New iPhone specs leaked -- 600MHz CPU, 32GB, 3.2MP cam?

Take this for what it is -- a totally unverified rumor from a Chinese forum -- but a set of specs for a next-gen iPhone have leaked out along with this screenshot, and they're not entirely far-fetched. According to the alleged leak, iPhone model MB717LL 9 ("iPhone2,1" perhaps?) will have a 600MHz processor (up from the current 400MHz unit), 256MB of RAM (from the current 128MB), 32GB of storage, a 3.2 megapixel camera with autofocus, as well as a digital compass and FM radio, all while retaining the same battery, basic shape, and screen size. Do we believe it? Well, if we were to conservatively guess at specs for a next-gen Apple phone that's pretty much what we'd come up with -- with the exception of FM -- so we're not shaking our heads too hard. Plus we've definitely seen evidence that a compass will figure into the equation, and there's endless whispers that the camera will see an upgrade. Still, only Steve and the gang know for sure, and we're (probably) not finding out till they're ready -- WWDC, are you here yet?

Texting While Driving Is Becoming Ridiculous

It's pretty redundant to make laws outlawing texting while driving because it already falls under laws covering distracted driving, but holy crap, something needs to be done about it.

You have ridiculous cases like the Trolley driver rear ending another train because he was texting his girlfriend, and train conductors causing a 25-fatality crash because he was texting teenage boys telling them that they're "gonna run the locomotive."

There's two commonalities to these accidents. First is that texting while you're supposed to be paying attention and in charge of other people's lives is a bad idea. Second, guys seem to be intent on texting people, no matter how inappropriate the time, if it's going to get them laid.

But there's nothing better than an anecdotal account of how bad texting while driving is, courtesy of reader Trevor, who has been rear ended three times this year by people texting on their phones.

Anyways, I live in Idaho. And everyone who lives in this state FUCKING SUCKS at driving. The last thing we need is people using their cell phones simultaneously, but of course I see everyone from the 15 year old girls to 50 year old guys typing out emails on their Blackberries. It sucks ass to have to deal with these fucking morons on a daily basis.

Anyways, on to the first incidence of getting hit:
I was driving through stop and go traffic outside of a high school moment after they got out of school, and I am completely stopped when I see a brand new Hummer H2 coming up on my ass at ferocious speed. I knew I was going to get hit, and right before he made contact, I was able to discern a fucking cell phone in his hands through my rear view mirror. The officer on the scene estimated he hit me going roughly 30mph, and had not even applied the brakes before hitting me. Completely totaled my beloved Toyota Tacoma, and gave me a wicked case of whiplash. By the way it was a roughly 17 year old guy driving his parents Hummer to school. Spoiled prick...

Second time was just 6 months later in the winter. It was a touch icy on the roads and I was stopped to make a left turn onto a side street and I look in my rear view mirror (after the Hummer incident I have been made paranoid about being hit), and see a little Dodge Neon moving way too fast towards me and start sliding sideways right into the back of my new truck. I jumped out and asked if she was ok, and the first thing she says to me is "Oh my god, I'm so sorry. I was texting and didn't even see you there until it was too late." This time the damage wasn't too bad, but I ended up being without my vehicle for 2 weeks, during which I had a shitty little rental car, so it still was quite the inconvenience.

Third time was about 3 weeks ago and I'm still feeling sore from it. I was sitting at a stop light and a big Ford F-350 with a huge trailer full of lawn mowing equipment plowed into me at about 25mph, once again totalling my vehicle, and absolutely wrecking my back. I felt like I got hit my a freight train this time. I had my foot on the brake, and he made my car skid forward so hard that I pushed the car in front of me into the car in front of him. An eyewitness to the accident said that the man in the truck was using a phone when he hit me, and it was just verified to me the other day that his phone record shows that he sent a text message seconds before the accident occured. At least this guy was able to apply a little bit of brakes before making contact, but still, I got hit really hard. I'm going to have to see a chiropractor, and I now am searching for another vehicle.

So yeah. That's my record for getting hit. It really sucks. I can't quite say I would mind the banning of texting while driving after all of this as I'm 100% sure at least somebody has lost their life in an accident caused by texting while driving. Hell, I used to do it before I got the iPhone which is fucking impossible to do without looking, but after seeing how poorly most others handle it, I can definitely understand why people are wanting this kind of a ban.

I don't know what we need to do about this, and encoding restrictions on devices themselves to not allow texting while moving is not the solution. I don't know what is.

Blu-ray making greenbacks, sales up 72% to start '09

Congratulations Blu-ray, you might be ready to step into the zone of mass market acceptance, as NPD's retail tracking service found Q1 sales of standalone players up 72 percent over last year, moving over 400,000 units with a 14% increase in dollar sales. Last year sure the format survived mad fights but high prices were a setback; fast forward to March when an online survey of 6,994 people found awareness has reached 90 percent in the last six months, with customers fascinated by its updates. Although BD-Live is looking more and more like an unneeded gimmick, the real facts are people care about cost and average player prices dropped from $393 last year to $261 in 2009. The "Blu-ray report" suggests the magic number is $214 for folks like Shawn Marion, so more room might be needed to breeze, and could come as soon as this fall around the time Vizio's player finally appears. It might be tragic for Vudu, CBHD and others trying to get a foothold, but Blu-ray's magic wand is word of mouth - so while much talked about, but much lower selling tech like Kindle is happy as hell to get a record deal, right now Blu-ray's unique skills can't be compared.

Amazon Announces Kindle DX! (hands–on)

We just got a quick first in-person look at Amazon's new Kindle DX. It looks bigger! Some quick thoughts on the device:

* It's not really drastically different from the Kindle 2. Not in any way. The ability to auto-rotate is nice, and the big screen is definitely easier on the eyes when it comes to reading newspapers, but largely this is the same beast.
* The screen looks great. It may just be the demo units here, but the blacks seem to be darker than they are on the Kindle 2. We'll have to hold this judgment for when we've got a review unit in our hands.
* Screen refresh is largely unchanged. You'll still see those black flashes when you turn the page.
* The keyboard seems better to us than the Kindle 2's. The keys are more raised, and there's more real estate for typing. It's still not an awesome experience, but it's improved.
* The size difference really is notable. The DX is a large device. It's not the kind of thing you'll be throwing into a purse, though it's not so large that you wouldn't consider it over the Kindle 2. In fact, if we had to choose right now, the Kindle DX wins hands-down.
* $489 is a lot of money for a device like this. Amazon is really going to have to show some considerable cuts on pricing for their deals with the NYT / schools to make this attractive to end-users.

iPhone OS 3.0 beta 5 now available

Apple just dropped iPhone OS 3.0 beta 5, just over one week after its last revision and about half the time they've put between the previous updates. You know the drill by now, we don't know yet what the update entails, but we'll let you know when we do. Oh, and just like last time, it appears iTunes 8.2 is required.