Does it feel like this week is going by pretty slow to you, too? We could’ve sworn this was a Wednesday, but thankfully we’ve got a daily tally, so we figured out the error of our ways pretty quickly. So, welcome to the Tuesday edition of the Daily Slash. Tonight, in the Best of R3 Media, we’ve got an unknown HTC Android device, Facebook changing up video formats, and a lesser version of the Samsung Galaxy S. And then in the Dredge ‘Net, it seems that LTE will have more sustainability than WiMAX, a new PlayStation 3 firmware update to add a nice feature, and then finally the Zune HD gets some new games added to the library, along with a new app.
The Best of R3 Media
Has the HTC Wildfire Been Outed? HTC took a different route with naming a future handset. Instead of keeping it internal like they usually do, they decided to talk to their Facebook fans. They published a list that showcased different names for devices. The Wildfire won that little contest. And sure enough, HTC’s just got a new, previously unheard of device being approved by the FCC. Could be the Wilfire. Or, it could be something completely different. [via Android Community]
Facebook Shifts Videos to HTML5: The Facebook iPhone OS app is one of the most popular for the platform, but the company has yet to create an iPad application. So, that means that most people with the magical tablet from Apple have been utilizing the mobile Safari to access their social networking content. The only trouble with that is, up until today, the videos that people added to their pages have been Flash-enabled. That’s all changed, though. They’ve hit the switch, and now the videos –all videos– are coded in HTML5, which means viewing them in mobile Safari, on the iPad or iPhone or iPod Touch, won’t be a problem at all. Now, how about that iPad app? [via Everything iPad]
The Samsung Galaxy A is Almost the Galaxy S: We’re eagerly awaiting our close, personal time with Samsung’s Galaxy S Android 2.1 handset, but for those in South Korea, you can pick up something a little bit like the real thing. The Galaxy A features Android 2.1, and it’s technically the company’s first Android 2.1 handset. It’s got a 3.7-inch AMOLED Plus One touchscreen display, and TouchWiz 3.0. So, like we said, it’s almost like the Galaxy S. No 1GHz processor, though. The Galaxy A has an 800MHz processor under the hood. [via SlashPhone]
The Dredge Net
LTE Has More Longevity Than WiMAX: Probably not good news for Sprint, but definitely good news for Verizon Wireless. According research firm IDC, it seems that WiMAX’s current spotlight in the news isn’t going to last. The company suggests that spending on LTE equipment is going to exceed WiMAX spending by the end of 2011. That’s a good bit of distance from now, but in the long-run, it’s still not that good for companies utilizing WiMAX for their 4G technology. As it stands, over 100 operators around the world are using LTE, which include nine of the top 10. An additional dozen are said to launch just this year alone. So, it seems that WiMAX may want to keep on running, because LTE may just leap over them before they know it. [via Gearlog]
New PS3 Firmware to Add Background Download: The PlayStation 3 keeps getting updated. It’s a bit over the top now, but we like new things way too much to turn them down. This time around, it’s just good news. According to rumors, the new update will add background downloading for patches to your favorite video games. Right now, it’s about as much a rumor as a rumor can be, but we’ve got our fingers crossed that Sony’s going to let us download our patches while we play the game of our choice. Especially considering those patches aren’t necessarily always that small. [via PS3 Blog]
The Zune HD gets Solitaire, Labyrinth, and a stopwatch: When you look at your Zune HD, the one thing you know it’s missing is the game of solitaire, right? Well, thankfully Microsoft has heard your inward pleas for justice, and have officially added the game to the roster. On top of that, there’s a labyrinth game, too. And, for all those moments when you need a stopwatch, they’ve got you covered with that, too. So, hurry up and go download the new goodness. [via CrunchGear]
At least we can say that this isn’t the first time the Zune HD2 has been rumored about. Because, let’s face it, if you’ve got something as thin as this, you’ll need some kind of other story to support it. Luckily, we’ve got that in this situation. According to a report over at Zunited, apparently a director and blogger got a chance to see the new Zune HD, along with a few pieces of other Microsoft tech.
The person in question, James Gunn, got the chance to attend Microsoft’s “The Microsoft Experience,” and while he was there, he got to peek the latest and greatest in Microsoft toys. The most notable is what he called “the new Zune.” Now, there was a new Zune HD that just got released, you know — the 64GB model. And, that could very well be what Gunn witnessed, especially considering he doesn’t give any further details. But, we’d wager that Microsoft said something along the lines of “new,” and perhaps Gunn is of the mind to know what exactly is new on the market.
