Full Page Wall Street Journal Ad - SanDisk 16GB MicroSDHC

Today’s Wall Street Journal contains a full page ad announcing the SanDisk 16GB MicroSDHC card.  The ad caught my attention because the top half shows only an actual size microSD card with the following caption in red ink: “innovating the impossible.”  The bottom half of the page contains the following:

“From the inventor of flash memory cards comes the first and only 16GB memory card for mobile phones.

“With room for up to 7 hours of video + 2,000 songs + 1,200 photos, the 16GB SanDisk card is compatible with millions of mobile phones worldwide and works seamlessly with microSD-enabled MP3 players, digital cameras, personal computers, new car and home entertainment systems, and other devices consumers already own.  Available at local electronics and mobile retailers, the 16GB card is revolutionizing the way consumers are.able to use their phones.

“‘Handsets have become far more than just phones-they’ve become mobile jukeboxes,
mobile offices, ,even mobile movie theaters. Flash memory cards have increased in
storage capacity, but even an 8GBcard may be too small for anyone with GPS map data,
a few movies, a game or two, a presentation file and other applications. There is an
acute need for more mobile storage capacity. 16GB gives consumers the ability to carry
their digital content with them and still have room to do more with their mobile phones.’
–Avi Greengart, Research Director for Mobile Devices at Current Analysis.

“It’s another industry-changing innovation from the company that pioneered the digital film market and sells more flash memory cards than anyone else in the world.”

What I find personally intriguing is the coincident comment from Woz that, “The iPod has sort of lived a long life at number one. Things like, that if you look back to transistor radios and Walkmans, they kind of die out after a while. It’s kind of like everyone has got one or two or three. You get to a point when they are on display everywhere, they get real cheap and they are not selling as much.”

If Microsoft delivers on their recent hint to put the Zune player software on Windows Mobile and you can then add 16GB of memory to your Windows Mobile phone, does the iPod fade away?

What do you think?

One iPod Reference Too Far

One accepts a certain amount of bias in journalism, especially areas that depend so heavily on the opinion and viewpoint of the journalist. Consider it an occupational hazard…reviewers have favorites, pundits have blind spots, analysts have pre-conceived ideas…it’s just human nature after all.

Normally I don’t really allow the persistent and kneejerk Anti-Microsoft/Pro-Apple bias that exists in almost all tech journalism to bother me overly much. When I note that even the mainstream press feels the need to note his negative reaction to MobileMe was the first Apple product that Walt Mossberg at the Times has panned since 1999, I roll my eyes. When it is reported that  high profile reporters who favor Apple get preferential treatment in Cupertino and face time with Steve Jobs while any one who writes things Steve doesn’t like get ignored, I chuckle at the way the stories are tilted to make it seem like Jobs is just being endearingly puckish, like a 5th grader writing his best friends list. When endless tech forums fill up with blind adoration for any Apple product (“OMG, look at how WHITE the new earbuds ARE…WTFBBQ they are bootiful!!!”) and automatic hatred for anything produced by Microsoft (sorry, I mean Micro$oft) I shrug. I even laugh out loud as I watch the Apple fanboys turn their ire on Google over the Android phone, because, well, it isn’t made by Apple.

However, even I have my limits…even I can be pushed too far by the bias and poor reporting over the new iPod releases.

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iPod Touch 2G and iPod Nano 4G Guided Tours

Thanks to Gadgets on the Go, here are a couple videos of the 2G iPod Touch and the 4G iPod Nano.

iPod Touch

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i-Kit iPhone FM Hands-free car kit & FM transmitter

I should probably let you know that I am the master of Jerry-rigging stuff. A few examples: I have a  screw/ring that I use to tune one of the broken machine heads on my 1939 Johann Nurnberg double bass… I have two broken guitar pedals that that I use to balance and  prop up the front feet of my 1970 Fender Rhodes organ (that is missing one of the leg extenders)… For years, I used a toothpick to hold in the bass boost button on my home stereo… the list goes on and on.  It’s just who I am and how I operate. I am cool with it.

