houston

Microsoft is getting ready to launch two more retail stores, one this week in Atlanta and another in June in Houston.

A new store at the Lenox Square mall in Atlanta will kick off with grand opening ceremonies on Friday at 9:30 a.m. ET and then officially open its doors at 10 a.m.

To bring in potential buyers, Microsoft will offer free wristbands to people who attend the opening ceremonies. The first 150 people to visit the store will receive two wristbands: One will let them attend a May 28 concert by the 2011 American Idol winner … Read more

If you're walking the streets of Houston this week and happen upon a group of very strange, oddly-shaped vehicles, there's a good chance you'll have wandered into the future of efficient cars.

From April 14 to 17, Shell is hosting the Eco-Marathon, a competition that tasks high school and college students with designing, building, and testing highly energy-efficient vehicles.

And the goal that every team that entered the Eco-Marathon is out to achieve this year? To beat last year's winning team, from Laval University in Quebec, Canada, which built a car that gets 2,487.5 … Read more

Houston, nicknamed the Petro Metro for the profusion of oil and gas companies that dot its skyline, is an unlikely host for an electric-car revolution.

But the fourth-biggest U.S. city, which claims the title of the "Energy Capital of the World," is competing with cities like San Francisco to be the nation's electric car capital.

"We are the Petro Metro but we are also a car city," said newly elected Mayor Annise Parker, speaking at an event on February 5 to promote the Nissan Leaf, an all-electric, five-passenger vehicle that can travel 100 miles … Read more

On Wednesday, the Houston Chronicle reported that AT&T is working to improve its mobile broadband coverage in the Houston area. Considering the size of the Houston market, I'm not surprised, but is it working and is the carrier making improvements fast enough?

I spoke to several AT&T customers in the area who all answered that it is not. Their No. 1 complaint is that reception inside homes remains poor, which is interesting considering that AT&T was going to deploy different frequency cellular radios to eliminate such problems. Sure, you can buy a femtocell … Read more

Last Thursday, KPRC Channel 2 in Houston ran a story during its evening news titled Rapper Charged In Wire Fraud Scam. (The video segment can be seen here.) In the segment, reporter Phil Archer details charges against a local Houston rapper, William James Dennis--aka Willie D--who has been accused of a wire fraud scam involving the Apple iPhone. According to Archer's report:

Acting U.S. Attorney Tim Johnson said William James Dennis, 42, who goes by the name Willie D, posed as an electronics salesman and used eBay to establish credibility with international buyers.

Dennis was selling Apple iPhones … Read more

We previously reported on complaints of iPhones being damaged by sweaty workouts and the ensuing customer frustration when Apple responded then insisted those customers had to pay full price for replacements and extend their AT&T contracts.

Now Apple retail stores have adopted a new policy allowing them to charge less to replace water-damaged iPhones. We contacted the Apple store located at The Grove in Los Angeles, Calif. to verify the news. Representatives at the store confirmed that Apple now offers replacement iPhones for $199 (without a contract extension) if the phone has stopped working because of moisture damage.… Read more

Some iPhone owners are claiming that exercise, while good for you, may break your Apple device. Of course, as with most electronic devices, significant moisture can ruin Apple's iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPod. But now, some are saying that water damage may occur during activities as mundane as going for a jog.

This past Monday, KPRC Channel 2 in Houston ran a story during its Ask Amy consumer segment titled Ask Amy: iPhones Sweat Sensitive. (The video segment can be seen here.) In the segment, investigative reporter Amy Davis pursued consumer complaints about iPhones being damaged by sweat.… Read more

In wars of yore, the slit-trench was state-of-the art field sanitation, filled to the brim and then maybe backfilled; but today, when even losers are litigious, it's not a good idea to leave that kind of mess.

Now, the Texas Research Institute for Environmental Studies (TRIES) at Sam Houston State University and PCDworks, a technology innovation firm, have developed a self-sustaining, portable and "smart" wastewater treatment system that promises to take over where the porta-potty leaves off. (PDF)

Housed in the ubiquitous 40-foot shipping container, the Deployable Aqueous Aerobic Bioreactor (DAAB,) can convert a battalion's worth … Read more

HOUSTON--"Houston, we have a problem."

If there is a five-word phrase more recognizable than that in the annals of modern science or space exploration, I want to hear it.

For my entire life, the "Houston" in that phrase was an abstract term, a reference to a disembodied place where people wield God-like powers--or don't, as the case may be--over the astronauts who were themselves abstract to me. I'd never seen them, and I wasn't old enough to have watched any of the mythical rocket launches prior to the Space Shuttle.

But earlier … Read more