The Best New Phone Is From Our Wacky Sci-Fi Dreams [Phones]

One day, you’ll have a little tablet or phone, and carry it everywhere. It’ll be your only computer. When you need to use a “real” PC, you’ll dock it. Motorola’s Atrix is a little glimpse at that day. More »

Report: New Verizon iPad won’t need hot-spot device

Verizon CFO tells Bloomberg the carrier is working on an iPad that connects directly to its network, but he offers no timeline.

Originally posted at Circuit Breaker

Study: Kindle tweets outpace Nook tweets 2 to 1

Crimson Hexagon has done a study analyzing consumer satisfaction in leading e-readers–the Kindle, Nook, and iPad–by tracking Twitter conversations.

BAE’s lasers blind high seas pirates, have no effect on Ice Pirates

BAE Systems has had its hands in some pretty crazy research in the past, from Bug Bots to invisibility cloak development and more. But as this next item has implications for our planned dystopian gadget community on the high seas (think Waterworld-meets-The Engadget Show), we took notice tout de suite. Being marketed as a non-lethal deterrent to pirates, the heart of the ship-based system is a Nd:YAG laser that can be used to warn off attackers over half a mile away — and disorient them at closer ranges. “The effect is similar to when a fighter pilot attacks from the direction of the sun,” said BAE’s Roy Evans. “The glare from the laser is intense enough to make it impossible to aim weapons like AK47s or RPGs, but doesn’t have a permanent effect.” Wild, huh? Check out the PR after the break for the complete low-down.

Continue reading BAE’s lasers blind high seas pirates, have no effect on Ice Pirates

BAE’s lasers blind high seas pirates, have no effect on Ice Pirates originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 11 Jan 2011 16:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon or AT&T: Which Will Deliver the Best iPhone Experience?

iPhone 4 with Verizon logo. Photo by Jon Snyder/Wired.com
U.S. iPhone customers have been eagerly awaiting a Verizon-branded iPhone almost since day one.

Starting February 10, they’ll have that option. Verizon announced Tuesday that it would soon offer the iPhone 4 on its 3G network. The 16-GB model will cost $200 and a 32-GB model will go for $300, both with a two-year contract.

But will you want to make the switch? That depends on what’s important to you.

Here are a few things to consider in weighing which network to go with.

What did we miss? Ask your burning questions in the comments, and if we’re able to get answers, we’ll add them to this list.

Ability to Make and Hold a Call

If there’s one thing that AT&T has been criticized for, its the network’s frequently dropped calls. It’s not uncommon for iPhone users in busy metro areas, such as New York and San Francisco, to lose voice connections several times over the course of a 5- or 10-minute phone call.

Other AT&T handsets have the problem, based on anecdotal reports, but the iPhone seems to have it worst.

It’s very likely that Verizon will do better.

That’s because AT&T, which sold an estimated 15.8 million iPhones in the United States in 2010, has been overwhelmed by demand for the phone. IPhone callers utilize data services far more than users of most other phones, a February, 2010 Consumer Reports study found. With so much data usage, phones of all varieties are frequently forced back to AT&T’s older and slower EDGE network, or are forced off the cellular network altogether.

Verizon, with a more extensive network and no iPhone users, will almost certainly deliver better voice performance. (And Verizon already has experience with Android phones, whose users are proving even more data-hungry than iPhone customers.)

Whether it’s able to maintain that level of service if millions of iPhones flood its network is another question, however.

Advantage: Verizon

The iPhone’s Hardware Design

Some of the iPhone’s problems with voice calls and wireless data connections are attributable to the design of the phone itself.

Apple has acknowledged problems with the iPhone 4’s antenna design, which incorporates two different antennas around the external surface of the phone, one for Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and GPS, and the other for cellular voice and data. Sometimes, your hand can short-circuit the two antennas, hurting data performance, as well as leading to dropped calls.

However, AT&T’s dropped-call problem happens for many people even when the phone is in a case (preventing contact between your hand and the antennas) or when the phone is held delicately.

That means the problem lies either with AT&T’s network or with the internal circuitry of the iPhone itself. We know there are problems with AT&T’s congestion, because some of these dropped-call problems affect other handsets. But some might be due to the design of the iPhone. Apple in the past has acknowledged problems with the way the iPhone handles basic calls. If it runs into similar problems on Verizon’s CDMA network, customers of that carrier might wind up just as frustrated.

Advantage: Neither

4G Networks

Verizon is busy rolling out a 4G network based on LTE technology, which it says will deliver download speeds of 5-12 Mbps. It will cover 38 cities, reaching 110 million Americans, in 2011, Verizon says.

Meanwhile, AT&T has recently rebranded its HSPA+ network as a “4G” network, even though it previously referred to it as 3G. The network offers download speeds of 6 Mbps, the company claims. Over time, AT&T will also be adding LTE-based coverage.

However, neither company’s iPhone is compatible with any 4G network. It’s likely that Apple is taking a “wait and see” attitude to these new technologies, just as they did with 3G, and won’t release a 4G iPhone until it is more confident about coverage and reliability.

