Turns out, Sony Ericsson is really coming around to the understanding that Android phones are not a one-size-fits-all proposition. After taking notice of the FreeXperia team’s tireless efforts to bring CyanogenMod 7.1 to certain SE devices, the company is now ” pulling a Samsung ” by lending its support to the cause. The firm has provided the group with approximately 20 phones, along with debugged and rebuilt camera library binaries to ensure a proper user experience. Not stopping there, Sony Ericsson hopes to make these bits available to all developers under a special EULA in the near future. Of course, the company continues to remind its users that it doesn’t specifically condone unlocking the bootloader — which still results in a void warranty — even though it’s willing to help you do just that. [Thanks, Thorsten] Sony Ericsson lends hand to FreeXperia devs, shows love for CyanogenMod 7.1 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 02 Oct 2011 12:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Turns out, Sony Ericsson is really coming around to the understanding that Android phones are not a one-size-fits-all proposition. After taking notice of the FreeXperia team’s tireless efforts to bring CyanogenMod 7.1 to certain SE devices, the company is now ” pulling a Samsung ” by lending its support to the cause. The firm has provided the group with approximately 20 phones, along with debugged and rebuilt camera library binaries to ensure a proper user experience. Not stopping there, Sony Ericsson hopes to make these bits available to all developers under a special EULA in the near future. Of course, the company continues to remind its users that it doesn’t specifically condone unlocking the bootloader — which still results in a void warranty — even though it’s willing to help you do just that. [Thanks, Thorsten] Sony Ericsson lends hand to FreeXperia devs, shows love for CyanogenMod 7.1 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 02 Oct 2011 12:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Boston Dynamics’ BigDog is one of our favorite insane-level DARPA projects; a robotic pack-mule that can carry 400 pounds of kit for troops. At some point, the Massachusetts mechanics decided the bot would be far better if it was the size of a bull, or, you know, an SUV. The Alpha Dog loses the un-stealthy buzzing noise of its predecessor, has a range of 20 miles and can take much more punishment. If you check out the video after the break, you’ll see two people unsuccessfully attempt a takedown on the monster — Half-Life 2 diehards might experience a combat flashback at the mere sight of it. AT-AT Jr is expected to see field testing sometime next year when it won’t have a test bed of rocks to contend with, but the US Marines. Mark our words: we expect ‘em to appear in every nightmarish dystopia of the 2020s, and take a staring role in the forthcoming Robopocalypse . Continue reading Boston Dynamics Alpha Dog makes Alyx Vance’s pet look like a toy (video) Boston Dynamics Alpha Dog makes Alyx Vance’s pet look like a toy (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 02 Oct 2011 13:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Friday afternoons just aren’t the same without a mobile podcast to listen to, but hopefully your Sunday afternoon is now a heckuva lot better this weekend. It turned out that 2PM ET was the perfect window of time for Myriam and Brad to get their rants in order and dissect the absolutely gargantuan week of wireless happenings all at the same time. Join us for a special Sunday edition of the Engadget Mobile Podcast, live at 2PM ET (11AM PT, 6PM GT)! Continue reading The Engadget Mobile Podcast, live at 2PM ET! The Engadget Mobile Podcast, live at 2PM ET! originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 02 Oct 2011 13:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it’s easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don’t escape without notice, we’ve gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery from the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy! Official Android updates The top story this week revolves around the HTC Thunderbolt’s long-awaited Gingerbread OTA update. It was finally rolling out, which was exciting news for owners of the device — until it had to be pulled because of some rather significant bugs. The largest of them all was that voicemail notifications no longer worked properly; video chatting through Google Talk was also slightly messed up as well. No word on when we can expect to see it come back with those bugs fixed. [ Droid-Life ] Unfortunately, the Thunderbolt isn’t the only phone falling victim to pulled revamps; the LG Optimus S on Sprint had its Gingerbread update kiboshed, though users have had two weeks to get it — plenty of time for anyone to experience some of the bugs, which included the phone not charging, the SD card not being recognized when the phone’s connected to the computer, no access to data services, and predictive text on the virtual keyboard stopped working. It’s disappointing to see this happen so soon after the Kyocera Echo update went through a similar debacle. [ SprintFeed ] LG Optimus 3D: V10K firmware update, enables phone to convert OpenGL-capable 2D games into stereoscopic 3D. Note: this still runs Android 2.2.2, so we’re still waiting for Gingerbread. [ AndroidCentral ] Motorola Xoom WiFi: Android 3.2.1 is beginning to roll out. [ AndroidCentral ] Dell Streak 7: Honeycomb update rolling out now to unspecified regions [ AndroidCentral ] Asus Eee Pad Transformer: Revamped to Android 3.2.1, adds other bug fixes [ AndroidCommunity ] Casio G’Zone Commando: Gingerbread rolling out now [ Droid-Life ] Motorola Droid 3: Minor maintenance refresh; enhances Google Talk with video chat support, several other fixes. [ PhoneDog ] T-Mobile Samsung Nexus S: OTA install (with option to manually install) to Android 2.3.6; doesn’t appear to break tethering. [ AndroidCentral ] Unofficial Android updates, custom ROMs and misc. hackery The Android 2.3.5 ROM for the global Samsung Galaxy S II leaked early this