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Google’s “open” strategy began with its multi-billion-dollar bid for wireless spectrum in an FCC auction two years ago. The company bid enough to get open-access rules attached to some of the airwaves, but stopped short of actually purchasing any. Two years ago, the prevailing thought in the industry was that Google wasn’t interested in getting into the cellphone business.

Then it introduced its Android operating system. And now the Nexus One handset. It seems Google is looking to make a splash in the cellphone business after all.
The device, a Snapdragon-powered, HTC-built phone looks — on paper, at least — like the ultimate Android handset, combining a newly tweaked and tightened user interface with killer industrial design. A sleek, streamlined phone that can easily go toe-to-toe with the iPhone 3GSs, Pres, and Droids of the world, powered by the latest version of Android (2.1 “Flan,” if you’re counting), and hand-retooled by Google. But is it all it’s cracked up to be? Can the Nexus One possibly live up to the hype ascribed to it? And more importantly, is the appearance of the phone the death knell for the OHA and a sign of the coming Android autocracy? In our exclusive review of the Nexus One, we’ll answer all those pressing questions and more… so read on for the full scoop!
Google Nexus One unboxing and hands-on

Note: The unit we have in hand is — by all appearances — a production model, save for the QR code imprint on the back, which is likely an employee-only Easter egg. However, Google is making its official announcement tomorrow, and there could always be differences. If anything changes with the device, or there are revelations about the marketing or sale of the phone, we’ll be sure to update the review with new info.
This normally would be the place where I’d embed the relevant YouTube video. But this is one video Google doesn’t want on its video site, and the company is pulling the footage down as quickly as it can. (This is where I imagine the Viacom guys chortling and rubbing their hands).
If Google’s strategy is successful at getting other carriers to “unlock” popular handsets, it would move the U.S. closer to aligning with European and Asian markets, where consumers typically buy cellphones directly from manufacturers and then connect to any network they choose. This could put pressure on carriers to increasingly improve their network speeds and capacities, since they will no longer be able to lure customers only with the hottest handsets.

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Filed under: Hardware, Rumors, Internet Tools

One of the things Apple should do to achieve runaway success with the tablet is incorporate textbooks. The folks at Coursesmart, a joint venture of five publishers that sells college textbooks as ebooks, have produced a video demonstrating how it could work.*

In the video, the user flips through available textbooks, makes a selection and begins reading. He also makes notes, views video of a lecture, adds an event to his calendar and searches the web for additional info, all while sipping a coffee. It’s a neat idea, and just one of a slew of concepts that have recently surfaced.

But why textbooks? There are several reasons. First, college students are young and tech-savvy. They’re also light on the finances often times, and ebooks are cheaper than their paper counterparts. Also, they could connect to iTunes U to find the books they need and lighten the load of heavy backpacks.

As for the publishers, this type of distribution would eliminate the school’s resale of used books, which was a benefit for the students but did nothing for them. If the latest rumor is true, we only have a few more weeks to wait.

*Note that the video is entirely Coursesmart’s imagining and not based on an actual product from Apple … real or otherwise.

[Via MacDailyNews]

TUAWTextbook publishers dream of the tablet originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 05 Jan 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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China’s BYD Auto has high hopes for its E6 all-electric car and F3DM plug-in hybrid sedan, both of which will be on display at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit next week, HybridCars.com reports.

Both vehicles, however, were also on display last year, and neither model shook up the automotive world like BYD had hoped they would. The massively hyped plug-in hybrid sold fewer than 100 units during its first eight months on the market, amid expectations of selling between 4,000-5,000 over the course of 2009.

This year, BYD will rely on a boost from the Chinese government, which last month announced incentives to help private consumers buy green cars. With the midsize F3DM plug-in hybrid priced at about $22,000 in China, and the five-seat electric E6 at $40,000, government rebates could be the game changer BYD needs, as the company’s hot-selling compacts go for considerably less (about $14,500), but the specific amount of the coming incentives is still unknown.

BYD’s goal is to dominate the global hybrid market by 2025.

