The major new feature of the latest version of the browser is a revamped address field. It now has search suggestions to access sites faster and it has a star in the address field for bookmarking pages easily. The browser also has a new engine that offers significant improvements and makes the browser faster and more stable.

Along with the new browser also comes a new mail design with the built-in mail client. The mail client will allow you to manage your mail automatically. It also has a cleaner layout, message grouping, and a more intuitive inbox view and navigation. You can download the new browser version right now.

The new beta version also adds CSS3 radial gradients to the mix allowing the web page designer to design ellipses and even double rainbows that the 11.60 version can render. The browser is also supporting ECMAScript 5.1, which is the latest version of JavaScript standards. The browser also has some other interesting HTML5 support.

11.60 is the first browser to support HTML5 microdata. That microdata is used by search engines to help enhance the search results returned for phrases. You can grab the beta 11.60 browser right now at Opera.com.

The benefit of the new platform for OEMs is that it can leverage more developers to design apps for the TV. Since the Opera TV Store will be cross-device, an app designed for a smartphone would be able to run on the TV and vice versa. That means that the TV platform alone doesn’t have to try and draw developers as a stand-alone TV app would.

Opera also says that porting an app to the Opera TV Store is very easy for those with HTML5 knowledge. TVs that are based on the Opera SDK 3.1 can access the Opera TV Store. The store supports HTML5, SVG, Canvas, CE-HTML, and OIPF based apps. Vimeo has already pledged to support the store, as have some of the developers behind other popular apps already on the market. Opera TV Store trial software is available as of today for OEMs and content providers to try out.

Opera has also added in new direct share functionality, making it easier to share webpages with Facebook, Twitter and its own My Opera service. The browser was first released back in March with a tablet version for Android-based slates; if you’ve always been confused between Mini and the Opera Mobile browser, this one uses the company’s compression servers to slim down data usage.

Safari on the iPhone and iPad has always been a patchy user experience, rendering well but with a stripped down UI that could make for sluggish operation, so we’re always glad to see alternatives. Opera Mini 6 for iOS is a free download [iTunes link] from the App Store.

Press Release:

Oslo, Norway – May 24, 2011 – Today, the Opera Mini 6 browser for iOS joined the Opera band and is available to download for free from the Apple App Store for iPhone and iPad.

The Opera Mini mobile browser provides a different kind of browsing experience to complement the default iPad and iPhone browser. It features up to 90% compression of data traffic for speed and cost savings, making both your patience and wallet happy on slower connections or when roaming.

So Opera Mini is ready to chime in and sing harmony when you are on a slow connection, crowded network, paying per megabyte for browsing, or simply want to save time and money.

Have an iPhone 4? Our browser adapts to the high resolution and changes the user interface to accommodate the screen size. How about iPad? Yep, the Opera Mini 6 browser will switch to a more convenient view for tablet handling.

The chorus of Opera Mini users gave feedback and we listened. Like the rest of the Opera Mini 6 lineup, the iOS version features:

- Much faster and smoother panning and zooming that lets the user get all the way into the details of every page, in one smooth motion
- Share buttons to share the love for a site to your friends on My Opera, Facebook, Twitter or vKontakte right from the Opera Mini 6 browser
- New jazzed-up skin and redesigned Opera menus

Backstage, Opera’s engineers have tuned the browser and created a faster and more fluid user experience. Scrolling and panning are ultra fast, even on the largest webpages, for instant access. On iOS, the Opera Mini 6 browser is submitted as a single download for all iOS devices.

What we are saying:
“I would compare it to walking onto the stage and hearing the roar of the crowd,” said Opera’s, CEO Lars Boilesen, when describing the feeling of letting the Opera Mini 6 browser out on stage in the App Store. “We have put in a lot of rehearsal and clever thought behind the new experience. The Opera Mini browser has always kicked up the tempo when downloading pages; now the browsing flows along to a smooth, easy beat.”

Rockin’ the app store

The Opera Mini 5 browser for iOS launched in April 2010, to the delight of screaming fans who threw their underwear at the stage, racking up more than a million downloads at the Apple app store in the first 24 hours. Super fast browsing, cost savings on data traffic and unmatched user experience leads to a Woodstock-like download rush.

During that time, the Opera Mini browser topped the charts in every Apple App Store globally.

Now, it is Opera Mini 6′s turn to get its name up in lights.

There’s also a new sharing button, with options for Twitter, Facebook, vKontakte or My Opera. If you’ve always been confused about the difference between the two, Opera Mini uses the company’s compression servers to slim down data usage, while Opera Mobile gets the full-fat web with HTML5 support and the Opera Presto engine carried over from the desktop version.

Opera Mini 6 is available on J2ME, Android, BlackBerry and Symbian/S60 phones, while Opera Mobile 11 will run on Android, Symbian, Windows 7 desktop (labs release), MeeGo (labs release) and Maemo (labs release). Interestingly, there’s no Windows Mobile version, so it looks like Microsoft’s old smartphone platform has sung its last, at least according to Opera. You can download at m.opera.com.

Press Release:

Whole lotta love for the mobile Web

Debuting all new Opera Mini 6 and Opera Mobile 11
Oslo, Norway — March 22, 2011

Can’t get no satisfaction from the mobile Web? Then you will fall head over heels for the new Opera Mini and Opera Mobile browsers launched today, now also available to cherish on tablets. Opera’s mobile browsers are the world’s most popular, the weapon of choice for 100 million people worldwide, used on more than 3000 devices. If you still haven’t found what you are looking for, there is an Opera out there available for you. Download to your phone from: m.opera.com and don’t stop til you get enough.

What’s new, pussycat?

Smooth operator
Improved scrolling, panning and zooming make the Opera Mini and Opera Mobile browsers the sweetest thing to hit mobile devices since the Opera Mini 5 browser.

Pinch-to-zoom
Feel free to twist and shout now that Opera’s features include true pinch-to-zoom on devices that support pinch.

Sharing
When you find something, let it be … shared. The new versions feature a share button, so you can easily post, Tweet (twiddly-diddly-deet), or just shout it out loud on Facebook, vKontakte or My Opera.

Now also optimized for tablets
Is it any wonder? Opera for tablets brings smooth browsing to your tablet PC with a brand new interface that is sure to rock you like a hurricane.

What we say

“If you’ve lost that loving feeling for the Web on your phone or tablet, don’t let it bring you down. Just try one of our browsers,” said Lars Boilesen, CEO, Opera Software. “The sun always shines on TV, but the Opera browser shines on more than 3000 devices.”

Who are you? The difference between the Opera Mini and Opera Mobile browsers

The Opera Mini browser uses Opera’s servers to shake, rattle and roll webpages down to a tenth of their original size before sending them to your phone. Because the data transferred is smaller, pages arrive faster than the speed of sound. On a pay-as-you-go plan, the Opera Mini browser dramatically cuts the price you pay, because the data you use is greatly reduced. The Opera Mini browser makes any device Internet savvy.
The Opera Mobile browser gives you the whole of the moon on smartphones and tablets. The strange magic of HTML5? Check. Full, high fidelity web browsing? Check. Sharing the same Opera Presto browser engine found in Opera’s desktop browser, the Opera Mobile browser is the premier option for fast, powerful browsing when on unlimited Internet data plans or Wi-Fi.
Availability

The Opera Mini 6 browser brings the fireworks to J2ME, Android, BlackBerry and Symbian/S60 phones.
The Opera Mobile 11 browser sings hallelujah on the Android, Symbian, Windows 7 desktop (labs release), MeeGo (labs release) and Maemo (labs release) platforms.
What you waiting for? Walk this way with your mobile device: m.opera.com.

A subsequent tweet pinned the blame on Opera’s new Mobile Store service, which is a competitor to GetJar’s own business. “[Opera] placed an app store in their browser. one thing we can’t do is promote competing app stores ;)” the message read, with a full explanation promised sometime today.

Opera is yet to comment officially itself on the matter, though we’re guessing the company won’t be too impressed by GetJar’s decision. Still, as we saw when Apple gave Opera a 17+ rating in the Mac App Store, the company does have a sense of humor about its competitors.

[via mocoNews]

Although it’s Opera’s name on the app store, it’s Appia’s tech behind it. In beta testing last month, the companies reckon over 15m users accessed the store, for a total of more than 700,000 downloads per day.

You can browse the catalog by visiting mobilestore.opera.com (even if you don’t have Opera installed) and while the UI isn’t exactly the most inspiring we’ve seen, there’s a decent range of apps on offer. More details for developers here.

Press Release:

Opera launches the Opera Mobile Store, available in over 200 Countries

Oslo, Norway – March 8, 2011

Opera Software, the leading provider of mobile browsers around the world, today announced that the Opera Mobile Store is now open and available at mobilestore.opera.com. This storefront is a featured Speed Dial link in the Opera Mini and Opera Mobile browsers, which makes the storefront immediately accessible by more than 100 million people who use an Opera browser on their mobile phones. The Opera Mobile Store has been built and delivered through a strategic partnership with Appia, the leading provider of open application marketplace technology. The Opera Mobile Store offers both free and paid applications for virtually any mobile platform and device. The Opera Mobile Store is available to Opera users and users of other mobile browsers, on all popular mobile phone platforms in more than 200 countries. The Opera Mobile Store uses Appia’s storefront commerce technology and leverages a wide catalog of applications for phones with Java, Symbian, BlackBerry and Android operating systems. The storefront experience is customized to each user’s phone, providing a tailored catalog based on the phone’s operating system, local language and currency.

