Despite carrier and retailer indications of delays for certain editions of Samsung's new Galaxy S III, the company triumphantly announced its launch right on schedule tonight. Of course, here in the US we're sadly on the outside looking in at the launch action going on in 28 countries as a new day dawns for the 29th, but at least there's rumblings that our localized editions aren't far off. As long as you're looking for a 16GB Marble White quad-core Exynos juggernaut, you should be able to find it -- if the machine translated Korean press release is too tough to bear, remember we've got all the launch details (and a review) right here.

Samsung's 'human centric' Galaxy S III launches around the globe, says what delays? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 23:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Should you have the impulse to turn your dumb display into a full-fledged Smart TV, LG has revealed the second iteration of its Smart TV Upgrader box is ready to hit the marketplace. The original ST600 box was released last year, and this new SP820 was announced earlier this year at CES. It adds LG's Smart TV experience complete with Magic gesture and voice controlled remote to any HDTV with an HDMI input. There's access to both 2D and 3D streaming content from the internet, DLNA, Wi-Fi Direct and any new apps LG rolls out for its platform. Similar to Apple's TV box and the Roku family, it's a palm sized device intended for easy installations. An even smaller, stripped down SP520 version that supports fewer apps is already on shelves with a $120 MSRP, although sale prices range from $80 to $99. The SP is shipping in June for 199,000 won ($169 US), while there's no word yet on a US release, we'll probably wait to see if LG can add enough apps to compete as a third party before jumping in.

LG launches 'upgraded' SP820 Smart TV Upgrader box in June for about $170 US originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 22:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Amazon has decided that offering 3G-capable Kindles isn't enough of an involvement in the cellular world -- it's now getting into the business of offering the bits themselves. Through a tie-up with NTT DoCoMo-using MVNO Japan Communications, Amazon is selling prepaid SIM cards for LTE data. Each slice of plastic and circuitry will provide a 500MB block of sweet, sweet 4G for ¥1,980 ($25). There's a very good chance we'd burn through that in a day, but it'll let you get an NTT DoCoMo-ready smartphone or Arrows Tab online in a pinch. The Japanese can snap up the cards later in the month, while those of us in the US will just have to hope that Amazon can make a similar (if hopefully cheaper) deal closer to home.

Amazon offers prepaid 4G LTE data in Japan, gets you online 500MB at a time originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 21:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

A lot has happened since Lenovo unveiled its biz-oriented Edge S430 back at this year's CES, but after months of staying under the radar, it's finally looking like the laptop's ready to hit a few shelves around the globe. If a product page on Geizhals.at is to be believed, the Thunderbolt-loaded, 14-inch S430 is set to carry a €809 (about $1,015) price tag on one of the higher-end models, with this particular one showing a hot-off-the-press Ivy Bridge CPU (i5-3210M), NVIDIA GeForce GT630M graphics, 4GB of RAM and two USB 3.0 ports, among other things. Of course, this kind of cash is a slightly larger amount than, say, the $749 we heard when the machine was announced -- though, that's likely caused by the souped-up specs and could, as usual, vary depending on configuration. Either way, we have a feeling it won't be too long before we find out its official pricing and release date.

Lenovo ThinkPad Edge S430 readies to enter Euro market, gets priced at €809 on German site originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 20:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iOS device security has regularly been a concern of the government, but locking down one of Apple's devices for the government is still fresh. Precise Biometrics hopes to have the problem licked through the Tactivo, a combo fingerprint and smart card reader for the iPhone 4 / 4S (and the iPad, in the summer). Either method keeps data inside an app away from prying eyes, and while they won't tighten the security around the built-in apps, they do make sure a third-party app's data meets US and international government privacy specs without having to use a BlackBerry. We're not surprised that the Tactivo needs to engulf the iPhone in a full case to work its magic, although there's a micro-USB port to keep it powered and synced up. It's all a bit much if you're just trying to make sure your list of high school crushes stays a secret, and the price reflects that -- at $249 a pop, the Tactivo is really meant for agencies and companies for whom losing the data on an iPhone would cost a lot more. Still, if you're running an outfit encouraging BYOD phone use or just really, really want your secret passions to stay private, both the iPhone case and a BioSecrets app are ready today.

