Here's the stuff that we didn't post today. (Until now, obviously.)

This could be the ugliest Touch Pro2 I've ever seen. We spared you before...but now you're not so lucky. [IntoMobile]

Here's the Nokia 5800i XpressMusic. An update to a phone that very few people cared about in the first place. [Unwired View]

Pico projectors have been bullshit. They've been dim and useless. The P2 is one of the next generation with LCoS display of 800x600 and 33 lumens, twice as bright as previous. In two gens, I might even recommend. [PicoProjectorInfo]

PC World 's Game On got an exclusive interview with Richard Marks, one of the key players on Sony's Playstation Motion Control team, and got him to talk a bit about what the future holds for their motion gaming control scheme.

Aside from plenty of marketing/corporate speak, Game On did manage to get a few interest points out of marks. For starters, Playstation Motion Control is not the final name for the control scheme. Marks himself referred to it as a "temporary mouthful" and we can expect a name announcement to come closer to launch.

Secondly, Marks pointed out that they opted to go with a wand peripheral over pure camera-based control because they found in testing that some games just felt more natural when a prop was in the hand of the gamer. They also wanted the option of action buttons to be available for games.

And one other part of the interview that was intriguing was when Marks was asked about backwards compatibility with regard to Playstation Motion Control and Existing PS3 titles. While he sidestepped the question entirely, he also didn't dismiss the idea entirely. Maybe new control schemes would be available via patch updates?

Anyways, check out the interview for yourself (complete with passive-agressive Nintendo and Microsoft comments) over at [Game On]

Filed under: Cellphones

FCC queries AT&T, Apple on Google Voice iPhone app rejection originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 31 Jul 2009 19:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Filed under: Cellphones

FCC queries AT&T, Apple on Google Voice iPhone app rejection originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 31 Jul 2009 19:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Cowon, makers of audiophile digital audio players like the D2 and S9, is teasing their new diminutive flash player, the E2. But what to make of this "circle + square" slogan?

Since we don't know anything about this keychain-esque DAP, we're left to guess based on the interesting ad, with its repetition of the "circle + square" tag. Is it a lost-in-translation attempt at our "square peg in a round hole" idiom? A nod to the design of the gadget itself, which is, in fact, a circle combined with a square? A hint at the future aesthetic of Cowon's players (which have certainly been more attractive lately; compare the blocky utilitarian square of the D2 with the sleek curves of the S9)?

I personally hope it doubles as a USB drive—I really miss the design of the first iPod Shuffle and the Sansa Express, low-profile DAPs with built-in USB. That was so convenient! But we'll have to wait for a real announcement from Cowon to figure out what's going on here. [DAPReview]

Those of you upset with Apple's rejection of the Google Voice iPhone app and the implications of such shady behavior might be interested to hear that the FCC has opened and inquiry into the ban.

In letters sent late Friday to the two companies and AT&T Inc., the FCC asked why Apple rejected the Google Voice application for the iPhone and removed related applications from its App Store. The letter also seeks information on how AT&T, the exclusive U.S. iPhone carrier, was consulted in the decision, if at all.

[WSJ via Gizmodo]

We highlight the best instant messengers on the block, rant and rave over Apple's bad iPhone decisions, tip you off to liars, and enjoy some cool summertime wallpapers.

Photo by Amecke.

• Five Best Instant Messengers
  Instant messaging has become so ubiquitous, an entire generation of internet users is probably unaware there was ever life without it. Check out the following five most popular instant messengers to to help you communicate across networks and the world.
• Bad Apple: An Argument Against Buying an iPhone
  Apple just rejected the Google Voice iPhone application from App Store distribution, the most recent in a long line of questionable moves, and the message is clear: If you want a device that won't lock you out of innovation, skip the iPhone.
• Catch Phrases That May Tip You Off to a Lie
  Apart from more obvious signs, non-verbal gestures and other cues can also help to determine whether someone is telling the truth or not. Forbes outlines 11 ways to potentially sniff out a liar, including several phrases to watch out for.
• How Bill Gates Uses Office and Three Monitors
  Bill Gates drops a lengthy blog post explaining how he gets things done, Microsoft style, using three monitors to watch an inbox, read or write documents, and browse the web.
• Wallpaper Roundup: Ocean Views and Abstract Blues
  The temperature is rising across the country, and while you may not be able to get yourself to a cool and breezy locale, you can at least plaster your monitor with soothing reminders of one.
• Make Reverse-Engineered KFC at Home
  An enjoyable bout of foodie one-upmanship has yielded not only one "reverse-engineered" home recipe of KFC's 11 herbs and spices, but an improved version of fried chicken that strips out the MSG.
• The Hidden Risks of Cloud Computing
  Every day more users move their computing lives from the desktop to the cloud and rely on hosted web applications to store and access email, photos, and documents.
• Avoid These Phrases to Keep Your Resume Relevant
  Resume writing is an infrequently used skill, and one with which most of us will take all the help we can get. Keep your resume from ending up in the bowels of a corporate shredder by avoiding these phrases.
• First Look at Firefox 4.0 Design Mockups
  Last week we took a look at initial design mockups for Firefox 3.7, and now the busy designers at Mozilla are back with some theme mockups for the even-further-into-the-future Firefox 4.0.
• Never Use Hotmail, Inactive Webmail As Your Secondary Email Account
  Registering for an account at any web site almost always requires an email address, and some people use a secondary address they don't care about instead of their real email address to avoid spam.
• Brush Up on Getting Things Done with an Updated Flow Chart
  Since the release of his new book Making It All Work, David Allen has updated his original GTD workflow chart to include the new elements from the book.

Vancouver-based startup General Fusion has been running around claiming they can build a nuclear fusion reactor in the next 10 years for under a billion dollars. And some anonymous futurists just gave them 9 million dollars for their troubles.

Seeing that current nuclear fusion projects are expected to cost around 14 billion dollars (ITER project) and take 20 years to complete, General Fusion's reactor would indeed come at a bargain price. But how can they make this so cheap, and what makes them so confident they'll succeed?

Well currently, the aforementioned ITER project is attempting to use astronomically expensive, superconducting tokamak magnets to keep superheated plasma in its place for a fusion reaction, while the National Ignition Facility is trying to use lasers to compress plasma into a reaction.

General Fusions wants to create a reaction using a mechanical process where 220 pneumatic pistons push acoustic waves through a sphere filled with liquid lithium and lead into a plasma ring in the center. With 220 of these waves coming in at 100 meters per second, scientists hope that it will compress the plasma into a fusion reaction. And since the majority of the tech consists of long-established machinery, costs will be low.

If successful, General Fusion believes they can ultimately create a fusion reactor rated at 100 megawatts, that could potentially power a grid for 500 million dollars. The most recent contribution of 9 million dollars for General Fusion brings the total funding to 14 million, but they'll need 37 million more over five years to build a working prototype. Um, can we pass a collection plate around? [MIT Tech Review and Xconomy]

Filed under: Household

LEDSAUR Tyrannosaurus Rex desk lamp makes chewing through paperwork less monotonous originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 31 Jul 2009 18:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.