We’ve seen physically broken Nexus One devices recently, but this may be the first time one of the phone’s peculiar user interface issues has been captured. Is it really the phone or just the fingers? Let’s go to the video.
I’m leaning toward it actually being a phone issue, but time will reveal that. Has anyone else experienced a similar issue? [Android Central]
Wondering why Bill Gates decided to join the Twitter crazy recently? Turns out he’s probably doing it for the same reason as most of us: Shameless self-promotion. Except he’s promoting some very, very good causes through a new website.
Earlier Bill Gates tweeted about his new website, the Gates Notes, and with his two-hundred-something-thousand followers that announcement is bound to be retweeted until even your grandma has heard about it. This means that by the end of the day a few more people might know about Gates’ ideas on curing malaria with candy, education reform, helping Haiti, and all the other issues the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation focuses on.
Pardon that fluffy, happy view on a simple tweet, but—with the exception of the recent calls for Haiti aid—I don’t often see Twitter used to promote something with great potential to make the world a lovelier place and I’ve got a weak spot for the work done by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to begin with. Nice work, Billy. You’ve got a retweet from me. [The Gates Notes via Bill Gates]
Most of us have followed the whole NBC debacle since the very beginning, but a recap of the mess never hurts. Especially when it’s animated with an awkward voice over. So watch, giggle, and tell us if you’re with CoCo.
Unlimited cellphone plans are trendy now and many are starting to offer them, but how do those plans fare against the old mix of 450 or 900 minutes and your choices of data and texting? Let’s go to the chart.
Click on the image for a closer look.
Geez. Still a bit confusing, isn’t it? I’m just gonna keep hugging my old grandfathered plan nice and tight. [BillShrink]
Thanks for making an iPhone app, Alice. Now I can finally excuse my bathroom iPhone usage with “Uh, I’m just ordering toilet paper. It should ship by tomorrow.” Whether the associated service is decent or not, the app is awesome.
The Alice app is basically a repackaging of online shopping service Alice. The basic concept is that you can order the random household stuff generally not stocked by most online retailers—toothpaste, trash bags, feminine care products—and get them shipped right to your door. Sounds like most of the grocery-shipping services we’ve heard of in the past, but it was about time that someone made a decent, snappy app for it.
I haven’t tested out the service—only the app and how well it works—so your mileage may vary. That said, the Alice app and the registration required to use it are free. The excuse gained from them is freakin’ priceless though. [Itunes]
According to the WSJ, HarperCollins Publishers is in talks with Apple about providing ebooks for Apple’s tablet. It’s speculated that ebook markets such as Amazon’s would seriously suffer if such an arrangement were finalized.
Based on explanations by Brian Murray, the chief executive of HarperCollins, the reason Amazon would initially have something to fear is that “e-books enhanced with video, author interviews and social-networking applications could command higher retail prices for publishers than current e-books” in the future. Apple’s tablet would, of course, be ideal for such enhanced content, and we already know that they’ll be digging for mags, newspapers and college textbooks but this is some of the first we’ve heard of Apple negotiating with publishers for regular e books.
Ah, I suppose we’ll be able to speculate some more on January 27th, in the meantime—on the tablet or not—”enhanced ebooks” sound like a blast. Just imagine how often you’ll say that something was way better with the author commentary. [WSJ]
After a quote that Google’s Nexus One is his “favorite gadget” went around, Steve Wozniak took the time to leave us a note. Read on for his explanation of how everyone misunderstood him and why fanboy-style arguments are ridiculous.
This is the comment Woz left us in the on the post about his gadget preference:
Actually, everyone got it wrong. My favorite phones are my iPhones. When asked what my favorite gadgets were I took it to mean new gadgets I was playing with (that I considered good). I am not a switcher but I’m not going to tell people that the Nexus One is not a good gadget. Same for the Droid. I continually buy and play with new hot gadgets because I gets asked about them all the time. I have had prior Android phones that I didn’t consider good. I usually have between 2 and 6 different cell phones on me, more when there are interesting product introductions.
I try mainly to make good comments but I’m honest about flaws too. I don’t get into arguments trying to claim that there are objective reasons that make one person’s phone better than another’s. It’s subjective. You can’t win such arguments, only have a stressful life doing so. I have no problem praising and learning from non-Apple products as well as Apple products, when they are good.
