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Splashtop will bring remote desktopping to your TouchPad
There's a burgeoning population of users who can't live without Splashtop's remote Windows app for Mac, iOS and Android. Now there's a new version in the works that'll let you telecompute from your TouchPad too. The official blog says the launch is "getting close" and it's offering the app free if you manage to persuade a bunch of other TouchPad users to register their interest. In fact, we can't help but notice that some guy called Tim has already signed up 2,508 of his mates. We don't know who Tim is, but we want to be just like him when we grow up. Update: Tim, the man with a commanding lead in the chart above, contacted us to say he asked Splashtop to remove him from the contest. He initially used the referral link in a post on PreCentral, not realizing that the company would be giving out the software to the top referrers. So, Tim is out, and now rawonthego is the man with the target on his back.
OpenMobile demos ACL for MeeGo, promises 100 percent compatibility with Android apps (video)
OpenMobile is a new company on the application compatibility scene whose primary product, the Application Compatibility Layer, promises to bring Android's large volume of apps to smaller platforms. In the following video, ACL is shown running on MeeGo, where the creators promise full compatibility with every Android app -- without the need for developer modification -- by leveraging Google's runtime environment and Dalvik VM. While support for Intel and Nokia's misbegotten lovechild is first out the door (along with Linux itself), the company plans to introduce similar versions for Bada, QNX, Symbian, WebOS and Windows. Like its competitor, Alien Dalvik, OpenMobile is positioning its Application Compatibility Layer to OEM manufacturers rather than consumers. Unfortunately, this eliminates any hope you might've had for installing Hanging with Friends on that N9 you've pre-ordered -- unless OpenMobile's able to convince the folks in Espoo with a mighty good sales pitch, anyway. [Thanks, Mikko]
Layoffs underway at HP's webOS division, hundreds of employees may be in jeopardy
HP's webOS-powered devices are riding off into the sunset and so too, apparently, are hundreds of jobs. Sources close to the company tell All Things Digital that upwards of 525 employees at HP's Palm division are slated to lose their jobs in the near future, as part of a layoff process that began this week. In a statement, an HP spokesperson explained the decision thusly: "As communicated on August 18, HP will discontinue the development of webOs devices within the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2011, which ends Oct 31 2011. As part of this decision, the webOS GBU is undergoing a reduction in workforce. Today's actions are part of this initiative. During this time, we stand by our commitment to our webOS customers and will work to ensure that support and service for customers are not adversely affected." The company went on to say that it's still "exploring ways to leverage webOS software," but declined to specify the exact number of hardware-related jobs that would be cut.
HP's 7-inch TouchPad Go surfaces on a website that isn't selling it
You're still not any closer to being able to buy one, but HP's mysterious 7-inch TouchPad has now gotten a bit less mysterious. After turning up at the FCC under the TouchPad Go moniker in August, the device has now shown up for some less-than-flattering pictures on the Chinese ZooPDA forums -- you may have heard of some other complications that happened in the interim. As you can see, this model packs the same 4:3 aspect ratio as the standard TouchPad, as well as most of the same internals -- the notable exceptions being both front and rear-facing cameras, and what appears to be an NFC chip (conveniently mentioned in a spec list printed on the back of the unit). This particular unit also has a removable back cover, which appears to provide access to the battery and a SIM card slot, although it's possible that's simply a result of its prototype status.
Mr Fussy mods Samsung Galaxy S for inductive charging, without frazzling warranty (video)
It's not hard to find a good inductive charging smartphone these days, but German IT student Qian Qin absolutely had to have the feature on his Galaxy S Plus. What's more, it needed to be just right: no voiding of the warranty and no unsightly protrusions. So, instead of bumping his gums, he went out and purchased a Palm Pre back cover and a Touchstone dock for €30 ($40), ripped the charging circuit out of the Pre cover and stuck it into the Samsung's cover, then finally soldered a wire from the circuit to the micro-USB port (plus another wire to the microSD slot for 0V). Job done. At first, the mere mention of a webOS device gave us a twinge of sadness, but then the video after the break cheered us right up again -- you can tell within the first six seconds that this guy is a pure OCD perfectionist. You'll also find more detailed instructions at the source link, and they should work equally well for the original Galaxy S too.
CyanogenMod 7 update brings WiFi, sound and accelerometer support to TouchPad (video)
Oh, sure -- HP's webOS may be one of the most sophisticated tablet operating systems in existence, but with a permanently stagnant market, The CM Team has decided that your fire sale TouchPad may be better off running Android. You know, from a long-term perspective. All jesting aside, the crew has been pounding the pavement on a new (and vastly improved) CyanogenMod 7 for Android, with this build providing functional WiFi, access to the Android Market, audio (albeit a bit fast) and an operational accelerometer. There's no code being released just yet -- the team's still working to cull the aforesaid Hamsterdance effect -- but you can catch a sneak peek of everything in action just above.
HTC chairwoman Cher Wang: we might buy a mobile OS, if it feels right
Samsung seems to be the go-to company these days when it comes to mobile OS acquisition rumors, but now it looks like HTC's on the proverbial hot seat. According to an interview by The Economic Observer in China, chairwoman Cher Wang has affirmed that HTC is at least mulling the idea: "We have given it thought and we have discussed it internally, but we will not do it on impulse." The report goes on to make strong mention of HP's recently-backstabbed webOS platform, but stops short of suggesting that it's the only OS in the running. Continuing on, Wang stated: "We can use any OS we want. We are able to make things different from our rivals on the second or third layer of a platform. Our strength lies in understanding an OS, but it does not mean that we have to produce an OS." Of course, that's a cheerleading session surrounding the outfit's polarizing Sense overlay, and we're guessing that webOS would eventually look a heck of lot different under HTC's control. On second thought, maybe Wang's actually trying to acquire iOS -- she sure seems to love those Apple stores!
IRL: Nexus One, Sansa Clip Zip, DeLorme PN-60 and the HP TouchPad
Welcome to IRL, an ongoing feature where we talk about the gadgets, apps and toys we're using in real life and take a second look at products that already got the formal review treatment. Welcome back to IRL, a new column where we dissect, defend and gripe about the gadgets we're using in real life. This week, Dante gets a firesale TouchPad, Dana ditches her Shuffle for a Sansa Clip Zip, Tim's on a boat with the DeLorme PN-60 and Darren explains why, exactly, he's still clinging to his Nexus One.
HP TouchPad gets multitouch drivers for Android courtesy of Team-Touchdroid
TouchPad mania has been in full effect since the slate went on blue-light special a few weeks ago. Yet, with the future of webOS in flux, crowds have clamored to get Google's green bots on the woebegone tablet. Last week, Team-Touchdroid gave the TouchPad a slice of Gingerbread, and now it's delivered full 10-point multitouch as well. Of course, the video below only shows it doing the trick on a testing app, but it's a good start. Shouldn't be long now before you TouchPad owners can get touchy-feely with any Android app your hearts desire.
How would you change HP's Veer 4G?
We know, there isn't much point, but folks who sank untold Jacksons on one of HP's final webOS devices deserve a chance to vent. And that's exactly what we're giving them. Barring a total 180, there won't actually be a second Veer to suggest changes for, but we're still keenly interested in hearing how you'd change the smallest webOS to ever ship. Back in May, we confessed to having a less-than-enthralling experience with the bantam handset, and while we doubt the company sold a shocking quantity of these, there's no doubt that some of you are pocketing one right now. If that's you, the comments are calling. Would you up the resolution? Ditch the physical keyboard? Change the network? Rethink the form factor entirely? Let us know below, and look, it's cool to cry.
Team-Touchdroid dual boots Android on TouchPad -- touchscreen not included
The race to get Android working on the now budget-friendly HP TouchPad is on. We've already heard rumors of the little green robot coming pre-installed on the ill-fated slate and we've seen the first CM7 boot, but no one's gone all the way quite yet. While progress is slow, a team of dedicated TouchPad hackers, calling itself Team-Touchdroid, is now showing off a dual-boot configuration with Android 2.3.5. As with CM7, the touchscreen still doesn't work, but the demo video is quite dramatic -- that is until the credits stop rolling. If early-stage flip-flopping OSs are your thing, hop on past the break, but don't say we didn't warn you: it's going to get weird.
