Average 30-year loan rate ties record: 3.94 pct. (AP)

WASHINGTON ? The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage has dropped to 3.94 percent, the record low set in October.

Low rates offer a historic opportunity for those who can afford to buy or refinance. Still, many people either can't take advantage of the record-low rates or have already done so.

The rate on the 30-year home loan fell from 3.99 percent the previous week, Freddie Mac said Thursday. This week's 3.94 percent average matches the lowest on records dating to the 1950s.

The average on the 15-year fixed mortgage fell to 3.21 percent from 3.27 percent. That's also a record.

Rates could fall further still. Many economists think the yield on the 10-year Treasury note could creep lower in 2012. Long-term mortgage rates tend to track the 10-year Treasury yield.

Should the Federal Reserve launch a new program of bond purchases in the coming months to try to help the economy, that could further drive down mortgage rates.

Rates have been below 5 percent for all but two weeks this year. Even so, this year could end up as the worst for home sales in 14 years.

Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist, said that despite the super-low loan rates, foreclosures and falling home values have created a "rough environment for housing."

Sales of previously occupied homes are just slightly ahead of last year's dismal sales figures ? and those were the worst in 13 years. New-home sales appear headed for their worst year on records dating back half a century.

Mortgage applications have risen slightly in recent weeks but are up from extremely low levels, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Last week, refinancings rose more than 9 percent, while loan applications to buy homes fell more than 8 percent.

Some lenders have reported an increase in applications through the Obama administration's refinancing program. That program was broadened in October to allow up to 1 million more homeowners lower their mortgage payments. But the MBA said such government-assisted loans account for just a small portion of refinancing.

High unemployment and scant wage gains have made it harder for many people to qualify for loans. Many Americans don't want to sink money into a home that could lose value over the next three to four years.

The average on the 30-year fixed loan has been below 5 percent for all but two weeks in the past year. And many homeowners who have the necessary credit and home equity to refinance already have.

To calculate average the rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country Monday through Wednesday of each week.

The average rates don't include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

The average fee for the 30-year loan rose to 0.8 from 0.7; the average on the 15-year fixed mortgage was unchanged at 0.8.

For the five-year adjustable loan, the average rate fell to 2.86 percent from 2.93 percent. The average on the one-year adjustable loan ticked up to 2.81 percent from 2.8 percent.

The average fee on the five-year loan rose from 0.5 to 0.6. And the fee on the one-year adjustable loan was unchanged at 0.6.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111215/ap_on_bi_ge/us_mortgage_rates

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World Briefing | Europe: Britain: Computer Equipment Seized in Climate E-mail Inquiry

[unable to retrieve full-text content]The British police said they had seized computer equipment as part of an investigation into the online dissemination of thousands of private e-mails from servers at the University of East Anglia.

Source: http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=1b4661cd589c76ef4dfa08754bb67264

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These Strange Light Effects In the Arctic Sky Are Not UFOs [Image Cache]

We live in a wonderful world indeed. And in places like Greenland, the skies are wonderful too, full of spectres, ringed glories, sundogs, coronas, lunar halos and cloudbows. These weird atmospheric optical phenomenons are common there. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/Ah94TlBGwMc/the-skies-of-greenland-are-full-of-alien-optical-effects

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Review: Samsung's Galaxy Nexus a sweet smartphone (AP)

SAN FRANCISCO ? As fans of Google's Android mobile software well know, each new version is named after a sugary treat, such as Gingerbread or Honeycomb. Android is about to get even sweeter with Ice Cream Sandwich ? a smooth, feature-rich operating system that will run first on the delectable Samsung Galaxy Nexus smartphone.

The combination of Google's software and Samsung's hardware makes the Galaxy Nexus one of the best candidates to compete with Apple's latest iPhone, though its price is steep. It will be available Thursday in the U.S. for $300 with a two-year Verizon Wireless contract.

Like the previous phone in the Nexus line, the Nexus S, the Galaxy Nexus was jointly developed by Google Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. It features a slim frame with a large, curved glass screen that's comfortable for chatting with friends and excellent for watching videos. There are 32 gigabytes of built-in storage space on the Verizon version of the phone, but no external slot for a microSD memory card.

The screen, a pocket-busting 4.65 inches at the diagonal, makes the iPhone's 3.5-inches look diminutive. And despite the size, the Galaxy Nexus manages to weigh just 4.8 ounces, slightly less than Apple's offering.

On it, videos and Web pages looked crisp and bright, with rich colors. I started watching a video during testing ? an HD copy of "The Help" that I rented from Google's Android Market ? and had to force myself to break away to test other features of the device.

With the latest version of Android under the hood, the Galaxy Nexus is packed with new and improved features. Many of them are great; others are simply great in theory.

Overall, the software looks fresher and less cluttered. The virtual "buttons" that usually sit at the bottom of the screen have been redesigned. There's still a "home" and a "back" button, but no "menu" button to pull up various options within an app. Instead, there's now a "recent apps" button that shows what you've been doing lately on the phone.

