CEA 3-D TV study finds interest up, but education and content needed

Interest is heating up, and many consumer-electronics sales associates are excited for 3-D technologies, according to a study from CEA. The 3-D Retail Experience -- Opinions of Sales Associates survey of more than 250 retail sales associates selling 3-D TVs also found that many consumers are still confused about 3-D technology. Sales associates interviewed report that roughly 50% of shoppers have an overall positive response to 3-D technologies while only 2% respond negatively. Additionally, 80% of sales associates report seeing an increase in interest and traffic over the past several months. To help retailers answer many of the frequently asked questions, CEA has developed a 3-D TV primer at DigitalTips.org. CEA is also organizing National 3-D Demo Days (Sept. 10 to 12) and will provide retailers the tips and tools needed to offer the consumer the best possible 3-D retail experience.

iPod Touch 4G Specs, Ship Date Leaked?

A UK tech blog claims to have acquired some highly specific details about Apple's fourth-generation iPod Touch.

Bloggers at Electric Pig said their information comes from an internal slide presentation designed to help staffers at British retailer John Lewis tout the new product.

The presentation is titled, "Apple iPod Refresh in September"—an indication that the device may be on store shelves in time for the crucial back-to-school shopping season.

According to the slides, the new iPod Touch will feature a 5 megapixel camera that can shoot HD-quality video.

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OLPC to Add Multitouch Screen to Future XO-1.75 Laptop

Nonprofit organization One Laptop Per Child on Thursday said it is adding a multitouch screen to the upcoming XO-1.75 laptop and is modifying software to take advantage of the new hardware.

The XO-1.75 with a touch-sensitive 8.9-inch screen will start shipping next year. The laptop will run on an Arm processor and is the successor to the current XO-1.5 laptop, which runs on a Via x86 processor. OLPC will also add a multitouch screen on the next-generation XO-3 tablet, which is due to ship in 2012.

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New Xbox 360 250GB review

See it at: http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/02/new-xbox-360-slim-250gb-review/

Grant Brings iPod Into Utah High School Classrooms

A $1 million federal stimulus grant will put iPods into the hands of some Utah high schools students as a learning tool.

About 1,600 students at Kearns High School will get iPod Touches next school year thanks to the Enhancing Education Through Technology grants . Students will use the devices in class to download applications, take notes, do Internet research and read English textbooks.

Students will be allowed to take the iPods home and keep them after graduation.

Timex Global Trainer GPS Watch

Timex said that REI would get its Global Trainer GPS watch first when it announced it way back in January, and it looks like it's now finally available both in REI stores and at REI.com -- albeit a bit later than the originally promised May launch date. That includes both the standalone watch and the bundle with a heart rate monitor, which will set you back $275 and $325, respectively. As for the watch itself, it seems to stack up pretty well against the likes of Garmin's Forerunner GPS watches -- complete with SIRFstar III GPS, water resistance to 50m, ANT+ compatibility, and training software for both PC and Mac -- and it does so while looking considerably more watch-like. Look for it to launch at other retailers globally this September.

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Liquavista Displays Go Out in the Sun

We've seen Liquavista displays plenty of times at various trade shows, but so far they've always been locked up indoors. Now they've gone outside to enjoy the weather, and ARMdevices.net was there to capture the results. The low-power color and monochrome screens are shown looking at least as good in the wild as they do in captivity, and when placed next to a traditional LCD (in the laptop on the right) the difference is clear. Granted, the colors are a bit washed out, but the refresh rate is certainly far higher than anything we've seen from E Ink. While there's still no firm word on how much this technology will cost manufacturers, converting from standard LCD production to Liquavista production is said to be relatively painless. How painless? We'll rather disappointingly have to wait for at least another year before we find out, as these aren't slated to go into production until the second half of 2011.

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SD Cards Branded with an Upper-Case "I"

These SD cards are faster. They are theoretically capable of 300 megabyte per second transfer rates. Consider selecting these cards when purchasing cards for recording HD video.