webOS global business unit split outlined in leaked HP documents
It's been just over two weeks since HP announced plans to discontinue production of its webOS devices, and speculation over the future of the platform is still going strong. Just this week, Samsung CEO Choi Gee Sung put to rest rumors of a webOS deal, and now two leaked missives from inside HP show plans to split the webOS global business unit in two. According to letters apparently from Todd Bradley and Shane Robison, webOS software will find a new home in the outfit's Office of Strategy and Technology, while the hardware division will remain with the Personal Systems Group. One of these letters from Tom Bradley explains the split: The pan-HP charter of OS&T provides a broad view of how we can optimize our technologies. In fact, it has proven to be a successful incubator of technologies; it is home to a team of senior technology experts devoted exclusively to exploring longer-term strategies for our technologies.The second missive, from Shane Robison, goes on to say that "webOS software is still a great asset." None of this should come as a surprise, as our interview with Stephen DeWitt reiterated the company's dedication to the webOS platform, while HP's recent ads hocking PSG show the outfit's intentions to spin-off its PC business. Now the question is, who has the bones to make it happen? For the full-length leaks hit the source link below.
Samsung CEO says 'never' to webOS
Honestly, it never made much sense to begin with. Between Android, Windows Phone 7 and Bada, what could Samsung possibly want with another mobile OS? Yet, the rumors persisted that Sammy was going to snatch up, or at least license, HP's recently quasi-retired tablet and smartphone platform. Well, the speculation can officially be put to rest -- Samsung CEO Choi Gee Sung told a group of reporters at IFA that the company would "never" pursue a webOS deal, and bemoaned the trend of "acquiring an operating system." Of course, things could change, but we wouldn't count on it -- sounds like the company's developers already have plenty on their plate.
HP: Limited supply of TouchPads on the way
Still waiting for your bargain TouchPad to ship? Good news, as HP's just confirmed that a "limited supply" of the webOS slates are on their way, and they'll land in "a few weeks." In an update to a blog post from yesterday, the company confirmed that it will manufacture an additional "limited quantity" of TouchPads in Q4 -- presumably to meet existing backorders. Those of you who've signed up for email notification will receive an update and one-time offer today (peep it after the break), and a followup when more details are known. For live updates peep the two Twitter accounts linked under more coverage, and to get the full rundown of HP's plans, hit the source link below. [Thanks, OneLove]
HP: TouchPad will receive OTA update for added 'functionality'
HP may have abandoned the TouchPad, but that apparently won't stop the company from issuing a post-mortem OTA update for its webOS tablet. Yesterday, an HP spokesperson confirmed to CNET that "HP TouchPad owners can look forward to an over-the-air update that will enhance the platform and add functionality and a growing applications catalog." The rep didn't offer any specifics, but reaffirmed that HP remains "fully committed to the ongoing support and service of customers who purchased webOS devices." The news comes on the heels of a Quickoffice HD update that dropped yesterday, and at a time when TouchPads are selling like hotcakes -- which probably explains HP's decision to issue a tweak. Indeed, the company went on to say that it's seen "huge spikes in activations and between 3-5X downloads of apps," since the TouchPad fire sale first launched.
Quickoffice update brings document editing to the TouchPad
Well, we knew it was coming, and folks, it's finally here -- the promised update to Quickoffice HD that brings document editing to HP's webOS slate. Available gratis for TouchPad owners, the overhaul enables text formatting in Word docs, in addition to enabling cell and function editing in Excel spreadsheets. Unfortunately, editing of Powerpoint presentations is sorely lacking, but that's nothing another update can't cure, right?
TouchPad port of CM7 in the works, can barely be called an alpha (video)
Supposedly there are some magical TouchPads out there with Android pre-installed on them, but that won't help you load it up your new collectors item. Thankfully the Cyanogen Mod team is hard at work on a port of Google's mobile OS for your HP slate and aiming to claim the bounty on its head. It's still in the extremely early stages. At the moment it does little more than boot up and unlock with the aid of ADB -- even the touchscreen isn't working just yet -- but it shouldn't be too long before you can swap out webOS with CM7. Check out the brief demo video below.
