Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Apple's Q4 earnings are out, records set for revenue, earnings, and sales (Update: earnings call liveblog!)

Apple's Q4 earnings are out, records set for revenue, earnings, and sales (Update: earnings call liveblog!)

Another Apple earnings report, another winner quarter for the company. Apple says its 2010 fiscal fourth quarter results are its "highest revenue and earnings ever," with records set for Mac, iPhone and iPad sales. Some of the highlight numbers include 14.1 million iPhones sold (up 91 percent over Q4 last year), 3.89 million Macs (up 27 percent), 9.05 million iPods (down 11 percent), and 4.19 million iPads. It all added up to an all-time record for Apple of $20.34 billion in revenue for a net profit of $4.31 billion. And of course, Apple couldn't resist stoking the upcoming-event-rumor flames a little bit: "We still have a few surprises left for the remainder of this calendar year." Hit up the press release after the break. The earnings call is starting in a few minutes, we'll be liveblogging it right here!

Continue reading Apple's Q4 earnings are out, records set for revenue, earnings, and sales (Update: earnings call liveblog!)

Apple's Q4 earnings are out, records set for revenue, earnings, and sales (Update: earnings call liveblog!) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 18 Oct 2010 16:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | | Email this | Comments

Apple TV hits 250,000 in sales, says Steve Jobs

Apple TV hits 250,000 in sales, says Steve Jobs

Deep within the heart of Apple's fiscal earnings call Q&A session, straight from the mouth of CEO Steve Jobs: "I can report that we've sold a quarter million Apple TVs." Quite an impressive number for a device that's only been out for 18 days but by no means on par with the likes of some other Apple debuts (the iPad, for instance, sold 300,000 on day one). Still, not bad for the once (and possibly still) hobby.

Apple TV hits 250,000 in sales, says Steve Jobs originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 18 Oct 2010 17:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | | Email this | Comments

Bose enters single-ear Bluetooth headset market with expected swagger and price tag

Bose enters single-ear Bluetooth headset market with expected swagger and price tag

"It's not every day you see a company release a Bluetooth headset" is something we'd like to say, but alas, it was not meant to be. Bose is the latest, launching what it claims is its first single-ear Bluetooth headset. The aural implant carries the family name and touted audio quality / proprietary technology, but functionality-wise, it's not much different than your run-of-the-mill earpiece. Of course, that branding carries a lot of weight with some folks, and for them, plan on paying just shy of $150 (before tax) when it comes out late November. Your weekly dose of bravado can be found in the press release after the break.

Gallery: Bose enters single-ear Bluetooth headset market with expected swagger and price tag

Continue reading ! Bose enters single-ear Bluetooth headset market with expected swagger and price tag

Bose enters single-ear Bluetooth headset market with expected swagger and price tag originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 18 Oct 2010 20:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | | Email this | Comments

iPhone 3,2 rumored to be in near-final testing phase, cue the CDMA speculation

iPhone 3,2 rumored to be in near-final testing phase, cue the CDMA speculation

Apple's all aglow with its fiscal triumphs, but that's nothing new. Here's something else that follows the Cupertino company like night follows the day: Verizon iPhone rumors. Boy Genius Report claims it's heard from one of its "solid Apple sources" that iPhone 3,2 (seen previously in iOS code) has hit "AP testing phase," which reportedly means final hardware and near-final software. Said source also claims it has a SIM card slot, which would be fine except for BGR's assertion that 3,2 is the oft-rumored CDMA iPhone -- you know, the one that Wall Street Journal is all but certain is coming next year. So how might these two apparently contradictory elements form some tangible paradox machine? One possibility the publication is suggesting is a CDMA / GSM dual-mode "global" phone that'd work on virtually all major carriers. Then again, it could just be a GSM iPhone 4 with some design finagling (antenna revision?). If any of this pans out, that is, but at least you can say you witnessed the Verizon iPhone rumor merging with existing iPhone 4 to form a mythical "carrier Voltron" device. Or something like that.

