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Researcher Adds Photovoltaic Cells to OLED Screen, Starts on Path to First Self-Sustaining Smartphone

2012-01-20T12:46:00.006-05:00

Here is some very interesting news for you. A crafty little researcher at the London Center for Nanotechnology managed to stuff a bunch of little solar power cells behind the display of a smartphone. According to Arman Ahnood, who just unveiled his design at the Materials Research Society at the end of last year, only 36% of the light produced by an OLED display is projected straight out. The other 64% is wasted as scattered light or bleeding from the edge of the display.

Ahnood created photovoltaic cells that line the back of and sides of an OLED display in order to capture some of this 64% of wasted light. The result? Free, harvested energy that can subsequently be used to power the phone or charge the battery. In other words, you now have a nearly self-powering smartphone.

The best part is that Ahnood's cells take the form of a thin film, similar to OLED and LCD displays themselves. Ahnood's idea is to bond this photovoltaic layer to the stack of films that make up an OLED display, which would ultimately produce OLED screens that automatically harvest wasted light. In addition to that, because OLED and LCD screens are not 100% opaque, these thin photovoltaic cells will gather ambient light from overhead lights or the sun.

As of right now, Ahnood's system only consists of a supercapacitor and some circuitry and only has an 11% efficiency rating. This is very low considering that commercial photovoltaic cells are reaching 30%, but Ahnood's is free energy. Ahnood's system can currently output a total of 5 milliwatts for a 3.7" smartphone screen, which is definitely a step in the right direction.

Ahnood's next step, as well as the next step for all the other researchers at the London Center for Nanotechnology, is to experiment with designs and materials to get the efficiency up to 90%. Once they get to that point, the system could extend the life of a phone battery by a few hours. Add in some more energy harvesting technology and we could very well see smartphones that can last more than a day on a single charge.

Source: ExtremeTech - Smartphone screens with built-in solar cells
IEEE Spectrum - Solar Cells in Smartphone Screens
Engadget - Arman Ahnood teases OLED display with solar cells, idealizes the self-sustaining smartphone

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Developer Newsletter Hints at March Release Date for Nokia Lumia 900 Windows Phone

2012-01-13T13:45:00.006-05:00

This week's 2012 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas was definitely one to remember. So much new tech was on hand, serving the sole purpose of making a lot of people mad that they weren't there and eager for the coming months. One of the coolest gadgets in the smartphone realm came out of the Nokia booth in the form of the Nokia Lumia 900. The device was unveiled by Nokia CEO Stephen Elop and will run Microsoft Windows Phone 7.5. It is also the biggest and fastest smartphone to date according to Elop.

But even though Elop and Nokia divulged a lot in terms of the phone itself, what they carefully left out of the unveiling was precise information on availability and pricing of the Nokia Lumia 900 Windows Phone on AT&T. AT&T wasn't much help either, as they too left out any specific mention of a final release date or final pricing scheme.

A Nokia Developer Newsletter that has been circulating around the internet gives a little detail about when and where we will see this phone saying that the Nokia Lumia 900 "will become available exclusively through AT&T in March." In addition to that, netcast hosts Paul Thurrott and Mary Jo Foley from Twit.TV gathered from sources of their own that the Nokia Lumia 900 will be available come March 18, just slightly more than two months after its debut at CES 2012.

Neither of these dates were confirmed by Nokia or AT&T at CES and neither company stated anything about pricing whatsoever, leaving people something to speculate about. Between now and March 18, on the other hand, there is another big electronics show set to take place at the end of February in Barcelona. This one is quite possibly more important for mobile device makers than CES, so you can expect Microsoft, Nokia and possibly even AT&T to give us a little more information about the Lumia 900 there.

Source: Engadget - Nokia Lumia 900 Coming to retail on March 18?
Pocketnow.com - Nokia Lumia 900 Expected on AT&T In March Says Dev Newsletter

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AOC Unveils 22" 1080p USB Monitor

2012-01-06T13:13:00.005-05:00

AOC has just announced its new 22" USB monitor in a recent press release. The USB monitor is a stylish, full HD LED monitor that receives power and signal completely from a USB connection. Being both energy efficient and affordable, the 22" USB monitor (also known as the e2251Fwu) offers simple plug-and-play connectivity, which makes it perfect for every tech savvy road warrior out there.

The e2251Fwu is perfect for business, gaming and entertainment use with its integrated USB port and high picture quality. If you are in the habit of running multiple applications, this is definitely a product you should look into. AOC states that the 22" USB monitor should be available in February for $199 and will also be showcased at the Bellagio, Monet 3 Ballroom at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show set to take place next week in Las Vegas.

According to Marketing Manager for AOC Robert Velez, "The 22-inch USB Monitor makes multi-screen computing more practical than ever with its plug-and-play setup, cord independence and low power consumption."

The e2251Fwu is extremely light and very thin and is an LED-backlit LCD monitor that comes with full 1080p HD resolution, 20,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, 200cd/m2 brightness and a 5ms response time. The LED backlighting allows the monitor to consume 50% less energy than most monitors and the monitor itself features a removable stand that allows it to instantly transform into a digital picture frame or presentation display.

Integration with other desktop or notebook computers is easy thanks to the DisplayLink chip and the device itself is also supported by Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Mac OS X Tiger, Mac OS X Snow Leopard and Mac OS X Lion. In addition to that, Linux support is available through many standard distributions. Full specifications include:

USB-powered LED display

250cd brightness

20,000,000:1 Dynamic Contrast Ratio

5ms response time

1,920 x 1,080 resolution at 60Hz

HDCP compatible

10.6mm thick

Supported on all leading operating systems including Windows, Mac OS X and Linux

Source: Engadget - AOC reveals 22-inch, USB-powered 1080p monitor

Security Camera Solutions

Lenovo's New IdeaPad S110 "Mini Netbook"

2011-12-30T15:57:00.005-05:00

Even though Lenovo's IdeaPad S110 netbook, the one complete with the Intel Atom Cedar Trail processor, has yet to be officially announced, Lenovo has still gone ahead and released a promotional video for the 10.1" laptop. Aside from the video, tech site Pro Vantage already lists the S110 206932U model complete with the Atom N2600, 1GB of RAM, 320GB HDD and Windows 7 Starter for $321 which means an "official" announcement is right around the corner.

According to Lenovo's video, the IdeaPad S110 is .62" thick and weighs in at 2.5lbs with a redesigned chassis that differs from Lenovo's standard design. The 10.1" screen is advertised as being HD and the device itself comes with a 98% full-sized keyboard with AccuType curved keys. As far as connectivity goes, the video shows USB 3.0 but nothing else. You'll have to wait for the official announcement to get every detail. The video also pointed out an optional 2MP webcam as well as WiFi and 3G connectivity.

The device will ship in a plethora of colors and so far black, white, red and blue S110 devices were shown in the video. Aside from the Windows 7 OS, the S110 also has instant-on OS for quick access to the internet without having to boot from the main operating system.

One interesting thing to point out is that the company avoids calling the IdeaPad S110 a netbook. Instead, Lenovo calls it a "mini netbook". Maybe the company thinks that netbooks get negative reviews thanks to their low performance? Regardless, a small, 10.1" laptop with an Atom CPU is usually considered a netbook, so the fact that Lenovo calls it a "mini netbook" won't really change things in the eyes of the tech world.

No word on an official release date but you can be sure there will be one soon. Keep checking back for more updates on the Lenovo IdeaPad S110 as well as everything else in the mobile tech world.

Source: New Technik - Lenovo IdeaPad S110 'Cedar Trail' Netbook Leaks (Video)

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Ice Cream Sandwich Not Coming to Samsung Galaxy S or Original Galaxy Tab

2011-12-23T16:15:00.007-05:00

It is a sad, sad day for any and all who own the Samsung Galaxy S and/or the Samsung Galaxy Tab because it has just been confirmed that neither device will be receiving Android's Ice Cream Sandwich update. The company recently sent out update schedules on which devices will be receiving Ice Cream Sandwich and when they will receive it and, unfortunately, neither the Samsung Galaxy S nor the Samsung Galaxy Tab (7" original version) made the list.

Fortunately, the later models of Samsung's products will be getting the Ice Cream Sandwich treatment, like the Galaxy S II, Galaxy S II LTE, Galaxy R, Galaxy Tab 10.1, Galaxy Tab 8.9, Galaxy Tab 7.7 and Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus. However, that means very little to the millions of users who own Samsung's 2010 flagship smartphone or the company's first jump into the tablet market.

An interesting fact is that the Nexus S, which is surprisingly similar to the Galaxy S, is getting the update. That begs the question as to why the Galaxy S is not. Samsung explained that the reason the Galaxy S is not getting the Ice Cream Sandwich update is due to a combination of factors: using the TouchWiz skin, included video conferencing software, additional widgets, carrier software and localization, all of which make it extremely hard for Samsung to deliver an update. Aside from all of that, Samsung also refers to issues with RAM and ROM management.

What is even worse is that this confirms fears about further fragmentation with Android and Ice Cream Sandwich. The new operating system was supposed to fix the issue which is why it is so unsettling to see a powerful device like the Galaxy S get left behind. On the contrary, Apple has delivered its newest iOS 5 software to the iPhone 3GS, which was released in 2009, one year before the Galaxy S.

If you're pretty technically skilled then, you may be able to hack your Galaxy S to run Ice Cream Sandwich, though I am assuming many users are not. This is definitely sad news but I predict that as operating systems get more and more advanced, we will see them popping up on less and less older devices.

Source: Phone Arena - Samsung Galaxy S and Galaxy Tab not getting ICS

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Toshiba's New Dynabook WT301/D Android Tablet

2011-12-19T21:28:00.007-05:00

Android is coming on strong in the tablet PC market. Apple completely set the standard for tablets when it first unveiled the original iPad (which seems like a lifetime ago) and held the spot as the tablet to have. However, tablets running the Android operating system are starting to give the iPad some stiff competition, mainly because only one company, Apple, can make the iPad and every other company out there can make an Android tablet. One of the biggest Android tablet makers is Toshiba and they have just unveiled their newest tablet to hit the market, the Toshiba Dynabook WT301/D.

Toshiba already has a number of Android tablets in its repertoire though this latest 10" tablet is said to run on Windows 7 Professional, giving it a little something extra over previous models. The device itself is coming soon to Japan and has been completely aimed toward enterprise users. As far as specs are concerned, the Toshiba Dynabook WT301/D has a 10.1", 1,366 x 768 pixel display along with an Intel Atom processor, 2GB of RAM and a 64GB solid state drive.

Seeing as how tablets are designed to be mobile, this device comes with 802.11 b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth 3.0 and a front-facing VGA camera along with a 1.3MP rear camera allowing you to take pictures and video chat with ease. The Toshiba Dynabook also has built-in stereo speakers, USB and micro HDMI ports. In addition to that, the tablet will come with business software like Microsoft Office Home and Business 2010.

Unfortunately, as it stands right now, the Toshiba Dynabook WT301/D is only set to release in Japan in January. There is currently no word on whether or not it will be branching out to other countries or when that may happen but I would wager that you may see this tablet hit stateside in the Spring of 2012.

Source: liliputing - Toshiba introduces 10-inch Windows tablet in Japan

Hopes of LTE Unifying 4G Slim At Best

2011-12-12T02:15:00.008-05:00

Just in case you were wondering, next-gen LTE mobile broadband networks won't be unifying global communications anytime soon, and they may never do so, period. A new Wireless Intelligence report was published on Friday that estimates that over 200 LTE networks will have been launched around the world by the year 2015 (that is, of course, if the 2012 doomsday doesn't kill us first).

This may seem like fantastic news at first, but then you realize that your LTE device will be incapable of working on all of them. It is also estimated that a total of 38 frequencies are expected to be on these networks as well. Looking at the Wireless Intelligence chart may put some people at ease due to the fact that a majority of the LTE networks will be using the 700MHz spectrum. Unfortunately, there are two problems.

The first problem is that 67% of LTE networks are using 700MHz is for this year (2011). Looking at the inner ring of the chart shows that 700MHz is still currently the preferred frequency for networks running in 2015 but only 16% for the operators. The second problem is that even within range of a like spectrum, carriers can still use slightly different frequencies. This effectively removes the ability to move a device from one network to another.

Fragmentation of this sort is already visible in the U.S. LTE networks currently in development. AT&T, as well as Verizon, are both using 700MHz blocks though with a slight variance. Verizon's network will use 746 to 787MHz while AT&T's will use 704 to 746MHz.

Making sure that every country in the world is on the same spectrum is beyond impossible, especially considering the regions that have been using certain frequencies for years now. It may not even be possible to do so at this point anyway which is especially disappointing considering the fact that mobile internet is starting to empower users to think on a more global scale.

Source: Gigaom - With 38 frequency flavors, LTE won't unify 4G

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New Novo7 Tablet Ships with Android 4.0 Pre-Installed

2011-12-05T20:39:00.007-05:00

People were just freaking out over the Jaguar 7's demonstration of Ice Cream Sandwich and anxiously awaiting the release of the Transformer Prime until Igenic and MIPS completely slapped them across the face and said "Look what we made!" by announcing the Ainol-branded Novo7. The Novo7 is absolutely the first commercially available tablet to come loaded with Ice Cream Sandwich out of the box.

I must confess that this device isn't entirely brand new. It was previously available as a Honeycomb tablet and is now shipping with Ice Cream Sandwich pre-loaded. In addition to the newest version of Android's operating system, this device is also packing an Igenic JZ4770 mobile applications processor, as well as 1GHz MIPS-based XBurst CPU, meaning, unfortunately, that this tablet isn't going to be breaking any power records.

A 7" capacitive touchscreen, Vivante GC860 CPU clocked at 444MHz, 1080p video decoding, rear 2MP camera with VGA front-facing camera, USB 2.0, HDMI 1.3, microSD slot and an endorsement from the one and only Andy Rubin (Google's Senior Vice President of Mobile) are all perks you get with the Novo7.

While the processor and CPU may seem to be on the low end, they are perfect for how much you will pay for this little guy. The Novo7 from MIPS and Ingenic will only cost you $99. For an Android 4.0 tablet with dual cameras and full 1080p HD, I'd say it's a steal. However, you may want to hold off on buying one right now for a few reasons. First off, the device isn't yet available in the United States and shipping will cost you nearly $50. Second, MIPS has already informed us that this device will hit the US market over "the next several months" and that 8" and 9" versions are also in the works. Plus, if you already have the previous Novo tablet, an update with Ice Cream Sandwich is on the way.

Source: Engadget - Ainol launches the NOVO7, the world's first Android 4.0 tablet, for $100 plus shipping.

Security Camera Solutions

New "Book Club" for Kobo E-Reader Users

2011-12-04T14:46:00.004-05:00

Tablet producer Kobo just announced on Thursday, December 1 that it will be offering a “book club” for consumers that buy and activate its e-reader for a limited time.

The service will be called the 2012 Kobo Book Club, and it will be available to all consumers that purchase the Kobo eReader Touch or Kobo Touch with Offers. Kobo explained that at the end of each month through the end of 2012, it will offer all U.S. and Canadian users a free e-book that they can keep.

Kobo also announced on Thursday that it had a new firmware upgrade for its Vox eReader Tablet. The upgrade will be automatically downloaded and installed when users connect to the Internet with their device. However, unfortunately for Vox users, they will not have access to the Book Club.

Although Kobo is supposed to be the top-selling e-reader in Canada, it has plenty of competitors in the United States. The tablet has to go against Amazon’s Kindle and Barnes and Noble’s Nook. Kobo, however, has one up on these other e-readers with the new Book Club. Amazon offered an e-book lending program recently, but it really isn’t much of anything in comparison to the Book Club.

"Kobo has an amazing family of eReaders and with the launch of the 2012 Book Club there's never been a better time to buy a Kobo Touch eReader," said Michael Tamblyn, executive vice president of content, sales and merchandising for Kobo. "Our Kobo Touch eReaders bring the ultimate in eReading value to readers around the world, and this new book club is another example of how we can take that great experience and make it even better for Kobo Touch eReader owners."

Kobo released the list of publishers that will be supplying the books for the Book Club, and I have to say that they are a little obscure. The list includes e-Reads, F+W Publications, Gooseberry Patch, Kensington Publishing, New Word City, and the Harvard Business Review, and Kobo said that the writers whose work will be featured in the club include Blake Crouch, J.A. Konrath, Shayna Krishnasamy, and Phyllis Smallman.

On Thursday Kobo also went on to apologize to its customers. It said that it has made some recent changes to the infrastructures of its customer service, and the transition hasn’t really been as smooth as they had hoped.

“The transition to our new platform has caused challenges for some of our customers resulting in longer phone wait times and delayed email responses," said Mark Stevens, vice president of customer care, wrote in a letter to customers. "We have been working diligently to identify the problems and resolve them to reach the level of service our customers expect. As a result, we expect to see significant improvement in response times within the next week."

Black Friday Sales Are the "Best Ever" for Kindle Tablets

2011-11-28T12:47:00.008-05:00

On Monday, November 28 Amazon reported that Black Friday sales of its Kindle tablets were the highest that Kindle has ever seen.

"Black Friday was the best ever for the Kindle family—customers purchased 4X as many Kindle devices as they did last Black Friday— and last year was a great year," Vice President of Amazon Kindle Dave Limp said in a statement. "In addition, we're seeing a lot of customers buying multiple Kindles—one for themselves and others as gifts—we expect this trend to continue on Cyber Monday and through the holiday shopping season."

So far, Amazon has not released the exact sales figures from Black Friday, but clearly they are going to be impressive. Of course, it was the Kindle Fire that was at the top of all the Kindle sales charts. Consumers have been pumped about the Kindle Fire since it was first announced by Amazon. In late October the Amazon chief Jeff Bezos said that the day that the Kindle Fire was announced was the “biggest order day ever for Kindle.” He went on to say that the Kindle Fire had doubled the amount of pre-orders from the previous Kindle launch.

Target offered plenty of tablet options on Black Friday including the Kindle Fire, Motorola Xoom, Asus Eee Pad and Acer Iconia, but the company reported that the Kindle Fire was the store’s best-selling tablet this past Friday.

Best Buy also reported impressive sales of the device. Wendy Fritz, senior vice president of computing, tablets, and e-readers at Best Buy, commented on Kindle Fire sales saying, "If this Black Friday was any indication, they are only getting hotter as we get into the shopping season."

In general Black Friday shopping online and in-store went up from last year. "Despite some analysts' predictions that the flurry of brick-and-mortar retailers opening their doors early for Black Friday would pull dollars from online retail, we still saw a banner day for e-commerce with more than $800 million in spending," said comScore chairman, Gian Fulgoni, in a statement. "With brick-and-mortar retail also reporting strong gains on Black Friday, it's clear that the heavy promotional activity had a positive impact on both channels."

Data has just been released from a survey that was conducted by the National Retail Federation showing that there was an estimated total of 226 million shoppers this year compared to 212 million in 2010. According to the NRF, the brick-and-mortar and online shopping totals are the highest that they have been in the past five years.

"Each of the top online retailers generated significantly greater Black Friday activity compared to last year," said Fulgoni, in a statement. "Amazon.com once again led the pack, with 50 percent more visitors than any other retailer, while also showing the highest growth rate versus last year. However, it is telling that the top multi-channel retailers also showed strong growth in visitors, demonstrating the importance of the online channel to the retail industry as a whole."

"Consumers are clearly demonstrating their desire to spend this holiday season, but are far from throwing caution to the wind when it comes to how much they will spend on gifts," said Phil Rist, executive vice president at BIGresearch, in a statement. "Retailers will have to stick to an aggressive holiday promotion schedule to keep consumers interested."

Sources: PCMag - Amazon Reports 'Best Ever' Black Friday Kindle Sales, PCMag - Black Friday Spending Up 16.4% From 2010 and PCMag - Nov. Online Spending up 15%; Black Friday, 26%

Security Camera Solutions

Toshiba Portege Z830 Ultrabook Available Now Online

2011-11-25T11:52:00.005-05:00

Toshiba's new Portege Z830 Ultrabook, a device that the company is touting as the world's lightest 13" laptop, is now available online for everyday consumers at Toshiba.com. A total of four different models of the Portege Z830 are available now with a base price of $929. However, customers do have the option of building their own, though that starting price is slightly more expensive at $1,099.

The configurable model, as well as the other two higher-end models (priced at $1,199 and $1,429 respectively), is considerably more expensive than competing Ultrabooks like the Acer Aspire S3, which sells for $899. However, the extra cash you spend entitles you to a bunch of upgrades including an Intel Core i5 or i7 processor, Windows 7 Professional, a three-year warranty, Bluetooth, a fingerprint reader and, for those who cash in on the $1,429 model, 6GB of memory over the standard 4GB. Still, Acer offers a beefed-up model of the Aspire S3 with an Intel Core i7 processor and 256GB SSD for only $1,299.

