scattered technology news

Xbox 360 Elite (Black) 3

Yesterday evening, Microsoft confirmed rumors of a new black Xbox 360, when it announced the Xbox 360 Elite. The initial details on the device further confirm the rumors that this new version of the 360 will come equipped with a 120GB hard drive and a high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI) port. However, besides those two additions and the fact that it’s black, there appears to be little else that’s new.

The 120GB hard drive will also become available, separately, to customers of the original Xbox 360 for an estimated retail price of $179.99. The average gamer will probably have to decide whether they’d prefer three more games or more storage capacity. I’d rather take the games, but of course this all depends on what else you might use the console for. Obviously, if you’re a customer of the LIVE Marketplace video store the need for extra storage is a no-brainer, but for those of us who only use the 360 as a gaming platform the extra $180 might be better spent elsewhere. Read More

Moto Bluetooth Headphones S9 5

This year at CES, of the cutting-edge gadgets, functioning bluetooth stereo headsets made their first appearance. Motorola had their “Bluetooth Active Headphones S9″ on display. The S9 is one of the first bluetooth headsets to function with any bluetooth device, that supports stereo profiles. The S9 is intended for music playback, however it also supports wireless voice calls. Also, unlike most other bulky wireless bluetooth headphones, these Motorola headphones are quite sleek, stylish, and light weight, weighing less than an ounce.

Active Headphones S9 Features:

• Crisp 1.3cm stereo speakers
• Compatible w/Bluetooth enabled devices
• Supports both phones and MP3 players
• Up to 6-hours of music playback
• Touch sensitive music & talk controls

The headphones have touch-sensitive talk/end controls on the left and play/pause controls on the right. Most initial reviews all seem to be giving the S9 a “thumbs up.” However if plan to purchase wireless headsets to use while driving, these are probably prohibited in most states since they cover both ears. In addition, they S9 headphones are quite pricey, current online retailers such as Amazon price it at $130. I’d recommend waiting for cheaper ones arrive since these are one of the first truly portable pairs.

Buy: Motorola Active Bluetooth Headphones S9
Links: Active S9 Headphones | Motorola Press

iPod Shuffle Giveaway 28

Since Skatter Tech is approaching our 300 post, we are offering all our readers a chance of wining a brand new Apple iPod Shuffle. The Shuffle can hold 1GB of storage (~240 songs), has 12hrs of battery life, is available in 5 colors, and costs $79. To enter our FREE giveaway contest you must meet all the requirements stated below and perform the following steps:

How To Sign Up:
1) Add Skatter Tech to your Technorati Favs
2) Leave a comment with the following info:

• a) Your Name (in the name field)
• b) Your Email (in the email field)
• c) Technorati User Name in the comments
• d) Color you want: Silver/Blue/Pink/Green/Orange

3) You are done!

Restrictions:
1) Must live within in the United States, Canada, or U.K.
2) Attempting to sign up more than once will result in disqualification.
3) You still may enter other future contests if you don’t win.

Other Info:
Contestants will be picked randomly until one is found that meets the requirements and has successfully completed instructions. We will not accept any entries made after 03/31/07. The winner of the contest will be announced on April 2, 2007. The winner will be announced here and contacted by the email address he/she has provided. Read More

TiVo Mobile w/ Verizon 3

Yesterday, after over six months of development, TiVo finally announced their new program “TiVo Mobile,” which allows recording shows directly from their mobile phones. Verizon Wireless customers can download a “Get It Now” application, which they can use to search for shows and eventually schedule them for recording. TiVo Mobile currently only supports use along with Series 2/3 models and will only be available through Verizon Wireless.

“TiVo Mobile scheduling gives Verizon Wireless customers unprecedented control of their television experience and provides that control wherever they are.” Jim Denney, VP TiVo Marketing

The service does have a few downsides. First off, the Get It Now application will cost customers $1.99/month, which is in addition to their TiVo service cost. Second, it is only available on three phones at the time, one of them being the LG Chocolate. This will probably never catch on unless TiVo figures out a way to offer this for free. I would rather prefer access to a “TiVo Mobile” webpage, which works on mobile browsers.

Demo: TiVo Mobile “Walk Though”
Links: TiVo Mobile Info | TiVo Press

Sony UX Micro PC Reviewed 4

At first glance, Sony’s UX Micro PC is noticeably bulky. The first thing most people notice other than the touch screen include the fingerprint reader and the Motion Eye Camera on top. The buttons on the side of the screen function as the left-click, right-click, and mouse thumb pad. Due to the nature of the small touch screen, the other buttons allow access to the zoom function and the on-screen keyboard. Also included are hard-keys for disabling WiFi to save battery life as well as a power button. The bottom of the UX has a standard line in and line out (headphone and microphone), a power supply jack, and an expansion slot. The only other port on the machine is a USB 2.0 slot on left, however access to more USB and a Ethernet ports can be made available using the mini port replicator, which plugs into the bottom. In addition a button for snapping photos and a Memory Stick Duo slot are found above the unit.

