In addition to Windows Mobile 7, the platform, Steve Ballmer unleashed nine shiny new phones from various companies such as Samsung and HTC on the world today, and called them Windows Phone 7. Three of the phones will be sold through AT&T in the US next month. Stephen Fry, a self-avowed Mac fan, has this to say about the phone at a launch event in London: “When I got one of these (phones) my first feeling was it’s fun to play with. I have felt enormous pleasure using this phone,” Fry said. “Yes, I love Apple, but I’m not a monotheist. I want biodiversity in this market and all of us that love it should welcome…

Since Apple has been patent-happy lately, it should come as no surprise that trademarks for its advertising should follow suit. The news came down the pipe today that Apple has successfully trademarked it’s slogan, “There’s an app for that”. The slogan has been trademarked, according to the legal text, for: “Retail store services featuring computer software provided via the Internet and other computer and electronic communication networks; retail store services featuring computer software for use on handheld mobile digital electronic devices and other consumer electronics.” No word…

Digg’s V4 redesign was more than a change in look and feel. It was a complete shift in the direction of the company that was intended to take it to the next level. It was a risk as admitted by former CEO Kevin Rose. So far, the risk has not paid off and “the next level” is a level below where they were with V3 (and even V2). For Digg to achieve the success they desire, they have to make a few changes. Many things have already changed. Installing a variation of the Upcoming section that had been removed was a start. They brought back the user submissions page, then populated archived submissions. Pagination…

According to computer security firm AVG, 73% of kids under the age of 2 have an online presence of some kind. Obviously these aren’t child geniuses who have figured out how to bypass the Windows login window, but insipid new parents who think it’s cute that their toddler has an email address. Additionally, 5% of kids have a social networking profile somewhere. AVG says it’s important that parents understand the implications of posting their children’s most private pictures and data online, other than the problem of being extremely annoying. “First of all, you are creating a digital history for…

Google is innovating so quickly, at this rate we might actually have flying automobiles by the end of 2010. But in the meantime, how about just a car that drives itself? You could see this one coming a mile off. Google has itself a self-driving car, and although the technology itself isn’t new, twinned with Google’s Street View and maps data they could have a viable commercial product on their hands. The cars use video cameras, radar sensors and a laser range finder to navigate roads and around other vehicles. The flux capacitor will be Google’s next addition, no doubt. The cars send data wirelessly…

You think your phone is a target for would-be identity thieves now? Wait until this phone-as-method-of-payment madness touches down – it’s about to get madder. As such, we’re probably gonna need more security measures, right? A password certainly isn’t enough, and besides, you don’t want to have to input your password every time anyway. Well, get a load of this. Or, half a load at least, if you’re strapped for time. Researchers have been working on using the built-in accelerometers in modern smartphones to measure a person’s gait – that is, the way he or she walks – to identify the owner of the phone….

Facebook. It’s in our cell phones, it’s mentioned in our television shows, it’s featured in our Hollywood movies, and it’s all over the Web. It’s everywhere! In fact, Facebook could be considered one of the great, if not greatest, social innovations since the creation of the Internet. However, would you believe it if I said that this was Mark Zuckerberg’s plan all along? “We’re going to change the world,” said Mark Zuckerberg in the early days of Thefacebook. He had just begun to believe that Thefacebook could be more than just another side project. But this is not where the story began. It began…

We all know the problem with touch screens. You can’t text under the table while you’re in a meeting. Or while you’re driving. Or while you’re doing anything other than watching the screen carefully to ensure that the letter you tapped is the one that appeared on the screen. Now a new technology could allow touchscreens to provide feedback that will help flat glass feel like any other kind of surface. Chris Harrison, a Ph.D. student at Carnegie Mellon University is hoping to change that. Working with Disney Research, Harrison demonstrated the new technology, dubbed “Tesla Touch”, for the first…

Windows Phone 7 is almost upon us and Microsoft is confident that it’s going to catapult them right back into the mobile space. Some aren’t so sure though, including Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam. In a recent interview with CNET, McAdam openly disses Microsoft’s mobile efforts, claiming that there are three players in the mobile space, RIM, Google and Apple. Interestingly, the last in the list is also a company Verizon doesn’t currently carry, but that might change soon if rumors of a Verizon iPhone prove to be true. When asked about Microsoft, McAdam says Verizon likes Microsoft, but when pushed…

It appears the hype around the Facebook movie The Social Network has climaxed, as the one person who stated he would never see the movie has finally caved. Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s privacy-hating CEO and the focus of the new hit movie decided to take his staff to see a screening of the film. “To celebrate a period of intense activity at Facebook, we decided to go to the movies. We thought this particular movie might be amusing,” the spokesperson said. The group even treated themselves to apple martinis after, the same drink Jesse Eisenberg and Justin Timberlake’s characters indulge in on screen….