In Your Pocket
Our GayGamer colleague Game-Boy got the scoop on the PSP v iPhone rumor that's going around, which sees the next PSP as a slide/flip-screened, double-analog-sticked bad boy that Pocket Gamer finds worthy of the moniker "iPhone beater":
It's no secret that Sony has been working on some sort of revision of the PSP, but there's been nothing but conflicting information coming from a variety of developer leaks. Today's latest batch via PocketGamer's anonymous developer source says that the next hardware update is set to include a touchscreen, a d-pad and set of face buttons that slide out, and... you better sit down for this one... a second analogue nub/stick. Praise Jebus!
The source also claims that Sony is ready to ditch the controversial UMD this holiday season in favor of digital distribution through the PlayStation Network Store. While I've never been a big fan of the UMD, I can't say that I'm that ecstatic to hear this. Sony's online stores have been awkward experiences for me at best and the 5th circle of User Interface Hell at worst (that's right next the original Xbox, for those wondering). Add on the fact that there's still no Mac software option for the PlayStation Network and I get the feeling that I'll be missing the UMD drive as much as I miss the GBA slot on the DSi.
Everyone, including the source of this latest rumor, is predicting that Sony will reveal the next step in the PSPs evolution at this year's E3 in June. Only time will tell if these stories are true or not, but with so much gossip around the PSP I get the feeling that there's at least a small amount of truth some of these rumors.
[
PSP 2 coming pre-Chrismas will be an iPhone beater] PocketGamer
People have been digging around the iPhone OS 3.0 beta and have discovered some rather interesting tidbits buried deep within the configuration files.
The video capabilities have pretty much been confirmed, as changing a configuration file to make the iPhone OS 3.0 think there's a video camera changes the camera interface into the picture you see, with a switch to change between video and still camera modes.
References to a "magnetometer" (compass), "auto-focus camera," and "Voice Control" have also been found in the configuration files.
All of these point to likely hardware additions to the next generation iPhone, rumoured to be released during WWDC 2009 in June.
It seems Apple is trying to match and beat the feature set of T-Mobile's Android G1 set. I love competition.
(Photo by MacRumors)
iPhone Video Recording Interface, Digital Compass, Voice Control and Auto-Focus Camera [MacRumors]
The problem with the iPhone and the T-Mobile G1 is that the user input is done via touchscreen, which would mean that users who are blind would be completely unable to dial such a device, right?
Not so, as Google engineers T.V. Raman and Charles Chen demonstrate their dead simple idea on how dialing on a touchscreen is possible without even looking at the screen:
So simple, and very functional!
Michael Dell yet again fluffed up speculation on his eponymous company's future in the smartphone market, despite rumors that wireless carriers aren't interested in Dell handsets. Speaking in Tokyo, the Dell CEO stepped up the hinting with a touch of specificity:
"For the last three years, we have integrated 3G radios into our notebooks," said Dell. "We already have agreements with many mobile carriers around Netbook devices, so it wouldn't be unreasonable to expect that we would have smaller mobile Internet devices or smartphones in the future."
Dell's own reorganization aims at expanding its product lineup while reinventing its public perception with some sleek new products. A cool new smartphone would fit right in.
Michael Dell Comments on Smartphones [Ubergizmo]
I've been participating in the GrandCentral Beta for a little while now, and I've been mostly impressed by the service. The amount of customization is spectacular, with the ability to set up various voice mail messages for different groups and people, and setting who can call what phone and when, are just a few of the options that you get to play around with in GrandCentral, and are just a few of the reasons I really like the service.
Recently, Google moved GrandCentral over to the mother ship and officially made the property they acquired a while back part of the big Google family. Now, putting aside that at this point Google really does know way too much about me, I'm mostly happy about this. The interface for the "new" Google Voice is drastically different than what GrandCentral offered, but I'm adjusting pretty well to the new Interface. I'm slightly disappointed though that my contacts list and voicemails did not make the transition from GrandCentral to Google Voice, but I suppose that's what I get for Beta testing a product like this.
One of the things I've noticed is that, unlike most Google products that reduce the amount of clicks it takes to do something, Google Voice actually increase the amount of clicks it takes to do many actions. For example, creating a group in GrandCentral involved hitting a Create button and setting everything up on the next screen, including selecting contacts to be in that group and what phones ring when those contacts call. Now I have to scroll to settings to create a group, then back to the group page to add contacts, then back to settings to select which phones get the message and click the advanced tab to do further customization. Same end result, just a bit more involved than previously.
