You might be wondering how many calories you have burned today, how many steps you have taken or how many hours you have been in bed. For physical fitness record or health reasons, perhaps you are keen to know the total calories burned, distance traveled, sleep quantity and quality taken or steps made in your daily activities. Fitbit, a tiny tracker could give you accurate answers.
Fitbit tracker is a tiny 3D motion sensor like the one users find in the Nintendo Wii which can be clipped to your shirt, pants, belt, pocket, wristband, etc to measure and record your daily physical activities. Fitbit measures multiple aspects of users’ physical activities and it can tell users immediately via its Blue OLED display the steps taken, calories burned, distance walked as well as their overall daily activity level. The data measured will be stored in Fitbit – up to 7days of intraday data and 30 days of daily data. Users can thence upload the data to the Fitbit website, Fitbit.com, by placing the device on the base station. Data synchronizing can also be done when users walk near the base station (within 15 feet). The synchronization will take place wirelessly and the data from Fitbit will be automatically uploaded to the Fitbit site. Users can thence log in to the Fitbit site to view the detailed data and analysis.


For $99, users can get Fitbit to measure everything from sleep to sex, as promised by the developer. But what would be interesting is users need to find a place to clip the device when they need to measure their sex activities. Perhaps the deisgners can come up with something that can stick to the naked skin.

If you're a MID fan that's curious about this crazy "Android" you've been hearing about, it looks like the realms are colliding in many new and interesting ways as of late. E World, which seems to be owned by China Mobile, is selling the SmartQ5a touchscreen device pre-installed with Android 1.5 for $199.99. We know some of the more hardcore have been taking it upon yourself to install the open source OS on Smart Devices' 4.3-inch wonder for a while, but now the whole affair appears to have the stamp of approval of the People's Republic itself. We're just wondering who you'd contact if you have to take advantage of the one year warranty.

Wireless charging technology
is not something really new and it has been implemented on some consumer electronics products such as Palm Pre as an additional selling point. However, such technology has not been carried over to PC computing yet and Dell is believed to be the first one that will bring its high end Latitude Z series with such capability to PC market.


Besides ability to recharge wirelessly thanks to its special made inductive charging stand, the machine is also featured with ‘Instant On’ Operating Systems so that its end users
will no longer need to waste time waiting for computer reboot and are ready for seamless internet connectivity. Surprisingly, the wireless charging is claimed to be able to fully recharge with the same amount of time needed as similar to when using conventional power cable. Other features include a 16-inch diagonal screen with touch-sensitive controls on its bezel, sliding touch controls and all these are being powered by Intel Core 2 Duo processor (as a main processor) as well as a thermally efficient ARM processor as secondary processor to support ‘Instant On’ feature for prolong battery life.

The new model is expected to be released on October 25th but don’t expect it to be cheap, the machine will cost around $2000 (which doesn’t include the wireless charging stand and wireless connectivity hub that will cost additional $200 extra each). Nevertheless, it is mainly targeted for business executives and professionals that need a truly portable machine while on the move and a convenient cable-less workspace in enterprise environment.

The default photo or video file name generated by camera has a standard naming convention format such as IMG_xxxx.jpg or MVI_xxx.avi which is not meaningful at all. By looking at the file name, you probably don’t have any clue of what is the photo about until you open the photo to view it. If you would like to change file names to something more presentable, then Caterpixer is probably one of the good and powerful tools that is able to rename files in batch with few options provided.
Caterpixer is a freeware that being designed with user friendly interface. Basically it provides two main functions. The first one is the ability to rename file names in batch including subfolders. The second feature is to rename file names in current folder and then copy them to another folder. If you set the destination folder to be the same as source folder, then you will notice that another set of files will be created with the new name that you have configured with the original file names remained unchanged. On top of this, the second feature allows you to reduce file sizes by reducing quality of pictures. Unlike other tools, Caterpixer has been designed with few flexible features which gives you more control on renaming file names. You can rename file names according to few options provided such as add file index position to the prefix file names (you can choose to be either number, letter or combine both variants), add note to the file name as you like, add destination folder name to the file name, add parent folder name to the file name, add file creation date to the file name, add original file name and add modified original file name with all numbers replaced with letters. For options that you have selected, it will be separated by delimiter and it even allows you to choose the type of delimiter as such as space, underscore, dash and dot. After some testings and observations, I realize that when “add modified original file name with all numbers replaced with letters” option is chosen, the number will be replaced with long string of letters, which is not the same as what it is claimed. Anyway, it doesn’t impact the overall usage and its functionality at all.

Caterpixer ver 4.3.4.4 is absolutely free to download and is compatible to run in Windows XP/Vista.

Previously we mentioned about Freeze Security solution offered by Phoenix that can activate laptop screen lock using Bluetooth wireless technology, now seems that similar concept has been applied by Secu5, a Swiss manufacturer when developing its next generation portable security solution
targeted for frequent travelers. Names as BlueWatchDog, it works great with any Bluetooth-enabled mobile devices to safeguard your personal belongings while on the move.

The mechanism behind is it is based on the Bluetooth pairing capability that can pair both the device with any Bluetooth enabled mobile phone and whenever the pairing starts to lose connectivity, users will be alerted though vibration or ringing from mobile phone so that they are aware of such incident. In case there is no respond after few seconds of mobile alert, BlueWatchDog is smart enough to emit an alarm sound of around 100 decibels with the hope to scare the theft away while getting attention from public.

Being manufactured in a tiny credit card size, BlueWatchDog can be fitted well in any laptop bag, handbag and briefcase especially suitable for frequent travelers. At a retail price of €79, it is a good companion to effectively protect all your valuable belongings using your existing Bluetooth-enabled mobile phones.

