HTC Rhyme comes with feminine style and matching accessories lineup

HTC has unveiled its new Android 2.3-based smartphone, the HTC Rhyme. Although the unit is not gender specific in any particular way, available colors and accessories such as HTC Charm might suggest it is primarily aimed at the fairer sex. The smartphone comes with a 3.7-inch WVGA super LCD touchscreen and a refreshed HTC Sense 3.5 user interface. The Rhyme will be hitting Verizon Wireless in the U.S. on September 29.

Powered via a 1GHz CPU and 768MB of RAM, the Rhyme features 4GB of total built-in storage (up to 1GB available storage), 5-megapixel camera and a 1600 mAh power supply. Connectivity comes courtesy of quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, GPS, Bluetooth 3.0 with FTP/OPP and A2DP profiles support, and DLNA support. Encased in a unibody housing, the Rhyme weighs 130 grams (4.58 ounces) with battery and will be offered in three "nature inspired colors": clearwater, hourglass and plum.

Its 5-megapixel camera comes autofocus- and LED flash-equipped, offering 720p video recording and instant shutter to speed up the snapping of images. Options such as face detection, action burst scene, panoramic mode and instant sharing via social websites are also present.

The refreshed HTC Sense interface includes a new home screen that provides "previews of your appointments, messages or whatever is important to you," HTC says. The Rhyme's lock screen is also customizable to display chosen content. The smartphone comes with HTC Watch service on board, offering a selection of movies and TV shows for download.

The Rhyme also has a number of accessories:

• HTC Rhyme docking station - provides charging and comes with Bluetooth speakers built-in
• HTC Rhyme Charm - a wired dongle that flashes in case of an incoming call or message, and reportedly makes it easier to pull the phone from a purse
• armband
• "tangle-free" headphones
• Bluetooth headset
• Bluetooth car speaker

Let it be your next smart phone!

ARCHOS G9 tablets get release dates and pricing

ARCHOS has confirmed release dates and pricing for its new breed of G9 Android Tablets, which hold the promise of satisfying mobile storage junkies thanks to spacious HDD options being available. The only change to the specs announced in June is that the new ARCHOS tablets will launch with Android 3.2 (Honeycomb) instead of 3.1.

ARCHOS says that pre-sale of the 8-inch, 1024 x 768 pixel resolution, 1 GHz ARM dual-core CORTEX A9 OMAP 4 processor version of its third generation ARCHOS 80 tablet with 8GB flash storage will start online from September 20. This will be followed with worldwide availability through outlets (including HH Gregg, Amazon, Newegg, Tiger Direct, Brandsmart and Electronic Express) from September 30. This flavor is priced at a suggested retail of US$299.

Come October, the 1.5GHz Turbo edition with 16GB flash storage will be made available for US$329, as will the version featuring a 250GB Seagate Momentus Thin HDD with an intelligent caching system that makes use of 4GB of dedicated flash memory to help speed up data access. The latter will cost US$369.

The larger ARCHOS 101 - with a 10-inch, 1280 x 800 pixel resolution display - will also be available from October in two versions. The 16GB flash storage/1.5 GHz processor model will cost US$399, while its 250GB HDD/1.5GHz processor sibling is priced at US$469.

Both media tablets offer AVI, MP4, MOV, 3GP, MPG, PS, TS, VOB, MKV, FLV, RM, RMVB, and ASF video format support, and can handle MP3, WAV (PCM/ADPCM), AAC3, AAC+ 5.13, OGG Vorbis and FLAC audio formats as well as the popular image formats. The Lithium Polymer battery is said to offer up to 36 hours of music playback, 7 hours of video or 10 hours of online enjoyment before needing some attention and the devices come preloaded with Google mobile applications like Google Talk with video chat, Gmail, Google Maps with Street View and Navigation (beta) and Google Calendar.

Even though the Android tablet market is becoming very crowded, I have to confess that I'm looking forward to getting my hands on the new G9's - particularly the capacious storage models.

