Archive for June 12th, 2009

AT&T’s been feeding us a story that it’ll offer MMS on the iPhone only “once [it completes] some system upgrades that will ensure our customers have the best experience,” but here’s the thing: it seems that it works right now — if you’ve got a build of OS 3.0 that’ll let it. None of us have been able to get it going ourselves, but we’ve been sent screenshots from a tipster that seem to indicate that both MMS and tethering are in full effect on the network, so there doesn’t seem to be a network restriction involved (we can’t verify whether the build we see here was tweaked, so we’re thinking there might be some hackery in play). The strategy for ultimately deploying the features to AT&T customers is unclear, but seeing how some folks in Europe running the exact same gold build of 3.0 have access to MMS and those of us stateside do not, it’s got to be a software switch that can be triggered remotely. Some form of SMS provisioning, perhaps? Let us know what you’ve seen out in the field in comments.

[Thanks, Arnoldo]

Update: Turns out the secret to enabling MMS and tethering lies buried in the carrier settings file, which happens to be the same black magic employed to roll out 3G MicroCell support a while back. Customer devices are at AT&T 4.0, but there’s an AT&T 5.0 profile floating around the interwebs that turns the features on — it’s just a matter of finding it, installing it, and making sure that your account is provisioned for multimedia messaging. Thanks, everyone!

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

MMS and tethering functional on some AT&T iPhone 3Gs running 3.0? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Jun 2009 16:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Wii has already set more than its share of sales records, but it looks like Nintendo has now claimed another big one, with the latest NPD figures indicating that the Wii has become the fastest-selling console ever in the United States. That milestone was apparently marked when the Wii sailed past 20 million consoles sold after just 31 months on the market, although that number is of course just a small part of the more than 50 million consoles shipped worldwide which, incidentally, has already made the Wii the fastest-selling console in the world.

[Via Joystiq]

Filed under: Gaming

Nintendo Wii sets record as fastest-selling console in the US originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Jun 2009 16:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve already gotten word of a few Windows 7 upgrade plans, but it looks like things are now really starting to get fleshed out, even if nothing’s quite official just yet. According to PC World, at least some PC vendors will be kicking off a coupon program on June 26th, which will let folks that buy premium versions of Windows Vista upgrade to Windows 7 when it rolls out this fall. As you might expect, however, things won’t be completely consistent across the board, and it won’t be a free upgrade in every case either. That’s partly because vendors will reportedly have to shell out between $9 and $15 per PC to include the upgrade coupon, although at least three unnamed Taiwanese PC makers will apparently be taking a hit on that cost and offering a free upgrade coupon to anyone that buys a laptop or desktop loaded with Vista Home Premium, Ultimate or Business. HP is also said to be participating in the upgrade program, although it says it won’t be revealing any details until Microsoft itself officially announces the start date for the program.

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops

Windows 7 upgrade coupon plan gets detailed, said to be starting soon originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Jun 2009 15:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’re big into 3G routers, don’t get us wrong, but with a bit of WiMAX on tap, the concept becomes all the more succulent. NEC is showing off a vaguely defined Mobile WiMAX Router at Interop Tokyo 2009, which can run on battery and shares its connection over WiFi. NEC isn’t talking launch plans just yet, but plans on rolling out the device alongside local WiMAX rollouts.

Filed under: Wireless, Networking

NEC builds WiMAX router for sharing sweet broadband goodies with your friends over WiFi originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Jun 2009 15:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Well, it didn’t happen quite as fast as the original Kindle, but it looks like the Kindle DX has now officially sold out, a full two days after it first became available. As you might expect, however, folks eager to get their hands on the large and in charge device don’t have to wait too long to get their fix, with Amazon promising that the next batch of Kindle DXs will be in stock on June 17th. Of course, as ComputerWorld notes, the fast sellout has once again prompted speculation from analysts that Amazon is intentionally keeping supply low to create more of a buzz around the device, but Amazon itself is naturally staying mum on the matter for now.

Filed under: Handhelds

Kindle DX sold out, but not for long originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Jun 2009 14:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s the big one-five-zero, people, and you know what that means: absolutely nothing. We’ve got news to talk about, after all — we’ll leave the extensive accolades and embarrassing praise for the history books. If you hadn’t guessed, this week’s show is a bit heavy on the Apple sauce, so the squeamish should turn away before it’s too late. Those inclined, however, to dive into MacBook SKUs and wax philosophical about the iPhone as a platform will likely get their money’s worth. It’ll be fun, we promise.

