By Staff Writer –

Apple TV is expected to launch with Netflix, the movie streaming service. The company is adding movies to their traditional music entree.

Announcing the service of 99-cent for Fox and ABC rentals might increase the digital sales, but threatens to shake up the media world and walk on thin ice for tradition broadcasting models.

There are so many questions about Apple’s next move, which will ultimately be answered tomorrow.

In light of it all, PC magazine reports:

Yet, even as some companies like, potentially, Apple, seek to anoint Netflix as the on-demand movie standard, others, like the cable giants, are using their considerable home entrenchment to reestablish old-school cable video on demand dominance. To this day, cable companies offer fresher movies than their upstart counterparts like Netflix and Amazon, but they also charge more for movies. Netflix is so attractive because, despite the still somewhat limited selection, the streaming service is all you can eat.

The front facing camera might make its way onto the iPod Touch! iPod Nanos will have Wi-Fi in them so customers can stream music. After all, iPods are Apple’s bread and butter market.

Watch the event live tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. PDT. This is the event so many long for each year.

in 2005, Steve Jobs introduced the iPod Nano. Two years later, he unveiled the iPod Touch. What will it be this year?

The Apple rumor mill is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer –

There are two types of people in this world. Apple lovers and Apple haters.

I’ve slowly become an Apple customer, clearly fallen prey to their market techniques. But wait, they don’t really have one. Or does Apple have one so clever, people can’t replicate their adoption into the marketplace.

Most startups fall short of the Apple charm. While startups have their eyes rolled in tapping new markets, Apple markets its amazing products (biased because I’m an Apple lover) to people like me.

Sure, Apple spends money on putting ads in magazines and the like. But the ads trickle in after the launch, so it gives people time to change their behavior.

In fact, Gigaom suggests that most companies fail because their software is made for businesses instead of the people. This is easy to do if you are a technology company. What companies should do is look at individuals and what they need. Leave it up to the customers to figure out how to use it.

But perhaps Apple is a special company — an anomaly in the era of personal computers and smart phones. In the age of consumerism of IT, Apple is leading the pack with the iPad and iPhone, that’s for sure.

Good example for startups? Apple markets their products to people is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer –

Out of the blue, the app market has become a multimillion dollar industry. Apple still hogs 90 percent of it. But imagine how big the industry would be if other smartphones platforms began producing apps at similar rates.

According to an analysis by MBA online, the App Store (for the iPhone) has 225,000 apps, while the Android Market (for Google Android) has 70,000 apps, Software Store (for Palm) has 5,000 apps, App World (for Blackberry) has 2,779 apps, App Catalog (for Palm/HP) has 2,000 apps, and Windows Marketplace (Windows Mobile) has 1,083 apps.

On average, an iPhone user will spend $80 on apps. More than 4 billion apps have been downloaded from the App Store. Google probably has similar numbers, but hasn’t released them.

Via: MBA Online

Mashable gives a good overview of what you need to have your apps stay popular. The apps that work well on mobile phones are content driven apps. Games, travel, fitness, people love people, and bolt on features (style guide and typography manual).

Apple is still going strong. The company blew out earnings.

“It was a phenomenal quarter that exceeded our expectations all around, including the most successful product launch in Apple’s history with iPhone 4,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO said in a prepared statement. “iPad is off to a terrific start, more people are buying Macs than ever before, and we have amazing new products still to come this year.”

Mobile app market is blowing up is a post from: TechStartups.com

Within minutes of getting to the Apple Store Fifth Avenue, I was sweating. I have no idea how the people have been waiting there since at least 5 am.

I would have been so bored. When asked to be interviewed, a few admitted they were ashamed they had been waiting for so long and didn’t want the whole world to know. But going to get food isn’t a problem, just slip in and out as you please. Everyone waiting seemed calm, except for the people walking by and media people running around like manics.

There was one guy who wanted to skip the line because he claimed he waited from midnight last night at the SoHo store and left because he had to go clock in a work. During his lunch time, he came to the Fifth Avenue store to get the phone. I’m not sure if he was lying, but his story worked. He walked out with the new iPhone in no time.

I heard a Fox Business reporter say a guy was there since Tuesday! Sort of ridiculous. I’d imagine it’s like standing in line at Disney World just to ride the roller coaster. And just as people walk off of the rides with huge smiles on their faces, wind blown hair, and slightly dazed — so do the new iPhone 4 owners.