Concrete speakers sound like a strange idea

We've seen a number of unusual speakers before, such as the Whamodyne glass speakers or Solid Acoustics' dodecahedron speakers, but concrete speakers are definitely something new. It's definitely not a very popular material for audio systems, but Israeli designer Shmuel Linski would like to change that with his "Exposed" concrete speakers, each of which weighs 123 pounds (56 kg). They're just one part of his line of unusual creations, that include a concrete coffee maker and a concrete canoe.

Most speaker casings are made of solid wood or MDF (medium-density fiberboard), while the cheaper models utilize plastic, but non-resonating concrete doesn't seem to be the right material for transmitting sound. "When concrete meets sound, it might distort the sound because the concrete is very stiff," Linski explains. "The speakers might therefore sound strange." Why make loudspeakers that sound strange? The designer gives a rather unclear explanation, saying that the Exposed speakers are capable of "invoking a sense of nirvana for concrete lovers and audiophiles."

To design the speakers, Shmuel used horn loudspeaker technology. The driver, located at the top of the speaker, is linked through a 96 cm (38 in)-long externally-lined pipe, with a large horn-shaped bass port at the bottom resembling a megaphone.

The concrete speakers are Linski's graduation project at Shenkar College of Engineering and Design in Ramat Gan, Israel. There's no word on any possible commercialization of the product.

His other concrete projects are also unusual. The "espresso solo" is an espresso-making machine in a concrete casing, and the Orca concrete canoe was made for a concrete canoe-building competition held last year in Israel.

RIM announces the BlackBerry Bold 9900, Bold 9300 and BlackBerry OS 7

RIM's BlackBerry Bold line is set for a major upgrade with the imminent arrival of the BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 Smartphones. Combining the familiar full QWERTY keypad with a new "Liquid Graphics" touch screen, the 9900 and 9300 will run on the new BlackBerry 7 OS and pack 720p HD video, built-in NFC (Near Field Communications) technology, a 1.2 GHz processor and the thinnest BlackBerry form factor yet – 10.5 mm (0.41-inches).

The key specs:

115 x 66 x 10.5 mm, approximately 130 g

2.8" capacitive touch screen display – VGA (640x480), 287 dpi resolution

Ultra-easy QWERTY keyboard, optical trackpad

1.2 GHz Processor, 768 MB RAM

8 GB on-board memory, plus microSD slot supporting up to 32 GB cards

NFC technology

5.0 MP camera, supports 720p HD video recording

Orientation Sensor (Accelerometer), Digital Compass (Magnetometer), Proximity Sensor

Built-in GPS / aGPS

Dual-Band Wi-Fi® - 802.11 b/g/n at 2.4 GHz and 802.11 a/n at 5 GHz

Bluetooth® 2.1+EDR support

Wireless Network support: 9900: Tri-Band HSPA+, Quad-Band GSM/EDGE, 9930: Dual-Band CDMA/EV-DO Rev. A, Dual-Band HSPA+, Quad-Band GSM/EDGE

1230 mAh removable, rechargeable battery

Nokia X7 smartphone: 4-inch AMOLED screen, 720p video and updated Symbian software

Nokia has officially taken the wraps off its new X7 smartphone – an entertainment and mobile gaming focused unit that packs a 4-inch, 16:9, AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 8 megapixel camera and 720p video capture into nicely chiseled stainless steel casing that's less than half an inch (11.9 mm) thick. Along with the (also freshly announced) QWERTY keyboard equipped E6, the X7 is the first Nokia device to run on the updated Symbian "Anna" platform which introduces a raft of enhancements including new icons, improved text input, faster browsing and a spruced-up version of Ovi Maps.

Though the 4-inch screen size trumps some of the obvious competition, the X7 still seems a little light on pixels with its 640 x 360 resolution. The 8 megapixel camera is enhanced by a face recognition software and a dual LED flash, with 2x digital zoom available for still images and 3x digital for video.

Under the bonnet there's a 680MHz CPU with 256MB RAM (the same as current Symbian^3 phones) and the phone will ship with an 8 GB microSD card (supporting up to 32 GB), includes GPS receivers, an accelerometer for screen orientation and gaming and supports internet tethering.

