Rumor: PS3 to Get Firefox Web Browser
Video game consoles like the PlayStation 3 aren’t exactly the most convenient way to surf the Web, but with all the connectivity and downloadable content available to consoles lately, Web browsing on consoles continues to grow. Of course, none of the browsers have a particularly useful browser built in, the PS3 included, which is what makes this new rumor so tantalizing: A source at Sony says the company is in talks with Mozilla to bring the Firefox browser to the PS3.
While a direct port of Firefox to a console like the PS3 would be a little cumbersome, a Firefox version designed specifically for use with a game pad would be a huge boon for Sony. It would make the PS3 even more...
Project Natal Release Date and Bundle Details Leaked
We’ve been impatiently waiting for the launch of Project Natal ever since it was unveiled at E3 last summer. Details about the release of the motion control device for the Xbox 360 have leaked out and it appears that we have a lot longer to wait.
Gaming publication MCV cites anonymous sources who say Natal’s controller-free camera interface will be shipping worldwide in November 2010. Yep, an entire year from now. The sources got the information from a secretive Microsoft tour of their British publishers and development studios.
Other leaked details from the tour include plans to have 5 million units ready to ship at release, including a mix of Natal only packages and Natal...
Amazon App Turns PC into a Kindle Reader
The culture of Kindle ebook owners has been a relatively small and closed community up until now. It’s not hard to see why: Only those with a Kindle ebook reader can view them. But the core audience for Kindle ebooks may grow much bigger now that Amazon has released an app that allows you to read Kindle ebooks on your computer. It also eases many of the concerns about DRM (digital rights management) restrictions on ebooks.
The Kindle for PC app allows users to read all the ebooks they purchase through Amazon’s Kindle Store on their computer with just as much ease as they did with the Kindle (an internet connection is obviously still necessary). But the point is that it could...
Spring Design Shows Alex in Pics and Video, Updates Lawsuit Against B&N
The Spring Design Alex has been operating in the shadows of the Barnes & Noble Nook ever since it was announced, despite a lawsuit claiming the Nook copies Alex technology. Today we finally have more than just a press release on the Spring Design Alex. Pictures and video of the device give us an idea of how the Alex works, and frankly, it has made us forget all about the Nook.
As you can see from the images, the secondary touchscreen on the Alex ebook reader is bigger and seems more vibrant than that of the Nook. It’s technically thicker than the Nook, but we’re talking about millimeter differences here, so it’s not an issue. But the pictures really don’t tell...
Spring Design Suing Barnes & Noble for Stealing Trade Secrets in Nook
When the Alex ebook reader was announced by Spring Design the day before the rumored dual-screen ebook reader was supposed to be announced by Barnes & Noble, we thought they were one and the same. Both were said to have an e-ink screen with a smaller touchscreen interface below. They turned out to be two separate devices, but Spring Design can’t help but notice how closely the Barnes & Noble Nook resembles the Alex. That’s why they’re suing Barnes & Noble for stealing trade secrets.
Spring Design says the Nook looks and operates so much like the Alex because Spring Design had shown the Alex to Barnes & Noble before the Nook was ever developed and the two...