A new single Michael Jackson song, called “This is It”, has debuted online. It’s the first new material after Michael Jackson’s death in Los Angeles on June 25; it’ll also be featured in the upcoming documentaryof the same name. Just like the trailer for the documentary, which was first shown at the MTV Video Music Awards and followed by an online debut on MySpace, the new single has first appeared online and will now be sent to radio outlets.The fan reactions on Twitterare mostly positive, but you can hear the song below (or at official site over at michaeljackson.com) and judge for yourself. Reviews: MySpaceTags: internet, michael jackson
Great viral videos are hard to come by, but Volkswagen (or rather ad agency DDB Stockholm) appears to have hit the bullseye. Their new campaign “The Fun Theory” is a series of experiments, captured on video, to find out if making the world more fun can improve people’s behavior. The top video, Piano Stairs, has achieved over 1 million views on YouTube–I can’t count how many times friends have shared it this week.Among the experiments: does turning a set of subway stairs into a real-life piano encourage people to use them (answer: yes, 66% more). Another experiment asks whether making a trash can sound like a 50ft-deep well will make people pick up their trash. An upcoming experiment, meanwhile, will turn a bottle recycling center into an arcade game.The brand placement is as subtle as it could possibly be: a simple VW logo dropped in at the end. And yet the content carries that logo all around the web, as tens of thousands of people pass around the video, along with their positive associations for the VW brand. Isn’t that the definition of a perfect brand campaign?Piano StairsWorld’s Deepest BinBottle ArcadeTags: viral, volkswagen
Where’s wireless technology for devices headed? If this fall’s industry event, CTIA, is any indication, it’s heading in a myriad of different directions. Of course there was news of a Barnes & Noble color Kindle competitor, but there were also several handheld devices on the expo floor highlighting the latest innovations and trends in wireless technology.Case in point, these three extremely unconventional gadgets. They include a watch that doubles as a smartphone, a mini television for consuming high-quality, live entertainment, and a tiny computing device that’s much smaller than a netbook but connects to the web over a 4G network.The jury’s still out on whether or not any of these products will influence market trends, but they definitely have us wondering, what will they come up with next?.1. K&S W PhonewatchWant a watch that doubles as a touchscreen smartphone, MP3 player, camera, and video camcorder? It sounds like something straight out The Jetsons, but Kempler & Strauss debuted a product that does just that at CTIA.Dubbed the W Phonwatch, the watch does tell time, but it also doubles as a touchscreen smartphone. It comes equipped with a micro SD slot, stereo MP3 player, camera, video recorder/player, and games. It’s also Bluetooth-enabled and works with a funky K & S Communicator. Of course why use the Communicator when you can just talk straight into the watch? Watch our video interview for a full demonstration of the watch/phone in action.Price point: $199Service plan: Carrier dependentFun fact: It’s not exactly waterproof, but it’s sweat-proof so you can take it to the gym. Just don’t try to take stealth video in the gym locker room.2. FLO TV Personal TelevisionSingle purpose devices like the Kindle or Barnes & Noble’s soon-to-be-released eBook reader are the antithesis to all-in-one devices like smartphones and tablets. They’re not exactly mainstream, but they do appeal to niche audiences that want a device that does one thing extremely well.In the case of the aforementioned examples, that one thing is reading electronic books. But Qualcomm, which just announcedtheir personal handheld television, FLO TV, has applied that same logic to watching high-quality live and time-shifted television.Just slightly bigger than an iPhone, the device comfortably rests in your hands or stands up on its own via the built-in stand, has a 3.5 inch touchscreen, supports up to 5 hours of TV watching on a full charge, and uses the FLO TV dedicated multicast network to provide a buffer and download-free experience.It’s too early to tell if this is a hit or miss, but the product delivers on it’s single mission — a great TV watching experience. The television content is currently limited, but does include Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, NBC, CBS, FOX, and ESPN.Price point: $249.99Service plan: $8.99 p/moFun fact: You can channel surf with your fingers.3. Samsung MondiThis device is a bit of a head-scratcher. Launched a few months ago, the Samsung Mondi is not a phone or a netbook, but it runs on Windows Mobile, acts like a full-fledged computer with Microsoft Office Mobile, comes complete with a webcam for video chat, applications, a 4.3″ LCD touchscreen, 4GB of internal