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The mobile Internet device: In search of itself

I suppose if I were just in search of controversy, I'd write a post to proclaim the death of the MID (mobile Internet device) category. My obituary for the Netbook earlier this week generated a ton of traffic; I suppose I could do that again. Certainly, the concept of a MID--a device midway in size and capability between smartphones and the smallest notebooks--is under tremendous pressure from both sides.

Customers have learned that with a well-engineered browser, the small displays on phones such as Apple's iPhone and T-Mobile's G1 "Google phone" are sufficient for most … Read more

American Airlines boarding passes go mobile

The idea is instead of the traditional paper boarding passes, passengers will use their mobile phones or PDAs to board an airplane.

American Airlines tried out this new method for the first time on Thursday with passengers leaving on domestic flights from Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.

Starting Monday, mobile boarding passes will also be offered as an option for passengers departing on domestic flights from Los Angeles International and John Wayne Orange County airports.

This is how it works: when buying the ticket online, passengers must provide an active e-mail address to which their boarding pass will be … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 732: Make family, not phone

An amusement park in the U.K. thinks you'll have more fun if they confiscate your smartphone. I think I would not go to that amusement park. I don't care if they say I'll have more fun-- I don't trust them with my iPhone. Also YouTube and Viacom are spatting again, and Brazilian beetles might lead to photonic computing! Listen now: Download today's podcast EPISODE 732

Why Friday audio sucked

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First pictures from Mars Phoenix lander … Read more

Socket SoMo 650-M: PDAs aren't dead

No, you haven't travelled back in time: this is a PDA. It might not do futuristic things like make phone calls, send text messages or take pictures, but if you're not bothered by those fancy features then this might be right up your street. It's called the Socket SoMo 650-M and costs around $670--which we think is ridiculous.

Aimed at the service industry, this rugged Windows Mobile 5 PDA looks retro, but it's extremely sturdy and boasts a large touch screen, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, an Intel processor running at 624MHz, and an SD and CF slot with … Read more

Scoop up e-books on the cheap

I love e-books. For years I've read them on whatever PDA or smartphone I happened to be carrying at the time. (Currently it's a Palm Centro.)

Sure, the screens are small, but you get used to that pretty quickly. For me, nothing beats the convenience of having a good book in your pocket (or clipped to your belt) everywhere you go.

eReader, one of the oldest e-booksellers, was recently acquired by another e-book veteran, Fictionwise. To celebrate, the company just dropped the prices on over 8,000 titles: Every book over $10 has been discounted up to 20 … Read more

Put a keyboard in your pocket, $29.99 shipped

Smartphone keyboards are fine for composing short e-mails and maybe tweaking the occasional Word document. But if you want to get any serious work done on your device, fuhgeddaboudit. Your thumbs don't deserve that kind of punishment. Instead, reach for the iGo Stowaway Ultra-Slim Bluetooth Keyboard, which serves up a full-size set of QWERTY keys and then folds up slim enough to slip into your pocket.

The Stowaway normally lists for $149.99 (ouch!), but Amazon has it on sale for just $29.99--which qualifies it for the store's free Super Saver Shipping. Just make sure you … Read more

Q&A: Micro fuel cell promise

Earlier this year, I did a Cleantech Blog article called "Micro fuel cell killer" talking about the challenges that undermined the promise of micro fuel cells.

Well, now we are looking at the other side of the story. One of my friends, Peng Lim, who is the CEO of Mechanical Technology Inc. (Nasdaq:MKTY), parent company to leading micro fuel cell developer MTI Micro, graciously consented to an interview on what they have done and the general state of play. In other words, what is the current micro fuel cell promise.

Q: Peng, can you give our audience … Read more

Palm's Black Friday deals start today: cheap PDAs!

Remember when the introduction of a new Palm PDA generated the same hype and hubbub as new iPods do today? Alas, those days are over, which may explain why Palm looks to be clearing out the inventory--maybe for good. From now until November 26, you can get a Palm TX for $199 (a $100 savings) or a Tungsten E2 for $149 (a $50 break).

You also get some freebies out of the deal: a hard case with the E2 and a wireless keyboard with the TX. The latter model (pictured) is without question the best PDA Palm ever produced, offering … Read more