02/12, 3:25pm
An investigation into Google's public records has hinted that the company is planning large expansions that would be incubators for multiple secret projects. The Mercury News sleuthing found that Google was spending over $120 million in construction around its Montain Vew headquarters for both public and private work. Secret projects would reportedly play a part, including for the Android@Home wireless audio device and Google's well-known but still secretive Project X labs.
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02/12, 2:30pm
As part of a larger study, comScore has shown that e-mail is making a large shift away from the web. Among teens and those aged 18 to 24, webmail use dropped by about a third in December from where it was one year earlier. Declines also appeared among the 35 to 44 set (down one point) and 55 to 64 (by seven points).
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02/12, 1:45pm
AT&T's efforts for shared data plans came closer to fruition Sunday after leaks from its Telegence account management system. Staffers showed Engadget that the interface for family plans was being changed to include a data section so that staff could add the eventual data plans at the same time as voice and text. No clues appeared for when shared data would take effect.
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02/12, 1:25pm
An upgraded Apple TV media hub might come sooner than thought after signs emerged that multiple stores ran low on stock. Amazon, Best Buy, Buy.com, Radio Shack, and Target all show the device either as out of stock or taking weeks to ship. Apple and others do have supply, but it follows a pattern of third-party resellers usually running out first.
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02/12, 12:30pm
The Recording Academy in its annual pre-show ceremony gave Steve Jobs its promised Lifetime Achievement award. The posthumous award was accepted on behalf of Jobs and family by Apple Senior VP Eddy Cue. In the acceptance speech, Cue highlighted how music was a central part of Jobs' existence; he was an outspoken fan of The Beatles and Bob Dylan, and often made music a focus of Apple's work.
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02/12, 10:00am
Saturday Night Live made technology an unusual target after it poked fun at Verizon in a pre-recorded skit (below). A customer (Fred Armisen) comes in asking about the carrier's 4G LTE network and is barraged with an increasingly technical and nonsensical sales pitch. By the end, LTE is likened to orange juice, and Verizon is described as an "old person's nightmare."
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02/12, 12:15am
The 13- to 14-inch notebook screen size is currently one of the hottest areas of competition right now: it's where Apple, HP, and others start off their higher-end models. Dell has certainly been one of the most active in this space and has brought its high-end XPS line to that space through the 14z. We'll check in our Dell XPS 14z review whether the 13-inch MacBook Pro, the Sony VAIO S, or comparable rivals will feel the strain.
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02/11, 4:35pm
Fresh checks have shown the earliest signs that iPad 2 supply might be ramping down ahead of the iPad 3 launch rumored for the next few weeks. The 9to5 investigation pointed to sales channel sources who said supply of 3G models was "constrained" across the board. Supporting this, searches at Carphone Warehouse and Orange in the UK both had some or most of their supply as "out of stock."
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02/11, 1:40pm
An expansion upon what few details have been available from Apple's new Samsung lawsuit has suggested that it reaches more at the core of Android and less at Samsung's specific actions. Along with accusing Samsung of violating a newer unlock gesture patent than what was covered in Germany, a second patent for a "universal interface" for retrieving data appeared to Florian Mueller to accuse Samsung of violating Siri-style searches, where stitching together keywords presents just the immediately needed results. While Android on a base level doesn't do this, it would prevent Google from providing a narrower search method in Android.
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02/11, 12:55am
Two major mobile apps got updates for special features at the end of the week. Spotify on iOS (App Store) now has the option to both stream and sync audio at 320Kbps, the same quality as it exists on the desktop. While it requires either a more intensive Internet connection or extra storage for cached tracks, it puts the app's audio quality ahead of other on-demand music rivals.
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02/10, 11:00pm
Cider port house TransGaming's download service GameTreeMac is now accepting pre-orders for The Darkness II, a first-person shooter released earlier this month for Windows and consoles originally from 2K Games, TheLoop reports. The Mac version is expected in March, and the sequel is based on the same comic book series that inspired the original game, which was released in 2007. The game, when released, will be available via Steam.
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02/10, 10:15pm
Two different tech gear companies have announced two new products for music lovers who want small speakers. Gear4 out of El Segundo are launching the AirZone Series 1 home speaker and iPhone/iPod dock that incorporates AirPlay compatibility for remote sounds and control, while iPod accessory maker iHome is offering two different mini-speakers that stream music and more via Bluetooth connections, one including a mic for speakerphone use.
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02/10, 8:15pm
A somewhat sensationalist press release from Russian forensic-cryptology company ElComSoft claims that it can "crack" passwords users put on documents created in Apple's iWork software (which comprises Pages, Numbers and Keynote). However, the company admits that the attack is just a variation on a brute-force cracking method that attempts to guess the password.
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02/10, 7:45pm
Instagram finished the week with a significant update to its app (App Store). The 2.1 update now has Lux, an image adustment option that automatically brings out details in highlights and shadows in a rough equivalent to high dynamic range (HDR) shooting. Similar to the tilt-shift effect, Lux can stack with other filters.
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02/10, 7:30pm
Two new job listings have hinted that Amazon will be the next commercial Internet video service to produce some of its own content. Its studio division is hiring for the People's Production Company to create comedies and children's shows. Unlike its counterparts, though, it would be developing for traditional formats as well.
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