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Alright, we’re going to be straight with you: you’re not going to like this. See, Microsoft just showed us a pair of 3D games running on its ASUS Windows Phone prototype and built with its brand new XNA Game Studio 4.0, but wouldn’t let us nab a single photo or video of the process. What we can tell you is that they exist, they work, and at least Microsoft tossed us some screenshots to wave in your face. The two titles are The Harvest (pictured), a good looking touch-controlled dungeon crawler with destructible environments, being developed by Luma Arcade; and Battle Punks, a less impressive one-on-one sword fighting Facebook game by Gravity Bear that’s being ported over. We didn’t get to see any full motion 3D camera moves, since Battle Punks is just composed of two characters duking it out, and The Harvest has a fixed camera and some pre-rendered elements, but there were indeed some real polygons being crunched before our eyes at a full resolution (no upscaling), alpha-rev, choppy framerate, and we were assured that full screen 3D was possible. We also got to see one of our first glimpses of universal notifications on Windows Phone: Achievement unlock notices (also pictured above) that slide down from the top of the screen in a black bar and then slide back, and can’t be interacted with. Follow after the break for some more nerdy details, along with a video of VisualStudio in action, and screenshots of the two games are in the gallery below.

Continue reading Microsoft shows off XNA games running on Windows Phone, full 3D is a goContinue Read More

We know you’ve barely recovered from our Devour review, but Moto just threw another Blur-ified phone in our laps this afternoon – the CLIQ XT. We’ve been playing around with the Android 1.5-based, Flash Lite-supported, multitouch-capable handset for the last couple of hours — but before we grace you with our first impressions, just a fair warning: we don’t yet know the price of the new T-Mobile Android handset, though Motorola did promise us that it will hit shelves this month. With that said, hit the break for a quick rundown of our early thoughts.Continue Read More

We hadn’t heard that the Storm2’s unique piezo-actuated touchscreen was acting up in any statistically significant way, but apparently, there’d been enough with dodgy lower left corners to prompt RIM to do something about it. BerryScoop and BlackBerry Leaks are reporting that Verizon stores have been ordered to return their existing stock in favor of new Storm2s with “silicone actuators” added to “to improve touchpad performance and tactile response,” and don’t worry, current customers — it seems you’re more than welcome to exchange your old unit for an upgraded one provided you’re “experiencing touchpad performance issues” (wink, wink). Unfixed handsets need to be out of stores by March 11, so it looks like you can definitely find the new ones hanging around this week — let us know if you can tell the difference.

RIM tweaking Storm2’s SurePress underpinnings, Verizon units getting swapped out originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 20:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Continue Read More

It feels like the Brigade’s been in the public conscience for forever and a day (and let’s be honest, November is forever and a day ago by phone standards), but amazingly, Casio’s latest rugged G’zOne for Verizon still isn’t being offered — at least, not in any official capacity. It seems some HowardForums posters have managed to order and receive their Brigades by calling the carrier’s telesales directly, and a few uploaded shots of the boxed QWERTY clamshell is enough to have us believing it’s the real deal. For what it’s worth, this tends to happen pretty frequently with Verizon — they’ll start selling and shipping new devices over the phone a couple weeks before announcing availability or offering them via the web — so it doesn’t come as much of a surprise that we’re going down the same road again here, and a few brick and mortar locations have apparently started to take delivery, too. Expect to pay $249 after $50 rebate — in other words, enough cash so that you’d better really need a messaging-centric dumbphone with a tough shell.

Verizon selling Casio Brigade on the downlow? originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 22:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Continue Read More

That’s the “glass is half full” attitude we like, Verizon — always looking for a way to sign a few more of those lucrative data contracts, no matter the circumstances! Turns out Big Red is tipping off its staffers on how it can encourage customers to go with the WiFi-only version of the iPad and pair it up with a device like the MiFi rather than shelling out $130 more for integrated AT&T 3G and waiting a few extra weeks. As usual, Verizon’s keen on playing up the anti-AT&T sentiment it’s cultivated in its recent ad campaign by openly calling its biggest competitor’s 3G network “overloaded,” but we see one big hangup: 5GB of data on a Verizon MiFi is going to run you $60 a month, twice as much as AT&T will be charging for its dedicated iPad plan. Then again, even AT&T’s own boss thinks the WiFi-only iPad is the way to go, so who knows — maybe Verizon’s onto something here.Continue Read More

With the estate of Philip K. Dick up in arms over the slightest commercial reference to his published works, we may come to regret the above headline. But it’s worth the risk to bring more attention to this lovely, handcrafted Android pillow. Covered in fleece and filled with fluffy polyester for a texture that creator Craftsquatch describes as “firm yet springy,” the cuddly 12-inch square, made-to-order cushion can be yours for $20 before shipping. If only it came with dessert.

Does Android dream of DIY cushions? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 19:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Continue Read More