What's new on SlashGear.com |
- What is Personal Computing in the Post PC Era?
- SlashGear’s Gigantic XOOM Giveaway Reminder [With Comments from YOU!]
- Is An App Store-Equipped Apple HDTV A Game Changer?
- PC Market Not Looking Pretty for Q1 2011
- NOOK Color to be Carried by Staples
- Android Lags iOS in Mobile Advertising Revenues
- Kogan Releases Agora Internet TV, 7″ Tablet, 12″ Laptop
- HTC Sense 3.0 UI Only For New Devices, Not Completely True
- 9 out of 10 Doctors Prefer the iPhone
- UN Treaty Would Recognize “Mother Earth’s” Rights
- Microsoft Reveals Details of Mango
- YAAM Android Market Means 100% Profit Share for Developers
- Atari classic Yar’s Revenge gets revamped and comes to Xbox Live Arcade
- University of Main creates golf ball out of lobster shells
- Intel to support USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt in 2012
- Motorola and Huawei end brewing legal battle
- Adobe shows off HLS streaming video on iPad, we still want native Flash
- White iPhone 4 by end of April according to sources
- UberMedia eyes launch of Twitter competitor
- Apple HDTV coming this year?
- Motorola testing new rugged Android tablet
- Spotify may limit access to free music to get people to upgrade to pay version
- Acer unveils new 3D computer monitors
- BlackBerry PlayBook Review Roundup
- The Daily Slash: April 13, 2011
| What is Personal Computing in the Post PC Era? Posted: 14 Apr 2011 03:03 PM PDT Several reports have come out today from Gartner and IDC taking a look at the state of the PC market so far this year. Even though we are only into the second quarter it appears the declines in the overall market for PCs predicted earlier in the year are coming to fruition. So what does this mean, is the world ending? Or perhaps there is something bigger afoot? Tablets are Part of the Cause Most if not all of my analyst colleagues agree that tablets are playing a role in declining PC shipments. The extent of the role tablets are playing is where we may disagree. I spoke with my friend Richard Shim who is a SR Analyst at Display Search. His point is that tablets are a convenient factor to blame notebook and desktop declines on but the reality is tablets represent a “convenient computing” solution and aren’t replacements for notebooks or desktops quite yet. Another factor he pointed to is the point of maturation of the market for notebooks and desktops. Richard said ”Consumers and enterprises are looking to extend the life of their purchases, this is a sign of a highly mature market.” I couldn’t agree more and in our own research we have found that on average consumers are now holding onto their notebooks an average of 4+ years. One of the conclusions that needs to be drawn by market researchers is that the shipment volumes WW of notebooks and desktops alone does not represent a holistic view of the overall market growth. Primarily because what a personal computer is or was, is in the process of being re-defined. More things becomes PC’s in the Post PC Era There is a fascinating technological shift that is happening right before our eyes. For us who study and research these things we take notice and analyze every detail. For the end consumer however they are mostly oblivious to the shift in computing we are seeing. The shift I am speaking of is this, more things are becoming PCs or more accurately personal computing as a whole is expanding into new form factors and devices. For example if we define browsing the web as an element of computing then many devices can incorporate this experience. However the experience alone does not define the device. To make this point I spoke with my friend Leslie Fiering who is a Research VP at Gartner. Leslie’s point is that we can’t define a PC as the ugly box that sits on your desk or the 12-14″ clamshell device in your briefcase, not even the tablet on your coffee table or nightstand. Her comment was this:
She then added:
This Begs a Question So the question I want to leave you with is this: What if in the future there is not one central device (i.e a notebook or a desktop) to which computing is limited? Rather the computing experience we all know and love will be accomplished by many devices that make up a holistic computing experience. Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| SlashGear’s Gigantic XOOM Giveaway Reminder [With Comments from YOU!] Posted: 14 Apr 2011 02:18 PM PDT Let me let you know what’s going on here. We’ve got these XOOM tablets, five of them – 2 for SlashGear and 3 for Android Community, and we’re gonna give them away for free. They’re all Wifi-only so you don’t have to worry about paying a monthly fee, in fact you don’t have to worry about paying for anything, because they’re totally, totally free. We’ve been getting some pretty awesome entries for this contest since it started, and in showing a few classics to you now, we’d like you, the people who haven’t joined in the fun yet, to enter! Have a peek first at the basic rules for this contest, then go back to the expanded rules for a full understanding, check out the comments by your pals below, then get our there and enter! To win one of these fabulous tablets, you must:
