When your core business is as wrapped up in emerging markets as Nokia’s is, then you’d better know a little something about KIRFs — those cheap handset clones that our Chinese friends can often stamp out faster than the time it takes for Nokia to ship a handset after its announcement. Nokia executive board member, Esko Aho, says that one out of every five cellphones now sold around the world (primarily in Asia, Latin America, and some parts of Europe) is an illegal or unlicensed clone. We’ve certainly seen more than our share when browsing the Shenzhen markets of China. Gartner claims the number to be even higher than 20 percent. While we poke fun at KIRFs around here for their shoddy software, comically similar branding ( Nokla !), and cheapo materials, they’ve clearly become a very serious issue for top-tier cellphone manufacturers. How serious we’ll see on January 27th when Nokia announces its fourth quarter results. One out of every five cellphones sold is a KIRF, says Nokia originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 21 Jan 2011 07:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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At the 30th annual Sundance Film Festival, its founder, Robert Redford, denies that the event has become more commercial and jokes that he’ll die before he retires. (Jan. 21)
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A Texas elementary school teacher is on leave after being accused of taping a first grader’s mouth shut. (Jan. 21)
Continue reading …A Norwegian teen has hard-rockers Creed to thank for saving his life. The 13-year-old says he was walking from school and headed to his family’s farmhouse on Monday when he stumbled upon four wolves. “I was afraid they would attack me,” Walter Eikrem says, but instead of fleeing, he blasted…
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When first we saw Fujisoft’s PALRO robot doing its thing we were charmed but, as it didn’t speak English, we had to adore it from afar. No longer. The little critter has obviously mastered our language quite quickly and can be seen below chatting with an even more robotic humanoid about such idle things as the weather, career aspirations, and just how great PALRO is. How great is PALRO? PALRO is really great — but humble. Inside that barrel chest is a full-fledged PC with an Atom Z530 processor, 4GB of flash storage, and an Ubuntu kernel keeping everything in check. It’s available as ever for educational and research institutions for about $3,600, but we’re trying to get one ourselves. If we can get it to type prepare yourselves for many more posts about software based on real Japanese cutting-edge technology. Continue reading PALRO robot masters English, will never shut up again (video) PALRO robot masters English, will never shut up again (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 21 Jan 2011 07:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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The long-awaited premiere of Ridley Scott’s and Kevin Macdonald’s ‘Life In A Day’ YouTube documentary is finally here. Find out where to watch it online after the jump. Broadcasting platform : YouTube Source : The Social Times Discovery Date : 21/01/2011 12:00 Number of articles : 4
Continue reading …A majority of Americans want the massive federal budget deficit dealt with now instead of when the economy improves, according to a New York Times / CBS poll. An overwhelming majority say they would prefer the deficit to be addressed through spending cuts instead of higher taxes. That preference, however,…
Continue reading …A Mexican journalist who says he fled across the border with his teenage son in 2008 after receiving daily death threats while covering his nation’s bloody drug war is scheduled to plead his case for asylum before a US federal judge today. Emilio Gutierrez Soto and his son, then 15,…
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As deep budget cuts force school districts to downsize, publicly funded charter schools are flourishing around the country. (Jan. 21)
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Photo: B. Alter Train travel can be such a delight, when it works. Take the London subway to the station, hop on the train, and two hours later you are in the centre of Brussels. What could be more environmental and it feels so virtuous. The Eurostar train terminal in Brussels is celebrating its green-ness with a big piece of art work made of recycled coke cans, plastic water bottles, crumpled paper and some paper plates. Each symbolizes an aspect of the company’s efforts to reduce its carbon footprint. … Read the full story on TreeHugger
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