NVIDIA pursuing external graphics accelerators for laptops?

NVIDIA pursuing external graphics accelerators for laptops? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 19:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

1080p, 5.1 surround sound coming to Netflix Watch Instantly in 2010?

Netflix Watch Instantly fans could be due for a big upgrade, as CNET has heard the company will roll out 1080p and 5.1 surround sound later this year. No word on timing or any other details, but this could mean its moving to version 3 of Microsoft's Silverlight streaming platform with its additional tweaks for adaptive streaming and hardware graphics acceleration. Also unknown is how much bandwidth would be necessary, but considering Microsoft already uses very similar technology for its 1080p Instant On videos on Zune Marketplace through the Xbox 360 while only requiring 3 Mbps and VUDU HDX 1080p videos only state a minimum of 4500 Kbps, a massive jump in available bandwidth might not be necessary if you already get clear 720p video. The last big hurdle? How much content will be available that way, Gizmodo points out only about 6 percent of current offerings stream in HD we'll be watching carefully if the pace picks up going forward.

1080p, 5.1 surround sound coming to Netflix Watch Instantly in 2010? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 18:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Google's Nexus One 'equipment recovery fee' slashed to $150, still a pain

So the good news here is that Google appears to have heard the cries for help, having taken a chainsaw to its brutal $350 "equipment recovery fee" that had been lumped on top of T-Mobile's $200 ETF for subsidized Nexus One contracts canceled in the first 120 days. The bad news, though, is that it still exists at all -- a hairy precedent for an industry being watched with eagle eyes by the FCC right now. The company has knocked $200 off the fee, bringing it down to $150; in other words, if you break your contract, you'll pay the same ETF that Verizon now charges on its "advanced devices." Whether that was a deliberate move to let 'em say that they're no more expensive than Verizon is unclear, but let's be honest: $350 is extreme, $550 was highway robbery. At least we're going in the right direction.

Google's Nexus One 'equipment recovery fee' slashed to $150, still a pain originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Motorola: Droid update to Android 2.1 'will start to roll out this week'

We knew Android 2.1 was coming for the Droid, but we'll confess -- we didn't expect it to come this soon. Motorola is now reporting via its official Facebook page that it's "happy to relay the 2.1 upgrade to Droid will start to roll out this week," going on to tease that it "will have more information to share on other device upgrades later." There's no detail on what the Droid update will entail or whether it'll roll out to every user this week (we doubt it), but by all indications, this is a promising sign that Moto's keeping the pedal to the metal, we'd say.

[Thanks, andrewcweaver]

Motorola: Droid update to Android 2.1 'will start to roll out this week' originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Microsoft says Windows 7 battery 'issue' isn't one

After Microsoft stated a week ago that it would look into reports of Windows 7 causing premature battery degradation, we've been staying up late at night with our frazzled lithium ion cells, reading them stories about Battery Heaven and generally trying to keep an upbeat tone around the Engadget HQ. Well, it turns out not everything is rosy in batteryville, but Microsoft says Windows 7 isn't the one to blame. According to the company's testing, the new tool, which reports when a battery is down to 40% of its designed capacity and suggests replacement, hasn't reported a single false positive. Additionally, the tool uses read-only data from the battery, and is in fact incapable of tweaking the battery's life span or internal data -- it merely reports the data it receives, and stacks the theoretical design capacity up against the current full charge capacity. Microsoft attributes the reports of the tool dooming batteries to an early grave to the mere fact that many people might not have noticed the degradation already taking place in their batteries -- most batteries start to degrade noticeably within a year. Of course, not everybody's going to just take Microsoft's word for it, and Microsoft itself will continue to look into the issue, but for now this sounds like a bit of a non-issue. The part about Windows 7 being less conservative with power use is a whole 'nother issue, of course.

Microsoft says Windows 7 battery 'issue' isn't one originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

DIY photog creates laser trigger for remote DSLR snapping

There's just no two ways about it: the integrated self-timer is easily one of the most amazing technologies to ever be invented. Yeah, we said it. Unfortunately, beeping for ten seconds while a shooter races to get in position isn't always ideal or fun, and that's where isharq comes in. His Arduino-based mod is amongst the most flexible out there for DSLRs, enabling it to morph from a basic laser trigger hack to something that senses heat, movement or sound (just to name a few) and then makes your camera react accordingly. As it stands, his setup triggers his DSLR to snap a shot whenever a laser beam is broken, and if you're eager to see more, be sure to peek the in-action video just past the break. Oh, and the source link holds all the secrets to recreating something like this in your own laboratory.

[Thanks, Simon]

Continue reading DIY photog creates laser trigger for remote DSLR snapping

DIY photog creates laser trigger for remote DSLR snapping originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

zoomMediaPlus' zoomIt is the iPhone's long overdue SD card reader

Sorry if we're the sort of folks to look a gift SD card reader in the mouth, but while we're oh-so-happy that Apple finally opened up application-enabled hardware development in iPhone OS 3.0, we really wish an accessory like this had been available for the iPhone right from the start. The new zoomIt SD card reader from zoomMediaPlus adds a bit of external, swappable memory to the iPhone and iPod touch at long last, giving you the ability to store your iPhone's pictures on the card, or pull stuff off it onto your handset using the free zoomIt app. Interestingly, this is coming to light just a couple weeks after we saw Apple's own similar solution for getting cameras into the iPad mix -- the SD and USB-adapting iPad Camera Connection Kit, which will be a mere $30. There's no word if Apple's adapter will work with the iPhone (we doubt it) or if the zoomIt will work with the iPad (perhaps), but the $60 pricetag on the zoomIt is a bit of a turn off. Also, it won't be shipping until April (though you can pre-order now for a $10 discount), so Apple may very well make up our minds for us by the time March rolls around.

zoomMediaPlus' zoomIt is the iPhone's long overdue SD card reader originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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