Al Franken calls net neutrality the ‘free speech issue of our time,’ proposes stricter FCC regulations
January 27, 2011 No Comment
We hate to see something we hold as dear to our hearts as the internet become so deeply mired in politics, but this whole net neutrality thing is serious business. The FCC released its full rules just before running home to sip some eggnog but still it didn’t take long for companies like Verizon to register their discontent . Now senators Maria Cantwell and Al Franken are voicing their own dissent, saying that the FCC “does not do nearly enough to protect consumers” and that the pair’s “Internet Freedom, Broadband Promotion, and Consumer Protection Act of 2011″ will. Among other things it explicitly prevents the creation of “fast lanes” for premium content, keeping ISPs from charging extra for content they like or slowing down stuff they don’t. The full details are in the PDF on the other end of the source link, and if you’re wondering what happens next we have a dramatization embedded below. Continue reading Al Franken calls net neutrality the ‘free speech issue of our time,’ proposes stricter FCC regulations Al Franken calls net neutrality the ‘free speech issue of our time,’ proposes stricter FCC regulations originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 15:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Elgato and OWC hawk upgraded Mac Mini HTPC bundles: Blu-ray burner, 12TB, TV tuner
January 27, 2011 No Comment
Simmer down, son — neither Elgato nor Other World Computing are actually shoving 12TB of hard drive space within a 2010 Mac Mini , but if you order one of their new bundles, you’ll definitely end up with as much. OWC is now selling pre-pimped Mac Mini machines, complete with bolstered storage options, an internal Blu-ray burner, Elgato’s EyeTV Hybrid tuner (or HD DVR), more RAM than usual and an Apple Remote. The company plans to offer both the 2.4GHz and 2.66GHz Core 2 Duo systems, and it swears up and down that the machine will arrive preconfigured and ready to rock your home theater. The addition of a Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 4-bay storage solution enables you to keep even a vast library of digital content nearby, but there’s no telling how much the outfit will charge for such a luxury. Hit the source link if you’re scrounging for details, but don’t expect pricing or an order button just yet. Continue reading Elgato and OWC hawk upgraded Mac Mini HTPC bundles: Blu-ray burner, 12TB, TV tuner Elgato and OWC hawk upgraded Mac Mini HTPC bundles: Blu-ray burner, 12TB, TV tuner originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 15:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Barnes & Noble brings pinch-to-zoom browsing, improved WiFi connectivity in Nook Color update
January 27, 2011 No Comment
Got yourself a Nook Color , did you? If you’re not the type to wait for OTA updates to hit you upside the head, Barnes & Noble has just let loose a software update that’s free to download. Version 1.1.0 promises to improve the Nook Color’s WiFi connectivity, improve Home and Shop performance and to “enhance the reading experience for magazines and children’s books.” Frankly, the latter is quite a curious promise, but we suppose we’d rather have it than not. In other news, the update is adding pinch-to-zoom capabilities in the browser, and B&N also swears that other miscellaneous bugs were squashed in the making of v1.1.0. Hit the source link to get those bytes a-streaming, or just wait for it to be delivered over-the-air in the coming days. On second thought, just download it. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in] Barnes & Noble brings pinch-to-zoom browsing, improved WiFi connectivity in Nook Color update originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 14:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Up in Canada, Mobilicity’s CEO made an odd comment recently that Bell, Telus, and Rogers will all be getting the Nexus S around the same time that his carrier does in March. Why is that odd? Well, as it stands, no variant of the Nexus S supports the 850 / 1900MHz WCDMA that would be necessary to run (at high speed, anyway) on those three networks. Circle back around to the Bluetooth SIG, where PocketNow has discovered an entry for a GT-i9020A; you might recall that the European version of the device is the i9020, while T-Mobile’s AWS -compatible build is the i9020T, with “T” ostensibly standing for “T-Mobile.” By extension, it’s definitely conceivable that the “A” here is for “AT&T” — which, again, would line up with the Mobilicity exec’s verbiage. If this is true, it’s theoretically possible that we could see AT&T and its similarly-equipped Canadian cousins get their own Nexus S as soon as five-odd weeks from now. Like the Nexus One before it, we’ve got a hard time picturing AT&T officially subsidizing this thing — but hey, an unlocked full-price version is a solid start, we’d say. Nexus S coming in a new AT&T flavor? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 14:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Court grants Sony’s temporary restraining order against Geohot, PS3 jailbreak still available everywhere
January 27, 2011 No Comment
