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HTC unlocks the bootloader on Sensation 4G, now just three more phones to go

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Few months back HTC had decided that it would be better to start selling their phones with locked bootloader and so they did exactly that, resulting in the Thunderbolt 4G, Desire S, Incredible S, EVO 3D, Sensation and the Sensation 4G to be sold with locked bootloaders.

Later though they realized that they were wrong to lock the bootloaders, this realization aided immensely by the uproar in the Android community who prefer to have complete access to their software. This made HTC revise their bootloader policy and the first phone to benefit from this was the Sensation. Read more »

Samsung Galaxy S II US launch pushed back by a day, Hurricane Irene is the one to blame

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At first Samsung took its own sweet time bringing the Galaxy S II to the US and now nature decided to play spoilsport. The launch of the Galaxy S II which was meant to happen in New York on August 29, has now been postponed by a day.

The reason for this delay is the Hurricane Irene, which is currently terrorizing its way to the US shores. I’m sure anyone in the hurricane’s path would have bigger things on their minds than the launch of the Galaxy S II Read more »

Ovi Store now powered by Nokia Drop, pushes apps directly to your Nokia device

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One of the cool things about the Android Market on the web is that it pushes apps directly to your Android device instead of downloading it and then making you transfer it manually to the device. Nokia had a system on their Ovi Store where they would instead send an SMS to your phone with a link to download the app, but this wasn’t very convenient. So now they have Android Market style push support for sending apps directly to your phone, thanks to Nokia Drop.

This works similar to on Android phones. You go to the Ovi Store through your web browser, then click on an application and if it is a free app it is sent instantly to your phone and gets installed automatically. Read more »

Razer announces Blade, their first ever gaming laptop

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A few days back Razer had launched a website, pcgamingisnotdead.com, where they talked about how, well, PC gaming is not really dead and that it is superior to console gaming. They also put up a counter on their site that hinted at an upcoming product but it wasn’t clear what it would be. But we know now.

Yesterday, Razer announced their first ever gaming laptop, the Razer Blade, which they claim to be the world’s first true gaming laptop. The focus in this product has been on achieving the highest possible performance in the thinnest possible form factor. Read more »

Logitech launches Joystick for iPad, reminds us of something similar we have seen before

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It looks like someone only recently bought the burgeoning tablet market to Logitech’s attention and so now they are coming out with one tablet accessory after another in quick succession to make up for the lost time. The first one was Tablet Keyboard for the iPad and Android tablets, then came the Fold-Up Keyboard for the iPad and now comes with Joystick, again exclusively or the iPad.

The Joystick basically latches onto your iPad’s display and manipulates the virtual D-Pad on the screen. This gives better control over the game and being transparent doesn’t veil the screen content the way your non-transparent thumb does. Read more »

Samsung launches bada 2.0, releases the SDK to the public

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Although Samsung had announced bada 2.0 back in February during MWC 2011, it took them quite a long time to release it. But it seems Samsung has not forgotten about its little pet project as today we got news of Samsung making bada 2.0 live and also releasing the SDK to anyone willing to visit their website, register and download the 368KB file.

Among the list of changes in bada 2.0 include a new user interface, improved multi-tasking, support for OpenAL, NFC, speech-to-text and text-to-speech, Wi-Fi Direct, in-app ads, push notifications and HTML5. But then again, we already knew all that. Read more »

Sony announces four new cameras, NEX-5N, NEX-7, Alpha A65 and Alpha A77

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And we have some more camera news for you today. Following Canon and Nikon’s lead Sony too has launched some new cameras. This time we have two EVIL (Electronic Viewfinder with Interchangeable Lens) cameras and two SLT (Single-Lens Translucent) cameras from their NEX and Alpha series respectively.

The first of the EVIL twins (sorry, couldn’t resist) is the Sony NEX-5N, which is the updated version of the NEX-5 launched last year. Sony claims it has the world’s shortest shutter lag for interchangeable lens camera (only 20ms) and an extremely quick auto-focus mechanism. The new 5N also shoots 1080p videos in 60fps, up from the 30fps in last year’s model. It also has a 16.1 megapixel sensor and will come with a 18.55mm kit lens for $700 in September. Read more »

Nikon announces six new cameras, the COOLPIX AW100, P7100, S100, S6200, S8200 and S1200pj

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After Canon announced it’s new range of cameras a few days back Nikon too has updated its range of point and shoot cameras. This includes four basic point-and-shoot cameras for beginners, one prosumer camera and their first every rugged, water-proof camera.