Here's a run-down of the Nokia X7's key specs:

• Size: 119.7 x 62.8 x 11.9 mm
• Weight (with battery): 146 g
• Screen size: 4"
• Resolution: 16:9 nHD (640 x 360 pixels) AMOLED
• 16.7 million colors
• Capacitive touch screen
• Orientation sensor (Accelerometer)
• Proximity sensor
• Ambient light detector
• Integrated GPS, A-GPS receivers
• Ovi Maps with free car and pedestrian navigation
• Wi-Fi network positioning
• Accelerometer for correct orientation of display
• Talk-time (max): 6 h 30 min (GSM), 4 h 30 min (WCDMA)
• Standby time (max): 450 h (GSM), 450 h (WCDMA)
• 8 GB microSD card included, support for up to 32 GB with an external MicroSD memory card (with hot swap)

Bluetooth 3.0

Micro USB 2.0 connector and charging

3.5 mm Nokia standard audio connector

FM Radio

Dedicated graphics processor with OpenGL 2.0 enables 3D graphics

Java games

Handwriting recognition for Chinese

Flash Lite 4

Camera

• 8 megapixel camera
• Fullscreen 16:9 viewfinder with easy on-screen touch controls
• 3rd generation dual LED flash
• Face recognition software
• Focal length: 4.3 mm
• Aperture: F2.8
• Zoom up to 2x (digital) for still images
• Zoom up to 3x (digital) for video

Video

• Video capture in 720p 25 fps with codecs H.264, MPEG-4
• Shoots 16:9 videos in HD
• Settings for scene, video light, white balance, color tone

No U.S. wireless carriers have been announced for the Nokia X7 or E6 at this stage, but Three in the UK has picked up the X7 with a release expected in coming months at a price in the €380 range.

Nokia has also announced that the Symbian Anna update will become available as standard on for Nokia N8, Nokia E7, Nokia C7 and Nokia C6-01 devices.

HTC sensation 4G takes HTC flagship mantle

HTC has unveiled its new flagship smartphone – the HTC Sensation. Powered by a 1.2 GHz MSM8660 dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor and runningAndroid 2.3 (Gingerbread) the HTC Sensation is designed with multimedia in mind. Packing a 4.3-inch qHD (960 x 540) touchscreen display, Sense 3.0, front-facing VGA camera, and 4G capabilities, the Sensation shares many of the features of theEVO 3D, minus the 3D.
The Sensation also ups the ante with a curved unibody aluminum body and a higher resolution 8-megapixel rear-facing autofocus camera that can shoot 1080p video at 30fps. Captured video can also be trimmed on the phone before uploading. For downloading videos, the Sensation's HSPA+ capabilities promise speeds of up to 14.4 Mbps, and a new HTC Watch video download service, that will also be found on the company's upcoming Flyer tablet, makes its first appearance in a phone.

Features include a customizable active lock screen that constantly updates social media, photos, weather or stock updates, which can then be viewed by waking the display. The lock screen also serves as the launchpad for jumping to the phone's most-used features. For example, the camera can be launched right from the lock screen in a single motion to give users the best possible chance of capturing the action.

The Sensation comes with 768 MB of RAM and 1GB of internal memory, but HTC has thrown in an 8GB microSD card to help with all that video your service provider hopes you'll be downloading on the device. The phone weighs 148 g (5.2 oz.) and at 11.3 mm (0.44 inches) thick, comes in slightly thicker than the iPhone 4. However, the Sensation's 4.3-inch widescreen display is almost an inch bigger than the 3.5-inch display of Apple's device.

iPhone 5 release expected by the end of end of June 2011

iPhone lovers are waiting anxiously for the next iteration to Apple’s signature that is assumed to be a revolutionary Smartphone. People are getting crazy about it. The reports of new iPhone 5 has brought many questions with it as when it will be going to release; what features it has; what is new in it and so on. Recent reports reveal that we can expect new iPhone in the last half of June 2011.
Another thing of which we are already aware is Apple has no plans to release iPhone 5 at Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2011. The conference focuses more on the software aspect than Smartphone itself. The conference is planned to start from June 6, 2011 and it will offer the previews of iOS 5 and Mac OS X Lion. One speculation that why Apple is not keen to announce its iPhone 5 at the conference is perhaps, the substantial delays from Sony in providing the new iPhone 5 camera modules to Apple.


