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SIM2, Dolby showcase 46-inch HDR display prototype March 31, 2008

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Well, would you take a look at that. Right on cue, Dolby and SIM2 are collaboratively showcasing a 46-inch 1080p display built around the former firm's high dynamic range technology. The HDR-enabled LCD HDTV boasts 1,836 LED-based backlight units (designed / developed by SIM2), a full 1,920 x 1,080 resolution, brightness level greater than 4,000 cd/m2, an "infinite" contrast ratio, 16-bits of luminance and a Xilinx Virtex field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) chipset. Additionally, the prototype employs a design created by Giorgio Revoldini, and while we can't imagine hearing of a release date anytime soon, the two firms aren't wasting any time putting the new set on a world tour to presumably wow onlookers. Hey SED, you taking notes here?

 

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SIM2, Dolby showcase 46-inch HDR display prototype

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Well, would you take a look at that. Right on cue, Dolby and SIM2 are collaboratively showcasing a 46-inch 1080p display built around the former firm's high dynamic range technology. The HDR-enabled LCD HDTV boasts 1,836 LED-based backlight units (designed / developed by SIM2), a full 1,920 x 1,080 resolution, brightness level greater than 4,000 cd/m2, an "infinite" contrast ratio, 16-bits of luminance and a Xilinx Virtex field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) chipset. Additionally, the prototype employs a design created by Giorgio Revoldini, and while we can't imagine hearing of a release date anytime soon, the two firms aren't wasting any time putting the new set on a world tour to presumably wow onlookers. Hey SED, you taking notes here?

 

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NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GTX already popping up in stores?

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We got this photo in from reader Ryan, who found a small cache of NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GTX cards at Best Buy, each priced at $360 for 512MB versions. Can they just release these things already?

[Thanks, Ryan]

 

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Pleo finally learns to sit with Life OS 1.1

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Although Pleo just got upgraded to v1.0.2 earlier this month, UGOBE is taking the Life OS to 1.1 and adding a laundry list of features to boot. Initially available for install only through an SD card (download via USB should hit within a few weeks), the update enables your favorite dino pet to sit, sing a variety of melodies, call for attention, get sick (coughing / sneezing) and change attitudes based on how much attention it gets. As these things always go, there's also the promise of a few unannounced inclusions ("strange habits," as it were), and it should be noted that previous downloads -- Holiday, Love-struck, MySkit, Yapt, etc. -- will need to eventually be re-downloaded in new versions to be compatible with the Life OS 1.1 update. Give the read link some attention to check out the changes, and fire up the download while you're over there.

[Thanks, Caaahl]

 

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Nokia N82 Review - Bangkok Post

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Nokia N82 The Bangkok Post reviews the Nokia N82 and writes, "As a camera-phone, the N82 is on par with the Sony Ericsson K850i Cyber-shot, and, in certain cases, betters it in terms of image quality. But, on the other hand, the K850i has dedicated camera controls that can enhance user experience when shooting. Overall, the N82 is a great all-round phone. Despite some niggles that could have been avoided, we'd still recommend it."

Read more about the Nokia N82.

Nokia N82 Review - Gizmodo

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Nokia N82 Gizmodo reviews the Nokia N82 and writes, "The camera's not as good as the N95's, but it's still great. Audio quality is good, keypad is "fiddly", messaging isn't as good as a BB or a Windows Mobile phone, solid battery life, no US 3G (yet), and good GPS/FM functionality. In the end, it's up to you whether you can justify a $550 price tag for a non-touchscreen phone without support for 3G in the US."

Read more about the Nokia N82.

Nokia N82 Review - Gizmodo

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Nokia N82 Gizmodo reviews the Nokia N82 and writes, "The camera's not as good as the N95's, but it's still great. Audio quality is good, keypad is "fiddly", messaging isn't as good as a BB or a Windows Mobile phone, solid battery life, no US 3G (yet), and good GPS/FM functionality. In the end, it's up to you whether you can justify a $550 price tag for a non-touchscreen phone without support for 3G in the US."

