2008 July | official tech news

Jul 29 2008

Plankton wants to stick a nail in your USB drive

Posted by: admin in Official Tech News

I thought I’d seen everything when I saw a website dedicated to selling shirts with bacon on them. However, I was proven wrong when I saw a website dedicated to selling a USB flash drive in the shape of a huge nail. The name of this USB flash drive is “Nailed” and you can learn all about […]

I thought I’d seen everything when I saw a website dedicated to selling shirts with bacon on them.
However, I was proven wrong when I saw a website dedicated to selling a USB flash drive in the shape of a big nail.

The name of this USB flash drive is “Nailed” and you can learn all about it at Plankton Station. With a name like Plankton Station you’d think the site would be selling fish food for your costly saltwater aquarium and not a USB novelty. You’d also think they’d want to wait to go live until they’d more than a single product and a mission statement.

The drive itself is a tiny high-priced, it comes to about $46.50 USD and features only a 1 GB storage. I guess that’s a small price to pay for the illusion if hammering a nail in to your beloved and/or hated computer. (No actual hammering required or recommended)

Jul 29 2008

Where are the smartphones for seniors?

Posted by: admin in Official Tech News

A TC/CG reader Teresa asks we, the gadget-nation, a question: where are the good smartphones for seniors? Sure, they’ve ClarityLife and the Jitterbug but neither of those work as real smartphones. Teresa wants something with a little power. She writes: I’m one of the 22% of seniors (39 million) that have a laptop, […]

A TC/CG reader Teresa asks we, the gadget-nation, a question: where are the good smartphones for seniors? Sure, they have ClarityLife and the Jitterbug but neither of those work as real smartphones. Teresa wants something with a tiny power. She writes:

I’m one of the 22% of seniors (39 million) that have a laptop, cell phone, etc.
Most seniors are barely on the web and not often. They still stick steadfastly to offline behaviors-watch TV & read newspapers etc

What I don’t understand is why no company is making a product that, as a senior, is adapted to aging, as follows:

1. Simple to use/large print Smartphone that is already loaded with wi fi…with huge letters, screen etc. -everyone over 50 has eye changes and everyone over 65 has some limitation in texting due to arthritis etc.

2. Since Nokia & Android may be joining together to create new Smartphone…this would be a perfect time to design, develop & create one that the Boomers (43-63)-81 million adults and Seniors (65+)-39 million adults=120 million adults could use that does is not difficult to use & adapted to aging population.

3. I’ve had various cell phones and personal and they always have instructions that are long, arduous and only a geek can understand. As a consumer, shouldn’t I not only be able to comprehend how to operate it, but also have a choice of what I want on it??

4. The smart thing to do, would be to create a Smartphone “shell” , making, numbers, screen everything big enough for groups above to read and use, then give them a choice of what they want with it when they buy it (ie, text messaging, camera, GPS, etc..). They then are offered choices that can be customized to what they want.

5. It should also include mobile VolP software connectivity without GSM contract & a flate fee plan. Or use dedicated handset for VolP & GSM cards pre-installed. International travel in this package, is essential, many travel frequently. Could adapt the Nokia N95 to above & lower the price.

Before I retired 3 yrs ago I was Nurse Consultant for Say of California Preventive Health Care for the Aging and have the scientific, medical expertise to see where the world of techonogy is very unresponsive to a population that’s aging. I am curious to see if any of those corporations will respond to my request/challenge.

AAA Magazine advertises one with large #’s etc…but it’s features are so limiting, it wouldn’t serve many people’s purpose for one.

What have you guys gotten for the seniors in your life? What would be a good phone for Teresa and her friends?

Jul 29 2008

Pentax rolls out another yawner: the 10MP M60 point-and-shoot

Posted by: admin in Digital Cameras

Filed under: Digital Cameras

If the E60 had you dozing last night, you’ll be conked out in no time by the time you finish reading this. Pentax is at it again, proving that point-and-shoot cameras can still be boring this day and age. The M60 tries to be fancy with a 10-megapixel sensor, 5x optical zoom, 2.5-inch LCD monitor, “approximately 36.5MB of built-in memory,” movie / panorama modes, a variety of scene modes and smile detection abilities to boot. Expect this one to arrive late next month in blue, pink and silver for around

Jul 29 2008

Powermac G4 Booting Up

Posted by: admin in Videos

this is my powermac g4 booting up please comment and subscribe to see more content like this

Jul 29 2008

Newsflash: People like good movies

Posted by: admin in Official Tech News

More often than not, it’s the easy explanation that makes the most sense. Commenting on a recent LA Times woe-for-the-movie-industry piece, Techdirt arrives at the stunning conclusion that people will pay to go see a good movie. The LA Times article describes in detail the efforts that the industry took to delay The Dark Knight […]

More often than not, it’s the simple explanation that makes the most sense. Commenting on a current LA Times woe-for-the-movie-industry piece, Techdirt arrives at the stunning conclusion that people will pay to go see a good movie.

The LA Times article describes in detail the efforts that the industry took to delay The Dark Knight including shipping the motion picture reels in separate shipments to discourage a complete copy being lost or stolen. From production to post on through movie theater delivery, the motion picture was under tight security.

All of this sounded a tiny over-vigilant to Mike Masnick who simplifies the equation down to the bare facts. Make a good motion picture and people will pay for the experience. The Dark Knight, most say, is a good movie. That is where the success came from, not by the cloak and dagger routine staged by the MPAA.

Jul 28 2008

Pentax Optio E60’s 10 megapixels are simple on the wallet

Posted by: admin in Digital Cameras

Filed under: Digital Cameras

In strict megapixel to dollar terms, the new Optio E60 from Pentax is a real steal, at a mere $140 for its absurd 10 megapixels. Of course, there’s more to the story. The 3x zoom and lack of optical image stabilization — “High Sensitivity Digital Shake Reduction” is tiny comfort — won’t be winning you any “best candid shot of whatever we did last night” awards, but there are some decent automatic perks like face recognition and a “Green” settings mode for absolute novices that should keep you from getting booted out of your Flickr pool. The E60, which is powered by AA batteries, will be available in October.

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Via Engadget

Jul 28 2008

Toshiba rolls out budget-priced Camileo H10 HD camcorder

Posted by: admin in Digital Cameras

Filed under: Digital Cameras

It looks like those wanting to get some HD recoding done on the cheap but not willing to venture into some less familiar territory now have a new option to consider from Toshiba, which is set to release its new Camileo H10 camcorder. It’ll give you the usual 720p recording, along with a 5x optical zoom, a 10-megapixel sensor, 64MB of memory, an SDHC card slot for expansion, image stabilization, motion detection and, of course, an HDMI output to let you view your low-budget masterpieces. No word on a release ’round these parts, unfortunately, but those in the UK can apparently get their hands on one at the end of the month for

Jul 28 2008

Most popular posts for Monday, July 28

Posted by: admin in Official Tech News

Today’s Top Posts: Live from Virgin Galactic: We visit the White Knight 2 Cuil search engine: Reinventing the wheel Replacement LCD for iPhone 3G just $85 via Brando Automatic door for dogs, training not provided White Knight 2 photo gallery Motorola cleans out closest, reorganizes, again eDeck lets you gamble for real money via Wi-Fi Samsung Haiku contest ends tomorrow Digital signage system […]

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