According to the BBC, all hard drive manufacturers have agreed to change how their devices store information effective with January of next year.  Under the old method, hard drives store data in blocks that are 512 bytes in size.  This was dune to work with floppy drives, and it stayed with the storage industry until now.  Under the new architecture, blocks will be increased to 4K in size, or nearly eight times the old size.  This is expected to make hard drives 7 – 11% more efficient than the current drives.

The problem is that Windows XP, despite its age, is still a very prevalent operating system, and it has no clue how to handle blocks of that size.  Mac OS X (Tiger, Leopard and Snow Leopard versions) Windows Vista, Windows 7, and versions of the Linux kernel released after September 2009 are all able to handle the new file format.

A workaround has been designed to trick the hard drive into working with Windows XP, but it could result in reduced speed performance of as much as ten percent.  So, it will work, just not at peak performance.

In short, if you feel like you may need a new hard drive, do it before the end of this year so you can get one of the old style drives.

Article originally published by StarterTech.com

New Hard Drives Coming Out In 2011 May Not Play Well With Windows XP

Google Apps is a product of Google that allows companies to use the popular Gmail and Google Docs tools under their own company banner for an annual fee per user.  It can also be used for free by smaller companies or Web sites as a way to to route their e-mail into a Gmail interface while using their own domain name.  (i.e. owner@sitename.com would route to a Gmail account as opposed to your standard e-mail account)

Now Google has teamed up with multiple services to launch the Google Apps Marketplace.  For a separate fee per service you can add services such as Dimdim Web Conferencing, eFax, SurveyMonkey and many more to your current account, so that you can use all of them from one interface as opposed to going out to multiple sites and having to log in to each separately.

From a security perspective we can see the benefit, but each of the ones we looked at has some sort of cost associated with it.  If you’re a small company there are numerous free alternatives out there for just about everything we looked at.  In these tough economic times, weight convenience VS. cost, and you may not see the benefits of this immediately.  If you’re a big company, known yourselves out.

Article originally published by StarterTech.com

Google Launches Google Apps Marketplace

Panasonic 3D TVs will be hitting the shelves at Best Buy on Wednesday for around $2500.  The question is if you even need this technology in your life?

Personally I see 3D as a fad.  It has come and gone over the years, and while it may be nifty to go to a 3D movie from time to time, do you really want to have to wear those glasses all the time you’re in your own home?  (and, by the way, your $2500 only gets you one pair of glasses, so be ready to pick up more sets)  You know how some people have gotten headaches from watching Avatar?  Imagine doing that every night while you watch television?  No thanks.

When you add in th fact that people are still in the adoption process of HD TV sets, this was not the time to introduce a whole different set of technology.  Even if you have an HD TV already, you haven’t had it that terribly long in most cases, are you ready to plop down money again so soon for a technology that will be even more limited?

While the home electronics industry seems to think we’re ready for this, and I simply say we aren’t.  I have no desire to sit around with glasses on in my own home on a regular basis just to watch TV.  Thanks, but no thanks to all of the electronics companies that are so excited about this, but it just isn’t for me.  And, honestly, I think the electronics companies are going to find I’m not alone.

Article originally published by StarterTech.com

3D Televisions Hitting Store Shelves In The USA This Week

Lets just get the actual video out of the way.

If you had any question about what this device would do, you shouldn’t have that anymore after having watched that.

This commercial said in 30-seconds what bloggers have been writing about for five weeks now … if we just had an iPad to film we could have been done with this!

Honestly, we’re still saying you should skip the first generation, but we also know that most of you won’t listen to us, and this thing will be a huge seller.  We like the device, heck, we’d love to have one, but we also know the second generation will be even more impressive, so why not wait a year?  it’s not like this is a device you need, it’s one you want.

Article originally published by StarterTech.com

Apple’s First iPad Commercial Says It All

Not too long ago we brought you the news that Apple had banned around 5,000 apps from the App Store for being too sexually suggestive.  Well, this past week, another round of bans happened, and this time it makes absolutely no sense.

