New Win 7 ads highlight the bright ideas of ‘regular people’ (video)

You know that Windows 7 is a big deal, we know that it’s a big deal, and now the commercial actors of America are letting their voices be heard. This new series of ads from Microsoft drives home the point that the improvement this OS represents over Vista is the product of the comments, concerns, and complaints of users all over the world — which is fine, as far as that goes, but either they never received our countless emails or someone thinks it’s bad form to ship computers with Dukes of Hazzard wallpaper as the default. Advertising after the break.

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New Win 7 ads highlight the bright ideas of ‘regular people’ (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 11:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nokia sues Apple, says iPhone infringes ten patents

Boom. Nokia’s just hit Apple with a patent infringement lawsuit, claiming that “all iPhones models shipped” infringe on ten of Espoo’s patents relating to GSM, UMTS, and WiFi. According to Nokia’s press release, the patents in question have been licensed by some 40 other companies, “including virtually all the leading mobile device vendors,” and Apple’s refused to agree to “appropriate” license terms. That’s pretty vague, actually — it could either mean that Apple was willing to license the patents at a price less than what Nokia demanded, or it could mean that Apple refused to pay at all. We’ll obviously be covering this one in great detail as it progresses — stay tuned for a fun decade or so of litigation.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

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Nokia sues Apple, says iPhone infringes ten patents originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 10:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Toshiba Dynario fuel-cell: the battery revolution begins October 29th

We can hardly believe it but the day has finally arrived: Toshiba just launched the first Dynario fuel-cell for portable consumer electronics. That’s right, the long promised and highly anticipated direct methanol fuel-cell (DMFC) with dedicated fuel cartridge for on-the-go refueling will go on sale October 29th in Japan for ¥29,800 (about $328) plus another ¥3,150 (about $34) for a set of five, 50ml fuel cartridges. Dynario takes about 20 seconds to fill its 14ml fuel tank with an injection of a concentrated methanol solution at which point it’s ready to charge USB-connected devices. Dynario’s hybrid structure uses a lithium-ion battery to store enough electricity to charge two typical cellphones, according to Tosh. That works out to be about $1 per recharge, if our calculations are correct, based on the fuel costs alone. We assume the battery can be charged via wall socket power too but this isn’t explicitly stated in the press release. The first run consists of only 3,000 units after which Toshiba will gauge consumer reaction before extending the launch outside of Japan. Boy oh boy, a new age in portability has begun.

Toshiba Dynario fuel-cell: the battery revolution begins October 29th originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 01:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon hosting Droid event on October 28

Verizon has yet to give a firm date on when we can all get our hands on some Droids, but we know one thing’s for certain: it’ll be fully revealed for the first time one week from today, October 28. The invitation that’s been extended to the media confirms that it’ll come from Motorola (of course), it’ll be Verizon’s “must-have device of the year,” and it’s got a very close association with giant, scary, glowing eyes. A far cry from Google’s friendly green bot, isn’t it?

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Verizon hosting Droid event on October 28 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 18:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BlackBerry Bold 9700 announced, launching globally starting next month

Properly replacing one of the most popular, recognizable BlackBerrys ever made is no easy task for RIM, but it looks like they’ve done a respectable job in officially announcing the Bold 9700, a device we’ve seen rumored as the “Onyx” through much of 2009. The new model gently massages the original Bold’s time-tested formula by moving the camera up to 3.2 megapixels, giving the screen another 40 lines of vertical resolution (480 x 360, up from 480 x 320), and shipping with the brand new BlackBerry OS 5.0 out of the gate. Also notable is that the 9700 replaces the trackball with an optical trackpad –continuing a trend started by the Curve 8520 — and will ship in both 900 / 1700 / 2100 and 800 / 850 / 1900 / 2100MHz 3G varieties, making the phone a perfect fit for AT&T, T-Mobile, and a multitude of networks in Canada and Europe. RIM isn’t announcing specific carrier availability, but they’re teasing that it’ll be coming on “carriers around the world” starting in November. Follow the break for a quick teaser video from the boys and girls up in Waterloo.

Update: Engadget Germany is at the launch event with RIM’s co-CEO Mike Lazaridis. We’ll be back shortly with a hands-on.

Update 2: T-Mobile just announced its flavor of the Bold 9700 for the US which it says will be the first BlackBerry that allows voice calling over WiFi.

Update 3: And here comes AT&T, which says the 9700 will be out in the “coming weeks” for $199 after $100 mail-in rebate.

Continue reading BlackBerry Bold 9700 announced, launching globally starting next month

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BlackBerry Bold 9700 announced, launching globally starting next month originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dell Streak is a 5-inch Android 2.0 MID, packs 3G and WiFi (video)

Well, hello there! Those Dell MID rumors we’ve been hearing have finally received vindication in the form of a nice, picture-heavy leak courtesy of some industrious folks in Vietnam. What we know as of now is that there’s an 800 x 480 capacitive touchscreen display (with multitouch zooming), WiFi, Bluetooth and 3G WWAN connectivity, all riding atop an Android 2.0 (aka, Donut Eclair) install. A dual-LED flash 5 megapixel camera adorns the back, and there’s a 1,300mAh battery to power all that goodness. See pics below and a video awaits after the break, where an old friend of ours plays with the jumbo smartphone.

[Via SlashGear; Thanks, Nicky N.]

