Archive for 'SlashGear' Category
HTC EVO 4G Android 2.2 Update Now Available, Adds Plenty
Yesterday, we told you that HTC and Sprint had managed to get everything squared away with the Android 2.2 update, and sure enough, it looks like everything is still going well. Why do we say that? Because you can actually go download the official update right now, courtesy of Sprint’s support site. That’s right — you don’t have to wait for the OTA update that’s set to kick off on August 3rd. Find out after the break if the list of features is good enough for you to jump the gun and start your download early, or if you’ll be able to hold off and wait.
Below, you’ll find the official list from Sprint, giving you a quick run down of all the cool new features that the Froyo update is bringing your 4G device. So, without some more rambling, here you go:
This update offers:
- Ability to share applications
- Display events and birthdays from Facebook on Calendar
- Use camera LED as flashlight
- New user interface for the FM radio
- Add unknown users in Facebook as friends in Friend Stream
- Photo Gallery supports Facebook comments function
- Send contact as vCard using SMS
- Addition of MMS slideshow editor
- New pre-loaded widgets including Calculator, FM radio, Message list view, Profile settings and Ringtone settings
- Camcorder can use camera flash so video can be shot at night or in low light
- Flash 10.1 support
- Numeric PIN and alpha-numeric passwords to unlock screen
- Search widget and search bar able to switch to search in different types (web, specific application, or all)
- Adjustable alarm volume
- Android Market widget allows installation of applications on SD card
As you can see, it looks like HTC managed to throw just about everything, plus the trunk, into this update. Which makes sense, considering that everyone who’s bought the EVO since it came out has been aching to get their fingers on this version of Android. Some stand out features are that Market widget that will let you install applications from the SD card, and the new pre-loaded widgets like the calculator. Using your calculator without having to go into the menu, or into the application itself is pretty cool, if you ask us. Plus, don’t forget that new user interface for the FM radio. How cool is that?
Let us know in the comments if you’ve downloaded it from Sprint’s site, or if you are waiting for the OTA update. And, if you’re deciding to wait, let us know why — you’ve got to have a good reason to be holding yourself back from all these goodies, right?
UPDATE: HTC yanked the download not too long after, but if you look around we’re pretty sure there’s a copy floating around.
[via Sprint]
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Motorola Droid Upgrading to Android 2.2 Next Week
We’ll just go ahead and say it: Android 2.2 is just about to be on everything. And it looks like, unlike the previous updates to the Android version, every major carrier and manufacturer out there is taking the update to Android 2.2, or Froyo, very seriously. And that’s perfectly fine with us. This time around, we’ve got official word from Verizon that the Motorola Droid is getting updated to Android 2.2 next week.
We had actually heard rumors that the original Droid would be updated to Froyo at the end of July, so this isn’t all that far from the case. And, while the HTC EVO 4G is getting updated to the same version number on August 3rd, we expect the roll out for the original Droid to happen right around the same time. There’s no exact date, but considering the competition, we wouldn’t be surprised.
So, we’ve got confirmation from HTC, Samsung, and now Motorola that existing devices in the market right now are getting updated to 2.2. This is great news for all the Android fans out there, especially those who have been waiting patiently for their official upgrade. Now, the Motorola Droid X is next on the list — so hopefully that happens before the end of the month of August. Any word on that, Motorola?
[Thanks, Verizon!]
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Best Buy to Offer Cheaper Xbox 360 Special Edition Bundles Starting August 1st
When it comes to the special edition consoles, they aren’t cheap. Then again, they’re special, and they include more in the box than you’d normally get in just the “stock” box. So, that makes sense. So when they go on any kind of sale, you can see why we’d get pretty excited. Thanks to Best Buy, some of the two hottest special edition consoles out there are going on a nice sale, but you’ll have to act fast — it will only be around as long as units are in stock.
Beginning August 1st, Best Buy will mark down the Final Fantasy XIII and Splinter Cell: Conviction special edition Xbox 360 consoles to only $299. That’s a $50 savings of their current prices (they launched at $399). As you might expect, they’re trying to rid themselves of stock, and probably try and make some room for that new console that just launched, plus that whole Kinect thing that’s coming out soon.
Nothing else is changing with the bundles, though. You’ll still get the black or white Xbox 360 (depending on which game you want), as well as two controllers, the game itself, as well as the console and a 250GB hard drive. Considering how “not-special” the 250GB hard drive is now-a-days, we’re not sure if anyone out there would actually want to pick up either of these packages. Especially considering the new console, with all of its new looks and amenities, goes for the same price. Then again, the included game and controller may be worth it, in of itself.
