Crave

(Credit: Motorola)

For this weekend, the Crave Giveaway is the Motorola Cliq. It's one of T-Mobile's latest and greatest Android phones, and it scored a four-star rating from Kent German, who noted its "great design," "brilliant display," and "easy-to-use controls and keyboard." Its MotoBlur interface is optimized for fans of social networking and media sites including Facebook, Picasa, MySpace, Twitter, and Photobucket.

Normally, the Motorola Cliq would cost you $449 (with a service plan from T-Mobile, that price drops to $199). But you have the chance to get it gratis.

So, how do you try to win this Motorola Cliq? (Note: no wireless service is included, and you'd need to sign up for a T-Mobile account to get service.) Let me enumerate the basic rules. Please read them carefully; there will be a test.

• Register as a CNET user. Go to the top of this page and hit the "Join CNET" link to start the registration process. If you're already registered, there's no need to register again.
• Leave a comment below. You can leave whatever comment you want. If it's funny or insightful it won't help you win, but we're trying to have fun here, so anything entertaining is appreciated.
• Leave only one comment. You may enter this specific giveaway only once. If you enter more than one comment, you will be automatically disqualified.
• The winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive (1) Motorola Cliq (without wireless service). Approximate retail value is $449.00.
• If you are chosen, you will be notified via e-mail. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.
• Entries can be submitted until Monday, December 7 at 6:59 am EST.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENT OF ONE OF THE 50 UNITED STATES OR D.C., 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER AT DATE OF ENTRY INTO SWEEPSTAKES. VOID IN PUERTO RICO, ALL U.S. TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS AND WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Sweepstakes ends at 6:59:59 AM ET on December 7, 2009. See official rules for details.

Good luck.

Gmail has long had keyboard shortcuts, though learning them can be difficult. Enter the Gboard, a specialized mini-keyboard for Google's e-mail service. It debuts this Friday at an asking price of $19.99.

The Gboard consists of 19 colored keys set in a standard size numpad-only keyboard. Clicking on any one of these performs that particular keyboard shortcut. Included are Gmail-specific features such as starring messages, starting a search, and jumping between message threads. Outside of Gmail they simply act as normal keyboard buttons, and will type in whatever letter or number corresponds with that shortcut.

The device is powered by USB and requires no special software or drivers, however users need to first enable keyboard shortcuts within Gmail's settings before using it. Also worth noting is that it was created not by Google, but by Charlie Mason, a film producer from Venice, Calif. This is his first foray into the computer hardware business.

The Gboard consists of 19 keys, all of which act as shortcuts within Google's Gmail Web mail service.

(Credit: James Martin / CNET)

This really is a product that users will either love or hate. Those who have mastered Gmail's shortcuts will see little need to buy special hardware and find a spare USB port to plug it into. Meanwhile, newbie users may be unwilling to take the plunge on such a specific peripheral for a program that works only within another program (the browser). The Gboard runs the risk of being an unappealing prospect to both parties.

It's also not the first attempt at easing the process of learning and remembering shortcuts. This time last year Google offered users a free pack of color-coded shortcut stickers that could be tacked onto any keyboard. There have also long been specialized keyboards for video and audio editing as well as graphical design--all of which provide similar, color-coded keys. Users who don't want to commit, or tack stickers on their keyboard, also have the option of buying a silicone keyboard mat, though no such thing has been created for Gmail.

Considering there are a total of 69 Gmail shortcuts (with more on the way if Google graduates some of its experimental features from its labs section) the Gboard could just be the first step toward creating a full-size (100 plus key) version. In the meantime, its early December release and low price tag make for a good stocking stuffer if you've got a Gmail lover in your family.

The good:
• No setup required
• Color coding is logical and makes it easy to learn the keys
• Good build quality and feel; keys are flat like on a laptop
• At $19.99 it's not that expensive. Most numeric-only keyboards cost about the same.

