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US Update: CES 2011, Mark Zuckerberg, iPad phone
Nimbuzz adds HD voice calling to iOS
Turn your iPad into a phone with GV Connect and Talkatone
Gran Turismo 5 plus SSD equals lightning fast load times
Mark Zuckerberg: Time magazine person of the year
Samsung Galaxy Tab: finalist in SIG Best of CES Awards
Teatime Tech: 4oD on the PS3, Google Nexus S reader review and the Spotify top 10 of 2010
Google Nexus S review: Reader inquisition!
Chrome for a Cause: watch more YouTube for charity
Android 2.3: revamped UI is most wanted feature

US Update: CES 2011, Mark Zuckerberg, iPad phone

Posted: 15 Dec 2010 07:00 PM PST

We've made it through the midpoint of the week, but that isn't stopping the onslaught of tech news from barging through the front door. In today's morning round up, the recap we like to call the US Update, we break down the latest and greatest.

Starting things off this morning is the SIG sixth annual Best of CES 2011 Awards finalists. Topping the list of finalists is the Samsung Galaxy Tab and an unannounced Samsung product, could it be the Nexus S or possibly a dual-core Android tablet?

Mark Zuckerberg has been named Time magazine's person of the year, an award that is given to the person who has "done the most to influence the events of the year". Controversial WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was leading the reader votes, was Zuckerberg the unlikely winner?

Gran Turismo 5 has been installed in an original Sony Playstation 3 via a solid state drive (SSD). Load times have been slashed in half so if you have the spare coin, you might have a new front runner for your holiday wish list.

A crafty guide over at Gear Diary shows us how to turn our iPad into a Google Voice phone. A new update for the official Google Voice client was released today, but it only supports SMS, we've got the step-by-step guide to add voice!

Last up this morning is an update to Nimbuzz for iOS devices. The latest update bring HD voice calling, improved contact lists and several stability improvements. Find out the full details of the update here.

That wraps up things this fine morning from the states. Thanks for spending your morning with us as we break the headlines fresh off the press from our side of the world. Until tomorrow, this is Nick saying over and out.

Nimbuzz adds HD voice calling to iOS

Posted: 15 Dec 2010 06:00 PM PST

A fresh update for iOS devices running Nimbuzz promises to showcase HD voice calls. The update is currently available for the iPad, iPhone and iPod, but besides HD voice calls, what else does the update deliver?

Three key features are included in the latest update of Nimbuzz for iOS devices: offline mode, new contacts list/profile layouts, and multiple contact sorting options. Of course like any software update, stability improvements are included, but the "buzz" is focused on HD voice calls.

Earlier today Fring announced their new Dynamic Video Quality (DVQ) so it seems only fitting that Nimbuzz would counter with HD voice. According to the developers, HD Voice calls are activated by measuring the stability of the connection, better known as throughput. You can activate the feature if you need a crystal clear call and a HD bar will be shown to the right of call duration.

Videos are the best way to demonstrate features, so take a look at the video above and let us know what you think about Nimbuzz. We'll be doing some of our own testing today, but if you get a chance feel free to report your findings, thanks!

Out Now | App Store | Free

Turn your iPad into a phone with GV Connect and Talkatone

Posted: 15 Dec 2010 05:00 PM PST

The official Google Voice app for the iPad and iPod touch was updated today to include support for SMS, but what about voice? Luckily, our friends at GearDiary have put together a solution to turn your iPad into a phone using GV Connect and Talkatone. Ready to make some free calls on that iPad?

So here's the rub — you'll need to purchase GV Connect (currently $2.99) from the App Store and install it on your iPad. The app was updated recently and includes a key feature; the option to make calls using Google Voice – a feature missing from official iPad Google Voice application.

Part two of the iPad phone solution involves a second application, Talkatone (free in the App Store). Talkatone lets you use your iOS device to make calls using Google Voice via any active data connection. For iPad WiFi-only users this is key.

So how exactly does the system work? Simple, you open GV Connect (enter your Google Voice credentials) and it will automatically open Talkatone and place your call. There's a little more to the setup process, so let's go into a quick walkthrough of the process.

First you'll want to open your GV Connect preferences pane and use Google Talk to make calls. Below you'll want to turn "Call using Talkatone" to the ON position. Once you've done that your Google Voice account will be shown as an option that is called when a call comes into Google Voice.

