Section: Communications, Cellphones  Today was the much anticipated release of the HTC Droid Incredible. The Nexus One replacement for Verizon Wireless customers was expecting early success, but no one expected it this early. In fact just in the couple of hours that it was available online for purchase, it sold out. But do not fret. The next shipment of the Incredible is not that far off and should be availble by the 4th of May. The HTC Droid Incredible is Verizon’s new baby. With a snapdragon processor, it leaves the Droid in the dust. But the real bonus to this buy is HTC Sense, the custom UI that HTC has developed on top of Android and Windows Mobile. Without a doubt this is one of the best smartphone solutions on the entire market and a must have for the Verizon Wireless customers. Read [Boy Genius Report Full Story » | Written by Hunter Clarke for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Business News, Communications, Computers, Gadgets / Other 
Wha? Sure, you know that HP agreed to acquire Palm yesterday but did you know that they also purchased 3Com last November? Palm was spun out of 3Com back 10 years ago in 2000. Is HP making a new run at PDAs? In fact, HP made 116 acquisitions from 1986 to 2008, that’s one busy M&A department. Prices paid for acquisitions maxed out with the Compaq acquisition for $25 billion. In truth, 3Com’s business that has sustained it since spinning off Palm has been network switching, routing and security solutions. This purchase was absorbed into HP’s ProCurve solutions division. Certainly that has little to do with PDAs or mobile OS. The move expanded HP’s Ethernet switching capabilities and made in-roads in China’s market. At one point, 3Com had the Palm Pilot under its belt as well as the kitchen computer, Audrey. Audrey was capable of syncing each family members Palm Pilot to keep everyone on the same schedule. It was designed to be a Mom’s best friend though the product failed to strike a chord with consumers and was abruptly ended. HP spent more than double ($2.7 billion) to acquire 3Com than Palm. Read: [HP] Full Story » | Written by JG Mason for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Communications, Accessories, Cellphones, Email / IM, Smartphones, Mobile, Computers, Mobile Computers, Netbooks, Wireless 
A new day for Palm is dawning and it’s trusty webOS. The target of a HP acquisition, we’ll hopefully quickly get to see what HP values in the buy. Is it a good start into the mobile phone category or is a proprietary OS for it’s Slate computers allowing HP to be more like Apple? Competition in either the mobile smartphone market or the burgeoning tablet market is sure to be tough. On the phone side, Palm had a strong device that is wilting a bit while the Pixi showed many users want a bigger screen on their smartphone. On the tablet side, wouldn’t Android have been enough of a differentiator without dropping $1.2 billion on Palm? Back at CES, Microsoft waved around the HP Slate on stage, as early incarnations feature the Windows operating system. For the casual user, Apple is showing users don’t need a bloated OS, they need a simple one that is fast and breezy. What can webOS bring to that party? For starters, webOS can bring elegant multitasking. So far, I am not impressed with Apples take on shoehorning multitasking into their iPhone OS. webOS accomplishes this simply by swiping apps like cards - it’s intuitive and fun. To get Android to feel this interactive, it takes some big time skinning, which brings along its own issues, just ask HTC. Another perk of webOS is an App catalog. While not the bottomless pit like Apple’s store, Palm has gone out of its way to make sure developing for webOS could be done by almost anyone that wishes to. This could be an asset as HP looks into leveraging it’s corporate focus. Tweaked for presentations, easy assimilation with business documents, HP could have a business success in a webOS Slate line. Will consumers follow? Read: [Gadgetell] Full Story » | Written by JG Mason for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Web, Websites In remembrance of Geocities, we take a look at Geocities-izer, which promise to “make any webpage look like it was made by a 13 year-old in 1996.” Thankfully, or maybe not so thankfully it does just what it promises. Man, I am so glad we moved past that time or I am thinking I would have to find another career path because I am not sure I could sit online for 10-12 hours a day looking at pages like that. Of course, maybe that is one way we could put an end to Internet addiction—make the web ugly again and chase people away. With that I leave you the link for Geocities-izer… Read [Geocities-izer] Via [Boing-Boing] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Communications, Cellphones, Cellular Providers, Smartphones, Mobile Verizon has begun rolling out the latest update for webOS devices, the update is version 1.4.1.1 and an be downloaded by heading to the Launcher and then Updates app on your webOS enabled smartphone. According to the official word; “This update contains a variety of minor software improvements.”
Though unofficially, this update should correct the double press issues that many have been complaining about. Of course, if you do not feel like being bothered by doing the update manually, you will also be prompted, but going that route may mean waiting a day or three. That said, if you are not having any trouble, then it could not really hurt to wait. Either way, webOS 1.4.1.1 is available for Verizon Wireless subscribers. Otherwise, keep reading to check out the full change log for the webOS 1.4.1.1 update… Version information Version: webOS 1.4.1.1
Release date: 31 March 2010 New applications NONE Feature changes to existing applications Bluetooth
This release fixes an issue so that the phone now correctly connects with supported BMW car kits. Camera
This release corrects a lag in the shutter sound when you take a picture.
