It’s not much of a secret that the Merge is destined for Verizon — but for some reason we can’t put our finger on, HTC has been very careful not to mention the carrier by name since the phone’s reveal last week. Maybe Verizon’s not yet 100 percent certain it wants to launch this one yet? At any rate, just in case there was any lingering doubt, the FCC filing for the Merge includes a user manual plastered from start to finish with Verizon logos and mentions of Verizon services. That’s kind of funny considering that they went to all the trouble of carefully taping over the logo in the handset’s external photos… but don’t worry, FCC lab engineer — we’ve had those kinds of days before, too. Keep your chin up! HTC Merge rolls into FCC with mentions of Verizon originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 03 Mar 2011 05:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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In all honesty, you would expect the leader of a team concerned exclusively with producing games for smartphone platforms like iOS and Android to be dismissive of a new dedicated handheld console’s chances, but it’s still jarring to hear such a strident dismissal of the Sony NGP ‘s chances. In an interview at GDC this year — yes, the same place where we were treated to some very impressive demos of the NGP’s performance — ngmoco CEO Neil Young has expressed his belief that Sony’s next PSP will be “dead on arrival.” Claiming that the new portable will be incapable of competing with the rich ecosystems and affordable pricing models that smartphones now offer, Young says not even the crazy specs or PS3-like gaming will help the NGP survive. This echoes comments from Satoru Iwata last year saying that Apple, not Sony, is the ” enemy of the future ” for handheld consoles, though Young does close off on a positive note, saying that he sees brighter prospects for the 3DS thanks to Nintendo’s rich collection of own-brand franchises and reserves of fan loyalty. So that’s it, folks, better start selling those Sony shares while they’re still worth something! Or not, it’s up to you. [Thanks, Dominick] CE-Oh no he didn’t!: NGP will be ‘dead on arrival,’ says ngmoco boss originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 03 Mar 2011 03:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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After much brouhaha and rigmarole , Microsoft appears to be back on track with its inaugural Windows Phone 7 software update. An update that wasn’t actually supposed to do anything but prepare that first wave of WP7 devices for their first real update but, ironically, left about 10 percent of WP7 owners with issues including some precision-built Samsung paperweights. Last night Microsoft issued an update on the matter saying that the February update for Samsung handsets has been fixed, resuming its rolling release schedule. Great, with this hopefully behind us, maybe we can now focus on the first real update scheduled for “early March” that will finally check off the platform’s infamous lack of copy ‘n paste on the road to multitasking, Twitter integration, and a vastly improved IE9 browser later in the year. Microsoft resumes WP7 update for ‘bricked’ Samsung handsets originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 03 Mar 2011 03:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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The ( newly updated ) range of electric motorcycles from Zero Motorcycles is certainly tempting for those urban dwellers looking for a fun way to launch themselves over short commutes. But, for garage-less apartment or townhouse tenants lacking the requisite charging connector, they don’t make a heck of a lot of sense. Here’s one that does. It’s the new Zero XU, an electric motorcycle featuring a removable battery pack that you can carry inside with you to juice up. You can also buy a second pack and swap them out, which could let you leave one at work and one at home — something you might have to think about given the thing’s unfortunately short 30 mile range. That’s about half what the Zero S manages, but the XU is at least $2,000 cheaper, starting at $7,995. It also curiously still uses a chain, a departure from the other 2011 Zero bikes that just switched to belts. Anyhow, if you’re still intrigued the Zero XU is up for order now and should start terrorizing AC outlets in March. Gallery: 2011 Zero XU electric motorcycle [Thanks, Darius ] Continue reading Zero XU electric motorcycle makes in-apartment EV charging a reality Zero XU electric motorcycle makes in-apartment EV charging a reality originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 03 Mar 2011 02:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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The headline just about says it all — we’ve got some new footage (as opposed to what we’ve seen before ) of Sony’s NGP for all you gamers to drool over. Today at GDC 2011, we saw a live demo of Uncharted, Little Deviants, and the NGP’s augmented reality capabilities. We were, once again, impressed by Sony’s latest piece of gaming hardware, but don’t take our word for it, see for yourself in video footage above and after the break. And, oh-by-the-way, we gleaned a few new tidbits about the handheld powerhouse that developers may want to know — retail game cartridges will be only 2GB or 4GB in size (notable because the average PS3 title is 9GB), and Sony recommends that devs looking to port PS3 titles to the NGP should simplify their models, shaders and textures to make them work. Now if only Sony would spill