Archive for April 29, 2009
PlayCafe, a startup whose existence and funding we were first to report on over the past couple years, is closing shop. Co-founder and CEO Mark Goldenson sent us a post-mortem email about the online game show company tonight.
PlayCafe had raised $930,000 from First … Read More »
One of the companies featured in the story we did yesterday about monetizing unauthorized uploads has closed new round of funding. San Mateo, Calif.-based FreeWheel raised a $12 million Series C round led by Foundation Capital and including existing investor Battery Ventures, which had … Read More »
Pure Digital added a new HD model to its Flip Ultra line today and refreshed the standard definition version of the popular portable video camera. Take a look at the new device with this brief hands-on demo we shot (an example of the HD footage … Read More »
I don’t expect this to win me any friends in the Maemo world, but I think it’s a valid question. Believe me, I wish Nokia and the open-source community nothing but success with their mobile platform. This isn’t about me liking other operating systems or … Read More »
The folks at Yanko Design have so many cool concept products, and the MacBook Touch concept is as cool as any. There have been many rumors flying around about some sort of Mac Touch tablet or netbook, and this concept addresses them all.
The MacBook Touch … Read More »
WildBlue Communications, the Greenwood Village, Colo.-based satellite broadband provider, today demonstrated how it can deliver download speeds that are up to 12 times faster than its current speeds if it gets a new high-capacity satellite. Satellites are pricey (it can cost around $500 million … Read More »
AT&T has adjusted its terms of service again — after retracting parts of a previous revision — to limit uses of mobile data plans for video services like Sling. The new change, as written up by DSL Reports today, excludes “redirecting television signals … Read More »
Solar firms have been hit as hard as anyone in the economic downturn as companies and residents have shied away from large purchases like rooftop and backyard solar panel installations. But First Solar, the stock market darling that is the leader in the thin-film solar space, … Read More »
No wonder this went unnoticed by most people. In the grand history of non-newsworthy news, this is right up there.
Two days ago, Apple updated their MobileMe News page with the announcement of 24/7 Live Chat support. If you have a problem with MobileMe, and the … Read More »
When working on-site, it’s reasonably easy to maintain your employer’s or client’s confidentiality. But what about security in your home office? OK, so your dinner guests aren’t likely to be covert operatives for your employer’s largest competitor, angling to steal company secrets between the appetizer and … Read More »
More Must Reads
By Josie Garthwaite
Apr. 29, 2009, 3:30pm PT
Tesla Model S Test Drive: The first person outside of the company to drive Tesla’s Model S concept car says the vehicle is “just barely ambulatory — more like a glorified golf cart than a harbinger of tomorrow tech.” — LA Times
Segway Maker’s Next Step: … Read More »
In iPhone OS Beta 3, there was a hint of a new feature that would presumably let a user change settings of the built-in App Store. With iPhone OS 3.0 Beta 4, seeded to developers earlier today, it has turned out to be a useful … Read More »
I have been a fan of BlueAnt headsets for as long as I can remember. The V1 I have been using for a while is one of the coolest Bluetooth headsets I have ever used, and it works great with my iPhone 3G. The BlueAnt … Read More »
If you’re an actor, being a chameleon won’t make you a star — unless you make that versatility part of your mystique. That seems to be what actor Brent Rose is banking on.
Rose is no stranger to new media, having co-created and starred … Read More »
By David Ehrlich
Apr. 29, 2009, 2:00pm PT
Wave Hub, basically a giant underwater socket under development that wave power developers can use to feed power into the grid, has lost its second partner so far this year. Energy company E.ON, which had planned to use a … Read More »
I’m rebooting my life. After 10 years at the BBC, I’m switching careers and running my own business full-time. And that’s not the only big switch going on around here — I’m also moving from Windows to Mac for just about everything. Moving everything to the … Read More »
We’ve had a couple of really great entries for our Paintbrush/Backblaze Contest but would love to see more!
We’re really looking for some awesomely cheesy drawings here, so don’t feel like you need to be a pro artist. The cheesier, the better!
As a reminder, … Read More »
By Edit Staff
Apr. 29, 2009, 12:44pm PT
With the news this week that CBS would be banishing its new series Harper’s Island to Saturday night after sliding ratings, we checked in with Greg Goodfried, EQAL co-founder, president and COO, to ask about the future of companion web series Harper’s Globe.
