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VIDEO: Facebook shares due to go on sale

Sun, 20 May 2012 13:24:14 +0000

One of the biggest floatations ever seen on world stock markets will take place today when shares in the social networking site Facebook go on sale.
BBC News – Technology

Researchers develop silicon ReRAM chip, send warning shot to Flash memory

Sun, 20 May 2012 10:59:28 +0000

Does the word ReRAM ring a bell? No? Well, the key point is that it’s much faster than NAND memory, and it’s making its way into chips from Elpida, Sharp and Panasonic. Further proof that ReRAM is on the up and up? Researchers at University College London have used this technology to make a chip that operates at 100 times the speed of standard Flash memory. The device is composed completely of silicon oxide, which improves the chip’s resistance, and it doesn’t require a vacuum to work (which makes it cheaper to produce). But this new chip is more than just a faster alternative to Flash; its ability to move between different states of conductivity means it can be configured as a memristor, or a device that handles both data-processing and storage tasks. In the long term, researchers hope this technology can pave the way for silicon oxide CPUs — and UCL is already using this design to help develop transparent memory chips for mobile devices. Need to know more? Feast your heart on the gritty details via the link below.

Researchers develop silicon ReRAM chip, send warning shot to Flash memory originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 May 2012 06:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Phys.org | | Email this | Comments
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Alternative Wii U controller design makes brief appearance on Twitter, goes into hiding

Sun, 20 May 2012 07:02:27 +0000

Excited for Nintendo’s new tablet-esque controller? So are the kids in TT Games’ QA department. An over-excited tester tweeted out an image of a slightly different Wii U slab than the one we laid hands on at E3 2011, teasing “look we what we have at work!” Answering the call does indeed reveal something worth looking at — a somewhat wider looking Wii U slate featuring two full-sized analog sticks (as opposed to 3DS-like circle pads), a pair of unmarked button-like squares, and a new starboard home for the controller’s plus and minus buttons.

The tweet was summarily pulled, of course, but not before our friends at Joystiq nabbed a screenshot. Naturally, the rumor mill started right up, churning out speculation of developer specific slabs, early prototypes and late redesigns. The truth? We’ll probably need to wait until E3 to find out, but we reached out to Nintendo for a comment all the same. We’ll let you know if we hear anything more than the usual “Nintendo doesn’t comment on rumors and speculation” line.

Alternative Wii U controller design makes brief appearance on Twitter, goes into hiding originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 May 2012 02:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Joystiq | Twitter | Email this | Comments
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VIDEO: Facebook shares see modest debut

Sun, 20 May 2012 03:16:13 +0000

Facebook shares ended their first day of trading at $ 38.23, barely above the company’s initial pricing of $ 38.
BBC News – Technology

Ask Engadget: Electric commuting on the cheap?

Sun, 20 May 2012 02:58:16 +0000

We know you’ve got questions, and if you’re brave enough to ask the world for answers, here’s the outlet to do so. This week’s Ask Engadget inquiry is from is from Warren, who wants to find an electrical moped within his budget. If you’re looking to send in an inquiry of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com.

“What’s the cheapest two-wheeled electric vehicle that goes over 45mph available in the US? I looked at the Gas-powered $ 2,500 Sym Symba, but as far as I can tell, I’d have to spend four times that much for an electric equivalent. Am I missing something? Thank you!”

Unfortunately, you are. The biggest barrier to joining the EV parade is the price of batteries, which are often more expensive than the vehicles they’re situated inside. For example, even a motorized bicycle like the Grace One is $ 6,000 — but that’s as far as our knowledge goes on the subject. Perhaps there is a solution out there, all it needs is for one of our friendly commenters to tell all in the river of text below.

Ask Engadget: Electric commuting on the cheap? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 May 2012 22:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Engadget Mobile Podcast 138 – 05.19.2012

Sat, 19 May 2012 22:59:12 +0000

Borders. Here at the Engadget Mobile Podcast, we’re so over them. That’s why we let former Engadget Mobile CEO-in-chief Chris Ziegler come back and hang out on our side of the fence for a few hours, no matter where he comes from. You know who’s NOT over border? The United States Border Patrol, Division of Potential Patent Infringements on Apple Intellectual Property. Be a fence-sitter with us for a little while: it’s not so bad up here (and we get great reception).

