Vectrix officially files for bankruptcy, plans to stay in business

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Legislation and Policy, On Two Wheels, Vectrix

Vectrix scooter - Click above for high-res image gallery
Vectrix has officially filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Much like what recently took place with General Motors and Chrysler, the old company will be purchased by an entity called New Vectrix LLC in relatively short order unless another interested party comes along and presents a better offer to the bankruptcy judge. Production of theSource: AutoblogGreen RSS Feed

From the Prancing Horse's Mouth: Montezemolo reportedly confirms Ferrari 458 Spider

Filed under: Convertible, Performance, Ferrari

Ferrari 458 Spider rendered by Jon Sibal - Click above for high-res image
Ever since the introduction of the 348 Spider back in 1993 and on through the 355 Spider, 360 Spider and F430 Spider - to say nothing of the targa variants that came before - Ferrari has always produced droptop versions of its mid-engine V8 supercars. So it should come as no great surprise that Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo has reportedly confirmed theSource: Autoblog RSS Feed

The Split Ring Key

Gadget Lab:

Scott Amron, friend of Gadget Lab and serial-innovator, has come up with yet another why-didn’t-I-think-of-that invention: The rather painful sounding Split-Ring Key-Blank.

The key blank, which can be taken to your locksmith and cut to fit your locks, incorporates its own keyring: Instead of a tiny hole, you get a more-or-less standard split-ring, the kind found on most keyfobs. Yes, the idea is great, and you only need one per bunch as you can slip on allSource: Business Opportunities Weblog RSS Feed

BlackBerry Instant Messenger clients updated to 2.5

RIM is on an updating roll bringing all the IM clients to 2.5 with some new features. Apart from being OS 5.0-compatible, the new clients feature deeper integration with BlackBerry address book contacts, conversation search function, and better emoticon selection.

There is also a new feature that allows you to save a favorite contact as a home screen icon for even faster navigation.

Grab the latest version of your favorite flavor IM client:

Yahoo! Messenger

GoogleSource: BlackBerryCool RSS Feed

Backyard Bizs Find Niche Market

The Salt Lake Tribune:

Adam de Havenos didn’t know much about gardening when he moved to Utah from New York City, but it seemed a shame to let the small plot in the backyard of his Sugar House dwelling become weed infested.

The 31-year-old neurology resident didn’t have much time to spare, so this summer he hired a company to plant and care for his 5-by-10-foot garden. These days when de Havenos gets home from his job at the University of Utah Hospital, Source: Business Opportunities Weblog RSS Feed

AIG Shares: Still Not Worth Anything.

GAO

Frequent MarketBeat readers know we love pointing out that shares of a certain government-controlled insurance giant are likely worth little-to-pretty-much-squat.

Citigroup said it. Credit Suisse said it. S&P said it.

Of course, plenty of the people who are buying these shares don’t really care if the company has any value. They care about being able to sell them to someone willing to buy the stock for a higher price. And it seemed like they wereSource: MarketBeat RSS Feed

About Dell's Purchase of Perot Systems

Yesterday morning's big corporate news was Michael Dell's computer making company buying Perot Systems. For a hefty $30/share, a hefty premium to the $17 or so Perot closed at on Friday. A price the consultant/system integrator hasn't seen in ten years!
I'm sure Dell shareholders are thanking Michael profusely for squandering their money so unwisely.

I happened to have lunch with my friend and former/sometimes business partner, B. He noted that all of Ross Perot's companies Source: The Reasoned Sceptic RSS Feed

Onkyo HT-RC180

Onkyo HT-RC180

Onkyo has a well-earned reputation for building A/V receivers with fabulous price/performance ratios, and at first glance, the feature-laden HT-RC180 looks to be no exception. But we can’t recommend this 7.2-channel receiver to anyone who owns a home theater PC or an older DVD-Audio player because the HT-RC180 lacks the multi-channel analog inputs needed to establish a proper audio connection with those devices.
Strangely, we can’t understand theSource: Technopress RSS Feed

Vodafone - Ever More Two-Sided Strategy!

