smart

Samsung takes smartphone battle to the storefront

DALLAS -- Samsung has opened a new front in its battle for smartphone supremacy: the storefront.

The Korean electronics giant plans to set up mini Samsung stores inside all U.S. Best Buy and Best Buy Mobile venues within the next couple of months -- just in time for the Galaxy S4 launch. The "Samsung Experience Shops," which start rolling out Monday, will be in 500 big-box Best Buy stores and all 410 Best Buy Mobile locations by early May. Best Buy's remaining 550 large-format Best Buy stores will feature the shops by early June.

A larger … Read more

Microsoft Store slashes prices on Windows 8 tablets, hybrids

In what could be a sign of things to come, the Microsoft Store is slashing prices on a variety of hybrid laptop-tablet models.

Here are some of the highlights now appearing on the Microsoft Store "Tablets and Convertibles" page:

Toshiba Satellite U925t-S2130 Convertible Ultrabook: Cut to $799 from $1,149. 12.5-inch screen, Core i5 Intel chip, 128GB solid-state drive (SSD). ( Read the CNET review.) Acer Iconia W510-1674 Tablet: reduced to $399 from $499. 10.1-inch display, Intel Atom 1.8GHz "Clover Trail" Z2760 chip, 32GB SSD. ( Read the CNET review.) HP ENVY x2 11-g012nr Touchscreen: … Read more

Cheerleader assaults centurion? Must be a new Samsung ad

Selling TVs is hard.

Especially if the medium at your disposal is, well, TV.

Most look somewhat the same. Most seem to do very similar things, which is make "American Idol" look and sound better than it really is.

So one can understand Samsung feeling a touch hamstrung in trying to make its Smart TVs look astoundingly intelligent.

In this case -- thank you, Business Insider for finding this -- not only is the budget seemingly enormous, but so are the ambitions.

There are two ads that feature so many themes and special effects that you have come … Read more

Silicon Valley city offers free Wi-Fi via smart meters

Leave it to a city in Silicon Valley to become the first in the U.S. to use smart meters to bring all of its residents free outdoor Wi-Fi.

Santa Clara, Calif., debuted its new service this week after installing nearly 600 transmitters throughout the city, according to the Mercury News. The name of the network is "SVPMeterConnectWifi."

"We are the first utility in the nation to offer free Wi-Fi as part of the smart meter rollout," manager with Silicon Valley Power Larry Owens, the community's utility provider, told the Mercury News. "It's … Read more

What time is it? Just ask... Firefox OS?

Rumors have been swirling about Apple and Samsung building smartwatches, but they're not the only ones. One Chinese company is reportedly looking to get into the time-keeping game Firefox OS.

Known for its e-readers and an Android-fueled smartwatch released last year, a subdivision of massive Chinese tech outfit Shanda called Guoke plans to sell a smartwatch in June called the Bambook Smart Watch. The Bambook will come in two flavors, according to TechNode. One will run Android, the other Firefox OS. Reportedly, the watch will cost more than $100, and will have an e-ink screen.

Like Samsung, Shanda has … Read more

Google Glass could one day let you control objects around you

You may eventually be able to operate your TV, refrigerator, or garage door through Google Glass.

Published today by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, a Google patent application called "Wearable Computer with Superimposed Controls and Instructions for External Device" describes a technology in which a Google Glass wearer could control a real object via a virtual display.

Beyond merely showing you details about an object, Google Glass would present a virtual control panel to let you interact with that object.

As described in the patent, you could "control the target device, provide input to the … Read more

Apple iWatch, beware. Samsung plans to clock you

Now that Samsung has said it's working on a high-tech watch, one that presumably will pack smartphone features, 2013 could shape up as the year of smartwatch wars, with longtime foes Apple and Samsung leading the battle.

The motivation, Wall Street analysts argue, is that the biggies need another act as growth of smartphones sales are already slowing. Could smartwatches become that act? It might sound like a long shot; many people already are abandoning watches and relying on their phones instead. And in an age of ever-expanding phone screens, a device for the wrist comes with obvious limitations. … Read more

The bathroom scale evolved

Go way beyond the typical bathroom scale with the new Withings Smart Body Analyzer. This fitness gadget not only measures your weight, it also calculates the amount of fat you're saddled with, plus keeps tabs on your heart rate.

The Body Analyzer, which goes on sale March 20 for $149.95, even sniffs the air for carbon dioxide levels in an effort to monitor ambient air quality. Another indication of the product's intelligence is that it can sync wirelessly with mobile devices via Bluetooth 4.0 and Wi-Fi.

When it's paired with the Withings Health Mate app, … Read more

Sony offers slick new SmartWatch software

Sony's high-tech timepiece offering, the Sony SmartWatch, isn't exactly known for smooth performance. The company's new software update, however, promises to offer a slicker interface and six new watch faces, and to address any lingering stability issues. … Read more