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BD-AV70: Sharp’s Blu-ray Recorder Is 35mm Thin, Plays 3D Blu-rays

Posted: 21 Oct 2010 04:39 AM PDT

Sharp has announced [JP] the BD-AV70 for the Japanese market today, a Blu-ray recorder that stands out with a number of features. Perhaps most importantly, the device is just 35mm thin, which makes it the thinnest out there, according to Sharp.

It can be placed horizontally or vertically, plays 3D Blu-ray movies, and is compatible to BDXL discs (128GB max.). The recorder also features one digital and one analogue TV tuner, Ethernet, a USB port, an HDMI port, and AQUOS link.

It’s not cheap though: Sharp plans to start selling the BD-AV70 in Japan on December 1 for $1,050. The company hasn’t said yet if it will hit markets outside Japan as well.

Daily Crunch: Air Edition

Posted: 21 Oct 2010 12:00 AM PDT

Return To The Flipside: The Flipside Wallet 2X

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 07:46 PM PDT

Back in September of 2009, I was sent a wallet to review. I’d been in the market for a wallet, and while this one wasn’t the color I would have chosen, it definitely ticked the geeky boxes for me as far as design, style, and usability.

Fast forward to October 2010 — I’m still carrying the Flipside 2 wallet, and while the hinges are a little looser and the cover is a bit more scratched, the orange color has worn me down and I don’t even notice it these days. Yet I get more comments on the wallet than any other gadget I use on a day-to-day basis. So imagine my delight when I checked my email this morning and there was a message from the guys at Flipside — they have a new Flipside wallet coming out, and they want yours truly to review it.

The revised Flipside 2X addresses a couple of issues I’ve discovered with the wallet since the review; one, it’s a bit on the small size, and two, the hinge is starting to not line up after a couple years of living in my pocket. The new version has a reinforced steel hinge, a redesigned money clip (good idea), a third place to put cards (there’s that space issue), and an external clip for holding business cards (also a good idea). The Flipside 2X is priced at the same $39.99 as the original , and yes, it’s still available in orange. Flipside will be sending me one in the near future to review, so I’ll let you know if the new version really is an improvement on the Flipside 2.

Samsung To Make Prescription 3D Glasses

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 07:42 PM PDT


One of the common complaints about 3D is that it’s essentially calibrated for those among us lucky enough to have perfect or near-perfect vision. Even if you wanted to try putting the glasses over your existing glasses or contacts, there’s no guarantee that the optics would work out correctly.

Samsung knew, I’m sure, that alienating a huge (and growing — thanks to computers) group of consumers like this was bad news. So they’re going to be offering their 3D glasses in common prescriptions.

The pairs in the picture above look pretty innocuous, and to be sure, LCD glasses have gotten lighter and more convenient. Luckily, it doesn’t really matter, since you’ll only be wearing these in the comfort of your own home.

Therein also lies the problem. Do you really want to pay what will certainly be a substantial amount of money to let you watch the limited selection of 3D available now, especially when active shutter technology is sure to be replaced in the next couple of years? Plus, will this enable you to go see movies in the theater in 3D? Because that’s really the fun part. Unfortunately, you can never be sure; this is a very limited solution (though certainly a welcome one).

No pricing was mentioned, but I’d guess you’re looking at around $100 minimum, more depending on the frame. Maybe your insurance will cover it. Not.

[via Dvice]

Why FaceTime And Not iChat?

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 07:30 PM PDT

Is anyone else curious as to why Apple decided to make an entirely new FaceTime app instead of adding support to iChat? Lets look at why Apple could have done this. So far, FaceTime for Mac isn't even what I'd expect from Apple; it has little flaws that lead me to think it was rushed—more on that in a bit.

Right now, in order to sign in on iChat, you must have MobileMe, AIM, Google Chat or Jabber accounts. That's fine for Mac-to-Mac, but how would you reach out to an iPhone? You would have to enter a phone number in iChat—your address book is not synched there. Okay, so add the address book to iChat. Wait, it's not that easy because, if all a sudden you had an extra 300 people in your instant messenger, many without instant messaging service, it would get overwhelming. Why not just add a section just for added FaceTime friends? I mean clearly the phone number does nothing except point to the devices email (333-555-6666@mms.att.com).

