IBLOG SPACE

LG has unveiled a new 3D TV and monitor that is sized to fit into just about any room and on your desk. The monitor is called the DM50D and it has many of the same features of the higher end Cinema 3D TVs from LG. The screen promises to be flicker free and have a bright picture. Perhaps most importantly it uses what appear to be passive 3D glasses rather than the expensive active style. The official press release on the display is one of the worst in recent memory and offers virtually no detail on the screen. It doesn’t offer the screen size or any hard specs on the device other than it can support 1080p full HD resolution. A specific number on brightness isn’t offered, but the device has “double the brightness” of your average 3D screen. TUV and Intertek are UK firms and have certified the screen as flicker free. No flicker means the display is easier on the eyes. The passive glasses are also offered in a clip-on style for people that wear prescription glasses. The display has an int

I would have to say that this is one of the more interesting items that Brando has ever had on its website. Generally the company has cheesy USB gear that is of questionable value. This PMP, which looks more like a tablet, certainly won’t beat out many of the more popular and well-known PMPs in most minds, but the thing is cool nonetheless. It’s called the Gadmei P83 3D PMP. It has a big 8-inch screen and a resolution of 1280 x 768 and can show 3D content without needing any glasses. The device supports multiple video and audio formats with support for 3D formats. It has a button to turn the 3D effects on or off. The device has full 1080p video out support and supports connecting of flash drives, USB HDDs, and SD cards for playback. The device measures 220 x 138.5 x 17.8mm and weighs 516g. It has 4GB of internal storage and an internal SD card slot. The PMP will support still photos in several formats as well as eBooks in multiple formats. The PMP OS isn’t specifically mentioned, the s

Isabella Products – the firm behind the Vizit 3G-enabled photo frame and the Isabella Mini 3G dongle to turn your TV or dumb digital photo frame into a wirelessly-connected photo viewer – has confirmed it’s bringing its range to Europe, with the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain the first to get their hands on the connected kit. The Euro Vizit and Mini will use Vodafone’s network when they arrive in early 2012, allowing owners to send photos wirelessly either direct from their smartphones or via email. Unlike most wireless photo frames, which generally use WiFi, Isabella’s Vizit has a built in 3G modem and as such doesn’t demand a nearby WiFi router. That means it’s ideal for applications where broadband isn’t available or financially feasible (grandparents’ houses, perhaps); instead, there’s a monthly or yearly service plan which includes a set number of wirelessly-delivered images. The Vizit has a 10.4-inch touchscreen display, while the Mini looks like a USB modem; plugged into a regular

Just as we’d started to revel in the speeds of LTE 4G, Ericsson had to go and spoil it all by showing us what’s next in the roadmap. The company has demonstrated LTE Advanced in Sweden this week, delivering speeds 10x that of regular LTE - over 900 MB/s in fact – by aggregating carrier spectrum into bigger blocks. According to Ericsson, that offers not only higher potential top-speeds, but better performance even when the network is congested. Not that there’d be much congestion in Ericsson’s testing, given that right now there’s no operational LTE Advanced service around. The trial used a 3 x 20MHz (60MHz aggregated) spectrum chunk and an off the shelf Ericsson multi-mode, multi-standard radio base station, the RBS 6000, and streamed data between the RBS and a moving van from which engineers kept track of network performance. Current LTE systems are limited to 20MHz at most, but thanks to carrier aggregation and extended multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) – fresh additions to LTE

A new Google search portal has been discovered ahead of its official launch, with “What do you love?” offering an aggregated selection of results and services based on a single search term. Currently found at www.wdyl.com, the new site pulls in news, books, shopping, photos, search and other results, as well as links to Google’s services like Picasa and Blogger. Google is yet to publicly announce WDYL.com, though we’re guessing that will happen later on today. Its usefulness varies greatly on the sort of search term you put in – while a query for SlashGear pulled up images and news from the site, as well as the ability to translate it, the patent and shopping sections were less applicable. Other searches proved patchy – looking for the Samsung Galaxy S II pulled up recent news and photos of the phone, but nothing in the product search shopping section. Still, it’s likely that Google will refine that over time, and we’re seeing this more as a way to educate people on the search giant’s

