Microsoft Surface setup impressions: "filled with mind-bogglingly frustrating usability issues"

Microsoft Surface setup impressions: "filled with mind-bogglingly frustrating usability issues": "Yep, you read that right -- Microsoft's $17,000 big-ass touchscreen table requires a keyboard and mouse to set up, something which isn't noted in any of the marketing or manuals. Ouch."

Here is another link that I found with photos...This DOES look complicated.

Microsoft profits sink for the first time in 23 years

Microsoft profits sink for the first time in 23 years: "A CNN reports suggests that the presence of Linux on those devices has contributed to the hurt here, but it's more likely that the combo of a market still unwelcoming to Vista and the wide popularity of XP on the low-power systems has more to do with these dipping profit margins."

Video: Blade Runner starring the iPod shuffle and Kindle 2

Video: Blade Runner starring the iPod shuffle and Kindle 2

Found this on Engadget, VERY cool. VoiceOver from Apple is pretty good, huh?!

Apple's iPod Shuffle costs $21.77, not for you...

Deconstructing Apple's Tiny iPod Shuffle - BusinessWeek: "All told, the cost of the shuffle's components, the headphones, and the packaging it ships in comes to $21.77, according to iSuppli's estimates. That's about 28% of the device's retail price. The smaller the component cost as a percentage of price, the higher the potential profit. This suggests the per-unit profit margin on the shuffle is higher than on other iPod models. The component cost for the first iPod touch released in 2007, for instance, amounted to about $147, or about 49% of its $299 retail price. The component cost of the third-generation iPod nano, also released in 2007, amounted to about 40% of its retail price."

Zune HD website exists, means nothing at all

Zune HD website exists, may mean nothing at all (update: means nothing at all): "Thanks commenters! According to this post on Zunited, the Zune HD site is registered to someone named Zac Altman -- a 'Zune guru.' They have those?"

$1.29 songs dropping on iTunes charts

Electronista | $1.29 songs dropping on iTunes charts: "The institution of variable song prices on iTunes has directly translated to a decrease in the popularity of the more expensive songs, Billboard finds in a short-term study of the immediate wake of the change. Those songs that were boosted to a $1.29 price typically fell 5.3 places on iTunes' Top 100 charts on Wednesday and another 2 places on Thursday. In exchange, those songs that kept their 99-cent pricing rose an average of 2.5 spots on Wednesday and 1.7 on Thursday.

In some cases, the changes were enough to push certain songs off the chart altogether. How 69-cent songs have been affected isn't clear, though these are usually older or less popular titles that are unlikely to chart."

Use a PS3 Controller on your Xbox 360 - But Why?

Engadget always says it best....

XCM's $84.99 Cross Fire Adapter for Xbox 360 ships today: "We can't say for sure why you'd want to use a PlayStation 3 controller with your Xbox 360, but if you somehow prefer the Batwing over something that's actually comfortable to hold, there's this."

Video-In and Magnetometers Could Introduce Interesting iPhone App Possibilites

This is some pretty wild stuff. Check out the videos!

Video-In and Magnetometers Could Introduce Interesting iPhone App Possibilites - Mac Rumors: "The discovery that Apple's next iPhone might contain both video input as well as a magnetometer (digital compass) opens up some interesting possibilities for future iPhone applications."



iHologram - iPhone application from David OReilly on Vimeo.

'Apple tax' really Microsoft tax?

This about this the next time you see that "real person" (actually an SAG member) Lauren buying her 17" HP computer for $1000. She probably had to buy a few more things just to make her computer work properly.

MacNN | 'Apple tax' really Microsoft tax?:

"Whereas Apple's gross margin for the past five years is said to have been 31.83 percent, Microsoft's margin is noted to have been 81.69 percent. Most of the money is said to have been wasted, moreover, on unsuccessful products such as Vista, the Zune and Live Search."