Google Updates Its Android Emulator With GPU Support

Google has today rolled out a new update to their Android emulator tool for developers to test and build Android apps. The update has added major improvements to the emulator, including a performance increase together with support for a broader range of hardware features, including sensors and multi-finger input.

Google has now also added support for OpenGL ES 2.0 allowing you to now play, run and test your OpenGL games inside the Android emulator. The new Android Emulator update also provides improved CPU performance, with floating point operation which has been available for system images since Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0), allowing CPU operations to be emulated roughly twice as quickly.

The video after the break shows the interactivity of the Android launcher in the emulator in normal and hardware accelerated mode. More information about the new update to Google’s Android Emulator can be found over on the Android Developers forum.

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Google Project Glass Windows Parody (video)

Its not taken long since the unveiling of Google’s Project Glass eyewear for a number of parody videos to be created showing the funnier side of what the Google Project Glass project might be like. Check out the video after the jump for a quick glimpse at what the feeling might be like wearing the eyewear if it was to be loaded with Microsoft’s Windows operating system.

Google Project Glass which is thought to be renamed Google Eye are augmented reality glasses that are currently being developed by Google. The glasses would provide the users with a heads up display and running Google’s Android OS.

Unfortunately no information on just how far development has progressed with the concept at the moment. So it will be a little time yet before pricing or worldwide availability has will be released. But as soon as information comes to light we will keep you updated as always.

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Microsoft Purchases AOL Patents For $1 Billion

Microsoft has just splashed out over a $1 billion to purchase patents from AOL. The deal worth $1.056 billion will be sealed by the end of 2012 and AOL will exchange 300 patents to Microsoft who will be able to use them under a non-exclusive license.

The patents and patent applications relate to advertising, content generation, content management, multimedia and security. Tim Armstrong, AOL’s Chairman and CEO explains:

“We continue to hold a valuable patent portfolio as highlighted by the license we entered into with Microsoft. The combined sale and licensing arrangement unlocks current dollar value for our shareholders and enables AOL to continue to aggressively execute on our strategy to create long-term shareholder value.”

AOL is expected to sell stock from one of the subsidiaries as part of the transaction; resulting in taxes connected with the sale being rendered immaterial.

AOL is also planning to utilise approximately $40 million of existing deferred tax asset to offset charges related to its remaining patent portfolio, as well as forward a ’significant’ amount of the proceeds to AOL shareholders.

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Toshiba Unveils New Satellite L800 and C800 Series Laptops

As well as unveiling their new all-in-one desktop PC systems. Toshiba has today unveiled its new range of Satellite L800 and C800 series of laptops.Toshiba’s new Satellite C800 entry-level line of Satellites has a little more design style than its previous version.

Its comes equipped with either next generation Intel or AMD processors, together with basic specs including DVD drive and USB 3.0 connectivity, with pricing starting from $399 and will be available to purchase in Q3 2012.

The Toshiba Satellite L800, is a step up from the C800 series range and has similar Intel and AMD processor options, and is available in a variety of colours including silver, black, white, red and blue. The Satellite L800 is equipped with a larger trackpad, together with optional Blu-ray, and prices are a little higher to reflect these features.

Both ranges will be available with a selection of screen sizes including 14″, 15.6″ and 17.3″ inch versions. The Toshiba Satellite L845 14” $449.99, Satellite L855 15.6” $499.99, while the Satellite L875 17.3” $599.99.

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Toshiba Announces Three New Excite Android Tablets

Toshiba has announced three new Android tablets, and the three devices are part of Toshiba’s Excite range and include a 7 inch tablet, a 10 inch tablet and a 13 inch tablet, and all of the tablets share similar specifications.

The three new Excite Android tablets are powered by NVIDIA’s Tegra 3 quad core processor clocked at 1.3GHz, and each ones comes with 1GB of RAM and the latest version of Google’s mobile OS, Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.

Other specifications on the Excite tablets include Gorilla Glass, a micro USB port, micro HDMI and a microSD card slot, although the 13 inch model will feature a full sized SD card slot instead of the microSD card slot.

The Excite 10 will go on sale in May for $450 and will come with 16GB of storage, the 7.7 inch model will go on sale in June and will retail for $500 and the 13 inch version will go on sale in June for $650 and will come with 32GB of built in storage.

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Nokia 808 PureView Goes Up For Pre-order In Italy

The Nokia 808 PureView was announced back in February, and now the device has gone up for pre-order in Italy, with an expected launch date of May, and the smartphone is listed with a price of 600 Euros on Nokia’s website.

The Nokia 808 PureView features a 41 megapixel camera and a  4 inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 640 x 960 pixels and runs Symbian Belle as its OS.

Other specifications include a 1.3GHz single core processor and comes with 16GB of built in storage, plus a microSD card slot that can take up to 32GB cards.

The last thing we heard about the availability of the Nokia 808 PureView here in the UK was that it would be available in April, and we previously heard that it would retail for £465 including taxes.

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