Hasta La Gadget!

Primed goes in-depth on the technobabble you hear on Engadget every day — we dig deep into each topic’s history and how it benefits our lives. Looking to suggest a piece of technology for us to break down? Drop us a line at primed *at* engadget *dawt* com.

The world of wireless is dragging us into the 21st century kicking and screaming. Our treatise on NFC was a great sneak peek into how our future will play out over the next five years, but we’re also seeing other types of suave new tricks coming out as short-range wireless technology creeps closer to the mainstream. Wireless is the crux of convenience that will keep us calm enough to make our way through this speed-demon culture. It didn’t take long for our quest to obtain simpler and faster everything to become an obsession, and it shows no signs of stopping; on the contrary, it’s only speeding up exponentially at a rate even manufacturers have a hard time keeping up with.

Wireless charging is making some serious headway in public mindshare. Once confined to toothbrushes and other simple household items, it’s now a handy means of powering phones (HP’s Touchstone, for example) and media players, and it’ll soon be ready to charge up our notebooks and cameras at our command. Are we sure this is the future, or will this just be a passing fad? Why should it matter? Read on after the break to get the air-conditioned answers to those burning questions.

Continue reading Engadget Primed: how wireless and inductive charging works

Engadget Primed: how wireless and inductive charging works originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 24 Jun 2011 12:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You can’t stop Verizon’s nationwide LTE push — and even hoping to contain it seems like a bit much to ask these days. The company made its last major 4G service rollout just under a week ago, and now it’s looking to do the same next month, adding a slew of new markets to its coverage umbrella and expanding in a few existing locales on July 21st. New markets include Portland, OR, Toledo, OH, Winston-Salem and Raleigh-Durham, NC, Maui, HI, Wichita, KS, and Knoxville, TN, to name a few. Coverage will be expanded in Seattle, Louisville, Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Diego, and Las Vegas. The full list of high-speed recipients can be found in the link below.

Verizon’s next big LTE push coming July 21st originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Jun 2011 12:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Boost and Verizon shouldn’t have all the fun, right? The latest kid to do a cannonball into the low-cost prepaid pool is wearing a blue-and-orange swimsuit, as AT&T will be ready to start up $50 unlimited GoPhone plans June 26th. The new prepaid selection sheds $10 off its previous limitless talk and text offering, while tossing in web access for Quick Messaging Phones. In order to be fully competitive in the pay-as-you-go realm, the aforementioned plan will allow the same texting privileges across our borders; you’ll be able to SMS or IM your buddies in Mexico, Canada, and 100 other countries. The unfortunate (albeit unsurprising) part is that heading the smartphone route will come at an additional monthly cost, ranging from $5 to $25. Even though it seems Big Blue is a little tardy for the party, a wireless giant is never late — it arrives exactly when it means to. Full press release after the break.

Continue reading AT&T to offer $50 unlimited prepaid plan, ready to ‘GoPhone’ June 26th

AT&T to offer $50 unlimited prepaid plan, ready to ‘GoPhone’ June 26th originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Jun 2011 13:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Continue reading Verizon tiered data plans coming July 7, starting at $30? (update)

Verizon tiered data plans coming July 7, starting at $30? (update) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 20 Jun 2011 14:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The army of high-speed broadband phones is actively seeking new recruits to join its rapidly-growing force, and the LG Revolution is the latest to graduate from boot camp. We’ve witnessed the emergence of three Verizon LTE handsets in as many months, beginning with the HTC Thunderbolt and the Samsung Droid Charge a few weeks later. As if this wasn’t enough choice to tempt your tastebuds already, the LG Revolution — the entertaining climax to the classic 4G trilogy — was born one full moon after that. With three options, all so close to each other in dimension and features, it’s natural to compare all of ’em and make the call on which one is the best of the bunch. Is LG’s first crack at Verizon’s LTE network truly a game-changer, as its name suggests? Or does this Revolution fail to even get its feet off the ground? Read on after the break to find out.

Continue reading LG Revolution review

LG Revolution review originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 17 Jun 2011 16:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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