What have Pete Rojas (founder of Gizmodo and Engadget) and Ryan Block (founding editor of Engadget) been working on for the past eleven months? They said they were launching a consumer-electronics site called Gdgt and started a popular podcast, but were pretty secretive otherwise. But GDGT went live today–and it’s a neat social-network site where folks can gather to review gadgets, discuss them, and generally help each other get more out technology products.
Unfortunately, Gdgt opened its doors and then was crushed by the onslaught of visitors, so it’s down at the moment. Ryan says they’re working to get it back up asap. But I got a sneak peek shortly before the launch, and liked what I saw. The site’s an extension of what Gizmodo and Engadget do. But it’s also a sort of anti-Gizmodo/anti-Engadget, since those sites rarely have much to say about products other than that they’ve been announced. Gdgt’s about the whole lifecycle of the product after that announcement, and the content is contributed by the community.
Pete and Ryan pronounce the site as “G-D-G-T,” by the way; that seems less harmonious than pronouncing it as…gadget. But I probably shouldn’t talk, since about 40 percent of the world trips up on the name “Technologizer.” I’m looking forward to using the site, and am already signed up as harrymccracken.
[UPDATE: The site seems to be up and running again.]