Gadgetell | Tech News, Reviews, and Interesting Things

Thor, the deer has been “geo-hacked” and undergone an interesting experiment, all in the name of science. Valery Hronusov, a developer of numerous geo-hacks, actually thought up the blog posting deer scenario. Using his tips and ideas, ‘Siberian’, a Google Earth Community member, figured out how to track a deer by attaching a cell phone (to send emails) and a GPS device (to track the movements) of Thor (the deer) throughout a suburban area in Pennsylvania. During Thor’s travels the GPS device sent back tracking coordinates every five minutes. The ingenious automated system used all free services, some tech gadgets, and a spreadsheet to publicize nearly every move Thor makes.

I assume that the tech laden collar is worth saving and I hope that Thor is too. Aside from being a neat project, all of this makes me wonder why anyone would want to track a deer like this, except for the obvious, “because I could” mentality that you find among many geeks. Of course the more official reason why is because “they are studying deers living in suburban areas in Pennsylvania.”

Read [Wired] Via [Google Earth Blog]

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I have often passed a parcel of property that I’d love to buy knowing that sometime or another it would be a great investment. Immediate timing is not always right for an acquisition but down the road it could be perfect. This is just the position that Dish Network has found itself in. Was it by chance or was it a calculated bet? 

Recently, blocks of wireless airwaves came up for auction since the analog TV will soon go all digital. In a surprising turn of events Dish Network partnered with Frontier Wireless won a block of one-way communication licenses.

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Warnings and reminders are on everything from coffee to lawnmowers. Are they necessary? Can anyone be protected from doing mindless, thoughtless acts?

Maybe not, but it is still important for companies to make an effort to make their products safe for the consumer. Verizon is steeping up to the plate. They are reminding California drivers about the dangers of driving while gabbing on cell phones. If the message resonates with their subscribers they will also save them some dollars. Instead of spending those dollars on traffic fines I would suggest investing in a Bluetooth headset with voice dialing capabilities.

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Have you heard that Sprint is now offering enhanced mobile Web browsing on all Web-enabled Sprint phones? Sprint is now the first U.S. carrier to do so with the addition of the OpenWeb solution from Openwave Systems, Inc. This is a major breakthrough for users that want to surf the Web on their mobile phones.

Unless you own an iPhone I bet you do not really enjoy surfing the Web on your cell phone. The speed is not the issue - it’s the convoluted formats, the endless scrolling and the chore of navigating in general.

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You have come to expect slider phones from HTC. The HTC TyTN (AT&T 8525), the TyTN II (AT&T Tilt) as well as the HTC730 Smartphone. We all know that there are new models on the drawing board but what will they look like? I would hate to see the large displays shrink and the QWERTY keyboards are so handy go away in any form.

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