Wednesday, 5 January 2011

Windows Phone 7 Amazon Kindle app now available

It has been a long time coming, but the Amazon Kindle app for Windows Phone 7 handsets is finally available to download, giving the platform its first real eReader option.


The Kindle app, which we first reported on back in late October, gives the reported 1.5 million Windows Phone 7 owners their first opportunity to sample the 725,000 titles available from Amazon to smartphone platforms.

 

The app will also allow keen readers to sync their purchases across all of their devices, which means if you're reading on your iPad, you'll be able to save your page and pick up where you left off on your WP7 handset.

 

Kindle, which is free to download for Windows Phone 7 from the Marketplace, will also feature the ability to send book recommendations to friends and receive your own recommendations on the apps homepage.

 

Yesterday Amazon confirmed that the Kindle app would also be coming to Android and Windows tablets.

 

Link: Mashable

 

 

 

 


Posted by Chris Smith


Source: T3.com News

Posted by Matt Collard at 16:33 0 comments

Samsung Galaxy Player 50 launches in the UK

The Apple iPod Touch has today inherited a new rival to its MP3 player crown as Samsung's Galaxy Player 50 media player goes on sale in the UK.

 

- Samsung Galaxy Player 50 pictures

 

Measuring in at just 11mm thick, the Galaxy Player 50 sports a 3.2-inch Tab-like WGVGA TFT touch screen, a 2-megapixel camera/camcorder and Wi-Fi connectivity.
 

 

Powered by Google's Android 2.1 (Eclair) mobile OS, you'll get access to the Android Marketplace to download from the 100,000 and steadily growing app catalogue.
 

 

Unlike the Touch, the Galaxy 50 browser supports Flash while compatibility with MPEG4, WMV and DivX/XviD video files should save you the trouble of converting files to watch your flicks on the go. .

 

 

 

On the audio front there's a mono speaker and Samsung's SoundAlive Sound Engine technology which is said to recreate 5.1 surround sound and give your music more clarity.

 

Available in 8GB and 16GB models, storage can be expanded by a micro SD card which ramps it up to 32GB, still a hefty 32GB behind Apple's priciest iPod Touch.
 

You can expect to get 25 hours of audio and 5 hours of video which in comparison to the Touch's 40 hours of audio and 7 hours of video also lags some way behind.
 

Other notable features include GPS (Google Maps Navigation on board), embedded games, an E-Book Reader, BBC iPlayer, YouTube, an FM radio, DLNA support to wirelessly stream content to your TV or laptop, and the ability to use the device as a remote for Samsung internet enabled TVs.
 

The Samsung Galaxy Player 50 is priced at £149 (8GB) and £179 (16GB) and is available now from Amazon, Play.com and Argos.

 

Link: Samsung

  


Posted by Michael Sawh


Source: T3.com News

Posted by Matt Collard at 03:59 0 comments

Tuesday, 4 January 2011

News@8pm: Microsoft enter TV wars and HTC tablet named

Microsoft will be pitching into the set-top box wars after reports have revealed it’s close to unveiling its own model. There’s no name yet, but a pared down Media Centre UI to make it user friendly has been mooted. More details will be released at Steve Ballmer’s keynote tomorrow evening. It’s expected to go toe-to-toe with Google TV and Apple TV. Talking of Cupertino’s finest, Apple hasn’t wasted any time nudging their products northwards with the UK’s VAT increase to 20 per cent. The rises aren't too eyewatering, but a £1,999 MacBook Pro will now come in at £2,041.

 

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App of the Day | TouchNote Postcards
Perfect for when you can't find the right postcards this app takes a photo, crops it and sends it anywhere
T3 App Chart | Top 10 Windows Phone 7 Apps | TouchNote Postcards Review
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CES is likely to be going tablet-crazy over the next few days, so getting in one of the first shots is HTC which is expected to unveil its own Scribe tablet, which is expected to run Google’s upcoming Android 3.0 Honeycomb OS. Another Far-Eastern giant looking for a slice of tablet pie is Toshiba. Fresh on from their undwhelming Folio, they have demoed an as-yet unnamed 10in Android 3.0 Honeycomb device. Far more familiar territory for Toshiba is laptops and they are threatening to unveil the Holy Grail of 3D; yep, glasses-free viewing on their new Qosmio laptop.

 

Following hot on the heels of the Big M’s Kinect is Asus’ very own motion sensing effort, the WAVI Xtion. Expected after Easter, the console will allow users to enjoy and share PC content on TV with gestures. Hoping to add to the commercially successful Kinect is a new service called Avatar Kinect. Not many details are available, but expect gamers’ avatars to hook up via Xbox Live and shoot the breeze virtually. Talking of gaming, Call of Duty, is expected to add paid-for online content to its armoury. Analysts expect a ‘first quarter’ launch for a subcriptions based ‘second tier’ on board COD.

 

Sony’s nifty little video recorder, the Bloggie is set to receive 3D shooting credentials. Alongside a wealth of new product launches, the pocket friendly shooter will reportedly offer full HD 3D video capture for homemade 3D playback via a 3DTV enabled set. Also fighting to get its share of airtime at CES will be Kodak who will push out a series of eye-catching launches. The Easyshare Touch video camera looks the best bet, packing a 3-inch capacitive touchpanel, 14-megapixel sensor and HDMI for quick transfer to HD TV.

 


Posted by Luke Johnson


Source: T3.com News

Posted by Matt Collard at 17:37 0 comments

Opera Android tablet browser spied

Opera’s ace mobile browser has just been given a tablet makeover. The new effort has been spied in an official video and has clearly been made with Android slates in mind.

 

The tablet edition of the browser takes its cue from its smartphone sibling, with easy to click windows to take you to your favourite websites. The video, which you can see below, shows it sitting pretty in the dock of a Samsung Galaxy Tab and working at lick spit speed.

