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Microsoft sending upgraded Xbox 360 consoles to users with disc issues
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Hardware, Microsoft, Xbox 360, Xbox Live,
Microsoft is offering a small number of Xbox 360 owners replacement consoles and a free year of Xbox Live as compensation for a firmware glitch, according to a report.
According to Kotaku, some customers have received emails stating that consumers can trade in their defective consoles in return for an upgrade.
Microsoft also confirmed the report via Twitter, in response to the posting of a screenshot of the letter by user Avery Penn.
However, the email from Microsoft appears to anticipate problems with the console, as Penn told Kotaku that his console is still able to read the discs. "The email was most likely referring to the Xbox LIVE update which is being phased in between May 19 and May 30 – an update which reflashes the DVD drives to a new stock firmware, and adds support for new XGD3 disk format," Kotaku added. "It's this update that allows an extra GB of usable storage on game discs."
Click to continue reading Microsoft sending upgraded Xbox 360 consoles to users with disc issues
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MacBook Air EFI Firmware Update 2.0 released
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Software,
If you picked up one of the new MacBook Air notebooks that Apple released recently, you'll wanna fire up Software Update to pull down the EFI Firmware Update 2.0. It fixes an issue where the Air boots or wakes to a black screen or becomes unresponsive. We're sure it's rare, but we think we speak for everyone when we say that we'd rather something like that not happen at all, so take care of that update, okay?
Sprint Overdrive 2.06.06 update available now
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Software, Wireless / WiFi,
We are big fans of the Sprint Overdrive, especially because here in Seattle, we’ve got 4G coverage. The network is speedy, and the Overdrive pretty much comes with us wherever we go. We use it as a WI-Fi hotspot for the iPhone, iPad, and laptop. We can even let friends hop on the network if need be. That said, there have been a few annoyances every now and then—it would crash once or twice a day, requiring a reboot. Starting the thing up took forever. Random disconnects would have us questioning why we weren’t getting data.
Well, a new firmware update for the Overdrive was released yesterday, and it seems to fix everything we had a problem with. Here’s the full list of fixes and improvements:
- Improved device stability, eliminating all known freeze-ups and lock-ups
- Wi-Fi enhancements that improve Wi-Fi stability and eliminate Wi-Fi disconnects and crashes
- Significant improvement in 3G & 4G WAN stability, eliminating most 3G and 4G disconnects
- Some improvement in overall battery life and battery life in poor coverage; for more information on how to improve battery life, see the “Overdrive Battery Tips” document on DSP
- Faster boot-up time (10-12 seconds faster)
- Improved response time when changing the WAN Mode setting - time savings of approximately 1 minute, 20 seconds; no reboot required (includes switching from 3G to 4G and vice versa)
- Tool Tips added to GPS settings screen to help the users understand the GPS settings
- Faster response time after canceling an operation on the Advanced Settings screen (device reset is no longer required; offline time decreased by 1.5 minutes)
- The ability to now enable or disable the microSD card and the TRU-install™ feature in addition to DataLink support
Just log in to your Overdrive admin console and check for updates. You’ll get the new hotness in short order.
Read More 
| Sprint Overdrive
Zune 3.1 update: More games, better Social, more
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Handhelds, Microsoft, Music, Portable Audio / Video, Video Games,
Just two months after the Zune 3.0 release, Microsoft is now deploying the next incremental update to their Zune platform with Zune 3.1. Available for download today, the Zune 3.1 update brings quite a few welcome feature changes and updates:
- New Games: Checkers, Sudoku, and Space Battle
- New multiplayer mode, and single-player difficulty levels, for Texas Hold’em
- Visual changes to the Zune Social, making it prettier and easier to navigate
- Like-Minder Listeners feature added to social, allowing you to compare your music tastes to others
- Improved play count reporting, content synchronization, and other bug fixes in both the hardware and software
You can grab the update now by launching your Zune software, going into Settings, and hitting Check for Updates.
Read More | Zune Insider
PS3 2.30 firmware to bring DTS-HD Master Audio to console, revamped PLAYSTATION Store
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Downloadable Content, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Network, Release Dates, Sony,
Okay, so first and foremost, the atrocious PLAYSTATION Store that the PS3 has been sporting is going to be replaced with PS3 firmware 2.30. That is a good thing, because compared to both the Xbox Live Marketplace and the Wii Shopping Channel, the PLAYSTATION Store just performs horrible in our opinion. So good on Sony for changing that up. You can get a look at the new interface in the video above, which Sony put together. It looks a lot better.
Second thing, which is even better than the store upgrade if you ask us, is that the 2.30 firmware update is going to finally bring DTS-HD Master Audio to the Playstation 3, alongside DTS-HD High Resolution Audio. If you are a Blu-ray fan, then this means the world to you if you have a compatible receiver. Be prepared for perfect lossless audio to be read at an “incredible high variable rate of 24.5 mega-bits per second” in 7.1 surround sound. This is the one thing the PS3 was missing as a Blu-ray player (well, this, and Dolby-HD), and now makes it pretty much future-proof.
You get all this goodness on April 15th.
Playstation Blog
iPhone Dev Team jailbreaks and unlocks iPhone 2.0
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Handhelds, Mods / Hacks, Software,
In an absurd turn of events, the iPhone Dev Team has announced that they’ve completely unlocked the upcoming iPhone 2.0 software that we are all waiting to get access to come this June. Even better, it is a full unlock as opposed to a simple jailbreak. Custom hacked firmware, ready to run and install any application, whether is is unsigned or “Apple Approved.” Better still, the Dev Team believes that this is a hole that Apple is going to have a very difficult time closing. I guess I should have known when my pal Nate True informed me a while back that, until Apple releases new iPhone hardware, the method used for breaking in will continue to work, regardless of any changes made to the software. This is all part of the Pwnage Project.
We love it.
Read More | ModMyiFone
iPhone 1.1.3 firmware feature gallery
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Accessories, Apple, Smartphones, Features, Software,
UPDATE: In case you thought this was fake, Steve Jobs just confirmed that our 1.1.3 coverage is real in his MacWorld 2008 keynote.
Looks like the soon-to-be-released iPhone firmware 1.1.3 has quite a few surprises. We were able to get a look at it, and here is what we found:
- The ability to send an SMS message to multiple people is now there
- Google Maps application can now pinpoint your location using cell tower triangulation
- Google Maps can now display the Hybrid map view
- You can now drag and drop application icons on your home screen
- The home screen supports pagination
- You can now add web bookmarks to your home screen
That is all we have found for now. We also know that is you used AnySIM to unlock your phone, you can expect the 1.1.3 update to brick it. Good times. Take a look at our iPhone Firmware 1.1.3 Gallery for a photo tour of the new stuff. By the way, if you are looking for an excellent program to create custom ringtones for your iPhone, check out iPhone RingToneMaker.
EDIT: We are answering your iPhone 1.1.3 questions! Check out our first batch of iPhone 1.1.3 answers here.
Read More | iPhone 1.1.3 Feature Gallery
Gallery:
Apple slowly bumping up the speed on iPhones?
Posted by Sparky Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Portable Audio / Video, Wireless / WiFi,
With the new 1.1.2 firmware many users reported that their iPhones ‘felt a little snappier’. This could be in part due to the fact that with the 1.1.2 firmware the processor is actually being used at a slightly higher speed. iPhones ship with a 624mz processor, but originally Apple capped them at 400mz for typical use to help enhance the battery life. With 1.1.2 that’s been bumped up to 412.
While this may not be major news right now, it does hint that Apple may have more features planned which require the additional horsepower. Another side of the coin may be that as Apple continues to refine the iPhone code base and make various functions more efficient they can ramp up the processor without adversely affecting battery life. Whatever the cause we can hopefully look forward to seeing our iPhones get faster and faster with each coming software update.
Read More | iPhone Atlas
Samsung BD-P1000 and BD-P1200 Blu-ray players get new BD+ firmware tomorrow
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Home Entertainment, Movies, Software,
Our pals over at Samsung just alerted us to the fact that their BD-P1000 and BD-P1200 Blu-ray disc players will be receiving the firmware upgrade treatment tomorrow. This is good news, because some of the latest Blu-ray titles have had issues playing on the Samsung players due to the lack of BD+ support. This update fixes that. Here are all the details, straight from them:
Available on Friday, 10/12/07, the firmware update will be available on www.samsung.com for users to download, burn to disc, and load into the player. Owners of the BD-P1200 will have the option to do the update via the player’s Ethernet connection. This firmware update will resolve freezing issues experienced when viewing Fox titles and their BD+ features. Details are as follows:
BD-P1000 Firmware Update
This firmware update provides the following benefits:
- Enhanced Blu-ray movie title playability regarding BD+
BD-P1200 Firmware Update
The firmware update provides the following benefits:
- Improves playback compatibility in some movies
- Enhanced Blu-ray movie title playability regarding BD+
- Enhanced performance of in-movie games
- Fixing audio noise in some movies
Mac Pro SMC Firmware Update 1.1 Released
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Software,
If you are pushing a Mac Pro, time to fire up Software Update, as Apple has just pushed out the Mac Pro SMC Firmware Update 1.1. What’s it do? Straight from the horse’s mouth:
The SMC Firmware Update adjusts fan behavior in Mac Pro. The updater application will be installed in the /Applications/Utilities folder and will launch automatically. Please follow the instructions in the updater application to complete the process.
So there you have it - fan behavior upgrade. Not too exciting, but still important.
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