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Viliv X70 dissected and reviewed ahead of initial pre-order

We know what you're thinking: too much Viliv X70 news at once and you're liable to go mad as a hatter with excitement. Settle down, and now let's move on. jkkmobile's been playing with the MID for quite some time now, and has posted an epic, 27-minute long review. It's well worth a gander if you're considering the device, and ultimately it comes away as a good slate portable with fast 3G (in Finland, at least), a better MID for newcomers than the S5. Not all is great, and some lag issues aside, points get knocked off for the lack of some mouse-like input. If that's not enough, we've also got pics of it torn asunder piece by piece, so you can get a better glimpse at the innards. Want more? Dynamism's updated its placeholder page to let everyone know of a pre-order special tomorrow, July 6th, where the first 777 customers get a free 1.3GHz upgrade (from 1.2GHz), car kit, leather pouch, and protective film for the screen, and premium model buyers can get an extra battery to boot. Video review after the break, and hit up the read links for everything else.

Read - Review
Read - Dissection
Read - Pre-order page

Sprint swaggers, promises to be first to release 3G Femtocell in US

While AT&T's still claiming MicroCell will be out before the year's up, Sprint's bringing out the big words by boasting to Unstrung it'll be beating everyone to the market with its 3G femtocell solution. Company VP of device and technology development Mathew Oommen is pretty light on some of the finer details -- like actual release date, hardware supplier, pricing scheme, and pretty much every other piece of information we'd want -- but he did imply there'd be multiple options available for the CDMA EV-DO Rev. A extender, including a device more tailored for enterprise use. Look, you two can fight all you want over who gets first, but in the end, we just want our Pres and iPhones to live together and home in perfect-reception harmony -- think we can get that in time for Christmas?

[Via Slashgear]

Kindle's German launch stalled by T-Mobile and Vodafone?

A news item is circulating the internet reportedly from German business weekly Wirtschaftswoche claiming Amazon is facing a major hurdle in trying to bring its Kindle to Deutschland. The problem at hand? The two big wireless providers in the country, Vodafone and T-Mobile, are both saying "nein" to providing Whispernet service, and apparently the issue has to do with how much money Amazon was willing to give -- unsurprising, if true. Another, very likely reason for T-Mobile's unwillingness is that parent company Deutsche Telekom is rumored to be working on its own e-book reader, and we gotta believe those company picnics would be mighty awkward if a large subsidiary was given the competition a major boost. We can't imagine this stopping Amazon for long, and we'd be very surprised if the Kindle didn't find some way to sneak itself into the region sooner or later.

Mushroom Networks announces new wireless "Broadband Bonding" technology


Mushroom Networks has been in the "broadband bonding" business for quite a while now, but we're guessing they're going to find a few more fans with their new wireless broadband gear, which promises the fastest cellular-based internet connection to date. Like the company's previous PortaBella device (pictured above, not exactly to scale), its new rig can combine up to four different cellular data cards into a single high-speed connection, but this one is fully portable (just over a pound) and, perhaps most importantly, it has an optional battery pack that'll let you be truly mobile with it. That, Mushroom says, makes the device ideal for a whole range of applications that can be a bit tricky with a single modem, like mobile TV broadcasting or temporary offices set up in a disaster area. Unfortunately, there's no word on pricing just yet, but it doesn't exactly take much guesstimating to figure out that it's likely not the most cost-effective solution around.

ASUS rolls out RT-N16 wireless router


It's not a dual-band router, but it looks like ASUS has just about all the other bases covered with its new RT-N16 model. Apparently "engineered for the future" (too bad, present), this one naturally packs full 802.11n capabilities, along with a "powerful CPU" and 128MB of memory to help it eek out every last bit of bandwidth, and both four LAN ports and a pair of USB ports to accomodate your non-wireless devices. Otherwise, you can expect to get ASUS' own EZ UI, which promises quick and easy setups and customization, and all the the usual basic security measures you'd expect, including support for WPS. No word on a price just yet, but it looks like this one should be rolling out soon, if it hasn't hit stores already.

Comcast launches High-Speed 2go WiMax service tomorrow in Portland, other cities to follow by end of year


Put down that bowl of homemade granola and take heed, citizens of Portland: you're about to get a first crack at Comcast's High-Speed 2go service, and we don't want any of your excuses about "taking a tech sabbatical" or "getting lost in the wilderness" to keep you away from sweet, sweet broadband bundles. Based on Clearwire's WiMAX service, Comcast High-Speed 2go is available in a "Fast Pack Metro" bundle which packs home internet service, a WiFi router and the WiMAX for $50 a month, with another $20 tacking on nationwide Sprint 3G (along with the appropriate 3G / WiMAX combo card). Existing Triple Play customers can add the WiMAX by itself for $30. Comcast plans to launch similar service in Atlanta, Chicago, and Philadelphia before the end of 2009.

Video: Silverlit's Heli-Mission SWAT Truck brings your Blue Thunder fantasies to a rockin' reality

Video: Silverlit's Heli-Mission SWAT Truck brings your Blue Thunder fantasies to a rockin' reality
We've seen remote controlled toy helicopters and remote controlled toy cars, and they were good, but never have we seen before a product that brings the greatness of the two together. Silverlit's Heli-Mission SWAT truck is that holy union of RC, a butch-looking controllable truck with flashing lights and a cavernous cargo bay that swings open to release a three-channel helicopter. The heli is hoisted into position and can then be launched to go rescue your Transformers figurines from the clutches of your evil sister, brother, husband, wife, or pet. This wireless duo will set you back £59.95 when it releases in Europe, about $100, but sadly we're not finding it up for order anywhere else at the moment. So go ahead and relax, Brazilian prison guards -- at least for now...

