BlackBerry Bold Touch previewed in leaked tutorials: prepare to pinch-to-zoom (updated)

<.>


A slew of leaked video tutorials for upcoming BlackBerry devices is finally giving us a glimpse into what RIM has in store to keep its diehard fans from ditching the platform. Among some more video of the all-touchscreen BlackBerry Monaco / Touch, we’re finally seeing how the popular Bold form factor will benefit from some touchscreen magic in the aptly named Bold Touch. We’re longtime fans of the traditional form factor, but if anything, the addition looks to be more trouble than it’s worth. Like its sliding cousin, the Torch, touch input seems even more gimmicky given that all the same functions can be performed using the familiar (and beloved) optical trackpad — which doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. Sure, touchscreens are all the rage these days and pinch-to-zoom is nice, but we can’t help but wonder if RIM is simply killing time until its dual-core QNX-equipped phones hit unsuspecting BBM’ers. Of course, the company has been impressing us with its use of touch on the Playbook, so there’s no telling what it might have in store come BlackBerry World. You can peep the Monaco action after the break, or check out a torrent of others at the source link as well.

Thanks, Reagan M.

Update: Uh oh, looks like the original Monaco video got yanked, but fret not, as Crackberry has just posted some more clips — we got one of the new ones after the break as well.

Continue reading BlackBerry Bold Touch previewed in leaked tutorials: prepare to pinch-to-zoom (updated)

BlackBerry Bold Touch previewed in leaked tutorials: prepare to pinch-to-zoom (updated) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 16:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink

Take a Peak at Windows 8’s Tablet-Ready ‘Immersive’ Browser and PDF Reader [Blip]

WithinWindows posted a few sneak peaks of a pre-beta Windows 8, including an “Immersive” full-screen version of Internet Explorer fit for tablets as well as a “Modern Reader” application for digging into PDFs sans distractions. Pretty! The IE screenshot also offers a glimpse of a Windows Phone 7-esque “tile” interface, which is perhaps slightly less pretty. [Within Windows via WinRumors] More

Watch the 50,000 Volt Taser Grenade Shock Its First Civilian Victim [Video]

There’s a new Taser in town! The company’s 50,000 volt projectile, the Taser Grenade, can incapacitate those who need to be incapacitated at distances of up to 900 feet. The Daily’s Justin Rocket Silverman (Rocket!) has the distinction of being the first civilian to be zapped by the new weapon, an experience he takes quite stoically, though the company wouldn’t actually fire the thing at him and just shocked him with a box of Taser Grenade guts instead. Still! This looks painful! The military is currently conducting tests with the projectile and police departments could be soon to follow, so you can probably expect the long distance tasing YouTubes to start rolling in very soon indeed. [The Daily via Crunch Gear] More

AT&T and Verizon join National Clear Fleet Program, thumb their noses at petrol

Thought the Prez was just kidding about those alternative fuel initiatives? Think again. Just hours after stating that the US government fleet would be 100 percent alternative fuel, hybrid, or electric vehicles by 2015, Obama has announced the National Clean Fleets Partnership, an initiative of the Department's Clean Cities program. It's a rather unique public-private partnership, and it'll be assisting large companies to “reduce diesel and gasoline use in their fleets by incorporating electric vehicles, alternative fuels, and fuel-saving measures into their operations.” A handful of Charter members have made themselves known, with AT&T, Verizon, FedEx, Pepsi-Co and UPS all committed to deploying over 20,000 advanced technology vehicles in the years to come — an effort that should save over seven million gallons of fuel per year. Ma Bell in particular will be replacing over 15,000 rides with 7,000 hybrids and 8,000 compressed natural gas vehicles during the next decade, while Verizon looks to use a raft of cars (er, vans) that rely on biodiesel and ethanol. Whether or not such a program leads to the installation of more EV charging stations remains to be seen, but if it’s good enough for Brown, surely it’ll be good enough for your future Tesla. Vid’s after the break, kiddos.

Continue reading AT&T and Verizon join National Clear Fleet Program, thumb their noses at petrol

AT&T and Verizon join National Clear Fleet Program, thumb their noses at petrol originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 15:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink

Researchers find graphene transistors cool themselves, silicon counterparts seethe with envy

We’ve seen graphene promise some pretty slick tricks already: budget-minded bendable batteries, superior stain resistance, and upping ultracapacitors’ energy density. We can now add self-cooling transistors to the list of awesome, yet unfulfilled possibilities for these microscopic sheets of carbon. Using an atomic force microscope, a team of researchers at the University of Illinois led by Professor William King discovered that graphene transistors have a thermoelectric cooling effect where they make their metal connections. This self-cooling is greater than the resistive heating that normally follows the flow of electrons — meaning graphene-based electronics from the future could make their silicon competition look decidedly uncool in comparison.

Researchers find graphene transistors cool themselves, silicon counterparts seethe with envy originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 17:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink

BlackBerry Bold Touch previewed in leaked tutorials: prepare to pinch-to-zoom


A slew of leaked video tutorials for upcoming BlackBerry devices is finally giving us a glimpse into what RIM has in store to keep its diehard fans from ditching the platform. Among some more video of the all-touchscreen BlackBerry Monaco / Touch, we’re finally seeing how the popular Bold form factor will benefit from some touchscreen magic in the aptly named Bold Touch. We’re longtime fans of the traditional form factor, but if anything, the addition looks to be more trouble than it’s worth. Like its sliding cousin, the Torch, touch input seems even more gimmicky given that all the same functions can be performed using the familiar (and beloved) optical trackpad — which doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. Sure, touchscreens are all the rage these days and pinch-to-zoom is nice, but we can’t help but wonder if RIM is simply killing time until its dual-core QNX-equipped phones hit unsuspecting BBM’ers. Of course, the company has been impressing us with its use of touch on the Playbook, so there’s no telling what it might have in store come BlackBerry World. You can peep the Monaco action after the break, or check out a torrent of others at the source link as well.

[Thanks, Reagan M.]