Geekly Update Jun 21

The AskBobRankin Geekly Update

Starbucks announced on Twitter they will be dropping their WiFi fees beginning July 1 and it will only take a click to log on. Definitely a win-win idea, and I hope this spells the beginning of the end of fee-based public wifi.

Cupidtino.com is a new dating site designed expressly for those who are die-hard Apple product fans. How long before we see a browser plugin that offers to flag Cupidtino profiles that also appear on other dating sites?

According to AZ Family, Jacob Walker and Joseph Velarde posted an ad on Craigslist indicating that they would trade an iPod touch and some pot for an iPad. Local cops showed up instead and arrested the pair. The charge: first-degree stupidity and probably some drug-related stuff, too.

HTC, perhaps in an effort to beat iPhone 4 to the punch, will be releasing the Aria on June 20 through AT&T. The Android smartphone features a 3.2" screen, optical trackball, runs on a 600 MHz Qualcomm MSM 7227, has 512 MB ROM and 256 MG RAM. Look for a $129 price after $100 rebate.

The E3 Expo kicked off this week with all of the gaming companies vying for attention. Microsoft introduced their slimmer Xbox 360, sporting a 250GB hard drive and wireless capability.

The Kno is an innovative idea that may replace heavy textbooks. Weighing about 5.5 lbs., the dual screen ebook will have access to published educational material and the Net, and can highlight, bookmark and take notes.

Casio's two new cameras, the EX-H5 ($240.00) and EX-FH25 ($480.00,) feature wide-angle lenses and image stabilization that should help reduce fuzzy background images and improve on poor lighting. Both Exilim cams, to be released first in Europe, have 10x optical zooms and high sensitivity CMOS sensors to ensure a better picture.

Beware of Internet scammers who will offer to sell you a gift card at a discounted rate on craigslist but will cancel it after you pay up. If you want to buy/sell/trade a gift card, check out The Gift Card Trader instead. Payment via Paypal gives buyers recourse against fraudulent sellers.

IBM is so proud of its new super computer that it has arranged for it to appear on Jeopardy this fall. Watson was designed to answer science, finance, healthcare and business questions, by understanding the meaning behind words and differentiating between what is relevant and what is not.

Microsoft has finally announced that Office 2010 is officially available. Released in 10 languages for now, this is the first update since Office 2007 and has a starting price of $149.95.