Nintendo 3DS users get free WiFi in selected UK
airports

post from Ubergizmo on 23 January 2012 08:52:14 PM. © Ubergizmo

If you own a 3DS and you happen to be travelling to or from the UK this year, you’ll be glad to know that you won’t have to pay through the nose for WiFi access on your portable gaming console. Boingo Wireless and Nintendo have teamed up to provide free WiFi access to 3DS owners in many of the main airports in the UK. This includes London Heathrow, London Gatwick, London Stansted, Southampton, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.

This free WiFi promotion complements the free WiFi that 3DS users get in selected North American airports as well. To use the free WiFi, all you need to do is turn on the WiFi on your 3DS, and you’ll be automatically connected to it when you’re in a participating airport. Make full use of SpotPass as well as the Nintendo 3DS Internet Browser to pass the time while waiting for your flight.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Nintendo Circle Pad Pro announced for the 7th of February 2012, PowerSkin Gaming Skin coming to the 3DS,

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http://www.ubergizmo.com/2012/01/nintendo-3ds-free-wifi-uk-airports/

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Pogo Sketch Plus unveiled

post from Ubergizmo on 23 January 2012 08:14:29 PM. © Ubergizmo

If you’re looking for a stylus to use on your iPad or Android tablet, you might have come across the Pogo Sketch before. Ten One Design, creators of the Pogo Sketch has now come up with a sequel called the Pogo Sketch Plus. It features new patent pending Pro Tip technology that consists of patterned structures within the tip itself (for greater sensitivity while providing an even smaller tip diameter for increased precision) ? a useful feature to have for folks who love drawing/painting on their touchscreen devices. It also comes with a flexible spring clip which allows it to be placed inside regular pen holsters or your pocket for convenience sake.

Available in hot pink, cactus green, burnt orange and silver, the Pogo Sketch Plus can be yours today, for $14.95 each. Just head over to Ten One Design’s website for more information or to purchase them. And as a promotion until the end of the month (January 31st) ? owners of the original Pogo Sketch can upgrade to a Pogo Sketch Plus for 50% off ? all they have to do is send a personal photograph of their current stylus to Ten One Design to redeem a promo code.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: txtRng could be next generation stylus, LunaTik Touch Pen combines a stylus with a rollerball pen,

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http://www.ubergizmo.com/2012/01/pogo-sketch-plus-unveiled/

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KDDI pushes ads onto Android devices

post from Ubergizmo on 23 January 2012 08:02:37 PM. © Ubergizmo

KDDI Android ad While this news doesn’t affect us directly, it looks some folks in Japan have it bad with the carrier KDDI. It has been reported that the carrier recently started pushing adverts directly to Android devices of its customers after a recent update. And while some people might not mind the presence of adverts on their phones, most of them probably do but have no way of disabling it themselves (we’re not sure, but it’ll most likely require rooting and removal of the offending app or installation of a custom ROM) which is pretty inconsiderate of the carrier. Then again, I guess it’s also one of the pitfalls of Android ? carriers and manufacturers are allowed to do anything they want to the operating system.

Hopefully this turns out to be just an experiment that dies soon, or doesn’t spread out of Japan. Unless there are some huge benefits to compensate for the ads, I doubt anybody would be interested in having them on their phones. What would you do if American carriers started pushing ads onto your phones?

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Square Enix Market to launch in Japan, Kyocera Digno ISW11K headed to KDDI,

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http://www.ubergizmo.com/2012/01/kddi-pushes-ads-android-devices/

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Sony Ericsson ST25i Kumquat to be called Xperia U

post from Ubergizmo on 23 January 2012 07:42:04 PM. © Ubergizmo

The Sony Ericsson Kumquat (ST25i) has been popping up all over the place recently, though with each day bringing us closer to MWC, it’s not hard to see why. The latest about the phone tells us something interesting about the device. Apparently the phone might be called the Sony Ericsson Xperia U when it goes on sale. This information comes from the Indonesian Postel website, which is likely to be an accurate source – since it is the Indonesian Telecoms Regulatory body after all.

It looks like Sony is keeping to the convention of naming its devices Xperia followed by an alphabet ? which is quite confusing when it is also keeping names like “ion” around. I wonder what kind of names we’ll be seeing next? The ST25i/Kumquat/Xperia U is expected to be announced at the MWC next month.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Sony Ericsson ST25i "Kumquat" caught in the wild, Sony Ericsson to unveil new Xperia phones at CES 2012,

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http://www.ubergizmo.com/2012/01/sony-ericsson-st25i-kumquat-to-be-called-xperia-
u/

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Warrantless GPS tracking violates your privacy
rights [Supreme Court]

post from Ubergizmo on 23 January 2012 06:01:41 PM. © Ubergizmo

You may think that law enforcement agencies could not plant a GPS tracker to a car without a warrant, but many people have woke up to the fact that until now, it was a growing practice, thanks to the falling prices of GPS devices. The Supreme Court has ruled that warrantless GPS tracking was unconstitutional and this extends to the position tracking of mobile devices as well (via the cell-tower locations triangulation, or direct GPS location). And although this is not explicit in the ruling, other forms of “electronic bugs” could (or should) be included as well. some also argue that the use of aerial drones should fall under the same legislation (what about manned helicopters then?).

It is not clear if this ruling will have consequences on current cases, but it would be natural that a certain number of defense attorneys plead that some evidence was gathered illegally. Interestingly, Declan McCullagh from CNET notes that California has taken the lead by introducing a law that requires a warrant to electronically track a person.

What do you think of this ruling, and where do you put the limit between the need for law enforcement information gathering and the privacy of the citizens?

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: German courts reject one of Samsung's patent infringement claims against Apple, Apple wants Germany to ban Galaxy S2 and other Samsung smartphones,

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http://www.ubergizmo.com/2012/01/warrantless-gps-tracking-violates-your-privacy-r
ights-supreme-court/

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Legend of Zelda recreated in Minecraft

post from Ubergizmo on 23 January 2012 05:40:48 PM. © Ubergizmo

video details and more

Earlier today we gave you some impressive Street Fighter pixel art in Minecraft, but it looks like the bar has been taken up a notch. Some folks have managed to recreate the entire world from the Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Hyrule, in the game. Called Hyrulecraft, it is supposed to be a 1:1 scale replica of the game world. Seeing how I’m not a giant Zelda fan, and I’ve never played Ocarina of Time ? I can’t tell you how true that is, but from the video demo it’s an impressive work of art nevertheless.

The creators of the map have put if up for download, but at the moment they’re working on adding quests to the map to make it even more interesting. Soon you’ll be able to play Zelda in first-person view!

[Hyrulecraft]

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: The Legend of Zelda: A Link To The Past recreated in Minecraft, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D to arrive in Australia as a special edition bundle,

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http://www.ubergizmo.com/2012/01/legend-of-zelda-recreated-in-minecraft/

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Spotify Launches Spotify Apps

post from Ubergizmo on 23 January 2012 05:23:56 PM. © Ubergizmo

spotify apps

Spotify has announced that it is now featuring third party services and content, thanks to its App platform. The idea is that apps can supplement, if not “magnify” the Spotify experience by adding a simple service (top list, lyrics…) or a social aspect (listen in a virtual room with your friends…). At the moment, there are only 15 apps, but given Spotify’s reach, you can expect many more to come soon. (more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Spotify Apps introduced, Ford showcases Spotify car integration,

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http://www.ubergizmo.com/2012/01/spotify-apps/

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Nokia Lumia 900 expected to go on sale worldwide

The Nokia Lumia 900 was announced a couple of weeks ago as an AT&T exclusive, but it looks like it won’t remain that way for long. According to reports online, the phone is expected to go up for sale in Europe in June 2012 ? around three months after the expected US release. This is the first “official” confirmation of the phone arriving elsewhere besides the US, which should make some folks who live outside of the US pretty happy. No word on whether there will be an LTE version for non-US markets, but we’ll keep you posted when we find out more. Perhaps at we’ll find our answers at MWC next month, stay tuned.

[Carphone Warehouse]

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Nokia Lumia 710 extreme social update challenge, Nokia Lumia 900 headed to other carriers?,

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http://www.ubergizmo.com/2012/01/nokia-lumia-900-worldwide/

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Classic GTA PS2 Games Heading To PS3

Thanks to some eagle-eyed gamers, it's been discovered that re-releases of two infamous Grand Theft Auto titles have been posted on the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) website.Grand Theft...

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http://www.i4u.com/49422/classic-gta-ps2-games-heading-ps3

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Gameloft and Verizon to bring in-game voice chat
over 4G LTE

video details and more

It looks like Verizon’s 4G LTE network will have more usage purposes on smartphones in the future. In addition to letting you stream your music, movies and download large files quickly ? you’ll be able to use it for in-game voice chatting when playing Gameloft games. Gameloft and Verizon recently announced a partnership to enable a voice chat feature in its games in the near future. At the moment only a few games are supported (Asphalt 6 is one of them) but hopefully that number increases when it is released later this year.

In-game voice chat would definitely take mobile gaming to the next level; and seeing how you’re playing a game on a phone after all ? it only makes sense that you can chat while doing it as well. Coordinating team-based moves are going to be so much easier next time. Check out the promo video showing Gameloft/Verizon’s in-game voice chat in action. What games would you like to see this feature in?

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: LG Spectrum Android phone available at Verizon (720p + LTE), LG Spectrum officially announced,