Senin, 14 Maret 2011

What's new on SlashGear.com

What's new on SlashGear.com

HP Reveals Plans To Focus On Cloud, Connectivity, And Software

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 03:14 PM PDT

At a summit today in San Francisco, HP’s CEO Leo Apotheker gave his first keynote since taking office to discuss the company’s future strategy. HP is expanding beyond its PC and printer business with plans to focus more on cloud computing, connectivity, and software.

HP intends to build out their own cloud platform to deliver a variety of cloud computing services for businesses and consumers. Among other things, the public cloud platform will have its own app store and work with over 100 million WebOS devices that HP plans to ship within the next few years. And, through partnerships along with the acquisition of Vertica Systems, HP will be able to manage the massive database required for large numbers of consumer interaction.

When it comes to software, HP plans to offer software-as-a-service via its cloud platform. And with everything riding on the cloud, security becomes the utmost important. HP is the fifth largest security information technology company in the world and they expressed their commitment to security saying that it is the key to insuring cloud computing is safe.

The company, however, did not mention much at today’s summit about the progress of WebOS, which they recently announced would ship with all HP Windows PCs by 2012.

[via Venture Beat]

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Some Apple Stores To Open Early On Tuesday For iPad 2 Restock

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 02:50 PM PDT

If you can’t wait to get an iPad 2 and weren’t lucky enough to nab one over the weekend, then here’s some good news. There are reports that some Apple Stores will be restocking the iPad 2 today with the chance of opening one hour early tomorrow morning to make it easier for customers to pick one up.

The reports first came from customers asking their local stores about stock replenishment. Apple Store employees in some locations have told customers that even though the iPad 2 has been restocked today, they would not start selling until tomorrow.

Opening an hour earlier tomorrow to sell the iPad 2 should make it easier to pick one up for folks who normally have to work and have a difficult time getting to the Apple Store. However, this was confirmed for only three retail locations and its best to contact your local store for more details.

[via Unwired View]

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Sprint Kyocera Echo To Arrive April 17 For $199

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 02:34 PM PDT

Early last month, Sprint and Kyocera jointly unveiled the world’s first dual-touchscreen Android phone, the Kyocera Echo, in an event opened with an appearance by magician David Blaine. The device, however, turned out to be less magical but interesting nonetheless. And now its confirmed to ship this April 17 for $199 with a Sprint two-year contract.

The Echo was touted as the tablet that can fit in your pocket thanks to its sturdy unique hinge design that allows it to unfold into two 3.5-inch WVGA touchscreens. The two screens running side-by-side creates an overall 4.7-inch display. Although the clunky form factor makes the device less sexy, it is still an interesting direction.

Other features include a 5MP camera with flash, autofocus and digital zoom, 720p HD video, Stereo Bluetooth 2.1, external microSD card slot, and WiFi hotspot support for up to five devices. To be released with Android 2.2 Froyo, the Kyocera Echo can be pre-ordered starting March 26.

[via Android Community]

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Time Warner Cable Launches iPad App, First Ever To Play Live TV

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 01:59 PM PDT

Time Warner Cable has just made a big announcement, launching the first iPad app from a cable or satellite company that plays live TV. The app is free to download and will be available starting March 15. Only subscribers to both video and internet service via Time Warner Cable will be able to use the app. And, the app will only work in the home, when you’re iPad is connected to the company’s cable modem via WiFi router.

“For all intents and purposes … this enables you to convert any room in a house into a TV room,” said Rob Marcus, the company’s chief operating officer and president. The app will play 30 basic cable channels in high definition with more channels to come soon.

At this moment, competing cable companies only have iPad apps that act like giant remotes or might play video on demand. However, Time Warner Cable’s biggest competitor, Comcast Corp., has promised that its app will get the ability to play live TV before the end of this year.

[via Wall Street Journal]

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Sprint And T-Mobile Waive Fees For Japan Donation Text Messages

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 01:27 PM PDT

To help with the relief efforts after the devastating Japanese earthquake and tsunamis, all the major carriers are jumping in to help. Following the announcements by AT&T and Verizon of free calls and texts to Japan, Sprint and T-Mobile have both confirmed their own program to help.

Both carriers are offering the same SMS short code mobile donations program where customers can text short codes of a particular charity to donate $10 to them. Those short codes are:
* Text “REDCROSS to “90999″ to donate $10 on behalf of the American Red Cross
* Text “TSUNAMI to “50555″ to donate $10 on behalf of Convoy of Hope, Inc.
* Text “WAVE” to “50555″ to donate $10 on behalf of the World Relief Corp. of National Association of Evangelicals
* Text “JAPAN” or “QUAKE” to 80888 to donate $10 on behalf of The Salvation Army

However, the offer isn’t quite as generous as the free calls and texts to Japan announced by AT&T and Verizon. Sprint and T-Mobile only offer to waive fees incurred for sending short code donation messages but the two carriers do not extend any fee waivers or adjustments for calls and texts to Japan.

