Subscribe:

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Shops Online

Shops Online

Nissan Leaf completes 621-mile Cannoball Ireland 2011

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 03:39 PM PDT

Nissan Leaf completes 621-mile Cannoball Ireland 2011


Nissan Leaf completes 621-mile Cannoball Ireland 2011
Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Nissan, UK, Racing, Videos More than 150 blazingly fast automobiles participated in Ireland's 1000-kilometer (621-mile) Cannonball Ireland 2011. But one vehicle, a lime green Nissan Leaf fielded by ESB ecars, stood out - not for its color, but for its powertrain. The goal of ESB ecars was to demonstrate that an electric vehicle could traverse the whole of Ireland by using the nation's charging infrastructure....

Sprint reportedly capping its mobile hotspot plans October 2nd

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 03:39 PM PDT

Sprint reportedly capping its mobile hotspot plans October 2nd


Sprint reportedly capping its mobile hotspot plans October 2nd
If Sprint's myriad policy changes are part of the company's strategy update, perhaps we're not looking forward to October 7th's event after all. The latest bout in a series of gut-punching cost-cutting moves is the elimination of "unlimited" in the Now Network's $30 mobile hotspot add-on; according to a leaked employee memo uncovered by SprintFeed, October 2nd is the dreadful date in which all unlimited plans (sorry Sprintsters, there's no grandfathering)...

Sony's Tablet S goes under the knife, reveals secrets lurking within

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 03:39 PM PDT

Sony's Tablet S goes under the knife, reveals secrets lurking within


Sony's Tablet S goes under the knife, reveals secrets lurking within
With the Tablet S on sale, it was really only a matter of time before its inevitable teardown, and here to fill our need for splayed circuity is one from TechRepublic. Seeing as most Honeycomb tablets have similar internals, there aren't too many surprises to be had, but the outfit did curiously find a hole for a cellular modem, as well as an easy to replace battery and an internal plastic...

Google Says Mobile Optimized Sites Will Factor Into Landing Page Quality And Per...

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 03:39 PM PDT

Google Says Mobile Optimized Sites Will Factor Into Landing Page Quality And Perform Better In AdWords


Google Says Mobile Optimized Sites Will Factor Into Landing Page Quality And Perform Better In AdWords
Google is announcing today that websites that are optimized for mobile will now factor into ad quality. The company says that last year it began to limit ad serving on smartphone devices if they pointed to landing pages with Flash-heavy content, in order to improve the experience for users. Now the search giant will be considering the mobile optimization of a website as a new factor of mobile ads quality for...

Stand by Your Minivan

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 03:39 PM PDT

Stand by Your Minivan


Stand by Your Minivan
Video: A minivan ad created by people who actually drive them.

Micron adds self-encryption to RealSSD C400, protects plans for world domination...

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 03:00 PM PDT

Micron adds self-encryption to RealSSD C400, protects plans for world domination from prying eyes


Micron adds self-encryption to RealSSD C400, protects plans for world domination from prying eyes
Micron may think it's simply "bolstering user security" but, if you ask us, it seems like the company is providing the machines with a tool to protect their plans for insurrection. The RealSSD C400 SED has a special, security-focused firmware and hardware-based AES-256-bit encryption that keeps all of its precious data safe from prying eyes....

RIM’s Stock Price Tumbles To A New Five Year Low

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 03:00 PM PDT

RIM's Stock Price Tumbles To A New Five Year Low


RIM's Stock Price Tumbles To A New Five Year Low
RIM's stock took a bit of a tumble after the release of their underwhelming Q2 earnings report last week, and it looks as though it won't stop dropping anytime soon. Before the market closed for the day, RIM share prices continued to inch downward until it reached (at time of writing) $21.52: RIM's lowest in five years. Before this, the RIM's previous low occurred this past August, when their stock price dipped...

Shanghai Volkswagen launches Tantos electric vehicle sub-brand

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 02:21 PM PDT

Shanghai Volkswagen launches Tantos electric vehicle sub-brand


Shanghai Volkswagen launches Tantos electric vehicle sub-brand
Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Volkswagen, China China's vehicle application catalog, released today by the nation's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, confirms that Shanghai Volkswagen will launch an electric vehicle-only sub-brand with the name Tantos (not to be confused with Thanatos), according to China Car Times. Based on spy shots and the catalog number, China Car Times reports Tantos' first electric offering will be the E-Lavida, a vehicle that debuted in China back in...