This release fixes an issue so that newly taken photos and videos do not overwrite existing ones. Contacts
If you crop a picture before adding it to a contact, the picture appears cropped correctly in the contact entry.
If you previously assigned either the Z or the B key as a speed dial, you can now continue to create speed dials. Doc View
If you open a file and perform the back gesture, the app now returns to the file list screen.
Pinching in/out to zoom out/in now works correctly. Messaging
If you try to attach a video to an outgoing multimedia message, the list of available videos now displays only videos you recorded. PDF View
If you open a file and perform the back gesture, the app now returns to the file list screen.
Pinching in/out to zoom out/in now works correctly. Sprint Football Live
The app previously named NFL is now named Sprint Football Live. System
This release fixes an intermittent issue so that the volume slider no longer appears onscreen incorrectly. Touchstone charging dock
When the phone is on a Touchstone charging dock, the screen now consistently turns off correctly (displaying the lock icon and the time) after the shut-off interval. Videos
If you record a video, upload the video to YouTube, and send a link to the video via email, the email recipient can click the link and view the video. Previously, clicking the link displayed an error message.
This release fixes an issue so that when you upload a video to YouTube, the file always includes both video and audio. Web
The forward gesture now works correctly in the browser.
Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Communications, Cellular Providers, Mobile, Computers, Mobile Computers, Netbooks, Wireless Though still not officially announced or listed on the Verizon Wireless website, it looks like customers will soon be able to pick up an 3G connected Samsung N150 netbook from Verizon. The netbook has recently been spotted on the official Samsung website and pretty clearly states that; “The Samsung N150 netbook with Verizon 3G embedded wireless technologies gives you value without compromise.”
Still, no word on when it will be available, nor how much you will have to shell out to make the purchase. Otherwise, the specs are what we would expect in a netbook and include a 1.6GHz Intel Atom N450 processor, Intel GMA3150 graphics, 1GB of RAM, a 160GB hard drive, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, VGA out, three USB ports, Ethernet port and 6-cell battery. Additionally, the display will be 10.1 inches with a 1024 x 600 resolution and the netbook will come running Windows 7 Starter with a “rich, glossy black” exterior. Read [Verizon Wireless] and [Samsung ]Via [Netbooked] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Web, Web Browsers  Mozilla’s mobile version of Firefox, named Fennec, has been trying to make its way to Android for some time now. Finally, it has reached pre-alpha version and can even be downloaded on to your Nexus One or Droid.
Considering this is a pre-alpha model of the browser, I’m going to try and stay away from the negatives of the new software and focus on what I’m looking forward to in the final release. Feel The Fennec browser has a different feel than most browsers, and apps for that matter, on the Android platform. Navigation around the application is handled differently than most applications because all options and pages are available without the use of the menu button at the bottom of the phone. A simple swipe to the left will reveal the bookmark option as well as the settings button. Similarly, a swipe to the right will reveal all of your open pages. When you first start playing with Fennec it is a bit awkward, but after a while you start to realize just how ridiculous and annoying pressing the menu button is in any application. Speed This browser is not built for speed. It is full of features and separate options that allow the user to completely personalize the browser to their liking. Yet, I found that, when the app was working, it could hold its own in a speed test against the Dolphin Browser and the Android Default browser. This finding really excited me because it showed that you can have features without compromising speed of the application. Add-Ons and Plugins Since the version of this browser is very very young, there are not many add-ons to install on top of the browser yet. But the fact that the add-ons act just as the ones on the desktop amazed me. In fact the process is exactly the same. You go to the add-on page on Mozilla, find an add-on, and click the (+) button next to it. Then it installs seamlessly on top of the browser. To start you out, Mozilla has not left you empty-handed, and have chosen a Twitter, Youtube flash player (interesting right?), and several other add-ons for early adopters to play with. Weave Weave is an add-on, I know. But I felt the need to place it in a separate category just because it is so cool. Weave essentially syncs your Firefox data on your desktop (bookmarks, history, and even open tabs) and distributes it to any other Firefox browser connected to that Weave account. Mozilla has managed to work this cool technology into its mobile application allowing you to integrate everything you have saved on your desktop with the mobile device. By far the coolest feature, in my opinion, is the ability to pull tabs that are open on your desktop onto the mobile browser. This way, if you happen to be on the run and need to get that link that was on your computer, you can just pull it up on your Android device. For the download file and install instructions go here. Read [ReadWriteWeb] Full Story » | Written by Hunter Clarke for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Communications, Cellphones, Cellular Providers, Smartphones, Mobile, Web, Google A common grievance of Android users is the lack of Flash support on the popular platform. With Flash, many more videos and websites will be accessible on Android smartphones, making the overall web experience that much better. In a conversation with Andy Rubin, Vice President of Engineering at Google, the New York Times found out that the next version of Android will feature Adobe Flash Support. Android 2.2, codenamed Froyo, will sport Adobe Flash as a common feature, but unfortunately, there is no timetable in place for the release of Android 2.2. Android has been churning out a lot of positive news lately, and if Google can get the next version of Android out the door soon, they will be seriously contending with the iPhone for smartphone superiority. Via [New York Times] Image Credit: BGR Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
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