Well played, New Zealand. Hobbit-infested scenery, Flight of the Conchords, the first in the world to get iPhone 3Gs … and now this. What you’re looking at is purportedly the first person to purchase a Windows Phone 7 device, and even if that’s not quite the case, it signals the launch of the phone for the island country, which would make it the first region in the world to put the device on sale. Have patience, non-Kiwi friends. Update: After the break, a shot of a Vodafone NZ HTC Trophy, purchased at Aotea Square in Auckland. Thanks, Jonathan! [Thanks, Stephen] Continue reading Windows Phone 7 now on sale… in New Zealand Windows Phone 7 now on sale… in New Zealand originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Amusingly enough, you know what’s missing from the new MacBook Air models? Adobe Flash Player. While preloaded on Apple’s past hardware, out of the box here it just says missing plugin, with no click to install option. To be fair, Flash doesn’t come standard on a lot of machines, even for Windows, but we wonder if past models will continue to ship out with Adobe’s plugin, especially once OS X 10.7 becomes de facto. It’s not like Adobe was feeling the love from Steve anyway, and you can still install Flash yourself — we did, and are happy to report the Air plays 720p video great. We were too bandwidth-challenged at the time to try 1080p for real, so we’ll have to let you know about that later. MacBook Air: all substance, no Flash originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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We knew Windows Phone 7 was scheduled to land first internationally, but it’s always a treat to hear the particulars. Orange UK has just (re)revealed that it’ll be the exclusive carrier of HTC’s 7 Mozart across the pond, and it’ll be joined by Samsung’s Omnia 7 as both go on sale tomorrow morning in Orange’s Oxford Street shop — fittingly, at 7am local time. Naturally, the carrier is going to blow out the launch, with each customer buying a WP7 handset to receive a complimentary Bluetooth headset… while supplies last, anyway. You’ll also get a stockpile of Orange applications and services (like it or not), and we’re told that each phone will be offered for zilch with a fresh contract starting at
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We’ve been anticipating FaceTime for the Mac ever since we spied the feature on the iPhone, and now Apple is making our dreams a reality with a handy new beta Mac OS X application dubbed “FaceTime.” It’s not an iChat replacement; far from it, in fact. Instead, the standalone, lightweight app dedicates itself to FaceTime calls only, with no sign of your handy AIM or Gtalk buddy list to help you along. It pulls its list of contacts strictly from the Mac Address Book, with no editing available in app, and you’d better hope you have a good handle on that list of contacts (our Gmail-tainted version could certainly use some work). You have to click on a person’s name and then guess which email or phone number they have associated with a FaceTime account — none of the helpful icons from the iPhone have made it over to guide you. It took quite a bit of extra-FaceTime communication to sort out what was what, but once you guess at the right bit of info to place the call with, it’s typical Apple simplicity. From the phone side it’s intuitive enough: call the email address associated with an Apple ID and you get the computer, call the phone number and you get the iPhone. Conveniently, your computer will “ring” even if the app is closed, though you can turn this feature off in System Preferences if it unsettles you. Hopefully Apple takes this “beta” moniker seriously and has some extra features to add before it releases the final version of the app. We also wouldn’t mind seeing this folded into iChat proper — why have two first party video chat methods? Either way, computer-to-phone conversations are here to stay. The payoff? The psychedelic experience of viewing four Paul Millers simultaneously. Gallery: FaceTime for Mac hands-on FaceTime for Mac hands-on: it works, it’s rough originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 15:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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What’s a MacBook Air to do in the case of a software emergency without an internal or external optical drive? Well, Apple’s thankfully considered that situation, and has included a Software Reinstall USB drive with both the 11-inch and 13-inch models. As a bonus, it also makes an attractive addition to a keychain or necklace. New MacBook Airs come with Software Reinstall USB drive originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 15:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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We just spent some quality time with the new 13-inch MacBook Air , and it certainly seems like a worthy upgrade. It definitely feels significantly bigger than the 11-incher , and we noticed the function keys are standard MacBook size, as opposed to the shrunken ones on the 11. We also noticed that it was seriously instant-on — we popped the lid open and closed several times while taking photos, and it was ready to go the second we opened it. We’ll have more impressions and pics in a few, stay tuned! Developing… Gallery: MacBook Air 13-inch hands-on! Gallery: MacBook AIr 11 and 13 head to head! MacBook Air (13-inch) first hands-on! originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 14:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Look, all we can tell you is that is one of the tiniest, thinnest, most lust-worthy laptops we’ve ever seen. We’re taking a deeper look at the device right now, but for the time being, enjoy the gallery below! Update: Video after the break! Gallery: MacBook Air (11.6-inch) Gallery: MacBook AIr 11 and 13 head to head! Continue reading MacBook Air (11.6-inch) first hands-on! (update: video!) MacBook Air (11.6-inch) first hands-on! (update: video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 14:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Hoo boy, our tipster was spot on with this one, Apple’s adding an 11.6-inch sibling to its newly redesigned 13.3-inch MacBook Air. It’ll have a dual-core 1.4GHz processor, 1366 x 768 resolution, and a $999 starting price for the 64GB SSD model, with the 128GB version setting you back $1,199. It carries over the aluminum unibody construction from the 13-incher, along with the same 2GB of RAM and NVIDIA GeForce 320M graphics, but has to settle for a briefer 5-hour battery life. Gallery: Apple’s 11.6-inch MacBook Air Continue reading Apple introduces 11.6-inch MacBook Air, available today for $999 Apple introduces 11.6-inch MacBook Air, available today for $999 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 14:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Apple asked itself what would happen if an iPad and a MacBook Air “hooked up.” Benefits from the iPad? “Instant on… great battery life, amazing standby time… solid state storage… and it’s thinner and lighter.” It’s 0.68-inches thick at its thickest, 0.11-inches at its thinnest, and weighs 2.9 pounds (the old MacBook Air was 0.76-inches thick and weighed 3 pounds). Naturally, Apple is going unibody construction here, with one of those big new glass trackpads. They’re also sticking with a 13.3-inch screen, running at a 1440 x 900 resolution (with an 11.6-inch “little brother” to boot ). There’s SSD storage, a 1.86GHz or 2.13GHz Core 2 Duo processor (the same ones available on existing MacBook Airs, apparently), GeForce 320m graphics, and 2GB of RAM standard. Apple says its new “more stringent” battery life tests offer 7 hours of “wireless web” and 30 days of “standby.” Prices start at $1,299 for 128GB and $1,599 for 256GB of storage; they’re available today. Be sure to check out our complete live coverage right here ! Gallery: Apple’s New MacBook Air Continue reading Apple’s new MacBook Air Apple’s new MacBook Air originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 14:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Given its success with the iPhone / iPod touch’s App Store , we can’t say an OS X version is entirely crazy — and neither can Apple, who just announced such an App Store for its 10.7 release, Lion . Here’s what we know so far: multi-touch gestures, app home screens, full screen apps. “Every app on the iPad is a full screen app,” says Steve. Auto save, apps resume when launched. Don’t expect on-screen multitouch, as Jobs is very much against vertical touching. “Touch surfaces want to be horizontal” — you can all but kiss those touchscreen iMac rumors goodbye. Just like iPad, there’s automatic installation, auto-updates, a 70 / 30 revenue split for developers, one-click downloads, and the license works for all personal Macs. The App Store itself is a standalone app that looks a lot like iTunes. Apps are automatically dropped into the dock after download. Expect it to hit OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard users “within 90 days” from today. And developers? Apple’s accepting app submissions starting in November. Check out our liveblog of Apple’s Back to the Mac event right here . Gallery: Mac App Store on OS X 10.7 Mac App Store for OS X 10.6 and 10.7 unveiled, coming ‘within 90 days’ originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 12:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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