Read more about the Nokia N82.

Nokia N82 Review - Trend

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Nokia N82 Trend reviews the Nokia N82 and writes, "While the camera isn't quite up to par with the N95, the N82 camera is still pretty darn good. They were also fairly impressed with audio quality, battery life, and GPS/FM functionality. On the downside, the keypad is "fiddly" and the lack of US-friendly 3G is a bit of a downer."

Read more about the Nokia N82.

Sony’s HDR-SR12 1080/60 camcorder gets reviewed

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Sony launched the hot little HDR-SR12 HD camcorder in a overwhelming barrage of new models at CES, so it hasn't really gotten the love it deserves, but the crew over at CamcorderInfo recently took one for a spin and found that while the $1399 cam isn't the cheapest option out there, it's still a strong competitor to popular options like the Canon HF100. Although the video bitrate is a bit lower than the Canon at 16Mbps, image quality was overall comparable due to the Bionz image processor and Exmos CMOS sensor, which is the same chip found in Sony's Alpha DSLRs, and it's got the most storage available at 120GB. The only other potential dealbreaker is the fixed 60i framerate, but if shooting in 30p or 24p isn't important to you, the HDR-SR12 looks like it's worth a spot on your list.

 

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AT&T seeing executive shakedown?

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Details are still shaky, but GigaOM is reporting that the futures of certain AT&T executives may also be dubious. In addition to a recently replaced CTO and recently departed USi CEO, apparently VPs are being offered exit packages or demotions (their choice!), possibly to trim some of the fat at the top of the pyramid before the US economy gets any crappier. We can't say for sure, but hey, those billions of dollars in 700MHz auction funds have to come from somewhere -- immediately, too, you don't want the FCC sending over hundreds of goons to kneecap thousands of employees. AT&T had no comment on matters both of downsizing and the FCC's mafia-like collection practices.

 

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iPhone Dev Team claims to be dismantled, Pwnage tool dead for good? Update: nope.

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April Fool's day joke? Could be, but we're hearing it might be real: the long standing bastions of iPhone hacking, the iPhone Dev Team, posted a note to their site stating that "[today] the DevTeam was approached by an unnamed party to sell all of the intellectual property and related applications. After much consideration [What, hours? -Ed.] the offer was accepted and the [Dev Team] has ceased." Seems a bit outlandish. For those not in the know, the Dev Team is the same group that posted jailbreaks to 2.0 (before it was out), 1.1.3, 1.1.1, developed the AnySIM unlock, and are thiiiis close to releasing the Pwnage tool (which promised total unsigned firmware control of the iPhone). So yeah, it may well be a prank, we wouldn't put it past them. Funny thing about the hacker community though, one goes down and 10 more spring up.

[Thanks Andrew, Erica]

Update: Yep, it's an April Fool's joke. We're just going to go offline until April 2nd, peace.

 

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iPhone Dev Team claims to be dismantled, Pwnage tool dead for good?

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April Fool's day joke? Could be, but we're hearing it might be real: the long standing bastions of iPhone hacking, the iPhone Dev Team, posted a note to their site stating that "[today] the DevTeam was approached by an unnamed party to sell all of the intellectual property and related applications. After much consideration [What, hours? -Ed.] the offer was accepted and the [Dev Team] has ceased." Seems a bit outlandish, sure, but for those not in the know, the Dev Team is the same group that posted jailbreaks to 2.0 (before it was out), 1.1.3, 1.1.1, developed the AnySIM unlock, and are thiiiis close to releasing the Pwnage tool (which promised total unsigned firmware control of the iPhone). So yeah, it may well be a prank, we wouldn't put it past them. Funny thing about the hacker community though, one goes down and 10 more spring up -- we're sure the iPhone Elite team is having quite a day.

