Category: Articles

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Lenovo shows off FLEX and Yoga 2 multi-mode touchscreen laptops

lenovo flex multimode laptop somegagetguyLenovo is waging an all out war on Windows 8 touchscreen laptops. Yogas and Twists for more portable, tablet style laptop computing, now they’re introducing a new line of bendy notebooks for people wanting larger screens.

The Flex will come in 14″ and 15.6″ flavors, and comes with the neat hinge trick of swiveling 300 degrees around to prop the screen up in “Stand Mode” to focus on touch apps. It’s a set up I use a lot with my Twist, especially when I’m eating to prevent junk landing on my keyboard. Maybe I Reddit too much, and should take more breaks. Who knows. Prices start at $629 for Flex Laptops.

Also, the Yoga is getting a refresh! Yoga 2 will now be sporting a QHD+ screen. At 3200×1800, it’s four times the resolution of the original Yoga in a 16:9 aspect ratio. It’s disturbingly close to a 4K screen, shocking at only 13.3″. It still retains the keyboard flip, where the base folds behind the screen to offer a tablet mode. All new tech, and it’s also thinner than the previous Yoga.

Lastly, a new version of Yoga will sport the ThinkPad moniker. For business folks looking for an ultra mobile touchscreen solution, a 12.5″ 1080p version of Yoga clad in classic Lenovo black will also be available. Along with Lenovo’s business grade tools like the fantastic Thinkpad keyboard, it’ll also have NFC on board for better connectivity with phones and other accessories. Expect to see Yoga 2 start at $1099 and ThinkPad Yoga around $949.

All of this new Lenovo gear is expected to be available Later this month.

Full PR after the jump.

Continue reading “Lenovo shows off FLEX and Yoga 2 multi-mode touchscreen laptops”

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HTC profits down 45% from a year ago. What does recovery look like?

Man. HTC just can’t catch a break here.

Last week, shares fell almost 5% on the news that HTC only pulled in $443 million this August, which is down 45% from a year ago. It seems that the critically acclaimed One and One Mini handsets aren’t quite motivating consumers to part with their cash. Investor confidence is also a little shaken by news of high level executives leaving the company. Some of those execs under investigation for allegedly leaking company secrets. In all, not a great position for the phone maker to be in given how competitive the phone landscape is.

The one resource HTC most likely needs to turn around its market image is likely the one most difficult to come by: Time. HTC’s recent moves have largely been celebrated by tech pundits. The HTC One marks the first handset by the company which isn’t hamstrung by carrier branding. Even the older One X was billed as the “Evo 4G LTE” on Sprint, diluting HTC’s presence. Future HTC phones will likely not be plagued by this consumer confusion.

HTC heres to changeAlso, we recently saw the first fruits from HTC’s $1 billion ad campaign featuring Robert Downey Jr. and “Hipster Troll Carwashes”. This is a long term brand identity move, which should net positive results, but HTC is also in need of some short term sales to help boost confidence internally and with potential customers. They need evangelists and fans who will tout the company line, and be a grassroots first line of attack when new handsets are released.

Recent moves have been smart, HTC is trying to build a presence on sites like Reddit, and they’ve been more active on social media sites. It’s a tough road to build that kind of loyalty however. Their 716,000 Twitter followers are nothing to sneeze at, but pale in comparison to Samsung’s 4.4 million, and comparing recent tweets, actual engagement with likes and retweet action mirrors those follower numbers.

So while their long term strategies look sound, this isn’t a market known for patience, and that magical recipe for pairing good products and actual sales has been eluding numerous companies of late.

See my hands on reviews for the HTC One and the HTC One Mini.

(via WSJ)

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Second successful flight for Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo!

SpaceShipTwo_technical_diagramVirgin Galactic looks to be on track to deliver commercial space flight next year!

SpaceShipTwo completed its second test flight today at the Mojave Air and Space Port in California. The little spaceship which could was ferried up to 40,000 feet where it’s boosters took over and it climbed to 69,000 feet and hit a top speed of Mach 1.4. Seriously impressive numbers for a commercial craft.

Hit the video below for some “science fiction becoming reality”.

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Former Nokia CEO to build Newkia Android handsets, restore Nokia’s “glory days”.

nokia running android newkia somegadgetguy lumia 1020Here’s the deal. It doesn’t matter how good a phone is. A single handset, or a couple of phones, the mobile phone market is viscerally competitive. Without an ecosystem surrounding your products, and an established reputation in the market, consumers will be wary. We’ve been burned too many times before. I still mourn HP/Palm for example. Poor webOS…

Anywho, Thomas Zilliacus speaks openly and candidly about his plans to form a new company to utilize Nokia talent to build Android handsets. Following a failed Nokia takeover, Mr. Zilliacus  is forming Newkia with plans to marry Finnish hardware design with Google’s operating system.

I welcome more competition, but pairing good or great hardware, even while piggybacking on Nokia’s build reputation, isn’t a sure-fire recipe for success. Any company walking into the smartphone arena has to demonstrate their ability to compete over time as well. That said, I’m tentatively very excited to play with a Newkia if and when they actually arrive.

Thomas Zilliacus on Channel News Asia, to form Newkia (video interview)

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MyGlass updated to control Google Glass from Android phones and tablets.

myglass google glass app update somegadgetguyPretty straight forward folks. If you’re lucky enough to be rocking Glass, then you’ll want to update the MyGlass app. The update allows you to control Glass using your phone.

Apparently, controlling Glass through taps and head tilts isn’t always ideal, and now utilizing Glass’ screencast capabilities, you can spread out the Glass UI on an Android handset instead.

Plus there are “Bug Fixes”. So. You’ll probably want those too.

MyGlass on Google Play

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Get to know the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 intimately. Samsung posts in depth intro video. UPDATED with 18 minute Galaxy Gear Video!

17 action menuYeah. Some hot, sweet, S-Pen action!

Sammy’s Youtube channel just posted this six and a half minute long video introducing the Galaxy Note 3, and spending some time walking around all the new features.

The video details the new design, the updated hardware, and then showcases some of the new quick control actions like Air Command and Action Memo. If you’ve been curious about what the Note 3 has to offer, this video should answer a lot of questions.

Click here for our full coverage of Samsung Unpacked from Berlin!

***UPDATE***

Wow Samsung! Get a room for those two!

Not to be outdone by themselves, or anyone else on the internet reviewing tech, they just dropped this EIGHTEEN minute video showing of the combo of Galaxy Gear + Galaxy Note 3. Geez… I guess  I don’t even need to bother reviewing this stuff anymore…

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NVIDIA posts an EXPLOSIVE tear down video of the Shield portable gaming console.

nvidia tear down shield explosion video somegadgetguyOk.

I’m geek enough to really enjoy a good tear down video. The first computer I ever took apart was an 8088 running DOS. It’s in my blood. I like knowing what’s inside my magic boxes. NVIDIA has taken a somewhat novel approach to opening up their Shield portable gaming console (one of my favorites from this year’s E3 btw).

When they said they were going to show us an “exploded” view of Shield, who knew they would take that literally…

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Funny satirical ‘Honest Cable Company’ Commercial blocked in Canada.

Oh Canada.

Apparently this video, which skewered how cable companies and ISP’s do business ruffled some feathers, and it’s currently blocked due to a defamation complaint up north. Bummer. It’s also frustrating as it calls into question how companies can silence dissent and satire using these automated copyright and defamation tools. Recently, several of my videos were flagged because I included a clip of Night of the Living Dead in them. NotLD is in the public domain, but someone copyrighted a new work incorporating part of the clip I used, but I digress.

I’ll have to save this ire for a proper rant editorial. Honestly I’m just covering this story to re-post this video which makes me laugh. That and I’m currently going through some issues with Time Warner Cable, and this is hitting particularly close to home at the moment. Enjoy (unless you’re in Canada)!

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