The death of desktop computers: The Bottom Line
A top Google exec says that desktops will be irrelevant in just three years time. Is that really the case? We talk to Seth Porges and Jason Hiner on the Bottom Line to find out.
Guests:
Talking Google Buzz and Android: The Bottom Line
Can the Android OS survive with so many different versions out at one time? Also, a look at Google's brand new Buzz - which brings social networking into your Gmail. Seth Porges from Popular Mechanics joins us on The Bottom Line.
Guests:
Bleak Black Friday predictions
While the rest of the week, we've talked about some of the highlights for Black Friday, leave it to the downers like John Biggs from CrunchGear and Seth Porges from Popular Mechanics to rain on the crazy parade. We talk about the quality of Black Friday gadgets, the ones to avoid, and the ones you should really be looking out for.
Guests:
Flip Cam on the big screen: Cisco’s FlipShare gets an unofficial debut
TechVi good friend Dave Zatz managed to scrounge up the a device from Cisco that should allow FlipCam users to take their home movies from the camcorder and put them on the big screen wirelessly. Zatz fished the FlipShare, the name of the system, out of the FCC's database, so it's not like we're exactly rife with details on the device. What we do know is there are three parts, a remote, a Roku-esque box, and a USB dongle for connecting to home computers. What does this device need to be for it to be worth buying? We ask Seth Porges, who runs the tech section for Popular Mechanics.
Guests:
BlackBerry Storm 2: Biz centric touchscreen phone, or iPhone wannabe?
RIM has been patiently putting together the followup to the BlackBerry Storm, aptly named Storm 2, and while we're waiting patiently for the device, we're starting to see reviews from Walt Mossberg at the WSJ, and others. Is the follow up the device everyone wanted in the first place, and more to the point, how is RIM trying to change the game with its new screen? We talk to Seth Porges of Popular Mechanics, and Harry McCracken of Technologizer about the device.
Guests:
More Apple tablet revelations, can consumers parse it?
Gizmodo's Brian Lam nailed some great reporting on Apple's upcoming tablet, saying that Apple is in talks with publishers to have the tablet become some sort of hybrid book / magazine / video / audio content player. The pieces are still up in the air, and with Apple we've come to expect the unexpected, but what do we think Apple needs to do to play this game properly? We talk to Seth Porges of Popular Mechanics, and Joel Evans of Geek.com.
Guests:
Palm Pixi hands-on impressions: The cheap smartphone?
Yesterday Apple may have stolen most of the spotlight, but we're still pretty excited to see Palm's next smartphone, the Pixi, which was announced yesterday. Seth Porges of Popular Mechanics got some hands on time with the device, and from what he saw, it seems like if the device is priced properly, Palm might have an interesting phone come holiday season, and Sprint would actually have some momentum for once.
Does it have a shot? Are you excited about the Pixi's prospects? Sound off in the comments and let us know if you'd go Pre / Pixi, or if you're eying another phone.
Guests:
Zune HD: App store importance?
It's a bit of a slow news day, so we thought we'd talk about our favorite topic of the moment: The Zune HD. When it's released on September 15th, with its beefy Tegra internals, we're expecting the device to be pretty impressive from a pure user experience perspective. On the other side of the coin, we're not really sure what to expect from the Zune's 3rd party application support. It's true, the device could have a great amount of secret developer support, but up to now there hasn't been much explanation about exactly how 3rd party apps will play on the device. How crucial are they to the platform's success? We ask Seth Porges from Popular Mechanics, and Marco Chiappetta from HotHardware their perspectives.
Guests:
Microsoft vs Google: Grudge match or snooze fest?
Much has been made of Google's supposed "entry" into the desktop operating system market next year as a direct warning shot to Microsoft. Some people are speculating today that the timing of the Chrome OS vaporware announcement coincides with a Microsoft announcement on Monday, which will bring an online version of Microsoft Office. The dramatic angle is that the companies are gearing up for what could be a slugfest, both in the operating system world as well as the search space, where Microsoft's Bing search engine has surpassed some web2.0 companies in terms of traffic. Are the two companies really about to do battle? We ask Seth Porges from Popular Mechanics, and Tom Merritt from CNET.
Guests:
HTC Hero: Can the Superphone compete?
HTC unveiled its latest smartphone, and it's a doozy. The HTC Hero packs in everything a smartphone lover could dream of, except the handset won't land on American shores till the fall. Now that we've got a more mature market for smartphones, can HTC compete? We talk to Joel Johnson of Boing Boing Gadgets, and Seth Porges of Popular Mechanics about the situation.
Joel thinks the Hero doesn't have to be the best phone in America, it really just needs to be the best phone for its American carrier, whoever that may end up being. With the wacky smartphone situation, many people aren't willing to switch to the iPhone simply because they'll have to go to AT&T, so when the Hero ends up hitting America, it'll just need to be the best in breed for its anticipated carrier.
Seth, who had some chance to play with the phone a few days ago, thinks it's a winner at first glance. Seth also thinks, like many of our previous guests, that smartphone's biggest asset is applications, and seeing how the Android marketplace, and for that matter the Palm App Catalog, hasn't fully developed just yet, it's hard to see how these platforms will play out.
What's your take? Are you excited about the device, or is it just another phone for you? What would make you stop obsessing about the iPhone for a few minutes, and take a liking to the Hero? Sound off in the comments.
Guests: