Section: Video, Portable Video Every company seems to feel the need to create a small video camera รก la the Flip. It can even be argued that it’s one of the reasons Apple included the back-facing camera in the new iPod touch. Sony has now decided to get into that market as well, and it’s version looks quite impressive. Sony’s entry is the called the Bloggie Touch. As you would imagine, the Bloggie Touch has a large touchscreen on the back, 3-inches to be precise. Unlike the Flip Slide HD, the Bloggie Touch doesn’t use the touchscreen for all the controls. In an almost un-Sony design choice, the Bloggie Touch has just one button on the back for controls, a big record button. There’s also two more buttons on the side, presumably for power and take photos. Possibly most impressive about the Bloggie Touch is that it can shoot 1080p video, whereas most similar devices will only shoot in 720p. The large sensor means it’s also capable of taking large still images as well. The Bloggie Touch is capable of taking 12.8 MP still images, which is quite impressive. You can even take still images while you are recording video, which is an impressive feature. The device lacks any sort of opitcal zoom, instead it has only 4x digital zoom. The Bloggie Touch is meant to make sharing your video and photos easily. The touchscreen seems to have a simple swiping method of moving through content, and that content can be marked for easy sharing on services such as Youtube, Flickr and Facebook when the Bloggie Touch is connected to a PC. This being Sony, of course the device uses it’s own software, and it’s only compatible with Windows computers. That is possibly the biggest downfall of the device, if it worked with a Mac, it’d be almost an instant buy for covering events. The Bloggie comes in 4 and 8 GB models for $179 and $199, respectively. That comes in cheaper than the Flip SlideHD, but more expensive than the UltraHD and MinoHD sell for on Amazon.com. Your move, Cisco. Read [Sony] Via [CNBC] Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Computers, Software / Applications When Microsoft first launched Windows 7, it sold a limited number of Family Packs for the OS. The Family Packs have since been long sold-out, but now Microsoft is bringing them back, but again only for a limited run. The Windows 7 Family Pack gives you three licenses to put on as many computers. The one catch is that the package only gives your three upgrades to WIndows 7 Home Premium, meaning you have to have XP or Vista installed on a computer to upgrade them. You can’t use the Family Pack on a completely fresh computer, which is a shame, but can be easily worked around by just installing an older OS on the box first. The Family Pack will be available again on October 3 at retailers and online at the Microsoft Store. Again, like last time, this is a limited time thing, it would seem. Once their sold out, we don’t know when Microsoft will bring the bundle out again. It would seem to make sense that Microsoft would keep the package around for those who want it, it is the best deal on the OS it would seem, and there would be a lot of people who want it. Although, by only offering it for a limited time, and not saying how long that time period is, it is possible it could drive up sales and adoption of Windows 7. Despite the fact that more people are using 7 over Vista, Microsoft still needs to get people off of XP and onto 7, and offering a good deal for a short period of time is a good way to drive up that demand. Read [Windows Team Blog] Via [Liliputing] Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Audio, Portable Audio, Video, Portable Video At IFA 2010 in Berlin, Samsung will have on display two MP3 players along with their other planned devices. The new MP3 players are the slim YP-Q3 and YP-U6, but unfortunately, details are rather scant at this time. The YP-Q3 is the higher end device as it has a battery life of 45 hours playing audio and 6 hours playing video. The color of the device matches perfectly with the GUI, as you can see from the picture above. Additionally, it boasts high audio quality with 5.1-channel sound support. No word at this time on storage space or screen size, but I imagine storage space to be at least 4GB. The YP-U6 is a really slim device, as you can probably tell form the picture below, and it comes with 20 hours of audio playback. It comes with an interesting fitness mode, which shows you how many calories you have burned. Again, no word on storage space or screen size, but I expect more information will be announced at IFA. Via [SamsungHub] Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Computers, Mobile Computers, Laptops, Peripherals, Mice / Keyboards Today, Microsoft issued a press release explaining its latest product, the Arc Touch Mouse. One of the main selling points of the Arc Touch Mouse is its ability to neatly fold