TechVi » Aaron Crocco

Apple beefs up HD movie offerings

Aaron Crocco — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:07:16 +0000

Apple has added hundreds of HD movies to the iTunes store. New and classic movies can be purchased in HD including Star Trek and Wall-E.

Verizon unveils Motorola Droid [UPDATE]

Aaron Crocco — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:47:59 +0000

Verizon unveiled the hotly-anticipated Motorola Droid smartphone, available for $199 with a two-year contract beginning November 6th. Featuring a 3.7-inch 16:9 touchscreen, a 5-megapixel camera, and all the normal trimmings, the Droid comes with Android 2.0, bringing Facebook integration, voice-activated search, and a physical keyboard.

UPDATE: Some Verizon stores will be opening an hour early for the Droid release on friday.

Nokia unveils phone for Chinese market

Aaron Crocco — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 18:00:36 +0000

Nokia unveiled its first phone compatible with Chinaâ€™s proprietary 3G technology. The Nokia 6788 features a slider-style layout and a mirror finish display, with a goal to sell lower priced phones at a higher volume. Nokia, with a 38% global market share, spends over $60 billion in research and development. The Nokia 6788â€™s pricing has not been announced and ships later this year.

Ubuntu’s 9.10 Release Candidate now available

Aaron Crocco — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 18:10:03 +0000

Canonical, the commercial sponsor of Ubuntu, made the Release Candidate of Ubuntu Linux 9.10 available on Thursday. Desktop, server and netbook versions of the code-named Karmic Koala release, built on the Linux 2.6.31 kernel, promises faster boot times and easier software development. Ubuntu will have multiple versions containing Gnome, KDE and XFCE desktop environments and will be released on October 29th.

One out of every five people online use Twitter

Aaron Crocco — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 17:57:53 +0000

A Pew Internet Project study shows that Twitter usage rose 8%, meaning in one out of every five people online is using the service. The study showed growth came from users under 44, social network and mobile web users. Thirty-five percent of social network users use Twitter and something else, while 6 percent use only Twitter. Overall, just under half of all Internet users use a social network.

Nook’s LendMe feature limits lending to once per book

Aaron Crocco — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 18:12:09 +0000

The Consumerist reports that administrators on the Barnes & Noble message board have confirmed the Nookâ€™s much-publicized LendMe feature, which allows loaning of eBooks, is allowed only once per title. Once that book is returned, loaning it again will be unavailable. The Nookâ€™s LendMe feature has been seen as its killer feature over the Amazon Kindle, making the $259 reader a strong competitor.

Apple updates remote, now in aluminum

Aaron Crocco — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:24:59 +0000

Apple updated the Apple Remote yesterday which will now sport an aluminum body. The remote is compatible with any Mac built after 2004, the iPod Universal Dock, and allows control of Front Row, an iPod or iPhone. The updated design also moves the Play/Pause button down next to the Menu button. The Apple Remote retails for $19 and ships in two to four weeks.

Netflix now offers streaming on Insignia Blu-Ray players

Aaron Crocco — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:17:06 +0000

Netflix has announced a partnership with Best Buy which integrates Netflix's streaming service into Insignia Blu-Ray players. The NS-BRDVD3 and NS-WBRDVD will allow on-device queue management, WiFi connectivity on the higher-end player, and Ethernet-only on the cheaper model. The players, retailing for $179.99 and $249.99, are on sale now exclusively at Best Buy.

iTunes to sell new Michael Jackson album

Aaron Crocco — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 02:54:25 +0000

Apple has come to an agreement with Sony to sell the upcoming Michael Jackson album This Is It on iTunes. Beginning on October 26th, one day before the double-album hits other retailers, the complete digital version will be available alongside an EP containing only the six unreleased songs.

Amazon introduces same-day shipping

Aaron Crocco — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 20:36:54 +0000

Amazon announced it now offers same-day shipping in seven cities for items ordered before a designated local cut-off time. Members of Amazon Prime will be charged $5.99 per item, while non-Prime charges will be based on the type and weight of the item. In most cities, the latest order time hovers between 10:00AM and 11:00AM, but in Seattle same-day orders can be placed as late as 1:00PM.