RIM dropped an intriguing hint about a likely release date for the BlackBerry PlayBook during its Q3 earnings call this week — namely, that the company expects the first revenue from the dual-core tablet to arrive in the first quarter of the company’s fiscal year. “There are no PlayBook revenues included in our Q4 guidance, and we expect the first revenue impact from PlayBook will be in RIM’s first quarter,” a RIM spokeswoman said, adding that the PlayBook is still slated to ship in the first quarter of the calendar year. If that still sounds like financial gibberish, let us clarify a tad — RIM’s first fiscal quarter doesn’t start till March, which happens to be when the first calendar quarter ends. Oh, RIM can certainly revise its guidance to shareholders and launch the BlackBerry PlayBook earlier or later if that’s what execs deem fit, but if both of RIM’s statements remain true, then March is when the PlayBook will ship. Isn’t logic wonderful? BlackBerry PlayBook will ship in March, assuming inertial momentum originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 23:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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We know this isn’t exactly the news you wanted to hear, AT&T customers, but it’s comforting to know that the diminutive Aria has been upgraded to Froyo somewhere , isn’t it? HTC’s support page for Southeast Asia now reports availability of an over-the-air update to build 2.37.708.5 for the phone, which brings it up to Android 2.2 — topped off with Sense, of course — presumably along with all the normal benefits of Froyo like tethering, improved enterprise support, and some serious performance boosts. It’s unclear when this update will take a flight across the Pacific to AT&T’s version — but if nothing else, it’s good to know that HTC’s officially gotten the Aria working with something newer than Eclair. Remember, the glass is half full. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in] HTC Aria gets Android 2.2 update… but not on AT&T yet originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 23:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …We know you’ve got questions, and if you’re brave enough to ask the world for answers, here’s the outlet to do so. This week’s Ask Engadget question is coming to us from Cris, who can’t seem to find a latex-free mouse that he needs to prevent allergic reactions. If you’re looking to send in an inquiry of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com . “I work in an office environment for ten hours a day in front of a computer where my right hand spends most of it’s time on my wireless Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer 2.0. It’s a mouse I’ve loved, but there’s an issue. I have discovered that I’m allergic to the rubber latex used in the mouse. Although I have not had a tough time finding posts online from people complaining of the same problem, I have had a very difficult time finding a solution. I need a latex-free mouse, preferably with similar features to the Intellimouse I love so much. It’s easy to find many things in a latex-free variety; obviously mice aren’t in that group. Thanks!” So, any suggestions for Cris? Quite a few folks are allergic to latex rubber, and it’s borderline impossible to believe that no latex-free mouse lives in a world chock full of options. If you’ve managed to uncover a gem that fits the bill (or a particular keyboard, while we’re on the subject), drop a hint in comments below. Ask Engadget: best latex-free mouse and keyboard solution? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 22:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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You know that killer new app you just got for your iPhone? Could you beam us a copy to try? Of course you can’t — it doesn’t work that way — but someday soon it might . The fine folks at Patently Apple recently unearthed an Apple patent app that describes a way to transfer apps over peer-to-peer Bluetooth or shiny, star-filled WiFi . The idea goes that if a company wants to spread a program by word of mouth, it might as well make it shareable too, and so the owner of an app could transfer an “application seed” to friends and associates with a similar device. You’d pick from a menu of apps to beam over, where only those greenlit by their developer would be available to send, and your recipient would receive a trial version — or somewhat less excitingly, a link to the App Store — over the air. The patent app suggests that recipients could even share the demo in turn, generating generation after generation of word-of-mouth sales, and that companies might even reward particularly influential sharers in some way. What’s that rumbling we hear? Just the gears turning in the minds of men plotting the next great pyramid scheme. Apple looking to patent sharable apps, considers calling them ‘seeds’ originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 21:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Thanko’s monitor hub takes all your desk clutter and hangs it from your LCD
December 17, 2010 No Comment
