The Acer Iconia A1-810 offers a nice monochromatic design, but it’s a bit on the thick side. DealFisher Well, cheeps, I must apologize. On Friday I told you about Best Buy’s trade-in deal, which promised a minimum $100 credit when you surrendered your old Windows XP machine. I first learned of this from the Los …

Part laptop, part tablet, all Windows 8.1. Sarah Tew/CNET When it comes to Windows 8, I’m not sure which laptop form-factor makes more sense: a convertible or a hybrid. The latter offers full separation of keyboard and screen, while the former keeps the two hinged but flexible, allowing for a greater variety of viewing modes. If you’ve tried either one …

Republic Wireless now lets you order customized Moto X phones via Moto Maker. Screenshot by Rick Broida/CNET No-contract carrier Republic Wireless started selling the Motorola Moto X last November, but with two limitations: No Moto Maker customization, and no 32GB option. If you wanted the phone, your choices were black or white and 16GB. Starting at 9 a.m. PT on …

Sorry, Android, I’m just not that into you. Rick Broida/CNET I gave it the old college try. After a long stint as an iPhone user, I decided I wanted something with a bigger screen. Apple failed to oblige last year, instead merely tacking letters onto the iPhone 5, so I made a move: I adopted a Motorola Moto X from …

Google I know from past experience that readers have mad love for Google’s Nexus 7 tablet, but what about the 10-inch model? Surely bigger is better, no? Especially when there’s a deal to be had. Like this one: For a limited time, and while supplies last, Manhattan Products (via eBay) has the Google Nexus 10 (32GB) tablet for $299.99 shipped. …

The Fluance Fi30 is a shiny, stylish Bluetooth speaker available in white or black. Fluance First up, thanks for the incredible response to yesterday’s post about Microsoft Office. Lots of good discussion, lots of very fair points on all sides. (Note that CNET’s commenting system is down for the moment, so you can’t add your two cents just now. Same …

Tired of flabby arms and weak wrists? Wish you had more to show for using your iPhone than just communication, entertainment, driving directions, restaurant recommendations, and casual hookups? If only your iPhone looked like a dumbbell and was heavy like a dumbbell. Then, every time you picked it up, you’d be working out! So goes the “logic” behind ToneFone, a …

Republic Wireless made waves late last year with its $299 Moto X smartphone and dirt-cheap no-contract service plans. Now the company plans to lower the cost of entry with a less expensive handset. Starting in April, Republic will offer the Motorola Moto G (8GB) for $149 and Moto G (16GB) for $179. These replace the company’s previous entry-level phone, the …

Big day for Republic Wireless. First, the company announced plans to offer the Moto G smartphone on its low-cost, no-contract service. Now, Republic is rolling out a highly anticipated update: Android 4.4 (KitKat) for the Moto X. That will bring the handset alongside Motorola’s own, unlocked version of the Moto X, which has been receiving KitKat updates via the major …

Good news for iPhone 4 owners: Apple’s iOS 7.1 update, released earlier this week, should make your handset feel a little snappier. The bad news: It still won’t run as fast as it did on iOS 6. So writes Ars Technica, which conducted basic iPhone 4 performance tests with iOS 6.1.3, iOS 7, and 7.1. Specifically, the blog clocked load …