| Ideum unveils speedy Platform and Pro multi-touch tables, says PixelSense ain't got nothin' (video) Jun 28th 2012, 23:17  Who knew giant multi-touch tables would trigger the next big speed race? Ideum clearly thinks that the PixelSense-based Samsung SUR40 is lagging with that AMD Athlon II X2, because it just rolled out a pair of speed demon 55-inch, 40-point touch surfaces (but not Surfaces) in the Platform and Pro. The Platform has a respectable dual 2.2GHz Core i7 and 8GB of RAM, but it also carries a pair of 256GB solid-state drives in case that museum exhibit app won't load quickly enough. Hopping to the Pro switches to two not quite as speedy 500GB hard drives in standard trim. It more than makes up for this with a quad 3.4GHz Core i7 and NVIDIA's Quadro 600 for the truly stressful projects -- the combination can juggle multiple users and tasks even more smoothly than its MT55 Pro ancestor. Outside of raw speed, picking a table depends mostly on svelteness versus expansion: the Pro has a full-fledged HP tower inside that can drop in SSDs and other upgrades you might fancy, while the Platform is half as thick as a SUR40 (at two inches) and sleeker overall than its big brother. We're working to get price quotes, but the early five-digit figures we've seen in the past likely rule out upgrading the family coffee table. You can convince yourself with a video after the break. Continue reading Ideum unveils speedy Platform and Pro multi-touch tables, says PixelSense ain't got nothin' (video) Ideum unveils speedy Platform and Pro multi-touch tables, says PixelSense ain't got nothin' (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jun 2012 19:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink |  Platform, Pro | Email this | Comments | | Valve Source Filmmaker makes a movie out of any Source game, now you're directing with Portals (video) Jun 28th 2012, 22:55  Creating machinima with a video game engine usually requires accepting one of two truths: either that it will require a lot of fudging or that it will have all the sophistication of playing with action figures. Valve Software isn't very happy with that dichotomy, which is why it's posting its very own movie-making tool, Source Filmmaker, as a public beta. Any game that runs on the Source engine, whether it's Left 4 Dead 2, Portal 2 or another in the family, can have gameplay run-throughs edited and dissected right down to custom facial expressions. As Valve expounds in the video after the break, throwing a gaming-grade PC at the task gives directors the advantage of seeing exactly how any changes will look in the final scene; there's no rough wireframes or pre-rendering here. Budding Francis Ford Coppolas can sign up for an invitation to the Filmmaker beta at the project page. If you'd just like to see how far someone can go with the end results, we've also included the latest Team Fortress 2 character profile video, Meet the Pyro, after the jump. Continue reading Valve Source Filmmaker makes a movie out of any Source game, now you're directing with Portals (video) Valve Source Filmmaker makes a movie out of any Source game, now you're directing with Portals (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jun 2012 18:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink  Joystiq | Valve Software | Email this | Comments | | Apple Senior VP of Hardware Engineering Bob Mansfield to retire, be replaced by Dan Riccio Jun 28th 2012, 22:35  Apple has announced that its Senior VP of Hardware Engineering, Bob Mansfield, will retire and over the course of the next few months transfer his role to Dan Riccio. Mansfield is credited with leading the Mac engineering team since 2005 and took on a more visible role as an exec during the reshuffling in 2008. He's also mentioned as leading iPhone and iPod engineering since 2010 (when he took over the role from Mark Papermaster in a move curiously timed around those antenna troubles) and the iPad since it began. He'd been with Apple since 1999 when it acquired his previous employer, Raycer Graphics, and most recently popped up on our radar earlier this year while integrating another acquisition, flash memory maker Anobit. If you'd like to get familiar with his replacement, Dan Riccio is currently vice president of iPad hardware engineering. Check the press release after the break for a few more details on both individuals, there's no word on Mansfield's post-retirement plans. Continue reading Apple Senior VP of Hardware Engineering Bob Mansfield to retire, be replaced by Dan Riccio Apple Senior VP of Hardware Engineering Bob Mansfield to retire, be replaced by Dan Riccio originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jun 2012 18:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Apple | Email this | Comments | | Nexus Q hacked to run Android games in under 24 hours Jun 28th 2012, 22:16  The word "run" in the headline is chosen very carefully. Developer Christina Kelly managed to get Swords and Soldiers up and running on the Nexus Q, but the game is not actually playable. Without a touchscreen or any other way to actually control the title, there's not much to do besides look at the splash screen. Still, the fact that in under 24 hours Google's new streaming appliance has already made to fire up unapproved apps bodes well for its future with the hacker community. Once the device gets in the hands of more devs we imagine it'll only a matter of time before someone figures out a way to get Hulu or Netflix running on it, with your Android phone acting as the remote. Nexus Q hacked to run Android games in under 24 hours originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jun 2012 18:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink TechnoBuffalo | SlashGear | Email this | Comments | | Google Chrome for iPhone hands-on Jun 28th 2012, 21:29  Today's Google I/O keynote was, as expected, all about the Chrome. Easily one of the biggest among the company's laundry list of announcements surrounding the browser-turned-operating-system has to be its arrival on iOS, bringing the functionality that an ever-growing number of users have come to know and love to the iPhone and iPad. The list includes, perhaps most notably, its cross-device syncing, ensuring that you can pick up where you left off on the desktop version of the program, taking your pages and tabs with you on the go. So, is Google's fancy mobile browser enough to get us off mobile Safari altogether? Check out some impressions of the iPhone version of the app after the break. Continue reading Google Chrome for iPhone hands-on Google Chrome for iPhone hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jun 2012 17:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | | Email this | Comments | |
