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

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We've got your latest list of items that fall under the best tech Deals of the Day for you, including a few standouts like free apps, heavily discounted HP and Dell laptops, and a nice Xbox 360 deal as well. Be sure to hit the jump for the fill list.

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.

Click to continue reading Deal of the Day: The big weekend list


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In this episode we review the Samsung SCH-LC11 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot. The SCH-LC11 is available from Verizon Wireless, and runs on their 4G LTE network, and also provides a fallback to 3G as well. You can connect up to 5 different devices (laptops, smartphones, and anything else that supports Wi-Fi) to it, all sharing the super-fast 4G connection. ; We also perform a speed test, showing the difference between 3G speeds on an iPhone, versus the iPhone connected to the 4G hotspot over Wi-Fi.

Big thank you to JackThreads for sponsoring the show - be sure to check them out, we've got exclusive invite codes that give you $5 to use towards anything you'd like.

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iPhone 5 verizon

In an interview with Reuters, Verizon Chief Financial Officer Fran Shammo said his company's version of the next Apple iPhone, the so-called "iPhone 5," will be a global phone, working in the same countries as the AT&T model.

That would mean the Verizon iPhone 5 would be able to make calls on both CDMA and GSM networks. The device would still be native to Verizon's network, using GSM only when roaming. The AT&T version might also have both radios, though it would only need GSM to be considered a global phone.

The current Verizon iPhone 4 is CDMA-only, so it doesn't work in countries where there are only GSM networks, which includes most of Europe, Africa, and parts of Asia. The AT&T version works on most GSM networks, which are much more common.

Shammo also said Verizon would be able to launch the iPhone 5 at the same time as AT&T, all but confirming a simultaneous launch on both carriers.

Click to continue reading iPhone 5 details revealed by Verizon CFO Fran Shammo


Latest Gear Live Videos

HTC Trophy WIndows Phone 7

Verizon's first Windows Phone 7 device, the HTC Trophy, goes on sale at Verizon's online store on May 26 and in retail locations on June 2.

The 3G device costs $149.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate and two-year contract. If you buy one before July 15, Verizon will throw in a free Xbox 360 game: either Halo: Reach, Kinect Sports, or Lode Runner.

The media-centric device features a 1-GHz Snapdragon processor, surround sound through SRS WOW HD, 3.8-inch WVGA touch screen, 5-megapixel camera with auto-focus and 720p HD video capture, 16 GB of storage, Wi-Fi connectivity (802.11 b/g/n). It's also quad-band and will work in more than 200 countries, Verizon said in a press release.

Click to continue reading HTC Trophy hits Verizon Wireless on May 26 for $149, includes free Xbox 360 game


Plain ManSummer's coming up and you know who's got a new book coming out? My old Ultraverse pal Steve Englehart, who's perhaps best known in comics for acclaimed runs on Batman, The Avengers, Captain America and dozens of other titles.

Years ago, he wrote a book called The Point Man. It was reprinted in 2010 by Tor Books and quickly followed by the sequel later that year called The Long Man.

He's got a new one coming out called The Plain Man – and the growing line is now called the Timeless Series - and it ships next month, June 21. There's a follow-up book already in the hopper called The Arena Man, so there appear to be plenty of stories left to tell.

Bonus for comic book fans, in The Plain Man Steve's bringing in some of his creator-owned characters, Coyote and Scorpio Rose to name just two, to join in the action. And they won't be the only ones popping up either.

Click to continue reading Steve Englehart: The Plain Man


monster icarplay sale

This Deal of the Day from eBay offers 84% off the Monster iCarPlay FM Transmitter for Apple devices. These let you play tracks from your iPod, iPod touch, iPhone, and iPad right through your car stereo. These usually sell for $119.95, and this deal brings it down to just $19, saving you a full $100.95. That's a discount of 84%. Even better? Shipping is free. If you're interested, head on over:

Save 84% on Monster iCarPlay

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.

Read More | Monster iCarPlay sale

Motorola Droid X2 unboxing

The Droid X2 is the follow-up to the popular (and large) Motorola Droid X. What's changed? Well, the big thing here is that the Droid X2 is the first dual-core Android smartphone available on Verizon. That means that this thing is fast, but we'll talk more about that in our Droid X2 review. For now, though, we've put together a Droid X2 unboxing gallery for you to feast your eyes on. We figured while you waited for our review, you might at least wanna get a look at what the thing looks like, y'know? As you can see, the display is still large (it's a 4.3-inch qHD screen,) and it's also pretty thin. Jump over to the gallery for all the details.

Gallery:


Apple signs EMI

Apple has reportedly secured a licensing agreement with EMI Music, adding to an earlier deal with Warner Music Group in its alleged efforts to launch a cloud-based music locker for iTunes users.

If the CNET report is true, Apple only needs to close deals with Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group now before it secures unprecedented, legitimate access to music from all "Big Four" labels.

In March, Amazon launched its cloud music locker without such rights and faced threats of legal action; it is now reportedly in talks with the labels to secure licensing agreements. Google launched Google Music at its Google I/O event a couple weeks ago.

In April, CNET reported that Apple had inked a deal with Warner Music and "at least one of the remaining three" major music labels. Apple has not officially acknowledged the development of a cloud-based music storage service, but speculation is rife after reports "confirming" the development with unnamed sources. Furthermore, the company recently built a massive data center in North Carolina, reportedly meant to host a video streaming service.

Click to continue reading Apple signs up EMI Music to be part of cloud music service


BlackBerry Playbook sales

It hasn't exactly been smooth sailing for the BlackBerry PlayBook since its April debut, but according to financial analysts, the tablet might not be a complete disaster for Research in Motion.

RBC Capital Markets analyst Mike Abramsky estimates that RIM has sold about 250,000 PlayBooks to date, and could sell about 500,000 in the quarter. Abramsky and his team checked out PlayBook stock at 180 Best Buy stores and found that 14 percent of the 16GB versions were sold out, 71 percent of the 32GB PlayBooks were gone, and 84 percent of the 64GB tablets had been purchased. He cautioned, however, that the sell-outs on the 32GB and 64GB "appear allocation related."

Abramsky found that returns for the PlayBook are "nominal," despite setbacks that include a recall of 1,000 tablets and the lack of a native email client.

This comes about a month after Peter Misek, an equity analyst with Jefferies, speculated that RIM possibly sold 45,000 PlayBooks in the first few days.

Click to continue reading BlackBerry PlayBook selling moderately well, so who is buying them?


Xbox 360 replacement

Microsoft is offering a small number of Xbox 360 owners replacement consoles and a free year of Xbox Live as compensation for a firmware glitch, according to a report.

According to Kotaku, some customers have received emails stating that consumers can trade in their defective consoles in return for an upgrade.

Microsoft also confirmed the report via Twitter, in response to the posting of a screenshot of the letter by user Avery Penn.

However, the email from Microsoft appears to anticipate problems with the console, as Penn told Kotaku that his console is still able to read the discs. "The email was most likely referring to the Xbox LIVE update which is being phased in between May 19 and May 30 – an update which reflashes the DVD drives to a new stock firmware, and adds support for new XGD3 disk format," Kotaku added. "It's this update that allows an extra GB of usable storage on game discs."

Click to continue reading Microsoft sending upgraded Xbox 360 consoles to users with disc issues


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