Posts Tagged ‘Gizmodo remainders’
Remainders – The Good, Bad and Ugly Things We Didn’t Post (and Why) [Remainders]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 31st, 2009
You say remainders, I say reminders. Reminders that online shopping can be fun but also dangerous. Reminders that big-name companies like Polaroid can falter while less big-name companies like jWIN flourish. And a reminder to let goats sing their song.
Hacker Extraordinaire
Albert Gonzalez, a 28 year old Floridian, pleaded guilty to the largest credit card theft in American history yesterday. What exactly does that entail, you ask? Something to the tune of 130 million stolen credit cards. He won't be sentenced until March, when he's expected to pick up somewhere between 17 and 25 years. That's about one year for every six million cards stolen. Doesn't quite seem like enough time when you put it that way, does it? [PhysOrg]
Poor Polaroid
jWIN, purveyors of various crappy electronics, have secured an exclusive deal to sell products under the Polaroid brand. This isn't a great look for anyone: jWIN will sully the Polaroid brand by slapping the name on some second-rate laptop cases and cleaning supplies, and Polaroid, well, they're the ones letting themselves get sullied. We just hope they make good on their promise to go back to making high quality low quality film in 2010. [Engadget]
Satisfied.com
Online shoppers were happier than ever this holiday season, according to a study that factored in price and availability of merchandise, site layout, and other variables. Apple and Newegg joined Amazon and Netflix in the top tier of e-tailers with ratings of "excellent," while Neiman Marcus and Circuit City ranked lowest, which, in the case of the latter, is still better than their brick and mortar stores are doing, in a sense. On the whole, online shoppers' satisfaction was a 79 out of 100: a C+. That means our materialism is passing but not excelling like it could be. There's always next year. [New York Times]
Usher Feat. Goat
Who knew there was a site designed specifically to facilitate YouTube mash-ups? Who knew that following Ryan Schreiber's Twitter would be so fruitful? And who could have possibly known that the G.O.A.T. R&B background vocalist is...a goat. Don't think, just click. [YouTubeDoubler via Twitter]
Remainders – The Good, Bad and Ugly Things We Didn’t Post (and Why) [Remainders]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 30th, 2009
The holiday hangover days between Christmas and New Year's are sort of the year's remainders to begin with, so it's a perfectly appropriate time to check out these remainders: Google phones, space probes, misspellings, and one serious party popper.
Google Phone On Wheels
You can count on Engadget to watch the FCC website like a hawk, and today they spotted a tasty little critter: a bluetooth car dock for the HTC Nexus One. We can't blame you if you're a little tired of hearing about the Nexus One by now, but you might not have to hear that name much longer. The filings show "Google Phone" listed as the device's trade name, but does it really matter what they call it at this point? [Engadget]
Halfway To A New Horizon
Wired didn't have the patience to wait until the thing actually got there, so now we know that the New Horizons space probe is officially halfway to Pluto. That's sort of like calling your wife to let her know you're halfway home. Still, zipping along at 31,000 MPH, the probe is the fastest thing man's ever made, so it's making pretty good time. New Horizons is scheduled to pass by Pluto in July 2015. [Wired]
Spell Check
Our friends at The Oatmeal sent this cute infographic of common spelling mistakes our way. Theirs alot more to it than just "loose" and "lose," so check it out weather you think your guilty or knot. Wait is that how you spell "knot"? I keep typing it and it looks really wierd. Just kidding. We're flawless spellers and know all of our readers to be the same. [The Oatmeal]
Have A Blast This New Year's
If you always felt like those little party poppers had about one ninth of the celebratory firepower you were looking for, well, today's your lucky day. This enterprising soul has taken the popping to the next level by constructing the Party Popper Claymore, a contraption that lets you fire off nine of the tiny plastic cannons—"PP"s, he abbreviates them—with one exhilarating yank. If you want to give the Party Popper Claymore a go yourself, follow the link for the Openscad files. But first ask yourself if spending an hour making your own PPC is really the best way to start a fresh year. [Make]
Remainders – The Good, Bad and Ugly Things We Didn’t Post (and Why) [Remainders]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 24th, 2009
Happy Festivus, readers! You lot have disappointed me in so many ways, I'm deciding to punish you with these Remainders four: HDMI prepares new 3D-ready spec, Kindle DRM stripped, Steve Jobs takes a $1 salary, and snow snow snow snow!
