Friday, November 16, 2012

Wii U's Nintendo TVii, Amazon Instant Video, Hulu Plus, and Netflix pushed to December

Wii U's Nintendo TVii, Amazon Instant Video, Hulu Plus, and Netflix pushed to December:
When Nintendo's Wii U launches this weekend, it won't arrive with most of its primary multimedia features -- namely, Nintendo TVii, Amazon Instant Video, Hulu Plus, or Netflix. All were said to come pre-loaded on the new console, but reviewers found out early that a launch day patch would enable the functionality. As it turns out, that patch will actually arrive at some point in December, bearing Nintendo TVii, with the rest of the apps arriving "in the coming weeks" (no hard date is given for any of the apps). The console is still expected to launch with Miiverse, Nintendo Network, and backwards compatibility with the Nintendo Wii -- none of which is currently enabled on the Wii U (presumably still arriving in some form of day-one patch). We've reached out to Nintendo to see if those things are still planned for launch.
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Monday, November 12, 2012

Livescribe Sky WiFi Smartpen review

Livescribe Sky WiFi Smartpen review:
Livescribe Sky WiFi Smartpen review
For a relatively niche company that has only been around for five years, Livescribe has grown quickly. Its smartpens -- which cleverly digitize handwritten notes and audio -- have already attracted a million users. However, just because these customers prefer to write their notes the old-fashioned way, that doesn't mean they aren't also obsessive about technological progress. In fact, many of them have been waiting on one new feature in particular: a totally wireless workflow, which would allow them to write a note with their smartpens and then -- without any docking or syncing -- see their scribbles appear in the cloud and on their mobile devices.
Well, as you've probably guessed by now, that is precisely the gap that the new Sky pen is looking to fill. The first half of its operation is identical to that of its predecessors, the Pulse and Echo: it contains a camera and microphone, which enable the capture of handwritten notes and time-linked audio files. (You can choose between 2GB, 4GB and 8GB of built-in storage.) But what happens next is totally different. You use "buttons" printed inside Livescribe's proprietary stationery, in conjunction with the pen's OLED display, to select a local WiFi network, enter the password and sync your files directly to Evernote. The popular online note-taking platform then handles everything else, automatically filing the text and audio in the cloud using a time stamp, making it available on whatever devices run Evernote's apps or web interface. What's more, it makes the note searchable through optical character recognition (OCR) of your handwriting.
If there's a downside to users getting what they've been asking for, it's that they are the ones expected to pay for it. The Sky's base model matches the Echo's $170 launch price, but that older pen came with twice as much internal storage, and can also now be had at a discount. Moreover, the 4GB and 8GB Sky pens rise to $200 and $250, respectively, which means this is only likely to be sensible if you really, really dislike writing or typing on a screen. Even assuming that you're totally stuck in your pen-and-ink ways, could a $170 pen ever be worth it? Read on to find out.

Continue reading Livescribe Sky WiFi Smartpen review
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Livescribe Sky WiFi Smartpen review originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 12 Nov 2012 09:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Revel’s Retail iPad POS system adds variable pricing and inventory module, signs on Goodwill and Belkin

Revel’s Retail iPad POS system adds variable pricing and inventory module, signs on Goodwill and Belkin: usingipad commerce gettyimages 520x245 Revels Retail iPad POS system adds variable pricing and inventory module, signs on Goodwill and Belkin
The iPad in the business world has changed the way commerce has taken place. Revel Systems, a company that created a point-of-sale (POS) system on the iPad, is seeking to help bring cash register-like transactions forward. Today, it just updated its solution to include variable pricing and inventory management while adding two new customers to its mix: Goodwill Industries and Belkin.

“Successful first year”

Coming off what it says was a strong first year, Revel Systems is the creator of a POS system centered around the iPad. Calling itself the cash register of the 21st century, it’s a mobile platform that will provide customers with “up-to-the-minute” reporting to track sales within an organization while also moving it away from the traditional register and hardware infrastructure. This system relies on using the iPad because of its “greater style”, has a faster operating system, provides better security, and “it just works”.
Some features of its POS system include being able to process credits, exchanges, and returns; tracking sales by employee for easy commission management; manage inventory, product costing, and ability to set threshold alerts, tracking customer order history, and much more.
Businesses seem to be taking notice of Revel’s system as well — it has well-known companies using its service right now, including Little Caesar’s Pizza, Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, Popeye’s Louisiana Kitchen, Illy, Twistee Treat, and others in the restaurant, retail, and grocery industries. Over 400 enterprise locations around the United States have rolled out this new POS platform and it has been processing hundreds of millions of dollars.

