Ha, and you thought your HotSeat Chassis was the next best thing to paying way too much to carry an appropriate amount of luggage on your next jaunt to paradise. Australia’s own Matthew Sheil has been tinkering on his own personal flight simulator for over a decade now, but the latest iteration is just too good to ignore. Aside from setting a Guinness world record for his efforts, the man has poured over $300,000 into recreating the flying experience of a 747-400, which is dirt cheap compared to the $60 million that professional simulators generally run. Sheil flies virtually with legions of other enthusiasts around the world, and each year he hosts 15 folks as they rotate on an around-the-world flight that Qantas sponsors and where donation money is funneled to the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Hit up the read link to get a real gist of what this thing is capable of, and feel free to go in with stupid high expectations.

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Transportation

Australian continues to hone $300,000 flight simulator originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Mar 2009 09:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Low light, candles in the corner — seriously folks, these shots are downright sultry. Optus’ HTC G1, er, Dream has been spotted and photographed in some random corner of the world, and while it basically looks like every other G1 you’ve ever seen in this hue, we’re absolutely certain that Australians in attendance are more than happy to have a look. You know where to head for the rest.

[Thanks, Tom]

Filed under: Cellphones

Optus’ HTC Dream spotted, photographed passionately originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 09 Mar 2009 05:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Wearables

DIY prosthesis all the rage in Tasmania originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Feb 2009 22:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We thought that Virgin might allow its most loyal patrons to exchange frequent flyer points for trips to space, and now it looks like they hope to jump-start the process with a seriously stacked contest. In Australia, the company is now counting ‘Velocity Points’ as entry to a drawing where you could win 25 million frequent flyer miles — or exactly the amount you need to get yourself a space flight for two. Oh, and if you have no interest in ever looking like that chap pictured above, Virgin will also let you exchange them for a pair of Alfa Romeo vehicles, the chance to explore the planet “how you see fit” or a $170,000 shopping spree.

Update: We got this story a little turned around initially, as you can see — this is for a contest to win 25 million points, not an offer open to anyone who has 25 million points (though it’s assumed if you’ve got those kinds of numbers, you can head to space too).

[Via VideoSift]

Filed under: Transportation

Virgin offers up 25 million ‘Velocity Points’ to put you in space originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Feb 2009 09:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Just as we’d heard, Western Digital is indeed producing (and shipping) a standalone 2TB internal hard drive. Available now for purchase from Mwave Australia, the 3.5-inch WD20EADS sports a 7,200RPM spin speed, 32MB of cache and a AU$377.80 price tag, which converts to just under $250 in greenbacks. We get the feeling that this drive is just hours away from launching here in the US of A (we’re guessing the time zones are to blame), so we’ll be keeping a close eye out for early reports on performance.

[Thanks, Danny]

Filed under: Storage

Western Digital’s 2TB Caviar Green HDD on sale in Australia originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 26 Jan 2009 23:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It was just yesterday that Reuters predicted Nokia’s Comes With Music service was headed for something of a pilgrimage through the wilds of Europe, and now we have the official confirmation of this “pan European” expansion. The company has secured partnerships with music licensing and publishing big-wigs in Spain, France, Italy, Sweden, Finland, and Norway, and is indicating that Singapore and Australia are next on its to-do list. Alas there was no mention of other nations getting any sort of attention, meaning Nokia handsets in the New World are unlikely to come with anything but guilt for the forseeable future.

Filed under: Cellphones, Portable Audio

Nokia’s Comes With Music goes on European tour, Asia next, Americas deemed too boring originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Jan 2009 08:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nokia’s all-you-can-eat Comes With Music service has been humming along quite nicely across the pond, but until now, we’ve been left in the dark about its plans for world domination. No more, as a recent Reuters report has it that the unlimited music service should be headed to Australia, Asia and Singapore later this quarter and Latin America / USA sometime this year. We’re also told that more corners of Europe should get served in the future, though no window of time was handed out there. It should be interesting to see if any carriers jump in to subsidize these, but our gut feeling says they’ll be sold for a premium unlocked at your nearest Nokia flagship.

