Wednesday, May 19, 2010

IT News HeadLines (Engadget) 19/05/2010



Slacker Radio 2.0 for iPhone to feature station caching, out 'soonish'
Ever since Slacker Radio decided to flee the hardware business, we've been looking forward to bigger and better things from its mobile apps. If the hands-on that Dave Zatz got with the version 2.0 software for iPhone is any indication we won't be waiting in vain, either. The big news here is station caching: that's right, users will soon be able to store music for off-line access, whether you're listening on a plane or in a dead zone. Exactly how many stations (and for how long) you can store is currently a mystery, although the reviewer said it took about 20 minutes to cache six stations, with each one being good for at least a couple hours playback. In order to take advantage of this, you will need to purchase the Slacker Radio Plus package, and you'll have to wait for the app to be approved by Apple, which could be a couple days from now -- or it could be never, depending on Apple's mood.

Slacker Radio 2.0 for iPhone to feature station caching, out 'soonish' originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 11:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | sourceZatz Not Funny | Email this | Comments
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Nintendo trademarks 3DS, 3DSPlay, and 3DSWare in Japan: begin speculating as soon as you're comfortable
It's been a couple months since Nintendo rush-released a statement on its up and coming 3D handheld, and the company's been predictably mum on most of the details. To be honest, we're not even sure what the official name for the thing will be -- although Nintendo 3DS has been the working title (and the one that makes the most sense, if you ask us). Now the kids at Siliconera are reporting a flurry of activity in Japan's trademark database, with Nintendo registering such names as: Nintendo 3DS, N3DS, 3DSPlay (a 3D WiiPlay variant?) and 3DSWare (similar to DSiWare, perhaps). All in all, it seems safe to assume that the device we see at E3 will be dubbed the 3DS, but who knows? This certainly wouldn't be the first time that a trademark has thrown us for a loop.

Nintendo trademarks 3DS, 3DSPlay, and 3DSWare in Japan: begin speculating as soon as you're comfortable originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 11:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Joystiq | sourceSiliconera | Email this | Comments
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Sanyo brings short-focus projector into the third dimension, may never look back
Sanyo's been a relatively large player in the short-focus / short-throw projector game for awhile now, so frankly, this was inevitable. As everyone (and their third cousin, in fact) races to jump on the three-dee bandwagon, the aforesaid company has just pumped out its first 3D short-focus PJ. The PDG-DWL2500J doesn't boast the most amazing of specs -- the native resolution sits at just WXGA -- but it can project a 3D image from a distance as short as 2.4 centimeters. It also touts a maximum projection size of 110 inches, and it can be installed vertically or horizontally depending on your mood. There's also an HDMI socket, Ethernet port, 16:10 aspect ratio, 2,500 lumens of brightness, a single 10-watt speaker and a price tag that'll probably make you spit out your morning coffee. Word on the street has it that this one will launch next month in Japan for ¥450,000, and if that $4,868 conversion follows it stateside, you can bet only a handful will be lined up to drag one home.

Gallery: Sanyo PDG-DWL2500J 3D short-focus projector

Sanyo brings short-focus projector into the third dimension, may never look back originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 10:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Akihabara News | sourceSanyo | Email this | Comments
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Google's VOIP buying spree continues with Global IP Solutions offer
Google's VOIP buying spree continues with Global IP Solutions offer
We're not entirely sure what Google is up to, but we're inclined to think that there's an awful lot of voice over IP magic coming, with the company announcing the anticipated acquisition of another VOIP company. Back in November it acquired Gizmo5 for about $30 million, and now it has made a $68.2 million offer for Global IP Solutions. That company provides VOIP solutions for a number of clients, including Yahoo, and recently announced plans to release an Android library that would enable easy video conferencing in apps. We're guessing someone in Menlo Park liked what they saw and decided to bake it right into the OS, but that's pure, unfounded speculation. This offer still needs to be approved by 90% of Global IP's shareholders but, since that $68.2 million represents a nearly 30 percent boost in the company's stock price last week, we don't think there will be any problem there -- but there we go speculating again.

Continue reading Google's VOIP buying spree continues with Global IP Solutions offer

Google's VOIP buying spree continues with Global IP Solutions offer originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 10:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink mocoNews.net | | Email this | Comments
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iPad used to replace Apple IIe data cassette, feels seriously underutilized (video)
You know how we much love our old Apple IIe around here, and whether it's being used to create chiptunes or as an 8-bit Twitter station, we're always tickled when the venerable home computer makes an appearance. When an artist named Stewart Smith asked a Mac software developer called Panic to run some software on their in-house Apple IIe, he provided them with the source code as an audio file -- but he failed to supply them with a cassette player to load it from. The solution? Panic played the program off its iPad. As you can see from the video below, this isn't just any old program either -- it's a homebrew video for Jed's Other Poem (Beautiful Ground) by Grandaddy. Thanks for amusing us, guys. And thanks for reminding us how much we enjoy The Sophtware Slump.

