WiFi

3D
April 6, 2011
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Nintendo 3DS review: seeing double

By on April 6, 2011 at 11:50 AM.

Nintendo 3DS review: seeing double

The 3DS, Nintendo’s latest portable gaming platform and the first with a 3D display, made its U.S. debut on March 27th. Nintendo moved 400,000 units on launch day in Japan, and Amazon U.K. said the device broke console pre-order records as well. So, being the subway riding gamer that I am, I knew I had to find out what all this hype was about. I took it for a spin over the last week, staying up late trying to beat games and carrying it in my backpack to rock on the subway. And now, after a week of 3D gaming, it’s time to drop the hammer and see if the 3DS really is worthy of all that hype.

More →

109 Comments
mobile
April 1, 2011
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Kyocera Echo pre-orders start at RadioShack

By on April 1, 2011 at 5:54 AM.

Kyocera Echo pre-orders start at RadioShack

Sprint’s new dual-screen Kyocera Echo is now available for pre-order from RadioShack. The Echo sports two different displays for a total 4.7-inches of touchscreen real estate. The Echo’s second screen can be used to run two applications at once, as a full QWERTY keyboard, or to enhance gameplay. The Android 2.2 (Froyo) powered smartphone is also capable of creating a Wi-Fi hotspot, which allows you to share the Echo’s 3G connection with other Wi-Fi enabled devices. The Echo — which costs $199 with a new two-year Sprint contract – will ship from RadioShack on April 17th. For more info on the Echo be sure to check out our hands-on. More →

19 Comments
mobile
March 30, 2011
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Samsung 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot paws-on!

By on March 30, 2011 at 2:01 PM.

Samsung 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot paws-on!

While Verizon Wireless just announced two new 4G LTE devices that are going to serve up insanely fast mobile broadband speeds, Samsung’s 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot is the first one in our hands. We’ve been rockin’ and rollin’ over Verizon’s 4G LTE network for a little while thanks to the new mobile hotspot, and we’re happy to report extremely fast speeds around 12Mbps down and 5.5Mbps up on average — the fastest speeds that the device is rated for. In terms of size, it’s just a tad thicker than the original Novatel MiFi unit we rely on for our mobile connectivity. We haven’t had enough time to test battery life for ourselves, but we’ll report back. The Samsung 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot is available online from Verizon Wireless starting today, and will be in stores beginning tomorrow for $99.99 with a two-year service agreement. Check out our hands-on gallery with some comparison photos!

62 Comments
mobile
March 29, 2011
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T-Mobile’s HTC HD7 may receive ‘NoDo’ Windows Phone update today

By on March 29, 2011 at 12:12 PM.

T-Mobile’s HTC HD7 may receive ‘NoDo’ Windows Phone update today

According to several, leaked internal screen shots obtained by TmoNews, the highly-anticipated NoDo Windows Phone 7 update could begin rolling out to owners of the T-Mobile HTC HD7 smartphone as soon as Today. Users should start seeing a pop-up notification alerting them of the update, at which point they’ll need to connect their phones to a computer and install the update through Microsoft’s Zune Player software. NoDo will bring copy/paste functionality, improvements to Wi-Fi and the camera, along with several speed and performance enhancements. For now this is just a rumor, but it’s entirely possible given that Microsoft began pushing out the NoDo update in Europe last week. We’ll be sure to keep you updated if we hear more on NoDo being deployed to the HD7 today. More →

21 Comments
General
March 14, 2011
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T-Mobile intros new 10GB data plan

By on March 14, 2011 at 9:00 PM.

