Samsung sneaks Q2 PMP onto the scene with 50 hours of battery life

Looking for a PMP that can hang with you for every last minute of the long weekend, eh? Just in case MSI's MS-5552 is a bit too aged for your tastes, Samsung has quietly introduced a newcomer (the Q2, but not that Q2) which promises 50 solid hours of audio playback on a single charge. Specs wise, we're looking at a 2.4-inch QVGA display, built-in microphone, FM radio module, 8GB / 16GB of flash storage and little else. As for file support, this little bugger will play nice with MP3, WMA, OGG, FLAC, WMV and MPEG-4, though the lack of WiFi and Bluetooth keeps us from really, truly falling in love. There's no word on a price just yet, but we get the feeling we'll have to snoop around in due time for that as well.

Samsung's HMX-R10 HD camcorder aims for April release

Samsung's devilishly cute HMX-R10 camcorder stole the hearts of many at CES, but ever since, we've been aimlessly wandering about Sammy's website attempting to locate clues on pricing and availability. Thankfully, it seems some answers are starting to surface, and we've only got a month or so before we discover whether these whispers were laced in truth. Reportedly, this pocket-friendly high-def camcorder will be hitting UK streets next month, with early estimates pegging the price at $550. We're told that Americans may have to wait until sometime this summer before they too can indulge, but at least the Britons will be able to test it out beforehand and give you a little heart-to-heart buying advice.

Samsung Q1EX UMPC reviewed, dismissed

Rats. Just when we thought that someone had figured out how to make a winning UMPC configuration for consumers, out comes a review to pan it. While the Samsung Q1EX sounds good on paper with its 7-inch resistive touchpanel with 1,024 x 600 resolution, 1.2GHz VIA Nano processor, 4.5-hour battery, and $775 price tag; Laptop Mag was unimpressed when it came to go-time. Unfortunately, Laptop found text entry to be too much of a chore thanks to the loss of the thumbpad used on previous Q1-series UMPCs and the lack of a digitizer that severely impacts the unit's ability to accurately recognize handwriting under XP Tablet Edition. Boot times were slow and battery life was poor at just two hours compared to the 4.5 hours stated. Sure, you can add a dock with keyboard (pictured) and optional 6-cell battery (bringing the price to $977), but at that point, you'd be wise to look at the latest in wee netbooks offering bigger screens, the same power, and longer battery life at half the price.

Samsung's Android phones delayed, won't show up at MWC

Looks like Samsung will be one of the few companies not to show off an Android device at next week's Mobile World Congress. Head of marketing for mobile device division Younghee Lee told The Guardian that none of their Google-powered handsets would be making it out to the show. As for that June launch on Sprint and T-Mobile we heard about back in December, the new plan is to launch in the second half of this year. Hey, at least we've got the i8910 to look forward to.

Samsung licenses Sandbridge's reconfigurable baseband tech

Reconfigurable baseband processors aren't a new concept by any stretch of the imagination, but so far, the idea that we might move from CDMA to HSPA to LTE to WiMAX on our handsets with little more than some creative firmware flashing is -- sadly -- science fiction. Samsung's taking that dream a little closer to reality this week by revealing that it's licensing Sandbridge Technologies' software radio tech for integration in future devices; odds are, they're looking at this as a power play for reducing manufacturing expenses and not as a too-easy way for users to switch network technologies on the go, but as the old adage goes, "where there's a hacker, there's a way." Once this is implemented, the only remaining hurdle will be configurability of the actual frequencies in use -- it's dictated as much by the antenna as it is by the baseband itself, so we'll have to wait for tiny antenna robots before that sitch works itself out.

Screen Grabs: Fringe's Olivia Dunham investigates zombies with Samsung BlackJack II

Screen grabs chronicles the uses (and misuses) of real-world gadgets in today's movies and TV. Send in your sightings (with screen grab!) to screengrabs at engadget dt com.

Given the scrutiny which Barack Obama underwent, you'd expect Fringe's Olivia Dunham -- who's responsible for matters far more serious than "fixing economies" and "creating domestic stimulus packages" -- to use some sort of highly specialized Sectera Edge for work. But given that AT&T sponsors her program, we suppose the FBI has made an exception here. As you can see, she (and her partners) were recently caught wielding Samsung's BlackJack II (and getting perfect reception on AT&T) while investigating the spontaneous morphing of humans. Turns out, this nifty little live video trick helped lead to some resolution in her life, but we'll spare you the spoilers.

