Electronics, Gadgets | featured news

Apple yesterday rolled out its iOS 5.0.1 software update which, among other things, was supposed to stomp out a bug that causes iPhones and other iOS devices to lose battery life faster than they should. It also added things like multitasking gestures for the original iPad, better voice recognition for Australian users, and got rid of another...

Beyond phenomenal products, Steve Jobs helped define what good design meant for the tech age. Here are his most enduring ideals.

Here today, dot-gone tomorrow? Once high-flying RIM, the maker of the very popular Blackberry line of smartphones, is today fighting for its very survival, battling to keep its core business in the face of a string of service outages and far-cooler technology from its competitors.

Logitech Chief Guerrino De Luca isn’t going to sugarcoat the gadget company’s troubles with the $300 Logitech Revue, which it introduced last December. At Logitech’s investor day Wednesday De Luca said the Revue was a mistake that will cost Logitech $100 million in operating profits. The set top box was built around Google‘s Google TV software, which remains a work in progress. We “executed a full scale launch with a beta product and it cost us dearly,” De Luca said.

Apple has released iOS 5.0.1, an update to its mobile OS that fixes a series of issues that drained the iPhone's battery.

When Kindle Fire customers across the country open their boxes next week, they will be able to choose from several thousand of the most popular Android apps and games, including Netflix, Rhapsody, Pandora, Twitter, Comics by comiXology, Facebook, The Weather Channel and popular games from Zynga, EA, Gameloft, PopCap and Rovio. Kindle Fire customers will be able to download these apps and games without having to register multiple times and using Amazon’s simple and secure 1-Click payment technology. Plus, all apps are Amazon-tested on Kindle Fire for the best experience possible, customers can get a great “paid” app for free every day, and once you’ve downloaded an app from the Amazon Appstore, it’s available on Kindle Fire as well as your other Android-based devices.

Amazon is likely to change its product roadmap by shifting the display size of its next-generation Kindle Fire to 8.9-inch instead of 10.1-inch as originally planned, according to sources in Amazon's supply chain.

Barnes & Noble is upgrading its Nook e-reader line with a device that's less like an e-reader and more like a full-blown tablet, taking up the fight with Amazon as it is set to launch its Kindle Fire tablet....

Ever since Amazon unveiled its 7-inch Kindle Fire tablet in September, a lingering phrase has been attached to the low-cost, high-profile device: "the iPad's first true Android competitor."

More consumers are discovering their mobile devices can help them compare prices, research gift ideas, redeem electronic coupons and watch for special deals. As shoppers gear up for another mad holiday scramble, smartphones and tablet computers are emerging as Santa's electronic helpers.