We haven't heard much from Acer on the smartphone front since it announced a pair of handsets at Mobile World Congress, but the company's now back with another that it hopes will improve its standing in markets outside North America: the Liquid E2. Expectedly, this one is an update to the E1, and includes a bump up from a dual-core to a 1.2GHz quad-core processor, and the addition of an optional dual-SIM card slot (availability of it will depend on the particular market). Otherwise, you'll get a 4.5-inch qHD IPS display, an 8 megapixel camera that promises "zero shutter delay," the same dual-speakers 'round back found on the E1, and stock Jelly Bean for an OS. There's no word yet of this one making its way over here, but you can look for it to hit the UK, France, Germany and a number of other countries in early-to-mid-May for €229, or just under $300.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

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Donald Melanson Engadget RSS Feed johalputt

09:04

You can now scratch one more big name off the list of apps not available on Windows Phone. Tumblr has just released its official app for Microsoft's mobile platform, offering all the key features found in its iOS and Android counterparts with a distinct Windows Phone flavor. That includes the ability to swipe left and right to switch between the dashboard and "explore" options, and the option to add the latest images from your dashboard to your lock screen or live tiles. You can also rest assured that animated GIFs will remain animated while you scroll.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Microsoft

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Source: Tumblr

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Donald Melanson Engadget RSS Feed johalputt

08:49

We've already seen the Obama administration announce its latest budget for NASA this week, and now President Vladimir Putin has announced that Russia will be spending more than $50 billion in its space-related efforts by 2020. The most immediate result of that will be the completion of the Vostochny Cosmodrome near Russia's border with China, which Putin says is still on track to see its first rocket launch as soon as 2015 and its first manned launch in 2018. With NASA decomissing its shuttle program, all manned space launches currently take place at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan (as pictured above), and Putin says the new launch base will also be open for other countries to use.

Beyond that, Putin says that Russia will also have what's being described as a space weapon deterrent system by the year 2030, although specifics on it unsurprisingly remain a bit light for the time being. Russia says it also remains committed to sending cosmonauts beyond Earth's orbit in the future, including to a permanent base on the moon that it says could be used as a future launching pad for flights to Mars. Unmanned missions will precede that, though -- indeed, a new Moon probe is set to be the first launch from the aforementioned Vostochny Cosmodrome.

[Image credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls]

Filed under: Science, Alt

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Source: Bloomberg, AFP, Reuters

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Donald Melanson Engadget RSS Feed johalputt

08:04

Netflix has made clear its intention to bring Facebook integration to users in the United States (following similar moves elsewhere), and now -- after clearing some legislative hurdles -- it's finally rolling out the feature. That will let users link their Facebook account to their Netflix account and automatically share what they watch with others, although sharing will be limited to Netflix by default -- Facebook sharing needs to be enabled in the "Social Settings" on the Netflix website. Naturally, once enabled, that sharing is also enabled across your various Netflix-ready devices, letting you see what individual friends have been watching (and letting them see what you've been watching). Netflix also notes that its social features "will evolve with new capabilities being tested regularly," and that upcoming tests include the ability to let members "explicitly share their favorite titles on Facebook and discuss with their friends." You can find a short video from Netflix explaining the feature after the break.

Filed under: HD, Facebook

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Via: Bloomberg

Source: Netflix

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Donald Melanson Engadget RSS Feed johalputt

06:49