Gallery: Screen Grabs: Fringe's Olivia Dunham investigates zombies with Samsung BlackJack II

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Samsung's tiny 120Mbps Wireless USB chipset ready for Q2 launch

Today things are a bit more clear as to why Intel abandoned its own Ultra Wide-Band efforts in favor of off-the-shelf solutions: Samsung just announced its ultra-fast Wireless USB chipset. Samsung's tiny 8 x 8-mm (0.31 x 0.31-inch) chip operates in the traditional 3.1 ~ 10.6GHz Certified Wireless USB space and delivers a relatively blistering 120Mbps data transfer rate (measured, not theoretical) compared to the 50Mbps achieved by current solutions -- that's a single ripped 700MB film transferred in about a minute from a range of about 3 meters. It also features 128-bit AES encryption and other security mechanisms meant to safeguard your data during transmission. The SystemOnChip design consumes 300mW of power and brings a built-in ARM core, UWB (ultra wide-band) physical layer, and memory controller while interfacing with SD cards, MMC, NAND, and USB 2.0 without any additional circuitry. In other words, expect to see Samsung's Wireless USB in digital cameras, MP3 player, speakers and more when these chips hit mass production in Q2.

It's worth noting that Samsung is a member of the Wireless USB Promoter Group that pushes the "Certified Wireless USB" standard. However, with Wireless USB start-up WiQuest out of the picture and zero references made to the standard or use of the group's logo, this might very well be a proprietary grab at the short-range wireless space that has received very little interest from vendors to date. We'll find out more more when Samsung presents its WUSB solution for the first time at Mobile World Congress next week.

Samsung introduces Lapfit monitors in a fit of insanity

Samsung's Lapfit monitors are here to solve a problem most laptop owners are familiar with: the secondary monitor offset. See, a laptop's integrated display typically sits just a few centimeters above the desktop. That can create an unnatural panning effect when trying to move the mouse or drag a window from your laptop's display to the higher secondary. Samsung's solution is to offer these new low-profile monitors that sit at the same height as your (desktop replacement-sized) laptop's display. The 19- (LD190G) and 22-inch (LD220G) UbiSync Lapfit monitors offer a 10-30 degree tilt, a 1,360 x 768 (16:9 aspect) pixel resolution, 4ms response, and a 20,000:1 dynamic contrast. Great, a physical solution to a problem solved long ago by laptop stands or by your laptop's OS -- way to go Sammy.

Samsung's TouchWiz UI getting a MWC makeover

With Mobile World Congress around the corner, Samsung is prepped to launch the latest version of its increasingly impressive, finger-friendly TouchWiz UI. Already spotted on the Ultra Touch S8300 slider, the interface has been fitted with new 3D-effects eye candy, enhanced haptic feedback, and new gesture and voice controls. A new widget dock allows you to more easily manage an increased variety of downloadable widgets while Samsung's new Photo Contact feature provides better integration of your photos and contacts with what appears to be face recognition technology. We'll know more after getting our hands on with the UI at WMC next week -- an event that's shaping up to be the biggest cellphone show in years.

Samsung melds slate, slider with Ultra Touch S8300

If having your cake and eating it too is just how you roll, you're probably the kind of hard-to-please son of a gun that wants a numeric slider keypad to go along with your phone's AMOLED WQVGA touchscreen. Wait, let us guess: you also want an 8 megapixel camera, AGPS with geotagging, integrated FM radio, stereo Bluetooth, and microSD support up to 16GB. And naturally, you want it all somehow magically packed into a shell measuring no more than 12.7mm thick. Well, guess what, sweet pea? Samsung's gone and called your bluff with the rumored Ultra Touch S8300, earning itself an official announcement ahead of MWC -- and as long as a real smartphone OS isn't on your shopping list, this 7.2Mbps HSDPA monster should fit the bill. We don't have launch territories or pricing just yet, but see that little "Barcelona" on the weather widget there? Yeah, we suspect we'll be seeing plenty of this one on the Mobile World Congress show floor.

