Cellphones Engadget's smartphone buyer's guide

Shopping for a smartphone can be an exciting and arduous experience. Along with the promise of something new and fantastic, it brings the fear of commitment, and even worse, the prospect of saddling yourself to a lousy device for two years. Fortunately for you, Engadget spends tons of time playing with the latest gear and we're constantly on the lookout for what's coming next. If you're wanting to take the pain out of shopping for a smartphone, you've come to the right place. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Engadget's smartphone buyer's guide: your one-stop resource to finding the best and most exciting handsets on the market today.

Before you dive in, however, we've introduced a few changes to the buyer's guide, so take a minute to prepare yourself for what's in store. First and foremost, you'll now find alternate selections to supplement our top picks. This should already be familiar to many of you, which is the same format we use for our seasonal gift guides. The next one is a biggie: we've dropped the QWERTY selection.

By and large, manufacturers and carriers alike have shifted their focus away from keyboard-equipped smartphones, and you'll rarely find more than one option on any given carrier. That said, if you still insist on the tactile experience, you'll always find everything you need to know in our reviews.

Finally, whenever possible, you'll now find prices from Amazon Wireless, which allows us to provide you with more compelling budget selections and highlight the substantial savings that you can score by circumventing the carriers. It's not like they need your charity, anyway.

If you're curious to see how it all unfolded -- and we know you are -- join us after the break, where we round up the very best smartphones of the season.

AT&T

HTC One X Five months have passed since its debut, and as a testament to its staying power, the HTC One X remains our top pick for AT&T. Not only does it combine excellent performance, a large and beautiful 720p display and a fantastic camera into one stunning handset, but at just $0.01 through Amazon Wireless, it also represents the very best value on the market today. A near-term release of Jelly Bean promises to bring a new lease on life to the venerable One X, and the only consideration that keeps it from being a no-brainer is that its successor has already been announced. Still, this is an amazing value by any measure, which qualifies the One X as our unequivocal budget pick for AT&T -- or any carrier, for that matter. Key specs: 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4, 4.7-inch HD (1,280 x 720) S-LCD 2 display, 8MP rear / 1.3MP front cameras, 16GB built-in storage, Android 4.0. Price: $0.01 at Amazon Wireless

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	Apple iPhone 5 It's no secret that the iPhone 5 is among the most compelling smartphones on the market today, and for good reason: it brings snappy performance, a top-notch display, commendable battery life and an excellent camera to the table. We're also particularly fond of its beautiful enclosure, and all things told, the iPhone 5 is the best choice on the market for those who insist on a compact smartphone. From $199 at Apple		Samsung Galaxy Note II While the Galaxy Note II certainly isn't for everyone, many users will absolutely adore the additional functionality that comes with the S Pen stylus. What's more, it currently leads the pack in terms of raw performance, and it packs a spacious, beautiful display and amazing camera to boot. Better yet, upon its release, the Galaxy Note II will come dashing out of the gate with Jelly Bean. Pricing and release date TBA

You might want to wait for...
	HTC One X+ While the One X remains awesome to this day, power hungry shoppers may prefer to wait for the One X+, which combines a quad-core Tegra 3, a larger 2,100mAh battery and 32GB or 64GB of internal storage. As another reason to smile, it'll ship with Jelly Bean from the get-go. Keep in mind that you'll likely need to pony up a decent chunk of cash to snag this untamed beast, but if you insist on living on the bleeding edge, it could be well worth it. Pricing and release date TBA		Nokia Lumia 920 If you've never developed much of a fondness for either Android or iOS, it goes without saying that Windows Phone deserves your attention. Set to debut later this year, the Lumia 920 packs some serious treats for camera junkies, which offers superb low-light performance and peerless optical stabilization technologies -- a boon for those who tend to shoot shaky videos. In all, the Lumia 920 promises to be a thoroughly premium smartphone, and it'll even offer wireless charging via a pillow, of all things. Pricing and release date TBA

Sprint

HTC EVO 4G LTE Those in search of the best smartphone on Sprint need look no further than the EVO 4G LTE. A retooled version of the One X, it combines much of what we love from the original and adds to it a dedicated camera button, larger battery, removable storage and a handy kickstand. What's more, its $30 price positions it as the best value on Sprint and similarly qualifies it as our budget pick. That said, unless you know for certain that Sprint will soon bring LTE to your area, you're guaranteed to have a more rewarding experience with the One X and AT&T's vastly superior network speeds and LTE coverage. Key specs: 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4, 4.7-inch HD (1,280 x 720) S-LCD 2 display, 8MP rear / 1.3MP front cameras, 16GB built-in storage, Android 4.0. Price: $30 at Amazon Wireless

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	Apple iPhone 5 While the iPhone 5 is an excellent handset, only those under unique circumstances should choose this model. For example, if you know that your area will be covered by Sprint's LTE service and you're looking to take advantage of its unlimited plans, then go for it. Other than that, however, you're more likely to benefit from the iPhone 5 on Verizon Wireless, which offers access to a much larger LTE footprint in the US and accepts international nano-SIM cards without issue. From $199 at Apple		Samsung Galaxy Note II Sure, you could pick up a Galaxy S III for Sprint today and be completely happy, but if you're not sold on the EVO 4G LTE -- which is the better of the two smartphones in terms of software, overall quality and value -- then we seriously suggest you wait for the arrival of the Galaxy Note II. Not only is its large display in a class of its own, but the phone also offers raw horsepower and unique functionality that no other phone can currently match. $300 at Sprint on October 25th

You might want to wait for...
	LG Optimus G If the Galaxy Note II isn't your thing and you're still keen on owning the very latest gear, then you'd be wise to wait for our review of the Optimus G. Not only will it be among the first smartphones on the market to wield a quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro, but it'll also boast a large IPS HD display and a rather unique 13-megapixel camera. While we can't yet recommend the Optimus G, we have little doubt that it'll be among the most intriguing smartphones to emerge in the coming months. $200 at Sprint on November 11th

T-Mobile

Samsung Galaxy S III While most of us prefer HTC's high-end offerings at AT&T and Sprint, that's not to suggest that the Galaxy S III isn't an excellent smartphone in its own right. More importantly, its our pick for the majority of subscribers at T-Mobile. Unfortunately, this Galaxy S III is also the most expensive of all the major carrier variants, which means that shoppers will need to find value in T-Mobile's unique offerings such as free WiFi calling and unlimited data usage to make the handset a worthwhile purchase. Despite the carrier's lack of LTE coverage, its 42Mbps HSPA+ network offers excellent data speeds in areas where it's available. Key specs: 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4, 4.8-inch HD (1,280 x 720) Super AMOLED display, 8MP rear / 2MP front cameras, 16GB or 32GB built-in storage, Android 4.0. Price: $280 (16GB) or $330 (32GB) at T-Mobile

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	HTC One S The HTC One S isn't quite as impressive as the One X on AT&T, although it offers roughly the same level of performance and the same excellent camera. The most glaring weakness of the One S is its inferior qHD display, which is less pixel dense -- and thus not quite as sharp -- as the Galaxy S III and Galaxy Note II. That said, it's still an excellent smartphone and is nearly ideal for those who'd prefer a more compact handset. $150 at T-Mobile		Samsung Galaxy Note II While we certainly wouldn't consider the Galaxy Note II a phone for the masses, it's our selection of choice for power users who demand either blazing fast performance or maximum screen real estate. We're also fans of the extra functionality that it offers, which includes the ability to quickly jot down notes and annotate photos. Like other carriers, the Galaxy Note II isn't yet available at T-Mobile, although we expect that to change in short order. Pricing and release date TBA

If you're on a tight budget...
	Nokia Lumia 710 If you're stuck in a situation where you absolutely must have a new T-Mobile smartphone today and you can't afford to spend much, the Lumia 710 is far and away your best option, although it comes with one gigantic caveat: it's incompatible with the next generation of Windows Phone apps. Unfortunately, T-Mobile's other smartphones are sorely deficient in the budget realm. We recommend either switching carriers or waiting until the One S, Galaxy S II or Galaxy S Blaze 4G are sold at a promotional discount that's in line with your budget. Free at T-Mobile

You might want to wait for...
	HTC Windows Phone 8X If you're looking for a phone that absolutely oozes personality, there's a good chance that the Windows Phone 8X will fit the bill. By coordinating the enclosure with the software, HTC is looking to give smartphone owners a clean break from the buttoned-down black monotony. We also have reason to believe it'll be a serious hardware competitor: the phone boasts a 720p S-LCD 2 display, and HTC has been talking up its quality camera and superior audio -- both good signs. Pricing and release date TBA		Nokia Lumia 810 While the Lumia 810 will undoubtedly be somewhat of a mid-tier offering when it lands at T-Mobile, it'll offer one key advantage over all other smartphones: Nokia's finely tuned suite of apps. This includes advanced camera features, augmented reality, an e-book / news reader, a transit planner and the best offline navigation system we've ever come across. Not to let HTC have all the fun, the Lumia 810 is a downright colorful creation in its own right. Pricing and release date TBA

Verizon Wireless

Samsung Galaxy S III Verizon Wireless is currently awash in excellent smartphones, and while it's a tough call, the Galaxy S III is our favorite of the bunch. In addition to its spacious and beautiful display, it offers an excellent camera, fantastic performance and solid battery life. It's also an excellent value at Amazon Wireless, which positions it as the best bang for your buck. Our only major grievance with Verizon's Galaxy S III is its encrypted bootloader, which means that you'll need to jump through a few loopholes to load custom ROMs on the device. Additionally, while the carrier has promised an update to enable international roaming support, it's yet to deliver on the promise. Key specs: 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4, 4.8-inch HD (1,280 x 720) Super AMOLED display, 8MP rear / 2MP front cameras, 16GB or 32GB built-in storage, Android 4.0. Price: $149 (16GB) or $199 (32GB) at Amazon Wireless

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	Apple iPhone 5 Unlike the Galaxy S III, Apple's latest iPhone offers unrestricted global roaming, which should be at the forefront of your list if you make a habit of traveling abroad. Siri also boasts superior voice control, which is a distinct advantage for those who make regular use of the feature. Given the iPhone 5's snappy performance, excellent camera and dependable battery life, the decision is a no-brainer if you prefer Apple's iOS. It also goes without saying that the iPhone 5 should also be on your short list if you prefer a compact handset. From $199 at Apple		Samsung Galaxy Note II The Galaxy Note II not only wields a wicked fast quad-core processor, but also boasts a stunning HD display and the latest version of Android. The phone is an excellent choice for shutterbugs, too, as the massive display also doubles as a viewfinder, and it combines the same camera as you'll find in the Galaxy S III and adds additional software features that you won't currently find on any other model. The Galaxy Note II combines the best features of a smartphone, tablet and sketchbook into one genuinely compelling device. Pricing and release date TBA

If you're on a tight budget...
	Motorola Droid RAZR M It's fair to consider the Droid RAZR M an outright superstar for those who can't afford to splurge on their next smartphone. While it's not quite the same insane bargain as the One X for AT&T, the phone boasts a speedy dual-core processor, dependable battery life, a fantastic still camera and a thoughtfully designed implementation of Ice Cream Sandwich. Weak points of the phone include a sub-premium qHD display and a lackluster video camera, but we think budget-minded shoppers will agree that the Droid RAZR M is an incredibly well-rounded smartphone. $80 at Amazon Wireless

You might want to wait for...
	HTC's rumored 5-inch 'DLX' As far as HTC and Verizon are concerned, this phone doesn't exist. Still, we've seen a number of rumors that suggest an epic smartphone is in the carrier's pipeline that wields a 5-inch, 1080p display, a quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro and a lofty 12MP rear / 2MP front camera combo. There's no certainty that this supposed beast will ever see the light of day, but if you're willing to wait for something that may not exist, then you're probably not in much of a hurry to make a purchase, anyway.		Motorola Droid RAZR Maxx HD If gobs of battery life is at the top of your smartphone desires, you'd be wise to hold out for our review of the Droid RAZR Maxx HD, which promises to lead the pack for overall endurance. Like its predecessor, it boasts a massive 3,300mAh cell, but more importantly, it's keeping up with the times with a speedier processor, higher-res display and a (hopefully) better camera. While the phone will debut with Ice Cream Sandwich, Motorola has promised to deliver an update to Jelly Bean in short order. $199 at Amazon Wireless

Boost Mobile

Samsung Galaxy S II 4G It may cost more than you were hoping to spend, but those in search of the best smartphone at Boost Mobile should look no further than the Galaxy S II 4G. The handset is the very same as the Sprint model that we absolutely adore, which includes a dual-core Exynos processor, a fabulous Super AMOLED Plus display that boasts a traditional RGB (non-PenTile) matrix and a camera that still impresses to this day. Even if you have to scrimp and save for a few months to make it happen, all Boost Mobile customers should choose the Galaxy S II 4G, as it's well worth it. Key specs: 1.2GHz dual-core Exynos, 4.5-inch WVGA (800 x 480) Super AMOLED Plus display, 8MP rear / 2MP front cameras, 16GB built-in storage, Android 4.0. Price: $370 at Boost Mobile

Cincinnati Bell

HTC One S Cincinnati Bell has the unique luxury of acquiring hand-me-downs from T-Mobile. Unfortunately, it's yet to visit the figurative thrift store as of late. Suffice it to say, while the lineup is aging, the One S is still an excellent smartphone, which offers the same top-notch performance and camera as the One X, yet within a smaller enclosure that some will find preferable. We're also happy to see that Cincinnati Bell has lowered the price of the One S, which is now slightly more competitive than T-Mobile. Key specs: 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4, 4.3-inch qHD (960 x 540) Super AMOLED display, 8MP rear / VGA front cameras, 16GB built-in storage, Android 4.0. Price: $100 at Cincinnati Bell

Cricket

Apple iPhone 5 How does an unlimited smartphone plan for just $55 per month strike you? Throw in contract-free wireless service and you're sold -- right? That's the selling point of Cricket, which requires that customers purchase their phones outright in exchange for a lower monthly rate. While the carrier continues to struggle with its premium smartphone selection, there's one that stands head and shoulders above the rest: it's the iPhone 5. Now, the only question that remains is whether you're willing to pony up for it. Yes, the $500 price tag may seem difficult to swallow, but the latest iPhone exists in a league of its own at the prepaid carrier. Unfortunately, it's not yet available on Cricket's website, which suggests the carrier is struggling to get sufficient inventory. For those unable to afford the iPhone 5, we recommend the HTC One V ($210). Key specs: 1.3GHz dual-core A6, 4-inch Retina (1,136 x 640) IPS display, 8MP rear / 1.2MP front cameras, 16GB, 32GB or 64GB built-in storage, iOS 6. Price: $500 at Cricket (pending availability)

MetroPCS

LG Connect 4G While we're not particularly taken with any smartphone on MetroPCS, if we were forced to throw down our own money on one, we'd most certainly walk out the door with the Connect 4G. It's most similar to the Viper 4G LTE on Sprint, and just the same, you'll find an excellent IPS NOVA display that's paired with a dual-core processor and LTE connectivity. We haven't subjected the Connect 4G to a full review, but it certainly impressed us during our hands-on time with the device. As for the carrier's other smartphones, the Galaxy S Lightray 4G is certainly its most premium device, but you'd be a fool to throw down $459 for what amounts to a clone of the Droid Charge. Similarly, while the Anthem 4G ($199) may look good on paper, our experience suggests that it's a seriously flawed piece of hardware. Key specs: 1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon S3, 4-inch WVGA (800 x 480) IPS display, 5MP rear / VGA front cameras, 4GB built-in storage, Android 2.3. Price: $349 at MetroPCS

