Archive for October 14th, 2009

Just as promised, the (still SD only) Blockbuster OnDemand service is now available on a slew of Samsung hardware via firmware update, while the Internet@TV lineup (LCD and Plasma HDTVs Series 650 and above and LED HDTVs Series 7000) has a brand new toy with the Amazon VOD Yahoo! widget (which does support HD.) Both services offer a slew of rental and/or purchase options for the digital delivery fanatic, though we still hunger for the audio and quality of VUDU plus the all you can eat goodness of Netflix Watch Instantly, of the millions of TVs out there, there’s surely someone willing to sift through those menus for the ease of viewing Ghosts of Girlfriends Past without resorting to cable VOD — or getting up from the couch. The “convenience” goes both ways, since they’ll also be able to pick up compatible Samsung blu-ray players at Blockbuster stores, right next to the TiVo section — check for exact model #s supported in the PR after the break.

Continue reading Samsung rolls out Amazon, Blockbuster video store access across HDTVs, HTIBs and Blu-ray players everywhere

Filed under: Displays, HDTV, Home Entertainment

Samsung rolls out Amazon, Blockbuster video store access across HDTVs, HTIBs and Blu-ray players everywhere originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 16:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Acer (a company that we always knew as ambitious… but not too ambitious) finally launched its Aspire One D250 dual boot Windows 7 / Android netbook today, and as you can imagine the ears of the gadget world have all perked up a little bit. According to Pocket-lint, the implementation of the open source OS on a touchscreen deficient PC is not without its issues. For instance, without any designated Android keys, one can find themselves going to the trackpad and ESC key a bit too often. Also worth noting is that this machine will only boot Android — to access Windows you’ve got to select “Switch OS” from within Android itself and then wait for Microsoft to take over. According to Register Hardware, Acer VP Jim Wong explained that the company expects people to use Android for the majority of their computing while only hitting up Windows while looking to use software and tools specific to that OS. And sure, that’s a decent rationalization — but why not give us the choice? Either way, we know you’re jonesin’ to get at all the red hot hands-on action contained within the read links below. And what are you waiting for? Go on!

Read – PHOTOS: Acer Aspire One D250 with Android
Read – Hands on with Acer’s dual-OS netbook

Filed under: Laptops

Acer Aspire One D250 Android netbook gets fondled and photographed originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 16:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Believe it or not, a device-controlled car isn’t exactly fresh. In fact, we’ve actually seen a PSP control a Civic before Barack Obama was even a glimmer in the media’s eye. That said, we’re always willing to give credit where it’s due, and the iDriver app just might be the most impressive use of Apple’s smartphone… well, ever. As the name implies, this here app is able to control a heavily wired vehicle seemingly with ease — the accelerometer handles the steering, and two soft buttons on the screen handle braking and acceleration. We’d bother explaining more, but we know you’ve already clicked past the break to see the whole thing demonstrated on video. Right?

[Via Engadget German]

Continue reading Appirion’s iDriver app lets iPhone control minivan (video)

Filed under: Cellphones, Software

Appirion’s iDriver app lets iPhone control minivan (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 16:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remember this chart? It’s interesting for a number of reasons, but I want to highlight that all present day Android phones use virtually the same Qualcomm application processor, all based on a sluggish 528MHz ARM11 core. Blech.

I’ve got nothing against Qualcomm, but a big reason most Android phones feel slow is because they’re running on slow hardware. The ARM11 core was first announced in 2003. It’s old and creaky, and it’s used so frequently because it’s cheap. But the basic rules of chip design mean that things are about to change fast.

Continue reading Core Values: The silicon behind Android

Core Values: The silicon behind Android originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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At last eluding the omnipresent Mr. Blurrycam, Motorola’s Android-powered Sholes handset has finally gotten the sort of photography it deserves, apparently with an official go-to-market name of Droid — or at least one decent photo of it. This pic, which doesn’t really confirm or deny any of our suspicions about the device (Verizon was already in the bag), made a berth on the locked Twitter profile of Boy Genius, and hopefully there’s more where this came from: we’re getting tired of the tease.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Filed under: Cellphones

Motorola Droid (alias Sholes) finally gets a decent headshot originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 15:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Michael Dell has definitely provided us with a few token quotes before, but his latest spurts over at a Silicon Valley dinner sponsored by the Churchill Club are amongst the best. For starters, he didn’t hesitate to exclaim that “a fair amount of customers” have been unhappy with the small screens and weak innards found in netbooks, which is definitely a perplexing comment to make when you’re making ends meet (at least in part) by moving Minis. Of course, it sounds like the honest-to-goodness truth, but we digress. The money quote came when asked about Windows 7, as he noted that if “you get the latest processor technology and you get Windows 7 and Office 2010, you will love your PC again; we actually have not been able to say that for a long time.” We’re not trying to read too deeply between the lines, but that definitely sounds like a gentle jab at Vista, does it not? Hit the read link for the full schpeel.

Filed under: Laptops

Michael Dell curiously talks down netbooks, slyly bad-mouths Vista originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HP didn’t exactly do the best job keeping this one under wraps, but it’s now finally gotten official with its new Pavilion dv8 “entertainment laptop,” which packs some fairly impressive (if not all that surprising) specs across the board. That, of course, starts with a big 18.4-inch, full 1,920 x 1,080 screen, and continues along the high-end track with a Core i7 processor, 4GB of RAM (expandable to 8GB), dual 320GB hard drives, NVIDIA GeForce GT230 graphics with 1GB of RAM, a built-in TV tuner, and a Blu-ray drive. Of particular note, the laptop also comes standard with HP’s Long Life battery, which makes use of Boston Power’s Sonata cells and promises a lifespan three to five times better than traditional lithium-ion batteries. Still no official pricing over here, but it looks like this one will be available in the UK starting October 22nd for £1,300 (or just over $2,000).

[Via Shiny Shiny]

Filed under: Laptops

HP Pavilion dv8 gets official, complete with HP Long Life battery originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remember when TracFone horrified the world with its Straight Talk phone selection back in July? Clearly the suits in Bentonville weren’t so scared, as now Walmart is latching on to that very plan and claiming it as its own. In over 3,200 of the outfit’s retail stores across America, consumers will be able to snag an admittedly pathetic cellie and a rather decent calling plan for just $30 a month. Three Hamiltons gets you 1,000 voice minutes, 1,000 texts and 30MB of mobile web access, not to mention nationwide coverage and free 411 calls. If that’s not quite enough, a $45 per month option provides unlimited everything (voice / SMS / mobile web). Of course, the price of using an antediluvian LG 220, LG Slider 290 or Samsung 451 can’t be measured in mere dollars, but hey, humiliation’s only temporary — right?

Filed under: Cellphones

No-contract $30 / $45 Straight Talk wireless plans storm Walmart originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Well, we just got the first round of Nikon D3S previews this morning, but it looks like we now also have the first few sample videos shot with the camera — possibly a bit ahead of Nikon’s preferred schedule. While it’s a bit hard to draw some firm conclusions due to their YouTube-ness (not even a “High Quality” version, unfortunately), the videos do go some way towards backing up claims that the camera truly delivers the goods when it comes to high ISO shooting — something that’s particularly evident in the stunning wildlife video shot by Vincent Munier (pictured above). Head on past the break to check it out for yourself, along with a second, also impressive short shot down under.

[Via CrunchGear]

Continue reading Nikon D3S shows its high ISO prowess in two sample videos

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Nikon D3S shows its high ISO prowess in two sample videos originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 12:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Picture this scenario: you’ve just left work after a long shift, and have to endure the lengthy commute in the hot, crowded subway. The last thing you want is to doze off and wake up to the horror of your bag or phone gone walkies. This is exactly the kind of problem TenBu Technologies is trying to solve with its nio Bluetooth security tag. Announced at the Mobile World Congress back in February, this little dongle aims to create a personal security space by the means of proximity, linking your tagged belongings with your Bluetooth-enabled phone. Read on to see how we got on with the nio – a dramatic video awaits you at the end.

Continue reading nio Bluetooth security tag review: your phone’s new muscle

Filed under: Cellphones, Misc. Gadgets, Wireless

nio Bluetooth security tag review: your phone’s new muscle originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 12:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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