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Monday, January 2, 2012

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Sprint gives LightSquared an extra 30 days to gain FCC approval

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 10:54 AM PST

As you may recall from last year, Sprint and LightSquared signed a 15-year agreement that would see the two companies share spectrum and equipment as they build out their respective LTE networks -- an agreement that hinged on LightSquared's ability to gain FCC approval for its planned use of a particularly problematic slice of spectrum. LightSquared faced a December 31st deadline from Sprint on that last bit, which has obviously passed. So, is the deal dead? Not yet -- Sprint's now given LightSquared a 30-day reprieve on the deadline, during which LightSquared can continue its attempt to gain clearance from the FCC. For its part, LightSquared has yet to comment on this latest development, and it remains to be seen if it's prospects for the next thirty days are any brighter than the last.

NASA's GRAIL spacecrafts enter Moon's orbit, set to map its gravitational field in March

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 10:29 AM PST

Way back in September, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory sent a duo of Lockheed Martin-produced spacecraft toward one of its favorite test subjects, the Moon, as a part of its GRAIL mission -- Gravity Recovery And Interior Laboratory. Now, nearly four months later, the administration has announced that the GRAIL-A and -B twin crafts have planted themselves within our Moon's orbit. According to NASA, they're currently in "a near-polar, elliptical orbit with an orbital period of approximately 11.5 hours," and it plans to execute more "burn maneuvers" in the coming weeks to shorten that time frame to less than two. By March, the research crafts will be positioned in a "near-polar, near-circular orbit" 34 miles above its surface, at which point they'll begin surveying its gravitational pull, by using radio signals to determine the distance between both units.

With this information, NASA hopes to better understand how gravity works, both above and below the Moon's surface, by detailing the findings in a high-resolution map. NASA also says that scientists can utilize it to get further insight into how our planets formed. Notably, both spacecraft feature a MoonKAM (Moon Knowledge Acquired by Middle school students), that will allow students request pictures of specific areas the lunar surface for later study. Best of all, using NASA's "Eyes on the Solar System" web app, you'll be able to follow the paths of both spaceships in detail. You'll find full details about the GRAIL mission at the source links below.

IBM's Samuel J. Palmisano: we sold PC business due to lack of innovative opportunities

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 09:58 AM PST

Departing IBM head honcho Samuel J. Palmisano has been known to say some outlandish things, but there's nothing comical about the information divulged in a new piece surrounding his legacy in The New York Times. Outside of looking into the details of how IBM become one of the world's most boring, highly profitable outfits, there's plenty of fascinating nuggets to be had. For one, he focused intently on getting out of "low-margin businesses that were fading," and not surprisingly, the outfit's personal computer business was first on the chopping block.

Reportedly, he saw a lack of opportunity for innovation (at least "in the corporate market"), and felt that the "hub of innovation would shift to services and software." As if a prophet, just about everything he expected has come to pass. The article explains that the jarring sale of its PC business was no easy thing to decide upon, and he even affirms that he "deflected overtures from Dell and private equity firms, preferring the sale to a company in China for strategic reasons." As the story goes, China wants its corporations to have global reach, and by helping with that, IBM "enhanced its stature in the lucrative Chinese market, where the government still steers business." Trust us -- there's far more where this came from in the source link below.

[Thanks, Theo]

PlayStation Vita shown running Sega Genesis titles (video)

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 09:39 AM PST

Still mulling whether or not to pick yourself up a PlayStation Vita? Obsessed with retro gaming titles? If you answered "yes" to both, you should probably start socking away a few extra coins, buster. YouTube user frwololo has just upped a video showcasing the Half Byte Loader running the Picodrive emulator on Sony's PS Vita -- the first major proof that this kind of wizardry is indeed a possibility. The nuts and bolts of how it happened are being kept under wraps for now, and he seems certain that Sony's inbuilt security will make the mod unusable as soon as it's released. That said, there's still a lot of hope to be found in the clip just after the break, and c'mon -- who doesn't need a little hope to kick off a year where we're all supposed to perish?

Intel's Ultrabook portal jabs at limited functionality of tablets

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 09:19 AM PST

Love 'em or hate 'em, there's no question that tablets aren't capable of handling the same rigors (with the same efficiency levels) as a full-on laptop, and Intel's using that very point to promote the Ultrabook category as a whole. Given that we're just days away from seeing what's apt to be a flood of these things at CES, Intel's new Ultrabook portal (and linked "Ultra Excited For Ultrabooks" preview paper) is priming the masses for what to expect. In the note, Intel Technical Marketing Engineer Shirley Chen notes the following:

"Tablets have introduced some great features that support some of these use cases with longer battery life and touch capabilities in order to provide a more enriched experience. However the screens are still small, local storage is generally miniscule and restrictive, and tablets lack performance compared to that of a traditional PC. At the other end of the portable scale there are laptops, which for many are just too big, and place power and performance above user experience, which both hardware and software play a part in. Ultrabook systems marry thin and light with the best in performance, responsiveness, security and battery life – filling the gap between desktop/laptop and tablet. We are reinventing the PC again. An Ultrabook device is ultra-responsive and ultra-sleek."

Nothing here is truly groundbreaking, per se, but it's the first time that we've seen such a giant company take a meaningful swing at a product sector that has caught fire for myriad reasons. 2012 is shaping up to be the year of the inexpensive tablet, but if Intel has its druthers, you'll be shaking off the hype and picking up a full-fledged computing tool instead. Have a look at the rest in the PDF sourced below.

Microsoft-approved Windows Phone 7 unlocker discontinued (for the moment)

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 09:00 AM PST

Well, that was fast. Not two months after ChevronWP7 began selling $9 "tokens" to unlock WP7 handsets, the tool is being discontinued. WPCentral reports that ChevronWP7 made an agreement with Microsoft not to sell more than 10,000 tokens. Unfortunately for latecomers, though, the outfit's reached that cut-off, and says it has no current plans to renegotiate this number (though it hasn't ruled it out either). In a statement, ChevronWP7 spokesperson Rafael Rivera wrote, "Microsoft isn't involved in our discussion yet. And they can't provide us with more unlocks because we haven't asked yet. If we do request more, we're sure Microsoft will respond positively – as they have in the past." Until the two companies raise that sales ceiling, the only Redmond-sanctioned unlocker will be Microsoft's own AppHub, which will set you back a princelier $99.

Nintendo plans improved app store for Wii U, looks to serve Apple and Google in dance-off

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 08:41 AM PST

Unless you go through the '80s-style "becoming super cool" montage, the other app stores won't respect you. Nintendo seems to be in this mindset, as a source has stated that it's creating an app store for its upcoming Wii U controller that goes "far beyond" the online stores the company currently provides for its DSi and Wii consoles. According to The Daily, the new gaming system, which is set to launch in the second half of 2012, will be able to use apps that operate on the controller itself, much like iOS and Android-based tablets. In other news, Nintendo has also vowed to buy each of its employees a cheetah with the Wii U app store profits.

Stanford archives provide rare glimpse into Apple's early days as mere seedling (video)

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 08:20 AM PST

Housed in a climate controlled storage facility operated by Stanford University, nearly 600 feet of shelf space is dedicated to preserve documents, videos and memorabilia of Apple and its early days as a young startup. The collection holds rare gems such as interviews with Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, both of whom discuss some of the rationale behind Apple's name -- Jobs asserts that it was selected to place his company ahead of Atari in the phone book. Originally intended to furnish Apple's corporate museum, the materials were donated to Stanford in 1997 after Steve Jobs' return to the company, which was most concerned with financial survival at the time. According to the university, more than 20 significant collections have been added to the archives in the subsequent years.

The warehouse holds blueprints of the Apple I, user manuals, magazine ads, TV commercials and T-shirts, along with thousands of photographs that document Steve Jobs during his years as CEO of NeXT. Other rarities include a $5,000 loan document -- signed by the two Steve's and the partnership's third co-founder, Ron Wayne -- a spoof of Ghostbusters that starred former CEO John Sculley and other company leaders, who played "Blue Busters" to eliminate IBM, and handwritten sales entries of the very first Apple II's. While the location of the facility is undisclosed, we can only hope that, some day, the collection will be showcased for fanboys, fangirls and the public alike.



ASUS now catching heat for locked Transformer Prime bootloader, probably wishes the thing was never made

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 07:50 AM PST

Man, talk about not being able to catch a break. After launching what was largely considered the first Android tablet worth drooling over at AsiaD, ASUS has ran into every conceivable issue in the months since. Delays, on-again / off-again claims about GPS and now, a locked bootloader that has the vocal Android modding community all sorts of angry. The primary issue here is that the Prime is a WiFi-only device, which leaves little room for ASUS to justify its decision to thwart the use of uncertified ROMs. Of course, HTC has faced similar pressures in the past, and its decision to cut loose of the locked bootloader chains won it universal praise from a universal audience. Time for ASUS to step up and do likewise?

CyanogenMod 9 may feature a 4G LTE toggle switch for the Verizon Galaxy Nexus

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 07:32 AM PST

We were slightly disappointed when we discovered the Verizon-branded Samsung Galaxy Nexus didn't come with an easily-accessible LTE toggle switch, but we had a feeling it wouldn't be long before the development community came in with an acceptable solution. Thanks to Gregory Sarrica, we may be seeing a fast toggle button for the next-gen internet connectivity included in a future build of CyanogenMod 9. According to Gregory, it's getting tested right now and still needs to be reviewed before it gets accepted into the build, but he hopes it'll show up in builds as early as next week. There's no guarantees yet, of course, but he's provided us with video evidence of the new functionality to whet our appetites for now.

[Thanks, @gsarrica]

7-inch ASUS Eee Memo Pad gets leaked, 1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon inside

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 07:11 AM PST

The ASUS news, it just keeps on flowin'. Shortly after getting a sneak peek at the Eee PC Flare, in flies yet another leaked image of yet another leaked ASUS product. This go 'round, we're looking at what's purportedly the 7-inch Eee Memo Pad, a handy little fellow that we've actually heard about before. We're told that it'll ship with a 1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor, 16GB to 64GB of internal storage space, built-in 3G, WiFi and a 1,280 x 800 screen resolution, and it's apt to be revisited at CES 2012 before launching as an Asia-only product later in the year. It's hard to say what edition of Android will pop up when this is formally unveiled next week at CES, but we're guessing that it'll stick its tongue out at the long-awaited Padfone as it's introduced, regardless.

The Engadget Giveaway: win a BlackBerry Bold 9900 and a one-year TeleNav subscription!

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 07:00 AM PST

The fount of free stuff to give away overfloweth -- and we want to keep the holiday spirit alive -- so we've taken the opportunity to offer up two more huge contests before CES approaches this coming weekend. Through tomorrow you'll have the chance to win a BlackBerry Bold 9900 and a full year's worth of top-notch voice turn-by-turn navigation, all courtesy of TeleNav! The Bold will be locked to T-Mobile's network, so you'll need to have a T-Mo SIM card to be right as rain. The normal rules apply, so make sure you read through them thoroughly and leave a comment below. Good luck!

The rules:
  • Leave a comment below. Any comment will do.
  • You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness, and we're quite certain they won't go all Skynet on us.)
  • Contest is open to all residents of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and Canada (excluding Quebec), 18 or older! Sorry, we don't make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad.
  • Winners will be chosen randomly. One winner will receive a BlackBerry Bold 9900 with a free one-year subscription to TeleNav.
  • If you are chosen, you will be notified by email. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen. In order to receive your subscription, you will be asked for your full name as well as the phone number you'll be attaching to the Bold.
  • This unit is purely for promotional giveaway. TeleNav and Engadget are not held liable to honor warranties or customer service.
  • Entries can be submitted until January 3rd, 2012 at 11:59PM ET. Good luck!
  • Full rules can be found here.