iPhone 3,2 rumored to be in near-final testing phase, cue the CDMA speculation originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 18 Oct 2010 21:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | source

source

Boy Genius Report | Email this | Comments

NEC introduces 23-inch MultiSync EX231W LCD monitor, complete with DisplayPort

NEC introduces 23-inch MultiSync EX231W LCD monitor, complete with DisplayPort

NEC's new MultiSync EX231W may not be the sexiest LCD of all time, but it's still decidedly sleek for a screen that's all-business underneath. This 23-incher weighs just 9.3 pounds, has an ultraslim bezel (14.6mm) and a native 1920 x 1080 screen resolution, and it's also packing 250 nits of brightness, 25,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio and a Mother Earth-approved ECO mode that consumes just 16 watts. There's also DVI and DisplayPort options, not to mention a USB pass-through on the top of the monitor that enables quick webcam or flash drive connections. The usual extras are also in attendance, with an ambient light sensor, carbon savings meter, touch-sensitive on-screen controls, four-way adjustable stand and an intelligent power manager all making the cut. It'll ship next month for $339, and that does indeed include the company's three year limited warranty.

Continue reading NEC introduces 23-inch MultiSync EX231W LCD monitor, complete with DisplayPort

NEC introduces 23-inch MultiSync EX231W LCD monitor, complete with DisplayPort originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Oct 2010 02:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Hot Hardware | source

source

NEC | Email this | Comments

AMD Radeon HD 6870 and HD 6850 officially pictured, coming this Friday

AMD Radeon HD 6870 and HD 6850 officially pictured, coming this Friday

AMD said it's bringing the new heat this week, but, in a classic act of showmanship, it's teasing out only imagery today and insisting on making us wait until Friday to truly learn what the next generation of Radeon graphics is made of. For now, we have the full titles of its leading lights, namely the Radeon HD 6870 and Radeon HD 6850, along with plenty of pictorial evidence of their existence in a lab somewhere. We note with glee that the default output arrangement includes no less than five ports, including two DVI, one HDMI (1.4a), and two Mini DisplayPorts. We'd rather the latter two were full-sized, but it doesn't look like ~~ATI~~ AMD had the room to fit them in. As to power requirements, the HD 6870 will need two 6-pin connectors to augment the juice it gets from the PCI Express port, while the HD 6850 will sate its needs with just the one. Anyhow, enjoy the gallery below and make sure to have your popcorn ready for the benchmark-heavy reviews coming up at the end of the week.

Gallery: AMD Radeon HD 6870 and HD 6850 official images

Continue reading AMD Radeon HD 6870 and HD 6850 officially pictured, coming this Friday

AMD Radeon HD 6870 and HD 6850 officially pictured, coming this Friday originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Oct 2010 02:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | source

source

Legit Reviews, Extreme Tech, Tested.com | Email this | Comments

Dell's Inspiron 15R Alloy Edition makes the wrong kind of waves

Dell's Inspiron 15R Alloy Edition makes the wrong kind of waves

An "Alloy Edition" laptop sounds like something that should look pretty decent, right? Well, ideas and execution are two entirely different things, as evidenced by Dell's new Inspiron 15R Alloy Edition. While the alloy part of the equation isn't bad, it's unfortunately only available in a "waves" pattern that we can only hope looks better in person. As for the laptop's specs, you can expect the usual choice of Core i3, i5 or i7 processors, a 15.6-inch 1,366 x 768 display, integrated Intel graphics or an optional ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5650, up to 8GB of RAM, and up to a 750GB hard drive. Somewhat curiously, while the laptop is up on Dell's site with a "customize" button, it isn't yet actually available to customize, and there isn't a starting price or release date to be found.

[Thanks, Nik G]

Dell's Inspiron 15R Alloy Edition makes the wrong kind of waves originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Oct 2010 03:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | source

source

Dell | Email this | Comments

BlackBerry PlayBook 64GB variant confirmed, strapped to a 5,300mAh battery (video)

BlackBerry PlayBook 64GB variant confirmed, strapped to a 5,300mAh battery (video)

You already know most of the spec sheet delicacies that RIM has in store for its PlayBook, but here are a couple more details to complete the picture. The PlayBook will indeed match the iPad in having 16GB, 32GB and 64GB variants available, and will also come equipped with a pretty huge 5,300mAh battery. That'd be a generously proportioned cell for a full-sized laptop, we imagine it'll turn the PlayBook into quite the endurance champ. Beside those tidbits, there's another video appearance by the tablet that we weren't allowed to touch just after the break. You know you wanna see it.

