Gadgets Blog

The Portuguese government is confident that Intel’s low-cost laptop initiative will improve education — enough to place an order for 500,000 of the chipmaker’s Classmate PC notebooks.

With the move, Intel has nearly matched One Laptop Per Child’s (OLPC) overall total of 622,000 laptops sold to date. Nonprofit OLPC’s goal since 2005 has been to produce a $100 notebook to provide poorer countries with education; its current offering, the XO, costs about $188.

Though it would appear Intel has "won" against OLPC, OLPC President Chuck Kane stressed that competition is irrelevant to his organization’s mission.

"I want to make it clear here we’re not competing; we are complementing," Kane said in a phone interview. "When these actions take place then our mission is further advanced…. Our mission is to get laptops in the hands of children; it doesn’t necessarily have to be our laptop."

He added that Intel’s move does not spell out trouble for OLPC, because "The world is big enough for us combined — and more."

However, computer industry analyst Roger Kay of Endpoint Technologies Associates thought differently. He said that the downfall of OLPC is that it fails to recognize it must operate with a sharp business model in order to succeed in its idealistic goals.

"[OLPC] is not really clear on what it takes to produce massive quantities of these things, deliver them and then support them in the field," Kay said in a phone interview.

He explained that Intel has the advantage in this regard, because in selling 500,000 low-cost notebooks to Portugal, the company is creating a market for such devices. Thus, more Original Equipment Manufacturers will want to work with and provide for Intel, a company that understands how to operate a business, as opposed to OLPC, Kay said.

"Intel has very long range view of how they develop a market, and that’s what they’re doing," Kay said. "It’s competitive; this is how competitive companies operate, they have a goal…. They adjust to realities of the situation; they bring in partners; they come up with marketing strategy and campaigns."

However, OLPC’s president said his organization is satisfied that a new market has emerged as a result of its efforts. He said he’d like to keep seeing Intel and other manufacturers continue producing low-cost laptops, because it only furthers the organization’s cause of providing computers to as many children as possible.

"What I’d like to see happen is an ecosystem develop here — similar to what’s happened with iPods," Kane said. "When Apple came out with that product, there were a lot of companies that surrounded the appliances of that product….We will be absolutely delighted to see people push innovation, because that’s only going to translate to other parts of the world having that opportunity that they would’ve never had before."

Portugal to sell 500,000 of Intel’s Classmate PCs [AP News]

(Photo credit: graysky/Flickr)

When making a modernized remake of a classic game, there are several important factors to remember. One: include a upbeat, generic techno soundtrack. Two: Put lots of crazy hallucinogenic images and colors flying around in the background. Three: make slight, marginal improvements to the gameplay. Square Enix definitely incorporated these design rules into the new Space Invaders Extreme remake, and manages to take a classic series and reinvent it in a way that while lacking in originality, definitely makes up for that by presenting a very flowing, addictive gameplay.

The first thing players will notice about the new game is how much the visual aesthetics and music borrow heavily from the trend pioneered by games like Rez, Lumines and Pop. Everything is very brightly colored, from the enemy ships to the weapon effects, but the color saturation is really brought to overkill with the constant psychadelic graphics show going on in the background of the action. These backgrounds can luckily be turned on and off, because some people are going to love them, while I have heard others say they simply can’t play with them on. The classic art style is still here in all its blocky glory, but the presentation otherwise is very modern. The music, however, is very monotonous. It also, sadly, cannot be turned off in the options.

What this game really does right is that it never gives the player a moment to stop. Levels flow in and out very quickly, and the fun and diverse bonus stages that are triggered transition very fluidly. The lack of pauses really makes for a game that is exceedingly simple, as we all know Space Invaders is, but keeps the player active and engaged without breaks that can make the players’ mind wander to other things. The action is really seamless in every type of transition, and losing all lives simply puts you back at the beginning of the current level.

The core gameplay is exactly as you remember the ancient Space Invaders paradigm, albeit faster moving. Chains have been added, but score really becomes meaningless in the arcade portion of this game. What keeps the player going is the zen-like state that comes from really getting into the flow of the game and just surviving as long as possible. Boss battles have also been incorporated, and are a fun addition. A couple new enemy types also spice up the play, including large invaders that take multiple hits to kill and enemies that split into three when shot.

Power-ups have also been added to the mix of this classic franchise. Unlike other modern shooters, these upgrades only last a few seconds then are gone, ending up in a frenetic grab to keep acquiring the upgrades that rain from the sky off of defeated enemies. Upgrades consist of a beam laser that annihilates everything for a few seconds, a spread shot and a bomb projectile. Coming back from a bonus stage with a good score lands the player a frenzy burst for a few seconds, consisting of an uber-strong variant of one of the beam types in the game.

There is a multiplayer mode, but it only supports two-player ad hoc wireless. This is great if you happen to have a friend with a PSP and a game, but unlikely one would ever find a multiplayer match otherwise. The only other gameplay variant from the standard arcade mode is a stage mode that allows players to play single levels, once they have been beaten.

The bottom line is this is a very well done, albeit simple arcade-style game. It’s really the perfect type of portable game, in that it works well for short gaming bursts during the day when one is out and about. I’m admittedly not the biggest fan of retro remakes, but the pace and flow of this game make for an extremely compelling portable title.

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Ever wish you could stand out from the rest of the crowd? Well, that is now possible by revamping your wardrobe and taking a look at these Watch Cufflinks.

Watch-Cufflinks.com offers the most original cufflinks available by creating stunning, one-of-a-kind pieces from vintage jeweled timepieces. Each piece is hand made from specifically selected watch movements of the finest craftsmanship from Switzerland, France and across the globe. Because all of the items on Watch-Cufflinks.com are unique, hand-crafted pieces, all items come with a certificate of authenticity signed by the artist.

