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Monday, November 14, 2011

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Pogoplug Cloud offers 5GB of free mobile storage, a home for your Beatles collection

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 11:03 AM PST

Is that 2GB of free storage from Dropbox just not enough to house all of your mobile music habits? Don't fret, as Pogoplug Cloud now offers 5GB of secure space for all your storage, sharing and streaming needs. The service offers Dropbox-esque folder sharing and automatic uploads for all those vacation pictures without time lost to manual syncing. If that's not enough extra space for your coveted Jericho episodes (and the Season 3 comics), you can spring from the 50GB and 100GB paid plans at $9.95 and $19.95 per month. You'll also be able to post your cloud activity, should you so desire, to Facebook, Twitter or Google+ via native smartphone apps. All of the aforementioned services are available now via the coverage link below -- after you install the free Android or iOS app, of course.
Show full PR text
Pogoplug Introduces Free Cloud Storage for Mobile Phones
Share and Stream Directly From Your Phone

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Pogoplug, creators of the award-winning line of streaming and sharing devices, today unveiled a new service: Pogoplug Cloud. The service provides users with a secure online space to store personal content and instantly share and stream it from their mobile device. Users sign up directly from any mobile phone, tablet or web browser and immediately receive their free 5GB Pogoplug Cloud.

Pogoplug is the only service to offer infinite expansion. Users can purchase additional online storage from Pogoplug, or host a private, unlimited cloud for no monthly fees by buying a Pogoplug box and connecting it to a home or office network.

Pogoplug Cloud enables users to:
- Store: Automatically upload photos and videos from your mobile phone to your Pogoplug Cloud-no sync required.

- Share: Instantly share anything in your cloud through email, Facebook, Twitter and Google+. Create shared folders and collaborate with friends and colleagues.

- Stream: Stream HD videos, photos and music from your Pogoplug Cloud to your phone.

"Mobile users are asking for more storage for their devices," said Daniel Putterman, CEO and co-founder of Cloud Engines. "We designed Pogoplug Cloud to give everyone the freedom to interact with all of their personal content straight from their mobile phone."

Pricing and Availability
Pogoplug offers 5GB of free cloud storage. 50GB and 100GB of additional cloud storage are available for $9.95/month and $19.95/month, respectively. Pogoplug Cloud is available today at www.pogoplug.com. Pogoplug's iOS and Android apps are FREE and available for download in the iTunes Store and Android Marketplace. The full range of Pogoplug hardware and software products are available at www.pogoplug.com.

ABOUT POGOPLUG

Pogoplug is cloud storage for your mobile life. The service enables users to store, share and stream personal content from any mobile device. Pogoplug is the only service that provides flexible expansion options by allowing users to purchase additional cloud-based storage or to host a private unlimited cloud for no monthly fees by purchasing a Pogoplug box.

Pogoplug is led by experienced entrepreneurs from the digital media and security space and backed by Foundry Group, Softbank and Morgan Stanley. The company is headquartered in San Francisco, with a satellite office in Tel Aviv. For more information, please visit http://www.pogoplug.com.

HTC Rezound available now on Verizon for $299 on contract

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 10:45 AM PST

Maybe you were one of the lucky few who skirted the system to get an early bird delivery of HTC's latest 4.3-inch handset. But if not, there's no day like today to seize upon Verizon's retail and online stores to sign yourself up for the Dre-approved Rezound. Big Red's offering this Sense 3.5-laden beastie and its red-and-black motif for $299 on contract right now. It's a 4G LTE affair, so prepare to chuck that 3G-only connection and snuggle up to a new data plan. Ready to claim those custom earbuds as your own? Then hit up the source below where the augmented mobile audio awaits.

Add lasers to a tennis ball, drive your dog crazy (video)

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 10:34 AM PST

It's a "programmable disco ball," a "cat toy for humans," and a "personal laser light show," all rolled into one. That's how one Matt Leone describes his latest creation, aptly known as the Laser Ball. To realize his dream, Leone drilled a set of holes into a garden variety tennis ball, and inserted about 14 laser diodes, each with an attached strip of diffraction grating. Said diodes were then synced up with an Arduino-equipped Teensy microcontroller nestled within the ball, alongside a rechargeable battery. As a cherry on top of this DIY sundae, Leone then incorporated an infrared remote package from Adafruit, allowing him to remotely jump start his next house party. The result is a cyborg-like ball that makes any LED cube look... square. Check it out for yourself, in the video after the break.

HP TouchPad pops up on TigerDirect, refuses to roll over and play dead (updated)

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 10:11 AM PST

HTC Jetstream review

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 10:00 AM PST

When HTC entered the tablet game, it did so in reverse course. Where other manufacturers were jostling for elbow room in a 10-inch form factored world, the company opted for smaller, more familiar battleground, eschewing the rough-hewn Honeycomb OS for a Gingerbread-baked Sense overlay on the Flyer. Naturally, the time for that mini-slate to shine has come and gone. In its stead, we're treated to a flagship of sorts -- HTC's first 10-incher and AT&T's inaugural 4G LTE slate. Android 3.1 makes an appearance here, as does Sense 1.1 for tablets, but is the skinned experience really any different from the custom UX we've all come to love or hate on phones? Can the added Scribe pen functionality, repurposed here from its 7-inch brother, transform the Jetstream from third pillar offering to an always-on, on-the-go assistant? And will those newly hatched 700MHz speeds convince you to cough up for that weighty $700 price tag? Follow along past the break to see how it fared.
HTC Jetstream review

Hardware


When you buy into HTC, you're pretty much guaranteed a quality build. So, it should come as no surprise that the company's given its all to the design of this LTE-enabled piece of kit. And for good reason, too. Unlike its even-footed Android competitors, the Jetstream's saddled with an outsized $850 price tag to complement its premium build -- a cost that only sees a minor reduction to $700 with the addition of a two-year contract.

Above all else, the first thing you'll notice when you lift the Jetstream out of the box is its heft. At 25 ounces (709 grams), it's just a tad lighter (and by tad, we mean one ounce) than the Motorola Xoom, and a veritable behemoth compared to the skinny-minny, 21-ounce Galaxy Tab 10.1. Once you've got it in your hands, though, that noticeable heaviness takes a temporary backseat. This tablet just feels good to hold and that's thanks to an absolute lack of hard edges. Whereas the Xoom's screen is bordered by an unpleasantly rigid plastic that digs into your palms, the Jetstream's brushed aluminum back gently curves up to the display, making for a comfortable grip. It's only when you attempt to hold it one-handed or even in portrait that you remember this is an overweight slate. Try though you might, you won't escape the eventual wrist strain and will resign yourself to trusty landscape.

Again, HTC's known for its aluminum unibody enclosures and the Jetstream certainly doesn't break from legacy. That said, it is a whole-hearted departure from the metal ribbon and tri-coloring we've become accustomed to seeing on the company's other devices, like the Rhyme, Sensation and even the Flyer. The ID element at play here skews more industrial, giving off an impression of sophistication and luxury that matches up to its ridiculous asking price. The brushed metal finish fills up over three quarters of the device's back, and is broken only by two grey strips of plastic: one located just below the speakers that surrounds the micro-USB port and mic on the bottom, and the other a combo of soft touch and textured plastic up top that houses a subwoofer to the left and an 8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash to the right. It's here, under the camera's diagonally ribbed casing, that we find both the SIM and microSD card slots neatly tucked away and easily reached. The tablet's 7,300mAh battery, however, is not accessible, but you shouldn't have much need to worry about replacing it. Over on the left side of the device, you'll find the unbroken volume rocker, with the power button and 3.5mm headphone jack sitting atop the device's upper right perimeter. A 1.3 megapixel front-facing camera is situated just right of center on the screen's upper bezel.


On the inside are a slew of internals that tip their hat towards beast territory. It's clear both HTC and AT&T wanted to set the Jetstream apart from its able-bodied Honeycomb fellows with a dual-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon MSM8260 processor and 1GB RAM that bests rival tabs clocked at 1GHz. There's also a batch of radios on board to take advantage of the second place operator's 3G / 4G networks with LTE 700MHz / 1700MHz, triband HSPA+/HSPA/UMTS, quadband EDGE/GPRS, in addition to WiFi and Bluetooth 3.0 support.


Display and sound


Naturally, a tablet is nothing without its screen. Unfortunately, what HTC chose to put into this 10-incher brings both good and bad news. We'll get to the upshot first. Fortunately, the Jetstream's outfitted with a 1280 x 800 10.1-inch WXGA display that matches its similarly outfitted counterparts, so you'll be able to watch those YouTube videos in 720p glory. The downside to this screen is that you can actually see the pixels spread out into columns, giving images and icons a noticeably striped appearance. It's a minor niggle that stems from the tablet's lower pixel density (150ppi) and would mostly be a forgivable flaw were it not so ridiculously priced. Especially, when it's outclassed by the Xoom: a tablet that's not only older (in tech years) and outfitted with LTE, but also cheaper to purchase.

Viewing angles on the display were surprisingly good, with the screen subject to a slight washout at a full 90-degree tilt. It's good news if you're planning on whiling away the hours watching video on the device as you won't suffer much loss in contrast. We also spent considerable time lugging the Jetstream outdoors and even with brightness set at 50 percent, we encountered minor issues with the display's readability. This screen won't wow you with saturated colors or deep blacks, but you won't bemoan its usability either.

The Jetstream packs an unexpected punch in the audio department, delivering clear, crisp and loud sound from its dual speakers and subwoofer. We pumped the volume up to the max and still music played back without any distortion or tinniness. It's definitely not going to become the boombox replacement for the next-gen set, but it should prove more than adequate in a moderately noisy environment.

Cameras


Let's be honest. Most folks don't look to their tablets as a reliable means for photography. And it's not that these devices can't contend with other best-in-class tablets, as the Jetstream's equipped with a solid 8 megapixel rear camera that handily beats out the blurred photos taken by the Flyer's comparatively weak 5 megapixel camera. Rather, it's more a question of accessibility. You're more likely to be carrying a phone in your hand than a bulky tablet when you spot a Kodak moment. Also, there are the device's gross dimensions to deal with, which makes handling it while snapping a shot on the fly supremely awkward. If you're dead-set on using this tab to capture still lifes, however, you're in luck -- a world of surprise awaits you.

The 10.1-inch display does double time here as an excellent viewfinder, framing shots in a way that makes every subject instantly high art worthy. The camera app offers plenty of options to customize settings, allowing you to toggle the ISO, white balance and resolution to your whimsy. And, as is usually the case, a simple tap onscreen is all that's needed to get the camera to focus on an intended object, with the volume rocker handling the zoom function. In our testing, we encountered very little frustration with the admirably performing autofocus and seldom had to resort to adjusting it manually.
HTC Jetstream sample shots

HTC's bundled a bunch of scene modes that are similar to what we saw on the Amaze 4G, although the selection here is not quite as robust. There's the usual array of portrait, landscape, macro, action, backlight and lowlight settings, but a few more quirky selections -- beach, snow and candlelight -- also make an appearance. Regrettably, we didn't have the time to stop by a nice Italian restaurant or fly out to Tahiti and Canada to test these modes out, but we'll keep it in mind for the next review.


As noted earlier, colors won't exactly jump off the screen to salute your eyes with their vividness. You can expect detail that's above average, but there is an inherent dullness to overall image tonality. Video on the tablet, captured in full 1080p, performed similarly with that same dim color temperature visible. Frame rate was reasonably smooth and held up for the most part, with only brief moments of slowdown.


The Jetstream also packs a 1.3 megapixel front-facing camera and despite our desire to make use of it, we were left high and dry. Shots taken using the module resulted in dark and grainy photos as there's no front-mounted flash available to light up images. When employed for the purpose of video chatting, it was more of the same. We didn't get very far in our testing, however, as Skype couldn't access the camera and Google Talk kept force closing whenever we tried to enable the function. For the split second we were able to maintain a connection, our video appeared stuttery on the other end with largely out of sync audio.

Performance and battery life


You'd think that with a dual-core Snapdragon chipset running at 1.5GHz under the hood and 1GB RAM, this tablet would be the epitome of elan and alacrity. Alas, it doesn't appear that HTC optimized the Jetstream to take advantage of the power that lies beneath. Instead, that beastly processor lies mostly dormant, chugging along and treating users to a sputtery, less-than-smooth experience. Sure, navigation through the homescreen feels zippy and responsive for the most part. But there are definite moments when the device fails to recognize your touch or, worse, tricks you into believing it hasn't registered your input when it's merely an issue of lag at play. These performance shortcomings aren't necessarily consistent either. We've definitely found the tablet to be a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde, performing well for a short jag and then devolving into stutters and application force closes. The screen's accelerometer, thankfully, doesn't fall prey to the trap of oversensitivity. True, it takes a moment for the orientation to switch around from landscape to portrait, but we actually appreciated the delay here.

We pitted the Jetstream against a couple of its Honeycomb rivals and ran all three through the usual gamut of benchmarks, resulting in a barely-there victory for HTC. In Quadrant, it bested both the Xoom's 1,745 and Galaxy Tab 10.1's 2,083, with a score of 2,111. Sammy's tab took home the graphical crown at 42.5fps in the Nenamark 1 bout, crushing the Jetstream's respectable 33.8 fps and the Xoom's 30.5 fps. The tables were then flipped back to the Jetstream's favor in Nenamark 2 performance, yielding 22.9fps over the competition, and again in Linpack where single- and multi-thread offered up 48.9 MFLOPS and 59.9 MFLOPS, respectively.

HTC Jetstream Galaxy Tab 10.1 Motorola Xoom
Quadrant 2,111 2,083 1,745
Linpack (single-thread) 48.9 MFLOPS 16.9 MFLOPS 32.5 MFLOPS
Linpack (multi-thread) 59.9 MFLOPS 36.7 MFLOPS 59.8 MFLOPS
Nenamark1 33.8 fps 42.5 fps 30.5 fps
Nenamark2 22.9 fps 18.6 fps 19.3 fps
Vellamo 914 886 922


Too often we shell out for a high-end gadget that leaves us high and dry after a few hours of moderate use. You won't find that to be the case with the Jetstream, as the tab excels at wisely conserving power. True, it doesn't quite pack the overall punch of other 10-inch rivals, but the Jetstream's 7,300mAh battery provides more than enough gusto to get you through a few days. As we mentioned previously, the battery's not removable, so you don't have the option of swapping it out for something with a greater charge, but that's just the thing -- you won't have to worry about that. Having had the tablet in our possession for a couple of weeks, we can happily report that you'll be able to manage at least two days worth of usage on HSPA+ only and a little over a full day with LTE. That's with brightness set to automatic, WiFi off, the 4G network on, Google Talk running in the background, one Gmail account, and Twitter actively synced. We even made use of the tablet as an e-reader during this two-day stretch, loading books on the pre-loaded Amazon Kindle app and reading for hours at a time. We should also note that it's definitely possible to squeeze up to four days out of a single charge even with light use, so long as you power the tablet down at night.

Battery Life
HTC Jetstream 7:44
Apple iPad 2 10:26
Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 9:55
Apple iPad 9:33
Sony Tablet S 8:35
HP TouchPad 8:33
Motorola Xoom 8:20
T-Mobile G-Slate 8:18
Archos 101 7:20
RIM BlackBerry PlayBook 7:01
Toshiba Thrive 6:25
Samsung Galaxy Tab 6:09


In our more formal battery test, where we played a video in a continuous loop, the battery went from a 100 percent charge to fully drained in seven hours and 44 minutes. That's with brightness set to 50 percent, the network signal enabled, email and Twitter syncing at 15 minute intervals and the display set to never sleep. If you look at the chart above, you'll see that the Jetstream falls just short of the eight hour mark achieved by fellow LTE tab, the Xoom, with the more drastic performance gap highlighted by the Galaxy Tab 10.1's near ten hours. Again, this doesn't take into account the device's excellent power management abilities, but for all the tablet's extra heft, you aren't rewarded with a more powerful battery or even any full-sized ports.

Software


To know HTC is to know Sense. There's just no avoiding it, and for most it's a love-it-or-hate-it affair. If you've ever owned one of the company's Android handsets before, you'll be pretty familiar with the customized skin placed atop Honeycomb 3.1. It may be officially called Sense for tablets 1.1, but it's more or less just Sense 3.0. No where is this more evident than at the lockscreen, which allows you to jump straight into applications by dragging their shortcut into an onscreen ring. You have the opportunity to modify all of this to your liking via the Personalize menu -- scenes, skins, lockscreens and wallpapers.

When you boot the tablet up for the first time (and wait the 20 or so seconds it takes), you'll greeted by the outsized flip clock and weather animation widget the company's become synonymous with, as well as those 3D carousel transitions. Sadly, your enthusiastic first meeting with the Jetstream's initial start up will be short lived. Waiting there to receive your ire on the primary homescreen, and in considerable force within the app tray, are a boatload of pre-installed applications spread across the slate's five screens. It looks as though both HTC and AT&T took turns to see who could fill up the Jetstream's 32GB of storage with more crapware. For a tablet that comes loaded with over 50 applications, the vast majority are largely ignorable. Complementing (and we say that with a heavy dose of sarcasm) the OEM's typical assortment of Android apps are a suite of AT&T's own: Code Scanner, Family Map, Navigator, Wi-Fi Hot Spots, Featured Apps, my AT&T. Third-party apps also make an appearance with Amazon Kindle, Facebook, Let's Golf 2, NFS Shift, Polaris Office, Teeter and Zinio all on board. If it weren't for the vast amount of real estate afforded, this could easily become the single most frustrating aspect of the device. Whereas a smaller-screened device like a smartphone would give the impression of app drawer overcrowding, the Jetstream's 10.1-inches helped us to more or less overlook the pre-loaded shenanigans. We did, however, take issue with the automatic creation of homescreen shortcuts when downloading an app for the market. We like to keep our tablets tidy and, besides, that's what's an app drawer is for anyway.


