Sony hints at the PlayStation 4 being unveiled before E3
We had a rumor less than a couple of days ago regarding pricing on the next-generation of consoles, which would be just $400 at launch. Now we're hearing from Sony's Vice President of Home Entertainment that we could see the PlayStation 4 unveiled sooner, rather than later.
Hiroshi Sakamoto recently talked to Chilean website Emol that Sony are working hard on the next-generation PlayStation, and that they are focused on showing it off at E3 in June, or even earlier. If Sony did jump first, they would beat Microsoft to the punch with their next-generation console which is expected to be unveiled at E3 in June.
The PlayStation 4 being announced ahead of the next-gen Xbox won't do much, but it will certainly have press sites going crazy, and thus, readers wanting to know more. Sony unveiling the PlayStation 4 would work for them, but against them at the same time - as it would give Microsoft E3 all to themselves and their next-gen consoles.
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IEEE adopts WiGig (802.11ad) capable of 7Gbps wireless speeds
Wireless is a funny thing, it pretty much controls most people's everyday lives, and because it is mostly invisible, there's never an afterthought. If it 'just works', then that's fine. Well, a new wireless standard is on its way as the IEEE have adopted a new standards known as 802.11ad.
802.11ad will boast some incredible speeds of 7Gbps over 60GHz frequencies and should be baked into consumer devices as soon as 2014. The consumer-friendly marketing name that will find its way plastered all over 802.11ag is going to be WiGig. WiGig won't be replacing your wireless network, it will be complimenting it.
The hopes of the new technology will be that it'll provide an insanely fast, direct link between devices. The reason behind this is because of the 60GHz frequency it finds itself surfing along. As higher radio frequencies are used, they aren't so good at penetrating solid objects like walls, fridges, desks and more. High frequencies are really only good at shorter ranges, so WiGig will have its place in the market, but not where you'd like it to be.
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Stream the US Presidential Inauguration live to your smartphone with new app
Interested Americans, historians, or really anybody who owns a smartphone will be able to live stream the Presidential Inauguration straight to their device, thanks to a new app released for iOS and Android. Released Monday morning, the official Inaugural 2013 app features photos, videos, and a livestream that will go live January 21 and stream footage of the ceremony.
It features numerous other features, such as a map if you will be in DC for the inauguration, and information about volunteering opportunities for the Inaugural Committee's National Day of Service on January 19.
The app was produced by AT&T and is a free download for both iOS and Android devices.
Windows Phone satisfaction higher than that of Android, still behind iPhone
The iPhone remains the number one desired device in the United States, with half of American's planning to buy a new device in the next 90 days planning on getting an iPhone. That's down from 71 percent in September 2012, while Samsung's numbers have jumped from 13 percent to 21 percent, respectively.
More interestingly, 71 percent of iOS customers say they are "Very Satisfied," while only 53 percent of Windows Phone customers say they are. However, both groups are ahead of Android, which only sees 48 percent very satisfied. RIM lags behind with only 26 percent of its base being very satisfied.
Because of this, Windows Phone could very well see some great growth in the coming year, as long as those satisfied customers are getting the word out. The data above comes from 451 Research. They surveyed 4,061 people, with 88 percent of those being US-based.
Tesla opening 25 new stores in 2013, including first store in China
The all-electric vehicles made by Tesla are awesome pieces of technology. Not only should they help advance battery technology, they look great and, apparently, drive great. Tesla is planning to open 25 more stores during 2013, which is almost double that of the 13 stores it opened in 2012.
Half of those locations will be in the United States and the other half will be in foreign countries, including Tesla's first location in China. The new location in China is set to open this Spring.
Tesla has also redoubled its commitment to rolling out Supercharger charging stations across the United States. Currently only eight are in operation, most of which are on the west coast. Tesla plans to cover both coasts and then connect them in the middle so that someone can travel from Boston to LA without using any gas.
