Oh Verizon, did you just spill confidential information all over your YouTube channel? The guys over at Droid-Life spotted a VZW ad starring a mysterious new Honeycomb tablet, which to our ninja-trained eyes looks to exhibit many of the design elements of Motorola’s Xoom. It could, of course, be just about anything, given that Verizon yanked the video almost as soon as the above screengrab was lifted, but the rear of this 10(ish)-inch tablet looks very much like a Xoom designed to be used in portrait orientation. We know Moto has a Xoom 2 cooking in the oven and it’s not unreasonable to surmise that Verizon is putting together the finishing touches on a promo campaign for it. Now if only we could get a look at that video with our own eyes…

Pulled Verizon video shows an unannounced tablet, could it be the Xoom 2? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 17 Jun 2011 04:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Japan loves Apple, there’s no doubt about it. The brand is one of the most popular tech brands in the country. iPods, Macs and even the iPhone are selling like hot cakes. But apparently, big A, or at least its Japanese subsidiary, is getting a bit arrogant in the process. According to The Nikkei (“Japan’s Wall Street Journal”), Apple Japan today ordered a number of major online retailers to stop offering all of their products online.

And Apple seems to have so much clout in Japan that their products vanished from almost every retailer’s website in the last few hours (reportedly, Apple told them to take down its products without delay). The resellers in question include the “Best Buys of Japan”, for example Yodobashi Camera, Joshin Denki, BicCamera, or Kojima.

What reportedly bothered Apple were the discounts these retailers gave to their customers. The background is that Japanese buyers usually expect discounts of at least 5% whenever they buy consumer electronics or computers – online or offline (some devices can even drop up to 20% and more in price). In most cases, the discounts are being granted in the form of “points” that can be redeemed when it’s time for the next purchase.

I just tried and could still put the iPod touch 32GB into my shopping cart on the Yodobashi site, for example. But as you can see on the screengrab on top of this post, Yodobashi says I have to go pick up the device [JP] in one of their brick and mortar shops and call a number for more information. The 5% discount (as bonus points) is still being displayed.

The only online store I could find that seemed to have received special treatment was Amazon (see screengrab of my shopping cart above).

John already gave you his “quick look” on the 8520, but a second look never hurt. Take into account the fact that my main phone is the BlackBerry Curve 8900 and you can see why I’m anxious to give you my thoughts on the latest Curve to hit the streets.

It’s a budget BlackBerry that skimps on aesthetics, but manages to offer a lot of “must have” features that BlackBerry users have become accustomed to from other devices. Compared to the 8900, the 8520 is sans GPS and the 3.2-megapixel AF camera that’s on the 8900 is now a 2-megapixel variant on the baby Curve. Here are a few sample images taken side-by-side with the 8900. Video quality is somewhat similar, but the 8900 does a better job with color than the 8520. Check out the screengrab after the sample photos.

A fake report on CNN’s iReport site alleged that AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson had been found dead.

(Credit: iReport, screengrab from Business Insider)

Reports began to surface Sunday charging that AT&T had blocked broadband access to parts of the notorious (and powerful) Internet forum site 4chan, which …

Originally posted at The Social

We always try our best to keep a positive mental attitude on The 404, so it makes sense that we’ve chosen The Hold Steady’s latest album, “Stay Positive,” as today’s Audio Draft Pick. We also run through the accidental video game archive, shame the Guinness World Records, and warn our listeners about open manholes, literally.

Today’s “Best Web site you’ve never seen” award goes to Derek Yu’s Accidental Video Game Porn Archive that showcases sexual innuendos found in your favorite video games. It’s an easy way to waste a few hours at work. They’re all hilarious, but this Menage a Kong has got to be one of my favorites, with this Star Fox violation in a close second. I also like that Derek and I share the same last name–this Web site is totally something a Yu would do. Nice job, cuz!

We don’t wag our fingers as much, but we have to scold the Guinness World Records for this record-breaking fail. One of the entries on its Web site awards the “Most Individuals Killed in a Terrorist Act” to the terrorists behind the attack on the World Trade Center towers and even invites viewers to “break this record.”

Instead of immediately taking down the award, Guinness World Records compounded the fail by threatening legal action on the ICanHaz network for posting a screengrab that features the Guinness World Record logo without proper authorization. If that isn’t a case of corporate cowardly B.S., I don’t know what is. Daps to Fail Blog for their hilarious response complete with a Rick Roll at the end!

The Hold Steady's "Stay Positive".

(Credit: Last.FM/The Hold Steady)

Jeff’s pick for today’s “Audio Draft,” sponsored by Beck’s Beer in conjunction with Last.FM, is Brooklyn local band The Hold Steady. In our own words, these guys sound like the aural lovechild of Bruce Springsteen, Social Distortion, Joe Strummer, and Billy Joel. The music combines various instruments (banjos, organ, piano, theremin) to produce a jamming rock theme, and then adds gruff vocals with epic storytelling lyrics to complete the circle.

The band’s latest album, “Stay Positive,” keeps the party going with a steady balance of hilarious stories from the road (“Sequestered in Memphis”) and heartbreaking admissions of love lost, but not forgotten (“Lord, I’m Discouraged”). Check out the entire discography and let us know what you think in the comments!

(Last.fm is a part of CBS Interactive, which also publishes CNET News and Reviews.)

EPISODE 381

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Originally posted at The 404