Continue reading Precise Biometrics' Tactivo for iPhone, iPad locks data by fingerprint and smart card, is overkill for your diary (video)

Precise Biometrics' Tactivo for iPhone, iPad locks data by fingerprint and smart card, is overkill for your diary (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 19:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

It's been awhile since we saw Volvo's SARTRE (Safe Road Trains for the Environment) project, which was last running out of harm's way on a test track near Gothenburg. Volvo has just taken a big step forward in fostering confidence by conducting its road train on public asphalt. The 124-mile Spanish test both proved that the cars could stay driverless without posing a threat and upped the ante for what the cars could do: the lead truck, an S60, a V60 and an XC60 all moved along at a brisk 53MPH with a tighter gap between vehicles than there was in the original test, at just 20 feet. SARTRE was so successful in the public run that Volvo is now focusing on far less contentious issues -- like making sure fuel use drops by the promised 20 percent. There's still the looming question of making a viable business model, though Volvo's dream if realized will make sure no driverless car has to go solo.

Continue reading Volvo's driverless road train in Spain is public mainly on the plain (video)

Volvo's driverless road train in Spain is public mainly on the plain (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 18:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Art imitating life (T-1000, anybody?) or yet another evolutionary step towards the subjugation of mankind? For now, let's just shift focus to the immediate and soak in this novel feat of robo-replication engineered by a team from M.I.T. Headed up by Professor Daniela Rus, the Smart Sand project looks nothing like it sounds and that's because the tech in question is currently more cube than grain. Measuring 12mm per side, these intelligent pebbles work in unison to recreate an object by first surrounding it and then building a shared 3D map that's used as a blueprint for duplication. Eventually, the researchers hope to shrink the units down to just 1mm in size, effectively creating a "sand" that could completely engulf and actually clone objects (think: tools) as needed, in multiples or even enlarged versions. That promise of an ultra-portable bag of 3D-printing fairy dust is still safely a ways off, so in the meantime, content yourself with video footage of the mini-modules first cyborg steps after the break.

Continue reading Smart Pebble robots replicate objects the way a good hive mind should (video)

Smart Pebble robots replicate objects the way a good hive mind should (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 18:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Game of Thrones
HBO's premiere series wraps up season two this weekend, and while we're not going to spoil things (yeah we read ahead via wiki summaries, we're weak) we're pretty sure that someone will die in this episode. Just like pretty much every other episode. Someone else will do something honorable, someone will be betrayed, and... dragons. Game of Thrones, ladies and gentlemen.
(June 3rd, HBO, 9PM)

Workaholics
Comedy Central's series makes its return this week, and the story of three slackers just trying to get by has really grown on us. Trying to explain the interactions between Blake, Adam and 'Ders would probably make us look crazy, so we'll just advise you to tune in and hope for another Double Dare cameo by Marc Summers. If the words "let's get weird" don't mean anything to you, check out the trailer embedded after the break.
(May 29th, Comedy Central, 10:30PM)

Stanley Cup Finals
The NHL Playoffs are finally down to just two teams: the LA Kings and the New Jersey Devils. Hockey's biggest prize is up for grabs, however the games are pretty spaced out so we've only got two of them on the schedule this week. We're sure you can make time to tune in.
(May 30th & June 2nd, NBC, 8PM)

Continue reading Must See HDTV (May 28th - June 3rd)

Must See HDTV (May 28th - June 3rd) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 17:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Much ado was made when security experts found Stuxnet wreaking havoc, but it's looking as though the malware was just a prelude to a much more elaborate attack that's plaguing the Middle East. Flame, a backdoor Windows trojan, doesn't just sniff and steal nearby network traffic info -- it uses your computer's hardware against you. The rogue code nabs phone data over Bluetooth, spreads over USB drives and records conversations from the PC's microphone. If that isn't enough to set even the slightly paranoid on edge, it's also so complex that it has to infect a PC in stages; Flame may have been attacking computers since 2010 without being spotted, and researchers at Kaspersky think it may be a decade before they know just how much damage the code can wreak.

No culprit has been pinpointed yet, but a link to the same printer spool vulnerability used by Stuxnet has led researchers to suspect that it may be another instance of a targeted cyberwar attack given that Iran, Syria and a handful of other countries in the region are almost exclusively marked as targets. Even if you live in a 'safe' region, we'd keep an eye out for any suspicious activity knowing that even a fully updated Windows 7 PC can be compromised.

