Latest Gear Live Videos
CES 2008: Magellan Maestro Elite 5340+GPRS
Posted by Jenny Lewis Categories: Accessories, CES, CES 2008, Google, GPS, Wireless / WiFi,
Magellan has premiered their newest GPS unit for autos, the 5340+GPRS, the first GPS unit with Google Local Search. Users can search their area for events, businesses and services, receiving real-time results from Google based upon the user’s current location or a specified location.
The wireless GPRS service also enables the unit to deliver up-to-the-minute information on traffic and weather. Additionally, users planning trips in advance can send addresses or other information directly to the unit using the wireless service. In case a change to an itinerary is needed while the trip is in progress, third parties can send changes to the unit using the Magellan website.
Like the rest of the recently-introduced Elite line, the 5340+GPRS features voice command, a USB port and 6 million points of interest. It also features a 533 MHZ S-Media 3362 processor and and a 5-inch WQVGA widescreen. The Maestro 5340+GPRS will be available for puchase in March for and estimated $1299. Full press release available, after the break.
Click to continue reading CES 2008: Magellan Maestro Elite 5340+GPRS
Advertisement
Hybrids To Be Sold at Wally World
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Corporate News, Editorial, Transportation,
Hybrid Technologies removes internal combustion engines from cars and turns them into electric vehicles. Founder Richard Griffiths is trying to convince people to think of battery power as a high-end option. High-end indeed. Griffiths takes such cars as the Chrysler Crossfire, the PT Cruiser, and MINI Cooper and makes them hybrid. The result will be a $65,000 MAXI Cooper, which can run 120 miles on a charge and go from 0 to 60 mph in 6 seconds.
Here’s the rub. Griffiths plans on initially selling his electric cars through Wal-mart at a starting price of ~$35,000.00. We are not sure what that means unless he believes that the shopping place of the “everyman” will convince us to spend twice the cost. We have two questions. If the cars do not sell at that inflated price, will Wal-mart roll back their prices? And if so, will the cars be made in sweat shops like most of their clothing?
Read More 
| MSN
New Device Stops Car in its Tracks
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Design, Misc. Tech, Transportation,
If you saw the movie “2 Fast 2 Furious,” you will probably recognize the electromagnetic system that can stop vehicles. Researchers at Eureka Aerospace are creating a device that is about 7 x 3 feet and weighs 200 lbs. Attached to a car or aircraft carrier, it sends out pulsing microwave radiation to disable the microprocessors that keep the car engine going. Chief Exec James Tatoian says that the system may be available for security purposes within 18 months. That gives us less than two years to beat out those speed traps or buy a car made before 1972, which was when electronic control modules were first placed in them.
Read More | ABC
This Week on HD DVD and Blu-ray: November 6, 2007
Posted by Johnny Mercedes Categories: Buena Vista, Disney, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Short Films, Drama, Family, Foreign, Foreign Language, Period, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Distribution, Home Entertainment, Lists, New Releases,
Disney/Pixar’s quaint animated story about Remy the rat and his penchant for the culinary arts releases on Blu-ray this week, shortly after taking the US and UK by storm. And with no other major title to contend with (Chuck & Larry do not count), Ratatouille is sure to take high-def home entertainment by storm too.
Other titles worth noting include a cross-format The Aviator from Warner, South Korean cult film Old Boy from Tartan, and some modestly-priced box sets from Warner and Disney.
Check the full list of high-def releases after the jump.
Click to continue reading This Week on HD DVD and Blu-ray: November 6, 2007
Latest DARPA Urban Challenge is Successful
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Design, Misc. Tech, Science, Transportation,
This past weekend, the Defense Department’s Urban Challenge 2007 took place in the desert between LA and Las Vegas. Driverless, the computer-run vehicles had to maneuver around neighborhood streets and obstacles at a deserted AF base. Although “Junior,” Stanford’s 2006 Volkswagen Passat station wagon diesel, crossed the finish line first, the grand prize went to the Tartan Racing team, based on safety as well as speed. Stanford was second, followed by team Victor Tango. This time, 6 of the 11 finalists crossed the finish line. We can see why the military would be interested in this technology, especially when you consider its shock value application. Check out a video we shot of the Carnegie-Mellon team qualifying for the DARPA event.
Read More | USA Today
Bleeding Edge TV 189: Driving Tips from GM’s Milford Proving Grounds
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Gizmatic, Short Bytes, Design, Features, Podcasts, Transportation, Videocasts,
When General Motors contacted us about bringing us up to their Proving Grounds in Milford, MI, we jumped at the chance at getting to visit what we figured would be an awesome place. We were right - General Motors’ Milford Proving Grounds was the industry’s first dedicated automobile testing facility when it opened in 1924. It covers 4,000 acres, and over 4,800 staff work in its 107 buildings today. The proving ground includes the equivalent of 132 mi of highway-quality roads for vehicle testing. Some roads are open only to drivers who have passed special performance driving training.
We got a first-hand look at the new StabiliTrak technology that GM will be making a standard feature on all their vehicles in a couple of years, which aims to give drivers a lot more stability during sudden turns and avoidance maneuvers. In addition, GM gives us some tips on how to maintain control of your vehicle, even in extreme (and often unsafe) conditions. Check out the video for all the goods, and leave us any driving tips you may have in the comments.
Cops Can’t Resist the Anti-Ticket Donut
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Misc. Tech, Toys, Transportation,
We have all made some of those traffic errors and gotten tickets that might have been ignored with the proper bribery. The Anti-Ticket Donut is designed for those occasions. When the police officer asks you to produce your registration and license, reach right into your glove compartment and offer him/her the chocolate ($8.75) or sprinkled ($9.95) treat-in-a-tin. Of course, the donut is made of plastic, but we figure you can always stop at Krispy Kreme for the real thing if you are heading towards a known speed trap. Besides, it would make a great gift for your uncle, Chief Wiggum.
Read More | Product Page
GM to include Stolen Vehicle Slowdown in Cars
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Corporate News, GPS, Misc. Tech, Transportation,
By 2009, if they are done dealing with the UAW, GM will be equipping its new vehicles with a system that will aid police to remotely stop high-speed chases. In cooperation with OnStar, who can already track devices and help cops find stolen vehicles, it will also issue a signal that remotely slows the car down to idle speed. OnStar is free initially for owners of GM automobiles that have them built in, but must pay for the service beginning with the second year. OnStar says that about 60% continue to subscribe after that first year. In light of the price of new vehicles and fuel, we are not surprised that many decide to opt out and spend the extra on gas.
Read More | OnStar
Vin Diesel and Paul Walker to return for The Fast and the Furious 4?
Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Action, Sequels, Box Office, Casting, Celeb News, Upcoming Releases,
Well, audiences waited long enough (through two sequels), and now The Fast and the Furious franchise will reward the faithful with an installment several years in the making. That’s right: Vin Diesel and Paul Walker will finally reunite and reprise their original Fast roles. Maybe. The two are in talks to reprise their roles as Dominic Toretto and Brian O’Conner, which launched Vin Diesel as a major action star and helped the movie gross more than $200 million worldwide. Walker appeared in 2 Fast 2 Furious, which out-grossed the original, though Diesel could not be swayed from his other movie engagements at the time. The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, the third installation in the movie series, featured Diesel only briefly and Walker not at all. The fourth movie will feature more cars, more dirty deals, and hopefully more ticket sales than the third (which nearly grossed $160 million but was considered disappointing to Fast fans). The film, yet to be titled, will begin shooting in LA, Mexico and the Dominican Republic next spring. Diesel and Walker are both currently tied to unrelated movie projects, and neither has confirmed accepting a role in the fourth Fast flick.
Read More | E! Online
Burnout Paradise Gets Previewed
Posted by Paul Hamilton Categories: Action, Driving, Electronic Arts, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360,
Tom Bramwell has a preview for the upcoming Burnout Paradise that is surprisingly thoughtful and critically considered as far as previews go. He discusses the challenges faced by Criterion Games in re-inventing a popular series practically from the ground up and asks some pertinent questions where they ought to be asked. For example, when the topic of the Crash mode comes up and Criterion mentions that they have scrapped the original concept of the popular mode, Bramwell presses the point, getting Criterion rep Matt Webster to confess they don’t yet know exactly how it will all work out:
Asked whether they’re opting for a Burnout 3 approach of trying to manoeuvre the car in slow motion between power-ups and Crashbreakers, or a Burnout Revenge “golf swing” of perfect start and target cars, Webster admits it’s not all there yet. “We’re still throwing ideas around. I think we’ll be talking about it more in the coming weeks.”
The preview isn’t about sticking it to the Burnout devs, though, it reads more like a fan of the series seeing drastic changes and slowly coming to the realization that if executed properly, these could make for a remarkable game. Among the more exciting aspects of Criterion’s open-world approach to Burnout is the focus on seamless online play that works the way most gamers prefer, by putting the folks in your Friends list first.
Burnout Paradise is scheduled to hit shelves early next year for Xbox 360 and PS3.
Read More | Eurogamer