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MeeGo OS Concept For Tablets

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 12:56 PM PDT

With the Nokia and Microsoft partnership, the once promising MeeGo OS has been relegated to research and development status with very little chance of ever becoming a mainstream platform. However, that doesn’t stop developers from continuing to think up new UI concepts for the OS such as the one shown below, designed by Jozef Kocúr.

This MeeGo OS concept was designed with Nokia tablets in mind, and borrows ideas from WebOS and Maemo. It utilizes a side scrolling structure with each panel then having a columns layout. A bottom menu features the main panel headings of Board, Applications, Now, Social, Media, and System.

The Board panel appears to be a customizable dashboard type of page where widgets could possibly reside. The Applications panel is self-explanatory showing all available applications ordered by category. The Now panel looks to be a page for customizable news feeds and the Social panel is like a doorway to all your social network channels.

The concept seems promising and may help MeeGo with a resurrection. But the future seems bleak with Nokia’s new direction and the strength of competing OS platforms such as iOS, Android, Windows Phone, and WebOS.

[via Concept Phones]

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Odd British Man Totes Mobile in Barcelona [EXCLUSIVE]

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 12:38 PM PDT

So I was standing there, minding my own business in an oddly calm moment during the several day madhouse that was Mobile World Congress 2011, and there they were, a man who could only say “Action,” and a man who had clearly practiced his news voice for many many years. They were standing along the main drag of the convention (the whole convention is a big L shape, they were near the entrance,) and were doing multiple takes of the scene you’re about to see (completely and totally exclusively behind the scenes, of course.)

We’re not sure what this scene is going to be used for (or has been used for), but a good guess I recon would be BBC – judging by the inflection and intensity in the delivery of the words, of course. The best part of the experience is the pause at the end. Don’t expect this to be any award-winning sort of documentation of a once in a lifetime opportunity for footage, but if you only watch one video from Mobile World Congress 2011, let it be this one.

All this should be enough to excite you to the level you’ve GOT to be excited to for our upcoming trip to Orlando for CTIA 2011. It starts next Monday, the 21st of March, 2011, and we’ll be there for several days! This is another event in which we’ll be running around back and forth across a bunch of land through buildings filled with electronics for the greater good of our eyeballs, and we’re going to be bringing it to YOU on time and in class! Take a peek at our small but growing [CTIA 2011] portal now, and check it out 24 hours a day in a week!

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Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY “The Donor” Commercial, WTF?

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 12:27 PM PDT

Sony Ericsson unleashed a bizarre commercial for the Xperia PLAY Android phone that will make most folks go WTF? Titled “The Donor,” the commercial posted on YouTube this past Friday is described as telling “the shocking story of how the Android robot really got ready to PLAY.” The commercial shows a confused victim telling the police about the story leading up to a horrific crime that later explains how the Android robot got his game-playing thumbs.

The victim in a dark police station describes his night out meeting a young woman to waking up the next morning with her missing, all his belongings still there, but realizing his thumbs were missing. The police laugh in disbelief at his story and the commercial cuts to the next shot where we see the Android robot on the street decked out with two new thumbs.

The imagery of stolen human thumbs stitched on to the Android robot may be rather disturbing, but it’s an interesting way to announce the new gaming ability of upcoming NVIDIA-equipped Android devices such as the Xperia PLAY, which will have access to up to 50 original PlayStation games along with built-in game controls. NVIDIA confirmed that Sony’s PlayStation Suite will be available to all Tegra Android devices later this year, which will mark the first time that PlayStation quality games are available beyond Sony devices.

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Re-Inventing the Book in the Digital Age

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 12:15 PM PDT

For a while now we, at Creative Strategies, have been involved in projects within the digital reader ecosystem. We have been talking and working with both publishers and hardware OEM's who either have a presence or want a presence in this market. E-Readers and Tablet sales combined could be between 60-70 million in 2011*.

Regardless of where we are now in the adoption cycle of e-readers and tablets one thing is now clear: the shift from analog to digital in books is happening rapidly.

The publishing industry has struggled in this decade with relatively flat CAGR (Compound Annual Growth) and a projected CAGR of 2.1% according to the Book Industry Study Group. The question is will the move to digital change not only the publishing industry but also the overall habits of readers?

I began doing some research on US reading statistics and found some numbers that are very interesting. According to statistics published by ParaPub:

•         Generally 80% of US households did not buy or read a book last year.
•         70 % of US adults have not been in a bookstore in the past 5 years
•         42 % of college graduates never read another book after college
•         1/3 of high school graduates never read a book the rest of their lives
•         57 % of new books are not read to completion

I look at these statistics and what stands out to me is: why? Nearly 100% of all American adults can read. It may be debated about what school level of reading the majority is capable of but, regardless, nearly all American adults can read at some level. So the question is, why are they not reading?

Very good observations to this question could be, not enough time to sit down and read, or that TV and the Internet media is more interesting, entertaining and captivating than reading a book. These are all good observations and answers to an intriguing question about why so few American adults take the time to sit down and get engrossed in a book. The question I have however is: does the move from analog reading to digital reading have the potential to change this?

