Few engineering projects have the scope, costs or risks involved in building a new bridge.

San Francisco Bay Area residents got a peek at what’s involved Wednesday, when builders set in place the first segment of a tower that will soon hold up a brand-new span of the San Francisco Bay Bridge.

Wired captured photos of the event, as well as many inside photos of the new bridge that we shot on a recent tour of the massive construction project.

More than 250,000 vehicles pass over this bridge every day, carrying people and freight between San Francisco and the east side of the bay. You can’t exactly ask that much traffic to wait patiently while you tear down the existing bridge and replace it with a new one.

Complicating matters is the fact that the San Francisco Bay Area is one of the most seismically active regions of the United States. Any bridge built here has to be able to withstand a massive quake — since some big shaker is almost certain to hit sometime during the bridge’s expected 150-year lifespan.

In fact, engineers are designing the new Bay Bridge segments to withstand the largest earth movements predicted for the next 1,500 years. The specifications call for the bridge to be open to traffic within hours after such a massive quake, with minimal repairs required.

No wonder it has taken two decades to come up with a replacement for the Bay Bridge’s damaged eastern span.

This page: What locals call the Bay Bridge is actually three bridges: a pair of suspension bridges leading from San Francisco in the west to Yerba Buena island in the middle of San Francisco Bay; and an eastern section made out of steel girders, leading from the island to Oakland, on the east side of the bay. Connecting the two is a 76-foot wide, 58-foot high tunnel — the largest bore tunnel in the world — going through the heart of the island.

It’s the eastern span, shown here, that took a hit during the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. A section of the upper roadway collapsed in that quake.

Photo: Stefan Armijo/Wired.com

Man, how much longer can Motorola and Verizon Wireless try and keep the lid on the DROID 2? Earlier today, Droid-Life obtained a user guide for the yet-to-be-released DROID 2 as well as an image of DROID 2 cases on sale at Best Buy. The user guide reveals that the device will have Motorola’s UI enhancements — same as the DROID X — and will in all likelihood be launching with Android 2.2; as opposed to Android 2.1. We’ve heard August 3rd tossed around as a potential launch date (Verizon likes to launch handsets on Tuesdays). Come on Verizon, kick the flood gates open already!

Read [User Guide] Read [Cases]

An Android app that offers free wallpapers is allegedly gathering data about its users, including their phone numbers, carrier subscriber identifiers and phone number of their voicemail accounts. The app then sends this data to a website based in China, says mobile security firm Lookout.

The Android app, called Jackeey, is estimated to have anywhere from 1 to 4 million downloads.

“While the data accessed are certainly suspicious coming from wallpaper apps, we’re not saying that these applications are malicious,” Kevin Mahaffey, founder and CTO of Lookout wrote in an e-mail to Android Central. “There have been cases in the past where the applications are simply a little overzealous in their data-gathering practices, but not because of any ill intent.”

The Jackeey app does not touch the SMS and browsing capabilities of the phone. Lookout made the disclosure at the ongoing Black Hat conference in Las Vegas. (See Wired.com’s Threat Level blog for more coverage of Black Hat.)

Wired.com was not able to contact the developers of the Jackeey wallpapers.

While one Android app has been singled out, many iPhone apps also intrude into the users’ privacy, says Lookout. A survey of 300,000 applications for both the iPhone and Android OS found twice as many free applications on the iPhone have the capability to access the user’s contact data (14 percent) as compared to Android (8 percent).

“Ultimately, the device OS makers should focus on better security,” says Dimitri Volkmann, a vice-president at Good Technology, which provides mobile security and device management for businesses. “It’s more about the maturity of the vendors rather than control vs. open source.”

How the data gathered from users is handled has been a minefield for phone makers. In 2009, a developer found the Palm Pre’s operating-system webOS sent his GPS location back to the company every day. Palm was also monitoring the webOS apps he used each day, and for how long he used each one. The outcry forced Palm to change how it handles data gathered by the OS.

Android app Jackeey’s missteps in handling user data has hurt and embarrassed them. But with thousands of apps in the Android app store and little supervision, it’s just a matter of time before a bigger mobile-security risk has major consequences for consumers.

See Also:

• Apple’s iPhone Security Gets Better, But Still Not BlackBerry
• Google Flips Remote Kill-Switch on Android Apps
• Hacker Says iPhone 3GS Encryption Is ‘Useless’ for Businesses
• Want to Fool Apple’s App Store? Plant an Easter Egg

Photo: (marketingfacts/Flickr)

A new connect just dropped some interesting images in our inbox. What you are looking at is Verizon Wireless’ first LTE USB modem that VZW is currently testing. As you can see from our images, the manufacturer is Samsung LG and the unit contains the much anticipated LTE SIM card. We don’t have much else to report on this one other than the hardware looks to be pretty polished… hopefully it will be released to the masses soon. We’ve got a couple more images for your scrutiny after the break.

Yesterday, we broke news about Bell Canada’s plans to offer a $30 per month 6 GB smartphone data plan that permits iPad users to share their 6 GB monthly data bucket with their iPad for an additional $10 fee. Today, on the eve of the iPhone 4 launch, Rogers Wireless is following suit. Rogers customers will be able to purchase a $30 per month 6 GB data bucket as long as you sign a new 3-year contract. The iPad sharing option is explained like this:

Starting July 30, and for a limited time until Sept. 30, customers on a 6 GB plan will be able to share data between iPhones and iPads for an extra $20 (plus Government Regulatory Recovery Fee). For details, visit a Rogers retail location.

Not quite as cheep as Bell’s offering… but there you have it. What do you say Canadian friends? Sound off!

Read

Google’s Nexus One phone is going where few smartphones have gone before. A group strapped the Nexus One to the back of a rocket and launched it from the Nevada desert into the atmosphere to test the device’s performance up in the air.

The Mavericks Civilian Space Foundation, a group of rocket enthusiasts, used an Intimidator-5 rocket to send the device 28,000 feet into the atmosphere.

“The purpose of flying the Nexus One is to find a low-cost satellite solution,” says Thomas Atchison, chairman of the Mavericks Foundation. “The radio, processing power, sensors and cameras in smartphones potentially have the same capability as those in satellites.”

The idea is to drive down satellite cost by using off-the-shelf products and components, says Atchison.

“Today’s satellites are the size of Greyhound buses,” he says. “But I believe they are going to get smaller and more frequently deployed. This is a first-step effort.”

The Nexus One piggybacked on a rocket that’s being used as part of a project called Clotho that’s trying to find out how far off the earth’s surface life exists.

The test flight with the Nexus One was to see how the device behaves under a high-G environment, says Atchison.

“If you put a Nexus One in orbit, how will it perform?” he says. “How does the device handle the thermal temperature and vibrations. We wanted to see the results.”

The resulting video from the Nexus One is below. As expected, the video is a lot of shaking, blue sky and blobs of light, but it is still fun to watch. An earlier test brought Nexus One back with a shattered screen but the device did well on its second flight.

James Dougherty, one of the participants in the project, shows the payload with a biosampling module and the Google phone.

See Also:

• Extreme Hobbyists Put Satellites Into Orbit With $8000 Kits …
• The $150 Edge-of-Space Camera: MIT Students Beat NASA On Beer …
• DIY Freaks Flock to ‘Hacker Spaces’ Worldwide
• Water-Cooled Supercomputer Doubles as Dorm Space Heater

Photo: The shattered Nexus One post launch (jurvetson/Flickr)

[via Make and Droid Ninja]

YouTube has decided to make it markedly easier for you to get your fifteen minutes of fame. How? By upping the time limit of uploaded YouTube clips from 10 minutes to 15 minutes. Those of you who dream of posting a video of yourself singing Can’s Mother Sky into a kitchen spoon, go right ahead. YouTube’s just made your dream a reality. Here is the official word from Google:

Well, we’ve spent significant resources on creating and improving our state-of-the-art Content ID system and many other powerful tools for copyright owners. Now, all of the major U.S. movie studios, music labels and over 1,000 other global partners use Content ID to manage their content on YouTube. Because of the success of these ongoing technological efforts, we are able to increase the upload limit today.

Thanks Google.

Read

If you can’t wait until Tuesday to see what BlackBerry 6 is going to look like, blog driphter.com may have something for you. The blog posted a five minute video of an unreleased BlackBerry 9780 — the purported successor to the Bold 9700 — running BlackBerry OS 6. The video gives us a little taste of what the new WebKit browser and spiffified interface are going to look like. If you’re excited — and judging by our poll yesterday, a lot of you are — hit the jump, we’ve got the video all queued up for you.

Read

Over the last few days, one of Apple’s new products has been all over the internet. Nothing new there, right? But which one do I mean? The new iMac? The 12-core Mac Pro? The cool new Magic Trackpad? Nope. I’m talking about the Apple Battery Charger.

It’s a nice charger, to be sure: it minimizes “vampire draw” by shutting off the power when the batteries are charged. It ships with six batteries which should last up to ten years and it has the usual Apple polish in the form of coded flashing or steady amber and green LEDs. But does this really warrant the amount of coverage that is being given to a battery charger? After all, there are countless chargers out there that are better featured, or simpler, and certainly cheaper.

What this insane news coverage really tells us is that, despite the endless whining comments to the contrary, Apple news is big news. People read it, people want it, and people click on it. Sure, Apple benefits from the almost continual din of free publicity, but so do the people publishing the news. And so do you, the reader: From the amount of interest in any Apple news, it’s obvious that it is in demand.

But back to that charger. The one that costs $30, that only holds two batteries that takes five hours to charge them. I’ll probably buy one. Why? Because it uses the little interchangeable power-prongs, which means one tiny thing less in my luggage.

Battery charger [Apple]

Nintendo confirmed on Thursday that it is holding an event to announce the details of a new product on September 29th. This centerpiece product for this upcoming event is most likely the Nintendo 3DS, a 3-D portable gaming device unveiled by Nintendo earlier this year. If this supposition pans out, then we can expect Nintendo to announce the official launch date,launch markets, and pricing for this novel gaming device. Folks trying to adjust their budget to accommodate a purchase of the 3DS would be wise to consider the words of James Honeywell, Nintendo’s marketing manager, who hinted to Electric Pig that the 3DS will fall somewhere within the current DS pricing architecture. With the DSi available for £129.99 ($203 USD) and the larger DSi XL for £159.99 ($249 USD), we would expect the 3DS to hit that sweet spot between $200 and $250. Anyone looking to score a 3DS when it becomes available later this year?

[Via Kotaku]

Read

It looks like Sprint is hell-bent on bringing at least some kind of iPhone to its network. An FCC filing shows a MiFi like device which not only creates a personal Wi-Fi hotspot but also acts as a cradle for the iPod Touch. It effectively turns the iPod into an iPhone, only without the actual phone part, nor the cameras, nor the GPS. But you sort of see the point.

The “Peel”, as it looks to be called, is an interesting idea, and isn’t outside the scope of Sprint’s iAmbition: remember the free iPad case which would also hold Sprint’s own 4G wireless router? This one would run on the slower but more pervasive 3G network, and use its own battery. It would also do away with the issue of tethering, as you could connect several devices to the hotspot.

If it escapes the FCC’s clutches, we’d expect to see this soon enough. And who knows? Maybe you could also wrap it around the iPhone thus avoiding both pesky dropped calls and AT&T’s flaky data network. Win win!

FCC Reveals ZTE Peel On Sprint, For Apples Perhaps [Phone Scoop via Cult of Mac's John Brownlee]

Follow us for real-time tech news: Charlie Sorrel and Gadget Lab on Twitter.

LG announced earlier this month that it was launching an Android-powered tablet as part of its new Optimus brand. On Thursday, the Korean company confirmed that it will be launching this Android tablet in Q4 2010. Though Q4 2010 is still a broad window for launch, the timing suggests that LG is trying desperately to hit that ever important holiday shopping season. No word on whether this tablet will be a Korea-only exclusive, but if it does launch globally, is anyone interested?

