smart

NYC payphones get revived as touch-screen tablets

Payphones are a dying breed, which will probably make some people yearn for our simple past and others celebrate our tech-filled future.

New York City and two companies, Cisco Systems and City 24/7, announced today that they're officially commencing their plan to transform those endangered species into 32-inch touch-screen information kiosks, a.k.a. "Smart Screens," around the city, according to GigaOM.

The idea was originally introduced in April and the companies have been testing the pilot project over the last few months. Now, the Smart Screens are officially live and a handful of kiosks are … Read more

To glimpse Windows' future, get thee to a Microsoft store

Getting to a Microsoft store isn't easy. That's a problem.

It's a problem because in the wake of the Windows 8 release late last month, the best selection of the coolest devices is at a Microsoft store. Throw in solid ambiance too.

Best Buy? I don't think so. Though my local Best Buy in Los Angeles has a few interesting Windows 8 PCs, like the Lenovo Yoga convertible, it's mostly business as usual.

Same old big box chaos with clam shells that look pretty much like the clam shells that were there last year.

And … Read more

Xbox SmartGlass for iOS adds more console interactivity

Much like the former Xbox Live app, Xbox SmartGlass (free) gives you the Xbox 360 Dashboard experience, letting you do things like view your avatar and info, see your friends' bio and game lists, and track and compare achievements.

With this latest version of the app, you get a lot more ways to interact with your console. You now have the ability to type using your iPhone keypad rather than the old hunt-and-peck Xbox controller method; you can browse the Internet on your Xbox using your full iOS keyboard; you can play, rewind, and fast-forward videos; search the Xbox game … Read more

Microsoft kills Messenger to push Skype

Wednesday's CNET Update is app happy:

Today's tech news roundup bids farewell to Windows Live Messenger. Microsoft is pushing users to use Skype instead for instant messaging. The latest Skype update lets users transfer contacts from Messenger.

The new Xbox SmartGlass app is now available for Apple devices. The app turns an iOS device into a second screen for navigating through Xbox menus and media, and it's easier to type with an iOS keyboard. Some games have extra features for SmartGlass, like Halo 4, Dance Central 3 and Forza Horizon.

If you're wondering about an app for Microsoft Office, … Read more

Microsoft's Xbox-Surface tablet: What could it be?

Microsoft apparently has a gaming tablet complete with Xbox branding on the way in the near future, perhaps to coincide with the release of the next-generation Xbox. In a year full of tablets of all shapes, prices, and functions, what does this mean? What can we hope for? What are the pitfalls? Here's what immediately comes to mind.… Read more

Windows 8 reshapes the laptop: Touch models on the rise

Windows 8 is all about touch. And that means a lot more touch laptops and hybrid devices are popping up at PC stores in the U.S.

Microsoft's brick-and-mortar and online stores are among the most aggressive at stocking up on touch-capable Windows 8 portables. Its online store now shows eight traditional (non-hybrid) clamshell laptops with touch screens. Those include the $499 Asus VivoBook X202E, the $899 Sony Vaio T13, and the high-end $1,349 HP Spectre XT TouchSmart.

Throw hybrids, or so-called "convertibles," into the mix and the number jumps to 16. Convertibles -- which include … Read more

Amazon Instant now available on Samsung TVs

The one major streaming service heretofore absent from Samsung's TVs, Amazon Instant, is now available.

Today Samsung announced that the popular video service is available for immediate, free download to all 2012 Samsung Smart TVs. The Amazon Instant catalog includes more than 140,000 movies and commercial-free TV shows at a la carte pricing. The app on Samsung TVs also allows access to the more than 30,000 titles available for free to Prime members.

A Samsung rep told CNET that the app will not be made available to 2011 Samsung Smart TVs at this time, but couldn't … Read more

Microsoft SmartGlass connects your Xbox to your mobile device

Your smartphone or tablet will soon be able to control and display games and movies from an Xbox 360.

Set to be released along with Windows 8 this Friday, Microsoft's new SmartGlass app is designed to bridge the gap between the Xbox and mobile devices.

The free app will naturally support Windows 8 and Windows RT tablets and PCs as well as Windows Phone 8 devices. But it will also run on iOS and Android devices.

As described in a blog by Yusuf Mehdi, chief marketing officer for Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment Division, Xbox 360 owners will be able … Read more

HP, finally, has a good answer to the iPad

Could Hewlett-Packard trump the iPad?

With Windows 8 general release due on October 26, it's a good opportunity to take a look at the competition coming down the pike.

In this case, from Apple's Silicon Valley neighbor, HP.

It took way too long -- Apple announced the iPad in 2010 -- but HP now has a real iPad alternative -- the Envy x2.

Or, put another way, should I think about swapping my iPad for the x2?

Personal musings aside, HP has a different design philosophy from Apple -- so it's not simply a question (for me … Read more

The lights over your head are about to get smart

Take a walk through the labs of Bridgelux (PDF) in Livermore, Calif., and you see a lot of LED lighting modules being made on a more affordable platform: disused factories that used to make silicon chips. But while you'll see lots of lights, you'll hear mostly about connectivity. Bridgelux CEO Bill Watkins envisions a new array of smart, connected sensors, cameras, and other devices integrated with LED lighting over our heads.

The challenge is formidable: Most lighting consumers, large and small, think of lighting as a cost to be contained, not an opportunity to be maximized. So job … Read more