IBLOG SPACE

We talk about Mushkin quite about around these parts and generally it’s about a new SSD or computer RAM when we do. Mushkin has now announced that it is offering a full mine of SD and microSD memory cards in several speed classes. This is the first time that Mushkin has offered storage media like this for cameras and other devices. Mushkin offers all the way up to Class 10 SD cards with 8GB, 16GB, and 32GB capacity. The class 10 cards guarantee up to 10Mb/s data speed. Mushkin also offers Class 4 microSDHC cards in 4GB, 8GB, and 16GB as well as a class 2 microSD card in 2GB capacity. The class 10 cards are only offered in SDHC flavor with the 32GB selling for $57.94. “We have very carefully prepared and tested our SDHC and microSD product offerings to ensure that they deliver the superior level of quality for which Mushkin products are known. Both amateur and professional photographers will value the data reliability and speed of our Class 10 SDHC cards, and those shooting video will a

The Bluetooth headset has gone over the years from being a black thing that hangs onto your ear to being something of a fashion accessory for some people. With the fashion accessory status has come some strange deigns and some that are the typical designs with different colors and artwork on them like the i.Tech MyVoice 610. This Bluetooth headset is shaped like most headsets I see, but has some fancy colors and art on them. The art isn’t only for the ladies either; the black one with the white flames/tribal motif might interest some of the guys. The copper colored one with the braid looks meant for the ladies. i.Tech also offers the thing in brushed silver and black or white with silver as well. No matter the design, they all get the same hardware inside. The 610 has up to five hours of talk time, 130 hours of standby, and takes only three hours of a full charge and 15 minutes for 1.5 hours of talk. The device uses Bluetooth 3.0 + EDR Class 2. It uses a single multi function button fo

Sony Ericsson will use the same NFC chip as found in the Samsung Nexus S for its new Android smartphones, according to the component supplier. NXP Semiconductors has confirmed that Sony Ericsson will be slotting the PN65 NFC solution – consisting of the NFC radio controller, the embedded secure element and NFC software – into future devices, enabling mobile payments and other short-range wireless use.

Vivitek has announced that it is finally shipping its interesting little Qumi HD and 3D ready pocket projectors. The projectors were originally pegged to ship last month, but that never happened. The Qumi projector is available right now for $499 online and in retail stores. The Qumi should be very portable with a weight of 1.4 pounds and it is the first 3D ready pocket projector. The 3D support for the projector is via Texas instruments DLP Link technology. The projector has touch sensitive buttons and a very sleek design with black or white version available. The native resolution is 1280 x 800 making it 720p capable. The brightness is up to 300 lumens and it has a 2500:1 contrast ratio. The projector is 6.3″ W x 1.2″ H x 3.9″ D and the LED light source is good for 30,000 hours of operation estimated. Connectivity includes mini-HDMI, universal 24-pin connector for VGA or component, and a mini jack audio output. “With the Qumi, Vivitek has a complete line of projector models to fit ju

If you are a big fan of the Palm Pre series of smartphone and want the latest that HP and Palm have to offer the Pre 3 has been tipped to ship on July 8 by UK retailer Play.com. The smartphone can be pre-ordered right now and the SIM free, unlocked price of the Palm 3 is £349.99 with shipping included. The Pre 3 runs WebOS 2.2 and has decent specifications. The phone is a quad band unit and measures 111 x 64 x 16mm and weighs 156g. The screen is a 3.58″ TFT capacitive touch unit with a resolution of 480 x 800. It has a small landscape slide-out QWERTY keyboard and an accelerometer for UI auto-rotate. Internal storage is 16GB and it has 512MB of RAM. It will operate on 3G networks and has 802.11b/g/n WiFi. The rear camera is a 5MP unit and the CPU is a 1.4GHz Scorpion with Adreno 205 GPU and a Qualcomm MSM8655 chipset is used. The smartphone also has Assisted GPS, active noise cancellation with the integrated mic, a digital compass, and supports MP3 and MP4 files.

Ladies and gentlemen, put down your cellphones and close your laptop lids. Well, don’t, because you’ll need the internet to see YouTube’s latest stroke of genius. Nyan Cat is known for its beautiful Pop Tart body and tendency to leave rainbows wherever he’s been, and now YouTube has given it the time bar it deserves. Gone is the boring YouTube blob, replaced by a colorful mini Nyan Cat scampering across the screen. In a way, it’s a metaphor for the passing of time and the transition of our lives, though of course only if you also have a tail and are only rendered in 8-bit graphics. If the custom time bar doesn’t show up below, you can find the official video here. We now return you – inescapable tune stuck inside your head – to your regular gadget coverage.

We have talked about Getac and its line of rugged notebooks for a long time and the latest rugged machine from the company is now here. The notebook is called the X500 and is hailed as the most powerful rugged notebook computer the company makes. The rig looks like a briefcase when closed and is powered by a 2.66GHz Core i7 processor. The processor has Intel’s Turbo Boost Technology allowing it to hit 3.33Ghz when the extra performance is needed and it has a 4MB Intel Smart Cache too. The machine has a 15.6-inch 1000NIT QuadraClear HD resolution display available and graphics are powered by an NVIDIA GT330M MXM GPU. That GPU has 512MB of its own RAM. The machine has a bunch of options to choose from as well. For instance, the machine can be had with a multitouch screen, MIL-SPEC connectors, and an expansion unit that is able to support two PCIe cards or a pair of PCI cards. The standard connectivity on the X500 includes three USB 2.0 ports, a SATA/USB combo port, dual PCMCIA ports, Exp

Toshiba has unveiled a new TV in Japan that is very interesting. The set is called the Regza 19P2. As the model name hints, the TV has a 19-inch screen and is LED backlit to save power. The TV will ship early next month. The TV has a special battery pack that slips into the back of the set. In a power, outage where you still need to get weather information or want to finish your favorite show you can press a button to keep watching using the battery. The battery is claimed to last about three hours with a five-hour charge. The TV will automatically adjust settings when on the battery to extended runtime. The screen brightness is reduced by about 18% on the battery. The set also has an integrated Seg TV tuner for picking up OTA broadcasts. Toshiba is mum on pricing of the set at this time. The battery pack is sold separately. The battery can be set to charge at night only when power is cheaper if the owner wants to be as frugal as possible. The TV also has a wireless remote control and

T-Mobile USA wants to give you a little extra motivation to go for its flavor of 4G, with an HSPA+ speed boost for 47 new markets. As of today, San Diego, Salt Lake City and Fresno are among the locations getting 42Mbps HSPA+ support, which – if you have a Rocket 3.0 USB modem – you can use for super-fast mobile downloads and uploads.

One thing I tried to play when I was young and couldn’t come anywhere close to making an actual tune with is a harmonica. I always thought that dude from Blues Traveler could play the crap out of a harmonica so it couldn’t be that hard, I was very wrong. If you are an aspiring harmonica player that wants to take digital lessons with you on how to play wherever you and your trusty instrument might go the FlashHarp is for you. This thing is a combination of a normal harmonica that you can actually play and a flash drive. One end of the FlashHarp has a USB connector on it and you can plug that end into your computer to retrieve lessons on playing. The flash drive has 2GB of storage and you can store other files on the FlashHarp too. The USB connector has a plastic cap to keep it safe. The instrument is made in the USA by hand with high quality parts. The dimensions of the FlashHarp are 3.5″ x 1 3/16″ x 15/16″. You can order the 2GB version of the drive right now for $49.95 with free shipp

If you are in a band that likes to rehearse at all hours of the night and are tired of the people that live near you calling the cops you need the Jam Hub. The Jam Hub comes by way of Daikyung Vascom and it is called a soundless rehearsal studio. A soundless rehearsal studio sounds pretty strange, but when you think about what the device does it makes sense. It’s a half moon device that has a little LCD and a bunch of knobs and buttons. Around the half-moon is seven different inputs and outputs for headphones. The idea is that you can plug your instruments into the Jam Hub and then listen to the session on headphones. The only thing I see issue with is the drums (unless electric) will still drive the neighbors crazy. The device supports 21 different audio channels and has a SD card slot and an internal digital recorder. That SD card slot and recorder will let you record your jam sessions to archive or to prove that your bassists is missing notes and needs to be replaced. Pricing and av

The busiest people in the Apple corporate structure have to be the legal team. These guys and gals are constantly fighting off suits and filing suits for one reason or another. The legal team at Apple only recently settled with Nokia for patent infringement and now another suit has been filed against the corporation. A publisher in New York filed a trademark infringement suit against Apple this week. The publisher is John T. Colby. Colby says that he purchased the assets of various entities formerly owned by another publisher named Byron Preiss in 2006 and 2007. Preiss had published more than 1000 hardcover and paperback books under the ibooks name as far back as 1999. Apple has a trademark on the IBOOK brand and sold a computer using the iBook name long ago. The suit says that Apple didn’t start using iBook for actually selling digital books until the iPad came around. Apparently, the use of iBook to sell books was the final straw for Colby and he filed suit. The lawsuit claims, “App

Four of the main UK carriers have banded together to work on mobile commerce, pushing NFC payments, digital coupons and mobile advertising. Everything Everywhere – the combined T-Mobile and Orange – along with Telefonica UK (aka O2) and Vodafone UK have formed a joint venture which will handle the sales, delivery and payment on top of which each carrier will build their individual services.

Intel has been pedaling some SSDs to enterprise and consumers for a while now and the enterprise versions of its SSDs have been a long time without a significant refresh. The specs on the replacements for the aging X25-Elineup of SSDs has now surfaced and the new 700 series are aimed at that enterprise like their forbearers. The new SSDs are the 710 and the 720. The 710 caries the codenamed Lyndonville and the 720 is dubbed the Ramsdale. The 710 series will come in 100GB, 200GB, and 300GB with the 720 coming in 200GB and 400GB capacities. The 710 SSD has 25nm MLC-HET NAND under the hood with the 720 getting 34nm SLC NAND. The cache on the 710 line is 64MB with the 720 getting a 512MB cache. The main difference between the 710 and the 720 SSD is the interface used for connecting to the computer. The 710 use a SATA 3GB/s drive and the 720 uses the PCIe 2.0. The PCIe drive is blazing fast with 2,200MB/s read sped and 1,800MB/s writes with the 710 getting 270MB/s read and 210MB/s write. Th

An interesting looking smartphone has surfaced in the UK at an event in London for Orange and Kineto Wireless. Apparently, the event was to show off the Kineto smart WiFi solution that is used in Orange signal boost tech. Kineto also offers the tech for T-Mobile in the US as well. The smartphone you see in the pics here is apparently going to be a US exclusive device and it looks very interesting. The thing that jumps out at you is that second screen in the middle of the slide out keyboard. That secondary touchscreen has spots for eight shortcuts for apps and a couple extra spots for custom shortcuts. There is no word on the hardware details, but the person manning the booth at the event called the phone Flip II according to Pocket-lint. The publication does point out that the two halves of the phone were not that solid. The QWERTY keys are split on each side of the second screen in a layout for use by each thumb. If that cool screen in the middle of the keyboard can do anything else r

As expected, Apple has kicked off its “Back to School” promotion for 2011, and rather than cheaper – or free – iPods as in previous years, the company is offering a software deal instead. Qualifying students, their parents or faculty members buying a new iMac, MacBook, MacBook Pro or MacBook Air between now and late September will get a $100 Back to School Card to use on the Mac App Store, the App Store, the iTunes Store, and the iBookstore. Of course, there’s also educational pricing deals on the Mac hardware too, so you’re saving there as well. That could amount to $100 on a MacBook or iMac, or up to $200 on a MacBook Pro. The promotion runs until September 20 2011. $100 gets you a copy of iWork – with Pages, Numbers and Keynote – with some left over for a few tracks to entertain you while you work and an ebook or two to lull you to sleep before bed. You could alternatively spend it all on thrash metal from iTunes and games for your iPhone. Best of all for Apple, because it takes a 3

There are a bunch of universal remote control apps and hardware on the market for your Apple iOS device today. The latest such device comes by way of Griffin Technology and Dijit and is called the Beacon Universal Remote Control System. The device is a hardware and app combo that promises to deliver full control of your home entertainment system using your iOS device. This system will work with your iPod touch, iPad, or iPhone. The hardware device is a small gadget that sits on your coffee table so you don’t need any accessories hanging off your iPhone or other device. The hardware converts the Bluetooth signals of your iOS device into IR signals that the entertainment system in your living room can understand. The Beacon connects to the Dijit Universal Remote App. Once the app is installed, the iOS device can then change channels, volume, inputs, program your DVR and more. The app also has a learning feature just in case you have a component that isn’t in the library. The app will als

