Jun 14

With Nokia E73, T-Mobile Keeps Wi-Fi Calling Alive

Posted in: nokia, t-mobile, Today's Chili, wi-fi

One of the less-touted features of the new Nokia E73 Mode is Wi-Fi calling, something T-Mobile should be promoting a lot more heavily. But T-Mobile’s Wi-Fi calling strategy seems confused right now, which is a pity – making calls over Wi-Fi is a win-win for the carrier and for consumers.

Here’s the secret: according to a T-Mobile exec I spoke to, if you’re using an E73 (or one of a few other phones), you’re connected to a Wi-Fi hotspot, and T-Mobile has lousy coverage where you are, the call will just quietly be routed over the hotspot. No muss, no fuss, no configuration, no confusion. It’s a great in-building solution, far more user-friendly than the expensive and limited “micro-cells” that AT&T and others are selling right now.
T-Mobile used to be much more aggressive on the Wi-Fi front. I’m a subscriber to @Home, a $9.99 home-phone-replacement service which T-Mobile stopped selling a few months ago. It’s been very reliable for me (as reliable as my ISP, at least.)
The E73 shows that T-Mobile is still capable of using UMA technology (their Wi-Fi calling scheme), if not marketing it. The company needs to step up and show off this strength by portraying it as the great in-building solution it is. My suggestion – “Why buy an expensive micro-cell? If you own a Wi-Fi router, you already have one!”
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Jun 14

HTC EVO 4G and Droid Incredible suffering from unresponsive screen issues

Posted in: droid, HTC, problem, screen, Sprint, Today's Chili, touchscreen, verizon, video

Uh oh: on top of reports that the EVO 4G suffers screen-detachment issues, we’re also starting to hear that the touchscreen sensor is inconsistent, particularly when the phone isn’t grounded. We’ve seen more than one report and video purporting to show the EVO’s touchscreen failing to smoothly register touches when the phone isn’t being handheld (and thus grounded). We haven’t been able to reproduce the issues ourselves, but trust us when we say we’ve heard from enough unhappy EVO owners to believe that the problem is real. What’s more, there’s also an older video showing the same problem on three different Droid Incredibles, which obviously shares strong family ties to the EVO. We’ve pinged HTC, we’ll let you know what we hear — for now, get your sad faces on and watch the videos after the break.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Continue reading HTC EVO 4G and Droid Incredible suffering from unresponsive screen issues

HTC EVO 4G and Droid Incredible suffering from unresponsive screen issues originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jun 14

ATT Announces the HTC Aria, Its Second Android Phone

Posted in: Android, HTC, Smartphones, Today's Chili

htc aria.gif

AT&T Wireless has just announced the HTC Aria, the second Android
phone to join the network’s lineup this year. The Aria is AT&T’s first
device to run Android OS 2.1 and the first to include the HTC Sense
UI.

Sense aims to streamline and enhance the mobile experience and
offers features such as the Friend Stream, which integrates Facebook,
Twitter, and Flickr updates into a single mobile social-networking
experience. AT&T is positioning the Aria as a petite powerhouse–it
measures just a bit more than 4 inches long and weighs just 4.05
ounces. A “soft touch” back cover eliminates sharp
edges and make the Aria comfortable to hold.

The device has a 3.2-inch HVGA, a capacitive touchscreen display, and a
5-megapixel camera, plus an optical joystick designed to make
navigation easier. The full suite of Google Android applications is
included, such as GMail, Google Maps, Google Navigation, and Google
Search, plus YouTube and the Android Market.

Other features include
HSPA for faster downloads and Wi-Fi wireless networking; customers will
also have free access to AT&T’s more than 20,000 WI-Fi
hotspots nationwide. The HTC Aria will be available on June 20th for
$129.99 after a $100 rebate with a new two-year agreement.

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Jun 14

Xpand Releases Second-Gen 3D Glasses

Posted in: Today's Chili

XpanDX102.jpgHome 3D is moving forward: Xpand is now shipping its second-generation X102 DLP-link 3D glasses. They work with all 3D-ready DLP projectors with a range of 140 feet, which is more than double the current industry standard.

Xpand has partnered with Texas Instruments to use its DLP Micro-Mirror Device technology, which syncs active 3D glasses with DLP projectors with no additional technology needed (such as an emitter). That plug-and-play functionality makes the X102 an affordable choice. The company is targeting education buyers, such as classrooms that have projectors with DLP technology.

You can get a pair for $129 from Xpand’s site.

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Jun 14

Sony announcing PS3 bundles with more storage, faster WiFi, and Move?

Posted in: e3, playstation, playstation 3, Playstation3, ps3, rumor, sony, Today's Chili, wifi

Sony announcing PS3 bundles with more storage, faster WiFi, and Move?We’re just a day away from Sony’s official press conference at this year’s E3, and CVG has heard rumors from a supposedly reliable source that some refreshed PS3 bundles are on the docket for officialdom. Word is that the new PS3s will pack 802.11n WiFi (up from 802.11b/g currently) and will come in 250 and 500GB flavors. Both bundles are said to be coming with at least one Move controller included, a move (zing!) that Sony had already said it would make, but the word of faster WiFi flies in the face of last week’s FCC filing for new bundles still offering only 802.11b/g. So, will a new 802.11n-equipped model become the standard edition, or does this “industry source” not have a clue? We’ll find out tomorrow.

Update: Looks as if Sony has updated Move’s official online portal with a slew of working titles. Have a peek while we get ready for the full reveal at E3, won’t you? Thanks, Tiaan!

Sony announcing PS3 bundles with more storage, faster WiFi, and Move? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jun 14

Aluratek Gets Sound from a Brick

Posted in: iPhone, MP3 Digital Audio, Today's Chili

AluratekBrick.jpg

To some techies, a “brick” is an iPhone that’s been unsuccessfully jailbroken. But Aluratek is re-claiming the word. The Aluratek Brick is an iPod/iPhone dock with a built-in amplifier. Don’t depend on your device’s internal speaker any longer; get some great room-filling sound.

The Brick works with any iPod except the Shuffle and any iPhone, and charges them while they’re connected. It also offers a 3.5mm auxiliary line, so you can connect any MP3 player you like. An FM tuner can take over when you’re sick of your stored songs. You’ll also get an alarm clock and equalizer.

For output, you’ll get a 23W speaker, including a 15W downward-firing subwoofer and 4W on each L/R channel. While the press release said the Brick would cost $149, it’s on the site now for $129. Not a bad deal for a compact stereo and alarm clock.

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Jun 14

Motorola and RIM settle patent dispute with a good old cross-licensing deal

Posted in: BlackBerry, deal, Law, legal, moto, motorola, patent, patents, research in motion, ResearchInMotion, RIM, Today's Chili

We always like to hear of companies burying the hatchet (and the lawyers with it, if at all possible), and our latest source of good vibes are two North American phone makers that have been at each other’s throats over patents since early 2008. Motorola and RIM had a previous intellectual property-sharing deal that expired at the end of ’07 and with the companies unable to come to a suitable extension agreement, it all spiraled out into a big and silly legal discord. That has at long last been settled now, with RIM paying a one-off fee and regular royalties, as well as licensing some of its own patent catalog out to Moto, in exchange for using the Americans’ knowhow in WiFi and other areas. All in all, an inevitable conclusion to an unnecessarily legalized negotiation. Now how about both you guys get back to building us those QWERTY sliders and 2GHz Androids?

Motorola and RIM settle patent dispute with a good old cross-licensing deal originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Jun 2010 11:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jun 14

Best Buy, Wal-Mart, Radio Shack Gear Up for iPhone 4 Launch

Posted in: Today's Chili

Where will you buy your iPhone 4? Pre-sales of Apple’s latest smartphone start tomorrow, and there are now plenty of options for getting your hands on the device.

The phone will, of course, be available at Apple stores and on the Apple Web site, but for those who do not live near an Apple store, Wal-Mart announced Friday that it too will sell the iPhone 4 at 1,500 of its 2,500 locations on launch day – June 24.

However, the phone will also be available at Best Buy and Radio Shack.

Best Buy will start accepting pre-orders for the iPhone 4 on June 15 at any Best Buy or Best Buy Mobile standalone store nationwide. The device will be in stores starting June 24, the company said in a release.

Radio Shack will also have the iPhone 4, according to the store’s Twitter account. The store will also start accepting pre-orders tomorrow; buyers must leave a $50 deposit. Those who have questions about the phone’s availability can tweet the store using the hashtag #shackiphone.

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Jun 14

Wired Bureau Chief Builds iPad Stand from $6 Doorstops

Posted in: Hacks, Mods and DIY, ipad, Today's Chili

When not knocking back gin martinis or sipping “Platform Heinekens” while waiting for the train home, Wired.com NY Bureau Chief John C Abell is quite the handyman. Not only is he the Foursquare mayor of his local Home Depot, he has also put together the best iPad typing stand yet seen.

Professional to the last, Mr. Abell even took time to load up the Wired.com front page before knocking out this video clip. The stand itself is made of a pair of “designer” steel doorstops, with rubber strips on top. And that’s it. As you can see, the doorstops, which are off-the-shelf items, are rock-solid when holding the iPad at the perfect angle for typing, but can also be scooped up and tossed in your bag where they’ll take up almost no space.

John was planning on somehow joining together the two wedges to save on readjusting their positions every time he set them down. In the end I convinced him that portability was more important, and he conceded that I had made an “excellent point.”

Rubber doorstops would work just as well, of course, but the steel ones come in at just $6 for the pair, will last forever and will match the black-and-silver color scheme of the iPad. The only problem is that they don’t appear to be in the online Home Depot store, so you’ll have to pay a visit to a real store. But then, you own an iPad, so what fear could the outside world hold for you anyway?

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Jun 14

Archos 13 laptop arrives in France

Posted in: archos, laptop, Laptops, Today's Chili
Archos — primarily known for being heavy into the PMP game — has just outed an updated line of laptops in France. Here we have the previously spotted Archos 13, and while we don’t have a full rundown of specifications, we know that it’s a 13.3-incher with an unnamed Intel Atom D510 CPU, 1GB of DDR2 RAM, a 160GB hard drive, WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth, and a 6-cell battery. It comes with Windows 7 Home Starter edition, and although we haven’t heard anything about releases outside of France or international pricing, we do know that this puppy goes for €399.98 (around $485).

Archos 13 laptop arrives in France originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Jun 2010 11:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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