“The launch of the Opera Mobile Store supports Opera’s core belief in an open, cross-platform mobile Internet experience by providing Opera users with an integrated storefront of mobile applications,” said Mahi de Silva, EVP, Consumer Mobile, Opera Software. “Our partnership with Appia delivers to all Opera Mobile and Opera Mini users easy access to a wide variety of great content, on any device, all over the world.”

To support the Opera Mobile Store, Opera Software has also launched the Opera Publisher Portal, providing developers with an easy way to get their applications onto the Opera Mobile Store and in front of millions of Opera users every month. In its pre-launch state, the Opera Mobile Store attracted more than 15 million users in February, from 200 countries, achieving more than 700,000 downloads per day. These metrics establish the Opera Mobile Store as a top 10 mobile application store around the world.

“The Opera Mobile Store presents a remarkable opportunity for mobile application developers to distribute localized content through a single, far-reaching marketplace,” said Jud Bowman, CEO of Appia. “Appia is thrilled to partner with Opera to deliver an incredible storefront of applications to Opera users and beyond.”

“It’s very fast, you know, and it has a lot of features” he continues, concluding “I think the download requirement should be at least 18.” Opera Software suggest that those without Mac App Store access should head over to their site and download the browser the old fashioned way. Just be careful not to stumble over anything unsavory on your travels.

Press Release:

Opera first browser available in Apple’s Mac App Store

Oslo, Norway – March 3, 2011

This week, the Opera web browser became the first non-native browser made available in Apple’s Mac App Store, but only for those over seventeen years of age. Jan Standal, VP of Desktop Products for Opera Software, is surprised.

“I’m very concerned,” says Standal. “Seventeen is very young, and I am not sure if, at that age, people are ready to use such an application. It’s very fast, you know, and it has a lot of features. I think the download requirement should be at least 18.”

For those under 17, there is a workaround. Just visit www.opera.com and download it. We do not ask for your age or your credit card number. Please, get your parents’ permission before using this browser.

Video demo after the cut

Connectivity is via an integrated GSM/EDGE modem (no 3G), though thanks to Opera’s compression technology – which can shrink pages by up to 90-percent – Vodafone still reckons that speeds should be palatable. The carrier will preload bookmarks suited to its entry-level audience, including online news, dictionary, social networks, some games and a rudimentary application service.

While we can see many users being keen on the idea, Vodafone is targeting emerging markets with the Webbox, at least initially. South Africa will get the internet keyboard first, from next week, with broader availability in 2011. It will be priced at around €75, with a free 2GB SD card and data purchased on pre-paid SIM.

Press Release:

Vodafone launches Webbox – an innovative plug and play keyboard, bringing internet to your television

Vodafone today announces the launch of the Vodafone Webbox, the first device of its kind, bringing affordable internet access to a customer’s existing television set, just by plugging in a keyboard.

The Webbox is a Vodafone innovation developed specifically for customers in emerging markets, where technology and cost barriers often exclude many from enjoying affordable, ready internet access at home or in the workplace. A sleek, black, 14 x 25cm QWERTY keyboard, the Webbox uses standard RCA connectors to plug into the television. With no set-up required, the plug and play keyboard converts any standard domestic television into an internet portal.

Patrick Chomet, Vodafone’s Group Director of Terminals said: “The Webbox is a simple yet very innovative product. It has the potential to make a powerful difference in the lives of people in emerging markets who have limited access to the internet, but where TV penetration is typically very high. The simplicity of the product is striking – it brings the internet to the TV, be that at home for the family, in schools for education or in small businesses to assist local economic growth.”

The Webbox home screen allows the customer to navigate easily between the core services: Opera Mini 5.1 internet access; SMS and email messaging; internet search and media services including FM radio and a photo gallery tool, as well as a music player.

The Webbox Opera Mini browser runs over the 2.5G and EDGE mobile networks, compressing data by around 90% and so serving fast-loading internet pages. The browser homepage comes with bookmarks such as news, sport and social networking sites as well as locally relevant apps such as a job search and application service. In addition, the portal comes with some games, a dictionary and a basic text editor.

In South Africa, Vodacom has today announced that they will start selling the Webbox from next week. Other markets across Vodafone’s emerging market footprint will launch in 2011.

Notes to Editors

Opera Mini is available across 20 markets, preloaded onto 32 handsets and downloadable to a total of 278 devices. There have been 9 million downloads of the Vodafone Opera Mini browser to date.
Watch a Webbox quick demo and hear Patrick Chomet talking about it here: www.youtube.com/vodafonemedia
Cost example: Vodacom will retail the Webbox at a one-off unit cost of R749 (c €75) with a free 2GB SD card, and prepaid SIM with R12 data credit.
Vodafone’s Webbox won a prestigious Universal Design Award Consumer Favourite 2011, so being credited for its usability, learning curve, flexibility, security as well as affordability.
The Webbox will be exhibited at the Vodafone stand at Mobile World Congress 2011.

“Our developers have been hard at work building the mobile browser of the future for both consumers and mobile operators,” said Lars Boilesen, CEO of Opera Software. The Opera Mini has been a popular alternative to Apple’s Safari and many of company’s browsers are popular for other smartphones as well as Nintendo’s Wii and DSi.

Opera is also planning on introducing new versions of Opera Mini on the iPhone as well as on the Android, Blackberry, J2ME, and Symbian platforms. The browser has been immensely popular since it gained Apple’s approval early last year with 1 million downloads in the first 24 hours. Opera says that more than 100 million people use its browsers every month, mostly the Opera Mini.

[Via MacWorld]

Sony has not confirmed which HDTVs and Blu-ray decks will get the Opera browser, but it seems the company isn’t content to settle on Google TV for its smart TV line-up.

Press Release:

Opera chosen by Sony for LCD television and Blu-ray Disc players

Oslo, Norway, and Tokyo, Japan, January 19, 2011

Opera Software today announced to deliver its world-class browser on Sony BRAVIA televisions and Blu-ray Disc (TM) players. Opera aims to deliver more “lean-forward”, interactive components to connected home users by offering Opera’s solution to Sony’s state-of-the-art devices.

The Opera Devices Software Developer Kit (SDK) is the cross-platform, standards-based backbone of Opera for connected TVs and Blu-ray Disc players. As a robust, open platform for creating web-standards-based solutions, Opera Devices SDK forms the ideal foundation for developing full web browsers and user interfaces. Opera brings customization and ease of content distribution to global markets by enabling the delivery of web applications, widgets, full web browsing and emerging standards such as HTML5, HbbTV and OIPF.

Previously, consumers were required to have multiple devices to surf the Internet while watching television. As more connected home electronics devices arrive in living rooms, Internet use is changing. The Internet is becoming more closely connected with people’s everyday life, such as the ability to enjoy video on-demand services on television, exchange opinions with friends through social networks about the program they are watching, and buy online directly from their televisions the items seen on TV dramas.

“The Web as we know it is evolving, and we are committed to making it more accessible across diverse devices,” said Christen Krogh, Chief Development Officer, Opera Software. “Our ability to address key hybrid broadcast-broadband initiatives in numerous markets makes us a natural fit with Sony. By delivering both a global viewpoint and the necessary technology, we are able to stay on the cutting edge of the industry.”
About Opera Software ASA

Opera Software ASA has redefined web browsing for PCs, mobile phones and other networked devices. Opera’s cross-platform web-browser technology is renowned for its performance, standards compliance and small size, while giving users a faster, safer and more dynamic online experience. Opera Software is headquartered in Oslo, Norway, with offices around the world. The company is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol OPERA. Learn more about Opera at http://www.opera.com/.

Video demo after the cut

Full functionality is yet to be revealed, but in the video below you can see pinch-zooming in action together with some pretty slick scrolling. There’s also Opera’s usual multi-shortcut paned homescreen, for easier access to your favorites.

Press Release:

Opera unveils touch browser for tablet and netbook PCs

Las Vegas, Nevada – January 3, 2011

If you were nice in 2010 then there is a good chance Santa left you one of the hottest gifts of the year – a tablet. Now that it is January you are probably looking for ways to get the most of out of your tablet. Luckily, Santa has some special Norwegian helpers who worked all through the holidays to kick off the New Year with a browser designed especially for tablets.
At the annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2011, Opera Software will unveil the first public preview of Opera for tablets. Whether it’s checking email, managing social networks or surfing the net, Opera’s specialized browser for tablets provides you with the smoothest tablet and netbook experience on the market.

“In 2011, tablets are a new must-have. Opera is creating waves with the first public preview of Opera for tablets,” said Christen Krogh, Chief Development Officer, Opera Software. “Opera for tablets brings the same trusted Internet experience to tablets and netbook PCs as users have come to love on their mobile phones and desktops.”

The original patent was filed in 2002 by Actify, it seems that Hopwell Culture and Design are chiming in now because previously, double-clicking had not been used to any effect for the user input while in a Web browser, corresponding to the unique double-click input. Adobe’s been marked due to their PDF Reader software. Apple, on the other hand (and not surprisingly) is being targeted in a more sweeping motion, with mention of the iPhone and iPad. But, it’s HTC that’s certainly seeing a lot of attention, too, with device names like the Droid Incredible, Droid Eris, Hero, and EVO 4G being specifically pointed out.