And that’s it! We’d also like to encourage you to participate in a post-win review of the tablet, but we’ll get into that once you’ve discovered you’re the WINNER. Now let’s take a look at some comments from YOU that we’re just LOVING: Rahul Horé Meir Kaniel Andre Phillips Gj Bivens Next, have a look at the poll we recently ran where it was decided amongst 75 of you that the most likely outcome of a winning pick for you would be crying. Awww! We’d also like to encourage you to join our Facebook page even if you don’t, for some reason, want a free XOOM tablet. We’ve got lots of exciting features and exclusive content you’ll only find on Facebook! Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| Is An App Store-Equipped Apple HDTV A Game Changer? Posted: 14 Apr 2011 01:22 PM PDT Last night, I was sitting in my living room thinking about what I should watch, and I decided to browse Netflix. But rather than fire up my Apple TV or turn my PlayStation 3 on, I simply clicked over to it from the apps marketplace available through my HDTV. I then started sifting through its library of content. As I did so, I started thinking about Apple. In that split-second decision about which device I would watch Netflix on, I chose my television over the Apple TV, even though the latter's Netflix app is just as good. It was a decision based solely on the fact that I didn't want to change inputs. Although this was just a single event, it was awfully telling. The Apple TV isn't the solution for the living room that Apple needs. Quite the contrary, the proper solution is the company's long-rumored television, complete with access to Apple's App Store. The way I see it, having the App Store available in a television would be enough for Apple to reign supreme in the living room. The television would undoubtedly feature high-quality specs that should put it on an even playing field with some of the other top televisions in the market. But the addition of the applications marketplace would be the trump card Apple would need. See, many of the top TV vendors in the industry have applications available for their televisions. But in the vast majority of cases, worthwhile programs are few and far between. Apple has the ability to change that. Its App Store is the favorite of developers around the world. And there's a good chance that after just a few months, the company could easily bring a slew of worthwhile apps to its TV App Store that would put all other marketplaces, including Samsung's, which has been seeing stable growth over the last several months, in the junk heap. Right now, TV makers are only doing enough to bring some apps to the television market. The time has come for one company to dramatically revolutionize the use of applications in the living room. And the way I see it, the only company capable of doing that will be Apple. Of course, I will fully admit that there will be pitfalls along the way. And content providers might be loath to deliver programs to the App Store for fear of hurting their traditional business model. But Apple has a tendency to get content providers to do things they seemingly don't want to do. And that can't be underestimated. If televisions are going to live up to their role as the center of our living room experience, they need to have better (and more) apps. And although companies like Samsung are doing a fine job, I'm a firm believer that Apple might be the only company that can really deliver what consumers are really after. Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| PC Market Not Looking Pretty for Q1 2011 Posted: 14 Apr 2011 01:19 PM PDT Research firms Gartner and IDC have come out with their quarterly look at the PC market in the US and worldwide. With some exceptions, the results are not good. Only three companies, Lenovo, Apple, and to a lesser extent, Toshiba, posted gains for PC sales in Q1. The two reports differ on how large the decline in the total market is, and also on the cause. Is it tablets? Lack of innovation in PCs? Or just a lingering hangover from big Q4 spending? See all the numbers after the cut. But there are other factors at work here. For one, the iPad 2 and other tablets have taken the spotlight off PCs, even if they haven’t replaced them. Possibly many people spent their money on a new tablet and decided to stick it out with their old PC for a bit longer. At least, that is what Mikako Kitagawa, principal analyst at Gartner thinks: "With the launch of the iPad 2 in February, more consumers either switched to buying an alternative device, or simply held back from buying PCs. We're investigating whether this trend is likely to have a long-term effect on the PC market." That