Tag Archives: release date

Droid R2-D2 on sale September 30 for $249

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We knew it was coming, so now it’s time to makes things official.  The limited edition Star Wars branded Droid 2, dubbed Droid R2-D2 by Motorola, goes on sale this Thursday, September 30 for $249 after a $100 mail-in rebate and a new two-year contract on Verizon Wireless.  Besides the new exterior aesthetics, the device has the same features as the standard Droid 2.  Its got the 3.7-inch multitouch display, slideout QWERTY keyboard, 5 megapixel camera, and it runs Android 2.2.  So why the $50 price hike?  The phone comes preinstalled with the following exclusive content: · R2-D2 notification sounds and ringtones; four live wallpapers; R2-D2 clock widget; “The Best of R2-D2” video with the original Cantina music; and an exclusive binoculars app.  The phone is bundled with a Star Wars media dock and wired stereo headset inside custom packaging “resembling carbonite.”  Look in the gallery below for a closer look at the phone and media dock.  Full PR after the break.

In related news, VZW also announced a new Star Wars app for all Android 2.1 or higher phones.  The VZW exclusive Empire Strikes Back app includes a sound and photo gallery, live wallpapers, a trivia challenge game, and widgets all related to Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back in celebration of the film’s 30 year anniversary.  The app will be made available in the Android Marketplace for a cool $2.99.

[Via Engadget; DroidR2D2]

Continue reading Droid R2-D2 on sale September 30 for $249 →

Kid Cudi delays album to November 9, teases Dot Da Genius collab

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I don’t want to start counting how many times Kid Cudi’s forthcoming second studio album, Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager, has been delayed.  OK, I think it’s been three times.  And you know what?  For all we know these changes haven’t been delays, per se; everything is labeled rumor until the record label makes the official call.  Although the label didn’t make the call this time around, it is the first time Cudder acknowledged a release date.  He sounded pretty confident about a November 9 release date when he announced it during a performance at the University of Buffalo.  He explained the push to November saying that he’s being working so hard on the songs that he forgot to put much effort into the “other [important] sh-t”, like the album artwork.  He wants to “bring art on all levels…musically and visually with the packaging.”  He promises that another movie poster and DVD footage will be included with the album.  Regular and deluxe versions will be available to purchase.

Cudi continued the conversation with his fans by revealing that another album is in the works.  He will be collaborating with longtime partner Dot Da Genius (Day N Nite) and he plans on releasing it alongside MOTM2 so that we will have “a sh-t ton of Kid Cudi music to listen to” for the foreseeable future.  Right on!  Lastly he says he’s working on mastering “Dose of Dopeness“, a track that he performed for an audience back in 2008.

Look after the break to hear all this news straight outta Kid Cudi’s mouth.

[Via DatNewCudi] Continue reading Kid Cudi delays album to November 9, teases Dot Da Genius collab →

Portal 2 gets a release date

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After numerous delays, Valve has decided to kick things in to high gear by announcing a firm release date for the sequel to 2007’s critically acclaimed puzzler.  Portal 2 will release on February 9, 2011 for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC, and Mac.  Valve has also confirmed that British writer and actor Stephen Merchant (The Office, Ricky Gervais Show) will voice the British robot Wheatley who has been featured in the game’s trailers.  “Meet Wheatley” at the Portal 2 site.

[Via GameInformer]

PlayStation pimps its new PS3 models

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On Tuesday Sony revealed two new PlayStation 3 SKUs.  The first is a plain jane PS3 with a 160GB hard drive.  It replaces the older SKU and keeps the same price of $299.99.  Buy it today.  The second model is a PS3 + PlayStation Move bundle.  Price at $399.99, it packs a 320GB hard drive and comes packed with one PS Move controller, one PlayStation Eye camera, a copy of Sports Champions, and a game demo disc.  The bundle will hit store shevles September 19, the same date PS Move launches.

[Via PlayStationBlog]

Kanye West pops into Hot 97 radio show, plays new song “See Me Now” (Featuring Beyoncé & Charlie Wilson), reveals November 16 album drop date

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The Kanye West headlines just won’t stop.  But I’m not complaining.  Today Mr. West stopped by Hot 97’s Angie Martinez Show to play a brand new track that may or may not be off his next yet-to-be-titled album.  It’s called “See Me Now” and features beautiful vocals from the talented Beyoncé and R&B/soul singer “Uncle” Charlie Wilson.  Unknowingly we had heard a preview of this track when Kanye paid a visit to Facebook HQ two weeks ago; he rapped “I’mma need you to kill all the hypocrisy / This is an aristocracy / I’m Socrates, but my skin more chocolatey.”  The track literally is brand new; it was completed this morning at 5am!  Though Wilson’s vocals were recorded about two weeks ago, Kanye met with Beyoncé, Jay-Z, and Consequence this morning and rushed to write Beyonce’s part so that it could be recorded and played for us today on the radio.  The final package is nothing short of excellent.  Big shout-out to Lex Lugar and No I.D. for helping Kanye produce the light-hearted track.  “See Me Now” falls on the other side of the spectrum when compared to “Power.”  It’s got the stylistic drums and synths banging in the background, but it is not nearly as dark and brooding.  It’s more uplifting, very reminiscent of “Through the Wire” and other The College Dropout tracks.  It’s good to see Kanye having some fun in the studio again.  Preview and download the song below.

During his four part interview with Angie Martinez, Kanye mistakingly let loose an expected album release date of November 16.  So mark your calendars and let the anticipation begin continue.  Click here to stream the entire interview.  Kanye is surprisingly candid at the mic.

Update: Kanye just used Twitter to point out that this version of “See Me Now” is not the final mix.  When the mastered version is available I’ll post it here.  Also, a “Power” remix is on the way.

Download: “See Me Now” (Featuring Beyoncé & Charlie Wilson)

[audio: Kanye West – See Me Now (Featuring Beyonce & Charlie Wilson).mp3]

[Via KWBlog; AngieMartinez]

Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 finally gets release date and priced

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Now THIS has been a long time coming.  Sony Ericsson is finally releasing its first Android-powered smartphone on August 15 for $149 (with a new two-year contract) on AT&T.  The Xperia X10 first made waves last summer when a breif video preview leaked onto the ‘Net.  Codenamed “Rachel” the SE customized user interface evolved over the months to eventually become a skin for Android 1.6.  That’s right, the X10 runs a very old version of the Android OS (version 2.2 is just starting to trickle onto handsets today).  As disappointing as that sounds, it looks like the highly customized UI overlay might hide the cobwebs and make for an inviting experience.  SE offically revaled the X10 back in November, but I’ll refresh your memory with a quick listing of specs.  The X10 packs a 4-inch touch screen, 1GHz Snapdragon processor, 8.1 megapixel camera with LED flash (plus smile detection, face recognition, and autofocus), built-in GPS, and 8GB of on-board memory and 2GB memory card (expandable up to 32GB).  The cornerstone(s) of the refined UI skin are SE’s “signature applications” Mediascape and Timescape:

*Mediascape on the Xperia X10 gathers music, photos, videos and content from your phone’s memory card and online, letting you browse, search, listen and share your media from one unified view. For example, view photos taken on the device as well as your Facebook and Picasa web albums. Or, when listening to a favorite song on your phone, press Sony Ericsson’s infinite button to access related content about the artist pulled from the phone’s memory as well as albums, songs and video content from YouTube and search results from Google.

*Timescape is a unique communication application that automatically organizes social interactions in chronological order, leaving users free to concentrate on keeping in touch on-the-go. From Facebook and Twitter updates to photos, emails and text messages, a scrolling menu offers easy viewing and organization of all communications. Additionally, tap the Timescape infinite button to bring up and view all communications from a single person in a single place.

Like I said, the X10 will be available August 15 in AT&T stores for $149.99.  But if you choose to pick one up at a local Sony Style store you’ll receive an instant $20 rebate.  Look after the break for the official PR and a brief video tour conducted by a Sony rep from this past year’s CES.

[Via Engadget] Continue reading Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 finally gets release date and priced →

BlackBerry Torch slider QWERTY smartphone runs BlackBerry 6, hits AT&T August 12 for $199.99

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On Tuesday RIM and AT&T formally announced the latest BlackBerry handset and it’s called the BlackBerry Torch.  It’s BB’s first slider smartphone, and it comes with a full QWERTY keyboard BB users are accustomed to.  Let’s run through the specs, shall we?  The Torch packs a 3.2″ (360 x 480) capacitive touch screen display,  5.0MP camera with flash, auto focus, image stabilization and geo-tagging, built-in GPS and 802.11n WiFi, quadband 3G radio, and 512MB of Flash memory with 4GB on-board and a microSD/SDHC memory card slot for additional storage (up to 32GB supported).  It measures 4.4″ x 2.4″ x 0.57″ when closed and 5.8″ x 2.4″ x 0.57″ when the slider keyboard is out.  Face buttons include start/end calls, main menu, back, and an optical trackpad.  The Torch will be the very first BB to run the just detailed BlackBerry 6 operating system.  This means it will include the fast Webkit browser (for which it was named after–RIM recently bought a company named Torch Mobile), integrated social feeds, a new multimedia experience, and universal search.  The phone will be made available to purchase on August 12 for $199.99 on a new two-year contract with AT&T at Best Buy, Wal-Mart, RadioShack, and AT&T stores.

The brand new form factor is extremely compelling.  It’s the new OS, which seems to be following the pack and not making its own strides, that I am worried about.  Look in the gallery below for press shots and after the break for the PR and two “launch videos”.

[Via Engadget]

Continue reading BlackBerry Torch slider QWERTY smartphone runs BlackBerry 6, hits AT&T August 12 for $199.99 →

Rock Band 3 to release October 26, preorder options get detailed

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Are you ready to rock!?  Well don’t get too excited since we’re still a few months away from the next iteration of Rock Band.  MTV Games and Harmonix announced that RB3 hits stores October 26.  The game will ship for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, and DS.  Pricing details were previously reported.  Besides the all-important release date, a bunch of enticing preorder options were detailed, too.  If you preorder the game at Walmart you will get a $10 eGift card.  Those who shop early at Amazon will receive access to an exclusive in-game guitar plus $10 off a future videogame purchase (the latter offer applies only to Xbox 360 & PS3 RB3 preorders).  And last there’s the GameStop special: three free downloadable songs (“My Own Summer” by The Deftones, “Blue Monday” by New Order, and “Burning Down the House” by Talking Heads).  I don’t have to tell you which option is best to choose.  Look after the break for the official PR.

[Via Joystiq] Continue reading Rock Band 3 to release October 26, preorder options get detailed →

September 14 is G.O.O.D. Music Day

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According to rapper Big Sean, September 14 is going to be a huge day for the G.O.O.D. Music crew.  In the form of a tweet, Big Sean announced that his upcoming debut album Finally Famous, Kanye West’s Good Ass Job, and Kid Cudi’s Man On the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager will all release on Tuesday, September 14.  If this were to actually happen it would be INSANE.  You must realize, though, that all of these albums likely will not simultaneously drop on the same day since almost every major rap album get the “delay treatment”.  Naturally I am skeptical about the whole thing.  However, if such a day does pass I’m positive it will prove to be a fantastic marketing ploy for the G.O.O.D. Music record label (which was founded by Kanye West in 2004).  I know I’ll be first in line to purchase all three of these anticipated releases.

Since Big Sean pushed out the tweet, more G.O.O.D. Music artists have decided to jump on the release date bandwagon.  Consequence (ConsTV) and Tony Williams (King or The Fool) have publically stated that their albums will also drop 9/14.  And the cherry on top?  Rumors are swirling that John Legend is working hard to finalize his next album Wake Up (produced by The Roots) in time for the September date.  With just about two months until the day, the anticipation is killing me.  No really, it is.

[Via 2dopeboyz; RapRadar; TheSmokingSection, Thanks Corey Z.]

Droid X by Motorola hits Verizon Wireless July 15 for $200

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Droid X by Motorola joins siblings Droid by Motorola, Droid Eris by HTC, and Droid Incredible by HTC on Verizon Wireless later this summer.  Check out these spectacular specs: 4.3-inch 854 x 480 display,  1GHz TI OMAP3630 processor, 8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash and 720p video recording, and 8GB of onboard storage, expandable up to 32GB (it comes with a 16GB SD card).  All of that’s packed inside a sleek, black 9.9mm thin device.  It will come preinstalled with Android 2.1 and a brand new UI skin overlay (it has not been confimed if this is MotoBlur).  Android 2.2 and Flash 10.1 support is expected to make their long-awaited debuts on Droid X via an OTA update “in the latter half of the summer.”  And there’s more.  Droid X will act as mobile hotspot, supporting up to 5 other devices over WiFi.  It also features DNLA and HDMI connectivity “to download, stream and share personal HD content.”  A preinstalled Blockbuster On Demand app will allow users to rent and watch movies right on the device.  Last, let’s talk pricing and availability.  Droid X becomes available to the masses July 15 for $199.99 (that’s with a new two-year contract with VZW and after a $100 mail-in rebate).  If you opt for the 3G Mobile Hotspot service be prepared to cough up an additional $20/month.  VZW is pulling an Apple with this one: All VZW customers whose contracts end by December 31, 2010 will get their early termination fee waived if they want to upgrade to the X (or any other smartphone for that matter).  Be sure to look after the break for the full PR and the awesome Droid X commercial that has been making waves on the boob tube.

[Via Engadget]

Continue reading Droid X by Motorola hits Verizon Wireless July 15 for $200 →

Halo: Reach gets September release, Bungie thanks players with video

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Mark your calenders, people.  Halo: Reach will release September 14, 2010.  And if you’re an ultimate Halo fan and expecting to get your game on day one, be sure to preorder as soon as possible.  Bob McKenzie, senior vice president of merchandising at GameStop: “Pre-orders for ‘Halo: Reach’ have been off the charts, with fans snapping up the limited and legendary editions since they were introduced just a month ago.  Overall, it’s a real testament to the passion of the ‘Halo’ fan base.”

The Halo: Reach beta invitational was a huge success for developer Bungie and Microsoft.  Over 2.7 million gamers participated in the beta, playing over 13 million games for over 16 million hours.  In a fun way to thank Halo fans for taking part in the beta, Bungie compiled a bunch of in-game footage captured by players.  The video, embedded above, contains some awesome sticks and impressive kills..so check it out.

[Via IGN; Joystiq]

Apple iPad to launch April 3rd, pre-order on March 12th

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The Apple iPad took one step closer to the brink of reality today when Apple announced a ship date.  iPads will be available for purchase Saturday, April 3 at Apple Retail stores, online at Apple.com, and “select Apple Authorized Resellers.”  (Could that mean we’ll see iPads sold at Best Buys?  Time will tell.)   On March 12 (one week from today) you can pre-order the iPad (Wi-Fi + 3G models) at Apple.com or you can reserve the iPad (Wi-Fi model only) at an Apple Retail store and pick it up on that date.  The 3G model will be released in “late April.”  Speaking of late April, peoples of Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK will get their paws on the device at this time.  Need to be reminded the prices of the models and how much poorer you will be come next month?

Fun fact: Apple’s stock hit a record high Friday afternoon, jumping to $219.70 before it slightly fell to $218.95 at closing time, up around 4%.

[Via Apple; Yahoo!]