Flame malware snoops on PCs across the Middle East, makes Stuxnet look small-time originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 17:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

RIM's Chief Legal Officer is latest exec to leave the company originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 16:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

We previously looked at talk of delays for some versions of the Galaxy S III with a jaundiced eye, as there hadn't been much official word at the time. That chatter just grew decidedly louder and more formal: Vodafone UK is now telling Pocket-lint that only the 16GB Marble White version will hit the high streets this week, with as many as two to four weeks before any Pebble Blue variant, or even 32GB white models, are ready to go. There isn't much comfort if you decide to turn elsewhere, either. With a few exceptions, third-party shops are all warning of at least slight delays for blue models that range from June 5th at Clove to a somewhat ominous-sounding "to be confirmed" at Handtec. Samsung is still quiet about what's triggering the delays, although Negri Electronics' founder Ryan Negri is claiming that different regions have been short-changed on different colors. Whatever the cause, it appears as if the Galaxy S III will face a rocky launch, even though the quad-core, Android 4.0-toting beast has otherwise been getting a warm reception.

Vodafone UK, retailers push back Galaxy S III in Pebble Blue by weeks, trample on dreams originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 15:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Taking full advantage of the Lumix FX90's WiFi capability, Panasonic has unveiled its companion apps for both iOS and Android devices. Throwing in shutter functionality and zoom control alongside a larger viewfinder, it's pretty much a glossy dumb remote; there's no further features to make the most of your precious smartphone, although the camera itself is already capable of linking up your camera shots with your major social network of choice. The app requires a firmware update on the camera, but it should ensure all those self-portraits really pop in the future. Download links for the wannabe self-obsessed are waiting below.

Panasonic Lumix FX90 gets remote app for iOS and Android originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 14:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Well actually, the Hobbit preview wasn't shaky, it was smooth -- maybe too smooth -- and that's the point. "It does take you a while to get used to," Peter Jackson has admitted, referring to the surprisingly fluid motion of his 48 fps movie footage. But is he right to think audiences will even give it a chance? The launch of high frame-rate (HFR) cinema is surrounded by publicity in the run-up to the Hobbit's debut on December 12th, but it equally has a lot going against it. For starters, the film's 48 fps preview wasn't exactly received warmly. On top of that, the video-style apperance of HFR has a long history of being disliked by movie-goers -- past attempts since the 1970s have all flamed out.

85 years after the first 24 fps movies, the same number of frames are still going stubbornly through the gate (digital or otherwise) each second, so that must be what "filmic" is, right? Or will we look back on 24fps as the bad old days? Read on to see if these new/old-fangled frame speeds might survive, and though a 48 fps Hobbit trailer isn't available, we've provided a couple of clips to help you judge what two-dimensional HFR looks like.

Continue reading Editorial: Despite shaky 48 fps Hobbit preview, high frame rates will take off

Editorial: Despite shaky 48 fps Hobbit preview, high frame rates will take off originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 13:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

We're very used to Apple prototypes showing up on eBay. It's not often that we see unreleased iPads get the auction treatment, however, which makes a new listing that much more interesting. A 16GB WiFi version of the original iPad has popped up sporting a second dock connector on its side, a feature that we'd previously only spotted in Apple design patents. The advantage, of course, would be to keep the iPad powered and synced while it's playing a favorite movie in landscape mode. While we don't know how one aaps69 managed to get hands on the tablet, there's some clear signs that the seller didn't just carve an extra hole in the aluminum for kicks: the slate is running the familiar SwitchBoard tool that Apple uses for in-house diagnostics, and there's a raft of old and incomplete part details that suggest this particular iPad was never meant for store shelves. We'll likely never know why Apple left us in a land of solo dock connectors, but we'd take a peek at the source link before it's gone, as more recent Apple prototypes at auction tend to return to the source quickly.

OG iPad prototype with dual dock connectors hits eBay, teases us with convenience we never had originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 12:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In the animal kingdom, reptiles shed their skins. In the mobile marketplace, Android smartphones do just the opposite. So, in keeping with the natural order, Huawei's preparing a June coming out party for a UX of its very own, dubbed Emotion UI. The Chinese manufacturer's no stranger to custom interfaces, as we saw at CES 2012 with the optional 3D launcher it employed on the Ascend P line. But as the company continues its trek towards major mobile player status, certain stock perks were sure to fall by the wayside. It's a bid for differentiation that should arguably "enhance" the user experience, but if forums and comment sections are to be believed, this great leap forward is actually a devolution of the worst kind. Hit up the source below to gander at the garbled word constructions of good 'ol Google translate.

