That’s no typo, folks, Microsoft’s own-brand pseudo-smartphones are back at Verizon , this time sporting an “m” appendage to their names and what looks like better pricing across the board. The Kin ONEm will set you back a cent under $20 with a two-year contract, whereas the TWOm costs just under $50 but is also subject to a Buy One Get One Free offer (the free phone being an LG Ally ). We’ve spotted Zune Pass is still present on the pair, though it’s on a “WiFi and sideload only” basis, seemingly forbidding 3G streaming. Plans start at $39.99 for voice and $9.99 for 25MB of data (while the $9.99 option is advertised, the cheapest data plan we’re presently able to add is the $15 a month 150MB option), plus there’s a $35 activation fee. Compared to the original pricing, which had the One asking for $50 in upfront costs and $70 as the minimum levy for voice plus data, we’d say this is a definite move in the right direction. A few months late, but better late than never, eh? [Thanks, Wyatt] Continue reading Kin ONEm and Kin TWOm back at Verizon Kin ONEm and Kin TWOm back at Verizon originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Nov 2010 02:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Panasonic GF2 shipping December 3rd in Japan, turning gringos green with envy
November 18, 2010 No Comment
As far as we know, the western hemisphere should still have the mirrorless GF2 from Panasonic penciled in on its January 2011 must-own list, but Japan is (predictably) getting the party started a little early. Panny has shot out a brief statement this morning to say that its home nation will receive the GF2 — alternately attired in red, white or black — on the 3rd of December. That’s a good couple of weeks before we expected to even have pricing for North America and Europe, leaving the rest of us to just pout and stare at the calendar with disdain. And if pricing is what you need, Impress has some of its usually deadly accurate estimates to offer you, with the GF2 body set to cost
Continue reading …Qualcomm teases 28nm dual-core Snapdragons, pixel-punching Adreno 300 GPU
November 18, 2010 No Comment
By the time Qualcomm’s 1.5GHz QSD8672 Snapdragon finally makes it to market , it might be obsolete — the company just announced that the new 28nm dual-core MSM8960 system-on-a-chip will have five times the performance and consume 75 percent less power than the original Snapdragon when it arrives in 2011. It’s got the usual WiFi, GPS, Bluetooth and FM radio modules but also a multi-mode LTE / 3G modem too, and reportedly four times the graphical muscle on board. Speaking of graphics, Qualcomm seperately took the time to detail a new GPU: the Qualcomm Adreno 300 series, which will allegedly offer the gaming performance of an Xbox 360 or PS3. We’d say “We’ll believe it when we see it,” but that would imply doubt — the reality is that we just want to feast our eyes on mobile gaming bliss as soon as humanly possible. [Thanks, PhineasJW] Qualcomm teases 28nm dual-core Snapdragons, pixel-punching Adreno 300 GPU originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Nov 2010 02:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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It’s hardly the most affordable Bluetooth speaker around, but Jawbone’s new Jambox did manage to impress us when we got our hands on it earlier this month , and you can now finally pick one up yourself directly from Jawbone, or at your local Apple store and “select” Best Buy stores. As expected, it’ll set you back $200, and it’s available in your choice of four different colors / designs, each of which pack the same 800mAh lithium-ion battery that promises ten hours of continuous use, a built-in mic that will let you use it as a speakerphone, and an output capacity of 85 decibels that Jawbone says “fills even the largest rooms with stellar hi-fi sound.” If you’re looking to judge that for yourself, you can apparently do so at an Apple store, where Jawbone says the Jambox will be “featured alongside the iPad.” Jawbone Jambox Bluetooth speaker now available for $200 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Nov 2010 01:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …OnLive MicroConsole official at $99, we go hands-on and bombard you with details
November 18, 2010 No Comment
Everybody’s favorite instant streaming video game service just came into its own: OnLive is launching the MicroConsole right now , a tiny box that turns your Speedy Gonzales internet connection into a virtual game console. Sure, the company’s cloud computing service already lets you do the same from any old netbook — that’s kind of the point — but the $99 OnLive Game System gives you the leanback HDTV experience complete with a custom wireless gamepad, and (assuming you use HDMI) it’ll come with all the wires too when it ships December 2nd. We sat down with OnLive VP of Engineering Joe Bentley to get a handle on the hardware within, and learn about the budding ecosystem you’ll be dealing with if you buy in. See what the long-awaited system looks like below, and get the full scoop after the break! Gallery: OnLive Game System unboxing and hands-on Continue reading OnLive MicroConsole official at $99, we go hands-on and bombard you with details OnLive MicroConsole official at $99, we go hands-on and bombard you with details originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Nov 2010 00:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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It’s been a long time coming since Sling announced the super slim Sling Adapter at CES , and surprise, surprise, the first cable or satellite provider to make it available to its customers is Sling’s sister company Dish Network . The Sling Adapter should be available for order at $99 by the time you read this, and with a single USB plug it will add Slingbox capabilities to your Dish Network 722 DVR. Dish was nice enough