Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

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Filed under: HDTV

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Filed under: Digital Cameras

Just weeks after Olympus and Panasonic launched the potentially revolutionary Micro Four Thirds system, in flies word that Samsung is looking to steal their thunder with a sure-to-be-incompatible alternative. Speaking at IFA in Berlin, Samsung Techwin executive vice president Byung Woo Lee confessed that the company was gearing up to introduce a new “interchangeable lens ‘Hybrid’ digital camera system.” The first model in the still unnamed system would reportedly carry Sammy’s own 14-megapixel APS-C sized CMOS sensor and a new lens mount, and while exact size specifications weren’t disclosed, you can rest assured that the end product will aim to deliver DSLR-like results in a much more compact frame. As with the aforementioned Micro Four Thirds, this method will also utilize electronic viewfinders and a live rear LCD for framing, though we won’t see anything on store shelves until early 2010. Talk about testing our patience.

[Via 1001 Noisy Cameras]

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Filed under: Wireless

A little URL hacking by Engadget fan Leo, has revealed Sprint’s new My Xohm site and loads of service information. The site is clearly in a preparatory state with plenty of dead links and Latin dummy-text holding the pre-launch site format together. Nevertheless, there is quite a bit of detail here, some of which is certainly more than just idle filler. For example, based on the current text, we can expect the following at service launch in September:

• Nokia’s N810 WiMAX Edition — looks like a lock based on the liberal use of its image (above) across the pages.
• XOHM USB (ZTE’s TU25) modem.
• XOHM Express Card (Samsung’s SWC-E100) modem with optional PCMCIA adapter.
• XOHM Modem (ZyXel’s MAX-206M2) Ethernet hub / router with optional 4-hour battery — unfortunately, XOHM will not offer static IP addresses at this time.
• The XOHM portal (whatever that is) supports both Windows and OS X. However, the modems listed above and Sprint’s XOHM Connection Manager software are PC-only, sorry Mac owners.

Unfortunately, we can’t find any specific pricing information but the site does tell us that access will be sold by the day or by the month without binding contracts or cancellation fees. It also promises speeds between 2-4Mbps for downloads and 1-3Mbps for uploads. Not sure that’s worth the move to Baltimore but it’s certainly given us cause to pause at the thought. See the modems pictured after the break.

[Thanks, Leo S.]

Read — General Support FAQ
Read — Pricing and Speed
Read — My Xohm
Read — Devices

Continue reading Sprint leaks XOHM WiMax service details and devices

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Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

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Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video

In a stunning attempt at making us afraid to pick up another Samsung DAP ever again, Samsung’s set-up for its new YP-Q1 and YP-U4 players was in the ass end of the huge Samsung hall at IFA, with lights enough to cook a chicken and some technical errors to boot. For starters, the Q1 (pictured) is just a pain to use, with capacitive touch controls that only work through tapping in the four directions (or center for select), instead of a more natural scrolling motion. The screen is nothing special, and the interface seems a step back from Samsung’s other full-featured DAPs. If we were to say anything positive, the Q1 does feel nice and solid in the hand, but it’s nowhere near as thin or sexy as it could / should be. The U4 we tested wasn’t charged, and had rather infuriating surface and side controls that made us a little happy it wasn’t. It’s nowhere near as sexy in person as it was in those press shots, and could really do to lose a few millimeters here and there. Wake us when you’re ready to start trying, Sammy.

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Filed under: Displays

Just when you thought manufacturers couldn’t possibly manage another refresh of 22-inch LCDs, Samsung shows up at IFA with two of them. The 2233Hz (pictured) and the 2243Hz (after the break) SyncMaster desktop LCDs share a screen size, 1680 x 1050 resolutions, 300 nits of brightness and 5ms typical response times. Both displays also feature Samsung’s new Enhanced MPAII to drop Motion Picture Response time from 27ms to a mere 9ms, which should give ghosting-phobics some relief. Sadly, there’s no mention of DisplayLink, but of course there are DVI plugs with HDCP. The only differences we can find between the displays is four USB plugs (instead of two) on the 2243Hz, plus MagicRotation for pivoting the display. No word on when these will be available or for how much.

Continue reading Samsung kicks out SyncMaster 2243Hz and 2233Hz desktop LCDs

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Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video

We heard the YP-Q1 was brewing, and now Samsung has confirmed the new player, along with a followup to the U3 thumbDAP, the previously rumored YP-U4. The U4 borrows a few design cues from Samsung’s TV lineup, but while it’s certainly sexier than the previous generation, we can’t help but think it looks a bit frumpy given the teensy grey OLED screen and stingy 2GB and 4GB capacities. The players boast 16 hours of playback, DNSe 2.0, and come in rose, purple and blue flavors. Meanwhile, the Q1 (pictured) seems to be frump grown up, with a 2.4-inch QVGA LCD and those purported 4, 8 and 16GB capacities. Samsung is also touting its DNSe 3.0 in the new player, which can “upconvert” audio to improve quality… supposedly. You can score one in October in black, white or silver, while the U4 (pictured after the break) should be shipping nowish.