Continue reading iPad used to replace Apple IIe data cassette, feels seriously underutilized (video)

iPad used to replace Apple IIe data cassette, feels seriously underutilized (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 09:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Wired | sourcePanic | Email this | Comments
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Tranquil PC serves up a pair of high-end but laid-back HTPCs
Tranquil PC serves up a pair of high-end but laid-back HTPCs
We haven't heard from the folks at Tranquil in some time, the UK-based firm's employees surely too busy watching all the As Time Goes By episodes they stuffed onto their last five-bay media server, but they've sent Gene and Lionel on their way and are back to announce two new HTPCs. First is the T7-MP2, a tiny, fanless Ion- and Atom-powered machine that offers HDMI output for direct connectivity to your HDTV and up to 1TB of storage, starting at a rather pricey £479 (about $700). The other is a more powerful beast, the ixVL, coming sometime next month with either an Intel Core i3 or i5 CPU inside and an optical drive (DVD or Blu-ray), but still no fans for quiet operation. No price on this one yet, but expect it to cost, you know, more than the other one.

Tranquil PC serves up a pair of high-end but laid-back HTPCs originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 09:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | sourceT7-MP2, ixVL | Email this | Comments
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ASUS Eee PC 1215 with Ion receives Optimus and USB 3.0 augmentation
ASUS Eee PC 1215 with Ion receives Optimus and USB 3.0 augmentation
When we found out that the Ion 2-packing Eee PC 1201PNs lacked NVIDIA Optimus tech for switching graphics hardware on the fly, well, it was a bit of a bummer to say the least. But, ASUS is at least fixing its successor, the Eee PC 1215. It's largely the same machine as the 1201, packing a dual-core Atom D510 processor and Ion graphics to complement the onboard graphics. This one, though, will have the Optimus hardware to switch betwixt the two, saving battery life all the while. The case has also been subtly refreshed but, most interestingly, ASUS saw fit to throw in a pair of USB 3.0 ports, their cerulean insides shining like beacons to guide us toward the future of high-speed file transfers. We're not sure when the 1215 is destined to hit retail and make the 1201PN obsolete, nor how much of a premium it will cost when it does, but there are plenty more pictures of the thing and even a few benchmarks at the source link.

ASUS Eee PC 1215 with Ion receives Optimus and USB 3.0 augmentation originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 08:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | sourceNetbookReviews.net | Email this | Comments
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Best Buy's internet movie store launches this month under the CinemaNow brand
That Best Buy is ready to launch its entry into the online video on-demand game is not at all a surprise, but we weren't expecting to see such a familiar name. The retail giant purchased the CinemaNow brand away from Sonic Solutions (explaining the latter's sudden switch to RoxioNow) and will start selling movies sans-disk to web connected devices later this month, starting with LG Blu-ray players (where buyers won't see the Best Buy logo at all) and home theater in a box systems, followed by Samsung's internet connected home theater equipment and of course the house Insignia brand. As planned, it will have "first run" movies for sale as soon as they arrive on DVD, with rentals for $2.99 - $3.99 per movie and purchases at $9.99 to $19.99, including HD titles and some available in 1080p. Apparently the name game is how Best Buy plans to sneak boxes with its store embedded through other retailers, we'll see how Wal-mart / VUDU, Amazon and the rest respond to the challenge.

Continue reading Best Buy's internet movie store launches this month under the CinemaNow brand

Best Buy's internet movie store launches this month under the CinemaNow brand originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 08:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NTT DoCoMo shows off automatic email generator for mobiles (video)
Demonstrated at the Wireless Technology Park 2010 exhibition last week, this automatic email generator from NTT DoCoMo promises to take just three words' worth of input, whether spoken or typed in, and convert them into a fully fleshed out, anatomically correct email. An anthropomorphic genie creature serves as your guide on this journey into gimmick world, although some rather nice sophistication is also on the cards. The carrier's rep informs us that the composition of the missive will be dependent on the sort of person that you are and your relationship to the recipient. Thus, an email from a teenager to his parents will read quite differently to one from an employee to her boss, even if both believe they're writing to their draconian overlords. Check it out on video after the break.

Continue reading NTT DoCoMo shows off automatic email generator for mobiles (video)

NTT DoCoMo shows off automatic email generator for mobiles (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 07:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | sourceDigInfo.tv | Email this | Comments
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Toshiba's latest use for OCB LCDs: 3D glasses
Even after years of demos, we're not aware of Toshiba Mobile Display's OCB (Optically Compensated Bend) LCD panels actually making their way into shipping products, so here's hoping these large-bezeled 3D glasses on display at SID 2010 will be the ones to break through. Sure, the last time we saw OCB it was supposed to show us the way towards no-glasses-needed autostereoscopic screens but that was in 2009, when Law & Order was on, prototype iPhones weren't floating all over Korea and the company was called Toshiba Matsushita display. In this iteration the high speed, high contrast characteristics of the curiously aligned crystals in those LCDs are claimed to make the ideal 3D glasses technology with brighter images, less crosstalk and a wider field of view, but with similar specifications to existing hardware from RealD and others we'll probably be in for another all new / all old tech demo and more vapor in 2011.

