Deals to buy on May 15

Creative Live! Cam Video IM Pro Webcam - USB - 73VF023000000 » for $2.99 at Buy.com

List Price: $49.99 Exp: 05/21/2007

Connect the Creative Live! Cam Video IM Pro camera and you'll love the smooth, fluid video the high-speed USB 2.0 connectivity delivers. At 30 frames per second, it's a great way to keep in touch with friends and family across the miles using your favorite Instant Messaging programs. Enjoy smooth, natural looking video thanks to Live! View Auto Tuning technology. You'll get sharp, vibrant images with accurate white balance and better light exposure. Plus, this smart technology gives you enhanced frame rates. How to get this deal: Click here to go to Buy.com Add to Shopping cart for $42.99 -$40 Mail-in rebate ( Offer valid from 5/15/2007 to 5/21/2007 ) Final Price: $42.99 -$40 = $2.99 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except CA, MD, MA, and TN)

HOT!!

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05/15/07 02:24 CST

Creative Live! Cam Notebook Pro Webcam - CMOS - USB - 73VF025000000 » for $14.99 at Buy.com

List Price: $49.99 Exp: 05/21/2007

Talk face to face wherever you roam. Connect the Creative Live! Cam Notebook Pro webcam to your notebook. You'll be ready to chat with friends and family across the globe. How to get this deal: Click here to go to Buy.com Add to Shopping cart for $39.99 -$25 Mail-in rebate ( Offer valid from 5/15/2007 to 5/21/2007 ) Final Price: $39.99 -$25 = $14.99 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except CA, MD, MA, and TN)

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05/15/07 02:23 CST

Creative HN-605 Noise Canceling Headphone - Cable - 3.5mm Mini-phone Stereo - Over-the-head - 51MZ0340AA002 » for $19.99 at Buy.com

List Price: $39.99 Exp: 05/20/2007

Creative HN-605 noise-canceling headphone reduces ambient noise by up to 15dB (80%) and delivers clear, rich music playback. Designed with your comfort and portability in mind, this headphone features leatherette earpads and a foldable headband for easy storage and transport. How to get this deal: Click here to go to Buy.com Add to Shopping cart for $34.99 -$15 Mail-in rebate ( Offer valid from 5/14/2007 to 5/20/2007 ) Final Price: $34.99 -$15 = $19.99 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except CA, MD, MA, and TN)

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05/15/07 02:25 CST

Creative Noise-Cancelling Headphones HN-700 - 51MZ0205AA004 » for $29.99 at Buy.com

List Price: $69.99 Exp: 05/20/2007

The HN-700 delivers exceptional sound quality with active noise cancellation and closed earcup design. Comfortable for extended use with ergonomically designed leatherette pads. The HN-700 features a folding headband, storage pouch, removable side cable and airplane adapter - ideal for the traveler. How to get this deal: Click here to go to Buy.com Add to Shopping cart for $59.99 -$30 Mail-in rebate ( Offer valid from 5/14/2007 to 5/20/2007 ) Final Price: $59.99 -$30 = $29.99 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except CA, MD, MA, and TN)

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05/15/07 02:23 CST

Creative Digital Wireless Headphone CB2530 w/ Bluetooth Technology - 70BX000007148 » for $44.99 at Buy.com

List Price: $149.99 Exp: 05/16/2007

No strings attached.Experience pure wireless freedom with Creative's Digital Wireless Headphone CB2530! The Creative's Bluetooth Headphone CB2530 uses GFSK modulation with Bluetooth specification version 1.2. It works with most Bluetooth enabled devices supporting A2DP profile or Bluetooth USB AV dongle with an adjustable headband for comfort wearing. The Creative's Bluetooth Headphone CB2530 can support up to 10 Meters (Class 2) with clear music quality of 20-level volume control for continuous streaming time of > 8 hours for new batteries used. How to get this deal: Click here to go to Buy.com Add to Shopping cart for $104.99 -$60 Mail-in rebate ( Offer valid from 5/2/2007 to 5/16/2007 ) Final Price: $104.99 -$60 = $44.99 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except CA, MD, MA, and TN)

HOT!!

