Single-Serve Takeaway Wine Glasses Intoxicate Britain

Over in Britain, a nation of binge-drinking alcoholics, there’s now yet another way to get a booze-fix. Marks and Spencer, the kindly uncle of national department stores, is selling a single-serve glass of wine.

The glasses, actually recyclable plastic, come pre-filled with 187ml (6.3-ounces) of Shiraz, Chardonnay or rose and have a peel-off foil lid. They cost £2.25 each ($3.37), which makes them more expensive than buying the same wine by the bottle (four glasses add up to £9, whereas the bottle is £4.50).

The product was invented by an Englishman named James Nash, and ironically his idea, before being picked up by M&S, was laughed off UK reality business show Dragon’s Den by its foolish, short-sighted panel.

The idea of single-serve wine could really take off. In-flight beverage service is the obvious market, doing away with the wastefully separate bottle and cup, but picnics for one could also work well. Sitting in the park with a sandwich, a bottle of wine and a glass will draw in some stares, even if you aren’t dressed like a wino. But with a cold glass (plastic) glass of Chardonnay to accompany your smoked salmon bagel, you’ll be the most sophisticated bum in Union Square. Chin-chin!

Wine Innovations product page [Wine Innovations]

Wine-in-a-glass entrepreneur ridiculed in Dragons’ Den toasts M&S success [Daily Mail via Crave]


Reports of iPhone 4 Antenna-Band Reception Problems Flood In

It usually takes a couple of days before the negative reports about hot new products crop up. People are just starting to receive their new iPhones, and there’s already a slew of online complaints that point to what appears to be one major design flaw in the latest iPhone.

According to numerous reports, holding the phone’s new external antennae
band has the tendency to completely block reception. The issue seems to
have first popped up (as many do) on a Mac Rumor board. Gizmodo put out a call to readers with the new phone and got a flood of responses from
users who seem to be having the same issue.

Perhaps it’s because a product like the iPhone 4 is bound to be under the microscope upon its release–or maybe this is a legitimate concern. Either way, it seem like this is something Apple is going to have to address soon.

Do you have an iPhone 4? Are you having this problem? Let us know in the Comments section.

Keeping it real fake: ePhone won’t shatter when you drop it, might melt in the sun

We’re guessing that there won’t be many tech sites lineblogging outside the Shenzhen KIRF stalls when the ePhone 4GS finally gets a release date. And it’s a shame, really: for knock-off fanatics like ourselves, this thing could be in the big leagues, right up there with the iorgane (that’s pronounced “i-orange,” by the way). Don’t let the industrial design fool you — unlike the real deal, this thing is all plastic, right up to that silver band wrapping ’round the edges. The rear of the unit boasts the Apple logo and 16GB, and while the first designation is definitely inaccurate, we harbor serious doubts about the latter. But what do you expect for $85? Get a closer look after the break.

Continue reading Keeping it real fake: ePhone won’t shatter when you drop it, might melt in the sun

Keeping it real fake: ePhone won’t shatter when you drop it, might melt in the sun originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 11:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple: No White iPhones for at Least Three Weeks

Those of you still holding out for a white iPhone 4 are going to have to be mighty patient. Citing manufacturing problems, Apple has officially stated that the white version of the sellout new iPhone won’t be in stores for another three weeks. Here’s the entire, short press release:

White models of Apple’s new iPhone 4 have proven more challenging to manufacture than expected, and as a result they will not be available until the second half of July. The availability of the more popular iPhone 4 black models is not affected.

My assumption had been that Apple has just switched all production over to the black handset just to keep up with the extraordinary demand. Now it would seem that there is some problem with making the glass case white.

This may be similar to an issue with the old iBook of several years ago. These were made from clear polycarbonate and painted on the inside, presumably to avoid scratches. The trouble was that the paint wasn’t always applied so well. One of mine had a rather patchy finish.

Still, at least now we know how long it will be, and those who want the white iPhone can choose to wait or just change their mind and get a black one. But then, it wouldn’t be a surprise if you had to wait until mid-July for one of those, too.

