Somehow I managed to lose my cell phone in Galveston the other weekend. It was on our bed when we left for a wedding. Cassidy remembers seeing it on there while we were gone. But when we packed up the next morning, it was nowhere to be found.

So I did what any right-thinking guy would do: I went out and bought a better one. My firm uses a Blackberry server to push email while we’re out of the office, so I had to beat back my Treo lust and get another Blackberry.

I got a Blackberry 7130e.

I was with T-Mobile, but when my firm’s T-Mobile representative decided not to follow up on my two calls, I decided to move to Verizon. Unlike the first time I moved my mobile number to another carrier, which was a huge hassle, this time it took about 45 seconds. I had service with my number before I walked out of the store. Nice.

The other reason I decided to go with Verizon is its national wireless broadband network. While many people buy the computer card to get this service, the 7130e can provide the same network coverage as the computer card via a USB cable that connects the phone to your laptop, and the cost is only $15 a month extra (as opposed to $59 a month for the computer card).

When I got home, I tried out the wireless broadband connection and it was fast and reasonably reliable. I’ll know more once I get back from some upcoming speaking engagements, but this seems like a really good deal to me. The one drawback is that you can’t use the phone while it’s being used as a wireless modem, but that’s not that big a deal when you consider the cost savings.

I’m sort of sorry I lost my cell phone, but as is the case with any gadget upgrade, I’ll get over it.

The Globe and Mail has a long and interesting article today about NTP, the company that’s in the process of kicking RIM’s tail in court. RIM is the maker of everyone’s favorite email gadget, the Blackberry.

I guess the public relations campaign mentioned in the article worked, because until today I had the impression that NTP was merely a patent troll, trying to extract some easy money from RIM.

This article doesn’t necessarily make me change my mind about the case, but it does remind me that there are two sides to the story.

It’s always next to impossible to get the real story based on what you read or hear on the news. People tell reporters carefully crafted versions of the facts. But it sounds like there may be a little more to this lawsuit than I thought.

The New York Times reports that the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued preliminary rejections of two wireless e-mail patents claimed by NTP, the holding company that has sued Blackberry manufacturer Research in Motion (generally referred to as RIM) over the patent claim.

NTP was incorporated to hold patents on technology developed by Tom Campana. NTP claims that Campana developed a wireless communications system for his pager company that he later patented, and that BlackBerry technology infringes upon that patent.

RIM argues that Campana’s wireless technology is different than that used with BlackBerries because it only allows users to read and print e-mail, as opposed to compose, reply to and forward emails.

This has been a battle that threatens the ability of BlackBerry addicts everywhere to read their emails over lunch and furiously thumb replies as if the future of the world was at stake. George A. Romero has reportedly optioned the rights to make a horror movie based on all the conversations the BlackBerry addicts would be forced to have during lunch should NTP prevail in its efforts to shut down BlackBerry networks.

Stay tuned for more as it develops.

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blackberry, rim

PC World has released its list of the 50 greatest gadgets of the past 50 years. Here’s my take on the ones I know something about.

45. Sony Mavica MVC-FD5 (1997)

Absolutely deserves to be on this list and probably higher. My first digital camera, after I fell in love with one owned by my brother-in-law. We still have it around here somewhere. It took digital photos directly onto a floppy disk.

43. Polaroid Swinger (1965)

I remember being utterly amazed that you could take a picture and it would print immediately while you waited. This was some amazing technology. Cassidy asked Santa Claus for a polaroid camera for this Christmas, so the technology is still around.

40. Connectix QuickCam (1994)

Another gadget I learned about from my brother in law. I have one of its great grandchildren attached to my computer right now. This was a great step forward in terms of internet connectivity.

36. Iomega Zip Drive (1995)

Yes, everyone owned one. The stock was a day traders’ dream back in the day. But the technology was crappy then and it’s crappy now.

32. Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer (1999)

Everybody had one, yes. But it wouldn’t make my list.

27. Commodore 64 (1982)

Absolutely, positively deserves to be on this list. Probably higher.

17. Texas Instruments SR-10 (1973)

The first TI calculator I ever had was a 1/2 pound Christmas present that seemed at the time like a dream come true. Definitely made math and Chemistry easier.

14. BlackBerry 850 Wireless Handheld (1998)

This was the first Blackberry I carried around. I replaced it with the newer phone-form model, but this was truly amazing technology at the time.

7. Atari Video Computer System (1977)

My friend Andy Rogers’ brother had Mattel’s Intellivision competitor to this, and it was a groundbraking thing to be able to play video games at home. I still remember beating Andy’s butt at Intellivision Football for hours on end. I had two plays- roll out right and roll out left. And I was unstoppable!

