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Barnes & Noble to introduce updated Nook e-reader on May 24
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Handhelds,
Barnes & Noble is readying an updated e-reader, the company revealed in a recent Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
"In a meeting with investor analysts on May 4, 2011, Barnes & Noble ... indicated it expects to make an announcement on May 24, 2011 regarding the launch of a new eReader device," the notice said.
The company provided no other details about what the updated e-reader might entail. The last major Nook upgrade was the Nook Color (pictured above,) which started shipping in November. The Android-based device includes a 7-inch touch screen and access to more than 2 million titles, as well as an extra-wide viewing angle intended for sharing. The screen boasts 1,024-by-600 resolution and 169 pixels per inch. It comes with 8GB of storage, expandable up to 32GB with a microSD card.
In late April, Barnes & Noble pushed out a major software update to the Nook Color, which included its own app store, an email client, the ability to play Flash video, and enhanced books. It also added support for Android 2.2 "Froyo" and Adobe Flash video.
Click to continue reading Barnes & Noble to introduce updated Nook e-reader on May 24
Samsung Infuse 4G hits AT&T on May 15 for $199
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Google, Handhelds,
If you're on AT&T and the HP Veer isn't your cup of tea, AT&T and Samsung on Thursday announced the sale date and price for the Infuse 4G, the carrier's first smartphone with the HSPA+ 21 speeds that we consider to be the minimum for true 4G. The phone will go on sale on May 15 (same day as the Veer) for $199 with a two-year contract.
First previewed at CES in January, the Infuse is an interesting phone: it's unusually thin, long and wide. The Android 2.2 phone is of the standard black-slab style, but it has a 4.5-inch, 800-by-480 screen. That isn't higher resolution than the usual smartphone screen, but it's wider. The screen also sports Samsung's Super AMOLED Plus technology, which combines the increased outdoor visibility of Super AMOLED with more subpixels for truer colors. The phone is also very slim, at 9mm.
The Infuse has AT&T's fastest Internet speeds yet, but it's not quite the fastest smartphone AT&T has to offer; with a single-core, 1.2-Ghz Samsung processor, it's a bit slower than the dual-core Motorola Atrix 4G. It's still faster than most of the other smartphones on the market, though.
Click to continue reading Samsung Infuse 4G hits AT&T on May 15 for $199
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HP has announced that its tiny HP Veer WebOS phone will be available from AT&T on May 15, and for a relatively tiny price, at that.
The HP Veer 4G will be available from AT&T stores on May 15 in either black or white, costing $99.99 with a two-year contract, AT&T said on Thursday. AT&T said the offer is good for just a limited time, however, and that there's an early termination fee of up to $325, depending on how far along users are into their contract.
Inside will be 8 GB of user storage, which will store preloaded apps including a mobile hotspot for up to five users and AT&T Navigator that uses the built-in GPS. AT&T also claimed that "thousands of apps" are available via the WebOS App Catalog.
"A large majority of our customers are choosing smartphones but they don't all want the same thing," said Michael Woodward, vice president, mobile device portfolio, for AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets, in a statement. "HP Veer 4G gives us a highly unique and feature-rich smartphone for customers who want something a 'little' different."
Click to continue reading HP Veer goes exclusive with AT&T, $99 on May 15
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Deal of the Day: 13% off 13-inch MacBook Pro
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Hot Deals, PC / Laptop,
eBay has an awesome deal today for anyone looking for one of the new MacBook Pros! They're offering 13% off the recently updated MacBook Pro. The new model sports the Thunderbolt port, HD FaceTime cameras, and the Intel Sandy Bridge chipset. These normally sell for $1,199, but today's deal brings it to you for $1,049, saving you $150--and shipping is included in that price. They've got limited stock, and this deal will only last for a few hours. If you're interested, head on over:
Save $150 on Apple MacBook Pro
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 
| MacBook Pro deal
Apple, Google, Lucasfilm, Intel and more sued for secretly conspiring to fix employee pay
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Corporate News, Google,
A former Lucasfilm software engineer on Wednesday filed a class-action lawsuit against a who's who of Silicon Valley tech giants, alleging a conspiracy to fix employee pay and not poach staff away from each other in violation of anti-trust laws.
Siddharth Hariharan, a former Lucasfilm employee who is the founder and CEO of game developer InEarth, is suing Lucasfilm, Adobe, Apple, Google, Intel, Intuit, and Pixar.
Hariharan is represented by Joseph Saveri of the national plaintiffs' law firm Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein.
The suit claims that an alleged "no-solicitation" agreement between the named companies resulted in employee compensation being reduced by "10 to 15 percent" as compared to "what would have prevailed in a properly functioning labor market where employers compete for workers."
