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Thanks to Alen for this "404-Busters" Photoshop job!

(Credit:
Alen Stojanac/The 404)

The same thing always happens to the Internet in the months building up to a new Apple product: a random Twitter users and/or one of the big tech blogs gets their hands on a one-off photo and the entire industry blows it up speculating whether or not the image is an authentic leak. Today is one of those days.

Engadget started it all by posting these pictures of a rumored 4G iPhone acquired over the weekend, claiming that “someone” found the phone on the floor of a bar in Silicon Valley. Before you start raising red flags of disbelief, consider that Gizmodo is corroborating Engadget’s story with a hands-on with the actual device! Who knows how much blood was shed in acquiring the device, but Gizmodo has it and they believe it’s the real thing.

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Is this the next gen Apple iPhone?

(Credit:

Gizmodo)

Unfortunately there’s no way to confirm the rumor since it won’t turn on, but the design details certainly fall in with the iPhone’s natural evolution. The device moves from the 3GS’s rounded edges to an entirely flat back made of a plastic-y material, has a camera on the front for video calls in addition to the one on the back (now with flash), an improved display possibly at 960X640 resolution, a secondary mic for noise cancellation, and split volume buttons. Finally, there’s a slot for a micro-SIM card, which closes the door on hopes that the Apple/AT&T would relinquish their exclusive partnership with the new model.

Tune in for our own predictions on the next gen iPhone plus a story about online game shoppers getting duped into selling their souls, a new 404 theme song courtesy of a 4 year old girl, and more!

EPISODE 562

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Originally posted at The 404 Podcast

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(Credit:
James Martin/CNET)

It’s been a long, single-tasking journey but Apple finally released OS 4.0 for the iPhone, and one of the key upgrades includes the ability to multitask. Took you long enough, Darth Jobs! Developers and users will now have the ability to run multiple applications at once, and Apple also demonstrated the Skype app running in the background (does that mean the next-gen iPhone will have a forward-facing camera?) as well as streaming audio apps like Pandora and Last.fm. Apple also unveiled folders for the iPhone that makes it easy to organize all your apps into customizable categories.

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(Credit:
The 404/CNET)

Unfortunately, not all of our prayers were answered in this latest update. The iPhone still can’t go into mass storage mode, it can’t tether to a computer, no Flash support or FM radio, and of course, the biggest issue is that it’s still exclusively on the unreliable AT&T network. Wilson was hoping for Wi-Fi syncing but apparently Apple makes too much money on selling iPhone cables to worry about wireless.

Big thanks to everyone for pointing us to CheckFacebook.com that answers yesterday’s question about the percentage of Americans on the site. Unsurprisingly, the U.S. has the highest number of FB users at 94,748,820, with the U.K. at a not-so-close second. Also be sure to listen carefully during E-Mails From the Public to learn how to say “Facebook” in Chinese!

This weekend is your LAST CHANCE to enter the The Audiophillie Music Awards for Excellence in Recorded Sound! Make a last minute recording of your band or another group, send it to us on a CD, and you could win a set of either Monster Turbine Pro Gold ($299) or Pro Copper ($399) headphones!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

EPISODE 556

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Originally posted at The 404 Podcast

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A 404 sticker at Shake Shack next to the CNET N.Y. office- thanks for the picture, Derrick!

(Credit:
Derrick Chen/The404)

Longtime 404 listener Ammi took some time out of her busy vacation from Sweden to drop by our studios this morning, so we invite her on the show to tell us about her first trip to the United States…and also to help us locate Sweden on the map, because we’re geographically hopeless. Ammi’s only been here a few days so far, but her observations on the chaos and consumerism of American culture are on point. Like many foreigners that visit our country, she can’t help but notice the obesity epidemic that we can easily trace back to the cupcake stores on every block in the city.

To Jeff’s delight, Ammi also tells us that hockey gets much more attention in Sweden than it in the US, although I’m pretty sure Swedish cable subscribers can’t watch their games in 3D. On March 24th, Cablevision will be broadcasting the New York Rangers vs. New York Islanders game in 3D, the first live 3D sports broadcast to hit the network. Don’t worry if you’re not one of the 11 people that actually own a 3D TV, Madison Square Garden will also host a viewing party on a big screen 3D projection TV for 2,500 guests on the night of the big game. Hockey fans that can handle the real dimension can also just buy tickets to the live game.

Finally, a new study in the latest Retrevo Gadgetology Report (gadgetology?) anecdotally shows that one in 10 people under 25 would pause coitus to check their social networking updates, which begs the question: is Facebook better than sex?

Short answer: No, dude.

Long answer: Listen to the show!

EPISODE 541

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Originally posted at The 404 Podcast

It might be thirty years since you’ve even thought about Pong, the earliest video arcade game, but believe it or not, the ancient two-dimensional tennis sports game is making a comeback in 2010.

