Developages - Development and Technology Blog

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Pharos’ line of GPS-equipped Windows Mobile handsets has sort of lost its place in our hearts now that seemingly every phone under the sun — smartphone or otherwise — comes equipped with wicked advanced AGPS out of the box, but the company’s latest pair actually looks competitive for reasons that have nothing to do with GPS whatsoever. Sure, GPS is nice, but the Traveller 117 and 127 really rock on account of tri-band 7.2Mbps downstream HSPA, and in the case of the 117, a VGA display. They’ve also got 2-megapixel primary and VGA front-facing cames, Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, and covert semi-official launches courtesy of Dell’s online store. What more could you ask for?

[Thanks, rock99rock]

Read - Traveller 117
Read - Traveller 127

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Original post by Chris Ziegler

Filed under: Portable Audio

Back by popular demand, it’s the Walmart DRM servers! You heard right — just days after Wally World announced its plans to turn the screw on its digital rights management servers, we’re now being shown a big “just kidding.” According to an e-mail (posted in full after the break) sent out to previous downloaders, the mega-corp be leaving things as-is for the foreseeable future, and it’s all because of “feedback from the customers.” In other words, those actions it urged you to take late last month are no longer required, though we’d still back those tracks up on CD just in case. Can’t be too careful, you know.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Continue reading Walmart has a change of heart, decides to maintain DRM servers

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds, Portable Audio, Wireless

Fresh off an extensive corporate decaffeination downsizing and a scaling back of its foray into music sales, it’s a fair question to ask: just how ironclad is Starbucks’ commitment to rolling out iTunes WiFi Music Store integration across its entire chain? We just happened to notice that the Starbucks page on Apple’s site is now stone-cold gone, redirecting to the standard iTunes 8 stuff. You might say “no big deal, Apple’s just playing down an agreement that’s now been in place for a full year,” but there’s some other weirdness, too — the company’s iTunes WiFi Music Store at Starbucks FAQ, for example, still references the dead link. The partnership was kinda ill-conceived to begin with getting access to the store meant hooking up to AT&ampT WiFi, which you wouldn’t normally have configured unless you actually had an AT&ampT WiFi account. We haven’t heard any official word here that the deal is in danger, but really, would anyone be welling up if it fell apart?

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Original post by Chris Ziegler

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Here you have latest pinhole camera by artist, Wayne Martin Belger — a good boy raised on a steady diet of crucifixion imagery and the scorched-earth wrath of divinity. This work entitled Third Eye, a study of “the beauty of decay,” uses precious metals like titanium and silver to expose the memory of time onto the film sheering the 150 year old skull of a 13 year old girl. Sample image posted after the break for those who dare.

[Via Make: and Art Diabolique]

Continue reading Third Eye pinhole camera exposes the dead, mocks the living

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Original post by Thomas Ricker

Filed under: Displays, Wireless

What’s better than a (cheap) XEL-1? How’s about a wireless, battery-powered XEL-1? Sony has recently shown off a completely cordless OLED TV with the same ultrathin chassis as used in the aforementioned 11-incher. Bulking things up a bit is the integrated HDTV tuner, and of course, it’s wall-mountable for midgets who live in a Little Tikes playhouse. Unfortunately, there’s no real mention of specs (aside from the whole “3-millimeter thin” part), and even worse, there’s no telling how long we’ll have to wait before we see it hit shelves (let alone grow to a size that’s actually useful). Anywho, tap the read link for a plethora of images.

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Now that the dust has settled on Nikon’s new D700 DSLR — but hopefully not on that anti-dust 12.1 megapixel full-frame sensor — we thought we’d toss together a few general impressions of the new mid-range pro camera. It’s pretty much a landslide, the D700 is a major winner for Nikon. Sure, $3,000 is pricey, but for a camera that basically crams the full-frame imaging prowess of the D3 into the highly portable body of the D300 — and left out only a few pro features in the process — it’s a relative bargain, and Nikon couldn′t have done much better for itself. You’ll also need to pony up for lenses that were actually built for a full-frame sensor to really get your money’s worth, though our hats off to Nikon for letting you use any old lens you please. The only real complaint we heard is that the shutter feels mushy, which is a relevant criticism and an anomaly for Nikon, but unlikely to be a dealbreaker.

Read - Nikonians: “She’s capable of making practically all the moves of the rest of the line-up and she’s arguably the most versatile of the bunch.”
Read - Cameralabs: “Nikon further broadens its impressive DSLR line-up and continues to throw down gauntlet after gauntlet to Canon.”
Read - Scott Kelby: “The D700 just takes a better looking photograph than the D300 (and really, that’s what it’s all about-all the rest is really just bells and whistles).”
Read - Imaging Resource: “One of the finest digital SLR cameras ever produced.”
Read - PhotographyBLOG: “It comes across as a kind of ‘greatest hits’ of Nikon DSLRs.”

