gizmodo

What if Steve Jobs were a girl?

Owen Thomas · 01/24/08 09:00AM

It's long been known that Apple CEO Steve Jobs fathered a daughter, Lisa, out of wedlock, and did not acknowledge her until later in life. (Apple's ill-fated Lisa is apocryphally said to be named after her.) Now, Lisa Brennan-Jobs is an accomplished magazine writer. Her latest assignment: a story in February's Vogue. But my eyes stopped on the magazine's contributors page, which featured a striking photo of Brennan-Jobs. She is the very image of her father.

Gizmodo, Ars Technica party all night

Photos by Randal Alan Smith · 01/15/08 07:01PM

Poor Ars Technica and Gizmodo. The gadget sites invited San Francisco's thirsty class over for some pre-Macworld booze at Harlot in SoMa last night, and the assembled crowd drank the hosted bar dry in 35 minutes flat. I ran into a host of familiar faces there, including a certain Farker who goes by the unforgettable login of "catbutt." So unforgettable that I called him ... well, something else instead. And no, I'm not throwing David Ulevitch the shocker — just a gesture that looks a lot like it. Fake Steve Jobs blogger Dan Lyons, making his Macworld debut, drew a tight bubble of fans around him everywhere he went.



Why Blogs Don't Make Money On Apple Day

Nick Douglas · 01/15/08 10:58AM


This morning is Superbowl Day for the web. The Apple Macworld Keynote starts at 9 Pacific, and already tech blogs like Gawker Media's Gizmodo are clocking pageviews like mad as everyone refreshes for news of Apple's latest announcement (this year the guess is an ultralight Mac laptop). It's a scheduled event with a guaranteed boost; last year Gizmodo and competitor Engadget earned four times their normal visitors (and ten times the pageviews), with Engadget breaking 10 million page views thanks to a boost from AOL. I thought ad money would be rolling in for these promised pageviews, but publisher Nick Denton explains why ad sales don't jump today:

Can Apple save WiMax?

Jordan Golson · 01/11/08 04:23PM

Click to viewOur sources tell us that Apple may include WiMax, the high-speed, long-range wireless broadband technology, in an ultraportable 13" notebook computer, and possibly across the entire MacBook Pro line. Just part of the rumor mill flying in preparation for Steve Jobs's Macworld keynote next week in San Francisco, of course, but our source gives it a "60 percent chance." AppleInsider has pictures of Apple's banners inside the Moscone center with "There's something in the air" as a slogan. If true, this could be a risky move for Apple.

The real untold story of the iPhone

Owen Thomas · 01/10/08 01:03AM

In its February issue, Wired promises "The Untold Story" of the iPhone. But as typical for the magazine, they instead deliver a rehash of things you mostly already know, spread over 3,336 lavish words. Here, instead, are 378 words, in bullet points, containing the truly juicy tidbits Wired writer Fred Vogelstein was able to turn up. My favorite? That when Steve Jobs gets really mad, he doesn't scream. He stares.

Tips from a CES veteran

Jordan Golson · 01/07/08 10:00AM

A veteran CES attendee sent us her tried-and-true tips to having a successful CES 2008 trip:

Mac vs. PC in the CES press lounge

Jordan Golson · 01/06/08 05:20PM

Having plenty of time on my hands while my compatriots at Gizmodo blog blog blog it all at CES 2008, I took a walk around the press lounge to check the ratio of Macs to PCs. The latest numbers peg Apple with a 7.3 percent market share in the world at large. Will the the press lounge be full of fanboys or stodgy old corporate types?

Millions of New Year text messages overwhelm system

Jordan Golson · 01/04/08 09:10PM

Millions of text messages were sent simultaneously at midnight on New Year's. Many were delayed, or didn't arrive at all. A delay in holiday greetings is not a big deal, but what about during a real emergency? Emergency personnel and government officials are automatically given priority on landline and cellular networks, leaving the average consumer in the lurch. After 9/11, cell-phone traffic in New York was at a standstill for days. Cellular networks, like highways, aren't designed to have everyone use them at once. When everyone tries to make a call at once, for a holiday or emergency, communication breaks down. The communications infrastructure, as it is currently designed, will never be able to handle calling patterns thousands of times heavier than normal. Your best bet? Send an IM. (Photo by PhotoOptik)

Idiot jumps onto subway tracks to save iPhone

Mary Jane Irwin · 01/04/08 04:20PM

Bijan Rezvani dropped his iPhone on the subway tracks in New York City. Instead of contacting the transit authorities like a sane person, he braved oncoming trains, the electric third rail, and plague rats to jump down and snatch it. His exuse? "I needed my phone, so... I got it." Even though we call it the Jesusphone, people, it's not going to save your life.

