C Spire restarts LTE rollout, aims for September launch in Mississippi Mar 8th 2012, 18:29 After missing its year-end 2011 target date, C Spire is once again set to get its LTE network up and running -- this time with a more realistic fall launch. The regional carrier announced plans for that initial rollout today, aiming to blanket 20 markets in Mississippi this September. Bear in mind, this particular flavor of 4G is more akin to the brisk, though not blistering performance achieved by HSPA+, given average downlink speeds should range between 4Mbps to 12Mbps and uplink at 1Mbps to 5Mbps. Considering this may be the first taste of non-3G for some denizens of the Magnolia State, it's not a bad start. For the sake of our southern brethren, we just hope the carrier can actually fulfill on its grandiose, next-gen promises this time 'round. Check out the official presser after the break. Continue reading C Spire restarts LTE rollout, aims for September launch in Mississippi C Spire restarts LTE rollout, aims for September launch in Mississippi originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Mar 2012 14:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | | Email this | Comments | CeBIT 2012 wrap-up Mar 8th 2012, 18:00 For better or worse, our week in the frigid German city of Hannover has come to a close, bringing with it the end of this locale's days-long tourist season. All of the local highlights were in the region's Messe, and were focused around CeBIT, which draws visitors from every corner of the globe. There's no question that IT remains the focus of this giant European trade show, but buried amongst the servers, point-of-sale terminals and countless cloud-based solutions were a handful of gems. Ultrabooks stole the show from a CE perspective, with Intel's touchscreen-equipped solution making its hands-on debut, but we also came across a multitude of tablets, and even a pink Samsung Galaxy Note. We also spent some time wandering a virtual living room with a pair of head-tracking VR glasses, played a classic arcade game using only our mind ( and our eyes), and got a front-seat demo of Audi's new gesture-based entertainment system, which lets you navigate your car while focusing on the road. We've gathered all of these demos and more for an inside look at everything CeBIT, which you'll find just past the break. Now, it's time for one more currywurst before we make our way back home. Continue reading CeBIT 2012 wrap-up CeBIT 2012 wrap-up originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Mar 2012 14:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | | Email this | Comments | HP acknowledges complaints about the HP Envy 15's color calibration, will release a tuning utility in the 'coming weeks' Mar 8th 2012, 17:44 If you remember, we had some mixed feelings about the HP Envy 15's IPS display when we took the laptop for a spin earlier this year. On the one hand, it offers wide viewing angles, deep contrast and rich saturation. (Not to mention, when are we ever going to complain about 1080p resolution on a 15-incher?) Still, as many disgruntled forum posters have pointed out, the color calibration seems off against other displays, with reds skewing orange and purples veering into bluish territory. At the time, we reached out to HP for comment and were told to sit tight while the company investigated the issue. Well, today we got an answer, and while the outfit is stopping short of admitting any sort of defect, it is willing to concede the color tuning is different, to say the least. Better yet, it's promising a fix for those incapable of un-seeing it. In a statement, HP's PR team said: HP understands that some customers have expressed concern regarding the appearance of the color red in the ENVY 15 full High Definition (HD) panel, and we wanted to reassure our customers that this panel is functioning properly. HP ENVY Series notebooks use optional premium LED-backlit display panels that have a higher color gamut (range of viewable colors), brightness and viewing angles than many display panels. This means that some colors may appear differently than they do on other displays. A company rep added that over the "coming weeks" HP will release a tuning utility that will allow users to adjust the color settings, making those reds redder, et cetera. It's still unclear how extensive these options will be (after all, HP is still steering the most discerning customers toward its DreamColor offerings), but something's most likely better than nothing, right? HP acknowledges complaints about the HP Envy 15's color calibration, will release a tuning utility in the 'coming weeks' originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Mar 2012 13:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | | Email this | Comments | Verizon will support Mobile Hotspot on the new iPad, AT&T still working on it Mar 8th 2012, 17:21 It's no secret that the new iPad will offer the ability to share a data connection with other devices through a mobile hotspot, but the feature doesn't do any good if your wireless network doesn't offer it. Representatives from Verizon and AT&T sent tweets this morning that raised more questions than they answered, leaving us concerned that both companies had decided not to allow the hotspot capability at all. After reaching out to the carriers, however, we're able to shed some light on the subject: Verizon killed the rumor, telling us it has "every intention of supporting Mobile Hotspot on the new iPad," while AT&T stated that it is "working with Apple to enable this feature in the future, but we currently do not offer it." In other words, Verizon has everything settled and ready to go when the first iPad shipments arrive next week, while AT&T and Apple are supposedly still at the negotiation table. Are the two companies trying to hash out some kind of revenue sharing deal as we sit idly by, yearning for the coveted option to magically appear? Whatever the reason, AT&T's answer isn't a full-out no -- but it's not a yes, either. Update: In regards to pricing, Verizon also stated: "All of our tablet data plans include Mobile Hotspot so customers do not have to pay an additional fee for the service on tablets." Verizon will support Mobile Hotspot on the new iPad, AT&T still working on it originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Mar 2012 13:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink 9to5Mac | Twitter (VZW), (AT&T) | Email this | Comments | |