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Get flash to fully experience Pearltrees
We're here at CES Showstoppers and we've just managed to wrangle ourselves a sneaky-peek at the currently-in-development Plex client for Windows Phone 7 . Plex is an XMBC spin-off that's quickly becoming a favorite of serious home theater users and the range of devices you can get the service on (Google TV, iOS, OSX, Android, Samsung Smart TVs) is growing rapidly. The Windows Phone 7 client lets you use your device as a remote control for your media setup or stream it straight to your device.
Plex for Windows Phone 7 client hands-on (video)
Boxee Box Live TV dongle hands-on (video)
Boxee is here at Showstoppers, where they've put the Boxee Box Live TV dongle on full display. Initially announced back in November, this tool pipes coaxial signals through to a user's Boxee Box, allowing users to connect their antennas to a Box and stream select channels at no monthly fee. The system also features Facebook integration, allowing you to see what shows your friends are watching, with their profiles displayed under each show within the sidebar menu.ESI 250 deskphone wants to make business smartphones easy (hands-on)
Over at Showstoppers, ESI offered up an Android-based desktop phones hoping to bring the world of Google's OS kicking and screaming onto a business desk near you. The ESI 250 runs on Android Froyo (2.2), with a color display capable of running a limited bunch of (ESI-vetted) third-party Android apps like Evernote, text messaging and visible voicemail and reminders. Looks-wise, aside from the touchscreen, it's business as usual. The Android interface is a little sluggish, although our major issue is that we want to be handling Gingerbread by now, if not Ice Cream Sandwich.
Update to Google Maps improves battery life, public transit options and more
A new version of Google Maps has hit the Android Market today, which simultaneously brings fresher location tracking within Latitude and better battery life -- two welcome improvements that seem contrary to one another. There's also a couple goodies included for the transit-minded folks, as Navigation has been updated to better estimate location when GPS signal is lost, and the number of route options for public transit users has been increased from three to four. Sure, the changes are rather incremental, but who's honestly going to argue with greater battery life?HomePlug Alliance AV2 specification promises gigabit class networking over electrical wires
HomePlug® Powerline Alliance Announces AV2 Specification for Next-Generation Broadband Speeds over Powerline Wires Global Standard Meets Burgeoning Demands of Home Networking with Expanded Coverage and Performance Portland, Ore. - January 9, 2012 - The HomePlug® Powerline Alliance (www.homeplug.org), the world's leading industry group for powerline networking, today announced the availability of the HomePlug AV2 specification. This new HomePlug technology enables significant performance and coverage for broadband networking over powerline wires while remaining fully interoperable with existing HomePlug AV / IEEE 1901 compliant products used in millions of consumers' homes and widely available worldwide from service providers and retail stores. HomePlug's digital entertainment technology provides high-quality networking over existing wiring within the home to any device with an Ethernet port or even to extend the range of a Wi-Fi router.
Over 800 Million HDMI-Compliant Products Expected to Ship in 2012; 43 Member Companies Join the HDMI Forum to Participate in the Next Generation of the HDMI Specification SUNNYVALE, Calif. January 9, 2012 – HDMI Licensing, LLC and the HDMI Forum, Inc., today announced that over 1,150 licensed HDMI Adopters are expected to ship over 800 million HDMI-compliant products in 2012 according to market research firm In-Stat; an increase of 17% over shipments in the year 2011.
HDMI standard continues its ascent, new specification expected for second half of 2012
Mad Catz® Announces Cyborg™ F.R.E.Q.™ 5 Pro Gaming Headset for PC and Mac New Stereo Headset Expands Award Winning Cyborg Range SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mad Catz Interactive, Inc.
Mad Catz readies latest gaming headset: F.R.E.Q 5 makes you look a bit like one
Lumus was showing off two different types of wearable displays, the development kit -- or DK-32 shown above -- and the PD-18-4 a monocular version using the same technology. Driven by Lumus' patented Light-guide Optical Element, a micro-display pod, and the Optical Engine which projects light into the lens -- where it is reflected back to the user's eye via reflectors embedded in the lens -- the Lumus' DK-32 delivers a bright 720p 3D-capable display that only weighs 27 grams. The effect is really quite impressive, the colors are bright -- and adjustable using the display pod -- and images were surprisingly clear. But the best part, of course, is that while you're watching YouTube vids and walking about you'll avoid stumbling into objects and passersby. Also on hand was the monocle which was very much like something you'd see in a science fiction flick.
