Hasta La Gadget!

To the delight of shopaholics everywhere, Visa has announced that it’s jumped on the Google Wallet bandwagon — giving card users access to the snazzy, new NFC payment system. Much like MasterCard’s announcement last week, the licensing agreement will allow Visa users to link their credit, debit and prepaid cards to Google’s offering for fast mobile payments in places that accept the service. The credit card company has dabbled in mobile payments before through payWave, but with plans to integrate into GW, we’ll surely be seeing more of it in the near future. As momentum over the NFC-powered mobile phones grows, it will be interesting to see if the Real Housewives can part with their phones long enough for their assistants to pay for those Manolos. Check out the full PR after the break.

Continue reading Polyamorous Google Wallet adds Visa to its arsenal

Polyamorous Google Wallet adds Visa to its arsenal originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Sep 2011 00:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Amazon’s Appstore hasn’t set the world on fire just yet — perhaps due to the fact that it was a US-only store since launch. That could soon change, with a number of Amazon customers reporting that the curated Android marketplace is now open for business across western Europe, also working in India and Australia. We’ve tested it for ourselves, and can confirm it’s functioning with our Amazon UK account, though its dedicated webpage is still based at Amazon.com. Register with the site, and you’ll be able to rush the free daily app downloads, which has previously offered the likes of Angry Birds Rio and SwitftKey — worth a regular visit, regardless of what time zone you’re in.

[Thanks Nate]

Update: Looks like we jumped the gun, as the Appstore is now no longer functioning for our friends across the pond. (Thanks, Felix)

Amazon Appstore goes global: available now in Europe, Australia and India (update: not so fast) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 19 Sep 2011 21:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s far too early to be writing it off, of course, but AT&T’s proposed acquisition of T-Mobile is facing some fairly significant hurdles that could throw a big wrench in the companies’ plans — not the least of which is a lawsuit from the US Department of Justice. Now, according to Blooomberg, AT&T is proactively talking to a number of smaller rivals about selling some of its assets (namely, “spectrum and subscribers”) in an effort to save the deal. While talks are described as “preliminary,” AT&T has reportedly already reached out to MetroPCS, Leap Wireless, Dish Network, CenturyLink and even Sprint, although Bloomberg notes that any such sell-off may still not be enough to please the DOJ. As you might expect, all of those companies are remaining mum on the matter.

AT&T reportedly talking to rivals about asset sales in effort to save T-Mobile deal originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 19 Sep 2011 14:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Well, since Samsung couldn’t get an early peek at the iPhone 5 and iPad 3, the company has simply decided to take a page from Apple’s playbook. A senior exec told The Korea Times it plans to file a request to block the sale of the upcoming iOS handset in its Korean homeland the moment the device is announced. According to the Times, the anonymous exec said it would leverage its wireless technology patents and demand that Apple either remove the telecommunications features — turning the iPhone into an iPod touch — or simply be banished from the Korean market. The knock-down-drag-out war between the two companies has only seemed to escalate in recent weeks, as Sammy has taken a much more combative and offensive approach. We can only hope the two get tired of divvying up the globe and declare a draw in this game of patent Risk.

Samsung moves to block iPhone 5 in Korea, expands its anti-Apple offensive originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 19 Sep 2011 12:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s not hard to find a good inductive charging smartphone these days, but German IT student Qian Qin absolutely had to have the feature on his Galaxy S Plus. What’s more, it needed to be just right: no voiding of the warranty and no unsightly protrusions. So, instead of bumping his gums, he went out and purchased a Palm Pre back cover and a Touchstone dock for €30 ($40), ripped the charging circuit out of the Pre cover and stuck it into the Samsung’s cover, then finally soldered a wire from the circuit to the micro-USB port (plus another wire to the microSD slot for 0V). Job done. At first, the mere mention of a webOS device gave us a twinge of sadness, but then the video after the break cheered us right up again — you can tell within the first six seconds that this guy is a pure OCD perfectionist. You’ll also find more detailed instructions at the source link, and they should work equally well for the original Galaxy S too.

Continue reading Mr Fussy mods Samsung Galaxy S for inductive charging, without frazzling warranty (video)

Mr Fussy mods Samsung Galaxy S for inductive charging, without frazzling warranty (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 18 Sep 2011 19:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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