Gadgetell | Tech News, Reviews, and Interesting Things

Google has just introduced two enhancements to its mobile service to provide users a faster mobile search experience through a fast loading mobile homepage and better iGoogle gadget management.

First, they updated their mobile homepage to make mobile access faster than before. When users visit google.com using their mobile browser, Google will cache the homepage so that when users bookmark the homepage, they will have quicker time when loading it during their next visit. This is possible no matter where users came from, whether through the mobile browser or through Google’s mobile search plug-in.

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While the initial announcement that select AT&T stores were getting a Microsoft Surface was exciting, when you think about it, they are just in a mobile phone store. However Microsoft has taken the excitement to a new level, that is assuming you are a fan of Las Vegas and Harrah’s. A newly installed Surface is now located in the Rio iBar ultra-lounge, which makes Harrah’s the first to install the Surface in an entertainment venue. In addition, instead of simply installing the Surface they have also created come customized applications that are said to offer “an amusing social experience.” Guests at the Rio will be able to “flirt, play and have fun,” however I am sure that along with all the drinks that are usually flowing the flirting may not always need the additional help. Still a very cool use, keep reading to check out the latest Microsoft Surface video…

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Because Sony wants us to believe that digital photo frames aren’t all that bad, they are now offering the VGF-CP1, a Wi-Fi enabled little number that, other than showing off your digital snaps in 16 million colors, gives you access to your preferred RSS feeds and plays your favorite music too. It can even connect directly to online albums like Google’s Picasa, allowing you to download and save your online photos to the 512MB of internal memory. All these features will come at a price though, and if you’re in Japan (as it’s only available there at the moment), that price is 30,000 Yen or about $300 USD. You didn’t really expect it to be cheap, did you? Well, at least it’s not as expensive as some other digital photo frames that we have seen recently.

Via [NewLaunches]

Walk up to any right-minded business owner and you’re sure to be told one thing - it’s supposed to be about the green stuff. And I don’t mean the Benjamins. To get an idea of what I’m talking about, ask yourself what it would take to give your mobile device enough juice without doing Mother Nature any harm. The answer to that question might not yet be known for sure, but that question is what Devotec Industries is trying to address with its new Solar Charger. While it doesn’t have the best thought of name in the business, this little number should be able to “keep your phone juiced up twice over before needing a recharge.” It contains a built-in 1800mAh battery under a charging solar panel, and aside from that it also charges via USB cable or AC adaptor. Devotec made sure it would be compatible with the widest range of portable devices possible, and at £19.99 or about $40 USD a pop, it sure beats replacements.

Product [Devotec]

What ever happened to killing two birds with one stone? This - the Sigma APO dual USB charger from Japan. As the name suggests, it will have a total of two USB ports so you can charge two devices with it simultaneously. Not exactly groundbreaking technology, but it’s something road warriors such as yourself would gladly appreciate, I’m sure. It’s light, weighing in on only 43 grams, and runs 1000 mA in total for each port. Meaning that each device gets half of that, 500 mA whenever it is plugged in to it. So now you can relax, and watch your iPod and cellphone get charged while you do nothing. You know you can’t play with devices that are charging, don’t you? Ah, multi-functional devices. How could we have ever lived without them?

Via [jkontherun]

You might have heard the news that the Microsoft Surface table has hit five select AT&T stores across the country, and are now available for you to try out for yourself. In case you haven’t had the chance to drop by any of these stores yet and seen the Microsoft Surface in action, we have here a video showing just how it can complement your AT&T experience by adding multi-touch and satellite mapping technology. The surface, it seems, could serve as a perfect tool for presentations with its touchscreen interface, and it adds a nice touch of interactivity while enabling easy, user-friendly graphics to complement the user-experience. Apple’s CoverFlow could make it much nicer, though. But that’s just my opinion.

Via [Gotta Be Mobile]

Just a little reminder for those lucky enough to live close to one of the five AT&T store locations that is getting a Microsoft Surface installed, that today is the day. Those five lucky stores will be a mix of two locations in New York, two in San Antonio and one in Atlanta.

1. New York City
   381 Madison Ave
   New York, NY 10017
2. New York City
   350 Park Ave
   New York, NY 10022
3. Atlanta
   3429 Lenox Road NE
   Atlanta, GA 30326
4. San Antonio
   13127 San Pedro Ave
   San Antonio, TX 78216
5. San Francisco
   1206 El Camino Real
   San Bruno, CA 94066

As we previously mentioned, the Surface will allow customers to check out the available phones, and also purchase digital content such as ringtones, wallpapers, and videos. If you are planning to head out, make sure you snap a few pics and send them our way.

Via [Boy Genius Report]

A prototype for a retinal scanning display that is currently in the works has the potential to change the way we watch movies. Cleverly constructed with a complementary eye-piece and weighing in at a very light 25 grams, Brother Japan’s retinal scanning display scans images and beams them on top of your retina, ala mini-projector. This in turn, makes your eyes look like a little canvas, on which you can see displayed images of what’s before you, clearer and more distraction-free than ever.

The way this works is by beaming low-intensity light on your retina and scanning it with light at a high speed. The resulting image is then displayed on top of your eyes, just like how current age projectors work. Only this time, everything’s miniaturized, and yet still works perfectly fine.

But unfortunately, like Toshiba’s Apripoco, this product is far from its final stages and is still a prototype. However, Brother Japan does hope to commercialize this by 2010. Personally, I’m looking forward to it. Think, no more worrying about the screen size of the latest gadgets. Forget high-def, this is eye-def!

Via [dvice]

I never really thought I’d ever see the day when a passable cellphone watch was rolled out to market. But apparently, I was wrong, and with Van Der Led’s new WM2 cellphone watch, I’m eating my words, and reconsidering my attitude towards such gadgets.

It’s not exactly packing high-technology, with a 1.3-inch touchscreen display that shows 260k colors. Stereo Bluetooth isn’t a new thing, and neither is 1GB of internal memory and support for MP3 or MP4 files. But what’s special about this cellphone watch isn’t what’s inside, but how it looks like. For the first time in modern technology history, cellphone watch fans just might spring into existence. This thing looks like it came straight out of Batman Begins! And it’s only €300 (about $471 USD).

So if you’re itching for convenience in a gadget that’s a cellphone and a watch at the same time, add one more item to your shopping list, buddy.

Product [Van Der Led] Via [Engadget Mobile]

Although the original announcement named T-Mobile, among others, as the first company to have a Microsoft Surface in their offices, today it seems that the deal was not to be. And word on the Interwebs is that AT&T will be the first to install Surface tables in four of their branches across the US. AT&T will purportedly be placing the Surface in the New York, San Francisco, Atlanta and San Antonio store branches, in which customers will then be able to perform certain actions using Microsoft’s high-tech piece of furniture, such as browsing the available handsets, and purchasing digital content like ringtones, wallpapers, and videos for their own phones. April 17 is the date to watch out for, so if you live near any of the previously mentioned branches, mark your calendars for a chance to see the surface in action.

Via [Tech Digest]