 

Doubtless this new version will be ready to roll on a slew of new Android slates at CES this week. Rest assured we’ll be there to go hands on and bring you our first impressions over on our CES 2011 microsite.

 

Remember, you can also keep up to date with all the CES news over on our Facebook and Twitter pages too.

Via Electricpig


Posted by Joe Minihane


Source: T3.com News

Posted by Matt Collard at 04:02 0 comments

Monday, 3 January 2011

Lack of Facebook could lead to withdrawal symptoms

According to research, avoiding technology like mobile phones, internet, television and radio can lead to withdrawal symptoms akin to those experienced by drug addicts trying to beat the addiction.

An international experiment called Unplugged was conducted, in which 125 students of Bournemouth University participated as part of the UK team. Twelve universities around the world took part in this experiment, with 24 hours without technology.


Volunteers had to stay away from emails, texts, Facebook and Twitter, television, radio and newspapers for 24 hours. As a result, they began to show symptoms seen in smokers who were trying to give up.

Participants likened the experience to going cold turkey on a drug habit or going on a diet.

This condition now has a name - Information Deprivation Disorder.

The scientists conducting the experiment saw psychological as well as physical symptoms of withdrawal. Apparently, it was the lack of music that most people found the toughest to deal with.

The research was conducted by the University of Maryland's International Centre for Media and the Public Agenda.


Have you ever tried giving up the internet, newspapers, or music for a whole day? Our Twitter and Facebook pages are waiting to hear what happened. Keep following us for updates on all things tech.


Via: The Telegraph

 

 


Posted by Devina Divecha


Source: T3.com News

Posted by Matt Collard at 15:59 0 comments

Amazon Kindle e-book lending lands

Amazon hinted earlier this year that e-book lending would become a reality in the world of Kindle, and the concept has finally come to fruition.

With the Kindle 3 already Amazon's best-selling product, users are being enticed into the e-book lifestyle with their latest Kindle e-book lending scheme.


Owners of e-books can lend their purchases out to anyone you choose, even if they don't have a Kindle. The e-book can be read on any of the Kindle apps for the PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone, BlackBerry or Android, but they need to remember that they have 14 days to read it before the loan period ends.

Currently only a selection of e-books can be loaned, due to rights issues and publishers' decisions to opt in to the program, and can be loaned only once every two weeks. In addition, the person lending the book cannot read it while it is loaned to their friend.

Books which are eligible for the scheme will have "Lending: Enabled" showing in their product details.

Currently, the service is only available for Amazon.com, but it's expected to reach other territories early this year. Amazon says, "At this time, Kindle book lending can only be initiated by customers residing in the United States.  If a loan is initiated to a customer outside the United States, the borrower may not be able to accept the loan if the title is not available in their country due to publisher geographical rights."


Do you think e-book lending would harm the paperback industry? Weigh in at T3's Twitter and Facebook pages and follow us for regular updates on all things tech.

 

 


Posted by Devina Divecha


Source: T3.com News

Posted by Matt Collard at 03:59 0 comments

Saturday, 1 January 2011

App week: Skype video calls on iPhone, Apple sued

APP NEWS:

Skype video calling now available for iPhone
By far the biggest news in this sparce week between Christmas and New Year is the arrival of Skype 3.0 for iOS which finally brings video calling over Wi-Fi and 3G. With Apple's own service FaceTime only available over Wi-Fi and between iOS devices, this gives users much more freedom to make video calls from their iPhone to any other Skype-enabled device with a webcam

 

Apple and app makers sued over user profiling
Every week there's some kind of scandal about companies passing on our data to third party advertiers, and now it's Apple's turn. The Cupertino company and makers of apps like Dictionary.com and Pandora are allegedly allowing advertisers to access our ID and our location in order to target us with in-app advertisements. We'll see how this one unfolds.

 

VLC to land on Android in 2011
Our favourite jack-of-all-trades video player VLC will be available on the Android Market in 2011 for owners of phones packing the Android 2.3 Gingerbread OS. VLC rose to fame on PC for being able to play pretty much every video codec known to man. An Apple edition of the app has allowed iPad owners to play Flash videos.

 

Listen to your heartrate on the iPhone
There's a few hot fitness apps around at the moment but a Swiss company is putting the finishing touches on an app that will allow users to ditch that annoying chest strap once and for all. Pulsear will listen to your heart-rate and report the findings through your headphones, while comparing it with your heartrarte during previous workouts.

 

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App of the Week | Angry Birds HD
The iPhone game causing a stir around the world has gone big, gone HD, gone iPad bound
T3 App Chart | Top 10 iPad Apps | Angry Birds HD Review
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APP REVIEWS FROM THE T3 APP CHART:

Remember Desert Strike on the Megadrive?
It was popular about the time of the first Gulf War. You'd go in and take out oil fields and the like and freedom would prevail. Final Strike 3D for Samsung Bada phones offers a similar deal on your Wave handset. Graphics and gameplay are a joy in one of the best Bada games yet.

 

mVideo Player for Android review
With VLC not arriving on the Android Market until later this year, the most malleable video player on Android is currently the four-star mVideo Player. Handily it can play mp4, m4v and 3gp files among others, so that covers a lot of what the web has to offer.

 

Windows 7 gets TouchNote postcards app
There's nothing worse than corny holiday "wish you were here" postcards, so why not make your own? The TouchNote app for Windows 7 At only £1.49 each, payable by Paypal, why not spare your Euros and send the family a postcard of you pulling inappropriate moonies?

 

Link: T3 App Chart

 

 


Posted by Chris Smith


Source: T3.com News

Posted by Matt Collard at 15:58 0 comments
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