2011年3月27日星期日

Spring Into Beauty at Bartell Drugs

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2011年3月16日星期三

Æsir's Yves Béhar-designed phone starting at just €7,250, plenty left for mortgage on the summer home

Okay, okay, €7,250 (about $10,150) sounds positively exorbitant for a phone with a microscopic 2-inch display that dares to boast of "200 calendar entries" as a "feature," but hear us out -- that's a drop in the bucket compared to the €42,000 ($58,800) you'll pay for the gilded version. That's right: for €7,250 you get nothing more than common stainless steel coating the front and rear of your Æsir Yves Béhar, the latest entry in the long-running luxury phone trend that includes Mobiado, Gresso, and Nokia subsidiary Vertu, among others. As the name implies, the phone -- which, we'll admit, is pretty gorgeous -- was penned by none other than famed designer Yves Béhar... but then again, so is the $200 Jawbone Jambox. Six of one, half-dozen of the other, right? Look for it to ship around the world in the summer and fall.

Wirefly: 'no Skype' on Thunderbolt, but simultaneous 3G voice and data is a go; ships on March 17th

Wireless retailer Wirefly is pushing ahead with pre-orders for the beleaguered HTC Thunderbolt starting at midnight Pacific Time this evening with the promise that they'll start shipping this Thursday, the 17th; that lines up with a whole lot of noise we've heard recently, so we can't really argue with it at this point. They're also confirming a couple rumors that have been floating around since the phone's January debut: first, they're saying "no Skype," which we're taking to mean that the promised Skype video calling app won't be installed out of the box. We're also assuming (or at least hoping) that you'll be able to install the standard voice-only version. Secondly, they're saying that the phone definitely does simultaneous voice and data over 3G, a feature that was just recently made possible on Verizon's CDMA network through software upgrades -- and the Thunderbolt, it seems, will be the first retail device to have the pleasure of taking it for a spin.

Samsung Romania liking March 20th for Galaxy S Gingerbread update

Remember that Android 2.3 update for Samsung's i9000 version of the Galaxy S that leaked out late last month? Well, it's looking more real -- and more imminent -- than ever thanks to a Facebook post from Samsung Mobile's Romanian team a few days ago. Basically, it's sounding like the Froyo update will be online until the 20th of this month, at which point the Gingerbread update will start rolling out from the 20th until the end of March... which could ironically stand to make the Galaxy S one of the first non-Google devices to get an official Gingerbread update anywhere in the world. No word on how this timeline corresponds to dates for other countries and SKUs, but it's a good sign regardless.

2011年3月15日星期二

Sony Ericsson's Xperia Play advertise: gross human thumbs stitched onto robots, drugged clubgoers, not much more we can say

Is this the creepiest ad ever produced to introduce a new video game console? That's a high bar to pass -- but is it the creepiest ad for a new smartphone? Perhaps. The minute-long spot for Sony Ericsson's upcoming Xperia Play called "The Donor" appears to explain the backstory behind its last ad, relaying the tale of a young gentleman who was clubbing with friends, met an attractive woman, took her home, and woke up the next morning to discover that his thumbs were stone cold gone (notice the dirty, poorly-bandaged stumps on the table as he tells his tale of woe to a local law enforcement official). Cut to the next scene, where we've got our cute, lovable Android bot waddling around town... oh, and he's got human thumbs crudely sewn onto his arms. Go ahead, recoil in horror, vomit in the trashcan next to your desk, then cue the inevitable increased desire in owning this phone. Follow the break for the video, if you dare. 

Web Apps On iOS Being Throttled By Last-Generation Engine Now

This probably sounds worse than it is, but it’s strange that it should be an issue at all. It appears that web apps and games launched from the home screen (as opposed to being used in the browser) do not at present have access to iOS 4.3′s improved “Nitro” Javascript engine, and are restricted in using web-related cache and resources they would otherwise have when used in-browser. It could be that the Nitro engine simply hasn’t been extended for use by the non-browser web UI tools, but one developer says that the Safari team indicated the problem would not be fixed.

It’s a pretty serious oversight when Apple has indicated such an interest in HTML5 and standards-based apps, but it’s also worth considering that it has a large interest in making such apps available via the App Store, where they have editorial control and revenue possibilities. By refusing to give web apps that have “gone native” access to the improved Javascript engine or preventing them from being run while offline (another new trouble), they could be trying to subtly prod users in the direction of paid or ad-based “real” apps.
On the other hand, it could also be just a slow roll-out of a complicated new bit of code and the developers being affected could just be a minority being affected by this very specific problem.
If you’re interested, there are a number of threads and other sites investigating this issuecollected over at Register Hardware.

A Legacy Living On: T-Mobile Sidekick Reborn As The Android-Powered Sidekick 4G

Call me a nerd, or call me nostalgic — but I loved the Sidekick series. Though that love fizzled over time (partially due to hardware issues in the later Sidekicks, partially due to the fact that smartphone prices plummeted while their user-friendliness skyrocketed), the first three Sidekicks are still some of my favorite devices ever.
Today, just two weeks after T-Mobile and Microsoft announced that they’re pulling the plug on the old Sidekick cloud servers, T-Mobile is officially unveiling something they (and I) hope can bring life back to the Sidekick series: the Android-powered, Samsung-made Sidekick 4G.

From pictures of the hardware, it looks like Samsung has kept most of the things that Sidekick fan know and love. The overall shape remains unchanged, and it still packs a roomy-lookin’ 5 row key (which I’m really, really hoping is on par with Sidekicks prior). Alas, there is at least a change or two that the more devout fans might not like: the handset’s signature (and oh-so-awesome) display spin-out has been replaced with something they’re calling a “pop-tilt” hinge (we’ve confirmed that this display slides, rather than spins), and the physical trackball has been replaced with an optical trackball.
Here’s what you need to know:
  • 1 Ghz Samsung Hummingbird CPU
  • 3.5 inch touchscreen display (First Sidekick with a touchscreen!)
  • “Group Text” app (Seems to just be a “Reply All” type thing, rather than a managed Group Texting app a la Beluga or GroupMe)
  • “Cloud Text” app (Which they say “provides the option to text with friends and groups across platforms, from wherever a customer is, whether from the comfort of their PC’s large screen and keyboard, or from their new Sidekick 4G”)
  • “Sidekick Media Room” app provides access to Youtube, Slacker, T-Mobile TV, and any audio/video that might be on the handset
  • Comes pre-loaded with Facebook and Twitter
  • Dedicated Jump key for jumping between active applications (It’s not quite clear how this works, but it sounds like it’s more than what simply holding the Home key usually provides.
We’ll be checking this thing out at CTIA Orlando (March 21-23) in just a few days — check back in then for our hands on impressions! In the mean time: what do you think? Is this a worthy revival of the Sidekick line?

T-Mobile Sidekick 4G Boasting Group Text, 21Mbps HSPA+

T-Mobile and Samsung today announced the Sidekick 4G, a new generation of the Sidekick family that retains the Sidekick's defining characteristics while also breaking new ground. The Sidekick 4G keeps the familiar hardware design with pop-up 3.5-inch touch screen and five-row QWERTY keyboard, but it runs Android 2.2 Froyo with a number of customizations by Samsung and T-Mobile. First, the Sidekick 4G will have Group Text, a new T-Mobile service offering that lets Sidekick 4G users conduct reply-all group text conversations. Cloud Text, another new feature, will allow Sidekick 4G users to to conduct text conversations from their platform of choice (PC, phone, etc.). The new Jump key can be used for faster multitasking, and lets users jump from app to app quickly. The Sidekick 4G has a 1GHz A8 Hummingbird processor, and a user-facing VGA camera for video chats with the included Qik application. The Sidekick 4G is loaded with a bevy of entertainment features, including Samsung's Media Hub, T-Mobile's Media Room, and pre-installed Facebook, Twitter and social networking applications. The Sidekick 4G will have access to T-Mobile's HSPA+ network at 21Mbps. The Sidekick 4G will first be offered to existing T-Mobile customers later this spring.

Motorola Droid 3, Droid X 2 and LTE-equipped Targa really pictured?

The Motorola Droid 2 and Droid X are both headed toward their one-year anniversaries this summer, which has pretty much become the culling hour for a smartphone of any creed these days. Their successors, ingeniously titled the Droid 3 and Droid X 2, have seemingly made an appearance over atHowardForums, courtesy of longtime forum member wnrussell. He's also kindly provided imagery of a heretofore unknown device, called the Targa, which promises Verizon 4G LTE and has a protrusion on its rear that looks to be dedicated to accommodating an outsized camera sensor. It reminds us most of Motorola's XT720, though it sports a chrome outline to its body similar to what you see above on the purported Droid 3. Click past the break to get an eyeful of this Targa device and its Droid X 2 brandmate.



