Hasta La Gadget!

Xbox Live frontman Larry Hryb (aka Major Nelson) took to his blog on Tuesday to announce that Dish and Verizon FiOS customers can now download the Fox Broadcast app for Xbox 360 to stream next-day Fox programming. In order to use this free app, you’ll need a paid Xbox Live Gold subscription. In addition to keeping you up to date with recent episodes of Fringe and Family Guy, this new app also includes access to legacy series such as House and 24. Like most things Xbox, the Fox Broadcasting app features Kinect integration, because everything is “better with Kinect,” right?

Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD

Fox Broadcast app now available to Xbox Live customers with Dish and FiOS subscriptions originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Sep 2012 21:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fall must be the season for surprisingly fixable thin smartphones. Repair part supplier DirectFix has posted a currently rare, video-based teardown of the Motorola Droid RAZR M that shows just how well Verizon’s mid-range smartphone copes with surgery. In practice, it fares quite well: those unafraid of voiding their warranty can disassemble the Droid RAZR M from top to Kevlar bottom, replacing parts like the battery, cameras and flash with a minimal risk of damage. Not all is sunshine and roses, however. The display assembly is a single piece, which could be as costly to fix as it is easy to replace. We won’t mind if it ever means dodging a full-price replacement in the event our RAZR meets the sidewalk.

Continue reading Motorola Droid RAZR M torn down to its bare Kevlar essentials (video)

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

Motorola Droid RAZR M torn down to its bare Kevlar essentials (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Sep 2012 09:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Most phones sold with a carrier subsidy in the United States are locked. Even after the contract is up, most phones (and all previous iPhones) can’t switch carriers unless you ask your carrier to “unlock” it, and most carriers would only do so if you had a reason, such as international travel. Today, Verizon announced that after contract, iPhone 5s on the Verizon network will be unlocked. In a way, it is betting that its network is so much better for the iPhone 5 that most consumers will choose to stick with Verizon after two years or that most consumers will opt for a new device and contract at that time.

(more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: FaceTime coming to Verizon’s 3G network, iPhone 4 is still selling well,

Last week, we told you that the iPhone 5 comes with a special little bonus if you’re buying from Verizon. The massive carrier’s version of the iPhone 5 is GSM unlocked, meaning that users could potentially pop in a SIM card from another carrier, say AT&T for example, and use the phone on its network. This feature will definitely be appreciated by travelers, and today we have even more good news to share: Verizon says that it has no plans to lock down its iPhone 5.

Verizon’s version of the iPhone 5 can work on many carriers other than AT&T, and ABC News points out that offering an unlocked iPhone 5 is a win for consumers in more ways than one. For instance, once your contract expires, you could potentially take your iPhone 5 to another carrier and sign up for service there. In doing so, you can net service without having to be tied down by a contract, which is always a major plus if you can swing it.

Indeed, it seems that consumers are very happy with the fact that Verizon’s iPhone 5 is GSM unlocked, and Verizon may just be able to score a few more iPhone 5 sales as a result. Still, at the moment, there isn’t much reason to look for iPhone 5 service from anywhere but Verizon if you’re planning to use the handset’s 4G LTE capabilities often. While AT&T offers “4G” service, it definitely isn’t as fast as Verizon’s network, so for now, the only big reason to take your Verizon iPhone 5 to a different carrier is to get a less expensive monthly bill. That’s bound to change soon though, as a number of major carriers will be boosting their 4G networks in major ways during the coming months.

Unlocking phones is nothing new for Verizon, as the company has done so in the past for those who are traveling to other countries. Selling a phone, especially one as big as the iPhone 5, that’s unlocked from the get go is a first for the company, however. Perhaps this is a little experiment on Verizon’s part to see if selling a phone that comes GSM unlocked ultimately leads to more sales? If it is, the experiment seems to be working, at least as far as consumer disposition toward Verizon goes. Stay tuned.

iPhone 5 to remain GSM unlocked at Verizon is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

While some patent lawsuits continue to drag on, the battle between TiVo and Verizon over DVR technology has come to a resolution. In exchange for cross licensing their patents and dismissing all pending litigation, the two parties have agreed Verizon will pay TiVo $100 million up front followed by recurring quarterly payments totaling $150.4 million through July 2018, as well as monthly license fees for each FiOS DVR user above certain levels. Now that they’re no longer at war the two companies may find a few things to work together on, and there is a provision for “certain commercial initiatives” which, if pursued this year, could count as credits toward the amount Verizon has agreed to pay.

Additionally, the press release indicates they are exploring support for the upcoming Redbox Instant service (which Verizon is a partner in) on TiVo’s DVRs. This all follows TiVo’s $215 million settlement with AT&T earlier this year and last year’s $500 million agreement with Dish Network. Meanwhile, lawsuits are still pending against Cisco, Time Warner Cable and Motorola. The press release is after the break and associated filings are linked below, with any luck this infusion of cash will help TiVo on new projects like dropping the price of the Stream.

[Thanks, Dave Zatz]

Continue reading TiVo settles patent lawsuit with Verizon for at least $250 million, is ‘exploring’ Redbox Instant support

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

TiVo settles patent lawsuit with Verizon for at least $250 million, is ‘exploring’ Redbox Instant support originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 24 Sep 2012 09:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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