Read

After posting about the ShutterSnitch/Eye-Fi combo on Monday, which lets you beams photographs direct from your camera to an iPhone or iPad, I was sold, and I bought both. After using them for a couple days, it turns out that the Eye-Fi, in its Pro form at least, pretty much sucks.

I went for the Pro as it is the only one that works with RAW files. It is latest Class 6 (X2 in Eye-Fi terms) fast-transfer version, with 8GB memory, Wi-Fi and geo-tagging. It’s the best card Eye-Fi makes, and cost me €131, or a ridiculous $171. On top of this I bought the ShutterSnitch App for $8. I was now in for almost 180 bucks. What did I get for it? Not much.

Geo-Tagging

While the Eye-Fi Pro will geo-tag JPG images, it won’t tag RAW. This is because RAW files, although they use standard EXIF metadata (the information about the photo such as shutter speed and ISO), they put it in non-standard places. That’s fine. You can just shoot RAW+JPG in-camera and then use the desktop software to copy it across on import, right? No. There is no way to do this without resorting to third-party apps.

And if you use this (or any other) Eye-Fi card for geo-tagging, be prepared for slow imports. The way the Eye-Fi works is to gather data about the surrounding Wi-Fi networks as you shoot. Back at the computer, when you import, this data is sent up to the Eye-Fi servers and converted to location data. It’s how the iPod Touch works out your position in the Maps app, only done on Eye-Fi’s servers.

The problem is that to get this to work, you need to let your photos import over Wi-Fi. Even though the cards come with their own (pretty good) SD-card reader, you have to import over the network to get the geo-data, even if the card is in the card-reader. This, if you are shooting RAW and have more than a few photos, takes forever. Worse, if all your machines aren’t on a fast 802.11n network, you’re looking at hours to pull in the photos from a full card.

Compare this to the cheaper alternative, a GPS tracker. For around $50, you can hang a keychain-sized dongle on your bag, get real (and more accurate) GPS data and then combine with the photos later, in seconds.

Could I just import the photos with a regular card reader and drag them all into the Eye-Fi Center software? Nope. Done this way, it mysteriously stops recognizing the RAW format of the files.

Tethered Shooting

Done straight to the computer, transfers are rock solid, and fast if you have a fast network. Using ShutterSnitch, though, things are less reliable, and that’s being generous. I managed to get direct transfers working just twice over the past days, and even then not all the photos would make it to the iPad. And yes, I followed the instructions, and read the forum threads and did what I was supposed to do. But really, this should just work, and it doesn’t, making it useless as anything more than a novelty.

Direct Uploading

The other functions, like direct uploading to the web, work great. But as I would never send a photo to Flickr without at least some tweaking, it’s moot for me at least. It’s also speed-limited by your internet connection, which means that large files will take a while to upload and therefore drain the battery. Which brings me to…

Battery Life

In short, using the Eye-Fi for wireless transfer drains the battery fast. Geo-tagging doesn’t appear to cause a problem, but the strain of beaming images across the network sucks at the battery life. If you thought the days of removing the card from your camera to transfer photos were over, you’re dead wrong. It’s a good thing the card comes with its own reader.

More

There are more niggles. The Eye-Fi Center software, used for configuring the card, is clunky and annoying. For example, it pops up a dialog box every time you save a setting (and you have to save before you can move to a different tab). This needs to be clicked to dismiss it, every single time, and that gets old, fast.

The application also runs on Adobe Air and inexcusably installs the runtime on your computer without asking. The first thing you’ll know about it is when Air starts contacting Adobe’s servers and trying to update itself.

The conclusion seems to be that if you don’t shoot many images, or if you take crappy, low-res snapshots and send them straight up to Facebook, then one of the cheaper Eye-Fi cards might be for you. On the other hand, you can do all that with the cellphone you already have. If you’re a pro, or an enthusiastic amateur like me, the frustrations and limitations are so numerous you should probably look elsewhere. For wireless transfer, suck it up and use a USB cable. For geo-tagging, buy a cheap GPS-logger. Right now, the “Pro” version of the Eye-Fi line is half-baked at best.

Eye-Fi Pro [Eye-Fi]

See Also:

• ShutterSnitch Beams Photos from Camera to iPad
• ShutterSnitch and Eye-Fi: Wireless Camera Tethering for iPad …
• AirStash Wireless SD Card Reader: Perfect iPad Companion?
• Eye-Fi Pro X2, The Un-Fill-Up-Able Memory Card
• Eye-Fi
• Eye-Fi Adds Geotagging And Hotspot Support

Follow us for real-time tech news: Charlie Sorrel and Gadget Lab on Twitter.

If there’s one thing T-Mobile USA is known for, it’s solid customer service. J.D. Power and Associates found this out as well, as they have just announced that T-Mobile USA is the sole highest-ranking wireless provider in “Overall Customer Care Performance.” Congrats, T-Mobile. Now if you could only expand coverage and launch some kick-ass devices…

Read

The current iPod Shuffle is tiny to the point of being hard to use. In fact, lose or break the Apple earbuds and you’re screwed, unable to control playback without the in-line remote in the cable. It is cool-looking though, in a how-the-hell-do-they-fit-an-iPod-in-there? kind of way.

Now you can make it even cooler-looking with the lamely-named Pod à Porter necklace, which despite all good sense seems to be for both men and women. The necklace is a velvet-finish, 3D printed polyamide loop. The iPod plugs into one end and the headphone cable threads around the loop to exit at the other end. The result is a tangle-free unit that keeps cables and everything else above the neckline, and can be worn whilst naked, Patrick Bateman-style.

As someone who has killed countless pairs of expensive headphones by catching cords on street-furniture as I dance through the city, I can appreciate the utility. But as a gadget writer and nerd, I like the manufacturing process even more. The Pod à Porter exists as a 3D computer model designed by Michiel Cornelissen and resides on the servers of Shapeways, the online 3D printing service. When you order, your necklace is cranked out of the printer and mailed to you. This feels a lot like the future.

The Pod à Porter costs $27 and comes in black, white, magenta, blue and green to match your iPod Shuffle.

Pod à Porter [Michiel Cornelissen]

Pod à porter – neckband for iPod shuffle [Shapeways]

See Also:

• Shapeways: 3D Printing for Everyone (but Not for Little Kids …
• 3D Printing
• Print Your Own 3D Styluses
• 3D Printing, Now in Stainless Steel

Follow us for real-time tech news: Charlie Sorrel and Gadget Lab on Twitter.

This morning, Motorola announced their Q2 2010 earnings, and the information looks so-so to be honest. The company as a whole saw sales of $5.4 billion during the quarter, earnings of $162 million, and earnings per share of $0.07 (up from $0.01 in the previous year). The mobile division sold 2.7 million handset, generating $1.7 billion in revenue, with an operating loss of $109 million (a $239 million loss was posted last Q2). The company as a whole still has $8.3 billion in net cash, and the mobile division looks poised to improve their Q2 metrics with the recent release of the DROID X and other high-end smartphone devices due out later this year. The results are certainly better than previous quarters, but the earnings of $162 million on $5.4 billion (which actually beat analyst expectations) are still a slight cause for concern.

Read

Really, the Panasonic RP-HJE 130 is just another earbud. Price is a good indicator of headphone quality, and after that you choose whether you need noise-canceling or an in-line remote and you’re done. But the real genius behind the RP-HJE 130, the thing that will make people buy a pair, is something that has nothing to do with Panasonic. It’s the packaging.

It’s fantastic, right? The design was done by the Scholz And Friends agency in Berlin, Germany, and shows the two hook-shaped buds as a pair of eighth-notes linked together by a bar formed by the in-line remote. The design was so good that it won a Cannes Lions award this year. These buds, it is certain, would jump off the shelf at you, whatever their specs.

And those specs remain a mystery. A Google search for “RP-HJE 130″ comes up with nothing but articles about this design. Switch to Google Shopping and you get precisely zero results. But then, I guess it doesn’t really matter. After all, it’s better to pick headphones on their quality, not their packaging, which will be ripped open and tossed into the recycling-bin after a few minutes anyway.

Panasonic Earphones: The Earphones Note [Coloribus]

See Also:

• Model-Kit Business-Card Transforms into Plane, Car, Boat

Follow us for real-time tech news: Charlie Sorrel and Gadget Lab on Twitter.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Apple, Inc. is looking into reports that the performance of iOS 4, on the iPhone 3G, is sub-par. The most common gripes are that the two-year old handset is “sluggish” and “burns through a charge” very quickly after the update is installed. Anyone out there experiencing this?

Read

Most people I know who have an Apple Magic Mouse hate it. They hate the carpal-tunnel-inflaming multi-touch gestures, and they hate the stupid shape, which fits nobody’s hand. One thing they probably don’t hate, though, is the resilient glass surface on top.

Even the most cautious of Magic Mouse lovers would likely shy away from this $15 MouseGuard, essentially a screen-protector for something that sits on a desk all day. A screen-protector makes sense when that screen is swinging around your neck (camera) or sitting in your pocket with some carelessly forgotten keys (phone), but not when the worst that could befall the glass panel is being lightly scraped with an untrimmed fingernail.

It’s not even like you need to look through the screen. Seeing a scratch on the LED panel of your $800 camera is frustrating at best, but a mouse is something that is always covered by your hand when in use. In fact, the MouseGuard comes in two opaque flavors, white and gray.

What next? A case to protect your case? Even my friend Pedro, who buys cases for pretty much everything he owns and will likely be spending the next few weeks handling his new iPad with cotton gloves until he finds the perfect sleeve, would shy away from the MouseGuard. And when it comes to protecting gear from scratches, Pedro is an expert. You should listen to him.

MouseGuard [Moshi Mode via Oh Gizmo]

See Also:

• Tat
• Protective Keyboard Cases Signal End of Civilization
• Judge OKs FBI Keyboard Sniffing

Follow us for real-time tech news: Charlie Sorrel and Gadget Lab on Twitter.

Here’s a list we wouldn’t mind being on. A recent Wall Street Journal study found that Larry Ellison, Oracle’s CEO, has received over $1.84 billion in compensation over the last decade, making him the highest paid CEO in the world. The WSJ estimates Ellison’s personal worth at roughly $28 billion. Another notable tech persona on the list is Steve Jobs. While Jobs only grosses $1 annually in salary his compensation package is quite lucrative. The study estimates that Jobs has received over $749 million over the last 10 years, and ranks fourth on the CEO list. The prophet Christopher Wallace once said, “more money, more problems” (I think technically it was “mo money, mo problems” but you get the point)… wouldn’t you love to have a shot at that inconvenience?

Read

Yesterday, we reported on the Chevy Volt electric car and it’s $41,000 price tag. Now, we know some of you were probably thinking that a Chevy doesn’t exactly fit your personal steez, but we might have something for you. The Porsche supervisory board has green lighted the production of the 918 Spyder hybrid, complete with a 500-horsepower V8 and 109-horsepower electric motor. The new Porsche will allegedly net 78 miles per gallon and will retail for slightly more than the Volt, at around $650,000. We’re unclear as to how a 500-hp Porsche is going to get 78 mpg while a 140-hp Prius gets around 40 mpg… but hey, here’s to hoping those crazy Germans know something we don’t!

Read

Today, The Wireless Association announced updates to its Consumer Code for Wireless Service. The Code, according to CTIA, “was originally developed in 2003 to help consumers make informed choices when selecting and managing their wireless service.” Wireless companies can sign and “adhere to the Code’s 10 points, including commitments to disclose rates, additional taxes, fees, surcharges and terms of service; provide coverage maps; make customer service readily accessible; and allow a trial period for new service.” Previous Code signatories include: AT&T, Celcom, Clearwire, Sprint, T-Mobile USA, Unicel, U.S. Cellular and Verizon Wireless. In a separate press release, Verizon Wireless announced that it will sign and support the new code put forth by CTIA. And there you have it.

Read

Microsoft has posted a one and a half minute video teaser of Microsoft Office 2011 up on YouTube. The video lets you know that Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Outlook all come with the Ribbon interface, and that Office and Messenger have been completely redesigned. If you are interested in a very high level overview of the new software hit the jump, the video is waiting for you.

