On Gear Live: Circuit Breaker: The Tech Newsletter that Elevates Your Gadget Game

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Apple iCloud

This morning, Apple put out a press release letting the world know that they'll be showing off iOS 5, OS X Lion, and iCloud, their long-awaited cloud service/MobileMe revamp, next week at WWDC. Oddly enough, Apple only went as far as naming iCloud, and called it an "upcoming cloud services offering." Now, we aren't expecting them to go into full detail in a press release, but why even name it at all? We're guessing it's because Apple really wants to set the expectation that WWDC will be focusing on software, softening the blow that will inevitably come when the masses are complaining about the lack of an iPhone 5 hardware reveal. The press release lets us know Apple's WWDC intentions and plans, and sets the expectations accordingly.

WWDC kicks off in six days, and of course, we'll have details of all the announcements as they're made. By the way, the press release also confirms that the incomparable Steve Jobs will be taking the stage at WWDC.


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DS Lite $99

Quick update for you mobile gaming fans - the Nintendo DS Lite is now $99. Nintendo announced the price drop today, ahead of next weeks E3. It's a great price for a fantastic portable console, but we have to wonder--does this mean we might see a Nintendo 3DS price drop next week? It's no secret that the sales on Nintendo's new flagship console have been less than stellar.

Read More | Nintendo DS Lite

dell xps 17 promo code

The Deal of the Day today features a significant discount on the Dell Vostro 230 desktop PC series. You end up saving $300 on a Vostro 230 mini tower or slim tower that is configured to be over $699. Included in the price is a 23-inch Dell monitor, and shipping is free! Just be sure to use coupon code RBGFF90MV391F9 during checkout:

Save $300 on Dell Vostro 230 desktop PC

Don’t forget, if you’re looking for other deals, be sure to check out our Newegg Promo Code thread. Oh, and if you're on Twitter, be sure to follow @TechPromos for the latest deals, or you can Like TechPromos on Facebook.


Latest Gear Live Videos

Planet Of The Apes 2Okay, how many of you went to BEA this past week? Yeah, that’s what I thought. Since you didn’t make it, you might appreciate Torsten’s overview at Comics Beat.

Now, here’s some more nifty stuff:

Toth: Randy Reynaldo reviews Alex Toth, Genius Isolated. Need more be said?

Apes: My pal Rich Handley, no stranger to Planet of the Apes, reviews the first issue of BOOM!’s new Apes series, and likes it.

Apes II: Did you know there’s also a new Planet Of The Apes novel out? That’s right, novel! Scoop has the scoop.

Blackbeard: A terrific piece on comics historian Bill Blackbeard’s efforts to preserve comic strips, in case you were wondering why he’s such an important figure.

Click to continue reading Weekend Reading: Toth, Apes, Jesus and Lichty


iPad displayA Korean paper is claiming that Apple is teaming up with Samsung to bring its Active-Matrix Organic Light-Emitting Diode (AMOLED) display technology to the iPad 3.

A "source" allegedly told The Korea Herald that "Apple wants to tap into Samsung's AMOLED technology for an upgraded version of the iPad 2." The site also claimed that Apple chief operating officer Tim Cook started chatting with Samsung about the possibility of integrating the technology on a recent trip to South Korea, and it pegs the end of the year for the launch of Apple's next-generation tablet.

Apple didn't upgrade the iPad's display with the second iteration of the device it released in March, and rumors about the fabled iPad 3's screen have already started to trickle in. Earlier this month, reports circulated that the next iPad will feature a 3D display.

Click to continue reading Apple considering Samsung AMOLED panels for iPad 3


Apple Store Upper West Side

Two African-American men have filed a federal lawsuit against Apple that accuses the company of racial discrimination at an Apple Store in Manhattan.

The plaintiffs, Brian Johnston, 34, and Nile Charles, 25, claim a white Apple employee in his 50s told them, "I don't want 'your kind' hanging out in the store" at Apple's retail outlet at 1981 Broadway on Dec. 9, 2010, according to court filings cited by Apple Insider Wednesday.

Another Apple Store employee allegedly approached the pair, who were wearing "baggy jeans and large sweaters with hoods" according to the lawsuit, and said, "Now you have to go. If you want to know why, it's because I said so. Consider me God. You have to go."

Johnston and Charles entered the Upper West Side store to purchase headphones, the suit said. They recorded the incident on their cell phones, according to Apple Insider.

Click to continue reading Apple being sued for racial discrimination at NYC Upper West Side Apple Store


Book Expo AmericaI love BEA, better known as Book Expo America. It’s the premiere American book show - a place to mingle with publishers, authors, editors, bookstore owners and see what books will be coming out in the very near future.

Before BEA took up permanent residence in NYC, it used to pop up periodically in Los Angeles, and I always made it a point to drop in.

One time, while I was eavesdropping, I heard two publishing stereotypes - one even wore a brown corduroy sportcoat with leather elbow patches - discussing the future of the industry: “These blogs, they’re just so much nonsense, right?”

Click to continue reading Top 10 Surprises @ BEA


Amazon Mac Download Store

Following up on the Lady Gaga album sale earlier this week, Amazon continues their digital download battle against Apple with the launch of their own Mac app download store. They've got quite a variety of available titles (though, not as much as the Mac App Store of course,) which include big games like Civilization V, productivity suites like Microsoft Office, and a bunch of others. Right now they are offering Airport Mania for free, and your first paid download will be $5 off. We like it.


dell xps 17 promo code

The Deal of the Day today features the new Dell XPS 17. You can get this notebook for $150 off, and shipping is free. The Core i5 XPS 17 normally sells for $999, and this deal drops that price down to $749. Of course, being that this is Dell, you can configure it to your hearts content, so adding on a Core i7 processor still results in savings ($949), as does getting the 3D model with souped up NVIDIA graphics card. Click the link to get all the details - this is a hot one:

Save $150 on Dell XPS 17 laptop

Don’t forget, if you’re looking for other deals, be sure to check out our Newegg Promo Code thread. Oh, and if you're on Twitter, be sure to follow @TechPromos for the latest deals, or you can Like TechPromos on Facebook.


We open up the Motorola Droid X2 in this episode of Unboxing Live, giving you a look a the first dual-core Android device available on Verizon Wireless. This is the follow-up to the original Droid X, and maintains the same form factor and physical buttons, as well as the huge display. This one is actually a qHD display, providing a higher resolution than the original Droid X that launched almost a year ago. One thing missing here, the Droid X2 doesn't have 4G LTE built-in, but that's a minor complaint for this otherwise speedy device.

As always, hit us with any questions you have about the Droid X2 and we'll do our best to answer them in our follow-up review! In the meantime, feel free to check out our Motorola Droid X2 gallery.

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