Digital Soft Technologies

Latest Mobiles

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 20:54:00 +0000

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New Version of Google Maps is Coming With Streetview

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 08:52:00 +0000

A perfect feature called “Streetview” in Google Maps is now available for Mobile phones
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Sony's 18-inch Blu-ray laptop is our portable home theater favorite

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 07:11:00 +0000

In any collection of similar laptops, the one with the Sony Vaio logo is likely to be the most expensive in the group. So, imagine our pleasant surprise to find the Vaio AW125 to be less expensive than the other 18-inch, Blu-ray equipped laptops we've seen.

Our Blu-ray HP HDX18 was $2,149, while the Blu-ray version of Acer's Aspire 8920 was $2,499 (both have cheaper non-Blu-ray versions). In comparison, the Vaio AW125 was a mere $1,849 (although fancier models from the AW line can get up as high as $3,200).

We're big fans of the 18-inch 16:9 screen concept, which matches the resolution of HDTV screens and works perfectly with HD content. Our only real knocks against the Vaio were its insistence on including the usual assortment of proprietary Sony stuff, from a Memory Stick slot to all kinds of Sony-branded media software (just stick with iTunes or the VLC player).

Blue Shirts to solve digital TV transition

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 06:56:00 +0000

Geeks and nerds need not apply, but if you're still one of those facing your 10-year-old analog TV every night, I have some news.

On Tuesday, Best Buy announced that it will host workshops in 25 of its stores around the country to educate consumers about the transition to digital television broadcasting and help them choose the best solution for their television needs.

The workshop will help you understand the difference between the two technologies and, most likely, encourage you to buy a new digital TV. Best Buy, of course, will be ready to facilitate the purchase of said digital television right there in its store, though no purchase is required for you to participate.

The workshops are the collaborated efforts of Best Buy and the National Association of Broadcasters. During the event, local broadcasters will also be available to answer questions.

The workshops will take place at at 10 a.m. on November 17--exactly three months before the switch. You can participate at Best Buy stores in following locations: Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis, Tampa, and Washington D.C.

Skype wirelessly with Drone Bluetooth adapter

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 06:51:00 +0000

Most new laptops have built-in Bluetooth these days, but if yours doesn't, you might want to get what CallPod introduced on Thursday, theDrone.

The Drone is not a regular Bluetooth adapter. It's a high-powered device that offers a range of up to 300 feet; that's 10 times the range of regular Bluetooth devices.

Designed mainly for audio purposes, once plugged in, the Drone is recognized by a computer as a speaker. The Drone's built-in firmware then streams the computer's audio feed to Bluetooth headsets or speakers.

For this reason, the device is perfect for computer-based VoIP calling, and works with Skype, right out of the box. If you are listening to music when a Skype call arrives, the Drone automatically switches over the the call.

As an audio device, the Drone is 100 percent plug-and-play; software installation is only required for advance functions, such as data transfer.

The Drone Bluetooth adapter is A2DP-compliant and compatible with both PCs and Macs. It's available now for $49.95, which is significantly more expensive than other regular Bluetooth adapters.

Vuzix eyewear: Wear a wide screen on your head

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 04:11:00 +0000

Ever wanted to view a 52-inch screen from nine feet away in the comfort of your own home, without the 52-inch screen? If you answered "yes," then you're in luck. If you answered "no," then you have no soul. This should not, however, stop you from continuing to read this article.

On Tuesday, Vuzix announced the iWear AV310 Widescreen. While there have been other video eyewear products, this purports to be the first with wide-screen (16:9) viewing capabilities.

The AV310 projects a virtual 52-inch screen nine feet away from your eye, which is about four feet too close, according to the recommended distance.

Perhaps the physics of viewing distances, screen sizes, and resolutions are different in the virtual world within the glasses. Perhaps it is a non-Einsteinian universe full of vast potential energy where the rules have been flip-flopped. Where cockroaches are the dominant species and the human race is the species that darts to dark corners when the light come on. Yeah, that's probably it.

HTC Touch HD officially reveals its gorgeous mug

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 04:04:00 +0000

The poor HTC Touch Diamond and HTC Touch Pro; the two smartphones just made their CTIA Fall 2008 debuts, and we've already moved onto the next big thing. But can you blame us? On Monday, HTC introduced its newest Touch model, the HTC Touch HD, and it's a stunner.