does seem likely. But according to Bob O’Donnell, Vice President for Clients and Displays at IDC, "Slower than expected commercial growth in the first quarter failed to offset the ongoing challenges in the consumer market," he said in a statement. "While it's tempting to blame the decline completely on the growth of media tablets, we believe other factors, including extended PC lifetimes and the lack of compelling new PC experiences, played equally significant roles." In the US, IDC says shipments declined by 10%, while Gartner says 6%. Shipments also contracted in Europe and Japan. In Asia though, shipments increased by 5.6% (IDC) or 4.1% (Gartner). Here are IDC’s numbers for the worldwide market: IDC sets the worldwide demand for PCs at 80.6 million units, and HP led the pack at 15.2 million, followed by Dell, Acer, Lenovo, and Toshiba. Lenovo is the only one on that list that saw an increase, 16%, which is the exact number of the decline in Acer’s shipments. Gartner’s numbers for the worldwide market: Gartner says the worldwide market is at 84.2 million units, with HP leading with 14.8 million, then Acer, Dell, Lenovo, and Toshiba. In the US, the numbers are pretty similar, at 16.1 million units. The lineup is HP at 4.3 million, Dell at 3.7 million, Toshiba at 1.6 million, Apple at 1.4 million and Acer at 1.3 million. Acer got spanked with a decline in shipments of 42 percent. Apple posted a gain of 9.6 percent, and Toshiba saw a gain of 10.4 percent. See the full Gartner and IDC reports, and draw your own conclusions. What do you think is the culprit behind the declining PC market? [via All Things Digital] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| NOOK Color to be Carried by Staples Posted: 14 Apr 2011 01:16 PM PDT In a move that’s aimed directly at Fathers and Mothers days, Staples will soon be picking up the NOOK Color in both its physical locations and online office supplies store. This is an oddity of an announcement if you consider the push Barnes & Noble has made to make sure everyone knows that this device is made for their books, their magazines, and their children’s books. On the other hand, perhaps a fabulous cross-branding is exactly what the NOOK Color and Barnes & Noble needs to take off into outer space! This collaboration will be taking place starting May 1st, 2011, and will have the device again for the price of $249. This device is an Android tablet with a locked Barnes & Noble user interface that directs the owner of the device to read media provided by Barnes & Noble. Because Android is generally used as a more stripped-down operating system, manufacturers in the USA generally offering it up per Googles specifications so they can have access to the Android Market, this system has been sort of an American oddity. As you well know, any manufacturer can use Android however they want, Google making their money from the Android Market which they only allow manufacturers to have upon completing a certification process. Barnes & Noble’s taken the approach where they don’t ship the product with Android Market, instead selling apps through their own version of an app store that’ll continue to only offer up reading-centric apps. Does Barnes & Noble selling the device at Staples signify a move away from that model? No way. Does it mean they’re opening up their arms to more people who’ll be attempting to hack past Barnes & Noble’s reading screen? I think perhaps. Either way, here comes a Staples NOOK Color! ALSO Don’t forget to check out our famous Week With NOOK Color from a few months ago!
Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| Android Lags iOS in Mobile Advertising Revenues Posted: 14 Apr 2011 12:26 PM PDT Android may be gaining marketshare, now powering 33 percent of U.S. smartphones, but it is behind iOS in mobile advertising revenues, according to Millennial Media. iOS-based applications account for 47 percent of Millennial revenues in March of 2011, with Android close behind at 36 percent. However, Android is ahead of iOS in mobile ad impressions. Find out more about this interesting trend after the cut. Both Android and iOS are growing fast, with Apple impressions growing 29 percent month over month, and Android growing 23 percent month over month. You can download the full report here. Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| Kogan Releases Agora Internet TV, 7″ Tablet, 12″ Laptop Posted: 14 Apr 2011 12:03 PM PDT Kogan has unveiled three new products in its Agora line today, an Android powered Internet TV portal, a 7″ Android tablet, and a 12″ laptop. These are priced very aggressively, in line with Kogan’s penchant for “market shattering prices”. The tablet starts at just $139. The products are scheduled to ship in May, but are for sale now on Kogan’s site. It features:
The 7″ Android 2.2 tablet starts at $139, and includes WiFi only. It goes up to $189 as it gets closer to market. Ships end of May.
