| Tesla pairs up with SolarCity, will power off-grid homes as well as cars Apr 18th 2012, 22:14  If you've ever dreamed of thumbing your nose at big energy and its expensive, polluting ways, then Tesla and a solar panel leasing company called SolarCity might be taking you a baby-step closer to reality. Although recognized mostly for its EVs, Tesla reckons it knows enough about batteries to solve a key problem in the solar energy chain -- namely the storage of power for use when the sun, power grid, or both go offline. The battery design, consisting of many laptop-style lithium ion batteries stacked together, was chosen after two years of research and a $1.8 million energy grant. The two companies are now waiting for tax credits from the Fed and California before rolling out the tech. And being kissing cousins -- with Elon Musk as both Chairman of SolarCity and CEO of Tesla -- certainly can't hurt. Tesla pairs up with SolarCity, will power off-grid homes as well as cars originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Apr 2012 18:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink  Gizmodo |  GigaOM | Email this | Comments | | Qualcomm breaks records with Q2 2012 earnings, thanks 'strong demand' for 3G- and 4G-enabled devices Apr 18th 2012, 21:31  It's a good time to be in business. And by "business," we mean, "in the wireless business." Apple and Samsung seem to be selling every smartphone they make, and Qualcomm seems to be outfitting those very devices with quite a few components. After a record-setting Q1, Qually has just revealed that its Q2 2012 earnings made for "another quarter of record revenues and earnings per share." The driving force? "Strong demand for 3G- and 4G-enabled devices across both developed and emerging regions," according to Dr. Paul E. Jacobs, the outfit's chairman and CEO. Mobile device usage isn't apt to start contracting anytime soon, which has pushed the company to increase operating expenses to "facilitate additional 28 nanometer supply." Getting down to brass tacks, we're told that Q2 revenues reached $4.94 billion, representing a 28 percent uptick year-over-year, while operating income hit $1.9 billion -- a 15 percent increase year-over-year. Net income was reported at $1.76 billion (a 21 percent improvement over Q2 2011), but it's important to note that these figures included $761 million, net of income taxes, for discontinued operations as a result of a $1.2 billion gain associated with the sale of "substantially all of its 700 MHz spectrum." Those looking for more figures can hit the source link; those looking to improve Qualcomm's bottom line can just buy another phone. Qualcomm breaks records with Q2 2012 earnings, thanks 'strong demand' for 3G- and 4G-enabled devices originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Apr 2012 17:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Marketwatch | Email this | Comments | | Qbo goes legit, now up for pre-order on maker's site Apr 18th 2012, 20:45  Graduation day is always tough on parents. So, you'll have to forgive the growing pains experienced by TheCorpora, whose six years in development labor of cybernetic love, Qbo, is now ready for mass consumption. To make this ever-evolving, endearing bot on wheels easily accessible, the team's divvied up its commercial wares into two distinct offerings: Basic and Complete. For the soldering prone among you, that former kit comes with a chassis, plastic coverings and an array of the cutesy android's mechanic guts, all at your disposal for assembly. Devs less interested in getting their hands dirty and more concerned with coding can opt-in for the fuller set in either Pro or Lite versions, replete with a fully constructed unit and differing only in the variety of motherboard and CPU configuration used. The outfit's accepting pre-orders on its site now, with the base model running about 500 Euros (about $656) and the higher end packages emptying wallets at 1,700 Euros (about $2,230) and 2,300 Euros (about $3,017) apiece. Those are certainly hefty investments for the at-home hobbyist, but can you really put a price on synthetic love? We didn't think so. Qbo goes legit, now up for pre-order on maker's site originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Apr 2012 16:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink SlashGear | TheCorpora | Email this | Comments | |