[Via UnwiredView]

Filed under: Cellphones, Portable Audio

Nokia’s Comes With Music service plans world tour originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Jan 2009 03:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oh, Kogan — we were so, so hopeful that you weren’t peddling vaporware, and the latest indications seemed to suggest that the Agora and Agora Pro were very much real devices. We wanted to root for the little guy, get another Android handset out into the unlocked market, review it, and love it to death. Unfortunately, scrappy Australian entrepreneur Ruslan Kogan has decided to delay the launch of his independently-designed phones indefinitely citing concerns over compatibility with future Android apps — concerns that were likely raised in a hush-hush meeting he’d recently scored with Google. One issue, it seems, is that the Agora’s screen resolution won’t likely play nice with Android apps going forward; that doesn’t seem quite right since the form factor is totally standard, but who really knows? The dude’s had working prototypes on video, so we can’t totally write it off just yet.

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

So close, yet so far: Kogan Agora delayed indefinitely originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 16 Jan 2009 00:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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With Mobile World Congress a little over month away — and Android essentially a no-show at CES — suspense is building over what sort of action we’ll see out of the Google camp at the show. Australia’s Smarthouse cites a particularly cocky Telstra exec saying that he’s got an upcoming HTC set that’s “better and more functional” than the Pre — and seeing how he enjoyed a Palm briefing this week, he’d have a pretty good idea. Rumor has it this Pre killer will run a version of Android with HTC tweaks and will have a huge display, which seems like a good combo if you’re trying to impress a jaded smartphone buyer these days. The mystery device is expected in the second quarter of the year, which gets back to our hope that we’ll see some Android heat at MWC next month; don’t get us wrong, the G1 is great and all, but we’re ready for some more.

[Via wmpoweruser.com]

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Telstra exec: new Android-based HTC phone ‘better’ than Pre originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 12 Jan 2009 06:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We had already heard it through the grapevine, but now Huawei has stepped in to confirm. Straight from the horse’s (or spokesperson, in this instance) mouth: “Huawei can confirm that their first Android smartphone is scheduled to launch in the third quarter of 2009. Huawei’s smartphones can be ordered and developed for Australian operators based on any such requests.” It stands to reason that other markets outside of AU would be able to get their paws around ‘em as well, though we sadly have no idea how long proliferation would take. Looks like Australia’s gearing up to be a serious Android battleground — who woulda thunk it, mate?

[Via UnwiredView]

Filed under: Cellphones

Android-powered Huawei handsets on track for Q3 2009 release (in Australia) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Dec 2008 15:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Transportation

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Most unboxings don’t require a forklift and crowbar. Then again, most of us aren’t unboxing Microsoft’s 125-kg (275-pound) Surface computer — so big that one recipient quipped, “That’s a big-ass box.” How apropos. The recipient is Australian marketing agency Amnesia, making this the first international shipment of Surface we’ve heard about. That’s good news as the platform seems to finally be taking off.

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Hard to say if this solution will be cheaper than the bordering-on-free LifeStraw, but a team at the University of South Australia has developed a low-cost method for removing bacteria and other contaminants from water “using tiny particles of pure silica coated with an active nano-material.” Professor Peter Majewski is pretty proud of the all new system, stating that it can “remove bacteria, chemicals, viruses and other contaminants from water much more effectively than conventional water purification methods.” Due to its ability to function sans additional energy and its low overall cost, the team is hoping to see the creation bring clean water to developing countries. The best part? It should be available within two years.

[Via Protein OS]

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

There’s no shame in admitting that shape-shifting creatures are a touch frightening, but we’ll go ahead and warn you — those spooked by petite bots will be utterly terrified by this. The SkinForm Project has arisen from the University of Technology Sydney, and while there aren’t any elaborate details available just yet, it’s described as an “intelligent pneumatic structure that transforms dynamically in response to socio-physical context.” Additionally, it seems to utilize a plethora of sensors and rely on a good bit of software programing in order to become the transforming architecture that it is. If all goes as planned, the initiative will be completed on June 12th, but you can take a look at a number of in-progress videos right down there in the read link below.

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

We have no real way of verifying whether or not these so-calls crystals were purchased alongside some bizarre time machine on eBay, but we’ll take this guy’s word for it and assume not for the time being. Reportedly, University of Queensland professor Max Lu has teamed up with researchers in order to grow “the world’s first titanium oxide single crystals with large amounts of reactive surfaces.” Put simply, these very crystals can “absorb sunlight and convert it into electricity.” It’s said that Lu has been working on the project for some 15 years, and even now, he doesn’t expect the creation to be commercially viable for another decade. Aside from morphing into fairies and making dreams come true, the things could also be used to “purify air and water.” Pair this up with an invisibility cloak and we’ll really be in business.

[Thanks, Brendan]

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Filed under: Displays

If we were betting souls, we’d say seeing a hologram of Bill Gates is still far more frightening than one of Telstra’s CTO, but nevertheless, said exec was recently beamed from Melbourne to Adelaide via hologram in order to “speak at a major function for senior business executives.” According to David Thodey, the live demonstration symbolized “what has become possible using the high data speed and capacity of [its] network” — something the outfit is calling Next Dimension Working. The actual hologram was transmitted over the company’s network using the Musion Eyeliner System, a “high-definition holographic video projection system that allows three-dimensional moving images to appear within a live stage setting.” Telecommuting just took on a whole new meaning.

[Via News, thanks Brad]

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Filed under: Cellphones

var digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/apple/3G_iPhone_to_support_42Mbps_Evolved_HSPA_data’; Get this. Australian site ChannelNews claims that a “senior executive of Telstra” is the latest 3G iPhone bean spiller. They quote the exec as saying the following:

“We know what is coming we have seen the new device and it will be available on our network as soon as it is launched in the USA. By Christmas this phone will be capable of 42Mbps which will make it faster than a lot of broadband offerings and the fastest iPhone on any network in the world.”

Interesting. We know that Telstra’s Next G HSDPA network has been capable of 14.4Mbps since 2007. At GSMA Mobile World Congress, they even committed to 21Mbps before the end of the year and 42Mbps using HSPA+ (aka, Evolved HSPA, HSPA Evolution) technology in 2009… not Christmas of 2008. Hard to say if this is just industry blow-harding or actual insider info. June 9th: T-minus 17 days and counting.

[Thanks, Paul S.]

Read — Telstra 42Mbps HSPA+ in 2009
Read — Telstra 3G iPhone rumor

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Filed under: Wireless

We haven’t heard too many specifics when it comes to performance of actual WiMAX rollouts (and let’s be real, we’re all kind of waiting for LTE at this point, right?), but Garth Freeman, CEO of Buzz Broadband, apparently shuttered the company’s Australian WiMAX rollout in Hervey Bay, publicly declaring that for his company and customers the technology “failed miserably”. Apparently beyond about a mile from the base station non-line of sight performance was “non-existent”, regular indoor use produced latencies as high as 1000ms even just 400m away, and the company had to scrap its network for TD-CDMA service on 1.9GHz just to make sure customers weren’t completely left in the cold. Maybe they should have checked for an errant satellite, eh mate?

[Via Slashdot]

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Filed under: Laptops

We’ve been waiting for Dell to pop a Penryn chip inside one of its laptops — so far it’s been HP and Toshiba sitting pretty with some of the few Penryn laptop offerings in existence — but we didn’t think it’d come for free. Dell is pushing Penryn on consumers with an upgrade to the existing XPS M1330 line, which is a far sight smaller than what HP and Toshiba intro’d Penryn in, but the best news is that if you build out the AUD$2,000 model (which includes 4GB of RAM and other perks) you get a free “upgarde” [sic] to the Core 2 Duo T9300 processor, at least for today. As you might’ve guessed from that currency, this deal is only in Australia so far, but new Dell products and deals usually start there and end up in the States whenever the international date line swings around.

[Thanks, Rupert]

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Filed under: Digital Cameras, Displays, HDTV, Home Entertainment, Household, Portable Audio, Portable Video

As Hitachi continues to streamline operations, we get word that it is pulling out of the consumer electronics and whitegoods market in Australia. Announced over the weekend, Hitachi will no longer sell their appliances or flat-panel TVs, camcorders, and other CE-class goods in the land down under. ACs, industrial, and electronic goods will still be available. The move brings along 40 job cuts from its Sydney HQ. Hitachi claims that the Australian market is just too small and too competitive to warrant the effort. A sentiment backed by Sharp Australia’s deputy managing director, Denis Kerr, who claims that Australia is under, “a siege mentality that has forced pricing to ridiculous levels that cannot be sustained.” He surmises that if the trend continues, “Brand names are going to withdraw from the market place.” Of course, all this leaves us wondering… who’s next?

[Thanks, Dzx]

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