The Touch HD features a 3.8-inch (diagonal) VGA touch screen, which is the largest display on a smartphone that I can remember to date. Given the spacious screen, it's no surprise the company designed the Windows Mobile 6.1 smartphone for heavy Web and multimedia usage, hoping to replicate what you might get on your desktop.

The quad-band (GSM 850/900/1800/1900) handset does offer HSDPA speeds for a faster browsing experience, but currently only works on the European 900/2100MHz bands. We imagine U.S. support will be added when and if brought to the States. The smartphone also comes equipped with a 3.5mm headphone jack and a 5-megapixel camera.

Like the other Touch series models, the Touch HD will feature the TouchFlo 3D interface and has integrated Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0, and GPS. There's 512MB of flash memory and 288MB of RAM with a microSD card slot for expansion capabilities. According HTC, the Touch HD will be available through major European carriers in Q4, while other markets should follow shortly. No word yet on pricing.

Apple only other company that can release a game console

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 03:58:00 +0000

The video game industry is a hotly contested space that's currently being dominated by three major companies: Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo. And although companies like Sega and others have tried to solidify their brands in the console space, they've failed in the face of those three giants.

But just because the past is littered with companies that have failed miserably at trying to capture a place in the world of hardware, does that mean that no company ever will do it again? Microsoft is a late entrant into the space and Sony came on the scene in a big way when columns were being written about the same basic premise: companies can't break into the console war.

Sorry, but I just don't buy the logic.

That said, I don't think any company can break into the console space. In fact, I would say that only one company can do it. Not because it has worked in the video game business for such a long time or that it's uniquely positioned to break in. No, the real reason why I believe this company could make a splash in the video game business (and why it possibly will) is because it commands the kind of hype and respect that no other company in the space does.

If you ask me, Apple could (and should) release a video game console. And not just because it'll be a success, but because it's the only company that could make a dent in the market.

The App Store has taught us a few things about Apple. It has taught us that the company is ready and willing to work with developers trying to create sound businesses and it's taught us that Apple can create a device, albeit a bit small, that can provide users with a powerful gaming experience.

But because of the App Store, everyone is looking in the wrong direction. Everyone believes that the App Store is how Apple will break into the gaming business and make the iPhone a compelling gaming platform.

I think that argument is pure rubbish.

In reality, the App Store is the first step in Apple's would-be plan to dominate the video game market by providing a service that can handle the console business and capture a significant portion of the market that it's trying so hard to be a part of: home entertainment.

Rest assured that Apple is a hardware company. If Apple was really concerned about software, it would have licensed Mac OS X again and it wouldn't have spent so much time trying to find unique ways of bringing Apple products to people in different ways. There would have been no iPhone, no iPod, and Macs may have been irrelevant.

Suffice it to say that Apple is inexorably tied to hardware.

But Apple's vision for the future is also tied to its obsession with controlling all the facets of your life. It already controls the music enjoyment part of your life and has taken a significant slice of the communication pie. It has Macs for those who want to be productive and an Apple TV for those who want to extend the capability of their home entertainment rig. But what about gaming?

The gaming market is one of the largest and most important industries in technology. But it's also one of the few key markets where Apple doesn't have a presence. Beyond that, it's one of the few places in the technology space that may actually be receptive to an Apple device.

One of the key success factors in the console market is playing well with developers. And although Apple has been less than ideal in that space in the past, its work with video game developers on the App Store is the ideal entree into coaxing them to support Apple's game console.

Even better, Apple has the infrastructure in place through iTunes to create a real value proposition for those who want to extend the capability of their console beyond gaming. Also, the company has the cash--about $20 billion--to not only invest in the best components on the market, but in an online gaming experience that could rival Xbox Live.

That cash could also be put to good use by acquiring major developers (did someone say Take-Two?) that could go from third-party powerhouse to Apple's first-party publisher.

And all the while, Apple can solidify its position in the space as the de facto "cool company."

Apple has a number of things going for it: it's successful, people love the brand, and people will buy its products regardless of their usability. And although the Apple TV could have performed a bit better, a video game console is the kind of product that would make Apple zealots and hardcore gamers flock.

That's not to say that it'll be easy for Apple to solidify itself in the gaming business; it's a tough industry, after all. But Apple's track record of working with game developers, its unprecedented control over the general population, its cash on-hand, and its ability to understand what people want make it the ideal company to break into the video game industry and supplant the major players.