Google said to be preparing NFC checkout trials for San Francisco and New York City Now

Google does not sell hardware, Eric Schmidt told us as much, but the company has few qualms about buying the stuff up. Bloomberg is reporting, on the authority of a pair of well informed sources, that the Mountain View team is about to buy up "thousands" of VeriFone's NFC payment terminals, with a view to installing them in stores across San Francisco and New York City. Those two technophile cities represent the most receptive audience NFC is likely to get in the US, and Google will be hoping that users there will be able to appreciate the convenience of being able to swipe their Nexus S (or other similarly equipped handset) to complete payments. We already know that Schmidt and co. consider the concept of "mobile money" a priority and there have been rumblings of Google setting up its own payment system, which together make this hookup with VeriFone appear highly credible. Bloomberg expects the trials to commence within the next four months, just in time to make iPhone 5 users green with envy.

The HTC Thunderbolt Going To Hit Verizon On March 17th For $249


Finally. The HTC Thunderbolt hit the scene back at CES but HTC and Verizon has been uncharacteristically mum about it sense. No more. The $249 Thunderbolt superphone is set to debut on big red this coming Thursday, March 17th. This will be the network’s first 4G LTE device, but if that doesn’t win over buyers, the rest will: a 32GB microSDHC card, the gorgeous 4.3-inch WVGA screen, a8-device hotspot and the solid feel that comes along with nearly every HTC phone. Too bad the VZW premium pricing sort of chills the lightning-hot phone as the 4G package runs $30 a month and the hotspot function an additional $20 spot. So yeah, that’s $50 a month Verizon will get from buyers that wanna take full advantage of the next-gen phone. Ouch. Click through for our hands-on video demo.

Motorola Milestone achieving Android 2.2 milestone at last, Froyo update ready for download

The road to Android 2.1 may have been a long and treacherous one for Milestone users, but the one to Android 2.2 wasn't even certain of reaching its goal. Thankfully, Moto has managed to conclude its "exhaustive testing process" and is now making a Froyo firmware update available to Milestone users wishing to step their software up a notch. Flash Player 10.1, a faster browser and mobile hotspot capabilities await the intrepid updater, but Motorola warns that any DRM-locked media you have on your SD card will be lost. Weirdly enough, there's also a caution that "users may experience some adverse effects associated with the upgrade which could include slower operation of some phone functions and applications." Once you've read and understood all the warnings, smash the source link to download the new software.

HTC Ignite, Prime, and Pyramid rendering surface?

Even before the Incredible S was announced as the company's new top-of-the-line set back in February, the rumored Pyramid was the upcoming HTC phone that was capturing everyone's imagination thanks in no small part to its promise of a dual-core processor -- something the Incredible S notably lacks. We hadn't seen what this beast might look like, though... until today. Chinese site xda.cn has posted alleged renders of the Pyramid's front and rear, showing a careful evolution of HTC's current design language along with claims of a 4.3-inch 960 x 540 display, 8 megapixel primary and 1.3 megapixel front cameras, 768MB of RAM, and Android 3.0 (that last bit doesn't sound right to us, though -- Android 2.x with Sense would be more plausible). Rumors have this one pegged for launch on T-Mobile at some point this year; it'd be nice if that happened at CTIA next week, but considering how tied up they might be with Sprint at the show, it's hard to say if that'll happen.

Moving on, we've got some visual evidence here that HTC's pressing on with its Windows Phone line. The first of the two, the Ignite, looks like a midrange slate thanks to an 800MHz Qualcomm processor (clocked slower than the current batch of 1GHz units that are out there), a mere 3.7-inch display, and a 5 megapixel camera around back. The Prime, meanwhile, looks like a little brother to the 7 Pro thanks to a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and similar specs to the Ignite -- not blockbusters by any stretch, but HTC (along with other OEMs) might be waiting to pull out the big guns until Mango. Check out those renders at the source link.