Don’t Miss: The 10 Smallest Cars In The World

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• BYD Rival Unveils Electric Car That Lasts 124 Miles Per Charge
• Bad Omen: BYD Sells Just 100 Plug-In Hybrids In 8 Months
• The 10 Smallest Cars In The World

The device, a Snapdragon-powered, HTC-built phone looks — on paper, at least — like the ultimate Android handset, combining a newly tweaked and tightened user interface with killer industrial design. A sleek, streamlined phone that can easily go toe-to-toe with the iPhone 3GSs, Pres, and Droids of the world, powered by the latest version of Android (2.1 “Flan,” if you’re counting), and hand-retooled by Google. But is it all it’s cracked up to be? Can the Nexus One possibly live up to the hype ascribed to it? And more importantly, is the appearance of the phone the death knell for the OHA and a sign of the coming Android autocracy? In our exclusive review of the Nexus One, we’ll answer all those pressing questions and more… so read on for the full scoop!
Google Nexus One unboxing and hands-on

Note: The unit we have in hand is — by all appearances — a production model, save for the QR code imprint on the back, which is likely an employee-only Easter egg. However, Google is making its official announcement tomorrow, and there could always be differences. If anything changes with the device, or there are revelations about the marketing or sale of the phone, we’ll be sure to update the review with new info.
This normally would be the place where I’d embed the relevant YouTube video. But this is one video Google doesn’t want on its video site, and the company is pulling the footage down as quickly as it can. (This is where I imagine the Viacom guys chortling and rubbing their hands).
If Google’s strategy is successful at getting other carriers to “unlock” popular handsets, it would move the U.S. closer to aligning with European and Asian markets, where consumers typically buy cellphones directly from manufacturers and then connect to any network they choose. This could put pressure on carriers to increasingly improve their network speeds and capacities, since they will no longer be able to lure customers only with the hottest handsets.

Google’s “open” strategy began with its multi-billion-dollar bid for wireless spectrum in an FCC auction two years ago. The company bid enough to get open-access rules attached to some of the airwaves, but stopped short of actually purchasing any. Two years ago, the prevailing thought in the industry was that Google wasn’t interested in getting into the cellphone business.

Then it introduced its Android operating system. And now the Nexus One handset. It seems Google is looking to make a splash in the cellphone business after all.

Related posts:

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Europe is making moves on its first electricity super-grid dedicated to renewable energy this month, as nine countries will draw up plans to link up a grid of powerful clean energy projects all around the North Sea, CleanTechnica reports.

The plan would connect Scottish off-shore wind turbines with German solar energy, Norwegian hydro power and wave power off the coast of Belgium and Denmark.

The Nine North Sea nations - Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and the UK - will eventually link the super grid to the equally large in scale Desertec grid, bringing solar power from Africa to Spain and Portugal.

The network of super efficient undersea transmission cables would cost about $43 billion.

The U.S. has enough wind potential to supply 25% of the entire country's needs in North Dakota alone, but no transmission lines to connect a statewide line of turbines that would balance out the power and send it to more populated areas. If the U.S. follows Europe's lead, we could harness enough off-shore wind potential along the Atlantic Seaboard to meet the electricity needs of a quarter of the U.S. population.

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• Say Hello To WAVE Energy!
• Wind Power In Texas Is Cutting The Cost Of Electricity
• Iowa Now Able To Blow Second Most Wind Energy In The US

Following the official introduction of the 5 Series sedan in November, the automotive world has already began turning its attention to the estate version (or touring) of the new 5er, expected to hit the market sometime this year.

The CGIs you can see here are an exercise combining the already revealed front end of the "perfect symbiosis of aesthetic design and performance," as BMW calls the 5er, and some imaginative speculation on how the rear of the estate would look l… (read more)

The device, a Snapdragon-powered, HTC-built phone looks — on paper, at least — like the ultimate Android handset, combining a newly tweaked and tightened user interface with killer industrial design. A sleek, streamlined phone that can easily go toe-to-toe with the iPhone 3GSs, Pres, and Droids of the world, powered by the latest version of Android (2.1 “Flan,” if you’re counting), and hand-retooled by Google. But is it all it’s cracked up to be? Can the Nexus One possibly live up to the hype ascribed to it? And more importantly, is the appearance of the phone the death knell for the OHA and a sign of the coming Android autocracy? In our exclusive review of the Nexus One, we’ll answer all those pressing questions and more… so read on for the full scoop!
Google Nexus One unboxing and hands-on

Note: The unit we have in hand is — by all appearances — a production model, save for the QR code imprint on the back, which is likely an employee-only Easter egg. However, Google is making its official announcement tomorrow, and there could always be differences. If anything changes with the device, or there are revelations about the marketing or sale of the phone, we’ll be sure to update the review with new info.
This normally would be the place where I’d embed the relevant YouTube video. But this is one video Google doesn’t want on its video site, and the company is pulling the footage down as quickly as it can. (This is where I imagine the Viacom guys chortling and rubbing their hands).
If Google’s strategy is successful at getting other carriers to “unlock” popular handsets, it would move the U.S. closer to aligning with European and Asian markets, where consumers typically buy cellphones directly from manufacturers and then connect to any network they choose. This could put pressure on carriers to increasingly improve their network speeds and capacities, since they will no longer be able to lure customers only with the hottest handsets.

