Media Sync: iTunes Syncing on HTC, Nokia, Sony, and Sony Ericsson Devices [Cellphones]

Obviously, if you love iTunes but do not own an iPhone, syncing your music can be frustrating. Salling Software has developed a solution to this problem with Media Sync—an app that transfers playlists, music and podcasts to a wide array of Nokia, Sony, and Sony Ericsson phones (also works in a limited fashion with the HTC Touch Diamond). The basic Windows / Mac software is free, but you will have to shell out $22 for the fast sync version. And, naturally, it does not transfer DRM protected tunes. [Salling via Cult of Mac]

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Filed under: Robots

While a great many scientists are attempting to create autonomous bots for uses in surgery, a team of Stanford whiz-kids are having a bit more fun with it all. The crew in question has concocted an artificial intelligence system that “enables robotic helicopters to teach themselves to fly difficult stunts by watching other helicopters perform the same maneuvers.” Dubbed a demonstration in “apprenticeship learning,” the robots can actually learn by observing rather than having to be programmed, meaning that entire airshows could be reeled off by planes that simply keep an open mind when warm-ups are underway. Of course, they could also be used for more serious applications — mapping out hot spots of California wildfires, finding land mines in war zones, etc. — but even if none of that pans out, we’re cool with inventions being used purely for entertainment.

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Via [Engadget]

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Microsoft Patents Page Up and Page Down [Patents]

Just so everyone knows, Microsoft has been awarded a patent for Page Up/Page Down. Yup, it’s theirs now. They called it. You can’t touch it. And if anyone takes issue with the clear fact that Microsoft invented hitting a button to skip to the next page of text, you’ll have to take it up with the principal and/or Microsoft’s parents. Because we think that Microsoft might have ringworm so we’re afraid to get too close. Oh, and just in case you think we’re living in crazy world, here’s the patent’s abstract:

A method and system in a document viewer for scrolling a substantially exact increment in a document, such as one page, regardless of whether the zoom is such that some, all or one page is currently being viewed. In one implementation, pressing a Page Down or Page Up keyboard key/button allows a user to begin at any starting vertical location within a page, and navigate to that same location on the next or previous page. For example, if a user is viewing a page starting in a viewing area from the middle of that page and ending at the bottom, a Page Down command will cause the next page to be shown in the viewing area starting at the middle of the next page and ending at the bottom of the next page. Similar behavior occurs when there is more than one column of pages being displayed in a row.

[US Patents via GigaOM]

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Dell confirms Inspiron 910 netbook arriving this week

Filed under: Laptops

Dell’s Inspiron 910 / Mini Inspiron hasn’t exactly been a secret since we first heard about it back in April, but it sounds like this baby bump is about to go from open secret to bouncing bundle of joy — Dell just confirmed to InformationWeek that the netbook is scheduled to arrive later this week. That’s all we know right now — Dell reps called those earlier specs we’d heard “pretty much rumor and speculation” — but we’ll go out on a limb and say we wouldn’t expect anything less than an 8.9-inch screen and 1.6GHz Atom in there. Sorry if we killed the surprise, guys — but remember, you can still wow us with the price tag.

[Thanks, AC]

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PSP 3000 To Have Worse Battery Life, But Sony Takes Note [PSP]

The PSP 3000 will have a brighter LCD with a wider color gamut and 5 times the contrast ratio of the PSP 2000. From the shots we’ve seen, it blows the old screen away—and that screen was already pretty decent. There is, of course, a catch. And that catch is that the PSP will lose somewhere between 20 and 30 minutes of battery life compared to the old PSP, putting its playtime to 3 1/2 to 4 hours. But to compensate, Sony will be rereleasing the just-discontinued PSP extended battery to the market which should still provide 8-10 hours of play. [Gamespot via Maxconsole]

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Filed under: Robots

While a great many scientists are attempting to create autonomous bots for uses in surgery, a team of Stanford whiz-kids are having a bit more fun with it all. The crew in question has concocted an artificial intelligence system that “enables robotic helicopters to teach themselves to fly difficult stunts by watching other helicopters perform the same maneuvers.” Dubbed a demonstration in “apprenticeship learning,” the robots can actually learn by observing rather than having to be programmed, meaning that entire airshows could be reeled off by planes that simply keep an open mind when warm-ups are underway. Of course, they could also be used for more serious applications — mapping out hot spots of California wildfires, finding land mines in war zones, etc. — but even if none of that pans out, we’re cool with inventions being used purely for entertainment.

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Via [Engadget]

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MS Paint Gadget Fantasies are as Twisted as They are Unlikely [MS Paint Contest]

For this week’s bonus MS Paint contest, I asked you to create fantastical fantasy gadgets using everyone’s favorite rudimentary coloring program. Unsurprisingly, you guys have some pretty twisted fantasies that you want taken care of via unlikely technology. From promoting alcoholism to suggesting we turn the decomposing corpses of hippies into oil, today’s Gallery of Champions really runs the gamut of subtlety and good taste. I salute you, MS Painters.

First Place — Roberto Alicea
Second Place — Phenostar
Third Place — Daniel Luna

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LG X110 Feels Solid, Fast, Is Netbook with Capital N [IFA 2008 Hands-On]

I groped and used the LG X110 netbook for some time here at IFA. As Mark pointed out, this is the first netbook where “net” actually means something else: direct 3G network access without additions.

The Good: The LG X110 felt solid and compact in my hands, heavier than I expected for such size. Good hard plastic finish outside. Fast operation under Windows and fast rendering and access to the Web, although unfortunately I was only able to try it with the Wi-Fi connection. Good set of ports, although I wish all these computers implemented HDMI video output, rather than VGA.

The Bad: I was disappointed the interior wasn’t real aluminum but painted plastic. The keyboard didn’t feel good to me, too bland and not enough clickety-clack action, but that’s just my personal taste.

Bottom line: For those looking for a good Windows- or Linux-based netbook with no-fuss internet access at all times, my first impression is that they will be happy with this one.

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Firefighting Sprinkler Suit From 1931 [Retromodo]

Back in 1931 Modern Mechanix magazine ran an article about an invention used by German firefighters to protect themselves from being engulfed in flames. The simple device consisted of a helmet with a built-in sprinkler system that connects with a nozzle on the hose. Using a hand lever, the firefighter could control the amount of spray needed for a given situation. Clever—but it seems that fighting a fire in something that looks like an old-timey deep sea diving helmet might prove problematic. [Modern Mechanix via Boing Boing]

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Sony VAIO Z: The Engadget Review

Filed under: Laptops

Here’s the thing: Sony’s VAIO Z series of ultraportables doesn’t get to be a part of the X300 / Envy 133 / MacBook Air / X360 club. We like it, it’s a great laptop, but it’s just too chubby to count as a cake cutter. So that said, there’s really little point in comparing this thing to that sort of computer — we’ll just have to judge it on its own merits.

The VAIO Z is the latest in Sony’s long heritage of ultraportable computers, but lands itself decidedly on the beefy end of that spectrum. With discreet NVIDIA 9300M graphics and a Blu-ray drive, this is a full-fledged laptop (we’ve been testing out the $3,600-ish VGN-Z591U SKU). There’s WWAN, SD and Memory Stick card readers, ExpressCard and an HDMI plug, and even the 16:9 13.1-inch screen is on the upper limit of Sony’s ultraportable heritage. There’s plenty of SSD inside, with dual SSD RAID option that makes no bones about this being a performer.

Continue reading Sony VAIO Z: The Engadget Review

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