On Tuesday, Microsoft noted several of the Games Hub changes that will go into effect when Windows Phone Mango launches this fall. Mango’s Games Hub will include new “Avatar Awardables” which, much like on the Xbox 360, will allow you to dress your avatar up with a number of unique clothing items. The first title to support Avatar Awardables will be the game “Chickens Can’t Fly.” Games Hub will also feature new game add-ons. For example, in the game “Beards & Beak...

Apple has placed orders with its manufacturing partners for as many as 26 million iPhone 5 handsets in the second half of 2011 as it prepares for a massive launch this fall. In addition to Apple’s iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4 models, this could bring the vendor’s second-half iPhone shipments up to 56 million units, DigiTimes reported on Monday. Tack that massive figure onto the 18.65 million iPhones Apple shipped in the fiscal second quarter and the 20.34 million units shipped in the fiscal third quart...

Sony’s brand new portable gaming console, the PlayStation Vita, could launch as soon as this fall according to IGN. A Blockbuster flier in the United Kingdom started the rumor. The advertisement suggests the PS Vita Wi-Fi edition and 3G & Wi-Fi model will both launch on October 28th. A Sony spokesperson confirmed with IGN that the company will begin a “phased global release” during the holiday season, but would not confirm specific dates. We already know that the Vita will cost $249.99 i...

Following our exclusive report from Thursday suggesting Apple plans to release iTunes 11 in September alongside the iOS 5 and iCloud, a new report claims iTunes 11 will feature a redesigned layout and deep iCloud integration. IDownloadBlog on Friday cites a reliable source in stating that the next major release of iTunes will be “revamped from the ground up.” The report claims Apple’s new version of iTunes will feature a brand new user interface as well as iCloud integration. Mobile device ...

We haven’t seen the HTC Ignite or Prime since March, but a new leak from cell phone retailer The Phone House suggests that HTC is planning to launch both handsets in the near future. The phones will pack Microsoft’s Windows Phone operating system, presumably the Mango release, but it is unclear when they will hit the market. If we were betting men we would wager that both handsets will launch in the early fall, when Microsoft has said it will deploy Mango to existing handsets. Earlier this week, t...

Newly appointed Verizon Communications CEO Lowell McAdam is already making waves. While fielding questions on Verizon’s earnings call on Friday, McAdam let slip some interesting notes regarding Apple’s fifth-generation iPhone. The executive was asked by an analyst if he thought Verizon Wireless would meet earlier estimates projecting that smartphones would be in the hands of 50% of postpaid subscribers this year. “We like the gross add mix that we see coming in here. We are in the roughly 60...

AT&T on Wednesday announced that it will be the exclusive provider of Sony’s new S2 tablet in the United States. Sony took the wraps off of the S2 in April, and said it offers a unique folding form factor with dual 5.5-inch 1024 x 480 displays and a dual-core NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor. The device is powered by Android 3.0 Honeycomb and will launch with support for AT&T’s HSPA+ 4G network. It also runs Sony’s PlayStation Network for gaming and video services. AT&T didn’t reve...

According to a purported roadmap image obtained by PreCentral, HP will introduce a new 64GB version of its TouchPad this August alongside a 4G model on AT&T. The 64GB model will apparently offer a “glossy white” finish and could come equipped with a dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor that’s clocked at 1.5GHz. AT&T’s 4G TouchPad is expected to come in a black finish and will offer support for the carrier’s HSPA+ network, but will maintain the 32GB capacity of the Wi-F...

Over the weekend, the hacking group LulzSec announced that after 50 days of hacking targets such as Sony and the U.S. government, it was stopping its operations. As a parting gift, the group leaked a number of internal AT&T documents, including the above image that suggests AT&T will test a 4G LTE version of its iPad between November and December of this year. That’s in line with earlier suggestions from research firm CLSA, which said earlier this month that Apple would launch a new 4G LTE capab...

During Microsoft’s Windows Phone Mango press conference in New York today, the company confirmed that Nokia’s first Windows Phone devices will run the newest Mango operating system when they’re released. That suggests that the phones could land as soon as this fall, when Mango makes its debut. Microsoft also confirmed that it already has Nokia prototype devices running in its labs today. Other new partners include Fujitsu, Acer, and ZTE, and Microsoft said that we can expect new Windows Phon...

Microsoft on Tuesday unveiled its forthcoming major update to its Windows Phone platform — Windows Phone 7.1 “Mango.” We gave you live coverage of the event as well a hands-on look at the update, and now that the dust has cleared we can finally sit down and collect ourselves. In short, Mango looks awesome. We’ve seen plenty of promise in the Windows Phone platform right from the start, but we also thought Microsoft rushed the OS to market — understandably — and a lot of key features an...

In February we heard early reports that Apple was planning to construct an Apple Store inside Grand Central in the heart of New York City. A month later new reports suggested that the plan was scrapped. According to The Wall Street Journal, however, Apple is interested in two balconies that are located on the north and east sides of Grand Central Terminal — a total of 15,230 square feet. BGR has also independently confirmed that Apple has indeed been scoping out the space during the past few weeks. A restau...

According to Apple’s touch panel makers, the company has not yet made any information available to manufacturing partners with regard to the next-generation iPhone’s production timeline. This new report from DigiTimes contradicts several earlier reports claiming the iPhone 5 will launch in September. In addition, however, it further supports the notion that Apple may alter its current annual release schedule, which has seen the company launch a new iPhone model each summer since the first iPhone w...

That’s what it’s looking like according to a leaked image from Apple.pro, a site that has in the past leaked details and images on Apple products before their announcement and release. From what we can see, the seventh generation iPod nano would keep the same form factor as the existing model, though would add a relatively large camera sensor to the back of the small multi-touch music player. We’re betting that we’ll see the new iPod nano with camera appear at one of Apple’s tr...