Walmart clearing off shelf space for $599 HP TouchPad?

Hey now, what’s this? Looks like Walmart has made some space on its crowded shelves for the HP TouchPad. An eagle-eyed tipster sent in a shot from his local Wally World of a tag and some room just waiting to be filled up with the planet’s first webOS slate. It’s always possible that someone’s just throwing out their latest Photoshop masterpiece, but the $599 mark certainly has an air of legitimacy (and matches what we saw, back in May). So why not swing by for a better look? And maybe pick up a few dozen iPhones while you’re at it.

[Thanks, Mitch]

Walmart clearing off shelf space for $599 HP TouchPad? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Jun 2011 16:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile might launch Samsung Exhibit 4G and Gravity Smart June 22nd?

Millions of schoolchildren may be getting ready for three months of lazy summer days, but T-Mob’s just starting to get its hustle on. Samsung’s Gingerbread-equipped Exhibit 4G and Froyo-laden Gravity Smart have been officially confirmed for sometime in the month of June, but all is quiet about the exact date. If this leaked screenshot above comes to fruition, though, it means we’ll be seeing these two phones hit the shelves on June 22. The Exhibit 4G will tempt us with access to T-Mobile’s 21 Mbps HSPA+ network, while the Gravity Smart looks to be a splendid entry-level QWERTY slider. The pricing for either phone is still anybody’s guess, but at least the possibilities have been narrowed to $100 or less — a good idea, since it wouldn’t take any sales away from the Sensation 4G if it were any higher.

T-Mobile might launch Samsung Exhibit 4G and Gravity Smart June 22nd? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Jun 2011 09:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ASUS UX21 to be priced at less than $1,000, says Commercial Times

The ASUS UX21, that 11.6-inch cake slicer that doubles up as an ultrathin laptop, is coming in September with a price tag of less than $1,000. That’s according to the Commercial Times, which cites supplier sources in identifying ASUS’ aggressive pricing strategy. Word is that the Taiwanese company is aiming to price the UX21 at 80 to 90 percent of the cost of Apple’s competing products, namely the MacBook Air family. Of course, with a second-gen Intel Core i5 (or i7) CPU inside it, ASUS’ new laptop has a significant spec advantage over Apple’s similarly aluminum-encased laptops, so we’d argue simply matching the MBA’s price will ensure the UX21 flies off store shelves. ASUS has a fine recent history of breaking through price barriers, as shown by the $200 Eee PC X101 that was announced alongside the UX21 at Computex, so if anyone was going to give us a 17mm-thick slab of up-to-date gorgeousness for less than $1,000, it probably had to be Jonney Shih’s crew.

ASUS UX21 to be priced at less than $1,000, says Commercial Times originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Jun 2011 03:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MobileNotifier dev snapped up by Apple to work on iOS framework?

We said that MobileNotifier unobtrusive notifications might be the single best reason to jailbreak your iOS device, and it sounds like Apple may agree — Redmond Pie reports that lead developer Peter Hajas has been spirited away by the Cupertino computer company to work on iOS itself. Hajas wrote that he was taking a break from MobileNotifier, and some newfangled detective work dug up the rest — a thinly-veiled reference to Steve Jobs, a tweet mentioning a California “fruit” company, and finally an alleged screenshot of Hajas’ entry in Apple’s employee database. We’re feeling slightly bittersweet about the whole thing, to tell the truth, as while we’d rather not have to smash our iPhone chains, the notion that this is all happening now suggests we won’t see greatly improved notifications in iOS 5, come Monday.

[Thanks, Jeff]

MobileNotifier dev snapped up by Apple to work on iOS framework? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Jun 2011 16:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nintendo Wii HD / Project Cafe rumor roundup: What will E3 hold for the gaming giant?

Nintendo Wii HD / Project Cafe rumor roundup: What will E3 hold for the gaming giant?

We’re a few days out from E3, that magical place where dreams are made and fanboys and girls from all walks of life are simultaneously appeased and slightly disappointed. Surprises are expected from all of the big three this year — particularly Nintendo. How will the gaming giant top last year’s 3DS debut? All signs point to the announcement of a Wii followup, which we’ve heard alternately referred to as the “Wii HD” and “Project Cafe.” Rumors, leaks, and the occasional bit of confirmed information have been rampant in the months and weeks leading up to the event. We’ve weaved it all together into one handy guidebook, to make sure that we’re all on the same page, come Tuesday morning.

Let’s start with a genuine bit of information: back in April, the company’s CEO, Satoru Iwata, confirmed that Nintendo is, in fact, working on an HD followup to the Wii that is most likely due out in 2012. A few days prior to that revelation, the requisite blurry images of console concepts surfaced, detailing controllers with embedded touchscreens that display the system’s 1080p gameplay via a technology called Stream Screen. These certainly weren’t the first concepts of the console we’ve seen — and they were apparently first brought to light by the folks at 4Chan.

Continue reading Nintendo Wii HD / Project Cafe rumor roundup: What will E3 hold for the gaming giant?

Nintendo Wii HD / Project Cafe rumor roundup: What will E3 hold for the gaming giant? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Jun 2011 11:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink GameDynamo, The Escapist, Joystiq, AfterDawn, Kotaku  |  sourceGI, CVG, IGN (1), (2), Andriasang  | Email this | Comments

Garmin in talks to buy Navigon?

It’s hard out there for a company making endangered gadgets. According to Reuters, flailing satnav maker Navigon could be acquired by none other than Garmin, which has struggled itself to maintain strong handheld navigator sales in the face of stiff competition from smartphones. The deal could be worth somewhere in the “mid-double-digit million” Euro range — a none-too-helpful estimate, but enough for us to understand that the personal navigator market is in such a state that Garmin could scoop up its rival for a pretty modest sum. Garmin, for its part, has been doing well, considering — it’s the top navigator brand in the US (a market Navigon has long since exited), and its profit nearly tripled in the most recent quarter. That’s largely thanks to those bestselling navigators, but also because the company’s been wise enough to reinvent itself as a purveyor of running watches and expand its boating and aviation businesses. In any case, if the Navigon brand is going bye bye, it looks like we could find out as soon as this month.

Garmin in talks to buy Navigon? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Jun 2011 18:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide gets pictured with Gingerbread, may debut next month

We didn’t know it was possible, but Mr. Blurrycam just got out-Blurrycam’d. After getting some quality hands-on time with the FCC this week, the T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide had a brief photo shoot showing off a few of its assets. The images, provided by one of BGR’s sources, give us a brief look at the device’s keyboard and some of its software specs. The myTouch 4G Slide appears to be running Android 2.3.4 — the same version of Gingerbread found on the Nexus S — and the latest iteration of HTC Sense UI. This source also confirmed an 8 megapixel camera and teased that the phone runs “as smoothly as the HTC Sensation” and the screen “isn’t much to write home about.” We hear that the myTouch 4G Slide is penciled in for the first half of July, and looks to be a mighty fine QWERTY-slide option within T-Mobile’s Android stable. Or, as good as one can look given the circumstances.

T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide gets pictured with Gingerbread, may debut next month originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Jun 2011 18:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple’s iCloud bags last major record label, will cost $25 / year to sign up?

We’d heard that Universal was the only holdout, and now CNET says the deal is done — Apple has reportedly signed all four major record labels for its upcoming iCloud service. We’ll be bringing you all the confirmed details on June 6th, but while you wait, here’s some food for thought: the Los Angeles Times says that Apple will eventually charge somewhere around $25 a year for a subscription to the cloud. That will help supplement the 58 percent piece of the pie it’s planning to take from the music industry for songs distributed though the network, and possibly some ad revenue as well. 30 percent will reportedly go to the labels, and another 12 percent to publishers, who will apparently be signing their own agreements with Apple tomorrow.

Update: There’s actually an interesting discrepancy between the two sources here: the LA Times reports that Apple’s taking that nice, juicy 58 percent, but CNET says that the labels will take 58 percent while Apple claims its traditional 30 percent instead. We’re investigating.

Update 2: The LA Times has updated its piece, with different percentages still — reportedly, Apple will take 18 percent, publishers get 12 percent, and labels 70 percent of the proceedings.

Apple’s iCloud bags last major record label, will cost $25 / year to sign up? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Jun 2011 17:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVO 4G getting Gingerbread on June 6th (or Friday if you’re impatient)

Well, this was inevitable. After Sprint’s website snafu outing its Android 2.3 intentions for the EVO 4G, we’ve received evidence that points to June 6th as its release date. Better yet, if you’re willing to manually check for its availability, you might even find a happy surprise this Friday. In addition to Gingerbread, users will find SMS and Gmail fixes, along with a tweak to the phone’s power management software. Hopefully you’ve got WiMAX, because this update is coming over-the-air. Should everything go according to plan, users will have less than a week to say goodbye to Froyo. It’s a trusty companion for sure, but that spicy aroma is quite enticing. Hit the break for some corroborating clues.

[Thanks, Tone Bone]

Continue reading EVO 4G getting Gingerbread on June 6th (or Friday if you’re impatient)

EVO 4G getting Gingerbread on June 6th (or Friday if you’re impatient) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Jun 2011 23:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC EVO 3D gets more RadioShack love, June 24 sticks out as possible launch date

We’ve been hearing all sorts of details on the HTC EVO 3D as of late, but the only thing that hadn’t popped out at us was the launch date. We knew the day was drawing near, evidenced by the phone being put up for pre-orders at Sprint and RadioShack, but we have a little more to chew on. The June 24th launch date on this promotional flyer jumps off the page more than the EVO 3D does, and we really want to believe it; but even if this is an official flyer, it could simply mean that’s when RadioShack will begin selling it and it won’t be related to Sprint’s official launch. Still, if you’ve been waiting with bated breath to get your hands on your very own copy of The Green Hornet — oh, and a sweet phone while you’re at it — hang tight just a smidge longer.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

HTC EVO 3D gets more RadioShack love, June 24 sticks out as possible launch date originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Jun 2011 21:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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