Pinterest has been one of the biggest web success stories of past 12 months. Its growing influence on fashion and product oriented web sites is now extending to e-commerce sites. A growing number of e-tailers from eBay to mom-and-pop operations are adopting the grid-like look. Read more »
Scott Forstall, the deposed iOS chief, has been a divisive figure inside Apple. His exit from Apple is likely to have an impact on the company’s stock price when the markets re-open. How are Apple insiders feeling about his exit? I asked a few of my sources. Read more »
By combining chemistry, processing and engineering expertise, IBM researchers have come up with a new chip technology that would allow the industry to get more powerful, yet smaller with lower power consuming chips. It may take more than a decade before the technology become commercially viable. Read more »
What a week in tech – the new iPad Mini and Microsoft Surface. And more is yet to come. Perhaps that is why you need a dose of non-tech refresh this weekend, so here are some pieces about Euro car crisis, Rio and Frank Sintara. Read more »
John Maeda, the President of Rhode Island School of Design and one of the most influential people in the world of design and technology, spoke at TED earlier this year about the importance of art, technology and design inform creative readers. It is fun and educational. Read more »
AT&T says it saw 4.7 million iPhone activations for the three months ending September 30, 2012. Eighteen percent were new to AT&T. Due to supply constraints a “vast majority of third-quarter iPhone sales going to existing customers to satisfy pent-up demand.” Verizon activated 3.1 million iPhones. Read more »
Lost in the madness and hype around iPad Mini is Apple’s newest waif like iMac, which has lost a lot of weight, got a new screen and it might be Apple’s best desktop computer just yet. My quick hands-on with the iMac. Read more »
Time Warner Cable, like some other broadband service providers, is now charging monthly rental fee for modems. That’s hardly a surprise, given the dearth of alternatives for consumers. Of course, the FCC willfully ignores the lack of a competitive market dynamic. Read more »
Facebook Vice President Joanna Shields, who in the past has worked for Google, Bebo, AOL and most recently with Facebook is now taking over as the chief executive of Tech City Investment Organization, a group that wants to make London a center of tech innovation. Read more »
Did AOL just come up with a new way to do email? Who is Felix Baumgartner? Are we too addicted to techno-nannies? What is happening to the American salesman? Ina Drew plus what lurks in the wild. Some of the stories on tap this week. Read more »
By all measures, Google had a terrible day yesterday. The earnings news was accidentally released earlier than expected, and poor financials saw the stock tank. But there was some good news: Estimates of Nexus 7 tablet sales are near 1 million units for the quarter. Read more »
Second quarter of 2012 represented three good months for planet broadband, particularly for the US which saw big gains in higher broadband speeds. In addition, Japan got faster and more countries are offering more broadband to more people. But there is some bad news as well. Read more »
As more sources of news start to go direct by posting their thoughts to their blogs, Twitter and Facebook pages, a journalist’s role becomes more about deciding what to amplify and what to ignore. Read more »
Reuters reports that FTC is looking to take anti-trust action against Google, because there is belief that Google has abused its dominance of the search business. If true, it will have a far reaching impact on the company and its culture. Read more »
RockMelt, a startup co-founded by Tim Howes & Eric Vishria burst on the browser scene two years ago with a social browser. Today the company is launching a brand new iPad app that marries browser and a reader. It is part of company’s growing focus on mobile. Read more »
Kickstarter co-founder and CEO Perry Chen is the latest to join an all star line-up of speakers for GigaOM RoadMap conference, scheduled to be held on November 5 in San Francisco. Other speakers include Evan Williams (Twitter and Obvious), Instagram’s Kevin Systrom and Birchbox’s Katia Beauchamp. Read more »
James Dyson, the maverick engineer who created Dyson line of vacuum cleaners is donating $8 million of his money to an incubator that is based at London’s Royal College of Art. Its mission – create new physical products that solve modern society’s vexing problems. Read more »
This is a potpourri of subjects — from Salman Rushdie to the business of tacos. If that doesn’t get you interested, then how about Homeland’s CIA connection, the little fish that can save the Atlantic Ocean, karma and the road to nowhere, a one-eyed matador, and Williamsburg. Read more »
Steve Jobs once said to follow your heart, do what you love and let the dots connect themselves. Today, on the first anniversary of his death, we can all try to do just that, especially here in Silicon Valley that seems to be afflicted by short-termism. Read more »
Today, there is a lot of talk about Facebook signing up a billion users – a staggeringly large number. However, the real value of Facebook comes from how it allows us to use our Facebook identity to sign-up for apps, e-commerce website and even gadgets. Read more »