You can also pick up a less expensive edition of the Toshiba Portege Z830, known as the Z835. In addition to being more affordable, the Z835 is also the lightest Ultrabook on the market, hands down. Many reviews have stated that the weight difference between the Portege Z835, other Ultrabooks and Apple's MacBook Air is immediately noticeable. The Portege weighs 2.4 lbs while the 13" MacBook Air weighs 2.96 lbs.

There is also an exclusive Best Buy Portege Z835 that is priced at $799. If you compare Toshiba's $929 Z835-ST8305 and the $929 Z935-P330 models against Best Buy's version, you won't find any significant differences in terms of specs so the Best Buy model may be your best bet. All three models offer the same 1,366 x 768 resolution on a 13.3" display and come with an Intel Core i3-2367M processor, 4GB of memory and a 128GB solid state drive.

The Z835 does have some other things going for it, however, aside from light weight, like a full array of full-sized ports, a backlit keyboard and a solid state drive. If you want to get one in time for the holidays, head on over to Toshiba's Portege Z830 website. Toshiba says that the devices will ship in about three to four weeks.

Source: PCWorld - Toshiba Portege Z830 Ultrabook Now Available Online

A T-Mobile iPhone 4S is Only One Hack Away

2011-11-18T18:25:00.005-05:00

The iPhone 4S has already outdone its predecessors by making itself available with three different carriers, Verizon, AT&T and Sprint, but it seems as if some hackers didn't think that three carriers was quite good enough. So you know what they did? They hacked the device to run on a fourth carrier, T-Mobile. That's right, if you are a loyal T-Mobile customer and you desperately want the iPhone 4S, all you have to do is follow the instructions of two hackers.

Hackers Michael Capozzi and Daniel Scaleb, via Pastebin and a YouTube video, posted step-by-step instructions that specifically show you how to hack an iPhone 4S in order to make it compatible with T-Mobile's service as T-Mobile is now the only major U.S. carrier that does not support the device.

The modification requires you to insert the original AT&T SIM card, dial 611 for customer service, then drop the call. The next step has you turning on "Airplane" mode, removing the legitimate SIM card and reinserting a T-Mobile SIM card. But that's not all. As Scaleb said on Pastebin, the next step involves turning off "Airplane" mode. This will cause the iPhone to search for a network.

The EDGE network will automatically activate, after which you should turn off then phone for 20 to 30 seconds and then turn it on again. Once you turn the phone back on, tap "Use Cellular Connection" when the "Activation Required" screen pops up. After you perform all of these steps, removing the SIM card and reinserting it into your device should unlock the phone and make it compatible with T-Mobile's network.

The "hack" seems pretty simple though tech site Gizmodo, which was also one of the first sites to report about it, has said that it has received conflicting reports about whether or not the unlocking trick actually works. Regardless, if you want to give it a shot yourself and get a T-Mobile compatible iPhone 4S then go for it, though there is another option. As of last week, GSM iPhone 4S smartphones became available for $650, so there's always that.

Source: MSNBC - Hackers modify iPhone 4S to run on T-Mobile

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Adobe Promises to Keep Patches Coming for Flash Player

2011-11-11T14:02:00.005-05:00

Even though the Flash Player plug-in for mobile browsers is going away, Adobe has promised to support it, though the company has not said exactly how long it will continue to patch security bugs in the software. The Adobe Executive in charge of Interactive Development Danny Winokur said in a recent blog post that Adobe would release one more version of Flash Player for Android and RIM's PlayBook before calling it quits.

The last version, which was labeled 11.1, shipped today though Winokur pledged that Adobe would keep patching some bugs in Flash Player. According to his statement, "We will of course continue to provide critical bug fixes and security updates for existing device configurations." Winokur's mention of "critical bug fixes" may not mean much, however. That is because Adobe typically rates all its Flash security updates as "critical" across the board.

In addition to Winokur's statement, another Adobe manger repeated that promise. In a Twitter post by Brad Arkin, Senior Director of Product Security and Privacy for Adobe, Arkin stated, "Adobe will continue to ship security updates for Flash Player mobile after the final feature release."

Unfortunately, neither Winokur nor Arkin relayed exactly how long Flash Player 11 security updates will be offered for smartphones and tablets. In addition to that, Adobe's Public Relations Staff declined to comment on a support timeline. Director of Security Operations at nCircle Security Andrew Storms, however, found this bit of information very peculiar.

"Why would they not tell us?" Storms asked. "That's to the detriment of everybody. If they make a date, that would get users off it sooner and force developers to get off Flash too." In addition to that, Storms speculated that Adobe may not have yet decided or that other commitments may have tied their hands.

Even though there is no word on when Adobe will drop Flash, users should look to the company's handling of Shockwave Player for inspiration. Even though Shockwave Player 11 was introduced back in March 2008, Adobe is still pushing patches to servers with the most recent one hitting last Tuesday. What is interesting, and slightly ironic, is that Adobe patched Flash Player on Thursday, releasing 11.1 for Android, as well as for Windows, OS X and Linux.

The update fixed 12 flaws, all of which were considered critical and most of them memory corruption vulnerabilities. The update yesterday was the ninth this year for Flash Player. This is nearly double the number that Adobe released in 2010. If you're running desktop browsers other than Chrome, you can download the patched version of Flash Player from Adobe's site. Android users can obtain the update from the Android Marketplace.

Source: Computer World - Adobe promises to keep patching Flash on mobile ... but doesn't say for how long

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New Nook Tablet Launched by Barnes & Noble, Set to Challenge Amazon's Kindle Fire

2011-11-07T15:35:00.005-05:00

Amazon's Kindle Fire has been buzzing around the internet for a while now getting everybody up in a frenzy. For those of you who don't already know, the Kindle Fire is a 7" tablet from Amazon that has a beautiful $199 price tag. However, it appears as if Amazon has some competition now that Barnes & Noble has pulled the curtain on the all new Nook Tablet.

The new Nook Tablet heavily resembles its predecessor, the recently discounted Nook Color. Everything looks pretty much the same, even the metal bar on the bottom of the corner. Even though Barnes & Noble technically already launched into the tablet market earlier this year with an upgraded Nook Color, the Nook Tablet looks to bring more than just a new name to an old device.

The tablet comes with a 7" IPS display with full lamination, video playback in up to 1080p, and 11.5 hours of battery life, supposedly. In addition to that, the Nook Tablet also comes with 16GB of built-in memory which can be further expanded thanks to a microSD slot.

The Nook Tablet is definitely concerned with multimedia content and offers Netflix, as well as Hulu Plus, pre-loaded and also gives you access to 250 magazines and periodicals, as well as comics from big name publishers like Marvel. It is also obvious that Barnes & Noble is going straight at the Kindle Fire, but I don't think that this is going to come as any big surprise to anyone.

There are great features with both devices but you may want to consider getting the Nook Tablet over the Kindle Fire for a few reasons. First off, the Nook Tablet offers double the storage space of the Kindle Fire (which, of course, is also expandable) as well as a better display, more RAM, free in-store device support and a lighter body weight at under 1 lb.

The device, when it is released, will run Android Gingerbread and, unfortunately, does not offer open access to the Android Marketplace, just like the previous Nook Color. The tablet will cost you $50 more than the Kindle Fire with a $249 price tag but that $50 difference seems like it's worth it, especially for a better screen, double storage, more RAM and a lighter weight.

Pre-orders are now available online or in-store with the device beginning to ship next week.

Source: Engadget - Barnes & Noble launches Nook Tablet, lights a fire under Amazon

Dell Launched All New Latitude ST Business Tablet

2011-10-30T14:37:00.006-04:00

Dell has just launched the all-new Latitude ST Windows 7-based slate computer. This new device sports a 10.1" display and also shows support for multitouch input as well as digital pen input and comes with an Intel Atom processor.

The Latitude ST is primarily aimed towards business customers according to Dell. The Latitude ST comes with an Intel Atom Z670 1.5GHz "Lincroft" CPU and also comes with 2GB of DDR2 memory, a solid state drive with up to 128GB of capacity and Windows 7 Home Premium, Pro or Ultimate as well as WiFi, Bluetooth and optional 3G broadband connection with A-GPS.

The display itself is a 10" display with a native 1,280 x 800 resolution and a Corning Gorilla Glass cover. In addition to that, the Latitude ST also comes with an N-Trig digitizer. A rear-facing 5MP camera, as well as a 720p HD front-facing webcam, are included on the Latitude ST along with a single speaker, USB 2.0, HDMI out, SD memory card reader, headphone/microphone combo jack and a docking connector.

The ST series docking station, which is sold separately, provides an additional three USB 2.0 ports, Gigabit LAN, HDMI and audio out. Since computer security is becoming increasingly more important, Dell has incorporated the Trusted Platform Module 1.2 into the tablet. In addition to that, a remote hard drive wipe functionality has also been added. Microsoft BitLocker Data Encryption is also available in Pro and Ultimate Windows editions of the tablet. The Dell Latitude ST will be available in 53 countries for a starting price of $759 on November 1.

Full specifications for the Dell Latitude ST tablet include:

10.1" 1,280 x 800 capacitive multitouch display with N-Trig pen digitizer

Intel Atom Z670 1.5GHz processor

2GB of RAM

Up to 128GB SSD

Front-facing 720p and Rear-facing 5MP cameras

1xUSB 2.0, Gigabit LAN, HDMI, SD card reader, headphone/mic combo port

10.63" x 7.32" x 0.59" dimensions

1.8lbs total weight

Windows 8 Home Premium, Professional or Ultimate OS

Source: Laptoping - Dell Latitude ST Windows / Atom Tablet Released

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Google Now Allowing Education and Business Chromebook Customers to Pay Upfront

2011-10-23T20:44:00.006-04:00

One of the biggest things to hit the tech world a while back was the fact that Google, the search engine superpower, was expanding into hardware with its all new Chromebooks, all new cloud-focused laptops aimed at the education and business sectors. What made the announcement even more interesting was the fact that Google would offer business and education clients a 3-year monthly payment subscription-based payment plan, charging no upfront costs whatsoever. However, Google has just recently announced that it will begin allowing businesses to pay for their Chromebooks in full upfront.

Google has stated that it discovered some businesses were simply unable to budget for a three-year commitment requiring annual cycles. As a result of these findings, Google is offering education and business customers the choice to pay upfront for their Chromebook with one-year access to a web-based admin management console, phone support and hardware warranty. After the initial year, customers will have the option to pay a monthly fee for the second and third year of management console access and support.

Customers in the education industry are able to get their hands on a Chromebook for $449 if they choose the WiFi option or $519 if they go with the 3G option. Business customers will have to pay $559 for the WiFi version and $639 for the 3G version. The changing policy for the education and business sectors is notable for many reasons, primarily for the fact that we have yet to hear anything from Google about success in this market. I know it has only been four months, but with the way information flies around the internet you would expect to have heard something by now even if it was leaked information or a rumor.

Nevertheless, Google is still very well known for its policy of launching during a beta and it appears as if that applies to the company's enterprise business models as well. I guess we will just have to wait and see how this business venture plays out for Google, though I don't think the company will take any serious financial dips if the project doesn't quite meet expectations.

Source: The Next Web - Google drops Chromebook business, education subscription-only policy, lets them pay up front

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iPad Users Can Now Display PowerPoint Presentations

2011-10-18T18:03:00.005-04:00

Brainshark, a company that creates software for online and mobile video presentations, has created a great new app for iPad users. The app, SlideShark, gives iPad users the ability to professionally display PowerPoint presentations from their tablets, and the best part is that it is free!

There have been some issues associated with users importing and viewing PowerPoint presentations on their iPads. Mostly, there have been problems keeping the original formatting of the presentation. Well, with SlideShark, all of those issues are eliminated.

Users are now able to upload their PowerPoint presentations to their online accounts on SlideShark’s website. There the presentation is converted to an iPad viewing format, and then, using the SlideShark app, users are able to download and view the file on their iPad.

"The iPad is supporting business mobility like never before," said Brainshark CEO Joe Gustafson. "At the same time, and as the mobile workforce continues to grow, the need to present PowerPoints on the iPad is becoming more critical. We're pleased to offer the SlideShark app to resolve this issue—allowing mobile sales, marketing and training professionals to present their business content both reliably and effectively, and helping companies maximize productivity."

The best thing about SlideShark is that it preserves all of the original fonts, graphics, colors and formats of the PowerPoint presentation. Users with an iPad 2 are then able to connect their tablets to a TV or VGA projector in order to project the presentation. SlideShark also has the ability to support gesture. This means that users are able to swipe or tap the screen of their iPad to control the presentation being projected.

"As more and more companies make tablet investments, it's important they do so strategically—with a game plan for how they'll use the devices," said Scott Nelson, managing vice president, Gartner Research. "It often comes as an unpleasant surprise—particularly for salespeople and others in the field—that there's not a simple way to convert some collateral material that they rely on. Addressing this market need will help companies maximize their technology investments and enable business professionals to be even more agile and effective when presenting on-the-go."

Source: PCMag - Slideshark Brings PowerPoint to iPad

iPhone 4S Plagued by AT&T Activation Issues

2011-10-16T19:28:00.004-04:00

Even though the iPhone 4S literally just launched, people are already reporting complaints and problems with the latest smartphone from Apple. People all across the internet have been complaining that they have been unable to activate the iPhone 4S on AT&T's network because of too much strain on the carrier's servers.

Those iPhone 4S owners did state later that the activation process was sped up when the device's screen displayed a message saying, "I may take up to three minutes to activate your iPhone." What is of more interest is that there have yet to be any reports from users on the device's other two carriers, Verizon and the newly added Sprint, reporting similar issues.

Naturally, the host of complainers took to the social networks to voice their frustration at being stuck on the iPhone activation screen for an absurd amount of time. One user on Twitter stated that he waited two hours for the iPhone 4S to activate with another using tweeting, "there was a problem connecting" to the AT&T server during activation of the device. Another, more comical post stated, "5 years and counting, AT&T iPhone activation fail."

It comes as no surprise to anybody that iPhone 4S users are having troubles on AT&T as the carrier has a long-standing history of iPhone problems. When the iPhone first launched back in 2007, a plethora of people were forced to wait more than a day for the carrier to activate their device. iPhone 3GS users back in 2009 experienced similar issues and were also forced to wait several days before their devices could be activated. However, Apple did offer a $30 iTunes credit to customers experiencing the problem.

AT&T didn't have to worry about competition in those days as the company was the only carrier. This time around things are different as AT&T has not just one but two companies vying for iPhone customers, and since both Verizon and Sprint have not reported any problems, that makes the problems over at AT&T stand out even more.

Source: CNET - iPhone 4S buyers complain of AT&T activation issues

Courts Decide That Australia Won’t Be Seeing the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1

2011-10-15T17:38:00.003-04:00

In Australia this week, a court decided that it will be complying with Apple’s request to participate in a temporary ban of Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1. This means that consumers in Australia will most likely not be seeing the newest version of Samsung’s tablet during the holiday season.

Samsung released a statement after the decision was made. It stated that the company was disappointed with the court’s decision, but it would "take all necessary measures including legal action in order to ensure our innovative products are available to consumers."

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Justice Annabelle Bennett believed that there were several different factors that were in Apple’s favor. Earlier this month, Samsung informed the court that it would consider cancelling all plans to sell the Galaxy Tab 10.1 if they placed a ban on the tablet. Despite this, the Herald reported that Bennett said, "she had to weigh this consideration against the loss and injury that could be caused to Apple should Samsung be allowed to sell the iPad rival."

Samsung had been confident that they would be able defeat Apple with a countersuit which it filed in September, but clearly things didn’t work out as well as they had hoped.

"Our wireless standard patents are essential for mobile business. We will continue to legally assert our intellectual property rights against those who violate Samsung's patents and free ride on our technology," Samsung said.

The Herald reported that Apple released the same statement that it had issued earlier this year, "This kind of blatant copying is wrong, and we need to protect Apple's intellectual property when companies steal our ideas."

Patent blogger Florian Mueller said that of course the issue will not be completely resolved until the full trial has concluded, but by the time that the trial is complete "the product will likely be obsolete in this rapidly evolving market," he wrote in a blog post.

"After today's decision, I believe no company in the industry will be able to launch any new Android-based touchscreen product in Australia anytime soon without incurring a high risk of another interim injunction," Mueller wrote.

"If Apple wins the Australian case at the end of the main proceeding, all Android-based products will effectively be shut out of the Australian market forever, unless Google or its device maker partners settle with Apple," Mueller said. "Therefore, Google and Samsung will have to fight very hard to have the asserted patents declared invalid, or at least have their scope narrowed."

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Could the Kindle Fire Outsell Apple's iPad?

2011-10-15T17:08:00.004-04:00

Consumers can’t seem to wait to get their hands on the Kindle Fire, and according to Cult of Android, there are numbers that have been compiled showing that the newly released tablet has the potential to outsell Apple’s iPad.

About a week ago, there were leaked screen shots of Amazon’s internal inventory management system that allegedly revealed that consumers had already preordered more than 250,000 Kindle Fires. Amazon announced the tablet less than a week prior to the leaked screen shots. Cult of Android claims that the tablet is already selling around 50,000 devices a day, more than 2,000 tablets per hour.

Two thousand devices per hour?!? That’s absolutely insane! If these numbers are correct, this would mean that Amazon is set to have the biggest tablet launch to-date. It would be even bigger than the launch of the iPad or the iPad 2.

On April 3, 2010 Apple sold 300,000 of the original iPads at the devices launch. As of right now, Apple still has not released any of the details concerning the launch of the iPad 2, but Cult of Android claims that somewhere close to 2.5 million devices were sold in the first month that the device was available.

So far, Amazon has not released any numbers concerning the Kindle Fire, but it has been estimated that Amazon presold 95,000 units the very first day that it was announced.

According to Cult of Android, none of the other devices have had presale numbers like the Kindle Fire. BlackBerry sold 250,000 PlayBooks in the first month, while Motorola only sold 100,000 Xooms.

The Kindle Fire does not ship until November 15, so Amazon has plenty of time to overtake the iPad, even if presale numbers begin to slow. Another tablet could definitely help to boost the sales numbers, and reportedly Amazon is working on a 10-inch version of the Kindle Fire.

The media is saying that the Kindle Fire is the tablet that could actually present some decent competition to Apple’s iPad. It also helps that the Kindle Fire will only cost you $199 and that Amazon is offering free two-day shipping. Who knows how it will all turn out, but if Cult of Android is even close to being on track with their estimates, the Kindle Fire really could become the tablet to beat.

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Disabling Your Laptop's Trackpad

2011-10-06T18:18:00.005-04:00

If you are constantly working on the go and constantly taking your laptop with you wherever you go, then I think it is safe to say that you are a person who probably likes using a mouse as opposed to your laptop's trackpad. I'm like that; I hate track pads for anything other than casual internet browsing and even then I still get irritated. However, there is a way to avoid that irritation by simply disabling the trackpad.

Choosing which way to disable your trackpad depends on your hardware. Thankfully, most modern laptop makers have attempted to address that problem outright. Some notebooks contain a physical switch that allows you to seamlessly turn your trackpad on and off. Others may incorporate a keyboard shortcut to disable it or may require you to simply press a certain area of the actual trackpad.

There are other ways to disable the trackpad through the software, which can be done with three easy options:

Option 1: Identify a trackpad icon in the notification area. Once found, double-click or right-click the icon to browse the trackpad options and disable the trackpad from here.

Option 2: If that doesn't work or you can't find the icon, then click your Start button. From here go to your computer's Control Panel, then to Hardware and Sound. From here click on Devices and Printers, then click Mouse. The Mouse Properties window will appear where you might find an option of disabling your laptop's trackpad.

Option 3: If the first two options don't work, you can always search for trackpad software from the Start menu.

If you can't find a way to physically disable the trackpad or to disable it via software, you still have one more option with five easy steps.

Step 1: Click Start

Step 2: Type Device Manager into the Search Box. Then click the Device Manager result, subsequently opening up the Device Manager window.

Step 3: Expand Mice and Other Pointing Devices.

Step 4: Right-click the trackpad's entry, then click Disable.

Step 5: Confirm that you want to disable the trackpad.

This should go without saying but make sure you have another pointing device ready before disabling your trackpad, otherwise you won't be able to enable it. Other than that, it should be smooth sailing from there. Now you can enjoy full use of your laptop without the trackpad and you can also get the trackpad back up and running again if you feel like you miss it.

Source: PC World - How to Disable Your Laptop Touchpad

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Sonnet Introduces New Fusion Storage System

2011-10-02T21:12:00.005-04:00

Sonnet Technologies has just announced the new Fusion F2QR portable teo-drive hardware RAID storage system. Physically this device is very compact and is about the size of two CD cases stacked on top of each other. The drives come mounted side-by-side and are also housed in a sturdy aluminum case.

The system itself contains two 2.5" 1TB hard drives and is based on the Fusion F2, a portable two-drive raid SATA storage system. As far as features go, the F2QR adds a built-in hardware RAID controller for configuring the drives, a quad interface with eSATA, FireWire 800 and USB 2.0 ports for compatibility with pretty much anything. In addition to that, the two 1TB drives also offer a large amount of storage.

This device also delivers high performance with up to 160 MB/second read and 100 MB/second write data transfer rates as well as being bus powered by a FireWire port on the computer, regardless of the interface you are using. Mounted inside the case, both drives are shock resistant and vibration resistant in order to help protect against rough handling, according to CEO of Sonnet Technologies Robert Farnsworth. The engineered aluminum case also effectively transfers heat, eliminating the need for an external or internal fan.

The F2QR also features a built-in hardware RAID controller that manages the drives and enables the system to connect to a computer with a single cable. The F2QR also supports fast (RAID 0), safe (RAID 1), big (Span) and JBOD configurations without relying on OS RAID or a specialized controller card. In addition to that, the included configuration utility software also supports Mac and Windows operating systems.

The quad interface of the device also offers users three different ways to connect the storage system to their computer. Users can connect via either an eSATA, FireWire 800 or USB 2.0 interface and Sonnet includes all the cables for each interface allowing you to connect immediately. The Fusion F2QR is available now for a retail price of $569.

Source: Mac News - Sonnet Introduces Fusion Storage Solution

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AT&T Debuts 4G LTE Acer Iconia A501 Tablet

2011-09-23T15:16:00.004-04:00

AT&T has just launched the new 10.1" Acer Iconia Tab A501 Android tablet which comes complete with 4G connectivity. The A501 is actually the exact same device as the Acer A500. However, the Acer A501 includes a 4G LTE HSDPA+ modem that gives you access to AT&T's 4G network.

According to AT&T's website, the 4G speeds are currently available in the Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio, Houston, Atlanta and Chicago areas, though more are expected to become available soon. AT&T plans on expanding its 4G LTE coverage to an additional 15 major metropolitan areas by the end of the year.

Based on early reports, the 4G speeds of the Acer Iconia A501 are much slower than other tablets currently on the market. One report saw only a 1.9 Mbps download and 1.2 Mbps upload speed. These numbers are very bad, especially considering the fact that the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 4G LTE version saw 19 Mbps down and 5 Mbps up on Verizon's 4G network.

The tablet itself, however, runs Android Honeycomb version 3.0.1 an Nvidia Tegra 2 dual-core processor at 1GHz. In addition to that, it also comes with 16GB of internal memory. Pricing isn't too outrageous, especially considering some of the other prices you could be paying for a 4G tablet. If you opt for the Acer A501 on an AT&T data plan, you will have to fork out $330 on a new two-year agreement with a minimum $35 per month data plan. If you go without the commitment, you can expect to pay $480.

Source: Laptoping - AT&T Launches Acer Iconia Tab A501 with 4G

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Battery Life for the PlayStation Vita Revealed

2011-09-16T12:53:00.006-04:00

If you are a traveling businessman or somebody who just finds themselves constantly on the road, then you know what a toll traveling can take. All that traveling and working is very strenuous on the mind and body which is why it is ok to take a break every now and then. All work and no play isn't going to cut it for most people, but what do you use to take the edge off in those stressful times? Movies? Music? Games? How about all of the above? Well, with the upcoming PlayStation Vita handheld gaming system, you can do just that.

The PlayStation Vita is Sony's successor to its popular PSP handheld device and the company's answer to the current champions of the handheld market, Nintendo's DS and 3DS devices. The PlayStation Vita brings a lot of new and interesting features to the handheld market including HD games and a fully functioning touchpad located on the back of the device. Like most handheld devices, the PlayStation Vita allows you to play games, watch videos or even listen to music while on the road. But the big question on everybody's mind is how long the battery lasts.

Well, Sony has finally released that information and it is up to you to determine if the stats are worth the wait and price of this new handheld. The company held a press conference on Wednesday at the Tokyo Game Show detailing many aspects of the PlayStation Vita. According to Sony, the PS Vita is capable of 3 to 5 hours of gaming, 5 hours of video playback or 9 hours of music playback on the device's 2,200 mAh battery.

However, these numbers only hold true if you use the device in a certain manner. These numbers are based on using the device on the default brightness level, which is probably around half, with Bluetooth and WiFi both disabled. Altering any of those aspects will affect the overall battery life of the device and it takes a full 2 hours and 40 minutes to charge the device completely from 0% battery. However, these numbers are pretty close to those put up by Nintendo's 3DS, which offers 3 to 5 hours of playtime with the 3D effect enabled or 8 hours of standard DS gaming.

In case you don't already know, the PS Vita has an OLED screen, ARM Cortex-A9 quad-core processor, SGX543MP4 + GPU, 512MB of RAM and 128MB of video RAM. Among the other built-in features you will find front and rear facing cameras, speakers, a microphone, accelerometer, gyro-sensor, GPS, Wi-Fi and a 3G version as well.

The PlayStation Vita will launch in Japan this year and in the United States sometime early 2012.

Source: CNET - Sony reveals PlayStation Vita battery life

Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY Available on AT&T

2011-09-09T16:09:00.003-04:00

Sony Ericsson just recently announced that the Xperia PLAY will be arriving at AT&T stores across the country this month allowing even more people to have access to the only PlayStation certified smartphone on the market.

This announcement falls right in line with the seemingly strong momentum that the Xperia PLAY has been experiencing since it launched earlier on in the year. This device is now available through major carriers around the globe including Verizon, America Movil, Telefonica Movistar, Vodafone, T-Mobile, Orange and now AT&T.

The Xperia PLAY offers a plethora of games that will suit the need of any gamer. Among the 150 titles available to download are titles like Minecraft Pocket Edition, Battlefield: Bad Company 2 and even DeadSpace 2. But if that isn't enough for you, the Xperia PLAY also offers users a host of unique social experiences including Sony Ericsson Facebook inside Xperia, which allows you to share and discover games.

According to Global Head of Marketing at Sony Ericsson Steve Walker, "Xperia PLAY is the only true gaming smartphone and Sony Ericsson is creating a new and unique market category. Games are the most popular content for smartphones and Xperia PLAY users are at the forefront in downloading content. This presents a major opportunity for operators."

The Xperia PLAY is marketed by AT&T as the Xperia PLAY 4G supporting HSPA+ and is also offered in a "stealth blue" color. This device will be available as a smartphone package complete with accessories including the Sony Ericsson Multimedia Dock DK300 and MC100 music cable. In addition to that, the device will also come pre-loaded with seven games, some of which are completely exclusive.

You can pick up your very own Xperia PLAY smartphone by Sony Ericsson from any AT&T retail store or online on September 18th, 2011 for $49.99 with a new two-year agreement.

Source: Mobile Tech News - Sony Ericsson Xperia(TM) PLAY launches with AT&T in the US

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Samsung's Galaxy WiFi 3.6 is a Smartphone without the Phone

2011-09-01T19:30:00.005-04:00

This may be a surprise to a lot of you out there, but there are some people who want a powerful Android device without the costly monthly contract of a phone plan. Well, they do exist and Samsung has launched the Galaxy WiFi 3.6 as a response. The Galaxy WiFi is an Android device reminiscent of a smartphone without a SIM card, ergo you can't make calls on it.

If you are wondering what kind of consumer would want a device like this, then think of the iPod Touch from Apple. A lot of people like having a simple phone that makes calls and sends texts and they also like the idea of having an Android device that launches apps, connects to the internet, browses the web, etc... on the side. This is especially useful for people on a tight budget.

That is where the Samsung Galaxy WiFi 3.6 comes into play. This is an Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) device that comes with a 1GHz OMAP processor, a 3.65" screen, 8 or 16 GB of memory (which is expandable through a microSD card), WiFi connectivity and a 2-megapixel camera on the back. In addition to that, it also comes with a VGA camera on the front for video calls.

Other things that come on your traditional smartphone come on this device such as GPS, a 3.5 mm headphone jack, Bluetooth, USB 2.0, accelerometer and compass. In addition to that, it also supports a wide variety of video and audio codecs, making it an all around nice device for multimedia, gaming or app use on the go.

The Samsung Galaxy WiFi 3.6 will launch in the United Kingdom in the beginning of October and will be available from retailers such as Dixons, Amazon, Littlewoods, HMV and Argos. It will cost around $242 for the 8GB version and around $274 for the 16GB version. Pricing and availability for other countries has yet to be announced.

Source: Mashable - Samsung Galaxy WiFi 3.6 Takes the "Phone" Out of "Smartphone"

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Personal Netbook Rentals

2011-08-30T13:05:00.002-04:00

Netbooks are great for highly transient circumstances, where portability is a necessity. So if you are traveling and need a general purpose computer for online connectivity, and perhaps some word processing, then a Netbook Rental is very ideal for the user who is Working On The Go.

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About Netbooks:

Netbooks are a category of small, lightweight, legacy-free, and inexpensive laptop computers. Since their inception into the mobile technology market in the late 2007, they have slowly been stealing market share from laptops. Netbooks are optimized for low weight and low cost, making them perfect for the user who doesnt require much processing power.

First Images of HTC Vigor Leaked

2011-08-28T16:48:00.008-04:00

Guess what has just popped up on the internet in some photos? The HTC Vigor, of course. This little device has done a pretty good job of eluding the eye of the public, until now. Some leaked photos of the device have surfaced, detailing red accents, a nice, big screen and black rubbery exterior, reminiscent of the HTC Incredible.

Rumored as the next big 4G LTE phone from Verizon following the Bionic, set to be released on October 6, the pictures display some nice details about this elusive device. It appears as if the Vigor has a front-facing camera embedded in the top right corner of the device as well as a screen that looks massive, to say the least.

As far as aesthetic styling goes, the Vigor looks like a beefed-up version of the Incredible which is definitely not a bad thing. There is, unfortunately, no visible 4G LTE logo anywhere on the device, nor is there a Verizon logo. This could be due to the fact that the device in the pictures is an early model so don't get too fussy just yet.

Closer examination of the pictures does make the Vigor look a lot like the Incredible and the color scheme also tends toward Droid branding as well as a previously rumored HTC device. One theory floating around is that the HTC Vigor may actually be the Incredible HD, but that is purely speculation at the moment.

The pictures show nothing in the way of specifications though previous reports suggest a 4.3" HD screen, 1GB of RAM, 16GB internal storage, 1.5GHz dual-core processor and Beats by Dre technology. The pictures don't show any sign of external Beats technology so it could be that it is internal software.

What do you think? Are you excited about the Vigor? How would you feel if the Vigor ended up being the Incredible HD? Do you even care about anything I have written here? Let me know in the comments section below.

Source: Droid Life - Exclusive: First Pictures Of The HTC Vigor

First Images of HTC Vigor Leaked

2011-08-28T16:48:00.004-04:00

Guess what has just popped up on the internet in some photos? The HTC Vigor, of course. This little device has done a pretty good job of eluding the eye of the public, until now. Some leaked photos of the device have surfaced, detailing red accents, a very nice and big screen and black rubbery exterior, reminiscent of the HTC Incredible.

Being rumored as the next big 4G LTE phone from Verizon following the Bionic, set to be released on October 6, the pictures display some nice details about this elusive device. It appears as if the Vigor has a front-facing camera embedded in the top right corner of the device as well as a screen that looks massive, to say the least.

As far as aesthetic styling goes, the Vigor looks like a beefed up version of the Incredible which is definitely not a bad thing. There is, unfortunately, no visible 4G LTE logo anywhere on the device, nor is there a Verizon logo. This could be due to the fact that the device in the pictures is an early model so don't get too fussy just yet.

Closer examination of the pictures does make the Vigor look a lot like the Incredible and the color scheme also notions to Droid branding as well as a previously rumored HTC device. One theory floating around is that the HTC Vigor may actually be the Incredible HD, but that is purely speculation at the moment.

The pictures show nothing in the way of specifications, though previous reports suggest a 4.3" HD screen, 1GB of RAM, 16GB internal storage, 1.5GHz dual-core processor and Beats by Dre technology. The pictures don't show any sign of external Beats technology so it could be that it is internal software.

What do you think? Are you excited about the Vigor? How would you feel if the Vigor ended up being the Incredible HD? Do you even care about anything I have written here? Let me know in the comments section below.

Source: Droid Life - Exclusive: First Pictures Of The HTC Vigor

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Leaked Best Buy Ad Shows Off Droid Bionic

2011-08-19T13:42:00.006-04:00

Ever heard of the Droid Bionic? I'm sure you have, especially if you have been paying attention to the the smartphone industry at all in the last year or so. The Droid Bionic is the latest addition to the Droid family though not much is known about it. The Droid Bionic is the highly anticipated and extremely (to the point of absurdity) long-awaited device from Motorola that seems ever closer to finally getting into our greedy little hands.

A "very reliable source" has leaked information to multiple tech outlets regarding the Droid Bionic, including an unreleased ad spotlighting the Verizon dual-core LTE Android device. The ad is supposed to run in the Best Buy Buyer's Guide set to be released this Sunday.

The ad looks to be heavily focused on the Droid Bionic, with the smartphone appearing multiple times throughout the pages. The details in the ad give the final specifications of the device, which go along with previously leaked details. The ad confirms a 4.3" touchscreen display, 8 megapixel rear facing camera, VGA front facing camera, full 1080p HD video recording, Android 2.3 Gingerbread, microSD slot, Bluetooth, and up to 320GB of expandable memory.

The only thing not listed is the price or a solidified release date. However, after seven months of waiting, it looks as if the Droid Bionic is just around the corner and may be this year's perfect Christmas present. Motorola has speculated on a September release date which seems even more likely, thanks to this ad.

Source: TechnoBuffalo - Droid Bionic Finally Ready to Flex Its Muscles Says Best Buy Ad

Lenovo's ThinkPad Edge Laptops and ThinkVision Mobile Monitor

2011-08-12T16:37:00.008-04:00

Lenovo has just announced the ThinkPad Edge 14" E425 and 15.6" E525 laptops for small-to-medium sized businesses. In addition to the laptops, Lenovo also announced the ThinkVision LT1421 Wide, Lenovo's first mobile monitor that gives people working on the go a second monitor for increased productivity on the road. The ThinkPad Edge laptops are designed to simplify your computing experience, starting with a slimmer and more polished design that goes hand in hand with powerful, reliable technology. You get the choice between the latest AMD processors along with voice and video features for an unparalleled user experience.

According to Vice President, ThinkPad Edge Business Unit, Lenovo, Luis Hernandez, "These latest ThinkPad Edge laptops combined with the ThinkVision mobile monitor equip small businesses with an extremely powerful technology toolkit. From creating content on the road to conveniently displaying presentations, video or other content, this solution fits the demanding requirements of growing small businesses."

The new ThinkPad Edge laptops have a smart, polished look and come in different colors including heatwave red or midnight black with either an anti-glare or glossy display. In addition to that, these devices are also nearly 13% slimmer than previous versions, which allows them to easily fit in a briefcase along with the ThinkVision LT1421 Wide monitor. Key features of these laptops include:

AMD A-Series APU with VISION Pro Technology

Integrated AMD Radeon discrete-class graphics with dedicated memory

Up to 750GB of storage and up to 8GB of memory

Multimedia and expansion options with DVD burner, powered USB, 4-in-1 media card reader and HDMI support

Optional fingerprint reader for convenient and secure log-in options

The ThinkPad Edge E425 and E525 laptops as well as the ThinkVision LT1421 Wide mobile monitor should become available sometime this month. Pricing for both the Edge E423 and E525 begins at $549 with pricing for the LT1421 Wide monitor being $219.99.

Source: Business Wire - New Lenovo ThinkPad Laptops & Mobile Monitor Simplify Small Business Computing

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Intel Ultrabooks to be Priced Below $1,000, Competes Strongly with Apple

2011-08-06T13:18:00.005-04:00

In the realm of ultra-thin notebooks, many companies complain that they cannot compete on price with the industry's juggernaut Apple and its MacBook series. However, Intel has just developed a ready-made spec for its upcoming ultrabook part costs that, according to the company, will help placate Windows PC builders who are affected by prices.

According to Intel, the raw build of materials before assembly is said to be between $475 and $650 for the slightly thicker 0.8" models and between $493 and $710 for the thinner 0.7" models, similar to the MacBook Air. A total of five templates currently exist for the thinner category, with the UX21 and larger UX31 from Asus matching that specification.

A rumored meetings is supposed to take place next week that will gauge how well the bill of materials lines up with the specs PC builders are looking for. Intel, along with the initial partners, are supposedly all aiming for starting prices below $1,000, even with requirements like metal shells and solid-state drives.

In addition to that, up to and including ultrabooks that are based on Intel's upcoming Ivy Bridge 22 nanometer processors, all of the 11" to 13" models that will be closely following Apple's formula must be no thicker than 0.7". Manufacturers will still be able to make an ultrabook at 14" to 17", which will give them the leeway to increase the thickness to 0.8".

The first round of Windows-based ultrabooks are said to be hitting store shelves this September, when the UX21 ships. Other companies, like Acer and HP, will be joining in later. Intel has not yet stated publicly its reasons behind embracing the concept of an ultrabook, but only did so after the MacBook Air was released in 2010.

Intel has been looking for a way to keep ultraportable notebooks relevant as the tablet PC market chips away at the PC market and it looks as if the company has taken Apple's idea of a very thin, lightweight, instant response, long-living system as a way to offer things the tablet gives you in the form of a conventional laptop.

Source: Electronista - Intel ultrabook spec keeps parts sub-$710 to spar with Apple

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Motorola Mobility Up, While Motorola Reports Overall Loss

2011-08-01T21:02:00.009-04:00

Motorola reported that its Motorola Mobility has sold 440,000 Xoom tablets and 4.4 million smartphones in the second quarter.

Motorola went on to report a $56 million loss this quarter, compared to $80 million in net earnings during the same period last year; however, Motorola Mobility reported a revenue of $3.34 billion, up from the $2.61 billion in revenues that was reported last year.

While Motorola’s phone business reported a loss of $31 million on the sales of $2.4 billion, Motorola’s home division reported a profit of $62 million on revenue of $907 million.

Despite the fact that overall Motorola lost money this quarter, according to an AP report, Sanjay Jha, the chairman and chief executive officer of Motorola Mobility, remains hopeful. He said that by the holidays Motorola will release at least one more 4G smartphone and two 4G tablets.

Jha did also comment on the fact that Motorola’s third quarter earnings will not be as expected, due to the delay of the Droid Bionic, as well as a lower amount of tablet computers, lower prices and a seasonal decrease in the sales of set-top boxes.

"In the second quarter, Mobile Devices launched several new smartphones in the U.S. and markets around the world. Revenues grew over 40 percent driven largely by Latin America and China where sales more than doubled year over year. Our Home business delivered another strong performance, and we introduced several innovative products and services for next generation multi-screen video solutions," Jha said in a statement. "With a focus on profitable growth and delivering differentiated LTE smartphones and tablets, we expect to achieve profitability in Mobile Devices in the fourth quarter and for the full year 2011."

Motorola is currently predicting that its third quarter will either allow them to break even or show a very small profit.

ITC to Hear Samsung's Case Against Apple

2011-07-31T23:15:00.004-04:00

On Wednesday, July 27 the International Trade Commission decided that they would hear out Samsung’s patent case against Apple.

The commission "has voted to institute an investigation of certain electronic devices, including wireless communication devices, portable music and data processing devices, and tablet computers," the ITC said in a statement. What Samsung wants is for the commission to block all U.S. imports of iPhone, iPods and iPads.

At the end of June, Samsung filed a complaint against Apple just two months after Apple sued Samsung. Apple claimed that Samsung had copied the look and feel of the iPhone and the iPad with its Galaxy S smartphones and tablets. That’s when Samsung turned right around with a countersuit that claimed that Apple was infringing on five different patents that were related to some of Samsung’s wireless network technology.

Apple then came back with some more complaints at the beginning of July. They attempted to block the import of Samsung Galaxy S phones as well as the Galaxy Tab tablets.

Apple recently was informed by the ITC that its Mac OS X operating system is in violation of patents from S3 Graphics related to graphics chips; however, its iOS is fine. Bloomberg said that the ruling on the case could possibly lead to a U.S. ban on the imports of certain Macs.

FOSS Patents’ Florian Mueller mentioned the fact that S3 is in the middle of being bought out by HTC, another company that is dealing with patent issues involving Apple. He did say, however, that he did not think that the S3 ruling would help HTC out at all.

"It looks like HTC is going to have to use patents other than the four at issue in that proceeding in order to put Apple under serious pressure," Mueller wrote.

"Right now it seems that the validity of those four S3 patents is uncertain, and even the worst-case scenario for Apple may just come down to a need to equip its Macintosh computers with Nvidia chips."

"The iPhone, iPad and iPod product lines aren't even affected at all. Against that background, Apple can apparently keep pursuing its multiple lawsuits against HTC," he said.

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Heavy Data Users to be Throttled by AT&T

2011-07-29T20:43:00.006-04:00

AT&T is putting into effect a new policy that is said to affect customers who are heavy users of their data plans. This new policy will only affect customers who are still on an unlimited data plan and only the top 5% of that customer base. AT&T will be throttling these users beginning on October 1. Throttling is when a carrier slows down the connection of a device in order to keep it from consuming more data. At the moment, AT&T hasn't specified what exactly the "limit" will be, though the company says the amount of data that would trigger throttling will vary from month to month.

This isn't a new idea from AT&T, however, AT&T is just the most recent carrier to do this. Throttling is the newest way for carriers to deal with the explosion of wireless data users. Throttling is just the move that illustrates the difficulties it faces, and signals that the era of unlimited data plans is almost at an end. However, if unlimited data is coming to an end, I fear that a lot of users will stop using smartphones all together; I know I might.

AT&T is stressing, however, that this move would only affect a small minority of its customer base and, furthermore, that it is designed to improve the experience for the rest of its users. On the other hand, this move is definitely going to receive a strong reaction from users who are quite used to, and quite attached to, their unlimited data. According to a statement from AT&T, "These customers on average use 12 times more data than the average of all other smartphone data customers."

In a kind gesture, AT&T did say that it would send several notices and offer a grace period to the carrier's heaviest users before throttling them. In addition to that, the users will have their speeds restored at the beginning of each billing cycle. AT&T moved to tier pricing last month in order to deal with the capacity crunch. This capped data usage at 2GB of data, though customers who had an existing unlimited data plan were grandfathered in and kept their plans.

These actions were taken primarily due to the changing way in which AT&T customers have begun to use the iPhone. The iPhone clogged up AT&T's networks and resulted in years of crappy service, especially in areas like New York and San Francisco. In addition to that, data usage has seemingly exploded, especially considering the new Android phones the carrier has added.

It is rumored that Verizon may go to throttling as well. The carrier has already switched to tiered data plans just like AT&T. Sprint is currently the only carrier to offer truly unlimited data plans though it too has suggested jumping on board with everybody else.

Source: CNET - AT&T says it will throttle heavy data users

Critical to Download Apple's iOS Security Patch

2011-07-29T12:29:00.003-04:00

Recently, there has been news flying around about some issues with Apple’s mobile operating system. At first it didn’t seem like a huge deal, but according to Chester Wisniewski, a senior security advisor at Sophos, it is much more critical than was first believed that iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch users download Apple’s recent security patch for iOS.

“It is clearly critical that all users update as soon as possible, unless they only use their device for telephone calls,” Wisniewski wrote Wednesday, July 27 on Sophos’ NakedSecurity blog. He wrote that the Apple operating system is vulnerable to an updated version of a tool that is called sslsniff. It "allows users to easily perform man-in-the-middle attacks against SSL/TLS connections," he said.

He said that the new version of sslsniff can "identify vulnerable Apple devices and allows anyone to snoop on secure communications."

"This patch should be applied immediately if you log in to any service on your device, especially things like your bank or PayPal," Wisniewski writes. "Users are particularly vulnerable to this attack if they frequently use public/open WiFi."

According to Wisniewski, iOS versions 4.3.4, 4.2.9, 5.0b and earlier are vulnerable. He also said that there is no fix, even for devices that are only a couple of generations old.

"If you are using an iPod Touch generation one or two or an iPhone older than the 3GS, you will be perpetually vulnerable," he writes. "Owners of these devices should not use them for any purpose for which security or privacy is required."

"Oddly the flaw in iOS was a widespread flaw in WebKit and Microsoft's CryptoAPI nine years ago," Wisniewski writes. "It allows any valid certificate purchased from a Certificate Authority to sign any other certificate, which the client device will then consider valid.”

"This allows anyone who can capture traffic from your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch with man-in-the-middle techniques to intercept and read any and all encrypted SSL traffic silently and without notification to the user."

If you haven’t fixed this issue yet, it is definitely something that you need to get on. You do not want to put your private information at risk.

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Business Profiles for Google+ in High Demand

2011-07-24T22:10:00.004-04:00

The demand for Google+ business profiles has reached an all-time high, which has lead Google+ leader Vic Gundotra to acknowledge that Google has indeed been caught off guard. However, Gundotra did vow to fix this and that the solution is being fast-tracked. Google+ is currently designed for personal profiles only, except in cases of companies that have been hand picked by Google to participate in the program for the development of business profiles.

Because of this, Google has been deleting unapproved Google+ business profiles which has prompted a series of critical posts from Danny Sullivan, editor of the Search Engine Land blog. Sullivan's business profile was among one of those removed from Google+. In a comment to a post by Sullivan, Gundotra wrote that Google should have anticipated the frustration among those who want a Google+ business profile. "This is my fault. I prioritized other things first. So when Danny says Google screwed up, he is right," Gundotra wrote.

In addition to that, Gundotra added, "We prioritized making a great experience for people first. None of our internal models showed this level of growth. We were caught flat-footed. This growth is very enticing for people/brands who crave an audience. We are doing all we can to accelerate the work to properly handle this case. Please give us just a little more time."

In a post by Christian Oestlien, one of Google+'s product managers, he stated that tens of thousands of organizations applied to be in the business profiles of Google+. Oestlien also stated that Google hopes to allow for the creation of business profiles in the coming months, much sooner than originally planned. "Your enthusiasm obligates us to do more to get businesses involved in Google+ in the right way, and we have to do it faster. In the meantime, we ask you not to create a business profile using regular profiles on Google+. The platform at the moment is not built for the business use case, and we want to help you build long-term relationships with your customers. Doing it right is worth the wait."

In the meantime, Google will continue to disable business profiles, according to Oestlien, who added that a work-around is to "find a real person who is willing to represent your organization on Google+ using a real profile as him-or-herself." For those of you who do not know, Google+ is the search engine giant's Facebook. The service is currently in a limited beta and is only allowing a certain number of users in and by invitation only. It is believed that Google+ currently has somewhere between 15 million and 20 million members already and is only growing as fast as Google allows it to.

Source: Computer World - Google scrambles to accelerate Google+ business profiles

Security Camera Solutions

Amazon's New Way of Supplying Textbooks

2011-07-19T10:34:00.004-04:00

It’s the time of year that college students start to think about laptops and school supplies and textbooks, whether they want to or not. Unfortunately, text books are something that most students cannot avoid. They are something that students need to be thinking about because they can cost you an arm and a leg, and once you shell out all the money for them, the bookstore doesn’t want to give you two cents for them when you try to sell them back after you are done with the classes. Well, this year, Amazon is offering you a new way to deal with the text book dilemma. On Monday, Amazon unveiled its new Kindle Textbook Rental service. It allows students to rent textbooks via their Kindle or Kindle apps for up to a year.

One of the great things about the new service is that Amazon promises that they can save students up to 80 percent. "Students tell us that they enjoy the low prices we offer on new and used print textbooks. Now we're excited to offer students an option to rent Kindle textbooks and only pay for the time they need—with savings up to 80 percent off the print list price on a 30-day rental," Dave Limp, vice president of Amazon Kindle, said in a statement.

Customers will be able to rent textbooks for as little as 30 days or as many as 360. It all depends on how long the student needs the textbook. They will be able to increase their rental period in one-day increments or have the option to even buy the book if they wish. Amazon made sure to mention that they will make sure to save all of the notes that individual users make in the margins, even after the rental has expired.

"Normally, when you sell your print textbook at the end of the semester, you lose all the margin notes and highlights you made as you were studying," Limp said. "We're extending our Whispersync technology so that you get to keep and access all of your notes and highlighted content in the Amazon Cloud, available anytime, anywhere—even after a rental expires. If you choose to rent again or buy at a later time, your notes will be there just as you left them, perfectly Whispersynced."

Amazon also mentioned that users will be able to access all of their rented textbooks across devices. Say you start reading a book on your Kindle, you will be able to pick up wherever you leave off via your Kindle smartphone app whenever you want.

According to Amazon, tens of thousands of textbooks will be ready and available for the 2011 school year. A few publishers that will be included are John Wiley & Sons, Elsevier and Taylor & Francis. Students will really be able to enjoy great savings with this new service. For example, to buy an intermediate level accounting book on the Kindle, it will cost you about $110, but to rent it, you will put out less than $40. An organic chemistry book goes for about $100 when you buy it, but when you rent it, it is closer to around $40. That is some serious savings!

In July, 2010 Borders unveiled an online textbook market similar to Amazon’s service, and in August, Barnes and Noble also announced a Web-based textbook rental service. It’s good that Amazon is now up to speed. I think that the new service is bound to be a success.

Apple Introduces New Volume Purchasing Program for Businesses

2011-07-18T10:29:00.005-04:00

Apple announced this week that it will be allowing businesses to begin purchasing iOS apps in bulk. Apple has not yet revealed a launch date for the new Volume Purchase Program (VPP) for the App Store, but its website says that it is “coming soon.”

"Streamline your purchasing process and put more power and productivity in the hands of your workforce," Apple says on the VPP page. "Every paid app in the App Store is available for businesses to buy in volume through the program website. Simply search for the apps you need, enter the quantity you want to buy, and complete the transaction with your corporate credit card. Apps are available for purchase at the same price listed in the App Store."

The new Volume Purchase Program is an extension of a program that Apple already offers that allows educational institutions to purchase apps in bulk. “Any business in the US can participate in the Volume Purchasing Program,” the website states. It continues saying that to enroll in the program, all a business has to do is create a volume purchasing account with Apple. To enroll, one needs basic contact information to verify your business, a Dun & Bradstreet (D-U-N-S) number and a corporate credit card or PCard to purchase the apps with.

Now it is important to note that any of the apps that businesses purchase through this program are processed differently than normal apps which are processed through iTunes. These bulk purchases will be processed directly through VPP. Also, one disappointment would be that while educational institutions get a discount when they purchase apps in bulk, businesses will be receiving them at the regular price. Once a business has purchased apps through the Volume Purchase Program, they will be able to distribute the apps to their employees by using redemption codes.

“The website also discusses how businesses will be able to utilize custom B2B (business to business) apps. Custom B2B apps are built just for you by third-party developers and business partners to address a specific business process, integrate with a unique back-office environment, or deliver a custom interface for your users. Using the Volume Purchase Program, you can securely and privately purchase custom B2B apps for iPhone and iPad that make your business even more effective. If you are a developer who is enrolled in the iOS Developer program, you can create custom B2B apps for sale to your customers enrolled in the Volume Purchase Program.”

It sounds like there will be plenty of great things that businesses will be able to do with this new program. It is just unfortunate for businesses that they do not get a discount like educational institutions do.

MicroVision SHOWWX+ HDMI Pico Projector

2011-07-16T17:22:00.007-04:00

Pico projectors aren't really new anymore, and that's ok because they are still highly popular pieces of equipment. However, despite their commonality, finding a Pico projector with an HDMI input is still pretty rare. However, MicroVision's latest device is taking the SHOWWX+ from last year and adding an HDMI input and creating the MicroVision SHOWWX+ HDMI, the most perfect device to have for easy hook-ups with your laptop or tablet PC.

The device measures in at 2.3 x 4.6 x 0.55mm and uses a laser projection system. What that means is that absolutely no focusing is necessary. All you have to do is point it at a wall and you get up to a 100" display. The MicroVision SHOWWX+ HDMI also has a 848 x 480 resolution which won't treat your HD movies too well but should be enough for some quality YouTube videos. Brightness ranks at 15 lumens with the contrast ratio coming in at 5,000:1. In addition to that, the HDMI input is HDCP compliant for protected sources.

Aside from the HDMI, this device has your usual component input for use with a standard television output from a laptop, DVD player or iPod. You can also hook it up to a VGA connection if you have the right hookups though that probably won't be necessary since many laptops have HDMI already these days. The battery, which is user replaceable, is also good for around two hours of use.

If you are looking for a good Pico projector for your laptop or tablet PC, the MicroVision SHOWWX+ HDMI is the device for you. You can pre-order the MicroVision SHOWWX+ HDMI projector now and pick it up when the device is expected to ship soon. Price is slated at $369.

Source: Slash Gear - MicroVision SHOWWX+ HDMI pico-projector adds HDMI input

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Acer Finally Rolls Out Android 3.1 Update for Iconia Tab A500

2011-07-08T14:23:00.005-04:00

Have you recently purchased or been given a new Acer Iconia Tab A500? If so, are you lamenting over the fact that many other tablets have Android 3.1 and you don't? Well, if any of that rings true for you, don't fret any longer because the Iconia Tab A500 from Acer is the next device in the long line of products to get the Android 3.1 upgrade.

While it was a little later than consumers had first imagined, Acer did manage to start rolling out the Android 3.1 upgrade for the Iconia Tab A500 on Wednesday. This recent update has all the nifty little features we saw at Google I/O including a deeper multitasking system, resizable widgets and support for USB host devices like a camera.

In addition to adding new things, this update also removes some things. A number of quirks have been removed like respecting the orientation lock when the tablet is at the lock screen, among other things.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 was the first tablet to receive the Android 3.1. The Galaxy Tab 10.1 had the fortunate experience of shipping with Android 3.1 out of the box. A few select Xoom users are also getting the upgrade as well.

Acer has yet to say how quickly the owners of the Iconia Tab A500 will get the upgrades. Usually, in terms of upgrades like this, the update pushes out over the course of a couple of days to a couple of weeks. A lot of the time the update will automatically show up but a manual check of your tablet may allow you to receive the update earlier.

Source: Electronista - Acer Iconia Tab A500's Android 3.1 update goes live

Security Camera Solutions

Sliding Tablet Reportedly Coming from Acer by Holiday

2011-07-01T07:44:00.007-04:00

Tablets are some of the hottest new pieces of technology out right now and just about every technological or computer company is dipping their toes in the market to see if they can somehow muster up a product to top Apple's juggernaut, the iPad 2. Now even though tablets are great pieces of tech and lot of companies are trying to aim them towards business professionals, they don't seem that useful to me. Actually, I should say they do not seem more useful than a laptop in terms of business professionals.

A lot of tablets, including the iPad, are a bit pricey. So much so that the price you would pay for an average tablet would be around the same you would pay for a pretty good laptop. Both would be lightweight, have good hardware that would work well with your business travels etc., but the laptop has one thing that a tablet does not, something that I would think is very crucial for business professionals who constantly find themselves working on the go... a keyboard.

Granted nearly every big name in the tablet universe these days has its own version of a detachable keyboard that you can buy separately from the tablet, but that is just extra money you have to spend and an extra piece of equipment that you have to travel with and take care of. To me the hassle doesn't seem worth it. However, Acer appears to have solved this problem by introducing one of their newest products, a slide tablet.

Acer is said to be releasing a slide tablet in the fourth quarter of 2011 with their crosshairs focussed on the year-end holiday season. This new product will adopt a 10-inch touchscreen and ARM-based processor and will be manufactured by Compal Electronics, who declined to comment about its clients. What sets this device apart from other tablets is that instead of having to buy a separate keyboard for your tablet, the Acer slide tablet will have one already built in. All you will do is slide the screen out and flip it up and you have yourself a fully functioning laptop clone.

Acer is holding back details on this device as the company is still currently trying to clear its inventory of notebooks. Acer has recently reduced its 2011 tablet PC shipment forecast from 5-7 million units to only 2.5-3 million. In addition to that, with more and more Android tablets starting to pop up in the second half of 2011, most of non-Apple tablet vendors' estimated shipments are slightly optimistic.

Either way this new tablet from Acer may be the better choice for on the go business professionals, especially due to the slide out keyboard. However, we will not truly know until all the specs on this device are out, so keep checking back as we will have updates about Acer's sliding tablet PC as they arise.

Source: DigiTimes - Acer reportedly planning to launch slide tablet PC in 4Q11

Consumers Choose the iPad Over Other Tablets

2011-06-26T10:24:00.005-04:00

According to a survey that was conducted by Bernstein Research, it seems as though half of the consumers in the United States and the United Kingdom want an iPad if they decide to purchase a tablet. The other half of the consumer population that didn’t choose the iPad said that they wanted a tablet that looks and feels just like the iPad.

Well, this survey only seems to confirm the fact that Apple is certainly the brand that is dominating the tablet industry. The iPad and the iPad 2 are the front running tablets, despite the many other tablets that seek to sneak past the Apple tablets. The Bernstein Research survey caused All Things D to state Monday, “Consumers don’t want tablets, they want iPads.”

Fifty percent of the consumers polled in both the U.S. and the U.K. chose the Apple iPad, so that left the other fifty percent choosing either Research in Motion, Samsung, HTC, Motorola, Nokia, Dell, Hewlett-Packard or “no preference” as their tablet choice.

All Things D is comparing Apple’s dominance in the tablet industry to the company’s iPod’s supremacy among the MP3 player industry. Right now, that seems like a pretty good comparison. According to industry researcher Gartner, Apple is expected to stay ahead of the other tablets at least until 2015. That would be pretty sad if no one else could come up with something that would challenge the iPad until then. We always need a little healthy competition.

Bernstein’s survey also showed that other tablet manufacturers better not attempt to deviate from the standards that Apple has set down with its iPad.

"We find that consumers are not interested in form factors that deviate from the benchmark set by Apple," the Bernstein Research report stated. "Few consumers, less than 15 percent, prefer the 7-inch screen size versus the 10-inch screen of the iPad."

"Over 50 percent of respondents are firmly in favor of the 10-inch screen, which leads us to conclude that the 7-inch tablet models recently launched, like the BlackBerry PlayBook, are destined for failure. Consumers' preference for the 10-inch form factor explains the lukewarm response to Samsung's 7-inch Galaxy tablet and the rapid introduction of larger screen models in that series."

Card.io Snaps Photo of Credit Card for Online Payments

2011-06-24T13:45:00.005-04:00

In recent mobile news, two former executives from AdMob have just launched a seemingly novel mobile commerce platform that scans your credit card via your phone's camera. Known as Card.io, this app targets developers by giving them the SDK to drop into their codes. For example, this could very easily complement a location-based coupon service or movie ticket app.

Whenever it is time to make a payment in your app, card.io activates your phone's camera and displays a green frame on screen. You then place your credit card into the frame, take a picture of it, and Card.io's proprietary technology will scan the card in order to receive the desired information. The transactions themselves are performed by third-party payment processors used by the merchant. After that, your credit card information is deleted immediately from your phone for security.

Mike Mettler, a co-founder of the app and pre-Google developer at AdMob, said that the company was betting that in the long run, software will win out over hardware-dependent mobile payment solutions like the ones developed by Isis and Google Wallet. Unlike those two, Mettler is not concerned about being able to use your phone to buy anything a credit card can buy. "I'm never going to buy a mortgage on my phone," he stated.

Mettler went on to say that, "One of the biggest lessons I learned at AdMob is that mobile consumer behavior is different, it's not just about taking Web payments and cramming it into a smaller screen. Mobile payments are good for time-sensitive payments, like hotel reservations or Groupon Now, an instant activation feature."

Card.io is currently in talks with a "Craigslist competitor" about implementing a secure mobile payment solution that would not require buyers to meet up with a stranger holding a load of cash. What do you think? Is this app a good idea? Or is the thought of having sensitive credit card information streamed through your phone a little to invasive or risk-inducing?

Source: PC Mag - Former AdMob Execs Tackle Mobile Payments, Photograph Credit Cards

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SakTel First Carrier in North America to Confirm Samsung Galaxy S II

2011-06-17T12:40:00.005-04:00

SaskTel, the Saskatchewan-based cellular carrier, will soon be the first North American carrier to confirm plans to release the new Galaxy S II smartphone from Samsung. The timing of the announcement suggests that the device may be on track for a wider launch via multiple North American carriers sometime in July.

The phone, which will be running on the Android OS platform, recently broke an internal record for Samsung by selling more than 1 million units in Korea within 30 days. US carriers are expected to acquire the smartphone with some slight differences. Recent reports are pointing to the label Attain for the model from AT&T.

The second-generation Galaxy S will offer a 4.3-inch screen that capitalizes on Samsung's improved Super AMOLED Plus technology. In addition to that, the profile has been reduced to 8.9mm with other features including a revamped TouchWiz interface and support for 21Mbps 3G networks.

The current Samsung Galaxy S has been one of the hottest selling smartphones on the market and, if the U.S. is anything like Korea, the Samsung Galaxy II will be just as hot, if not more so. Unfortunately, Samsung has yet to announce specific launch plans for North America.

Source: Electronista - SaskTel first North American carrier to confirm Galaxy S II

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Touchscreen Problems Arising for the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9

2011-06-11T15:30:00.004-04:00

While the new super slim tablet PC from Samsung, otherwise known as the Galaxy Tab 8.9, looks great and is getting a lot of people excited, Samsung Electronics is finding itself in a little bit of a pickle with the device that was, in all fairness, a little rushed in order to compete with Apple's iPad 2.

The Galaxy Tab 8.9 was able to succeed in becoming the world's thinnest tablet coming in at 8.6mm. This was all due to the touch screen being integrated with the tempered glass known as G1F. The iPad 2 comes in at 8.8mm thick. Despite that achievement, however, Samsung is having a little difficulty putting the device out on the market due to the low process yield ratios of some key components.