With all this widescreen real estate at your disposal you'd imagine widgets would take on a deeper usefulness and, in select cases, they do. While Twitter's native app maxes out at a gridded 4 x 2 in landscape showcasing only the most recent tweet, Sense for Twitter stretches out to 3 x 5 and displays up to three tweets at a time, with the added ability to scroll through your feed directly from that homescreen. Other applications, like The New York Times for example, take on a streamlined 5 x 1 or 4 x 1 look that adds just enough space for a headline and brief article synopsis. HTC's calendar and photo widgets, however, made the most of the available 10-inches,occupying 3 x 5 grids and giving you full access to both your monthly agenda and picture library.


Web browsing was a relatively painless experience. Flash-heavy and graphics-intensive sites rendered in full desktop view within about 15 to 20 seconds, although this speed did vary depending on the HSPA+ / LTE signal's strength. Pinch to zoom was fluid and tracked our fingers' movement well without a hint of checkerboarding. Instead of that familiar grey and white grid, this inbuilt browser opts for a white screen that surrounds your selected text and only displays the page's full contents once you've settled the action. Tablet-based browsing is still not without its hiccups and we did come across a few sites that refreshed in a maddening continual loop without ever completing. Also, there were occasions when it appeared the browser couldn't keep up with our rapid scrolling, as evinced by a completely blank screen that only redrew when we'd finished navigating.

Network speeds


AT&T's been calling itself home to 4G speeds for some time now, but that's been mostly for the purposes of combative marketing. The operator's "true" entry into the next-gen network race has only recently gotten underway. Just this past September, the carrier finally took its LTE spectrum live in five cities spread across the south and mid western United States, and more recently in an additional four cities. Much to our dismay, New York, the city we call home, hasn't yet made the cut, so we took a trip to Boston and gave the carrier's 700MHz spectrum a whirl.

In our time with the Jetstream, we've logged fairly inconsistent 4G network speeds. Whether this had to do with the demands made of AT&T's network in New York City, poor signal penetration or spotty LTE coverage (in the case of Boston), we're not certain. Signal strength usually hovered around four bars around New York City and three to four bars in Boston. When the tablet latched on to a hardy LTE signal, we were treated to speeds that fell just under 25Mbps down and, in less optimal HSPA+ conditions, roughly 1.5Mbps. Uplink speeds were a mixed bag, ranging from a fantastic 18.39Mbps to an abysmal 60kbps.

Pen input


Like the Flyer, the Jetstream supports pressure-sensitive pen input. If you think that stylus up there looks familiar, it's because the Jetstream takes advantage of the same N-Trig DuoSense digitizer used on both the Flyer (hence, the opportunity to recycle the pen). As it happens, that's also the same technology used in Lenovo's ThinkPad tablet and the HP Slate 500 (now Slate 2), which means all of these pens should be interchangeable.

The aluminum stylus itself isn't remarkable from a design standpoint, nor does its $80 standalone price tag confer a sculpted ergonomic fit. Hopefully, AT&T's limited time offer of a free digital pen will still be kicking when you decide to take the plunge on this purchase, freeing you from the burden of that additional cost. Truth be told, though, the Scribe's inclusion seems more afterthought than value-add, but we'll happily take all we can get for the cost.

The first time you use the pen to tap on the screen, a tutorial will open, introducing you to the feature's limited functions, including the stylus' erase and highlight quick buttons. This directs you to a menu shortcut on the lower left of your homescreen that, when selected, displays a mini palette that takes you through the various Pen Options, much like on the Flyer. From here you can choose amongst a range of pen styles, colors and thicknesses to be used for scribbling on a screengrab or for thoughts jotted down on the included Notes app. HTC's handwriting recognition software is truly impressive, as it faithfully recreated the strokes of our messy cursive and more legible print, though we wouldn't go so far as calling it useful. You'll notice a tiny delay between the pen's movements and the onscreen scrawl, but it's not enough to hamper the rate of your writing and you can always use the erase button to backtrack over your mistakes. What will get in the way is your own clumsy hand. We noticed that any gentle contact between our palm and the Jetstream's display would immediately activate the keyboard. It's the same quirk we'd previously seen on the Flyer and one that could seriously impede your furious note-taking. That said, there's not much apparent use for the Scribe nor is there a simple way to discover compatible apps. We attempted a quick search for "HTC Scribe" in the Android Market and saw only four matching results, while a query for the less specific "stylus" yielded about 70. Sure, you can use the pen to break up the monotony of finger swiping and navigate the tablet, a handful of apps and even sling shot a few Angry Birds with the digitizer, but it's likely a feature you'll play with several times before losing it the mess of your things. Which brings us to Scribe's major downfall -- there's just nowhere on the device to store it. Unlike it's Gingerbread-based sibling, there's no included case here to stash away the Scribe pen. It's this glaring omission which leads us back to our original conclusion: the Jetstream's pen input is less of an integrated killer feature and more of a straight-up gimmick.

Wrap-up


On paper, the Jetstream talks a tough spec game, boasting a 10.1-inch WXGA display, dual-core 1.5GHz processor, 1GB RAM, 32GB of storage and an 8 megapixel rear shooter capable of 1080p video. Add to that list 4G LTE capability and you'd easily topple the Honeycomb competition in a side-by-side comparison. When put to real-world use, however, many of those much-touted internals, especially the LTE radio, could turn against the device, sucking down the beefy 7,300mAh juice and leaving you with a handicapped mobile product. Happily, that's far from the case here, as battery life management is one of this tablet's strongest points. Use it heavily in one of AT&T's LTE coverage areas and you'll need to pull out the charger at day's end, but left to the operator's HSPA+ network and this go anywhere slate becomes a trusty and long-lasting mobile sidekick.

Our gripes with the tablet's dull display and schizophrenic performance are mainly exacerbated by its $700 cost. At this high of a price, you'd expect greater pixel density and smoother performance to accompany the sleek and sturdy metal build. And with LTE-enabled versions of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 and Xoom offering improvements in both these areas, and coming in at cheaper price points on Verizon - $500 and $630, respectively -- it's hard to fathom signing on the dotted line with AT&T. That's not to say future software updates, namely those of the Ice Cream Sandwich variety, won't remedy the tablet's sporadic operating tics -- they most likely will. Really, it all comes down to a choice of network speed and battery life over display and performance, as that's the Jetstream's main trade-off. If you need a tablet to last you through a span of two working days with an always on 4G connection, then by all means, this is your device. But if you're crunched for cash and are still keen to claim this tablet as your very own, then we'd recommend holding out for the eventual price drop. That, or you can always hop over and buy what Big Red is selling -- like the Galaxy Tab 10.1.

This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Galaxy Nexus headed to Bell and Virgin Mobile in Canada, Three in the UK

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 09:33 AM PST

We expect there will be more to come, but you can now officially add at least three more carriers to the list confirmed to be offering the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. Those include Bell and Virgin Mobile in Canada, and Three in the UK, which joins O2 as a confirmed carrier for the flagship Ice Cream Sandwich phone across the pond. The two Canadian carriers aren't offering a firm release date or pricing details just yet -- though they're happy to take your email address and keep you posted -- but Three lists an off-contract price of £499.99 (or just under $800) and is promising "earliest delivery" by November 18th.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

IconSettings gives you simple control of your iDevice without jailbreaking

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 09:03 AM PST

IconSettings
Look, we understand, some of you are a little timid about jailbreaking your iPhone. You've looked on in envy as your contemporaries have thrown warranties to the wind and enjoyed the convenience of turning on and off their WiFi from the homescreen. But, be jealous no longer. A crafty developer has figured out how to bring the same capabilities your iDevice with little more than a browser bookmark -- no jailbreaking required. IconSettings lets you quickly access or toggle various settings on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch, provided its running iOS 5. Setting it up is as simple as saving a bookmark to your home screen. Then you just tap the links and, voilà, you can turn on and off Bluetooth, change brightness levels, or disengage autolock. You'll find full instructions and the appropriate bookmarks at the source links.

iTunes Match goes live: sync up your entire music collection for $24.99 a year

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 08:34 AM PST

It's a tad later than Apple's original "end of October" launch window, but the company has now officially rolled out its iTunes Match service to everyone with the iTunes 10.5.1 update. That will let you sync up your entire music collection with iCloud -- including songs and albums you've ripped from CDs -- which you can then listen to on any compatible device (i.e. an Apple device or a Windows PC with iTunes). In the case of songs already offered through iTunes, your music will simply be matched up with the tracks already available, and anything not offered will be uploaded, with everything offered in the usual DRM-free 256kbps AAC files. As expected, that convenience comes at a cost -- the service will run you $24.99 a year. You're also limited to 25,000 songs, although iTunes purchases don't count against that limit.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Kindle Fire shipping a day early for those who pre-ordered

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 08:28 AM PST

Kindle Fire
Officially, the Kindle Fire isn't supposed to launch until tomorrow, November 15th. But, if you were one of the impatient many that jumped on the chance to pre-order the Amazon-branded tablet, the online retailer has a surprise -- it's already on its way. In a statement, Dave Limp (VP of Amazon Kindle), said the company was "thrilled to be able to ship Kindle Fire to our customers earlier than we expected." We already knew that early sales of the device had exceeded expectations and production had to be ramped up to meet demand. Putting them in the mail 24 hours ahead of schedule is really just icing on the cake. Sure, it's not the full week that Kindle Touch purchasers are enjoying, but when it comes to the latest gadgets, getting our mitts on it even just a few hours early is a pleasant surprise.

Engadget's holiday gift guide 2011: headphones

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 08:00 AM PST

Welcome to the Engadget Holiday Gift Guide! We're well aware of the heartbreaking difficulties surrounding the seasonal shopping experience, so we're here to help you sort out this year's tech treasures. Below is today's bevy of curated picks, and you can head back to the Gift Guide hub to see the rest of the product guides as they're added throughout the holiday season.

We imagine many a PMP or smartphone will be changing hands this holiday season -- iPhone 4S or Galaxy Nexus, anyone? And what better way to accessorize your brand new mobile gadget than with a set of headphones? Fret not audio lovers -- we've rounded up nine of our top picks that we think you'll really enjoy while on the move. We're talking headphones that'll let you control your playlists and chat with friends, all without exposing those precious new gizmos to the harsh winter elements. It's all just past the break, so what are you still doing here? Click on through to the other side!


For starters


Sony NWZ-W260 Walkman in-ears


PMP? Who needs one? Not anyone rocking this set of in-ears from Sony. These Walkman-branded 'buds come with a choice of two or four gigs of storage for your tunes, leaving behind any worries about pocket space. Better yet, the water-resistant design should hold up to a fair amount of sweat, appeasing fitness buffs and marathon runners alike -- you'll have eight hours between charges to put that durability to the test.

Key specs: 2 or 4GB of built-in storage, water-resistant, eight-hour battery.

Price: $60 - $80 on Amazon


You might also like...



Klipsch S4i / A

You've probably heard of Klipsch's S4 in-ear headphone line. Whether you're an Android faithful or an iOS junkie, these 'buds will keep your mobile life in control with an inline remote / mic and great sound to boot -- all without breaking the bank.

Price: $100 on Amazon


AiAiAi Swirl w/ mic

Keep it simple, keep it stylin'. If that's your mantra, then AiAiAi's Swirls are sure to rock your holiday this year. With a plethora of color options, a right-angle connector and a three-button remote / mic, you'll have all your mobile bases covered.

Price: $80 on Amazon



Mid-range


Bowers & Wilkins C5


This may only be the company's second set of headphones to date, but given the pleasing performance we experienced with them, it's obvious that B&W has swiftly attained a knack for this mobile audio thing. This micro-sized kit packs a number of perks, including Tungsten Balanced earbuds with Secure Loops for an excellent fit, and a Micro Porous Filter for wide soundstaging. The set's aluminum build not only looks classy, but will also hold up in your day-to-day rigors. Lastly, iPhone users will no doubt appreciate the inline mic's tactile controls while skipping through songs on the move.

Key specs: Tungsten Balanced aluminum earbuds, Secure Loop fit, iOS-compatible remote / mic, Micro Porous Filter, hardshell carrying pouch.

Price: $180 on Amazon


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Klipsch Image One

Want that S4i-type vibe, but hate jamming silicon in your ears? Klipsch's Image One offers its signature sound in an on-ear package -- and there's a similar iOS-compatible remote / mic here as well.

Price: $150 on Amazon


Nokia BH-905i

Bluetooth isn't just for dinky earpieces, you know. This headset looks like a normal set of cans, but features A2DP Bluetooth functionally, on-ear controls and eight microphones for noise-cancelling. There's a duo of mics for phone calls and a rechargeable battery too.

Price: $183 on Amazon



Money's no object


Sony MDR-NC200D noise-cancelling headphones


When it comes to city life, finding some peace and quiet can be tough. Of course, anyone with noise-cancelling headphones knows such silence can be blissfully simulated, and we found that Sony's MDR-NC200Ds admirably fit the bill. This portable on-ear set can hush harsh sounds for up to 22 hours on a single AAA-battery, all while automatically analyzing your surroundings to achieve optimal noise-blockage. Best of all, you may even forgot you're wearing them thanks to the extra comfortable padding and lightweight design.

Key specs: Intelligent noise-cancellation, foldable design, talk-through mode, detachable cable, included carrying case.

Price: $200 on Amazon


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Westone 4 R-series

Looking for massive sound in a small package? This IEM set can pack a serious punch thanks to its quad-driver array, all the while being small enough to fit in your pocket. Swap out the detachable cord with an optional EPIC MICS "smartphone interface cable," and you've got a mobile headset fit for an audiophile.

Price: $500 at Westone


Bowers & Wilkins P5

We can't say it enough -- the P5s remain one our favorite iOS-compatible, noise-isolating headphones. With a comfortable on-ear fit thanks to soft leather earpads, you'll be able to rock on the go for hours, and take the occasional phone call while you're at it.

Price: $300 on Amazon

Google X lab is full of smart people with crazy dreams and frozen yogurt machines, probably

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 07:49 AM PST

A Google lab so secret that even some of the company's own employees don't know of its existence? That's Google X -- or it was, before The New York Times ran a profile on the lab's super secret goings-on at an undisclosed location somewhere in the San Francisco Bay Area. Naturally, the paper doesn't have a ton of information about the lab, which some claim is "run like the CIA," though it paints a picture populated by robots who are are learning menial work tasks and how to take photos for Google Maps. There are around 100 concepts in all from the lab that helped give rise to those driverless cars, including social networking dinner plates and internet-connected refrigerators. No word on the lab's production of an adamantium-laced super soldier for the Canadian government, but we're sure it's around there somewhere.

Barnes and Noble tosses gloves aside, speaks its mind on Microsoft's Android licensing initiative

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 07:40 AM PST

It looks like Barnes & Noble is mad as hell and just isn't gonna take it anymore. In a strongly worded letter to the Department of Justice, it's called Microsoft out as a "Patent Troll" and "Bully." When Redmond rolled up with its usual ultimatum: license our Android patents or we'll sue you, B&N demanded to know which patents the Nook was meant to infringe -- many of them trivial. The software giant demanded that as well as licensing fees, it would have veto power on design features and hardware requirements for future devices, which prompted the bookseller to contact the DoJ. Whilst you should take everything with a pinch of salt (and realize that both companies could be rattling the sabers), it's worth remembering that companies won't start calling in government agencies until no other viable options exist, which means this saga could be running for months, if not centuries. Head on down to our source link for all the gory details, replete with copies of the filings made.

Sprint undercuts AT&T and Verizon with new Mobile Broadband data plans

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 07:27 AM PST

Sprint just tossed some new data options our way for those of you who tend to sip gulp gigs of data each month. Under the new plans, 6GB of data will run you $49.99, while an extra 30 bucks will let you boost consumption to 12GB -- an amount exceeding Verizon's standard offering (but not the holiday LTE promo) by two gigs, while blowing away AT&T, which doesn't offer an option quite so beefy (12GB there will run you $120, after overage fees). Sprint customers with lighter use can add a 3GB plan to their tablets, mobile hotspots or USB cards for $34.99, while tablet users can opt for 1GB of data for just $19.99 per month. All plans include overage rates of 5 cents per MB for in-network usage (a whopping $50 per additional GB), while roaming will run you 25 cents per MB. All of these plans apply to data-only devices, and don't affect smartphones. Jump past the break for the full PR from Sprint.
Show full PR text
Sprint Launches New 3G/4G Mobile Broadband Plans, Delivering More Data at a Lower Price Than Competitors

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (BUSINESS WIRE), November 14, 2011 - Sprint (NYSE: S) today launched new 3G/4G mobile broadband plans that deliver more data at lower prices than similar plans from national competitors. The new plans are available in all Sprint sales channels.

Customers can choose from 6GB of combined on-network 3G/4G data usage for $49.99 per month or 12GB of 3G/4G data usage for $79.99 per month. The new plans deliver 20 percent more data for the same price as similar plans from Verizon and AT&T.

