If your gadget life centers equally on Apple devices and luxury Danish home theater, Bang & Olufsen now has you officially covered. The BeoPlay V1 TV, which we got a sneak peek at just over a week ago, has a slot to connect your Apple TV without wires spoiling the look of your upscale loft. Both 32- and 40-inch versions have relatively powerful speakers, too, with as many as three 32W amps in the 40-inch version being joined by discrete treble / mid speakers and a bass unit. Either of the 1080p TVs carries a 100Hz refresh rate, five HDMI inputs, and a USB port for your music and photos. Just as new is a BeoPlay A3 speaker dock for the iPad, which nestles your first- or second-generation iPad into what Bang & Olufsen calls a "stable wedge" that not only keeps the iPad comfy but adapts the speakers to get maximum output. An eight-hour battery keeps the speakers completely wireless, although it won't charge your iPad in the process. The company will have the V1 in British shops on May 3rd at a comparatively frugal £1,999 ($3,238) and £2,499 ($4,047) for the respective 32- and 40-inch sizes, while fans of Hamlet's homeland will have to wait until May 23rd to pay £449 ($727) for an A3 dock, a picture of which you can find after the break.

Continue reading Bang & Olufsen caters to the iOS crowd with Apple TV-friendly BeoPlay V1 TV set, A3 iPad speaker dock

Bang & Olufsen caters to the iOS crowd with Apple TV-friendly BeoPlay V1 TV set, A3 iPad speaker dock originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 May 2012 17:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Amazon’s affordable Kindle Fire tablet shook up the industry when it launched last year. Tablet vendors were already having serious difficulties competing against Apple’s iPad, and these companies would now have to find a way to cut costs as well. While Samsung announced last week that it will soon launch lower-priced Galaxy tablets, a new off-brand device has the potential to make waves if the firm behind it can manage to successfully fight for attention in an increasingly crowded market. Read on for more.

The “My Tablet 7,” a new effort from New York-based software and hardware developer Xtex, is one of the most affordable tablets available in the United States. The entry-level 7-inch slate is already available for order direct from Xtex, and it costs just $149.99 despite specs that, in some areas, compete with several devices currently available at much higher price points.

Xtex’s My Tablet 7 features a 7-inch 800 x 480-pixel display, a 1.5GHz processor, 16GB of internal storage, up to 32GB of additional SD storage, 1GB of RAM, a 2-megapixel front-facing webcam, an HDMI-out port that supports 1080p video playback, a full USB port, a miniUSB port and Android 4.0.3 Ice Cream Sandwich.

The low-resolution display is the biggest down-side here, and it remains to be seen how Ice Cream Sandwich will perform with a 1.5GHz single-core chipset running the show. At $150, however, this affordable device has the potential to appeal to a number of budget-conscious consumers on the lookout for a cheap tablet.

The company’s press release follows below.

MY TABLET, 7-INCH HIGH PERFORMANCE AND AFFORDABLE ANDROID TABLET LAUNCHES

The $150, 7-Inch My Tablet combines portability with connectivity and up to 48GB memory

NEW YORK – April 13, 2012 – XTEX announces My Tablet, a 7-inch WiFi enabled tablet device that combines affordability with connectivity, courtesy of the powerful and stable Android Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0.3 OS…all at a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $150.

“Everyone is walking around with a tablet device under their arms,” said XTEX VP Allen Kiehl. “The 10-inch tablet’s become a fashion accessory, like not so long ago when everybody wore cell phones clipped to their belt.” Eventually, the smartphone was made small enough to fit in a pocket, and it’s time we did the same for tablets. 10-inch tablets are too big, while 5-inch models are too small, like squinting at a smartphone screen. The My Tablet 7-inch is just right. Not only is it about the size of a paperback book and ultra-slim to slip easily into a jacket or back pocket, but also it’s loaded with features for convenience and on-the-go connectivity.

“But just in case fashion and accessorizing are important, My Tablet is available in three colors at the time of its launch: black, white, and pink.”

Lightweight and less than half an inch thick, the 7-inch My Tablet fits in a pocket but comes loaded with features, including a 1.5MHz Processor, 1GB of RAM, a 16GB internal hard drive, expandable to 48GB of storage with a 32GB MiniSD card, a brilliant 800X480 7-inch capacitive screen, and a front facing 2MP webcam.

