Not that we haven’t seen an elongated iPod sound system before, but we’ve definitely yet to see one as totally bodacious as this. JVC has just slung out its XS-SR3 iPod speaker dock, which — like B&W’s Zeppelin Mini — can hold your iPhone / iPod vertically or horizontally. JVC claims this little trick better enables users to view videos in widescreen form, while the 5-watts of power are sure to blow your skin back when cranked to 11. Other specs include a bundled remote and two audio inputs (one analog, one digital), and if you’re even mildly interested, you can check it out later this month for $149.95.
Gallery: JVC gets tubular with XS-SR3 iPod speaker dock
It’s one thing to see the Entourage Edge in a controlled demonstration by a company representative, something else entirely in the capable hands on CNET’s Ina Fried. Ina got down with a prototype of the Marvell-powered, dual-display, 9.7-inch E Ink and 10-inch LCD hybrid with built-in WiFi. The video walkthrough after the break shows that Android-powered resistive touchscreen browsing the web and launching other apps from the familiar Android desktop. The E Ink display lets you read EPUB and PDF files, as you’d expect, in addition to taking notes and manipulating text with the help of an included stylus. You can also move content between the displays and record audio via a pair of mics (one to record the lecture, one to cancel the noise). Unfortunately, Fried says that the device is still buggy and “definitely has the look and feel of a first-generation product.” Sounds like the company has its work cut out in order to launch as planned in February as a textbook / notebook replacement for “typical highschool students” with $490 to burn. Let’s hope they have more luck with that than Amazon did in its early Princeton pilot. Right.
[Thanks, Henry]
Digital memory aid and note taking service Evernote already has mobile applications for the iPhone and BlackBerry, among others, but so far it wasn’t part of the now more than 20,000 applications for the Android platform. Expect that to change real soon, because we hear the startup is making the app available in the Android Market in the next few hours.
(Update: it should be available now)
Digital memory aid and note taking service Evernote already has mobile applications for the iPhone and BlackBerry, among others, but so far it wasn’t part of the now more than 20,000 applications for the Android platform. Expect that to change real soon, because we hear the startup is making the app available in the Android Market in the next few hours.
Evernote says the development of the app, which will be offered for free, took months to complete.
Mobile content delivery company Myxer Myxer is getting into the marketing arena with the launch of MobileStage, a suite of mobile marketing services aimed towards the music industry. The suite of services includes app marketing, analytics, mobile website creation and fanlist management
Myxer says that they are aiming to create a “MySpace Music for Mobile” with MobileStage. The suite is fairly comprehensive and aims to create suite tools to artists to better expand and analyze their mobile offerings. Part of the deal is that Myxer will promote artist apps to its user base of 30 million customers via its own mobile site. Myxer already works with artists for its ring tone and mobile content business. Myxer just delivered 10 million ringtones to users and offers over 2 million free ad-supported ringtones, wallpapers and videos. Users can also make their own ringtones, videos and wallpaper from music and files a customer already owns.
MSI has been quite the snake of late. Just over the past fortnight alone the outfit has slyly rolled out a new Wind Top all-in-one PC, a revamped X-Slim X600 Pro and now a brand new CULV rig that promises up to 9 hours of battery life and weighs just 3.31 pounds. The 13.4-inch X-Slim X350 doesn’t deviate from the design mantra established in earlier X-Slim models, and within you’ll find an Intel CULV Core 2 Duo processor, a ‘chiclet’ keyboard, LED-backlit 1,366 x 768 resolution display, an integrated HDMI socket, GMA 4500MHD graphics set, 2GB of DDR2 RAM, a 1.3 megapixel webcam, gigabit Ethernet, optional Bluetooth, WiFi, an SD / MMC card reader, audio in / out, a couple of USB 2.0 sockets and Windows 7 Home Premium runnin’ the show. There’s also an optional external optical drive available (DVD or Blu-ray), your choice of a 4- or 8-cell battery, VGA output and a pair of inbuilt speakers. Mum’s the word on pricing and availability, but we suspect the firm will be showcasing this shortly when CES kicks off.
Want to record video on your iPhone 3G or 1st generation unit? No need to jailbreak anymore. A $0.99US app called “Camcorder (for iPhone 3G and 2G)” [iTunes link] promises real time video recording on your older equipment, similarly to the free Ustream app.
So how does it work? In our initial and very quick try, not so badly — but at the same time, really not so great. Prepare for a slow frame rate (tested on 3G and on a 3GS) with just okay audio. For $0.99, there’s not much value there, especially considering you can’t do anything with the videos you capture except watch them on your phone until you delete them (although they are backed up with your sandbox data, they are inaccessible except to iPhone geeks).
Last month Google unveiled enhancements to Google Translate. Among the new features was a simple text-to-speech function. You can try it out, or watch this video to see how it works (skip to 0:45).
There’s no official API for the text-to-speech service. But Weston Ruter noticed that anyone can access the service in the same way Google does: “Looking at the Firebug Net panel for where this TTS data was coming from, I saw that the speech audio is in MP3 format and is queried via a simple HTTP GET (REST) request: http://translate.google.com/translate_tts?tl=en&q=text”
JVC’s never been much on using wires to hook up its home theater systems, and for those not looking for mind-blowing 7.1 surround, these soon-available wireless soundbar setups might just satisfy your aural cravings without forcing you to run ungodly lengths of cabling around your den. The TS-BA3 ($549.95) is a dual wireless soundbar system that consists of a 280-watt amplifier, 5.1-channel surround rig (including a soundbar, wireless subwoofer and wireless rear speaker kit) and built-in surround decoding. You’ll also find a single analog input, two optical digital inputs and support for Dolby Digital, DTS and Dolby ProLogic II surround signals. The TH-BS7 ($599.95) is engineered to mount alongside flat-panel HDTVs, with a 1.4-inch tall, ultrathin soundbar, an even slimmer wall-mountable amplifier / control unit and a wireless subwoofer. This one’s packing 180-watts of teeth-rattling oomph and promises 4.1 sound with minimal consumption of floor space. Hop on past the break for the full release and detailed specifications.
Gallery: JVC intros cord-free TH-BA3 and TH-BS7 soundbar audio systems
Bank account not mighty enough to handle an underwater EOS 5D Mark II? Fret not, ’cause H2O Audio just made underwater Terminator captures a reality for a comparative pittance. Said outfit has been cranking out waterproof shells for Apple’s cash cows for awhile now, but the latest one is of particular interest due to the iPod nano 5G’s integrated video recorder. The $79.99 case enables you to capture video clips while under the sea, and considering the multitude of wild and wacky scene modes, we’d say next summer just got a lot more interesting. Just ask that dude up there if you don’t believe us.