Nokia on Tuesday released a teaser video showing off the remarkable camera included on a handset it plans to unveil next week at the annual Mobile World Congress trade Show in Barcelona, Spain. The device is thought to be a high-end Windows Phone with a 12-megapixel camera that has surfaced in a number of earlier reports. A new report on Wednesday claims that Nokia has plans to announce a new cheaper Windows Phone at the show next week as well, however, suggesting that the Finnish phone maker plans to address multiple market segments with its Windows Phone announcements once again. Read on for more.

During the Nokia’s first round of Windows Phone announcements, the vendor unveiled the high-end Lumia 800 and the entry-level Lumia 710, an affordable handset currently available for just $39.99 on contract from T-Mobile in the United States. The company then unveiled a second high-end Windows Phone at last month’s Consumer Electronics Show, the AT&T-bound Lumia 900. Now, Reuters reports that Nokia will take the wraps off the Lumia 610, “a new, cheaper smartphone using Microsoft’s Windows Phone software,” at next week’s conference.

Reuters also reaffirms earlier reports stating that Nokia plans to unveil an international version of the Lumia 900 set to launch on AT&T next month. It is likely that this high-end smartphone is the camera phone referenced in Nokia’s new teaser video, which follows below.

Google may be in the process of bringing its mobile operating system to desktop and notebook computers, according to a recent patent filing. The patent, which was discovered by Patently Apple, showcases desktop control features similar to Apple’s multitouch MacBook trackpad and Magic Trackpad. The current Android operating system has been designed for touch commands and actions, however in the future it may be expanded to support different means of control, Google said in the patent overview. Using a multitouch trackpad, a user can “directly interact with graphical elements located at the current pointer location as if they are using a touchscreen device, and perform traditional touchscreen operations (e.g., dragging/flinging content, scrolling).” Following Google’s acquisition of Motorola Mobility, it is believed that the Mountain View-based company will now explore a variety of new hardware products.

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We’re less than a week away from the Oscars award show this Sunday and Motorola’s planning to do a little special for nominees. They’ve introduced a special edition of the Motorola DROID RAZR MAXX. The device is the same internally but it has a red external chassis to give it that red carpet feel. It also comes with a fashion bag for women and a shaving bag and kit for men.

On top of that, they’ll be getting a Motorola ELITE Silve Bluetooth Headset. While these great and illustrious gifts won’t be available to the general public, Motorola’s giving five users a chance to win one of their own! Tomorrow, February 23rd, simply tweet the hashtag #RedCarpetRAZR. Visit Motorola’s twitter account for more details and read on for the full presser.

Feb. 22, 2012

LIBERTYVILLE, Ill. – Feb. 22, 2012 – Motorola Mobility, Inc. (NYSE: MMI) has added another layer of glitz and glamour to Hollywood’s biggest night, creating a special edition “Red Carpet” DROID RAZR MAXX by Motorola.

The phone, which will go out to select nominees and presenters at this year’s event, has twice the battery life of other smartphones. So, this Sunday, nominees with a DROID RAZR MAXX will have what they need to get through the big day – from the minute they wake up until the after-party champagne runs dry.

With its sleek design and vibrant 4.3-inch display, the phone will look every bit as good as the stars do walking the red carpet. And with DROID RAZR MAXX’s 8-megapixel camera and HD video recording, Hollywood’s elite can turn the camera back on the paparazzi and capture all the red carpet action from their perspective.

Plus, with up to 21 hours of talk time, the stars will have more than enough battery life to chat with the press, check in at home, surf the Web from their seats or Tweet to their adoring fans – all at lightning-fast speeds.

Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress nominees received the phone within a glamorous, gold sequined pouch, just big enough to keep the evening’s essentials. Nominees for Best Supporting Actor, Best Actor and Best Director were given a high-end shaving kit, so they can keep their faces as smooth, beautiful and chiseled-looking as ever.

We’ve also outfitted them with a Motorola ELITE SLIVER Bluetooth® headset small enough to conceal – and stylist-approved.

For mere mortals who don’t appear on the silver screen, they’ll have a chance to get their hands on a special edition “Red Carpet” DROID RAZR MAXX by Motorola with a Twitter sweepstakes that kicks off Thursday, February 23. Five fans have the chance to win their own device online by retweeting #RedCarpetRAZR. For additional details, visit www.twitter.com/motorola.

About Motorola Mobility
Motorola Mobility, Inc. (NYSE:MMI) fuses innovative technology with human insights to create experiences that simplify, connect and enrich people’s lives. Our portfolio includes converged mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets; wireless accessories; end-to-end video and data delivery; and management solutions, including set-tops and data-access devices. For more information, visit motorola.com/mobility.

