Greg Sandoval, senior writer for CNET News, has been covering the story of the iPhone 4G prototype.

(Credit:
Greg Sandoval)

We’re all wondering what’s going on with the story of the Apple iPhone 4G prototype found in a Redwood City, Calif., bar and its subsequent sale to Gizmodo. CNET News Senior Writer Greg Sandoval drops by the studio to fill us in on all the latest developments, including who exactly found the phone, how it eventually got into the hands of Gizmodo editor Jason Chen, and why it’s never a good idea to purchase anything you know for a fact is stolen! Unfortunately, “finders keepers, losers weepers” only holds water on the playground.

Wired published an article last week outing Brian J. Hogan as the person who found and sold the iPhone prototype to Gizmodo, but CNET also learned that he had help finding a buyer for the device from Sage Wallower, a UC Berkeley student who attended Santa Barbara City College with Hogan.

The investigation is still ongoing (San Mateo County police still have Chen’s computers), but Greg tells us felony criminal charges are still a very serious possibility since a California law specifically states that “any person who knowingly receives property that has been obtained illegally can be imprisoned for up to one year.”

We also have a collection of silly stories to even out the show in the second half, including a very discomforting story about an unlikely pairing between a 59-year-old Chinese man and a 20-inch long eel. We can’t go into much detail, but there’s a very important lesson to take away from it all, and that is to never, ever pass out in front of your friends.

Finally, Roger Ebert has written an open letter to the public decrying the concept of 3D movies as a way of life. His points are direct and address many of the issues we’ve already discussed with David Katzmaier, senior editor of TVs and home theater for CNET.

(Credit:
Gizmodo)

Ebert claims that the 3D element, even in popular movies like “Avatar,” add nothing essential to the moviegoing experience. It also doesn’t help that these movies often cause nausea and headaches for people who just want to be entertained for two hours, not to mention the inflated surcharges that theaters tack onto already expensive tickets. Listen in to hear our take on the future of 3D movies and home theater.

Big thanks to Greg for taking time out of his schedule to join us on today’s show. If you have a question for us or simply want to comment on the show, give us a call at 1-866-404-CNET or e-mail the404(at)cnet(dot)com. Thanks for listening!

EPISODE 573

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Originally posted at The 404 Podcast