Mac-toting SSD users won’t have to wait until OS X Lion for TRIM support, with the news that last week’s OS X 10.6.8 update – expected to be the last of the public Snow Leopard builds before Lion roars onto the scene – already adds in the feature. MacRumors spotted the the change, though right now it’s not entirely good news for every OS X user with an SSD. That’s because Apple has only enabled TRIM support for Macs with its official SSDs, rather than for third-party drives. So, if you’ve swapped out your original hard-drive for an SSD rather than pay the somewhat hefty upgrade charges to Apple in the first place, you won’t get TRIM. Apple had actually enabled the feature in a custom build of OS X 10.6.6 for SSD-equipped early 2011 MacBook Pro models, but now its been extended to all those with official solid-state drives. TRIM is basically an automated garbage collection system for SSDs, feeding information back to the operating system from the drive as to which data blocks are no lon

Sony has unveiled its latest performance ultraportable, the Sony VAIO Z Series, tipping the scales at under 1.2kg but still offering – thanks to a docking station that uses the same Intel Thunderbolt connection technology as Apple recently adopted - solid graphics performance with an external video card. The new 13.1-inch 1600 x 900 notebook runs up to a Core i7-2620M 2.7GHz processor paired with up to 8GB of DDR3 memory and up to a 256GB SSD, while the Sony Power Media Dock VGP-PRZ20C/VGP-PRZ20A packs an AMD Radeon HD 6650M graphics card with 1GB of dedicated memory, a choice of DVD or Blu-ray drives, and support for a further two simultaneous monitors. That means, including the notebook’s own display and its HDMI output, up to four screens can be active at any one time, turning the VAIO Z Series into a performance desktop workstation. Video on the ultraportable itself is courtesy of Intel’s HD Graphics 3000, while connectivity includes WiFi a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, 3G WWAN, a USB

T-Mobile has officially announced the myTouch 4G Slide, the carrier’s latest Android smartphone and another QWERTY handset from HTC. Packing HSPA+ connectivity for T-Mobile USA’s 4G network, the myTouch 4G Slide has a 3.7-inch WVGA touchscreen and an 8-megapixel camera; it’s that camera which the carrier is most proud of, though, with improved low-light performance thanks to a new f/2.2 wide aperture lens and a backlit sensor, along with the claim of zero shutter lag and in-camera HDR. The camera also supports SweepShot, for taking panoramic photos simply by waving the myTouch 4G Slide in front of the scene, and BurstShot, which as the name suggests fires off a handful of frames and then allows you to choose the best one later on. There’s a dual-LED flash on the back, and a front-facing camera with Qik preloaded for video calls. Of course, you’re also getting Android 2.3.3 Gingerbread along with HTC Sense 3.0 – so the active lockscreen from the Sensation – and inside is the 1.2GHz dual

When Microsoft and Nokia first unveiled their new relationship it was said that Nokia would have certain privileges over other Windows Phone manufacturers. Microsoft has been placing hardware design restrictions on its manufacturers including the requirement of specific physical buttons. Hence, when Nokia’s “Sea Ray” was leaked, the absence of buttons was assumed to be an exercise in their special privileges. But word comes now that this may not be the case. Industry insider with a track record of breaking Nokia and Microsoft news, Eldar Murtazin, has tweeted that Microsoft may have changed its hardware design requirements across the board. With the new Windows Phone Mango update comes a new design guideline that no longer requires hardware buttons on the front of Windows Phone devices. Murtazin says that Samsung, LG, and HTC will all follow suit with phones no longer sporting the once requisite buttons. We recently had a Technical Preview of the Windows Phone Mango update, which touts

Ever since the iPad debuted, e-readers were thought to be a dying breed with Amazon’s Kindle on the preemptive attack with commercials touting its glare-free e-ink display as opposed to the iPad’s glossy screen. However, a new report from Pew shows that so far e-readers are still going strong. In fact, their survey shows that e-readers not only have a greater ownership percentage but also a stronger growth rate when compared to tablets. The report surveyed 2,277 adults over the age of 18 living in the U.S. and was conducted between April 26 to May 22. It revealed that as of May 2011, 12% of U.S. adults owned an e-reader such as the Amazon Kindle or the Barnes & Noble Nook. This is a big jump from the 6% in November 2010 and is also the first time the e-reader ownership percentage reached the double digits. Tablets, on the other hand, continued to hit number lower than e-readers. The survey revealed that as of May 2011, only 8% of U.S. adults own a tablet device such as an iPad or A

We first talked about Italian company, Olivetti, having plans for an Android tablet all the way back in December of last year. The company has since produced the OliPad 100 that was released with Android 2.2 Froyo and now has a second one called the Olipad 110 with Android 3.1 Honeycomb that’s getting ready to launch. A demo video of the Olipad 110 has surfaced recently and you can watch it after the cut, but you’ll need some Italian language skills. The OliPad 110 will feature an NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual-core processor and a 10-inch screen with resolution bumped up to 1280 x 800. It will have 1GB of RAM, 16GB internal storage, as well as a 2-megapixel front-facing camera and a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera. Connectivity will include a micro HDMI-out, a mini USB slot, and a microSD card slot. The new tablet with Android 3.1 Honeycomb, hardware improvements, and better display resolution is a nice upgrade from the original OliPad 100, touted as Italy’s first ever Android tablet. The OliPad

These days it’s apparent that offering a complete ecosystem of services with strong developer support that connects users and all of their devices is the key to platform success. Although lagging behind, Microsoft has been busy building up their own ecosystem of services centered around Xbox LIVE, which will be the link between Windows 8, Windows Phone Mango, and Xbox 360. Recently, the company released a demo video that shows a tighter integration between Windows Phone and Xbox Kinect—video after the cut. Microsoft revealed in this latest demo some of the new ways that the Xbox Kinect can interact with your Windows Phone. For instance, if you’re watching a commercial for a show you will get a prompt to say “Xbox Schedule” to add the show to your reminders list. Once it’s added, your Windows Phone will automatically get a reminder of when the next episode airs. Another example given in the video is that of a Toyota commercial. If you’re interested in the car and want to find out about

When it comes to Apple products working with the television, it’s generally either hit or miss – for example I, personally, have it in my column signature that I use an iPad for a VCR, playing Netflix shows with it all day long (that is, before and after work, of course.) Up until recently, the app didn’t function well unless you had it turned to portrait mode. Recently an update fixed this and it’s perfect. Similarly, I’ve got a friend who purchased an Apple TV and used it for a week, then never touched it again, while I’ve got an uncle who has the same unit and has used it basically every day since he got it. Today we find an application for iTV, a name for a product that may well push Apple to the brink of one of our most universally American products since the dawn of color sets. The patent application we’re looking at here notes iTV as being separate from Apple TV, leading us to believe that there may be one of two situations going on. One, it’s possible that this could be a whole

We all know by now that not all 4G is created equal. And with more and more of us relying on fast and reliable data connections these days as our lives revolve around accessing the internet and staying connected while on the move, its important to know how our network options stack up against each other. PC Mag took this to task with their road test of eight 3G and 4G networks in 21 U.S. cities. [Above: Nationwide results]

When was the last time you used a mouse? The last time I used a mouse, it was the late 1990s and I was playing the MMORPG Diablo II. Sidenote: Diablo III is coming out soonish, (within the next year, we hope,) and I may need a mouse – any suggestions? Since then, essentially every person I know, my age or otherwise, has been using a laptop for all their computing needs. A desktop replacement, rather, with a trackpad and no need for a mouse. The manufacturing and distribution group Smartfish has just released a product that, by all means, should have been invented years ago: the Mouse Pad Travel Pouch. Will you partake? Have a look back at a device we reviewed at the beginning of this year: the HP ENVY 17 3D, a desktop replacement notebook. This laptop was (and is) so gigantic and powerful that there’s no reason for you to own a separate device. There’s no reason for you to have a separate computer unless you want to be mobile, that is. And for times like that, what will you do? Will yo

In a strange move, MasterCard has gone on to partner with CSI for their own mobile payments app. The “tap to pay” convenience of mobile payments is expected to really expand next year, with competing services coming from the Google Walletservice, Visa, and ISIS. MasterCard was a partner for Google’s Wallet service, so its not certain why they’ve branched off to push out a separate mobile wallet app. The new mobile payments partnership will produce an app called CSI Virtual MasterCard that will be available for the iOS, Android, and BlackBerry platforms. The folks at Engadget confirmed that the app is scheduled for launch sometime in July and may enable GlobalVCard users to use their mobile devices of choice to make payments. But what’s not clear is whether the app will utilize NFC technology or simply be software-based. Currently, the only devices to have NFC chips are the Google Nexus S and Nexus S 4G. Although rumors suggest that thenext-gen iPhone will have NFC, the handset won’t ar

