Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Samsung ATIV S review: the Galaxy S III, repackaged for Windows Phone 8

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/19/samsung-ativ-s-review/

Samsung ATIV S review a flagship repackaged for Windows Phone 8

Samsung was one of the first to join the Windows Phone parade with the Focus, and was quick to follow up with devices like the Focus S. It's been unusually conservative with Windows Phone 8, however: the ATIV S ($100 on contract through Bell Canada) is the last of the big three flagships to arrive in 2012, following weeks after the HTC Windows Phone 8X and Nokia Lumia 920 went on sale. Some would argue that Samsung has been especially conservative with the ATIV S, given that it shares the same 4.8-inch screen, Snapdragon S4 processor, cameras and overarching design traits with Sammy's other flagship phone, the Galaxy S III. There's a real worry that someone visiting the carrier store will see both devices and pick the Galaxy simply through name recognition alone.

And yet, they're not entirely cut from the same cloth: there's a design twist or two, a larger battery and, of course, a switch to an entirely different ecosystem. Some will want the phone to try Windows Phone's simpler, at-a-glance interface concept; others are shopping solely inside of Microsoft's universe and want to know if expandable storage and Samsung's custom app suite fend off rivals. We already have lots to like, but there are a few punctures in the AT! IV S' fa ux-metal armor that will keep it from being the handset for everyone, even if they do prefer Windows Phone. Read on and you'll see why.

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W3C completes HTML5 definition, starts interoperability testing

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/18/w3c-completes-html5-definition/

Long heralded as the darling of the open web, the standards for HTML5 haven't actually been finalized by the W3C -- it was just recently that the international consortium pledged to get it done by 2014. So it's good to hear the group just hit a significant milestone on the road to that goal by publishing the full definition for the spec this Tuesday. With that accomplished, the next step is interoperability and performance testing to make sure HTML5 plays nice with any and all browsers, servers and other web tools. The W3C hopes that this will bring "broad HTML 5 interoperability" by 2014, which fits right in to the organization's philosophy of bringing the entirety of the web -- however divisive -- together.

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Via: The Inquirer

Source: W3C

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NEC intros 15.6-inch LaVie X Ultrabook in Japan, claims it's the 'world's thinnest'

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/19/nec-lavie-x-ultrabook-in-japan/

NEC intros 156inch LaVie X Ultrabook in Japan, claims it's the 'world's thinnest'

Following the announcement of its somewhat flexible LaVie Y in Japan, NEC's now introducing us to a new, much sleeker member of the company's Windows 8 lineup. At first glance, you may quickly notice that the novel LaVie X clearly takes a design cue from another NEC affiliate, the Lavie Z, but does sport a relatively larger 15.6-inch, 1920 x 1080 IPS display, a more powerful Core i7-3517U CPU which clocks in at 1.9GHz, 4GB RAM and a 256GB SSD -- all while being wrapped in a slim 12.8mm package. The LaVie X is expected to hit Rising Sun shelves starting December 27th, with NEC slapping a cool 175,000 Yen (around $2,100) price tag on this slim, Windows 8-loaded Ultrabook.

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Via: AkihabaraNews

Source: NEC

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Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Credit Card Skimmers Aren't Just at ATMs Anymore

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5969373/credit-card-skimmers-arent-just-at-atms-anymore

It used to be that you only had to be paranoid about credit card skimmers when using an ATM. But times have changed, and the bad guys have gotten so sophisticated that they've now created realistic but fake point of sale terminals that even print an authentic looking receipt while they're collecting your credit card number and PIN.

Discovered and exposed by Brian Krebs over on KrebsonSecurity, the new skimmers can either be set to issue a receipt, or report back a connection error message which most consumers wouldn't think twice about. And even though the skimmers can run as much as $3,000, it wouldn't take long for someone to easily make that money back if they had access to even a handful of credit cards. [KrebsonSecurity via BoingBoing]

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Beats By Dre Headphones Are Going in Helmets Now

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5969436/beats-by-dre-headphones-are-going-in-helmets-now

Beats By Dre Headphones Are Going in Helmets NowPOC and Beats By Dre are going to make your next ski trip better and safer with a new line of Receptor BUG Helmets that have headphones built in.

They're pretty standard as far as these kinds of helmets go—the headphones are built into the neckroll for a comfortable fit, and there's a mic and remote on the cord, so you can take calls, change songs, and adjust the volume. It comes in white or black and runs from XS-XXL for the perfect fit. And if you already have a POC helmet and don't want to pay the full $330 for a new head protector, you can just buy the neckroll for $180.

I have a helmet with built-in headphones, and it's one of my favorite pieces of gear to take to the mountains. The new Receptor BUG/Beats helmest will be available in January. Good timing, because it's so important to protect your brain when you're skiing or snowboarding, and tunes always make your ride more fun. [POC via GearPatrol]

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