We’d had some indication that robot teachers could be headed to classrooms
sooner or later, but it looks like things may now be progressing faster than anyone thought. According to South Korea’s
etnews, the country has announced plans to invest in a so-called “R-Learning” program that promises to put robotic teaching assistants in up to 400 pre-schools by 2012, and expand to a full 8,000 pre-schools and kindergartens the following year. Those apparently wouldn’t be in charge of the class (yet), but they would be used to do things like recite stories, and could let parents check in on the classroom and send messages to their children. If that trial program proves to be successful, the robots could then be expanded to elementary schools, and the Korea Institute of Science & Technology (the folks responsible for the bots) is apparently already eyeing international possibilities.
Robot teachers to invade Korean classrooms by 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Feb 2010 16:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Last we saw Casio’s GPS-equipped
EX-10HG it was still in prototype form at CES, but the company was back with it again at PMA this week, and thankfully was a bit more talkative this time. The big news is that the camera will be available in October of this year, and will cost “around $400.” That will get you a 12.1-megapixel camera that not only does geotagging of photos (with some accelerometer-based assistance when a GPS signal isn’t available), but can even double as a navigation system in a pinch — although it’s still not exactly clear how fully functional that aspect of the camera will be.
Casio’s GPS-equipped EX-10HG camera gets a price, launch date originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Feb 2010 16:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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We’ve got Motorola’s latest Blur handset in hand, Devour-ing ill-advised puns like it’s a full time job. You can check out this aluminum slider in all its consumer-friendly glory in the gallery below, see it sized up against big brother Droid right below that, and there are some initial impressions and a video walkthrough after the break.
Continue reading Motorola Devour goes hands-on, hits Best Buy for $99 this week (update: video!)
Motorola Devour goes hands-on, hits Best Buy for $99 this week (update: video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Feb 2010 16:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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If there’s one thing that sounds more impressive than actual capabilities, it’s theoretical capabilities — and it looks like the CompactFlash Association has come through on both counts with its new CF5.0 specifications. While any actual cards or cameras supporting the spec are still a ways off, the new standard does pave the way for 48-bit addressing (up from 28-bit), along with an increased data transfer unit size of 32MB/s (up from 128KB/s) and, best of all, a theoretical maximum capacity of 144 petabytes (up from a mere 137GB with the current spec). Other advancements include a so-called “Video Performance Guarantee” aimed at professional video cameras, and a new Interface Electrical Specification that complies better with the ATA standard, and promises to allow for “easier and better” card design.
CompactFlash 5.0 specification promises faster speeds, crazy ‘theoretical’ storage originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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It’s no Courier, but for a charging pad, this is a pretty interesting concept. According to a patent filed by Microsoft’s Beijing office, the idea for such a pad is that it can have one side dedicated to inductive charging (maybe for a future Zune or even Microsoft’s own phones), while the other side can be used for displaying useful information “such as weather conditions, sports scores, news headlines.” It may not sound very practical at first blush, but have a listen at this — the built-in accelerometer and the charging surface’s load detector help determine which side isn’t in use, thus switching that side off to reduce power consumption. Voilà! As for why the eggheads suggested adding a light panel for glowing up a glass prism — it’s the new crystal ball.
Update: looks like this device has been around since March 2009! A tipster — who happens to be affiliated with Microsoft Research Asia — has just hit us with some photos of a prototype device based on this patent. It’s called the uPad (please, don’t start) and was produced as souvenirs for Microsoft Research Asia’s 10th anniversary. As you can see after the break, the uPad wirelessly charges a modified Wireless Laser Mouse 7000. We want one.
Continue reading Microsoft dreams of smart charging pad with information display (update: prototype pics)
Microsoft dreams of smart charging pad with information display (update: prototype pics) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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