Online Apple Store Down!

What's in store? Mabye it is the new MacBook refresh! Or is it just website maintenence...

What do you think?

Update: It's back up again. Did you notice anything new? We didn't...

EXCLUSIVE: More Proof that google drive exists!

We have all heard rumors that Google Drive will be released any moment now. I was snooping around the interwebs and I stumbled across this: http://www.google.com/apps/intl/da/edu/chromebooks.html.

Look at the bottom and you will see this:

The link is dead though. Now the only question is: When is it Google Drive going to arrive?!?!

Livescribe's Echo Smartpen Impressions

Being teenagers in high school we (the Teenstech team) take a lot of notes. The problem is that we have electronic notes as well as hand-written notes in our notebooks which is annoying because we have two places to look when studying for a test. The thing is, it's nicer to have an electronic version of our notes so we can access them anywhere, but we weren't able to draw diagrams or graphs and add them to our electronic notes so essentially, we could only have half of our notes be taken on a laptop. This is where the Echo smartpen by Livscribe comes in. 

The Echo smartpen truly is a nifty piece of hardware. All you need is an Echo smartpen and some "dot paper" and you just write on the paper. Then all of the notes you take on the special "dot paper" will be uploaded to drop box. To sweeten the deal, the Echo smartpen can also record audio and sync that with your drop box as well.

Now now, I understand there are those who might question this whole interface and ask about how it's similar to the Windows Live Mesh/Onenote/Skydrive system and not without good reason. But hold on, again you have to use a laptop to utilize Microsoft's one note true ability and unless you're willing to shell out for a tablet PC then you really only get half of your notes. You can't draw a graph on a normal laptop - well you can but you're just going to ruin the laptop and it's not going to get you anywhere.

But in terms of Dropbox vs. Livemesh funcitonality, they are few differences. Both give you the ability to sync files on your computer to cloud storage. Both are accessable anywhere in the world (granted there must be an internet connection). I must say, it is actually a pretty good idea to add drop box functionality to the Echo smartpen. Being able to sync your notes to cloud storage and your computer on the fly will become pretty handy.

However,where laptops are limited, the Echo smartpen excels, it lets you take all sorts of handwritten and recorded notes (including graphs and diagrams) and sync them to dropbox so you could access them anywhere. Frankly, laptops aren't there yet.

Now although the Pen is $130+ it looks like a good investment due to the fact that the Echo smartpen is EXTREMELY helpful for students. What do you guys think? Sound off in the comments below!

Did Parrot (Creator of AR Drone) Mess Up?

Shipments of the very anticipated AR Drone 2.0's have just arrived to pre-orderers. If you were unaware, the Drone is a helicopter that can be controlled by your tablet/phone. It even has a 720p camera for taking footage of your flights. There is just one issue with the new 2.0 version: the new Free-Flight application is not available on the Google Play Store. Rather, it is only availalbe on iOS. This means that android users are unable to utilize the newest fuctions of the Drone, such as raking videos of your adventures and doing barrel rolls. Even the AR Drone manual states "Search the Android Market for Free Flight 2".

How could Parrot forget about more than half of all of the smartphones in the world? 

Nokia leaks Lumia PureView Concept Images

When first announced, the pureview looked like a cool phone that might be worth getting. The 41Megapixel sensor, Carl Zeiss Lens, and 4'3" HD screen were all nice little features that I wouldn't mind having in my phone. But wow, look at that image that was supposedly leaked out by a Nokia Office in China recently. Read more after the break.

I have no idea how that is going to feel in my pocket and quite frankly I would prefer not to know. Anyway, this is frankly just weird because we were shown pictures of PureView back at MWC. Remember? The photo looked something like this ...

You might also remember that the Nokia PureView was originally announced that it would be running on Nokia's own proprietary O.S, Symbian Belle, but on the picture you can clearly see that it says that it's running on Window's O.S.

It is possible that this is a completely different phone, but its confusing that Nokia would release two PureView's both with the same camera and screen size with the only main differences being the O.S and design. Who knows, maybe they just re-imagined the phone entirely.

Do you really believe Nokia would change the design so drastically? Is it a completely different phone? Let us know what you think in the comment section below. 

Minecraft 1.2 Released

Yesterday saw the much-awaited release of Minecraft version 1.2. This release is the culmination and of nearly a dozen snapshots, combnied together in a package and officially released. The update list for this version is absolutely enormous, touching nearly every aspect of the game. One of the most prominent focuses of this new patch is mobs. Nearly every mob has recieved new AI, thanks to Mojang's newest team member. Hostile mobs will now search out shade and water when they are exposed to daylight, which can create some odd behavior, but will add an extra level of difficulty to the game. Villagers have also recieved an AI buff; they now do much more human things, like reproducing, running away from zombies, seeking shelter, and much more. A new mob has also been added to the game: iron golems. Iron golems spawn near villagers to help them defend against zombies, as villagers and zombies can now skirmish (due to their new AI). More new content includes, but is not limited to: 

• a new jungle biome, with gigantic trees and lush forests
• doubling the world height from 128 blocks to 256 blocks
• a new ocelot mob that spawns in jungles, and can be tamed (like wolves)
• new items, like a redstone powered lamp and a more efficent version of a flint and steel
• villager children
• mobs (skeletons, zombies, zombie pigmen) now have a chance to drop armor and weapons

And as always, many of the annoyance of past versions have seen their end in this update. Mobs will no longer annoying jump when up against a fence, ladders have once again regained their collision box, monster spawners will now display the correct mobs in multiplayer, and double doors will work again. A few aesthetical changes have been made as well; half-blocks can be placed on only the half top of a block space now, and stairs can be placed upside-down.

