Hasta La Gadget!

Rumors of a Facebook phone flared up on Sunday, thanks largely to a TechCrunch post titled Facebook is Secretly Building a Phone. The story goes that two of the company’s high-level employees, Joe Hewitt and Matthew Papakipos were holed up at the social network’s headquarters working on a so-called “Facebook Phone.”

Facebook was quick to deny the rumors–sort of. A spokesperson for the popular social network told the press, “the story, which originated in Techcrunch, is not accurate. Facebook is not building a phone. Our approach has always been to make phones and apps more social.”

The spokesperson went further, stating, “The bottom line is that whenever we work on a deep integration, people want to call it a ‘Facebook Phone’ because that’s such an attractive soundbite, but building phones is just not what we do.”

The second quote is telling. It’s a non-denial denial of sorts. The company may not be working on a “Facebook Phone” in so many words, but that still allows for the possibility of a handset built around the social network and, potentially, a Facebook-branded phone.

And anyway, the original rumors didn’t really have the company creating the hardware itself. Facebook was said to be working with a third-party manufacturer on that part, not unlike the partnership with HTC that result in the Google Nexus One.

A new round of rumors have named a partner: London-based manufacturer INQ. The new rumors, championed by Bloomberg, upped the ante a bit, suggesting that Facebook and INQ are actually working on two handsets.

Bloomberg’s source? Three people “familiar with the matter.”

The handsets are said to be slated for the first half of 2011 in Europe and the second half in the U.S. AT&T is reportedly considering picking up the devices, but has yet to definitively decide whether or not it will carry the devices.

Photo credit/permission courtesy Marco Arment at Marco.org

The Kindle 3 is a deceptively capable device, but Amazon doesn’t, by default, give you access to a lot of what’s going on under the hood. (The “Settings” menu only has three choices.) This is why some users pop that hood using jailbreaking tools — tools that work on the Kindle 3.

I haven’t taken this step with my new Kindle, but I have read in detail the MobileRead forum posts announcing that the Kindle 3 has been jailbroken and describing how (and why) to do it. Here is a short list of why Kindle users jailbreak their device:

• Installing custom fonts, including support for Asian-language scripts;
• Installing custom screensavers;
• USB networking, or tethering.

All of these hacks risk bricking your Kindle and violating Amazon’s terms of service, but only the last might really cause you problems. Amazon’s free 3G networking (assuming you’ve got a 3G-capable device) is intended to be used for Amazon’s services only, i.e., the Kindle store and the built-in web browser.

Again, read the forums carefully, and do some deep soul-searching and gut-checking before you try any of this out. For now, I’m still pretty happy that I’ve got an easier way to enter in numbers using the built-in keyboard: Press “Alt,” then a key on the top row (Q=1, W=2, etc.). See also this great list of Kindle tips and keyboard shortcuts, again courtesy A Kindle World’s Andrys Basten.

See Also:

• How to Do (Almost) Everything With a Kindle 3
• How to Pick a Kindle Case
• Kindle Software Update Adds Twitter, PDF Zoom, Sharper Fonts …
• Photos: Putting Kindle 2 and Kindle 3 Head-to-Head
• You Can Read Manga On Your Kindle With Mangle
• Why Does the New Kindle Have A Microphone?

Sonos is using the CEDIA conference over in Atlanta to launch a new Apple-friendly product, the Sonos Wireless Dock. The dock lets users connect iPhones and most models of iPods to the company’s high-end Multi-Room Music System.

Sonos’s Wireless Dock works with the iPhone 4, iPhone 3Gs, iPhone 3G, iPod touch (1st, 2nd, and 3rd generation), iPod classic, and iPod nano (3rd, 4th, and 5th generation). The device has been Apple certified.

It wirelessly transfers music stored on the Apple devices to the Sonos Multi-Room Music System. It’ll be available at the end of next month for $119.

That Blockbuster hadn’t filed for bankruptcy earlier has really just sort of felt like prolonging the inevitable. The movie rental chain has struggled in recent years, thanks in no small part to companies like Netflix, Redbox, and a slew of digital-only streaming and download services.

Blockbuster has struggled to compete, introducing its own digital and by-mail services, but it has continued to face slipping market share and store closures.

The company officially filed a Chapter 11 petition on Monday in a Manhattan court. Blockbuster is looking toward recapitalization, in hopes of cutting its staggering $1 billion debt down to $100 million.

Blockbuster expects to keep all of its 3,000 retail locations open (which employ roughly 25,000 people), during the restructuring. It will also be “normal” business for the company’s DVD vending kiosks, digital download, and mailing services.

In a press release issued today (not surprisingly lacking the word “bankruptcy” in its headline), Blockbuster CEO Jim Keyes had this to say,

After a careful and thorough analysis, we determined that the process announced today provides the optimal path for recapitalizing our balance sheet and positioning Blockbuster for the future as we continue to transform our business model to meet the evolving preferences of our customers. The recapitalized Blockbuster will move forward better able to leverage its strong strategic position, including a well-established brand name, an exceptional library of more than 125,000 titles, and our position as the only operator that provides access across multiple delivery channels – stores, kiosks, by-mail and digital. This variety of delivery channels provides unrivaled convenience, service, and value for our customers.

He wouldn’t be a corporate executive, if he didn’t use the word “leverage” at least once in every on-the-record cxomment.

Senior Noteholders are offering up $125 million in financing, the help Blockbuster maintain operations during recapitalization.

There’s something so romantic about just-a-little-bit-too-expensive ear buds, a product that’s easily worth every penny and yet easily lost, easily misunderstood, and incredibly difficult to rid of ear wax. Shure is adding a new model to its hallowed line of ‘buds, the new SE315 Sound Isolating Earphone. The headphones have a single MicroDriver, as opposed to the dual drivers in the SE425 and triple drivers in the SE535, but otherwise is very similar to those family members, including the investment-protecting detachable cables. Oh, and of course the price it a good bit more attractive, with a $200 retail price, while the SE425 and SE535 go for $300 and $500, respectively. Still, attractive enough? We’ll leave the handwringing to you.

Continue reading Shure SE315 Sound Isolating Earphone offers detachable cables on a ‘budget’

Shure SE315 Sound Isolating Earphone offers detachable cables on a ‘budget’ originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 23 Sep 2010 09:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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