We are a social animal. That doesn’t exactly demand a psych degree to figure out. Yet we’re also a private one; there’s a little of the Gollum about us, clutching close our “precious” secrets and inside-knowledge. It’s no surprise that one of the recurring entries on the periodic “top ten ways to annoy people on social networks” lists is the “mysterious update.” You know the sort: “Big changes afoot…” or “Oh ffs, not again!” leaving readers curious and goggle-eyed (you hope) or simply frustrated (more likely) over what exactly it is in your interesting, exciting life that you’re teasing about today. Over the past few weeks I’ve been testing some of the new breed of “Facebook phones”; or, more accurately, what handset manufacturers believe comprises a Facebook phone when the social network itself is still yet to put out any own-brand hardware. Some, like Sony Ericsson’s XPERIA Neo, bake Facebook through all of the key apps, letting you share what music you’re listening to or what video

Although we all know the iPhone 5 and 4S are on there way, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t treasure your current iPhone 4. And instead of saving up for the next-gen iPhone, you might splurge on a new protective case, well, at least that’s what accessories maker Case-Mate is hoping for. The company has recently introduced a new premium case for the iPhone 4 made with titanium. The Titanium iPhone 4 case takes on the same form as the company’s Jett Metal Case series that works like a bumper surrounding the entire edge of your iPhone without covering either the front or back sides. However, this new case is precisely micro-machined from a solid chunk of titanium. The company touts that titanium is mainly used in aircraft engines and luxury automobiles. It is often sought for its combination of extremely light weight and high durability. The case requires a more elaborate process of attaching to your phone that involves two screws, a few buttons, and a small screw driver that all come as

Fring is one of the most popular video chat apps that works on both iOS and Android platforms. It is a rival to Skype but brings something new to the table with a 4-way chat feature that lets you video conference with up to three other friends. Today, the app got an update that optimizes it for the iPad 2. Interestingly, this update comes just after the leaked video of a new Skype app made for the iPad. Up to this point, Skype users have had to use the iPhone version on their iPads, which doesn’t take advantage of the larger screen. Although the video was pulled, Skype later confirmed that the app would indeed be available soon. Besides the ability for 4-way chat, Fring also lets you call landlines and text chat. And big differentiator was that Fring allowed users to video call via their carrier’s 3G network instead of just via Wi-Fi. This is a big limiting factor for Apple’s FaceTime video calling which only works with a Wi-Fi connection. However, the leaked video demo of the new Skyp

LaCie is well known for its high-end external hard drives that pair great design with top-notch functionality. They will be one of the first to introduce Thunderbolt-enabled portable hard drives, with their Little Big Disks, using the Apple and Intel proprietary technology that promises up to 10Gbps transfer speeds. But today, they have partnered with Porsche Designs to introduce a new luxury lineup of hard drives that feature USB 3.0 technology. The lineup includes the LaCie Porsche Design Mobile Hard Drive (P’9220) and the LaCie Porsche Design Desktop Hard Drive (P’9230). They each feature a sleek aluminum frame design that is modern and purist for a very elegant piece of hardware that packs in all the performance under the hood, optimally regulates heat, and is 100 percent recyclable. The workmanship and aesthetic reflects the Porsche Design signature. Performance-wise, the USB 3.0 hard drives are touted as the fastest on the market, clocking speeds three times faster than USB 2.0.

The Apple brand continues to surge when it comes to mobile devices despite the growing competition. According to a new report from IDC, the first quarter 2011 results show that Apple has become the number one mobile brand in Australia for the very first time. The market there has mainly been dominated by Nokia, but this year the Symbian platform has seen a huge tumble along with a dip in demand for feature phones. Apple comes in first place in Australia’s smartphone market with 40% market share after an almost 10% increase quarter over quarter. Android comes in second place with nearly 30% of the market while Nokia has plunged to third place with 22% of the market. Nokia’s partnership with Microsoft to transition to the Windows Phone platform along with a major decrease in feature phone shipments has delivered a huge blow for the company. Feature phone demands have dropped tremendously with a 79% majority of new mobile phone shipments being smartphones while the Symbian platform has se