Continue reading BlackBerry PlayBook 64GB variant confirmed, strapped to a 5,300mAh battery (video)

BlackBerry PlayBook 64GB variant confirmed, strapped to a 5,300mAh battery (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Oct 2010 06:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

SlashGear | source

source

BlackBerryFanatic (YouTube) | Email this | Comments

Samsung Wave II has its Super Clear LCD tested against Galaxy S Super AMOLED display

Samsung Wave II has its Super Clear LCD tested against Galaxy S Super AMOLED display

Well, "tested" might be a strong word, but the living legend that is Eldar Murtazin has squared up Samsung's latest Bada handset against the company's top of the line Galaxy S for a bit of side-by-side screen comparison action. The 3.7-inch display on the Wave II holds its own admirably against the hyper-advanced Super AMOLED panel alongside it, but it does seem to have a tendency to introduce a slight yellow hue into images, as illustrated above. Regrettably, the Russian weather wasn't conducive to doing any comparisons under sunlight, so we'll just have to content ourselves with even more pictures setting the Wave II up against Nokia's N8 and Samsung's first Bada phone, the Wave numero uno.

[Thanks, Ronan]

Samsung Wave II has its Super Clear LCD tested against Galaxy S Super AMOLED display originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Oct 2010 07:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | source

source

Mobile-review | Email this | Comments

Monday, October 18, 2010

Dell trots out eight new LED-backlit LCD monitors, promises 21.5-inch multitouch IPS model

Dell trots out eight new LED-backlit LCD monitors, promises 21.5-inch multitouch IPS model

We had a hunch that Dell's latest quartet of LCD monitors would be making the short trip from Asia to America in the not-too-distant future, and sure enough, Dell's delivering the four we saw in September (along with four more) to US consumers today. Kicking things off is a new trio in the Studio line, which is available in 22-inch (ST2220), 23-inch (ST2320) and 24-inch (ST2420) sizes. The whole lot boasts a 1920 x 1080 screen resolution, five millisecond response time, a 16:9 aspect ratio, ST panels (read: not IPS) and touch controls on the bottom right panel. You'll also find VGA and DVI ports, with the ST2220L ($199.99) / ST2320L ($229.99) / ST2321L versions adding HDMI. Moving on, there's a new pair of budget-friendly 20-inchers, the IN2020 and IN2020M. These guys tout a 1600 x 900 screen resolution, five millisecond response time and a VGA socket; the latter steps it up with the addition of DVI. Hit the source link for further details, including a brief teaser on a forthcoming ("later this fall") 21.5-inch multitouch model with an IPS panel. Mmm, delicious.

Dell trots out eight new LED-backlit LCD monitors, promises 21.5-inch multitouch IPS model originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 18 Oct 2010 12:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | source

source

Dell | Email this | Comments

Sony Ericsson brings 16 megapixel Cyber-shot S006 cellphone to KDDI

Sony Ericsson brings 16 megapixel Cyber-shot S006 cellphone to KDDI

KDDI may have done its best to bury it amongst the few dozen other phones it announced today (including that eye-catching X-RAY clamshell), but we're not about to let the first phone using Sony's new 16.4 megapixel CMOS sensor slip by. That honor naturally goes to Sony Ericsson itself, which has stuffed the sensor into the otherwise ordinary looking Cyber-shot S006 cellphone. In addition to all those megapxiels, you'll also get ISO settings up to ISO 12800, and the rest of the camera's specs aren't too shabby either, including a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, a 3.3-inch screen (said to be VGA, though we're assuming it's actually HVGA or WVGA), and built-in WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS. Unfortunately, all of that is paired with Sony's own proprietary non-smartphone OS and it's, of course, exclusive to KDDI in Japan for the time being (and only being released next spring).

