August 19th, 2010 — Gadgets
If you own a Galaxy S anywhere in the world or you’re thinking of buying one, you’re probably well-acquainted at this point with the GPS issues it’s been suffering that prevent you from getting anything close to a precise lock on your location — it might not be a deal-breaker for some, but for anyone planning on using their phone for turn-by-turn nav or fitness tracking (for instance) it’s a big deal. Samsung’s already committed to updating released versions of the phone in September, but what about the upcoming Epic 4G? Our testing suggests that it’s functional — Google Maps was able to give us extremely precise positions very quickly — and a statement we’ve received from Samsung seems to corroborate that:
“We have tested and validated both Network Assisted (indoor) and Autonomous (outdoor)
GPS on the Epic 4G. With regards to Vibrant and Captivate, we are currently testing software updates which will optimize
GPS performance. We expect to be able to make the updates available in September and will communicate more information and download instructions in the next few weeks.”
In other words, the Captivate and the Vibrant have the bug and will be fixed next month; the Epic, meanwhile, should be good to go when it launches on the 31st. Cheers to that, we say.
Samsung says GPS is ‘tested and validated’ on Epic 4G, our testing agrees originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Aug 2010 20:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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August 19th, 2010 — Gadgets
We’ve been waiting on pins and needles for Google to announce some official Android tablet plans for so long we’d almost forgotten about Mountain View’s other operating system — but from what we’re hearing, Chrome OS is about to jump to center stage with a tablet debut on Verizon just before the holidays. Our friends at Download Squad are told by a reliable tipster that HTC is building a Tegra 2-based Chrome OS tablet for Google with a 1280 x 720 multitouch display, 2GB of RAM, at least 32GB of storage with the possibility of expansion, GPS, a webcam, and the usual wireless connectivity, including a 3G radio. Launch is pegged for Black Friday on November 26, and apparently the plan is to offer the device for extremely cheap or free on subsidy, which makes sense — it is just a browser, after all, and “free” sounds mighty nice compared to the iPad’s $499 entry point. (Of course, you’ll undoubtedly be tied to a Verizon contract, but we’ll just let that slide for now.) We’ll see how much of this comes true in the next few months — we’re certainly intrigued.
Update: The author of the Download Squad post, Lee Matthews, apparently fabricated all these specs — in comments, he confirms that they’re “pure speculation,” and this his source only provided the launch date and Verizon partnership. That part certainly seems plausible, but we wouldn’t necessarily believe any of this — it’s pretty suspect to just make things up.
Update 2: One of our own actually proven tipsters just hit us to say this whole thing — including launch date — sounds suspect, and that ARM-based Chrome OS tablets won’t hit until late 2011 at least. It’ll be Atom-based netbooks until then, we’re told. That lines up with everything else we’ve ever heard from Google and its partners, so we’re calling this entirely bunk until we actually see some hardware.
Chrome OS tablet coming from Google and Verizon on Black Friday? (update: probably not) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Aug 2010 11:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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August 18th, 2010 — Gadgets
Chinese company Leader-intl brings a new Android tablet called G10. THe 7-inch G10 is powered by a Marvell PXA 166 800MHz processor, 256MB memory and up to 8GB flash memory. It runs Android 1.6 OS.
The G10 packs a 7-inch 800×480 touchscreen display, built-in GPS module, WiFi 802.11b/g, 0.3 Megapixel camera, SD/MMC card reader, and built-in 2400mAh battery. The tablet also includes USB 2.0 HOST port for connecting external storage or USB 3G modem.
Live shots from shanzhaiben:
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August 18th, 2010 — Gadgets
Running has changed quite a bit as an activity over the last decade or so. Moisture-wicking (or “technical”) clothing has become commonplace, portable media players are small and light enough to not be a hinderance, and
GPS watches and other gadgets have emerged on the scene and rapidly come down in price. While some may think those devices are reserved for only the most serious runners, they can actually be a great tool for those just starting out as well.
One of the latest such gadgets is Timex’s Ironman Global Trainer, the company’s first true GPS sports watch (previous models relied on a separate GPS module), and one of the few rivals to Garmin’s well-established Forerunner line. How does it stack up? Timex kindly let us put the watch through its paces so we could find out. Read on for our review.
Continue reading Timex Ironman Global Trainer review
Timex Ironman Global Trainer review originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Aug 2010 15:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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August 18th, 2010 — Science
Individuals on long term incapacity benefit because of mental health problems could be identified by their GPs three years before they stop working, finds a research paper published on British Medical Journal.
