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Wednesday 1 May 2013
The iTunes influence, part three: Art in the age of digital disruption
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Slickdeals' best in tech for May 1st: Lenovo IdeaPad Y500 and Western Digital My Passport
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Brewster Brings Its Personalized, Mobile Address Book To The Web With Easy Contact Sharing
Brewster launched late last year with a simple goal: Replace your tired old A-to-Z contact list with an address book that actually understands your relationships and, in turn, helps you become a better friend. For some of us, this feels like a hopeless pursuit. We’re overworked, stressed, have terrible breath, and just can’t seem to find enough hours in the day to better manage our personal relationships. It starts in your twenties and gets worse from there.
Sure, Brewster’s mission sounds similar to the one that Plaxo launched with back in 2002, and there are enough smart, mobile address books out there to make your head spin. They’re all trying to simplify contact management, but there isn’t anything out there that’s based on the understanding of the people in your life and how those relationships fit together, which is how founder Steve Greenwood tells us he thinks that the team can actually transform the address book.
Today, Brewster launched its web application to let users enjoy a newly designed, fast Brewster experience on your phone, tablet or laptop. The app also introduces easier and faster contact sharing so that you no longer have to open your address book only to realize you’re missing a close friend’s number or have forgotten to update their work email.
via TechCrunch » Startups http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/techcrunch/startups/~3/PLmOGXv0GY4/
MiiPC offers backers double the memory for $15, throws in a free mic
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Call of Duty: Ghosts is this year's CoD entry, headed to 360, PS3, PC and 'next-gen consoles' on November 5 (video)
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2013 'Doodle 4 Google' top 50 winners selected, require your judgment
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Here's the Lock Screen Google Glass Needs
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Intel Haswell's idle states reportedly won't play well with some power supplies
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The Engadget Show won two Webby Awards, now we're giving away two Nexus 7s!
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Una película a escala atómica
La han titulado A boy and his atom y aunque artísticamente no sea gran cosa es literalmente la película más pequeña del mundo – récord Guiness oficial incluido. Cada fotograma de la animación se creó y fotografió en los laboratorios de IBM con un microscopio efecto túnel moviendo pacientemente moléculas de monóxido de carbono.
Para hacerse una idea de la escala, cuando ves la película en la pantalla está ampliada cien millones de veces. Aquí hay un vídeo del cómo se hizo A boy and his atom y más información sobre los trabajos a escala atómica en la web de IBM: Made with atoms.
via Microsiervos http://www.microsiervos.com/archivo/ciencia/pelicula-escala-atomica.html
Virgin Media launches VIP unlimited mobile plans, starting at £15 SIM-only
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La historia de la tipografía, versión animada
Esta versión de la historia del arte y técnica de la tipografía contada con lápiz-y-papel comienza en los tiempos de Gutenberg y llega hasta nuestros tiempos, en los que hay cientos y cientos de preciosas tipografías (y también ¡ejem! la Comic Sans).
via Microsiervos http://www.microsiervos.com/archivo/arte-y-diseno/historia-tipografia-animada.html
Isis still quiet about expansion plans: will happen 'when we're ready'
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Kindle iOS app gets a slew of new features for the blind and visually impaired
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LINE messenger has more than 150 million users, because we all love stickers
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Charge Your Phone While You Ride Your Bike With The Siva Cycle Atom
While you are riding into work on your daily bike commute, why not charge your phone? There’s a bit more to it than that, but ultimately that is exactly what the Siva Cycle Atom does. A brilliant idea.
Reaching their KickStarter goal of $85,000 after only a week, the newly funded Atom is on display on the floor of Hardware Alley at TechCrunch Disrupt NY 2013.
The Atom is a generator, complete with a detachable battery, that is fixed to the rear of your bicycle. As you pedal away, the generator is charging the attached battery. However it can also directly charge your phone too, using a smart switching system that goes back and forth between the device and the battery.
For example, if your phone is hooked up to the device it will directly charge your phone while you are pedaling, however when you come to a stop, your phone will automatically draw from the battery to keep you topped off.
Once you reach your destination, you simply detach the 1300mAh battery and take it with you for extra juice for your smartphone.
via TechCrunch » Startups http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/techcrunch/startups/~3/D_WlufwaTxg/
The Pirate Bay Moves to the Caribbean
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Tim Cook to Return to AllThingsD's Kitchen
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Is a Cheaper HTC One Variant On its Way?