Google’s AdMob Now Ready To Serve Ads To Windows Phone 7 App Developers

Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 is getting a vote of confidence from a company not usually counted among its allies.
Google’s AdMob mobile advertising division is ready to introduce a software development kit that will let mobile application developers put AdMob ads in applications designed for Windows Phone 7 for the first time, the company plans to announce Tuesday. AdMob also plans to take the wraps off new SDKs for Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android developers that brings their ads closer to HTML5 compliance, said 
Mark Schaaf, engineering director for AdMob and one of the company’s earliest employees.
T Mobile Windows Phone 7
Mobile advertising is still pretty small compared to Google’s desktop-Web advertising juggernaut, but it’s a more and more attractive way for mobile developers to make money on their games and news applications without having to charge for the app. AdMob has been serving Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) and Android developers for years now, but started to receive more and more requests from those developers for Windows Phone 7 support, since many of the larger developers want to get their apps onto as many platforms as possible, Schaaf said. Microsoft’s new partnership with Nokia also stands to open up those developers to a host of new devices, although the details of that plan will take some time to unfold.
AdMob also supports WebOS applications, and with the move to support Windows Phone 7 that leaves RIM’s BlackBerry software as the lone holdout among the major mobile operating system companies. Despite the fact that BlackBerry remains one of the most popular operating systems in the U.S., Admob hasn’t gotten the same level of demand from its customers for BlackBerry support as it has other platforms, Schaaf said.
“We’ve talked a lot about BlackBerry,” he said. “We’ve had some projects we’ve started on the blackberry side, and will (provide support) if it starts to make sense for our developers.”
Schaaf said the HTML5 enhancements could allow advertisers and mobile developesr to incorporate richer ads into their apps, such as, for example, an ad for a gas station that integrates with a phone’s compass to point the way toward the closest station.

Online news overtaking paper, and nearly half of it is mobile

Wait, this is just now happening? The Pew Project's 2011 report on mobile devices' effect on media was published this week; it's a fascinating read from end to end that reveals a wild swing in the way we've gathered news and information as human beings over the past decade, but a couple stats really stand out. First off, the internet has finally overtaken newspapers as a news source, putting it behind just television -- and we already know the writing's on the wall there since the young ones are already preferring the web. And of those web-savvy, voracious consumers of information, some 47 percent are getting at least some of it on the go, either through their phone or tablet (like, say, Engadget's lovely selection of mobile apps). Mass transit commuters have always been a haven for newspaper-toting businessfolk -- but with iPads continuing to sell like hotcakes, not even the subway is safe from the tablet onslaught.

RIM's BBM Social Platform going to open beta, lets devs bake BBM into BlackBerry apps

Announced at BlackBerry's 2010 Developer Conference last fall, BBM Social Platform has just become available to interested third-party devs in beta form. Of course, you might be hoping that it opens BlackBerry Messenger to other (read: non-BlackBerry) platforms via API... but yeah, that's not happening quite yet. Instead, the SDK allows folks developing for BlackBerry OS to integrate BBM capabilities into their own apps, and the list of capabilities is pretty extensive: you'll be able to read and update user profiles, embed BBM chats inside your app, and transfer files, just to name a few of the big ones (with the user's permission, of course). The current beta works for Java apps, while RIM's hard at work crafting a new version for release in April that'll add WebWorks web app compatibility.

Unboxing and Hands-on Gallery: The HTC Arriving for Sprint

Well well well, lookie here. In just 5 days, Sprint’s first Windows Phone 7 handset, the HTC Arrive, will… erm, arrive. Thanks to a surprise visit from Mr. FedEx this morning, though, we’ve got one a bit early. I’ll be taking it through the paces over the next few days, and should have a few review up in time for the launch — but in the mean time, be sure to check out our unboxing and hands-on gallery below.
(Oh, and for those wanting to hear our impressions so far, I’ve only got one: Oh my God, this keyboard seems nice.)

OC Register Planing iPad-Only Content For Tablet Relaunch

While News Corp.‘s The Daily hasn’t set the world on fire with as the first major “iPad newspaper,” the influence is clearly having its affect on other outlets. But more than that, newspapers, after sensing that Apple’s dominance isn’t going away, are also looking for ways to capitalize on the device’s popularity. Freedom Communications’ Orange County Registeris preparing to reboot its existing iPad app in the next few weeks with an emphasis on “iPad-first” and “iPad-only content.”
Orange County Register
The OC Register did not release a specific date for the relaunched app.
The California paper’s new iPad app will be available on a free-trial basis for a “limited time.” After that, assuming it hits some unspecified audience targets, the app will shift to a weekly or yearly subscription model.
There was no word on what the price would be yet either. The company’s e-paper pay options include a prepaid 4-week subscription for $5.25 or yearly subscription for $65.00. Both subscriptions are prepaid and are automatically re-billed at the appropriate interval. Kindle OC Register subs are charged $5.99 a month for daily access on the Amazon (NSDQ: AMZN) device.

