Steve Jobs Has Died

We are greatly saddened by the news this evening that Apple co-founder Steve Jobs has passed away. The news was made official by Apple:

We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Jobs passed away today. Steve’s brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives. The world is immeasurably better because of Steve. His greatest love was for his wife, Laurene, and his family. Our hearts go out to them and to all who were touched by his extraordinary gifts.

Steve Jobs' contribution to technology is immeasurable: he's changed the way we live and the way that we think about technology. He was a visionary, the likes of which have never been seen. He will be deeply missed.

ASUS TOUGH 7-inch Honeycomb tablet lands in Japan ready for some corporate abuse

Not content with offering up merely modular Android tablets, ASUS has revealed a new seven-inch tablet that's water and dust resistant -- perfect for a spot of bath-time browsing or... desert rallying. The ASUS TOUGH-ETBW11AA has a rubberized bezel and strips across the back, contributing to the substantial 22.2mm profile, but that hefty frame can survive drops from the heady height of 76cm. Aside from its tough-guy credentials, there's a 1280 x 800 screen, five megapixel camera, Tegra 2 dual-core 1GHz processor, WiMAX connection and the staple WiFi, Bluetooth, and GPS medley. It comes with 16GB of well-protected storage, but there's room for more via microSD. For those seeking a slate that'll survive the bumps and scrapes of the business world -- and not look ridiculous -- it'll be available to enterprise customers of Japanese carrier KDDI this November. No news yet on whether it'll canoe its way across from the Land of the Rising Sun, but we can give you a few more photos of the rough and tumble tablet after the break.
[Image credit: Keitai Watch]

Motorola Xoom 4G LTE upgrade process begins tomorrow, new tablets on sale October 13th

Verizon's dangled a 4G LTE upgrade carrot in the noses of the Xoom-adopting hordes from the start. Now, it appears the carrier's ready to make good on that promise. Starting tomorrow, current owners of Motorola's Honeycomb tab can visit a dedicated VZW site for a step-by-step guide through the upgrade process. If you were amongst the eager few who signed up for alerts, the company's going to prioritize you and send out a notification via email. The entire swap-out should take up to six business days, returning a freshly enhanced LTE-enabled slate free-of-charge. As for the rest of you Xoom-less onlookers, Big Red's going to be offering up the updated tablets this October 13th for $499 on a new two-year service contract. Jump past the break to parse through the official presser.
MOTOROLA XOOM 4G LTE UPGRADE AVAILABLE TOMORROW


Upgrade to Add the Speed of the Largest 4G LTE Network in America

BASKING RIDGE, N.J. – Verizon Wireless and Motorola Mobility, Inc. (NYSE: MMI), today announced the Motorola XOOM 4G LTE upgrade will be available for existing Motorola XOOM customers beginning tomorrow. The Motorola XOOM 4G LTE will be available in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores and online at www.verizonwireless.com beginning Oct. 13 for $499.99 with a new two-year contract.

Starting tomorrow, Motorola XOOM customers can visit www.verizonwireless.com/Xoom4GLTEupgrade for complete instructions and to begin the 4G LTE upgrade process. Customers who signed up for email alerts will receive an email notification with instructions tomorrow. Customers should expect to get their updated Motorola XOOM with 4G LTE back in approximately six business days. The 4G LTE upgrade is free of charge and customers do not have to change their current data plan when upgrading to 4G LTE. Customers are encouraged to back up any personal information prior to shipping.



Faster speeds and connections enhance the Motorola XOOM experience, allowing customers to download songs in seconds and movies in minutes. Customers should expect average download speeds of 5 to 12 Mbps and upload speeds of 2 to 5 Mbps in 4G LTE mobile broadband coverage areas. When customers travel outside of a 4G LTE coverage area, the Motorola XOOM automatically connects to the Verizon Wireless 3G network, enabling customers to stay connected from coast to coast.



