Hasta La Gadget!

If you were wondering what is next for TiVo, another leaked customer survey may give some indications. ZatzNotFunny has a few screenshots, and the questions ask customers about their interest in a companion box that could sit in another room and stream live TV or recordings from the DVR on a second TV, as well as their interest in a DVR with four tuners. Windows Media Center fans with four tuner InfiniTV setups or Moxi owners with three are unlikely to accept anything with less, and TiVo itself already ships a three tuner box for Virgin Media in the UK while cable and satellite providers have largely stuck with two, making it a logical feature to beat them on. Those weren’t the only features users were asked about, they also ranked items like the ability to hide SD versions of channels from the guide, browse recorded shows on every DVR from any box and other UI related options. TiVo is apparently figuring out where it should allocate resources going forward and while we’d suggest enabling the second core of that processor and extending the new Premiere UI across all menus, they didn’t ask us. Check out the full text of the survey a tipster forwarded to us after the break and see if TiVo missed anything else you might want them to focus on.

[Thanks, Anonymous]

Continue reading TiVo survey hints at multiroom companion box, four tuner DVR in the future

TiVo survey hints at multiroom companion box, four tuner DVR in the future originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 14:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You saw the specs confirmed a little earlier today and you even got to glimpse HTC’s new Sensation in the flesh. Now it’s time to watch this 4.3-inch Android device strut its stuff on video. We’ve gotten our mitts on the Euro model and you can check out all the delicious visuals after the break.

As we mentioned in our preview of this handset, the new lock screen is perhaps the biggest (it’s certainly the most immediately apparent) change in the Sense UI that comes with the Sensation. HTC describes now describes it as “smart,” because it can both serve you with live information, like weather and those all-important stock prices, and also lets you unlock straight into an app by dragging its link into an unlocking circle. Frankly, we used the functionality so much that we almost forgot how to unlock the phone “normally.” It’s something the Inq Cloud Touch and other lower-end Android devices have previously exhibited, and a feature we really, truly appreciate.

Performance was, as you’d expect from a 1.2GHz dual-core machine, snappy all around, though we still caught some slight lag and insufficient frame rates when the Sensation was dealing with some of those yummy new 3D animations. The higher resolution (960 x 540) screen is a definite upgrade over the 800 x 480 standard that Android devices have been coalescing around and the 4.3-inch size seems like a perfect fit for it. Both the camera app and video playback in the HTC Watch app showed great speed and responsiveness to our input. Those are the things that will really harness the processing power of the Sensation.

Physically, the Sensation somehow manages to feel more compact than its predecessor atop the European jumbo phone throne, the Desire HD. The two phones both have 4.3-inch screens, but the 16:9 screen ratio of the Sensation makes it narrower, while HTC’s ingenuity has managed to make the new device marginally thinner too. All in all, a definite upgrade in ergonomics. Aluminum construction is present here as well, however the entire aluminum chunk — which spans the middle portion of the back, separating two plastic parts (each of which has its own color, giving you a tri-color rear) — is in the removable cover. This is unlike most of HTC’s aluminum “unibody” phones, which make the aluminum piece part of the phone’s framework. Hey, at least you get much easier access to what’s under the back cover. Delve into the gallery below for more!

Continue reading HTC Sensation first video hands-on!

HTC Sensation first video hands-on! originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 Apr 2011 09:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Don’t want to pay 3D tax for HTC’s Evo 3D? You’ll be wanting the Sensation then, which is HTC’s new worldwide flagship phone. With its sculptured, curved unibody aluminum body, it’s also one of HTC’s thinnest handsets at 11.54mm. More »

Samsung has just delivered a most welcome (and concrete) bit of news for British smartphone lovers. Its next do-it-all Android superphone will be available on May 1st in the United Kingdom. The Galaxy S II will emulate its predecessor by being made available “across all major networks and retailers.” The press release promises a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, which indicates we’re looking at the Exynos 4210 variant of this handset. We’ll try to track down availability information for the rest of Europe, but at least Brits can now stop fretting about the delay / non-delay of this marquee phone’s launch.

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy S II to be available May 1st in the UK

Samsung Galaxy S II to be available May 1st in the UK originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 11 Apr 2011 08:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We already knew that T-Mobile’s dual-core G2x won’t be arriving for another week, but it looks like some cheeky monkey managed to nab one early and promptly put it up on eBay. While the seller hasn’t posted photos of the actual handset, all the signs suggest that at least this sealed box is legit, especially the label on the back. If you’re willing to take the risk, then this Tegra 2 Froyo Android could be yours early for a cool $799, or maybe a bit less if you could work your magic on that “Make Offer” button.

Update: And it’s gone. Looks like someone really wanted this phone.

T-Mobile G2x shows up on eBay with $799 price tag, tests your bartering skills (update: sold!) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 07 Apr 2011 23:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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