News Archive for 12/05/07

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Magellan adds seven models to RoadMate line

05/07, 11:56pm

Some models with lifetime traffic alerts and map updates

Magellan revealed the seven models in the 2012 RoadMate series earlier today. The entire line boasts four new features: landmark guidance, traffic camera alerts, access to the bestparking.com database, and junction view. MSRP ranges from $100 to $170.

T-Mobile hopes to cover 17 of 25 top markets with LTE

05/07, 11:45pm

Spectrum needed obtained from 1900MHz AT+T sale

T-Mobile has hired Ericsson and Nokia-Siemens today for the upcoming $4 billion LTE buildout. T-Mobile's current HSPA+ network covers 220 million people in 229 major markets, and the company argues that it can be called 4G based on speed alone. The LTE expansion is expected to be completed sometime in 2013.

Hands on: Escort SmartRadar

05/07, 11:40pm

Enforcement avoidance continues to evolve

Escort late last year introduced Escort Live, providing basic integration between the company's radar detectors and Android or iOS smartphones. The company has continued to embrace smartphone capabilities with SmartRadar, a new detector that discretely monitors radar and laser signals while diverging from form factor of existing dash-mounted radar detectors. Electronista had a chance to check out the new device this week at a special event ahead of CTIA's New Orleans gathering.

Briefly: Garmin Fit App update, Schosche multi USB

05/07, 10:25pm

Garmin updates Fit iOS app

The Garmin Fit iOS app ($1 in the App Store) was updated today, adding a new feature, LiveTrack. With the feature addition, users can set up tracking sessions and share their training sessions over Facebook and Twitter. The update also includes optimizations for running the app on iPads.

Apple self-produced parody '1944' arrives on YouTube

05/07, 10:20pm

Features Steve Jobs as FDR in cameo

A video Apple created in 1984 as a motivational spoof for its annual Hawaii sales force conference that features a cameo of Steve Jobs playing President Franklin Delano Roosevelt has arrived on YouTube. The film, first made public by Network World a few days ago, was intended as a spoof "propaganda film" to inspire the Macintosh sales force to do battle against "Big Blue" (IBM), then seen as Apple's main rival.

Wii U launch list leaks: Mario, Pikmin, Assassin's Creed

05/07, 9:30pm

Blockbuster UK leaks 25 Wii U launch titles

Amid the rumors and speculation surrounding Nintendo's forthcoming Wii U console, leaked screens from Blockbuster UK purport to show the 25 games likely to accompany the Wii U when the system launches later this year. The supposed lineup shows a range of offerings, from party games, to fitness titles and big franchises appearing for the first time on a Nintendo system.

Angry Birds maker Rovio eyeing 2013 IPO

05/07, 8:15pm

Angry Birds creator may get $9 billion valuation

Rovio Entertainment, fresh off of announcing phenomenal sales for the latest installment of its Angry Birds series, is reportedly looking to go public. The Finnish video game developer is in the process of preparing for an initial public offering in 2013, Reuters reports. Analysts peg the value of the company at up to $9 billion.

Xbox and Kinect for $99, 2 year Live subscripton confirmed

05/07, 7:30pm

Xbox 360 and Kinect bundle subsidized by 2 year contract

The previously speculated Xbox 360 bundle deal from Microsoft has been confirmed to exist. A voucher for the bundle has appeared on the Microsoft Store website, showing a 4GB Xbox 360 complete with Kinect for $99 and a two-year, $15-per-month Xbox Live Gold subscription.

Hands on: Samsung Focus 2 for AT&T

05/07, 7:17pm

New Windows Phone targets budget market

AT&T held a special event in New Orleans to detail its home automation and security system, however the carrier also brought along Samsung's Focus 2. Electronista had a chance to try out the company's latest Windows Phone device, which represents the third model to feature the Focus label and the carrier's first to be equipped with an LTE radio for 4G data speeds.

Briefly: Dane-Elec, Microsoft SkyDrive, Jobs photo for sale

05/07, 7:12pm

Dane-Elec boosts Pro Sport flash drive line to USB3 speed

Dane-Elec unveiled the first products in the Pro Sport USB3 line today. The red 8GB, 16GB blue, and 32GB black USB3 flash drives will be available on Amazon in late May. The Pro Sport flash drive boasts speeds up to 80MB/sec read and 30MB/sec write when plugged into a USB3 host connection.

Target discounts iPhone 4, 4S by $50 in store

05/07, 7:05pm

iPhone discounted in Target for a week

Target, which just recently announced it would expand its Apple Store-Within-A-Store (SWAS) program, is now discounting new iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S unite by $50 with a two-year contract, reports 9to5Mac. The new prices in-store offer the iPhone 4 8GB at $50 and the 4S 16GB at $150 with either AT&T or Verizon.

IEEE: new 802.11 standards for faster, improved Wi-Fi

05/07, 7:00pm

IEEE revises 802.11 Wi-Fi stanards

The IEEE has published expanded standards for increased speeds and simpler communications in Wi-Fi. The revision, called IEEE 802.11-2012, increases the scope of the existing networking standards to include more supported devices and improve cellular network hand-offs. This is the fourth revision of the standard since the original publication in 1997.

Apple jumps into the top 20 on Fortune 500

05/07, 6:15pm

iPad maker now number 17 despite huge sales

Fortune Magazine released its annual Fortune 500 list of America's largest corporations, and Apple has zoomed up the list to the number 17 slot. The new ranking is a sizable improvement over its 35th -place ranking last year, but the iPad maker still ranks second in technology, behind Hewlett-Packard.

Jury partial verdict: Google infringed Oracle copyrights

05/07, 6:00pm

No decision on fair use, trial continues

The jury assigned to the Oracle versus Google lawsuit has returned a partial verdict. On the matter of API copyright infringement, Google has been found to have violated the sequence, structure, and organization of 37 Java API copyrights. However, whether or not the infringement was fair use remains to be decided, as the jury was unable to break through a previously reported impasse on the matter. Judge Alsop is not waiting for motions from either side, and is immediately moving forward with the next phase, the patent phase, of the trial.

Report: Apple admits lack of multi-user on iPad a problem

05/07, 5:44pm

Hints at potential solution in development

In response to a "bug report" filed by a developer, Apple has for the first time acknowledged that the lack of multi-user support in iOS for the iPad is a "known issue" which is "currently being investigated by engineering," AppleInsider reports. While developers have often used bug reports to ask for or promote system features, the developer who submitted it says normally Apple doesn't reply to such requests.

Tethered iOS 5.1.1 jailbreak comes to redsn0w

05/07, 5:37pm

New iPad, iPad 2, iPhone 4S still unsupported

Third-party jailbreaking utility redsn0w has been updated for iOS 5.1.1, which was released by Apple just earlier today. Currently the hack works only in tethered mode, meaning that a device has to be connected to computer anytime it's restarted. It's also restricted to devices based on A4 processors, excluding the third-generation iPad, the iPad 2, and the iPhone 4S.

VeriFone to bring out Square-like payment card reader

05/07, 4:32pm

VeriFone to bring out SAIL card reader to defend against Square

VeriFone will release a new card reader that plugs into the iPhone or iPad's 3.5mm headphone input to process payments. A step up from its PayWare solution for hardware, the new device, called SAIL, will be very close to Square's hardware. VeriFone already makes card payment hardware for larger businesses and stores, and is trying to protect this client base from smaller up and comers like Square, BusinessInsider reported.

Apple cuts prices on refurb iPads by up to $50

05/07, 4:31pm

First-, second-gen iPads included in discounts

Apple has further knocked back the cost of refurbished iPads at its online store. The iPad 2 is now available for as little as $319 in the case of a 16GB Wi-Fi model, a $30 price drop. Other models have had their prices reduced by up to $50, such as the 64GB 3G tablet, which is just $629. The only other exception in fact is the 16GB 3G, which has been slashed by $30 to $449.

Sony promises 20 new titles at E3, more

05/07, 3:52pm

Sony to stream live E3 webcast, promises future of gameplay at E3

Sony has invited the press to a conference before the E3 gaming show on its dedicated website. At the show, it plans to reveal 20 new game titles and what it calls the "future of gameplay and innovation." Exactly what that involves remains to be seen, but it could have something to do with its next-generation home console, the Orbis. That console will not be unveiled at the show, however, the company said earlier.

Nielsen: Smartphones top devices, Android top OS

05/07, 3:13pm

Survey shows Apple number manufacturer, Android near 50 percent

A majority of US mobile subscribers are now choosing smartphones over other kinds of handsets, according to new numbers out from Nielsen. Smartphones currently make up 50.4 percent of handsets, up from 47.8 percent in December 2011. Nielsen's report also looked at the most popular operating systems among smartphones, finding that Android was by far the favorite at 48.5 percent of smartphones sold in March. iOS came in second with 32 percent, while RIM's BlackBerry OS was in third with 11.6 percent.

iOS 5.1.1 improves HDR functionality, fixes several bugs

05/07, 3:07pm

Release resolves iPad bug when switching between 2G and 3G networks

(Updated with security fixes) Apple has released a minor maintenance update for iOS devices. Versions 5.1.1 is said to improve reliability when using the HDR photography option from the lock-screen shortcut, while an iPad-specific tweak is designed to enable the device to properly switch between 2G and 3G networks.

Ematic ships 10-inch Android tablet for $220

05/07, 3:03pm

Ematic eGlide XL Pro 2 with Android 4.0 now shipping, priced at $220

Budget electronics maker Ematic has just detailed specs of a new 10-inch Android-powered tablet, the eGlide XL Pro 2. It shares many of the hardware specs with the smaller 7-inch eGlide Prism introduced in mid-April. It runs on Android 4.0 as well and sports a 1GHz CPU and 400MHz GPU, along with 1GB of RAM.

Clarion Next Gate is an iOS controller for car windshields

05/07, 2:16pm

Next Gate will control connected iPhones during drives

Clarion has introduced a new device for iPhone owners, the Next Gate. It's a 7-inch, GPS unit-like device that will attach to a vehicle's windshield using a suction cup and provides a larger, more convenient control over a wired iPhone. Unlike the recently introduced Mirage head unit that's powered by Android, the Next Gate doesn't support handsets with the Google-made OS.

New rumor has Apple TV set supporting FaceTime calls, Siri

05/07, 2:00pm

Hardware said to resemble oversized Thunderbolt Display

A "well-placed" source has seen a prototype of Apple's upcoming TV set, claims Cult of Mac. Visually the hardware is said to resemble Apple's current Thunderbolt Display, but with a size "much larger" than 27 inches. The centerpiece is actually an iSight camera, which will allegedly support Siri voice commands and FaceTime video calls.

Briefly: Sony SmartWatch extensions, Moto Cliq 2 OS Update

05/07, 1:59pm

Extensions for Sony SmartWatch made open source

Two extensions for the Sony SmartWatch have been released as open source in an attempt to foster app development for the device. The 8 Game extension, a simple game based on sliding tiles to reorganize a picture, shows potential developers how they could create their own titles that can run on the timepiece. The Music extension permits the accessory to control music playback on the linked phone through supported media players, letting existing programming teams add SmartWatch functionality to their software.
Parties interested in developing for the $150 SmartWatch can download the SDK from Sony, with a further request from the electronics giant to suggest other extensions to release as open source.

BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha software reveals 7 phone code names

05/07, 1:38pm

Source code reveals Naples, Nashville, Nevada names for BB 10 devices

A rummaging through the source code of the dev alpha handset RIM distributed to developers at its BlackBerry World event last week has revealed 7 new codenames for upcoming BlackBerry handsets. According to N4BB, J. Duke from the OSBB site found a reference to Nevada, Winchester 2, Colt, London, Blackforest, Nashville, and Naples in the viewable file system. The London was reported on before and is the second version of the dev alpha phone, with Colt the name for the first-revision of the device.

Apple update exposes Lion login passwords in clear text

05/07, 1:32pm

Lion debug flag left in update causing major security risk

OS X 10.7.3 contains a debug flag which makes system passwords readable, checks show. Depending on the system configuration, people who update to v10.7.3 may have a widely-viewable debug log file containing passwords for all users accessing a system. The passwords are stored in plain text, making for a potentially serious security risk.

Color, Verizon, make deal to bring live HD streaming

05/07, 12:55pm

Color app partners with Verizon, will ship on 4G phones

The Color app which isn't a stranger to reinventing itself has now partnered up with Verizon. In this new iteration, which will see the app come preloaded on some of Verizon's Android LTE smartphones, users will get the ability to stream what they're recording live and in HD, while simultaneously saving a local copy. Verizon customers will also have an exclusive feature that allows adding sound to the recording.

Amtrak adopts iPhone for ticket scanning

05/07, 12:35pm

App, custom case involved in changeover

US government railroad Amtrak is migrating to the iPhone for ticket scanning, the New York Times reports. Conductors on some routes have been training on the technology since November; during testing, passengers could submit either a regular ticket or a special barcode loaded on their smartphone. During the official rollout, some 1,700 conductors around the country will start using iPhones by late summer.

Evernote buys out handwriting app Penultimate

05/07, 12:18pm

Penultimate creator to move over to Evernote as part of buyout

Cloud-syncing note service Evernote has purchased handwriting-recognition app Penultimate, SlashGear reported. Penultimate will continue on as a standalone app, at least for the time being, and its creator, Ben Zotto, will join Evernote to work on integration of the two services. A future Evernote update will bring handwriting recognition to it, and Penultimate will expand to support other mobile operating systems, as it's only available for iOS thus far.