I've got you under my skin: Huawei to cover Android in new Emotion UI originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 12:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Wipe that insincere, two-faced grin off your face -- your computer knows you're full of it. Or at least it will once it gets a load of MIT's research on classifying frustration, delight and facial expressions. By teaching a computer how to differentiate between involuntary smiles of frustration and genuine grins of joy, researchers hope to be able to deconstruct the expression into low-level features. What's the use of a disassembled smile? In addition to helping computers suss out your mood, the team hopes the data can be used to help people with autism learn to more accurately decipher expressions. Find out how MIT is making your computer a better people person than you after the break.

[Thanks, Kaustubh]

Continue reading MIT researchers teach computers to recognize your smile, frustration

MIT researchers teach computers to recognize your smile, frustration originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 11:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Huawei has filed an EU antitrust complaint against InterDigital to end its "abuse" of the allegedly standards-essential patents it controls. The company has urged the commission to examine its demands, which are considered too hefty to come under the protection of FRAND terms. The shoe normally resides on the other foot, with InterDigital previously instigating battles with Nokia, Samsung and ZTE. This time, it looks like the Chinese giant was tired of being pushed around by what it's derisorily called a non-practicing entity -- which we've taken to be a polite euphemism.

Continue reading Huawei files EU antitrust complaint against InterDigital

Huawei files EU antitrust complaint against InterDigital originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 10:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Maybe our skeptic's goggles have fogged over with excitement, but there's something mightily interesting about an entry over at GLBenchmark. First off, the model number and listing info vaguely suggest it could be a variant of the LS970 superphone rumored for Sprint, aka the LG Eclipse, although the ICS build ("geeb_att_us-eng 4.0.4") indicates this 1.5GHz device is one of Ma Bell's. One of the more unusual specs offers some corroboration: the Adreno 320 graphics, which only come in the souped-up Pro or quad-core variants of Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon S4 chipset. That would make the LE970 a rare breed indeed, but unfortunately that's about all we can learn at this point. The actual benchmark scores tell us nothing about the handset's performance other than that it can max out the Egypt Standard test despite its 1280 x 720 screen -- making it impossible to compare it to regular Snapdraon S4 phones like the HTC One X on AT&T or the HTC One S. Oh well, where are those lens wipes?

Update: An earlier version of this post confused the benchmark results with the Egypt Offscreen test -- apologies for the error.

[Thanks, Ketul]

Mystery LG LE970 claims next-gen Adreno graphics, can't quite prove it originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

There's really not much to go on, but ASUS has thrown its own brief snippet into the Computex teaser hat. It mentions that "the shape of the cloud is ever changing" -- and, er, not much else. Puzzle away this sunny public holiday by checking out the brief teaser after the break.

[Thanks Sal]

Continue reading ASUS teases its 'next transformations,' will probably have screens (video)

ASUS teases its 'next transformations,' will probably have screens (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 08:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

A befuddled Joker once pondered "Where does he get all those wonderful toys?" Soon you'll have a chance to inspire the same sort of wonderment amongst your friends -- at least the more eagle-eyed ones. Nokia has announced it's launching a Batman-themed Nokia Lumia 900, with the minimalist logo of (spoiler alert) Bruce Wayne's alter-ego laser-etched onto the back. It's the same treatment that was given to a special edition Lumia 800 earlier and, no surprise, it'll be available exclusively in Batman's favorite color. It's also exclusive to Europe, at least initially, where it's said to be going on sale in a few weeks. Act fast and you might have yours in time to listen to Christian Bale grumble his way through the conclusion of the Dark Knight Trilogy.

Batman-themed Nokia Lumia 900 coming soon, utility belt clip not included originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 08:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

973,086 iOS devices were jailbroken in a single weekend thanks to Absinthe 2.0, which was released on Friday. Chronic-Dev, one half of the Jailbreak Dream Team tweeted the announcement yesterday, adding that 211,401 of those freed were third-generation iPads. If you want to loosen your own Apple-branded handheld from the clutches of Cupertino's control, then the warranty-worrying software is still available -- with the promise that it's so easy, your grandma could do it.