The bad:
• Does not come close to including all of Gmail's shortcuts
• Could be rendered less useful if Gmail's shortcuts change
• Only comes in one color (black)

Cisco's release Tuesday of the Flipshare TV brought to mind other overpriced single-purpose devices that have cluttered my computer desk and stereo rack over the years. Like the over-specific kitchen appliances you use once or only once in a while and don't really need in your life (yogurt makers, margarita mixers, hot-dog toasters), there are plenty of technological products that are better at taking up your space and money than providing ongoing value.

Here are my top categories of tech yogurt makers:

The Flipshare TV

(Credit: Cisco)

TV media viewers
Worst example: The Microsoft TV Photo Viewer. Released in 2001, this was a floppy disk drive with a TV output. It was for viewing digital photos on a TV. Of course, if you had a digital camera and a computer, you already had a good way to view photos, and at a better resolution than the TVs of the day. But with the TV Photo Viewer, you could set your parents up with a viewing station for your digital photos.

Great--but then you had to teach them how to use it, make sure it stayed connected to their TV, and worse, crunch your photos down to fit on a floppy and get said floppy to them so they could see the pictures. I tried to set one of these up for my mother. She rolled her eyes and said, "Just mail me the snapshots, dear."

Also in this category, the aforementioned Flipshare TV, a $149 device whose main function can be duplicated by a $0.31 HDMI cable. For that matter, the Flip camera itself is a bit of a one-trick pony. Sure, it's easy to use, but a standard digital camera will also take videos. I have a Flip camera myself and I do love it--in theory. But when I leave the house, I don't want to take a video camera that duplicates only one thing that my point-and-shoot digicam does (and without a zoom lens, no less), so the Flip stays home almost all the time.

Related: The Sandisk Take TV, which was a bunch of wires and parts that let you watch videos stored on SD cards on your TV. It was a great product for all those illegal vids you got from BitTorrent. It, like the the TV Photo Viewer, is no longer sold.

HP's Printing Mailbox for Presto Service

(Credit: CNET)

Other gizmos for your parents
There are more products that seem to exist to tell your parents that they're technological klutzes. The Presto printer, from 2006, comes to mind: It's an HP-sourced photo printer that prints only what you, the loving child, sends to it over the Internet. It can't print from a local computer, and there's a monthly service fee to be able to send to it. Eventually you will grow tired of the one-way sending of photos and articles to the printer, and replace it with a real computer so your loved ones can communicate back to you. Hopefully you'll still have money left for the computer after paying the monthly fee to use the Presto.

My co-worker Molly Wood thinks digital photo frames fall into this category, since nobody ever bothers to update them after they're first loaded with images. But I happen to like these devices, and even if they are never updated, they're unobtrusive and have great gift appeal.

For just $9.99 you can stuff a stocking with the cool, practical HiJack Headphone Splitter Keychain.

(Credit: ThinkGeek)

What do you get for the iPhone user who has, well, an iPhone? After all, the device itself is the gift that keeps on giving. Am I right?

Anyway, I've rounded up five iPhone-friendly items for the holidays. Whether you're shopping for a Secret Santa gift for a co-worker, a stocking stuffer for your hubby (or missus), or something to round out the latter nights of Hanukkah, one of these should fit the bill.

1) A gift card...that later turns into an iPhone stand! Start with any gift card--Starbucks, iTunes (duh), or whatever--then tell the recipient to bring it back to you after it's used up. Following these simple Instructables instructions, do a little waving-your-magic-wand thing and turn that card into a cute, clever, portable, and virtually indestructible stand. Who knew a gift card could keep on giving?

2) The world's best (?) battery pack Blogger Josh Bancroft calls this Monoprice iPhone Backup Battery Pack the "best $15 you can spend," and I'm inclined to agree. For just $15.23 you get a 2200mAh battery, which is good for roughly two full iPhone charges. Just one problem: It's currently on back order. Well, you can always print a photo from the product page, write "coming soon," and stuff that in the stocking.

