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Modeo hosted a little shindig tonight to unveil some of its future DVB-H plans and show off some kit. The big news is that the FCC has approved Modeo’s request to boost signal power by 10 times in urban markets and 20 times in rural areas, giving the company a much easier path to coverage rollout and better signal quality. Modeo also mentioned that while it’s currently testing service in NYC only, it has designs already in place for moving into the top 30 markets in the US. We also got our hands on upcoming DVB-H SD and mini-PCI cards, with the SD cards up and running in a myriad of Pocket PC devices, and the mini-PCI card running smooth — though rather pixelated — video on a Dell laptop. The next move for Modeo is to get channel changing time under 2 seconds, continue to improve video quality, add PVR and mediacasting capabilities, and stick interactivity into the programming. Modeo’s software partner Penthera already had most of those capabilities up and running on demo units, as you can see in the gallery below, so it looks like most of this stuff will be all ready by the time a commercial launch happens. When that might be is anyone’s guess. Modeo is still looking for a retail partner, and they made it pretty clear that Qualcomm’s MediaFLO model of hitching onto mobile providers is exactly what Modeo would like to be doing — unfortunately for Modeo, nobody’s signed up yet.

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Original post by Paul Miller

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds, Wireless

Malaysian startup Gupp Technologies is prepping its baby (and by baby we mean ugly baby, that only mommy could love) — the Phreedom — for Q2 release this year. This dual-mode VoIP / GSM abomination little fella will be running a la Mobile’s Convergent Linux platform, so fiddlers, start your engines because Linux anything means open source! It’s good news for Gupp that this handset is also partially redeemed with a solid feature set, packing 802.11b/g, push and pull mail, 312MHz CPU, 320MB memory, VoIP with seamless handover to GSM, and a 2200 mAh battery to supply the juice for it all. Billed as a VoIP device first and a GSM handset second, this may be an interesting notion, but until we get our greasy hands on it, the jury is out — and so far the looks are hurting its case.

[Via Linux Devices]

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Original post by Sean Cooper

Filed under: HDTV, Storage

In a strange turn of events, Blu-ray discs are outselling HD DVDs, and now the HD DVD format has taken the lead in capacity — who would’ve think it? Toshiba just announced that it has successfully created a triple-layer disc with 17GB per layer, which amounts to 51GB, a full GB more than those dual-layer Blu-ray discs can muster. We heard about the size gains at CES this year, but Toshiba is already in the process of submitting the new extension of the format to regulatory approval, however, the word on the street still amounts to a potential Q4 release, and it’s still unclear at this time what kind of manufacturing costs or complications these new discs will incur. We’ll say it again: the format war is far from over.

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Original post by Paul Miller

As if your Costco wine-in-a-box couldn’t get any classier, this Wine Dispenser is shaped like a box and pours out wine like a cheap middle-school cafeteria worker. Available in black, white, and red, the box is made out of real metal and seriously impresses the ladies. And by ladies, we mean homeless ladies. – Jason Chen

Product Page [Poaa via Cooking Gadgets]

Original post by Outblush

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

While dealing with a widespread problem of abandoned children is an issue we have no interest in tackling, Italy’s Family Affairs Minister Rosy Bindi apparently feels that hooking up hospitals with “modern-day foundling wheels” is the best solution. Based on an idea that dates back hundreds of years, the sensor-laden hatches that are now being installed in Italian hospitals are accessible only from the outside, and feature a specially designed window in which an unwanted child can be deposited into a warm, cushioned bed. In a recent incident, the sensors alerted the staff at Casilino Hospital, which arrived in a mere 40 seconds to care for the infant and find him a proper home. In an effort to get the message out, flyers in six languages have been posted around hospitals that encourage troubled parents to bring their child to one of the newfangled incubators. Still, we’re not experts on foreign policy nor on taking care of rejected youngsters, but going from the cold, ruthless streets to a heated cubicle doesn’t seem like such a raw deal for the kiddos.

[Via MedGadget]

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Original post by Darren Murph

Despite claims that you need a pretty high-end PC to run Vista well, J2s site came up with a system that runs Vista with Aero Glass enabled for only $538 (not counting the price of Vista itself).

From looking at the parts list, he uses some pretty decent—but not spectacular parts—and actually manages to get 2GB of RAM in there. It’s not going to win any speed races, but this thing costs less than a PS3. – Jason Chen

How to Build an inexpensive Vista PC (Aero Enabled) [JJMelo]

Original post by Outblush

Juniper Research thinks the market for WiFi VOIP phones will be worth $70 Billion by 2012, but most of the phones will be WiFi/Cellular hybrids. And the WiFi-only phones will go the way of the dodo.

I agree.

I’d always thought the WiFi/Skype phones would be a destructive force in the telecom world. But the lag introduced when using them to call land lines add microseconds build up between queries and responses. It’s enough to make every call to feel like that one time you spoke dirty nothings into the phone to your girlfriend, who actually turned out to be your girlfriend’s mom. At least, that’s how it goes with Skype…and me.

So now, even in WiFi blanketed areas, it’s just easier to keep my cellphone close by, and use up the free minutes I already have allocated.–Brian Lam

Death Knell for Wi-Fi Phones? [PCWorld]

Original post by Outblush

Marriott is trying to get with the times by announcing today that all of its chains in the U.S. and Canada will offer HDTV by 2009. Each hotel room will have a standard 32-inch flat-panel, with easy-access plugs for hooking up your laptop, MP3 player, or camcorder. Not bad considering the last two hotels I stayed at were rocking the old CRTs, but personally I would’ve been a lot happier if they announced all rooms were getting free Wi-Fi. – Louis Ramirez

Marriott Rooms Plug in to HDTV [Crave]

Original post by Outblush

This Kiddy Cam from Magnet allows busy parents to monitor their kids without actually spending any time with the little bastards. The flip-down LCD screen can mount to any surface—a kitchen cupboard, for example—and receives transmissions from up to 30 meters (100 feet).

Useful for watching that your kids don’t shove gadgets up their nose, but even more useful as it has a built-in radio. You have to watch them, but you don’t have to listen to them. – Jason Chen

Product Page [Magnet via Shiny Shiny]

Original post by Outblush

Filed under: Gaming

Bad news for those European fans who’ve still been anticipating the PS3 despite delays, higher costs, limited selection, and weak launch stock: the rumors were true this time around, and your ‘newly designed’ console will be shipping sans PS2 hardware. Of course, you’ll still be able to play certain titles through software emulation — although even that may be dodgy, judging from the US and Japanese experience — and there’s always the possibility of non-compliant games coming out over PlayStation Network, but Sony has already admitted that the backwards compatibility offered by these new rigs won’t be on par with that of PS3 Rev A. Since this move is purportedly being made to lower costs and speed up production (remember Sony is quite sure that there are widespread shortage) it’s possible that the PS2-less PS3 might be sold in regions outside of Europe according to company reps — yet another blow to gamers who’ve had to put up with setback after setback after setback for the privilege of giving Sony their money. We’re sure that this news is going to bring yet another barrage of “passionate discourse” in the comments, so let the flaming discussion begin.

[Thanks, Griking]

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Original post by Evan Blass