My Tablet features Wi-Fi as well as USB Mini, USB Ports, a TF Card Slot (supporting up to 32GB), and HDMI 1080P output, maximizing connectivity to the internet, printers, high density TVs, or any number of external devices for easy and reliable on-the-go access to email, movies, videos, music, and photos. Surf, browse, blog, text, email, stream, download, upload or Tweet…take care of business on the fly and stay in touch with friends and family with an affordably priced tablet that fits in your pocket. Download video and musicfrom the internet or carry them separately on 32GB MiniSD cards. The choice is up to the user.

“I can attest that the My Tablet was extremely snappy and handled all the apps I threw at it,” writes Stormy Beach of the influential blog, AndroidSPIN.com. “I don’t think there is a tablet out there that can offer this much goods for such a small price tag.”

With its full list of features, including blisteringly fast 1.5GHz processor, 1GB of RAM, and 16GB of internal storage, AndroidSPIN also declared My Tablet “quite a powerful little device for $50 less than a Kindle Fire.”

Power. Portability. Affordability. My Tablet. The whole world in your pocket!

Key product Information:

• 7″ Capacitive screen (800X480)
• 1.5 MHz Processor
• Android 4.0 OS
• 1GB RAM
• 16GB HD (storage)
• 2.0MP Front Facing Webcam
• USB port
• Mini USB Port
• HDMI 1080P output
• TF card slot (support 32GB)
• Headset port

For as much as everybody loves to hate 3D, there seems no end remakes and reboots touting it. Even YouTube is jumping on board, announcing today that all short-form videos uploaded in 1080p will automatically be converted to the 3D format. More »

Continue reading Onkyo intros a new pair of TX-NR AV receivers, prices start at $999

Onkyo intros a new pair of TX-NR AV receivers, prices start at $999 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 27 Mar 2012 00:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Despite an earlier leak that made a May announcement seem increasingly likely, Samsung is apparently still considering an April launch for its highly anticipated Galaxy S III smartphone, South Korean news site MK reports. Samsung president for the China region Kim Young-ha is quoted as having said that the company is still pushing for an April launch. ”In order to increase sales of the Galaxy S3 as well as the Galaxy Note which is already very popular in China, the company is considering rescheduling the rollout of the Galaxy S3 from May to April,” Kim reportedly said Wednesday while speaking at the Samsung Forum 2012. An earlier report suggested that the flagship smartphone is currently slated for a May 22nd announcement, as tipped on the home screen of a leaked product render. With HTC’s One-series smartphones set to launch next month, the South Korea-based vendor is undoubtedly under pressure to push up its Galaxy S III release, though carriers could stand in the way here in the United States. BGR exclusively reported that the Galaxy S III will feature a 4.8-inch display with 1080p HD resolution, a quad-core Exynos processor, Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and a remarkably slim case made of ceramic.

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Continue reading Pioneer launches its 2012 VSX AV receivers lineup, available now starting at $249

Pioneer launches its 2012 VSX AV receivers lineup, available now starting at $249 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 17 Mar 2012 20:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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FCC wastes no time, approves new iPad and Apple TV originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Mar 2012 15:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remember that Nokia PureView tease from a few days ago? Well, suddenly it all makes sense. We are indeed looking at an imaging flagship phone and a true successor to the N8. It's called the 808 PureView and it's expected to reach Europe in the next quarter for a price of 450 Euros. Before we move on to its craziest feature -- the camera, of course! -- let's run down the other key specs: The OS is Symbian Belle; the engine is a 1.3GHz single-core chip; the display is 4-inches corner to corner but its resolution is a Nokia-style 360 x 640 (nHD). There's 512MB of RAM and 16GB of on-board storage that is thankfully expandable via microSD. A Pentaband modem increases the chances of getting a signal while globe-trotting, while data speeds will top out at plain HSPA 14.4Mbps. Now that Carl Zeiss-lensed camera: it handles continuous-focus 1080p, but is claimed to have an incredible sensor resolution of over 41-megapixels when shooting stills -- or 34-megapixels for 16:9 images. It's achieved by some clever sub-pixel interpolation jiggery-pokery that basically entails five pixels being merged into one, but we'll dig deeper very soon. It's expected to arrive in May at a price of €450 and if you're curious, we've got a gallery of hands-on images and video for your viewing pleasure.

Continue reading Nokia announces 808 PureView: Belle OS, 4-inch display, 41-megapixel camera(!) -- we go hands-on!

