It used to be that BlackBerry themes of years and devices past were best in their static form. A few clever and crafty theme developers deviated from the standard BlackBerry theme and added bits of animation here and there. The only problem is that older BlackBerry devices were grossly underpowered with a meager 312MHz processor meaning any animation found in themes resulted in slow, stuttery navigation and an overall sub-par user experience. That was then, this is now: 600+ MHz BlackBerries with much more capable hardware. WIth that said, themes such as the Snowman Theme (designed by “TemasBlackBerry”) can now be used and enjoyed with smooth and stutter-free usage.
The Snowman Theme isn’t the most “far out” there BlackBerry theme. Though, as mentioned, the snow falling animation is a nice touch that makes it unique. Six user-customizable icons don the home screen and quick access to connection manager and profiles via the relocated and truncated banner located bottom right. Overall, the mix of holiday cheer, clean and simple layout, and smooth animation make for a well spent $5.00. Anyone else feeling like grabbing a piece of holiday cheer?
Could the Droid really be nearing the 1,000,000 unit mark? If data collected by RBC Capital Markets analyst Mark Sue is to believed, the answer to that question is a resounding yet subdued “yes”. In the age of the multi-million selling iPhone, hitting the 7-digit sales mark doesn’t quite hold the significance or weight that it used to. Mind you, it’s still no small feat. While the latest iPhone 3GS sold over 1 million units in a weekend, you have to remember that it was available in multiple countries from the get go. The Droid was a U.S., Verizon only device during the initial push, limiting it’s overall uptake. I’m left sitting on the invisible fence of uncertainty. On one side, 1 million 4th quarter sales is big — huge for Android. At the same time, 1 million units sold isn’t really that much all things considered. Whataya think, is the Droid really that close to the big 7-digit figure and is it really that big of a deal?
What would you say if I said your roof could be so much better? Why am i asking you about your roof on a tech blog? If you thought there was nothing cool about such things, think again. The roof above our head is a grossly outdated piece of human existence that has remained unchanged for decades. That’s all about to change with the Thermeleon roofing tiles. What’s so special? These futuristic phase-change polymer gel-filled tiles developed by MIT students for the MIT MADMEC (Making and Designing Materials Engineering Contest) actually change color according to the temperature during the day — white during the summer days to reflect heat and black during this bitter winter days to absorb heat. Novel idea. Simple in theory. Brilliantly executed. Now don’t get all excited that you’re heating/cooling bill is going to be slashed by 99%. Instead, take comfort in knowing that you’re saving energy. Even though it’s a relatively small portion in the grander scheme of things, every little bit helps right?
While I’m not discounting the teams’ efforts or results in any way, a user comment on Gizmag highlights one way the MIT team could take the whole “green roof” one step further — add some sort of solar energy converter/storage system. Not only could you power the house with the solar energy, but a system of houses connected to the grid could, if the system required, push stored energy back into the grid. Getting somewhere…?
If there were ever a gadget that the tech world was so eager to see, touch, and play with, the CrunchPad was perhaps one of the top contenders. Eschewing any Apple related gear, in recent memory I honestly can’t think of a gadget that so frequently soaked up headlines. While the headlines were often negative in nature, detailing yet another delay or setback, geeks alike were still primed and ready, waiting for a date they could get their hands on this wonder device. After reading the final account by Michael Arrington himself over at TechCrunch we can now see the real reason to not necessarily past delays, but to why that now hallowed November 20th date came and went. A personal account by Michael Arrington sheds light on what is easily one of the saddest and most disheartening events for tech enthusiasts as well as the CrunchPad team alike.
To get things started: Greed. Need I say more? In reality there’s a lot, lot more. Essentially, Michael was told by his partner and best friend who’s company, “Fusion Garage”, was helping build and distribute the CrunchPad that he and TechCrunch were no longer involved in the device and that the only option for forward progress was the surrendering of any and all remaining CrunchPad trademarks and rights to Fusion Garage. You can see where this is going…
If the video that revealed itself a week or two back showcasing the upcoming SureType BlackBerry 9100 wasn’t quite the greatest thing you’d ever seen (/sarcasm), this new video may come a tad bit closer. The above motion picture clip features a much more thorough tour around the 9100 (Stratus’) hardware and software offerings. Going by what we see in the vid, it looks like a rock solid device to keep the SureType line of devices relevant and alive. Just in case you’re short on time, you can look forward to the following: OS 5.0.0.350, 256MB of app memory, a life catching thanks to a 3.2 megapixel camera around back. Not mind blowing features, but enough that it should do relatively well.