Read

Chatr Wireless, a Rogers Communications venture, is officially open for business, and the low-cost, prepaid wireless company is keeping things simple. Chatr is currently offering a selection of four phones: the Nokia 1661 for $60, the LG GB125R for $75, the Nokia 2680 for $95, and the Samsung Gravity for $130. The company also, as reported, has two very simple contract-less calling plans: unlimited talk for $35 per month, and unlimited talk and text for $45 per month. The website www.chatrwireless.com is also up and running, ready to show you coverage maps, roaming rates, etc. Happy chatring!

Read

If you got worried when Amazon’s Kindle went out of stock a bit earlier, you can rest easy as they have just announced a brand new model. The new Kindle (yes, it’s just called the Kindle) comes in both the classic white and now graphite colors, is thinner and lighter than the predecessor, and starts at a great $139 price point. There are both Wi-Fi and 3G models with the 3G models using AT&T’s network like the Kindle 2 did. Want raw specs? Well, the device is 21% thinner, has an even better contrast, doubled internal memory at 4GB, and it’s a bit quicker all around — faster page turning! It’s available August 27th in the US and UK. So, interested or what? Or do you have iPads to take care of your reading needs?

Read

This whole pad term is still a mystery to us… anyway… it appears as though Research In Motion has legally registered the domain name blackpad.com. As you can see from the above screen capture, the Waterloo company first registered the name on July 8, 2010. The filing adds fuel to the rumor fire that RIM is concocting some sort of tablet-slab-pad thing that will serve as a companion to its BlackBerry smartphone devices. BlackPad… yikes. Which name do you think is worse, iPad or BlackPad?

Read

Jeff Bezos has survived the iPad.

Predictions that Apple’s bright tablet computer would be a Kindle-killer haven’t quite come to pass: Amazon CEO Bezos says that the growth rate in sales of his e-reading device has tripled since June, when he dropped the Kindle price to $189. (Clearly increased competition from other e-readers, like Sony Reader and the Barnes and Noble Nook, hasn’t dampened the Kindle fire, either.) And he’s still kvelling over last week’s announcement that e-book sales on Amazon exceed the number of hardback books sold by the e-commerce site. “And that’s with a device at the end of its product life cycle,” he says.

The cycle of life resets on Aug. 27, when Amazon will ship the third-generation Kindle. Judging from a brief hands-on demo, the new Kindle — which still costs $189 — isn’t a drastic makeover but a canny evolution that enhances the device’s raison d’etre: reading.

But by also releasing a lower-cost ($139) version of the Kindle without 3G wireless connectivity, Bezos anticipates millions of new customers who can live with waiting for a Wi-Fi hot spot to replenish their content. He says that the introduction of the Wi-Fi version is purely a price play, a way to sell Kindles to families and couples who already have one in the house.

“At $139, you’re going to have multiple Kindles, not just one,” Bezos says.

Consistent with Amazon’s past practice, Bezos revealed no specifics about Kindle sales to date, other than to say that “millions” have already been sold.

This year’s Kindle comes in either the classic ivory or an earthier graphite hue. The most significant improvement — perhaps as a “sez you” to the crisp iPad screen — is a sharper e-ink display than previous Kindles. Bezos claims that the contrast is 50 percent better, due in part to a proprietary technology involving “font hinting” which more skillfully manipulates the electronic ink that forms the letters.

Also, as Apple’s CEO has been known to say, “It’s really thin!” The new Kindle is a svelte 1/3 of an inch thick and weighs 8.7 ounces, making it 21 percent smaller than the 2G Kindle. This makes Kindle lighter than a paperback, while the iPad is heavier than Infinite Jest. (Eventually, Bezos says, he’d like to make the Kindle so light “you’d need a paperweight to hold it down.”)

The pages turn 20 percent faster than on the previous Kindle, and Amazon has even tamped down the clicking sound of the buttons, so readers are less likely to disturb a slumbering companion. Those page-turning buttons, by the way, are longer and slimmer — almost like bumpers on the edge of the device. This may be the first Kindle that finally prevents you from turning a page by mistake.

The long-anticipated Kindle touchscreen is … still not there. “From an engineering point of view, it would have been very easy to put a touchscreen on it,” says Bezos. “But it would hurt the reading experience.” He says that e-ink touchscreens degrade display quality and add glare. Instead, the Kindle revamps its interface by replacing its stubby joystick with a “five way” arrangement where a thumbnail-sized selection button is surrounded by a thin band of compass-point directional buttons. The home and the menu button are now placed on the keyboard array. Maybe third time’s the charm for the Kindle, which has changed navigational controls on each version.

Other improvements include expanded battery life: a full month if the radio’s off, and 10 days if you leave the 3G turned on. There’s twice as much storage, enough for 3,500 books. And though Bezos didn’t show it to me, Amazon is offering a cover with a built-in LED reading light that works off the device’s battery. It’s $60, which seems pricey for a book light, but Amazon explains that it uses gold-plated conducive hinges. Maybe when you’re done reading you can use it as jewelry.

“We’re starting to see evidence that at the $189 price point that this may be a mass product,” Bezos says. “Even though we’re designing it for readers, it seems to be breaking out.” With a Kindle now selling at $139, he expects the tipping point to tip even more.

What’s more, the revelation that Amazon sells more Kindle books than hardcovers is only the beginning of what now looks like an inevitable mass migration to e-books.

“Our best estimate is that Kindle books will outsell paperbacks at Amazon sometime in the next nine to twelve months,” Bezos says. “And then at some point after that they’ll overtake the combination.”

As for the iPad? Bezos is a fan. “My first thought when I saw the iPad is that it will be great for our mobile commerce business — the more internet-connected devices the better, from Amazon’s point of view.” But if people thought the iPad would be a challenger to Kindle’s e-reading throne, “it hasn’t happened that way,” says Bezos with his trademark laugh. He tried reading a bit on an iPad but didn’t get far because “if I have to read a long document on an LCD display, the first thing I do is print it out.”

He thinks that people will be fine with carrying multiple devices — tablet, laptop and, of course, “purpose-built reading devices that are extremely light, let you read outside in bright daylight, a whole bunch of things.” Like the one he’s now selling for $139.

Some Apple 3G phone owners who upgraded to the new iOS4 operating system are facing buyer’s remorse. The upgrade has left their devices slow and struggling for breath, according to complaints on Apple’s users forum.

“My iPhone 8Gb 3G is soooo slow after ‘upgrading’ to OS4,” says a user registered as George Stark on the Apple forum. “Unlocking the phone sometimes takes 5-10 seconds and the home screen icons literally stop converging halfway through and then 2 seconds later, finish off. Other things are ridiculously slow, such as opening and replying to texts. Good one Apple, maybe you want us all to upgrade to the iPhone 4 so that OS4 actually runs at a manageable speed?”

Apple is looking into the complaints.

“We are aware of these reports and we are investigating,” a company spokeswoman told Wired.com

Apple rolled out iOS4 in June as a new version of the operating system that would introduce features such as multitasking, a unified inbox for e-mail and the ability to group apps into folders. iPhone users who had bough their devices in 2007, when the phone was first introduced, cannot run iOS 4 at all. But iPhone 3G users can upgrade to iOS4 though multitasking is not supported for these devices. iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4 are completely compatible with iOS 4.

But Apple’s decision to make older iPhone models seems to have backfired. When Apple moved from iPhone 3G to iPhone 3GS, it introduced a faster processor in the latter. Remember all those company statement saying the ‘S’ in the 3GS stands for ’speed.’

The iPhone 3G has a 412 MHz ARM 11 chip, while the 3GS model uses a 600MHz ARM 11 processor. Clearly, the difference computing power seems to have an impact on how well the device can handle iOS4. The thread relating to iPhone 3G’s slow performance on the iOS4 is 38 pages now and has more than 560 messages.

Those stuck with iPhone 3Gs running at glacial speeds, downgrading the OS to the iOS 3.1.3 may be an option. But as this tutorial shows it’s not an easy process. The alternative is to do a factory reset on the device.

For Apple, the iOS4 woes on the iPhone 3G comes on the heel of ‘Antennagate‘–a widely publicized problem with the iPhone 4. Many iPhone 4 users have noticed that the device loses signal strength when gripped at a specific spot at the bottom left of the phone.  Apple has responded to those complaints by offering its iPhone 4 users a free case.

See Also:

• Apple Launches iOS 4 for iPhone, iPod Touch
• Apple iOS 4 vs. Google Android 2.2: How Do They Stack Up?
• Apple Unveils High-Resolution, Videoconferencing iPhone 4
• Finger Fail: Why Most Touchscreens Miss the Point

Photo: (twenty5pics/Flickr)

Amazon reduced the price on its popular eReader and the book reading device has flown off the shelves. So fast that anyone looking to snag a Kindle at this moment in time will be faced with an wait of unknown duration as the eReader is temporarily out of stock. The last time the Kindle went out of stock was late 2008 when Amazon was selling off the remaining supply of the Kindle 1 in advance of the launch of the Kindle 2. If history is repeating itself, then this shortage of the Kindle 2 could be an indication that Amazon is preparing to launch the Kindle 3. Though rather rumor-ish, this scenario does sound plausible, no?

[Via Information Week]Read

If size matters, Modu’s extremely tiny and lightweight phones that come with interchangeable casings are an interesting idea. Go beyond that and the phones seem rather dated.

That could change as Modu is likely to introduce a new version of its phone that will run Android OS. A video showing a tiny Modu phone and some of the key screens has surfaced.

Israeli company Modu, which makes these phones that are sold outside the U.S. and most of Europe, has engineered devices that weigh just 1.4 ounces. An iPhone 4G weighs about 4.8 ounces. So far, Modu’s phones have used a proprietary version of the operating system, giving rise to complaints about the tired looking user interface.

Android OS could fix that. But it looks like it may not be enough. The new Modu phone has some glaring omissions such as the lack of 3G capability and a capacitive touchscreen, says Phandroid. The phone includes a stylus and a microSD card slot.  It also seems to be running version 1.5 or version 1.6 of Android.

Clearly, Modu become so captivated by the idea of a small phone that everything else–specs, OS, user experience– has become secondary.  A pint-sized phone is enough to get consumers’ attention but when its peers are on Android 2.2 and turning into powerful little computers, Modu can’t just count on its looks to be accepted.

See Also:

• Bloatware Creeps Into Android Phones
• iPhone Hacked to Run Android 2.2
• Motorola Droid Rules Android
• Android Comes of Age at Google Developer Conference

The ZTE Peel 3200, a Sprint-branded sleeve with mobile hotspot functionality and EV-DO connectivity, was spotted at the FCC. The curious device sports a sleeve-style form factor that appears to be ideally suited for the iPod Touch. Details are sparse on the device but it is clearly a mobile hotspot with integrated GPS and support for up to 5 Wi-Fi-enabled devices. Any Sprint users out there who would consider using this with VoIP as an alternative to an AT&T iPhone?

Thanks IGOD!

[Via Phone scoop]

Read

A new Canadian Ninja has come forth with some great news for all you Bell Canada smartphone users who happen to also own an iPad. According to a Bell memo, the wireless carrier plans to offer a 6 GB data plan for $30 per month that will provide smartphone users with “unlimited Wi-Fi @ Starbucks” as well as tethering. Bell will also allow you to “share” your 6 GB data bucket with your iPad for an additional $10 (as long as they are on the same billing account). The effective date on the memo is July 30th through September 30th and it is being billed as a “limited time offer.” We’ve got the full three page memo, for your scrutiny, after the break. 

Does size matter to you? The bigger the better perhaps? Well, Dell may have crafted your next smartphone, the Dell Streak. We’ve been messing around with our very own Streak and thought we would put together some initial impressions for you. Want to see and know more? Hit the jump and lets do this thing!

