If you were bold enough to buy a Developer Edition HTC One or its unlocked sibling, today is your lucky day. HTC's US division has announced that it's rolling out an Android 4.4 KitKat upgrade to both One variants, weeks ahead of the expected update for carrier-locked models. Sense 5.5 should also be a part of the package. While the KitKat upgrade isn't reaching these units as quickly as it did for the Google Play Edition, it's safe to say that many One owners will have another reason to celebrate this Thanksgiving weekend.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, HTC

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Source: HTC USA (Twitter)

Street photography is the purest, most spontaneous way to create art with a camera. No studios, no props, no poses; all you need is the right equipment and a street with people on it. In this original series for Engadget, we'll follow three seasoned street fighters and try to glean some practical wisdom about what engages their eyes, brains and fingers in the moments before they shoot.

In part one, we focus in on Antonio Zazueta Olmos -- a street photographer who has learned to rely on manual exposure to capture the images he wants, rather than making use of the ever-smarter, ever-quicker automatic settings available on the latest digital cameras.

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This is an especially good year for gamers: With major consoles from Microsoft and Sony debuting just in time for the holidays, there are some pretty obvious items to add to the wish list. If hand-held gaming is more your thing, don't fret; we've got you covered, too.

Filed under: Gaming, Sony, Microsoft, NVIDIA

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Jolla's self-titled and first smartphone launched in partnership with Finnish carrier DNA this week, with a few hundred handsets finding their way to early pre-orderers. Today, a couple of familiar faces from the company stopped off in London to let us play with the final hardware and get to grips with Jolla's Sailfish OS, which is based somewhat on Nokia's old MeeGo platform. If you caught our tour of the Jolla prototype earlier this year then you've got a good idea of what the handset looks like. In fact, the only differences we can see aesthetically are slightly smaller bezels above and below the screen, and that the rear camera has moved from right flank to center stage. Internally, the core specs are: A 1.4GHz dual-core Snapdragon 400 (MSM8930), 1GB of RAM, 16GB of storage space (expandable), a 4.5-inch, 960x540 (qHD) IPS LCD display, an 8-megapixel rear camera and 2-megapixel shooter on the front. We only had a few hours to probe Jolla's first device, but head past the break for our initial impressions.%Gallery-slideshow124244%

Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile

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Whether you've decided to spend the day battling bargain hunters for an insanely low-priced wafflemaker or just chillin' by the warm glow of your computer screen watching the mayhem unfold, we've got a little surprise for you. We've managed to snag a brand new Sony 55-inch 4K Ultra HD TV and we're giving it away to one lucky Engadget reader. Those who passed by Sony's booth at Expand NY earlier this month can attest to the fact that 4K really is a thing to behold. So don't push, don't shove, but do head on down to the Rafflecopter widget below for your chance to win. Of course, a prize of this size does have some region restrictions, so be sure to check the rules before entering. Good luck and stay safe out there!

Filed under: Announcements, HD, Mobile, Alt, Sony

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We've seen single-pixel cameras, and now MIT researchers have figured out how to create clear images of dimly-lit objects using single photons -- in 3D, no less. The technique doesn't involve any fancy new hardware, either, as the team worked with a standard photon detector that fired low-intensity visible laser light pulses. The magic happens from the algorithms they developed instead, which can pick out variations in the time it takes for individual photons to bounce off of subjects. After the software separated the noise (as shown above) the result was a high-res image created with about a million photons that would have required several hundred trillion with, say, a smartphone camera. That'll open up new possibilities for low-energy surveying, for instance, or even spy cameras that could virtually see in the dark -- because no laser research project is complete with a sinister-sounding military application.

Filed under: Cameras, Science, Alt

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Source: Nature

Some shipwrecks are too costly or dangerous for humans to explore, but many underwater robots are too disruptive and unwieldy to serve as substitutes. The Tallinn Institute of Technology's new U-CAT mapping robot solves that dilemma by imitating one of the ocean's more graceful creatures: the sea turtle. The small machine uses flippers to get around instead of propellers, preventing it from kicking up silt (which would obscure its camera) and letting it turn on a dime. It's also autonomous, which helps it venture deep into a wreck without worrying about cables. It's sure to have a big impact on underwater archaeology, and you can see it in person if you swing by the London Science Museum between November 28th and December 1st. However, It will eventually map shipwrecks in the Baltic and Mediterranean Seas as part of the EU's ARROWS Project, providing more detail than any diver could manage.

