Hasta La Gadget!

The next version of XBMC isn’t ready for prime time yet, but the team behind it is already talking about what’s being added and tweaked in v11.0, a.k.a Eden. This is the first major release since the media player app added iPad, iPhone and Apple TV support and as such improved touchscreen support is high on the list. We can also expect a new “Files” view in the video library, a different default skin, improved CPU / GPU efficiency, customizable home screens and other UI tweaks as seen above. Now that the list of features is pretty much locked down we’ll be expecting a beta, and eventually final release, but you can hit the source link to dive in early and help test everything out.

XBMC teases new features coming in 11.0 ‘Eden’ release originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 20:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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To say expectations were high for Tuesday’s iPhone event at Apple HQ would be an understatement.

Apple is infamously secretive, and few words of what news Apple’s event held in store were leaked prior to the event. Or rather, few accurate words. Most of the other rumors were dispelled.

We’ve taken a look at a few of the most pervasive rumors to have made the rounds before the event, as proposed by publication. Let’s see how everyone checked out.

The Good

Some rumors, reports and predictions were right on.

Sprint would carry the iPhone
The Wall Street Journal spoke truth when they reported that the nation’s third largest carrier would begin carrying the iPhone this year.

Check your Bingo squares — we have a full on geek rant this week. While DVBLink’s Boxee extender engendered nothing but peaceful conversation, we couldn’t help but dig into the next two topics. Rumors of Microsoft’s efforts to integrate cable TV into a unified search with its other Xbox offerings continue to swirl, which left us wondering just who is standing in the way of innovation. Meanwhile, the cable companies and content providers are at odds over how to distribute their channels with little thought given to the end user’s experience. Of course, we do have some happy news, with Star Trek: TNG coming to Blu-ray, bigger LCDs and 4K support for the PS3. Press play to hear the rest of our discussion and our impressions of the new fall programming so far — it’s not looking good.

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Hosts: Ben Drawbaugh (@bjdraw), Richard Lawler (@rjcc)

Producer: Trent Wolbe

00:01:42 – DVBLogic’s Boxee app brings live TV streaming to the Box
00:04:15 – Microsoft reportedly adding video from Comcast, Verizon, HBO Go and others to Xbox Live
00:13:20 – Some cable companies are pushing for unbundled channels — but not for you
00:32:35 – Showtime launches Anytime streaming portal, social iPad app
00:34:57 – Star Trek: The Next Generation is coming to Blu-ray, starting in 2012 (video)
00:42:44 – Sharp’s biggest LCD HDTVs get even bigger with a new 80-inch model
00:49:00 – PS3 will support 4K stills after a future update, moving pictures remain out of reach
00:51:15 – Sony to stop paying for movie theater 3D glasses, theater owners fire back
00:56:27 – Energy Star 5.3 now in effect, some chunkier TVs left out in the cold
01:00:30 – Must See HDTV (October 3rd – 9th)

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Engadget HD Podcast 268 – 10.04.2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 18:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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At its iPhone 4S event on Tuesday, Apple boasted of its new phone’s specs by comparing it to a number of Android competitors. But as much as newly minted CEO Tim Cook raved about the 4S, the question remains: Does the 4S truly stack up to the rest?

For the sake of comparison, we’ve taken some of the latest and greatest handsets across today’s most prominent mobile operating systems and broke them down relative to the new iPhone. First, we have the Droid Bionic, Motorola’s latest and greatest 4G smartphone offering. There’s also the Samsung Galaxy S II, the much-anticipated sequel to the popular Galaxy line. And of course, we have to include the underdogs: Samsung’s Focus (which runs Windows Phone 7.5, a.k.a. Mango), and one of RIM’s most recent handsets, the BlackBerry Bold 9900.

So let’s get to it.

The Guts

First, let’s compare these guys on what matters most: Their insides.

The Samsung Focus packs the weakest punch sporting a 1-GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, while the Blackberry Bold has a slightly faster 1.2-GHz Snapdragon model. The iPhone 4S and the Droid Bionic both house 1-GHz dual-core chips, the 4S an Apple-designed A5 processor, the Droid Bionic an A9 processor. The Samsung Galaxy S II also features a 1.2 GHz dual-core chip.

Honestly, single-core chips are yesterday’s news. iPhone or not, two cores are indeed better than one.

We weren’t given the specifics of the iPhone 4S’s battery, but it’s safe to say it’s either the same as the iPhone 4’s, a 1420 mAH battery, or better. The Blackberry Bold sports the smallest in the battery department, a 1240 mAH battery, while the Samsung Galaxy S II has the largest, a 1650 mAH one (the better to juice up that super large display with). Schiller promised us up to 14 hours of talk time with the iPhone 4S; we’ll see if that holds water.

Screen size

Only the BlackBerry measures in smaller than the iPhone when it comes to display size. The Bold has a practically teensy 2.8-inch LCD. The iPhone 4S has a 3.5-inch retina display, just like its predecessor. The Samsung Focus has a larger 4-inch Super AMOLED display.

The Android models embrace the “bigger is better” ethos: The Droid Bionic has a 4.3-inch qHD display, but the Galaxy S II trumps even that with a gargantuan 4.52-inch Super AMOLED screen.

Although the larger phones are great for media consumption, a smaller phone fits more easily into pockets and doesn’t look ridiculous when you actually talk on it. Display size, therefore, is largely a matter of personal preference and depends on how you plan to use the phone.

It should be noted that the BlackBerry Bold 9900 is the only one of the bunch to include a hardware QWERTY keyboard (and not a slide-out version), while the rest utilize onscreen touch-based keyboards.

Camera

The Samsung Focus and BlackBerry Bold both have 5 MP cameras on board. We thought that pictures taken with the Focus were sub-par, and somewhat on the blurry side. It does offer HD video recording capabilities, though. The Focus is an older phone, it came out in 2010, but the Bold 9900 debuted this year.

8 megapixels seems to be the standard in 2011. The Droid Bionic has an 8-megapixel camera. The Samsung Galaxy S II does as well. Both take bright, detailed photos. So finally, the iPhone 4S joins the 8-megapixel trend, also with photo editing functions. All three of these guys have 1080p video recording capabilities, so you can capture whatever it is like you like to capture with your smartphone camera with exquisite clarity and detail.

Network

The Samsung Focus and Droid Bionic are single carrier guys. The Focus runs on AT&T’s HSPA+ network, while the Bionic sails on Verizon’s CDMA and LTE networks.

The BlackBerry Bold 9900 is the first 4G BlackBerry, and it’s available on T-Mobile, Sprint and Verizon’s networks.

The Samsung Galaxy S II comes in different flavors that run on AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint’s networks. We tested the Epic 4G Touch, which is available on Sprint’s 4G Wi-Max network.

The iPhone 4S will be available on AT&T, Verizon and Sprint.

Conclusions

Hardware wise, the BlackBerry Bold 9900 is really the only phone that’s behind the times (though saying RIM needs to catch up is hardly news). Android and iOS are still battling neck and neck for world smartphone domination. And we should have some new Windows Phone Mango handsets later this fall, which should bump up Windows Phone’s offerings to better match that of Android and iOS (hopefully, at least).

Nearly two years ago, a French court dismissed a lawsuit that Nintendo filed against a group of vendors accused of illegally selling DS flash carts. At the time, the game-maker argued that sales of the cartridges should be halted on the grounds that they could be used to illegally pirate software, but the presiding judge thought differently, countering that the R4-like devices could be used to develop homebrews or other DIY projects. Last week, however, the Paris Court of Appeals overturned the ruling, in a decision that Nintendo has met with understandable delight. In a statement released today, the company confirmed that Divineo SARL and five other flash cart retailers must pay a total of €460,000 in criminal fines, along with €4.8 million in damages to Nintendo, as ordered by the appeals court. Details behind the ruling remain vague, though Nintendo hailed it as a “strong message to French companies… that such activities are illegal and will not be tolerated,” and that convicted vendors will “risk prison terms, face substantial fines and obligations to pay damages.” Sail past the break to read Nintendo’s statement, in full.

Continue reading French court reverses DS flash cart ruling, Nintendo smiles

French court reverses DS flash cart ruling, Nintendo smiles originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 18:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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