This is very troubling for the company because if this problem continues, then Samsung's goal of selling 10 million units this year may be affected as well. The Galaxy Tab 8.9 incorporates both G1F and the GFF technologies. Samsung was originally planning on selecting two local panel makers and starting the new manufacturing of the Galaxy Tab 8.9 later this month. However, this yield problem popped its ugly little head up resulting in the shortage of some components.

Samsung was forced to take drastic measures and brought in two GFF panel manufacturers in addition to the ones they already had. To simplify, the new Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 takes two different types of touchscreens. A GFF touch panel is roughly 30% to 40% thicker than its G1F counterpart. In addition to that, the GFF's light transmittance is lower than the G1F which makes the display's overall performance poorer. According to Samsung, "There is nothing certain about the specifications of the 8.9-inch version of the product with the 10.1-inch model having yet to hit the market."

Source: Etnews - Samsung Electronics Applies Two Different Touch Screens to Galaxy Tab 8.9

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HP TouchPad Available in July

2011-06-10T09:58:00.003-04:00

On Thursday, June 9 HP announced that it will be releasing its TouchPad tablet in The United States on Friday, July 1. The TouchPad was first revealed to the public back in February. The 9/7-inch device will come complete with a 1,024 x 768 capacitive screen, a 1.2-GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 1.3 megapixel webcam, Beats Audio technology, stereo speakers, and video calling support. The device weighs 1.6 pounds and is 13.77mm thick. It will also include Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR and fun features like a gyroscope, accelerometer and compass. Basically, it’s got plenty of things to keep you occupied for quite some time!

HP feels that the webOS operating system that is found in the TouchPad will set this device apart from its competitors like the Apple iPad 2, the Motorola Xoom and the RIM BlackBerry PlayBook.

"What makes HP TouchPad a compelling alternative to competing products is webOS,” said Jon Rubinstein, senior vice president and general manager, Palm Global Business Unit, HP. “The platform’s unmatched features and flexibility will continue to differentiate HP products from the rest of the market for both personal and professional use. This is only the beginning of what HP’s scale can do with webOS.”

According to HP, retailers will be stocking the Wi-Fi version of the device. Customers will have the option of the 16GB tablet for $499.99 or the 32GB tablet for $599.99. If you don’t want a Wi-Fi version of the TouchPad, HP has said that AT&T will offer a 3G version of the tablet a little later in the summer, so you could wait for that.

HP said that they will begin taking preorders for the U.S. and Europe starting Sunday, June 19, and the TouchPad will be arrive in the U.K., France, Ireland and Germany just a few days after it hits the U.S. It will also go to Canada in mid-July and Italy, Spain, Australia, Hong Kong, New Zealand and Singapore sometime later this year.

There are a variety of stores that are expected to stock the HP tablet in the U.S. including: Best Buy, Staples, Office Depot, Walmart, Sam’s Club, OfficeMax, Amazon.com, Fry’s, Microcenter and HP’s online store.

"The iPad, which has single-handedly dominated the tablet business since its introduction last year, will account for the bulk of the DRAM demand in the market in 2011 and the following years," IHS principal DRAM and memory analyst Mike Howard noted in an email. "However, competition to the iPad is seeping into the market, driving further DRAM demand."

It will be very interesting to see how the TouchPad does when it hits the shelves. The tablet market is the place to be right now, so hopefully HP will hit a homerun with this new device.

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Windows 8 to Have Mobile Capabilities

2011-06-04T12:55:00.005-04:00

Windows 8 is one of the hot button topics in the tech world right now. Windows 7 was an immaculate improvement on the lackluster Windows Vista and people cannot wait to get their hands on Windows 8. Microsoft has been teasing some details here and there about Windows 8 but what is probably one of the coolest new things to come out about the new OS is that fact that Windows 8 is going to attempt to elevate a mobile OS to the desktop.

That's right, the newest buzz around Windows 8, which may or may not be the official title, is that the next-generation OS is expected to be touch-friendly and seamlessly work on tablet devices, desktops and laptops. Microsoft just recently gave an early demonstration of Windows 8's new look as well as the capability of Windows 8 at the D9 conference.

The development platform is based on HTML 5 as well as JavaScript. Any and all applications created for a touch interface will also work with a mouse and keyboard as well which is another nice feature. In addition to that, there is also an option for a split virtual keyboard for typing on a tablet.

The good news about Windows 8 is that the system requirements for running Windows 8 will not be more than what is required to run Windows 7. In addition to that, Windows 8 will also run on Intel, AMD processors and ARM chips. Stay tuned here for all the new information on Windows 8's mobile platform capabilities as they are released.

Source: CNET - Windows 8 to go mobile

64GB MicroSD Card Announced by Kingmax

2011-06-03T11:33:00.004-04:00

In a press release that came out on Tuesday, May 24, a Chinese semiconductor company called Kingmax announced its new 64GB microSD card and released all of the details about it.

Right now, the largest microSD card on the market is 32GB, so a card that could hold double that amount of stuff would be something great for individuals who have enormous amounts of MP3s and videos bogging down their phones and tablets. They would no longer need to feel restrained by the 32GB microSD cards and could simply switch out their current card for the massive 64GB one.

The original microSD card was introduced to the world by SanDisk, and it was also SanDisk that brought us the current maximum capacity microSD card, so I can’t help but be a little surprised that it is not SanDisk that is making this gigantic leap in the microSD world. When we were first introduced to the 32GB microSD card, it was priced at $199.99, but now you can find it on websites like Amazon for around $60. Mobile technology is becoming much more refined, but as file sizes expand for much more data-intensive formats, including FLAC and HD video, a card with a much bigger capacity is really in demand. Now, of course, Apple users get lucky. Due to all of the internal storage found on Apple devices, users should have no need to up their microSD card capacity.

The press release that Kingmax released gave plenty of details about the 64GB microSD card but did not indicate when they will be releasing the product. They also did not mention any type of price range. Taking into consideration what SanDisk first charged for their original 32GB card, Kingmax’s new product could be hundreds of dollars. Another issue that I didn’t immediately think of is that not all phones would be able to support a 64GB card. Verizon’s LG Revolution, with a 16GB card, and its Droid Charge, with a 32GB card, both can only support up to a 32GB card. It looks like the phone technology will need to catch up to Kingmax.

When you think about it, there really aren’t a ton of devices that are compatible with a card that is 64GB. I mean the card’s capacity is on par with the top, most expensive versions of the iPad and the iPod Touch. I’m sure that technology will quickly be catching up to Kingmax’s capabilities though, and while the company waits for technology to catch up, I’m sure that there are plenty of other storage companies that will be working to get out their own 64GB microSD card as well.

Here are the features listed in the press release on Kingmax’s website:
Product Features:
‧High compatibility & reliability
‧Ultra fast transfer rate
‧plug and play

Product specifications:http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
‧SD3.0
‧Capacity：64GB
‧Speed：Class6
‧Dimension：15 mm x11 mm x1.0mm
‧Wear leveling algorithm to maximize product lifetime
‧Built-in Error Correction Code that auto corrects data
‧Energy efficient, extends mobile devices’ battery lifetime

Want to know more? Check out the actual press release at Kingmax’s website: KINGMAX Unveils World's Largest Capacity 64GB Micro SDXC Card.

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Samsung's Galaxy S II Sells 1 Million Units in First Month

2011-05-30T12:53:00.007-04:00

Samsung started the week off with some good news stating that the Samsung Galaxy S II set a record for the fastest-selling smartphone in Korea. The Galaxy S II, which is a dual-core Android handheld, hit one million in sales in its first month alone. If you want to put that into perspective, it is about one phone sold every 3 seconds. This is incredible news considering the original Galaxy S smartphone took a full 70 days to reach one million units sold.

The Galaxy S II shipped back in the later part of April to Korea, the homeland of Samsung, and hit the 100,000 mark in three days, then doubled in eight and passed 500,000 units sold in two weeks. Samsung attributed the rush to hardware, pointing out the highly improved 4.3-inch Super AMOLED Plus screen. Samsung also added that other features, like the newer TouchWiz interface, super thin 8.9mm design and 21Mbps 3G, were also responsible for the rush of purchases.

The super fast sales rate of the Galaxy S II just goes to show you how intense the fight for smartphone supremacy is in Korea. Apple managed to wrangle 300,000 iPhone pre-orders in Korea and quite possibly came close to beating out Samsung's numbers. However, Apple's device still faces limitations from the past that Samsung has not had to face like limited carrier availability.

Until the addition of SK Telecom back in March, Apple was only able to pump out phones via KT. Samsung and LG have a virtual duopoly in Korea which has led to KT and other carriers supporting foreign devices. However, this has caused corporate retaliation. Samsung, for example, held back on marketing support for KT's Omnia line due to the carrier's iPhone deal.

Overall Galaxy S II sales are expected to be much larger due to the fact that the smartphone has a strong presence in Europe and other key parts of the world. Samsung is expected to repeat its all-fronts strategy in the United States with the launch of the Galaxy S II on almost all the major US carriers in slight variants.

Source: Electronista - Samsung Galaxy S II hits 1m units in Korea, breaks records

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The Foxconn Explosion Wasn’t an Accident

2011-05-26T16:35:00.003-04:00

Although the Chinese government had previously said that the explosion at the Foxconn factory was an accident, a Hong Kong workers advocacy group is claiming otherwise. The group alleged on Monday, May 23 that the blast was the result of Foxconn management disregarding work safety at the plant.

"The explosion is not accidental," Students & Scholars Against Corporate Misbehavior (SACOM) wrote in a blog post. The blog went on to condemn the conditions at Foxconn’s facilities in mainland China. It also alleged a total lack of inaction on the part of the contract computer and electronic manufacturers including Apple, Hewlett-Packard and Dell.

The explosion at Foxconn’s Chengdu facilities in southwestern China killed three people and left more than a dozen workers injured. The explosion occurred in the factory’s “polishing plant” where the aluminum cases for Apple’s iPad 2 are polished. Reports now seem to be linking the blast to combustible “ultra-light” aluminum dust.

"SACOM pinpointed the problem of the aluminum dust in the polishing department in our report in early May," the advocacy group stated. They are referring to a report that the group released on May 6, 2011. The report condemned the alleged failure of Foxconn and its partners to improve the conditions for the workers at the plant in lieu of the string of worker suicides that took place.

"Regrettably, Foxconn turns a deaf ear to SACOM's findings. After the spate of suicides, the blast also affirms Foxconn puts productivity of [the] iPad before workers' lives," the blog continued.

Apple is the most prominent customer of the factories. Foxconn, which is a subsidiary of Taiwan’s Hon Hai Precision Industry, assembles iPads, iPhones and iPods for the company; however, they also provide products for Amazon (the Kindle e-reader), Acer, Asus, Intel, Cisco, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Nintendo, Nokia, Sony and Vizio, among a variety of other clients.

In recent years, Hon Hai Precision Industry and its many high-profile customers have been under scrutiny and sparked many controversies with the worker suicide and leaked product design incidents. It was the suicides that really drew attention to the working conditions at the plants, especially its Shenzen plant, which houses more than 420,000 workers inside of the facilities.

After the suicides, Foxconn announced that they would have a series of pay raises that included a 30 percent across-the-board pay hike and a 66-percent performance-based raise for those employees who received good marks following a three-month evaluation. Some of the partners, including Apple, HP and Dell, pledged that they would monitor the pay rate changes at Foxconn to make sure that employees new pay rates, safety and overtime compensation were taken care of.

However, SACOM reported in their May 6 report that these pledges by the partners and the company have not been kept.

SACOM said that when they last visited the Foxconn facilities, there were “anti-suicide nets” in the workers' living spaces, but working conditions and promised compensation allegedly remained completely unaltered.

SACOM also said that Foxconn promised that it would provide adequate personal protective equipment for workers, but the workers do not have this protection and “are not well-informed about the chemical in use.”

SACOM called out Apple in the report that they released May 6 and the blog post that they posted May 23. They alleged that “while Apple commends the measures taken by Foxconn to improve working conditions, SACOM finds [the] predicaments of workers remain.”

"Workers always have excessive and forced overtime in order to gain a higher wage. Workers are exposed to dust from construction site[s] and shop floor[s] without adequate protection. Even worse, they are threatened by [the] potential harm of occupational diseases in various departments. Additionally, a military-styled management is still in practice, characterized by 'military training' for new workers."

According to the International Business Times, Hon Hai chairman Terry Gou said that the explosion will not cause any production delays for the iPad 2.

Close to 30 percent of Apple’s iPad 2 tablets are produced at the Chengdu plant where the explosion occurred; however, the managing director of Ticonderoga Securities said that the production of the iPad 2 will simply move to the Foxconn facility in Shenzhen. This will prevent any supply issues for Apple.

Apple Predictions After Foxconn Explosion

2011-05-23T16:40:00.003-04:00

Recently, there were predictions of Apple iPad shortages due to a lack of parts and manpower at the company’s Foxconn plant in China, but now there will most definitely be a shortage following the deadly explosions at the plant on Friday, May 20.

Analysts have predicted that iPad production could drop as much as 36 percent in the third quarter. Mike Abramsky, analyst at RBC Capital, wrote that iPad production could drop by 22-36 percent or 1.8-2.8 million devices. Citing CNN, Abramsky said that this could impact Apple’s third quarter revenue by $1.1-1.7 billion.

There have been some reports that the Foxconn plant in Chengdu will only be down for about a month. In this scenario Abramsky said that iPad supplies in the third quarter would most likely only be decreased by somewhere around 1.3 million units. This, unfortunately for Apple, is the bright side of things.

The Foxconn factory reportedly had 52 iPad production lines and had the capability to spit out more than 40 million devices a year. That will not be occurring this year though. On Friday an explosion in the facilities “polishing plant” at about 7 p.m. killed two people and injured 16. According to the Wall Street Journal, the government has ruled out the possibility of foul play as the cause of the explosion.

Foxconn has had a wide range of trouble affecting its factories. The incidents range from factory workers that committed suicide in 2010 to charges against three different employees that allegedly leaked the design of the iPad 2 to third-party accessory suppliers. Just in May, the Taiwan-based newspaper DigiTimes reported that there could be shipment delays of the iPad 2 and the iPhone 4 due to labor and part shortages.

Ever since the launch of the iPad 2, Apple has simply not been able to keep up with the demands for the device. In the first quarter earnings call, Apple was forced to report that there was a sharp decline in iPad sales, going from 7.33 million units sold in the previous quarter to 4.69 million. The chief operating officer Tim Cook was calling the iPad 2 issues “the mother of all backlogs.”

Kingston Launches DataTraveler Ultimate USB 3.0 Generation 2 Flash Drive

2011-05-20T11:42:00.007-04:00

Kingston has recently announced the launch of the Kingston DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 Generation 2 USB 3.0 flash drive, otherwise known as the DTU30G2. The DTU30G2 is Kingston's fastest USB flash drive to date and uses a native USB 3.0 controller in order to achieve better performance and power management.

The DTU30G2 features the latest USB 3.0 technology available to flash drives which makes it perfect for people in the IT field or anybody who loves taking advantage of all the performance improvements one gets from using a USB 3.0 flash drive. It is also good for anybody who just really loves flash drives. Who knows, maybe you have your very own little collection?

This new device comes with a read speed of up to 100MB per second and a write speed of up to 70MB per second when plugged into a USB 3.0 port. If you plug it into a USB 2.0 port, you can expect read and write speeds of 30MB per second.

According to Kingston's Flash Memory Business Manager Andrew Ewing, "Kingston is committed to help drive market adoption of the new USB 3.0 standard and make it more accessible to the mass market. The growing number of platforms and computers supporting the USB 3.0 standard as well as the benefits of the single chip controllers that allow better compatibility and performance are helping drive the adoption of USB 3.0 technology."

The DTU30G2 is capable of storing large amounts of documents, photos and even HD videos and is perfect for anybody looking for the fastest USB technology on the market. The DTU30G2 is backed by a 5-year warranty as well as 24/7 tech support. The Kingston DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 Generation 2 DTU30G2 Flash Drive is available in 16GB, 32GB and 64GB capacities.

Source: Engadget - Kingston refreshes DataTraveler Ultimate USB 3.0 flash drive, demonstrates the high price of speed ; Far East Gizmos - Kingston Launches its Fastest USB 3.0 Flash Drive

iPad and iPhone Shortages Could Cause Shipment Delays

2011-05-16T22:24:00.003-04:00

There could be some definite delays in the shipping of Apple products including the iPad and the iPhone. One of Apple’s key manufacturers, Foxconn, whose factory is in Chengdu, China, is reported to be dealing with a shortage of parts as well as labor.

Digitimes is saying that the alleged shortage could, and most likely will, cause a stall in the shipment of Apple products, particularly the iPhone 4 and the iPad 2. Digitimes also reported that so far Foxconn has not directly commented on the possible issue. The only thing that they have said is that "the company's capacity is being arranged fully at the request of its clients." They refused to comment on whether or not the shortages would delay the shipment of Apple products. The company also went on to say that "it has experience arranging manpower to assist its clients in reaching their goals."

Although Foxconn isn’t speaking up about the problem, recent Apple iPad news seems to indicate that the shipping delay rumors could definitely be true. In Apple’s most recent earning report, they conveyed a decrease in iPad sales. In the first quarter sales slipped from the 7.33 million units that the company sold in the fourth quarter to 4.69 million units. According to Apple’s Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook, the company faced “the mother of all backlogs” with the iPad 2.

Cook even said in the earnings calls, "I wish that we could have made a lot more iPad 2s because there were a lot of people waiting for them."

The Foxconn factory that is struggling with the shortage issues reportedly has 52 different iPad production lines, and it supposedly can produce more than 40 million units a year, but obviously, things are not working out as planned.

One of the reported reasons that there have been iPad 2 supply problems is a leaky touch screen, but this issue has supposedly been fixed. Besides the comments that Cook made during Apple’s earnings report, the company has not commented on anything surrounding the issue.

Hopefully, Foxconn and Apple will figure out all of the shipping issues, and there won’t be big delays on their products; or if there are going to be major delays, I hope that the companies will be upfront and discuss the issues with the public. We’ll just have to wait to see how everything turns out.

Samsung Galaxy Tab Makes Move to Gingerbread

2011-05-13T16:35:00.007-04:00

If you own one of those fancy new Galaxy Tabs, then have I got some good news for you! Samsung has officially began rolling out Android 2.3.3, otherwise known as Gingerbread, to any and all active Samsung Galaxy Tabs.

News of this exciting update first came in from Androidiani and was later confirmed by users from XDA-Dev. If you are a Galaxy Tab owner in Italy, you can start updating your device to Gingerbread via KIES now.

Sources from SamFirmware have also confirmed the Galaxy Tab's move to Gingerbread stating that the Galaxy Tab is now receiving the update with rom coming online within the next couple of days.

Full details of the update are below. I don't know what it is about updates and food names, I mean we've got Honeycomb, Gingerbread and even Ice Cream Sandwich. I'm beginning to think that these technology companies have their minds on something other than updates.

The firmware version of KIES is : P1000XXJPZ.
This rom is running Android 2.3.3
Firmware Version: 2.3.3
Versione banda base : P1000XXJPZ Base-band version: P1000XXJPZ
Versione Kernel : 2.6.35.7 - se-infra@SEP-52 #2
Kernel Version: 2.6.35.7 - if infra-SEP-52 @ # 2
Numero build : GINGERBREAD.XXJQ1
Build Number: GINGERBREAD.XXJQ1

Source: The Galaxy Tab - Samsung started rolling out Android 2.3.3 (Gingerbread) update for Galaxy Tab in Italy! [With Upgrade Video]

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U.S. Cellular Announces 4G Services

2011-05-07T14:31:00.004-04:00

U.S. Cellular, in conjunction with its partner King Street Wireless, has just announced that the company will be delivering high-speed 4G LTE services as well as 4G-enabled devices to more than 25% of customers spanning two dozen markets in time for this year's holiday season. Customers of U.S. Cellular with 4G LTE devices and services will experience faster data speeds when browsing the internet, accessing email, playing games and streaming videos.

The initial rollout of 4G LTE services for U.S Cellular is planned for selected cities in Iowa, Wisconsin, Maine, North Carolina, Texas and Oklahoma. These cities include some of U.S. Cellular's leading markets like Milwaukee, Madison and Racine in Wisconsin, Des Moines, Cedar Rapids and Davenport in Iowa, Portland and Bangor in Maine and Greenville in North Carolina.

According to President and CEO of U.S. Cellular Mary N. Dillon, "With 4G LTE, our customers will have faster connections to the people, information and entertainment that enhance their lives and help them stay organized. In addition to our line-up of cutting-edge devices, customers who switch to U.S. Cellular get unique benefits like faster phone upgrades without continuously signing contracts, and join the happiest customers in wireless."

Sure.

