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CAT's next phone is so rugged we're surprised it doesn't have a beard
We'd hate to admit it, but you could never really mistake your humble narrator for a manly man, breaking cinder blocks with his pectoral muscles and hanging out at monster truck rallies. That doesn't mean, however, that we can't appreciate the engineering and effort that went into CAT's newest rugged smartphone, the S50. We're told that it's designed "for the outdoors," that terrifying world where there's no WiFi and comfortable furniture we see only in our nightmares. The 4.7-inch handset is coated in a liberal helping of Gorilla Glass 3, but the first time we asked about resolution -- which we later learned is 1,280 x 720 -- the device just glowered at us as if we'd challenged its masculinity.
Toshiba details 4K laptop arriving before summer
Toshiba has just dished most of the important details about its intriguing 4K Satellite P50t that we saw at CES 2014, along with some other new models. Unfortunately, it's left some info hanging -- namely the all-important prices. For the most part, the Satellite 50t model sounds pretty fine, considering the sleek 2.2kg (4.8 pound) weight. There's that exotic 282 pixel per inch 3,840 x 2,160, 15.6-inch touchscreen, driven by 2GB AMD Radeon R9 M265 graphics, for starters (1080p is optional). It's also packing an Intel Core-i7 CPU, 16GB DDR3L RAM, 4 USB 3.0 ports, an SD/SDHC slot, Bluetooth 4.0, 802.11ac WiFi and Windows 8.1. Oddly, the otherwise well-spec'd device only features a 1TB mechanical disk option, when it's clearly screaming for SSD speed -- hopefully Toshiba will rectify that prior to release. Availability is listed as sometime in Q2, but again, there's no clue about pricing. Meanwhile, Toshiba's also detailed a few other models after the break.
Lexar intros JumpDrive S70, V10 and bacterial-shielding S50 USB keys
Another day at CES 2011, another release from Lexar Media. This go 'round, the memory outfit is dishing out a three-pack of JumpDrives, with the S70, S50 and V10 all seeing significant redesigns and subtle enhancements to make 'em their own men. The S70 touts a retractable connector design and gives users the ability to create multiple password-protected area (deemed 'Encrypted Vaults'); they'll ship in 4GB, 8GB, 16GB, 32GB and 64GB sizes, but pricing remains a mystery. Moving on, the bacteria-hating S50 ships with a layer of Microban antimicrobial protection, which is said to resist the growth of mold on its 4GB, 8GB, 16GB, 32GB and 64GB models. Somewhat gross to ponder, but what else is there to think on when no MSRPs are handed out? Lastly, the V10 boasts a translucent cap and will ship in a variety of colors / sizes. The whole crew should hit retail in Q1 2011, and the release that says as much is after the break.
Navman's S-series gets official welcome
Amazon leaking a product? Say it ain't so! 'Course, as we all try to act surprised, Navman has gone and updated its website with the full lineup of S-series navigators, which includes the £299.99 ($610) S90i, £199.99 ($406) S70, £179.99 ($366) S50 and £149.99 ($305) S30. The high-end S90i touts a 4.3-inch widescreen touch panel, European Tele Atlas maps, real-time traffic support (free lifetime subscription bundled in), Bluetooth / handsfree, text-to-speech, 2GB of built-in memory, a 400MHz Samsung CPU, two-megapixel camera, and an SD / MMC slot for good measure. The S70 / S50 models strip away some of the more extravagant features while maintaining the 4.3-inch display, but the S30 scales way back to a 3.5-inch LCD and goes without Bluetooth or optional traffic information. The foursome can be had later this month save for the flagship S90i, which will land on its own in October.[Via Pocket-Lint]
Hands-on with Nikon's S50, S50c, S200, S500, L10, L11 and L12
Rounding out the rest of Nikon's gear at PMA was their four new S-series entrants, and three new low end L-series. The S cameras were, as usual, sexyhot, definitely gear we approve of (outside the folded optics); the L cameras are, of course, for newbs and your klutzy butterfingers friends / family that can't keep his or her gear intact for longer than a few weeks, so don't expect the all the same sweet feature hookups. Check 'em all out.%Gallery-1997%
Nikon announces S50, S50c, S200, and S500
We've got a slew of new Nikon cams tonight, so let's get this thing rolling. First up we have the S50, S50c, 7.2 megapixel / 3x shooters with 3-inch screens, OIS, 1600 ISO, best shot selector, in camera red-eye repair, but the S50c has WiFi for email, image storage, and the rest of the fun stuff you can do with Nikon's Coolpix Connect 2 service. These will be available in April for $300 and $350.The S200, and S500 are slightly less sophisticated, but look to be quality cameras all the same. You've got 7.1 megapixel / 3x optics, electronic image stabilization, up to 2000 ISO, 2.5-inch displays, best shot selector, in and camera red-eye repair. The S500 steps up over the S200's aluminum body with its own stainless steel finish (how DeLorean -- shown above), as well as an anti-shake button that engages high ISO mode, image stabilization, and best shot selector at the same time. These will hit in March for $250 and $300.Read - Nikon S50, S50cRead - Nikon S200, S500%Gallery-1704%
Five megapixel Sanyo S50 hits Germany for €100
For everyone out there who's trying to save their pennies for that new PS3, but still wants a good deal, you may want to give this new Sanyo S50 a looksie, given that the €100 ($127) camera brings loads of solid features at a very low cost. What's packed inside that metal case? Well, a 5 megapixel CCD, 2.5-inch screen, 2x optical zoom and a f/2.8 aperture in wide and f/4.0 in zoom for starters. Beyond that, the software has an "extensive preview mode", allowing you to create a slideshow -- pretty rare for such an inexpensive camera. If that wasn't enough, Sanyo's happy to provide a little mirror adjacent to the lens, in case you feel like turning the camera on yourself to capture your own beautiful visage. Sadly, though, you can only get one at a Ringfoto Gruppe dealer in Germany -- the S50 will drop exclusively in Deutschland sometime this month.
Sirius poised to release Stiletto portable receiver
Better late than never, Sirius is finally on the verge of releasing its first "personal live satellite radio product" to consumers, who will see the device ship by the end of the summer and possibly as early as this month. We first spotted the rather chunky-looking player about a month ago in the hands of CEO Mel Karamazin, who said in a recent conference call that the so-called Stiletto (it's not clear if that's the official product moniker or simply an internal codename) has now been in beta testing for a few weeks and seems ready for prime-time (Mel referred to it, probably not without some bias, as "great"). As you're probably aware, rival XM has already brought a number of XM2GO products to market -- most recently, the Samsung Helix and Pioneer Inno -- while Sirius is still stuck in the dark ages with its dockable S50. Personally, we couldn't be happier about this impending release; we can't wait to give up the crappy sound quality we're getting with SiriuCE on our Windows Mobile phones, and we're sure our wireless carriers will be just as pleased when we stop sucking down so many gigs of data.
Sirius CEO reveals portable receiver/DAP
While XM is already offering its customers live feeds on-the-go through the well-received Pioneer Inno and Samsung Helix, rival Sirius has been rather slow to the starting gate in this department, as its flagship S50 portable only plays back content that was recorded while it was docked. Now, however, it looks like Sirius is finally on the verge of releasing its first DAP with built-in satellite receiver, and Tech Effect even managed to snap a picture of the device when CEO Mel Karmazin briefly flashed it during his keynote at this week's Convergence 2.0 conference. Unfortunately Mel only broke out the chunky-looking player to illustrate a point he was making about the iPod ("I wish it didn't exist," he said, probably only half-jokingly), so all that's known about this unit is its size and the fact that it sports a headphone jack. Still, Mel promises that he'll have the product in stores by the end of the summer, and since it's reportedly in the midst of beta testing, we're expecting to see some leaked specs and photos sooner rather than later -- much sooner if any of you testers would be so kind as to drop us a line.
Samsung's neXus XM DAP reviewed
We've always been a bit skeptical of portable DAPs like the Sirius S50 and Samsung neXus that promise to let you listen to sat radio content on-the-go, because since neither device includes a built-in satellite receiver, you're stuck with the programming you've recorded while the player was docked at home. PC Mag seems to agree that this class of gadgets offers rather limited functionality, and their review of the neXus isn't very promising for potential customers: unless you buy the $70 car kit for listening to live feeds in your ride, you're basically spending either $219 or $269, respectively, for either a 512MB or 1GB MP3 player that delivers neither great sound quality nor an acceptable battery life. What's more, you have to make sure that you keep the unit docked for at least eight hours a month so that XM can properly authenticate your subscription to keep your recorded tunes from disappearing. Ultimately, unless you're a on a tight budget and absolutely need some XM swag in your pocket at all times, PC Mag suggests -- and we tend to agree -- that you're better off shelling out a few more bucks for the Pioneer Inno or Samsung Helix, which both allow you to pick up and record live feeds right out of the box, no dock necessary.
Record labels sue XM over Inno recording
We thought that maybe, just maybe, the recent S50 blessing from the record labels might mean that they were letting off a bit on this whole "satellite radio recording is killing the music industry" thing. Boy were we wrong. Turns out Sirius agreed to pay for one of those snazzy and expensive distribution licenses, similar to what iTunes and Napster have, to allow their users to continue to record songs off of the radio service. XM balked at the fee, since they're already paying a license to play the songs in a radio capacity. That's why they've just been hit with a massive lawsuit for the sale of their Inno player, seeking $150,000 in damages per song recorded by XM customers. XM says they play 160,000 different songs per month, but we're not sure how that translates to this "songs recorded" figure that the record labels want to penalize them for. What we do know is that the amount is pretty extreme, and that XM had better have a good case, or this emerging satellite radio market could lose a major player in a jiffy
