The 404 Podcast

The 404 1,048: Where we can't believe how much it made (podcast)

$200 million. That's how much money "The Avengers" brought in this weekend. And who says the movie industry is in trouble? On today's show we welcome CNET editor Scott Stein to the show and discuss the disgusting amount of money Joss Whedon's Marvel mash-up accumulated. We'll compare it to the other top weekend grossing film of the past 30 years and then decide on whether or not "The Dark Knight Rises" will join the list.

Next we'll get into a discussion about the possibility of an $800 MacBook Air and whether or not Apple settled on the design of the iPad 3. Finally, it's an E3 2012 preview. Scott and I will be at the big show in Los Angeles next month and have some pretty bleak outlooks on what the world's biggest video game expo will bring.

The 404 1,047: Where we go one-on-one with James Gunn (podcast)

Director James Gunn goes one-on-one with The 404's Jeff Bakalar to talk about his writing duties on the new video game, Lollipop Chainsaw. James is the man responsible for films such as the "Dawn of the Dead" remake, "Slither," "Super," and the cult-classic "Tromeo and Juliet."

James has teamed up with legendary game-maker Suda 51 (Shadows of the Damned, No More Heroes) to bring us Lollipop Chainsaw, the story of a cheerleader who must take on a swarm of the undead led by a colorful cast of zombie punk rockers. We asked James what it was like to work with the iconic producer and the various special guests that voice the game's bosses.

There's something for everyone in today's show: zombies, music, video games, movies, and much more!

The 404 1,046: Where we're going beard-core (podcast)

Our favorite Aussie Ty Pendlebury stops by The 404 today to chat about what's new in the world of TVs. It's only May, but Ty thinks he's already seen this year's best TV. Tune in to find out which set he's talking about.

The 404 1,045: Where we're outed on Facebook (podcast)

We love Facebook pranks as much as the next guys, but not when it's coming from an anonymous source at Best Buy. As if we needed another reason not to step foot in the big blue retailer, we read this story about a Best Buy employee that posted a phony Facebook status update on a customer's phone. The message declared, "I am gay, I'm coming out," but there's one problem: the customer is straight.

The 404 1,044: Where we make May day (podcast)

Could you last a year without the Internet? It's not the first time we've heard of someone going off the grid, but a guy from The Verge has decided to spend the next year offline, so we'll challenge each other to do the same.

In other online news, Facebook has launched a new organ donor tool for Timeline that lets users add a life story to their profiles with a link to sign up for donation services in their area. Mark Zuckerberg went on ABC news and credited Steve Jobs as inspiration to use social networking to more

The 404 1,043: Where we advocate hacking (podcast)

Our old friend Andrew Mager joins us in the studio this morning to tell us what it takes to earn the role of Hacker Advocate over at Spotify.

He'll also give us a live demo of some of the popular apps you can download for Spotify that help you discover new music, browse music lyrics, read more about your favorite artists, scan your albums using a Web cam, and more. Somewhere during this episode, we also decide to start a four-man band, so let us know what you think our name should be.

The 404 1,042: Where the Enterprise has landed (podcast)

Steve Sphere Guttenberg returns to close out the week and he's calling on all our listeners to submit and vote for their favorite speakers, sound bars, headphones, subwoofers, and other home theater products for the first ever Stevie Awards for Excellence in Audio. So far, my personal top pick, the Koss PortaPros, are leading the headphones category!

Steve also tells Jeff and me about the leaps in technology that blew his mind growing up, the most prolific of which happens to be a head-shaped JVC binaural recording device that he used as a wingman in bars around New York more

The 404 1,041: Where we unbox this box (podcast)

Jeff and I find ourselves in a conversation about candy in this morning's preshow that bleeds over into today's recorded episode. Why? Well, we heard a story about Steve Jobs proposing a Willy Wonka style contest to celebrate the sale of the millionth original Apple iMac.

It comes from a book coming out soon called "Insanely Simple: The Obsession That Drives Apple's Success," and it talks about how Steve wanted to put a custom gold ticket inside a single iMac box that would land the winner a trip to Cupertino, Calif., for a tour of the Apple more

The 404 1,040: Where we've got 404 in your cup (podcast)

Aunt Jill is on the show once again, back by popular demand to tell us more about Apple's massive earnings that blew past our initial profit forecast.

She'll also update us on her LinkedIn privacy fiasco and answer more questions from our listeners -- this week's advice includes what to do with extra savings, tips to reduce interest on school loans, how to use 401(k) rollover at a new job, and more.

We tried to answer everyone's questions today, but be sure to follow Jill Schlesinger on Twitter if you think of another. If not, Jill will be back on the show in two weeks, so get ready!

The 404 1,039: Where we start back at one (podcast)

Of all the terrible video game movie adaptations, the 1991 version of "Super Mario Bros." got the most critical reaction.

Its story is chronicled in a new book called "Generation Xbox: How video games invaded Hollywood," so we'll spend some time today dissecting all the negative reviews and discover how it became a cult favorite.

Bridget Carey joins us for the first half with a backstage pass to her new show, CNET Update!

It rounds up all the top tech stories of the day and keeps a close eye on product updates, emerging trends, and new apps, so be more