Continue reading Toshiba's latest use for OCB LCDs: 3D glasses

Toshiba's latest use for OCB LCDs: 3D glasses originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 06:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink AV Watch | sourceToshiba Mobile Display | Email this | Comments
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Android 2.1 becomes most used version, just in time to be obviated by Froyo
Rejoice, oh Android lovers. Thy OS of choice has finally graduated to the point where its latest variant is also the most used -- a statistic that is likely to last for only a day given Google's intent to reveal Android 2.2, or Froyo, at its I/O conference tomorrow. For the first time since El Goog's been keeping these platform version stats, 2.1 has risen above 1.5, the previous incumbent, having grown from 32.4 percent on May 3 (chart after the break) to 37.2 percent on May 17. This rapid ascension can only be expected to accelerate with more devices getting their Eclair permissions slips, and let's not forget that Google will be trying its hardest with 2.2 to make upgrades easier for phone makers to implement. Onwards and upwards we go.

[Thanks, Chris D]

Continue reading Android 2.1 becomes most used version, just in time to be obviated by Froyo

Android 2.1 becomes most used version, just in time to be obviated by Froyo originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 06:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Android Police | sourceAndroid Developers | Email this | Comments
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In2Pay is the name of Visa and DeviceFidelity's money-grubbing iPhone case
Visa has been trying to finagle its way onto mobiles for quite a while, and its latest attempt, done in partnership with DeviceFidelity, has now been named as the In2Pay system for iPhones of 3G and 3GS varieties. Built around an app ensconced on a MicroSD card inside that oh-so-special iPhone case, this offers contactless payments anywhere that Visa's payWave is available, as well as secure access to buildings and computer networks. Yep, that sounds like it's definitely going to end in tears, but the brave cash collectors are pressing ahead. Trials are still set for the second quarter of this year, which makes them imminent, and soon thereafter we'll all be making our ill-advised purchases with even greater ease. Video and full PR after the break.

Continue reading In2Pay is the name of Visa and DeviceFidelity's money-grubbing iPhone case

In2Pay is the name of Visa and DeviceFidelity's money-grubbing iPhone case originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 05:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | sourceVisa | Email this | Comments
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MSI brings Core i5, GeForce 310M to 15.6-inch CX623 multimedia laptop
Nah, it's no Core i5 ULV-powered X series, but MSI's latest does use a Core i5 processor and does have an X in the model name. Mind-blowing, right? The outfit's latest 15.6-incher is a multimedia powerhouse, humming along with a 1GB NVIDIA GeForce 310M GPU, twin DDR3 RAM slots (plenty of space for 4GB), a 1,366 x 768 resolution display, six-cell battery, 1.3 megapixel webcam and a pair of stereo speakers. There's also a 320GB or 500GB SATA hard drive, 4-in-1 card reader, 802.11b/g WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1, HDMI / VGA outputs, twin USB 2.0 ports, an eSATA socket, audio in / out, Ethernet and a "film print coating" over the palm rest area to minimize wear. Mum's the word on a price and release date, but we suspect we'll know a bit more on both of those points when we touch down at Computex in a fortnight.

Continue reading MSI brings Core i5, GeForce 310M to 15.6-inch CX623 multimedia laptop

MSI brings Core i5, GeForce 310M to 15.6-inch CX623 multimedia laptop originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 05:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Hot Hardware | sourceMSI | Email this | Comments
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MacBook refresh gets official with 10-hour battery
115diggsdigg Weird, but there it is, the leaked MacBook refresh is now official, on Tuesday, just as we thought. The 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo refresh with NVIDIA GeForce 320M graphics and longer 10-hour battery life (up from 7 hours) is sitting up, nice and pretty on Apple's very own store in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Germany, and a few other sites. It's still $999 making it a better deal for the moment than the similarly spec'd 13-inch MacBook Pro listing for $1,199. Expect it to go global shortly. A few more screengrabs after the break as Apple gets its house in order.

[Thanks, Jose and Peter]

Continue reading MacBook refresh gets official with 10-hour battery

MacBook refresh gets official with 10-hour battery originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 04:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | sourceApple | Email this | Comments
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The Onion: Google 'whisper ads' detect keywords in phone calls (video)
Oh man, The Onion really outdid itself this time. Its latest tech parody takes on ad-supported phones from Google meant to drive down the device's cost. Funny, because it's true. Users won't even remember a time when they didn't have a second voice whispered in their ear.

P.S. The Yahoo dig at the end is classic.

Continue reading The Onion: Google 'whisper ads' detect keywords in phone calls (video)

The Onion: Google 'whisper ads' detect keywords in phone calls (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 03:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Android 2.2 will invite you to visit 'Flash-enabled' sites, rub Apple's nose in it
The battle for minds is well and truly on now, and if there was any doubt that Google and Adobe are cozying up together to take on Apple, let it now be extinguished. TechCrunch is reporting that the latest version of Android -- you know, the one with the 450 percent performance improvement and buttery smooth Flash playback -- will, upon updating, guide you to visit a selection of Flash-enabled websites. Countering Apple's list of iPad-ready (aka Flash-free) websites, this is clearly intended as a showcase of the Adobe software's capabilities. Ironically, a sizable number of the sites on the list are "mobile optimized," meaning you won't be hitting their full desktop versions (which doesn't quite mesh with the idea of "the full web experience"), but it's still likely to cause some consternation over in Cupertino. All we're wondering now is how much Adobe had to pony up to ensnare such a prominent promo position, but things like that don't stay secret for long.

