It seems that when it comes to being environmentally friendly, people can come up with so many excuses, especially in the business and technology world.  It’s either too much work or too expensive.  In the past, big companies have only been interested in looking at environmental issues if it made them look good or increased sales. 

These days, if you don’t do your part, you’re behind the times.  It’s pretty much impossible to conduct any business that isn’t easy on Mother Earth.  There are numerous outlets for information to help consumers and businesses get with the program.

Here are some resources that are very helpful:

“Share the Technology” is a non-profit organization dedicated to getting the word out about recycling and donating used computers.  Their website includes tips on donating, places to donate or recycle, and other useful information regarding our responsibility to protect the environment from the toxins in computers.

GreenMachineShop is a Michigan-based outlet that sells green desktop computers, laptops and peripherals that contain over 97% less toxins, carcinogens and brominated flame retardants, compared to other computers.  Their PCS are also RoHS compliant (Restrictions on the use of Hazardous Substances in electronic equipment).

If you’re looking to “greenify” your life, look no further than Gaiam, a green lifestyle company that offers everything from apparel to solar technologies to electric transportation.  Check out their swanky electric bicycles here:  http://www.gaiam.com/retail/3/SL_SustTransport_ElectricVehicles

Blog Action Day, Consumer Electronics, Consumer Tech, Corporate Responsibility, donating used computers, electric bicycles, electric transportation, environmental issues, environmentally friendly, gaiam, green desktop computers, GreenMachineShop, mother earth, recycling, rohs compliant, Social Responsibility, solar technologies, toxins

There’s some more great news from the “One Laptop Per Child” camp.  Between November 12 and November 26, U.S. residents will be able to purchase two of Nicholas Negroponte’s XO laptops for a total of $399.  One laptop with be sent to a child in a developing nation and one will be delivered to your home.  You can only order them during the two week window, but your personal XO will arrive just in time for Christmas.

I know there are many people out there looking to do their part in bridging the digital divide at home and abroad.  What better way than snagging a piece of computer history and making a donation at the same time.  Read more about the “Give 1 Get 1” initiative here:  http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/usa/olpc_xo_laptop_sale.html

Cool News:

Researchers in Japan are using robotics once again to make strides in the field of medicine.  A robot with a silicone tongue and motorized jaw is being developed to mimic oral movements needed for speech.  The robot will use a computer program to aid in speech therapy and also serve as a tool to teach foreign language.

San Francisco Japantown’s Best Western Hotel Tomo has reopened its doors recently with a bunch of features catering to Japanese culture freaks like myself.  The guest rooms are for geeked-out with flat screen TVs, iPod docks and Wi-Fi, of course.  The best part of the new look, though, is the manga and anime theme.  Beautiful murals are all over the hotel’s ceilings and walls.  The icing on the cake - two gaming suites that have PS3 and Wii consoles.  I know where I’ll be next weekend.  See pictures here:  http://www.wired.com/gaming/gamingreviews/multimedia/2007/09/gallery_hoteltomo

According to Saul Hansell of The New York Times, Google will further its conquest of world domination by building its own trans-Pacific cable to save data transmission costs by 2009.  It will be part of a project called “Unity” that includes other telco companies and will rival Verizon’s project that is working with Asian companies to build a cable from the U.S. to China.

Yahoo! is about to unleash its own version of a friend-based social networking service called Mash.  Users will be able to customize pretty much anything they want on their page and even add things like Flickr stream and RSS feeds.  One of the cooler features that stand out is the ability to leave your profile open so friends can modify as they so please!

Huh?:

It’s almost time for Eastwick Communications’ Black & Orange Bash again and I’ve found the perfect gift for our Witches of Eastwick.  There’s a new flying witch arcade game where the user actually rides a broom!  It sure beats the pants of DDR but I need to figure out how much it will cost to ship it from the Land of the Rising Sun.  Practice your Japanese and check it out here:  http://www.gizmodo.jp/2007/09/tgs2007_11.html

Coolest-Gadgets.com recently ran a post about a cat language translation mechanism called the Meowlingual Cat Translation device.  Although ridiculous, there are some people I know that might shell out the $75 for one of these, including myself.  Who wouldn’t like to know which of the three cat activities - eating, pooping and sleeping - my Anabelle is fussing about?