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Original post by Paul Miller

clikit writes “Today, the Lego Minifig turns 30 years old. Gizmodo is running a video contest with Lego, giving away Galaxy Explorer or the Yellow Castle sets and other unopened vintage sets. They also have an exclusive video from the factory, showing how the minifig is built. Check it out… finding out how the little guys are made will make you smile.” Scientists estimate that 98% of the minifigs created in the last 3 decades have lost a hand in a tragic vacuum accident, been melted by a magnifying glass, or eaten by your dog.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Original post by CmdrTaco

Filed under: Digital Cameras, Portable Audio

We’ve never been big fans of giving your tween some Nickelodeon-ized gizmo when you can simply hand down your current gear and use it for an excuse to upgrade, but apparently not everyone sees it that way. Nickelodeon, Viacom and Imation have jointly announced the latest line of kid-friendly Npower gizmos, which includes a digital voice recorder, a digicam and a webcam based on the “breakout hit” iCarly. Additionally, the outfit is churning out SpongeBob SquarePants-themed speakers, boomboxes, MP3 players and digiframes, and there’s even a few Dora the Explorer toys thrown in for good measure. All the (inflated) prices and shipping details are down there in the read link — we won’t bore the uninterested any longer by fleshing it out here.

[Via Electronista]

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Original post by Darren Murph

jedie noted an impressive rendering of the Beijing Olympics in Lego. Featuring 300,000 bricks, and 4,500 Lego, it was built by the Hong Kong Lego User Group. Yes that exists. Amazing. I’m pretty sure that the lighting inside the water cube was not made using stock legos. At least, non in my giant cardboard box.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Original post by CmdrTaco

Ifandbut was one of several readers to point out the arrival in Oshkosh of the first practical jetpack. It was invented by a New Zealander Glenn Martin, who has been working on the idea for 27 years. He plans to sell the gizmos for somewhere in the neighborhood of $100K. While previous attempts at jetpacks have flown for at most a couple of minutes, Mr. Martin’s invention can stay aloft for half an hour. Both “practical” and “jetpack” may need quotation marks, however: The device is huge and it’s incredibly noisy. And, “It is also not, to put it bluntly, a jet. ‘If you’re very pedantic,”‘ Mr. Martin acknowledged, a gasoline-powered piston engine runs the large rotors. Jet Skis, he pointed out, are not jets, and the atmospheric jet stream is not created by engines. ‘This thing flies on a jet of air,’ he said. Or, more simply, it flies.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Original post by kdawson

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

There was a time when the world was more innocent and Lincoln Logs in elementary classrooms were a given, but now that teachers are looking to squash every ounce of fun between 8AM and 3PM (okay, so maybe we just had a rough experience or two), LEGO‘s taking the back door in. The WeDo robotics kit is marketed toward elementary schools and the younger kids within them, with each package containing 158 blocks, gears, levers, etc., a USB hub for connecting to your Mac / PC, OLPC XO or Intel Classmate, a motor, one motion sensor, one tilt sensor and a CD with a smattering of sure-to-be-riveting activities. Mum’s the word on pricing for now, but considering your tax dollars will be paying for ‘em, it’s not like you’ll really benefit from knowing.

[Via BoingBoing]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Transportation

Tired of waiting for scientists to crack the secrets of levitation in order to purchase a bona fide hoverboard? Look, life’s short — why not take matters into your own hands? A genuine wooden Mattel hoverboard used by Michael J. Fox (or Marty McFly, as we prefer to call him) in Back to the Future II and III is up for auction, though the barrier to entry is rather substantial. Of course, this is considered the “best example of all wood hoverboards to have survived the rigors of filming,” but whether or not it’s worth the $30,000+ asking price is entirely up to you.

[Via CrunchGear]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Robots

So it’s a full $59 more than we were expecting, but with Wall-E’s tremendous success at the box office, we have a feeling Disney can get away with it. The Ultimate Wall-E remote control robot is now up for pre-order, promising kids and adults-longing-to-be-kids alike hours upon hours of fun. For those who missed this creature frolicking on video, here are the highlights: he can chat with his owner, dance, play music, dazzle you with those eyes and even sense / avoid obstacles. Unfortunately, all $249 will buy you is a place in line, as this fellow isn’t expect to ship until October 16th.

[Thanks, Toadlet]

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Original post by Darren Murph

An anonymous reader writes “Gizmodo has a fascinating report and video tour inside the Lego factory, which is full of robots and controlled by a mainframe. ‘This video shows something that very few people have had the opportunity to witness: the inside of the Lego factory, with no barriers or secrets. I filmed every step in the creation of the brick. From the raw granulate stored in massive silos to the molding machines to the gigantic storage cathedrals to the decoration and packaging warehouses, you will be able to see absolutely everything, including the most guarded secret of the company: the brick molds themselves.’”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Original post by CmdrTaco

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Directly rewarding efforts with results, now that’s the way to get someone moving. As we’ve seen time and time again, providing a clear, undiluted motivator is a perfect way to make fitness a top priority in life, and that’s exactly what Takara Tomy is hoping to achieve with its pocket-friendly Jinsei Game of Life pedometer. Essentially, this device is a portable version of the famed Game of Life board game, but users are purportedly not allowed to take a turn unless they take 300 steps first. Additionally, two players can take on one another via the “communication mode,” but there’s a good chance the most chiseled among you will take home the gold regardless of luck. Out this month in Japan for &yen3,675 ($34).

[Via CScout Japan]

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Original post by Darren Murph