Last time the winds of hearsay rustled our tech feathers, word was Samsung had pegged its Tab 2 10.1 for a quad-core CPU transplant. While the company went on the record to shoot down that pesky rumor, it remained suspiciously mum where the Galaxy Note 10.1 was concerned. Now, thanks to a brief video demo over on German site All About Samsung, it appears the formerly dual-core slate refresh we had a chance to preview back in March could, indeed, be set for a processor swap. Though it's still far from official, the new Note 10.1 shown above looks to be sharing not only some of the Galaxy S III's specs -- 1.4GHz quad-core Exynos processor with Mali 400 MP GPU and a TouchWizzed Android 4.0.4-- but also that formerly problematic Pebble Blue finish. And much to our delight, it also appears as if the company's revised the tablet's design slightly, adding in a convenient slot on the lower left hand side for S-Pen stowage. Not convinced by mere words alone? The head past the break for video evidence of this purported hardware upgrade.
Nintendo might have more up its E3 sleeve than just final Wii U hardware and a boatload of franchise games. According to Nikkei, the Japanese console legend is readying a version of the 3DS with a big 4.3-inch main display. That's smaller than on some smartphones we've seen, but a more than substantial jump from the 3.5-inch original. We might not even have long to wait: the trade paper claims that this biggest of all Nintendo handhelds could be ready as soon as the summer, just in time to squeak in some vacation playtime (and prepare us for Luigi's Mansion 2). As always, rumors such as these aren't guaranteed roadmaps; don't be surprised if we just see a regular-sized 3DS in plaid instead. If the plans are real, however, expect the DSi XL to develop feelings of inadequacy.
Most gamer who want to play with more than one or two vintage console platforms often turn to software-based emulators that may or may not be above-board. How about stuffing all of the authentic hardware into one controller and one base unit? Modders at Bacteria's forums have developed Project Unity, an attempt to natively address 20 consoles across 17 actual platforms folded into a single device. The gamepad, arguably the centerpiece, includes two each of analog sticks and directional pads, along with multiple shoulder buttons and a central button grid that can either be used to steer an Intellivision or fill in for otherwise missing controls. Stuffing the unique controller hardware into one gamepad obviously presents problems with board sizes and the laws of physics, so much of the relevant circuitry sits in modified NES cartridges. Our only dismays are the lack of original Xbox support and the slightly imposing challenge of aggregating and modifying that much classic gaming componentry in one place -- if you're more concerned about convenience in your retro gaming than preserving the original feel of that Sega Master System or SNK NeoGeo, though, you've just found Utopia.
An interesting twist in the world of social media came today with confirmation that Google has entered into an agreement to purchase Meebo, a company known for its eponymous Meebo Bar. Primarily a platform that's intended to drive consumer engagement with brands via a social medium, Meebo also provides advertisers a less-intrusive way to reach their target audiences. Meebo announced the acquisition on its blog, and hints that its team will work with Google to grow and improve the platform. It's unclear whether Google intends to integrate the Meebo Bar into its own online properties, or whether the Mountain View giant simply views it as a method to increase its advertising reach. Regardless, it seems a bit of a no-brainer that Google+ will soon find a new home in the Meebo Bar. While the final purchase price remains a bit of a mystery, AllThingsD sources peg the deal in the neighborhood of $100 million. Not a bad way to start a Monday.
Thunderbolt has leant its air of celebrity to yet another device: the Matrox DS1 docking station, due out this fall for $249. The laptop dock has room for pretty much everything you'd want to plug in when you reach your desk, including DVI, gigabit Ethernet, audio in and out, two USB 3.0 ports and one USB 2.0. All those connections are then funneled into a single Thunderbolt output to your MacBook or Ultrabook. This provides "one cable convenience," but the lack of an extra port means there's no scope for daisy-chaining Thunderbolt storage or other components you might pick up at some point before 2015. If that seems like an important omission, look out for Belkin's alternative expected this Summer, which finds room not only for Thunderbolt in and out, but also for FireWire -- though likely at a higher price.
It's Monday, which means it is time for you to listen into the recording booth when the Engadget HD podcast goes to mp3 at 5:30PM.Please be a part of it by reviewing the list of topics after the break, then participating in the live chat too.
