05/13, 7:51am
Aims to replace paper with touchscreen e-ink display for note taking
Sony has been working on a device for using e-ink as digital paper in an educational setting. Aimed at universities as a replacement for pen and paper-based notetaking by students, the prototype is a 13.3-inch, 1200x1600-resolution, 16-level gray scale e-ink display-as-tablet with touchscreen capabilities, as well as stylus input for drawing and writing.
more
11/29, 10:23am
New prototype uses keyboard, forgoes touchscreen-only interface
Research In Motion has revealed it will make a new prototype BlackBerry 10 device available to developers. The announcement at BlackBerry JAM in Asia said that developers could apply for one of the 1,500 devices, and that recipients of the prototypes will be able to swap the device after launch for a full-production version.
more
10/16, 5:03am
Nokia N900 converted to vibrate when squeezed
A phone has been modified to be able to transfer a squeeze to another phone. A prototype by Nokia Research and the Helsinki Institute of Information Technology amended an N900 to use a resistor to detect up to four different levels of pressure from compression. The recipient of the phone call receives different levels of vibration, depending on the amount of pressure applied.
more
09/24, 7:16pm
New storage has low data density, but extremely durable
Hitachi has developed a prototype storage media, filing information on slivers of quart glass that can endure extreme environmental conditions without degrading. The new technology stores data in binary form by creating dots inside a thin layer of quartz which can be read with an ordinary optical microscope and associated software package.
more
08/22, 6:58am
A rare iPhone 4 has surfaced on eBay replete with an unusual deathstar-like 'protologo.' According to the description, it is features an unusual back that clamps to the body without screws, as was fitted to the final shipping model. Further, it is also still fully functional and runs Apple's 'SwitchBoard' software testing suite and is designated the N90AP.
more
07/30, 7:15am
New court docs reveal 'purple' prototype predates 'Sony' design study
Apple has released images of an iPhone prototype from 2005 codenamed 'purple' as evidence to refute Samsung's assertion that Apple copied its iPhone design from Sony. The prototype was asserted by Apple's lawyers to predate the 2006 Sony-inspired prototype designed by Apple's Shin Nishibori. As a result, Apple's lawyers have filed (pdf) to have Samsung's references to Nishibori design study stricken from the record.
more
07/29, 8:00pm
May be faked, but matches previous specs, leaks
A Japanese repair site has cleverly taken various parts that have been previously reported as being from the sixth-generation iPhone (often referred to as the "iPhone 5" to follow the iPhone 4S) and assembled a non-working casing to better illustrate what it believes the next iPhone, expected this fall, will look like. While the iLab Factory prototype could be a decoy or fake, the parts and assembly match various reports of the planned redesign and may represent a mostly-accurate look at the next model.
more
07/27, 6:13am
Samsung filing claims Apple copied Sony for iPhone design
A Samsung filing has revealed what had been a highly confidential iPhone prototype that bears a Sony logo, according to The Verge. In one instance, the same design also carries a 'Jony' logo variant that appears to be a hat tip to Apple design chief Jony Ive. The court filing by Samsung appears intended to show that Apple derived its designs from the work of others, although the designs in question were developed in-house by Apple.
more
05/29, 6:35pm
Apple did not file to recover 'stolen' property
Surprising observers who had speculated that Apple would close down the auction, a rare prototype iPad with two 30-pin dock connectors sold for a total of $10,200, about $200 above the original asking price. The unit had dock connectors on the "bottom" and "left side" of the iPad, and was functional except for a faulty digitizer, which renders the touchscreen inoperative. The unit still had Apple's "Switchboard" testing software included.
more
