Pod People Get A Sight For Sore I’s (New York Post)
Keep the “i,” hold the “Phone.” Apple’s next-generation iPod, expected to be unveiled this week, will mimic the touch-screen look and feel of the popular iPhone, insiders say.
You can catch me on National Public Radio tomorrow (Tuesday) morning! I’ll be on the daily news show “Day to Day - Midday Magazine“.
NPR contributor Alex Cohen asks me why Apple didn’t include instructions with its $600 iPhone, if customers have been supremely baffled and what motivated me to write The Pocket Idiot’s Guide to the iPhone. It was a fun, honest interview.
Broadcast times vary based on your outlet (most seem to run the hour-long program between 9 am and noon), but don’t worry if you miss the radio show. On Tuesday you can listen online at NPR.org. After Tuesday, go to NPR’s “Day to Day” archive, click “August 14th” on the calendar to listen online. Finally, iTunes listeners can go to the iTunes Store, search for “NPR Day To Day Midday Magazine” and download the August 14th episode.
You can grab the iPhone book through the link on the right-hand column.
Update: A direct link is here.
Nintendo and Apple Platforms Are Gaming Each Other
Two of the hottest tech companies - Nintendo and Apple - appeared headed for a showdown after Nintendo moved to patent its tilt sensitivity on its best-selling portable system, Nintendo DS, essentially to turn it into a mobile Nintendo Wii.
Profits to Come In Gobs For Jobs
The millions of early adopters who will buy an iPhone over the next several months will be helping Apple continue one heck of a profits winning streak.
Sony Plans PSP Phone
Embattled Sony is making a move to reverse extremely disappointing sales of its PSP game system. The electronics giant has filed for a patent to add a cellphone to the next generation of PSPs.
Due later this month, the AT&T-exclusive iPhone has Verizon and the other major carriers going through the stages of grief.
Good news: Penguin will be releasing my third book, The Pocket Idiot’s Guide to the iPhone, on August 7th! It will be the first book available on the iPhone. As with the best-selling Pocket Idiot’s Guide to the iPod, the new book is good enough for the tech savvy and gentle enough for the tech challenged. And, at $9.95, it won’t hurt your budget after buying the premium iPhone!
Want the latest news on the iPhone? Keep an eye on the New York Post Sunday business section where I’ll be doing plenty of articles leading up to the “late June” iPhone release. Check out the May 20th article on the iPhone’s cryptic delay. Be sure and read the business section this Sunday to hear what Apple’s competitors are doing to quiet the iPhone buzz.
You may have caught my satellite radio feature and grimacing mug in May’s Family Circle (yes, that one). They were open to doing a nice satellite radio primer for moms. I look forward to working with them again soon.
Finally, the June issue of Playboy has my reviews of the hottest cell phone games.
The best part? For exactly one week, I was in the newsstand issue of both Playboy and Family Circle. I could happily retire right now.
You can pre-order The Pocket Idiot’s Guide to the iPhone from Amazon today. Thanks for your support!
Fans are checking when their current cellphone deals run out - and many are opting for Cingular to be eligible for the iPhone.
Apple CEO Steve Jobs gambles brand rep with iPhone 2.0.
The annual Consumer Electronics Show brings more than 100,000 geeks to Sin City (the overlapping Adult Entertainment Expo helps, too). Here’s the music tech you should be bumping this year. – Damon Brown
*iPhone (June, $499 for 4 GB and $599 for 8 GB) – Apple blew away the show (as usual) with its tiny smartphone. The device is all screen: 3.5†of full-color touchscreen goodness, complete iPod compatibility and Blackberry-like keyboard functionality. The Safari web browser keeps you online, while Visual Voicemail allows message organization without listening to every saved voicemail. The quad-band GSM format provides extensive coverage worldwide. The 2 megapixel camera flows into iPhoto. At press time Cingular was the only provider. We suggest you get in line now.
*Boynq Vase USB Speaker (Available now, $29 and up) – Don’t give your compact laptop some clunky speakers. Try the Boynq line of sleek sounds, the best looking being the curvy vase design. It’s USB powered, so no AC plug is required, and emits a pink or amber glow when on.
*Altec Lansing inMotion iMV712 (Available now, $349.95) – Video iPods are great, but suck battery life quicker than an episode of Scrubs. The iMotion station has an 8.5†high resolution LCD panel, neodymium (e.g. powerful) speakers and a built-in subwoofer. The small size fits easily into any crib.
*Altec Lansing PT7031 (Available now, $599.95) – If these speakers are any indication, regular surround sound is officially old-school. One slim wireless bar, carrying the left, right and center speakers, fits on your TV. The other bar goes behind your head. The whole package is clean, efficient and powerful.
*Repose Wireless Sound Seat (Available now, $599) – Entertainment seats come a dime a dozen, but this one supports your music and your video games. Five 2.1 surround sound speakers, including a subwoofer below, and a USB and iPod connector come standard. The velvety cover and cup holders complete the laziness.
*Atlantic EGO Waterproof iPod Case (Available now, $199.99) – Take your iPod to the beach or in the shower with this fully self-contained package. Batteries keep the four embedded speakers running for about 30 hours. And the sturdy case is actually made of bulletproof glass, which might help if you get shot at.
*MOTOMING (Availability and price TBD) – Looks like the iPhone has a little competition. This thin bad boy is all touch-screen operated – no keys – and sports FM radio, Real Player and multiple music format support. A removable microSD memory card makes storing additional tunes easy.
*Coby PMP-4330 (Available now, price TBD) – The PMP should be renamed the P.I.M.P. The small device plays almost any media, including text documents and FM radio, connects to home theater systems and packs a 30 GB hard drive. The 4.3†widescreen LCD doesn’t hurt, either, and data management is a snap.
*Sonos Digital Music System (Available now, $999.00 and up) – Pump your favorite Internet, PC or Mac music throughout the house without drilling holes or running wires. Mix and match the ZonePlayer 80 and ZonePlayer 100 speakers, wirelessly connect them throughout and control it all via remote.
*Delphi SkyFi 3 XM Satellite Radio (Available now, $220) – Miss your favorite XM program? The portable SkyFi 3 TiVos your satellite radio shows as you listen and can rewind them up to 30 minutes. It also holds up to 600 songs on its microSD card – the first satellite radio to pack removable memory.
Damon Brown writes about sex, technology, music and video games for Playboy, New York Post and Family Circle, and is the tech columnist for AARP Online and PlanetOut. He is the author of several books, most recently Porn & Pong: How Grand Theft Auto, Tomb Raider and Other Sexy Games Changed Our Culture.
Damon has a Masters in Magazine Publishing from Chicago’s Northwestern University and a degree in Journalism and Computing from Detroit’s Oakland University. The Jersey native considers New Orleans, Chicago and Lansing (Michigan) his hometowns, but recently established his secret headquarters in Southern Northern California. Reach him at browndamon at hotmail dot com.