Google’s “open” strategy began with its multi-billion-dollar bid for wireless spectrum in an FCC auction two years ago. The company bid enough to get open-access rules attached to some of the airwaves, but stopped short of actually purchasing any. Two years ago, the prevailing thought in the industry was that Google wasn’t interested in getting into the cellphone business.

Then it introduced its Android operating system. And now the Nexus One handset. It seems Google is looking to make a splash in the cellphone business after all.

Related posts:

1. Walmart Open New Years Day 2010 Several local newspapers and blogs list openings and closings for…
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Here’s an interesting side note to Googlephone (aka “Nexus One”) day — Google is still experimenting with its “click-to-call” program for advertisers on “high-end mobile devices”. Coincidence?

From Search Engine Land:

Google sent out notification to its AdWords advertisers that this month “your location-specific business phone number will display alongside your destination url in ads that appear on high-end mobile devices. Users will be able to click-to-call your business just as easily as they click to visit your website. You’ll be charged for clicks to call, same as you are for clicks to visit your website.”

Note that this offer doesn’t appear to be specific to phones running Google’s (GOOG) Android operating system. And it appears to be running in addition to Google’s practice of providing phone numbers in organic search results, which also essentially provide “click to call” options for smartphone users.

In Greg Sterling’s words: “This is a version, effectively, of “pay-per-phone call” but the cost per call is the same as a click — a bargain (generally speaking) for the advertisers to receive a “warm lead.””

Google first started playing around with “click to call” programs for conventional Web search 4 years ago — in that scenario, you gave Google your phone number (this was designed for landline use, really) and it connected calls to advertisers on your behalf.

Google eventually moved on, since no one seemed to use it (though you can still see traces of the program here). But connecting mobile users with advertisers ought to be a very lucrative proposition, so no surprise that Google is still chasing after this.

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Now this makes sense—an HDMI cable with a connector that can be positioned within a 180 degree radius. That will be a big space saver if you are trying to run cords in tight spaces.

Of course, the cables would have been more effective if both ends pivoted. For the life of me I can’t understand why they chose to leave one end straight. At any rate, the Sanus cables will support HDMI 1.3b, 1080p and up to 16-bit color. They will also be available in 5 and 10-foot lengths. Pricing and availability information has not been released, but they should be available at major retailers like Best Buy in the near future. [Sanus via Slashgear]

Do you know which pasta is best for a casserole? Or where frilly campanelle noodles got their name? The National Pasta Association (who knew there was one?!) has put together this handy reference guide to all our most beloved noodles, spaghettis, and pastas. Take a look!

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Analyst Dennis Gartman says he’ll be laying out some predictions for the new decade/year in the coming weeks.

Today, he shared his first in The Gartman Letter. Turns out he’s bullish on American growth.

The Gartman Letter: Over the coming days and weeks we’ll put forth our few “predictions” for what may happen in ’10. Others have put their ideas forth at the previous year’s end, and yesterday, and we figured that our clients have been blasted by that sort of thing, so we’ll dribble our predictions out piecemeal. Thus, firstly we’ll suggest that one of the surprising events of this year shall be just how strong shall be the US and the global economy as we move along through the year. The consensus amongst the economic cognoscenti is that growth here in the US shall be tepid at best, with GDP figures barely higher by mid-year and perhaps only 1.5-2.25% GDP growth at best by mid-year. We suggest that it shall be quite a good seal stronger than that, and we’d not be surprised to see GDP growth of 3-4% by mid-year.

Yes, there are problems with housing, and yes the consumer is “strapped,” but inventories of everything are low; capital expenditures for everything have been low for years; the nation’s auto fleet is old and must be replace… and above all, monetary stimulus remains intact. The surprise: GDP growth will surprise us all… bullishly.

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• RBS Analyst Andy Chaytor: Forget Treasuries, Check Out Foreign Debt And Commodities In 2010
• Gartman: Blame Democratic Mayors For Nationwide Poverty
• Gartman: The EU Exodus Is Coming

One reason for Japan’s inability to reverse the Nikkei’s two-decade slump could be a lack of motivation.

Most Japanese moved heavily into fixed income following their market crash, and have since enjoyed a huge rally in ten-year government bonds, according to The Economist.

Until this gravy train runs out — which could be soon — Japan is getting by fine.