Sprint Verizon AT&T
$49.99 per month/6GB $50 per month/5GB $50 per month/5GB
$79.99 per month/12GB $80 per month/10GB NA


With an extra 1GB of data vs. Verizon and AT&T's $50/5GB plans, Sprint customers subscribing to the new $49.99/6GB plan will be able to view approximately 6,667 additional Web pages, 2,000 more photos or 67 extra YouTube videos each month.1

"Sprint is committed to delivering exceptional value to its customers, and our new 3G/4G Mobile Broadband plans are the latest example of that," said Will Souder, vice president of pricing for Sprint. "Sprint gives customers more data at lower prices than competitors, so they can do more with their mobile broadband devices on Sprint's 3G and 4G networks."

The $49.99/6GB and $79.99/12GB plans are compatible with all Mobile Broadband devices sold by Sprint, including tablets, dedicated mobile hotspot devices, USB modems, netbooks and notebooks.

In addition, Sprint is also launching a new plan available for tablets2 and dedicated mobile hotspot devices3 priced at $34.99 per month for 3GB of 3G/4G data usage, along with a new plan for tablets priced at $19.99 per month for 1GB of 3G/4G data usage.

The new plans replace all previously available Mobile Broadband plans and are available to new and existing customers.

Sprint provides to customers tools to monitor and manage their mobile broadband data usage and avoid overages:

Customers who have opted-in for notifications will receive email and/or SMS notifications when their 3G/4G data usage has reached 75 percent of their plan limit or higher.

Customers are also able to view their data usage by logging into My Sprint at www.sprint.com.

Customers with devices featuring the SmartView application can use the app to view data usage.

Tablet users can text "usage" to 1311 to receive a text with their current 3G/4G usage.

Barcelona readies hybrid ARM-based supercomputer, uses NVIDIA GPUs for heavy lifting

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 07:04 AM PST

NVIDIA has announced that it'll be providing CUDA GPUs for Barcelona's Supercomputing Center, with the facility looking to substantially boost its energy efficiency with these later this week at the SC11 Conference in Seattle. While the words "low power" and "energy efficiency" are a bit of a buzz kill in the high-octane high-MFLOP world of supercomputing, the BSC thinks it'll use between 15 to 30 times less power than current systems. Titled the Mont Blanc Project, it's aiming to multiply those energy savings by four to ten times by 2014. While other supercomputers eat their way though megawatts of the electric stuff, hopefully a drop in power demands won't affect this machine's supercomputing scores.
Show full PR text
Barcelona Supercomputing Center to Deploy World's First ARM-Based CPU/GPU Hybrid Supercomputer

Prototype System With Energy Efficient Tegra ARM CPUs and CUDA GPUs Advances Europe Toward Exascale Supercomputing

SEATTLE, WA -- (Marketwire) -- 11/14/2011 -- SC11 -- NVIDIA today announced that the Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC) is developing a new hybrid supercomputer that, for the first time, uses energy-efficient, low-power NVIDIA® Tegra™ ARM CPUs, together with high-performance NVIDIA® CUDA® GPUs.

BSC is planning to develop the first large scale system based on this technology, with a near term goal of demonstrating two to five times improvement in energy efficiency compared with today's most efficient systems. BSC is showing the system design publicly for the first time at this week's SC11 Conference, which runs Nov. 14-17 in Seattle, Wash., in exhibit booth #235.

BSC's ultimate research goal is to deliver exascale-level performance while using 15 to 30 times less power than current supercomputer architectures. This so-called EU Mont-Blanc Project will explore next-generation HPC architectures and develop a portfolio of exascale applications that run efficiently on these kinds of energy-efficient, embedded mobile technologies.

"In most current systems, CPUs alone consume the lion's share of the energy, often 40 percent or more," said Alex Ramirez, leader of the Mont-Blanc Project. "By comparison, the Mont-Blanc architecture will rely on energy-efficient compute accelerators and ARM processors used in embedded and mobile devices to achieve a four- to 10-times increase in energy-efficiency by 2014."

To support growing demand for similar ARM-based initiatives around the world, NVIDIA also announced plans to develop a new hardware and software development kit. The kit, with hardware developed by SECO, will feature a quad-core NVIDIA Tegra 3 ARM CPU accelerated by a discrete NVIDIA GPU. It is expected to be available in the first half of 2012, and will be supported by the NVIDIA CUDA parallel programming toolkit.

In recognition of its ground-breaking work leveraging NVIDIA GPUs and CUDA technology to drive education and research programs across a range of scientific disciplines, BSC was named a CUDA Center of Excellence by NVIDIA. The CUDA Center of Excellence program rewards and fosters collaboration with leading institutions that are at the forefront of parallel computing research.

AMD ships '16-core' Bulldozer-powered Opteron 6200

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 06:44 AM PST

We seem to have mislaid our definition of fashionably late -- a fortnight after the promised "October" launch, systems packing AMD's Bulldozer-powered Opteron 6200 (formerly Interlagos) will commence shipping to enterprise customers. If you haven't been paying too much attention, you might just believe the claim about it having 16 cores -- Bulldozer's architecture has eight two-core modules rather than 16 independent ones. Despite the short delay and the conspicuous claims, the company reckons it's 84 percent faster, 73 percent more efficient and uses half the power of the equivalent Intel Xeon. At the same time, Sunnyvale firmed up news on the Valencia (Opteron 4200) and announced 2012's Opteron 3000 platform with the new Zurich chip -- designed to run on low-power web hosts. Enterprise customers can read the PR we've got after the break and then begin placing orders; the rest of us will have to keep waiting to see if Andre Yang can push his FX all the way to 9GHz.

[Thanks, Khan]
Show full PR text
New AMD Opteron™ Processors Deliver the Ultimate in Performance, Scalability and Efficiency

SUNNYVALE, Calif. -11/14/2011 AMD (NYSE: AMD) today announced immediate launch and availability of its AMD Opteron™ 6200 and 4200 Series processors (formerly code-named "Interlagos" and "Valencia"). The new AMD Opteron processors are designed to give enterprises:

Better performance for business with up to 84 percent higher performancei
Increased scalability for Virtualization with up to 73 percent more memory bandwidth, enabling servers to host more virtual machines and also handle increasing workloadsii
More efficient economics for the Cloud with half the power per core , requiring 2/3 less floor spaceiv and up to 2/3 lower platform pricev

"Our industry is at a new juncture; virtualization has provided a new level of reliable consolidation and businesses are now looking to the cloud for even more agility and efficiency. We designed the new AMD Opteron processor for this precise moment," said Paul Struhsaker, corporate vice president and general manager, Commercial Business, AMD. "The wait for the most anticipated new product and architecture for servers is over. Leading OEMs are now offering cloud, enterprise and HPC customers a full suite of solutions based on the industry's most comprehensive server processor portfolio, the new AMD Opteron family of processors which deliver an inspired balance of performance, scalability and efficiency."

AMD also announced the expansion of its 2012 roadmap with the addition of the new AMD Opteron 3000 Series platform. The AMD Opteron 3000 Series platform is targeted to the ultra-dense, ultra-low power 1P Web Hosting/Web Serving and Microserver markets. The first processor will be the 4-8 core CPU code-named "Zurich", expected to ship in the first half of 2012. "Zurich" is based on the "Bulldozer" architecture and leverages the new Socket AM3+. The AMD Opteron 3000 series offering is designed for hosting customers who require dedicated servers for their customers. These cloud and web hosting customers appreciate the cost savings associated with a lower cost infrastructure, yet still want to deploy a server-class product with reliability and security features and server OS certification.

IT customers of all sizes can today take advantage of new servers based on the engineering and business advantages of AMD's new "Bulldozer" architecture, which has been engineered for the leading datacenter workloads. Systems from Acer, Cray, Dell, HP, IBM and many additional channel and motherboard partners are expected on the market in the coming days and weeks.

AMD is also introducing embedded server processors designed for high-end embedded systems such as storage, telecommunications and networking infrastructure. These models are planned to be available to match the embedded market's longevity need.
Key Facts, Performance and Technical Detail

89 percent greater performancevi than the most popular server processorvii from the competition at the same priceviii
An extremely comprehensive processor portfolio scaling from 4- to 16-cores
Unmatched power efficiency with power envelopes that are consistent with previous generation platforms and as low as 4.375W per coreiii
Up to 24 percent to 84 percent better performance on key cloud, virtualization and HPC workloadsix
Highest 2P server TPCC scorex
Lower cost per virtual machine (VM)xi
Up to 4 memory channels with up to 1600 MHz memory
The only x86 processor to support ultra-low voltage 1.25v memory
Supports up to 12 DIMMs per CPU for up to 384GB memory per CPU
Up to Four x16 HyperTransport™ technology (HT3) Links at up to 6.4GT/s per link

Together, these new features allow AMD to deliver unparalleled performance, scalability and efficiency for highly threaded workloads like HPC, database, virtualization, and especially, the emerging web and cloud market.

Full performance details can be found at www.amd.com/opteronperformance or read about the latest here.

HTC Sensation XL review

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 06:00 AM PST


The HTC Sensation XL has landed, leaving a sizable footprint behind. While it picks up the naming convention from HTC's previously dual-core flagship series and some Beats audio accreditation on the way, it looks pretty damn familiar to another member of the family. Yes, the family's Windows Phone flagship, the Titan certainly tickled our fancy -- no other phone had landed on that nascent OS with such a screen. But the Sensation XL faces phones both bigger (and only slightly smaller) in the increasingly crowded world of Android. At around $723 (£450), is the XL's single-core processor enough? Is that glossy WVGA screen still sharp enough at this size? How does this one compare to previous Sensations, and perhaps more importantly, Samsung's even bigger not-so-heavyweight? Keep reading after the break to find out.
HTC Sensation XL review


Hardware


The Sensation XL has some sizable heft to it, making it yet another handset pushing the boundaries of how much touchscreen we can fit into our collective pockets.

The HTC Sensation XL bears a more than passing resemblance to its Windows Phone cousin, the Titan. In fact, most of the technical specifications are identical, with matching 4.7-inch screens, identical camera specifications and and generally the same look and feel. There are some differences; the XL is another Beats-branded handset, and arrives with a pair of Dre-endorsed in-ear buds, and there are subtle differences to the shaping of the handset. The Sensation XL has some sizable heft to it, making it yet another handset pushing the boundaries of how much touchscreen we can fit into our collective pockets. Hardware-wise, much of what we've already said about the Titan holds true here. In fact, it measures up identically to its Windows Phone doppelganger, squeezing all that screen and a 1,600mAh battery to within 10mm (0.39 inches), making it thinner than its smaller-screened Sensation sisters. Those XL credentials also betray its weight; at 5.73 ounces (162g) it's lighter than both the original and XE versions. The build quality is another success story from HTC and the single-piece backing feels solid in the hand. While the Titan's cover wraps around the whole screen, the Android version doesn't extend over the front lip. The Sensation XL's upper bezel is thinner than the Titan, but this is simply a trade-off for a bigger chin at the bottom. The phone's edges are also more curved, and we found the back cover slightly more tricky to wrench off, though it's certainly easier than a certain similarly styled HTC tablet.


The XL arrives in the same white-metallic stylings seen on the HTC Flyer and Radar, with a dash of Beats-inspired red accents livening up the back. Unlike the HTC Sensation XE or HTC's forthcoming Rezound, you won't find any such touches around the front of the phone, which is a bit of a shame, as we found that splash of scarlet helped add some visual spice to the otherwise slightly muted design. You will find, however, HTC's stock Android button quartet: Home, menu, back and search. They're lit up by a gentle glow, slightly more subtle than other phones from its back catalog, though we'd welcome a return of those prismatic, rotating beauties found on the Incredible S. Above the WVGA screen, you'll find the ear piece, proximity sensor, ambient light sensor and a 1.3 megapixel front-facing camera.

Screen


You won't find the curved Gorilla Glass display seen on other Sensations -- the screen looks to be identical to the Super LCD we already stroked on the HTC Titan; that 4.7-inch WVGA screen remains the same, as does its color reproduction and viewing angles. Already the software differences do come into play, if only due to involuntary comparisons with other Android phones. We've already seen qHD and even higher resolutions running Google's OS. Does it matter? Well, it depends. This, like the Titan is a lovely screen, despite the mid-table dots-per-inch ranking. Colors aren't washed-out, and this model of Super LCD beats out the smaller -- but sharper -- Sensation screen with impressive viewing angles and color production. No, it's not Super AMOLED, but that doesn't mean it can't impress. In daily use, in this size, it's a revelation to use -- like the Galaxy Note, we found ourselves drawing the phone away from our eyes, as we could see everything we needed to from a distance -- you can glance at the phone, and read any information you've setup on the customizable lock-screen.

Audio

Sound-wise, our review model arrived with another pair of urBeats in-ear headphones, with several pairs of buds, hoping to fit all sorts of ears. As we investigated extensively in our Sensation XE review, the built-in Beats audio remains mostly bluster, the headphones themselves remain stylish and of far higher quality than your typical in-the-box in-ear offerings, which sound cheap and weedy in comparison.


However, despite the push to sell the XL as the go-to music and entertainment smartphone, it's utterly hobbled by non-expandable memory. This would've been fine if built-in storage amounted to top-end iPhone levels, but the built-in storage amounts to just under 13GB. Anyone with an extensive range of music tastes will be forced to pick and choose what they sync with the phone -- or pick an alternative (presumably cloud-based) option like Spotify and miss out on the built-in Beats equalizer. A major problem for this audio-branded phone.

Camera



We feel like we're retreading old ground again, but (again) the Sensation XL has the same camera as the Titan. In that respect, it's another zippy eight megapixel number: responsive, but also missing the kind of two-stage trigger found on its WinPho alter ego. Nonetheless, the f/2.2 lens does its job managing the light admirably, with a particularly strong macro performance. Compression on pictures was similar to the Titan; expect a reduction on full-sized eight megapixel stills to between 1 and 1.5MB.
HTC Sensation XL sample shots

Video performance is hampered by some pretty poor light balance, often switching between extremes. We appreciated the ability to adjust the auto-focus during filming by touching the area we wanted in focus, but this invariably adds a moment of unfocused blur. It's still worth noting that other similarly priced Android phones may be capable of 1080p recording but often don't have the bit-rate chops to back it up. With adequate lighting, the camera is still capable of capturing satisfactory footage, but audio quality leaves a lot to be desired.


Performance and battery life

The Sensation XL packs a Qualcomm MSM8255 1.5GHz processor, so we weren't expecting a new king of performance. Aside from the comparatively low Nenamark score, the latest addition to the Sensation stable fares remarkably well, with an impressively low Sunspider score proving its web browsing chops.

Sensation XL Sensation XE Sensation
Quadrant 1,963 2,080 2,000
Linpack (single-thread) 56.2 MFLOPS 32.5 MFLOPS 37.5 MFLOPS
Linpack (multi-thread) 50.3 MFLOPS 52 MFLOPS 59.4 MFLOPS
Nenamark 2 13.1fps 25.9fps 24.2fps
Nenamark 1 29.3fps 48.5fps 45.8fps
Neocore 58.4 59.8 59
SunSpider 9.1 2,140 3,300 6,301

When we pushed the Sensation XL's 1,600mAh battery to its limits in our video rundown test (movie looping, 3G on, WiFi enabled, but not connected), it managed just under five hours. If you stack this up against its progenitor, a dual-core Sensation XE with a slightly larger battery that managed between five and six hours of rundown, you begin to see the phone's battery takes some blows from that big-screen. In day-to-day use, we found Sensation XL's lifespan would understandably vary widely on what you used it for -- the more time spent enjoying that SuperLCD screen, the less you'll have to keep the phone otherwise ticking over. When it came to holding this impressively molded lump of smartphone to our face for calls, we found reception was typically good, and it's worth noting that the unibody back acts as a contact for the aerial innards. Also, the YourBeats headphones doubled as hands-free set quite admirably, and are comfortable enough to manage those extended conversations.

Software

Yes, HTC's Sense UI is back, and it's big. The Sensation XL is the latest phone to get version Sense 3.5, introduced on the "lady-centric" HTC Rhyme. The lock screen shortcuts remain its most redeeming feature, but it looks increasingly likely to face obscurity once Google gives us a bite of the Ice Cream Sandwich -- planned to arrive on the XL in early 2012. Anyone who's used a different Android phone will find it takes some time to get used to its quirks. While some may bemoan the extra processing juice (and presumably battery power) to keep the glossy weather features and 3D carousel animations going, we think they do add to the experience of the phone. Now if only HTC would give us the option to turn all these bells and whistles off, we'd take less of an issue with it, especially with single-core phones that may need to think a fair bit more for these graphical pyrotechnics. Behind the layer of Sense is the reliable Gingerbread build of Google's OS, and functions superbly on the expansive screen. The likes of Google Maps and the built-in web browser make the most of the 4.7-inch Super LCD display, and it rarely chokes on content-dense sites.

Keyboard


HTC's stock keyboard takes up the majority of the screen, with its squareish buttons a very viable option for anyone who's found touchscreen keyboards before now simply too fiddly. There's the typical predictive function here, too, but what the Sensation XL has over the Titan is a choice of extra keyboards, including Engadget favorites like SwiftKey and Swype, though the stock Android version isn't an option here.

Wrap-up


Sacrifices have been made here, and ones which put it behind the smaller-screened Sensation and XE when it comes to processing speed and battery life.