Functionality
The HDD-based model we tested was quite fast for its size. It took roughly 50 seconds to reach the login screen after booting up, which is quite slower than a standard laptop. (runs Win XP) However the all new flash-based models will probably be much faster, in addition to being power efficient. The unit can have a max of 1 GB of RAM and a CPU of up to 1.33GHz (Intel Core Solo). Switching back and forth between the stylus and the keyboard can get quite annoying after a while. The battery life on this HDD-based unit is quite horrible, I could only get around 2hrs out of it with the WiFi enabled. (at least +4hrs needed) The device also has Cingular Wireless Internet (paid service) to compliment the Bluetooth and WiFi. The included features are quite powerful, but lacks true functionality. Read More

Sony’s 07 Cyber-Shot Cameras 1

Over the past two weeks, Sony has announced their lineup of Cyber-Shot cameras for 2007. Each of the four camera series that were announced includes a unique specialty such as WiFi and internal storage. Unlike the last generation, all the new cyber-shots support displaying photos on full 1080 HDTVs using component cables. In addition they all now use a whole new GUI and support even support editing photos within the camera.

Sony DSC-G1

Sony’s first WiFi-enabled camera allows wirelessly sharing photos with other cameras and computers. The cyber-shot features a high-res 3.5″ LCD display, 6 megapixels, 3x optical / 6x digital zoom, and a new interface. The unit accepts Memory Stick Pro Duo media, but has 2GB of memory built in. (~600 full resolution pix) The G1 will begin to Ship in April 2007 for $600.

Sony DSC-T100 / T20

The T100 features a 5x optical zoom and a 3-inch LCD while the T20 has 3x optical zoom and a 2.5-inch LCD. Both cameras are 8 megapixels and support outputting the images to HDTVs via component cables. Both cameras have a new “face tracking” technology to allow detecting faces and automatically adjusting multiple settings for a “perfect” image. The T100 will be available this month for $400 and the T20 in April for $330. Read More

Spring Forward, Fall Back 0

For United States residents only – Due to Daylight Saving Time, be sure to set all your clocks ahead an hour tonight. This year daylight saving time will begin on March 11, which is three weeks earlier than last year’s, and end five days later than last year on November 4th.

Most Windows XP / Vista and Macintosh OS X computers should not be an issue. Both Microsoft and Apple have released special daylight saving time patches. Just to be safe be sure to run either the Windows Update or the Apple Updater to retrieve the fix. Cell phones will automatically jump to the proper time at around 2:00AM, when they receive the new time from the cell phone towers as long as the service provider don’t run into any problems. Atomic clocks will automatically update themselves. Other devices such as TiVos should be patched in time, since most companies are taking this new daylight saving time issue seriously.

Links: U.S. NAVY

March 07 Wii/PS3/Xbox Games 0

This month Wii owners will rejoice with the arrival of four highly anticipated games. We are looking forward to how games like The Godfather: Blackhand Edition will work with the Wii controls. The PS3 will face some great games like Oblivion and Rainbow Six: Vegas this month, but unfortunately rather than MotorStorm they are all ports from the Xbox 360. Finally on the Xbox 360 we are looking forward to Armored Core 4.

Wii:

• Medal of Honor Vanguard – EA
• Prince of Persia: Rival Swords – Ubisoft
• The Godfather: Blackhand Edition - EA
• Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07 – EA

PlayStation 3:

• MotorStorm - SCEA
• F.E.A.R - Vivendi Games
• The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion – Bethesda Softworks
• Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Vegas – Ubisoft

Xbox 360:

• Def Jam: Icon – EA
• Virtua Tennis 3 – SEGA
• Armored Core 4 – Sega of America

Game Lists: Nintendo Wii | Sony PS3 | Microsoft Xbox 360
Related: Upcoming PS3, Wii, & 360 Games: Feburary

Creative Commons 3.0 0

Last week the creators of Creative Commons announced version 3.0 of their licenses. For those that don’t know what Creative Commons is, it’s a free alternative to actual copyrights. The service allows website owners to set up and place a license on their own site which, in simple terms, state the rules and regulations regarding the content.

Most of the changes from 2.5 to 3.0 are regarding internationalization of licensed content. For example, American Creative Commons users, previously, had no option but to use a generic license. With the upgrade to 3.0, they have included a “United States” license and created a new “generic” one. If you own a blog or a website, we highly recommend incorporating a CC license to protect your content.

Skatter Tech was originally using v2.5, however we have now implemented the new 3.0 license. According to our new policy you are allowed to share, distribute, display, and perform the work as long as you attribute us and don’t use the content for commercial purposes.

Links: Creative Commons | Get Your Own License
Related: Skatter Tech’s CC License

Google Maps: Real-Time Traffic 0

If you were to venture over to Google Maps right now, you’d notice a new tab in the upper right-hand corner that reads “Traffic.” Thats’s right; Google now offers real-time highway traffic congestion data for 30 major cities, including San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Dallas, and Los Angeles. As of yet the system is still in its infant stages: Google Traffic is only capable of displaying the congestion on major highways and does not offer detours based on incidents. It also isn’t exactly the most accurate system available, but it’s a pretty good start.

Google Traffic System Visuals:

• Green: 50 mph or above
• Yellow: between 25 & 50 mph
• Red: less than 25 mph
• Gray: data not available

Google isn’t the first major company to try to alleviate traffic congestion by informing commuters about traffic conditions. Live Maps has had a similar service for quite some time now and they’re offering additional information besides simply the speed of traffic. One of the nicer features on Live is its ability to display road construction with little warning icons to indicate the exact location. Once hovered over, these icons will expand into text boxes to explain the construction plans, the severity of ongoing constructions, as well as start and projected completion dates. Read More