Well, if you’re into the whole “stiff upper lip” thing who wants to live the life of a modern aristocrat, perhaps ordering one of these cufflinks would do your public image a whole lot of good.

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Amazon has introduced two new payment systems targeted at both sellers and buyers of goods online.

The first payment system is called Checkout by Amazon and is aimed at sellers. It offers an all-in-one solution that mirrors the system buyers are used to seeing on Amazon.com. This includes Amazon 1-Click alongside a range of tools to help sell more, protect against fraud and manage orders.

Setup is also incredibly simple. Once an account has been created all you need do is add a “Checkout with Amazon” button to your item pages and Amazon handles the whole payment process. You then ship the products to the customer and Amazon Payments transfers the money to your account.

The second payment system is called Amazon Simple Pay and is aimed at making the shopping experience for buyers on different websites easier. It basically allows a customer to use their Amazon account details to pay on sites separate from Amazon.com. The emphasis is still on the website to support this feature, but it allows for secure payments from a known brand increasing the trust a customer has purchasing from your site.

There are 3 versions of Simple Pay called Standard, Donations and Marketplace. Standard is for typical web sales, Donations is for non-profit organizations websites and Marketplace is for companies handling auctions and shopping cart solutions.

Simple Pay is being seen as a potential competitor to eBay’s PayPal, but it may never be used on eBay’s auction site as a payment option. eBay has always forbidden the use of Google Checkout on the site and Amazon is likely to get the same treatment.

Read more at CNET

Matthew’s Opinion
Both services look like an ideal way for website owners to add more trust to the purchases people are making on their sites. Established websites with a growing customer base may not need this, but a new site considering a range of e-commerce solutions would likely benefit from having Amazon deal with their transactions.

Amazon is a big brand and well-known name across the Internet. Its system is proven and people know it and many will likely assume a site is actually a part of Amazon if it has the buy button clearly showing their logo. That suits all parties as customers buy with confidence, the seller gets the sale and Amazon has its brand used more, increasing customer awareness and likely pushing more sales to the main site. They will also be taking a cut of the sale price earning them revenue from this.

by Joshua Fruhlinger, posted Jul 31st 2008 at 3:28AM

It’s been a while since we’ve reported about the doings of our robotic friend on Mars, but a press conference tomorrow (Thursday) could uncover Phoenix’s first positive report of water on the red planet. NASA’s conference will be held at 2 p.m. Eastern Thursday and we’re hearing that Pheonix Mission is ready to report that water ice is not only confirmed, but the research robot has dug some ice out of a trench, heated it, and confirmed that it is, in fact water. If this all holds true, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory will be able to determine whether or not the atmosphere could sustain life and lead to manned missions to Mars. We call shotgun.

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Sanyo has managed to achieve a solar cell efficiency of 22.3% with their latest proprietary solar cell known as “heterojunction with intrinsic thin layer (HIT) solar cell.” This was achieved during the research phase, so it remains to be seen whether practical application in the real world will translate to the same. Sanyo’s engineers are also focused on reducing the thickness of the HIT solar cell in due time. It actually good for efficiency, but what’s the cost? The thin-film solar industry is going towards “less efficient, but a lot cheaper.”

Sanyo has revealed its PLC-XL50 XGA projector in Korea, allowing you to throw a 80″ image from just 3″ away. Features include 2,000 ANSI lumens that ought to be bright enough for conference rooms as well as storefront display windows. Sounds like the perfect device to carry around if you’re one who is wont to make impromptu presentations - I wonder what the battery life is like on this thing.

If you’re a stickler for proper law and order, then the Laser Parking System ought to be right up your alley. This $30 device ($25 if you search for a cheaper source) is instaled in your garage to help you park - it uses the integrated motion sensor to know whether a vehicle is approaching or not, kicking off the Laser Guided Parking System to “shoot” a bright, vertical laser beam from a mounting location so that you will be able to park in the same spot every time without fail. Too bad they don’t use this in driving tests…

Sonic Impact’s SoundPads are small pads that are able to “transfer sound to any surface you stick them on”. Guess this means instant speakers are now a snap to create - just grab a couple of these for $17.99 and you’re good to go. One word of warning though - where you place them would be a permanent fixture, so choose wisely before you settle on the desired spot. The SoundPads measure roughly 4″ in diameter and can be wired to virtually any amplifier - you’ll have to get your own wires, of course.

Blizzard’s annual convention BlizzCon is extremely popular with gamers and getting a ticket is not only expensive, but likely very dificult unless you act quickly. So if you can’t make it to the Anaheim Convention Center, California between October 10-11, or you can’t afford the US$100 entrance fee, there is some good news.

For the first time Blizzard has done a deal that will see BlizzCon televised. The service is being offered through DIRECTV on a pay per view basis, and even though pricing has yet to be announced, they are promising 8 hours per day of HD BlizzCon footage. That means you will get to see pretty much everything regarding World of Warcraft, StarCraft 2 and Diablo 3 announcements and footage. There will also be discussion panels, tournaments and playable versions of future releases to watch.

Steven Roberts, senior vice president at DIRECTV said:

BlizzCon is one of the most highly anticipated gaming conventions of the year, and we are excited to partner with Blizzard Entertainment to deliver coverage of the show to gamers nationwide … With our BlizzCon pay per view package, members of Blizzard’s gaming communities who are not attending the event can now experience it in crystal-clear HD.

Those of you who would prefer to attend can buy tickets from August 11. For the rest of us we will have to wait and see how much the coverage will cost from DIRECTV, but if you take up one of their packages with free months attached you may end up paying nothing extra.

Read more at Blizzard.com, found via Edge-Online.com