The Redfly is a cool little device, but while it worked perfectly I was afraid it would quickly find itself unnecessary in a world where you can get a full-featured Atom-powered netbook for the same price and with the same small size. Redfly seems to have noticed that and they’re bringing some interesting stuff to the market.
The problem with the Redfly device wasn’t that it didn’t work, but that it was just too limited. Celio is now going to be offering software that can be run on a suitably-sized laptop or netbook that will allow you to dual-boot your hardware, so you’ve got the best of both worlds. I can’t imagine the Redfly stuff takes up more than a gig at the very most. That alone is a solid product — in a limited connectivity situation, tethering may be difficult or not useful, but using your smartphone to the maximum of its capabilities may be a great idea.
Another interesting thing they’ve got going on is what they’re stressing is a “proof of concept” for Android compatibility. Obviously it’s not quite ready for the living room, but hey, it’s stretching right and the cursor works. That’s good news by any measure. They haven’t given a date (they’re emphatic about the fact that there’s no timeline) but that doesn’t mean I can’t look forward to the day I get to try it out.
Lastly they’ve got a device that, well, I’m not quite sure exactly what it does. Says here, “enables projectors, office kiosks, and commercial applications to use any display, keyboard and mouse with just a smartphone.” Okay. I believe that means it’s going to be using a smartphone as an interface device. In any case, it’s one of the things we’ll be able to see and touch pretty soon, so we’ll get you more info ASAP.
Let’s talk about this recent habit I’ve noticed on CG of burying the lede in an apparent attempt to get users to click through to the second page (”look John, we’ll DOUBLE our ad revenue!”).
It’s annoying. And it’s very 1999. And it’s what’ll stop CG from getting a Webby if it continues.
If you’ve got something to say, say it above the fold. Give readers the essential information up front, and let them decide if they want more detail. If you want users to click through to the second page, give them a compelling reason to do so by telling them what they’re going to be reading that is important. “interesting stuff” and “mysterious” do not satisfy that last requirement.
I hear you, dude, but the old style was really limiting. This way we can write a real post with a little depth and context, and we don’t have to clutter the front page with too much text.
Sometimes I try to get stuff just on the front page, but it doesn’t always work out. but tabbed browsing is your friend…
^ OMG a second click?
you still read it and commented didn’t you :P
theskyisfallingtheskyisfalling
Ok but what does it matter? Honestly, even if there is some crazy conspiracy theory about CrunchGear cheating their users by forcing them to click the second page does it matter? This is a good website with good news and if you spend the extra minute loading a new page and reading the article so what? keeps you busy right? :)
Using the free EveryWAN Remote Support for controlling your Windows Mobile device from a NetBook is easier and provides many more useful features: like using file transfer to use the real office application to edit your office documents instead of Windows Mobile limited versions.