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The 404 Podcast presents the future of gaming

On today’s episode of The 404 Podcast, we discuss the future of video games and how students at the Imperial College in London are developing a pair of special glasses that allows players to control paddle movement using their eye movements! The new technology holds particular promise for people with physical disabilities that might soon get the chance to join the gaming community. The glasses are fitted with infrared light sensors and a webcam that links a laptop to the player’s eyes, and although the hardware only costs $35 to make, the eye movement system itself costs around $36,000, so don’t expect to control Modern Warfare with your eyes anytime soon.

The big news of CTIA 2010 is Sprint announcing the HTC Evo 4g, the first available handset to run 4G in the US. Its list of accolades is impressive and blows away the competition: 4.3-inch display, micro-USB port, 8.3-megapixel rear facing camera in addition to a VGA lens on the front for video calls, and perhaps the most impressive–a kickstand! So far Sprint has rolled out its 4g network in 27 cities and plans to expand to NYC, Boston, D.C., SF, and more by the end of the year. The HTC Evo 4g certainly grabs our interests, but Jeff is shaking at the prospect of a phone worthy of replacing his 8th Palm Pre. Could this be the one? We’ll get CNET’s Cell Phone Editor Bonnie Cha in the studio soon to get the inside scoop.

Both of those stories plus an family-sized Calls From The Public on today’s episode of The 404 Podcast!

EPISODE 547

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Originally posted at The 404 Podcast

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It’s been way too long, but CNET’s own Molly Wood is back for a special cross-coastal episode of The 404! We chat with Molly about what she’s been up to lately, including a new Molly Rants blog on CNET and her recent conversation with FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski. She also hints at future CNET Conversation guests, so stay up on CNET TV for the latest news.

Molly is a perfect fit for The 404–don’t believe us? Check out the latest episode of The Buzz Report for a ridiculous “study” from the U.K. Guardian that links syphilis outbreaks to Facebook! “Professor” Peter Kelly, the director of public health for the town of Teesside, links a sudden increase of syphilis in students to their propensity toward the popular social networking Web site , and that is the only evidence he offers. We’re still struggling to draw the connection ourselves, but suddenly MySpace doesn’t seem that bad after all.

The latest Burger King ad campaign is blowing our minds–apparently they’re sponsoring Digg.com’s 404 page with an ad for the $1 Burger King Double Cheeseburger that will appear when users type in a query with no results. The exact message, according to WalletPop reads, “No results for ‘Your Search Error’ were found. Looks like your search had a typo. Blame it on your tiny hands. The beefy $1 Burger King Double Cheeseburger gives tiny hands some trouble, too.” Sponsoring an error page sounds counterintuitive for Digg since we assume that most of its users are tech-savvy. Maybe they’d have more success sponsoring Twitter’s Fail Whale page.

Stick around for plenty more stories about the world’s hottest chili pepper, cellphone etiquitte, amateur snapshots from space, and, of course, we wouldn’t let Molly leave without giving us a little taste of her famous nerd voice. Have a great weekend everyone!

EPISODE 546

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Originally posted at The 404 Podcast

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Pucker up! The 404 Podcast cordially invites you to help us celebrate Kiss An Asian Day! Wilson and I are clearly delighted with this extremely made-up holiday, whereas Jeff couldn’t be stuck in a more compromising position. Yesterday also happened to be International Talk Like William Shatner Day, so the first story in today’s rundown is about his new social network that is aimed at sci-fi nerds. Myouterspace.com is still in beta (Shatner’s Twitter is apparently taking suggestions), but the site promises to be “a sci-fi social network for those with a passion for the arts.” In my best Shatner voice: that…sounds…very…lame.

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Nintendo's first shot at 3D gaming.

(Credit:

Geekosystem.com)

Today, Nintendo announced the next generation of its popular DS portable gaming platform, and, of course, it’s in 3D. The Nintendo 3DS will officially see a release at this year’s E3 conference in June, but so far we know that the device will be backward compatible with DS and DSi games and won’t require you wear special goggles for 3D gameplay. Here’s hoping that the 3DS will be a little more fun than Nintendo’s first foray into 3D gaming.

CNET audio expert Steve Guttenberg stops by on the second half to pimp his ongoing contest, “The Audiophillie Music Awards for Excellence in Recorded Sound.” Keep in mind that this is not “American Idol,” so entries won’t be judged by musical talent, but rather on the quality of the recording itself. This is your chance to prove your recording skills and promote your favorite unsigned band, so submit your entry on a CD and you’ll be entered to win one of six pairs of Monster Turbine Copper or Monster Turbine Gold in-ear headphones!

Click here for official rules and an entry form (must complete and send along with CD). The contest ends on April 17, so good luck, everyone!

EPISODE 543

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Originally posted at The 404 Podcast