Are you a hater of full sized keyboards and extra wide loads? Think the BlackBerry 9100 has a chance to win your heart…?
For every site you find on the internet telling of a so called “Google Phone” — the ultimate Android phone according to Google’s own tastes — one can find just as many if not more sites debunking such rumors with the most popular reasoning being that Google would hurt 3rd party partners. Because of this, we’ll never see a Google Phone straight from Google. They don’t make hardware. Or do they? Gizmodo received a hot tip that points even harder to Google releasing a slab of hardware on their own. So what exactly would a Google inspired phone look like? Hard to say. But hardware isn’t everything anymore.
With that said, this gPhone won’t just sport new hardware but new software as well. According to Giz’s sources, this uber Android phone will run a version of Android that makes even 2.0 look like child’s play. Of course, this is under the assumption that we’ve been dealing with the “real” Android so far. Not so according to the source, claiming the “real” Android has yet to show it’s face.
Interesting stuff indeed. While I generally am pleased with most of the Android hardware, I have yet to see one that leaves me speechless and eager to drop untold amounts of cash on — Droid included. HTC generally has pretty high build quality on their devices and previous rumors speculated that a gPhone had a high probability of being developed and manufactured by HTC. My personal wish is for another touchscreen + physical keyboard device much like the G1, except in a form not as goofy and straining on the hands.
Rampant speculation and giddiness aside, if we did see an HTC based “Google Phone”, I can honestly say that I would be excited and fairly certain that it would be rock solid. As far that mystery build of Android it’s said to be packin’ — future goodies and all — well, I can hardly wait. Think there’s any sliver of hope Google would “step on their 3rd party/supporters’ backs by kicking out their vision of what the pinnacle of Android devices should be? Or could we say that Google is merely trying to bump up competition a notch or two?
I can’t wait for Google Chrome on Mac. Almost since day 1, it replaced Firefox as my main Windows browser and over the last couple of weeks each build release has inched closer and closer to perfection. Granted, I use perfection loosely, merely using it to describe a “finished”, stable product. While we can expect a Chrome 4 for Mac of some sort in the next couple of weeks, it will be far from perfect, finished, or full featured. Features such as bookmark manager, mutli-touch gestures, gears, app mode, task manager, and several more have been pushed back to Chrome Milestone 5. Some features such as Gears are being completely left out with Google instead favoring HTML5 tools and services. Am I harping on Chrome? Maybe a little. While I use it on my Mac now and enjoy it thoroughly, many people will find the missing features a sore point and reason to wait for the next major release. I’ll be honest, most of the features mentioned above aren’t that big of a deal to me. Still, after looking at everything Chrome for Mac won’t do out of the box means it is an extremely bare bones browser in the beginning. What do you think: Should Google have waited and added a few more features, sacrificing several more weeks or months delay? Or is it Chrome for Mac FTW!! — ?
Somehow, somewhere, someone thought I knew a thing or two about mobile devices. Take a minute or two to check out Freescale's Smart Mobile Device Pundit 2012. There's some pretty big names on there and some awesome people. Not to worry. I won't judge you if you vote for someone else.
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If there were ever a gadget that the tech world was so eager to see, touch, and play with, the CrunchPad was perhaps one of the top contenders. Eschewing any Apple related gear, in recent memory I honestly can’t think of a gadget that so frequently soaked up headlines. While the headlines were often negative in nature, detailing yet another delay or setback, geeks alike were still primed and ready, waiting for a date they could get their hands on this wonder device. After reading the final account by Michael Arrington himself over at TechCrunch we can now see the real reason to not necessarily past delays, but to why that now hallowed November 20th date came and went. A personal account by Michael Arrington sheds light on what is easily one of the saddest and most disheartening events for tech enthusiasts as well as the CrunchPad team alike. 
For every site you find on the internet telling of a so called “Google Phone” — the ultimate Android phone according to Google’s own tastes — one can find just as many if not more sites debunking such rumors with the most popular reasoning being that Google would hurt 3rd party partners. Because of this, we’ll never see a Google Phone straight from Google. They don’t make hardware. Or do they? Gizmodo received a hot tip that points even harder to Google releasing a slab of hardware on their own. So what exactly would a Google inspired phone look like? Hard to say. But hardware isn’t everything anymore.
