It hasn’t been a terribly good week for MeeGo , but there’s a scant silver lining in the cloud — the first MeeGo netbook has arrived in Singapore, courtesy of Fujitsu. Actually, to be precise, it’s the first netbook to ship with MeeGo preinstalled, as Fujitsu’s simply shoehorned the lightweight operating system onto its existing LifeBook MH330 machine. Sadly, the MH330′s about as boring as they come — it’s a plain vanilla 1.66GHz Intel Atom N455 ultraportable with 1GB of RAM, a 250GB hard drive and a 10.1-inch 1024 x 600 LED-backlit screen. The company says it’s customized MeeGo to take advantage of hardware buttons, but other than that there’s nothing noteworthy here, just a (roughly $400) netbook that managed to find a place in the annals of history for being the first to preinstall an operating system that’s already on the outs — albeit a very pleasant, quickly-booting one. PR after the break. [Thanks, Edwin C.] Continue reading Fujitsu unveils world’s first MeeGo netbook, world barely notices Fujitsu unveils world’s first MeeGo netbook, world barely notices originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 13 Feb 2011 06:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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So the story goes that some store-bought Norwegian butter was eaten away to reveal a very special Android-powered surprise at the bottom. It looks to us like the butter could have possibly been packed back in after the fact to create the effect, but even so: if you’re willing to sacrifice a Tattoo in such spectacular fashion, you deserve a little recognition. [Thanks, Arif] I Can’t Believe It’s An HTC Tattoo In My Butter! originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 13 Feb 2011 05:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Webby is the Android-powered Chumby thing that hasn’t won any awards — yet
February 13, 2011 No Comment
What is a Webby? It is, according to its manufacturer Avantis, “a revolutionary new gadget which is like nothing your customers have seen before.” That, of course, assumes they’ve never seen a Chumby , because that’s basically what this is — running Android , though. It features a suite of widgets and little apps that will let you stream internet radio, check your e-mails, cruise RSS feeds, and even wake up to an alarm. Yeah, familiar stuff, but the apparent lack of social networkability is a bit of a bummer. (There doesn’t even seem to be a Twitter client!) It’s powered by a 600MHz ARM CPU with 256MB of RAM, 2GB of internal flash paired with SD and USB expansion. The 3.5-inch touchscreen has a resolution of 320 x 240 and it’ll connect over 802.11b/g/n WiFi. It even has a DMB tuner if you happen to be living in a land that’s similarly equipped. All that controlled by the wonder that is Android 2.1, but for an undisclosed price. [Thanks, TIll] Webby is the Android-powered Chumby thing that hasn’t won any awards — yet originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 13 Feb 2011 03:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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March 6th is the official street date, but you can lay down your money for Motorola’s modular smartphone right now, as the Atrix 4G and its suite of incredible Webtop docks are now available for pre-order. $200 buys you the biometric HSPA+ smartphone on a two-year contract, and it’ll cost you an additional $300 to turn it into a portable netbook of sorts — though as we feared, you’ll need to pay $45 a month for the DataPro 4GB + Tethering data plan (on top of your phone bill) to actually use it on the go. Another bummer is that the HD Multimedia Dock (enabling desktop-like functionality) will run $130, a good bit more than we thought we’d see it for. All in all, the Atrix is looking like quite an investment, so perhaps you’d be best served waiting for our full review . But don’t let us tell you what to do with your hard-earned dough! [Thanks to everyone who sent this in] Motorola Atrix 4G pre-orders begin at AT&T originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 13 Feb 2011 00:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Samsung Galaxy Tab II and Galaxy S II pics leak out ahead of Barcelona event
February 13, 2011 No Comment
There are still twelve hours to go before Samsung unveils its new products at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, but somehow there are already a series of pictures allegedly “from the event.” We’re not complaining, though, because four of them show off the new 10.1-inch Galaxy Tab II. We discovered yesterday that Sammy’s slate will run Android 3.0 Honeycomb at 1280 x 800 resolution and on a 1GHz processor, and heard rumors it’d have an 8 megapixel camera with HD video recording as well, but this is the first time we’ve laid eyes on a decent image of the tablet, and we imagine you’re in the same boat. Join us on a journey over to Samsung Hub to see the full set (and more shots of the Samsung Galaxy S II), or if you’re too busy priming your touchscreen-smudging thumbs, simply hit the break to see a render of what the unit’s back might look like. [Thanks, Dell P.] Continue reading Samsung Galaxy Tab II and Galaxy S II pics leak out ahead of Barcelona event Samsung Galaxy Tab II and Galaxy S II pics leak out ahead of Barcelona event originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 12 Feb 2011 23:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Microsoft rolls out long, long-awaited Windows update to disable AutoRun for USB drives
February 13, 2011 No Comment
It’s already changed the behavior in Windows 7, and Microsoft has now finally rolled out an update for earlier versions of Windows that prevents a program from executing automatically when a USB drive is plugged into a PC. That behavior has been blamed for the spread of malware in recent years — including the infamous Conficker worm — and Microsoft had actually already made it possible to disable the functionality back in November of 2009, albeit only through an update available from its Download Center website. It’s now finally pushed the update out through the Windows Update channel, though, which should cause it to be much more broadly deployed (particularly in large organizations). As explained in a rather lengthy blog post, however, Microsoft has decided to simply make it an “important, non-security update” rather than a mandatory update, as it doesn’t technically see AutoRun as a “vulnerability” — it was by design, after all. That means you’ll have to look for the option in Windows Update and check it off to install it — if you choose, you can also re-enable it at anytime with a patch. Microsoft rolls out long, long-awaited Windows update to disable AutoRun for USB drives originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 12 Feb 2011 23:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Greenpois0n RC6 breaks new Apple TV’s bonds, performs untethered jailbreak and NitoTV install
