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Changes at D-Link bring pebbles, boxes and a doorbell

January 29th, 2010, 3:30 am by
D-Link 3G doorbell
D-Link’s 3G door bell, actually called the D-Link Door Phone, is a home security system with a camera built inside the bell. When someone pushes the bell, the camera starts streaming video online, which can be viewed by a 3G wireless phone so owners can see who is at the door even when not home. The door phone comes out in the second quarter of 2010 for $199.99.

At the recent Consumer Electronics Show, D-Link Systems showed off its core product: a wireless router.

But then the Fountain Valley firm pulled out a device mixing Web TV and social networking. And an eReader. And a … doorbell!

There have been major changes inside the company. Last May, it reorganized, letting go of CEO Steven Joe, who has since resurfaced over at Irvine’s hot HDTV company Vizio (read earlier story: “D-Link replaces president, announces reorganization“). Nick Tidd, pictured below, stepped in as vice president of marketing. This week, Tidd was named president of D-Link North America.

Tidd answered some questions to give readers insight into what D-Link is all about today.

Question: With some major management shifts behind it, how has D-Link changed as a business?

Nick Tidd, named president of D-Link North America in Jan. 2010.D-Link’s Nick Tidd: The most significant changes have come since last May when we had a complete reorganization of our North American and Pan American operations. We’ve made a number of changes to the organization in order to optimize and leverage resources across North America. We’ve built teams and budgets for areas which were lacking and built structure and systems so we’re better equipped to compete in a fast and dynamic marketplace. But overall, we’ve tried to instill the sense of fun and empowerment among our employees needed to achieve the next level of success as a company. We are aggressively driving into new markets, while solidifying our presence in existing markets where we have a very compelling value proposition to companies with constrained budgets and consumers looking to get more out of technology and their connected devices. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in: Gadgets • Wi-Fi & networking • • • • • • • • • | 20 Comments »

Vizio goes beyond TV with 6 new gadgets

January 12th, 2010, 4:31 pm by

Vizio Universal RemoteVizio conquered the LCD HDTV market last year. Now it wants a piece of the TV accessory market.

While the Irvine TV company unveiled its first Blu-ray Disc player, sound bar and cables last year, this year’s show had many nice surprises as well. It not only showed its latest TVs, including a 3D model and a super skinny HDTV, but it offered up a bunch of interesting TV accessories. I’ve highlighted the following, with pictures of course:

Number 1 stock artUniversal remote control with built-in LCD – Two of them are coming but the more interesting one is the XRT100 touchscreen remote control has a 3.5-inch LCD display to control the home’s entertainment system. It will work with Vizio’s upcoming (and delayed) Internet TV, as well as older audio and video devices. Unlike the Samsung Wi-Fi remote with the built-in TV display, this one works over Bluetooth. Click photos to enlarge.

Vizio universal remote control with touchscreen Vizio universal remote control with touchscreen

Number 2 stock artHeadphones with built-in LCD — Why does one need an LCD screen on a set of headphones, I’m not quite sure. But it was cool to see. Vizio added a round LCD display to the outer part of each earpiece. Users will be able to see the album cover or personal images on the screens. These are future products with no price or availability date available. Watch the video I took inside Vizio’s dark CES suite: Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in: Gadgets • iPods • Video & TV • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • | 9 Comments »

Easy-to-use cell phone targets senior citizens

May 27th, 2008, 3:43 pm by

Pantech Breeze cell phoneCypress’ Pantech Wireless introduced a new cell phone today that targets “adults needing an easy-to-use cell phone.” The Pantech Breeze doesn’t have the giant buttons of the Jitterbug (which has some new phones out) nor the colorful simplicity of the Migo.

But the simple phone does add some arguably more useful tools for seniors. Notably:

  • Short cuts: Three short-cut keys that can be programmed to dial the three most commonly used phone numbers.

Pantech Breeze cell phone short-cut keys

  • Light: Keys stay illuminated briefly when touched.
  • Audio: Add audio to buttons that say the number of the key when pressed.

The Pantech Breeze is $199, but that’s discounted to $79 with a 2-year contract at AT&T Wireless. Get the price down to $50 with a $30-mail-in rebate.

Other options:

Posted in: Cell phones • • • • | 2 Comments »

How to cram more shows on your TV recorder

May 15th, 2008, 9:50 am by

WD’s My DVR Expander adds 60 hours of HD-video storage to the DISH boxIn this age of high-definition TV, not a whole lot of TV fits on a digital video recorder (DVR). It seems like I can only squeeze five movies and a few hours of prime-time shows on mine.

Western Digital Corp. in Lake Forest just announced a fix for DISH Network’s users. Its $149.99 MyDVR Expander hard drive (on right) plugs into DISH Network’s ViP Series HD DVR via USB. It immediately adds 60 extra hours of HD space (or 300 hours of standard-definition video).

In addition to the extra space, the 500-GB external drive may also save you money. The drive uses WD’s GreenPower technology, which means it uses less power because it has a no-fan passive cooling system. WD says it reduces energy consumption by 30 percent and is quiet enough to use in the bedroom.

WD already offers My DVR Expander drives for TiVo and Scientific Atlanta cable boxes.

WD’s My DVR Expander adds 60 hours of HD-video storage to the DISH box While that excludes my home DVR, WD does offer the rest of us hope: “Further compatibility of the My DVR Expander drive is planned as other cable and satellite DVR manufacturers enable the USB ports on their currently-deployed DVRs,” says the company.

Posted in: Storage • Video & TV • • • • • • • • • • • • | 1 Comment »

Line Rider inspires site to launch free tools

May 7th, 2008, 2:48 pm by

Line Rider, the original BostjanOne of the Web’s favorite free distractions, Line Rider, has inspired a new company.

Newport Beach’s inXile Entertainment spun off a new company called SparkWorkz. Line Rider, the new Bostjan

Line Rider, which started in 2006 as an art-school project, is a web-based game where users draw lines and then watch a bob sledder ride the lines. It has since been played by thousands who then uploaded their creations to YouTube. The most popular Line Rider video has been viewed 7.4 million times.

InXile bought the rights to the game in late 2006 from creator Bostjan Cadez, who spent time in Newport Beach to meet the developers. Read the original Register story: If you draw it, Line Rider will come. Line Rider is now heading to the Nintendo Wii and DS this summer. The first preview of the game for the Wii and DS is expected to be posted at game site IGN.com Thursday night.

Online, anyone can play for free. The official site features a ‘Bostjan’ with a new look but the game is pretty much the same.

“Vanity is a big thing on the Internet. It’s either you show off, ‘Hey, look at me,’ on Facebook and MySpace. Or it’s look what I can do. That show-off aspect is what I like,” said Brian Fargo, inXile’s founder.

Line Rider was created by Bostjan Cadez Art student Bostjan Cadez started Line Rider by scribbling in his drawing pad More inspiration from Bostjan’s drawing pad More inspiration from Bostjan’s drawing pad
Above: See the inspiration of Line Rider from art student Bostjan Cadez’ drawing pad.

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Behind the scenes at Buy.com

May 6th, 2008, 5:27 am by

Buy.com is based in Aliso Viejo, Calif.On a recent visit to OC’s own Buy.com, I noticed that the Aliso Viejo online store still has dot-com flair.

Free ice cream, sodas and Naked Juice. Catered lunches every day! I’m told that scooters, Razors and even Segways are regularly used by employees to move from one cubicle to another — although not on the day I got a tour.

Neel Grover, Buy.com’s CEOLittle pots of fresh grass decorate the conference room tables and the lobby. Someone comes in weekly to trim grass with scissors. While the game room got cleared out for more customer service staff, a Ms. Pac-man arcade game found a new home in the cafeteria.

Neel Grover, its chief executive since May 2006, is young, friendly and determined. Dressed in dark jeans and a long-sleeved black shirt, he’s far from the suited exec at most companies in the county. That’s him on the right, although that’s not his motorcycle. Buy.com’s founder Scott Blum is a collector.

The company plans to report its sixth consecutive profitable quarter soon. Not bad when you’re selling everything at a discount (except for prices set by the manufacturer).

Buy.com brings in fresh grass weekly. Click image to see slideshow of Buy.com.“It’s not just me, by any means,” Grover tells me. “I have a great team. Most of the employees have been here for 10 years.”

That means the bulk of its 125 employees were there during the dot-com mania days, when it was a publicly traded company, employed more than 300 people and had free-shipping deals so frequently, I’d time purchases to take advantage of the deal. But also back then, the company was losing money and many critics thought Buy.com was going bye bye.

Buy.com, obviously, is still around. Grover said listening to the customer has helped boost sales. And now, he said, “We make money on every product we sell — we make a little less money than our competitors.”

“We’re a very mature young company. There’s still a long way to go,” Grover concedes. And yes, he said, answering my next question before I could ask it. “We think we’ll catch them (Amazon).”

Jebb Harris, a Register photographer, took photos of our tour and offers a picturesque view of life at today’s Buy.com. Click here to check them out!

Read a longer story after the jump:

Read the rest of this entry »

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SRS forms set-top box unit as experts expect growth

March 21st, 2008, 8:00 am by

srs-labs-logoSanta Ana’s SRS Labs announced Wednesday that it has formed a new business unit that will focus on sound technology in set-top boxes for TVs.

SRS will partner with several chip makers (including Irvine’s Broadcom and NXT, STMicroelectronics and Conexant) and manufacturers of the set-top boxes. SRS Labs’ Lenka Koloma will head up the new division, serving previously as senior director of Strategic IC Platforms and Sales.

Sales of set-top box sales are expected to grow but remain fragmented, according to a February report from Light Reading Insider, an analyst firm tracking the industry. That report predicts that the North American and European markets for set-top boxes will be worth a cumulative total of more than $3.2 billion between 2007-2011.

“We are excited about SRS Labs’ new STB direction as it greatly complements and further expands our long-term existing relationship,” says Philippe Lambinet, executive vice president of the set-top home entertainment business unit at STMicroelectronics.

SRS flat panel TV segment was the “most significant revenue driver in 2007,” according to CEO Tom Yuen. During the fourth quarter of 2007, SRS revenues came in at $4.3 million, a 14 percent decrease for the quarter on a year-over-year basis.

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D-Link takes top spot in Wi-Fi market

March 13th, 2008, 4:00 pm by

Fountain Valley-based D-Link announced this week that it is the new leader in shipments of Draft 802.11n Wi-Fi products worldwide, according to research from In-Stat.

D-Link’s marketing director, Daniel Kelley, says this has been a big focus for the company since mid-2006. Read Tamara Chuang’s review of the D-Link Rangebooster N 650 router router from that time.

According to D-Link, here’s the In-Stat market share breakdown for Draft 802.11n units in the fourth quarter of 2007:

  • D-Link shippped 584,000 Draft 802.11n units, for 33 percent of the market.
  • Linksys in Irvine had 28.4 percent market share.
  • Belkin took home 17 percent market share.
  • NETGEAR had 14.15 percent market share.

Posted in: Wi-Fi & networking • • • | Comments Off

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