Previously, the $99 that Windows Phone devs paid annually to get access to the Marketplace covered up to five app submissions — but Microsoft looks like it’s willing to play ball in an effort to drum up more interest in third-party development ahead of Windows Phone 7’s release by chucking the five-app cap. Well, sort of — paid apps will have unlimited submissions, but free apps will still be limited to five per yearly cycle, with additional submissions running $19.99 each. Additionally, Microsoft is taking the wraps off its Trial API for helping developers enforce trial functionality prior to purchase, details on its push notification service, and a new option that lets publishes push their apps globally — to every localized store in the Marketplace’s reach — in one fell swoop. The company says that it has “listened to developers and responded to changing customer behavior to make Marketplace an even better experience for all,” and it certainly seems like a step in the right direction — but we’ll admit, we’d still love to see free app submissions go unlimited (what can we say, we’ve got a soft spot for freebies). Microsoft tweaks Windows Phone Marketplace policies for the better originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 07 Jun 2010 19:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
D on’t call it a comeback. Or do, because that’s precisely what this is. After Clear shuffled its final incorruptible passenger through a speedy security lane in June of last year, the company closed up shop and forced even the nicest of travelers to re-join the herds. Thankfully for us all, Alclear has decided that life’s simply no good without a hasty security option at airports, and it has plopped down $6 million in order to acquire the assets of Verified Identity Pass out of bankruptcy protection. According to our hombres at Gadling , that purchase price doesn’t include individual airport contracts, so it’ll be an uphill battle getting these lanes back into the places in which they’re needed. If all goes well, we could see the first Clear avenues reopen this fall, with pricing set at $179 per year for unlimited individual use or $229 per year for unlimited family use. Head on past the break for more details on reactivating old subscriptions and the full presser. Continue reading Clear security lanes storming back to airports, principled travelers high five one another Clear security lanes storming back to airports, principled travelers high five one another originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 May 2010 10:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Palm’s news activity doesn’t seem like abating any time soon, as the company has just made the Deutsch arrival date for its Plus-ified phones official as April 28. It matches earlier speculation about late April, but also — very importantly — introduces a new carrier options for our Teutonic brethren in the form of Vodafone. Formerly locked in with Telefonica (whose local representative is O2), Palm seems to have finally seen the error of its ways and started offering choice as a side dish to its delectable WebOS main course. So, forget about who’s buying the company , will you be buying its phones? [Thanks, gizmo21] Official: Palm Pre Plus and Pixi Plus hitting Vodafone and O2 Germany on April 28 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 13 Apr 2010 06:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
‘Tis fun while it lasted, yeah? Verizon’s FiOS has provided a much-wanted (or much-needed, some would argue) sliver of competition in markets that were previously offered just one or two ISP options, and the wicked fast speeds available through the fiber-based service were just one big stream of cherries-on-top. We’ve personally noticed that the company has slowed down the rate at which it blasts out releases trumpeting new FiOS and FiOS TV markets, and now we know why: an Associated Press report notes that the operator has canned all public plans about expanding its FTTH home network, though it will continue to build-out where it had previously announced service (Washington, D.C., New York City and Philadelphia, namely). Of course, Verizon never stated that it would be making FiOS a nationwide service, but after hitting at least some sections of 18 states, we had high hopes that it would keep on keepin’ on. Unfortunately, it looks like you’ll be forced to move to FiOS-heavy Massachusetts , or simply gaze endlessly from your apartment window knowing that you’ll never feel the warm glow of a FiOS wire. Sniffle. Verizon shelves plans for future FiOS rollouts, relocations to Massachusetts set to boom originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 27 Mar 2010 08:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
We knew it was coming , and now we have a concrete date. Starting this Thursday, March 25th, Verizon Wireless customers with one of nine select smartphones (Motorola Droid and Devour, HTC Droid Eris, various BlackBerrys) and data plan will be able to use Skype over the 3G network. As we heard before, Skype-to-Skype calls will not affect your VZW minutes, and now you’ve got the option to use the app for cheaper international dialing using the mobile app. Full list of compatible devices after the break, a list we’re hoping gets expanded in the not-so-distant future . Continue reading Skype mobile heading to Verizon smartphones on March 25th Skype mobile heading to Verizon smartphones on March 25th originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Mar 2010 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Nokia may still not have brought turn-by-turn navigation to Maemo with its own Ovi Maps , but