Did you finally use JailbreakMe to free your iPhone? Well, if you’re also sick of pecking at its virtual keyboard, then Andrew Liu’s new Swype iOS port may pique your interest. Although the app’s still in the earliest of stages — version 0.1.0, to be exact — we can confirm it works, but it did take us two downloads with Cydia and functionality proved limited. We were able to swipe words in pre-loaded apps like Messaging, Mail and Search, but had no luck with Safari or others we’ve downloaded. Furthermore, Swype’s all-important blue trace-line is absent, and our words didn’t always come out as expected. Liu stated on Twitter that the current release is still a beta and that he’ll be sprucing it up soon; in the meantime, let us know how your swipe-typing goes in the comments if you choose to install it. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in] Swype unofficially makes its way to iOS, slides in via Jailbreak radar originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Jul 2011 17:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Well, we hate to be the bearers of bad news but, looks like the Droid 3 will not be shipping with the unlocked bootloader Motorola promised us. According to a Motorola support forum manager the latest, landscape QWERTY slider from the company is not sporting the new unlockable firmware found on the Xoom. Now, before everyone gets up in arms, lets remember that Moto said it wouldn’t be offering the new bootloader till “late 2011,” and it’s entirely possible the Droid 3 could shed those shackles with a future software update. So, we understand you’re a little disappointed but, patience is a virtue friends. Droid 3 sadly shipping with locked bootloader originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Jul 2011 13:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …BlackBerry PlayBook gets arrested, finds itself toggling light bars in a police car (video)
July 8, 2011 No Comment
Look, there’s no question that Canada looks out for its own, but if you reckoned that it also let everything slide… well, think again. One D&R Electronics has apparently thrown a BlackBerry PlayBook into a Canadian Dodge Charger, signified by a red maple leaf and the oh-so-distinct use of the word “ayeouuut.” Put simply, the 7-inch slate has been coded up to flip on the overhead / side lights, search police databases for names and faces, accept commands wirelessly from an in-car keyboard, and even be fully detachable for those times with mobility is of the utmost importance. You know, like playing Angry Birds while waiting in line to cross the border. Head on past the break to have a look, won’t you? [Thanks, Dan ] Continue reading BlackBerry PlayBook gets arrested, finds itself toggling light bars in a police car (video) BlackBerry PlayBook gets arrested, finds itself toggling light bars in a police car (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Jul 2011 16:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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We’ve known since its recent announcement that T-Mobile’s myTouch 4G Slide will be a mobile photographer’s delight and now we get to see the camera UI in action on video. As a quick reminder, the carrier’s upcoming Gingerbread smartphone is made by HTC and features Sense 3.0, a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, a dual-core 1.2GHz Snapdragon processor, a 3.7-inch WVGA Super LCD display, HSPA+ connectivity on the AWS spectrum, and a trick 8 megapixel shooter. The f2.2 wide-angle lens is combined with a low-light capable sensor and a dual-LED flash, but it’s the camera software that really shines. Like on the Sensation , you’ll find support for 1080p HD video recording, but the myTouch 4G Slide adds multiple scenes, zero shutter lag technology, continuous autofocus, HDR stills capture, plus panorama and burst modes, along with a dedicated two-stage shutter key. While we doubt it will dethrone Nokia’s N8 in term of raw picture quality, we’re looking forward to putting HTC’s latest feature-packed shooter through its paces when the handset debuts this month for $199 on contract. T-Mobile’s myTouch 4G Slide shows off its camera chops (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Jul 2011 15:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …AT&T launches USBConnect Force 4G USB modem, offers it for zilch on contract
July 8, 2011 No Comment
You’d better be darn sure AT&T’s data service is solid in your neck of the woods before making the leap, but if you’ve managed to survive this long sans a USB WWAN dongle… well, here’s your chance to grow that much more connected to your inbox. Ma Bell has just issued its latest USB modem, the USBConnect Force 4G. Priced at a downright delicious $0.00 with a two-year contract (or $89.99 straight-up), the Huawei-built stick supports the carrier’s “4G” (read: HSPA+ ) services and offers a microSD slot for good measure. Interestingly, AT&T’s allowing users to buy this with post-paid and prepaid options, and of course, data roaming’s available in over 200 nations for those insane enough to pay for it . If you’re going post-paid, you’ll get 5GB of data for $50 / month, while prepaid buyers can select 100MB for $15 (day package), 300MB for $30 (weekly package) or 1GB for $50 (month package). It’ll operate with both Mac and PC platforms, and should be on store shelves by July 17th. Continue reading AT&T launches USBConnect Force 4G USB modem, offers it for zilch on contract AT&T launches USBConnect Force 4G USB modem, offers it for zilch on contract originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Jul 2011 13:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Western Digital’s My Book Studio jumps to 3TB, dons Mac-approved brushed aluminum garb
July 8, 2011 No Comment
Hard to say how long WD’s going to keep its My Book line a-churnin’, but when you’ve got a good thing going…. The outfit has just announced a gently refreshed version of its My Book Studio, now available in capacities reaching 3TB and sporting a flashy new exterior that should blend right into your Mac Pro + Cinema Display setup. Much like the G-Force drives of yesteryear, these new models are equipped with a brushed aluminum casing and rely on Western Digital’s Caviar Green HDDs to handle the ints and outs. You’ll also find FireWire 800, FireWire 400 and USB 2.0 interfaces, meaning that Thunderbolt aficionados should probably be turning their nose up right about now. The new guys are available at “select retailers and distributors” as we speak, with pricing set at $149.99 (1TB), $199.99 (2TB) and $249.99 (3TB). Continue reading Western Digital’s My Book Studio jumps to 3TB, dons Mac-approved brushed aluminum garb Western Digital’s My Book Studio jumps to 3TB, dons Mac-approved brushed aluminum garb originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Jul 2011 07:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Apple seeks to spruce up the real world with interactive augmented reality, has the patent apps to prove it
July 8, 2011 No Comment
When we go somewhere new, we wish we could spend more time taking in the sights and less time looking at our phone for directions and info about our surroundings. Apple’s well aware of this conundrum, and has filed a couple of patent applications to let you ogle your environment while telling you where to go and what you’re seeing. One app is a method for combining augmented reality (AR) information and real time video while allowing users to interact with the images on screen — so you can shoot a vid of a city skyline with your iPhone, touch a building where you want to go, and let it show you the way there. The second patent application is for a device with an LCD display capable of creating a transparent window, where the opacity of the screen’s pixels is changed by varying the voltage levels driving them. Such a display could overlay interactive info about what you see through the window, so you can actually look at the Mona Lisa while reading up on her mysterious grin. Of course, these are just patent applications, so we probably won’t be seeing any AR-optimized iDevices anytime soon (if ever), but we can dream, right? Apple seeks to spruce up the real world with interactive augmented reality, has the patent apps to prove it originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Jul 2011 12:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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It’s hard to even believe these words, but they’re true: the last scheduled US space shuttle launch happens today. What started as a frenetic race to another world has ended as program that will forever be remembered for sparking the interest of mere tykes, and if this so-called economy ever gets turned around — heck, maybe we’ll see the hiatus ends. In all likelihood, it’ll be Sir Richard Branson making the next moonwalk, but rather than sit around and mourn the quiet death of the space shuttle, we’d prefer to share a few of our fondest memories here. And by all means, please deliver any final words of your own in comments below. Continue reading The end of an era: what the space shuttle means to Engadget The end of an era: what the space shuttle means to Engadget originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Jul 2011 11:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Are you the switched-on environmental type who plans your Prius journey around how much air resistance you’re likely to encounter on the way to Whole Foods? Rejoice! Now you can stop worrying and learn to love your car stereo if you purchase Pioneer ‘s newest Navigation Unit designed specifically for electric vehicles, the AVIC-ZHO9-MEV. Hiding behind that easy to remember (and decidedly catchy) name is a device that estimates your car’s remaining battery, power consumption and opportunities for energy regeneration, planning your routes accordingly. Expect to be detouring down lots of short hills with slow moving traffic at the bottom, or maybe it’ll just give up on the whole idea of roads and demanding you switch to train tracks . It also has the usual things you’d expect from such a unit, so you can play DVDs on the 7-inch display, receive digital TV and radio and play MP3, WMA and AAC discs. The unit drops in Japan in ‘late July’ with an RRP of 246,750
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BW, LON is our new favorite abbreviation. In addition to kind of looking like something you’d type into a graphing calculator, it also means means big week, lots of news: in the hardware department, we’ve got reviews of HP’s latest tactile offering and a hazy outlook on Apple’s next communications device. Software’s riding out another week of Google+ and finding out what it’s like to be more video-centric on facebook. Lots going on in legal, too, with patent trolls of various calibers doing their thangs. We managed to hang on to Engadget founder Peter Rojas after The Engadget Show to rope it all in, too, so come join us, won’t you? Host: Tim Stevens, Brian Heater Guest: Peter Rojas Producer: Trent Wolbe Music: Mo Money Mo Problems 00:01:46 – Flush with success, Microsoft hopes Samsung will be its next Android patent bounty 00:03:00 – Microsoft and Wistron come to terms in royalty agreement, Android and Chrome OS now targeted 00:05:00 – Microsoft inks Android patent deal with Velocity Micro — sound familiar? 00:09:02 – Sony brings PSN back online in Japan, wants us to forget about all that hacking nonsense 00:11:10 – Can HP turn around the TouchPad? 00:30:18 – HP TouchSmart 610 review 00:36:17 – Skype comes to Facebook, and Facebook comes to Skype (update: available now!) 00:39:00 – Facebook video chat and Skype 5.5 beta hands-on 00:44:26 – Google+ iOS app already submitted for Apple’s approval, employee says 00:46:15 – Google+ sneaks NFC into its Android app, gets caught red-handed 00:46:49 – Google+ to require that profiles be visible to all, will boot private profiles after July 31st 00:49:27 – Picasa, Blogger to get renamed: now with more Google? 00:50:35 – Motorola Droid 3 up for order, helps to usher in Verizon’s new data plans 00:55:00 – iPhone 5 / 4S: the rumor roundup 01:03:50 – Spotify is coming to the US, invites are open now 01:08:10 – Listener questions Hear the podcast Subscribe to the podcast [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (enhanced AAC). [ RSS MP3 ] Add the Engadget Podcast feed (in MP3) to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically. [ RSS AAC ] Add the Engadget Podcast feed (in enhanced AAC) to your RSS aggregator. [ Zune ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in the Zune Marketplace Download the podcast LISTEN (MP3) LISTEN (AAC) LISTEN (OGG) Contact the podcast Send your questions to @tim_stevens . Leave us a voicemail: (423) 438-3005 (GADGET-3005) E-mail us: podcast at engadget dot com Twitter: @tim_stevens @bheater @peterrojas Filed under: Podcasts Engadget Podcast 247 – 07.08.2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Jul 2011 10:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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