In a press release today, Sprint and Samsung "declared" that mobile WiMAX technology is "now ready for commercial service." Sounds exciting right? Well, it's kind of like saying that a car is "ready to drive" -- you still can't do much without the keys and a road. Since Sprint has seen recent delays, litigation, and various other forms of badness, this does kind of come off as an empty PR move. Nevertheless, they want to let everyone know that XOHM has "met Sprint's rigorous commercial acceptance criteria including overall performance, handoff performance and handoff delay." Honestly, we hope it gets off the ground soon -- we've got a pile of WiMAX N810's here we need to fire up.

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.

Though we're breaking slightly from our typical Screen Grabs format (movies, TV), we could never live with ourselves if we didn't share these shocking gadget appearances from Metal Gear Solid 4. That's right, despite being on some kind of deadly spy mission, Solid Snake will find time to bro down with a fifth-generation iPod (above), while some lovely cohort of his dials up for pizza on a Sony Ericsson W62S clamshell. More pics after the break.

[Via iLounge / CellPassion]

If you've been watching CNN's election coverage lately (and we think you have), then you've probably seen anchor John King tripping the light fantastic on the channel's Magic Wall touchscreen. Apparently, Microsoft has come up with its own version of the board -- essentially a Surface flipped on its side and mounted. The device, known as the TouchWall, joins a handful of finger-friendly prototypes that Microsoft Research is working on (including a spherical unit we assume will be used strictly for world domination campaigns). The 4-foot-by-6-foot "wall" uses inexpensive infrared sensors and a rear-mounted camera -- which can be added to a variety of surfaces -- in order to create the hands-on experience. The company appears to be targeting this as a low cost "intelligent whiteboard" solution, so hopefully they'll be turning up in schools, small businesses, and the Engadget offices soon. Check the video after the break to see it all in action.

[Via CNET]

The folks over at Computerworld just ran the current 3G providers in America through their paces, only to discover that AT&T came out on top in almost every category. Well, it appears the monolithic telco plans to keep its edge (er...) on the competition -- by upping its HSPA service to a whopping 20Mbps come 2009. Our main man Ralph de la Vega said that the process wouldn't require a major overhaul to the provider's infrastructure, and that they're already working on punching up the current 3.6Mbps speeds to 7.2Mbps "in the labs." Apparently, this won't stall plans for forthcoming 4G / 700MHz / LTE service from the company -- it'll just be icing on the cake.

Read - Which 3G network is the best?
Read - AT&T plans 20-megabit 3G by 2009

For those of you waiting with bated breath for Dell's gargantuan 3008WFP 30-inch LCD to return from technical-issue-town, your prayers have been answered. The monster display is back on the company's virtual shelves, presumably with that "small technical issue" wiped out of existence. So go for it people; that larger-than-life game of Crysis won't wait forever.

[Thanks, Mert]

If you felt like your Western Digital My Book hard drive went too far -- or didn't go too far enough -- in looking like an actual tome, Sarotech is here to turn it up a notch. When you absolutely, positively must have a drive that looks like a fake book, you can do no better than the Wizplat W-31 (yes, really). The SATA-drive-sporting, USB 2.0 device features an internal power supply, ample vents for keeping your drive cool, and a slick, sexy exterior that says, "Hey, I'm a book." All this luxury can be yours for the low, price of ₩121,000 (about $120) for a 320GB version, up to ₩315,000 ($312) for the 1TB model. Too bad this only appears to be available in Korea right now.

[Via Everything USB]

The industrious Boy Genius has apparently unearthed more juicy tidbits about that rumored BlackBerry touchscreen device. Word from BG is that the new iPhone-ish handset is now internally dubbed the "Thunder," and will come to Verizon and Vodafone as an exclusive device. The phone will reportedly have four physical keys (send, end, menu, and back), sport a hybrid CDMA EV-DO Rev. C / GSM HSPA radio, and could come equipped with a 4G LTE component. Outside Waterloo's labs, the device could be known as the BlackBerry 9500 -- though it's possible that designation could change. BGR has included a self-made mockup (above) of what the device may look like, but as of now, no one has laid eyes on this mythical creature.