Portable media device is so common nowadays and while it can provide multimedia entertainment especially for those that always on the move, it also poses certain hearing impaired threat to those that being exposed for long hour of music listening in loud audio level condition. In an attempt to control such situation, EU (European Union) has proposed a new legislation to regulate the maximum audio level that all the portable media players cannot exceed before they are allowed to be sold in Europe market.

The portable media devices that will be affected under this new regulation include Apple iPod and other branded MP3 players. The new regulation specifies the default maximum threshold to be set at 80 decibels which is considered safe level for average users. It may be hard to imagine how loud 80 decibel is, but in layman term, it is almost equivalent to heavy city traffic condition. Based on survey report, there are total of 50 to 100 million of people listening to music daily and if they are continuously exposed to loud audio for five year, chances to get permanent hearing damage is pretty high.

Although the maximum audio level has been defined and set by default, it doesn’t stop consumers from altering the level and so it is still not a hard rule for now. Nevertheless, hopefully it can create awareness to public to properly use the portable media player without creating unwanted health risk in normal life.

A tiny little beta leak earlier this month let BlackBerry-toting Mac fans knew that something good was coming in the near future, and now we know it's very near indeed (though a bit later than expected). On October 2 RIM will release BlackBerry Desktop Manager for Mac, specifically at 1:00pm EST. That means instead of wrapping up your busy work-week being productive you can instead spend the afternoon fighting long download queues and playing around getting this app configured -- for purely work-related purposes of course, like syncing with iCal, Address Book, and automatically backing up contacts. Just don't tell your boss you'll also be able to sync your iTunes collection to your handset, including album art, something that should make Pre-owning Bob down the hall a little jealous. Again, the fun starts Friday afternoon at 1:00 EST. Clear your calendars accordingly.

Read - RIM Launches BlackBerry Desktop Manager for Mac Users
Read - Download here come Friday

All we've got to go on here are a few screen images, but at a cursory glance, they sure match what we expect the Motorola Sholes (or Tao, as it were) to look like. The biggest news is that Android is alive and well, and while we're still waiting for an official release date, things are looking up for this to be the outfit's second-ever Google-powered device. Have a peek in the read link for a few more Google Maps shots as well as a glimpse at the 1,390mAh battery, and yes, it's completely fine if you bookmark the last page of the thread and refresh it continuously until actual hardware shots slip out. Not saying that's "normal," but hey...

We're still not sure if that many people are interested in buying Blu-ray burners yet, but Pioneer just unveiled the first 12x capable drive (up from 8x, and with an 8x read speed that gives us a great idea for the next PlayStation 3 revision) the BDR-205. Initially rolling out to OEMs this month, this drive couldn't wait for 12x certified discs to exist, though its full speed has been tested on Panasonic and Sony 6x BD-R blanks, "12x writing on all media cannot be guaranteed." Minus that caveat, expect to see these popping up on Newegg and the like any second now, the only price mentioned is for the full retail package BD-2205 coming Q1 2010 for $249.

Welp, that didn't take long. Just a few months after TerreStar announced that it had completed its first call on the new bird, the revived sat phone provider has now announced the first dual-mode smartphone for AT&T. Granted, we knew these two would be holding hands in the near future, but it's still refreshing to see the Genus hit the landscape. The WinMo-based phone will ship with a 2.6-inch touchscreen, WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS and GSM / GPRS / EDGE / UMTS / HSDPA radios. Oh, and it can tap into satellite waves too. This one's actually aimed at government, energy, utility, transportation and maritime users, and while it's slated to ship in Q1 2010 for an undisclosed amount, AT&T assures us that a consumer-oriented version is in the pipeline. Too bad this only enhances coverage in the US, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands and territorial waters -- we always dreamed of phoning home from Komsomolets Island.

mSpot has been streaming full-length movies to cellphones for a few years now, but not until this week has the company had a potential customer base of 40 million. As of right now, mobile phone users on Sprint, AT&T, Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile (yes, that includes the G1, Pre, iPhone and every other smartphone with a half-decent browser) can surf over to m.mspot.com in order to stream major motion pictures, and being that the service is on-demand, you can also pause and restart 'em whenever you darn well please. Deals have been inked with Paramount Studios, Universal Pictures and the Weinstein Company, and we're told that more agreements are in the works. Movie rentals will cost $4.99 per title, and can be viewed from 24 hours to 5 days after they're rented. Naturally, mSpot recommends paying for an "unlimited" data plan, and if you're smart, you won't utilize the service whilst traveling abroad.

Among the many minor changes included in the 3.0 release of the iPhone OS was one that would enable those myriad of iPhone accessories to work more closely with software. That is to say, to make the plugging in of one result in in a prompting to download the other. The first such piece of hardware is the latest Griffin iTrip, which, when connected, raises the dialog shown above. You can of course say "No" if you don't feel like playing along, but when it comes to accessories like the TomTom car kit we're thinking you'll probably be missing out if you don't go along with the flow.

Alright, so we're going to go ahead and caution against buying anything that claims to have a "dual Bluetooth" module, but if you're feeling froggy, the planet's first (and probably last) dual CPU netbook has just been launched. Not dual core, mind you, but dual processor. The admittedly chintzy looking Swordfish Net 102 Dual claims to have a pair of 1.6GHz Atom N270s within, not to mention 2GB of DDR2 RAM, optional WWAN, a 1.3 megapixel webcam, 10.2-inch display (1,024 x 600 resolution), a 160GB hard drive and Windows XP runnin' the show. It's available to order for the low, low price of $449, though we wouldn't expect the stock 3-cell battery to last very long (read: an hour) with a pair of CPUs sucking down juice.

If you believed all the fuel cell talk that's been bandied about in press releases over the years you'd have thrown away your plug-in chargers by now and started squirting alcohol into all your gadgets. Many promises have been broken, so please take this news of a supposed $30 fuel cell charger for cellphones and other mobile devices with a suitably large chunk of salt -- or some sodium-free flavor enhancer if your doctor has imposed such dietary restrictions. Scientists at the Industrial Technology Research Institute in Taiwan have created a prototype charger that runs on small tubes containing solid-state hydrogen, "plasticized" so that it is only released when mixed with water. The canisters are said to sell for $.30 a pop, leaving one researcher to say: "They could be sold at 7-Eleven." We want to write a skeptical response analyzing the feasibility of to such pricing but instead got distracted researching information about Taiwanese convenience stores. Did you know there are 4,807 7-Eleven franchise locations around Taiwan? Amazing!

LaCie isn't exactly the first name that comes to mind when you think "sound," but it's definitely near the top in the design department. Neil Poulton, the same fellow responsible for designing the outfit's line of sleek, sexy hard drives, has placed his touch on the speakers you see above. The simplistic Sound2 setup boasts 30 total watts of peak power, and all it requires to function is a free USB port, an open AC outlet and an Earthling kind enough to connect it all. If you just know these would look sound great on your desk, get ready to fork out $99.99 for the privilege.

Love that brain-pounding sensation when you jack that volume past the sensible limit? If so, you best hop on the next flight to somewhere not within Europe, as the almighty European Commission is fixing to peg the default volume limit on portable media players at 80 decibels. If you're stricken with an awful case of déjà vu, you're not alone. You may recall that a similar French law forced Apple to limit the volume level on its iPod family to 100dB, and at that time, it decided to make the limit apply to all units shipped within Europe. Now, the EU is seeking to bring that ceiling down to 80dB on all portable music players in an effort to protect the precious hearing abilities of its citizens, though we should note that said level would only apply to the default setting, not overall maximums. In other words, you can override the recommended listening level if you please, but don't bet on that socialized healthcare taking care of you if The Man finds out. Kidding. Maybe.

We've already seen Nokia's Maemo 5-powered N900 pull off some pretty fanciful tricks, but without qualification this is the one most dear to our hearts. Somehow or another, Konttori managed to get his palms around an N900 of his own, and rather than testing out the social networking abilities or battery life, he simply installed an SNES emulator, tweaked it to accept Wiimote controls and even connected it to his TV for a staggeringly authentic gameplay experience. Vicarious living is just a click or two away, so hop on past the break for a video of the action. Oh, and don't mind the baby -- he's not in the corner or anything.

We've been furnished with the above page from an O2 in-store catalog detailing the HTC HD2 (aka Leo), which was set for a UK release on October 12 (though we're hearing that may have slipped to the 26th). Interesting that it's pictured with a stock Windows Mobile 6.5 UI instead of TouchFLO 3D. Is O2 rushing HTC's new hotness out the door in response to losing its iPhone supremacy? Or did an absent-minded employee just slip out the catalogs ahead of time? We're getting in touch with O2 to find out and will update with more details as we get them. For now, check out the full catalog page after the break.

Update:
After O2 stonewalled our phone enquiries, we decided to drop by our nearest (which was still annoyingly far away) store to have a look for ourselves. Alas, we only found September issues of the catalog, and the above snapshot is from the October iteration, which sports a big fat Pre promo on the front. So, anyone else seen an advance copy yet?

Mmm, real time dynamic maps of the Earth. It seems nowadays that supervillainy just isn't as hard as it used to be. Back in the days of Hugo Drax, you had to be a filthy rich eccentric to ever get to spy on the whole world, whereas today all you need is Google Earth and some Georgia Institute of Technology students. Using motion capture data and the veritable litany of CCTV cameras people have surrounded themselves with, the team have succeeded in mapping and animating the real time movements of cars, people and clouds. A proper unveiling is coming up at a symposium next month, by which point they might have added weather patterns, birds and river motions to that list, but for now you can enjoy the video demo after the break.

The Windows Ecosystem Team has gone official with the new 'Compatible with Windows 7' sticker, which we sincerely hope won't be as laughably misapplied as its Vista-related predecessor. Set to appear on hardware, software and peripherals, the label is intended to reassure customers that they'll have the "optimal Windows 7 experience" thanks to "robust testing requirements" and a longer testing cycle. That's good to hear, as is the fact that already over 6,000 products have been given a passing grade, meaning that -- surprise, surprise -- when you get your Windows 7 machine, it will most likely be compatible with everything you own or intend to buy. An intriguing tidbit is that one logo will cover all flavors, including 64-bit.

Update:
Okay, so it looks like we were a little off the mark here. To be clear, this program is primarily intended for peripherals and accessories you purchase after your you get a computer, which is why testing against 64-bit Windows 7 is a requirement. We're sure we'll see plenty of Atom netbooks running Windows 7 with a slightly different sticker on 'em just as soon as October 22 rolls around -- you just won't be able to buy an Atom-based mobo with this particular sticker on the box, because it won't run 64-bit Windows 7. You know what else you can't buy? A dragon.

Look, we admit it: Honda's U3-X unicycle gave us a bit of a chuckle when we first peeped the video last week. Now look at this, just look at it! Not only does the Honda EV-N Concept steal all the best retro styling from the classic Fiat 500 (or Honda 600 closer to home), it also integrates the miniscule U3-X electric transporter directly into its passenger door frame -- adding an additional 22-pounds, at least, in the process. Oh, and this little guy's electric with a solar roof panel. The EV-N will makes its debut at the Tokyo Motor Show next month where we hope to give it a great big hug just for showing up. A few more pics after the break, fully gallery just beyond that read link.