Will it happen? Who knows. But if you ask me, it should. And soon.

Warner to offer cheaper Blu-ray movies later this year

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 07:45:00 +0000

300 is one of the movies that will feature a lower price tag in the fall." height="270" width="270">

300 is one of the movies that will feature a lower price tag in the fall.

As much as we complain about the high prices of standalone Blu-ray players, in some ways the high prices of Blu-ray movies are even more frustrating. Today, Warner Home Video has taken a step in the right direction, by announcing that the company will offer discounted pricing on select titles this fall. Blu-ray buyers can expect prices between $17 and $20, which is a lot more than DVDs sell for, but less than the $20-$30 prices Blu-ray discs currently go for.

While there isn't a complete list of movies that will be available at this lower pricing, Video Business reports that The Fugitive, Enter the Dragon, Clockwork Orange, The Shining, The Aviator, Road Warrior and Swordfish will get the discount. Additionally, some newer movies will get a smaller price cut, including 300, The Departed, I Am Legend, Ocean's 13 and We Are Marshall.

While this certainly won't make everyone run out and buy a Blu-ray player, it's definitely good news that studios are hearing complaints that Blu-ray movies are just too expensive at their current levels. Of course, we'd prefer if the prices fell below the $15 mark, which would make them feel comparatively-priced to DVDs, but we'll probably have to wait until at least 2009 to see those prices. In the meantime, at least there's always Netflix.

Sources: Video Business via High-Def Digest... Read more

Microsoft E3 2008 press conference wrap-up

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 07:44:00 +0000

The E3 conference opened Monday in Los Angeles with a press conference from Microsoft. Here are some highlights.

Microsoft showed off first-ever game play footage from the post-apocalyptic title Fallout 3Resident Evil 5, shipping on March 13. We got a peek at the new co-op feature in the game, where players will be able to team up and make their way through together. Developer Square Enix also made announcements that included the release of four titles for Xbox 360 including Final Fantasy XIII. and announced that there will be downloadable content exclusive to Xbox Live. We saw real-time action from

As for console exclusives, we saw in-game action from Fable 2, shipping in October. Players will be able to seamlessly invite other friends who are also playing the game. Finally, we were blown away by the impressive game demo of Gears of War 2 shipping November 7. The game actually looks better than the original and will feature a five-player online co-op mode.

Microsoft will be releasing a new dashboard interface this fall that incorporates an avatar system--the Xbox answer to Nintendo Mii characters. The new feature allows you to join up with other friends to form a "party," a group of up to eight people where you can share multimedia items or start a game. A new mode called Primetime will actually incorporate real-life TV shows like 1 vs. 100 and allow Xbox Live members to play and watch these game shows and possibly even win real prizes.

Microsoft also announced ... Read more

Sun issues upbeat fourth-quarter forecast

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 07:43:00 +0000

Sun Microsystems on Tuesday announced preliminary fourth-quarter results that were higher than Wall Street's expectations, sending its shares up more than 11 percent in after-hours trading.

Shares of Sun climbed as high as $9.83 per share in after-hours trading, up from a close of $8.80 a share during the regular session.

"In these difficult economic times, we continue to see customers across the world look to open software and hardware as a source of savings," Jonathan Schwartz, Sun's chief executive, said in a statement.

Sun said it expects to report fourth-quarter revenue between $3.7 billion and $3.8 billion for the period ending June 30, compared with nearly $3.84 billion a year ago.

Wall Street, meanwhile, expected Sun to generate revenue of $3.8 billion, falling in the high end of Sun's range, according to Thomson Financial.

On the earnings front, Sun said it expects to generate net income of 5 cents to 15 cents a share. After excluding special charges, the hardware maker expects fourth-quarter net income to be in the range of 25 cents to 35 cents a share.

Analysts, meanwhile, were expecting Sun to post earnings of 27 cents a share, according to Thomson Financial.

Sun expects to report its fourth-quarter results on August 1.

Intel rides high on strong notebook demand

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 07:39:00 +0000

Intel says its business remains unaffected by the economic headwinds set loose by the subprime crisis.

Speaking with analysts following the release of its second-quarter earnings statement, Intel's brass remained upbeat about demand for Intel products--especially for notebook processors.