Another neat change: The buttons are completely virtual, so they change directions when you flip the phone sideways and disappear when you're viewing photos or videos.

Other changes to Android include an overhaul of its virtual keyboard, meant to make it easier to type without messing up ? something I've always had trouble with on the stock Android keyboard. I was often able to type more accurately than in the past, but sometimes still ended up with unintended words in my messages.

The Android browser and Gmail are updated, too. Gmail's new functions include the ability to search emails while offline, while the browser is zippier and has a "request desktop" option so you can check out webpages in their non-truncated desktop version.

One new feature that falls into the "great in theory" category is Face Unlock, which uses facial-recognition technology to unlock the phone from standby mode. To set it up, you take a picture of your face with the phone. Then, all you have to do to unlock the phone is stare at the screen after you press the power button.

Most of the time it didn't work, though, probably because the phone couldn't recognize my face from certain angles. I was also able to fool it by holding up a shot of my face on an iPhone. So much for security.

Ice Cream Sandwich also has Android Beam, which lets you share such content as a Web page, map or video between two Android phones by bringing the backs of the phones close together. It only works with phones that have this Android software and near-field communication technology, though, so unless you and your friend both buy the Galaxy Nexus you'll be out of luck at launch.

More immediately useful was the phone's 5-megapixel camera, which is the snappiest I've seen on any Android phone. There was almost no shutter lag between shots, even when I had just turned the camera on.

Still, I would have preferred a higher-resolution sensor ? 8-megapixel cameras are quickly becoming common on smartphones. In addition, photos I took could have been brighter, though this can be improved on somewhat by using some of the available editing options, including numerous color filters and adjustable contrast options.

Like the iPhone 4S and some other high-end smartphones, the Galaxy Nexus can record high-definition videos in 1080p ? the best resolution you can get on a consumer camera. I had some fun taking sunset videos with a time-lapse feature, and there are some goofy filming effects to play around with, too.

And yes, you can make calls on the Galaxy Nexus. Its thin body and curved screen make it comfortable to hold against your ear, and calls generally sounded good.

Sadly, high-speed networks guzzle battery power like a milkshake, so I wasn't able to spend a ton of time using the device on a single battery charge.

The phone Google loaned me to test was a version that works with AT&T or T-Mobile, so I couldn't test its speed or battery life with the carrier actually selling it in the U.S., Verizon, or with its high-speed 4G network.

Using both T-Mobile's standard 3G and speedier HSPA+ networks, at least, I got about three hours and 15 minutes out of the Galaxy Nexus for surfing the Web, streaming a movie, sending instant messages, chatting on the phone and other activities. The phone got quite warm with all this use. Over Verizon Wireless' 4G LTE network, it's possible that the phone's battery would drain even faster if you're doing a lot of downloading.

Another bummer: Verizon is blocking the Galaxy Nexus from supporting Google Wallet, which is supposed to allow the phone to be used to buy items in some stores by tapping it to payment terminals.

Generally, though, the Galaxy Nexus is a well-rounded smartphone that serves up a noticeably freshened-up version of Android with sleek hardware. Delicious, indeed.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personaltech/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111215/ap_on_hi_te/us_tec_digital_life_tech_test_samsung_galaxy_nexus

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Best Buy 3rd-quarter profit falls, shares skid (AP)

NEW YORK ? Electronics retailer Best Buy said Tuesday that its third-quarter net income fell 29 percent as it cut prices in popular categories such as tablets and TVs to drive sales and traffic during the busy holiday season.

Its adjusted earnings missed analysts' expectations, and its shares tumbled almost 9 percent in premarket trading.

Best Buy Co. is facing tough competition from discounters and online retailers. The largest U.S. specialty electronics retailer said it increased mark downs in categories such as mobile computing ? which includes tablet computers ? TVs and movies to drive traffic and sales, hurting its gross profit. It also spent more on advertising.

"We took actions to provide value to customers and drive our business in this competitive consumer environment," said CEO Brian Dunn.

Net income for the three months ended Nov. 26 fell to $154 million, or 42 cents per share. That compares with $217 million, or 54 cents per share, last year.

Excluding one-time items, its adjusted earnings totaled 47 cents per share. Analysts expected 52 cents per share, according to FactSet.

The Minneapolis company said revenue rose 2 percent to $12.1 billion from $11.9 billion a year ago. Analysts expected $12.13 billion.

Revenue in U.S. stores open at least one year rose 1 percent, boosted by a 20 percent increase in online revenue.

Strong sellers during the quarter included mobile computing, appliances, e-readers, mobile phones and movies. Digital imaging and gaming were weaker.

Best Buy reaffirmed its full-year guidance of adjusted net income of $3.35 to $3.65 per share. Analysts expect $3.44 per share.

It expects revenue of $51 billion to $52.5 billion. Analysts expect $51.83 billion.

