Your Tech Wishes for 2010

We’ve done predictions. I made some resolutions on behalf of the PC industry. And today on Twitter, I asked my pals to share their own personal wishes for 2010.

Here (after the jump) is what they had to say–once you’ve read their hopes, dreams, and ambitions, share your own in the comments. Happy new year, and thanks for being part of the Technologizer community.

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5Words: Good God, Even More Lists!

Nine things crushed by Google.

YouTube’s top features of 2009.

A Silicon Valley top 10.

TSA investigates document-publishing bloggers.

Zune HD: not a hit.

The decade in tech stocks.

A giant Dell netbook/phone.

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John Gruber on “The Tablet”

This long rumination on the Apple tablet by Daring Fireball’s John Gruber makes sense to me.

You Like Lists, Do You? Here Are Fifty of ‘em

We technology journalists are an obsessive-compulsive bunch. We like compiling lists–for the simple reason that people like reading lists. It only gets worse at the end of the year. And this being the end of the decade*, there are enough tech lists being published out there to wallpaper Bill Gates’ house.

We published one decade-related list ourselves (This Dumb Decade: The 87 Lamest Moments in Tech, 2000-2009), and one 2009-oriented one (Technologizer’s Second Annual Game Awards). But if that’s not enough to sate you, graze on these fifty additional lists about the decade, 2009, and 2010. Don’t read them all, though–your head might explode.

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Verizon Droid vs. Google Nexus One: The Provisional T-Grid

For the past two months, Verizon Wireless’s Droid by Motorola has had the privilege of holding  the undisputed title of Coolest Android Phone on the Market. But its reign may be short, if everyone’s assumption that next week’s Google Android event turns out to be the unveiling of Google’s Nexus One (aka “the Googlephone”)  turns out to be accurate.

The Nexus One remains unannounced, but there’s information (or alleged information) about it all over the Web. So it doesn’t seem premature to put together a provisional T-Grid comparing it to the Droid. The Nexus One data here is culled from sources such as Engadget and Gizmodo, and for now, you should pretend that each and every field has an asterisk next to it indicating that it’s not confirmed.

What are the key differences between the two phones? The Nexus One (which lacks a physical keyboard) is apparently thinner and lighter. It’s supposedly got an OLED screen which is said to be gorgeous. It runs on T-Mobile’s network rather than Verizon’s (it’ll reportedly only work on AT&T in sluggish EDGE mode). And it’s allegedly got a very fast CPU (1-GHz?) and twice the RAM of the Droid. Plus a newer version of Android that’s been further tweaked by Google.

Okay, enough apparentlys, supposedlys, reportedlys, and allegedlys. Info after the jump–I’ll update it once Google has weighed in…

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New Polaroid Products. Sigh!

Wow–no sooner do I publish a story bemoaning the diminished state of the once-proud Polaroid name than the news breaks that jWIN (owners of the sorta-well-known iLuv brand) are licensing the right to make Polaroid stuff. The company plans to offer “peripherals for PC’s, console games, mobile phones, audio/video as well as telephones, certain laptop carrying cases and cleaning care accessories.” The first time I see a Polaroid phone or laptop bag, I’m going to shed a silent tear. But I guess they’re not as undignified as Bell + Howell pest repellers…

New Slingbox Goodies Coming to CES

Beyond the WiFi-only iPhone Slingbox client, neutered by Apple and AT&T, it’s been a very quiet year for Sling. No new retail products. Insignificant firmware and software updates to existing products. And fire sale SlingCatcher pricing. Combined with near radio silence, I figured EchoStar has been winding down the Sling line. However, all is not lost, as I received this CES invite earlier today which promises:

You’ll experience an up close view of Sling’s new placeshifting products including WiFi television, ultra-slim Slingboxes, and a next-generation touch screen device.

Of course, a WiFi television was shown at CES last year (pic above). Where it was pitched as a DISH Network accessory for Echostar’s yet-to-be-released “SlingLoaded” VIP 922 Echostar DVR. If I had to guess, that touchscreen device similarly accessorizes the 922 — as a Sonos-esque remote controller. I’m not entirely opposed to a slimmed-down Slingbox, but noticeably absent from this pitch is reference to a next generation Catcher… that lives up to its billing. Stay tuned, as I intend to find out more (with pics) next week in Vegas.

(This post republished from Zatz Not Funny.)

5Words: Adobe, Hackers’ New Favorite Target?

Hackers: goodbye Microsoft, hello Adobe?

Windows Mobile: signs of life.

Unlimited wireless broadband for $39.

Verizon getting new Palm phones?

Is Apple censoring Chinese apps?

List: ten decade-defining gadgets.

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Coming on Tuesday: Live Coverage of Google Phone Event

On Tuesday at 10am PT, Google will be holding an event at the Googleplex–and everyone assumes that the subject will be the Nexus One Android smartphone. I’ll be in attendance, and in the tradition of our coverage of Apple’s live events, I’ll be reporting on the news as it happens and doing my best to answer your questions. Please join us at www.technologizer.com/googlephone (if you head there now, you can sign up for an e-mail reminder).

The Twelve Most Tarnished Brands in Tech

Quick, what’s the most admired technology brand? Maybe you answered Apple. Or Google. Or maybe even Microsoft. I’m reasonably certain, however, that none of the brands you’re about to read about sprung to mind. They’re all damaged goods–severely damaged goods in most cases.