Here’s a fascinating slide from Vodafone CEO Vittorio Colao’s presentation to a Goldman Sachs investors’ conference in New York this week. Note that Vodafone’s future strategy seems to be getting more and more Telco 2.0 - they want “efficient pipes”, i.e. a broadband network that’s cheap to run in the radio, transport, and core elements, “smart pipes” as wholesale services, and top-level products for the consumer market.

The first is a prerequisite ofSource: Telco 2.0 RSS Feed

“EmeryCat” Invention Does Double Duty

USA TODAY:

Necessity is the mother of invention. We’ve all heard that old saw. Maybe half believed it, maybe not.

Evidence of its truth is at hand: in the form of Michael Diep.

The cat-loving business consultant couldn’t face taking his brother’s two cats to the vet every couple of weeks for pedicures in order to prevent shred-jobs on the expensive furniture while he was presiding as pet sitter.

The very idea of those tripsSource: Business Opportunities Weblog RSS Feed

WSJ.com to launch live twice-a-day Webcast on Thursday

TALKING BIZ NEWS EXCLUSIVE

The Wall Street Journal’s Web site is expected to launch on Thursday a twice-a-day Webcast called “The News Hub” that will air at 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m.

WSJ.com executive editor Alan Murray, in an e-mail to the staff, writes, “The show will be webcast from the 6th floor news hub, and will bring together reporters, columnists and editors from the Journal, Newswires, MarketWatch and Barron’s, to talk about the top news stories ofSource: Talking Biz News RSS Feed

Lotus Evora Type 124 pics from the Frankfurt motor show

The Lotus Evora Type 124 is the star of the Lotus stand at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show, although the Elise and Exige Cup model year 2010 were also on display. The track-prepared Evora is equipped with the V6 3.5-litre from Toyota with more than 400 hp. Weight has been reduced, though, by 200 kg to keep to 1,200 kg overall. The coupe is equipped with a 120-litre capacity fuel tank so that it can compete in the 24-hour Sepang, Silverstone, Nurburgring and DubaiSource: EuroCarBlog RSS Feed

UberTwitter goes Beta 5 with TweetPhoto and bug fixes

UberTwitter is a great Twitter client that is now in Beta 5. The latest build integrates TweetPhoto, allowing you to now send both picture and video from your device to the Twittersphere.

The latest version of UberTwitter also comes with the requisite bug fixes and application stabilization. Beta 5 will utilize TweetPhoto’s uploading, voting, favoriting, commenting and geo-tagging feature-sets. The app will also allow users to view all photos they have uploaded,Source: BlackBerryCool RSS Feed

Frankfurt Preview: Renault shows off Fluence Zero Emissions Concept

Filed under: Concept Cars, Frankfurt Motor Show, Sedan, Renault, Alternative Fuel

Renault Fluence Zero Emissions Concept - Click above for high-res image gallery
The Renault Fluence is the model that is replacing the Megane sedan this year. The Megane, of course, is the vehicle that the Renault-Nissan Alliance is using to test Better Place's battery swap technology. Put these two facts together and it's no surprise that Renault is bringing the Fluence Zero Emissions Concept to Source: Autoblog RSS Feed

Fiat announces new dual fuel natural gas Qubo Natural Power MPV

Filed under: Fiat, Natural Gas

Fiat Qubo Natural Power - Click above for high res image gallery
Fiat is launching a new dual-fueled version of its Qubo van in Europe that can run on gasoline or compressed natural gas. The Qubo Natural Power is propelled by a 70 hp, 1.4-liter engine that should give the van leisurely performance. The new Qubo is intended primarily for use in urban areas where the cleaner-burning methane fuel will provide the greatest advantage. CarbonSource: AutoblogGreen RSS Feed

REPORT: Electric Chevy Spark to get its fire from....Reva?

