So far January has been somewhat lackluster when it comes to tech headlines, but here’s what’s making the rounds this morning.
But first, a brief aside. If you recall, in January of last year Google made a huge splash with their announcement of the Google Nexus smartphone which marked their ill-fated attempt at a direct sales model. Then Apple delivered the blockbuster of all blockbusters with its Apple iPad in February which remains, almost twelve months later, unchallenged in the tablet marketplace. 2011 has yet to produce anything close in terms of buzz, despite an enthusiastic and well-received Consumer Electronics Show (CES) earlier this month.
Is there a big headline coming in 2011… Facebook phone? Real tablet rival to iPad, anyone… ? Anything out of Redmond?
eMarketer: Twitter revenue may triple to 150 million in 2011
Perhaps some light at the end of the monetization tunnel for Twitter. At least according to a report from eMarketer, the company could see advertising revenue triple this year to $150 million. “If Twitter can grow its user base and convince marketers of its value as a go-to secondary player to Facebook, it will succeed in gaining revenue,” said Debra Aho Williamson, eMarketer principal analyst. “In 2011 it must work overtime to give its early advertisers a positive experience.” Despite having 175 million users, only 8% of web surfers use the micro-blogging service, and Twitter has consistently lagged (by a wide margin) ad revenues from competitors such as Facebook and Google. – M.C.
Sony PSP2 to have OLED display, 3G
Later this week Sony it’s believed will announce the PSP2, the successor to its handheld gaming console. Kotaku reports that the Japanese edition will have 3G perhaps implying that US consumers could see a similar feature allowing them to download content, surf the web, and possibly even make phone calls. – T.E.
Into Production: iPad in February, iPhone 5 in May
Reports this morning indicate the iPad will go into production February and the iPhone following in May. This is consistent with what we’ve been reading for months so there are no surprises here. The on-again/off-again rumor about the iPad 2 high-resolution retina display (2048×1536) appears to be off again. Some suggest that suppliers can’t manufacture the volume Apple would need, and that it’s more likely to appear in the third generation iteration. – M.C.
Mike Daisey on Apple CEO Steve Jobs: “Visionary. Asshole.”
Daisey’s one-man show about labor practices in China, Steve Jobs, and our technology-obsessed lives opened last night in Berkeley. “Apple users are sometimes like battered wives,” he said, referring to the love/hate relationship with their products and philosophy. When trying to figure out why the Newton (the failed Apple PDA from the 1980s) would not recognize hand-writing: “It’s me.” The two-hour monologue is centered around Daisey’s visit to the Foxconn factory in Shenzhen. Housing over 430,000 workers according to the New York-based performer, it produces over half of the world’s electronics. It also employs child labor. And at shows end a sheet was handed out to theater-goers asking for them to take action. – C.S.