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Bleeding Edge TV 399: Motorola Droid Bionic review
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Full Episodes, Gizmatic, Cell Phones, Features, Handhelds, Podcasts, Product Reviews, Videocasts, Videos,
We give you a look at the Motorola Droid Bionic in this episode. The Droid Bionic is a 4G LTE smartphone on the Verizon Wireless network, sporting a dual-core processor, 8 megapixel camera, and 1080p recording. The front camera even allows you to take part in Google Hangout sessions. ZumoCast allows you to stream content from your PC directly to the device. The Droid Bionic has a 4.3-inch qHD display. We explain the features and give you a look at the device in this episode.
Big thank you to GoToMeeting and JackThreads for sponsoring the show - be sure to check them out! As for JackThreads, we've got exclusive invite codes that give you $5 to use towards anything you'd like.
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Motorola Droid RAZR: 4G LTE, 4.3-inch qHD Super AMOLED screen, $299 this November
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Google, Handhelds,
Today Motorola announced the return of their most popular brand ever when they unveiled the Droid RAZR smartphone. The RAZR isn't just another Android handset, and you know they Motorola wouldn't just slap that name on any average device. This one has a Gorilla Glass covered 4.3-inch qHD Super AMOLED display (this has not been seen on any other mobile phone to date,) and a body made of Kevlar, making it lightweight, water-resistant, and durable. On the inside you've got a dual-core 1.2GHz TI OMAP4430 chip, 8 megapixel camera that records 1080p video, 1 GB RAM, and 16 GB flash storage onboard (and another 16 GB on the included microSD card.) It also runs on Verizon's 4G LTE network.
Motorola's also tried to make the phone as thin as they could, touting that it's just 7.1mm thin, but that doesn't take into account the thicker bottom area. Who's counting, right? One other nice feature is the addition of something Moto's calling SmartActions. It's meant to preserve and optimize battery life by doing things like turning off Bluetooth when you get home, or clocking down the processor while you're on a phone call.
You'll be able to squeeze out 12.5 hours of talk time when this bad boy hits Verizon this November 6th, and it'll cost you $299 for the priviledge. Pre-orders start October 27th.
iPhone 4S review
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Features, Handhelds, Product Reviews,
After over a year, Apple has released the follow-up to the iPhone 4, and its called the iPhone 4S. What do you do with your phone? If you're like most Americans, you make some calls, take some photos, and send some texts. Maybe you kill time with some games, check Facebook or Twitter, and look things up on the Web. If that's you, then the iPhone 4S ($199-$399 with contract on Sprint, Verizon, and AT&T) is your phone: it's the best cameraphone in the US, the fastest Web-browsing phone, and one that has finally licked the iPhone's calling problems. It's so good, that it's our current Editors' Choice on Sprint, Verizon, and AT&T.
Click to continue reading iPhone 4S review
Apple sells over 1 million iPhone 4S pre-orders in 24 hours
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Corporate News, Handhelds,
This morning Apple announced that it had sold over 1 million iPhone 4S smartphones within the first 24 hours that they were available for pre-order. No matter how you look at it, this is a monstrous number, and crushes last year's iPhone 4 figures, which were "only" 600,000 on the first day. These 1 million pre-orders obviously don't include all the folks who'll be lining up at Apple, AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint locations this Friday to buy the iPhone 4S directly. The device goes on sale at retail locations at 8:00 am on October 14th.
This is a shout-out to all the media who were calling the iPhone 4S underwhelming and disappointing--apparently over a million consumers disagree.
Another midnight iPhone pre-order fiasco
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Handhelds,
With the fifth iPhone launch looming, you'd think that five years would be enough time for major companies like Apple and AT&T to get this stuff working. You'd think. Unfortunately, when the iPhone 4S pre-orders were supposed to start at 12:01am PDT today, it took about 40 minutes before Apple's online store came back online, and things quickly went downhill from there. While Verizon customers seemed to be able to make purchases with ease, and even Sprint's site held up well despite some slowness, AT&T's systems continually crashed and burned until Apple threw in the towel and implemented a reservation system two hours later so that people could reserve a device and get to bed, coming back later to complete the transaction.
Here's looking to next year's improvements...we hope!
iPhone 4S: A5 chip, 8MP camera, 1080p, Siri, available October 14th
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Handhelds,
Today (after accidentally outing it) Apple announced the iPhone 4S. The device is the follow-up to the massively popular iPhone 4, and features an internal overhaul while keeping the same iPhone 4 external design. So, what's changed? First, the iPhone 4S is rocking an A5 processor, which makes it 2x faster in performance, and 7x faster graphics performance than the iPhone 4. The camera is upgraded to 8 megapixels, and records in 1080p video.
The iPhone 4S has two cell antennas, and will intelligently switch between the two on the fly. Speaking of antennas, the 4S is also a world phone, supporting both GSM and CDMA networks. The device can download data at about 14.4Mbps, which is double the iPhone 4 and its 7.2Mbps speeds - AT&T actually says this is 4G speed, but we won't get into all that.
