Gadgets and New Technologies

by Nilay Patel, posted Apr 24th 2008 at 12:58AMThe last we heard of DHS’s “Project 28″ plan to build a 28-mile stretch of virtual fencing along the US / Mexico border in Arizona, it had been postponed until at least 2011 because the towers didn’t quite work. Well, it appears that on further review, the system is even more of a total failure, and it’s being scrapped entirely: according to Kelly Good, deputy director of the administration’s Secure Border Initiative program, Project 28 “hasn’t come close” to meeting Border Patrol’s goals. Tests of the virtual fence didn’t lead to nearly as many arrests as designers had hoped, and the lag from sensor detection to transmission of an image to border agents was apparently a big part of the problem. (Read the full post about ‘Border Patrol’s virtual fence canceled for not being as good as a fence’…)

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Helio has just become the first cellular provider to offer Gmail as a push service. Sure other carriers can take advantage of either POP or IMAP access, but push is so much nicer, because what is better than instant gratification. Helio users with an Ocean, Mysto or Fin will now have access to the “ultimate inbox.” Setting up push support for Gmail is about as simple as it can be, assuming you already have your Gmail account set-up, then all you have to do is go to the Menu and hit the “Send/Receive” button and it will ask you whether or not you want push support activated. In addition to the push support for Gmail, Helio also supports push for Helio Mail, Yahoo, Windows Live, and AOL. (Read the full post about ‘Helio now offering Push support for Gmail’…)

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Jon Canan, Program Manager of MSN Direct, has confirmed what we all figured would be happening any day now: no more MSN Direct-powered Smart Watches. Jon chose SpotStop as the place to make this semi-official announcement. In the announcement Jon makes mention of how the technology will live on in GPS devices and Windows Mobile, but states that the company does not have any immediate plans for a new version of the Smart Watch. That said, current watches in the field will still be supposed.

We reviewed the Smart Watch a while back and I actually really liked the tech behind it. For me, though, the execution was flawed.

(Read the full post about ‘Microsoft pulls plug on Smart Watches with MSN Direct’…)

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[Web 2.0] The Profy platform - in closed alpha since January 2008 - is announcing its beta launch at Web 2.0. According to the press release (I did not try the alpha), the blogging process – news reading, writing and publishing, managing comments, communication with readers and other bloggers - is made easier with the Ajax based Profy tools. In addition, Profy provides a more social blogging experience by allowing users to find people with the same interests, share ideas and discover new sources of information. I will meet the Profy team today at their booth to get more information about this new publishing tool. (Read the full post about ‘Profy: the New Web Platform for Bloggers- beta launch’…)

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Levi’s is quietly spreading its mobile phone presence out in Europe and they don’t seem to be nearing a stop any time soon, since Orange France has been granted the exclusive privilege to market its tri-band GSM, 3G network connected handset. No other details about the deal have been provided, except to say that there will be a free 1GB memory card for every purchase, which customers can use to upgrade the memory of their devices through the built-in microSD card slot. It also sports a 2-megapixel camera for your regular snaps, and don’t forget, it’s a 3G network enabled handset. That means you can transfer all you want - or not - but it’s a few notches faster than any old GPRS or EDGE connection can ever give you. (Read the full post about ‘Levi’s 3G slider handset headed to Orange France’…)

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VTech has announced the retail and online availability of its latest phone systems, where the 2008 line up will feature the trend-setting LS6117 that spearheads VTech’s effort, touted to be the first cordless phone which is capable of delivering creative control over the phone’s aesthetics with customizable graphics. Other additions in the DECT 6.0 family are also stylish, providing the marriage of both form and function for your living room. According to Matt Ramage, senior vice president of product management, VTech Communications, “The 2008 lineup addresses what consumers want today — stylish designs with advanced technology features. (Read the full post about ‘VTech launches latest phone systems’…)

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by Paul Miller, posted Apr 23rd 2008 at 1:01PM We just got to spend a smidgen of quality time with Samsung’s new boringdaps: the S2 and S3. Gone are the pretensions of Bluetooth grandeur of the P2, these two players are about as straightforward as it gets. (Read the full post about ‘Samsung S2 and S3 hands-on’…)

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Microsoft will be switching off its PlaysForSure licensing servers on August 31st 2008. What does this mean? It means that if you bought music from the MSN Music store, you’re going to be shafted by your lackadaisical attitude to DRM. Technically, tracks will continue to play forever on licensed machines (of which you can have up to five), but if you upgrade your OS, buy a new computer or just make enough hardware changes to your existing machine, you’re screwed come September. Microsoft sent an email to customers detailing the delights of DRM’ed music. (Read the full post about ‘Microsoft Gives PlaysForSure Four Months To Live’…)

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A new HP iPAQ smartphone has just received the FCC kiss of approval, and we find that might actually be a member of the HP iPAQ 900 smartphone series, to be called HP iPAQ 910 for the AT&T network. Now while this new smartphone has a slightly intimidating facade, not to mention that it’s colored in an aggressive black, it’s interesting to note that this phone is not just about business. It’s also about the other, equally important things in your life that make you happier, like a built-in GPS system, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Quadband GSM connectivity and support for expandable micro SDHC cards. And take a look at that screen. (Read the full post about ‘An HP iPAQ 900 Series smartphone for AT&T?’…)

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by Thomas Ricker, posted Apr 23rd 2008 at 4:24AM While we patiently wait 18 to 24 months for the CFast CompactFlash cards to arrive, there’s always this: the DIY Century Compact Flash to SATA adatper. We’ve seen these adapters before of course, but this is the first we recall supporting 3x cards. That’s a quickie 96GB SSD for about $450 (plus $192.57 for the adapter plus shipping) given current on-line prices. Not bad when you consider the $1,000+ price tag for a smaller 64GB SSD. Better yet, performance should be rock solid based on earlier reviews. (Read the full post about ‘Century’s SATA adapter supports 3 CF cards: cheap SSDs for all’…)

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