What’s wrong with this picture? Looks like Apple may have dropped one important product from its store during today’s new product rush. It seems as if there may indeed be some meat to those recent rumors that the company is doing with its white plastic piece of laptoppy goodness — at the very least, the thing is nowhere to be seen in its current online lineup. The MacBook drops from Apple’s Store originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jul 2011 09:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Traditionally known as DSLRs, interchangeable lens cameras (ILC) have always promised excellent image quality, speed, and versatility. But their enormous size and weight, lofty price tags, and intimidating design have forced casual photographers to focus on compact and superzoom point-and-shoot cameras instead, often leaving those bulky, confusing monstrosities to the pros. Enter mirrorless models, which scrap an optical viewfinder in favor of shrinking both body size and price tag, have provided the rest of us with a welcome mat to the world of powerful sensors, high-speed shooting, and swappable lenses — with relatively little sacrifice along the way. The 16-megapixel Alpha NEX-C3 builds upon the successes of its predecessor — the NEX-3 — sporting a slimmer body and redesigned APS-C sensor. It also adds a reported 20-percent boost in battery life, improved low light performance, and a slimmer, more attractive design. We spent well over a month using the NEX-C3 as our primary camera for product shoots, trade shows, hands-on videos, and vacations, and were blown away by its performance as both a versatile still snapper and a powerful video camera. It’s important to note that while the C3 does capture 720p video, it can’t shoot in 1080p, so you’ll need to look elsewhere if you need full HD. Like all mirrorless cameras, there’s also no optical viewfinder, nor is there a traditional hot shoe. Instead, Sony included the same propriety connector found on the NEX-3 and NEX-5, enabling connectivity with a dedicated external microphone and a limited variety of external flashes, including the compact strobe that ships in the box. While some photographers may find the NEX-C3 inadequate for their needs, we absolutely loved shooting with it, and we think you will too. Jump past the break to see why. Gallery: Sony NEX-C3 review Continue reading Sony Alpha NEX-C3 review Sony Alpha NEX-C3 review originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jul 2011 08:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …T-Mobile unveils flexible new Value plans: unlimited talk, text, and / or data for any device
July 20, 2011 No Comment
We’ll give T-Mobile credit, it isn’t afraid to shake things up to try to gain ground on Big Red and Ma Bell in the cellular arms race. Mere months after rolling out new prepaid options for its customers, T-Mo is bringing Value plans to the people. These new plans come in various configurations, but all are available with any of the carrier’s phones, tablets, or broadband accessories. In exchange for a two year commitment, you get 2, 5, or 10GB of high speed data, with limitless websurfing at slower speeds. Full pricing hasn’t been announced, but we do know you’ll be able to get two lines with unlimited talk, text, and 2GB of data for $100, while the data alone will run $20 per month. Sound good? Well, the plans go live next Monday, so you’ve got plenty of time to read up on your options in the PR after the break. Continue reading T-Mobile unveils flexible new Value plans: unlimited talk, text, and / or data for any device T-Mobile unveils flexible new Value plans: unlimited talk, text, and / or data for any device originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jul 2011 06:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Sonos Play:3 compact streaming media Hi-Fi gets official for $299, we go ears-on
July 20, 2011 No Comment
Chances are you’ve already seen the Sonos Play:3 thanks to the leaktacular thing we call the internet. Now the tiny streaming Hi-Fi system is official and ready to start beaming that shiny new Spotify account you just scored all around your home. Inside the relatively compact chassis is a trio of digital drivers, one tweeter and two mid-range, as well as three Class-D digital amps. Unlike its big brother, which has been rebranded the Play:5 (instead of the S5 ), there’s no active subwoofer on board, but it does sport a passive bass “radiator” that adds a surprising amount of depth to this little shelf speaker. The $299 streamer requires a Bridge ($49) to actually kick out the jams but, once you’ve got the basic system in place, you can tack on additional Play:3s and even combine them as a stereo pair for better separation of those all important right and left channels. There’s even an accelerometer built in that automatically switches from standard to mono and tweaks the EQ settings when the speaker is turned on its side. We only spent a brief period of time with the Play:3, but it was surprisingly loud and quite clear even at neighbor-annoying volumes — though, we’re reserving final judgment until our review unit shows up. In the meantime, check out the galleries and the PR below. Continue reading Sonos Play:3 compact streaming media Hi-Fi gets official for $299, we go ears-on Sonos Play:3 compact streaming media Hi-Fi gets official for $299, we go ears-on originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jul 2011 03:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Klipsch’s AirPlay-enabled Gallery G-17 Air pleases ears sans cords for $530
July 20, 2011 No Comment
No, that’s not some oversized Kinect KIRF . What you’re looking at is Klipsch’s latest soundbar, the Gallery G-17 Air. Seem familiar? If you’ll recall, back at CES it was known as the Gallery Studio — the smallest of three AirPlay -enabled speaker systems the company let us demo at CES . Although not totally new, its full specs have been revealed and its price re-vamped from $400 to a slightly spendier $530. The bi-amplified stereo rig features four individually powered drivers that aim to deliver full-range sound via two Tractrix-horned .75-inch tweeters (10 watts each), and dual 2.5-inch, 20 watt woofers. Although you’ll probably be streaming music over WiFi from iDevices or iTunes, the unit’s equipped with USB and 3.5mm inputs should you ever want to plug-in directly or juice-up your battery. There’s an ultra-svelte grill-cloth magnetically attached to the front, playback and power buttons on the side, and it also comes with a remote. The system itself sits atop a tempered glass base, but if space is at premium it can be mounted to a wall. The G-17 is set to release this fall, but if your ears are already tingling you’ll find more info in the source link below. Klipsch’s AirPlay-enabled Gallery G-17 Air pleases ears sans cords for $530 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jul 2011 04:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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This