Hosts: Myriam Joire (tnkgrl), Brad Molen
Guest: Chris Ziegler
Producer: Trent Wolbe
Music: Tycho – Coastal Brake (Ghostly International)

00:01:06 – Best Buy expects EVO 4G LTE to land May 23rd, HTC remains cautious
00:03:00 – Apple, HTC ordered by judge to sit down, try and make nice on August 28th
00:07:00 – HTC One X and EVO 4G LTE delayed at customs due to ITC exclusion order (updated)
00:13:15 – HTC EVO 4G LTE for Sprint review (updated)
00:30:00 – T-Mobile CEO Philipp Humm issues memo discussing restructuring plans, more jobs affected
00:48:06 – HTC confirms One X multitasking tweaks in Sense 4
00:51:30 – NTT DoCoMo’s Galaxy S III to ship with 2GB RAM?
00:59:27 – LG shows off UI 3.0 for Ice Cream Sandwich devices, says it’s ‘unobtrusive and simple’
01:06:22 – Google reportedly planning stable of Nexus devices with Android 5.0, will sell ‘em direct
01:15:48 – Verizon CFO says grandfathered unlimited plans on the way out
01:18:07 – WSJ: Apple moving towards larger iPhone screens
01:30:05 – Report: Apple dumping Google for own Maps app in iOS 6 (update)

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Contact the podcast
podcast (at) engadgetmobile (dot) com.

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@tnkgrl @phonewisdom @zpower @engadgetmobile

Engadget Mobile Podcast 138 – 05.19.2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 May 2012 18:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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China clears Google acquisition of Motorola, eliminates last barrier to Googorola bliss

Sat, 19 May 2012 18:59:13 +0000

The final significant roadblock to Google’s buyout of Motorola has been cleared, as Chinese regulators have just given their rubber stamp. Their approval follows a few months after the simultaneous American and European clearances, and virtually all that’s left now is to formally close the deal and start integrating the two mobile giants. It might still come too late for the combined entity to present a united front at Google I/O, but at least they won’t have any awkward glances at each other across the room. We’re just trying to decide on whether or not Googorola is the best pet name for the loving, $ 12.5 billion-dollar Android union.

China clears Google acquisition of Motorola, eliminates last barrier to Googorola bliss originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 May 2012 14:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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VIDEO: The low-cost tablets battling Apple

Sat, 19 May 2012 17:15:52 +0000

LJ Rich takes a look at the low-cost tablets battling Apple’s dominance in India. BBC News – Technology Related posts: VIDEO: Could tablets kill the PC? EAFT Magic Tile and Compal tablets shown in India, Tegra 2 and Android in tow Archos said to have two new Android tablets on track for CeBIT Related posts:

Dish warns the FCC its 4G LTE might come in earnest as late as 2016

Sat, 19 May 2012 15:00:16 +0000

Dish has been tranquil about facing a longer FCC review period for its planned LTE-based 4G network, and now we might have an idea as to why. The satellite TV giant is telling the FCC that it only expects coverage to reach up to 60 million potential customers “within four years,” or about 2016 — six years after MetroPCS and Verizon first flicked their respective 4G switches. This is also assuming that the 3GPP cellular standards group clears the AWS-4 frequency band for LTE use. There’s speculation that Dish is giving the extra time so that it can sell the spectrum later, but we’d take the safe road and assume Dish is serious. After all, AT&T wouldn’t be trying to set tough conditions for Dish’s LTE if it didn’t think there was possibly significant competition on the way.

Dish warns the FCC its 4G LTE might come in earnest as late as 2016 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 May 2012 10:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink GigaOM | FCC (PDF) | Email this | Comments
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Researchers tout efficiency breakthrough with new ‘inexact’ chip

Sat, 19 May 2012 11:00:35 +0000

Accuracy is generally an important consideration in computer chips, but a team of researchers led by Rice University are touting a new “inexact” chip (dubbed PCMOS) that they say could lead to as much as a fifteen-fold increase in efficiency. Their latest work, which won a best paper award at a recent ACM conference, builds on years of research in the field from the university, and is already moving far beyond the lab — some inexact hardware is being used in the “i-slate” educational tablet developed by the Rice-NTU Institute for Sustainable and Applied Infodynamics, 50,000 of which are expected to wind up in India’s Mahabubnagar school district over the next three years. As for the chips themselves, their inexactness comes not just from one process, but a variety of different measures that can be used on their own or together — including something the researchers describe as “pruning,” which eliminate rarely used portions of the chip. All of that naturally comes with some trade-offs (less defined video processing is one example given), but the researchers say those are often outweighed by the benefits — like cheaper, faster chips that require far less power.

Researchers tout efficiency breakthrough with new ‘inexact’ chip originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 May 2012 06:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink TechEye | Rice University | Email this | Comments
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