[via Joystiq]
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How Lucas Ruined Star Wars, and How to Save It
Geeks don’t agree on anything. Mac OS or Windows? PlayStation, Xbox or Wii? Peanut or plain? But there is one thing on which all geeks can agree.
George Lucas ruined Star Wars.
[Photo By Bonnie Burton -- Starwars.com]
In every way, George Lucas ruined the franchise with the three horrendous, unwatchable monstrosities that will forever taint the Star Wars brand. I’m embarrassed that my son will grow up thinking that those three ‘prequels’ (though ‘putrid mutant offspring’ is a more apt description) are part of the great trilogy that I enjoyed so much at his age. Thinking about the newer Star Wars movies actually makes me angry, in the same way that the BP Oil Spill or “Fox and Friends” makes me angry.
It didn’t have to be this way; and, believe it or not, I think Lucas could still save the franchise, though I doubt he has the will to do so. I know there have been some great critiques of the Star Wars prequels. If you haven’t watched this multi-part review of The Phantom Menace, you’re depriving yourself of one of the only great, hilarious joys to come from that movie. Here’s where I think things went wrong.
Everybody speaks English
This was the first problem I had with the new movies, and it comes up almost immediately. In the original trilogy, almost none of the aliens spoke English. And the humans didn’t speak alien tongues, at least not out loud. Everybody said what they had to say, and they were understood. The audience got subtitles.
It led to some cool moments. In the third movie, Return of the Jedi, a bounty hunter with a raspy, alien voice forces its way into Jabba’s layer with a thermal detonator. To the audience, it’s another classic Star Wars alien, until she removes her helmet and reveals Princess Leia beneath. The switch from the cold, digital alien voice to the warm, soothing Leia reinforced the action on screen, where Han Solo was being thawed from a carbonite block.
In the prequels, the characters don’t just speak English. They speak English with annoying, stereotypical and perhaps even racist accents. They use slang that is so horrible, it’s cringe-worthy. Forget about the insufferable Jar-Jar. Everyone else, from the Trade Federation lackeys to the most minor, yet memorable alien character, usually a strong suit in Star Wars films, puts on some silly accent and slogs through the worst dialogue spoken on screen since “Howard the Duck.”
Think of the problems Lucas could have solved by using alien voices again, instead. About a third of the horrible dialogue would have been washed away, especially the banal Jar-Jar. No more silly accents or horrible voice actors.
Every actor in the movie has already seen Star Wars
The problem isn’t just that they’ve seen Star Wars, the problem is that they all act as if they are in a Star Wars movie. They act like every word is canonical. Every action and plot device is important. Geeks will pore over details for decades to come. Except that the movies all suck, so we won’t.
In the first movies, nobody had a clue what was going on, but boy did it feel like a good time! Everybody is having fun, even at the most serious moments. They trade barbs and take jabs. They steal kisses and swing from the rafters . . . literally. They call each other “nerf herder,” “fuzz ball,” “laser brain,” and it all sounds natural. In the prequels, there is too much gravitas. Perhaps because they were really long, boring movies about a trade dispute and a power grab in the senate, the actors decided to take themselves very, very seriously.
George Lucas is a horrible director
A long time ago, George Lucas directed a great movie called Star Wars. He was an unproven director in his early thirties. He had no children yet, and not a lot of money. It was a prime opportunity to make a break-out film, and he managed to come through.
Lucas did not direct the next two movies in the trilogy. He produced the movies and provided all of the financial backing, which undoubtedly gave him final say. But he didn’t direct, and he didn’t even write the screenplay, just the story.
The directors he chose were not experienced, nor did they go on to great things. But between the other directors, the screenwriters and everyone else involved, there was at least some input. There were other people to say “You know, George, this kind of sucks. I don’t think the swimming jackass alien should have a Jamaican accent.”
More than 20 years later, George Lucas got behind the camera again and directed all three of the prequels. He wrote them, adapted the screenplay and directed them. He did everything, and nobody had the power to tell him how horrible the films were turning out.
Too much explaining
I knew The Phantom Menace was a bad movie when I saw Jar-Jar for the first time. I knew it was unsalvageable when they discuss the midi-chlorians. Midi-chlorians are the technical, scientific and objective explanation for the force. In the original movies, nothing was overly explained. What’s the force? It’s all around us, it flows through us. What’s a Jedi? A knight protector; a good guy. Why is Darth Vader dressed that way? Shut up, kid, you ask too many questions.