To be sure, a certain number of dropped calls are to be expected when you're dealing with the wonders of cellular communication, but some phones do seem to fare worse then others when paired with certain carriers in particularly congested regions. Apparently fed up with such problems in New York, Gizmodo reader Manoj decided to stop by an Apple Store to see if something might be wrong with his iPhone -- this, after apparently being assured by AT&T that everything was all right on its end. After a few tests, the Apple Genius determined that Manoj's phone was dropping 22 percent of its calls, which turns out to actually be "excellent" compared to most iPhone users in the New York area, where a dropped call rate of 30 percent is said to be average. The Genius further went on to confirm that the phone was indeed "fully functional," and that the problem is "consistent with the service provided by AT&T." So, nothing to worry about, folks -- everything is "normal."

Tesla Motors may now be banking on its Model S to help it snag a bigger piece of the electric car market, but it looks like the car's platform may be the real key to the company's near-term success. As just revealed in an official blog post by VP of Business Development Diarmuid O'Connell, Tesla will also be using the platform for a range of other "derivatives," including a minivan, a cross-over utility vehicle and, yes, a full-fledged utility van for both industrial and civic use. Unfortunately, O'Connell didn't have much to say about anything like a launch timeframe or any other details, for that matter, but we wouldn't let that stop you from your starting to plan out some van art. Trust us. It's coming back.

The New York Times Bits Blog is reporting that Michael Tchao, a member of the team that brought the Apple Newton MessagePad to market, is going back to work for Apple after a 15-year absence. In Tchao's new job as Vice President of Product Marketing, he'll be reporting to Apple Senior V.P. of Product Marketing Phil Schiller.

For the past 7 years, Tchao has been General Manager of Nike's Techlab, which has been responsible for the Nike + iPod line as well as the online integration that makes nikeplus.com so powerful.

If you wanted to start doing a bit of speculating, it's interesting to note that Tchao was part of the team that was responsible for Apple's first tablet computer. Of course, the Newton platform wasn't exactly a huge success during its 5 years of life, owing primarily to its high price and (at least in the first versions) less-than-stellar handwriting recognition. Tchao wasn't in a marketing position at the time as the General Manager of Product Planning and Strategy for Apple's Personal Interactive Electronics group, and most of the marketing fumbles of the Newton era can be laid at the feet of the Apple execs in charge at the time.

Tchao certainly has the street cred as a tablet computing expert, with 5 patents to his name during his time with the Newton team. Although we don't know for sure at this time if Tchao has been tapped to resurrect tablet computing at Apple, his background both at Apple and Nike Techlab shows that he not only has the technical background to shepherd a new product to market, but the marketing savvy as well.

Welcome back, Mr. Tchao!

Those of us in the Mac rumor and news business (is there a difference?) love it when we get a good tip, especially when that tip is from someone who has given us good, solid info in the past. iLounge featured a post last night called "Ten New Details on the Apple Tablet" that passed along some rumors that they've received from one of those solid sources.

While I won't parrot back the bullet list of ten details that are in the iLounge post, here's the gist of the article: Apple has created at least three prototypes of what editor-in-chief Jeremy Horwitz calls the iPad. The prototype that is still in the running has a 10.7" diagonal display, runs iPhone OS, and looks like a large iPhone 3G.

The device will have two variations, one with 3G networking built-in (think of it as an über-iPhone 3GS) and another without it (a mongo iPod touch). The larger display is expected to have about 7 times the surface area of the iPhone, and about 6 times the resolution, allowing easy reading of books, magazines, and cropped newspapers.

With the extra screen space, the new devices are designed to bring ebook functionality to the iPhone platform as well as make a more compelling platform for games, media, app, and the web. Apple doesn't expect this device to compete with netbooks, hence their continued denial that the company will come out with a netbook killer. Instead, this will be an extension of the iPhone platform.

Horwitz finishes his list by noting that the device is still awaiting a green light from Steve Jobs, and that it has about an 80% chance of making it to market. If it's given the go-ahead, the source is stating that the device would be announced on or before January 19, 2010 and would go on sale in May or June.

While this is still a rumor, the information is from the same source that gave iLounge the scoop on the iPod nano 5G, the iPhone 3GS, and the Chinese iPhone 3G. It appears we'll still have to wait until 2010 before the fabled tablet appears in our local Apple Stores.

What's it going to take for us to get developers to release games for Apple products earlier than two years after the fact? The iPhone, apparently -- EA has announced that their soccer flagship FIFA 10 will be available for the iPhone this Friday, which is the same day the console game shows up in stores as well. The game will have everything the full versions have, including real teams and leagues, a licensed soundtrack, and all of the usual soccer standbys. One thing missing: online multiplayer, though local wifi multiplayer will be available.

Sounds good to us, especially if you're a fan of the sport all those crazy Europeans call football. The app should be $9.99, befitting of a premium EA sports app, though there will probably be a sale on it sooner or later. Now, about that actual Mac version...

Sometime this summer a wiseacre commenter (we get a few) suggested we do a "Five Apps" for a variety of somewhat offbeat topics. One wasn't so far-fetched however: gastroenterologist. One could say that a gastro doc has about the same needs as any doctor, of course, and that's an easy out. So here are 5 apps that are great for gastroenterologists and possibly any medical specialist... Coming soon: 5 apps for the lemur owner.

Epocrates Rx - This free app looks up drugs and is updated weekly. Epocrates [iTunes link] has already been available for other mobile platforms for a while, this is a must-have for physicians, I would think. There's also a Pro version that is designed for medical professionals, and it requires a yearly subscription fee to work. It's $99 for one year, which is pretty reasonable for what this does -- which includes an amazing pill ID tool.