US Cellular

Samsung Galaxy S III It shouldn't come as much surprise that we recommend the Galaxy S III as the best overall smartphone for US Cellular. As Samsung has proven extremely stringent in its dealings with carriers, we feel comfortable recommending the phone without hesitation, despite the fact that we've yet to review this variant. If the Galaxy S III is outside of what you can afford, we recommend you snag the Galaxy S Aviator ($50), which is a clone of the Droid Charge, and like the Galaxy S III, is one of the few smartphones within US Cellular's lineup to support LTE. Naturally, the Galaxy Note II ($300) will be another exciting option, which will arrive as the carrier's most powerful smartphone and the only one to ship with Jelly Bean. Key specs: 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4, 4.8-inch HD (1,280 x 720) Super AMOLED display, 8MP rear / 2MP front cameras, 16GB or 32GB built-in storage, Android 4.0. Price: $199 (16GB) or $249 (32GB) at US Cellular

Virgin Mobile

HTC One V Yes, the iPhone 4S is without a doubt the most well-rounded smartphone at Virgin Mobile, but we think it's a crime that anybody should be forced to pay $650 for yesterday's hardware. Instead, we recommend that all potential Virgin customers snag the One V, which is the carrier's most aggressively priced option. Sure, it's not the fastest smartphone on the block, but it offers a better display and similar camera to the higher priced Galaxy Reverb ($250). Meanwhile, the EVO V ($240) stands as the only smartphone at Virgin to offer 4G (WiMAX), but its poor battery life and lackluster camera are too significant to ignore. So, yes, that leaves us with the One V. At just $160, think of it as something to tide you over until a better option comes along. Key specs: 1GHz single-core Snapdragon S2, 3.7-inch WVGA (800 x 480) S-LCD 2 display, 5MP rear camera, 4GB built-in storage, Android 4.0. Price: $160 at Virgin Mobile

Unlocked

Galaxy Nexus HSPA+ When Google introduced the Galaxy Nexus into the Play Store at just $349 -- with a full warranty, mind you -- the smartphone immediately became the no-brainer decision in the unlocked scene. Unlike most handsets, the Galaxy Nexus includes a pentaband HSPA+ 21Mbps radio that supports both AT&T and T-Mobile, along with a wide number of Canadian and European carriers. For this reason, the Galaxy Nexus is an ideal solution for globetrotters. While it's no longer on the cutting edge of smartphones, this Google-inspired creation remains a perennial favorite around these parts due to its excellent value, stock Android OS and hacker-friendly approach. That said, we expect a new Nexus smartphone -- or possibly several -- to appear in short order. So, unless you need to make a purchase today, we recommend waiting to learn what will come next. Key specs: 1.2GHz dual-core OMAP 4, 4.65-inch HD (1,280 x 720) Super AMOLED display, 5MP rear / 1.3MP front cameras, 16GB built-in storage, Android 4.1. Price: $349 at Google Play

You might want to wait for...
	LG's upcoming Nexus 'Mako' The cat's out of the bag: LG is making a successor to the Galaxy Nexus. While we may ultimately discover many Nexus handsets, all reports -- and even a review -- suggest that this smartphone will be a significant improvement over its predecessor. The device brandishes a quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro, a 4.7-inch HD (1,280 x 768) IPS display and a much-improved 8-megapixel camera. The handset is currently being tested with Jelly Bean, and as history has proven, Nexus smartphones are your best bet for gaining access to the very latest Android releases. Naturally, we're now curious to know whether LG's phone will maintain support for a wide range of wireless bands, which is one of the primary reasons we love the Galaxy Nexus so dearly. Pricing and release date TBA [Nexus image credit: onliner.by] By Zachary Lutz posted Oct 19th 2012 http://www.engadget.com/2012/10/19/engadgets-smartphone-buyers-guide-fall-2012-edition/

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Pioneer 15x Blu-ray burner

Pioneer announced a new Blu-ray drive this week. The BDR-2208 will be the fastest drive available on the market—an internal 15x Blu-ray burner—and offers small businesses a cost-effective means of backing up and archiving important data.
The press release from Pioneer describes a number of features that consumers will appreciate. It has QuickPlay to decrease the time it takes between inserting a disc into the drive, and having that disc available and ready to use. It has PowerRead to enable smoother data reads by quickly bypassing areas marred with minor scratches or smudged with fingerprints. It has Auto Quiet Mode to adjust the disc rotation speed to reduce rotation speed—and noise—when watching Blu-ray movies or listening to music.

Those are all great features for consumers, but have little consequence in a business environment. It’s nice to have faster access to the disc, more reliable data retrieval, and a drive that doesn’t sound like a small jet preparing for takeoff, but none of those is necessarily a compelling business case. The thing that will attract businesses to the BDR-2208 is the speed at which it can back up data, and the sheer capacity of data that can be backed up on a single disc.

Using quad-layer BDXL media, the BDR-2208 can store up to 128GB of data on a single disc. That’s far short of the 2TB and 3TB capacities of USB hard drives, but the capacity of the Blu-ray drive is virtually unlimited as long as you have blank discs available, and Blu-ray discs are generally smaller and easier to transport and store than a USB drive.

There are a couple caveats to keep in mind. First, triple-layer and quad-layer BDXL discs can only be read by BDXL drives. So, don’t expect to back up 128GB of data to a single disc and then retrieve it using just any Blu-ray drive. Second, the 15x burn speed only applies to single layer Blu-ray discs—the speed is 14x on dual-layer, and only 8x on triple-layer discs. Pioneer doesn’t state the speed for quad-layer discs, but just know that burning 128GB on a quad-layer disc might take longer than burning the same data on multiple single-layer discs.

Those limitations aside, though, the new BDR-2208 drive will be available later this month at a suggested retail price of $99.99. At under $100, the drive could be a cheap, effective means of backing up and storing crucial business data. Just make sure you store a copy of those backup discs offsite somewhere so they don’t get destroyed in a fire or flood along with the original data they’re supposed to be backing up.

By Tony Bradley
http://www.pcworld.com/article/2012292/pioneer-15x-blu-ray-burner-coming-soon-for-under-100.html

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Windows 8: Nine unanswered questions about the new OS

Despite the looming October 26 launch date of Windows 8, a handful of questions about Microsoft's next operating system remain. Some are big, some are small, but all should be relevant to hard-core PC users who have decided to take the Windows 8 plunge, as well as to people who plan to buy new Windows 8 hardware.
Here we'll do our best to explain nine mysteries, as well as to provide context on why you should care.

How will users sync their media with phones, including Windows Phone devices?

Until now, Windows Phone users have relied on a Zune desktop app to sync their media files from a PC to the phone. With Windows 8, the Zune brand will disappear, and we haven't yet received official word on what will replace it.

The Verge has posted a leaked screenshot of a Windows Phone companion app, but that provides only a glimpse at how syncing might work. In addition, it doesn't answer the question of whether a desktop sync application will remain available.

On a related note, we don't know whether Apple will release a version of iTunes for the Windows Store. It seems unlikely, but that would be the only way for Windows RT users to sync their content to an iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad. Will Apple ignore these users because they dared to choose an RT tablet over an iPad? Only time will tell.

What are the details on Xbox Music?

Although Microsoft announced Xbox Music in June, details remain murky. The service is expected to be a competitor to Pandora and Spotify, with free radio-style streaming and subscription-based music on demand, but the official word is to wait and see about specifics on pricing and packaging.
The biggest remaining question about the service is whether it will be an answer to Apple's iTunes in the Cloud, which acts as an online repository for all the music you already own. Whether Xbox Music will have a similar music-locker element is unclear. We expect answers soon, but as of press time Xbox Music remains quite mysterious.

What are the specifics on SmartGlass?

SmartGlass is a companion app for Windows 8 tablets—and eventually other mobile devices—that lets users control and send content to the Xbox 360. It can also show additional content on the small screen while a video is playing on the television.

That sounds great, except we don't know exactly how content selection will work for third-party apps, such as Netflix. We're also uncertain about how many apps will offer second-screen content for SmartGlass. To date, Microsoft has demonstrated HBO GO and shown concepts of what Halo 4 on Smartglass might look like, but the company has released little hard information.

Will other Microsoft apps, such as Paint and Movie Maker, go modern?

Microsoft will preload Windows 8 with several of its own tablet-optimized apps, such as Bing, Sports, Finance, and Weather. Even Solitaire received a makeover for the new touch interface in Windows 8.
Still, some apps, including Paint and Movie Maker, haven't crossed over from the desktop. This is somewhat surprising, considering that Apple's content-creation apps, such as iPhoto and iMovie, have become big selling points for the iPad.
Will Microsoft port its own apps, or will it rely on third parties to fill in the gaps? That's a critical question, considering that the Windows Store, Microsoft's app portal, is woefully understocked. If Microsoft really wants consumers to take its app ecosystem seriously, it should ensure that all of its key, legacy desktop software products come in modern-style touch versions too.

What's the future for version upgrades?

By fusing tablet and desktop into a single operating system, Microsoft has created a dilemma for future upgrades: Will they be free, as they are on iOS and Android, or paid, as they have been with past versions of Windows and with Apple's OS X? And for that matter, how often will Microsoft deliver upgrades with new features, rather than simple bug fixes?
The pace of software innovation has sped up in recent years, so Microsoft's tradition of issuing three-year upgrades for Windows may no longer suffice. Is this the last of the showstopping updates for Windows, as Microsoft moves toward yearly iterations? The answer has important ramifications for anyone considering the upgrade-or-wait question with respect to Windows 8.

What will Windows 8 cost in six months?

Until January 31, upgrades to Windows 8 Professional will cost $40 for users of Windows XP, Windows Vista, or Windows 7. After that, Microsoft hasn't said what the price of Windows 8 upgrades will be. Will users have to pay for a full retail copy, rumored to cost $100 and up, or will a cheaper upgrade option remain available?

How much will Surface cost? And what are its display resolution and battery life?

Four months ago, Microsoft shocked the tech world by announcing its own Windows tablets, known as Surface. These tablets are unlike anything other manufacturers have shown so far, with integrated kickstands and magnetized screen covers that double as ultrathin keyboards.

Since the announcement, however, Microsoft has been less than forthcoming about some key Surface details, such as exact pricing, display resolution, and what type of battery life to expect.
On the pricing front, the company did say that the Windows RT version of Surface would have a price comparable to that of other tablets, while the Windows 8 Pro version would cost about the same as Ultrabooks. So that's the official word. As far as the unofficial word, at least one estimate for the full bill-of-materials cost suggests that Surface RT's actual cost is a little over $300, while Surface Pro could cost as much as $640 to build. From there, you could hazard a guess at the final retail pricing, but no one knows how much margin Microsoft wants to make on its first in-house tablet adventure.

Adding to the mystery is a rumor, reported by Engadget, that Microsoft will sell the Surface RT for just $200. Microsoft may reach that price by bundling a subscription service, such as the new Office software, as a subsidy. And as far as display specs go, Microsoft has said that the RT version will have an "HD display," while the Pro version will have a "full HD display"—but those labels are just marketing terms that don't correlate to standard resolution specs. Conventional wisdom suggests that the RT version will be 1366 by 768 pixels, and that the Pro version will be 1920 by 1080, but who really knows?

The RT version of Surface is slated to launch on October 26, right alongside Windows 8, so these mysteries can't last forever. Still, Surface is a highly anticipated product, and the sooner Microsoft can answer questions, the less anxious we tech enthusiasts will be.

How will Microsoft explain the difference between Windows 8 and RT to consumers?

Techies who have followed the development of Windows 8 and Windows RT know the difference by now. The former will run on x86-based processors and will support legacy software, while the latter will run on ARM-based chips, which won't support legacy software but are likely to foster cheaper, slimmer, and lighter devices.
The challenge for Microsoft's marketing team will be to communicate this difference clearly to the average consumer, who doesn't care about processor architecture and just wants everything to work. At the moment, it's unclear how Microsoft will define Windows 8 versus Windows RT for the layperson.

How many apps will be available at or around launch?

As of October 10, Microsoft's U.S. Windows Store contained about 2400 apps. That's certainly short of the five-digit goal that Microsoft has reportedly set for itself, and we don't know whether the situation will change by the time Windows 8 ships. Only time will tell whether Microsoft can get developers on board with the Windows Store and persuade them not to merely stick with the desktop.

Jared Newman Oct 11, 2012 3:30 AM

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2011482/windows-8-nine-unanswered-questions-about-the-new-os.html

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Motorola Users Outraged

Doran Else bought his Photon 4G last October, lured by the fast dual-core processor and by the close relationship between Motorola and its new owner, Google. Motorola had recently joined the Android Upgrade Alliance, promising to release operating system updates to all its phones for 18 months following their release.

But for Else and thousands of others, those operating system updates turned out to be a mirage. Last Friday, buried in a Motorola forum, the company quietly abandoned its update pledge, killing off plans to ever update the Photon 4G. The Electrify, a re-branded Photon available on the US Cellular network, and the Atrix 4G, a flagship phone that debuted on AT&T in the United States, got the axe as well.

"Just seems they were happy to join the alliance when it helped them sell handsets," Else said in an e-mail. "Now that it's time to do the work, they're all dropping devices. This latest announcement from Moto is just ridiculous."

The result is that Else and thousands of people in the middle of two-year carrier contracts will have to use Android 2.3, known as Gingerbread, for the foreseeable future. Motorola had promised owners of the Photon, Electrify and Atrix an upgrade to to Android 4.0, known as Ice Cream Sandwich, which would bring a host of new features and security updates. Instead they are stuck on Gingerbread, an operating system that was already a year old when Else bought his phone.

There was no word on why the company had twice said upgrades were coming -- first in the third quarter of this year, then the fourth quarter -- or why it had bothered joining the Android Upgrade Alliance, if it couldn't meet its requirements.

Same old song

Every few months, it seems, we hear a new version of an old story: the maker of an expensive smartphone announces it won't be upgraded to the latest version of Android, and consumers cry foul.
But this one is different. First, Motorola told customers they would upgrade the phones for 18 months after they came out, a statement that drove sales of the devices. Second, Google owns both Android and Motorola, making it all the more puzzling why the business units didn't work together to make an upgrade happen.

Finally, there are signs that for some Android devotees, Motorola's abandonment of its year-old phones is the last straw. I asked Motorola smartphone owners how they were feeling about the company -- and Android -- these days. Jacob Depenbusch, a Photon owner, offered a typical account. He researched a variety of Android phones and settled on the Photon after learning it was on the upgrade path. "My family and myself all bought the Photon because it met the specifications of being upgraded to ICS," Depenbusch said. "Had they not promised an update, the phone would've been out of the question. And then they reneged on the promise. They benefited financially from lying to us, and these phones certainly aren't cheap. This is an appalling business practice." Several owners said they had filed complaints with the Better Business Bureau over their treatment by Motorola. Others said they had purchased a Motorola for the last time. That's despite the fact that Motorola is offering a $100 credit to anyone willing to purchase a new phone from the company. "The fact they are offering $100 to swap to another Motorola phone is laughable," said Danny Brewer, who owns an Atrix. "I will not be touching it or another Motorola phone with a barge pole. I don't want a new phone -- I want my current phone, that I have to keep for another year, as that's how long my contract is for.

"There are very few companies that I have felt I needed to boycott," he added. "But Motorola has just earned that honor." The really unfortunate part of this? Most of the people who we interviewed love their phones. They find them fast, reliable, and fun to play with. They want to keep using them well into the future. They'd just like to do it on Ice Cream Sandwich -- an operating system that was released to manufacturers a year ago.  

But does it matter?