Squid extract bridges human / machine divide, cyborgs to become very real

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 02:20 PM PDT

Squid extract bridges human / machine divide, cyborgs to become very real


Squid extract bridges human / machine divide, cyborgs to become very real
If we ever manage to capture a live giant squid, researchers at the University of Washington are going to have a field day. Enterprising minds at the institution's materials science and engineering department have discovered a use for chitosan -- an extract made from squid pen or crab shells that could lead us down a cybernetic road to human / machine interfaces....

BrammoParx brings branding to electric motocross rent-and-ride, will come Stateside

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 01:40 PM PDT

BrammoParx brings branding to electric motocross rent-and-ride, will come Stateside


BrammoParx brings branding to electric motocross rent-and-ride, will come Stateside
Filed under: EV/Plug-in, On Two Wheels, Europe/EU, USA With the decision by Brammo to get into the dirtier (yet clean!) side of motorcycling with its Engage and Encite line up came the question of how to effectively expand existing electric motocross markets and build new ones. Rather than steal a page from Quantya, with its partnership to open company-branded riding parks, Brammo bought the whole book. The tome in question is QuantyaParx....

Roku announces Disney partnership, YouTube channel in the works

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 01:40 PM PDT

Roku announces Disney partnership, YouTube channel in the works


Roku announces Disney partnership, YouTube channel in the works
Roku has been charming the pants off Google and the suspenders off Mickey. The media streaming company has shed light on both the development of a YouTube channel and a partnership with Disney. After an unofficial attempt at viral video stardom was quickly squashed by Google, Roku has confirmed via Facebook plans for a new YouTube channel....

Apple offers Final Cut Pro X update and free 30 day trial, hopes we can all stil...

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 01:40 PM PDT

Apple offers Final Cut Pro X update and free 30 day trial, hopes we can all still be friends


Apple offers Final Cut Pro X update and free 30 day trial, hopes we can all still be friends
Plenty of folks were less than thrilled by the release of Apple's rebuilt Final Cut Pro -- in fact, words like "disgruntled" come to mind when describing the response to the new version of the video editing software. Take heart, however, the massive backlash hasn't gone unnoticed. The company has released version 10.0.1 of Final Cut Pro X, which offers up some new features, including support for rich XML and Xsan,...

Twitter opens up photo sharing via text message on some carriers

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 01:01 PM PDT

Twitter opens up photo sharing via text message on some carriers


Twitter opens up photo sharing via text message on some carriers
We're not exactly lacking in ways to share a photo on Twitter these days, but one key area that has been left behind is the venerable text message -- which is pretty important for the millions of people that don't have smartphones. While tweets via text have been possible since day one, Twitter has only just now opened up the ability to post a photo via SMS....

Froyo-based ViewSonic V430 smartphone appears in Russia, anonymity almost guaran...

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 01:01 PM PDT

Froyo-based ViewSonic V430 smartphone appears in Russia, anonymity almost guaranteed


Froyo-based ViewSonic V430 smartphone appears in Russia, anonymity almost guaranteed
ViewSonic has revealed its latest Android phone, the V430 -- though you'd be hard pressed to tell who made it from looks alone. Putting the incognito design aside, vital statistics include a meaty WVGA 4.3-inch screen, and a 5 megapixel primary camera paired with a VGA front-facing camera, all chugging along on a 1GHz Snapdragon processor....

Confiscated drug money used to convert sherrif's vehicles to propane autogas

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 12:23 PM PDT

Confiscated drug money used to convert sherrif's vehicles to propane autogas


Confiscated drug money used to convert sherrif's vehicles to propane autogas
Filed under: Etc., Natural Gas A small law enforcement fleet in North Carolina converting gas-guzzling vehicles to run on propane autogas isn't exactly national news, but what we have here is also a candidate for the classic "News of the Weird" column. Why? Because sheriff Phillip Redmond of Iredell County, NC has converted 13 Ford Crown using matching grants from the North Carolina Solar Center's Clean Fuel Advanced Technologies and the NC...

