IM+ Pro On Sale for Just $.99

The game of messenger applications is a difficult one for all players involved. It's difficult to emulate each protocol's unique set of features in one comprehensive application and users will not hesitate to toast you if you don't live up to their expectations. After having used IM+ Pro for quite some time I can safely say that they are the cream of the crop. It has support for tons of different protocols and it's about as problem-free as you can get.

The best news is that it's on sale for $.99, a $9 price drop that is nothing to sneeze at.

Android Phone, IM+ Pro On Sale for Just $.99

LG Spectrum User Guide Now Available for Download and Hungry Eyes

While we still may be a bit of ways away from the LG Spectrum we’re learning more and more about the device every day. Just a few days ago it was revealed that the Spectrum would be Verizon’s version of the LG Optimus LTE. Today, we’ve gotten a downloadable user guide for the device. Seeing one of these usually means we’re close to a launch but with the heavy lineup Verizon introduced in the last quarter of 2011 we wouldn’t be surprised to see this thing come out as late as February. As with any user guide you might not find many useful things here but it’s nice to get a peek anyway. Download here.

Android Phone, LG Spectrum User Guide Now Available for Download and Hungry Eyes

Logitech Cube mouse demonstrated on video

[CES 2012] Earlier this week we reported about Logitech's upcoming Cube mouse which defied all conventional mouse design. Well, if you were wondering about how it works you can check it out at CES 2012 next week in Las Vegas - but for those of you who can't make the trip, fret not. Logitech has posted on its official blog, a demonstration video showing off the Cube mouse. First thing you might notice about the Cube is that the mouse is tiny. You can see now why it is designed for travelling presenters. While it features no visible buttons, it is capable of scrolling through pages just by stroking its surface - pretty cool if you ask me.



Ubergizmo, Logitech Cube mouse demonstrated on video

Zero Chroma Teatro-S for iPhone 4x4S Review

I reviewed an iPad 2 case from Zero Chroma yesterday, and here's a companion case for your iPhone.  The Teatro-S for iPhone 4x4S case incorporates the rotating theater stand used in the Vario-SC case for the iPad 2. How does it stack up against its big brother. The Teatro-S is designed for iPhone 4 or 4S and fits models from AT&T or Verizon.  It's made of a hard plastic, and it's available in black, white, or pink.  The case is a hard shell that snaps over the back.  The corners of the iPhone are covered to protect against damage.  The interior is lined with felt to prevent scratches on the iPhone's back.










The Gadgeteer, Zero Chroma Teatro-S for iPhone 4x4S Review

Web traffic patterns suggest Apple's iPad was a dud this holiday season

. Countless analysts predicted Amazon's Kindle Fire tablet would be a big seller this holiday season, and new data suggests that the slate may have been the most gifted tablet this past Christmas. Advertising network Chitika saw traffic across its network from the Kindle Fire grow roughly 20% each day leading up to Christmas, and traffic then exploded by more than 120% between December 24th and 25th.


Boy Genius Report, Web traffic patterns suggest Apple's iPad was a dud this holiday season

Toyota unveils updated 2013 Land Cruiser

For a country that loves (or, at least, loved) sport utility vehicles, the Toyota Land Cruiser has certainly slipped to the back of our minds. It carries one of the most iconic go-anywhere, do-anything nameplates in the industry, and yet in 2011, only 1,662 Land Cruisers were sold here in the United States, making it one of the ten worst-selling vehicles of the year. But since the vehicle's product cycles are largely dictated by other markets where it's more popular, the big Toy continues to carry on, and for the 2013 model year, there are a host of new updates.

Autoblog, Toyota unveils updated 2013 Land Cruiser

HTC profits decrease as smartphone competition stiffens

Every streak has its end and the HTC two-year streak of continuous growth came to an abrupt halt over the holiday season. The Taiwanese company posted net profit of $364.26 million, which is a 25.5% decrease compared to the same period of last year. And while the company already warned that it won't be making its previously set targets, it even failed to meet the revisited goals.

GSM Arena, HTC profits decrease as smartphone competition stiffens

CES 2012 Preview: The 5 Trends to Watch Most Closely

. A serene moment from CES 2011. It surely did not last long. Photo: Jon Snyder/Wired.com

With 140,000 attendees clogging 1.7 million square feet of floor space, next week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas won't merely be “some big trade show.” No, CES is also The Big Show — the grand coming-out party for every hardware manufacturer that wants to prove its gadget is the single must-see spectacle for which all other booth visits must be cancelled.

