Gadgetell | Tech News, Reviews, and Interesting Things

In days past, photographers had to rely on their memory to answer the question “where did I take this shot?”. Not so any more. Geotagging is fast becoming popular in the days of digital photography. By definition, Geotagging is the process of adding a form of geospatial geographical identification metadata to your images. It can also be added to other media like websites or RSS feeds. This metadata almost always consists of latitude and longitude coordinates; although it can sometimes also include things like altitude, bearing, or even location names depending on how specific you want to get.

Geotagging can also be useful if you are looking for location-specific information. For example, you are trying to find images taken near Red Rock Canyon. You simply enter the latitude and longitude coordinates into a Geotagging-enabled image search engine. There you go! These same search engines can also be used to locate location-based news, websites and more.

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In an attempt to be more proactive rather than simply reactive, the MPAA has recently approved the DreamStream system and its 2048-bit “military strength” anti-piracy encryption technology to protect content streamed to viewers online.

First introduced to the MPAA in March of 2008 by Laura Tunberg, MGM’s former vice president of intellectual property enforcement, it was since reviewed by the MPAA and found it to be a viable means for securing digital content. Chief development officer for DreamStream, Ulf Diebel, is excited by this acknowledgment of their product.

“We are very excited to have the MPAA stand behind our technology.”

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Music lovers holding a Verizon subscription will better be able to say “I can hear you now” to their favorite musical artists, as Rhapsody and Verizon team up to offer users with certain V Cast phones DRM-free PC downloads. In obvious competition with iTunes, Rhapsody is still behind in the numbers game (about 5 million in their online library as opposed to iTunes 8 million), however, the bonus of not being stuck with DRM puts them ahead in many people’s minds. This way, you can play the music on any PC, MP3 player, or other digital device. Bonus.

So how much is it going to cost you? The songs are going at 99 cents each, and most albums will be $9.99. You’ll also find a Windows-only download utility that will import your music directly into iTunes, RealPlayer, or the Rhapsody client; Mac users will get their songs in a ZIP file. Select Verizon Wireless V Cast phones (including the upcoming Chocolate 3, the new Dare, the Samsung Glyde, the Juke, the RIZR Z6tv, and the RAZR V9m) can purchase tunes from Rhapsody over the air, and get an MP3 “master” PC download in the bargain.

If you jump on the ball, Verizon is running a special through July 4th: The first 100,000 people to sign up with the MP3 store will get their first album free.  And hey...free is always good.

Via [Yahoo! Tech]

For those who are busy, outgoing and are often in meetings, using your laptop (however small) is often not very practical so you end up taking notes through the old fashioned, and lot cheaper method, the pen. However not only does that hurt your hand after a while, but you get a result that you cant search, send off instantly, or mess around with on Word. In fact you often end up re-typing it anyway to make it usable which is frustratingly time consuming, and makes you wish there was a better solution.

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Fujifilm has added another model to its ultra-slim and metal-bodied compact point-and-shoot camera line - the Finepix Z200fd. When Fujifilm says slim, it’s got to be real slim at only 19.8mm thick. This camera beauty touts a 5x optical zoom lens, face detection technology, red-eye removal and dual image stabilization.

In addition, the Finepix Z200fd is also packed with a 52MB of internal memory plus support for xD-picture card, SD and SDHC media. It has 100-1600 high ISO sensitivity, a 2.7-inch high resolution screen, face zoom and micro thumbnail playback features, VGA movie capture at 30fps frames per second with sound, PictBridge compatibility, blog mode and auction mode.

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We are all slowly becoming aware that as of February 9, 2009 we are going to see a switch from analog broadcasting to digital only, which, as we here already know, that means some people are going to wake up very confused as to why they are not able to watch TV. I am sure lots of you out there are looking after and taking care of those who are less than familiar with this situation, however just in case you are speaking a little to geek for them to truly understand, here comes Florence Henderson, yup, Carol Brady to save the day. I am sure she can speak in a little more down to earth terms, so sit your parents in front of the computer and hit play. While the video itself is slightly entertaining, they could have made it really fun to watch by offering up Carol Brady in the old Brady kitchen. Keep reading to check out the video below.

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Most companies have, at some point, released some sort of themed device, with the theme of the last two years being this summer’s Beijing Olympics. Lenovo, put out their so-styled laptop, a very long time ago. Now Kodak is keeping true to customs with their Olympic-themed M2008 digital camera.

The device features the Olympics logo, along with text that reads “Beijing 2008.” From a more technological standpoint, the M2008 offers a 10-megapixel camera and 3x optical zoom. The standard Kodak menu system can be viewed via the 3-inch LCD on the device.  You can even record events, sporting or otherwise, in 720p with the video functionality, a nice touch.

Those of you living in China can pick one up for around $270, but no word about a Stateside release. Keep reading for a few more pictures.

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Sony has started shipping its weird egg-shaped music device, the Rolly in the United States. Released in Japan back in September 2007, the Rolly packs two integrated speakers which are capable of producing surround sound. It boasts 2GB of flash memory, Bluetooth, ATRAC and MP3 music file format support as well USB connectivity.

But aside from these features, what makes Rolly innovative or should we say a novelty item is the fact that it was designed to move to the beat of the music that it plays, thanks to its built-in robotic technology. It comes with pre-programmed choreography for three songs, “Also Sprach Zarathustra”, Avril Lavigne’s “Girlfriend” and Earth Wind and Fire’s “Boogie Wonderland.” In addition to this features, the Rolly also comes with 700 colors which light up to the music beat.

If this new Sony music player sounds interesting to you, it currently retails for $400 at all Sony Style retail stores.

Via [I4U News]

Assuming that the Microsoft Zune will most likely never see the light of a Korean day and knowing that Koreans are longing for it, Samsung has taken the lead and announced its Zune-like MP3 player - the Art Noveau version of its Yepp T10.

Available only for the Korean market, this new iteration of the T10 boasts of 4GB internal memory, a specialized GUI to match its art noveau design, a 2-inch QVGA screen, Bluetooth 2.0, DNSe 2.0 technology, double bass, improved equalizer, FM radio and Samsung Media Studio.

Like we said, this classy MP3 player is currently available only in Korea. It would have been great if Samsung will market this internationally as it comes in a very affordable price of around $139 US.

Via [Akihabara News]

Apple’s iTunes Store better watch it’s back, because here comes Napster with not just another online music service, but one that now offers a whooping 6 million DRM-free music tracks. With this number of available tracks Napster has now become the world’s largest major label MP3 catalog and the largest library of independent music worldwide.

Beginning today, all digital music that is downloaded from Napster will be a DRM-free MP3 that is compatible with any MP3 player or music phone, including yes you guessed it right, the iPod and the iPhone. Downloaded music will remain at 99 cents for a single track and $9.95 for most full albums. Most of Napster’s digital music is encoded at a 256kbps bitrate and shall include album art. In addition, users can freely browse Napster’s catalog without any obligation or commitment to purchase. Napster is also offering a web-based on-demand streaming service which users can access from anywhere using computer with Internet connection.

Read [Business Wire]