"We are very aware of the global economic issues which dominate the world these days," said Intel CEO Paul Otellini. But he quickly added that order patterns played out as expected in Q2 and that the company sees "continued healthy demand" in the third quarter.

Intel CEO Paul Otellini

That news may provide some relief to worried Wall Streeters, fretting about the impact of the banking crisis on IT demand.

Notebook sales now comprise more than half of the market but they also carry lower average selling prices. Intel said that as notebook prices continue to decline in price, Intel expects to see increased demand.

"What we're seeing is a fundamental shift to notebooks," said Otellini, adding that the crossover transition was taking place six months sooner than expected.

In particular, the company expects to ship more Atom-based notebooks in the second half of the year. The design of the Atom processor is particularly suited for the emerging market of low-cost subnotebooks. However, Intel does not see the Atom cannibalizing its other notebook product lines.

"You're dealing with something that most of us wouldn't use," said Otellini, adding that Atom was designed primarily for Net access. "You would not want to ... Read more

Cuba and Venezuela to lay undersea Internet cable

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 09:10:00 +0000

A new undersea fiber-optic cable being laid between Cuba and Venezuela will help provide high-speed Internet access to Cuban citizens by 2010.

Earlier this week, Wikileaks published documents that were signed in 2006 by officials in Cuba and Venezuela describing plans for the new undersea cable that will connect the two countries.

The United States economic embargo against the island nation has forced the communist country to rely on slow and expensive satellite links for Internet connectivity, according to the Wikileaks article. Even though it would cost less and be more efficient to lay a new cable between Cuba and the U.S., which are only 120 kilometers apart, Cuba is working with Venezuela to lay a 1,500-kilometer cable to get high-speed Internet connectivity.

The proposed cable, which is being deployed by CVG Telecom (Corporacion Venezolana de Guyana) and ETC (Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Cuba), will also provide high-speed Internet access to Jamaica, Haiti, and Trinidad.

According to the Wikileaks article, the new undersea cable is being built as a strategic partnership between Cuba and Venezuela to encourage an interchange between the two governments; foster science, cultural and social development; and increase economic relationships among Cuba, its South American neighbors, and the rest of the world.

Cuba has traditionally kept a tight lid on Internet access in the country. In 2003, the government cracked down on ordinary Cuban citizens, who were accessing the Internet over the government's painfully slow phone network.

But recently since Raul Castro has taken ... Read more

Synthasite gets even easier to use with new UI

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 09:07:00 +0000

This morning simple site builder Synthasite has a new and improved user interface that's different from any other site creation tool I've used. There are still themes to choose from, and widgets to drop in, but the site building tool has received a far more polished feel that I think new users will be a little more comfortable with.

The biggest change users will notice is that the tool now scales to the entire width of your monitor. Everything is still drag and drop, but now each element also includes right click contextual menus to tweak various bits of metadata or options.

Having just looked at Wix a few weeks back, there are definite similarities between the two, although I found Synthasite's theme directory to be more straightforward. There are now 60 different themes to choose from, and most have color pallets that you can pick to further tweak the look of your site.

Also new with this morning's redesign are some widgets you can plug into your page, like a new Flickr gallery builder that will put together a pretty svelte looking photo collection from your Flickr photo stream. Photos uploaded to your Synthasite account can now be edited within the tool using photo editor Picnik.

One thing to note is that the service is not using Amazon's S3 storage service to host the blogs like many other simple site hosts do. Instead it's using its own server farm that's located in the same part of the world. Synthasite's CEO Vinny Lingham tells me that he'd eventually like to move to a hybrid solution using several server solutions at once to make sure sites won't go down even if one server cluster does.

In the coming months the service will be expanding to cover niche sites like resumes, specialty blogs, and portfolio sites.

Synthasite's new page creator is a simple drag-and-drop affair. It'll also scale as wide as your monitor to let you see how your site will look live, as you change it.

Is Google's iPhone app all that?

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 09:04:00 +0000

With so much fairy dust in the air over Apple's day-early release of the App Store and iTunes 7.7 (for Windows and Mac), it's easy to get caught up in the excitement. And we are excited. Being the intrepid reviewers we are, we're taking the unofficial iPhone 2.0 firmware for a ride to test out some of these apps. Be forewarned that the firmware has not yet been Apple-approved for wide release and cannot be vouched for.