away, fit securely in a laptop bag, and provide a comfortable user experience. When using the mouse, users are able to pop it up allowing for a curved surface, and then with a simple push, the mouse goes flat and is easy to stow away. In addition, the mouse features a touch strip which is used predominantly for scrolling slow or fast—depending on your finger speed. The Arc Touch Mouse contains three programmable buttons, but the default functions are page up, page down and the middle click area. The mouse is currently available for pre-order from Amazon.com, BestBuy.com and Buy.com for $69.95 and it will start shipping in December in time for the holiday season. Expect the mouse to launch globally in January 2011 for a similar price point. Read [Microsoft] Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Communications, Cellphones, Cellular Providers, Smartphones, Mobile .jpg)
With the recent launch of the Samsung Epic 4G, it is important for Sprint to keep introducing 4G speeds to more and more places. Today, Sprint announced three more cities would be privileged with 4G speeds, and those cities include: Boston, Massachusetts, Daytona Beach, Florida, and Providence, Rhode Island. Here is a list of current cities with 4G access: Sprint 4G is now available in 51 markets: California - Merced, Modesto, Stockton, Visalia; Delaware - Wilmington; Florida - Daytona Beach, Jacksonville; Georgia - Atlanta, Milledgeville; Hawaii - Honolulu, Maui; Idaho - Boise; Illinois - Chicago; Maryland - Baltimore; Massachusetts - Boston; Michigan - Grand Rapids; Missouri - Kansas City, St. Louis; New York - Rochester, Syracuse; Nevada - Las Vegas; North Carolina - Charlotte, Greensboro (includes High Point and Winston-Salem), Raleigh (includes Cary, Chapel Hill and Durham); Oregon - Eugene, Portland, Salem; Pennsylvania - Harrisburg, Lancaster, Philadelphia, Reading, York; Rhode Island - Providence; Texas - Abilene, Amarillo, Austin, Corpus Christi, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston, Killeen/Temple, Lubbock, Midland/Odessa, San Antonio, Waco, Wichita Falls; Utah - Salt Lake City; Virginia - Richmond; and Washington - Bellingham, Seattle, Tri-Cities, Yakima.
Read [Sprint] Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Communications, Cellphones, Smartphones, Mobile Running Android 2.1 with MOTOBLUR, Motorola presents the Defy, a 3.7” touchscreen-driven smartphone that is ready to take a fall. The device is touted by Motorola as water-resistant and dust-proof, two common elements users run into frequently. While filming reef sharks at 30 feet underwater is out, the water-resistance should be helpful for getting caught in a quick shower and thanks to Gorilla Glass, the Defy’s screen is protected from falls. The phone is geared currently for Europe and will release later this year. Packing a 5MP camera, Android 2.1, AGPS, and Flash Lite 3, it’s not a super-powered device. Motorola describes the phone as “slim”, though at 13.4mm thick, it’s fatter than the iPhone 4 (9.3). The Defy packs only 512MB Internal RAM; 2GB Internal ROM and the microSD slot can handle up to a 32GB card. While not the cutting edge, this should be a decent workhorse in the Moto line. Product page: [Motorola]
 Full Story » | Written by JG Mason for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Apple, Audio, Portable Audio From a new product perspective, possible the most exciting announcement is the new iPod nano. It doesn’t do as much as the iPod touch, but it combines the ease of use of the touch with the portability of the shuffle. The new iPod nano is simply a roughly 1.5-inch square with a 1.5-inch touchscreen. it has only three buttons: volume control and sleep/wake. Opposite the buttons are the standard 30-pin dock connector and the headphone jack. Behind the touchscreen in a clip, just like the iPod shuffle, making the new nano easier to bring with you for workouts and the like. The interface is simple, and is based on iOS, even if it doesn’t run apps. It has four home screens with four icons each. Gone is the ability to play video that was present in the last three nanos, but it’s a worthwhile sacrifice for the new form factor. Apple added in an FM tuner for the new nano, and kept the pedometer and Nike+ capabilities. Apple really wants you to use the nano for workouts, it even has an option to turn the screen to orient whichever way you wish so you can clip it anywhere you want. The new nano comes in 8 and 16 GB varieties for $149 and $179, respectively. They are up for pre-order now, and will start shipping next week. Read [Apple] Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Communications, Cellphones, Smartphones, Mobile  Coming Q4 of this year, Motorola announced the Milestone 2 for Europe. Just like the original Milestone, the Milestone 2 is the European variant of the US Droid. The Milestone 2 will ship with Android 2.2.