In the first round, Apple eventually came out and explained themselves, but thus far there has been no word on why they removed Wi-Fi detection apps.  These are applications that actively searched for a Wi-Fi signal, but the ban does not impact applications that simply contain a database of Wi-Fi hotspots that can be accessed via the iPhone’s GPS or by entering an address on the iPod Touch.

Apple has offered no comment on why these applications were removed, although it may have something to do with the rule for developers about how an application may not duplicate functionality of the device, and the iPhone and iPod Touch do have the ability to scan for Wi-Fi signals.  The question then would be why were they approved in the first place?

With two rounds of purging, should we expect more?

Article originally published by StarterTech.com

Wi-Fi Locating Apps Banned From The iPhone App Store

On February 24th, Conan O’Brien launched a Twitter account that he has been posting to once a day ever since.  The Tweets have all been extremely random, and mainly make fun of his unemployed status since he left The Tonight Show.

As his follower count grew past the 500,000 mark, there was an oddity in that he was not following any one back.  Around 4 PM EST on March 5th, Mr. O’Brien decided to change all that with just one Tweet:

I’ve decided to follow someone at random. She likes peanut butter and gummy dinosaurs. Sarah Killen, your life is about to change.

Before this Tweet, Ms. Killen had three followers, but as I write this she has 9,438 followers.  She has received a free Mac as a gift, been extended an offer for a wedding ring for pending nuptials, been interviewed by MTV and who knows what else.

Will her new found Twitter fame last?  Who knows.  So long as Conan O’Brien follows only her, she will stay in the spotlight, and it does make for a heck of a joke.

Congratulations Ms. Killen on your new Internet fame, and on your impending nuptials.

(In case you’re curious, Mr. O’Brien’s people reached out to Ms. Killen prior to the Tweet via MySpace to make sure she would be okay with this, but she didn’t believe it would actually happen … apparently he is a man of his word)

Article originally published by StarterTech.com

Conan O’Brien Changes The Life Of Sarah Killen On Twitter

Sit back and laugh, but realize … this isn’t too far off from the truth.

Article originally published by StarterTech.com

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart Tech-Talch – Chatroulette

Suze Orman, the financial guru receives a call from “Mark Z.”, an obvious nod to Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, who wants to buy Twitter for $1.5 billion.  It really is hysterical and well worth your time to take a look.

Article originally published by StarterTech.com

Shorty Awards Presents: Can I Afford It with Suze Orman and Mark Z.

TiVo has unveiled its latest home DVR devices, and they’re going to do a lot more than just record your shows for you now.

Known as HD Series 4 and as TiVo Premiere, the new set top DVRs are adding Internet connections to deliver even more content to your TV than the shows you choose to record. Both the TiVo Premiere (320 GB hard drive) and the TiVo Premiere XL (1 TB hard drive) will be able to deliver content from Netflix Watch Instantly, Amazon Video on Demand, Blockbuster on Demand, YouTube, Pandora and more.

Both units will have 1080P outputs and feature expansion slots for additional storage.  The Premiere will for $299 and can record up to 45 hours of content in HD recording, while the Premiere XL will sell for $499, record up to 150 hours of HD content and adds THX certification.

Both devices will include Ethernet ports, but if you want to go for a Wi-Fi connection, you will have to purchase a $90 dongle.  Also, there will be a Bluetooth enabled QWERTY keyboard released later in the year you will need to buy separably.

One of the biggest additions, and one I have wanted for ages, a meter will show you how much hard drive space you have left at any time.  Thank goodness!

Full press release after the break

INTRODUCING TIVO® PREMIERE, THE ONE BOX TO RULE THEM ALL
New Box Offers a Stunning New HD Experience That Blows Away Any Other Cable Set-Top Box

TiVo Opens Up the Box to Pandora Internet Radio, Maximizing the TiVo Music Experience

Alviso, Calif. March 3 -TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO), a leader in advanced television services, including digital video recorders (DVRs), announced today the launch of TiVo® Premiere and TiVo® Premiere XL boxes. TiVo Premiere elegantly combines access to cable programming, movies, web videos, and music all in one box at a truly affordable price. TiVo Premiere is now the only way to unlock the real value of the HD television set, a box that is more powerful, compact, and energy efficient than previous generations. If the DVR changed your life, TiVo Premiere will change it again.

