Hasta La Gadget!

We got a quick look at the latest version of the Access Linux Platform (ALP) today, running on an early build of TI’s OMAP 3-based Zoom hardware. Access seems excessively enthused with widgets, and really isn’t doing a bad job at them, featuring transparency galore and even a second home screen for housing a separate set of them (perhaps “work” or “home” or “really great world clocks”). The machine also run’s Access’ own NetFront browser, which isn’t quite as butter as we’ve seen WebKit get lately, but might be about on par with Microsoft’s new builds of Internet Explorer Mobile. Unfortunately, aside from a jerky, barebones “flickable” photo browser, that’s all Access is showing off of LiMo-compliant 3.0 at the moment, and we didn’t get a look at that Garnet OS compatibility layer we all know and love. Still, if you suffer from some irrational fear that we’d be short on mobile operating systems here at MWC you can at last rest at ease. Video is after the break.

Continue reading Access Linux Platform 3.0 live, in person, and oh-so-full of widgets

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Access Linux Platform 3.0 live, in person, and oh-so-full of widgets originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Feb 2009 07:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve got this image burned in our brains of the Pre as this slick, black, streamlined, ultra-glossy pebble of a phone, and by and large, that’s an accurate image — unless you spring for the Touchstone. The inductive charging accessory — which seems like an almost automatic purchase for any Pre buyer with a single geeky bone in their body — needs magnets in the Pre to hold it in place when it’s attached, but it turns out that the standard glossy battery cover doesn’t have those magnets. Instead, the Touchstone will include a replacement cover that has the magnets and loses the gloss for a stickier matte soft-touch surface, ostensibly to help secure the phone against the charger’s slanted top. For some, the soft-touch is going to be perceived as an upgrade — but others are undoubtedly going to be bummed that they won’t be able to see their own reflection against the shiny Palm logo dead center. What’s more, if you want the matte without the Touchstone, you’re out of luck (at launch, anyway) — it won’t be available separately. Whatever; it’s not like you weren’t planning on getting this thing Colorwared anyway.

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Palm Pre’s Touchstone charger requires matte, soft-touch battery cover originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Feb 2009 06:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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While perusing the Samsung booth for something fresh and fun we happened upon this, the Samsung SCH-M830. The M830 is a WiBro (mobile WiMax) and HSPA set, WiFI, Bluetooth, 3 megapixel camera, a 3.3-inch LCD, memory expansion with microSD, and runs Windows Mobile 6.1. The interface and all the UI elements were in Korean (see that Anycall branding? That’s the hint) so if there were any special goodies in there we definitely didn’t catch them. Impressions? It felt great and was really solid, but as to performance we can’t add much there — though just that big display had us smiling. Lovely gallery and a quick video flip-through follow the break.

Continue reading Samsung SCH-M830 hands-on

Filed under: Cellphones

Samsung SCH-M830 hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Feb 2009 22:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Looks like offline Gmail on the iPhone wasn’t the only trick Google’s Vic Gondotra has up his sleeve during his talk at MWC — he also gave a quick demo of Google Maps running as a web app on the Palm Pre. Of course, what’s interesting there is that the Pre’s HTML-based SDK means that web apps can act like first class citizens on the device — which is probably why Vic called the Pre “arguably one of my favorite devices.” Hopefully that means we’re going to see a lot more Pre devs really blur the line between local and cloud-based applications, but for now we’ll just settle for the short demo video after the break.

Continue reading Google demos HTML5-based Maps on the Palm Pre

Filed under: Cellphones

Google demos HTML5-based Maps on the Palm Pre originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Feb 2009 20:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If you were thinking offline Gmail on your desktop was the greatest thing since sliced bread, prepare yourselves people. If an MWC keynote from Google’s VP of engineering, Vic Gundotra, is any indication, the same functionality might be coming soon to an iPhone / Android phone near you. Amongst other things, the souped up web app boasts an overhauled interface, supports labels, and of course, offline access. Despite our own hunch that Google’s just using black magic and voodoo to make this happen, Gundotra claims that it’s all made possible through HTML5 standards — AppCache being the biggie. This development certainly opens the doors to more offline-enabled web apps in the future — Docs, anyone?. Of course, we know Apple has a thing about people messing with its own apps, so it’s probably going to take some time / knee-breaking to get them to come around, but for some reason, we don’t think it’ll take as long with Android. There’s a demo video available after the break, and please, try to contain yourselves.

Continue reading Google demos offline Gmail for iPhone, Android at MWC

Filed under: Cellphones

Google demos offline Gmail for iPhone, Android at MWC originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Feb 2009 18:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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