In the tech industry, you're only as safe as your latest batch of patent procurements. And Google, stuffed with billion dollar coffers, is only too happy to comply. Neatly paired with its recently wrapped Motorola acquisition, the Mountain View-based company's just expanded its intellectual property holdings with a portfolio related to mobile RF uplink solutions. Formerly the property of Magnolia Broadband, the outfit's "beamforming" tech will now undoubtedly aid the search giant's in-house manufacture of smartphone and tablet devices -- likely those of the Jellybean sort. No financial details of the transaction have been disclosed at this time, but you can bet your bottom dollar the price of this innovation didn't come cheap. Über-brief PR after the break.
The exterior of the Canal Room is a touch jarring in the harsh light of day. The street-level windows of the TriBeCa brick building are plastered with giant, neon posters advertising the venue's reoccurring theme nights - events with names like "Back to the Eighties Show featuring RUBIX KUBE: The Ultimate '80s Tribute Band" and "Saved By The '90s: A Party with The Bayside Tigers." Checkerboard backgrounds and pictures of Screech abound. And for a moment, I'm worried for Thomas Dolby. It's hard not to entertain images of the singer being tortured with Teddy Ruxpins, forced to perform 30-year-old songs for a crowd of middle-aged showgoers squeezed into their prom dresses, in defiance of all laws of physics.
Things are much less troubling inside, however. The lights are dim and there's no neon to be seen - and while Dolby himself is MIA a few hours ahead of the show, a pair of dancers run around the space all steampunked out in corsets and high-heeled boots. One spots our photographer and asks whether we're there to "shoot the belly dancer." It's an interaction I can't help but relate to Dolby when he finally arrives, off-handedly comparing the whole thing to a traveling circus of sorts. "Actually," he responds, "it's quite simple compared to some other show. There's no video here, only three musicians, so this is the simple version."
This is the scaled-back version of Dolby's live show in 2012. For one thing, the tour had to leave its chrome 1930s-era trailer back in Jersey. Apparently it's just too difficult to get a giant time capsule through the Holland Tunnel. In its absence, Dolby describes the vehicle as appearing to have been "modified by Jules Verne and Nikola Tesla," adding that it "houses a video suite, which allows anybody from the public to shoot a 30-second message to the future. So, we've got a YouTube channel called Time Capsule TV and people are uploading these messages that they shoot in the time capsule and the most popular ones, based on the views and so on, we'll sort of preserve for posterity, for the future."
If it's the end of a financial quarter, there must be another chronicle of the iPad swelling Apple's money pile and its tablet competitors trying in vain to chip off more for themselves. And with 11.8 million shipped by Cupertino out of 18.2 million slates total, that's pretty much the case -- with a minor shuffle of those "other guys" the only other tidbit. To wit, Amazon's Kindle petered into third spot only a quarter after trumpeting its ascension to number two, and Samsung displaced it as distant runner-up with sales of 1.1 million tabs. The most wide-eyed in the Korean maker's camp might point to Apple being topped in the rate of 3G / 4G tablets sold, but with eight times the sales of WiFi models, we doubt Apple's number-crunchers are losing any sleep over it. Per usual, the full report can be seen in the source link.
Lodsys has been facing an increasing backlash ever since it began suing left and right to scrape money from developers over patents, including countering lawsuits from some heavy hitters. Its stiffest opposition might have just lined up in the form of Oracle, however. The database behemoth is hoping to render four of Lodsys' patents invalid and prevent it from threatening further lawsuits against companies that use Oracle's technology, such as current target Walgreens. The lawsuits are focused more on web chats than on the in-app purchasing that has put more than a few mobile app developers in jeopardy, although it might help EA or Rovio at ease knowing Lodsys might be defanged. Oracle certainly isn't mincing any words in its accusations: it out-and-out accuses Lodsys of being a patent troll that profits from technology it didn't invent and will never use. Strong rhetoric against patent lawsuits won't guarantee Oracle a victory in court, but it certainly creates a minor degree of irony for a company that unsuccessfully sued Google over patents inherited through an acquisition.
Microsoft is likely as eager to announce the upcoming version of Windows Phone -- known as Apollo or Windows Phone 8 -- as we are to hear about it. Fortunately, we expect the answers to our many questions won't be left unanswered for much longer, as the folks in Redmond are flying down to San Francisco to offer us a sneak peak of "the future of Windows Phone." Certainly, we're hoping this brief look at the next OS will be more expansive than, say, the BlackBerry 10 reveal last month. Either way, we'll be at the event to cover every single detail, so mark your calendar!
