Hasta La Gadget!

If tech battles were kung-fu movies, Steve Jobs would be Jackie Chan. Earlier this week, the Apple CEO took on all comers, smack-talking Google, BlackBerry, and practically anyone else who dared do battle with his precious iPhone and iPad.

All in all, it was a pretty impressive display, and it was enough to get executives at Google, RIM, and TweetDeck all up in his grill. But how does it compare to some of the all-time best tech battles?

We’ve broken down some of our favorites from over the years to see how Jobs vs. Google/RIM stacks up. Let’s just say that nothing puts a verbal tiff into perspective quite like watching some grainy footage of a circus elephant getting electrocuted on Coney Island.

Is 3D gaming on the verge of completely revolutionizing your world? If you’re a hardcore PlayStation fan, you might believe the answer to that question is “yes.” However, given the recent DisplaySearch findings on 3DTV adoption, we’re thinking more of you fall in with the leanings of Microsoft’s Phil Spencer, who is making it clear that he isn’t pushing the technology at this point:

For better or for worse, people just don’t really have TVs in their house right now that are going to do 3D in a way that’s going to work… As a corporate mandate, I don’t need to sell you a new TV, that’s not part of my business model. Other companies maybe have that part of their business model. I don’t.

“Other companies,” eh? Yeah, we think you can figure out who he’s talking about there. Phil isn’t just dishing up the Haterade, though, throwing props to Nintendo: “I like the 3DS, you don’t have to wear the glasses.”

Microsoft’s Phil Spencer rains on Sony’s 3D parade, thinks 3DS has potential originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 10:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Attention all humans and empathetic robots: The Engadget Show is back in a big way this Saturday, October 23rd at 6:30pm! To get things started, Josh and the gang will be taking a first-hand look at the myriad Windows Phone 7 devices with Microsoft’s Aaron Woodman, then we’ll be demoing Google TV, and Engadget’s own Darren Murph will be joining Josh, Nilay, and Paul on stage, Guinness world record in hand. What’s more, we’re hosting our first ever Halloween costume contest! There will be giveaways at the show for the best costumes (as voted on by you, the audience), so get to work on your winning masterpiece now! We’ll also have the usual random giveaways, but why leave it to chance when you could win stuff with a little creativity and a black turtleneck? There will also be music from Kris Keyser and visuals from noteNdo and plenty of other giveaways at the live show only, so make the trek and join us at The Times Center in person. We have a new ticketing policy, so if you’re coming to the live show, be sure to read about it below. If you’re geographically incapable of joining us in New York City, just tune into the stream right here on Engadget.

The Engadget Show is sponsored by Sprint, and will take place at the Times Center, part of The New York Times Building in the heart of New York City at 41st St. between 7th and 8th Avenues (see map after the break). Tickets are — as always — free to anyone who would like to attend, but seating is limited, and tickets will be first come, first served… so get there early! Here’s the updated info on our new ticketing policy that you need to know:

• There is no admission fee — tickets are completely free
• The event is all ages
• Ticketing will begin at the Times Center at 2:00PM on Saturday, October 23rd, doors will open for seating at 5:45PM, and the show begins at 6:30PM
• We now have assigned seating, so the first people to get their tickets — and the Sprint text-to-win winners (see below) — will get priority seating. This also means that once you get a ticket, your seat is guaranteed — you won’t have to get back in line to get a good seat.
• We still had plenty of tickets left over at the last taping, so just because it’s 5:00pm and you finally finished Halo: Reach doesn’t mean you won’t get a seat at the show — so get your butt up to the Times Center!
• Ticketing will continue until all tickets are given away
• You cannot collect tickets for friends or family — anyone who would like to come must be present to get a ticket
• Seating capacity in the Times Center is about 340, and once we’re full, we’re full
• The venue is located at 41st St. between 7th and 8th Avenues in New York City (map after the break)
• The show length is around an hour

If you’re a member of the media who wishes to attend, please contact us at: engadgetshowmedia [at] engadget [dot] com, and we’ll try to accommodate you. All other non-media questions can be sent to: engadgetshow [at] engadget [dot] com.

Subscribe to the Show:

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The Engadget Show returns this Saturday, October 23rd with Windows Phone 7, Aaron Woodman, Google TV devices, and our first Halloween costume contest! originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Oct 2010 18:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Well, it looks like the Xbox 360 dashboard isn’t the only thing getting an overhaul this fall — Microsoft’s Major Nelson has just announced that Xbox.com will be getting a “massive facelift” tomorrow. The changes are more than just visual, however, and include a few new features that more tightly integrate the site with the Xbox 360 and Windows Phone 7. That includes a new browser-based avatar editor and, most interestingly, some web games that you’ll be able to play with your Xbox Live friends on the web or on Windows Phone 7 — no word if they’ll earn you achievements. Otherwise, you can expect a streamlined view of messages, friend and game requests, some new family reports that will let you see how your family is using Xbox Live, and some improved browsing and searching options for the Marketplace. It’s still not clear exactly when it’ll go live, but the site will be down for a short period starting at 5:00AM ET tomorrow to prepare for the changes — in the meantime, you can get a peek at what’s in store in the gallery below.

Xbox.com getting a major overhaul: browser-based avatar editor, WP7-connected web games originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Oct 2010 12:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft has just announced that Chief Software Architect Ray Ozzie is leaving the company, in the form of an open letter from Steve Ballmer to Microsoft employees. Ray, who succeeded Bill Gates in his currently held position, is famous for his focus on moving Microsoft into the cloud. As recently as June we saw Ray on stage at D8 with Steve Ballmer, and there’s no indication given in the open letter as to Ray’s reasons for leaving, though Steve does point out that much of Ray’s vision for the cloud is already in progress at Microsoft. Ray will stick around for a transition phase of unspecified length, and Ballmer doesn’t plan to fill the “unique” role of Chief Software Architect when he’s gone.

Ray Ozzie, Microsoft’s Chief Software Architect, is calling it quits originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 18 Oct 2010 17:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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