February 13, 2011 No Comment
Installing nitoTV on your Apple TV used to involve a mildly difficult SSH process, and for those folks who are turned off by running Terminal and punching in lines of code, the newest version of greenpois0n (RC6) might pique your jailbreak interests. It’ll perform an untethered jailbreak (meaning, you can reboot your iProduct without the need to re-JB), freeing your device (iPhone, iPad, etc.) running 4.2.1 and allow you to fulfill all of your out-of-jail needs. Bundled in this new release is a loader that’ll inject nitoTV right onto your little black Apple box. This new greenpois0n is said to fix emulation problems ( zodttd’s emulators were having issues) and can be applied right over your device that’s been freed with RC5. But proceed with caution — we’re seeing a bunch of jailbreakers on Twitter claiming have ran into issues (WiFi, booting) with RC6. Hit the source link to grab either the Mac or Windows version. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in] Greenpois0n RC6 breaks new Apple TV’s bonds, performs untethered jailbreak and NitoTV install originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 12 Feb 2011 22:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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There’s little doubt that today’s smartphones are pocketable computers — they’re equally or more powerful than the desktop PCs of yesteryear — but what about dumbphones? Well, in US v. Kramer, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals just held that a Motorola Motorazr V3 fits the federal statutory definition for a computer — and quoted Woz in the opinion: “Everything has a computer in it nowadays.” Seems a bit silly to call a RAZR a computer, but courts can only interpret existing laws, not make new ones — and US law says a computer is “an electronic, magnetic, optical, electrochemical, or other high speed data processing device performing logical, arithmetic, or storage functions.” Because this was the first time a federal appeals court had ruled on the issue, the Eighth Circuit set a precedent that other courts are likely to follow. And yes, the court is aware such a definition may include microwaves and coffee makers, and informed Congress that it should change the law if it doesn’t like it. Regardless of whether you agree, this interpretation added some jail time for a guy who pled guilty to trying to engage in sexual activity with a minor, so the mild absurdity of it all is fine by us. Somewhere Chris Hansen is smiling. Eighth Circuit declares RAZR a computer under federal law originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 12 Feb 2011 21:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Fisher Price releases iCan Play Case and Kid-Tough See Yourself Camera, you’ll thank ‘em
February 12, 2011 No Comment
You know who you can count on to protect your technology? Fisher Price , that’s who. We know, it sounds a bit crazy, but what other company out there is thinking about safeguarding your gadgets from those adorable yet greasy-handed kids? The company is kicking off Toy Fair with a few new gadgets that do just that, and first up, is that cute little Laugh & Learn iCan Play iPhone case up there. The $20 plastic enclosure stores any generation iPhone or iPod Touch and has a screen cover to protect your precious capacitive LCD from “dribbles and drool.” Seriously, OtterBox has its work cut out — the toy even has rattles and handles to entertain when mommy or daddy have to yank the phone out to make a call. And because looking at e-mails, texts, or apps could get bit boring for those three to 36-month-olds after awhile, Fisher is adding a few new Laugh & Learn apps to the App Store later this month. What about the older kids, you ask? Well, they won’t be interested in your brand new point-and-shoot when they’ve got a Kid-Tough See Yourself Camera of their own. Or at least that’s what the company’s hoping — the plastic camera has a rotating 1.2 megapixel lens with a 4x zoom so kids can take pictures of themselves and then check it out on the 1.8-inch LCD screen. The shooter houses a SD card slot and is powered by four AA batteries. Sure, it doesn’t have the latest and greatest specs, but what $70 camera do you know that can customize shots with “fun digital stamps”? We told you your gadgets would stay safe and sound. The iCan Play Case and Kid-Tough camera won’t be available until this summer, but we’ve got the gallery of hands-on shots below so you can check ‘em out earlier. Gallery: Fisher Price iCan Play Case and Kid-Tough See Yourself Camera hands-on Fisher Price releases iCan Play Case and Kid-Tough See Yourself Camera, you’ll thank ‘em originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 12 Feb 2011 19:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Remember the Samsung 9 Series laptop from CES? Of course you do, it was the seriously thin, duralumin 13-inch laptop with a new Sandy Bridge Core i5 processor and 128GB SSD. Well, as you can see from the label shot above, the .68-inch system just passed through the FCC, which means the skinny sucker should be on track to hit its February release . (Our Samsung contact told us we should be expecting a unit later in the month so we’re assuming it will hit retailers around then.) The FCC filing doesn’t reveal much — it was actually submitted by Broadcom — but the label clearly shows its 900X3A model number and the drop-down port latches on the edges. We’ll be keeping our eyes peeled for more on this beauty, but it can never hurt to watch our hands-on video from CES to remember just what we’re lusting after here. Video after the break! Continue reading Samsung Series 9 slides its rail-thin body through the FCC Samsung Series 9 slides its rail-thin body through the FCC originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 12 Feb 2011 18:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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