In June, writing about the sorry state of Android updates, CNET's Danny Sullivan asked whether users actually cared. Noting that Android's market share continued to expand despite the spotty track record with updates, he noted that Gingerbread remained a perfectly useable operating system. "That's the reality check that can go missing when looking at update figures," he wrote. "People are clearly still able to use their phones despite not having the latest version of Android." But you don't have to be a power user to crave regular updates to your phone's operating system. Often, updates do more than add new bells and whistles -- they fix security exploits, improve battery life management, and make phones more useable in general. Ice Cream Sandwich, meanwhile, wasn't just a superficial update to Android; it revamped the user experience and added a lot of key features: visual voicemail, app folders, resizeable widgets, and an improved camera app, as well as improved designs for its contact and email apps. Moreover, by signaling a company's willingness to keep investing in products for as long as their customers are under contract, they foster loyalty to a brand. (Andrew Cunningham, writing at Ars Technica, highlights another benefit -- the more people are using the same operating system, the easier the platform is for developers to build on. That benefits everyone who uses it.)

Motorola phone owners are tweeting their outrage using the #motofail tag.

(Credit: Screenshot by Casey Newton/CNET )

 
Motorola responds

Motorola, for its part, acknowledged that it was leaving some of its most loyal customers hanging. "I think some of them have gotten a raw deal," said Punit Soni, who runs software product management for Motorola Mobility. "We understand strongly and apologize for it."

Punit Soni, who runs software product management for Motorola Mobility.

Soni is taking the brunt of consumer frustration despite just joining Motorola from Google a month ago. The decision to deny some phones an update came down to stretched resources, Soni said. Ultimately, Motorola chose to focus on speedy, consistent updates to a limited number of older phones and all of its new phones, rather than its entire product lineup, which would have led to long, unpredictable upgrade cycles and headaches for the leaner staff. "We couldn't do both," Soni said. "If we went down that road (of upgrading every device), we couldn't meet our commitment to be future-facing." Before making the call Motorola considered every device, taking into account specifications such as processor speed and memory, the user base, and the work required to enable the upgrade, Soni said. He added that he doesn't believe they will add any other phones to the list of devices not getting an upgrade to the operating system. "If we didn't make the hard call here, we would be in trouble going forward," he said. The company, under CEO Dennis Woodside, has decided to narrow its focus on fewer devices so it can offer quick upgrades to the latest version of Android. That includes its currently announced lineup of upcoming Droid Razr smartphones, which will all be getting Android 4.1, or Jelly Bean, before the end of the year. The company has worked with its suppliers and carriers to ensure that future upgrades would go through more smoothly.

Motorola aspires to be known for fulfilling its commitments. Soni admitted that the company wasn't quite there yet. But he believes the decision to cut off some upgrades would position the company to meet its future commitments. Soni said he knew Motorola would alienate some of its more loyal customers with the decision. He added the company would provide more details on its rebate program to help customers upgrade to a device capable of getting the latest version of Android.  

#MotoFail?

But that's cold comfort to thousands of customers who took Motorola at their word. A number of them have set up a website, SupportMyMoto.com, begging the company to reconsider -- or to at least unlock the phones' boot loaders, which would enable power users to load a custom operating system.

On Twitter, users are broadcasting their disappointment with the company using the #MotoFail hashtag. Soni said Motorola supports unlockable bootloaders -- but that in some instances, the company is facing concerns from the carriers. When those concerns are assuaged, it will gladly provide the bootloaders to individuals, he said. "As a matter of principle, we are totally for it," Soni said. Still, the outrage comes at a difficult time for Motorola, said Tony Costa, an analyst at Forrester. "Motorola can't at this point afford to alienate the customers who have stuck by them," he said.

"They're going to need those customers to move forward and rebuild their business." Meanwhile, some users are planning to bypass Android altogether. Doran Else, the buyer of that Photon in Des Moines, said that when his contract is up he's buying his family iPhones and Windows Phones. "Android devices are abandoned far too quickly for me to invest any further in them," he said.

by Casey Newton and Roger Cheng

October 5, 2012 2:40 PM PDT

 http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-57526994-94/android-users-outraged-over-motorolas-broken-promise/

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Poor Pre-Launch Showing Plagues Windows 8

With just weeks before the public launch of Windows 8, users are five times less likely to be running the new OS than they were Windows 7 at the same point in its countdown, an analytics firm said today.
The newest numbers from California-based Net Applications portray a tepid reception so far for Windows 8.
Unlike post-launch numbers, the early returns from Net Applications are not contaminated with those new PCs that come with an operating system pre-loaded. Rather, users chose to install the previews and finished code of Windows 8 and its precursor, providing a picture of customer interest in the OS itself, not in the desire or need to acquire new hardware.
Just 0.33% of all computers running Windows during September relied on Windows 8, Net Applications' statistics showed Monday. That number represents 33 out of every 10,000 Windows machines.
At the end of September 2009, with essentially the same time remaining before its launch, Windows 7 accounted for 1.64% of all Windows PCs, or 164 out of 10,000: That's five times that of Windows 8 at its T-minus-one-month milestone.
Not only did Windows 8 stack up poorly against Windows 7 last month, but the gap between the two has widened. Three months ago Windows 8's share was one-fourth of Windows 7's. Since then the difference between them has increased, with Windows 8's September share only one-fifth of Windows 7.

Data: Net Applications

The pre-launch uptake for Windows 8 is extremely weak compared to the adoption of Windows 7 in 2009.

In fact, Windows 8's September share of all Microsoft-powered computers was identical to Windows 7's share six months before that OS's launch, when users had had the beta for about three months but had yet to see the release candidate, much less finished code.

Win 8 avalable since August

While Microsoft has not yet started selling Windows 8, developers, IT professionals and enterprises with volume license agreements have been able to obtain and run the "release to manufacturing" (RTM), or final, build since the middle of August.
The two operating systems have also had an equal opportunity to win hearts and minds: Microsoft delivered two early versions of each to the public, they reached their RTM milestones just 10 days apart, and their retail on-sale dates fall within the same week of October.
The poor pre-launch showing doesn't preclude Windows 8 from flourishing once new systems running it reach stores and the upgrade becomes available. Microsoft has discounted the Windows 8 upgrade to an all-time low of $40 in a deal that starts Oct. 26 and ends Jan. 31, 2013; the price cut could jumpstart Windows 8 adoption.
But many analysts don't believe it will.
Just last week, Gartner said it would continue to advise its clients to essentially ignore Windows 8, and predicted that the OS would top out at a 20% to 25% share of corporate PCs.

What businesses are doing with Win 8

Net Applications' data also highlights the difference between Windows 7 and Windows 8 in enterprises. At T-minus-two-months, Windows 7's share of all PCs jumped three-tenths of a percentage point, followed the next month by a four-tenths of point increase, the largest in all the months before its October 2009 debut.
Those increases could be attributed to the availability of Windows 7 RTM -- on Aug. 6, 2009, for developers and IT pros, Aug. 7 for enterprises with a Software Assurance plan -- to a large chunk of customers.
Meantime, Windows 8 saw little "bounce" from its Aug. 15 and Aug. 16 RTM availability dates. Windows 8's T-minus-two-months increase was just three-hundredths of a percentage point, with a slightly-larger eight-hundredths of a point boost the next month.
Windows 8 will go on sale--and PCs and other devices with the OS will hit shelves--on Oct. 26. Microsoft has slated a New York City launch event for Oct. 25.

Gregg Keizer Oct 2, 2012 10:55 AM

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2010981/poor-pre-launch-showing-plagues-windows-8.html

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Why Gamers Are Gluttons for Punishment

Being punished never feels good.

Everyone has a memory of paying the price for at least one error in judgment. Getting grounded. Getting a ticket. Getting a full leg cast because that tree branch was a little less stable than you judged.

We remember these punishments with a grimace. That’s the point, right? The punishment must trigger enough unpleasantness that you (hopefully) won't repeat the mistake. Or at least disagreeable enough to serve as a stark contrast between it and the sweet spoils of success. Punishments and consequences are essential because they allow us to appreciate said success when it does eventually come.