Android 2.2 will invite you to visit 'Flash-enabled' sites, rub Apple's nose in it originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 03:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink TechCrunch | sourceAdobe | Email this | Comments
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OnStar reveals mystery partner: Google
Google I/O's shaping up to be a hell of an event this year. We just received word that OnStar will give a sneak peek at new functionalities it's developing for its version 2.0 Chevy Volt app with the help of Google. A major new addition -- to be demonstrated on Android, of course -- will be a navigation tab on the app's home screen that can identify your position relative to your Volt's location in Google Maps. Something that should prove handy in tracking down your car in the airport parking lot. Owners can then use their smartphone to enter their destination before even entering the vehicle. When it's time to drive, your Volt will already be setup and ready to guide you to the spot using OnStar's turn-by-turn navigation. Alternatively, users can follow the voice guidance provided by Google Maps Navigation if they prefer. Unfortunately, these 2.0 addition won't be in the app at launch this fall. Full press release after the break.

Continue reading OnStar reveals mystery partner: Google

OnStar reveals mystery partner: Google originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 02:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Kindle for Android coming this summer
What was hinted at in those leaked Dell Streak flyers is now official: Kindle for Android. Unfortunately, it's not quite ready to download. Amazon's free Kindle ebook reader -- already out for Mac, PC, BlackBerry, and iDevices -- won't launch until later this summer. When it does, users of Android 1.6 and above (with SD card) will have the ability to search, browse, and purchase (without exiting the app) any of the half million books in the Kindle Store. Like the other apps, Kindle for Android features Whispersync to keep your bookmarks, last page read, notes, and highlights synchronized across all your Kindle-enabled devices. Expect to see this demonstrated at Google I/O starting tomorrow.

Continue reading Kindle for Android coming this summer

Kindle for Android coming this summer originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 01:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | sourceAmazon | Email this | Comments
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Screen Grabs: Gossip Girl's Nate Archibald drops a blast from Kin Two
Screen Grabs chronicles the uses (and misuses) of real-world gadgets in today's movies and TV. Send in your sightings (with screen grab!) to screengrabs at engadget dt com.

Given Microsoft's Generation Upload marketing and Verizon's exclusive Gossip Girl placement deal, it's not surprising a Kin phone made an appearance on the show's season finale, but we're having a hard time believing that even Nate Archibald is chump enough to trade in his heat-seeking Droid for a Kin Two. Not that we'd know, since we don't watch the show. At all. Ever. Video after the break.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Gallery: Gossip Girl Kin Screen Grabs

Continue reading Screen Grabs: Gossip Girl's Nate Archibald drops a blast from Kin Two

Screen Grabs: Gossip Girl's Nate Archibald drops a blast from Kin Two originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 May 2010 01:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nokia partners with Harman to 'standardize' cellular infotainment
Though Microsoft, RIM and possibly Google are already vying to be the center of the automotive infotainment push, a certain Finnish phone manufacturer says it wants to take charge -- in what seems to be the latest phase of its Terminal Mode initiative, Nokia's tapped infotainment provider Harman to "standardize" the interface between phone and car. Like Harman's last in-dash venture, a touchscreen and physical controls will be the focus, while your handset (rather than an Intel Atom) does the heavy lifting. Connected via Bluetooth or USB, your Nokia will play music, deliver Ovi Maps, respond to voice control and more, with the entire phone display duplicated onto the car's larger touchscreen for easy access and a set of auto-specific apps planned for Nokia's Ovi Store. It all sounds pretty swell, but it's still not clear how the companies intend to standardize anything beyond their balance sheets; we're not sure how much Nokia will appreciate you connecting a Droid to their Ovi-powered car. PR after the break.

Update: It appears that this is part of Nokia's Terminal Mode initative, which -- as some have noted in comments -- we've actually told you about before. Whoops!

Continue reading Nokia partners with Harman to 'standardize' cellular infotainment

Nokia partners with Harman to 'standardize' cellular infotainment originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 22:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC Hero spied with Cox firmware?
We've known for some time that Cox -- a name traditionally associated with cable television -- is on the cusp of turning over its trial CDMA networks in a handful of markets to the public as it marches towards LTE on a swath of 700MHz bandwidth, but what we don't know is the kind of hardware selection we can expect once these guys go live. Take it for what you will, but it seems that an unbranded CDMA HTC Hero that looks suspiciously like Sprint's version of the handset has just changed hands on Craigslist, and -- you guessed it -- it's got a Cox splash screen when you power it on. Cox's strategy boss said just last week in an interview with Light Reading Cable that there'd be Android devices in the mix for the launch, but he played coy when pressed on details; the Hero could certainly be on the short list, but doesn't it seem a little long in the tooth to kick off a brand new network launch? Of course, this could be a hoax or a cobbled-together prototype to help test the trial network, so we'll just have to hang tight and see how this cookie crumbles; in the meantime, follow the break for the damning video evidence of the Cox Hero in the wild.