Refresh Roundup: week of August 22, 2011
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. 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 from 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! Official Android Updates Motorola's Photon 4G was the recipient of a minor over-the-air firmware revamp that offers improvements to responsiveness and voice calls, and offers more bug fixes and other enhancements. [via PhoneArena] Want another bug fix update? The HTC EVO 3D is the next contestant, rolling out its second OTA refresh in as many weeks. This time it appears that a new "Corporate 4G" widget and a new radio have been added. [via AndroidCentral] Gingerbread 2.3.4 is now rolling out to Bell's Motorola Atrix 4G OTA. [via MobileSyrup] Now that its official Gingerbread support page has gone live, Verizon's Motorola Droid 2 will likely be receiving Android 2.3 in the very near future. [via AndroidCentral] Sasktel's HTC Incredible S is now the beneficiary of Android 2.3.3 in an OTA install. [via MobileSyrup] Unofficial Android updates / custom ROMs / misc hackery Remember that Gingerbread update the HTC Droid Incredible was supposed to get? The official version's been leaked out and is awaiting your download. Just remember the follow the directions and back up your device before proceeding. [via AndroidPolice] Speaking of leaked versions of Gingerbread, the Droid 2 Global has one now. More info can be found here. [via Droid-Life] The Motorola Droid 3's been successfully rooted. As it turns out, there may be a couple different methods to do so, so check out the link to learn how to do it. [via XDA and AndroidCentral] An official build of Android 2.3.4 for the Samsung Captivate has been leaked to XDA. [via Phandroid] Other platforms The Nokia N8 was recently blessed with Symbian Anna, but a few camera-related upgrades were left out. No need to fear, as an "experimental" update is now being offered, which adds continuous auto-focus and tweaks the UI to allow for faster access to the camera -- among other improvements, such as a boost to 30fps. Check out the change log here. [via ZOMGitsCJ] Given last week's news about webOS, we were concerned the newly-launched Pre3 would be DOA, with no promise of future updates. HP's proving this isn't the case, however, as the device got a minor update that brought the phone's help center live and fixed a few bugs along the way. [via PreCentral and PhoneArena] Research in Motion released an upgrade to its Tablet OS for the BlackBerry PlayBook. Unfortunately, it's not the 2.0 version we saw leaked screenshots of earlier this week, but it still brings a nice feature to the tablet: differential updates. This means that in future OS refreshes, only the affected sections will be changed. In addition, the new version, dubbed 1.0.7.2942, will improve WiFi connectivity via WEP and enhancements to BlackBerry Bridge. [via RIM] WP7Mod showed a video of the HTC HD2 booting up with Windows Phone Mango's RTM build installed. We've been told that it's almost ready for any daring souls interested in a new challenge for their Windows Mobile device. [via WMPowerUser]
HP wants to give you some free apps to go with that new TouchPad
Not that it particularly needed it, but HP is sweetening the deal for owners of its now defunct TouchPad, offering up six webOS apps for the price of free. The pack includes apps normally ranging in price from $0.99 to $14.99, featuring the multitasking Glimpse, monster-building Big Boss, Camera for TouchPad, and Audubon Birds, a field guide that's decidedly less slingshot-based that other bird apps. The deal expires on the 31st -- all of the promo info can be found in the source link below. The company is set to offer up another app six-pack in September. Update: We're hearing in comments that the codes are no longer working. Thankfully, HP has promised more free dealies in the near future.
Alleged HP TouchPad running Android appears, can be yours on eBay (update: and another one!)
In an extraordinarily convenient turn of events, one buyer of a firesale-priced HP TouchPad at Best Buy a couple of days ago claims his came out of the box with an extra special treat -- it's running Android, 2.2 to be exact. A possible explanation for the existence of this unicorn tablet can be seen in the two YouTube videos posted of the device so far, where it flashes a Qualcomm Innovation Center (Quic) logo which suggests it could be some kind of development project that slipped into retail. We queried Qualcomm about this TouchPad's provenance ourselves and received only a "We have no comment on the video" in return, so the decision to believe that it's real or a particularly well executed hoax is yours. Now, you can be the first to solve this riddle since the owner has put it up for sale on eBay. Need another potential perk? How about the ability to snag a TouchPad-running-Android bounty posted by HacknMod that's up to $2,150 as of this posting. Relevant links are below, including the initial Reddit post, both videos and the auction, so while our credit cards will remain securely in our wallets those who are more trusting -- or just can't believe that anyone would would be dumb enough to try and sell a fake -- can put a bid in if they so choose. Update: Apparently one of our own commenters, Shahzeb Jiwani, has come into possession of a similar device. Luckily for us, he's chosen to make a ROM dump available over on RootzWiki, so check out his video after the break or head over to the thread there as they try and find out how to make this work on everyone else's $99 tablet. [Thanks, David & Dennis]
