KARYNE: Hey, I�m Karyne Levy.
ERIC: And I'm Eric Franklin.
KARYNE: Welcome to Rumor Has It! The show where we round up the
week's biggest tech rumors.
ERIC: And vote on what sounds likely and what's probably bunk.
KARYNE: And remember: you can vote on all the rumors! Keep your eye
out for the poll in the interactive player, if you're watching on CNET.
ERIC: First up, according to reports from Paul Thurrott and The Verge, Microsoft will
unveil the next Xbox at a small event on May 21st. At the event, Microsoft will
reportedly touch on many of the console's details including a $500 price for the regular
version and $300 for a "subscription"based model.
These reports come just days after Microsoft creative director Adam Orth basically
started trolling his Twitter followers about the rumor that the new Xbox would require an
Internet connection at all times.
KARYNE: Yeah, he just didn't understand why people were making such a big deal
about it, ending his tweet with the hashtag: Deal with it. And he probably put on shades
as he typed that.
ERIC: Yeah, chastising your current
userbase about something they're anxious about? Historically, not awesome. It would be
like me trolling the comments section of every CNET review I wrote, telling people how
wrong they were when they disagreed with me.
KARYNE: Don't you do that like every week?
ERIC: [Cutting Karyne off] Quiet.
KARYNE: But I was just
ERIC: Shush!
KARYNE: I have a
ERIC: Shush!!
KARYNE: If you'd just give me
ERIC: SHHHHHHHHHHUSHHHHHH!!
KARYNE: You...need help.
ERIC: I know...
KARYNE: Next, we've got some Google news for you. Allegedly, Google wants to buy
WhatsApp, the super popular messaging service that essentially allows for crossplatform
texting without having to pay for SMS.
ERIC: According to a report from Digital Trends, citing an anonymous source,
WhatsApp is playing hardball, getting its selling price up to $1 billion.
KARYNE: Which is how much Facebook paid for Instagram last year. Instagram was
huge when Facebook bought it, bigger than WhatsApp, which makes me think that $1
billion is a little overpriced.
But maybe Google is feeling the pressure to boost its mobile chat capabilities, especially
on the heels of Facebook's Chat Heads.
ERIC: Yeah, cause, Chat Heads...
In any case, AllThingsD reported that a WhatsApp exec completely denied this
anyway and won't comment any furthe
r.
Probably because all these obnoxious journalists are calling him, being like "What's
App"?
KARYNE: Next up, remember the iTV? It's the fabled television that Apple is probably
building, causing the rumor mill to disrupt every couple months when talking about it.
Apple analyst Brian White predicts that r
this year for between $1,500 and $2,500, depending on configuration and accessories.
But then his prediction goes
Apple will introduce a 60inch iTV late
crazy: he said it would include an iRing,
a
small device placed on the finger that serves as a navigational pointer and takes over
some of the functionality of a traditional remote control.
ERIC: The iRing, also powered by the willpower of its user.
KARYNE: Then he went on to say that the TV would come with iPadlike mini TV
screens, and that the rumored iWatch would also play an integral part in controlling the
TV, saying that the devices will increase mobility around the home. He just rolled every
single Apple rumor into one.
ERIC: So you watch your iTV while wearing an iWatch and an iRing and there's second-
screen action happening on the iPad? This all sounds iCrazy.
KARYNE: I think *I* crazy after all that. [laughs to self]
ERIC: [Laughs, stops abruptly] Shut up.
KARYNE: What do you guys think? Is an iRing part of the equation? Don't forget to vote
and leave a comment, and we'll check in with the CNET Council.
ERIC: And the Council's verdict is NO. Four out of five editors do not think that
the iTV will come with an iRing.
KARYNE: That�s our show everyone, share your rumors at rumorhasit@cnet.com or call
us at 1800750CNET. And tweet us!
ERIC: Tune in next week for more tech
rumors.