Nokia announces 808 PureView: Belle OS, 4-inch display, 41-megapixel camera(!) -- we go hands-on! originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 27 Feb 2012 03:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s finally here… the flagship smartphone we’ve all been waiting for… HTC’s One X. BGR first revealed details surrounding HTC’s high-end One X back in November, and the wait has been grueling but it’s finally behind us. This sleek smartphone is every bit as beastly as we all knew it would be, and then some. Starting with the 4.7-inch Super LCD2 display that features 720p HD resolution, this is easily one of the best screens we’ve ever seen on an HTC phone. The quad-core Tegra 3 appears to be an absolute monster, and we didn’t even come close to tripping it up during our hands-on time with the phone. Check out our photo gallery below, and hit the break for more.

[Gallery not found]

The look of the One X is familiar from afar, but up close there are a number of unique details we really appreciate. For one thing, the handset’s unibody case is made from a single piece of polycarbonate so scratches won’t show at all. We also love the design of the handset; the One X is flat on top and on the bottom, but the curved look of the right and left edges on the phone create an optical illusion that makes the whole phone seem slightly concave like the Galaxy Nexus.

The other big story with the One X is the camera. Plainly put, there is nothing like it on any other smartphone in the world (aside from HTC’s other One-branded smartphones, of course). It features an 8-megapixel sensor that captures amazingly crisp photos, but the more impressive feat is that it can capture an 8-megapixel photo in RAW format, and get ready to capture another photo in just 0.7 seconds. It can also capture full-resolution 8-megapixel images while recording full HD 1080p video. Amazing.

Battery life remains the biggest question mark here, but NVIDIA has promised that its 4-PLUS-1 architecture — which uses four cores to power through most tasks and a single “companion core” for lighter duties such as music playback and standby — will make its chipset far more battery-friendly than rival processors.

We can’t wait to get our hands on a One X for a full review but in the meantime, be sure to check out our hands-on photos in the gallery linked above.

The low-cost Raspberry Pi Linux computer is set to become available for purchase later this month for $35. The firm behind the budget computer announced on Monday that the first batch of boards will enter manufacturing on February 20th and will be available at the end of the month. The single-board computer is equipped with a 700MHz processor, 256MB of RAM, SD card support and both HDMI and RCA outputs. Despite the low cost and small size — which is roughly equal to a credit card — the Raspberry Pi computer is powerful enough to run games such as Quake III Arena and power 1080p video, however the company intends for the device to be used in schools to teach the basics of computer science. A second Raspberry Pi model with 128MB of RAM will be released for $25 at a later date.

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Fancy taking photos on the fly and then uploading them to your preferred list of social networks? Good thing, then, that Kodak has your best interests at heart. Announced at this year's CES extravaganza, the company's showing off two of its newest connected imaging devices -- the Kodak Playfull Dual Camera and Easyshare M750. The compact Playfull has a 12MP camera capable of full HD 1080p video capture at 60fps, with an accompanying Xenon flash and a port for an external mic. But those specs aren't the camera's real draw -- that'd be it's built-in WiFi ability. Using the Share Button, users can instantly upload photos and video to YouTube, Kodak's own Gallery, as well as Facebook. The company's more traditional looking point-and-shoot refresh, the Easyshare M750, touts a 16MP module, 3-inch capacitive touchscreen, a RETINAR HD 5x zoom lens and a similar capability to share content wirelessly via an available network or through an installable app on iOS, Android and BlackBerry. When it launches later this spring it'll retail for around $170 and come in a smattering of colors, like silver, teal blue and red. As for the Playfull, well, nothing's quite been announced on it yet, but that could all very well change this week. Check out the official pressers after the break.

Continue reading Kodak intros new connected Easyshare M750 and Playfull Dual Camera, adds instant uploads over WiFi

Kodak intros new connected Easyshare M750 and Playfull Dual Camera, adds instant uploads over WiFi originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 09 Jan 2012 17:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HDTV is cool, I guess, but it's going to be hard to go back after looking at LG's ultra-def 4k display, which packs four times the pixels as a 1080p set. It's mind-bogglingly crisp and enormously... enormous. Second mortgage time! More »

The Raspberry Pi Foundation is preparing to launch a new ultra-affordable Linux-powered computer next month that is the size of a credit card. It’s so affordable, in fact, that it will cost just $25 or $35, depending on how much RAM the buyer requires. In an interview with Edge, Raspberry Pi Foundation head David Braben said, despite the size and low cost, the Raspberry Pi computer is powerful enough to run games such as Quake III Arena and power 1080p video. The company will launch just 10,000 units to developers next month, mostly in the United Kingdom. “At the moment we’re appealing to techy people because we want people to give their time for free, writing software and improving things, porting them from other places, and putting them into the public domain, essentially, so we can use them for education,” Braben said, noting that he hopes to turn the developer board into a consumer-friendly device next year. The Raspberry Pi is equipped with a 700MHz processor, 128MB or 256MB of RAM, support for an SD card, and both HDMI and RCA outputs.