Goodfried pushed the … Read More »
By Stacey Higginbotham
Apr. 29, 2009, 12:11pm PT
Welcome to the first App Store Roundtable. The iPhone and the App Store are always hot news, and for good reason. It’s a fantastic marketplace for developers, and there’s always something exciting happening somewhere for the press to report on. But sometimes the issues faced by … Read More »
By Justin Moresco
Apr. 29, 2009, 11:45am PT
The nation’s ever growing push for a smarter electric grid means it will become increasingly similar to a computer network with two-way communication. While that has many benefits, it could also leave the grid more vulnerable to attack. That’s why two influential U.S. lawmakers, Rep. Bennie … Read More »
By Stacey Higginbotham
Apr. 29, 2009, 11:11am PT
The venture model is ailing, and folks in the industry are promoting two different diagnoses for the sickness. One group says the industry needs more exits and should promote the return of smaller initial public offerings, while the other says the industry has grown … Read More »
By Imran Ali
Apr. 29, 2009, 11:00am PT
To paraphrase the famous Wes Anderson and Robert De Niro American Express ads, “My life happens here; my bag is Timbuk2.”
I’ve lived an untethered, web working, co-working lifestyle for around nine years. In my previous life as an R&D consultant, hopping between Paris, London, … Read More »
Quantenna Raises $14 Million; company provides chips for wireless HD transmission, Quantenna has raised more than $42 million to date. (VentureBeat) Elsewhere in the wireless HD world, Amimon rolled out its second-gen chips today.
Lost‘s Big DVR Audience Poses Advertiser Problem; one-third of the show’s … Read More »
By Katie Fehrenbacher
Apr. 29, 2009, 10:12am PT
The notion of virtualization in the computing industry — using software to better utilize computers and thus require less of them — has been around for over a decade, and VMware was one of the pioneers of adding virtualization to data centers. But in the … Read More »
Microsoft might not be creating a Zune Phone, but they are going to offer voice control features into Windows Mobile 6.5. The features won’t be natively integrated into the mobile operating system, but instead will become available as a free download to Windows Mobile … Read More »
Popular user-curated news and ephemera site Reddit today launched Reddit.TV for browsing videos shared on its site.
The Reddit.TV interface is similar to StumbleVideo or Twitmatic, where you’re presented with one zeitgeisty video at a time. Videos are presented in categories like … Read More »
By Josie Garthwaite
Apr. 29, 2009, 9:03am PT
Evidently teamwork was just a little too blah for the mayors of San Francisco and Portland, Ore. While last month the governors of California, Oregon and Washington said they wanted to build a “B.C. to Baja green highway,” with alternative fuel and charging stations along … Read More »
By Aliza Sherman
Apr. 29, 2009, 9:00am PT
The other day I noticed that someone had posted a quick poll on LinkedIn. I thought a poll like that might be a good tool to use for informal market research so I clicked on the link to create my own. However, I was met with … Read More »
By Derrick Harris
Apr. 29, 2009, 8:45am PT
Antivirus software is important, but many available products can bog down machines with heavy memory and processor usage. Panda Security today announced its free personal Cloud Antivirus product, which keeps most of the heavy lifting in Panda’s cloud instead of on the user’s … Read More »
One area that netbooks fall short in for many people is in the graphics arena. Many use the Intel 945GM/GME/GMS/GSE graphics which, according to the GMABooster folks, are underclocked and low-voltage versions of a faster core. They say that their free software can boost the … Read More »
By Derrick Harris
Apr. 29, 2009, 8:09am PT
It’s beginning to look like you just can’t keep a good cloud down. The makers of the open-source cloud computing platform Eucalyptus today said they have raised $5.5 million in Series A funding, and they announced the launch of Eucalyptus Systems Inc. … Read More »
President Obama will give a news conference this evening to mark his first 100 days in office (ed. note: 100 days?! Dang, this year is flying by). The event begins at 8 p.m. ET, and while you won’t be able to watch it on FOX’s … Read More »
Sharing a 3G data connection with other people or devices is becoming all the rage these days. LevelOne is the newest entrant in this market, touting their MobilSpot Portable Wireless Hotspot as “mobility for on-the-go users.” All in all, the $149 router looks like it … Read More »
By Stacey Higginbotham
Apr. 29, 2009, 7:04am PT
Updated: Amazon said today it would offer grants to allow educators, academic researchers and students to access its Amazon Web Services such as its compute cloud and cloud storage. It plans to spend about $1 million, and offers grants starting at $100 of credit per … Read More »