“It has never been this easy to get all your entertainment in one place, on the big screen, in HD, right at your fingertips. And the beauty of TiVo Premiere is that finding what to watch is just as fun as the watching the TV shows themselves. We accomplished it by using pictures and graphics to make the whole television guide experience come alive in a way that it never has before,” said TiVo’s President and CEO Tom Rogers. “TiVo Premiere is your new cable box, it’s your movie box, it’s your web box, and music box; it’s the one box that can give you access to almost anything you want, whenever you want it. We’ve taken millions of pieces of content and organized it for you in a way that makes so much sense you’ll wonder how you ever lived without it.”

Why Premiere Is Revolutionary:

It’s the One Box: TiVo Premiere is your new cable box, movie box, web box, and music box; it’s the one box that gives you access to everything you want to get on your television and all with one remote. It’s a true one stop shop for entertainment.*

Broadband and Broadcast Integration: Premiere’s search functionality offers users the ability to find programs from many sources – whether it’s a digital premium channel from cable, a funny outtake from YouTube or a movie from broadband sources such as Netflix, Amazon Video On Demand, or Blockbuster On Demand, plus options from the Web all brought together into one unified and simple experience.*

Browse Baby Browse: Premiere is at its best when you want to browse, discover and explore the almost infinite array of TV options. Every show, from every source, is organized by category or topic. With a full-screen menu that includes a rich display of movie posters & TV show logos for exploring, it’s simple to stumble upon interesting things to watch or record. Plus, consumers have never before had the option to browse by specific movie collections on their TV. For example, browse thru Oscar® Award winning movies or Emmy® Award winning television shows with one simple click of the remote.

Six-Degrees of Separation: Premiere will settle debates over “where have I seen that actor before?” far faster than a trip to the laptop ever could. Just click on a show or an actor and consumers will be able to view entire entertainment resumes and cast lists, quickly and easily. Before you know it you’ll find associations from one favorite actor to another that you never dreamed existed, fueling the discovery process even more and likely getting you hooked in the process.

Easy to Use HD Layout: We’ve kept the easy navigation, but significantly cut the number of screens you have to visit by utilizing the extra room high-definition affords. The experience was built for HD television sets and by creating a two-column and three-column layouts we reduce the number of screens, helping you to get to what you want more quickly.

Set-top box built on Adobe® Flash® Platform for the Digital Home: Premiere is built on Adobe Flash software, a pathway to future user-generated experiences and development opportunities, which have not been available before on a set-top box. Premiere is built on multi-core architecture that greatly facilitates future development of third party provided applications.

We Listened: By popular demand Premiere includes an on-screen disk space meter that shows how much room is left to record, a built in 30 second scan, and a new video window that lets you watch your favorite show while navigating the TiVo menus.

Room to Record: The TiVo Premiere box has up to 45 hours of HD storage space or up to 400 hours of standard definition programming capacity. And for those who want even more options the TiVo Premiere XL box holds up to 150 hours of high-definition or up to 1350 hours of standard definition programming.

Even More Content: A brand new relationship with Pandora means in the coming months, Premiere as well as TiVo Series3™ and HD DVR customers will be able to listen to their personalized Pandora radio stations on the best speakers in the house. A new relationship with FrameChannel brings the best of the web directly to the TV offering users access to nearly 1,000 content widgets of personal and commercial content, ranging from Tweets, photos and status updates to news, weather, sports scores and stock quotes. FrameChannel acts as a personalized channel on your television, transforming your TV into a constant stream of real-time news and information with the content that matters to you most.