U.S. Cellular plans to introduce a plethora of 4G-enabled devices during the first phase of the company's 4G LTE deployment and will continue to expand its offering through 2012. This new plan builds on the 3G data services that U.S. Cellular customers already experience on the carrier's nationwide network. More information will be given as it arrives.

Source: Engadget - US Cellular announces 4G, plans to light up LTE by end of year

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White iPhone 4 Thicker than Black, Case Issues Imminent

2011-04-29T13:14:00.008-04:00

So, everybody is going bonkers over the iPhone 4, especially since it made the transition from being AT&T exclusive to also being provided on Verizon. And now people are having even more cause to celebrate as Apple has finally released a white version of the Apple smartphone to give customers a nice alternative to the standard black that everyone is carrying around these days. However, with a white iPhone come a few problems that may irritate some and cause others to not buy the phone at all.

What am I talking about? Oh, nothing much, just that the white iPhone 4 is a tiny bit thicker than the original black version. That's it? That's the big problem you all need to hear about? Yeah, it is, especially if you are an iPhone user who just loves buying cases to house your precious iPhone in.

For example, an Incase slider that lovingly fits your black iPhone 4 with ease has to be forced into place on the white iPhone. What is interesting, and unfortunate, is that the white iPhone 4 spec page that Apple is displaying to everybody does not reflect a change in thickness from the black model to the white model. The spec page shows the white iPhone 4 as measuring 9.3mm, the same as the black model. However, it actually measures 9.5mm. There is a tiny disclaimer on the page that says "Actual size and weight may vary by configuration and manufacturing process."

This will undoubtedly cause confusion among consumers as they enter the endless debate of "will my case fit or not?" So why is the white iPhone 4 thicker? Phil Schiller of Apple mentioned that the company needed to add extra UV protection in addition to some other tweaks and that this was done in an attempt to reduce the "unexpected interactions" between the new white cover and the internal components.

This essentially means that Apple needed to sacrifice the slimness of the device in order to have a better functioning white iPhone 4. With this new thickness it seems that we now have four different sized button configurations that need to be taken into consideration before purchasing a shrink-wrapped case for your white iPhone 4, black iPhone 4, white Verizon iPhone 4 and black Verizon iPhone 4. Have fun, Apple junkies. I'll stick with my Android device.

Source: Engadget - White iPhone 4 thickness created issue for case makers, owners

iPad Sales Slipping

2011-04-25T17:25:00.003-04:00

Surprisingly and certainly unexpectedly, Apple’s iPad sales are slipping. They’re slipping enough that iSuppli has gone ahead and readjusted the predicted numbers of iPads that it believed Apple would sell in 2011. That’s a pretty quick decision. Is it really that bad?

At an earnings call on Wednesday, April 20 Apple reported that it had sold 4.69 million iPads in the first quarter. That seems like a ton, doesn’t it? Well, in the fourth quarter of 2010, Apple sold more than 7.33 million iPads, although you have to consider that this number includes the holiday sales.

Originally, iSuppli was predicting that Apple would sell 43.7 million iPad units in 2011, but due to the decline, AppleInsider is saying that they have dropped that forecast to 39.7 million. Before the earnings call, there were a variety of different iPad sale predictions ranging from 45 to 60 million, but I think that those numbers will be dropping very soon.

So why is it that the sales aren't meeting the expectations? One of the biggest issues seems to be that Apple simply cannot keep up with the incredible demand for the device. Tim Cook, Apple’s chief operating officer, said that Apple is dealing with “the mother of all backlogs.”

"I wish that we could have made a lot more iPad 2s because there were a lot of people waiting for them," Cook added.

The new and improved version of the device was released on March 11 in the United States, and it has been incredibly popular. It was reported that Apple sold almost a half a million iPad 2s during the first week that it was in stores, although there was a five week wait period for the device. Reports also stated that they sold out overseas just as quickly.

iSuppli said that some of the slowdown surrounding the iPad 2 was due to the quality of the touch screen LCD panels and the production shortages of the advanced speakers that went into the device. It simply was more difficult to crank out these higher quality parts. There are also rumors that Apple ran into a few manufacturing glitches that slowed down the process as well.

“When we looked at the manufacturing numbers, they must have run into some manufacturing issues, some quality issues in terms of turning those products around, because we didn't see the volume manufactured that we expected to see in the first quarter," said Rhoda Alexander, the director of monitor research at iSuppli.

Some might question whether or not the 8.9-magnitude earthquake that devastated Japan could have caused some production delays as well, but Apple claims that this had no effect on the manufacturing of the device. It was rumored that Apple was being forced to pay extra to ensure smooth shipping of the iPad 2 parts that they received from their Japanese suppliers, but Cook claimed that the disastrous event did not have any kind of impact on supply or cost for Apple.

Although iSuppli has decreased its prediction of sales in 2011, the 2012 predictions have gone up. Previously, it was forecasting that 61.6 million units would be sold in 2012, but they have now increased that number to 62.6 million.

It’s interesting that although there has been a decline in iPad sales, Apple is reporting record earnings. They recently reported profits of $5.99 billion, which is a 95 percent increase over the same time period last year.

It doesn't matter if iPad sales do continue to slip; I think that it is safe to say that Apple will somehow make it through.

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T-Mobile Offering $100 Off the G-Slate

2011-04-22T14:17:00.006-04:00

There's a revolution coming and its name is tablet. Tablets are blowing up the tech industry right now with all the biggest names in technology, like Apple, Samsung, T-Mobile, Acer and others, pumping out tablets like there is no tomorrow. People who continuously find themselves working on the go have really taken a liking to the new rage of tablet technology, with many business professionals taking them on the road instead of a laptop.

Now there are a lot of tablets out there and most people have probably only ever heard of the iPad. Well, ladies and gentlemen, there are actually a whole slew of different tablets out there aside from the iPad, and some of them are actually really good.

One such device is the G-Slate from T-Mobile. The G-Slate is T-mobile's first 4g Android 3.0 tablet and if you act now, you can get a pretty sweet deal on one. Want to know a secret? Of course you do! T-Mobile didn't really plan on this getting out to the public, but when was the last time a technology company was able to keep anything a secret? If you call up T-Mobile right now, you can take the price of the G-Slate and slice off a nice $100.

This $100 discount wasn't offered to the public, it was only offered to those people who signed up for a special promotion offer that T-Mobile recently teased. But once the internet found out, it was all downhill from there because that little "select" promotion is now open to everybody!

That's right, all you have to do is reference the promotional code GSLATE100 and you can grab yourself a brand new, 4G Honeycomb tablet for a pretty $430. That is, of course, if you have an existing voice plan or you decide to sign up for one and are willing to commit to a two-year data contract on top of all of that. Did I mention the $100 off is a mail-in rebate?

If all that red tape doesn't phase you, then congratulations! You will soon be the new owner of a discounted T-Mobile G-Slate tablet! But if you decide to do it, then you had better do it fast because the offer ends on April 27th.

Source: Engadget - T-Mobile willing to knock $100 off G-Slate if you ask nicely

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1&1 Online Storage App Makes Working on the Go More Efficient

2011-04-17T23:32:00.005-04:00

Mobile technology is taking off faster than probably anybody anticipated with millions of people just in America alone using mobile devices and smartphones to do a number of things including logging onto the internet. Well, in response to that, 1&1 Internet Incorporated has developed a new app that is specially designed to be beneficial for businesses and business professionals utilizing mobile technology. This new application, known as the 1&1 Online Storage app, provides you with access to important documents without ever using a computer and can even be achieved with a mobile internet connection. Business professionals who are constantly traveling can can utilize this app to edit and manage documents more efficiently while on the go. The only thing you need is a 1&1 Online Office account which you get for free with most 1&1 hosting packages. The actual app is available to download for free to your iPhone, iPad or even your iPod Touch and any mobile phone running the Android operating system. According to CEO of 1&1 Internet Incorporated Oliver Mauss, "With the increased demand for mobile Web connections, 1&1 has been working hard to provide our customers with the tools necessary to manage their business from any type of internet connection. Mobile applications have become a dominant force in communication and information management and we welcome the challenge to continue providing customers with tools that support their efforts to effectively conduct business on the go." The 1&1 Online Storage app is simple to download and once it is downloaded, you can enter the email address and password associated with your 1&1 account. This login will provide you with access to 1&1's Online Storage from anywhere you can get internet service. A plethora of document types, including DOC, XLS, PDF, PPT and JPG, can be viewed, edited, filed and saved directly from a mobile device. In addition to that, each account is automatically given 2 GB of free space. If you need more than that, you can increase your storage capacity for an additional cost. All of the data and information is stored on 1&1's servers located in the company's state-of-the-art, high performance data center in Lenexa, Kansas. By storing your documents in Online Storage, you can ensure that only the most recent file versions are available and eliminate the chance of outdated information being referenced. Source: SFGate - 1&1 App Improves Efficiency for Working On-The-Go

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Wi-Fi-Only Samsung Galaxy Tab Available Soon

2011-04-09T18:29:00.005-04:00

On Wednesday, April 6 Samsung announced that it will be releasing a Wi-Fi-only version of its Galaxy Tab in the United States. It will be available on Sunday, April 10 and will be selling for $349.99. The original 7-inch version of the Samsung Galaxy Tab was released seven months ago in September. When it first was released, the only mobile carrier that offered the tablet was Sprint. They originally offered it for $399.99, but the company required that users commit to a two-year data plan that would cost $29.99 at least. Since the Galaxy Tab launched, it has become available on all of the major U.S. mobile carriers. "We are excited to have the WiFi version of the Galaxy Tab join our growing portfolio of Galaxy-branded devices," said Dale Sohn, president of Samsung Mobile, in a statement. "The 7-inch Galaxy Tab is the first truly mobile tablet on the market, allowing users to comfortably hold the device in one hand while typing or navigating the Web with the other." The Galaxy Tab features an Android 2.2 operating system, a 7-inch TFT display with 1,024 by 600 resolution, weighs 13 ounces, and is 12 millimeters thin. It comes standard with 16GB of internal storage, but if that isn’t enough room for you, it offers microSD expansion that will allow for up to 32GB of additional storage.

Samsung made another announcement recently. Sometime in the near future there will be a 10.1-inch and an 8.9-inch version of the Galaxy Tab. There will also be 5-inch and 4-inch Galaxy Player models that will be available.

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Pandora Caught Sending Personal User Information to Ad Servers

2011-04-08T19:17:00.005-04:00

If you are constantly working on the go, you definitely value your breaks. One thing a lot of people like to have with them when they are always on the go is music and no other service is quite as popular as Pandora. Now we all know that the Pandora app sends a ton of personal information to third party developers according to an analysis by Veracode. Well, Veracode decided to do a follow-up on their news that Pandora, as well as a lot of other mobile app makers, was being investigated by a federal grand jury and found that information, such as birth date, gender, Android ID and GPS information, was being sent to a plethora of advertising companies. Pandora recently revealed that they had been subpoenaed by a federal grand jury to produce documents about their user data collection practices on Android and iOS devices. Pandora also stated that they believe the subpoena is part of an industry-wide investigation into popular applications on Android and iOS devices. The Wall Street Journal didn't waste any time following up on this news and reported that the purpose of the investigation is to find out whether or not app makers fully describe to users the kinds of information they obtain from them and exactly why they need it. Veracode decided to dig deeply into the Pandora Android app to see just what data might be transmitted. Veracode's analysis stated that Pandora's app seems to be integrated with five separate ad libraries that included AdMarvel, AdMob, comScore (SecureStudies), Google.Ads and Medialets. Veracode verified that the AdMob library accessed a user's GPS information as well as various other data about the application itself like package name and version info. That is all pretty low level but Veracode said that there are other references which appear to transmit your birthday, gender and postal code. In addition to that, the app also appears to send your Android ID and seems to continually access your GPS location for updates. According to a blog post by Veracode, "The analysis into the remaining libraries resulted in even more of the same.The SecureStudies library accesses the android_id and directly sends a hash of the data to http://b.scorecardresearch.com while the Medialets library accesses the device's GPS location, bearing, altitude, android_id, connection status, network information, device brand, model, release revision and current IP address." Pandora has argued that they need this type of user information in order to continue delivering personalized music streams. However, the analysis from Veracode shows that Pandora is not simply collecting that information for itself. They are also using it for advertising purposes. If the grand jury comes to the same conclusion as Veracode, then Pandora, as well as a whole host of other app makers, could be facing some pretty serious legal difficulties. "Your personal information is being transmitted to advertising agencies in mass quantities," according to Veracode. "In isolation some of this data is uninteresting, but when compiled into a single unifying picture, it can provide significant insight into a person's life... When all that is placed into a single basket, it's pretty easy to determine who someone is, what they do for a living, who they associate with and any number of other traits about them. I don't know about you, but that feels a little Orwellian to me." If all this is true then Pandora and other app makers will have some serious explaining to do. I, for one, do not want any kind of personal information like that being slung around carelessly to advertisers. Who knows, if advertisers can get it that easily, then what stops an identity thief from getting it? Source: ars technica - Pandora sends users' GPS, sex, birthdate, other data to ad servers

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Is the iPad a Necessary Business Tool?

2011-04-03T23:44:00.004-04:00

What do you think? Is the iPad a bad business tool? According to Dell and HP, it is. This week, both of these technology giants criticized Apple’s enterprise strategy. "Apple is great if you've got a lot of money and live on an island. It's not so great if you have to exist in a diverse, open, connected enterprise; simple things become quite complex," said Dell’s global marketing chief Andy Lark. In an interview with CRN Stephen DeWitt, senior vice president of HP Americas Solution Partners Organization, said "Apple's relationship with partners is transactional, completely. Apple doesn't have an inclusive philosophy of partner capabilities, and that's just absurd."

On Thursday, March 31 there was a sort of rebuttal against these criticisms when SmithBucklin, a global company that deals with managing anything from the basic logistics to event promotion of trade shows, took on the role as the first company to place an entire order for iPad 2s. So, why did SmithBucklin choose the iPad 2?

They say that one of the main reasons for choosing the iPad 2 over a tablet like the Samsung Galaxy Tab, Motorola Xoom, etc. was because they wanted to boost the use of social media among their employees. "We wanted to make sure our employees were actually walking the walk and not just talking the talk," Mike Nikolich, SmithBucklin's chief marketing officer, said. "We advise our clients all the time on managing blogs, commenting, updating Facebook pages, etc.” "Ultimately we see the iPad 2 as a productivity tool. It's a lot easier to bring the tablet on the train or out of town for work, and lots of people here already use them during meetings."

Nikolich went on to say that most of the 600 employees at SmithBucklin will receive an iPad 2. He also said that almost half of the office already owns an original iPad, but when given the opportunity to have the new iPad 2, 95 percent of the employees chose the upgraded tablet. "It's so new, there's still the 'wow' factor," he said. He also said that his company’s interaction with Apple was minimal because there was very little integration work needed. "Honestly, direct contact with Apple did not have an impact in our decision."

So again I pose the question…what do you think? Do you feel that the iPad 2 is a useful business tool? It’s a very expensive tool. I know that for sure. I think that it can definitely be useful tool, but there are many other things that can do the same job. Yes, it’s convenient access to social media outlets, but can’t laptops and computers and even smartphones do the same thing? If your business has plenty of money to spend on things like iPads, then by all means, go for it, but I don’t think that the average corporation is going to be sending Apple orders for iPads for all of their employees. Maybe someday in the future, when iPads are cheaper, this could be a possibility, but for now, I think most companies will be waiting.

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Most Carriers Getting Windows Phone 7 Updates Soon, AT&T Not One of Them

2011-04-01T16:23:00.006-04:00

Microsoft released last week their highly anticipated "NoDo" patch for Windows Phone 7 handsets. This patch finally brings things like copy and paste and a lot of other improvements to the world of Windows Phone 7. However, there is one problem with the NoDo update, the carriers. Microsoft began rolling out the update to unbranded smartphones in Europe last week over-the-air with no problems. However, in America things were a little different. In the U.S. it was up to the discretion of the carriers whether or not their phones would be receiving the update to the mobile operating system. Apparently this is common here in the states whereas a majority of phones run operating systems that have been bought off the shelf. Apple, Research in Motion and Nokia (until recently) were some of the few providers who were in charge of their own software updates and who were the ones that would take responsibility for an update if it failed on a phone. When a mobile phone is made by one person and its operating system is made by another, both companies can put the blame on each other if something goes wrong. This ultimately leaves the carriers as the ones taking the blame on a failed patch. That is why, in America at least, carriers test patches before they roll them out. It is also the reason updates for phones running Android or Windows Phone 7 can be delayed for so long. When this update was released last week, Microsoft had just posted a public chart showing where domestic carriers were in the deployment phase of the NoDo for Windows Phone 7. The good news today is that nearly all of the networks are rolling out the update to their handsets. But there is some bad news. The bad news is that AT&T is still testing their update and they expect it to be completed by early April. This is a huge delay for some users who have already waited six months for basic copy and paste functionality. It is so bad that even Microsoft is apologizing. Microsoft's Eric Hautala wrote, "I know many of you are disappointed, even angry. You certainly have the right to be. We've fallen far short of your expectations and our own, and for that I'm truly sorry. We didn't set out to let you down. But it's clear we did. Whether you're someone who has followed our progress from the start or are new to Windows Phone, you deserve the updates we've promised. My job is to get us on the right path and deliver them." While the apology is nice, many people would prefer seeing a plan on how Microsoft plans on fixing the patching process, or even if they plan on doing so at all. Source: Geek.com - Windows Phone 7 updates rolling out to most carriers soon... except AT&T

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Samsung Renames Galaxy Tab 10.1 to Galaxy Tab 10.1V

2011-03-25T13:39:00.006-04:00

There was a lot of buzz going around that Samsung was dropping their first installment into the tablet market, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, for a larger, thicker and newer tablet. Well, after much speculation, a lot of rumors and even more closed-door conversations that seemed a little too fishy, it has finally been revealed that those reports are completely NOT TRUE.

Samsung has, however, announced that the Americas will, in fact, be getting a thinner, lighter and newly designed model of the Samsung Galaxy Tab on June 8th, 2011. However, according to UK's Vodafone as well as Samsung representatives, the carrier will definitely be sticking with the original Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 which launched last month in February at Mobile World Congress.

In order to prevent confusion between the two devices, Samsung is renaming the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 to the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1V. According to a spokesperson from Vodafone, "The Galaxy Tab 10.1V remains a Vodafone exclusive and will still be one of the first Android 3.0 devices to launch. We'll announce pricing and availability in due course."

You heard correctly. Following the hyped announcement at CTIA in Orlando, Florida about a brand new, super slim design, nothing appears to be changing with the initial British release. Samsung has also stated that the new model may not even appear in the United Kingdom at all. Not everything is negative though. While it is slightly thicker then the upcoming Samsung tablet, the Galaxy Tab 10.1V does feature an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera as opposed to the 3-megapixel camera on the device that is now known as the Galaxy Tab 10.1. Vodafone has also confirmed that the Galaxy Tab 10.1V does not feature the Touchwiz UI that Samsung demoed at CTIA.

Source: Pocket-lint - Full flat Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 still on for UK release... via Vodafone

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The Original iPad Just Got Cheaper

2011-03-21T20:30:00.004-04:00

If you haven’t purchased a tablet yet but are really looking into getting one, you may have a very hard decision ahead of you if you’re looking into an iPad. You have been faced with the decision of buying the less expensive original iPad or splurging and going for the slightly more expensive iPad 2.

As if that decision wasn’t hard enough, Apple made it even harder for you to decide when it discounted the original iPad models by $100 after the announcement of the iPad 2. This provided even more incentive to just go ahead and buy Apple’s incredibly popular original iPad because it just seemed like such a great deal.

Well, guess what? The deal just got even harder to resist. AT&T has decided to not be outshined by Apple’s discounts on the original iPad. The company has recently announced that customers who are looking to purchase the first generation iPad from AT&T will now enjoy an extra $100 off their purchase, on top of the $100 that Apple has already knocked off.

The final price of the original iPad has now been reduced by $200 at AT&T stores. The 16GB and 32GB versions will now be available for $429 and $529 respectively. In addition to these savings, AT&T has also slashed the price of the 64GB iPad to $529, a $300 savings. This incredible savings can be found at AT&T’s website.

So, you may be sitting there saying, that’s great, but what’s the catch? Well, one of the disadvantages is that AT&T does not sell Wi-Fi only devices, so you are stuck purchasing the more expensive 3G versions. Also, if you are looking to take advantage of the online discount, AT&T requires that you subscribe to their DataConnect Personal Data Plan. The cheapest DataConnect plan gives you up to 250MB of data for $14.99 per month.

Right now, AT&T has a promotional deal that allows users to get the first month of their DataConnect plan completely free. If you decide to be crafty and get around the data plan requirements with AT&T, what you could do is sign up for a plan, like the website requires you to do, and then after the first 30 days, simply cancel your plan. This is a practice that has been used by some of AT&T’s smartphone customers. This is a great way to snatch up a super-discounted iPad from AT&T and really not have any strings attached.