We are still in doubt about the releasing date of iPhone 5 for the fact that a July iPhone 5 release stands against the fall timeframe of the iPhone.
So, we have to wait and see when Apple releases the new iPhone 5 officially.

Low-flying projectile: Saab's PhoeniX concept car

Well, it may not be able to fly, but it is nonetheless a car with wings ... or in this case, winglets. Unveiled at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show, the Saab PhoeniX concept car pays homage to the automaker's roots in aviation with roof-mounted winglets designed to channel airflow from the sides of the car and across its rear deck, thereby reducing lift forces without increasing drag. Other notable features include butterfly opening doors, stalk-mounted rearward cameras, an electrically-driven rear axle and Saab's new upgradable Android-based IQon entertainment and communications system.

The 6-speed PhoeniX is powered by a 1.6-liter 200 hp gasoline turbo engine, which is supported by the company's new eXWD system. This consists of a 34 hp electric motor/generator and battery pack that powers the rear axle, giving the car a more fuel-efficient version of all-wheel drive. The drive unit's battery is sustained via regenerative braking.

The concept sports three eXWD modes. According to the press release: "The default Eco mode delivers optimal fuel and CO2 efficiency with power assistance to reduce load on the gasoline engine at low speeds; Sport mode includes maximum power assistance with torque vectoring across the rear axle for greater chassis control; and Traction mode enables optimal grip at take-off and in slippery conditions."

Umeox unveils solar-powered Android phone

You may not have heard of Chinese mobile phone maker Umeox Mobile, but odds are you’ve come across one of their handsets at one time or another without realizing it, as its phones are generally re-branded and sold by operators around the world. The company's latest offering announced this week at Mobile World Congress 2011 is due to hit stores later this year. Named after the Greek god of the sun, the Umeox Apollo sports a built-in solar panel on the back for keeping the phone running when you can’t get to an outlet – provided you can get to some sunlight, of course.

Aside from the built-in solar charger, the Apollo’s features aren’t really anything to write – or phone-home – about, but should be fine for anyone who spends plenty of time in away from the convenience of an electrical outlet and doesn’t need the latest whizz-bang features. The Android-powered device has a 3.2-inch 320 x 480 display, 1 GB of internal storage that can be increased via a microSD card slot, FM radio, Bluetooth 2.1 A2DP, 3-megapixel rear camera and 3.5 mm audio jack.

As reported on Mobile Crunch, Umeox looks to be producing two versions of the Apollo – an 850/1900MHz model suited to networks in the U.S. and a 900/1800MHz model compatible with networks in Europe and much of Asia. Umeox says that topping up the phone for daily usage will only take about 2.5 hours of basking in the sun, but recharging a completely flat battery will take around 17 hours.

While a solar panel might seem like a nifty thing to have on your mobile phone, you’d have to ask yourself just how much time your current phone actually spends catching some rays and whether such a feature is worth sacrificing the power of a fully featured smartphone. Judging by the less than stellar success of other solar-panel touting mobile phones such as the Samsung Blue Earth, Sharp Solar Ketaiand Digicel Coral-200-Solar, the answers to these questions seems to be, 'not enough' and 'no'.

The 900/1800MHz model is set for release in Q2 this year, while the 850/1900MHz model is due in Q3 this year.

Report: Android beats Apple in market share

A new report from online research company comScore  gives a new indication that Android is overtaking Apple in popularity among U.S. consumers.

Blackberry-maker Research In Motion continues to lead in market share, with 33.5% of U.S. smart phone subscribers for the three months ending in November 2010. But it lost market share to Google's Android platform, which was up from 19.6% to 26% in the period.
Google narrowly beat Apple for second place. Apple took 25% of the market.
According to comScore, 61.5 million people in the U.S. owned smart phones during the period.

Disappearing Car Door

Vyrus plans to run hub-center steered 986 M2 Factory racebike in Moto2

Boutique Italian motorcycle company Vyrus is hoping to cause a real shake-up in top-level racing by entering its radically unorthodox Vyrus 986 M2 Factory in the heavily standardized Moto2 competition. With the same weight, engine, tires and electronics as its opponents, the Vyrus bike is more or less a controlled experiment in the racetrack effectiveness of hub-center steering. It will be the first time in decades that we've seen a machine enter top-level racing without a set of traditional telescopic forks at the front end. If it succeeds, it has a real chance at causing a suspension revolution in the sportsbike world. Oh, and there's streetbike and kit versions available too. Very exciting news.
Wish vyrus a good luck!