[Via SlashGear]

UK ATMs set to offer WiFi access, free for BT and iPhone users


BT Broadband customers and O2 iPhone owners, rejoice -- some 2,500 ATM machines near you will soon be converted to serve as free WiFi hotspots, courtesy of BT Openzone and Cashbox, perhaps the most mismatched pair of commercial metaphors ever put together. The initial rollout starts with 10 machines this week and numbers are expected to steadily increase. Non-BT users and iPhone heretics wanting to join in the fun will have to shell out £5.88 ($10) for 90 minutes or a more reasonable £9.79 ($16) for 24 hours.

[Via Tech Digest]

How would you change Novatel's MiFi 2200 portable EV-DO router?


Firms like Cradlepoint have been dishing out generic portable hotspots for years now, but it wasn't until recently that US consumers had a carrier-branded option for creating their own WiFi zone via EV-DO. Novatel's shockingly diminutive MiFi 2200 portable EV-DO router has officially arrived on both Sprint and Verizon Wireless, and while GSM followers have been unfortunately left out for the moment, we're still eager to hear how early CDMA adopters are faring. Are you pleased with the convenience factor here? Have you had any odd and unexpected connection issues? Are you kosher with that 5GB limit on monthly throughput? Let us know if you think this thing's worth its asking price, and if not, what would make it so. And... go!

AT&T's 3G MicroCell still on track for release sometime before the end of the year

AT&T's 3G MicroCell still on track for release sometime before the end of the year
We've known the tech behind AT&T's spin on the home-based femtocell repeater since January, and in February a little iPhone update revealed that we were getting closer to prime time. Finally, news of limited trials and then... silence. AT&T has apparently been keeping its head down, diligently testing its MicroCell service, with 200 lucky subscribers having Cisco boxes beam full bars to the darkest corners of their living rooms for months, testing that has been successful enough for AT&T's Gordon Mansfield to say that it's still "on track for a full national launch." That's the good news. The bad news is that he continued by saying it'll release sometime "by the end of 2009." So, you might be in for up to six more months of dangling your iPhone out the window to get your voicemail, but hold tough -- you can make it.

FCC approves LTE / EV-DO hybrid gear from LG


We're not sure what the LG M13 is, exactly, but we can tell you one very important thing about the mysterious device: it's awesome. We know this because the FCC has revealed some limited documentation about the recent approval, which is where we find out that it's a "Cellular / PCS CDMA / EvDO and 700MHz LTE Device." Translated, that means it'll be able to play both on CDMA networks -- take Verizon's, for example -- and also on LTE spectrum deployed in the 700MHz band, which Big Red just so happens to have recently purchased a whole lot of. This wouldn't be the first time LTE-compatible stuff from LG has garnered FCC love, but it would be the first time we've seen a device that supports both LTE and CDMA -- and considering that Verizon will have both networks operational for years (if not decades) to come, that's a pretty important feature. Any creative guesses as to what this might be, then? A modem, perhaps?

Autonet Mobile in-car WiFi router goes national with Amazon availability

So, what does a company do when the two major outfits hired on to install its wares go belly-up? Why, put the power in the hands of the people, of course! After spending entirely too much time with Chrysler and General Motors, Autonet Mobile has decided to give consumers another option for having an in-car WiFi router installed: Amazon. Starting now, those interested in shoving a hotspot in their vehicle can purchase the router for $299.99 after rebate and handle the install themselves, but none of this makes that $29 monthly charge any easier to swallow.

Pioneer uses WiMAX to buffer content into your commute

Pioneer uses WiMAX to buffer content into your commute
What the world needs now is another distraction to keep a driver's eyes off the road, and Pioneer is ensuring wheelmen of the future will have something other than the asphalt to focus on with what it's calling the Network AV playback system. It relies on WiMAX to send your entire backlog of Knight Rider episodes straight to your Trans Am, and could stream every track from the Ronin Original Motion Picture Soundtrack too. Pioneer also envisions its technology beaming data to your backyard and anywhere else you can get a WiMAX connection -- which, right now, isn't too many places. But, hey, at least with this tech you can drive somewhere that does. Optimistic video after the break.

[Via DigInfo]

Belkin's Gigabit Powerline Adapter ups the ante for electrical outlet networking

We don't know exactly how, but Belkin's claiming its new Gigabit Powerline HD Starter Kit adapters can outpace the current 200Mbps standard speed of most other powerline devices (not all of them, mind you) by five fold. Of course, the caveat here is that the touted 1000Mbps is under ideal settings, and there's no telling what other network traffic, interference, or problematic wiring could lower that figure -- still, assuming all conditions are sound, we're talking some hefty numbers for an HD streaming network run via your home's electrical system. It's available now in North America at a penny under $150 for a pair of adapters, with a European release in early August.

CATSeye Mk2 tracking device takes the smaller, more waterproof route

Okay, so if you thought the CATSeye matchbox-sized tracking device was a bit too big or cumbersome, the gang is back with something decidedly smaller and more discrete. Introducing the CATS.i, also known as CATSeye Mk2. It's got all the same functionality as its predecessor -- GPS, GSM/GPRS, RF, internet / SMS controls, etc. -- but is now only eight millimeters thick (or twelve if you chose the thinner "folded over" arrangement) and completely waterproof. Power options include a Li-ion battery, solar power, or any number of other ways you can think to run juice. Have an urge to keep track of all your family members and loved ones even more secretly than before? The new devices ship next month.

[Via NaviGadget]




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