As expected the Milestone 2 features a QWERTY slide out keyboard, Adobe Flash Player 10.1, the ability to turn the device into a WiFi hotspot for up to 5 devices, and a 1Ghz processor now with 802.11n support. The device ships with an 8GB SD card, bringing total memory up to 40GB. While the form factor is identical to the Droid, there is a major difference between the Droid 2 and Milestone 2: the Milestone 2 can record HD video (720p). And in the video below, you can see Motorola is pumping this new feature right up front. In fact, it’s the first feature they highlight:  Press release: [Motorola] Full Story » | Written by JG Mason for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Apple, Audio, Home Audio, Video, Video Providers As the “one more thing,” or rather “one more hobby,” at today’s event, Steve Jobs unveiled the new Apple TV. The product is essentially what we’ve heard rumors of for the past few months. The new Apple TV is small, about a quarter of the size of the original, which is possibly because it has no local storage, instead it relies on AirPlay and streaming from Apple as well as other services. The new Apple TV will only allow for renting movies or TV shows, unlike the previous model which allowed you to purchase content from the device. Now Apple will let you rent first-run movies (same day as DVD release) in HD for $4.99, with prices diminishing as the movies get older. Apple also has a deal with ABC and FOX to brings $.99 TV show rentals to the AppleTV, and it hopes to brings in other networks over time. Apple TV will also support AirPlay, so you can stream media across your home network from your computers or iOS 4.2 devices (that OS version is due out in November). In addition to Apple-provided content, you can view media from Netflix, YouTube, Flickr, and MobileMe on the new Apple TV. It retails for just $99, compared to the previous $229, and is available for pre-order now. The device will start shipping in four weeks. Read [Apple] Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Apple, Audio, Computers, Software / Applications Love it or hate it iTunes is huge and probably part of your existence in some capacity. By the numbers - 11.7 billion songs, over 450 million TV episodes, 100 million movies, 35 million books, and over 160 million accounts in 23 countries. Today Apple announced their latest and greatest version of iTunes as iTunes 10. Brand new logo, a face-lifted UI and also introduced Ping. Ping as described by Jobs “Twitter and Facebook meet iTunes.” As part of the iTunes 10, Ping allows you to follow and be followed by your friends and artist to see what they are listening post comments, view concert listing etc. Though it was briefly touched on, there were settings for privacy so you may share as much or as little as you want. Let’s hope Apple doesn’t take a page out of Facebook policy. Ping is available to sign up today. Full Story » | Written by Aaron Thacker for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Gadgets / Other, ebooks We heard the rumors, and it looks like they have come true—Sony has officially offered up a refresh on their Reader device lineup. With that, we now have the Pocket Edition PRS-350, the Touch Edition PRS-650 and the Daily Edition PRS-950. As for the devices, the Pocket Edition has a 5 inch display, the Touch Edition has a 6 inch display and the Daily Edition has a 7 inch display—all of which are said to be new and improved. Furthermore, all three models are shipping with a stylus and have 2GB of internal storage as well as an SD/Memory Stick Pro card slot. As for connectivity, the Pocket Edition and the Touch Edition stick with USB only. The Daily Edition on the other hand comes sporting Wi-Fi (and USB). In terms of pricing, expect to pay $179, $229 and $299 for the Pocket Edition, Touch Edition and the Daily Edition respectively. And all I can say is that Sony was not lying when they stated they would not be competing in the ebook reader market with price. After all, while these all may be nice devices, it is hard not to consider that the Kindle and Nook are also nice and also have a much lower starting price. Via [CrunchGear] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Apple, Audio, Portable Audio, Video, Portable Video We all knew it was coming, an iPod touch with a Retina Display like the current iPhone. To make it even better, though, Apple has added just about everything but the phone to the new iPod touch. The latest touch will come not only with the Retina Display, but with a front-facing camera for FaceTime, and a back-facing camera as well. Steve Jobs only mentioned HD video recording for the iPod touch, but it would make sense that it could also take photos, unless Apple doesn’t want to add that feature. It will also contain the Game Center app for competitive gaming, which of course, is also coming to iOS 4.1 with all other devices. Despite being even thinner than the third generation iPod touch, the new version will tout 40 hours of music playback, but will likely not get that with video and apps running. The new iPod touch will ship in 8, 32 and 64 GB models. They will sell for $229, $299, and $399, respectively. They will go up for pre-order today, and will start shipping next month. Read [Apple] Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Apple, Audio The first of Apple’s new announcements today is the