Apparently, when Motorola was trying to figure out why their Xoom has struggled so mightily in against the iPad 2, the company didn’t focus on its high starting price or slightly heftier hardware. Instead, it decided the issue was the screen — in particular the format — and rumor has it that Moto is working on a new tablet that ditches the 16:9 ratio for the more square 4:3 found on Apple’s slate. Supposedly the non-widescreen device will sport an extremely pixel-dense 2048 x 1536, 10-inch display and run Ice Cream Sandwich when it lands later this year or early next. We’re not entirely convinced this will pan out and, honestly, we’ve always preferred the more modern widescreen format — but, if the iPad sells with its old-school ratio we suppose it’s worth a shot.

SOURCE via Fudzilla

We’ve heard lots of rumors about an Amazon Android tablet, but till now there are no leaked documents and photos/videos of the thing, but yet the rumors still stream on like nobody’s business.  The only solid evidence is a little teasing from CEO Jeff Bezos back in May, and now The Wall Street Journal’s adding flames to the slate fire saying the hotly anticipated tab could be on its way before October. Yes sir, but we’ve heard this aplenty time already.

According to those oh so familiar “people familiar with the matter,” the Android-based slate would rock a nine-inch screen and, surprisingly, lack a camera, making it ill-suited as an iPad competitor — the tablet would apparently be focused on offering media purchased from the online retailer. What’s more, those sources are also spreading word of two new Kindles coming in Q3 — one with a touchscreen, the other a budget version of the current e-reader. Of course, it’s all just rumor for now, but that’s a whole lot of rumor to swallow, and I don’t think this will stop people from going to buy the iPad 2, if they still haven’t.

SOURCE via Wall Street Journal

Not a dream by Nokia, but a dream of a Nokia fan. Designed for the ‘My Dream Nokia’ series at MyNokiaBlog, the N10 is a slick concept that is perfect for the indecisive individual that can’t decide which smartphone OS to go with. Although out of the box it doesn’t boot the popular iOS, the N10 is capable of triple booting Android, MeeGo and Windows Phone operating systems.

With top end hardware specifics such as an 8 MP camera, a 480 x 854, 3.9-inch capacitive AMOLED touchscreen, 1.2 GHz dual-core processor, and 1 GB of RAM, the N10 truly lives up to its name as a dream phone. In addition to the included triple operating systems, hackers will be able to add and remove and operating system they like, with the exception of the core Meego system. For more renders and specs to drool over, head on over to the N10 article here.

9to5Mac reports that Apple may release the iPhone 5 on October 4. The speculation is derived from leaked documents revealing a new tier of devices that will be created in AT&T’s phone database on that date. The news follows reports that the phone is expected to be revealed in September along with a new iPod Touch sporting 3G connectivity and a cheaper, low-end iPhone 5 model.

According to the AT&T documents, the new tier will not only see a $2/month increase in insurance costs, but will feature Apple’s entire iPhone family. “All customers enrolling in MI must be advised of the pending MRC (monthly recurring charge) increase from $4.99 to $6.99,” reads an AT&T document. “This occurs on October 4, 2011, in conjunction with a new tier, Device Tier 3, that is $199. iPhone and other devices will move to this tier on October 4, 2011.” Read more…

And what’s so special about this return? Well, once Pastebin’s new Twitter account reels in 75,000 followers, LulzSec will launch a “mystery operation”. Sounds like a marketing strategy.

Like some 80s hairband reuniting for one last time to perform at a benefit concert, the notorious hacker group LulzSec is reportedly getting back together to launch one final assault in the name of Pastebin.com and its follower count on Twitter.

According to reports, Pastebin.com administrators finally obtained the @pastebin Twitter account after previously using @pastebincom. “From now on http://t.co/elGKocV will use the Twitter username: @pastebin,” the site said on Twitter. “We managed to claim that today. Victory! ”

Read more…

Read more…

And she’s Tracey Moberly. Do you know her? Cause I don’t. She’s either incredibly exciting or is acquainted with plenty of people that are, because over the course of twelve years she’s collected enough interesting texts to publish a book about them. We can’t imagine saving and compiling thousands upon thousands of SMS messages — let alone weaving them together into intricate stories and life lessons — but it sounds like she’s received more than enough interesting texts to make Text me up! worth a peek. A book about texts may sound boring, but the novel isn’t just full of threaded conversations; Tracey’s interspersed it with commentary and illustrations of her own, making it a rather unique (and comprehensive) take on the various trials and joys we face in everyday life, if you may. Regardless of how successful the book is, it’s nigh impossible to read our own incoming messages the same way again. Check out the six-minute video that shows Tracey being interviewed after the break.

Read more…

Don’t look down on the casual gaming industry today, what may seem like a company that develops simple games like the famous Bejeweled, or better known as Bejeweled Blitz on Facebook, could actually worth up to USD$1.2 billion. It has been reported that Electronic Arts might be acquiring PopCap, the developer for Bejeweled, for USD650 million plus stock and earn-outs which could add up to as much as USD$1.2 billion.

The deal is not finalized yet though, it is expected to close in August. Earlier, EA already acquired Playfish, a game developer for Facebook. Last year, EA bought Angry Birds’ publisher Chilingo for USD$20 million as well as Firemint, an iOS game maker, earlier this year.

“EA’s global studio and publishing network will help PopCap rapidly expand their business to more digital devices, more countries and more channels.” – John Riccitello, CEO of Electronic Arts.

With all these  acquiring of gaming companies and together with the five-year deal with Facebook signed late last year, it seems like EA is all prepared to go heads on with Zynga, the developer for the most popular games on Facebook including Farmville, Cityville and many more.

SOURCE via Mashable

It’s ok if you’re not using the latest smartphones available in the market, it’s also ok if you’re using a non-smartphone too because as long as it’s Java-enabled, you can now access Facebook. Of course, provided you have a data plan otherwise I’m not sure how your phone bill will be given that the app might be simplified to cater to work on dumb phones.

Facebook has just announced their new Facebook for Every Phone app which offers a fast and comprehensive Facebook experience on over 2,500 different phones. The app, like those available for smartphones, will show you News Feed, Inbox, Photos, and you can even update photos and find friends from your phone’s contacts.

The app is already available globally on Java-enabled phones immediately. Facebook also mentioned that they are working on making the app compatible on even more handsets in the future. Can’t wait to smarten up your dumb phone a tad? Visit m.facebook.com from your device and click on the download link or enter d.facebook.com/install directly on the URL bar.

Visit Facebook Mobile page for more information.

SOURCE via CNET
” target=”_blank”>Facebook