My guess is that Apple, wanting to keep FaceTime an open standard, is looking to recruit other manufacturers to FaceTime and someday open it to Windows users. If Android, Windows Phone 7 and iPhone all had FaceTime with Mac and PC users, it would create a huge network of video-communicators. Throw Facebook or Skype into the mix and welcome to the future. So why was it rushed, so much so that you cannot dial in the app itself and must open address book to add contacts. My guess is that Apple wants everyone on FaceTime by the time the Verizon phone is out. It will force the other mobile operating systems to adopt FaceTime, for one unified video service.

FaceTime in Action

Chunghwa Telecom And Intel To Talk Smart TV Tech

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 07:04 PM PDT


Does it strike you as a little bit late to start talks on smart TVs? Me too, but to be fair, this isn’t Chunghwa and Intel’s first time to the rodeo. Reports have the tech giants getting together for a friendly chat later in the month. I’m sure “what’s best for the consumer?” will be #1 on their agenda.

The only thing that makes me nervous is the fact that both of these guys have been on the wrong side of stuff like price-fixing and antitrust litigation. Obviously at some point the 900-lb gorillas have to get together and talk turkey, but often when they do, whatever gets left off the table ends up neglected for a long time. LCD makers setting standards, for instance, seem to have agreed not to improve their displays or lower prices too quickly.

Actually, chances are that Intel and Chunghwa have a well-established relationship and are just meeting to hammer out the details of the next step in the process — taking over the smartification of TVs. I doubt these talks will be very public, but we’ll make sure to let you know if these smoke-filled-room talks make the news.

FYI: MacBook Pros Now Go Up To 2.8GHz

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 05:40 PM PDT

Just a quick note: it was just pointed out that MacBook Pros now let you put up to a 2.8GHz Core i7 processor in them. The previous max was 2.66.

That’s kind of a shrimpy increase for $200, but hey. If it takes a half an hour off a video’s rendering time, it might just be worth it (to you (maybe)). [via 9to5Mac]

Apple TV Gets Included In Pwnage Jailbreak Tool

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 05:20 PM PDT

The Apple TV only came out a month and a half ago, and it’s already busted wide open. Actually, that’s not much of a record. A lot of hardware gets cracked pre-release, or day-of. And in fact, the AppleTV was cracked privately some time ago, but now you too can get in on the fun.

The Dev-Team blog reports regarding the release of Pwnage Tool 4.1:

AppleTV 2G users: Welcome to the JB family! Right now, about all you can do is command-line stuff via ssh. You also have afc2 available, so you can use tools like ifunbox to move files around. These are the *very* early days of AppleTV 2G jailbreaking, so it'll take some time for JB app developers to come up with methods to use your AppleTV 2G from the remote, versus the command line. PS: Your ssh password is "alpine"…please change it when you can :)

Sounds good. Of course, the only thing you can do with it right now is access the command line, but I bet there will be further developments before the end of the day. Depending on how accessible this thing is, it might make a nice little hacker box. A hundred bucks isn’t a lot for an A4 and a few gigs of internal flash storage — more than enough to set up your own style of home theater gadget, complete with emulators and unfettered file playback.

We’ll keep you updated with further developments, of course.

Traditional-Style Kids’ Remote May Not Apply To This Generation

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 05:00 PM PDT

So Sony’s put out a new kiddie remote, for junior couch-potatoes everywhere. It’s got big colorful buttons and includes controls to prevent them from setting the volume super high or erasing your recorded shows. But I’m going to be honest here: if I were going to make a TV remote for kids, this is the last way I’d go about doing it.

I mean, why a remote with the numbers 1 through 7? Obviously kids don’t know the numbers of channels. They don’t associate those shapes and colors with numbers or channels. Shows are often on demand and don’t even come on channels. Why not a remote with pictures representing three or four different shows or kinds of shows (you could even sell official buttons) that would queue up an episode of Dora from your DVR or streaming service?

I feel like this thing is just the worst of both worlds. If you want your kid to learn to operate your TV (it’s never too early!) then there should be options available that are actually robust and take advantage of new and interesting technologies for parenting.

Sure, that’s a lot of responsibility for a bargain kid’s remote (it’s only $18 at Target) like this one to bear. I just don’t like things like this, things that are obviously doing it wrong. There’s a cap that covers the number pad, by the way, I just cropped it out because I’m mean.

[via Ubergizmo]

Review: Windows Phone 7

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 04:05 PM PDT

For years, Microsoft’s mobile OS was plagued with a reputation of being, for want of a better word, stuffy. As competing smartphone platforms rocketed past it in both popularity and functionality, Windows Mobile 6 fell further and further into a realm of obscurity, damned by a shoddy interface, a painfully bad touchscreen keyboard, and a downright atrocious application store.

Microsoft’s next move was really their only option: scrap everything, and start anew. The result? Windows Phone 7. Built from the ground up, it’s about as similar to its predecessor as I am to a head of lettuce. Of course, different doesn’t necessarily mean better — so how does this new offering stack up? Join us after the jump for our full review.

Read the rest at MobileCrunch >>

Wear This R2-D2 Swimsuit And Show Off Your Tatooines

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 04:00 PM PDT

Ain’t nothin’ wrong with flaunting it. Your geekiness, I mean. What did you think I was talking about?

This R2-D2 swimsuit is the usual Lycra construction, with UV-blocking fibers and all that other stuff that’s in pretty much every swimsuit now. It costs $85 over at Black Milk Clothing. I don’t know if that’s a lot or not. What do girls pay for their swimsuits? I don’t even know where my swimsuit is.

There will be a 2-3 week delay if you order it, because geek is the new black.

[via Crave]

GE’s New Halogen-CFL Hybrid Bulb Eliminates Light Switch Lag

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 03:30 PM PDT


One of the most annoying things about fluorescent bulbs (including their new and improved little brothers, the CFLs) is the way they take a little time to get to full brightness. It differs from bulb to bulb, but you always end up cursing it inwardly, as it always keeps you in suspense of when that slight flicker will end.

Well, GE has solved that problem, at least kind of, by putting a tiny halogen bulb in the gap between the fluorescent coils. Go ahead, zoom in, you can see it nestled in there.

So when you flip the switch, the halogen bulb comes on instantly, and then after a minute or so, the CFL will have gotten fully lit, so the halogen bulb goes off. Very good, I suppose, but these are going to be rather expensive, aren’t they? If you’re already resigned to sub-par lighting (fluorescents still give me headaches), why not go with the cold, everlasting light of LEDs?

Our Take: Apple’s “Back To The Mac” Event

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 03:00 PM PDT


It’s been an eventful day all around. All but the most outlandish rumors we’d heard were confirmed, including the marriage of OS X and iOS, FaceTime coming to the Mac, a revamped iLife, and a pair of new MacBook Airs with iPad-like flash storage. We’ve gotten our hands on both the new Air and Facetime, our impressions of which you can read separately, but here are our blurb-sized weigh-ins on the new today’s event and the new Apple products.


Devin: It’s impossible to say anything substantial about Lion at this point, since there are still lots of unknowns and we can’t go hands-on with Mission Control and all that, but it could make for some elegant computing. I’m concerned that power users are being left out in the cold, here, but at the very least this update only adds functionality, it doesn’t (as I see it) lock anything down. I really like the idea of the 11.6″ MacBook Air, since now I can offload my serious photo work onto my PC with Lightroom. The portability and convenience of this little guy (underpowered as he is… no Core i3, really?) are really unmatched right now in the notebook/netbook space. It’s not the most cost-effective device, but it will promote some serious Mac envy down at the coffee shop.

John: I’ve been looking for a new MacBook Air for a long time. I was very excited about the first model and when I got it I was sorely disappointed. I literally just pulled the trigger on a 4GB 13-incher with 256GB storage in hopes that this maxed out machine will finally let me do what I need it to do while on the road. As for Lion, the presentation was very confusing and it’s abundantly clear that they only wanted to talk about the App Store to convince folks to submit apps. A 70/30 split on apps is pretty good for Apple and currently they have a 100/0 split with app devs, so this is an interesting business move. Summer ’11 is way too far ahead to say anything interesting on Lion.

Nicholas: I was reasonably satisfied with Apple’s announcements today. I guess the biggest news is the new MacBook Air, but I’m really not sure how much I’d look forward to buying a brand new computer in 2010 that has an Intel Core 2 Duo processor — those things came out four years ago! (Now you know why Apple is able to start the MacBook Air at $999.) Another thing that struck me: for a while now we’ve been reading that you can’t try to put a desktop operating on a mobile device, but now we have Apple trying to put parts of a mobile operating system on a desktop. I’m not saying it won’t work — the Mac App Store looks nifty, indeed — but I wonder if anyone else will have noticed this. iPhoto looks great, as always, and Garage Band’s new "learn an instrument" could be quite useful to any number of kids who’ve been playing Rock Band or Guitar Hero and now want to move onto the real thing. The iMovie "create a trailer" feature looks fun, but I can definitely see getting tired of it after one or two trailers. All in all, what Apple showed today wasn’t too shabby at all. The design of the MacBook Air is obviously great, and I suppose that for a "MacBook + iPad" its specs are sufficient, but I’m typing this on an overclocked behemoth of a desktop PC — I’m pretty clearly not who Apple is going after with the Air.

Kyle: With the intro of Mac OS X Lion and iLife '11, it became very apparent to me that Apple is gunning, again, towards the non-computer-literate crowd—and I'm okay with that. I won't mind seeing cool videos pop up on Facebook or neat slideshows from iPhoto, or even some budding rock stars making beats on Garageband. Apple just wants people to have fun and showcase their ideas in new ways, even if others will also have the same limited themes. As for the Macbook Air(s), it's nice to see some really small computers — quite an engineering feat. I'm not sure who buys them, since personally, I'd rather have more power from newer components.

Matt: I want a Mac again just for the new iPhoto. Windows 7 is great and I enjoy using it on a daily basis, but there is nothing like iPhoto on Windows. I still keep an old iBook around just for iPhoto but it will be replaced by a 13″ MacBook Air. It seems like the perfect secondary computer: long battery life, sufficient power for iPhoto and Farmville, it’s tiny and not that expensive. I’m sold. It will soon be my new couch computer.

Obviously we’ll have more to share once we’ve had a little more time with the products. You can expect a full review of the MacBook Air and iLife shortly, and we’ll keep you posted on 10.7 as soon as anything develops. How about you guys? Has anyone already ordered one of those sweet little 11.6″ Airs?

Kobo E-Book Store Unfriendly To Self-Publishers?

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 02:42 PM PDT

While this blog post over at Tomorrow’s Book has more than a little bitterness to it, it’s also informative. More and more people are choosing to self-publish these days, and even if it’s a hassle, you’d think a new e-book store like Kobo would want to embrace this nascent business model. After all, if you cut out the middle men, you can get right to the chiseling.

In this case, a perfectly normal book was submitted for publication in the Kobo bookstore, and the creators were told they needed to go through a “digital aggregator,” essentially a business with whom Kobo already has a relationship, that can package the books in the way Kobo likes, and likely is already giving solid terms on middle-man fees. This isn’t that egregious — the blog post makes it sound like Kobo sent them a letter bomb — but isn’t the whole point of decentralizing publishing to remove this exact kind of unnecessary step?

Certainly the bar for entry has been lowered, but as long as you’re going 90% of the way, Kobo, why not take the last step? I feel certain you’ll be forced to eventually, or else just allow Amazon and B&N’s self-publishing systems to rule the roost. Not a good business decision.

Luckily, there are still many ways of getting your book out there. The industry is still adapting, and will be for several years still, so give them a little time to work out the kinks and come to grips with their broken dreams.

Hands-on With Facetime for OS X

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 01:37 PM PDT

This is clearly a beta product. It’s very non-intuitive and the contacts system is ridiculous. Regardless, it worked well enough from iPhone to desktop and from desktop to desktop. Now we just have to figure out where iChat is headed.

Behold: The New MacBook Air [Pictures]

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 01:04 PM PDT

Today, following Apple’s Back to the Mac event, we got some hands on time with the new products unveiled. Of those, the biggest announcement was the new MacBook Air. Pretty much, it’s almost exactly what I said I was looking for a few days ago.

Check out the pictures of it in action below.

Good Old Games Gives Out Free Copy Of Jagged Alliance: Deadly Games To Beta Testers, 50 Percent Off Strategy First Games For Everyone

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 12:45 PM PDT

Good news, Good Old Games users! The company just sent out an e-mail blast to let us all know that we’re getting a free game. Yup, if you joined the site before the recent re-launch you’ll soon have Jagged Alliance: Deadly Games added to your account, totally for free! Woo~!

