Hasta La Gadget!

The new book Vending Machines: Coined Consumerism by Christopher D Salyers (2010, Mark Batty Publishers, New York) contains an interview with CScout Japan CEO Michael Keferl.

Japan understandably features heavily in this photographic survey of the globe’s vending machines, and Michael was happy to provide his expert insight. In the interview he talked about the problems with the Taspo tobacco passport scheme, the marketing potential for RFID tag use in vending machines, as well as the popularity of capsule (gachapon, or ガシャポン) and claw and crane machines in Japan.

This article was written on December 20, 2007 by CyberNet.

I’m sure many of you have heard about Think Secret, the blog which at one point was the place to go to hear all about the latest Apple rumors. The editor of the blog, “Nick de Plume” (an alias for Nick Ciarelli), managed to get tons of inside information right from the mouths of Apple employees. Back in December of 04′, Think Secret reported a rumor that there was going to be a new Mac computer coming out and a new word-processing suite. They were sued for violating trade secret law after publishing that, and then the rumors were confirmed shortly thereafter when Steve Jobs introduced the Mac mini and iWork.

After several years, the lawsuit has finally been settled.  On Think Secret’s site, they explain that an agreement was made that “results in a positive solution for both sides.” I’m not quite sure how this is a positive solution for both because Think Secret will no longer be published. Apple wins, bloggers lose. They haven’t really published much of anything since they were sued, but today is the official end of Think Secret which is sad. I suppose the only positive side to this is that they didn’t have to reveal any of their sources, and he must have had good ones because the rumors were nearly always dead-on.

Imagine if Microsoft did something similar at this point where Blogs play an important roll as an alternative news-medium? It wouldn’t be pretty. What I don’t get is that Think Secret gave Apple free publicity! Apple fans loved to go there to get the latest scoop on what might be coming out of Cupertino and it just fueled their interest. Sure Apple likes to protect all of their upcoming products, but in this situation, I think they went a little too far. What do you think?

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According to a leaked internal document, Apple will now sell you an off-contract iPhone. Previously, you were required to prove that you had an AT&T contract before purchase, or to sign up for one. The iPhones aren’t unlocked, though. They are still tied to AT&T. What this does mean is that you can buy an iPhone and use it without having to sell yourself to AT&T for two years, either by unlocking for use on another GSM carrier, or using it with an existing or pre-pay AT&T contract.

This takes us all the way back to the first days of the iPhone, when the only way to buy an iPhone was off-contract, and unsubsidized. It also gives us a reminder of the crazy prices people were paying back then. The off-contract iPhones will cost you $500 for the 8GB 3G, $600 for the 16GB 3GS and $700 for the 32GB 3GS.

This is unlikely to reawaken the gray export market, which saw US-sourced, contract-free jailbroken iPhones on sale as far away as China: Customers are limited to just one iPhone per day, or five if they do it the old fashioned way and buy the phone with a contract.

The offer hasn’t yet reached the online store, so you’ll need to take a trip to you local Apple Store to do the deal. And one more thing: Those iPhone prices make the iPad look pretty cheap, right?

Buy iPhones Without Contract Now: Official Apple Document Leaked [Gizmodo]

Continue reading Bang & Olufsen announces BeoVision 10 North American Tour

Bang & Olufsen announces BeoVision 10 North American Tour originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Mar 2010 04:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Whoa, now this is a whopper coming (almost) out of nowhere. Nintendo has just slipped out a press release in Japan informing the world that all-new 3D-capable portable hardware is coming, with a full unveiling set for E3 2010 this June. Tentatively titled the 3DS, this glasses-free 3D wonder is pitched as the successor to both the DS and DSi, and will use a “compatible cart” that should ensure backwards compatibility with your vast library of favorites from the older consoles. Nintendo expects to launch the 3DS into retail “during the fiscal year ending March 2011.”

Update: Unofficial reports from Japan suggest the 3DS will have a parallax barrier 3D LCD from Sharp, a vibration function, and a “3D control stick.” Read about it all here.

Nintendo announces 3DS — the glasses-free 3D successor to the DS originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Mar 2010 03:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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