But there exists another category of punishment that most people reading this probably feel more ambivalent about. Losing your gear in a pool of lava in Minecraft. Using up your final life and being shuttled way back to stage 1-1 in Mario. Making yet another long, boring corpse-run in World of Warcraft.

None of these experiences feel good either. But I feel differently about these memories than I do about time spent in detention or other “real world” punishments. Failing in a game just makes me more motivated to succeed. I get back up and try again.

This is not a coincidence. Without a punishment or penalty for failing, what’s the point of play? What’s the purpose of overcoming a challenge if nothing is actually at stake?

It’s worth pointing out that a game being punishing is not the same as a game being difficult. Games can be (and often are) both, but there is an important distinction. A punishing game imposes a significant penalty onto players when they fail. The game itself can be easy, but it whacks gamers heavily when they are defeated.

If I have to run back through Westfall one more time...

I think about video games as a series of rewards. It’s a rush to earn a badass new weapon. To level-up. To open up new areas to explore. But the truth is that video games almost never work if they only offer The Carrot. Great video games also know how to make good use of The Stick. It’s a tightrope-balancing act that game designers must walk. If your game is too punishing, gamers will give up. If it’s too lax, they will grow bored.

All of this might sound obvious. Of course when you miss a jump and hit some spikes, you’re punished with a lost life and forced to restart. This is just a part of the contract of video games. Right? But some games subvert this formula for failure and play upon people’s expectations. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time let gamers literally rewind time and try again. Failure in that game, then, is just a warning. “Don’t do that again.”

Brutal 8-Bit Memories

By making NES-era games so punishing, game developers were increasing the game’s value to the player. Games like Super Mario Brothers, Castlevania and Mega Man are fondly remembered for offering hours upon hours of fun, spread across weeks and months of play. But these three games are actually very short. They used their extreme difficulty and their extreme form of punishment (start the whole game over!) to make up for their relatively short length. The challenge and nasty punishments didn't arise because game developers were masochists or didn't yet know how to tune their products. The titles were punishing out of necessity.

Of course, coin-op arcades also played a role. It was in a game's (and by extension, the arcade owner's) best interest to keep gamers staving off failure one quarter at time.

At home, the very same element that frustrated young you to no end in Castlevania (Go back to the beginning! AGAIN!) is also what made the game such a classic. Imagine if you could rewind time and amend your mistakes like Prince of Persia. You would have destroyed Dracula within a single afternoon. Sure you might have popped the cart back in once in a while to experience the awesome graphics or to replay the adventure, but would gamers still consider the title such a classic?

Castlevania-ville this wan't.

The penalty for failure contributed to Castlevania’s epic feeling. It made the boss battles much more harrowing. It caused you to shout out in joy when, on the brink of death, you found a hidden turkey. It made the adventure lengthier and more epic. Gamers might have hated it. But the game needed it. Without the looming threat of being sent back to the start, the turkey means nothing, and no one wants a meaningless turkey. No one.

Like Like many gamers, when I was young I would endlessly complain and moan about a game’s extreme punishments. But sometimes gamers like me can’t be trusted to accurately pinpoint what we want from a game. Even if a gamer insists they want an easier path, I believe what they really want is a challenge worth overcoming, and a penalty they fear enough to give them a rush when they avoid or overcome it.

In this same NES era, advances in technology allowed developers to push the entire video game category forward. As games grew in size, length and sophistication, it was no longer feasible to expect gamers to happily trudge back to the beginning when they failed. The increasingly complex nature of video games suddenly made the most accepted and established method of punishment (start over!) too severe. The punishment didn’t change; video games had changed. Game developers had to adjust.

What worked before simply wasn’t an option for games like Final Fantasy, Metroid or The Legend of Zelda. Luckily, through sheer ingenuity (password saves) and technology (battery back-up saves), game makers were able to soften the blow of failure and allow games to continue their slow march towards greater size, complexity, and ultimately accessibility.

 

When Games Lost Their Bite

As the game industry grew up and transcended the bedroom of teenage boys, in-game punishments lost their teeth. There are exceptions – for every friendly, take-you-on-an-adventure game like Journey there are shrewd, exacting experiences like Dark Souls. But generally speaking, games have had all their sharp corners rounded into nice, smooth curves to help ensure no one gets hurt.

There are examples everywhere you look. If you died in EverQuest in 1999 you were forced to return to your corpse to recover your lost items, and you also lost a big chunk of experience. By the time World of Warcraft launched in 2004, dying imposed no penalty on the player other than a small amount of repair money and a few minutes of downtime. A poorly handled engagement in a shooter like Doom of Half-Life would leave you permanently damaged and vulnerable, potentially causing you to lose a future firefight for a mistake you made many minutes before. But now permanent player health has been completely replaced with rapidly recharging health systems in virtually every major shooter.

I actually really don't have time to bleed.

The above examples are observations, not value judgments. I don’t yearn to return to the days of quicksaving every 30 seconds in Half-Life 2 to ensure every battle goes perfectly. Recharging health offers an elegant solution to the out-moded littering of every FPS level with health packs. And besides a few very specific exceptions (like arcade titles), the idea of actually starting a game over from scratch as a viable form of instructive player punishment seems ludicrous. Modern, more player-friendly gaming is undoubtedly an improvement in many ways.

Of course every rule is also made to be broken – plenty of incredibly successful high-score games like Temple Run and Super Hexagon force full restarts onto unwilling players. But it is undeniable that video games as a whole are friendlier now than ever before.

But it can be hard to judge how far developers can take player accommodation before something important is lost. How easy is too easy?

World of Warcraft was widely praised (and made Blizzard billions of dollars) because of its much more player-friendly policies. Bonus XP, rapidly recharging health, relaxed death penalties and more “user-friendly” designs contributed significantly to the game’s success. Professional gamers and casual players alike praised the changes. But how far is too far? In WoW, if instantly resurrected on the spot after death, wouldn't most people simply ask “what’s the point of death?” – obviously some sort of penalty is an absolute must.

And yet 2012’s Guild Wars 2 lowers the death penalty even further. Players can resurrect just a few seconds away from the fight and sometimes can re-join the same battle, essentially making failure impossible.

This trend obviously isn't exclusive to massively-multiplayer online games. 2006's Prey notably sent players to an undying purgatory of sorts to fight your way back to life. 2008's Prince of Persia reboot literally rescued you from death anytime you fell. Gears of War allows AI and co-op teammates to revive each other, and even the just-released Borderlands 2 features a "fight for you life" mechanic which allows you to return to partial health and leapfrog death if you score a kill before you bleed out.

 

What Happens When Failure Isn't an Option

To truly examine the impact a complete lack of punishments and failure states can have on video games, players need to look no further than the rise of Zynga and other social game makers. It’s not a coincidence that core gamers have such a deep and intense disdain for the entire category. It’s true that you hear complaints about how they make their money. You hear complaints about their spammy nature. But what underlies all of it is a low grumble that “they aren’t even actual games.”

This complaint is the perfect window into the mindset of a true gamer. It’s the perfect summation of why the potential to lose, and the punishment and inevitably follows, is absolutely essential to our enjoyment of games. Even though we don't like losing. Without the possibility to failure, there can be no success.

My crops may die, but I never will!

Despite the naysayers, Zynga’s games are actually incredibly complex. They feature elaborate storylines, detailed artwork and offer up collaboration with friends and strangers on a grand scale. What’s more, they give players an almost unprecedented level of freedom for self-expression. Despite all this, many core gamers don’t consider FarmVille a game because it is literally impossible to lose, even if one were to work at it. Try as you might, the game will keep giving you more coins. Your game will never truly be over. The worst you can ever experience is a farm plot full of withered crops.

Yet these “little” flash games with their lack of failure states or player punishments have managed to eclipse anything the else games industry has ever accomplished. At its peak, Zynga’s CityVille had 100 million active players.

But the verdict is still out on whether this truly represents a sea change for the video game industry. Zynga is on rocky ground, with many professional pundits beginning to wonder if the entire social game category is materializing into a massive fad.

