The 5 billion cellphone location records the NSA's reportedly collecting daily? Don't expect an apology. While it's hard to sustain shock and disbelief when we've been hearing new details about the government's information collecting for months now, the National Security Agency saw fit to address concerns about the so-called Co-Traveler program in a statement today. The gist: The collection of massive amounts of location data is incidental in the agency's effort to "collect foreign intelligence information that is relevant to national security."

Interestingly, the statement references a Reagan-era executive order (12333, if you want to dig deep) to vindicate the agency's data-collection practices. That executive order, authorized in 1981, authorizes the collection of foreign intelligence information relevant to the nation's safety through means "consistent with applicable United States law." Additionally, the statement asserts that these surveillance activities don't violate FISA. The bottom line, though, is that the NSA won't be doubling back on its data collecting any time soon.

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We haven't even seen the latest iteration of Google TV yet -- oops, sorry, that's "Android with Google services for TV" these days -- but a new rumor from The Information's Amir Efrati points to a Nexus-branded set-top box directly from Google in the first half of 2014. Previous rumors have noted TV-connected hardware focused on videoconferencing and gaming, and this new rumor also focuses on the latter, indicating that at this stage it runs Android game apps with a touchscreen controller, but doesn't carry live TV. The suggestion is that an "aggressively priced" gaming box (that also plays streaming internet video and is controlled by phone or tablet) would give Google the advertising foothold it's looking for on your family's TV screen. The $35 Chromecast dongle has been well received and achieves many of those goals, but we'd like to see what Google could do to separate itself from competitors like Apple TV and Roku or Android-powered hardware like the Ouya -- not to mention the next-gen consoles from Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony.

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The market for keyboard-equipped phones may be on the wane, but don't tell that to Ryan Seacrest -- the American Idol host is convinced that messaging mavens need real buttons. To that end, he's jumping into hardware and launching the Typo Keyboard for the iPhone 5 and 5s. The Bluetooth case turns an Apple handset into a makeshift BlackBerry Q10, complete with backlit, sculpted keys that cover up the iPhone's home button (there's a small substitute key); we hope you don't need multitasking, folks. The Typo Keyboard will make its formal debut at CES in early January, and it should ship that month for $99. Thankfully, that means we'll escape a sales pitch during New Year's Rockin' Eve.

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With Engadget's new tools, you can track price drops on thousands of devices every day, and once a week we feature some of the best deals right here. But act fast! Many of these are limited-time offers, and won't last long.

The holiday season usually means an increase in family portraits -- whether we like it or not. There's also the excursions to visit Nana, selecting the perfect tree and those all-important New Year's celebrations. In today's smattering of deals, we focus our viewfinders on the digital camera deals of the week. Nab one of the gadgets we've selected on the other side of the break or use our product database to keep an eye on prices as they're sure to fluctuate. Join us and add the gadgets you're shopping for to your "Want" list; every time there's a price cut, you'll get an email alert!

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The US Supreme Court is wading into the battle over software patents by agreeing to hear a case between two financial firms you've likely never heard of. This comes just as the legislative arm of the government is getting ready to address the problem of patent trolls. (There's not much Republicans and Democrats can agree on, but a hatred of trolls is apparently one of them.) The hope is that both the Supreme Court and Congress will address what many see as the largest problem with the American patent system: low quality patents and frivolous law suits.

Alice Corporation, which runs a derivatives market, charges that foreign currency exchange firm CLS Bank Internation violated a number of its patents relating to computer-based trading systems invented in the 1990s. The defense has argued that four of the patents in the question are invalid, and twice lower courts have agreed with them, both in March of 2011 and in May of this year. The most recent ruling, handed down by a divided appeals court, found that Alice's claims were too vague to be protected under patent law.

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The Eurocast crew, led by the fearless Daniel Cooper, divine the spirit of HD this week as they discuss HBO's deal with Google in the UK and the merits of today's "golden age of television." While the country sees some new shows, its nearly century old paper car tax is being shown the door, and it's not the only thing on the way out. The HTC Mini is now banned in the UK due to a patent ruling in favor of Nokia and both Steve Dent and Matt Brian mourn the loss of this quality handset. It's not all a downer this week, however, as Three UK subscribers finally gain a leg up in spots around the globe, with normally priced service being extended to various international locations. Want to enjoy a bit of international flavor without leaving your couch? You're in luck, because there are at least two different accents to enjoy in this week's edition of the Engadget Eurocast. Cheers!

Hosts: Dan Cooper, Matt Brian, Steve Dent

Producer: Jon Turi

Hear the Podcast:

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National Geographic has long contributed photos and article links to Google Maps, but it's now deepening that commitment by introducing its own cartography. The magazine is using Google Maps Engine to share over 500 of its historical and reference maps with the public, including interactive overlays. You can see what Medieval England looked like, for example, or find tourist hotspots in South America. All of these maps are free to use through Google's platform; National Geographic is only charging for high-resolution and printed copies to help fund its non-profit efforts.

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If you're an Android user who likes to shop for music on the Amazon MP3 app, then you'll be glad to hear that it has received a much needed update. Most notably, the application now looks substantially better and is a lot speedier than before, with Amazon making nice design changes to the UI and tweaking things under the hood to make browsing through it all a breeze. This new version also brings the option to share what you're listening to with Facebook friends, as well as a fresh widget that allows you to have quick access to recently played tunes. It's available for download now, so go on and grab it from either Google Play or the Amazon Appstore.

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It's not too often we get to review a product with a completely new form factor, but we relish the opportunity when we do. This time, we're taking a closer look at the LG G Flex, one of two curved smartphones that have come out of Korea over the last two months. The idea of a curved device is enough to pique anyone's interest, but there's one thing holding it back from mainstream acceptance: the price. Retailing for the US equivalent of $940, this unique handset isn't for the budget-conscious, and it isn't going to make your every dream come true either. To most potential buyers, the return on investment is pretty low; it's high-end, sure, but is it worth paying a $200 or $300 premium just for the shape? We believe you already know the answer to that, but keep on reading to find out if we agree with you.

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If an image from prolific bean-spiller @evleaks pans out, it looks like Razer is set to join the iPhone gamepad brigade with the Kazuyo. We've already seen the Moga Ace Power and Logitech's Powershell for the iPhone 5 or 5s so far, thanks to Apple's inclusion of a controller API for iOS 7. Razer's offering appears to have a similar case and button layout as the latter model, but also brings a unique tilting ability, judging by the image above. There's no other details, of course, because it's still just a leak -- so keep the salt handy until you see a real product.

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