July 02 - 07:25pm EDT   QuickerTek has launched a new external battery, the Apple Juicz, for iPhones, the iPod touch and other iPods. The 2200 mAh polymerized Lithium-ion battery measures 1.75- x 2.5- x .375-inch and connects through the data port and offers roughly three times the battery life of the iPhone internal battery. The Apple Juicz is rated for an additional 30 hours of music, six additional hours of video or three extra hours of talk time when used with an iPhone. the battery charges via the iPhone's USB charging cable, taking about three hours to fully charge. It has a built-in LED battery level indicator. [full story]

July 01 - 11:20am EDT   Pioneer on Wednesday brought out four new home theater receivers to its flagship Elite lineup, including the top-rung SC-27 and SC-25, as well as the slightly lower-end VSX-21TXH and VSX-23TXH. All four have a customized USB/composite cable that allow users to integrate their iPhones and iPods into their home theater audio systems. Once connected, the Apple devices can be controlled via the systems' remote controls, and their content sent to 2nd and 3rd zones setup in the home. The SC-series units are meant to reproduce uncompressed Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio soundtracks found in movies recorded on Blu-ray Discs. Both have a Direct Energy HD Class D amp based ... [full story]

June 30 - 04:50pm EDT   Edifier recently announced it has now made its iF500 iPod dock entertainment system available in North America. The large dome of the iF500 houses five separate speakers and is made with vibration and resonance control in mind. The device, which was launched in Europe earlier this year, can accommodate iPods and iPhones, as well as other portable audio players via their headphone jacks thanks to an auxiliary input. [full story]

June 30 - 02:20pm EDT   Sony on Tuesday added a pair of iPod speaker docks that center on its first network-aware system. The NAS-Z200iR (shown) puts all its controls on an advanced visual remote that also serves as the center of a Wi-Fi streaming system. Besides controlling iPods and other physical media on the stereo itself, the remote can share media streamed from DLNA-supporting devices like the PlayStation 3 or PC software as well as to browse Internet radio stations. [full story]

June 30 - 12:20pm EDT   Fluent Mobile says it has developed the first news app that highlights only content formatted specifically for mobile devices. Fluent News for iPhone searches a variety of sources, including the Washington Post, New York Times and Wall Street Journal, using proprietary algorithms claimed to reduce search times and minimize bandwidth consumption. [full story]

June 29 - 04:45pm EDT   Dell's rumored smartphone may only be an Internet-capable handheld, a leak today says. A contact for the Wall Street Journal supports the belief that an Android-based touchscreen device is in the works but that it won't have phone features. It should be slightly larger than the iPod touch and would instead focus on Internet access. [full story]

June 29 - 09:50am EDT   AVerMedia on Monday announced it has released its AVerTVHD Duet dual TV tuner in North America. The Windows 7-compatible product can receive over-the-air HD Digital TV signals (ATSC) or unencrypted digital cable (ClearQAM) and can either record two programs simultaneously or else allow users to watch one program while recording another. AVerTVHD Duet sports a PCI Express interface that is faster than a traditional PCI connection. [full story]

June 29 - 09:30am EDT   Several major cellphone makers today agreed to support a European Union push for a universal charger standard. Apple, LG, Motorola, Nokia, RIM, Samsung and Sony Ericsson have signed a deal with the European Commission that will see micro USB become the default connector for powering cellphones in the continent. Chipset producers like NEC, Qualcomm and Texas Instruments have also agreed to the deal. [full story]

June 26 - 04:30pm EDT   Lancer has recently introduced the iJector, a front-projector that lets users cast images up to 50 inches in size from their docked iPhone or iPod on a wall or screen. Despite the large screen size, the resolution is a lowly 557x234 pixels. The iJector's brightness is rated at 20 lumens, with the lamp said to last 30,000 hours. Amplified stereo audio will also be played back via the iJector. [full story]

June 26 - 11:40am EDT   Samsung may be triggering a sudden crunch in supplies of 1.8-inch hard drives through a strategic decision, Taiwan-area notebook builders reportedly said today. They claim that the Korean company has stopped development of the ultra-mobile disks in favor of solid-state drives, cutting the number of suppliers in half. Only Toshiba is left, DigiTimes says, and it's feared that prices might go up as the remaining producer tries to control demand. [full story]