12 Feb, 2008
In a blog post made late last week by Caligari Corporation CEO Roman Ormandy, he announced that the company has been acquired by Microsoft.
Caligari is best known for its trueSpace and gameSpace modeling products, offering users a complete 3D asset creation package for a much lower price than the better-known 3ds Max and Maya packages.
Microsoft’s main reason for the purchase seems to be in order to add experience to its Virtual Earth project. Virtual Earth is Microsoft’s attempt to offer businesses very detailed geospatial data that they can use to enhance their business on a local and global level.
(Read the full post about ‘Microsoft buys Caligari’…)
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12 Feb, 2008
Gear Live just posted a tip they have received from their sources about the iPhone will have flash support in the very near future. Currently, the iPhone and iPod touch do not support flash sites leaving some to be dissapointed in the web experience. Rumor was it was a hardware issue that prevented the support. Seems it was not a hardware issue, just negotiations according to the site. They speculate that the news of flash support will be combined with the SDK release we expect at the end of the month. Word on the street is folks have been hired for an Apple event at the end of this month. Apple is mum on the news. (Read the full post about ‘Will the iPhone flash? Rumor says any day now’…)
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12 Feb, 2008
Posted Feb 12th 2008 1:40PM by Nilay PatelFiled under: Laptops var We’ve definitely heard some horror stories about Best Buy, but it looks like a DC woman named Raelyn Campbell has had enough: she’s opening up a big can of America Sauce on the retailer in the form of a $54m lawsuit after it lost her laptop during warranty service. Campbell says she bought a laptop and $300 extended warranty from Best Buy in 2006, and took the machine in for service when the power switch broke last May. Told repairs would take two to six weeks, she set off on a business trip, only to find that her laptop had gone missing when she returned in August. (Read the full post about ‘Woman files $54m lawsuit against Best Buy for losing laptop’…)
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12 Feb, 2008
Apple has finally released the long awaited 2.0 update to its photo organizing and editing software, Aperture. The application is now $100 cheaper, at $200.Aperture introduces over 100 new features, some of which should have been there already (duplicate detection on import, and tethered shooting). Mostly, though, this update is, according to Apple, all about being faster and easier to use, with a multitude of UI tweaks.Of most interest to Gadget Lab readers is the addition of support for more cameras, including the Canon G9. (Read the full post about ‘Apple Opens Aperture 2′…)
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12 Feb, 2008
MWC ‘08 is the venue where ailing Motorola released its RAZR2 V8 Special Edition handset that comes adorned with 18K and 24K gold, with snake pattern leather rounding off its aesthetics. Measuring a mere 12.05mm thin, you get the following features :- 2.2″ 240 x 320 resolution internal display 2″ external display Linux OS 2GB memory 2 megapixel camera USB 2.0 and Bluetooth connectivity Tags: PDA, gps, laptops, buyers guides (Read the full post about ‘Motorola RAZR2 V8 Special Edition’…)
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12 Feb, 2008
Dyson, the folks behind the most lust-worthy vacuum cleaners in the world, have apparently turned their attention to drying clothes. The Air-Line is a compact unit that concentrates wind power and solar energy to dry clothes quickly on your balcony, back porch or whatever. Looks like a concept design for now, but I can easily foresee entire Japanese apartment buildings outfitted with the futon-sized version. Now dry out with your favorite Tee with eco-friendly care [Ecofriend] Tags: video, home theater, electronic toys, lcd (Read the full post about ‘Dyson Perfects the Clothesline?’…)
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12 Feb, 2008
OmniVision Technologies Inc. can stand proud and tall, being the company that holds the current record for rolling out the smallest VGA CameraChip sensor in the world - the OV7960. Featuring the latest generation of OmniVision’s proprietary pixel architecture, this new 1/13-inch VGA sensor is capable of delivering nearly twice the sensitivity and low-light performance (960mV/Lux-sec) when compared against other low cost sensors. More details for the press release are available after the jump. The OV7690’s new 1.75-micron OmniPixel3-HS architecture combined with a unique, non-linear micro lens shift technology allows for a significant reduction in distance between the sensor and the lens, and thus enables OmniVision to significantly reduce the module height while maintaining the highest levels of image quality and camera performance. (Read the full post about ‘Smallest VGA CameraChip sensor’…)
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12 Feb, 2008
Panasonic has announced the “worlds first” Class 6 32GB SDHC memory card, the RP-SDV32GU1K and while it may not be the first 32GB SDHC memory card it is the first at a Class 6 speed. At Class 6 you will see a 20 MBs transfer rate and with the large storage available you can record up to 12 hours of high-def video or store about 12,320 10-megapixel images. The new 32GB card from Panasonic will be available in April and retail for $699. Read [CNN Money] Via [Engadget] Keep up with the latest gadget goodness! (Read the full post about ‘Panasonic announce “World’s First” Class 6 32GB SDHC memory card’…)
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12 Feb, 2008
Nvidia is a company which is well-known for their graphics chips that are currently dominating the market. While none of their other technologies will likely ever become as popular as their GeForce chips, they have decided to venture into the cell phone market. No, you aren’t going to see an Nvida phone per se, but don’t be surprised if you see a “Powered By Nvidia” sticker on the back of one. With the amount of experience they have with developing chips that process video and graphics, which would be valuable to an industry that is rapidly expanding their multimedia offerings. What’s interesting is that handset manufacturers that decide to go with an Nvidia chip can bank on a certain degree of brand recognition. (Read the full post about ‘Nvida gets into the mobile phone biz’…)
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12 Feb, 2008
Samsung is almost comically proud of its new do-it-all G810 cellphone. The Korean company bills it as an “Almighty Multmedia Computer” on the show stand signs (pictured below). Inside the this successor to the G800 you’ll find added WiFi (802.11b/g), GPS, a 5MP camera, YouTube client, TV out (for use with Samsung’s tiny new projector) and 3G via HSDPA. Samsung has also dropped Windows Mobile in favor of Symbian S60 Third Edition.
In the hand, the phone is fine, but not €500+ ($730+) plus fine. It feels lighweight and – in what is fast becoming a hallmark of this year’s GSMA – it’s hard to use. Maybe it’s me, spoiled on an iPod Touch, but almost every phone at the show feels clunky in comparison.
(Read the full post about ‘Hands On With The Samsung G810′…)
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