Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds, Wireless

Hey, do you guys want to hear our AT&T impression? It’s pretty awesome. Okay, okay, here it goes: “Great news, we’re offering free WiFi to iPhone users! Wait, no we’re not. Yes we are! Oh, no, wait, cancel that.” Pretty spot-on, right? Sadly, it looks like we might need something else to rag on shortly, since an AT&T spokesman started clearing the air with the New York Times late last week. The bottom line — for the moment, anyway — is that AT&T has “long planned” to offer up its WiFi hotspots as a free value-add for the iPhone and all of the other WiFi-equipped devices in its arsenal, but that the brief enabling of the feature thus far and the mention on AT&T’s site were results of human error, and the company isn’t prepared at this point to commit to an actual launch date or details on how the service will work. Hey, at least we know we’re not just suffering from some brutal hallucinations now.

[Via TUAW]

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Filed under: Cellphones

Singapore Telecommunications (aka SingTel) announced that it’s secured agreements to distribute the iPhone in Singapore (on SingTel Mobile) and its partly-owned subsidiaries in Australia (on Optus), India (on Bharti Group), and the Philippines (on Globe Telecom). Vodafone’s also distributing the iPhone in India and Australia though, so we’ll have to wait until later this year to find out who gets to shoot first.

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Filed under: Laptops

HP’s got some new 2133 configs out as of tonight, including options for “downgrading” to Windows XP on models over $700 — more or less as expected. They’re up to eight base configs ranging from $500 to $820, so if you’ve been thinking of picking one up you’ve certainly got plenty of options to choose from.

[Via HP 2133 Guide]

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Happy Birthday to “Lost” actor Malcolm David Kelley (1992), “American Pie” actor Jason Biggs (1978), “The Facts of Life” star Kim Fields (1969), skateboard phenom Tony Hawk (1968), actor Stephen Baldwin (1966),

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Filed under: Peripherals, Wireless, Storage

Eye-Fi’s expanding from a single card to a family of three tonight. All are the same 2GB as before, but now we’ve got the new flagship Eye-Fi Explore ($129), which includes geotagging courtesy of Skyhook (the same WiFi-based location system that helps the iPod touch and iPhone find their way). Then you’ve got the Eye-Fi Share ($99) — basically the same card we used to know simply as the Eye-Fi — and finally the Eye-Fi Home ($79), which appears to only be able to upload photos through desktop software using your home network. Expect ‘em all on sale come June 6th.

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Filed under: Cellphones

Damn, took ‘em long enough! RIM finally announced the BlackBerry Bold / 9000 — we’ve got specs, but no price or hard launch date. Here we go:

• HSDPA and EV-DO versions (including an AWS-capable 1700MHz version)
• 320 x 480 display
• 625MHz CPU
• 1GB internal flash memory
• 802.11a/b/g, Bluetooth 2.0 (with A2Dp), GPS, MicroSDHC
• 480 x 320 video recording, photo geotagging
• 4.5 x 2.6 x 0.55-inches, 4.7 ounces

PC Mag’s got the (latest) hands-on, hit the read link.

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Filed under: Laptops

Not that we wouldn’t eventually expect a 2.6GHz MacBook, but Apple’s Hot News site is running this promo that references a new, upgraded model of the laptop (which right now only reaches 2.4GHz). Our take? We’re thinking typo, not premature announcement.

[Thanks, Matthew and fr]

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Filed under: Transportation

We’d heard Renault was prepping a new electric car in conjunction with EV start-up Project Better Place, but no one had actually seen the thing until its unveiling today in Tel Aviv. The car itself only has a 125 mile range, which is where Project Better Place’s network of charging and battery swap stations come in. But since those aren’t intended for rollout until 2010 in Israel and Denmark, Renault won’t have any EVs immediately available to buyers — making this consumer-friendly sedan more of a precursor to the supposed $0.5-1 billion the Renault-Nissan alliance are lining up to invest in their respective electric vehicle businesses.