The Agora 12″ laptop starts at $299 for standard and $319 for Pro. Ships May 27th. Standard specs:
Pro specs:
See the full specs on Kogan’s website. Kogan, if you are not familiar with the company, is based out of Australia, and has a somewhat unusual business model. The products are manufactured in China. They sell the products directly from the factory, and only from their website. And they begin selling while the product is still in the manufacturing process. The price goes up as the product gets closer to market. Have you tried any of their products? What did you think? See their nifty video explaining their business model, complete with super-speedy sketching: [via Kogan] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| HTC Sense 3.0 UI Only For New Devices, Not Completely True Posted: 14 Apr 2011 11:16 AM PDT The recent announcement of the HTC Sensation brought with it an enhanced 3.0 version of their slick HTC Sense user interface built on top of Android. Unfortunately, the company let it slip last night via Twitter to a curious customer that the HTC Sense 3.0 will only be available to its newest devices—the Flyer, EVO 3D, and Sensation. The news may be disappointing for folks who recently picked up a Desire S or Incredible S and find themselves not able to upgrade to the new and improved interface. According to the HTC spokesperson in the tweet, the reason for the restriction lies in the hardware requirements of HTC Sense 3.0. The new interface will support many new 3D effects including 3D widgets along with smart shortcuts on its new set of multi-functional lock screens, and 360-degree menu carousels. It’s likely that the new processing power required to smoothly run the new interface is what older devices such as the Desire S and Incredible S are missing. However, this morning, another official tweet from HTC followed up to clarify their statement from last night. The new message says that only certain aspects of the HTC Sense 3.0 will not work on older devices, but not all. And they are in fact working to incorporate the other aspects that will work with older devices. Exactly which those are and when customers may receive the updates is all up the air at this point. But at least those customers are not completely shut out from the new features of the updated interface. Check out the video below for a taste of Sense 3.0. [via Unwired View] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| 9 out of 10 Doctors Prefer the iPhone Posted: 14 Apr 2011 10:57 AM PDT A recent study by Bulletin Heathcare of the reading habits of its 550,000+ subscribers found that the vast majority of healthcare professionals use iOS based devices to read Bulletin’s daily email briefings. The data was collected over a nine month period from June 2010 to February 2011. Android came in a distant second, but did show signs of growth. “Despite Apple’s longer tenure in the marketplace, we were surprised by the wide margin between Apple devices and others,” said Bill Mulderry, president of Bulletin Healthcare. The interesting thing about this data is the different mobile use by medical specialty. “We assumed that specialty-based segments of the medical community might differ in their media habits and use mobile devices to varying degrees,” Mike Donatello, vice president of research at Bulletin Healthcare parent company Bulletin News said. “Still, we were surprised to find a threefold range in mobile-device use, between emergency physicians and physician assistants on the high end, and clinical pathologists on the low end.” According to the data, 41% of physician assistants adn 40% of ER physicians are using mobile every day. By contrast, a mere 20% of oncologists and 16% of clinical pathologists are using mobile. Other specialist fields stay between 24% and 31%. Of course, this is only data from one publication, but it is interesting enough to warrant more research, and delving into why iOS seems to be preferred by the healthcare sector. The trends shown by Bulletin’s data do not reflect trends in the wider consumer market, where Android’s share of the smartphone market has now surpassed Apple’s. [via Information Week] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| UN Treaty Would Recognize “Mother Earth’s” Rights Posted: 14 Apr 2011 10:33 AM PDT Bolivia, which has enacted its own “Law of the Rights of Mother Earth”, reflecting the beliefs of the indigenous people of that country, is seeking to bring those principles worldwide with a United Nations treaty. The treaty, in draft at this time, would give Mother Earth the same rights as humans, including rights to life, water and clean air, the right to repair livelihoods affected by human activities, and the right to be free from pollution. The treaty would establish a Ministry of Mother Earth, and would give the planet an ombudsman with the job of hearing nature’s complaints. These would be brought forward by activist groups, and other countries. Pablo Salon, Bolivia’s ambassador to the UN explains: “If you want to have balance, and you think that the only (entities) who have rights are humans or companies, then how can you reach balance? But if you recognize that nature too has rights, and (if you provide) legal forms to protect and preserve those rights, then you can achieve balance.” Other countries have been supportive of the treaty, including Ecuador, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Antigua and Barbuda. Bolivia also issued a pamphlet in 2008 with 10 commandments to save the planet. Number one? End capitalism. Debate is set to begin on April 20th, two days before the UN’s recognition of the second International Mother Earth Day, which is another initiative led by Morales. I’m going to go out on a limb here, and predict that this treaty will not have wide acceptance. [via Canada.com] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| Microsoft Reveals