The R1 will come in 16GB and 8GB versions that will both ship in April for $149.99 and $179.99 respectively. The R0 PMP will also be offered in 8GB and 16GB versions shipping in April for $99.99 and $129.99 respectively.

The R1 features a 2.4-inch TFT LCD touchscreen with drag and drop media loading. The R1’s battery is good for up to 50 hours of audio playback and four hours of video per charge. It also features a FM tuner and recorder along with support for Bluetooth headsets. The R0 has a 2.6-inch LCD and has enough juice for six hours of video and 30 hours of audio along with a microSD card slot for storage expansion.

Via : Slash Gear

Samsung has teamed up with publisher Barnes and Noble who will deliver content to their new E6 eReader, and it is capable of reading a range of file formats which include e-pub, PDF/a, TXT, bmp and jpg.

“We are very excited to be entering the explosive eReader market with a device that brings the best of a traditional reading experience into the digital age,” said Reid Sullivan, Senior Vice President at Samsung Electronics America. “Samsung prides itself on identifying and fulfilling unmet consumer needs through innovation, and the eReader is emblematic of that approach. We are partnering with the best in the business to offer access to an extensive array of content, and have developed innovative features and technologies designed to make reading that content as personal and intimate an experience as reading a hard copy book has always been.”

The Samsung E6 eReader also comes with built-in front speakers and a headphone jack to plug it whenever you need some privacy, features the company’s text-to-speech (TTS) technology that will read text aloud. Other specs include Bluetooth 2.0 and Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g) connectivity.

On top of that there is a built-in MP3 player for your favorite audio content, and 2GB of storage space (expandable by 16GB via a microSD card) for you to store up to 1,500 books or 24,000 pages of memo.

The new Samsung E6 reader will debut on Barnes & Noble website sometime this Spring for $299.

(www.samsung.com, www.barnesandnoble.com)

Published on March 11, 2010

The company is partnering in this launch with publishers including Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, 2K Games, THQ and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. The games will also include new releases like Mass Effect 2, Borderlands, Assassin’s Creed II, Dragon Age: Origins, as well as a bunch of other titles. CEO Steve Perlman anticipates anywhere from a dozen to 25 titles to be available at launch time, and more after that in the future.

Intially the service will run on Macs and PCs as a browser plugin, but the MicroConsole TV adapter will be slated for release later this year, along with other devices. The service will stream at 720p, but 1080p full-HD at 60 fps will be added “as the bandwidth becomes available”.

Via : Slash Gear

“Securing high definition content from these studios is another significant milestone further validating PlayStation Network as a complete entertainment network in the home. PlayStation Network is the first and only service to deliver high definition home entertainment from all six major studios, directly to consumers for download,” said Peter Dille, senior vice president, marketing and PlayStation Network, SCEA.

The PS3 system enables consumers to play games in HD, listen to music, view photos, browse the Internet and its built-in Blu-ray player gives owners HD movie content, too, via Blu-ray discs. This latest announcement means consumers can skip the process of visiting a “bricks and mortar” shop to purchase latest release movies from the major studios.

New titles available on PlayStation Network include: 20th Century Fox – Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, Jennifer’s Body and Fantastic Mr Fox (on March 23); Walt Disney Pictures – Disney Pixar’s Up, Jerry Bruckheimer’s G-Force and Disney’s Earth; Paramount Pictures – Star Trek, Paranormal Activity and Zoolander; Sony Pictures – This Is It, 2012, District 9 and Zombieland; Universal – Inglourious Basterds, Couples Retreat and Public Enemies; Warner Bros. Digital Distribution – The Hangover, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince and The Wizard of Oz.

To begin with, content will be available in the US only, but Sony says it has plans to launch soon in the UK, France, Germany, and Spain. (http://us.playstation.com)

Published on March 11, 2010

With portability comes sized-down inconveniences relating to monitors, keyboard and navigation products. The Warpia Easy Dock allows users to wirelessly connect their netbook/notebook/MacBook to any traditional desktop setting so it’s easier on the eyes, ears and hands.

The Warpia is based on wireless technology from Wisair and comprises a USB dongle that connects to your laptop, and a receiver that connects to your monitor, mouse, keyboard, and speakers. Your laptop will instantly recognize the dongle and begin submitting a wireless signal to the receiver, transmitting the image with a resolution of up to 1400 x 1050 to your monitor.

“The Easy Dock gives customers ultimate portability and comfort,” says Marc Levaggi, VP of Marketing for Source R&D.  “They can take their compact notebook to business meetings, while still having the option to do more intensive work at home with a full-size keyboard and monitor. It’s also a great solution for those who want to play media on high quality speakers.”

The $149.99 Easy Dock is compatible with Windows 7, Vista, XP, Mac OS X Leopard, and Snow Leopard. (http://warpia.com)

Published on March 11, 2010

Cloak is a sleek, sturdy case for the Apple iPad with a modern design resembling an office folder. It’s made of non-slip rubber, and features a hinged protective plastic cover.  The case also doubles as a stand for the iPad that works in both portrait and landscape orientations.

The iPad slides into the case through a top opening and is held in place by a sturdy friction grip. You can fold the Cloak’s front cover behind the iPad, and use the plastic support brace located on the product’s inside cover to prop up the iPad screen vertically/portraid mode.

