HTC Omni = Google Dream?
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
MOCKUP Apple iPad Touch Tablet Mock-Up Is Shiny, iPhone-y [Apple]
HiveLive’s Social Networking Platform Puts Users in Control
I've covered a lot of white label social networking platforms in my fairly short time here at TechCrunch (see here and here). So when I initially heard of a new platform called HiveLive, which launched Monday at the DeFrag Show in Denver, I expected to see much of the same features that are available elsewhere.
In large part, my expectations were realized - HiveLive is a platform with a lot of standard social networking functionality. However, it also has some unique capabilities that organizations ought to note when trying to decide which SaaS platform to go with. These capabilities, in essence, give ordinary users the ability to control the modules deployed within a social network.
Social networks often incorporate many Web 2.0 tools that could stand alone elsewhere, such as blogs, forums, and wikis. With most platforms, the network administrator determines how these tools are deployed on the site: drop in a forum here, add a wiki there, and so on. The network users for the most part then have equal access to these predefined areas of interaction.
HiveLive is attempting to mix things up a bit by introducing customizable components they call "Hives". Network users can choose to add their own hives to an existing social network, configure the type of hive (blog, forum, wiki, etc.), and then determine who within the network gets to use them (everyone or just a subset of friends and colleagues). This allows users to stake off their own areas of interaction and undergo activities from there.
Want to join with friends to run a blog about a shared interest? Create a new blog hive that everyone can see but only a few can edit. Want to collaborate on a project with team members using a wiki? Create a wiki hive that only a few people can access at all. The HiveLive platform is flexible enough so that you don't even have to create a hive that's easily categorized. If you just want to share a string of items with friends, you can create a blog-like page with a variety of data types. Users can also create their own hives by copying other hives with a few clicks of the button.
HiveLive was self-funded for its first couple of years but raised $1.6M from institutional angels towards the end of 2006. They're calling their product the "LiveConnect Community Platform."
Monday, November 05, 2007
Airbox CM3 Turns Your Car Into a 100MPH Hotspot [Wireless]
As you might have guessed, the Airbox is powered by a car cigarette lighter, but what is really interesting is the compact size. The weight is comparable to a paperback book, and the dimensions are small enough to place it under a car seat. You can even take it indoors and connect it to a standard electrical socket for home use. Available for a whopping $499 (cellular data plan required.) [WAAV via Gizmag]
9 Takes on Asus Eee PC [Frankenreview]
But while all these ideas sound fantastic on paper, how does the Asus Eee actually perform in testing? Hit the jump for our Frankenreview—nine different perspectives on the ultraportable we're all hoping to be great.
The physical feel of the notebook is pretty solid for such a small piece - I have definitely had 11" screen notebooks that felt more fragile than this system does. As long as you don't expect the build quality of an IBM ThinkPad, you will not be let down.
CNET
The obvious limitations of the tiny hard drive, low-power CPU, and lack of the Windows operating system may be enough to scare away many potential users...
TweakTown
The Intel Celeron M CPU runs at 900MHz with 9x clock multiplier. The L1 cache is 64KB, the L2 cache size is 512KB and the Bus speed is rated at 400MHz...The TDP of the chip is a very low 5.5W. This low heat signature makes it ideal for a platform of this type.
Given that there's only 1.3GB of space after the OS and applications, external storage through USB keys and hard drives will be essential. As such, it's pleasing that Asus has managed to squeeze as many as three USB ports into the diminutive chassis.
NoteBook Review
Most low-priced notebooks currently on the market feature poorly built keyboards...Much to our surprise, the keyboard on the Eee PC is remarkably firm, though the keys are small and have a large degree of "wiggle" when pressed.
For the Eee PC, ASUS developed its own full-blown operating system based on Xandros Linux. The user interface is easy to understand and navigate. It's similar to a Web page with multiple tabs.
HotHardware The Asus Eee PC comes preloaded with more than 40 applications...almost none of the applications on the Eee PC can be considered "bloatware." In fact, almost every application on this notebook is both useful and easy to use.