Absinthe 2.0 used to jailbreak nearly one million iOS devices in a single weekend originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 07:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

GameStop selling Android tablets in-store isn't anything new, but we've been curious to see how well the initiative would take off following a soft launch at 200 locations last November. Things seem to be going swimmingly, as the company now has "more than 1,600 locations" stocking the slates. If you'll recall, the devices all come with pre-installed titles of the retailer's choosing, with models from the likes of Samsung, Acer, ASUS and Toshiba. There's still yet to be any word about whether you'll eventually be able to trade-in your own, but it would seem like a logical next step -- aside from becoming an AT&T virtual carrier. Hit up the source link below to see if a store in your area is part of the lineup.

Continue reading GameStop gives in to its sweet tooth, stocks Android tablets at over 1,600 stores

GameStop gives in to its sweet tooth, stocks Android tablets at over 1,600 stores originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 06:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Putting the squeeze on those hardware specifications has lead to several more app casualties on Microsoft's ever-growing mobile platform. Unfortunately, it includes one of mobile gaming's biggest hitters: Angry Birds. We gave installation a go on our own Lumia 610 and were met with the unfortunate message seen above. According to WindowsPhoneApps Spanish, it's not the only one affected by the reduction in RAM on these lower-priced smartphones. PES 2012 won't run on the lower-specced smartphone, while videocall app Tango also joins its rival Skype on the no-go list.

Update: Nokia's confirmed that Rovio is, indeed, working on an optimized version of Angry Birds for the Lumia 610, though an exact release date is still up in the air.

Angry Birds and PES 2012 join Skype: won't work on Windows Phones with 256MB RAM (updated) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 06:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Kyocera's innovative Urbano Progresso is set to launch in Japanese stores before the end of the week. The result of a team-up between the handset manufacturer and carrier KDDI, it uses a new vibrational technology that forgoes the more typical earpiece, delivering sound throughout the whole handset. We've toyed with the technology already and it's good to see Kyocera delivering on its promise of a real world application of its smart sonic receiver in the same year. Aside from its audio chops, the phone houses some less ground-breaking, but still respectable, features like a dual-core 1.4GHz Snapdragon S2 processor, Android 4.0, an 8.1-megapixel camera, waterproof casing and a 4.1-inch screen. It'll be out in shops starting May 30th and tempted Japan residents can check out the hard sell -- condensed into a two-minute video -- after the break.

Continue reading Kyocera's Urbano Progresso to bring tissue-conductive sounds to Japan on May 30th

Kyocera's Urbano Progresso to bring tissue-conductive sounds to Japan on May 30th originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 05:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Ask the average geek to describe the Apple II and you'll probably hear something about its legacy or software. Ask Steve Wozniak circa 1977, on the other hand, and he'll write you a technical tome -- or at least he did for Byte magazine. Way back when the classic computer was fresh, a young Woz penned an extremely detailed "system description" for the rig, pouring over specifics on the II's graphical capabilities, memory, peripherals, programming language and more. Perhaps in (slightly late) honor of the machine's 35th anniversary, Information Week has seen fit to reprint the extensive examination for your reading pleasure -- assuming you're up to wading through the technical nitty gritty. No? Well, Woz does have a few nuggets of wisdom for the layman. "To me," he says, "a personal computer should be small, reliable, convenient to use and inexpensive." No arguments here, Steve. Read the man's words for yourself at the source link below.

The Apple II, as described by Steve Wozniak originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 04:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

We've see BBC iPlayer reach many devices over time, but it's been conspicuously absent on Windows Phone. Nokia has stepped into give us some relief, and it's now promising that a port of the TV catch-up service will be ready for your Lumia 800 "in weeks." Good news no doubt, although Nokia's encyclopedic knowledge of British TV streaming is also dashing hopes of using the Sky Go mobile app on Windows Phone anytime soon: the same Nokia rep doesn't see Sky being ready for a "good few months" at the earliest. As such, you'll have no problems keeping up with Doctor Who and Sherlock when they're airing, but we wouldn't count on watching live football matches for awhile.

Update: Pocket-lint is reporting that it quizzed the BBC over this issue and got a firm denial about a Windows Phone version, which suggests that The Inquirer's report, or its Nokia source, may have made an illogical deduction.

BBC iPlayer reaching Windows Phone within 'weeks,' will catch up with Sherlock on your Lumia (update: perhaps not) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 May 2012 01:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Samsung's sub-$200 Galaxy Player offers up PMP-stylings inside a smartphone shell. When our reviewer put it through its paces, we couldn't find much to commend it -- with poor sound quality and battery life that wouldn't manage a long-haul flight. The expandable storage and removable battery made it more desirable than the equivalent iPod touch, but given that it was retailing for $20 more (at the time), we'd have said go for a GoGear or D3 instead. But we suspect that despite our advice, some of you bought one, so tell us how you've found it on a daily basis and what should the company do when it comes time for a refresh?

