Sony Xperia Ion from AT&T receives Android 4.0
Ice Cream Sandwich update officially

post from Ubergizmo on 26 September 2012 11:37:50 PM. © Ubergizmo

It was nearly a week ago when we reported that there were a few users who claimed to have started to receive the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich operating system update on their respective Sony Xperia Ion devices, but up till then, there was no official word from AT&T having done so. Well, things have definitely changed – and for the better, I might add, today, where Ice Cream Sandwich is readily available for the masses over at AT&T who are rocking to the Sony Xperia Ion. Better late than never, considering how this is still one step behind in terms of the Android ?version count?, where Android 4.1 Jelly Bean is the latest and greatest version of the mobile operating system at this point in time.

Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich is touted to make your handset easier to use, and also more powerful than ever before. Just to refresh your memory, some of the new features include an improved browser with better page loading, tabbed browsing, offline reading and desktop mode. Not only that, you will be able to benefit from new lock/unlock features, ranging from the ability to unlock directly to the camera, text messaging, phone dialer, home screen or use Face Unlock. There are other features that accompany the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich update as well which you would be able to check out once you?ve updated your device.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Sony Xperia Tablet S gets Android 4.0.3 firmware update, Android 4.0 for AT&T's Sony Xperia Ion reportedly rolling out to some users,

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Asus teases Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update for
Transformer Prime and Infinity

post from Ubergizmo on 26 September 2012 11:35:05 PM. © Ubergizmo

When it comes to the Android operating system, many people do talk about the issue of fragmentation. While it is not that serious, it is still a problem that should be addressed by Google as well as the slew of hardware manufacturers who release products that run on Android. Well, Asus has their fair share of Android-powered devices, where they have just teased the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update to arrive on the Transformer Prime as well as Infinity in a matter of 3 days.

That would translate to approximately 72 hours of patient waiting, so owners of the Transformer Pad Prime TF201 (otherwise known as the Eee Pad Transformer Prime) and the Transformer Pad Infinity TF700 might want to grab some popcorn and enjoy the waiting period. All good things come to those who wait, after all, so if you have waited this long, what is a few more hours between good friends, right? Better late than never should be taken as a consolation this time around. [Facebook Page]

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Asus Transformer Prime Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update rolls out in Sweden, Original ASUS Transformer to receive Jelly Bean,

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Texas Instruments quit OMAP game

post from Ubergizmo on 26 September 2012 11:33:42 PM. © Ubergizmo

Texas Instruments (TI) has said that they will no longer be developing new OMAP processors for smartphones and tablets, as TI cited that their range of OMAP boards have started to become less and less popular among mobile manufacturers, considering how the majority of them have started to place good money on Qualcomm. Not only that, big players in the industry such as Samsung and Apple are working on their very own in-house solutions, meaning OMAP is going to go the way of the dodo pretty soon. After all, one of the glaring disadvantages of the OMAP chipset would be a lack of an on-board 3G/4G modem.

This means manufacturers who have devices that are powered by OMAP chipsets will need to make sure that their hardware come with extra radio chips, resulting in an increased battery consumption as well as escalating production costs. Having said that, this could be one of the major reasons as to why Qualcomm?s suite of complete solutions have become more and more popular over time. Adios OMAP, you will not be missed.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Liquavista pursues full color e-ink displays, Texas Instruments OMAP4 Chipset Can Drive 3 Independent Displays,

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Freedom House: Estonia is world number one for
Freedom of the Net

post from Ubergizmo on 26 September 2012 11:30:02 PM. © Ubergizmo

According to Freedom House, they have ranked Estonia as the world?s number one in terms of Freedom for the Net. Now, this is not a particular achievement that happened for the first time this year, but rather, for the third year in a row, Estonia picked up the gong for being the world’s number one country for Internet and digital media freedom.

NGO Freedom House (@FreedomHouseDC) conducted their third in a series of a comprehensive studies of Internet freedom in 47 countries worldwide, ranking them using various criteria such as Obstacles to Access, Limits on Content, and Violation of User Rights. It does seem as though Estonia has a blueprint that many other countries could use to follow if they want to climb up the rankings, but I believe that North Korea and Iran would be pretty happy being right smack at the bottom of the list. Hey, if you are going to block YouTube, Google and Gmail, there should not be any reason for even a consideration on this particular list. Will there be other countries that aspire to knock Estonia off their pedestal next year? We will be watching closely.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Asus teases Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update for Transformer Prime and Infinity, US Air Force uses Samsung Series 7 Slate in bases,

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Samsung smart school solution pilot program
launched with Galaxy Note 10.1 in tow

post from Ubergizmo on 26 September 2012 11:28:55 PM. © Ubergizmo

Here with a protective case from Samsung

Geeter Middle School is the first educational institution in the US to take part in the first US pilot of Samsung?s interactive 1:1 learning solution, where it was thought up of to help drive classroom engagement and empower educators via classroom technology. Needless to say, Samsung summoned the help of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 (read our freshly minted review here). Should this pilot program prove to be successful, it should be applied in other learning institutions throughout the US, helping demonstrate the potential of the digital classroom platform which will see the clever integration of both the Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet and interactive whiteboard displays.