T-Mobile intros new 10GB data plan

T-Mobile has introduced a new Even More 10GB webConnect monthly data plan, although it costs a hair more than was suggested by early rumors. For $84.99 per month and a new two-year agreement, you’ll get a 10GB bucket of data and unlimited Wi-Fi access at T-Mobile hotspots with your 3G or 4G webConnect device. T-Mobile says it is not charging overage fees with this new plan, but data speeds may be reduced after you hit your monthly cap. The new plan joins T-Mobile’s existing 5GB option, which costs $49.99 per month with no overage fees, and a 200MB option that costs $29.99 per month with overage charges. More →

7 Comments
Tablets
March 14, 2011
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iPad 2 and Smart Cover guts revealed in iFixit tear-down

By on March 14, 2011 at 2:12 PM.

iPad 2 and Smart Cover guts revealed in iFixit tear-down

iFixit got down and dirty opening up the iPad 2 Wi-Fi and its Smart Cover accessory over the weekend and has published specs and pictures of the inner workings of both. There aren’t a ton of surprises hiding in the iPad 2, which sports a 1GHz A5 dual-core processor manufactured by Samsung, 512MB of LPDDR2 RAM, a 9.7-inch LED-backlit multitouch display, and 16GB, 32GB, or 64GB of internal storage. Its Wi-Fi board is powered by a Broadcom BCM43291HKUBC chip that was used in the first iPad and in the iPhone 4.

Also listed on the battery is a capacity of 6930 mAh. Since mAh = Watt-hours / volts * 1000, converting using the above numbers yields 25 / 3.8 * 1000 = 6,579. It looks like there might be some rounding going on here, or the battery voltage might actually be more like 3.6 volts.

The iPad 2 Smart Cover tear-down revealed 21 magnets (in addition to the 10 magnets in the iPad 2 itself), a large metal plate encased in plastic, and two structural plates. Hit the jump for images of a heaping serving of hardware porn.

More →

21 Comments
Exclusive
January 13, 2011
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Exclusive: BlackBerry Dakota gets pictured; the touch and type BlackBerry you’ve been waiting for

By on January 13, 2011 at 8:51 AM.

Exclusive: BlackBerry Dakota gets pictured; the touch and type BlackBerry you’ve been waiting for

We just got our hands on a crystal clear photo of the BlackBerry Dakota — you know, the device that’s going to sit right at the head of the BlackBerry family dinner table. What about the specifications for the BlackBerry Dakota? What, you thought we’d skimp out on you? How about the famous original Bold styling, HD video recording, NFC, 3G Mobile hotspot, magnetometer and much, much more! Full specs after the break! More →

404 Comments
mobile
October 31, 2010
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Sprint CEO Dan Hesse: Thank you iPad

By on October 31, 2010 at 8:47 AM.

Sprint CEO Dan Hesse: Thank you iPad

Sprint may not stock the iPhone or the iPad, but that hasn’t stopped them from reaping the benefits (or even making a case) of the iPad’s success. In an interview with GigaOm, Dan Hesse,CEO of Sprint pointed out that the fastest selling iPad’s were the WiFi variants, which bodes well for Sprint. Sprint’s Overdrive 3G/4G mobile wireless hotspot, has been selling well, allowing iPad owners to blitz the net at 4G speeds. “The company has seen an uptick in demand for its Overdrive (3G/4G) MiFi wireless hotspot device, as people use it to connect their iPads to the Internet when on the go.” Although Dan stopped short of giving us some actual numbers, we’ll give him the benefit of the doubt. Sprint has been rolling out their 4G network gradually across the major cities in the U.S., and from the looks of it, their Overdrive sales aren’t going to pipe down any time soon.

[Via Engadget] More →

50 Comments
Rumor
July 28, 2010
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ZTE Peel for the iPod Touch passes through the FCC on its way to Sprint

By on July 28, 2010 at 5:10 PM.

ZTE Peel for the iPod Touch passes through the FCC on its way to Sprint

The ZTE Peel 3200, a Sprint-branded sleeve with mobile hotspot functionality and EV-DO connectivity, was spotted at the FCC. The curious device sports a sleeve-style form factor that appears to be ideally suited for the iPod Touch. Details are sparse on the device but it is clearly a mobile hotspot with integrated GPS and support for up to 5 Wi-Fi-enabled devices. Any Sprint users out there who would consider using this with VoIP as an alternative to an AT&T iPhone?

