Posted on 31 March 2009 by
In braille, a character is made up of six dots laid out on a two by three matrix — not something that can really be conveyed using capacitive touchscreen technology. Working with a
Nokia 770 Internet Tablet, researchers in Finland have developed a method for piezoelectric touchscreen devices that uses a single pulse of intense vibration to convey a raised dot, and a longer vibration made up of several weaker pulses to represent a missing dot — spelling out letters that can be easily read by touch. It took a while for volunteers to get used to this method, but once they had they were able to read a character in as little as 1.25 seconds. Now that they have letters down, the team is moving on to words and sentences — with an eye towards developing text-to-braille software sometime in the future.
Filed under: Tablet PCs, Science
Researchers develop braille for vibrating touchscreen devices originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Mar 2009 11:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Original post by Joseph L. Flatley
Posted on 31 March 2009 by
Sure, everybody loves a
tough notebook — but there are all sorts of gadgets that can benefit from the tough treatment. Adding to the list of electronics suitable for dropping, kicking, and spraying with water, Medtronic’s LIFEPAK 15 — which just received FDA approval, by the by — is a portable heart monitor / defibrillator equipped with all sorts of fun features, including an audible CPR Metronome, a dual-mode color LCD with a high-contrast mode for use in bright sunlight, up to six hours of operating time, and energy dosing for difficult-to-defibrillate patients. Just make sure it’s nice and dry before you plug the paddles in. For reals. Video after the break.
[Via Medgadget]
Continue reading Medtronic’s LIFEPAK 15 defibrillator for extreme conditions, or extremely clumsy paramedics
Filed under: Misc. Gadgets
Medtronic’s LIFEPAK 15 defibrillator for extreme conditions, or extremely clumsy paramedics originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Mar 2009 10:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Original post by Joseph L. Flatley
Posted on 31 March 2009 by
According to folks over at Android Community, Google has begun to pull tethering applications from the G1′s Market. One of the contributors to the “WiFi Tether for Root Users” app claims that the company is citing distribution agreements with carriers as the cause of the takedowns. In their words:
Google enters into distribution agreements with device manufacturers and Authorized Carriers to place the Market software client application for the Market on Devices. These distribution agreements may require the involuntary removal of Products in violation of the Device manufacturer’s or Authorized Carrier’s terms of service” Google Developer Distribution Agreement
Of course, this should come as quite a surprise, given statements T-Mobile’s Cole Brodman made to us during the G1 launch last year, and Google’s seemingly rampant interest in being the de facto open source mobile OS. It’s not clear at this point if this is an isolated incident (possibly related to the root nature of the app), or just the beginning of a more widespread move. Google (and T-Mobile to some extent) — we await your response.
[Thanks, Chris]
Filed under: Cellphones
Is Google pulling tethering apps from the Android Market? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Mar 2009 09:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Original post by Joshua Topolsky
Posted on 31 March 2009 by
Filed under: Rogers Wireless
It’s not terribly often that Canada’s Rogers Communications names a new chief exec — hell, the last one was none other than the company’s founder himself — so needless to say, it’s a pretty big deal that the company has concluded its search and sealed the deal. As expected, Nadir Mohamed, who already has plenty of executive-level experience within the company serving as president and COO of its Communications Division, has been named to the CEO post, concluding a search both outside and inside the wireless giant for Ted Rogers’ successor. Congrats, Nadir — you’ve got big shoes to fill. [Warning: PDF link]
[Via MobileSyrup]
Nadir Mohamed in as Rogers CEO originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Tue, 31 Mar 2009 09:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Original post by Chris Ziegler
Posted on 31 March 2009 by
Given that most cats aren’t really the talkative type, we can definitely understand scoopmycatbox’s desire to rig up a water dish (vid’s after the break) that does the yapping for his dearest kitty. Put as simply as possible, the ultrasonic water level cat dish combines an Arduino, Parallax range finder, some scrap wood and a good deal of wires in order to measure when the water bowl needs to be refilled. He’s still working to get the contraption to send him a Tweet when the level gets below a certain point, and we can only assume that part II will see an automatic refilling tool hooked in to said alerting system. And you thought pets had it good before the advent of technology…
[Via MAKE]
Continue reading Video: ultrasonic water level dish pings owner when kitty needs a drink
Filed under: Misc. Gadgets
Video: ultrasonic water level dish pings owner when kitty needs a drink originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Mar 2009 09:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Original post by Darren Murph
Posted on 31 March 2009 by
Not that we haven’t seen nerdy wedding bands before, but for those who aren’t really enamored with networking, we’ve stumbled upon another option that’s just too awesome to pass up. Granted, the sound wave bands have been around a finger or two, but really, how awesome is a wedding ring with an EQ interpretation of “I Do” engraved in it? We’ll tell you — really awesome. Moving on, we’ve got the 1981 Atari ring, a solid piece of kit sporting an original Atari chip splashed with gold or silver. Lastly, we’ve got Cufflinks.com’s latest, a set of Guitar Hero links that will undoubtedly make the faux rocker in your life grin from ear to ear. Dig in below for more details, but don’t expect to purchase any of ‘em but the last, and at $50 per pair, you should probably think twice.
Read – Guitar Hero cufflinks
Read – Atari ring and EQ wedding bands
Filed under: Gaming, Wearables
Nerd jewelry roundup: Guitar Hero cufflinks, gilded Atari ring and EQ wedding bands originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Mar 2009 08:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Original post by Darren Murph
Posted on 31 March 2009 by
The big CTIA Wireless show in Vegas continues to crank out mobility news with the launch of Ericsson’s F3607gw HSPA/GPRS/EDGE broadband module. The Windows 7 lovin’ module’s unique “wake-on wireless” feature allows your laptop to sleep until important messages or security updates are sent over the air. Combine that little trick with F3607gw’s embedded GPS and your laptop is ready for a host of location-based services like traffic alerts, public safety warnings, and geo-fencing. Of course as we’ve already seen, the module works with Intel’s Anti-Theft Technology so you can remotely disable (via SMS) the laptop you left behind at happy hour. The module can even send its location data to a central server for recovery. Once recovered, a second SMS will unlock your portable and make all your data accessible again — your dignity, however, will be lost forever. Expect to see the first portables and theft-recovery services featuring the new module sometime after the F3607gw is released in June. Full press release after the break.
Continue reading Ericsson’s F3607gw wake-on wireless HSPA module offers remote kill switch and recovery for laptops
Filed under: Laptops, Tablet PCs, Wireless
Ericsson’s F3607gw wake-on wireless HSPA module offers remote kill switch and recovery for laptops originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Mar 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Original post by Thomas Ricker
Posted on 31 March 2009 by
var digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/playstation/Official_PlayStation_2_now_less_than_100′; We’re really hoping that this isn’t Sony’s global announcement. Nevertheless, starting tomorrow April 1st, the PlayStation 2 will be available for less than $100, exactly as rumored. Hoozah?
[Thanks, Ris]
Filed under: Gaming
Sony PlayStation 2 just $99.99 starting tomorrow originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Mar 2009 07:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Original post by Thomas Ricker