[Thanks Andrew, Erica]

 

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Arkansas school has an 11-year-old IT department — no, really, an 11-year-old

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Seeing as our high school network hijinks pretty much led to semi-permanent suspension, our barren hearts were actually warmed by the story of 11-year-old Jon Penn, who has been in charge of his elementary school's 60-machine network since last year. The previous network administrator at the Arkansas school simply up and left, leaving the IT systems in shambles -- and in the hands of Jon's mom, the school librarian. Jon's since scrubbed the aging Windows 98 machines of their accumulated viruses and spyware, and he's installed a firewall and virus / spam filter to keep things clean while he works out a plan to move to Windows 2000 and centralized system management. Right now though, Jon's got his hands busy doing everything from fixing everything from paper jams to revising server configurations, and it sounds like he's having a ball -- he says he's been testing out virtualization products lately, and he's studying up for A+ technician certification this summer. Looks like school's a lot more fun when you're running the show, no?

[Via Switched]

 

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Arkansas school has an 11-year-old IT department — no, really, an 11-year-old

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Seeing as our high school network hijinks pretty much led to semi-permanent suspension, our barren hearts were actually warmed by the story of 11-year-old Jon Penn, who has been in charge of his elementary school's 60-machine network since last year. The previous network administrator at the Arkansas school simply up and left, leaving the IT systems in shambles -- and in the hands of Jon's mom, the school librarian. Jon's since scrubbed the aging Windows 98 machines of their accumulated viruses and spyware, and he's installed a firewall and virus / spam filter to keep things clean while he works out a plan to move to Windows 2000 and centralized system management. Right now though, Jon's got his hands busy doing everything from fixing everything from paper jams to revising server configurations, and it sounds like he's having a ball -- he says he's been testing out virtualization products lately, and he's studying up for A+ technician certification this summer. Looks like school's a lot more fun when you're running the show, no?

[Via Switched]

 

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Palm Centro hits the magical one million mark

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Palm's miniscule and wallet-friendly Centro has managed to reach one million units sold since its launch last September. It got its legs working as Sprint and AT&T's gateway smartphone at that fantastic $99 pricepoint, and now it's making a bid for world domination in major markets in Europe and Asia. The one million sales have it nipping at the heels of recent superstar smartphones, the two million plus HTC Touch and the four million plus iPhone, not bad company in the least.

 

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3G iPhone: If They Build It, Will You Buy?

Posted by admin in : Tech Reviews , add a comment After conducting a "channel check," Bank of America analyst Scott Craig said in a research note that Apple is gearing up to begin manufacturing the next generation of its iPhones this summer, with 3 million coming off factory lines in May. An additional 8 million iPhones are expected in June. The 3G iPhones -- if Craig has assessed the situation correctly -- will come to market as the first-generation 2.5G iPhone is updated sometime this summer.

BUG+EDU educational discounts unveiled for little hackers

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Bug Labs announced in January that it'd be busting out a BUG+EDU program for getting units into the hands of impressionable youngsters, and now that they've sold out of the first crop of units they're getting those educational discounts off the ground. Students (with relevant ID) can now purchase modules at a 10% discount, while K-12 schools and secondary education institutions can buy Bug for 25% off. K-12 schools can also participate in Bug giveaways, while undergrad and postgrad programs can develop coursework in cojunction with Bug -- long story short, some kids out there are going to get themselves some fun edumicatin'.

 

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AT&T, EDS, T-Systems Win Billions in Shell IT Contracts

Posted by admin in : Tech Reviews , add a comment Shell has doled out some $4 billion worth of contracts to outsource the management of its core information technology infrastructure. Shell signed the master service agreements as part of a push to improve its business operations performance as a way of maximizing profitability and efficiency, it said. Even though it will spend close to $4 billion over the next five years on the contracts, Shell believes it will realize cost savings over that time frame compared to managing information technology services directly.