Your desk is a mess. Didn’t your mother teach you anything? I mean, really, wouldn’t that pen be better off in a drawer or something instead of tossed haphazardly behind your keyboard? And how long are you going to keep those empty soda bottles there? Maybe you should organize yourself a little, and maybe Thanko can help with its LCD monitor hub. It attaches to the sides and bottom of your LCD, giving you a four-port USB replicator below to help reduce cable-clutter and a series of tilt-out drawers on either side of your display where you can stuff the pens, pencils, cables, candies, thumb drives, screwdrivers, utility knives, digital cameras, toy cars, Gorillapods , memory cards, stickers, scissors, headphones, Wiimote wrists straps, and everything else that might not otherwise have a home. Or maybe that’s our desks and we’re just projecting. Thanko’s monitor hub takes all your desk clutter and hangs it from your LCD originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 21:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Look, y’all know that TRON : Legacy comes out in just a few painful hours.You’ve probably seen those Daft Punk headphones , a blue-glowy Razer mouse , and the obligatory armchair , among other insane promotional items . But those earthly objects definitely weren’t enough to fulfill the geeky capacity of the branding opportunities that such a cinematic event — nay, spectacle — creates. Melbourne-based interactive design company Eness went ahead and built an interactive projection-mapped skate ramp to commemorate the premiere. The Aussies who got to shred in this thing created and destroyed light trails, exploded through galaxies of color and shapes piped straight from the Grid, and had their airtime measured in real time and projected onto the ramp. It’s not quite a real-life light cycle battle, but we’ll take it. Must-see video after the jump. Continue reading TRON: Legacy gets its very own interactive halfpipe (video) TRON: Legacy gets its very own interactive halfpipe (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 20:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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As you can imagine, the call for a community to be the recipient of Google Fiber’s 1Gbps network was met by an overwhelming response. Indeed, the response was so great that while the recipient of all that bandwidth was to be announced at the end of this year, it looks like they won’t have a decision until early 2011. In the meantime, the project will continue to offer insanely high download speeds to Google’s campus and an 850 home beta network in Stanford. Google Fiber’s 1Gbps ISP ‘test community’ selection delayed until 2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 20:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Bringing this up with your local AT&T rep is liable to get you laughed out of the store, but things are a little different up in Canada where one of the major carriers is now offering an unlock service — for a fee. If you’re on Rogers (or its budget subsidiary, Fido ) and you’re a customer in good standing with an iPhone that you’ve previously purchased from them and you’re not currently in a contract, you can pay $50 Canadian — that’s $50 US, for those of you not up to speed on current conversion rates — to have Rogers’ customer service reps flip a switch that’ll cause the phone to magically unlock the next time you restore it while connected to iTunes. Considering the restrictions, they should probably be offering the service for free, but it’s a start. Rogers, Fido offering iPhone unlocks for $50 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 19:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …LG ‘B’ Android phone caught in the wild, looking thin and ready to spank Super AMOLED
December 16, 2010 No Comment
We’re still coming down from that rush of adrenaline that accompanied the launch of the dual-core Optimus 2X last night, but we’ve had a hunch lately that LG is planning on taking Android very seriously in 2011 — seriously enough to have something even sexier than the 2X up its sleeve. Looks like that sexiness could be delivered in the form of a device codenamed “B,” shots of which have been delivered to Phandroid in a direct comparison with the iPhone 4 and the Galaxy S — two handsets we’re sure LG would love to embarrass. As you can see up there, the screen’s looking pretty insane, especially when you consider that those other two phones in the picture have arguably the best displays in the mobile business right now; it’s claimed to offer 700 nits of brightness, a 40 percent improvement over the Galaxy S. Oh, and if that doesn’t impress you, Phandroid ‘s tipster has also sent in a shot of the edge that appears to make the 9.3mm iPhone 4 look downright chubby. No word on a release date for the B just yet. LG ‘B’ Android phone caught in the wild, looking thin and ready to spank Super AMOLED originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 19:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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We don’t normally cover the “business crime” beat, but there’s a pretty interesting gadget angle here. As part of a larger crack down on insider trading, three technology executives and a “salesman for an ‘expert network’” have been arrested for leaking confidential tips to hedge funds. What sort of secrets, you ask? A certain executive for Flextronics, Walter Shimoon, happened to pass on information concerning an iPhone update and the iPad well before they became official (Flextronics supplied Apple parts). “At Apple you can get fired for saying K48 … outside of a, you know, outside of a meeting that doesn’t have K48 people in it. That’s how crazy they are about it,” he said during an October 2009 phone call intercepted by authorities, where K48 was the codename for the iPad , which didn’t see the light of day until 2010 (we’re assuming here that’s not all he said). The others arrested hail from AMD (leaking financial details) and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, and a fifth person already pled guilty (a former Dell global supply manager). Remember, kids, crime doesn’t pay. Apple secrets leaked early by inside traders, arrests reveal originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 18:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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