Thursday, June 5, 2008
Networks
Official: Verizon Wireless Absorbing Alltel to Become Largest US Carrier
11:55PM Wilson Rothman | We mentioned it yesterday, but now Verizon Wireless is kissing and telling: It will pay around US$6 billion for Alltel, adding 13 million customers in 34 states to the Verizon subscriber ranks. That should put Verizon’s total at 80 million—high above AT&T’s last-reported 71 million customers. Though Alltel and Verizon share the same phone technology, Alltel serves rural markets that Verizon had not built out, so it should mean some nice network expansion too, and “seamless transition” for Alltel customers. Seems like the merger will be completed by the end of the year, and all things will be harmonious and groovy by the second year. We’re not seeing many problems with this—it’s certainly no Sprint-Nextel fiasco. Jump for press release with financial mumbo jumbo. More »
Phones
Sprint Instinct Full Video Walkthrough
11:45PM Matt Buchanan | The latest batch of Sprint Instinct vids are mercifully (and smartly) short on the iPhone bashing, instead going for a feature walkthrough/tutorial, kind of like the iPhone’s (sorry Sprint). There’s five vids showing different features of the phone, though live search is the most worthwhile, where you say what’re you looking for, like “pizza” or “McDonald’s,” and the Instinct tosses up a list of nearby places using GPS, with a map, phone number, etc. It was a little buggy when we saw it back in April, but they’ve had plenty of time to fix, so we can’t wait to check it out soon. All the vids are below. More »
Toys
World’s Fastest Electric RC Chopper Can Chop 10 Heads per Second
11:30PM Gizmodo US Edition | I don’t know what’s more terrifying about the new Rave 450-class electric helicopter—which the experts say is the fastest electric RC helicopter in the world: the fact that it buzzes like an angry giganormous killer wasp who just got three speeding tickets driving a Ferrari on a coke overdose, or the fact that it looks like it can chop your head faster that you can say “325mm or 350mm blades.” (Video updated—was missing the sound.) [Curtis Young Blood via RC Heli Resource] More »
Computers
Dell Inspiron Mini Due Later This Summer
11:25PM Matt Buchanan | We’re finally getting some more bits on Dell’s lil’ Inspiron. Most importantly, Dell’s confirmed a quasi-release date: later this summer, which is behind the rest of the ultraportable pack because they’ve been working so hard on the keyboard, apparently, which is now a bit different than the one Blam saw. And Inspiron Mini is the name that’s “been bandied out.” Other than that, Dell’s holding tight on info: no specs (probably Atom/XP though), price or anything else. Guess we’ll know soon enough. [APC Mag via Lilputing] More »
Phones
Palm Treo 800w Caught Running Windows Mobile
11:15PM Mark Wilson | We know, huuugggeee surprise that the upcoming Palm Treo 800w will be running Windows Mobile. But now we’ve got the photographic confirmation. If only the blogosphere was so committed to capturing Big Foot in poorly whitebalanced lowlight photography, we’d really have something. Here’s a shot of the rear: More »
Networks
Starz Transitions to MPEG4 (For More HD)
10:45PM Mark Wilson | Starz is upgrading their infrastructure, transitioning from their MPEG2 systems of old (old, fat DVD codec technology) to sweet MPEG4 (efficiently-packed video that can be scaled more easily to HD). So why am I telling you this? Well, it’s totally geektastic knowledge and sometimes I can’t help myself. And also, these MPEG4 systems are being installed to offer customers more HD content by clearing bandwidth. The catch? Like many content providers, Starz’ transmissions will peak at 1080i/720p. No 1080p for you, guy who apparently spent too much on his television. Just remember this when 4K TVs are all the rage. [CNN] More »
Random Stuff
Louvre Apple Store Now Official, Mona Lisa Keeps Smiling
10:30PM Gizmodo US Edition | The Gioconda will be surrounded by fanboys with white earbuds soon, as Apple gets ready to open an Apple Store in the Louvre following the official approval of the project. Like the Regent Street store in London or the Fifth Avenue store in NYC, the Louvre store will be located in one of the busiest tourism spots in the planet, with 8.3 million visitors each year. More »
Phones
Sony Ericsson xPeria X1 Reviewed, Now Dubbed SEX1
9:35PM Gizmodo US Edition | That dirty dirty BengalBoy has got his dirty dirty paws all over the Sony Ericsson xPeria X1, putting it through his usual battery of tests: girls in bikini holding it, girls in bikini licking it, girls in bikini fondling it, and girls in bikini trying to find it inside their bikinis because they just lost it somewhere in the last test. He also tried it himself, defining it as “Stainless Steel Wireless Erotica” and dubbing it SEX1. And yes, his other impressions and photos—including the obligatory comparison shot with the previous generation iPhone—can be applied to sex toys as well. More »
Computers
Albatron Rocker Mini Tablet Has Windows CE and Not Much Heft
9:30PM Gizmodo US Edition | An ultra slimline tablet from Albatron has been unveiled at Computex. The Rocker has a seven-inch 800 x 480 touchscreen, 128MB flash memory, Wi-fi, Bluetooth, a webcam, and SD and MMC slots. Weighing just 343 grams, the battery runs for six hours on a single charge, and it runs Windows CE. Not too shabby, really. [Aving via JKK Mobile] More »
Computers
