Flash 10.1 announced for just about anything with a screen, webOS and WinMo betas this year (update: Pre video!)

Flash 10 already supports HD video on the desktop, but 10.1 — announced this week at Adobe’s MAX conference in Los Angeles — is being billed the first to really reap the full benefits of the Open Screen Project by unifying feature sets across a wide variety of platforms on the desktop, the laptop, and the pocket. As usual, Windows, Mac, and Linux will all get hooked up with the latest release, but public betas of 10.1 for Windows Mobile and webOS will be hitting before the end of the year as well followed by Android and Symbian in “early” 2010. RIM’s also gotten official with its rumored membership in the Open Screen Project, though the lack of a timeline for 10.1 support in BlackBerry OS is a stark reminder of the long technical road that lies ahead for Waterloo as it tries to match the smartphone competition tit-for-tat in the multimedia space. At the end of the day, mobile Flash means nothing without the horsepower to properly drive it, so let’s hope that Tegra, Snapdragon, and next-generation architectures like OMAP4 start to come on board en masse just as these builds come out of beta.

Speaking of fast chipsets, the other big news out of the show is that Flash 10.1 will take advantage of GPU acceleration on a number of key mobile platforms, including both nVidia’s Tegra and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon alongside ION for smooth (well, theoretically smooth) 720p and 1080p video on the latest generation of netbooks and smartbooks.

Update: Added video of the Palm Pre running three instances of Flash in parallel after the break.

Read – Flash 10.1 announcement
Read – RIM joins the OSP

Continue reading Flash 10.1 announced for just about anything with a screen, webOS and WinMo betas this year (update: Pre video!)

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Flash 10.1 announced for just about anything with a screen, webOS and WinMo betas this year (update: Pre video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 01:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC Pure and Tilt 2 bring Windows Mobile 6.5 to AT&T

Long-rumored versions of HTC’s ubiquitous Touch Diamond2 and Touch Pro2 have finally been made official for AT&T — but perhaps more notably, they mark AT&T’s very first forays into the WinMo 6.5 arena as Microsoft officially unleashes the latest version of its mobile platform on the world this week. The Pure (pictured left) is a particularly heavy rework of the Diamond2’s industrial design, shedding the square metal-adorned shell for a glossy black plastic one while carrying over the 3.2-inch WVGA display and 5 megapixel autofocus camera. Meanwhile, the Tilt 2 resurrects the Tilt name — dormant since AT&T’s version of the TyTN II made way for the Fuze last year — bringing a 3.6-inch WVGA display, full QWERTY keyboard with tilt-up display (hence the name), full duplex speakerphone, and a 3.2 megapixel cam. The Pure will be the first on shelves, available already (ahead of Microsoft’s official release on Tuesday, interestingly) for $149.99 on contract after a $50 rebate; the Tilt2 comes “in the following weeks” for $299.99 after $50 rebate.

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HTC Pure and Tilt 2 bring Windows Mobile 6.5 to AT&T originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 00:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AT&T Pure now on sale — with Windows Mobile 6.5

Well hey, look at that — AT&T’s riff on the HTC Touch Diamond2, the Pure, has quietly gone on sale, meaning Windows Mobile 6.5 just hit the world a couple days early. The glory won’t last long, though: the nicer Imagio is hitting Verizon on the 6th, and the Leo‘s looming. Still — WinMo 6.5 is here. Let’s get crazy.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

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AT&T Pure now on sale — with Windows Mobile 6.5 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 04 Oct 2009 15:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC Pure starting to show up in AT&T stores, not for sale just yet

We’ll withhold judgment until we have a far more intimate encounter with the device, but at a glance, the HTC Pure — AT&T’s branded, customized version of the Touch Diamond2 — might carry the least-exciting industrial design of any variant launched thus far. Considering the business-oriented clientele, that might not be a big deal for the phone’s bottom line — but when you take a look at the slightly better-equipped Imagio that’s about to launch over on Verizon, we would’ve liked to have seen something with a little more spunk here. At any rate, it seems Pure units are starting to flow into AT&T retail locations, which inevitably leads to some time in front of the bright lights and camera; AT&T was mentioned as one of Microsoft’s global launch partners for Windows Mobile 6.5 on October 6, so if we connect the dots, we’re guessing this is the phone that’s gonna make it all happen. So where’s that Touch Pro2, then, eh?

[Via wmpoweruser.com]

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HTC Pure starting to show up in AT&T stores, not for sale just yet originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 02 Oct 2009 16:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon’s HTC Imagio toyed with on video, sized up against BlackBerry Storm

Interested in HTC’s upcoming slate of WinMo 6.5 goodness for Verizon? How interested? Interested enough to peek a minty fresh video of the thing in action? If you’re nodding your head up and down with any level of ferocity, we’d encourage you to re-familiarize yourself with the specifications, come to terms with the fact that there’s no way you’re laying hands on this yourself prior to October 6th, click on past the break and mash play. In that order, please.

[Thanks, Mark]

Continue reading Verizon’s HTC Imagio toyed with on video, sized up against BlackBerry Storm

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Verizon’s HTC Imagio toyed with on video, sized up against BlackBerry Storm originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 02 Oct 2009 05:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon launching Omnia II later this month — with WinMo 6.1?

