Developages - Development and Technology Blog

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

We haven’t seen all that many OLED lighting options, but a group of researchers from the University of Michigan and Princeton University say they could be on the verge of changing that situation, with them now boasting of a new breakthrough that could greatly increase the efficiency of OLEDs. The key to that, it seems, is a combination of an organic grid and some tiny dome-shaped micro lenses that guide the trapped light out of the devices. As the researchers point out, with current OLEDs, only 20% of the light generated is actually released, but they say this new method could boost the efficiency by a full 60%, or about 70 lumens per watt of power. Of course, they’re also quick to point out that all of this is still quite a ways away from becoming practical for commercial purposes, although they seem to be optimistic that the eventual production cost for these new and improved OLEDs will be competitive with existing ones.

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Original post by Donald Melanson

Filed under: Laptops

It looks like Fujitsu Siemens have broken cover on the next member to get in on the netbook party. That’s right — the company is launching a cheap, micro-sized laptop in the coming months… just like everyone else. According to reports, the 8.9-inch device will clock in around €300 or €400 (about $470 to $630), and will likely sport some version of Windows (we’re thinking XP, as is the case with the vast majority of these). The laptop will be part of the Amilo line, but little else is known about it at this point.

[Via Lilliputing]

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Original post by Joshua Topolsky

Filed under: Laptops

According to sources, Acer’s tiny Aspire One laptop is now available in three iterations, the A110L, A150L, and A150X. The A110L sports an Atom N270 CPU, Intel’s 946GSE chipset, 512MB or 1GB of RAM, 8GB of NAND flash storage, an 8.9-inch 1024 x 600 display, 802.11b/g, and three USB ports. The other two models come equipped with the same specs, save for a 120GB hard drive in place of the flash storage, and are offered with Linpus Linux, or Windows XP. Retailers in Germany already claim to have the A110L in stock now, selling for €329 (or about $518).

[Via Fudzilla]

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Original post by Joshua Topolsky

Filed under: Laptops

As we all wait tensely for Everex’s Cloudbook MAX to land (and WiMAX to launch in a big way), rumors are swirling that First International Computer (FIC) — Everex’s affiliate and the maker of the Cloudbook — is preparing a 10.2-inch “Eee PC killer.” ‘Course, by the time this thing comes out it’ll have 27 Eees to kill, but we digress. Early word suggests that the unit will pack a 1,024 x 600 resolution panel, a 1.3-megapixel camera, up to 2GB of RAM, a 4-in-1 multicard reader, ExpressCard slot, 4- or 6-cell battery, 802.11b/g WiFi as well as optional 3G WWAN / WiMAX capabilities. With everyone and their first cousin twice removed getting into this arena, don’t be shocked to see this turn up here in a few months.

[Via SlashGear]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Laptops

The last time we saw this downsized Atom-based laptop, it was looking staid and proper in a press shot. Finally someone has gotten their hands on this thing, and we’ve got to say — it looks pretty handsome (even if it is a rebadged, recolored MSI Wind, and a dead ringer for the Mini-Note). Specs seem unchanged, with a 10-inch 1024 x 800 display, 80GB hard drive, 1GB of RAM, and a 1.3-megapixel webcam, and the price appears to be holding at €399 (or about $630) as well. Still no word on when or if this is going to hit the states, but we’ve got our fingers crossed.

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Original post by Joshua Topolsky

Filed under: Laptops

Clearly not content with letting Intel, VIA, and now NVIDIA own the market on the architectures of miniature, budget laptops, grumpy underdog AMD showed off what look to be some reference designs that would sit nicely next to the Eees of the world. At Computex 2008, the company unveiled two models: a white, 8.9-inch Linux laptop with 1GB of RAM, an AMD CPU, the ATI RS690 chipset, and an almost MacBook-like black XP-based model with a 7-inch 1280 x 600 display (that’s some pixel density!), a 60GB or 80GB hard drive, and 1GB of RAM.

[Via jkkmobile]

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Original post by Joshua Topolsky

Filed under: Laptops

It looks like your dreams of laptop salvation via the Van Der Led Jisus will have to wait a little, as the company has pushed back the release of its diminutive PC to the 28th of July (at least according to the product page). However, if you want to spend a tiny bit more money, they’ve got a new model that nets you a lot more bang for the buck. Enter the Jisus V2, or as we like to call it — the second coming of Jisus. The new version features a pink leather (!?) casing, a 10.2-inch 1024 x 600 LED display, a VIA C7-M 1.6GHz CPU, 1GB of RAM, a VIA Chrome9 graphics chipset, an 80GB hard drive, 802.11a/b/g, and Bluetooth 2.0 support. All this magic will supposedly be available come June 20th for an extremely affordable €349.99 (or about $546).

[Thanks, Takashi]

Read - Jisus V2
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Original post by Joshua Topolsky

Filed under: Laptops

The folks over at Laptop Magazine have gotten their mitts on CTL’s latest edition to the ever-growing field of ultraportables, the IL1PC (or as we like to call it, the Airis Kira 740), and have given it the once over. The system is built atop VIA’s 1GHz C7-M CPU, has 1GB of RAM, a 60GB hard drive, and uses Windows XP as its OS. Obvious comparisons to ASUS’s Eee abound, though Laptop was impressed with its slick design and small footprint, and felt that it excelled at simple tasks like web browsing and email. Things weren’t so smooth when it came to video playback, as graphics-intensive duties led to choppy behavior. Head over to the full review to get all the ins and outs, as well as some handsome pics.