How would you change Samsung's Galaxy Player 4.0? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 May 2012 23:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Smartphone displays are becoming larger in size, and along with that, we're seeing a nice trend that's bringing greater pixel density. While LG Display's newly-announced 1080p HD mobile display isn't the most pixel dense that we've seen -- a distinction that belongs to Toshiba -- the five-inch panel is more appropriate for consumer applications and boasts an impressive pixel density of 440ppi. Its 16:9 aspect ratio was designed with HD content in mind, and the LCD technology isn't anything to sneeze at, either: it's a variant of IPS known as Advanced High Performance In-Plane Switching (AH-IPS), which is said to boast wide viewing angles, fast response times and improved brightness efficiency. Best yet, it seems that consumers won't have long to wait before the panel works its way into consumer technology -- the five-inch HD display is set for availability during the second-half of this year. To learn more of the Retina Display-shattering deets, you'll find the full PR after the break.

Continue reading LG Display debuts five-inch Retina Display killer with 1080p HD resolution and 440ppi pixel density

LG Display debuts five-inch Retina Display killer with 1080p HD resolution and 440ppi pixel density originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 May 2012 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Despite amassing something close to a billion users, Facebook has mainly stayed true to the startup mantra of staying focused on a few core things. In this case, that has been promoting openness and sharing among friends and, increasingly, the world at large. Such was the case for its rival Google at the launch of the search company's IPO. Since then, however, the company has launched a pair of operating systems powering handsets and tablets around the world, a digital media store selling everything from apps to books, and its own social sharing service (at least twice).

With the vast capital infusion that comes with an IPO, Facebook has an opportunity to expand far beyond its own site and Like buttons that now line up in a row next to sharing buttons using Twitter and Google+. The company certainly has no love for Google and has kept Apple at arm's length, but it has had a strong partnership with Microsoft, which made a financially shrewd $240 million investment in Facebook back in 2007. Windows Phone would be a poorer experience were it not for its tight Facebook integration. The giant social network would gain from entering the device market or spinning its own version of Android as Amazon has done, but there would also be significant challenges to striking out into its own ecosystem.

Continue reading Switched On: Facebook's ecosystem dilemma

Switched On: Facebook's ecosystem dilemma originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 May 2012 21:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This week Inhabitat has been reporting live from New York Design Week, where we've witnessed countless innovative green designs from around the world. To kick things off, we were pretty impressed with this desk lamp designed by Jake Dyson (son of the vacuum god) that extends the life of its LED bulbs by a whopping 37 years. Also in the category of "bright shiny things we love" is QisDesign's Aurelia lamp, which bears a striking resemblance to a glowing jellyfish. We were also dazzled by UM Project's collection of retro, robot-inspired lamps, Light & Contrast's cute LED flower lights, and we were absolutely floored by Alessandro Jordão's larger-than-life LEGO chair. Can't get enough of NY Design Week? Check out all of our favorite green designs from this year's shows.

Continuing with the topic of innovative green lighting technology, artist Ryosuke Fukusada has created the impossible: a glowing wooden light bulb. Confused? The light was created using a technique called Rokuro, and it consists of an LED light bulb wrapped with a very thin layer of wood. When the bulb is turned on, it illuminates the grain of the wood. As Fukusada's creation demonstrates, LED lighting technology has taken some incredible strides recently, and we took some time to round-up 24 of our all-time favorite green lamps that look great with LED bulbs.

Continue reading Inhabitat's Week in Green: Jake Dyson's lamp, wooden light bulbs and weed-killing lasers

Inhabitat's Week in Green: Jake Dyson's lamp, wooden light bulbs and weed-killing lasers originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 May 2012 20:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!

