Dave Zatz, Author at Zatz Not Funny!

BeyondTV To Power The Daily Show

Now that I’ve firmly planted a stake in the ground, declaring that we’ll regurgitate fewer press releases… let’s discuss a press release. Because Rakesh Agrawal, founder and CEO of SnapStream, is a good guy. And because I’ve been fascinated with automated business intelligence collection techniques since being collocated with a startup in that space during … Read more

PVRBlog.com eBayed for $12,110.00

Matt Haughey recently unloaded his PVRBlog.com domain and content on ebay for $12,110.00 at the conclusion of a 7 day auction. As with most items that attract seasoned bidders, the reality was closer to a 20 minute event — during which time we saw PVRBlog‘s price more than double. However, the week-long listing provided plenty of time to mull over a purchase. And to be approached by a variety of folks looking to team.

But how do you value a website? In it’s heyday, PVRBlog held an amazing 9/10 Google PageRank. And despite hardly any new content (8 posts in 2009), the site still sees several hundred visitors a day. Perhaps most impressively, PVRBlog may have over 180,000 RSS subscribers thanks to some early Google promotion. Yet Matt says his revenue maxed out at $3,000 a month (and currently brings in about $100/mo). Given those top flight numbers, I would have expected significantly higher cashflow. I’m not entirely sure where the disconnect is, but it did give me pause.

Snowed In Gadgetry

As you may have heard, much of the mid-Atlantic region has been crippled by winter weather. And my neighborhood was hit with maybe 18″ of snow yesterday. So, having some indoor time on my hands, I jumped on a few gadgety projects and looked to digital media for distraction. Inspired by Mari’s netbook disaster, I … Read more

The Boxes of the Year

With the last holiday shopping weekend of 2009 upon us, it’s probably time to list my favorite home entertainment boxes of the year. This list is by no means exhaustive, these are just some of my faves – top picks, suitable for mainstream audiences and geeks alike. Keeping in mind, that for the second straight year, the Xbox 360 ($300) is still my #1 digital media powerhouse – the one box I cannot part with. Take my TiVo. Take my Roku. But you better come armed if you want this 360. Not only does it feature the best online gaming experience, it also boasts THE best Netflix instant streaming client – in addition to offering a variety of other media playback options.

Video

In the video category, there are two standouts for those sticking with physical media – and a higher quality of HD. But the snappy LG BD 390 set-top box (<$300) and the redesigned PS3 gaming console ($300) are much more than capable Blu-ray players. Both offer a variety of connected services (and 802.11n), including Netflix instant streaming. Those who have current or potential gamers in the house should probably look to the PS3 (and budget another 20 bucks for a remote), while everyone else would be quite happy with the Vudu-streaming LG. If you’re less picky and/or on a tighter budget with a higher tolerance for networking pain, look to the Samsung BD-P1600 (~$150) for similar features.

Living with the Android

After several weeks of surfing with the alien# living with the Android, I’m comfortable declaring any build 1.5 or higher as a suitably modern, powerful mobile OS that will meet the needs of most. In addition to carrying Sprint’s rendition of the HTC Hero (along with my iPhone 3GS), I’ve also had the opportunity to play with a few office Droids. While Android (even 2.0) isn’t nearly as polished as the iPhone OS, there are several compelling enhancements that ‘droid does.

Multitasking is the most obvious. And something many like me have been effectively managing since the Windows PocketPC days. Being able to continue streaming Slacker while checking email? Priceless. Unlike the iPhone home screen, in addition to application icons, Android also provides support for folders and widgets (as shown above). Lastly, Android conveniently collects various configurable system/app notifications in a drop down bar.

Hands On with OWC’s iPhone Windshield Mount

Surely, I can’t be the only one in search of a solid iPhone windshield mount. Yet there haven’t been many reasonable solutions. I’ve previously had good luck with the Griffin RoadTrip, which also happens to charge your device and beam audio over FM to the car stereo. Yet my attempts to get the iPhone a … Read more

The Fake Steve Jobs Is Out Of Line

The Secret Diary of Steve Jobs is a blog, not written by Steve Jobs (of Apple fame), which was once clever and entertaining. It’s decidedly less so this week as The Fake Steve Jobs incites a data riot to bring down AT&T’s network. His plan, reinforced again here and here, encourages frustrated iPhone owners, such … Read more

The WeSay Sony DSC-WX1 Panorama Contest

As previously mentioned, Sony provided me the DSC-WX1 digicam (~$300) to participate in a blogger panorama contest hosted by WeSay. The winner will designate a school for Sony to donate a number of these cameras to. And I’ve got a few worthy candidates in mind. But, before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s first talk … Read more