Monday, September 10, 2007
Apple Eying Open Wireless Spectrum Battle
11:38PM Mark Wilson | According to multiple Business Week sources, Apple has been considering the merits of bidding on the 700Mhz open wireless spectrum that goes up for grabs this January. Expected to sell for around $9 billion, most say Apple has the liquidity to make the purchase—even amongst competition like Google. What would the deal mean for Apple fans? Think iTunes content that hits your iPhone/iPod/iMysteryDevice in data rates faster than WiFi. And of course, think voice transmission without relying upon the AT&Ts of the world. But the purchase would mandate a lot of infrastructure and busy work. Presumably Apple would farm out logistics to another firm, but still…it’s a commitment that brings you directly into the wireless service world, which is full of headaches and federal regulation. And who says $9 billion will take this spectrum? How the hell do we know how much cash is needed when some of the richest, most leveraged technology companies in the world are duking it out for US data dominance? So who do you want to take the spectrum? [businessweek] More »
The Loit Eagle Audio System with CD Player Looks Gorgeous, May be Art
11:21PM Addy Dugdale | Russian design-meister Art Lebedev has got something to do with this audio system, which consists of a high-end CD player sitting atop a triangular, uber-minimalist amplifier. More pics, including one of the classiest remotes I’ve ever seen, below. More »
Sony Planning Price Drop for 80GB PS3, New $399 40GB Model?
11:19PM Matt Buchanan | Citing their mole with a proven track record, Opposable Thumbs is reporting that the PS3 will re-emerge with two SKUs this holiday season: a $499 80GB model and a $399 40GB model. So if you want a $499 PS3, you might actually want to wait for it. The $100 cheaper 40GB model would be a great move, since it might just hit the sweet spot Sony’s been missing since the launch. If this goes official, it’d be the best news we’ve heard about the PS3 in a while. Oh, and they might have Spidey 3 as the Blu-ray pack-in. Hurrah? [Opposable Thumbs] More »
OQO Model 02 Gets Spec Bump, Price Dump
11:00PM Matt Buchanan | OQO’s updated the specs for their model 02 line pretty much all around. The fastest available processor now runs at 1.6Ghz; hard drives go up to 120GB, plus they’ve added the option for a flash-based 32GB solid state drive; and WWAN’s been upgraded to 1.4 Mbps EV-DO Rev. A. Finally, the price for the entry level model’s been cut by $200 to $1299. Not a bad little announcement. Still too rich for my blood though. [OQO] More »
Most Disappointing Transformer Ever
10:46PM Mark Wilson | First off, the GX-32 Gold Lightan Transformer is actually made of silver. And secondly, the badass robot turns into a cube rectangular solid. Yes, a freakin’ cube rectangular solid—the most boring geometrical shape in existence that’s good for building cool things out of. Remember back when Transformers became guns? Oh, how the mighty have fallen. $51 [product via superpunch] More »Landing Airplane Collapses, Smashing Engine Blade into Cabin
10:40PM Jesus Diaz | This is what happens when big toys go wrong: watch as this SAS Haviland Q400’s right landing gear collapses, putting the engine on fire and smashing one of its turboprop engines’ blades into the cabin. Fortunately, like the stunning explosion in Okinawa, all passengers and crew survived. Next time the Scandinavians should kill a couple goats to appease the pneumatic gods, even while they probably carry pneumatic goddesses in every plane. [LiveLeak] More »
Apple Sells 1 Millionth iPhone
10:38PM Wilson Rothman | Seventy four days out from launch, Apple has sold 1 million iPhones—smack dab on target with recent analyst predictions that the iPhone would surpass the mil mark by Sept. 30. In a press release, Steve Jobs said that it took nearly two years to sell that many iPods. The big boss continued: “We can’t wait to get this revolutionary product into the hands of even more customers this holiday season.” Too bad it won’t be that even more revolutionary iPhone that seems just around the corner. Critique aside, we congratulate Apple on the iPhone’s momentum. More »
World’s Biggest Supercomputer is a Virus?
10:03PM Gizmodo US Edition | The Storm Worm Botnet currently infects between one and ten million computers worldwide, which means that it has access to a huge amount of processing power and somewhere between 1 and 10 petabytes of RAM. This apparently makes it one of the most powerful computers in the world, with more computing power than the ten fastest supercomputers in the world combined. More »
