I had to think a little bit about what the most expensive piece of technology I owned was. Not because I spend money like it's goin' out of style, but because I have made so many gadget investments in the last few years that I had to figure out which topped the list.

So far, I think it's my MacBook Pro, although my HDTV comes in very close. Following that is my Canon DSLR, and right on its heels is my Playstation 3 (and I don't even want to ask my boyfriend how much his high-def video camera was). I'm trying to slow it down, considering this economic crisis that's hitting everything, but all I can do is think about the HD TiVo XL that I don't yet have, sigh.

Financial dramas aside, share: What's the most expensive gadget you have?

Photo courtesy of MTV

I had to think a little bit about what the most expensive piece of technology I owned was. Not because I spend money like it's goin' out of style, but because I have made so many gadget investments in the last few years that I had to figure out which topped the list.

So far, I think it's my MacBook Pro, although my HDTV comes in very close. Following that is my Canon DSLR, and right on its heels is my Playstation 3 (and I don't even want to ask my boyfriend how much his high-def video camera was). I'm trying to slow it down, considering this economic crisis that's hitting everything, but all I can do is think about the HD TiVo XL that I don't yet have, sigh.

Financial dramas aside, share: What's the most expensive gadget you have?

Photo courtesy of MTV

Right off the bat, it doesn't really make sense why Apply would enter TV market with an Apple-branded LCD. The market is as cutthroat as ever with companies eating costs and gouging prices. Most of the big PC names (Dell, Gateway, etc...) are getting out, leaving obscure Chinese manufacturers to hash it out. Sure, Apple makes their Cinema Display, but those are strictly for the computer market and aren't any bigger than 30". So while they're not LCD n00bs, they're still green to the TV market.

You can also use the cheapness wars to highlight the best selling TVs are the ones which only offer video, speakers and a sufficient number of inputs — leaving the rest to the consumer. But at the same time, all these manufacturers are bottoming out with their prices, and will soon need to distinguish their product from the rest with special features.

Storage is also an issue. The Apple TV relies on a 40 GB HDD to bring content to the living room. Putting a spinner inside a TV is something manufacturers are adverse to, probably because of drive failure, noise, and heat concerns. It's entirely possible they could stick a 64 GB SSD in the TV and call it a day, but that still adds a couple hundred extra dollars to the price.

There are also reasons why this rumor might have some validity to it, the most obvious of which is Jason Calacanis' standing in Silicon Valley. Unless he's pulling a stunt to get his own fledgling projects some attention, you have to believe the internet tech entrepreneur rubs elbows with some people who actually know what they're talking about. Kevin Rose has proven to have some great insider information in the past, so there's no reason to think that Calacanis wouldn't.

Looking at other companies, networked TVs and internet-based content are becoming more popular in flat panels. Pioneer, HP and Samsung, among others, have showed off displays with internet connectivity. And LG has Netflix streaming in their upcoming Blu-ray player, so maybe it's not far fetched to think Apple wants a piece of this.

And speaking of which, Apple has to worry about Netflix, who is on their ASS when it comes to digital movie distribution. Netflix has made aggressive moves in the last few weeks with regard to their all-you-can eat streaming service, you have to think Apple needs to make some moves to keep their ala carte model of distribution relevant.

And this brings about the final point, which is purely speculation — what if Apple doesn't build a TV at all, but rather lends their Apple TV software to a big name TV maker? Instead of an "Apple iWhatever," it's a "Sharp Aquos with Apple TV." This would work on two levels. First it would eliminate the financial risk of R&D, marketing and manufacturing costs of what could be a potential flop in an already oversaturated market. Second, they don't need to move the hardware to make money. They just need people buying things from the iTunes Store. Lending their interface to an already established TV maker, would do just that — bring new customers into their marketplace.

