Sponsored: Sirius Act Has The Buttons You’re Looking For

The following article is sponsored. -Ed.

We go through life pressing buttons, and we never think twice about the time and effort that goes into their design. But there are people who do, and Siemens is behind an interesting campaign meant to raise awareness of their line of sophisticated push buttons. It’s called Sirius Act, and in the video above, you can see their efforts to showcase their ‘star’. Granted, the video is a little mysterious and doesn’t pontificate on the product itself, but it’s meant to pique your interest rather than sell a button outright. As a matter of fact, given that Siemens’ modern push buttons will have mostly industrial applications, it’s not the campaign’s goal to get you personally invested in the buttons, but rather to make you aware that there are good people working tirelessly to improve upon a technology that generally goes unheralded.

So, after giving the video a look, and following the link below, the general takeaway should be that Siemens’ elegantly designed push buttons and signalling devices are “the perfect embodiment of style, intelligence, and physical toughness.” There are tons of different kinds, from toggle switches and potentiometers, to mushroom push buttons and sensor switches. And more importantly, you should come away with the knowledge that there are lots of dedicated people working on their constant refinement.

[ Find out more about Sirius Act ]

Nokia Acquires Full Stake in Nokia Siemens Networks for $2.2 Billion


With a lot of focus and an able leadership, Siemens is selling entire 50% of its stake to Nokia in Nokia Siemens Networks. This network is a joint venture of both Nokia and Siemens which is now fully...

Nokia buys controlling stake of Nokia Siemens Networks for $2.2b

That didn't take long -- just hours after Bloomberg reported that Nokia was planning to buy out its German partner, the two firms have made it official: Nokia Siemens Networks is about to become a fully owned subsidiary of Espoo. The €1.7 billion ($2.2 billion) buyout will eventually see the Siemens name dropped from the network, naturally, though Nokia hasn't yet announced what the restructured entity will be called. The transaction isn't a complete surprise, of course -- earlier this year Siemens CEO Joe Kaeser told Dow Jones Newswires that 2013 was the year his company would help "NSN to move into a better place," announcing plans to separate from the partnership.

Kaeser continued the thought in today's announcement, calling Nokia's new acquisition as "an attractive opportunity to actively shape the telecom equipment market for the future and create sustainable value." Nokia head honcho Stephen Elop echoed the sentiment, speaking highly of NSN's recent financial growth and looking ahead to future ventures. Read on for Nokia and Siemens official press release, complete with quotes, statements and financial specifics.

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Source: The Next Web

Bloomberg: Nokia will buy Siemens’ share of joint venture for less than $2.6b

Not all partnerships pan out, and Nokia seems ready to call it quits: according to Bloomberg, the company might announce a buy out of the German half of Nokia Siemens Networks later this week. Sources familiar with the matter say that the the Finnish firm is planning to use a bridge loan to finance the $2.6 billion purchase (less than 2 billion euros), taking the entire operation under its own wing. It's not a completely unexpected move on Nokia's part -- the company previously avoided selling off stake in the network back in 2011, opting to lean on its own shareholders instead. Bloomberg reports that Siemens has declined to comment on the issue, but we'll let you know if we hear anything solid.

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Source: Bloomberg

Amtrak to roll out high-efficiency trains with regenerative braking (video)

Amtrak starts receiving highefficiency trains with regenerative braking video

Some of us look at electric trains as efficient transportation almost by definition, but that's not entirely true when they consume a lot of power and give little back. Amtrak is about to strike a better balance now that it's close to receiving the first of 70 high-efficiency Siemens ACS-64 trains destined for routes across DC, Massachusetts, New York and Pennsylvania. Each engine centers on a regenerative braking system that can recover up to 5MW of energy, much of which goes back to the power grid. The machinery is smarter, too: it can self-diagnose problems and mitigate the impact until repairs are possible. Commuters won't immediately notice the difference when ACS-64 trains reach the rails between this fall and 2016, but there should be important behind-the-scenes savings. Amtrak reckons that the new vehicles could lower energy consumption by 3 billion kilowatts in the long run, which might help both the company's bottom line and local utilities.

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Via: Inhabitat, Wired

Source: Amtrak

Siemens Aquaris Waterproof Hearing Aid: All Weather Hearing

People who suffer from hearing loss typically have to deal with going without their hearing aids when they are swimming or at the beach, or in the elements. This is one of the reasons why Siemens developed the Aquaris waterproof hearing aid, which will allow users to take them anywhere.

siemens aquaris waterproof hearing aid

The Aquaris hearing aid offers watertight seals and membranes to keep moisture out while still allowing the flow of air, which is necessary when using zinc air batteries. They can be submerged for up to 30 minutes without any damage, and also incorporate a Bluetooth transmitter and a microphone, allowing them to double as a hands-free system.

siemens aquaris waterproof hearing aid water

This system allows people to communicate with hearing-impaired athletes in the water, something which was problematic before. The Aquaris hearing aid sells for about $2500(USD).

[via DVICE via designboom]

Siemens’ waterproof Aquaris hearing aid means rain doesn’t need to stop play, we go ears on

Siemens Aquaris hearing aid means rain doesn't need to stop play, we go ears on

It's no fun being deaf or hearing impaired, especially if you are fond of the great outdoors and all the weather-related perils that come with it. Siemens knows this and developed the Aquaris hearing aid, the only one to receive an IP68 rating for continuous submersion underwater (to three feet). It's also dust- and shock-proof, if you're further up the extreme activity lifestyle ladder. It's not just about keeping the elements out, it's also got Bluetooth, meaning wearers can listen to music on smartphones and other devices while underwater.

The device itself is what you might imagine a hearing aid to look like, if it was given the sports treatment, which makes it attractive to younger folk, and those of an active disposition. Most importantly, it works impressively well, which was amply shown by the demonstration we were given with the device permanently submerged in water at the booth, streaming its audio to another device. The waterproof functionality doesn't come at the expense of the sound, either, with the Aquaris sporting high-definition sound with 48 channels with high frequency resolution and a 12 kHz frequency range. Given the nature of the device, you'll need to speak with your physician or ENT / otolaryngologist if this sounds like something for you. Available now.

Sean Cooper contributed to this report.

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Nokia’s Q2 2012 financials: 4 million Lumias sold, $1.01 billion dollar loss

STUB Nokia's Q2 2012 announced

The past three months haven't been the best for Finland's former world number one. It hasn't been helped by the three biggest credit agencies lowering the company's bond rating to "junk," and the Lumia 900's violently slashed price. Unfortunately the latest results reveal continuing gloom: the manufacturer made an operating loss of $1.01 billion dollars for the quarter. The company managed to make €7.5 billion in sales ($9.2 billion, down .5 billion since the last quarter), shifting four million Lumia handsets in the process. In fact, the only cause for optimism is that sales of the Lumia range have roughly doubled each quarter.

The number of handsets pushed out the door increased (thanks to the Asha range of budget phones) with the company selling 73 million phones. That said, the company has clearly failed to crack America, selling a paltry 600,000 handsets in the States. The cash pile has also continued to dwindle, with the piggybank currently standing at €4.1 billion ($5.1 billion), down from $6.3 billion in Q1, despite getting a further $250 million in kickbacks from Microsoft. Unsurprisingly, the prediction for the third quarter of the year was similarly dour, summed up rather euphemistically as "difficult."

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Nokia's Q2 2012 financials: 4 million Lumias sold, $1.01 billion dollar loss originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Jul 2012 06:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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