After many months of secrecy regarding their touchscreen tablet, it looks as if HP has finally come up with a name for their iPad contender, one that may please the Palm Pre masses.

HP’s been extremely direct in saying that it plans to release webOS tablets and other devices in the future, and now that the Palm acquisition is complete, it looks like those plans are starting to move forward — the company just filed a trademark application for “PalmPad,” which certainly sounds like a webOS tablet to us. (via Engadget) More →

RIM isn’t too thrilled with Apple’s latest press conference in which Steve Jobs was able to “duplicate” antennategate upon a respective Blackberry device.

RIM’s co-CEO’s Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie decided to issue a joint statement which accuses Steve Jobs of lying about Blackberry’s signal woes (at least when compared to the iPhone 4).

Apple’s attempt to draw RIM into Apple’s self-made debacle is unacceptable. Apple’s claims about RIM products appear to be deliberate attempts to distort the public’s understanding of an antenna design issue and to deflect attention from Apple’s difficult situation. RIM is a global leader in antenna design and has been successfully designing industry-leading wireless data products with efficient and effective radio performance for over 20 years. During that time, RIM has avoided designs like the one Apple used in the iPhone 4 and instead has used innovative designs which reduce the risk for dropped calls, especially in areas of lower coverage.

One thing is for certain, RIM’s customers don’t need to use a case for their BlackBerry® smartphone to maintain proper connectivity. Apple clearly made certain design decisions and it should take responsibility for these decisions rather than trying to draw RIM and others into a situation that relates specifically to Apple. (Inside Blackberry) More →

Like their iFoes before them, it looks like Android lovers will finally have a lighter phone to compete against the ever so elusive white iPhone 4.

HTC is releasing a white EVO 4G phone, which may appeal to the geeks who want to stand out from the masses and appear “hip” at the same time.

Now available in black and exclusive white online and in select stores.

Get ready for a rich, mobile Internet experience at Sprint 4G** speeds. The feature-packed HTC EVO 4G gives you the power to quickly download music, photos, files or videos in seconds. Stream video or create your own content and upload your creations to your favorite social network. (Best Buy)

Emphasis: Mine.

Unfortunately it looks as if HTC may be suffering from white smartphone shortage (something Apple is dealing with) which may have something to do with demand or material (or perhaps both?).

While many of my Android friends will probably clamor over this beauty, personally I find white smartphones (regardless of manufacturer) more of a irritation due their ability to attract “stains” due to their lighter color.

Either way its good to finally see HTC attempt to match Apple’s white iBeauty in the wild, even if the former lacks FaceTime.

Like every geek in the universe, my eyes have been glued to the press conference that was live blogged to the masses about the iPhone 4 antennae issue.

Instead of approaching the world mournfully, Apple came out swinging, and decided to replicate “antennaegate” upon their rivals smartphones, as well as mention how happy their users were via stats.

Apple also decided out of the goodness of their iHeart to hand out free bumpers (which Apple admitted they do not have enough of) or free iPhone cases from third parties.

Apple however seems to be hinting that the free bumper/case deal may not last forever by stating:

10:53AM Q: On the September 30th date, is that to let people know that you’ll have to buy a case?

Steve: Not really, we’ll reevaluate then. Maybe we’ll have a better idea. Maybe Eminem will come out with a band-aid that goes over the corner and everyone will want that. (Engadget)

Apple will probably end up creating their own iCase in the future, although they may end up selling it for really cheap (perhaps for a few dollars) if they decide that free isn’t the way to go.

While the free bumper/iCase will help Apple kill off the antennae issue, time will only tell whether the Cupertino company will rebound after this fiasco (although with the launch of the upcoming iPad in January, chances are that they probably will).

Despite the allure of an Android tablet, truth be told the Google OS lacks the elegance and user interface to match iOS which powers Apple’s iPad (even if the former would potentially pack a lot more power).

What the world needs is an iChallenger who can take on Steve Jobs greatest creation and actually come out victorious (or at the very least a close second).

As far as this author can tell, that company may in fact be Hewlett Packard (also known as HP).

HP has a unique vantage point of the whole tablet market. They haven’t released a model yet. Instead of simply outing an iPad alternative right away, they are taking their time and are doing it right. They might have even bought Palm for over a $1 billion dollars just for the spectacular webOS platform with the tablet market in mind. [...]

