How would you change Sony's OLED Walkman?

Sony's OLED Walkman is something else. Literally. In many ways, it's Sony's first formidable iPod rival to emerge in quite some time, and with its striking OLED panel, tastefully appointed graphite casing and absolutely amazing audio quality, it's certainly worth a look. For those of you around the world that have picked one up, we're curious to see if you think you made the right decision. For many, anything sans an Apple logo is the right choice, but we're wondering if the UI, design and value here were up to snuff in your mind. Are you digging the overall look and feel? Do you mind not having an App Store? Are you floored with audio / video performance? Have at it in comments below -- don't hold back now, okay?

Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video

How would you change Sony's OLED Walkman? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 11 Jul 2009 00:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: iPhone watch

Memorex hears the cry of underserved female gadget hounds, delivers the pink

Memorex recently had a study carried out on its behalf, which found that roughly 70 percent of women feel "underserved" by electronics companies. Women, who buy about 40 percent of electronics, think (according to this study) that most products are made and marketed for men. Memorex ingested that data, and decided to offer up some new options for the ladies... and they came up with a neon pink, purse-shaped iPod dock. The miniMove Boombox would be just another crummy looking piece of gadget noise, had it not come swaddled in such a spate of condescending mumbo jumbo. Kasia van Hall (a woman!) of Memorex told the Times of London that "women want to know about technology, but only just enough to get a taste of it," adding that the majority "simply don't have time or energy to read long instructions and play with cables." The device, in similar, less-pink form, has been on shelves since last December.

Now, it's true, we of the Engadget nerdom are possibly in the minority, but it seems like a crappily designed iPod dock painted pink is hardly the answer to the conundrum of women's gadget needs. Then again, we have been known to try to insert our BlackBerry into the VCR. Were we not supposed to do that? The miniMove Boombox will be available in the next two weeks in the UK for a totally cute £59 (that's $96 for all you mathematically changed gals).

[Via Jezebel]

Filed under: Portable Audio

Memorex hears the cry of underserved female gadget hounds, delivers the pink originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Jul 2009 02:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: iPhone watch

Google brings Gmail, Docs, Calendar, and Talk out of beta

Guess what, internoodle? Google Apps is officially out of beta. Do you know what that means? It means that Gmail, Docs, Calendar, and Talk are losing that "beta" signage / language you've come to know and loathe. It also seems to mean that Google will be taking a much more direct and serious approach to courting businesses for its Apps suite. At first blush, it looks like the company has all but squashed the "Standard Edition" free hosted Apps package that many now use, though that isn't that case (yet). We say "all but" because while it looks like the pro bono package has been zapped out of existence by the magic raygun of capitalism, a tiny link to the service still exists on an arcane page buried deep in the casefiles of one T. Google Merryweather III. Or just Google. To be completely clear, however, regular old Gmail will still be freely available to anyone and everyone who wants a crack at it. At any rate, you'll be happy to know that the beta tag will be scuttled later today, and you can start getting righteously mad at Google for not taking care of their proper, released products immediately. Now maybe they can get to coding up nice native versions of Gmail for the iPhone and webOS... eh?

Filed under: Software

Google brings Gmail, Docs, Calendar, and Talk out of beta originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Jul 2009 11:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: iPhone watch

Video: Nearest Tube iPhone app augments reality with directions

Augmented reality applications to this point could be best categorized as tantalizing to the mind, but otherwise pointless. Thankfully, it seems as if that's no longer the case. AcrossAir, a nascent app builder for the iPhone, has conjured up a slickly executed digital guidance application that augments video with real-time distance and directions to the nearest subway station. With the iPhone 3GS pimping an improved camera, inbuilt compass and GPS, we had a hunch that it wouldn't be long before someone slammed them all together and gave commuters and tourists alike a reason to smile. Presently only capable of serving up directions in London, this app should find plenty of user interest that will hopefully drive its development for other metropolises around the world. Click through to check it out for yourself, and expect to see it ready for download as soon as someone (or something) at Cupertino decides to start approving live video programs. Any day now, Apple...

[Via Tokyo-Genki]

Continue reading Video: Nearest Tube iPhone app augments reality with directions

Filed under: Cellphones

Video: Nearest Tube iPhone app augments reality with directions originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Jul 2009 08:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: iPhone watch

Apple's iPhone 3GS gets two more handheld video mounts

Look, it's not like Apple's iPhone 3GS is really equipped with the necessary hardware to shoot your next feature film, but given the high-profile nature of the device, it's no surprise to see a veritable cornucopia of video mounts making their way onto the scene. Just weeks after a completely over-the-top shoulder mount emerged, we've now got a pair of handheld grips ready for the amateur crowd. Both Zacuto's ZGrip iPhone Pro and OWLE's BUBO are designed to steady one's shot when capturing clips with Apple's freshest handset, though we tend to prefer the dual grip design of the latter. Hit the read links below for more information on each, and jump past the break if you're looking for samples to absorb before you buy. Oh, and yes -- both are guaranteed to draw unwanted stares and cause intense embarassment when used.

Read - Zacuto's ZGrip iPhone Pro [Via TUAW]
Read - OWLE BUBO [Via iClarified]

Continue reading Apple's iPhone 3GS gets two more handheld video mounts

Filed under: Cellphones, Peripherals

Apple's iPhone 3GS gets two more handheld video mounts originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Jul 2009 05:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: iPhone watch

Creative Zii and Zii EGG touchscreen players with HD cameras served up by FCC

Guess who's back? Creative. Hard to believe, we know, but the company we've all but forgotten looks ready to make a comeback in the portable audio / video game. Creative Labs Zii and Zii EGG just made their first appearance at the FCC. Can't say that we're too enthused by the "EGG" moniker but we're definitely liking the looks of that "HD Camera" module along the backside of these "MP4 players with touchscreens" and 802.11b/g WiFi. That "developer edition" is also a good sign that Creative is looking to make this a software platform a la the ol' iPod touch only with Creative's Zii system-on-chip architecture secret sauce. In fact, these devices could very well be running Android atop Creative's ZMS-05 chipset as we saw back in February. Welcome back Creative, you've got until September or so before Apple adds a camera to its own iPod touch... best get to work.

Filed under: Digital Cameras, Portable Audio, Portable Video

Creative Zii and Zii EGG touchscreen players with HD cameras served up by FCC originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Jul 2009 01:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: iPhone watch