Archive for May 26th, 2009

When T-Mobile finally decided to join the 3G data card bandwagon earlier this year, we figured it prudent to grab a few sticks from the likes of T-Mob, Sprint, Verizon Wireless and AT&T in order to see which carrier provides the most bang for the buck in the mobile data arena. And trust us, it’s about more than just uplink and downlink rates in 2G / 3G regions these days — it’s about figuring out which operator provides the coverage you need at the price you can afford, all while dodging those precarious overage charges and finding yourself out of luck when traveling overseas. Join us after the break as we delve into the deep, murky realm that is mobile broadband, and prepare to have your every preconceived notion about this stuff utterly destroyed.

Continue reading Engadget Labs: The best mobile data carrier in America

Filed under: Cellphones, Peripherals, Wireless

Engadget Labs: The best mobile data carrier in America originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 May 2009 16:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HP just recalled a hefty 70,000 laptop batteries earlier this month, but it looks like it still has a few more fires to put out, and it’s now recalled another 15,000 batteries sold in China. No reports of any actual “flames / fire” this time around but, as with countless other recalls, the batteries are apparently prone to overheating, and can indeed pose a pesky fire hazard. Word of specific models affected is also a bit hard to come by at the moment, but the batteries were apparently used in laptops manufactured between late 2007 and early 2008, and include models sold under both the HP Pavilion and Compaq Presario brands. If that sounds like your laptop, you can get in touch with HP China for a free replacement battery.

Filed under: Laptops

HP recalls another 15,000 laptop batteries, this time in China originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 May 2009 16:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ah, Spring. The season of vacations, beach attire and VAIO updates. We already heard that Sony was giving its VAIO P netbook a dose of Windows XP and an optional 256GB SSD, but that was just the tip of the iceberg. Indeed, the Type T, Type Z, Type F and Type A are all getting makeovers, so we’ll do our best to break ‘em down right. The beastly A series will continue to be menacing, boasting an 18.4-inch 1080p panel, WiFi, a HDD / SSD hybrid system, 4GB of RAM, a Blu-ray drive and a GeForce 9600M GT. The F series rolls in with a 16.4-inch display, 4GB of memory, ATI’s 256MB Mobility Radeon HD 3470, WiFi, a battery good for three hours and a Core 2 Duo P8700. The other guys are seeing far lighter touchups, but you can feel free to have a look at all of these Japan-bound units in the links below.

Read – VAIO updates I
Read – VAIO updates II

Filed under: Laptops

Sony updates plethora of VAIO laptops in Japan originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 May 2009 15:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Well, here’s a wild new spin on the Android for netbooks debate: Canonical, commercial sponsor of Ubuntu, is creating an Android execution environment that would allow Android apps to run on Ubuntu and other desktop-style Linux distros, which seems like the best of both worlds for netbooks in most cases. Canonical already has a working prototype of the execution environment, and plans on making the necessary changes to the kernel in its next version of Ubuntu to give Android all the juice it needs at the core level and will open source the project soon. Things are still early, and there’s a lot of work to do before this is going to really make the highly specialized Java-based Android apps actually usable on regular Linux — they’re currently working on granting Android access to the Ubuntu file system, for instance — but we love where this is headed.

[Thanks, Michael Y.; Image courtesy of Scott James Remnant]

Filed under: Desktops, Handhelds, Laptops

Canonical giving Ubuntu the gift of Android apps originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 May 2009 15:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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While it’s always a fun rush to see an unopened box in a Canadian store room, we’re much more excited about what’s inside the box, and friendly tipster James somehow managed to buy himself an Acer Aspire Timeline 5810TZ-4657 in Iowa about a week ago. For a scant $598 he got a 15-inch display, DVD drive, Intel U2700 1.3GHz processor and 3GB of RAM — which makes most similarly specced “thin and lights” seem a little silly in comparison. He says he’s gotten around 7 hours of battery on max power saving mode, and about 4-5 hours on max use, finds the 720p webcam comparable to a Flip camera, enjoys the keyboard and multitouch trackpad, and overall finds the system to be very quick and responsive running Vista. Acer still hasn’t confirmed an official lineup, price or availability for these things, but we’ve gotta think it’s gonna be soon — if this is right, it’s almost too good not to share.

