Hasta La Gadget!

In our review of the Moto X, we determined that while its ClearPixel camera was decent, its performance was hit or miss. Fortunately, Motorola has taken a lot of feedback and has cranked out a software update with improvements to the camera’s performance, specifically in the areas of exposure, color accuracy and focus speed. The refresh, which is so far getting pushed out to T-Mobile phones — we expect it to roll out to other carriers as soon as each one is done testing the new firmware, though nothing is currently confirmed — appears to make a rather substantial difference in several scenarios, such as reducing noise in low-light and eliminating haze in outdoor shots. Anandtech’s Brian Klug had the opportunity to take the updated shooter for a test run and declared it to be “nothing short of the biggest [improvement] I’ve ever seen come across in an OTA update.”

In addition to the camera improvements, Motorola also threw in a few other enhancements as well. Users who have downloaded the update should expect increased Touchless Control accuracy, a fix for the choppy audio issue some have experienced in voice calls and an improvement to Moto Assist as well.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, Google, T-Mobile

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Source: Anandtech

It’s not the easiest time to be a consumer on the hunt for a wireless Bluetooth speaker. New models are flooding the market on a daily basis, and wading through the hundreds of choices can be mind-numbing. So here’s a quick cheat sheet for you: If you want something small, consider Jawbone’s new Mini Jambox, but if design and style are at the top of your feature list, you can’t go wrong with Marshall’s gorgeous new Stanmore.

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Microsoft was late to enter the tablet wars and paid for it dearly. But the company isn’t giving up just yet. Today it unveiled Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2, the updated versions of its Surface – formerly known as Surface RT –  and Surface Pro tablets. The most significant change hardware-wise are their new and more power efficient CPUs that lead to a significant increase in battery life. On the software side, the tablets will come with their respective variants of Windows 8.1 when they launch on October 22.

Microsoft hopes to improve the reputation of its cheaper tablet by boosting its battery and display. Surface 2 has a 12-hour battery life – thanks in part to its 1.7GHz quad-core NVIDIA Tegra 4 CPU – and a 10.6″ 1080p display. In comparison, its predecessor only has an 8-hour battery life, a Tegra 3 CPU and a 1366 x 768 display. Watch Microsoft’s video to find out the other improvements to the Surface 2:

Sadly, Surface 2 still has its Achilles’ heel: it will only run Windows 8.1 RT, not the full version of the operating system. That means, among other things, that you won’t be able to run desktop programs on it. You’ll have to rely on what’s offered on the Windows Store for apps. If you want a more complete device, you’ll have to go for the more expensive Surface Pro 2.

Surface Pro 2 gets the 1.6GHz Haswell Core i5 CPU with an integrated Intel HD Graphics 4400 GPU. That helps give it a significant boost in battery life: 7 to 8 hours compared to only 4 to 5 hours in the original Surface Pro. Surface Pro 2 also has more storage and RAM configurations. There’s one with 4GB RAM that can have either 64GB or 128GB storage, and there’s one with 8GB RAM that can have either 256GB or 512GB of storage. The stylus featured in the video above will be included on all configurations of the Surface Pro 2.

The price for the Surface 2 will start at $449 (USD), while Surface Pro 2 starts at $899. You can pre-order both tablets from Microsoft starting tomorrow, but as I said they won’t ship until October 22. You should check out the Surface website or Wired’s coverage for more on the tablets.

I’m not sure why Microsoft is still selling the gimped Surface 2. Worse, they’re going to keep selling the first-generation Surface RT at $349. If it were up to me I’d cut down on the cost and confusion and just focus all my efforts on the Surface Pro 2. Because that is a very capable device. It’s a hell of an expensive tablet until you realize it’s also a decently priced laptop.

[via Microsoft & Wired]

Colin Farrell has been in a number of movies, one of the most recent being the Total Recall remake that didn’t totally suck. Farrell is reportedly up for the lead role in a movie based on a video game, and an incredibly popular video game at that. Word is that Farrell could play one of the lead roles in the upcoming video game movie based on World of Warcraft.

The actress tipped to be in contention for the female lead in the film is Paula Patton. Patton was in this summer’s 2 Guns and was in Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol as well. Production for the film is tipped to begin in January of 2014. The film is slated to be directed by Duncan Jones, who created Moon and Source Code (and also happens to be David Bowie’s son.)

Producers attached to the film for Legendary include Thomas Tull and Jon Jashni. Charles Roman and Alex Gartner are also tipped to be producing for Blizzard and Atlas Entertainment respectively. It’s hard to pull off a decent video game movie, so here’s hoping this one does the popular video game justice.

[via Comingsoon.net

(Credit: Andrew Gardner)

Anyone who’s ever played with a set of Zen Magnets, or a pair of rattlesnake eggs, knows how mesmerizing magnets can be. What if you could have a set of awesome magnets that was also a pen…that was also a stylus?

Well, say hello to the Polar Pen by Canadian designer Andrew Gardner. Gardner often used to pull apart his pens (who didn’t?), and he loves magnets, so he decided to put the two together. The ink cartridge sits inside a series of small, tubular rare-earth magnets that click together to form the barrel of the pen. If you want to get super fancy, you can also get a stylus tip that sits over the pen’s nib.

So, what’s the point of a pen made of powerful magnets? Well, sometimes the mind just needs to relax and have a play. “From tool to toy, it will inspire you at work, school, or home,” Gardner says on the product’s Kickstarter page. “If you enjoy tinkering with things or are fascinated with the power of magnets, then this product is for you. We have found many fun and functional ways of using the Polar Pen, and we are really excited to see what you will come up with.”

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