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05/15/07 01:03 CST

Jabra BT500 Bluetooth(tm) Headset with Voice-Dial » for $24.99 at CellHut.com

List Price: $89.99 Exp: 05/15/2007

Weighing only 20 grams or about 3/4 of an ounce, JABRA BT500 gives a wearing comfort and a sleek contemporary look. It offers up to 8 hours of talk time and 240 hours of standby time. Additional features such as a LED indicator to inform charging and Battery level, and a Dedicated pairing button are designed to offer greater convenience and ease of use. Wtih improvements such as increased range, faster connection to the phone and improved Audio quality. Last, but not least, an additional power charging Option is provided - charging from the desktop/laptop via USB cable. How to get this deal: Click here to go to CellHut.com Add to Shopping cart for $44.99 At Checkout apply Exclussive $20off + Free Shipping Coupon Code : JABRA (Expires after 70 uses) You must use Google checkout to pay for it. Any orders not processed through Google checkout will not receive $20.00 OFF and Free Shipping. Final Price : $44.99 - $20 = $24.99 + Free Shipping + No tax (Except NY) Hint: If you use Google Checkout for First Time then you get $10 off instantly to get this for $14.99

HOT!!

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05/15/07 01:00 CST

MOTOROLA RAZR V3 BLACK UNLOCKED DELUXE PACK » for $134.98 at CellHut.com

List Price: $299.99 Exp: 05/15/2007

Motorola's new V3 is the essence of advanced technology and superlative design. At only 13.9 mm thin, 53 mm wide (the width of a credit card) and 98 mm long, it is one of the slimmest phones on the market yet still rich in functions, performance excellence and design innovation. It provides the user with a total sensory experience – from the innovative metallic finishes and use of materials to a truly revolutionary, chemically etched keypad created from a single sheet of nickel-plated copper alloy. How to get this deal: Click here to go to CellHut.com Add to Shopping cart for $144.98 At Checkout apply $10 off Special Coupon Code: D2B10 You must use Google checkout to pay for it. Any orders not processed through Google checkout will not receive $10 off Final Price : $144.98 - $10 = $134.98 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except NY) Hint: If you use Google Checkout for First Time then you get $10 off instantly to get this for $124.98

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05/15/07 01:00 CST

Kingston 4GB DataTraveler USB 2.0 Flash Drive - DTI/4GBKR » for $24.95 at Buy.com

List Price: $50.00 Exp: 05/19/2007

4GB DataTraveler USB 2.0 Flash Drive is ideal for home office, small business, schools and promotions. It is affordable and put mobile storage in nearly anyone's hands. How to get this deal: Click here to go to Buy.com Add to Shopping cart for $38.95 -$14 Mail-in rebate ( Offer valid from 5/13/2007 to 5/19/2007 ) Final Price: $38.95 -$14 = $24.95 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except CA, MD, MA, and TN)

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05/15/07 01:00 CST

NuVue NV-561 5.6" Smoked Acrylic Digital LCD Photo Frame/Player - U-30364 » for $59.99 at Buy.com

List Price: $149.95 Exp: Limited Time

The NV-561 Digital Picture Frame is the newest in a line of photo players from Digital Spectrum. The NV-561 sports a high resolution, bright 5.6 TFT screen that displays digital photos in vivid color. Set up as a slide show and play directly from a memory card. The number of images is only limited by the capacity of the memory card being used. How to get this deal: Click here to go to Buy.com Add to Shopping cart for $59.99 Final Price: $59.99 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except CA, MD, MA, and TN)

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05/15/07 01:00 CST

ARGUS QuickClix 2185 2.0 Megapixel Digital Camera - DC-2185 » for $28.99 at Buy.com

List Price: $49.99 Exp: Limited Time	Product Guides Digital Photography Made Simple With 2MP resolution and larger LCD display, the QuickClix 2185 offers all the features you want in a small and stylish, light weight digital camera. How to get this deal: Click here to go to Buy.com Add to Shopping cart for $28.99 Final Price: $28.99 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except CA, MD, MA, and TN)

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05/15/07 01:00 CST

Kingston 1GB SD Card with TravelLite SD/MMC Reader, Can be Used as 1GB Pen Drive, Model FCR-TL+SD/1GB » for $14.95 at Meritline.com

List Price: $19.99 Exp: Limited time

Kingston's Standard Secure DigitalTM (SD) Memory Cards combine massive storage capacity, blazing data transfer rates and ironclad security in a memory card no bigger than a postage stamp. With an excellent price-to-performance value, Kingston's SD cards are ideal expansion option for the smallest of devices including MP3 players, digital cameras, PDAs, smartphones and more. How to get this deal: Click here to go to Meritline.com Add to Shopping cart for $14.95 Final Price : $14.95 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except CA, MA)

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05/15/07 01:00 CST

Buy Kingston 1GB Micro SD Card with SD Card Adapter ,Get MicroSD to MiniSD Adapter Free » for $10.95 at Meritline.com

List Price: $29.99 Exp: Limited time	NA How to get this deal: Click here to go to Meritline.com Add to Shopping cart for $10.95 Final Price : $10.95 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except CA, MA)
HOT!! with SD & MiniSD Adapters!!

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05/15/07 01:00 CST

MOTOROLA OAKLEY RAZRWIRE WITH BLUETOOTH HEADSET - BLACK » for $119.99 at CellHut.com

List Price: $205.99 Exp: 05/15/2007

RAZRWIRE ™ is the first eyewear to combine patented Oakley optics with Motorola wireless Bluetooth® technology. The integrated design frees you from wires, allowing you to quickly answer and place calls with the touch of a button. A wearable link to your cell phone*, RAZRWIRE ™ offers the freedom of mobile hands-free communication, anywhere and everywhere you want to be. How to get this deal: Click here to go to CellHut.com Search for MOTOROLA OAKLEY and Add to Shopping cart for $149.99 At Checkout apply $30 off Special Coupon Code: 30RZRW You must use Google checkout to pay for it. Any orders not processed through Google checkout will not receive $30 off Final Price : $149.99 - $30 = $119.99 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except NY) Hint: If you use Google Checkout for First Time then you get $10 off instantly to get this for $109.99

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05/15/07 01:00 CST

LG HFB-300 BLUETOOTH™ SPEAKER PHONE » for $39.99 at CellHut.com

List Price: $159.99 Exp: 05/15/2007

Bluetooth convenience now moves in-vehicle with LG's Bluetooth Speaker Phone HFB-300. The kit easily clips onto your vehicle's visor, providing handsfree communication wirelessly. Features include: Bluetooth Version 1.2; Headset and Handsfree Profile; Last Number Redialing; Voice Activated Dialing; Audio Transfer; Noise Canceling; Echo Canceling; Private Talk Function. Includes Vehicle Power Adapter with CDMA-connector. Also charges with compatible Travel Charger (not included). How to get this deal: Click here to go to CellHut.com Add to Shopping cart for $99.99 At Checkout apply $60 off Special Coupon Code: LG60DL You must use Google checkout to pay for it. Any orders not processed through Google checkout will not receive $60 off Final Price : $99.99 - $60 = $39.99 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except NY) Hint: If you use Google Checkout for First Time then you get $10 off instantly to get this for $29.99

HOT!!

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05/15/07 01:00 CST

BlackBerry Pearl w/ myFaves for T-Mobile » for FREE at Wirefly.com

List Price: $449 Exp: Limited time

The super-slim, ultra-light BlackBerry Pearl for T-Mobile is the next class of BlackBerry device. Like all BlackBerry devices, the Pearl provides possibly the best on-the-go email solution for mobile professionals. But this new BlackBerry includes a good camera, a built-in music player and Bluetooth. Plus, you'll be amazed at the speed and accuracy of the SureType® QWERTY keyboard. And, best of all, this BlackBerry weighs in at a scant 3.2 ounces and is razor-thin- the smallest of its class. How to get this deal: Click here to go to Wirefly.com (Note: This phone requires data plan & 2yr contract) Select Phone & Plan and sign up Phone cost you $49.99 -$50 Mail-in Rebate Final Price : $49.99 - $50 = FREE + Free FedEx Shipping + No Tax in most states

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05/15/07 01:00 CST

Car Charger for Motorola V3 U6 L7 V360 ROKR V3X » for $3.15 at Meritline.com

List Price: $7.99 Exp: 05/17/2007	NA How to get this deal: Click here to go to Meritline.com Add to Shopping cart for $6.15 At Checkout apply $3off Special Coupon Code : AC2443392OFF (Exp.5/17) Final Price : $6.15 - $3 = $3.15 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except CA, MA)

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05/15/07 02:37 CST

MOTOROLA (SNN5696B BR50) ORIGINAL OEM RAZR V3 LITHIUM ION BATTERY 3.7V 710MAH / VALOR HOME TRAVEL AC ADAPTER / 12V RAPID CAR CHAGER » for $14.95 at PCMicroStore.com

List Price: NA Exp: Limited time

Motorola genuine original OEM battery, Manufacture part number SNN5696B BR50, Compatible with all Razr V3s. Travel Charger: Built-in smart IC chip for overcharging protection, Provides power to your phone while simultaneously charging your phone's battery Valor 12v Rapid Car Charger: Durable coil cord for extendable reach and use, Provides power to your phone while simultaneously charging your phone's battery. How to get this deal: Click here to go to PCMicroStore.com Add to Shopping cart for $14.95 Final Price : $14.95 + Free Shipping + No Tax (Except CA)

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05/15/07 01:00 CST

Meebo Launches Meebo Rooms (oh, and Meebo now has ads)

Web based instant messaging provider Meebo will launch Meebo Rooms tonight. Like MeeboMe, which allows users to embed a widget on a website where visitors can chat with the publishers, this is a significant new product that will appeal to new set of users.

Users can now create their own chat box that appears on Meebo and can also be embedded into a website. The room can be themed and customized by the publisher (see screen shots). Users subscribe to the Meebo Room by adding it to their buddy list. Others can be invited and will receive a URL to click; they can join immediately even if they are not a Meebo user.

This is a really cool feature - if anyone adds a link to media, say a YouTube video, the video is automatically embedded into the chat for users to view/hear. The company is announcing a number of partnerships who are launching their own branded Meebo Rooms tonight. Partners include blip.tv, Capitol Music Group, CNET, CollegeHumor, Flixster, Hearst Magazine Group’s Popular Mechanics, Jive Records, MTV Networks’ GameTrailers.com, NBC Universal, RockYou, Sugar Publishing, and VIBE Magazine. See the flixster room here as an example.

Each Meebo room is currently limited to 80 simultaneous users. CEO Seth Sternberg says that they are working to increase that limit and keep the rooms stable. An interim solution will be to simply create a new version of the room after 80 users are using the first one, and put the next group of 80 into a clone of the original room.

Meebo isn’t currently keeping permanent archives of the conversations in the rooms but says they will add that feature in the near future.

And Meebo now has advertising, too. Any video integrated into chat will include “lull advertising.” 15-30 second video ads will be shown between videos after a few are shown.

Meebo is based in Silicon Valley and has 16 employees. The company has raised $12.5 million over two rounds of financing - $3.5 million from Sequoia in 2005, and $9 million from Draper Fisher Jurvetson in 2006.

Vpod.tv Launches Personalized Video Channel Public Beta

A year after launch, Vpod.tv, makers of flash-based online video publisher tools, released some previously premium tools into public beta. The tools trickling down to the public accounts will be under the umbrella of their myTV product.

