An impressive show of Frostbie 2 technology indeed, EA and DICE’s Battlefield 3 upcoming DLC, Close Quarters, is set to debut in June of this year (1 week early on PS3). Now, best of all, there are four new maps and new weapons to make use of in-game, and can I just say that is look chaotic yet fantastic, at the same time?
Via: Battlefield
Posterous, a blogging platform that allows users to post information to a personal page, has just been acquired by Twitter. According to Posterous’ Sachin Agarwal, “The opportunities in front of Twitter are exciting, and we couldn’t be happier about bringing our team’s expertise to a product that reaches hundreds of millions of users around the globe,” and “Plus, the people at Twitter are genuinely nice folks who share our vision for making sharing simpler.”
No noticeable changes have been made to Posterous as a service, and the company vows to let its users know if changes are to be made. Financial details have not been disclosed by either company. Via: Posterous
In the recent shakeup at Yahoo!, management has been evaluated over and over again. In this particular lawsuit, Yahoo! is suing Facebook in patent infringements left and right, and that the 10 infringed patents include privacy measures to messaging, social networking in itself, the News Feed, user profiles, and its advertising methods. The real question here is if Yahoo! will win its case — in which none of us can give a very clear answer. However, Yahoo! seems very confident, stating that it is ”compelled to seek redress in federal court,” and adding that it’s “confident” it will prevail. Hmph.
On the flipside of things, Facebook says that it is “disappointed that Yahoo’s effort to engage with us was limited to a few short phone calls and that we continue to learn of new developments about a long-time partner through the press,” adding that “we will defend ourselves vigorously against these puzzling actions.” The usual friendly jargon used to ensure nothing wrong is said, yet nothing too right is said, either. Via: AllThingsD
What Khan’s Academy has done is simple: use videos to teach. However, the way it teaches its users is in a very bright and clever method: Wacom tablet scribbles and brief, straightforward explanations on almost every subject. The iPad app, available on the App Store for free, will allow users to watch over 2,700 videos, with options for subtitles, progress tracking, and the gift of being able to download videos and playlists for offline viewing. Check it out, it’s free, and worth it. Via: App Store (Khan Academy)
Some interesting news out of SXSW, no doubt. Famous photo-sharing iOS app, Instagram is headed to Android very, very soon. Instagram’s Kevin Systrom pulled out a Galaxy Nexus running a prototype version of Instagram, and flashed it towards the crowd. He continued to say that, “it’s one of the most amazing Android apps you’ll ever see,” and furthermore, “in some ways, it’s better than our iPhone app.” The app is currently in a private beta, and the team hopes “to have it out to people really soon.”
There also is confirmation of Instagram’s new stats: 27 million registered users, nearly double the 15 million announced back in December 2011. Good going.
Via: Techmeme, Image credit: @stefanetienne
The much-loved Roboto font seen in Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, by Google, is now available for download. It displays all versions of the font: italics, bolds, different sizes, a specimen book, etc. However, Google makes note that it is only to be used for apps in the Google Play Store, but I highly doubt that you will not see it other places. Myself, for one, will probably use it on my next English paper, review, project, or presentation — with credit to Google, of course. Via: Android
This is the Nokia Lumia 710.
It is the very first Windows Phone of Nokia’s design to make way to the United States, made possible with a contract on T-Mobile USA, where the Lumia 710 receives decent HSPA+ data speeds. Powering the Lumia 710 is a preppy, little 1.4GHz Snapdragon processor with Windows Phone 7.5 Mango and some of Nokia’s additional enhancements, including Nokia Drive (their turn-by-turn voice navigation system) and “Nokia Blue”, a new color for the famous Metro tiles that run inside of the operating system. When using the Lumia 710 for a few days I noticed that it is one of the smoothest operating smartphones I have ever laid hands upon. Plus the rubberized body with plastic feels great to hold in your hands, even though it is not of the chic polycarbonate seen in high-end Lumia smartphones.
Nokia Lumia 710 Review Shots
On the backside of the Lumia 710 is a 5 megapixel camera with a single LED flash and the capability to record 720p HD video. No doubt is it very clear and the fast shutting speeds that Microsoft has programmed into the camera app for Windows Phone Mango works well with Nokia’s fantastic past of cameras: pictures are crisp and clean, but can be prone to some ISO noise that can be seen in the photos. Same goes for the video, seen after the break when you’re finished reading the review.
Lumia 710 Camera Tests
Battery life is all day, everyday, considering that it is mostly energy-efficient and has no WiFi hotspot capability (a minus, in my opinion). Otherwise, for the low cost, the Lumia 710 is in the same ranks as the Focus Flash (identical cost), except it lacks a front-facing camera for video chats, which is a waste, considering that Skype has just been launched on Windows Phone.
All in all, I bestow upon the Nokia Lumia 710 a humble 8.5/10 as its LaptopMemo Review Score. It is currently available on T-Mobile for $39.99 (web-only price) on a new, 2-year contract. Editor’s Note: Strangely, the plans include a mobile hotspot package, but there was no app for it on the review device, so I will leave it at that.
Pros:
Cons:
This is just to pass the time on this slow news Saturday. What has popular YouTube videographers come to nowadays? “Cooking in Kevlar”, it seems.
Big news! Finally the Samsung Galaxy S II will see Android 4.0 via a Kies 2.0 desktop update, however and over-the-air (OTA) will take longer, so to make this quicker and perhaps more convenient, does the desktop upgrade. Owners of the United States variants of the Galaxy S II will have to wait longer due to the usual carrier tests and delays.
Sadly, Samsung just recalled the update saying it was not the right schedule.
Via: Samsung, Upgrade FAQ
This is the next-generation iPad. It is marvel of a tablet: it uses 4G LTE technology on AT&T or Verizon Wireless in the United States (plus 3G support worldwide and portable hotspot), a 2048 x 1536 Retina display of 9.7-inches (with 264ppi), a new quad-core GPU system-on-a-chip called the A5X (with dual-core processor), a strong auto-exposure, auto-focus, 5 megapixel backside-illuminated sensor with 1080p stabilized video (the same camera as the iPhone 4S), 10 hours of battery life like the iPad 2 and 9 hours on 4G, with a thicker and heavier body: 9.4mm thick and 1.4 pounds. It also features a new Dictation feature will allows the user to speak to the iPad to type, as you do with Android.
The new iPad will also launch with iOS 5.1 and iPhoto (which is a built-in photo-editing app with extreme maneuverability) and will retail for $499 for the 16GB Wi-Fi model and $629 for the 16GB 4G model, with 32GB and 64GB sizes adding an extra $100 and $200, each. It’ll reach stores on March 16th, but pre-orders start today in the US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Switzerland, and Japan — and it’ll hit 100 more countries on March 23.
Great stuff, indeed.
Via: Apple
Have you ever experienced a 3D TV like you get at the cinema? Lightweight glasses, cool effects and a great picture experience? LG 3D televisions bring it right into your home.