The new model seemed smaller than the old models. I do want an iPhone 4, but not that badly. I’ll wait. Until then, I have my iPhone 3GS and my landline so I can actually make phone calls!

Long lines for the iPhone 4: A typical Apple product launch day is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer – Boonsri Dickinson (@boonspoon)

Every week, I will write about one thing I have learned from my mentor. This idea was born during a random night of chatting — I write about things I’ve learned from him and about lessons I am learning from him.

While the technology to publish engaging stories may change, the good stories still need to be told. That will never change — people told stories before they could write. While we have become content driven as a society, believe it or not, Google doesn’t have all the answers. Internet search engines can never replace good ole’ fashion wisdom.

Here’s the first piece of advice:

Take 3 hour lunches. There really is no need to rush lunch. If you are having a good time with someone, the more time you can spend with them, the better. I can remember almost every long lunch I’ve had in the city, but can’t remember that many networking parties I’ve gone to.

Each lunch leaves a lasting impression — something that is pretty much impossible to do at networking parties. I have a habitual horrible habit of misplacing business cards anyway.

So when it is possible, have lunch with someone you want to get to know more on a professional level. And never, ever buy into the one hour curfew. It’s BS. Plus if you are an entrepreneur, the best ideas arise from table top discussions.

And one more thing, cut down the number of distractions. It’s best to leave your phone and your watch at home, so you don’t become a time Nazi.

No wonder this whole social networking thing has killed the buzz. Why get lunch with someone, when you can just Facebook stalk them and then occasionally send them a message? Well, for one thing, you might get free lunch, which is always a bonus . I see social networking is real life’s ugly and evil twin. In the real world, we leave no digital footprints and live in the moment. And in the moment, should be you sitting for hours, enjoying a really long lunch.

Tips from my super mentor is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer –

The iPhone 4 is coming soon. I really want one, even more than an iPad — especially since my friend who said the iPad was magical, thinks the awkwardly named gadget is a waste of space. Go figure.

As buzz over our gadget obsessed culture hit the social media scene today, Steve Jobs unveiled a device catered to our multi-tasking needs — the iPhone 4 allows media hungry users to run several applications at once.

But you’ll have to wait until mid June to pre-order the new phone. Tech Crunch demonstrated how the phone would run with Pandora in the background. As a frequent user of Pandora, I thought this video was worth posting:

Besides being a powerful musical companion, the iPhone 4 could be a traveler’s best friend. You can put travel related apps in a folder, the microphone blocks out background noise, and email is put into a universal inbox. And the cameras (the front camera, the HD video camera, and the 5 megapixal camera) are the major selling point.

However, Apple will have battle it out with Google in the mobile ad market, which is slated to be much bigger than the actual sale of the smart phones. According to True/Slant:

Jobs predicts iAds will grab nearly half of the 2010 mobile advertising market — a claim that was immediately challenged by Admob, Google’s dominant mobile ad network.

US mobile Web advertising is expected to reach $3.8 billion this year, according to JP Morgan analyst Imran Khan, which is well below his forecast of nearly $25 billion, a majority of which is spent on text messaging. Morgan Stanley analyst Mary Meeker predicts mobile Web users will outpace desktop Internet users within five years. The yawning gap between the consumer time and advertiser dollars spent on mobile connected devices represents a $50 billion opportunity,  superceding the actual sales of iPhones and Android-powered devices.

I want the iPhone 4 is a post from: TechStartups.com

Snac is a startup that wants you to digest information in snack sized amounts.

Want access to the web in 2 seconds to check sports scores, stock, or the latest tweets, but only have an old school phone?

Well Snac might be able to help with that: It plans on letting non-smart phone users have access to the web and all its goodness.

While iPhone and Android apps are popular, Snac’s CEO Mark Caron expects widgets for regular cell phones will take off this year.

A widget is sort of like an app, in that it will allow you to access your Twitter or Facebook account, but it can run on a regular phone and does not require as much energy to run.

Caron thinks widgets development will catch on this year because it is easy to code for. “Next year, you will see millions of widgets out there,” says Caron. “It’s an open standard. Anyone can create the widgets,” he adds. Once the standard is set, by the whole sale applications community, engines like Snac can execute the widgets.

“An iPhone app is a 5 megabyte file and is resource intensive. Widgets are a different experience. It’s about quick access, not about the wow factor,” says Caron. Widgets are constantly updated and only require 200 kilobytes. “We are focused on efficiency. Widgets run without too much memory and don’t drain the battery quickly,” he says.