Laptop
...we didn't see any new applications we could add, although Asus promises to certify applications as they become available and make them available to users via software updates. The intrepid can install applications themselves, but you'll have to dig into the File Manager and launch them manually each time.
Forbes
Shih [Asustek President] says Asustek will tap into a new market--consumers unable to buy computers because they're too expensive or just too intimidating. Indeed, the Eee name comes from easy to learn, easy to play and easy to work.
The Asus Eee PC looks like a good buy if you mind the caveats. Little known fact? That girl in the picture above is only 4 inches tall.
US Consumers Clueless About Online Tracking
Arashtamere writes "A study on consumer perceptions about online privacy, undertaken by the Samuelson Clinic at the University of California and the Annenberg Public Policy Center, found that the average American consumer is largely unaware that every move they make online can be, and often is, tracked by online marketers and advertising networks. Those surveyed showed little knowledge on the extent to which online tracking is happening or how the information obtained can be used. More than half of those surveyed — about 55 percent — falsely assumed that a company's privacy polices prohibited it from sharing their addresses and purchases with affiliated companies. Nearly four out of 10 online shoppers falsely believed that a company's privacy policy prohibits it from using information to analyze an individuals' activities online. And a similar number assumed that an online privacy policy meant that a company they're doing business with wouldn't collect data on their online activities and combine it with other information to create a behavioral profile."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Lil'Grams Launches -- It's Twitter/Pownce/Dogster for Newborns
Augustine: drag and drop simplicity for social networking
Lil'Grams allows you to keep every aspect of your baby updated - from text snippits "he just burped" to video "baby's first walk" to height "damn, looks like those 2 cm's mean new clothing" to food "he really likes those orange pez" and a 1st category for everything baby does "first".
I think Lil'Grams has great potential and exporting select content will be a large benefit as well. Post a quick message on Lil'Grams, click transfer to Twitter and let everyone see what's going on. Same with YouTube, Flickr, etc. I could also see buying a domain name for your new baby and redirecting it to Lil'Grams.
This is a niche site and making sure there is a large enough market is critical. Greg notes below that 1.6 million first-time moms, but the market is larger than that. Moms with multiple children work as each baby will want a book. And the site seems simple enough that translation to other languages should be easy to implement which could provide an entirely new marketing opportunity for expansion.
One monetization strategy for Lil'Grams would be partnering with the team at Sharedbook - I would bet a great marriage could take place as SharedBook can provide the printed books for those who want an offline version for family members who aren't online.
Study Says P2P Downloaders Buy More Music
from Slashdot by
An anonymous reader writes "Michael Geist posts to his site about a study commissioned by the Canadian government intended to look into the buying habits of music fans. What the study found is that 'there is a positive correlation between peer-to-peer downloading and CD purchasing.' The report is entitled The Impact of Music Downloads and P2P File-Sharing on the Purchase of Music: A Study For Industry Canada, and it was 'conducted collaboratively by two professors from the University of London, Industry Canada, and Decima Research, who surveyed over 2,000 Canadians on their music downloading and purchasing habits. The authors believe this is the first ever empirical study to employ representative microeconomic data.'"
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
A New Way To Make Water, And Fuel Cells
from Slashdot by
Roland Piquepaille writes "You probably know that it is easy to combine hydrogen and oxygen to make water. After all, this chemical reaction is known for more than two centuries. But now, researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) have discovered a new way to make water. As states the UIUC report, 'not only can they make water from unlikely starting materials, such as alcohols, their work could also lead to better catalysts and less expensive fuel cells.' But be warned: don't read the technical paper itself. It could win an obfuscated contest — if such a contest existed for scientific papers." Yet another advance in fuel cell technology; we discussed a different one just the other day.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
E-TEN's VGA and HSDPA-packin' Glofiish X800 now shipping
Filed under: Cellphones
Share Your News Tips and Photographs with Mainstream Media
from Digital Inspiration by
If yes, here are some prominent websites where you can send in those news photos and video clips:
Reuters - You can share your news photographs and videos to Reuters by sending them to pics@reuters.com or upload here. Reuters is not just looking for news events, they are also very interested in offbeat news like a model falling over her huge heels on the catwalk or fans cheering inside the sports stadium.