Nokia is also being blamed, with devices like the N900 and N97. Other companies include LG, Motorola, Quickoffice, Palm, and Opera. Hopewell Culture and Design is hoping that they can receive “adequate” payment from damages, from each of the companies. The lawsuit was filed with the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. If that district sounds familiar, it’s because it’s a pretty well known place for plaintiffs to get what they want, especially in patent disputes.

[via Electronista]

The nearest alternative was Internet Explorer 8, which blocked 90-percent. NSS Labs credit SmartScreen URL filtering, included in IE8 and IE9, for the strong showing; only IE9 has SmartScreen application reputation protection, however, hence the difference in results.

Meanwhile, Apple’s Safari 5 languished with 11-percent of threats blocked, Chrome 6 did even worse with 3-percent, and Opera 10 failed to block any of the downloads. Around 636 URLs were included in the testing, and interestingly – as shown in the following chart – despite both Safari 5 and Firefox 3.6 each using Google’s Safe Browser feed, the two apps seemingly implemented it in different ways.

SlashTRACKED
In Irvine California there is a man named David Norris, a man who owns a company that aims to “fingerprint” every computer, mobile phone, and TV set-top box in the world. With the “credit bureau for devices” Norris is building, each device will have a “reputation” based on that device’s online activities including, specifically, shopping habits and demographics. Fingerprinting has been used up until now as a replacement for “cookies” as a method of preventing illegal copying of computer software and to stop credit card fraud. At the moment, Norris’s company has id’ed over 200 million devices – by the end of the year, they expect to have cataloged one billion (one tenth of the world’s total.)

[Via Wall Street Journal Tech]

R3 Media Network

SlashPhone
New Winamp for Android Receive Music from Your PC Wirelessly
Nokia Smartphones Get Opera Mobile 10.1 Final Release
Motorola Divided Into Two Different Division on January 4th
Dell’s Website Show Off Venue Pro For A Moment

Android Community
Official Google Reader App Comes to Android
Motorola Defy Rooted
Verizon’s 4G Network Officially launches December 5th
Motorola DROID Update Preparing for Release, Will Bring Software to Android 2.2.1
Samsung’s New Near Field Communication Chip Promises Increased Wireless Connectivity
Angry Birds Expansion : Seasons Revealed on Android Only!
Autodesk launches SketchBook Mobile for Android users
Google Editions to offer digital books on Android and any other device
Micromax Andro 60 will be Cheapest Android Phone in India Soon, Runs 2.1
Motorola Olympus Gets Bought at Flea Market, Runs Motoblur and FroYo
LG Star gets hands-on video treatment
DoubleTwist receives big update, now features AirSync

SlashGear
Android, iPhone, and BlackBerry in Dead Heat for Most Desirable Smartphone of the Month
LG VL600 LTE Modem hands-on and unboxing [FEATURED]
The Freedom of WikiSpeech [COLUMN]
PlayStation Phone “Spy Video” Shows Device in Action
The Importance of Verizon LTE and 4G Networks [ON TIME ANALYSIS]
Handmade Steampunk PC with Windows 7 Home Premium or Linux Ubuntu
Evernote 2.0 Beta for Mac – Now with Sharing and Notebooks Stacks [MINI REVIEW]
HP Slate 500 Arrives, Gets Unboxed by Lucky Owner
World’s Smallest Cellphone Jammer Blocks GSM and 3G Signals
LG VL600 LTE USB Modem Landing This Sunday for $99
‘Tis The Season for Acquisitions [COLUMN]
Parker Brothers Choppers Creates 10 TRON: Legacy Light Cycles, Only 4 Left [Video] [WANT]
LG VL600 & Pantech UML290 LTE USB Modems Launching Verizon’s 4G Network
Dell Venue Pro Available Starting Today, Will Ship by December 9th
Verizon’s 4G LTE Site Launches, Reveals Details [Updated]
Live TV on iPad Today Via DISH Remote Access App
Halo: Combat Evolved Remake Not Being Made, Microsoft Focusing on Reach
WordPress Updates to Version 3.0.2 – Do It!
Steve Jobs Confirms Extension of AirPlay Features in 2011 – Safari, Third Party Apps, Etcetera
Palm Acquisition Leads to HP Pulling Out of Windows Home Server Market – Leaves Vail Lonely
H2O Audio Presents a Full Color-Blasted Line of Waterproof Earbuds
Text messages marketing Robots movie worth $200 each
Bitfenix unveils awesome Colossus Venom computer case
iPhone 4 Vent Shell Case is full of holes
Samsung Mobile Display outs new Super PLS display to replace IPS tech
Apple patent app shows optical MagSafe data connector and convertible tablet
OWC outs new rack mount Mercury Rack Pro RAID device
Futuremark delays 3DMark 11, geeks saddened

To see more Daily Slash posts, click here: [The Daily Slash] or here: [SlashGear Morning Wrap-Up]

SlashINTERNATIONAL
“U.S. aircraft carrier heads for Korean waters” is not the first thing I wanted to read today when I went looking on an update for the situation unfolding between North and South Korea. If you’re the sort of person who keeps up with these sorts of events, or are at least a person who reads The Daily Slash on a daily basis, you’re aware that yesterday North Korea shelled a South Korean island, leveling a number of buildings and killing two civilians. Today, a U.S. aircraft carrier is on its way over there to… maybe sit around and have a glass of tea. Today the U.S. government expressed its belief that the North Korean aggression was an isolated incident that had to do with leadership change in Pyongyang (N.Korea’s capital), and that it hoped China would use its influence to stop additional “provocative behavior.” Further, Rueters reports:

North Korea said the shelling was in self-defense after Seoul fired shells into its waters near the disputed maritime border. The North’s KCNA news agency said the South was driving the peninsula to the “brink of war” with “reckless military provocation” and by postponing humanitarian aid.

So now the USS George Washington, capable of carrying 75 warplanes and a crew of over 6,000 has left a naval base south of Tokyo Japan and will be joining exercises with South Korea from Sunday to the following Wednesday, so says U.S. officials in Seoul. Read the full story over at [Reuters] and remember when you’re chewing on your roasted bird tomorrow that you should be thankful we’re not in more war than we’re already in and hope, wish, or pray for a peaceful solution to this terrible situation.

R3 Media Network

SlashPhone
Verizon Wireless Add More Devices Into The Black Friday List And BOGA
HTC DROID Incredible Free Via Dell, Plus $25 Gift Card
Verizon Announced DROID Essential Packs For Holiday Offers
Opera Mini had 76.3 million users in October
UberTwitter Beta hits the iPhone

Android Community
Droid Incredible Free From Dell, Shipping, Activation, and a Gift Card Included
Yelp adds check-in offers for Android
Laptop Magazine reviews Viewsonic ViewPad 7 tablet
PC World runs down the best apps for Black Friday on Android
Motorola Defy coming to Telstra in Australia
FlightView Elite now available in Android Market for $3.99
OpenFeint brings 8 new titles to Android
Open your garage with your Android device [NEATO]
Samsung Epic 4G Game Gripper Available Now [NEATO]
PlayStation Phone arriving December 9th?
Creative ZiiO Android Tablet hits the FCC
DROID 2 Global gets officially announced, sort of

SlashGear
HTC PB92300 hits FCC: new video calling Aria?
Sony 3D pro camcorder gets new video demo
LG HDTV NetCast update adds BBC iPlayer, Facebook, Twitter & more
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Acer outs first 3D notebook in Japan
Movea turns your iPhone 4 into an Air Mouse for HTPC use
iPad waterproof case called Drycase unveiled [DUNK IT IN]
FreeOneHand iPad holder and stand is odd [JUST A POLE]
Android data theft exploit to be plugged in Gingerbread [Video]
Andy Rubin to release Android 2.3 Gingerbread on Dec 6?
Stern unveils limited edition version of Avatar pinball game [PINBALL FOREVER]
GoSmart Clip hangs your smartphone on the steering wheel [WHA...?]
ColorWare add new MacBook Air to line-up [BRIGHT]
iOS 4.3 due Dec 13 with News Corp “Daily” recurring subscription APIs?
Chinese gamer reportedly pays $677 per minute for IMAX-style big screen play [WORTH IT]
PocketBook Mirasol ereader due Q3 2011; IQ701 touchscreen tablet tipped
$89 Kindle 2 for Amazon’s Black Friday sale
Foursquare Mocks TSA Airport Screenings with “Baggage Handler” Badge [GG]
Content Rating System Coming to Android Market
Koostik Wooden iPhone Dock for Olde Fashioned Sound Amplification
Facebook to Trademark the Word “Face”
The SlashGear Black Friday Deal Guide of Complete Excellence
Microsoft Might Fund Halo Movie, Wants Your Mom to See It [AWESOME FRIGGIN AWESOME]
Black Friday Is Never Good For My Tech Addiction [COLUMN]
Nissan Reveals Fuel Efficient ECO Pedal System
PSP and UK TVs Updated by Sony to Work with Qriocity Streaming Movies
Pigeon Food Will Soon Turn Bird Crap Into Soap [LOLS]
List of GameStop Locations Open at Midnight on Black Friday
Obama Signs Another iPad in Europe [WHAT A COOL GUY]
Samsung 256GB SSD 470 Series [REVIEW]
Microsoft drop Drive Extender from Windows Home Server refresh
SlingPlayer Mobile for iPad released [UPDATE: ONLY works with Slingbox SOLO and Pro-HD]

To see more Daily Slash posts, click here: [The Daily Slash] or here: [SlashGear Morning Wrap-Up]

Video demo after the cut

Opera claims to be seeing 10-20 new extensions added each day; you can browse the catalog here. As you’d expect, it’s billed as faster and more efficient than Opera 10, too, being a 30-percent smaller install and 15- to 20-percent faster on the regular benchmarks than its predecessor. Plug-ins can now be set to load on demand, rather than being constantly active, which is also good for up to a 30-percent performance boost.