The meteoric rise of Zynga, born on the backs of games that appease the player at every turn and never allowed them to fail, sent traditional game companies scrambling. But it now looks more and more likely that the basic psychology of failure used by game designers for decades hasn't actually been upended after all.

When I was little, I was once allowed to eat whatever I wanted for dinner. Eight-year-old me picked cookie dough, and I ended up with a terrible stomachache that lasted all night. It was too much of a good thing. It turns out I only tolerate cookies after a real, balanced meal.

Zynga’s recent fortunes might be proof writ large that game players don’t know what they want from a game’s difficulty. Just as eight-year-old me picked cookie dough for dinner (and would have picked an easier, friendlier Castlevania), Zynga’s casual game players have picked the company’s friendly fare over the more punishing titles the traditional game makers produce. It is very possible that the waning interest in social games is the latest proof of the maxim that players can’t be asked what they want – they sometimes need to be told what they want.

In one version of the future, a generation of gamers may never see a screen like this.

 

Why Fear is Good

 

Gamers want to be challenged. We want a game to bring us directly to the peak of our abilities and push us into a flow state. But I believe that this alone isn’t enough. Without a fear of punishment, a victory over a game feels hollow. Everyone absolutely loathes losing rare gear to the aforementioned unexpected patches of lava in Minecraft, but without that fear of loss, there is no tension. Exploring the creepy, blocky cave wouldn’t be as fun. Even though we don't like it, it makes Minecraft a better game.
Game makers have been pushing more “user-friendly” consequences and punishments onto players for as long as video games have existed. But this trend can’t continue indefinitely. If you follow that thread to its end, it terminates at the Zyngas of the world, with a library of “games” that aren’t games at all. They are colorful interactive distractions.

But if '80s gamers weaned on Castlevania and Mega Man were to skip ahead 30 years, would they view Gears of War or Uncharted any differently than gamers today view social titles? Both shooters feature the recharging health and checkpoint systems that gamers insist they don’t want to live without. But do we truly know what we want, or are we just eating too much cookie dough?
 

by Justin Davis

September 20, 2012

http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/09/20/why-gamers-are-gluttons-for-punishment

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Dump Internet Explorer Until Microsoft Issues Patch

If you use Internet Explorer 6, 7, 8 or 9 as your default browser on a Windows PC, security experts are advising you to use a different Web browser until Microsoft patches a critical vulnerability in IE. Microsoft on Monday confirmed that hackers were actively exploiting an IE vulnerability that could allow an attacker to take over your PC. The exploit does not affect users running IE10 on the Windows 8 Release Preview.
So far, Microsoft says it has received reports of “a small number of targeted attacks” using this exploit. The software maker is working on a security patch for the problem, but the company has not yet said whether it will issue a security update as soon as possible or as part of its monthly “patch Tuesday” update cycle. The next “patch Tuesday” would be October 9.
The exploit was made public on security firm Rapid7's Metasploit Project and first discovered in the wild by security researcher Eric Romang. Metasploit is advising users to dump IE until Microsoft issues a security update. The new IE security flaw was developed by the same group that created the recent Java zero day flaw, according to Metasploit.
Microsoft's Internet Explorer makes up about 48.75 percent of active Web browsers worldwide, according to Net Market Share.

The Exploit

Microsoft said the exploit makes it possible for a hacker to take advantage of corrupted memory in your system and execute malicious code on your PC. The end result is that, if attacked, a hacker would have the same control over your PC that you do. So if you login as an administrative user, which many Windows users do, then the hacker would be able to do everything you can including install or remove programs; view, change, or delete files; and even create new user accounts with full administrative rights.

How It Could Happen

For most home users, the exploit would require you to visit a malicious Website where the attack could be carried out. The attack is also possible via compromised sites that may have malicious advertisements on them or host user-provided content. The most likely scenario for getting hit with this exploit appears to be phishing attempts where a hacker attempts to trick you into visiting a malicious site.

What Microsoft Advises

While Microsoft is working on a patch for the new IE exploit, the software maker is advising users to employ a multi-step workaround including downloading and installing a security toolkit, and setting your Internet security zone settings via Tools>Internet Options>Security to “High.” The company is also advising you to configure Internet Explorer to either disable Active Scripting or prompt you before running any script. You can find out more details from Microsoft's security advisory.

Think About Switching, For Now

Employing this workaround will make it much harder to take advantage of the security threat, but it won't eliminate the problem entirely. That's a lot of hassle to go through just to mitigate but not eliminate a serious security flaw, which is why it might be more advisable to just dump IE until the problem is fixed.
Popular alternatives to Internet Explorer include Google's Chrome browser, Mozilla Firefox, and Opera.

By Ian Paul Sep 18, 2012 6:36 AM
http://www.pcworld.com/article/2010031/dump-internet-explorer-until-microsoft-issues-patch-security-experts-warn.html

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Nintendo Wii U

The Nintendo Wii U will launch in the US on Sunday, November 18, Nintendo America president and CEO Reggie Fils-Aime revealed in a New York City press conference this morning. It'll arrive in Europe on November 30, though no price was given for our friends abroad. Like its Japanese release, the console comes in two varieties: a base level bundle in white with just 8GB of internal memory for $300 and a premium bundle in black with 32GB of internal memory for $350.

Each version contains the console itself, a WiiPad, a charging stand, a play stand, and a stand for the console. The premium version, however, adds a subscription to Nintendo's Premium Network, which offers various rewards for digital purchases -- it also gets a full 32GB of internal memory, which is a pretty major step up over the 8GB model. It's hard to imagine either having enough internal storage compared with current-gen consoles, but the Wii U's memory is expandable via USB.

Fils-Aime also said that Wii remotes are getting rebranded for the Wii U, and will be available in retail shops shortly. Check out the official PR and an additional shot of the basic set after the break.

 

By Ben Gilbert posted Sep 13th 2012 10:03AM

http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/13/wii-u-price-date-us/ 

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GoDaddy offers users one month credit following service outage

GoDaddy customers are being given an apology and one month of free service after grappling with Monday's service snafu.

In an e-mail sent to GoDaddy users, the company's CEO Scott Wagner apologized for the outage that affected Web sites, e-mail availability, and other services.

"We let you down and we know it," the e-mail read. "We take our responsibilities -- and the trust you place in us -- very seriously. I cannot express how sorry I am to those of you who were inconvenienced."

To appease its customers, GoDaddy is kicking in a credit good for one month of service for all active and published sites. Customers can click on a link in the e-mail to redeem the credit but must take advantage of the offer within the next seven days.

GoDaddy is one of the biggest Web site hosting companies and also one of the largest domain registrars. So Monday's outage could have affected thousands, if not millions, of sites.

A hacker with the Twitter name "Anonymous Own3r" took credit for the outage. But GoDaddy attributed the cause to an internal network problem that corrupted the data tables used by its routers. After finding the issue, the company was able to get its service back up. GoDaddy has assured customers that no credit card data, names, addresses, or passwords were compromised.

The company also promises to learn from its mistakes.

"Throughout our history, we have provided 99.999% uptime in our DNS infrastructure," the e-mail added. "This is the level of performance we expect from ourselves. Monday, we fell short of these expectations. We have learned from this event and will use it to drive improvement in our services."

by Lance Whitney

September 12, 2012 8:29 AM PDT
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57511288-93/godaddy-offers-users-one-month-credit-following-service-outage/

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William Moggridge

The next time you hinge open that notebook PC and smile at a feature that makes it easier to use, give a thought to Bill Moggridge, who passed away Saturday from cancer at the age of 69. The pioneering designer invented the modern clamshell design seen in all modern laptops, and is also viewed as the father of human interaction software design.

The Compass Computer he designed for Grid Systems with the screen folded over the keyboard appeared in 1981, flew on the space shuttle, and inspired virtually every notebook design since. Perhaps more importantly, when he tried to use the machine himself, Moggridge was exasperated with the difficulty and decided to take the human factor into account for software design. To that end, he engaged experts from fields like graphics design and psychology, and tried to "build empathy for the consumer into the product," according to former partner, Professor David Kelly. The pair merged their design firms to form Ideo in 1991, and worked with clients like Apple, Microsoft and Procter & Gamble, designing products like the first Macintosh mouse and Palm V handheld along the way.

