Crave

(Credit: Geekspeak)

Looking at that picture on the left, I'm reminded of the days when buying a comic book and keeping it in pristine condition was the most important thing in my life. Didn't matter which comic, either; all of them were treated with the same reverence. Ah, the good old days when I actually thought my comics would be worth something.

It's those first appearances you had to get in on. The most important first appearance took place in 1938 in "Action Comics" No. 1. That was the first appearance of Superman. Today someone will attempt to capitalize on that.

According to Reuters, starting today and ending March 13, a copy of "Action Comics" No. 1 will be auctioned off, and before all is said and done, experts expect bidding to reach extremely high amounts.

The comic, valued at $126,000, was bought by an unidentified seller in 1950 when he was nine years old after begging his father for 35 cents. Good for him that parents in the '50s and '60s who threw out their kid's comics had no idea of their future value. If they had, there would be a lot more of these around and the value would not be so high. So, thank you parents, for your ignorance.

Stephan Fishler, founder of New York's Metropolis Collectibles, will manage the auction of the comic at www.comicconnect.com

(Credit: eBay Motors)

It's no Ferrari, but an original 1956 Aerocar--the first flying car to be deemed street-legal in the U.S.--is listed for sale on eBay. And it's only $3.5 million--if you use "buy it now."

It's presumably in good shape, with the auction stating that its engine was inspected a couple of years ago, but if you plan on flying this car anywhere I'd recommend a tune-up first--the engine hasn't been officially inspected since 1976.

Of course, for that money you could buy a top-of-the-line personal jet as well as a rare super car, but that wouldn't be nearly as neat as this thing. I want it.

As a tribute to the newly released Android G1 phone that runs on a Linux-based operating system, the folks at gOS, maker of gOS 3 Gadgets, decided this week to hand-build an Android G2 PC.

(Credit: gOS)

This custom-built desktop computer is designed in the image of a new "Android." The G2 PC is based on the Via C7-based Nano-ITX board, and comes with an 800MHz processor, 1GB of DDR2 RAM, and 80GB of hard disk storage space. This is not much of a supercomputer, but it's powerful enough that you can do multiple tasks.

As Google's Android G1 is set to introduce cell phone users to all the mobile aspects of Linux, gOS hopes the Android G2 PC will bring the same excitement to households.

And, whose lucky household will it be? It could be yours. The company is auctioning off this special desktop PC on eBay. All proceeds will be donated to DonorsChoose.org via the TechCrunch Challenge.

DonorsChoose.org aims to provide students with the books, technology, and supplies they need. It's the kind of organization that could always use some more funding.

At the time of this writing, the bid for the computer was at $280. Now, that's not much funding at all. The auction will go for another six days, if you want to join and win. But, if you can't wait, you can always donate directly at DonorsChoose.org.

(Credit: Sony Pictures)

Love Spidey? Hate cancer? Of course you do.

Consider this: Stand Up To Cancer [link includes an auto-play video], an organization dedicated to building interdisciplinary teams of experts to focus on solving specific cancer problems, has teamed up with eBay to auction off a number of "celebrity experiences" to raise funds for cancer research.

At the top of the list: a visit to the set of Spider-Man 4 to meet the cast and enjoy a walk-on role, plus a trip to the movie's New York premiere, and designer duds to wear to the show. (At the time of writing, the bid to beat is $5,000.) Or, if you'd prefer, wait until September 5 to bid on a set visit, walk-on role, and tickets to the Los Angeles premiere of Iron Man 2.

Other goodies going on the block in the next few weeks include lunch with Judd Apatow, who will also review your comedy script; a round of golf with Sugar Ray Leonard; and a visit to the set of the CBS Evening News (which is owned by CNET's parent company CBS). Check out the Stand Up To Cancer eBay store for a list of all items in the auction.

All proceeds will go directly to Stand Up To Cancer; consult your tax adviser about tax-deductibility.

(Credit: Leica)

In collaboration with Leica, auction house WestLicht Photographica is looking to fetch $46,600 for a first-series production Leica M8 digital rangefinder. While it is not clear if this camera was the very first unit assembled in its maiden year of 2006, it has the serial number 3100000.

Hardcore fans of the German company are going to have a field day trying to outbid each other in a furious war on June 7 in Vienna to lay their hands on this ultra-exclusive camera. The prize will come in the original M8 box with a certificate of authenticity signed by Leica's CEO, Andreas Kaufmann.

The proceeds from the auction of this shooter will help fund the journalists organization, Reporters Without Borders. The funding will help journalists craft their stories and, where needed, support their families.

Not that we aren't supportive of press freedom (after all, we're on the same side), but we think the money could be put to better use elsewhere, such as quake-torn Sichuan, China, or cyclone-struck Myanmar where natural disasters have already claimed thousands of lives.

(Source: Crave Asia)

Could satellite TV provider Dish Network be planning to build a mobile TV service with its newly won 700Mhz spectrum?

That's the question that many analysts were asking after it was disclosed this week that the company, also known as EchoStar Communications, spent $711 million for a block of licenses in the auction that is ideal for offering mobile broadcast TV, according to a Reuters story.

The much-talked about auction ended Tuesday raising about $19.6 billion for the government. Wireless carriers AT&T and Verizon Wireless won the bulk of the spectrum.

The licenses that Dish bought were in the 6MHz sliver of spectrum called the E-Block. Because these licenses cover such a narrow band of spectrum, it would be hard for Dish to build a broadband wireless service to transmit two-way communication. This means that building a cellular phone or wireless broadband service using this spectrum is nearly impossible. But the spectrum could be used to send communications one-way, making it ideal for services such as broadcast TV.

