All though induction charging isn’t a new technology it has been an overlooked technology in the consumer electronics markets. We first saw a commercially available version of induction charging from the Palm Touchstone for the Palm Pre and it really didn’t go over as well as Palm had hoped. But don’t fret as induction technologies haven’t gone the way of the Dodo just yet. This year Mobee Technologies unveiled an exciting new product at IFA which is a replacement battery pack and induction charger for the Apple Magic Mouse designed in a very Apple-esk fashion.

The Magic Charger is a great example of what induction charging technologies should be used for and designed like. Products that use relatively little power and that aren’t used all day and night are perfect candidates for induction as they are trickle charged at a much slower rate than traditional USB or wall-socket charging. This product seems so right that I’m amazed that Apple hadn’t come up with it themselves, instead of an Apple approved battery charger.

Take a look a the video below for an up-close look at the Mobee Magic Charger:

AppleTV has been rumored for the past month to be replaced by an Apple iTV at the September 1st press event and Apple did indeed deliver on that rumor. The new AppleTV (rumored iTV name didn’t happen) is exactly 1/4 of the size of the original AppleTV. This is largely in part to the fact that the device has NO INTERNAL STORAGE. All content is streamed over your Internet connection. Content includes ABC, FOX, NETFLIX & more …

Apple has completely revised the pricing for episodes streamed to the AppleTV. From now on all episodes will be FOR RENT ONLY for $0.99, similar to renting a movie on iTunes now your content will be removed from your queue once you have finished watching it and you would have to re-rent the content if you wish to watch it over again. For some this may be the a-la-cart option that will help break consumers break-free from their current cable providers.

The new AppleTV will be priced at $99, which is an excellent price point.

MORE PHOTOS:

AppleTV Specifications Breakdown

AppleTV is Very Small

AppleTV brings Netflix, YouTube, Flickr & MobileMe

Apple has finally released the hotly anticipated  and rumored new iPod Touch with a camera…. Make that 2 cameras, one on the back and one on the front for proper Facetime communications. What we didn’t think we were going to get from Apple with this release was the Retina Display, 3-Axis Gyro and the Apple A4 processor.

This device is a slimmer version of the iPhone 4 but without the nasty AT&T contract. If you’ve been considering an iPhone but don’t want the antenna issues or the AT&T service this is the device for you.

Pricing look like the following: 8GB for $229, 32GB for $299 & 64GB for $399

MORE PHOTOS:

iPod Touch Retina Display and Front Facing Camera

Facetime between Apple iPhone4 and the all new Ipod Touch

]]> http://yista.com/2010/09/01/iphone-4-without-the-contract-new-ipod-touch/feed/ 0 http://yista.com/2010/08/31/philips-ipod-touch-gogear-connect/ http://yista.com/2010/08/31/philips-ipod-touch-gogear-connect/#comments Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:14:50 +0000 George Burnett http://yista.com/?p=1076

For all its success, the iPod touch has few dedicated media player competitors capable of matching its big-touchscreen, WiFi, and voluminous App Store. Until today. Philips just went official with its GoGear Connect featuring the full suite of Google Mobile applications pre-installed with access to the Android Market for pretty much everything else.

Specs: 3.2-inch display, WiFi, sound isolating earphones, built-in camera, microSD slot and Android OS (version not specified yet).

Syncing your music is done over Bluetooth or a USB tether to your PC with Philips’ Songbird providing the software assist. The GoGear Connect come to Western Europe, China, and the US, starting in late October with the price pegged at €249 (about $315) for the 16GB model.

Today, August 12th 2010 the popular social media management tool TweetDeck has been release in beta form as an Android app. The company is opening its beta program this morning, and I was lucky enough to get my hands on a copy.

At first glance TweetDeck for Android is noticably a standout application on the Android platform and a real testament to what can be done with the Android OS API.

A lot of people think of TweetDeck as a Twitter application as they really started out that way. However, over the past year or so they have added quite a bit of functionality to their Adobe AIR desktop app, iPhone/ iPad apps by including Facebook, Google Buzz and Foursquare integrated into your social media streams and columns.

Well, TweetDeck for Android will not dissapoint as they have included all of the functionality from their iPhone and desktop apps and more in to it. My favorite new addition is the Blended Columns…Bringing all your Twitter, Facebook, Buzz and Foursquare feeds into the same column allows you to focus more on what your friends are saying and less on where they are saying it. This is done by changing the shade or color of the block behind the text to easily signify that you’re currently looking at a Foursquare update rather than a Twitter update.

If you’re an Android user make sure you sign up for the beta whitelist and get your self a copy too. Let me know if you have a different opinion or have your own reasons for using TweetDeck for Android.

Sprint has begun rolling out the Android 2.2 upgrade to HTC EVO users today, Tuesday August 3rd according to an announcement posted on the carrier’s Web site last Thursday night. Sprint says the upgrade is rolling out to EVO users in waves. All users should have the software by the middle of the month.

The release of Android 2.2, more commonly known as Froyo, has been one of the most hotly anticipated events in the OS’s history, but its release has been staggered so far. This rollout for the EVO users is the first of many 2.2 upgrades to come in the following months. Next we will see a rollout to the Droid and Eris followed by the release of the Droid 2 which will come with Froyo and then the Droid X, which is scheduled for upgrade on the Verizon network later this summer.

Samsung Mobile Display (SMD) is developing an AMOLED display that is crush-proof and can be bent while showing video without ill effects. The prototype display is sized at 2.8 inches and has a resolution of 166ppi. It weighs just 0.29g and is 20 micrometers thin. Samsung believes it can bring the AMOLED display on a universal board to market by 2012.

Pretty amazing right!?

Google Alarm, a Firefox & Chrome Add-on has hit the Internets this week, which alerts you every time your personal info is sent to Google’s servers by blasting your senses with notifications. Every website you vistit that sends any data back to Google by way of Ad-Sense or Google Analytics or any other Google related service will immediately sound off the Vuvuzelas accompanied by flasing red lights and a Growl like notification telling you which Google service was the culprit. If you’ve ever wondered just how much information you are sending the the all-mighty Google or just wonder which of the website you frequent are the biggest “offenders”, give this Add-on a shot… or just take a look at this video demonstration below.

Google Alarm from Jamie Dubs on Vimeo.

Art International Radio is an internet radio station based in the Clocktower in lower Manhattan, run by Alanna Heiss, who’s been at the forefront of contemporary art in New York City for decades. The Internet radio station is a non-profit Internet radio station, free online cultural archive, and media arts center. Producing over 500 new radio shows annually, AIR features a diverse range of programming from audio art to interviews and from music to spoken word and radio theater.

AIR broadcasts art-related talk and interviews as well as an eclectic range of music, and experiments with radio theatere and more ambitious sound-based extensions of art projects. If you’re a fan of the music, theatre or excellent old fashion radio programming you should definietly give AIR a listen, after all it is FREE! If you like their programming they do accept tax-deductible donations.