Pitchfork Media, the company behind the music site that all my cool friends used to read (I use the past tense because, like me, my friends have gotten old and uncool), just launched a new property — The Dissolve, a site that’s all about movies.
When I loaded up The Dissolve earlier today, my first feeling was one of familiarity. That’s usually not something you want in a new property, but in this case, it was good thing — I was happy to see the bylines of several writers I used to read at one of my favorite arts and entertainment sites, The A.V. Club. The Dissolve was founded by Keith Phipps, who previously edited The A.V. Club, its editor Scott Tobias was film editor at The A.V. Club, and yes, Phipps appears to have done a good job of brining several of the writers from his old gig over to the new one.
Phipps told me that he started dreaming up The Dissolve after his departure from The A.V. Club in December. As he tried to figure out what he was going to do next, Phipps realized that what he was most excited about was “getting back into film” — movies are a big part of the coverage at The A.V. Club, but they’re mixed in with TV, music, and more. The Dissolve is aiming to be all movies, all the time.
Not that the Internet is exactly lacking when it comes to movie sites. Phipps said he thinks are “tons of great film websites” out there, but he had his own vision for “kind of a place to hang out and read about and talk about movies.” He noted that for many sites, there’s a bit of a “hype cycle,” where they’ll post every trailer and every piece of news or speculation about a big movie, but once it’s actually out in theaters, the discussion dies off.
“We’re not going to be out of the game entirely,” Phipps acknowledged, but he said he wants to dial the hype down a bit and mix things like posting trailers with in-depth discussions of movies old and new.
One example of that approach is a series called the Movie of the Week, where, as the name implies, The Dissolve will run a number of pieces throughout the week discussing different aspects of a single film. And it doesn’t look like these are going to be the latest blockbusters — the first selection is Repo Man, the second will be Zelig. You can read about some of the other planned features in Phipps’ “user’s guide.”
As for building a community, The Dissolve hasn’t done anything too novel on the tech side. it comments on stories, of course, and it also has what Phipps called “a very informal partnership” with movie rating service Letterboxd. Phipps added the he’s open to exploring other services that could be added, but he isn’t interested in building a separate forum or social network: “There are enough of those already.”
But given the proliferation of online film criticism, much of it done for free, isn’t the news- and aggregation-based model the one that makes economic sense? Phipps said that to a large extent, he lets other folks to handle the business side — though in the initial stages he did have to convince Pitchfork, particularly Pitchfork President Chris Kaskie, that The Dissolve could be a moneymaking proposition.
More broadly, Phipps quoted his aforementioned editor Scott Tobias and suggested that there’s “a real estate bubble when it comes to pageviews in film.” He said he’s discouraged when he sees “variations on the same story aggregated on linked to on every site” and that an approach that values pageviews and nothing else is “disastrous for creativity.”
“I hope we’ll build a quality audience that our advertisers think is worth reaching, rather than just going for the numbers,” Phipps said.
Android: The HTC One and Galaxy S4 Google Editions ship with a new and improved Camera app that adds features like PhotoSphere and an improved settings menu. Thanks to some enterprising users, that APK is in the wild and available to anyone who wants to give it a whirl.
When you make a purchase online, or are providing an email address to someone you don't quite trust, it makes sense to provide a disposable email address. While it's certainly not the only service of its kind, MailDrop is a clean, easy to use service that keeps the junk out of your real inbox.
If Shapeways is the Etsy of the 3D printing world, Layer by Layer is the iTunes. The brand new online marketplace provides a place for designers to sell one-time prints of their designs, from vases to phone cases to toothbrush handles.
The key phrase is “one-time.” Unlike sites like MakerBot’s Thingiverse, which allows you to download design files to your computer, Layer by Layer users do not receive a file. After they hit the “Print Now!” button next to an object they desire, Layer by Layer sends instructions to their personal 3D printer, automatically printing that object.
“The whole process is a little too complicated for average people who aren’t engineers or computer scientists,” co-founder and CEO Jonathan Schwartz said. “This takes the whole printing process and simplifies it to the click of a button.”