Continue reading Refresh Roundup: week of May 21st, 2012

Refresh Roundup: week of May 21st, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 May 2012 20:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Pretty much the only place you see vacuum tubes any more is inside a quality audio amp. But, once upon a time, they were the primary ingredient in any piece of electronic equipment, including computers. The glass tubes have since been replaced with the smaller, less fragile and cheaper to manufacture silicon transistor. There are, however, disadvantages, to transistors. For one, electrons tend to move more slowly though the semiconductors, and two, they're highly susceptible to radiation. The second of those problems doesn't affect us much here on Earth, but for NASA it poses a major obstacle. Engineers have finally managed to combine the advantages of both vacuum tubes and silicon transistors, though, in what has been dubbed "nano vacuum tubes." They're created by etching tiny cavities in phosphorous-doped silicon, bordered on three sides by electrodes that form the gate, source and drain. The term "vacuum tube" is slightly misleading however, since there is no true vacuum in play. Instead, the source and drain are separated by just 150 nanometers, making it highly unlikely that flowing electrons would run into stray atoms. In addition to their space-worthy hardiness, they can also potentially operate at frequencies ten-times as higher than silicon transistors, making them a candidate to push terahertz tech from experimental to mainstream. For more, check out the source link.

[Image credit: Shane Gorski]

Nano vacuum tubes could give a second life to the guitarist's best friend originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 May 2012 17:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

If the HTC Status' dedicated Facebook button fell shy of satisfying your obsessive social networking needs, sit tight: the house of Zuckerberg may be building a slab of tech just for you. According to the New York Times Bits blog, those old Facebook phone rumors are making a comeback. A handful of Facebook employees and engineers familiar with the matter reportedly say that the firm is collecting former Apple engineers, specifically, ones that worked on the iPhone and iPad. Like Zuckerberg said, mobile is the company's top focus, and one employee says the man at the top is afraid of getting overlooked in a sea of apps. "Mark is worried that if he doesn't create a mobile phone in the near future that Facebook will simply become an app on other mobile platforms." Facebook has focused on deep integration with other devices for some time, but a dedicated handset could take the freshly public company in new directions. Reports suggest that the rumored device is still in its infancy, and there's no word on form factor or OS, of course. Up for some speculation? Check out the source link below for Bits' full take.

Facebook reportedly back to building phones, recruiting former iPhone engineers originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 May 2012 16:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Love it or hate it, we're stuck with NBC as our Olympics broadcaster in the US, and the company recently laid out its full plans for the 2012 Olympics in London this summer. The good news first: NBCOlympics.com will live stream every single event (they'll even be on YouTube, and in the UK the BBC has its own plans) for the first time ever including streams of each of its channels, encompassing 3,500 total hours and the awarding of all 302 medals. The bad news is that if you're not a cable subscriber, many of those hours will not be available to you, and even if you are, you're looking at a (likely convoluted) authentication sign-in process. That's a little bit of pain, sure, but it should mean what we've been asking for -- the ability to watch all Olympics events as they happen, not tape delayed for prime time after viewing grainy bootleg streams over the internet. Also new for the internet are multiple streams for the same event, so for example, viewers can select a particular gymnastics apparatus or track and field event at will.

On mobile devices, NBC also has plans for two different apps on phones and tablets, with one that brings live video streams and another with highlight clips. It didn't specify what platforms they would be available for, but we'd assume the usual suspects (iOS, Android) will be first up. On pay-TV cable, satellite and telco providers it's also providing dedicated channels for basketball and soccer, although it's up to your provider to pick them up. The same goes for the 242 planned hours of 3D coverage it's producing in partnership with Panasonic, which will unfortunately air on 24 hour tape delay, just like the HD broadcast was back in 2004 (we've got chips.... and salsa!). For the full breakdown of all 5,535 hours of coverage across NBC, MSNBC, CNBC, Bravo, Telemundo and everything else check out the press release after the break, plus an Olympics preview trailer. While there are some limits for cord cutters, sports fans with pay-TV should be ready to experience the best Olympics coverage ever with the ability to watch what we want, instead just what's on the TV schedule.

Continue reading NBC lays out 2012 London Olympics broadcast plan on TV, internet, apps and in 3D (video)

NBC lays out 2012 London Olympics broadcast plan on TV, internet, apps and in 3D (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 May 2012 14:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Researchers at Northwestern University have found one way to stop a leak: get rid of the liquid. A new variation on the Grätzel solar cell replaces a short-lived organic dye with a solid alternative. The molecular dye the solid substance replaces was corrosive, at risk of leaking and only lasted about 18-months -- by replacing it, researchers plan to pave the way for a more affordable (and less toxic) alternative. Northwestern's new design flaunts a 10.2-percent conversion efficiency, the highest ever recorded in a solid-state solar cell of its type -- but that's still only half of what traditional sun collectors can do. Researchers hope to improve conversion in the long run, but expect that the cost reduction alone will be enough to get the party going. It may not be the greenest solar technology we've ever seen, but who are we to judge?