I believe the answer is yes, IF….
I have observed some things not only with my own Kindle, Nook color and tablet experience but of others I have informally surveyed as well. Things like how you find yourself reading more often than you did before, you find yourself buying more books more often because you get them instantly and wirelessly. Using a tablet or e-reader is actually easier to use to read due to the ability to find one comfortable position and press a button or use a gesture to flip the page. It is popular among an older demographic due to the ability to make the text bigger. People with arthritis find it more comfortable and easy to hold for long periods of time. I personally find myself actually reading newspapers like the NY Times and Wall Street Journal, something I would never get a physical paper for and have yet to subscribe online to.

Back to my question on does the shift to digital have the potential to change American reading habits. The reason I say IF, is because what fundamentally exists is the opportunity to create an entirely new type of book / reading experience. We believe the potential exists to create what we in concept are calling a “Multimedia book.”

The Multimedia Book
What if we could blend animation, video, still picture art, audio, music and text together to create an experience that leverages the compelling value of each or all of those media types?

Imagine a multimedia comic book where the images and text were static until you clicked on each frame to see some of the story play out. Each frame of the comic would tell a part of the story by blending different forms of media to take the reader through a more interactive and immersive experience then was ever possible in the print world. Both iOS and Android have a growing collection of comics but none that I have seen yet represent the more immersive experience I think is possible.

Imagine also a children's book where a child could enjoy the art of the still pictures and read the text which was followed by a video / animation transition to the next part of the story.

Text books can become more interesting when you can blend video – both historic and current – to help the content become more alive or relevant than with static words and images.

What happens is what ultimately always happens when things move from analog to digital. An experience that was once static and could only be experienced one way now becomes dynamic and can be experienced in many ways (i.e TiVo, MP3s, digital cameras). We believe a whole new world of content creation and consumption becomes possible with the concept of a multimedia book. Apple with its iTunes LPs has taken a similar step with the one-time physical lure of a vinyl LP by adding a digital version that blends audio, video and text as lyrics, for example. Vook is also an example of a company trying to move content in new directions.

Although I feel this new type of book experience will be just one feature of a larger experience, with e-readers or tablet it may also extend even further to everyday PCs, smartphones and TVs. I fundamentally feel that what we see in the market today is just the beginning of classes of devices that enable consumers to engage and interact with their content and their world in new and exciting ways. To get there, however, publishers and content developers need to get past attempting to re-purpose their content and start thinking about re-inventing it.

*Creative Strategies market estimates.

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AT&T And Verizon Offering Free Calls And Texts To Japan

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 11:06 AM PDT

AT&T and Verizon both announced today that they will be offering free calls and texts to Japan in the wake of the devastating earthquake and tsunamis that have ravaged the country. Customers can call and text loved ones in Japan without incurring any additional monthly charges.

AT&T’s offer is good for calls and texts made until March 31. Postpaid wireless customers will not be charged for international calls or text messages to Japan made from the United States or Puerto Rico. Residential landline service customers can also enjoy up to 60 minutes of adjusted billing relief. Wireless customers can text “redcross” to 90999 to give a $10 donation to help with relief efforts.

Verizon’s offer is good until April 20th. And Verizon FIOS customers will now receive TV Japan free until March 18th to keep up with news in the country. The carrier has also set up a program for customers to easily donate money to different charities involved with the Japan relief effort:
* ADRA Relief: text SUPPORT to 85944
* American Red Cross Relief: text REDCROSS to 90999
* Convoy of Hope: text TSUNAMI or SUNAMI to 50555
* GlobalGiving: text JAPAN to 50555
* International Medical Corps: text MED to 80888
* Mercy Corps: text MERCY to 25383
* Salvation Army: text JAPAN to 80888
* Save the Children Federation, Inc.: text JAPAN or TSUNAMI to 20222
* World Relief Corp. of National Association of Evangelicals: text WAVE to 50555
* World Vision, Inc.: text 4JAPAN or 4TSUNAMI to 20222

AT&T Press Release:

AT&T Offers Wireless, Wireline Billing Relief for Consumers Calling and Texting Family, Friends in Japan

DALLAS, March 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — AT&T* today announced it has implemented international calling and texting support efforts for U.S. residential wireless and wireline consumers trying to connect with loved ones in Japan, following last week’s tragic earthquake and tsunami.

Effective beginning last week, March 11, and continuing through March 31, AT&T wireless postpaid customers will not be charged for:

* International long distance usage from the United States and Puerto Rico to Japan
* Text messages to Japan, originated from a U.S. wireless number

In addition, and also effective March 11 through March 31, residential wireline customers can seek credits for up to 60 minutes of direct dial calling to Japan:

* Upon receiving their wireline bill, customers may call AT&T to receive adjusted calling for up to 60 minutes. In other words, no charges for up to 60 minutes of call time from the United States to Japan between March 11 and March 31.

For any of the above activity, customers will either see no charges reflected on their monthly statement, or they will see a full credit applied to their statement for activity between March 11 and March 31.

“We want to help our customers connect with loved ones in Japan in anyway we can,” said Mark Collins, senior vice president, Voice and Data Products, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. “Connecting with family and friends is most important at times like this- we want to make it as easy and worry free as possible for our customers.”