Details of Mango Posted: 14 Apr 2011 09:57 AM PDT Microsoft has given the most detailed look yet into Mango, the newest version of Windows Phone, at its annual show for Web and phone developers, Mix11. Microsoft’s Joe Belfiore also assured us all that the rocky start that Microsoft has had in the phone platform is now behind it, and this new OS will be rolled out without glitches. Read more about the details of Mango after the cut. Microsoft plans to build on its efforts to give users “glance and go” information, and make it a lot easier for users to find what they are looking for with Mango. The multitasking capability will allow developers to add capability to the app tiles, so that users can see information even before opening the app. And Mango also offers access to the Windows Phone camera and motion sensor library, so developers have the ability to create programs that incorporate the phone hardware. Belfiore also explained some of the problems with previous updates, saying that Microsoft did not take into account the software that phone makers add to phones. That software did not coexist well with the updates, temporarily bricking the phones. But all is well now, he says: “We expect that we’re going to get these problems licked and get good at this.” He gave demonstration in which the Windows Phone beat the iPhone 4 and Google’s Nexus S, displaying information more quickly than the other two phones. Of course, this was a Microsoft presentation, so that outcome might have been a bit questionable. The company also announced that Angry Birds will be available on Windows Phone May 25th. We shall see how Mango stacks up once it is out in the wild. No release date yet. [via CNET] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| YAAM Android Market Means 100% Profit Share for Developers Posted: 14 Apr 2011 07:33 AM PDT Well what do you know, a fair deal for developers, could it be? It appears that a group of developers from XDA forums have created an Android Market alternative that allows creators of apps and games to grab 100% of the profit from their wares. In a move that seems nearly impossible without the backing of a major corporation, a few smalltime players have set themselves up for what might be a power move against the titans. YAAM stands for Yet Another Android Market, a rather unassuming title for a project that could be such a big deal. The aesthetics of the market are just about as simple as they could be, the app itself works inside handsets, tablets, and even Google TV, and the whole business is centered around getting a fair deal for developers. Will it catch on? Only time and perhaps advertising will tell. Marketing is basically the biggest component in getting a project like this off the ground, as evidenced by Amazon’s push with a free app every day. This market is currently said to play host to 23,000 users and 400 applications, a drop in the bucket compared to Google and Amazon’s markets, but impressive for a teeny tiny startup, if I do say so myself. And integration with PayPal – if they wanted to find a payment group that people trusted, they hit that right on the money. They’ve not got their orders completely set up enough for this writer to recommend everyone use it quite yet:
But we’re excited at the prospect! For more information on why this matters, check out [THIS article.] [via Android Community] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| Atari classic Yar’s Revenge gets revamped and comes to Xbox Live Arcade Posted: 14 Apr 2011 05:53 AM PDT
The game is on Xbox 360 Arcade right now for 800 Microsoft Points. The game is not a straight up reissue of the original game. It has anime inspired art and a narrative story to it that expands on the story from the original back in the 80′s. The game also supports co-op play local. The player plays as Yar who has been brainwashed by the Qotile empire to do their bidding. Yar gets shot down and rescued by Bar Yarglar and then sets off to get revenge on her master and his assassins. This sounds like a pretty cool game. Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| University of Main creates golf ball out of lobster shells Posted: 14 Apr 2011 05:17 AM PDT We lived near a golf course when I was a kid and we thought it was great fun to grab the balls as they rolled down the fairway. What we didn’t realize was that the golfers were hitting those balls from over the hill and they didn't appreciate at all that we swiped their balls. We moved to wading in the water hazards gathering up the balls sitting on the bottom of the pond. If you think about it, there are probably thousands of golf balls under the water in those hazards on golf courses all around the country and the things will be there forever unless someone digs them out. The University of Main has invented a new biodegradable golf ball that is made from the stuff the lobster canning industry tosses out. The balls are made from lobster shells that are held together with a biodegradable binder and a coating that is biodegradable too. That means after the ball sits in that water for a certain amount of time it will just melt away leaving some lobster shell chunks behind. The balls are on the market now for a bit less than $1 per ball and the material costs about 19 cents per ball. The catch is that ball won’t fly as far as a regular golf ball. [via BoingBoing] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| Intel to support USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt in 2012 Posted: 14 Apr 2011 05:06 AM PDT
