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AT&T Is In Event Mode, Replaces Site With iPhone 5 Pre-order Countdown
Sep 14, 4:53AM
Despite my not-so-great experiences with AT&T today, the company is getting the iPhone 5 party started early and drumming up excitement, as a timer has replaced its site:Taiwan: How About A Taipei Mini-Meetup?
Sep 14, 3:32AM
I'm going to be heading over to Taipei next week and I'd love to connect with entrepreneurs, programmers, nerds, hackers, fun people, and/or sourpusses. To that end, I'd like to propose a small meet-up, very informal on Tuesday, September 18, 2012, at about 8pm. I know nothing about Taipei so I'm depending on you guys to recommend a location for us to meet.Accessory Manufacturers Aren't Sure (Or Aren't Saying) If Apple's Adapter Will Allow Audio And Video Dock Output
Sep 14, 3:13AM
One of the biggest concerns I've had about Apple's new Lightning port is the perceived (or real) obsolescence of a whole constellation of iPod 30-pin compatible devices. Now that fear seems confirmed. As we learned today, the Lightning to 30-pin adapter comes with an important caveat: "Video and iPod Out not supported." This means thousands, if not millions, of devices will become e-waste. But are we sure these adapters won't work?Amazon Web Services Expands in Japan
Sep 14, 2:58AM
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is expanding in Japan through the opening of a new availability zone. The move means that AWS will most likely be adding more data centers to keep up with the steady demand it has had since it first began offering its service in Tokyo 18 months ago. AWS breaks its regions into availability zones. Each availability zone can encompass multiple data centers. For example, the AWS U.S. East region in Northern Virginia now occupies more than 10 data centers. That means it is likely AWS could be building new data centers in Japan for its new availability zone, as well as the two it opened since early 2011.Apparently, This Is Happening: Silicon Valley Bank Hosts An 'American Idol For The Geek Set'
Sep 14, 2:22AM
Not a joke, not an imaginary story: Silicon Valley Bank and Coverflow are hosting an event next month that was described in an invite as "American Idol for the geek set." Now, there's nothing special about getting a bunch of startup assholes to sing karaoke. (Heck, I hear that the TechCrunch team held not one, but two karaoke parties this week.) However, Silicon Valley Voice, which will be held on Oct. 3, looks kinda-sorta legit.Developers On iPhone 5: Redesigning Apps Not Hard, But Also Not Trivial
Sep 14, 1:04AM
The new iPhone 5 has a new screen with new dimensions, and this time, making existing apps fill that space and look good isn't just a matter of doubling dimensions of all assets like it was with the introduction of the Retina display. This time around, the change will require more varied responses, depending on what kind of app or app element you're working with. I spoke to a couple of developers of varying technical expertise and experience, and picked their brains on what kinds of challenges people are facing in getting their apps ready for the iPhone 5. Existing unmodified apps will run fine in letterbox mode, with two black bars on each side, but users will be hungry for updated apps that show off the new screen, so developers are understandably trying hard to be ready on day one.Dropbox Rewrote Its Entire Browser-Side Codebase In 1 Week
Sep 14, 12:56AM
The engineering team at Dropbox re-wrote its browser-side codebase one week last July, according to a post on the Dropbox tech blog. The rewrite was done to translate all of its JavaScript into a language called CoffeeScript. CoffeeScript is a language that compiles into JavaScript. It offers an alternative syntax that looks more like Python or Ruby, with the goal of enabling "literate programming", an approach to writing code that's meant to be more human readable.Startup Alley: The Disrupt Mexican Pavilion Shows A Growing Tech Ecosystem
Sep 14, 12:36AM
The great thing about country-based pavilions at TechCrunch Disrupt is that one can see innovation and new tech companies coming from countries you might not have associated with startups before. As you will have read in this guest post by Eduardo Serrano last week, the shift toward emerging markets shows that Mexico is on its way up in tech. Mexico's economy is growing 40 percent faster than Brazil's, more than twice as fast as the United States, and is already the world's 14th-largest economy (on a GDP-based scale). One out of five Mexicans now owns a smartphone, and the market will have grown 70 percent in the next two years. Some 40 million Mexicans are connected to the Internet today. Here's a run though of the companies in the pavilion:Apple Maps In iOS 6: What Happens When You Take A Step Back With User Experience?