[Image credit: Tallin University of Technology, Flickr]

Filed under: Robots, Science

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Source: Tallinn University of Technology, ARROWS Project

If you've been mulling the latest Apple gizmo but wince at the prices, today could be the day to act. That's because Cupertino's offering UK discounts of up to £81 on the latest and greatest iMac or MacBook models and £31 off of the iPad Air. Other iPad models are discounted too, and you can score a deal on the iPod Touch or accessories like the Parrot AR drone. As for the US and Canada, gift cards are being handed out in lieu of cash off, including $75 offerings on the iPad Air, $150 for iMacs and MacBooks and $50 for an iPod Touch. As for the rest of the EU, other countries like France and Germany are seeing similar cash discounts to their UK counterparts on the same products. Not everything is on sale, though. For instance, the iPad Mini with Retina display is still full price. Still, if your iProduct trigger finger's been feeling itchy lately, hit the source.

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops, Tablets, Apple

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Almost two years after it updated its privacy policy, Google is still facing the wrath of European watchdogs. The Dutch Data Protection Authority (DPA) has just ended a seven-month investigation into the search giant's practices and, similar to rulings in the UK and France, has deduced that Google isn't doing enough to inform users about the data it "collects and combines." The DPA accuses Google of spinning an "invisible web of our personal data without our consent" with its Search, Gmail and YouTube services, which it states in no uncertain terms "is forbidden by law." It's another knock for Google, which has found itself under investigation by a total of six European privacy authorities after French privacy regulator CNIL initiated action on their behalf last year. Google has said that it "respects European law," but its commitment will be tested at the Dutch DPA's upcoming hearing, after which the authority will decide it wants to take "enforcement measures" against the company.

Filed under: Internet, Google

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Via: Techie News

Source: Dutch DPA

Ever want to test a Chrome Web Store app without installing it? You may get your chance if a new Chromium feature find its way into Google's commercial browser. Mountain View is experimenting with support for "ephemeral" apps that launch like regular Web Store titles, but don't leave a footprint in Chrome or Chrome OS. Users wouldn't even have to visit the Web Store in the first place -- a recent Chromium build lets surfers launch an app directly from a Google search result page. There's no certainty that the new try before you buy (or at least, try before you glorified bookmark) capability will actually land in Chrome's stable channel, but it certainly wouldn't surprise us.

Filed under: Internet, Software, Google

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Via: The Next Web

Source: Francois Beaufort (1), (2)

Georgia Tech researchers believed that tongue-controlled devices could help the disabled, and now they have solid proof. A new study shows that the school's wearable Tongue Drive System lets the paralyzed control wheelchairs three times faster than they would using an ordinary breath-based approach. The speediness is due to TDS' intuitive design, Georgia Tech says -- wearers use a magnetic piercing in their tongue as a joystick, which is both faster and more logical than puffing into a straw. It's subtler, too, as wearers don't block their faces with as much equipment. Trials have so far been limited to hospitals and labs, but the findings pave the way for real-world tests. Eventually, Georgia Tech hopes for widespread use that improves tetraplegics' mobility -- and gives them more control over their lives.

Filed under: Transportation, Wearables, Alt

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Source: Georgia Tech

You likely won't know Germany's Gigaset unless you've bought one of its cordless phones, but you may want to take notice now that the company is launching its first tablets. Both the 8-inch QV830 and 10-inch QV1030 have relatively upscale aluminum shells and run stock Android 4.2, all the while targeting very different audiences. The QV1030 is the high-speed flagship with a 1.8GHz quad-core Tegra 4 processor, a 2,560 x 1,600 display, 16GB of expandable storage and both 8-megapixel rear as well as 1.2-megapixel front cameras. The QV830 aims at a more frugal crowd with its 1.2GHz quad-core MediaTek chip, 1,024 x 768 screen, 8GB of expandable storage, 5-megapixel rear camera and 1.2-megapixel front shooter. Both slates should reach Germany in early December, starting at €199 ($271) for the QV830 and jumping to €369 ($502) for the QV1030. There's no word of an American launch, although we're not counting on it when Gigaset doesn't have much of a footprint in the US.

[Thanks, Martino]

Filed under: Tablets

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Via: Tabletsmagazine.nl (translated)

Source: Gigaset (1), (2), GlobeNewswire

Sony has been rather successful in selling the PlayStation 4, to the point where the PlayStation Network has strained under the load. To avoid making things worse, the company will be delaying some PSN features in Australia, Europe and New Zealand. For the first few days after the PS4 launch in these areas, friend activity will be disabled in both the What's New and content info sections. Activity will come back once the initial frenzy is over, Sony says. The decision won't make a big impact on gameplay when multiplayer and other core features will be available on day one, but it may catch a few players off-guard.

Filed under: Gaming, Sony

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Source: PlayStation Blog

Gionee isn't exactly a name that you'd come across in the Western market every day, but this time, the Chinese company has big global ambitions. The latest proof is its Elife E7, a 5.5-inch 1080p Android phone that boasts two titles: it's the first known phone featuring the 2.5GHz flavor of Qualcomm's Snapdragon 800 chip (MSM8974AC); plus it has the most sensitive 16-megapixel camera, courtesy of its Largan M8 lens (though the aperture is still unknown) and 1/2.3-inch sensor with large 1.34µm pixels. Compared to the competition, Gionee believes this particular OmniVision sensor has the best balance between resolution and pixel size, and the phone maker even went as far as claiming this already beats the 1.12µm, 16-megapixel counterpart on the yet-to-be-announced Galaxy S 5. Of course, we'll believe it when we get to properly test the E7's camera ourselves.

%Gallery-slideshow123339% %Gallery-slideshow123346%

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

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Source: Gionee (Chinese)

UK-centric news is plentiful today while America busies itself with feasts and football. One such announcement concerns the launch of Nokia's first tablet, the Lumia 2520, which will go on sale December 4th exclusively at John Lewis and affiliate stores. Running Windows RT 8.1, the colorful 10.1-inch tablet will cost £400, while the optional keyboard accessory will retail for an additional £150 when it becomes available "in the coming weeks" (although we can't say we were enamored with the typing experience in our review). Curiously, John Lewis' monopoly means you'll have to go to extra lengths to make use of the 2520's LTE radio by procuring a 4G data-only SIM from EE or O2. Thus, you also can't take advantage of any carrier subsidies. There's no word on exactly when the exclusivity period will end, but if you just have to have one, you know exactly where to go.

Filed under: Tablets, Microsoft, Nokia

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Welcome to the new Engadget, where the surprises never stop coming! In addition to the updated design and logo, we just recently launched some great new community tools for your consumption. They include profiles, discussions, user reviews, a gigantic product database, gadget lists and more. Basically, it's everything you need to stay plugged into the world of technology. So, how do you become an essential part of the Engadget community? Jump past the break to find out!

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Brits can't really complain about Freeview TV since it comes at no recurring charge, but it doesn't stop them tiring of the channel selection. Those who also aren't interested in signing on the dotted line with the likes of Virgin, Sky or YouView now have another way to perhaps cure their programming apathy with VuTV. Launched today, the new service adds 13 channels to compatible Freeview-equipped TVs or set-top boxes for a fee of £7 per month (no extended commitment necessary). VuTV manages to add these new channels via a selection screen hosted within a single Freeview channel, Inception-style. While it sounds like a fair deal, we're far from convinced it's worth the money, unless you're into MTV-made reality shows or have a house full of children to keep entertained. Then again, Comedy Central is a good pick-up on VuTV's part, and you can always take the two-week trial before throwing down any cash. Full channel list after the break.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

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Source: VuTV (Twitter), VuTV (website)

Pebble's slowly been expanding the places you can buy its e-paper smartwatch, but today it's landed at the biggest retailer of them all. Ahead of the Thankgiving celebrations, the company took to Twitter to announce the availability of the Pebble at Amazon, where you'll now be able to buy black and red models (rocking the new software update) for $148.99. While you'll still find them at Best Buy stores and sold by AT&T, Amazon's promise of free next-day Prime delivery might sway you if you're on a post-turkey impulse buying binge.