General Dynamics UK touts near real-time 3D maps for soldiers

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It looks like soldiers could one day have their own tab key of sorts to call up detailed, 3D maps at will, at least if the folks at General Dynamics UK have their way. As Physorg reports, they've developed a "near real-time" 3D map system that makes use of an array of different technologies including LIDAR, thermal imaging and x-ray backscatter techniques to not only display buildings and streets, but objects and people inside buildings as well. The use of LIDAR also promises to provide measurements of doors, windows, and alleys with "millimeter accuracy." All that obviously makes the system, dubbed Masthead, slightly less than portable, however, although General Dynamics says it'd be able to be carried in the back of a military vehicle or civilian 4x4, or in a plane for that matter. Of course, like most such projects, General Dynamics isn't just setting its sights to military applications, with it also touting Masthead's potential benefits for police forces in planning security measures for large events, to name one example.

[Via Physorg]

 

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Doctor Suggests Cell Phones May Be Riskier Than Cigarettes

Posted by admin in : Tech Reviews , add a comment The dangers associated with cell phones could far outweigh those tied to asbestos and smoking, an Australian doctor recently warned in a new report. In his paper, "Mobile Phones and Brain Tumors -- A Public Health Concern," Vini G. Khurana, a staff specialist neurosurgeon at the Canberra Hospital and associate professor of neurosurgery with the Australian National University Medical School, summarizes a 14-month study in which he reviewed previous studies on the effects of mobile phone usage in the medical and scientific literature as well as the Internet and popular press.

Hitachi intros short-throw CPX3 WXGA projector

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It looks like Hitachi is aiming to give those normally confined to XGA projectors a bit of a boost, with its new CPX3 model not only boasting a slightly more home theater friendly WXGA (1280 x 800) resolution, but some short-throw capabilities as well. Exactly how short that throw is isn't clear, however, with Hitachi only going so far as to describe the projector as boasting a wide-angle lens that'll let you use it "close to the screen with no obstructions." Apart from that, the 3.9-pound projector is fairly standard fare, with it packing 2,000 lumens of brightness, HDMI input, and a built-in 1 watt speaker, along with some security measures sure to please more business-minded types. While there doesn't appear to be any official word on a price from Hitachi, a couple of retailers seem to already be selling it for around $1,000.

 

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Hitachi intros short-throw CPX3 WXGA projector

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It looks like Hitachi is aiming to give those normally confined to XGA projectors a bit of a boost, with its new CPX3 model not only boasting a slightly more home theater friendly WXGA (1280 x 800) resolution, but some short-throw capabilities as well. Exactly how short that throw is isn't clear, however, with Hitachi only going so far as to describe the projector as boasting a wide-angle lens that'll let you use it "close to the screen with no obstructions." Apart from that, the 3.9-pound projector is fairly standard fare, with it packing 2,000 lumens of brightness, HDMI input, and a built-in 1 watt speaker, along with some security measures sure to please more business-minded types. While there doesn't appear to be any official word on a price from Hitachi, a couple of retailers seem to already be selling it for around $1,000.

 

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MacBook Air, Vista Box PWNd - Ubuntu Stands Alone

Posted by admin in : Tech Reviews , add a comment After three days of attacks by leading hackers, a laptop running Ubuntu remained untouched while two others, running Mac OS X and Windows Vista Service Pack 1, succumbed. The attacks were launched at the CanSecWest PWN 2 OWN contest in Vancouver, Canada. This was sponsored by security firm TippingPoint, a division of 3Com, and held March 26-28, under its Zero Day Initiative. ZDI is a program for rewarding security researchers for responsibly disclosing vulnerabilities.

MacBook Air, Vista Box PWNd - Ubuntu Stands Alone

Posted by admin in : Tech Reviews , add a comment After three days of attacks by leading hackers, a laptop running Ubuntu remained untouched while two others, running Mac OS X and Windows Vista Service Pack 1, succumbed. The attacks were launched at the CanSecWest PWN 2 OWN contest in Vancouver, Canada. This was sponsored by security firm TippingPoint, a division of 3Com, and held March 26-28, under its Zero Day Initiative. ZDI is a program for rewarding security researchers for responsibly disclosing vulnerabilities.