[Via AutoblogGreen]

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Filed under: Displays

E-Ink has a new display made available last week, based on segmented display cell (SDC) technology. Apparently the new screens are 40% thinner and have increased flexibility over E Ink’s previous displays, and can now be formed in “organic non-rectangular unique shapes, including holes, curves, and other non-standard designs”. Delphi’s already picking up use of the display for future keyfob products — always good to know there are consumer applications right around the corner.

[Thanks, Pat]

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Filed under: Displays

E-Ink has a new display made available last week, based on segmented display cell (SDC) technology. Apparently the new screens are 40% thinner and have increased flexibility over E Ink’s previous displays, and can now be formed in “organic non-rectangular unique shapes, including holes, curves, and other non-standard designs”. Delphi’s already picking up use of the display for future keyfob products — always good to know there are consumer applications right around the corner.

[Thanks, Pat]

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Filed under: Displays

E-Ink has a new display made available last week, based on segmented display cell (SDC) technology. Apparently the new screens are 40% thinner and have increased flexibility over E Ink’s previous displays, and can now be formed in “organic non-rectangular unique shapes, including holes, curves, and other non-standard designs”. Delphi’s already picking up use of the display for future keyfob products — always good to know there are consumer applications right around the corner.

[Thanks, Pat]

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Filed under: Robots, Transportation

Maybe our robo-challenges speak something to our respective histories: Americans have spent the last few years driving intelligent vehicles through vast expanses of desert, but over in Europe, scientists and technologists are preparing for this fall’s Microtransat, wherein machines must sail across the Atlantic propelled only by wind and artificial intelligence. The race, intended as a public proof of concept for long-range autonomous sea-faring scientific vessels, should take the, um, roboats three months to complete.

[Via Piquepaille]

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Lindsay Lohan has hit back at reports alleging she was axed as the star of an upcoming biopic of murderer Charles Manson, insisting she turned down the role.

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Filed under: HDTV

Not that there was any doubt that OLED is on its way to larger sizes (hasn’t it been since like 2005?), but Japanese firm Sumitomo Chemical announced its plans to produce 40-inch OLED panels for HDTVs some time in 2009, meaning Sumitomo-based TVs could hit the market could hit in 2009 or 2010. Samsung’s old-skool 40-inch OLED HDTV prototype shown above for scale.

[Via OLED-Info]

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Nikki Finke is reporting that Boston Legal will back for a fifth season this fall!!! After negotiations money were finally decided to ABC’s liking Boston Legal will back to win more Emmys, but not all the cast will be there to share in the Emmy joy. She added expect the cast to be scaled down again and personally I won’t miss the distractions that haven’t added a lot to the show this season.
BTW I can’t believe that ABC even considered dropping Boston Legal, it is the only show on ABC that gets better with time unlike Grey’s Anatomy, Ugly Betty, Lost and Desperate Housewives.

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Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel have topped a new list of Hollywood’s Buffest Couples.

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More surprises, as the contestants get a rude wake-up call from none other than CHARO who announces that tonight, they are competing in a song and dance competition of firey hot Latin numbers: the salsa, tango, and flamenco. With musical novelas on the rise, our contestants have to become triple threats. Guest choreographer, Sergio Trujillo is on hand to put them through the paces. Some of the show’s biggest rivals and budding romances pair off for the big show.

I can’t wait to see Charo wake them all up in her cuchi-cuchi way on tonight’s VH1 Viva Hollywood at 10p!
Make sure to watch Celebracadabra beforehand to watch Lisa Ann Walter grunt her way through her act! It is magical!

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Filed under: Laptops, Portable Audio

Owners of yesteryear Apple products (and consumer advocates) had a pretty solid week. Friday it came to light that more than two million 2001-era PowerBook owners could be eligible for refunds between $25 and $75 in a class-action settlement (which is set for final approval on September 8th) over faulty, sometimes even sparking power adapters. But that’s not all: Apple is also offering up $45 credits to any Canadian iPod owner that bought before June 24th, 2004 as part of a class-action suit claiming Apple misrepresented the advertised battery life of the players.

Read - Power adapters
Read - Canadian iPods [sub req’d]

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