| Travel in traffic estimates return to Google Maps, promises not to suck this time Mar 29th 2012, 16:05 You might remember that, once upon a time, Google Maps offered you two estimates for your travel time -- ideal and in traffic. The problem was, Big G's estimates weren't so great. So, the web giant quietly removed the feature last year and simply started providing traffic-free travel times. Well, trip times in traffic are back, and this time Google promises their guess work won't suck. Using both live and historic traffic data Google Maps now offers an estimate of how long your trip will take in current conditions, directly under the congestion-free time. And, if you find the live traffic info in your area isn't particularly accurate, you can help improve that by turning on My Location in the Maps for Android app. Travel in traffic estimates return to Google Maps, promises not to suck this time originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Mar 2012 12:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink |  Google Lat-Long | Email this | Comments | | Apple patents Siri-like system for controlling cameras, PMPs through a computer or smartphone Mar 29th 2012, 15:23 "Siri, turn on the flash and take three pictures with my camera after waiting two seconds." Apple's intelligent voice control system has been wildly popular amongst consumers in the U.S., and abroad, but Siri could be making her way to other devices in the future, including iPods, cameras and other consumer electronics. "Okay, Rock God, I will take your picture in two, one..." A patent by Apple filed in 2010 but published today describes a scenario in which you could control a secondary electronic device using your voice, with all of the backend processing passing through a connected smartphone or computer. According to the patent: One embodiment may include a first electronic device communicatively coupled to a server and to a second electronic device. The second electronic device may be a portable electronic device, such as a digital media player, that includes a voice user interface. The second electronic device may be capable of accurate speech recognition, but may not include additional computation hardware and/or software for training the speech recognition engine. As such, the bulk, weigh, and cost for manufacturing the second electronic device may be reduced, resulting in a more portable and affordable product. In other words, you could have Siri-like control of virtually any device, with all of the required hardware and software residing on an iPhone or MacBook, linked with other devices over WiFi or Bluetooth. Voice control wouldn't be practical in all situations, but it could be enormously helpful for certain operations, like adjusting settings or reviewing images. Instead of scrolling through hundreds of images, you could simply say "Siri, show me pictures from last Thursday," and see exactly the shots you were searching for. As always, this is one of thousands of Apple patents, and it quite possibly may never come to fruition as described. But here's to hoping it will. "Siri, show our readers the patent application" -- you'll find it at the source link below. Apple patents Siri-like system for controlling cameras, PMPs through a computer or smartphone originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Mar 2012 11:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | USPTO (PDF) | Email this | Comments | | Engadget Giveaway: win one of three ioSafe 500GB Rugged Portable hard drives! Mar 29th 2012, 15:01 March 31st may not jump out at you as a day worth celebrating, but it's actually World Backup Day. In honor of this special day, our friends at ioSafe want to make sure you're hooked up with plenty of storage to mark the occasion. As a result, they're hooking you up with three chances to win a Rugged Portable hard drive of the 500GB variety (sorry, Terrence and sledgehammer not included). Half a terabyte of storage capacity ain't too shabby, but the beauty of this prize is not in what it can hold, but rather what it can endure. It's designed to take a heckuva lot of abuse from whatever you throw at it: drops, water, chemicals, you name it. So don't delay, enter to win and celebrate World Backup Day! Continue reading Engadget Giveaway: win one of three ioSafe 500GB Rugged Portable hard drives! Engadget Giveaway: win one of three ioSafe 500GB Rugged Portable hard drives! originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Mar 2012 11:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | | Email this | Comments | |
