Hitachi intros UltraVision LED TVs with Roku-ready HDMI, freshens Value TVs and sound bars for the fall

Although Hitachi was one of the first in line to promise support for Roku Streaming Sticks through MHL, it didn't have much more to say without the TVs to back up the claim. The second half of the puzzle is complete now that the company's fall TV revision is underway. Snag its new UltraVision UltraThin S606 TV in its one of its 42-, 46- or 55-inch sizes and you can discreetly (if optionally) hide the equivalent of a full Roku box in one of the HDMI inputs. The S606 sits strictly in the mid-range, however. Its 120Hz, edge-LED LCD design is superceded by the W806, which comes only in 48- and 55-inch sizes while carrying 3D, IPTV support and WiFi. Those who can get by on 60Hz refresh rates can opt for the Value line, where the H306 and S406 offer 720p in 29- and 32-inch dimensions; a third H316 line brings 1080p to those same sizes while adding a 39-inch panel. Hitachi hasn't said whether stores are stocking the TVs today, but it sees pricing ranging from $329 in the smaller Value sets to $1,399 for the largest W806 variant.

[Source: Engadget - Click here to read the full story]

FedEx makes shipping packages to Facebook friends easier with new 'Ship to Friends' app

What's better than saving some precious and valuable time, right? Well, if you're a power Facebook resident and FedEx is your carrier of choice, then you'll be be happy to hear all about Ship to Friends. With this new Facebook app, the company previously known as Federal Express will make it easier for you to send your friends packages without ever having to virtually step out of Zuck's social network. Essentially, this means you'll be able to simply select a user from your Friends list, add the necessary shipping info and, finally, choose the delivery speed (i.e. Premium Choice or Best Deal) and pay for the service -- naturally, however, you'll still have to get the package ready and drop it off at the nearest FedEx shop. Unfortunately, Ship to Friends is only available to Stateside folks for shipments within the US, and FedEx made no mention of when, or if, it plans to start offering its new handy service elsewhere.

[Source: Engadget]

Skype announces new 'In the Workplace' platform for small businesses

Skype has made itself present in many different areas around the globe, but the Microsoft-owned service is now looking to enter (and hopefully be a part of) a more business-oriented field. With the launch of its newfangled, adequately-named In the Workplace platform, Skype says it's hoping to keep small businesses connected and help them grow by giving them a free platform where they can easily communicate with potential customers, partners and even suppliers. According to Skype, this novel service has been tested in beta form for nearly six months now, and today it's officially opening its virtual doors to all business owners that are interested in giving it a go -- the link to sign up can be found down below.

[Source: Engadget]

DC Comics brings a veritable justice league of titles to Kindle, iBooks and Nook Stores

Not that there's been any lack of ways to get Batman or Supes on your chosen tablet, between Comixology and the devoted DC app, but if you happened to need on more, the publisher announced today that it will be bringing its entire line to three prominent e-bookstores. Justice League, Batman, Superman and a slew of others are hitting the Kindle Store, iBookstore and Nook Store. Never let it be said that your tablet doesn't support Flash. check out some thoughts from co-publisher, cartoonist and all around awesome dude Jim Lee after the break.

[Source: Engadget]

Microsoft to retire Messenger, begins migration to Skype

We've heard plenty of rumors about Microsoft's plans for Skype. Finally the company is laying its cards on the table. After working diligently to bridge the gap between Messenger and its VoIP purchase, its aging IM platform will indeed be retired and users migrated to the more video-focused property. Redmond hopes to complete the move during the first quarter of 2013, after which Messenger will be retired everywhere except in mainland China. Users of both services will be able to merge their accounts and combine their contacts, while those with only a Microsoft account will have to transition to a Skype one. Though, rest assured, your Messenger buddy list will automatically be transferred. With the imminent death of this MSN descendant, it's clear that Microsoft is positioning Skype not just as a VoIP client, but as an all-in-one messaging solution meant to take on the likes of Google Talk, with its Voice and Hangouts features.

[Source: Engadget]

Google Chrome 23 in finished form brings Do Not Track, graphics boosts for Windows users

As cutting-edge as Google can be, its Chrome browser has trailed in supporting Do Not Track by default; all its major challengers already have the option to cut off tracking cookies. At least that's where Google's fast-track development process comes in handy. Following a short beta, the stable release of Chrome 23 includes the DNT protocol to both safeguard privacy and prevent a few eerily well-targeted ads. The update is more fine-grained still with a quick drop-down menu to selectively turn off access to cameras, location and other sensitive details on a site-by-site basis. Even those who live their life in public get something: Windows users at last have graphics hardware acceleration for video, giving a lift to battery life on laptops and smoothing playback for those on borderline-acceptable PCs. More details are available at the source link, so get to clicking if you're not a fan of small text files shadowing your web visits.