But there will be about 2,700 exhibitors at CES next week. No single attendee can pay attention to every booth.






Gadget Lab, CES 2012 Preview: The 5 Trends to Watch Most Closely

IP Company Goes After Power Management in Smartphones

St. Clair Intellectual Properties, a company with a history of suing mobile phone vendors over patents, has expanded a patent infringement lawsuit that has targeted Apple, RIM and HTC to LG, Motorola Mobility and Samsung. St.

2DayBlog.com, IP Company Goes After Power Management in Smartphones

Nintendo's Wii U may have an eBook store too

Following reports that Nintendo is secretly building its own Apple-like app store for the upcoming Wii U console, there's now chatter that the company will also launch an ebook store for distributing game guides, digital magazines and other content. The company is reportedly talking with publishers and developers now, and is even entertaining the notion of re-publishing digital versions of its back-catalog of out-of-print “Players Guides” in the supposed ebook store for free.

2DayBlog.com, Nintendo's Wii U may have an eBook store too

Transcend develops SD Card with CD-ROM-like partition

Last week Transcend launched a set of SD and microSD memory cards that record data in a CD-ROM style partition. This prevents accidental or unauthorized copy, modification and deletion of the stored contents. The only catch is that the data needs to be sent to Transcend first so that it's pre-loaded at the point of manufacture. There's also no way to write new data to the “locked” portion of the cards.
“Exclusive ideas, creations, and artistic work are priceless assets, and essential to future business success,” the company said.

2DayBlog.com, Transcend develops SD Card with CD-ROM-like partition

Maxymiser Secures Series B $12 Million Investment From Investor Growth Capital And Pentech Ventures

- New funding to allow multivariate testing and personalisation company significant global expansion -London, UK (January 6, 2012) - Maxymiser, the global expert in multivariate testing, personalisation and optimisation solutions, today announced that it has secured a strategic investment of $12 Million from new investors, Investor Growth Capital (IGC), along with additional investment from the company’s Series A investors, Pentech Ventures. This new funding will allow Maxymiser to expand significantly through all areas of the business, with emphasis on North America and research and development.

Press Release Distribution, Maxymiser Secures Series B $12 Million Investment From Investor Growth Capital And Pentech Ventures

Jay Leno's Garage welcomes the Hennessey Venom GT

John Hennessey has stopped by Jay Leno's Garage for a second time to show off the 2012 Hennessey Venom GT. Last time the tuner-turned-supercar-maker visited the comedian's garage, Leno didn't get a shot behind the wheel of the Venom GT because the vehicle had yet to be legalized in the States. That was then. Now, the 1,200 horspeower beast has all of its paperwork in order, and Hennessey has been kind enough to hand over the keys to one very yellow Venom GT.

Autoblog, Jay Leno's Garage welcomes the Hennessey Venom GT

Rumor: iPad 3 to come with Retina Display, 8 MP camera, and FaceTime HD, iPad 2 will drop to $399

Many iPad 3 rumors have come and gone over the past few months. At first, it was supposedly launching in 2011 too (which made absolutely no sense whatsoever). Now it's obvious that it will be released this year, and one thing has been quite common in all rumors so far: the purported ‘Retina Display' of the upcoming iPad. That is of course just a brand, but what it means is that the iPad 3 will get a higher-resolution display than the first two generations of the tablet. And the rumor du jour, courtesy of iLounge's Jeremy Horwitz, also says something about the iPad 3 packing a Retina Display.

But it doesn't stop there.

Unwired View, Rumor: iPad 3 to come with Retina Display, 8 MP camera, and FaceTime HD, iPad 2 will drop to $399

Mystery LG Windows Phone smiles for the camera, may be unveiled next week

So far, LG has been notably absent from the Windows Phone Mango area of the smartphone space. The only exception being the oddly-named Jil Sander Mobile, which was just a redesigned Optimus 7 from yesteryear anyway. But that will soon change, it seems. The Korean company may launch two new Windows Phones in the near future. One of them will be the Fantasy, leaked last month, and the other may be this little puppy over here:

What you see above is an image of an upcoming LG Windows Phone that clearly isn't the Fantasy. The image originates in China, and that's all we know for now unfortunately.

Unwired View, Mystery LG Windows Phone smiles for the camera, may be unveiled next week

iHome has new docking alarm clock speaker for CES

[CES 2012] iHome has been quite the name to quote when it comes to iPod and iPhone docks in recent memory, and the company intends to continue from where they are currently at CES 2012 by launching a new range of docking alarm clock speaker solutions. How do I put it – iHome intends to change your bedside experience with their latest range, doing their very best to deliver value as well as diversity in a single accessory. The iW4 AirPlay is a wireless system that sports 20 Watts of power, playing nice with the iPad, iPhone and iPod, and is making it's alarm clock speaker system debut to boot.

Ubergizmo, iHome has new docking alarm clock speaker for CES

Zero Chroma Vario-SC for iPad 2 Review

I seem to be the go-to gal for iPad accessories.  (Julie knows what I like!)  I have another iPad 2 back cover and stand for you today.  The Vario-SC for iPad 2 from Zero Chroma protects the back of your iPad 2, works with your Smart Cover, and acts as a horizontal, vertical, or typing stand.  That's a lot of functionality.  Let's give it a closer look.










The Gadgeteer

See also:
technologypulse, Zero Chroma Vario-SC for iPad 2 Review

Steve Jobs toy makers threatened by Apple?

Remember the realistic-looking Steve Jobs action figure that we reported about earlier this week. Well it looks like we may never get the chance to purchase them. According to a report from The Telegraph (which failed to quote any sources); Apple has sent a letter to the toy manufacturer, asking it cease sales of the 12″ Steve Jobs doll. Apparently in the letter, Apple mentioned that: “any toy that resembles the technology company's logo, person's name, appearance or likeness of its products is a criminal offence.”.

Ubergizmo

See also:
itnews, Steve Jobs toy makers threatened by Apple?

Motorola announces stylish MOTOLUXE and rugged DEFY MINI

Motorola made its first two announcements for 2012, unveiling the stylish MOTOLUXE and the rugged DEFY MINI smartphones. The two mid-range handsets run Android Gingerbread aim to deliver solid smartphone experience without breaking the bank. Actually, we've already met the Motorola MOTOLUXE, which has been available in China for some time now, under the name XT615.








GSM Arena, Motorola announces stylish MOTOLUXE and rugged DEFY MINI

Motorola owners upset over locked bootloaders

There is a segment of the Android community that gets all worked up whenever the topic of unlocked bootloaders are brought up, and most recently, Motorola has been in the line of fire as users who wish to do as they like with their handsets realized that was not quite possible with select Motorola smartphones. While Motorola did promise to unlock the bootloaders of its smartphones and followed through with that promise, they did somehow manage to leave out a few from the list, hence causing those affected by this “memory lapse” on Motorola's part to seethe.

Ubergizmo, Motorola owners upset over locked bootloaders

MSI Wind U180 netbook announced

MSI has recently announced the launch of a new netbook running on Intel's Atom N2800 Cedar Trail processor. Clocked at 1.86GHz, this dual-core processor is slightly faster than Intel's previous generation dual-core Atom chips. The netbook also features a 10.1″ (1024 x 600) display, Intel GMA 3640 onboard graphics, 1080p video support, and a touted improved power consumption compared to older netbooks. It also packs up to 2GB of RAM, a 320x750 GB HDD or 512GB SSD, a 0.3-megapixel front facing camera, HDMI output on selected models, optional USB-based DVD and Blu-ray burners, 3-in-1 card readers, and the Windows 7 operating system.

Ubergizmo, MSI Wind U180 netbook announced

Global telecommunications industry revenue to reach $2.1 trillion in 2012

. Worldwide telecommunications industry revenue is set to reach $2.1 trillion this year according to market research firm Insight Research Corp. Despite the rocky global economy, industry revenue will grow further at an average annual rate of 5.3% to $2.7 trillion in 2017. The Asian region is seen as a key market and wireless revenue there is expected to grow 64%. Mobile broadband services and the transition from 3G to 4G will also be key growth drivers.

Boy Genius Report, Global telecommunications industry revenue to reach $2.1 trillion in 2012