I also enjoy that they are doing their best to pimp all their products, and it saddened me to realize how deep I am into Google's fold. Take this screen grab for example. This is their screen to demonstrate the changed Call Me Button (a widget you can add to any website that allows people to call you right from the site). If you'll notice, in one screen Google is pimping their Blogger Service, their Chrome Browser and their Google Voice service. That's pretty impressive all-in-all. The sad part? I use all of those. All I need now is a Android phone and I'll be completely entrenched in Google.
The move to Google Voice means a few good things though. First, if it's a "Google" labeled product, it will most likely stay free. The big G will subsidize the cost through advertising most likely, which is fine by me... I think. I was afraid of what GrandCentral would cost when it went Release, so I did not go all in on it, but now that it's looking to remain the same I'm leaning more toward relying on my Google Voice number. Also, the move means that there should be another round of beta invites soon, or maybe even a soft launch. If you're interested in the service, you can sign up to get notified for the next round of invites or check out all it can do.
I'm really excited to see where Google goes with this service, as I think it has a lot of potential. If you get in, let us know what you think. If you've been involved with GrandCentral and recently switched to Google Voice, make sure to drop us a line with your impressions.
Apple's promising 100 new features in iPhone OS 3.0, and while not all of those new additions made it into Tuesday's event, we've got the big ones - that we know about. Here's a rundown of what we've seen introduced:
- Copy, Cut, & Paste: first mentioned and arguably most anticipated, we'll now be able to cut or copy text from all applications, and pictures from the photo album. Yay.
- Multimedia messaging: it isn't a new feature for cell phones, but it's new for the iPhone. And about time.
- Landscape keyboard: across all applications. My sausage thumbs appreciate the news.
- Push notification: not the most coherent system, and non-native, but useful nonetheless.
- In-App purchasing: Remember how the new Kindle app shunts you to Safari for purchases? Not anymore. (In theory.)
- Peer-to-peer networking: good for games but not likely to impact functionality otherwise, at least not until/unless we see native Bluetooth data file sharing.
- Voice memo: another common feature just now being added to the iPhone's native software. Sayonara, 'Recorder.'
- Full search: Spotlight will search your mail, music, videos, notes and contacts all at the same time. AND, all it takes for access is a leftward finger-swipe from the home screen, which sounds very tidy.
- Forwarding of invites and contacts: absolutely necessary for enterprise customers, ho-hum for the rest.
- Stocks: the application has been improved to include headlines for your saved tickers and show charts in landscape mode. Data!
- Turn-by-turn directions: not a native feature and not available with Google Maps for licensing reasons, which disappoints, but still there. Expect to see turn-by-turn real-time directions in apps, but also expect to pay for 'em.
- Stereo Bluetooth: listen to music through Bluetooth headphones unless you have an iPhone Classic ('Classic' being Applespeak for 'Old.')
And there's more. From shaking your phone to auto-shuffle songs to syncing notes with your Mac. Autofill for Safari. Parental controls. It's nuts out there, kids.
Today's iPhone OS 3.0 event has just wrapped up, and with Den Den on vacation I've yet to piece together all that was unveiled, although some of the highlights include:
- In-app purchases
- Peer-to-peer Bluetooth
- Maps available in any application
- Turn-by-turn directions via Core Location GPS technology
- Push notification
- Apple's own Voice Memo app
- And of course: copying and pasting across all applications.
Finally!
SMS messages and third-party-app text can be copied just as easily as web page or email text, as well as text from Notes. Simply double-tap a snippet of text to select and up pops two grab points that let you resize your text-selection box (and in Notes, at least, we saw a "select all" function). The cut, copy and paste buttons are self-explanatory, but here's one awesome feature that isn't: just shake the phone to undo your last copy, paste, or cut.
Stay tuned for a more measured round-up once the ink on all the press releases dries!
The XKCD Kindle 2 comic has been brought full circle. Behold! The Kindle 2 laser engraved with those immortal words found on the cover of its spiritual brother, the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: "Don't Panic."
Grats Adafruit Industries, on having the geekiest Kindle 2 to date, and making me green with envy.
Hit the jump for a video of the laser doing its deed.
First laser etched Kindle 2! The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - "Don't Panic" [Adafruit Industries]
[via: Engadget]
Apple has released a new iPod Shuffle this morning that is coming dangerously close to being a choking hazard for little children everywhere (if it isn't already!)
