Section: Gadgets / Other, ebooks  Just in case you were thinking about placing a pre-order for the Barnes & Noble Nook, you may want to slow down a little bit because at this point there is virtually no chance of seeing one for Christmas. That is unless you find someone willing to sell theirs rip you off by charging a hefty premium.
But jokes aside, the Barnes & Noble pre-orders are now sitting with a shipping date of February 1, 2010. Yup, you can place your order today, and not even see the device for more than a full calendar month. Of course, its easy to poke fun at Barnes & Noble about now, but I seem to remember pretty long stretches where the Amazon Kindle was just about impossible to get (again, without being ripped off) during those early days. Product [Barnes & Noble] Via [Gizmodo] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Computers, Mobile Computers, Hardware, Laptops As a sit here with my laptop nearly burning my leg, it’s stories like this that scare me. A one year old Dell Mini proceeded to growl like an angry chihuahua as its owner unplugged it and placed in on the wooden floor. For only a few minutes the Mini would hiss, sizzle, and smoke leaving a hole in the casing and a scorch mark on the wooden floor. Its owner, a lady name Hannah, describes the event: I heard a loud popping sound and the room immediately filled with smoke while the laptop hissed and sizzled. It died down, I pushed it with my foot, and it started hissing again. There is a large scorch mark on my floor. It goes without saying, I am glad the laptop was not on my couch …or in an airplane.
Lucky for Hannah, Dell paid for her to send her newly melted laptop back for inspection. They also sent her a brand new laptop with better specs. No cause of the battery malfunction has been determined. Read [Geek.com] Full Story » | Written by Greg Billetdeaux for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Gadgets / Other, ebooks, Household, Lifestyle Earlier in the week, it was reported that some people who pre-ordered their Nooks would not receive them by Christmas even though they were supposed to get them by November 30th. To compensate, Barnes and Noble guaranteed at least a $100 online gift card if they didn’t receive their Nook by then. Well now it seems they have some better news. If you pre-ordered your Nook and were given a pre-holiday ship date, you will receive your Nook by Christmas. Here is the full statement: We’re happy to report that all customers who pre-ordered nooks and were given a pre-holiday estimated shipping date will be sent their nooks in time to receive them by Christmas. As you know, there’s been an overwhelmingly positive response and unprecedented demand since Barnes & Noble announced its new eBook reader on October 20th. Customer demand continues to be strong and new orders will be fulfilled beginning February 1, 2010.
So even though it seemed like it would never come, the time has finally come, for some of you… Read [Engadget] Full Story » | Written by Greg Billetdeaux for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Communications, Cellphones, Cellular Providers, Smartphones, Mobile, Web, Google According to Engadget, some new important details have surfaced about the highly anticipated Google Nexus One phone. First off, it is said to be available by invite only, so it will probably be hard to obtain at first. The phone could be available as early as January 5th, and it is rumored to become available via T-Mobile at some point in the future. In terms of specs, there were a few images leaked covering nearly all the specs about the Nexus One, and it is shaping up to be a pretty hot phone. There will be 4GB of memory on board in the form of microSD card, and it can be expandable up to 32GB, also there is 512MB of RAM and ROM. It features a large 3.7 inch touch screen, operates on Google Android 2.1, supports Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 5MP camera with flash, digital compass, and accelerometer. It can download at 7.2 Mbps and upload at 2Mbps. It uses a 3.5mm headphone jack so it can support conventional headphones, has only a few physical keys and a trackball, and it supports many audio and video formats. No word yet on battery life for the device. It will be interesting to see how many more details about the phone such as pricing and availability come available in the next few weeks. But in terms of specs, the phone is pretty solid. Via [Engadget] Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Computers, Software / Applications  Microsoft recently lost a court appeal to a Toronto based company i4i. The terms of this loss stated that Microsoft must stop selling Office 2007 after January 11th because Microsoft infringed on some XML handling algorithm.