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, GM, India

2010 Chevy Spark - Click above for high-res image gallery
Reva, the little electric car company from India whose product has withstood ridicule from the likes of automotive entertainer Jeremy Clarkson seems to be working very hard of late to turn those jeers into cheers. Not only will they be showing off two new models with fancy telematic systems and a "wireless charging" set up in Frankfurt next week but now comes news they may beSource: AutoblogGreen RSS Feed

Beeronomics Update: Hoppin' It Up in Hood River

I got a note from the good folks at the Hood River Chamber that the Hood River Hops Fest has a website with loads of information. From the website:
Featured breweries again will include Gorge favorites such as Double Mountain Brewery, Full Sail Brewing, Big Horse, Elliot Glacier, Walking Man and Mt. Hood Brewing. Oh yum. Plus, if you go, you'll also be able to enjoy the delights that await you at the Double Mountain Taproom and the Full Sail Pub if you want some more Killer Green Source: The Oregon Economics RSS Feed

REPORT: Subaru considering using more CVTs

Filed under: Sedan, Subaru

2010 Subaru Legacy - Click above for a high-res image gallery
The 2010 Legacy will be the most fuel efficient Subaru in the Japanese automaker's US lineup, but only when it's powered by the 2.5i boxer engine mated to a CVT transmission. According to the EPA, that powertrain returns 31 mpg on the highway, a full four mpg better than the six-speed manual. With fuel economy standards set to climb over the next decade, Subaru is going to need moreSource: Autoblog RSS Feed

Lenovo Releases New ThinkPad USB Keyboard

By Chris Scott Barr

I spend a lot of time typing, so having a keyboard that’s comfortable is really important. When I’m on the road, I don’t generally mind typing on my MacBook, but only for short periods. If I’m going to be writing anything of great length, I’m going to prefer a desktop keyboard every time. It’s for that reason that I’m surprised to find that Lenovo makes an external keyboard that’s modeled after their notebookSource: OhGizmo! RSS Feed

iRiver VR-1 W/ Linear PCM Recording Announced

iRiver VR-1 W/ Linear PCM Recording Announced

For your next voice recorder, you might want to take a look at what iRiver has to offer. The VR-1 is a Linear PCM recorder coming with 2GB or 4GB of internal storage. It also plays MP3 music and FM. The iRiver VR-1 promises optimum recording against a noisy background and also supports voice prompts. It measures 34.6 x 98 x 17.4mm and weighs 46 grams, supposedly including the 2 AAA batteries. No pricing yet or date ofSource: Technopress RSS Feed

Subscriptions up for WSJ Asia

Circulation of the Wall Street Journal Asia daily jumped 6.3 percent in the first half of the year compared to the same period in 2008, according to an Editor & Publisher story.

The story states, “The circulation gain was fueled mainly by what Dow Jones called a ’substantial increase in subscriptions, with particularly significant growth in Hong Kong, India, Malaysia and Taiwan.’

“Average daily circulation rose to 85,822 in the period between January to Source: Talking Biz News RSS Feed

Oil age celebrates 150th birthday, death urged

Filed under: Etc.

It has now been 150 years since Edwin Drake first successfully struck oil in Titusville, Pennsylvania and, while it certainly wasn't the first well created (the earliest known dates back to 347 AD in China), that discovery is marked by many as the beginning of the oil age. As that original production of 25 barrels a day has grown to 85 million worldwide, the end of the oil age is being urged for in a piece published in the Houston Chronicle, the paper ofSource: AutoblogGreen RSS Feed

Nintendo Announces Black Wiimote Bundle

By Andrew Liszewski

Throughout their lifespans the Nintendo 64 and the Gamecube came in a variety of different colors, and if I remember correctly, the Cube was even available in black or purple right at launch. But the Wii has been a different story. Since it launched everyone has had to settle for a white console, though that limitation clearly hasn’t had much impact on its sales. But there is hope that the Wii might eventually get a splash of color.

Source: OhGizmo! RSS Feed