The most thrilling [marketing] advancement in recent years was unveiled last night on 60 Minutes . If you missed it— how could you have missed it? —Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos detailed the [marketing] future of his company for millions [of potential customers]: Amazon PrimeAir . The [marketing] future is here, and it is [vague promises of] 30-minute delivery by drones. Read more…
The China National Space Administration has launched Chang’e 3, a plutonium-powered lunar lander on-board at 185-foot-tall Long March 3B rocket. The lander is on a four-day trajectory for the lunar surface, and will brake and enter lunar orbit on December 6th. It is scheduled to land on December 14th, in the Bay of Rainbows (Sinus Iridum). The rover masses 140kg, with nuclear heaters to keep systems alive during the two-week-long lunar nights, and will use radar to probe the lunascape as it roves during its mission. It is also outfitted with high-resolution panoramic cameras and telescopes. The Chinese space program’s stated goal is to establish a space-station and autonomous landers that can return to Earth with samples. “On behalf of the Xichang Satellite Launch Center and the command headquarters, I would like to extend my gratitude to all those who have been part of the project,” said Zhang Zhenzhong, director of the Xichang launch base. “And my thanks also go to all the friends who have been helping us throughout the whole process. “The Chang’e probe is on the way to the moon. Of course, it’s a symbol of China’s national power and prowess,” Zhang said in post-launch remarks translated into English on China’s state-run television. Over the next few days, Chang’e 3 will adjust its path toward the moon three times to set up for a critical rocket burn to enter lunar orbit Dec. 6. Landing on the moon is scheduled for Dec. 14 in a region known as Bay of Rainbows, or Sinus Iridum, on the upper-left part of the moon as viewed from Earth. Many of the mission’s specifications and objectives remained secret until the week of launch, when China rolled out details in a press briefing and through official state-owned media outlets. The lander carries a bipropellant rocket engine designed to adjust its power level and pivot to control the probe’s descent from an altitude of 15 kilometers, or about 9 miles, according to China’s state-run Xinhua news agency. Long March rocket blasts off with Chinese lunar rover [Stephen Clark/Spaceflight Now]
4K is here to stay, what with a vast number of companies ramping up production on all types of different panels . Today, Dell is the latest one ready to join the frenzy in full force, announcing availability details for some new, super high-res monitors as part of its UltraSharp lineup. Naturally, the main feature here is the 3, 840 x 2, 160 resolution on them, although there are other highlights worth mentioning. For its part, the newcomer UltraSharp 24 (you know, the one we caught earlier ) has an IPS LED screen with Dell’s PremierColor tech, which translates to being able to support 99 percent of AdobeRGB colors, and offers access to HDMI, DisplayPort, USB 3.0 and a 6-in-1 card reader. The UltraSharp 32 , meanwhile, boasts the majority of the same specs as its smaller 24-inch sibling, save for the fact it’s sporting a 32-inch, IGZO LCD panel. Furthermore, Dell also took the time to reveal it plans to release a 28-inch model sometime in the near future, noting that this “will be the most affordable Ultra HD monitor in the industry when it is launched.” Speaking of which, The UltraSharp 32 is now up for grabs worldwide for $3, 499, while the $1, 399 UltraSharp 24 is only available in South and North America to begin with and elsewhere on December 16th. No word yet on how much exactly the UltraSharp 28 will cost, but Dell did say we can expect it to be under $1, 000 when it hits shelves in “early 2014.” Filed under: Displays , Misc , Peripherals , Dell Comments Source: Dell (1) , (2)
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Dell’s UltraSharp 32 and new UltraSharp 24 4K monitors are available now, 28-inch model on the way
Microsoft’s on the, erm, threshold of something big — something that’s likely to make its three major operating systems even more similar. Queen of Microsoft leaks Mary Jo Foley has caught word from some unnamed contacts that the next major update to the Windows family is codenamed ‘Threshold.’ That name comes from an internal email from EVP Terry Myerson. The codename reportedly covers updates to Windows , Windows Phone and the Xbox One operating system , bringing even more commonality to the three OSes. The Threshold is title more than just a big abstraction — it’s actually borrowed from the original Halo game, following the Cortana codename the company adopted for its forthcoming personal assistant offering. Among the shared, cross-OS features are single, unified app store and tool sets designed to further entice developers to create applications for all three. Naturally, none of the higher-ups at Microsoft are confirming the existence of Threshold yet, but Foley’s projecting a spring 2015 release for the upgrades. Filed under: Cellphones , Desktops , Gaming , Laptops , Tablets , Software , Microsoft Comments Source: ZDNet