DocWrite - Another free app with a service you subscribe to, but this may appeal to more than doctors. DocWrite [iTunes link] is a transcription service that sends your ramblings securely and sends you back a complete transcription in PDF or Word. DocWrite has a web-based dashboard for your stuff, too, so you'll never be without those documents in text or audio.

PubSearch - PubMed is a massive database of medical research papers and PubSearch (free version) [iTunes link] is an iPhone app that'll search them. Yes, of course you need a subscription to the database (noticing a trend here?). PubSearch also has a Mac desktop app, although there does not seem to be any coordination between the two. I'd imagine something like sharing bookmarks would be helpful. PubSearch Plus [iTunes link] costs $1.99 and is really the more functional version as it will show full articles and use EZProxy (where supported).

Medcalc - A free medical calculator? Yep, Medcalc [iTunes link] includes a ton of formulas for doctors, plus a few indices and charts and whatnot to keep a handy reference for those who need it. This app seems to cover a lot of ground, although I'm not sure how much applies to the field of gastroenterology.

Mobile MIM for iPhone and iPod touch - Sadly, this has yet to be released. But I'm guessing it'll be at the top of many doctors' wish lists. MIMvista makes real-deal medical imaging stuff and the MIM app for iPhone was demonstrated at WWDC. The demo was astounding, showing how doctors could merge CT and PET scans right on their iPhone and make notes for later use. The app is pending FDA approval, with no release date or price set.

You might think you're hot stuff for carrying around a new Vertu Constellation Ayxta, but this is America, bub -- and your blinged-up Nokia has to kick it at the FCC just like everyone else. Of course, without that fancy always-on-call Concierge service and Vertu Select, all you're really looking at here is a pretty anonymous featurephone wrapped up in high-end garb, but you're not spending your $10,500 on features here -- you're spending it because you're too lazy and rich to buy something good.

Counting down the moments with your besties until T-Mobile USA opens up the pre-order page for Motorola's first-ever Android device? Might as well do something more productive in the meanwhile, particularly since the aforesaid carrier has just announced plans to charge $199.99 for the CLIQ on a two-year agreement. Without a doubt, that's quite a bit more than the $0.00 we gently expected (okay, not really) it to run, but it's pretty much par for the course these days. Existing T-Mobile customers that are interested in getting ahold of this thing (in Titanium or Winter White) early can pre-order one from October 19th through November 1st, while newcomers and procrastinators can get theirs in-store starting on November 2nd. So -- you in, or what?

It doesn't matter who your carrier is, you're gonna have some complaints. But is the grass always greener somewhere else? To answer that question, the kids at Laptop Magazine have conducted a test of the customer service practices of the big four (Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile, and AT&T) to ascertain each company's friendliness, knowledge, and timeliness. The publication placed customer service calls twice during a week (once at midday and once during rush hour), visited two stores per carrier in New York City, and tried to find solutions to its problems using each carrier's online knowledge base. Apparently, T-Mobile takes the prize for in-store assistance and web support, and Sprint, while not always able to answer questions, at least had taken steps to streamline the support process (and the fact that its employees were friendly didn't hurt). Apparently Verizon Wireless offered solid in-store support (albeit with grumpy employees), "quick and accurate phone support" and "solid" online help. AT&T, sadly, was the loser here -- Laptop says it left the store "shocked" that one representative couldn't figure out how to get email up and running on its Blackberry. Shocking! Hit the read link to see for yourself.

We know you love nothing more than a Toshiba Satellite laptop announcement, so listen up: the company has just announced two new CULV ultraportables of the UK and stateside market: The Satellite T135 (or the T130 as it's known overseas) is a 13.3-inch beauty with options including either an Intel Pentium, Celeron single core or Celeron dual-core CPU, up to 3GB of DDR3 RAM, and 250GB harddrive. The Satellite T115 (or T110 in the UK) sports an 11.6-inch display, either an Intel Pentium or Celeron single core CPU, and up to 4GB of RAM and 500GB harddrive. What's more, the kids over at Laptop Mag have given the T135 the old once-over and found it to be a pretty good deal: "for slightly less than the competition," they said of the $709 review unit, you're getting "good performance and a stylish design." Perhaps the single touchpad button and the quiet speakers will be a turn-off to some, but it takes all kinds, right? Look for the T135 and T115 on October 22nd, for $599 and $449 respectively -- their UK counterparts should hit the streets on the same date, priced from £429.
Read - Toshiba Satellite T130/T135 and T110/T115 CULV ultraportables debut
Read - Toshiba Satellite T135 review

No, the device you see above is not simply a comically large smartphone (at least we don't think it is). It's actually a Snapdragon-powered, Windows Mobile 6.5-running tablet developed by the folks at C-motech. While complete details are still a bit hard to come by, this so-called "Mangrove" device reportedly packs a 7-inch touchscreen, along with a full range of connectivity options including WiFi, 3G and WiMAX, plus a pair of USB ports and a microSD card slot for a bit more flexibility. Of course, it is still just a concept at the moment, but C-motech is apparently looking at ways to bring it to market -- although your guess is as good as ours as to whether it'll actually hang onto Windows Mobile during that transition or not.