Sorry, no iPhone included.

For today's holiday giveaway we've serving up one the best portable iPod and iPhone speakers on the market, Altec Lansing's inMotion Classic.

CNET Editor Donald Bell says that while Classic lacks the low-end oomph of a larger system, it sounds "remarkable for its size" and has a built-in rechargeable battery. (Read the full review).

Normally, an inMotion Classic would cost you about $125, but you have the chance to get it gratis.

So, how do you try to win this portable iPod dock? Let me enumerate the basic rules. Please read them carefully; there will be a test.

• Register as a CNET user. Go to the top of this page and hit the "Join CNET" link to start the registration process. If you're already registered, there's no need to register again.
• Leave a comment below. You can leave whatever comment you want. If it's funny or insightful it won't help you win, but we're trying to have fun here, so anything entertaining is appreciated.
• Leave only one comment. You may enter this specific giveaway only once. If you enter more than one comment, you will be automatically disqualified.
• The winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive (1) Altec Lansing inMotion Classic. Retail value is $125.
• If you are chosen, you will be notified via e-mail. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.
• Entries can be submitted until Friday, December 4, at 7 a.m. EST.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENT OF ONE OF THE 50 UNITED STATES OR D.C., 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER AT DATE OF ENTRY INTO SWEEPSTAKES. VOID IN PUERTO RICO, ALL U.S. TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS AND WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Sweepstakes ends at 7 AM ET on December 4, 2009. See official rules for details.

Good luck.

Come back tomorrow for our next holiday giveaway. Tomorrow's prize will be a Motorola Cliq smartphone.

(Credit: U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California)

Start-up Spring Design has been denied an injunction to halt Barnes & Noble from selling its Nook e-reader, according to court documents.

The company had requested the injunction, in addition to monetary damages, as part of a recent lawsuit filed in federal court in San Jose, Calif. The suit charges that the bookseller misappropriated Spring Design trade secrets in the design of its Nook, which launched October 20, the day after Spring Design announced its Alex e-book reader.

The court's decision (PDF), based on a Monday hearing, denies Spring Design's request for a preliminary injunction, but states that a halt to sales could still be appropriate if the plaintiff ultimately prevails. The court also says it will expedite the pre-trial process to accommodate Spring's request for an early hearing.

Barnes & Noble does not comment on litigation as a matter of policy, a company spokeswoman said Wednesday. CNET has contacted Spring Design for a comment and is waiting to hear back.

The Nook, like Spring Design's Alex (which has yet to be released), combines a color touch screen with an e-ink display, and both readers use the Android operating system. In its lawsuit, Spring Design said it showed its plans for the Alex to Barnes & Noble, which showed interest in the product and gave no indication it was working on a similar device.

So sales of the Nook will move forward for now, though not without hitches of a non-legal sort.

Win a $500 shopping spree at Newegg.com!

In my humble opinion, this is one of the best giveaways we've ever done. Why? Well, because thanks to some intrepid work by our reps at Shopper.com, Newegg.com is generously offering up a $500 gift card, which means you get to pick your prize.

In case you don't know what Newegg.com is, it made its name selling computer gear and accessories at really low prices. But now it sells not only computer stuff but tons of electronics, so you're looking at a whole lotta selection.

As for Shopper.com, it powers CNET's price-comparison engine and it's a great site for finding the best prices on products. (See all of Shopper's deals, coupon codes, and rebates).

Normally, a Newegg.com $500 gift card would cost you $500 (duh), but you have the chance to get it gratis.

So, how do you try to win the Newegg.com gift card? Let me enumerate the basic rules. Please read them carefully; there will be a test.