Even though I am fairly practical about form/function and am usually forgiving when it comes to aesthetics, I also don’t want you all to think that  I am not capable of appreciating something that is beautiful or works well. On the contrary, I’d pimp any Harold Van Doren object, any day of the week. I can appreciate something that is elegant or makes it easy on you, while not always requiring it. I’m kind of “Jekyll and Hyde” like that. Dig?

So when I received the MediaGate i-Kit FM Hands-free car kit & FM transmitter to review, at first I think I questioned if I needed it, but after about 2 days, I really began to appreciate it. Now, I am not trying to say it’s beautiful, like a Van Doren scooter or anything, but for $50-$60 it looks reasonably good and works pretty well. It definitely makes it easy on you, if you want to screw around with your iPhone/iPod in the car.

In a nutshell, the i-Kit is an FM transmitter for you iPhone/iPod that transmits the output of your device, wirelessly, to your car stereo, while at the same time keeping it charged. It has a couple of other extra features too, so lets just go ahead and list them all.

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The Countdown Begins

In approximately 60 hours I will see my favorite band of all time, Rush, perform at the United Center in Chicago.  That will be the first of two shows I see.  The next one is June 27th at Milwaukee Fest.  I decided to use technology to prepare myself for the shows.  Here’s how.

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authorSTREAM Launches Tool to Let Users Share PowerPoint Presentations on YouTube, Blogs and Web Sites for Free

New Service Also Lets Users View Slide Shows on Apple iPod Devices

authorSTREAM, a place to share and discover presentations created with Microsoft PowerPoint software, enhanced its service by adding features that allow users to post presentations to any video-sharing platform, such as YouTube, and view on Apple iPod as well as other handheld devices.

“Business professionals, students, educators, trainers and other people create billions of presentations in PowerPoint format each year and then struggle to find an easy way to share their important content with others,” said Harman Singh, chief executive officer, authorGEN Technologies, the company behind authorSTREAM. “We’re giving millions of PowerPoint users a solution. They no longer have to send files, only post them to authorSTREAM.com to inspire, educate and persuade any audience, anywhere on the Web. There’s no easier way to share presentations.”

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Pocket a 4GB iPod nano for $99 shipped

Remember the book, “How to do Everything with your Dell Axim” ? It was written by Rick Broida. He is blogging over at Crave, a Cnet blog. He post mostly deals he finds online. Today, he has found a really sweet one if you are in the MP3 Player market. Get a 4gb iPod Nano Fatty in Silver for $99 delivered. I prefer the Zune these days, but can’t pass on such a good deal.

Maybe I should have a contest soon for a couple of his books. I still have 3-4 copies of this book around!

Anyhow, head over to Buy.com for this deal!

An iPod nano for under $100?! Sign me up. Buy.com has the 4GB silver model for $99 shipped. No rebates, either! So what’s the catch? These are reconditioned units with a 60-day warranty. If that doesn’t square with you, the Apple store currently has the same refurb nano for $129 with a 1-year warranty.

Source: Crave : The gadget blog

Import Lyrics to iTunes…Fast!

Holy Cow!  I have spent hours finding lyrics online, copying them, then pasting them into iTunes so they’ll show up on my iPod.  Sometimes you just really want to know the lyrics.  But with 3000 songs in my library, this project has turned out to be very time consuming. 

When I ran across an article about LyricSnapper on JAMM I got excited and tried it out.  That software has you play a song for just a couple seconds, then it is supposed to get the lyrics and import them when you terminate the song.  However, even though it’s free, I found it to be wildly unstable.  Sometimes it would pull the lyrics from LyricWiki, but it wouldn’t add them to the id3 tags.  Often it would freeze up, forcing me to shut it down. 