Sony Ericsson brings 16 megapixel Cyber-shot S006 cellphone to KDDI originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 18 Oct 2010 12:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Akihabara News | source

source

KDDI | Email this | Comments

HTC HD7 versus Desire HD: battle of the 4.3-inchers

HTC HD7 versus Desire HD: battle of the 4.3-inchers

Come October 21, European smartphone buyers will be faced with the enviable choice of having to pick between two 4.3-inch handsets from HTC bearing the latest and greatest OS from their respective camps. The HD7 will be one of the flag-bearing Windows Phone 7 devices, whereas the Desire HD -- which is already sneaking out into retail in some small quantities -- offers the finest Froyo dessert Google has yet cooked up, replete with some extra sprinkles of Sense-ible enhancements. We'll have full reviews of both in the coming days, but for now, we thought we'd whet your appetite with a tour round their oversized bodies, both in pictorial form below and on video, right after the break.

Gallery: HTC HD7 versus Desire HD: size comparison

Continue reading HTC HD7 versus Desire HD: battle of the 4.3-inchers

HTC HD7 versus Desire HD: battle of the 4.3-inchers originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 18 Oct 2010 14:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | | Email this | Comments

MakerLegoBot is made of Lego, makes things out of Lego, is so meta it hurts (video)

MakerLegoBot is made of Lego, makes things out of Lego, is so meta it hurts (video)

MakerLegoBot is made of Lego, makes things out of Lego, is so meta it hurts (video)

Building things out of Lego? Lots of fun. Building a thing out of Lego that itself builds other things out of Lego? That's totally mindblowing, and that's what Mindstorm master Will Gorman managed here with his MakerLegoBot masterpiece. The machine takes input from a PC running MLCAD, a sort of industrial design tool for blocknauts, and then churns out anything you like -- so long as it is comprised of 1x2, 2x2, 3x2, 4x2, and 8x2 bricks. These are fed by the machine and methodically placed in exact position, as shown in the video below. If you're hanging out in The Netherlands this upcoming weekend you can also see the thing in action at LegoWorld in Zwolle, or just build your own with the detailed plans at the source link below. But, before you start assembling, know that you'll need 2,400 bricks and nine Mindstorms NXT motors.

Continue reading MakerLegoBot is made of Lego, makes things out of Lego, is so meta it hurts (video)

MakerLegoBot is made of Lego, makes things out of Lego, is so meta it hurts (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 18 Oct 2010 14:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | source

source

BattleBricks | Email this | Comments

How to Stream Media without Buying Any More Gear [Howto]

How to Stream Media without Buying Any More Gear [Howto]

So, you'd love to get the movies, music, and photos from your laptop to your living room, but you don't want to buy another box, right? Well, If you have a game console, you're in luck. ZOMG IT'S SOOOO EASY.

Getting Started

Seriously, on a scale of one to ten, streaming from your console to your home theater stack clocks in at super freaking simple. All you need is a wireless router (which you probably have), a console (which we're also assuming you have), and 10 minutes of setup time (come on, you know you have that!). One of the newer Wireless-N jobs is your best choice for buttery smooth HD-streaming, but it's not a must have. Wireless-G will work, and an Ethernet cable is actually your best option for glitch- and interference-free streams. Everybody's got one of those. OK, let's get to this.

Xbox 360

The Xbox 360 plays really nicely with Windows (surprise!). When you combine the 360 with Windows 7's Windows Media Center, the Xbox 360 gets complete access to all the content on your PC, and can pipe it right into your TV. The 360 mirrors the same front end of your PC's Windows Media Center, and videos, photos, and music all plays as easily as it does on your machine.

But you don't just have to stick with PC—the 360 streams great with your Mac too. You'll need Vuze, a free, third-party streaming software (that's also a bittorrent client), to get it working, but there's actually an advantage to using Vuze: it converts any file to the proper format, meaning you can watch video codecs and formats that aren't officially supported by Microsoft. There may be some buffering time, but it's worth it for the ability to watch the movies you get from alternative, legally gray areas of the internet. The Windows Media Center solution, on the other hand, is limited to the file formats Microsoft officially supports.

