Dave Zatz

So Long, and Thanks for all the Fish (Yahoo!)

I’ve been with Yahoo!, in one form or another, pretty much since the beginning (when they began life as a human-generated index of the then finite and mostly manageable World Wide Web). As a customer, as a blogger, and as a professional. Like most, I long ago moved to Google for modern web search. But I’ve been using Yahoo Mail nearly exclusively since the late 90s (never mind those two years of Hotmail and Mac.com experimentation and despite grabbing a Gmail account 11/04).

As changing homes is quite disruptive and I do quite like the ad-free Yahoo Mail Plus UI ($20/yr), I’ve tried to be patient while Google has run laps around the schizophrenic Yahoo. (Who else would kill the #1 web photo sharing site? And plenty of other initiatives I previously relied on.) But I’ve had enough.

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Slacker Lands on webOS, Sirius XM on Blackberry

While Best Buy’s HD Radio may not meet our mobile audio needs, we’ve got two new and solid contenders in the digital streaming space. As promised at CES, Slacker is now available for webOS and can be downloaded via the App Catalog. And, fortunately, I just so happen to have Kevin Tofel‘s Palm Pre on … Read more

Question of the Day and HD Radio Giveaway

ZNF reader Larry C recently inquired about the HD Radio reception from Best Buy’s Insignia NS-HD01 portable ($50): what is the range of reception – hopefully good clear sound within 50-75 mile radius And I’d glad he brought this up. Because only after writing my mostly positive review did I learn how bad the HD … Read more

Logitech’s Touch Mouse App is Cute, But…

Logitech’s new Touch Mouse iPhone app (above left) is a cute bit of marketing, but power users can do better. Touch Mouse, in conjunction with PC or Mac server software, allows you to use your iPhone as a remote touchpad (à la GlideTV) and keyboard. For basic control and a cost of zero dollars, it’ll … Read more

20 Minutes with the Nook

2010 is shaping up to be the year that media consumption tablets go mainstream. In fact, according to Amazon, the Kindle already has. Obviously, most of our current attention is focused on the iPad… and Macmillan jacking eBook prices by 50%. (Which is probably unsustainable, despite their hopes.) But a co-worker received a Nook ($259) … Read more

Verizon Preps Widescreen FiOS TV UI?

Over at the Verizon at Home blog, I stumbled upon what may be the future of the FiOS TV UI. And it’s (finally) widescreen! Ben Drawbaugh will be pleased. A variety of under-the-hood modifications and development strategies have resulted in a more modular Interactive Media Platform (IMG) for Verizon – who should be able to … Read more

Roku’s New Channels: SmugMug, DreamTV

Roku ($99) may or may not hit 100 channels this year, but we’re +2 with the addition of SmugMug photos and DreamTV (who?) video. Speaking of channels, I’m about to cave to the studios and pick up a Blu-ray player for new movies, sooner. In addition to physical media, the Sony BDP-N460 (~$200) also claims … Read more

Unboxing the Nao Symphony

You may have caught Cignias’ Nao Symphony Wireless Music Station CES press release, announcing broad device availability and the requisite iPhone app. But I caught the actual unit. The Nao Symphony Wireless Music Station ($299) provides a slightly different take on the pedestrian iPhone speaker dock. In fact, it’s far more sophisticated. So while you … Read more