The Streak is built as a data first device for users who want to view full-HTML webpages, watch videos, and play games on a great screen… the fact that the device functions as a phone is sort of an added bonus. Here is the official stat sheet for the Dell Streak: 5-inch WVGA touchscreen (with Gorilla Glass), 800 x480 resolution, 1 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, HSPA 7.2 Mbps radio, 1530 mAh battery, Bluetooth 2.1, Wi-Fi b/g, 5 megapixel rear-facing camera, VGA front-facing camera, HMTS 2100/1900/850 MHz, GSM/EDGE 1900/1800/900/850 MHz, and Android 1.6.

The first thing you are going to notice about the Dell Streak is — obviously — its size. This puppy is wide, it actually makes the DROID X and EVO 4G feel puny. The good news is that the sheer size of the device is slightly masked by how thin it is. The device certainly will fit in your pocket (not if you wear tight fitting jeans), although you may not want to leave it there for fear of hearing: Is that a Dell Streak in your pocket or are you just happy to see me? We’re still getting acquainted with our Streak, so we’re not ready to pass judgment on its size quite yet.

On the right side of the device is (from bottom to top) a dedicated camera button, power button, volume up/down keys, and 3.5mm headphone jack. The top and bottom of the device are absent of keys or switches, and the right side has a proprietary Dell 30-pin dock connector that closely resembles Apple’s 30-pin connector.

The software on the device is actually quite nice, even though it is Android 1.6. Dell has done a great job tweaking Android for the device without completely molesting the interface. The icons are stock, notifications are stock, and aside from some modifications to built in apps — to optimize them for the 5-inch viewing palette — most of them are stock as well. Even seasoned Android veterans will get a kick out of how much information is displayed on the screen by default, after all… there is a lot of potential on a 5-inch screen. They keyboard is pretty easy to type on thanks to its size, the landscape version even includes a number pad!

The phone is made to be used in landscape mode, which is made clear by the fact that the soft-key icons are oriented toward the landscape view and the home screen does not rotate to portrait. Applications all rotate with the phone’s built in accelerometer just fine, but we have a feeling this landscape only home screen — a la Nokia N900 — will be a turn-off for some people.

Like we said, we’ve only had this monster for a short while, so we’re still in the discovery process. In the meantime we’ve got some additional images for you to analyze. Enjoy!

Advertising wars are so much fun! Late yesterday, Motorola took another swipe at smartphone rival Apple, capitalizing on the free-case fiasco of the iPhone 4. In a Facebook post, the company displayed a poster that read:

At Motorola, we believe a customer shouldn’t have to dress up their phone for it to work properly.  That’s why the DROID X comes with a dual antenna design.  The kind that allows you to hold the phone any way you like to make crystal clear calls without a bulky phone jacket.  For us it’s just one of those things that comes as a given when you’ve been making mobile phones for over 30 years.

Burn. The first ad Motorola put out was a little tongue and cheek, however this one is a sharp stick to the eye… a very funny sharp stick to the eye. We’ve got the full-sized image after the bounce.

[Via Droid-Life]

Read

Amazon’s Kindle e-reader is listed as “temporarily out of stock” on the company’s website, in what could be a sign that a new Kindle model may be on its way.

The latest shortage of the device lines up nicely with earlier rumors that Amazon plans to introduce a new Kindle model in August. An e-reader with a color screen is not likely, but the new Kindle could sport a better black-and-white display, updated hardware, improved user interface and new apps.

“Order now and we’ll deliver (the Kindle) when available. We’ll e-mail you with an estimated delivery date as soon as we have more information,” says Amazon on its page listing the Kindle, which is currently on its second generation. (When introduced, the current model was called the Kindle 2, but Amazon dropped the numeral after discontinuing the first-generation model, like a son dropping the “Jr.” after his father passes away.)

The shortage may be because of a surge in demand for Kindle — but it’s more likely that Amazon is preparing to introduce an improved version of the device. So far, Amazon hasn’t commented on the reasons for the Kindle shortage.

In June, Amazon cut the price on the Kindle from $260 to $190. A few days later it launched a new Kindle DX, featuring an updated version of the E Ink screen known as Pearl. The black-and-white Pearl display offers a contrast ratio 50 per cent better than the earlier model of the DX screen, Amazon claims.

One of the hottest consumer electronics products of last year, the e-reader market is in turmoil this year. Smaller e-reader makers such as Audiovox, iRex, Plastic Logic and Cool-er have found themselves squeezed out by the competition, especially Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Despite the launch of the Apple iPad, which comes with its own iBooks bookstore, Amazon has continued to see strong demand for the lower-priced, reading-optimized Kindle. Since it lowered the price of the Kindle to $190, sales of the Kindle have tripled, says Amazon. However, Amazon hasn’t disclosed exactly how many Kindles it has sold.

See Also:

• Upstart E-readers Fade to Black as Tablets Gain Momentum
• 5 Things That Will Make E-Readers Better in 2010
• E-Readers Will Survive the Onslaught of Tablets
• Gallery: E-Readers Push Boundaries of Books
• Apple iPad Raises the Stakes for E-Readers

Photo: (kairin/Flickr)

After posting pictures of our self-assembled white iPhone 4, we received more information on some of the manufacturing challenges Apple is facing with the albino iPhone model. For starters, just as we saw, Apple is having trouble getting the paint thick enough on the front display to be perfectly white while not having any light bleed — or transparency — without affecting the proximity sensor. There is also reportedly an issue with the actual paint itself, which we’re told is silkscreened on the front glass. Apple has had to come up with a paint mix that will stay white and won’t discolor, flake, etc. However, the back panels are totally fine (and we can confirm that), as there is no need for portions to remain clear for the LCD display. Lastly, we are told the reason the device isn’t perfectly white and is slightly discolored is that the binder Apple is/was using causes a slight off-color tint. In closing, our source let us know that Apple might have actually worked through these issues and that white iPhone 4s might not be so far away from shipping in the near future. Apple just probably left it open-ended so they wouldn’t crush expectations again. And again.

Yesterday, we reported on the T-Mobile information page for a mystery HSPA+ device and subsequently on a theory that this device was the HTC Vision/Blaze. Now, to further cloud the rumor waters, Android Central has received an image that their tipster claims is the HTC myTouch 3G HD, and the T-Mobile mystery device. AC’s tipster described the device as a myTouch 3G Slide minus the slide-out QWERTY keyboard and with an HSPA+ capable radio. What do you think? Would any of you T-Mo customers sign up for an HSAP+, all-touch myTouch?

Read

Samsung has put a Wi-Fi radio inside its latest digicam, the ST80. The camera is pedestrian in almost every regard, from its ho-hum zoom range (35-114mm equivalent), through its 3-inch screen with just 230,000 dots to the too-big 14.2-megapixel sensor. But the saving factor is that Wi-Fi, which means that you can share your pictures without a computer.

In addition to email, you can upload images to Facebook, Picasa, YouTube and Photo Bucket. The touch-screen also lets you carry out basic editing first: you can crop, for example. The ST80 will also shoot 720p video at 30fps in H.264, and comes with an Boingo account to access Wi-Fi hotspots on the go.

This is the direction that more and more cameras will take. As smart-phones get better and better cameras, their connectivity becomes much more useful. With the iPhone, you can shoot video and stills, edit them and send them out to the world. Dumb cameras don’t even come close. Samsung has bets on both sides, with digicams and phones in its lineup, but we’re certain that those lines will blur more and more.

The ST80 will be available in September for $250.

Company press page [Samsung]

Follow us for real-time tech news: Charlie Sorrel and Gadget Lab on Twitter.

A while back, the folks at Portland Design Works sent over a couple bike lights, a set containing the Spaceship and the Radbot. After opening them up and almost blinding myself, I set out to test them, with the intent of killing them. Read on to find out if they survived.

The kit consists the Radbot 500, a 0.5-watt red LED powered by a pair of AAA batteries, and the Spaceship, running on two AAs, which shines its white LED through a “German-engineered lens” and will “withstand rain showers and meteor showers,” (according to the blurb).

I started out the test in Barcelona, but it quickly became clear that the hot temperatures, lack of rain and smooth roads weren’t going to tax these lamps. Worse, Barcelona is so well lit at night that you really don’t need lights on your bike (although the law says otherwise). So I took the pair to a rather more difficult terrain: Berlin, Germany.

Berlin is almost bankrupt, which means long stretches of unlit road and teeth-rattling cobbled streets. It is also in the North of Europe, which gives it hot, dry days (up to 40-degrees, or 100º F) punctuated by cold nights and day-long thunderstorms. It is, in short, a very tough place for bikes and bike accessories.

The lamps do their most important job admirably. They’re ridiculously bright: the red Radbot alone can illuminate a whole room at night, and that’s when its still strapped on my rucksack, pointing in the wrong direction. The Spaceship’s tight beam, a mere curiosity in Barcelona, was essential when cycling through the pitch-black Mauerpark at night, picking out a glowing ellipse on the ground in front to illuminate a safe path between the potholes and broken beer-bottles.

The lights are removable. The Spaceship clamps onto the handlebars with a wraparound collar and a finger-operated screw to tighten it. It stays in place, even over the cobbles. The Radbot comes with a few different fixings. I clip it to the Brooks tool-bag hanging from my saddle, but you can screw an adapter to the light-mount on a rack, the seat-stay or the seat-post.

Despite hanging on tight, I managed to drop both lights plenty of times (usually while trying to drunkenly fix them onto the bike, post-beer-garden). They bounced, and neither of them has even a crack (yet. I’m still trying). Both lamps have also sat outside in Berlin rainstorms: They’re waterproof.

Problems? Very few. While the Radbot needs a long, 1.5-second press on the power switch to turn it on and off (to stop it lighting up in a bag), the Spaceship doesn’t, and actually switched itself on in my bike-bag on its air-trip here. Also, to change the batteries, you need to unscrew the lights to open them. A minor pain, as the screw-shut cases are what keeps the rain out. Otherwise, they come highly recommended (especially the Radbot’s cool pulsing flash-mode). The Spaceship even doubles as a handy weapon with which to blind rival bike-polo players (I have tested this).

Available now in a set for $45.

Spaceship/Radbot 500 [PDW. Thanks, Dan!]

Photo: Charlie Sorrel

See Also:

• Hands-On with the Knog Frog Bike Light
• Reelight: Magnet Powered LED Bike Light
• LightLane's Lasers Make an Instant Bike Lane
• Video: Sanyo Eneloop Bike Pedals For You

Follow us for real-time tech news: Charlie Sorrel and Gadget Lab on Twitter.

This morning, Apple released an update to its Safari web browser. The biggest new feature that the update packs is the ability to customize Safari with third-party extensions which can be found at extensions.apple.com (welcome to 2010 Apple). Aside from being able to install AdBlock, the update also fixes that little address book bug that was discovered last week. We’ve got the full release notes for you after the break.

New in this update:

• Safari Extensions
  • Customize Safari with features created by third-party developers
  • Find extensions in the Safari Extensions Gallery, accessible from the Safari menu and extensions.apple.com

This update also contains improvements to stability, accessibility and security, including the following:

• More accurate Top Hit results in the Address Field
• More accurate timing for CSS animations
• Better stability when using the Safari Reader keyboard shortcut
• Better stability when scrolling through MobileMe Mail
• Fixes display of multipage articles from www.rollingstone.com in Safari Reader
• Fixes an issue that prevented Google Wave and other websites using JavaScript encryption libraries from working correctly on 32-bit systems
• Fixes an issue that prevented Safari from launching on Leopard systems with network home directories
• Fixes an issue that could cause borders on YouTube thumbnails to disappear when hovering over the thumbnail image
• Fixes an issue that could cause Flash content to overlap with other content on www.facebook.com, www.crateandbarrel.com, and other sites when using Flash 10.1
• Fixes an issue that prevented boarding passes from www.aa.com from printing correctly
• Fixes an issue that could cause DNS prefetching requests to overburden certain routers
• Fixes an issue that could cause VoiceOver to misidentify elements of webpages

For detailed information on the security content of this update, please visit this site: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1222

Read