Continue reading HTC Hero spied with Cox firmware?

HTC Hero spied with Cox firmware? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 21:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Android Central | sourceYouTube (via slamontia), Cox | Email this | Comments
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Chinese scientists demonstrate 2Mbps internet connection over LED
 175diggsdiggLED data transmission used to be all the rage -- we fondly remember beaming Palm Pilot contacts via IrDA. Then we got omni-directional Bluetooth and building-penetrating WiFi, and put all that caveman stuff behind us. But now, scientists the world over are looking to bring back line-of-sight networking, and the latest demonstration has Chinese researchers streaming video to a laptop with naught but ceiling-mounted blue LEDs. The Chinese Academy of Sciences claims to have realized a 2Mbit per second internet connection that transmits data simply by modulating the flicker of the little diodes, and imperceptibly enough to have them serve as room lighting as well. Like Boston University before them, the Chinese scholars see short-range LED networks controlling smart appliances. It's not quite the gigabit speed you'd get from laser diodes, but this way you'll get more mileage out of those expensive new bulbs, eh?

Chinese scientists demonstrate 2Mbps internet connection over LED originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 20:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Engadget Chinese | sourceBeijing Times (163.com) | Email this | Comments
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iSuppli finds worldwide cellphone shipments are up 13.8 percent, Motorola's share slipping
We've already seen Motorola's market share slip a bit when it comes to US cellphone shipments, and it looks like the news is even worse for the company on a global scale. According to iSuppli's latest numbers -- which back up some earlier reports -- while worldwide cellphone shipments rose a healthy 13.8 percent in the first quarter of 2010, Motorola slipped from sixth to eighth spot in the global rankings, selling a total of 8.5 million phones compared to 14.7 million during the same period a year earlier. As you can see in the helpful chart above (with sales indicated in thousands), Motorola's loss came largely at the expense of considerable gains from market leaders Nokia and Samsung, with LG, RIM and Apple also seeing some smaller but significant gains. And, yes, this news also means that Motorola is also now in a neck and neck race with ZTE, for what it's worth.

[Thanks, Katie]

iSuppli finds worldwide cellphone shipments are up 13.8 percent, Motorola's share slipping originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 19:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink GigaOM | sourceiSuppli | Email this | Comments
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The Engadget Show returns, this Saturday, May 22nd with Sprint's Evo 4G, Adobe CTO Kevin Lynch, and an Engadget editors Q&A!
Guess what humans? It's that time again -- the Engadget Show returns this Saturday, May 22nd at 5pm... and it's shaping up to be a killer! First up, we'll have an exclusive interview with Adobe's CTO Kevin Lynch (taped at the Google I/O conference), which is sure to be both informative and wildly entertaining. What's more, Josh, Paul, and Nilay will be putting the new HTC Evo 4G through its paces live onstage, then they'll be joined by our very own Chris Ziegler and Laura June for a hard-hitting round of Q&A with the audience. That's right, it's your chance to ask the Engadget editors anything, live and in-person, plus much more (see instructions in the bullet points below). And as usual, we'll have some rocking 8-bit music from minusbaby and visuals from notendo and plenty of those good 'ol Engadget Show shenanigans.

You like giveaways? Well then, this is your lucky week (if you attend). Many of you will be walking away with shiny new Voyager Pro headsets, courtesy of Plantronics and we've got tons of Engadget t-shirts to hand out!

Oh, and did we mention we're also giving away a brand new iPad (courtesy of The Little App Factory and bundled with all of their software titles)? Well we are, alongside a handful of other goodies.

The Engadget Show is sponsored by Sprint, and will take place at the Times Center, part of The New York Times Building in the heart of New York City at 41st St. between 7th and 8th Avenues (see map after the break). Tickets are -- as always -- free to anyone who would like to attend, but seating is limited, and tickets will be first come, first served... so get there early! Here's all the info you need:
  • There is no admission fee -- tickets are completely free
  • The event is all ages
  • Ticketing will begin at the Times Center at 2:30PM on Saturday, doors will open for seating at 4:30PM, and the show begins at 5PM
  • You cannot collect tickets for friends or family -- anyone who would like to come must be present to get a ticket
  • Seating capacity in the Times Center is about 340, and once we're full, we're full
  • The venue is located at 41st St. between 7th and 8th Avenues in New York City (map after the break)
  • The show length is around an hour
  • If you have a question for the editor Q&A, email your question to showquestions [at] engadget [dot] com, or hand the question in to us at the venue by 3:30PM. You must hand in the query on an index card or piece of paper when you pick up your tickets.
If you're a member of the media who wishes to attend, please contact us at: engadgetshowmedia [at] engadget [dot] com, and we'll try to accommodate you. All other non-media questions can be sent to: engadgetshow [at] engadget [dot] com.

