Tech Biz

The inventive and modern August smart lock is inching closer to availability. The company has begun taking pre-orders for its beautiful Yves Behar-designed product that, like the Nest thermostat, aims to reinvigorate a market that’s long lacked any real innovation. August set up a reservation list shortly after unveiling its “secure, simple, and social way Continue Reading →

Did you find this blog post through Bing?  Probably not — 67% of worldwide searches go through Google, 18% through Bing.  But Microsoft has advertised in a substantial TV campaign that — in the cyber analog to blind taste-testing — people prefer Bing “nearly 2:1.”  A year ago, when I first saw these ads,  the Continue Reading →

The billionaire investor said Tuesday on CNBC’s “Fast Money” that the tech giant is missing a golden opportunity if it doesn’t issue a bigger share buyback, and he intends to make sure that shareholders are represented even if the board does not want to go ahead with a bigger buyback. “I feel very strongly about Continue Reading →

Three of the top 20 investors in Microsoft Corp are lobbying the board to press for Bill Gates to step down as chairman of the software company he co-founded 38 years ago, according to people familiar with matter. While Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer has been under pressure for years to improve the company’s performance Continue Reading →

The idea of a la carte cable programming that would allow subscribers to pick and choose the stations they pay for is one that we have all dreamt of for years now. Some pay TV executives tease us from time to time and talk about how a la carte options might become available at some Continue Reading →

If you had a choice between spending 2 minutes or 6 seconds brushing your teeth, you would probably go with the faster method. The Blizzident custom 3D-printed toothbrush is a bizarre-looking toothbrush alternative that promises a 6-second scrub of your pearly whites. There is no one-size-fits-all Blizzident. Each one is custom-made to fit an individual’s Continue Reading →

In his speech over the government’s shutdown and the launch of a new healthcare site, President Barack Obama has brought up the trump card in modern political debates: successful and beloved tech companies. Obama addressed criticism of Healthcare.gov, the sleek but buggy and unreliable system that lets Americans shop for health care plans, by comparing Continue Reading →

One big reason that investors like Facebook again: The company looks like it has figured out how to make money — a lot of money — on mobile. One big reason Facebook looks like it has figured out mobile: App-install ads, which developers use to encourage Facebook users to download their software onto their phones. Continue Reading →

A big regulatory victory for Airbnb happened this past Friday: the company has managed to win an appeal in New York City over a fine against a host called Nigel Warren, whose landlord was fined $2,400 in June after Warren rented out a room in his apartment. If the fine had stuck, it would have Continue Reading →

New York City is increasingly playing host to a number of successful startups, and Mayor Bloomberg wants to keep it that way. The city announced on Monday a plan to bring free Wi-Fi connectivity to neighborhoods across the five boroughs. These networks, set to launch in December, will be open to the public and have strategically Continue Reading →