Skyfire, a moble web-browser maker, launched Skyfire 2.0 for Android today. The browser uses cloud computing to deliver reach media to mobile phones. Version 2.0 now adds what the company calls SkyBar, which is a toolbar that enables users to view flash videos that are embedded on any web page, and sharing with social networks via three icons: Video, Related Content, and Sharing.
USB 3.0 is the newest USB technology to the market, problem is most computers even new ones do not have USB 3.0 technology built-in. Thankfully companies like StarTech have released adapters so that we can fill up one of our empty PCI express ports with a USB 3.0 controller card.
The StarTech PCI Express SuperSpeed USB 3.0 Controller Card (geez that’s a long name) connects to your PCI-Express 1x port. Most motherboards I have seen have two but may only have one free, as a lot of OEMs are using one of the ports for either wireless cards or fire wire.
Today Research in Motion (RIM) announced a 3G BlackBerry Pearl, and both RIM and Sprint announced the Bold 9650 which will be available on the Sprint network soon.
No word as of yet on which network the 3G Pearl will end up but my guess would be at&t or Sprint. CellRants.com has a quick write up on both phones so check them out there.
In Korea today (it’s tomorrow for them) Samsung announced an addition to the STORY station line with the new STORY Station 3.0. A USB 3.0 compliant external HDD. The new STORY Station 3.0 can deliver up to 5 Gbps of data transfer which is 10 times faster than the previous model.
“The Samsung STORY™ Station 3.0 has been built for advanced users who demand fast transfer speed and data security without sacrificing design,” said H.S. Lee, vice president, storage marketing, Samsung Electronics. “The STORY Station creates a seamless user experience that allows users to move large chunks of high-quality multimedia content with minimal wait time.”
Last month Microsoft announced two new Life-Cams the HD-5000 and HD-5001 (for laptops) both with TrueColor Technology. A technology which was designed to improve the colors in the worst of lighting situations. A week or so after the announcement I was able to get my hands on the HD-5000 and after misplacing it for another week I finally got to play with it.
I am not one to follow instructions so I tossed the manual and plugged the camera into my computer. It instantly worked on Windows 7 and the picture quality was superb. But for the life of me I could not figure out how to use the TrueColor feature.
Sufian unboxed the Novero TheTalkyOne, a speaker phone for your cell phone. Great for incar use.
I received Motorola’s MOTOROKR S9-HD Wireless Stereo Headphones last week. The S9-HD, the second of the S9 series by Motorola, sports Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP support, is somewhat lightweight (38g), and wraps around the back of your head with each earpiece resting in your ear. The S9-HD allows you to move around and commute without having to worry about wires tangling. The left end of the headphones has controls for your music device, while the right has controls for volume and mobile phone. In this review I’ll break down a few pros and cons that I’ve observed over the course of the past week while using the headphones with my Nexus One smartphone, an iPhone, and my iPod.
GameStop today announced it will be hosting nationwide Wii Fit Plus Demo days. On April 25th and May 2nd at 100 stores across the US from 1 to 4 p.m. During the demo days you and your kids can learn about added features of the Wii Fit Plus from Nintendo Representatives and Gamestop associates.
For a list of participating locations, visit http://www.gamestop.com/wiidemo.
Today Lenovo introduced its new ThinkPad L series designed for Business, Education and Government Customers. The new L412 and L512 are powered by the latest intel processor, and are supposed to be the greenest laptops on the market. Lenovo backs up that claim by saying 30% of the machines are made up with post consumer content from office water jugs and used IT equipment.
Some of the Key Features on the systems are a 16:9 HD screen 14 inches for the 412 and 15 for the 512, choice between intel and ATI graphics, 3G/4G Connectivity provided by AT&T, Sprint (4G) and Verizon. Battery life of up to 8 hours and Windows 7 with Lenovo Enhanced Experience which features an up to 57% faster boot time. Something I was able to experience and verify on a different ThinkPad.
Today Symantec announced the availability of the Norton 2011 Beta Software. The Beta software is free for everyone to try out and you can download it over at http://www.norton.com/beta.
I have been using the beta for a little close to two months now, and I continued to be impressed by how Symantec has reworked their software to not only be resource friendly but user friendly. I litterally installed the software on my mothers computer, and she was able to figure it out herself. For example she isn’t a big fan of the Identity Safe feature in Norton Internet Seucirty so she always disables it and she was happy that it was so easy to disable in the 2011 beta. That’s just one example of how much easier Norton has made their product.