The Android Gingerbread OS remains the major difference between this and its Windows Phone cousin. While the Titan could arguably lay claim to being the best device available on the OS at this point, the XL has tougher competition -- even within HTC's own family. Sacrifices have been made here, and ones which put it behind the smaller-screened Sensation and XE when it comes to processing speed and battery life. We've said our piece about Beats Audio already, but it becomes even more defunct when storage space for the stock music app is at a premium. Having said that, like our experience with Samsung's Galaxy Note, web browsing, media consumption and other full-screen tasks are a joy with the extra canvas on offer here. But as we concluded with the Galaxy Note, some may still find the Sensation XL's 4.7-inch screen one size too big.

This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

HP TouchPad Go gets stopped for more close-up photography

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 05:34 AM PST

We're unlikely to ever get our grubby mitts on a final model, but that hasn't stopped a developmental flavor of this seven-inch slab getting another going over in China. Unceremoniously revealed as the TouchPad Go in FCC filings earlier this year, this seven-inch tablet packs in 32GB of Sandisk storage alongside 1GB of RAM, plus 3G bells and GPS whistles. Palm Joy notes that the tiddly TouchPad is flatter than the original, with the physical button centered on the longer side and an additional rear-facing five megapixel camera. The back of this tablet also has a Pre-esque matte finish, nixing the fingertip-magnet gloss of its bigger brother. You can grab another shot after the break, but if that doesn't quench your thirst there's plenty more at the source link.

O2 launches LTE trial across UK ahead of next year's 4G spectrum auction

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 05:03 AM PST

BT's gonna have to make some room at the 4G table, now that O2 has launched its very own LTE trial across the UK. Today, the provider dipped its toes into the LTE pool for the first time within London, a little less than a year after announcing a similar test across Germany. The nine-month trial will begin at 25 test locations across London, before spreading out to encompass a full 40 square kilometers and some 1,000 participants. Obviously, not all customers will be able to grab a slice of the pie, but those who do receive one of Samsung's B3730 modems will benefit from connection speeds of up to 100Mbps. According to the company, that should allow users to download a 500MB file in just one minute, compared to the five minutes it would take on a normal 3G connection. Time will only tell whether these dreams become a reality, but O2 is certainly hoping to benefit from the feedback it receives from its guinea pigs, ahead of next year's 4G spectrum auction. Find out more, in the full PR after the break.
Show full PR text
O2 brings superfast 4G to London

UK's largest LTE trial network launches to explore the technology before national introduction

O2 today will switch on the first 4G (or LTE - Long Term Evolution) network in the capital, offering a unique glimpse into the future of superfast mobile broadband. The trial, which will run for the next nine months, will see O2 equip hundreds of consumers, businesses and venue owners with the latest 4G technology and give exclusive access to the first and largest urban 4G network in the UK.

Over 25 4G sites will go live across London this month, covering a combined area of 40 square kilometres, between now and summer 2012.The network will stretch from Hyde Park to The O2 in Greenwich and has been carefully designed to cover key areas of the capital, including Canary Wharf, Soho, Westminster, South Bank and Kings Cross.

The network will enable O2 to provide a mobile internet experience comparable to the fastest landline fibre home broadband connections, unlocking a wealth of services including high speed corporate LAN access, high-definition film and music streaming, mobile online gaming and high-speed access to social networks. At these speeds, the time to download a 500MB file could be as fast as under one minute, compared to over 5 minutes on 3G.

Ronan Dunne, Chief Executive Officer of Telefónica UK (O2), said: "Today's launch of the UK's first 4G London trial network demonstrates our commitment to delivering 4G to our customers at the earliest opportunity. The work we are doing now will lay the foundations for our commercial 4G network when it launches in the UK."

O2 will provide trialists with Samsung B3730 mobile broadband dongles, supporting speeds of up to 100Mbps, and well as 4G personal wireless hotspots and handsets from a number of other vendors. Over 1000 individuals are expected to take part. Among those involved in the trial are a number of exclusive partners, including:


BUSINESSES
· John Lewis – the leading retailer, John Lewis, is one of O2's largest corporate customers to be signed to the trial to pilot the benefits of 4G internally and explore the impact it will have on its operations


INDUSTRY BODIES
· The IET – the Institution of Engineering and Technology, with offices at Savoy Place, has joined O2's efforts to demonstrate 4G capability amongst its membership


SMALL BUSINESSES
· Enterprise Nation – Emma Jones, founder and CEO of Enterprise Nation and co-founder of StartUp Britain, has joined the trial to share the 4G experience through her workshops with those individuals who she aims to help 'start a business and grow a successful venture'


MUSIC FANS
· The O2 – with its own dedicated 4G internal and external sites providing coverage to The O2 Arena and surrounding area, The O2 will play host to 4G live music video and film streaming demonstrations at the O2 Lounge and O2 Store, for both O2 customers and visitors to enjoy


TECH LOVERS
· Gizmodo UK – readers of the recently launched Gizmodo UK are to be recruited on the trial for a period of three months. They will be selected at a private Gizmodo UK 4G launch party at The O2, and will be invited to provide feedback and content to the site via a reader's panel

Real-time network performance data, combined with anecdotal feedback from customers, will be collected throughout the trial. The results will be used to influence and shape O2's plans for the commercial implementation of its forthcoming 4G network, following Ofcom's 4G spectrum auction, which is expected to take place in 2012.

The O2 4G trial will use the 2.6GHz spectrum band under a Test and Development licence granted to O2 by OFCOM, and is an extension of O2's earlier 4G trials in Slough that have been running since 2009. The 2.6GHz band supports the maximum 20MHz RF bandwidth for LTE, which allows 4G speeds of up to 150Mbps.

"O2 has been at the heart of the mobile data explosion over the last three years and our priority has always been to build ahead of the curve," continued Ronan Dunne. "Our work in London will give us a better understanding of the capabilities of 4G technology and will allow us to explore the superfast benefits it will bring to people and industry across the UK. This 4G trial is the next step on our journey to a smarter network - a network that offers a seamless, connected experience across multiple devices, locations and services.

"The forthcoming spectrum auction is a watershed moment for the UK mobile industry, which will see the release of the airwaves capable of powering a whole range of exciting next-generation mobile services. We are actively engaged in the auction and are supportive of a fair process that meets the Government's and Ofcom's planned timeline."

Editor of Gizmodo UK, Kat Hannaford, said, "O2's 4G trial spells great news for the UK and we're thrilled that readers of our site, launched late September, will be amongst the first in the UK to benefit from these super-fast speeds, helping to test O2's network. While we still have several years before 4G networks are available to consumers, this is a big step-forward for the industry and an exciting development for the UK's capital."

Telefónica UK's 4G trial network has been deployed using equipment supplied by Nokia Siemens Networks for both the Radio and Core network elements. Backhaul for the 4G trial network has been provided using Microwave Radio Equipment from Cambridge Broadband Networks Limited, NEC and Nokia Siemens Networks.

The trial in London is now live and will run until June 2012.

VIA offers $89 processor and motherboard combo for custom HTPCs

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 04:39 AM PST

If you're looking to craft a small form factor HTPC to an equally small budget, then VIA's own-brand internals deserve some serious consideration. The company's 1.4GHz dual-core Nano X2 CPU was recently put to good effect in Zotac's ZBOX Nano VD01 and is now available as part of a DIY combo called the VE-900, which puts the processor on a compact mini-ITX motherboard alongside a VX900 dedicated media accelerator for smooth video handling up to 1080p. The board has a single PCI slot, room for up to 8GB of DDR3, two SATA pin headers and four USB 2.0 ports. The rear panel adds to this with HDMI and VGA video outs, three analog audio jacks, Gigabit LAN, four more USB 2.0 ports and other standard fare -- but alas, it seems that the $89 price tag won't fetch you digital audio outs or USB 3.0. You'll find a full PR and promo video after the break, plus some Nano X2 benchmarks at the More Coverage link.


Show full PR text
VIA Releases VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX Mainboard for Digital Home Media Enthusiasts

Power efficient, highly optimized platform is ideal for the creation of custom systems

Taipei, Taiwan, November 11, 2011 - VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced the VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX Mainboard, available from the VIA Online Store (store.viatech.com) for US$89. The VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX provides the ideal platform for DIY enthusiasts to custom build stylish home desktop and media center PCs.

VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX delivers stunning multimedia performance. Ideal affordable platform for enthusiasts and modder innovation.

Featuring a high-performance 1.4GHz VIA Nano™ X2 dual core processor and the VIA VX900 unified all-in-one media system processor, the VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX Mainboard delivers a highly optimized platform that boasts stunning HD video performance of the most demanding video formats at resolutions of up to 1080p. The VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX also supports high fidelity surround sound through the VIA VT1708S HD audio codec which delivers amazing stereo 24-bit resolution and up to 192kHz sample rates and adds HDMI support in a compact, power-efficient package.

"November 6th marked the 10 year anniversary of the Mini-ITX form factor which spurred a revolution in the modding community," said Richard Brown, Vice President of Marketing, VIA Technologies, Inc. "The VIA VE-900 delivers an affordable, high performance Mini-ITX mainboard that will spur a new wave of inspiration and innovation in the next generation of enthusiasts."

VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX desktop board
The VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX Mainboard, measuring 17cm, x 17cm, pairs a 1.4 GHz VIA Nano™ X2 CPU with the VIA VX900 MSP. In addition to enabling support for up to 8GB of DDR3 system memory, the VIA VX900 MSP features the latest ChromotionHD 2.0 video engine, boasting comprehensive hardware acceleration for the latest VC1, H.264, MPEG-2 and WMV9 HD formats at screen resolutions of up to 1080p without incurring a heavy CPU load. Display connectivity support includes onboard HDMI and VGA.

Rear panel I/O includes a Gigabit LAN port, HDMI port, VGA port, four USB 2.0 ports, one PS/2 K/B and M/S port, one serial port and three audio jacks for line-out/in/Mic-in. An onboard PCI slot is accompanied with 2 SATA pin headers, four USB 2.0 ports and LPT support.

Pricing and availability:
The VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX Mainboard is currently available from the VIA Online store for US$89. To order your VIA VE-900Mini-ITX board please visit: http://store.viatech.com

For more information about the VIA VE-900 Mini-ITX Mainboard please visit:
http://www.via.com.tw/en/products/viamainboards/ve900/index.jsp

For images related to this press release please visit:
http://www.viagallery.com/index.php?option=com_flickr4j&Task=sets&Set=72157627916866897&Page=1

About VIA Technologies, Inc.
VIA Technologies, Inc is the foremost fabless supplier of power efficient x86 processor platforms that are driving system innovation in the PC, client, ultra mobile and embedded markets. Combining energy-saving processors with digital media chipsets and advanced connectivity, multimedia and networking silicon enables a broad spectrum of computing and communication platforms, including its widely acclaimed ultra compact mainboards. Headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, VIA's global network links the high tech centers of the US, Europe and Asia, and its customer base includes the world's top OEMs and system integrators. www.via.com.tw

Intel's Sandy Bridge E gets rounded up and reviewed, the E is for Excessive

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 04:21 AM PST

You can guess how this one's gonna go: top marks for performance and a shriek of despair when it comes to value for money. Is there anyone out there who really needs an over-sized six-core CPU that requires its own chubby LGA-2011 socket and tailored X79 chipset before it'll even switch on in the morning? Could people seriously be persuaded to drop a grand on merely incremental improvements in technology, such as 15MB of L3 cache and a bigger 600MHz Turbo Boost for stock clock speeds up to 3.9GHz? Well now, let's not get distracted. Even if there were no market -- which there is -- Intel would probably carry on releasing world-beating desktop chips simply to remind us that its rivals can't, and we'd probably carry on reading about them. So here goes, a bunch of reviews covering both the i7-3960X and i7-3930K variants, which together represent the absurd awesomeness of Sandy Bridge E and are on sale at Newegg for $1,050 and $600 respectively:

AnandTech: bemoans the absence of an on-die GPU, criticizes the X79 chipset, and dislikes the "performance/functionality tradeoffs"

PC Pro: sedately noted that the i7-3960X shows an "improvement" over i7-2600K in real-world benchmarks, and that "AMD must be sweating."

HotHardware: regards the 3960X as an "excellent overclocker" despite its vast power consumption, and says it combines with the X79 chipset to make "the most potent" desktop for gaming, content creation or productivity.

Tom's Hardware: describes the 3960X is a "symbolic king in a crowd full of value," and the 3930K is the processor moneyed enthusiasts should be lusting over.

ExtremeTech: says "the 3960X is a great chip on a solid platform," but cautions that only the most demanding gamers and content creators need this kind of power.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Samsung Captivate Glide and DoubleTime hands-on

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 04:00 AM PST

Samsung Captivate
Samsung's got a pair of QWERTY-sporting Android handsets heading to AT&T, targeting distinctly different different ends of the smartphone spectrum. Sure, both the Captivate Glide and the DoubleTime attempt to woo messaging addicts with their physical keyboards, but that's about where the similarities end. The Glide is packing a full gig of RAM, a 1GHz Tegra 2 processor, 8GB of internal storage, an 8 megapixel camera (plus a 1.3MP front-facing cam), Gingerbread slathered with TouchWiz and a 4-inch Super AMOLED display. The 800 x 480 panel isn't the best we've ever seen, but it's brightness and superb contrast certainly don't disappoint. Like many Samsung handsets, the Glide is surprisingly light thanks to its all plastic construction, but the textured battery plate and satisfyingly firm sliding mechanism keep it from feeling cheap. The landscape keyboard is quite pleasant. The keys don't have much travel, but they're well spaced and we had no trouble quickly banging out a bunch of texts right away.
Samsung Captivate Glide and DoubleTime hands-on

The DoubleTime, on the other hand, is a decidedly less high-end device. The rather beefy clamshell boasts a pair of 3.2-inch HVGA screens (hence the name) -- one on the font of the device and another on the inside, above the QWERTY keypad. The single-core 600MHz processor under the hood should be fine for texting and placing calls, but it did stutter a bit when navigating the heavily skinned Froyo. Oh, and yes, we're looking at Android 2.2 on this messaging-focused handset. And we wouldn't hold out hope for an update to Gingerbread, none the less Ice Cream Sandwich. The keyboard itself wasn't the worst we've ever used, but it was a bit cramped. Despite its rather plasticky and cheap feeling body, the hinge was surprisingly robust -- but we wouldn't suggest subjecting it to a rigorous durability test. Don't expect to load the DoubleTime up with piles of media either. Internal storage is practically nonexistent and Sammy only saw fit to bundle a 2GB microSD card with the handset. Unfortunately the company didn't have information regarding availability or price to share with us just yet, so you'll just have to be a little more patient if you're itching to get your QWERTY-equipped TouchWiz on.

Exclusive: Lenovo to release a 10.1-inch Ice Cream Sandwich tablet with Tegra 3 by year's end

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 03:13 AM PST

You wouldn't think a giant like Lenovo would stop at just three (or four) Android tablets now, would you? In fact, a little birdie has informed us that said Chinese company will release a new 10.1-inch tablet by the end of the year, and unsurprisingly, Ice Cream Sandwich along with NVIDIA's Tegra 3 T33 are on the menu. Other features include 2GB of speedy 1,600MHz DDR3 RAM, a standard USB host socket (covered by a not-so-elegant pop-out flap), a back-facing camera of unknown resolution, a "Special Fusion-Skin Body" and, most interestingly, a fingerprint scanner that apparently doubles as an optical joystick on the seemingly flat backside -- only time will tell whether this layout makes sense. Our source hasn't spilled any info on the dimensions and weight, but judging by the photos in our gallery, this 1.6GHz quad-core slate should be significantly thinner than the IdeaPad K1 or LePad sitting underneath. As always, you'll hear from us as soon as we find out more.

[Thanks, Anonymous]
Exclusive: Lenovo to release a 10.1-inch Ice Cream Sandwich tablet with Tegra 3 by year's end

Zelda-branded Nintendo 3DS coming to US GameStops?

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 02:18 AM PST

Is Nintendo's Zelda-branded 3DS making its way to the US? It certainly seems to be, based on the above GameStop ad. Spotted by one of our eagle-eyed tipsters, this leaked Black Friday promo offers the gold-and-black, Hyrule-emblazoned console as part of a bundle deal that also features The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D. This can all be yours, apparently, for the price of $200 (or as little as $100, if you're willing to part with one of your older consoles). Nintendo has yet to issue an official word on Zelda's stateside arrival, but we'll be sure to let you know as soon as we hear more.

[Thanks, Colin]

Motorola Droid RAZR rooted -- watch out for rough edges

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 01:04 AM PST

First it was the Kevlar-coated hardware, and now Android enthusiasts have cracked open the software edges of Motorola's latest Android baby. Yes, that dual-core slice of smartphone that is the Droid RAZR can now be rooted, but there is a catch. The Windows-only program won't let you reverse the deal once you've taken the hack-friendly plunge, even if you're unfortunate enough to hit a soft brick wall. You can check out the directions in the source link below, but we're wagging our finger of caution right now -- you've been warned.