HDMI Spec Updated to Ensure HD 3D Compatibility
The fine folks who work on HDMI have updated work on the 1.4 spec to make sure it can communicate all that upcoming Avatar-inspired HD 3D nonsense between display and source. Frankly, all this stuff is way over my head, and that's okay because dual-1080p streams in the home are still a ways off. From what I understand, HDMI will meet soon to discuss implementing the "Top/Bottom" format of 3D into HDMI, and the group is working to ensure that older 3D hardware will still work with the updated spec. Luckily, I have not been asked to participate in this discussion. But rest assured, HDMI is on the case. [Engadget]
Kindle eBooks Hacked!
An enterprising hacker named Labba has apparently managed to create a program that strips the DRM off Kindle-formatted ebooks, turning them into unprotected PDFs. The hack seems kind of too complicated to use right now, but Labba's working on a more consumer-friendly version as well. This isn't just hacking the Kindle to accept other formats—this is straight-up DRM elimination. Big win for hackers, not so hot for Amazon. [Engadget]
Steve Jobs Takes $1 Annual Salary for 2009
There've been a bunch of stories today about Steve Jobs' $1 salary that make it sound like a philanthropic exercise or some kind of response to the current recession—but Apple fans know that Steve Jobs has taken a $1 salary for about a decade. Of course, it's not like he needs a paycheck; his stock in Apple is valued at $1.1 billion, and his stock in Disney at $4.5 billion. Interestingly, he is usually reimbursed for miscellaneous expenses; last year, he was reimbursed $871,000, but this year only $4,000. He has been out on sick leave for a long time, but still, that's a big difference. This has been making the rounds (today I saw it on the AP, NYTimes, and HuffPo), but I'm sure you guys already knew it—so I tossed it into Remainders. [AP]
The Weather Outside Is Goddamn Frightful
Here are pictures of snow! [Boston.com]
Remainders – The Good, Bad and Ugly Things We Didn’t Post (and Why) [Remainders]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 23rd, 2009
Today's Remainders are gelled, tanned, and fist-pumping: Dell pulls ads from World's Greatest TV Show (Jersey Shore); Facebook tempts spouses to cheat; Apple approves, pulls an NES emulator; and a recipe for bacon cups. That's right, cups made of bacon.
Dell Boycotts Jersey Shore, Has No Taste
Jersey Shore is great. It's the trash TV event of our generation. Anyone that has a problem with it has a serious deficiency in the "derisive fun" section of the brain. Add Dell to that list, because they've pulled ads from the show for the usual "We don't support ethnic bashing and do not understand reality television (or fun)" reason. Who wants to boycott Dell due to their boycott of Jersey Shore? Anyone? [Engadget]
Facebook Ruins British Marriages
All those great stalking features that make Facebook so addicting apparently also make it DEADLY...to marriages. A survey found that Facebook-related findings were mentioned in 20% of English divorce papers. Here are some actual examples:
One 35-year-old woman even discovered her husband was divorcing her via Facebook.
Conference organiser Emma Brady was distraught to read that her marriage was over when he updated his status on the site to read: "Neil Brady has ended his marriage to Emma Brady."
Last year a 28-year-old woman ended her marriage after discovering her husband had been having a virtual affair with someone in cyberspace he had never met.
Amy Taylor 28, split from David Pollard after discovering he was sleeping with an escort in the game Second Life, a virtual world where people reinvent themselves.
Gasp, you guys. Gasp. [Telegraph]
Apple Approves, Then Pulls NES Emulator, to Nobody's Surprise
What's surprising about this story isn't that what looks like a really fun, full-featured NES emulator app was pulled from the App Store; it's how the hell that app got approved in the first place. Nescaline (every time you think the world has run out of puns, the world proves you wrong, and you cry) was approved and removed overnight, for the simple reason that "It's an emulator." That's from the mouth of an Apple rep, although it's not like you needed that explanation—it's pretty obvious. You want NES emulation, you jailbreak your iPhone, it's that simple. Sorry to the guys of Nescaline, but maybe the app will find success on the grey market of jailbreak apps. [PCWorld]
Bacon Cups. Cups of Bacon.
Man, do I love our sister site Lifehacker. Today they have a guide to making bacon cups in a cupcake pan, which yields the most delicious dishware you've ever eaten. The BLT idea pictured here is really great, but you know there are boatloads more. How about pasta in a parmesan-cream-onion sauce in a bacon cup, for a twist on carbonara? Or filling it with a corn bread, apple and sausage stuffing? Or scrambled eggs and cheese, topped with a biscuit? I can't keep going, I'm already drooling down my shirt front. Post your suggestions in the comments! [Lifehacker]
Remainders – The Good, Bad and Ugly Things We Didn’t Post (and Why) [Remainders]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 22nd, 2009
Come, gather round the Remainders tree for the orts and leavings of the day's stories. Today: Apple's gift-wrapped products, free overnight shipping for the Kindle, internet available under the San Francisco Bay, and many more.