Continue reading Razer Blade review

Razer Blade review originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Feb 2012 16:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Take a look at the Android market, Google Docs fans – Google has just issued a pretty nice update. The biggest change, by far, is the addition of real-time document collaboration that desktop users have been enjoying for quite some time. Alongisde that, we’ve got an improved editor, support for rich text formatting, layout tools and cursor presence to know where you and your collab buddies are in any given document. You’ll want to get this massive update right away so make no delay. [via Google]

Those of you waiting for the official upgrade to Android 4.0 for both the Acer Iconia Tab A100 and Acer Iconia Tab A500 can cut the wait short with a little preview of what’s to come. Official builds have been leaked on XDA, and although there doesn’t appear to be any major issues, it’s worthy to note that this build may not be final. And it does break root. If you’re OK with all of that and want to see what’s in store for the April OTA updates, head here (A100) and here (A500). [Thanks Jerry!]

Nokia bringing two Lumia devices to MWC next week? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A pair of workers who claim to have been poisoned by toxins in a Suzhou, China factory while assembling touchscreens for Apple’s iPhone have written an open letter begging consumers to demand reform. SumOfUs, the organization behind the Ethical iPhone Campaign, released the letter in an email to the media on Wednesday afternoon. The letter was written by Guo Rui-qiang and Jia Jing-chuan, two former factory workers who urge consumers to sign SumOfUs’s petition and demand that Apple force its suppliers and manufacturing partners to improve working conditions at their Chinese factories. Both workers claim to have been poisoned by a chemical cleaner called N-hexane, and they have suffered neurological damage as a result. The Fair Labor Association is currently conduction inspections of two Foxconn factories, prompted by Apple, and while only preliminary inspections have been made at this point, the organization says it has already found “tons of issues.” The workers’ letter follows below in its entirety.

Dear SumOfUs Members and Friends -

You don’t know us but you have seen our work. Until recently, we worked long hours assembling Apple’s iPhone touch screens in Suzhou, China.

In early 2010, it was independently confirmed that 137 workers, including us, were poisoned by a chemical called n-hexane which was used to clean iPhone screens. N-hexane is known to cause eye, skin and respiratory tract irritation, and leads to persistant nerve damage. Apple admitted to gross labour rights violations more than a year later.

If more people know about what we went through, Apple will feel pressured to change so other workers don’t have to suffer like we did.

Can you share this letter with your friends, and ask them to join you in signing our petition calling for a reform of working conditions at their factories?

We have been pressuring Apple, and its new CEO Tim Cook, for years to compensate those of us who were injured working for them, and demanding reform of working conditions at their Chinese factories so that their workers don’t suffer like we do. Now we need your help as customers or potential customers of Apple.

We need your help to send a message to Apple before their shareholder meeting on Thursday, Feb. 23rd. We want to see a strict corporate social responsibility and reform of the audit system to prevent similar tragedies in the future. He will listen to you as current or potential consumers.

You’ve already signed the petition, and 82,000 others have too — for that, we thank you. We believe it’d be symbolicly powerful if 100,000 people signed the petition before SumOfUs delivers it to Tim Cook on Thursday at their shareholder meeting. We’re really close to that goal, but we need you to share our request with your friends to get over the edge.

Can you share our letter with your friends, and ask them to sign the petition too?

It has been over two years since many of us were hospitalized and treated but our debilitating symptoms continue. Rui-Qiang still can’t find work because he can no longer stand for the long hours most jobs require. Jing-Chuan has to spend nearly $100 a month on health supplements.

But with all of us working together to pressure Apple to change, we can make sure what happened to us doesn’t happen to others too.

-       Guo Rui-qiang and Jia Jing-chuan

The slide-making masses have spoken and Google’s dutifully listened. After launching presentations for Docs as a preview last October, the search giant’s making that editor ready for prime time with a few user-suggested tweaks in tow. In addition to the recently introduced slew of transitions, themes, tables and collaborative options, Mountain View’s now tossing in the ability to make, edit and resolve comments, send email notifications, as well as control read / write privileges for outside users. And don’t worry about your old documents getting lost in the shuffle; a new import setting will enable those visual gems to benefit from this new facelift. Check out the source below for a fuller walk-through or catch the instructional vid after the break.

Continue reading Google Docs presentations slides out of preview, adds import and comment options (video)

Google Docs presentations slides out of preview, adds import and comment options (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Whether you’re fan of Apple products or not, there is no denying the influence Steve Jobs had on the world. Simon Lau — a freelance Web, iPhone and iPad developer — built a tribute to Mr. Jobs using Facebook’s Timeline feature. Facebook’s Timeline replaces a user’s traditional profile page with life events, check-ins, new friends additions, photos and more, all listed in chronological order. Lau’s Timeline of Jobs, which was promptly removed by Facebook only to later be restored, features an array of photos and life events that highlight the Apple co-founder’s time on Earth. Hit the break for a video showcasing Steve Jobs’s Timeline.

[Via Gizmodo]

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