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Outages, complexity, and the stronger cloud

The extended outage of Amazon Web Services' EBS storage services in one of their service "regions" the week of April 21st has triggered so much analysis--emotional and otherwise--that I chose to listen rather than speak until now. Events like this are tremendously important, not because they validate or invalidate cloud services, but because they let us see how a complex system responds to negative events.

You see, for almost four years now, I've believed that cloud computing is evolving into a complex adaptive system. Individual services and infrastructure elements within a cloud provider's portfolio are acting … Read more

Intelligent travel abroad with Apple's World Travel Adapter Kit

When traveling abroad, one of the most important things to consider is how you will charge your Apple devices. Apple's World Travel Adapter Kit provides the most elegant approach to doing just that.

Power issues can be detrimental to electronic devices and Apple's devices are no exception. Ensuring that your Mac, iPhone, iPad, or iPod has proper power while traveling abroad is essential to the longevity of your battery.

Apple's World Travel Adapter Kit is the perfect precautionary purchase when planning your trip. It is compatible with every Apple MagSafe Power Adapter, including those provided with iPhones, … Read more

Netgear out with 500Mbps four-port powerline kit

LAS VEGAS--Trendnet shipped the first 500Mbps powerline kit, the TPL-401E2K, a month ago, and now Netgear has upped this type of device another notch.

The company announced today its first 500Mbps powerline kit, the Internet Adapter for Home Theater XAVB5004; it offers four ports at the far end of the connection.

The XAVB5004 includes two adapters. The first one has a single Gigabit port to connect to an existing network via a router (or a hub); the second adapter has four Gigabit ports, meaning you can use up to four Ethernet-ready devices before having to resort to an additional hub. … Read more

Netgear AV 200 Nano power-line kit shrinks

LAS VEGAS--One of the nuisances about snap-on power-line adapters is that they are bulky and therefore obstruct the adjacent power sockets.

This is, however, not an issue with what Netgear announced today, the Powerline AV 200 Nano Adapter Kit (model XAVB2101). The company called it the "smallest 200Mbps power-line AV adapter currently available worldwide."

The kit includes two identical power-line adapters that are small enough to fit in your palm. When mounted on the wall socket, it's clear that the adapter won't be in the way if you want to use another socket nearby.

These adapters … Read more

Trendnet introduces first 450Mbps wireless gaming adapter

LAS VEGAS--If you plan on getting one of those new 450Mbps wireless routers and access points from Trendnet, such as the TEW-691GR or the TEW-692GR, you'll need wireless clients or adapters that can take advantage of the new higher speed.

Today the company announced a product of the sort, something it calls the "first 450Mbps Wireless-N gaming adapter," the TEW-687GA.

This is a wireless device that adds wireless capability to Ethernet-ready devices, such as computers, gaming consoles, televisions, media players, and so on. Traditionally, these devices have required a network cable to connect to a network.

Gaming … Read more

Kinect power adapter appears in Microsoft's store

It only took a few days, but Microsoft's power adapter for the Kinect has become available at the company's online store.

The adapter powers the Kinect unit for users with older (read: not slim) Xbox 360s, and is unnecessary for users of the newer Xbox hardware, which has a special powered Kinect port on the back. The adapter is included for users who bought the standalone Kinect accessory, but not in either of the two Kinect Xbox 360 bundles, since they both feature the Kinect port.

As noted in our story about the Kinect's launch last week, … Read more

Car Tech Live 188: The next Smart Car will be a Nissan (podcast)

Nissan will build the next Smart Car, Mercedes offers in-car iPad tech, a tour of the Tesla factory, stop sign cameras are the latest gotcha, and we name our three favorite cars from the Paris Motor Show.

Subscribe with iTunes (audio) Subscribe with iTunes (video) Subscribe with RSS (audio) Subscribe with RSS (video) Episode 188 Show notes

Union of Concerned Scientists' latest green car list (PDF)

Nissan to build next Smart Car for U.S.

Insider's tour of the new Tesla battery and motor plant

Car tech gets its own place in Android OS, market

Mercedes latest on market with in-car iPad adapter… Read more

Hands-on with GuitarJack and FourTrack

There are a number of companies offering products that let you plug your guitar into your iPhone. Most of them assume (astutely, perhaps) that musicians don't have a lot of money to throw around. Products like Amplitube iRig or Griffin GuitarConnect offer ways to transform your iPhone or iPod Touch into a virtual practice amp for around $30-$40. The result is fun and arguably convenient, but the sound quality isn't great.

Sonoma Wire Works takes a different approach, with a $199 accessory called GuitarJack that works directly through your iPhone or iPod's dock connection. The product … Read more

Ford upgrades airbags in 2012 Focus

Most cars are more or less one size fits all, even though its occupants are not. While adjustable seats, pedals, and steering wheels address some of the size differences, there's aren't a lot of accommodations when it comes to the safety features, except to recommend that if you're short you might be better off sitting in the back seat where airbags are less likely to break your face.

Today Ford announced that it will be adding adaptive airbags in the 2012 Ford Focus. These next-generation airbags include features that modify the amount of air pressure deployed in … Read more