So I searched and found a great solution called iLyrics.  This one allows you to get lyrics in batches.  Check it out:

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Monster Now Shipping the iSoniCast for iPod

Wireless Audio Bridge Lets Users Play iPod Music Over Their Home Stereo System

Monster, a leading manufacturer of advanced consumer electronics accessories, today announced the Monster iSoniCast Wireless Audio Bridge is now shipping. The iSoniCast is a breakthrough wireless device that allows users to enjoy music from their iPod over a home stereo system with no batteries required.

The Monster iSoniCast is a two-piece audio bridge that features powerful 2.4 GHz wireless technology for extended control range and superior sound quality. Intelligent frequency hopping minimizes interference while high-bandwidth 4Mbps streaming eliminates compression artifacts, often found in other wireless technologies such as Bluetooth.

The iSoniCast comes equipped with a two-meter mini-to-RCA cable for hassle-free integration into a home audio system. The sleek design of the base station adds to its attractiveness. The iSoniCast Wireless Audio Bridge retails for $99.95.

Source: Monster press release

Teenagers Can Use iPods to Watch Driving Safety Video in HD for the First Time

Parents can send teenagers for an instructional drive on the ‘real’   Internet Highway without the high cost of gas, stress.

Teenagers can take the iPod out for a drive so to speak, watching real life driving situations on real roads while listening to a professional driving instructor talk about the traffic and approaching situations.

A new website, http://www.teenlivedrive.com, allows teenagers to download video files that play on iPods, iPhones, iTunes and in QuickTime
on desktops and laptops.

“Most schools don’t teach behind the wheel anymore,” says Jim Grimm,
driving instructor and coach at Reagan High School in Austin, Texas. “I
think an in-the-car instructor is best, still an in-the-car instructor online is great, since many kids wind up tuning out a parent.”

“It would take me weeks and who knows how many gallons of gas to drive
my teenagers through all the scenarios at teenlivedrive.com,” says Bernice
Smith, a mother of three teenagers in St Louis, Missouri. “And it’s
especially nice that I can put something educational on the iPod, a player
teenagers live on.”

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Nike + iPod Experience Coming to a Gym Near You

Nike and Apple revolutionized the way people run with Nike + iPod and now the companies are redefining the way people work out by bringing the Nike + iPod experience to gyms around the world this summer.

Nike and Apple are working with major gym equipment manufacturers such as Life Fitness, Precor, Star Trac and Technogym to make their cardio equipment Nike + iPod compatible so health club members can easily track workouts on cardio equipment like treadmills, ellipticals, stationary bikes and stair climbers. Nike + iPod users will simply plug in their iPod nano into the equipment at the start of their workout to automatically record their progress. Users can then connect their iPod with their computer to upload the workout to www.nikeplus.com.

“The Nike + iPod experience revolutionized running. Now we’re revolutionizing the gym cardio experience,” said Trevor Edwards, Nike’s Vice President of Global Brand and Category Management. “We’re enabling people who go to the gym an opportunity to set goals, track progress, and compete in challenges with their friends and with other members of www.nikeplus.com. It’s a groundbreaking tool for people who want to maximize their workouts.”

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Micro CMoy Headphone Amp Review

A few days ago I asked how this mystery item could improve the sound of your mp3 players and headphones.  I will now reveal the mystery.

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iPod shuffle Now Just $49

New 2GB Model Priced at $69

Apple today announced that its iPod shuffle, the world’s most wearable music player, is now even more affordably priced at $49 and that it is introducing a new 2GB model of the iPod shuffle for $69. The popular iPod shuffle is just half a cubic inch in volume, weighs just half an ounce, features an aluminum design with a built-in clip and comes in five colors—silver, blue, green, purple and a (PRODUCT) RED special edition.

“At just $49, the iPod shuffle is the most affordable iPod ever,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide iPod Product Marketing. “The new 2GB model lets music lovers bring even more songs everywhere they go in the impossibly small iPod shuffle.”

The iPod is the world’s most popular family of digital music players with over 140 million sold. The lineup includes iPod shuffle, the world’s most wearable iPod; iPod classic holding up to 40,000 songs*; the incredible iPod nano with video playback and the breakthrough iPod touch with a revolutionary Multi-Touch™ user interface. iPod owners can choose from a vast ecosystem of accessories with over 4,000 products made specifically for the iPod including cases, fitness accessories, speaker systems and iPod connectivity in over 75 percent of US automobiles.

The new 1GB iPod shuffle is available immediately for a suggested retail price of $49 (US) through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. The 2GB iPod shuffle will be available later this month for a suggested retail price of $69 (US) through the Apple Store (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. iPod shuffle requires a Mac® with a USB 2.0 port, Mac OS® X 10.4.8 or later and iTunes® 7.4; or a Windows PC with a USB 2.0 port and Windows Vista or Windows XP Home or Professional (Service Pack 2) or later and iTunes 7.4 or later.

Source: Apple press release

“American Idol” Performances Available Exclusively on the iTunes Store

Music & Video Performances Available the Next Day

Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox Interactive Media, 19 Entertainment, FremantleMedia and Apple, for the first time, have partnered to bring music fans all of the contestant performances from Season Seven of television’s most popular show exclusively on the iTunes Store (www.itunes.com). Kicking off with the “American Idol” Top 24 semifinalists this week, customers can purchase music performances for 99 cents per song, and viewers will be able to purchase the full video of Top 12 finalist performances for $1.99, starting March 11. In addition, beginning today, fans can pre-order performances of their favorite contestants from the iTunes Store, which will be automatically downloaded the day after the show airs.

“We have some truly outstanding talent this year, and by working with Apple and iTunes, we’re giving viewers another great way to enjoy America’s brightest new stars from ‘Idol,’” said Simon Fuller, creator of “American Idol” and Founder of 19 Entertainment. “I’m sure there will be many memorable performances that viewers will want to relive from this 2008 season.”

“We’ve created a special section on the iTunes Store for ‘Idol’ fans with an incredible array of music and video performances from television’s most popular show,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s vice president of iTunes. “We think ‘American Idol’ viewers are going to love the ability to purchase and download ‘Idol’ performances from iTunes.”

iTunes will also provide exclusive direct links from the free streaming performance videos on americanidol.com (www.americanidol.com), the official website of the show and home to MyIdol, the Internet’s largest “American Idol” fan site. Fans will be able to simply click through to iTunes if they want to purchase their favorite performances to own and enjoy on their iPod®, iPhone™ or Apple TV®.

iTunes 7.6 for Mac and Windows includes the iTunes Store and is available as a free download from www.itunes.com. Purchase and download of songs and videos from the iTunes Store requires a valid credit card from a financial institution in the country of purchase. American Idol music and video content is available in the US and Canada only. Music performances are 99 cents (US) and video performances are $1.99 (US) per episode and can be viewed on a Mac or PC, iPod nano with video, iPod classic, fifth generation iPod, iPod touch, iPhone or on a widescreen TV with Apple TV.

Source: Apple press release

Double Trouble… Proporta Dual Skin Silicone Cases

Proporta are certainly the ones who know how to give your device the protection it truly deserves, but offering protection and style at the same time can sometimes be a little trickier. Proporta hit the nail on the head with their Dual Skin Silicone Cases - offering your iPod even more protection than it could ever wish for, and making it funkier than ever before.

Two tough protective skins make up the Proporta Dual Skin Silicone Case and protect your device from scratching and impact damage, as well as complimenting it in a wide variety of colours.

Both silicone layers have all the necessary cut aways enabling access to all ports and controls so that your iPod can still be used when it’s inside the two layers. The upper layer also offers cut outs along the side of your iPod for anti-slip confidence, and a little bit of extra style.

Proporta’s Dual Skin Silicone Cases are available for all the newer members of the Apple iPod family, including the iPhone, iPod touch, iPod classic 80GB / 160GB and 3G iPod nano.

Colors available : white and clear, grey and black, and pink and black

Price: $22.95

Source: email, Hannah Saffman, Marketing and Advertising Executive - Proporta Ltd.