Speaking about its strategic marketing alliance with TiVo that was announced last year, Mike Vitelli, President of the Americas for Best Buy, said, “This is an important step toward achieving our shared vision to transform the digital home entertainment experience and redefine customer service. Through TiVo we can continue to strengthen relationships and interact with our valued customers even after they leave our stores, which is invaluable in a rapidly evolving digital media environment. Cable companies do a great job of connecting customers to content, but TiVo takes the complete digital experience to the next level.”

“We are proud to be leading the cable industry in the adoption of this groundbreaking approach to advanced television. TiVo will bring a whole new way for our subscribers to experience television with TiVo’s DVR and broadband television offerings,” said RCN President & CEO Peter Aquino. “I’m very pleased to report that based on our field test results, we will begin to roll out TiVo as our primary advanced box in all of our markets, one by one, in the second quarter of this year.”

Coming in May, a new TiVo Wireless N adapter, that allows for faster downloads and faster streaming of content, at speeds that are especially helpful for multi-room viewing (MRV) transfers. Coming later this year, consumers will also have access to a groundbreaking, slide-out QWERTY TiVo remote. The compact peanut shaped remote gives a faster experience, especially when utilizing text entry. With Easy plug n’ play installation, extended range utilizing Bluetooth and backlit programmable buttons the remote will quickly become a must have accessory.

TiVo Premiere Box Specifications:
TiVo Series4™ architecture
Supports digital cable, high-definition digital cable, antenna (ATSC) and Verizon FiOS
Outputs: HDMI, Component video, Composite video, Optical audio, Analog audio
Video output modes include: 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p
Inputs: CableCARD™ support, Cable coax, Antenna coax, Ethernet
Ethernet connection, USB 2.0 ports (2), E-SATA support for external storage
TiVo Wireless N and G Network Adapter support
ENERGY STAR® certified
320 Gigabytes
Records up to 45 hours of HD programming or up to 400 hours of standard-definition

TiVo Premiere XL Box Specifications (all specs not listed are the same as above unless noted)
One Terabyte storage
Records up to 150 hours of HD programming or up to 1350 hours of standard-definition
Backlit, programmable, and learning remote
THX®certified, ensuring optimal audio and video reproduction and enables seamless integration with other THX components
TiVo Premiere XL box is the first HD product to feature THX® Optimizer™, a video calibration tool that lets users fine tune color, black levels and other settings to improve picture quality. Hailed by critics for its ease-of-use, the exclusive THX Optimizer for TiVo Premiere XL box is found in the My Shows menu of the TiVo service. A pair of THX Optimizer Blue Glasses, designed for adjusting Color and Tint settings, is included with the owner’s manual.
TiVo Premiere and TiVo Premiere XL boxes will be available in retail nationwide in early April. They are also available for pre-order today at tivo.com for $299.99 and $499.99 respectively.
*TiVo service is required and sold separately. Cable and Netflix subscriptions required for cable and Netflix programming, respectively and are not included in TiVo service subscription. Additional fees may apply for other broadband content. Broadband programming sources subject to availability and may change without notice.

Article originally published by StarterTech.com

TiVo Adds Internet Content In The TiVo Premiere

States have been trying to figure out for some time how to collect sales tax from all of those sales made on sites such as Amazon.  The problem is that tax laws say a business must have a presence in a state for that state to collect taxes from it.  With online retailers, that has been tricky at best, so states have had to get creative in how they do it.

According to TechFlash, Colorado’s latest gambit is that retailers are supposed to tell you at the end of each purchase how much the customer owes the state, and then do it again in a end of the year summary.  Apparently the state then expects the consumer to submit those amounts with their annual state taxes.

While Amazon is the focus of most stories, this impacts all online retailers, and the idea of every retailer trying to keep these types of records is daunting at best.  Many online retailers are one to two people operations, so trying to add this to their workload will be a nightmare.  Also, most retailers run on pre-packaged shopping cart software which contains no options for this type of thing.

This is going to be interesting to watch, and also potentially very messy.

Article originally published by StarterTech.com

Colorado Calling For Internet Retailers To Inform Customers Of Taxes They Owe