Still available, AT&T wireless customers can text “redcross” to 90999 to give a $10 donation to help the Red Cross with disaster support efforts in the area. No text message fees apply.

And, TV Japan – the 24 hour Japanese news channel – is available for free through March 17 to all U-verse® TV subscribers, allowing viewers to follow the news and recovery efforts. TV Japan can be found on channel 3680.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

Verizon Press Release:

Verizon Makes Calls Free To Japan From March 11 To April 10
03/14/2011

NEW YORK, NY — To help its customers contact loved ones in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake and tsunami, Verizon is making calls to Japan free for most wireless and residential customers through April 10.

All Verizon Wireless post-paid customers will receive free calling to Japan from March 11 through April 10. Post-paid customers are those who receive a monthly bill from the company. In addition, Verizon Wireless post-paid customers in the U.S. will receive free text and multimedia messaging to Japan for the same time period.

Verizon Wireless has also made it easy for customers to text donations to a host of non-profit organizations responding to the earthquake and subsequent tsunami. Customers can easily make a $10 donation by simply sending a text message and may choose from 10 organizations aiding those in need in Japan.

All calls made from a Verizon residential landline to Japan will be rated at $0.00 per minute, from March 11 through April 10. Customers with Verizon World Plan (300, 500 or unlimited minutes of long-distance calling) can call Japan without using any minutes from their time-allotment blocks.

Additionally, Verizon Prepaid Phone Card charges for all long-distance calls placed to Japan from the United States will also be waived from March 11 until April 10.

The company is also providing FiOS TV customers who are not subscribed to the channel free access to TV Japan through March 17. The channel location is 1770.

* Only long-distance usage charges associated with calls made from residential landlines terminating to wireline or wireless destinations in Japan will be waived from Mar. 11 – April 10. All other fees including taxes, surcharges, monthly recurring charges (MRCs), minimum spend levels (MSLs), monthly minimum charges (MMCs), etc will continue to apply. Post-paid calling card charges to Japan will also be waived.

** If long distance calling fees were charged, credits will be issued in a future bill statement.

About Verizon
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, NASDAQ:VZ), headquartered in New York, is a global leader in delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications services to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers. Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, serving 94.1 million customers nationwide. Verizon also provides converged communications, information and entertainment services over America's most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers innovative, seamless business solutions to customers around the world. A Dow 30 company, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of more than 194,000 and last year generated consolidated revenues of $106.6 billion. For more information, visit verizon.com/news.

VERIZON'S ONLINE NEWS CENTER: Verizon news releases, executive speeches and biographies, media contacts, high-quality video and images, and other information are available at Verizon's News Center on the World Wide Web at verizon.com/news. To receive news releases by e-mail, visit the News Center and register for customized automatic delivery of Verizon news releases.

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SG Comics Presents: NYC Apple iPad Lines

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 10:13 AM PDT

The Apple iPad 2 started selling last Friday, March 11th to massive lines at major flagship Apple Stores. One NYC woman was able to sell her first place spot in line for $900. This could become an interesting trend for future Apple product launches…

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iPad 2 Hands-On and Unboxing [World Record Entry]

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 09:53 AM PDT

Welcome to the world record video of yours truly opening up the iPad 2. This is the world record for amount of time between the purchase of an iPad and the opening of the box, or it was supposed to be, but I couldn’t last past 23 hours (24 hours is the world record as held by Don Johnson of Miami.) Thusly, here’s the second place to the world record for iPad 2 box openings, as presented to you by me on behalf of SlashGear. Enjoy the heck out of it.

What you’re going to see here is the iPad 2 16GB Wifi version, aka the least expensive version of the iPad 2 that you can purchase. It was approximately a 1 hour wait in line at the Mall of America plus about 45 minutes before the door opened until the line before this iPad was delivered to my hands. They certainly did not sell out that day of this particular model there at the Apple Store at the MoA, but the AT&T and Verizon models were sold out about 10 mints before [AT&T] and after [Verizon] I received the golden ticket for this one.

On the presentation table in the video you’ll see the magnificence of the backpack Apple bag, the one with two nice straps for easy mall carrying. Inside you’ll find a lovely new 16GB Wifi Apple iPad 2 along with the official vinyl gray colored Smart Cover. The Smart Cover is what’s opened first, it revealing a cool transparent plastic front, white and printed card back, and a nice little hitch to keep them connected. The cover itself is study, smooth to the touch, full of magnets, and appears as though it’ll deflect any bombardment.

The printed iPad 2 box was interesting in that we were definitely not impressed by the printing quality on the top (or the front, however you look at it,) and/or the photography job. It’s one of the two, or perhaps the graphic design job, as it appears that in their effort to make the iPad 2 look small, they made it look out of place. Instead, in my own grand opinion, they should have stuck with the straight-on sideways view like they’ve done with the current line of laptops. Those look nice and fabulous. The printing around the sides of the box is of course perfect, the design impeccable, as it just shows the “iPad” mark written in Apple’s Myriad Pro and the Apple logo stamped in silver on either side. The back is blank white save for some tiny copyrights at the bottom as well as some stickers telling what’s inside as well as showing off the barcodes needed to purchase.

Inside the box, under the hood, is a thin layer of padding to protect the tablet. The tablet itself sits right on top once the box is opened, a layer of plastic surrounding it, protecting it from scratches. Let me tell you here that you don’t want to be mailing this box with the iPad in it anywhere without at least putting a bunch of bubble wrap around it to pad it inside a second box. No way in heck this’d get through the mail without a cracked screen. Below the tablet is a package holding instructions, a card with a guide, and stickers. Below this package is the USB connector cord, and to the side you’ll find the USB-converter wall plug for power.

The actual iPad 2 unit is lovely. The only thing I believe I might say about it that’s anything different from anyone else who’s held this device is that I might regret having purchased the white version. While white might seem like the cool choice, especially considering how long we’ve been waiting for the iPhone in white, black just acts as a better pallet unto which lovely content can be contained. Will I return it and switch for black? Nah. If I’d held a white one and a black one in my hands before purchasing, would I have chosen black? Probably yes.

The rest I’ll leave to the actual review. The perspective I’ll be offering in the review of this iPad 2 is one of an Android addict. I’ve currently got a lot of my focus as a member of the R3 group pointed towards Android Community which affords me many close looks at amazing Android products. I’ve got a XOOM sitting right here, an ATRIX 4G over there, an Inspire 4G in the drawer, and so on. Thusly you can rest assured I’ll be putting this tablet through the paces from a perspective not oft seen in the blogs of Apple lovers anonymous. Seeya there!

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T-Mobile intros 10GB data plan with no overage fees

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 09:53 AM PDT

The tipped T-Mobile USA data plan refresh has quietly taken place, with the carrier introducing a new 10GB data-only plan and dropping overage charges for its 5GB plan. The 10GB, 5GB and 200MB Even More webConnect plans all include unlimited hotspot use, and T-Mobile won’t charge for going over the 5GB or 10GB limits.

Instead, the carrier is reserving the right to throttle users’ bandwidth, though whether it will actually do that likely depends on current network load at the time. Pricing starts at $29.99 per month for the 200MB plan, rises to $49.99 for the 5GB, and hits $84.99 for the 10GB. All require a new, two-year agreement.

[via Electronista]

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OS GSR-110B portable generator uses flexible solar panel [Video]

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 09:27 AM PDT

A Japanese company has developed a highly portable backup generator which uses a flexible solar panel to fit 40W of power into a 3kg package. The OS GSR-110B combines a 24W internal rechargeable battery with a 16W solar panel that pulls 1.2m from the side of the unit.

Video demo after the cut

Together, the two sources are good enough to power a portable TV for 4.8hrs, though you can connect two units together to double the runtime. The flexible solar panel sheet is developed by Fuji Electric Systems, and the internal battery can be recharged from a 12V DV input.

There’s also a standard USB port for hooking up portable gadgets like cellphones. OS began shipping the GSR-110B back in January, with the device priced at 60,000 yen ($730).

[youtube XjL1mQFlp7A]

[via OhGizmo]

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No Nokia Windows Phone for twelve months

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 09:04 AM PDT

Nokia’s first Windows Phone will arrive in roughly a year’s time, according to Nokia India MD D Shivakuma. The exec told DNA India that the Finnish company is working on a roughly 12 month timeline, a move which would seemingly bypass Windows Phone 7 and instead see devices run the next version of the platform, codenamed Mango.

Mango, we have heard separately, looks to be delayed until 2012 itself, which has likely put the dampeners on Nokia’s 2011 plans. The company had originally hinted at a limited Windows Phone range later this year, with “a large number of Windows Phone devices over a variety of price points” in 2012.

As for this year, we should expect to see 40-50 new Nokia handsets in 2011 with around 20 of those being Symbian smartphones. In a regulatory filing last week, Nokia confirmed it envisaged a two year migration of its smartphone line to Windows Phone.

[via InfoSync]

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1m iPad 2 sales claims analyst; Best Buy sold out in 10 mins

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 08:20 AM PDT

More analysts are weighing in with iPad 2 sales predictions, and for once notorious soothsayer Gene Munster isn’t the one offering pie-in-the-sky figures. He predicted around 400,000 iPad 2 sales, constrained because of supply issues that have left the second-gen tablet sold out online, while Wedbush Securities analyst Scott Sutherland believes as many as 1m iPad 2 units could’ve sold over the weekend.

“We would not be surprised to see Apple sell closer to 1 million iPad 2s in the opening weekend” Sutherland predicted. Meanwhile, Global Equities Research analyst Trip Chowdhry has tipped three times the amount of iPad 2 sales as of the original iPad, which Apple sold 300,000 of in the first day.

He also suggests that AT&T’s iPad 2 WiFi + 3G model was more popular than the Verizon CDMA version because users prefer AT&T’s customer service, something we don’t think many iPhone owners would necessarily agree with. Apple is yet to announce official sales figures, but Best Buy claims some of its stores had sold out of iPad 2 stock – as well as accessories – within 10 minutes of the tablet going on sale.