As the Android world reels in awe of the awesomeness of the new king of Google mobile OS power, the famed Galaxy S II appears now to have an upgrade coming at or before the USA release. If you’ll look below the second paragraph in the post you’re reading now, you’ll see a benchmark run on the standard Galaxy S II that’s out on the world market right this moment. This benchmark shows that the Galaxy S II as it exists today is the clear forerunner for most powerful Android device benchmarked thus far. What we’ve come to understand today is that, if “sources in Asia” are to be believed, there’s an even more powerful Galaxy S II coming soon. This upgraded version of the Samsung Galaxy S II is said to have a bump in its processor power, that being the 1.2GHz we see today bumped up to a larger more powerful iteration, this new Galaxy S II Plus having a 1.4 GHz in its Samsung Exynos SoC dual-core processor – for total world domination, if this Android fellow would be so kind as to say so. Thi

Apple and Samsung’s ongoing legal rumpus could see the Korean company lose the manufacturing contract for the next-gen Apple A6 processor, with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) the likely benefactor of the supply chain shakeup. According to both a Taipei Merill Lynch analyst and an Ars Technicasource, Apple and TSMC are currently in talks with the entire A6 production deal on the table. Although rumors of Apple negotiating with TSMC are not new, until now it had been assumed that the company would be joining Samsung as a supplier, rather than replacing them altogether. That would certainly have fit in with Apple’s ramping up of production supplies as it increased its sales ambitions; some analysts have suggested that the company will launch not just one but two fifth-gen iPhones later this year. Instead, however, it looks like Apple is attempting sever ties with Samsung and reduce its reliance on the company. It was revealed recently that Apple is Samsung’s second-larg

As you may recall from back in May 2011, a story broke on the fact that HTC, one of the biggest manufacturers behind the wave of Android devices that has been sweeping the world since the inception of Google’s mobile OS, is paying Microsoft $5 for every single Android device the company sells. Keeping that in mind, note that Microsoft is now agreeing on a patent licensing deal with another OEM by the name of General Dynamics Itronix. Is this the first block to fall in a wall of signings with groups like Microsoft that collapses the concept of a Free and Open Android? Corporate vice president and deputy general counsel of Intellectual Property and Licensing at Microsoft Horacio Gutierrez calls this deal “an example of how industry leaders address intellectual property.” Is this a shout out to other manufacturers who’ve yet to sign deals with big companies like Microsoft who may later come after them the same way they did with HTC? Microsoft certainly does have reason to want to ink deal

The Sony Ericsson XPERIA Neo arrives with something of a personality problem. Where the XPERIA Play was resolute in its gaming ambitions, and the XPERIA Arc promised to put Sony’s living room prowess into a pocket-friendly package, the Neo takes on the competitive mid-tier mainstream segment, Android for the every-man. With luminaries like HTC’s Desire S keeping the masses connected, can the Neo carve its own niche? Check out the full SlashGear review after the cut. Hardware

Most of the time legal battles that have to do with technology and the sale of certain items are decided in lower courts. On a few occasions the fight goes all the way to the top court in the land with the Supreme Court being the place when the final decision is made. That is where the legal battle between Brown v. Entertainment merchants Association was finally decided. The case centered on a California law that would restrict the sale of violent video games to minors. The plaintiff argued that the law was a violation of First Amendment rights. The Supreme Court ruled that the ban of the games to minors does in fact violate their First Amendment right to free speech. The court ruling read, “Video games qualify for First Amendment protection. Like protected books, plays, and movies, they communicate ideas through familiar literary devices and features distinctive to the medium.” The ruling was a split decision though at 7-2. The court also specifically stated in the ruling that “Califo

The next-gen iPhone rumors continue to come thick & fast, and building on the talk of there being two devices in the wild right now – an iPhone 4S to give developers a taste of the Apple A5 dual-core processor, and the advanced iPhone 5 with more groundbreaking specs – there’s now word from analysts to expect both to go on sale. According to Deutsche Bank’s Chris Whitmore, Fortune reports, investors should count on seeing both devices hit the market in September, as part of Apple’s attempt to capture the mid-range smartphone segment. “With Nokia and RIM struggling, the time is right for Apple to aggressively penetrate the mid range smart-phone market (i.e. $300-500 category) to dramatically expand its [total addressable market] and market share.” Chris Whitmore, analyst, Deutsche Bank Whitmore predicts an affordable iPhone 4S, priced at around $349, and offered with a pre-paid voice plan. Such a strategy would “drive significantly greater penetration” into markets where contract ag