The iPhone 4S will be available in black and white on October 14th, and will cost $199 for 16 GB, $299 for 32 GB, and $399 for the 64 GB model, a first for the iPhone. Another first? In addition to AT&T and Verizon, now Sprint customers can get in on the love as well.
Why Apple is announcing the iPhone 5 in October instead of June
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Editorial, Software,
The iPhone 5 will be revealed in under an hour. In all likelihood, it won't be called that—that's just the general name people are calling the device, since it will technically be the fifth iPhone model from Apple. As with any iPhone launch, there have been the obligatory predictions, analysis, and mountains of rumors, but this launch is different from previous ones in a big and obvious way: Apple is unveiling the next iPhone in the fall instead of summer. Why?
It used to be there was a kind of unwritten agreement between Apple and its customers. Apple didn't say word one about any of its products until they were on the verge of general release. On the other side, customers and observers—the whole world, really—could rely on an extremely regular product release schedule: iPods in the fall, iPads in the winter/spring, and iPhones in the summer. It was so predictable you could plan vacations around it.
Click to continue reading Why Apple is announcing the iPhone 5 in October instead of June
Comcast and Verizon live TV content expected to come to Xbox 360
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Home Entertainment, Microsoft, Rumors, Video Games,
Microsoft will partner with providers like Comcast and Verizon for its upcoming Xbox 360 integrated TV experience, according to a Bloomberg report.
Users will sign into Comcast Xfinity and Verizon FiOS apps on the Xbox 360 with existing account information. Redmond will also likely ink content deals with HBO, Sony's Crackle, the Bravo and SyFy channels, and Amazon's Lovefilm, Bloomberg said.
Microsoft discussed its Live TV efforts at this year's E3 gaming conference, and the feature has already kicked off overseas with Sky TV in the U.K., Canal Plus in France, and FoxTel in Australia. Microsoft chief Steve Ballmer provided more details on what US consumers can expect during a presentation at the company's BUILD conference earlier this month.
"It's quite obvious that we need to increase the amount of video and TV content that are available on the Xbox," Ballmer said. "Our goal this year is to dramatically increase the total amount of content, the total entertainment catalog available on the Xbox, particularly by working in partnership with a number of video suppliers."
Click to continue reading Comcast and Verizon live TV content expected to come to Xbox 360
Samsung Galaxy S II is their fastest selling smartphone ever
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Corporate News, Google, Handhelds,
Samsung has announced the latest batch of sales figures for its Galaxy S II Android smartphone, and the device remains the company's fastest-growing smartphone yet.
According to Samsung, the Galaxy S2 has officially hit 10 million in sales all of five months after the device's worldwide launch this past April. Sales in South Korea take the lion's share of the total at 3.6 million, with European markets close behind at 3.4 million. Sales of the smartphone in Asia hit a total of 2.3 million.
"In just five months the Galaxy S II has seen tremendous growth, reflecting its tremendous popularity with customers around the world, who in selecting the Galaxy S2 as their device of choice have driven the device's strong market position globally," said J.K. Shin, president of Samsung's mobile communications division, in a statement.
Previous sales figures put the Galaxy S2 at three million units sold after a mere 55 days on the market, shattering the company's sales records at the time. In fact, the Galaxy S2 hit the three-million figure all of 30 days faster than its predecessor device, Samsung's Galaxy S smartphone. Total Galaxy S2 sales then ballooned up to five million at the 85 day-mark.
Click to continue reading Samsung Galaxy S II is their fastest selling smartphone ever
AT&T 4G LTE compared to Verizon 4G LTE
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Broadband, Smartphones, Wireless / WiFi,
AT&T officially dipped its toe into the waters of higher-speed mobile communications today with the debut of the company's 4G LTE network – yes, that's 4G LTE, not just "4G" – in five launch cities: Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio, Houston, Atlanta, and Chicago.
And it's safe to say that mobile users aren't going to be overtaxing the service anytime soon, as there currently aren't any AT&T handsets that would actually be able to make use of the new network. Users would have to pick up either AT&T's USBConnect Momentum 4G modem, Elevate 4G mobile hotspot, or USBConnect Adrenaline in order to get Wi-Fi friendly devices or laptop and desktop PCs connected up to 4G LTE. Those, or the recently announced HTC Jetstream 10.1-inch tablet, which promises to support both AT&T's 4G LTE and "4G" network, or HSPA+.
That's a big difference that's worth highlighting, as it's sure to ensnare neophyte consumers who can't understand why their "4G" devices don't work on AT&T's new network. We're talking different technologies: 4G LTE isn't 4G, or HSPA+. The latter's more closely related, technology-wise, to a 3G network. And it's worth noting that 3G devices aren't themselves compatible with an HSPA+ network. Got it?
Click to continue reading AT&T 4G LTE compared to Verizon 4G LTE
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