DV300F point-and-shoot camera adds WiFi to Samsung's front-facing LCD DualView line

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 06:30 AM PST

Samsung is extending its "highly popular" DualView point-and-shoot line with a WiFi cam, launching the DV300F today. Consistent with previous models, this latest 16 megapixel snapper includes a 3-inch 460k-dot LCD on the rear, along with a 1.5-inch 61k-dot screen up front. Naturally, a front-facing screen makes self-portraits a snap, while also serving to entertain toddlers with things like an animated clown loop. As for that WiFi connectivity, the DV300F can upload pics directly to sharing sites like Facebook and Picasa, videos to YouTube or the full contents of your card to a PC using the Auto PC Backup function -- there's also a microSD slot for local storage. The DV300F is expected to ship in March for $199, and full details are awaiting you just past the break.
Samsung DV300F
Show full PR text
Samsung's Latest DualView Offering – the DV300F - Brings Further Innovation to Highly Popular Category

Enhanced Dual LCD and Wi-Fi connectivity for users to capture
and share life's moments in an instant, from both sides of the lens

Ridgefield Park, NJ – January 2, 2012 – Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd, a global leader in digital media and digital convergence technologies today unveiled a new addition to its market-leading Samsung DualView® line, the DV300F. With this launch, Samsung continues to cement its leadership position by introducing the latest in Dual LCD technology with Wi-Fi connectivity for camera users who want to snap and share moments in an instant.

The Samsung DV300F builds on the success of Samsung's DualView technology with a 1.5" front facing LCD screen that helps ensure users are capturing the most challenging shots. Child Mode displays an animation to keep little ones focused, and the visual Self Timer makes it easy to put oneself in the picture.

In response to evolving consumer demands for maximum creativity and shareability, the DV300F is the first DualView model to offer Wi-Fi connectivity. The camera's built-in Wi-Fi connectivity enables users to email their images or upload them to social media sites including Facebook, Picasa, Flickr and YouTube. In addition, images saved onto the camera's microSD memory card, can be saved to a home PC without wires, by using the Auto PC Backup function. Cloud services, including Samsung's AllShare Play and Microsoft SkyDrive, allows users to store and share their precious pictures from anywhere.

For consumers on the lookout for sophisticated design and premium quality, the latest model comes in several shimmering metallic colors, including mock black, silver, navy and red. The new DualView camera features a sleek, seamless, and rounded form factor for ultimate style without compromising ease of use and image quality. The DV300F boasts an impressive 16 Megapixels, 5x optical zoom and 25mm wide-angle lens to capture all the action, even from a distance.

"Our aim is to continually be at the forefront of innovation and maintain our leadership within the DualView market, pioneered by Samsung," stated Mr. Myoung Sup Han, senior vice president and head of digital imaging business, Samsung Electronics. "The new DV300F model is the embodiment of this goal. This latest model with the DualView LCD, Wi-Fi connectivity, ultra premium styling and the latest creative features, demonstrates Samsung's unwavering commitment to innovation within the digital compact camera market, as well as our ability to consistently meet the needs of our customers."

Get Creative with Magic Frame and Picture-in-Picture Shot
The DV300F is crammed full of fun features to maximize users' enjoyment. The Magic Frame feature includes 12 fun background templates, as well as the ability to create poster-quality art, perfect for sharing or hanging. The camera's Picture-in-Picture function lets users insert one image within another. Users can even impress their friends by combining a still picture with a video clip and instantly uploading it to YouTube or other social networking sites.

Maximize enjoyment with latest Photo shot features
With the Split Shot feature, users can merge up to three different images to create their very own artistic masterpiece! Pictures can even be imported from other cameras. However, the fun doesn't stop there. Funny Face allows photographers to add goofy grins, comical noses or even crazy eyes to shots of friends and family in eight different modes.

The innovative new Artistic Brush feature can instantly take a portrait, landscape shot or even a movie clip and transform it into a black and white or full color sketch just like an artist would! Users can then show off their artistic creation via the camera's LCD, or by simply uploading their creation to social networking sites to ensure everyone look at their creative masterpiece or potentially, their latest profile picture -- with a twist.

Finally, the model includes the new Motion Photo feature. Similar to the latest Hollywood blockbuster, users can freeze time around a moving subject for dramatic effect. Now, users can capture a friend jumping in the park and keep everyone else around them still.

ASUS Eee PC Flare leaked ahead of CES, AMD and Intel models promised

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 06:06 AM PST

Choosing is hard. And in the case of ASUS' forthcoming netbook line, totally not necessary. Just days after Intel snuck out details surrounding the next generation of its Atom line, out flows shots and information about what'll undoubtedly be one of the first next-gen netbooks to use 'em. The Eee PC Flare line is expected to supplant the long-standing Seashell range at this year's Consumer Electronics Show, with a smattering of models to be lining ASUS' booth. Outside of lively, sleeker exteriors, we're told to expect models with the new N2600 and N2800 Atom CPU line, a 12-incher powered by AMD's Fusion APU line and the token chiclet-style keyboard that we've all grown used to. It's also possible that we'll see revised 10-inchers alongside the big boys, with the 1225B, 1225C, 1025C and 1025CE named in particular. Naturally, we'll be bringing you more as we get it. Oh, and "netbooks are back, baby!"

Did you fire off a bunch of texts this Christmas? Welcome to the museum

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 05:52 AM PST

Finland might be the spiritual home of the SMS, but it also proves that this ancient form of communication is going the way of the rune stone. A mere 8.5 million texts were sent over the country's Sonera network on Christmas Eve, versus 10.9 million on that festive day in 2010. The same trend was spotted on other Finnish networks and also on the other side of the world: Christmas Day texts in Hong Kong were down nearly 14 percent on the year before, and Telstra in Australia experienced a nine percent year-on-year decline over the whole of 2011. Things are different in America, where texting has continued to grow, but that growth seems to be slowing down and some analysts expect "SMS erosion" to hit Verizon and AT&T by 2014. The obvious culprit is mobile internet: social networking apps, BBM, iMessage and a host of other 'free' options, but you won't find carriers complaining -- data contract ARPUs suit them just fine.

Mimo Magic Touch screen combined with WP7 emulator to make impromptu Windows Phone tablet

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 05:32 AM PST

When Mimo's Magic Touch monitor came out it was pitched as just that: a secondary, USB-powered display. But Windows Phone developer Social Ebola immediately eyed it as a potential programming tool. In a video demo, you can watch him drag and drop an emulator onto the Mimo display, and use it as the WP7 tablet we always wanted. As you can see, the emulator doesn't fit the Magic Touch's 10-inch screen perfectly, but gestures like scrolling and pinch to zoom seem buttery smooth from where we're sitting. Self-explanatory, yes, but oh-so mesmerizing. Have a look for yourself, just past the break.

Telecoms win immunity in wiretapping case, US court approves separate suit against the government

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 03:44 AM PST

Looks like a case of good news-bad news for the Electronic Frontier Foundation in its fight against warrantless wiretapping. A US appeals court upheld a 2008 ruling, granting telecoms such as AT&T, Verizon and Sprint immunity for cooperating with the government in its surveillance activities. Still, Judge Margaret McKeown of the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals insists that immunity only applies to telecoms, not the government, and that "the federal courts remain a forum to consider the constitutionality of the wiretapping scheme and other claims." Indeed, while the 9th Circuit upheld immunity for telecoms, it also gave the go-ahead for a separate suit against the NSA, former president George W. Bush, senior members of the Bush administration and President Obama for using AT&T's network to conduct "an unprecedented suspicionless general search," according to the filing. The court's decision to allow this suit to proceed marks a reversal of an earlier ruling, in which a lower court said the plaintiffs did not have legal standing to pursue the case.

[Image courtesy PBS]

Shogun Bros. Chameleon X-1 mouse dons assassin style, sneaks into CES

Posted: 02 Jan 2012 01:14 AM PST

Digging your stealthy Chameleon X-1 gamepad / mouse combo clicker? Look out, it's about to get a bit stealthier -- Shogun Bros. tells us that the dual analog rodent is sporting some fresh digs to ape the style of Assassin's Creed Revelations, complete with antique decorated leather mouse buttons. Cowhide aside, this is the same 1600dpi, 16 button wireless doodad the firm updated earlier this year. The branded mouse will debut at CES 2012 in "Altair white" and "Ezio grey," and promises to help you eliminate your targets in style. The outfit hinted to us that they'll be bringing a few other killer products to the show as well -- we'll be sure to sneak a peek while we're there.
Assassin's Creed Revelations Chameleon X-1

China promises to put more humans in space, less trash

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 10:34 PM PST

China's recent Beidu GPS launches were mere firecrackers compared to its space ambitions for the next five years. These have been laid out in a 17-page government document, which fortunately reduces down to just a few key points once you filter out the abstract bluster. Top of the list is a pledge to prepare for the construction of more "space stations" -- plural -- to complement the Tiangong module and allow for "medium term" human habitation. Officials and scientists will also find time to plan for a "human lunar landing" as well as surveying the moon with rovers. Lastly, it seems that China wants to fix its nasty reputation as a space litterer, by moving "aging GEO satellites out of orbit" and "fully deactivating" used Long March rockets to reduce the risk of them exploding and scattering debris in the busiest lanes. Regardless of how these lofty goals pan out, the juxtaposition with America's own dwindling dream is obvious.

How would you change Apple's iPhone 4S?

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 07:27 PM PST

It's the dawn of a new year for How Would You Change, so let's take a look back at one of the hottest-selling phones of the last one. A low-key launch couldn't dispel a summer of hype for the handset: Apple went for evolution when we were expecting a revolution -- even though we'd seen the same with the 3G/3GS. In the cold light of January, we can see the 4S for what it is: a refined experience that lacks a compelling reason to pay an early-upgrade fee. If you were in the planning meeting for the iPhone 6 (it's a hunch), what would you be pushing for? Built-in NFC? Would you have kept Siri under wraps until it had left beta? Do you resent the existence of any phone that can't run Android? Constructive and polite suggestions in the comments below, impolite ones should be written down on a piece of paper and sent to the usual address (we kid, we kid).

Inhabitat's Week in Green: exciting green cars, plugless power and a candy robot

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 04:30 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.


This week Inhabitat celebrated New Year's Eve and the start of 2012 with a look at the biggest breaking green design stories from the past year. We showcased the most exciting green cars to hit the streets in 2011, and we took a look at the next-gen renewable energy technologies that are set to supercharge our grid. We also brought you the year's most popular green science stories, and we shared 7 futuristic wearable technology concepts. Last but not least, we said farewell to the holiday season with a look at an overachieving gingerbread house that transforms into a candy robot!

It was also an epic week for eco transportation news as China unveiled a brand new blazing fast 310 MPH bullet train and Russia announced the construction of the world's largest lithium-ion battery plant. We also watched M55 unveil a line of ludicrous e-bikes blinged out with diamonds and gold, and we were wowed by the Energy Return Wheel - an airless tire that utilizes springs to smooth out bumps in the road and improve gas mileage. Finally, Evantran announced pre-ordering for its Plugless Power EV charging system and Düsseldorf International Airport flipped the switch on one of the largest solar arrays in Germany.

In other news, this week we brought you several bright lighting stories to chase away dreary winter days - we took a peek inside a Christmas light recycling plant the town of Shijiao, China that processes 20 million pounds of lights each year, and we and we shared our own DIY guide to transforming burned-out bulbs into sparkling earrings. Meanwhile LG announced plans to debut the world's largest OLED TV at CES 2012 and we spotted a stunning series of solar origami lamps made from folded photovoltaic panels. To top things off, we showcased a glowing red garnet pavilion set high in the Italian alps and a beautiful dandelion lighting fixture that joins nature with technology.

Switched On: The 2011 Switchies

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 04:30 PM PST

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


It's that special time of year between the post-holiday sales and the pre-CES hype that presents an opportunity to consider some of the most innovative devices of the year. Switched On is proud to present the Saluting Wares Improving Technology's Contribution to Humanity awards, also known as The Switchies. This year marks the sixth annual Switchies, which are decided based on a rigorous examination of the opinion of me, and do not reflect the opinion of Engadget or its editors. For that latter honor, nominees will need to win an Engadget Award. Let's roll out the red carpet then.

The "Brand New Convertible" and Product of the Year award goes the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Prime. The first quad-core Android tablet, the Prime represented a refinement of ASUS' original Transformer, which debuted earlier in the year. Its detachable keyboard dock accessory addresses one of the key issues consumers have with tablets, the occasional need for a physical keyboard, while also adding a battery boost, SD card reader, and an increasingly useful (for an Android tablet) USB port.

The "Easy Call to Make" Award for Best New Smartphone goes to the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. Actually, this was not an easy call to make, with many strong introductions during the year. However, the Galaxy Nexus' large display, LTE support, and of course introduction of the Android 4.0 operating system that will unite Android smartphones and tablets gave it the edge.