Chicago Apple Store Has Express, Gift-Wrapped Line
The Apple Store in downtown Chicago, like every Apple Store, has a few ways to check out. You can flag down an employee, head to the checkout counter, or, in what seems new, you can head to the express line, which lets you buy non-customized Apple products quickly. Even better, that express line's products are pre-gift-wrapped. Pretty sweet! I bought my MacBook Pro from that exact store this summer, and I wish it had come gift-wrapped, even though it was all mine—there's just something about tearing open a gift-wrapped box, you know? [Business Insider]
YouTube Offers Shortened URL, Sort of
In these heady days of Twarter-domination, it's important to have a shortened URL to save precious characters. Seems like everyone's got one, and YouTube just joined in the fun—except, um, their shortened URL, Youtu.be, really isn't that much shorter. Example: youtubedotcom/watch?v=FdeioVndUhs would become http://youtu.be/FdeioVndUhs. You'll only have space for a few LOLOLOLs after that. [YouTube Blog]
BART Expands Wireless Access Under the San Francisco Bay (!!!)
This ends up gift-wrapped under the Remainders Tree of Sadness because it's local, but to SFBay residents like myself, it's great news. BART, the Bay Area's fantastic (compared to my native SEPTA, that is) regional rail system is now getting access to wireless signal while zooming under the San Francisco Bay over to Oakland, Berkeley and sites beyond. That means I'll never have to stop using data while on BART, which also means I've lost one last excuse for being out of touch with the Gizmodo monarchs, King Brian and King Jason. [BART]
Seriously You Guys, Just Buy a Kindle
Amazon really wants you to buy one. Remember that Dealzmodo from a few days back, when Amazon offered free two-day shipping on the Kindle? Now they're upping that to free overnight shipping if you buy it on December 23rd. It's in Remainders because honestly, updating this post feels like I'm advertising for Amazon, but the Kindle is still the reigning champ of ebook readers and you guys have a right to know. Now buy one. NOW. [Amazon]
iPod Touch Users Neglect OS 3.0 (Comparatively)
iPod Touch users, for whom the OS 3.0 upgrade costs $10, are upgrading in much lower numbers than iPhone users, for whom the upgrade was free. 95% of iPhone users have opted for 3.0, compared to only 55% of iPod Touch users. Frankly, I'm damned impressed that Apple managed to wrangle 10 bucks out of more than half of the huge numbers of iPod Touch users for a firmware upgrade. This could be painted as a failure, but I think it's exactly the opposite; I can't remember a single other PMP (or whatever the iPod Touch is) firmware upgrade that cost money (besides maybe those Archos add-ons, but that's not really firmware). Way to go for the Hamiltons, Apple. [iLounge]
Remainders – The Good, Bad and Ugly Things We Didn’t Post (and Why) [Remainders]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 19th, 2009
In a very special episode of Remainders, we've got: A Verizon-iPhone quote from somebody who would actually know something (Verizon exec!), the anti-COFEE tool DECAF revealed as a hoax, Xperia X10 at the FCC, and (no lie) Three Walrus Moon.
Verizon iPhone Rumor From a Non-Analyst (Whaa?)
Analysts can blah blah blah about the Verizon iPhone all they want, but we ain't buying it until we see some hard proof. Now, Verizon's CTO made a statement that looks as if it's that proof we've been wanting:
"We have put things in place already," Melone reportedly said. "We are prepared to support that traffic."
Ah. Well, it's not exactly a confirmation that Verizon's getting the iPhone. It actually seems like another dig at AT&T's network problems—he's just saying that if a huge blockbuster handset like the iPhone were to come in 2010, Verizon's network could handle that kind of traffic. So, Remaindersed. [AppleInsider]
COFEE-Beating DECAF Software Revealed as Hoax
DECAF, which supposedly disabled Microsoft's COFEE forensics tool, has been revealed as an elaborate hoax by its creators. Looks like it was created to draw attention to the fact that COFEE is actually not as effective a tool as they'd like—in fact, the hoaxers view COFEE as vastly inferior to properly trained forensics experts. So, we, like everybody else, got duped. Seems to us that software that actually could defeat COFEE would be make a stronger statement than a hoax, but we'll never know now. [Seattle P-I]
Sony Ericsson's Xperia X10 Android Phone Hits FCC
This one's simple: FCC posts are boring. They rarely give us new information, and the FCC photographers are notoriously artless. But the Xperia X10 is an exciting gadget, with its flashy Android skin, and it looks like we've got confirmation that the X10 should hit either T-Mobile or be sold unlocked, due to the support of the EDGE 850/1900 spectrum. More details as we hear more about the phone's eventual release. [Engadget]
Jesus Diaz Has Odd(ly Hilarious) Taste in T-Shirts
Three Wolf Moon is cliche. But our own Jesus Diaz has moved beyond the internet sensation to its logical sequel: Three Walrus Moon. Really, this t-shirt was just delivered to our HQ today, addressed to Jesus, and he's been elusive about offering official comment. All we can say is: Watch out, ladies.