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PayPal and Discover expand partnership, will reach 2 million stores by year-end
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Dots, The Most Beautiful Mobile Game I've Ever Seen
You remember the first time you played Angry Birds, right? What about the first time you picked up the iPhone 4 and realized just how beautiful a phone can be, both in hardware and software? Well, the latest company to launch out of betaworks mixes the addictive nature of Angry Birds with the minimalist beauty of Apple’s hardware and software.
Meet Dots.
The idea is simple: Everyone has played connect the dots with their friends during science class or with a sibling on a long plane ride. Dots is the digital version of the classic pencil-and-paper game.
The rules are slightly different. Instead of drawing against another player, or being allowed a single line at a time, you simply connect all the dots of the same color that are in a straight line. The more dots you can connect, the more points you get. If you happen to be able to connect the dots into a square, you get even more points.
Each game lasts 60 seconds, but it never feels like long enough.
The choice to build a game surprised me at first. The App Store is completely saturated with a million games, ranging from big names like Angry Birds all the way down to the silly stuff. But Dots actually has a solid chance at penetrating a huge market.
For one, the app touches on our memories of connecting the dots with our friends. It’s sentimental right off the bat.
It also appeals to everyone. Children could easily play Dots, yet adults would still find it challenging. And to top it all off, the team worked really hard to make sure that the design was just as simple and natural as the game itself.
“It’s hard to articulate what makes something fun, but we spent a lot of time and care crafting a well designed, and hopefully delightful experience that unfolds as you play,” said co-founder Paul Murphy. “This also reflects the background of the founder – Patrick Moberg. Patrick is a truly talented designer, illustrator, developer — you’ll see his personality and talent reflected as you play the game and win trophies.”
But how will Dots make money?
The currency of the game is actually called “dots”, which you earn for playing well. You can use these dots to get advanced powers. Of course, like most games, you can also buy dots through in-app purchases. Thankfully, you can always earn the same powers that are available for purchase, so you’ll never be roped in to spending money in order play more.
Dots is available now on the App Store.
via TechCrunch » Startups http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/techcrunch/startups/~3/mr8pP5QAfaY/
Call of Duty: Ghosts is this year's CoD entry, headed to 360, PS3, Wii U, PC and next-gen consoles on November 6
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Hoptroff's atomic pocket watch is the ultimate rich guy accessory
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Bloomberg: Jony Ive said to be considering 'more dramatic' changes to email and calendar amid iOS 7 overhaul
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Olympus PEN E-P5 mirrorless camera leak suggests 16-megapixel, WiFi flagship
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YouTube brings live streaming to Capitol Hill, whether you like it or not
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UPenn's TitanArm exoskeleton prototype makes light work of heavy lifting (video)
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It's official: T-Mobile closes deal to acquire MetroPCS
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On Deck Adds $17M From Google Ventures And Peter Thiel To Help Small Businesses Connect With Capital
Because there are so many small businesses out there on Main Street that don’t have access to the same juicy venture capital rounds that seem pervade today’s tech industry, On Deck set out in 2007 to provide mom-and-pop business owners with an easy way to secure the capital they need to grow their businesses. Using data aggregation and electronic payment technology, On Deck aims to simplify the borrowing process for small businesses by offering them a fast, online alternative to the traditional old bank loan.
The startup’s alternative approach to lending and evaluating the creditworthiness of SMBs has seen it deploy over $450 million in loans and allowed it to raise $100 million in credit facility from Goldman Sachs and others in 2012. After declining offers from British online lender Wonga that were reportedly as high as $250 million, On Deck raised $42 million in series D financing in February, led by IVP, with contributions from its existing investors, SAP Ventures, RRE Ventures and First Round Capital.
As a result of the round, IVP General Partner Sandy Miller joined the startup’s board. Miller has been involved in over 100 tech IPOs over his career, which we surmised at the time could well be a signal of On Deck’s future intentions. This, combined with its growing credit line and traction, appears to have investors lining up at the startup’s door.
Today, On Deck announced that it will be expanding its Series D financing with $17 million in new capital, raised from a lineup of familiar names. The round was led by Google Ventures, with participation from PayPal co-founder, education contrarian and prolific investor, Peter Thiel and Industry Ventures. This brings the startup’s total Series D to $59 million and brings its total capital raised to date to $113 million.