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HP Touchpad priced/dated; 7-inch webOS Opal incoming, plus 4 Honeycomb 10-inchers

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 07:54 AM PDT

The HP Touchpad and a new 7-inch webOS tablet codenamed HP Opal are among multiple incoming slates included in a new retailer roadmap leak. According to the document, acquired by PreCentral, the Touchpad will drop in June priced between $499 for the 16GB model and $599 for the 32GB version.

Meanwhile, a 7-inch webOS model will arrive in September, though details of hardware and pricing are unknown. We’re assuming this is the same Opal as leaked earlier this year, expected to measure around 180 x 144 x 13mm and have a 1024 x 768 capacitive touchscreen.

Meanwhile, a 7-inch Acer – which we’re guessing is the Iconia Tab A100 – is arriving in April for $399, though it’s said to run Android 2.3 Gingerbread rather than the Android 3.0 Honeycomb Acer has previously promised. It will apparently be followed by 10-inch tablets from HTC, Dell, Acer (presumably the Iconia Tab A500) and Toshiba in June, all running Honeycomb and priced between $449 and $499.

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ARM server chips taking on Intel with 480 core clusters

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 07:43 AM PDT

Microsoft isn’t the only company looking to many lower-powered chips to replace a few high-powered CPUs in modern servers; ARM’s first server processor has been detailed by Calxeda, a quad-core chip squeezing up to 480 cores in a 2U chassis. According to Computer World, the new ARM processors will be based on Cortex A9 cores – the same family as used in NVIDIA’s Tegra 2 – and have an onboard interconnect fabric for communication between the nodes.

When paired with RAM, each ARM node should consume 5W of power under load. 120 nodes could fit into a 2U box, for a total of 480 cores, and Calxeda is working on the necessary software layer so that developers can recreate server apps that will run on ARM chips.

Exact processor specs, including clock speed and availability, are yet to be confirmed. Calxeda – under the name Smooth-Stone – secured $48m in funding back in August last year. AMD is believed to be readying its own server range, using its Bobcat APU chips.

[via Slashdot]

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iPad 2 Smart Cover teardown reveals 21 magnets

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 07:25 AM PDT

We’ve already seen the iPad 2 teardown, but who would’ve thought Apple’s Smart Cover would deserve the teardown treatment by itself. Steve Jobs spent plenty of time waxing lyrical about the Smart Cover tech at the iPad 2 launch, and so iFixit took a closer look to see if it was worth the attention. The headline feature? A full twenty-one magnets.

Magnetic viewing film identified them all, with four used to hold the Smart Cover to the iPad 2 (along with another four in the iPad 2 itself). Interestingly, Apple has arranged them with alternating poles, so that the cover will only clip on in one orientation. Eleven magnets hold the Smart Cover in its triangular prop position.

Finally, there’s a single magnet which flicks the iPad 2 in and out of standby mode. In all, counting what’s in the iPad 2 as well, there are thirty-one magnets used in total. If you want to know how well the Smart Cover works in more general day-to-day use, however, check out the full SlashGear review.

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Amazon Appstore wins exclusive on Angry Birds for Android

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 07:15 AM PDT

Lest you suspect Amazon was treating its new Amazon Appstore as a hobby, the company has announced an exclusive deal with Angry Birds developer Rovio to release the new Angry Birds Rio title through the new Android marketplace. Ditching GetJar and shifting over to Amazon’s new system, Rovio will also be offering ad-free versions of its existing Angry Birds and Angry Birds Seasons for Android games for the first time.

They’ll also be available exclusively through the Amazon Appstore, quite the coup for the online retailer. The support for in-app purchases will also be seen in Angry Birds Rio, which will ship with 60 levels but have more on offer for purchase within the game.

Gaining Angry Birds to the platform is a significant achievement for Amazon; the title has become a best-seller, and Rovio the current poster-child for popular gaming on smartphone devices. The game has been downloaded 30m times on Android alone.

[via Android Community]

Press Release:

Angry Birds Rio for Android to Debut Exclusively in the Amazon Appstore

AUSTIN, Texas/ ESPOO, Finland – March 14, 2011 – Rovio today announced that the highly anticipated game Angry Birds Rio will be introduced for the Android platform exclusively in the Amazon Appstore. Developed in conjunction with Twentieth Century Fox, Angry Birds Rio features the animated stars of the studio's upcoming motion picture, RIO. Additionally, for the first time ever on the Android platform, fans of Angry Birds games will have the opportunity to purchase and download ad-free versions of Angry Birds and Angry Birds Seasons. Both will debut only in the Amazon Appstore.

"The Android platform has seen phenomenal growth, and it's great that new avenues for app distribution are opening up," said Mikael Hed, CEO of Rovio. "The openness of the Android platform works for the benefit of consumers and developers alike. It has been delightful to team up with Amazon to bring the Angry Birds franchise to this great new application marketplace."

