Younger People Using Email Less (or Maybe Using Gmail More) [Email]

You may think the world doesn't lack for emails, but just wait until the younger generation comes up. A Comscore survey found 12-to-17-year-olds spening 48 percent less time on email sites—though Gmail actually gained ground, and mobile email wasn't included.

Says the New York Times about Comscore's findings:

The numbers testify to the trend. The number of total unique visitors in the United States to major e-mail sites like Yahoo and Hotmail is now in steady decline, according to the research company comScore. Such visits peaked in November 2009 and have since slid 6 percent; visits among 12- to 17-year-olds fell around 18 percent. (The only big gainer in the category has been Gmail, up 10 percent from a year ago.)

The chart above shows the wider range of findings, with those over 55 actually spending more time at web-based email sites, and a wide divide between those 17 and under and slightly older young adults. There are some notable question marks in the survey, including the lack of accounting for email through mobile devices like BlackBerry phones, and the perhaps limited scope of looking at just Gmail, Yahoo, and Hotmail usage. And if younger users are actually adopting Facebook's messaging system in any number, that muddies the waters when it comes to defining "email."

Still, the numbers are intriguing. Do you see yourself moving away from email more and more? Will email always be available for you, or could you see another messaging platform replacing it?

E-Mail Use Falls as Young Chat and Text [NYTimes.com]

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App of the Day: Camera+ for iPhone [Video]

After getting a bit overzealous with the iPhone 4's volume buttons, Camera+, my favorite iPhone photography app, was booted from the App Store. Thankfully it's back Apple's good graces, and it's just been updated with more photo-fancifying features than ever.

What is it?

Camera+, iPhone, $2. Even during its brief hiatus from the world of sanctioned App Store apps, Camera+ remained my favorite all-around photography app for the iPhone. Of course, it has all the photo effects you'd expect—HDR, miniaturize, polarize, color dodge, '70s, toy camera, sepia, and one or two dozen more—as well as a variety of presets for various scenes—cloudy, fluorescent, portrait, concert, etc. But it's also got some less obvious stuff for both before and after you shoot: touch focus and exposure, white balance lock, timer mode, burst mode, and plenty of borders and cropping options. It pretty much does it all. And it's on sale for a buck. OH, and, with its reintroduction into the realm of the living, the beloved volume button-shutter button feature is gone. So don't update if you wanna keep that around.

Who's it good for?

People who don't want to switch between a bunch of different apps to get their photos looking just right; people who find MMS and email adequate for sharing those photos; people who are fed up with Hipstamatic's authentic-to-a-fault UI.

Why's it better than alternatives?

Well, it does just about everything you could want it to, it's only $2, and, in my estimation, it's got some of nicest looking effects of any iOS photo app. The update also does some nice things under the hood, like maintaing meta data and geographic info when you export shots to the camera roll.

How could it be even better?

This new and improved version of Camera+ is noticeably slower than the previous version, which I wouldn't have described as snappy to begin with. Hopefully that'll be addressed in the next update. And with so many features and options, it'd be nice to be able to save a custom workflow that you could quickly apply to photos on the run without doing all that tapping.

You can grab Camera+ in the App Store for $2. Scratch that! Currently on sale for $1

We're always looking for cool apps—for iOS, Android, Windows Phone or whatever else—to feature as App of the Day (yes, apps for other platforms will start popping up soon!) If you come across one you think we should take a look at, please let us know.

For more apps, check out our weekly app roundups for iPhone, iPad, and Android

Video music: Kevin MacLeod

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Digital Storm's xm15 gaming laptop rolls with NVIDIA's Optimus

Lookin' to straddle the fence with your next laptop purchase? Or maybe you're just lookin' to conserve battery life when not picking off enemies in Counter-Strike. Either way, Digital Storm's new xm15 (not to be confused with Alienware's M15x) can satisfy the yearning, as the $999 base configuration comes equipped with a 2.4GHz Core i5-520M, 4GB of DDR3 RAM, a 320GB HDD and NVIDIA's GT 425M (1GB). Naturally, Intel's integrated graphics chipset is also included for less demanding times, and if you're in need of a little more oomph, a $1,086 build jumps to a 2.53GHz Core i5-540M and a $1,367 model steps up to a 2.8GHz Core i7-640M. 'Course, far nicer editions are available if you're got the cash to customize, but we'll leave all that between you and your wallet. And whoever fills your wallet.

Continue reading Digital Storm's xm15 gaming laptop rolls with NVIDIA's Optimus

Digital Storm's xm15 gaming laptop rolls with NVIDIA's Optimus originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Dec 2010 14:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Acer Aspire 5742G laptop with NVIDIA GeForce GT 540M graphics reviewed, es ist schnell

When first announced, we had fears that the new NVIDIA GeForce GT 500M-series graphics would be little more than a tweak of a clock speed here and a new sticker there, as the specs of the 540M (96 CUDA cores, 128-bit memory interface) match the 435M series bit-for-bit. But, a Notebook Journal review of the first laptop to bear NVIDIA's latest, the Acer Aspire 5742G, finds that the performance boost is tangible. "Much stronger," even, scoring 8315 points in 3DMark 06 -- a good bit higher than the 435M scores we've seen. The laptop otherwise is said to be quite a powerhouse, with a massive 8GB of DDR3 memory onboard, but it's a gentle machine too, Optimus letting the thing run cool and long (up to five hours on a charge) when you're not getting your frag on. Indeed it's deemed the most powerful notebook you can buy for €700, and while that translates to roughly $920, we'll have to see what Acer decides to charge when it comes Stateside.

[Thanks, Markus]

Acer Aspire 5742G laptop with NVIDIA GeForce GT 540M graphics reviewed, es ist schnell originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Dec 2010 14:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Viliv to debut Android-based X7, X10, Windows 7-based X70 tablets at CES

We can't say for sure just yet, but we're starting to get the feeling that we're going to see lots of tablets at CES. The latest to join the party is Viliv, which has just announced that it will be showing off its new Android-based X7 and X10 tablets, along with the Windows 7-based X70 "slate" -- the latter of which is touted to be the "most slim and light Windows 7 based tablet in the world," and is presumably a successor to the company's existing X70 tablet. As you might expect, however, Viliv is still saving most of the key details for the official unveiling at CES, but you know we'll be there to check them all out first hand.

Viliv to debut Android-based X7, X10, Windows 7-based X70 tablets at CES originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Dec 2010 19:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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