Thanks IGOD!

[Via Phone scoop] More →

68 Comments
General
July 21, 2010
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Verizon Wireless DROID X plagued by Wi-Fi connectivity issues?

By on July 21, 2010 at 5:15 PM.

Verizon Wireless DROID X plagued by Wi-Fi connectivity issues?

Motorola-DROID-X-2

Chatter on the forums suggests that the latest update hitting the DROID X has not fixed the WiFi connectivity problem many users were reporting. Affected DROID X owners report that their handsets have difficulty connecting to a WiFi router and poor network performance once a connection has been established. Several users report that changing the encryption from AES to TKIP has alleviated the problem, while others note that changing your router to 802.11g instead of 802.11n has decreased the number of network disconnects. Anyone with a DROID X currently experiencing this problem?

Thanks, Goreja! More →

245 Comments
Rumor
July 2, 2010
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Leaked Windows Phone 7 smartphone from HTC: 4.5" Super AMOLED display and 1.5GHz processor

By on July 2, 2010 at 4:26 PM.

Leaked Windows Phone 7 smartphone from HTC: 4.5" Super AMOLED display and 1.5GHz processor

htc-hd3-windows-phone-7

As with any leak, we suggest you approach this with a healthy amount of skepticism, but if a post made to PConline is to be believed, this upcoming Windows Phone 7 handset from HTC — the HD3 — is going to be an absolute beast. We mean, take a look at the purported specs:

  • 4.5″ WXGA Super AMOLED multi-touch display
  • 8 megapixel camera with dual-LED flash
  • 720p HD video recording
  • 1080p HD playback
  • Wi-Fi / Bluetooth
  • 3G / 4G connectivity
  • 32GB microSD support
  • 1GB RAM / 1GB ROM
  • 1.5GHz Snapdragon processor
  • 1800 mAh battery
  • 115mm x 65mm x 10mm

Like we said, this is strictly a rumor, but how great would it be if it all came true?

[Via Gizmodo] More →

93 Comments
Services
June 30, 2010
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Cisco to offer Wi-Fi-enabled Flip, enterprise video transcoding, and iOS video app

By on June 30, 2010 at 4:55 PM.

Cisco to offer Wi-Fi-enabled Flip, enterprise video transcoding, and iOS video app

cisco-logo

Cisco’s annual networking conference, Cisco Live!, is in full swing and the networking giant is unveiling the initial details on several upcoming video-oriented products. For consumer video camera buffs, Cisco is working on a Wi-Fi-enabled version of its popular Flip Video camera. Details are sparse but senior vice president of emerging technologies, Marthin De Beer, did hint that the portable camera may launch in time for the holidays. Cisco is also developing an enterprise-level video transcoding service, called the Media Experience Engine, that would allow companies to internally distribute video to a variety of platforms on the fly. Last but not least, Cisco is planning to release an iOS 4 video client for the Apple iPhone and is exploring opportunities to integrate its technologies into Apple’s FaceTime video conferencing tool. More →

5 Comments
Entertainment
June 22, 2010
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SlingPlayer for Android makes its official debut in the Android Market

By on June 22, 2010 at 11:12 AM.

SlingPlayer for Android makes its official debut in the Android Market

sling-android

Slingbox owners rocking the latest Android handset will be happy to know that SlingPlayer has made its official debut in the Android Market. Available for $30, the app will allow you to Sling over 3G, 4G, and WiFi and is as full featured as its iPhone counterpart; as it has support for local channels, local sports coverage, video on demand, pay per view, and home DVR control. If you are an Android-toting, Slinbox-owning resident of Australia, Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom or the United States, head over to the Android Market and get your Sling on. More →

26 Comments