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Two weeks after the useless Windows 8 M1 build was leaked to torrent and warez sites, a newer version (M2) is now available for download.

The build is Windows 8 Milestone 2 (M2) Build 6.2.7955.0.110228-1930. That number implies the build is from February 28th and is "time-bombed to expire in July," says Soft.

This latest build, whilst still hiding some new features, adds a Webcam, Logon UI, TaskUI, PDF Reader, Ribbon UI, Application Folder, full DWM and the "immersive IE."

Touchscreen gestures are also supported in the latest build.

Potential downloaders are reminded that this is not an officially released Windows 8 build and will be highly unstable.

Microsoft's upcoming "Mango" firmware update for mobile phones will actually be Windows Phone 7.5, says the software giant.

On the Microsoft Partner page, the company says "Preview the New Windows Phone OS 7.5 coming later in 2011."

Windows Phone 7.5 will add (says Giz)

• Application multitasking for background processing, audio and file transfer, and fast application switching
• Deeper phone integration so apps can, for example, take better advantage of the versatility of Live Tiles
• Access to the camera and Motion Sensor library so developers can build apps that incorporate device hardware and build augmented reality experiences

Nokia will release their first Windows Phone 7 device later this year, or early in 2012, when 7.5 is readily available.

Sony has finally unveiled its much anticipated Honeycomb tablets today, dubbed the S1 and S2.

The S1 has a curved design which Sony says will make it much easier to carry (check first video) and the S2 is a clamshell with dual touchscreens.

At 9.4-inches, the S1 is comparable in size to the iPad 2, Xoom and Galaxy 10.1, and each device has a Tegra 2 dual-core SoC.

Each tablet has a customized UI and a "Swift" Web browser.

You can use the S1 as a touchscreen remote control thanks to built-in infrared.

The S2 has dual-5.5-inch screen with 1024x480 resolution. As seen in the video, the devices can be used for PSOne gaming, with full controls.

Each tablet is 3G and 4G-capable, support DLNA and are PlayStation-certified.

There was no word on release day or price, but expect prices between $500 and $700.

Following 5 days of downtime, Sony has finally confirmed the reason behind the PSN outage, sparking outrage from concerned gamers.

Sony says hackers have stolen PSN account info, forcing the company to shut down PSN and Qriocity as it rebuilds its services.

In an announcement, Sony says the attack took place between April 17th and 19th.

The company notes that your "Name, address (city, state, postal code), country, email address, birthdate, PlayStation Network/Qriocity password and login, and handle/PSN online ID, profile data, including purchase history and billing address (city, state, postal code), and the subscriber's PlayStation Network/Qriocity password security answers" have all likely been compromised.

Even worse, the company says your credit card info and expiration date are likely to have been compromised, as well.

There are 71 million registered PSN accounts.

If you are worried, Sony says you should check your credit card statements and credit reports daily, and of course, to change your password once PSN goes back online.

Following one of the biggest headline-grabbing kidnappings in many years, the son of software tycoon Yevgeny Kaspersky has been freed, and Russian police have arrested five people.

The group, based out of Moscow, were demanding 3 million euro for Ivan Kaspersky's return.

Authorities managed to save Ivan after posing as middleman negotiating the ransom.

Ivan was kidnapped last week on his way to work as a programmer.

Kaspersky is a top anti-virus, and the entrepreneur is very highly regarded in Russia.

As we have reported since last Wednesday, the Sony PSN has been down to due an "external intrusion on our system."

Sony said the downtime would likely be 48 hours but the network still remains down, over 100 hours later.

Today, a new rumor has it that the "Rebug" custom firmware for the PS3 caused Sony to desperately take down their own network, on one of the more popular weekends for gaming of the whole year.

The Rebug CFW is a mod to a proxy server, allowing users to simulate turning their PS3 into debug units used by Sony developers.

Using those mods, hackers can enter any credit card number they want and download games and other content for free from the PSN. Sony does not check the authenticity of the cards because it is assumed their own developers are not stealing content.

For now, the rumor remains just that, but Sony has sure gotten a lot of press for remaining pretty mum on why their network still remains down after 5 days.

Nintendo has finally confirmed the successor to the Wii gaming console, two weeks after the rumor fire was set ablaze by a number of reports.

The company will reveal the system at E3 in June with a playable demo.

Nintendo says:

So I won't talk about specific details today, but it will offer a new way of playing games within the home.

For now, the rumors about the console are:

Nintendo is building the system under the codename Project Cafe and may be released very early next year as the Nintendo Stream.

Under the hood, the Stream will run on a custom-built triple-core IBM PowerPC CPU, with "much" faster clock speeds than the Xbox 360. The GPU will be a revamped AMD R700 architecture. The system will support full 1080p output alongside stereoscopic 3D.

BGR has posted a picture today of a white iPhone 4 prototype being tested with T-Mobile's 3G bands.

The site speculates that it may be an iPhone 4S developer prototype.

Those "4S" were given out to certain developers to test out new software on an iPhone with a dual-core A5 processor, which is expected to be added to the upcoming iPhone 5.

AT&T has proposed buying T-Mobile for $39 billion, but that deal is expected to take over one year to close, if it even does get through anti-trust regulators.

If the deal does go through, Apple would have little use for a T-Mobile 3G, but there may be many willing buyers if the phone is released soon.

According to RBC Capital Markets analyst Mike Abramsky, the RIM BlackBerry PlayBook tablet may be selling much better than analysts had anticipated, with the company selling 50,000 on the first day, alone.

Checking in with 70 different retail store, including Best Buy and Staples, Abramsky says 11 percent of all stores sold out, while others had "light" sales.

Overall, the analyst says 50,000 were likely sold on launch day, April 19th.

While the numbers may be deceiving (because it is unclear how many models of each were available to begin with), it appears the 64GB model is selling the best, with 91 percent of stores claiming that particular version is sold out, compared to just 13 percent for the cheapest 16GB model.

Abramsky says he expects 500,000 to be shipped in the first fiscal quarter of availability.

DroidLife has reported today that Motorola is set to launch two Tegra 3-powered smartphones at CES 2012, dubbed the Jet and Bullet.

The Nvidia Tegra 3 CPU is quad-core making the devices much more powerful than current devices, most of which sport single-core or dual-core processors.

Motorola's Bullet, will have a 4.3″ qHD screen, Tegra 3 quad-core processor, 1GB DDR2 RAM, 16GB internal storage, an NFC chip, and a 12MP camera with a full redesigned sensor.

The Jet will have the same specs, but will include a full slide-out keyboard.

Both phones will have access to 4G LTE, although it is unclear whether they will be on AT&T or Verizon.

Sony has announced that former president and chairman Norio Ohga has passed away at age 81.

Ohga is credited with developing the CD (compact disc).

A lover of music and former opera singer, Ohga made the decision to design CDs at 4.8-inches (75 minutes of music), so it could store the complete Beethoven's Ninth Symphony.

Ohga is also credited with helping expand Sony out of niche into a global player in the audio, video and electronics world.

Says current Sony Chairman Sir Howard Stringer (via CBS):

It is no exaggeration to attribute Sony's evolution beyond audio and video products into music, movies and game, and subsequent transformation into a global entertainment leader to Ohga-san's foresight and vision.

Despite founding partner Nokia leaving the mobile operating system for dead, it appears there is still interest in the Linux-based mobile OS MeeGo.

Last week we reported that LG Electronics was looking to adopt the OS for some lower-end smartphones, with discussions already underway.

Furthermore, ZTE and China Mobile were also said to be looking to help develop a handset with the OS.

Today, insiders are saying Huawei and Panasonic are joining the Handset Working Group, making sure the OS does not die.

Panasonic is a large handset maker in Japan and Huawei has a number of feature phones and smartphones available worldwide.

Collecting info from multiple sources, the upcoming Wii 2 is getting more and more details, including a mockup of the next-gen controller.

For now, the console is under codename Project Cafe and may be released very early next year as the Nintendo Stream.

Under the hood, the Stream will run on a custom-built triple-core IBM PowerPC CPU, with "much" faster clock speeds than the Xbox 360. The GPU will be a revamped AMD R700 architecture. The system will support full 1080p output alongside stereoscopic 3D.

For form factor, the system will be the same size as the first-gen Xbox 360s and will look like a "modernized" SNES.

The completely revamped controllers will have integrated touchscreens, with the ability to stream games to each controller. (Check included mockup)

While the console will begin shipping in September, but it appears that Nintendo will not release until early 2012 to ensure they have a huge amount of launch titles and large supply so there are no delays.

There are conflicting reports surrounding the upcoming iPhone 5, but former Engadget editor-in-chief Joshua Topolsky has fueled the fire by claiming that the iPhone 5 will be completely redesigned to look like the iPod Touch, including a "teardrop" shape where the device goes from thicker to thinner, just like the MacBook Air.

Additionally, the "home" button will be expanded to also support gestures. (As seen in mockup)

Furthermore, the screen will also be expanded to 3.7-inches and take up the entire front of the device, leaving no bezel.

Rumors of the larger screen have been around since last year, including the "edge-to-edge" design.

The phone will keep 312dpi Retina display, as well, despite the larger screen.

On the other hand, Macrumors cites a "reliable" source when saying Engadget's report is completely untrue.

Launched on March 22nd, Mozilla's Firefox 4 has become a rockstar, topping 100 million downloads earlier this morning.

The numbers come via Mozilla's "Glow" stats ticker page, which has been updating the downloads since launch. You can check that page here: Firefox 4 Downloads

StatCounter (via Crunch), says Firefox 4 already has 8 percent of the worldwide browser market share, behind more established IE8 at 30 percent, Firefox 3.6 at 24.43 percent and Chrome 10 at 15.35 percent.

Microsoft recently released Internet Explorer 9, a complete overhaul of their previous browsers, and Google has released betas of Chrome 11, which adds HTML5 speech input, allowing users to talk into their mics and have the browser type out what you are saying (great for hands-free searches).