Subscribe to the Show:

[iTunes] Subscribe to the Show directly in iTunes (M4V).
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Continue reading The Engadget Show returns, this Saturday, May 22nd with Sprint's Evo 4G, Adobe CTO Kevin Lynch, and an Engadget editors Q&A!

The Engadget Show returns, this Saturday, May 22nd with Sprint's Evo 4G, Adobe CTO Kevin Lynch, and an Engadget editors Q&A! originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 18:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sonos 3.2 update and S5 stereo pairing put to the test
It's not a major update by any stretch. But Sonos owners are accustomed to regular software updates that extend or enhance the functionality of their distributed wireless audio system... for free. A good thing since a four room system can easily set you back a few thousand dollars -- a hefty price compared to some brute force solutions but relatively cheap compared to custom solutions offering similar functionality but with the additional burden of extensive in-wall wiring. Today's Sonos 3.2 update delivers crossfading to smooth the transition between songs and more sophisticated alarm settings allowing you to wake to any of Sonos' vast music delivery options at any time and in any room of the house. The gang from Santa Barbara also added Japanese and Simplified Chinese language support and tossed in access to the streaming iheartradio music service giving US owners access to exclusive content and some 750 national radio stations. But the flagship feature is probably the ability to join any two S5 speaker systems to create a stereo pair -- one S5 serving the left channel and the other serving the right. A union meant to achieve a balance indistinguishable from that of heaven and hell, yin and yang, or Nilay and Paul. Read our impressions after the break where you'll also find a spectacular press release using plain, bold, and italicized text!

Continue reading Sonos 3.2 update and S5 stereo pairing put to the test

Sonos 3.2 update and S5 stereo pairing put to the test originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon to offer 'up to' five LTE handsets by next May, Android tablets from HTC and friends
44diggsdigg Verizon had already said that it anticipated launching its first LTE handsets in the first half of 2011, but as we're rounding third base toward the launch of Big Red's first commercial 4G markets, it's shedding a little more light on how it thinks this'll all go down. Basically, wireless chief Lowell McAdam says we can expect "up to" five handsets by May of 2011, exactly a year from now -- which could mean anywhere between zero and five, as far as we're concerned -- and that Motorola, LG, HTC, and RIM are all in the running to serve up that first volley of hardware. What's not clear is whether these will make voice calls over CDMA exclusively (a la EVO 4G) or if they'll be compliant with the IMS-based (and GSMA-friendly) voice the company expects to eventually roll out on top of its LTE network, but either way, it's good news.

Turning our attention to Verizon's recent tablet hullabaloo, McAdam says that although "there's no reason [the company] couldn't have an iPad," the first tablets it offers will be Android-based -- yes, "tablets" plural -- and that most of them will launch in the fourth from companies "including Motorola, Samsung and LG." Interestingly, this dovetails rather conveniently with an NVIDIA-powered Motorola tablet with Verizon branding that was briefly (and quietly) shown off at CES this January, so we wouldn't be surprised if that was the unit we ended up getting. None of these devices might end up with the iPad's name recognition, obviously, but an LTE-powered Android tablet with HTC's good design sense certainly can't hurt.

Verizon to offer 'up to' five LTE handsets by next May, Android tablets from HTC and friends originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 17:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink AllThingsD | sourceReuters | Email this | Comments
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Seagate confirms 3TB hard drive for 2010, possible 32-bit OS issues
Seagate has been pushing the areal density envelope for years now, but by and large, these "developments" we hear about typically fade into the cold, harsh winter night without ever amounting to anything tangible. Not so this go 'round, with the company confirming to Thinq (and reaffirmed on our end) that it will be "announcing a 3TB drive later this year." If you'll recall, 2TB drives have held the crown for the world's largest since early 2009, and if all goes to plan, we'll be able to buy drives 50 percent larger than even those before the dawn of 2011. The company didn't talk details -- we're still left to envision a price, release date and spindle speed -- but it didn't hesitate to mention a few issues that users with older operating systems may encounter. Essentially, you'll need to have a rig that's fully capable of handling the Long LBA (logical block addressing) standard, which means that you'll need updated drivers, an updated BIOS and either a 64-bit copy of Vista, Windows 7 or "modified version of Linux." As you'd expect, Windows XP users needn't pay this platter any mind, and while Seagate is hopeful that industry players will all rally in short order to support the new HDD, there's still a chance that these growing pains will lead to delays. What we're most jazzed about here, crazily enough, isn't the predictable jump in capacity -- it's the fantasies of über-cheap 2TB drives once they fall from the top.

[Thanks, JC]

Seagate confirms 3TB hard drive for 2010, possible 32-bit OS issues originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 17:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Hot Hardware | sourceThinq | Email this | Comments
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OmniVision announces 'world's smallest' 1080p camera module
Well, Samsung's had a nice one-month run, but it looks like there's a new company to claim the title of world's smallest 1080p camera -- OmniVision's just announced an in-bezel solution of its own with a z-height a full one millimeter smaller (3.5 mm compared to Samsung's 4.5 mm). To achieve that feat, OmniVision used its own 1.4 micron OmniBSI backside illumination technology, which the company says also helps to give its new OV2720 CMOS sensor low-light performance double that of similar-sized VGA sensors. Still no word on any specific products that will use the camera, but OmniVision says it's ideal for everything from netbooks to standalone webcams, and it's already slated to go into mass production this June. Full press release is after the break.

Continue reading OmniVision announces 'world's smallest' 1080p camera module

OmniVision announces 'world's smallest' 1080p camera module originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 16:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nexus One runs Windows 3.11, possibly the saddest thing we've seen all day (video)
In a volatile Android ecosystem where bigger and better phones pop up every week, your Nexus One might be feeling a little obsolete. Frankly, there's hardly a better way to cheer it up than by installing an operating system that's a little more its speed. In the finest DOSBox tradition, one gentleman recently imbued his Googlephone with Windows 3.11, by far our favorite 1993 Microsoft OS. Realizing the futility of getting it to do anything -- ah, memories -- he set about crafting a step-by-step guide for you to do the same. If you care to give his misery company, you'll find instructions at our source link; if not, don your rose-tinted glasses and peep the video after the break.

Continue reading Nexus One runs Windows 3.11, possibly the saddest thing we've seen all day (video)

Nexus One runs Windows 3.11, possibly the saddest thing we've seen all day (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 16:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | sourceEric Tate | Email this | Comments
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BT prepping a tablet with combined home phone and web slate duties
Of course, every time you call it an "iPad killer," a BT-branded, slate tablet-shaped fairy dies. Still, while it's a bit silly for the UK provider to so rigorously avoid the comparisons, it's true that this forthcoming tablet might have something slightly different to offer. The tablet, which will measure slightly smaller diagonally than the iPad, can be used with a Bluetooth headset as a post-2010 take on the home phone, with abilities to manage email, SMS, voicemail and so forth straight from the screen. This is augmented with widgets and the requisite web browsing, which sounds pretty intriguing. Sure, you could set up an iPad to do most of this, but getting it all in one package from a home phone provider is an interesting slant. Unfortunately, we don't know who will be building this, or what it looks like, but if we get lucky maybe it'll have something to do with that Moorestown-powered OpenTablet 7 we spied at CTIA.

BT prepping a tablet with combined home phone and web slate duties originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 15:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink SlashGear | sourceTelegraph | Email this | Comments
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LG Ally review
You know, not every smartphone has to be putting down maxed-out hardware. That's a lesson that Nokia is certainly taking to heart, concentrating many of its latest efforts on lower-end Symbian devices that it hopes will capture entire new swaths of users that'd otherwise be buying dumbphones with half the functionality (and far less than half of the revenue potential). In the world of Android, though, recent devices like the EVO 4G, Droid, Droid Incredible, and Nexus One have admittedly caused us to grow accustomed to the idea that we should all be using blazingly fast processors and huge WVGA displays.

In reality, of course, Android is an extraordinarily scalable platform; there's a whole world of hardware (and around $200 of on-contract pricing) below today's latest round of "superphones." At $100 on a two-year deal, the LG Ally sort of typifies what we'd expect out of a midrange Android device right now -- a gap-filler that can capture users seeking a Droid experience on a Kin Two budget. So does it hold up in the day-to-day grind, or are you going to be begging for a Droid by day two? Let's find out.

Gallery: LG Ally review

Continue reading LG Ally review

LG Ally review originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 15:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ZTE packs 3G, Maemo into its V7 MID
Sure, Android has been getting plenty of attention from MID manufacturers as of late, but we all know that's not the only mobile OS worth a gander. Debuted by ZTE "at a ceremony dedicated to the 3G technology" at Shanghai's World Expo the V7 MID is roughly 4.7 x 3.3 x .5-inches and features the Maemo OS and -- for those of you who value function over form -- a physical QWERTY keyboard. Also on board are a 4.1 inch (800 x 480) display, a 3.2 megapixel webcam, and support for 3G CDMA1X, EV-DO, and HSDPA. But that ain't all! Rounded out by a Marvell PXA310 processor (806 MHz), GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth, micro USB, and an SD card slot, we imagine that all you mobile Internet fans will be able to put this thing to good use. No price or release date yet, those are but two of many mysteries this device raises. Which leads us to our next question: What goes on at a "ceremony dedicated to the 3G," anyways?

ZTE packs 3G, Maemo into its V7 MID originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 15:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink ChiniTech | sourceC114.net | Email this | Comments
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Official: Acer will not launch Chrome OS devices at Computex
Oh, what's this? Acer officially saying it will not launch a Chrome OS device at Computex or in the "short term," just like our sources told us a few days ago? Unfortunately, that's exactly what's going on. Like we said last week, Google's other operating system just doesn't look like it's ready for prime time yet, and it's a little premature to expect devices running Chrome OS to "launch" in just two weeks -- although we're sure we'll see someone throw an early Chromium build on a new tablet or netbook, and show it off at the upcoming Taipei computer show. Of course, we are expecting Android tablets and smartbooks to be in full force at the show, and we'll be there hunting down the best ones. Hit the break for Acer's official Chrome comment.