You'd think Sony's ad teams would have learned to stay away from needlessly controversial imagery after that whole "White is coming" PSP debacle or even those "Take a Running Jump Here" ads, but... they haven't. Check out these Chilean PlayStation 3 ads, which show a modern-day gamer giving a heart transplant to Joan of Arc and a blood transfusion to a Nazi. Yes, Sony has Godwin'd its own advertising. The Nazi in question is supposed to be Erwin Rommel, a highly decorated and respected German field marshal, but it's not like Sony's really riffing on that here, and making an ad with a swastika in it that relies on your audience to know the subtle nuances of WWII history just isn't the smartest move in the world. It's a pretty simple rule: if you make a video game ad with Nazis in it and it's not about shooting the Nazis, you've screwed up. Let's just stick with those creeptastic Japanese PS3 spots, okay?

P.S.- We'll shut off comments in a heartbeat. Behave yourselves.

In a move that's sure to please a few million Windows users and break the hearts of a handful of anti-virus companies, Microsoft has now finally made the non-beta version of its Security Essentials software available to the general public, and it's not even asking that you throw a launch party to get it for free. For those not in on the beta or following Microsoft's exciting forays into freeware, the software promises to cover all the security basics and fend off viruses, spyware and other malicious software, and Microsoft even assures us that it'll "run quietly in the background" and only intrude on your life when an action is required. You'll also, of course, get free updates on a regular basis, and it'll work just fine whether you use Windows XP, Vista or Windows 7 -- hit up the link below to grab a copy.

Hard Kernel has just announced that the developer version of the ODROID Android-powered portable gaming device is available for pre-order as of today. The device features an 833MHz Samsung S5PC100 processor (same as the iPhone 3GS), 512MB of RAM, and a 3.5-inch capacitive touchscreen. Sadly, there's no integrated 3G, but WiFi b/g, Bluetooth and mini-HDMI output is supported. The Android OS 1.5 runs off a 2GB TFlash card, with an 8GB SD card supplied for storage. Also included are a download/charger cable, serial console debugging board and batteries. Going for about $320, this bad boy is expected to ship on November 5th. If all goes well, you can expect to see a consumer version sometime in December for around $250.

Rumors of updated iMacs have been flying fast and furious lately, and now it seems like they're getting a bit of credibility -- AppleInsider says retailers, including Apple's own stores, have been told supplies of iMacs and Mac minis are "constrained" and that future orders will go unfulfilled. You heard that right -- the Mac mini, the red-headed stepchild of the Mac line, is now also officially on Refresh Watch. Combined with the rumors of revised and potentially cheaper plastic MacBooks and we're hoping Apple's about to get aggressive with its low-end pricing, but that's probably just wishful thinking.

P.S.- Doesn't that seem like a lot of updates to dish out at once? The savvy rumor connoisseur would be expecting a couple random analysts to mouth off at this point, followed by whispers of an impending event and its cancellation due to "last minute issues." Gene Munster swirls his glass and predicts the MacBook will feature CableCARD slots and function as a DVR. Spring follows winter, winter follows fall.

In a little over 19 days from now, you'll be able to get your CLIQ... ah wait, no you won't, but at least you'll be able to express your interest in getting a CLIQ, which is a good first step, we suppose. T-Mobile has just thrown up its official CLIQ preorder countdown page, which we're thinking the most die-hard Android types out there are probably going to leave running in the background of their machines for the next three weeks until the moment of truth finally comes. In the meantime, you can register for official updates, which -- sorry, T-Mobile, much love -- probably won't come as quickly as we can provide them. Just sayin'.

Garmin and AT&T have announced the launch of the new Garmin Nuvifone G60 navigation phone, which claims as the only 3G phone to fully integrate the world’s best selling GPS navigator with voice, data and mobile web, offering users the same core great features and user experience as a high-end Garmin nuvi aimed to deliver the easy-to-use, advanced and intuitive navigation experience.

“Personal navigation devices are already all about mobility and taking the Garmin experience everywhere as your mobile phone is truly compelling for customers who travel often,” commented Michael Woodward, vice president, Mobile Phone Portfolio, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. “We expect the nuvifone to be the guide for local restaurants, the least-expensive gas and the nearest coffee shop for many customers.”

Features Of Garmin Nuvifone G60:

* 3 megapixel camera with auto-focus and geo-tagging capability
* 3.55-inch anti-glare resistive WQVGA (272 x 480 pixels) touchscreen with 65K colors
* Large screen with portrait and landscape view of each screen and virtual QWERTY keyboard on touchscreen
* Comes preloaded with maps and millions of points of interest (POIs) for North America
* Voice prompted turn-by-turn directions that speaks street names to millions of destinations
* “Where am I?” safety feature displays users’ current address and nearest police, hospital and fuel services in one click
* Real GPS receiver with Garmin’s HotFix technology and assisted GPS provide reliable location information in the most challenging conditions
* Ciao! Location-based Social Networking platform that integrates compatible social networks into 1 easy-to-use interface
* Garmin Locate helps users remember where they parked by automatically marking their position while they remove it from the car
* Free access to AT&T’s Yellow Pages, flight status and converter
* Desktop web experience with full HTML browser
* Mobile e-mail like Hotmail, Gmail, AOL mail, POP3 and IMAP
* 4GB internal memory plus MicroSD memory slot expandable up to 16GB
* Talk time: Up to 4 hours ; Standby time: Up to 250 hours

“The nuvifone weaves location into nearly every facet of its functionality making it ideal for people who depend on location to navigate everyday life,” said Cliff Pemble, president and COO of Garmin. “The nuvifone has Garmin’s easy-to-use interface, so navigating to a meeting directly from its calendar or contacts pages, or geotagging an email or photograph with a location stamp, is intuitive, useful and fun.”

Garmin Nuvifone G60 navigation phone which measures 4.4 x 2.3 x 0.57 inches and weighs just 4.8 ounces (battery included) is scheduled to hit AT&T stores starting October 4, 2009 for $299, after $100 mail-in-rebate and 2-year service contract. Furthermore, Nuvifone Premium Connected Services that includes traffic updates, white pages, weather, movie, local events and fuel prices are available for $5.99 per month after a 30-day trial.

Samsung has introduced its new Samsung AMOLED 12M (Samsung SCH-W880) in Korea, which the company claims as the world’s first mobile phone to sport a 12 megapixel camera with 3x optical zoom, featuring world’s most advanced WVGA (800 x 480 pixels) AMOLED full touchscreen display, providing users
a latest camera technology and display technology to enhance their mobile experience.


“Samsung has led the camera phone market introducing the very many first of its kind camera phone – the first 5-megapixel (SCH-V7800, June 2005), the first 7-megapixel with an optical zoom (SCH-V770, July 2005), the first 10-megapxel (SCH-B600, October 2006), and recently, the first 12-megapixel camera phone for global market (Samsung Pixon12, June 2009),” said JK Shin, Executive Vice President, Head of Mobile Communication Division at Samsung Electronics. “The Samsung AMOLED 12M is a living proof of our continuous commitment to introduce the most up-to-date technology to enrich users’ mobile experience.”

Powerful Features And Specifications Of Samsung AMOLED 12M (Samsung SCH-W880):

* Brilliant 3.3-inch WVGA AMOLED full touchscreen display
* 12 megapixel camera with 3X optical zoom, xenon + power LED flash, Touch Auto-Focus (AF) tracking, Smart Auto, Beauty Shot and image stabilization
* Dedicated Camera Power Key provides a real digital camera-alike look and grip feeling
* Fast image saving for next shot enabling users move to next shot within around 2 seconds
* Ability to record 720p HD videos (1280 x 720 pixels) at 30 fps
* Built-in 4GB internal memory, and MicroSD memory expansion slot supporting up to 32GB
* Bluetooth 2.0 and USB 2.0 HS (micro USB) connectivity

The new Samsung AMOLED 12M (SCH-W880) which measures 115.8 x 56.9 x 16.3 mm will hit Korean market by early October 2009 for about 1 million won, but no words on other areas’ availability yet. In addition, Samsung is expected to swap T-DMB (Mobile TV) with Wi-Fi and GPS in an International version of Samsung AMOLED 12M – Samsung M8920.

Apple has announced that over 2 billion applications
have been downloaded from its popular App Store, which the company claims as the world’s largest applications store that includes more than 85,000 apps for iPhone and iPod touch owners in 77 countries worldwide, offering incredible range of apps in 20 categories, including games, business, news, sports, health, reference, travel and more.

“The rate of App Store downloads continues to accelerate with users downloading a staggering two billion apps in just over a year, including more than half a billion apps this quarter alone,” said Steve Jobs, CEO for Apple. “The App Store has reinvented what you can do with a mobile handheld device, and our users are clearly loving it.”

Philips has added a new phone to its Xenium lineup which known as Xenium K700. The touchscreen phone has been improved with media player that supports variety of file formats including RMBV, AVI, FLV, Divx, MP3, WMA, AC, FLAC and APE for enhancing multimedia experience.

Featured with a 2.8-inch touchscreen TFT LDC display with 400 x 240 resolutions, Philips Xenium K700 is also equipped with a 3.2-megapixel camera with auto-focus function as well as video recording. It boasts 48MB of internal memory, integrates with dedicated GPU, supports GSM/GPRS/EDGE 900/1800/1900 MHz connectivity and has built-in FM radio with RDS. Moreover, it is Bluetooth enabled, supports USB 2.0 and microSD memory slot, and comes with 1000mA battery that provides up to 8.5 hours of talk time and up to one month of standby time.

Highlight Key features of the Xenium K700:

* 2.8-inch touchscreen TFT LCD at 400 x 240 resolutions.
* GSM/GPRS/EDGE 900/1800/1900MHz connectivity.
* Supports RMBV, AVI, FLV, Divx, MP3, WMA, AC, FLAC and APE file formats.
* Dedicated GPU.
* 3.2-megapixel camera with auto-focus and video recording.
* 48MB internal memory.
* microSD memory card slot.
* Bluetooth 2.0/USB 2.0/FM-radio with RDS

The availability and the price of Philips Xenium K700 with measurement of 101 x 52 x 13-mm and weighs at 97 grams are not yet announced.

Previously we mentioned about BitFinder that can scan for duplicated files to conserve your hard disk space, but if you are looking for some freeware that can do more than that, then this tiny utility may fit your need. Named as Hard Drive Powerwash, it allows users to clean up some clutter files such as files that are left over whenever you uninstall program or temporary internet files to free them up from your hard disk space.


Once install and launch the utility, users will be brought to a GUI whereby there is a way to do simple setup before running the utility. By default, no filter will be used and it will scan the whole hard disk drive for files that can be cleared. Alternatively, users can selectively scan Internet files which include browser cache, history, cookies or only do drive cleaning with specific types of files to be searched which would definitely narrow down the searching criteria and shorten the searching time. Once everything are defined, just click on ‘Analyze’ radio button and it will scan all the selected categories of files with proper display for quick glance ready for deletion. Next, click on delete will send all these to recycle bin. Good thing is, it will able to summarize how much total space you are able to save after deleting some of these unused trash files.

Let’s try to run this tiny utility by downloading here and see how much space you could save and you would be impress with how much memory capacity you can save and more importantly, it will ensure your PC system is always in optimum condition for more effective daily work.