Now any account will be able to upload, publish, and monetize their own hosted (600 Mb) myTV video channel, like this one for a series of entrepreneurs speaking in France. You can also see the new version of their embedded player below.

Channels consist of a series of streamed videos (no rewind or fast-forward) navigable by a show menu running along the bottom of the player and are managed by several overlayed menus. The menus let you grab a link to an individual show, RSS feed, or share it over email. Publishers create channels by uploading individual shows (using a new desktop uploader) to their account and ordering the videos in play lists. They can then personalize the player by linking it to their own domain and adding their own logo, and syndicate it through a Netvibes widget.

There are several other startups getting involved in personalized internet video. Both Cozmo, Kyte, me.tv, and Splashcast have RSS based video players that create channels from videos hosted on other sites. Yet to launch, WorldTV will also feature a personalized video player.

Mpire Launches Widgets for eBay and Amazon Affiliates

Mpirelaunches a new widget service today with over 75 different widgets aimed directly at eBay and Amazon affiliates.

It’s a crowded space. On Sunday Michael Arrington described it well with a post aptly titled “The Attack of the Advertising Widgets“. A natural first reaction is what? more widgets!

I caught up with Mpire CEO Matt Hulett and Co-Founder Dave Cotter earlier in the week and it’s a question I had to ask. After a decent 30 minutes I found there was a lot to like about Mpire’s new widget offering, and some great potential. Yes, more widgets, but these ones are different.

The defining feature that makes Mpire widgets stand out from the crowd is dynamically grouped content. The widgets incorporate Mpire’s meta-shopping data, creating shopping trend results across 15 categories, including entertainment, sports, fashion, technology, games and youth/teens.

A widget can list and link to the top searches at eBay for a particular topic, for example Baseball. A widget covering fashion can provide a dynamically updated price watch chart. For lovers of Second Life, one widget provides updates of Linden Dollar average sales prices from eBay.

The new widgets have been in private beta testing prior to today’s launch and can boast of some significant results. On average in testing, CTR rates with Mpire’s widgets were up to 5 times higher than a comparable banner or Adsense unit.

The new widgets are completely free, and surprisingly do not require registration (although it is an option). Affiliates simply insert their affiliate code when setting up the widget and get to keep 100% of all profits made. There’s no revenue sharing model and affiliates deal directly with eBay and Amazon for payment.

I asked Hulett and Cotter the obvious question: where’s the return?

We’ve covered Mpire previously here and here. As well as offering an on site shopping comparison service, Mpire also have a browser plugin that provides comparative shopping data.

The aim of the widgets from a corporate view point is to drive awareness and traffic back to the core product.

What better way of getting your name out there than having thousands of people running widgets that include your company name and link in the footer!

The only draw back I could find from a publishers view point was a lack of dynamic contextual delivery. Much like AuctionAds (a TechCrunch sponsor), the widgets are delivered contextually only to the point of the topic placed in the code. For example a Digital Camera site would code the widget to run digital camera data, but the widget doesn’t pick up if the particular page is about a specific item, say a Panasonic DMC FZ 50, my own particular camera of choice. A fully fledged contextual version is something Mpire is considering for development at a later date.

Stopping email from being sent with blank subject..

Forgot to mention subject, while writing an official mail and feel bad later ???????

Yes…. It’s a concern for all…. A mail without a subject brings a bad impression on us.

Don't worry......... just follow the simple steps mentioned below and see the result.

Here below are the steps

1. Open your outlook

2. Press Alt+F11. This opens the Visual Basic editor

3. On the Left Pane, one can see "Microsoft Outlook Objects" or "Project1", expand this. Now one can see the "ThisOutLookSession".

4. Double click on "ThisOutLookSession". It will open up a code pane.

5. Copy and Paste the following code in the right pane.(Code Pane)

'============================================================================

Private Sub Application_ItemSend(ByVal Item As Object, Cancel As Boolean)

Dim strSubject As String

strSubject = Item.Subject

If Len(Trim(strSubject)) = 0 Then

Prompt$ = "Subject is Empty. Are you sure you want to send the Mail?"

If MsgBox(Prompt$, vbYesNo + vbQuestion + vbMsgBoxSetForeground, "Check for Subject") = vbNo Then

Cancel = True

End If

End If

End Sub

'============================================================================

6. Save this and now close the VB Code editor and take a breath. From now on, this macro will make sure you do not make the mistake of sending a mail without a subject.

Internet encyclopedia to list all 1.8 mln species

From apples to zebras, all 1.8 million known plant and animal species will be listed in an Internet-based "Encyclopedia of Life" under a $100 million project, scientists said on Tuesday.

The 10-year scheme, launched with initial grants of $12.5 million from two U.S.-based foundations, could aid everyone from children with biology homework to governments planning how to protect endangered species.

"The Encyclopedia of Life plans to create an entry for every named species," James Edwards, executive director of the project which is backed by many leading research institutions, told Reuters. "At the moment that's 1.8 million."

The free Encyclopedia would focus mainly on animals, plants and fungi with microbes to follow, blending text, photographs, maps and videos in a common format for each. Expansion of the Internet in recent years made the multi-media project possible.

Demonstration pages at http://www.eol.org include entries about polar bears, rice, death cap mushrooms and a "yeti crab" with hairy claws recently found in the South Pacific.

"This is about giving access to information to everyone," Jesse Ausubel, chairman of the project who works at the Rockefeller University in New York City, told Reuters.

The Encyclopedia would draw on existing databases such as for mammals, fishes, birds, amphibians and plants. English would be used at the start with translations to other languages.

Comcast shows off super quick modem

Comcast Corp. Chief Executive Brian Roberts dazzled a cable industry audience Tuesday, showing off for the first time in public new technology that enabled a data download speed of 150 megabits per second, or roughly 25 times faster than today's standard cable modems.

The cost of modems that would support the technology, called "channel bonding," is "not that dissimilar to modems today," he told The Associated Press after a demonstration at The Cable Show. It could be available "within less than a couple years," he said.

The new cable technology is crucial because the industry is competing with a speedy new offering called FiOS, a TV and Internet service that Verizon Communications Inc. is selling over a new fiber-optic network. The top speed currently available through FiOS is 50 megabits per second, but the network is already capable of providing 100 Mbps and the fiber lines offer nearly unlimited potential.

The technology, called DOCSIS 3.0, was developed by the cable industry's research arm, Cable Television Laboratories. It bonds together four cable lines but is capable of allowing much more capacity. The laboratory said last month it expected manufacturers to begin submitting modems for certification under the standard by the end of the year.

Intel to update Centrino laptop hardware

Intel Corp. is set to launch new hardware for laptop computers that the world's biggest chipmaker hopes will keep it at the top of the fastest-growing segment of the personal computer market.

Intel's new product is not a processor but is instead a platform -- a whole package of components including the main processor as well as all the secondary chips that add features such as the ability to connect to a wireless network.

Platforms rarely grab attention outside of technical circles, but Intel is generating wider interest this time because its new products are the first to use flash memory chips, which should translate into faster performance and longer battery life.

"Santa Rosa" is the code-name for the latest big overhaul of Centrino, Intel's hugely successful laptop platform brand that helped popularize the Wi-Fi wireless technology now standard in the industry.

"Intel has done a lot of things to save power here and there and the overall message of Santa Rosa is more features, more performance with little or no impact on battery life," said Nathan Brookwood, head of consultancy Insight 64.

Intel, which has about 80 percent of the overall PC market, has traditionally been even more dominant in the laptop segment and updates Centrino about once a year to try to maintain its lead over rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc.

Laptop computers are the hottest part of the PC business. Last year, worldwide PC shipments rose just over 7 percent, but sales of laptops jumped 26 percent, compared to just 2 percent for desktops, according to market research firm IDC.

The new hardware will boost performance and battery life by storing some data on flash memory like that found in digital media players and digital cameras. Flash chips can be accessed more quickly than a hard drive and also use less power.