In the prequels, Lucas answers every single question I did not ask. I do not care about any of those explanations. Where does C-3PO come from? How did Darth Vader hurt his hand? What did the Emperor look like before he became the Emperor, and what was his day job? WHO CARES?!?
The entire trilogy should have started where “Revenge of the Sith” ended. Start with Anakin Skywalker getting disfigured in a battle with Obi Wan, and then spend the next three movies chasing Jedis across the galaxy. The Clone Wars is a good plot device, but Lucas didn’t need to spend half a movie explaining where the clones came from and who made them. We get it, they’re clones. Move on.
It’s like Lucas didn’t realize what made the first trilogy so cool. Instead, he read about the things everybody liked, and decided to make three movies explaining where cool came from.
How to save the day
There is a way to save Star Wars. All we need is one more movie. Bring back the original cast. Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamil, even Kenny Baker. Give us a real sequel showing what’s going on now in the Star Wars universe, 30 years later. I don’t even care what it’s about, because it will have to be something new, instead of explaining what we already know.
Keep the aliens speaking alien languages. In fact, George Lucas shouldn’t have any say in the dialogue whatsoever. Let someone else write the screenplay. Lucas can come up with the story and name the funny looking characters in the background.
“That guy looks like a Hammerhead shark, so we’ll call him Hammerhead. And that guy looks like he should be called Greedo, so Han Solo will shoot him in the crotch.”
Keep George Lucas away from the director chair. Let Joss Whedon direct. With Serenity and Firefly, Whedon has provided a great new vision for science fiction movies that fits well with the Star Wars universe. The Star Wars galaxy is a grimy place, full of beaten-up old ships covered in scars and dirt. Whedon not only shares this vision, but he also has some new ideas and techniques on how to film action in space. Handing him the final Star Wars movie would be a dream come true for fans of the original films and Whedon fans alike. Best of all, Joss Whedon knows how to have fun.
It isn’t going to happen, of course. Star Wars is dead, strangled and beaten by a sixty-year-old serial killer, who then went and committed horrible, unspeakable acts against my dear old friend, Indiana Jones (seriously? Indiana Jones and the Flying Saucer? George, what were you thinking?). My only hope is that in six months, I won’t be sitting down to write a column about how Disney ruined Tron, because Tron might be all I have left to hand down to my children.
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RAPUDA Robotic Arm Aides Those With Disabilities
Even if those in the know are constantly watching the next batch of robot announcements to look for any signs of a robotic apocalypse, sometimes we get stories like this one. Where, for the briefest of moments, we realize why some folks out there still think robots may be a source of good in this world. Of course, we know the truth, even if we are pleasantly surprised to see the RAPUDA doing its thing, helping those who need it.
RAPUDA is manufactured at Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology by the Intelligent Systems Research Institute. It stands for Robotic Arm for Persons with Upper-limb DisAbilities. It exists only to help those with upper-limb disabilities, where they cannot lift, or move things on their own. As the video below will show, it helps those seated in a wheelchair lift things from tables, set them down, or even move objects to their mouth. It’s not as sleek as some robots out there, but the sheer fact that it works well, and does some good, means it gets a gold star from us.
[via CrunchGear]
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Xtraordinary Adventures Will Take You Into Space for $95,000
Privatized space travel isn’t a thing of the future anymore. At least, not as far into the future as it used to be. With air/spacecraft going up into the stratosphere whenever we want them to, soon it won’t be just about where you want to fly to, but where in space you want to launch to. (Now we just need destinations up there. Where’s our floating islands?) Unfortunately, it’s still super expensive to get it done. Even if you take Xtraordinary Adventure’s deal.
As the title clearly states, it will still cost you $95,000 to fly into space, courtesy of their very own spacecraft. It’s called the Lynx, and they’ve labeled it as a reusable space vehicle. We don’t mind the whole “space vehicle” part, but that “reusable” part makes us think it can have the potential to not be reusable one time, and that’s not good for the psyche at all. The company is booking space flights right now, but you won’t be able to take part in it until 2012.
Also, you’ll need to toss down a cool $20,000 for the deposit to hold your place in line. But, if you hand over all the money necessary to get your seat on the Lynx, then you’ll also need to take a four day training course, plus a two day briefing before the flight actually launches. A lot of money, and a lot of hard work, but we imagine for the idea of flying into space, it would all be worth it. And, it’s better than $200,000.
