AndroidCentral has posted a video of the Google Nexus One running a new custom ROM that was ported from the HTC Desire. The new ROM has HTC Sense, and has Flash 10.1 support.
IntoMobile is reporting that the latest beta of the redsn0w jailbreaking utility, version 0.9.3 has brought back iPhone 3G data tethering to jailbroken devices, even for those with OS 3.1.2.
The new redsn0w uses an IPCC tethering hack, one that was overridden by Apple recently, but it appears the cat-and-mouse game is back on.
The site posts a little how-to as well:
Okay, maybe a little guidance is in order here. For clarification, you’ll need the redsn0w 0.9.3 beta to get the IPCC tethering hack working again – find at the bottom of the page via the link above (or here). Once you’ve run redsn0w, you’ll have to download a custom IPCC file (carrier bundle), which tells your iPhone that you are allowed to tether on a given carrier.
1. Point your iPhone Safari browser here, and download an IPCC file that corresponds to your region and carrier.
2. Once downloaded, install the IPCC file and replace your existing carrier bundle.
3. Navigate to Settings > General > Network on your iPhone to enable tethering.
4. You now have tethering enabled on your iPhone 3G/3GS running iPhone OS 3.1.2!
Silicon Alley Insider has posted their "Chart of the Day," and it is very interesting how such a simple chart can show how so much has changed, in not a very long period of time.
For the three year period ended December 2009, Windows Mobile fell from over 35 percent smartphone market share to about 17 percent, losing incredible amounts of share to Apple, RIM, and although not pictured, Android.
Making the chart even more notable is the fact that Apple only has one device, the iPhone, whereas Windows Mobile can be the operating system for any number of mobile devices.
The figures are via ComScore, which is known for its accuracy.
Motorola has released a full 7 minute tour of their upcoming Devour smartphone for Verizon, showing off all the features of the device.
Earlier this week we reported that a lawsuit had been filed in US District Court accusing administrators at Lower Merion School District in Rosemont, PA of using webcams on a school-issued laptop to illegally spy on a student.
Today, the FBI has opened an investigation into the allegations, which is considered illegal wiretapping and a violation of student's privacy.
District Superintendent Christopher McGinley denied the allegations: "At no time did any high school administrator have the ability or actually access the security-tracking software. We believe that the administrator at Harriton has been unfairly portrayed and unjustly attacked in connection with her attempts to be supportive of a student and his family. The district never did and never would use such tactics as a basis for disciplinary action."
AppAdvice has posted a report today that the highly-hyped Apple iPad should go up for pre-order on the 25th, a little over a month before its release date on March 29th.
Citing a "reliable source," the site says the pre-order is for the U.S. only, and will be limited to the Wi-Fi model only. The 3G versions will not go up for pre-sale until later.
Apple will not comment on rumors, but recently made the news when it was revealed that the company was keeping all freight details private, keeping launch proximity a secret.
Finnish mobile handset giant Nokia Corp. has scrapped its 6216 NFC handset. The 6216 was set to be the third Near Field Communication (NFC) equipped handset, but also the first that would see the operator's SIM control the payment system through the Single Wire Protocol (SWP). China Unicom had planned an NFC service launch and had chosen the SWP architecture.
"We felt the quality of the consumer experience was not what it needed to be," Nokia told NFC World when asked about the cancellation of the 6216. Nokia objects to giving total control to the operator instead of the handset itself.
Using NFC technology, users can avail of a proximity payment system to carry out transactions, such as paying for public transport.
Besides having the NFC to facilitate wireless communications, the handset would also need a lot of various elements to be stored safely that control the system securely. Operators have lobbied for the SWP standard which would store all of this important data in the SIM and facilitate such features, but Nokia would prefer that the secure module be embedded in the handset itself.
Apple Inc. has reportedly thrown out a bunch of applications for the iPhone that contain adult content under a new policy that bans all "overtly sexual content". Developers have been getting notices from Apple informing them that their applications have been removed from the App Store, without any prior warning or notification of a change in policy.
This could be a setback for some small app companies that were developing for the platform. On the Go Girls had half of its portfolio removed from the app store, while Jens Ltd was left with only one application remaining; and the purge is apparently on-going. A number of apps provided by Maxim were removed too, showing that established brands aren't being ignored either. Playboy's latest app is reportedly still up.
"Whenever we receive customer complaints about objectionable content we review them. If we find these apps contain inappropriate material we remove them and request the developer make any necessary changes in order to be distributed by Apple," a statement from Apple reads.
Sprint has announced that new 4G-compatible handsets will be available in the U.S. in the first half of 2010. The handsets will be dual-mode phones capable of using Sprint's 3G network in the U.S., while also using its 4G network when it becomes available. There is no information yet on who will be manufacturing the 4G-capable handsets for Sprint.
The operator, along with Clearwire, offers the only commercially available 4G network in the United States. It backed WiMAX for its technology, which is faster to marker than Long-Term Evolution (LTE). Sprint and Clearwire offer WiMAX in a number of large cities in the country, and continue to roll-out the network in more cities. AT&T and Verizon have opted to use LTE for their 4G networks.
Currently, the only use for Sprint's network is USB modems for Internet connectivity. The operator has said in the past that handset devices would become available, but none have materialized so far. Now, Forbes reports that handsets capable of using the 4G network will become available for subscribers in the first half of 2010.
Charles Nesson, William F. Weld Professor of Law at Harvard Law School, who defends Joel Tenenbaum in his dispute with record labels, said that Joel has only caused $21 worth of damages from his activities. Tenenbaum was told to pay $675,000 in damages to record companies for downloading and sharing 30 songs using the Kazaa software. Nesson has described the damages as "monstrous and shocking."
"Had he purchased the 30 songs on iTunes, he would have paid 99 cents apiece, of which Apple would have passed on 70 cents to the record companies," Nesson argues. "Assuming, contrary to fact, that the record companies have zero costs so that every cent returned to them is profit, the total return would have been $21.00."
Record companies say that statutory damages are a fair way to deal with P2P file sharing, since nobody really knows how many times a user downloaded any of the 30 tracks from Tenenbaum, or from most P2P users. Nesson believes that the actual loss of revenue caused by Tenenbaum's actions should instead be the amount of money he would have paid for the songs had be opted to purchase them legally.
According to a concept that surfaced in the US Patent & Trademark Office's online database, Sony may be looking to exploit the growing market for gaming accessories by developing a Universal Game Console Controller. The LCD touch-screen gamepad could emulate controllers for Nintendo systems, Microsoft systems and even some older legacy hardware.
The information on the concept says it could "emulate the controllers of popular game consoles, such as…the PlayStation, a controller made by Nintendo, Xbox game controllers made by Microsoft, Amiga CD-32 controllers, Atari Jaguar controllers, Gravis Gamepad controllers, Sega controllers, and Turbographics controllers." The button layout of the gamepads would be displayed on the LCD screen, which could store three types of control schemes at a time.
A special receiver would be used to pass controller data, and the pad could come with rumble functions as well as integrated speakers. "It may now be appreciated that among other advantages, the controller provides for backward compatibility so that it may be programmed to emulate the key layout of an older controller that may no longer be available," the filing reads.
A new letter has been posted to the Free Software Foundation (FSF) website, which is interesting and worth a read.
The full post:
Dear Google,
With your purchase of On2, you now own both the world's largest video site (YouTube) and all the patents behind a new high performance video codec -- VP8. Just think what you can achieve by releasing the VP8 codec under an irrevocable royalty-free license and pushing it out to users on YouTube? You can end the web's dependence on patent-encumbered video formats and proprietary software (Flash).
To sit on this technology or merely use it as a bargaining chip would be a disservice to the free world, while bringing at best limited short-term benefits to your company. To free VP8 without recommending it to YouTube users would be a wasted opportunity and damaging to free software browsers like Firefox. We all want you to do the right thing. Free VP8, and use it on YouTube!
Why this would be amazing
The world would have a new free format unencumbered by software patents. Viewers, video creators, free software developers, hardware makers -- everyone -- would have another way to distribute video without patents, fees, and restrictions. The free video format Ogg Theora was already at least as good for web video (see a comparison) as its nonfree competitor H.264, and we never did agree with your objections to using it. But since you made the decision to purchase VP8, presumably you're confident it can meet even those objections, and using it on YouTube is a no-brainer.
Director James Cameron has announced that his epic blockbuster hit Avatar will be released on DVD and Blu-ray in April, although the first version released will not be in 3D.
The original Cameron quote is as follows: "It's all right on schedule. We'll do the Blu-ray and the standard def DVD April 22nd, that's our plan as of right now, and that'll be pretty much bare bones. And then we'll do a value-added DVD and a 3-D Blu-ray in I think November sometime."
Fox however, has stated that the 3D version is not coming out in November. Says the spokesperson: "3-D is in the conceptual stage and 'Avatar' will not be out on 3-D Blu-ray in November."
'Avatar,' released in December, has quickly become the highest-grossing film of all-time (not adjusted for ticket inflation), and is the highest-grossing film in U.S., Chinese, Russian, Spanish, U.K history.
Redbox will begin adding Blu-ray titles to its 22,000 kiosks starting in the Q2 2010, says parent company Coinstar CEO Paul Davis.
So far, the company has been only testing Blu-ray releases in its kiosks.
"[Blu-ray] strengthens our position to meet consumer demand," adds Davis, although he concedes that they will not cost $1.00 like DVD releases do. When asked about the price, he said they have not determined a price, but they will "for sure be higher than our standard DVDs."
According to Sony Ericsson president Bert Nordberg, the company rejected the opportunity to build the Google Nexus One, saying that it did not want to gain a reputation as a subcontractor. After SE turned down the offer, HTC gladly took the chance to manufacture the smartphone.
Although sales of the Nexus One have been rather small by most standards, HTC gained tons of publicity from the partnership, with their CEO given a few minutes to talk at the much-hyped Nexus One launch last month about his company and the brand itself.
Sony Ericsson has seen over $1 billion in losses over the past year, and continues to lose market share to rivals, leading to over 2000 layoffs.
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