Gamercize has finally found the way to get gamers off the couch and exercising.  The company has developed little step machines and power cycles that hook up to your PS2.  The users have to “workout” at a certain intensity level or the controller disconnects from the console.  Where you at Wii?

Sad News:

The king of mimes, Marcel Marceau, passed away last Saturday at the age of 84.

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One of the non-profit groups we work with here at Eastwick is Comunidad Para Baja California.  Comunidad is a volunteer organization whose goal is improving the quality of life for the indigenous communities of Baja California.  They make a difference through medical services, long-term educational programs and infrastructure improvements.

Last Friday, July 6, 2007, Eastwikkers took part in loading two massive semi trucks worth of donated school furniture that is going directly to the tribes of Baja California.  Blossom Hill Elementary School in Los Gatos, CA partnered with Comunidad to give student/teacher desks, student chairs, work tables, picnic tables, book cases, folding chairs, etc.

It was a great experience for all the Eastwikkers who took part.  We spent a whole morning being macho and lifting heavy objects, the rest of the afternoon sore and dirty, with an “In and Out Burger” break in between.  The furniture donation was featured on the San Jose Mercury News‘ website.

Students of Blossom Hill’s participating classes have also written letters to their counterparts in Baja, an exercise to teach students about different cultures and making a difference in other people’s lives.  Teachers and volunteers gave mini-Spanish lessons to the students so the kids of Baja can read the Spanish language letters that will accompany the donated school furniture.  In return the students of Baja will be writing letters back to Blossom Hill - creating a rich cultural exchange.

One of the most intriguing things about Baja is that it is so close (not too far south of the CA-Mexico border) yet so far away economically.  The indigenous people have to live in extreme conditions and the children go to dilapidated schools, without necessities like plumbing and utensils.  It is very exciting to be part of such a great cause that really helps people in a part of the world that is constantly overlooked. 

Blossom Hill Elementary School, Comunidad Para Baja California, Eastwick, Eastwikkers, indigenous, Los Gatos, San Jose Mercury News, Social Responsibility, Spanish

Ah, to be rich and famous . . . I would have all the gadgets and gizmos!  But what about celebrities who aren’t tech nerds like me?  Do they honestly care about consumer electronics, aside from their beloved Sidekicks?

Apparently so.  Seen an episode of “Cribs” lately?

There’s been an increase in the number of techie products popping up in swag bags and gift lounges at various celebrity events.  Take the recent Country Music Awards or Indy 500, for example.  Celebrities were not only treated to the standard gourmet chocolates, jewelry and plastic surgery vouchers: They also got gaming headsets, Clarity TV sound amplifiers and i2Telecom Voicestick USB drives. 

At this week’s MTV Movie Awards Platinum Luxury Lounge, celebs were snatching up tech items like the Seagate FreeAgent* data movers as quickly as they were grabbing hip clothing and accessories.

Electronics companies have been bringing in design talent from every industry — from motorcycles to couture — in a concerted effort to transform seemingly mundane gadgets like cell phones, laptops and even hard drives into fashion statements that will win the hearts of fickle consumers.  Celebs are the perfect testing ground.  And, it doesn’t hurt to get your product seen by loads of adoring fans. 

Celebrities, oddly enough, are genuinely enthusiastic about the tech gifts they get at events. (Of course, they could just be good actors…or bad ones with good agents and killer cheekbones.)  It seems the style-page set need to simplify their lives just as much as we, the little people, do.  They also need constant access to photos of their dog, or their headshots.  While they’re globetrotting, they need the best communication devices to get in touch with Aunt Bessie, or their agent.

I have a feeling we’re only seeing the beginning of this trend.  Yes, celebs love getting the best tables at the top restaurants, wearing “loaned” couture and having front row seats, but marketers are learning they also want (and need) the best technology has to offer. 

I can’t wait to see how they fit a plasma screen into a goody bag.

*Seagate is an Eastwick Communications client

celebrities, Clarity, Consumer Electronics, Consumer Tech, Country Music Awards, Cribs, data movers, FreeAgent, gadgets, gift lounges, gizmos, hard drives, i2Telecom, Indy 500, MTV Movies Awards, Platinum Luxury Lounge, Seagate, Sidekick, swag bags

I’m starting to get tired of iEverything.  I thought it was great how we can hook up our cars with the iPod.  I loved the ability to connect a digital camera to the player.  I didn’t mind when some company sold stuffed animals with iPod docks in them.  But this has ended it for me - an iPod dock on a piano? 