[Source: Engadget]

Google redesigns search to make space for more info, kick the sidebar to the curb

Google loves to tweak its search results whether or not it's something we'd ever notice. Even the most casual of visitors might notice its latest change, though. The Mountain View crew has dropped the sidebar on the desktop in favor of moving everything to drop-down menus up above. It's ostensibly a reflection of the company's tweaks to its mobile page that should scale elegantly through different screen sizes, although a key goal is to fit in richer results: images, the Knowledge Graph and more all have extra room to breathe with the update. Americans tracking down election results will be the first to see the extra-wide view, and they should be followed by everyone else as soon as Google can flick the switch. We'll be content enough knowing that the company isn't spreading sidebars everywhere.

[Source: Engadget]

SkyDrive app gains Windows Phone 8 support in version 3.0

After just a few short months at v2.0, Microsoft's own SkyDrive app is now sitting pretty at 3.0. What's an extra point get you? For starters, it'll support all incoming Windows Phone 8 products, and it'll also allow users to search their SkyDrive files / folders. Moreover, you'll find new settings for photo upload and download size, as well as updated app icons and visuals. Microsoft has also improved performance when it comes to loading one's content, but as of now, the 3.0 update won't play nice with WP7 handsets. Hit up the source link if you're hungry for more.

[Source: Engadget]

Order your office supplies from Amazon, pick them up at Staples with upcoming lockers

Amazon lockers have been popping up at 7-eleven stores and UK retailers, but now they're arriving at what seems like a conflicted destination: bricks and mortar (and online) arch-competitor, Staples. The service allows shoppers who missed a delivery to head over to a locker and nab their packages using a 72-hour code, with the host retailer keeping a small fee in return. But there aren't too many items at Staples that you can't also find at Amazon, so we hope the office supply giant got a sweetheart deal.

[Image credit: Wikimedia Commons]
[Source: Engadget]

NASA releases web app to help you spot ISS, celebrates 12 years of continuous crew occupation

The International Space Station just celebrated its 12th anniversary of having a crew continuously onboard, and to mark the occasion, NASA's unveiled a new service to help folks catch the station in the night sky. Dubbed Spot the Station, the web app texts or emails the time that the ISS will pass over a user's location to their phone. The calculations are done for more than 4,600 places across the globe by NASA's Johnson Space Center, which determines when the ISS will be high enough in the sky to be seen above obstacles such as trees and buildings. Since the station is the second brightest object in the night sky after the moon, it'll appear to the naked eye as if it were a star moving at a steady clip. To get pinged with sighting alerts by NASA, hit the second source link below.

[Source: Engadget]

AMD unveils Opteron 6300, hopes to put servers in a Piledriver

AMD's advantage these days most often rests in datacenters that thrive on the chip designer's love of many-core processors, so it was almost surprising that the company brought its Piledriver architecture to the mainstream before turning to the server room. It's closing that gap now that the Opteron 6300 is here. The sequel to the 6200 fits into the same sockets and consumes the same energy as its ancestor, but speeds ahead through Piledriver's newer layout and instructions -- if you believe AMD, as much as 24 percent faster in one performance test, 40 percent in performance per watt and (naturally) a better deal for the money than Intel's Xeon. Whether that's true or just marketing bluster, there's a wide spread of chips that range from a quad-core, 3.5GHz example to a 16-core, 2.8GHz beast for massively parallel tasks. Cray, Dell, HP and others plan to boost their servers before long, although the surest proof of the 6300's success from our perspective may be that everything in the bacrkoom runs just as smoothly as it did yesterday.

[Source: Engadget - Click here to read more]

Skype launches prepaid cards in UK: Available in over 1,400 stores, credit starts from £10

Skype has unveiled a series of prepaid cards for the UK, offering users without a credit card the ability to top-up their accounts starting from £10. A second £20 card will also be available in UK retailers including Asda, Currys, PC World, Sainsburys and bookseller WHSmith, with both denominations redeemable globally through the Microsoft company's online portal. While Mexico got there first, we've been told that more countries can expect their own currency-specific cards later this year. You'll be able to use the prepaid credit to pay for Skype subscriptions, including unlimited world calling bundles starting from £8.49 per month -- all in time for that incoming Windows Phone 8 app.

[Source: Engadget]