Now simply initiate a phone call using GV Connect and the app will automatically open Talkatone and within a few seconds, presto – you'll be making your first call. Doesn't sound very difficult right? We didn't think so.

While this certainly is not the solution for everyone, it is the only solution for those wanting to use Google Voice with your iPad for the time being. If you decide to take the plunge and complete the installation do let us know, we're always looking for feedback. Thanks and good luck!

Download GV Connect here, download Talkatone here

via Gear Diary

Gran Turismo 5 plus SSD equals lightning fast load times

Posted: 15 Dec 2010 04:00 PM PST

Copying your games to your Playstation 3 has long been the solution for reducing game load times. Today, that all changes with a simple SSD upgrade for your original (fat) Playstation 3. Using Gran Turismo 5 as a test and a Corsair F120 SSD, a user on the Beyond3d forums has slashed their track load times by as much as 50 percent.

Assuming you have an original (fat) Playstation 3, a little bit of technical knowledge and a Corsair F120 SSD, Gran Turismo 5 is about to become a whole lot less time consuming. That is of course if you factor in load times in your game usage. Lookin at the chart below you can see that reported load times for the SSD compared to loading the game to the standard internal SATA hard drive pre-installed on the PS3.

Here's a little more detail on exactly how the test was completed. Using a simple stop watch and a current PS3 slim, the user mounted the SSD inside the original "fat" Playstation 3. The tests were all completed from the arcade mode and the loading time covers the moment from the car selection screen to the race menu.

"My thoughts on the results are a bit mixed. On one hand, it shows how long the Gran Turismo 5 load times are despite the huge HDD install option. It’s nice to see that the SSD can have such a positive benefit. On the other hand, factor 2 in most cases is a little disappointing given the Corsair can do up to 250MB (sequential read/write) and beyond in a normal Linux environment – with more than one thread easily between 65 and 130 MB/sec constantly. A “2.5 SATA drive in my experience on the same setup gets around 50-70MB/sec (sequential write) and with more than one thread not over 20MB/sec, not to mention slow latency."

After completing the testing, the user later compared the times of pre-loading the game on the internal PS3 slim versus the original "fat" PS3 with the standard SATA drives. End result? The times were neck and neck, clearly indicating that the SSD alone was the reason for the tremendous load time reduction.

The days of waiting 30 seconds or more for a track to load on Gran Turismo 5 are a thing of the past. If you have the extra coin lying around and you're looking to slash those load times in half, opting for a SSD could be the perfect upgrade to your original Playstation 3. Anyone out there willing to give it a go? Let us know!

Via Beyond3d | CrunchGear

Mark Zuckerberg: Time magazine person of the year

Posted: 15 Dec 2010 03:00 PM PST

The impact of Facebook on society as we know it is irrefutable. So much so that Time magazine has named Facebook founder and CEO, Mark Zucerkberg, their person of the year for 2010.

The Time magazine person of the year is awarded to the individual who has "for better or for worse… done the most to influence the events of the year." For the current year, that person is Mark Zuckerberg. In a year fraught with war and financial troubles, Time readers had named controversial founder of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, as their popular vote. Zuckerberg was an unlikely winner.

The cards have been dealt and the decision is final, with more than 500 million users worldwide and a suggested market value of over six billion, the power of Facebook is at an all time high. The release of "The Social Network" earlier this year only perpetuated the social awareness of Facebook, both as a brand as well as an uncontrollable entity.

Mark Zuckerberg benefited most from the publicity, first appearing on Oprah's show to donate more than $100 million to Newark schools and then just late week, pledging half of his fortune to charity. The combination of immense monetary donations and the success of the Zuckerberg inspired film have left a lasting impact on our society, even more so on Time magazine.

Facebook has changed the way we interact, it has defined social media and Mark Zuckerberg predicted its success. Back in 2007, Zuckerberg said that "once every hundred years, media changes," and implied that Facebook was that hundred-year change. For what it's worth, Time magazine agreed and for the next 365 days Zuckerberg will remain the Person of the Year.

Let us know what you think about today's decision. Did Time magazine drop the ball or is Mark Zuckerberg well deserved of the title, Person of the Year? Did the Time readers vote for Julian Assange come as a shock? Sound off in the comments!

via BBC Mobile

Samsung Galaxy Tab: finalist in SIG Best of CES Awards

Posted: 15 Dec 2010 02:00 PM PST

The votes are in and the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) has announced the ten finalists for the 6th annual Best of CES 2011 Awards. Our beloved Samsung Galaxy Tab is one of ten finalists, let's find out who else will be joining the tablet.

For those new to the SIG Best of CES Awards, the program is divided into three categories — Now, Next and New. The clear focus is bluetooth, products currently on the market such as mobile phones, tablets and automobiles, that support bluetooth technology.

The Now category includes the Samsung Galaxy Tab, Plantronics BackBeat 903+, LG HMB-810 Bluetooth enabled solar headset and speakerphone and the 2011 Chevrolet Volt. The New category consists of the Vizio 65-inch 3D Edge lit Razor LED TV, an unnamed Samsung product, iGrill and Zii Sound T6. The last category, Next, includes the ZOMM Wireless Leash and the BodyMedia FIT Armband BW.

We're not exactly sure what the "unnamed Samsung product" from the New category will be, but if we had to guess, maybe the new Google Nexus S or a dual-core tablet? This year's SIG Best of CES Awards featured a record number of device submission from all three levels of SIG membership.

According to the panel, bonus points were awarded to those products that included Experience Icons on the product packaging or product website, and also products featuring the newly adopted bluetooth 4.0 spec.

When asked about the the success of bluetooth, Michael Foley, Ph.D. and executive director of bluetooth SIG said, "with over three billion Bluetooth enabled devices available worldwide, we expect to see the permeation of Bluetooth technology increase in the coming years. Product designers, and consumers alike, are going to want to connect all of their devices – and Bluetooth technology is the proven, successful, secure way to do just that".

Now that we've laid out the list of finalists, who do you think is going to win the award at CES 2011? We'd like to think it could be the Samsung Galaxy Tab or the unannounced Samsung product, but judging by the buzz on the Chevrolet Volt, we wouldn't be shocked if it it took top honors.

via Bluetooth SIG

Teatime Tech: 4oD on the PS3, Google Nexus S reader review and the Spotify top 10 of 2010

Posted: 15 Dec 2010 09:58 AM PST

It’s knocking off time, but before you do, check out our teatime tech roundup, stuffed full of all the latest news and views on gadgets and games.

First up, in mobile, we’ve got lots for Android fans to tuck into: we checked out what our readers made of the brand new Google Nexus S, and a guide to the Sony Ericsson LiveView Android remote too.

On the web, Spotify outed its most played songs of the year, an ditto makes for something interesting listening: seriously, Jason Derulo?

Over to next gen TV, and we’ve got good and bad news for you. The news about Sony’s PS3 4oD and ITV coup was tempered slightly when we discovered that it’s only the last fortnight’s worth of shows on 4oD for PS3 right now. But on the plus side, we also got the scoop on the Beeb’s next 3D plans, straight from David Attenborough.

Finally, in gaming, we brought you another fantastic giveaway: a chance to win our best PS3 Move games and a PlayStation Move.

Still want more news? Get yourself over to the homepage – it’s updated around the clock!

Google Nexus S review: Reader inquisition!

Posted: 15 Dec 2010 08:57 AM PST

The Google Nexus S doesn’t ship until the end of the month, but if you caught our review earlier this week, you’ll know that we nabbed one early – and came away impressed. But share the wealth, we say: we got a bunch of Electricpig readers together to try it out before release. Read on to see what they made of it in our exclusive reader inquisition!

We sat down with our readers today in London’s West End, Google Nexus S in hand to shoot the breeze about Samsung’s latest phone and Gingerbread. Read on for everyone’s impressions.

Build

Matthew Lyons sizes the Nexus S up against his Galaxy S

Matthew Lyons, an operations analyst for Debenham’s website, was actually a teeny bit disappointed then the Google Nexus S was announced. Google had said there would be no Nexus Two, though it’s now apparent it got out of that with a technicality – by calling the sequel the Nexus S instead. “I was a bit gutted because I was holding out for a new Nexus….so I bought a Samsung Galaxy S, and then they release a new one.” But he and our other readers were still impressed by the design.

Ken Liu, who runs a personal training company, thought it was a step up from the cheapish build of the Samsung Galaxy S Android phone, released in the Summer. “I’m surprised it feels as good as it does – Galaxy phones have felt toy like so far”. Ritesh Gupta, a business analyst, was a bit disappointed at the capacitive buttons below the screen, which are invisible when the screen is locked: “I think those buttons should be physical. You’re tapping around….I don’t want to necessarily look down and see what I’m doing,” he said.