It looked for a moment like Geohot and fail0verflow might beat Sony’s DMCA lawsuit over the PS3 jailbreak on a jurisdictional technicality , but things didn’t go their way: the US District Court for the Northern District of California granted Sony’s request for a temporary restraining order forbidding Mr. Hotz and his merry men from distributing or linking to the jailbreak, helping or encouraging others to jailbreak, hacking into the PS3 or PSN, or distributing any information they’ve found while hacking. What’s more, they’ve been ordered to turn over any computers or storage media used to create the jailbreak to Sony’s lawyers — although we’ve got a feeling Geohot’s attorneys will raise a bit of a fuss about that. Of course, this doesn’t mean that Sony’s won anything substantive — it’s just proven to the court that the jailbreak will cause it ongoing harm while the case continues, and it still has to actually win its formal lawsuit to collect any damages or a permanent injunction. And let’s not forget that forcing Geohot to stop distributing it won’t stop anyone else — in almost an exact mirror of the deCSS case, we’re already seeing the jailbreak mirrored all over the internet . Way to learn from history, Sony. [Thanks, Henry] Court grants Sony’s temporary restraining order against Geohot, PS3 jailbreak still available everywhere originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 14:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …O2 plans free and open WiFi network across the UK, Sky picks up The Cloud
January 27, 2011 No Comment
Only a handful of Muni-Fi projects ended in anything greater than eternal tears here in the States, but hopefully O2′s up for the challenge across the pond. The UK carrier just announced its intentions to “refine the WiFi landscape” in its home nation by launching O2 WiFi, with a raft of “premium hotspots” to be rolled out and managed by key venue owners. As of now, it’s hard to pinpoint who exactly will begin hosting O2′s routers, but the key part is this: they’ll be open for all customers to access for free, no matter which mobile or broadband provider they are with. Making no bones about who it’s coming after, the operator has affirmed its intentions to “at least double the number of premium hotspots currently offered by BT Openzone and The Cloud combined by 2013,” with the rollout to begin as early as today and continue for as long as it takes. ‘Course, doubling up The Cloud may take a little more work given that Sky just picked it up for an undisclosed sum, but hey, we’re sure every Briton in existence would just love to see these two duke it out for WiFi supremacy. Continue reading O2 plans free and open WiFi network across the UK, Sky picks up The Cloud O2 plans free and open WiFi network across the UK, Sky picks up The Cloud originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 13:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Mac users have already been able to do some group video calling with recent beta versions of Skype , but the company has now finally brought things fully up to speed with its Windows counterpart and released the final version of Skype 5.0 for OS X. In addition to group video calling, the application sports a whole new interface that Skype says has been “slimmed down” (compared to the previous beta versions, at least) and allows you to see 30 percent more contacts at once. As with the Windows version, however, that group video calling feature has now been relegated to the premium package which, after a free seven-day trial, will run you $4.99 for a day pass or $8.99 a month for a subscription (though you can get 33 percent off if you sign up before February 28th). Head on past the break for quick video overview. Continue reading Skype 5.0 hits Mac with group video calling, streamlined interface Skype 5.0 hits Mac with group video calling, streamlined interface originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 13:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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If you live in the US or Canada then you can add the RDIO social music service to the long list of streaming music options available to your Sonos whole-home wireless audio system. We’re talking eight million tracks that you can search, browse, and play on-demand with an RDIO bonus that lets you follow the musical tastes of your friends and idols for $9.99 per month. Get back to us in 46 years and let us know if your $5,514.48 was well spent, ok? Continue reading Sonos adds RDIO to its streaming music repertoire Sonos adds RDIO to its streaming music repertoire originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 13:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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If these first in-the-wild shots of T-Mobile’s upcoming Android-powered Sidekick 4G turn out to be legit — and we’ve no reason to doubt them, especially considering TmoNews ‘ track record — then we’d say the carrier has done a reasonably good job porting the classic Sidekick design and pulling it into the modern age off the strength of a big display… and, of course, a modern operating system. Interestingly, word on the street is that the new model is made by Samsung, not Sharp; historically, Sharp has made all of the Sidekicks with the exception of the forgettable Slide , which was a Motorola one-off. Looks like the swivel display has been replaced by a tilt-slide, but most importantly, the device looks the same when open and closed, which should put a warm, fuzzy feeling in the hearts of old-school Sidekick users. Who’s excited? T-Mobile Sidekick 4G in the wild, made by Samsung? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 13:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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The Daily , News Corp’s iPad-specific news”paper,” is living up to speculation about an early February inauguration with the announcement of a launch event on February 2nd. CEO Rupert Murdoch is explicitly mentioned on the invite, though Apple’s presence will be fulfilled by Eddy Cue, presumably a late draft-in to substitute for his company’s CEO, Steve Jobs, who’s currently out on medical leave . Even without the great Apple orator, we expect the arrival of the first tablet-only news outlet to be a significant event, so we’ll be strapping on our liveblogging gear and heading out to the Guggenheim Museum for a looksie. You’ll join us in spirit, won’t you? News Corp and Apple set date for The Daily launch: February 2nd originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 13:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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