Thanks to an especially sneaky Best Buy employee with access to the company’s retail stock system and a liking for the Boy Genius Report, we now know when to expect a few new handsets to arrive in the land of the blue polo. The only new non-smartphone making an appearance is the 5 megapixel Sony Ericsson C902, which actually managed to sneak in sans fanfare over the weekend. On the fancier… → Read More
WhatTheyPlay.com is reporting that we might see a new next-gen Nintendo console by 2011 and that it might be named Wii HD. Better get in line now so you can get your hands on one by 2014. Try to at least get a raincheck for Wii Fit HD, too. Apparently Nintendo’s been showing some presentations to developers and publishers and the consensus is that the shift between the current Wii and the Wii HD… → Read More
Transferring large files on the web has always been a hassle, especially when you need to do it frequently. One field especially prone to this problem is the music industry – artists often collaborate with eachother by sending rough versions of tracks, but have to rely on clunky services like YouSendIt or FTP servers. SoundCloud, a German startup that launches on October 10, is looking to… → Read More
Starting out at $999.99, because that one cent makes a big difference, the 13.3-inch HP dv3500t notebook packs an Intel C2D (four to choose from: T5800 2.0GHz; P7350 2.0GHz; P8400 2.26GHz; T9400 2.53GHz), Nvidia GeForce 9300M GS graphics card, up to a 400GB HDD (smallest being 160GB) and a handful of other customizable features. You can also get the HD screen with LED backlighting. Not too shabby… → Read More
Here’s a Steampunk phone prototype by designer Arthur Schmitt. You make calls using binary punchcards. Punchcards! There are also some dials and a metal grill-type earpiece. The backside of the device seems to contain some sort of rolling counter that likely either keeps track of call duration or gives you the time. → Read More
The Bay, that’s how we’re going to refer to Michael Bay from here on out, has announced that a handful of sequences from Transformers 2 will be shot with IMAX cameras. However, the rest of the movie will be re-mastered for IMAX, but those scenes will be seen in traditional letterbox. When the IMAX sequences come up the picture will fill the entire screen. The movie coming to IMAX is old news… → Read More
Yesterday Toyota Japan announced [JP] it produced the world’s first airbag specifically designed for rear-end collisions. The company said it will use the new airbag in its hyper-compact iQ to be released in Japan by the end of the year. The new airbag, which is placed above the iQ’s rear window, is supposed to protect passengers sitting in the backseat in the case of an accident. The… → Read More
Hacking the AppleTV to make it ostensibly better has long been an underground hobby of mine. I upgraded my hard drive and tried to add plug-ins but this may be the holy grail of ATV mods. Boxee basically adds full media center capabilities to Steve’s box and turns the old menu into something glorious to behold. → Read More
Panic! A ruling that’s expected to come down on Thursday in Washington could endanger iTunes. So we’re led to believe. The National Music Publishers’ Association is demanding a 66 percent increase in royalties that its members receive whenever their music is purchased from online music stores. iTunes, Amazon MP3, and so on. Meanwhile, Apple says the increase, from 9 cents per… → Read More
In an interesting move by Netflix and Starz, about 2,500 featured movies and concerts are now available for instant streaming over the Internet and using the Roku Netflix box. Because Starz offers first run “premium” content, this move expands the overall streaming offerings from Netflix considerably. My only complaint about Netflix streaming has thus far been movie selection –… → Read More
NEC has a new workplace-type monitor in the EA241WM. It’s billed as an “enterprise” monitor but if you really wanted, I bet you could sneak one into your home. It’s a 24-inch widescreen LCD with 1920×1200 resolution, 1000:1 contrast ratio, 400 cd/m² brightness, and a magical base that allows it to tilt, swivel, and pivot. There’s also a built-in four port USB hub, speakers, HDMI… → Read More
The Apple DVR poll’s results have been tallied and it turns out the vast majority of you (62%) would buy an Apple DVR – as long as the price is right. Knowing Apple, its DVR wouldn’t be the cheapest on the market, but it should be one of the most innovative. FYI, a TiVo HD DVR is $299 and the 1TB edition goes for $599. So what is the right price? → Read More
I am not sure if this is a good idea or not but Toshiba announced at CEATEC 2008 it will soon start incorporating fuel cells in a number of its products, i.e. digital cameras and notebooks. The company currently presents a hybrid prototype of the W55T [JP], a cell phone that is powered by a methanol fuel cell (cartridge capacity: 50ml) charging a secondary lithium-ion battery. The phone, which is… → Read More
Memo to the Copyright Royalty Board: a bigger pie fills more bellies. Tomorrow, the three-judge panel that sets rates on music copyright fees is scheduled to announce new rates on digital music downloads for the next five years. The fees, which go to music publishers (the actual owners of the copyright to each song), are currently set at 9 cents per track. Music publishers want to raise that to… → Read More
http://blip.tv/play/ih_QtyyJ5FQ Japanese toy maker Takara Tomy announced it will start selling the AeroSpider [JP], a radio-controlled car that can climb walls and drive on ceilings, on October 30 (availability outside Japan is unknown at this point). Just like ordinary toy cars, the battery-powered AeroSpider can also be used on horizontal surfaces. But pushing a switch at the back of the car… → Read More
Silent Hill: Homecoming, which is only getting so-so reviews (which stinks because it’s my favorite game series; Silent Hill 2? Now there’s proper narrative in a video game), is effectively banned in Australia because of its over-the-top violence. But what, exactly, is the reason why the game won’t be coming out down under? How about this: drilling into and severing body parts. → Read More
Apple announced today that it has decided to drop the controversial iPhone developer non-disclosure agreement because it “created too much of a burden on developers, authors and others interested in helping further the iPhone’s success.”