Qualcomm already owns spectrum that is adjacent to the spectrum that Dish bought. Qualcomm uses its spectrum to deliver its MediaFlo TV mobile broadcast TV service. Qualcomm had also been bidding in the auction and was attempting to get the E-Block licenses. The fact that it wasn't able to get those licenses is a negative for the mobile technology company.

"It makes more sense for one provider to operate both pieces of spectrum," Steve Clement, an analyst at Pacific Crest Securities told Reuters.

Dish hasn't said yet what it plans to do with the spectrum. Some analysts in the Reuters story speculate that it could cost the company between $3 billion and $5 billion to build a mobile TV network. The company said in a financial filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission in February that it might "make investments in or partner with others to expand our business into mobile and portable video, data and voice services."

There's also a possibility the company could work with Qualcomm.

Dish bid on the spectrum through its partner Frontier Wireless.

As News.com's Maggie Reardon has told us, the FCC's ongoing 700MHz auction is proceeding along, albeit a bit slower than the FCC would like.

Much has been made about Google's entry into the bidding process (as Google Airwaves), but the tech giant is hardly the only company onboard. As a review, the other big bidders include AT&T Mobility, Verizon Wireless, Cox Communications, Cablevision Systems, U.S. Cellular, Leap Wireless, MetroPCS, Alltel, and Qualcomm. Also on the list is Vulcan Ventures, which is controlled by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. It's also interesting to see who's sitting out the auction. T-Mobile is not participating, perhaps because the carrier says it already has the spectrum it needs to launch its promised 3G network, nor are Sprint Nextel, Comcast, or Time Warner. Also, it appears that Apple is not bidding, even though it was suggested last autumn that the company was interested in joining the auction.

Unlike in previous auctions, the FCC is not identifying the names of top bidders at the close of each round. Yet, a look at the full list of bidders does reveal a few interesting tidbits. Chevron was one company I didn't expect to see. The idea of an oil company clamoring for wireless spectrum certainly seems a bit odd until you realize that one of the FCC's Cellular Market Areas (PDF) covers the Gulf of Mexico. Maybe it's because Chevron has a few oil rigs in the area that might need to communicate back to the mainland. Or on the other hand, it could be another reason entirely but it's unlikely that Chevron would start its own wireless network. Like Google, I would guess it just wants to own some spectrum. As for the other bidders, it's clear most are communications firms but a few cryptically named entrants caught me eye. There's The World Company (only the world and not the universe too?), I-700 LLC (that sounds like an interstate highway), Continuum 700 LLC, and the 585 Consortium. Five individuals are also the bidding list. They include David Miller, Scott D. Reiter, Jack E. Robinson, Thomas K. Kurian, and Laurence B. Glass (perhaps related to George Glass?). What those folks plan to do with the spectrum if they indeed win is beyond me.

(Credit: Lenovo)

Gail Emms

As promised last summer, Lenovo has opened its first auction for its special laptops bearing the "Cloud of Promise" theme to commemorate this year's Bejing Olympics.

The eBay auction, the first of a series to be held online, began in the U.K. with a limited-edition Lenovo 3000 V2000 laptop autographed by Olympic medalist and badminton star Gail Emms, according to Pocket-lint. The proceeds are designated for the Lenovo Hope Fund charity.

Google is lining up financing to bid on wireless spectrum in the Federal Communication Commission's upcoming 700MHz auction, and it's already built a small high-speed wireless network at its headquarters in Mountain View, Calif., to test out what it could do with the spectrum, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

The Journal cited sources saying the company is planning on bidding in the auction, set to take place early next year. Google has obtained a test license from the FCC that it's using to test technology on a small wireless network on its campus, the article said. And it's supposedly using prototypes of handsets that use the company's newly announced Android software.

The Journal's revelation that Google will bid on the spectrum shouldn't come as a huge shock. Google's CEO Eric Schmidt has said before the company would likely bid in the upcoming auction.

After all the fuss and hoopla surrounding Google and the auction, it would seem ridiculous if the company didn't bid. Google lobbied the FCC hard for rules to be passed as part of the auction that would require license winners to allow open devices on that part of their network.

So what happens if Google actually wins some of this spectrum? That's the big question everyone is asking. It could build its own wireless network to compete against other operators like AT&T and Verizon Communications.

But building and operating a network is hard work and very expensive. I've said from the very first time Google was mentioned as a possible bidder in this auction that I don't think it will acquire spectrum to offer consumer wireless service. It just doesn't fit into the company's business model.

Google develops and delivers applications. It makes money via advertising. And all of this can be done without taking on the expense of becoming a wireless operator.

That said, it makes a lot of sense for Google to lease spectrum to other service providers that can put up the cash to build and operate the wireless service. In this scenario, Google maintains control of the asset without having to deal with the maintenance, management and customer service issues of running the network.

If you think about it, this approach makes a lot of sense given how Google has already positioned itself in the wireless market. The Android software was not designed for any single phone developed by a particular handset maker. It also wasn't designed to operate exclusively on a single carrier's network. Instead it is an open software platform that the company hopes will be on hundreds of different cell phone models running on dozens of carrier networks.

So while I know it sounds a lot sexier to think of Google as an alternative to AT&T and Verizon Wireless, I think it's not very likely. Of course, I could be completely wrong. But I was right about the Gphone not really being a phone, and instead being a software platform.