N900 users can now get their fix courtesy of Sygic, which has just released a version of its Mobile Maps app for the device. Available only in Europe to start with, the app costs €60, and includes maps of both eastern and western Europe, along with the usual “millions” of points-of-interest, speed camera locations and speed limit warnings, and plenty of customization options (including support for multiple languages). No firm word on availability outside of Europe just yet, but Sygic does say that additional regions will be announced “gradually.” Head on past the break for a quick demo video. [Thanks, Brad C] Continue reading Sygic Mobile Maps for Nokia N900 brings turn-by-turn to Maemo Sygic Mobile Maps for Nokia N900 brings turn-by-turn to Maemo originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 21 Mar 2010 00:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Oh Palm. Just a little over a year ago your future seemed so bright, so renewed. You walked away from CES 2009 reborn, held aloft by a completely innovative new mobile operating system, a striking piece of hardware, and a feeling amongst the press and investors that you were back in the game and playing to win. Now, less than a year and a half later, you’ve nearly returned to the dark and desperate place you’d found yourself in at the end of 2008 ; a rapidly declining mindshare, the bottom falling out of your stock, and bad dips in phone sales. All of it is leaving you backed into a corner where the common perception now is that you’ve got to sell to survive at all. So what went wrong? How did such a promising launch lead to such a disappointing reality? And how can you wrestle your way back from the brink yet again? Is that even an option? In 2007 the editors of Engadget penned an impassioned open letter to the company , pleading for many of the changes we eventually saw at Palm. This isn’t a follow-up, but it’s very much in the spirit. We’re going to take a look at the missteps that put the company in its current spot, and talk about what we think can pull it back out. Palm, it’s time for a little tough love… again. Continue reading Palm: this is your survival guide Palm: this is your survival guide originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 19 Mar 2010 17:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Whether for real or for show, Google tried to make the world believe it would use Android OS as a bargaining chip during the company’s terse, slow negotiations with China. Now, the company has seemingly abandoned that option. During an educational webcast about the future of Google’s mobile business, CFO Patrick Pichette told viewers that he expected the company’s Android platform to do well in China despite all the recent threats and ultimatums in the country. “The Android platform is available to everybody,” said Pichette, “and China is obviously another great market in which Android should flourish.” Good to hear that Google and China are finally in accordance , right? Thing is, with China circumventing Android’s default search engine, Google’s stance against Chinese censorship of search depended on taking Android handsets hostage. But if the OS is indeed available to everybody, that’s not going to happen. The mobile market might one day be dominated by Android, but if Google doesn’t step up, mobile search will go to competitors more willing to play wallball with the Great Firewall of China. Google says Android should ‘flourish’ in China, effectively concedes a point originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Mar 2010 22:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
We’ll start by saying that this perhaps the most aesthetically challenged portable console we’ve ever seen, and while it is a bit more slim than that “portable” GameCube we spied a few years back, it too is hardly pocketable. So why cover it? Because it’s the first and only legitimate way to get your Fighters Megamix fix while on the go. (No, the Game.com version does not count). It was created by a modder who goes by the handle Evil Nod over at the benheck.com forums and contains what looks to be a full-sized console re-skinned and surrounded by a one of the system’s optional analog controllers split in two. There’s a 7-inch screen front and center and a nine volt battery ’round he back. The result ain’t pretty, but we’d let it spin our Panzer Dragoon collection anytime. [Thanks, ttsgeb] World’s first portable Sega Saturn has a face only a gamer could love originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Mar 2010 09:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
We’re still waiting for all the legal fallout from the Pennsylvania’s Lower Merion School District webcam spying case , but more news is slowly trickling out about the whole thing, including the technology that the school used: a remote administration suite called LANrev. An update to the software, releasing this week, will disable the option for admins (or pervy IT workers) to remotely switch on a computer’s webcam, hopefully preventing a replay of this situation. Beyond that, two unnamed (and possibly pervy) IT workers have been suspended for their involvement in this whole situation. Are they the ones who went too far, or was it their managers who ordered them to do it and are now throwing their dutiful peons to the fire? We may never know the truth, but at least we can now frolic naked in front of our MacBooks without fearing that dreaded green light. Spying school district update: remote webcam functionality disabled, two IT monkeys suspended originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 09:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
