Feb 21
Feb 21
If you’ve been debating on possibly purchasing a new Motorola smartphone, this next week and a half would be the best time to finally take the plunge as Google is announcing a new promotion that will make you $50 bucks richer if you purchase one of the eligible Motorola devices.
Starting today until March 4, you can earn a $50 gift card if your purchase any of the following devices: DROID RAZR M, DROID RAZR HD, DROID RAZR MAXX HD, DROID RAZR, DROID RAZR MAXX, DROID 4, ATRIX HD, ATRIX 2, PHOTON Q LTE, PHOTON 4G, TITANIUM, ADMIRAL, ELECTRIFY M, ELECTRIFY 2, ELECTRIFY, DEFY XT.
You can pick up your Motorola device from either a local wireless retailer or straight from Motorola themselves. Once you make your purchase, you’ll need to wait up to two weeks in order for your rebate to be processed. Once you’re given your $50 Google Play gift card, you’ll need to redeem it before May 18, or else it’ll spoil and leave a rotten smell in your wallet or email inbox.
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Nexus 4 Wireless Charger Now Available For Order, DropTag Sensor Uses Bluetooth To Report Mishandling Of Packages,
Feb 21
Yes, the new Google Chromebook Pixel is relatively pricey—especially for something that’s not a “real” computer—but it does what it was designed to do really, really well. More »
Feb 21
OtterBox is well known for their robust cases for a handful of devices. They offer a bit of insurance in case you ever drop your phone, or even throw your phone at a wall in a fit of anger. After the official HTC One announcement earlier this week, it looks like OtterBox is taking no time to introduce cases for the new smartphone.
OtterBox has made three cases for the HTC On using their popular line of Commuter and Defender series of cases. The regular Defender HTC One case will cost $50 and will come in a bevy of different colors that you can choose from, including black, glacier (grey/white mix), blushed (grey/pink mix), and punked (black/green mix).
The company is also offering a RealTree Defender case, which will give your phone a nice camouflage look, just in case you need to be completely hidden while hunting out in the woods, smartphone and all. This case will cost you $60. As for the Commuter series, an HTC One case will cost you $35 and it will come in a mixture of colors as well, including black, glacier, steel blue (black/teal mix), lilac, black/purple mix), and punked.
There’s no word on availability yet, but the company allows you to submit your email address to be notified when the new cases eventually become available, which should be sometime in March (the same time that the actual phone is releasing). These cases may not be as tough as the Armor series of cases that we checked out at CES last month, but you’ll be guaranteed that your brand new HTC One will be well protected using any OtterBox offering.
OtterBox HTC One cases “coming soon” is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Feb 21
The DualShock 4 is ‘near final’ hardware, Remote Play is more than an afterthought, and other notes from Shuhei Yoshida
Posted in: Today's Chili 
The only hardware shown on-stage during Sony’s PlayStation 4 event was the retooled DualShock controller, the DualShock 4. No box. No PS4 Eye. No new version of Move. As for the console itself, its absence makes some sense in light of today’s news from SCEA prez Jack Tretton that the console’s internals are “still in development in terms of final specs and design.” So, how final is the only piece of hardware Sony was willing to trot out? “It’s near final. It’s just gonna be small tweaks being done,” Sony Worldwide Studios head Shuhei Yoshida told us in an interview this morning.
Sadly, he also admitted we won’t be able to touch any of it anytime soon. “By E3, I think” was the best he could offer. He blamed Sony’s hardware folks for not allowing access, despite him pleading with PR to give hands-on time. “I was just asking our PR team can we just let you touch this stuff. Our hardware guys don’t want you to find out some detail that …” he said, trailing off. “Some dirty secret?” we asked. “Of course,” he responded with a smile.
Moving on to Vita and the Remote Play functionality on PS4 (which allows you to play any PS4 game on your Vita, via streaming), Yoshida said that — unlike with the PlayStation 3’s Remote Play functionality — Sony’s asking devs to try their game via Remote Play on Vita before submitting final code for publishing. He also said that, using Remote Play, developers could implement Vita-specific controls. “Some PS Vita games make use of the edge of the screen to add contextual buttons — that works really well, I think, and it’s easy to see. So that kind of thing I’d like to see developers do on PS Vita over Remote Play,” Yoshida explained.