Advantage: Neither

3G Data Speeds

The iPhone that Verizon will be selling is not LTE-capable, so it’ll be limited to the company’s slower 3G network, which offers download speeds of 600 Kbps – 1.4 Mbps, according to Verizon. Independent tests published by PC World last spring put the speed closer to 800 Kbps on average.

Like Verizon’s, AT&T’s iPhone is not 4G capable, so it’s stuck with AT&T’s 3G network, which is based on HSPA (without the +) and UMTS. The company doesn’t say what speeds to expect from this network, but PC World’s tests pegged it at 1.4 Mbps. Other tests have generally agreed with these results: AT&T’s 3G network is faster (when you can connect to it).

Advantage: AT&T


The 404 736: Where we see an iPhone on the Verizon (podcast)


The exclusive partnership between Apple and AT&T wireless has finally come to an end! At a press conference in New York today, Verizon’s COO Lowell McAdam announced that the company will begin selling its own iPhone 4 starting next month. Wilson’s off covering the announcement, so Digital City’s Joseph Kaminski fills in for an agnostic perspective on the release.

The Verizon iPhone 4 will be the same model that AT&T carries now except that the Verizon version will connect to the CDMA network instead of GSM. Aside from better service (hopefully), Verizon will also offer personal Wi-Fi “hot spot” access that lets up to five devices connect wirelessly to the iPhone at once- no word yet on how much extra you’ll have to pay for that, however.

Additionally, one of the limitations is that CDMA is that the network won’t allow for simultaneous Internet browsing and voice calling, which might be a dealbreaker to some, but most will just be satisfied to make uninterrupted phone calls.

Starting on February 10, a 16GB and 32GB model will cost $200 and $300 respectively with a 2-year contract dea, but we’re still in the dark regarding data prices and whether or not there will be an unlimited options on deckl.

So this leaves current AT&T subscribers in a tricky situation: jump ship now and pre-order the Verizon iPhone 4 or wait a few months for Apple to release the next version, hopefully with access to Verizon’s superfast 4G LTE network? Check out today’s show to hear our best advice for prospective iPhone owners!



Episode 736


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Originally posted at The 404 Podcast

Kinect hack lets you see your own skeleton

Add this one to the long list of Kinect hacks: a system that acts as a virtual X-ray, letting viewers see inside themselves in real time.

SPOT Connect Makes Your Smartphone a Satellite Communicator

SPOT Connect

A long time ago we looked at the SPOT Satellite Messenger, a product designed to help people stay safe and in-touch with friends and loved ones if they were camping, off-roading, or traveling somewhere cellular signal or wireless Internet access weren’t necessarily available. 
The SPOT Messenger allowed you to “check in” at a GPS location via the SPOT satellite network, and have your location and a short message posted to the service or sent directly to friends and family so they knew you were okay.
At CES this year, SPOT unveiled the SPOT Connect, a smartphone peripheral that pairs with your phone and gives you the same ability, even if you have no cellular signal. You simply download the SPOT app, pair the phone with the SPOT Connect device, and you can send short e-mail, SMS messages, even Twitter and Facebook updates via SPOT’s satellite network. 
If there’s an emergency and you need to call for help, just press the SOS button and police and medical authorities in your vicinity will be notified, complete with your GPS coordinates so they can find you quickly. The SPOT Connect will be available later this year, although no specific release date was announced. It’ll set you back $169.99 retail, plus the cost of a SPOT subscription.

NZXT Bunker Protects Your USB Devices

USB Bunker

Afraid someone is going to run off with your mouse or keyboard, or perhaps that someone will find an unused USB port and plug in a keylogger? NZXT’s new USB Bunker is designed to give you a bunch of USB ports that are completely locked down and protected, and not using some fancy software – we mean lock and key. 
You’ll need an expansion bay in your desktop computer to install the bunker into, but once it’s in, you can swing it open to plug in your USB devices, and then shut the door over those devices to keep the USB cable in its port and in place so no one can snatch it. 
If you have a desktop computer and want to make sure no one has access to your precious USB ports, the USB Bunker can be yours for $24.99 retail price and will be available in March.

Aigo A8 / Leo 14 megapixel cameraphone hands-on (video)

We were wandering the floor at CES just before the end of the show when we stumbled upon this oddly familiar device. It’s the Aigo A8 — née Altek Leo — an Android cameraphone (more like a phonecamera, really) destined for China Unicom that sports a 14 megapixel autofocus camera with a CCD sensor, xenon flash, 3x optical zoom, and support for 720p HD video recording. Of course, we wasted no time taking this rare beast for a spin, even going so far as to sample the camera. Take a look at the pictures below, followed by more information — and videos — after the break.

Continue reading Aigo A8 / Leo 14 megapixel cameraphone hands-on (video)

Aigo A8 / Leo 14 megapixel cameraphone hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 11 Jan 2011 16:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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