Verizon is really gearing up for what it thinks is the CDMA version of the iPhone – the LG Voyager. Although the device really isn’t much of an iPhone, it’s still very feature-rich with its VCAST Live TV, EV-DO and a touchscreen. So if you’re seeking out the 411 on the Voyager, I present you with this data sheet. Yes, this one. I’d hardly call a 2-megapixel camera something to get excited about, but hey, Verizon customers are desperately in need of a cool “it” phone right now, so fair game. LG Voyager gets a datasheet [Phone News] → Read More
Nokia’s push into consumer GPS devices is a good thing, if you ask me. Nobody asked me, but whatevs. This GPS system has been approved by the FCC and is slated to begin selling in Europe by the end of the year. Will the Nokia 500, like Akeem Joffer, be coming to America? The answer is uncertain. One thing that is certain, however, is Nokia’s “definitive agreement” to swallow up GPS software maker Navteq, so expect to see a fair amount of GPS devices from Nokia in the near future. The 500 features a 4.3-inch touchscreen, support for 16GB SDHC cards, and can handle video, audio, photos, and connects to your mobile to function as a Bluetooth speakerphone. It’s expected to retail for around 300 EUR ($433 US). FCC Approves Nokia 500 Auto Navigation GPS [MobileWhack] → Read More
If this doesn’t make Sprint the best CDMA network in the nation then I’m not sure what will other than the fantastic new phones they have coming. Pretty sure $30 is cheap for a BIS plan that includes unlimted BIS e-mail, IM, Web, Data and text messaging on top of the Sprint services. Yeah, it doesn’t include tethering, but that’s only an extra $15, which is still pretty good. The new plan drops on the 4th. Sprint Coming Out With New BlackBerry Data Plans [via BGR] → Read More
Psst… rest of the world. Come here. Don’t tell Japan. OK. We need to stage an intervention or something because this stuff is getting crucial. We were OK with eht cosplay and the tentacle porn and the robot fetishes. Hell, some of us can even accept the blurred out naughty bits in their many and various forms of pornographic representation. But this is freaking nuts. Sure, it looks like a can of ramen. But it’s ramen that you, in no uncertain terms, are supposed to screw. You pop open the top, drop the wanger in, and do your business. Then you — what do you do with a spent cup of noodles containing your main seed and your dignity? Give it to your mom to throw away? Hide it behind your futon? I’m hoping to Jeebus that this is a gag gift and that something was lost in translation but knowing what I know about Japanese sexy time, this has to be a serious tool for getting it on with a freaking noodle bowl. So we all need to stick together on this one, guys. We need to sit Japan down, give it a good talking too and maybe send it to rehab. If we don’t, expect sashimi-shaped vibrators and a Mario real doll [NSFW] in the next few years. Cup Nude [DannyChoo] → Read More
Typically, wireless is not considered to be as reliable as wired. Dropped signals and diminished fidelity are typical problems that have plagued this technology. Rocketfish designed this system to eliminate the need for running wires around your walls or under your floors (the latter is even more difficult if you do not have a basement). It comes with a sender unit (sending at 2.4 GHz), receiver unit, stand for the receiver unit, power adapter, and two 2-foot speaker wires. The setup is very simple. After connecting your surround cables to the sender unit from the amplifier, you will connect your surround speakers to the receiver. The cables that come with the system have terminals instead of wires, which is nice. It makes it extremely easy to connect. The only negative is that it doesn’t come with another set of cables, so you will still need to have some on-hand for your receiver unit. → Read More
This, my friends, is a poorly named product. But you know what they say; you can’t judge a donut making machine by its ridiculous hyphen-happy name. → Read More
After sprucing up Ask.com earlier last summer, parent company IAC began spending $100 million this year on marketing to raise awareness of the Ask brand. I don’t know about you, but I’ve been seeing a lot of Ask.com ads on TV lately. (And I pretty much only watch TiVo, yet they are so ubiquitous that they still catch my eye as I fast-forward through the commercials). So how is that ad campaign doing? Taking a look at IAC’s earnings today, it is not clear whether or not the expensive ad campaign will even pay for itself. Out of IAC’s $1.5 billion in total quarterly revenue, its media and advertising businesses (of which Ask.com is a part, along with CitySearch and Evite) accounted for only $190 million. While those revenues were up 40 percent from last year, the search portion of that saw a greater contribution from the Ask network (search results it powers on other sites) than from Ask.com itself. In other words, IAC’s media and advertising businesses saw a $54 million bump in revenues last quarter. Not all of that was due to Ask, and of the part that was, more than half came from traffic outside of Ask.com. The point of the ads, of course, is to drive traffic to Ask’s main site. At least Ask is not losing market share. According to comScore, the search market share of Ask’s network as a whole nudged up 0.2 percent in September versus August to 4.7 percent (compared to 57 percent market share for Google, 23.7 percent for Yahoo, and 10.3 percent for Microsoft). Both Google and Yahoo still gained more share in September than Ask.com, although it did take some share away from Microsoft. And if you look on Compete.com, traffic to Ask.com itself does look to be picking up. UpdateIt’s been pointed out to me by someone who know that the $100 million is the total amount the search engine is spending on marketing worldwide, including much more than the TV spots (such as online ads, agency fees, and internal marketing salaries). The TV spots are still a significant chunk of it, but not the majority. Also, the most recent TV ad campaign just started in September. This Hitwise graph suggests that it contributed to a nice 23.7 percent jump in Ask’s share of executed searches from August, 2007 So it could just be too early to tell → Read More