Continue reading Dell Streak is a 5-inch Android 2.0 MID, packs 3G and WiFi (video)

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Dell Streak is a 5-inch Android 2.0 MID, packs 3G and WiFi (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 06:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Barnes & Noble Nook dual-screen reader officially announced… for real

Barnes and Noble’s Nook ebook reader might have made an unexpected debut a little earlier than planned today, but it’s all official now. The Nook has a six-inch 16-level E-ink screen with a color touchscreen underneath for navigation and settings, and — it’s running Android! You can lend a book to a friend, and there’s wireless on AT&T’s 3G network as well as WiFi — everything we saw earlier today. Pre-sales are live now at $259, and it’ll be shipping in November. All B&N stores will soon be getting a big crazy display unit that showcases the device and a number of cases from all sorts of designers. And what’s more, Nook owners can connect to B&N WiFi and browse complete ebooks in-store for free — just like a real book. That’s pretty great.

Update: Malcom Gladwell is on stage, talking about syphilis in Baltimore. People are clapping — it’s a little odd. But the first Nook buyers will get a free copy of The Tipping Point, so that’s nice.

Update 2: “Ladies and gentlemen, the bar is now open.” That’s all for now — we’ve got a Q&A session coming up, we’ll let you know what we find out after the break.

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Barnes & Noble Nook dual-screen reader officially announced… for real originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Oct 2009 16:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Barnes & Noble Nook e-reader leaks a bit early: $259, pre-orders are live (video)

Looks like all those whispers were true — the “Android-based” nook is alive and well, and it’s calling itself the planet’s “most advanced e-book reader.” Measuring 7.7- x 4.9- x 0.5-inches and weighing 11.2 ounces, the device includes a top e-ink display from Vizplex and a color touchscreen (3.5-inches) below, which supports one-touch control and swipe-to-browse books with full-color covers. The rechargeable battery takes 3.5 hours to go from zero to full if using a wall outlet, and B&N claims that it’ll last for up to ten days if you flick the wireless to “off.” Speaking of which, inbuilt WiFi (802.11b/g) and AT&T 3G is included, not to mention 2GB of internal storage, a microSD expansion slot, MP3 player, built-in mono speaker, 3.5 millimeter headphone jack, a micro USB port and support for EPUB, PDF and MP3. The nook also supports bookmarking, making notes, and highlighting passages, and the ‘LendMe’ feature allows users to lend books for up to a fortnight at a time to other e-readers, cellphones or computers.

B&N also tells us that you can pick up where you left off (with markings and highlights in tact) on your iPhone or BlackBerry using its free eReader software, which just so happens to be the same app that allows sharing to iPhone, iPod touch, BlackBerry, PC or Mac. As expected, the company will also let you sample ebooks before you buy, and you’ll enjoy free WiFi each and every time you sashay into a Barnes & Noble retail location. It’s available to pre-order as we speak for $259, with initial shipments expected to happen at the end of November. Introductory video is after the break, along with a few highlights about accessories and features.

Update: Aw snap, B&N just yanked everything related to nook from its website. Thankfully for you, everything you’d ever need to know is right here.

Update 2: Looks like it’s back! Though, the landing page itself still seems down. Hurray for backdoors!

Update 3: Be sure to check out our live reveal coverage and our hands-on images / video!

Continue reading Barnes & Noble Nook e-reader leaks a bit early: $259, pre-orders are live (video)

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Barnes & Noble Nook e-reader leaks a bit early: $259, pre-orders are live (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Oct 2009 13:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple’s new MacBook unboxing and hands-on!

We just took delivery of Apple’s new MacBook — it’s an interesting revision to the MacBook formula, built using the same unibody techniques as the Aluminum Pros but with white plastic. That means it feels much more solid than the previous plastic MacBooks: there’s zero flex when you pick it up by a corner, and the keyboard is nicely rigid. There’s a price for that heft, though — the battery is now sealed in, although we’re guessing it won’t be too hard to replace if you remove the soft-touch rubber bottom panel. Unlike the Pros, the screen is still set in by a plastic bezel instead of edge-to-edge glass, which means it’s a little less glossy overall — but make no mistake, it can still serve as a mirror in a pinch. Ports are looking pretty dismal — there’s no FireWire, no SD card slot, no dedicated line-in. Instead you get just two USB 2.0 ports, Ethernet, Mini DisplayPort, and a combo headphone / line-in jack. That’s pretty weak in a thousand-dollar machine. We’re going to spend some more time playing with this thing before we dish out a proper review, though — anything you want to know?

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Apple’s new MacBook unboxing and hands-on! originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Oct 2009 12:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MacBook goes unibody, available today

Like a bat out of hell, Apple has just shuttled a new, unibody MacBook in the gadget world’s direction. The new model — which looks like an arctic, glossy version of the familiar 13-inch MacBook Pro line — will be landing in stores today (yes, today), with a familiar price tag: $999. In terms of changes, besides the new, high-test plastic casing (built in the same fashion as the aluminum MacBook Pros) the 13-incher boasts a LED-backlit display, new glass multitouch trackpad, and a built-in, “7 hour” battery. Inside the single SKU will be a 2.26GHz Core 2 Duo, 2GB of RAM (upgradable to 4GB), an NVIDIA 9400M GPU, 250GB hard drive and the old standby SuperDrive. We had a chance to play around with the laptop, and it’s pretty snazzy for a hunk of plastic. The surface is super slick (AKA super fingerprint friendly), though the base of the laptop utilizes a soft-touch, non-slip surface that’s nice to handle. The display certainly is brighter and better looking than the previous model, though the one on the desk we saw was slightly dimmer than we would prefer — in its defense it was sitting right next to a super bright iMac. As stated, the new model can be picked up right this very second at stores around the globe, and we’ll have a much closer look very soon — so stay tuned! A full spec breakdown is after the break.

Update: Check out our hands-on!

Continue reading MacBook goes unibody, available today

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MacBook goes unibody, available today originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Oct 2009 12:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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