Continue reading Samsung’s YP-U4 and YP-Q1 DAPs go official

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Filed under: Laptops

We’re not just staring down a boring press release of Samsung’s new X360, we actually got to fiddle around with it for a few minutes and came away fairly impressed. It has a build somewhere in-between the plastic-ish Voodoo Envy 133 and the rock-solid ThinkPad X300, though probably closer to the latter, and the sheen of Silver Nano Technology on the technology saves us from bacteria but adds a slightly cheap flavor to the keyboard. The isolated keys aren’t as deep as those found on Sony’s latest models, nor not quite as crisp as an Apple keyboard, but should make for a comfortable typing experience. The port layout seems reasonable, the LED-backlit screen bright and not-too-terribly-glossy, and the brushed metal finish on the back is surely a nice touch. We didn’t play much with the Korean OS, but Samsung claims the next-gen 128GB SSD offers a 25-50 percent boot time bump. Up against the MacBook Air the X360 is significantly thicker, but actually a tiny bit (3 ounces) lighter. We’ll leave it to you to decide the victor while we swap USB devices willy nilly in an attempt to finish this post.

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Filed under: Laptops

Newsflash, Samsung: your (previously rumored) new X360 laptop isn’t actually lighter than air. Also newsflash: it’s still pretty special. Samsung shouted a resounding “me too!” today with its new X360 13.3-inch ultraslim / ultralight / ultraportable laptop. Weighing in at 2.8 pounds and measuring as thin as 0.66-inches (1.2-inches on the fatter end), the laptop is based on a Centrino 2 ULV processor and is built to compete. 1GB of RAM is standard — there’s room for up to 4GB — and you can pick a 64GB or 128GB SSD, or opt for a 5400RPM 120GB HDD if you’re feeling boring. Graphics come from X4500 integrated graphics, and the screen runs at 1280 x 800. The best and worst news comes with the inputs and outputs; Samsung didn’t integrate an optical drive, but did find room for a 7-in-1 card reader, three USB ports, PCI ExpressCard/34, HDMI, VGA, LAN and a docking port. There’s naturally WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0+ EDR and a 1.3 megapixel camera. Battery life is specced at 6 to 10 hours, but we’re guessing the upper end of that spectrum will add considerably to the weight. No word on price or availability, but as far as we know Samsung hasn’t gone backsies on its “no computers for those dirty Americans” policy, so it looks like we’re stuck with the other dozen or so similarly specced laptops out there.

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Filed under: Laptops

Newsflash, Samsung: your (previously rumored) new X360 laptop isn’t actually lighter than air. Also newsflash: it’s still pretty special. Samsung shouted a resounding “me too!” today with its new X360 13.3-inch ultraslim / ultralight / ultraportable laptop. Weighing in at 2.8 pounds and measuring as thin as 0.66-inches (1.2-inches on the fatter end), the laptop is based on a Centrino 2 ULV processor and is built to compete. 1GB of RAM is standard — there’s room for up to 4GB — and you can pick a 64GB or 128GB SSD, or opt for a 5400RPM 120GB HDD if you’re feeling boring. Graphics come from X4500 integrated graphics, and the screen runs at 1280 x 800. The best and worst news comes with the inputs and outputs; Samsung didn’t integrate an optical drive, but did find room for a 7-in-1 card reader, three USB ports, PCI ExpressCard/34, HDMI, VGA, LAN and a docking port. There’s naturally WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0+ EDR and a 1.3 megapixel camera. Battery life is specced at 6 to 10 hours, but we’re guessing the upper end of that spectrum will add considerably to the weight. No word on price or availability, but as far as we know Samsung hasn’t gone backsies on its “no computers for those dirty Americans” policy, so it looks like we’re stuck with the other dozen or so similarly specced laptops out there.

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Filed under: Displays

Samsung’s dropping four new digital photo frames at IFA, and wonder of wonders, they’re actually somewhat interesting — particularly since they can all act as UbiSync secondary monitors for your PC. The 8-inch, 800 x 600 SPF-85H and SPF-85V and 10-inch, 1024 x 600 SPF-105P and SPF-105V all feature Samsung’s usual piano black finish with hidden touch controls and an integrated speaker; the two V models have integrated 802.11 wireless and can pull photos off RSS feeds, FrameChannel, or Windows Live Spaces, while the two standalone units have 1GB of internal memory. The eight-inchers will be $129 and $199 when they hit in September, while the 105P will arrive in October for $199 and the 105V will come in at $289 in November.