T-Mobile G2x and G-Slate Not Coming Until April 20th

2011-03-18T14:05:00.006-04:00

I love writing about tablets and smartphones because everybody is so excited about them! Smartphones and tablets have really taken off thanks to products like the Apple iPad and the Motorola Droid, and since they brought new life into these markets people just can't get enough of them.

Since people are so infatuated with these devices, there are always a lot of rumors floating around the internet about them. Nothing gets talk buzzing about your product like some good ol' fashioned internet rumor spouting and the latest in both smartphone and tablet rumors comes to us from T-Mobile.

There has been a lot of speculation that the G-Slate from T-Mobile would be released on March 23rd. However, as that is only five days away, it does not seem likely that the 23rd release date is going to happen. Companies like to do that. They like to tell you one date so you keep talking about their product, then when that date comes close, they push it back so you get even more excited for it.

We'll for anybody who has been following this release, I have some news, good or bad depending on how you take it. It appears that the T-Mobile G-Slate tablet as well as the T-Mobile G2x will drop together on April 20th. An official announcement is said to come soon from CTIA.

However, like the March 23rd release date, these dates are subject to change and will if they need to (you know what we mean, HTC Thunderbolt). This does give you some extra time to save up if you really want one of these devices but can't afford it now.

Source: TmoNews - T-Mobile Releasing G2X And G-Slate on April 20th?

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T-Mobile G2x and G-Slate Not Coming Until April 20th

2011-03-18T14:05:00.004-04:00

I love writing about tablets and smartphones because everybody is so excited about them! Smartphones and tablets have really taken off thanks to products like the Apple iPad and the Motorola Droid and since they brought new life into these markets people just can't get enough of them.

Since people are so infatuated with these devices there are always a lot of rumors floating around the internet about them. Nothing gets talk buzzing about your product like some good 'ol fashioned internet rumor spouting and the latest in both smartphone and tablet rumors comes to use from T-Mobile.

There has been a lot of speculation that the G-Slate from T-Mobile would be released on March 23rd. However, as that is only five days away, it does not seem likely that the 23rd release date is going to happen. Companies like to do that, they like to tell you one date so you keep talking about their product then when that date comes close they push it back so you get even more excited for it.

We'll for anybody who has been following this release I have some news, good or bad depending on how you take it. It appears that the T-Mobile G-Slate tablet as well as the T-Mobile G2x will drop together on April 20th. An official announcement is said to drop at CTIA.

However, like the March 23rd release date, these dates are subject to change and will if they need to (you know what we mean HTC Thunderbolt). This does give you some extra time to save up if you really want one of these devices but couldn't afford it now.

Source: TmoNews - T-Mobile Releasing G2X And G-Slate on April 20th?

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Thinking of Trading in Your Original iPad?

2011-03-11T22:06:00.003-05:00

Are you thinking about getting the new iPad 2 and don’t know what to do with your original iPad? Well, now there is an option. Best Buy and Target are both offering an iPad buyback program that allows iPad owners to trade in their original iPads for in-store credit or a check.

Target is only offering an in-store credit for trade-ins. Owners will receive the maximum amount of credit for fully functional iPads that are turned in with their original boxes. You can either go to Target’s Mobile Stand (there are currently 850 in 1,490 Target stores nationwide) or Target’s trade-in e-store if you want to trade in your old iPad.

Target also mentioned that their REDCard 5 percent discount program will apply to the iPad 2.

Listed below are the maximum values that Target is offering as an in-store credit which you can receive when you trade in your old iPad:

iPad WiFi 16GB (original price: $499) – $194
iPad WiFi 32GB ($599) -- $229
iPad WiFi 64GB ($629) -- $257
iPad WiFi + 3G 16GB ($699) -- 229
iPad WiFi + 3G 32GB ($729) -- $264
iPad WiFi + 3G 64GB ($829) -- $303

Best Buy's longstanding trade-in program offers the choice of either an in-store credit or a mailed check. Listed below are the maximum values that Best Buy is offering for your iPad without the box:

iPad WiFi 16GB -- gift card: $230; check: $150
iPad WiFi 32GB -- gift card: $275; check: $179
iPad WiFi 64GB -- gift card: $311; check: $202
iPad WiFi + 3G 16GB -- gift card: $275; check: $179
iPad WiFi + 3G 32GB -- gift card: $320; check:$ 208
iPad WiFi + 3G 64GB -- gift card: $370; check: $240

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Record Sales for Tablets and eReaders in Fourth Quarter 2010

2011-03-11T16:52:00.007-05:00

2010 was a big year for technology and. according to the International Data Corporation Worldwide Quarterly Media Tablet and eReader Tracker, it was also a good year for tablets and eReaders. According to the IDC, 10.1 million media tablets were shipped in the fourth quarter of 2010 alone which was more than double the 4.5 million shipped in the third quarter. Apple saw a decrease in shares from 93% to 73% but still remained on top. The Galaxy Tab from Samsung was the main contender against the iPad, beating other players to market and grabbing more than 17% share of the market.

The Tracker also showed that the market for eReaders increased significantly in the fourth quarter. Amazon's Kindle saw strong sales and other contributers, like Pandigital, Barnes & Noble, Hanvon and Sony, contributed to the market growth.

The eReader market more than doubled in volume in the fourth quarter from the third quarter with over 6 million units shipped for the fourth quarter. This brought the total of eReaders shipped for the year to 12.8 million units. eReader shipments also increased over 325% from 2009 when there were only around 3 million units shipped. This type of growth reflects a strong growth of competition in the market and an increasing interest in the category.

According to Loren Loverde, Vice President of Consumer Device Trackers, "Strong holiday sales of media tablets were in line with IDC projections and strong consumer interest in the category while device vendors scrambled to offer products competitive with Apple's iPad and now iPad2. Media Tablets are on pace to reach shipments of roughly 50 million units in 2011."

According to the IDC, the United States, Western Europe and Asia/Pacific (not counting Japan) accounted for 89% of all media tablet shipments in the fourth quarter. Even though the United States was the largest country market, Western Europe and Asia/Pacific increased almost twice as fast from the third quarter to the fourth quarter with Western Europe seeing a slightly larger jump in shipments in the fourth quarter.

Retailers were the highest channel of shipments in the fourth quarter of 2010 followed by direct sales and telco shares. Telco operators, which is a new channel for media tablets, accounted for nearly 14% of all shipments in the 2010 fourth quarter following the only 1% share seen in the third quarter.

Source: Engadget - IDC: 18 million tablets, 12 million e-readers shipped in 2010

Updated Google Maps Navigation App Avoids Traffic

2011-03-07T18:03:00.007-05:00

GPS systems that hook into your car can be very helpful most of the time, but what do you do when your GPS takes you on a route straight into the middle of a traffic jam? A new update to Google’s navigation app now allows you to avoid that mess though.

In a blog post on Monday, March 7, Google said that its Google Maps Navigation for Android phones will now automatically route you away from and around all traffic issues. Before the latest update, the Google app would simply choose the fastest route without any consideration of the traffic conditions at the time. It did feature the option of choosing the shortest route or the route that used the highway instead of side roads.

"Starting today, our routing algorithms will also apply our knowledge of current and historical traffic to select the fastest route from those alternates," wrote Roy Williams, a software engineer with the Google Maps team. "That means that Navigation will automatically guide you along the best route, given the current traffic conditions."

Google went on to say that they could not necessarily guarantee a faster route with the new updated Google Maps Navigation, but they said "it will always try to get you where you're going as fast as possible."

The new and improved app from Google is now available in North America and Europe.

It was first released in 2009 as a part of the Android 2.0-powered Motorola Droid. It was the very first free GPS app that featured voice prompts. Later on, a version of the app was created for Android 1.6 devices as well. The Google Maps app is available via the Android Market.

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$100 Refund for Recent Purchases of the Original iPad

2011-03-04T20:15:00.005-05:00

So you did it. You have had enough of working on the go and lugging your laptop around with you, so you broke down and finally bought an iPad. The bad news? The iPad 2 was literally just released and the original iPad got a pretty price cut. I bet in your mind you are spouting some pretty obscene curse words but alas, I have some very very good news for you. If you recently purchased a first generation iPad, then you may qualify for a $100 refund.

That's right, Apple is offering a $100 refund to customers who purchased the iPad at its former price according to a customer service representative from Apple. The refund, which will be applied directly to your credit card, applies to each and every single version of the first generation iPad.

But like most good news in the world, there is a catch. According to the customer service representative, who recently spoke with CNET, Apple is only offering the $100 refund to anybody who purchased a first generation iPad within 14 days of the March 2nd announcement of the iPad 2. There was no official date given by the customer service representative but if you do your math right, that cut-off date would seemingly be February 16th.

The iPad 2, which comes with some serious updates including two cameras, a dual-core processor and either a black or white finish, is scheduled to hit store shelves on March 11th for a base price of $499. Apple also released a statement yesterday that it has started selling first generation iPad models for $100 less than their previous price tags, which is where the $100 refund comes in.

If you purchased your iPad online, then you need to call Apple customer service to process the refund according to the customer service representative. Customers who purchased iPads from a store must bring their receipt with them to the store they purchased it from in order to receive their refunds.

Source: cnet News - Apple giving $100 refund on recent iPad purchases

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Froyo Pulled from Samsung Epic 4G Due to Connectivity and SD Card Issues

2011-02-25T13:10:00.005-05:00

Froyo, or Android 2.2, is the hot topic around the mobile phone world right now and everybody is wondering whether or not their phone is getting it. While a ton of phones are getting it, there is one that just pulled the update due to a few problems. That's right, if you have the Samsung Epic 4G from Sprint and are waiting for your upgrade, then keep waiting.

Samsung handset owners have been swimming in the bad news this week while awaiting their updates. Just a mere three days after the hotly anticipated Android 2.2 (Froyo) update began making its way onto Epic 4G phones, the code has been pulled from the update servers. Sprint is working on finding the root cause for several annoying problems after a rash of support calls.

According to a moderator's forum post, "The issues being reported are related to data connectivity following the upgrade and SD card issues when attempting to access photos, music, etc... If you are experiencing these issues, a hard reset has been reported to resolve the problems."

A hard reset doesn't sound too friendly and there is currently no word on who or what is causing these problems. There is also no word on when exactly the update will be ready for download again. Needless to say, this has not been a good week for Samsung and Samsung smartphone customers.

Source: BGR - Sprint pulls Samsung Epic 4G Android 2.2 (Froyo) update; data connectivity, SD card issues reported

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Is Your Android Getting Froyo?

2011-02-18T15:48:00.005-05:00

It seems like everybody with an android smartphone these days is eagerly awaiting Google's Android 2.2 operating system known on the streets as "Froyo". Froyo is slowly making its way onto handsets around the world, but there is a lot of confusion about which phones are receiving the update and which ones will be left behind.

Many manufacturers have been slow to reveal details about their plans for the 2.2 upgrade, but if you piece together all the little snippets of information that we do know about, then you craft a pretty nice picture of what is happening in the Froyo universe. So check out the following list and see if your phone made the cut for the Froyo treatment.

HTC Aria - Southeast Asian carriers are receiving th update now. No word on an official U.S. release date.

HTC Wildfire - Started in Europe in late December and is expected to be complete around the world by end of February 2011.

Samsung Acclaim - Made available on January 13, 2011 but as a manual download.

LG Ally - Officially began January 18, 2011 and is still running.

Samsung Galaxy S - All Samsung Galaxy S handsets will be receiving Froyo including: Samsung Captivate (AT&T); February 16, Samsung Epic 4G (Sprint); February 21, Samsung Vibrant (T-Mobile); January 21, and Samsung Fascinate (Verizon) February 22.

Other phones expected to get Froyo include:

Motorola Mileatone

Motorola Defy

Samsung Transform

Nook Color

Samsung Galaxy Apollo

Samsung Continuum

Samsung Apex

Sanyo Zio

If your phone wasn't listed here, chances are it either a.) already has the update, b.) is still iffy on the subject or c.) isn't getting the update at all. ComputerWorld has the full list of all the phones getting the update, all the ones that got it and all the ones that are iffy or not getting it at all, so check to make sure your phone is on the list and when you are expected to get it, if at all.

Source - ComputerWorld - Android 2.2 upgrade list: Is your phone getting Froyo?

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Yahoo’s Livestand Digital Newsstand Coming Soon

2011-02-18T15:09:00.003-05:00

To start things off at the Mobile World Congress on Wednesday, February 16, Yahoo offered a demo of its Livestand digital newsstand app which the company plans to release soon. The executives at Yahoo have promised that the app for tablets will offer personalized content in an elegant format which will cater to the millions of Yahoo users who access the company’s content via their mobile devices.

"We have 630 million users who come to Yahoo on a monthly basis, and we noticed that our users are going more and more mobile," said Cris Pierry, senior director of Yahoo Mobile. "What Livestand is designed to do is to facilitate that transition from the PC to mobile [so they still] have a compelling way to consume content from Yahoo."

Now, this does not mean that Yahoo will be disappearing from the Web. The company said that it will not only be offering a tablet version of the Livestand app, but a little later in the year, a smartphone version and Web version will be made available. For now though, the company really wants to focus on catering to the tablet industry and more specifically to the iPad and Android-based devices. Recently there has been quite a bit of buzz about publications being built explicitly for tablets including Rupert Murdoch’s “The Daily” and Richard Branson’s “Project” magazine; however, Pierry says that Yahoo isn’t looking to compete with those publications but instead to compliment them.

"I consider them a potential partner," Pierry said. "I consider Livestand as a platform where 'The Daily' content can also be published and distributed. For us this is really about creating this eco-system to enable publishers ... to distribute that content through a variety of devices."

Since Yahoo wants to be consider a “potential partner,” this means that Livestand will feature content from both Yahoo properties and other outside publications. Livestand itself is very easy to use. On the iPad, if you tap on the app, you will be brought to a screen that shows one main story on top and three or four smaller stories on the bottom. All of the stories include fantastic pictures to go along with the articles, and all of the stories that show up are customized based on the preferences that have been determined by your previous Yahoo activity.

As you continue through the story, Livestand will organize advertisements and comments that are customized to you. Say you decide to post a story to Facebook, if someone comments on it, that comment could appear as an in-line box in the story, and you can simply click to discuss it further. There are also interactive ads that make things a little more interesting.

Now if you’re concerned about privacy at all, Pierry said that all of your Yahoo data is completely secure.

"We take privacy very seriously; we're not sharing that information with third parties," he said. "We're basically using the same technology that we use today. The idea is that the publisher will take all their content, they'll submit it into the Yahoo content repository, and then we're going to [take] what we know about the customer and the content the publisher [submits] and then we'll mix and match. We're not really sharing your personal information; we're just using what we know about you to deliver content for you."

Pierry said that as of right now Yahoo has no plans to charge for their content on Livestand. Later on though, publishers may have the option for a subscription model for access to their content.

On Wednesday at a keynote presentation at MWC, Yahoo’s chief Carol Bartz said that Livestand really offers content with a “unique blend of science, art and scale.”
"We all know that the world's entire content is going digital; it has to," Bartz said. She said that she really pushed the concept of "content in context" as the "sweet spot" for Yahoo. She said that it is definitely something that Livestand will highlight.

"We want your content to be personal," she said. "We've tailored a solution and the whole concept is that it's built from the ground up ... publish once, run on any device and have it actually be tailored."

Pierry said that the solution is to simply have a algorithmic page layout (ATL). The layout decides how Yahoo wants to lay out the Livestand pages "based on a variety of different signals," he said. "Some of it is on the relevance of the content to me, some of it is based on popularity across the platform." ATL also will take into account if there is any multimedia that is associated with the story.

This app is really cool. It caters completely to the user. Yahoo really did a fantastic job. It will be very interesting to see what they do with the smartphone and Web versions later in the year.

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10.1-inch Honeycomb Tablet Coming from Samsung this Sunday?

2011-02-11T13:18:00.008-05:00

Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold the phones! Could Samsung be launching a Galaxy Tab 2 with Honeycomb this Sunday? If so, it is definitely a bit of a surprise to the tech world.

According to sources from Pocket-lint, Samsung will be launching a 10.1-inch tablet on Sunday night complete with Honeycomb as the start of Mobile World Congress. According to what we know so far, the device will be thinner and lighter that the current Samsung Galaxy Tab, will have a bigger screen and be featured in black as opposed to white.

Running Honeycomb, (Android 3.0) Samsung is hoping the new tablet will be able to hold its own against some of the more popular devices out there like the Xoom from Motorola and the dominating iPad from Apple. Pocket-lint sources also believed that Samsung was considering launching a 9-inch tablet at the same time, making it appear that Samsung didn't really have a full plan laid out. However, it appears now that this is untrue.

Specifications are scarce on this device. What we do know is that it will have a dual-core Qualcomm chip as well as an 8-megapixel camera. It has also been released that this Galaxy Tab will be physically smaller than Apple's iPad, even though it has a moderately larger screen than Apple's device.

I guess we will figure out more details concerning this tablet, which is still without a name, on Sunday. Samsung's first Galaxy Tab did o.k. but couldn't really hold a candle to the iPad. But then again, what device could? Maybe this next generation device will be different. One can only hope.

What Does the Tablet Industry's Future Look Like?

2011-02-07T17:31:00.004-05:00

There are plenty of people who are trying to predict the growth of the tablet industry in the next few years. Most recently, the glass makers have been the people that are rolling out the predictions. More specifically, it has been the president of Corning Glass Technologies Group that has been vocal about his beliefs concerning the tablet industry.

Now, you may not recognize the name Corning Glass Technologies Group right off the bat, but you will most likely recognize the name of the product that the company manufactures…Gorilla Glass. This product is the transparent panel that protects devices including Dell’s Streak tablet, Samsung’s Galaxy S, the iPhone 4, and a variety of other devices.

The president of Corning Glass James Clappin claimed that the demand for Gorilla Glass has really been off the charts since the launch of the product in 2008, but what does the future look like for the company and the product?

"Corning Gorilla Glass is the cover glass of choice for manufacturers of high-end mobile phones," Clappin said in a statement. "We expect the number of these devices using cover glass to quadruple over the next four years, presenting us with a significant opportunity for growth."

“Global innovation is at the heart of Corning today and has been for our 160-year history,” said Wendell P. Weeks, chairman, chief executive officer, and president of the company. “Our capabilities in glass and ceramics have the potential to deliver solutions across many industries that address significant global technology trends, driven by consumer desires to access and share information wherever they are, whenever they want,” he said. “We envision a world where technology enables seamless delivery of real-time information…a natural and intuitive interaction with the virtual world. This is a world of specialty glass with vivid displays, multi-functional ‘smart’ surfaces, and interactive devices.”

“Corning Gorilla Glass is the cover glass of choice for manufacturers of high-end mobile phones. We expect the number of these devices using cover glass to quadruple over the next four years, presenting us with a significant opportunity for growth,” Clappin said.

He has gone on to discuss how there is an even larger opportunity for Corning’s Gorilla Glass with the growth of the tablet industry. Corning goes on to estimate that tablet computer sales could grow from roughly 20 million units last year to almost 180 million by 2014. “What makes the tablet market so appealing for us is that all of these devices will likely require a highly durable, scratch-resistant piece of cover glass,” he will say.

If there really is an increase like what Clappin is predicting, there could be as much an 800 percent increase in tablet sales.

Now, although these are some incredible numbers that Clappin is throwing out, not everyone is quite that ridiculously optimistic. According to analysts like the Yankee Group, there will be a lower multiplier in terms of overall revenue growth. The Yankee Group feels that it is much more likely that the global tablet market will jump from 16 billion in total global revenues in 2010 to 46 billion in 2014. This is definitely a lot less than the 800 percent increase that Clappin is predicting. As far as physical sales, Yankee Group believes that tablet sales will triple between 2010 and 2015.

Clappin and Yankee Group analyst Dmitriy Molchanov may not agree on the final prediction numbers, but they both are saying that the tablet industry has a very bright looking future for consumers, manufacturers, and glass makers.

"The growth in this market is unprecedented," said Molchanov. "The tablet sales curve is rising faster than that of HDTVs, handheld gaming consoles or even MP3 players."

It will be very interesting to see how this market really does increase and whether or not Gorilla Glass will be a part of it.

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Samsung's Smart Touch Android Remote App

2011-02-05T15:28:00.008-05:00

If any of you reading this article are smartphone users and avid television watchers, then Android has an app for you. Samsung's Smart Touch Android remote app is finally available in the Android Marketplace as a free download. This download comes nearly nine months after it was originally released on iOS.

If you threw down a hefty amount of cash on a new model C Samsung TV recently and are eagerly awaiting the day your Samsung smartphone can replace yet another piece of your everyday technology, then today could be the best day ever. Based on reviews the app currently has an average 4-star review but there are a lot of reports about crashing and error reports.

The app works with any Samsung Galaxy S smartphone as well as the Samsung Galaxy Tab as a remote for your television and uses Wi-Fi to connect to your Samsung television. There are a lot of cool features that come with this app that offer things a traditional remote cannot do. You can use the on-screen QWERTY keyboard to input information for TV functions, control settings and make it easier to navigate Samsung apps.

