Windows 8 App Store images leaked?

Windows 8 images continue to leak onto the Internet, despite Microsoft's wallpaper-based pleas to those with access to the early releases. Today's installment courtesy CNBeta shows the upcoming Windows App Store, which will likely feature prominently in Windows 8.

We've got our doubts about the authenticity of the image. In addition to showing several of the built-in games which already ship with Windows, Opera is listed -- and a competing browser seems like an odd inclusion this early on. Of course, with the browser ballot still in place in the EU for quite some time, Microsoft would probably need to include rivals like Opera and Firefox to stay out of trouble. We're also not sure why Clickgamer is shown beneath Angry Birds instead of Rovio -- the game's actual publisher.

It's still early, of course, so it's entirely possible that the Windows App Store image is genuine but merely using placeholder images and text for now. Anyone else thinking Windows Marketplace might be a more logical name? You know, to keep things consistent with Windows Phone and keep Apple's legal eagles at bay.

Windows 8 App Store images leaked? originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 11 Apr 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Elephant Quest is an addictive, deep platformer

When someone tells me about a "platformer", my first thought is that it's probably a simple game that mainly revolves around running and jumping around, with a minimal plot. [Play a Zelda game! -Ed]

Elephant Quest is one platformer that managed to prove me completely wrong. Yes, you do run and jump around, and you also shoot at stuff. But the game has much, much more going for it.

Basically, as you run, jump and shoot, you gain experience points and level up. Hitting Space brings you into an interface where you can convert your experience points into Charisma, Intelligence, Agility and Dexterity points. Once you've "specialized" your points, you then get to pick what exact skills you'd like to enhance in each field. For example, you could use your dexterity to enhance your weapons or increase your swiftness.

The game is played in a huge maze; you go through rooms using doors, and there's a large map. As the name implies, there are quests you can take, too. For example, one quest had me searching all over the place for ten balloons.

The bottom line is that this is a surprisingly deep game that just might ensnare you for a good bit longer than you intended to play. Beware!

Elephant Quest is an addictive, deep platformer originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 25 Mar 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Adblock Plus developer pokes holes in Mozilla's new add-on performance tests

Wladimir Palant, developer of the most popular add-on in the world, Adblock Plus, is also an active contributor to the Planet Mozilla blog community. Over the last few days, in response to Mozilla's new name and shame list of slow add-ons, Palant has been investigating whether Mozilla's testing methods are actually accurate.

Rather surprisingly, it turns out that Mozilla's numbers could be significantly wrong -- and if they're not wrong, the factors that Mozilla uses to tabulate an add-ons final score should definitely be made more transparent.

In the first set of tests, Palant shows that FlashGot's position in the top 10 is probably due to a fault in Mozilla's testing setup, and that add-ons can perform very differently depending on which operating system they're being tested on. In the second analysis, Palant uncovers an irregularity that doesn't seem to have an obvious cause -- but it could be due to an I/O bottleneck on Mozilla's test machines. Basically, even though performance testing of Read It Later is disabled because of a bug, it still (somehow!) manages to record a 14% slow-down on Windows 7.

Palant concludes both analyses by scolding Mozilla for going public with the performance data before its testing methods had been confirmed accurate. It definitely looks like Mozilla has been more than a little reckless, considering the importance of Firefox's add-on ecosystem.

Adblock Plus developer pokes holes in Mozilla's new add-on performance tests originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 08 Apr 2011 05:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nokia X7 and E6 Symbian Anna phones start shipping into obsolescence

While we eagerly await Nokia's first Mango device, millions of others (we're told) have been patiently anticipating shipments of the first Symbian Anna smartphones. Well, today's the day, good sir. Nokia just loosed its 4-inch X7 media slab and E6 portrait QWERTY with 326ppi display into the shipping lanes. Look for the E6 worldwide while the X7 will skip the US carriers (as expected) targeting the friendlier Symbian climates of Europe, Eurasia, China, India and other countries around AsiaPac. Huzzah?

Nokia X7 and E6 Symbian Anna phones start shipping into obsolescence originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 May 2011 03:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A Flashlight-MP3 Player Hybrid for Music Loving Idiots in the Dark [Crap]

I hate it when I'm investigating a spooky mystery, or walking around the woods at night, and don't have any sweet tunes to go along with me. Actually, I don't, because that scenario never exists, and this product is moronic. More »

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Eutelsat's Ka-Sat satellite goes into service, provides broadband to 13 million homes across Europe

Europe's already extensive broadband coverage may be expanding even further, now that Eutelsat's Ka-Sat satellite has officially gone into service. The new craft, which launched from Kazakhstan in late December, uses spotbeam technology to generate areas of connectivity that are about 250 kilometers wide, with each beam carrying a total capacity of 900Mbps. Unlike the Hylas 1, its reach will extend far across the continent, providing Tooway's high-bandwidth services to 13 million households in remote locations. Subscribers will have download speeds of up to 10Mbps and upload rates of 4Mbps, though they'll still have to put up with latency on the order of 250ms, making life even more difficult for Eastern European OnLive gamers. Of course, this access won't come for free, but Ka-Sat's 82-beam network structure significantly lowers its operating costs, allowing Eutelsat to offer prices that are on par with market rates. According to company CEO Michel de Rosen, customers should expect to pay around €30 for basic service, in addition to €250 they'd have to spend on a 77cm satellite dish. That's not necessarily a small amount of cash for low-income families to fork over, but at least they'll have an option that didn't exist before. Head past the break for a video about Tooway's Ka-Sat services, along with a full PR.

Continue reading Eutelsat's Ka-Sat satellite goes into service, provides broadband to 13 million homes across Europe

Eutelsat's Ka-Sat satellite goes into service, provides broadband to 13 million homes across Europe originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 May 2011 11:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nexus S Seidio Innocell 3500mAh extended battery

Extended batteries and Android go together like peanut butter and jelly.  The phones are powerful and connected, and need the juice.  The Seidio Innocell 3500mAh battery for the Nexus S takes the simple idea of a larger battery to the extreme.  Checking in at more than double the standard 1440mAh battery for the Nexus S, it delivers when it comes to keeping you up and running longer.  If you're one who still talks a lot on the phone (yes, they really are phones!) you'll love it. 

Here at the homestead, we dropped the landline ages ago.  My Nexus S is my phone, 24/7.  Whether I'm doing important business with Pizza Hut, calling Mom and Dad to say hello, or talking to my kids, it's all done with my Nexus S.  Phone calls can destroy the battery on an Android phone, but since I got the Seidio Innocell, I don't even worry about checking the battery status.  I still charge my phone every night, but I'll bet I wouldn't have to. 

Until battery technology catches up with everything else, that's how it's going to be.  Android phones in particular, because they are so connected, tend to be hard on batteries, and we spend hours trying and discussing tricks to get more from their batteries.  The best trick of them all?  Get a big extended battery and stop worrying about it.  The Seidio Innocell  adds some girth to the profile (about 1 cm extra width), and comes with it's own battery cover -- one with Seidio's soft touch coated plastic.  All the cut-outs for camera, speaker and USB ports are there, and it doesn't feel bad in your hand at all.  The little bit of extra weight is no problem on a phone that many thought felt too light to start with.  One thing that needs mentioned, there is no NFC antenna in the extended battery cover.  You'll lose that functionality, if you had plans on ever using it.  Other than that, there's just not much here not to like. We've got a handful of pictures after the break, have a look. 

If you find yourself fighting with your Nexus S battery more often than you would like, you can grab the Seidio Innocell 3500mAh battery from the Android Central store for $64.95.

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Cellphones are dangerous/not dangerous: the WHO changes its mind

To say that experts generally don't agree about whether cellphone radiation can fry your brain is an understatement of massive proportions, but amazingly enough, the World Health Organization has come to a pseudo-conclusion. A group of 31 scientists from 14 countries working in the org's International Agency for Research on Cancer says that -- based on a survey of the literature -- those electromagnetic fields are as likely to be potentially carcinogenic as 266 other worrisome substances, including DDT pesticide and the exhaust from your automobile. Mind you, the WHO isn't saying that cellphones cause cancer, as today's decision is merely the latest call for more research, but the fact that respected scientists even claim that a correlation should be considered will probably be enough to stir the pot.

Continue reading Cellphones are dangerous/not dangerous: the WHO changes its mind

Cellphones are dangerous/not dangerous: the WHO changes its mind originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 May 2011 13:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wind Turbines May Not Be the Prettiest Structures, But They're a Real Cash-Cow For Residents [Energy]

It's usually disheartening to wake up and discover the wind is blowing. But if that wind is proving to be quite the money-spinner, you may feel differently about the huge white objects dotted around the horizon. And the wind. More »

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