| Kickstarter talks to us about product 'pre-orders,' won't force refunds when creators flake May 7th 2012, 18:21  Kickstarter has proven an incredibly effective venue for connecting project creators with monetary support -- inventors pitch directly to consumers, indie filmmakers meet indie producers and food trucks get the financial push necessary to take their restaurants to the road. With the latter two, backers don't necessarily expect goods in return, save for an overvalued t-shirt, bumper sticker or film credit. When it comes to electronics, however, funders are often promised a first-off-the-line gadget -- one that may never arrive at their door. One oft-overlooked, yet critical detail should help curb expectations, while also serving to filter out pledges that are motivated by the pre-order promise, from those that offer financial support without a guaranteed return. Like it or not, all transactions fall into that second category. Pre-order offers may go unfulfilled, and some pledges may be reduced to donations, if a project creator ends up unable to deliver an item as intended. And such situations may not prompt a refund, souring the experience for an increasing number of hopeful device owners. Join us past the break for an explanation from the Kickstarter team, and a closer look at some recent examples. Continue reading Kickstarter talks to us about product 'pre-orders,' won't force refunds when creators flake Kickstarter talks to us about product 'pre-orders,' won't force refunds when creators flake originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 07 May 2012 14:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink |  Kickstarter | Email this | Comments | | Amtrak readies conductors to trade in their hole punchers for iPhones May 7th 2012, 17:25  Pilots aren't the only ones updating their workflows with modern technology. Amtrak conductors have been getting schooled on how to use iPhones to scan passenger tickets on select routes since November -- forcing hole punches to collect dust on a lonely shelf at the station. By the latter part of this summer, 1,700 conductors will be using the aforementioned smartphones on the outfit's trains throughout the US which allows them to track passengers with more ease than manual ticketing. The $7.5 million system affords passengers the choice of printing the tickets or loading a bar code on their smartphone of choice before getting the iPhone's scan. Inside the dedicated app, riders can book and modify reservations easily without having to worry with a refund from an agent first. There's only one small hiccup: currently Amtrak's app is only available for iPhones. But, the government-owned corporation says that an Android release is in the hopper and should see daylight this fall. For now, non-iOS users must load their tickets though a mobile site in order to save a tree or two. Amtrak readies conductors to trade in their hole punchers for iPhones originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 07 May 2012 13:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | New York Times | Email this | Comments | | Editorial: Apple isn't making a 'converged' laptop / tablet hybrid, but I still want one May 7th 2012, 17:00  Deflated. Disappointed. Let down. Unsurprised. All of those emotions ran through my being at one point or another following Apple CEO Tim Cook's comments regarding "converged" devices, but if anything, his denial has made me all the more hungry for this particular device. For months -- heck, maybe even years -- I've waited for Sir Jonathan Paul Ive and co. to finally nail the concept of a laptop / tablet hybrid. In many ways, Apple managed to get right on a smartphone in 2007 what I felt was wrong holding a BlackBerry. I still think the iPad's screen is about 2.7-inches too large for my own personal tastes, but the world at large has affirmed that it nailed that design, too. Oh, and the MacBook Air? C'mon -- we all know it's the thin-and-light you always wanted, and given that it'll run Windows with poise, it's arguably the sexiest Windows laptop currently on the market. The point? Apple has waited for companies to flounder about with certain designs before, all while perfecting its own take for a future release. Windows-based tablets were flooding out in the early noughties, and believe it or not, Toshiba was already giving the tablet / laptop hybrid thing a whirl in 2003 with the Portege 3500. Apple waited over half a decade to usher in the iPad, and the rest -- as they say -- is history. The iPhone followed a similar path; companies came before it and did their best to produced pleasing, long-lasting, highly usable smartphones, but the iPhone completely changed the trajectory of everything that came after. Love it or hate it, it's hard to imagine a 2012 with Windows Phone in it had Apple not pinned Windows Mobile in a corner back in '07. So, if Apple has shown an ability to thrive with designs that others have experimented with, why is the "converged" laptop / tablet a nonstarter? Continue reading Editorial: Apple isn't making a 'converged' laptop / tablet hybrid, but I still want one Editorial: Apple isn't making a 'converged' laptop / tablet hybrid, but I still want one originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 07 May 2012 13:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | | Email this | Comments | | Microsoft officially offering Xbox 360 4GB console for $99, two-year Live Gold subscription required May 7th 2012, 16:34  Whoa, Nelly! As rumored, Microsoft is indeed shattering the home console pricing paradigm by trying something that US wireless carriers have been doing for years. As of now, the official Microsoft Store is hosting up a coupon that'll enable prospective Xbox buyers to snag a 4GB console bundle for just $99 (a $200 savings versus the outright unit)... so long as you agree to pay $14.99 per month for two solid years. That monthly fee -- which amounts to some $360 over the 24 month term -- gets you on the Xbox Live network with a Gold subscription, but remember, Microsoft's maintaining the ability to "terminate this offer at any time." Looking to score one yourself? Hit the source link and visit that "Find a store" icon; hopefully there's a B&M Microsoft Store near your neck of the woods. Update: In case you're curious, yes, early termination fees will apply if you cut out of your two-year deal early. It's a prorated affair, with users asked to pay less the longer they maintain the contract. Those who part ways after only a month will have to pay $250, while those who cancel with just a month remaining will owe $12. All told, someone buying this and keeping true to the contract terms will pay $459 for the bundle and Live access, whereas those buying outright could snag it for $420 (or less, if scouring the web for cheaper Live subscriptions). The full ETF schedule is shown after the break. Continue reading Microsoft officially offering Xbox 360 4GB console for $99, two-year Live Gold subscription required Microsoft officially offering Xbox 360 4GB console for $99, two-year Live Gold subscription required originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 07 May 2012 12:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink  Joystiq | Microsoft, Contract Terms | Email this | Comments | |