According to the company, in a statement released today, it “put the NDA in place because the iPhone OS includes many Apple inventions and innovations that we… → Read More
Toshiba is currently showcasing a prototype of a 16-Gbyte microSDHC memory card at the CEATEC 2008, doubling the maximum capacity of currently available products. The company said it managed to squeeze a total of 16 8-Gbit NAND and one controller chip into the card. Reportedly, the NAND flash memory chips were cut down in thickness from 70μm to just 18μm. Via Tech-On → Read More
Following the merger, XM content has made its way to Sirius-branded radios. This photo shows XM’s Opie and Anthony playing on a Sirius radio, on channel 197, and Howard Stern on an XM radio. Yeah, it’s weird. → Read More
Microsoft is trying anything to get you to use Live Search. And now it’s time to add another to its attempts to try to pay you to use its service.
Dubbed SearchPerks, Microsoft’s latest scheme gives users points when they use Live Search, which can be redeemed for prizes. Users who sign-up before the December 31 deadline, must agree to download a small program that tracks their usage. Once… → Read More
Some fool in upstate New York followed his GPS’ directions a little too closely, right onto a pair of train tracks. And yes, the car was hit by a train. No one was hurt, though. The man, a Mr. Jose Silva of White Plains, turned onto the train tracks in Westchester because, you know, that’s what his GPS device told him to do. Again, he’s fine, and no one on the train was hurt. → Read More
Yes, we’ll soon all be at each other’s throats fighting over cans of soup, but Apple? It’s fine, despite that drop earlier in the week. That’s what Citi and Goldman Sachs say, at least. Those two haven’t failed yet, so we’d do well to hang on their every word. Both Citi and Goldman Sachs kept a “buy” rating on Apple stock, despite the fact that it tanked by… → Read More
Zocdoc, the health appointment scheduling startup that launched at TechCrunch 40, has announced that Marc Benioff and Jeff Bezos – two of Silicon Valley’s most prominent figures – have joined the $3 million Series A funding round it raised last month that was led by Khosla Ventures.
ZocDoc allows users to book their doctor appointments online, even for same-day appointments. The site is… → Read More
Gigya has raised $11 million in a Series C round led by DAG Ventures and joined by all existing investors, including Benchmark Capital, First Round Capital, and Mayfield Fund. The round brings the Israeli startup’s total funding to about $23.5M, an amount raised over the two plus years since its founding in summer 2006.
The money will fuel two main widget services: Wildfire, which helps widget… → Read More
The Life Clock is not an appropriate retirement home timepiece Nintendo to reveal new old game: Contra? Kid Icarus? Blaster Master? Please tell me it’s Blaster Master SteelSeries reddens its headphone lineup 10 gadgets to help you survive the coming economic apocalypse Penguin Ice mold makes penguins.. out of ice. → Read More
You know, the world just can’t get enough dead bodies as shields. Microsoft knows this. To help satiate your dead bodies as shields desires, they’ve taken a bunch of 120 gig Zunes and done’m up with Gears of War 2 styling, not unlike the Halo 3 Zunes of yesteryear. They’ve laser blasted the game’s iconic “Crimson Omen” into the back of each Zune, stuffed… → Read More
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