Academy Awards iPad commercial
Way back in 2007, the first TV advert for iPhone went out during the Oscars, and Apple again paid for the top spot yesterday during a break within the 82nd Annual Academy Awards.
Archive for March, 2010
Olive Telecom AAA battery phone
Power out? Pop in a triple-A for an extra hour
The FrvrOn V-G2300 is launching in India with Olive Telecom, a long way from the UK but it caught my attention because of its nifty hybrid power mode. If the standard lithium-ion battery runs out of juice, users can slot in an AAA battery to get an extra hour of service.
Bluechip VX1
Engagingly retro or Soviet-era calculator?
The VX1 from Bluetooth manufacturer Bluechip arrived on my desk this week. Retro built like a 1980’s calculator, it measures 80mm x 50mm x 10mm and is smaller in profile than a credit card. Solely for voice and texts, it’s been available exclusively from Tesco during the Christmas and the New Year period, priced at around £18. It’s marketed SIM free as a backup or emergency phone and works on any network except 3’s.
EU approve Orange T-Mobile merger
Conditions accepted
The Orange T-Mobile 50/50 deal as discussed previously has been accepted by the European Commission, and the UK Office of Fair Trading has withdrawn its objections, Reuters report.
Palm slashes forecast
Facepalm moment
California based Palm faces dire straits. Financial trouble looms as the company cut its forecast revenues and the share price slumped. Generally smartphone sales are riding a wave but demand for Palm’s new Pre, Pixie and their ‘Plus’ siblings has been low. It’s unfortunate as Palm’s webOS has some great features, including the best implementation of multitasking I’ve seen. So why the problems? Well, partly webOS is being squeezed out by established operating systems, the rise of Android and new entrants with more clout like Samsung’s Bada. Without the support structures and developer community, there can be no clamour generated for all important app consumption. Second, the advertising and branding has been dreadfully dull and even worse.
Apple shareholder meeting eyes huge pile of cash
War chest is not for looting
At Apple’s annual shareholder meeting, boss Steve Jobs defended the decision to sit on cash reserves of $40 billion. Roughly amounting to a fifth of Apple’s value and a strategically critical resource as the recession ends, Jobs alluded to the war chest being kept for something big. Investors would love to get their hands on the cash, but questions and suggestions were rebutted, with the explanation that buy backs and dividends would have no lasting impact on company’s share value.
Google news from Europe
European triple hurdle
After an uncomfortable time in China already this year, Google is now experiencing difficulties in Europe. Two employees, and one ex-staffer have been convicted of breaching Italian privacy regulations in a case involving cyber-bullying back in 2006. Footage was posted to Google Video of a child being mistreated by schoolmates. The video was taken down after a request from the authorities, but the prosecutor continued with the case and convictions have led to suspended sentences. It’s a pretty stark warning to all social networking and media sharing sites, that potentially they are legally responsible for every bit of content posted by anyone.
PocketGear absorbs Handango
Independent app vendor jumps to number three spot