Top Items:
Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:
Music On microSD: I Can't Believe The Labels Fell For This — Forget buying an album on a USB stick, SanDisk just convinced the big labels to release (DRM free, thankfully) music on a 1 GB 15mm x 11mm x 1mm microSD card. And then they convinced Best Buy and Walmart to sell these things.
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Om Malik / GigaOM:
SanDisk SlotMusic Cards Are Destined to Fail — SanDisk, a flash memory chip maker that has been fighting off competitor Samsung's bid to acquire the company, has launched SlotMusic MicroSD memory cards that will carry full-length music albums just like a music CD or a vinyl.
Discussion:
Techland, Ars Technica, The Core Truth, Portfolio, Silicon Alley Insider, p2pnet, jkOnTheRun, Boing Boing Gadgets, Computerworld, Electronista, Engadget, Business Week and Inquirer
Sascha Segan / PC Magazine:
T-Mobile's Dream Is a Distraction — Google's Android OS is really about ruling the world of feature phones, not the world of smartphones. — You're about to be bombarded by a rush of coverage about T-Mobile's G1, aka the HTC Dream, the first Google Android smartphone. Don't ignore it.
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Anita Hamilton / Time:
Android: Google's Dream, Apple's Nightmare? — T-Mobile will unveil the first Android handset on Sept. 23 — A new smartphone is debuting on Sept. 23, and, no, it's not just another iPhone clone. The HTC Dream from T-Mobile will be the first handset to run Google's new mobile operating system, Android.
Joseph Weisenthal / paidContent.org:
Microsoft Authorizes A Big $40 Billion Buyback; Ups Dividend — Well, that's one thing they can do with all their cash... Rather than buy anyone else, the Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) board has authorized the company to spend $40 billion on buying its own shares through September 30, 2013.
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Microsoft:
Microsoft Announces Share Repurchase Program and Increases Quarterly Dividend — $40 billion authorized for share repurchase; Dividend increased 18 percent — Microsoft Corp. today announced that its board of directors approved a new share repurchase program authorizing up to an additional $40 billion …
Discussion:
Portfolio, Technology blog, Digital Daily, Technology Live, Microsoft Subnet's blog, Microsoft Pri0 and Voices
Zephoria / apophenia:
I will be joining Microsoft Research in January — Guess who has a post-dissertation job? [Yes, that implies I'm actually going to finish this *#$@! dissertation.] :: bounce:: In January, I will be joining the newly minted Microsoft Research New England in Boston, MA. w00000t!!!!!
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Philip Elmer-DeWitt / Apple 2.0:
Analyst: Apple will sell 5 million iPhones in Q4 — Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster, one of the most bullish — and closely watched — of the more than two dozen analysts who track Apple Inc., has raised his estimates for the company's fourth quarter, which ends next Tuesday, Sept. 30.
Google Book Search Blog:
Book Search everywhere with new partnerships and tools — Posted by Alex Diaz, Product Manager, Google Book Search — Today, we're taking a big step towards bringing more books, across more sites, to more people online. — We're launching a set of free tools that allow retailers …
Vasanth Sridharan / Silicon Alley Insider:
iPhone Developer: I Just Made $250K From App Store In Two Months (AAPL) — Steve Demeter developed the iPhone puzzle game Trism as a side project, but now he's quitting his day job. Why? Because he says he's generated $250,000 in profits since he started selling the $4.99 game on iTunes this summer.
Allen Stern / CenterNetworks:
Scribblar Lets You Socially Scribble — A new UK-based startup soft-launched last week named Scribblar. Scribblar lets you create a room where you can draw and conference with others on media or audio. It's basically a social whiteboard and from my testing today, it's pretty well crafted.