An honorable mention goes to the sheer engineering showcase of the Motorola Droid RAZR. Introduced just hours before the Galaxy Nexus, this 7.1 mm LTE phone set a new benchmark for LTE devices, and Motorola's thoughtful use of materials such as Kevlar paired with a water-resistant nanocoating and some helpful services married to software help this Droid recapture at least some of the status that its namesake exuded. A second honorable mention goes to the Nokia N9. While launched with the stillborn MeeGo operating system, the N9 introduced the "fabula" industrial design language that has been part of the appeal of Nokia's first Windows Phone flagship, the Lumia 800.

The "Your Pad Or Mine?" Award for Best New Tablet goes to the Apple iPad 2. Apple's follow-up to the pioneering iPad had competitors scrambling with most still far behind the product's thin profile and maturing operating system .Even its Smart Cover accessory displayed more forethought than many products on the market. Honorable mentions go to the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9, the stylus-flirting HTC Flyer, and the Amazon Kindle Fire.

The "Light on Your Lap" Award for Best New Ultraportable PC goes to the Lion-equipped 11-inch MacBook Air. Apple's second-generation 11-incher remains a great compromise between the portability of a netbook and the thinness of an ultrabook, upping the attractiveness of the company's sub-$1,000 laptop offering. Much as with the iPad 2, few competitors have yet to offer as complete and polished of a direct competitor. Nonetheless, an honorable mention goes to the ASUS Zenbook, one of the first and most stylish of the Wnidows-based ultrabooks to compete with the MacBook Air.

The "Quarterbacks Often Make Passes on Screens That Need Glasses" award for best new 3D product goes to the LG Cimena 3D displays. While active shutter technologies certainly have their advantages, the 3D effects on these TVs really pop, and the glasses -- while still an inconvenience -- are more like the inexpensive lightweight variety used in movie theaters. For consumers who place a premium on 3D, passive glasses represent a step forward in convenience. Honorable mention goes to the Nintendo 3DS which, after a somewhat slow start, has been able to capitalize on Nintendo's control of the platform to encourage more game 3D game development then we're likely to see on 3D cell phones for some time.

The "Lens With Benefits" Award for Best New Imaging Product goes to the Lytro. The first light field camera, the Lytro is capable of creating images with dynamic focus. Honorable mentions go to the scarce 24 megapixel-packing Sony NEX-7, and the Looxcie 2, a slimmed down version of the original video camera-equipped headset that has been paired with the Looxcie Live real-time video clip sharing service.

The "Gist on Your Wrist" award for Best New Mobile Glanceable Display goes to the WIMM One. While a somewhat chunky developer product today, WIMM Labs has blended advanced display technology with its own Android variant to produce a new platform for development and licensing. An honorable mention goes to the rapidly maturing Allerta InPulse, which emerged from a long hibernation to expand both its scope and platform support.

The "Display Matches Well With Dat Play" Award for Best New Mobile Monitor goes to the Lenovo ThinkVision LT1421. Time was when being on the road meant that being confined to the display that your notebook came with. For those used to using multiple monitors at work, that could be confining. But this extra 14" of real estate doesn't take up much room in the bag, and provides a reasonably bright workspace at the expense of only about $200 and a USB port.

The "We Value Your Input" Award for Best New User Experience goes to the Apple iPhone 4S for its introduction of an integrated version of Siri. Far from the first voice input or command technology, Siri scratches the surface of what may be possible moving forward in terms of natural dialogue with a computer regarding the world around us. An honorable mention goes to Sifteo Cubes, which combine small screens and sensors to create novel edutainment experiences. The "Guess We Just Click" Award for Best New PC Input Peripheral goes to last year's input device award winner Microsoft for its Touch Mouse with an honorable mention to the Logitech Wireless Trackpad.

The "Set-Top Box That Rocks" Award for Best New TV Add-On goes to the Roku 2 XS. Whlie lacking the purple case cachet of its sub-$50 sibling, Roku continues to add more channels to its lineup while now expanding into casual games via its Wii-like motion controller. An honorable mention goes to the diminutive Biscotti video chat camera, which can bring remote parties to the (coffee) table.

The "Phones Need Friends, Too" Award for Best Smartphone Accessory goes the Motorola MOTOACTV. A standalone iPod nano competitor in its own right, the MOTOACTV can pair with a Motorola smartphone and Bluetooth headphones to create an integrated Bluetooth personal network designed around monitoring one's runs.

The "Server with a Smile Award" for Best New Home Server Product goes to the Netgear ReadyNAS 2. Serving as an easily accessible enclosure that serves backup and remote access needs, the latest incarnation of the product line doesn't deviate much cosmetically from its predecessors, but includes redesigned configuraiton software that makes it easier to keep tabs on centralized storage.

The "Finders, Keepers" Award for New Best Location-Based Product goes to Location Based Technologies' PocketFinder. Finally coming to market after debuting at CES years ago, the puck-like device can be planted in all kinds of bags and pockets to be tracked via a companion iOS app.

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.

LG details 55-inch OLED TV, will show off its true colors at CES 2012

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 03:35 PM PST

While building the world's first 55-inch OLED TV panel is nice, it's not worth much unless you put an actual TV around it and LG Electronics will have the total package on display next week at CES. Today's press release reveals more about LG's "4-Color Pixel" and Color Refiner technology it's implementing to bring consistent, accurate colors that it claims will be other OLED TV's abnormal color gamut. LG's press release doesn't mention production plans or pricing, but all of this is squeezed into a frame that's just 4mm thick with a narrow bezel and weight of 7.5kg -- we'll let our eyes decide on the quality of its colors once we meet in person.



Show full PR text
WORLD'S LARGEST OLED TV FROM LG OFFERS MORE REALISTIC COLORS, BRIGHTER PICTURE, FASTER SPEED
LG Unveils Much Anticipated 55-inch OLED TV for First Time at CES 2012

SEOUL, Jan. 2, 2012 – LG Electronics (LG) will present the future of TV technology at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas with the unveiling of the world's largest OLED TV with a display size of 55 inches. By incorporating the company's 4-Color Pixels and Color Refiner features with LG Display's advanced OLED (organic light-emitting diode) panels, LG OLED TV generates the most natural colors of any TV set at a much lower price point than could have been achieved using the standard manufacturing process.

"Working closely with LG Display, we have a product which not only delivers on all the advantages of OLED over LCD but at a significantly lower cost than what could be achieved using existing OLED manufacturing technologies," said Havis Kwon, President and CEO of LG Electronics Home Entertainment Company. "OLED is clearly the future of home TV entertainment and LG is very focused on making this exciting technology as easy as possible for consumers to embrace."

What sets LG's TV picture apart from other OLED TVs is 4-Color Pixels and Color Refiner which work together to generate natural and accurate colors that are sharp and consistent. The 4-Color Pixels feature allows for more accurate color depiction by using a set of four colors (red, green blue and white) in comparison to the RGB setup used by other OLED TV manufacturers. Color Refiner ensures consistency in colors from a wider viewing angle via an LG algorithm which improves and refines hues and tones. This is in contrast to other OLED TVs which often exhibit drastic changes in hues from different viewing angles and abnormal color gamut.

Boasting an infinite contrast ratio, LG's OLED TV exhibits vivid colors and the smallest details regardless of the overall luminance of the on-screen image. In turn, colors and details throughout an entire image are preserved with utmost clarity and sharpness, even when displaying scenes with dark lighting. Such color capabilities are technically impossible with LED and LCD display panels. And at 1,000 times faster than LED/LCD displays, LG's OLED TV shows crystal clear motion without any blurring or bleeding.

And LG's OLED TV is as aesthetically pleasing as it is technologically sophisticated. LG's Slim and Narrow Bezel design gives the TV a sleek, minimal look and at only 4 mm thin and a mere 7.5 kg, LG's OLED TV practically blends into the wall.

# # #

Casio's smartphone-ready G-Shock watch set to hit Japan in March

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 01:54 PM PST

Casio's G-Shock GB-6900 watch was originally set to roll out sometime this year (having even made an appearance at FCC way back in July) but, according to TechCrunch, the company was forced to delay its release to due to shortages resulting from the Thailand floods. Now it looks like you'll be able to finally pick one up on March 16th of next year -- at least in Japan, where it's set to run ¥18,000 (or about $230). Of course, we wouldn't be covering this if it was just an ordinary G-Shock watch. The key feature here is Bluetooth LE connectivity (part of the Bluetooth 4.0 spec), which consumes far less power than other Bluetooth variations, and allows the watch to communicate with your smartphone. As you might expect from that tiny display, that functionality is a bit more limited than something like Motorola's MOTOACTV, but it will let you see incoming calls, emails and text messages, and control some basic features like your phone's ringer or alarm.

2011 Year in review: A timeline

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 12:00 PM PST


In an industry that changes minute by minute, a year's worth of news is a lot to digest. We combed our archives in an attempt to drown out the noise and came up with a short list of the stories that made 2011. Consider this an abridged look back at the year that was. Head past the break to check it out.


2011 Year in Review

January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December

January 2011

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January 4: AMD revealed its hybrid CPU / GPU Fusion processors, complete with DirectX11 support, at CES 2011. Dedicated 1080p HD video processing and 10 plus hours of battery life quickly jumped aboard laptops, including the first fusion-powered machine, the HP Pavilion dm1 (announced the same day).

January 4: ASUS' pair of Tegra 2, 10.1-inch, keyboard sportin' tablets, the Eee Pad Slider and Transformer, were announced at CES causing quite the buzz. Not entirely abandoning the outfit's commitment to the keyboard, both shape-shifting slates put a creative spin on the tablet -- but most importantly laid the groundwork for their quad-core successor.

January 5: Putting rumors to rest and simultaneously increasing selection in the Windows market, Microsoft announced that the next major version of its OS would ship complete with ARM support. As if that weren't enough, the company said that the release would play nice with SoCs as well.

January 10: After lending us a hand in escaping a soggy and cold Washington DC last year, the Chevy Volt was named North American Car of the Year. Despite government loan issues and delayed shipping, the 93MPG-capable vehicle bested both the Nissan Leaf and Hyundai Sonata in its quest for top honors.

January 11: Apple and Verizon made a million dreams come true when the two announced the iPhone 4 would make an appearance on Big Red in February. After beginning talks way back in 2008, the wait was over as the Verizon 3G (EV-DO) only -- it lacked 4G and GSM -- handset finally became a reality.

January 19: Nintendo finally spilled the beans on the US and Europe launches of the 3DS after what felt like an eternity. The $249.99 glasses-free 3D gaming handheld was slated for a March 27th release in the US, while European gamers were able to snag one two days earlier. Sales of the device would prove somewhat less certain.

January 20: Among the details of Google's Q4 2010 financials was a bit of a bombshell: in April, Larry Page would take over as CEO. Page would assume the helm of day-to-day operations in addition to product development and strategy. Eric Schmidt stayed on board as Executive Chairman, focusing on external projects. [Photo: Getty Images]

January 27: Sony came clean with its next-generation PlayStation Portable, codenamed NGP. What we could come to know as the Vita was announced in all its quad-core ARM Cortex-A9 glory. Of course, a 5-inch OLED touchscreen, dual analog sticks and a rear-mounted touchpad were nice specs as well.


February

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February 4: We knew the Verizon iPhone launch would be huge, but after only two hours of having the handset available for pre-order, Big Red shattered its all-time record for first-day sales of a single device. The feat is even more impressive when you consider pre-orders were only open to subscribers and began at 3AM.

February 9: While HP unveiled a host of devices in the phone and tablet space, including the TouchPad, Pre 3, Veer and webOS for PCs, one thing was missing: Palm. As an apparent casualty of HP's acquisition and subsequent "scale," the source of handheld innovation for decades left behind its webOS to fight another day – for a few months, anyway.

February 10: Sure, we knew the White House was on board with the FCC's desire to free up 500MHz of spectrum. Then, Obama announced a plan to make it happen, enticing spectrum squatters with a share of the auction revenues. The plan also included a $5 billion investment for 4G networks in rural areas.