I think this is yet another reminder of why we adore this brilliant man. Thanks for the follow up, Woz.
It’s rough for robots in the armed services lately. Lack of funding is forcing the United States military to end the Army’s Future Combat Systems program and eliminate many robotic soldiers, including autonomous helicopters and mine-sniffing transport vehicles.
The good news is that some of the remaining funds are being used to upgrade existing programs in an attempt to integrate the technology “in a fiscally responsible manner.” I say we just plain need to start working on a way to call some Autobots in for help. [The Hill via Wired via PopSci]
The Freedom of Information Act allowed the ACLU to view documents concerning the Customs and Border Protection‘s searches of laptops and other electronic devices at the United States’ international borders. They discovered that third parties view and copy some data.
The ACLU was quite thorough and analyzed the documents—which detailed searches of not just laptops, but digital cameras, thumb drives, hard drives, and even DVDs as well—to produce some easy to digest spreadsheets. Based on a glance at those spreadsheets, the CBP seemed to take advantage of the fact that “under the current policy, they were not required to justify a single one of these searches.”
It’s explained that those searches are generally done due to “individualized suspicion of wrongdoing, but CBP’s policy allows officials to exercise their power arbitrarily.” You know what? This may sound insane, but I think that I can deal with somewhat unjustified searches like that. It’s alright, I’ve got time to waste when traveling and there doesn’t seem to be any harm in it, except when I get to this part:
Between July 2008 and June 2009, CBP transferred electronic files found on travelers’ devices to third-party agencies almost 300 times. Over half the time, these unknown agencies asserted independent bases for retaining or seizing the transferred files. More than 80 percent of the transfers involved the CBP making copies of travelers’ files.
So who exactly is getting to see my occasionally inappropriate vacation pictures and what do they do after taking a peek? That’s the part which troubles me. If I somehow prompt a search, I’m fine with it. Look at my browsing history, ebook collection, odd music library, whatever you want, but give me assurance that my data is safe.
I’ll be reserving my full-on whining tantrum until I finish reading the whole 863 page batch of documents, but so far I’m not exactly a happy camper. Did you catch anything that particularly freaked you out in there? [ACLU]
There are too damn many ebook readers and it’s tough to figure out what’s worth buying and which reader will even survive the market. To make things easy, here’s our guide to the readers that matter—for now. Updated.
Of course we’re skipping some of the many ebook readers floating around, but quite frankly we can’t really stomach all of them. We decided to focus on the ones that matter to us—whether because they stand a shot of surviving the over-saturated market, or simply because they are examples of what we think matters about these gadgets. Feel free to let us know if you disagree with any of our survival odds or if you think we missed a significant device.
When we reviewed the Barnes & Noble Nook, we decided that it was pretty damn good all around. At the time, we mainly focused on pitting it against the Amazon Kindle, but even without that limited comparison the Nook remains a rather good device:
It’s got a second screen which actually serves a useful purpose
Expansion and evolution possibilities of this very device are great, especially with touchscreen and Android OS
Lending and in-store Barnes & Noble action will be huge
Native ePub support
A little thicker than Kindle, but as a tradeoff, it’s a little smaller footprint
Wi-Fi doesn’t seem to matter now—hopefully it will prove to be an advantage later
LCD and other features mean less battery life than Kindle, but still adequate, “measured in days”
Current software is buggy and sluggish in spots; hopefully fixes and optimization will come soon
Second-screen possibilities are great, but current implementation is cautious and conservative
Taking all those features and shortcomings into account, we think that the Nook’s survival chance is 80%— if it can fix its firmware and get production up to speed.
A hands on of the Entourage Edge left us hesitant about whether there’s actually a market for something that has the price tag of a good netbook and barely more features than most readers:
It does have two full screens on which actual work can be done
Can run Android applications and be used to browse the web
Wi-Fi built-in, so you’re not stuck relying on 3G
Two built-in microphones for noise-cancelation, but unfortunately no synchronization with notes
Note taking can be done using a stylus
Switching between the screens allows for websites to be loaded on one screen and “pushed” to the other
Just as with most other readers, you can highlight, annotate, and bookmark
It’s three whole freakin’ pounds and ridiculously bulky
$500 price tag.