Again, we're just thinking out loud here. We're trying to make sense of this like anyone else, especially with Apple TV rumors floating around, the lack of updates to the Apple displays, and Apple Execs referencing new products and product transitions. But for all we know, they could be talking about the iPod Shuffle. [CNET UK via Mac Blogz]

Right off the bat, it doesn't really make sense why Apply would enter TV market with an Apple-branded LCD. The market is as cutthroat as ever with companies eating costs and gouging prices. Most of the big PC names (Dell, Gateway, etc...) are getting out, leaving obscure Chinese manufacturers to hash it out. Sure, Apple makes their Cinema Display, but those are strictly for the computer market and aren't any bigger than 30". So while they're not LCD n00bs, they're still green to the TV market.

You can also use the cheapness wars to highlight the best selling TVs are the ones which only offer video, speakers and a sufficient number of inputs — leaving the rest to the consumer. But at the same time, all these manufacturers are bottoming out with their prices, and will soon need to distinguish their product from the rest with special features.

Storage is also an issue. The Apple TV relies on a 40 GB HDD to bring content to the living room. Putting a spinner inside a TV is something manufacturers are adverse to, probably because of drive failure, noise, and heat concerns. It's entirely possible they could stick a 64 GB SSD in the TV and call it a day, but that still adds a couple hundred extra dollars to the price.

There are also reasons why this rumor might have some validity to it, the most obvious of which is Jason Calacanis' standing in Silicon Valley. Unless he's pulling a stunt to get his own fledgling projects some attention, you have to believe the internet tech entrepreneur rubs elbows with some people who actually know what they're talking about. Kevin Rose has proven to have some great insider information in the past, so there's no reason to think that Calacanis wouldn't.

Looking at other companies, networked TVs and internet-based content are becoming more popular in flat panels. Pioneer, HP and Samsung, among others, have showed off displays with internet connectivity. And LG has Netflix streaming in their upcoming Blu-ray player, so maybe it's not far fetched to think Apple wants a piece of this.

And speaking of which, Apple has to worry about Netflix, who is on their ASS when it comes to digital movie distribution. Netflix has made aggressive moves in the last few weeks with regard to their all-you-can eat streaming service, you have to think Apple needs to make some moves to keep their ala carte model of distribution relevant.

And this brings about the final point, which is purely speculation — what if Apple doesn't build a TV at all, but rather lends their Apple TV software to a big name TV maker? Instead of an "Apple iWhatever," it's a "Sharp Aquos with Apple TV." This would work on two levels. First it would eliminate the financial risk of R&D, marketing and manufacturing costs of what could be a potential flop in an already oversaturated market. Second, they don't need to move the hardware to make money. They just need people buying things from the iTunes Store. Lending their interface to an already established TV maker, would do just that — bring new customers into their marketplace.

Again, we're just thinking out loud here. We're trying to make sense of this like anyone else, especially with Apple TV rumors floating around, the lack of updates to the Apple displays, and Apple Execs referencing new products and product transitions. But for all we know, they could be talking about the iPod Shuffle. [CNET UK via Mac Blogz]

While GM and Ford’s stocks are plummeting to the bottom(the worst since 1950), GM states that “bankruptcy is not an option” as they still have billions of cash in hand. (which is washing away rather quickly)

Here’s an excerpt from LA Times:

“We face unprecedented challenges related to uncertainty in the financial markets globally and weakening economic fundamentals in many key markets,” Renee Rashid-Merem, a GM spokeswoman, told Bloomberg News on Thursday. “But bankruptcy is not an option GM is considering.”

According to Clark, a bankruptcy filing would probably have terrible effects on the residual value of cars and their warranties, making it even harder to sell new cars as consumers gravitate to other, more stable carmakers. That, he said, means that carmakers would choose to stay out of bankruptcy far longer than companies that might normally see it as a way out of untenable financial straits.

I think it’s a good thing that GM is trying to outlast this economic disaster, but I wouldn’t want to see any of my tax dollars going to fix their problems. As a owner of a GM car, I am sure my replacement parts and warranties would really be gone into the thin air, but this shouldn’t be a reason why Uncle Sam should help the big car companies.

My thoughts are still clear that business financials should not be paid for my U.S. citizens. It’s an outrage when that happens as I too, should be getting my expenses paid by the government.

