For all of their technological genius and massive resources, Google sure doesn’t know how to make hardware. It’s a problem that has plagued them for years but it seems to be best highlighted with the Chromebook Pixel. Over at CNET, they were focused on one of the major bugs with the laptop – the challenge the device has with connecting to cameras. There’s good and bad that comes with having an operating system that is designed to be light and shareable. One of the bad parts is that you often miss some of the common accepted notions that other operating systems (and their users) take for granted. Because…

It isn’t easy for anyone, even law enforcement agencies like the ATF, to break into an encrypted iPhone. They are often forced to look for help from Apple itself. The rise in requests from law enforcement agencies has compelled the Cupertino company to create a waiting list to get to the data of alleged bad guys. Currently, that means 7 weeks or more before requests can be fulfilled. According to CNET: An agent at the ATF, the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, “contacted Apple to obtain assistance in unlocking the device,” U.S. District Judge Karen Caldwell wrote in a…

In 1984, Apple changed the world. They introduced Macintosh computers with a commercial directed by Ridley Scott that is arguably the most famous tech ad ever put on television. This overshadowed another advertisement, a print ad, that Apple distributed called, “Introducing Macintosh. For the rest of us.” For those who weren’t around 30 years ago or who simply love LEGO, artist Chris McVeigh recreated the subject image of the ad for us in epic LEGO fashion. According to CNET: Based in Halifax, Canada, McVeigh has designed custom builds and images for Gizmodo, Esquire Malaysia, and Toronto…

The CES Best of Show award is a big deal, so this isn’t exactly a case of the Streisand Effect, but CBS certainly didn’t want to draw such a spotlight to one of their litigation opponents. The decision to censor CNET and disapprove their choice for the award has turned from a mild spectacle to a major blunder. Adding insult to injury, CES issued a press release today, awarding DISH’s Hopper with Sling the “Best of Show” award with co-winner Razer Edge. “The CNET editorial team identified the Hopper Sling as the most innovative product of the show, and we couldn’t agree more,” said Karen Chupka,…

Censorship is arguably the most irreversible path a publication can travel. We are a semi-forgiving society that understands journalists will get the story wrong from time to time. We know that there are ethical boundaries that must occasionally be crossed. We are forgiving when a publication gets too controversial or stands behind the side of an argument with which we do not agree. When censorship enters the equation, a publication loses everything important to it. Credibility is gone. Unbiased reporting can no longer be expected. Every opinion and fact posted will be seen through the eyes…

Do you remember who won CNET’s “Best of CES” award last year? Probably not. What you likely will remember is who should have but didn’t win it this year, thanks to a boneheaded PR move by CBS. The parent company of CNET is in heated litigation with Hopper, the Dish Network service that allows users to skip past commercials. It has been deemed dangerous and potentially illegal by just about every major television network as it promotes an technology that cuts off their revenue stream. When CNET’s editorial team voted that Hopper would get the top prize, CBS brass reacted swiftly, saying that the litigation…

They’re just not ready. They weren’t ready for their IPO.They’re not ready to get into the hardware business with a smartphone. They’re not ready to take off the hoodie and put on a suit. They’re still just a social network and they’re making the kind of mistakes that startups make. That doesn’t mean they won’t continue to be successful in the realm they own nor does it mean that they can’t make a lot of money doing it. It simply means they not ready to get into the “big time” with the likes of Google, Microsoft, or Apple. They’re still a 2nd-tier tech company. The latest problem stems from their botched…

The words “National Domestic Communications Assistance Center” sound harmless enough. It could be a call center for a tech support company. It could be a relay center for the telecom industry or a hub for amplified reach of broadband signals. The name is about as conspicuous and attention-grabbing as “please be quiet” sign at the library. In reality, NDCAC may be the start of the most powerful and potentially dangerous wing of the FBI. As CNET reports, the mandate is broad. With cybercriminal technology greatly outpacing their counterparts, the desperate need to be able to listen in on potential…

Millions of websites have had to go through hell and back to survive long enough to reach profitability, but there is an elite list of websites that have managed to survive and prosper through the past decade and beyond. The things they went through dwarf any issues that their more recent counterparts have had to face. It wasn’t easy by any means for these sites though. From the dot-com bubble to the economic recession, the web has, at times, been plagued with turmoil that would make most website owners pack up shop. But, by luck or by design, the following have managed to keep their business going…