Hasta La Gadget!

What better way to read up on your Republic of Gilead lore (whether or not such country allows you to read in the first place) than on a digital screen via firmware that’s just a tinge futuristic. Amazon is offering an early preview of software update 3.0.2 for the latest generation of its Kindle reader. It’s as simple dragging-and-dropping a file onto your device, jumping through the right menus, and waiting patiently for several minutes. What does it offer? “Web browser and general performance improvements,” according to the site, and while the browser did seem a tad snappier, that could very well be a phantasmagoria of our optimism. Still, you do get to show all your friends you’ve got a newer version, and that’s what really matters, right?

Early third-generation Kindle software update improves web browser, provides new way to feel e-litist originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Sep 2010 14:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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What’s this — the slim, Verizon-bound successor to the Entourage Edge, out in plain sight? Just so, because Marvell wanted to look its best when the Governator came by. When California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger toured Marvell headquarters as part of a trade mission to Asia, a Forbes camera crew tagged along, and got us this first glimpse of the “Verizon Pocket Edge” shown immediately above. Though it’s hard to tell what’s changed from this angle — save a lack of front-facing camera on the right — a second photo taken by the Associated Press (after the break) shows the e-reader is significantly smaller in size, so perhaps it’s the 7-inch device we were originally told about. Hats off to The Digital Reader for spotting the device, weeks after the newswires had packed up and moved on.

Continue reading Entourage Pocket Edge in the wild at Marvell event, scared out of hiding by Schwarzenegger

Entourage Pocket Edge in the wild at Marvell event, scared out of hiding by Schwarzenegger originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Sep 2010 16:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The fact that Blio was preloaded on our Toshiba Libretto W105 was a good hint that the company was getting ready to release its software to the digital reading masses, and sure enough in just a few weeks that’s exactly what’s going to happen. The full-color program, which was designed to mimic the look of a book with fancy 3D page turns, will be available for download starting on September 28 directly from Blio’s website. Sure, Blio’s no Amazon or Barnes & Noble, but they’re promising a million free titles at launch and they’ve partnered with Baker & Taylor to provide another 10,000. We’re also intrigued by the software’s advanced text-to-speech capabilities — hey, don’t forget Ray Kurzweil is the founder! Not too far after the launch of the PC software, Blio will be releasing Android, iPhone and iPad apps. It’s also promising that there will be numerous partnerships with device (i.e. tablet, laptop) manufacturers, retailers, and carriers, so it looks like we’ll be hearing quite a bit about the company in the weeks to come. We’ll hit you back with our impressions of the apps sometime soon, but in the meantime you can peruse the screenshots and press release after the break.

Continue reading Blio for PC will be available on September 28, iOS and Android apps soon after

Blio for PC will be available on September 28, iOS and Android apps soon after originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Sep 2010 09:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This morning as we were brewing our coffee, we saw what appeared to be a new Kindle ad that mocked the readability factor of an iPad-like slate in the sun. The video turned a little weird, however, when, at the end we were greeted with a maniacal monsterish cackle. Unsurprisingly, we thought, “this is fake” and moved on with our day. Turns out, however, the ad is in fact real, sans the laugh track, of course, which was someone’s idea of a great goof. The full ad is below.

Continue reading New Kindle ad takes on the readability of iPad in the sun, doesn’t have monster sounds

New Kindle ad takes on the readability of iPad in the sun, doesn’t have monster sounds originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 13 Sep 2010 17:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A rose by any other name would smell as sweet, and the same usually goes for tablets. But in the Great Venn Diagram of slate form factors, the ViewSonic MB-P702 seems to hover around the intersection of tablets and e-readers. It’s got a 7-inch 800 x 480 resolution touchscreen LCD display and functions as both an e-reader and a movie player — but not, as far as we can tell, an internet-based experience. Looking to the former function, the MB-P702 reads PDF, TXT, EPUB and others with handwritten notation capabilities. For video, we’re looking at MKV, AVI, WMV, MPG, MP4, and RMVB, with 1080p support and HDMI out. Unfortunately, all we’ve got is rough machine translation and some renders of the product. A sea of 7-inch slates on the horizon — ViewSonic’s own ViewPad 7 included. With any luck, it’s an “optimized experience” (and a competitive price point, knowing the company’s MO) that’d keep it in check.

ViewSonic MB-P702, the color e-reader and HD video player you didn’t yet realize you needed originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 03:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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