The Edge shows us what happens when you try to make a reader into what it’s not—a pseudo netbook or tablet. We think the device’s survival chance is 0% and consider it pretty much DOA.
We liked the feel of the Plastic Logic Que when we got our hands on it, but we didn’t like the price tag. The device is mainly aimed at business folk who want to carry a notepad-sized device instead of a stack of documents, but it could make a rather nice reader if you crave for a large screen:
At 8.5 x 11 x .33 inches, its about the size and thickness of a standard notepad. It weighs about one pound. Like a heavy notepad.
The screen is huge—and I mean huge. Over ten inches.
Because of Plastic Logic’s obsession with its namesake material, the Que is light as a feather
Formatting from magazines and other publications is maintained on the screen
The interface seems snappy and intuitive
Que Mail and Que Calendar services allow email and calendar updates to be pushed over WiFi and 3G networks
While odd to look at, the wide bezel actually makes the Que a lot more comfortable to hold than some other readers
The back of the device is a magnet for fingerprints. It’s annoying, but not unusual for shiny toys like this.
$650 for the 4GB model with Wi-FI and $800 for the 8GB model with WiFi and 3G are quite the prices to swallow
We think the Que’s features, design, and business as well as consumer appeal leave it with a survival chance of 70%—higher if businesses feel like spending so much on a device that will certainly help cut back on paper use. Or if Plastic Logic manages to cut back on that price.
Our hands on of the Spring Design Alex Reader left us thinking that the Nook might have some serious competition, but even on its own the Alex is a rather good device:
It’s thin—we thought we’d break it just by holding it—but it turned out to be surprisingly sturdy
You can run any Android app including the browser, email client, and music player apps
The interaction between the two screens doesn’t seem fully worked out
No news about whether there’s a data provider secured for the device
$399 makes the Alex a wee bit pricier than the nook
Assuming that a data provider is secured for the Alex, we could see its survival chance being 80%—higher if there’s a price drop to bring it closer to the Nook’s.
When the Sony Daily Edition reader was announced, we got a bit excited about its electronic library program and wide screen, but alas, we’re still waiting to actually get one of these devices into our hands to check out all the features:
Sony’s got plenty of partners for this device to provide content
The on-screen content is rotated automatically to allow viewing in a nice, comfortable, and super wide landscape format
Native EPUB support
The electronic library program will let you borrow books from your local library’s electronic collection
Free 3G service is included—but limited to accessing the Sony Store
$399 is a bit much for a device with so few tricks up its sleeve
Until we actually take a Daily for a test run, we’re deeming its survival chance as 40%—mostly because the library program is appealing along with the push for EPUB formatting.
In our review of the Amazon Kindle 2, we discovered that it’s not too different from the original model, but we still liked all the features:
The rounded design makes the device appealing to hold and look at
Zippy interface, decent refresh rate
Plenty of internal storage and long battery life
Text-to-speech book reading
Crisp, sharp display
It’s hard to read longer, more complex books
While the Kindle 2 wasn’t a huge leap from the first generation, we still think the device about a 80% chance of survival, especially if Amazon works on improving the interface and how the device treats flipping through book sections.
When we got our hands on the Notion Ink Adam Pixel Qi, we discovered that it’s more of a tablet than it is a reader and that it tries too hard to be both:
The device runs on Android 2.0
There’s a snappy Nvidia Tegra 2 processor lurking inside
10.1-inch panel that can switch between backlit LCD mode and low-power electrophoretic reflective mode
3G service, which is becoming fairly standard among readers
LCD colors aren’t as vivid as a plain LCD
Despite having “ink” in its name, the Adam falls too far into tablet territory for us to take it seriously as a reader so we give it a 40% chance of survival in that particular market. As a tablet device though, it might actually do rather well.