Maingear brings Intel i7-3960X Extreme Edition chip, Epic Audio Engine to desktops, extreme gamers

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 11:24 PM PST

Looking to add a dash of extremity to your gaming existence? Maingear's got you covered, now that it's added a second generation Intel Core i7 CPU to a handful of its desktop offerings. Today, the company announced yet another upgrade to its SHIFT, Quantum SHIFT and F131 desktops, with the addition of the Intel Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition processor. According to Maingear, this extra horsepower will provide gamers with a 34 percent improvement in performance at normal speeds, while offering similar enhancements in video editing and 3D rendering capabilities. That's all thanks to the fact that the i7-3960X can be overclocked at a handsome 5.2GHz, with a quad-channel memory structure that brings even more bandwidth to the table. On top of that, the company has also added its own EPIC Audio Engine to this troika of rigs, using Aphex's processing technology to offer audio that, according to Maingear, is "more balanced, more articulated, and simply put, better sounding." The revamped desktops are on sale now, so hit up the source link for more information, or check out the full PR, after the break.
Show full PR text
MAINGEAR KICKS UP PERFORMANCE WITH THE NEW 2ND GENERATION INTEL® CORE™ i7 PROCESSOR EXTREME EDITION AND EPIC AUDIO ENGINE SOLUTION

MAINGEAR offers new updated 2nd generation Intel® Core™ i7 Extreme Edition processor
with their EPIC Audio Engine for the Ultimate High Performance PC experience

Kenilworth, New Jersey – November 14, 2011 – MAINGEAR, an award-winning custom PC builder offering custom desktops, custom built laptops , and pc workstations updates their SHIFT, F131, and Quantum SHIFT desktops with the new 2nd generation Intel® Core™ i7 processor Extreme Edition and MAINGEAR's exclusive EPIC Audio Engine.

MAINEAR's SHIFT, F131, and Quantum SHIFT desktops with the 2nd generation Intel® Core™ i7-3960X processor Extreme Edition are the perfect engines for power users who are looking for a top gaming computer or custom built pc that provides unparalleled performance and unlimited digital creativity. Smart features like Intel® Turbo Boost Technology 2.0 and Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology give additional performance where and when you need it. Gamers will love this new cutting-edge gaming computer platform with up to a 34% improvement in performance at normal clock speeds that can also be overclocked up to 5.2 GHz. This top gaming computer platform is also the first to feature quad-channel memory offering up to 102% memory performance that is more than twice the memory bandwidth of the previous generation.

Creative professionals will also benefit from this new 2nd generation Intel® Core™ i7 processor Extreme Edition that offers faster performance with up to a 20% increase in video editing pc performance and up to a 14% increase in 3D rendering compared to the previous generation. The MAINGEAR Quantum SHIFT is the perfect high performance pc workstation for any creative professional and has the power to optimize workflow and maximize output with the ultimate desktop processor.

In addition to adding the new 2nd generation Intel Core i7 processor Extreme Edition, MAINGEAR EPIC Research Labs have also enhanced the SHIFT and F131 with the highly anticipated EPIC Audio Engine that debuted earlier in the year at CEA Week 2011. MAINGEAR has partnered with legendary pro audio technology brand, APHEX, as a licensee, to offer an exclusive audio enhancement solution that gamers, creative professionals, DJ's and musicians will appreciate. By leveraging Aphex's studio-grade processing technology in a custom designed high performance pc solution, headphone audio output and microphone input will be unmatched by any solution in the industry. This unique technology harmonically brings audio to life without adding gain to deliver audio that's more balanced, more articulated, and simply put, better sounding.

Rounding out the new enhancements to MAINGEAR's lineup of award-winning pc workstations and gaming desktop computers is the introduction of the EPIC Control Center, a GUI control panel for monitoring the thermal performance of a MAINGEAR high performance pc system that features granular fan control, real time temperature monitoring, and event-based lighting control. Alerts can also be set up to notify users when critical temperature levels are reached. The MAINGEAR EPIC Control Center is due out during the Holiday 2011 season.

"The new 2nd generation Intel Core i7 processor Extreme Edition provides the ultimate benefitfor gamers looking for unmatched gaming performance, whether you are a novice or a seasoned pro. Said CJ Bruno, VP, GM Intel Americas"MAINGEAR understands their customers want breakthrough performance and we are thrilled that MAINGEAR has again selected the 2nd Gen Core Extreme Edition for their newest products."

"APHEX is excited that MAINGEAR will be releasing their EPIC Audio Engine that takes advantage of APHEX's unique audio technology, bringing a whole new level of audio performance to the PC market." Says David Wiener, CEO & Chairman of APHEX. "The APHEX technologies in MAINGEAR's EPIC Audio Engine will dramatically improve audio for gamers, music and movie lovers."

"We are always hard at work thinking about innovative ways to incorporate new products from our partners," said Wallace Santos, CEO and Founder of MAINGEAR. "The new 2nd generation Intel® Core™ i7-3960X processor Extreme Edition and Intel® X79 Chipset, combined with our exclusive SHIFT EPIC Audio engine and other EPIC liquid cooling solutions offer the ultimate gaming experience."

All of MAINGEAR's custom built computers, pc workstations and computer products are supported with lifetime labor and phone support with a one to three year hardware warranty. For more information about MAINGEAR's unique gaming computers, custom desktops and their EPIC Audio Solution, please visit: www.maingear.com/epic

Netflix signs up Lionsgate UK films for its British debut

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 11:16 PM PST

Now that Netflix has made its plans to launch in the British Isles official, it's gotten busy signing content deals and the latest affiliation is with Lionsgate's UK arm. The deal makes Netflix the "exclusive subscription streaming service" in the UK and Ireland for the studios first-run movies, with upcoming titles like The Expendables 2, and the Dirty Dancing remake already on deck. The agreement also extends to catalog hits like Reservoir Dogs, 3:10 to Yuma and The Blair Witch Project, which should be available when the service launches early next year. Check the press release after the break for all the details, although there's still plenty of time to decide whether or not its worth your pounds, pence, or bank notes.
Show full PR text
Netflix and Lionsgate UK Announce Multi-Year Premium Pay TV Window Agreement in the United Kingdom and Ireland
Starting In Early 2012, Netflix Members in the UK And Ireland Will Enjoy Instantly Watching High-Quality Films From Lionsgate UK

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., Nov. 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Netflix, Inc. (Nasdaq: NFLX) and Lionsgate UK, a subsidiary of Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. (NYSE: LGF) today announced a new multi-year licensing agreement that will make Netflix the exclusive subscription streaming service in the UK and Ireland for first-run feature films from the studio.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20101014/SF81638LOGO)

Lionsgate UK titles will be available for Netflix members in the UK and Ireland to watch instantly in the pay TV window on their televisions, tablets, game consoles, computers and mobile phones, for a low monthly price. Netflix announced last month that it would launch its service in the UK and Ireland early in 2012.

Appearing exclusively on Netflix within one year of their theatrical release will be such films as "The Hunger Games," the highly-anticipated film based on Suzanne Collins' best-selling teen novel and starring Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth; "The Expendables 2," the sequel to the blockbuster hit starring Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Bruce Willis and Jet Li and the recently-announced remake of the beloved 1987 classic "Dirty Dancing."

Among recent Lionsgate UK hits available to watch instantly in the UK and Ireland are "The Mechanic," "Saw 3D" and the original "The Expendables" as well as great catalogue titles including "Reservoir Dogs," "Blair Witch Project," "3:10 to Yuma," and "Good Night and Good Luck."

"Lionsgate is an important and successful supplier of television series and movies to us in all of our territories," said Ted Sarandos, Netflix Chief Content Officer. "We are proud to be the exclusive Pay TV home for Lionsgate theatrically-released films in the UK and Ireland."

"Netflix is the leading worldwide brand in steaming movies and they have an incredible service in North America. We are very excited to be working with them as they launch their service and bring our movies to audiences in the UK and Ireland," added Zygi Kamasa, Lionsgate UK CEO.

About Netflix:

With more than 20 million streaming members in the United States, Canada and Latin America, Netflix, Inc. [Nasdaq: NFLX] is the world's leading Internet subscription service for enjoying movies and TV shows. For about US$7.99 a month, Netflix members can instantly watch unlimited movies and TV episodes streamed over the Internet to PCs, Macs and TVs. Among the large and expanding base of devices streaming from Netflix are the Microsoft Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii and Sony PS3 consoles; an array of Blu-ray disc players, Internet-connected TVs, home theater systems, digital video recorders and Internet video players; Apple iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, as well as Apple TV and Google TV. In all, more than 700 devices that stream from Netflix are available. For additional information, go to Netflix.com. Follow Netflix on Facebook and Twitter.

About Lions Gate:

Lionsgate UK is the diversified UK-based filmed entertainment arm of Lions Gate (NYSE:LGF), the leading independent filmed entertainment studio. The company (formerly Redbus Film Distributors) was acquired by Lions Gate in October 2005 and has since established a reputation in the UK as a leading producer and distributor and acquirer of commercially successful and critically acclaimed product, recently releasing such boxoffice hits as The Expendables, Harry Brown, Oscar and BAFTA winner The Hurt Locker, Drag Me To Hell, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, I've Loved You So Long, 3.10 to Yuma, Good Luck Chuck, The Bank Job and Oscar-winning The Lives of Others in the UK. Upcoming releases include 50:50, Machine Gun Preacher, The Sam Raimi produced The Possession, Ralph Fiennes' Coriolanus, David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method, The Hunger Games and What to Expect When You're Expecting and Lasse Hallstrom's Salmon Fishing in the Yemen starring Ewan McGregor, Emily Blunt and Kristen Scott Thomas.

Its prestigious and prolific library of nearly 13,000 motion picture titles and television episodes – including Mad Men, Nurse Jackie and Weeds – is a valuable source of recurring revenue and a foundation for the growth of the Company's core businesses – film production and distribution, TV programming, home entertainment, family entertainment and video-on-demand content. The Lionsgate UK brand is synonymous with original, daring, quality entertainment in markets around the globe. www.lionsgatefilms.co.uk

SOURCE Netflix, Inc.

Intel and MasterCard to offer Ultrabook users 'safer' NFC checkout via PayPass, impulsive shoppers rejoice

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 08:14 PM PST

Entering a 16-digit credit card number may be a thing of the past with a new initiative from MasterCard and Intel, which allows users to checkout online by tapping a PayPass-enabled card, tag or smartphone to their Ultrabook. Calling the checkout "safer" and "simpler," Intel is bringing its Identity Protection Technology to the potluck, giving shoppers two-factor authentication and chip-based display protection when forking over that hard earned cash. Here's how it all works: when you tap a NFC smartphone or other PayPass-enabled device, it will communicate with the Ultrabook, generating a six-digit code from the embedded processor or from within the Manageability Engine. The ME hardware, encrypted with third-party algorithms, then transacts with the e-commerce site, hopefully offering shoppers more protection than standard software solutions. Since using the feature requires an NFC-connected device as well as the Ultrabook and a username and password, forgetful folks who tend to misplace their phone or computer won't have to worry about unwarranted spending. Sadly, the solution won't protect your wallet from the perils of a late night shoe shopping spree. Check out the full PR after the break.
Show full PR text

Intel and MasterCard Join Forces to Enhance the
Consumer Payment Experience for Online Shopping

Collaboration to provide more options for a safer and simpler check-out process for online merchants and consumers

SANTA CLARA, Calif. and PURCHASE, NY – Nov. 14, 2011 – Intel Corporation and MasterCard Incorporated announced today a multi-year strategic collaboration to further enhance the security and consumer payment experience for online shopping.

The collaboration will combine MasterCard's expertise in payment processing and commerce with Intel's strengths in silicon innovation and chip-based security. It is designed to provide more options for a safer and simpler checkout process for online merchants and consumers using Ultrabook™ devices and future generations of Intel-based PCs.

The two companies are working together to optimize a variety of emerging payments technologies, including MasterCard's PayPass® and Intel® Identity Protection Technology (IPT). Intel® Identity Protection Technology can enable consumers to use strong two-factor authentication and hardware-based display protection. This provides increased online security against malware. Additionally, when used with an Intel® Identity Protection Technology-enabled reader, consumers will be able to pay for online purchases with a simple tap of their PayPass-enabled card, tag, or smart phone on an Ultrabook device.

"MasterCard is constantly working to improve the shopping experience for consumers and merchants," said Ed McLaughlin, chief emerging payments officer, MasterCard. "The collaboration with Intel will deliver enhanced security and faster checkout – with the convenience of a simple click or tap."

Consumers continue to shift their shopping to the Internet. Online sales reached $176.2 billion last year in the United States alone and are expected to grow at double-digit percentage rates annually for the next 5 years, according to Forrester Research.

"Our goal is to enable users of Ultrabook devices and future generations of Intel-based PCs to enjoy the convenience of e-commerce while making online payments safer from malware and hackers with the advanced security capabilities of Intel Identity Protection Technology," said George Thangadurai, general manager of PC Client Services Division, Intel Corporation. "Online commerce is a key focus area for Intel, and through this partnership with MasterCard, we intend to deliver an innovative, personalized and safer e-commerce experience to consumers."

Amazon Kindle Fire review

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 08:00 PM PST

It seems like ages since Amazon introduced us to the $199 Fire at a hectic New York City event, but in truth that was only about six weeks ago. Maybe our perception of time is warped because we've been hearing talk about this 7-inch Android tablet for months now. Maybe it's because Amazon launching a tablet seemed like such a natural thing to do after Barnes & Noble paved the way with its Nook Color. Or, maybe it's just because the gadget Amazon shipped looks nigh-identical to the 7-inch BlackBerry PlayBook that we've had for, well, ages.

For whatever the reason, what Amazon has delivered is a device that is intimately familiar yet mysterious -- a simple, minimalistic exterior design hiding a flashy, seemingly quite trick customization that's sitting atop a decidedly ho-hum Android Gingerbread build. Our questions leading up to this review were many: How will it handle sideloading? Are the battery life and performance better than the PlayBook? Can a tablet that costs two hundred bucks stand a chance against those that cost two and three times as much? C'mon baby, click on through to find out.
Amazon Kindle Fire review

Hardware


The Kindle Fire is not identical to the PlayBook on the outside, but it's pretty damned close. Turn off the screens then put a little black tape over the BlackBerry logo on RIM's slate and, at a glance, there's almost nothing between them. The Fire is a simple, black thing with nothing in the way of styling pretenses. In fact, one could say it has nothing in the way of styling whatsoever.

Flip it over and you'll see the word "kindle" subtly embossed across the back, only really visible if you hold the tablet at an angle in some light. Otherwise the matte, rubberized back absorbs too much and you can't spot that one bit of styling indulgence the designers allowed themselves here. There's an extremely subtle "Amazon" print below too and, beyond some scribbles from the FCC, that's it.
Amazon Kindle Fire vs. BlackBerry PlayBook and Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus

Pretentious this isn't, and neither is it a handful. Measured in inches it comes in at 7.5 x 4.7 x .47 (that's 190 x 120 x 11.4mm), making it 0.4 inches shorter, 0.1 inches narrower and 0.07 inches thicker than the PlayBook. At 413g (14.6oz) it's slightly lighter, too, but still far from a featherweight -- it's noticeably heavier than the 345g Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus.



This thing feels incredibly solid, as if Amazon simply put a chisel to a big piece of slate, gave it a good whack and then put the resulting slab into a Frustration-Free box.

But, for that extra heft you get an extra feeling of quality. Like the PlayBook, this thing feels incredibly solid, as if Amazon simply put a chisel to a big piece of slate, gave it a good whack and then put the resulting slab into a Frustration-Free box. The rubberized back may not look or feel particularly posh, but the entire assembly is reassuringly stout.

The slight step down in size here compared to the PlayBook comes at the expense of the bezels, which are slightly more trim on the Fire -- at least on three sides. Held in portrait, the 7-inch, 1,024 x 600 IPS LCD is shifted ever so slightly toward the top. The slimmed-down black bars make no room for a front-facing camera and there are none to be found around back. So, while you won't be buying one of these for its looks, neither does it care much about yours.


That non-removable, soft-touch back extends about two-thirds of the way up the edges of the device, the rest covered by shiny black plastic that flows up and around to the edge of the Gorilla Glass. Situated between those two layers are a pair of thin speakers that will send tinny, hollow audio out only on the right side when you're holding this as you would watching a movie. Those with more than one ear will want to want to make use of some headphones, which are not included.

Bring your own and you'll find their receptacle on the opposite side, where the 3.5mm audio output is located. That's situated immediately next to a micro-USB port and a small power button. And that's it. There's just that one button to be found, meaning you'll have to delve into the software whenever you want to adjust volume. There's also no HDMI output for playing all of the great content Amazon throws your way and seemingly no ambient light sensor, as the tablet can't auto-dim its screen.

Internals


If you're the type who likes to load down your tablet before spending a few hours or days offline, you might find this single, tiny capacity a bit restrictive.

Things are similarly barren on the inside. It's the same dual-core 1GHz TI OMAP processor that powers the PlayBook, but here it's paired with only 512MB of RAM and a mere 8GB of storage, of which about six and a half will be available to you and your ever-growing multimedia collection. Ostensibly, you won't need much since Amazon so thoughtfully lets you re-download anything you've bought any time you want, and is quite happy to stream all your music to you as well. But, if you're the type who likes to load down your tablet before spending a few hours or days offline, you might find this single, tiny capacity a bit restrictive. It's a shame Amazon doesn't offer a $250 16GB version, and a $300 32GB option too.

If you are streaming content you'll be doing it over WiFi, as there's no 3G option yet. The tablet supports 802.11b/g/n on 2.4GHz and had no problem picking up and staying connected to wireless networks that weren't necessarily offering up full signal strength, but we kind of wish there were a 5GHz option. Bluetooth might have been nice, too.

Display


Again, this is a 1024 x 600 IPS LCD panel that measures 7-inches from one corner all the way over to the opposite one. Those are the same specs as on the PlayBook and, as far as we can tell, this is the same panel. That's a reasonably good thing, because while it won't wow you at its maximum brightness, color reproduction is good and viewing angles are just as broad as you'd expect from an IPS panel.