New RED Scarlet to be announced November 3rd

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 12:23 PM PDT

New RED Scarlet to be announced November 3rd


New RED Scarlet to be announced November 3rd
Well, it looks like Canon won't be the only company making a big camera announcement on November 3rd. RED CEO Jim Jannard has also now confirmed that it will also be officially announcing its "new" RED Scarlet camera on the very same day (no coincidence, it seems), at which point it will detail "all the changes" the company has made to it....

New American Car Company Debuts Vehicle for the Disabled

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 12:23 PM PDT

New American Car Company Debuts Vehicle for the Disabled


New American Car Company Debuts Vehicle for the Disabled
Wheelchair accessible vehicle is first of its kind.

Wyse Releases New Version Of Cloud Storage App PocketCloud

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 12:23 PM PDT

Wyse Releases New Version Of Cloud Storage App PocketCloud


Wyse Releases New Version Of Cloud Storage App PocketCloud
Wyse Technology, the developers of cloud storage app PocketCloud, is launching a new version of its service today, which turning smartphones and tablets into virtual desktops byt letting you control anything on your PC from a mobile device. PocketCloud utilizes customers' existing storage on their Mac, PC and virtual desktops rather than storing files on third-party servers....

Authentic Nissan Leaf apparel says "don't half gas it"

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 11:43 AM PDT

Authentic Nissan Leaf apparel says "don't half gas it"


Authentic Nissan Leaf apparel says "don't half gas it"
Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Green Culture, NissanNissan's line of 100-percent authentic Leaf gear invites you to "Wear the Revolution." There are t-shirts with slogans ranging from "Goodbye Gas, Hello Leaf" to "Don't Fill Up, Charge Up." Simple, clear and positive, right? Sure, but the shirt that caught the eye of an AutoblogGreen tipster was the one that reads "Don't Half Gas It." On the back of the 100-percent organic t-shirt is where...

LightSquared proposes 'simple, affordable solution' to that pesky GPS interferen...

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 11:43 AM PDT

LightSquared proposes 'simple, affordable solution' to that pesky GPS interference issue


LightSquared proposes 'simple, affordable solution' to that pesky GPS interference issue
It's not the first "solution" that LightSquared has proposed for the GPS interference issue that's gotten in the way of its LTE network rollout, but the company's now touting a new "simple, affordable solution" to the problem. That doesn't actually involve any changes to the network itself, but rather changes to the high-precision GPS hardware that is being interfered with....

Microsoft: Mango Will Roll Out “In The Next Week Or Two”

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 11:03 AM PDT

Microsoft: Mango Will Roll Out "In The Next Week Or Two"


Microsoft: Mango Will Roll Out "In The Next Week Or Two"
File this one under "It's about time" — Microsoft has announced today that they intended to roll out their Windows Phone 7.5 (a.k.a "Mango") update to current devices within "the next week or two." Sure, it's still not an exact date, but Microsoft has a good reason for this: they can't really provide one....

GroupMe Co-Founder: GroupMe Won’t Be My Last Startup

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 11:03 AM PDT

GroupMe Co-Founder: GroupMe Won't Be My Last Startup


GroupMe Co-Founder: GroupMe Won't Be My Last Startup
Ah, the majestic serial entrepreneur in its natural habitat. GroupMe may have cashed out with a $50+ million acquisition by Skype (after the initial product was built overnight at a TechCrunch Hackathon, no less), but that doesn't mean its founders are about to yacht up and sail off into retirement. At this morning's Twilio Conference, Twilio CEO Jeff Lawson brought GroupMe co-founder Steve Martocci up on stage and asked him, quite simply:...

Existing Windows Phones to get Mango update within the next two weeks

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 11:03 AM PDT

Existing Windows Phones to get Mango update within the next two weeks


Existing Windows Phones to get Mango update within the next two weeks
We've already witnessed the launch of a Windows Phone with Mango and seen several others announced, so when's the update rolling out to devices still operating on NoDo? According to Microsoft's official Windows Phone Blog, we need only wait another week or two before the update begins rolling out. The Windows Team indicates it won't be pushed to your phone OTA when the time comes, so you'll want to ensure you...

Poll: Spotify tops two million premium subscribers -- are you one?

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 11:03 AM PDT

Poll: Spotify tops two million premium subscribers -- are you one?


