Section: Video, Content, Video Providers Image via Daily Blam Netflix has signed another deal to bring popular movies to it’s Watch Instantly service. Today the company announced that Miramax films will start streaming online starting next month. The deal to bring Miramax to Netflix streaming means that you’ll be able to watch movies like “Pulp Fiction,” Kill Bill Volume I,” “Kill Bill Volume II,” and other movies that aren’t made by Quentin Tarantino whenever you want. Those other movies include “Clerks,” most “Halloween” movies, “Good Will Hunting,” and “Shakespeare in Love.” There really isn’t much to say aside from the fact that we’ll have a lot more popular movies to watch on Netflix Streaming. With the company dating back to 1979, there’s bound to be at least a few movies in the back catalog for everyone to enjoy, assuming most of it is put up under this agreement. Via [Netflix Blog] Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Communications, Smartphones, Mobile, Computers, Wireless, Gaming, Mobile  PopCap Games, makers of the popular Plants vs. Zombies, Bejeweled and Zuma are finally bringing their games to Android by way of the Amazon Appstore. The first two games to come to the Android platform will be Chuzzle and Plants vs. Zombies.
Tomorrow, May 17, Chuzzle will launch in the Amazon App Store for free. After that you can get the game for $2.99. The game will be exclusive to the Amazon Appstore for two weeks, so until May 30. After that, we can probably expect Chuzzle to find it’s way to the Android Market. Plants vs. Zombies will shuffle it’s way into the Amazon Appstore sometime later this month. PopCap must be taking lessons from Crazy Dave, because Plants vs. Zombies will also be free on the first day of it’s launch. After that it will be the same $2.99 as Chuzzle. The same two weeks of timed exclusivity also applies here. PopCap has been talking about having Android games for what seems like a while now, and it’s nice that they’re finally here. Chuzzle seems like an odd choice for a first game on the platform, but it certainly lends itself well to smartphones, and it was one of PopCap’s first games on iOS as well (though it hasn’t been updated since 2009). Plants vs. Zombies is an obvious choice, and one that will likely prove quite popular on Android just as it did on iOS. It’ll be even better if it works well on tablets. Now Android users just have to wait for the eventual Peggle release, and possibly some 4th and Battery titles like Unpleasant Horse. Read [PR Newswire] Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Apple, Communications, Cellphones, Cellular Providers, Smartphones  The world’s eyes were opened to the very real threat of computer hackers in the past few weeks. Hacking is certainly nothing new, but with the recent intrusion into the PlayStation Network and the possible intrusion into LastPass, customers are even more aware of the possibilities of identity theft. For the most part, cellphone hacks aren’t as prominent. There have been applications offered by third-party Android app stores that are used to steal customer data, but there haven’t been reports of massive breaches yet. AT&T wants to be ready if that ever happens.
According to Reuters, AT&T’s John Stankey spoke about protecting the cellphones of customers. Businesses have the option of enrolling in a program that offers protection for corporate phones through AT&T, but a program for every day people doesn’t exist yet. There is a possibility that AT&T will create such a service for all its customers in 2012. Stankey didn’t go into detail about what AT&T is planning. He did however address the concern with charging for such a service. “When you start asking them what’s your willingness to pay for a solution, if they’re not a little frightened, their willingness to pay is nothing,” Stankey said. “It’ll take a little time for this in the mass market.” Should AT&T initially charge for this service, it probably won’t get a lot of people signing up. Hopefully it won’t take a run in with data theft to convince users to purchase a security plan for their phones. Via [Reuters] Read [ZDNet] Full Story » | Written by Jeremy Hill for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Business News, Video, Computers, Desktops, Laptops, Gadgets / Other, Household Elgato revealed a new product today that will let you stream television content to a PC or Mac over a Wi-Fi connection. The HDHomeRun works with homes that receive television channels through a cable connection or a TV antenna. One end of the HDHomeRun screws into the wall and the other end is plugged into the unit. When that’s done, an Ethernet cable is plugged into the HDHomeRun and a router. That’s all it takes to get free HDTV beamed across your home. HDHomeRun is available now for $179.95. It includes the tuner, EyeTV 3 software for Mac, a driver for Windows 7, Ethernet cable, power supply and a couple manuals. EyeTV 3 is only available for Mac. This software basically turns your Mac into a DVR. You can record, pause, rewind and search for shows. Recorded programs can by synced with iTunes and exported to the iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad. the EyeTV 3 iOS app is currently available for $4.99. It’s only compatible with Macs and allows you to watch live TV streaming from the HDHomeRun hardware and EyeTV software. The PC version of HDHomeRun doesn’t come with EyeTV software. Site [Elgato] Full Story » | Written by Jeremy Hill for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Gadgets / Other, ebooks, Household 
