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U.S. Cellular to launch eight smartphones, two tablets by end of 2011

Sprint isn't the only one ramping up its lineup today. U.S. Cellular just announced its product road map for the remainder of the year, and it includes eight smartphones and two tablets.

Seven of the eight handsets will run Android 2.3 Gingerbread and the eighth will be the carrier's first Windows Phone 7 handset. One of the models among the group will also be U.S. Cellular's first 4G LTE smartphone, due out in November.

HTC will provide four of the devices, beginning with the Windows Phone handset due out this summer. This will be … Read more

Soldiers' angry YouTube video changes baggage policy

I imagine that if I was a U.S. soldier coming home from Afghanistan, the last thing I'd want to think about is my baggage allowance.

Still, Staff Sergeants Fred Hilliker and Robert O'Hair--on their way home with

Delta Airlines--were reportedly offered some delightful extra financial baggage when they checked in at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport in order to fly to Atlanta.

According to the Associated Press, the group of 34 soldiers had already enjoyed an 18-hour layover when they were told to find a total of $2,800 for extra baggage.

You see, the folks at … Read more

Samsung Chrono review: It makes calls!

The Samsung Chrono may not stray much from the well-worn path tread by Samsung's flip phones before it, but we will say one thing: the phone can make calls.

Large dial pad buttons keep it simple, and a call quality so unclouded we had to ask several times to make sure our callers were still on the line is a rarity among most cell phones, period, no matter how many rabbits their software pulls out of a hat.

Of course, we wouldn't say no to a few more software tricks and to updated specs in general, but for … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 1482: iCloud details, LulzSec strikes again, and USA rules at cupcakes (Podcast)

On today's show, we discover that Sony may have stored more than 1 million user emails and passwords in clear text, which LulzSec happily took advantage of. Also, the Gmail hack may have targeted White House employees who were using their Gmail accounts for official off-books government business. And iCloud might only stream iTunes purchases at launch which, if true, would be a massive bummer. We'll see. --Molly

Subscribe:  iTunes (MP3) |  iTunes (320x180) |  iTunes (640x360) |  RSS (MP3) |  RSS (320x180) |  RSS (640x360)… Read more

U.S. Cellular gets HTC Merge and LG Genesis

U.S. Cellular scored quite a coup today with the announcement of two new Android phones, the HTC Merge and the LG Genesis.

The HTC Merge is U.S. Cellular's first "global ready" smartphone, meaning it supports both CDMA and GSM chipsets for travel abroad. It has a 3.8-inch touch screen and a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, plus it ships with Android 2.2 Froyo. Other features of the phone include a 5-megapixel camera, GPS, Wi-Fi, and mobile hot-spot capability. There were rumors that the Merge might head for Verizon Wireless, but it looks like U.S. Cellular beat it to the punch. The Merge ships with an 8GB microSD card.… Read more

Group plans Apple Store protests over tax law

US Uncut, an organization that fights companies that try to avoid taxes, is planning to target Apple retail stores on June 4, protesting the company's support of the Win America Campaign.

The group seeks to have Apple leave the WAC, which it claims is lobbying Congress for what would end up being a $4 billion tax cut for the company, as well as to cease other lobbying activities relating to "tax loopholes."

"Apple plays huge games with their taxes. By disguising profits in the U.S. as foreign earnings in low-tax countries, Apple dodges billions of … Read more

DOE expands partnerships with energy companies and automakers

Tesla Motors and Electric Power Research Institute join U.S. Department of Energy, automaker research teams and energy companies to accelerate the development of new energy-efficient technologies for cars and light trucks and the infrastructure needed to support them.

According to the DOE, the collaborative effort formerly known as FreedomCAR and Fuel Partnership, is now U.S. DRIVE--Driving Research and Innovation for Vehicle efficiency and Energy sustainability. The goal is to beef up research and development of not only new vehicle technologies, but to also work on a broad range of energy infrastructure technologies.

"Government-industry partnerships like U.… Read more

Toys 'R' Us building massive rooftop solar project

Toys "R" Us announced today that it plans to cover 70 percent of the roof of its distribution center, located in the leafy suburb of Flanders, N.J., with a solar installation.

The 5.38-megawatt solar project is a massive undertaking for a rooftop installation. Toys "R" Us claims this will be the largest rooftop solar installation in North America.

The Flanders distribution center is the largest distribution facility in the U.S. for the toy and electronics retailer. Toys "R" Us estimates that the roof spans about 32 acres. More than 869,294 square feet (almost 20 acres) of that roof will be covered in solar panels, according to the company.… Read more

U.S. Cellular set to offer dual-screen LG Genesis

LG should be the next company to enter the dual-screen smartphone fray with its Android 2.2-powered Genesis. Uncovered by AndroidCentral, the LG Genesis features a very familiar enV design with its two touch displays (3.5-inch external, 3.2-inch internal).

On the hardware front, the handset offers a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, a 5-megapixel camera, and a five-row QWERTY keyboard. Additionally, the Genesis has 430MB of internal memory, an 8GB microSD card, and support for Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n), GPS, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, and DLNA media sharing.

AndroidCentral's findings indicate that U.S. Cellular will offer the smartphone for an expected $249.99 price tag with the requisite two-year commitment and $449.99 outright. As of this time, neither the LG nor the carrier have formally announced the phone or its release date.

I'll admit that I'm growing a little bit leery of the dual-screen Android phones and tablets hitting the market. Android developers already have their hands full dealing with the various platform versions and I foresee that the secondary displays will only add to the equation.

Already, we have the Samsung Continuum and Kyocera Echo on sale with Sony's tablet arriving later this year. Until one of these handsets really takes off, developers will sit on the sidelines, fearful of wasting time and effort on a one-trick pony. … Read more