Tech Tidbits

HDTV Listings for July 31, 2010

What we're watching tonight: NBC (1080i) has Persons Unknown at 8 p.m. Posts of Interest:

‘The Shack’ downsizes, opens Bullseye Mobile kiosks in many Target stores

Radio Shack is at it again, expanding your perceptions of the place that once actually sold radio components. A year after that ill-received 'The Shack' marketing campaign the company is now making a rather more substantial move, securing an arrangement with Target stores to see the creation of so-called Bullseye Mobile kiosks. Posts of Interest:

Poll: Is it live or is it HDTV, how do you want to watch sports this season?

We heard you loud and clear, last time we asked, most preferred the comfort of their custom home theater setup to a day at the ballpark, and teams must have too, as they have have responded accordingly. A New York Times story about the new Meadowlands notes new stadiums have made massive high definition scoreboards, smartphone apps and other enhancements a part of their business, along with everyday-sized HDTVs everywhere you go within the concourse and luxury suites. The USA Today wants to know what you think gives the best angle on gameday, and so do we. Posts of Interest:

WD TV Live Plus gets reviewed, lauded for value

After being announced in early June , Anandtech recently put the Western Digital WD TV Live Plus through its paces and discovered the Netflix enhancement works as advertised. Posts of Interest:

Sony Ericsson Xperia X8 coming to O2 UK in September

It doesn't have the X10's beefy spec sheet -- nor the X10 mini's cute-as-a-button looks -- but if you're looking for a midrange Android device that's a little lighter on the pocketbook, you might want to keep your eyes glued to O2 in the UK where the X8 is now slated for a September launch. Pricing hasn't been announced, but considering that it tops out with a 3.2 megapixel camera and will go unsubsidized for €259, we imagine you won't need to spend very much on your monthly plan to get it for free. Let's hope it comes off Android 1.6 rather quickly, eh? Posts of Interest:

Enso whips up two smartphones and three new slates, but we wouldn’t order any of ‘em

Oh, Enso -- must you really give us a reason to hope? After dealing with what felt like a case of the vaporwares , and then being epically disappointed with the zenPad (which is now out of stock, curiously) that you finally shipped, we just can't muster up the courage to look fondly upon the five new products that are gracing your webstore. That said, those that don't mind risk taking and actually enjoy the thought of fighting for a refund have three new MIDs / slates to ponder along with a pair of Android-based smartphones to consider Posts of Interest:

iPhone 4 launch day in Canada: the experience

Our own Myriam Joire was in the thick of things for Canada's iPhone 4 launch today out in lovely Vancouver, and as you might expect, hysteria was reaching... well, iPhone 4 levels. Lines formed early and stayed strong through much of the day, and generally, camaraderie seemed high -- always a good thing when you're standing a foot away from the same handful of people in summer heat for hours on end Posts of Interest:

Rover Puck WiMAX hotspot gets FCC’d, traction on ice subject of fierce debate

The pool of choices for WiMAX hotspots continues to expand, and thanks to the FCC , we now know of another up-and-comer. The Rover Puck -- trademarked by Clearwire and previously unheard of -- joins the ranks Sprint's Overdrive and its various rebrandings by providing pocketable 4G WiFi service. Unlike its predecessors, however, we finally have a new, more aerodynamic form factor Posts of Interest:

NFL to stream every pre-season game in HD for $40

Don't have the NFL Network but still want to catch every single pre-season NFL game in HD? Posts of Interest:

EVO 4G’s Froyo firmware now available for download, manual installation (update)

Like we said, you don't have to wait until August 3rd to get your Android 2.2 Froyo update for the EVO 4G . You can grab the update file right now from HTC's servers (via source link). All you gotta do then is move the file to the root directory of your SD card, boot the phone into recovery mode (hold the "up" button while the phone is turning on), and select apply update from the associated .zip file -- you might also have to rename the file "update.zip" and expect a few other variations in the instructions, user depending Posts of Interest: