Daily Roundup: Ubuntu’s first phones, Lumia Icon review and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Nokia Lumia Icon review
Nokia’s latest smartphone, the Lumia Icon, packs the same high-end specs and imaging tech as the Lumia 1520, just in a smaller, 5-inch package. The Icon will be available February 19th from Verizon for $200 on-contract.
Ubuntu phones arriving in 2014
Canonical is finally ready to enter the mobile market, and it’s already got two manufacturers on board. Details on the Ubuntu-based handsets are scarce, but we’ve been told to expect more information during Mobile World Congress.
Early upgrades: should you take the bait?
No one likes waiting two years for a new smartphone, but are plans like T-Mobile’s Jump and AT&T’s Next all they’re made out to be? Our own Brad Molen tallies the pros and cons of early upgrade programs from the major US carriers.
The FCC will rework its net neutrality rules
The FCC announced it won’t seek an appeal following a recent ruling that secured Verizon’s right to favor certain types of internet traffic. The commission will instead write a new set of guidelines to ensure net neutrality, with the goal of enshrining them by late spring or early summer.
Filed under: Misc
Tesla CEO Confirms ‘Conversations’ With Apple, Says Any Acquisition ‘Very Unlikely’
Following a report earlier this week suggesting Apple had considered purchasing Tesla, Tesla CEO Elon Musk today confirmed in an interview with Bloomberg that his company “had conversations” with Apple. Musk went on to say that he could not comment on whether the conversations had revolved around any kind of acquisition, but he did confirm that at the current time, an acquisition of Tesla seems “very unlikely.”
If one or more companies had approached us last year about such things there’s no way we could really comment on that. We had conversations with Apple, I can’t comment on whether those revolved around any kind of acquisition.
News of Apple’s meeting with Tesla first came to light over the weekend, when the San Francisco Chronicle reported Musk had met with Adrian Perica, Apple’s head of acquisitions, and possibly Apple CEO Tim Cook. While the site speculated the meeting pertained to a possible acquisition, other sources have since suggested Apple may have been meeting with Tesla over iOS device integration in the company’s electric cars or about a potential battery deal between the two.
As noted by The Los Angeles Times, Musk last month announced plans for a massive lithium-ion battery plant, which will be constructed in partnership with “some other companies.” Tesla is expected to make an announcement about the plant later this month, and it’s possible Apple, which uses lithium-ion batteries for many of its portable devices, could be involved in that venture.
When asked whether Tesla was for sale, Musk told the interviewer that an acquisition was unlikely because the company needs to stay “super focused” on its goal of creating an affordable electric car, though he did not rule out the possibility of an acquisition entirely.
If there was a scenario where it seemed like it would be more likely that we would be able to create the mass market sort of affordable, compelling car then possibly it would make sense to entertain those discussions. I don’t currently see any scenario that would improve that probability, so that’s why I think it’s very unlikely.
Apple CEO Tim Cook recently said the company is open to making large acquisitions if it makes sense, but he has also said that Apple will focus on the very few products that “deserve all our energy.” Apple currently holds nearly $160 billion in cash while Tesla has a market cap of approximately $24 billion.
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NYC’s subway wireless will soon reach Grand Central Terminal and Queens
New Yorkers won’t have to wait long to get internet access at some of the biggest commuting hubs in their fair city — Transit Wireless has started the second phase of its subway wireless rollout. The initial construction will bring cellular and WiFi access to 11 subway stations in midtown Manhattan, including the all-important Grand Central Terminal. Those in the borough of Queens, meanwhile, should start seeing underground coverage in March. When the current phase wraps up in June, the expanded service should give internet access to about 250 million riders per year. That’s no mean feat when even some of the bigger public WiFi projects have much smaller potential audiences.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Networking, Mobile
Source: Transit Wireless
T-Mobile will give you $250 if you trade in your old BlackBerry for a new one
If you hadn’t heard, BlackBerry chief John Chen isn’t happy with T-Mobile — he believes the carrier fired a shot across the bow when it enticed BlackBerry users to switch phones in a recent promotion. To mend that bruised relationship, the magenta network is launching a limited-time trade-in offer that gives loyal users a strong incentive to upgrade. As of February 21st, T-Mobile will give you $200 for your existing BlackBerry, and $250 if you’re upgrading from a T-Mobile BlackBerry to a BB10 device like the Q10 or Z10. The payout is the same regardless of the device’s age, so long as it’s in good condition; if you’re still rocking a Curve 3G, you’ll get the full amount. Market share trends suggest that there won’t be too many people upgrading to new BlackBerrys, but the olive branch is welcome all the same.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, Blackberry, T-Mobile
Via: Recode
Source: T-Mobile
Facebook is buying WhatsApp for a whopping $19 billion in Cash and Stock
Something tells me that Facebook wants a stake in the instant messaging market… It was announced today that Facebook is buying WhatsApp today in a blockbuster deal that is going include up to $12 billion in Facebook stock and $4 billion in cash going to WhatsApp, with an additional $3 billion in stock to be given to the messaging giant once the deal is finalized.
That’s an absolutely massive amount of money considering that one of Facebook’s other major acquisitions, Instagram, by comparison, saw only $1 billion change hands, but perhaps unsurprising considering how popular WhatsApp’s mobile app is around the world. Much like the Instagram acquisition though, Facebook isn’t looking to absorb WhatsApp into Facebook itself, instead leaving it as is as a separate service.
Key stats of WhatsApp that Facebook will be acquiring include:
- Over 450 million people using the service each month;
- 70% of those people active on a given day;
- Messaging volume approaching the entire global telecom SMS volume; and
- Continued strong growth, currently adding more than 1 million new registered users per day.
With Facebook slowly moving its tendrils into all communication markets, we can only wonder what they are eying next to acquire. What do you think about Facebook buying WhatsApp?
Source: Facebook via Android Police
Preview of the Faint Icon Pack, by Joshua Masih: icons served with a side of Beautiful
Icon lovers will know this feeling very well: sometimes, you’ll just be scrolling through your news feed when all of a sudden, something catches your eye; an icon pack so beautiful that you think you might shed a tear. That’s exactly what went through my mind when I first saw Joshua Masih tease his Faint icons, and thankfully, Joshua’s given me a preview of the Faint icon pack as part of the beta and check out his wonderful work.
As I mentioned in the video, the Faint icon pack already has over 650 icons, and counting, as Joshua continues to update the pack as he goes. I really, really like these icons; the whole gradient and shadow combination makes for some really impressive looking icons. I really do think something different needs to be done with the masking of the unthemed icons, however, Joshua informs me that this masking has improved immensely since the version I tested.
This is the beta though, so when the Faint icon pack is officially available on February 22nd (that’s just 3 days away!), the pack will likely have many more features, including an app for customizing wallpaper and the like. While you can’t purchase the icon pack just yet, you’ll want to follow Joshua on Google+ here for any updates that he posts about Faint and his other great icon packs.
The Supersmoker Bluetooth pairs an electronic cigarette with a speakerphone
We’ve been punked, right? This thing can’t possibly actually exist. We’ve seen plenty of ridiculous inventions in our day, but a combination electronic cigarette and speakerphone? What the what? According to the people behind this abomination, the Supersmoker Bluetooth “aesthetically combines the convenience of electronic smoking with modern-day technology.” (Given that there are bigger fish to fry here, we’ll forgive them for calling a speakerphone “modern-day technology.”) From what we can tell, the Supersmoker Bluetooth is real, and it’s available now from a Dutch e-tailer in black, silver and gold for the princely sum of €84.90 (about $117). Oh, and it plays music, too.
Good lord. They even made a video:
Filed under: Household, Peripherals, Wireless
Via: Gizmodo
Source: Supersmoker Club, Supersmoker Bluetooth
Compare two generations of gaming across four platforms with Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes
Like so many games launching at the end of 2013 and throughout 2014, Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes straddles both last generation (Xbox 360/PlayStation 3) and the current one we’ve just entered (Xbox One/PlayStation 4). Given Metal Gear‘s history of gorgeous visuals, the question asked itself: what will Ground Zeroes look like on aging game consoles compared to the new shiny ones? It turns out that Kojima Products, the studio behind Ground Zeroes, has exactly the answer we were looking for in the form of a brand new comparison video.
If anything, we’re most shocked by how great it still looks on the older consoles! Of course, for those of you still fighting the console wars, there’s the (negligible) difference between Xbox One and PlayStation 4 to analyze. Head below to take a look for yourself.
Currents officially transitions to Google Play Newsstand with latest update
When Google Play Newsstand made its debut back in November, the folks in Mountain View let us know that Currents would be merged with the new app. Well, the day has come when Currents officially bites the dust. With a recent update, users are prompted to click through to Newsstand when trying to access the shuttered software and all current subscriptions are ported over automatically. After you swipe over the first time, Currents will be disabled and its icon disappears from the Apps menu. Of course, iOS users are still waiting for Google’s Newsstand to hit their mobile devices, which is expected to happen soon.
Filed under: Internet, Software
Via: Android Police
Google I/O Conference Gets its Dates on the Calendar
Google I/O has finally been scheduled this year, and the dates you should mark on your calendar are June 25th and the 26th. Many of us were wondering when Google was going to plan their developer conference, and it was Sundar Pichai to the rescue.
Apparently there will be a sort of different registration process to get into the event, which Google will announce next month. They don’t plan on doing a first come, first serve registration, but rather have people apply then they will get back to those certain applicants. Probably because they don’t want a bunch of random tech enthusiasts and they want more developers to attend. Let us know if you plan on going.
Source: Android Police
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