BMW Vision ConnectedDrive concept: the car as a fully integrated part of the networked world

BMW Vision ConnectedDrive concept: the car as a fully integrated part of the networked world

Like every other object in the world, the car is about to become networked. A glimpse into the automotive benefits of our networked future will be on show at the Geneva Motor Show next month when BMW shows its Vision ConnectedDrive concept car. The concept study, in a two-seat roadster guise, presents the automobile as a fully integrated part of the networked world in both its design and technological innovations. It is with this concept that BMW presents the potential of current and future in-car technology for optimizing comfort, safety and infotainment.

The BMW Vision ConnectedDrive employs a layering principal in its design, demonstrating the bond between the driver, passenger, vehicle and the surrounding environment. This is visualized by the complex light installation which shows the path of data exchange with the driver and passenger as the start and end point of each interaction.
The interior is divided into three layers – comfort, infotainment and safety – each with a corresponding light installation. Each layer is defined by a color, rhythm, motion and texture and, through the transparent surfaces the path taken by the information can be seen via fiber optic lighting.
The BMW Vision ConnectedDrive demonstrates the interaction between the driver and the passenger and shows how networking with the environment can reach new levels.........

G-Slate tablet headed for T-Mobile spring release

T-Mobile and LG have announced the G-Slate tablet with 8.9-inch multi-touch display, Tegra 2 processor, 32GB of storage and wireless connectivity over Wi-Fi or T-Mobile's HSPA super fast mobile broadband.

 

Motorola's Xoom may have grabbed most of the Android 3.0 headlines of late but it's not the only tablet to run on Google's new tablet-optimized operating system. T-Mobile and LG have announced a spring release window for the newest member of the G-series of mobile devices, the G-Slate. The Tegra 2-powered device features 3D-capable, high definition display and can record stereoscopic HD video via its rear-facing cameras. Wireless connectivity is also given a speed boost thanks to T-Mobile's growing HSPA+ network.
In addition to being Wi-Fi-capable, the G-Slate will also be able to wirelessly connect to T-Mobile's HSPA+ network, which offers theoretical download speeds of up to 21Mbps and has already been rolled out to more than 100 major metropolitan areas in the U.S. It's not quite 4G as defined by the International Telecommunication Union (which has determined that the only LTE-Advanced and WirelessMAN-Advanced currently qualify as true 4G technologies) but it's still damn quick.
G-Slate users can view up to 720p high definition content on the 8.9-inch, multi-touch display but the screen is also 3D-capable. You will need to use glasses to view the 3D content on the display, although whether those will need to be active or passive has not been revealed. If you want to play 3D or HD video on a suitably large television then the device can output full 1080p HD video via an included HDMI-out port.
Motorola xoom will make your life more zoom to others! :)

Volkswagen to unveil 261 mpg XL1 prototype in Qatar

At the dawn of the millennium, Prof. Dr. Ferdinand Piëch, who is today Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Volkswagen AG, set his sights on creating a practical everyday use production car with a fuel consumption of 1.0 liter per 100 km (235 mpg). In 2002 a prototype VW 1-Litre was unveiled, which was followed in 2009 by the second-generation model, dubbed the L1, which boasted a combined diesel fuel consumption figure of 1.38-liter/100 km (170 mpg). As impressive as that figure is, the company has now managed to squeeze a combined fuel consumption of just 0.9-liter/100 km (261 mpg) with its third-generation VW 1-Litre prototype – the XL1.
With a combined fuel consumption of just 0.9-liter/100 km and CO2 emissions of 24 g/km, VW is calling the XL1 is the most efficient car in the world. This is achieved through a combination of lightweight construction using monocoque and add-on parts made of carbon fiber, very low aerodynamic drag (Cd 0.186) and a plug-in hybrid system consisting of a two cylinder TDI engine (35 kW/48 PS), E-motor (20 kW/27 PS), 7-speed dual clutch transmission (DSG) and lithium ion battery.