Facebook is reportedly looking to loosen Apple’s grip on mobile app distribution – by creating software intended for iOS devices. However, rather than releasing software through the App Store, Facebook is supposedly readying “Project Spartan”, a push for browser-based apps and services. According to TechCrunch‘s sources, Project Spartan will wrap Facebook social networking around HTML5 apps from big names like game developer Zynga and the Huffington Post, all in the browser. The Facebook wrapper will allow app developers to use services like Credits to support app sales and in-app purchases. HTML5 is the centerpiece, with Project Spartan tipped to be the culmination of Facebook’s push away from Flash and to the more iOS-friendly standard. According to a preview of Project Spartan’s functionality, the app store component would just be another drop-down from the mobile site version of the social network. Although Apple is believed to be Facebook’s key target, the functionality will also

If you are looking for an easy way to transfer files like video, music, and others from your iPhone or iPad to your computer PhotoFast has unveiled the new i-FlashDrive that will do just that. The i-FlashDrive can also be used to transfer files between supported iOS devices without needing a computer nearby. The device can also be used as a normal PC flash drive with a USB port on one end. The flash drive has an Apple sync connector on one side that can plug right into any iOS device that can be used as mass storage. That includes the 4G iPod touch, 3G iPod touch, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 3G, and the iPad. The i-FlashDrive is offered in 8GB, 16GB, and 32GB capacity and price varies based on the capacity you choose. Pricing is NT$2,850 for 8GB, NT$3,450 for 16GB, or NT$5,550 for 32GB. The flash drive will work with Mac and PC computers and a free app is available for download that is needed for transferring the files to and from your iOS device to the i-FlashDrive. The flash drive

Lenovo has confirmed that it has two Android 3.x Honeycomb tablets in the pipeline for 2011, as well as a Windows 7 model for release later in the year. According to COO Rory Read, DowJones reports, Lenovo will have both a consumer slate – the IdeaPad K1 aka LePad – and an enterprise model falling under its ThinkPad heading, presumably the same tablet we saw leaked back in April . The IdeaPad K1 is well known to us, being the production finale of the IdeaPad U1 hybrid journey Lenovo has been traveling since CES 2010 . In its K1 form, it has a 1GHz dual-core Tegra 2 processor, 1GB of memory, WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1 and an HDMI output. The Lenovo ThinkPad tablet, however, has not previously been confirmed by the company, though leaks earlier in the year gave us a glimpse of what we could expect. Read did not give away any specifications of the Lenovo enterprise slate – beyond that it would offer a digital stylus “for signature capture” – but we’re expecting Tegra 2 and a “keyboard b

HTC has confirmed that it will be dropping apps from the HTC Desire’s Android 2.3 Gingerbread build, so as to fit the upgraded OS into the ROM the smartphone has available. The company frustrated and then bemused Desire owners earlier this week by first announcing that the Gingerbread update had been cancelled and then, in the face of significant backlash, reinstated again . However, it seems there are are compromises to be made if you want the latest software. According to HTC’s Facebook page, “to resolve Desire’s memory issue and enable the upgrade to Gingerbread, we will cut select apps from the release.” The exact nature of which apps will make the final ROM and which will not is unclear: we’re guessing they’ll more likely be culled from HTC’s own Sense selection. HTC’s original argument is that the Desire’s 512MB of ROM was insufficient for both Android 2.3 and its own Sense modifications, if it wanted to deliver “the HTC Sense experience you’ve come to expect.” Owners argued th

Bizarre watch manufacturer Tokyoflash has revealed its latest concept , and it wants to use its cryptic LEDs for good. Coupling the company’s usual, distinctive style and a breathalyzer, by blowing into the side of the watch and tapping “Alcohol Test Function” you can check your blood alcohol content.