[via Technabob]
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Snowflake Speakers Shown Off, We Want Them
In today’s market, there are plenty of home audio solutions. There’s even more that let you plug in your iPod Touch or iPhone. Basically, they’re all over the place. And, while we can’t say anything really bad about them, because they work just fine (for the most part), we can say that most of them look relatively similar to the other one. Here’s the solution to that problem: snowflake speakers.
As different as a snowflake should be, these speakers definitely stand out. Even if they didn’t light up, which they do, they’d still attract an eye or two while they sat on your table, or desk at your house. Thanks to designer Sylvain Gerber, we get to see what it would look like if a snowflake went all industrial on us, and sprouted a port for your iPhone.
The speakers feature the latest in integrated flat membrane audio equipment, so that all of the necessary parts are shoved into the bottom of the speaker. The wiring is illuminated by different colors, as you can see, and extend through the appendages of the snowflake. The iPod Touch or iPhone sits right there in front, and then you jam out. No word on whether or not these will be coming to the market, ever, but we’ve got our fingers crossed.
[via Yanko Design]
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Luxurite Introduces 82-Inch Glass TV
Want a big TV? How about a ridiculously big TV? At 82-inches, the size of this TV is probably too big, but then again — if size matters, it probably matters most when it comes to the TV in your living room. Or, you know, your backyard. Did we mention that this TV is meant for the outdoors? Because we should. That’s where Luxurite wants you to put your brand new 82-inch TV.
Before we move forward, we should mention that the screen is a weather-proof LCD. So, that’s good. Not that that will stop a strong wind from blowing something into your (obviously) expensive HDTV, but still. It’s good for those rainy days. In any event, this new member of the “Giant” line-up of Luxurite HDTVs features a contrast ratio of 120,000:1, supports full 1080p HD resolution, and it has three HDMI ports, just for good measure.
Unfortunately, the 82-inch Glass TV isn’t available on the market quite yet, so Luxurite doesn’t have a tag on the price. But, we’re pretty sure that everyone can assume, safely, that this will be expensive. Really, really expensive. Or you could go for the smaller versions, at 15-, 17-, 19-, 22-, or 45-inches, they may be the better bet. But, like we said — size matters, right?
[via BornRich]
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RIM BlackPad Announced in November, Still Called BlackPad
Well, there you have it. Just a couple of days ago RIM was outed for landing the BlackPad domain name. And while we were secretly hoping that they were just securing a name for name’s sake, if these new rumors from unnamed sources are to be believed, then it looks like the folks up there in Waterloo have chosen their company’s first tablet’s name. And yes, it’s the BlackPad.
Speaking to Bloomberg, these unnamed sources also revealed that the 9.7-inch tablet won’t be revealed come this August 3rd, but will actually be unveiled and announced this November. However, the due date for retail availability is still up in the air, and the sources couldn’t divulge any details in that regard. And, just as we’ve heard in the past, the tablet will indeed feature built-in WiFi and Bluetooth. Still, the name means a lot — is BlackPad where RIM should take their first tablet?
[via Bloomberg]
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Steve Ballmer: iPad Competition is Coming
The tech industry isn’t just about one product. It’s about that product, and the products that emerge to compete. We see it every day, but sometimes something gets released that, at least right off the bat, doesn’t see any real competition. This year, that product is Apple’s iPad. And while many people are looking in just about any direction they can to find something that can dethrone Apple’s tablet device, Microsoft still looms in the background. Are they the company to make it happen? Steve Ballmer seems to think so.
He will admit though, that the iPad has sold a lot of devices. “They’ve sold certainly more than I’d like them to sell, let me just be clear about that.” That was a choice comment from Ballmer, Microsoft’s CEO, as he was speaking at Microsoft’s Financial Analyst Meeting. He goes on to outline that Microsoft has to make something happen, that it’s up to them to create something worthy enough to draw attention away from the iPad, and to whatever slate-like device they release.
What’s probably most noteworthy, though, is his relation to the tablet market and the netbook market of yesteryear. He pointed out that Microsoft didn’t lead that movement, but now they are certainly the most dominant proponent of it. He is apparently suggesting that, just like how Linux was in the lead for netbooks, that Apple’s iOS will be in the lead for tablets for a little while, but that Microsoft will soon take it over. We’ll have to wait and see, and hope that the versatility of Windows 7 (or something) and those manufacturing partners mean that something worthwhile gets released sooner than later.
[via TechFlash]
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