February 13: Samsung announced two highly anticipated devices: the Galaxy S II and the Galaxy Tab 10.1. The dual-core GS II was released in Europe and Asia first, North America clamoring for its variants. Not to be outdone, the 10.1-inch slate featured Android 3.0 and a dual-core Tegra 2 processor, but would face an admittedly more complicated release.

February 14: At Mobile World Congress, Intel's Senior VP Anand Chandrasekher took aim at ARM while hammering home the company's focus on battery life. Intel announced that its Medfield processor was being tested in mobile devices and that it would in fact ship in a phone, complete with the "longest usage time" we've seen.

February 15: After getting our hands on a NVIDIA roadmap, the barely conceivable quad-core Tegra chip was made official. What was known as Kal-El internally, the Tegra 3 was promised to land in tablets in August. After a few months delay, the processor shipped in the Transformer Prime; it's expected to grace the Padfone in early 2012.

February 16: It shouldn't have been a surprise that IBM's million-dollar Watson would take a pair of regular humans to school on Jeopardy. As it turns out, all three contestants knew the answer most of the time, but the supercomputer was just quicker on the draw. As a victory lap, Watson would take on the healthcare industry. [Photo: AFP / Getty Images]

February 24: While it wasn't the most original name the couple could've mustered, Apple's implementation of the Intel's Light Peak standard was unveiled in Thunderbolt. Making its debut on this year's MacBook Pro models and promising 10Gb/s transfers, we'd eventually see both storage and display implementations for the new tech.


March

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March 2: Apple made its second-generation iPad official featuring a 1GHz dual-core A5 chip and both front and rear facing cameras. The new internals promised to be twice as fast and showcase graphics performance up to nine times faster that the O.G. model. While battery life remained nearly the same, so did the price as the slates started at $499.

March 4: Whether you love or loathe Apple, the upgrade of the iPad was quite impressive. Even Samsung had to take another look at the hardware and pricing model for its Galaxy Tab 10.1. Originally expected to cost more than the 7-inch Galaxy Tab, the company eventually shipped a slimmed-down 10.1 with at $499 base price.

March 11: The massive 8.9 earthquake that rocked Japan shut down factories around the country. Several familiar manufacturers were forced close cease production due to damage. Sony and Toyota stopped operations while injuries were reported among Honda and Panasonic workers. The tragedy ultimately led to widespread losses and delays. [Photo: AFP / Getty Images]

March 17: Verizon's first 4G LTE handset was unveiled in the HTC Thunderbolt. While the 4.3-inch smartphone was impressive on paper, it packed a $250 price tag on contract. As we would come to experience for ourselves, one major flaw with the device was its battery life, as the hardware couldn't keep pace with 4G download speeds.

March 20: The AT&T / T-Mobile saga started back in March when Ma Bell agreed to the $39 billion purchase from Deutsche Telekom. AT&T claimed a significantly expanded LTE footprint among the benefits of what would have been a de facto GSM monopoly. The companies estimated that the regulatory hurdles would last 12 months...

March 22: After popping up on Sprint's site before the official word, it was announced that the HTC EVO 3D was headed to Sprint. Trumpeted as a 3D ambassador, the 4.3-inch WiMAX handset came loaded with a 1.2GHz dual-core processor and dual 5 megapixel cameras. In the end, the 3D moniker wasn't much more than a gimmick.

March 22: Samsung went back to the drawing board after the iPad 2 launch, looking to slim down their 10.1-inch Galaxy Tab. At CTIA, the company revealed its thinner revamped model as well as the smaller 8.9 version. Both slates were the first to alter a pure Android 3.0 experience by adding TouchWiz 4.0.

March 29: Looking to throw its hat in the music-streaming ring, Amazon rolled out its own service dubbed the Amazon Cloud Player. While the announcement wasn't exactly groundbreaking, it did shake things up a bit. Sony Music took the company to task in the press over streaming media rights, while Amazon remained unmoved.


April

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April 1: Following the sudden resignation of the company's CEO, Gianfranco Lanci, plans for a new strategy at Acer began to emerge. Lanci's replacement, JT Wang, announced that while the company would continue to focus on PCs, it would more aggressively attack the tablet and smartphone markets, à la Apple.

April 18: Bringing news of perhaps the biggest patent suit of 2011, The Wall Street Journal reported that Apple was taking Samsung to task for allegedly copying the iPhone and iPad. Among the offending devices at the center of the year's most wide-sweeping case were the Galaxy S and Galaxy Tab.

April 19: RIM's attempt at tackling the consumer tablet market came up short with the launch of the BlackBerry PlayBook. With basic software like native email and calendar apps absent right out the gate, it appeared the already troubled company wasn't poised to capture the hearts and dollars of casual users.

April 20: Sparking one of the year's biggest controversies, a pair of UK researchers exposed a feature in iOS 4 that constantly collected and recorded location data. Culminating in a Senate hearing on mobile privacy, the firestorm would leave no OS untouched, with Google and Microsoft being swept into the fray. [Photo: Getty Images]

April 21: Following the announcement of a strategic alliance between Nokia and Microsoft, the two tech industry heavy hitters penned a definitive agreement that would see Espoo concentrating its handset strategy on Windows Phone. The announcement brought with it the promise of a new portfolio of handsets as well as a new way of doing business.

April 21: Proving it had a few – ten to be exact – bones to pick of its own, Samsung struck back at Apple with a hefty stack of infringement claims in South Korea, Japan and Germany. Shedding light on the accusations, Reuters reported Samsung's claims centered mostly on data transmission-related technology.

April 21: Just weeks after Anonymous claimed responsibility for intermittent PlayStation Network outages, Sony's online service was down again. The company initially stated that the interruption could be the result of "targeted behavior" and could last "a full day or two," but it would last nearly a month. [Photo: Getty Images]

April 28: It took almost a full year for the white iPhone 4 to follow its ebony predecessor to market. After various delays and endless speculation, the albino handset was finally set free, with the big Apple's marketing head, Phil Schiller placing the blame on the addition of extra UV protection.


May

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May 1: Over a week after Sony's PlayStation Network went down for the count, the outfit's VP, Kaz Hirai, officially addressed the outage. Sony mentioned targeted attacks by Anonymous, but stopped short of placing blame. The FBI was brought on to investigate, but it would take a full month for restoration to begin.

May 10: Sealing the deal for a cool $8.5 billion, Microsoft announced plans to suck up internet calling giant, Skype. Under the agreement, Skype CEO Tony Banks would become president of the newly minted Microsoft Skype Division, while Redmond made clear that it would encourage development of "Skype clients on non-Microsoft platforms."

May 10: Marking a new direction for its sugary sweet operating system, Google laid bare its plans to meld its tablet-based and smartphone-oriented operating systems in "one OS that runs everywhere." Following the Ice Cream Sandwich excitement, the company announced its very own cloud-based music service, aptly titled Google Music.

May 11: Google I/O served as the jumping off point for the company's official foray into the commercial laptop game, with the introduction of not one, but two Chromebooks. The Samsung Series 5 and creatively named Acer Chromebook would be the first laptops to make it to market, running Mountain View's cloud-based Chrome OS.

May 19: Proving that not all augmented reality is dumb, Sony introduced us to SmartAR. Billed as "integrated augmented reality technology," the software touts increased responsiveness and markerless object recognition. While the outfit stopped short of offering release dates, we eventually caught it showing off its smarts on the PS Vita.

May 24: Microsoft officially announced its hotly anticipated Windows Phone 7 refresh, codenamed Mango, bringing with it the promise of 500 new features. Those updates included everything from increased social networking integration, the introduction of IE 9 and more dynamic Live Tiles. Windows Phone users would finally taste Mango's sweet nectar in September.

May 26: With the introduction of Google Wallet, mobile payment got the sort of stateside brand recognition it had been lacking. The NFC-based system made its debut with a limited number of retail partners on board – Macy's, Toys 'R Us and Subway – and the support of Citibank and MasterCard. While questions of adoption remain, Google continues to add partners, including Visa.

May 30: Proving there's room for more than one twiggy lappy on the market, Intel's Sean Maloney coined a new term for skinny PCs. Ultrabooks would contain the chipmaker's 22nm Ivy Bridge processors, measure less than 0.8-inches thick, carry sub-$1,000 price tags and significantly decrease power consumption.

June

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June 1: Continuing its dedication to a touchier, feelier UI, Microsoft raised the curtains on an awfully familiar-looking OS during Steven Sinofksy's D9 keynote. Aping its mobile-minded cousin, Windows 8 adopted a tablet-friendly interface, complete with Live Tiles and HTML5 / Javascript apps. Unlike its fruity family member, Windows wouldn't see a release by year's end.

June 2: Talk about a bad case of déjà vu. Following the seemingly unending PlayStation outage that saw some 77 million accounts hacked, Sony's online properties were hit again. This time around it was Lulz Security taking the credit for breaking into SonyPictures.com and snatching up the personal information of some 1 million users.

June 6: Apple proved that not even the cloud was safe from its i-naming convention this summer. Then CEO, Steve Jobs took the stage at this year's WWDC to outline iCloud and iTunes Match, the latter service offering repeat rippers the opportunity to legitimize their libraries for $25 a year.

June 6: The portable formerly known as the NGP made its debut at E3 this summer, touting prices of $250 and $299 for WiFi and 3G models, respectively, and aiming to revolutionize on-the-go gaming. While the Japanese PS Vita we reviewed came up short in terms of battery life, we ultimately dubbed this machine a "beast."

June 7: This year's E3 also saw the introduction of Nintendo's next console, the Wii U. The most notable addition to the Wii-fresh came in the form of a 6.2-inch touchscreen controller that demonstrated the far-reaching influence of the tablet. Other notable additions include the ability to pump out 1080p video over HDMI.

June 20: Perhaps the most bitter sweet handset launch of the year, a victim of Nokia's new Windows Phone strategy, the N9 was the first and last to run the MeeGo operating system. The combination of a fine body and a refreshing operating system would make it an Engadget favorite, but, alas, it just wasn't meant to be.

June 23: And, another one bites the dust! Just three years after its launch, word spread that Tesla's Roadster was not long for this world (or its roads). CEO Elon Musk confirmed that there were just a "handful of cars left to sell in the US," while the company solidified plans to focus on the rather less flashy Model S sedan.

June 28: While it still hasn't led to the great social networking migration of the 21st Century, the launch of Google+ did give Zuckerberg and company a much-needed kick in the pants. With features like Hangouts, which ushered in group video chats, the service proved it wasn't just another social network.


July

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July 7: Despite its designation as 'North American Car of the Year,' sales of Chevy's Volt fell behind that of Nissan's Leaf. Nissan outpaced Chevrolet by 1,121 units, selling 3,875 Leafs (Leaves?) in the first six months of 2011. That victory came in spite of a month-long setback in production due to the earthquake that hit Japan in March. [Photo: AFP / Getty Images]

July 8: Space nerds and science geeks everywhere took time out to celebrate and mourn the Space Shuttle's last mission. Taking off just four days after July 4th and touching down at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida less than two weeks later, the Atlantis would close the book on NASA's Space Shuttle program. [Photo: AFP / Getty Images]

July 12: What started out as a straightforward separation of Netflix's streaming video and DVD rental services would fast become one of the year's most notable marketing fiascos. Following an internal leak and errant advertisement, the outfit officially cut its service in two, offering either DVD-only or streaming-only unlimited plans for $7.99 each or $15.98 as a package... But the worst was yet to come.

July 14: One day after CCO Ken Parks announced that Europe's much-loved music service was going the way of Prince Akeem, Spotify was ready to stream on American shores. The initial launch was an invite-only affair, but gave paying customers the chance to jump the queue for a $5 Unlimited or $10 Premium account.

July 20: Holding true to Steve Jobs' declaration that we live in a "post-PC world," the launch of OS X Lion brought us ever closer to a mobile OS for desktop computers. While it trumpeted some 250 new features, it was its similarity to iOS that stood out most. All told, the world's "most advanced" operating system ultimately proved more evolutionary than revolutionary.

July 20: Not to be outdone by its own software announcement, the big Apple introduced a number of refreshes rocking the Thunderbolt I/O. While the company announced the impressive 27-inch Thunderbolt Display and a re-upped Mac mini, we were most taken with the Sandy Bridge-equipped MacBook Air. On a somewhat more morose note, that was the day the MacBook said goodbye.
July 26: Making its debut well before Microsoft's new fruit was ripe for the picking, Fujitsu Toshiba mobile communication's IS12T would officially become the world's first Mango handset. Alas, the phone wasn't destined for American soil, but it did give us a very colorful look at Windows Phone's future.