Hosts: Joshua Topolsky, Nilay Patel, Paul Miller
Producer: Trent Wolbe
Song: Fat Boys – Stick ‘Em

00:01:20 – Archos rolls out Archos 10s, Archos 13 laptops, Classmate-based student PC
00:02:40 – Phil Schiller keynote live from WWDC 2009
00:05:06 – Apple’s 8GB iPhone 3G falls to $99 on contract
00:05:20 – Apple shows iPhone OS 3.0 at WWDC, hits devices June 17th
00:05:30 – Find My iPhone is live, totally found our iPhone
00:06:00 - iPhone 3G S processor specs: 600MHz CPU, 256MB of RAM
00:22:40 – iPhone 3G S announced: $199 16GB, $299 32GB, June 19th
00:42:40 – Apple’s new MacBook family: non-removable batteries, lower prices
00:50:00 – Apple’s new MacBook Pro family unboxing and hands-on!
01:01:47 – Apple shipping Snow Leopard in September, $29 upgrade
01:06:38 – Jon Rubinstein takes over as Palm CEO
01:08:32 – Roger McNamee says Pre launch was a “dream come true,” hints that all Palm devices will have physical keyboards
01:16:22 – Palm Pre goes on sale nationwide, line forms on the right

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Filed under: Podcasts

Engadget Podcast 150 – 06.12.2009 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Jun 2009 14:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The day is finally here, after the pushback and staggered changeover, analog television broadcasts across the country are giving way to a future of digital TV and making room for new services to take over the airwaves soon. Still, after months of announcements, coupons sent and many dollars spent there are still millions who will be caught unawares as their television blinks off today. It’s been an incredibly long time coming, so take a look back at some of our coverage of the run up to the digital TV switch, and why not drop us a line to let us know of any interesting local coverage in your area or experiences (procrastination-fueled runs on converter boxes, transition gaffes, mob violence) going on. A roundup of FCC links and national press coverage is after the break.

Engadget’s lead-up coverage:

T-minus one year till the US analog shutoff: are you ready?
The original DTV transition: what could’ve been
President Obama signs DTV delay bill into law
Digital TV transition spoof video is both informative and hilarious
Wilmington, NC kills analog dead as broadcasters go all-digital

Continue reading Digital TV transition: 12 hours in, how are things going?

Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

Digital TV transition: 12 hours in, how are things going? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Jun 2009 13:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s been removed now, but Nikon Rumors says this screenshot from a supposed Nikon D300S was briefly posted on Nikon USA’s site earlier today. There’s not much to go on here, but that SD icon in the corner seemingly implies the update to the D300 will somehow feature an SD slot — whether it’s in addition to CF as previously rumored is obviously up in the air. Either way, it seems like we’ll find out soon enough — stay tuned.

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Nikon D300S screen leaks out originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Jun 2009 13:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve known for a while that Dell’s planning to follow the Mini 10 and Mini 12 with a Mini 11 at some point, and it sounds like that day isn’t far off — word out of the always-poppin’ Display Taiwan 2009 tradeshow is that the company’s placed a large order for 11.6-inch displays from noted party supplier Chunghwa Picture Tubes. We’re also hearing that Samsung’s getting in the action, so we’d assume there’s a new CULV thin-and-light coming our from Korea sometime as well, but we’ll see when we see.

[Via Electronista]

Filed under: Laptops

Dell and Samsung placing orders for 11.6-inch netbook screens? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Jun 2009 12:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This whole global economic crisis, and its resulting massive loss of jobs got us thinking. We here at Engadget didn’t want to stand helplessly by, announcing every new round of misery without giving anything back — so we decided to take the opportunity to spread a little positivity. We’ll be handing out a new gadget every day (except for weekends) to lucky readers until we run out of stuff / companies stop sending things. Today we’ve got a Scosche passPORT Home Dock ready to give your old iPod docking device the ability to play nice with newer iPods and iPhones. Read the rules below (no skimming — we’re omniscient and can tell when you’ve skimmed) and get commenting! Hooray for free stuff! Oh, and for those who miss out, coupon code ‘engadget’ will net you 20 percent through Google Checkout at Radius’ site.

Special thanks to Scosche for providing the gear!

The rules:

• Leave a comment below. Any comment will do, but if you want to share your proposal for “fixing” the world economy, that’d be sweet too.
• You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you’ll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.)
• If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Just be careful and you’ll be fine.
  
• Contest is open to anyone in the 50 States, 18 or older! Sorry, we don’t make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad.
• Winner will be chosen randomly. One (1) winner will receive one (1) Scosche passPORT Home Dock. Approximate retail value is $39.99.
• If you are chosen, you will be notified by email. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.
• Entries can be submitted until Friday, June 12th, at 11:59PM ET. Good luck!
• Full rules can be found here.

Filed under: Portable Audio

Engadget’s recession antidote: win a Scosche passPORT Home Dock! originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Jun 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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