Read [Raspberry Pi Foundation] Read [Edge]

Verizon Wireless on Wednesday finally announced the upcoming launch of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. The world’s first Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich phone with 4G LTE support will become available beginning tomorrow for $299.99 with a new two-year service agreement. BGR reviewed the international version of the Galaxy Nexus last month and called it the best Android device in the world, offering a more cohesive user experience than previous Android builds as well as solid hardware and an amazing screen. The smartphone features a 4.65-inch 720p HD Super AMOLED display, a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 32GB of storage, 1GB of RAM, a 5-megapixel camera with 1080p HD video recording support and an 1,850 mAh battery. Verizon’s version of the handset ads CDMA and 4G LTE connectivity along with a slightly thicker case, though subscribers will certainly be happy to handle a thicker version of the phone in exchange for blazing fast 4G LTE data speeds. Verizon’s full press release follows below, and check out all of the official photos in the gallery.

GALAXY^™ NEXUS^™ BY SAMSUNG NOW AVAILABLE ON THE VERIZON WIRELESS 4G LTE NETWORK

First Smartphone to Combine Android^™ 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and the Power of America’s Fastest, Most Reliable 4G Network

BASKING RIDGE, N.J. – Verizon Wireless, Samsung Telecommunications America (Samsung Mobile) and Google^™ announced Galaxy^™ Nexus^™ is available starting today in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores and online at www.verizonwireless.com for $299.99 with a new two-year customer agreement.

Customers can browse the Web, stream music and more at blazing speeds using the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE network. Galaxy Nexus customers can enjoy access to the 4G LTE network in 190 markets covering over 200 million people across the United States, and fly through the Web with fast download speeds of 5 to 12 megabits per second (Mbps) and upload speeds of 2 to 5 Mbps within the 4G LTE Mobile Broadband coverage area.

Galaxy Nexus runs Android^™ 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich, which brings an entirely new look and feel to Android. Galaxy Nexus offers customers a redesigned user experience with improved multi-tasking, notifications, Near Field Communications (NFC) sharing with Android Beam^™ and a full Web-browsing experience. The lock screen, home screen, phone app and everything in between have been rethought and redesigned to make Android simple, beautiful and useful. Galaxy Nexus also features an ultra-thin 9.47mm design with a 4.65-inch HD Super AMOLED^™ Contour Display to watch movies, view pictures and play games that come to life in 720p (1280×720) resolution.

Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) features:

• Redesigned user interface – software navigation buttons, a first for Android smartphones, and a dedicated recent apps button to make multi-tasking easy
• Face Unlock – use state-of-the-art facial recognition to unlock Galaxy Nexus
• Android Beam^™ – quickly share Web pages, apps, contacts and YouTube^™ videos with friends by simply tapping two compatible phones together
• Redesigned Camera – introduces panorama mode, 1080p video capture, zero-shutter lag for instant photo capturing, and effects such as silly faces and background replacement
• People Application – browse friends, family and coworkers, see their photos in high-resolution and check their latest status updates from Google+ and other social networks
• Cloud Services – keep email, contacts, photos, music, browser bookmarks and other data synced to the cloud, available across multiple devices so customers never lose important data
• Google Music – upload up to 20,000 songs to the cloud, discover and buy new music from Android Market^â„¢, and stream it instantly on Galaxy Nexus and from the Web for free
• Google+ – Create a Google+ account right from the phone and check status updates, manage circles, quickly share updates and photos, video chat with up to ten friends with Mobile Hangouts, and chat with groups of friends with Google+ Messenger
• Support for Google Mobile^™ Services – Gmail^â„¢, Google Maps^™ with 3D maps and free turn-by-turn navigation, Google Earth^â„¢, Movie Studio, YouTube, syncing with Google Calendar^â„¢, a redesigned Google+ app and access to more than 300,000 apps, millions of eBooks, thousands of movies to rent, and millions of songs available to download from Android Market

Additional features:

• Dual-core 1.2 GHz application processor and HTML5 Web browser – optimized dual-core processing with Android 4.0 combined with lightning fast 4G LTE connectivity for fast downloading of graphics, applications processing and Web browsing
• Mobile Hotspot capability – share 4G LTE or 3G connection with up to 10 Wi-Fi-enabled devices
• 5-megapixel rear-facing camera with zero-shutter lag for instant photo capturing, autofocus and LED flash with full 1080p recording
• Front-facing 1.3-megapixel camera for video chat
• Textured soft-touch back cover – enhances the ergonomic feel and makes the phone slip-resistant
• Bluetooth^® 3.0 technology – support for headset, hands-free, stereo, phonebook access, human interface device (HID) and object push for vCard and vCalendar
• 1 GB RAM and 32 GB on-board memory (actual formatted capacity will be less)
• Pricing and data packages:
• Galaxy Nexus is available now in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores and online at www.verizonwireless.com for $299.99 with a new two-year customer agreement.
• Customers that purchase a Galaxy Nexus by Samsung will need to subscribe to a Verizon Wireless Nationwide Talk plan beginning at $39.99 monthly access and a smartphone data package starting at $30 monthly access for 2 GB of data.

Customers can visit www.verizonwireless.com/galaxynexus for more information on the Galaxy Nexus. For additional information on Verizon Wireless products and services, visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or go to www.verizonwireless.com.

 

Continue reading Samsung 'Optical Sensor in Pixel' LCDs rolling out, ready for Surface 2.0

Samsung 'Optical Sensor in Pixel' LCDs rolling out, ready for Surface 2.0 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 02 Dec 2011 19:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon Wireless has not one but three powerhouse 4G LTE smartphones lined up for the holidays, and the HTC Rezound is one of them. Launching right after the Motorola DROID RAZR, the HTC Rezound takes things to another dimension, both visually and sonically. With an amazing 4.3-inch 720p HD display, a fast 1.5GHz dual-core processor, Beats-enhanced audio and other competitive specs in a solid package, is the HTC Rezound the 4G smartphone to beat this holiday season? Read on to find out how this phone shapes up against the DROID RAZR and Galaxy Nexus.

Hardware / Design / Display

The HTC Rezound features all the latest lust-worthy pieces that fit together to make up any smartphone-lover’s ideal puzzle: specs include one of the first 720p HD displays, a fantastic 8-megapixel backside-illuminated camera complete with support for full 1080p HD video capture, a 720p HD front facing camera, an incredibly powerful 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor, and of course, support for Verizon’s 4G LTE network.

I love the HTC Rezound’s identity and personality. It’s a perfect complement to the red and black branding shared by both Verizon Wireless and Beats. Underneath the battery cover, the phone’s internals are displayed in, you guessed it, a translucent red plastic case, giving the phone an extra detail that only HTC devices have.

Let’s focus on the central feature of the HTC Rezound, and as much as Jimmy or Andre would want you to believe it’s the Beats audio processing features, it’s actually the display. The 4.3-inch 720p display on the Rezound is nothing short of stunning. It’s easily the best display I have ever seen on a mobile device besides the iPhone 4/4S. The screen on the HTC Rezound is the best screen on any current Android device, and completely annihilates the Motorola DROID RAZR’s PenTile display, though I’m interested to see how the Rezound lines up against the Galaxy Nexus.

Looking at the phone, you’ll see the sinister red-tinted Android menu keys sitting right below that gorgeous display. While it’s a bit unsettling at first, that vivid red color shining through the buttons lets you know that this isn’t just a Verizon device, but a Beats device as well.

There’s a gun metal polished bezel around the entire phone that’s cradled in a soft-touch rubber back casing. On the right side you’ll find a volume rocker button, and on the left side you’ll find the phone’s MHL port that lets you use a microUSB connector or mini-HDMI out cable, along with a secondary microphone for noise cancellation. On top is a 3.5mm headset jack and a power/lock/unlock button. Around back is a dual-LED flash, the 8-megapixel camera sensor and a speaker etched out perfectly amid the ridged design of the back battery cover.