Gunn also noted his time spent with Project Natal, and the fact that he also saw a new Microsoft tablet, which, apparently, is a lot like the iPad. From what we heard yesterday, we don’t know if that would be the HP Slate. Of course, he also got to see the new Microsoft phones, so that’s probably Windows Phone 7, and not the Kin One or Kin Two. This doesn’t necessarily mean that a new Zune HD, the Zune HD2, is coming, but it’s just another rumor to pile up. And we’d be willing to be that they’ll be piling up pretty quick over the next few months.
We all know that lurking inside the Zune HD is NVIDIA’s potent first-gen Tegra chipset, but what isn’t so well publicised is that Microsoft’s XNA development platform for the PMP doesn’t allow access to the hardware’s full capabilities. In fact, it means no 3D, no internet access and performance apparently an order of magnitude less than what the Zune HD is capable of. That wasn’t good enough for the ZuneBoards team, and so they’ve come up with OpenZDK, an alternative development platform to XNA.
With OpenZDK, developers can create Zune HD apps – as well as apps for the original Zune models – that take advantage of the Tegra APX2600 chipset, including using custom vertex and fragment shaders with OpenGL ES 2.0 and programming in C++. The resulting apps run on top of the regular Zune firmware, and shouldn’t impact your Microsoft warranty at all.
The end result is the ability to make games that match up to Microsoft’s own titles, such as PGR: Ferrari Edition and Audiosurf Tilt, rather than the more mundane possibilities that the dumbed-down XNA allows. More information on getting started at the OpenZDK wiki, and the ZuneBoards guys have a special forum (currently empty) for apps created with the new framework.
In a discussion with Kin product manager Derek Snyder this afternoon, we’ve confirmed that both the Kin One and Kin Two are built on the same foundation as the Zune HD — in other words, they’re running NVIDIA Tegra silicon, and there’s no reason that anything you see on a Zune HD couldn’t run just as well on a Kin. Of course, that’s a purely theoretical statement at this point since Zune apps don’t work on Kin as it stands — the platform’s completely closed, though Microsoft has been insistent that we should keep a close eye on its over-the-air updates after launch as features evolve. Either way, that’s a marked (and curious) departure from Windows Phone 7, where Microsoft’s been taking an all-Qualcomm, all-the-time approach.
Realistically, we’ve gotten the impression today that Kin doesn’t come close to tapping out a Tegra’s horsepower, but that might be by design: Snyder also mentioned that a key goal of the development phase was to make sure that the phones could go a whole weekend without a charge. Running a Tegra at full bore 24 / 7 doesn’t lend itself to miserly power consumption, so the overall simplicity of the UI — and the lack of 3D gaming — might play a role there.
If you haven’t already picked up a Zune HD, perhaps now would be a good time. Unless, you’re a fan of a different kind of Personal Media Player. In any event, Microsoft has just pulled the curtain off their granddaddy of the lineup, officially making the 64GB model available for purchase. But, hopefully you’ve been saving your hard-earned pennies, because it’s going to cost you.
Not that it’s not worth it, necessarily. After all, the Zune HD is a great PMP, if not one of the best on the market, and having the extra space to fill up makes it all that much better. Especially if you’re using that Zune Pass like you should be. Plus, there’s also the fact that Microsoft just released that 4.5 update. Which, if you’ll remember, brings more codec support, smarter DJ mix on your device, and the ability to browse the Zune Marketplace right from your TV.
A whole bunch of updates, actually, to make sure that when you do pull the trigger on this bold purchase, you’re well taken care of. If you’re interested in picking it up, just head over to the Zune Store, and pick out your favorite model. If you are going for the 64GB model, it will cost you $349.99. What do you think? Is it worth it?
It’s been a week, exactly, since we brought you the initial news regarding the next update to Microsoft’s Personal Media Player (PMP), the Zune HD. And, sure enough, we’ve got a pretty big update in regards to the release of Zune HD’s 4.5 software upgrade. It’s out now. Yep, those non-firm details that Microsoft couldn’t talk about must’ve been code for wanting to make us all surprised at how quickly they released it. Well, it worked. We’re pretty excited. (We love updates.) And sure enough, it’s adding all the goodies we mentioned before.
The update is bringing quite a few changes. First up, we’ve got a broader, more advanced Smart DJ. It’s being upgraded on the Zune HD, so that if you’re in the mood for one particular genre, you plug in a song, and the Zune HD will take care of the rest for you. Second, we’ve got Picks for Zune HD. This means that the next time you go into the Marketplace via your PMP, it will show you some of the most relevant picks of your music liking. It’s a great way to find new bands, and keep your music selection up to date with new music. And then we have the Zune Marketplace on your TV. By connecting your PMP to the TV via the dock, you can now browse the Zune Marketplace from your TV in all that panoramic goodness.
And finally, Microsoft has expanded the video codec options for their Zune HD. And, just to sweeten the deal, there’s no transcoding necessary. Oh, but wait, there’s more! As a bonus gift, Microsoft wants everyone to know that the Zune HD 64GB model is also available for $349.99. But, that’s still labeled as coming soon, so you’ll have to wait a bit longer for that one.
Remember the Zune HD 64 spotted on the Microsoft’s site earlier this week? The company has just been in touch to let us know that it is indeed launching a 64GB version of the OLED touchscreen PMP, together with reducing the price of the existing 16GB and 32GB models. The new Zune HD 64 will arrive April 12th for $349.99.
It will be available in Platinum, Black, Blue, Red, Green, Purple and Magenta, and otherwise have the same specifications of the current models. As for the Zune HD 16, that will be cut to $199.99, and the Zune HD 32 will be reduced to $269.99. So far there’s no sign of the new 64GB version on Microsoft’s Zune.net site, though it will apparently go up for sale at ZuneOriginals.com in mid-April.
Meanwhile Microsoft are also promising more details over the next few days on the Zune HD 4.5 firmware also tipped earlier in the week. That’s expected to include the company’s Smart DJ feature together with Xvid and AVI video container support.
Remember that promise from Microsoft at CES this year? They told us that they, for one, weren’t going to forget the Zune HD (in as many words), and told us that a general update would be coming to address the company’s Smart DJ feature, and add Xvid and AVI containers. Well, the update is finally coming in the next few weeks, and they are also including a special new feature that those of you with the Zune HD dock are going to enjoy.
That extra feature is the ability to browse the Zune Marketplace from your TV, while your Zune HD is plugged into the dock. Sure, it may not be on the top of everyone’s lists of absolutely needed features, but we’re excited about it. Microsoft is also updating the Smart DJ feature, which is like Apple’s Genius, and basically making it smarter. Now when you activate the Smart DJ, the Zune HD will pull information from the Zune Marketplace to find you related music, but will also pull information from other users as well. This means that the expansion to find new music will be fast and sweeping.
At the moment, Microsoft doesn’t have concrete information to give us about the exact release date of the update. For now, we’ll have to live with “the coming weeks.” That’s not bad, and we’re sure we can live. You’ll be able to download the update right from your PC, so you’ll probably know before we do (but probably not) that the update is up and running. As soon as we hear something, we’ll pass it along to you. Does anyone out there use the Smart DJ feature? Let us know what you think might need to be updated to make it better.
The ability to tag songs for a later purchase is one of the easiest, and most convenient ways to shop for songs that you may not have immediate access to. After all, the radio is still an avenue to learn about your favorite band’s latest release, or to find new music in general. Microsoft has been tagging songs since late 2008, but it’s a pretty big feature in the Zune HD’s
catalogue.
The HD Radio on the touch-based Zune allows you to tag a song you hear, and then purchase/download it from the Zune Marketplace at a later date. Convenient, but apparently it goes against a patent that one Edward Yavitz, a man based out of Illinois, patented back in 2002. According to Yavitz, he tried to get in touch with the Redmond-based company that created the Zune HD back in 2006. He basically said that the technology is patented and possible, and that Yavits would work with Microsoft to keep the likes of Google and Apple from doing the same thing.
Of course, Apple is doing the same thing. The technology is found in the 5th generation iPod Nano, and can buy songs that are identified by RDS text and tagged. At the moment, there’s no word on whether or not Yavitz will go for Apple, or anyone else using the same technology for that matter. Furthermore, Microsoft knows that the patent suit exists, but they are not commenting on the situation at this time. We’d be willing to bet that a settlement gets met, if Yavitz does indeed prove the patent exists. We will let you know when we hear more about this.
What’s that you say, 32GB of Zune HD storage simply insufficient for your A/V needs? Simmer down, Microsoft hear your plaintive, ear-splitting cries and it looks like they’re responding in the most obvious way: with a Zune HD 64.
The Zune HD site has been updated with a new link for the 64GB Zune HD, though so far the URL it links to isn’t working. However, we’re not expecting anything dramatically different from the previous Zune HD models, bar the greater capacity, which means an NVIDIA Tegra chipset, 3.3-inch AMOLED capacitive touchscreen and distinctive UI.
There’s also WiFi and HD Radio, along with a 720p HD video output (as long as you have the right cables), multitouch and an accelerometer. Check out our full Zune HD review for more details. As for Zune HD 64 pricing, the 32GB model retails for around $240, so we’d expect the larger version to come somewhere in the mid-$300 range.