new iPod Shuffle. To make the new version, Apple decided to listen to users who liked the last version, but who wanted actual buttons on the device. The new Shuffle looks less like the last version, and more like the second generation, but focused on just the buttons. It has the same features as the previous version, including Voice Over, and playlist support. Apple also added Genius Mixes to the new Shuffle, making it easier to find similar songs. The new iPod Shuffle comes in five different colors (silver, blue, magenta, yellow and green), like the previous models. It can hole 2 GB of music, and play that music for a total 14 hours at a time. It will ship for $49. Like all the new iPods, it is available for pre-order today, and will start shipping next week. Read [Apple] Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Business News, Apple, Computers Apple announced today the opening of their 300th retail store at Clove Garden in London. They are also reporting that within these stores approximately 1 million visitors are passing through - pretty staggering. Inside these stores there are 80k One to One classes, 50% of users are buying their first Mac. The proof is in the pudding that customers like their product sampling hands on. Full Story » | Written by Aaron Thacker for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Computers, Mobile Computers  Augen may not have ended up having a hit on their hands with the $150 Augen GenTouch78 tablet with Android. Of course, having those issues with Google and the Android Market, that is not really all that surprising. That said, it looks like Augen may be down at the moment, but not completely out of the game. According to the details that we have read so far, Augen is currently working on a new line of Android based tablets—the GenTouch Espresso line. Unfortunately the details are fairly light at this point and so far include that the lineup will consist of tablets ranging from 7 inches up to 10 inches and are expected to be unveiled during CES this coming January. Sounds like a pretty bold promise, that being ready for January part. Furthermore, with the lack of Android Market access on the previous GenTouch78 tablet, that could be a recipe for disaster on any future model. After all, while people like Android, they seem to really only want Google Experience Android devices and by that I mean Android with the Android Market and Google mixed in. Read [Augen Gentouch] Via [Liliputing] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Business News, Apple, Video, Content, Video Providers More Apple related rumors, I know, shocking to see on the day of an Apple event. That said, if you are a fan of the Apple TV and Netflix this one may be of interest though. According to a Bloomberg report, Apple is planning to unveil a new Apple TV set-top box that will be able to stream Netflix. The details are said to have come by way of “three people with knowledge of the plans.” “The streaming service would be available on the revamped version of Apple TV, due to be introduced tomorrow in San Francisco, said two of the people, who asked not to be identified because the plans haven't been made public. Users would pay a subscription fee to Netflix for the service, the people said.”
And thankfully the Fall Apple Event is set to take place a little later today (at 1PM EST), that way we can either rejoice in having a new way to stream Netflix or realize this was just a crazy rumor. Still, I hope to see it come true, after all, Netflix is on just about every device at this point why would it not end up on the Apple TV? Furthermore, the new Apple TV (assuming there is one announced) is said to be coming with a $99 price tag. Read [Bloomberg] Image courtesy: Apple Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Business News, Video It looks like this is going to be a rumor filled morning, first we have mention that Sony is going to try and steal some of the Apple thunder today, and now it looks like Amazon may also be looking to get in on that party. Only while this one may be aimed at Apple, it really looks like it would really be more competition for Netflix and/or Hulu+. The Amazon details are coming courtesy of the Wall Street Journal who are reporting that; “Amazon.com Inc. is working on a new subscription service that would deliver TV shows and movies over the Internet, ramping up the battle among Web companies to control entertainment in the living room.”
According to the details, this service from Amazon is going to be targeted at older content and at multiple internet connected devices. Sounds a lot like Netflix. Hmm, an iPad app sounds nice. But in the end, while Hulu+ is a nice alternative, this would really be competing with Netflix, after all they are seemingly everywhere. Read [WSJ] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Business News, Audio The details on this one are still pretty light, however, according to a recent report in the Financial Times—Sony may be getting ready to unveil a new music service today. “Sources in the media industry told the Financial Times that Sony would use its PlayStation games consoles as the starting point for a new service that users will be able to use across a range of other internet-connected devices. That could include Walkman music players, Vaio computers, Bravia TVs, Blu-ray players and Sony Ericsson mobile phones.”