The Economist: Remarkably, retail investors were among the first to get out of the stockmarket and were net sellers of equities from 1991 to 2007, says Kathy Matsui, chief strategist for Goldman Sachs in Japan. Though there have been four bear-market share-price rallies since 1989, they have all been driven by foreigners.

The Japanese parked their money instead in government-backed shelters such as the post office, which in turn invested in safe bonds. The result has been a 78% rally in ten-year government bonds since their trough in 1990 (see chart). “Fixed income has been one of the longest-duration bull markets in the world,” Ms Matsui notes.

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• If The World Ends Free Trade, The West Will Lose The Most
• Small Business Conditions Horrible Again In December, And That’s A Bleak Sign For Employment
• Americans Are Unemployed Because They Don’t Have Any Skills

The wedding took place in front of 65 family and friends at Aratmour House at Lake Forest Academy, Illinois, Saturday 2 January 2010. Wedding guests stayed at the neighboring Knickerbocker Hotel and took buses to the wedding site. According to Gossip Cop, the ceremony came at the end of a three-day-long celebration, which began with a New Year’s Eve party in Vaughn’s apartment.
Vince, 39, proposed to the 31-year-old Calgary native last Valentine’s Day. The actor — best known for his comedy features like Swingers and Couple’s Retreat – has kept his relationship with Kayla under the radar, following hishigh-profile romance with his The Break-Up co-star Jennifer Aniston.
“It’s the first time that I really want to have kids. I’ve been very fortunate in my career, and my life has been about that for so long that you get bored of it. You’re ready for your life to be about other people and other things.”

Insert a Jennifer Aniston crying into pint of Ben and Jerry’s joke here. Nah, I am kidding. She is way over that shiz. She went right back to stalking Brad after Vince hit CLT+ALT+IQUITTHISBITCH on their relationship.

Quoteables:

Celebrity Smack – “It was a small ceremony with only a few family members and friends. None of that fancy schmancy, huge celebrity wedding crap for ol’ Vinny.”

Hecklerspray – “it’s fair to assume that Vince Vaughn didn’t write his own vows for the service – because if he did, he’d still be there now, babbling and ad-libbing and riffing in the same monotonous yakkety-yak way hour after hour because, even though it’ll all get edited down to a couple of seconds in the wedding video, it’ll bulk out the DVD release a bit more if it’s included as an extra.”

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Filed under: Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, Smart

Just a few weeks ago, former Saturn general manager Jill Lajdziak was hired by Penske Automotive to head sales and marketing for its Smart USA operations. Now, Smart has announced that Lajdziak will take over the entire operation as the new president of Smart USA, replacing Dave Schembri who has held the post since its inception.

In the past several months, sales of the Smart Fortwo have collapsed in the States, with November down 65 percent. From where we sit, Lajdziak has a tough job ahead of her, trying to find a way to convince buyers that a tiny but not inexpensive car with disappointing fuel economy and a horrible transmission is a good idea. To be fair, tilting at windmills is nothing new for Lajdziak, who worked at Saturn throughout its entire nearly twenty year run. Revamping the sales network will apparently be a big part of her job, since a revamped version of the Fortwo is not on the immediate horizon. You can check out the official press release after the jump.

[Source: Smart USA | Image: Stan Honda/Getty]

Continue reading Penske appoints Jill Lajdziak to run Smart USA hoping to stem sales collapse

Penske appoints Jill Lajdziak to run Smart USA hoping to stem sales collapse originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 05 Jan 2010 11:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Seeking an innovative way to spread the message about radon’s health hazards, the Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA) and the American Lung Association in Illinois (ALA-IL) today launched the “2010 Illinois High School Radon Video Contest.”

The agencies are encouraging high school students throughout the state to create 60-second YouTube videos about radon, a radioactive gas that causes an estimated 1,100 lung cancer deaths in Illinois each year.

The video contest highlights activities in Illinois during Radon Action Month in January.

Other organizations supporting the video contest include the University of Illinois Extension Office, Respiratory Health Association of Metropolitan Chicago and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Region 5.

“For nearly two decades, we’ve been working to get the radon message out to the public, and those efforts have paid off as we’ve seen a dramatic increase in the number of people who have tested their homes,” said IEMA Director Andrew Velasquez III.

“This video contest provides us with a new, creative method for reaching even more people with that important message, particularly young people.”

Radon is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that comes from the radioactive decay of naturally-occurring uranium in the soil.  It can enter homes and buildings through small cracks in the foundation, sump pumps or soil in crawlspaces.