Overall, the most apparent point of this update is to dump an incredible amount of new features into the game, with the focus mobs. If you're one of those people that loves to mess around with Minecraft mobs and likes a whole bunch of new content, this is the update for you.

Go out there, and happy crafting!

Windows 8 coming in Q4? Fujitsu certainly thinks so ...

At a recent press event, Fujistu showcased this slide (look up). Looks like Fujistu has some tricks up its sleeve. Read more after the break.

If what this roadmap says is true it seems that Fujistu has 2 new ultrabooks, a slimbook, an android tablet, a transformer prime-esque tablet that comes with a detachable dock all coming to retailers near year sometime in 2012. Now, thats all fun stuff to know about but since we know literally nothing about all of these products, its hard to get excited.

It is, however, easy to get excited for the last object on the roadmap that is marked for a Q4 launch. Windows 8. Windows 8 needs no introduction but I'll give it one anyway. Windows 8 is the next operating system being developed by Microsoft. It will more or less be Windows 7 but with a suite of new functions and tablet optomization features and a new Metro homepage. Bottomline, it will awesomeness and beauty rolled up into one nice package. Until now, Microsoft has been tightlipped about a release window so this is pretty exiting. I for one am gearing up for the Developer Preview that is coming out soon.

I'll post my thoughts when I get it up and running on my computer.

We contacted Microsoft for confirmation and we'll update this post if we hear back.

Details on Windows Phone 8 (Apollo)

Although we don't know when the update is being rolled out, Microsofthas given us some more details on windows phone 8. The update will have Windows 8 tablet and phone connectivity, skype integration, super phone support and more. Read on after the break for a full list of improvements.

The List: (provided by Engadget)

• Support for four different resolutions, though no specifics were given
• Support for dual cores
• NFC support added, including payment and content sharing with WP8 and Windows 8 machines
• Carrier control and branding of "wallet" element is possible via SIM or phone hardware
• MicroSD support added for expandable storage
• Transitions to core components from desktop, including kernel, network stack, security components and media support
• Simplified porting of desktop apps to mobile
• Zune desktop integration scrapped in favor of new, unnamed syncing app
• Deeper Skydrive integration, including ability to sync data such as music collections
• Xbox Companion app will get Windows 8 partner client
• Native code support, simplified porting from Android and iOS
• App-to-app communication and integration
• Skype client with deep OS hooks that will make it almost identical to placing standard voice calls
• Camera app now supports "lenses" which allow third parties to skin and add features to camera interface
• DataSmart tracks and reports usage via app and live tile
• Gives preferential treatment to WiFi, can automatically connect to carrier-owned hotspots
• Proxy server will compress websites in Internet Explorer 10 up to 30 percent
• Native Bitlocker encryption
• Support for proprietary, custom built apps to be deployed behind company firewalls

The New Textbooks

Recently at Apple's high-profile event in the Guggenheim museum in New York, Apple executive, Phil Schiller announced a new initiative to encourage and promote easier publication for ebooks and revealed multiple new programs with that educational emphasis. The revamped iBooks 2 is designed to bring a "new textbook experience," and will allow multimedia sources, such as videos or touchable graphics, to be incorporated into the text.  Certain aspects, like the ability to highlight and to search the text, will be refined and improved with the upcoming software. Apple's other new projects, the iBooks Author and iTunes U, enables publishers to create those interactive textbooks and to distribute those ebooks and other course materials to students. The iBooks author, in particular, may pitch Apple further into further competition with Amazon, who is also transitioning from a book distributor to being more of a book producer. With Apple's new initiative on the ease of creating an ebook, the tablet is moving one step closer to replacing the traditional textbook.

Tobii = Controlling Your Computer Solely With Your Eyes!

I am sure you guys have heard of this new thing called touchscreen coming to computers. But that is so last week. This new company called Tobii created this new technology that allows you to control a computer with your eyes using a kinect like sensor, except rather than sensing motion, it senses your iris movement. I know, I know... you think it would be weird and un natural and will have glitches. Well, your wrong. Tobii works perfictly! If you look at a picture, it will enlarge. If you look at an asteroid in a game, it will explode. Everything is natural, easy, and sort of fun! At the CES I spoke with the founder of Tobii and he explained to me that his technology works perfactly with Windows 8. He said that the tile mechanism is great for controlling with your eyes. The only issue is clicking. It is quite strenuous to blink to click or to squint to click, so Tobii had another approach. They decided to use your eyes as a mouse, and use a button for clicking. All you do is hold down on the button, look at an application, and then let go. You needs to try Tobii to believe it. I personally think eye controlled computers is the future of computing.ob 

Tobii is said to be released through OEM on tablets, laptops, and desktops and in the future it will be a 3rd party webcam.