Proview claims progress in settlement talks with Apple

05/07, 11:35am

Apple may have already proposed settlement sum

Progress is being made in settlement talks between Apple and Proview regarding the Chinese iPad trademark lawsuit, lawyers for Proview claim. One of them, Xie Xianghui, recently spoke with China's official Xinhua news agency, and said that the two parties have discussed a compensation package. Apple has even allegedly mentioned a specific sum, but Proview has yet to agree to anything.

Lenovo to invest $792m in new mobile plant in Wuhan, China

05/07, 11:33am

R&D, production and sales plant due to open in October, 2013

Lenovo will build a new production, R&D, and sales facility in Wuhan, China, the PC maker announced on Monday. Called the Lenovo (Wuhan) Industrial Base, the facility will focus on smartphones and tablets while employing several thousand employees. The company will invest about RMB5 billion ($792) over the next five years, with a scheduled opening date of October, 2013.

4G LTE-capable Focus 2 with WP7 coming to AT&T for $50

05/07, 10:47am

AT&T to get the Samsung Focus 2 on May 20

AT&T will soon begin offering the Samsung Focus 2 handset. Powered by the Windows Phone 7 operating system, it will support AT&T's 4G LTE network and cost just $50 on a two-year contract. The phone otherwise has a 4-inch Super AMOLED touchscreen and a five-megapixel camera out back with a front VGA camera.

Verizon makes Droid Incredible 4G LTE official

05/07, 10:17am

Phone due in coming weeks, prices still to be announced

Verizon has made the Droid Incredible 4G LTE official, though this wasn't a surpsie, since the handset's product page was leaked last month. The 4-inch Super LCD qHD-equipped phone has Android 4.0 onboard with HTC's Sense 4.0 on top and it will connect to Verizon's 4G LTE network for some of the highest mobile broadband speeds available in the industry. The phone is powered by a dual-core, 1.2GHz Snapdragon S4 processor that's also used in the One S.

Genius Bars now replacing some black iPhone 4s with 4S

05/07, 10:12am

iPhone 4 shortage switches colors

The Genius Bars at Apple Stores are now in some cases replacing black iPhone 4 models with equivalent iPhone 4S models, 9to5Mac claims. Recently it was said that Geniuses were replacing broken white, GSM 16GB iPhone 4 units with 4S models instead, owing to shortages of the former. As of earlier this week though, Apple is said to have "almost" caught up with demand for white 16GB iPhone 4 units, but developed new constraints involving black 16 and 32GB iPhone 4 models.

Apple files to gain control of iphone5.com domain

05/07, 8:31am

Apple legal claim a confirmation of iPhone 5 name?

Apple has filed to gain control of the iphone5.com domain with the World Intellectual Property Organization, reports Fusible. With the next iPhone often referred to as the iPhone 5, the move has garnered a lot of attention, although it does not necessarily amount to a smoking gun. It was thought that the iPhone 4S would carry that name; if it is called the 5, the next iPhone will nevertheless be a sixth-generation device.

Rumor: Apple to release $799 MacBook Air in Q3?

05/07, 7:06am

Rumor: Apple to release $799 MacBook Air in Q3?

Taiwanese supply chain news source Digitimes is reporting that Apple may be prepping a MacBook Air priced at $799 for Q3. According to its sources in the upstream supply chain, Apple may be positioning itself to address a renewed push by Intel to kickstart sluggish ultrabook sales to date. Intel is said to have put in place ambitious sales targets of 20-30 million ultrabooks for 2012, driven by pricing taking the second wave of ultrabooks below the $700 threshold.

LG confirms plans to ship TVs with Google TV

05/07, 5:56am

LG Internet-enabled TVs with Google TV inbound

In line with an earlier rumor, LG has announced its plan to start shipping TVs to the US pre-installed with the latest iteration of Google TV running on its in-house L9 ARM-based processors. It’s next-generation of smart TVs are expected to arrive the week beginning May 21 and carry with them the South Korean company’s hopes of grabbing increased market share from Samsung, Sony and Vizio. First previewed at CES 2012, the company has not yet specified details about which models it will ship or pricing details at this juncture.

Adobe CS6 now shipping, Creative Cloud available soon

05/07, 5:08am

Adobe starts shipping Creative Suite CS6 for Mac and PC

Adobe has started shipping its eagerly anticipated Creative Suite CS6 for both Mac and PC. Its alternative version of CS6 in the cloud known as Creative Cloud will launch on May 11, offering users the ability to access the entire suite of apps for a monthly access fee. Revamped applications now available for purchase include Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, Dreamweaver, Premiere Pro, After Effects and Flash Professional in four suite versions. Apps also remain available for purchase individually.