Weekly Roundup: Galaxy Note 3 and Gear reviews, Twitter's $1 billion IPO, Silk Road shutdown and more!
You might say the week is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workweek, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Weekly Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past seven days -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Samsung Galaxy Note 3 review
A little over two years ago the Galaxy Note was nothing more than a weird, 5.3-inch abomination. Fast forward to 2013, where Samsung is now on its third generation device. What are the marquee features this time around? The Galaxy Note 3 has a 1080p 5.7-inch display, a quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor and 3GB of RAM. The phablet also represents a major step away from the company's notorious plastic backing, to a textured "leather-like" cover. The Note's excellent battery life, brilliant display and top performance make it an ideal all-rounder for those wanting a bigger device. Read on for our full review.
Amazon Kindle Paperwhite review (2013)
Amazon's been on a roll of low-key announcements recently with the company's new Kindle Fire HDX, and its updated Kindle Paperwhite. The latter of those two devices remains largely unchanged from last year, except for a few minor tweaks: a faster processor, and an improved front light. Both of these tweaks help to make a great e-reader even greater, but are they enough to tempt consumers into dishing out $119? If you've already got last year's device, than the answer is no. But, if you're someone who's looking to enter the market, than Amazon's new Paperwhite is an excellent choice. Click the link above for our full review.
Samsung Galaxy Gear review
Rumors of Apple's new iWatch are heating up, while other companies are scrambling to show off their devices in the growing market of consumer smartwatches. It was only a matter of time before a large manufacturer like Samsung got involved in the wearables arena, and its first attempt is the Galaxy Gear. The Gear comes with a 1.6-inch AMOLED screen, downloadable apps and even a 1.9-megapixel BSI auto-focus camera. But, just like any other first-generation Samsung device, there are too many problems at the present for us to recommend the watch. Click through for more.
Twitter's $1 billion IPO, and 215 million monthly active users
This week Twitter finally made its initial public offering official to the tune of $1 billion, split up over 472,613,753 shares of common stock. The company will be trading under the symbol TWTR (not TWTRQ), and hopes to begin this year as long as the market remains strong. In its filing, Twitter also confirmed that it now has 218.3 million monthly active users, collectively pulling in $253.6 million in revenue over six months. For more details on the IPO and all of its numbers click the link above or head straight to the SEC's website.