No brand is guaranteed eternal health. (The two most powerful tech trademarks of the mid-1980s were arguably Compaq and Lotus; both are still around, but in greatly diminished form.) The brands in this story haven’t just lost a little of their luster. Most were once among the most respected names in tech, but ran into financial hardship and got sold (often repeatedly) to new owners who were usually mostly interested in strip-mining whatever goodwill the brands retained with the American public.

If you ever loved any of the names in this article–and chances are that you once had a high opinion of at least a few of them–prepare to feel a tad glum.

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New Years Resolutions for the PC Industry

More year-ahead musings: I’ve written another guest post for WePC.com, and this one covers six new years resolutions that I’d love to see the PC industry make and keep. They’re entirely selfish, since they all involve stuff I wish every PC had. (Starting with a realistic estimate of the battery life I’m likely to get.)

Check ‘em out–and I’d love to hear any resolutions you care to make on behalf of the tech biz.

Name the Apple Tablet, Win a $100 Apple Store Gift Card

When the biggest news story involves speculation about the name of a product that may or may not exist, you know it’s a slow news week. So let’s turn iLemons into iLemonade and have a little contest.

What will Apple name its tablet? Please register your guess by adding a comment to this post–one guess per entrant, please. Once the tablet is unveiled–assuming it does get unveiled–we’ll check all the comments. And if anyone got the name right, we’ll give that person a $100 Apple Store gift card. (Consider it a down payment on the Apple tablet if you like.)

It’s OK to guess a name that someone else has already entered–if more than one person has the right name, we’ll do a random drawing that will include everyone who predicted correctly.

If you can’t think of a name that seems likely–well, enter one that seems unlikely. Or wholly implausible. (It’s possible you’ll still have a shot at winning–see rule #3 below.)

The fine print:

1. The names “iSlate,” “iGuide,” and “Magic Slate” are being widely bandied about; you can enter them, but you might just end up being one of many. We’d love to see other names get nominated, too–lots of them.

2. We’ll judge the contest and announce a winner–if anyone gets it right–within 48 hours of the day Apple actually announces the tablet, if it does.

3. If Apple announces a tablet and nobody got the name right–or December 31st, 2010 comes and Apple still hasn’t announced a tablet–we’ll do a random drawing that includes all entrants.

4. If you enter more than one guess, your entries are disqualified.

5. The judges’ decision is final.

6. Be sure and use a real e-mail address when you leave a comment; it won’t show up publicly, and we’ll only use it in the event that you’ve won the contest.

7. Have fun!

5Words: iBall? iLid? iDrop? iClaudius? iAmISaid?

More Apple tablet name speculation.

Nokia-Apple patent wrangling continues.

8GB iPhone 3GS coming soon?

A $728 MacBook. For students.

Facebook: #1 site for Christmas.

Will Chrome OS be dangerous?

New e-readers to watch for.

Psystar to sell Linux PCs.

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Google Android Event Next Week

Breaking news: Google is holding an Android-related press event at the Googleplex next week. The invitation I got is vague about the specifics–but the logical assumption is that the subject will be the company’s Nexus One one. (Logical assumptions are, of course, sometimes wrong.)

I’ll be at the event and will cover it live here.

3D: Gimmick? Breakthrough? Both? Neither?

First, a disclaimer: I’m instinctively skeptical about 3D. I’ve seen my fair share of 3D movies over the last three decades or so, and they always leave me squinting, adjusting my glasses, and generally not enjoying myself. It seems like a lot of effort to go through for an effect that’s less like real life and more like a humongous View-Master. Your mileage may vary (I’ve always assumed that the fact I wear glasses in real life is an issue).

All 3D reminds me of this (no, I haven’t seen Avatar yet):

Anyhow, as you know, we’re in the midst of a sort of 3D renaissance. It started in theaters, but is in the process of coming home–or trying to, at least. Over at HDGuru.com, they’re reporting that DirecTV will be announcing an all-3D channel next week at the Consumer Electronics Show. It’ll be compatible with new 3D-capable TVs that’ll be announced at the show. And yes, you’ll need to wear special glasses.

Me, I don’t think I’m going to love 3D until it’s (A) closer to true 3D than the 2.5D effect you’ve always gotten; (B) doesn’t involve glasses; (C) isn’t used by moviemakers for pointless “HEY, THIS IS 3D!” effects. I expect all three points to be resolved by oh, 2050 or so. But I’m willing to be pleasantly surprised when I head to Vegas for CES in a little over a week.

This seems like a good excuse for a T-Poll:

Technologizer Predicts: The 2010 Edition

Once again, I’ve cleverly avoided making any predictions for the coming year by asking you to do the job instead. Dozens of you responded to my call for prognostications earlier this month; I enjoyed reading ‘em all and have selected some highlights for this post. (A year from now, we can see how many came true, as we did with last year’s crop.)

First, an announcement: We have a winner for the Olive 4 Hi-Fi Music Server that we offered to tempt you to submit your predictions. We picked Aaron Neyer (whose fearless forecasts you’ll find below) in a random drawing as explained in our original post. Congratulations, Aaron!

The Olive folks, incidentally, have a limited-time special offer that Technologizer readers qualify for: If you buy an Olive 4 by December 31st, they’ll throw in the recent 17-CD set of remastered Beatles albums for free. Here’s a special page to visit if you want to take advantage of the deal.

Okay, end of announcement. Prediction highlights follow after the jump (you can read all the submissions here). Once you’ve read them, feel free to add some last-minute forecasts of your own. And happy 2010!

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