Verizon:
No Contract Required — New Month-To-Month Agreement Gives Verizon Wireless Customers Even More Freedom — Customer Inquiries — For customer inquiries, please call 800-922-0204 or go to — BASKING RIDGE, NJ — Beginning today, Verizon Wireless customers who want to enjoy …
Discussion:
TMCnet, Gearlog, PhoneNews.com, BlackBerry Cool, Techcraver.com, mocoNews.net and MobileCrunch
Amy-Mae Elliott / Pocket-lint.co.uk:
BlackBerry Storm confirmed for UK — Pocket-lint learns of launch date and operator — Multiple sources have confirmed to Pocket-lint that Vodafone will be getting the UK exclusive for the new touchscreen BlackBerry; the Storm. — “Vodafone will be the exclusive operator in the UK …
Jack Schofield / Guardian:
Netbytes: Is the Wall Street Journal losing the plot? — As Wall Street rides the rollercoaster of global financial hysteria, people are turning in their millions to the website of The Wall Street Journal for reliable information. But just when it's needed most, this venerable institution may be losing the plot
Mary Jo Foley / All about Microsoft:
Microsoft continues its push to change the rules of the online-advertising game — As Microsoft's search share continues to drop, the company is stepping up its campaign to change the way that the efficacy of online advertising is measured. — On September 22, Microsoft announced that the beta of its …
Discussion:
Microsoft
Eric Bangeman / Ars Technica:
RIAA rejects damage award, forces trial, looks hypocritical — What price innocent infringement? That's the question a San Antonio jury will have to address in mid-November, as the RIAA and 20-year-old Whitney Harper will battle in court over the amount of damages Harper will have to pay …
Maggie Shiels / BBC NEWS:
Google throws down open source gauntlet — Google founder Larry Page wants the world to know that he and the company are serious about open source, unlike others who shall remain nameless. Alas for this reporter all I got for my attempts to dare the man to out any of these companies was a stare and a hint of a “Yeah right!”
Discussion:
Open Source
Darren Murph / Engadget:
Leica debuts S-system, 37-megapixel flagship S2 camera — Is it Photokina time, or what? Joining the host of other camera manufacturers with sparkly fresh announcements this week is none other than Leica, which just announced a trio of new cams a few days back.
Tony Smith / The Register:
Palm OS II-based smartphones now due H2 2009 — Palm's next-gen operating system will be finished by the end of the year, the company promised late last week. — The company said the Linux-based system software known as Palm OS II and ‘Nova’ is “on track” for completion by the end of calendar 2008.
Discussion:
CNET News, Electronista, IntoMobile, Boing Boing Gadgets, CrunchGear, Gizmodo and Engadget Mobile
Ed Felten / Freedom to Tinker:
How Yahoo could have protected Palin's email — Last week I criticized Yahoo for their insecure password recovery mechanism that allowed an intruder to take control of Sarah Palin's email account. Several readers asked me the obvious follow-up question: What should Yahoo have done instead?
Nokia:
Nokia Photos 1.5 — Overview — With Nokia Photos, you can transfer your photos and videos to your PC, organize and geotag them, and share them on Ovi. Also, you can load your phone with photos and videos from your PC, converted into compatible format.
Kim Zetter / Threat Level:
FBI Searches Apartment of Tennessee Student Suspected of Palin Hack — FBI agents executed a search warrant Sunday at the apartment of University of Tennessee student David Kernell in connection with the hack of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin's private Yahoo account.
Discussion:
Valleywag, Today @ PC World, Pulse 2.0, p2pnet, Ars Technica, Technology Live, AppScout, TechCrunch, Switched, CrunchGear and WBIR-TV
Caroline McCarthy / Webware.com:
MTV Networks buys Social Project platform — NEW YORK—Viacom division MTV Networks announced Monday that it has turned its minority stake in software company Social Platform into a full acquisition: Social Project, formerly known as Tagworld, is the basis for Viacom's Flux.
GamesIndustry.biz:
CD Projekt: Publishers “scared” to go DRM-Free — The best way to fight piracy is to compete with it by offering greater value, according to Michal Kicinski, CEO of CD Projekt, but publisher's are too afraid to release titles without DRM. — Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz about CD Projekts …
Kara Swisher / BoomTown:
Reset: What's Next for Yahoo? (Merging With AOL? New Execs?) — When Yahoo holds its first board meeting tomorrow-with three new board members, including shareholder activist Carl Icahn-there will be little time for getting-to-know-you chitty-chat. — In fact, it should be all business …