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Next Windows release reportedly codenamed ‘Threshold,’ set to further unify Microsoft operating systems
Everything from photography, to television, to printers made the eventual evolution from black and white to full color. And following in those technological footsteps is the 3D printer, with 3D Systems recently announcing what it’s claiming is the world’s first continuous-tone full color plastic printer called the ProJet 4500 . Read more…
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Full-Color 3D Printing Is Here, and It’s Marvelous
There may well be more than 60 billion habitable planets littering the Milky Way, but it’s virtually impossible to make use of that figure. Instead, how about this picture , which shows you how many planets are within 60 light-years of Earth. Read more…
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All the Habitable Planets Within 60 Light-Years of Earth, Visualized
Assuming Steam’s user base is still around the 65 million mark, as Valve reported at the end of the October , over 10 percent of the gaming platform’s patrons were logged-in at the same time yesterday, setting a record in the process. More than seven million people were online simultaneously, which is roughly a million above the peak login record Steam hit around the same time last year . While that number might be fact, whether it holds any meaning is altogether harder to deduce. Is this indicative of a surge in PC gaming? Well, we’d need way more stats to make that kind of claim, as fluctuations in the user base of huge non-Steam titles like World of Warcraft , League of Legends and Starcraft 2 to name a few, surely play a part in that discussion. One could also hypothesize the record shows PCs holding firm following a few recent, rather high-profile console launches , but these Steam users may also have new black boxes in their living rooms. Not that we think there’s anything better than killing a lazy Sunday playing Dota 2 , but perhaps the number of concurrent logins were just a bunch of people who thought to check Steam for one last bargain . Who knows, maybe it was aliens? With Valve getting ready to flog its own hardware and OS , though, we know at least one person that’s seen seven million and hasn’t stopped rubbing his hands together since. Filed under: Gaming Comments Via: GamesIndustry , PCGamesN , NeoGAF forums Source: Steam stats
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Steam sets a new record as over 7 million gamers log in at once
A new photo captured by Artyom Anikeev shows Russia’s new Sukhoi T-50 stealth fighter—America’s F-22 Raptor’s nemesis. According to The Aviationist, its new camouflage—inspired by a typical white tip Red Sea’s shark—will make it look “as a rhomboidal shaped aircraft, smaller than the actual airplane” from a distance. Read more…
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Newly captured photo shows Russia’s new badass shark stealth fighter
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos took to 60 Minutes to reveal the company’s latest delivery method: drones . In what is likely a cunning reminder of the e-tailer’s upcoming Cyber Monday sales, these bots will apparently be capable of delivering packages up to five pounds (86 percent of orders are apparently under that), with the aim of getting them to your house in under half an hour. The system is called Prime Air and the octo-copter drones, which wait, ready to deliver, at the end of conveyor belts, have a range of 10 miles. As Amazon puts, “Putting Prime Air into commercial use will take some number of years as we advance the technology and wait for the necessary FAA rules and regulations” and Bezos himself added in the segment that it won’t be before 2015 at the very earliest. While it sounds like they”ll take their time to get here (if they ever do), we’ve at least got a video of the drones in action — it’s right after the break. Filed under: Internet , Amazon Comments Source: Lance Ulanoff (Twitter) , Amazon
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Amazon unveils Prime Air drones on 60 Minutes, aims to deliver in half an hour (video)