The HTC ChaCha is now available for purchase through the Phones 4U dealer in the UK. The phone is the first have a dedicated Facebook button and integrate major FB functionality into the device.
The Phone can be had for free on a 20 £/month contract or a 300 £ outright pay as you go plan. Check out the link and specs below.
[Phones4U]
A year after the EPIC sequel to one of Blizzard Entertainment’s most successful games, Starcraft was launched, a cinematic trailer to the second part of the Starcraft 2 Trilogy has been released. Watch the video and drool… :-P
On Tuesday, Twitter officially announced its new “Follow Button” that web developers can down insert into their websites for an easier way to gain new followers. We also got the button and you can spot it in our sidebar .
Simply head over to twitter.com/followbutton to configure yours and get the HTML embed code now.
Yesterday, Apple released an update for Snow Leopard to detect and warn useres if they have installed a fake Mac security software called MacDefender. The term ‘Scareware’ basically means that the software will plague users with popups and alerts warning them that their computer is infested with trojans, worms and other malware. To get rid of these popups users have to fork over $60 to $80 to purchase the registered version of the useless software.
The update, labelled 2011-003, adds a new definition to the rudimentary virus detection engine embedded in Snow Leopard, and also increases the requency with which it checks for definition updates to daily. This brings the total tally of antivirus definitions on the Mac AV engine to 6.
This update was only offered to users running OS X 10.6 aka Snow Leopard. Macs powered by the older 10.5 Leopard OS will not recieve the same anti-MacDefender protection. Users can download the update from the apple website or update their system using the regular ‘Software Update’.
UPDATE:
The people responsible for the fake Mac security software has already updated their “scareware” to evade defenses Apple put in place late Tuesday, a French security company Intego confirmed today. “Apple’s [antivirus] did not detect the new sample,” said Peter James, a spokesman for Intego. According to James, the new malware file is identified as “mdinstall.pkg” and if installed, plants the phony MacDefender software on the victim’s Mac.
Intego confirmed that the scammers had created a new version that wasn’t detected by Apple’s new defenses. “This isn’t surprising, that there’s a new variant out almost as soon as Apple released its security update Tuesday,” said James. “[The attackers] are following the news, they’re efficient.”
Our present need for internet connectivity is so profound that secondary devices like the Nextep Computer are bound to happen. Developed to be worn as a bracelet, this computer concept is constructed out of a flexible OLED touchscreen. Earmarked for the year 2020, features like a holographic projector (for screen), pull-out extra keyboard panels and social networking compatibility, make the concept plausible. Nine years from now is not too far away, so how many of you think we’d be buying such gadgets?
A flywheel battery is a system that stores electricity in the form of kinetic energy, in a mechanism that has a wheel that spins at tens of thousands of RPM. The batteries are made of carbon fiber and levitated in a vacuum using magnetic bearings. Carbon fibre is perfect for this application as it’s very strong and lightweight; it doesn’t take a lot of energy to keep it spinning.
Flywheels are better than batteries in many applications. They can absorb and release power very very quickly, they don’t need much in the way of maintenance, and, most importantly, the amount of storage that they provide doesn’t degrade over time like chemical batteries do. They tend to be bulky, and the gyroscopic effect of a big spinning thingy means that they can be tricky to integrate into anything that moves, but for stationary power storage applications, flywheels could be the way to go for the future.
It’s pretty easy to understand the basic method of operation of a flywheel. It’s really just a big wheel hooked up to a generator, and you can either put electricity into the generator to speed up the wheel and store energy, or you can suck electricity out of the generator by slowing the wheel down, just like the regenerative braking system in a hybrid car. The system isn’t perfect, and it does cost you something to keep the wheel spinning, but thanks to magnetic levitation and a sealed vacuum, modern flywheel batteries can be up to 97% efficient.
Google today said that it’s “detected and disrupted” a plan to gain access to hundreds of Gmail accounts through phishing attacks. The attacks originated in Jinan, China and targeted Government Officials from the US and several Asian countries. The attacks also included individuals from the press, military as well as political activists.
“The goal of this effort seems to have been to monitor the contents of these users’ e-mails, with the perpetrators apparently using stolen passwords to change peoples’ forwarding and delegation settings,” wrote Eric Grosse the engineering director for Google’s security team in a post announcing the crackdown. He also said that “It’s important to stress that our internal systems have not been affected–these account hijackings were not the result of a security problem with Gmail itself. But we believe that being open about these security issues helps users better protect their information online.”
Google has notified the people whose accounts are affected and has also secured the accounts. The company is prevailing on users to come up with more complex passwords and only going through the company’s secured “https://www.google.com” domain when logging on from a Web browser.
Microsoft has just taken its Wraps off the next build of Windows, Microsoft Windows 8. Taking its inspiration hugely from the Windows Phone 7 Metro UI. Just like the Windows phone 7 Build this UI is also designed perfectly to work with touch-screens. Therefore you can bet on a large number of Windows 8 tablets to hit once the OS is fully released for consumption.
This next version of Windows will come with the new Internet Explorer 10 , as well as support for HTML5 and Java apps that will run better on tablet-sized devices. But, will also support all applications designed for Desktop use.
Being a few of the most successful apps on the iPad online App store since day one of Launch, Apple has finally brought some love to iPhones and iPod Touches. The same apps will now run on all other iOS devices making them universal Apps at US% 9.99
PRESS RELEASE
Apple iWork Now Available For iPhone & iPod touch Users
CUPERTINO, California-May 31, 2011-Apple® today announced that its groundbreaking iWork® productivity apps, Keynote®, Pages® and Numbers®, are now available for iPhone® and iPod touch®, as well as iPad®. Created for the Mac® and then completely redesigned for iOS and Apple’s revolutionary Multi-Touch™ interface, Keynote, Pages and Numbers allow you to create and share stunning presentations, beautifully formatted documents and powerful spreadsheets on the go. iWork apps are available on the App Store™ for $9.99 each to new users and as a free update for existing iWork for iPad customers.
“Now you can use Keynote, Pages and Numbers on iPhone and iPod touch to create amazing presentations, documents and spreadsheets right in the palm of your hand,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “The incredible Retina display, revolutionary Multi-Touch interface and our powerful software make it easy to create, edit, organize and share all of your documents from iPhone 4 or iPod touch.”
Keynote, Pages and Numbers import and export documents from iWork for Mac and Microsoft Office; print wirelessly using AirPrint™; and include beautiful Apple-designed themes and templates. All iWork apps now include improved document management with thumbnail images that let you find your files quickly, organize them and group them into folders using intuitive gestures. From the Tools button in the toolbar, you can easily share any presentation, document or spreadsheet without leaving the app.
Keynote makes it easy to create impressive presentations, complete with animated charts and transitions. You can play your presentation in Full Screen view on the stunning, high-resolution Retina™ display or connect to a projector or HDTV for a large audience. Available separately, the Keynote Remote app allows your iPhone or iPod touch to control a Keynote presentation on any iOS device or Mac.
Pages is the most beautiful word processor ever designed for a mobile device and has everything you need to create amazing documents. Pages takes full advantage of the high-resolution Retina display on iPhone 4 and iPod touch so you can see all the detail and richness of your documents. To make working with text easy on iPhone and iPod touch, Smart Zoom automatically zooms in to follow the cursor while you’re editing and zooms back out when you’re done.
Numbers uses Multi-Touch gestures and an intelligent keyboard to help you create compelling, great-looking spreadsheets with over 250 easy-to-use functions, flexible tables and eye-catching charts. Just like Pages, Numbers takes advantage of the high-resolution Retina display and Smart Zoom to make working with text and cells on iPhone 4 or iPod touch easy.
Pricing & Availability
Keynote, Pages and Numbers are universal apps that run on iPad and iPad 2, iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4, and iPod touch (3rd & 4th generation). Keynote, Pages and Numbers are available from the App Store for $9.99 (US) each for new users, or as a free update for existing iWork for iPad customers. Keynote Remote is sold separately via the App Store for 99 cents (US).Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and has recently introduced iPad 2 which is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices.
Korean manufacturer Omnio has come out with a few prototypes of its ‘WOW Keys’ USB keyboard last year and is all set to enter the keyboard industry with its finished product this year. Measuring 16 x 4.7 x 1 -inches and weighing 1.4 pounds, the full-size QWERTY keyboard is compatible with both windows and mac operating systems, permitting the docking of iPhones and iPods.
In addition to charging and syncing when connected to the keyboard, the handheld devices can be used for touchscreen control of the PC, including as a numberpad when loaded with a special app. Two-way functionality means that with the press of a button, ‘wow-keys’ can switch from ‘PC mode’, which uses the phone or iPod as touchscreen input to the PC, to ‘iPhone mode’ instead, which permits easy file transfer and utilizes the keyboard for text entry directly into the handheld device. In ‘iPhone mode’, twelve keyboard hotkeys provide shortcut functionality to the docked device, such as ‘search’, ‘home’, ‘play/pause’, and ‘display on/off’.
When we were kids, we used to have a great time playing with LEGO. Since that time, many things have changed including the addition of a robotics kit for LEGO. But the one thing that will never change is that you’ll always be looking for that 1 piece that you saw 5 minutes ago.
We were quite proud of the cars and houses we made but this guy has taken things to a whole new level. Meet the LEGO printer. The entire thing has been designed, and built from scratch including analog motor electronics, sensors and printer driver and the USB interface which uses a “wiring” board. It does not use Mindstorms. Hats off to you sir…
A cool new toy that we’ve discovered for the hobbyist and robot aficionado, Cubelets from Modular Robotics. For a price of 300 USD you get 20 cubelets, which you can basically snap together in various configurations to make your robot do almost anything. The modular nature of these devices makes it very easy to make new creations. Watch the video for more info.
Everyone must remember the Tata Nano. Well, they’ve come out with a similar high-tech varient for the european market. It boasts high fuel efficiency, ‘zero turn’ technology for minimal turning radius, built-in integration with tablets and smartphones, and an innovative door design. Measuring three meters (9.8 feet) long, the highly efficient ‘pixel’ combines a 1.2L three-cylinder turbocharged diesel engine with stop-start technology and an aerodynamic design to offer a combined cycle fuel economy of 3.4 L/100 km (69mpg), and producing carbon emissions limited to 89 g/km (0.3 lb/mi). ‘Zero turn’ technology makes use of the vehicle’s toroidal infinitely variable transmission to rotate the outer rear wheel forwards and the inner rear wheel backwards as the front wheels turn, producing a turning circle radius of 2.6 meters (8.5 feet).
We’ll let you decide if they should have launced this in India…
Google announced this week, that it would begin upgrading offline access to Gmail from Gears, its now obsolete plugin, to HTML5. On Tuesday, Gmail dropped offline support for Chrome, Internet Explorer 9 (IE9), Firefox 4, Safari and Opera. Until Google restores offline support to Gmail with HTML5 this summer, Google recommended that users switch to IE8 or Firefox 3.6. This announcement leaves us to wonder why other browsers but Google’s own Chrome have access to offline Gmail? Not a good strategy according to us.
Three top banks in the US are collaborating to create a service that will allow users to login to an online bank account and transfer money to another person simply by entering their name and mobile number. The service will be rolled out by Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo, which formed a new venture called ClearXchange to create the product.
The service, said to be the first bank-owned offering of its kind, was made available to partner businesses yesterday. The banks did not mention when the service will be made available to the general public. Bank customers will be able to move funds directly from their existing accounts by using an email address or mobile phone number. The service will eventually be rolled out all over the US, and there are plans to expand it over time to include other countries as well. No news on when this would be available to us in India.