Kyocera Rise arrives on Virgin Mobile with ICS, 3.5-inch display and slide-out QWERTY keys

Just as we'd heard, today's the day that budget-minded (and not-so-shy) Kyocera Rise hits the Virgin Mobile USA shelves. Available now for a mere $100 -- without any contracts, of course -- this 3.5-inch, Ice Cream Sandwich device boasts some pretty run-of-the-mill features, including an HVGA, 480 x 320 LCD, a single-core, 1GHz Snapdragon CPU, 2GB of built-in storage which can be expanded to 32GB via microSD and, as you can see above, a full-on, slide-out QWERTY keyboard. Naturally, Virgin Mobile's betting on folks to bundle the cheap handset with one of its unlimited data plans -- not to mention Kyocera's handset is yet another addition to the prepaid carrier's rising smartphone lineup. Those interested can give the Rise a better look down below, where a nice gallery filled with charming press shots awaits.

Gallery: Kyocera Rise for Virgin Mobile press shots

Continue reading Kyocera Rise arrives on Virgin Mobile with ICS, 3.5-inch display and slide-out QWERTY keys

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Kyocera Rise arrives on Virgin Mobile with ICS, 3.5-inch display and slide-out QWERTY keys originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 31 Aug 2012 15:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Richard Branson confirms Virgin Galactic's first space tourism flight will launch next year with him on board

Richard Branson has long said that he'd be on board Virgin Galactic's first commercial space tourism flight, and he's now confirmed that will take place sometime next year with his two adult children along for the ride (a bit of a delay from the company's original 2011 target). That trip will of course be made with the company's SpaceShipTwo craft, which has already completed a number of test flights, and which is capable of flying 100 kilometers (or just over 60 miles) above the Earth for a planned two and a half hour flight with five minutes of weightlessness. As the AP notes, some 529 people have already signed up for the $200,000 per person rides into space, each of whom will have to take part in a week of training prior to their trip. Booking's can still be made on Virgin Galactic's website.

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Richard Branson confirms Virgin Galactic's first space tourism flight will launch next year with him on board originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 15 Jul 2012 16:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Virgin Pure water purifiers launch offensive against tap and bottled water in the UK

English entrepreneur and chairman of The Virgin Group Sir Richard Branson thinks that your tap water is dirty. So much so, in fact, that he's partnered up with Strauss Water to get one of his new purifiers into your home and onto your countertop. The colorful Virgin Pure T6 (£299, $466) can dispense 1.3 liters of chilled H2O per minute, or 1.4 liters of hot water that's stored internally. The T7 (£379, or $591) delivers a bit more swagger to your crib with its minimalist, tapered design that offers 50 percent faster cold water flow. It even gets a small power bump to heat your hot water more quickly than its less-expensive sibling. It all sounds well and good, but we'll really be impressed when Virgin crams one of these into its seatbacks in first class.

Virgin Pure water purifiers launch offensive against tap and bottled water in the UK originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 May 2012 23:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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