Remainders – The Good, Bad and Ugly Things We Didn’t Post (and Why) [Remainders]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 18th, 2009
Abandon all hope, ye who enter Remainders. Today, we've got: Windows 7 needs less tech support than anyone expected, Acer's Olympic-themed laptop, Sprint's Android phones skipping Android 2.0, and a leaked Panasonic (non-Micro) Four Thirds camera.
Windows 7 Customers Are Just so Savvy
Windows 7's tech support lines have been far less busy than expected—but we can't draw any easy conclusions, like, say, "Windows 7 rulz!," because Windows online tech support has gotten much easier to use and online solutions have become more appropriate. People now know to just Google (or Bing) their problems, which probably filters out a lot of the knucklehead stuff. [CNET]
Acer's Olympic Laptop Is the Lamest Tie-In Ever
Really, Acer? You can't think of anything else to do with an Olympic-themed laptop than to slap the five ring logo on the lid? We expect better, Acer. You've come up with some phenomenal, gaudy, ostentatious and downright silly-looking laptops in the past—what's up with this one? At least slap a GO USA! sticker on the front or something. [Engadget]
Sprint Confirms HTC Hero and Samsung Moment Will Skip 2.0, Head to 2.1
In an official Tweet (ugh), Sprint confirmed that two of its Android handsets, the HTC Hero and Samsung Moment, will actually skip Android 2.0 and move straight to 2.1 when they receive the update sometime in the first half of 2010. That's sort of expected; we knew the update was coming around that time, and given the pace of Android's dessert-themed releases, certainly 2.1 would be the current release. So, not earth-shattering news, but good to see that Sprint (and Google) plan to support those phones into the future. [Slashgear]
Leaked Panasonic Four Thirds Camera Ditches the Micro
A patent from Panasonic shows what appears to be a Four Thirds camera, though not the Micro type after which we so lust. Apparently it can flip between optical and live view viewfinders with a hardware switch, and has manual sensor cleaning and anti-shake feature. Rumors suggest it may be announced at CES in a few weeks, but we'll have to wait and see. [Slashgear]
Remainders – The Good, Bad and Ugly Things We Didn’t Post (and Why) [Remainders]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 17th, 2009
Today in the un-scratchable part of Gizmodo's back we call Remainders, we've got a Tron-inspired Android phone, the top YouTube videos of the year, some more videos of the Google Nexus One in action, and more (well, one more)!
OPPO Android Concept Is All Tronned Out
So this is a pretty interesting-looking Android phone concept, what with the neon teal backlighting and spacious keyboard and all. It's supposedly due for a 2010 release, although we'll believe that when it happens, and hopefully it'll actually be running Android by then—it looks like somebody accidentally Photoshopped the WebOS dialer onto this thing. It's in Remainders because nobody really got all that excited about it; it's weird enough to be catch your eye, but not enough to make you want one. [Ubergizmo]
Top YouTube Videos of the Year Are Pretty Upsetting, Really
I'm proud to say I've seen exactly one of the top five YouTube music videos of the year and none of the top general videos. On the other hand, this is a pretty depressing-looking list—not once does the World's Best YouTube Personality of All Time appear. Plus, um, who the hell is Pitbull? [YouTube Blog]
Why Can't These People Take a Decent Video of the Nexus One?
So TheNexusOne has been posting videos of their namesake Android phone, and while that would normally deserve a bigger post, these are really just teaser videos—when we get a real, comprehensive video tour of the Nexus One, we'll be sure to let you know. But for now, we've got a video of the incoming call screen, which looks exactly like it does on Android 2.0.1, we've got the bootup sequence we've seen before, and a 15-second clip of the Tron-like (there's a Tron theme in Remainders tonight, it seems) animated wallpaper. [TheNexusOne via Android Central]
iFixit Publishes Apple Repair Manuals Under Creative Commons License
iFixit, known round these parts for their teardowns, just published five years of DIY Apple repair manuals for free under the Creative Commons license, which permits free, non-commercial use. That's over 125 manuals for Macs, iPods and iPhones, and should be a big help for anyone who's got an out-of-warranty Apple product and needs help fixing it, or for anyone who just likes to tinker. [iFixit via 9to5Mac]
Remainders – The Good, Bad and Ugly Things We Didn’t Post (and Why) [Remainders]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 16th, 2009
In today's very special episode of Gizmodo Remainders, Microsoft admits to plagiarism, Comcast unveils a streaming video service, and stop reading this right now because you could develop nearsightedness. Plus, does anyone actually use MacDonald's Wi-Fi?
Microsoft Admits to Plagiarizing a Twitter-Like Service
It was recently revealed that huge swathes of the code in Microsoft's China-based microblogging service, MSN Juku, was directly lifted from another service called Plurk. It's so blatant that Microsoft even admitted guilt:
"We are obviously very disappointed, but we assume responsibility for this situation," Microsoft said in a statement. "We apologize to Plurk and we will be reaching out to them directly to explain what happened and the steps we have taken to resolve the situation."
Plurk has decided not to sue—for now—and will instead undergo some talks with Microsoft to see how best to resolve the situation. Microsoft, for its part, says MSN Juku was built by a third-party contractor, and they've since pulled the entire site. [Seattle PI]
Comcast Unveils Streaming Video Service
Comcast just launched a partly subscriber-only Flash video service, streaming content from a selection of its partners (27 in total, including IFC, HBO and Showtime). It's called The Fan, after the fan-like UI that's used to control which shows you watch. Does anyone want to try this out and let us know how it is? It looks like most videos are free to watch at the moment. [CNET]
Reading Gizmodo May Make You Nearsighted
A recent study showed a huge uptick in nearsightedness in the last 30 years, with in increase of over 80%. The condition (full disclosure: I'm nearsighted, and am thus biased and untrustworthy on this subject) is not very well understood, but may be due to genetics or an excess of close viewing (like, say, books, or a computer screen). The tests can't conclusively prove anything, but it seems (in my totally amateur, but totally confident opinion) that staring at an LCD screen for ten hours a day may not be entirely beneficial to ocular health. [ScienceNews]
MacDonald's Orders In-Store Wi-Fi Be Completely Free, Forever
Normally we'd be really excited about a major nationwide chain offering free Wi-Fi in every store. Hell, that's why I go to Peets and not Starbucks (well, that and the vastly superior coffee). But I have to wonder: Who is whipping out a laptop in MacDonald's? Every time I go there, I just want to grab my ball of meat-grease and run away as fast as possible to scarf down my 99-cents worth of shame in private. I'm not about to take out the MacBook Pro and sip a coffee and converse with my fellow fast food patrons. But maybe that's just me. [Electronista]
Remainders – The Good, Bad and Ugly Things We Didn’t Post (and Why) [Remainders]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 15th, 2009
Today's remainders have a URL shortener from good ol' Google, the realization that people outside of the United States might want certain iPhone apps, a deal on the TomTom iPhone app, and Apple winning a bunch of awards.
Yeah, it's an Apple-dominated bunch of remainders. Maybe I'll make tomorrow's three-fourths Microsoft for some balance.
Kindle iPhone App Now Available for Over 60 Countries
If you live in one of the many countries previously ignored when it came to availability of the iPhone Kindle App, you can stop crying: The handy-dandy app can now be downloaded through the App Store in over 60 countries. If you're still somehow overlooked, then I'm very sorry and wish I could offer you a tissue. [App Store]
Apple Named Takes Best Brand, Best Ad, Best Marketer, Best Award Winner Titles
Adweek just wrapped up their "Best of the 2000s" Awards and Apple walked away with three shiny pretend trophies. One for the brand itself, one for marketing strategies, and one, oddly enough, for the "Get a Mac" ad campaign. Congrats to them, and while at it: Congrats to Gawker for taking the "Blog of the Decade" award in the same listing. Now are we done with these awards yet? [The Loop]
Google Brings Yet Another URL Shortener Into the World
As if we don't have enough URL shorteners, Google has decided to toss in one of their own making into the new versions of the Google Toolbar and FeedBurner. I'll admit that http://goo.gl/ is kinda clever and that at least there's some assurance that links won't mysteriously disappear overnight as with some tiny websites, but I still groaned when I read about yet-another-damn-URL-shortener. [Google Blog]