Half the size of the previous iPod Shuffle and with twice the standard storage (4GB), what really sets the new iPod Shuffle apart is the addition of text to speech technology to add more control into the screen-less iPod Shuffle.
The new VoiceOver feature will read to you the track and artist you're currently listening to, but it has a bigger benefit: it allows the use of multiple playlists on the iPod Shuffle. When you hold down the centre button on the headphone remote long enough, the iPod Shuffle begins reading a list of playlists synced to your iPod Shuffle, and when you hear the playlist you want, just click the button again to switch to it.
One surprising little difference between Mac and PC users is that if you sync your iPod Shuffle with a Mac, VoiceOver will use a male voice, while if you sync with a PC, it will use a female voice.
The new iPod Shuffle is $79 and comes in silver and black.
Product Page [Apple]
The rumours and tips are mounting, pointing towards an effort by Apple to build a 10" multi-touch netbook style computer that could be released as soon as the 2nd quarter of this year.
Yesterday, the Digitimes brought us news from the Chinese language Commercial Times that Wintek might be supplying the touch panels for the new netbooks:
Wintek revealed that it is currently working with Apple to develop some new products, but it said it does not know what applications the new products are for. Wintek added that no shipment schedule has been worked out yet, but shipments are likely to begin in the second half of the year.
The report from the Commercial Times goes on to cite Quanta Computer (who currently make iMacs and MacBooks) as the probable manufacturer of the new netbook.
Today, the Dow Jones newswire piped in with reports from two undisclosed sources that confirmed an Apple netbook is slated to launch in the 2nd half of the year:
Apple Inc. (AAPL) is planning to launch a netbook computer with a touch screen monitor as early as the second half of this year, two people close to the situation told Dow Jones Newswires Tuesday.
The mini laptop computers will likely have monitor screens that are between 9.7-inches and 10-inches, one person, who declined to be named, said.
Apple, Quanta and Wintek have all declined to comment on the rumours.
A 10 inch multi-touch Apple netbook? Gimme!
The $40 price difference between the DS Lite and the DSi may be a moot question if the DSi succeeds the way Nintendo would like. While remaining noncommittal, Nintendo UK general manager David Yarnton today said that if DSi sales prove strong enough, the DS Lite will probably go the way of the original Nintendo DS, which also sold alongside its successor for a while.
"We'll let the market decide," he said. "We expect some people will upgrade, but we also anticipate that we'll win over people who were still undecided on DS -- the extra features will help convince them. There's an extra incentive."
While the form factor difference between the first two iterations of the DS was obvious, the DS Lite and the DSi don't seem as different to the eye; but the DSi is Nintendo's first stab at embracing some of the multimedia uses that enterprising homebrew aficionados have been enjoying for a while, as well as adding new hardware features such as its twin cameras. With music and downloadable games arriving on the DSi, Nintendo has pulled an ironic move, at least regarding its competition: the PSP, which was launched as a portable multimedia system, has fared overwhelmingly poorly in that regard (so poorly that its physical medium had to be abandoned, although there's more to that story); now the DS, which gained its success by focusing purely on games and making them fun, has done so well that multimedia features are practically being begged for.
That scenario has to tickle some of the veeps at Nintendo.
Nintendo likely to axe DS Lite if DSi thrives [Electronista]
The Kindle 2 has a lot going for it - it's snazzy looking, super functional, and keeps most of the technical under the hood. But the cost. For $359 you can get a game console, cheap computer, or tickets to Paris. And now, for free, you can get Amazon's Kindle service on your iPhone.
Sure, you won't get access to periodicals (only books), the form factor isn't as friendly to the eye, the books still cost $9.99, and so forth. But you can now access books that are only available at Amazon's store, keep your page when moving between Kindle and iPhone via Whisper Sync, and generally enjoy Kindleness without having to shell out hundreds of dollars for a unit.
Given my own trained-like-a-circus-bear behavior tendencies, I see myself falling in love with Kindle books and eventually justifying the purchase of what would otherwise be an almost offensively expensive product. I don't know how well that recruitment technique will work in the wild, though, which leaves the Kindle app as an extension of the service for the existing Kindle community - after all, there's gotta be a lot of overlap between iPhone and Kindle customers.
And girls who like girls who like fembots!
Gadget of the Week
3D iPhone glasses. Why?
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