Netflix Android App Hijacked From The LG Revolution, Being Leaked To The Internets

The LG Revolution isn’t even available yet, but some crazy resourceful lads have already managed to get a full dump of the handset’s innards. As we showed you (before anyone else!)back at Mobile World Congress, the LG Revolution just happens to be the only handset with the Netflix app on it right now — but now that the system dump is in the wild, the hacker-type crowds have ripped it out to be shared with everyone.
Alas, there’s a bit of bad news.
The bad news: You can’t… actually stream anything, right now. While the dudes over at DroidLife are thinking it’s just a matter of the Netflix team firing up things on their end, I think there might be more to it than that; last I’d heard, Qualcomm and Netflix had partnered for the DRM/Security setup in this app, requiring specific hardware in the device’s chipset (beyond that already found in most Snapdragon phones) before playback can go down.
In other words: unless something’s changed or the always-clever hacking community finds a workaround, chances seem pretty good that streaming will only work on the handsets that they intend it to work on.
On the upside, you can still use this leaked APK to browse around Netflix and manage your queue. That’s a start, right? You can find the download link over at DroidLife.

Verizon offering unlimited LTE data plan for HTC Thunderbolt, don't expect it to stick around

Verizon execs have been clear as crystal that unlimited smartphone data will follow the dodo -- perhaps as soon as summer of this year -- but in the meanwhile you can drink your fill of the best as the HTC Thunderbolt will launch this Thursday with an unlimited LTE data plan. While we've no guarantees how long it will last, or whether you can grandfather the $30 monthly option into bigger and better devices down the road, it does open up a whole new avenue of opportunity for the Thunderbolt. Considering that Verizon's 4G USB modems top out at 10GB of LTE data for $80 a month, the HTC handset just became the most powerful, affordable MiFi you could possibly own. Assuming battery life is decent, of course. Find the full PR below.

Cobra iRadar detection system will come to Android next month

iPhone users have been able to avoid radar speed guns using Cobra's iRadar system since late last year, and it looks like Android users will soon finally be able to get in on the act as well. Cobra used the gdgt Live event at SXSW to announce that iRadar will be available for Android phones sometime in April. That consists of a standard dash-mounted radar detector and, of course, an app, which also takes advantage of your phone's built-in GPS capabilities to provide warnings of photo enforcement zones and other potential impediments to your inability to drive 55 -- you'll apparently soon even be able to share radar alerts with other iRadar users. Head on past the break for a video of the iPhone version.


2011年3月10日星期四

Samsung Corby II getting official, colorful

So, Samsung's own leak of its Corby II from last month was spot-on -- no surprise there, we suppose. Like the original Corby, the S3850 Corby II is all about doing full touch in a cheap, fun, colorful way, featuring a 3.14-inch QVGA display, a 2 megapixel camera, microSD expansion up to 16GB, and quadband EDGE data; in other words, you're not going to set any browsing speed records with this one. Look for it to launch in Germany toward the end of the month with follow-on releases coming in the CIS, Latin America, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and other parts of Europe (in other words, pretty much everywhere except North America).

Lifelapse app promising to turn your iPhone into a life-logger

We've seen a few dedicated "life-logging" devices that let you record your every waking moment, but why spend a couple of hundred bucks on something when you're already carrying around a perfectly capable smartphone? That's the thinking of the folks behind the Lifelapse iPhone app which, like the Vicon Revue we've tested, promises to simply record a time-lapse video of your entire day -- they've even developed a "LifePouch" so you can conveniently wear your iPhone around your neck (no iPad version just yet). Unfortunately, the developers aren't offering a peek at the app itself just yet, but they are now accepting applications for those that wish to participate in the beta.

Angry Birds’ Rovio Raising $42 Million From Accel And Skype Founders

Big news today from Rovio, the Finland-based developers behind the hugely successful Angry Birds mobile game: the company has picked up $42 million in funding, a first round round led by no less than Accel Partners and Atomico Ventures, the VC firm founded and led by Skype/Kazaa/Joost founders Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis.
The funding is some of the biggest we’ve seen for a mobile content or mobile gaming company, and it underscores how one good bit of content can help a company hit the jackpot.
With the funding, Zennstrom will join the board of Rovio, according to the release. Other investors in this round of funding include Felicis Ventures.
Angry BirdsAngry Birds has been downloaded more than 75 million times, and claims to have 40 million active users per month. It’s one of the most popular apps in the iTunes store. Rovio is aiming for 100 million users by next year, according to Reuters.
The funding will be used to further expand Angry Birds to more platforms, not just on mobile but also social media and beyond. Some of it will also, presumably, be used in the development of further products in the hopes of another big success.
The company is estimated, according to a profile in Wired, to have made €50 million ($69 million) from apps sales, advertising and licensing of Angry Birds to date. That’s helped not just by downloads of the app, but from transactions when the game is in progress: Rovio says that 40 percent of new customers on the iOS platform purchase downloadable content (that is, virtual goods).
But some of that revenue, pointedly, is not from mobile directly: the company has sold two million Angry Birds plush toys, for example. That could give Mickey Mouse a run for his money.