Filed under: Displays, HDTV, Home Entertainment

It's been a tick since we've seen a swank new projector from SIM2, but on paper, it looks like the wait was worth it. The firm's new-generation version of the Grand Cinema C3X (dubbed C3X 1080) features a gorgeous Giorgio Revoldini-designed chassis, TI's brand new DarkChip 4 DLP device, a 10-bit video processor, HD scaling and deinterlacing capabilities, 1080p24 support, a 10,000:1 contrast ratio and color-management software that enables installers to "precisely match each projector to its home theater environment." Additionally, you'll find a pair of selectable HDCP-compliant HDMI jacks, component / S-Video / composite / VGA ports, RS-232 / USB control sockets, IR-sensor inputs, 12-volt trigger outputs and an optical digital audio socket. This 22-pounder, which ships in high-gloss gunmetal, black, red and gold, is likely to keep your eyes affixed for days on end, but only if you've got $31,995 to spare. Check out a few more colors in the gallery over at Engadget HD, and watch the drool, will ya?

 

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Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

AdBrite might have just secured an additional $23 million in funding, but at midnight tonight its business prospects may look decidedly dimmer. Competing ad network Etology is cutting deals with some of AdBrite’s biggest customers to take over their ads.

A big chunk of the ads that AdBrite serves are for porn sites on behalf of the AVN Media Network. These AVN Ads make up 31 percent of AdBrite’s total daily impressions (259 million out of 824 million total, according to the respective Websites). Yes, porn is the lifeblood of many of these online ad networks—don’t act so surprised.

Since December, 2004 AdBrite has been supplying the technology, billing, and payment platform for AVN Ads. Now that deal is going to Etology, who will manage the site from now on and relaunch it with a new look. Before that happens, AdBrite is trying to redirect all of its members to its own new adult advertising sub-brand, BlackLabelAds. If you go to the AVN Ads Website, you will see a big pop-up trying to switch advertisers and publishers with existing accounts over to BlackLabelAds. Yet, according to Etology, it has already secured the loyalty of 1,268 (and counting) of the biggest porn sites on AVN Ads, including YouPorn, PornTube, and RedTube. (Out of 6,614 total). Those 1,268 sites account for 108 million daily impressions (or 42 percent of AVN Ads’ total, and 13 percent of AdBrite’s total). The other 151 million impressions are still up for grabs. Etology is trying to lure them with a 75 percent share of revenues, versus the 70 percent they got from AdBrite.

I caught up with AdBrite co-founder Philip Kaplan on the phone to get his take. He notes that all the current 6,614 sites that run AVN Ads have AdBrite code on them, and that is going to stay there unless they take it off. “If you were an AVN Ads user before, you are automatically a BlackLabelAds user.” But he is really not too worried about losing the porn business because it is not where he sees the future:

Adult is an interesting thing. It is a lot of pageviews, it is not a lot of revenues. Most of the major players support it, but as the Internet advertising business is growing and more mainstream advertising is coming from TV and print, it is becoming less and less significant.

In the meantime, he is happy to fight it out with Etology for the porn advertising business, but it is not where he is planning on spending the bulk of the new money he just raised.

Here is what the new AVN Ads Website will look like:

cb_widget_report_widget("cb_widget_1196460975"); cb_widget_report_element("cb_widget_0_1196460975","adbrite");

Crunch Network: MobileCrunch Mobile Gadgets and Applications, Delivered Daily.

eCirkit is the latest to introduce a webtop “personal desktop” experience to users for an integrated social networking experience. Unlike most basic offerings towards this end, eCirkit acts very much like a Windows desktop in most respects. Still conducting private testing, the company hasn’t launched a beta yet (it’s coming December 1), but I had a rather involved conversation with the guys behind eCirkit so I could find out what the site’s all about.

On the social networking side of things, eCirkit has an instant messenger client, an email tool for aggregating POP/IMAP accounts, and shared “browsing and web” options. For instance, viewing another user’s preferred RSS feeds and social bookmarks can be viewed through eCirkit’s proxy browser, and added to their own favorites. So in this sense, there’s the potential for direct sharing of certain types of media that we often interact with on the web.

This reminds me a bit of Flock’s direct media-sharing options that lower the barriers of nearly all social networks, regardless of their already “open” status. So in some sense, eCirkit is attempting to do this without the need of installing a new browser. eCirkit does have a toolbar, however, that merely gives you portal functionality for your existing browser if you’d like to take advantage of this offering as well.

The biggest problem I’ve seen so far with proxy browser windows is that they don’t overlay and function as well as your regular windows you have open on your own desktop. If a video (or even a flash advertisement) is playing on a window that’s layered beneath another, you’ll get a good amount of interference for your top window that you’re currently viewing. And of course you lose some actual browser functionality when you open a proxy window, but given the purpose of using these windows for interacting with others within eCirkit, this is an easy fact to deal with.

Webtop tools have yet to really take off, even with some offering the unique social networking and media-sharing tools. This is often because of the complexity that lies within using a system that’s in fact set up to operate like an application that already exists as a Program File on your computer, or can be pulled up on your AOL instant messenger. So with eCirkit’s combined tools for either solitary or social browsing and experiencing of media, it will be interesting to see if this one gains traction.

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Without a doubt, the most famous video on the Internet this month is the legendary 2 girls 1 cup, something I strongly urge you not to google. What’s amazing, though, isn’t just that it exists or that it’s making the rounds it is, but rather the creation of a whole bevy of “reaction videos” on YouTube.

They’re what they sound like: videos of people watching 2 girls 1 cup for the first time ever. The reactions range from the humorous to the disgusting, and they’re all fantastic. This is one of the best trends to hit YouTube yet, and I certainly hope it continues. And don’t worry, most are safe for work, and as far as I can tell none actually have footage of the original video. Find your headphones, though.

2 girls 1 cup reaction videos [YouTube]

A big thank you to everybody for filling our tips at crunchgear dot com inbox with wonderful, unique, and newsworthy items. Here are five that we just couldn’t get to this week.

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Subject: Razors and Clippers — Inoformation please

Good Day,

   My firm manages a large network of online business and private clients. With the holiday season fast approaching a number of them are searching for both men’s and women’s electric shavers and razors. Also beard trimmers, epilators, clippers etc.

   Therefore, we are looking to find a quality source to direct our clients to for their Hair trimming needs. We have reviewed your website and it was felt that you might be a good source to work with and to feature for our clients. Please contact me at [phone number redacted] so we may discuss this further.

Regards,

Jon Thomas

CG Responds:

Good day to you, sir! Your letter states that you have reviewed our website. Please advise as to where you might have possibly gotten the idea that we’d be a good source of information for men’s and women’s electric shavers. I would like to know this information for my own personal use.

We’re constantly looking for new avenues of revenue creation here at CrunchGear.com. As such, we’d like to wholeheartedly agree to help you with your clients’ hair trimming needs. I noticed that you capitalized "Hair" and I’d like to tell you that I don’t blame you. Hair is important. I used to have long hair and girls wouldn’t talk to me. Now I have short hair and I’m getting married in a month. To Hair!

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Subject: Advertising Rates?

Hi,

I was wondering how much you would charge to advertise on your fashion and clothing related website. I have clients looking to place small text based ads on sites like yours. If you are interested let me know your price and if you prefer to be paid via PayPal or check? I prefer the ads be placed at the top, middle, or bottom of the main content area of the site. However, I am sure we can work out placement. For more information please email me and checkout www.authoritysites.com our FAQ site which should answer most of your questions. I look forward to selling your advertising space and adding your site to my inventory. Please email me with any questions.

Thanks,

Paul White

CG Responds:

Thank you for your inquiry! You, like Jon Thomas, are clearly seeing things on our site that we’re not. While we welcome Hair enthusiasts and fashion mongers the world over, I think I can speak for the rest of the writers here when I say that our website is one of the last places people would be likely to visit for fashion and clothing tips.

In lieu of accepting payment for fashion-related advertisements on our site, I’d like to offer to tell you what I’m wearing right now; a blue shirt, brown corduroy pants, gray socks, and Crocs sandals. Sandals! In the middle of winter! And with gray sox, no less! You’d be doing your clients what I call a "disservice" by advertising here.

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Subject: BREAKING: Twisted, Alternative Video e-Cards

Hi Doug,

Rattlebox, www.rattlebox.com, is officially launching its edgy, alternative videogram site next week. Below is the press release and it has no embargo. Would you be available next week to speak with CEO Nancy Miller?

If you don’t have the cycles for a story right now, at least take a quick break and see what they’re all about. If your sense of humor is a little off like ours is you’ll love these.

Feel free to contact me via reply email or at [phone number redacted]. I look forward to your rants, raves and reviews. Please let me know if you’d like to cover this exciting launch!

Best,
Jen

CG Reponds:

We’d like to take this opportunity to politely and delicately set some ground rules for PR mailings, mostly concerning the definitions of certain words. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

"BREAKING" is to mean something that’s happening right now, mostly related to news items that affect either part of all of the entire industry. An official videogram website launch happening a week from now likely wouldn’t be considered breaking news.

"Exciting, Edgy, Alternative" are all examples of words that have a tendency to be overused. I personally don’t mind them all that much but some editors set up e-mail filters targeting similar words. I’m more than happy to entertain anything about "Excitebike" though. Also "EDGE" data speeds, provided it has to do with those speeds getting faster.

Finally, I’m not quite sure what "If you don’t have the cycles for a story right now" means but I can almost guarantee that I’m not afraid of anything and I have the biggest cycles you ever did see.

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Subject: Thanks

                         GOOGLE INTERNATIONAL LOTTO AWARD

Dear Winner,

This is Google International Lotto Award, a non religious and non racist organization formed to unite the human race in their religion/belief, as we believe God is one and human beings are one not withstanding your religion, race, education or political background.

Dear, you have been selected as one of our lucky winners in this our inaugural lotto awards which was organized in the spirit of Ramadan and the forth coming Christmas.
The draw was conducted via computer programmed selection system which saw your email address win in the 1st Category with the following information;

Your ticket no: DI-8923412
Serial no: 654213
Insurance no: 57025
Winning no: DI/418906
Winning amount: £1000000.00 Pounds

Be informed that this 2007 lottery award and payments starts on the 15th September and ends on the 31st of December, 2007.

Your are therefore advised as a matter of importance as it concerns time factor: to contact immediately the director of payments informing him of your winning with the winning details

We wish to congratulate you over your winning as we pray that you will contribute in making the world a peaceful place for human race.

Yours truly,
Elizbeth Olk

CG Responds:

YES! I knew it! Pooling our money for  the non-religious, non-racist, Google-sponsored lottery has finally paid off! Wait, how come the payout is in British Pounds? And how come our ticket number and the winning number are different? And how come you spell your name like that, without the A? Did we really win the non-religious, non-racist, Google-sponsored lottery or is this just some ingenious ploy to get at our Social Security holdings?

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Subject: i need a hacker

hello there friend my name is dickson youngers from malaysia i hav little problem conclude my work and will realy need your help , i am a business man buy trade and run my busness arround the world, i will be very glad if you can come to my resqur and you will be very well payed after every deal , and the money is good .
i hope to here from you real soon

CG Responds:

Dickson Youngers? Is that you? THE Dickson Youngers from Fantasy Business Camp, summer of ‘95 in Northfield, Minnesota? Well how the hell have you been, you old son of a sea cook?! Still fighting the urge to use that old shift key to capitalize things, I see. That’s so Dickson.

I can’t believe you’re in Malaysia! How is it there? Hot? I’d love to come to your resqur, what’s on your mind? I’m not a great hacker by any means, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night, buwahahahaa!! Get it?! Do you get those commercials there? Dude, they’re off the charts. So funny.

Anyway, good to hear from you. Keep in touch!

Click here to read previous Back Burner posts…

Looks like Netflix subscribers get yet another feather to add to their caps. NBC has struck up a deal whereby flixers can watch episodes of some hit shows like “Heroes” the day after they’re aired on cable. You’ll be able to stream the new episodes, or get ones from earlier in the season on DVDs. Sounds sweet to me, mainly for those who haven’t taken the plunge and gotten a DVR. Interestingly, the guy at Reuters seems to have trouble with his space bar, unless “entertainmentmarketplace,” “timeseries,” and “ourtraditional” are hot new buzzwords I’m too out of the loop to have heard.

Netflix and NBC Universal Announce Online Deal for ‘Heroes’ and Other Popular Series [Reuters]

Founder of and public face on Vimeo Jakob Lodwick has announced on his blog that he’s leaving IAC/Connected Ventures/College Humor. The announcement, which was accompanied by what can only be described as what looks like a heroic hit from a bong, was:

“As of an hour ago, I am no longer affiliated with IAC/InterActiveCorp/Connected Ventures/Vimeo. No hard feelings! Goodbye to everyone at CV; you are wonderful and I will miss you.”

This comes after recent news that Vimeo co-founder Zach Klein has also left the company. Klein recently made headlines as he was being publicly courted by MySpace to give the place a good sprucing up. Lodwick’s leaving of the company is abrupt and unexpected given his very public love adulation of the company at his personal tumblog.

Vimeo is an embedded video website, much like YouTube, with a much nicer look and feel and support for HD video. Vimeo and the related ventures also have close ties to the organization built up around Tumblr.

Valley Wag is propagating a rumor that Lodwick might have been fired, although there are no public confirmations from either Vimeo nor Lodwick to affirm or discredit this. As of present, Lodwick could not be reached for comment, as he’s “turned off [his] cell phone for the evening and catch up with everyone later!”

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Nearly every company has a suggestion box, and for online companies, that suggestion box sends along a nice little email to the “community guy.” When FeVote came around, they made structured suggestion boxes easier for users and companies to manage, and today it’s rolled out some new options for your suggestion box that will let users really express themselves.

Having teamed up with Scribd, FeVote now lets your users attach embedded documents to their suggestions. To achieve this, Scribd created an integrated upload form for uploading and attaching documents. Photos and videos can be included in your users’ suggestions as well. FeVote has added Flickr, YouTube, Metacafe and Vimeo options to this end.

You’ll need to know the URL of the photo or video you want to add from any of these sources–there’s no search options for finding content for this attachment option. Seeing as you’re more likely to attach your own image or video to a suggestion, however, it’s less likely that a tool like FeVote would need search capabilities for these media-sharing sites.

While FeVote isn’t really introducing any new technology here (other than what Scribd has created for upload and access options), it is evolving some concepts around the way in which people communicate about companies and services. As with most communication tools, visual examples can often convey the message better than a simple paragraph of text.

And for the companies themselves, they’ll now get a more complete look at what suggestions or problems users are experiencing, granting them the opportunity to address problems in a more comprehensive manner from the very beginning. I think the inclusion of multimedia files for FeVote would be great for startups needing a structured feedback system during their beta testing.

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I know I’ve bitched and moaned about Leopard in the last few weeks, but I just can’t handle it anymore. I’m going to search for my Tiger disc and reinstall it over the weekend. Leopard has too many kinks and it’s not worth the headache. It pisses me off that Apple has screwed up so badly. I’d rather go back to XP then use this shit anymore. Sounds crazy doesn’t it? Considering the fact that I’ve been worshipping OS X like it was some higher entity or something. Like I said, Tiger is great and I’ll be going back to it if I can find the install disc or I’ll be scouring the torrent sites for it. Do you have beef with Leopard? I’m sure you do. Here’s why I want it to die. A slow and painful death. Umm. No. I’d rather push it in front of a train if it were a physical being. I guess I could smash the DVD.

My MacBook is slowly dying and I’ve only owned it for a little over a year. Want to know what happens when I fire it up? I get the “?” in a folder. What does that mean? My HDD is going to crap out soon. I did a clean install of Leopard, too, so it shouldn’t be doing that but it is. That burns my biscuits. Eat ween, Leopard. Eat it and like it.

My MacBook will eventually burn my apartment down if Leopard is left as is. I’m sorry but I don’t want my fans blasting 24/7 at 5,000RPMs nor do I like 150+ burning Fahrenheits on my lap. It’s not comfortable no matter how cold my place is. I really do fear for my apartment, the lives of my roommates and material possessions when I leave my place with the MB still on. Did I mention that it freaked out the other day and it was sleeping in my bag? Yeah, Biggs was there and said it was probably going to die soon. WTF?!

Why does my keyboard not respond half the time? It’s because Leopard is a piece of shit. It thrills me to know that my MB’s keyboard could go at any time. I guess I won’t make my living now.

Nicholas and I both don’t use anything Leopardy and he’s had to reinstall the bitch on more than one occasion even though he does a clean install every time. A clean install is the way to do it, right? Well, on anything else, yes. But not with Leopard. It hates you. Well, I hate you, Leopard.

Time Machine looked so cool when I first saw last year. I can’t even use it because it wants to reformat my external. Forget that. I’m not deleting my music, movies, comics, pictures and porn. No thanks. I’ll deal with losing whatever is on my MB’s hard drive then reformat.

You see, I haven’t even attempted to use the full potential of Leopard for fear of a massive hard drive failure or any other failure that lurks within the OS. I hate it. I loathe it. I want it to die and to never come back until all the bugs are fixed. I want my money back, too. You hear me, Apple. Get off your fucking pedestal and go back to making the OS I switched from Windows for. Or I’ll burn the MF down. The following scene from Harold and Kumar comes to mind. Enjoy it:

Thank you.

Slashdot reports that a pair of computer scientists have figured out how to de-anonymize the "anonymous" data set that Netflix released as part of its million-dollar contest to improve its recommendation algorithm. The researchers found that the set of less-popular movies a user has rated tends to uniquely identify that user. By comparing movie ratings on IMDB with the ratings in the Netflix data set, the researchers were often able to uniquely pair a particular IMDB user with a corresponding Netflix user. And that meant the researcher would instantly have access to all of the user's Netflix ratings, which Netflix users presumably expected to remain private. While movie ratings might seem innocuous at first glance, the authors point out that one's movie ratings can often reveal potentially embarrassing personal details, including a user's views on politics, religion, and homosexuality. This isn't the first time a company has released "anonymous" data regarding its users that turned out not to be so anonymous. Last year, AOL got in a lot of hot water when it released a data set of search queries that turned out to be quite easy to link back to the users conducting the searches. The lesson here is that companies should be very reluctant to release private customer data, even if they believe they have "anonymized" it. Anonymization is surprisingly difficult, and you can never be sure you've done it successfully; it's always possible that someone will find a way to link records back to the people they represent. Wherever possible, companies needing to release data should either aggregate it in a way that avoids revealing information about individuals, or they should carefully limit who has access to the data sets, to avoid having the data sets become publicly available. Simply stripping out the "username" field doesn't cut it.

Tim Lee is an expert at the Techdirt Insight Community. To get insight and analysis from Tim Lee and other experts on challenges your company faces, click here.

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