I don’t think helping the car companies will do a great deal other than keeping them alive little bit longer (in case we happen to see Depression-era here in the U.S.).  Better way would be to let them go bankrupt, let’s focus our attention on the other 90% of U.S. economy and all the people who have lost jobs as of lately.

GM should help others before they ask the government for help, otherwise, it’s a bad business anyways.

Do you want to pay $20 billion to auto-makers out of your tax dollars?  Heck no, I worked too hard for the last couple years paying those ridiculous taxes that went into wars because of Bush.  Yes, I do deserve money before those big corporations, don’t you?

via autoblog

Brought to you by: Zedomax.com

GM - “Bankruptcy is not an option”

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September 2008 came and went and along with the downturn in the economy and the increasingly agitated political campaigns, there were plenty of interesting news in the Gadget World that took their spotlight turn.

The top stories we covered included the upcoming HTC G1 Google phone, the latest drama from Apple's App store client base, and the InterBike conference in Las Vegas.

Once again, we calculated all the diggs, added all the Reddit points, and looked for the most commented stories with the most page views to come up with the list. If you read these stories before, we invite you to enjoy them once again. If you missed them, cuddle up to your tiny netbook and check them out over the weekend. As always, please send us your comments at our emails, or through Danny's hairstylist/life guru.

The Most Popular (Non-iPhone) Stories:

• Five Antisocial Gadgets That Should be Banned
• Photo Gallery: Robot Hands Get a Grip on the Future
• Scariest Toy Concept Ever: The Epidermits Thing
• T-Mobile G1 Carries High Expectations + T-Mobile's G1 Android Phone: Neither Open nor Exciting
• Briton Invented iPod, DRM and On-Line Music in 1979
• Natural Materials Making a Comeback in Tech Cycling World

The Month's Top Reviews:

• Review: 4th Gen iPod Nano — We Want Our Square Form Factor Back!
• Review: Archos Internet Tablet Blinds Its Flaws With a Brilliant Screen
• Review: Nikon D90 Takes World Champion DSLR Title Belt
• Review: Slacker G2 Media Player a Bit of an Overachiever
• Review: Upstart Sony DSLR Pops Nikon and Canon on the Chin
• Review: TiVo HD XL DVR Proves Bigger Is Sometimes Better

August's Top iPhone Stories:

• IPhone Can Take Screenshots of Anything You Do
• iPhone Developers Go From Rags to Riches
• Let's Rock: Apple Unveils New iPods, Genius Playlists, HDTV, NBC
• IPhone 2.2: Safari Redesign, Possible Cut and Paste
• Is Steve Jobs Really E-Mailing Apple Customers? Grammatical Analysis Raises Doubts
• Android Welcomes App Store's Rejects With Arms Wide Open

The Best of The Rest:

• Discs Meet the Internet in Next-Gen Blu-ray Players
• Bamboo Bike Maker Grows His Frames, Bonsai Style
• Google Patent Could Kill Off Cellphone Contracts
• Fujifilm's Real 3-D Camera Is Just the Beginning
• Researchers Demonstrate How to Spoof GPS Devices
• Is It Possible to Live Without a Cellphone? + The Results
• Bike Geek: Cross Vegas
• Best Buy Customer Service Punks Customer, For Real

Colors are "sensational and bright" and the reviewer goes so far as to describe the TV ""the best home-entertainment display in America." Strangely there's no mention of the TV's built-in 3D capabilities and still no pricing information for the fabled 73-inch model, but it's only a matter of time. Check to full review at Time, though it's of a distinctly non-technical flavor (prepare lots of overly descriptive asides about his neighbor's "man cave"). The important thing is that this TV apparently is as good as it sounds. [Time - Thanks, Josh!]

Do you have a home with lots of birds?  Well, you can refer to this DIY on how to make a birdie food shack so you can watch your birds close-up and help them eat nutritious foods.

we’ve been wanting to get a bird feeder to hang outside our living room window for some time now. (hopefully it won’t drive our cats nuts!) this little feeder was inexpensive and easy to make, and we were able to customize it with paint to look like a little snack stand at an amusement park!

via designspongeonline

Brought to you by: Zedomax.com

DIY - How to Make a Birdie Food Shack!

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