How I learned to love the supergrid: pan-European electricity grid could get a push forward

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  • April 13, 2012 at 12:08 pm

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Supergrid for Europe map

Contrary to the Stanley Kubrick reference there is actually nothing wrong with building a supergrid. In fact, it’s actually a fantastic idea. A supergrid is an electric power grid on a mega-scale that connects various countries together, moving electricity from where there is excess supply to where there is demand.

The supergrid in question is an envisaged European high-voltage direct current (HVDC) cable power grid connecting different regional countries, Iceland and even North Africa and the Middle East.

We’ve talked about the supergrid being a great idea, and connecting different countries together in one big grid means: better energy security and reliability, better and more efficient use of the region’s renewable energy resources and energy generation capacity, which would translate to lower cost of electricity throughout Europe.
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Samsung confirms November 17 release date for Galaxy Nexus in the UK and Europe

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  • October 27, 2011 at 4:04 pm

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Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and Galaxy Nexus event

Samsung has officially confirmed, at its Galaxy Note event in London, that the Android 4.0 bearing Galaxy Nexus will be available in the UK and the rest of Europe come Thursday November 17.

Amazon UK already has the Galaxy Nexus up for pre-order for £549 without a commitment, and as we’ve found in these cases, it’s good to get ahead in line. As far as UK carriers go the Galaxy Nexus is expected to be available on Vodafone, O2 and Three, but you might want to check directly with them for availability.

Note that in the U.S., Verizon has already has confirmed that it will carry the smartphone and has put up a registration page, where you can ask to be notified when the Galaxy Nexus becomes available. Other carriers have yet confirm availability.

Google adds French, Italian, German and Spanish Voice Actions to Android Voice Search (video)

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  • September 16, 2011 at 4:50 am

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Google Voice Search for Android, European Voice Actions

Android users in Europe can now get talky with their smartphones. Google last year, had introduced Voice Actions as a way of controlling your Android device with your voice. We’ve already covered how you could perform all sorts of tasks, such as sending emails, calling contacts or searching, using your voice. Unfortunately voice recognition until now was limited to English (and mainly US English).

Google just released a new version of Voice Search for Android with voice actions in French, Italian, German, Spanish and specifically tailored British English. As usual, check the Android Market for the latest version of the app. To use, launch Voice Search by keeping the Android search button (the one that looks like a magnifying glass) pressed for a few seconds, or if you have the Google Search widget on your homescreen touch the microphone icon.

Google lists the following commands, though you could also try ‘listen to’ and ‘alarm’:

  • send text to [contact] [message]
  • call [business]
  • call [contact]
  • go to [website]
  • navigate to [location/business name]
  • directions to [location/business name]
  • map of [location]

A video of how it all works is after the break, yay!
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