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November 19, 2003 |
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Smart phones are definitely a smart choice, and our readers are always on the lookout for the hottest, most cutting-edge smart phones out there. For the moment, it's the Samsung i600, a new Microsoft-powered PDA/phone combo carried by Verizon. Plus, you're looking for more info on the platinum-selling TiVo. |
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Samsung i600
CNET readers are a tech-savvy bunch, so it's no surprise that smart phones, one of the hottest and newest product types out there, are so popular with you. One of the hottest of the moment is Samsung's latest, the SCH-i600, which also happens to be one of the first smart phones released in the United States that runs the Microsoft Windows Mobile smart phone operating system. Verizon is selling this spiffy combo device for $499.99 and is offering a $100 rebate on that price to customers who sign a two-year agreement for a monthly calling plan of $39.99 or more. If you're checking out this Samsung because of the Microsoft OS, you may also want to look into Motorola's MPx200, the first Microsoft-based smart phone to hit the States, carried by AT&T Wireless. We're in the process of reviewing both of these hot ringers and will have the reviews posted by next week. |
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TiVo
There's no doubt that digital video recorders (DVRs) are one of the hottest home-entertainment developments of the last decade or so, and TiVo is the name that's become synonymous with DVRs. More importantly, TiVo seems to have emerged as the popular favorite, through both ease of use and key partnerships with satellite company DirecTV and hardware makers that incorporate its technology into their own boxes. As a result, TiVo announced this past week that it now has 1 million customers. The number is likely to grow this holiday season as Dell starts selling subscriptions for DirecTV, which offers a box with TiVo built in, and with a $50 rebate TiVo is offering through the end of the year. For now, our editors are still more impressed with ReplayTV for its overall better features and picture quality, especially for HDTV owners. |
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MP3.com
Instead of searching CNET for news, our readers this week were searching for news about CNET. How postmodern! The big news on our front at the end of last week was CNET's purchase of MP3.com. It's definitely a juicy dot-com business, and the situation got a lot of attention due to some coverage elsewhere around the media. The tizzy began when MP3.com sent e-mail to all of its customers late Thursday, saying that its Web site would no longer be accessible in its current form. The mail added that after the site's removal, all of the online content on its servers would be deleted, and it promised that previously submitted musical works in its possession would be destroyed. Not good news for those artists who were using MP3.com to share their tunes with the world. So what happens next? CNET says it plans to enter the online music market through the acquisition but won't compete with music download services. I have no inside info, so I'll be waiting like the rest of you to see what will come of this big deal. |
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MobyDock
Call me Ishmael, readers. On second thought, don't. Instead, let me tell you about this superhot download that a good handful of your fellow readers are checking out. To understand what MobyDock is, you need only look at the Mac OS X desktop and play with its cool springy launchbar. MobyDock basically turns any Windows desktop (within system requirements, of course) into that Mac OS X-like desktop. Check out a screenshot here. It's the perfect desktop enhancement for PC users with Mac envy or Mac users who hate using the Windows interface. If you're curious, download it from CNET's Download.com and rate it once you've used it. |
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Chess
We spend so much time loving technology here at CNET, it's hard to imagine fighting against it. But in a classic matchup of man vs. machine, it all comes down to the game, apparently. This week, top world chess player Garry Kasparov took on yet another computer, X3D Fritz, which has voice-recognition and virtual-reality features. Tuesday's match, the fourth and final one, ended the series in a tie; the first was a draw, Fritz won the second, and Kasparov the third. "Machines are getting better, but we humans are also learning," Kasparov was quoted as saying after the final game. |
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