Watch the demo, although I must warn you it’s very infomercial-like.

He believes the widgets will help advertisers reach their customers. Caron points out that typically iPhone app loses 90 percent of their customers. And mobile websites only get 2 unique visitors a month.

“The trouble is with discovery. In the app store, Apple decides what they want to feature. It’s very hard for service companies to get preferential treatment in that environment,” Caron says.

Establishing the standard is key. Caron has worked in the mobile space for 20 years and helped pave the way for text messages! He was leading a company introduce the idea of inter carrier text messages. So if Caron’s instincts are correct, we will see an explosion of widgets soon!

Snac makes regular phones smarter with quicker access to the web is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer –

Google purchased BumpTop, a startup that makes your desktop look 3D. This is big news because the acquisition of BumpTop might help make Android more popular than Blackberries and possibly compete with iPads.

BumpTop was made to run on desktops, but it doesn’t matter. Once Google uses the Bump talent to bring the easy to drag applications to your smart phone — you’ll be able to manage Excel spreadsheets and documents with your fingertips.

BNET reports:

If Android could handle that kind of heavy lifting with a 3-D virtual desktop like BumpTop, business users would arrive in droves, happy to finally — after years of disappointment in the power of smartphones — be able to leave their laptops at home.

And clearly we like the touch interface. Apple has sold over 1 million iPads in just one month. This would definitely give the Android over iPhones if it can let business users navigate their smart phone the way they work on their laptops. That’s the point right? We want our phones to be our computers too.

Taylor Buley writes on Forbes:

We were wondering the same thing here at Forbes, so I called up Gartner analyst Leslie Fiering to help iron out the confusion. As she explains it, the BumpTop interface is a strategic play in a burgeoning market for touch-enabled computers, a new market category widely expected to grab eyeballs (and advertisers) everywhere.

In other startup news, Google just invested in Record Future, a firm that attempts to predict the future. Calculating future changes of momentum is of interest to many, including government agencies and trading firms, apparently.

Google buys BumpTop for its 3D software company is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer –

That’s right, YouTube will start renting movies. Interesting. Google is competing in the video market with Hulu, Apple, and Netflix.

Fast Company reports:

The prices of rentals vary between $1 and $4, with few exceptions, and are available for 48 hours after purchase. Some movies are only available for a limited period of time–The Cove, for example, is only available through May 8th. You pay through Google Checkout, which is pretty convenient, and since it’s YouTube, you can view the movies on pretty much any device. Of course, there are also a boatload of easy, one-click ripping tools for YouTube (including extensions for Firefox and Chrome), which might explain the hesitance of the major studios–there are no Big Four movies available.

I miss going to Blockbuster and walking around the store not knowing what movie I would walk out of the store with. That was before I had a smartphone that I could watch movies from anywhere. Google now has 500 partners in its rental program and there are more to come.

Soon, there might even be a futures market around blockbuster hits — read my take on it in Forbes.

YouTube will start renting movies is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer – Boonsri Dickinson (@boonspoon)

Finders keepers, losers weepers. Well, not exactly. The person who sold the new iPhone to Gizmodo.com could face criminal charges.

You probably already know about this, but Gizmodo paid $5000 for the iPhone prototype. Watch here for the full exclusive.

Now, the California police are on the case.

CNET reports:

Apple argued in that case that information published about unreleased products causes it significant harm. “If these trade secrets are revealed, competitors can anticipate and counter Apple’s business strategy, and Apple loses control over the timing and publicity for its product launches,” Apple wrote in a brief.

Under a California law dating back to 1872, any person who finds lost property and knows who the owner is likely to be but “appropriates such property to his own use” is guilty of theft. If the value of the property exceeds $400, more serious charges of grand theft can be filed. In addition, a second state law says that any person who knowingly receives property that has been obtained illegally can be imprisoned for up to one year.

Anyways, just because you find something, does not mean that you can do what you want with it. Bloomberg reports:

“The finder may have broken the law,” said Peter Henning, a law professor at Wayne State University Law School in Detroit. “The law of theft isn’t ‘finders, keepers.’ If you know that something has just been mislaid, you can take it and return it, but you can’t take it and keep it, or sell it.”

By Apple shouldn’t worry too much about the leak. According to a Mashable poll, the iPhone 4G won over the Android Incredible.

