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Comparing Apple's iPad 2 with Motorola's XyBoard and Amazon's Kindle Fire is fraught with peril. But here goes anyway.

Let me preface my review by saying that a few overzealous readers (I'm being charitable with that description) almost invariably call the writer (me) an idiot for not being as savvy and/or perceptive as they claim to be. That's par for the course. But let's get a few things straight here.

First, this isn't an official review. Like the kind you would find at CNET Reviews. Second, I don't favor one manufacturer … Read more

Yahoo's undergoing more changes at its top, with a reshuffling of its board of directors.

In a letter to shareholders today, Yahoo's chairman of the board, Roy Bostock, said that along with fellow board members Vyomesh Joshi, Arthur Kern, and Gary Wilsonhe, he would not seek re-election this year.

Bostock added that to help fill the gap, the board has hired Alfred Amoroso and Maynard Webb Jr. to serve as independent directors. Amoroso was previously the president and CEO of Rovi. Webb previously served as CEO and currently serves as chairman of LiveOps.

Bostock's plans for announcing … Read more

Preparing food creates a lot of waste. It's an unavoidable necessity; meats, fruits and vegetables all have parts that are inedible or undesirable. And that doesn't even bring into consideration the packaging that is necessary to get it all into our kitchens. It's what we do with that waste that we can control. Like make it grow into something beautiful (and delicious).

While it would be nice if all unwanted kitchen items (and cooking experiments) could be planted into the ground, hidden from view until they turned into something useful, sadly, that is not usually the case. … Read more

LAS VEGAS--One of my favorite parts of CES is getting beyond the shiny new smartphones and tracking down the quirky mobile accessories that hide in far corners of the enormous show floor.

Sadly, I had to wait until the last day of CES to start exploring, so I was very fortunate to bump into the founders of CaseInity at the CNET stage (I guess they figured it was a likely place to find CNET editors lurking about).

Based in Philadelphia, CaseInity is developing a unique and very convenient case for the iPhone 4 and 4S called Cord-on-Board. Beyond just protecting … Read more

Yahoo has reportedly hired an executive search firm to find possible replacements for several members of its much-criticized board of directors.

The Wall Street Journal reported today that the Web giant has hired Heidrick & Struggles to help it identify "several new board candidates" who could replace long-term directors that have served on Yahoo's board. The board has faced biting criticism in recent years for rejecting a lucrative takeover bid from Microsoft in 2008, as well as for its hiring--and then its ham-handed firing--of former chief executive Carol Bartz.

The Journal reported that board member Patti Hart … Read more

Sony has knocked $100 off the price of its S series tablet, another sign that non-Apple tablet pricing is trending downward.

The 16GB Tablet S is now $400, reduced from $500, while the 32GB model got cut to $500 from $600.

Specs include a 9.4-inch 1280x800 display, front and rear cameras, Android Honeycomb, 1GB system memory, and eight hours of rated battery life.

Sony is by no means is the first to wield an ax on pricing. RIM's BlackBerry Playbook is the most extreme recent example of tablet price deflation. The PlayBook has been selling--depending on the week--for $300 off its original price.… Read more

The California agency responsible for protecting air quality says it will appeal a decision by a court that blocks enforcement of rules designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and encourage alternative fuel technologies.

The Air Resources Board, part of the California Environmental Protection Agency, adopted the landmark Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCSF) last year. The regulation gives producers and refiners until 2020 to reduce the carbon footprint of their fuel by 10 percent.

Ethanol producers complained that the rules favor in-state producers and refiners because they take into consideration the carbon footprint impact of the transportation of, as well as … Read more

Apple-centric blogs play an important role in disseminating information about what is probably the most important consumer-electronics company in the world. But the coverage is hardly neutral.

While not all that surprising, the FUD factor can get pretty hot and heavy sometimes. You know, that tendency to try to discredit any major threats to Apple's dominance. Namely, Android.

Take the blog Daring Fireball. It offers some solid analysis. But in the end it's a fanboi site, assailing the misinformed or pointing out how wrong or disliked the Android competition is. That kind of attitude gets in the way … Read more

XyBoard tablets will launch at Verizon stores on Friday, as Verizon takes another shot at selling Motorola tablets--now sleeker and faster.

Stores contacted in suburban and downtown Los Angeles Thursday night said "live units" will be available for the first time Friday and units should be available for purchase.

Update: A Verizon spokesman said today that the tablets would be in "all stores by Monday, Dec. 12." But he added that some stores have them and are selling them on Friday. Three stores randomly contacted by CNET in Los Angeles have Xyboards on display and available for purchase. Same for stores randomly contacted in Ardmore, PA and North Dartmouth, MA.

The tablets are a fairly radical redesign. The 10.1-incher is iPad 2-thin (about 9mm) and has squared-off corners. While the 8.2-inch design is a first for Motorola.

Xyboard salient specs:… Read more