Hasta La Gadget!

It’s at least six months behind schedule at this point, but we guess late’s better than even later. We’d known that Aircell Gogo (yeah, it’s officially changed!) was aiming to get into the in-flight entertainment business, and today it’s dishing the real dirt. It’s hoping to “extend the company beyond internet connectivity,” and apparently that means introducing an in-air multimedia platform. Per the company, it’ll allow users to tap into “real-time travel information, destination content, news / information and exclusive shopping deals” right within their web browser, and it’ll also give airlines the opportunity to offer passengers access to the latest movies and TV shows through Gogo’s new streaming video product. We’re guessing that last bit is what’ll make legacy outfits think twice before shelling out for another round of Panasonic in-seat head units, particularly since there’s no air-to-ground connectivity needed.

Even today, average JPEGs are compressed when downloaded and uploaded through Gogo, making it just about impossible for folks who actually work with images to get anything finalized in the sky. Upon hearing of its initial plans, we wondered one thing: if Gogo can’t handle uncompressed JPEGs, how the heck is your streaming video going to look with every other middle-seater trying to load the latest episode of Weeds? Thankfully, our fears were pushed aside after hearing that the IFE portion (read: the service that serves up multimedia) will be locally based on the plane, with an undisclosed protocol pushing material from the cockpit to your display. Executives confirmed that the goal is to serve an entire plane, but it sounds as if there will certainly be some limits in place at first — though, unless the entire plane hops onboard with the new program on Day 1, it probably won’t become an issue.

Read on for more…

Continue reading Gogo launches in-air multimedia platform, details international expansion plans

Gogo launches in-air multimedia platform, details international expansion plans originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Jul 2011 14:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Some ideas are undeniably sensible, and zero-click WiFi roaming across carriers and countries is one of them. That’s why iPass has set itself the unenviable but likely profitable task of convincing global telecoms giants to overlook their differences and form an “Open Mobile Exchange” based on its cloud-based authentication technology. It won’t be the first to embark on such a voyage of persuasion: Skype is already on the case and Boingo is too (at least, sort of), but there are still plenty of fragmented hotspot services out there waiting to be crushed and blended by an effortless roaming technology. We just hope iPass has perfected its pleading email template: “Dearest Carrier, have you considered…?” Full PR after the break.

Continue reading iPass wants a world of interconnected WiFi, a roaming ‘renaissance’

iPass wants a world of interconnected WiFi, a roaming ‘renaissance’ originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 07 Jul 2011 10:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Galaxy Tab 10.1, the benchmark Android tablet device at this moment in time, is coming to the UK on August 4th. Samsung’s just made the launch date official, announcing that both WiFi and 3G variants will be hitting “a range” of British stores almost exactly six weeks from now. Alas, no pricing details have been revealed yet, but you can look forward to an exceedingly slim (8.6mm / 0.33-inch) slate sweetened with Honeycomb (3.1) software and dual-core Tegra 2 performance. The 3G variant will also include a 21Mbps-capable HSPA+ radio, which would be called 4G if it were in the hands of overzealous American carriers. The TouchWiz UI will be large and in charge on the British Tab 10.1, augmented with Samsung’s Social, Readers, and Music Hubs, as well as access to NVIDIA’s Tegra Zone. We’re also reminded about the neglected Galaxy Tab 8.9 in the press release, which should be arriving in the UK “later in the year.”

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 will launch in the UK on August 4th

Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 will launch in the UK on August 4th originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 24 Jun 2011 05:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Here in the US and Canada, we’re already worrying about things like recalls, while the rest of world is still waiting for its crack at the original BlackBerry PlayBook. RIM today announced that its enterprise-friendly tablet will be hitting 16 more markets over the next 30 days — though some of the locations, like the UK, have already been announced (you guys will be getting the thing in a mere six days). Recipients include Hong Kong, India, and Australia — check out the full list in the form of a press release after the break. And when you’re done let’s start talking next-generation specs.

Continue reading BlackBerry PlayBook rolling out internationally over the next month

BlackBerry PlayBook rolling out internationally over the next month originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Jun 2011 08:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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After encountering a little hitch with its mid-April Gingerbread delivery, Samsung is now ready to boot up Kies for another try. The company has this morning released word that it intends to update its entire Galaxy S family line, starting with models in the UK and Nordic countries from the middle of this month. The rest of the globe, including North America, will follow suit “according to the regional plan.” Also benefiting from a Gingerbread upgrade will be the 7-inch Galaxy Tab, which already got a taste of Android 2.3 in Italy, and the company’s bevy of budget Galaxy devices, the Ace, Gio, Fit and mini. Read the full PR after the break.

Continue reading Official: Samsung Galaxy S and Galaxy Tab getting Gingerbread update in mid-May

Official: Samsung Galaxy S and Galaxy Tab getting Gingerbread update in mid-May originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 May 2011 01:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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