Peripherals

Is That A Moto Q's Extended Battery In Your Pocket, Or Are You Just Happy To See Me?

q battery 1.JPGYesterday I was angry with Motorola - when I left home to go to a meeting in the morning, my Motorola Q said it had a full battery. On the train I received a phone call, and after four minutes the phone started beeping at me like a bitter ex-wife that its battery power was dangerously low.

Fortunately I happened to bump into some of the lovely folks at Motorola at a PR event last night and after telling them my plight, they introduced me to the Moto Q's extended battery.

While they couldn't tell me the cost (never fear, Gizmodians - I am chasing that up now), they did tell me that it's available now. I'm also trying to track down some stats on the battery - you know, like talk time and standby - so we can all make an informed decision about whether or not the extra bulk (it adds about 5mm depth to the battery compartment) is worth it.

For me, considering how thin the Q is anyway, I don't think I'll mind the 5mm Quasimodo hump for a big boost to battery life. But what about you guys? Would you be interested in a chunky battery for longer talk time on your mobile (even if it's not the Q)? Let us know in comments.


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Gizmodo Australia Post

3:22 PM on Fri May 16 2008
by Nick Broughall

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Computers

OLPC Having A TechFest In Sydney June 1


The OLPC initiative has come to Australia, and they're holding a special Techfest day for anybody interested in learning more about the XO, or those who just want to get their greasy hands all over one. There will be demonstrations, workshops and developer tutorials for both the hardware and software.

It's completely free, and could be a fun day out on a Sunday for anybody looking for something to do on June 1. It's being held a St Ignatius College, Riverview between 9:30am and 6:00pm.

For a full rundown on the day's planned events, or to RSVP (for catering purposes), head on over to the OLPC Australia website.

[OLPC.org.au via Lifehacker AU]

Gizmodo Australia Post

3:01 PM on Fri May 16 2008
by Nick Broughall

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Cameras

Sony HDR-TG1 Priced And Dated For Australia

 For everybody who's been hanging out for the local release date and of "the world's smallest Full HD camcorder" from Sony, we've got the details here.

The HDR-TG1 is available now for the bargain price of $1,599.

I had a little play around with this camera the other day - one of the coolest features is the ability to automatically bookmark people's faces as you film, so when you're playing back on the camera you can select a face and playback will start from the point in time their face was registered.

Stay tuned for a more detailed look at this impressive little camera soon.

Gizmodo Australia Post

2:00 PM on Fri May 16 2008
by Nick Broughall

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Software

BlackBerry Connect Now Available On The Motorola Q

BlackBerry's been everywhere recently, with their upcoming Bold phone to take on the iPhone and their Touchscreen Thunder also rumoured for a release later this year.

But if you're after a HSDPA-enabled Blackberry and don't want to wait for either of those models to launch, you could always download BlackBerry Connect onto a Motorola Q9h.

Motorola has very recently made the Blackberry Connect service available for download from their website, giving your Q the ability to receive push email from BlackBerry Enterprise Server, plus BlackBerry's desktop software for syncing details between your PC and phone.

It's a free download, although you do need to have a BlackBerry Connect Data plan added onto you phone plan.

[Motorola]

Gizmodo Australia Post

12:52 PM on Fri May 16 2008
by Nick Broughall

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Online

Northern Territory Government Computers Hacked, Dingo Denies Involvement

dingo hacker.jpg
The Northern Territory Government is a little bit screwed at the moment - turns out that a 27 year old hacker got into their network and shut down the servers for the health department, Royal Darwin Hospital, Berrimah Prison and the supreme court up there.

On top of that, he deleted the independant user accounts of over 10,000 public servants.

The man accused moved to Darwin in February as a service engineer to update and maintain the NT governments online system, but resigned in April.

The report had no word on a motive for the attack, although it's rumoured that his defence will involve dingos using his laptop to do the hacking.

[News.com.au]

Gizmodo Australia Post

12:06 PM on Fri May 16 2008
by Nick Broughall

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Software

Semi-Official Sprint Mogul Windows Mobile 6.1 ROM Leaked

This isn't the final official version of the Sprint Mogul Windows Mobile 6.1 firmware update—which probably means that it shouldn't be called "official"—but it has been leaked on WinMo dev sites. New features are Sprint TV, a larger Start read more »

11:40 AM on Fri May 16 2008
by Jason Chen

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Peripherals

TDK Join The Environmentally Friendly Packaging Movement

87366 DVD-R front.jpg
Every year, millions of plastic CD and DVD cases and unrecyclable plastic spindles are thrown into landfill. It's a tragic prctice that will single-handedly create the downfall of the human race, unless something is done about it.

TDK know this, so they're now releasing their recordable CDs and DVDs in environmentally friendly, 100% recyclable cardboard filing drawers, which not only save the planet from plastic landfill-related end-of-the-world scenarios, but can be used as an easy-access filing method for your discs.

The only downside is that this is actually a limited time promotion - although if its successful, TDK will consider saving the world all the time, not just at the end of the financial year.

A 100 pack of CDs will set you back $35, while recordable DVDs (both +R and -R) will cost you $50.

[TDK]

Gizmodo Australia Post

11:39 AM on Fri May 16 2008
by Nick Broughall

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Portable

Youth Killed By a Helicopter While Getting His Mail Sparks Debate About Headphone Safety

Seriously guys, you just can't make this stuff up. A 23 year old Canadian college student was killed when a crashing helicopter struck and dragged him as he was walking to his mailbox. Apparently eyewitnesses noticed that the youth was completely unaware of his impending doom and a friend told reporters that he often listened to music through earbuds underneath the hood of his sweatshirt. Naturally, reaction was swift. If he had not been listening to music perhaps he could have nimbly sidestepped the helicopter and gone about his business as if nothing had happened. After all, this sort of crap happens everyday right?


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11:20 AM on Fri May 16 2008
by Sean Fallon

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Computers

Alienware: Gaming PCs Are Hitting a Performance Wall

The last place I would expect to hear even a glimmer of doubt about the performance potential of gaming PCs would be Alienware. Yet Alienware's Marc Diana spills that 32-bit machines just aren't cutting it at the pure performance level anymore, saying that faster chips with more cores aren't the solution: 64-bit systems are the real fire. He castigates the rest of the industry for not stepping up, noting that Alienware doesn't actually offer 64-bit systems because driver support sucks, at best.

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11:00 AM on Fri May 16 2008
by Matt Buchanan

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Peripherals

My Document Laptop Case is Charmingly Iconic

Clever. Monospaced. Bold. Yellow. Those four words can describe this My Document laptop case as well as any others, which is good because our pocket dictionary just fell into the toilet. The design is from 25togo Design Studios, and as hard as we try (which is not that hard) we can't find a price tag or a way to purchase one. You can always email them and see if they'll sell you one manually, but they're in the country which has a country code of 886 (Taiwan), so be prepared to pay a little extra for shipping. [25togo via Like Cool via Slashgear]


10:40 AM on Fri May 16 2008
by Jason Chen

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