Venturi Mini Car Audio System

Posted by admin in : Tech Reviews , add a comment This Bluetooth accessory lets you stream tunes from your phone and talk hands-free--if you have a compatible phone.

Venturi Mini Car Audio System

Posted by admin in : Tech Reviews , add a comment This Bluetooth accessory lets you stream tunes from your phone and talk hands-free--if you have a compatible phone.

Venturi Mini Car Audio System

Posted by admin in : Tech Reviews , add a comment This Bluetooth accessory lets you stream tunes from your phone and talk hands-free--if you have a compatible phone.

Nokia WiMAX N810 appears in the wild

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The WiMAX version of Nokia's N810 internet tablet has already popped up on Nokia's European site, lending creedence to all those whispers about a CTIA debut tomorrow, and now we've got units showing up in the wild, which is probably a good sign. There were apparently some other shots of this bad boy on Flickr, but they've since been removed -- let's hope tomorrow brings us some official beauty shots, eh?

 

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Microsoft Toys With New Xbox-Only Entertainment Format

Posted by admin in : Tech Reviews , add a comment Microsoft has teamed with Hollywood production company Safran to create original content available only to owners of its Xbox 360 gaming console, the two companies announced Monday. Safran has helmed the production several films, including "Scary Movie," and it has produced recent films such as "Meet the Spartans" and the upcoming "Chilled in Miami." The "pioneering distribution deal," according to Microsoft, will see original shows distributed via Xbox Live on the game maker's Xbox 360 video game platform.

LiMo Platform Release 1 gets loosed, R2 to come later this year

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Don't look now, but mid-2008 is almost here, and for those waiting intently for the release of a LiMo SDK, you're one step closer to having your dreams realized. Announced today, the LiMo Foundation has made available what it calls the "first globally competitive, Linux-based software platform for mobile devices." According to Morgan Gillis, executive director of LiMo Foundation, the consortium is hoping that R1 will "spur rapid innovation and contributions from all LiMo members," and it's restated that software development kits for Native, WebKit and Java operating environments are set to launch during the second half of this year. Not one to sit idly, the entity has also announced that Release 2 is currently "being specified and developed," and should escape testing and greet the real world in late 2008.

[Via PhoneScoop]

 

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Adobe Joins Linux Team, Springs AIR

Posted by admin in : Tech Reviews , add a comment The Linux community got a double dose of Adobe on Monday when the San Jose, Calif.-based company announced it rolled out some Linux-friendly software and joined the Linux Foundation. Adobe made available an English-only prerelease version of AIR for Linux, which enables developers to apply various Web technologies -- HTML, Adobe Flash, Adobe Flex and Ajax, among them -- to build rich Internet applications on the Linux desktop. A perfected AIR, with multiple languages, will be released for Linux later in the year. AIR already supports Windows and Macintosh platforms.

Deutsche Telekom / T-Mobile demands Engadget Mobile discontinue using the color magenta

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So last week Deutsche Telekom, owners of the global T-Mobile brand, sent Engadget a late birthday present: a hand-delivered letter direct from their German legal department requesting the prompt discontinuation of the use of the color magenta on Engadget Mobile. Yep, seriously.

Granted, we get nastygrams from angry tech companies practically every day, but rarely regarding anything that's not some piece of news we published that they're livid about having out in the open. And irony of ironies, this whole use-of-magenta thing is precisely the topic we took up last year on behalf of DT.

We spoke with David Beigie, vice president of corporate communications for T-Mobile US, who offered: "As a trademark owner, from time to time Deutsche Telekom looks at usage that could lead to confusion in the marketplace. The letter sent by DT merely outlines these perspectives and is meant to simply open a dialogue. Engadget continues to pioneer forums for discussion of wireless industry developments and innovation. T-Mobile respects the role Engadget and its readers play in advancing dialog on these important topics."

So in the interest of that open dialog we've posted Deutsche Telekom's letter below (typo in the first word of the first sentence and all), as well as a handy guide to allay any confusion should you suddenly find yourself disoriented and trying to buy your next SideKick or MDA from Engadget Mobile.