Automatic extensions updates, new security indicator badges and a streamlined address bar round out the main changes, along with a new bookmarks bar. It’s a free download from here, and is available in Windows, Mac and Linux versions.

Press Release:

Tabs go to 11
First beta of Opera 11 showcases tab stacking

Oslo, Norway – November 23, 2010 – Tabbed browsing, one of the essential features in all browsers, has evolved yet again thanks to its long-time pioneer. Opera 11 beta introduces tab stacking, a better way to organize your open tabs. Traditionally, tabs were opened side-by-side, but now people using Opera can stack their tabs, grouping them by site or by theme. Tab stacking reduces clutter and makes it easier to identify and work with sets of open tabs.

It is easy to stack tabs. Simply drag one tab on top of another. Hovering the mouse over a tab will cause the stack to expand in a visual preview. Clicking the arrow icon expands the current stack across the tab bar. This brief video showcases tab stacking in action: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hqSGGk1YTI.

“Tabs are the most popular feature in browsers today,” said Jan Standal, VP of Desktop Products, Opera. “Because so many of us wrestle with tens or even hundreds of tabs, we wanted to find a better way to manage them. So, whether you are tracking positive reviews of your new album or researching the proper dimensions of Stonehenge, stacking your tabs is an intuitive way to organize and group your open webpages.”

Extensions go to 11
Opera 11 also introduces extensions, browser add-ons that enhance the capabilities of Opera. In the three weeks since extensions debuted in the alpha release of Opera 11, more than 500,000 extensions have been downloaded. Fueling the growth in available extensions, developers submit between 10 and 20 new extensions each day. The full extension catalog is available here: https://addons.labs.opera.com/.

Thanks to a new developer mode in Opera 11 beta, extensions are even easier to make. Developers can use the developer mode to launch, test and package extensions quickly.

Mouse gestures go to 11
Mouse gestures provide a simple and effective way to control Opera with a few simple mouse movements. Since their introduction in Opera 5, mouse gestures have proven to be one of the most loved Opera features. In Opera 11, a new visual interface highlights mouse paths and helps guide the discovery, use and mastery of these powerful shortcuts. The full list of mouse gestures is available here: http://www.opera.com/browser/tutorials/gestures/.

But wait! There is more:
- The address field now hides unnecessary information and puts the security status of each page front and center. Now, badges explain the security state of the site, giving consumers clear information about the sites they visit.
- Plug-ins can be set to load on-demand. This can give as much as 30 percent performance improvement.
- Extensions and Opera Unite applications are updated automatically through Opera’s update mechanism.
- Even more work has been done to boost browsing speed, particularly for Linux. Opera 11 for Linux is 15 to 20 percent faster on common benchmarks than Opera 10.63.
- Bookmarks are just a click away thanks to a new bookmarks bar that replaces Opera’s personal bar.
- Opera 11 is 30 percent smaller than Opera 10.63, despite including new features.

Availability
Download Opera 11 beta (English only) from http://www.opera.com/browser/next. Opera runs on Windows, Mac and Linux computers.

Resources
Opera 11 beta press kit: http://www.opera.com/media/presskit/Opera11beta.zip
Timeline of tabbed browsing in Opera: http://www.opera.com/bitmaps/press/resources/campaign/opera11beta/tabs_timeline.gif

No drummers were harmed in the making of this browser.

About Opera Software ASA

Opera Software ASA has redefined web browsing for PCs, mobile phones and other networked devices. Opera’s cross-platform web-browser technology is renowned for its performance, standards compliance and small size, while giving users a faster, safer and more dynamic online experience. Opera Software is headquartered in Oslo, Norway, with offices around the world. The company is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol OPERA. Learn more about Opera at http://www.opera.com/.

Meanwhile there’s also wireless bookmark synchronization and a password manager. You can download the new browser by visiting http://www.opera.com/mobile/ on your Android phone.

[via Android Community]

Press Release:

Turbo charge your Android

Opera Mobile 10.1 beta for Android available
Oslo, Norway — 9 November 2010

Android users now have a new choice when it comes to browsers. Today, Opera Software announced that Opera Mobile 10.1 beta is available in the Android Market for free, providing the many millions of Android users better browser performance and an improved user experience.

Android users are known to appreciate speed and functionality. They are also known for their demands for new and improved software for their handsets, as well as an almost emotional relationship to their phones. Now, they have the opportunity to run Opera Mobile, made by a company that shares their passion for a better browser.

“Android users now have a better choice when it comes to using a browser on their mobile devices,” said Lars Boilesen, CEO, Opera Software. “With Opera’s new browser for Android, we give users the opportunity to access the Web, using the best tools available.”

Opera Mobile boasts faster page loading than other browsers and a highly fluid panning, scrolling and smooth zooming experience. Speed Dial, another Opera innovation, gives quick and easy access to the user’s favorite websites while the password manager saves the user from cumbersome mobile-phone typing. Additionally, users will experience better browsing on slow or congested networks with Opera Turbo, which provides up to 80 percent data compression.

Opera Mobile 10.1 Beta for Android also features:

Easy tab management with visual tabs
Opera Presto rendering engine
Sync your bookmarks across devices with Opera Link
Ability to be set as the default browser
Geolocation support
SVG support
Download

Download Opera Mobile directly to the Android phone for free from the Android Market or at m.opera.com/next. For more information, visit http://www.opera.com/mobile/.

Opera Mobile is available for Android users in the following 18 versions: Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Swedish.

Everyone on Windows, Mac and Linux is free to download this new version of Opera today over at the download station at Opera’s house. The Extensions bit should be very similar to extensions workings of browsers we’ve seen before. Opera says developers will be able to create extensions using open standards (HTML5, CSS, JavaScript) and supported APIs. One button installations and support of injectable JavaScript, callouts, a number of UI items and a basic Tabs and Windows API. Developers are invited to develop and publish extensions on the Opera developer site: Dev Opera.

[Via Opera]

Those features will include hardware acceleration and pinch to zoom among others. The hardware acceleration allows Opera Mobile to run at faster speeds and will bring with it new improvements to the UI with pinch to zoom for all websites and better interaction with the phone. An exact launch date is not offered from Opera.

Opera has also announced that Opera 11 will have extensions. Extensions are a way for the user to add new functionality to their browser and developers will be able to create extensions using HTML5, CSS, JavaScript and other open standards and supported APIs. The extensions will be installed via a pop up that lets you install them easily when you want. Extensions will debut with the browser at an unspecified future date.

Via Android Community

The web browser improves browsing speeds by compressing data up to 90% before sending the content to the phone. The page load times are significantly improved thanks to this. Opera claims that displaying BBC News will cost nine times less with Opera mini 5.1 for the user compared to loading the page on another browser.

The 5.1 version of the browser can be downloaded right now on the Android Market or at m.opera.com. The new version is also optimized for a better layout on Android devices with a larger screens and the browser can be set as the default for your device.

The Best of R3 Media

Samsung Vibrant Releasing July 15th: We can chalk this one up to pretty strange. After officially announcing the Samsung Vibrant, T-Mobile confirmed that the device would be hitting physical and digital store shelves beginning July 21st. But, thanks to some leaked T-Mobile documents, it’s now been more or less confirmed that it’s actually releasing on July 15th. A full week early, and on the same day as the Droid X by Motorola for Verizon. Interesting choice, especially considering they are still cutting it dangerously close to that date, and still haven’t told anyone. Tricky, tricky, T-Mobile. [via Android Community]

Apple Activates Their Kill Switch: The application in question is called NDrive, and it’s a GPS app created from a small group of folks. Basically, it’s an indie app, lost amidst the other high profile GPS applications out there in Apple’s App Store. At least, that was the case until today, when the application suddenly disappeared from the App Store, and people’s computers as well. Oh, and from iPhone owner’s handsets, too. That’s right — the app just disappeared. The company doesn’t seem to know what’s going on, either, but everyone’s trying to figure it out. What it looks like at the moment, is that Apple pulled their kill switch, and this is the result: utter confusion. [via SlashGear]

Opera Mini Updated to 5.1: Updates are bound to happen to anything out there that can be updated, and it’s never a bad thing when they make things better. The update to 5.1 for Opera Mini brings the removal of some icons, as well as the visual speed dial tool for the User Interface, but the changes are said ot make the browser faster, and more stable for devices with less memory. So, if this fits your device’s description, it looks like your browser choice just got a little better. [via PhoneMag]

The Dredge ‘Net

Solar Impulse Flies Overnight on Just Solar Power: There’s skeptics for everything out there, and solar power (and especially any kind of adoption of the alternate power source) has its fair share. One of the reasons for that skepticism is its fundamental behavior at night. Or, if it can work. Well, thanks to the Solar Impulse and the power of the sun, those skeptics can start to quiet down. The solar powered plane completed a 26-hour, straight, flight through the day and night. It was able to recharge its batteries throughout the night thanks to its 12,000 solar panels, which gathered more than enough energy through its flight during the day. [via Physorg]

AQUA2 is Fast and Amphibious: The AQUA2 was created at McGill University in Montreal, and sure enough, it’s the first of its kind. Specifically designed to be able to move around on land, but be just as free-roaming in the water, the AQUA2 can indeed traverse the landscape, as well as dive and swim under water. It can dive down to 120 feet, and it’s capable of being controlled by a remote control tethered via ethernet or fiber optics. And thanks to those flippers, the swimming thing it’s definitely got down. [via Engadget]

This Bike Can Fold Around a Lamp Post: Keeping your bike safe is a pretty high priority for anyone that owns a bike. After all, it may be your best (or only) means of transportation. But, just using a chain to lock your bike to something may not be enough in today’s day-and-age, so that’s why we can thankfully welcome this new foldable bike design from a 21-year old by the name of Kevin Scott. He’s created the world’s first bike that can literally fold at the center, and be wrapped around a post, or whatever else you want, without the need of an extra chain. The lock is actually built into the bike itself, right under the seat, so you just wrap the bike around the post, so that the handlebars reach the lock, and there you go — safe and secure. We want this bad boy right now, and Scott is trying hard to get it picked up by a bike lover with money. So, keep your fingers crossed. [via Daily Mail UK]

As before there’s a multimedia app, games support and more, but Cowon have preloaded the Opera browser and a YouTube viewer to take advantage of the new wireless connection.  There’s also Flash support, an SD card slot and Full HD video playback support (via the HDMI output, not the V5W’s own display of course).

Cowon use their JetEffect 3.0 audio processing system, and with a reputation as one of the better companies in the PMP industry for sound quality we’ve high hopes for the V5W’s multimedia credentials.  Battery life is tipped at up to 45hrs of music, 10hrs of video or 300hrs of standby; no word on pricing, but it’ll hit Korea this month.

[via TechTicker]

In fact, Opera reckon the browser has been downloaded to 1,024,380 Apple devices – likely including not only the iPhone but the iPod touch and iPad too – though of course there’s no way of telling how many people continue to use it in preference to the native Safari browser.  A brief scan through the App Store reviews suggests that, while people appreciate the extra turn of speed Opera Mini delivers – thanks to the company’s intermediary servers – there are ongoing issues with how some sites actually render.

Still, we’ll always err on the side of having more options than having fewer, and we’re hoping that Opera are busy working on not only refining their iPhone app but developing a native iPad version that takes advantage of the bigger device’s 9.7-inch display.  Opera Mini is a free download from the App Store.

Press Release:

One million downloads

Opera Mini for iPhone #1 download in iTunes App Stores everywhere

Oslo, Norway – April 15, 2010 – Apple said “Yes”, and iPhone users around the world said, “Yes, please”. Opera Mini was downloaded more than one million times in its first day of availability in each market. Opera Mini is currently the number one iPhone app in the 22 featured Apple App Stores on their site, as of 8 a.m. CET today.

According to Apple’s download count, Opera Mini has been added to 1,023,380 Apple devices. Opera Mini is the world’s most popular browser that brings the Web to nearly any mobile phone. Opera submitted its browser to Apple on March 23, following the unveiling of Opera on iPhone during the Mobile World Congress, CTIA and SXSW. Initial previews of the browser garnered rave reviews, indicating that Opera Mini delivers up to six times the speed, especially on congested networks, and significant Web-page compression to keep roaming and pay-per-MB costs at a minimum.

“Today iPhone users have a choice, and, as the numbers show, they are eager to explore new and faster ways to surf the Web on the iPhone – especially during heavy Web traffic,” said Lars Boilesen, CEO, Opera Software. “With any widely available and frequently downloaded Opera product, we are appreciative of all the feedback we are getting, as it helps us to continually improve our product and better meet the needs of our users.”

About Opera Software ASA

Opera Software ASA has redefined Web browsing for PCs, mobile phones and other networked devices. Opera’s cross-platform Web browser technology is renowned for its performance, standards compliance and small size, while giving users a faster, safer and more dynamic online experience. Opera Software is headquartered in Oslo, Norway, with offices around the world. The company is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol OPERA. Learn more about Opera at http://www.opera.com/.

Which means, as you’ve already guessed, that the Opera Mini Web browser will be available for the iPhone and iPod Touch soon. And, in fact, sooner than we could have imagine: some time in the next 24 hours, to be exact. There’s no details as of yet, other than the fact that the new browser will in fact be free, but we’re sure that sooner than later, we’ll get a whole hand full of stuff to showcase.

But, we imagine that many of you are already in the App Store, hitting refresh, waiting to see if it’s there. You’ll probably have to a bit more patient, but hey, at least it’s happening, right? Now you have an option to browse the Internet! Our only question now, is will it be optimized for the iPad as well, or is the new tablet shunned from the groundbreaking announcement? We’ll see, in the next 24 hours.

Video demo after the cut

The hardware consists of a STB with dual DVB-T2 HD digital TV tuners for OTA high-definition broadcasts, along with a 500GB hard-drive, UPnP and DLNA streaming, and two USB 2.0 ports.  There’s also 10/100 ethernet connectivity (though 3view will sell you a USB WiFi dongle if you ask nicely), HDMI, SCART and S/PDIF.  Out of the box, the 3view software will support YouTube videos, MPEG 1, 2 and 4 H.264, Windows Media (with and without DRM) and both 720p and 1080p HD.  BBC iPlayer support is expected to be added in a subsequent upgrade.

As for home automation, that depends on 3view’s software and what Z-Wave kit you already have around.  The only thing the company are talking about now is an energy monitor, which would track your home electricity use via an on-screen TV widget.  The 3view box is set to hit the market at £299 ($448), though there’s no specific release date at the moment.

[via TechCrunch Europe]

However, while Opera may be previewing the new app, that doesn’t mean users will be able to download it post-MWC.  Apple have previously shown themselves to be resolutely opposed to permitting third-party browsers in the App Store, which means iPhone and iPod touch owners won’t actually be able to get it, at least not legitimately.

It remains to be seen whether Opera will release Opera Mini for iPhone as an unofficial title, which will require a hacked iPhone in order to run, but the audience for such a release would be significantly smaller than an official distribution.  While we’d like to imagine this is a hint of Apple loosening their control over the App Store – Opera Mini for iPhone would be very interesting on the Apple iPad – we can’t quite see it happening.

Press Release:

Opera Mini for iPhone sneak peek

Exclusive press and partner preview at MWC 2010
Oslo, Norway — February 10, 2010

Opera Software, maker of the world’s most popular mobile Web browser, plans to reveal Opera Mini for iPhone in an exclusive press and partner preview during the 2010 Mobile World Congress (MWC). Visit Opera’s exhibit in Hall 1, C44, to witness a new way to surf the Web on the iPhone — an experience that Opera promises will be fast, easy to use, and packed with favorite Opera features.

Opera Mini is renowned for its compression technology, which results in significantly faster Web-page loading and reduces data surcharges. With favorite desktop features in its arsenal, such as tabs, Speed Dial and the password manager, Opera Mini is designed with usability in mind.

“We are thrilled to offer journalists and partners an exclusive preview of Opera Mini for iPhone during the year’s biggest mobile event,” said Jon von Tetzchner, Co-founder, Opera Software. “This is a unique opportunity to introduce the fast, feature-rich Opera Mini experience for the iPhone, and to showcase our latest beta releases of Opera Mobile and Opera Mini on other platforms and devices. Opera’s mission is to bring the Web to the world, and by making Opera Mini available on yet another platform, we are one step closer.”

While Opera Mini for iPhone is not publicly available, visitors without a press pass will not leave Opera’s stand disappointed. Opera will unveil a host of other Opera-powered devices at its exhibit. Check out the following Opera technology, live from MWC:

Opera Mobile 10 beta 3 on Symbian S60 and Windows Mobile handsets
Opera Mobile 10 beta running on Android handsets
Opera Mini 5 beta, running on a variety of handsets and platforms
Opera’s cross-platform Widgets Manager beta, running on Windows Mobile and S60 handsets
To hear more from Opera about the future of the Web, attend one of our speaking engagements during MWC:

Monday, February 15, 2010
15:00 — Jon von Tetzchner, Vodafone panel discussion on “Mobile Web developments, W3C standards, using Web APIs and the live creation of widgets”, in Hall 7, Auditorium 1
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
14:00 — Håkon Wium Lie, panel discussion on “Mobile security in an IP world”, Hall 5
14:00 — Christen Krogh, presentation on “Creating a connected cloud for the perfect mobile storm”, Hall 5
15:45 — GSMA Awards ceremony, Opera Mini shortlisted for “Best Mobile Internet Service” and “Best Mobile Technology Breakthrough”, Hall 5, Level 3, Auditorium 1
Get your hands on an Opera-powered device by visiting our stand in Hall 1, C44, during Barcelona’s annual Mobile World Congress, or schedule a meeting with Opera. Contact press10@opera.com press10[at]opera.com for more information.