Microsoft’s Kinect for Windows SDK will be released in beta form this week, according to Microsoft Spain president María Garaña, the toolkit allowing developers to use the motion-tracking hardware with PCs rather than the Xbox 360. Among the initially supported features, WinRumors reports, will be skeletal tracking for one or two people along with use of the four-microphone array. That array is coupled with acoustic noise and echo cancellation, and can pinpoint which person in the field of view is speaking. Microsoft will also link it with the existing Windows speech recognition API, opening up the possibility of two users individually controlling a PC with their voice, and the system automatically recognizing which commands come from which person. Finally, there’s XYZ depth perception to allow the Kinect camera – and the connected PC – to track how far away a user is. Microsoft’s gaming platform uses all this for motion-controlled titles such as sports, bowling and other games; back

You remember the Sony S1 and S2 tablets, right? One looks like a folded back magazine while the other takes on a clamshell form factor. Just last week, the two tablets had cleared the FCC, which revealed the S1 to come in four variations and the S2 to come with AT&T HSPA+ support. Now, a leaked internal note from Sony’s marketing group may have outed the release timeframe for the two tablets. The guys over at Engadget were shown the private note, which highlighted the timeline for an unnamed Sony tablet that will hit the UK first. According to the note, the tablet is due out for pre-orders starting in August and will ship by the end of September. The tablet is said to be available at launch through Sony Direct, UK retailer John Lewis, and another unconfirmed retailer. Other retailers will start carrying the tablet after the Christmas holiday. There aren’t any details in the note that specifically indicate whether it’s referring to the S1 or the S2. But it does say that it will stac

It’s that summer sales season right now that gives students two months to pick up all the goodies they need to kick off the next school year. Rumors for Apple’s back-to-school deal have been floating around since before WWDC 2011 , and now new evidence seems to confirm that the promotion will kick off tomorrow. MacRumors was able to get a photo of Apple’s marketing material for the promotion indicating that the sale would start June 16 and run through September 20. Also, instead of the rumored $200 off an iPad with the purchase of a Mac, the offer is for a $100 Mac App Store gift card that can also be used for purchases from the iTunes Store. In previous years, a free iPod was offered instead. This new offer makes a lot of sense considering all the updates coming with Mac OS X Lion, iOS 5, and the iCloud . The Mac App Store will be built-in to Lion, and the iCloud will make it super easy to sync apps and music purchased through iTunes.

That beast of a smartphone, the HTC Sensation 4G is now available at T-Mobile. Some lucky folks were able to get them early and at a discount from Walmart, but for the rest of us, we can now head to T-Mobile retail stores or online to pick up HTC’s new flagship smartphone. The HTC Sensation 4G features a 4.3-inch qHD display, 1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, and an 8-megapixel rear camera. It will come running HTC Sense 3.0 UI on top of Android 2.3.3 Gingerbread. The new UI promises new features such as enhanced 3D widgets, smart lock screens, and HTC Watch for media downloads. The smartphone is priced at $199 with a new two-year contract that includes both voice and data plans. However, that price is only after a $50 mail-in rebate, which means it’s $249 out-of-pocket right away. That sure makes the $148.88 Walmart deal seem awfully sweet. If you’ve been able to find the phone at your local Walmart, let us know in the comments.

The Apple and Google location tracking controversy may soon be fully addressed in legislation. Ever since news of Apple’s unencrypted storage of location data on iPhones broke, Senators Al Franken and Richard Blumenthal have been hot on their tails, summoning both Apple and Google for congressional hearings on the matter. Now the duo are submitting a bill that would require explicit consent for location data. The bill is called the “Location Privacy Protection Act of 2011″ and hopes to close any loopholes in the current federal law regarding location privacy. The proposed law will apply to both device manufacturers and app developers for smartphones and tablets. “Our laws do too little to protect information on our mobile devices,” Franken said in a statement. “Geolocation technology gives us incredible benefits, but the same information that allows emergency responders to locate us when we’re in trouble is not necessarily information all of us want to share with the rest of the world.

What we’ve got here today is an oddity indeed, a product we don’t often see around these parts, one made for the crossbreed citizen of our beloved modern world, the hardcore outdoors tech nerd. Better yet, it’s a piece of equipment that’s made for a mountain climber, but will make your everyday sunfish catching a whole lot louder. This is the Grade Digital Audio ECO Extreme All Terrain Speaker Case – it’s waterproof, it’s bright blue, and it’s made to make sure your handset doesn’t get trashed while you’re listening to Lady Gaga while you’re jumping out of an airplane. Actually you probably still wouldn’t be able to hear the music over the air even if you had it – but your device would be fine!