July 28: Following lack luster sales and a significant downgrade in its financial projections for the fiscal year, Nintendo announced that it would cut the cost of the 3DS by a full $80. The August price reduction, which put the 3DS at $169, would lead to a reported 260 percent increase in sales and a Merry Christmas for Mario's papa.


August

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August 10: HTC's investment in Dr. Dre's Beats was no AT&T&T, but it did birth a whole new slew of well-hyped handsets. The Taiwanese company took a $300 million bite out of Beats, resulting in a partnership that brought phones like the Sensation XE to market. Our review of that phone would prove that the Beats hype was just that.
August 15: Whether you saw it as a match made in heaven or a hasty grab at much-needed patents, Google's gobbling of Motorola Mobility was one of the most talked-about acquisitions of the year. The two company's became one for $12.5 billion and raised questions about what the partnership would mean for Android competitors going forward.

August 18: A little over a year after HP sucked up Palm and webOS, the company announced its plans to put a stake through the hearts of devices running the operating system. The discontinuation of such devices as the newly minted TouchPad came as part of a larger announcement that the outfit was considering a spinoff of its personal systems group. [Photo: AFP / Getty Images]

August 19: And just like that, HP's flagship tablet became one of the most sought after pieces of hardware on the market; no doubt thanks to its newly acquired $99 price tag. The TouchPad fire sale would lead to the poorly received slate taking the number three spot in worldwide tablet shipments in Q3 2011, according to IDC.

August 24: Apple founder Steve Jobs stepped down from his position as CEO after years of struggling with pancreatic cancer. He would remain on as Chairman of the Board, with then COO Tim Cook filling the open position. Jobs said he believed "Apple's brightest and most innovative days are ahead of it." [Photo: AFP / Getty Images]

August 24: We fell in love with its little brother, the NEX-C3, but Sony's NEX-7 was the real heartbreaker, or should we say, record-breaker. With its announcement, it became the first APS-C camera with a 24.3 megapixel sensor. It also became the first of its size to be a worthy replacement for a DSLR (if you ask us, anyway).

August 30: Over half a year since its initial debut, one of the year's most sought-after smartphones was finally ready to hit American shores – well, almost. The Samsung Galaxy S II was given a September 16th release date for Sprint customers under the name Epic 4G Touch and would soon after make its debut on T-Mobile and AT&T.

August 31: AT&T's acquisition of T-Mobile had some very obvious opponents at the outset, but one perhaps surprising foe came in the form of the US government. Bloomberg reported that the Justice Department filed to block the marriage of the two telcos, citing concerns that the merger would "substantially lessen competition" in the wireless space.


September

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September 1: Back at IFA, Samsung rolled out the 5.3-inch Galaxy Note alongside the Galaxy Tab 7.7 and Wave 3. The Note, which blurs the lines between phone and tablet, features a stowaway pen for note taking and a number of other tasks. Not to be overlooked, the Gingerbread-running LTE and HSPA+ handset featured the same processor as the 7.7-inch slate.

September 2: At its IFA press conference, Acer announced the Aspire S3 and the Ultrabook race was officially on. Weighing in at a mere 1.4 kilograms and mustering 13mm in thickness, the laptop features instant-on access and near-instant connectivity. The 13.3-inch displays were grouped with low voltage Core i3, i5 and i7 CPUs alongside a choice of solid-state storage or HDDs.

September 13: Microsoft kicked off its Build conference with a full-on developer preview of its next major desktop operating system, Windows 8. The company opened up downloads for devs to give them a leg up on the desktop, laptop, and tablet platform app building process. Featuring a "metro-styled" UI, graphical elements of Windows Phone 7 were brought front and center for use across devices.

September 19: For about a month, Netflix planned on spinning its DVD-by-mail service to another entity known as Qwikster. After much backlash, CEO Reed Hastings issued a string of apologies and backed off the split, keeping the division internal. Customers would remain virtually unaffected, as one site with one log-in still provides access to both DVD and streaming queues and the company said it's "done" with price hikes.

September 21: After journeying to a secret location in midtown Manhattan, we got our first look at the Nikon V1 and J1 mirrorless cameras. While both included 10.1 megapixel CMOS CX-sized sensors, these were significantly smaller than the APS-C counterpart in Sony's NEX cameras. The specs left something to be desired, but signaled a shift toward the entry-level market.

September 22: With less than a year under his belt at HP, Leo Apotheker was ousted and former eBay CEO Meg Whitman took over. After seeing its stock price plummet 47 percent, ceasing production of webOS devices and considering spinning off its PC business, the company was indeed in hot water. Whitman said the "strategy is right," but not the execution. [Photo: Getty Images]

September 27: Despite a fit of stops and starts for the line's rollout, Boeing handed off its long-awaited 787 Dreamliner to All Nippon Airways in Everett, Washington. Even with all of the delays, Boeing expects to meet ANA's 55-plane order, producing an additional 20 fuel-efficient aircraft for the Japanese airline by the end of 2013.

September 28: Perhaps no single announcement had a more widespread impact on the tablet market in 2011. With a $199 price tag, Amazon's Kindle Fire became arguably the most viable budget tablet yet. While it lacked access to the Android Market, its access to Amazon's vast media library made it a contender for casual users.





October

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October 4: Sure, the iPhone 4S looks just like its predecessor on the outside, but it's what's on the inside that counts? Right? For the first time, Apple launched three new handsets in a year (including VZW's iPhone 4) and this time around, it jammed a dual-core A5 CPU under the hood. But it was the voice of Siri that got everyone talking.

October 5: Steve Jobs died at the age of 56 after stepping down as CEO of Apple and naming Tim Cook his successor. His profound effect of the world of technology was endlessly memorialized in the press. A celebration of Steve's life was held for Apple employees some weeks later. [Photo: Justin Sullivan / Getty Images]

October 13: RIM founder Mike Lazardis issued a public apology following a global outage of BlackBerry services. In a video address, he acknowledged that RIM dropped the ball and assured customers that the company was working hard to remedy the situation. He later admitted it was "the largest outage we've ever experienced."

October 18: The long-awaited Galaxy Nexus was made official in Hong Kong as well, becoming the first handset to feature ICS. The 4.65-inch behemoth features an HD Super AMOLED display, a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, dual cameras and an embedded NFC module. Also on offer, a newfangled panorama mode and an onboard barometer.

October 18: Google took the stage in Hong Kong to unveil the next version of its Android OS, version 4.0, aka Ice Cream Sandwich. The update featured a comprehensive interface redesign and showcased a host of new features. Among the highlights were the NFC-enable Android Beam, Face Unlock and the controversial "Roboto" font.

October 19: Lytro introduced the world's first consumer light field camera, bringing infinite focus to eager photogs everywhere. Within an anodized aluminum frame, the camera houses an f/2, 8x zoom lens with 11-mega-ray light-field power for all the infinite focusing magic. It's expected sometime in 2012 with a base price of $399.

October 20: ARM unveiled is Cortex-A7 processor, which is built using a 28nm process, making it five times smaller and more efficient than the current Cortex-A8. Cheap enough to power sub-$100 phones, the Cortex-A7 can be combined with higher-power cores like the Cortex-A15; a concept ARM labeled "big.LITTLE computing."

October 26: The device Nokia was counting on to bring smiles to our phone-loving faces and a sigh of relief to its shareholders finally arrived. While it was similar in stature to our beloved N9, the Lumia 800 was dubbed the "first real Windows phone" -- it would set the standard for future Nokiasoft handsets.


November

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November 3: The Xoom 2's predecessor (you can guess the name) was the first tablet sporting Google's tablet-only Honeycomb, but failed to impress. With the second generation, Motorola improved in just about every respect, but stuck with the sticky sweet OS and a rather unpalatable price, making it yet another Android tablet in the crowd.

November 7: The introduction of Barnes & Noble's Nook Tablet proved Amazon wasn't the only book dealer with a budget tablet up its sleeve. Ringing in at just $50 more than the Kindle Fire, the Nook tablet looked nearly identical to its predecessor, the Nook Color. While it would run Gingerbread, it had its competition beat with open access to the Android Market.

November 9: Mere months after its shape-shifting predecessors made it to market, ASUS' Eee Pad Transformer Prime would become the first-ever quad-core tablet. Sporting Google's freshest OS, Ice Cream Sandwich and packing NVIDIA's Tegra 3 SoC, it would fast become our favorite Android tablet of the moment.

November 9: And just like that, Flash Player for mobile was dead. Citing its dedication to "aggressively contribute" to HTML5, Adobe gave the axe to the once-ubiquitous platform. Soon after, a product lead came forward to point the finger at Apple's reluctance to adopt Flash Player for iOS. Adobe said it would continue to nurture Flash for the desktop.

November 16: The proposed Stop Online Piracy Act ruffled more than a few feathers, including those of heavy hitters like Google and Facebook. Taking out an ad in the New York Times, a group of nine Internet companies voiced its concern that the act would impose unwanted restrictions, including monitoring of websites, and pose a threat to innovation.

November 22: It's been a long and twisted road to market for Mirasol color displays. Just a few months after Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs announced the death of its 5.7-incher, the Kyobo eReader became the first device to sport the screen. It wouldn't appear stateside, but it would make its South Korean debut for about $310.

November 27: Following a May crash-test that saw one damaged Volt battery set a car ablaze, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration launched a formal safety investigation into the North American Car of the Year. The incident led Chevy to offer refunds and loaners and consider a new battery for future models.

November 29: A little over eight months after it asked for T-Mobile's $39 billion hand in marriage, AT&T withdrew its application with the FCC, hoping to focus its attention on dealing with the DOJ. The FCC approved the move, but went on to publish its report on the proposed merger. AT&T, for its part, reaffirmed its commitment to the magenta one.




December

 Return to top

December 1: Calling to mind the year's location-tracking debacle, Trevor Eckhart revealed that wireless providers and handset makers were secretly running a sneaky program on our phones called Carrier IQ. The software had the ability to track an awful lot of information, record keystrokes and, apparently, make the mobile industry squirm.

December 2: There's no denying that RIM had a tough go of it in 2011, and, unfortunately for the troubled company its flagship tablet wouldn't be the harbinger of good news. The outfit announced that it would take a $485 million hit in the third fiscal quarter thanks to the PlayBook, which saw a sharp decline in sales following Q1.

December 3: While Apple and Samsung continue to wage a patent-fueled war the world over, a US District Court judge shot down the fruity ones request to block the sale of Galaxy devices stateside. Of course, that battle goes on, but the decision would guarantee that devices like the Galaxy SII and Galaxy Tab were still fair game for holiday shoppers.


December 12: In a rather vague restructuring, Microsoft's developer-loving Steve Ballmer announced plans to replace Andy Lees as head of the company's Windows Phone division. He would be replaced by engineering head, Terry Meyerson, but would maintain his position, at least temporarily, as president of the Windows Phone Group.

December 15: Perhaps the year's most talked about handset, aside from the nonexistent iPhone 5, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus finally got the LTE treatment thanks to Verizon Wireless. While we were pleased with the ICS smartphone, the lack of Google Wallet and poor battery life on LTE made it less enticing than its HSPA+ predecessor.

December 19: Ma Bell set out for a twelve-month run of jumping regulatory hurdles to secure the acquisition of T-Mobile, but just nine months later it was throwing in the towel. The ill-fated plan faced a massive amount of backlash from the industry as well as the government and ultimately cost AT&T $4 billion and a whole lot of heartache.

December 21: Microsoft announced its plans to scale back its presence at CES following this year's conference. Frank Shaw said the company's "product news milestones generally don't align with the show's January timing," adding that it won't have a keynote or booth in coming years. This year's keynote is expected to go out with a whimper.

December 22: It may have suffered a bitter blow in its attempt to acquire T-Mobile, but AT&T wasted no time picking up its spectrum grab. The FCC approved Ma Bell's $1.9 billion purchase of Qualcomm's 700MHz spectrum, formerly used to facilitate FLO TV, solidifying Ma Bell's plans to put the airwaves to use on its LTE network. [Photo: AP]

Billy Steele and Jon Turi contributed to this report. Illustration by Stephen Webster.

