If you are a fan of Android-powered smartphones, you have probably been following the new Motorola DROID with interest. We got all hands on with the DROID earlier this week and the handset is very cool. Best Buy has announced that it is now taking pre-orders for the DROID in its stores at Best Buy Mobile kiosks.
If you have more than one dockable iPod or iPhone in use in your house, charging them up at the bedside can be a challenge without having two charging docks sitting around. If you want to dock the device in one of the cool alarm clock docks, available most lack enough room for two devices. iLuv has unveiled a new dual dock alarm clock called the iMM183 that promises Hi-Fi sound.
Thrustmaster is really big in the accessory and controller world for the Wii and other game consoles. The last time we talked about Thrustmaster products it was a new accessory kit for the Wii Fit. Thrustmaster has unveiled a new line of Wii remote charging stands to keep that remotes ready to play at all times.
MSI teased us with a few tidbits on that awesome Big Bang mainboard at the end of September, and I really want one. MSI has issued a new press release that gives more details on the mainboard and promises that it will launch soon, but MSI gives no specific date for the board to hit market.
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Nintendo have confirmed that the DSi XL (aka the DSi LL in Japan) will launch in the US and across Europe come Q1 2010, just as we predicted earlier this week. The company's UK arm had already confirmed that the console - which has larger, 4.25-inch displays than the DSi - would arrive in the UK on that timescale.
Could we soon be looking at large(ish) scale, reasonably priced OLED and AMOLED displays? Probably not, at least when it comes to the pricing part, but both LG Display and AUO have announced mass production plans for their OLED and AMOLED panels, LG expecting to kick-start production in 2011 while AUO claims to be ready to start now.
The FCC has kindly outed Cisco’s latest device, the FlipShareTV, seemingly a companion media streamer for the company’s Flip range of point-and-shoot camcorders. The three-part FlipShareTV consists of a remote control, USB dongle for your computer, and a set-top box, with a basic folder-based browsing structure that can be used to view recorded video that has been transferred from the camcorders.
Bargain hunters looking for a new ultraportable this Christmas could do well to hold off until the new year, as ASUS CEO Jerry Shen has announced the company plans to launch an Android-based Smartbook in Q1 2010 that could be priced at around $180. ASUS were among the companies demonstrating Smartbook prototypes – based on Qualcomm’s 1GHz Snapdragon processor – back in June, but since then have downplayed their involvement with the format.
Android 2.0 may only have been officially announced last week, but don’t underestimate the speed of the open-source community. They’ve already got a basic install of the new OS running on the original HTC Dream (aka the T-Mobile G1); it’s not optimized yet, which means the handset chugs along rather than whipping through the pages like we’re finding on the Verizon DROID by Motorola, but it’s certainly working.
Video demo after the cut
Apple patent applications either meet with resounding “I want that, give that to me now!” or “meh, why?” and it seems the reception to these iPod Bluetooth Headset illustrations is leaning toward the latter. The patent application shows a device similar in shape to the existing Apple Bluetooth headset, but that would have a detachable second earbud, an integrated display and onboard storage.
That storage would turn the headset into a full-blown iPod, similar to the shuffle. You would also be able to record voice notes, since it would have an integrated microphone, and of course it could be used for hands-free calling in the regular way. Apple’s application also describe a form of basic automatic volume adjustment that would change earpiece volume depending on the ambient noise picked up by the microphone.
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