Archives for June 2010

Mac Mini Updated – New Model Arrives at the Apple Store

As well as launching the Apple iPhone 4 pre-order pages this morning, Apple [AAPL] also updated the Mac Mini with a new model.

The Mac Mini has been completely redesigned and has up to twice the graphic performance along with a new HDMI post and an SD card slot.

The casing is now aluminium and a unibody with prices starting at $699.

“The sleek, aluminum Mac mini packs great features, versatility and value into an elegant, amazingly compact design,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “With twice the graphics performance, HDMI support and industry-leading energy efficiency, customers are going to love the new Mac mini.”

[Read more…]

iPhone 4 UK Price – £499 and £599 PAYG

After a week or so of waiting, Apple [AAPL] has now added the iPhone 4 to it’s store. The price with no contract is £499 for the 16GB model and £599 for the 32GB model.

As previously rumoured just last night, the White iPhone 4 is not available just yet. We have heard September sometime before you can get your hands on it.

The good thing about buying direct from Apple is that the phone is unlocked allowing you to choose any network you want. [Read more…]

Google Earth for iPad Launched

Finally, Google Earth is now available for download on the iPad. The new app works very similar to how the iPhone version works but with the iPad having a larger screen it makes the experience far better… well, at least the idea is better as we actually found it to be a little buggy and slow.

The main problem we cam across was when using pinch to zoom where the “Earth” couldn’t keep up and kept freezing. Hopefully it’s just a software bug that can be fixed and hopefully a patch will be released soon for that.

But either way, it still looks very impressive running on the larger screen. [Read more…]

Amazon Kindle Update 2.5 Now Ready for Download

Amazon has launched new firmware for the Amazon Kindle. The new version is 2.5 and brings a few new features to the eBook reader. The update has passed through the final stages of testing and is now being pushed out to Kindle owners over the next few weeks. Amazon suggest you just keep your wireless connection switched on to automatically receive it.

For those who don’t like waiting you can also manually grab the update over here where you will get to enjoy the new features of the firmware now. [Read more…]

Apple iPhone 4 Pre-order – Best Stick to Apple Store

Engadget are hearing that Apple [AAPL] could be blocking 3rd party retailers from allowing pre-orders tomorrow as mentioned below…

We’ve been tipped that Apple may now be blocking third-party retailers from taking pre-orders altogether tomorrow. RadioShack already changed its story on us, and now Best Buy locations have started doing the same, telling us that they definitely won’t be taking pre-orders tomorrow but may be by the end of the week. Bottom line — hit up Apple’s website in the morning.

Wise advice we think as retailers are starting to give back word on pre-orders. [Read more…]

Microsoft XBox 360 Kinect Starwars Demo Video

We are not 100% convinced this is actual game play on the new Microsoft XBox 360 Kinect. The demo shown on video is for Starwars and it shows a demo of the game running with a guy supposedly controlling it through the new XBox 360 Kinect (previously known as Project Natal).

The reason we posted it was because it looks great… but at the same time it doesn’t actually look real in that it seems like the user is following the character instead of the character following the user. It seems like it’s more staged than anything, but either way, hopefully we’ll see some clearer demos soon showing actual in-game footage and controlled by someone. [Read more…]

iPhone 4 Pre-Orders Available at Best Buy Tomorrow

Best Buy [BBY] has pushed out a press release stating that they will be offering iPhone 4 pre-orders starting tomorrow on June 15. The company will be taking pre-orders at stores nation wide and will allow you to reserve an iPhone 4 for launch day on June 24.

“Adding the iPhone 4 to our stores alongside other great smartphones like the HTC EVO from Sprint and HTC Incredible on Verizon, gives customers a great opportunity to view each side-by-side and get the mobile phone that works best for them.”

“Offering the iPhone 4 to consumers is just the latest example of how Best Buy Mobile has become the place to go for the best smartphones. It’s exciting to have an opportunity to launch this iconic device with this pre-sale,” said Shawn Score, president of Best Buy Mobile. “Adding the iPhone 4 to our stores alongside other great smartphones like the HTC EVO from Sprint and HTC Incredible on Verizon, gives customers a great opportunity to view each side-by-side and get the mobile phone that works best for them.”

[Read more…]

HTC Aria Officially Announced

The HTC Aria leaked recently. It was believed at the time of the leak a couple of weeks back that the smartphone would run Android 2.1. This information has been confirmed with a lot more, by AT&T [T] who today announced it.

The HTC Aria runs the Google [GOOG] Android 2.1 operating system as mentioned above, it is a 3G device that is capable of downloading at 7.2MBps HSPA speeds. A 5 megapixel camera can be found on the device. It has a 3.2 inch HVGA screen and runs the HTC Sense UI overlay.

Other features include the usual WiFi connectivity, GPS and all other general features you find in a modern smartphone.

‘HTC Aria is the first of several smartphones in our Android portfolio to run the 2.1 platform, said Jeff Bradley, senior vice president, Devices, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. ‘When you combine the nation’s fastest 3G network, and access to the nation’s largest Wi-Fi network, HTC Aria will be one of the best Android smartphones available.

[Read more…]

Microsoft Develop new 3D Screen Technology

One problem with 3D TV (other than the current high price of the screen) is that you need to wear glasses to get the 3D effect. Glasses are expensive (over $50 a pair), and there is no standard yet for glasses which means the specs used on one suppliers screen wont work on a screen from another company in some cases. A demo of that can be seen here.

One way around this is to use a 3D TV that requires no glasses. The problem with this at the moment is the way it works. The glasses-less 3D screens require that you sit in a specific place to get the 3D effect. When you move your head the effect disappears. There are actually a few points in a room where people might sit to get the effect. Either way, it’s awkward having to sit still for so long and not a very friendly to watch the TV with friends. [Read more…]

HTC EVO 4G Inductive Charging Mod Built with Palm Touchstone

Someone has managed to modify a Palm Touchstone wireless charger and Palm Pre back plate and make the necessary parts inside function in the HTC EVO 4G. The system allows the EVO 4G to charge by just resting the phone on the Touchstone charger.

The system was made by purchasing the necessary parts from Amazon. This includes the Palm Touchstone kit and back cover for $46. With a bit of hacking done on the back cover for the Pre the necessary parts were removed and put inside the EVO 4G and connected up in a way that allows it to charge wirelessly. [Read more…]

iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS Screen Comparison

One of the biggest features of the iPhone 4 from Apple [AAPL] is the new screen used which they call the Retina Display. The retina display has four times the amount of pixels when compared to the older iPhone models. This, according to Apple, makes it impossible to see the individual pixels when using the device at a normal distance away from your eyes.

There’s been a few complaints about Apple’s claim, but I think the picture above (larger below and even larger when clicked on) really shows what the new resolution is all about. We’ll wait until we see the iPhone 4 screen for ourselves, but from samples we have seen and side-by-side comparison pictures on the internet, it certainly looks very impressive. [Read more…]

JooJoo Tablet Converted to run Windows 7

The JooJoo tablet launched a few months back. The launch didn’t appear to go down too well due to delays and a buggy UI it was running. One user has decided to customise his JooJoo and install Windows 7 on to the tablet.

No modifications were made to the hardware and it runs the standard 4GB SSD along with 1GB of RAM. The guy who managed to port Windows 7 on to the JooJoo reports that all is working fine other than the accelerometer at the moment. To get the screen to rotate you just need to click on a few menu options instead.

The tablet running Windows 7 actually works quite well too with 720p movie playback being possible. [Read more…]