Publishers, music labels, movie studios and ships near the Suez Canal all have one thing in common: they hate pirates. What if there was a quantitative linkbetween higher sales and piracy, would the piracy haters ease their stance (except, perhaps the ships near the Suez)? One childrens book seems set to prove that piracy can have positive effects on sales. The viral book, Go the #### to Sleep, has hit number one on Amazon’s best seller list a full month before the book is to be released. What’s the reason for the fast success? The book went viral as a PDF and as a result is knocking down sales predictions. The book began life as a joke on Facebook after Adam Mansbach related the frustration of putting his little one to bed, something many can identify with. The encouragement he received from his friends inspired him to pen the book. The result is a book that is funny, accurate and one that just about every parent can smile to themselves about. Read: [FastCompany]
Full Story » | Written by JG Mason for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Communications, Cellular Providers, Smartphones, Mobile We saw Verizon announce that the free Mobile Hotspot trial offer was being extended until mid-June for the Droid Charge due to the delayed release. And well, it looks like that same free trial offer has been extended to Thunderbolt users. The news comes by way of the official @VZWSupport Twitter account and notes that the free offer will expire on June 15th at which time those who decide to keep using the Mobile Hotspot will have to pay $20 per month. “Great News! The free Hotspot offer has been extended to Thunderbolt users also through June 15th.”
Via [Twitter @VZWSupport] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Business News, Communications, Cellphones, Smartphones The Ovi brand name will soon be no more. Nokia announced today that it is removing Ovi services from Nokia devices starting in July. From that point on, Ovi will simply be known as Nokia. This change only involves the branding and will not affect services. Any application that used to have Ovi in the name will still function as normal. Nokia decided to do away with Ovi in an effort to capitalize on its “master brand.” Jerri DeVard, executive vice president for Nokia said on the Nokia blog that “By centralizing our services identity under one brand, not two, we will reinforce the powerful master brand of Nokia and unify our brand architecture – while continuing to deliver compelling opportunities and experiences for partners and consumers alike." Nokia wants customers to know exactly who created the services they are using. When the tech crowed hears Ovi, we instantly associate that with Nokia. The general public may not make that same connection. For example, the owner of Google Maps is self explanatory. Ovi Maps? Not so much. By the end of 2012, we shouldn’t see Ovi on Nokia phone or advertisement. Upcoming phones will automatically have the new branding and existing phones will get a software update to remove Ovi. Via [Nokia Conversations] Full Story » | Written by Jeremy Hill for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Communications, Cellular Providers, Smartphones, Mobile HTC announced the Sensation 4G back in mid-April and told us all that the handset would be coming available with T-Mobile sometime this summer. Well, it looks like that summer date has since been revealed to be June 8th. The release date leak comes by way of an internal T-Mobile screen capture and while we still hope to see the official word come, seems to be the real deal. That said, in addition to the June 8th release date, it looks like the handset is going to arrive priced at $199.99 on a two-year agreement. And lastly, the Sensation 4G will come available with Android 2.3 Gingerbread and version 3.0 of the HTC Sense user interface. Other features include a 4.3 inch qHD display, dual-core 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor and 8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash and 1080p video recording. Via [TmoNews] and [TmoNews] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Business News 