CNET reports that Intel has now announced that it will be supporting both USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt on the chipsets that it has in the pipe for next year. Intel’s Kirk Skaugen said at IDF in Beijing, “Intel is going to support USB 3.0 in the 2012 client platform. We’re going to support Thunderbolt capability. We believe they’re complementary.” As it stands today, the machines on the maker supporting USB 3.0 are all using a third party chip. The Intel Ivy Bridge chipset that is set for 2012 will put USB 3.0 support directly on the Intel silicon. The move will mean that by 2012 when the ivy bridge chipsets land both major chipmakers will support USB 3.0 natively making the speedy ports commonplace. [via CNET] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| Motorola and Huawei end brewing legal battle Posted: 14 Apr 2011 04:55 AM PDT Motorola and Huawei had another legal battle brewing that had to do with allegations that Motorola was transferring Huawei IP to Nokia Siemens Networks. Nokia is buying certain aspects of the Motorola business in wireless solutions. Motorola and Huawei have now announced that they are both withdrawing any legal claims. The announcement means the end to all legal claims and pending litigation between the two firms. The two companies reached an agreement that will allow Motorola to transfer certain Huawei intellectual property and other agreements that are in place with Huawei to Nokia Siemens Networks for an undisclosed sum of money. Motorola CEO Greg Brown said, “We regret that these disputes have occurred between our two companies. Motorola Solutions values the long-standing relationship we have had with Huawei. After reviewing the facts, we decided to resolve these matters and return to our traditional relationship of confidence and trust. I am pleased that we can again focus on having a cooperative and productive relationship.” [via BGR] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| Adobe shows off HLS streaming video on iPad, we still want native Flash Posted: 14 Apr 2011 04:26 AM PDT I’d like to go on record saying that one of the only things from Adobe that interests me in the slightest is Flash for my iPad. Get to work on that, thanks. Adobe and Apple still have no agreement for support of Flash content on the iPad, but Adobe is touting its new streaming of Adobe Flash Media Server across multiple devices like the iPad 2, Samsung TVs, the Motorola Xoom and the Atrix smartphone. Adobe announced last year that it was supporting HTTP Dynamic Streaming on the Adobe Flash Platform. Adobe has added support for another format to the offerings. Adobe is now supporting HTTP Live Streaming or HLS. HLS is a MPEG2 transport streaming container that can be used by devices like the iPad 2. With support for HLS within the Flash Media Server Adobe has reduced the complexity for broadcasters looking to reach HTML5 supporting browser like users of the Safar browser on Apple gear. The HLS support also allows the support of any platform where Flash is not installed. When Flash is installed, the system will steam the video using F4F over HTTP. The Flash Media Server with new support is being shown off at NAB right now. [via Adobe] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| White iPhone 4 by end of April according to sources Posted: 14 Apr 2011 04:09 AM PDT When we were at the event where the iPhone 4 was launched, the device was on hand in both black and white colors. The only version to come to AT&T was the black smartphone with the white one having some sort of undisclosed issues with production at the time. We later learned that Apple was having issues with the white paint peeling and getting the color to match between makers of the iPhone 4. On April 6 were reported that the hit iPhone 4 had been deleted from the Apple system and it seemed that the with version would never come to the market. Apparently, there is still a chance that fans of the white iPhone can get the device. Bloomberg reports that three people with knowledge of Apple dealings have claimed the white iPhone is coming. According to the sources the white iPhone 4 will land this month with a date pegged to be “near the end of April” according go the sources. Sources have also said that no iPhone 5 will be coming at WWDC this summer. A white iPhone 4 might hold some people over until the iPhone 5 comes out. The next iPhone is expected to debut in September. [via Businessweek] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| UberMedia eyes launch of Twitter competitor Posted: 14 Apr 2011 03:55 AM PDT If you are a big user of Twitter, you might be familiar with the company UberMedia. This company makes some of the most popular apps that users of Twitter actually use to send their tweets. UberMedia is behind popular apps like UberSocial, Echofon, and Twidroyd. These apps allow the Twitter user access features that Twitter doesn’t offer directly. The apps are popular enough that they accounted for 11.5% of all Tweets sent on one single day last month. The relationship between Ubermedia and Twitter isn’t on the most stable ground though. Twitter blocked three of the firm’s apps a while back and forced the UberTwitter app to change names to UberSocial. This may be part of the reason why UberMedia is eyeing launching a service that will compete with Twitter. Some think that a competing service from UberMedia might be able to succeed against Twitter where other competing services from big names like Google have failed. The reason a competing UberMedia service may work is that the apps for Twitter are so popular that the company makes. The UberMedia competitor would go after Twitter by addressing common complaints about Twitter like the character limit among others. [via CNN] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| Posted: 14 Apr 2011 03:38 AM PDT I mentioned yesterday that an analyst at Jefferies thought that evidence was pointing to Apple possibly launching a new video streaming platform and maybe even a new set-top box or TV this year. Another analyst at Ticonderoga Securities named Brian white has now announced that his research has led him to a very similar conclusion. According to White Apple could launch a new HDTV