PlayStation Home lets friends watch free movies together now, UStream and radio next month
Sony’s recently redesigned PlayStation Home project has always been about bringing online social experiences to the PS3 that mirror their real-world counterparts: hanging out in your apartment with friends, window shopping at the mall, Quincying. Now it can add one more notch to its virtual world experience belt by offering the ability to view full length movies for free, streamed by Sony’s Crackle network. If you’re a frequent user of Xbox Live’s Netflix Movie Parties this may sound like old hat (were we the only ones using that feature?), but now all PS Home users — in North America — can do social viewing with up to 60 users or private parties with up to 11 at a time. Crackle’s selection of movies and TV shows are available today, while live broadcast UStream events (Engadget podcast party anyone?) and musical stations provided by RadioIO are scheduled to debut in December. Press play on the video above for a quick preview or check after the break for a celebratory press release.
PlayStation Home lets friends watch free movies together now, UStream and radio next month originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 Nov 2011 12:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Yale demos NFC-enabled residential locks, germaphobes rejoice (video)
Assa Abloy has already brought NFC-based door locks to some Swedish hotel rooms, but one of its subsidiary companies is now looking to bring them to your doorstep, as well. Earlier this month, Yale Locks & Hardware unveiled what it hopes will be the first NFC-enabled residential lock to hit the US market. With this system, all you’ll need to do is wave your smartphone in front of one of Yale’s Real Living line of motorized locks, which will then automatically open (as long as you’ve been authorized to do so). Demoed at this year’s CEDIA Expo, these revamped locks are also compatible with either Zigbee or Z-Wave home automation technologies and support Assa Abloy’s Mobile Keys software, which allows users to securely load all of their digital keys on their handsets. Pricing and availability remain unclear, but you can unlock more details in the brief demo video and full press release, after the break.
Continue reading Yale demos NFC-enabled residential locks, germaphobes rejoice (video)
Yale demos NFC-enabled residential locks, germaphobes rejoice (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Sep 2011 20:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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WikiHouse promises printable homes, work for the world’s idle CNC routers
WikiHouse promises printable homes, work for the world’s idle CNC routers originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Aug 2011 06:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Microsoft shuts down utility monitoring service, proves you can’t go Hohm again
Is there anything more tragic than a broken Hohm? Microsoft announced this week that it will be shuttering its utility monitoring service at the close of May 2012, citing a lack of consumer adoption. The news comes a week after Google announced the closing of its competing PowerMeter service. Despite the shutdown, however, Microsoft assures us all that it’s still in the business of developing energy solutions for cities with a wide-ranging list of partners. Hohm itself will continue to operate through the end of May 2012, at which point its users will be rendered Hohmless.
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Microsoft shuts down utility monitoring service, proves you can’t go Hohm again originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Jun 2011 17:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Sputnik 0667 PC mod: perfect for your early 1900s living room
Do ya hate that slick, aluminum unibody design that you just shelled out a thousand plus smackers for? Looking for something that just screams alt-tech, not high-tech? Then please, feast your steampunky eyes on this beauty of a PC mod that’ll fit perfectly alongside your Memaw’s china closet. Crafted by Swedish art student Love Hulten, this wood-grained cabinet of wonders takes its design cues from “the 20th century and old hi-fi.” Hiding under that well-varnished hood is a Gigabyte GA-H55N-USB3 Mini-ITX motherboard with a 3.2GHz Core i3 500 processor, 4GB of RAM, a 500GB HDD and a GeForce GTX 460 GPU and a log-fire power supply. Love’s hybrid commode is up for sale, but you’ll have to contact the artist himself to get pricing. Check the sources below for a few more shots, as well as a bit of inspiration from the last millennium.