"Amazon is thrilled to work with a leading developer like Rovio in offering our customers Angry Birds Rio for Android exclusively in the Amazon Appstore," said Aaron Rubenson, category leader for Amazon Appstore. "We think Angry Birds Rio is sure to be an instant customer favorite."

"Angry Birds Rio is a fun and interactive way to introduce millions of fans to the exciting world of ‘RIO,’ and we are proud to work with both Rovio and Amazon to make this experience available to users on the Android platform," said Peter Levinsohn, president of new media and digital distribution for Twentieth Century Fox. "The Amazon Appstore will be a great new way for consumers to download all their favorite Android apps, and we're excited to offer Angry Birds Rio as one of the first pieces of content to be made available to consumers through this new store."

In Angry Birds Rio, the original Angry Birds are kidnapped and taken to the magical city of Rio, where they eventually escape their captors and set out to save their friends, Blu and Jewel – two rare macaws and the stars of the upcoming Fox motion picture, RIO. From the creators of Fox's blockbuster ICE AGE motion picture franchise, RIO debuts in theaters worldwide on April 15, 2011. Angry Birds Rio will launch with 60 dedicated levels, with more content to follow via app updates.

Angry Birds Rio will be available for download on Android phones and tablets at amazon.com/angrybirds.

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Japanese Prius Plus to get lithium ion battery option

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 05:10 AM PDT

The best selling hybrid in the world is the Toyota Prius. The green vehicle has been on the market since 1997 and has sold millions of units globally. Toyota is expanding the Prius family with a new version called the Prius Plus. The Plus has three-row seating in some models.

The Prius Plus will be the first Prius to use lithium ion battery packs. The catch is that the Plus will only get the lithium ion batteries in the Japanese market. The car will get the old nickel-metal hydride batteries in the US that are heavier and used in the current Prius vehicles.

The Japanese Prius Plus cars are getting the lithium batteries to open up more interior space. Toyota has noted that the three-row seating is more appealing to the Japanese market. The Plus with the lithium ion batteries will sell for the equivalent of $36,590 in Japan with a version using standard batteries starting at $28,660.

[via Autonews]

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AT&T to add caps to DSL and U-verse broadband plans

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 04:50 AM PDT

If you are an AT&T subscriber with U-verse or DSL connectivity in your home we have some bad news. AT&T is set to add caps to the broadband plans that will see users that go over set amounts monthly being hit with overage charges. Letters will be going out next week to notify users of AT&T services.

Apparently, the cap for DSL subscribers will be 150GB monthly. If you are a U-Verse subscriber, the cap will be 250GB monthly. These tidbits came from AT&T representative Seth Bloom at SXSW in Austin. If a customer goes over those data limits, they will be charged $10 for each additional 50GB block of data.

Bloom says that users that go over the caps will get a onetime grace period and after that, the user will be notified when they have reached 65% of the monthly allowed data and notified again at 90% and at 100% used. Bloom says the average AT&T DSL user only consumes 18GB per month and a small amount of customers will be affected by the change.

[via Gigaom]

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Google Maps adds locations of EV charge stations

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 04:40 AM PDT

If you own and drive an EV, knowing where the closest charging station for your car is could be the difference in being stranded and making it to your final destination. The problem is that in many areas knowing where those EV charge stations are can be a big challenge. Google has a new Google Maps service that will help find those charge stations.

Google Maps now has the location of public charging stations in your area. To find the closest charge stations to where you will be you just need to search Google maps for “EV charging station near (your area)” and you can find all of the available stations easily. The catch is that not all of the charging stations available in an area may be listed right now.

Google says that the US DOE NREL is working to make data on public charging stations more available. As the NREL database is updated Google will update the database for Google Maps so the charging points can be found.

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Most disgusting billboard ever to be created in Dallas using thousands of live roaches

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 04:22 AM PDT

Terminix and its Ad agency in Dallas, Texas are creating what may be the most disgusting billboard in history today. The billboard is being erected to warn people of the germs and infections diseases that pests can carry inside their homes and in their yards.

The sign will be created at the Mockingbird DART rail station at 5465 E Mockingbird Lane. The gross part of the billboard is that it will be created using thousands of live cockroaches. The roaches will be put inside some sort of container to form the letter “E”. The letter is to symbolize the E. coli strain that roaches can carry.

The billboard is being created by Publicis Dallas and construction will start at 1pm today and will be finished by 6pm. I wonder how they will remove the dead roaches after the display is over. I would hate to have that job.

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Vonage offers free calls to Japan

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 04:11 AM PDT

If you have friends or loved ones in Japan where the major earthquakes recently hit and you are trying to get in touch with them to be sure they are OK, Vonage is making getting in touch cheaper. Vonage has announced that it will be waiving all per minute charges to Japan for a full week.

The free Japanese calling started on March 11 and will run through March 18 at 8:30 pm. The charges will be waved on any calls placed from the Vonage home phones of users to Japan. This is good news and will make checking in a no cost proposition.

“We care deeply about our customers and want to ensure they can reach their loved ones in the aftermath of this horrific natural disaster,” said Marc Lefar, chief executive officer of Vonage. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to everyone impacted by the earthquake in Japan and we hope this helps keep friends and family connected at this time of great need.”

