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Looks like those whispers we heard about HP’s Topaz having a 1.2GHz Qualcomm CPU were true. The folks over at Pre Central just scored an internal document detailing presumed specifications of HP’s forthcoming 9.7-inch tablet, and it looks like the aforesaid CPU will be joined by an integrated Adreno 220 GPU, 512MB of DDR2 memory, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, a front-facing 1.3 megapixel camera and dual-band 802.11b/g/n WiFi. We’re told to expect an oleophobic Gorilla Glass screen with a standard XGA (1024 x 768) resolution, options for 16GB, 32GB or 64GB of storage, optional WWAN, an accelerometer, gyroscope, light sensor, microphone and a battery that’ll last for around eight hours in ideal circumstances. Naturally, webOS will be onboard, and we’re hearing that a WiFi-only model will indeed hit the market at some point. As for the connected versions? HSPA, LTE and CDMA variants are rumored, with the former two likely to be SIM-locked while all three carry A-GPS.

It should be noted that these documents were apparently fresh as of last fall, so everything is clearly subject to change. That said, we’re digging the reports that HP will be doing everything it can to fully support Flash on this here slate, and it may also consider a partnership with Blio for the digital bookworms in attendance. Naturally, cloud services is shaping up to be a huge deal, and it’ll definitely support inductive charging via the Touchstone v2. These docs also affirm what we’d heard about integrated Beats Audio technology and Tap to Share, with the second-gen Touchstone to also handle wireless picture sharing, cordless audio streaming and tether-free video beaming (just to name a few). Hit the source link the full skinny, and feel free to pressure HP to move February 9th a little closer to today.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

HP / Palm’s 9.7-inch Topaz tablet to use 1.2GHz Qualcomm MSM8660, Adreno 220 GPU originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 24 Jan 2011 12:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony is expected to unveil its PSP2 later this week, and when it does, the handheld game player could feature 3G connectivity and an OLED touch screen, according to Nikkei.

Originally posted at The Digital Home

Microsoft’s been playing it really cool with the nascent Windows Phone 7 hacker community so far, which is winning them friends in all sorts of important places — not the least of which is the ChevronWP7 team itself. The first guys to split the platform open for homebrew apps were recently invited up to Redmond for a powwow with the guys in charge, and it seems the meetings were fruitful to say the least; though much of what they saw was under NDA, they say they’re “genuinely excited” by what Microsoft has in the works. Furthermore, Microsoft was kind enough to give the team a heads-up that an upcoming platform update would break the existing ChevronWP7 tool, though they say they’re “collaborating with Microsoft on an interim solution that will continue to support homebrew developments after the update.” Considering that they’ve already reached out to jailbreaker extraordinaire Geohot as well, it’s clear that Microsoft doesn’t believe this is a black-and-white situation — the ChevronWP7 guys seem to think homebrew has a place somewhere in the platform’s future, it just remains to be seen how that’s going to play out.

Windows Phone 7 jailbreak devs ‘genuinely excited’ by Microsoft’s roadmap originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 24 Jan 2011 12:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The National Hockey League was looking to drum up some interest, so naturally it did what any major league sporting body would–it contacted Stan “The Man” Lee. The X-Men/Spider-man/Fantastic Four/Hulk/Iron Man creator helped dream up the Guardian Project, an odd team of heroes based loosely upon different NHL teams.

The 30 characters will “come to life” during the NHL All-Star game this weekend in Raleigh, North Carolina. The league will be showing of a computer animated short featuring the characters, which will offer “fans a glimpse of their individual powers and collective force.”

The adventures will continue over at the Guardian Website–and, of course, merchandizing in the form of cards, posters, t-shirts, pins, pucks, and a graphic novel.

Silly promotion? Sure. But heck, we’re writing about the NHL this morning, and how often does that happen?