Other than the fact that the displays will support 802.11 b/g/n, dual-band Wi-Fi, and WMM multimedia standards, there really isn’t any additional info available yet. Both series were certified by the Wi-Fi Alliance on December 30, 2011, so I can only imagine that these are some of the displays we’ll see at next week’s CES show.

While the “X Series” moniker doesn’t sound like anything too mysterious, my curiosity is definitely piqued by the “Echo-P” name. Any guesses as to what might be special about those displays?

The camera is also said to have integrated Ethernet, presumably to allow the streaming of live video, and perhaps the sending content to your computer faster. Storage is to a CF card, and the D4 should support the new XQD standard – which offers significantly improved throughput and a small form-factor.

Other features include Face Detection, video recording in 1080p (only 30fps?), and uncompressed video output via the HDMI port. These specs were picked up by Nikonrumors from a variety of sources, but the site thinks that they are 90% accurate based on experience. They expect that all will be revealed about the D4 in January 2012.

When the guy got home and plugged the drive into a computer, he found that there were years worth of confidential Apple files on the drive. It’s not clear how exactly the man was given this supposedly defective drive. I can only assume that a drive in the store had gone bad and was sitting where the Genius was working and the person simply handed the wrong drive back.

I suspect that someone at the Apple Store will get in a lot of trouble over this. The files on the drive are confidential Apple documents from May of 2011 back to late 2009. The files include videos, store checklists, and a lot more. The guy that has the drive apparently tried to sell it to Cult of Mac and they declined. However, Jesus Diaz over at Gizmodo is trying to find the guy that owns the drive, so maybe they want to take him up on the offer.

[via Gizmodo]

We don’t have confirmation that these screens are in fact from Angry Birds 2, but the level it shows is definitely not one we’ve seen in the original or in Angry Birds Seasons. From what I can tell, the screens are identical to one another, but show off different high-resolution backgrounds and textures, but no new birds or block types.

The screens turned up in this report from Deutsche Welle and can be seen around the 4:17 mark. (The clip is worth watching all the way through if you care at all about the guys who created the game.)

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

For all we know, the screens could be from one of the console versions of the game, or possibly level concept art. Regardless, I’ve played through all of levels on the original, so I could use some new ones just as soon as Rovio is ready to release a sequel.

[via MTV Multiplayer]

Here’s the video:

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

I’m sure you noticed the camera pinhole as well, but I think a camera is pretty much guaranteed for the 2nd gen iPad. I’m not sure but it also seems like the current iPad is slightly larger or more rounded than the 2nd gen iPad, since the former doesn’t quite fit in the case. If (and this is still a big if) the case is indeed for the next iPad, what do you think are those bottom holes for? Speakers? SD card slots? USB ports? An HDMI port perhaps?

[via TUAW]

Sony makes up for the lack of analog input by including a wide touchpad. The phone also has a touchscreen, although that’s to be expected these days. The gadget is said to be powered by a 1GHz Qualcomm MSM8655 processor. That’s as powerful as the Apple A4 chip on the iPhone and iPad, three times more powerful than the current PSP and more than twice as powerful as the 3DS; then again Nintendo isn’t a cutting edge tech sort of company nowadays. The PlayStation Phone is also said to have 512MB RAM, 1GB of ROM and eschews Memory Stick support for MicroSD cards.

There’s a decent chance that the phone will be running the upcoming Android 3.0, and have an online store for games. No word on price and release date yet, but if I were a betting man I’d say that it’s going to be released in 2011 and it’s going to be expensive. It is a phone too, don’t forget that.

Are you liking what you’re seeing so far? Bear in mind that these are pictures of a prototype. Personally both of my fears unfortunately came true – this is most likely a download-only platform, and its dual nature means it’s going to be pricey. Still, I’m interested in seeing how Sony handles the software side of things, even if I’m probably not going to get this device.

[via Engadget]

The Dell Thunder looks pretty slick from these early pics the guys over at Engadget managed to get their hands on. The Thunder is expected to have a nice big 4.1-inch WVGA OLED screen, and sports an 8-megapixel digital camera. Rumor has it that it will have a zippy Snapdragon CPU powering its brains. Connectivity will be provided by 7.2Mbps HSPDA and Wi-Fi.

From the looks of the user interface screens, Dell has added their own menu system, but under the surface, there’s a full Android 2.1 operating system. Internal documents from Dell indicate that the Thunder will include built-in support for Facebook, Twitter, and Hulu, and also play Flash 10.1 content.

At this point we don’t know a firm release date, but word on the street is a Q4 2010 release for the initial version of the phone.

Check out the whole screenshot at Comboadictos or at EventHubs, where commenters are pointing out that the text in the article is actually about Chrome Hounds. I don’t know if the culprit is someone from 2chan, or if it’s from Famitsu or hell even from Capcom, but whoever you are shame on you, making millions of CVS fans drool and writhe in agony.

Here are some of Calacanis’ revelations: “The price will be 599, 699 and 799 (I think it’s safe to say the prices are in US $) depending on size and memory in apple tablet. Also, wireless keyboard + monitor connection for tv.” It’s running a modified iPhone OS that can run multiple apps at the same time. The tablet has an OLED screen, and has a “solar pad” at the back for recharging, but Calacanis says that the solar pad is more of a gimmick. The tablet also has thumbpads on each side for gestures and reads fingerprints for security; up to 5 fingerprint profiles can be stored. The apple tablet will connect to other tablets via Wi-Fi for gaming, also saying that “Apple tablet games are sick. Basically nintendo wii-level innovation. Custom farmville app is insane.” The tablet is great for reading newspapers. It also has two cameras, one in front and one at the back. It also appears that the device will be available through Verizon and AT&T.

Calacanis’ goodnight statement sums it up: “Ok, I’m going to bed (with apple tablet after reading nytimes+Vanity Fair on it!), steve jobs outdid himself, its greatest device ever!!!”

Hit up Calacanis’ Twitter page now, before the rest of the Internet brings it down.

*Update: Okay the iPad is out and now we know that the jerk was just taking us all for a ride. A few folks are angry at him for the prank but that doesn’t matter anymore. I should have realized it when he mentioned the solar pad. Lesson learned.*

[via Softpedia]

I for one, believe in ol’ Ben Franklin’s saying: “Nothing is certain but death and a slimmer version of a Sony video game system. And my eternal fame.” Really, it’s a question of when, not if. And the answer seems to be August 18. (pssst, Ben, you cited Gizmodo but your link leads to Engadget! That’s blasphemy!)

If PS3 Slim rumors were Pokemans, Kuchera’s almost caught ‘em all: everything from their own insider info, to the non-denial of Sony’s director of Hardware Marketing, John Koller, to significant increases in orders for PS3 components. Everything except Engadget‘s alleged leaked shots of the console’s case and box art, which I have just pointed out to you. Because gossip is for geeks too. Check out the article for the rest of the links.

That’s the new wallpaper; you can get the full version here. But the story doesn’t stop there;  build 7260 was also leaked yesterday, just a few hours after build 7232 came out.

No word on the difference between the two builds, but according to neowin, 7260 is an “RTM escrow build meaning vigorous testing will commence to ensure this is the final code unless there are show stopper bugs.” Let’s hope everything goes smoothly.

Although I have to ask, why is it that Win 7 has been leaked to high heavens, but I’ve only seen like 3 or 4 Snow Leopard leaks? Does that mean that Microsoft is less strict with their employees? I mean, the release dates for both systems are not that far from each other, so we can’t say that Snow Leopard is still in it’s early stages. Hmmm.

[via Maximum PC]