Will We See The Day When All Cell Phones Take The Same Charger?

I hate having to change my cell phone charger every time I get a new cell phone, and I don't think I'm the only one. I've long heard rumors that there was going to be an effort made to create a single standard for cell phone chargers in the future and maybe we're nearing that day a little sooner than I had given the effort credit for.

According to Joseph Palenchar in TWICE (This Week In Consumer Electronics), "CTIA-The Wireless Association announced its support for a universal cellphone-charger standard that would enable consumers to use the same charger for any future handset that they buy.

The standard, called the Universal Charging Solution (UCS), uses the micro-USB-connector standard as its common charging interface and is expected to be available on new cellphones in January 2012, CTIA said." (Read more here)

Personally, I still see this as (a) a long shot to actually happen and (b) one of the most insignificant things being worked on at this time. However, if indeed micro USB is to be the form factor chosen to charge all models of all cell phones at least one thing we could cross off the list is the worry that the form factor wouldn't be conducive to producing the most flexible or compact devices the world has ever seen.

Micro USB is very small (See image where Mini USB, found on many cell phones and digital cameras now, is on the left next to the Micro USB adapter on the right) and it seems difficult to envision a manufacturer having a difficult time coming up with devices that would be as compact as possible (what the consumer wants) and yet still able to use a standardized device. However, I find it funny that someone is pushing for a standardized form factor on a cable's connection when there is already attempts out there for WIRELESS charging of electronic devices that would seemingly need no such connectivity.

I'm curious: what would a company like Apple do with their iPhones that use their own standardized connector shared throughout their iPod lineup?

I'm also curious if, by January 2012, will we even care about something like this? Might we finally arrive at a day when cell phones aren't just consumables that you donate or recycle? And, if we do arrive at that point, won't that mean you could just keep using your charger you already own?

I guess we'll all find out together.

Cheers!

Trade HD DVDs for Blu-rays with Warner's Red2Blu Program!

So you went with HD-DVD and, this time, Sony won and shoved Blu-ray down your throat. You're looking at what you've invested and you think to yourself, "Man, had I known...". Well, buck up cheerio!

If you aligned yourself with the red team during the HD DVD vs. Blu-ray format war, we wouldn't blame you if you felt a little turned off to the whole idea of high-def discs. Warner's new Red2Blu program is trying to relieve some of the sting for the losers of the format war, giving owners of Warner HD DVD movies the option to trade in their movies for Blu-ray versions of the same movie. The program isn't free--you send in the cover art from your HD DVDs along with $4.95 per movie, plus a $6.95 shipping and handling fee for your entire order--but it's definitely better than having to shell out another $30 bucks for a new Blu-ray. There are some minor restrictions, such as you can only trade in 25 movies per household and only one copy of an individual title, but the biggest restriction is that the offer is only good for Warner titles.

Tiger Direct To Buy Circuit City's Brand Name?

Credits:
Steve Smith
Twice.com

Systemax, the company that operates Tiger Direct’s online and brick-and-mortar stores — which last year cut a deal last year to acquire the brand, trademarks and e-commerce business of CompUSA, as well as 16 former CompUSA storefronts — is on the prowl again.

When Circuit City announced the intention to auction off its brand, I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who said, "Why?"

Maybe people in the industry are too close to the situation, but many have to think that the Circuit City name would be far too damaged to make it a worthwhile investment for anyone. But Circuit’s going out of business sale was, by all accounts, successful, so who knows?

... read more...

For what it's worth, it appears that Tiger Direct's intention is aimed squarely at the most successful part of Circuit's bankrupt brand, the E-Commerce business. The obvious question that needs to be asked, though, is how much of the E-Commerce business's success was based on the connection to the brick and mortar stores themselves (either through the existing company branding or the in-store pickup leverage used by the website). Still, 6.5Million plus a share of the future business that transacts for the first 30 months of the deal is a pretty heft price to pay for any brand linked to such a stigma of failure.

Panasonic Goes DECT 6.0 On All Cordless Phones

Panasonic seems to have made a complete switch over to DECT 6.0 on its cordless phone offerings, no longer offering any 2.4 or 5.8GHz models within its lineup. Thank god... that's all I can say.

Read Panasonic's press release here.

If you're using a land line and possibly still using a 2.4GHz or 5.8GHz phone check out Panasonic's full DECT 6.0 category.