Dell leaves its US phone plans blank after ending sales of the Venue and Venue Pro here

While Dell may still be releasing Streaks and Venues in other countries, a company spokesman tells PC World that its last remaining phone stateside, the Venue and Venue Pro are no longer on sale. While the short lifecycle of mobile products was cited in the pair's time with us drawing to a close, the lack of replacements means Dell is out of the smartphone game in this country less than two years after entering with the Aero and Streak 5. While the spokesperson confirmed Dell would introduce more mobile devices in the US later this year, they could not say whether or not phones would be among them. We're not sure what the reboot of its product lines will entail -- other than a lack of connection to departed section head Ron Garriques -- but at least it still has those Thunder, Smoke, Lightning and Flash names in their pocket whenever something new arrives.

Dell leaves its US phone plans blank after ending sales of the Venue and Venue Pro here originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 28 Mar 2012 23:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Samsung's own Facebook page shows Galaxy Note wearing Ice Cream Sandwich

Hard to believe we're mere months from learning all about Android 5.0, and the lion's share of Android devices haven't even heard of v4.0. That said, Samsung already promised that its polarizing Galaxy Note would be grabbing ICS in the second quarter of this year, and it looks as if the company's designers already have an inkling as to what that'll look like. Shown here at Samsung Mobile USA's official Facebook portal, we have one Galaxy Note sporting Ice Cream Sandwich, but there's no fuss made about (officially, anyway) in the description below. We'd probably still hope for late Q2 based on history, but perhaps the update really is closer to seeing the light of day than we'd been led to believe.

[Thanks, Binyamin]

Samsung's own Facebook page shows Galaxy Note wearing Ice Cream Sandwich originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 27 Mar 2012 09:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Samsung launches Switch Grip QF20 WiFi camcorder, shoot with both guns

Samsung trotted out a cluster of new video shooters back at CES, including a refresh of its hand-impartial HMX-Q10 movie maker. Now, it looks like sinister filmmakers can finally get their (left) paws on the WiFi enabled QF20. The debut also brings with it mention of a few minor details that we didn't hear about in Vegas, namely an on board "BGM" background music tool, a 230,000 pixel count on the LCD viewfinder, and news that the sensor is a 5-megapixel BSI CMOS affair. If this sounds like the answer to your camera-handling dreams, Samsung wants ₩449,000 (about $395) no matter which hand you reach for your wallet with.

Samsung launches Switch Grip QF20 WiFi camcorder, shoot with both guns originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 27 Mar 2012 10:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Novatech Ultrabook range goes to nFinity, well, at least four

Novatech has just put its own spin on the Ultrabook theme, outing its new nFinity line of svelte, 14-inch, portables. The base model is driven by an i3 chip, 2GB of RAM, and 64GB of SSD storage, for a £430 (about $687) asking price. If you want a little more pep, however, there are naturally i5 and i7 options too (£580 / $926 and £699 / $1,117 respectively), both of which get a RAM upgrade to 4GB, and double the SSD at 128GB. There are a few things which might dampen your purchasing flame, such as the lack of USB3.0, and perhaps the plastic finish. But when you're fully booted in the (claimed) 15 seconds, and still going 7 hours later, maybe that won't seem so bad a trade-off. The range lands on the 30th of this month, so not long to wait, or click on past the break for the promo video.
Continue reading Novatech Ultrabook range goes to nFinity, well, at least four

Novatech Ultrabook range goes to nFinity, well, at least four originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 27 Mar 2012 13:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Coby's budget-minded Ice Cream Sandwich tablets go on sale

Eager to get a taste of Ice Cream Sandwich while you wait for an update on your phone? Then you now have another option to do so relatively cheaply if you don't mind venturing into Coby's bargain bin of tablets. It's begun rolling out no less than six new slates to retail stores today (most of which we saw at CES in January), which pack screens ranging in size from seven to ten inches and each run Android 4.0. Specs are otherwise fairly identical across the board, with each boasting the same single-core 1GHz Cortex A8 processor, microSD card slot, front-facing cameras, HDMI out and either 4GB or 8GB of storage. Unfortunately, they all also come with one key drawback common to budget Android tablets: there's no official access to Google Play. If that's not too much of a deterrent, you can pick these up for between $179 and $279.

Coby's budget-minded Ice Cream Sandwich tablets go on sale originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 27 Mar 2012 15:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Samsung's vacuum tube driven speaker lineup gets priced for US, available this Spring

It's no secret that Samsung's been teasing a major interest in premium audio since CES, blending digitally powered speakers with vacuum tube pre-amplifiers. We didn't get a chance to check the systems out in Vegas, but today the company's spilling the details regarding US pricing on a trio of systems, all of which will be available in the Spring. The star of the show is the $800 DA-E750 Audio Dock, featuring the rear-mounted dual dock for Galaxy (charging only) and iOS devices we first saw last month. Clad in a polished wood case (available in black or cherry), the 2.1 stereo system pumps out up to 100 watts of power through its glass fiber speakers and tweeters. As an added touch, its JJ Electronics 12AU7 tubes (the same you could use for guitar amps) are sunken in from its top under glass, allowing for clear view of their glow. Best of all, aside from the requisite USB and 3.5mm inputs, the DA-870 works wirelessly with Samsung's AllShare Play, AirPlay and Bluetooth 3.0 w/ aptX.

Moving past the HiFi category, Samsung's also priced a duo of surround sound systems aimed at the home theater market. To start, there's the $1,000 HT-E6730W Blu-ray 3D 7.1 home theater system and its $800 5.1 sibling, the HT-E6500W Blu-ray 3D -- both of which feature the same tube pre-amp and similar wireless capabilities as the DA-E750. Notably, the E6730W features a tiltable top speaker on each of its stereo towers, allowing for a more personalized output depending on your room. Furthermore, if you happen to have a DA-E750, too, you'll be able to stream the audio via Bluetooth if you find yourself far away from your television. There's no exact date on when you'll be able snag any of them, but Samsung notes that the 5.1 system is currently shipping.

Gallery: Samsung's premium speaker lineup

Samsung's vacuum tube driven speaker lineup gets priced for US, available this Spring originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 27 Mar 2012 20:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Samsung ships five million Galaxy Notes in just five months

Five is an important number for Samsung's Galaxy Note. It has a 5.3-inch screen and now, just five months since it debuted Samsung has announced it's shipped five million units (the one million mark was crossed right around the end of December). That's certainly long enough for you to decide if you're in love with its super-sized frame or the accompanying S-Pen stylus, but unfortunately it has not been quite enough time for the highly-anticipated Ice Cream Sandwich software update to be released. While the world waits for the Premium Suite of apps and Android 4.0, let's think back to all the good times we had, including its initial unveiling, our original review and finally its arrival in the US on AT&T. So, are you convinced yet that there's a place in the world for a device like this, or five million phablets later are you still thinking this is just a fad?

Update: If you prefer to use your stylus for kanji or kana, Engadget Japan has NTT Docomo's announcement that it will release the Galaxy Note with LTE, branded the SC-05D, on its network April 6th.

[Thanks, ph00ny]

Samsung ships five million Galaxy Notes in just five months originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 27 Mar 2012 23:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.