What could make a game of Missile Command more exciting? If you said playing it on a gigantic multi-touch screen, you're probably right. Luckily for you, someone has gone to all the trouble so you won't have to. A gentleman named Steve Mason has created a large-scale version of the game that can be played by hand using multiple contact points. The result? Extreme awesomeness. Don't believe us? See the video after the break, then just try and tell us you don't want to get in on that action.

[Thanks, Penny]

Just in case you've been holding out, we want you to know that Dell's budget-friendly 17-incher, the Vostro 1710, is now available for your purchasing pleasure. The widescreen laptop joins the 1310 and 1510, thus completing the holy trinity of black and boxy systems, and likely signaling the end of this breathtaking saga.

[Thanks, Mike]

Microsoft really wants you to do some video conferencing, okay? Why else would they release the LifeCam VX-5000 and VX-500 webcams? Apparently gunning for some of that juicy video-chat market, the boys and girls in Redmond have introduced two models sure to find a home perched atop any monitor. Both cams sport VGA resolution and play nice with Windows Live Messenger -- we assume they're USB 2.0 devices, but Microsoft doesn't seem to want to tell us. The company is also releasing a headset, the LifeChat LX-2000. The VX-5000 will be available in June for $49.95, while the VX-500 and LX-2000 hit shelves this month for $16.95 and $29.95, respectively.

Hot on the heels of the news that Dell is axing its XPS gaming line to focus attention on Alienware, we've got word that Alienware will intro a new, low-end model soon. Clearly aiming for a bigger chunk of the market, the eyeball-shattering-system makers will offer a $1,699, AMD-powered desktop, featuring 4GB of RAM, a 2.2GHz quad-core 9550 Phenom X4 CPU, and two ATI HD 3870 X2 graphics cards. The system will be based around the AMD 790FX chipset, which will be served up on an ASUS motherboard. In a feat of absurd cliché, Alienware spokesman Marc Diana claimed, "It's not your granddaddy's AMD system. We're talking top-of-the-line quad core." The PC will be available sometime in the next two weeks, so stay alert.

On June 9th, Steve Jobs will be speaking at WWDC. Plans are vague right now, but we understand he will give two lectures on Sudoku, a shirt-folding seminar, and will discuss the possibilities of using a perpetual motion machine to replace the engine in his 1986 Volvo. Afterwards, every developer gets a hug and a low five. It's unlikely he'll discuss the 3G iPhone.

If you were starting to get worried that the new Gizmondo device would never see the light of day, fear not! According to an interview with Carl Freer, the company is hard at work on its next handheld, which he claims will feature a number of improvements on the previous, practically perfect iteration. First up, the new system will be built atop Windows CE 6 (which Freer claims has lots of "new goodies"), utilizes a separate graphics chip, will be an open platform with a readily available SDK, and can grab content form a web portal (Gizmondo.com, likely). Most interesting of all, however, is that Freer says the old Gizmondo units will be returning to store shelves. All of this magic is said to be happening by the end of the year -- though since we're nearly half-way through it, Carl and co. have a pretty small window. This is where the "exciting psychic worlds" come into play, right?

[Thanks, Trevor]

Are you hoping to enter a "two-nuclear detonation true high-definition era" of PMP'ing? Do you desire "really high-definition video playback" which brings a "new visual shock?" Do you want a media player with "super hard drive recorders, easily direct D1 quality" which are "worth your small taste?" If you answered "yes" to those questions, you want the Aigo Patriot MV5920 Dual-Core MP5 player! The unit features video playback at 720p (though not 720p screen resolution), can handle MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, AVI, DivX, XviD, ASF, WMV9, RM, MP3, WMA, WAV, AC3, and OGG files, and features a hard drive as large as 160GB... but that's not what you're really after, is it? What you really want is "unlimited life," right? Well, my friend "the curtain has been opened, such as what you."

[Via PMP Today]

Ah -- we'd know that backside anywhere. If you were super-duper stoked about the forthcoming HTC Touch Diamond, you might want to sit down. Apparently, High Tech Computer Corp. has already sent this beauty over to the FCC, where a room is currently filled with men in white coats meticulously judging the above label placement. Regardless, this might bode well for a US release of the company's latest and greatest... don't you think? While you ponder that brainteaser, feel free to truck over to the FCC's site and get all the information you could possibly want about the Diamond's RF exposure.