Comments (0)

Having attended many pre-CES keynotes headlined by Microsoft’s Bill Gates, I’m used to getting in line hours ahead of time in order to secure a seat at the event that always kicks off CES.

But this year was different. Steve Ballmer was the main act and quite frankly he did not pack them in like Gates.  A conservative estimate of the press and general admission lines is that they were 80 percent shorter then in the ...Read More

Comments (0)

It appears that Santa was not kind to portable GPS suppliers, leaving them only flat sales for the fourth quarter, where in 2007 sales to consumers were up 400 percent for the same period. 

Garmin recently released a statement acknowledging, “The December sales environment is weaker, which we attribute to our retail customers’ desire to exit the year with lower levels of inventory,” according to chief financial officer and treasurer Kevin Rauckman, although he said Black Friday sales were as predicted. 

Analysts believe sales will be flat for the quarter, and several key retailers told TWICE that inventories are now piled high at all price points, and so they expect to see the same Black Friday discounts down to $79 to $99 during the first quarter. 

The results are a blow to an industry where 60 percent of sales were transa...Read More

Comments (3)

It’s a poorly kept secret in car audio that most of the leading brands are linked to corporate parents that supply OEM radios to the car companies. 

Few of the car audio brands would comment on the record, then, about their reaction to the bail out of General Motors and Chrysler, which received a combined $17.4 billion in emergency loans. But off the record, the relief was immense.

...Read More

Comments (6)

Liz Cutting at The NPD Group writes:

“Black Friday results for imaging were less than we had expected, and really a disappointment in a sector which has, for so many years has been an exciting holiday electronics driver.”

She also suggests that market saturation is not helping the category:

“Three quarters of U.S. households have at least one digital point-and-shoot camera. Retailers and manufacturers need to find ways to reignite a passion among those who may be wa...Read More

Comments (0)

OK, in the midst of this economic meltdown when people are being forced to cut back on their daily meals, let alone their cable and satellite services, I know this comes off as pathetic bellyaching, but the Reed Business blogmeisters demand — “Whine for men!” — so here goes:

As a long-time DirecTV subscriber and an HDTV owner, the Dec. 3 addition of high-definition Public Broadcasting System (PBS) stations in some of DirecTV’s local TV programming packages was more than welcome news, and way too long in coming.

Comments (0)

• Electrograph Systems entered a relationship with Rise Vision to offer its Rise Display Network content-management system.
• Petra added Icom America products to its lineup.
• The EDGE Distributors Group announced its 2009 board of directors.
• DBL Distributing is now offering products from Celestron and Pelican.
• CED has been appointed as a national distributor for the exclusive Hitachi Director series of ultra-thin LCDs and plasma TVs.

Comments (0)

Because it’s always easier to borrow from others, here is Time Magazine’s Top 10 Gadgets of 2008 (with some commentary added):

1. Optoma’s Pico PK101 (Not sure how much I need one, but a very cool gadget.)
2. Mitsubishi’s LaserVue 65-inch LCD (I don’t think something this big can be considered a gadget, but again not something I would turn down if it appeared on my wall.
3. Apple iPhone 3G (I’m a BlackBerry guy, so I’ll pass.)

Comments (0)

DavidSteele.com has the perfect iPod accessory for both college students and your drunk uncle at Christmas: the iBreath breathalyzer. Its bonus feature? It also doubles as an FM transmitter.

Comments (0)

Facebook users know they can get poked by a friend, but how about getting a nudge from your friendly neighborhood process server?

This is happening right now in Australia.

I find it hard to believe this can be legally binding; after all, how does the server know the intended party will see the notice? In my case my wife can access my Facebook page. For all I know process servers are lining up on my wall, but to keep me from getting upset my wife is somehow getting rid of those entries. She is wonderful that way.

Comments (0)

Here’s a neat product idea: Target is offering their gift cards in a different form. The company’s digital camera gift card can be purchased in denominations from $50 to $1,000, and it doubles as a 1.3-megapixel camera.

Hat tip: MSN/PC World

Comments (1)

Who would have thought a customer review on Amazon.com could be so entertaining?

Comments (0)