When we got a hands on with the Skiff, we were pretty impressed by its size but uncertain about most features since we didn’t get to play with a final production model:
It’s big and thin: 11.5 inches of touchscreen space on a device only a quarter of an inch thick
Light and—quite importantly—solid feeling
Layout mimicks a real newspaper better than most readers
Can handle 12fps animation, which is pretty primitive compared to an LCD device
Reasoably responsive to taps and swipes
You can highlight and annotate content
Magazines feel awkward to read as they’re full page scans and any zooming feels slow due to the e-ink refresh rate
Once again: The Skiff unit we tried out was not a final version, so plenty can change by the time it hits shelves. But based on what we’ve seen so far, this could be a pretty great reader overall—despite its key focus being periodicals. Assuming that it’s price turns out to be reasonable and the interface is fixed up a bit more, we give it a survival chance of 70%.
Those are the ebook readers we think deserve some discussion right now. There are plenty we left out—super cheap ones, poor imitations of readers mentioned already, and some that just plain make us gag. We didn’t want to promote crappy products or those where “you get what you pay for” rings a bit too true. That disclaimer aside, we welcome discussion and mentions of other readers, simply because it’s always possible that we omitted something worthwhile—like the Skiff which has now been added—by accident. So let’s hear it in the comments.
Yes, you read that right. Steve Wozniak, Apple co-founder and Gizmodo guest contributor extraordinaire, has confessed that his favorite gadget is Google’s Nexus One. Oh Woz, my darling, you just broke my iPhone-powered heart.
We know that Woz picked up an iPhone right when it first came out and it’s perfectly OK that he picked up a Nexus One right on it’s release day, too. But proclaiming the Google device as his favorite gadget? Ouch.
I do wonder what his reasons are for that proclamation when he also explains that an iPhone is still his main cellphone. [NBC]
We heard about AT&T’s Voicemail-to-Text service back in December, but now it’s being shoved down our throats again with email reminders aplenty. Why don’t we care about the $10/month service? Because we can get something better. For free.
Google Voice and it’s transcribing powers were our first thought, but it’s not the only alternative. Ribbit Mobile offers some decent transcriptions and has a pretty solid iPhone app available and as does YouMail.
Lifehacker actually made it a point to pit some of these transcription services against each other a long time ago, but I’m certain that both quality and prices have changed since then. Either way, these services remain free—or at least cheaper than AT&T’s service—and have been around long enough to work out some kinks. So check them out and spend the ten bucks you’ll save each month on ice cream or something.
Google’s location-aware features can feel creepy at times, but in the case of mobile searches they can make life a heck of a lot easier. Queries made from most mobile devices can now include suggestions optimized for your current location.
The basic idea is to reduce how much you need to fumble with your phone and give you the most relevant query suggestions possible. Let’s say I’m sitting around in Tampa, Florida and searching for a museum. It’s more likely that I might be that I’m looking for some quick info on the Museum of Science and Industry than for Louvre and now my Google search suggestions reflect that. Then again, the entire system isn’t without flaws, unless people around my area are really more likely to search for the University of South Carolina than for a Florida college.
Ah well, the feature is live, so check it out and see if there are any oddities like that in your search suggestions. [Google Mobile Blog]
A Canadian woman trapped under rubble after the recent earthquake in Haiti managed to send out a text message to the Foreign Affairs Department in Ottawa, a place nearly 3,000 miles away. And it saved her life.
Once received, the text message was “relayed to Canadian diplomats back in Haiti” who then provided aid in the search for the woman. There’s not much more information beyond that, but it’s simply good to hear even the tiniest bit of encouraging and happy news in regards to this devastating event—particularly when it shows that a gadget and solid communication between diplomats can save a life.
Also, we’ve mentioned it before, but a reminder doesn’t hurt: If you’d like to donate to an organization that can help in this situation, here are some ways to do so:
• MSF/Doctors Without Borders
• The American Red Cross International Response Fund
• Texting “HAITI” to 90999 to donate $10 to the American Red Cross International Response FUnd
• Online tech store SmallDog, who is matching any MSF/DWB donations up to $200
[ABC—Photo by Telegraph.co.uk]
Camera stabilization rig maker Steadicam-Tiffen is making its first anti-shake mounts for cellphones and pocket cameras, including the iPhone, Droid, and Flip. I say it’s about damn time for it because I’m tired of shaky cellphone spy videos.
No pricing or release information is available for these small scale rigs at this time, but I hope that I can get one soon so I can finally become a real iPhone videographer. [Oh Gizmo! via Electronista]
We’ve teased that Apple Geniuses might not be the brightest in the bunch, but now Apple itself might make them feel stupid. The company is supposedly adding “experts” who’ll roam retail stores and answer support questions without need for appointments.