Filed under: Wearables, Mobile, Amazon

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Source: Amazon

BT has landed quite a few major sports broadcasting deals as of late, including its buyout of ESPN's British and Irish channels back in February. Today, it's extending its athletic empire with an exclusive arrangement to air NBA games in Ireland and the UK. The agreement will see BT Sport 1, BT Sport 2 and ESPN broadcast as many as seven live games per week, with some of them streaming through BT Sport's website and mobile apps. While there isn't a huge market for basketball in the country, the pact will make life much easier for diehard UK fans and American ex-pats -- they won't have to buy online passes or otherwise bend over backwards to keep up with their favorite NBA teams.

[Image credit: Getty]

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

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Source: BT

If you haven't noticed, Engadget has some new digs and there's a lot more going on than a fresh look. While you kick back and recover from holiday feasting, it's time to start thinking about what you're buying friends and family this year. We've got a suite of new tools to help make the shopping process a bit less painful. There's a lot to digest, but we've put together a helpful guide explaining all of Engadget's new features. Read on for everything you need to know.

Filed under: Announcements

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Now that Kim Dotcom's cloud storage service Mega is available to the public, it's finally found time to launch the iOS app it's been promising. The new app includes many of the same features as its Android counterpart, which has been available on Android for more than four months, including file previews and easy sharing. It currently lacks automatic camera syncing but that will come, along with iPad support, in a future update. What's next for Mega? It's on course to launch its Sync tool for Windows, Mac and Linux in the coming weeks, giving it time to concentrate on adding new security and messaging features to the cloud service in the new year.

Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile, Apple

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Source: Mega (App Store)

It took a while, but Virgin Media has finally brought its TV Anywhere service to Android. Already available on the iPhone and iPad for more than a year, the app comes to Android smartphones and tablets with nine new UK TV channels including Alibi, Dave, Drama, Good Food, Home, Really, Watch, Yesterday and CBS Reality. That takes the total number of mobile channels up to 67, with up to 90 available online. Virgin Media boasts it now offers more choice than rival service Sky Go, but like it's competitor, some might be frustrated by the patchy support for Android devices. Although you'll find support for Samsung's Galaxy S4 and Galaxy Note, HTC One, Sony Xperia Tablet Z and Google's Nexus tablets, you might experience issues if your device is running Android 4.4 KitKat. While you won't be able to install it on your Nexus 5 just yet, Virgin says more Android devices will join the line-up "in the very near future."

Filed under: Cellphones, Home Entertainment, Software, HD, Mobile

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Via: Virgin Media

Source: TV Anywhere (Google Play)

Remember all the fuss a couple years ago about Apple storing your location data from iPhone 4 handsets and the subsequent privacy lawsuits that resulted? Well, that's all amounted to nothing for four of the plaintiffs, as their claims have just been dismissed in court by none other than Judge Lucy Koh. She said that those folks failed to show they had relied on any alleged Apple misrepresentations, and suffered no harm in any case. Shortly after the allegations were made in 2011, Apple countered that it was just using the data to improve connection times, and the only thing it did wrong was keep it for too long. As a result, it ended up patching the problem so that the offending file only stored your information for a week, instead of a year. Despite Koh's ruling, Apple has paid out similar suits elsewhere, and still has up to 19 more to contend with stateside. Anyway, after what we've seen since then, the whole thing now seems downright quaint.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Apple

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Source: Reuters

US wireless industry group CTIA has announced that a stolen phone database launched last year by T-Mobile, AT&T, Sprint and Verizon is now final, including integration with international carriers. That'll let foreign operators block stolen US device activations, a bone of contention for law enforcement officials stateside. They complained that the list was having no impact on thefts, since organized crime groups were simply dumping devices overseas where their serial numbers couldn't be detected. Police would prefer to also see kill switches installed in handsets to truly put a dent in phone-knapping, but carriers have strenuously objected to that idea -- strictly out of self-interest, according to some. For its part, the CTIA said that the completed database at least means there are fewer countries where gangs can hawk their stolen wares. Still, as the carrier group pointed out, if a stranger asks to "borrow" your phone for directions, just, don't.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

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Source: CTIA