Video demo after the cut

The display may be smaller than the JooJoo – at 7-inches and 800 x 480 – but it’s also a more compact and portable device.  Battery life is tipped at three hours of “intensive use” and the whole thing runs on an ARM processor with an Opera browser and various web-connected widgets.

It’s the handiwork of Sagem, and right now there’s no word on whether they might be releasing it outside of France, which is a shame.  The $362 price point is certainly closer to the $300 sweet-spot initially promised for the CrunchPad, and that’s an unsubsidized price too.

[via NetbookNews]

In fact the DVR box has a whopping 3TB of storage (up to 2TB set aside for time-shifting) and supports DLNA streaming and YouTube playback, too.  Both it and the display are finished in “smoked aluminum”, and the screen also uses “self-congruency” to improve picture quality at the edges of the panel, and 2.5x the luminance of regular sets.  A 7-speaker sound bar is slung under the display.

The Toshiba CELL REGZA 55X1 will arrive in Japan come December, and is tipped to be priced at 1,000,000 yen ($11,107).  It’s also to be the first of a number of similar sets, including smaller (and hopefully cheaper) models that offer the same CELL processing and DLNA server technology.

Press Release:

Toshiba Unveils the CELL REGZA 55X1

The World’s First1 LCD TV Integrating the Cell Broadband Engine™–To be Available in Japanese Market from December–

Tokyo—Toshiba Corporation (TOKYO: 6502) today unveiled the future of home entertainment, the CELL REGZA 55X1. This new LCD TV, the flagship of the company’s REGZA line-up, offers viewers state-of-the-art picture quality, including a dynamic contrast ratio of 5,000,000:1, and supports this with ultra-high-speed processing and recording, enhanced navigation and seamless network interactivity. The CELL REGZA 55X1 will be available in the Japanese market from the beginning of December.

The heart of CELL REGZA is Toshiba’s CELL Platform. A combination of the high speed parallel processing of the Cell Broadband Engine™ 2, specially developed for demanding multimedia applications, and Toshiba’s advanced image-processing algorithms, the CELL Platform achieves an arithmetic processing capability approximately 143 times 3 that of the current top-of-the-line REGZA TV, allowing it to support unrivaled image-enhancing capabilities. These include:

CELL Platform Super Resolution Technology that builds on Toshiba’s current4, super resolution technology to offer unmatched picture quality.
Self-congruency, a dedicated process that improves image quality at the edge of the picture.
Enhanced color and brightness balance that improves picture color and definition.
LED backlight control system. In the CELL REGZA, the display is divided into 512 distinct areas, each with individually controlled lighting. Luminance is pushed to an industry high 5 of 1250cd/m2, 2.5 times the level of typical TVs, and the dynamic contrast ratio6 is an astonishing 5,000,000:1.
Another distinguishing feature of CELL REGZA is its storage capacity: a 3-terabyte (TB)7 hard disk drive. Two terabytes of capacity are dedicated to the CELL REGZA’s “time-shift machine,”8 which can simultaneously record up to approximately 26 hours of programming for up to eight channels9 of digital terrestrial broadcasts. The time-shift machine allows viewers to catch up on missed programs simply by pressing the “time-shift machine” button on the remote control.

With the ability to store a massive amount of recorded programs, a fast, easy search function is essential. Toshiba delivers with “roaming navigation.” This allows viewers to find and display information on recorded, current and future programs simply by inserting an identifier—the title, person’s name, genre or related keywords.

The CELL REGZA consists of a striking, slim monitor and a stylish tuner that also integrates the hard disk drive. Both have a smoked aluminum finish, achieved with an alumite10 deposition process that lends the design a feeling of luxury. The remote controller is finished in the same way.

Drawing on some 80 years of experience in TV technology, and on synergies between its visual products, semiconductor and storage device businesses, Toshiba has developed CELL REGZA not only as the flagship model of its REGZA series, but also as a statement of the future of the LCD TV.

Product Outline

Product Model Screen Price Launch in Japan
CELL REGZA 55X1 55-inch
Full HD Open Beginning of
December 2009

Background to Development

As Japan approaches the end of analogue broadcasting in 2011, the digital TV market has entered a period of diversifying customer needs. In order to meet demand for more vivid reproduction of high contrast, high definition images, simultaneous viewing and recording of multiple programs, along with access to broadband content, Toshiba has developed the CELL REGZA TV and its innovative CELL Platform.

Key Features of the CELL REGZA

1. CELL Platform Super Resolution Technology achieves superior HD images

The CELL Platform supports the most advanced version of Toshiba’s super resolution technology. Faithful image reproduction includes enhanced edge detail and color saturation, and also extends to better rendering of video from the Internet.

Super Resolution Technology: Self-congruency captures edge detail
Self-congruency, a newly developed technology, reconstructs the edge of the picture with more detail and greater realism. It samples successive patterns with the same intensity around the edge of images, and then copies pixels from these more defined areas to other parts of the edge. The result is more precise detail and more realistic high definition images.

Super resolution technology: Brighter color and image definition11
Digital images are rendered as a combination of “brightness” and “color” in each individual pixel. In normal digital broadcasts, the processor cannot match the pace at which data is delivered from the receiver, and data transfers are typically made with color information compressed to one-fourth that of brightness. The CELL Platform uses a Toshiba-developed algorithm to boost reproduction of color information to half the level of brightness information. Increasing color information reduces blurring at the edge of images, creating sharper, better defined pictures.

Super resolution technology: Improved Internet content and animation
Video content from the Internet viewed on a TV tends to be blurred, due to the lack of resolution and noise compression. Super resolution technology detects the noise compression of low-resolution Internet content and then separates and corrects the image to reproduce a sharper, clearer image more suited to a larger screen. The super resolution technology also detects animation content and controls noise at the edges.

2. High contrast of Mega LED Panel and LED Backlight control system

CELL REGZA integrates a Mega LED panel specially designed to interface with the CELL REGZA’s high luminance LED. Together they achieve outstanding picture quality that is further enhanced by the CELL Platform.

Peak luminance is boosted 2.5 times and enhanced by intelligent peak luminance control
A peak luminance of 1250cd/m2 (the display’s highest level of brightness and the maximum yet achieved in the industry) assures stunningly bright whites, while the wide dynamic range achieved by backlight luminance adjustment delivers a dynamic contrast ratio of 5,000,000:1, assuring deep, detailed blacks.

LED block array divides display into 512 separate areas
Toshiba’s previous LED backlight control system divided the screen into 9612 distinct areas; the CELL REGZA control system divides it into 512, over five times more. This increase enables much closer management of image contrast and brings out image detail to the full. Better backlight control also sharpens edge detail and the textural effect of adjacent areas of brightness and darkness.

3. Doubling the effect of ClearScan 240

Toshiba’s ClearScan 240 defines the standard for blur-free fast moving images, but with the CELL REGZA the company sets the bar even higher. By combining the 120Hz scan rate of ClearScan 240 with its new Backlight Scanning technology, Toshiba now achieves 240Hz scanning that makes action scenes crisper than ever. The new double backlight scanning function divides the display into 16, against eight for current REGZA models13.

4. Improving picture quality with color temperature control

Picture quality is also affected by ambient lighting conditions. CELL REGZA delivers real-time color temperature analysis that can identify daylight, evening sunlight, interior lighting and darkness. Optimum picture quality is achieved by automatic fine tuning of multiple control settings: 1024 steps in color temperature, a 128 scale dynamic gamma range, 100 brightness settings, 32 settings each for color saturation, color sharpness, and adjustment of super resolution, plus control of the LED backlighting.

5. Support for multiple recording and playback functions with a 3TB hard disk

“Time-shift machine” function simultaneously records multiple channels
CELL REGZA integrates a tuner supporting eight digital terrestrial channels, and its time-shift machine can store up to 2TB of recorded programs—that adds up to approximately 26 hours of programs simultaneously recorded from eight channels (the number of terrestrial digital channels available in Japan). Simply pressing the time-shift key on the remote control gives instant access to this huge library of recorded programs, and allows viewers to enjoy missed TV programs—or old favorites—whenever they like.

“Roaming Navigation” supports relevancy-based searches
“Roaming Navigator” can search for and deliver data on archived, on-the-air, and to-be-aired programs. A visual display centers on a thumbnail14 of the program chosen by the viewer, and other programs are shown circling this, either nearer or further, depending on relevancy15. Searches can be based on program title, a character or actor’s name, genre or keyword. Relevancy-based searches deliver what you are looking for, and much more.

Multi-Image display of eight digital channels simultaneously while recording
The split screen is nothing new, but an eight-window multi-display16 is. With multi-image display for up to eight digital channels, it is a lot easier for viewers to check out programs and make choices.

“Multi Thumbnail” display shows scenes of recorded programs as thumbnails
“Multi Thumbnail” displays recorded programs as a multi-display of 40 time-divided thumbnails, making it very easy to select and go to a particular scene.