But, all were agreed that it looks the part – and reminded everyone, eerily, of the Palm Pre. Ken summed it up when he said: “It looks more organic, there are nice curves and flow to it.”

What about that screen?

Like us, our readers found that the curved “Contour display” didn’t actually do much to increase the comfort of holding a light piece of plastic against your face, save for Ritesh, who thought who could notice a slight difference when he experimented with a Samsung Galaxy S we had to hand alongside it.

Ritesh Gupta tries the contour display on for size

Ken thought that “you can’t really notice it when you hold it – I think it’s one of those marketing gimmicks.” But he, added, that Super AMOLED panel produces some great, vibrant colours: “it looks really good, the screen is really nice.”

Is Gingerbread all it’s cracked up to be?

Our readers were divided over the new look in Android 2.3 – the Google Nexus S is the first phone to run this version of Google’s operating system, codenamed Gingerbread. Ritesh didn’t “like the black they’ve gone with for the menus, it’s too minimalistic.” Ken on the other hand did “like the flatness of it…it does feel easier to use” – referring to the new notification bar, which has ditched the cartoony gradient and dropshadow.

All were agreed that the lack of network interference with the Google Nexus S was a good thing for them, as it meant the latest incarnation of Android without delay. “I think it’s good that any new versions of Android comes out, you get it straight away,” Ritesh told us. “It’s really frustrating when you have to wait for your network to roll out.”

Ken gets to grips with the new Android 2.3 keyboard

At the same, our readers weren’t sure Android 2.3 in its latest incarnation was necessarily better for your average consumer. Both Matthew and Ken’s girlfriends use HTC Android phones and love Sense, the company’s software overlay on Android with extra features, and while they agreed that the new on screen keyboard was an improvement on the previous QWERTY, Motorola, Samsung and Apple are all making better ones.

Ken thinks Android’s almost there though. “The power of the phone is less appealing than the usability now. Android’s getting there…the little touches like the screen off animation, the little bits of polish that make it special and nice to use,” he said.

Verdict

Ritesh and Ken aren't quite convinved it's worth the upgrade

Surprisingly, there was almost a sense of grudging reluctance when we asked everyone if they thought the Google Nexus S was the best Android phone yet – almost as if it was, just, but they were hoping for more. Ritesh has decided to stick with his BlackBerry Curve 8900 for another six months and see what the iPhone 5 brings.

Matthew said he would if he wasn’t on a contract, while Ken said “it’s an evolution, not a revolution…it’s not as exciting as I thought it would be.”

On everyone’s minds of course, was the avalanche of Android phones expected to launch around mobile World Congress in February – not least Samsung’s own rumoured dual core smartphone. Playing the Android wait and see game’s tricky, isn’t it? The Google Nexus S is the best Android phone yet, but our readers clearly don’t think it will be for long.

Chrome for a Cause: watch more YouTube for charity

Posted: 15 Dec 2010 08:07 AM PST

Chrome for a Cause is a Google Chrome extension that counts the number of tabs you open in one session and translates it into charity donations. It’s running from 15-19 December. You can choose one of five charities you want to donate to, and you get a reading of what your tabs have been converted into. It’s not a trick to invade your privacy either. Google says: “Chrome for a Cause tracks your tab count, but doesn’t store any of your browsing history.”

To give you an idea of how many tabs rack up a decent donation: it takes 10 tabs to rack up enough browsing to plant a tree or donate a book. The five charities are Doctors Without Borders, The Nature Conservancy, Room to Read, Charity:Water and Un Techo para mi PaÃs. For more info about Chrome for a Cause, head here.

Android 2.3: revamped UI is most wanted feature

Posted: 15 Dec 2010 07:32 AM PST

We’ve been asking you this week how much you want Android 2.3, and what you’re most excited about. Over half of you said you could hardly wait for the Android 2.3 upgrade, and when we asked what you were most looking forward to, the revamped UI came top of the list, with 38 per cent of the vote. 25 per cent of voters wanted Android 2.3 for the new video codes support, and 16 per cent couldn’t wait for the new improved keyboard. The task manager improvements in Android 2.3 came bottom of the list, with only 8 per cent of your vote. Other answers included better all round performance, and its ability to run games.