On the eve of its rumored launch , we’ve spotted what looks to be a leaked press shot of Olympus’ new teensy micro-four-thirds camera. According to the folks at 4/3 Rumors , the miniature shooter is pegged to debut (alongside the E-PL3 and E-P3 ) with a 12-megapixel sensor and TruePic VI engine. Not making the jump however, are its brother’s OLED screens, leaving the emancipated light-box to make do with just a regular LCD. Interest piqued? Start pinching those pennies now — we hear tomorrow isn’t far away. Olympus E-PM1′s petite frame outed before launch originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jun 2011 22:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Game Gear mod has five-inch screen, rechargable batteries, two pounds worth of memories
June 29, 2011 No Comment
Are Nintendo and Sony’s portable gaming offerings not doing anything for you? Yearn for the days of Hedgehog-based adventure? You’re not alone — though, unless you’re as crafty as “lovablechevy,” you’re going to have to settle for whatever you can find on eBay or in a dusty shoebox under a bed at your parents’ house. The modder resurrected a Game Gear with a custom case created using the beloved Sega portable, a Master Gear converter, a screen from a PS One, and assorted other bits and pieces. The franken-portable can play Game Gear and Master System titles, has a rechargeable battery, and weighs a hefty two-plus pounds. Video after the break and lots more jealousy-inducing images in the Source link below. Continue reading Game Gear mod has five-inch screen, rechargable batteries, two pounds worth of memories Game Gear mod has five-inch screen, rechargable batteries, two pounds worth of memories originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jun 2011 23:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Google+ users can now send email invites, brag about being into the service before it was cool
June 29, 2011 No Comment
Google’s exclusive little club just got a little less exclusive. As promised, the search giant’s shiny new social network Google+ has opened up, giving users the ability to invite friends via email. (If it’s not working on your system yet, trying logging out and then logging back in.) Existing users, it’s time to start building out those Circles to avoid the sort of accidental social networking shenanigans Google is working so hard to curb. Everyone else, we’re sure you’ll be getting one in your Gmail inbox soon enough. In the meantime, how about prepping yourself by reading our detailed hands-on ? [Thanks, Ryan] Google+ users can now send email invites, brag about being into the service before it was cool originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jun 2011 21:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
As things get older they tend to get bigger. It’s the same for people, corporations, models of cars, budget deficits… and so it is for webOS. As Palm was in the process of being subsumed its great mobile operating system was being eyed for much broader things, far bigger than the little phones it had previously been flashed on. Things like printers and desktops and laptops , but for its first proper foray outside of a phone it has a tall task: compete in the brutally viscous tablet space. Its weapon is the TouchPad, a 9.7-inch tablet from HP that got official back in February and will be available July 1st (if you don’t manage to find it earlier ) — $499.99 for the 16GB model, $599.99 for 32GB. That’s exactly on parity with the WiFi iPad 2 and Galaxy Tab 10.1, current kings of the tablet court. Does this plus-sized Palm progeny really have what it takes to hang at that price point, or is this just a chubby pretender that’s outgrown its britches? Read on to find out. Gallery: HP TouchPad, unboxing and comparison Continue reading HP TouchPad review HP TouchPad review originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jun 2011 18:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
We already gave you some hands-on impressions of Panasonic’s new Lumix GF3, but we just had a chance to shoot video and stills with the Micro Four Thirds cam at an event in NYC, leaving with a couple hundred photos and a small handful of video clips. There’s no question that this GF2 successor was designed with interchangeable lens camera (ILC) newbies in mind, with no dedicated mode dial, a touchscreen display, and a boatload of auto settings, along with the usual spattering of effects modes. Panasonic chose a mock wedding scene as the centerpiece of its demo today, complete with bride, groom, and celebrity cake designer (a rather enthusiastic Ron Ben-Israel). Weddings mean colorful flowers, well-dressed subjects, and food — but also dim lighting and chaos — a perfect environment for showing off a camera’s strengths shooting in low-light, assuming it can actually deliver. The GF3 probably won’t be the camera of choice for our next celebration, however. Gallery: Panasonic GF3 Image Samples First up was a balcony shot with bride and groom. As expected, the backlit scene presented an incredible challenge for the GF3, which had trouble focusing and compensating exposure to properly light our subjects — even the professional wedding photographer on hand had difficulty focusing his GF3 at times. The position-adjustable flash allowed us to light our subjects at an angle, or to bounce light off the ceiling, which didn’t seem to work well in the cavernous room. As we progressed through the morning, additional scenes highlighted new shortcomings. Jump past the break for a sample video and more impressions, or check out the gallery above for sample images — the first four shots highlight different positions with the adjustable flash. Continue reading Panasonic Lumix GF3: sample photos and video Panasonic Lumix GF3: sample photos and video originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jun 2011 20:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Samsung Galaxy S II gets official for Canada on Bell, Virgin Mobile and SaskTel
June 29, 2011 No Comment
We’ve already had some indication of where and when the Galaxy S II would land in Canada, and three carriers have now finally made things fully official (even if they haven’t yet got completely specific). That includes Bell and Virgin Mobile — neither of which are confirming a price at the moment — plus regional carrier SaskTel, which plans to offer the phone for $79.99 on a three-year contract. SaskTel and Virgin Mobile both also say that the phone will be available in the coming weeks, while Bell isn’t offering much more than a chance to win the phone in a contest that ends July 19th — we’ve previously heard that the phone will be hitting Bell on July 14th . Perhaps not surprisingly, it’s looking like the phone will also alternatively be known as the “Galaxy S II” or “Galaxy S II 4G” depending on the carrier. Samsung Galaxy S II gets official for Canada on Bell, Virgin Mobile and SaskTel originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jun 2011 19:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
In the market for a $750 Android tablet with an IT-controlled closed ecosystem, Atom processor, and a requisite middle man to place your order? Then you probably work for a corporation. Cisco’s Cius Android tablet was designed with a Cisco infrastructure in mind, focusing heavily on security and integration with other products. Sure, you can watch HD video or play Angry Birds (if IT is willing to flip the switch on game downloads), but you’ll mostly be using the Cius to join WebEx presentations, TelePresence conferences, and access custom enterprise apps — this is not the tablet to give your kids , for someone just looking to browse the web, or really for anyone not working at a company that already depends heavily on Cisco services. Basically, if a Cius magically appears on your desk one day, you’ll know it’s right for you. Gallery: Cisco Cius Hands-On Today Cisco launched AppHQ, a custom app store created to give IT departments complete control over device app loading, allowing them to limit access only to enterprise apps, or the entire Android Market. We went hands-on with the tablet and AppHQ at the company’s offices in NYC, and were impressed with the tablet’s ability to integrate seamlessly with Cisco services. Even though Cius isn’t intended to be used for entertainment, it’s designed to be both your primary portable device and desktop workstation — so that ability to play HD video will definitely come in handy. You can access all of Cisco’s popular communications tools, making private calls as you walk, joining a video conference from the train over AT&T or Verizon LTE , and then slipping the device into its dock once you reach the office, which adds speakerphone functionality, three USB ports, video out, and even Ethernet connectivity. You can use Cius to access an offsite virtual Windows desktop, using a mouse, keyboard, and monitor to control your primary machine. The tablet has begun rolling out to some clients and will be available worldwide on July 31st. You’ll need to reach out to your Cisco sales rep to make a purchase, but jump past the break for a quick look in our hands-on video. Continue reading Cisco Cius Android tablet hands-on (video) Cisco Cius Android tablet hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jun 2011 17:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
We were among the first to check out the upcoming Mango update for Windows Phone, but developers won’t be left out of the festivities any longer. Microsoft released the second version of Developer Tools Beta , which lets eager app-building folks try out the refresh on their own devices. More importantly than solid bragging rights, it affords developers the opportunity to test apps in a realtime environment, rather than on an emulator. This can only mean good things for Windows Phone users; with nearly four months remaining before the first Mango phones show up, devs have gobs of time to make sure their apps work flawlessly before the anticipated launch. As if this isn’t encouraging enough, Microsoft is also doing a fabulous job of helping students get started — not only is Redmond offering free registration, it’s giving out up to 50 phones to members signed up for the DreamSpark program. There’s no shortage of opportunities here, so aspiring developers may want to click on the source link and follow the directions to the letter. Full PR after the break. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in] Continue reading Windows Phone Mango ripe for developers to sink their teeth into Windows Phone Mango ripe for developers to sink their teeth into originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jun 2011 18:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Roku 2 line passes through the FCC with modest hardware updates and a reset button
June 29, 2011 No Comment
It hasn’t even been a year since Roku last updated its line of streaming media players — but nine months is a long time in the gadget world. So it was pleasant, though not entirely surprising, to spot a trio of new devices from the IPTV pioneer sauntering through the FCC bearing the model numbers 3000X, 3050X, and 3100X. Eventually the three boxes will likely be sold as the Roku 2 HD, XD, and XS respectively. We’ll have to wait to see if there’s anything new on the software side, but we can tell you there have been a host of hardware changes, even if they don’t amount to a major upgrade. First off, the new models are more rounded and much smaller than their predecessors. Judging by the label affixed to the underside — which we know is 44.65mm x 44.65mm (about 1.7 inches) — the latest Rokus are about the size of an Apple TV, and perhaps a bit smaller. Inside that tiny case is a new Broadcom 2835 SOC, an 802.11n radio, a MicroSD slot, Bluetooth, and (most exciting) a reset button — no more unplugging when Hulu freezes up. Oddly, only the XS retains the Ethernet jack, though the top of the line model ditches support for dual-band WiFi. The primary difference between the HD and XD models still appears to be the latter’s ability to push out 1080p video, while the XS adds a USB port and gets a spiffy new RF remote, which we’re hoping takes a cue from the Boxee clicker . While you impatiently await important information, like pricing and release date, check out the comparison chart after the break. Continue reading Roku 2 line passes through the FCC with modest hardware updates and a reset button Roku 2 line passes through the FCC with modest hardware updates and a reset button originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jun 2011 17:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Symantec report on mobile security concludes iOS and Android both vulnerable to attacks
June 29, 2011 No Comment
In Symantec’s bleak, dystopian world, it doesn’t matter whether you choose Android or iOS — you’ll be making yourself vulnerable to attacks regardless of the camp you’re in. The company just concluded a study pitting iOS’s security against Android’s — an undertaking intended mainly for corporate IT staffs trying to figure out which devices they can safely issue to employees. (Curiously, despite the enterprise focus, you won’t find a single comparison against BlackBerrys.) Although iOS won higher marks when it came to thwarting traditional malware and showed a more modest advantage in terms of data loss, data integrity, and service attacks, the two platforms proved equally adept at preventing web-based attacks — and equally powerless to catch socially engineered ones. And when it came to implementing certain security measures, such as permissions-based controls, Android pulled ahead. Ultimately, Symantec (which sells mobile security software of its own, by the by) concluded that both “are still vulnerable to many existing categories of attacks,” not least because both platforms allow users to sync with third-party apps or web services that may or may not be secure themselves. Indeed, Symantec’s thesis is that Apple’s App Store approval process helps explain its lead in the malware-blocking department. Also, in shocking news, Symantec adds that people using jailbroken are especially attractive targets for attackers, and that these devices are as vulnerable as computers. Don’t say no one warned you. Head past the break for a press release with a summary of the findings or, if you’re curious, hit the source link for a PDF version of the full report. Continue reading Symantec report on mobile security concludes iOS and Android both vulnerable to attacks Symantec report on mobile security concludes iOS and Android both vulnerable to attacks originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jun 2011 17:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …