Bahrain's rulers cast net for loyalty oaths online

 

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – While Bahrain's justice minister was making the latest accusations against alleged enemies of the state — this time medical staff — other officials were busy organizing a patriotic blitz that encourages pledges of loyalty on Facebook and Twitter.

Is new Warner Music buyer a sucker or savant?

 
LOS ANGELES – Billionaire Len Blavatnik is spending $1.3 billion to buy Warner Music Group Corp. a decade into a steep decline in CD sales for the music industry.
That could make him a sucker in line for many more years of slashing staff, or a savant for buying the company at the start of a digital music revolution.

Top in Tech: Sony loses account info for 24.6 million customers

Sony loses account details for 24.6 million customers Sony made headlines last week for a data breach of the PlayStation Network. This week Sony's online gaming network SOE joined the security scare, stating an additional 24.6 million customer accounts were compromised during the attack, with 12,700 European and Japanese credit card numbers stolen in the process. As compensation to the victims, Sony is offering 30 free days of service, as well as an additional day for each day the network is down. It will also offer assistance to those who want to enroll in identity protection monitoring.
Man accidentally liveblogs Osama raid As a U.S. Navy Seals team launched an assault on Osama bin Laden this week, leading to the death of the terrorist leader, Sohaib Athar — @ReallyVirtual on Twitter — was attempting to sleep nearby. The noise of the raid caused him to inadvertently liveblog the event, with tweets such as "A huge window shaking bang here in Abbottabad Cantt. I hope its not the start of something nasty," and ending with a final tweet from the evening: "Bin Laden is dead. I didn't kill him. Please let me sleep now." Athar's tweets prompted several media outlets to contact him and even travel to his home to hear his account of the events.

4 Apps for Getting More Done This Weekend

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here. Each weekday, Mashable chooses one startup to profile in our Spark of Genius series. While we're inundated with applications from great startups, it's more demand than we can keep up with.

US lawmakers plan 'Do Not Track' bills

 

WASHINGTON  – US lawmakers announced plans on Friday to introduce "Do Not Track" legislation that would let Internet users block companies from gathering information about their online activities.
Senator Jay Rockefeller, a Democrat from West Virginia, said his "Do Not Track Online Act of 2011" will offer a "simple, straightforward way for people to stop companies from tracking their every move on the Internet."

Fusion of work and play shapes Lenovo laptops

 

SAN FRANCISCO – Chinese computer colossus Lenovo is infusing its leading business laptops with more fun features as Internet Age lifestyles blur lines between work and play.
Lenovo was at the San Francisco headquarters of Dolby Laboratories this week to show off theater quality sound, rich viewing and quick graphics handling in a ThinkPad laptop computer line that has become a top choice for businesses.

Jeter, Blake win Jamaican sprint titles

 

KINGSTON, Jamaica  – US sprinter Carmelita Jeter ran the fastest time in the world this year to capture the 100-meter women's crown at the Jamaica International Invitational athletics meet.
Jeter on Saturday won in 10.86 seconds with Trinidad and Tobago's Kelly-Ann Baptiste second in 10.94 and Jamaican Sherone Simpson third in 11.07.

New Android smartphones stealing the spotlight

 

If you’re the owner of a Droid Incredible, don’t break it, lose it, or get it stolen, because chances are you won’t get your hands on another one, at least not from Asuirion.

The 1GHz processor, 8 megapixel camera smartphone is currently being sold on Amazon for 1 cent to make room for the Droid Incredible 2.
The new HTC handset was unleashed by Verizon on April 28 and features a 4 inch (800x480) display, an 8-megapixel rear camera and a 1.3-megapixel forward-facing camera.
Those who are making claims for their Droid Incredible through Asurion are being given the Droid X as a replacement phone.

Flipboard iPad App Doubles Users, Triples Traffic In Two Months

Traffic on Flipboard, which turns your social and media feeds into a sleek digital magazine, has increased 300 percent since early March, to between 8 and 9 million flips, CEO Mike McCue told Liz Gannes of AllThingsD. A flip on the touchscreen app is roughly equivalent to a page view.
[Read: Flipboard--A Great Apple iPad App Gets Better]
The social news app also doubled its user base in two months, and I was one of them. Flipboard was the third app I installed on my new iPad last month, after Evernote (for productivity) and Angry Birds (for unproductivity).

Five Things Google Needs to Fix in Android 3.0 Honeycomb

Make no mistake: Google's tablet-optimized Android 3.0 represents a huge improvement overall over previous versions of Google's mobile operating system. But that's not to say it gets everything right. After extensive use across multiple tablets, I've identified five things that Google needs to address in Honeycomb.

Maxim generates buzz for Hot 100 issue with iPad-first release, but lacks interactivity

If you feel your iPad overheating, it's not due to a mechanical problem, but rather the iPad-first release of Maxim's annual "Hot 100" issue. Since Maxim is one of the hottest digital titles out there, the company decided to capitalize by releasing this much-anticipated (by pretty much any male within spitting distance) edition a week early via the iPad.
Despite succeeding in capitalizing on its mobile popularity, a reviewer from MinOnline said that the issue, available over the Maxim HD iPad app, lacks sufficient interactivity to make it truly buzzworthy. Given that the issue features "100 of the world’s most beautiful women," there should be plenty of material -- from interviews to additional pics to videos -- from which to choose, especially given its visual-heavy format. It's doubtful though, that additional time would have made a difference in the issue's interactivity.
However, Maxim is clearly heating up where other mags and publications have had cooler reception - with 50,000 downloads each month across various mobile platforms, approximately 10,000 of which are downloaded to Apple devices. As some titles struggle to get their weekly/monthly content up-to-date on the web at the same time as the print version, Maxim is ahead of the curve and profiting from it.
Perhaps by next year's issue, Maxim will have figured out a way to get Katy Perry or Beyonce to interact with you personally via your iPad or other mobile device, before the print issue hits the doorsteps of your less fortunate friends.

US government officially recognizes video games as art

Enthusiasts have long debated whether video games qualify as “art.” But that conversation is now over at the US government’s National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), which just declared “all” forms of media, including video games, content made for the Internet, and “mobile technologies” officially-sanctioned art forms.
The status upgrade is due to a change in the NEA’s guidelines for its new “Arts in Media” category. They are, as NEA director of Media Arts Alyce Myatt says, “expanding.”
Astonishingly, the NEA’s previous rules only counted radio and television as viable art platforms in the multi-media realm. According to the new guidelines, content produced for “all available media platforms such as the Internet, interactive and mobile technologies, digital games, arts content delivered via satellite, as well as on radio and television,” will be recognized by the NEA.

Warner Music sold for $1.3 bil

The world's No. 3 recording company is being acquired by Access Industries, which agreed to pay $8.25 a share and take on $2 bil in debt as well as $320 mil in cash. The deal comes as CD sales continue to drop and digital sales have flattened. Warner Music Group (NYSE:WMG - News), known for artists like Eric Clapton and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, is now seen making steep cuts, after trimming its workforce to 3,700 from 5,100 in 2003. Shares rose 3.5% to 8.18.

Four injured in iPad fight at Beijing Apple store

 

BEIJING  – Four people were taken to hospital and a glass door smashed as a near-riot broke out at Beijing's top Apple store among crowds rushing to snap up the popular iPad 2 tablet computer, according to state press.
Angry consumers began rushing the store on Saturday afternoon after a "foreign" Apple employee allegedly stepped into the crowd to push and beat people suspected of queue jumping, the Beijing News said.

Artists switch from easels to touch-screens

 

SAN FRANCISCO  – Autodesk released a major update to SketchBook Pro software that has artists switching from pencils and paints to virtual canvasses on iPhones or iPad tablet computers.
SketchBook Pro software upgrades were crafted to take advantage of improved features in second-generation iPads recently unleashed on the world by California-based Apple.
"This is the biggest release we've had since last year when the iPad launched," SketchBook product line manager Chris Cheung on Friday said at a Digital Canvas exhibit of art made using the application.

Judge orders Oracle to cut patent infringement claims against Google from 132 to 3

Judge William Alsup, presiding over Oracle's patent infringement suit against Google, ordered the former to reduce the number of claims against the Mountain View based firm to 3 from the original 132. At the same time, the judge ordered Google to reduce the number of "prior art references"-the defense that Google is using-to 8 from a few hundred. A "prior art reference" is a term that is used when someone tries to show that before a company received a patent, the particular item being protected was already under a prior patent. It is a common defense used in these proceedings to show that-in the present case-Oracle's patents were invalid.

Last August, Oracle sued Google claiming that the Android OS infringed on a number of Oracle's patents and copyrights pertaining to Java. Those patents and copyrights became part of Oracle's intellectual property when the company bought Sun Microsystem. The suit was filed last August, as we reported.

source: AndroidandMe

LG Optimus Black to tour Europe before hitting North America

LG has announced today that the LG Optimus Black will be launched on 6 continents in Europe later this month before heading to North America. The handset with the 4 inch NOVA screen was displayed at CES and at MWC and has garnered pre-orders from 56 carriers in 50 countries.

Dr. Jong-seok Park, President and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company said, "For smartphone users who appreciate both style and substance, the LG Optimus Black offers beauty, performance and mobility in one smart package. LG Optimus Black is a significant addition to our global Optimus portfolio and we think it’ll prove to be one of our most popular phones."

The LG Optimus Black also introduces the Korean based firm's NOVA display that brings a higher level of brightness and true representation of blacks and whites. At 700 nit, the screen is brighter than the 500 nit reading on the Apple iPhone 4. At the same time, battery consumption is cut in half when compared to the power used on a regular LCD display.

Weighing in at only 109g and measuring a sleek 9.2mm thin, the LG Optimus Black is a stylish handset and will be followed by white and pink versions next month. The device is powered by a 1GHz Texas Instruments Omap3 processor and offers both a rear and front-facing camera coming in at 5MP and 2MP respectively. The screen lies flush with the body offering a seamless viewing experience. There is 2GB of internal memory and the microSD slot accepts up to 32GB of additional storage. Android 2.2 is installed along with the Optimus 2.0 UI.

As we reported, T-Mobile UK and Orange are offering the phone for free with specific plans. Without a carrier subsidy to fall back on, the price of the phone rose to $600 in retail locations in Singapore where the LG Optimus Black has already been released.

source: LG

Kyocera Echo on the Fringe of stardom

While the Kyocera Echo may not be everyone's cup of tea, its dual-screen capabilities were recently put to good use on an episode of Fox's Fringe. Thanks to the twin displays, the Echo helped the Fringe team pull up a set of security blueprints to an opera house.

The show takes place in 2026 which makes us wonder if the Fringe team was so busy that they didn't bother to upgrade the device to Watermelon.


source: Engadget

The Kyocera Echo stars on the hit Fox show Fringe

Launch of Apple iPad 2 in China turns ugly; four are hospitalized

With a big crowd lined up outside an Apple Store in China for the launch of the iPad 2, a fight broke out between an employee of the store and scalpers standing outside the location. The glass door of the Beijing Sanlitun Apple Store was shattered and four people were sent to the hospital. It is not known what started the fight.

Those waiting in line to purchase the sequel to Apple's highly successful tablet had to follow new rules Apple had put in place for the launch, including issuing numbered wristbands that iPad 2 buyers had to wear. The store has been closed since the altercation while employees cleamed up the leftover mess. According to Chinese site MacX, the store looked like there had been a riot inside while several customers had blood on their faces. An unconfirmed report from Chinese blog Sinatech quoted a police source as saying that an Apple Store employee had beat up a jobless man who was acting as a scalper.

With a population of 1.2 billion, China is seen as a very important area by Apple. The country currently hosts 4 Apple stores and the company plans on building 25 more over the next few years.

source: Sinatech (translated), MacX (translated) via AppleInsider

Long lines wait outside an Apple Store in China for the Apple iPad 2

Samsung Infuse 4G HDMI-out Adapter Demonstration

Seeing that most top shelf devices nowadays are sporting things like microHDMI ports to easily share multimedia content with high-definition television sets, it’s rather bewildering to say the least that it’s lacking with a prestigious device like the Samsung Infuse 4G.

Fear not because Samsung surprisingly packages along an HDMI-out adapter with the handset – meaning, you can still get all your multimedia content sharing groove thing going on. Although it might be a pain being required to carry it around with you, unlike the convenience of a dedicated built-in microHDMI port, it’s still a nice gesture since you don’t have to pay for it (like the iPad 2).

Naturally, the adapter is connected to the Samsung Infuse 4G through its microUSB port, from there, you can attach your usual HDMI cable to it. However, this adapter requires a little bit of extra juice that’s not sufficiently supplied by the microUSB port. Instead, you’ll need to use the included wall charger to connect it to the HDMI-out adapter – so on top of the adapter, you’ll need to lug around its wall charger as well.

Once you have the initial set up all nailed down, you’ll be presented with a mirrored experience on your high-definition television set. From navigating across its homescreens to launching specific apps, everything is translated over well without much delay. Web browsing is undoubtedly nice, especially in landscape, because it’ll encompass the entire area of the television set – as opposed to the narrow confines in portrait.