P.S. -Not an early April Fool's joke.

#comparechart { border: 2px solid #333; border-collapse: collapse; } #comparechart td { padding: 3px; border: 1px solid #ccc; vertical-align: top; margin: 0; line-height: 1.3em; } #comparechart th { font-weight: bold; text-align: left; padding: 4px; background: #eee; } #comparechart th.mainth { border-bottom: 1px solid #333; font-size: 1.2em; } #comparechart td.red { background-color: #f08c85; } #comparechart td.green { background-color: #b3e2c4;

Deutsche Telekom
Engadget Mobile
Cellphone carrier Yep No
Distributor of telecom equipment Yep No
Likely to be mistaken for T-Mobile / Deutsch Telekom We certainly hope so
 No
Former state-owned monopoly Yep No
Has something against US 3G Apparently No
Has more than five friends Might not anymore
 Yep

Gallery: Deutsche Telekom / T-Mobile demands Engadget Mobile discontinue using the color magenta

 

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Deutsche Telekom / T-Mobile demands Engadget Mobile discontinue using the color magenta

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#comparechart { border: 2px solid #333; border-collapse: collapse; } #comparechart td { padding: 3px; border: 1px solid #ccc; vertical-align: top; margin: 0; line-height: 1.3em; } #comparechart th { font-weight: bold; text-align: left; padding: 4px; background: #eee; } #comparechart th.mainth { border-bottom: 1px solid #333; font-size: 1.2em; } #comparechart td.red { background-color: #f08c85; } #comparechart td.green { background-color: #b3e2c4; So last week Deutsche Telekom, owners of the global T-Mobile brand, sent Engadget a late birthday present: a hand-delivered letter from their German legal department requesting the prompt discontinuation of the use of the color magenta on Engadget Mobile. Yep, seriously.

Granted, we get nastygrams from angry tech companies practically every day, but rarely regarding anything that's not some piece of news we published that they're livid about having out in the open. And irony of ironies, this whole use-of-magenta thing is precisely the topic we took up last year on behalf of DT.

We spoke with David Beigie, vice president of corporate communications for T-Mobile US, who offered: "As a trademark owner, from time to time Deutsche Telekom looks at usage that could lead to confusion in the marketplace. The letter sent by DT merely outlines these perspectives and is meant to simply open a dialogue. Engadget continues to pioneer forums for discussion of wireless industry developments and innovation. T-Mobile respects the role Engadget and its readers play in advancing dialog on these important topics."

So in the interest of that open dialog we've posted Deutsche Telekom's letter below (typo in the first word of the first sentence and all), as well as a handy guide to allay any confusion should you suddenly find yourself disoriented and trying to buy your next SideKick or MDA from Engadget Mobile.

P.S. -Not an early April Fool's joke.


 Deutsche Telekom
Engadget Mobile
Cellphone carrier Yep No
Distributor of telecom equipment Yep No
Likely to be mistaken for T-Mobile / Deutsch Telekom We certainly hope so
 No
Former state-owned monopoly Yep No
Has something against US 3G Apparently No
Has more than five friends Might not anymore
 Yep

Gallery: Deutsche Telekom / T-Mobile demands Engadget Mobile discontinue using the color magenta

 

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Cybook Gen3 e-book reader gets reviewed

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Bookeen's Cybook Gen3 e-book reader has been a long time coming, but now that it's out in the wild we're finally starting to get some reviews of the device, including this fairly thorough one from the folks at The Future of Things. Unfortunately for those looking forward to the reader, they found it to be quite a mixed bag. On the upside, they found the device to be thin, light, small and fast, with it also boasting solid battery life and, most importantly, a screen that's "very comfortable" to read, even outdoors. They were also impressed with the Cybook's RSS support, and the Mobipocket format used for e-books. On the downside, the page flip mechanism proved to be "cumbersome," and they found that the current firmware left a lot to be desired, with them even going so far as to say that it felt like it was "rushed to the market too soon." They were also somewhat disappointed by the lack of SDHC support, and a lack of wireless connectivity (be it 3G or WiFi). They also point out, however, that none of the e-book readers out there are perfect, so if you're in the market for one you'll just have to pick the trade-offs you're willing to live with.

