EFF’s Guide to Border Laptop Searches [Laptops]

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Philips working on a 3-inch touchscreen Xenium X-Connect?

Filed under: Cellphones, GPS

A couple things you should know about this purported Philips Xenium X-Connect before churning your gadget juices through the emotional Osterizer. First, it’s clearly a product rendering. Second, Philips Xenium cellphones are primarily found in Asia Pacific region — as such, a European or North American launch is likely out of the question. If the X-Connect is the real-deal, however, here’s what we’ll be missing: Windows Mobile 6, 3G UMTS/HSDPA radios, GPS receiver, AA/AAA battery backup, microSD slot, and Bluetooth 2.0 all powered by a 624MHz Intel processor beneath a 3.0-inch (presumably touchscreen) display. Still, as a broadly positioned “communication device,” maybe we’ll see Philips reach out to different geographies this time around.

Update: Oh snap, this thing sure looks like the Xenium 800.

[Via ToTouch, Thanks Giovanni]

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AT&T says “iPhone Black” means nothing, gunman acted alone

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

We’ve just received an official statement from AT&T regarding the presence of an “iPhone Black” on its model selector earlier today: “The reference to ‘iPhone Black’ was simply a temporary placeholder used over the weekend for a scheduled catalog update. It was meant to temporarily distinguish the various iPhone models-4GB, 8GB and 16GB-but was never reassigned. We’re changing the site now.” Makes total sense, right? Three models of iPhone, two placeholders: iPhone and iPhone Black. You know, because “Black” has so much to do with memory capacity, and is easier to remember than 4, 8, or 16GB — never mind the fact that we have good intel suggesting that the next-gen device is glossy black.

Also, AT&T, we know those cigarettes are yours, so you can stop telling us you were “just carrying them for a friend.” We’re not stupid, you know.

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What Went Wrong With the First TV Remotes [Retromodo]

Zenith pioneered the TV remote control, but those early models were more drag than advantage. Electronic House has a full walk down remote-control memory lane, but first, here’s a quick Retromodo look at Zenith’s first three creative attempts—and what was tragically wrong with them:

Lazy Bones (1950) - According to Electronic House, it was the world’s first commercially available TV remote control. It could only flip through channels by triggering a motorized knob. Needless to say, its secondary skill as a tripwire caused problems in the living room.

Flash-Matic (1955) - Billed as “absolutely harmless to humans,” this focused flashlight could be aimed at one of four light sensors on the TV itself, in order to turn TV on or off, change channel or adjust volume. But like Gyration mice and other gestural devices of today, it was a challenge because people forgot where and how to point the thing to activate each function. Also, sunlight really played havoc with the sensors.

Space Command (1956) - A much better system than Flash-Matic and as comfortable as a pack of Benson & Hedges in the hand, the Space Command used ultrasound—ingeniously generated without batteries by plungers hitting aluminum tuning forks—to change channel, turn TV on or off, and adjust volume. It did have one problem, though: Some dogs couldn’t stand the noise.

Check out EH’s “A History of TV Remote Controls” for the full story. [Electronic House]

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OLPC XO officially gets Windows XP, children of the world to be assimilated

Filed under: Laptops

It’s been a controversial decision, but it looks like the OLPC XO has completed its transition from revolutionary education project to just another tiny Windows laptop with a useless keyboard — albeit one with a pleasantly whimsical design. Yep, it’s official: Microsoft and OLPC just put out a joint press release saying that XP-loaded XOs will be available starting in August or September. Users will get all the regular functionality of XP, but Microsoft’s spent over a year developing specialized drivers for the XO’s various features like e-book mode, the writing pad, and camera. (We’re pretty certain that doesn’t include mesh networking, but WiFi is supported.) XP is too big for the built-in 1GB flash chip, so it’ll come preloaded on a 2GB SD card, leaving just about 1.5GB free total for apps and media. It seems like Microsoft is thrilled about this partnership, but it’s a not going to make NickNeg’s search for new vision at the top any easier. As for Sugar? You’ll still be able to get it, but we have a sinking feeling about its future. Demo video after the break.

Continue reading OLPC XO officially gets Windows XP, children of the world to be assimilated

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Filed under: Robots

Rest assured, this won’t be the first or last time you hear of insects and mammals being used as inspiration for robotic creatures. Nevertheless, a recent MIT mechanical engineering course saw students craft bots that could handle “beaver-like tasks” such as “knocking down trees and gathering food in the form of street hockey balls” while fending off competitors in 45-second rounds. Separately, the EU-funded SPARK endeavor is seeking to “develop a new robot control architecture for roving robots inspired by the principles governing the behavior of living systems and based on the concept of self-organization.” There’s plenty more material to make your skin crawl in the read links below, just don’t feed the mechs, okay?

Read - SPARK project
Read - MIT competition

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Via [Engadget]

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Fujitsu U2010 Packs An Atom, Too [UMPCs]

The Intel Atom-based UMPCs are finally rolling out, but not all of them are as inexpensive as we’d hoped. Fujitsu—never known for their budget systems—has announced their latest UMPC featuring a 5.6-inch rotating (touchscreen?), “3.5G” wireless and GPS. The catch? It’s $1,300 in Taiwan. Even with the extras and the Fujitsu name, that’s just way more than we want to spend on a 5.6-inch lappie with that feature set. Then again, at 1.3lbs, it’s about a pound lighter than the original Eee. And that counts for something. [Digitimes via CrunchGear]

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Official Indiana Jones Fedora Available Now For Nerds Everywhere [Indiana Jones]

The reason that the official Indiana Jones Fedora is available on Think Geek is that only geeks think that they can pull off wearing a fedora in the year 2008. The only fedora you (us) nerds should stick to is Red Hat’s version, leaving Indiana Jones’ to the still handsome but greying Harrison Ford. If you really do want to pick up your own version for some down-home sexy play, it’s $99. Everything’s in stock except for X-Large and XX-Large, further proving our point that only overweight nerds will buy and wear this outdoors. [Think Geek]

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Addy Named Cool Geek of the Week, Spills Seeeecrets [Addy Dugdale]

Ever wanted to know more about the lovely, sweet, sexy, funny, and absolutely adorable* Addy Dugdale, Associate Editor, Disco Queen, and Pop Culture Smartypants At Large in Gizmodo? Then head to Born Rich and read her Cool Geek of the Week interview. Stay tuned for a Conan O’Brienesque “ADELAIDE! Seeeeecrets” segment soon. [Born Rich—*Full Disclosure: yes, she’s my wife]

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StairSteady Helps the Elderly Climb Stairs on Shaky Legs [Inventions]

Ruth Amos, an 18-year-old student from the UK, has come up with a simple and ingenious device for helping the elderly hobble their way up stairs with as little chance of hip-breakage as possible. Dubbed the StairSteady, it’s essentially a bar that one can hold onto as they walk up the stairs, moving up or down with them while they move and keeping them steady. It’s a bit pricey at $642 due to the absolutely worthless US dollar, but that’s a lot cheaper than a hip replacement. Kudos, Ruth. [BBC via Popgadget]

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