At Musikmesse 2007, which wrapped up not to long ago in Frankfurt, Germany, a company called PianoDisc unveiled the iQ.  The iQ is a player piano that has an iPod docking system so the “instrument” can play itself from the iPod’s melody.  For those of us who thought the player piano was a lame excuse for an instrument anyway, this adds digital injury to insult.

I’m a big fan of the digital music revolution, but this product doesn’t really make sense to me.  Someone should establish a protocol that requires iPod accessories keep some sort of musical or artistic integrity.  To each his/her own, I guess.  Check out AVING for some great pictures of the iQ.

Cool News:

Check out Wired’s “Console Portraits: A 40-Year Pictorial History of Gaming”, which has some very cool images of everything from the Magnavox Odyssey to the PS3.

Last week textually.org reported that next year Japan is going to set up “an experimental high-tech wireless zone” on one of its islands.  Drivers will be notified of movement of nearby pedestrians via sensors and hospitals will be able to monitor heart rates of live-at-home elderly 24 hours a day. 

I know, I know, Wal-Mart is the devil, but in a huge leap for VoIP, the retail giant will be adding a Skype section in its stores that will sell the brand’s handets, headsets, Web cams and other equipment.

Huh?:

Whoops - IBM loses tapes with employee data.  Not good for one of the leading providers of data management and backup solutions!

Japan is at it again.  Now they have created an entire store that is a giant t-shirt vending machine.  I don’t really see the point of this.  Don’t we go to shops for the customer service and interaction?  I would suggest just staying at home and shopping online!

In a disgusting development, an Australian video game designer has created a game based on the VT massacre.  He’s even soliciting donations, saying he’ll take the game down from his Web site if he earns a certain amount of money.  This is just as nauseating as the terrible game that was made after Columbine.  Repulsive.

Finally, last week CNET News.com reported on a “New gang war raging on the Internet” where a Web turf battle is raging on.  Although a serious matter, I find it kind of amusing and wonder how some governing agency will end up stopping (or attempting to stop) the botnet battle for spam supremacy!

AVING, Consumer Electronics, Consumer Tech, data backup, data management, Gaming Console, IBM, iEverything, iPod, iQ, japan, Magnavox Odyssey, Musikmesse, PS3, Skype, VoIP, Wal Mart, Wired

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls . . . I would like to welcome you to the world of Mo. Here we will discuss consumer electronics’ impact on the world and what companies are doing to make that impact a good (and quite often bad) one.

This is my first post and I’d like to start off easy by highlighting some of the stories that grabbed my attention over the past week or so:

Last week Wired ran an interview called “Spying in the Death Star: The AT&T Whistle-Blower Tells His Story” that featured Mark Klein, the retired San Francisco AT&T technician that brought the telcom heavyweight’s involvement in the NSA wiretapping to light. It’s a very interesting interview where he talks about why he came forward and how AT&T was aiding the US government.

Japanese vending machine company Apex Corp introduced a new system that will vend free drinks if customers watch a 30-second commercial. This is an interesting development for marketers trying to find different ways to reach consumers in a world filled with advertising noise. I don’t know if you’ve ever been to Japan, but it’s pretty noisy! Link 

On a similar note, Mad4Mobile Phones has a patent for phones that will display Google ads.  Another huge jump in targeted advertising.  Link 

On May 9, John Fontana over at NetworkWorld wrote a story about Microsoft and Best Buy facing racketeering charges in a seven year-old case.  The charges allege that consumers had MSN accounts activated and were being charged unknowingly when they bought a new computer.  Fascinatingly, Microsoft began to offer customers refunds for this in 2003 and say the charges are just “procedural”.  Read more here. 

Finally, in one of the most important announcements of the 21^st century, Spinal Tap is reuniting for the Live Earth concerts on July 7.  You can read more and watch the group’s new 15-minute film here.

advertising, AT&T, best buy, Consumer Electronics, Corporate Responsibility, japan, live earth, microsoft, NSA, phone, racketeering, San Francisco, spinal tap