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Fandango pulls a Ticketmaster with plans to buy MovieTickets.com
Who doesn't love grabbing movie tickets from their mobile device before heading to the theater, skipping the long lines at the box office? No one, that's who. Now there's one less outlet to do so with, as Fandango continues to consolidate advance movie ticket sales with plans to acquire MovieTickets.com. According to Deadline, this leaves Atom Tickets as one of the only other competitors in the space, bringing Fandango closer to a Ticketmaster-style monopoly. The deal itself is set to close in the latter part of this year.
Marquee Media Center hands-on
Winning gdgt's StartUp contest has its perks -- just ask recent winner Marquee, which is showcasing version 2.0 of its Media Center here on the showfloor. The imposing device, currently available on the outfit's site for $899, packs 2TB of storage, 4GB DDR3 RAM, DVD player and a 2.4GHz dual-core Intel processor into an aluminum-lidded box to let you stream a mix of online and locally-stored multimedia content. Seen from above, the unit is mostly unadorned, save for a quite sizable power button, three circular vents and two notification LEDs. Off to the right side hiding just beneath that generous metal hood, lies ports for audio I/O and standard USB, with HDMI-out on the back. Naturally, you need a way to parse through the goods and that's where Plex XBMC -- running atop Ubuntu 12.04 -- and a custom wireless controller outfitted with a full QWERTY keyboard come in handy. According to Marquee's CEO, set-up out of the box is a no-brainer and requires nothing more than connecting to an external display and your home network (via ethernet or WiFi) to get things started. We had the opportunity to take the Media Center for a quick test spin and immediately noticed a calibration issue that, combined with the cluttered remote, made for some extremely unintuitive navigation. You can check out some pics of the startup's progeny below.%Gallery-159092%
Engadget's smartphone buyer's guide: spring 2012 edition
Springtime is here. It's a season of renewal, and similarly, an ideal time to replace your aging phone with one that you'll adore. With this in mind, we give you Engadget's smartphone buyer's guide -- your one-stop resource for selecting the best handset that fits your desires and budget. This time around, we're doing things a bit differently. In addition to naming the top phones for each provider, you'll now find more comparisons across carriers. This should help you find the best possible handset -- regardless of network -- if you're willing to make the switch. Also, you'll no longer see limited-time offers as our budget picks -- they'll still get a mention, but now, only phones that commonly retail below $80 will qualify for this coveted spot. Naturally, new smartphones are always coming onto the market, so before you make your final selection, be sure to consult our reviews hub for the very latest recommendations. With that in mind, read on as we round up the best smartphones of the season.
LG Marquee steps out in leaked press shot, coming this October? (updated: it's official)
It looks like the LG Marquee's gearing up for its coming out party. We first caught wind of the Optimus Black clone when it surfaced in blurrycam form at a Radio Shack briefing, running what appeared to be vanilla Android, and branded for the Now Network. Well, thanks to a leaked press shot over on PocketNow, we can clearly see that the device is, indeed, sporting a lightly-skinned version of the pure Gingerbread experience, with Sprint ID replacing the browser in the phone's launcher. Cosmetically, you'll also notice the new grey-colored chassis has a striped band sweeping down the battery cover, although the camera placement remains similar to its European cousin. Aside from that, the only other notable difference is in the design and arrangement of the capacitive buttons. The specs seem to fall line with its elder LG stablemate, as the handset packs a single-core 1GHz processor, 2 megapixel front-facing / 5 megapixel rear cameras and 4-inch NOVA display. The only question that remains is whether you're willing to forgo impending beastliness for elegance this October when it's rumored to launch. Update: Sprint's made it official. The LG Marquee'll be available for pre-order online on September 20th, and will go on sale October 2nd for $99.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate with a two-year contract.
LG Marquee caught on candid camera, is this Sprint's Optimus Black?
Is this a case of smartphone identity crisis, or just a repurposed chassis? Whatever the case may be, LG's got a Marquee handset ready to shore up Sprint's future line-up. The leaked shot comes courtesy of a now private video spotted by Android Central, and was taken at a Dallas-based Radio Shack Business Summit. It's evident from the one Mr. Blurrycam screen cap on display that the phone's currently running a vanilla build of Gingerbread, and sports a minimalistic design that's reminiscent of the Optimus Black. We can't be certain the two are indeed twins, however that leaked roadmap did indicate a stateside October bow for the Optimus Black -- this could simply be a rebrand for the Now Network.