this year and enter into the $100 billion LCD HDTV market. White says that the data suggests that Apple is looking at launching a new Smart TV by the end of the year. He said that this would me more than the Apple TV on the market already. White also notes that Apple appears to be moving down the HDTV path faster than expected. Another analyst from Piper Jaffray named Gene Muster has said in the past that Apple would enter into the HDTV market with a set carrying a price near $2,000. Munster also thinks that the huge $3.9 billion investment in securing components like screens for the iPhone and iPad is another sign of investments in hardware for the TV push. However, Munster thinks that the TV will not come until the end of 2012 at the earliest. [via AppleInsider] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| Motorola testing new rugged Android tablet Posted: 14 Apr 2011 03:25 AM PDT Motorola has reportedly been testing a new Android tablet that is aimed at the enterprise user. The new tablet is said to be a rugged device that is able to survive life in the field. The new tablet is apparently part of Motorola’s efforts to grow its enterprise business. The new tablet has no name, but a graphic has surfaced that gives details of the tablet. It has an 8MP rear camera and a 1.3MP front camera. It is rugged enough to survive a four-foot drop onto plywood and is sealed to IP54 rating. It has Bluetooth, WiFi, and a USB host that will support accessories and peripherals. The tablet will weigh less than 1.25 pounds and it runs Android 2.3. The screen of the tablet is a 1024 x 600 resolution multi-touch 7-inch unit with 400nit brightness or better. The machine runs an OMAP4 dual core processor running at 1GHz. The battery life is being targeted at 5.5 hours with streaming video over WiFi connection so it should last for a full business day of data connectivity. [via Android Community] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| Spotify may limit access to free music to get people to upgrade to pay version Posted: 14 Apr 2011 03:00 AM PDT
Sources close to the company are telling CNET that Spotify is set to limit the amount of time users can listen to music on its free service. Apparently, the company is set to place limits on the total number of hours that users could listen to free music. The source also says that Spotify might put a cap on the number of times that the user can stream a specific song. The goal is to get the user to upgrade to the paid account where they can get unlimited access to the music. CNET also notes that Spotify has agreements in the US with two of the major labels and has already agreed to limit the amount of time that a user can listen to music free before making them upgrade to pay versions. The changes could happen this week, however, May is the more likely date for the changes to go into effect. [via CNET] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| Acer unveils new 3D computer monitors Posted: 14 Apr 2011 02:48 AM PDT Acer has unveiled a pair of new 3D screens for computer users that sound pretty darn cool. The new screens include the Acer HN274H and the Acer HS244HQ. Both of the screens use active 3D shutter glasses. The HN274H is a 27-inch screen and the HS244HQ is a 23.6-inch screen. The 27-inch screen is the first to support both HDMI 3D and NVIDIA 3D solutions. That allows it to deliver 3D content if you connect it to a 3D component like a PS3 or Blu-ray player. It can also deliver 3D gaming using the 3D Vision system that has been on the market for a while. It has a 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio and an integrated IR emitter so it will do 3D without having to use an external emitter. The 23.6-inch screen has three HDMI puts, a 12M:1 contrast ratio, and a 2ms response time. It also uses an integrated IR emitter. This screen uses Acer 3D glasses, not the NVIDIA 3D Vision tech that the larger version uses. The 27-inch screen sells for $689 and the 23.6-inchs screen is $449. Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| BlackBerry PlayBook Review Roundup Posted: 13 Apr 2011 08:51 PM PDT The time has come, RIM fans, BlackBerry’s PlayBook has begun to be seeded in the press and the reviews are leaking inward, toward your screen at an alarming rate. What are all these people with tapping fingers and eyes for the Canadian OS giant saying? We’ve got just the formula for you to find out: a roundup post. That’s right, find out right here and right now what the 7″ BlackBerry tablet has to offer, with its 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB Wi-Fi models having their $499, $599, and $699 prices respectively. Behold the words of the judges! Before we begin, perhaps some specs will freshen your memory of this cute little bug of a tablet device: • 7" LCD, 1024 x 600, WSVGA, capacitive touch screen with full multi-touch and gesture support First, lets take a peek at our good pal Anand Shimpi over at AnandTech, who take a positively lit look at the device:
Anand goes on to note that there’s a complete lack of a built-in email client, calendar, or contact book. We’ve got to note that these items will basically certainly be available once the device ships via the app market of course, but not having them built in is rather absurd no matter what direction you’re looking at it from. Next is of Tim Stevens of Engadget who decidedly aims directly at the graphics and app handling of the device, noting that while apps load quickly and graphics roll out with ease and grace, there’s been more than one update to the software since they got the device in their possession. Is that a good thing? He’s guessing probably not:
Walter S Mossberg of Personal Technology from the Wall Street Journal notes that the PlayBook appears to work as a companion for a BlackBerry handset rather than working on its own – Android, iOS, and Symbian users beware!