When money gets tough and you want to add a sub-woofer to your 1998 Hyundai Tiburon with the rims you got from that dude off Craigslist, you’ll need something on the cheap. After all, those “professional” boxes made from things like wood and plastic cost way too much for any college student. So it makes sense that some dude instead opted to pound Miller Lite all night and throw a speaker into the leftover cardboard box. Bet it gets the ladies too. So my question to you is: will a sub-woofer made from a 30-pack of beer and some wires actually work well? I was going to test it out myself but I kept purposely messing up the box so I had an excuse to buy more beer. Miller Lite Subwoofer Will Get Stolen Quickly [Geekologie] → Read More
This is just plain creepy and weird. I love my Mac and at one point I loved my PC, but…but…WTF is this?! It can’t be a photoshop job, can it? Geek’s Tomb → Read More
Boobs. We love em, right? Of course we do and so does Western Digital. Not to downplay the importance of supporting breast cancer research or anything, but pink products make me barf. I hate pink. I hate guys that wear pink and think they look cool. You’re a tool, dude. Girls and pink are fine. It’s a feminine thing. Totally don’t know where I’m going with this. Anyhoo, the latest external drive dipped in pink is the Passport, which I own and has become invaluable since the HDD on my MacBook is all but tapped out. Plug it in and start moving _________. The 250GB pink Passport is available online now and hits Best Buys next month for $199.99. Product Page → Read More
Little is known about these spy shots of a new interface designed for Sony-Ericsson’s UIQ. What I see is a touch-based interface that is half iPhone, half HTC Juno. You would think a guy snapping photos during a corporate presentation would be willing to cough up a little more information! Sneak peek at SonyEricsson’s new UIQ interface [Gearfuse] → Read More
Here come the outrage mongers. As you’re well aware, Manhunt 2 comes out today. Predictably, all sorts of family-oriented “leaders” are up in arms over the game’s release. (Never mind that these “leaders” would be out of a job if they didn’t complain about anything.) The big, scary claim now is that children, my God children, could log onto the Internet and download a copy of the game, exposing them to all sorts of pornographic violence. Don’t forget regular pornography! Whatever, these guys calling for the game to be divorced from America need to calm down. It’s rated M, it’s not for kids. That kids might get their hands on it is irrelevant; kids can download all sorts of horrifying things from the Internet. I say we hand out copies of the game to the little trick-or-treaters tonight and see what happens. Child advocates upset over `Manhunt 2′ [AP/Miami Herald] → Read More
Alcatel-Lucent, the French-American telecommunications equipment maker, reported a third-quarter loss of $373 million today. To help the bottom line, the company plans to layoff another 4,000 employees beyond the February announcement of 12,500 layoffs. This amounts to a 20% reduction in payroll. It is hoped this move will save the company an additional $578 million by 2009. CEO Patricia Russo, the architect of the company’s $2.45 billion cost-cutting plans, denies reports that the board of directors is unhappy with her future plans for Alcatel-Lucent. Russo has lobbied for a slimmed down management team, a more streamlined core carrier business and a focus on higher-margin businesses. “Volumes we are seeing are not what we expected,” Russo said in a conference call. “These are difficult but necessary decisions, and we will manage these reductions with care.” Chief Financial Officer Jean-Pascal Beaufret said he will leave the company “in coming weeks.” He will be replaced by Hubert De Pesquidoux, previously CFO of Alcatel North America. MobileCrunch reported earlier this month that Ericsson’s 3rd Quarter Profits (were) down 36%. Ericsson has 45% of the telecommunication equipment market and blames lower profits on a slowdown in equipment investment by mobile phone providers. This ripple is now being reported by smaller companies like Alcatel-Lucent. The third-quarter loss of 258 million euros was slightly larger than analysts’ expectations, and contrasts to a pro forma net profit of 532 million euros a year ago. Sales in the quarter slumped 11 percent to 4.35 billion euros ($6.27 billion), hurt by lower investments in U.S. wireless networks. Overall revenues for the year are expected to be flat, but shares of Alcatel-Lucent rose 1.4 percent to 6.72 euros ($9.58) in Paris after the third-quarter news came out. Cheuvreux analyst Remi Thomas doesn’t think the company’s plans go far enough to make it profitable again. He believes revenue is so short of expectation that Alcatel-Lucent needs to save an addition 1 billion euros ($1.44 billion). This would require the company to cut an extra 10,000 jobs. Alcatel-Lucent → Read More
If things go well, we might finally see that Gphone by the middle of next year. Google is in heated talks with wireless carriers in the U.S., including Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile, (and Vodafone internationally) to carry the Gphone, reports the WSJ. Google already competes (and cooperates) with some of these carriers. It recently fought with Verizon, for instance, over the rules of the upcoming 700 Mhz wireless spectrum auctions, while it is partnering with Sprint on its upcoming Wimax network. The only carrier not mentioned is AT&T, which carries the iPhone. When the Gphone does come out, chances are that there won’t be just one Gphone, but many. In the next two weeks, Google is also expected, says the WSJ, “to announce new software and services that handset makers could use to build customized Google-powered phones.” Just as in social networking, Google wants to make mobile phones an open platform that developers can build lots of applications on top of. We may very well see a mobile 2.0 platform war brewing between the Gphone, the iPhone, Windows Mobile, and Nokia’s Ovi. → Read More
