Friday, December 30, 2011

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Damn It Google, Where Are My Magic Android Lightbulbs? Top
lightbulbBack at Google I/O in May, members of Google's Android team unveiled a new initiative that's going to extend the mobile OS beyond smartphones and tablets — and take us one step closer to Back to the Future II. Dubbed Android@Home, the project aims to bake special hardware and software into a variety of gadgets, which will allow users to control these devices from their Android phones. Think alarm clocks that fade in with your favorite music, lighting systems that blink based on events in the game you're playing, and more. Eventually the @Home project will include everything from home stereos to dishwashers, but the first planned device was something a bit more modest: the lightbulb. At the event, Google said that it had partnered with LightingScience to launch Android@Home LED lightbulbs by the end of 2011. I've been waiting patiently since then, scowling each time I had to get up out of bed to flick off one of my 'dumb' lightbulbs when I should have been able to simply tap a button on my phone. I may have even boasted to my iPhone-toting friends about my impending luminescence superiority.
 
Verizon Wireless Cancels Plans To Charge $2 "Convenience" Fee Top
vzwWell, that didn't take long. Less than 24 hours after word got out that Verizon Wireless planned to introduce a painfully ironic "convenience" fee of $2 for anyone paying their bill online, the carrier has just officially confirmed that such plans have been cancelled.
 
AngelPad Looks Back: 37 Companies, 31 Funded, $25 Million Raised Top
angelpad-logoAngelPad, the startup incubator launched by seven ex-Googlers in August 2010, is taking a look back at how far it's come in the months since and the lessons they've learned along the way. So far, AngelPad has helped 37 companies get off the ground, but it wasn't until this year that things really got going: 29 of those 37 startups emerged from AngelPad's incubator in 2011 alone. Out of the 37 companies, 31 have received funding, totaling just over $25 million.
 
2011: The Year In Tech Top
2011Okay, last workday of the year. It's nostalgia time. Let's take a quick glance in the rearview mirror at the year in Tech, before we speed forward again in 2012. There were defining moments, epic battles, new product introductions, and major corporate screw-ups. Mobile and social drove many of the changes in tech, and we've certainly gone through our own major transition here at TechCrunch (but I'll save that for another post). Below is our list of 11 events in tech that made 2011 memorable.
 
Keen On… Marian Salzman: What Were The Top Trends in 2011? Top
Screen Shot 2011-12-29 at 10.30.49 PMIt's the last Friday in 2011 and the new year is imminent. So what were the top technological, cultural and economic trends in 2011? What shaped a year that some are saying is one of the most significant in the last couple of centuries?
 
LG To Debut Second Intel-Powered Smartphone At CES 2012 Top
lg-intel"If at first you don't succeed, try try again." It looks like LG and Intel have taken that old adage to heart, if a new report is to be believed. The Korea Times reports that LG will debut an Intel-powered smartphone at CES 2012, but the bigger question is whether or not the device will ever make it to market.
 
Gillmor Gang Live 12.30.11 (TCTV) Top
Gillmore Gang test patternThe Gillmor Gang – John Borthwick, Robert Scoble, John Taschek, and Steve Gillmor – are recording live at 9am PT. Recording has concluded.
 
Insync ("Dropbox For Google Users") Gets Major Revamp, Goes Free Top
insyncFile synchronization and sharing platform Insync has been around for over a year now, and today, the eponymous startup has rolled out a totally revamped version of its "Dropbox for Google users". Insync 2.0, so t speak, is more focused on Google Docs as ever, removed registration and sync limits, streamlined the user experience, and is now free to use. The main target group here are GDocs users who want Dropbox-like functionality when it comes to handling files (the more Google accounts, the more useful Insync should become). In a nutshell, Insync allows you to automatically sync, update, manage, and share files stored on GDocs on your Mac or Windows desktop (in Finder or Explorer).
 
Startups: Give Us Your Best One-Sentence Pitch Top
oneIf you had to describe your company's mission in a single sentence, what would your pitch read or sound like? One good way to summarize what you do and boil it down to one clear sentence, in my opinion, is following the advice of Founder Institute founder Adeo Ressi (see above). This is how it's done: "my company, _(insert name of company)_, is developing _(a defined offering)_ to help _(a defined audience)_ _(solve a problem)_ with _(secret sauce)_".
 
As Millions Of Consumers Unwrapped Kindle Fires Over Christmas, Mobile Ad Impressions Spiked 261 Percent Top
Kindle Fire -1In November, Mobile ad network Millennial Media reported that Amazon's new tablet devices Kindle Fire, was seeing ad impressions grow at an average daily rate of 19% since its launch to the public in the middle of the month. Millennial says it's not just seeing millions of impressions and the device is on a monthly run rate of hundreds of millions of impressions. But that data was gathered from a few weeks of usage from consumers in November, and as Amazon reported yesterday, December's holiday season brought record sales for the Kindle Fire, with over 4 million Kindle devices sold in December. The Kindle Fire was the most gifted and wished for product on Amazon this season. Today, Millennial is releasing data from its ad network showing impressive growth numbers from the Kindle Fire over the holiday weekend. In November, impressions on the Kindle Fire grew an average rate of 19 percent every day. Over this past weekend, Millennial says that as consumers opened and used their new Kindle Fires, ad impressions increased even more. As millions of consumers unwrapped new Kindle Fires, Millennial saw an average daily growth rate of 113 percent.
 
Dropbox Automator Is Like IFTTT For Dropbox Top
dropboxlogoThirty-six hours ago, the recently founded software development firm Wappwolf launched Dropbox Automator, which is sort of like an IFTTT for Dropbox. IFTTT, for those of you not up to speed on the latest Internet trends (where have you been?!), is a pretty amazing online tool that automates tasks to trigger when a particular action has occurred. For example: when my Facebook profile picture changes, update my Twitter profile pic too; email me when Amazon posts its free Android app of the day; text me when a get a new email; etc. Like IFTTT, Dropbox Automator is capable of triggering a similar series of actions, based on what kind of files have been added to your Dropbox folders.
 
This Cat Might Be Better At Fruit Ninja Than Your Kids Top
catiOS devices are generally very accessible for most people. But for felines? Apparently so according to the video recently tweeted by Halfbrick, the developer of Fruit Ninja. It's clear within seconds of the video starting that the cat has done this before. This cat slashes fruit like a boss. As UberGizmo notes, the cat displays a surprising amount of accuracy and navigates the arcade mode with ease. But Fruit Ninja is one thing. I wanna see this cat slice and dice its way through Infinity Blade II.
 
Photo Organization Service Everpix Launches Public Beta Top
everpix-iconPhoto organization service (and TechCrunch Disrupt finalistEverpix has just launched into public beta, bringing with it a number of changes to its backend infrastructure, web interface and its desktop software. The service, for those unaware, automatically organizes and combines all your photos, whether they're stored on your computer or in the cloud. It then combines them into an online photo gallery where groups of photos are laid out into attractive albums called "Moments."
 
Casio's New G-SHOCK Connects To Smartphones, Shows Incoming Calls, Emails, SMS Top
g-shockCasio Japan is planning [JP] to roll out the G-SHOCK GB-6900 on March 16 next year, a wristwatch that connects to certain smartphones via Bluetooth LE (LE=low-energy, a standard that's baked into Bluetooth 4.0). The device will be compatible with the Medias LTE N-04D Android phone from NEC (to be released next year) and NEC's Medias PP N-01D. Casio says that the G-SHOCK not only synchronizes the time with the phones but also shows incoming calls, emails, or SMS on its display. Users can also switch their handsets to vibration mode by pushing a button on the watch or set alarms.
 
It's My Meme Karaoke Party And I'll Cry If I Want To Top
memeIt's the end of the year and that means Zaraguza Digital has cooked something special for all tech bloggers struggling to find something to post on a very slow news day, and for their bored audiences. Last year, it was Drunk TechCrunch, and this year they're throwing a Meme Karaoke Party ... and every procrastinator's invited! Enjoy, and if I don't see you anymore, Happy New Year boys and girls.
 
Shock Horror! Berlin VC Invests In Italian Startup. Is This The Start Of Something? Top
mzl.fwjflxtn.320x480-75Point Nine Capital has made a seed investment into Cibando, an Italian startup which operates a popular iPhone application that makes it easy to find the best restaurants in Rome, Milan, Florence and other cities in Italy. Fabio Pezzotti, one of Italy's more successful Internet entrepreneurs and angel investors, also participated in the round. Terms of the investment were not disclosed. The deal is significant since it's the first investment by Point Nine in a startup in Italy, a market traditional vastly under-served by risk capital. Outside of traditional e-commerce style businesses, there remains very few Italian startups compared to the rest of Europe's major countries.
 
Daily Crunch: Car Tracking Top
1509Here are some recent posts on TechCrunch Gadgets: The Most Important Gadgets Of 2012 Video: Electric Car From Japan Reaches Over 300KM Travel Range Rumor: Apple Will Debut Two iPads Next Month, Retina Displays In Tow (Update) Samsung Ships 1 Million Galaxy Note Phablets The Gizmon iCA Might Be The Ultimate iPhone Camera Case
 
Someone Is Selling An Apple "Five Year Employee Award" On eBay, For $2K Top
Screen Shot 2011-12-29 at 11.56.39 PMToday in employee loyalty and the slow winter tech news cycle, someone is selling an Apple "Five Year Employee Award," on eBay, for $2K if you want to buy it now. While the immediate impulse of you cynical, cynical people is to yell "FAKE" as loud as you can in the comments section, sources are telling me it looks legit. You can't argue with "sources."
 
Verizon Cuts $50 Off The Droid Xyboards On-Contract Price But They're Still Too Expensive Top
droidmemeIt seems that Verizon (or Motorola) got the message: The Droid Xyboards are too damn expensive when tied to a 2-year commitment. Until today, Verizon was selling the 10.1 Xoom 2 for $529 and required a 2-year contract. Ludicrous. Well, after today's price cuts, the prices are less absurd, but just slightly.
 
Google Testing New Email Subscription Ad Format Top
00000193 copyGoogle is experimenting with its Google Adwords offerings, attempting to go beyond regular text ads with Google Email Subscription Ads, allowing companies to buy ads that automatically fill in a "Subscribe to newsletter (or whatever, I'm assuming)" slot with a given searcher's Google email address during a search.
 

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