memory, a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, and is only slightly bigger than a typical smart phone.On the one hand it’s a mobile internet device for more sophisticated computing and internet access over a 4G network (WiMAX) or local Wi-Fi, on the other hand it fits in your pocket.It’s by no means the perfect device, after all women with fingernails may have trouble using the keyboard, and the touch sensitivity could be much improved, but it’s a very business appropriate device for productivity on the run. Is it the next great gadget? You tell us.Price point: $499.99 (Best Buy)Service plan: Carrier dependentFun fact: You can use it as a phone, with VoIP applications like Skype.Reviews: Bluetooth, SkypeTags: flo tv, gadgets, samsung mondi, watchphone
We commented a few hours ago on a claim in the Telegraph newspaper that Twitter is considering the addition of videoto the service, and expressed skepticism about the report. That skepticism seems well-founded, as Twitter co-founder Biz Stone replied to our inquiries today by email, essentially debunking the article’s premise:Haven’t read the piece but no video hosting. 140 characters of text including spaces. You know the drill!Twitter’s position is sound: if the site were to duplicate the functionality of existing apps, it could undermine the trust of developers who invest huge amounts of time, money and energy in creating applications for the Twitter ecosystem. That said, Twitter does lose out when it comes to multimedia: adding in-line thumbnails for images and videos (even if that content is hosted on 3rd party sites) would make for a much richer experience that could match Facebook’s news feed for image and video sharing. Yes, in-line multimedia can be done with apps like TweetDeck, but that’s non-obvious and an extra step for those more familiar with the leading social network. Even this could bring Twitter into conflict with developers however: if multimedia support were added, would there be default services in the same way Bit.ly is the default URL shortener?Such moves would be made with caution, if at all. Stone’s comment sums up Twitter’s philosophy nicely: keep it simple, with as few extra features as possible. Image courtesy of iStockphoto, FotoieReviews: Facebook, TweetDeck, Twitter, iStockphoto
Microsoft just launched Windows Mobile 6.5, but the TV ad campaign doesn’t distract the viewer with version numbers: instead, Microsoft is encouraging customers to buy a “Windows phone”. Apps like Word, Outlook and even Twitter are seen hopping into a car as their owner leaves the house. Seattle blog TechFlashsays the ad is a flop, calling it “downright strange” and lacking the impact of the successful Laptop Hunter series:Am I missing something here? I’ve watched it three times now, and still don’t think it resonates. We’ve actually been impressed with Microsoft’s “Laptop Hunters” ad campaign — which appears to be making inroads against Apple — as well as some of the more recent Windows 7 ads. But this one is just downright strange.I disagree: taking your apps with you is the perfect message for those already invested in the Windows desktop environment. The downside: those fun little app icons are somewhat reminiscent of iPhone apps, are they not?What do you think: are the new Windows phone ads a hit or a miss?
Update: Twitter responded to our inquiries saying that they have no plans to host video. See Twitter: Nope, We’re Not Doing Video Tweets–If Twitter added the ability to post video clips to the service, would you use it? That feature may be coming, according to a short and unsourced article today by Britain’s Telegraph. If true, such a service would compete with many existing Twitter videosites, including Twiddeo and Vidly.The details, however, are suspiciously sparse, with the Telegraph merely citing discussions by the site’s founders:The upgrade, which is being discussed by Twitter’s founders, will enable Twitter users to upload brief video snippets to their profiles directly from mobile phones, laptops and other devices. Third party sites Twiddeo and Tweetube already allow Twitter users to post video tweets but only by creating links to their sites.Both Twideo and Tweetube have so far failed to gain as much popularity as similar external service Twitpic. Twitter’s founders hope by adding live video-tweeting it will help boost its prominence as a fashionable social-networking tool again.We’re somewhat dubious about this one: there’s been no public discussion of video Tweeting, while upcoming features like the new retweetsand listshave been discussed extensively. We’ll let you know when we hear back from Twitter on the matter.Would you use video Tweets if they were a native Twitter feature? Let us know in the comments.Reviews: Twitpic, Twitter
