Paypal executive leaves for mobile payments startup Clinkle

A Clinkle promo image shows off a few screens from the app. (Credit: Clinkle) Clinkle has hired away an executive from digital payments giant PayPal, the startup announced Tuesday. The fledging mobile payments company, which has yet to officially reveal how its product works, has hired Mike Liberatore, a vice president...

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'Downton Abbey' fan makes Lego tribute

A dedicated fan pays tribute with Legos to Crawley clan members and their servants, as well as their impressive home, from the popular British TV drama, "Downton Abbey." (Credit: Eric Stevens ) As a present for his girlfriend, New Yorker Eric Stevens has built a Lego replica of the stately home and characters from the hit...

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Finally, someone wants to ease the pain of booking a hotel

An example of two recommendations for two different travelers for the same city on the same day. (Credit: Traxo) It's time for a confession. I used to have an assistant called Brandy. I drove her nuts, so much so that she went into comedy. You see, when she had to book my flights, she'd have to remember I'd only fly in Boeings...

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Sony Xperia Z1 Compact

The Sony Xperia Z1 Compact packs the same blisteringly powerful quad-core processor, 4G LTE connectivity and 20-megapixel camera as Sony's top-end Xperia Z1. It has a 4.3-inch display, rather than the palm-stretching 5 inches of its brother, making it the most technologically advanced small Android phone you can get. While the iPhone 5S provides great performance in a compact size, if you want a top-end phone...

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Apple has the Mac to thank for its next generation of devices

When Apple introduced the Mac 30 years ago, it was already a successful computer company with the Apple II, a product that would continue to be successful for years after the launch of Apple's new darling. If it had taken the approach Microsoft had with Windows 1.0, and later Windows 8 and Surface, it would have grafted a graphical interface onto the Apple II -- something that actually eventually happened toward the line's...

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Battle of the (broad)bands: Online music's Grammy picks

The Grammys are awarded Sunday starting at 5 p.m. PT. Can online music services' data predict the winners? (Credit: Getty Images) The debate over man versus machine has existed as long as machines have. So how well does raw data hold up for something as human as musical expression? Online music services, which use data...

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How the 'Netflix of books' won over the publishing industry (Q&A)

Oyster offers more than 100,000 books in an all-you-can-eat subscription model. (Credit: Oyster) The world in which people have to rent movies one at a time from a video store, or buy individual songs from iTunes has come and gone. These days, Netflix, Spotify, Rdio, and other services are making it easier and easier for people...

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Tim Cook talks Apple secrecy on Mac's 30th anniversary

Apple CEO Tim Cook (Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET) Apple's Tim Cook admits that Apple is a secretive company, so secretive that he can't spill the beans on very much, at least not to a curious ABC News reporter. Cook recently sat down for an interview with ABC's David Muir for a segment that airs Friday on "World News with Diane Sawyer"...

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Steve Jobs' perfect pitch: The Macintosh launch

Steve Jobs introducing the 1984 commercial on October 22, 1983 at the Apple sales conference in Honolulu. (Credit: Apple video) Guest post: Jean Louis Gassée, the former president of the Apple Products Division, shares his remembrance of the October 1983 sales conference in Hawaii where Steve Jobs made his call to arms...

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Expedia stock drops as site falls in Google's search results

SearchMetrics showed this drop in Expedia's score of relevance in search results. (Click to enlarge.) (Credit: screenshot by Stephen Shankland/CNET) Investors fretting about Expedia's prospects sent its stock down 4 percent Tuesday after Google lowered the travel site's ranking in its search results. Google draws attention...

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Tracing the origins of the Macintosh

Precursors to the Macintosh: Xerox Alto and the Xerox Star. The Alto was the first relatively small computer to include a mouse, removable storage, networking, a graphical user interface and WYSIWYG printing. (Credit: Computer History Museum) This article is part of a CNET special report covering the beginnings of the Macintosh...

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Get a 4,000mAh mobile charger for $16.99 shipped

This slim black slab offers 4,000mAh of mobile power for your devices. (Credit: Accessory Power) Quick housekeeping note: After much deliberation, I will no longer be spotlighting deals from 1Sale (formerly 1SaleADay). I've heard from too many readers who've had too many unhappy experiences with the company. Although a lot...

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TiVo, Roku, and Sling: Catching up with modern-day TV pioneers

TiVo announced at CES that it will be supporting recordings in the cloud. (Credit: CNET) Time-shifting, streaming, and place-shifting have become a part of the modern television experience. All were pioneered by retail electronics products -- TiVo and the DVR in 1999, the Slingbox in 2005, and the Roku TV streamer in 2008. Over...

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From Croatia to CES: The story of Teddy the Guardian's unlikely Las Vegas debut

Central Hall at the International CES in Las Vegas can be a little overwhelming. Wall-sized panels looping short clips of impossibly clear footage will dazzle you into thinking that $10,000 for a new television is perhaps not such a bad investment. Up to North Hall, concept cars from all the major manufacturers will make your own wheels...

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Oily Bits: The cylinder head and valve train

For an engine to work fresh mixture and exhaust gas has to be able to enter and exit the cylinders. These induction and exhaust processes also need to occur at the correct moments, otherwise the engine won't run properly or even at all. During the intake cycle the air and fuel mixture has to be drawn into the cylinder, then held there during the compression stroke. This mix then burns and expands, during the power stroke,...

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Google Now notifications now alive in Chrome test version

Google Now notifications have arrived in early test builds of Chrome. (Credit: screenshot by Stephen Shankland/CNET) Google, taking a big step in its effort to make Android and Chrome equally good homes for people's digital lives, has at last built its Google Now anticipatory notification service into its browser. Google...

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