I definitely can’t wait until the new iPhone comes out, especially after reading Gizomodo gush over the front-facing camera feature. Gizmodo reports on how Apple is bringing iChat to the iPhone:

• Front-facing camera means video calling
• Leaks suggest video calling is part of overall iChat
• iChat software and new VOIP provisions in OS means voice chat, too (maybe even for older iPhones)
• iChat branding, arrival of iPad and new OS multitasking all suggest compatibility with desktop app and standard buddy lists
• iPhone-to-desktop compatibility means everybody talks to everybody, no special plans needed

Cops investigate lost iPhone 4G debacle is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer –

Apple announced their revenue of $13.50 billion and a quarterly profit of $3.07 billion. Selling nearly 3 million Mac computers and 8.75 million iPhones certainly made that dent. The iPad will certainly make an even bigger dent next quarter.

Lee Gomes at Forbes calls the iPad the world’s first couchtop. It’s not the next laptop, it’s more like a kitchen appliance that you can push a button and watch the machine perform. And you know, he might not be that far off. Reuters is creating a financial news video service and are streaming onto the iPad. Reuters Insiders will only be available to its paying customers and will include content from other major TV partners.

While all the rave is about how the iPad will save the magazine and news business, the real value of the iPad will be seen when you take it shopping. Ad Age suggests the iPad will help out in the following areas: catalogs, customization, sales floor assistant, personal shopper, registries, and e-commerce. I still like the interaction I have when I ask people for their recommendations at the store. While the iPad might lead us to make better choices when we shop, it might make those serendipitous situations rare. That would be a tragedy.

Image: flickr/ fraserspeirs

Related Post:

Dear iPad. I love you. I really do.

iPad fever. Who has it?

Ad platform wars: Admob versus iAd

iPad is a couchtop, a shopping buddy, and more is a post from: TechStartups.com

While 24 states report an increase in unemployment rates for March, the western states seem to be suffering the worst. The graph to the left shows the last 10 years — the recent spike is extremely disturbing.

But here’s the good news: Technology companies are hiring like crazy. Google reported a 37% profit in the first quarter, Intel jumped 44%, and Advanced Micro Devices reported an increase in 34% revenues, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The other heavy hitters — Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon — will report their earnings next week.

This means these companies are hiring. Google hired nearly 800 people in the first quarter. Intel wants to hire a few thousand people. Cisco System wants to hire up to 3,000 more people this year. Twitter is looking for people to engineer our tweets.

According to Dice.com, the tech employment website, New York is the leading hiring hub. D.C. comes in second, then Silicon Valley, followed by Boston, and lastly by Seattle.

The WSJ reports on the road to recovery:

Someone should tell Ning about this recovery. The Palo Alto, Calif.-based start-up, which lets people create social-networking sites, is dumping its free services along with 40% of its staff. That’s a blow for a company that has raised at least $119 million from investors – including a $15 million Series E round in July that valued the company at $750 million. CEO Jason Rosenthal is making the move just 30 days after taking over the reins. A year ago Business Insider calculated that Ning had a nearly $10 million annual revenue run-rate based on comments from previous CEO Gina Bianchini, who boasted traffic was surging.

Image: Bureau of Labor Statistics Data

Tech companies are on a hiring binge is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer –

Honestly, I didn’t believe my journalist friend who actually described his iPad as “magical.” I called total BS. But, I’ve had a change of heart.

I’m in love with the iPad.

I finally got to play with one today at The Telegraph headquarters in London. It was much smaller and lighter than I anticipated. I flipped through The New York Times app and one for an Alice in Wonderland book. I typed on the keyboard on the notepad section. I even got a dabble of drool on it, by accident of course. (I guess that is what a case is for?)

People in the states are enjoying their iPad, but it will be a while before others around the globe can buy one. When Apple announced it has delayed the international launch by a month until the end of May, many found this upsetting. Why, eager iPad users ask. Well, the iPad is in high demand.

But hey, I’m not an owner yet. The biggest gripes about the iPad are its shoddy Wi-Fi pick up, apps crashing, and charging issues. Oh well, like I said before, the first generation always has some growing pains.

Image: flickr/ Jesus Belzunce

Dear iPad. I love you. I really do. is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer –

AdMob was one of the very first large exits in the mobile space, which set off a wave of mobile and advertising activity in the industry. However, the Federal Trade Commission has raised their eyebrows at Google’s purchase of AdMob and is now considering blocking the acquisition.

Daily Finance reports:

Clearly, Apple wanted AdMob. But ironically, Apple’s aggressive push into mobile advertising may help ameliorate regulatory concern over the AdMob deal. Or at least that’s what Google CEO Eric Schmidt would like us — and the FTC — to believe.

Over the weekend, Schmidt said that Apple’s iAds launch is “evidence of a highly competitive market,” according to Reuters.

Yes, iAd is cleverly named like the iPad without the P. iAd would allow apps in the iTunes store for the iPhone and for the iPad to have an advertising element to it. Well, it was only a matter of time. And this is encouraging that the advertising community is finally growing up and maturing beyond Google AdWords. But the old school advertising isn’t going away anytime soon, now that Twitter just introduced their ad plan through Promoted Tweets.

Forbes reports mobile advertising is expected to get a boost of 45 % this year. Developers better brush up on HTML 5, as I wrote earlier, MeFeedia has the first ad solution for the much anticipated iPad. iAd will also require developers to use HTML 5 as the programming language.

Ad platform wars: Admob versus iAd is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer –

The Internet made the news free, it might soon do the same thing to phone calls. Enter Line2, an app that makes the iPhone more robust by allowing the user to get around the rules of its sole mobile provider, AT&T.

Not only does Line2 give your iPhone a second line, it also lets you make calls using Wi-Fi. After the initial investment of a $1 for the app, you have a month to try it for free.

And if you like it, you can pay $15 a month to use its service. Not only can Line2 save minutes on your minute plan, it can prevent the dreaded (and embarrassing) dropped calls.

The New York Times reports:

Line2 gives your iPhone a second phone number — a second phone line, complete with its own contacts list, voice mail, and so on. The company behind it, Toktumi (get it?), imagines that you’ll distribute the Line2 number to business contacts, and your regular iPhone number to friends and family. Your second line can be an 800 number, if you wish, or you can transfer an existing number.

To that end, Toktumi offers, on its Web site, a raft of Google Voice-ish features that are intended to help a small businesses look bigger: call screening, Do Not Disturb hours and voice mail messages sent to you as e-mail. You can create an “automated attendant” —“Press 1 for sales,” “Press 2 for accounting,” and so on — that routes incoming calls to other phone numbers. Or, if you’re pretending to be a bigger business than you are, route them all to yourself.

As The New York Times points out, people with an iPod touch can use their gadget as a phone as long as there is Wi-Fi available.

Hmm, there must be tension brewing behind the scenes of Google and Apple. After all, Steve Jobs rejected the Google Voice app.

In the future, when broadband becomes more ubiquitous, these mobile apps might soon replace our cell phone providers. If you are wondering why you wouldn’t just use Skype, keep in mind Line2 can manage your calls, connect to a Wi-Fi if available to put you on a more reliable network, and improves the sound so that it’s radio station quality. But of course, Skype is completely free to use and it also works on your cell phone.

But the Skype app has to running to accept incoming calls and the Line2 app doesn’t.  But Line2 is hardly perfect and has a few hiccups to solve — some scratchy sound in the background of calls and a slight delay is enough to annoy someone on a bad day.

If your cell reception is really horrible, you can always take matters into your own hands and buy your very own personal cell tower.

Images: iTunes

When the signal is weak, Line2 makes the iPhone into a super phone is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer –

Finally, multitasking will soon come to the iPhone. But if you want to take advantage of the multitasking feature, you would need to upgrade your iPhone to an OS 4 version.

Physorg.com reports:

“We weren’t the first to this party, but we’re going to be the best,” Apple CEO Steve Jobs declared Thursday, as bloggers, software developers and others in the audience greeted the news of such “multitasking” with applause.

The iPhone already permits some multitasking, but that’s largely limited to Apple’s own programs. Apple had not given users ways to seamlessly switch among all the software “apps” available from outside software companies, the way phones from rivals Palm Inc. and Google Inc. already do.

By being able to multitask, the iPhone really will get closer to replacing the function of personal computer.

Speaking of the personal computer, The Times published a beautiful piece on Edward Roberts, the underdog personal computer “pioneer”.

Image: flickr/ mattjb

Multitaskers look forward to being able to multitask on the iPhone is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer –

Even if I was in New York tonight, I would not be lining up for the iPad like so many others are. As a magazine writer, I should be excited about it, but I’m not. Considering the fact that the iPad is expected to change the landscape of magazine publishing, my heart should be fluttering. People, Esquire, and Wired are among the few magazines that have iPad apps ready to go.

But as BNet puts it: Magazine people better stop acting like a giddy teenager before a date and figure out how to make money off of the new gadget.

According to the New York Times:

Many consumers do not understand the device’s purpose, who would want to pay $500 or more for it and why anyone would need another gadget on top of a computer and smartphone. After all, phones are performing an ever-expanding range of functions, as Apple points out in its many iPhone commercials.

But it’s expensive. And it’s big. It’s apparently a big deal. And it’s easy to use. It’s just hard to get.

We can all remember the hype over the iPod and the iPhone. And the hype was well justified, as the devices have transformed the music and cellular industries. The first versions of both had so many kinks in it and were clunkier. But eventually Apple does win my heart — yes I have an iPhone, iPod, and MacBook.

Needless to say, Apple’s stock got a big boost. It always does after a new product launch. Besides the iPad debut April 3rd, the rumors that the iPhone will hook up with Verizon Wireless is helping the prices sour.

Watch Fast Company’s video on the iPad:

Image: flickr/ PACMan3000

iPad fever. Who has it? is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer –

It’s rumored that Google might buy Catch Media, a startup that takes care of permission and licensing issues for media on the Internet. Why would Google want it? Well, Catch Media can make it easier to access movies and music on a number of devices like your cable box or your car or your cell phone.

Through their Play Anywhere technology, files stored on your computer can be accessed from anywhere.

The New York Times reports:

Based in Jerusalem and Los Angeles, Catch Media is building a registration, tracking and clearinghouse system to give consumers legal access to their music anytime and anywhere across a variety of devices. Mark Segall, its business development adviser, says the company will soon announce which music companies will use the technology but suggests that consumers will have to pay a “convenience fee” for streaming their music from the Web, comparable to charges at an A.T.M.

Basically, Catch Media wants to make buying entertainment as easy as withdrawing cash from an ATM. This is brilliant.

Google may have some competition though. Apple is building a data center to stay in the cloud game. They want to host the cloud version of data to reduce the burden of downloading and storing new media on PCs.

Related Post:

mSpot lets you watch movies from your phone and PC

Will Google buy Catch Media? is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer – Boonsri Dickinson (@boonspoon)

Happy, snowy Friday. Do you feel like having some self help ideas for your business? Here are some things that happened this week.

10 entrepreneurs who created companies valued at $50 million talk about their biggest mistake.

Scientists turn body movement into electricity.

Start-ups get $3.5 billion in an attempt to boost innovation in the states.

Bits blogger Nick Bilton talks about the three Fs: Facebook, Farmville, and Foursquare.

Why New York isn’t the best place for a start-up.

100 things entrepreneurs should know.

Anyone building an app? How to deal with Apple.

Online video is hot in China: Chinese search engine Baidu raises $50 million for Oiyi, its online video site.

Approved. Facebook patents The News Feed. What does this mean for Twitter and other social networks?

Apple pulls sexy iPhone porn apps from its store. Prude and unfair?

Unhappy? You’ll have to wait until you’re 74 to be content, scientists say.

Cybercriminals are after Twitter users again. Don’t click on shady links people!

Image: flickr/ veesees

Roundup of Start-up News is a post from: TechStartups.com

By Staff Writer – Boonsri Dickinson (@boonspoon)

At the O’Reilly Tools of Change for Publishing conference, Nilofer Merchant, a leading authority on business strategies, talked to me about her new book, The New How: Creating Business Solutions Through Collaborative Strategy.

When I asked her why start-up companies fail, she said the companies have too many ideas and deplete their resources. “They are unclear of what matters most to them and why,” says Merchant.

In her book, she introduces the idea of MurderBoarding:

“It’s not how many good ideas you have. It’s how many good ideas you kill.”

After working for companies like Apple and Adobe, she learned how to solve problems and shares her tricks with you. If you are starting a business, Merchant gives you a step-by-step guide to why companies fail and provides tips on ways to succeed.

Watch the video to find out more:

Merchant suggests getting people involved in the strategy planning process because developing strategies should be creative and collaborative. Now put your journalist hat on and ask the right questions.

Start-ups Have Too Many Ideas is a post from: TechStartups.com

MobileGamesBlog has a recent post that Apple has begun to block users that have jailbroken their iPhones from the App store.

