Amazon Cloud Player review: functional, not mind blowing, and still US-only

It's hard to believe: our world-spanning network, our Internet, which is the cornerstone of free speech and free society -- which, on a good day, is capable of causing populist revolutions -- is still crippled by banal geolocation restrictions. We are, of course, talking about Amazon's two latest offerings, both of which are only available in the United States. Last week it was the excellent Android Appstore for Android, and today it's the Amazon Cloud Player for Web and Android.

Along with Cloud Player, Amazon also launched Cloud Drive, which is basically just like any other cloud storage digital locker. It's not particularly feature rich, and there's no real reason to use it over something like SugarSync or SkyDrive -- it does work outside the US, however.

Its primary purpose, as far as we're concerned, is that it stores your your Cloud Player music in a subdirectory. You get 5GB of Cloud Drive storage for free, and then it's $1 per gigabyte per year if you need more space.

The Amazon Cloud Player itself will not, to put it bluntly, blow your mind. It works, but it's very much an early, and possibly rushed, release. Let's dive in to the Web and Android players for a closer look.

Gallery: Amazon Cloud Player and Cloud Drive: on Web and Android

Continue reading Amazon Cloud Player review: functional, not mind blowing, and still US-only

Amazon Cloud Player review: functional, not mind blowing, and still US-only originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 29 Mar 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/03/29/amazon-cloud-player-hands-on-review-functional-not-mind-blowin/

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ETC: Vanity Fair asks auto writers what car they'd buy for $100k

Filed under: Convertible, Coupe, Budget, Sedan, Performance, Etc., Crossover, Electric

As automotive writers, we're always asked what our favorite cars are or which cars we would buy if we had the money. To answer the latter query, Vanity Fair writer Brett Berk polled 13 scribes to see what they'd pick for under $100,000. An interesting mix of vehicles ensues. Some of the choices stretched the imaginary budget to its max while others went all bang-for-the-buck on us, but what's most surprising about the list is that more than half the cars on it are not available with a manual transmission.

Of course cars like the Porsche 911, Ford Mustang and a couple of Mercedes-Benz AMG cars make the cut, but there were also a handful of choices that caught us off guard. Jonny Lieberman of Motor Trend chose the Subaru BRZ, Autoblog weekend editor Alex Nunez would love commuting in a brown Tesla Model S Performance, and Jake Fisher of Consumer Reports picked the Hyundai Veloster... non-turbo!

Here's the full list of what these 13 auto writers would take home if given a sub-$100,000 car:

• Mercedes-Benz E63 Wagon
• Audi A7
• Mini John Cooper Works Convertible
• Porsche 911 Carrera S
• Hyundai Veloster
• Porsche Cayenne S Hybrid
• Mercedes-Benz CLS63 AMG
• Jaguar XF Supercharged
• Lotus Evora
• Subaru BRZ
• Tesla Model S Performance
• Ford Mustang Boss 302
• Land Rover Range Rover Evoque

So what do you say? If you could buy ANY new car priced under $100,000, which would you choose? Let us know in the comments below.

Vanity Fair asks auto writers what car they'd buy for $100k originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 29 Sep 2012 19:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2012/09/29/vanity-fair-asks-auto-writers-what-car-theyd-buy-for-10/

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Windows Phone Is Taking Share From RIM, But It’s Still Nowhere Near Breaking Through The Android/iOS Stronghold: Research

Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, the WPP-owned market research group, today released its latest 12-week smartphone sales figures across the key markets in Europe, the U.S. and elsewhere, and the figures show that Microsoft's Windows Phone platform is definitely making some progress, and in at least one case, in Italy, overtaking RIM as the fourth-largest smartphone OS in terms of actual sales. But it has a long way to go before getting enough critical mass to challenge the combined dominance of Google's Android and Apple's iOS in the smartphone race. Combined, the latter two are currently accounting for 93% of sales in markets like the U.S. Kantar Worldpanel analyst Dominic Sunnebo tells TechCrunch that smartphone penetration in the UK is now at 57.6%, while the U.S. penetration is 42% (that includes both prepaid and postpaid).

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/QZ0mb5xnaac/

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webOS 3.0 beta now available to developers

With the webOS 3.0 SDK available for almost two months, HP has now given developers access to a beta download of webOS 3.0 -- which powers the upcoming TouchPad and will likely ride along on HP desktops and laptops in the form of an emulator.

Right now, the webOS 3.0 beta is only available to Early Access developers. The crew at PreCentral states that HP appears to have eased up on access restrictions, however, so hopefully more devs will get on board and those of you who are planning to buy a TouchPad in the next couple months will have plenty of slick webOS 3.0 apps to install on your new tablet.

webOS 3.0 beta now available to developers originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 31 Mar 2011 09:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/03/31/webos-3-0-beta-now-available-to-developers/

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CyanogenMod resurrects OTA updates for latest CM10 nightly builds

CyanogenMod ROMs give Android users the latest Ice Cream Sandwich or Jelly Bean treats to their otherwise-neglected smartphones, and it's mostly open-source except for one piece: the boarded-off ROM Manager. To remedy that, the modding organization is bringing its OTA updater back from the CM5 and 6 graves, letting users pull updates straight to their devices. Notice we say "pull," because pushing would require the Google Apps framework, which the CM updater won't have. However, as the screen above shows, you'll be able to set a timeframe to check and grab the latest versions directly from CyanogenMod's servers, and after flashing yesterday's CM10 ROM, we can confirm that the software is working on our Galaxy S. That'll bring a much-needed dose of simplicity to upgrading CM firmware and make all that modding slightly more mainstream.

Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile

CyanogenMod resurrects OTA updates for latest CM10 nightly builds originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 01 Oct 2012 07:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/10/01/cyanogenmod-resurrects-ota-updates/

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Evoluce Win&I brings Kinect gesture controls to Windows 7

We've been looking at some pretty cool Kinect and Windows interactions for a while now, but we were hoping that the release of an official SDK would lead to even more coolness. Evoluce has stepped up, and is now offering Win&I -- a full-featured gesture control system for Windows 7.

The company claims that a range of up to four meters is supported, which should be perfect for just about any home theater setting. In the video embedded after the break, you can see an Evoluce demonstrator flip through a photo album, pan through a map, rearrange application windows, browse the Web, and control media playback. Two versions of Win&I are offered -- the home version goes for about 20 Euros, the business version for 40.

Anyone else having fun pretending his stance is a little "Iron Man"? We're tempted to put a repulsor on that hand.

Continue reading Evoluce Win&I brings Kinect gesture controls to Windows 7

Evoluce Win&I brings Kinect gesture controls to Windows 7 originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 01 Apr 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/04/01/evoluce-winandi-controls-windows-7-with-a-kinect-sensor/

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Windows 8 wallpaper available to download, Jupiter and Twin UI spotted

With Windows 8 milestone 3 now up for grabs for select Microsoft Connect partners, it's inevitable that leaked bits and pieces will start popping up around the Web. In fact, the first "official" wallpaper image from the still-brewing OS is already making the rounds.

As you can see, it's got a similar feel to the good ol' Windows 7 default background, but features a more subdued smattering of cerulean hues. Those of you who want to use the Windows 8 wallpaper on your current desktop can download it from our file dump.

A few other details have been revealed, too. According to ZDNet's source, the Windows 8 Jupiter libraries and Twin UI are starting to take shape -- though all that's been located thus far are "[various files] scattered throughout the OS" and the aptly-named twinui.dll.

Windows 8 wallpaper available to download, Jupiter and Twin UI spotted originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 31 Mar 2011 10:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/03/31/download-windows-8-wallpaper/

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