Luckily, since the appeal began, Microsoft started preparing for the future and began work on making the required fixes to Office 2007. The removed feature was the support for reading custom-generated XML within DOCX, DOCM and pure XML files. Office will still be able to open files with this code inside but it will no longer be displayed to comply with the infringement claims. And since these terms apply only to software sold after January 11th, it is unlikely that a patch will be released. Also, Office 2008 for Mac and Office 2010 are not subject to those terms because they didn’t implement the technology at the height of i4i’s lawsuit. Unfortunately, Microsoft will still have to pay the $290 million in damages to i4i as was reported Tuesday but they likely will be seeking to reverse that verdict. Microsoft claims to fight this verdict to levels as high as the US Supreme Court. Read [Electronista] Full Story » | Written by Greg Billetdeaux for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Gadgets / Other, Green, Household, Lifestyle, Miscellaneous Panasonic recently acquired an over 50% stake in Sanyo and one of the cool things they inherited from it is the opportunity/technology to manufacture a lithium-ion battery that could store enough power to keep your household running for a week, according to Panasonic. So for all you green-folks here ya go. This battery stores the power generated by your solar panels or fuel cells, allowing you to keep watching your favorite shows into the night. Users will also be able to monitor electricity usage on a TV display; so you know when someone in your house is wasting electricity. Fumio Otsubo, president of Panasonic, stressed that Panasonic and Sanyo have already tested such a battery. Otsubo stated, “We’re positioned closest [among firms] to realizing CO2 emission-free daily life.” Working together, Panasonic plans to speed up the development of such a battery. Otsubo also stated that they will announce its basic ideas with regards to reorganizing the two firms’ growth strategies and overlapping product lines—such as large household appliances—on Jan. 8. More specific details will come in May. Read [Physorg] Full Story » | Written by Greg Billetdeaux for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Communications, Smartphones, Mobile  RIM is blaming the 8 hour service outage users suffered yesterday on two bugs in the latest update to the popular Blackberry Messenger application. BBM allows Blackberry users to chat with one another via instant messaging and in chat rooms. The details of the bugs aren't clear but RIM released this statement:
“Root cause is currently under review, but based on preliminary analysis, it currently appears that the issue stemmed from a flaw in two recently released versions of BlackBerry Messenger (versions 5.0.0.55 and 5.0.0.56) that caused an unanticipated database issue within the BlackBerry infrastructure,” spokesman Jamie Ernst said by email. “RIM has taken corrective action to restore service. RIM has also provided a new version of BlackBerry Messenger (version 5.0.0.57) and is encouraging anyone who downloaded or upgraded BlackBerry Messenger since December 14 to upgrade to this latest version which resolves the issue,” wrote Ernst in his email. “RIM continues to monitor its systems to maintain normal service levels and apologizes for any inconvenience to customers."
The statement should be welcome news to Blackberry users who have complained that the company's communication with customers is poor at best. Service appears to have been fully restored and running normally. Users still experiencing problems are advised to do a battery pull and resend their service books. Read [Toronto Star] Full Story » | Written by Sue Walsh for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Gadgets / Other, ebooks If you are still on the lookout for a last minute Christmas gift and are determined to have it arrive on time and do so without leaving your house then you may want to consider the Kindle. It seems that for at least the next (as of this posting) 7 hours and 25 minutes, Amazon will be offering free one-day shipping on the Kindle. Which means that it will arrive in time for Christmas morning surprise. Product [Amazon] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Computers, Mobile Computers CES is now less than two weeks away, and forgetting the holidays, I am like a kid staring into a candy store window right about now. The anticipation about the cool gadgets and gizmos that we are going to get to see and play with have me almost losing sleep at this point. And don’t forget, Gadgetell along with Appletell and Gamertell are going to be on the show floor this year. That said, one of the companies that I am looking forward to checking out is Viliv, and they have just recently begun teasing with the N5 clamshell styled PC that they are planning to introduce during CES. So far the details are pretty light, but we can tell you that the N5 will feature a 4.8-inch display with a 1024 x 600 resolution, and have support for Wi-Fi, GPS and 3G. Thankfully we will not have much longer to wait to find out the rest. Read [UMPC Portal] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Audio, Computers, Software / Applications Multimedia player and library manager Songbird has updated its Windows version to include two major new features: support for external devices and the ability to rip CD’s into a music library. The addition of media device means Songbird users can now sync their music library (including songs and playlists) with their iPod. Songbird is an open-source music application that serves as an alternative to other music apps like WinAmp and iTunes. The program features optional add-ons that bring new functionality and help keep it less-bloated than iTunes. For iPod owners displeased by the iTunes software, the app could serve as a lighter solution. Other device owners - say Windows Mobile or Android phone owners (or Palm Pre owners sick of being blocked out by iTunes) - can also take advantage of the Mass Storage Class add-on. The addition of CD ripping now puts Songbird in a better position to compete with other media apps like DoubleTwist. Songbird also features downloadable skins ("feathers"), a large gallery of add-ons, and integration with web services like Last.fm and SHOUTcast. It is available for free at GetSongBird.com Download Songbird Full Story » | Written by Andrew Kameka for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Computers, Mobile Computers, Laptops  A week or so ago, we reported on the rumored Asus Eee Pad. What we knew then was rumored size range and that’s about it. Well now, Netbooknews claims to have many sources reporting that is pretty much confirmed that the tablet will have full multitouch capabilities.
