Seagate and LaCie have gotten friendly before — the former company’s drives are in the LaCie 2big Thunderbolt HDD, for instance — but the storage makers are about to get even cozier. Today, Seagate announced its plans to buy a 64.5-percent share in the French company, which is currently valued at $186 million. The acquisition will combine the two outlets’ product portfolios and, according to the press release, “accelerate Seagate’s growth strategy in the expanding consumer storage market, particularly in Europe and Japan.” The deal should go through by late 2012, and Seagate will bring over LaCie CEO Philippe Spruch to head the consumer storage products division.

Continue reading Seagate to buy LaCie for $186 million, expand its storage empire

Seagate to buy LaCie for $186 million, expand its storage empire originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 May 2012 11:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Seagate to buy LaCie for $186 million, expand its storage empire

If you’re an iPhone or iPad owner, you might have been disappointed that the Delorme inReach two-way GPS communicator launched with app support only for Android users. That’s fine if you’re trekking with a Casio G’zOne Commando, but not so hot if you’re of the Apple mindset and get stranded canoeing down the Amazon. Thankfully, Delorme just posted an iOS version of its Earthmate app that will let your Cupertino-designed gear send either text messages or SOS beacons through a paired-up inReach unit. As before, the handheld relies on its own GPS positioning and embedded locations in messages to keep friends and rescue crews updated anywhere the device can get an Iridium satellite lock-in. It’ll still cost you $250 for the device and $10 per month to stay linked up; even so, there’s a real chance you’ll be texting your friends from your iPhone in Mali, assuming you haven’t had to call a rescue helicopter first.

Continue reading Delorme’s inReach two-way satellite communicator gets iOS support, sends iPhone texts from Timbuktu (video)

Delorme’s inReach two-way satellite communicator gets iOS support, sends iPhone texts from Timbuktu (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 May 2012 08:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Delorme’s inReach two-way satellite communicator gets iOS support, sends iPhone texts from Timbuktu (video)

bonch writes “Chrome was recently called the world’s no.1 browser, but Microsoft is accusing the source, StatCounter, of using flawed methodology. When a user enters a search in Chrome, the browser preloads an invisible tab not shown to the user, and these were being counted by StatCounter. Net Applications, another usage tracking group, ignores these invisible tabs and reports IE at 54%, Firefox at 20.20%, and Chrome at 18.85%.” Whereas the saturation of MSIE is totally organic, right?

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Chrome Browser Usage Artificially Boosted, Says Microsoft

Click here to read Groupon’s SEC Troubles Infographic

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An administrative law judge for the International Trade Commission issued a recommendation that the commission ban 4GB and 250 GB Xbox gaming consoles from import to the United States. The recommendation(PDF) was released to the public on Monday, and would punish Microsoft for infringing against some of Motorola’s patents. The patents permit video transmission and compression on the console and between the console and its controllers.

Not all import bans are created equal though. In Judge David Shaw’s statement, he suggested a cease and desist order be placed against Microsoft. It would, “require the respondent to submit an annual report to the Commission regarding the number and value of infringing goods in its domestic inventory,” according to the authors of ITC Remedial Orders in the Real World(PDF). “Failing to do so, or providing false information in the report, may lead to criminal prosecution under 18 U.S.C. § 1001.” The cease-and-desist order is more strict than a standard exclusion order, which would simply require US customs agents to keep tabs on Microsoft’s activities.

Judge Shaw also ordered “that Microsoft post a bond equal to 7 percent of the declared value of unsold Xbox inventory already in the country,” according to Courthouse News.

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ITC judge recommends import ban on Microsoft’s Xbox

They may not be “robots” as most have come to expect, but these so-called microrobots developed by a team of researchers from the University of Hawaii at Manoa do have at least one thing in common with many of their mechanical counterparts: lasers. As IEEE Spectrum reports, the bots themselves are actually nothing more than bubbles of air in a saline solution, but they become “microrobots” when the laser is added to the equation, which serves as an engine of sorts and allows the researchers to control both the speed and direction of the bubbles. That, they say, could allow the bots to be used for a variety of tasks, including assembling microstructures and then disappearing without a trace when the bubble is popped. Head on past the break for a video of what they’re already capable of.

Continue reading Researchers power microbots made of bubbles with lasers

Researchers power microbots made of bubbles with lasers originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 May 2012 21:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Researchers power microbots made of bubbles with lasers

Bits & Pieces has a fun collection of “double take” photos. Each one caused a fun moment of “huh?” in my mind, until reality snapped into place.

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Fun gallery of “double take” photos

Microsoft has been going into very exacting detail as to how Windows 8 works, but one area it hasn’t explored much is what happens before you even see the Start screen. As user experience manager Chris Clark notes, the days of mashing F8 repeatedly to reach a pre-boot configuration are (mostly) over: you can invoke it either through an “advanced startup” in settings, through Start menu shortcuts or, if your PC is truly sick, let it show automatically. At least on systems blessed with UEFI instead of an aging BIOS, you’ll get a lot more to tinker with as well, including going straight to the command prompt, recovering from a system image or booting from external storage. The emphasis on choosing your environment before you hit the power button is virtually necessary. A Windows 8 PC with a solid-state drive leaves just a 200-millisecond slice of time for any user input, and Microsoft would rather not have users caught in an infinite loop of restarting their systems as they unsuccessfully try to boot from USB drives. You’ll likely discover the pre-boot space first-hand when the OS ships later this year, but for now you can check the source for more.

Microsoft details Windows 8’s pre-boot world, helps you skip the F8 F8 F8 routine originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 May 2012 23:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft details Windows 8’s pre-boot world, helps you skip the F8 F8 F8 routine

Tuesday morning at 0344, right on schedule (and it had to be right on schedule), Elon Musk’s baby finally left the launch pad on its way to the International Space Station (ISS). Two babies, actually: the Falcon 9 launch vehicle is what we watched as it took off from Cape Canaveral — the first private spaceship headed for the ISS — with the Dragon spacecraft perched on its nose. The Dragon carried over 1000 pounds of supplies and experiments for the ISS. The launch went off without a hitch. But don’t stop holding your breath quite yet; Dragon isn’t scheduled to dock at the ISS until Friday.

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At Long Last, a Private Cargo Spaceship Takes Off