From the sounds of it, this new job position translates as a sales floor roaming Genius who’ll “serve as a resource that answers questions for customers.” These boys and gals will also have a “general knowledge of the whole product range.” In essence, they seem like some kind of combination of sales and Genius Bar staff, and their positions are supposedly very coveted. According to Apple Insider, we should see these folks crowding Red Zones—Apple retail store sales floors—within the next few weeks.
I still don’t understand how the term “expert” itself ranks above a “genius,” but that’s all job titles and semantics until someone gets called a dunce again. [Apple Insider]
Update: According to an Apple retail employee, the Experts are considered something closer to “super salesmen” than to super Geniuses. Guess the Geniuses won’t feel to slighted then.
Google has announced a rather bold move today: It will no longer censor search results on Google.cn, the Chinese version of the search engine. Apparently they will maintain this stance, even if it ends in shutting down Google.cn.
According to a post on the Official Google Blog:
We have decided we are no longer willing to continue censoring our results on Google.cn, and so over the next few weeks we will be discussing with the Chinese government the basis on which we could operate an unfiltered search engine within the law, if at all. We recognize that this may well mean having to shut down Google.cn, and potentially our offices in China.
Google explains that part of the motivation behind this action are the recent cyber attacks on Google as well as “at least twenty other large companies” over the course of the last month:
These attacks and the surveillance they have uncovered—combined with the attempts over the past year to further limit free speech on the web—have led us to conclude that we should review the feasibility of our business operations in China
While it remains to be seen how the Chinese government reacts to this move, I couldn’t be prouder of Google for making it. I hope that other major Internet properties follow suit and that perhaps we’ll see an end of national filters and censorship one of these days. [Google Blog via Guardian]
Early last month, a young man was shot in the streets of Harlem. Now we’ve learned that his murder may have begun with an argument on Twitter which gradually escalated to the point of leaving cyberspace.
Kwame Dancy and Jameg Blake grew up together and were said to have been close before some kind of argument tore them apart. It may have been because of a girl whom they fought over in the past, it may have been over something else. What we know is that they began sending messages such as this one over Twitter:
N——-s is lookin for u don’t think I won’t give up ya address for a price betta chill asap!”
How much of a role tweets like that one played in finally pushing things over the edge is unknown, but the point remains that, in the end, Darcy wound up dying after a shotgun blast to the neck and a few tweets.
Between this and the two guys dying over an iPod, I’ve barely got any faith left in people. [Daily News via News.com.au via William Gibson]
Pictured: Jameg Blake, 22, who is accused of killing Kwame Dancy.
Samsung showed off some LTE-equipped cameras, MIDs, and photo frames which will beam your media around over Verizon’s 4G network. This could mean having images show up on your photoframe as you shoot them, and allow for plenty of humiliation.
I mean, having things transferred almost instantly like that is bound to lead to some shots you don’t want seen being displayed. Either way, this is yet another way 4G will make our lives easier by cutting out the oh-so-difficult process of using data cables and card readers. [Engadget]
The Samsung IceTouch seems odd with its AMOLED touchscreen and rubbery-looking bottom half, but it’s fun to use and designed to keep your fingers from getting stiff while handling it. Ok, and the transparent display is just plain awesome.
Basically, the IceTouch is a pretty standard PMP except it has a nifty AMOLED screen with one-way transparency.
That odd bottom half comes in either blue or pink, and it has two purposes. One is to hide the the components which keep the screen running—in non-transparent displays, those are behind the screen itself—and the other is to make the player ergonomic. Using only the top half of a player for controls forces you to hold the device in a manner which is easier on your hands. Of course, the gadget spends most of its time in your pocket, so that may not be a concern, but it’s a clever design consideration.
What really kept us amused with the IceTouch though, is the fact that you can set the screen to be mirrored and control the device by tapping the display from behind. It’s an entirely random feature, but it could be useful and it’s just plain crazy fun to toy around with.
We don’t have any pricing or shipping information yet, but we do know that the IceTouch is entertaining to play with. How long the lookie-wow factor of the transparent display lasts though is questionable.