The company says that the new infusion of capital will be used to support its growth, particularly by allowing it to ramp up hiring and product development. In the big picture, says CEO Noah Breslow, On Deck wants to power every U.S. small business loan and help make on-demand capital a reality for the five million businesses with 25 employees or less in the U.S. — a segment of the economy relied on for 40 percent of its jobs.
However, as we wrote in February, On Deck’s road forward (to IPO) isn’t necessarily going to be a walk in the park, thanks to competition from startups like Kabbage, which are looking to make it easier for online merchants to raise loans, and big players like Amazon have been moving into the lending game as well.
Not to mention that companies like Capital Access Network have been bringing loans to small businesses since 1998 and have deployed nearly $3 billion to SMBs thus far. It also has raised big money, $30 million from Accel for example, and has secured even heftier credit lines from Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo — nearly $300 million.
So, On Deck isn’t without competition in the SMB lending space; but, that being said, the market opportunity and the demand for capital is significant enough that there seems to be plenty of room for more than one sizable lender. As mentioned above, there are millions of small businesses in the U.S., most of which will look to borrow at some point in their development and, all told, are pretty underserved when it comes to access to secure, short-term lending.
Main Street businesses are used to turning to banks when looking for business loans, but traditionally, banks have relied on personal credit scores to evaluate the creditworthiness of their business. While business owners may have perfectly legitimate, high-growth businesses in the making, they don’t always have the kind of personal credit scores that make them attractive borrowers for banks.
By providing banks with infrastructure that allows them to evaluate electronic performance data and pull up a credit score for the businesses rather than the owner, On Deck’s model aims to streamline the application and negotiation processes, adding value to both sides of the equation. Or at least that’s the idea.
To add some credence to this proposition, Breslow tells us that it is this streamlining of the application process (which takes about 15 minutes, he says) is a large part of the reason that On Deck was able to increase its “repeat customer base” by 34 percent in 2012.
Making on-demand, short-term lending a reality for the millions of small businesses in the U.S. is a tall order, but having Google Ventures and Peter Thiel on board certainly doesn’t hurt.
via TechCrunch » Startups http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/techcrunch/startups/~3/7WiaV8WTjUY/
Comcast gains 583,000 new subscribers, while revenues reach $15.3 billion for Q1 2013
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6 New Google Glass Demos Worth a Watch
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Google Glass Bulletproof app gives the wearable a lock screen (video)
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iMakr 3D printing store opens in London, carries Solidoodle and more
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Synthesizer giant Bob Moog to be inducted into Inventors Hall of Fame today
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Samsung Ditches Hard Buttons on NX2000 Mirrorless Camera
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MindMixer Raises $4M For Its Community Engagement Tools
MindMixer, a startup that helps organizations like the City of San Francisco gather ideas from their communities, has raised $4 million in Series B funding.
When the company announced its $1.9 million Series A last year, CEO Nick Bowden recalled his work in urban planning, when local governments and agencies would hold public meetings that no one attended. So MindMixer created tools for soliciting ideas and feedback online.
The company says its current customers include the D.C. public school district, Ohio State University, and Coursera. For example, it powers the ImproveSF site, which hosts a number of “challenges” where San Franciscans can contribute suggestions and content around topics that are serious (like food access and the public library) and not (like holiday photos).
Bowden said this week that although he plans to keep focused on “the civic and education markets” in the short-term, MindMixer is also defining those markets broadly — it’s not just for the government. For example, he said there’s definitely an opportunity to use MindMixer in health care, and he has also seen interest that the company could address eventually from nonprofits and businesses.
MindMixer plans to reach 1,000 customers by the end of the year. As its customer base becomes more diverse, the company can do to create “a unified experience,” Bowden said, where it becomes not just a toolset, but also a destination website that people can visit to find ways to engage with a variety issues that matter to them — in fact, he said the company will be rolling out improvements in that vein in the next couple of months.
The new funding was led by education and financial planning company Nelnet, with participation from existing investors Dundee Venture Capital and Optimas Group. In the funding press release, Nelnet CEO Mike Dunlap said, the company is “always looking for ways to improve the way we help associates, students, and schools reach their goal.”
“It’s a recognition of the fact that there’s absolutely a need for a platform for people to better connect with their constituent base,” Bowden told me.
via TechCrunch » Startups http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/techcrunch/startups/~3/o6YEL84lnB8/
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