The lack of a file transfer presents a layer of protection for designers who wish to keep their original design under wraps. When someone posts their design on Thingiverse, they are broadcasting it to anyone who cares to look and enabling endless duplication. That’s not a good feature if they want to make money off of their design. Right now, a lot of sellers turn to Shapeways, where they can set up a virtual shopfront with their designs. Shapeways takes care of the entire 3D printing process and ships objects out to buyers.
Layer by Layer preserves the home printing aspect while also allowing designers to bring in cash. Many objects are still free, but others are as high as $10 or $25 per print.
More traditional makers probably balk at this concept, as personal 3D printers have long been associated with the open source movement, but Schwartz said their system to protect files is the answer to a major complaint they heard from designers.
In a further effort to streamline the printing process, Layer by Layer employees inspect and approve every design that goes up on the site. One of the company’s main goals was to make sure people can trust a design will be of good quality and compatible with their printer. Schwartz said they wanted to differentiate the site from Thingiverse, where the number of designs seems endless. You find what you want and download it, and sometimes find it is not compatible with your printer.
“Is this going to print or not?” Schwartz said. “That shouldn’t be a question in your head.”
Designers and the people who use their design often have different settings on their printers, which can result in an object turning out differently on each end. Every design on Layer by Layer prints with the designer’s original settings and is advertised with its compatible printers. In this early stage, the company is limiting compatibility to MakerBot’s Replicator line. To appear on the site, each design has to be compatible with all of the models. They will expand to other printers in the near future.
Schwartz co-founded Layer by Layer with Max Friefeld and Oliver Ortliev, all of whom met while students at Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, Calif. They had used 3D printers to make prototypes and custom parts at school, but only became really excited about the possibilities when they saw them take off as a personal tool. They started work on Layer by Layer in September and launched it in beta mode early last week.
“We’re trying to increase the availability of great things you can print,” Schwartz said. “Instead of having to download files and apply settings to get them to print properly, you just have to click a button. People are seeming to really like that.”
Call forwarding when you're abroad isn't the most exciting of tech topics, but it is one that's likely to save you a bundle on the road. Roamer is a new iOS and Android app that forwards your regular number onto a local SIM card, ensuring that you'll pay native rates even when calling your loved ones. The app itself is free from the Android and iOS stores, with roaming credits available to buy in packages of $13, $16, $39 and $65 -- and if you'd like to see it in action before you reach for your phone, there's a video tucked in after the break. Oh, and any Windows Phone and BlackBerry users who are feeling left out, fear not, the company has promised versions for those platforms are coming in the near future.
Jay-Z’s Magna Carta Holy Grail arrived on a million Samsung phones today, courtesy of a pioneering cross-promotional deal that will see the Brooklyn MC’s new album hit platinum status before it even arrives in stores. But it’s also everywhere online (except stores), thrown up on scores of blogs and torrent trackers almost immediately after the midnight ET launch.
Windows: We love Autohotkey for its ability to automate keyboard tasks. Mouse movements are another thing, though. Thankfully, MouseController is up to the task.
It's an unwritten rule that everything is better in slow-motion. But there's a good chance your eyes aren't ready for the next level of awesomeness from Phantom's new Flex4K camera that can capture an astounding 1,000 frames per second at a resolution of 4096 x 2160. In other words? Every last detail captured in super, super, super slow-motion. More »
Happy April First, errybody! Yes, that’s right, we’ve reached that special, inimitable time of year. April Fools Day 2013. At TechCrunch, we have a long history of taking April Fools seriously. Deadly, deadly seriously. So, we’ve taken it upon ourselves to create a master list (which will be updated throughout the day) with the best tomfoolery, pranks, WTFs and LOLs the Internet and the tech industry have to offer.
All night and all day, whatever it takes. If a company close to you happens to break out its clown shoes in what can only be an eye-rolling effort at being funny (really, the one time of year we indulge terrible nerd jokes publicly), please alert us in the comment section. And, again, thank you for your help in advance.
We’ve tried to separate the good from the bad and the ugly — and highlight the stuff that’s actually funny — sometimes with success, sometimes not.
So here they are.
(And, again, for our annual disclaimer: If you’re one of those folks who finds April Fools stressful because you’re constantly subject to punkings courtesy of your co-workers, rest assured that we at TechCrunch would never do that to you. Never. Never ever.)
