Inside these posts: Tablet computers

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Sprint to unveil dual-touchscreen smartphone

Sprint Nextel Corp. plans to unveil a smartphone with a twin set of touchscreens made by Kyocera Corp. late Monday, according to a person familiar with the device.

The device, called the Echo, features two 3.5-inch touchscreens that can be stacked side by side to form a pseudo-tablet design. Users can accomplish multiple tasks on the two screens, or drag items from one screen to the other. The phone, which runs on Google Inc.’s Android software, uses a pivot hinge that allows one screen to be tucked under the other, transforming it into a more conventional touchscreen phone. Get the full story »

Unreleased Apple iPad seen at News Corp. event

Spotted at Rupert Murdoch’s splashy digital newspaper launch on Wednesday: a prototype of Apple’s newest iPad.

A Reuters eyewitness saw what appeared to be a working model of the next iPad with a front-facing camera at the top edge of the glass screen at a press conference to mark the debut of News Corp’s Daily online paper in New York on Wednesday.

A source with knowledge of the device confirmed its existence, adding that the final release model could have other features. News Corp and Apple declined to comment. Get the full story »

Microsoft shares fall on tablet worries

Microsoft shares fell 3.5 percent on Friday as its better-than-expected profit was overshadowed by worries it is failing to cope with threats from hot areas like tablet computing. Get the full story »

News Corp. to unveil iPad newspaper next week

News Corp. is now set to unveil the world’s first iPad-only newspaper, The Daily, in New York next Wednesday. Get the full story »

U.S, pursuing criminal charges in iPad data theft

U.S. investigators plan to announce criminal charges concerning the alleged theft of email addresses and other personal information belonging to about 120,000 users of Apple Inc’s iPad tablet computer. Get the full story »

Journalists to launch News Corp.’s iPad newspaper

Rupert Murdoch and Steve Jobs are expected unveil "The Daily" together. (Getty)

Stop the presses — completely. The world’s first iPad newspaper, The Daily, is prepping for launch. Journalists have been hired and are in place at multiple U.S. bureaus, including Los Angeles and New York.

The formal announcement of the digital publication owned by News Corp. will be made at an event at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art on Jan. 19, according to two people familiar with the matter. The people said the event will be attended by Steve Jobs, chief executive of iPad-maker Apple Inc., and Rupert Murdoch, CEO of News Corp. Get the full story »

With more devices, 4G to hit its stride in ‘11

Until recently, consumers wanting to take advantage of 4G wireless network speeds didn’t have much choice in devices. Carriers offered laptop cards and USB dongles, but the selection of smart phones and other gadgets was minimal.

This dynamic will change dramatically this year, thanks to a flurry of product launches from mobile operators that are eager to meet increasing consumer demand for fast wireless broadband and draw more revenue from data traffic. At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week, carriers announced more than 15 new 4G devices, many of them smart phones or tablets. Get the full story »

Tribune rolling out news app for Microsoft tablets

Mosiac app. (Tribune)

The Tribune Co., publisher of the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune, is rolling out a news-reading application that will run on a new line of Microsoft-based tablet computers.

The app, called Mosaic, creates a moving set of touchable photographs that, when tapped, reveals the headline associated with the photo and allows the user to open and read the article.

“It’s a very different, visual way for readers to sort through and personalize how they want to see news delivered,” said Eddy Hartenstein, the Tribune’s co-president. “You just touch it and it blossoms.” Get the full story »

Comcast rolls out video app for iPad, eyes live TV

Comcast Corp. plans to soon roll out a feature allowing its customers to watch real-time television shows, whether a crime drama or newscast, on tablet computers such as Apple Inc.’s iPad. Get the full story »

Google exploring digital newsstand

Google Inc. and Apple Inc. have stepped up their battle to win over publishers, as the two companies vie to become the dominant distributor of newspapers and magazines for tablet computers and other mobile devices.

Google is trying to drum up publishers’ support for a new Google-operated digital newsstand for users of devices that run its Android software. With the effort, it is chasing Apple, which already sells digital versions of many major magazines and newspapers through its iTunes store. Get the full story »

Study: Web users willing to pay for some things

The Web may seem like the land of something for nothing. Free video. Free news. Even free tools such as word processing and spreadsheets.

But almost two-thirds of adult Internet users in the U.S. have paid for access to at least one of these intangible items online, according to a new survey from the Pew Internet and American Life Project. Get the full story »

BlackBerry PlayBook hurdle: Short battery life

If Research in Motion’s BlackBerry PlayBook is to succeed at market the way the company hopes, there are a few engineering hurdles to overcome. The most significant, according to Kaufman Bros. analyst Shaw Wu, is the device’s relatively poor battery life.

Sources tell him the tablet currently lasts just a few hours per charge, compared with rivals like Samsung’s Galaxy Tab, which lasts about six, and the iPad, which lasts upward of 10. If true, that’s an untenable situation for RIM, which really needs to hit the mark with the PlayBook, and it may cause a delay of the launch–if only for a bit. Get the full story »

Microsoft said to plan new Windows for tablets

Microsoft Corp. is working on a version of its core Windows operating system for devices such as tablets, according to media reports, and the company said its Windows Phone 7 software is making headway in the booming smartphone market. Get the full story »

First glimpse of new Motorola tablet?

From Geek with Laptop | Google’s Andy Rubin appears to have shown off one of the 10-inch tablet computers Motorola plans to launch next year. Sanjay Jha, Motorola’s CEO, basically that Motorola will also launch a 7-inch tablet at some point next year,.

Rubin was showing off the new Nexus S phone at the “Dive into Mobile” event and whipped out a nameless prototype Motorola slim line tablet running Android 3.0 otherwise known as Honeycomb, a version of Android that is supposedly more suitable for tablet computers than previous versions. Get the full story>>

Apple suppliers: Look for camera-toting iPad in 2011

Component suppliers for Apple Inc.’s iPad are gearing up for a new round of production in the first quarter, sources said on Friday, with one saying the product will be a revamp of the popular tablet computer including front- and back-mounted cameras.

Touchscreen chip designer Wintek Corp., battery maker Simplo Technology Co. Ltd. and AVY Precision, an unlisted maker of covers for electronic products, are among suppliers for the next batch of iPads, four people familiar with the situation said. Get the full story »