WistronNeweb
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New DirecTV Cinema Connection Kit hits FCC with wireless in tow
A new version of DirecTV's Cinema Connection kit has just sneakily hit the FCC filed under its OEM name of Wistron NeWeb Corporation. Unlike the current model which required a direct Ethernet connection to work, this unit can act as wireless receiver to connect your individual DirecTV DVRs or an entire whole-home network. That gives users the freedom to access the company's online CINEMAplus library of 4,000 movies and TV shows at no additional cost for the service (we're sure DirecTV will find someway to ding you at least for the kit though). To get a glimpse for yourself, check out the gallery below featuring internal and external beauty shots of the device included with the filing, along with key pages from the user manual. Otherwise, let's all give DirecTV a nice slow-clap for entering the world of wireless streaming at its own leisurely pace. %Gallery-115419%
Hands-on with Wistron NeWeb's GW4 Linux phone
Though it bears a vague resemblance to the utterly nonexistent device pictured in Android's emulator, rest assured: the GW4 QWERTY phone from Wistron NeWeb doesn't run Google kit. It does however run some other homegrown flavor of Linux, giving promise that it could end up as a nice little clean slate on which to drop an Android image when the time comes. Like the physical phone itself, the existing UI seems really functional, if not a little rough around the edges; you get VoIP, weather and stock widgets, WiFi, and Bluetooth, though you won't find any HSDPA, UMTS, or even EDGE here. Not a bad effort, guys -- keep crackin' and we might see you fighting for market share with the OpenMoko types of the world.%Gallery-12945%
Qtopia dual-mode phone drops in France
We first told you about Wistron NeWeb's GW1 dual-mode candybar with tri-band GSM and VoIP over WiFi back in January when we caught wind of it at CES; now, it looks like they've picked up a launch partner. Rebranded as the "Twin" by French MVNO Neuf (that's "Nine" for you non-Francophones out there), the phone appears to be hit with the basically the same ugly stick that afflicted the GW1, but never mind that -- the big draw here is dual mode, which Neuf will offer at regular mobile rates through customer's Internet connections and its own hotspots. Also of note is that the Twin / GW1 runs Qtopia for folks looking to make an escape from more traditional smartphone platforms. The Twin is available unlocked and without contract for €200 or €1 when purchased with a Neuf Internet connection and phone plan.
