The Connected Circuit

Is all this gadgety news coming out of IFA in Berlin making things hard to keep up? Well no worries, here are highlights and what you may have missed.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1

For those who want a camera that’s as powerful as a dSLR in a compact package, take a gander at the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1. The second micro four third digicam that won’t break your wallet. The GF1 features a 12.1 megapixel Live MOS sensor, 720p HD video recording, a 3-inch live view LCD, built-in flash and an HDMI out all in a small and compact size. The downsides: it’ll costs you $900 for each of the two kits, a 20mm/f1.7 lens and a 14-45mm/f3.5-5.6 zoom lens. You also won’t find a viewfinder here, but you can purchase one sold separately. Check out ther presser here and the product page here, as well as a nice first impressions from dpreview here.

Sony Ericsson XPERIA X2

The much rumored and quite leaky XPERIA X2 is now official, successor to the wild unpopular, but amazing XPERIA X1 the X2 will feature WinMo 6.5, 8.1 megapixel camera and that infamous panel UI that Sony Ericsson concocted. Check it out here at Xperiancers and their flickr stream here for more gadgety pr0n.

The Sony VAIO X

Not much is actually known about this, since Sony really just pre-announced this thing to be announced later this year. All that’s know is that it has a carbon fiber shell, a half-inch thin, has an 11.1″ display, weighs under a pound and a half, has battery life that “lasts all day” and may or may not come with an Atom. What I do know for sure is that this “ultraportable” with netbook specs will be guaranteed to costs more than twice the price of the most expensive netbook out. Check it out here on Engadget.

Canon EOS 7D

Priced at $1,699 (body only), this 18 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor full manual control, 1080p HD recording monster from Canon is coming this September.Presser here, spec page here, and a hands-on from Dpreview here.

RS 180

Think A2DP stereo bluetooth is awesome, well take a gander at Sennhesier’s first Kleer wireless 2.4GHz ‘phones, the RS 180 (pictured below), RS 170 and the RS 160. Expect CD quality tunes with the industrial over the head look. Sennhesir, also announced the successor to the popular, PX 100 and PX 200, the PX 100-II and PX 200-II.

Nokia X6

A capacitive touchscreen device (other than the N900) finally makes it out of Nokia with the X6. With a dual LED flash, 32 GB of storage, 5 megapixel camera, 3.2″ touchscreen, TV out, and a mere 0.55″ thin. Did I mention that this “comes with music”?

Other mentions:

For you photo buffs: Leica M9 and the Leica X1 was officially leaked. Nokia’s less notable other announcement the X3, an S40 series non-touchscreen slider phone, equiped with a 3.2 megapixel cam, 16 GB storage and decicated music keys.

--written by Peter To--

Two days ago the guys over at Plastic Logic announced their partnership with Barnes & Noble as their exclusive ebook store provider now they are poised to replicate the experience of Amazon’s Kindle Whispernet experience with their partnership with AT&T as their 3G data provider. So what do we not know yet? If you’ll have to pay a monthly fee for using AT&T’s service and whether or not you’ll be able to enjoy connectivity on the global scale.

Full Press Release below:

“PLASTIC LOGIC EREADER WILL WIRELESSLY CONNECT
USING AT&T 3G NETWORK

eReader Built for Mobile Business Professionals to Debut in 2010

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA, JULY 22, 2009
–
Plastic Logic announced today that AT&T’s*
3G network will provide the mobile broadband connection for the Plastic Logic Reader,
the eReader created for mobile business professionals, when it launches in 2010.

The Plastic Logic Reader, which is also Wi-Fi enabled, is the ideal companion for busy,
on-the-go business professionals who want to keep up to date on key information and
who need to read and review multiple documents throughout the day. The Plastic Logic
device is about the size of an 8.5 x 11 inch pad of paper, less than a ¼ inch thick and
weighs less than many print magazines. The innovative eReader features the largest
screen in the industry and an intuitive touch screen user interface.

“We’re extremely proud to be able to offer the Plastic Logic Reader with the nation’s
fastest 3G network through AT&T. This alliance is a pillar in our strategy to provide
mobile business professionals with a device that delivers a great reading experience,
and is fully connected through 3G and Wi-Fi to deliver easy access to digital content,”
said Richard Archuleta, CEO of Plastic Logic.

The Plastic Logic Reader is unique among its competitors due to its plastic display,
which is based on the company’s revolutionary plastic electronics technology. The
eReader features the first ever commercial high-quality plastic display and an
outstanding E Ink reading experience. Its battery lasts days, instead of hours. Designed
specifically with mobile business users in mind, the Plastic Logic Reader will connect its
users with their desired business and professional newspapers, books, periodicals and
magazine content and will support the document formats business users need, including
PDF, Word, PowerPoint, and Excel documents.

“The Plastic Logic Reader is an impressive device and we look forward to providing the
wireless connectivity that will keep business professionals connected to the news,
information and entertainment they desire while on the go,” said Glenn Lurie, president-
Emerging Devices and Resale, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. “There is
tremendous market potential for electronic reading devices and we look forward to
powering this revolutionary device with the nation’s fastest 3G network.”