More than 500 applications are already clustered in the App Store, many of them tiny apps and widgets that have been custom-built to run natively on the upgraded iPhone firmware. Most of these early entrants are nearly identical to the iPhone-optimized versions previously released by publishers to work with the iPhone Classic.

Google's app is a prime example. It opens with a blinking search bar and with the keypad already engaged. Like the optimized Web app version, suggested matches are displayed as the search begins; this time they are listed below the search field. Below the search space is a shortcut bar for seeing the array of Google apps, including Gmail, Maps, Docs, and Reader. These icons are themselves quick links for launching the Web-optimized versions of Gmail and clan.

The app does save a fraction of time in bypassing Safari's initial loading of the iPhone-optimized page and works without a hitch.

Catch the most recent news about the iPhone 3G and App Store.

eBay's iPhone app now out of the box

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 09:02:00 +0000

When the native eBay app for iPhone was demoed at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco in June, Webware.com Editor Josh Lowensohn commended it for its slickness, storage capacity, and winning looks. The application is indeed easy on the eye and similar in look and feel to eBay Desktop that runs on Windows, Mac, and Linux on the AIR platform. At least the home screen is.

After that, the application might as well be considered eBay Light. You can quickly take in an overview of your personal stats on the home screen to see how many items you're watching, winning, outbidding, and so on. Drilling deeper takes you to the My eBay screen, which is tabbed to show greater detail about the items you're watching, buying, and selling. There's also a separate search screen for browsing and reading listings descriptions.

However, unlike the eBay Desktop and eBay.com, eBay's iPhone app has been stripped of browsing categories and ways for sellers to add or amend input on auction items. This app is strictly for bidding and viewing purposes.

And that's too bad. While limiting the on-screen activities admittedly keeps the application from paralyzing users with choice, it also keeps it from being as useful as it could be. Imagine wanting to add another photo of your sale piece directly from your iPhone, or want to lower the price of a not-so-hot item while waiting to board a plane? And here's a crazy thought--why not clip in to that GPS capability to show users any listed sale items nearby, an estate sale in the neighborhood, for instance?

While the app definitely has its uses as a tracking and bidding tool, I really had expected more iPhone integration from eBay, and at the very least, the visually appealing wrapper from the home screen to carry over into the other views.

Eventful offers free iPhone application

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 09:00:00 +0000

Eventful For iPhone's interface.

Eventful Inc., an event-driven social Web site, announced today its release of Eventful For iPhone application. The software works on both iPhone and iPod Touch and makes it easy for users to find events and things to do in their local communities.

The application basically provides access to all of the Eventful Web site's key functions through an iPhone-friendly interface. It automatically tailors search results and recommendations based on the user's current location and integrates with the iPhone's built-in applications such as Calendar and Contacts so users can easily share the events with friends or sync those with their desktop Outlook or any other calendaring software.

Eventful for iPhone has five navigational sections that users can access at any time, including Profile, Track, Featured, Search, and Demand. All of these sections are self-explanatory. For example, Demand is a tab where you can demand your favorite performers to come to your city and see which performers are most in demand throughout the world and in your location. You can also view your current list of demands and see all of the demands that your friends have joined but you haven't.

The application is available now for free from Apple's App Store.

Apple offers 30 days free to MobileMe customers

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 15:52:00 +0000

Amid the shaky launch of the iPhone 3G, Apple's new MobileMe service--a juiced-up revamp of its .Mac offering--also took a blow. Apple has consequently opted to entitle eligible members to 30 days free as a we're-sorry gift.

.Mac accounts had been scheduled to "migrate" to MobileMe last Wednesday evening, but instead produced an outage in which neither service was available. New subscribers, meanwhile, had experienced issues signing up.

"The transition from .Mac to MobileMe was a lot rockier than we had hoped," a details page from Apple explained. The offer isn't for everyone: only .Mac members whose accounts were active on July 9, and MobileMe members who registered before 7:00 p.m. PDT on Tuesday (i.e., amid the activation chaos) are given the 30 free days.

It's automatically added to eligible accounts, Apple's site explained.

Facebook face-off: Scrabble vs. Scrabulous

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 15:51:00 +0000

Scrabble is finally on Facebook. Officially. While the Scrabulous game has been online for a while and is wildly popular, it's had a sword hanging over its head since launch. Hasbro, owner of the Scrabble franchise, has threatened and tried to kill Scrabulous--while at the same time prepping to launch its own, official, Scrabble app on Facebook.

