News Archive for 09/05/26

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Report: AT&T attracting 33% of switching subscribers

05/26, 9:50pm

ATT leads future demandA

AT&T appears to be continuing to build momentum in terms of attracting subscribers from other carriers, according to a recent ChangeWave survey. When asked to disclose the likelihood of defecting to another carrier in the next six months, 13 percent of consumers claimed they were very or somewhat likely to switch. Of that group, 33 percent said they plan to choose AT&T as their next provider, while only 24 percent expected to move to Verizon.

Microsoft confirms Zune HD with multi-touch

05/26, 8:40pm

MS Confirms Zune HD

Microsoft tonight confirmed the existence of the Zune HD, its first-ever touchscreen media player. The company readily acknowledges that the player is meant to compete against the iPod touch and will have a 3.3-inch, 480x272 OLED screen with a multi-touch interface. It earns its name through the first inclusion of a portable HD Radio tuner for digital broadcasts as well as HD video playback through a special dock. For the first time on a Zune, the HD will also use its Wi-Fi to browse the web and should come with a special version of Internet Explorer designed for touch.

Chill Pill provides speakers for portable devices

05/26, 8:15pm

Chill Pill speakers ship

Koyono has released the latest addition to its Apple accessory line, the Chill Pill. The device, used with an iPod, iPhone, or notebook, is made of two speakers that magnetically connect in order to reduce size for storage. The Chill Pill uses a rechargeable internal battery and can be used for up to 8 hours.

HP recalls 15,000 notebook batteries in China

05/26, 7:50pm

HP recalls 15K batteries

Hewlett-Packard has recalled 15,000 batteries contained in notebooks distributed across China, as the lithium-ion cells are known to potentially overheat, according to Reuters. The affected devices include HP Pavillion, Compaq Presario and HP Compaq models manufactured between late 2007 and early 2008. China's quality-control regulator, AQSIQ, suggests the batteries pose a fire hazard when used in extreme conditions.

Briefly: Mac maintenance e-books, CourseForum 2-for-1

05/26, 7:25pm

Circuit Strike.One

In brief: TidBITS publishing has released two new e-books, authored by Joe Kissell, which provide tips on maintaining and fixing Mac computers. The e-books can help Mac users achieve peak performance from their computers and are available for $10 each of $16 as a bundle. CourseForum Technologies has announced a new two-for-one promotion on all of its license sales. Any customer who purchases licenses for one of its products before June 30th will instantly receive double the order for free. Meanwhile, new details on the upcoming iPhone game Circuit Strike.One have been released. The game takes place inside a computer network where players are trying to hack all of the nodes in a network.

DealNN: iPods, GPS units, wireless routers, more

05/26, 7:15pm

DealNN: iPods, GPS units

Today's featured deals from DealNN include iPods, GPS units, wireless routers and more. Today's deal of the day from Buy.com is on the TRENDnet Wireless N home router for $24.99. That's a price cut of $34.01 off the list price of $59 and includes FREE shipping. The TRENDnet Wireless N router supports cable/DSL modems with most connection types. Transmit wireless data at up to 300Mbps over distances up to 300m.

Apple refurbs: 17-inch MacBook Pro, more

05/26, 7:10pm

Apple refurbs: 17" MBP

Currently the Apple store is offering a selection of refurbished unibody Macbook and MacBook Pro models including, for the first time, the 17-inch MPB. The 2.66GHz, 17-inch MacBook Pro is available for $2399 and includes 4GB of memory, 320GB hard drive and features a battery that lasts for up to eight hours on a single charge. Other MBPs include the 2.4GHz model with 2GB of RAM and 250GB hard drive for $1699 and the 2.53GHz model with 4GB of RAM and 320GB hard drive for $2299. Starting at $1099 is the 13-inch unibody MacBook with 2.0GHz processor, 2GB of memory and 160GB hard drive. The 2.4GHz model has 2GB of RAM and 250GB hard drive for $1299. Upgrade to the 128GB Solid State drive configuration for $1899. Refurb. MacBook Airs start at $999 for the 1.6GHz model with 2GB of memory and 80GB hard drive and top off at $2149 for the 1.86GHz model with 2GB of memory and 128GB SSD.

onOne ships free PhotoTools 2 Lite Photoshop plug-in

05/26, 6:55pm

PhotoTools 2 Lite Released

onOne software has released PhotoTools 2 Lite, a free version of its plug-in for Photoshop that includes 14 photo effects taken from both the standard and professional editions. The effects can be applied to any image brought into Photoshop, with a before-and-after preview available from within the plug-in. Effects can be combined into a layered stack, while each stack can still be individually altered.

GizFever releases HDD HDMI TV media player

05/26, 6:30pm

New GizFever media player

GizFever has released its newest product, the 2.5 SATA HDD HDMI TV Media Player. The device can be used to play media such as music, images and movies through a user's visual display and speakers. The player provides a AV, YPbPr, and HDMI video outputs for attaching televisions, along with ports for SD, SDHC, and MMC memory cards or USB drives.

NimbleKit SDK offers iPhone app development templates

05/26, 5:50pm

NimbleKit SDK update ships

VolnoTech has updated its NimbleKit SDK software which provides tools to create iPhone applications. NimbleKit aims to simplify the coding process by providing HTML and Javascript templates, eliminating the necessity of learning complex coding languages. Users can also launch their newly-created application in the app simulator for testing.

app4mac releases Plexoo image editing software

05/26, 4:55pm

Plexoo 1.0 released

app4mac has released an entirely new piece of software, Plexoo. The program is meant for basic image-editing tasks, as well as exporting to a variety of filetypes including JPEG, PNG, TIFF, GIF and BMP. The interface is built around Apple's Core Image rendering framework.

LG Opera TV and HQ handsets coming to AT&T

05/26, 4:50pm

AT&T to get LG Opera, HQ

AT&T will soon add two new high-end LG handsets to its lineup if these leaked images from the wireless provider prove to be real. The first, tentatively scheduled for a release late in August, is the Opera TV, though the placeholder image is believed to be that of the current Arena. Specs on the Opera include a 3-inch display with 480x800 resolution, a 5-megapixel camera, and 7.2Mbps HSDPA data network access. As the name suggests, FLO TV support allows users to watch mobile TV programs.

Unlocked HTC Touch Pro2 now available in the UK

05/26, 4:35pm

Unlocked HTC Touch Pro2

UK online retailer DeviceWire is now offering an unlocked version of the HTC Touch Pro2 smartphone. When the page was first put up, 50 examples of the handset were reportedly available. The Touch Pro2 has a QWERTY keyboard along with a 3.6-inch, 480x800 resolution touchscreen. There is quad-band GPRS voice network and EDGE/HSPA data network support, along with an integrated GPS sensor, a Wi-Fi radio and Bluetooth functionality.

HoudahSpot 2.5 update allows any text criteria

05/26, 4:35pm

HoudahSpot 2.5 released

Houdah has released v2.5 of its HoudahSpot utility. The software initiates detailed searches of a person's computer, using a variety of file attributes. Results can be sorted through multiple columns, and examined closely using Quick Look. Custom search parameters can be set to launch as defaults.

Pantech Aladdin QWERTY slider leaked for AT&T

05/26, 4:20pm

Aladdin comng to AT&T

A Monday leak has revealed that Pantech's Aladdin handset may be coming to wireless provider AT&T in mid-August. The candybar device has a slide-out QWERTY keyboard for texting, which is its main mission, as it is otherwise fairly basic in its specifications. There is a 1.3-megapixel camera, assisted GPS functionality, stereo Bluetooth support and a Video Share mode for one-way calls. It should support protected Windows Media tracks in addition to usual mobile formats.

Intel peeks eight-core Nehalem-based Xeon

05/26, 4:10pm

Intel Nehalem EX Preview

Intel today provided early official details about Nehalem-EX, the architecture that will form the foundation of the chip maker's highest-end Xeon processors. The design will stand as Intel's first eight-core processor and, thanks to Hyperthreading, will run as many as 16 program threads at once. It will also have the most bandwidth of any design with four QuickPath interfaces, which create a point-to-point link between the CPU, memory and peripherals. Each core will have as much as nine times the bandwidth of present-day Xeon 7400 processors.

Educate for iPhone offers lesson-planning tools

05/26, 4:05pm

Educate for iPhone

iKonstrukt has announced Educate, an app for the iPhone and iPod touch designed to support teachers. The software provides lesson planning and student tracking, as well as tools for strategizing and e-learning. Users can also connect to the company’s Facebook group to discuss ideas and suggest features. Using the app's weekly planner, teachers can keep a timetable and schedule individual lessons.

HTC to bring Android phone to China in June

05/26, 3:50pm

HTC Android due in China

Taiwan's handset manufacturer HTC is due to release an Android-powered smartphone in China in June, its chief executive Peter Chou told the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday. The phone will be a version of the Magic, the second Android-powered handset from HTC that went on sale in Europe recently, although with custom software from China Mobile, the world's biggest wireless provider, at about 500 million subscribers. With the Magic, HTC hopes to double its China sales to 1.6 million.

Sanyo intros pair of SSD in-car navigation systems

05/26, 3:45pm

Sanyo SSD navi systems

Sanyo Japan has recently announced the upcoming release of two of its in-dash navigation and entertainment systems, the NVA-GS1609FT and NVA-GS1409DT, each equipped with a solid state drive (SSD). Dubbed AV Gorilla, the double-DIN head units sport 480x240-pixel 7-inch LCD touchscreen displays. The NVA-GS1609FT has a 16GB SSD, half of which is dedicated for storing map and navigation data. The other 8GB can be used to rip music from inserted CDs at up to 12x speeds or 8x speeds while simultaneously playing back the music. DVDs are supported, but cannot be ripped.

AT&T readying HSPA+ ExpressCard, USB modems

05/26, 3:40pm

ATT HSPA Plus Modem Leak

AT&T's planned move to HSPA+ service for its next-generation 3G should be accompanied by at least two computer networking devices when the network goes live, as a slide leak late Monday has revealed the carrier's plans. A Sierra Wireless notebook card nicknamed the "Triple Lindy" should lead the charge, Engadget says, and will have a dual-stage enclosure that can either work as a regular ExpressCard/34 adapter or else plug into a PC Card adapter for use on older notebooks. It could reach the theoretical peaks of the service at 21.1Mbps downstream and 11.5Mbps for uploads.

Roxio unveils VHS to DVD converter for Mac

05/26, 3:35pm

Roxio VHS to DVD

Roxio is entering the increasingly crowded market of analog video converters for the Mac with the VHS to DVD kit. The package relies on five software screens to guide users through the process of copying from VHS, Hi8, Video8 and other analog sources. USB-based hardware is capable of capturing video in native MPEG-2 resolution; input jacks are provided for composite, stereo audio and SVHS connections, using either NTSC or PAL encoding.

Seiko Epson tech will allow large OLED TVs

05/26, 3:15pm

Seiko Epson large OLED TVs

Japan's Seiko Epson on Tuesday announced it has discovered a way to produce large-panel organic light-emitting diode (OLED) HDTV sets. A new discovery in inkjet technology allows a more uniform deposition of organic material during the manufacturing of OLED panels, solving the issue of uneven layering in large screens. This breakthrough will allow Epson to make 37-inch and larger OLED HDTVs.

Intel pushing back Core i5 to September?

05/26, 3:10pm

Intel Core i5 Delayed

Intel's Core i5 processor platform has been pushed back until September, according to claims by those producing mainboards for the platform. The delay would move the launch from the original July and is purportedly meant to clear out stock of earlier designs due to the poor economy. When it does launch, the desktop processor range will reportedly start with 2.66GHz, 2.8Ghz and 2.93GHz processors in bulk prices of $196, $284 and $562 along with a matching mainboard chipset, the P55, costing $40 in volume.

Zeebo 3G game console ships to Brazil

05/26, 2:30pm

Zeebo Ships in Brazil

Zeebo today said its unique game console has started shipping to its first market of Brazil. The game system will cost $247 but, as promised, is rare in having free 3G access; users can download games over the local cellular network without having to pay for a separate Internet connection. The launch edition also comes with three full 3D games -- Brain Training, FIFA 09 and Need For Speed: Carbon -- as well as permission to download ports of the first two Quake games as well as Prey.

JVC ships HDTV for digital SLR viewing

05/26, 1:55pm

JVC Xiview Photo TV Ships

JVC today shipped an LCD TV it bills as the first specifically geared towards digital SLR photography. The Xiview LT42WX70 emphasizes color accuracy first and covers both all of the sRGB color gamut used for HDTV but 96 percent of the Adobe RGB space as well; the trick promises a relatively accurate display that can be used for quick photo proofing or just as a means of viewing images at a large size. About 52 different visual settings, as well as consistent 2.2 gamma, help calibrate the display to achieve its intended effect.

Psystar files for bankruptcy, delays Apple lawsuit

05/26, 1:55pm

Psystar files for Ch. 11

Psystar has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection through a federal court in Florida, documents show. Although a sign of serious financial trouble, the move will also grant the Mac cloner a temporary reprieve from an Apple lawsuit, charging Psystar with breaking the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and the license agreement for Mac OS X Leopard. All legal actions against Psystar have been put on hold while bankruptcy proceedings get underway; the hold may be lifted within a few months, at the discretion of the judge.

Samsung Gloss reaches US Cellular

05/26, 1:30pm

Gloss at US Cellular

Samsung Mobile on Tuesday confirmed an earlier report by announcing wireless provider US Cellular will soon add the Samsung Gloss SCH-u440 flip-phone to its lineup. Also known as the Cleo, it has an unusual design with a QWERTY keyboard and borrows design cues from a makeup mirror. Bluetooth support, a 1.3-megapixel camera and music playback functionality are also onboard.

Apps: TrailRunner, SharewarePublisher, dupeGuru

05/26, 1:20pm

Mac Restart X, Eddy Timer

TrailRunner 2.0 (free) is an outdoor oriented route-planning and journaling application. The software offers automatic route calculation for a given distance, a workout diary, workout histograms and analysis tools for measured data like speed, ascent, heart-rate, and personal aerobic zone. The new release includes a new routing feature that is based on openStreetMap. This allows users to create routes with the openStreetMap routing editor and then upload the corse to a GPS device or share it with GPSies. [Download - 4.3MB]

NAD intros audiophile-grade M2 digital amp

05/26, 1:00pm

NAD intros M2 amplifier

NAD Electronics on Tuesday has announced the upcoming release of its Masters Series M2 Direct digital amplifier for home audio and theater setups. The result of a 10-year research project, the M2 is said to be the industry’s first true digital amplifier available to customers. NAD compares the amp to a Digital-to-Analog Converter (DAC) that drives a loudspeaker directly. It is rated to provide 500W of dynamic power on its two channels. NAD is also touting the M2 as being the first to fully exploit HD audio source files, the first to include digital error correction and use it to reduce distortion.

Microsoft deploys Vista Service Pack 2

05/26, 12:45pm

MS posts Vista SP2

Microsoft has posted 64- and 32-bit versions of Service Pack 2, a major update for Windows Vista and Server 2008. The downloads measure 577 and 348MB respectively, and include all of the key Windows updates produced since the debut of Service Pack 1. New devices and hardware platforms are also said to be supported, such as Bluetooth 2.1, 64-bit VIA CPUs and Blu-ray data recording.

NEC intros 1.6lb, 0.62-inch thick netbook

05/26, 12:00pm

NEC 1.6lb, 10.6in netbook

NEC Japan has recently announced the upcoming release of its business-grade 10.6-inch netbook, the VersaPro UltraLite type VS. Most notably, the netbook weighs just 1.6lbs and is 0.62 inches thick. The low weight is achieved thanks to a magnesium frame that is die-cast and by exclusively offering a solid state drive, while the thinness comes from a careful design and shuffling around of the internal components. The 10-layer baseplate for the mainboard does not sit directly underneath the keyboard, for example, and a traditional heat sink for the CPU was done away with.

Microsoft to offer Zune trade-up program?

05/26, 11:55am

MS Zune Trade Up Leak

Microsoft has potentially signaled its plans to clear out stock of its current-generation players through word of an upgrade plan that may start in June. The program as described by Zune Scene would mostly be intended for Zune 30 owners out of warranty and would give them large discounts on second-generation players that vary in scope depending on the storage of the player. Moving to a basic Zune 4 would drop the price of a Zune 4 down to $70, or $30 off its usual cost; the exchange would provide $70 off a Zune 16 or higher, providing the strongest incentive to trade in for one of Microsoft's newer players.

North Carolina working to lure Apple server farm?

05/26, 11:50am

North Carolina server farm

North Carolina may be willing to provide special tax favors for Apple, should the company decide to build a server farm in the state, writes the Charlotte Observer. A state official cited by the paper says that a new bill, nearing approval, would offer breaks to corporations with a minority marketshare in the region but large quantities of property and workers. The bill is said to be explicitly aimed at luring the proposed Apple server farm, which could in theory save the company $46 million over the course of 10 years.

iPhone apps: Robo Riot!, BMW Z4, Quantum Pool

05/26, 11:20am

Deep Green Chess, pearPad

Robo Riot! ($1) is an arcade puzzler where the players goal is to protect humanity from the rioting robots. Players can eliminate robots by dragging an electric zapper box around a group of robots where every corner is the same color. Groups of the same color robots within this square will create combos and unlock additional power-ups players can use to improve their score.