Users will be able to connect to content and download it wirelessly through AT&T’s 3G
network, which offers the best wireless coverage worldwide. Built on the GSM family of
technologies, the de facto wireless world standard, AT&T’s 3G wireless network brings
enormous economies of scale to electronic manufacturers who are eager to cost-
effectively incorporate wireless technology in specialty devices. AT&T devices work in
more than 200 countries and regions. AT&T is also the nation’s largest Wi-Fi provider,
with more than 20,000 hotspots in the United States and more than 90,000 hotspots
globally in 89 countries through roaming agreements.

Financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

Pricing and availability of the Plastic Logic Reader will be announced when the product
begins shipping in early 2010.

To stay current with information on the Plastic Logic Reader, please visit
http://www.plasticlogic.com.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc.
under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

About Plastic Logic

Plastic Logic’s mission is to lead a revolution in the way people acquire, organize and consume
information. We are using our proprietary technology leadership in plastic electronics to create a
range of innovative products. Our first product, an eReader for mobile business professionals, will
enter the marketplace in 2010. Founded in 2000 by researchers out of the Cambridge University
Cavendish Laboratory, Plastic Logic has research and development in Cambridge, England; high-
volume, state-of-the-art manufacturing in Dresden, Germany; and executive management,
product engineering, sales and marketing headquartered in Mountain View, California. For more
information please go to http://www.plasticlogic.com.”

--written by Peter To--

Looks like all those claims from Sony that the netbook market wasn’t a viable market and would kill the industry has proven to be a lie and they’ve finally announced their “first netbook” in the form of the Viao W.What, you ask, does the Viao W have in it? Atom N280 CPU: Check, 1 GB of RAM: Check, 10.1″ screen: Check, Under 3 lbs: Check, WiFi: Check, Windows XP: Check, Under $400: …. errr… wait it costs $500, yes $500 for a netbook, $100 more than your average netbook.

So what’s different about Sony’s netbook from the rest of the pack that’s out there? From what it appears the Sony sticker and most likely the load of crapware that will inevitably be preloaded into this thing. Oh yeah and a 1,366 by 768 screen resolution. You can expect this to start shipping in August 2009, that is if you desire to waste your money that is.

Source: eWeek

--written by Peter To--

The iPhone has made many strides to bringing the true desktop web experience on mobile devices, but there has been one glaring omission to its arsenal, Flash. For those who don’t know what Adobe Flash is, it’s essential the backbone  of that media experience that you find so dear on the interwebs nowadays. From streaming video sites like Youtube to all those addicting games, whether you like it or not, the whole web community has embraced Flash to the point where it has become an integral part of any browsing experience. However, there isn’t a mobile device or platform out yet that has taken course and attempted to port these experiences to the ever growing mobile web world. Enter Adobe, who has   finally taken strides to bring Flash to a plethora of smartphones, with two glaring exceptions, Apple and RIM.

Adobe’s Open Screen Project is seeking to fill the void. With an alliance of companies, Palm, Nokia, Google and Microsoft are working to port Flash 10 to their various mobile platforms. So what does it mean to you the user? Well it means that before, where there was no hope of bringing those web applications without significant reduced functionality to your phone, now with the concerted effort of almost all the big guns working together, we’ll most certainly be able to view native youtube, hulu and many of the other applications that run entirely in Flash, mirroring that desktop browsing experience almost 100%. As a word of caution though, bringing Flash to mobile devices almost means bringing those Flash ads you see to mobile devices as well, but I for one would gladly take that punch in the gut to be able to watch my favorite show on hulu on the go.

Read more here and here. Watch Adobe’s press conference here.

--written by Peter To--

The iPhone 3GS launch is almost upon us, but before you pack your sleeping bag, lawn chair and a gallon of coffee to wait in line to get Apple’s new cream of the crop gadget, there are a few things you should know.

For those existing customers who are going in expecting to be able to acquire this at the subsidy price at $199 for the 16 GB and $299 for the 32 GB, you had better check to see if you qualify to actually get the iPhone 3GS at the discounted price. You can check by either calling *639# on your existing phone (you should receive a message stating that you do), call AT&T or check your online account. Don’t forget that AT&T will be trying to charge you an $18 “upgrade price”. With some smooth talk, you may be able to get yourself out of it. AT&T is, also, extending the upgrade to customers who have purchased their iPhone 3G in July, August, or September 2008, but be sure to check with the AT&T before you go in and realize that you were not eligible and had to pay the early upgrade price of $399 for the 16 GB or $499 for the 32 GB.

Many Apple and AT&T stores will be opening an hour early to fulfill many of the pre-orders at 7 AM, be sure to call ahead. There will also be many devices on hand for individuals, but at a first come-first serve basis only. Also be aware that the early pre-orders did sell out, so if you are expecting to see one at your doorstep on July 19th when you didn’t jump the gun in time, don’t be surprised if you don’t see it tomorrow. Apple has also requested that carriers hold their shipments until tomorrow for those who have pre-ordered, some may be lucky and have theirs ship a day or two early, but all reports indicate that it won’t. It’ll be a waiting game for that man in the brown tomorrow. With this useful information on hand, be safe and enjoy your shiny new gadget!!

AT&T deets here

Some Reviews below:

Engadget – Josh Topolsky

Gizmodo – Jason Chen

WSJ – Walt Mossberg

NYTimes – Dave Pogue

Wired – Steven Levy

USA Today – Ed Baig

CNET – Kent German

--written by Peter To--

Ever get bored with the robotic voice on your GPS device? Taking a page out of Mio’s book with its Knight Rider GPS, TomTom released a voice pack from everyone’s favorite donut- eating balding Springfieldian dad Homer Simpson. This makes the most boring family road trip into much less of a bore.  The cost, $12.95; the awesomeness level, 11. I’m still waiting for the Ay Karamba from Bart, but this would be something I would spend the extra doh on.

Listen to some samples here

--written by Peter To--

Last night one of my favorite hosts finally made his triumphant return on the silver screen, Conan O’Brien, on the newly revitalized Tonight Show, but unfortunately I missed it. I don’t have a TiVo and I didn’t want to wait hours to download Conan’s first episode, I just wanted to watch it. So I turned to the source that I knew would have it, Hulu. For those who don’t know Hulu is, it is a collaboration between all the big TV studios, Fox, NBC, ABC and CBS (it first started out with just Fox and NBC) offering the latest episodes, for free, on-demand viewing. The only requirements is that you have a capable browser, Adobe flash player installed, and a fast enough connection to stream the sub-SD/ED quality video. But I had a dilemma, instead of watching it on 24″ LCD monitor, I wanted to watch it on my 42″ Panasonic plasma HDTV that was situated right in my living room. I had a few options, either I bring out all the necessary cables and wires  to hook up my computer to my TV and disabling the use of my computer for the ~45 minutes or I could use something boxee that I installed on my Apple TV, which was already hooked up to my TV, to stream the content direct from Hulu itself. The choice was obvious, I fired up my Apple TV, navigated to the Hulu feeds application in boxee and I was ready to watch the plethora of video made available through Hulu. I was ready to watch Conan completely disconnected from my computer. There are plenty of other uses for my Apple TV with boxee. I can seamlessly stream media within my personal network, connect to Last.FM, pandora, watch or listen my favoritepodcasts or any number of add-on applications that others had created to watch content from Discovery, Youtube, Joost, Vimeo, or the Onion… the list goes on and on.

*Image cred to Lifehacker

If there’s so much free content, why aren’t more people using boxee? Well, a few reasons, installing boxee on the Apple TV isn’t the most seamless and easiest thing to do and if you’re expecting to get HD content streamed to your Apple TV, don’t be. The Apple TV is simply not powerful enough, it can barely handle 480p streams (video can be choppy at times), but that’s a limitation on how Adobe Flash works.

The Apple TV never makes use of the GPU because of its proprietary nature, reverse engineering the thing would be one heck of a trial. However, that’s all going to change with the recent announcement that Adobe is working hard with other companies, such as Nvidia and Broadcom, to develop a way for it to offload some of the video decoding to the GPU, resulting in a less choppy, HD video playback.

Another thing holding boxee back is that fact that the bandwidth speeds in the US required for these streams is simply not there, you can blame that on those ISPs implementing speed caps and metering. Video steams would be hit with much buffering to the point where it would keep you waiting for minutes at a time, which is not very seamless.

Let’s, also, not forget that Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Sony’s PlayStation 3 has media streaming/extending capabilities as well. Those two devices double as gaming consoles and media devices and features are constantly getting added. Just this Monday, Microsoft announced that the Xbox 360 is to have advanced Netflix queue integration, taking the computer part out of the equation and letting you browse Netflix’s watch instantly movie catalog, as well as, last.fm integration. It’s a pretty big deal, where in the past, you’d have to go to a computer, log into your Netflix account, find stuff you want to watch and then add it to your queue. This cuts having a computer out, giving you access to browse straight from the 360.

However, with the popularity and interest of all the individuals in the development of boxee, which can be installed on just about any platform (right now you can get it for the Apple TV, Mac OS X, and Linux and a Windows build is coming as early as the end of June). With the recent release of a developer API, it has limitless potential. If you have the know how and the drive to build an application, the tools are these for you to use to build your own application, kudos to the openness that is boxee. What’s most exciting is the operating system-agnostic behavior of boxee, it doesn’t have to be confined to a particular set of hardware, since it was originally a fork of the the very popular XMBC, which gave whomever had an original Xbox the ability to turn it into a multimedia powerhouse. Boxee is making the experience of watching on-demand content as easy as turning on your TV. For those proclaiming the death of mediastreamers, you couldn’t be more wrong, they aren’t dead but just taking a different form. I did eventually end up watching Conan using boxee and it was almost as seamless as watching it on TV.

--written by Peter To--