Top Items:
Seth Weintraub / 9to5Mac:
Foxconn employee tells us that the next iPhone is ready for production, indicates likely summer launch — We received word from a reliable source at Foxconn in China that the iPhone 5, as it is currently being called, is now gearing for production. The source said various sample devices …
Discussion:
eWeek, Digital Trends, CNET, PC World, mocoNews, iPhone, Electronista, Mashable!, Gadget Lab, IntoMobile, PC Magazine, WebProNews, Techland, HotHardware.com News, Geek.com, Macgasm, Appolicious Advisor, BGR, Redmond Pie, iPhone Hacks, Washington Post, netbooknews.com, iDownloadBlog.com, Gotta Be Mobile, App Advice, Edible Apple, MacRumors, VentureBeat, Pocketables, PalmAddicts and PandoDaily
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John Gruber / Daring Fireball:
Too Soon — Seth Weintraub: We received word from a reliable source at Foxconn in China that the iPhone 5, as it is currently being called, is now gearing for production. No it's not. No teardrop-shaped devices, as rumored in the lead up to the iPhone 4S. Samples so far have been symmetrical in thickness (also longer/wider).
Peter Kafka / AllThingsD:
Netflix Bounces Back With a Q4 Beat, But Says Amazon Is Coming — First look at Netflix Q4 earnings: Earnings of $0.73 per share and revenue of $876 million. Wall Street was expecting around $0.54 a share and $857 million. — But at least as important are the company's subscriber numbers and guidance …
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Claire Atkinson / New York Post:
Amazon looking into taking on Netflix
Discussion:
Examiner, VatorNews, The Next Web, The TechBlock, GeekWire, Electronista, PadGadget and Hollywood Reporter
Nilay Patel / The Verge:
Netflix abandons video game rental plans
Discussion:
paidContent, Gizmodo, Destructoid and GenGAME.net
Janko Roettgers / GigaOM:
Netflix streaming users now outnumber DVD subscribers 2:1
Discussion:
The Next Web and CNET, more at Mediagazer »
Jonathan S. Geller / BGR:
AT&T's Q1 2012 roadmap: Nokia Lumia 900 to launch March 18th for $99.99 — We just received a portion of AT&T's 2012 roadmap from a trusted source, and it looks like AT&T isn't playing around this year. There are some heavy hitters lined up for the first quarter of 2012 …
Discussion:
Examiner, The Verge, L.A. Times Tech Blog, TechCrunch, All about Microsoft Blog, Gotta Be Mobile, LAPTOP Magazine, netbooknews.com, paidContent, PhoneArena, Business Insider, Geek.com, AndroidGuys, GadgeTell, PC World, The Verge, The Next Web, VentureBeat, Techland, The Tech Trade, Ubergizmo, Network World, GeekWire, eWeek, IntoMobile, MobileBurn.com, Electronista and Gizmodo
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New York Times:
The iEconomy: Apple's iPad and the Human Costs for Workers in China — A staggering manufacturing system in China has made it possible for Apple and other companies to make devices almost as quickly as they can be dreamed up, but for workers, it can be dangerous.
Discussion:
AppleInsider, EE Times and Electronista
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Dieter Bohn / The Verge:
Apple's labor practices come under fire from former executives
Discussion:
New York Times
Stephen Totilo / Kotaku:
Sources: The Next Xbox Will Play Blu-Ray, May Not Play Used Games (And Will Introduce Kinect 2) — Microsoft will upgrade its disc technology for its next Xbox from DVDs to Blu-Ray discs, catching up to rival Sony, games industry sources tell Kotaku. — Sony's PlayStation 3 currently supports Blu-Ray …
Discussion:
Digital Trends, PC Magazine, VentureBeat, Business Insider, Wired, The Verge, Redmond Pie, Softpedia News, The Escapist, WebProNews, ReadWriteWeb, VG247, Electronista, Destructoid and ITProPortal
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Scott Lowe / IGN:
Xbox 720 Will Be Six Times as Powerful as Current Gen
Discussion:
Examiner, Kotaku, TG Daily, The TechBlock, PC Magazine, TechSpot, ITProPortal, VG247, WinBeta, USA Today, The Next Web and DVICE
Jenna Wortham / Bits:
Is iMessage Starting to Take a Bite Out of Standard Texting? — When Apple introduced iMessage, a service that lets people with its mobile devices send each other free text messages over data networks, many analysts predicted that it would take a substantial bite out of the profits …
Discussion:
The Next Web
Florian Mueller / FOSS Patents:
Google authorized Motorola to seek an injunction against the iPhone 4S and iCloud — These days, you can probably hear a pin drop if Apple and Google are in the same room. Tensions are rising high as a direct legal clash increasingly appears to be inevitable.