New features

managment23 Revels Retail iPad POS system adds variable pricing and inventory module, signs on Goodwill and Belkin
With today’s announcement, the company is rolling out two enhanced features designed to help its retail customers keep better track of their sales. One of which is the release of variable pricing — with this feature, Revel says that businesses will be able to accommodate multiple-item purchases or even multiple-weighted items at a discount.
reports managment2 Revels Retail iPad POS system adds variable pricing and inventory module, signs on Goodwill and Belkin
Additionally, it has rolled out an inventory module that it says will allow its users to easily update, change, and print labels for inventory in real-time. Through customizable alerts, companies will find out what items are low in stock and help users to place orders for new shipments right through its iOS device. Revel has partnered with Honeywell’s Bluetooth barcode scanner to help make mobile scanning easier — now users can take their mobile device and have it act like a scanner similar to what traditional retailers used with a barcode scanner.

Busy two years

In its two-year history, Revel has been busy rolling out new features for businesses. A few months ago, it produced its own router designed to help businesses use the system from a separate Internet connection. It also unveiled a POS solution for food trucks with a Twitter integration. And last month, it introduced its own app marketplace allowing third-parties to integrate with it, while also featuring plug-ins that users can install, ranging from Twitter and Facebook to tie-ins with local daily deal APIs from Groupon and LivingSocial.

Adding two more companies to its list

Revel Systems is also adding two more retail companies to its list of users. It says that Goodwill Industries has replaced its POS systems in 23 Florida stores with the Revel solution. In addition, technology giant, Belkin, has signed on and has installed the system in its retail store in the Los Angeles Westfield Mall.  Maureen Lewis, Belkin’s director of retail operations, says that it chose to go with Revel because of an unsatisfactory experience with another vendor: “The personalized service has been stellar and custom solutions really have made running the business effortless…and I love the fact that I can check transactions and sales anywhere on my iPad, laptop, and (soon) phone.”
Revel Systems has raised $3.7 million in Series A funding in capital and declared it became profitable at the end of its first year.
Photo credit: ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP/Getty Images

Friday, November 9, 2012

Hitachi intros UltraVision LED TVs with Roku-ready HDMI, freshens Value TVs and sound bars for the fall

Hitachi intros UltraVision LED TVs with Roku-ready HDMI, freshens Value TVs and sound bars for the fall:
Hitachi intros UltraVision LED TVs with Rokufriendly streaming, freshens Value TVs and sound bars for the fall
Although Hitachi was one of the first in line to promise support for Roku Streaming Sticks through MHL, it didn't have much more to say without the TVs to back up the claim. The second half of the puzzle is complete now that the company's fall TV revision is underway. Snag its new UltraVision UltraThin S606 TV in its one of its 42-, 46- or 55-inch sizes and you can discreetly (if optionally) hide the equivalent of a full Roku box in one of the HDMI inputs. The S606 sits strictly in the mid-range, however. Its 120Hz, edge-LED LCD design is superceded by the W806, which comes only in 48- and 55-inch sizes while carrying 3D, IPTV support and WiFi. Those who can get by on 60Hz refresh rates can opt for the Value line, where the H306 and S406 offer 720p in 29- and 32-inch dimensions; a third H316 line brings 1080p to those same sizes while adding a 39-inch panel. Hitachi hasn't said whether stores are stocking the TVs today, but it sees pricing ranging from $329 in the smaller Value sets to $1,399 for the largest W806 variant.
The TV builder's audio mix isn't being ignored with the refresh. Launching in tandem with the TVs, the HSB32B26 and HSB40B16 sound bars are designed to respectively match up with 32- and 40-inch TVs while delivering 3D sound processing and Apt-X Bluetooth audio. At $149 and $199, the sound bars are close enough in cost that we may only need a measuring tape to settle any purchasing dilemmas once the hardware is in stores.
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Google kicks Xperia S Android Open Source Project out of its nest, Sony takes it under its wing (video)

Google kicks Xperia S Android Open Source Project out of its nest, Sony takes it under its wing (video):
Google kicks Xperia S Android Open Source Project out of its nest, Sony takes it under its wing (video)
After just under three months of development, Google's wrapped up its experimental work on bringing the Sony Xperia S into the Android Open Source Project fold. According to Sony, AOSP Technical Lead Jean-Baptiste Quéru considers the effort a success, but the device is being taken off the project's roadmap so Mountain View can focus on its own hardware. Currently, an AOSP build boots on the Xperia S hardware with support for SD-Cards, Wi-Fi and its built-in sensors. Audio and the phone's modem are also operational, but they require proprietary binaries Hirai and Co. can't publish just yet. Work on polishing the handset's vanilla Android experience isn't over, however. Sony has moved the code to its GitHub account and is welcoming developers to pitch in and help with the open source effort. For more details and to see what code has already been laid down, tap the second source link or check out the video of the smartphone in action below.
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