•What you can do Stream music, movies, or photos from your computer to your home theater stack
•What you'll need
An Xbox 360, A PC with Windows 7 or Windows Media Center or a Mac running Vuze, and a home network
•Setup time
About 7 minutes if you have WMC (Xbox is, after all, a Microsoft product), or up to 10 minutes if you're working with Vuze

Here's how to set up your Xbox 360 as a Windows Media Center Extender:
• Fire up your 360 and go to the My Xbox Channel
• Select the "Windows Media Center" option (should be the 7th tab)
• Go through basic setup and it will display an 8-digit setup key—write that down.
• Head over to your PC, start up Windows Media Center and click Tasks > Add Extender
• Punch in the code
• Congratulations! You have now infected your living room with Internet porn.

And here's how to make Vuze work with your Xbox 360:
• Download Vuze here and install it
• Turn On "Devices" in the left panel of Vuze
• Turn on your Xbox 360 (an Xbox 360 icon should now pop up under "Devices" in Vuze)
• Drag and drop the video file you want to play to the Xbox 360 icon
• Go to the My Xbox Channel on your 360
• Select the Video Library tab on your Xbox 360 and select Vuze as the source
• Find the movie you've just dropped in Vuze and stream away

How to Stream Media without Buying Any More Gear

PS3

Streaming to the PS3 is wonderfully simple on both PC and Mac. Why? Because of a lovely little piece of software called PS3 Media Server. It's free, open source, and ridiculously easy to use. PS3 Media Server transcodes videos on the fly, which means your PS3 can stream pretty much any file type known to man. That's great and all, but the best thing about it is that there's hardly any setup. Once you get PS3 Media Server running, all of your computer's files are on visible on your PS. There's no need to pre-designate specific folders for streaming purposes.

•What you can do
Stream music, movies, or photos from your computer to your home theater stack
•What you'll need
A PS3, a PC or Mac, and a home network
•Setup time
About 5 minutes

Here's how to set up PS3 Media Server:
• Download PS3 Media Server here and install it to your computer
• Turn on your PS3
• Open PS3 Media Server on your computer
• Click on the PS3 Media Server Icon under the videos tab on your PS3
• Find your movie (song or picture)
• Make popcorn

Wii

How to Stream Media without Buying Any More Gear
Given its lack of HD support, the Wii isn't exactly the most powerful streaming solution around. But if it's all you got, you can definitely turn it into a solid option. The key to Wii streaming using the Opera browser to access your computer's content. You'll be using a third party streaming service called Orb, because Orb has a lovely webapp that you only need a browser to access. When you head to Orb's website, you'll be brought to a rather snazzy app that's surprisingly easy-to-navigate with the Wiimote. Movies are played through Flash, and, even though it's just a webapp, Orb on the Wii gives you most of the functionality you'd get with using Orb on the Xbox 360 and PS3.

•What you can do
Stream music, movies, or photos from your computer to your Wii's Web browser
•What you'll need
A Wii, Orb, Opera's Wii Browser ($5), and a home netowork
•Setup time
About 15 minutes

Here's how to get Wii to stream:
• Download Orb here and install it to your computer
• Set the folders you want Orb to access (i.e. your Movies folder)
• Go to the SHOP channel on your Wii and download Opera. It'll cost you 5 bucks.
• Open Opera
• Head to mycast.orb.com and plug in your Orb login deets
• Choose the category you want to stream, and knock yourself out

How to Stream Media without Buying Any More Gear

***
Special thanks to Leslie for this how to's inspiration.

If you've always wanted to learn how to do something but didn't know where to start, feel free to ask us how to here.

Netflix on Wii drops the clunky disc requirement, starts streaming through Wii Menu

source: http://engadget.com

Netflix on Wii drops the clunky disc requirement, starts streaming through Wii Menu

posted Oct 18th 2010 at 8:19AM

It's not just the PS3 that will be doing its Netflix streaming disc-free from today: the Wii is joining in the fun as well! Americans and Canadians alike will be able to download and install Netflix from the Wii Shop Channel, provided they've signed up for a subscription of $8.99 (C$7.99 in Canad! a) or ab ove. Notably, over three million Wii consoles are said to have been hooked up with Netflix since the service launched back in April, and this step should make that number grow even larger. Only question is what we're all going to do with those three million redundant discs now. We can't turn them all into coasters, any ideas?

Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)