Engadget

Loyal subjects of the United Kingdom who also embrace the cutting edge of TV may get an extra treat this year. Queen Elizabeth II has reportedly recorded her annual Christmas Message in 3D, becoming the first member of the British Royal Family to embrace the video format after Prince William turned it down for his wedding. We'll naturally need 3D glasses to catch all the nuances if it happens, although the extra dimension wouldn't be exclusive to the producers at BSkyB who captured it: both the BBC and ITV should supposedly have access as well. While donning funny-looking eyewear for a speech isn't usually our first choice for entertainment, we'll make an exception for Her Majesty if Buckingham Palace confirms the 3D broadcast. Besides, it may be the perfect test of a new 3D TV waiting under the tree.

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You might not need to move to Canada after all, LTE-seeking Nexus 4 owners. It appears that several users on the XDA Developers forums claim you can tap into LTE Band 4, which the Google phone requires for LTE, in select US markets where AT&T has AWS 1700 / 2100MHz spectrum. Those cities are Phoenix, Raleigh, San Juan, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Oklahoma City, Dallas, Chicago, Charlotte, Athens, GA and College Station, TX. However, LTE Band 4 is not widely deployed even in those areas, so don't feel too disappointed if your Nexus 4 struggles for an LTE signal if you live nearby.

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STMicroelectronics may not be a household name, but it's a name that's stamped on quite a few gizmos that you and yours have probably handled. Going forward, however, the company is announcing a new "strategic plan" that'll key in on five growth drivers while waving goodbye to a jointly held venture with ST-Ericsson. Carlo Bozotti, President and CEO of ST, stated the following: "Today we are announcing the new ST, aligned with the new market environment. Based on that, we have made the decision to exit ST-Ericsson after a transition period. We will continue to support ST-Ericsson as their supply-chain partner, advanced process-technology partner and application-processor IP provider."

From now on, the outfit will focus on MEMS and sensors, smart power, automotive products, microcontrollers, and application processors including digital consumer -- clearly, five areas where the tie-up with ST-Ericsson won't be necessary. Most analysts suggest that the two simply couldn't find a way to be competitive in the mobile chip business, with larger Asian and US-based rivals eating an increasing share of that pie. Moreover, the venture has been lagging ever since Nokia's smartphone downfall; as luck would (or wouldn't, depending on perspective) have it, Nokia was one of ST-Ericsson's bigger clients. It remains to be seen how many jobs will be lost due to this decision, and which of the remaining chip makers will be swooping in to buy up what's left.

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We knew good and well it was coming, and come it has: Twitter has begun its all-out assault on Instagram (and in turn, Facebook) by including its own set of (free) photo filters. As of now, just the Android version has been updated with the new lenses, but we're expecting iOS and the rest to follow suit in short order. Much like Flickr did earlier this year, Twitter has tapped Aviary to power all of the company's filters and effects.

As of now, users will find just eight filters -- ranging from "black and white to vintage" -- while the grid view enables you to preview how your image would look if any of the eight were applied. You'll also be able to crop, as well as pinch to zoom in order to focus attention. Moreover, there's an "auto-enhance" feature that'll add a little whiz-bang to whatever you managed to snap, and if you're still struggling to wrap your brain around it, there's an introductory video waiting just after break. (As well as a (NSFW) video that speaks the truth about all of these filters.)

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Last time we heard from Zink, it was introducing some sort of digital camera in concert with Lady Gaga. Perhaps not-so-coincidentally, that was unveiled at CES earlier this year. If we're assuming a yearly refresh cycle, it looks as if the company is planning its next major product launch for CES 2013, judging by a report of a new piece of kit that just surfaced at the FCC today. Simply entitled "Print" (or "Happy Print," as the documentation occasionally states), the (presumed) printer will support 802.11b/g/n WiFi transfers, though there's a USB option for those who prefer the tethered route. We also get the feeling it can be powered via an included battery pack, enabling IRL Instagrams to be printed out right there on location. There's no user guide to speak of, so further functionality is apt to be kept under wraps until its official reveal. If we had to guess, we'd say that day is coming soon rather than later.

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The Kindle Fire line of tablets is the latest set of electronics to grace GameStop store shelves in the US, the Texas company announced recently. From the baby 7-inch all the way to the larger 8.9-inch, the entire Fire line will be carried in all of GameStop's 4,400 US-based locations after a successful test run earlier this year with various Android-based tablets -- presumably it won't be too long before discounted, used versions of the tablets become widely available, as GameStop's offering a $100 in-store credit trade incentive toward the original Kindle Fire. Sadly, you'll only snag the free $25 Amazon.com gift card (offered through the end of January) if you purchase a brand new Fire, but then there's always that $50 off sale going on today, right?

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It's been almost four months since we first (and last) heard about Marshall's special edition Hanwell HiFi speaker, but today the renowned amp maker announced its sleek system is finally ready to hit shelves in various areas around the globe. The Marshall Hanwell amp / speaker combo's set to be available in Europe, Japan and the US for a cool $800, which will give interested at-home rockstars a package that's a "carefully crafted machine, designed to attain that trademark Marshall tone" and that produces "super lows, and hi-fi tweeters yield sharp extended highs, rendering the sound sharp and clear, like sitting in the front row." You'll have to tap on the source link below quick if you're looking to snag one for yourself, though, as Marshall has already said it'll only have about 10,000 units up for grabs.

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