 

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Cybook Gen3 e-book reader gets reviewed

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Bookeen's Cybook Gen3 e-book reader has been a long time coming, but now that it's out in the wild we're finally starting to get some reviews of the device, including this fairly thorough one from the folks at The Future of Things. Unfortunately for those looking forward to the reader, they found it to be quite a mixed bag. On the upside, they found the device to be thin, light, small and fast, with it also boasting solid battery life and, most importantly, a screen that's "very comfortable" to read, even outdoors. They were also impressed with the Cybook's RSS support, and the Mobipocket format used for e-books. On the downside, the page flip mechanism proved to be "cumbersome," and they found that the current firmware left a lot to be desired, with them even going so far as to say that it felt like it was "rushed to the market too soon." They were also somewhat disappointed by the lack of SDHC support, and a lack of wireless connectivity (be it 3G or WiFi). They also point out, however, that none of the e-book readers out there are perfect, so if you're in the market for one you'll just have to pick the trade-offs you're willing to live with.

 

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Zenith DTT900

Posted by admin in : Tech Reviews , add a comment The Zenith DTT900 DTV converter box has an easy-to-use design and solid video quality, but buyers should be aware of cheaper--and possibly better--alternatives coming in the future.

HP Officejet H470wbt Mobile Printer

Posted by admin in : Tech Reviews , add a comment HP markets the Officejet H470wbt to the mobile business professional, but it chose aesthetics over performance. The sleek design and cost-effective cartridges give its rating a slight boost, but the degradation of print quality from the previous model is definitely a deal breaker.

International Demand Fuels Higher February Chip Sales

Posted by admin in : Tech Reviews , add a comment Plunging prices in a glutted memory-chip market served as a weight on semiconductor sales worldwide, although sales did increase by 1.5 percent in February, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association. Fueled by sales of computers and mobile phones outside the U.S., global year-on-year semiconductor sales increased to $20.44 billion in February from $20.14 billion at the same point in 2007, according to the San Jose, Calif.-based group. However, sales were down 4.9 percent from $21.48 billion in sales in January.

HP goes all out with Blu-ray-packin’ Pavilion laptops for Europe

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HP's not one to let its laptops sit on the shelf too long without a revamp, and it's now let loose yet another raft of updates for its Pavilion line, albeit only in Europe for now. The big news here is the addition of Blu-ray drives across the board, which obviously replaces the HD DVD option previously found on the models they're replacing. That desirable feature finds its way onto the new Pavilion dv2800, dv6800 and dv9800 series models, which boast 14.1, 15.4, and 17-inch displays, respectively, along with your choice of Core 2 Duo or Turion 64 X2 processors, integrated graphics or NVIDIA GeForce 8400M or 8600M (depending on the model) and even a Blu-ray burner on the 17-inch model. If you're looking for something other than a traditional laptop, HP's also busted out an update to its monster HDX-9000 desktop replacement series in the form of the HDX-9300, and a new Pavilion tx2300 tablet PC (only the former boasts a Blu-ray drive). Otherwise, you can expect the HDX-9300 to pack Penryn T8100 or T9300 processors, 3GB of RAM standard, and a beefy NVIDIA GeForce 8800M GTS graphics card, while the tx2300 rolls in with a Turion 64 X2 TL-60 processor, 2GB of RAM, NVIDIA GeForce Go 6150 graphics, and a DVD burner standard. No word on pricing or availability for any of 'em just yet, unfortunately, nor is there any word of a release 'round these parts.

Read - Notebook Italia, "HP Pavilion dv2800, dv6800, dv9800 with Blu-ray"
Read - Notbeook Italia, "HP Pavilion HDX9300 and tx2100 tablet PC"

 

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