Statement by Apple on White iPhone 4 [Apple]

See Also:


Free: Serif PagePlus desktop publishing software

It’s the Starter Edition, meaning some features are disabled, but it still packs more than enough power for creating newsletters, flyers, and the like. pOriginally posted at a href=”http://news.cnet.com/8301-13845_3-20008706-58.html” class=”origPostedBlog”The Cheapskate/a/p

Belkin’s AV360 Mini DisplayPort Converter lets you play Xbox 360 on iMac, costs as much as an Arcade

Belkin's AV360 Mini DisplayPort Converter lets you play Xbox 360 on iMac, costs as much as an Arcade

If you’re inhabiting one of those quaint, downtown studio apartments in which your sink, oven, computer, and toilet are all within reach of your swiveling desk chair, and if that computer happens to be a 27-inch iMac, we have good news for you. Belkin has introduced its AV360 Mini DisplayPort Converter, which takes an HDMI input at up to 1080p and squeezes it into a Mini DisplayPort connector at 720p for display on your iMac. It’ll also push stereo audio through and is HDCP-compliant, so even protected content from your Blu-ray player will get by. The cost? $150, which is cheaper than getting a second display, but an awful lot for a converter box with a single input — especially when MonoPrice has similar offerings (which admittedly lack audio and HDCP) for under $10. But, if you don’t have room for anything else, this will fit in nicely with you and your minimalist/affluent lifestyle.

Update: We got it wrong on the MonoPrice reference here. That adapter goes the other way!

Continue reading Belkin’s AV360 Mini DisplayPort Converter lets you play Xbox 360 on iMac, costs as much as an Arcade

Belkin’s AV360 Mini DisplayPort Converter lets you play Xbox 360 on iMac, costs as much as an Arcade originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 10:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mitsubishi 3D TV adapter for its older DLPs now shipping; will not support Samsung

The only adapter that allows older 3D-compatible TVs to work with new 3D formats is now available from Mitsubishi, but it will not work with Samsung TVs.

iPhone 4 Loses Reception When You Hold It By The Antenna Band? [Iphone 4]

This is a reader video found on Macrumors forums illustrating something weird. When the guy holds the iPhone in his hands, touching the outside antenna band in two places, he drops reception. Placing the phone down gets him 4 bars. More »

iPhone 4’s yellow spot issue goes away with a bit of time?

We’re starting to hear a few reports of the dreaded yellow spots disappearing from the iPhone 4’s display after a day or so of use. Interestingly, someone posting on the AppleInsider forums seems to know why:

Apple is using a bonding agent called Organofunctional Silane Z-6011 to bond the layers of glass. Apparently, Apple (or more likely Foxconn) is shipping these products so quickly that the evaporation process is not complete. However, after one or two days of use, especially with the screen on, will complete the evaporation process and the yellow “blotches” will disappear. How do I know? I was involved in pitching Z-6011 to Apple.

If this can be trusted, it’s very good news for those afflicted — though hopefully Apple will keep to its usually painless replacement policy for defective phones either way. We are still seeing some mentions of the spots sticking around, fading in and out based on the heat of the phone, but we’ll give it another day or two to really see how much of a problem is going to be. Let us know how yours fares.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

iPhone 4’s yellow spot issue goes away with a bit of time? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 10:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceAppleInsider forums, Mac Rumors forums  | Email this | Comments

MobileProtect now officially ready to insure your iPhone 4 from everything*

And just like that, it’s confirmed. We’d heard through the grapevine that AT&T may be fixing to certify a third-party to sell an iPhone insurance program, and now it looks as if Asurion has been given the green light by Ma Bell, and not a moment too soon. According to the company, MobileProtect is the “only iPhone (and iPhone 4) insurance to protect against loss or theft (the reason for nearly 50% of phone claims), while also covering water or other liquid damage, accidental damage, and out-of-warranty failure.” Of course, you’ll have to shell out a borderline-ridiculous $11.99 per month for the coverage (and yeah, there’s still a deductible), which is made even more outrageous by the fact that the iPhone 4 and its Gorilla Glass is nigh indestructible. Er, wait…

*Claims of “everything” are subject to interpretation, as anyone who has ever dealt with an insurance company will attest.

P.S. – SquareTrade still works on the iPhone 4, and it’s probably worth considering. Take a look at the price breakdown after the jump.

Continue reading MobileProtect now officially ready to insure your iPhone 4 from everything*

MobileProtect now officially ready to insure your iPhone 4 from everything* originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 09:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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