Mass Effect 3 delayed until 2012
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Action, Adventure, PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360,
Gamers hoping to find Mass Effect 3 under the Christmas tree this year are out of luck. The latest installment of BioWare's popular mature-themed sci-fi franchise has been delayed until the first quarter of 2012, the company said Wednesday.
"Mass Effect 3 will be released in the first three months of 2012. The development team is laser-focused on making sure Mass Effect 3 is the biggest, boldest and best game in the series, ensuring that it exceeds everyone's expectations," BioWare executive producer Casey Hudson posted on Facebook.
The follow-up to Mass Effect 2 was originally slated for release in time for the 2011 holiday season, according to various gaming websites, though some have already updated that information to reflect the delayed release of the RPG third-person shooter.
Click to continue reading Mass Effect 3 delayed until 2012
Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo hits “feather” re-entry milestone
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Science, Transportation,
One of Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic spaceships on Wednesday completed a re-entry technique known as a "feather" configuration for the first time.
The SpaceShipTwo (SS2), known as the VSS Enterprise, has now completed seven solo flights since its December 2009 debut, but Wednesday's was the first that successfully tested out this re-entry procedure.
Virgin Galatic is Branson's commerical spaceflight program, which plans to take the average (albeit wealthy) tourist into space in the next two years.
The VSS Enterprise took off from a California runway this morning at 6:43am Pacific time attached to the WhiteKnight (WK2) carrier aircraft, the VMS Eve. The spaceship was controlled by Pete Siebold and Clint Nichols, test pilots from Scaled Composites, which designed and build the spacecrafts. Mark Stucky, Brian Maisler, and Brandon Inks manned the VMS Eve.
Click to continue reading Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo hits “feather” re-entry milestone
Microsoft should buy RIM
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Editorial, Features, Microsoft,
At this week's BlackBerry World trade show, everyone expected the top headliner to be the company's just-released PlayBook tablet and its new software offerings. As it turned out, the gadget ended up taking second spot to a surprise guest: Microsoft boss Steve Ballmer.
Ballmer came out during RIM co-CEO Mike Lazaridis' keynote yesterday morning to announce a partnership that would bring Microsoft's Bing search engine to BlackBerries. Search is a big deal in mobile devices, so it's fitting that a heavy hitter from Microsoft came to give its blessing, but many took the appearance of the CEO as a clear sign of bigger things to come.
Does RIM know what it's in for, though? There's considerable doubt over whether the company's strategy and platforms can be successful over the next couple of years. If they're not, Microsoft could end up owning RIM.
"Will Microsoft buy RIM? That is a possibility and a fast track for Microsoft to gain a foothold in the mobile hardware business," says Harry Wang, director of mobile research at Parks Associates. "RIM's market capitalization is only $25 billion and Microsoft has $48 billion in cash. If RIM's value drops to $15 billion, it will become an attractive target for Microsoft. Maybe Steve Ballmer was planting that seed during his keynote appearance at Blackberry World."
Click to continue reading Microsoft should buy RIM
Deal of the Day: 61% off Kodak SLICE 14 megapixel touchscreen camera bundle
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Cameras, Hot Deals,
eBay has a hot deal today, offering 61% off the Kodak SLICE camera bundle. It's got a 14 megapixel sensor, touchscreen, and can share to social networks like YouTube, Facebook, Flickr, and more with the touch of a button. This camera typically sells for $319, but today's deal brings it to you for $124, saving you $194 in the process, and shipping is included in that price. They've got limited stock, and this deal will only last for a few hours. If you're interested, head on over:
Save 61% on Kodak SLICE camera bundle
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 | Xbox Live Gold deal
American Airlines will stream video to your devices while you fly starting this summer
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Handhelds, Movies, Transportation, Wireless / WiFi,
Passengers on American Airlines flights are about to get a new perk. Instead of craning their necks to catch reruns of "Monk" and excerpts from "The Tonight Show" on tiny aisle TV sets, they'll be able to wirelessly stream content to their personal devices from the comfort of their own seats.
American announced Tuesday that it will begin testing an inflight streaming service, created through a partnership with Aircell, that gives customers choices of movies and TV shows that they can stream to Wi-Fi-enabled devices in the air.
"American was the first North American airline to launch inflight Wi-Fi, and today we again set a new industry standard as the first domestic airline to test inflight streaming video content," American's vice president of marketing, Rob Friedman, said in a statement. "We know our customers want to be connected on the ground and in the sky, so we are working hard to stay on the leading edge of connectivity through technology enhancements like this."
