An analyst report sent today hints at Apple producing an iPhone that would work with both GSM and CDMA networks. The OTR Global note obtained by AppleInsider claims to know of an iPhone in development with a hybrid Qualcomm chipset that will support the two normally incompatible standards. It would support UMTS-based 3G on carriers like AT&T and would presumably support EVDO-based 3G on Verizon and similar CDMA carriers.
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LaCie is without a doubt best known for its hard drives and other storage solutions, many of which are often particularly good-looking. The company's new Sound2 Speakers could also be described in just such a way. Shaped by French designer Neil Poulton and engineered by Cabasse, a French loud speaker manufacturer, the design comes across as a French supermodel. But does that mean the design is strictly superficial? Our Sound2 review finds an answer.
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Verizon late Thursday confirmed that it would add tethering to the Motorola Droid but clarified its plans. Contradicting a prior statement, it now says tethering when ready will cost $30 in addition to the phone's existing voice and data plans. It will also have a 5GB bandwidth cap before overage fees begin, though the tethering rate will be separate from the Droid's regular data.
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A recent FCC filing indicates that TiVo is readying an 802.11n accessory. The device, listed as the AN0100 Wireless 11n AP, appears to be a successor to the current AG0100 Wireless G USB network adapter the company sells for connecting its DVRs to a home network. The current model supports TiVoToGo, multi-room viewing, music, photos, and online scheduling.
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A new development by partly government-backed Fluidic Energy could potentially extend the battery life of notebooks, cars and other devices well beyond existing lithium-ion cells. Known as Metal-Air Ionic Liquid (MAIL), it would improve energy storage beyond relatively efficient zinc-air batteries by using an ionic liquid salt to conduct electricity that is much more stable and isn't prone to drying out either by accident or by eventual decay. The move would let battery makers use metals denser than zinc and therefore hold a much larger charge in a given volume.
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17 hours ago | Posted in: computers
Lenovo's rumored ThinkPad netbook will launch at the start of the next year, a leak today says. It's now purportedly named the ThinkPad X100e and may ship on January 5th, just ahead of CES. System specs are only guessed at but may not necessarily cling to the Atoms found in the IdeaPads; instead, it's speculated that Lenovo may use either Intel's CULV processors or an AMD Athlon Neo.
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The absence of long lines at most Verizon stores for the Motorola Droid is a positive sign, company spokesman David Samberg claimed today. According to the representative, Verizon believes early queues as "not really the goal" and that they are "flashy" more than a sign of actual built-up demand. The carrier would prefer to see a regular flow over coming weeks rather than an initial rush.
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Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime has again taken time to deny rumors of an advanced Wii shipping next year. Following assertions by analyst Michael Pachter that a new model is due in 2010, Fils-Aime tells Gametrailers TV that Pachter is the only one making such claims and that the rumored console is "not happening." Fils-Aime doesn't talk about whether or not the Wii will be updated at any point in the future but is emphatic that a replacement isn't coming soon.
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ARM president Tudor Brown at a presentation on Friday provided early details of his company's next-generation architecture for smartphones and other handhelds. Nicknamed Eagle, the processor design will focus on speed and come with a multi-core main processor, "high-end" graphics and better security against hardware-related attacks. Power use will be kept down by using GlobalFoundries' new 28 nanometer process and should get more efficient still when the assembly process shrinks to 22 nanometers.
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20 hours ago | Posted in: software
The first public beta of Boxee will be shown on December 7th, according to its developer. The app is primarily used to stream movies and TV shows to an HDTV, including remote content from sources such as Hulu and Netflix. Music and photos can also be streamed; versions of the app have been produced for the Mac, Windows and the Apple TV.
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Apple gained market share in the summer but slipped in the face of tougher competition, according to new IDC data. The iPhone's share of smartphones grew from 16.6 percent to 17.1 percent during the quarter but was overtaken by Research in Motion's record BlackBerry sales, which pushed it above Apple from 14.6 percent to 19 percent. The reversal is credited to the BlackBerry's wider distribution and the launch of a pair of key phones, the Tour and the Curve 8520.
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ASUS' leaked Eee PC 1201N netbook has gained a more definitive release date through a rumor on Friday. The NVIDIA Ion-based portable is now slated by Electricpig as arriving in at least the UK by December. Premature store listings put the price at $756, though the cost is likely to be lower for the as yet unknown North American release.
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Dell's Mini 3iX smartphone has edged closer to the US today with an FCC filing. While the phone itself isn't photographed, a label diagram confirms its identity as it identifies the handheld as a phone with UMTS-based 3G and Bluetooth.
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Microsoft chief research officer Craig Mundie as part of his college tour this week demonstrated a unique concept for a future computing interface that would in many cases go without any touch input. Although it would support pens for precise input, the transparent glass display would also recognize voices and detect touch-free gestures, much as with the Xbox 360's upcoming Project Natal. The system can also detect eyes and navigate based on their gaze.
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Canadian carrier Rogers could be the first in North America to pick up a version of the HTC Touch2, according to sources familiar with its plans. The Windows Mobile 6.5 phone is reportedly coming onboard in one or more colors that aren't normally picked for the phone; blue and red are both being considered as choices. While not confirmed at this stage, it's also implied that the phone will have North America-native 3G where the stock version goes without.
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(Updated with additional lineup details) Early reports have suggested relatively small lineups for the Droid at Verizon stores. Visitors to most stores have seen lines of several people or less, with others seeing no lineups even with later early opening 8AM openings. The midnight opening at Verizon's 34th Street Manhattan store has also been described as modest, with one report so far suggesting that only 20 were in queue roughly an hour before it opened and no reports of the line growing much larger by 12AM.
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