Other specs include the fact that it will not be running Windows CE, and it will probably be running on NVIDIA’s Tegra platform, possibly Tegra 2. Tegra 2 is being slated as having a CES launch as well as the Eee Pad. Since that is within three weeks now, I’m not sure what more we are going to learn until then. So we will just have to wait. Read [Engadget] Full Story » | Written by Greg Billetdeaux for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Communications, Cellphones, Mobile, Gadgets / Other, Household The age of the landline phone is slowly fading according to recent results from the Nielsen Convergence Audit. In its annual survey, Nielsen found that households have “cut the cord” and discontinued landline service in their home in favor of using only a cellular phone. In fact, one in five households relies entirely on mobile phones. In 2009, 21 percent of US households were cellular-only. That’s up from 18 percent in 2008 and 15 percent the two previous years. Nielsen attributes the change to people who have dropped their landlines and young adults who have elected not to start landline service when establishing a new household. These two factors signal that landline usage will continue to decline in the coming years. Many people have ended landline service in an effort to cut costs during tough economic times. Consumers who have gone months without service probably have become accustomed to using a cell phone as the sole means of communication and will find no need to return to a landline unless it involves bundled services or Internet service. The number on cellular-only homes will increase over time because young people tend not to use landline phones. Teens and college-age adults have lived in an era in which texting or calling from a phone is more common than using landlines. As these young people leave their parent’s home and continue their cellular-only habits, the number of landline connections is likely to decline. Read [Nielsenwire] Full Story » | Written by Andrew Kameka for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Communications, Smartphones, Mobile, Web, Web 2.0 / Social Networking  As the second outage in less than a week hit RIM, BlackBerry users flocked to Twitter to commiserate and in some cases, express their rage at RIM. The company took quite a bit of abuse from irate users, some who vowed to dump their BlackBerries for iPhones or Android phones.
At the same time, a war of words broke out between those very same users and iPhone owners, many of who took extreme pleasure in ridiculing them. "Blackberry had you down & out??? LOL Weeeeeeaaaakkkk! iDevice 3gs baby!!!" said one user. "sucks for all ya blackberry heads service sucks lmaoo that’s why the iPhone is best," said another. Even once service was restored the taunts kept coming: Welcome back #teamblackberry. How was ur trip?? LOL ha ha. An they talk about #iPhone users. That’s what they get." There was much more but most of it was too laden with profanity to print. BlackBerry users fired back using Verizon's map ads and their recent revelation that they will be "encouraging" iPhone users to not use so much data, even if they pay for an unlimited data plan as ammunition. A few Android users jumped into the fray as well, but there was silence from the Windows Mobile and WebOS fronts. The war of words seems to have reached a ceasefire, at least for now, but it sure made for an interesting event! Read [WhiteHatNews] Full Story » | Written by Sue Walsh for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Web, Web Browsers Firefox 3.5 is currently the most popular browser out there; and while the next version won’t come out for another year, design changes have been revealed by one of the developers on their blog. The biggest design change is being called the App Button. The App Button is just like the single menu approach that Windows 7 or Word 2007-2010 takes. It condenses all the basic menu items into into one single button. One benefit that was listed is that it is very similar to many of the new Windows applications so it will be familiar to users of Windows 7 or Word 2010. The different ideas of how the App Button should look are below. There are also many different ideas on how the toolbar should be re-imagined. Most of the ideas are based around rearranging of the bookmarks toolbar and overall design with the new App Button. They are displayed below with a brief description as described by developers. With Bookmarks Bar Tabs Under the Navigation Bar Tabs Under the Navigation Bar with Bookmarks Bar And then the developer showed a comparison of Firefox 4.0 and Firefox 3.5 in case your having problems imagining it yourself. Smooth is the new black these days. Smooth and simplicity. And I think Firefox is doing a good job of pulling this off in their 4.0. Read [Chromatic Pixel] Full Story » | Written by Greg Billetdeaux for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Communications, Smartphones, Mobile  BlackBerry users were forced to deal with yet another outage-the second one in less than a week. The trouble began at around 7:00 Eastern time, bringing data services to a screeching halt. Email, Blackberry Messenger, web browsing and social media services were all affected. The outage was large, affecting all major carriers in North and South America. RIM released this statement confirming the outage:
“Some BlackBerry customers in the Americas are currently experiencing delays in message delivery,” said a recorded message on the BlackBerry support phone line. “Our technical teams are actively working to resolve this issue for those impacted. We apologize for any inconvenience.”
Service returned about 2:45am and as usual, they are refusing to give a reason for the problem.This is something that RIM must change. Two outages in a week is bad enough but their refusal to communicate with BB users and the secrecy surrounding the outages are completely unacceptable. If the current activity on Twitter is any indication, BlackBerry users are mad as hell, and many say they aren't going to take it anymore. Many have tweeted that they intend to dump their Blackberries for the iPhone or an Android phone. Still more hurled abuse, much of it laden with profanity, at RIM. There were also more than a few disturbing tweets from users who were apparently having severe difficulty living without their beloved berries. I guess that’s why it got the name CrackBerry! Read [CNN] Full Story » | Written by Sue Walsh for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
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