What isn't so impressive is the 169ppi pixel density. With more and more smartphones starting to offer 1280 x 800 resolutions in displays that are four and five inches we might have hoped for a bit more here. Suffice to say the LCD in the Fire is good -- but it stops short of being great.

It's also a very, very different experience if you're coming from any of the company's other Kindles. E Ink displays offer a lower resolution and significantly reduced color depth (from this LCD's 16 million rainbow hues down to about 16 shades between black and white), but the Pearl display's reflective nature means it's just like reading paper and is very easy on the eyes. That is, of course, if you have enough light.

An LCD brings its own backlight to the party, meaning you can easily read the Fire in pitch blackness if you're so inclined -- just remember you'll have to manually dial down the brightness before doing so.

Battery life


This is one area where the Fire can't hope to compete against its Kindle predecessors that got the market suitably warmed up. Those readers, with their power-sipping processors and incredibly efficient E Ink screens, have longevity measured in months. We sadly have to resort to measuring in hours and minutes here, but we still have reasonably good news to report.

In our standard video rundown test the Fire managed seven hours and 42 minutes. That's 12 minutes more than the seven and a half hours Amazon promises it can deliver when playing video, reaffirming our belief that there is truth in advertising. Sometimes.

That figure compares favorably to the roughly seven hours the PlayBook managed but comes in 27 minutes below the healthy eight hours and nine minutes eked out by the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus.

Tablet
Battery Life
Amazon Kindle Fire 7:42
Apple iPad 2 10:26
Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 9:55
Apple iPad 9:33
Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 9:21
HP TouchPad 8:33
Lenovo IdeaPad K1 8:20
Motorola Xoom 8:20
T-Mobile G-Slate 8:18
Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet 8:00
Archos 101 7:20
Archos 80 G9 7:06
RIM BlackBerry PlayBook 7:01
Acer Iconia Tab A500 6:55
Toshiba Thrive 6:25
Samsung Galaxy Tab 6:09


Performance



As mentioned above, the Fire gets by with the same silicon that powered the PlayBook: a dual-core 1GHz TI OMAP chip, but here paired with only 512MB of RAM. Perhaps it's the step down from the standard 1GB, or perhaps it's the heavy-handed software overlay running atop Android, but the Fire never delivers smooth, seamless performance.

While Amazon's own carousel of recently used items is slick and smooth, we had inconsistent results with APKs we sideloaded on here.

While Amazon's own carousel of recently used items is slick and smooth, we had inconsistent results with APKs we sideloaded on here. Amazon's own media players work well, but third party ones that offered better compatibility with file formats universally did not. That said, 2D games like the omnipresent Angry Birds ran without issue, and simple 3D games like Fruit Ninja had no problems either.

Given the Fire has no access to the Android Market many of our favorite benchmarks were unavailable to us. We were able to sideload Nenamark and Nenamark 2, but running the second caused the Fire to crash. Hard. After resetting the device (it takes just over 30 seconds to boot, for the record) we opted to stick with web-based benchmarks.

Of those, the Fire achieved a respectable average score of 2,440 on SunSpider 9.1. Given the mysteries of Amazon's Silk browser, which offloads at least some of the rendering to the company's servers in the cloud, we're not 100 percent confident in that score -- especially since browser performance itself didn't wow us (more on that in a moment). But, as it's meant as a test of client-side rendering, it should be fair.

Software


You wouldn't know it, but the Fire is running Android 2.3 Gingerbread. That's the phone-friendly version of the OS that hasn't shown up in a top-tier tablet for quite some time. But don't fret that too much as it's been quite comprehensively buried here. So, let's start with what's been piled on.
Amazon Kindle Fire software

Interface


Your first experience with the Fire will be with a beautiful lock screen showing close-up imagery of abstract things -- heads on a typewriter, freshly sharpened pencils, well-used fountain pen nibs. Writers will feel inspired by these poignant pics but anyone who likes customizing their home screen won't. There are no widgets to trigger here, just a thin arrow that you must drag left to get in. It's situated too high, in the middle of the screen, making it a bit of a clumsy reach. Choose to lock your device with a numeric code and you'll be stuck with the even more unfortunate Gingerbread number pad, which doesn't scale well on a display this size.

Unlocked, you're greeted with what Amazon calls the carousel. It's an endless stack of icons representing whatever you've most recently done -- apps you used, books you read, movies you viewed -- it's all here in a big pile. Drag your finger across and those icons flip aside much like Apple's iconic Cover Flow and this is, ultimately, an easy way to get back to where you were -- so long as wherever you were wasn't that far away.

However, it quickly becomes a little too deep to be all that useful, especially if you're hopping back and forth between books and movies (as we reviewers are wont to do). The solution is to pull anything you like out and pin it to your favorites, which start occupying the shelves below this main carousel. This makes for easier access, but we wish we could split the carousel itself into multiple shelves -- separate stacks of icons for most recent books, most recent magazines, most recent movies, and so forth.

You have to be annoyingly precise to get your chosen thing to launch.

A bigger problem is the carousel being a bit too sensitive to touch. You swipe left or right through the carousel and then tap whatever you want to launch. But, if your finger moves even a pixel or two in any direction when tapping the chosen item won't launch. The list will instead scroll just a bit and then pop back. You have to be annoyingly precise to get your chosen thing to launch.

Apps and content are co-mingled here and throughout the rest of the interface, categorized into the following sections: Newsstand, Books, Music, Video, Docs and Apps. Finally, there's the Web tab, which launches the Silk browser -- which we'll discuss below.

You can guess what you'll find where, and the layout of each section is similar. Tap on Newsstand, for example, and you'll be presented with a list of all the magazines and newspapers you've purchased. On top is a toggle with two options: Cloud and Device. When "Cloud" is selected it shows all content you've purchased, whether it be online or off. Tap anything that hasn't been cached locally yet and it'll instantly start downloading.


Switch over to "Device" and, surprise surprise, you'll find only the things that are actually on your Fire, presented in the same sort of bookshelf aesthetic that is continued throughout the interface. The more things you add, the taller your bookshelf gets. You can sort by recently viewed or by title, but you can't reorganize and put your favorite mags up to the top like you can on the home page.

Up top, the screen is a simple notification bar showing your name on the left, the current time in the middle and, on the right, a gear, a WiFi signal indicator and a battery strength gauge. Tap on these and you'll get a quick slide-down set of toggles and sliders that let you enable or disable the rotation lock and WiFi, while also letting you adjust volume and screen brightness. Reminder: this is the only way to adjust volume on the device!

You can sideload other keyboard apps without problem but, since you can't get to the Android setting where those keyboards are selected, you'll never be able to actually use them.

Tap the "More" button and you'll get to the full list of settings, a rather comprehensive suite of toggles that's nearly as broad as the all those Android has to offer stock, but re-skinned and somewhat restricted. For example, you can sideload other keyboard apps without problem but, since you can't get to the Android setting where those keyboards are selected, you'll never be able to actually use them.

Tap on the left side of the status bar (where it says your name) and you'll get a list of current things happening in the background -- downloads and installs and the like. If you're an Android user you might find it confusing that you can't simply swipe down from the top to get this list. You might also be lamenting the lack of buttons.

Most apps on the Fire take up the full screen, hiding the notification bar. To get that back, and to display a little navigation bar on the bottom, you usually have to tap somewhere in the middle of the screen. That done, the navigation bar appears and you have access to the Home, Menu, Search and Back buttons. Sideloaded apps are much the same, except you need to tap on a skinny gray up-arrow on the bottom of the screen. The tap-tap-tapping to hide and display menus is all a bit clumsy and not particularly intuitive. We'd have preferred a nice set of gestures for navigation, as found on the PlayBook or TouchPad.

Finally, there's no concept of task-switching here. Apps you've been using recently do remember their state and bring you back where you left them, but there's no way to, for example, do a long press of the home key and jump from one to the next. You'll always have to go back to that carousel and scroll your way through.

Browser


Much has been made of the Fire's Silk browser and its remote rendering, ostensibly reducing the workload on the tablet itself and shuffling some of the heavy lifting off into the cloud to provide better, faster rendering. Does it work? Well, it's not the fastest browser in the West, but it is mighty quick given its limited internals.

Stacked up against an iPad 2 the Fire routinely got beat in rendering pages -- but often not by much. We also stacked it up against Samsung's Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus, which was often slower. Finally, we couldn't resist pitting the Fire against the PlayBook, and we found those two to be neck-and-neck in most tests.

It's not a bad performer, but Silk doesn't quite live up to its smooth name.

So, the Fire is a fine rendering machine, not the fastest in the world but able to keep up with the best without any ugly dithering or visual artifacts to indicate the content's remote-rendered nature. However, if we move past pure rendering speed, interacting with pages definitely seemed occasionally sluggish. Pinch-zooming was a bit jumpy and scrolling somewhat laggy. It's not a bad performer, but Silk doesn't quite live up to its smooth name.

In terms of interface, Silk is comfortable and intuitive enough. The address bar at the top disappears as you scroll down, but a simple tabs list is always present, enabling you to quickly jump from one to another. A simple bookmark button in the menu bar brings up a bookmark interface that's quite similar to the stock Android browser. A simple grid of pages representing your favorites, and just hit the big "+" on the one you'd like to add.

Recently visited pages also show up in the carousel and, like anything else, can be added to your favorites for quick return viewing. Annoyingly, though, there's no way to add a page directly to your favorites from the browser itself. You need to browse to that page, exit to the home screen and then do it from there. A bit of a bother, that.

Keyboard


The Fire's stock keyboard is a relatively simple affair that offers suggestions as you type above the top list of keys. The suggestions are of course helpful, but the typing experience itself is a little cramped when the tablet is held in portrait mode. A particular annoyance is the spacebar on the keyboard, shifted off to the left thanks to an unfortunately placed period button. If you're the sort who exclusively hits the space bar with your right thumb you might find.yourself.typing.sentences.like.this. It's naturally a good bit more roomy when held in landscape, but even then the offset spacebar poses a bit of a challenge.

If you can get over that it's a bit more comfortable to use than the stock Android keyboard, and the word suggestions are genuinely helpful -- especially for finding punctuation. There's nothing in the way of auto-correction, though, so if you want the suggestions to help you'll have to reach up and grab them yourselves.

Music playback



When you want to take things offline, with just a few taps you can download a song, an album or even an entire artist's worth of tracks.

If you've been using Amazon's cold storage for your tunes you'll be presented with your entire library the moment you boot up your Fire. Of course, none of those tunes will actually be on your Fire, but you can quickly stream them at will. Streaming takes just a few seconds to start and, when you want to take things offline, with just a few taps you can download a song, an album or even an entire artist's worth of tracks. This makes it very easy to get your library where you want it.

As with the other sections, purchasing music is very easy -- perhaps too easy for those whose buying impulses outweigh their budget-keeping abilities. There's a "Store" link that's always present in the upper-right, calling for you to click it should you find your Ryan Adams collection is a few discs short of comprehensive. Purchases can be pushed to your tablet or your happy pocket of cloud storage and pricing is generally quite reasonable.

The actual music playback is simple enough, with the album art taking up the left half of the screen and playback controls on the right. Thankfully there's a volume slider right here, but that won't do you much good if you need to tweak the volume when the screen is off.

Audio quality through the integrated speakers is far from inspiring. Again, they're both placed on one side, so the resulting output is decidedly monotastic. Even at max volume the amplitude here is underwhelming. Sound quality is decent, but a bit hollow, as one might expect.

Swapping over to your own 'buds or headset obviously helps, but we still weren't impressed by the audio fidelity. There's a very, very subtle pop when playback starts and something of a constant hiss in the background during playback, even when the music is paused. Audiophile quality this isn't.

Video playback


As with music, all your purchased or rented tunes are easily visible, whether downloaded or not. If they're not, a quick tap brings them down -- but you won't want to ingest too many. After purchasing the two-hour Crazy, Stupid, Love (we're suckers for a sweet romcom) we found it to take 560MB of our Fire's storage. With about 6.5GB at your disposal you'll have room for 10 movies -- and then nothing else.

Thankfully, though, you won't need to download them. With a quick tap you can stream your purchased content and save the local storage -- if you have a suitable connection. Whether downloaded or streamed the quality of the footage wasn't great, with plenty of compression noise providing muddying scenes with quick transitions. It didn't look bad, but those who've sworn off anything but Blu-ray and its sky-high bitrates won't go five minutes here without grimacing.

Amazon of course also offers an ever-growing selection of streaming content for free through its Primed service. The offerings aren't quite up to par with what Netflix can serve you, but the assortment isn't far off. Sadly, though, none of this can be downloaded for later viewing and, should you find yourself pining for the library offered by another service, both Netflix and Hulu Plus will be available.

Again, the presentation here is simple and the controls intuitive enough, naturally hidden most of the time during playback, but without HDMI output there's no way to get this video content onto a larger display. We asked Amazon if wireless video streaming might be in the cards, but the response is that instead the company would like you to try streaming your video content through any of a number of other devices that can pull Amazon content. So, here's to hoping you own one of those, too.

Magazine reading


Magazine reading is definitely a huge part of what Amazon's hoping people will love about the Fire, but our feelings here definitely fall more toward like. Amazon has lined up 400 full-color offerings for you to peruse, so chances are you'll find something that suits your fancy.

We downloaded a few photo-heavy folios, like Esquire and House Beautiful, to sample the reading experience and in general found it to be good -- but not great. Here the 7-inch display becomes a bit of a problem, just feeling a little too small and not packing enough pixels to clearly render small text. We constantly found ourselves zooming in and out to read. You can switch over to Text View, which pulls all the text out into a much more enjoyable full-page view -- but then you lose all the beautiful formatting and presentation that make magazines so engaging in the first place.

Thankfully page turning is quick and responsive and pinch-zooming reasonably so, but overall we just felt a bit restricted here, leaving us longing for that supposed 10-inch Fire. (Might we suggest Bonfire?)

Comic reading


Amazon made a big deal about its partnership with graphic novel publishers for the launch of the Fire, and rightfully so. Comics have tried to go digital many times in the past and have yet to find a solid following -- at least among those willing to pay money for them. So, what's the reading experience like here on the Fire? Occasionally great, but it can't shake the occasional clumsiness that muddies things here.

As with magazines, text is often squashed too small to be read -- even if its drawn in bold, sure penstrokes. Shockingly, though, you can't pinch-zoom to get a closer look! You have to double-tap on whatever section of the screen you want a closer look at. You then get a popup window with a closer view of that section and, from there, you can tap or swipe your way from one panel to the next. This is a little annoying if you just want to zoom in on one section and then zoom back out again, but it sure beats not being able to read the text.

Other than that annoyance comics are a great addition. The Fire's screen does a great job recreating the bold colors and simple lines that make them such a joy to read.

Book reading


This is, of course, not just the Fire. It is the Kindle Fire and, as such, reading is a big part of its game. You'll quite naturally have access to all the textual content you've purchased through Amazon in the past, all your bookmarks neatly synced here so you can pick up wherever you left off. Like with the other sections you can get a quick look at all your content available in cloud plus that which is already downloaded, and moving a book from one to the other takes just a tap.

The Kindle store is of course also easily accessible, which enables you to download book samples if you're not quite sure if a certain writer's prose will please your palate. Also, Amazon has just started the Kindle Owners Lending Library for Prime subscribers, which lets them borrow one book a month for free.

You have eight fonts to choose from in case the serifs on the stock typeface rub your Helvetic sensibilities the wrong way.

The reading experience is about what you'd expect. By default you get black text on a white background, but if you find that a little too squint-inducing you can flip and get white text on black -- or even brown text on a yellow. You can dynamically change font size, line spacing and margins, and you have eight fonts to choose from in case the serifs on the stock typeface rub your Helvetic sensibilities the wrong way.

To turn the page you either swipe your finger left or right or tap on the appropriate edge of the screen. Unfortunately, you can't tap on the bezel, a feature we'd have liked, and the new expanded tap zones in the Kindle Touch don't work here. With that device the "next" tapping region takes over much of the middle of the screen. Here that real estate is needed to bring up the menu.

Other

The Fire includes a version of Quickoffice out of the box, but it's capable only of reading Word-like, Excel-esque and PowerPoint-ish documents. If you want to edit or create you'll need to spring for the $14.99 Pro edition.

There's a simple email app included here as well. It isn't nearly as good as Android's iconic Gmail app, but it does work well enough and will sync with your Gmail account without much bother. You are able to send messages with attachments, if you're so inclined.

Competition



Sure, there are plenty of other 7-inch tablets out there, but at $200 it's hard to find a direct comparison. The best of the moment seems to be the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus, which we've been testing and generally liking. But, a starting MSRP of $400 makes that hard to compare -- even though it's thinner, lighter, faster and has full access to the Android Market. Another option is of course RIM's BlackBerry PlayBook, which at $349 is getting closer. In general we found the PlayBook to offer snappier performance, but that device hasn't exactly seen a flood of support lately and, while it is more feature-rich than the Fire, it has an even more limited app selection.

The T-Mobile Springboard from Huawei is a compelling choice, a device that we surprised ourself by liking quite a bit in our recent review. It's running straight Honeycomb and is available for just $180 -- if you don't mind a two-year agreement. $430 off-contract is a bit harder to swallow.

Amazon Kindle Fire vs. iPad 2, Kindle Touch and Nook Color

Of course, the biggest competition is yet to come: Barnes & Noble's Nook Tablet. That will cost $250 and ostensibly do much the same as Amazon's offering. How will they compare? We can't say for sure yet, but thankfully we also won't have to wait long to find out: the Nook Tablet ships on November 16th.

