Dell seems to be taking a graduated approach to tablets. While other big names around it seemed unwilling to commit themselves in a hurry, Dell was quick to enter the nascent market with the 5-inch Streak, which marked a very circumspect foray into uncharted territory. Dell was probably trying to hedge its bet by letting the Streak function as a phone. The PC maker now seems ready to raise its tablet game a notch.
There was one question about the Streak that Jon Phillips, Maximum PC's editorial director, could not answer while reviewing the device: “Smartphone, tablet, GPS navigator, what is it?” He wasn't alone, though.
“We’re going to take Dell up on the tablet designation, which is why it receives a 6 verdict – two verdict points lower than what we gave the iPad in June. With even a 7-inch screen (which is rumored, by the way), the Streak would warrant a solid 7,” reads the business end of that review.
The odds of the next Dell tablet receiving more than 6 verdict points from MPC have certainly improved with this announcement.
We're not sure what's more disheartening, the fact that Brianna Hendrickson, a 13-year-old from Brooklyn, New York text messages her friends and family 7,000 times a month, or that doing so prepared her to win this year's LG U.S. National Texting Championship and bring home $50,000 for her efforts.
Either way, little Miss Hendrickson has a good jump on her college tuition after beating out 500,000 other texters who participated in the challenge. During the final battle, Hendrickson triumphed over two other teens and a 48-year-old woman from Chicago by being the first to accurately type, "Old McDonald had a farm, Ei, ei, oh! And on this farm he had a champ. W/a txtr here, and BFF there. Here a text, there a text, erywhere a text-text!"
"I was really nervous when I saw the final phrase and worried my fingers wouldn't be fast enough," Hendrickson said. "Hearing my name announced was amazing and shocking all at the same time."
Hendrickson is now eligible to compete in the LG Text for Good Challenge, in which she could double her cash price, plus another $50,000 for a charity of her choosing.
Wires are the bane of any neat freak's home theater setup, so it should come as good news that AuraSound went and developed the industry's first wireless 5.1 soundbar for TVs.
"We are very excited to introduce the wireless 5.1 soundbar which will immerse individuals in a rich audio experience from their home entertainment systems," Mr. Harald Weisshaupt, President and CEO stated. "The response from both our retail and OEM customers has been outstanding."
The wireless soundbar measures 42 inches and includes four 3-inch hand-built mid/bass transducers and two 3/4-inch aluminum dome neodymium tweeters. A pair of satellites and a wireless subwoofer round out the package. Equipped with a 6.5-inch long throw driver, the sub's frequency comes rated at 35Hz up to 80Hz, so it's not going to trade low blows with the likes of Outlaw, SVS, or Hsu subwoofers, but it's all about reducing clutter here, and AuraSound's subwoofer can be placed within 60 feet of the soundbar (with a clear line of sight). As for lag? AuroSound claims a latency equal to the speed of sound (1ms/ft).
Volume shipments have already begun, and from what AuroSound tells us, it's "selling like hotcakes at almost all the major U.S. retailers." MSRP for the 5.1 system is $429.
Motorola Droid X owners will be happy to know that Verizon has begun rolling out Android 2.2, otherwise known as Froyo, as an over-the-air (OTA) update. If you haven't already, you should be receiving it within the next few days.
Android 2.2 brings a number of enhancements to the Droid X, some of which include:
Native Adobe Flash Player 10.1
Enhanced browser performance
Automatic app updates
Improved Exchange support
Transition from Wi-Fi and 3G without losing data connection
For those of you feeling impatient, you can force an update immediately. To do so, tap Menu from the main menu, select Settings - About phone - System updates. Mash the download button and follow the on-screen instructions to install.
A new report (PDF) by market firm DisplaySearch suggests that even though 3D is making a strong push to penetrate the notebook market, consumers are a little reluctant to buy into the hype.
"Is the market ready to accept 3D in a notebook PC? If the sales this year are any indication, then it seems that consumers are, so far, hesitant to embrace 3D notebook PCs," DisplaySearch said in its report. "Since the beginning of the year, less than 100,000 3D-equipped notebook PCs have been sold in a market of more than 100 million notebooks. That is less than one-tenth of one percent of the total notebook PC market."
