Remember that movie “Clueless” with Alicia Silverstone and how she was able to mix-and-match her daily school ensemble via her computer? Now that may have been a 90s flick and that technology might seem primitive by today’s standards but now, that same ease of looking good and not becoming a fashion victim is almost within our reach.
The new “Hybrid Fitting System” from Toshiba TEC gives shoppers a whole new shopping experience via an augmented reality. Shoppers can gesture movements to see the different products, colors as well as put together entire outfits. It also recommends accessories to top off your selections. With a navigable motion sensor and built-in cameras on a high-resolution screen, you can see your chosen products with prices and other details such as new lines and collections in real time. It also has the potential to allow the disabled to experience this type of shopping as well as those remote locations where shops aren’t easily accessible.
Some of the most stunning photographs ever taken are literally out of this world.
The photo above of Spiral Galaxy NGC 3982 is just one among many amazing photos taken by the infamous Hubble Telescope. As we marvel at this hypnotizing telescopic image, most of us might not even consider thinking about the complex process that goes behind producing these photographs.
Creating the final image above takes laborious hours of post-processing with software that will humble any photographer. According to the HubbleSite, the initial images are black and white, and color is actually applied in post using data from Hubble’s filter-covered sensors.
Perhaps its better to actually see the post-process in action via a time-lapse video, which compresses the entire procedure in a few minutes:
Google just dropped a bomb tonight – the gigantic search giant/mobile OS maker/future masters of the world has announced it has acquired Motorola Mobility, the arm responsible for creating the Droid series of smartphones and the Xoom for $12.5 billion. In a blog post at the official Google blog, CEO Larry Page stated that “Motorola’s total commitment to Android in mobile devices is one of many reasons that there is a natural fit between our two companies. Together, we will create amazing user experiences that supercharge the entire Android ecosystem for the benefit of consumers, partners and developers everywhere.” Additionally, he says that “this acquisition will not change our commitment to run Android as an open platform,” and that “we (Google) will run Motorola as a separate business.” That’s not the only reason why Google acquired Motorola though. It’s probably safe to say at this point that Larry sees Motorola as insurance against the patent bruhaha that Google believes is being instigated on them by Microsoft, Apple, Oracle and others. “We recently explained how companies including Microsoft and Apple are banding together in anti-competitive patent attacks on Android. The U.S. Department of Justice had to intervene in the results of one recent patent auction to “protect competition and innovation in the open source software community” and it is currently looking into the results of the Nortel auction. Our acquisition of Motorola will increase competition by strengthening Google’s patent portfolio, which will enable us to better protect Android from anti-competitive threats from Microsoft, Apple and other companies,” the Google CEO said.
Who doesn’t hate long cables? We’ve all devoted a large amount of time and energy finding ways to cut the cord or at least banish wires from our sight. Website Unplggd suggests that you do the complete opposite though, and display your wires in an expression of geeky art. Like the piece from Maussie Maud Broadhead, wherein she takes the very long cable of her lamp and creates a nice conversation piece.
Or the one from XBMC, in which he re-arranges all the cables coming from his PS3 into an homage to technology. Inspired yet? We sure are, and we’re rooting for our extra long Ethernet cable just in case.
Halloween may be a couple of months away but wouldn’t it be awesome to come prepared to win Best Costume at the local Halloween party? Well, if you’re in it to win it (and you want to let that inner vixen out), don’t go as the played-out witch, nurse, or Disney princess. Here are a few costumes that are sure to get the attention every guys’ attention alike… especially the geeks.
Toronto-based Artifice Clothing, creator of some very unique costumes gives you a Glowing trim Angled thigh corset that looks like it came straight out of Tron and Miss Enigma, a dead-ringer to Joker’s sidekick, Harley Quinn. Now these skin-tight suits may not be for everyone but hey, I know I wouldn’t mind shedding a few extra pounds to play such a one-of-a-kind villainess. And an incredibly sexy one at that.