Lumus see-through wearable display hands-on
Like us, you're probably wondering what's new with TiVo at CES . Typically the company doesn't issue press releases during CES, or even announce new products, but private meetings are held in TiVo's meeting space. In said space, we were able to take in demos of the latest Netflix and YouTube interfaces running on the TiVo Premiere .
Updated TiVo Netflix, YouTube interfaces and iPad streaming hands-on
While the majority of the tech industry prepares to go all in on this week's CES madness , a certain Mr. Ben Heck's been busying himself with an homage to the Vegas event. In the spirit of consumer electronics, he's gone ahead and retrofitted a gamepad enclosure to Apple's iPhone . Using a modified circuit board taken from an iCade , Heck was able to craft a plastic enclosure and buttons, made with a 3D printer, to neatly surround the device and borrowed silicon. Click on past the break to watch Ben walkthrough what he does best, which is to say, not gaming.
Ben Heck guts an iCade to build iPhone gamepad, salutes CES in the process (video)
OnLive Console-class Gaming to be Integrated into All Google TV Devices OnLive Viewer Available Now for All Current Google TV Devices Full OnLive Gameplay Coming Soon as Standard Offering OnLive Gameplay Showcased on VIZIO VAP430 Stream Player at CES Current and Future Google TV Devices Support OnLive Wireless Controller Palo Alto, CA – January 11, 2012 – OnLive, Inc., the pioneer of instant-play videogames and instant-action cloud computing, announced today that Google will be integrating the revolutionary OnLive cloud gaming service as a standard feature of the Google TV platform on all devices from all manufacturers. OnLive brings to Google TV users instant on-demand gameplay from a rapidly growing library of the latest high-performance console-class titles, as well exclusive social features such as worldwide massive spectating and Brag Clip® videos with full group voice and text chat.
OnLive Viewer comes to Google TV, full gameplay capability coming soon
IK Multimedia presents iRig MIC Cast The ultra-compact voice recording microphone for iPhone/iPod touch/iPad January 2012 - IK Multimedia is proud to present iRig™ Mic Cast, the ultra-compact portable voice recording microphone designed specifically for recording podcasts, interviews, lectures, voice memos, speeches and more. iRig MIC Cast provides a pocket-sized voice recording solution with crystal-clear audio quality.
IK Multimedia reveals trio of iRig iOS accessories for mobile podcasting and music making
Polaroid cameras back from the dead (again) after deal with Vivitar-owner Sakar
Exclusive Partnership Provides Sakar with Rights to Design and Manufacture Polaroid Digital Still Cameras and Digital Video Products in North America and Portions of Latin America MINNEAPOLIS– Jan. 9, 2012 – Polaroid today announced an exclusive licensing agreement with Sakar International Inc., a leading provider of consumer electronics. Sakar will leverage its expertise in designing and manufacturing Vivitar photographic equipment to continue extending Polaroid's market footprint. Under the agreement, Sakar will develop a line of Polaroid-branded digital still cameras and digital video products as part of a licensing program that has substantially expanded the Polaroid portfolio in the past year. "We're thrilled to unite Polaroid's unparalleled experience in the imaging space with Sakar's expertise in retail distribution and sourcing," said Scott W. Hardy, president of Polaroid.Seriously, this is the future that China's envisioning: huge friggin' buses engulfing smaller cars on the road. Despite the silly picture and the eccentric "3D Express Coach" branding, this cunning project by Shenzhen Huashi Future Car-Parking Equipment actually makes sense. The idea is to make use of the space between regular-size cars and bridges, thus saving construction costs as well as minimizing congestion impact by allowing cars to drive underneath these jumbo buses.
China to build ginormous buses that cars can drive under (video)
In among all the hard news of today's second Google I/O keynote, we were treated to a tease of a Google Chrome OS nettop, which to our ears sounded like it was called a Chromebox. What we've no doubt about is that Google is planning a desktop version of its web-centric OS, which -- together with that Samsung-branded computer above -- is going to be showing up at some point in our collective future. Light on details, but rich on intrigue, just the way we like it. <p style="text-align:right;color:#A8A8A8"></p>