The interface complete with its sliding cards and unifying goal should be up to the task. WebOS even does web browsing slightly better than Android. But more importantly, HP now owns Palm and webOS meaning the can shift huge resources into developing stellar apps. (CrunchGear)

Although the webOS is impressive, what HP currently lacks right now is a large developer community that can churn out webOS apps faster than Apple can say “your app has been approved.”

HP also needs to make sure that their upcoming slate can also out last the iPad when it comes to battery life, which is a major selling point to users existing outside of the world of geek.

While HP’s entrance into the tablet world will probably make choosing a large touch screen device more difficult (at least for the average consumer), it would help bring some much needed competition to the space as not everyone is a fan of all things Cupertino.

Despite their glorious iDevice being second to none, it looks like Apple will be holding a press conference tomorrow (at 10 AM PDT) in order to address the antennae issue in an attempt to salvage their brand after Consumer Reports gave the iPhone 4 the kiss of death.

The only questions that remain are “what will Apple say? And can I have a free bumper with that?”

Apple on Wednesday invited select press to a special press conference to be held this Friday in California.

Apple would only say that the press conference would be regarding the iPhone 4. No other information was available when I spoke with them tonight. (The Loop) More →

After buying YouTube in 2006, it looks as if the search engine giant has finally decided to do away with YouTube accounts, and force all of their users to accept assimilation into the Google account universe or find a new home.

In May 2009, we started requiring all new YouTube usernames to be powered by Google Accounts.

Now, we’re gradually asking all remaining pre-May 2009 users still using the older YouTube account system to connect a Google Account to their YouTube username. For now, it’s an optional step, but eventually it’ll be required in order to continue using your YouTube username. (Official YouTube Blog)

Although the Google account assimilation makes sense, a few stubborn YouTube elders (or those who had a YouTube account before Google took over) will probably not be thrilled with this news, despite the logic of a universal account system.

This will probably help free up more time and energy for Google’s security team as well (who are probably tired of supporting dual account logins).

Unlike it’s iPhone 4 brother, the iPad continues to enjoy success in the hands of everyone who possesses one.

Unfortunately for Apple, it’s rivals are once again full of iJealousy, which means that we may see a decent Android tablet (pictured on the right) later on this year.

Samsung’s next buzzy product launch will likely be its tablet computer, dubbed Galaxy Tab. The touchscreen device is said to sport two cameras for video conferencing, as well as GPS, Wi-Fi and a 3G data connection. Because it also runs Android, the tablet will be able to communicate and share content and applications with Samsung’s Galaxy S phones. Samsung says the tablet will go on sale before October. (Forbes) More →

With Google Me rumors picking up over the last several weeks yet another rumor has begun to make the rounds. This time it’s being said that a dedicated Google research team has been charting Social Networking functions to gain a better understanding of social media intricacies.

Apparently the researchers efforts include a 216-slide presentation with footnotes which has been posted on SlideShare. The slideshow is being used to help all people involved with Google Me build the new system, including designers, interface designers, programmers and other people involved not just with Google Me but with the social web as a whole. More →

Alas, how the mighty have fallen! Despite Apple’s claims that the antenna issue was nothing more than a software glitch, it looks like Consumer Report is siding with “our lying eyes” and declaring that iPhone 4 has a serious design flaw that hinders its ability to be used as a mobile phone.

When your finger or hand touches a spot on the phone’s lower left side—an easy thing, especially for lefties—the signal can significantly degrade enough to cause you to lose your connection altogether if you’re in an area with a weak signal. Due to this problem, we can’t recommend the iPhone 4. [...]

Our findings call into question the recent claim by Apple that the iPhone 4′s signal-strength issues were largely an optical illusion caused by faulty software that “mistakenly displays 2 more bars than it should for a given signal strength.”

The tests also indicate that AT&T’s network might not be the primary suspect in the iPhone 4′s much-reported signal woes. (Consumer Reports)

Once news of this broke, Apple’s stock took a nose dive, losing about $9 billion as rumors or recalls started echoing the blogosphere.

But what was devastating about this report was not the fact that Consumer Report confirmed what people were already saying about the iPhone 4, but rather their solution to the problem (as you can view in this video below). More →