Shares fell $2.50, or 8.9 percent, to $25.57 in premarket trading.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/earnings/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111213/ap_on_bi_ge/us_earns_best_buy

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RIM loses BBX trademark battle, next OS is named BlackBerry 10

Die-hard fans of RIM's mobile efforts should put those BBX tattoo plans on hold, as the US Federal Court has blocked the company from using the BBX trademark, favoring the existing use by BASIS International for its software. As a result, the boys from Waterloo just announced at BlackBerry DevCon Asia that the new name for its next phone OS is BlackBerry 10 (and the Roman numeral for 10 is... ah, we see what you did there.) Let's hope RIM's plans for pulling its tablets and phones into a single unified platform are better executed than its naming process -- next time, they should probably just leave it up to the machines.

Continue reading RIM loses BBX trademark battle, next OS is named BlackBerry 10

RIM loses BBX trademark battle, next OS is named BlackBerry 10 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 06 Dec 2011 23:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/12/06/rim-loses-bbx-trademark-battle-next-os-is-named-blackberry-10/

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PFT: Texans agree to terms with Delhomme

Reuters

1. Packers (No. 1; 11-0):? Any sounds you hear coming from South Florida won?t be coming from a cork leaving a bottle of champagne.

2. Ravens (No. 6; 8-3):? Given their history of stumbling against bad teams, the next four ?easy? games could be the hardest on the schedule.

3. Steelers (No. 3; 8-3):? The Steelers nearly experienced ?choke-like symptoms? on Sunday night.

4. Patriots (No. 4; 8-3):? The Pats are playing just well enough to fail to fulfill the expectations they?ll create in December.

5.? Saints (No. 5; 8-3):? They?ll be fine until they have to play on the road in the postseason.

6.? 49ers (No. 2; 9-2):? Unless and until the 49ers lose in January, Jim Harbaugh likely won?t be rooting for his brother in the playoffs

7. Texans (No. 9; 8-3):? Wins in the playoffs could be hard to come by without a quarterback who has some playoff experience.

8. Cowboys (No. 11; 7-4):? If the Cowboys keep it up, Tony Romo will have a chance to commit another game-altering turnover in January.

9. Raiders (No. 12; 7-4):? Forget Carson Palmer and Darren McFadden; Shane Lechler and Sebastian Janikowski could be the keys to a deep postseason run for the Raiders.

10. Bears (No. 7; 7-4):? Caleb Hanie?s hiney soon will be back on the bench.

11. Falcons (No. 13; 7-4):? They need to develop a killer instinct if they want to make it back to the playoffs.

12. Lions (No. 8; 7-4):? In fairness to Suh, no one ever specifically told him that stomping was frowned upon.

13. Bengals (No. 14; 7-4):? In the first NFL season since 1997 without T.O. and Randy Moss, the Bengals have a wideout who could be better than both of them.

14. Broncos (No. 15; 6-5):? Tebowmania will be very dangerous in a single-elimination tournament.

15. Jets (No. 16; 6-5):? Beating the Bills was, ultimately, the equivalent of delaying the inevitable.

16. Titans (No. 17; 6-5):? If Chris Johnson without his burst can rush for 190 yards, he could go for 400 yards once he can explode again.

17. Giants (No. 10; 6-5):? Bill Cowher?s plans are about to change.

18. Eagles (No. 18; 4-7):? DeSean Jackson dropped that pass because he prematurely launched into his ?hide under the bed? touchdown celebration.

19. Seahawks (No. 19; 4-7):? The 12th man apparently took a day off.

20. Buccaneers (No. 20; 4-7):? The ?toughest . . . schedule . . . ever? excuse went out the window in Nashville.

21. Bills (No. 21; 5-6):? So if Stevie Johnson had scored a touchdown against the Eagles, would he have gotten on all fours and barked like a dog?

22. Cardinals (No. 26; 4-7):? This team may not be as far away from contending as it appears.

23. Chiefs (No. 22; 4-7):? This team may not be as far away from contending as it appears.

24. Chargers (No. 23; 4-7):? This team may not be as far away from contending as it appears.

25. Dolphins (No. 24; 3-8):? This team may not be as far away from contending as it appears.

26. Browns (No. 25; 4-7):? And the streak ends at four.

27. Panthers (No. 29; 3-8):? Cam Newton had flashbacks to the national title game, given that his opponents in Indy were roughly as good as the 2010 Oregon team.

28. Redskins (No. 30; 4-7):? Back-to-back home games against the Jets and Patriots could make or break Mike Shanahan for 2012.

29. Jaguars (No. 27; 3-8):? Though it?s not clear who the next coach will be, it?s safe to say the next coach will have no offers to coach other NFL teams.

30. Vikings (No. 28; 2-9):? So if the Vikings have another 3-13 season, does Bud Grant come back again?

31. Rams (No. 31; 2-9):? Is it possible for the offensive rookie of the year to become a bust?

32. Colts (No. 32; 0-11):? ?If we fire the defensive coordinator, maybe people won?t think we?re trying to get the first pick in the draft.?

Source: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/11/29/jake-delhomme-heads-to-houston/related/

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