A total of 35 Galaxy Note 10.1 tablets will be provided to the 6th grade math class at Memphis? Geeter Middle School, accompanied by a 65-inch interactive whiteboard and a wireless printer. Teachers will be able to lead interactive lessons and real-time group activities via the convenient display and content sharing features, while learning management tools allow students to access course materials and information in a jiffy. Someone recommend a networked Battleship app already for students to play while teacher is not looking, but one thing?s for sure, going paperless means there is no chance for throwing paper airplanes in class. [Press Release]

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: HTC May Be Working On A Galaxy Note Competitor, T-Mobile allegedly cancels the Samsung Galaxy Note, possibly in favor of the Galaxy Note 2,

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US Air Force uses Samsung Series 7 Slate in bases

post from Ubergizmo on 26 September 2012 11:27:31 PM. © Ubergizmo

When a heavyweight like the US Air Force picks up the Samsung Series 7 Slate in bulk for action across worldwide bases, you know for sure that this is serious business that we are talking about here. This is the first network slate tablet blanket purchase agreement, where it will help deliver to the USAF standard desktop configuration implementation of Windows 7 Professional, in addition to supporting a slew of similar programs as though you were using a full-size PC, albeit enjoying working on a slim, light tablet form-factor.

Measuring just 0.5? thin while sporting a responsive 11.6? touchscreen display, the Series 7 Slate will pave the way for convenient mobile use, but you can also dock it or hook it up to an optional Bluetooth keyboard for a far more portable and comfortable PC functionality. Each Samsung Slate for the USAF will be delivered with a Trusted Computing Group certified, Trusted Platform Module 1.2 chip, adding to the network administrator?s peace of mind when it comes to security detail. [Press Release]

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Samsung Series 7 Gamer announced, Samsung announces Series 7 Chronos 17 laptop with Intel's Ivy Bridge on board,

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Tivo Stream, Premiere 4 and Premiere XL4
announced

post from Ubergizmo on 26 September 2012 10:24:36 PM. © Ubergizmo

TiVo has announced a trio of new devices for the coming holiday season, where they are the Stream, Premiere 4 and Premiere XL4. For starters, the TiVo Stream will allow you to seamlessly deliver content stored on any TiVo Premiere box to mobile displays (including those like iPads and iPhones), where you are able to stream up to a quartet of shows simultaneously to four devices that are hooked to a home network. Not only that, it lets you perform wireless transfer of recorded content to a supported mobile device, letting you carry your favorite TV shows along.

As for TiVo Premiere 4, it also offers a quartet of tuners, letting you record up to four shows at once even when you are viewing a fifth recorded program. Capable of recording 75 hours of HD content, it can carry nearly double of what a generic DVR offers.

Last but not least, the TiVo Premiere XL4 lets you record a whopping 300 hours of HD programming, boasting four tuners so that you can simultaneously record four different shows even when viewing a fifth recorded program.

The TiVo Stream, TiVo Premiere 4, and TiVo Premiere XL4 will retail for $129.99, $249.99 and $399.99, respectively. The TiVo Stream will have no monthly service fee, while the TiVo Premiere 4 and TiVo Premiere XL4 will both carry a monthly service fee of $14.99 with a one year commitment.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: TiVo Premiere Elite is finally here, TiVo Premiere Elite officially launched,

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Kenya to shut down counterfeit mobile phones by
end of September

Kenya has confirmed that they will be turning off counterfeit mobile phones by the time October rolls around, and mobile networks there will also be prevented from activating new “fake” devices that are purchased after October 1st. Government officials claim that this particular move was done so that consumers will be protected from hazardous materials, while safeguarding mobile payment systems in the process. Not only that, this move should also be able to help them track users and limit the possibility of violence before the general election is due to happen sometime next March.

Officially, the statistics claim that up to three million users were talking and texting using counterfeit handsets as of June this year, which is quite a number considering Kenya had 29 million mobile phone subscribers at the end of March 2012. The Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) say that fake handsets are “copies of popular brands and models made from sub-standard materials” which have yet to pick up any kind of licensing from the organisation. While this model be adopted by governments throughout Africa? Only time will tell.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Electro-Kinetic Shoe technology said to charge mobile phones, Kenya police site hacked, hacker thought about Mark Zuckerberg,

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Verizon Samsung Galaxy Nexus gets Android 4.1
Jelly Bean factory image from Google directly

If you happen to own a Samsung Galaxy Nexus smartphone and are rocking to Verizon Wireless, then you might be interested to know that Google had posted the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean factory image that carries build number JRO03O right there on the Google Developers website. Better late than never actually, considering how this release came about two months after Google introduced factory images for the Samsung/Google Galaxy Nexus HSPA+ model, which means it was a rather significant delay where the LTE model is concerned.

Some folks have dived into what the ROM offers, where they claim that the new ROM will apparently come with new radios for the LTE Galaxy Nexus, which could be a reason to obtain the factory image before you perform the update as the factory image is still required if one wants to return to stock. Have you downloaded the factory image update already from Google?

Verizon has been known in the past to offer delayed updates in the past, so it is not surprising to see this happen this time around.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Verizon offers Galaxy Nexus for $149 at Best Buy, Android 4.0.4 update reportedly rolling out to some Verizon Galaxy Nexus owners now,

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Re-Feed feeds plants with your leftovers

Most of the time, we would think that leftovers from our food could actually be ?shared? with other ?members? of the household such as your pooch or cat (although I personally think that this is not too healthy for our furkids), but who would have thought that regular unfinished food could actually be turned into ?food? for your plants? This is what the Re-Feed device concept does, liquefying your leftovers while pumping the result of that process straight into your flowerpots, while looking like some sort of dehumidifier on your desk.

All you need to do is drop in organic scraps, where the battery-powered blade will chop up the mix, leaving that to compost. Once done, just add some water and your plants should be on the receiving end of a balance diet. Heck, the Re-Feed can even be programmed to perform the feeding process just in case your forgetfulness kicks in. There might be issues with the smell though, but thankfully this is still a concept as at press time, so we should be able to see future iterations of this concept solve that particular issue.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Peugeot Onyx concept scooter , Upgradeable tablet concept lets you replace CPU at your whim and fancy,