ces

Music industry urged to drop download prices

The music industry needs to drastically cut the price it charges for downloads if it wants to survive the Internet revolution, according to CEO of one of the world's most successful independent labels.

Terry McBride, CEO of the Nettwerk Music Group, which manages such best-selling acts as Avril Lavigne, Barenaked Ladies and Dido, told the CES conference today that the music industry needs to "let go it's control and let consumers own their music" in order to survive.

The industry, McBride says, has been "hitting a glass ceiling" in terms of sales. It won'… Read more

CES: Sandbox Summit highlights kids and tech

I spent the whole day at CES attending the Sandbox Summit, an ambitious new specialty session put on by the Parents' Choice Foundation. We heard presentations from over 20 speakers, from Nickelodeon and Sesame Workshop (an Elvis-impersonating Elmo showed up live as a keynote speaker!), to Michelle Slatalla, Cyberfamilias columnist at The New York Times; Anastasia Goodstein, founder of YPulse.com; and Warren Buckleitner, editor of Children's Technology Review. The five panels addressed topics in depth and from several angles, including marketing, safety, the quality and effectiveness of educational media, and the question of how families can develop reasonable limits on screen time. I will be covering the details this five-hour summit in many upcoming blog posts.

The Sandbox Summit was well-attended and I had the most amazing networking experience afterward, talking to other women who attended as audience members. … Read more

Alltel scores the HTC Touch

Alltel Wireless has just announced the immediate availability of the HTC Touch smartphone with pricing starting at $199.99 with a two-year contract and after rebates and discounts. The Alltel HTC Touch has a number of the same features as the other versions of the phone (unlocked and Sprint's), such as the TouchFlo interface, Windows Mobile 6 Professional Edition, and a 2-megapixel camera. They've also added a fourth "cube" to the menu interface where you can access some of the carrier's exclusive applications such as Voice2TXT (converts voice mails into text), Games from Magmic, Sharpcast … Read more

Creative HS-1200: Wireless headphones for PC gaming

Are you a hardcore PC online gamer who's constantly restricted by the always-too-short-or-in-the-way cable on your headset? If so, Creative's new HS-1200 may be just the ticket. It's a fully wireless headset--the first such full duplex stereo model (according to the company), which means it can simultaneously send and receive audio. The PC headset will work with any VoIP or voice application, but Creative is aiming straight at the PC gaming market. The HS-1200 communicates with your PC via a USB transceiver that's about the size of a hockey puck--which also includes a separate umbilical cable … Read more

GM's Wagoner addresses CES, unveils Cadillac Provoq

Underlining the ever-converging automotive and electronic worlds, GM's boss Rick Wagoner arrived on stage here at the 2008 Consumer Electronics Show in GM's electric-powered Chevy Volt to deliver his keynote speech, marking the first time in the show's history that a leading automaker had addressed the convention. "If the automobile were invented today, I'm pretty sure it would debut here at CES," said Wagoner before launching into an overview of GM's technology, including details of the carmaker's alternative-fuel, telematics, and autonomous vehicle programs, and finally unveiling the latest concept vehicle in GM'… Read more

Intel CEO mum on Vista's impact

LAS VEGAS--After giving what we would describe as a visionary and even entertaining keynote address at CES on Monday, Intel CEO Paul Otellini carved out some time to answer questions from a small group of reporters. When it comes to tech CEOs, Otellini has been somewhere between Steve Ballmer and Michael Dell on the openness scale, though definitely much closer to Ballmer. So it was a little surprising that when we asked a simple question about Vista, Otellini pleaded the Fifth.

Noting that Bill Gates had said during his Monday keynote speech that there are now 100 million people using … Read more

D-Link simplifies home networking with 'D-Life'

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that for the bulk of home owners out there, the great promise of a networked 'digital home' has been all noise and no substance.

Despite all the hype and bluster of industry giants such as Intel and Microsoft, the promise has to date only been realised by the small percentage of the market that can afford high end products and services from specialist integrators, and a handful of technical folk armed with the skills necessary to install their own kit.

Even people with a reasonable grasp of networking … Read more

Nokia's cell phone speakers

There's always a lot more to find in a Nokia booth than just the company's phones. Typically, you'll find a gallery of Bluetooth headsets and cell phone accessories that round out the company's offerings. I like to scope out cell phone speakers and I found two models, the MD-6 and the MD-7W. The MD-6 mini-speakers are shaped like a black and red lipstick case. At 4.8 by 1.3 by 1.3 inches, the speakers can be slipped into your pocket with ease, and weigh just 4.9 grams with the four included AA batteries … Read more

CES 2008: Highlights of the day

The Consumer Electronics Show is on in full force in Las Vegas. Here are just some of Tuesday's highlights from the giant gadget show. For CNET's complete coverage, click here.

Best of CES nominees are in--CNET editors have announced the 30 finalists for Best of CES 2008. Vote your fave for the People's Voice Award.

Blu-ray player for less than $300--The major gripe against Blu-ray has always been that the hardware is just too expensive. Funai is looking to fill this gap.

Nokia goes green with 3110--New handset is made from 50 percent renewable … Read more