Hasta La Gadget!

Not the jolliest of news if you were waiting on a fresh new Leaf EV to blow in any time soon, as Nissan has had to understandably delay shipments as a result of the natural disaster that has befallen Japan. Updates on when customers might expect their orders to be completed will be forthcoming as soon as available. There are happier developments on the isle of Japan itself, however, where Nissan is resuming limited operations at five plants today and expects to be producing vehicles again by Thursday, which will last as long as supplies do. Sony has also shaken off some of the effects of the recent earthquake and says it’ll restart production of lithium-ion batteries at its Tochigi prefecture plant tomorrow. So, encouraging signs ahead for Japan’s industry, let’s hope everyone else’s recovery proves to be as swift.

Leaf deliveries delayed by Japanese quake, but Nissan and Sony already reopening factories originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 21 Mar 2011 15:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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No blockbusters here — nothing that’s going to give you much insight into an exact launch day for the Thunderbolt — but Verizon CTO Tony Melone made a few comments about its LTE handset launches at a financial conference yesterday that border on the interesting. Asked whether the company was facing any challenges in getting the phones solid and ready for commercial consumption, Melone responded by saying that they’re “facing is what you would expect, and that is a new technology, you are working through issues. And [they] anticipated that, and [they] are pleased at how [they] are working through issues.” In the same breath, he reminded the audience that Verizon had said the phones would be coming in the first half of ’11 all along and that hasn’t changed — so they’re not late by a long shot. Pressed on whether battery life specifically was a concern for the Thunderbolt, Melone said that he thinks the juice “will be acceptable to consumers.” Considering what we’ve been hearing about recent firmware revisions on the test units, we’re hopeful he’s right — Verizon has a reputation for testing the crap out of devices prior to release, after all.

Verizon CTO: ‘working through issues’ with LTE phones, still on track for first half launch originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 08 Mar 2011 17:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remember how at the end of last year the US legislature decided to make it mandatory for EVs to churn out an audible noise while in motion? It was all in the name of saving pesky pedestrians from getting in the way of your gliding electro-car, but the new law itself has managed to create a bump in the road for at least one company. Hyundai’s Sonata Hybrid was all set to launch in late 2010, equipped with a “virtual engine sound” system that the user could toggle on and off, however the government’s request that it be kept permanently on required modifications to the vehicle’s wiring harnesses, UI software and user manuals, delaying its debut into late January. These tweaks had to be done “amazingly late in the process,” according to Hyundai America CEO John Krafcik, but the delay will at least ensure that all of Hyundai’s Sonatas will sound the same. Which is something, we guess.

Hyundai Sonata Hybrid was delayed into 2011… by ‘virtual engine sound’ system originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Feb 2011 11:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wondering why the Thunderbolt isn’t in stores yet? Hard to say — apart from the reeling HTC and Verizon employees might be doing in light of the Apple / Intel news — but a Best Buy in California spilled the bad news on Twitter last night that it’s now expecting Big Red’s first LTE phone on March 4th. As Android Police points out, the store appears to have confused the day March 4th falls on (it’s a Friday, not a Thursday), but we’re figuring it’s far more likely the date is right, not the day of the week. And if Best Buy has a launch exclusive on this thing, that means it could be another week or two beyond that before the phone shows up in Verizon retail locations and elsewhere. Bummer, eh?

Update: We just got an image (you can see it for yourself after the break) that seems to set the ThunderBolt’s Best Buy arrival date even later than March 4th. According to the Best Buy Mobile document, it will be on sale on March 10th. We’re assuming the timing keeps being adjusted, but we think it’s pretty fair to say things keep getting pushed back.

Continue reading HTC Thunderbolt delayed until March 4th, says a Best Buy store with a Twitter account (update: or maybe March 10th?)

HTC Thunderbolt delayed until March 4th, says a Best Buy store with a Twitter account (update: or maybe March 10th?) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 15:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We really hate to be the bearer of bad news, but unfortunately, that’s exactly what we’re about to do. Yep, you read that extremely disappointing headline correctly — while the 11.6-inch Lenovo ThinkPad X120e, which we just recently reviewed and liked quite a bit, was supposed to start shipping on February 15th (that’s tomorrow), the ship date has just slipped to March 6th. Lenovo wouldn’t give us a reason for the delay or confirm whether it had to do with some of the slight video playback / graphics issues we had, but we do know that those lusting after a ThinkPad sprinkled with some fresh AMD Fusion Zacate will have to wait a few more weeks. Again, our deep apologies for having to tell you this news, but we promise to make it up to you someday, somehow.

Lenovo ThinkPad X120e won’t ship until March 8th originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 01:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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