Sep 13, 11:26PM
Apple's iOS 6 will be available for users to download and install on September 19, two days before the iPhone 5 is set to hit shelves. As per usual, the update brings a lot of new stuff to the table. Good stuff that will significantly improve user experience. But in a rare move for Apple, it also ticks the needle back a few notches in at least one big way: Google Maps is leaving as the platform's built-in solution. Apple's replacement, its own house-built (with a little help from TomTom, Waze and others) Maps.app, just isn't at the same level as Google's solution, and for good reason. As was discussed in the panel I hosted yesterday at TechCrunch Disrupt (embedded below), Google has had a huge head start on maps, having worked on Google Maps since the kernel behind it was acquired when the company bought Where 2 Technologies in 2005.Jimmy Kimmel Proves: Apple's Magic Is In The Brainwash
Sep 13, 10:49PM
Apple has definitely perfected its magic trick. There's no doubt about that. The company has the ability to brainwash, and I say that as someone who has been brainwashed myself by the beauty and simplicity of Apple products. But it stretches far beyond the actual hardware, software, or services, and delves straight into brand perception. Reports even suggest that fanbois' brains respond to Apple imagery the same way that religious fanatics' brains respond to religious imagery. It's an incredible feat, and some are so very indoctrinated that they stop trusting in their own sensory perception and simply trust the brand. Whole-heartedly. Such is the case with this spoof from Jimmy Kimmel.BuzzFeed's First Acquisition Kingfish Labs Could Make Its FB Ads Go More Viral Than Football Cats
Sep 13, 10:07PM
After its Facebook dating app didn't pan out, New York's Kingfish Labs built a data service for optimizing Facebook ads, and now the startup has become content cornucopia Buzzfeed's first acquisition. Kingfish's technology, engineering team, and one co-founder Jeff Revesz will head over to BuzzFeed, I've learned from other co-founder Rob Fishman. Here's what they'll be doing. BuzzFeed sells sponsored posts about brands like Red Bull and injects them into its own homepage feed of cute kitten, ridiculous lists, and insightful journalism. Kingfish will help it buy Facebook ads that drive traffic to those sponsored posts.Start-Up Chile Holds Its First Demo Day In San Francisco
Sep 13, 10:01PM
Start-Up Chile is an accelerator program that is financed by the Chilean government and meant to jumpstart the tech community in the South American country. Today, the program is holding its first demo day in San Francisco. What's especially interesting about Start-Up Chile is that the program, which started in 2010 and has already graduated four classes, isn't just trying to attract Chilean entrepreneurs. Instead, the Chilean government is making a concerted effort to attract companies from around the world. Many of the 19 startups that are presenting in San Francisco today (and many of which also attended TechCrunch Disrupt this week) hail from Singapore, New Zealand, India, and Canada.NYC's Lerer Ventures Raising $30M Third Fund For Early-Stage Investments
Sep 13, 9:37PM
Lerer Ventures, one of the better known seed stage venture capital funds based out of New York, is raising a $30 million fund, according to its Form D filed today with the SEC. It's the third fund in the venture firm's history and aims to raise the bar a bit from Lerer's second fund, of $25 million, which it raised in May 2011. (Its maiden fund was worth $8 million and was raised in early 2010.)Dear AT&T, Take Your iPhone 5 And Shove It Up Your A$$ (UPDATED)
Sep 13, 9:07PM
So here's an interesting predicament that I've found myself in today. As you know, the iPhone 5 pre-sale begins at 12:01 Friday morning. I'm ready to pre-order like every other geek, but I can't. Here's the gist of it. I was in Mexico last month, and before I left I added international data roaming services for two of my lines. Pretty standard for me, since I travel a lot. Those additions didn't stick and while in Mexico, I received text messages warning me that my usage was ridonkulous and that I'd soon be poor.YouTube Launches 'American Idol' Search For The Best Teachers
Sep 13, 9:06PM
YouTube is looking to give some much-needed celebrity status to the most engaging teachers in the world. They're conducting an Internet-wide competition of the best video lessons, which will be judged by an all-star panel of online educators, such as Sal Khan of Khan Academy. The rise of online educational videos is giving learners access to the world's greatest thinkers and teachers, leveling the playing field for all," explains the YouTube blog announcement. "We believe that inspiring online educators can come from all walks of life, and we want to find the next generation of educational YouTube stars."No More Needles: 'Painless' Laser Injects Drugs
Sep 13, 8:48PM
The end of needles is nigh: researches have developed a laser-based system "that blasts microscopic jets of drugs into the skin could soon make getting a shot as painless as being hit with a puff of air," reports phys.org. The laser system works by creating microsecond bubbles of air that penetrate the skin and injects a drug through a narrow space about as wide as a human hair.Video Portal Veoh Retains Equity Partners CRB To Explore Sale, Other Strategic Options
Sep 13, 8:21PM
So much for the YouTube competitors. The owners of Veoh, a video portal that claims to have millions of users worldwide, has said it has enlisted the help of Equity Partners CRB to explore strategic options for the company, including a sale. "The company intends to focus solely on commercialization of its proprietary social video offerings," owners Qlipso said in a statement (embedded below). The move is a sign that even with large audiences (but perhaps not large enough) video portals are facing some challenges monetizing under their existing, ad-based business models. And it may be a further sign that Veoh specifically has faced challenges in growth following lawsuits from big media, a bankruptcy in 2010, and its sale to Qlipso shortly after. Veoh, which focuses on premium rather than user-generated content, says it currently has 3 million pieces of content in its catalog, along with revenue-sharing partnerships with TV, cable, music and other brands worldwide. The company had raised some $80 million from investors that include Intel Capital and Michael Eisner.iPhone 5 Unlocked U.S. Pricing: $649 (16GB), $749 (32GB), And $849 (64GB)
Sep 13, 8:09PM
Apple's website now shows the unlocked pricing for the iPhone 5 in the U.S. Using the site's compare tool, you can see that the 16GB model starts at $649, with the 32GB version costing $749, and the 64GB top-tier configuration running $849. That's the same that the iPhone 4S used to cost unlocked, and it's a considerable additional expense above and beyond the on-contract price, but you get a couple of advantages.Friendster Founder Jonathan Abrams Launches Nuzzel: A Fast, Simple, Social News Reader
Sep 13, 8:08PM
Jonathan Abrams, whose resume as a founder or co-founder includes the Founders Den startup workspace, event service Socializr, social bookmarking service HotLinks, and Friendster (I don't need to explain that last one, do I?), is launching his latest startup today: Nuzzel, a site for browsing the news that your friends have shared on social networks. There seems to be a glut of social newsreading services, but Abrams says there's nothing that delivers the experience he's looking for — something fast, easy-to-use, and social. To demonstrate that, he had me create my own Nuzzel account. I connected my Twitter account (you can connect Facebook, too), and within seconds, I had a page of headlines shared by the people I follow on Twitter, along with their commentary, and related news and stories from sites like Reddit, Hacker News, and Techmeme.Birchbox Breaks Into Europe With Acquisition Of France's JolieBox
Sep 13, 8:03PM
Birchbox, which offers a monthly subscription box full of new cosmetics and beauty products, is crossing the Atlantic with the acquisition of Paris-based JolieBox (which offers a nearly identical service in Europe). Terms of the deal aren't being disclosed. "We knew it was always on the roadmap for Birchbox to be global," said Birchbox's co-chief executive Katia Beauchamp. "What we offer resonates globally with consumers and, furthermore, we work with so many global brands that we wanted to serve them in other markets."If at any time you'd like to stop receiving these messages, just send an email to feeds_feedburner_com_techcrunch+unsubscribe-hmdtechnology=gmail.com@mail.feed2email.net.
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