Debian has announced that they have created a version of their popular variant of a Linux-based operating system for the Neo FreeRunner. The Neo FreeRunner is the first fully open source phone. Even the physical case designs are available to anyone who wants a crack at it. Debian claims that this now means that there are 20,000 apps now for the FreeRunner. I have to say that I have some doubts that GIMP will work well on the little handset, but I could be wrong. Otherwise, nice work, folks!

written by Tyler Regas

Netbooks have been super crazy popular this year, and next year the netbook market is expected to explode even larger. Me? I hate it because there are so many cool little gadgets out there now I can’t hope to ever find a need for all of them. One of the models I’ve been eyeing, though, is Dell’s little guy, which is now officially dubbed the Inspiron 910. It should have been something like Dell MicroNote or Dell PowerNote or something else cool instead of this [FAIL] from marketing. Of course, none of it really matters if Dell’s going down the tubes. The Giz said their sources were saying August 22nd, but here we are a week later a nothing. Ok, not nothing, but what we did hear is that Dell managed to lose about 17% of its value in one day or really, really bad trading. Dell chalks it up to falling system prices and the economy. Does that mean our new little favorite is going the way of the Palm Foleo? We’ll just have to wait and see. [Source: Gizmodo]

written by Tyler Regas

Just thought I’d clear that up. Apparently, some dork at Bloomberg pushed the template for Mr. Jobs’ obit after updating the file. This is a common practice among news agencies. They prep an obit for famous people so they are prepared when it happens, and it will happen. This is just a monumental screw up. He ain’t dead, folks. Here’s a piece on it to help in your de-griefing.

written by Tyler Regas

Dell is planning things in the mobile audio device space again, and this time its apparently called Zing, an acquisition Dell made earlier this year. Word is that Dell will not make the Microsoft mistake and lump in with PlaysForSure, but will instead build a new digital media network. Dell’s aim is to bring a wide range of mobile media devices. It will be interesting to see what Dell comes up with, but rest assured that Apple isn’t resting on its laurels. So far, the Cupertino megalith has been able to preempt every single one of its competitors efforts to derail the mighty iPod. Time will tell, but you can read more about it at Business Week.

written by Tyler Regas

TUAW turned me on to this one. Apparently this Japanese company came up with a stylus which actually works with the iPhone. Since the iPhone’s touchscreen was designed to work with living fingers, the stylus had to be designed to mimic a living finger, which this one seems to do. Its soft and pliable and is only US$14 per. The downside is that the iPhone does’t have a stylus silo, so it will be easy to lose and hard to find when you need it and ThinkGeek, not surprisingly, is sold out at the moment. Pretty damn cool, though.

written by Tyler Regas

If you’ve been drooling over the Vista-capable, pocket fitting, slider having, keyboard sporting, 1Seg TV tuner jamming Willcom D4 personal MIDtop PC (also known as the Sharp WS016SH), Jenn Lee over at Pocketables has a very, very complete review of one. Aside from the fact that Vista is a productivity sapper and 1Seg doesn’t work outside of Japan, its a nifty if costly device with a few flaws. Be sure to check out the video which is about half way down the very long page.

written by Tyler Regas

If you’ve got yourself a Chrysler car and you’ve been dying to get ubiquitous internet on the go, then your prayers have been answered. Chrysler is now offering options for their UConnect EV-DO in-car system for 2007, 2008, and even some pre-2007 cars. The service is US$499 to get installed (there’s no factory installed option just yet), costs US$35-50 to put in, US$35 to activate, and US$29 per month for service.

written by Tyler Regas

Its not all that surprising that there’s another netbook to add to the already crowded list, but Raon Digital has decided to issue a first, regardless. The upcoming Raon Digital Everun Note is the first netbook to officially run a dual core CPU, specifically AMD’s Turion  64×2 unit running at 1.2GHz. The 7″ device also features 1GB of RAM, a 1024×600 widescreen display, a 60GB HDD, wi-fi, Bluetooth, USB, and a bunch more. It will be made available in the US and South Korea in September, though pricing has not yet been announced. Raon also hasn’t added it to their website just yet. [Source: Gizmodo]

written by Tyler Regas

Its starting to look like a paradigm shift. It happened in HDTVs when people like Kodak and Westinghouse started putting their names on big flat panel sets (disclosure: I have a Westinghouse LCD HDTV, and it rocks the socks off of locks, knox). Now, a company called Digital Gadgets is using the Sylvania name on their new g netbook MESO line of micro lappies. There’s really nothing special about it, either. Its an 8.9″ lappy with a 1.6GHz Atom CPU and integrated wireless. They will come in Linux and XP Home versions and have similar specs to the scads of other netbooks now or soon to be flooding the market. Pricing appears to be starting around US$399 and up and they should be available within the next 30 days.

written by Tyler Regas