Mark Gurman / 9to5Mac:
Tim Cook at today's Town Hall: Starting in June, Apple employees get $500 off Macs, $250 off iPads — Among the many topics discussed by Tim Cook at today's Town Hall session with employees, the Apple CEO revealed some new Apple employee benefits. Giving a little more back to the people …
Discussion:
Electronista
Facebook:
How Journalists Are Using Facebook Subscribe — In September, we introduced Subscribe as a simple way for public figures to allow people to subscribe to their public updates on Facebook. For journalists specifically, Subscribe has enabled each journalist's community of viewers and readers …
Janet I. Tu / Seattle Times:
Video: Bill Gates on his last visit with Steve Jobs, favorite movies and robots — Yahoo has posted segments from a interview ABC News' Bill Weir conducted recently with Bill Gates. — In one of the segments, Gates talks about his visit with Steve Jobs at Jobs' home before he died, in which the two tech titans reminisced for hours.
Discussion:
Yahoo! News, TUAW, The Verge, GeekWire, Redmond Pie, MacDailyNews and 9to5Mac
Chris Ziegler / The Verge:
Open webOS 1.0 announced: HP to complete webOS open sourcing by September, Enyo 1.0 and 2.0 code available today — Following up on its December announcement that it would open source the platform — a last-ditch effort to make it viable — HP has gone into detail today on exactly …
Discussion:
developer.palm.com, SlashGear, HP, L.A. Times Tech Blog, The Register, BetaNews, Ubergizmo, The Official HP Palm Blog, MobileSyrup.com, IntoMobile, Ars Technica, Liliputing, Gizmodo UK, Macgasm, CNET, @wpbasti, LAPTOP Magazine, PhoneNews.com, BGR, Business Insider, paidContent, Mashable!, VentureBeat, Pocketables, Geek.com, TechCrunch, The Loop, Techie Buzz, Neowin.net and PalmAddicts
Anthony Ha / TechCrunch:
TheFunded Calls Ben Horowitz The Most Disruptive VC — TheFunded, the site where entrepreneurs can anonymously review venture capitalists, sometimes a reputation for being anti-VC (especially in its early days), but it's not above showing investors a little love.
Kim Masters / Hollywood Reporter:
The SOPA War: A Frantic Call, an Aborted Summit, and Dramatic New Details on How Hollywood Lost — THR goes inside the piracy battle with MPAA president Chris Dodd as the industry wonders what went wrong and how to fix its battered image. — In the desperate hours of early January …
Discussion:
Electronista
David Cohen / All Facebook:
Restaurants Will Offer Facebook Credits Incentives: Plink — Will meals taste better when accompanied by a side of free Facebook Credits? Loyalty program Plink intends to find out, with the help of several national restaurant chains. — Plink will announce a Facebook Credits-based loyalty …
Discussion:
TechCrunch, Screenwerk and ClickZ
Mark Spoonauer / LAPTOP Magazine:
Samsung: We'll Douse Kindle Fire With More Features, Pen, TV Integration — When it comes to Android tablets, Samsung is the anti-Amazon. While the Kindle Fire comes in just one size, Samsung has released everything from the superthin Galaxy Tab 10.1 to the Galaxy Tab 7 Plus with a built-in remote control.
Discussion:
IntoMobile, Business Insider, ReadWriteWeb, TechCrunch and Android Phone Fans, Thanks:@mspoonauer
Mikey Campbell / AppleInsider:
Foxconn gets Brazil tax breaks, looks to start iPad production — The Brazilian government has approved tax reductions or exemptions pertaining to tablet production that will allow Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn to start iPad production in the country.
Discussion:
Electronista and MacRumors
Steve Hakusa / Official google.org Blog:
Public Alerts now on Google Maps — Today marks the launch of a new Google Crisis Response project: Google Public Alerts, a platform designed to bring you relevant emergency alerts when and where you're searching for them. — If a major weather event is headed for your area …
Discussion:
Gizmodo, Laughing Squid, dailywireless.org, GadgeTell, PC Magazine, PC World, Engadget, Electronista, The TechBlock and 9to5Google
Leena Rao / TechCrunch:
Biz Stone, 500 Startups And Others Put $1M In CRM For Web Businesses Intercom — CRM and 500 Startups incubated company Intercom has raised a seed round of $1 million from angel investors including twitter co-founder Biz Stone, Huddle founder Andy McLoughlin, Dan Martell, 500 Startups and Digital Garage.
Discussion:
VentureBeat
Matt Mullenweg:
On the Evolution of Investing — Today Y Combinator announced they are adding two new partners, Garry Tan and Aaron Iba. This announcement is unique because it does not list their academic credentials, their previous investments, the boards of companies or non-profits they have sat on …
Jason Kincaid / TechCrunch:
BeachMint Raises Another Big Round: $35 Million For Celebrity-Backed Shopping Experiences — BeachMint — an ecommerce startup that lets customers subscribe to receive products hand-picked by celebrities each month — has quickly become one of the hottest companies in Los Angeles.