In 2010, Moggridge became the director of the Smithsonian's Cooper-Hewitt Museum in New York, and was a recipient of that institution's lifetime achievement award. He also won the Prince Philip Designer's Prize, the longest running award of its type in the UK, given for "a design career which has upheld the highest standards and broken new ground." See why that's true by going to Cooper-Hewitt's tribute video, right after break.

By Steve Dent posted Sep 10th 2012 10:03AM

http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/10/william-moggridge-portable-computer-pioneer-dies/

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A Murder Is Announced

Well, it pains Linux Girl to have to write these words, but it looks like the "Death of Desktop Linux" story is back for another round.

Yes, after countless debates and discussions of the topic ad nauseum over the years -- the most recent being just a few short months ago, in fact -- it recently reared its ugly head again, like a zombie that just won't quit.
The culprit this time? None other than Miguel de Icaza, of GNOME and Mono fame.
The claim? Essentially, that Apple killed the Linux desktop.
Only problem is, FOSS fans can't seem to find any evidence that the crime ever happened.

'Then OS X Is on Life Support'

"Another one of these? Please," exclaimed Google+ blogger Linux Rants. "Now Apple killed the Linux desktop? No. I'm afraid not."
In fact, "the Mac OS in one form or another has been around since 1984, and in that time has managed to gain 6 to 7 percent market share," Linux Rants pointed out. "Linux has been around since 1991, and has managed to gain at least 1 to 2 percent market share. Probably more. Possibly much more, depending on who you ask.
"If desktop Linux is dead -- which I feel wholeheartedly that it is not -- then OSX is on Life Support and it's not looking good," he asserted.
The reality is that "this is a very exciting time for desktop Linux, with Windows 8 threatening to popularize it like we've never seen before, and gaming companies committing to supporting it unprecedented numbers," Linux Rants noted.
So "no, desktop Linux is not dead," he concluded. "It's had some difficulty gaining traction because it was a decade late to the Operating System market. Despite that, once it gets going it will be impossible to stop."

'It Seems to Be Working for Me'

Indeed, "if the Linux desktop is dead, why am I using it now?" asked Google+ blogger Kevin O'Brien. "It seems to be working for me as well as anything."
The real question, O'Brien suggested, "is what you want to accomplish. If it is total domination, with Linux having 100 percent of the desktop market, not only will that not happen, I wouldn't want it to happen.
"Monoculture never works well," he added. "So, I think de Icaza identifies some problems with development in Linux, but there's problems in everything."

'Killed? No Way.'

Blogger Robert Pogson took a similar view.
"Apple killed nothing," Pogson told Linux Girl.
Rather, "Apple's fanbois just wish they had 1K+ retail stores pushing product in China and India like Canonical has Dell doing," he explained. "They wish they were shipping more than 20 million PCs -- GNU/Linux will ship on that many PCs with Ubuntu next year. That leaves hundreds of other distros being installed by individuals and organizations on a global scale.
"Walmart Brazil barely sells any Apple products," Pogson added. "GNU/Linux and that other OS top them in popularity."
In short, "killed? No way," he concluded.

'We Have an Opportunity'

"I don't think Apple killed anything," consultant and Slashdot blogger Gerhard Mack agreed. "'Killed' implies a permanent state, and I don't think it's actually permanent -- I'm seeing more interest from my non-techie friends, and announcements such as the porting of Steam to Linux give me hope for the future."
De Icaza "is correct that the constant breakage caused by people completely rearranging interfaces and breaking apps on a constant basis set the Linux desktop back by years," Mack conceded. However, "he is completely out of line for blaming Linus for it."
Looking ahead, meanwhile, "the sad thing is that we have an opportunity to take market share, since Microsoft seems to be going out of their way to get rid of their entire userbase with Windows 8, but I don't think we will have a non Gnome 3/Unity distro ready in time to take advantage," he concluded.

'It's the Devs'

Slashdot blogger hairyfeet took an even stronger view.
"It's the devs," hairyfeet charged. "The devs can't stand bug fixing and instead would rather write something 'New!' even if it breaks compatibility, makes third party support impossible, and makes Linux drivers practically impossible to keep 100 percent functional past a single update."
Meanwhile, "you have Apple giving you 5 years of support, making sure their ABI doesn't break software so companies like AutoCAD and Photoshop can actually support them, in short they make it NICE for the user, what a concept!" he asserted. "And you still have the BSD underpinnings, so the old-school Unix heads can have their CLI and have a functional system too!"

'Dead on Arrival'

In fact, "the desktop distribution Linux community really has no concern as to whether it gets widespread adoption," opined Robin Lim, a lawyer and blogger on Mobile Raptor.
"In the past few months, maybe out of frustration, I have gone the same route," Lim explained. "I love my Linux distro, I use it, I benefit from it, but I do not bother to promote it with anyone anymore. This was some time after I got into a 'discussion' in a Linux forum about the issue of the need for change for widespread adoption -- the overwhelming response was, 'who cares?'"
So, "how can it win, when it is not even trying to fight?" Lim concluded. "Excellent article by Mr. Miguel de Icaza. But he is wrong about his conclusion: Mac OS did not kill Linux; Linux on the desktop was dead on arrival. His own article explains why."

'They Just Want Their Problems Solved'

Linux on the desktop has had "a number of important successes, but these are still very much niche cases," noted Chris Travers, a Slashdot blogger who works on the LedgerSMB project.
Breaking into the mainstream, however, "has not happened and it isn't about to happen," Travers opined. "Linux makes a great desktop tailored at each and every user, but nobody has really figured out how to make users see why they should consider a switch."
De Icaza's article focuses primarily on technical problems with the attempts thus far to bring Linux to the desktop, but "in the end this doesn't matter if you can't convince users to switch, and you can't do this by merely building a great desktop environment," he said. "It doesn't matter how great your desktop is, you have to find some way to sell the move to users, because moving operating systems is always a certain amount of trouble.
"If you don't market it," in other words, "you won't sell it," he added.
"People don't care what is technically best," Travers concluded. "They just want their problems solved."

By Katherine Noyes
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/A-Murder-Is-Announced-but-No-Corpse-Can-Be-Found-76067.html

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Bad Piggies

Imagine a world where everyone's evil and wears a goatee, while our avian allies from Angry Birds are actually the villains of the piece. That's the premise behind Bad Piggies, Rovio's newest productivity killer, which promises entirely new game mechanics (and no slingshots!). It'll arrive on iOS, Android and OS X on September 27th, with Windows and Windows Phone 8 versions following shortly afterward.

Press Release

Rovio to launch Bad Piggies on September 27!
Espoo, Finland- September 4, 2012 Rovio Entertainment, the creators of Angry Birds, today announced their newest game, Bad Piggies, launching September 27 for iOS, Android and Mac. This innovative game turns the franchise on its head by letting the fans play as the pigs – with all new, never-before-seen gameplay – and not a slingshot in sight!
"There's a lot of empathy towards the lovable enemies from the Angry Birds games, and we've been constantly asked: what about the pigs' side of the story?" said Mikael Hed, CEO of Rovio. "Bad Piggies gives you the chance to play as the second-most-loved characters in the Angry Birds universe, and explore this rich world through their green eyes."
The new game will launch on iOS, Android and Mac on September 27. Windows Phone, Windows 8 and PC versions will follow shortly.
"We've had a lot of fun creating a totally new and unique gameplay experience," said Petri Järvilehto, EVP Games at Rovio. "There's so much more to these pigs than what is seen in the Angry Birds games, and Bad Piggies is the first glimpse into what's going on in the imaginative and ingenious minds of the pigs."

By Daniel Cooper posted Sep 4th 2012 2:02PM

http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/04/bad-piggies/

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