As far as the feel of the device goes, it’s much more thoughtfully designed than the Motorola DROID RAZR. The phone fits very well in the hand, and even though it’s almost twice as thick as the RAZR, it’s still infinitely more comfortable to hold and use thanks to the tapered edges and narrower case.

Software

The HTC Rezound runs HTC’s latest Sense 3.5 user interface, layered on top of Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread. While HTC announced that the Rezound would be getting an upgrade to Android 4.0, it’s a pretty tough sell thrown up against the Samsung Galaxy Nexus that should launch within a week or so.

HTC Sense 3.5 is almost identical to HTC Sense 3.0, adding minor enhancements to the interface like the addition of an “All apps” label now included on the home screen at the bottom of the display as part of the arc. I go back and forth on HTC Sense and for the most part, and I appreciate a lot of the innovation from HTC in the early days of Android, especially starting with the HTC Hero. Sense now introduces more problems that it solves for me, though. While it is cohesive and very well designed, it almost offers too much customization now — so much so that the user may not even discover much of its capabilities because it takes so long to dig through everything. I’d run with a stock Android interface any day of the week.

I have also noticed many, many icons, and images that haven’t been updated to support the new HD resolution of the display. That’s an attention to detail that shouldn’t have been skipped over. If you’re going to customize the Android interface and modify stock elements of the operating system, it’s only right that you do this throughout the entire phone, and HTC didn’t do that. The status bar, for instance, is a mashup of high resolution and low resolution graphics. The battery icon is crisp but the signal bars aren’t. The silent ringer icon looks great but the GPS icon does not. Also, due to the fact that almost no app developers planned on a display of this resolution being released at this time, most app icons from apps you download look pixelated and blurry.

Another irritating thing about HTC’s Sense interface is the 3D carousel of app home screens. The phone comes with seven home screens, way more than I’d like. While HTC finally includes the ability to delete and reorder them, when you flick through your homescreens, the phone still displays them in a carousel as if there were seven. So, if you have two or three home screens, the phone will spin in a circle that’s only 25% full. It’s just odd, and it wasn’t well thought out at all.

Beats Audio / Headphones

The Beats headphones that the HTC Rezound ships with are very good. In fact, they are probably the best bundled headphones I’ve ever used. Music sounds full, heavy on the low end, and clear on the top end even when disabling the Beats audio mode on the handset or using the headphones with other devices.

I’m just not sold on this Beats thing, in terms of the software. If Beats as a product existed solely as hardware, and now is coupled with software processing (EQ) as a selling point, well, I’m not sure I see the advantage of a small increase in audio reproduction. If anything, the Beats software processing amplifies audio, and adds a present equalization that’s meant to make the track sound louder, knockier and fuller. This is artificial, though, and something audio purists won’t appreciate.

Another issue? Beats audio just flat out doesn’t work with many third party music apps, so it becomes a non-factor in many cases.

Phone / Battery / Speaker

Voice calling on the HTC Rezound is reasonably good. Callers sounded a little robotic to me, and would sometimes cut in and out. Noise cancellation worked very well though, with background noise almost completely eliminated and unnoticeable to callers on the other end of the line. The speaker on the Rezound projects nicely, especially when on a flat surface like a desk or coffee table. I’m still not a fan of the actual phone app on HTC Sense devices, however.

As far as the battery, standby mode has been excellent. With normal usage on and off throughout the day, the phone and its 1,620 mAh battery seemed to make it just fine as long as I remembered to recharge when I got home. Even when putting the phone under pressure with constant 4G LTE web browsing, email, video playback and continuous music in the background, the Rezound held up very well.

Conclusion

I feel like I’m taking crazy pills. On one hand, this is practically the same phone I’ve reviewed countless times, in a different shell, with slightly improved specs. On the other, it feels like a completely different animal.

The red and black color scheme, an amazing 720p HD display, Beats audio and extremely fast performance come together in an ergonomic design to create a fantastic finished product. While almost comical at this point, the HTC Rezound is now my favorite Android device in the world, besting the Motorola DROID RAZR, which bested the Galaxy S II. That might be short lived, though, as the Samsung Galaxy Nexus — the first Android 4.0 smartphone — is slated to hit shelves in the next week or two. In the meantime, the HTC Rezound offers up some of the best specs and one of the most complete smartphone packages I have ever seen.

Continue reading Playstation 3D Display hits shelves November 13, Sony answers your burning questions

Playstation 3D Display hits shelves November 13, Sony answers your burning questions originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Oct 2011 18:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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