Even in China, you don’t want to mess with Apple when it comes to intellectual property. Back in April, it was reported that three ex-employees of Foxconn were arrested on charges of leaking the iPad 2 design. Today, the Shenzhen Bao’an People’s Court has officially sentenced the three to prison for terms up to 18 months and fined up to 150,000 yuan. It turns out that only two of the arrested were former Foxconn employees while one was the general manager of MacTop, an accessories manufacturer of Apple products. Xiao Chengsong from MacTop had offered Hou Pengna, a Foxconn ex-employee, 20,000 yuan or roughly $3000 plus discounts to his company’s product in exchange for information on the next-gen iPad. Hou then paid Lin Kecheng, who at the time was working in Foxconn’s R&D department, to obtain the specs for the iPad 2. This all took place around September of last year and the iPad 2 was not unveiled until March of this year. Hence, the leak allowed third-party iPad accessories manu

Microsoft’s Windows 8 was just revealed recently with a demo of the tablet-friendly interface at the D9 conference and then some actual hardware prototypes shown at Computex 2011. Future Windows desktops, notebooks, and tablets will all be running Windows 8 and the release date is now hinted for Autumn 2012. Microsoft VP, Dan’l Lewin, was speaking at the startup LAUNCH event at the Microsoft Silicon Valley campus when he hinted at the Windows 8 timeline. He suggested that Windows 8 will be in the market 12 months after the initial beta. “We’ve made the point about having a developer conference later this year,” said Lewin. “Then typically we enter a beta phase, and then in 12 months we’re in the market, so let’s make that assumption.” Lewin also spoke about his views on tablet and smartphone operating systems. “I think tablets are big phones, more or less and I think they will want, over time, some of the capabilities that PC architectures have,” said Lewin. Windows 8 will be unifying

Today there’s been a what amounts to a flurry of activity surrounding the next-generation Nexus device basically certainly on the way from Google’s labs and whatever carrier they decide on pairing with. The big news comes via a report coming from a source speaking with BGR that notes several new and very plausible details on the so-called Nexus 4G, aka the next step in Google-partnered Android devices toting their most vanilla version of their current mobile operating system, whatever that Android may be. What lies below is an account of everything we’ve learned thus far, including rumors leading back months ago. We can’t wait!

Dolby announced today that it has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (RIM). The company claims that RIM has been using digital audio compression technologies that infringe its patents. They are seeking recovery of financial damages and also asking to halt the sales of several BlackBerry devices. Dolby’s patents cover a highly efficient digital audio compression technology that allows manufacturers to provide high quality audio while using extremely limited amounts of transmission and storage space. The suit claims that RIM uses this technology in some of its BlackBerry smartphones and also in the Playbook tablet, but has refused to obtain licenses from Dolby. The technology is incorporated into the international standard known as High Efficiency Advanced Audio Coding (HE AAC), which is widely used in many consumer electronics devices such as smartphones, tablets, and portable music players. However, most all major smartphone makers have ag

Google unveiled all the details on their Chromebooks during the Google I/O developer conference last month. Samsung and Acer were named as the first two partners in manufacturing Chromebooks, with the first commercially available models to ship on June 15. That’s today and they are right on schedule. However, buzz for Google’s Chromebooks have quickly fizzled since the announcement at I/O. Attempts to create more fervor were made when the Chrome team unleashed some early models to be sold exclusively through popular flash sales site, Gilt. Another attempt to generate and perhaps measure interest was an easter-egg-hunt type of game that Google hosted across the web for a chance to win an early Chromebook. Now, both the Acer and Samsung Chromebooks are up for sale at Best Buy and Amazon in the U.S. Various online retailers in the UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, and the Netherlands will also be carrying them. Pricing starts at $349.99 for the Acer model, and starts at $429.99 for

Scan the headlines, and you’d be forgiven for thinking that everybody had a tablet these days. The iPad broke the market open, and since that point we’ve seen a torrent of rivals each trying to take the touchscreen crown. It’s a tricky segment to judge, and even harder if you’re trying to take your first steps into tableteering. Get up to speed with your options – and advice on which slate to select – after the cut! iOS vs Android (or something else?) The big battle right now is between iOS, on Apple’s iPad, and Android Honeycomb, on various tablets from Samsung, Motorola, ASUS and others. Apple’s iPad 2 follows the original iPad in leading the consumer tablet market, with a clear and user-friendly UI, competitive prices and that all-important fashion factor. There’s a huge number of iPad-specific apps – Apple suggested over 90,000 at WWDC 2011 – and with dominant market share that figure is only increasing. Android Honeycomb is neither as instantly-accessible nor as widespread or m

