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Browser: Seinfeld to hawk Vista(Omaha World-Herald (NE) (KRT) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Aug. 24--After spending the better part of two years as the butt of Apple's jokes in the "Get A Mac" ad campaign, Microsoft is planning a $300 million blitz of its own. Designed to illustrate Widows Vista's ability to break down walls between people and ideas, the campaign will star Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates alongside comedian Jerry Seinfeld. Apple's Mac vs. PC ads are largely responsible for amplifying the problems of the troubled Vista operating system. Apple has picked on Vista's compatibility issues, hardware demands and instability, as well as its many versions -- six in all. By contrast, Apple touts its "It Just Works" line of Macs, which run on OS X -- of which there is only one version. Seinfeld will be paid $10 million for his role in the campaign. During the nine-year television run of "Seinfeld," Jerry's computer was always a Mac. Not that there's anything wrong with that. Widget Channel Internet on TV Yahoo and Intel on Wednesday announced plans to partner on software that will make it easier to display Internet content on television. The program is called Widget Channel and it will allow small windows to display information on the same screen as regular programming. The companies' aim is for consumers to be able to call up information such as weather forecasts or sports scores from the Internet without changing channels. Cheaper iPod speculated Inventory systems at Target stores are showing Apple's current iPod Touch line as "discontinued," fueling speculation that a new model will be introduced in the coming weeks, according to Appleinsider. During a quarterly earnings conference call in late July, Apple Chief Financial Officer Peter Oppenheimer referred to a product transition that will have "technologies and features that others can't match." That, combined with the inventory status of the Touch model has prompted some industry analysts to predict a cheaper version -- perhaps as low as $199 -- with higher storage capacities across the line. Currently, the Touch has three versions: 8 gigabytes for $299, 16 GB for $399 and 32 GB for $499. New items from PlayStation With its updated 80-gigabyte PlayStation 3 arriving in stores, Sony announced another new version last week, set to ship in November. The latest model features a 160GB hard drive and will come bundled with the game "Uncharted: Drake's Fortune," as well as a download coupon for the game "PAIN," which can be saved to the device's hard drive. The new model will retail for $499. Sony also announced a new version of the PSP, the company's hand-held wireless gaming platform. The new model -- dubbed PSP-3000 -- features a brighter, no-glare screen and a built-in microphone. Look for it on store shelves before the holiday buying season. High-tech shawl, coffee, anyone? Tired of spending the winter months shivering at your cubicle, or in your downstairs computer room? For just $28.95, computer users with a free USB port can plug in a heated shawl and compute in comfort. The shawl is made by Convenient Gadgets, which markets similar devices in a Sharper Image vein. While you're at it, pick up a USB-powered coffee warmer or desk lamp. Or you could save the money and just wear a sweater. --Contact the writer: 444-1387, [email protected] To see more of the Omaha World-Herald, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.omaha.com. Copyright (c) 2008, Omaha World-Herald, Neb. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |