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Jul

MyScript Calculator Lets You Write Math Expressions On Your Screen Instead Of Typing Them Out, Is Amazing

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Applications, News

When you were in school, you were told you need to learn how to do math the hard way because "you won't always have a calculator on you". Well, while we now know that your math teacher was about as good at forward-thinking as the dude who said no one would ever need more than 640k of RAM, there has still always been the problem of more complex expressions, including using constants, fractions, exponents and whatnot. Well, while this app won't replace your education on how those concepts work, MyScript Calculator lets you draw your problems rather than type them, making it much easier to get answers to less-than-straightforward expressions.

Jul

Toshiba Excite 7.7 Tag-Team Review: The Best Tablet You'll Never Buy

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Excite 7.7 (AT270 / AT275), Tablet Reviews

Just over a week ago, Aaron and I (Cameron) each received a review unit of the Excite 7.7. While I will largely be taking the reigns on this one, Aaron wanted to throw in his thoughts as well. Thus, while the bulk of the review was written exclusively by me, you'll also see his (clearly labeled) thoughts at the bottom of every section.

Cameron: I have to be honest: after using the Excite 10 and coming away feeling "meh" about it, I didn't have high hopes for its little brother. However, after spending the past week with the Excite 7.7, I have been blown away time and time again.

Jun

[Updated: Videos] Stuntmen Just Jumped Out Of An Airplane, Biked Across Rooftops And Rappelled Down Buildings To Introduce Google Glass

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Google, News, Videos

We've been hearing things about Google Glass, the Google-powered eyeball accessory, for a while now. While the device isn't quite ready for consumers (and won't be for a while), we got an extensive look at what these devices can do... right after Google-hired stuntmen jumped out of an airplane while on a Glass-based Hangout, then proceeded to bike across rooftops, rappel down the side of the Moscone Conference Center, and finally bike into the I/O keynote to deliver the device on stage to Sergey Brin. This is the first product announcement in recent memory where someone could have feasibly died during a demo.

Jun

[Updated] Samsung Introduces TecTiles: NFC Tags You Can Program With Your NFC-Enabled Smartphone

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in News, Samsung

NFC is one of those odd features that everybody wants in their phone, but few people are sure how they'll use it yet. Payments systems are slow to catch on and Beam functionality requires a friend with an NFC phone and a need to share data that isn't easier to share via the internet. Samsung, who is quick to note it has the largest NFC-enabled userbase, aims to change that with TecTiles: NFC tags that you can program to perform tasks when you place your phone near them.

The concept sounds why-didn't-anyone-do-this-sooner awesome. For $15, you can get a pack of five TecTiles.

Jun

Google Earth Gets Some Amazing New 3D Maps, Rubs It In Apple's Face Just A Bit

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Google, News

Today's Google Earth announcement brought a couple of nice new features to the Google Maps suite. In addition to moving offline maps out of Labs, the company also pre-empted rumors of Apple-branded 3D map software with a demo of some stellar 3D maps that Google has been creating with high-tech camera planes. Yes, Google now has camera planes.

The company is using some sophisticated mapping software and planes outfitted with a bevy of camera sensors to create photo-realistic 3D maps of the entire terrain of a metropolitan area. This is in stark contrast to the previous method of simply using 3D building models.

May

From The Makers Of Capta Comes A New Kickstarter Project: Meet Vavo, Your New Universal Stand/Mount/Kickstand

Posted by Cameron Summerson in News

A few weeks ago we looked at Capta, a universal mount that adds the ability to mount your smartphone on a tripod. The creators of Capta, UDS, now have a new Kickstarter project that utilizes the same "alien goo" material to bring even more functionality to your smart device. Meet Vavo.

Basically Vavo is a nifty little gadget that uses the same sticky junk as Capta to hold on to your device. It can hold your device in a multitude of ways, including upright, angled (with its kickstand) or on the wall. Yeah, that last one is definitely my favorite.

Apr

Meet KegDroid: An Android/Arduino-Powered Keg In The Shape Of Our Favorite Robot: Your Argument Is Invalid

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in News

There comes a time in every person's life when he or she must decide what to do with the time they've been given on earth. Will it be used to benefit mankind, or to destroy it? Will it be to help or to harm? In Google engineer Paul Carff's case, he went for both. Thus, KegDroid was born. This gorgeous Android statue, with beer taps for hands, dispenses home brew at the touch of a screen.

The keg comes complete with flow control, so you can select what size drink you want and the bot will pour it automatically. It uses NFC tags to ensure that only approved users can get at your precious booze supply.

Mar

Want To Customize Your Galaxy Nexus Without Adding Any Extra Bulk? Check Out These Super-Sick Laser-Etched Battery Doors

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Galaxy Nexus, News

There's no doubt that the Galaxy Nexus is one of the hottest phones on the planet right now. As such, there are quite a few people out there rocking the GN, so how do you make your stand out in the crowd? Adding a case is always an option, but if you really want your device to stand on, you have to check out these custom laser-etched battery doors. There's even one with the AP logo!

^{Yeah, that's my GN. Reppin' my AP pride, baby!}

Created by our good pal 0mie, these battery doors are probably the sickest way to customize the look of your GN without adding any extra bulk to the device - and they look dang good, too.

Mar

[New App] Photo 360° Takes Awesome 360 Degree Panoramas Of Surroundings, Items, Or Pretty Much Anything Else

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Applications, News

There's no shortage of camera apps in Google's Play Store, but every once in a while a new one hits that really wows us. That's the case with Photo 360° - a super sleek new app that lets you capture a full 360 degree view of your surroundings, items, yourself (using the front-facing camera on your device), or almost anything else you can imagine. Here's a quick look at how it works:

Pretty sick, no? Not only does the app allow you to catch some really rad photos, but it also includes the ability to capture sound along with the picture, as well.

Feb

Google Is Planning Pricey Glasses With An Augmented Reality Heads-Up Display, May Sell Them By Year's End

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Google, News

You've got to hand it to Google. They don't let silly things like "feasibility" and "finances" get in the way of an awesome idea. The New York Times is reporting that Google is working on a set of glasses with the specs of a smartphone, including 3G and 4G data connectivity, GPS, a camera, and oh yeah, a heads-up display.

^{Not the actual display. We wish, though.}

The glasses, which are supposedly under development at Google's not-so-secret Google X lab, would cost about as much as a smartphone, so they likely won't be for the light wallet. That being said, if they work as advertised, they could still sell plenty.