'WSJ' shock: consumers like pretty computers

Pareene · 01/04/08 11:19AM

Is this the heavy hand of Rupert Murdoch at work? Identical ledes on separate page 1 stories in today's Journal insist that common folk want their electronic thinking machines to be flashy and eye-catching, not boring, gray, and business-like. HINT HINT, Journal staffers!

Apple and 20th Century Fox strike digital movie rental deal

Jordan Golson · 12/26/07 08:18PM

The Financial Times reports that Apple and News Corp.'s 20th Century Fox film studio have signed a deal for digital movie rentals. Consumers will be able to rent the latest Fox DVD releases from iTunes for a limited time. The deal, which will likely be announced at Macworld in January, would likely be matched with an upgrade for the woebegotten Apple TV which has been de facto dead on arrival since it was released. It is suspected that Disney, which has extremely close ties with Apple — Steve Jobs is its largest shareholder after Mickey bought his Pixar animation studio — will be on board at launch as well.

The top 10 Genius Bar whale tail captions

Nicholas Carlson · 12/21/07 12:40PM

With over 160 entries at last count, we've given up trying to decide on a winning caption for this photo taken in Apple's new 14th Street store in New York. Instead, we narrowed it down to 10. Choose your favorite in our latest Valleywag poll. Feel free to write in candidates you think deserved to make the cut. (Photo by Meredith Scardino)

Palm Centro Is The Phone Of Choice For Passive Aggressive Friends

Joshua Stein · 12/19/07 04:10PM

Hey! Did you know the Palm Centro is only $99 with rebate and a 2 year service extension? BUT! And you know what's included? Making your friends feel bad about themselves. (FYI: In the zero sum game of friendship, this means making you love you more!) In the billboards that I annoyingly see everywhere, a text message reads, "Jen, it's 80's night. You won't even have to change!" And: "Hey Amanda, It's chubby night at Union Pool! You don't even have to gain weight!"

Apple workers on Steve Jobs's nice list get MacBook, iPod

Owen Thomas · 12/14/07 01:58PM


Ignore PC in Apple's latest TV ad as he tries to wreck Mac's Christmas. There are no Grinches this year in Cupertino. Apple's technical employees, rumor has it, were treated very, very well at a company holiday party. As a bonus, each one got a new MacBook, an 80GB iPod, and a week off. Why pay attention to the holiday gift? Such generosity suggests Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who reportedly attended the event, must have been pleased with Apple's newest products. With Macworld Expo just weeks away, we'll soon see what Apple's geeks did to earn their reward. Can anyone confirm the gift — or better yet, what prompted it?

Mossberg slams Kindle — was he bitter about Newsweek exclusive?

Jordan Golson · 11/29/07 08:44PM

Walt Mossberg, surprisingly slow out of the gate, has finally deigned to review Amazon.com's Kindle e-book reader. He was not kind, calling it "mediocre" and "marred by annoying flaws." He also says that Amazon "nailed the electronic-book shopping experience," which is no surprise given the success of Amazon.com, "but it has a lot to learn about designing electronic devices." Harsh words from a top reviewer who can make or break a device. Here's our question: what took him so long?

CNET vs. CNET

Owen Thomas · 11/26/07 06:17PM

So how bad is Windows Vista? The delayed, bloated Microsoft operating system is "very good," according to CNET, earning a 7.4 rating for its Home Premium version. But if you've actually installed it and want a second opinion, you should know that it's one of the "top ten terrible tech products" ... also according to CNET. Whom should we believe? By process of elimination, not CNET.

1 in 5 NYU students would swap their right to vote for an iPod Touch

Nick Douglas · 11/14/07 10:50PM

There's one thing dorky-sexier than Barack Obama: An iPod Touch, the $300 toy that 20 percent of New York University students would trade for their vote in the next presidential election. Downside: Anyone who wants an iPod that bad is clearly a wimpy latte-sipping liberal, meaning that Giuliani just needs two hours at that fancy New York Apple store to rule the country. Upside: Anyone who'd answer a poll like this is better off watching some video than talking to me.