to send us one a tad early, which means you should click on through to learn all the wonders and sorrows of the device. Continue reading Dish Network Sling Adapter review Dish Network Sling Adapter review originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Nov 2010 00:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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No surprise here, but it looks like Verizon’s on-sale -but-never-really-announced Droid 2 Global has its GSM radios locked down, meaning you can’t just throw an AT&T SIM in there and expect anything to work. Of course, the enterprising hackers at xda-developers are hot on the case, so there’s a chance things will be opened up, but we wouldn’t hold our breath. In other news, it looks like there’s been a slight case modification to the Droid 2 Global — the camera module now sports a slight hump as seen in the comparison photo above. We’re not sure if this is to accommodate the extra radio or (please please please) perhaps a better sensor, but whoomp, there it is. No big thing in the grand scheme of things, but between the dark blue casing and the camera bulge, you’ll totally be able to spot D2G owners out of the crowd. And that… that will make you a super nerd weirdo. But it’s okay, because we love you. Droid 2 Global GSM bands locked, camera bulge added to case originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Nov 2010 22:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …GSM Association proposes embedded SIM cards with remote activation for 2012
November 18, 2010 No Comment
The GSM Association is taking a serious look at embedded SIM cards that can be remotely activated, in both traditional (e.g. phones) and non-traditional devices (e.g. cameras, MP3 players). According to the presser, a task force has been assembled, culled from “leading technical experts” whose home turfs include virtually every major worldwide carrier. An “analysis of market requirements” is due in January 2011, and devices with the new technology are reportedly expected in 2012. If all that sounds familiar, perhaps you’ll recall a recent rumor that pegged Apple and SIM gurus Gemalto as privately collaborating on a similar (if not virtually identical) idea. Coincidence? Don’t blame us if your Krispy Kreme Android phonelet’s nanoSIM doesn’t mesh with the iPhone 6. GSM Association proposes embedded SIM cards with remote activation for 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Nov 2010 21:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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While there have already been a lot of great proof-of-concepts for the Kinect , what we’re really excited for are the actual applications that will come from it. On the top of our list? Robots. The Personal Robots Group at MIT has put a battery-powered Kinect sensor on top of the iRobot Create platform, and is beaming the camera and depth sensor data to a remote computer for processing into a 3D map — which in turn can be used for navigation by the bot. They’re also using the data for human recognition, which allows for controlling the bot using natural gestures. Looking to do something similar with your own robot? Well, the ROS folks have a Kinect driver in the works that will presumably allow you to feed all that great Kinect data into ROS’s already impressive libraries for machine vision. Tie in the Kinect’s multi-array microphones, accelerometer, and tilt motor and you’ve got a highly aware, semi-anthropomorphic “three-eyed” robot just waiting to happen. We hope it will be friends with us. Video of the ROS experimentation is after the break. Continue reading Kinect sensor bolted to an iRobot Create, starts looking for trouble Kinect sensor bolted to an iRobot Create, starts looking for trouble originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Nov 2010 21:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Verizon execs propose speed-based pricing for LTE data plans, say LTE has ‘drawn the interest of Apple’
November 18, 2010 No Comment
Paying for data overage is the new hotness in the wireless biz, and Verizon was the latest to dive head-first into the nasty world of usage-based pricing for its wireless data plans just a few weeks ago . But how about paying for speed instead? Seems both outgoing Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg and CFO Fran Shammo commented today that the company’s shiny new LTE network could support charging different rates depending on the speed subscribers select — just like in the landline internet business — though they wouldn’t commit to implementing such a system just yet. Speaking of LTE, Seidenberg also mentioned that he “expects” Verizon’s first LTE phone to launch in February (likely the LG we saw or HTC’s Mecha , if we had to guess), coming in on the early side of its 1H 2011 plan — and what’s more, he’s saying more LTE-equipped devices will launch than originally anticipated. We certainly won’t complain about that. On the undying topic of the iPhone , Seidenberg’s basically holding the same line he’s maintained for some time, which is that the companies’ “interests are coming together” and that the phone will come when “Apple thinks it’s time.” The gem, though, is that Seidenberg specifically says that Verizon’s adoption of LTE has attracted Apple’s attention and helped it score the iPad — and seeing how Verizon’s cobbled-together iPad / MiFi bundle doesn’t support LTE, we can only assume it was a peace offering to help the two companies come together and prepare to work together more closely down the road. Question is, just how soon would Apple like to play the LTE card? Verizon execs propose speed-based pricing for LTE data plans, say LTE has ‘drawn the interest of Apple’ originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Nov 2010 20:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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