the beans about how much the thing’ll cost . Gallery: Sony NGP developer presentation at GDC 2011 Continue reading Sony’s NGP at GDC 2011: more video of the quad-core marvel in action Sony’s NGP at GDC 2011: more video of the quad-core marvel in action originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Mar 2011 23:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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The headline just about says it all — we’ve got some new footage (as opposed to what we’ve seen before ) of Sony’s NGP for all you gamers to drool over. Today at GDC 2011, we saw a live demo of Uncharted, Little Deviants, and the NGP’s augmented reality capabilities. We were, once again, impressed by Sony’s latest piece of gaming hardware, but don’t take our word for it, see for yourself in video footage above and after the break. And, oh-by-the-way, we gleaned a few new tidbits about the handheld powerhouse that developers may want to know — retail game cartridges will be only 2GB or 4GB in size (notable because the average PS3 title is 9GB), and Sony recommends that devs looking to port PS3 titles to the NGP should simplify their models, shaders and textures to make them work. Now if only Sony would spill the beans about how much the thing’ll cost . Gallery: Sony NGP developer presentation at GDC 2011 Continue reading Sony’s NGP at GDC 2011: more video of the quad-core marvel in action Sony’s NGP at GDC 2011: more video of the quad-core marvel in action originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Mar 2011 23:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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We’ve seen homemade speakers crafted from all sorts of unusual objects , but these new sneaker speakers built for a design competition by professional sneaker customizer Nashmoney might just be the new king in town. As you can see, they started out as a regular pair of Nike Air Force 1s, and all of the speaker components are built right into the sneakers, including the amplifier and the controls. Of course, they’re also one of a kind, but you can find some pictures and details of the build process at the link below if you have an old pair of kicks you’d like to try to retrofit yourself. Sneaker speakers kick out the jams originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Mar 2011 21:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …We’ve seen homemade speakers crafted from all sorts of unusual objects , but these new sneaker speakers built for a design competition by professional sneaker customizer Nashmoney might just be the new king in town. As you can see, they started out as a regular pair of Nike Air Force 1s, and all of the speaker components are built right into the sneakers, including the amplifier and the controls. Of course, they’re also one of a kind, but you can find some pictures and details of the build process at the link below if you have an old pair of kicks you’d like to try to retrofit yourself. Sneaker speakers kick out the jams originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Mar 2011 21:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …We’ve seen homemade speakers crafted from all sorts of unusual objects , but these new sneaker speakers built for a design competition by professional sneaker customizer Nashmoney might just be the new king in town. As you can see, they started out as a regular pair of Nike Air Force 1s, and all of the speaker components are built right into the sneakers, including the amplifier and the controls. Of course, they’re also one of a kind, but you can find some pictures and details of the build process at the link below if you have an old pair of kicks you’d like to try to retrofit yourself. Sneaker speakers kick out the jams originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Mar 2011 21:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …HP TouchPad shoots down planes, shows off next-gen Snapdragon’s GPU (video)
March 2, 2011 No Comment
We’re willing to bet Qualcomm’s dual-core Adreno 220 GPU is an abstract concept to most readers, but we can put it into perspective real quick — here it is in the HP TouchPad , pumping pixels and mapping textures to a seriously stunning little air combat game. We got our hands on the webOS 3.0 tablet and gave Polarbit’s Armageddon Squadron II a whirl at GDC 2011, and the experience felt pretty solid overall, framerate only dipping significantly when unleashing a hefty barrage of rockets upon our foes. What’s more, the tablet easily — and automatically — paused our game when flexing webOS’s multitasking muscle to check a text message that had just come in. What’s that you say? You’re wondering how the HP TouchPad does text messages? Well, it doesn’t quite — it requires a webOS smartphone paired via Bluetooth to share the cellular modem for texts and calls. But you knew that already , right? Armageddon Squadron wasn’t the only title Qualcomm had handy to show off the power of the Adreno 220, though, as SouthEnd Interactive’s Desert Winds seems to be the feather in the company’s cap. It’s a 3D action-adventure title starring some very fancy lighting effects for a mobile game — not to mention a buxom female swordslinger who dredges up memories of ATI’s Ruby. See that after the break! Continue reading HP TouchPad shoots down planes, shows off next-gen Snapdragon’s GPU (video) HP TouchPad shoots down planes, shows off next-gen Snapdragon’s GPU (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Mar 2011 08:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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