While there’s certainly much to be said about professional notebooks for enterprise, those devices are simply too expensive for struggling small businesses. That’s why Dell’s unveiled the Vostro V131, a notebook made for business that has a price tag small businesses can afford. Sporting the latest Sandybridge Core i3 and i5 processors, the Vostro V131 brings stylish and lightweight sensibilities to small businesses without sacrificing performance. It’s also able to handle most tasks that’s expected from office machines, and features a fingerprint reader for added security. The Core i3 version of the Vostro V131 is available through www.dell.com.ph for $728 (about Php 30,918).
Remember the fake Apple store that we covered a few weeks back? Turns out it was just one of the many, copyright-infringing, may-be-genuine-but-not stores that’s peddling Apple’s wares in that particular slice of China. Reuters reports that Chinese authorities have identified another 22 unauthorized Apple stores in the region. The stores have since been ordered to stop using Apple’s logo after Apple China accused them of unfair competition and trademark violation. While not all unauthorized stores sell counterfeit Apple products, a good portion of them sell smuggled Apple products at a discounted price, though the report does not specify if the stores did either. The positive reaction of local Chinese authorities is a positive sign that IP rights are taking hold in China, a country that’ s been listed for the seventh year by the U.S. Trade Representative’s office as a country with one of the worst records for preventing copyright theft.
The newest release will feature increased speed and compatibility – startup time will be quicker, especially when loading up multiple tabs and groups. Similarly, the add-on manager will also include a plugins “check” which will automatically determine if the updated versions of all extensions are running.
For a complete look at what’s coming, you can check Mozilla’s release notes.
While 10-inch tablets have been the de-facto form factor for tablets, more and more consumers are gravitating towards 7 and 8-inch variants. Acer’s not one to get left behind, and has outed the Iconia Tab A100, a 7-inch Honeycomb tablet that’s also the first one to have version 3.2 on board. Interestingly enough, it’s not different from most 10-inch tablets floating around when it comes to hardware – dual core Tegra 2 processor, 1GB RAM, 8/16GB of internal storage, 5MP camera, WiFi and so on. One thing that’s caught our eye is it’s price – it says it’s going to sell for $329 (which is about Php 14,000 give or take) for the 8GB version, which gives it a very big edge price-wise in this price-sensitive country of ours.
Google’s announced that it’ll consolidate both tablet and smartphone versions of Android into a single OS, codenamed Ice Cream Sandwich back in their I/O event last May. If you’re curious about how what the OS looks like, you can check out pictures of early builds courtesy of Android Police and RootzWiki – both sites have received pictures of a Nexus S running on an early build of ICS. Major changes include a blue-themed color scheme, revamped notification bar and a more Honeycomb-ish look. Like most major iterations of its new OS, ICS is being rumored to launch on a Google branded phone first (which would be the Nexus Prime) before it’s pushed out to other smartphones via software update.
It’s the weekend again, and that means it’s time to look back at the stories that made headlines in the tech world last week. So if you were too busy to check our pages or open your browsers, now’s the perfect time to catch up on your reading.
HTC has just inked a strategic partnership with Beats Electronics (the makers of Beats by Dr. Dre). While the official press release says that it’s a “strategic partnership”, we’ve gotten word that it was actually a nice purchase, worth about 300 million USD. What does this mean for the prolific Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer who lately has been raking in millions and millions of dollars? Well, you can expect a better audio experience in future HTC phones for one, and we’re not terribly against the idea of Beats branded earphones being included in HTC devices. Who knows, maybe HTC will out a Beats branded smartphone?
Smart’s making it easier for its loyal subscribers to redeem rewards through their SMART Rewards’ bCODE technology. What it does is that it lets qualified SMART Bro postpaid and prepaid users redeem discounted or free items via their online account, including movie passes to upcoming movies. To do this, they need to log in to their WebConnect account and click on redeem free items. Once there, they can redeem a discounted or free ticket (depending on the points they’ve already accumulated), which will be sent to their email address via bCODE. The bCODE in turn can be printed out and taken to bCODE terminals located at SM Cinema lobbies, and enjoy the movie of their choice. The whole process sounds a bit complicated, but trust us, it’s simpler than it sounds. Want to know more how you can get in on this? You can check flyers and print ads, or visit their site at smart.com.ph/rewards.