A 4-way directional pad allows you to easily navigate apps, and the application is compatible with a wide variety of 2010 Samsung TV models including the LED C6500 series and higher, the LCD C650 series and higher and the plasma C6500 series and higher. The app will also be compatible with select 2011 smart TVs.

This is the second television remote app launched by Samsung to date. Samsung made available a similar app for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad last year in order to allow users an easy way to navigate their smart TVs. The app is literally brand new so there are very few reviews out on it but, like I said earlier, it does have an average rating of 4 stars. The app is currently available now for Samsung Galaxy S smartphones as well as the Samsung Galaxy Tab.

Source: Engadget

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The Daily- A Subscription News App for iPad Users

2011-02-02T20:33:00.005-05:00

On Wednesday, February 2 at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City, Rupert Murdoch, the founder, chairman, and CEO of News Corp., unveiled his newspaper called The Daily that is just for Apple’s iPad.

"In the tablet era, there's room for a fresh and new voice," Murdoch said. "The iPad demands that we completely reinvent our craft."

Murdoch went on to give a nice little overview of the new digital newspaper. He said that The Daily will feature close to 100 pages of brand new content each and every day in six different categories: news, sports, gossip and celebrity, opinion, art and life, and apps and games. iPad users that are interested in the paper can subscribe to the publication and decide whether they want to be billed each week for $0.99 or each year for $39.99. This comes down to about $0.14 a day. Once users have subscribed to The Daily, the publication will be automatically delivered to their iPad each and every morning.

"No million dollar presses, no trucks, and we're passing on that savings to the reader," Murdoch said.

The digital newspaper from Murdoch is really a fantastic idea, and not only does it provide a green newspaper solution for iPad users, but also it features bonuses like HD video and 360 degree photos. Users will be able to navigate through The Daily via a carousel at the bottom of the newspaper.

There were many different notable names at the event that was held on Wednesday. A few of these names included Apple's head of Internet Services, Eddie Cue; The Daily's Editor-in-Chief Jesse Angelo; and News Corp.'s Chief Digital Officer Jon Miller.

"It's the first national daily news publication built from the ground up for the iPad," Cue said.

The newly featured subscription for The Daily breaks new ground for the iPad. The new news app from Murdoch is one of the very few apps for the iPad that has a model. Most consumer magazines do have an app for the iPad, but barely any have a subscription model; however, Cue says that this is all about to change.

"[Subscriptions are] available today on The Daily," Cue said. "You'll hear an announcement from us soon for other news publications."

The Daily features content covering a variety of different subjects. Miller said that the digital newspaper is a very important tool to tell stories.

The Daily has been highly anticipated for a while now. Before Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO, left on a medical leave, he was supposed to appear with Murdoch to reveal The Daily at an event at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art on January 19.

Obviously, that didn’t come about. The new launch was confirmed on Thursday, January 27 when invitations were sent out to journalists.

Reportedly, the delay with the release of The Daily was so that News Corp. and Apple could work out all of the kinks surrounding the subscription platform. News Corp. did confirm the delay but did not seem interested in expanding on any further reasons for the delay.

Murdoch said that, despite the absence of Jobs at the event, Apple’s CEO "has been a champion behind The Daily since day one."

While the delays with The Daily were going on, the 100-member staff of the digital newspaper, which includes journalists from publications such as The New York Times, The Atlantic, and Forbes, was hard at work. They have been working to produce mock versions of the issues for an exclusive email list of 1,000 readers.

So, right now, The Daily is solely for the Apple iPad, but this won’t last forever.

"As other tablets get established, we will develop the tech to go on them," Murdoch said. "We will be on all the major tablets."

Murdoch did add though that this will most likely not occur for another few years.

If you’re interested in The Daily app for the Apple iPad, News Corp. is offering a trial offer that you can download for a free subscription for the next two weeks.

This is definitely a really cool idea, and it will be interesting to see if digital newspapers for tablets become a growing trend.

BlackBerry Curve Touch Gets Leaked

2011-01-28T16:53:00.010-05:00

The BlackBerry Curve has been one of the most popular devices in BlackBerry's lineup of smartphones. The device has always had a solid keyboard as well as a lack of pretense to any kind of functionality aside from exquisite messaging, but things could be changing, and fast.

CrackBerry has just released a photo of what appears to be a BlackBerry Curve Touch. This new device, codenamed "Malibu", appears to be all touchscreen. This doesn't seem to be the rumored Apollo device as that device was said to have a functional keyboard nor the Sedona which is what has led CrackBerry to determine that this is the Curve Touch.

So far there are only specs for the CDMA version available now, but the good news is that they are right in line with everything that you would expect from a midrange device due out in the late 2011 / early 2012 time slot. Full specifications include:

Qualcomm MSM 8655 800MHz CPU processor
CDMA - EvDo Rev A radio
3.25" 480x360 HVGA display
Trackpad and Navigation keys
5 megapixel camera with HD video recording
1GB Flash + 512MB RAM with Hot Swap Micro SD memory
802.11 b/g/n WiFi
Autonomous and A-GPS
NFC, Micro USB and Bluetooth 2.1
Ambient Light Sensor and accelerometer

These are still technically "proposed" specs and could change at any moment. Despite that, people are getting very excited about the possibility of an all touch BlackBerry Curve. This could very well redefine everything people know or do not know about BlackBerry. Stay tuned in here as we will have all the details as they emerge.

Source: Engadget
Picture Via: CrackBerry

Amazon's Kindle E-book Sales Surpass Sales of Paperbacks

2011-01-28T10:45:00.004-05:00

Amazon has just announced that their digital book sales on Amazon.com have overtaken the sales of their paperback books. The company also reported that for the fourth quarter of 2010 it had a 36 percent increase in its net sales. This is definitely some interesting and exciting news for Amazon.

However, despite the fantastic sales numbers reported by Amazon, their stock went down about 9 percent. According to Wall Street, the issue was that Amazon’s growth was completely expected.

Amazon’s chief financial officer Tom Szkutak said during a conference call that the revenues that Amazon reported for the fourth quarter were the strongest numbers in the company’s history since 2000. The company reported a net income of $416 million for the fourth quarter and a net sale of $12.95 billion. On a year-to-year basis, Amazon’s net income has increased 8 percent, while its revenues went up a whole 36 percent.

As I said, the sales of digital books at Amazon.com have passed the sales of paperback books, but it’s not by a whole lot. Since the start of the new year, Amazon has sold 115 Kindle books for every 100 paperback books. The company also reported that since January 1, it has sold three times as many Kindle books as hardcover books. Amazon made sure to mention that this information was coming from “across Amazon.com's entire U.S. book business and includes sales of books where there is no Kindle edition." The company also said that Kindle books that were free were excluded from the numbers.

So far, the company has not revealed the number of Kindles that have been sold. Some predict that Amazon probably sold more than 8 million Kindles in 2010, but who really knows? The company did say though that during the fourth quarter, it sold “millions” of its Amazon Kindles with the new Pearl screen.

"Thanks to our customers, we achieved two big milestones," said Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com, in a statement. "We had our first $10 billion quarter, and after selling millions of third-generation Kindles with the new Pearl e-ink display during the quarter, Kindle books have now overtaken paperback books as the most popular format on Amazon.com. Last July we announced that Kindle books had passed hardcovers and predicted that Kindle would surpass paperbacks in the second quarter of this year, so this milestone has come even sooner than we expected - and it's on top of continued growth in paperback sales."

Amazon doesn’t really seem too eager to report their numbers concerning the Kindle all of the time, but the company did report that there are currently 810,000 books in the Kindle Store. That number doesn’t even include the millions of free, out-of-copyright, pre-1923 books that are also available e-books for the Kindle.

Things seem to be going pretty well for Amazon. They have some up and coming projects that they are currently working on that should boost their numbers even higher. Szkutak declined to comment on Amazon's plans for Lovefilm. Lovefilm is being kind of described as Europe's version of Netflix. "Stay tuned on that one," Szutak said.

Szutak also declined to say anything about whether or not Amazon was planning on expanding its local grocery delivery system that they are doing a trial run of in Seattle called Amazon Fresh.

Amazon says that it really expects to grow somewhere between 28 and 39 percent in the first quarter.

All of these latest developments for Amazon are definitely exciting. It’s still pretty incredible that Kindle e-books outsold paperback books, but I guess this is beginning to look like a very bright future for Amazon, as well as other e-book providers.

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Early Results of the eReader Project

2011-01-25T18:38:00.004-05:00

It appears that a decent amount of students at the University of Notre Dame have decided to throw textbooks to the wind and have instead chosen to adopt the iPad as an e-reader replacement. Seven weeks into the study, students said that they learned more and were able to enjoy their classes more.

There is currently a yearlong study being conducted called the eReader project. Forty percent of a school’s management students (mostly undergraduates) are given an iPad as a loan for the study. Other schools besides Notre Dame are doing similar studies, but Notre Dame is the first school to release some early results concerning the study.

According to the eReader project, students said that the iPad really helped encourage them to further explore additional course topics, increase their knowledge, and keep their interest in the course. They also loved the portability of the iPad.

Dr. Corey M. Angst, the professor who taught the management class, noted that one advantage to the iPad was that it didn’t have the annoying and distracting clicking sound that a laptop has.

The students who enrolled in Angst’s class were not aware that they would be offered an iPad free of charge when they signed up for the class. It’s not a surprise that not one single student out of the forty offered an iPad rejected the offer.

Once the students were given the devices, there were a few rules that were laid down about what they could and could not do on their iPads. "We did this because we wanted to understand how or if the iPad changed the way students read, studied, participated, took notes, etc. We also anticipated that students would 'invent' ways of using the iPad to improve their course engagement," the authors wrote in their report.

This is a very interesting way to conduct the study because it allows users the freedom to figure things out on their own.

The success that Notre Dame is reporting from the study could possibly cause some two-year colleges' wheels to turn. The Obama administration just recently outlined funding that would provide eligible two-year colleges with new technology. The grant program plans to provide $2 billion in funding to support online learning strategies. This funding includes providing new ways of delivering core material to students.

Although most of the comments from the students were positives, the one negative comment was that it was frustrating using the highlighting and note-taking tools.
College is not the only place that iPads are popping up though. The New York Times reported that New York public schools went ahead and ordered more than 2,000 iPads for $1.3 million. In Chicago there were 200 public schools that applied for iPad grants totaling $450,000. In California there are six middle schools that are only teaching algebra courses via the iPad.

"It allows us to extend the classroom beyond these four walls," Larry Reiff, an English teacher at Roslyn High School in Long Island, which has 47 iPads, told the Times.

Scott Wolfe, the principal of a New Jersey elementary school, said that the iPad could quite possibly be the best new technology that has come to the school “since the overhead projector.”

Technology coordinator at the Bronx Green Middle School Michael Little wrote a blog discussing the integration of iPads into the school system. "For the students who don't remember the old math and can’t quite grasp the new, they can shut down in class or act out because of the frustration. The MathBoard app helps with the basic skills, but oftentimes I pull up a math game through the game center app and let those students focus on that while working with the rest of the class."

Not everyone is so excited about the devices though. "There is very little evidence that kids learn more, faster or better by using these machines," Larry Cuban, a professor emeritus of education at Stanford University, told the Times. "iPads are marvelous tools to engage kids, but then the novelty wears off and you get into hard-core issues of teaching and learning."

I’m not exactly sure where I stand on whether or not the iPad is a helpful device within the classroom. I feel like it could easily become a distraction instead of a help. It will be very interesting to see the final results of the eReader project when the year is over and whether or not the iPad really made much of a difference with the college students at Notre Dame.

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Logitech M515 Wireless Mouse

2011-01-21T13:01:00.006-05:00

If you are always working on the go, then you know how annoying it is when you have to pack everything up. The amount of things you need to take can sometimes be staggering, so packing as little as possible is always ideal. Wireless may not be the absolute best solution for the fastest connectivity, but it is most certainly the best if you are trying to cut down on clutter.

By going wireless, you can save a lot of space in your travel case and also reduce the clutter on your mobile workstation. That is one of the main reasons I use a wireless mouse. The only problem with a wireless mouse is that the batteries do not last forever, and it is hard to use one on anything other than a hard, flat surface. But those days may very well be behind us as Logitech has created a new wireless mouse that doesn't seem to have a problem with either.

Logitech unveiled today the Logitech Wireless Mouse M515. This device is said to deliver easy navigation on soft surfaces like a sofa, bed or even a pillow. The M515 features a sealed bottom case that allows it to easily glide along fabric as well as a hand-detection sensor which only activates the mouse when you place your hand on it.

According to Marcus Harvey, General Manager UK & IRE, Logitech, "Millions of people are connecting their computers to their TV and the M515 mouse was built to address the unique needs of this experience. As technology evolves and consumers' habits change, Logitech continues to develop navigation devices that make it easier to control and access the things people love to do in the digital world."

Thanks to the hand-detection sensor, the M515 is only active when you have a full grip on it. This activates the mouse only when you want it to be active and leaves it in sleep mode when you are not using it. The sealed bottom also helps to protect your mouse from collecting fuzz in the sensor opening. This allows your cursor to remain in control at all times. The base is also ideal for mousing around on any kind of soft surface including couches and blankets.

The M515 also features Logitech's Hyper-Fast Scrolling allowing fast and smooth scrolling through long web pages. If you need more control, then you can always switch to click-to-click mode. Don't worry about replacing the batteries every couple of months either as the M515 holds up to a two year charge. The tiny Logitech USB receiver that you use is also very handy as it does not take up a lot of space and is barely noticeable. There is even a storage compartment in the mouse itself for traveling.

The Logitech M515 will hit store shelves in Europe first in April for a retail price of £49.99 ($79.99 US).

iPad Hackers Finally Arrested

2011-01-18T22:08:00.005-05:00

On Tuesday, January 18 two men were arrested by federal officials for allegedly hacking into AT&T’s servers last year.

Andrew Auernheimer, 25, from Fayetteville, Ark. and Daniel Spitler, 26, from San Francisco supposedly stole e-mail addresses and other information about AT&T’s iPad customers. The two men were taken into custody by the FBI on Tuesday morning.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s office in Newark, New Jersey, Auernheimer and Spitler are being officially charged with allegedly attempting to hack into AT&T’s network in order to obtain personal subscriber information.

Auernheimer was arrested when he appeared in an Arkansas state court for drug charges that were completely unrelated to the hacking charges. He was quickly scheduled to appear in court before the U.S. Magistrate in Fayetteville, Judge Erin L. Setser, later Tuesday. Spitler’s arrest was a little less complicated. He gave himself up to the FBI in Newark and will be appearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Claire C. Cecchi in Newark’s federal court.

The maximum potential penalty for both Auernheimer and Spitler is five years in prison as well as a $250,000 fine.

Back in June 2010, AT&T did recognize the fact that a breach to its server had taken place. The breach exposed approximately 114,000 e-mail addresses and ICC-IDs of Apple iPad users, including such users as Michael Bloomberg, Harvey Weinstein, and blogger Kara Swisher. Later on, AT&T blamed the breach on hackers who had utilized a feature that was meant to help users log into their accounts more quickly.

The simple function allowed users to link the iPad’s unique identifier to their personal e-mail address so that they would be able to sign on to AT&T’s Web site as quickly as possible. The problem was that sometimes the ICC-ID was displayed in the AT&T Web site URL.

"Seeing this, and discovering that each ICC-ID was connected to an iPad 3G user e-mail address, hackers wrote a script termed the 'iPad 3G Account Slurper,'” said the Office of U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman. They then “deployed it against AT&T's servers," Fishman’s office continued.

In June 2010 the “Account Slurper” attacked AT&T’s servers for several days. It worked to collect as many e-mails as it possibly could. The script tricked AT&T’s servers into providing access for the Account Slurper by mimicking the behavior of an iPad 3G.

"Once deployed, the Account Slurper used a process known as a 'brute force' attack – an iterative process used to obtain information from a computer system – against the servers, randomly guessing at ranges of ICC-IDs," Fishman's office said. "An incorrect guess was met with no additional information, while a correct guess was rewarded with an ICC-ID/e-mail pairing for a specific, identifiable iPad 3G user."

After stealing all of the information, the hackers provided the gossip blog Gawker with the stolen e-mail addresses. Gawker then posted the stolen information and said that a group known as Goatse Security was claiming responsibility for all of the hacking.

Fishman reported that Auernheimer and Spitler discussed all of the hacking over an instant messaging program known as Internet Relay Chat. Fishman’s office said that both men formulated the attack to "simultaneously damage AT&T and promote themselves and Goatse Security."

"Hacking is not a competitive sport, and security breaches are not a game. Companies that are hacked can suffer significant losses, and their customers made vulnerable to other crimes, privacy violations, and unwanted contact," Fishman said in a statement. "Computer intrusions and the spread of malicious code are a threat to national security, corporate security, and personal security. Those who use technological expertise for malicious purposes take note: your activities in cyberspace can have serious consequences for you in the real world."

"Such intrusion cases, regardless if the motive is criminal gain or prestige among peers in the cyber-hacking world, must and will be aggressively pursued to ensure these rights are protected to the highest degree," added Michael B. Ward, a Special Agent in charge of the FBI's Newark field office.

Hacking is something that we have to deal with if we’re going to be part of the tech world. It’s intimidating though to see that AT&T took several days to even realize that a hack was occurring. Despite all of this, the Apple iPad is an incredibly convenient device that people are going to keep using in spite of a few issues. Hopefully AT&T and Apple have worked through any other possible hacking issues that could occur on the iPad so that iPad users can continue with their on-the-go use of the devices free of any worries.

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Leaked Release Date for the Motorola Atrix 4G?

2011-01-14T16:04:00.005-05:00

Everybody loves leaked news, just look at all the hubbub caused by WikiLeaks. If people can get information they know they are not supposed to have, then that makes it all the more exciting. Well, there may be some news leaked from AT&T about their upcoming Atrix 4G from Motorola.

The Motorola Atrix 4G from AT&T was easily one of the hottest devices on display at the recent CES 2011 event. The device has a dual-core processor, a laptop dock and an even cooler HD dock which can turn your smartphone into a mini-desktop computer complete with Firefox browser.

Yep, everything was told about the Atrix 4G at CES 2011, everything except for a release date. People were extremely excited about the device but were severely disappointed when they were not told when they would get their hands on this impressive device. However, thanks to an internal leak from AT&T, we may have that now.

A leaked internal AT&T screen has been found showing March 1, 2011 as well as the SKU of 65230 and many other specifications. Some people out there are skeptical over this release date though for one main reason. AT&T has a history of launching new phones and devices on Sunday. March 1, 2011 is a Tuesday. This could very well be a legitimate release date though it does break away from AT&T's traditions.

Pricing is also still a mystery and the leaked information didn't say anything about that. That being said, the Atrix is a smartphone, and not just any smartphone, a 4G smartphone. So you can probably expect nothing less than $200 on a new 2-year agreement. But that is definitely worth it for a phone with the dual-core Tegra 2 processor and performance strong enough to give you 1080p video.

Source: Android Central, Electronista

Samsung Sliding PC 7 Series

2011-01-07T15:11:00.005-05:00

When tablet pcs came onto the market, they opened up a whole new array of ideas and possibilities, one of which was the possibility of combining a tablet pc with a small, portable netbook. Many technologies like this have already been created though none of them really work perfectly. But there is a new product that may be changing that, and that is the Samsung Sliding PC 7 Series.

The Samsung Sliding PC 7 Series is a Windows 7 tablet/laptop hybrid. It is a full touch screen tablet that has a slide out keyboard to transform it into a fully functioning laptop. Powered by the 1.66GHz Z670 Oak Trail Processor from Intel, the Samsung Sliding PC 7 is a 2.2-lb tablet that features a 1366x768 resolution, 10.1-inch 340-nit touchscreen, 32GB / 64GB SSD options and 2GB of RAM.

At its core the device is running Windows 7 Home Premium though Samsung has created its own Touch Launcher that indicates a ton of applications which are "optimized for the touchscreen." Other apps will be available through Samsung's App Manager as well as Windows Product Scout. It is still unclear what Windows Product Scout is all about, but this device does come with a USB port as well as an HDMI port, 4-in-1 card reader, an ambient light sensor and a 1.3 megapixel webcam.

Another great feature for this product is the fact that, according to Samsung, it boots in under 20 seconds and will also be available with WiMax. But, this device also comes with its fair share of concerns from the tech world, mainly battery life. However, in response to that, Samsung is claiming that the six-cell lithium-polymer battery that is powering the device will last up to nine hours on a single charge.

This device is looking pretty awesome, especially for the $699 price tag. This is a great product for anybody who loves the functionality that they get from their tablet but hates lugging around both a tablet and a laptop. Look for the Samsung Sliding PC 7 Series when it hits store shelves sometime in March, 2011.

Source: Engadget

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