FACEBOOK ACQUIRES FRIENDFEED, HP TESTS OUT A NEW WAY TO SELL
LAPTOPS IN JAPAN, AND HOW TO GET TEXTBOOKS ON YOUR IPHONE. ITS
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11TH. I'M NATALI DEL CONTE AND IT'S TIME TO GET
LOADED.
[*]
FACEBOOK HAS ACQUIRED FRIENDFEED. THIS IS THE SOCIAL NETWORK
AGGREGATOR THAT GIVES YOU A RUNDOWN OF WHAT YOUR FRIENDS
ARE DOING ON PRETTY MUCH ANY SOCIAL NETWORK. FRIENDFEED IS A
GREAT WAY TO FOLLOW YOUR FRIENDS AROUND THE INTERNET BUT IT
NEVER REALLY BECAME THE NEXT TWITTER LIKE SOME THOUGHT IT
WOULD. STILL IT MAKES SENSE FOR YOU TO BE ABLE TO SEE THIS
INFORMATION WITHIN FACEBOOK GIVEN THAT FACEBOOK IS NOTORIOUS
FOR THE NEWS FEED FEATURE. WE WILL HAVE TO SEE HOW THE TWO
WORK TOGETHER BUT I FOR ONE DO NOT WANT A MORE CROWDED FEED.
I AM GOING TO NEED A WHOLE LOT OF FILTERING TOOLS.
[*]
YAHOO PURCHASED OMG.COM FOR $80,000. I DON'T EVEN WANT TO KNOW
WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO DO WITH THAT. RIGHT NOW OMG.COM DOESN'T
DIRECT ANYWHERE BUT I HAVE A HUNCH THIS IS HEADING TOWARDS MY
VERY FAVORITE THING: CELEBRITY GOSSIP SITE. JUST WHAT THE WORLD
NEEDS.
[*]
LOGITECH ANNOUNCED A NEW HARMONY UNIVERSAL REMOTE THAT HAS
RF, WHICH ALLOWS YOU TO USE YOUR REMOTE CONTROL THROUGH
WALLS. THIS WAS ANNOUNCED TODAY AND DAVID CARNOY HAS A FIRST
LOOK. CHECK IT OUT.
THE LOGITECH HARMONY 900 COSTS ABOUT $400.
[*]
GENERAL MOTORS STARTED SELLING CARS AND TRUCKS ON EBAY
TODAY. THIS SOUNDS LIKE A DIRECT-TO-CONSUMER TACTIC BUT IT
REALLY ISN'T. IT WILL STILL INVOLVE LOCAL DEALERSHIPS. IF YOU GO
TO GM.EBAY.COM, YOU CAN BROWSE DEALERS' INVENTORIES, ASK
QUESTIONS, NEGOTIATE PRICES, AND ARRANGE FINANCING. IT IS TOO
BAD THAT YOU CAN'T BIG ON CARS DIRECTLY FROM THE
MANUFACTURER AND CUT OUT THE MIDDLE MAN ALTOGETHER BUT
PERHAPS THE ECONOMY WILL PUSH US IN THAT DIRECTION SOMEDAY
SOON ENOUGH.
[*]
THE ROKU CAN NOW STREAM MLB.TV'S LIVE GAMES OVER YOUR HOME
WI-FI NETWORK. THIS IS OF COURSE NOT FREE, YOU HAVE TO BE A
MEMBER OF MLB.TV'S PREMIUM PACKAGE, WHICH GIVES YOU ACCESS TO
ALL OUT OF MARKET GAMES. IF YOU HAVE A ROKU AND THIS
SUBSCRIPTION, YOU CAN NOW RECORD GAMES OR WATCH THEM LIVE.
YOU CAN ALSO FIND A WEEK'S WORTH OF BACK GAMES TO WATCH ON
DEMAND. THIS IS A COOL THING BUT TOO BAD WE ARE ALREADY PASSED
THE ALL-STAR BREAK. HOPEFULLY THEY WILL HAVE A SIMILAR DEAL
WITH OTHER SPORTS LEAGUES. IF THEY DO, IT IS AN OBVIOUS ATTEMPT
FOR TO TRY TO TAKE OVER THE HOME SET TOP BOX MARKET.
[*]
HP IS TRYING OUT A NEW MODEL OF LAPTOP DISTRIBUTION IN JAPAN. THE
COMPANY WILL SELL LAPTOPS FOR ANYWHERE BETWEEN $50 AND $100.
THEY WILL COME WITH A REMOVABLE SIM CARD THAT LETS YOU BUY
MINUTES OVER YOUR CELL PHONE CARRIER'S NETWORK. THE LAPTOPS
WILL COME WITH 100 FREE MINUTES BUT YOU CAN TOP THEM UP AS YOU
LIKE AFTER THAT. THEY WILL BE NETBOOKS, NOTEBOOKS, AND
TOUCHSCREEN TABLETS. THEY GO ON SALE NEXT MONTH. THIS IS A VERY
COOL IDEA, ALTHOUGH IT MAKES HP AN MVNO, WHICH IS A HARD
BUSINESS MODEL TO MAKE WORK. STILL IT WILL BE INTERESTING TO SEE
HOW CONSUMERS ACTUALLY USE THESE MACHINES AND IF THE
PARADIGM WILL MAKE ITS WAY OVERSEAS TO THE U.S.
[*]
A NEW YORK WOMAN HAS BECOME THE FIRST PERSON IN THE U.S. TO USE
A WIRELESS PACEMAKER. THIS LETS YOUR DOCTOR MONITOR THE
PROGRESS OF HER HEART OVER THE INTERNET. 61-YEAR-OLD CAROL
KASYJANSKY GET THE PACEMAKER THREE WEEKS AGO. WHEN SHE GOES
INTO THE DOCTOR, HE IS MORE PREPARED FOR HER VISIT BECAUSE HE
HAS SEEN THE PROGRESS ALL ALONG FIRST HAND ON HIS PC. THIS IS THE
COOLEST THING EVER. IT HAS BEEN APPROVED BY THE FDA SINCE JULY.
[*]
IF YOU'RE HEADING BACK TO SCHOOL, YOU MIGHT WANT TO CONSIDER
THE COURSESMART IPHONE APPLICATION. THIS GIVES STUDENTS ACCESS
TO OVER 7-THOUSAND E-TEXTBOOKS. COURSE-SMART HAS BEEN AROUND
FOR A WHILE GIVING STUDENTS ACCESS TO BOOKS ON THEIR MACS OR
WINDOWS MACHINES. THE BOOKS ARE FAR CHEAPER THAN THEIR
PHYSICAL COPY COUNTERPARTS BUT THEY EXPIRE WITHIN 180 DAYS. THE
BOOKS ARE NOT COMPATIBLE WITH KINDLE.
[*]
HERE IS AN UPDATE TO THE STORY ABOUT THE BOY WHO DIED IN AN
INTERNET ADDICTION CAMP IN CHINA. THE CHINA DAILY REPORTS THAT
13 PEOPLE HAVE BEEN ARRESTED AND THE CAMP CLOSED DOWN. ALL 122
PATIENTS WERE REPORTEDLY SENT HOME. THIS IS NOT A CONFIRMED
STORY YET. THE SOUTHERN METROPOLIS DAILY REPORTED THAT THE
FACILITY WAS STILL IN OPERATION. XINHUA IS ALSO REPORTING THAT
THE CAMP WAS UNLICENSED. WE WILL REPORT MORE ON THIS STORY AS
IT UNFOLDS.
[*]
WE HAD A LOT OF VIEWER RESPONSE TO RADIO SHACK'S NEW BRANDING,
THE SHACK. YOU UNANIMOUSLY DO NOT LIKE IT. NOT ONE PERSON
WROTE IN FAVOR OF THIS NAME. MY FAVORITE EMAIL WAS FROM
CAMERON. HE SAID: If Radio Shack was trying to trick potential customers into
visiting their store because they thought they were walking into a brothel, the name
change was a good idea. If not, someone's getting fired."
THANK YOU FOR THAT CAMERON.
[*]
THOSE ARE ALL OF YOUR HEADLINES FOR TODAY. THANK YOU FOR
WATCHING. I'LL SEE YOU NEXT TOMORROW. I'M NATALI DEL CONTE WITH
CNET TV AND YOU'VE JUST BEEN LOADED.