China-native iPhone, wider-screen iPod in works?

05/26, 11:20am

iPhone China Model Rumor

Apple's upcoming revision to the iPhone could be the first to split the line into multiple versions based on the network, a supposed leak said on Tuesday. Rather than stick to a one-size-fits-all approach, the company is claimed by iLounge to be offering iPhones with different network speeds depending on the region. Those in the best-equipped countries will get iPhones with 7.2Mbps 3G; other countries would still have 3.6Mbps 3G, while a third phone would be specific to China.

iTunes movies and TV shows coming to iPhone?

05/26, 10:55am

Movies and TV on iPhone?

Apple may soon allow the iPhone and iPod touch to directly access movies and TV shows from the iTunes Store, a leak suggests. In using an ad-supported version of Twitterfon, one user claims to have encountered a banner promoting not just purchases of videos from iTunes, but also movie rentals. At present the main means of shuttling iTunes video to an Apple handheld is through sync with a Mac or PC; the one exception is podcasts.

TeliaSonera intros first commercial 4G LTE site

05/26, 10:40am

TeliaSonera 1st 4G Site

TeliaSonera has become the first carrier to set up a commercial-ready 4G site based on the Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard. Located in Stockholm, Sweden, the tower is part of a larger network that will be ready in 2010 and promises much faster Internet than 3G. Ericsson, which helped build the site, says 4G can reach a theoretical peak of 160Mbps; real-world speeds are likely to be much slower but still above the 7.2Mbps peak of existing 3G.

LG ships LH55 sets with 240Hz panels

05/26, 10:10am

LG Ships LH55 HDTVs

LG today began shipping its LH55 TVs to stores. Having made its first appearance at CES, the line uses traditional cold-cathode fluorescent lighting but has a scanning backlight that boosts the LCD panel's refresh rate to 240Hz, significantly improving detail in fast-moving scenes. Most current TVs still use either regular 60Hz or 120Hz panels.

AT&T to carry Windows Mobile 7 flagship?

05/26, 9:40am

LG Monaco ATT Leak

AT&T may be the home to one of the first headlining devices for Windows Mobile 7, a slide from a leaked presentation shows. The LG Monaco would be a full touchscreen smartphone with a 3.2-inch, 800x480 display and a slide-out QWERTY keyboard underneath. The new Microsoft OS is claimed by Engadget to be the centerpiece, however, and may require that the device support multi-touch, a level of input previously off limits to Microsoft devices that have so far been forced to use single-touch, resistive touchscreens.

Morgan Stanley ups Apple price target to $180

05/26, 9:35am

Morgan Stanley on AAPL

Morgan Stanley's appraisal of Apple stock has been substantially upgraded, Reuters reports. The firm has pushed its price target for Apple shares up from $105 to $180, also assigning them an "overweight" rating. Apple is now at the vanguard of mobile Internet access, says Stanley analyst Kathryn Huberty, and should see iPhone-based growth for at least the next two years.

EU nearing pan-European online music stores

05/26, 8:45am

EU Pushes Pan-Euro Music

The European Commission today pressed music labels on switching to a Europe-wide licensing strategy for music that would let Apple and others run stores for the entire continent. Citing early agreements with EMI as well as French agency SACEM, antitrust Commissioner Neelie Kroes argues that labels need to follow suit and switch from their current country-by-country approach, which forces iTunes and other stores to segregate their audiences and musicians to collect pay through local agencies rather than a single source.

Sony gives VAIO P options for Win XP, 2GHz Atom

05/26, 8:05am

Sony VAIO P with Win XP

Sony on Tuesday showed rare conservatism by giving its VAIO P netbook an option for Windows XP. The P50 variant lets the mini notebook skip Vista for the faster, less demanding older OS while trading few features. It loses only Sony's in-Windows media software but still gets access to the instant-on OS for media playback and other basics outside of Microsoft's platform. It also boosts the minimum storage from 60GB to 80GB.

Nokia opens Ovi Store, strikes AT&T deal

05/26, 7:30am

Nokia Ovi Store and ATT

After an early opening for some areas, Nokia today formally launched the Ovi Store worldwide. Accessible both through the web and through a downloadable app, the service is Nokia's own contender against the iPhone's App Store and puts both third-party apps, N-Gage games, podcasts and videos in a central location. It's primarily intended for Symbian S60 phones such as the 5800 XpressMusic as well as most recent Eseries and Nseries smartphones, including the imminent N97.