Technewsbuzz.com

How do you know you’ve reached status as an internationally-recognized icon? When someone decides to make a Lego representation of you, that’s when — so our hats go off to you, BlackBerry Tour , for this distinguished accomplishment. Well-traveled Lego artist Nathan Sawaya was recently tapped to turn RIM’s global CDMA traveler into a life-sized monolith of plastic bricks, though with an unusual twist: his unnamed patron wanted a working video display, too, which required some “trial and error” to integrate. It might not fit in a pocket, but we reckon you could still find a belt holster that could swallow this thing. Follow the break for video! Continue reading Lego-borne BlackBerry Tour probably still lacks WiFi Lego-borne BlackBerry Tour…

It’s always hard to confirm whether leaked pictures are authentic or not, but assuming this latest leaked picture of the Nokia C6 is authentic, it looks like the phone will be something like a Nokia Nuron that decided to grow a sideways-sliding keyboard. Do you think that this is what the Nokia C6 will eventually look like, or is it just a clever Photoshop job? Rumors are going around that the C6 is slated to be released in Europe this summer, so if you’re decided on this phone, you’d better start saving those pennies right now. Permalink: Nokia C6 Sports Sideways Sliding Keyboard from Ubergizmo

Using a camera as an input device is hardly a new idea — even on a mobile device — but most examples so far have been to enable functionality not possible on a touchscreen. As Master’s student Daniel Bierwirth has shown in the video after the break, however, a phone on a camera can also be used as an alternative input method for features like scrolling or zooming, potentially allowing for easier interaction on devices with smaller screens. Bierwirth also takes the idea one step further, and sees the system eventually including a second camera that’s worn by a person, which would be able…

Casio’s Exilim G EX-G1 camera made a solid enough first impression with us when we got our hands on it in January, but we’ve now had a chance to use it a fair bit more both indoors and out, and reach some firmer conclusions about it. The short verdict is that the camera, like any other rugged device, comes with its fair share of compromises. If you value ruggedness over everything else, the Exilim G definitely deserves some serious consideration (especially in this price range). On the other hand, if you’re looking for an all-around, everyday point-and-shoot that just so happens to be a bit …

The BBC World Service has conducted a poll of more than 27,000 adults across 26 countries to answer one primary question: is internet access a fundamental human right? We can skip right past Finland and Estonia who’ve already made laws to that effect , and take a look at what the other nations thought. Mexico, Korea and Brazil lead the way here with all having greater than 90 percent agreement, while Pakistan, India and Kenya — countries with a slightly different perception of what fundamental needs are — offer the least support, though they’re all still above 50 percent in agreement. Other interesting stats include the claim by 85 percent of Japanese internet users and 81 percent in Mexico that they would not be able to “cope…

Is the “Elan” an upcoming device from Palm, or is it just another (code) name for the Palm Pixi? Screenshots of a site listing the Palm Elan have surfaced, and according to a user who claims to work for AT&T, the testing for the Elan should begin in about two weeks and will have a ‘soft keyboard’. That being said, some folks have dug up

Apple’s doing the Oscars up right tonight — not only was Steve Jobs making friends on the red carpet , but the company ran the first iPad ad just now during the broadcast. It’s pretty much what you’d expect out of an Apple ad, but, you know, more magical . Get ready for a blitz of these as we lead up to April 3 . Video after the break. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in] Continue reading First iPad ad premieres during the Oscars First iPad ad premieres during the Oscars originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 07 Mar 2010 21:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink

We aren’t trying to lump these two together or anything, but we figured we’d give those of you who opted for Palm’s second set of webOS handsets an opportunity to pool your thoughts in order to make the smartphone landscape an even better place to survey. We personally didn’t find too much new to laud on Verizon’s Palm-branded twofer compared to the original Pre and Pixi , and those of you who were hoping for all new hardware from the company at CES were undoubtedly let down. Still, there’s something to be said about a webOS product on America’s “largest 3G network,” and frankly, we’re interested in hearing how you’d change things. Would you have …

We were glad to see Bluetooth low energy actually added to the Bluetooth 4.0 spec, but of course the question remained: when are we going to get our hands on it? By Q4 this year, apparently — at least according to the Bluetooth SIG. But don’t expect any dramatic changes in battery life for most of your gadgets: while the low energy spec introduces connectivity to a host of lower-power devices that have in the past relied on proprietary technology (such as watches, pedometers, and cats), your traditional Bluetooth devices, such as phones and laptops, will consume roughly the same amount of power. Indeed, the low energy spec is merely throwing smaller devices (with smaller amounts of data …

We’ve already seen a broken build of Android 2.1 for the Droid Eris slip out accidentally , but now the full package is available for installation courtesy of the fine folks at xda-developers. We haven’t tried it ourselves, but we’re told it’s working fine, and that snazzy new version of Sense is apparently quite snazzy and new. Of course, you’re risking your phone and all your data if you try this, so the absolutely smart and prudent move is to wait for the official update , but do let us know how it goes if you’re daring enough to load it up, okay? Update: And just like that, it’s been ported to the Sprint Hero , although not everything works quite yet. You be careful, …