Incredible Connection Blog | Dedicated to Technology, Dedicated to You

Back in April, when HP bought Palm, we opined that the main reason was probably the wicked good WebOS, that Palm had been wasting on ag-shame hardware. Since then, the rumors of a WebOS-fueled tablet computer from HP have been going round, and round, and round… The latest version comes apparently from no less than HP themselves. Seems that yesterday, in an internal all-hands meeting, Personal Systems Group VP, Todd Bradley, mentioned first quarter 2011, as the date for the project, known internally as “Hurricane.”

Backed up by HP’s filing for the “PalmPad” trademark in July, there seems to be flesh on the speculation bones. Truth be told, we’re pretty much drooling in anticipation. The prospect of a three-way tussle between iOS4, Android and WebOS (four, if you’re generous, and allow Windows 7 to play with), for the attention of those whipped into a new-paradigm frenzy by the iPad, is keeping us awake at night!

Somebody please! Ship something already!

Vodacom made the news again last week, happily, for some good, innovative-tech reasons. Seems like when Multichoice launched DStv Mobile last month, and we assumed this would be the replacement for the much-unloved and uncared for Vodaphone Live! based Mobile TV product, we might have been a tad hasty. To be fair, Vodacom HAD said that the Vodafone live! SKU would be retired, back in March, and they HAD said it would be replaced, and so when we heard about DStv Mobile, we naturally thought…..oh, nevermind. Here’s the news: Vodacom will launch it’s own TV: On Demand product on the 31st July. Curiously, they will also start the DStv Mobile service, on the same day. All a bit confusing, really…

If you’re at all interested in this kind of entertainment service, a word to the wise. Take some time to research the difference between “3G streaming TV”, “digital video broadcasting for handheld (DVB-H)” and “TV on demand”. There are some kinks in those cables, and they create significant differences in the product. For instance, as the DStv/Multichoice “fair-use” terms explain, there are limits to the amount of TV you can watch. 45 minutes in a week? That’s not even a Rugby match! Or a Grand Prix…

How much does TV:On Demand! cost? R75.00 per month or R20.00 per week. Streaming the content to the customer’s cellphone is zero-rated. (Yay!) To subscribe, SMS ‘ondemand‘ to 31116 (FREE). More good news! Monthly subscribers get the first 30 days free. Weekly subscriber sign-ups, the first week.

We have smart-phones, smart-cars, and now? We even have smart-pens! And what, may you ask, does a smart-pen do? Does it magically correct embarrassing typo’s? Can it smoothly convert doctor-script into elegant Monotype Corsiva? No, it’s even better than those (undeniable awesome) ideas. The Pulse smart-pen records everything you hear, say and write, and links your audio recordings to your notes. so, when you review your notes by touching the pen to any word, symbol or marking made on the page, the SmartPen will play the audio that was recorded at the exact moment that text was written.
Trés cool, no?

And, you needn’t be concerned about long, boring meetings filling your pen to overflowing, either. The 2GB device will record a staggering 200 hours, of mind-numbing meeting. So even if you get caught taking minutes in a filibuster, you’re good to go.

Once you (finally) get back to the office, simply plug the pen into a USB port on a Mac or PC. All your pages are instantly uploaded where they can be viewed as visual interactive documents, in which your hand-written text can be searched for keywords, your notes shared with others online and where they can be even made into PDF’s or Flash movies. A really cool use for the pen is the ability to draw a sketch of something and make verbal notes or instructions while you do it. Then, when you upload it, the sketch will be drawn live on screen with your voice (or audio notes) overlaying the picture, as it’s redrawn in real time. OCR software allows you to take the handwritten notes and convert directly to text, without all the time wasted in between re-capturing!

What You Get: The Pulse smartpen 2GB of memory Livescribe Desktop software 3D Recording Headset 100 sheet dot paper ruled notebook USB mobile charging cradle Black ink cartridges + 1 stylus cartridge

As always, you can get the Pulse 2GB Smartpen at your nearby Incredible Connection store.

Amazon, that pioneering ecommerce giant, has taken it’s third step along the path of changing the way in which the world consumes the written word. Speaking at the company’s new South Lake Union headquarters, Ian Freed, vice president of Kindle for Amazon, demonstrated (video link) the new, smaller, lighter version.

So, what’s the new stuff? Is there a hint of the direction that Amazon wants/intends the e-reader market to go? We think the key feature may not be hardware at all, but price. The new devices are considerably cheaper, at $139 for the Wi-Fi-only model, and $189 for the 3G model. Speaking in a related interview, Chief Executive Jeff Bezos said:
“We developed this device for serious readers. At these price points, it may be much broader than that. People will buy them for their kids. People won’t share Kindles any more.”
Just a guess Jeff, but that may appear to be steering away from the higher-end iPad territory, into safer waters?

Hardware-wise, what do you get in the new package? From the press release:

“Kindle’s revolutionary wireless delivery and massive selection of content-now in a 21 percent smaller and 15 percent lighter design, with 50 percent better contrast, 20 percent faster page turns, up to one month of battery life, double the storage…”

And, there are even more interesting, “hidden” features. There’s a second English dictionary, a PDF contrast adjustment and… a microphone. Now the User Guide DOES say, “The microphone is not currently enabled, but is provided for future use.” I’m guessing it’ll take the hacker community, all of about , oh say, 10 sec? to be all over that. Skype over free 3G, anyone?

I’ve never really WANTED an e-reader, but this smaller device? Hmmmm…

At long last. 12 years is a veritable desert between releases, but, finally, it’s here. The long-awaited, feverishly-anticipated sequel to the massively popular Blizzard title, was released globally on 27th July. And the good news? Blizzard, wisely, did not mess with the formula too much. In fact, just enough, is the consensus of response and reviews from the gaming world.

Four years after the Brood War devastated the Koprulu sector, most of the superficial damage has been repaired – but the true wounds still run deep, and far away from human eyes, the zerg’s final metamorphosis has just begun…

The three races which were a feature of the original, the Terrans, the zerg and Protoss are still the protagonists, and the game has not changed enough in execution, to warrant jabbering on about. To wit:

“In almost all scenarios, you start with a command centre and a few worker units with which to mine resources – in this case diamond-like minerals and vespine gas. You use these to construct buildings, which in turn produce military units. You then use said military units to blow the enemy into its component atoms before tapping out one of many fine ‘noob’ based insults you’ve been working on. Happy days.”

The big kick is in how much more refined the strategies are, and how absolutely uniquely, the three races of StarCraft play. The Zerg feel more evil and biological, the Protoss – telepathic, telekinetic and smug.

Of course, StarCraft plays best in multiplayer mode. Blizzard’s new gaming portal, Battle.Net, is where this happens – you can’t even play the single player campaign without registering for a Battle.Net account – It all happens there. Yay for uncapped Internet in SA!

If you haven’t already, you should rush out and grab your copy from your local Incredible Connection store. At R529.99, it’s a price worth paying. This title as been one of the most anticipated of all time, and the boys and girls at Blizzard had quite some pressure to perform. Kudo’s to them, they aced it.

You can also follow Starcraft on Twitter. Patches, maps, advice and all the latest SC2 news.