6. Network functionality

Supporting high image quality YouTube17 with high quality picture
A browser supporting full HD, based on the Opera18 browser and co-developed with Opera Software, provides full support viewing YouTube contents at near HD level quality. In addition, CELL REGZA supports:

- Broadband service
- DLNA19
- Display of JPEG digital photographs

7. CELL REGZA audio

CELL REGZA’S picture quality is complemented by a newly developed audio system and multi-amplifier system that deliver vibrant, full-bodied sound far surpassing that of current TV sound systems.

8. Others

Screen Size: 55-inches
Hard Disk: 3TB (Built-in)
Dimensions: Monitor: 133.3 x 96.3 x 40.2cm (W x H x D) (including stand)
Tuner: 43.6 x 10.9 x 38.7cm (excluding external projection),
Weight: Monitor: 44.0kg, Tuner 10.5kg
Power Consumption: Monitor: 320W (remote control stand-by mode: 0.10W)
Tuner: 140W (remote control stand-by mode: 0.2W)
Annual Power Consumption20: 324 kWh per year
For further information, visit http://www.toshiba.co.jp/regza/

(The above web site is in Japanese)

9. Focus on Environmental Considerations

Mitigation of global warming

- Power consumption is controlled by maintaining optimum image brightness
- The TV automatically goes into stand-by mode if no command is received from the remote controller for approximately three hours.
- Stand-by mode operates when the TV is set to external input and no signal is received.

Effective use of resources
All CELL REGZA components that use over 25g of plastics indicate the materials used and are designed for recycling.

RoHS21 and J-Moss22 (Green Mark)compatible
CELL REGZA contributes to moves toward environmentally conscious products by observing the requirements of the EU’s RoHS and Japan’s J-Moss.

Environmentally Conscious Products
CELL REGZA contains no brominated flame retardants (BFR) in the monitor part. Moreover, as an industry first23, polylactic oil and fat of plant origin are used for transparent front cover of power display, that contributes to reduce CO2 emissions.

For more information, visit http://www.toshiba.co.jp/env/en/products/index.htm

Toshiba Group, a Corporate Citizen of the Planet Earth, is committed to realizing a better environment. Guided by “Toshiba Group Environmental Vision 2050″ the Group is implementing measures to boost environmental efficiency by 10 times in FY2050, against the benchmark of FY2000. The core target is to reduce projected CO2 emissions by a total equivalent to 117.7 million tons a year by FY2025, through the development and sales of highly efficient power supply equipment and systems, and the manufacture of environmentally conscious home appliances and office equipment. By working to mitigate global warming, make efficient use of resources and control management of chemicals, Toshiba Group creates value for people and promotes lifestyles in harmony with the Earth.

1.
As of October 5th, 2009 for digital high definition LCD TV.
2.
Cell Broadband Engine (CELL/B.E.), jointly developed by IBM, Sony Group and Toshiba, is a breakthrough design featuring a central processing core based on IBM’s Power Architecture technology and eight synergistic processing elements (SPE). CELL/B.E. brings an unseen level of broadband processing power to digital products. CELL Broadband Engine is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.
3.
A floating point computation capability of 200 GFLOPS at theoretical peak performance. Metabrain in REGZA ZX8000 is 1.4 GFLOPS.
4.
Reproduction technology for image improvement. With current Super Resolution Technology, an image is once up-scaled and then converted to a lower resolution image. Toshiba’s proprietary algorithm compares the edge detail and image texture of the lower resolution image against the original and detects areas that can be improved. This information is incorporated into the up-scaled image. The current function is adopted in other REGZA TVs, including the REGZA ZX8000 series.
5.
As of October 5th, 2009 for digital high definition LCD TV in Japan. Compared with ZX8000 series.
6.
The ratio of maximum luminance of an image with a 30% window white signal and minimum image luminance ratio of total black signal when looked directly from the front.
7.
1TB is calculated on the basis of 1TB = 1,000 GB and 1GB = 1-billion bytes.
8.
Programs that can be viewed using this function are limited to programs that the user has specified for simultaneous recording, for up to eight channels of digital terrestrial broadcasting. When the hard disk capacity designed for this function becomes insufficient, the oldest programs are the first ones deleted from the archive. Recorded programs can be moved to the built-in hard disk drive or to an external USB hard disk drive.
9.
This function is limited to programs that the user has specified for simultaneous recording, for up to eight channels of digital terrestrial broadcasting and up to one day of recording, for high-definition TV program (at a rate of 20Mbps).
10.
A coating process that adds corrosion resistance while decorating the aluminum.
11.
Super resolution technology for color can be applied to digital terrestrial, BS digital and 110 degree CS digital broadcasts, but not to video input from an external source, such as an optical disc.
12.
Compared with 55ZH8000
13.
Compared with ZX8000 series.
14.
Thumbnails will not be displayed for programs that have not yet aired. Information is displayed.
15.
The content displayed at the center of roaming navigation is based on Toshiba’s relevancy evaluation technology and on analysis based on program information. It is not based on information from the manufacturer of the content or the provider.
16.
The multi –image display applies to digital terrestrial broadcast, BS, 110 degree CS digital broadcasting. The sub-display is applied to channel that is set-up by digital terrestrial broadcasting.
17.
YouTube and YouTube logo are trademarks of Google Inc.
18.
Opera is a trademark of Opera Software ASA. Opera browser is available with the touch-pad function by downloading the version of designed server and broadcasting that start from January, 2009.
19.
DLNA: Digital Living Network Alliance
20.
Energy consumption calculations follow as the standard defined by Japanese law.
21.
The RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances) directive, which came into effect on July 1, 2006 in the European Union, limits the use of lead, cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyls (PBB) and ploybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) in electronic and electronic equipment.
22.
J-Moss is the framework for disclosure of information on chemical substances defined in the Japanese Industrial Standards contained in electrical and electronic products.
23.
As of October 5th, 2009 for digital high definition LCD TV.

Video demo after the cut 

Once set up, the free Opera Unite service gives you a unique URL which you can use to access files as well as stream music and view photo galleries.  There’s also an IM chat service, called Lounge, which has its own private address which you can share with friends and family.  The online interface allows you to make certain folders and files public. 

That’s all available through any browser; if your friends or colleagues are also using Opera Unite, you’re able to post virtual notes on their systems.  Opera Unite can also work as a mini server, offering up content from your home PC, Mac or Linux/Unix system.

Opera Unite is a free download

Press Release:

Opera Unite reinvents the Web

Cloud computing and Web-based applications will never be the same

June 16, 2009 — Oslo, Norway

Opera today unveiled Opera Unite, a new technology that shakes up the old client-server computing model of the Web. Opera Unite turns any computer into both a client and a server, allowing it to interact with and serve content to other computers directly across the Web, without the need for third-party servers.

Opera Unite makes serving data as simple and easy as browsing the Web. For consumers, Opera Unite services give greater control of private data and make it easy to share data with any device equipped with a modern Web browser.

For Web developers, Opera Unite services are based on the same open Web standards as Web sites today. This dramatically simplifies the complexity of authoring cutting-edge Web services. With Opera Unite, creating a full Web service is now as easy as coding a Web page.

Opera Unite is available in a special version of the Opera 10 desktop browser from Opera Labs. Opera Unite services run directly in the browser.

It is easy to use Opera Unite
Download the Opera Unite build from http://labs.opera.com/.
To start Opera Unite, click the Opera Unite logo in the lower left-hand corner of the browser and log in with your existing Opera ID — the same Opera ID used for other Opera services such as My Opera and Opera Link. Opera Unite will prompt you to register an Opera ID if you do not have one.
Now you are ready to use Opera Unite. Simply access your Opera Unite services from the Opera Unite panel of the browser. New services can be installed from http://unite.opera.com/.
Running a service will give you a direct Web address to the Opera Unite service on your device, for example: http://notebook.jondoe.operaunite.com/photo_sharing/, where “notebook” is the name of the local device serving content, “jondoe” is your username, and “photo_sharing” is the Web service being accessed. That link will also allow others to access the same Web service from your computer through their Web browser.
You may also see which friends are using Opera Unite services on your My Opera Unite home page.
Current Opera Unite services are as follows:
File Sharing
Securely share a file from your personal computer without waiting to upload it. First select the folder from which you would like to share files. Opera Unite then generates a direct URL to that folder. By giving that link to your friends, you can share files without routing through a third-party Web service.

Web Server
Run entire Web sites from your local computer with the Opera Unite Web Server. After selecting the folder containing your Web site, you can share and host it from the given Opera Unite URL. Opera Unite will automatically recognize index files and create the Web site as you designed it.

Media Player
Rock out wherever you are by accessing your MP3s and playlists from any machine. After selecting the folder containing your playlist, use the Opera Unite direct link to play your tracks directly in any modern Web browser.

Photo Sharing
Share your photos direct from your PC, without uploading them online. Once you select your photo folder, the photo-sharing service will create a thumbnail image gallery of your photos. Clicking the thumbnail will present the photo in its original resolution.

The Lounge
The Lounge is a self-contained chat service running on your computer. Your friends can access the chat room via the direct link, which will not require them to sign into any service. Depending on your privacy settings, you need only provide the generated password to your service in order for people to log in to your chatroom.

Fridge
Post a note on your friends’ virtual refrigerators. By sharing the direct link to your refrigerator, you and your friends, family or colleagues can exchange notes securely and privately in real time.

These six services represent the beginning of what is possible. Web developers can unleash their creativity to design unique Web services and, in doing so, unlock the full potential of Opera Unite.

What our CEO says
“Today, we are opening the full potential of the Web for everyone,” said Jon von Tetzchner, CEO, Opera. “Technology moves in distinct cycles. PCs decentralized computing away from large mainframes. Opera Unite now decentralizes and democratizes the cloud. With server capability in the browser, Web developers can create Web applications with profound ease. Consumers have the flexibility to choose private and efficient ways of sharing information. We believe Opera Unite is one of our most significant innovations yet, because it changes forever the fundamental fabric of the Web.”

One Web developer to another
“What interests me about Opera Unite is how current technology and the social world are now interconnected,” said Molly E. Holzschlag, Web evangelist, Opera. “Using open standards including HTML, CSS and JavaScript, developers and even enthusiasts with a little standards savvy can make their own Opera Unite service. Opera Unite allows people the ability to be imaginative with their skills and create a wide range of technical and social applications using the same open standards used today.”

Make your own Opera Unite service
An introduction to Opera Unite
Opera Unite developer’s primer
Markuper — The Opera Unite service template library
When you have finished your new Opera Unite service, just upload it to http://unite.opera.com/ and share it with the world.

In fact, according to Pocketables’ source at Samsung, the specific CPU is the 800MHz S3C6410 ARM11 Mobile Processor.  That means no Cortex v7, which would have had impressive impact on runtime and performance.

There’s now concern whether the processor is up to the expectations of speedy MID performance that many will have for the Mondi.  Samsung are using Windows Mobile 6.1 and pre-loading Opera 9.5, which means the software is certainly capable enough; it remains to be seen how the web experience turns out in practice, though.

There’s also access to Live Search for Sprint, Visual Voicemail, Sprint TV and the Sprint Music Store.  Samsung even add two preloaded games: Guitar Hero – World Tour and Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader. 

The Samsung Instinct S30 will be a more flexible device for developers, too, with access to the core Java APIs for messaging, multimedia and Bluetooth, together with contacts/calendar and file access.  Those same APIs will be rolled out to the original Instinct through an OTA update over the next few months. 

You’ll be able to pick up the Samsung Instinct S30 in either Cobalt Metal or Touch of Copper from April 19th.  It’s priced at $129.99 with a two-year contract, and pre-registration is open now.

Press Release:

Samsung Instinct s30, Exclusively from Sprint, Adds Attractive Styling, Instant Messaging, Improved Web Experience and Enhanced Open Development Capabilities to Popular Instinct

All the Best of Award-Winning Instinct, Including Visual Voicemail, Speech to Action with GPS Integration, Full Touch-Screen and the Speed of America’s Most Dependable 3G Network, Coming Soon on New Instinct s30
Samsung Instinct s30 Fact Sheet (pdf)”

LAS VEGAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Mar. 31, 2009– Sprint (NYSE:S) and Samsung Telecommunications America (Samsung Mobile) today announced the upcoming availability of Samsung Instinct® s30™, a successor to the iconic Samsung Instinct touch-screen phone that made its debut last summer exclusively from Sprint. Instinct s30 offers full touch screen functionality and the broadband speeds of America’s most dependable 3G network.*

Instinct s30 raises the bar with built-in instant messaging, an improved Web-browsing experience through both the default browser and Opera Mini 4.2 as well as the popular games “Guitar Hero® – World Tour” and “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader” preloaded to keep consumers connected and entertained while on-the-go. Instinct s30 offers a thinner streamlined design for a smoother feel in the user’s hand with two color options – Cobalt Metal or Touch of Copper.

Advanced features balance business and personal needs

Instinct s30 is ideal for customers looking to simplify and increase the productivity of their business and personal lives with quick access to corporate calendar functionality via Microsoft® Outlook®. Sprint Mobile Email Work provides access to corporate email, contacts and calendar from Microsoft® Exchange Server 2000, 2003 or 2007 accounts, or IBM Lotus Domino accounts at no additional charge.

Like its predecessor, Instinct s30 has the following industry-leading features:

Expansive touch-screen featuring localized haptic feedback giving users a gentle vibration as they use the virtual QWERTY keypad
Live Search for Sprint, powered by Microsoft, provides easy access to directory information on-the-go, GPS-enabled directions, interactive maps and one-touch click to call access
Visual Voicemail, allowing users to listen to messages in their order of preference and manage them with a simple tap of the screen
Sprint TV®, with an extensive selection of channels and on-demand programming
Sprint Music Store, allowing users to browse and wirelessly download full-length songs directly to their phone for just 99 cents each
Advanced stereo Bluetooth® 2.0
SMS voice and text messaging with threaded text
True HTML Web experience from both the enhanced embedded browser and the addition of Opera Mini 4.2 with a desktop-like browsing experience
2.0 megapixel camera with camcorder
Instinct s30 offers a Speech to Action button, which provides many functions using voice activation including call, text, picture messaging, traffic, movie, sports, news and search. Speech to Action brings the user seamless integration with Sprint Navigation, powered by Telenav, with GPS-enabled audio and visual turn-by-turn driving directions, one-click traffic rerouting and more than 10 million local listings.

“Samsung Instinct s30 is proof that it is possible to improve on even one of the most successful mobile phones,” said Bill Ogle, chief marketing officer for Samsung Mobile. “Instinct s30 offers people a new way to enjoy a fast and fun user experience with their phone.”

More Open for Developers

Instinct S30 will also be more “open” than its predecessor, with access to core Java APIs (application programming interface), including messaging, multimedia and Bluetooth, which allow developers to take advantage of the phone’s features. By providing this open access, Sprint is providing what developers have been seeking and making it possible for them to create more sophisticated and innovative new applications for customers to use on the Instinct family of phones.

Developers will have open access to the following Java APIs when creating applications on Instinct s30:

Multimedia: recording audio, playing media files such as MP3 songs, streaming content and using the camera to take pictures
Messaging: sending and receiving messages
Bluetooth: establishing connectivity to send/receive data with peripherals
Contacts/Calendar: reading and writing to contacts/address book, and reading and writing to events
File Access: reading and writing to the internal file access on the handset
“We are excited to introduce Instinct s30 into our portfolio in a few weeks as we continue the tradition of innovative and easy-to-use touch-screen devices that will appeal to a broad array of our customers,” said Kevin Packingham, Sprint senior vice president of product and technology development. “The original device surpassed our highest expectations for both customer interest and industry accolades. The enhancements on Instinct s30 make it even more versatile for our customers, and access to core Java APIs, such as messaging and multimedia, will make it even easier for more developers to create new applications.”

Sprint plans to extend access to these Java APIs to the Instinct s30’s predecessor, Instinct, within the next few months through an over-the-air software update. The Java APIs will then be available on all future Java-enabled Sprint phones.

In providing open access to these capabilities, Sprint is creating a leading open software environment for developers to create innovative applications. Sprint’s industry-leading Application Developer Program (http://developer.sprint.com/instinct) further supports development in an open environment by providing an extensive set of free resources, including a kit with Instinct programming templates and device emulation, sample applications with source code, developer guides and developer forums.

Industry-leading Value with Simply Everything

The most popular rate plan for Instinct users, Sprint’s Simply EverythingSM plan, provides unlimited nationwide calling, texting, email, Web browsing, GPS navigation and much more for only $99.99 per month. Comparable yearly messaging and data plans on Verizon and AT&T cost the consumer an additional $475**. Sprint’s Simply Everything Family plan, with unlimited voice, data and messaging for two customers, is $955 cheaper per year than Verizon’s and AT&T’s similar plans.

Everything Data plans are a great value starting at just $69.99 per month for 450 anytime minutes of talk time with unlimited data, including texting, email, Web browsing, GPS navigation and exclusive content such as NFL Mobile Live™ and NASCAR Sprint Cup Mobile™. Unlimited mobile-to-mobile calling to other Sprint customers and free nights and weekends starting at 7 p.m. are included in these affordable plans.

Within a few days after its release, Instinct became the fastest-selling EVDO handset in Sprint history. Instinct accounted for more than 20 percent of all Sprint handsets being sold during the first two weeks of availability and continued to sell at a record pace through the 2008 holiday season. Instinct users consume data at a rate of approximately five times more than any other Sprint device, especially music and other downloads, text messaging and GPS navigation.

Beginning on April 19, customers will be able to purchase Instinct s30 through Sprint retail stores, Web (www.sprint.com) and telesales (1-800-SPRINT1) for $129.99 at launch with a two-year agreement, $70 instant savings and $100 mail-in rebate. Pre-registration is now available at www.sprint.com/SamsungInstinctS30.  

[via GadgetReview]

Opera claimed the browser is twice faster than Internet Explorer mobile. It features Pan and zoom, better web standards support, AJAX support, and tab browsing. You can download the first beta version here.

There’s also a video (after the cut) showing how another creative Wii owner circumnavigated the previous hassle of redirecting the console’s shopping page to google, by instead getting his wireless router to intercept and forward on any request for the shop to the search engine.

Wii already has Opera installed?! [WiiLi.org]

An on-screen keyboard and handwriting recognition takes care of URL and other text entry, adding just one more feather to the cap of Nintendo’s flourishing handheld.  There are two versions of the browser, for the original DS and the DS Lite, both cartridge based and neither, sadly, supporting Flash.

Nintendo [via Pocket-lint]