When it comes to interacting and navigating your TV and other multimedia devices, there are increasingly more options these days. One app that attempts to turn your iOS device into a magical remote that both controls your TV and integrates social features is the MyTVRemote app. Today, the app is getting an updated IR transceiver dongle that will not only make the app work better, but also aims to make itself a conversation piece. The company behind the app, Ryz Media, announced today that they will be offering four new colorful orb design IR transceivers for the MyTVRemote app that plugs into the headphone jacks of your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. It will allow you to control almost every entertainment device in your living room and comes packed with complete program guides for every zip code in the U.S. The MyTVRemote app currently incorporates social features such as real-time online connection to friends and others watching the same program. You can also interact and discuss shows

Acer’s original optimism for its tablet sales this year are now facing the realities of tough competition. The company has just revised its forecasts for this year’s tablet and notebook shipments, cutting down estimates by as much as 60 percent. Who’s to blame? Apple’s iPad 2 and the slow recovery of the European economy. Acer, the world’s number two PC maker, is facing a surplus in inventory that it needs to clear out. The company has missed its forecasts for the last three quarters and had an internal clash over how to deal with the tablet market that saw the departure of chief exec Gianfranco Lanci back in March. However, Chairman J.T. Wang believes that the third quarter will see sales become more stable. He also announced that the new target for tablet shipments this year is now revised to 2.5 to 3 million units. This is quite a big drop from the original 5 to 7 million units target set early this year. Notebook shipments are also expected to drop. Despite this news, Acer still ha

Sony today debuted the new VAIO E Series and C Series that all combine colorful stylish designs with good specs and affordable price tags for the everyday user. Both series come with multiple size and color options, with the the C Series available in a new neon red and thunder blue that’s sure to grab some attention while you work or enjoy your multimedia on the go. The Sony VAIO E Series laptops come in 14-inch and 15.5-inch models and are available in four colors: midnight blue, glacier white, charcoal black, and blush pink. There’s also a 17.3-inch model, but it comes in only charcoal black or glacier white. A geometric pattern throughout the lid and palm rest areas adds a unique touch of style and is fingerprint-resistant. Other than looks, the E Series packs a second-generation Intel Core i3 or i5 processor. The 15.5-inch model in charcoal black can also have the option of an AMD E-350 dual core processor with Radeon HD6130 graphics. The E Series will be available for pre-orders b

Feeling retro? JVC has dug deep into the archives and pulled out something of a classic, the JVC Kaboom! boombox , though they’ve wisely given it an update to suit the 2011 market. The distinctive pipe-bomb shape is still there, and the love-it-or-hate-it design, but you now get an iPod/iPhone docking station along with the integrated CD player. There’s also a USB Host port, for playing back MP3 or WMA audio files stored on external drives – that could be a simple thumbdrive PMP or an external HDD with thousands of tracks. An external audio input takes other sources, and there’s an FM radio as well as a guitar/microphone input for impromptu flashmob performances. The amp has been upgraded to 40W and there’s a protective hatch to keep your iPhone safe. AC and DC power inputs are supported, and there’s a shoulder strap and remote along with a video output for the picture from your iPod. The JVC Kaboom! RV-NB70 is available now, priced at $299.95.

Samsung’s Galaxy S II smartphone blew us away with its combination of dual-core performance, impressive Super AMOLED Plus display and super-slim dimensions, beating the HTC Sensation to the market. The company’s official accessories haven’t been so timely, however, but the Samsung Vehicle Dock Kit, HDTV Adapter, Desktop Dock and Battery Charger Stand are finally on the SlashGear test bench. They’re joined by Case Mate’s “Barely There” Tough Case, too. Check out our full review after the cut. Vehicle Dock Kit Given Google Voice Navigation has already replaced many standalone PNDs, it’s no surprise that Samsung offers an official Vehicle Dock Kit for the Galaxy S II. After all, the smartphone’s display is, at 4.3-inches, bigger than many dedicated GPS units offer, and the Super AMOLED Plus panel is bright enough to be visible even in direct sunlight. The kit itself consists of a suction-cup mount for the windshield, with a sturdy release latch and an adjustable ball joint where the se