Filed under: Laptops

Acer Aspire Timeline out of the box and loving life originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 May 2009 14:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s not exactly news that the Department of Defense is looking at ways to make hacking a more practical weapon, but it looks to really be stepping up its game with its latest project, which promises to make complicated attacks as simple as a few button presses. That would apparently be possible thanks to a slightly mysterious device that’d be small enough to carry around in a backpack, but powerful enough to do everything from breaking into a wireless network to hacking into SCADA (or Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) systems (used at power plants, nuclear facilities, and the like). While complete details are obviously a bit light, the system would apparently be able to, for instance, map out the nodes in a wireless network, cause them to disconnect, and watch them come back online to identify weak spots. It would then present the “hacker” with various attack attributes that could simply be adjusted using sliders on a touchscreen. No word if the soldiers will also be rewarded with Achievements.

[Via Softpedia]

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Networking

Defense Department developing portable hacking device for soldiers originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 May 2009 14:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We have mixed feelings about the news that Psystar is going under. On the one hand, it’s wonderful having somebody attempt to create powerful, expandable Macs for cheap, on the other hand the company has been generally abrasive to the grassroots hacker community its work is based on, and pretty bombastic when it comes to Apple and “the law.” But hey, everybody needs to make a profit, even companies being sued into oblivion by Apple, and the news of Psystar filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection has interesting legal implications. Not only does it stall Apple’s case against the company — while implying a possibly inevitable defeat — but Apple has long posited that a mystery investor behind Psystar has nefarious aims, and the bankruptcy hearing on June 5th will name the creditors behind the company. Our fingers are crossed for a “Dan Brown”-style conspiracy, but we’re prepared to be “post-2002 Tom Hanks”-style disappointed.

[Via SlashGear]

Filed under: Desktops

Psystar files for bankruptcy, anonymous creditors to be outed originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 May 2009 13:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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According to UOL Tecnologia, Tectoy’s Zeebo game console is on sale now in the city of Rio de Janeiro, with availability to spread across the Brazilian countryside later this year. As expected, the system is going for a MSRP of R$499 (that’s about $299) and ships with three games in memory: FIFA 2009, Need For Speed Carbon, and Brain Training, all in Portuguese. Additionally, the device ships with credit for three free downloads: Prey Evil, Quake, and Quake II. And as expected, this bad boy includes a free 3G connection via Claro, enabling additional game downloads in the R$7-30 ($3-13) range. Video after the break.

Continue reading Zeebo lands in Brazil, inspires revolutionary fervor in the hearts of gamers worldwide

Filed under: Gaming

Zeebo lands in Brazil, inspires revolutionary fervor in the hearts of gamers worldwide originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 May 2009 13:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Luckily we’ve got solid word of HTC’s Touch Pro2 headed for all of the majors Stateside, or this would come as a bit more of a blow for the hopelessly selfish Windows Mobile users among us: HTC’s QWERTY slider flagship is now available online and unlocked, though its Euro-centric nature means there’s no 3G for folks who’d like to use it in the wilds of the United States of America. Still, there’s plenty of greatness here outside the HSPA data, and the $800-ish pricetag doesn’t seem too unreasonable for what you get. And hey, maybe you live in Europe — we’re not ones to judge.

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

HTC Touch Pro2 hits virtual shelves, unlocked and ready for action originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 May 2009 12:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We just got through looking at ASUS’s new Eee PC 1008HA Seashell, but it might be the 1005HA that really strikes a balance between form and function. The upcoming netbook has many of the Seashell’s stylings, but forgoes the recessed ports, port doors and hokey mini VGA plug to bring a more functional experience while hardly sacrificing the aesthetics. This version in the wilds of Germany also has a 6 cell removable battery instead of the 1008HA’s “next-gen” 3 cell integrated battery — we’ll have to wait for the benchmarks to see who is crowned the winner, but anybody who’s ever had the joy of swapping batteries on a transoceanic flight has probably already made up their mind.

Filed under: Laptops

ASUS Eee PC 1005HA found in the wild, bests the Seashell in the little things originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 May 2009 12:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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