Set in stone for March, eh? Looks like that ship date slipped just a wee bit. iLuv's curious i1166 -- which plays back an array of multimedia from an array of sources on its 9-inch LCD -- is now slated to ship to the US next month. Originally introduced at CES, the $269.99 device can play back content stored on an iPod, DVD, SD / MMC card or USB drive, though the omission of a screen resolution gives us serious pause. Other specs include twin 3.5 millimeter headphone jacks, an "iPod-friendly" user interface and a bundled remote, none of which justify the lofty asking price in our humble eyes. You and your wallet can feel free to disagree in around a fortnight, though.

We heard the Archos 9 tablet was due alongside Windows 7, but just in case you were worried that preposition would be stretched to the limits of its definition, the company made clear at IDF that October 22nd was the target, making it day and date with Microsoft's latest OS. As for US price, it's a better-than-expected (at least as far as UK currency conversions go) $499 for the ultra-thin tablet. Mark your calendars accordingly, the diehards in the audience have less than a month to prepare their bank accounts. Now if only Archos would do something about that maladjusted resistive touchscreen...

Let's just be brutally honest here: Garmin-Asus' nuvifone G60 is basically the Duke Nukem of phones. We've been following it since before Garmin and ASUS formed their joint venture, since before we had an inkling of what carriers might pick it up, and before other models running other platforms got thrown under the nuvifone branding umbrella. It's been a heck of a ride -- a ride that seemed exciting for the first year or so, but at this point, the phone's stretched our patience to the breaking point and set expectations so unrealistically high that it seems virtually impossible that a US launch could quench our thirst for awesomeness. The world will never know with certainty what took so long -- maybe it was met with a lukewarm response from carriers, maybe the formation of the joint venture set everything back a bunch of months -- but whatever the case, it looks like we'll finally be able to navigate the G60 right into our hands come October 4 on AT&T. With triband HSDPA, a 3.2 megapixel camera, Bluetooth, and microSD expansion, the phone really doesn't scream "high end," but AT&T must think that the promise of an authentic Garmin nav experience is enough to command a hefty premium because a two-year deal is going to run $299.99 with a required $30 data plan -- and that's after $100 mail-in rebate. Follow the break for a gander at AT&T's G60 FAQs for salesfolk.


QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS:

Q. How does Garmin navigation compare to AT&T Navigator?

A. Both Garmin and AT&T Navigator provide voice prompted turn by turn navigation. One of the main differences between Garmin and AT&T Navigator is that Garmin navigation is fully integrated into email, contacts, SMS, photos and more. This means that customers can navigate to an address sent via text, email or in their address book directly from text, email, or the address book. Customers do not have to leave the application and type the address in the navigation search.

Q. How much does it cost for navigation on Garmin nuvifone G60?

A. Garmin navigation is built into the device price. Once a customer buys the device and puts a SIM into the phone, navigation will automatically work. There is no monthly charge for navigation. This is a great selling feature of the device. Once a customer's contract period is up they can continue to use Garmin navigation as long as a SIM is in the phone.

Q. What services are included with Garmin nuvifone G60 at no additional charge?

A. Customers who purchase the Garmin G60 will receive Garmin navigation with built in maps, web browsing, SMS, YPC, Ciao*, flight status and currency converter at no additional charge.

Q. What is Garmin Premium Services?

A. Garmin Premium services (GPS) is available for $5.99 a month after a 30 day free trial. GPS gives customers real time access to traffic updates, gas prices, white pages, weather, local events and movie listings. To activate GPS customers must click on one of the service icons on the device and accept the terms of service. After 30 days, customers will automatically be enrolled in GPS and will be billed $5.99 a month until they call in to cancel the service (For $5.99 a month the customer gets full access to all of the CPS on the device)

Q. Does nuvifone G60 require a special rate plan (like iPhone)?

A. nuvifone G60 can be activated on any eligible postpaid rate plan. It does not require a special rate plan like iPhone.

Q. Are there any Data plan requirements with Garmin?

A. Garmin requires a $30 data plan. The $30 data plan will give customers unlimited browsing and search. It also covers all data usage for GPS which requires real time updates every few minutes and is therefore constantly "pinging" the network and constantly using data.

Q. Can customers download applications using the G60?

A. All the applications that can be used on the Garmin G60 are resident on the device. Garmin nuvifone G60 does not support download capabilities

Q. Does nuvifone G60 support corporate email?

A. nuvifone G60 does not support corporate email. It supports mobile email clients like Hotmail, Gmail and AOL through POP3/IMAP setup

Q. What is included in the box when a customer purchases the G60?

A. nuvifone comes with all the accessories to optimize in-car use of the G60 including the device, car mount and dashboard mount. It also comes with a USB cable so that customers can easily sync their device to the PC to sync their contacts and/or get map updates from garmin.com

Q. What are some unique selling features of the G60?

A. There are many unique features to the nuvifone G60 including the following:

Where am I – with the touch of a button get the nearest intersection, hospital, police station and hwy

Where's my car - Once a device is taken off the car mount, it will automatically store the location where it was dismounted. Customers can leave with the device in hand and navigate back to the car at a later time (i.e. when shopping in the mall and wants to find the car in the parking lot)

Photo Geo-Tagging- Customers can send/receive pictures with location based information and customers can navigate directly to that location with a push of a button

Q. What is the Ciao application located on the device?

A. Ciao is a social networking application on the device. It allows customers to share location based information with friends, family and people in their social network. Ciao is an application that is included on the device for no additional charge.

Q. Is nuvifone eligible for insurance?

A. Yes! It is Tier 2, $125 deductable.

* Ciao is an application that allows others to track a customer's location. Ciao does not go through AT&T privacy controls. Customers should be informed that this application is available on the device but that it does include tracking capabilities. Registration for Ciao is handled on the device. When a customer selects the Ciao application they will be directed to www.garmin.com for registration.