Hasta La Gadget!

Microsoft is busy officially revealing all the bits and pieces that make up Windows Phone 8, and one of them is its new lock screen. Powered by Live Apps designed for Windows Phone 8 like Facebook, it lets apps directly update your lock screen with new photos and information. Exec Joe Belfiore is, as usual, excited about it, pointing to the “surprise” now waiting every time he picks up his phone. If pics from your last vacation popping up every time you turn your phone on doesn’t get you going ,just imagine sports scores or other relevant info you’ve picked pushed straight to the front, just a button press away.

Microsoft unveils new lock screen for Windows Phone 8 powered by Live Apps originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Oct 2012 13:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile was set to have its own splashy product unveiling today in New York City, but a certain Sandy put the kibosh on that. Now that Google’s let its trio of updated Nexus products out of the bag, Magenta’s ready to give us pricing and availability for the Nexus 4, HTC 8X and Lumia 810 which are set to hit the carrier’s shelves this November 14th. Both Google’s and Microsoft’s (signature) flagships will be available for $199 on a two-year plan, while Nokia’s lower-end WP8 handset will go for $149 with the same contract duration. Also, joining the crowded launch lineup that day is Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 for $349 with a two-year agreement. As for the newly HSPA+ capable Nexus 7, well, you’ll be able to snag that refreshed slate on Google Play just one day later. Of course, T-Mo hasn’t forgotten about its value-minded sub base, offering up LG’s Optimus L9 on the 31st of this month at an affordable $79 on contract. So if it’s options you wanted this holiday season, Magenta’s doling them out in spades. Hit up the break for the official PR.

Continue reading T-Mobile unveils holiday lineup: Nexus 4, HTC 8X, Lumia 810 to land November 14th

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, Samsung, Microsoft, HTC, Nokia, Google, LG, T-Mobile

T-Mobile unveils holiday lineup: Nexus 4, HTC 8X, Lumia 810 to land November 14th originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Oct 2012 12:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We know tomorrow’s Windows Phone 8 event will finally answer all of those burning mysteries that we’ve been yearning to hear more about since Microsoft first announced the new OS in June. After all, the company has kept its upcoming platform under tight wraps, preventing its hardware partners from showing it off to the press. So what else will the folks from Redmond have up their sleeves? Stay tuned here as we bring you all of the revelations live in San Francisco, tomorrow at 1PM ET!

Filed under: Announcements, Mobile, Microsoft

The Microsoft Windows Phone 8 event happens tomorrow, get your liveblog here! originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 28 Oct 2012 23:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon is one of the more common proponents of silly Android device names, in part through its insistence on that “Droid” prefix for some hardware. When its smartphone badges practically demand a pause for breath, you know there’s a problem. Android Central‘s purported copy of a Minimum Advertised Pricing list could show that there’s hope for the carrier yet. The chart shows the HTC DLX (6435LVW) skipping the rumored Droid Incredible X name in favor of Droid DNA — and that’s it. No superlatives, no arbitrary “4G LTE” tags to remind us of the network we already know we’re using. The 5-inch phone might have even been a reasonable launch, as the MAP shows a $200 contract price that would potentially take effect just before Thanksgiving.

Want more? Other smartphones are on the supposedly leaked MAP list as well, primarily focusing on Windows Phone 8 gear: the as yet unconfirmed Nokia Lumia 822 shows up with a $100 price and a mid-November release window, while Verizon’s take on the Windows Phone 8X is present with a $200 price and similar timing. Those who’d rather go for a Samsung phablet than HTC’s aren’t left out, either. The Verizon edition of the Galaxy Note II is on the list with a $300 price and availability that starts immediately — rather convenient, that.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Samsung, HTC, Nokia, Verizon

Verizon’s HTC DLX may be called Droid DNA, Windows Phone 8 devices get tentative prices originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 24 Oct 2012 14:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SmartGlass functionality may already sort of exist on Xbox 360 per the console’s latest Dashboard update, but Microsoft’s making it a full-on reality on October 26. As it stands, the Xbox 360 allows for SmartGlass support, but without an update to Microsoft’s 360 companion app, there’s no way to use it — when Microsoft’s Surface RT and other Windows 8 tablets launch on the 26, that functionality will come built in to the “Games” section of the new OS. That of course begs the question: “When will I be able to use SmartGlass with my iOS/Android/Windows Phone 7.5 devices? And how?”

The date isn’t certain, but functionality will arrive on other platforms “soon” after the October 26 launch of Surface, Microsoft reps tell us. When it does, it’ll come in the form of an update to your existing, “My Xbox Live” mobile app (which also renames the app to, “Xbox SmartGlass”) or Games tab (per WP7.5), and it’ll be more or less identical with the Windows Phone version. The only missing functionality, we’re told, are two somewhat basic bulletpoints. “We have deeper integration in the Windows Phone,” Microsoft tells us. “That’s something we don’t have on iOS or Android, it’s just within our application. Same on Windows — the integration in Windows is ‘last playing’ or ‘now playing,’ being able to present that information.” The other, more interesting item, is the lacking ability to “send” whatever website you’re using up to the Xbox 360’s Internet Explorer browser. Regardless of which mobile device you’re on, SmartGlass can “send” websites from the 360 to said device — it won’t work the other way around, however, if you’re using a non-Windows 8 device. Not what we’d call a huge deal, exactly, but a bummer no less. Regardless, you’ll soon have the opportunity to put SmartGlass through its paces from the comfort of home when support devices launch on October 26. For a full list of applications available at launch and partners beyond that plus a quick walkthrough video, head past the break.

Continue reading Xbox SmartGlass goes live alongside first Windows 8 tablets on October 26 with several supported apps

Filed under: Cellphones, Gaming, Handhelds, Tablets, Software, HD, Microsoft

Xbox SmartGlass goes live alongside first Windows 8 tablets on October 26 with several supported apps originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Oct 2012 00:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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