This week on gdgt: UE Boom, VAIO Duo 13, and Internet privacy tips

Each week, our friends at gdgt go through the latest gadgets and score them to help you decide which ones to buy. Here are some of their most recent picks. Want more? Visit gdgt anytime to catch up on the latest, and subscribe to gdgt’s newsletter to get a weekly roundup in your inbox.

This week on gdgt

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The Daily Roundup for 07.10.2013

DNP The Daily RoundUp

You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.

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T-Mobile unveils Jump, allows customers to upgrade twice a year

T-Mobile’s Moon Shot? Might as well Jump. The magenta-minded carrier has taken the wraps off of Jump (plus exclamation mark, if you choose), a system that lets customers upgrade their handsets up to twice a year — a plan clearly targeted toward gadget obsessives (and the fickle). As CEO John Legere put it — it can stand for either “Just Upgrade My Phone” or “John Upgrade My Phone.” Also included in the $10 (per phone, plus applicable taxes and other fees) a month deal is a total protection plan that helps out with malfunctions, damage, thefts and loss of handsets. Those interested are able to enroll as soon as six months after joining up. After that time, subscribers can trade in a working, eligible phone to a T-Mobile store. Equipment Installment Program fees will be eliminated, and they’ll be able to buy a new phone for a new customer upfront price.

As for availability? According to the fine print on the press release below (after the, wait for it, jump) the plan (which kicks in on Sunday), “may not be available in all locations.” Surely your local T-Mobile representative has more information on that front. More info below, along with some ads featuring none other than SNL‘s Bill Hader. And if you’re so inclined, click through the source link to jump on board.

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Source: Jump!

Jumping Out of a Helicopter’s Ramp Looks Like a Lot of Fun

It seems that if you join the USAF you may become a superhero. But if you join the US Marines, you will turn into some kind of Peter Pan, like Sgt. Michael Murphy: More »

Supersonic Space Jump: Full Coverage [Video]

Total success. After many delays, Felix did it. He reached the highest altitude ever reached by any man in a balloon, more than 127,000 feet. He then jumped and fell faster than any man, breaking Mach 1 (it’s unofficial for now, they have to confirm it). More »

The Supersonic Space Jump Balloon Compared to the Statue of Liberty (Update 2) [Space Jump]

The Red Bull Stratos mission control has announced that, after Tuesday’s aborted supersonic space jump, the next launch is scheduled for Sunday, October 14 at 8:30am EDT. We will cover the Roswell event live. More »

Red Bull Stratos Skydive Rescheduled for Sunday

If you’re paying attention to daredevil Felix Baumgartner and his desire to jump out of a pressurized capsule 23 miles above the surface, you may have noticed that he didn’t make the didn’t make the jump earlier this week. Winds were too high early Monday morning when Baumgartner had planned to make his leap. The skydive has now been rescheduled for Sunday.

red bull stratos1

If you somehow missed all the talk about Baumgartner and his insane desire to jump from an altitude of 120,000 feet, I’ll run it down for you again. Baumgartner plans to take the world’s largest helium-filled balloon attached to pressurized capsule on a two-hour trip straight up. He will then depressurize the capsule, and open the door.

I can only assume there’ll be some significant sphincter puckering and shortly thereafter, he will jump. Plummeting through the thin atmosphere at the insanely high altitude, Baumgartner and his team expect that he’ll be able to break the sound barrier using his body only reaching a speed of roughly 690 mph. Luckily for us, Baumgartner will be wearing a specialized pressure suit that offers five cameras to track his progress.

[via MSNBC]


First Human Supersonic Space Jump Aborted (Updated With Video) [Video]

Felix Baumgartner is going to jump from the edge of space. If successful, he’s going to become the first man in history to go supersonic without any mechanical propulsion aid whatsoever. He’s now getting ready. More »

Countdown Starts for Daredevil Space Jump [Video]

October 8th. That’s the final launch date for fearless Felix Baumgartner, the daredevil that is going to jump from the edge of space. The 42-year-old Baumgartner is eager to attempt the record-breaking super-sonic parachute jump. He says that he feels like wild animal in a cage right now. More »

Daredevil Leaps from over 96,000 Feet in the Air

We’ve been following the antics of Austrian daredevil Felix Baumgartner for months now. Baumgartner is the daredevil who plans on jumping from over 120,000 feet in the air, setting a world record and becoming the first person to break the speed of sound without an aircraft. Baumgartner has conducted several practice jumps and his latest practice jump came this week.

space jump tb

Baumgartner donned his pressure suit and climbed into a special capsule to take a ride to 96,640 feet above southeastern New Mexico. Once at altitude, the daredevil stepped out of the capsule and plummeted towards the ground reaching a top speed of 536 mph. After freefalling for 3 minutes and 48 seconds, Baumgartner opened his parachute.

Baumgartner was safely back on the ground 10 minutes and 30 seconds after jumping from his capsule. He had encountered a few difficulties on previous practice jumps, but there’s no word of any issues with his latest practice jump at this time. Baumgartner hopes to leap from 125,000 feet in the next month or so.

[via Space.com]