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Original post by Joshua Topolsky

Filed under: Laptops

Call us crazy, but these new low-end ultraportable laptops are beginning to look mighty familiar. At least Bestlink has an angle here — make it dirt cheap — so its entry isn’t totally without merit. The Alpha 400 will apparently be priced from $250 (or $180 in volume), sport a 400MHz (!) Xburst CPU, 128MB of RAM, 1GB or 2GB of flash memory, a 7-inch 800 x 400 display, and will run Windows CE or some form of Linux. The manufacturer says storage can be expanded via SD card or USB drives, and WiFi, CDMA, GPRS, and ADSL will all be available via external add-ons. So… worth about $250, wouldn’t you say?

[Via Desktop Linux]

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Original post by Joshua Topolsky

Filed under: Laptops

Here’s what we can tell you about the Emtec gdium EM-PC mini-laptop;

• It does not resemble the ASUS Eee PC at all.
• It does contain an 8.9-inch 1024 x 600 display, flash-based storage (though no word on capacity), a Linux-based OS, and a webcam.
• The company is touting its “GKey,” which is a removable dongle that manages the security and authentication for the laptop.
• It will be available in July in Australia for AUD $449, or about US $420.
• It looks nothing like the Eee.

[Thanks, KC]

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Original post by Joshua Topolsky

Filed under: Displays, HDTV, Home Entertainment

Interestingly enough, the last time we heard the phrase “High Bright,” Runco was showcasing a prototype set meant to work and play in the great outdoors. Now, however, Samsung’s looking to one-up that endeavor by actually shipping a High Bright DID panel later this month. The 46-inch unit is said to posses 1,500 nits of brightness, a contrast ratio of 3,000:1, 16.7 million colors, 178-degree viewing angles and a screen resolution of 1,366 x 768 pixels. Sammy claims that it’s around three times brighter than a typical LCD TV, and aside from remaining visible outside (you know, for pool parties and digital signage applications), it was designed to be tiled together to create “video walls.” No word on what sets these panels will find their way into, but we wouldn’t count on ‘em coming cheap.

[Via SlashGear]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals

It’s been the story from day one: the Novint Falcon is great and all, but without games there’s just no point. That’s about to change, however, as Novint has committed itself to developing Falcon integration for some big-name games, including a sizable number of EA blockbusters. Novint is buying up what it calls “3D Touch Rights” to games from the publisher, a no-risk revenue stream for the them and a license for Novint to sell games at a small profit with Falcon functionality built-in. The games will sell for $30, and you can get the haptics update for an existing game for $10. Of course, the $190-ish controller puts it all in perspective, but this is certainly a promising move for PC gamers and immersion freaks alike.

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Original post by Paul Miller

Filed under: Cellphones

The last we’d heard, the Indian government had ruled out the threat of a Blackberry ban if RIM didn’t allow it to snoop on messages, but it looks like some overzealous bureaucrat is getting his way after all: the Department of Telecom has issued a 15-day deadline for RIM to either open up for the G-men or get shut down. RIM says it won’t comment on regulatory issues as a matter of policy, but it looks like the Indian government is playing hardball, with Telecom Minister A Raja saying that national security will not be sacrificed at any cost. Hmm, hear that? That’s the sound of over 400,000 Indian Blackberry users desperately grabbing at their devices to get another quick fix — something tells us this isn’t going to end well.

[Via Cellpassion]

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Original post by Nilay Patel

Filed under: Cellphones

Remember the Indian government’s threat to shutdown RIM’s in-country network if they didn’t open it up for snooping? Ain’t gonna happen. Today the Indian government ruled out banning the BlackBerry service. Instead, the government will continue working with the Telecom Commission on security matters (whatever that means) with a promise to resolve the matter soon. Look India, if the notoriously controlling Chinese allow the data to run encrypted, what’s your beef chicken?

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Original post by Thomas Ricker

Filed under: Cellphones

Uh-oh, Indian Blackberry users — better get ready for some major disconnection anxiety. Apparently the Indian government is demanding that RIM either allow it to snoop on its encrypted email service (or worse, drop down to 40-bit encryption), or shut down the entire Indian Blackberry network at the end of the month. That’ll cut off an estimated 400,000 subscribers, so the carriers, RIM, and government officials are due to meet and try and hammer out a solution on the 14th, but the issue probably won’t be easy to solve — ISPs are now concerned that if RIM complies, all encrypted wireless data will be open to spying, which would make things like ecommerce virtually impossible. Furthermore, since Blackberry traffic gets routed to Canadian NOCs first, there are some thorny international issues at play as well — just to put things in perspective, RIM doesn’t even allow the Chinese government to snoop in this way, although we’re certain there’s another backdoor in place. Honestly, though, we’d suffer through a little CrackBerry withdrawal if it kept the G-men out of our hair — let’s hope RIM’s got some fight in ‘em.

[Via Boy Genius Report]

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Original post by Nilay Patel