MSN Direct goes dark, SPOT watches to suffer no more

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 11:02 AM PST

SPOTWhen the noble SPOT watch was discontinued back in 2008, Microsoft promised the FM service that kept them informed would soldier on. A year later that service too had its days numbered, and now, today, the counter clicks over to zero. MSN Direct, which also pushed content to navigation devices and digital baristas, is dead for good, meaning those devices will never again receive wireless updates. They will, however, still be eligible for customer support -- but only through the end of the month. Better set yourself a reminder on something a bit more modern.

[Thanks, zbwrsncf]

iOS apps shown running on Apple TV at 720p in new video demo

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 10:05 AM PST

We've seen a jailbroken Apple TV running iOS apps but admittedly, the last demo we were treated to was brief, dimly lit and light on commentary. Now, the developers behind the Apple TV MobileX project are back with a longer, more explanatory video, and this time you can see apps like Facebook, YouTube, Safari and Maps running at 720p resolution. As you can see, the hack generally runs smoothly, though the dev narrating the video is quick to admit that certain apps such as Safari are sluggish due to the fact that he's using VNC instead of a direct input method like a remote or mouse and keyboard. Curious? We've got video of the setup just past the break.

HP Folio 13 review

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 08:00 AM PST

By the time HP unveiled its first Ultrabook, the Folio 13, other heavyweights like Acer, ASUS, Lenovo and Toshiba had already gotten a head start of up to several months. But being fashionably late to market may have worked in Hewlett-Packard's favor: the Folio 13 ($900 and up) is temptingly priced for what it is. Even the base model comes stocked with a 128GB SSD, backlit keyboard, HDMI port and Ethernet jack -- specs that undercut the ASUS Zenbook UX31 and 13-inch MacBook Air, and render the $900 Acer Aspire S3 nearly irrelevant. Not to mention, it brings business-friendly features like TPM that other Ultrabook makers have omitted from their 1.0 products. But surely HP cut some corners to get here, no? Is this really as sweet a deal as it seems? Funnily enough, the answer is "yes," on both counts.
HP Folio 13 review

Look and feel


Considering how aggressively priced this thing is, HP made surprisingly few design compromises. Okay, the bottom is made of plastic, not aluminum, and the display offers narrow viewing angles, but other than that it's well-made and yes, tasteful, even. We'll wait a moment for all those folks who hate 1366 x 768 screens and things that aren't metal to leave the room. Are they gone? Good. We think the rest of you will agree that tried-and-true brushed metal lid was a safe design choice and also, a perfectly elegant one. Even better, those smooth metal surfaces continue onto the keyboard deck, stretching down to the palm rest. Particularly after reviewing split-personality machines like the Aspire S3, we appreciate that what's underneath the lid matches the exterior.

The keyboard is black, as are the nooks and crannies between the keys, but in this case we don't mind the color-blocking: since the trackpad, hinge, and bezel are also black, the effect feels balanced, not jarring. It also helps that there's just one button above the keyboard, which helps keep the design from feeling too busy. Even the bottom has a soft, rubbery finish that makes it that much more comfortable to grip in one hand. Despite all this, there's no pretending this has the same luxurious feel as the UX31, MacBook Air or Lenovo Ideapad U300s. Still, we can assure you of this: it's clean, understated and unlikely to embarrass you when you whip it out in public. And really, we don't ask for much more than that.

HP did in fact make an additional compromise, but this one had nothing to do with keeping the cost down. At 3.3 pounds (1.5kg), the Folio is the heaviest of all the 13-inch Ultrabooks we've seen so far, the rest of which have weighed in at three pounds or less. It just so happens that we have a two-and-a-half-pound laptop lying around, and next to that the Folio naturally seems big-boned. But unless you, too, have a notebook test lab set up in your living room, you most likely won't be able to appreciate the difference between 3.0 and 3.3 pounds.


If anything, the Folio's girth comes with some practical trade-offs. Though it's relatively thick at 18mm (0.71 inches) with a boxy profile, those sides make room for an Ethernet jack, something we've only seen on one other Ultrabook, the Toshiba Portege Z835. It also sports a full-sized HDMI port, which is more common, though absent on the Zenbook line. (Apple, of course, never adopted this standard.) In addition, you'll find requisite USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports, along with a combined headphone / mic port. All told, this is one of the best selections of ports you'll find on an Ultrabook today. Between that and the long battery life (spoiler!), we can think of two very good reasons to make do with the Folio's extra pudge.

As for that plastic bottom, it's here that HP installed a pair of vents. If you enjoy resting your laptop on your legs (guilty), gird your loins because those quadriceps are going to get nice and toasty. Although this makes use of HP's CoolSense technology, expect to feel some warm (but never scorching) air on your thighs, even if you're just surfing the web. Throughout our testing, we also noticed an incessant, but not-too-distracting whirring coming from the vents. After awhile, it registered as white noise, but it's worth noting that this sound doesn't go away, and is especially discernible if you're working in an otherwise quiet space.

Keyboard and trackpad


We had a feeling when we first got hands-on with the Folio that its relatively cushy keyboard would be an improvement over what all of the other early Ultrabooks have to offer. After all, laptops like the UX31 and Aspire S3 didn't exactly set the bar high: if the keys weren't too shallow, they were undersized, or failed to register the occasional press. Here, though, there's plenty of travel, and they're bouncy enough that you're not likely to suffer any dropped letters. HP also enlarged all of the major keys (Caps Lock, Shift, Enter and Backspace, etc.), thereby removing the last likely obstacle for touch typists. As is the case with other Ultrabooks, the arrow keys are quite miniature, though the right and left ones are at least wide enough to accommodate the pad of your finger; the up and down ones are more tightly packed, but we still think you won't have much trouble finding the one you want.

The keyboard is also backlit, a welcome feature on an Ultrabook this inexpensive. The backlighting's not enabled by default, though, so be sure to press F5 if you need (or just crave) that white glow. Which brings us to one other thing we like about the Folio: its brightness, volume and multimedia controls are built into the top row of keys, meaning you don't need the fn button to take advantage of them. This may or may not impress some of you, but we always appreciate the convenience of pausing songs with the push of a button, and would rather avoid a two-fingered keyboard shortcut.


Were you waiting for a "but"? Because there is one. While far from terrible, the trackpad isn't our favorite. Oddly, though, our complaints mark a reversal of what we usually have to say about touchpads with integrated touch buttons. This time, the problem is with the button mechanism itself: it's stiff, and not especially easy to press. It's ironic because HP succeeded where other laptop makers too often stumble: the drivers (courtesy of Synaptics) seem pretty fine-tuned! Cursor navigation feels precise, and multi-touch gestures such as pinch to zoom and two-fingered scrolling are easy to pull off. It's too bad, then, that HP can't loosen up the touch buttons through a mere software update.

In case any of you happen to have a disparate experience with the touchpad and find it flakier than we did, you can disable the pad by double-tapping the small icon drawn in the upper left corner of the trackpad. When it's turned off, a small LED light beneath the space bar will glow orange, and you'll hear a sound, confirming the touchpad has been disabled.

Display and sound


Since we warned you about the display, the fact that you've made it this far suggests a TN screen with 1366 x 768 resolution isn't necessarily a deal-breaker. And maybe it's a good thing you're so open-minded, since almost all the Ultrabooks we've seen (and know are coming) have the same pixel count, especially if they start in the $800 to $900 range. We haven't yet seen an Ultrabook rocking an IPS panel either, so for now, TN it is.

Starting with the good, the bezels here are quite narrow, though any benefit there is negated by the fact that the screen is ringed with a border of black pixels. And though the resolution will be a turn-off for some shoppers, it never got in our way. Yours truly wrote this entire review on this laptop, all while juggling seven or eight browser tabs for email, Twitter and YouTube. In the rare moments we did feel cramped (our Gmail labels pushing our Gchat list off the page, for instance), we just used pinch to zoom to expand our viewing area.

This really isn't a good display, even if you evaluate it with artificially lower standards.

That said, this really isn't a good display, even if you evaluate it with artificially lower standards. For starters, it's a dim one. The brightness is muted enough that if you're watching a movie in a room with lots of natural light pouring in, the maximum setting likely won't cut it. (It is sufficiently bright in darkened rooms, though we've yet to find a display that isn't.)

Aside from that, the viewing angles are about as narrow as you'd expect from a low-quality, TN panel. Whether you place the laptop on an airplane tray table or rest it on your legs, you'll want to fiddle with the screen and make sure the angle is just right before settling in to watch a movie. Dip it too far back and the contrast becomes severe; push it forward and the screen washes out. Viewing from the sides is also a wash, not just because of the loss in contrast, but because of the screen's reflective finish.

What's striking about the Folio's audio is that it isn't powered by Beats. For this -- a business-grade product, as far as HP is concerned -- the company went with Dolby Advanced Audio. As you might expect, then, it's missing the exaggerated bass notes you'd find on HP's consumer laptops, but that speaker built into the hinge is at least loud. Not booming enough for your next house party, mind you, but loud enough that even with the volume set to 24 out of 100, you should be able to hear a song playing across an apartment, even with the laptop sitting in a different room.

Performance

PCMark Vantage
3DMark06
HP Folio 13 (1.6 GHz Core i5-2467M, Intel HD Graphics 3000) 6,701 1,824 3,387
Toshiba Portege Z835 (1.4 GHz Core i3-2367M, Intel HD Graphics 3000) 5,894 3,601
Lenovo IdeaPad U300s (1.8 GHz Core i7-2677M, Intel HD Graphics 3000) 9,939 3,651
ASUS Zenbook UX31 (1.7 GHz Core i5-2557M, Intel HD Graphics 3000) 10,508 4,209
Acer Aspire S3 (1.6 GHz Core i5-2467M, Intel HD Graphics 3000) 5,367 3,221
13-inch, 2011 MacBook Air (1.7 GHz Core i5-2557M, Intel HD Graphics 3000) 9,484 4,223
Samsung Series 9 (1.7 GHz Core i5-2537M, Intel HD Graphics 3000) 7,582 2,240
Notes: the higher the score the better. For 3DMark06, the first number reflects score with GPU off, the second with it on.

The Folio 13 should be evidence that it's not always wise to size up a laptop's performance based on benchmark scores alone. The numbers tell a believable enough story: as configured with a Core i5-2467M processor, 4GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD, it's faster than the Aspire S3, which has a hybrid 5,400RPM drive. It also edges out the Portege Z835, which has an SSD, but a slower Core i3 CPU. Still, it doesn't come close to matching the MacBook Air, IdeaPad U300s or Zenbook UX31, all of which have an SSD and Core i5 CPU.

In the real world, though, the gap feels smaller. For starters, the Folio 13 boots in 18 seconds, matching the U300s and other machines with nearly five-digit PCMark scores. And, according to the disk benchmark ATTO, its Samsung SSD reaches top read speeds of 236 MB/s and max writes of 192 MB/s. That's not that far off the U300s, whose read / write speeds peaked at 250 MB/s and 200 MB/s, respectively. (The Zenbook UX31 is in a league of its own with 550 MB/s reads and 500 MB/s writes, but every Ultrabook, not just the Folio, has failed to replicate that.)

Speaking more anecdotally, the Folio 13 succeeds as a primary PC. Not only did we write this entire review on it, but during our testing period we used it as our only PC for email, Twitter, YouTube and Grooveshark. As an everyday machine, it's as capable as the rest -- a fact that could easily get lost in a table full of benchmark scores.

Update: We re-ran 3DMark06 and the average score jumped from 1,824 to 3,387, which falls in line with what we've seen from other Ultrabooks with Intel's HD 3000 card. Naturally, we've updated the table above as well.

Battery life

Laptop
Battery Life
HP Folio 13 6:08
Toshiba Portege Z835 5:49
ASUS Zenbook UX31 5:41
13-inch, 2011 MacBook Air 5:32 (Mac OS X) / 4:12 (Windows)
Lenovo IdeaPad U300s 5:08
Samsung Series 9 4:20
Acer Aspire S3 4:11

The Folio's six-cell battery is rated for up to nine hours of use and though we haven't figured out how to achieve that kind of runtime, you should easily enjoy about eight hours of juice if you use Windows' Power Saver battery profile and are just doing things in the browser. As for our admittedly taxing battery test, which involves looping a movie off the local disk with WiFi on and the brightness fixed at 65 percent, the Folio managed six hours and eight minutes, supplanting the Portege Z835 as the longest-running Ultrabook we've seen.

