Archives for June 2010

Google Music Could Compete with Apple iTunes

June 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Google [GOOG] a few weeks back at the Google I/O event, gave a very brief sneak peak at a new web-based music service that would tackle iTunes that Apple [AAPL] run.

On June 4, a logo was found on the Google servers showing that the service could be called Google Music. The logo is above in this post (note that the logo has now been removed from the servers).

It is expected that Google Music will be part of a new section in the Android Market and that some sort of streaming will be made available for users. When we say streaming, it isn’t confirmed just yet if streaming will be made available, or if music you like can be just downloaded direct from Android Market on to your Android device and then played back. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Tech News

Dell Streak Rooted

June 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

The Dell Streak launched last week on the O2 network in the UK. We now hear that someone has successfully managed to root the device.

For those of you unfamiliar with the Dell Streak, the device is an Android tablet device with a 5 inch multitouch screen. It has the ability to make calls, but is primarily designed to surf the web and send/receive email as well as handle multimedia such as video quite well. With it having a smaller form factor than the larger tablets such as the iPad, it easily fits in your pocket allowing it to be carried around.

Rooting the Dell Streak allows a number of things to be done with the tablet which normally cannot be done on a restricted device. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Tablets

Apple iPhone 4G Upgrades at AT&T – Eligibility Dates Change

June 7, 2010 by 2 Comments

If you currently have a contract at AT&T on an iPhone, go and check your upgrade eligibility date. You will probably find it has been changed and that a new message indicates that you will soon be able to upgrade to a new iPhone for a fee of $18 when signing up for a new two year contract. That isn’t to say that the iPhone 4G will cost you $18, that is the upgrade fee.

If you are an AT&T [T] customer, head on over to wireless.att.com and click on the Check Upgrade Options when logged in. At this point you should see a message similar to the one below (if you are eligible)

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Cell Phones

Deal of the Day: Proscan 32 Inch 1080p HDTV – 33% Off

June 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Amazon currently have a deal on the Proscan 32 inch 1080p HDTV that gives a 33% saving from the original $449.99 price tag bringing it down to $299.99. As well as the 32 inch model having a discount, the larger 40 inch model also has a saving of 26% knocking $161.99 off the price dropping it to $468.

Both TV’s are fairly standard in what they offer. Each has 2 HDMI inputs, each can display full HD at 1080p (1920 x 1080) and has a contrast ratio of 1300:1 although the larger is rated a little higher at 2000:1. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Displays

Motorola DROID Android 2.2 Download Available – Unofficially

June 7, 2010 by 5 Comments

If you are willing to root your Motorola DROID and manually install a new firmware, then in the next 30 minutes you could potentially be running Android 2.2 on your device.

Android 2.2 brings a number of enhancements to Android smartphones including performance increases, Flash 10.1 and a few nice features including wireless tethering.

If you are unfamiliar with how to install the Android 2.2 upgrade then follow the instructions over at MyDroidWorld which also includes links to where you can download the Android 2.2 Froyo update along with other things you need to get it going, and the instructions too. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cell Phones

Apple iPhone 4G Expected to be Announced Today

June 7, 2010 by 1 Comment

Today, June 7, will hopefully bring an end to all the Apple iPhone 4G leaks and rumours we have been hearing and seeing for the last few months. The main leak of the iPhone 4G from Apple [AAPL] was when Gizmodo managed to get hold of a prototype a couple of months back. Since then we have seen leaks spring out from a few countries around the world including Vietnam.

Now that we have seen the insides and outside of the iPhone 4G (or iPhone HD, or whatever it will be called), we are now expecting to hear official word from Steve Jobs himself today at WWDC.

Things that we expect to hear about the device are as follows…

The iPhone 4G is expected to have a 960 x 640 resolution effectively giving it four times the amount of pixels that the current iPhone 3GS has. The display is said to be similar to the iPad in that it will use IPS (in plane switching) along with another new technology called FFS (fringe-field switching). This could also get interesting in terms of apps for the Apple Pad… could the new iPhone apps optimised for a higher res look far better than they do now when scaled up? We hope so. Read on for more… [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cell Phones

Metro PCS to get Android 2.1 Phone

June 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Metro PCS is rumoured to be getting a new Motorola [MOT] smartphone that runs the Google [GOOG] Android 2.1 operating system.