Keepin' it real fake, part CLXXXI: Sumsang Omnia can't fool anyone

Oh, the horror! You know, Samsung's Omnia isn't terribly unique, but we never thought we'd see it knocked off and disrespected like this. Clearly created for use on China Mobile (and by fools who don't actually inspect the devices they buy), the Sumsang Omnia is a GSM smartphone that sports a 2.4-inch 320 x 240 resolution display, an MP3 player, a 13 megapixel camera (right...), USB connectivity, a couple of games, a microSD card slot and a sure-to-be-counterfeit version of Windows Mobile running the show. Of course, this abomination will only set you back a buck twenty, and hey -- at least this version comes with dual SIM slots!

Samsung Memoir officially brings 8 megapixels to T-Mobile

At some point, T-Mobile decided it wanted to play in the megapixel big leagues by rolling out the Motorola ZN5 and Samsung Behold, but why stop at a measly little 5 megapixels? The long-rumored t929 Memoir from Samsung has now been officially announced for T-Mobile USA's funky 3G bands, featuring a full touchscreen, TouchWiz user interface, integrated AGPS, full HTML browser, and -- of course -- that glorious 8 megapixel sensor with xenon flash. No word on pricing or availability just yet, but we're told we can expect it some time this month.

Samsung pulls a Samsung, leaks nine new models ahead of MWC

In typical Samsung go-big-or-go-home style, the world's number two phone manufacturer is now expected to announce no fewer than nine new models at this month's Mobile World Congress -- and that's just from the EDGE-powered middle of the range on down. Starting with the most interesting of the school (if we want to go with a fish analogy here), the pictured S5050 brings high style, a 3.2 megapixel cam, 2.2-inch QVGA AMOLED display, and most interestingly, dual SIM slots -- an indication that this will very likely see duty in the Far East. Heading on downrange, the B5702 is almost as awesome but trades the high-tech display for a 2.4-inch TFT. Of course, there's more than just sliders in the mix; you've also got bars like the S3310, which supports microSD expansion, a 2.1-inch QVGA display, and FM radio (an almost ubiquitous feature in developing market phones). The E2210 holds down the clamshell fort -- but to get it, you'll have to be cool with a meager 160 x 128 display and a weak VGA cam. Heading down to the very, very bottom of the range, you get into a couple candybars designed to be accessible to the world's poorest: the E1125 and E1100, which rock 128 x 128 displays, a data-less GSM radio, and 300 / 200-contact phone books, respectively. That E1100 sounds suspiciously like the legendary Nokia 1100, doesn't it? Anyhoo, expect this all to break at MWC, along with the usual array of moderately more droolworthy high-end fodder.

Samsung's 4Gb chip promises 32GB DDR3 memory modules for PCs and laptops

Oh Samsung, you and your world's firsts. We like to tease but your latest breakthrough is truly notable: the world's first 4Gb (bit, not Byte) DDR3 DRAM PC memory chip based on relatively frugal 50-nm processes. Two things here: 1) the new chips consume 40% less power than previous DD3 memory modules, and 2) the chips pave the way for 32GB (Byte, not bit) DIMM modules. The first modules will come in capacities of 16GB (containing 32 of the new 4Gb chips) for servers, 8GB DDR3 DIMMs for desktops, and 8GB SO-DIMMs for laptops. When, is the question Samsung fails to answer. The question to you is this: you're not still buying full-spec'd DDR2-based laptops are you?

Samsung seems pretty proud of world's highest density DRAM chip

Those of you who actually keep track of which outfits are on top of others in terms of density (yeah, all 8.4 of you) have a new winner to document, as Samsung has just announced the development of the planet's highest density DRAM chip. By utilizing 50 nanometer technology, Sammy has concocted a four gigabit DDR3 DRAM chip, and if it has its druthers, the low-power device will be used in data centers and servers the world over. The module can be produced in 16GB registered dual in-line memory modules (RDIMM) for servers, as well as 8GB unbuffered DIMM (UDIMM) for workstations and desktop PCs, and 8GB small outline DIMM (SODIMM) for laptops. If dual-die package technology is tapped into, the new device can scale as high as 32GB, though Samsung is careful not to mention just how much you'll have to pay for this stuff.

Samsung Propel Pro in the wild, caught on camera

More spy shots from the net, eh? This latest set shows what's purported to be the Propel Pro, an update to Samsung's QWERTY that launched last October. There's a more streamlined interface under the screen, including a new optical joystick that according to Boy Genius Report's source is "worthless." The Windows Mobile 6.1 device also sports 3G and a camera of unknown quality, although we expect to at least match its 1.3-megapixel predecessor. Mum's the word on price and availability.