Or for a landscape position, open Cloak’s front cover and use it to prop up the iPad’s screen from behind. Depending on your viewing preference, the cover can click into different angles by pressing a button on the hinge.

You might remember other successful Quirky products including the Split Stick, a double-sided USB drive; the DigiDude, a portable camera tripod and keychain; the Scratch-n-Scroll, a mousepad with a writing surface; and the PowerCurl , a cord wrap for Apple’s MagSafe power adapter. Quirky engages participants to collaborate in every aspect of product creation — from ideation, design, naming, manufacturing, marketing, right on through to sales.

Anyone can participate on Quirky.com either by submitting their own product idea for $99, or by voting, rating, and influencing other people’s product ideas. Cooler still, 30¢ of every dollar generated from the sale of a Quirky product goes back to these influencers. Every week, users post ideas on Quirky to be rated by the Quirky community. The community surveys the submissions during a seven-day evaluation period and selects one product to move forward into product development. Quirky’s community then begins weighing in on everything from naming to logo selection to packaging through to prototype.

The final product becomes available for pre-sale in the Quirky online store (quirky.com/products). Once the product hits its pre-sale threshold, credit cards are charged, and the product goes into production and delivery. At this point, 30¢ of every dollar made from the sale of these products goes back to the community. “Community” in this case covers both the ideator as well as all people who voted, commented, and rated the project idea along the way.

Having said that, you can probably surmise that the Cloak doesn’t actually exist yet, and in fact may change somewhat by the time the first production models roll off the line.  In exchange for their early commitment, presale buyers get a discounted price ($36 instead of the $42 that it will cost eventually), and free shipping.  Also noteworthy, the iPad goes on sale beginning April 3rd.

(www.quirky.com)

Published on March 11, 2010

MSI has announced the availability of the new Wind12 U230-033 and U230-040.  The new models will replace the successful Wind12 U210, a favorite among netbook users looking for a larger screen and more computing power.

Upgrades to this new generation of netbooks include the first Wind to feature a dual core processor and Bluetooth connectivity. Weighing in at just 3.3 pounds both versions of the U230 ship with 2GB of DDR2 memory, with a 6-cell battery and Windows 7 Home Premium operating system.  The newest editions to the Wind family are loaded with a 12.1” HD (1366×768) 16:9 aspect ratio LCD and an ATI Radeon HD 3200 graphics card.  The combination delivers a bright widescreen visual experience with exceptional color saturation and crisp imagery.

The Wind12 U230 also features MSI’s EDS (Ergonomic De-stress) keyboard with keys that are 51% larger than those on a standard keyboard.  The larger keys greatly improve finger contact range, which reduces stress on fingers and wrists to improve accuracy and comfort. Additionally, MSI included a 1.3M webcam, HDMI port, 3 USB 2.0 ports, VGA port, and a 4×1 card reader in the new U230 notebooks.

The new Wind12 U230 models are available now at Newegg.com starting at $429.99.  MSI offers a 1-year limited warranty with extended customer services hours at 1-888-447-6564.

(www.msimobile.com)

Published on March 11, 2010

Sony wants to capitalize on this new love for an old (but vastly improved (and still improving)) technology, so they’ve made sure the Blu-Ray Disc player is able to handle the 3D technology, and they’ve got it perfectly planned to gain that capability in tandem with Sony’s release of their BRAVIA 3D TVs. That’s right. If you go with Sony, eventually everything will be in 3D. Sony is touting that the industry’s first Blu-Ray Disc home theater system is getting “upgraded” to 3D capabilities by the Summer, and we honestly can’t blame them.

That’s a great big next step, and we’re glad that Sony isn’t making people pay for a whole new system if they don’t want to. The system itself is able to offer full 1080p playback; along with offer some great Internet streaming sites, such as Netflix, Amazon On-Demand, Slacker Inernet Radio (Pandora is coming in the Spring), Sony Pictures, and Sony Music. There’s also the exclusive iPhone/iPod Touch Blu-Ray Disc remote, which we told you about before. If this is sounding like something you want, head on over to Best Buy right now and get ready to drop about $550. But hey, at least you get 3D in a few months, right? Now, just start saving up for that BRAVIA TV.

Via : Slash Gear

The concept is a MIDI instrument for digital musicians that can replicate the sound of any guitar setup. The pickups and frets on the guitar are digital inputs and the neck is touch sensitive. One thing that you lose with a guitar lacking strings is the feel of the strings vibrating.

The designer says that the concept uses piezo-electric actuators to emulate vibrations corresponding to the played note. That means in a nutshell that the guitar offers faux sting vibrations so you feel like you are playing with strings.

Via : Slash Gear

All you need to do is connect either up to a 3D TV and they’ll deliver full 1080p 3D viewing using Sony’s Active Shutter technology.

Each device can also hook up to the web to access the new Bravia Internet Video service, which features catch-up TV, including the BBC iPlayer. There’s also the ability to stream rented movies via LOVEFiLM – a feature also coming to some Sony Bravia TVs – and the players can access YouTube to boot.

The BDP-S570 also comes with Wi-Fi, while the BDP-S470 uses an ethernet connection, but it can be upgraded to wireless using a Sony USB Wi-Fi dongle.   Plus, a bonus feature of these players is that they can both be controlled by using an iPhone or iPod touch!

Both players will be available by the end of March, but Sony hasn’t released pricing yet. (www.sony.com)

Published on March 10, 2010