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Amazon Kindle lands at Carphone Warehouse and Best Buy UK

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 03:55 AM PDT

If you are a fan of reading and are looking to get your hands on the Amazon Kindle in the UK without having to wait for the eReader to ship from Amazon you can get it at two new retail locations. The latest Amazon Kindle hit Best Buy and Carphone Warehouse in the UK on March 11. It is in all UK Best Buy locations and in 400 different Carphone Warehouse stores across the country.

This is the new third generation Kindle with the 6-inch screen with Pearl E ink technology inside. The screen is designed with no backlight so you can read it in bright rooms with no glare. The screen tech lets the battery last longer as well.

The device will be in the stores in WiFi only and in 3G versions. The onboard storage is enough for about 3,500 books and more than 550,000 titles are available from the Kindle Store. The Kindle sells for £111 at both chains. Gordon Willoughby, European Director of Kindle said, "We are pleased to be working with The Carphone Warehouse and Best Buy to offer the Kindle devices in store. The reach and appeal of both these first in class retailers combined with the excellent level of personalised service provided by its people gives customers a great new place to discover Kindle and Kindle 3G."

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Cryo Octane workstation breaks benchmark records

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 03:42 AM PDT

Cryo has announced that its awesome Octane EDP-WS has shattered the world record for performance on a common benchmark for workstation performance. The Octane has 12 physical cores supporting up to 24 threads and can be crammed full of up to 48GB of memory. The processors can be overclocked to 4.5GHz and the works uses custom liquid cooling.

One of the key features that allows the Octane to perform so well is the Cryo Boost Triple overclocking performance-enhancing process and technology. All of the high-end hardware is nestled inside a really cool aluminum chassis. The machine was used recently to break some benchmarking records on the SPEC CPU2006 benchmark.

The machine set a new record for dual CPU workstations with the CINT2006 speed rating on integer of 54.7/51.4, the CFP2006 speed of 73.2/69.3 on floating point, and integer peak CINT2006 rate of 504. Those scores are all well over the previous record holder scores.

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Junkyard Jumbotron makes instant multi-screen displays [Video]

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 03:25 AM PDT

MIT researchers have developed Junkyard Jumbotron, a way to take multiple devices – whether smartphones, notebooks, tablets or indeed anything else with a browser – and then instantly piece them together into one large display. The app, currently a free beta, uses QR codes to learn where each display is relatively positioned, and then spreads a single image across those multiple screens.

Video demo after the cut

The image can be moved around and zoomed by dragging it, either using a touchscreen or mouse depending on what gadget you’re using, and you’ll obviously need a device with a camera – like the iPhone in the video below – to set things up initially. MIT expects to add video support soon.

It’s not the first visual-based screen system we’ve seen; Qualcomm’s AR Digital Frame concept used a similar idea, though the difference is that MIT is allowing anybody to use the Junkyard Jumbotron system.

[via Gizmodo]

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Klipsch speakers to be featured inside Alienware M17x 3D notebook

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 03:24 AM PDT

Alienware makes some of the coolest and most expensive notebooks on the market. The company has a really cool design and packs its rigs with some high-end hardware. One of the places that your typical notebook computer is lacking for me is the sound system that they come with.

Klipsch has announced that its speakers will be used on the first 3D gaming notebook from Alienware. The new machine will be the first release in a series of new notebooks from Alienware that will use Klipsch speakers to give superior sound quality. The speakers should sound great; Klipsch makes some of the best audio gear on the market today.

The new M17x will launch this month starting at $1499. The machine will have a 3D 17-inch screen and it will use Intel Sandy Bridge processors with four cores. The notebook will also have HDMI in for playing the Xbox and PS3 3D style and the 3D screen will be an option.

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HPs Latest Intel Sandy Bridge notebooks available to purchase

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 03:11 AM PDT

If you have been waiting for the new line of HP notebooks packing in Intel Sandy Bridge tech to land so you can pick one up, today is your day. The new machines have all announced and you can order them up over on LogicBuy right now. The dv6 quad edition is selling for $824.99 with free shipping on the site and has a free 6GB RAM update. The machine has a Core i7 quad core CPU and Radeon HD 6770M graphics with a 15.6-inch screen.

The HP dv7 Quad Edition notebook starts at $924.99. For that much loot, you get a Core i7-2630QM processor at 2GHz, 6GB of RAM, and a 750GB HDD. It has a Radeon HD 6770M video card and a 17.3-inch screen. It also has a USB 3.0 port and lots more features. The new dv6 Select Edition is also offered on the site starting at $949.99 with a coupon code good for $250 off making it $699.99. The machine has several processor options and a lot more features.

LogicBuy also has the Envy 17 notebook available starting at $1299.99 after a $50 discount with free shipping. The machine has Core i5 or i7 processor options and a brushed aluminum chassis. The keyboard is backlit on this machine and it has options Blu-ray and SSD storage options. The screen is 17.3-inches and it has a resolution of 1920 x 1080.

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