5. Sony CDP-101 (1982)

CD Players changed the world and made me have to repurchase my music collection for a third time: LPs, cassettes and then CDs. I remember the first CD I ever bought: Hot Rocks by The Rolling Stones (I’m not a fan of greatest hits records, but there wasn’t a wide selection to choose from back then).

3. (Tie) ReplayTV RTV2001 and TiVo HDR110 (1999)

I’d actually pick all of the TIVOs and give them the number one place on my list, as I would have in my 10-year list as well. My love for TIVO is what makes me angry and sad as I watch it die a painful death.

2. Apple iPod (2001)

I’ve never owned an iPod, but as a stand-in for all portable MP3 players, it should be high on this list. But number 2 is a little too high.

1. Sony Walkman TPS-L2 (1979)

I had several incarnations of the Walkman line, and they were great products. Number 1 is too high, however. Maybe top 10, but you’ve got to put the stand-in for personal computers number 1. I’d put TIVO number 2. After that, maybe a tie between the Walkman and the iPod.

Here are some other people’s takes on the list (I’ll update as people send me links):

Engadget

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gadgets, electronics

Here’s something pretty cool– if it works as advertised.

A blue tooth wireless mobile conference unit for your cell phone. You can use it with up to 8 bluetooth devices via profiles and it’s VOIP compatible.

At $150 it may be a Christmas favorite when it’s released later this month.

More info here.

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bluetooth, gadgets

And I own nary a one.

I think of myself as a gadget hound, but maybe old age is catching up with me. C|Net has a list of the Top 10 Must Have Gadgets, and I don’t own any of them. Recall that I own or used to own 7 out of their 10 Best Products of the Past 10 Years.

Here are C|Net’s current top 10 gadgets and why I don’t own them:

1) Sony Play Station Portable: I’m over computer games (with the lurking exception of Civilization IV). Plus I have 2 kids who don’t know video games exist and I want to keep it that way.

2) Apple iPod: I don’t have many occasions to use a portable MP3 player. If I did, I’d certainly consider an iPod.

3) Sling Box: If I knew it would work flawlessly with my soon to be obsolete TIVO and whatever subsequent box DirecTV forces on me, I’d think about it. But I just don’t have many occasions to want to watch my TV from somewhere else.

4) Sony Ericsson W800i: If I don’t want a portable MP3 player, I certainly don’t want an MP3 phone.

5) Toshiba Qosmio G25-AV513: I’m very happy with my Thinkpad Tablet.

6) Archos Gmini 402: A fancier MP3 player that also does photos. Looks neat, but I’d never use it.

7) Nokia N9: I’m not even sure what this is, but I’m certain I’d never use all of its fancy features.

8) PalmOne Treo 650: I wish my firm would switch to these, but they gave me a Blackberry and a Blackberry I shall use.

9) Motorola Razr V3: Another fancy cell phone. Again, I use a Blackberry and if I could change it would be to a Treo.

10) Logitech Harmony 880: I may own one of these one day. I have been a long and loyal user of the MX-800, but the more I read about the Harmony, the more interested I become.

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personal technology

C|Net has released its list of the top 10 digital products of the last 10 years. I went 7 for 10, having owned or used all but three.

Here’s the list, with my take:

1) iPod– I’ve never owned or used the device C|Net proclaims the best ever. The file limitations and DRM are more than I am willing to deal with. If you consider iPods to be the representative of MP3 players in general, however, I can’t argue with a high ranking. I’ve used several Creative products, including the small MuVo, which remains my MP3 player of choice.

2) TIVO– My TIVO deathwatch demonstrates my love of this technology. TIVO is dying a sad death at the hands of DirecTV and the Hollywood cartel, but I would nevertheless put it number 1 on my list.

3) Google– Google changed the web and the world, for the better. No argument here. I use it several times a day.

4) Napster– The original incarnation, not the DRM infested current imposter, ushered in the age of P2P. It was revolutionary technology that worked…until the RIAA killed it.

5) Firefox– I use Firefox some. In fact, I’m using it right now. But top 10 all-time? You’ve got to be kidding me.

6) PalmPilot– I’m a Blackberry guy, but I’ve used PalmPilots and they are very intuitive and useful.

7) Motorola Startac– I used one for years. I’m over the flip phone now, but it sure was a vast improvement over the corded monster in my truck that it replaced.

8) Apple iMac– Here’s a confession: I haven’t used an Apple computer since the 80s. It looks cool and may be the greatest thing ever, but I wouldn’t know.

9) Sony Digital Mavica– I had (actually still have) one of these. It takes digital photos directly onto a floppy disk! A great digital camera at the time.

10) The Sims– I played this game a little bit. It was cool, but not as cool as Sim City or Sim Farm, and definitely not one of my big four games.

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personal technology