Hasta La Gadget!

Coming in 2012, Nintendo’s next home console will deliver “deeper game experiences” that aim to offer “something for everyone.” And it’ll be called the Wii U! A variety of new controls will be made available by that crazy new controller with a 6.2-inch touchscreen embedded in it. Most importantly, you’ll no longer be tied to a TV to enjoy your home consoling action — the Wii U controller can handle your gaming session when the television is needed for other purposes, while a built-in front-facing cam will let you video chat from anywhere too. Notably, you won’t have to use the 6.2-inch behemoth if you don’t want too — the Wii U will be compatible with all current-gen accessories and software. Yes, your expansive Wii collection will play on the U version of the console as well. We’ve also seen some decidedly high-def visuals from Nintendo showing off the Wii U’s graphical prowess. See video of the unveiling after the break!

Batman: Arkham City, an Assassin’s Creed game, Dirt, Ghost Recon Online, Tekken, Metro Last Light, Aliens Colonial Marines, Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor’s Edge, and Darksiders II all got a mention as coming to the Wii U. Yes! EA’s John Riccitiello just said the Wii U will deliver “brilliant HD graphics.” Finally, the Wii is going HD!

Speaking of HD, the fact sheet from Nintendo informs us that the Wii U can pump out 1080p video over HDMI. It’ll also be compatible with component, S-video and composite cables. There’ll be “internal flash memory” of unspecified quantity, which will be expandable via either an SD card or external USB HDD. IBM is, as with the original Wii, once again responsible for providing the processor inside. Four USB 2.0 slots are made available, while game media will be served up on “proprietary high-density optical discs.” There’s also another, worthwhile, reminder that the Wii U will play Wii games and their optical discs without a problem.

Update: We just got word from the folks at Kotaku that Nintendo game designer Katsuya Eguchi has revealed the Wii U’s proprietary disc format will hold up to 25GB of data.

Update 2: And now we have the final piece of the puzzle: the Wii U’s graphics will be handled by a “custom AMD Radeon HD GPU.”

Continue reading The Wii U, Nintendo’s next console (video)

The Wii U, Nintendo’s next console (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Jun 2011 12:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The HTC bonanza that Sprint has been cooking up for a while now has its official launch date: June 24th. That will be the day when the 4.3-inch EVO 3D and its tablet buddy, the 7-inch EVO View 4G, launch on the Now Network, both equipped with WiMAX radios and Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) as their OS. The 1.2GHz dual-core EVO 3D costs $200 on contract, with pre-orders available right now provided you buy a $50 Sprint gift card, whereas the 1.5GHz single-core EVO View 4G will set you back double that, at $400, while still requiring a two-year contract. Skip past the break for the full press release details.

Oh, we’ve also just noticed that Sprint Premier customers will be able to buy the EVO 3D online on June 21st — a three-day headstart on the competition to say thank you for being so damn premier.

Continue reading HTC EVO 3D launches on June 24th for $200, joined by EVO View 4G tablet at $400

HTC EVO 3D launches on June 24th for $200, joined by EVO View 4G tablet at $400 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Jun 2011 07:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon is seriously diversifying its portfolio today with the official in-store launch of four new smartphones. Three of them roll up in Android gear, though they all have major selling points beyond Google’s software. LG’s Revolution is the sole LTE-capable handset of the bunch, bringing with it a 4.3-inch screen and pre-installed Netflix for $250. The Droid X2 undercuts it on price, at $200, but doubles the core count with its Tegra 2 processor and ramps up resolution to qHD (960 x 540). Gaming aficionados can spend the same amount on the Xperia Play from Sony Ericsson, which offers a slideout gamepad and unique PlayStation Certified status. Bringing up the rear is HTC’s well-traveled Trophy, a 3.8-inch Windows Phone that accepts it’s a little late to the party and therefore slices $50 off its asking price, with a $150 levy before the obligatory two-year contract. What say you — buy, try, or keep waiting?

Verizon bonanza: Droid X2, Revolution, Trophy, and Xperia Play hit Big Red today originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 26 May 2011 02:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mango may no longer be a secret in and of itself, but we doubt Microsoft would’ve set up an entire event to preview its big Windows Phone update if there was nothing hidden up that Redmond sleeve. To that end, we’ve just come across an official press release from the company, released on its Romanian website. The machine translation awaits after the break.

Update: We’ve now swapped in the natively English press release. There’s also confirmation that Mango will indeed be known as Windows Phone 7.1.

Update 2: Turns out Microsoft “had to give [the SDK] a name” and dubbed it 7.1, so Mango retains its formal WP7 moniker.

The first thing to note is that the update will be “freely available” to all current Windows Phone handsets, something Microsoft already committed to, and will be ready for download “at the beginning of this summer.” (Update: it looks like our translation machinery betrayed us, tipsters are saying it’s actually the beginning of autumn.) Naturally, the new goodness will also figure in new devices and from new partners, including Acer, Fujitsu, and ZTE. Those fresh faces join Nokia and the incumbent partners of Dell (maybe) HTC, Samsung, and LG to expand the WP ecosystem.

A Beta SDK of the new Windows Phone free tools will be available within 24 hours, we’re promised, for developers to sink their teeth into.

In the communications department, Microsoft is introducing conversation threads, which seamlessly transition between MSN Messenger chats, SMS, and Facebook messaging to keep you talking to the same person irrespective of the method. New contact group tiles are also incoming, with the ability to send quick emails or IMs to entire groups. Twitter and LinkedIn contact integration is mentioned, though we expect this go a lot deeper in Twitter’s case, as Microsoft has already demonstrated. Speaking of more in-depth integration, Microsoft has improved the Live Tiles to allow the display of more dynamic information from apps, which will of course be able to multitask beautifully. Internet Explorer 9 is also joining in on the Mango fun with support for HTML5. Jump past the break for all the details.

Update 3: Would you look at that, Bing search has gotten a thorough sprucing up as well. Video of all the new goodness follows after the break — or you can click here to hit up Microsoft’s own video library, which is loaded to the gills with feature overviews.

Continue reading Microsoft announces Windows Phone ‘Mango’ update, coming in autumn (updated)

Microsoft announces Windows Phone ‘Mango’ update, coming in autumn (updated) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 May 2011 09:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The XPS 15z, true to Michael Dell’s word, is now with us. Provided “now” is May the 24th in whatever part of the world you happen to live in. Laptop shoppers in Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan — a group of nations already enjoying the glories of Tuesday — can now buy the 0.97 inches-thick 15z for prices starting at just under A$1,400. That buys you a Core i5-2410M from Intel (2.3GHz default speed, 2.9GHz with Turbo Boost), a generous 6GB of DDR3 RAM, backlit keyboard, GeForce GT 525M graphics with 2GB of dedicated memory, a 750GB hard drive, and a 64WHr battery. The screen spans 15.6 inches diagonally and offers 1920 x 1080 resolution. Stepping up to A$1,700 gets you a Core i7-2620M (2.7GHz default, 3.4GHz TB) and 8GB of RAM. Juicy specs, we must admit. Now when’s midnight coming?

[Thanks, John]

Dell XPS 15z available in Australia and Asia, fits Sandy Bridge in under an inch of thickness originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 May 2011 18:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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