McDonald’s will provide a new way for customers to order food at its 7,000 locations in Europe. A Financial Times story states that this new method involves touchscreen terminals with built-in credit card readers. On the surface, this change could expedite the process of ordering fast food. On the other hand, it could cost a lot of jobs. It’s estimated that the cashier-less terminals will make food ordering three to four seconds faster than usual. This also has the potential to increase McDonalds’ cash flow because shorter waiting times could translate into more business. We’ve seen self checkout terminals in retail stores such as Walmart. In my experience, self checkouts seem really convenient, but are not always the fastest way to pay for items. Some individuals don’t quite understand the options that are presented to them. It’s very possible for one transaction at a checkout terminal to last twice as long as the conventional method of having a human check you out. The fear of having computers step in to take orders will most certainly lead to a reduction of employees at McDonald’s. There will still be a need to people to prepare the food, clean the restaurant and handle drive-through orders. Read [TechEye] Also Read [InvestorPlace] Full Story » | Written by Jeremy Hill for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Communications, Cellphones, Cellular Providers, Smartphones, Mobile  Vodafone has just announced a new smartphone which carries the company’s name - the Vodafone Smart. At first look and with the published specs and features of this new Android phone, it may seem that Vodafone may have manufactured it’s own phone already. But actually they did not. That’s because if you will look closely, the Vodafone Smart phone is actually a rebranded Huawei U8160 which was released not so long ago. Even its specs and features were not really changed, the phone still sports the same 2.8-inch QVGA display, 2MP camera, 3G, Wi-Fi, acceleromter, A-GPS, 3.5mm headset jack, and microSD card support. The phone is pre-installed with Android 2.2 Froyo and loaded with Vodafone’s own Music app. The Vodafone Smart will be available in either black or white and its cover can be customized to suit your taste and preference. Want to see the Vodafone Smart in action? Check out the video after the via link. The Vodafone Smart will be available early summer in Germany, Italy, and the UK for €90. Via [Vodafone]  Full Story » | Written by Arnold Zafra for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Communications, Smartphones, Mobile, Computers, Mobile Computers It looks like the Pre 3 smartphone and TouchPad tablet has gotten some attention from the most recent issue of Playboy Magazine. According to details found in the issue, (on pages 90 and 91) the Pre 3 is going to be priced at $200 on a two-year agreement and the TouchPad tablet is going to come in at $500. And in addition to the pricing, which has already been deemed to be their ‘estimates” and not an official announcement, come in addition to them calling webOS “an underrated operating system.” Of course, that would sound really good had they not gone on to say that the Motorola Xoom was running a “turbo-charged version of the Android system.” That said, we are hoping that these prices (at least for the TouchPad) are accurate. Via [Engadget] and [PreCentral] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Communications, Computers, Mobile Computers, Laptops Remember the Samsung Series 9 laptop which was introduced a month ago? Well, you can now grab one of these 11-inch Samsung laptops from several retailers in the US. Amazon for one has the laptop in stock but you have to hurry because as of this writing, Amazon only has 1 unit in stock courtesy of Circuit City. If you don’t get the chance to score this laptop from Amazon, you might want to check out Tiger Direct or Direct City which are both selling the laptop as well. Price tag for the Samsung Series 9 is at $1,599.99. For that price you’ll get a thin Samsung laptop featuring - 11.6-inch display with 1366x768 resolution, Intel Core i3-380UM 1.33GHz CPU, Intel HD 3000 graphics, 64GB of SSD, 2GB of RAM, 1.3MP camera, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, 4-cell battery, HDMI port, USB 2.0, USB 3.0 and Windows 7 Home Premium. Are those worthy of the price you have to pay for this new Samsung laptop? Via [Netbook News] Full Story » | Written by Arnold Zafra for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Communications, Cellular Providers, Smartphones, Mobile As we had expected, AT&T released the webOS powered HP Veer 4G smartphone over the weekend. The handset arrives sporting features to include a 2.6 inch (320 x 400) touchscreen display, 800MHz Qualcomm processor, slide-out QWERTY keyboard, GPS, HSPA+, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, 8GB internal storage, a 5 megapixel