Expect Labs, the company that is helping usher in the era of anticipatory (or predictive) computing says it has received a big cash infusion from well known investors such as Greylock Partners and Google. The company also expects to launch its MindMeld app sometime this year. Read more »
Who is interested in a database of startups and tech companies? AOL is in talks to sell Crunchbase, the repository of company information started by Techcrunch, and it sounds like things are getting serious. Read more »
In today’s attention starved world, if you miss the chance to make an impression, people move onto something new. Doesn’t matter who you were and how much money you have in the bank – users decide who wins or loses. Airtime & Color are finding it out. Read more »
Japan was once the undisputed king of consumer electronics. Today, it has ceded that title to rivals from Korea. And if that is not enough, Japan lost its lead in mobile services to more internet centric rivals such as Google and Apple. Reason it lost: Internet. Read more »
There is no doubt we are heading to a future where the physical and the digital world start to intersect with each other more and more. Earlier today, I saw this news that shows that we are getting closer and closer to this reality. Read more »
When it comes to tech, San Francisco is the company town, but that isn’t necessarily a good thing. Martin Amis things writing should be about longevity, something no one can accuse Malcolm Gadwell of writing. And an American made car! These are this week’s recommended reading. Read more »
Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer yesterday briefed the troops on what comes next for the beleaguered Internet giant. She shared some ideas, but frankly those aren’t enough for I think the rot is too deep and cultural for the company to make a comeback. Read more »
ShoeDazzle had a great thing going with its shoes-as-a-subscription service, and then it decided to switch business models. Now it’s flailing, and people are pointing fingers at new CEO Bill Strauss, but it’s not quite that simple. Read more »
Pandora, the streaming music company wants to replace the traditional radio with its Internet-based music service. And in order to do that, it is embedding itself into many devices and in cars that would come with built in Internet connectivity, CEO Joe Kennedy said recently. Read more »
Apple, this morning announced that there are 100 million iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch devices that are using the latest version of its iOS – version 6, that was released last week. That is an incredible uptake, especially when compared to the previous version iOS 5.0. Read more »
James Bond is 50, a nation of deadbeats, Stone Age brains dealing with Facebook, living literally inside the computer and reverse network effects — these are some of the topics I have put together for this week’s seven recommended reads. Plus a great essay on men’s style. Read more »
Vimeo which recently broke into the top ten web video web destinations list, is giving video makers new ways of monetization. It is offering two new tools and has plans for others at it helps its indie creators grow. Read more »
It is hard to imagine that it has only been five years since the smartphone revolution started in earnest. The sensor driven modern marvels are not only redefining how we interact with the world, but they are also having unintended consequences. Like helping make cheaper robots. Read more »
When it comes to online video, there are three companies that dominate the conversation – YouTube, Netflix and Hulu. But don’t overlook, IAC-owned Vimeo, the single most interesting video platform. A little boost from friends like Apple and Kickstarter, and suddenly it is starting to find growth. Read more »
Will the new iPod touch turbocharge iPhoneography to new levels and put the point-and-shoot on the death row? My view: iPhoneography works because it is convenient, thanks to built in connectivity and has access to apps, both for editing or sharing. Read more »
The launch of the seventh generation iPod Nano means curtains for the square-shaped nano that sparked a Nano-watch revolution, thanks to the work of designers like Scott Wilson who created the straps to accommodate the Nanos. On the upside, maybe rarity will make them collectibles. Read more »
Had enough of the iPhone5? Well there is nothing here except chess, the Chinese economy, rotary dials, a word epidemic, petabytes, zettabytes and yottabytes. All of it crammed into seven stories that you gotta read this weekend. Plus, an homage to Bill Moggridge. Read more »
With iPhone 5, Apple might just have launched a mad dash towards high-definition voice and what that means is when some calls, we can actually enjoy the conversation. Skype, Google and others have similar ideas. Does that mean return of voice. God, I hope so! Read more »
The smartphone boom that began with iPhone and captured fire with the release of Android-based devices is going to hit a fever pitch soon and by 2016, DisplaySearch expects a billion smartphones to ship, making me wonder if there will be a need for feature phones. Read more »
Tablets (or any gadget) are supposed to be our companions for a long time. And in order to review them, you really have to live with them. So, after using the new Kindle Fire for about three days, all I can offer are my early impressions. Read more »