The Android handset has a slide out QWERTY keyboard that has four rows of keys with the addition of a .com button to the left of the space bar. On the front of the device looks to be some sort of unique home button which could be encircled by some sort of funky control pad.

Other features include a 600MHz processor, a 3 megapixel camera and from what we understand, it will run the MOTOBLUR overlay. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cell Phones

Motorola MILESTONE XT720 Android Smartphone Announced

June 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Motorola [MOT] has announced the Motorola MILESTONE XT720 for those of us in the UK.

The new Motorola MILESTONE has dropped the keyboard and also now includes hi-def recording and output. With the keyboard being dropped, the new MILESTONE is now slimmer than the previous version. It measures 10.9mm now compared to the 13.7mm when the keyboard was attached.

The operating system installed is Android 2.1 although Android 2.2 will be quickly made available after launch although it is unclear what quick means with Motorola. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cell Phones

Samsung Galaxy Tab to be Joined by Two Other Tablets

June 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

The Samsung Galaxy Tab was unveiled a few days ago. When previewed, it had a 7 inch screen putting it in-between the Dell Streak and Apple iPad in terms of screen size.

We now hear that Samsung will launch two other tablet devices also which will include an 8 and 10 inch version.

It is expected that Samsung will be pricing the new tablet computers aggressively to get them in the market to tackle the popular iPad from Apple [AAPL].

The Samsung Tablets will first be launched in their home network market on SK Telecom. If popular then I am sure an international launch will follow perhaps early next year. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Tablets

Apple iPhone 3G runs Android 2.2

June 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

We have seen a few cases where an iPhone has been seen running Android. Normally the version of Android has been older like 1.5 or 1.6, but now we see an Apple iPhone 3G running the latest Android 2.2 built (Froyo).

Most features work on the port although Wi-Fi and audio does not at the moment. Calls and SMS messages can be made as well as web browsing. There is a problem though that when they say Android 2.2 runs on the iPhone 3G, it isn’t really usable in that battery life dies quite quickly, there is problems accessing the GPU and the iPhone runs very hot will running the 2.2 OS.

The iPhone used was running iPhone OS 3.1.2. To get this running yourself, full instructions can be found over at GadgetsDNA although we always recommend reading the instructions fully and also do this carefully to prevent bricking your phone. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cell Phones

HP Printers to get Email Addresses

June 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

HP [HPQ] is expected to announce a new range of printers that will each be capable of having an email address. The idea sounds crazy until you look in to what capabilities that will give the printer.

Right now we live in an age where we carry an iPhone, iPad and other devices such as Android phones. Sometimes we want to be able to print but don’t have the necessary cables to do so. If a printer has an email address, you can simply forward the document to that email address, have the document load up on a small screen, check the formatting and hit print.

We are hearing that when the printers launch they will cost in the region of $99 to $400 depending on which model you choose. However, nothing is known yet about the printers other than they can receive emails and print out the documents. We suspect that the higher the price the larger the screen and the more abilities it will have possibly with the lower end not being able to handle attached documents for example. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Computer Gadgets

Apple Magic Trackpad Leak

June 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Leaked images of a new Apple Magic Trackpad were spotted today that reveal Apple [AAPL] could be working on bringing a touch/gesture based interface to the desktop. Apple over the last few years has worked a lot with touchscreen devices such as the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad and have advanced quite far with that technology. The leaked images seem to indicate that a new trackpad will be launching for desktop devices.

The Apple Magic Trackpad looks to be a bluetooth device that sits on your desk and has a similar profile to the Bluetooth keyboard in that a small cylinder on the back elevates the back end of the pad slightly. The magic trackpad would potentially allow you to more easily navigate around the screen and use gestures to swipe between windows for example.

Rumours earlier this year came about a multi-touch trackpad but shortly after seemed to be forgotten about. Also a patent for a “Magic Trackpad” was also unveiled a while back too, so perhaps today is when we will finally hear about this device. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Computer Gadgets