Mark Spoonauer of Laptop Magazine comments on the Laptop version of BlackBerry specifically as well:
In the end, it appears that all reviewers are telling you to wait until the device is out for a while to pick it up, this advice especially directed at non-BlackBerry people who may find themselves in for a world of… BlackBerry. But it’s only the first round of reviews! Wait and see what everyone else in the world says over the next few days and weeks before you flip out. And if you just want a free one, well, we’ve got you covered again! Win a free BlackBerry PlayBook with only a few clicks to your buttons! [via DailyTech] Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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| The Daily Slash: April 13, 2011 Posted: 13 Apr 2011 08:21 PM PDT Allow me to give you the skinny on everything you’re going to need to know in order to go on with your life today. I mean it! There’s some crazy important stuff going on today that may well, very possibly, perhaps, chance your whole life. Some of it is in the Android world, some of it is in the greater phone world, and some of it’s basically gadgetastic right here on SlashGear. Let’s begin with a bit of the ol’ aliens from another planet rumor – that’s right! Aliens are back in the news, and it’s your favorite: Roswell, New Mexico. That’s the least credible story we have for today. It’s all uphill from here! Next, we’ve got a couple of basically fantastic giveaways going on, one of them for a couple of tablets, the other for… another tablet! That’s right, we’ve got both a Motorola XOOM tablet set for you to win AND a BlackBerry PlayBook for your free having! You could walk away with a tablet of your choice! Of course, provided you enter the contest(s), that is. Go for it! Then it’s time to finally have an Angry Birds that lets you plan across multiple platforms, or in my case, multiple Android phones, without starting over! That’s right, Rovio is looking to Sync Angry Birds for easy continuation, no matter what system you’re on! Next, so long as we’re speaking about apps, Apple has revealed Final Cut Pro X for all of your ultimate video cutting needs! Oh and you’d like some Windows news too? We’ve got that – Windows 8 early build leak hits the web. Don’t expect TOO much out of it. Perhaps they should have contacted THIS Indy developer for tips on how to secure a bit of software from pirates. Next, learn from our resident business guru Ben Bajarin Why Cisco Shut Down the Flip Business Then behold the sensational day of HTC power! It’s the HTC Sensation, and we’ve got not only a lovely hands-on video, but an official announcement, a set of lovely benchmarks, but a comparison to the ATRIX 4G for your consumption. Then we do it all from a slightly different perspective over on Android Community as well! Speaking of Android Community, we’ve got an extended bit of that XOOM contest for MORE wins, an invite to the same event SlashGear is invited to – T-Mobile’s day in the sun, and just terrible reports of the HTC ThunderBolt dropping its LTE signal! The humanity! And we’ve got some Angry Birds Easter pictures! And we’ve got some T-Mobile Sidekick unboxing video and speed tests! Everything you could ever want to know, right? Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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I bet a lot of gamers played Yar’s Revenge back in the day on their Atari game consoles. If you were a big fan of the original and like retro inspired gaming still today, Atari has a new classic on the Xbox Arcade for you to check out. The game is 
Yesterday I mentioned that AMD had announced that it was 
Spotify is probably best known here in the US as the music streaming service that hasn’t launched. There are hoards of US music fans waiting for Spotify to hit the country, but so far, that hasn’t happened. Over in Europe Spotify is very popular and has a hoard of free users and a 
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