Solid state solar panels are more affordable, say researchers, don't leak originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 May 2012 12:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Perhaps there aren't enough places for you to play Words With Friends or FrontierVille, who are we to judge? Maybe what the world needs right now is playable Angry Birds in your Facebook news feed. Instead of just an invitation to join Cow Clicker, maybe you need to be able to play it straight from the homepage. Well, now you can. And that's all we have to say about that.

One more place to play Farmville or one more reason to quit Facebook? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 May 2012 10:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

YouTube's been beefing up the tools for its users lately, adding an audio editor, stabilization and color correction tools, and even ways for live-streaming productions to empty our wallets. Now, an outfit from the land of Oz has created an application that uses YouTube's live-streaming capabilities to allow those watching to grab pictures of live-stream and share them. Called Frontrow, it'll make its debut streaming the Vivid LIVE music festival currently going on at the Sydney Opera House. The app doesn't just let you take simple snapshots, either, users can zoom in and out and apply image filters to grab that perfect image of Florence + the Machine while watching them via WiFi a world away. Hit the more coverage link and check the video after the break for more.

Continue reading Frontrow has arrived to let you take and share photos from YouTube livestreams

Frontrow has arrived to let you take and share photos from YouTube livestreams originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 May 2012 09:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Do you really think a black FM radio -- or even worse, one in an off-season shade of grape --- can get you through the summer? Radio maker Pure wants to correct your errant ways. The company is expanding its Evoke Mio radio line with six new "on-trend" color options. The radio is already available in black, teal, grape and cherry, and now Pure is adding pepper, mustard, paprika, sage, rose and seagrass shades. While the colors are new, the specs are the same as on the original model: there's digital and FM radio, space for 30 presets, an auxiliary input for a PMP and an auto-dimming OLED panel. The new Pure Evoke Mio collection will go on sale in June for £130 (it's unclear if the radios will head stateside as well).

Pure updates Evoke Mio radio with six new colors, thinks you need a new shade for summer originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 May 2012 08:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

What, you didn't think those games appeared on Xbox Live through some act of magic, did you? No, they're the product of insanely small teams working insanely long hours, at the risk of their well-being, social lives and, in some cases, personal hygiene, in order to bring you a downloadable break from Call of Duty. Indie Game: The Movie is a beautifully shot, occasionally heartwarming and perpetually fascinating look at the intersection of art and technology currently being explored by indie game developers, focusing on the creators of Fez, Braid and Super Meat Boy.

We managed to get a sneak peak of the Sundance documentary, courtesy of filmmakers James Swirsky and Lisanne Pajot, who appeared on the most recent episode of the Engadget Show -- and now you can join in on the fun: the film is getting a worldwide web release on June 12th, by way of iTunes, Steam and the official movie site. If you can't wait until then, however, you can pre-order the movie now for $10 in the source link below.

Continue reading Indie Game: The Movie: The Worldwide Release: June 12th

Indie Game: The Movie: The Worldwide Release: June 12th originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 May 2012 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

So you've decided that it's time to make a tablet part of your life, but a lack of star-spangled slabs has prompted you to defer the purchase. Malaysians now face no such dilemma, due in no small part to the 1Malasyia Pad -- the country's first branded tab. The 1Mpad will reportedly soon be marketed to students (1.4 million of them, in fact), but 5,000 of the 7-inch Gingerbread devices are now being offered up to deep-pocketed locals, priced online at a rather-ambitious 999 Malaysian ringgits (about $315). Manufactured by MalTechPro Sdn Bhd, the 1Mpad will be offered to students at a to-be-determined discounted rate, making it the first such device to be available using a student discount card. At its current high list price, the tablet doesn't appear to be a fantastic deal, shipping with 3G broadband and the 1Malaysia Messenger application, which will serve as an IM service of sorts for sending text, pictures, video and voice recording to other 1Mpad owners. Still, if you have the cash to spare for an early taste of what Malaysian students may some day be using to surf the web, you can hit up the source link after the break for a bit more info.

[Thanks, Joe]

1Mpad is Malaysia's first branded tablet, delivers 7 inches of Gingerbread for $315 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 May 2012 05:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.