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Seeing Apple pull out of Macworld and hearing talk of poor turnout at CES make us speculate on the future of trade shows—like automakers and newspapers, are they another institution on the endangered-species list? Apple’s cited reason for the withdrawal of Steve Jobs from the Macworld keynote, and the subsequent withdrawal of Apple from Macworld…
Sometimes, I hate when I’m right. https://gizmodo.com/is-steve-jobs-preparing-his-farewell-5063281
Everyone’s at least a little surprised that Steve Jobs won’t be giving Apple’s final Macworld keynote. But do you think it’s because he’s about to retire? https://gizmodo.com/steve-jobs-skipping-final-macworld-apple-keynote-5111773 Is Steve Jobs About to Retire? ( surveys)
Philips’ Luxe MP3 Player, that Jawbone-shaped device that doubles as a bluetooth headset, is coming to the U.S. following its Singapore launch, thankfully with a color option that doesn’t include a tacky jeweled face. https://gizmodo.com/philips-luxe-bluetooth-mp3-player-is-simultaneously-bar-5068807 The GoGear Luxe comes with Bluetooth and a microphone, allowing the listener to switch between other Bluetooth devices, such as…
I like this move: The OLPC team, tired of their message being co-opted by geeks worrying about what operating system to install, have raised the stakes in a new web video. I don’t think the OLPC folks are advocating doing the ol’ switcheroo—XO for AK-47—to eradicate such horrors as the ones depicted on the spot.…
Attack of the Show is planning a little gathering tonight in PlayStation Home, encouraging one and all to join them in 7PM EST to dance the robot. Will the servers hold? https://gizmodo.com/10-things-you-need-to-know-about-playstation-home-5107634 The launch of Sony’s long awaited Second-Life-alike has not been without its problems. Although it’s been in closed beta for almost six months…
Nyko has just announced wired versions of their Wing (classic controller) and Kama (nunchuk). And while the previously announced wireless versions may be more technically impressive, these models are recession-friendly. https://gizmodo.com/the-nyko-wing-looks-better-than-the-wii-classic-control-5043420 Identical to the previously released versions (except for a wire sticking out of each), the wired Wing and Kama will each retail for $15.…
Recall that Samsung 8MP shooter that was previously spied in blurrycam photos with T-Mo branding, but then spotted in the FCC’s filing cabinets with AT&T’s 3G livery? Well, the FCC sleuths over at Boy Genius have dug up the same phone, now designated the T929 and equipped with 1700MHz support for T-Mobile’s 3G network after…
Your computer is your life. All of your important information is on there and you have the settings just the way you like. Now someone wants to use it. Does that make you uncomfortable? Do You Feel Uncomfortable When Someone Else Uses Your Computer? ( surveys) [Thanks OMG! Ponies! Image via nickgraywfu] Results from “LCD,…
Steve Jobs is not going to deliver this year’s Macworld keynote. We suspected this was coming. But there’s more: Apple has confirmed that this is their last Macworld ever. https://gizmodo.com/is-steve-jobs-preparing-his-farewell-5063281 Instead of Jobs, delivering this year’s supposedly final Macworld keynote is Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior VP of worldwide product marketing. While we have confirmed this…
Gel is great for some things—shoe inserts, hair product and, of course, holiday desserts involving various layers of suspended fruit. But remotes, Panasonic? When not in use, this Panasonic concept remote is said to slumber peacefully, its limp body pulsating with light not so differently than a gently sleeping MacBook. But when touched, the remote…
Nextar is bringing the big guns to CES this year with their upcoming frog-shaped “Ribbit” MP3 player. Besides the unique design, it features 2GB of storage space and an OLED screen for only $25. Nextar Ribbit MA589 MP3 Player —Product Features & Specifications: •Support MP3 and WMA •Built-In Memory: Up to 4GB (Price TBD on…
Designed primarily for military use, these LightSpeed binoculars are capable of transmitting “untappable” voice and video signals to another set of binoculars using infrared. The LightSpeed system exploits free-space optics—the ability to pass data between two points via an optical beam. The method usually involves lasers, but this system uses eye-safe infrared LEDs, similar to…
Hey Chen, yep, it’s cold by California standards. Lisa’s sick from it. She has a fever, as confirmed by a Raytek laser guided Mini temp gun. 100 degrees! We got some great shout outs by the mainstream media recently: ABC did this short on the Giz Gallery. https://gizmodo.com/catching-up-its-cold-5109017 And CNN also did this piece on…
It looks like customer service alone cannot save Best Buy in the current economy, so they’ve offered 4,000 corporate employees a buyout. https://gizmodo.com/best-buy-hunkers-down-focuses-on-customer-service-5084425 The voluntary plan includes 7.5 months of severance pay along with one year of health care, life insurance and outplacement services to those who leave the company now to January 5th. Employees…
We have seen evidence of this in the past, but it seems that burying loved ones with cellphones and other gadgets is more common than you might think. https://gizmodo.com/dead-woman-buried-with-cellphone-allegedly-sends-texts-375585 “It seems that everyone under 40 who dies takes their cell phone with them,” says Noelle Potvin, family service counselor for Hollywood Forever, a funeral home…
Pop Photo is one of the first to pop out a full review of Canon’s wunderkamera, the 5D Mark II, and says that it “does live up to its billing” and is “a virtual steal.” https://gizmodo.com/canon-5d-mark-ii-officially-awesome-21mp-dslr-first-to-5050899 The image quality, thankfully, is as good as we’d been led to believe, delivering the huge megapixel count of…
A reporter for the Times who spent seven days as an elf at one of Amazon’s UK warehouses found workers weren’t allowed to take sick leave, faced mandatory overtime, infinitesimal breaks and other sweatshop-y conditions. The undercover Sunday Times reporter took a temp seasonal position as a packer for seven days, where they found some…
In an age when nukes existed but pocket calculators did not, the potential damage of a nuclear strike could be quantified using cardboard slide rules like this one. Using data gleaned from the book The Effects of Nuclear Weapons, these circular “computers” could calculate weapons effects like yield and range when the big one dropped.…
Hey, cheapskates! Refurbished iPhones are available now from Apple for $150/$250, if that $50 has been a dealbreaker for you. You’ll still need a two-year contract, of course. [AT&T via CNet]