First we will talk about the AW100. It is Nikon’s first water-proof, shock-proof and cold resistant camera. It can function under-water for up to 10m, survive a shock of 1.5m and withstand temperatures as low as -10 degree Celsius. Under that tough body it has a 16 megapixel sensor with 5x optical zoom, 1080p video recording, 3.0-inch display, A-GPS and electronic compass with built-in maps for displaying your geo-tagged pictures on. The AW100 will be sold in five different colors for $379.95 starting September 8. Read more »

Latest update to Facebook takes privacy controls to a whole new level

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Facebook has often been chided in the past for disregarding its user’s privacy but over the years they kept adding more options to further protect your data from those whom you don’t want to share it with. But today they have released what is perhaps the biggest update that brings a host of new options, taking privacy to a whole new level.

First of all, you can now change who can see your profile page information from your profile with a simple drop down menu. You can also see how your profile will look to others, whether they are your friends or not. Read more »

Canon announces new point-and-shoot cameras, the PowerShot SX150 IS, ELPH 510 HS and ELPH 310 HS

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Canon has updated its PowerShot range of point-and-shoot cameras with three new models. The first of them, the PowerShot SX150 IS has a 14.1 megapixel sensor with 12x optical zoom and 28mm wide-angle lens. It also features 720p video recording, 3-inch LCD, Intelligent IS and Smart AUTO.

The SX150 IS also gives you manual control over the aperture and shutter priority values. There’s also a discrete mode for low disturbance photography. The SX150 IS will be sold in black and red for $249.99 starting September. Read more »

Desktop browser benchmark comparison

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Choosing a browser was much simpler in the past. There were fewer choices available and usually there would be a clear winner. These days you have a lot more options available and all of them are more or less similar. So which one should you choose for the best browsing experience?

Some things such as the UI and features are subjective. You might like the look of a particular browser that someone else won’t or there might be a particular feature in a browser that you must have that others might not care for much. But there is one things that isn’t subjective and that is performance. It has to be the very best regardless of the browser you choose. So today we decided to leave everything else aside and compare this aspect of the web browsers available for Windows to see which one came out on top. Read more »

HP drops TouchPad price to $99, suddenly everybody wants one

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If you were wondering what would happen to all those TouchPads sitting in warehouses after HP decided to abandon webOS, you now have the answer. HP just announced a mouth-watering discount on the ill-fated tablet, with the base 16GB model now costing a mere $99 and the 32GB for $150.

Of course this means that now everybody wants one. Most places that were accepting bookings for the device are now flashing the ‘Out of Stock’ sign and you would have to be lucky to get one. That’s just for the online stores though. Starting August 20, you can get the TouchPad at the new price in brick and mortar stores Read more »

Razer announces Tiamat, world’s first true 7.1 channel gaming headset

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Razer has a reputation for making exciting accessories for the gamers but it seems this time they have something for the audiophiles as well. Although a surround sound headset won’t be high on the list of must-have items of an audiophile, mostly due to the emulation used to create the surround effect, the Tiamat steers clear of such gimmicks. It packs in not two or four but a grand total of ten drivers, five for each ear.

Out of those ten drivers, you get two drivers for the front, center, side, surround and subwoofer channel each. This means you get to hear all the channels through dedicated drivers instead of having one or two drivers producing the sound of many. Read more »

Nintendo Wii gets a redesign and a lower price, coming to Europe in October

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Hot on the heels of the PlayStation 3 price cut comes the news of a new cut-price Nintendo Wii. But the new price tag is not the only feature, as this new cheaper Wii will also be considerably smaller than the current model.

The new Wii features a horizontal design that sits flat on your table and is barely wider than the slot loading DVD drive on the front. Unfortunately, this new Wii loses the ability to work with GameCube games and accessories. Read more »

Sony announces price cut for the PS3, special low-price version of the PSP

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Sony had some good news for prospective PS3 buyers at Gamescom yesterday. The five year-old but still going strong console is receiving a healthy $50 price cut, with the new prices being $249 for the 160GB version and $299 for the 320GB version. They have also launched a special edition inFAMOUS 2 bundle that comes with the 320GB model along with the copy of the game and a 30-day PlayStation Plus subscription for $299.

Also announced at that event is a new cut price version of the PSP. The PSP E-1000, as it is called, has a sexy new matte black finish and slightly new design but it loses out on some features to get that new €99.99 (RRP) price. Read more »