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RumorTT: iPhone 5S to be mass produced in March, launch in June/July
Jeffries analyst Peter Misek has released another research report, which continues to assert that the iPhone 5S will be coming June or July. New to the report is the assertion that mass production of the next iPhone will begin in March. If this is the case, I would expect to start seeing leaks soon, and definitely by March, as long as Apple continues to be as leaky as they have been in the past.
Our checks indicate that preliminary builds for the iPhone 5S will start in March for a launch in June/July. As word of the earlier production schedule starts to spread, we believe we could see a slight slowing of demand CQ1 in anticipation of the new product launch and Apple will likely start curtailing channel inventory.
Along with rumors and predictions for the iPhone 5S, Misek provides some insight into the possibility of a cheaper iPhone:
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Facebook's big thing is Graph Search, allows you to search through its social graph
Facebook's big announcement today was the preview and beta launch of Graph Search, a new tool that will help you sift through the massive amounts of connections and data that Facebook has in its social graph. For the questions that can't be answered by Facebook's data, Bing will try and provide the answer from the Internet.
The current version is available in a limited preview for English users only. Zuckerberg stressed that privacy was an important issue when building the search engine. For instance, you should only be able to search for content shared with you, however, you can search for something like "TV shows watched by doctors" or "Music liked by people who like Mitt Romney."
The ability to do searches such as the examples above could allow researchers to sift through connections to see if there are any connections. According to Zuckerberg, there are currently 1 billion people, 240 billion photos, and 1 trillion connections in the social graph. How it works:
NYPD to add GPS chips to prescription bottles to try and help New York City drug theft
Prescription drug theft is a major issue in New York City, and the NYPD have plans to try and prevent it from growing. Pharmacies across the city could receive "Dummy bottles" that contain GPS tracking chips in an effort to catch thieves.
"In the event of a robbery or theft, we'll be able to track the bottle, which may lead us to stash locations across the city", Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly writes in a speech he'll be giving in California today. Kelly has asked researchers to examine the feasibility of placing chips into fake pills that could be tracked by GPS.
The NYPD is also educating local pharmacies on how to better secure their premises in what is being called "Operation Safety Cap." What do you think about this? Is this just another money wasting effort or do you think that this could really clean up the streets of prescription drugs? Either way, I am happy to see more Law Enforcement Agencies embracing modern technology.
Foremay releases world's first 2.5" SATA 2TB SSD
Foremay, an OEM SSD manufacturer, has released the world's first 2TB SSD drives with a standard 2.5" SATA interface. Both new models seem to only be available for OEM and industrial applications though at this stage.
Foremay is offering the SC199 (for mission-critical applications) and TC166 (for terminal computing) product families in either commercial or industrial grades to suit end-user's specific applications. Features include Advanced Power Management, Advanced Error Correction, Military Secure Erase, and hardware based encryption.
"By leveraging Foremay's patent pending technologies, we are proud to deliver the world's first 2 TB SSD in standard 2.5" SATA form factor," said Jack Winters , Foremay's CTO and co-founder. "We hope our high reliability 2 TB SSD drives can help create more design freedom and storage space for both mission-critical and enterprise applications."
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World not going to end in 2029 or 2036 due to Apophis astroid
Fans of the end of the world will have to wait just a bit longer to start cheering. NASA has just released information that the world will not be ending in an explosion caused by an asteroid in 2029 or 2036. Previously, the Apophis asteroid was thought that it could hit the Earth in 2036, with a low chance of collision in 2029.
NASA's new data suggests that there is only a one in a million chance of the asteroid colliding with Earth in 2036, which is small enough for NASA to effectively rule out the collision. NASA says that interest in the Asteroid will now be purely scientific for the foreseeable future.
The asteroid will pass within 9.3 million miles of the Earth, which is a bit close for my comfort. However, it's far enough away that nobody will need to build bunkers. So, until the next space scare, put away your end of the world gear.
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