I guess Apple now figures if you’re gangster enough to go rogue with your iPhone you should be stuck with unofficial apps.

So far this has only happened to a few users. If we see more of it we’ll update our post.

From a personal perspective I’m not surprised by it. Every version of the iPhone and its software with the exception of the 3Gs model has come with major limitations in areas of video, control over phone operation at customization. Jailbreaking the device cleared up most of that.

With the 3Gs release there isn’t much need to jailbreak the phone unless you want to tether the phone for internet access. But it appears that will come at a hefty price.

Image credit: MobileGamesBlog

Via [MobileGamesBlog]

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Apple Blocking iPhone Jailbreak Users . . . is a post from: TechStartups.com

Yep, you read that title correctly, ‘Serial’. Oh, boy.

Like you my first thought was, “Really? My grandpop’s got an old printer he needs to connect to?”

My second thought being that is a great idea given the amount the products that us serial type connections that could be given legacy support from some of the newest technology.

Redpark is offering a new serial adapter and an RJ11 adapter that can be used in conjunction with custom apps to interface with various types of equipment. In their press release they highlight medical equipment along with other interesting solutions.

“The serial cable makes it possible to connect an iPhone or iPod Touch to serial devices such as medical or scientific instrumentation, point of sale devices, industrial process control equipment, networking devices, and building automation equipment. The cable enables the attached device to communicate with an application running on the iPhone.”

Redpark expects that their dongle will work with the iPad though it hasn’t been tested. But with the chances that the iPad could become a fav of medical or POS it would make sense for them to work on a compatible version.

Redpark is ready to teach the new dog some tricks and bring the old ones into the 21st century.

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• Mobile Coupon Redemption Easier than Ever with Cellit iWidgit (eon.businesswire.com)

Redpark Launches Serial Cable Adapter for iPhone and iPod Touch is a post from: TechStartups.com

If the iPad is going to cause any sort of revolution in computing it is going to be the massive choices that people will have to buy non-Apple slates.

The number of announced slates for Android, MS and Linux is gaining everyday.

One of the most recent that stands out from the crowd for its design is from Aigo, the giant electronics manufacturer. Though slates have yet to be proven they are throwing their hat into the ring with an iPad-esque design.

The Aigo slate is said to have Android OS onboard with, from what the pictures show, is one more USB port than the iPad at one.

If all of these announcements are telling us anything about the soon to be slate market beyond being crowded, there will be pricing pressure from the very beginning. All of these manufacturers are hoping to catch the same lightening in a bottle that was the netbook land rush.

I’m not quite sold on the necessity of having a laptop, netbook, smartphone and slate in my personal computing arsenal. The first three on that list, yes. They all serve a real purpose for needs that a user may have whether it is crunching video, writing up documentation or making a call. From what I’ve seen slates come up short on all things except web browsing.

Regardless, slates are going to be amassing and hitting the markets very soon. This will be an interesting year to see which company goes deep in slates and what their outcome will be.

Via [Cloned In China]

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The Chinese Are Coming With Slates and Tablets is a post from: TechStartups.com

Well, we all know what this means. And if you don’t know, let me hip you to what is known on the internets as ‘Apple New Product’ day.

Sometimes it is just simply product upgrades and other times it is all brand new stuff.

Today, it will most likely be upgrades for the MacBook Pros and other computing goodies.

If there is anything major . . . we’ll be on it. But for now the Apple store is down.

Update: Nothing to see here. Just a new version of Aperture that people had been tweeting about all morning.

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Apple Store Down [Updated] is a post from: TechStartups.com

If you really want to know what made the iPhone such a game changing device you need look no further than the fact that it challenged every concept of what a mobile phone was.

By challenging concepts and executing ideas of that challenge as actual solutions one innovates.

Take images to the left by ding3000 as something that can inspire you to think of something new.

Both of these challenge the popular conceptions of the role of electricity and fire in our live for lighting.

They are brilliant illustrations of design execution for innovative products.

Working at a startup whether you are the founder or early in the game means that you are required to be involved in product development at some level.

Being able to capture your own ideas based on thoughtful review of the current products is an important key to allowing you to help iterate for the growth of the business.

Hopefully these will help you when you need to think differently to create something innovative for your startup.

[Via 1 Design Per Day -> ding3000]

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Inspiration: Challenge Concepts for Innovation is a post from: TechStartups.com