Software


In an uncommon move, HP is selling the Folio through both its consumer and business channels, and the software load will vary slightly depending on where you buy it. Our review laptop was one a consumer would have bought, and came stocked with staples such as Skype 5.5, Windows Live Essentials 2011, Evernote, Blio, CyberLink's YouCam camera software and trials of Microsoft Office and Norton Internet Security. The brunt of the pre-installed software comes courtesy of HP, though. This package includes utilities such as Security Assistant, Setup Manager, Support Assistant and Power Manager, along with the aptly named MovieStore. If you nab this through one of the business channels, you'll also get HP Protect Tools, a suite of utilities that cover things like encryption and backup.

As with other laptops it's launched this year, HP included its so-called Launch Box software, which are really just pre-programmed folders that live inside the Start Menu and organize all of the apps HP has helpfully installed for you. Skype, for instance, can be found under "Communication and Chat." You can, if you like, throw your own apps inside those folders -- or, you know, create your own folders, or pin programs or carry on with whatever organizational system you already had in place.

Configuration options and the competition

Though our tester unit rings in at $1,049, the Folio is available starting at a more palatable $900. In fact, the key specs (Core i5 CPU, 4GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD remain the same); the only difference is that the model we reviewed ran Windows 7 Professional (despite not having Protect Tools installed), whereas the $900 model runs Home Premium.

If you've been wondering whether you should buy the HP Folio 13, the answer is probably yes.

We touched on this briefly earlier, but the Folio 13 really does undercut many of the other Ultrabooks out there. Let's start with the one that isn't technically an Ultrabook, but that all of the Ultrabooks have been aping. The 13-inch MacBook Air starts at $1,299 with a slightly faster 1.7 GHz Core i5 processor, 4GB of RAM, Intel GMA graphics and a 128GB SSD. For the money, you also get fewer ports: two USB 2.0 sockets, an SD slot, separate headphone and mic ports and Thunderbolt. As we've seen, its battery life is shorter than the Folio 13's, though its performance might be faster. Above all, what it still has over the Folio and other Ultrabooks is the combination of a smooth, easy-to-press trackpad and a comfortable keyboard. None of the contenders we've seen have both a keyboard and touchpad that's as comfy, though some, such as the Lenovo IdeaPad U300s, have come close, while others, such as the Folio, have succeeded in one area but not the other.

We can also see where you'd choose the Folio 13 over the UX31, which starts at about $1,100 with a Core i5 CPU, 4GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD, but no backlit keyboard. Its battery life is long, but not as long as the Folio's, and it's missing an HDMI socket. Before we simplify this comparison too much, though, it has a 1600 x 900 panel, and its performance remains unbeatable. Still, its keyboard is so shallow that it often fails to register key presses. The UX31 has a lot going for it, but now that the Folio's on the scene with a lower price, longer battery life and better keyboard, it would seem to be the more tempting buy.

It's a similar story with the IdeaPad U300s, which is going for $1,200-plus with similar specs, minus a backlit keyboard and SD slot. (For what it's worth, its keyboard and trackpad are among the more comfortable we've seen on an Ultrabook to date.) All told, the Folio 13 meets its stiffest competition in the Toshiba Portege Z835, which also starts at $900 and has a backlit keyboard, 128GB SSD, long-lasting battery and Kensington lock slot (if that matters to you). And despite having a robust selection of ports, it weighs just 2.47 pounds, which gives the Folio 13 less of an excuse for being as hefty as it is. Ultimately, both offer excellent value and performance for the money, along with long battery life. It's up to you which is more important: the Portege's extraordinarily light design, or the Folio's business-friendly software, spacious keyboard and elegant aesthetics.

One thing we know for sure: there's no reason to reject the Folio 13 in favor of the $800 Acer Aspire S3: it's slower, doesn't last as long on a charge and has an uglier design, including a shallower keyboard.

Wrap-up

If you've been wondering whether you should buy the HP Folio 13, the answer is probably yes. (After all, we're guessing people who want a higher-res display and lighter build have already moved on.) There's just so much to love in this $900 machine: it boots quickly, includes a robust selection of ports, can be configured with helpful business features and offers a refreshingly comfortable typing experience. The biggest things we'd change are the stiff trackpad and the dim, glossy display, which frankly, we expected to find in a machine this inexpensive anyway. We also wish it managed to be as light as the Toshiba Portege Z835, though this is hardly a deal-breaker. If you can adjust to the touchpad and aren't picky about screen quality, we think you'll be as pleased as we were, though it might still be worth holding off and waiting to see what CES brings next week.

PSA: iPhone alarm clock not working again? Time to update

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 07:31 AM PST

iphonehttp://www.engadget.com/2012/01/01/psa-iphone-alarms-not-working-again-2012-feeling-a-lot-like-20/Hey, remember that madcap time last year when iPhone alarms didn't work on January 1st or 2nd? Still having the same issue this year? Well, you might want to think about updating. We're seeing a flood of reports from users whose alarm clocks are not working again this year, but from what we're able to tell that's because the affected users haven't updated their devices past iOS 4.2.1. If that includes you, dear reader, now would be a great time to tether yourself and click your way through whatever iTunes recommends. There's a whole new major version out there waiting for you! That said, if you're still enjoying your iPhone 3G, we're sorry to say 4.2.1 is as high as you can go on the iOS food chain. Maybe 2012 is a good year for a new phone?

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Sony cuts Tablet S price by $100, now starts at $400 for 16GB

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 07:04 AM PST

New year, new pricing strategy? We just got word that Sony's cut the price of its 9.4-inch Tablet S by $100, so that it now starts at $400 for the 16GB model, and $500 for the 32GB flavor. The move follows a temporary $50 price cut, which Sony announced on December 15th and said would last through the end of the year. So, the fact that the outfit has lowered the price by another fifty bucks, and permanently, can't bode well for sell-through figures. In any case, that takes the Tablet S out of Transformer Prime and iPad 2 territory, though it now finds itself in an increasingly crowded field of mid-range slates, a category populated by the likes of the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus, the original ASUS Transformer and both Toshiba Thrive tablets.

Refresh Roundup: week of December 26, 2011

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 06:00 AM PST

Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery from the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!

Official Android updates
  • Notion Ink Adam: The company posted an official "pre-alpha" ROM of ICS on its blog and is available for your download. It doesn't offer any sound, and the camera and 3G aren't working yet. Sleep mode also doesn't appear to be an option at this point. [Android Community]
  • ASUS Eee Pad Transformer: Another bug fix is out, known as build 8.6.5.21. It's running Android 3.2.1 (no ICS yet, sorry) and includes a few minor tweaks to the firmware. [Droid-Life]
  • Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 4G LTE (Verizon): a major refresh known as version EL01 is ready for rollout and finally offers TouchWiz as well as Bluetooth 3.0 support, security patches and some enhancements in email, WiFi and DivX. [Droid-Life]
  • Huawei MediaPad: We've seen some photos from China that show an official build of ICS installed on the device -- done in similar fashion to ICS for the Honor -- suggesting that we may see one become available in the very near future. [AndroidOS]
Unofficial Android updates, custom ROMs and misc. hackery
  • Motorola Droid RAZR: A bootstrap method to get Clockworkmod recovery is now available courtesy of XDA-Dev. [Android Community]
  • Samsung Epic 4G: CyanogenMod announced that the CM7 repo is now available for the Epic's Gingerbread update. [Google+]
  • HTC Thunderbolt: The latest radio firmware for the device has been made available for use on any ROM. The only caveat here is the fact that the file's been known to unroot phones, so just make sure you have a Nandroid backup somewhere on your MicroSD. [Android Community]
Other platforms
  • Samsung Bada: Samsung Spain announced on its Facebook page that Bada 2.0 is still coming to some older Wave models (all but the Wave 525 and Wave 533, that is), but the update won't arrive until sometime in the first quarter of 2012. Samsung Italy echoed the news, but added that it would specifically roll out in March. [UnwiredView]
  • Windows Phone: Microsoft is reportedly testing a fix for the SMS bug discovered last week. The bug was a vulnerability that made it possible to cripple a device simply by sending it a SMS message containing a specific string of characters. [WPCentral]
Refreshes we covered this week

Fisker Karma recall is official, 239 cars will need their battery packs swapped

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 03:11 AM PST

The folks at Fisker are probably more excited to see the calendar roll over than anyone, as a tumultuous 2011 comes to an end with another setback for the Karma. A battery issue previously thought to affect around 50 cars will actually result in the recall of 239. GigaOM points out an NHTSA notice confirming a problem with the positioning of hose clamps on the high-voltage Li-Ion batteries. It could result in said hoses leaking coolant into the battery creating the risk of an electrical short-circuit (still not seeing how this is a bad thing) and fire (oh), which the company will resolve by replacing the batteries. The recall probably covers everyone out there rolling like Walden Schmidt, since the CEO announced December 21st that 225 cars had been shipped and its factory was producing 25 cars per day. Still, assuming the ~$96k price tag isn't an issue, would you really let a little thing like potentially bursting into flames keep you away from such a sleek, smooth handling luxury sedan that puts 657hp of hybrid power at your disposal? Neither would we.
Show full PR text
FISKER / KARMA
2012

Manufacturer:
FISKER AUTOMOTIVE, INC.
Mfr's Report Date:
DEC 21, 2011
NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID Number:
11V598000
NHTSA Action Number:
N/A

Component:
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: BATTERY: PROPULSION SYSTEM
Potential Number of Units Affected:
239

Summary:
FISKER IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2012 FISKER KARMA PASSENGER CARS MANUFACTURED FROM JULY 1, 2011, THROUGH NOVEMBER 3, 2011. WITHIN THE HIGH-VOLTAGE BATTERY, CERTAIN HOSE CLAMPS MAY HAVE BEEN POSITIONED INCORRECTLY DURING ASSEMBLY. IF POSITIONED INCORRECTLY, THE BATTERY COMPARTMENT COVER COULD INTERFERE WITH THE HOSE CLAMPS, POTENTIALLY CAUSING A COOLANT LEAK FROM THE COOLING HOSES.

Consequence:
IF COOLANT ENTERS THE BATTERY COMPARTMENT, AN ELECTRICAL SHORT COULD OCCUR POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A FIRE.

Remedy:
FISKER WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE HIGH-VOLTAGE BATTERY WITH A NEW PART AT NO COST TO THE OWNER. THE SAFETY RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING JANUARY 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT FISKER CONSUMER AFFAIRS AT 1-855-575-7577, OPTION 2, 6AM - 7PM (PST) MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY.

Notes:
FISKER'S RECALL CAMPAIGN NUMBER IS 51611001. OWNERS MAY ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), OR GO TO

Red Digital Cinema sues competitor Arri over e-mail hacking, adds new charges to the list

Posted: 01 Jan 2012 12:04 AM PST

The behind-the-lens drama between camera makers Red Digital Cinema and Arri has taken yet another step recently, as Red filed suit December 21st against Arri alleging corporate espionage. Former Arri executive Michael Bravin has already plead guilty to criminal charges that he illegally accessed emails at his previous employer, camera distributor Band Pro Film & Digital. At the time Red founder Jim Jannard also revealed his personal account had been compromised, and now The Wrap reports the company is accusing Arri of "unfair competition based on email hacking, invasion of privacy, conversion, misappropriation of trade secrets and unlawful trade practices, among other charges". The extra charges come as a result of information it has indicating other Arri executives were aware of the hacking. Other than listening in on conversations between Red and Band Pro, Arri also stands accused of launching a false advertising campaign ahead of the launch of the Alexa, while Bravin posted with a pseudonym on RedUser.net. Hit the source link for additional details on the sordid affair, we'll find out what can be proven if / when Red gets the jury trial it's seeking.