The USEPA has determined that radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer, behind smoking.  However, among non-smokers, radon is the leading cause of lung cancer.

Studies conducted by IEMA show that more than 40 percent of homes tested in Illinois had excess levels of radon.

Videos entered in the contest can be created by an individual student, group of students or classroom.

The winning entrants’ school will receive a $2,000 prize to be used for curricular activities, and the winning student or students will receive a $1,000 prize.  The winning video will also be featured on the IEMA and ALA-IL Web sites.

Video entries in the “2010 Illinois High School Radon Video Contest” must be submitted by March 12.  The one-minute videos will be judged by members of the sponsoring organizations.

In addition, the videos will be posted to proprofs.com/polls (keyword: Radon), where the public can view and vote for their favorite entry from March 17-31.  The winning entry will be announced in April.

“Our main goal of this video contest is to increase radon awareness within school communities,” said Harold Wimmer, ALA-IL President and CEO.

“Radon is the leading cause of lung cancer in non-smokers and the only way to know if your home has radon is to test.”

For full details about the contest, including entry and release forms, visit the ALA-IL website at lungil.org.

Questions regarding the contest can be directed to Melinda Lewis of the ALA-IL at (217) 787-5864 ext. 262.

Information about radon, including testing results by county and lists of IEMA-licensed radon measurement and mitigation contractors, is available at radon.illinois.gov.

Lawsuits aside, quite a few folks are interested in the Alex Reader from Spring Design. The device uses a 6″ eInk display for content, but also has a 3.5″ secondary color display that runs Google Android. (Yes, that sounds familiar.) Aside from the innovative hardware, the device is only as good as its content, right? Up to now I hadn’t heard of any specific content deals worked out, but CES is upon us and that changes things. Spring Design today announced a deal with Google that puts over 1 million titles in Google Books on the Alex.

“Our agreement and strategic alliance with Google opens the doors to more readers around the world,” said Dr. Priscilla Lu, CEO of Spring Design.  “We are excited to be part of Google’s initiative to digitize and deliver the world’s books and look forward to the markets and opportunities these efforts will open up for readers as well as independent authors.”

While this might not be the content provider some would hope for, it’s a definite start. And the device does support the EPUB format, so many more doors could open very soon for the Alex. How about it — does this news generate any more excitement for the Alex, or are you content to read Google Books on other devices?

Orbiting our Milky Way galaxy like two bickering siblings are the Magellanic Clouds, galaxies in their own right, though far smaller than ours. The smaller of the two — named, shockingly, the Small Magellanic Cloud — is also the farther of the two, about 200,000 light years to the Larger cloud’s 180,000 or so. The SMC is loaded with gas and dust, and is actively churning out stars.

The Spitzer Space Telescope, which observes infrared light from astronomical sources, took this incredibly beautiful image of the SMC:

[Click to embiggen, including getting access to a huge 7800 x 7000 40Mb version.]

Remember, this is not a visible light image! In the picture, blue represents light at a wavelength of 3.6 microns, about 5 times longer than what the human eye can see. Green is 8 microns, and red 24. So what you see here as blue is really what we would think of as red stars if we saw them with our eyes. Green shows light from big organic molecules called PAHs, for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Red is light from stars deeply embedded in dust, and is where stars are busily being born.

All together, this image shows starbirth on a vast scale, thousands of light years across. And this may be a new phenomenon for the SMC: measurements of the elements in the stars there show that they have far fewer heavy elements (like oxygen, iron, and so on) than stars in the Milky Way, as little as 1/5th as abundant. Since these elements are created inside of stars over time, this indicates that stars in the SMC are on the whole younger than in the Milky Way.

Even though the two Clouds are the closest galaxies we can see — and you can spot them easily with the unaided eye in the southern hemisphere — there’s still a lot we don’t know about them. In fact, we’re not even sure if they are orbiting the Milky Way, or just passing by! Even over decades, measuring their actual motion across the sky is very difficult; their mind-numbing distance of quintillions of kilometers away shrinks any real motion into apparently microscopic amounts. It may be quite some time before this question is finally resolved.

Another image from Spitzer also shows a tail of gas streaming away from the SMC, material ripped out of the body of the galaxy itself by the gravity of the Milky Way. It’s possible that interactions with the Milky Way and the other Magellanic Cloud are what triggered the star formation in the SMC, too.

It’s rather convenient to have such a nice laboratory for dwarf galaxies and starbirth so close to us. That makes it easier to study, giving us access to really high resolution images like this one. And the bonus? They’re pretty, too.