Accessories


The Kindle Fire doesn't come with much in its Frustration-Free yet almost comically oversized box. (It's larger than the container Samsung chose to hold the Galaxy Tab 10.1.) Inside you'll find a micro-USB power adapter for charging and... nothing else. No micro-USB data cable is provided and, while we're guessing you have one or two dozen to spare at this point, the Fire is targeting a whole new demographic of tablet buyers. We'd guess many of them don't have a single one. The assumption is that they'll just get all of their media through Amazon, and that's probably a safe one.

Amazon offers a selection of cases and covers that range from simple cloth sleeves to rather more advanced (and expensive) Leather covers with integrated stands. We were provided with the $29.99 Zip Sleeve in Charcoal to try, which is simple and slim and does a good enough job protecting the stout slab within, but doesn't wow with functionality like Apple's SmartCover. If that one's not to your liking there are plenty more in various colors from various third parties -- most of which cost a good bit more.


It's worth noting that none of these cases have integrated Bluetooth keyboards. That's not because these companies are assuming nobody would want to do that much typing on here anyway (again, probably a safe assumption), it's because, of course, the Fire doesn't offer Bluetooth in the first place.

Wrap-up


The Kindle Fire is quite an achievement at $200. It's a perfectly usable tablet that feels good in the hand and has a respectably good looking display up front. Yes, power users will find themselves a little frustrated with what they can and can't do on the thing without access to the Android Market but, in these carefree days of cloud-based apps ruling the world, increasingly all you need is a good browser. That the Fire has.

When stacked up against other popular tablets, the Fire can't compete. Its performance is a occasionally sluggish, its interface often clunky, its storage too slight, its functionality a bit restricted and its 7-inch screen too limiting if you were hoping to convert all your paper magazine subscriptions into the digital ones. Other, bigger tablets do it better -- usually at two or three times the cost.

So, the Kindle Fire is great value and perhaps the best, tightest integration of digital content acquisition into a mobile device that we've yet seen. Instead of having a standalone shopping app the entire tablet is a store -- a 7-inch window sold at a cut-rate price through which users can look onto a sea of premium content. It isn't a perfect experience, but if nothing else it's a promising look into the future of retail commerce.

Update: Amazon wrote in to let us know that you don't have to double-tap on every pane when reading a comic. We've updated the text above to reflect that.

[Thanks to Francois Simond for additional information on the Kindle Fire]

This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Amazon Kindle Touch review

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 08:00 PM PST

It was back in back in September that Amazon finally unveiled the Kindle Fire, its long awaited entry into the budget space. The full-color, multimedia slate hit the sweet spot, price-wise, sliding in at a hair under $200 and setting the tech world abuzz. The company made it clear, however, that it still had a horse in the standalone e-reader race -- three horses, in fact. That same event also saw the unveiling of the fourth-generation Kindle and the Kindle Touch, two new devices that take slightly different approaches to the post-keyboard world of e-readers. And, to play it safe, Amazon announced that it would be keeping the Kindle 3 around -- albeit, rebranded as the Kindle Keyboard.

At $79 for the ad-supported version, the Kindle 4 carved out a whole new price point for e-readers. The Kindle Touch meanwhile, marked a belated entrance into touchscreen e-ink devices -- a market that had already been populated by several high-profile competitors: Barnes & Noble's Nook, Kobo and Sony. Why did Amazon hold off so long? According to the company, it was "waiting to get touch right." Without spoiling this review too much, there are indeed some features of this new device that suggest the wait was worth it.

But are these elements enough to dethrone the Nook Simple Touch as the best devoted e-reader out there, especially given that the Nook, too, recently got a refresh of its own? Does Amazon still have what it takes to remain the clear market reader in e-books? And is the $20 premium worth the step up from the fantastically affordable fourth-gen Kindle? The answer to all of this and more can be found after the break.
Amazon Kindle Touch unboxing
Amazon Kindle Touch review
Hardware


Amazon didn't do a heck of a lot to distinguish the Touch from the fourth-gen Kindle. In fact, the only immediate difference between the two readers is the bezel below the screen. The toggle switch and row of buttons on the fourth gen has been traded in for a single home button, comprised of four small horizontal bars. It's not the greatest looking option out there, but it gets the job done.

The only other button is power, located on the bottom edge of the device, next to the micro-USB port and headphone jack, which had disappeared between the third and fourth generations. The return of the headphone jack marks the return of the device's MP3 player, text-to-speech functionality and the ability to play audio books from Audible. Sound is also handled by two small speaker grills located along the bottom of the device's rear. Between these are two small metal tabs, which are used to help power Amazon's excellent Kindle Lighted Leather Cover.

The Touch is also a bit larger than the fourth-generation model in just about every respect, save for the screen, which is the industry-standard six inches. The reader adds a fraction of an inch to every dimension, measuring 6.8 x 4.7 x 0.40 inches and about an ounce and a half, weighing in at 7.5 ounces (the 3G version weighs 7.8). Even the bezels are a bit larger, despite the fact that Amazon opted to drop the page turn buttons entirely, instead relying solely on the touchscreen for that kind of navigation. We can't say we're thrilled about the loss of those buttons -- the Nook Simple Touch, for one, kept them despite its new touch functionality. And while it's definitely possible to use the reader single-handed, physical buttons can be convenient, particularly in those instances when the touchscreen acts up a bit -- which, in our experience, happens to all of these devices from time to time.


The Touch also measures a bit taller than the latest Nook and Kobo e-readers. That said, Amazon's managed to shed a bit of height and width from the third-generation model, thanks to the loss of the keyboard. Like the fourth-gen version, the Touch should slip pretty easily into your pants pocket -- it's really an ideal size for one of these devices. The device fits nicely in the hand, never really feeling awkward when you're trying to read. The Nook Simple Touch is easier to grip thanks to its concave back, which conforms nicely to the hand. Otherwise, though, we can't offer up too many complaints in that department.

As per usual, Amazon's not revealing many specifics on the processor front. The company gave us the standard, "As a matter of company policy we don't disclose details of our vendors/parts" line. Speed-wise, however, the reader seems on-par with the competition. As for storage, we're looking at 4GB -- the same as the third-gen and twice that of the budget fourth-gen. As always, the reader is missing the microSD slot found in the Kobo and Nook. Amazon of course suggests that such additional storage isn't necessary, and the company has a point, given its estimated capacity of "up to" 3,000 books -- not to mention, the fact that you can store your content in the cloud. That said, expandable memory would have been a welcome feature, but it's hard to see Amazon ever really budging on that front, especially given the fact that it's not even an option with the higher-end, multimedia-ready Fire.


The Kindle remains one of the few readers around that serves up optional 3G -- a nice little feature for Platinum Status frequent fliers. WiFi isn't particularly easy to come by on the road -- though planning ahead with your downloads is an easy solution to that problem. The feature will run you an extra $50, though, as with past Kindles, that entails a one-time charge. The company actually foots the bill for data, a fact that no doubt has a fair amount to do with most users' modest download rates -- this isn't a multimedia device, after all. You're not going to use this thing to watch movies or stream music.

Display



Asked why it had taken so long to offer up a touchscreen reader, Amazon countered that it was waiting to "get the technology right."

The screen specs will look pretty familiar to anyone who's spent time with e-readers in the past year: 600 x 800 resolution, 16-level gray scale Pearl E Ink -- same as the Kindle 3 and 4. E Ink's Pearl screen has been adopted by all of the big names in the space: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Sony and Kobo. And it's pretty clear why: it's crisp and easy on the eyes (and, no doubt, relatively inexpensive to produce). If you're expecting to read a lot on a device, this is definitely the route you want to go. The page turn rate here is also on-par with the latest readers, with a flicking full-page refresh every six pages or so. The flip rate did suffer a bit going up against the Simple Touch's recent refresh, which managed to render every other page or so a bit faster, though the difference will likely prove fairly negligible for most users.

The most important distinction between the Touch and the new fourth-gen Kindle is -- you guessed it -- that touchscreen. It's a feature the Kindle 4 sacrificed for price, and it was one that was sorely missed -- a toggle wheel is just not an ideal way to interact with device like this. When asked why it had taken so long to offer up a touchscreen reader, Amazon countered that it was waiting to "get the technology right." Of course, a statement like that implies, among other things, that other companies (namely, Barnes & Noble and Kobo) failed to do so, though their devices admittedly made it to market months earlier.

So, were the Nook and Kobo readers released too early? Nope. Both displays were far from perfect -- but then, so is the Kindle Touch's. Touchscreen E Ink displays have a ways to go before they're nearly as usable as the sort of smooth multi-touch screens we've come to expect in our smartphones and tablets. That said, Amazon does offer some fairly notable improvements over those readers. For starters, there's the inclusion of dual-touch technology, a feature also seen on the recent Sony Reader WiFi. Amazon told us that while the technology in the Touch isn't quite identical, it's "similar." And it really is a nice feature, letting users pinch to zoom, which comes in handy when you're availing yourself of the built-in browser and PDF reader.

Typing on the virtual keyboard -- one of the the biggest shortcomings with past touchscreen e-ink devices -- has been improved. Again, it's still imperfect, but there's a bit less of that incredibly frustrating lag we've seen with other devices -- which Amazon chalks up to divvying the screen into touch panels. Interestingly, the company has also sectioned off the touch sectors differently while reading, devoting three quarters of the screen to paging forward with a tap and only the left margin to paging back. The reasoning here is that the vast majority of the time you're going to be flipping forward. Makes sense to us. It's a nice little change that other reader producers may end up borrowing from in future generations.

As with the Kindles 3 and 4, Amazon's offering up a pretty significant savings on the Touch, should you opt in to Special Offers, the company's friendly euphemism for "ad-supported." We've yet to see the company deliver on those "beautiful" ads that are virtually indistinguishable from screensavers, and it seems unlikely that too many users prefer the ad-supported versions for all of the sweet deals it offers up; people are opting into this version because it's cheaper. And $40 is a tangible difference that we're talking about here. The ads themselves aren't particularly intrusive -- they're limited to screensavers in sleep mode and a banner ad on the home screen -- but as Barnes & Noble rightly pointed out in its recent Nook event, giant ads may bring down the products' cache as a holiday gift.

Software


As with the hardware, there are a lot of surface UI similarities between the Kindles 4 and Touch. The home pages are nearly identical, with a listing of books (and other documents like PDFs) sorted by default according to what you read most recently (you can also sort by title, author or collections). Swiping up or to the left will advance the collection to the next page. Along the bottom of the ad-supported version is a small banner ad. Lining the top is a bar that includes your battery life, the time and your connectivity status (i.e., 3G or WiFi).

Just below that is a tool bar not found on the Kindle 4, which features buttons
for back, menu and launching the Kindle store. There's also a search field, which lets you search your reader using the Kindle Store, the built-in New Oxford American Dictionary and Wikipedia, which is by now a standard feature on WiFi-connected readers.

The basic reading experience also looks a good deal like what the fourth-generation Kindle has to offer, with the vast majority of the page monopolized by text, save for the black bar from the homepage up top and some small text at the bottom letting you know how far along you are in a given text. Here's where that dual-touch functionality starts to come in handy: you can pinch to zoom in and out. The text automatically adjusts and the reader offers up a window with the eight different possible font sizes, if you'd prefer to go that route.


Holding down on a word will cause a window with the New Oxford American Dictionary definition to open. From this screen you can also highlight text, add a note or share the selection through Facebook or Twitter. This is really the extent of the product's social networking functionality, unlike the Nook and Kobo devices, which are a bit more heavily invested in the concept of social reading. For the vast majority of readers, this will likely be enough -- actually, there seems to be a pretty good chance that once the novelty of the feature wears off, it will go largely unused. Tapping the top of the screen makes the reader's search functionality pop up, and choosing the book will offer up a list of all of the passages in which a given word appears.

The new X-ray feature takes things a step further. Clicking on it will bring up a list of proper names, including characters, historical figures and places. It brings up a timeline illustration letting you know how often the name appears in the book viewable by page, chapter and the full text. Clicking on a character name will offer up a biography. Clicking on, say, the name of a historical figure, however, will pull up its Wikipedia entry. The entries, interestingly, aren't accessible over wireless, but are instead located in a side file that's downloads when you buy the book. It's a pretty neat little feature and one that may convince a smattering of pirating users to get their books through more legitimate means (i.e. the Kindle Store).

You can add PDFs to the Touch by simply dragging and dropping them into the reader's Documents folder when it's plugged into the computer. Once again, like the Sony WiFi, the Kindle Touch has a distinct advantage over some other touchscreen readers when it comes to dual-touch. Here, users can pinch to zoom in documents. As with Sony's reader, the feature is a bit clunky in practice, with pages taking about a second to render, flashing several times before achieving the desired size. Once you've zoomed in, a swipe lets you pan across the image. Zoomed out, you swipe to advance to the next page. This isn't the perfect way to read PDFs, but if you're looking for a devoted e-reader with that functionality, this or the Sony WiFi are probably your best bets.



While these companies have paid some attention to web-browsing, they aren't exactly flaunting it with these readers.

The Kindle Store, meanwhile, looks a good deal like the one offered up on the Kindle 4, though certain features, such as the ability to enlarge thumbnails of recommended titles on the home screen, have been optimized for touch. Similar to most other readers, the Touch has a built-in web browser, though, as with the fourth-gen Kindle and Nook Simple Touch, it's hidden away. While these companies have paid some attention to web-browsing, they aren't exactly flaunting it with these readers. They know as well as anyone that this isn't the ideal way to surf the web. To access the browser, you have to click Experimental in the menu on the homepage (how a simple browser on an e-reader still qualifies as experimental is a bit beyond us). Amazon has refreshed the browser to accommodate its touch technology, but as with the PDF viewer, this is hardly the best device on which to accomplish that task.

A simple toolbar is located up top, along with a field for URLs and reload and menu buttons. You can navigate through the grayscale pages with the swipe of a finger and click on links by touching them. Pinch to zoom works here as well, but again, it's a bit choppy. It should be noted, too, that the web browser can only be accessed via WiFi -- to be reiterate, Amazon is only footing the 3G bill for your book downloads. It doesn't want to pay your web browsing fees, too.

The MP3 player can also be accessed through the Experimental section. It's an extremely basic player, offering up the name of the track being played, track forward and back arrows, a volume meter, play / pause and an off button. Once turned on, the music will continue to play as you utilize other features, a nice bonus for those who like to listen to some Chopin while reading the latest Twilight book. The speakers on the rear of the device get surprisingly loud, but the sound quality is, unsurprisingly, less than ideal. You'd best stick with headphones whenever possible.
Amazon Kindle Touch comparison shots
Amazon Kindle Touch comparison shots


If you like, you can enable text-to-speech via the menu in a given title. The feature only works on books where Amazon was able to negotiate the rights; long story short, some publishers remain a bit wary. The voice is, as you might expect, pretty robotic. This is hardly a replacement for audio books, but certain users, particularly those with vision problems, will no doubt get ample use out of this feature. A few alterations can also be made to the voice, including changing its gender or speeding up and slowing down the reading, but it never loses that mechanical voice.

Wrap-up


Despite apocalyptic conclusions predicting the death of dedicated e-readers in the face of competition from tablets, the battle is as heated as ever. Amazon alone is currently offering three such devices: the fourth-generation Kindle, Kindle Touch and Kindle Keyboard. So, does the Touch manage to stand head and shoulders above the rest? In a word, "naw." There's a lot to like here, including a dual-touch display, X-Ray search feature, audio functionality and a 3G option, but there's nothing here that would make us want to dump our Nook, Sony WiFi reader, Kobo or even Kindle Keyboard. The Kindle Touch is as good as any touch reader out there, but there's nothing particularly exceptional about it -- including pricing.

Those looking for a truly entry-level device should take a look at the fourth-generation Kindle, so long as you don't mind losing features like touch and audio playback. The Touch starts at $99 -- the same prices as the Nook Simple Touch. But keep in mind, that price is for the ad-supported, WiFi-only version. And with the Nook's recent software upgrade, the reader is still a heck of a competitor this holiday season. Prices go up from there, of course -- without Special Offers, you'll be paying $139. Add 3G and the reader runs you $149 with ads and $189 without. This is all still quite affordable, of course, thanks to all of the revenue the company is pulling in from content sales, but ultimately the Kindle Touch isn't the steal it appears to be on paper.

This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

PSA: Kindle Touch shipping a week early

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 07:38 PM PST


In case you haven't checked your email today, Amazon's touchy-feely e-reader will be hitting your mailbox a little earlier than expected. Instead of arriving after November 21st, readers have been telling us that their Kindle Touch orders have been pushed out a few days early, opening November 15-17 release windows. The Kindle Fire? As far as we know, it's still on track to make its November 15th shipping date. We'll let you know if we hear anything else.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Suzuki's Q-concept micro car tries to out-smart the Smart

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 06:07 PM PST

Inner-city cars have been getting smaller and smaller, but Suzuki's Q-concept micro car takes extreme spot-hunting to the next level. Thanks to its tandem seating configuration, the Q-concept is slim -- somewhere between a car and a motorbike -- bestowing it tighter turning angles, ideal for snaking betwixt those SUVs at Walmart. Being a concept, there are all sorts of teasing technical touches we'd love to see, such as what looks like a smartphone dock in the steering wheel, video screens instead of rear-view mirrors and, of course, gull-wing doors. It might not have the cyborg-ish charms of Audi's Urban Concept, but mercifully it's got some decent curves, unlike its cousin the not-so-concept electric Every van.
Show full PR text
Suzuki announces exhibits for 2011 Tokyo Motor Show

8 November 2011

The Suzuki booth at the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show* will feature automobiles and motorcycles that highlight Suzuki's uncompromising focus on meeting contemporary needs, offering new kinds of value, and delivering genuine pleasure to customers.

In line with Suzuki's unparalleled expertise in small cars, the theme of Suzuki's booth will be "small cars for a big future". Suzuki cars for today, the near future, and the more distant future will highlight the fuel economy, user-friendliness, innovation, brisk performance, and exciting styling that are possible within smaller dimensions – and the huge possibilities that small cars will realize in years to come.

*The 42nd Tokyo Motor Show will take place from 2 to 11 December 2011 at the Tokyo International Exhibition Center (also known as Tokyo Big Sight). It's organized by the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association.

Automobiles

Reference exhibits

REGINA: a vision of a next-generation global compact car with excellent fuel efficiency and low emissions thanks to lightness and superior aerodynamics

The REGINA embodies Suzuki's vision of a next-generation global compact car. It's as light as a minicar (just 730kg) thanks to a clear focus on minimizing weight, and it has a drag coefficient at least 10% lower than that of current models thanks to uncompromising efforts to heighten aerodynamic performance. As a result, it has fuel economy of at least 32km/L (measured in the JC08 test cycle) and CO2 emissions as low as 70g/km (measured in the New European Driving Cycle) using a petrol engine.

Q-concept: two-seat micro mobility for everyday life.

The Q-concept is an entirely new kind of mobility - one that's positioned between conventional motorcycles and cars. With a 2.5-metre overall length and two seats in tandem configuration, it's ideal for everyday journeys within a radius of about 10km.

The Q-concept is more practical than a car as it's more manoeuvrable and takes up much less parking space. At the same time, a cabin makes it a more attractive, more comfortable option than a motorcycle. It's outstandingly handy for shopping, commuting, going to the doctor, transporting children, and all the other short journeys in everyday life.

Other Q-concept configurations are possible. For instance, the Q-concept can have a single seat for a parent at the front and a two-person child seat at the rear, or it can be configured as a delivery vehicle with a single seat at the front and a cargo area at the rear. So it offers new possibilities for people who live in towns where businesses, schools, hospitals and other essential facilities are all in relatively compact areas.

Swift EV Hybrid: a compact electric vehicle with an engine-driven generator

The Swift EV Hybrid is Suzuki's vision of an ecocar that embodies advances on the Swift Range Extender.

A compact vehicle such as the Suzuki Swift is typically driven 20−30km per day in Japan. The Swift EV Hybrid can cover such distances on battery power alone. And it can extend its range using an engine-driven generator.

Compared with an electric vehicle that depends entirely on battery power, the Swift EV Hybrid has a smaller battery that's quicker to charge, weighs less, uses fewer resources, and costs less.

The Swift EV Hybrid is scheduled to be exhibited as the Swift Range Extender at motor shows in some countries.

New Swift Sport: the performance flagship of the Swift series

The new Swift Sport is based on the new Swift (a model that offers significantly better performance than its predecessor). Reflecting a concept of creating a refined sport compact, it has an even-higher-powered engine, new transmissions (six-speed manual and continuously variable), and stiffer suspension, which together deliver even better performance and even greater driving enjoyment.
As well as offering higher performance, the new Swift Sport represents a significant evolution in terms of fuel economy, comfort, and quietness.
Production models

Compact cars:
Solio, Swift, Escudo
Minicars:
Wagon R, Wagon R Stingray, MR Wagon, Palette, Palette SW, Lapin, Jimny, Every (wheelchair-friendly model)

Motorcycles

Reference Models

e-Let's electric scooter

The e-Let's is an electric scooter that combines zero-emission environmental performance with the practicality needed for everyday shopping and commuting.

The e-Let's has a high-performance in-wheel motor with regenerative braking capability; a lithium-ion battery; and a charging system within a compact, lightweight chassis. It weighs no more than a petrol-engine model. Also, it offers the smooth acceleration, nimble performance, low noise, low vibration, and zero-emission environmental performance that characterize electric scooters.

The battery is charged from a 100V household outlet. A single charge gives a range of about 30km (assuming the e-Let's is ridden at 30km/h on level roads).

The e-Let's was granted a number plate in September 2010. Suzuki has since been conducting on-road trials by itself and as part of an initiative led by its home city, Hamamatsu. Suzuki will use the resulting data to verify the reliability of the e-Let's and move further toward production.

Burgman Fuel-Cell Scooter

The Burgman Fuel-Cell Scooter debuted at the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show. It has since been subjected to on-road trials in the United Kingdom and Japan and has become the first fuel-cell vehicle of any kind to earn Whole Vehicle Type Approval in the European Union. Its appearance at the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show will highlight its continuing evolution.

GW250: Suzuki's flagship road bike for Chin

The GW250 is a 250cm3 road bike that Suzuki developed to be its flagship model in China, where more and more people are getting enthusiastic about motorcycles as the economy continues to grow. It debuted at this year's China International Motorcycle Trade Exhibition in the city of Chongqing.

The GW250 is produced in China.

V-Strom 650 ABS sport enduro tourer

The versatile V-Strom 650 ABS makes every ride enjoyable whether it's a day-to-day run across town or a long-distance tour.

When the original V-Strom 650 debuted in 2003, it earned worldwide acclaim for its versatile sport-enduro-tourer characteristics. The latest model change made the V-Strom 650 ABS even more comfortable through improvements to performance at low and mid-range engine speeds and adoption of new styling that gives better wind protection. Environmental performance is also improved by enhancing the fuel efficiency.

The V-Strom 650 ABS is an export model.

GSX-R1000:"The Top Performer"

In line with the GSX-R1000's "Own The Racetrack" slogan, the latest GSX-R1000 delivers enhanced running, cornering, and stopping performance together with improved fuel economy.

The GSX-R1000 is an export model.

Production models

Motorcycles:
Bandit 1250F ABS, Gladius 400 ABS
Electro senior vehicle:
ET4D

2011 Suzuki Auto Product Line

Suzuki is proud to offer the most affordable all-wheel-drive lineup available in the U.S. and maintains a versatile array of vehicles, including the spirited SX4 Sport sedan, multipurpose five-door SX4 Crossover, SX4 SportBack hot hatch, refined Grand Vitara compact SUV, award-winning Equator pickup truck and performance-oriented Kizashi Sport. Every vehicle in the line provides Suzuki's standout virtues of durability, leading-edge style and high-content at a competitive price. All 2011 Suzuki automobiles are backed by America's #1 Warranty: a 100,000-mile/seven-year, fully transferable, zero-deductible powertrain limited warranty.

About Suzuki Auto

The Brea, Calif.-based Automotive Operations of American Suzuki Motor Corporation was founded in 1963 by parent company Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC) and currently markets its vehicles in the United States through a network of approximately 250 automotive dealerships and numerous other motorcycle, ATV and marine distributors. With global headquarters in Hamamatsu, Japan, SMC is a diversified worldwide automobile, motorcycle and outboard motor manufacturer. In 2010, SMC sold more than 2.5 million new cars and trucks and more than threemillion motorcycles and ATVs. Founded in 1909 and incorporated in 1920, SMC has operations in 193countriesand regions. For more information, visit www.media.suzukiauto.com. Suzuki can also be found on Twitter (@SuzukiAuto), Facebook (www.Facebook.com/SuzukiAuto) and YouTube (www.YouTube.com/SuzukiAutomotive).

# # #

Inhabitat's Week in Green: Rolls Royce 102EX test drive, electric unicycle and a sun-powered leaf

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 04:49 PM PST

Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green.

Electric vehicle momentum swept the states this week as Inhabitat took a spin in the new Rolls Royce 102EX Phantom EV, and we brought you exclusive photos of BMW's brand new i3 and i8 electric cars. We also showcased six sexy electric vehicles set to hit the streets in 2012, watched a 350MPG EV win the Future Car Challenge, and saw scientists create the world's smallest electric vehicle from a molecule and four motors. Meanwhile, El Al airlines announced plans to launch a line of hybrid-electric Boeing 737 airplanes, Ryno unveiled a crazy electric unicycle, and a team of students revealed Uganda's first electric car.

It was a big week for alternative energy as well as Kenya announced plans to tap lava power with a newly Toshiba-built geothermal energy plant and scientists made a breakthrough in using urine as a viable power source. We also looked into a scientist claiming to have achieved cold fusion, a 'solar cucumber' that harvests fresh drinking water from the ocean, and a sun-powered leaf capable of making ice in the desert.

In other news, green textiles advanced by leaps and bounds as scientists wove fabric from 24-karat gold, researchers developed a reusable fabric that administers drugs through the skin, and the University of Kiel's developed a super-adhesive tape inspired by Gecko skin. We also showcased an incredible set of sculptures made from recycled circuit boards, we watched a crop of styrofoam robots invade Germany's streets, and we saw an innovative self-powered irrigation system win the 2011 James Dyson award. And just in time for the chilly winter season, we found these oh-so-handy texting gloves which feature conductive fingertips that allow you to touch, tap, or type on any mobile touchscreen outdoors without having to remove your gloves.

Engadget Mobile Podcast 112 - 11.13.2011

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 03:00 PM PST

Rants. You want 'em, we got em...by the dozen, this week. But they're not rants for ranting's sake: we just want the best for you, dear mobile technology consumer, and we're just doing our jobs by taking the flaws in the industry to task. Don't worry, we've got raves too, as well as the usual boatload of product announcements. The Engadget Mobile Podcast: it's full of stuff!

Hosts: Myriam Joire (tnkgrl), Brad Molen, Joseph Volpe
Producer: Trent Wolbe
Music: Tycho - Coastal Brake (Ghostly International)

00:35:00 - Adobe confirms Flash Player is dead for mobile devices
00:38:00 - RIM to forge ahead with Flash on the BlackBerry PlayBook, even if it's dead
00:45:55 - Samsung GS2 Skyrocket review
01:00:33 - HTC Vivid review
01:04:45 - Engadget Distro Issue 12 -- Now with more exclusive content!
01:07:40 - Motorola Droid RAZR review
01:22:07 - Samsung Focus Flash review
01:25:35 - Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S review
01:49:50 - Verizon to begin offering double the data for your buck tomorrow as a limited time promo
01:53:00 - ZTE Tania and LG Jil Sander Windows Phones hands-on
01:53:29 - AT&T commits to LTE-Advanced in 2013
01:53:38 - HTC Edge may be the first quad-core smartphone to market









Hear the podcast


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Download the podcast
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Contact the podcast
podcast (at) engadgetmobile (dot) com.

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Lenovo Live update outs ThinkPad X1 Hybrid, $800 Ultrabook plans

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 02:45 PM PST

Not so hip on the ThinkPad X1's short battery life? Lenovo doesn't seem too thrilled about it either, and are prepping to launch a new twist on the X1 sporting a battery efficient "Instant Media Mode" sometime this month. A recent Lenovo Live update dubs the refresh the "ThinkPad X1 Hybrid, and shows the rig rocking the same media interface as the IdeaPad K1. The Hybrid promises Windows 7 / Media Mode switching, instant-on convenience and enough juice to get you through eight hours of video playback or up to 10 hours of web browsing. The document also details plans to release 13 and 14-inch Ultrabooks in May starting at $1300 and $800, respectively, as well as the ThinkPad x130e -- an apparent successor to the X120e, ruggedized and due in December. Hit the source link below to peek at the PDF yourself.

Droid RAZR's CDMA2000 and TD-SCDMA variants teased in China, the latter with 720p display

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 02:25 PM PST

Chinese mobile customers face a similar dilemma as their American counterparts: they have to choose either China Unicom's WCDMA network, China Telecom's CDMA2000 network or China Mobile's more obscure TD-SCDMA offering. Needless to say, this can be a real headache for phone fanatics stuck on a carrier that doesn't support their desired devices, unless they don't mind surfing the web on 2G radio (if compatible at all). Luckily, nowadays Motorola tends to take good care of all potential Chinese customers whenever it rolls out a new Android phone, including the Droid RAZR (aka XT910, pictured right) in this case. Read on to find out what these two new phones are about.

Droid RAZR's CDMA2000 and TD-SCDMA variants teased in China

Starting from the left we have the XT928 with CDMA2000 radio, a 13 megapixel imager and Dolby Digital Plus certification, but details on weight and dimensions are still guarded by the crouching tiger. While China Telecom has confirmed on Sina Weibo that we're looking at a RAZR variant here with the same screen and processor, it's obvious that externally this is more of a follow-up to the Droid X series. Interestingly, our reader Chris spotted a similar-looking prototype shown off in a Starbucks situated about a mile from Motorola's headquarters in Schaumburg, so there's a small chance that the XT928 will also show up in the US market (and we'd wager on the "Droid X3" moniker).

Sandwiched between the two phones is the TD-SCDMA-friendly MT917 that first appeared earlier this month. Bearing much resemblance to the first Droid RAZR, this rounder-looking device gets bumped up with a larger 4.5-inch 1,280 x 720 LCD (according to its certification document) and the same 13 megapixel camera as the XT928. Similarly though, this model also gains 1mm in body thickness and 11g in weight.

There's no concrete info on release dates just yet, but we heard through the Chinese grapevine that both phones are expected to be out over there by the end of the year. Not that it'd be of any use for the rest of us outside China, anyway, no thanks to all those different radio standards.

[Thanks, Chris]

Switched On: Next for the nano

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 01:10 PM PST

Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about consumer technology.

For all the grousing about the minimal changes from the iPhone 4 to the iPhone 4S, Apple's fastest smartphone incorporates sweeping shifts compared to what the company did with its iPod line. From keeping the waning iPod classic in the lineup to leaving the still-potent iPod touch untouched save for a blanching and price reduction, the venerable digital media player line seemed all but ignored at a time of year when Apple once primed the holiday pump for MP3 players.

Yet, while the iPod touch may not have received the processor boost or Siri-ousness of the iPhone 4S, it at least continues to remain vibrant via access to Apple's app store. That's not the case for the nano, once the flagship of the line. While Apple's smallest touchscreen device gained new software that enlarged the main icons and brought new clock faces, these improvements are also being offered to owners of the last-generation iPod nano via a software update.

Virtually unchallenged in its price range, the nano can surely survive for years untouched much as the iPod classic has. However, will it merely hang on as its feature set-- long stripped of video capture and playback capabilities -- gets sandwiched between a lower priced iPod touch and a slew of commodity music players priced under $100?

With its new time-telling facades, Apple seems to have humored the idea of the nano as a watch; such usage doesn't hold up well today in the real world. However, the iPhone 4S's support of Bluetooth 4.0 -- which includes the low-power specification that began as WiBree -- may tip Apple's hand a bit as to its ultimate intentions for the nano. The nano does not yet support Bluetooth 4.0 (or any version of the specification), but the standard has been seen as a key component in helping reduce power consumption for such a product, There are also lower power display technologies -- such as Sharp's Memory in Pixel LCD on the forthcoming Meta Watch -- from which Apple has abstained.

Turning the nano into a glanceable display like the Sony Ericsson LiveView or the more recent MOTOACTV discussed in last week's Switched On could help Apple considerably in the widget war. As an interactive window for iOS devices, a revamped nano could make the device even more palatable to those who purchased iOS products such as the iPad. In iOS 5, Apple has revisited the idea of iPhone widgets -- differentiating them more from other iPhone apps -- in the drop-down notification center. However the nano could support not only a widget architecture for iPhones, but revitalize widget development for Dashboard, which seems to have languished since its debut in Tiger and has been somewhat sidelined as a Space in Lion.

Those widgets could even be useful as an addition to Apple TV or an element of an Apple-branded television should Apple pursue that oft-rumored path. Finally, with the advent of Siri, an iPhone-connected nano could bring retrieve bits of helpful info that could be formatted for the nano's 240 X 240 display or, of course, spoken back through the headphones.

When the iPhone was introduced, it had one of the largest touchscreens on a mobile device. These days, it seems compact compared to pocket-packing behemoths such as the Samsung Infuse, HTC Titan or Galaxy Nexus. But while the iPhone may not represent as much of a handful, there's still times that it -- like any phone -- isn't as close as you might want it. A reinvigorated nano could help create a bridge during those times and further tap the creativity of Apple's developer base.

Ross Rubin (@rossrubin) is executive director and principal analyst of the NPD Connected Intelligence service at The NPD Group. Views expressed in Switched On are his own.

Sony's latest PS Move Bundles let you go Medieval, get your groove on

Posted: 13 Nov 2011 11:33 AM PST

Good ol' gaming bundles can be enticing when you're on the prowl for a new console or accessory set, and we have to admit, we'd be excited to lay some motion-controlled moves down with Sony's latest PlayStation offerings. Back at E3, we had a chance to slice enemies with virtual swords in Medieval Heros: Deadmunds Quest, thanks to the PS Move's 1:1 tracking abilities. With the game releasing next week, Sony's decided to offer it in a $100 bundle, packing a PS Eye, Move controller and a copy of Sports Champions (which Deadmund shares its gameplay mechanics with). If you don't already own a PS3 -- and love getting your groove on -- the Everybody Dance bundle may be your $300 ticket to the wand-waving fun; it features a 320GB PS3 Slim, PS Eye and Move controller, along with a DualShock 3 for when Duty Calls. These likely won't be Sony's last PlayStation-related bundles to hit shelves before the year's through, but if it sounds like your kind of party you'll find more info at the source link below.
at 12:09 PM

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