Hasta La Gadget!

And that, as they say, is a wrap. We’ve departed a shockingly sunny San Francisco, but not without a huge helping of Google news to mull over on the long ride home. In typical Goog fashion, the outfit served up a double-dose of keynotes this year, both of which seemed to delight both developers and media alike. Sure, no new superphones used the show as a launching pad, but plenty of other nuggets were unearthed. From the reveal of Music Beta to the official introduction of the world’s first commercial Chromebooks, the 2011 edition of Google I/O packed plenty of punch. If you missed even a second of our continuous coverage, we’ve got you covered — the best of the best is recapped below. We’ll see you next year, I/O… you bring the tiramisu, we’ll bring the Ice Cream Sandwich.

Keynotes / liveblogs:
Day 1: Music Beta, Android 3.1, Ice Cream Sandwich, Open Accessory, ADK
Day 2: Chrome, Angry Birds, Chrome OS, Chromebooks

Editorials / previews:
Google Music Beta walkthrough: what it is and how it works (video)
Editorial: Engadget on Google Music and Movies for Android
Google Music Beta versus the titans of the streaming music space: a chart
Editorial: Google clarifies Chromebook subscriptions, might have just changed the industry

Hands-ons:
Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Limited Edition (white) hands-on from Google I/O!
Samsung Series 5 Chrome OS laptop hands-on at Google I/O
Fossil Meta Watch wrists-on at Google I/O (video)
Hasbro’s experimental Nexus-powered robot toy hands-on at Google I/O (video)
Lighting Science demos Android @ Home bulbs, promises dead-simple home automation (hands-on)
Google’s Arduino-based ADK powers robots, home gardens and giant Labyrinth (video)
LifeFitness exercise bike interfaces with Nexus S, makes fitness marginally enjoyable (video)
iRobot Ava mobile robotics platform hands-on at Google I/O (video)
Groupme’s group messaging app demoed at Google I/O, complete with data / location (video)

Head on past the break for more!

Continue reading Google I/O 2011 recap: Chromebooks, Music Beta, Movies and more

Google I/O 2011 recap: Chromebooks, Music Beta, Movies and more originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 May 2011 12:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

WiFi Galaxy Tab running on an older CPU than its 3G siblings? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 May 2011 11:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Carrypad  |  Samsung, XDA Developers  | Email this | Comments

We had a chance to peek at a glass-protected dummy version of Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 8.9 at CTIA, but the real thing popped up at an event in Germany over the weekend, in all its svelte gadget glory. Our friend Johannes went hands-on with the tablet in Frankfurt, and liked what he saw. The version he saw was noticeably thinner than the prototype 8.9-incher that we got to smudge up in March (it’s even slimmer than the iPad 2), and if this Europe appearance is any indication, Sammy may be on track to launch these sometime this summer, as promised.

Continue reading Working Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 spotted, handled in Germany (video)

Working Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 spotted, handled in Germany (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 May 2011 22:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  NewGadgets.de  | Email this | Comments

So we all know that Apple’s suing Samsung alleging myriad IP infringements, but you may not know what all the fuss is about. On one hand, the lawsuit is surprising because Apple gets much of the goodies it needs to build its iconic iPhones, iPads, and Macs from Sammy, and common sense dictates that you don’t bite the hand that feeds you. On the other hand, however, folks in Cupertino don’t take too kindly to copycats, and while it’s hard to put a dollar value on the brand equity Apple currently enjoys, this lawsuit shows it’s valuable enough for Apple to risk upsetting its relationship with Samsung and jeopardizing its supply chain. Having given the court docs a good read, here’s our rundown of what’s going on.

According to Apple’s complaint, phones from Samsung (particularly the Galaxy S variety) and its Galaxy Tab are eroding the efficacy of Apple’s carefully crafted brand. That brand is built, in no small part, upon the trade dress (aka the appearance and packaging) of its iDevices and its trademarked iOS icons, and Apple has spent over two billion dollars on advertising from 2007-2010 to stake out a little space in everyone’s brain that associates the iPhone’s looks and its progeny’s derivative forms with Apple. It’s worked quite well too, as Apple revealed (for the first time) in its complaint that it has sold over 60 million iPod touches, 108 million iPhones, and 19 million iPads total. Problem is, Apple views the Galaxy devices, their TouchWiz UI, and packaging — with their Apple-esque appearance — as illegal infringers on its hard-earned mental real estate, and it’s suing Sammy to stop the squatting and pay for its IP trespassing ways.

Of course, Apple isn’t just dragging Samsung to court for cashing in on the iPhone image in our hearts and minds — Jobs and company have accused Sammy of infringing several of their patents, too. Apple asserts that TouchWiz and the Galaxy S infringe upon its iOS home screen and iPhone 3G design patents. Additionally, the complaint says Samsung has run afoul of several Apple utility patents for: the iOS instant messaging interface, the “bounce back” effect you get upon scrolling too far in a list or window, control and status widgets, UI status windows that disappear a set time after being opened, and scrolling and ellipse multi-touch gesture recognition. In light of these alleged mass IP infringements, Apple’s asking the court for preliminary and permanent injunctions to take Samsung’s Galaxy devices off the market, in addition to the usual request for punitives, triple damages and lost profits. We’ve already heard that Samsung will “respond strongly” to Apple’s show of legal force, but time will tell if Sammy’s strong response comes in, or out of court. Those looking for a full breakdown of Apple’s legal claims can hit the more coverage link below.

Apple sues Samsung: here’s the deal originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Apr 2011 13:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Apple Inc. v Samsung Electronics Co. [PDF]  | Email this | Comments

Apple claims the Galaxy Tab (right) is a shameless copy of the iPad (left). Photo: Jon Snyder/Wired.com

Apple says it’s sick and tired of Samsung ripping off the iPad and iPhone, and the Cupertino, California, company is filing papers.

In a lawsuit filed Friday, Apple accused Samsung of committing patent and trademark infringement with its Galaxy line of mobile products. That includes the Galaxy S smartphone and the Galaxy Tab tablet.

“It’s no coincidence that Samsung’s latest products look a lot like the iPhone and iPad, from the shape of the hardware to the user interface and even the packaging,” an Apple representative said in a statement provided to All Things Digital. “This kind of blatant copying is wrong, and we need to protect Apple’s intellectual property when companies steal our ideas.”

Samsung is also a supplier of components to Apple, and manufactures at least some of the A4 and A5 processors used inside the iPhone, iPad and Apple TV, as well as solid-state disk drives used in many Apple products.

Tech giants are already tangled in a number of patent lawsuits filed in years past related to smartphones. Nokia filed suit against Apple in 2009 for patent infringement, Apple filed a patent lawsuit against HTC in 2010, and Microsoft has gone after Google’s partners offering Android-powered products.

In the suit filed against Samsung, Apple contends that Samsung is copying Apple’s products on both the hardware and software levels.

For instance, Apple says the Galaxy Tab “slavishly copies” Apple’s product design, using a rectangular body with rounded corners, a black border and an array of app icons similar to the iPad’s.

Apple also names the Galaxy S, Epic 4G and the Nexus S smartphones, according to a brief report in The Wall Street Journal. The lawsuit filing has yet to appear in the official PACER database.

Wired.com noted last year that the Samsung Vibrant, the predecessor of the Galaxy S, strongly resembles the iPhone.

See Also:

• Apple Tries Short-Circuiting Droid With Patent Lawsuit
• Patent Lawsuit Threatens to Clip Twitter’s Wings
• TomTom To Contest Microsoft Patent Lawsuit
• Paul Allen Files Patent Lawsuits Against Entire Web … Except Microsoft