Hasta La Gadget!

Can’t say we’re surprised to hear this at all, but Bloomberg BusinessWeek says Google’s working on its own NFC-based mobile payments system. That makes perfect sense, given that Eric Schmidt has been enthusiastically extolling the virtues of NFC since just before Google launched the Nexus S — which, of course, features an NFC chip. BusinessWeek says the system might launch as early as this year, although we think Google’s got plenty of infrastructure work to do first — and it’s facing plenty of competition from the likes of Verizon, T-Mobile, and AT&T, who are launching their own Isis payment system, as well as direct device competition from RIM and Apple. Should get interesting — we’ll see if we hear anything at CES this week.

Google building its own NFC-based payments system? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Jan 2011 02:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Well, would you look at what we found hanging around Toshiba’s CES kick-off party. Okay, so Tosh’s still unnamed tablet wasn’t running Honeycomb like the final unit will, but Toshiba’s loaded Android 2.2 on there to give us a better idea of how it will work when it’s finally ready. There’s really not much we can say that we didn’t already say before — it’s still a very nicely made tablet and we’re really digging that rubberized back. As for the screen, the viewing angles were quite wide and Toshiba showed off its Resolution +, which will enhance video or photos on the fly to make them look more HDish. If you’re interested in seeing a bit more, hit the break for a short video.

Continue reading Toshiba’s unnamed Tegra 2-powered Android tablet powers on!

Toshiba’s unnamed Tegra 2-powered Android tablet powers on! originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Jan 2011 02:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Just like the slew of tablets that have found their path to store shelves without official blessing from Google or access to the Android Market, RCA has chosen to go its own way People of Lava-style with this prototype Android TV, due out later this year. Obviously very early in development, it was unfortunately devoid of apps other than Picasa and a simple weather widget, and used pretty standard remote keys to guide a mouse arrow around the screen and keyboard. You can check out the video after the break to confirm, but with the official Google TV products already experiencing their own growing pains it’s tough to get behind a lone challenger. RCA plans to show off some 3D products and Blu-ray players at its booth to go along with this and its mobile TVs, we’ll see if we’re more impressed later on this week.

Continue reading RCA does Android on TV without Google’s help (video)

RCA does Android on TV without Google’s help (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Jan 2011 01:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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So yes, it’s looking about as confirmed as can be: thanks to a full-page ad in the latest issue of Rolling Stone, we’re finding out that the name of HTC’s first LTE phone for Verizon — and its first LTE phone regardless of carrier, actually — will definitely be “ThunderBolt.” This is the same phone that we’ve seen rumored and leaked over the last few months as the Mecha and the Droid Incredible HD, but we’ll admit — ThunderBolt seems like a pretty solid name for a phone that’s sporting a 4.3-inch display and some of the fastest data around.

Behind and to the right of the ThunderBolt, though, is another leak: the Inspire 4G for AT&T, though it’s unclear what “4G” means in this context exactly — AT&T’s in the same boat as T-Mobile right now where they’re topping out with HSPA+ and don’t have any LTE markets live, so it seems they might be borrowing a play from their smaller rival’s playbook and labeling the HSPA+ airwaves as straight-up 4G. We’re sad to see that trend start to snowball — but we’ll admit, T-Mobile kinda forced their hand on that one. At any rate, we’re pretty confident both of these suckers are going to get official here at CES this week, so keep your ear to the ground.

HTC ThunderBolt for Verizon and Inspire 4G for AT&T break cover courtesy of Rolling Stone ad originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Jan 2011 00:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LAS VEGAS — After weeks of leaked promo materials and screen shots, Sprint has introduced the EVO Shift, HTC’s latest carrier-exclusive 4G smartphone.

The phone is scheduled to be widely available to consumers on the last day of CES, January 9th.

As Sprint’s press release states, the EVO Shift follows in the speedy 4G footsteps of its mammoth-sized EVO predecessor, but comes in a smaller, tighter package. Highlights include a 3.6 inch capacitive-touch screen display, a slide out QWERTY keyboard, 5-megapixel back-facing camera, 720p HD camcorder and microSD slot for upgradable storage up to 32GB.The phone can also serve as a mobile hotspot, tethering up to eight wireless devices.

For the crowd that wants more power and more features from their phone, however, the EVO Shift may be lacking. The phone ships with Android 2.2. (Froyo, not the most recent version, Android 2.3, aka Gingerbread). It lacks a front facing camera, which means no video chatting either. The 5-megapixel back facing cameras is downgraded from the EVO’s 8 megapixels. The EVO has a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, while the Shift clocks in at 800 Mhz. Those that want larger screens like the former EVO (4.3 inches) may not be satisfied with the EVO Shift’s 3.6 inches.

Comparing the EVO Shift to the older, bigger EVO, the question comes down to this: Are you willing to sacrifice screen size, processor speed and other niceties for a slide out keyboard and easier pocketability?

The EVO Shift retails at $150 after a $100 mail-in rebate (with a two-year service contract).

Photo courtesy Sprint