[Via Digital Picture Frame Review]

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Filed under: Storage

Samsung was pretty boastful about its high-capacity SpinPoint N2 1.8-inch drives when they launched back in June of 2007, and now the company’s decided to show them off a bit — check out this hot new credit-card-sized external model in glossy black with a flip-out USB connector. Specs are the same as before — 4200rpm, 27MB/s read and 23MB/s read — but sadly the most important spec is that it’s China-only for now and pricing is in the stratosphere, with the 120GB version clocking in at RMB1999 ($293). Yeah, we’ll stick with saving our pennies for an SSD.

[Via Everything USB]

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Filed under: Home Entertainment

Rumors of Samsung’s BD-Live-ready BD-P2500 Blu-ray player first started cropping up a few months ago, and the strikingly similar BD-P2550 just slipped out at Best Buy a few days ago, but if you like your Blu-ray news all official like, you’ll be glad to know that Samsung has now finally actually talking about the player, and it’s set to show it off at the big IFA show later this week. In addition to BD-Live support (which will apparently come in a future update), Samsung also confirms that the player packs the always-desirable Silicon Optix HQV video processing chip, and support for both Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD in addition to the usual non-HD formats. No firm word on a price just yet, but you can look for the official launch to happen in September. If that Best Buy slip is any indication, however, it seems likely that they could start showing up even sooner than that.

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Filed under: Laptops

Apparently Samsung has it’s own X300-esque laptops in the works, and Turkish site ShiftDelete.net has gotten a few specs and some video. The slick looking (yet poorly named) X360 will sport some variety of Core 2 Duo CPU (in this case, the 1.2GHz U9300) and 2GB of RAM, and we can reasonably expect the X460 to bump those up a bit, though little else is known. Judging from the video, the design takes more than a few cues from the Sony VAIO Z / TZ, but throws in a little of that Samsung piano black finish for good measure. Check the video starting at about 2:30 after the break — and extra bonus if you speak Turkish.

Read - Screenshot of specs
Read - X460 video

Continue reading Samsung’s X360 and X460 laptops revealed in Turkey?

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Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

We’ve heard for some time that Samsung planned to have two Blu-ray players in its lineup, but it’s been well over a year since there’s even been a peep about the BD-P2400, now out of nowhere the BD-P2550 shows up at Best Buy stores all over the country for the premium price of $499. According to Best Buy’s website, the new model has many of the missing features from Sammy’s latest BD-P1500, like 7.1 analog outputs and the sought after Silicon Optix HQV video processing. What does appear to be missing though, is the elusive BD-Live, but with the included network connection and USB port, it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to imagine that either Best Buy failed to mention it, or it’s coming in a firmware update. Although $500 Blu-ray players aren’t for everyone, it’s good to see Blu-ray manufacturers offering multiple models for those in need of premium features.

[Via Format War Central]

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Filed under: Cellphones

Yeah, we know that the video posted after the break is a corporate promotion loosed onto the Internets in hopes of going viral. But damn if this Samsung Omnia (i900) unboxing doesn’t match our vision of how these oft tiresome rituals should be. What started a few years back as a cultural goof to poke fun at eager fanboy fanaticism has now become an integral part of a product’s launch identity. But this, this is the future.

[Thanks, Saad R.]

Continue reading Video: Samsung’s extraordinary i900 Omnia unboxing — go ahead, press the red button

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Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Remember the Touch Diamond? Yeah, well, cherish that memory, because it may be gone by the time you get done with our quick look at Samsung’s mighty Omnia. We’re not saying the Sammy entry blows away HTC’s — not by a long shot — but it’s a solid competitor that makes Windows Mobile looks shockingly passable for the year 2008. Read on!

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Filed under: Cellphones

Without much fanfare, the Samsung i800 was canned at the tail end of last month. When asked why, Orange simply noted that it was pulled in order to “prepare a more competitive Linux mobile.” A recent writeup at Ostatic takes a hard look at whether this simple withdrawal is really a sign of things to come, and it suggests that ALP could see support fade as the major players in Linux (and maybe even Nokia) step to the plate. One analyst was even quoted as saying that “having Google’s brand behind Symbian could very well mean ‘game over’ for mobile Linux in the mobile phone market,” and we honestly can’t disagree too vehemently with that assertion. Of course, the LiMo Foundation has stated its intentions to not back down from the mighty Google, but sometimes, even the best intentions fall through. Guess time will tell, huh?

[Via jkOnTheRun]

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Filed under: Cellphones

We can think of about fifteen plain-vanilla EDGE flips from Samsung that we’d expect T-Mobile to launch ahead of something like this, but you’re definitely not going to see us complaining. TmoNews is claiming that the guys and gals in pink magenta have an ace up their collective sleeve in the form of Samsung’s F480 Tocco — or really, an Americanized version of it dubbed T919. Naturally, the US version goes through the usual dilution, losing the front-facing cam — but on the upside, it manages to hang on to the really important stuff like a 3G radio (AWS, we’d assume), GPS, and 5 megapixel cam. There’s no telling when it’ll be on sale, but if we know our carriers — and we think we know ‘em pretty well — they’ll want it on store shelves in plenty of time for the holiday season.

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