Poll: Spotify tops two million premium subscribers -- are you one?
The competition may be nabbing most of the headlines these days, but Spotify's got some good news of its own to report. We just got word that the streaming music service has passed two million premium subscribers internationally. We attempted to get some clarification on just how many of those are based in the US, but the company doesn't break down such numbers by country....

Even without H2 cars, Honda opens UK's first public-access hydrogen station

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 10:24 AM PDT

Even without H2 cars, Honda opens UK's first public-access hydrogen station


Even without H2 cars, Honda opens UK's first public-access hydrogen station
Filed under: Hydrogen, Honda, UK UK drivers wishing to skip battery electric vehicles while maintaining "zero-emissions" motoring now have a new alternative since Honda has opened the UK's first public-access hydrogen refueling station. Ironically, no automakers offer a fuel cell vehicle in the UK, not even Honda. At the moment, Honda has "no plans" to sell the FCX Clarity in the UK, so we'd argue the hydrogen fueling station is pointless, but Honda...

Verizon CEO: A Third Mobile Platform Will Emerge In The Next 12 Months

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 10:24 AM PDT

Verizon CEO: A Third Mobile Platform Will Emerge In The Next 12 Months


Verizon CEO: A Third Mobile Platform Will Emerge In The Next 12 Months
iOS and Android are great, clearly. But that doesn't mean we don't have room in our hearts for a third platform. Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam feels the same way, expecting a third "smartphone ecosystem" to butt in to the current Apple/Google dominated space. Out of the various options, McAdam said he sees Samsung's Bada, Microsoft's Windows Phone 7.5, or RIM's forthcoming QNX-based BlackBerry platform to fill the spot....

IRL: WildBlue satellite internet, international charging, a flashing habit and f...

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 10:24 AM PDT

IRL: WildBlue satellite internet, international charging, a flashing habit and failing to get work done on an iPad


IRL: WildBlue satellite internet, international charging, a flashing habit and failing to get work done on an iPad
Welcome to IRL, an ongoing feature where we talk about the gadgets, apps and toys we're using in real life and take a second look at products that already got the formal review treatment. It's been a whirlwind two weeks of sitting inside concept cars, soaking up details about the PlayStation Vita and getting acquainted with Windows 8, and now that it's all wound down, we're getting back to the business of...

T-Mobile's BlackBerry Curve 9360 available for $79 on September 28th, swanks it...

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 10:24 AM PDT

T-Mobile's BlackBerry Curve 9360 available for $79 on September 28th, swanks it up with merlot variant


T-Mobile's BlackBerry Curve 9360 available for $79 on September 28th, swanks it up with merlot variant
Attention power users and devotees of physical portrait QWERTYs, RIM's outing yet another member of its Curve family this month. Running the Waterloo-based company's latest BB 7 OS, Magenta's BlackBerry Curve 9360 actually goes up for pre-sale today, but you'll have to count yourself amongst the enterprise set for the early access perks....

Willcom unveils its 33-gram WX03A, a phone-accessory phone?

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 09:45 AM PDT

Willcom unveils its 33-gram WX03A, a phone-accessory phone?


Willcom unveils its 33-gram WX03A, a phone-accessory phone?
You can't get more niche than a phone accessory that's also a phone, but that's exactly what Japanese network Willcom has got here in the miniscule WX03A "strap phone" -- a candy-bar handset that attaches to another phone. The device weighs in just 33g, crammed in a 32 x 70mm frame boasting a thickness of 10.5mm -- which, as you can see, compares favorably with a packet of curiously-named Japanese mints....

Eee Pad Slider shipping now, Archos 80 G9 hits pre-order status

Posted: 21 Sep 2011 09:45 AM PDT

Eee Pad Slider shipping now, Archos 80 G9 hits pre-order status


Eee Pad Slider shipping now, Archos 80 G9 hits pre-order status
It's practically raining tablets these days, and two more just hit the market. Of course, the Asus Eee Pad Slider and Archos 80 G9 were announced some time ago, but now you can finally handover your hard-earned paper for one of these Android 3.2-sporting devices. The Slider is already available from a variety of outlets, including New Egg and Amazon, starting at $479, while the G9 is up for pre-order direct...