Meizu MX launches today, lines dotted all over China as usual (updated)

Posted: 31 Dec 2011 10:51 PM PST

This time last year we witnessed the Meizu M9 madness in Shenzhen, so we decided to pay our favorite gadget city another visit for the MX launch today (still the 1.4GHz dual-core model, of course). Surprisingly, the lines in Huaqiangbei this time were significantly shorter, but we were told that this was due to tighter security measures as requested by the local authorities -- if you've seen last year's photos you'll know why. Instead, this year the customers are told to line up only when they get a phone call; but a few keen beans still arrived last night, and the first guy in Shenzhen even turned down hotel accommodation offered by Meizu. Yep, that's how you do a "first" properly, folks. Other big cities in China also saw a similar phenomenon, including Beijing, Guangzhou and even Hong Kong -- it's hard to miss the long line formed along the south end of Sai Yeung Choi Street outside the new Mongkok store.

Meizu also informed us that the MX's final hardware benefits from an improved camera (tweaked white balance and the lens now benefits from an oleophobic coating), while the software's been giving many enhancements since our review -- these are mostly the weird default settings we mentioned previously, such as the max clock speed out of the box (now at 1.4GHz instead of 1GHz) and the default video recording resolution (now 1080p instead of the weird 1,080 x 720 setting). Oh, and if you're still rocking the older M9, Meizu has confirmed that it'll also get the Ice Cream Sandwich update later this year, so stay tuned. More in the press release after the break.

Update: A Meizu engineer confirmed on the company's forum that from now on, all Meizu Android devices -- including the M9 -- will receive both a vanilla OS build and a Meizu-customised build. That said, the phones won't support simultaneous dual-system, so you must pick your destiny. Thanks, Andi!
Meizu MX launch in Hong Kong

Meizu MX launch in Shenzhen
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MEIZU MX On Sale Across China Starting On January 1, 2012


HONG KONG - December 30, 2011 - MEIZU will begin selling its latest flagship device, the MEIZU MX, on January 1, 2012 in its retail stores across China. This highly anticipated smartphone has received a warm reception, with the market displaying great interest both in its home market, China, and also internationally from all corners of the world.

Since starting the pre-order process on December 1, 2012, MEIZU received an overwhelming amount of pre-orders. The MEIZU MX launch is reminiscent of the MEIZU M9 launch one year prior, where massivley long lines were formed in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Zhuhai. Priority on the launch day will therefore be to provide pre-order customers with their units.

Hong Kong Launch
The launch day on January 1 represents MEIZU's first step outside of mainland China, as the MEIZU MX will launch simultaneously in the MEIZU Store in Hong Kong's busiest shopping area; Sai Yeung Choi Street in Mong Kok.

Queue registration will begin at 9:00 AM, with queue numbers being handed out on a first come, first serve basis. The MEIZU Store in Hong Kong will have two lines on launch day, one for pre-order customers and one for walk-in customers. Focus will be placed on satisfying pre-order customers, as the supply for walk-in customers will be very limited.

Continuous Improvement
Since releasing the MEIZU MX Engineering Sample units to the media on December 8, MEIZU has collected user feedback from across the globe and implemented a vast amount improvements and bug fixes, both to the hardware and the software of the device. The MEIZU MX is therefore the result of many people's work from around the world.

Some of the more prominent hardware improvements include a anti-fingerprint coating to the camera lens, easier to use hardware buttons, improved aesthetics of the internal circuitry along with improvements in overall build quality.

MEIZU M9 Price Adjustment
Coinciding with the MEIZU MX launch, the price of MEIZU's last phone, MEIZU M9 has been adjusted to 1,699 CNY, down from its previous 2,009 CNY. Released on January 1, 2011, MEIZU M9 was MEIZU's first Android phone and China's first flagship smartphone. It features a 326 PPI high resolution screen, 1GHz Cortex A9 CPU, and unsurpassed value for money.

Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
An upgrade to the new Flyme OS based on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich has been promised for both devices later in the year.

About MEIZU
Founded in 2003, MEIZU began producing music players which later came to be world renowned. Since 2008, all efforts have been focused on making great smartphones, which has made the company one of China's most loved smartphone brands. As a company, MEIZU seeks to transcend convention and imagination, with the ultimate goal of making products worthy of dreams.

Forget Pay N' Spray: GTA3 for Android and iOS allows proper user mods

Posted: 31 Dec 2011 09:31 PM PST

A group of cool cats has figured out how to add new textures and other mods to cars and buildings in the Android version of Grand Theft Auto 3. The XDA Developers forum is a good place to start for mod file downloads and the files can be inserted in the sdcard/android/data/com.rockstar.gta3/files/gta3/ directory (which happens to be the same directory structure as the PC version). Click the break to see a video of one of the car mods in action and remember, your ride isn't ideal for drive-by shootings unless Xzibit says so.

Update: Jim wrote in to say that the iOS version works as well!

Ask Engadget: best live traffic standalone GPS?

Posted: 31 Dec 2011 06:28 PM PST

We know you've got questions, and if you're brave enough to ask the world for answers, here's the outlet to do so. This week's Ask Engadget inquiry is from Elliot 'Mr. E' M. Smith who is trying to avoid Los Angeles rush-hour traffic with the help of his GPS. If you're looking to send in an inquiry of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com.
"I prefer using a GPS unit, not my phone, when I'm driving around LA. The best traffic I've seen is via Google Maps, since it shows surface traffic for streets in Hollywood. Navteq HD Radio maps (which is what I use now) doesn't show this kind of information: it's only for highways. There aren't any highways between Hollywood and Beverly Hills, but there's a ton of traffic, which you're blind to when using a standalone GPS. Is there an easy way to get surface traffic data on a GPS unit rather than forking out for a phone / tablet and $30/month data plan? Thanks!"
It's a tricky one to round off the year, dear commenters. Is there a GPS unit with live-traffic that you hold dear to your hearts? Does it let you glide around the gridlock with the Beach Boys cranked up? Let your fingers do the commenting in the space below.

Holga brings its retro, rotary, filter phone case to the Galaxy S II

Posted: 31 Dec 2011 04:29 PM PST

Holga caseWe get it. Really, we do -- photo filters fun. We also get that sometimes an app just isn't gonna cut it. You want quick access to double, triple or even quadruple image lenses as well as colored overlays. Well, iPhone 4 and 4S owners had their prayers answered in mid November a $25 Holga case, now Android fans have their own version -- provided those Android fans own a Galaxy S II. If you don't mind adding some bulk to your super-svelte super-phone head on over to the source link to get your own rotary-style lens case for the somewhat reasonable price of $28.

cTrix forges Atari 2600 and guitar together, mesmerizes nerds (video)

Posted: 31 Dec 2011 01:51 PM PST

If you're going to rock out, you might as well do so with a video game console from the '70s as the core of your guitar. In fact, this is precisely what modder cTrix has done with his gATARI2600. In his configuration, he's able to write and play new music through an Atari 2600 by using an EPROM programmer (a software application he wrote) and daughterboards to feed the new music back through the instrument. The gATARI also features equalizer and flange pedals, a track selector, and whammy bars that allow the player to switch tracks and make changes on the fly. No details have been posted as to how to make your own just yet, but click past the break to watch cTrix jam both thoroughly and effectively at Blip Fest 2011 in Japan.

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

Insert Coin: A look back at ten top projects from 2011

Posted: 31 Dec 2011 12:00 PM PST

2011 has been a tremendous year for tech -- Amazon launched a $200 Android tablet, AT&T and Verizon continued their LTE expansion, Apple killed off the Mac mini's SuperDrive and Samsung introduced a well-received killer 5.3-inch smartphone. But tiny tech startups made their mark as well, proving that you don't need an enormous R&D budget to spur innovation. Still, development isn't free, and unless your social circle includes eager investors, seed money has been traditionally hard to come by.

For many of this year's indie devs, crowdfunding sites have been the answer, with Kickstarter leading the pack. We've seen an enormous variety of projects -- including a deluge of duds and plenty more semi-redundant iPhone accessories -- but a few treasures soared above the swill to be featured in our Insert Coin series, with many of those meeting their funding goals and even making their way into the hands of consumers. Now, as 2011 draws to a close, we've gone through this past year's projects to single out our top ten, and they're waiting for your consideration just past the break.


Olloclip for iPhone 4

Our inaugural featured product was also the first to ship, making its way to early adopters around the same time it hit our reviews queue in July. This tiny combo optic is a solid option for smartphone photogs looking to bring a bit of originality to their on-the-go art without a generic single-tap filter app. Kickstarter contributors got to take one home for $45, but if you didn't pre-order months ago, $70 will net you a three-in-one Olloclip, in black or red.

Funded: $68,201

Eyez by ZionEyez

Sure, they look innocent enough, but these thick-framed black specs have a tech-enabled secret lurking just beside the lens. Upon close inspection, you'll notice a tiny 720p video cam, with a rechargeable battery, WiFi and Bluetooth modules, and other electronics tucked away inside the arm. No word on when they'll ship, but the design team is working around the clock to prepare a production-ready sample.

Funded: $343,415

Trigger Trap

Remote DSLR shutter releases have been around for years, but Trigger Trap is nothing like the rest. This open source device leaves the configuring up to you, bringing with it an infinite number of possibilities for snapping some frames. With a bit of additional hardware and programming, you can fire the shutter with a hand clap, or a laser pointer, or even a cell phone call. And if all else fails, there's a timer mode too.

Funded: $77,262

Grow a New Eye

So what's gadgety about a human eye? Well, that's not what you're looking at -- not in the traditional sense, at least. Tanya Vlach lost one of her eyes in an accident, and is hoping to embed a 720p camera in an ocular prosthesis, letting her snap stills with a blink, or stream video through a connected app. Generous donors helped her raise the funds necessary to commission an engineer, and we hope to hear more soon.

Funded: $19,631

6dot Braille Labeler

It's not the first Braille labeler, but 6dot includes a built-in Braille keyboard for those familiar with the language, along with the ability to connect a standard QWERTY keyboard so the rest of us can print Braille as well. A final version has yet to ship, but if you didn't commit during the Kickstarter promo, you can add your name and email address to join the pre-order queue.

Funded: $54,559

Teagueduino

We're no strangers to the world of Arduino, but as simple as the gadget may appear, you'll need to know your way around a soldering iron and have a bit of coding experience to take full advantage. With Teagueduino, a set of snap-in I/O terminals stands in for the solder, while drop-down menus help simplify things on the programming end.

Funded: $76,697

Romo - The Smartphone Robot

How do you make a smartphone even more mobile? Well, you give it wheels. Meet Romo, the smartphone robot. This compact four-wheeled contraption responds to frequency triggers controlled by an Android or iOS app and sent through your device's headphone jack. Three apps will ship at launch, including RomoRemote, which uses your handset's hardware for remote live view and public address. $99 gets you a Romo when it ships in February.

Funded: $114,796

Twine

Employing a concept similar to the Trigger Trap above, Twine uses a variety of self-contained sensors to send a notification, rather than fire a camera shutter. A built-in WiFi module transmits parameters to Spool, a web-based control app, which then fires off an email or text when triggered. Dryer stopped vibrating? Laundry's done! Too cold in the nursery? Mom gets a text to turn up the heat.

In progress: $425,000+

Multitouch Keyboard and Mouse

Sure, they're thinner and sleeker than ever, but our keyboards and mice have remained fundamentally unchanged since inception. This combo sets to shake things up, displaying characters projected from LEDs on a pane of glass above, with a camera standing by to recognize keystrokes. What it lacks in tactile feedback it gains in allure. $350 locks in your order for the set, with an estimated April ship date.

In progress: $130,000+

ODDIO1 Shuffle Headphones

We've seen an abundance of Apple accessories this year, from major manufacturers and on Kickstarter alike. Still, the ODDIO1's sleek design and $35 pre-order price tag have us intrigued, and if you're looking for a simple all-in-one listening solution for jogs or trips to the gym, $84 isn't a bad deal -- especially when you consider that a $49 iPod shuffle is included.

In progress: $12,000+
Jon Turi contributed to this report.

Google Health's New Year's Resolution is to cease to exist, countdown begins to save your data

Posted: 31 Dec 2011 10:56 AM PST

Back in June, Google announced that it would be 'retiring' Health effective January 1, 2012. Now, everything appears to be on-track for the shutdown, with Google sending out a final reminder to Health customers earlier today. You have until the stroke of midnight to access the service or port your data to a competitor -- after which point you'll no longer be able to view information saved to your account, though it'll remain available to download in .zip format for another year. Want to know more? Hit up the source link for the Google Health FAQ.
at 12:26 PM

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