BlackBerry Thunder With Touchscreen

The Wall Street Journal, for all intents and purposes, is a pretty respectable publication so when they speak out about something, everyone is bound to turn their ears towards them.

We’ve heard a few inklings about the first touchscreen phone to come out of the Research in Motion camp, but we have yet to hear anything about a firm launch date surrounding the upcoming BlackBerry Thunder. The crew at the WSJ, however, seem to have unearthed a very juicy detail.

It turns out that the BlackBerry Thunder 9500, which will target the more business-minded in the iPhone market, is set to launch with Verizon Wireless in the United States some time in the third quarter of this year. This means that we will be unleashing the Thunder unto the masses by September at the latest. This is right around the same time that we expect to see the BlackBerry Bold 9000 as well.

The pre-September launch date isn’t quite as soon as the predicted June unveiling of the 3G iPhone, but it looks like Research in Motion is pretty serious about snatching up even more market share beyond “just” the corporate environment.

via: wsj.com

Altec Lansing Intros iPod Gear

Audio gear maker Altec Lansing is in the process of rebranding itself, rolling out a new logo and Web site to convey the company's "rich history of groundbreaking audio innovation." We're sure that's what everyone's' going to pick out of black, white, grey, and gold…but in the meantime, the company has also unveiled a new desktop speaker system with a integrated subwoofers and three new iPod speaker systems.

First up, the new eye-catching Expressionist BASS desktop speaker system look like black cones that sit on your desktop—but the bottom of those black cones are down-firing 4-inch subwoofers, designed to offer "optical performance" for both music and PC gaming enthusiasts. The top of the cones feature two 1.5-inch drivers, and the unit offers an aux input so they can be connected directly to an alternative audio source (like a digital media player. Expect to see the Expressionist BASS at retailers this October for $129.95.

Next up, the tiny Orbit MP3 mini speaker is a follow-up to the company's Orbit MP3-207, introduced last year, and claims to offer 24 hours of continuous playback from any digital audio device like an iPod, iPhone, or notebook computer using three AAA batteries. The speaker produces a 360° sound field and features a wrap-around design to store the cord and connector. It should be available in October for $39.95.

Moving on to traditional iPod speaker systems, the inMotion Moondance GLOW offers a compact form factor combined with an dual-alarm clock, integrated FM radio (four station presets), and a wireless snooze-capable remote—so you really don't have to wake up in order to get back to sleep. The unit features two 3-inch speakers and a multicolored illumination system (hence, "GLOW") that adds a touch of Lava Lamp-like coolness. The unit sports an aux input for non-iPod devices, and should be available in in October for $179.95.

Finally, the inMotion MAX wants to be an all-in-one music system for iPhones or iPods, offering XdB bass enhancement without needing a separate subwoofer and proprietary ESS technology to expand the sound stage and make stereo music seem to more fully fill a space. The unit can run off a rechargeable Li-Ion battery for up to 3.5 hours of continuous playback, and includes an FM tuner with four station presets. The inMotion Max is also iPhone savvy: it'll automatically pause music if a call comes in on a docked iPhone.

via: Digital Point

Apple Releases iTunes 8.0

Late Wednesday, Apple released iTunes 8.0, the latest version of its multimedia/jukebox application for Mac OS X. The new version, a 55.9 megabyte download, offers the following fixes, changes and new features:

• Genius Playlists - Meet Genius: a brilliant way to create perfect playlists. Play a song, click the Genius button, and iTunes creates a playlist of other songs from your library that go great together. Genius playlists help you discover songs in your library you never knew you had and rediscover forgotten favorites.

• Genius Sidebar - While you reacquaint yourself with the music you already own, let Genius introduce you to new music youll love. As you select songs in your library, the Genius sidebar displays songs from the iTunes Store that go great with it. The Genius sidebar wont recommend songs already in your library, and you can preview and buy recommended songs directly from the sidebar.

• Grid View - See your iTunes library in a new way. Select Albums in Grid View and iTunes 8 displays your entire music library using cover art.Select Artists, Genres, or Composers and iTunes automatically creates groups of albums based on your selection. Simply skim across a group to see the albums inside, and start playing an album with a single click. Movies, TV shows, podcasts, and audiobooks look great in Grid View, too.

• HD TV Shows - Purchase select episodes of your favorite TV shows in high definition for just $2.99. Or get the whole season in HD with a Season Pass. And when you buy HD, iTunes doubles your viewing pleasure: You also get an iPod-ready version with a file size and resolution that's ideal for smaller screens.

• Enhanced Accessibility - iTunes 8 is now screen reader friendly on both Mac and PC. Manage your iTunes library using VoiceOver in Mac OS X Leopard or Window-Eyes for Windows XP and Windows Vista. Or use your screen reader to purchase or download content from the iTunes Store including iTunes U.

• New Visualizer - Turn on the new Visualizer and lose yourself in a 3D-scape of spheres, ribbons, and lights that pulsate to the beat and tempo of the song youre playing.

iTunes 8.0 is available for free, requires Mac OS X 10.3.9 or later to run and can be snagged using Mac OS X's built-in Software Update feature.