After the successful release of their TF101 Transformer tablet, Asus is preparing to strengthen their tablet lineup with the Eee Pad Slider SL101. We managed to spend a little time with the sliding wonder, and while it’s not quite the great leap forward as their TF101, it still a tablet to watch out for.
Probably the biggest difference of the SL101 from the original is the sliding keyboard located underneath the tablet. It takes quite a bit of effort to reveal the keyboard, but once it slides into place, it’s pretty solid.
The keyboard is smaller than the TF101, and has five rows as opposed to the six of the TF101. The keys are also a bit smaller, so people with bigger digits might have a bit of trouble typing on it.
The slide-out keyboard also holds the integrated USB 2.0 port (you could only get a USB 2.0 port with the TF101 if you bought the keyboard).
One of the things that concerned me with the SL101 was its weight – it clocks in at 960 grams, so it’s almost a kilo in weight. There’s a reason why tablets try to be as light as possible – heavier tablets are a pain to use when reading e-books or comics for extended periods of time.
Hardware-wise, the SL101 is identical to the TF101 – 1GHz Tegra 2 processor, 16GB of storage, 10.1-inch screen protected by Gorilla Glass. We did notice that the screen on the SL101 is a bit prone to glare. It’s powered by Google’s Honeycomb 3.1.
The unanswered question now is why would you choose the SL101 over the TF101? We think it all boils down to personal preference, and to be honest, having a keyboard mounted on a tablet all the time sounds attractive, especially if you’re the kind of person that’s not adept with touchscreens.
That’s it for now, we’ll get a review up as soon as we’re able to grab a unit. We’ve attached a few comparison shots of the TF101 and the SL101 below.
SL101 keyboardTF101 keyboardSL101 on bottom, TF101 on top
[album: https://gadgetsmagazine.com.ph/wp-content/plugins/dm-albums/dm-albums.php?currdir=/wp-content/uploads/dm-albums/[email protected]/Asus Eee Pad Slider SL101/]
Your futuristic utopia comes alive in PLDT and Smart’s Jump experience center at SM Megamall in Mandaluyong City. The top-of-the-line hub features the latest devices, services and technologies.
Located in one of the busiest malls in the Metro, it will be a place for the ultimate digital and mobile lifestyle of customers whether for home, work or leisure. PLDT President and CEO Napoleon L. Nazareno says that “it showcases how PLDT and Smart are working together to offer customers the best possible services.”
New and upcoming gadgets like the new PLDT Telpad, Apple iPad2, Blackberry PlayBook, Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 and the NFC-enabled Nokia C7 are also present on the Jump experience center.
Powering these devices are PLDT’s Fiber to the Home and Smart’s WiMAX and HSPA+ connectivity — the fastest wired and wireless Internet connections available in the Philippines. Just like the gadgets, visitors are free to try out these services even with their own devices.
“If you’re on the lookout for the latest gadgets or if you simply want to test the latest services that have piqued your interest, Jump is the place to go to,” said Orlando B. Vea, Smart’s chief wireless advisor. “We will constantly upgrade our equipment and our facilities so that we can treat our customers to the latest and the best, each and every time.”
Digital playground
Also located within the premises are three gigantic touchscreen displays. The first is the ‘Jump Screen’ where visitors can make their own dancing avatars. The second is used in the ‘Jump Springboard’ lecture room as an interactive way of learning for customers. The third and largest is called ‘Jump Panorama’ and is found at the heart of Jump.
At 82 inches, Jump Panorama is one of the largest multi-touchscreen displays in the Philippines. It is an interactive screen featuring various products and services of PLDT and Smart and how they play an integral part in the life and lifestyle of each member of the typical Filipino family.
Another innovation found in Jump are two units of multi-touch screens capable of accommodating 32 fingers — equivalent to 4 people simultaneously using it. Using these, Jump visitors may play games with their friends and know more about PLDT and Smart activities in the interactive presentation of the ‘Jump World’.When the Jump Panorama is not playing this interactive video, it may also be used to give Jump visitors a ‘supersized’ feel of the latest touchscreen devices, from phones to tablets.