• Register as a CNET user. Go to the top of this page and hit the "Join CNET" link to start the registration process. If you're already registered, there's no need to register again.
• Leave a comment below. You can leave whatever comment you want. If it's funny or insightful it won't help you win, but we're trying to have fun here, so anything entertaining is appreciated.
• Leave only one comment. You may enter this specific giveaway only once. If you enter more than one comment, you will be automatically disqualified.
• The winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive (1) $500 newegg.com gift card. Retail value is $500.
• If you are chosen, you will be notified via e-mail. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.
• Entries can be submitted until Thursday, December 3, at 7 a.m. EST.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENT OF ONE OF THE 50 UNITED STATES OR D.C., 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER AT DATE OF ENTRY INTO SWEEPSTAKES. VOID IN PUERTO RICO, ALL U.S. TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS AND WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Sweepstakes ends at 7 AM ET on December 3, 2009. See official rules for details.

Good luck.

Come back tomorrow for our next holiday giveaway. Tomorrow's prize will be an Altec Lansing InMotion Classic iPod speaker.

A look at one of Square's receipts for Sightglass Coffee, a San Francisco establishment in which founder Jack Dorsey has invested.

(Credit: Square)

Small business is front and center for Square, the new mobile-payments company founded by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey. Previously in a quasi-stealth mode (OK, more like San Francisco's worst-kept secret), Square has now launched in beta, is accepting e-mail requests for preliminary accounts, and has put up a basic Web site to explain the company's premise.

The Square hardware is a small, inexpensive card reader that plugs into the audio jack of a compatible device, including a mobile phone (it's starting with the iPhone and currently has job postings up for BlackBerry and Android engineers). It processes credit card payments, geotags their locations on a map, and e-mails a receipt to the buyer.

"Even though a majority of payments has moved to plastic cards, accepting payments from cards is still difficult, requiring long applications, expensive hardware, and an overly complex experience," the Square Web site explains, talking about how the company premise was hatched when now-executives heard about an artist whose sales were hindered by the fact that he was unable to accept credit card payments.

What hadn't been reported before is that loyalty programs and microdonations are built in as well. Square can track a history of your purchases at a given establishment for discounts and promotions, effectively replacing the buy-10, get-one-free card at coffee shops. Additionally, Square donates a cent of each transaction to a nonprofit organization that the merchant chooses.

CNET first reported the company's name (it had been code-named "Squirrel") as well as some of the details about its business model: low production costs, possibly to the point where the devices can be distributed for free, and profits from transaction fees. (It's not clear whether they actually will make them free.)

Square has set up offices in San Francisco, New York, and St. Louis, with a team of 11 employees announced on the Web site. It's backed by Khosla Ventures and some angel investors.

(Credit: Panasonic)

For today's giveaway, we've got the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZR1 digital camera. When Josh Goldman reviewed it just a few weeks ago, he praised this 12-megapixel megazoom for being simple to use and for delivering excellent performance and photo quality. Normally, the camera goes for between $230 and $280. But the folks at Willoughy's have supplied us with one to give away to our readers for free.

So, how do you try to win this Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZR1? Let me enumerate the basic rules. Please read them carefully; there will be a test.

• Register as a CNET user. Go to the top of this page and hit the "Join CNET" link to start the registration process. If you're already registered, there's no need to register again.
• Leave a comment below. You can leave whatever comment you want. If it's funny or insightful it won't help you win, but we're trying to have fun here, so anything entertaining is appreciated.
• Leave only one comment. You may enter this specific giveaway only once. If you enter more than one comment, you will be automatically disqualified.
• The winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive (1) Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZR1 digital camera. Approximate retail value is $279.95.
• If you are chosen, you will be notified via e-mail. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.
• Entries can be submitted until Wednesday, December 2, at 6:59 a.m. EST.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENT OF ONE OF THE 50 UNITED STATES OR D.C., 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER AT DATE OF ENTRY INTO SWEEPSTAKES. VOID IN PUERTO RICO, ALL U.S. TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS AND WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Sweepstakes ends at 6:59am ET on December 2, 2009. See official rules for details.

Good luck.