Moreover, we’re able to play songs and 720p videos stored locally on the handset through the television set. Lastly, games like Angry Birds look magnificent on the big screen – though, we’d recommend having a long enough HDMI cable to fully enjoy it while kicking it back on the couch.

Put the Sense 3.0 lockscreen on your HTC EVO 4G

Owners of the HTC EVO 4G might feel a little envious since their device is loaded with Sense 2.1 and the upcoming HTC EVO 3G will launch with Sense 3.0. It might reduce the hue of green that EVO 4G owners have been wearing by downloading the Sense 3.0 lockscreen on their handset.

To be able to install the Sense 3.0 lockscreen, you need a rooted EVO 4G with a Sense 2.1 based Gingerbread ROM. Download and install the .apk file, turn off and then on your device and you should have the new lockscreen up and ready to use. And speaking of using the new screen, it features a round semi-transparent ring that you move up to unlock the phone.

The new lockscreen features music app controls and a alarm snooze/dismiss button. It should be pointed out that the applications shortcuts are not working. When it is up and running, the plan is for the user to drag the ring to a shortcut which will instantly launch the app.

source: XDADevelopers

The music app controls and the alarm snooze/dismiss button will both work when you install the HTC Sense 3.0 lockscreen on the HTC EVO 4G

Samsung Infuse 4G Speed Tests

At the press event held in New York City for the Samsung Infuse 4G, both Samsung and AT&T executives touted the speedy abilities of the handset since it’ll be the carrier’s very first device featuring HSPA+ Category 14, which should get theoretical speeds of up to 21Mbps. Moreover, unlike the HTC Inspire 4G and Motorola ATRIX 4G before it, the Infuse 4G will have HSUPA on board at launch. Seeing that we now have the device in hand, we’re just curious to see what kind of speeds it’ll put out right now – prior to launch.

Using Ookala’s SpeedTest.net app, we first initially ran the test while at Samsung’s press event in New York City. Knowing that the network could potentially be unpredictable, especially in a metropolis like New York City, we still forged ahead and ran the speed test nonetheless. Unfortunately though, the results are far away from being admirable, since it’s given that prestigious “4G” moniker in its name, namely due to the lackluster numbers it’s able to put out. Specifically, we got download speeds ranging from 114kbps to 188kbps, while upload speeds hovered around 49kbps to 625kbps.

After that, we decided to test it later again, but instead, we did it this time around in the greater Philadelphia region. Interestingly enough, download speeds improved dramatically with speeds ranging from 1433kbps to 3393kbps, while upload speeds marginally improving to 119kbps to 490kbps.

At this point, it’s unclear whether or not the Samsung Infuse 4G in our possession has the final software version, but we’ll be keeping a close eye as we approach launch date since it’s mentioned that it’ll be HSUPA enabled at launch. Let’s cross our finger because right now, T-Mobile’s HSPA+ speeds in our area, is by far demolishing what AT&T is touting with the Samsung Infuse 4G.

Costco keeps us informed about the Samsung DROID Charge

For the second time within a week, Costco sent out a notice to its reps that the Samsung DROID Charge has been delayed. While no specific reason has been given, the warehouse membership club obviously got the word from Verizon. The latest memo says that, "Verizon is committed to delivering a high quality experience on all 4G devices".

With Big Red's second LTE device on hold, a "do not sell" flag is up at Costco. The original memo that we reported on Tuesday, noted that this delay is in force at all national retailers. The next update from Costco will be May 9th and we eagerly await the next report which hopefully will give the Samsung DROID Charge a green light for launch.

source: AndroidCentral

The Samsung DROID Charge launch remains on hold; next update from Costco is due Monday

ESPN The Magazine, EW have ads for the HTC EVO 3D

The HTC EVO 3D will be launched this Summer by Sprint. While the exact date and price are unknown, HTC decided to whet your appetite by putting an ad for the device in both Entertainment Weekly and in ESPN The Magazine. If you want to feel that you are making progress toward obtaining the EVO 3D, you can run over to Best Buy and pre-order one now.

The two magazines offer a pretty thorough reach of both sports fans and those who like music, television and the movies. Sounds like HTC has just about everyone covered. Just one suggestion for the Taiwan based firm. Next ad, how about giving us a launch date?

source: AndroidCentral

The HTC EVO 3D has been spotted in two magazines, EW and ESPN The Magazine