Hasta La Gadget!

Verizon’s been talking details on LTE deployment for some time now, but even at CTIA earlier in the year, the carrier insisted that it would be the first half of 2011 before the next-gen network was active in the US of A. Now, it looks as if the engineers have been working triple-time in order to get Long Term Evolution live in the States under Big Red’s branding, as a new VZW commercial (embedded after the break) has affirmed that the first LTE waves will go public here in December 2010. Yeah, next month. Granted, there’s no information beyond the date, but at least we shouldn’t have to ponder long which devices will be first out of the gate. Here’s hoping Santa’s wish list has room for one more thing.

Continue reading Verizon launching LTE network in December 2010 (video)

Verizon launching LTE network in December 2010 (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Nov 2010 09:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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That’s no typo, folks, Microsoft’s own-brand pseudo-smartphones are back at Verizon, this time sporting an “m” appendage to their names and what looks like better pricing across the board. The Kin ONEm will set you back a cent under $20 with a two-year contract, whereas the TWOm costs just under $50 but is also subject to a Buy One Get One Free offer (the free phone being an LG Ally). We’ve spotted Zune Pass is still present on the pair, though it’s on a “WiFi and sideload only” basis, seemingly forbidding 3G streaming. Plans start at $39.99 for voice and $9.99 for 25MB of data (while the $9.99 option is advertised, the cheapest data plan we’re presently able to add is the $15 a month 150MB option), plus there’s a $35 activation fee. Compared to the original pricing, which had the One asking for $50 in upfront costs and $70 as the minimum levy for voice plus data, we’d say this is a definite move in the right direction. A few months late, but better late than never, eh?

[Thanks, Wyatt]

Continue reading Kin ONEm and Kin TWOm back at Verizon

Kin ONEm and Kin TWOm back at Verizon originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Nov 2010 02:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There you have it, good people of the internet, the rumored Hulu Plus price drop has indeed been enacted, though it’s a little smaller than some might have hoped. The formerly $9.99 subscription service has now dipped to $7.99 per month — enough to get you to jump on board? Maybe the one week free trial will help get you there, but don’t fret if you’re already subscribed — Hulu’s got you covered with a refund for the difference from the preview price to the current one, which will be applied in your next billing cycle. Isn’t that nice? Also good to know is that the list of devices you can enjoy your Plus experience on has been expanded by one, adding Roku’s hardware as previously planned. You’ll find the full press release after the break.

[Thanks, Adam S. and Alwyn]

Continue reading Hulu Plus drops price to $7.99 a month, adds Roku support for official launch

Hulu Plus drops price to $7.99 a month, adds Roku support for official launch originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Nov 2010 05:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Getting a little more oomph out of your MacBook Air after giving Flash the boot? Adobe’s Shantanu Narayen stopped just short of saying that’s Apple’s fault for not handing Adobe a device ahead of time. We asked the CEO what the greater battery life sans flash in Apple’s new laptop meant for the platform vis-a-vis HTML5 at the Web 2.0 Summit just a few minutes ago. He said it’s really all about optimizing for silicon: “When we have access to hardware acceleration, we’ve proven that Flash has equal or better performance on every platform.” You wouldn’t be blamed for thinking that sentence a cop-out, but that’s actually not the case — the chief executive says they’ve presently got a Macbook Air in the labs and have an optimized beta of Flash for the device presently in testing.

Adobe CEO: Flash battery life depends on hardware acceleration, MacBook Air update in testing right now originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Nov 2010 12:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We had a feeling Eric Schmidt would be doing something surprising at the Web 2.0 summit, and the man didn’t disappoint — he just showed off the Nexus S running on T-Mobile, and revealed it has NFC features, a technology he thinks will eventually replace credit cards. Unfortunately, he also called it an “unannounced phone” from an “announced manufacturer,” and the logo was taped over, so we’re not any closer to a release date here.

Update: We’ve added some more pics to the gallery, including some close-ups that show the carrier is indeed T-Mo. We’ll let you know if Schmidt drops any more details on this thing.

Update 2: Schmidt said Gingerbread would be out in the “next few weeks,” so we’re assuming this bad boy will come along with it.

Eric Schmidt shows off a Nexus S at the Web 2.0 summit, says Gingerbread coming in ‘next few weeks’ originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Nov 2010 17:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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