The Sharper Image at one time employed 2500 people and had a thriving catalog business along with what were, at the time, innovative retail stores specializing in high-end electronics and gifts. Early in 2008 the 30 year-old company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, closed all its stores and continued to operate as a remnant of it’s former self, distributing a limited number of items through retailers such as Macy’s and Dillards, and as a department under the Amazon brand.
The company released a new product on Thursday that may - or may not - signal brighter days ahead for the former cutting edge gear purveyor. Their breakout product, slated to demo at Macworld 2009, is called the “SoundBag,” a top-of-the-line backpack designed to transform the listening experience for commuters, travelers and digital music lovers.
Featuring patented “flatpanel” sound technology designed by The EnE Group, “the SoundBag embodies The Sharper Image’s reputation for innovation, form and function that translates to a terrific user experience,” according to Federico de Bellegarde, vice president of Licensing at The Sharper Image.
With marketing material using terms such as “audiophile” and “surround sound,” the backpack can store and connect any portable digital device — including MP3 players, iPods and iPhone units — to a patented flat panel speaker, which is cleverly both part of the backpack or may be detached and used independently.
A 3.5mm mini-plug in the shoulder strap links the media player to the speaker and a protective clear covering allows access to the player’s controls without having to remove it. The detachable speaker also features a built-in stand and auxiliary input that enables users to play other audio sources, such as a portable DVD players and notebook computers. The speaker offers 8-10 hours of playback powered by three AA batteries.
Suggested retail for the SoundBag is $99. If it produces “audiophile” quality sound at that price, perhaps the Sharper Image will live again.
Via PRNewsWire
Written by Lonnie Lazar | Source: http://cultofmac.com
on December 5th, 2008 with no comments.
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Here’s a demo video for Star Walk, the astronomy app for iPhone and iPod I posted on yesterday. The more I look at this app, and the more glowing comments it gets from both reviews on iTunes and CoM readers, the more I wish I’d paid a little better attention in my college astronomy class.
Thanks to reader Cliff for sending it in!
Written by Lonnie Lazar | Source: http://cultofmac.com
on December 5th, 2008 with no comments.
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Roaming charges were the two dirtiest words in mobile telephony for the longest time. Without getting into the technical details, they referred to the gargantuan spigot mobile service providers were authorized to open, sluicing cash from your financial reserves whenever you wished to make a call outside your regular plan’s designated service area. A 5 minute call back home to check on the kids during a weekend getaway to the mountains could end up costing as much as a full night in a fancy place where they put mints on the pillows at night.
As calling plans have become more “unlimited” in nature and providers’ service coverage areas have expanded, domestic roaming charges have become all but a thing of the past. But mobile service providers are ever loathe to give up easy money when they can get it, and nowhere is the money easier today than charging unsuspecting mobile data users outrageous fees for attempting to access data, such as email or web browsing on smartphones, especially when domestic users try and use their phones overseas.
Follow after the jump to hear how bad it can get and find out what you can do to avoid getting sore in all the wrong places.
iPhone users (legitimate ones, anyway) are required to purchase a data plan as part of their service package with AT&T. Unlimited data for original iPhones costs $20 per month, for 3G users it’s $30, ostensibly because the 3G connection is faster and 3G users will use the data network more often, but, whatever - that’s just the way it is.
But your AT&T voice and data pricing is good for the US only. Never mind that the GSM iPhone will work overseas - unless you plan ahead, you can plan on coming home to some whopping usage charges if you use your iPhone outside the US.
Writer John Biggs tells a tale of woe at CrunchGear, bemoaning AT&T’s nearly $20 per MB charges for accessing data overseas, and he ultimately implied you should consider jailbreaking your iPhone before using it internationally so you can use a pre-paid SIM card or a MaxRoam or Rebel SIM card.
Aware, perhaps, how easy it actually is to jailbreak any iPhone, and wary of the inescapable logic that some users might really follow through on the idea of using alternative SIM cards, an AT&T representative replied to Bigg’s post with a comprehensive list of options the mobile services giant has to help people avoid the pitfalls of easy money, uh, international roaming charges. To wit:
“We advise customers to either call 611 or visit www.att.com/wirelessinternational to check availability and rates – including special voice and data discount plans. (For example, there are a number of data “bucket” plans that offer significantly reduced rates in many countries.)”
“Consider purchasing an international data package, which can significantly reduce the cost of using data abroad. You can sign up for a package before you travel and de-activate it when you return. AT&T offers Data Global plans with low rates in 70 countries.
$24.99 per month - 20 MB package
$59.99 per month - 50 MB package
$119.99 per month - 100 MB package (iPhone only)
$199.99 per month - 200 MB package (iPhone only)
· iPhone users, make sure you click on the link on the wireless page specifically for you (http://www.att.com/wirelesstraveltips)
· Visit www.att.com/travelguide to build a customized itinerary for up to 10 international destinations including cruise ships. Your itinerary will spell out you where your phone works and what the costs are.
· Our wireless network operates on the GSM world standard, which allows you to easily connect around the globe using your AT&T mobile phone. We currently offer wireless voice coverage in more than 200 countries and wireless data coverage in more than 150 countries. Of those, AT&T data plan subscribers can access ultra-fast 3G mobile broadband services in more than 60 countries.
· AT&T’s specialized international help desk is available for problems or questions while traveling outside the U.S. by calling +1-916-843-4685, a free call from your wireless phone.”
The penultimate paragraph of that answer from AT&T is worth reading again and considering. In this modern age, the evolution of communication technology is breaking down all barriers of time and space. As never before, you can use the Internet to make a phone call, even a video phone call, to someone on the other side of the globe and they can sound and look as though they are with you in the room. It’s the beautiful magic of 1s and 0s and because of the way the Internet is interconnected the distance between endpoints is of little to no consequence to the cost of transporting the data.
Call me a communist, but if I have an unlimited voice and data plan with AT&T, and AT&T operates a global network on a world standard that makes it easy for me to connect around the globe using my AT&T mobile phone, why should it matter whether I’m reading my email from inside a Starbucks in downtown San Francisco or from inside a Starbucks on Koh Samui, Thailand?
It shouldn’t, of course, but AT&T -as does every mobile service provider- loves them some easy money.
Written by Lonnie Lazar | Source: http://cultofmac.com
on December 5th, 2008 with no comments.
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Below is today's roundup
of news and blogs that haven't yet hit top story status by our community. Visit
Apple iPhone news and blogs for even more
news and blogs converage.
•
AT&T Defies Slump With IPhone, Coaxes People to Spend (Amy Thomson/Bloomberg) --
from Techmeme Firehose
•
Meizu M8 gets stripped of its shell, dignity --
by Chris Ziegler from Engadget
•
Rumor: 4GB iPhone at Wal-Mart for $99 --
by Shawn McBee from iPhonefreak
•
Patch: Push Notifications added to iPhone firmware 2.2.1? --
from iPhone News
•
iPhone apps: Babelingo Travel Phrases, iCompta, iDrum --
from iPodNN | The iPod News Network
•
iPhone apps: Babelingo Travel Phrases, iCompta, iDrum --
from MacNN | The Macintosh News Network
•
Flickr revamps mobile features --
from IT Industry Today: iPhone News
•
Flickr revamps mobile features --
from Music Industry Today: iPhone News
•
Flickr Gets Flashy With New Video-Enabled Mobile Site --
from Music Industry Today: iPhone News
•
Nokia further reduces forecast --
from IT Industry Today: iPhone News
See complete
Apple iPhone news, blog, video, and photo coverage at Boxxet.
Written by Apple iPhone - best news, blogs, videos, photos and more - Boxxet | Source: http://www.boxxet.com/iPhone/
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Written by lionel@macbidouille.com (Lionel)
One could imagine that Apple can integrate one of these chips in a forthcoming version of the iPhone. Currently, this has 128 MB of RAM. To double this memory could bring more fluidity, especially with the arrival of increasingly complex applications.
Original story at
HardMac.com
.
View our complete collection of news and blogs, plus related videos, photos and more at
Boxxet: Apple iPhone.
Written by Apple iPhone - best news, blogs, videos, photos and more - Boxxet | Source: http://www.boxxet.com/iPhone/
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