In another recent study -- this one conducted by Nielsen -- consumers who viewed 3D content became less interested in purchasing a 3D TV. Factor in higher costs and concerns over having to wear 3D glasses, it could be awhile before 3D truly enters the mainstream.
Do you think 3D is here to stay, or just a passing fad?
The Arctic from Wicked Lasers is a spectacular affirmation of the forward march of technology. But should a 750-milliwatt, handheld blue laser even be legal for sale?
The article you’re about to read is a story of furious power unleashed. It’s a story about technology that must be seen to be believed, but causes serious concern among federal agencies.
The USB 2.0 drive can, of course, also write onto CD-R (24x), CD-RW (16x), DVD-RAM (5x), DVD+/-R (8x), DVD+/-R Double/Dual layer (4x), DVD+RW (8x), and DVD-RW (6x). It also doubles up as a 3D Blu-ray player.
According to Sony, the BDX-S500U will retail for $200 when it becomes available later this month. That said, it is already available from a few online retailers.
Running with no shoes on, the theory goes, makes for faster reflexes, a stronger body, and a healthier mind. Fans of the style claim that even the lightest-weight shoes are unnatural and actually weaken your feet over the long term, causing more injuries than they prevent because they alter our natural biomechanics. All that support in the heel? It just encourages a disproportionately heavy heel strike. A thick outsole? It mutes our proprioception—our subconscious sense of spatial orientation.
AT&T just launched its TerreStar Genus smartphone first announced about a year ago. This dual-mode hybrid phone serves up satellite capability as a secondary option for voice, data, and messaging.
"We understand the importance to stay connected in remote locations and especially in emergency situations, and today’s announcement is the latest example of AT&T’s commitment to delivering the highest levels of service, quality and reliability for customers," said Michael Antieri, President, Advanced Enterprise Mobility Solutions, AT&T Business Solutions. "With this expansion of AT&T’s innovative mobility portfolio, AT&T is helping businesses and government agencies stay connected with a single device, single support contact and single bill."
The TerreStar Genus runs on Windows Mobile 6.5 and includes a 2.6-inch touchscreen, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 2MP camera, GPS, microSD card slot, and a full QWERTY keyboard.
It's available now for enterprise, government, and small business customers for $800, with phone and satellite service running $25/month.
We're not hating on TN panels, but when price is not an object, we'll take an IPS over a TN screen 10 times out of 10 (or 11 times out of 10 now that gaming performance usually isn't an issue). Alas, for most people price is an issue, and LaCie's latest 24-inch IPS display commands a hefty premium.
Pricing starts out at $1,250, which doesn't include the optional hood and blue eye colorimeter. What it does include is a 10-bit P-IPS LCD panel with wide color gamuts. We're talking 102 percent NTSC and 98 percent RGB.
"For years, LaCie has designed monitors for digital artists who demand color precision," said Ahcene Tirane, LaCie Product Manager for Displays. "From concept to creation, LaCie developed the 324i with the highest level of color accuracy, and with a firm belief that when professionals have a tool that enhances their workflow, they can deliver their best work."
The display supports a native resolution of 1920x1200 (16:10). It comes equipped with an HDMI port, DisplayPort, DVI-D port, and Component connection. Other features include a 1000:1 contrast ratio, 6ms response time (gray to gray), and audio inputs.
The pricey panel is available now direct from LaCie.
maximumpc: Opera browser for Android is out of beta and free to download, includes "off road" mode and more: http://t.co/6ODBEJKeVv1 hour 49 min ago
maximumpc: MS pulls the wraps off its next-gen console, the Xbox One, with an AMD APU, 8GB of RAM, 500GB HDD, Blu Ray and more: http://t.co/hPif19wC3J3 hours 28 min ago
maximumpc: Yahoo revamps Flickr with a new user interface, much bigger photos, and 1TB of free storage: http://t.co/ubqZloCTRi4 hours 13 min ago