With the Imagio having just launched and the Omnia II coming down the pike, it’s easy to be lulled into the false sense of security that Verizon subscribers will soon have their pick of several high-end smartphones running Windows Mobile 6.5 this month. Sure, the Touch Pro2 runs 6.1 for the time being, but the Omnia II must be hitting with 6.5 at launch — right? Not so fast; WMExperts alleges that when Samsung’s latest US-bound smartphone hits later this month, it’ll have 6.1 loaded, and although a 6.5 update is eventually planned, it won’t come “for a while.” That’s a huge disappointment if true, and it’ll be a tough situation to explain if they’ve got the Imagio launching on the 6th with 6.5 and the Omnia II comes, say, two weeks later with an operating system nearly two years older (not to say we expect the jump from 6.1 to 6.5 feel like two years’ worth of improvement, but still). Heck, we can’t believe we’re saying this, but we think it might even be worth their while to delay the phone by a few weeks if it meant they’d be able to be on shelves with 6.5 from day one — but maybe that’s why we’re writers and not Verizon marketing strategists.

[Via pocketnow.com]

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Verizon launching Omnia II later this month — with WinMo 6.1? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Oct 2009 09:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC Imagio launches on Verizon: WinMo 6.5 and VCAST TV on October 6

Those Imagio rumors have proven to be deliciously correct, with Verizon officially announcing the beastly Windows Mobile 6.5 set for availability on October 6 — the first day 6.5 devices will officially be available anywhere. HTC’s latest CDMA device features a spacious wide VGA display clocking in at 3.6 inches, a 5 megapixel autofocus cam, quadband EDGE plus HSPA 2100 for when you’re looking for a little connectivity abroad, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and the very latest iteration of TouchFLO 3D featuring social network integration, but the most interesting feature might be its support for MediaFLO-based VCAST TV — a first for HTC and Windows Mobile. Interest parties need only wait until next Tuesday to latch onto an Imagio online, while retail stores will be taking delivery on the 20th of the month — either way, you’ll be paying $199.99 on contract after rebate.

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HTC Imagio launches on Verizon: WinMo 6.5 and VCAST TV on October 6 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Oct 2009 00:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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TerreStar Genus: AT&T’s first dual-mode cellular / satellite smartphone

Welp, that didn’t take long. Just a few months after TerreStar announced that it had completed its first call on the new bird, the revived sat phone provider has now announced the first dual-mode smartphone for AT&T. Granted, we knew these two would be holding hands in the near future, but it’s still refreshing to see the Genus hit the landscape. The WinMo-based phone will ship with a 2.6-inch touchscreen, WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS and GSM / GPRS / EDGE / UMTS / HSDPA radios. Oh, and it can tap into satellite waves too. This one’s actually aimed at government, energy, utility, transportation and maritime users, and while it’s slated to ship in Q1 2010 for an undisclosed amount, AT&T assures us that a consumer-oriented version is in the pipeline. Too bad this only enhances coverage in the US, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands and territorial waters — we always dreamed of phoning home from Komsomolets Island.

[Via phonescoop]

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TerreStar Genus: AT&T’s first dual-mode cellular / satellite smartphone originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 13:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC HD2 makes first official appearance in O2 UK catalog

We’ve been furnished with the above page from an O2 in-store catalog detailing the HTC HD2 (aka Leo), which was set for a UK release on October 12 (though we’re hearing that may have slipped to the 26th). Interesting that it’s pictured with a stock Windows Mobile 6.5 UI instead of TouchFLO 3D. Is O2 rushing HTC’s new hotness out the door in response to losing its iPhone supremacy? Or did an absent-minded employee just slip out the catalogs ahead of time? We’re getting in touch with O2 to find out and will update with more details as we get them. For now, check out the full catalog page after the break.

[Thanks, Peter W.]

Update: After O2 stonewalled our phone enquiries, we decided to drop by our nearest (which was still annoyingly far away) store to have a look for ourselves. Alas, we only found September issues of the catalog, and the above snapshot is from the October iteration, which sports a big fat Pre promo on the front. So, anyone else seen an advance copy yet?

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HTC HD2 makes first official appearance in O2 UK catalog originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 08:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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C-motech shows off Snapdragon-powered Mangrove tablet

No, the device you see above is not simply a comically large smartphone (at least we don’t think it is). It’s actually a Snapdragon-powered, Windows Mobile 6.5-running tablet developed by the folks at C-motech. While complete details are still a bit hard to come by, this so-called “Mangrove” device reportedly packs a 7-inch touchscreen, along with a full range of connectivity options including WiFi, 3G and WiMAX, plus a pair of USB ports and a microSD card slot for a bit more flexibility. Of course, it is still just a concept at the moment, but C-motech is apparently looking at ways to bring it to market — although your guess is as good as ours as to whether it’ll actually hang onto Windows Mobile during that transition or not.

[Via jkkmobile]

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C-motech shows off Snapdragon-powered Mangrove tablet originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 Sep 2009 14:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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