Continue reading Official: Acer will not launch Chrome OS devices at Computex

Official: Acer will not launch Chrome OS devices at Computex originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 14:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Skullcandy debuts Jay-Z-approved Roc Nation Aviator headphones
While they may not exactly look like it, these new Roc Nation Aviator headphones are fairly understated compared to some of Skullcandy's other offerings, and it looks like you have Roc Nation co-founder Jay-Z to thank for that. Available in your choice of three different colors, the Aviators sport a foldable design and an "optics-inspired" polycarbonate speaker housing, along with a pair of 40mm full-range mylar drivers with neodymium magnets, and a tangle-free nylon cable complete with an in-line mic and controls. Still no word on a price just yet, but Skullcandy says the headphones will be available sometime in June. Oh, and envy had absolutely nothing to do with the creation of these.

Skullcandy debuts Jay-Z-approved Roc Nation Aviator headphones originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 14:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Engadget Spanish | sourceSkullcandy | Email this | Comments
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DIYer combines iPhone 3GS with Show WX for pico projected gaming bliss (video)
180diggsdiggThe Moject project proved that smartphones and pico projectors do indeed have a thing for one another, but Ethan Janson has taken things one step further with an unnamed contraption that holds his iPhone 3GS, a Microvision Show WX and an "ancient" point-and-shoot camera. Put simply, the handmade thingamajig allows him to play his iPhone games on a far larger screen, and since the Show WX is continually in focus regardless of distance from walls, there's never a blurring issue when flailing about in order to control the gameplay. The full skinny is down there in the source, but shortcut takers can head straight past the break for a video.

[Thanks, Ethan]

Continue reading DIYer combines iPhone 3GS with Show WX for pico projected gaming bliss (video)

DIYer combines iPhone 3GS with Show WX for pico projected gaming bliss (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 13:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | sourcePicoProject | Email this | Comments
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DuPont can print a 50-inch OLED TV in two minutes, you'll be waiting a little longer
DuPont can print a 50-inch OLED TV in two minutes, you still can't buy one
Right now LG's 15-inch OLED TV is the cheapest you can get -- but at about $2,500 it won't be rocking too many peoples' lives. We've heard promises of dropping costs thanks to printed displays for ages now, but never on a scale like this. DuPont has teamed up with Dainippon Screen to create a printing technique capable of line-feeding a 50-inch display in just two minutes. Two minutes! The printer is likened to a high precision garden hose, flying over the display surface at a speed of five meters per second depositing that good, good OLED juice in just the right places with nary a drip or an unwanted sprinkle. DuPont Displays President William Feehery says the technique "is worth scaling up" and could compete on cost with LCDs while delivering a 15-year lifespan. That's not quite the 100 years they promised us last time, but we'll take it. No word on when, or if, this technique will actually be deployed en masse.

DuPont can print a 50-inch OLED TV in two minutes, you'll be waiting a little longer originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 13:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink OLED-Display.net | sourceTechnology Review | Email this | Comments
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Objet 3D printing put to the test in Iron Man 2 (video)
We got a pretty good look at some of the tech of Iron Man 2 recently, and it looks like the flick's gadgety goodness extends behind the camera as well. It appears that all that bad ass armor is actually produced on the fly by the film's production company, Legacy Effects, using an Objet Eden 3D printer. The company describes the process as "print-to-wear" - pieces come out of the printer, get applied with paint, and make their way to the actors. And since the designs begin with an actual scan of the actor's body, they are much more comfortable. Believe us, there is nothing that a director wants to see less than a cranky Robert Downey, Jr. on their set. For more info on how the device is being used throughout the creative process, check out the video after the break.

Continue reading Objet 3D printing put to the test in Iron Man 2 (video)

Objet 3D printing put to the test in Iron Man 2 (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 13:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | sourceEcouterre | Email this | Comments
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Nintendo Wii gets American Heart Association's stamp of approval
When we heard that Nintendo and the American Heart Association would be making an announcement today, we (and most everyone else) assumed that it would have something to do with Nintendo's forthcoming Vitality Sensor. As it turns out, however, it's something altogether more surprising -- the AHA has announced that it's actually putting its stamp of approval on the Wii itself (as well as Wii Fit Plus and Wii Sports Resort). That's obviously a first for a video game console, and fairly unprecedented for the AHA -- as ABC News points out, the association hasn't seen fit to put its seal on other "active" things like baseball bats. It apparently had some small incentive to do so in this case, however, as the organization says it will be receiving a cool $1.5 million from Nintendo over three years as a result of the partnership. Head on past the break to see the AHA president explain the arrangement.

[Thanks, Katie]

Continue reading Nintendo Wii gets American Heart Association's stamp of approval

Nintendo Wii gets American Heart Association's stamp of approval originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 12:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | sourceABC News, Nintendo / AHA | Email this | Comments
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