BBC News - You can send pictures or news video clips to BBC at yourpics@bbc.co.uk . Web cam users can directly record and send a video message to BBC editors here. Other than news images, BBC also accepts images related to both local and global issues as well as just great pictures of your daily lives.
CNN.com - You can send your news videos, audio tips and photos to CNN at ireport@cnn.com. Like Reuters, CNN also accepts non-news events. CNN has an excellent toolkit for amateur citizen journalists to help them quickly learn tricks of the trade - how to capture good video and photographs.
CNN IBN - This is only applicable to events and issues related to India. This popular TV channel airs a separate program featuring content that's supplied by citizen journalists across the country. You can either upload the media files on the CNN IBN website or send your news reports via SMS and MMS messages (CJ to 2622).
Nokia Reporter Toolkit for Citizen Journalists
Alley Mogul Launches Gilt Groupe, We Get You In
Alley mogul Kevin Ryan and friends still had time on their hands after launching five start-ups in the past two years (including this site), so they have launched a sixth: Gilt Groupe (www.gilt.com). Judging from the early member sign-ups (3,500 in 8 hours), it's a hit.Gilt runs private sales of high-fashion merchandise at sample-sale prices. The next sale, for example, will feature the designer Zac Posen.
The sales are for members only--you have to be invited--but, thankfully, we have some connections here, and we can get (some of) you in. If you're interested, visit this special SAI referral page and register while you can (Gilt is doing the exclusivity thing and has so far refused to endow us with permanent membership granting capabilities, so hurry).
Gilt Groupe is run by CEO Alexis Maybank (above left), a talented AOL and eBay veteran, and the rest of the management team is equally, well, fabulous (check this page out and see if you disagree). The company is in the process of raising a major Series A round with premier VCs at a startling valuation, and interest, by all accounts, has been high.
Disclosure: Yes, yes, we know, we're conflicted up the wazoo here. Gilt's chairman Kevin Ryan is our chairman, Alexis Maybank, Mike Bryzek, and co are basically colleagues, etc. Whatever. You want pure objectivity without a hint of favoritism, emotion, or relationship conflict, visit TechCrunch.
Launch Apps Without Booting Windows Using Phoenix HyperSpace Mini OS [Software]
Though the Wired story didn't specifically say it, the applications probably wouldn't be the exact same ones you'd run in Windows. There might be a word processor, but it probably wouldn't be Word.
Lenovos, Dells and Acers of the world can start tailoring computers with HyperSpace functionality to very specific demographics. A student-aimed laptop, for instance, could come with apps like word processing, e-mail and IM preloaded into HyperSpace.Also, not only is it probably Linux-based, but as one Wired commenter pointed out, it's likely similar to code that experienced software ninjas have been messing around with for years. Some PC makers such as HP and Gateway have offered Windows-free quick-start media players already, though nothing to this degree.
A widespread implementation of HyperSpace across consumer laptops would still be a coup and a half.
Microsoft regards HyperSpace as "outside their sphere of influence," and is not too happy with Phoenix's offering, which adds yet another voice to the already loud chorus of voices complaining about operating-system bloat.Look out for HyperSpace in laptops starting in mid to late 2008. [Wired Tech Biz] UPDATE: Here's a link to the press release.
Sexy LG KS20 Now Shipping (At Least For Some) [Smartphones]
It's got 3.6Mbps HSDPA and Wi-Fi B and G, and what looks like a half-way decent web browser. There will be some built-in games and video on demand, video telephony, and a media player that will read MP3, MPEG4, WAV, 3GP, AMR-NB, WMA, AAC, AAC+ and eAAC+. We don't even mind the Windows Mobile 6 part, given the fact that there's a customized interface like the T-Mobile HTC Shadow or the Sprint's HTC Touch.
I suppose the upcoming entry of Verizon's LG Voyager to the US doesn't preclude us from getting a KS20, but the powers that be might not want the competition this early, and LG's relationships with other carriers are not as cuddly. [LG via Akihabara News]
Lancôme Makes Itself Useful With Unique Magnetic Nail Polish Gadget for Gals
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