He also apologized for not showing the final box, getting out ahead of the inevitable question from the room full of journalists. But hey, we sympathize — Sony’s gotta save something for E3, right? PlayStation Plus on PlayStation 4 may also be on that list; when we asked Yoshida about its presence on the next Sony game console, he coyly answered, “I know the answer, but we’re not talking about it. I’m a subscriber, so I’d like to see it.” Us too!
Feb 21
The Meridian Explorer takes the digital audio from your computer’s USB port, puts the code through some very fancy electronics, and spits out an analog signal to to your headphones or stereo. Yes, your computer’s sound card already has a built-in digital-to-audio converter that does this, but the Explorer is made by one of the most sophisticated manufacturers in the world. So in theory, it’ll make your music sound so good you’ll maybe almost forget the price tag. More »
Feb 21
This week the LG Optimus G hits Europe in several markets it’s never been available in before with a collection of feature upgrades that’ll make it the most enticing device it’s ever been. Though the LG Optimus G has already launched in several markets around the world – including in the USA (see our full LG Optimus G review now!) – this launch will place the quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro-toting smartphone in Sweden, France, Germany, and Italy as well. This version of the device will also be working with Android Jelly Bean 4.1.2 right out of the box.
With this version of Jelly Bean, the LG Optimus G will be nearly up to the newest edition of the Android operating system currently available on the market. The only devices available with more advanced software from Google are the Nexus 7 from ASUS and Google Nexus 4 – also made by Google. Incidentally, the Nexus 4 is built with the same design foundation as the LG Optimus G, having many of the same features both inside and out.
The LG Optimus G launching in the European markets listed above will be working with enhanced features in its software build unique to the LG family. One of the biggest additions is an enhanced QSlide function – here allowing users to operate more than one app at a time with transparent screen layers. That’s one app on top of another, operating at the same time – weird stuff!
Another update in this release of the LG Optimus G is in Safety Care. With this upgrade you’ll see Safety Care providing pre-designated users information about the device’s physical location when certain emergency situations arise. This can be used for those that are forgetful and need a reminder of the device’s location (this activating after prolonged periods without use), with an emergency service is dialed, or when you’ve completed a call with a designated contact.
Privacy Keeper for hiding caller information, Google Now (with its newest edition up now), Filmstrip View (for galleries), and Expandable Notifications will also be available for this new release. Pricing and exact release dates will be coming soon – for now have a peek at the timeline below with more LG Optimus G information than you can handle!
LG Optimus G hits Europe “enhanced and improved” is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Feb 21
Sprint may soon be announcing an entry-level Android smartphone called the Sprint Force LTE. The phone is said to be manufactured by ZTE and is expected to run Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and feature a 4-inch display, a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 4GB of internal flash memory, a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 1-megapixel front-facing camera. As the name would suggest, the Sprint Force LTE would also support Sprint’s LTE network.
This isn’t the first time Sprint and ZTE have partnered up for a device as just a few months ago, the Sprint ZTE Flash was announced to offer a mid-level Android smartphone to Sprint customers. Many of the specs of the two devices are similar, although the Sprint ZTE Flash has a better rear-facing camera as well as more internal flash memory.
Even though the Sprint Force LTE is being considered an entry-level Android phone, we’ve seen entry-level devices with specs worse than what’s being offered with this device. Hopefully we’ll hear more about the Sprint Force LTE before it’s reported release on March 1.
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: ZTE Grand S Drops Price Tag, Alleged Samsung Galaxy S4 Cases Revealed,
Feb 21
It turns out there’s an uneasy jungle truce between tigers and elephants. Tigers don’t try to attack and eat full-grown pachyderms, and the elephants make sure not to trample the big cats. And it’s this unofficial agreement that the BBC used to its advantage to capture the first footage of newborn tiger cubs in the wild. More »
Feb 21
There hasn’t been an ending to a game as controversial as Mass Effect 3′s as BioWare had to go back and deliver an extended cut DLC in order to calm its rabid fans from completely destroying the Internet. New pieces of DLC have been published for the game over the past couple of months after the release of Mass Effect 3, and today, EA is announcing two pieces of DLC for the game.
The first DLC is called Mass Effect 3: Reckoning and is a completely free piece of DLC content that can be used in the game’s multiplayer mode to access new character, weapons and upgrades. EA didn’t specify what those would be, but they did say it would be available on February 26, so we guess we’ll all learn at the same time once it’s released. (more…)
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Apparently Sony Has Yet To Finalize The PS4’s Design, PlayStation 4 Will Not Support PlayStation 3 Controllers,
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