Will Sony be able to steal some of the Apple thunder today? I guess we will see soon enough. If nothing else, this could be a nice option for Sony users. After all combine a service with a computer (Vaio), game console (Playstation) and portable device (PSP or Walkman or smartphone) and you could have an all around nice offering. Read [Financial Times] Via [Gizmodo] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Communications, Smartphones Just before Apple gets ready to launch it’s new iPods and possibly more, Palm has decided to show what it’s working on for it’s next version of WebOS. So far Palm is only show a few features for developers, but they hold a lot of promise for the OS. The first big change for WebOS 2.0 is the new way of multitasking. Don’t fret, there’s still the cards metaphor, but now those cards can be organized into Stacks. Stacks allows cards to be placed on top of one another for separate workflows. The best about the Stacks feature is that while the cards can be manually organized, they are made naturally based on what you open at what time. So a site that was emailed to you would be kept in the same stack as email, or a link from a tweet kept in the same stack as your Twitter client. It’ll make it much easier to switch between tasks, and reduce the amount of cards you need to search through to find something. WebOS 2.0 will also improve upon the Universal Search function. The feature is now called Just Type, and will be able to search anything on your phone and on the web. Developers will be able to hook into Just Type so you can search within apps as well. Just Type will also have Quick Actions that allow you to do certain tasks like sending a tweet, updating a Facebook status or search within a website without ever having to open to the app. Exhibition is pretty straight forward, and it’s a wonder why it wasn’t added earlier. The feature will use the Touchstone, and allow developers to show information on the screen while the phone is on the charging station. It can basically turn the phone into a Chumby or a Sony Dash while it’s sitting there charging. Palm will build in some Exhibition modes, Facebook slideshows, daily agenda and an alarm clock are given as examples, but it’s hoping developers will add more. With WebOS 2.0, developers will be able to tap into Synergy. This will let developers tap into your contacts list, or add there own services to Synergy. It basically gives developers access to the Contact, Calendar and Messaging apps so they can use them how they wish. Sounds like it could be useful to those who use any number of services not already included in Synergy. The rest of the updates are largely of interest mainly to developers. The upgrade to HTML5 is important as it will bring features like geo-location to websites. Since WebOS apps are built on web technologies, it would make them more powerful. The PDK will bring C/C++ plug-ins to apps, which will be great for games and other more powerful apps that can’t run on HTML5 alone. There’s also improvements to the Javascript in WebOS 2.0, which Palm says will strengthen support for background processing. Keep in mind these updates are just those for developers, so we don’t even know everything that will be forward facing for users. With these updates, however, it looks very promising for when we do finally see those features. Hopefully Palm can keep pushing and make even more improvements with all that HP money it has now. Then all we’ll need it an awesome phone or two, preferably with the rumored 960x680 resolution. Please, Palm make a WebOS 2.0 phone with specs at least on par with, or better than the iPhone 4. I’d do everything I can to switch to such a phone, I promise. Read [Palm] Via [Gizmodo] and [Engadget] Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Computers, Networking, Gadgets / Other, Peripherals, Storage Cloud Engines has returned with yet another new feature for Pogoplug users—cloud printing. The firmware that will enable this is currently being rolled out, so current owners may want to keep an eye out. As for who can take advantage, just about any other internet connected device including iPhones, iPads and Android devices. In order to print from the cloud, you will need to have any HP or Epson printer made from 2005 plugged into a USB port on your Pogoplug or a network printer that is installed on the same network as your Pogoplug. And in addition to the cloud printing, the recently announced Pogoplug Biz and Wireless Extender are both shipping as of today. Read [Pogoplug] Keep reading to check out the full press release… Pogoplug Gains Two New Products and Enables Web Printing!
A series of new Pogoplug features and products go live today! Today we are delighted to begin rolling out a new firmware update to our customers that activates a number of new features we have announced in recent months, including our new cloud printing feature. In addition, both the Pogoplug Wireless Extender and
Pogoplug Biz are now shipping. The print feature that we announced at the beginning of summer allows users to print from iPhones, iPads, Android devices, and any other Internet enabled device from anywhere in the world! The setup is simple; all users need to do is plug any HP or Epson printer made since 2005 into a USB port on the Pogoplug, or if it’s a network printer, simply have it on the same network as the Pogoplug. The firmware update begins rolling out to Pogoplug users today, and all users should have the update by the end of the week. Our newest product, the Pogoplug Wireless Extender, allows users to place the Pogoplug anywhere in their homes where there is wireless internet access, without having to connect it to a network router or wired Ethernet port. The Pogoplug Wireless Extender begins shipping today. Pogoplug Biz is an all-new version of Pogoplug specifically for businesses that gives business owners all the great features from the original Pogoplug, along with business specific features like customizable emails, a custom look and feel, file download and access statistics, and multiple users. If you haven’t already, order your Pogoplug Biz and Wireless Extender now!
Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
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