We’ve seen Tweets posted byplants, a space shuttle and even a house, so we shouldn’t be particularly surprised to hear that commercial jets are now Tweeting and posting Facebook messages (sorta). In fact, we think the idea is ingenious.Admittedly, it’s not the plane itself doing the Tweeting: it’s the airline. Lufthansa has set up a new service named MySkyStatusthat automatically posts the current position of your flight to Twitter or Facebook so your friends can follow your travels (and your friends living in those cities can look up!). Typical status updates read “flying over San Francisco Intl, California 94030, USA on United Airlines” or “flying over Grantsville, UT 84029, USA on United Airlines”. It seems the system posts the flight’s position around once per hour, pulling info from a database of flight information. Here’s the really smart bit: I stumbled on the service because one of my Facebook friends was on a United Airlines flight today. Clicking the link in the update, of course, directs you to the Lufthansa MySkyStatus page with a Google Map of the flight’s position, meaning that Lufthansa is getting free social media promotion from people travelling on all airlines. Pretty smart.On a long haul flight, of course, the system may post 20 updates or more, but the functionality is so cool that I’m prepared to give some slack to those Twitterand Facebookfriends who have decided to put their updates on autopilot. [Image credit: bribriTO]Reviews: Facebook, TwitterTags: flights, Flying, myskystatus
News came today that a server failure has resulted in total data loss for T-Mobile Sidekickusers. The data loss, seemingly the fault of Microsoft/Danger, is resulting in shock and anger. One Twitter addict is seeing the bright side, however: singer John Mayer points outthat celebrity blogger Perez Hilton has lost 2,000 address book contacts, which Mayer considers to be no bad thing:Hilton, of course, is not finding the situation amusing in the lightest: he’s been one of the Sidekick’s harshest critics in recent days, coining the hashtag #TmobileSucks (although it would appear that Microsoft/Danger may have more to do with the data loss). He’s unlikely to be alone: angry Sidekick users might now be motivated to take legal action, and lawsuits seem virtually inevitable.Tags: john mayer, perez hilton, sidekick
There’s bad news for Sidekick users today: T-Mobile has announced that it was unable to recover Sidekick data after a server failure at Microsoft subsidiary Danger. This means any data not stored on your Sidekick but residing in the “cloud” has been lost. Sidekick users are advised to keep their devices powered up and not conduct a reset or remove the battery: a power-down would mean any data still on the phone is lost. T-Mobile will provide an update on the situation on Monday, but things are looking very bleak indeed.In T-Mobile’s words: “based on Microsoft/Danger’s latest recovery assessment of their systems, we must now inform you that personal information stored on your device – such as contacts, calendar entries, to-do lists or photos – that is no longer on your Sidekick almost certainly has been lost as a result of a server failure at Microsoft/Danger.”The story is a jarring one for those storing increasing amounts of data in the “cloud”: as we become more reliant on servers to house our data, such losses can be catastrophic.The full press release is below (via Engadget).T-Mobile Press Release on Sidekick Data LossT-MOBILE AND MICROSOFT/DANGER STATUS UPDATE ON SIDEKICK DATA DISRUPTIONDear valued T-Mobile Sidekick customers:T-Mobile and the Sidekick data services provider, Danger, a subsidiary of Microsoft, are reaching out to express our apologies regarding the recent Sidekick data service disruption.We appreciate your patience as Microsoft/Danger continues to work on maintaining platform stability, and restoring all services for our Sidekick customers.Regrettably, based on Microsoft/Danger’s latest recovery assessment of their systems, we must now inform you that personal information stored on your device – such as contacts, calendar entries, to-do lists or photos – that is no longer on your Sidekick almost certainly has been lost as a result of a server failure at Microsoft/Danger. That said, our teams continue to work around-the-clock in hopes of discovering some way to recover this information. However, the likelihood of a successful outcome is extremely low. As such, we wanted to share this news with you and offer some tips and suggestions to help you rebuild your personal content. You can find these tips in our Sidekick Contacts FAQ. We encourage you to visit the Forums on a regular basis to access the latest updates as well as FAQs regarding this service disruption.In addition, we plan to communicate with you on Monday (Oct. 12) the status of the remaining issues caused by the service disruption, including the data recovery efforts and the Download Catalog restoration which we are continuing to resolve. We also will communicate any additional tips or suggestions that may help in restoring your content.We recognize the magnitude of this inconvenience. Our primary efforts have been focused on restoring our customers’ personal content. We also are considering additional measures for those of you who have lost your content to help reinforce how valuable you are as a T-Mobile customer.We continue to advise customers to NOT reset their device by removing the battery or letting their battery drain completely, as any personal content that currently resides on your device will be lost.Once again, T-Mobile and Microsoft/Danger regret any and all inconvenience this matter has caused.Tags: sidekick, T-Mobile
Beware: a Facebook poke could land you behind bars. Just ask Shannon D. Jackson of Hendersonville, Tennessee, who faces that very real possibility.Jackson was arrested and transported to Sumner County Jail on September 25th with a bond set at $1,500 after she violated an order of protection by allegedly poking a woman on Facebook. The alleged poke broke the terms of the court order: “no telephoning, contacting or otherwise communicating with the petitioner.” If found guilty, Jackson could face some more extended jailtime: a possible 29 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,500. The Tennesseanwrites:According to the affidavit filed in Sumner County General Sessions Court, Jackson is accused of using the “poke” option on Facebook to contact a Hendersonville woman, thus violating the terms of the order of protection…Hendersonville police have made copies of the page in which the alleged victim is shown to be “poked,” according to the affidavit.While the story seems unbelievable at first glance, the logic is impeccable: poking a person on Facebookis indeed a means of communication, no matter how subtle. What do you think? Is poking off-limits in this case? [Image Credit: Corey Leopold]Reviews: Facebook
“Our rock stars aren’t like your rock stars”, goes the slogan on Intel’s relatively recent TV ads. One ad in the series plays homage to Ajay Bhatt, co-inventor of the USB, although Ajay is played by an actor. Upon discovering that fact, The Tonight Show’s Conan O’Brien (and someone at Intel marketing) decided it was time for an interview with the man himself.Conan questions Bhatt on everything from his own failed attempt at creating the USB (a “gravy port”) to the effect of his “rock star” status on young women. The result, of course, is hilarious:[via Engadget]Tags: conan, intel, usb
The fusion of social and mainstream media is finally complete: not only did Thursday night’s “Jim and Pam wedding” episode of The Office feature the meme-tastic 3 Wolf Moont-shirt, but it also paid tribute to the YouTube hit JK Wedding Dance. The video, which featured wedding guests dancing down the aisle and put Chris Brown back in the charts, was one of the most-shared clips of the year. As we wrote back in July:It was a pretty remarkable feat for the United Breaks Guitars viral hit to pass 3 million viewsin just 10 days, but blowing that video out of the water is the breakout wedding reception monster of a web hit: JK Wedding Entrance Dance. We’ve just learned from Visible Measures that the hilarious and inspirational JK Wedding Entrance Dance video has amassed over 12 million views from 100 different clips since it hit the web on July 19. But while the Jim and Pam episode garnered 9.1 million viewers on NBC, the JK Wedding Dance has now received more than 27 million views on YouTube. Times they are a-changin’.Below: the official NBC clip and (for our international readers) a lower quality YouTubeversion.Jim and Pam’s JK Wedding Video (Official)Jim and Pam’s JK Wedding Video (International)JK Wedding Dance: The Original YouTube VideoReviews: YouTubeTags: jim and pam, the office
Would you post your love-making locations on the web? Thousands of people are happy to, it seems, on a quirky site called I Just Made Love.It’s a simple idea: right click on a Google Map to post the location of your passionate moments, select “Indoor” or “Outdoor” and choose from one of 5 positions, as illustrated by the site’s innocuous cartoon figures. (We’re intrigued by why the figures are blue and pink – does this imply only straight couples can add markers?)Whatever you might think – and we happen to find it pretty funny – the idea is sure to be shared around the web thanks to its mildly saucy spin and wonderful simplicity. Would you post a marker on I Just Made Love? Let us know in the comments.
Toy Story 3, to be released on June 18th, is one of the most anticipated movies of 2010. While a teaser trailer for the 3D movie had been posted online already, the theatrical trailer hadn’t yet made it to the web, and no actual footage had been seen online. This week that’s changing, as the full trailer has been posted to YouTubeand other sites. Whether Disney decides to leave the videos up is another matter, but it would seem the leak is only adding to the, err, Buzz, around the release.The social media chatter will likely be positive: the trailer not only hints at phenomenal animation, but also points to a decent plot. Thanks for the preview, interwebs!Toy Story 3: Full TrailerToy Story 3: Teaser TrailerReviews: YouTubeTags: toy story
