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Audi next-gen vehicles will be watching you

Audi equipped a test vehicle with forward-looking, 3D-imaging sensors, a processing unit that identifies traffic situations, and affixed internal cameras that keep an eye on the driver in an effort to develop next-generation active pedestrian and cyclists safety and crash-avoidance technology.

As part of the German Adaptive and Cooperative Technologies for Intelligent Traffic (AKTIV) consortium, Audi is participating in a three-pronged program consisting of Safety for Pedestrians and Cyclists, Active Emergency Braking, and Driving Safety and Attentiveness, which aims to use advanced automotive technology and communication to reduce traffic accidents.

On the road, 3D sensors on the Audi's test … Read more

Wal-Mart launches Gamecenter

Links from Friday afternoon's episode of Loaded:

Wal-Mart launches a gaming cite called Gamecenter

Yahoo and Nokia may announce a partnership agreement next week

The iPad steering wheel mount is probably not the safest way to drive

Super Mario Galaxy 2 launches in a few days and Guinness names the franchise the best-selling video game series ever

Morley Safer interviews Marty Cooper, the inventor of the cell phone, on 60 Minutes this coming Sunday

Top 10 must-have audio bargains

"Good enough" audio is the order of the day, but here at The Audiophiliac it's all about great sounding gear, which can get really expensive. Usually, but not always, so here's a Top 10 list of great gear that won't break the bank. Prices run from $8 to $1,995, and seven of the ten are under $650. All are truly exceptional performers, affordably priced. (Just note that these are my personal picks; see CNET's list of best home audio products for the editors' official recommendations.)

Grado SR60i headphones ($79). Grado long ago set the standard for unbelievably great-sounding, full-size budget headphones with the original SR60. The SR60's sound had weight, detail and punch far beyond the capabilities of most under $100 'phones. Jim Austin, over at Stereophile magazine, recently reviewed the SR60i, and he thinks Grado's upgraded design surpasses the original SR60.

Ikea Lack hi-fi component stand ($7.99) It's made of particleboard and ABS plastic, and it comes in a variety of painted colors (and "birch effect"); it's 21.3 inches wide and deep, and 17.75 inches high. Ikea doesn't present the Lack as audio furniture; it's a side table, but audiophiles all over the world have used it to support their prized possessions. Build quality is surprisingly sturdy.

Sony XDR-F1HD HD Radio ($100). I guess most of you don't listen to radio anymore, but if you're lucky enough to still have a great NPR or college station nearby, you gotta hear this radio. Plug it into your computer or hi-fi and it'll sound better than Internet radio by a long shot.

Samsung HT-C6500 home theater in a box system ($649, pictured at top). I've probably reviewed more HTIBs than anybody, but this new Blu-ray Samsung HTIB really stood out from the crowd. First because it doesn't have the feeble, thin sound I associate with the petite speakers that come with most HTIBs. The sound is rich, full, and thanks to the HT-C6500's potent subwoofer, powerful.

Altec Lansing Expressionist Ultra MX6021 PC speaker-subwoofer system ($200). I checked out Altec's mighty PC sound system when David Carnoy was working on his CNET review. Wow, this thing rocks! It's remarkably clean-sounding, and the subwoofer goes really deep, without the boom and bloat so common to computer speaker systems. Face it, you're never going to get great sound out of pipsqueak speakers, the Altec system's subwoofer is 15.8 inches tall by 15.1 inches wide by 10.2 inches deep, and the satellites sport 3-inch midrange drivers and 1-inch neodymium tweeters. It's easily the best sounding $200 speaker/subwoofer package on the planet! … Read more

Wi-Fi to cultivate speedy 60GHz band

If you still don't know the difference between the 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands of a simultaneous dual-band router like the Cisco Linksys E3000, you'd better hurry and learn. Another Wi-Fi band is on the way.

The Wi-Fi Alliance and Wireless Gigabit Alliance (WiGig Alliance) announced Monday an agreement on a new standard of multigigabit wireless networking.

Under the agreement, the two groups will co-develop new specifications for the next-generation Wi-Fi standard that works the 60GHz frequency (or band).

Currently, Wi-Fi signals work either in the ever-popular 2.4GHz frequency or the newer 5GHz frequency. The 5GHz is considered cleaner as it doesn't share the same frequency with other wireless home devices such as cordless phones or Bluetooth devices. A dual-band router supports both of them at the same time. Both of these bands offer wireless-N speeds up to 300Mbps, with the possibility of higher speeds up to 750Mbps. In reality, however, these two bands' sustained throughput speeds are still much slower than that of a wired gigabit connection. … Read more

The 404 572: Where it's time for a downgrade (podcast)

Jeff Bakalar is out sick today but luckily Natali Del Conte is back from her sojourn to San Francisco and fills in on today's episode of CNET's The 404 Podcast. I hope you had a better weekend than mine; I almost had a sleepover at the Apple Store after my iPhone inexplicably broke...again! The display on my 6-month-old phone stopped working, so I've decided to stick it out with a budget Samsung flip phone until the fourth-generation iPhone comes out.

Downgrading to a single-function handset from an iPhone requires some adjustment, but I'm quickly getting used to (and even enjoying) the simplicity of having separate dedicated devices for music and phone calls.

Boredom arrives much quicker without a smartphone, of course, but who really needs all those silly apps? I'm having a great time rediscovering the simple mundane pleasure of scrolling through "settings and options." What time increment should I set my auto-dimmer to today? The possibilities are endless!

Last night CBS' "60 Minutes" aired an interview with Conan O'Brien to get his personal take on the "Tonight Show" fiasco that left poor CoCo without a network to call a home.

Unfortunately, neither NDC nor I had a chance to check it out, but Wilson gives us the rundown on Conan's amicable responses and explains why Conan starts crying halfway through the segment. Check out CBS News for the full interview.

There are also plenty of hilarious Calls From the Public to play today including one listener who finally debuts an impression of Jeff that you won't want to miss. If you have something to tell us, leave us a message at 1-866-404-CNET or shoot us a line at the404(at)CNET(dot)com!

Episode 572 Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video

… Read more

BlackBerry OS 6.0: What we know so far

In light of the fact that BlackBerry maker Research In Motion is itching to drum up excitement about its forthcoming version 6.0 operating system at the Wireless Enterprise Symposium (WES) conference this week in Orlando, Fla., it's too bad the company was customarily tight-lipped last week when we asked if it could confirm leaked photos and details of the very same OS .

As we predicted, RIM will be previewing the next generation of its operating system at the conference beginning on Tuesday. RIM has confirmed very little else about the OS, other than a promised debut in the … Read more