Daily technology digest!

[DrEvil]

Verizon's HTC Droid Incredible Priced at $200

The only remaining unknown for Verizon's Droid Incredible, a Snapdragon-powered Android 2.1 handset from HTC, was the price, which was today pegged at $200. Oh, and pre-orders start Monday.

In case you're not in the mood to reassemble months worth of leaks, here's the finalized spec sheet for Verizon's newest piece:

    Android 2.1 with HTC Sense experience
    1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon™ processor for maximum responsiveness
    Friend Stream for unified Flickr, Facebook and Twitter updates
    "Leap" view for quick access to all seven home screen panels
    8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash for crisp, detailed images
    Razor-sharp 3.7 inch WVGA (480x800) AMOLED capacitive touch display
    Optical joystick for smooth navigation
    Dedicated, touch-sensitive Home, Menu, Back and Search keys
    Proximity sensor, light sensor and digital compass
    Integrated GPS
    Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g)
    3.5 mm headset jack

Throw in the muscular-bordering-on-tacky rear styling, the general goodness of HTC's latest Sense interface, and what it's safe to assume is a significantly better camera than the crap Motorola's been shoveling into their Android handsets lately, and Verizon customers have a serious alternative to the Droid here—assuming they're OK with losing the keyboard.

[nid404]

features quite reasonable for the price....but i'd like a sleeker phone

[DrEvil]

iPad 3G coming by May 7th

Apple has just updated its online store with a shipping date for the 3G-equipped  variants of its iPad. As you can see, all varieties of the hallowed Apple tablet should be out and about by May 7th -- meaning that some deliveries could sneak out even earlier -- and you can expect AT&T will be ready and waiting for you to activate that $30 a month unlimited data plan. Just for the European record, that means the iPad will be out in full force for American consumers three days ahead of the announcement  of specific international availability. Ah well, at least that gives the UK and others hope that they might see the 3G and WiFi-only slates coming out at the same time, which should be somewhere around the end of May.

[Amr Fouad]

wth?!?! thn y on earth did they release the ipad just months ago! i hate such moves

[DrEvil]

wth?!?! thn y on earth did they release the ipad just months ago! i hate such moves

this one is WiFi with 3G...

see the thread below:
https://studentforums.biz/index.php/topic,6555.0.html

all the models are listed there.

[Amr Fouad]

this one is WiFi with 3G...

see the thread below:
https://studentforums.biz/index.php/topic,6555.0.html

all the models are listed there.

I know..i mean they did that on PURPOSE! they released the ipad few months ago..with weak specs..so they can earn more money in May 

[DrEvil]

I know..i mean they did that on PURPOSE! they released the ipad few months ago..with weak specs..so they can earn more money in May 

thats because it is a policy of every brand and company to launch their low specs models first so that they can see the interest of the ppl and the sales of the product so that they might earn more money when launching the high specs models...

[Blizz_rb93]

thats because it is a policy of every brand and company to launch their low specs models first so that they can see the interest of the ppl and the sales of the product so that they might earn more money when launching the high specs models...

Yes that is very true, companies could go bankrupt and out of ideas if they put high specs right away

[DrEvil]

Apple 'sells 1m iPads in a month'

Just four weeks after release Apple has announced it has sold one million iPads.

Helped by a massive amount of hype ahead of launch day on 3 April this latest set of figures mean it's selling faster than the iPhone did when it was released.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs said: "One million iPads in 28 days - that's less than half the 74 days it took to achieve this milestone with the iPhone".

Users have also downloaded around 12 million applications, or apps, to use on the device as well as 1.5 million digital books to read on its 9.7 inch colour touchscreen.

This figure was helped by the second stage of a two part roll out of the tablet computer on Friday (30 April) when Apple released the more expensive 3G version.

But this success has come at a commercial cost.

Tablet PC market

The worldwide release of the iPad has had to be delayed until the end of May because of demand in America.

Also, its success has helped develop the tablet PC market - which will lead to greater competition from other areas.

In a statement computer manufacturer HP told Newsbeat: "We believe you will see a number of [tablet] devices in 2010. "With that in mind, we believe there is still a gap to be filled between smartphones with screens around 10cm and notebooks.

"The challenge will be to create the right size type of device and overcome some of the traditional PC barriers."

Pressed on when that means consumers can expect a big release from HP, its spokesperson would only confirm "sometime this year".

Other manufacturers are also looking to capitalise on Apple's success.

There are reports Dell, Nokia and Toshiba are expected to launch their own tablet PCs later this year.

A Toshiba spokesperson said it's "studying the slate PC market as a possible business domain".

Pushed on whether or not that meant consumers should expect something from Toshiba to compete with the iPad, the spokesperson would only say "we can't provide any further details for now".

Then there are the smaller companies hoping to take a slice of the tablet PC market.

German company Neofonie has unveiled an early version of its WePad which has a bigger screen at 11.6 inches and is expected to go on sale this summer.



Source: BBC News

[astarmathsandphysics]

I did want android, but my company dont do HTC

[DrEvil]

I did want android, but my company dont do HTC

what is ur company offering?

[DrEvil]

Android 2.2 Froyo is finally unveiled, 2-5x faster than Eclair

Just as expected Google announced the latest version of the Android OS at their I/O event today. Android 2.2 Froyo has hardly been the industry best-kept secret so you probably already had an idea of what was coming but it is a very worthy update nonetheless.

Bringing a significant improvement in performance and a host of new user features Froyo certainly looks like one of the most mature and advanced smartphone platforms out there.

The official Android 2.2. video will explain some of the new stuff.
Here's a recap of the most major changes in the latest Android 2.2 edition:
Flash 10.1 support

    * One of the most awaited addons - full Flash 10.1 support is on board the Andrid 2.2 Froyo. For now it's beta, but the final version is slated for June release.

Performance

    * New web browser V8 Javascript engine allows faster loading of JavaScript-heavy pages.
    * 2x-5x performance improvement for CPU-heavy apps thanks to the Dalvik JIT Compiler.
    * Improved memory management allowing faster app switching and smoother performance on memory-constrained devices.

Extended Exchange support

    * Password unlocking, remote wipe, exchange calendars, auto-discovery

Enhanced camera capabilities

    * Onscreen camera keys allows controlling zooming, flash, white balance, geo-tagging, focus and exposure.
    * Camcorder can now make use of LED flash as video light.
    * Camera now supports portrait orientation.

Apps management

    * You can install applications on the shared external storage (SD card, for instance).
    * The Cloud-based Backup and Restore service can now backup some of the thrid-party app data for future restores.
    * New bug reporting feature for Android Market apps send developers crash and freeze reports
    * New "car mode" and "night mode" controls and configurations allow applications to adjust their UI for these situations.

Misc enhancements

    * You can use the smartphone as a Wi-Fi hotspot for up to 8 devices.
    * You can tether the smartphone to a computer as a 3G modem over a USB cable.
    * 3D Gallery allows you to peek into picture stacks using a zoom gesture.
    * The Phone, Applications Launcher, and Browser now have dedicated shortcuts on the Home screen that are always visible.
    * Supportr for multi-lingual keyboards - toggling Latin-based keyboards is a flick away.
    * Voice dialing over Bluetooth.
    * Contact sharing over Bluetooth.

[DrEvil]

Scientists create a 7-atom transistor

Scientists have created a transistor in a computer chip that is 10 times smaller than those commonly in use now, marking the start of a new age of super-fast, super-powerful computing.

At the heart of the electronic device is a "quantum dot" (pictured above), which measures just four-billionths of a metre — so small that it contains just seven atoms, compared to the millions that make up a typical laptop chip.


The technical breakthrough is reported today in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.


The paper's co-author, Michelle Simmons, said the achievement marked the first time scientists had been able to dictate the placement and behavior of single atoms within a transistor.


"We're basically controlling nature at the atomic scale," she said. "This is one of the key milestones in building a quantum computer."

[Heart Hacker]

wow

this will be a big change

[DrEvil]

wow

this will be a big change

Yes, it is going to bring about a lot of changes. But most people aren't aware of this.