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Delaying Digital TV Only Adds to the Mess
Tweet Share on Facebook January 15, 2009 Comment (4)The digital TV switch is a mess. Word has it that congressional leaders are close to a bill to delay the deadline for turning off analog broadcasts. But I agree with outgoing FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, who says it will add to already rampant confusion.
For one, it's a deadline to switch off analog. Some stations are making the switch sooner. Whole markets including Wilmington, N.C. have already gone digital. The state of Hawaii is throwing the switch today.
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Maybe It's Time to Cut Apple and Jobs Some Slack
Tweet Share on Facebook January 14, 2009 CommentThere has been much criticism in recent months about how Apple has handled reports about Steve Jobs' health. Maybe some is deserved, as suggesting that Jobs wouldn't be speaking at the Macworld trade show because of simple business reasons. Only later did Jobs reveal that he had a medical issue that was forcing him to cut back his role at the company.
Lots of folks have suggested the CEO might have lied. That he purposely misled investors. They'll probably take today's news that Jobs is taking a medical leave as proof that Jobs hasn't come clean, as does Joe Wilcox at Apple Watch:
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Blockbuster Signs Up Sonic to Compete With Netflix Streams
Tweet Share on Facebook January 14, 2009 CommentHaving fallen behind archrival Netflix's online offerings, the Blockbuster retail chain went and found a tech-savvy teammate to get itself quickly into the stream. In turn, Sonic Solutions gets a high-profile brand in its efforts to set up end-to-end digital delivery systems.
Blockbuster said Sonic will help get its movie and TV titles onto a wide variety of devices, from Blu-ray disk players to Web-connected TVs and wireless handsets. The companies don't mention it, but seems logical that we'd soon be able to download Blockbuster movies and burn them to our own DVDs through Sonic's Qflix system.
Blockbuster has stumbled trying to catch up with Netflix streaming. The subscription service is already on a variety of Blu-ray players, TVs and other devices. Blockbuster recently released a device to connect its on-demand service to TVs. It was so bug-ridden that blogger Dave Zatz tossed it in his closet (thanks NewTeeVee).
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Toshiba: Nobody Wants Thinner TVs
Tweet Share on Facebook January 14, 2009 CommentToshiba declined to compete in the ultrathin TV contest at this year's CES. The company dismissed the challenge thrown down last year by Hitachi, with its 1-inch-thick LCD, and 1-inch plasmas announced this year by Samsung and Panasonic.
Basically, Toshiba argues that the extra-skinny TVs are a gimmick that's trying to find a market. "I've yet to find anyone who says their flat-panel TV is too fat," said Scott Ramirez, a Toshiba marketing exec.
Thinner is always better. Then again, he's got a point. From the front, who notices if a TV is the typical 3 or 4 inches deep, or merely 1-inch? Maybe it's worth the extra cost for sets hanging on the wall. But that isn't practical for the vast majority of us.
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Video: Cool and Wacky Tech From the 2009 CES
Tweet Share on Facebook January 13, 2009 Comment (17)More than 100,000 people flocked to Las Vegas to look at exhibits from 2,700 tech companies. On display was an impressive array of new gadgets and software. We've featured a few in this video, ranging from a 3D webcam to software that can turn your iPhone into a one-hand band.
There were no breathtaking products that dominated the show. Many could, and maybe even should, fade into obscurity. But the variety on display made clear that even in hard times, the tech industry is brimming with ideas and innovation.
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Panasonic Deck Combines VHS with Blu-ray
Tweet Share on Facebook January 13, 2009 Comment (1)Combining Blu-ray with VHS tapes seems, well, wrong. But many of us still have cherished cassettes. So Panasonic thinks there is a market for a combo Blu-ray and VHS player.
The DMP-BD70V, like Panasonic's other Blu-ray players, can process 15 billion pixels a second. And it will use those smarts to convert VHS video to something akin to high-definition TV. I only worry that all that firepower could melt the humble tapes.
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Maybe Obama Can Keep His Mobile E-mail
Tweet Share on Facebook January 13, 2009 Comment (4)Maybe Obama doesn't have to do without texting and E-mailing while on the go, though he'd have to give up his beloved BlackBerry. Declan McCullagh at CNet's Politics and Law blog has an interesting look at high-powered alternatives. A $3,500 mobile handset is not only secure, but...
...is dust-proof, waterproof, and rugged enough to survive repeated 4-foot drops onto concrete. Physically, it's a chunkier second cousin to the Palm Treo 750, though with an additional LCD display below the keyboard.
And the software is supposedly tougher, too:
The NSA claims that the installed versions of Internet Explorer, WordPad, and Windows Messenger are good enough for data that's classified at a level of Secret. Presumably the federal spooks have found a way to protect IE from the numerous security flaws that continue to plague the Internet's most popular browser.
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On Closer Look, the Palm Pre is Still Impressive
Tweet Share on Facebook January 12, 2009 Comment (6)I got a closer look at the Palm Pre before leaving Las Vegas this weekend, and I think it's still Best of Show from CES. The phone can do video, which was one lingering doubt.
Several readers have pointed out in the past that smart phones are about the software. The Pre's is more impressive in detailed demos, though Palm kept reporters and analysts from hands-on tests.
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CES Attendance Fell More Than Expected
Tweet Share on Facebook January 12, 2009 CommentAttendance at the Consumer Electronics Show fell more than 20 percent this year to about 110,000, according to early estimates. Organizers had predicted the numbers would fall less than half that. But it seemed obvious during the show that the numbers were down significantly.
That is, it wasn't so hard to get a cab or a restaurant reservation. And it didn't seem nearly so difficult hard to walk across the exhibit floor. Small consolations from the recession.
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Casio Jams High-Speed Feature Into Compact Cameras
Tweet Share on Facebook January 12, 2009 CommentI didn't cotton to Casio's Dynamic Photography introduced at this year's CES. But the company deserves credit for getting its super high-speed feature into smaller, more-affordable cameras.
New models starting at $350 will be able to capture a burst of 30 frames per second of high-resolution still pictures. Even rank amateurs can get the exact shot they want. The cameras can also capture an astounding 1,000 frames per second of video at lower, but still-good quality.
Those rates are slower than the original 60 fps and 1,200 fps that could be captured by the original model, the EX-F1 that was introduced last year at $1,000. But the new cameras are not only more affordable, they are compact. One is in the credit-card size that Casio pioneered. That's amazing power in a pocket.
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