Intel says it has also improved the integrated graphics of Centrino laptops, adding features and software that make video richer and more akin to what people would see on a television.

In addition, Intel is supporting the latest version of the Wi-Fi wireless technology that can deliver a maximum access speed of 300 megabits per second, about five times faster than the current popular version.

eBay Close to Acquiring StumbleUpon

First reported here at TechCrunch on April 18, eBay is now said to be close to finalizing its deal to acquire StumbleUpon for $75 million, according to a new online report from the Wall Street Journal.

The high flying startup has been rumored to be in acquisition talks since November .

The Wall Street Journal report quotes an insider saying that no final agreement has been reached and that talks could still fail.

The StumbleUpon had 2.1 million users as of April, up from 1.7 million in December 2006. 4+ million sites are “stumbled” daily.

The purchase price of $75 million will make a tidy profit for investors who include Ram Shriram and Lotus Development Corp. founder Mitch Kapor: StumbleUpon has only raised $1.5 million in a single round of seed financing previously.

The $75 million is on the high side of our initial range of $40-$75 million. Was there another bidder? Did Google and AOL stake a claim only to be trumped by eBay?

If the deal is finalized it’s an interesting move by eBay. Paypal was core to eBay’s Auction business. Skype could be justified as a tie into the Auction business as well. So where does StumleUpon sit? People “stumbling” from site to site with a business model the revolves around selling page views seems like an odd fit. A sign that eBay is looking to expand into new markets perhaps? Time will tell.

Stardoll.com: From Little Things Big Things Grow

Inspired by a childhood passion for paper dolls, Scandinavian born Liisa started drawing dolls and accompanying wardrobes, uploading them to Geocities. The personal page grew, evolving to Paperdoll Heaven in 2004.

Now calling itself Stardoll.com, the site took $4 million in Series A funding from Index Ventures in February 2006, and $6 million in a B Series round lead by none other than Sequoia in June the same year.

It’s a rags to riches success story that makes Stardoll worth taking a look at, and the space is seeing hyper growth. See our writeup of Zwinky last week.

Stardoll is all about dressing up dolls online.

Stardoll lets users create their own doll or choose from a large collection of celebrity dolls which can then be dressed up in virtual fashions. Every celebrity doll has a wardrobe full of unique clothes and outfits, with new celebrity dolls and outfits released weekly.

Each user is given a page from where they can share the dolls they have created, accompanied with a guest book, diary (blog), friend connections and album.

Most users are girls between the age of 10 to 17 and online safety immediately becomes a consideration. Stardoll adds a layer of anonymity to all accounts. Users can never reveal personal information such as their real name or city of origin on their pages.

Joining the site for the first time, you start with 25 star dollars that can be used to buy accessories for each virtual doll. Accessories range from 1 - 35 star dollars with users able to buy additional star dollars at the rate of 10 star dollars to $1.

They currently sell between 60,000 to 180,000 items per day.

In the background is a team that has grown to 40 people based in Stockholm, with a Los Angeles office on its way. Matt Palmer, former EVP of Marketing for Disney’s Kids Network has been hired to lead the North American push.

Stardoll has 7,144,735 members and is adding 20,000 new members a day, with 5.5 million unique visitors per month.

With its European heritage, languages supported include French, Italian, Spanish, Hungarian and Polish, with a dedicated German .de version recently being launched. 30% of traffic comes from the United States vs. 50-52% from the European Union.

As a destination this won’t appeal to all readers, men in particular working in tech fields, however the numbers speak volumes for their growing success amongst their target demographic. With Sequoia amongst its investors it doesn’t take rocket science to work out that the site looks like a winner.

There’s a positive message as well.

Chasing funding and trying to be the next best thing in Web 2.0 can be hard at times, and even a little depressing. Stardoll shows us that from little things, big things can grow.

Wall Street 2.0

Gordon Gekko is back.