camera, 910 mAh battery and an on-contract price tag of $99.99. Oh, and given the size, these dimensions may come in handy in showing just how small the Veer 4G actually is—3.30 x 2.15 x 0.6 inches with a weight of 3.63 ounces. That said, we can also see that the Veer 4G is available by way of Best Buy who are offering it for free on a two-year agreement. Via [AT&T] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Communications, Cellular Providers, Smartphones, Mobile The T-Mobile G2x launched on April 15th with an on-contract price of $199.99 (after a $50 mail in rebate) and we quickly saw it start selling for $149.99 by way of Amazon Wireless. Well, coming just about a month after the initial release and we have seen that Amazon has dropped that price yet again. Those interested in picking up a T-Mobile G2x can now do so for $79.99. Of course, that price comes with a two-year agreement. And for those in need of a refresher, the G2x is running Android 2.2 Froyo and has features to include a 4 inch display, dual-core processor, 512MB RAM, 8GB internal storage, microSD card slot, GPS, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, 3.5 mm headphone jack, 1.3 megapixel front facing camera and 8 megapixel rear facing camera with 1080p HD video recording and LED flash. Via [Amazon Wireless] Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Business News, Communications, Smartphones  Earlier this month, Microsoft delivered the unfortunate news that those who forced Windows Phone 7 updates would not be able to officially update their phones anymore. The problem stemmed from the fact that the unofficial update was incomplete and didn’t contain crucial components that official updates need. All is well now because a fix is now available.
Chris Walsh created the unofficial update in question. Phones that used his method to perform updates are considered to be “Walshed.” Walsh created a fix for the update issues and it has been approved by Microsoft as a method that works. The steps involved in restoring a Windows Phone 7 device are not very complicated, but Walsh stresses that users follow instructions exactly as they are written. It’s important that users only select languages that are installed on their phone when the tool prompts them to. After the steps have been completed, the phone should update through the Zune software. Via [Chris Walsh Blog] Full Story » | Written by Jeremy Hill for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 Section: Communications, Smartphones, Mobile, Computers, Mobile Computers Samsung has confirmed the good news for Galaxy S smartphone and Galaxy Tab tablet users—the update to Android 2.3 Gingerbread will be arriving as early as mid-May. Of course, not everyone using one of those devices will get Gingerbread in mid-May. According to the details coming from Samsung, those in the UK and Nordic countries will get the update in mid-May and from there it will be gradually rolled out to other countries in Europe, North America, Southeast Asia, the Middle East Asia, Africa and then the rest of the world. Bottom line, while the update will be coming, those using one of those devices may be waiting a bit depending on where they live. Keep reading to check out the full press release… Samsung Offers Android 2.3 ‘Gingerbread’ Upgrade for GALAXY S and GALAXY Tab SEOUL—(Korea Newswire) May 16, 2011—Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., a global leader in Android™ mobile devices, today announced the Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) upgrade to the Samsung GALAXY S, GALAXY Tab, and GALAXY Ace/Gio/Fit/mini, giving users enhanced performance and an improved user interface. The GALAXY S and GALAXY Tab are Samsung’s intelligently designed smart devices with 1 GHz application processors, giving users an intuitive, immersive and integrated mobile experience. The upgrade from Froyo 2.2 to Gingerbread 2.3 offers an even greater user experience, with features including: · Faster Performance – Multimedia content now has a lower CPU consumption rate, while support for more powerful 3D Graphics enables an enhanced mobile gaming experience.
· Upgraded Usability – The user interface has been improved, enabling faster access and control and a more intuitive user experience. Users will also benefit from improved copy-and-paste functionality. The Android 2.3 upgrade will start with GALAXY S in the UK and Nordic countries from mid-May, and gradually rolled out to other European markets, North America, Southeast Asia, the Middle East Asia, Africa and rest of the world according to the regional plan. The upgrade will be available via Kies, Samsung’s device management software. Kies can be downloaded from Samsung’s corporate website (http://www.samsung.com).
Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
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