Key features:

· 10.1-inch widescreen HD display

· 32 GB built-in storage (actual formatted capacity is less), with microSD card slot supporting additional 32 GB

· Android™ 3.2 Honeycomb – supports Google™ Mobile Services including Gmail™, YouTube™, Google Talk™, Google Search™, Google Maps™, Google Movies™, Google Books™ and Android Market™

· Dual-core 1 GHz processor

· Adobe® Flash® 10- enabling the delivery of rich Flash based web content including videos, casual games and applications

· 2-megapixel front-facing camera for video chats over 4G LTE, 3G and WiFi

· 5-megapixel rear-facing camera with LED flash

· Wi-Fi networks are generally short ranged and provide wireless Internet access to localized public areas (often called hotspots) such as airports, hotels, and coffee shops.



Data plans:

· Motorola XOOM customers will have the option to choose one of the following mobile broadband data plans:

o $30 monthly access for 2GB monthly allowance

o $50 monthly access for 5GB monthly allowance

o $80 monthly access for 10GB monthly allowance

iOS App Picks 28 Sep 2011

In this episode of the iOS App Picks we demonstrate five applications in 30 seconds each. These apps will keep you entertained, help you from leaving anything behind on your next trip, and watch free movies and TV shows. To download these apps directly to your iPhone, just click on the title of the application and the iTunes software will automatically launch to the app in the AppStore. If you have the free Google Search app installed on your iPhone just snap a picture of the QR-Code using Google Goggles or any other QR-Code scanner that will launch the App Store on your iPhone.

Crackle – A free application



Crackle is a free service, sponsored by commercials, which stream popular movies and television shows. Watch your favorite shows on the go over a cellular or Wi-Fi connection. The videos are quick to load and playback may be resumed at any time. Add movies and shows to your queue to watch later.



Where’s My Water? – No Lite and $0.99 full version



Where’s My Water? Is a very addictive puzzle game that is both simple to play and challenging at the same time. The object of the game is to drill through barricades made of dirt to get the water to Swampy, the gator that lives in the sewers. Avoid toxic waste and growing vines. Collect all three rubber ducks to earn extra points and in some levels there are hidden items in the dirt.



WebMD – A free application



Search through conditions, symptoms, and medications with WebMD. This free medical reference will give you up to date information about almost anything relating to health and wellbeing. The first aid button will help in an emergency by giving detailed instructions on how to treat the injury or condition before seeking medical assistance.



My Secret Folder – No lite and $0.99 full version



Keep you photos private with My Secret Folder. This camouflaged app looks like any other folder on youriOS device. Open up the My Secret Folder and you will need to input a password to gain access to the photos inside. This app will even alert you when there was an attempted break-in.



Packing Pro – No Lite and $2.99 full version



Leaving something behind on a business trip or vacation can sometimes be devastating. With Packing Pro you will not have to worry anymore. This app has more items to check off than most would ever need to bring with them, but it is nice to have the option. Add your own items and create your own customized lists.

Sprint Puts The Kibosh On Buggy LG Optimus S Gingerbread Update

Two weeks ago we told you how Sprint users were finally about to get some Gingerbread for their LG Optimus S handsets, just a few weeks after the update became available for the international Optimus One. Things were looking good, and we noted "assuming nothing goes wrong and forces it to halt distribution, it should hit nearly every subscriber with an Optimus S within about ten days." Oh, how we should have knocked on wood! It turns out that the update has been wreaking havoc on the Optimus S, breaking so much functionality that Sprint's withdrawn the update.

Sprint acknowledges the problem on its forums, promising that it and LG were working on diagnosing the issues and assuring users that the halt on the update's distribution is only temporary; once things are worked out, the Optimus S will finish getting Gingerbread.

So, what's going wrong? Oh, just a few small problems like an inability to get online, your PC not recognizing the phone when plugged-in over USB, refusal to recognize the presence of microSD cards, and finding itself in a state where it will no longer recharge while powered-on, eventually running the battery down to nothing. Predictive text is also turning-up broken, but compared to the rest of these issues, it seems positively minor. There are some suggested fixes for these individual issues, but no word on when an update addressing all of them may become available.