20th Century Fox has announced that it will be filming a sequel to 1987 cult classic Wall Street. The movie spawned lines that even today are quoted by stockbrokers and Investment Firms: lunch is for wimps and or course “Greed is Good”.

It’s sad they didn’t make the sequel in the late 90s. Gordon Gekko would have made a killing in Web 1.0 stocks. Fast forward a decade and the age of the IPO and inflated share price has passed, replaced in favor of the corporate buyout.

Reports state that in the movie, Gekko, having been released from jail, is now working in the hedge fund business.

Hedge funds do many things and not all of them are evil: hedge funds can be found in the background of funded companies throughout Web 2.0, but I couldn’t help but immediately think of Patent Trolling. Will Gordon Gekko buy a raft of patents, bringing his control over a range of Web 2.0 technologies to bare on a helpless Silicon Valley?

If Gordon Gekko in the Wall Street sequel was to focus on tech stocks and Valley startups, what could you see him doing aside from the obvious: abolishing free lunches and Segways at Google?

Hot or Not Tears Itself Apart, Reinvents

When James Hong and Jim Young founded HotorNot in October, 2000, they had no real plans for the service to be anything other than a fun site for a few friends. They turned a free low end computer they received for setting up an etrade account into a web server, launched the site from their house in Mountain View, California, and emailed 40 friends. By the end of the day, 40,000 people had visited the site, which now had 30 second load times.

It wasn’t too long before the service was hosted at RackSpace and the users were flooding in to rate user-uploaded pictures of themselves on a scale of 1-10. In January 2001 they added a dead simple dating site. Instead of reading endless profiles and trying to find a connection, users just say yes or no to a given picture. If it’s a yes, the other person is shown your picture the next time they look through profiles. If they like you as well, a connection is made. The Money Rolls In

Until last month, HotorNot was free until that last crucial stage when two people wanted to meet each other. At that point, one of the members (usually the man, Hong tells me) must have been a paid subscriber, which costs $6/month. Hong says their conversion rate was extremely high - 15% of active users eventually upgraded to premium accounts.

The premium revenue, plus advertising and fees for virtual flowers, soon topped $600,000 per month. Nearly all of that was profit for the two founders, who reportedly pocketed $20 million or so between them over the years. The company has never raised any outside funding.

In the last year though a few competitors have popped up (see yesnomayb, a copy of the business model) and a number of free dating sites also started to eat away at traffic. Traffic started to drift sideways, and the developers were getting bored at doing little more than site maintenance. Going To A Free Model

That’s when Hong and Young decided to rip apart their business model and remove the requirement for members to have premium accounts to talk to each other. A month ago, the requirement was turned off, and about $500k/month in revenue disappeared overnight. The founders also turned the company into a proper “C” corporation and issued stock options for the first time to all employees.

(I can’t help thinking that if HotorNot took venture financing somewhere along the way, they would not have been able to get their board of directors to agree to this.)

Hong says this lit a fire under the company, which is now running on reserve cash of a few million dollars. So far things look good. Traffic jumped over 60% - 10 million people visited the site in the last month, up from 6 million the month before. Advertising and virtual gift revenue spiked, and the site is now break even even though they killed their largest revenue stream.

Hong and Young aren’t stopping there. They have plans to expand the site greatly and say they will launch new products in the coming weeks.

Whether this works in the long run is yet to be seen. But the company wanted to try something new, and the founders took enough money off the table to be comfortable for life. Entrepreneurs tend to have a screwed up way of measuring risk - the more the better - and these guys are no exception.

RSS Feeds for Tags at Amazon.com

Amazon’s Customer Communities team has rolled out broader support for tag-based RSS feeds, according to a post from Amazon’s Ian McAllister.

The new functionality has been soft-launched and isn’t currently available on all Amazon pages. Support will become available across the board in the coming weeks.

The option allows subscription to feeds specific to the user’s interests and subsequently would also allow for the creation of widgets and mashups using the data created.

For those using the Amazon Associates Program, tag based feeds also support Affiliate Links.

Examples on the new feeds can be found here.