Myxer, a mobile content delivery company, announced that it has reached over 3 million users, making it one of the largest distributors of mobile content. In April of this year Myxer reached 1 million users and has tripled that number in less than six months. If growth continues at this pace, within ten years aliens in a galaxy far, far away will be downloading wallpaper and ringtones from Myxer. Currently, more than 7 million pieces if mobile content are downloaded per month, at a rate of roughly 3 downloads per second. Myxer offers over 150,000 free ad-supported ringtones, wallpapers and videos. Users can make their own ringtones, videos and wallpaper from music and files a customer already owns. “We think that reaching this milestone so quickly is a statement about how easy our platform and mobile content site are to use, and is also a clear confirmation of the growing demand for mobile content in general,” said Myk Willis, founder and chief technology officer of Myxer. “Our continued growth will be fueled by our aggressive recruitment of content partners, user adoption of new content types like video and over-the-air song downloads, and the vast international opportunity we are just beginning to tap into.” Myxer → Read More
Mobile media company 4INFO has taken funding from the NBC-GE joint venture Peacock Equity and a signed a provider deal with NBC. 4INFO is the sixth Peacock Equity investment since the $250 million fund was established in April. Under the deal, 4INFO will become NBC Universal’s preferred mobile SMS advertising partner, providing technology and services that will enable NBC Universal “to offer dynamic, targeted advertising in its text messaging content.” NBC Universal will also be able to supplement its own alerts content offerings with 4INFO consumer services such as health tips, fantasy sports player statistics and custom, user-defined alerts. San Mateo based 4INFO was founded in 2004 and includes amongst its investors Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Gannett Company, Sand Hill Capital and U.S. Venture Partners. The Peacock Equity investment is 4INFO’s 5th round, with the company having taken $8 million Series C in March 2005 and $10 million Series D in June this year. The amount of Peacock Equity’s investment was not disclosed. CrunchBase Information 4Info Information provided by CrunchBase → Read More
Hot on the heels of the launches of Disqus and Intense Debate, commenting reputation system SezWho has raised a $1 million series A round from KPG Ventures and upgraded their offering. The investment makes SezWho the best funded of the small group of startups currently trying to improve community for commentors. Considering how enhanced commenting somehow became a more competitive space overnight, the money also came at a good time to help speed development. SezWho has a more basic offering compared with Disqus or Intense Debate, but with a much lower point of entry. It doesn’t entirely replace your comments or wrap them in a fully featured social network. Instead it focuses on simply helping separate the good commentors from the noise by adding ratings and reputations to your blog comments. The WordPress and MovableType plug-ins let readers order comments by rating and explore the history of their commenting across SezWho enabled sites. The plugin doesn’t require users to sign up for a new account, but rather links commentors based on email address. If someone tries to hijack your reputation, though, you can claim your email address and remove the unrelated comments. VentureBeat and reportedly over 300 other sites use the system, totaling over 100,000 users. Today’s press release also says that the service will work across forums, social networks, and wikis, although that’s not currently the case. Comment ratings are determined by other users simply answering the question, “Was this comment useful to you? Yes or No”. But not all votes are equal. Commentors with higher overall “star” ratings from consistently highly rated comments have greater weight attached to their votes. SezWho also has a “Red Carpet” widget that highlights a site’s top rated commentors to encourage more participation. Readers can sort the comments based on these ratings and view other blog comments from users by checking out their profile, all via an AJAX popup. The idea is that users will be drawn to comments left on other sites and drive traffic across all SezWho enabled blogs. SezWho has some analytics tools that expose exactly how much traffic other sites are drawing to your blog. → Read More
Back from the dead: Automan Any golf-playing Trekkies out there? Here’s your putter Last-minute costume idea! Chris “Long Tail” Anderson is mad as hell and will not take it anymore Logitech + Skype = Videocalls → Read More
Comments are the greasy oil that keeps the blog machine running. Here are three great (and 100% unedited) comments recently posted by your fellow readers. Geek wants you to level his WoW character – sort of Sascha I just got proof I am not the dorkiest nerd on the planet. First I read this post and had no idea what he was talking about (other than the game WoW), so I went on to read the Craigslist posting and had even less of an idea what THAT guy was talking about, and then I decided that that was a good thing and that I still have a chance to de-nerdify myself and become a decent human being. → Read More
