Top Items:
Gregg Keizer / Computerworld:
iPhone 4 antenna woes prompt Apple to dump return fee — Move to mollify dissatisfied customers by ditching 10% restocking fee also aimed at quelling lawsuits — Computerworld - Apple has dropped the usual restocking fee for iPhone customers who want to return their smartphones, the company confirmed on Friday.
Discussion:
9 to 5 Mac, PhoneDog.com, MobileCrunch, Erictric, Thoughts from the Sidelines, The Next Web, MacNN, PC World, CrunchGear, everythingiCafe and ITworld.com
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Mike Gikas / Consumer Reports Electronics Blog:
iPhone 4's supposed signal woes aren't unique, and may not be serious — The debate over the iPhone 4's supposed reception problems continues, including a new class-action suit. Underplayed in the discussion is the fact that all phones are subject to interference from the human who is using them.
Discussion:
PC World, AntennaSys Blog, 9 to 5 Mac, eWeek, Tech Chronicles, Cellpassion, DSLreports, SlashGear, Robert X. Cringely's blog, CNET News, 901am, Computerworld and Crave
Jesus Diaz / Gizmodo:
Why Apple's iPhone 4 Update Won't Fix Your Reception Problem
Discussion:
MacNN, L.A. Times Tech Blog, fscked.co.uk, IntoMobile, Gawker, Thoughts from the Sidelines, The iPhone Guru, Obsessable, PC Magazine, Electricpig.co.uk and dygiscape, Thanks:digitallifedad
Chris Ziegler / Engadget:
Life and death of Microsoft Kin: the inside story — Since our piece on Wednesday, we've had more trusted sources step forward to fill in some blanks and clarify the story behind the amazingly swift fall from grace that Microsoft's Kin phones have experienced since their launch just a few weeks ago.
Discussion:
BetaNews, Ars Technica, Coolsmartphone News, Gizmodo, Technologizer, Geek.com, Windows Phone Thoughts.com and GigaOM
MG Siegler / TechCrunch:
Chrome Web Apps Coming Along Quite Well. Some Already Work — One of the big announcements at this year's Google I/O was that a new Chrome Web Store was being built. Think of it as Apple's App Store or the Android Market but for web apps. In it, you'll be able to purchase …
Mingyao Yang / The Facebook Blog:
Helping Newcomers Connect to Interests — Friends on Facebook are constantly helping each other connect with more of the people and interests that matter in their lives. As more of your friends like the Facebook Pages of their favorites celebrities, public figures, businesses and organizations …
Discussion:
eWeek, Softpedia News, Inside Facebook, VentureBeat, ArabCrunch English, The Next Web, Erictric, Techie Buzz, All Facebook and WebProNews
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Marshall Kirkpatrick / ReadWriteWeb:
Facebook Unveils One of History's Most Powerful Recommendation Engines
Discussion:
Webmetricsguru
Erick Schonfeld / TechCrunch:
Exclusive: The Sexy Russian Spy's Business Plan (And A Video Interview) — The bizarre case of Russian Spy ring arrested by the FBI earlier this week just keeps on getting stranger. In particular, one of the alleged spies, 28-year-old Anna Chapman, is getting a lot of attention because of her …
Discussion:
VentureBeat
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Andy Greenberg / Forbes:
Steven Levy On Mark Zuckerberg And The Hacker Spirit — Twenty-five years after his landmark book, hacker historian Levy revisits the tech revolution he chronicled. — Before the Romanian cybercriminals, before Angelina Jolie and Jonny Lee Miller breached the Gibson mainframe …
Marshall Kirkpatrick / ReadWriteWeb:
Twitter to Publish Shopping Deals Through @EarlyBird Account — Twitter has rolled out several different advertising systems in recent weeks and we're hearing that the next one will take a page from the Dell Computers playbook. In December, Dell famously reported $6.5 million …
John Paczkowski / Digital Daily:
How Many Palm Employees Did HP Just Lay Off? — I'm not quite sure, but make no mistake, Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) has cut some former Palm staffers from its ranks as it closes its acquisition of the smartphone maker. I'm hearing different numbers from sources (once) close to the company, so it's difficult to put a firm number on them.
Discussion:
Tech Trader Daily, Engadget, Gizmodo, VentureBeat, PhoneDog.com, Erictric, Maximum PC, Boy Genius Report and PreCentral.net
Roberto Baldwin / Mac|Life:
Why Did Comedy Central Remove EyePhone Reference from Futurama Online Clip? — If you're like us, you're besides yourself with joy about the return Futurama. Life just wasn't the same without the adventures of Philip J. Fry and his obnoxious friend Bender on our TVs every week.
Discussion:
Gizmodo
Nate Lanxon / Epicenter:
The Secret To Apple's FaceTime Success Will Be The PC — Apple's iPhone 4 video calling stands a good chance at becoming a widely adopted system. But it'll rely on a catalyst, and I believe it's the PC. — I'll just wait for the day I get asked to do a video podcast appearance and I whip out my iPhone to do it.
Roberto / PadGadget:
Will.I.Am Uses “Find My iPad” To Track Down Thief — We recently reported about the Find My iPad app and MobileMe service. It's certainly a cool way to track your iPad if it ever goes missing. The service works via a dedicated app you can install on any iOS device, or via the web.
CNN:
Obama announces new U.S. broadband connection funding — (CNN) — President Barack Obama on Friday announced new government investments in 66 projects to expand broadband connections in rural and poor areas across the country. — The $795 million in grants and loans funded …
Long Zheng / istartedsomething:
“Arc Touch Mouse” surfaces - Microsoft to launch multi-touch mouse? — Microsoft might be introducing a multi-touch mouse of its own tomorrow as several European retailers (specifically those in Norway and Denmark) have begun publishing listings for a product dubbed the “Microsoft Arc Touch Mouse” with the product code RVF-00003.
Discussion:
CrunchGear, Erictric, TechSpot, The Tech Report, Maximum PC, Engadget, SlashGear, Neowin.net and Gizmodo
John Ribeiro / Computerworld:
Reports: BlackBerry, Skype, Google face India data demand — India's Department of Telecommunications (DOT) has been asked by the government to serve a notice to Skype and Research In Motion (RIM) to ensure that their email and other data services comply with formats that can be read by security …
Peter Kafka / MediaMemo:
Why You'll Pay to Watch Ads on the iPhone and iPad — The new iAds that Apple (AAPL) launched yesterday are interesting. But they had better be: You're going to pay to see them. — This isn't news, exactly. But consider it a reminder: AT&T's (T) switch from an unlimited data plan …
Aliya Sternstein / Nextgov.com:
GSA unveils overhaul of USA.gov, featuring mobile apps — The General Services Administration unveiled on Friday a refurbished USA.gov, the official home page for federal services and resources. It now features mobile applications, a more sophisticated search engine and other enhanced navigation aides.