But wait! Let’s say you only joined after the re-launch: what do you get? Well, there’s going to be a 50 percent discount applied to all Strategy First games.

And the last "what if": What if you already have Jagged Alliance: Deadly Games in your account? Then you get an "alternative gift," which I’m not sure what that is.

70/30: Apple’s Magic Moneymaking Machine

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 12:41 PM PDT

Folks who just watched the Apple event will note something strange: Jobs announced OS X Lion, saying it would arrive in the Summer of 2011. But, he said, he wanted us to have a little gift. It’s called the Apple App Store for laptops and desktops and it’s how lots of people – especially Apple – will start printing money.

Back in the old days, if you wanted to sell an Apple app you had to make a really good app, make a really good website, and have John Gruber or Merlin Mann link to it. You waited, hoped people bought the app, and iterated the applications over and over, giving updates out for free. It was a hit-or-miss affair. This is how software sales had always worked, even under Windows and even under most phone OSes – until the iPhone App Store.

Suddenly you had a quasi-curated, easy-to-use, one-click system for downloading applications. It worked really well. This was great for phones. So why not add it to OS X?

And it was done. Generally I think this is a good thing. Plenty of people have gotten rent money from iPhone applications and selling Scrivener or QuicKeys through the App Store will ensure discovery.

But what it also does is allow users to press a button and get a receipt. It’s the seamless iTunes experience that people love about the app store. And it also gives Apple a cut of the pie. That’s huge.

I’m also worried that this means arbitrary app rejections but I doubt this will happen on the desktop. As long as you can drag and drop a new app into the Applications folder, there’s no way Apple will try to scare away potential vendors. Given that programming for OS X is essentially free, Apple needs to offer lots of incentive to use their service.

To sum up, the App store is a great move for programmers and it’s an especially good move for Apple. Depending on how cynical you are, you can say Apple is expanding the potential audience of app buyers or locking down devs in an arduous financial deal. Either way, Apple makes money.

Soccer Governing Body To Hear From Goal-line Technology Providers Today, Will Make Final Decision In March

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 12:10 PM PDT

Who can forget the acrimony, not to mention the utter embarrassment, that followed Frank Lampard’s disallowed goal (better video here) during the England-Germany Round of 16 World Cup match? The ball was clearly over the line, but for the nearsightedness of the officials on the pitch. Not that it would have mattered—Germany well and truly beat up ol’ England—but the ghost goal should have been what’s now called a "teachable" moment: OK, this bad thing has happened, but let’s try to turn this into a learning experience. With word that 17 different companies are now vying for a goal-line technology contract, we can now say this: finally!

It comes down to two competing platforms: a camera-based solution called Hawk-Eye, which is currently used in tennis with zero problems whatsoever, and solutions that add microchips to the balls themselves. The microchip solution would be developed by Adidas and Cairos.

Given the amount of flack Fifa and Adidas received over the Jabulani ball, I don’t know how popular a solution that involves fiddling with the match ball will be.

The actual decision will be made in March when the International Football Association Board—sort of a council of elders that have the power to alter the rules of the sport—next meets.

Hawk-Eye and Adidas/Cairo will make their respective cases to the IFAB today. You know, "Our system is superior because…"

I do not care which company gets the contract: as long as Fifa has finally gotten over this ridiculous fear of technology I’m all for it.

And we now await the start of today’s big game: Inter v. Tottenham.

Download The OS X Facetime Beta Right Now

Posted: 20 Oct 2010 11:32 AM PDT

Apple took just a few quick minutes during its Back To The Mac event today to announce Facetime on OS X. The release seems only natural as most Macs have had an integrated web camera for years and this type of vertical integration is Apple’s claim to fame. Of course they were going to bring the service full circle and the only question was really when it would launch.

Steve Jobs didn’t spend that much time on the announcement, mainly because it’s rather simple. So simple that there was only a quick demo and it works like you would expect — nice and simple. Best of all, Mac users can download the beta right now.

Facetime’s future isn’t exactly clear right now as the app is only available as a beta. But it’s free and available right now directly from Apple. Chances are Apple will quietly move the OS X application from beta sometime in the future once its full potential is released.
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