week. [ Pocketnow , SamFirmware ] You can now download the Android 2.3.4 SBF for the Motorola Droid X2, courtesy of XDA . [ Droid-Life ] If you have a Sony Ericsson Xperia-branded device from 2010 or 2011, CyanogenMod7 support will most likely come included as part of an upcoming update. Ten Xperia devices will be added, though a timeframe for release wasn’t announced. Check here to see if your device made the list. [ XperiaBlog ] Other platforms Check here to see if your phone is ready to receive Windows Phone Mango. The ultra-rare AT&T HP Pre 3 just received an OTA update to 2.2.3.2207, right after a new webOS Doctor became available for the same refresh. [ PreCentral ] Refreshes we covered this week Windows Phone 7.5 Mango update now rolling out How to force Mango to your phone right away Samsung Taylor receiving Mango? Refresh Roundup: week of September 26, 2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 02 Oct 2011 11:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …It may be serving a somewhat small niche, but we’re guessing that niche will be plenty pleased that something like the LiveLens MFT adapter now exists. That’s MFT as in Micro Four Thirds , and the adapter is for Canon EF lenses. Nothing too special there, but this particular adapter now also allows for aperture control for the first time, which is actually done on the adapter itself, not the camera — the only remaining drawback is a lack of autofocus. Expectedly that ability comes at quite a premium — you’ll have to fork over $442 for the adapter and an extra $52 for the necessary 9V battery cable. LiveLens MFT adapter brings aperture control to Canon EF lenses originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 02 Oct 2011 09:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Lots of PC news flowing out of Sony Electronics’ US headquarters this fine Sunday morning. First, the company slashed the starting price of the 13-inch VAIO SA laptop from $1,250 to $1,000, while the lower-end SB series now starts at $780 (it had been going for $800 after instant savings). We asked Sony’s PR team what that means for folks who recently purchased either of these through Sony’s online store, and still haven’t gotten a response, but the company was quick to remind us that it’s up to retailers such as Best Buy to set their own price protection policies. ( Thanks , Sony!) Moving along, that 15.5-inch VAIO SE series we reviewed a month ago is at last up for sale, beautiful 1080p display and all. You can find her on Sony’s site starting at a thousand bucks with a Core i5-2430M processor, 4GB of RAM, a 640GB 5,400RPM hard drive, DVD burner and, of course, that 1920 x 1080 panel. So, is all that is worth a flaky trackpad and poor battery life (sans $150 slice)? That, friends, is a decision you’ll have to make for yourself. Finally, in more granular news, the 14-inch C and E series are getting expanded Sandy Bridge processor options, while the 16-inch F series and L series all-in-ones will come with Vegas Movie Studio HD Platinum, Sound Forge Audio Studio and ACID Music Studio pre-installed. In addition, the SA, L, F and E series are all getting speed bumps, as are pre-configured SB and Z series laptops. Oh, and the SB is now available in red. Got it? Good. Lots of up to date specs at the source link. Sony cuts the VAIO SA’s starting price to $1,000, starts shipping the 15-inch VAIO SE originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 02 Oct 2011 08:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Have a soft spot for wireless speakers ? There were tons of options out there already, but JBL just threw one more into the ring with its On Tour iBT. As we’d expect form the audio gurus, the system boasts wireless audio internals that play nice with both A2DP and AVRCP Bluetooth devices. In addition to four JBL Odyssey trasnducers, the kit packs a built-in microphone for Facetime or hands-free calls, an adjustable iPad stand and a USB connector for charging — when the Katy Perry tune blastin’ device is plugged in itself, of course. Interested? It can be yours now via the source link for $150, but if you’d care to take a closer look before committing, peep the gallery below. Gallery: JBL On Tour iBT JBL On Tour iBT Bluetooth speaker now available for $150, iPad stand included originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 02 Oct 2011 06:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Do you demand portability from your Redundant Array of Independent Disks? Then you’ve probably already seen Sonnet’s Fusion F2 , with its two 1TB drives and eSATA connector. Today the company introduces the Fusion F2QR, which also features two 2.5-inch, 1TB hard drives — but now comes with four interface options. You’ve got your eSATA, of course, but also Firewire 400, Firewire 800 and USB 2.0 connectors. There’s a new built-in RAID controller that smooths configuration as well, and the aluminum case and fanless design keep noise to a minimum. All of that fits in a shell measuring 5.9- x 6.1- x 0.95-inches. This slender slab of storage is available now and will set you back $569. Need RAID? Fusion F2QR packs two 1TB drives into a portable shell originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 02 Oct 2011 03:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …October 2nd. Boy, the date sure creeped up on us, but it’s here regardless — the Samsung Galaxy S II has finally debuted on AT&T . Many of you who’ve been waiting several months for a subsidized GSM model in the US may find it hard to believe that you’re able to head on over to the carrier’s site and purchase one for a couple C-notes. Rest assured, we’ve checked it out ourselves and it’s really, really there, waiting for you to click that “add to cart” button. So if the style and carrier fit your fancy, friends, carpe diem. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in] Samsung Galaxy S II now available on AT&T for $200 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 02 Oct 2011 01:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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