Filed under: Cellphones
Yeah, those GSM carriers have been offering up RIM's BlackBerry Curve for eons (we're measuring in cellular years, kids), but not until recently have the major CDMA operators in the US been able to scoop up their own. Now that
Alltel,
Sprint and
Verizon all have the
Curve 8330 available to customers, we're interested in seeing an absolute torrent of responses from folks who just aren't entirely satisfied with their new handset. Was it really worth the wait? Is it missing any features that you're just dying to have (like, say, WiFi)? And, be honest, are you jealous of those
AT&T /
T-Mobile users who've already worn the letters from their keypads? Speak your mind, won't you?
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Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds
Not long after spinning off from former corporate parent O2, Windows Mobile purveyor MWg is
moving out of its Asian comfort zone to attempt to sell its wares over in Europe with a splashy press conference to kick things off -- and if the aggressive roadmap they're pursuing for the next year or so holds true, they might just have a fighting chance at making a splash up there. First up are the official European intros of the
Atom V and Zinc II, HSDPA-equipped handsets that have been kicking around for a while now, but that's not even
close to the interesting part. Looking deeper into '08 reveals a handful of
HTC Diamond competitors, devices that are sporting a respectable 7.2Mbps down and 5.2Mbps up, and looking still deeper into the fourth quarter suggests that MWg intends to release its first Windows Mobile 7-powered device -- the Flame II -- with GPS, a 3.2 megapixel camera, and "multimedia features" on board. That seems a little far-fetched considering that 7 hasn't been officially shown off and 6.1 isn't even in broad distribution to users yet, but we appreciate MWg's motivation here. We also see a
Shift killer in the wings with Vista and a 3G data connection toward the end of the year, so all told, the future's looking bright for these cats if they can actually execute.
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Filed under: Networking
Considering that
mechanical beings will be fighting our real wars
here in just a few
years, it's no shock to see more focus placed on the areas where actual humans will still be the ones waging. DARPA is looking to create what it calls a National Cyber Range, which would essentially act as a training ground for cyber warriors. The setup would enable defense gurus to simulate battle against attacks our on nation's most highly prized data, and of course, give victors over virtual phishing scams immense bragging rights. Come to think of it, Estonia could have
totally benefited from something like this last year.
[Via
Information Week, image courtesy of
Sandia]
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Filed under: Robots
Sure, we've seen a set of
robotic chompers before, but a team of scientists led by one Gaëlle Arvisenet is taking artificial mouths to a new plateau. In a study set to be released in next week's Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, researchers report on the "design of an artificial mouth that mimics the first vital steps of human digestion -- chewing, saliva release and the initial breakdown of food." In order to ensure accuracy in the mechanical chewer, the gurus actually compared masticated apple pulp from human mouths as well as the robotic version; they reportedly scrutinized texture, color and aromatic compound release. Great, as if we really need our next humanoid servant to start begging for eats.
[Via
The Register]
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Filed under: Gaming
There's not a lot of details on this one just yet, but Activision CEO Mike Griffith has dropped word in an earnings conference call that the company's upcoming Guitar Hero: On Tour
game / controller combo will not only be released on its own this June, but in a new Nintendo DS bundle as well. No word on a price, unfortunately, nor is there any indication that the DS itself will be undergoing any Guitar Hero-inspired changes, but it seems like those little details should be making themselves known soon enough.
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Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment, Laptops
Toshiba has been touting its
Cell-based
SpursEngine graphics chip for some time now, but it looks like its finally starting to get a bit more specific about when we can expect to see it in actual products. According to Register Hardware, Toshiba will begin offering the chip in some of its multimedia-oriented notebooks sometime this year, with TVs and DVD players set to get it by the fall of 2009. The chip itself, for those not up to speed, uses its Cell-based technology (specifically, four of the Cell's Synergistic Processing Element cores) to handle some heavy-duty graphics processing, including upscaling standard definition content to high-def levels, something Toshiba has apparently taken to calling "super-resolution." Now word on what sort of premium (if any) we can expect to pay for such wonders, but Toshiba is apparently betting pretty heavily on the technology as part of its post HD DVD strategy.
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Filed under: Gaming

Edward Keith Stoddard Jr. really likes his PlayStation 3. So much, in fact, that if you were to touch his PS3, he may just kill you. Such was the fate of his neighbor, Douglas F. Abrams, who Stoddard believed had taken his console. During an argument over the missing system, police say Stoddard shot Abrams, fatally wounding him. When cops showed up on the scene, Stoddard surrendered and was taken to Land O'Lakes jail (no, really) in Dade County, Florida. It's okay to love your console, people -- just don't get jealous if it drops by the neighbor's house for some tea.
[Via
PS3Fanboy]
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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets
Microsoft's no stranger to
appealing antitrust decisions before the European Commission's Court of the First Instance, and it looks like it's saddling up for
another go 'round: the software giant has decided to appeal that
$1.3B antitrust fine handed down in February. Saying that it was only filing as part of a "constructive effort to seek clarity from the court," Microsoft has asked that the decision be annulled. Yeah, that seems pretty clear. As always, our suggestions that this be resolved with a GTA IV / CoD4 round-robin deathmatch on Live have gone unheeded in favor of tedious paperwork and months of delay, but we're still holding out hope.
[Thanks, Hosain]
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Filed under: Gaming
Modder extraordinaire
Ben Heckendorn could easily be resting on his laurels by now but, thankfully for us, he continues to churn out console mods and accessories like nobody's business, and his latest creation easily meets the high standard he's set for himself. Designed for the Games for Health conference, this one continues his line of
one-handed controllers, with the pedals in this case replacing the strum and whammy bar from a standard Guitar Hero controller, letting you use a single hand for the chords. As you can see, everything is also obviously done with Ben Heck's usual fit and finish, and even a bit of clever salvaging, with an Atari Jaguar controller cable used with one of the pedals -- Ben just hopes that "doesn't jinx anything."
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Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals
Since about 20,000 people -- the overwhelming majority of
voters in yesterday's poll -- apparently want to see me in pain trying to get in shape with Wii Fit, it looks like it's time to suck it up and do this thing. Although I'd like to start by disclaiming that I've never really worked out with any regularity, I'm not exactly known for my physical coordination, and in school I always came pretty close to flunking PE -- so really, I'm kind of Nintendo's ideal customer.
Methodology
- I'll be working with Wii Fit out about 20 game-minutes a day, 7 days a week.
- My program will consist of five minutes each of routines and games from the four fitness categories: strength training, aerobics, yoga, and balance games.
- As a control, I won't be dramatically changing up my eating habits. I'm already a reasonably healthy eater, so any physical changes will be more easily attributable to the Wii Fit regimen.
- I have about a week of travel scheduled this month, so for whatever days I miss on Wii Fit I'll be extending the trial.
- I'll chart my changes in weight, BMI, coordination, etc. and thoughts on the experience in a weekly update for the next five weeks.
Current stats
Height: 6-feet
Weight: 174.5 pounds
Frame: small-to-medium
BMI according to Wii Fit: 23.65 (upper cusp of normal)
Wii Fit "Body age": 36
Wii Fit goal (you have to set a goal for yourself)
Target weight: 169.5 pounds
Target BMI: 22.96
Target date: 6/12
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