Sputnik 0667 PC mod: perfect for your early 1900s living room originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Jun 2011 13:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Xfinity Home Security makes home monitoring and management Comcastic (video)
Continue reading Xfinity Home Security makes home monitoring and management Comcastic (video)
Xfinity Home Security makes home monitoring and management Comcastic (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 09 Jun 2011 18:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Electronic House crowns iOS-equipped dwelling 2011 Home of the Year
Electronic House just announced its pick for 2011 Home of the Year, and from the look of things, this iOS-enabled abode has the stuff to put your robotic butler out of work. The mammoth craftsman’s interiors, designed by OCD poster boy Jeff Lewis, were automated by HD Media Systems using the Savant app. Everything from lighting to shower temperature are controlled using wall-mounted iPads or a series of unencumbered iOS devices. A pre-programmed “party button” immediately adjusts lighting and temperature, and bumps music to the 15 different Sonance in-ceiling speaker zones while displaying a slideshow on monitors dispersed throughout the house. Among the extravagant extras at work here are a switch in the master closet for flipping on the iron in the laundry room, a chandelier that flickers when it’s time to switch out the toilet paper, and a virtual butler that warns of impending visitors. Looks to us like Rosie the Robot’s days are numbered. Check out the source link for more automated overkill from this year’s runners up.
Electronic House crowns iOS-equipped dwelling 2011 Home of the Year originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 03 May 2011 07:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Sony rolling out PlayStation Home 1.5 update with real-time multiplayer support
Earlier this morning, Sony lifted the floodgates on its 1.5 update for PlayStation Home, bringing with it real-time multiplayer support, improved physics and more realistic graphics, among other goodies and graphical tweaks that we’re slightly less excited about (like, umm, “better furniture management”). Also hitting the PlayStation Home Mall this week is Sodium Blaster’s Paradise personal space and TankTop 1.0, a mini-game which appears to take advantage of the improved graphics promised in Home 1.5. Of course, the big news here is the real-time multiplayer support, which Sony says will pave the way for first-person shooter and racing games, making it even easier to terrorize other players from the safety of mom’s basement. So, what are you waiting for? Hit the source link for all the saucy details.
Sony rolling out PlayStation Home 1.5 update with real-time multiplayer support originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Apr 2011 13:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Kohler’s Numi $6,400 high-tech toilet does most of the dirty work for you (video)
We’ve seen some pretty fancy cans in our time, but perhaps none as tricked out as Kohler’s latest $6,400 john. The Numi does just about everything for you, aside from the stuff that, well, only you can do. Looking something akin to a fancy pop-top waste bin, Numi comes complete with a self-opening and closing lid so you never have to touch the toilet seat; a self-cleaning bidet with adjustable controls for temperature and water pressure; heating elements to keep your toes and tush toasty; an illuminated panel for nighttime rendezvous; a built-in speaker system that connects to a remote docking station to ensure only you know exactly what you’re doing in there; and a deodorizing element that sucks air from the bowl through a charcoal filter. Of course, no connected appliance would be complete without a touchscreen, and the Numi’s no exception; it has a touch panel remote that you can use to set to your specifications. Now, that’s what we call a porcelain throne. Check out the ridiculously lavish promo video after the break.
Continue reading Kohler’s Numi $6,400 high-tech toilet does most of the dirty work for you (video)
Kohler’s Numi $6,400 high-tech toilet does most of the dirty work for you (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 16 Apr 2011 17:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
iPod touch prototype with capacitive home button leaked?
Ah, would you look at that. Earlier this year there were rumors about Apple ditching the physical home button on upcoming iOS devices, and now we have what appears to be a new iPod touch prototype matching such description, courtesy of CrunchGear via Mr. Blurrycam. According to its About screen, this “DVT-1″ (a late milestone) device packs 128GB of memory — twice as much as the largest available capacity option right now (remember that 64GB iPhone 4 prototype in Hong Kong?) — as well as a model number “MC550LL” which isn’t far off from those of the fourth-gen iPod touches (“MC54xLL”), though this similarity doesn’t help prove its authenticity nor indicate whether it’ll make it to the market. Still, if Apple does go ahead with this grubby device or at least its capacitive home button, we might see new touch or gesture controls for the bezel area below the screen à la webOS, as suggested by an earlier patent. But hey, let’s not take this too seriously for now — all this could turn out to be just a much belated April Fools’ prank, right?
iPod touch prototype with capacitive home button leaked? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 05 Apr 2011 10:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.