drag2share: Samsung Stratosphere, Motorola Droid RAZR to be first Verizon LTE phones with Micro SIMs?

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/10/23/samsung-stratosphere-motorola-droid-razr-to-be-first-verizon-lt/

Looks like Verizon's got a hardware-crush on teensy 3FF Micro SIMs. The carrier's two latest 4G handsets, Samsung's Stratosphere and Motorola's Droid RAZR, both appear to make do with the diminutive cards. Neither, however, would be the first, as that honor was bestowed upon the carrier's version of the Galaxy Tab 10.1. If you're eager to call one of these devices your own, but already sport Big Red's LTE service, then get set to bust out the scissors for a little SIM card arts and crafts. Further pictorial proof of these itsy, bitsy modules awaits you at the source.

Samsung Stratosphere, Motorola Droid RAZR to be first Verizon LTE phones with Micro SIMs? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 23 Oct 2011 08:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: Switched On: Android's tablet traversal

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/10/23/switched-on-androids-tablet-traversal/

Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about consumer technology.

At AsiaD this week, Google's Andy Rubin noted that there were at least six million Android tablets in use. That number included only those running Google services. One could question whether the briskly selling Nook Color -- which is not open to Android apps at large -- is relevant to that tally, at least from a developer perspective. It will certainly be the case, though, that the Kindle Fire -- also expected to be a hot seller -- will be an important addition to the number moving forward.

Still, Rubin conceded, it was a tally far behind that of the 30 million cumulative units of the iPad, which broke open the modern-day tablet category, extended its lead with the iPad 2, and will likely see another revision this coming spring. When Apple introduced its tablet device, it set a precedent for third-party developers by rewriting core applications to take advantage of the iPad's larger display with "HD" versions. And while there are still far fewer native iPad apps than iPhone apps, Apple is far ahead in the race for native tablet software.

But not everyone wants to join that race.

Continue reading Switched On: Android's tablet traversal

Switched On: Android's tablet traversal originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 23 Oct 2011 16:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: Chromebooks now available to enterprise and education customers with a pay-once option

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/10/23/chromebooks-now-available-to-enterprise-and-education-customers/

Google made a big splash when it revealed plans to offer Chromebooks to enterprise and education customers under a subscription model. What's not clear is how much of a splash it actually made in those markets. While the notion of paying a monthly fee for three years, instead of buying a machine up front sounds like a game changer, some people just like the comfort of the familiar. To that end Google is now offering those same customers the option to purchase a Chromebook (with a year of support included) in one lump sum -- $449 for the WiFi model or $519 for the 3G to educational customers, while business are looking at $559 and $639 respectively. After that first year is through, customers have the option to sign up for a monthly support contract, at $5 a month for education and $13 a month for enterprise.

Chromebooks now available to enterprise and education customers with a pay-once option originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 23 Oct 2011 18:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: CHART OF THE DAY: The iPad Is A Bigger Hit Than The iPhone (AAPL)

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/chart-of-the-day-ipad-iphone-2011-10

The iPhone may have kicked off the smartphone revolution, but so far the iPad is selling much faster.

This chart shows unit sales of each products in the first six quarters after launch. The iPhone launched in June 2007, but didn't really take off until the iPhone 3G launched in July 2008, five quarters later.

The iPad launched in January 2010, and has sold more units every quarter.

That's partly because the iPad benefits from all the work Apple did for the iPhone, including a huge base of developers and customers who already understand how the product works. The iPhone is also constrained by carrier contracts -- it's hard to convince customers to buy a new phone before their current contract is up -- and had stronger competition at launch (like the BlackBerry).

Follow the Chart Of The Day on Twitter: @chartoftheday

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Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• Why Siri And Most Other Computer Voices Are Female
• Apple Releases Its First iPhone 4S Ad For Siri
• The Remarkable Evolution Of The iPod Over The Past 10 Years

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drag2share: OpenELEC Is a Fast-Booting, Self-Updating Version of XBMC for Home Theater PCs [Downloads]

Source: http://lifehacker.com/5851924/openelec-is-a-hassle+free-xbmc-distribution-for-home-theater-pcs

OpenELEC aims to make home theater PCs as much like your DVD player as possible, using a lightweight, instant-on version of XBMC that updates itself for a maintenance-free media center.

We talk a lot about XBMC around here, because it makes a great home theater PC—but it can often take a lot of work to set up. Even if you use XBMC Live—the easy-install distribution we used for our silent, standalone XBMC machine—you're essentially installing Ubuntu Linux on your PC with XBMC on top of it, which brings in a lot of software you don't necessarily need. Plus, it can take a bit of work to update the box and fiddle with its configuration. If all you want is a simple media center, OpenELEC makes XBMC's installation and maintenance a snap so you can just get to the good stuff: watching your movies.

OpenELEC's two main advantages when compared to XMBC are its super fast boot times, and its ability to update and configure XBMC right from XBMC itself—you shouldn't need to deal with the terminal or any other Linux nonsense during the process.

Note: Currently the OpenELEC batch installer (this is the script that installs OpenELEC on your thumb drive) is for Windows users only. If you're on Linux, this page should help. The Linux Terminal instructions could also work on Macs, but we haven't tested, so let us know if you do.

Here's how it works:

1. Download OpenELEC from its web site. There are a few different versions, but it's pretty easy to see which one is right for you. They even have a version for the first generation Apple TV. (if you've got an Apple TV 2, you'll have to stick with our previous guide for installing XBMC for now.)
   
2. Unzip the archive you downloaded and double click the create_installstick.bat file. Insert a flash drive and choose it from the menu that pops up. The script will erase your flash drive and put the OpenELEC installer on it. Linux users check out this guide to create your flash drive. There don't seem to be any Mac instructions, so Mac users should borrow a Windows PC from a friend for 30 seconds if possible.
3. Put the new flash drive installer into your home theater PC and start it up. You may need to enter the BIOS setup to make sure your computer is set to boot from USB (usually you do this by pressing Delete, or some other key as your computer boots—your screen should say which key when you boot). You should then see the installer, pictured above.
4. The installer is incredibly simple. Just choose the Quick or Custom install, and choose the hard drive on which you want to install OpenELEC (this will erase everything on that drive). When it's done, just reboot your machine and remove your flash drive. It should boot right into XBMC.

From there, setting up XBMC is easy. OpenELEC has some configuration guides if your remote, sound, or display don't work out of the box, and building your library is as easy as hitting "Add Source" from the Videos or Music menu. You can even install extra add-ons right from XBMC. If you want to turn on automatic updating, just head to Programs > OpenELEC Settings, and change the "Updates" setting to "Automatic". Whenever a new update is available, it'll automatically download and prompt you to reboot. And, best of all, rebooting should take no time at all, since OpenELEC is designed to boot insanely fast—sometimes as quickly as 10 seconds.

Check out OpenELEC's web site below for more detailed installation and troubleshooting guides. OpenELEC is a free download.

OpenELEC

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You can contact Whitson Gordon, the author of this post, at whitson@lifehacker.com. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and lurking around our #tips page.
 

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