In conjunction with Electronic Arts, that official Hasbro Scrabble app is now up, in beta. How does it compare to Scrabulous? Pretty well. Too well, actually. While Scrabulous fans will see no reason to switch to the official Scrabble app, newcomers to the game on Facebook (like me), will find Scrabble easier to get into, easier to use, and just as competitive and fun.

The two apps have a lot in common. Both let you quickly and easily invite people from your list of friends. Both let you manage multiple games. Both keep track of games scores and multiple-game ratings. Both have useful features that let you shuffle the tiles in your rack, chat with your competitors, look up valid two-letter words and access a Scrabble-official word look-up feature.

Scrabble's game interface is more intuitive than Scrabulous, and it looks nicer, too. The screen automatically redraws when an opponent makes a move or leaves a message; Scrabulous requires a manual refresh. This is not a big deal if you're playing a drawn-out asynchronous game with a correspondent, but if you want to play in real-time with someone it's a drag to use Scrabulous.

Scrabulous, for its part, has a faster interface for playing a turn. You can select a location on the board to place letters and just start typing. In Scrabble you have to drag your letters to the board one by one. And if you're playing multiple games at once, it's much faster, since there's a "next active game" link that puts you in the action on another board with just a click. Scrabble takes three clicks and makes you sit through tedious board-swap animations and load times.

Scrabulous' biggest advantage is that any stats or ranking you've collecting while in the game don't transfer out. If you don't want to have to earn your rank all over again, avoid Scrabble. Also, avoid Scrabble if your gaming partners are overseas: Scrabble is available for U.S. and Canadian users only.

Scrabulous has many more online users than Scrabble does, at least so far. But this game has just begun, and there's no reason that Scrabble's official online app--the developers of which don't have to worry about getting sued out of existence--can't surpass Scrabulous on the Web in general. Although Scrabulous could maintain its lead in the Facebook universe for a time, the world of social gaming goes beyond just that one platform, and Hasbro/EA could (and should) push its new, fully legal online game out to social networks all over the Internet.

For teens, the future is mobile

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 15:49:00 +0000

Advertisers are clamoring to reach teens in digital environments because that's where they're spending much of their time--either online, with cell phones or playing video games. What's more, teens wield an estimated $200 billion annually in discretionary spending.

Fuse, a marketing agency based in Vermont, talked in recent weeks to senior technology executives from companies such as Sony, MTV Networks, Yahoo, and Nokia to find out what the future of technology will look like for the teen market.

Among the predictions: Mobile phones in the United States will surpass the popularity of desktops for teens. Only an estimated 20 percent of teens currently own a smartphone such as the iPhone, but mobile phone and content companies are counting on the idea that smartphone adoption will spread fast among teens in middle America and other areas.

"The iPhone is just the beginning of the all-in-one device. Uses of mobile devices will expand to include all kinds of bar code applications and prepaid debit card payment methods," said Bill Carter, a partner at Fuse, who presented the findings here at the YPulse 2008 National Mashup, a two-day conference on teens and technology.

That's likely why geographic ad targeting to teens via the phone is expected to explode in the coming years. Right now, mobile phone providers analyze an estimated 4 billion Internet Protocol addresses to provide street-level targeting to consumers. Companies like U.K.-based Blyk, for example, are reaching teens through the phone with ads and information on nearby nightspots. Teens sign up for the service.

"When you combine this new technology with teens giving their permission to market to them, the growth could be exponential," Carter said.

But, he said, mobile phone providers likely won't succeed as the entertainment leaders for the phone, despite their efforts to sell ringtones, games, and music. Other companies like Apple, Google, and Yahoo will be more effective at "side-loading" the cell phone with services.

Case in point: Most teens download music to their iPod that's been ripped from a friend's collection as opposed to bought from the iTunes music store. "There's a natural gravitation to get content on a device that's different than the one the manufacturer intended," he said.

As a corollary, he said that most teens will eventually buy subscription-based music services, much like the cable TV model. He predicted that Apple's iTunes will offer an unlimited monthly download service for music. Mobile phone companies, too, will launch music subscriptions on the smartphone.

Another prognostication: Other technology platforms will save, not kill TV networks, Carter said. The analog-to-digital conversion will make it possible for teens to watch live TV on portable devices. The technology will help the television networks target programming to specific audiences, and that will buoy the cost of advertising, he said.

"The device is inconsequential compared to the content," he said.

Wal-Mart taps Dell for its own 'geek squad'

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 15:48:00 +0000

Already the biggest seller by volume of electronics in the U.S., some Wal-Mart stores are now trying their hand at tech support.

Starting this month in 15 stores around Dallas only, employees manning a new kiosk concept called Solutions Station by Dell will be available to do TV and home theater installations, PC repair, wireless network setup, and probably some other tech-related stuff too.

Dell and Wal-Mart have a pretty cozy relationship--Dell picked Wal-Mart as the first place to sell its PCs when the company started selling retail again last year--so the pairing isn't so surprising.

And this could potentially work out well for both. Dell has had problems with its customer service; in-person tech support, if Solution Stations customers feel satisfied, could be helpful in fixing its image. And Wal-Mart says this pilot program will help it find out more about what its customers want when it comes to installation and tech-related services--or if they want them.

For now, Wal-Mart says there are no plans to expand the service.

Adobe PDF Ads Program Gets Even More Tempting

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 16:05:00 +0000

Ads for PDF program from Adobe is a good opportunity for bloggers & other content publishers to monetize content via PDF files.

Adobe displays contextually relevant ads in the sidebar when your PDF files are viewed inside Acrobat Reader (see screenshot) - you make money based on clicks just like Google AdSense.

Today, Adobe announced certain changes that makes the program all the more tempting.

For instance, publishers can now embed ads inline with the content rather than displaying ads in the sidebar which often go unnoticed. See AdSense heatmap.

Other than deciding the location of Yahoo! ads in the PDF files, you also have the option to change fonts and color schemes so that the ads blend more nicely with your content and thus yield better CTR.

Tempting, right? The issue is that Adobe Ads for PDF program uses Yahoo! ad inventory and is only available for US based publishers since you require an SSN at the time of signing up.

Google has a much larger pool of advertisers than Yahoo! and can serve highly relevant contextual advertising but they generally limit themselves to displaying ads only on web pages. So am not sure if Google would agree to partner here but Adobe should seriously consider accepting international publishers.

Digg Is About To Launch “Digg Recommendation Engine” This Week

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 15:59:00 +0000

Digg is always adding something new and interesting. Kevin Rose announced today that they are going to roll out a new feature called “Digg Recommendation Engine” beginning this week.

The feature will be in beta and presented to registered Digg users first, based on a random sampling of logged-in users. Look for the red beta flag on your Upcoming tab - this means you now have access to the Recommendation Engine. It will be rolled out to everyone within the week or so.

“The Recommendation Engine is a cool way to discover new content on Digg. Now that there are more than 16,000 stories submitted to the Upcoming section every day, it’s difficult to sort through everything to find the best content. The Recommendation Engine uses your past digging activity to identify what we call Diggers Like You (who you can see on the right hand nav) to suggest stories you might like.”

Use Google Talk for iPhone in Firefox & Other Desktop Browsers

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 15:54:00 +0000

Google today launched a new version of Google Talk for iPhone and iPod Touch that includes no new features but looks slightly more pleasing than the regular Flash based Google Talk gadget.

If you like to use the new iPhone version of Google Talk gadget on a desktop browser or your Firefox sidebar, just use the following links.

For Google Accounts / Gmail users: http://talkgadget.google.com/talkgadget/m

For Google Apps: http://hostedtalkgadget.google.com/a/mydomain.com/talkgadget/m

Google Apps continues to build in Europe

noreply@blogger.com (Asif Sikandar) — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 15:52:00 +0000

With Google Apps nearing the venerable age of 17 months, we have already seen more than 500,000 organizations adopt Apps as part of their business, with another 3,000 signing up every day. Many of those customers are small- and medium-sized businesses, but more and more large enterprises are also opting for the cost savings and greater flexibility that cloud computing offers.

A good example is Taylor Woodrow, a UK-based construction, facilities management and engineering company that has just moved all its employees onto Google Apps Premier Edition. Their 1,800 users can now collaborate from offices, construction sites, and client premises across the UK and Benelux. Not only has it brought greater mobility and flexibility to everyone, but Taylor Woodrow's director of IT estimates he's saved £1 million in the process. Read more on the Google Enterprise Blog.