Apple Store looks so real we still can’t quite believe it isn’t. The KIRF-ers have excelled themselves this time: mimicking or at least reinventing everything from the Brave New World posters down to the dog-tags and “We live here” demeanor worn by the staff. The only giveaways that led observant blogger BirdAbroad to whip out her camera were some slight imperfections in the decor, the lack of individual names on the staff badges, and the fact that Apple only has legit stores in Beijing and Shanghai — and none here in the Chinese Backwaterville of Kunming. Hey Apple, we feel your pain . You’ll find further unbelievable pics after the break and over at BirdAbroad’s blog. Continue reading The ultimate KIRF: fake Apple Store spotted in China The ultimate KIRF: fake Apple Store spotted in China originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jul 2011 04:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Hey there, friends. Do you have the voice-calling blues, wishing for a better way to talk to your friends — without using your minutes? Consider Viber, a free VoIP app that launched for the iPhone last year . Usable over 3G or WiFi, with built-in SMS, it requires no registration, using your existing phone number and contact list. Our only quibble? A disheartening lack of Android support. But our spirits are lifted today, with the app making its way to the everyone’s favorite olive-green market. It has all the compelling features of the iOS version, plus a few extras we saw in the limited beta , like pop-up text message notification, in-app call logs, and the option to use Viber as your default dialer. The company must be doing something right, as it claims 12 million active users just seven months after launch. Interested in being one of them? Check the full PR — with video! — after the break. Continue reading Viber’s free, no-registration 3G VoIP app officially launches on Android Viber’s free, no-registration 3G VoIP app officially launches on Android originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jul 2011 03:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Last we heard from Viliv , one of the OGs of the MID and UMPC world, it was throwing its hat in the tablet arena with a pair of Android slates and a Wintel slab at CES. Now, rumor has it, the company is prepping to close up shop and make a graceful exit from a market segment it helped pioneer. This is according to sources talking to UMPC Portal , but there have been other clues. The manufacturer was conspicuously absent from Computex in June and, when we reached out to its PR line, our emails we’re bounced back as undeliverable. We’re not quite ready to start digging Viliv’s digital grave just yet but, in the face of competition from the likes of Samsung and Apple, we’d say the writing is on the wall. Viliv, UMPC and MID proponent, reportedly exiting the ultramobile game originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jul 2011 00:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Sprint’s Fared Adib: we made a conscious decision to scale back bloatware on smartphones
July 19, 2011 No Comment
If you’ve ever wondered what companies take your advice (read: complaints) to heart, here’s yet another one that is: Sprint. Recently, HTC received oodles of praise from a minuscule-but-passionate group of folks who appreciate the company’s stance on unlocking its bootloaders , and today we learned that folks at The Now Network made a similarly impressive change after hearing yet another enthusiastic sect… our readers . If you’ll recall, Sprint’s VP of Product Development Fared Adib appeared on the November 2010 episode of The Engadget Show, and it was during that appearance that he heard a rather shrill cry of users begging for a smaller amount of “bloatware,” or at the very least, bloatware that users could customize or outright remove. For those unfamiliar with the term, it generally refers to applications that are preloaded onto devices from the carrier; by and large, these clutter up the application grid, and many power users aren’t exactly enthralled by any carrier-imposed OS changes. In speaking at length today with Adib during a Sprint campus walkthrough, he confessed that he jetted back from NYC and immediately informed his team that the bloatware needed to go. To quote: “Ben, we’ve got to get rid of these preloaded apps on our devices. A lot of customers don’t want this.” You may have noticed a dearth of those very apps on the EVO 3D , and according to Fared, customer feedback on the newly cleaned slate has been overwhelmingly positive. We inquired on whether this approach would be pushed across the company’s product spectrum, and he seemed eager to admit that it would. In fact, Sprint’s taking quite the different approach internally than some folks may be used to. It’s effectively trying to get out of the way in as many areas as possible, and in turn, litter your future phones with as little content as possible. In fact, he’s pushing to make whatever programs Sprint does preload user-removable, and it’s a mantra we can only hope other carriers latch onto. Nothing against NASCAR, of course, but having the ability to burn rubber in our own way is definitely preferred. P.S. – This slide was just one of many, and is definitely not a comprehensive view of partners and plans. We were specifically informed to not read into it as a solo slide. Sprint’s Fared Adib: we made a conscious decision to scale back bloatware on smartphones originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Jul 2011 21:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Roku 2 HD, XD, and XS officially launch: same price, smaller size and Angry Birds
July 19, 2011 No Comment
Roku has gone from a barely known streaming media box manufacturer to a retail darling in a remarkably short amount of time (the last hardware revamp launched less than a year ago ) and it’s back with more new hardware to continue the assault. The Roku 2 lineup will put their (much smaller) footprint in the spaces left by their predecessors when they hit shelves later this month without changing the price one bit. Besides being more energy efficient, it brings new channels including Angry Birds , Epix, MLS and more, while also upgrading the Netflix experience with support for subtitles, surround sound and 1080p video. The pricing tiers of $60 (HD), $80 (XD) and $100 (XS) remain; while stepping up to the XD adds 1080p video output, splurging for the XS adds a game remote (a $29 accessory), included copy of Angry Birds plus Ethernet and USB ports. If you still need confirmation after all the leaks , there’s another pic and a press release after the break. Continue reading Roku 2 HD, XD, and XS officially launch: same price, smaller size and Angry Birds Roku 2 HD, XD, and XS officially launch: same price, smaller size and Angry Birds originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Jul 2011 23:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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