The Great List Of April Foolings
Google Nose
You have to give Google props. They always take April Fools Day pretty seriously, and cats are usually involved. But this year Google is poking fun of its Glass Project with some olfactory goodness. Google Nose. Smells galore. You’ve probably been wondering what Google does with all that information that it tirelessly indexes for its search engine, combing the Web with Page Rank to serve you moderately usable results. Well, it’s also been collecting scents.
Now, as Greg reports, instead of paying hundreds or thousands for its newest piece of sexy hardware, Google is now letting you type your favorite scent into its search engine, tap the “smell button” and inhale to your hearts content. Just try not to sneeze on your monitor.
YouTube? More like NOTube, amirite?
That’s right. You heard it here first. Jordan brook the news Google has decided to shut down YouTube. After eight years, the company revealed that the whole thing has actually been an American Idol-like competition. Thank god, because for those of us that were taught that life is a competition — no enjoyment necessary — well, we’ve been a little suspicious of YouTube.
But the company has finally revealed that the competition that we know as YouTube is coming to a close, and that an expert panel of judges — YouTube celebrities themselves — will choose the winners. But don’t expect the winners to be announced any time soon. The judges will spend the next decade sifting through YouTube videos to choose said winners. Tomorrow, at midnight, the site will shut down and all content will be deleted. When it reopens in 2023, the only remaining video will be the winner. Frankly, it all makes perfect sense.
Gmail Blue
The hits just keep coming for The Googs. Next stop on the April Fools Google Train? “Gmail Blue.” That should explain itself, but just in case, it took Google “six years to develop the technology” to turn Gmail blue. Google turns nine tomorrow, and it might as well just go for it.
A poke at Facebook? Who’s to say?
You Got Vowels? Give Twitter Money.
Twitter has announced Twttr. Who needs vowels, am I right? Not you. Or Twitter. Twitter’s new “two-tiered” service includes a free portion called “Twttr” where each tweet (or “twt”) shall contain nary-a-vowel. But just in case that has you up in arms, you can have your stinkin’ vowels back, but it will cost you $5/month.
Pretty minimal price to pay for the fundamental building blocks of, you know, the English language and all. But because Twitter is ever-the-beneficent social network, it will offer the “sometimes Y” free of charge. Well, isn’t that precious? Oh, and thankfully URL vowels are free. Twitter’s not into the whole “hidden fees” thing, you understand. It’s almost like that April Fools joke where Facebook tried to make you pay $1 to message strangers. Oh wait, that actually happened.
It seems like an angry intern has wiggled his way into Netflix’s genre system, with all sorts of new genres popping up for the first time today.
Other family favorites include “Movies That Are In English But Still Require Subtitles”, “Movies With Epic Nicolas Cage Meltdowns”, and my favorite, “Surreal Ballets Based on a William Shatner Album” which just lists William Shatner’s Gonzo Ballet 50 times.
Virgin’s Glass-Bottomed Plane
Glass-bottomed boats are so last year. That’s why Virgin is stepping it up a notch with the world’s first-ever glass-bottomed plane. Richard Branson proves himself to be a peerless innovator yet again:
We hope to trial the glass bottom technology with other Virgin airlines in time and have asked other Virgin companies to support this innovative trial and launch our new domestic Scottish route. This really is a team effort from all corners of Virgin.
Speechless.
Sony For Pets
Sony is releasing a new “Animalia” line of products for your tech product-starved pets. And they’re really “stoked” about it. As are your pets, no doubt. Because your hamsters need to test out those Beats headphones you bought them for Christmas.
According to Sony:
The introductory line-up includes Sony-branded products targeted at owners with dogs, cats and hamsters, with additional devices and networked services slated for release later this year. Check out this video to learn all about our new K9 4K TV, M3-OW KittyCans, and In-Cage Speakers.
ThinkGeek
ThinkGeek has a whole new line of April Fools products that are fun for the whole family. Like this “Eye Of Sauron Desk Lamp.” My apologies if your order doesn’t go through. I’ve already bought 50 of them.
Archeological analysis has confirmed that our Google Maps Street View team has indeed found one of history’s long lost relics: a treasure map belonging to the infamous pirate, William “Captain” Kidd.
The map was found on a recent expedition in the Indian Ocean, as part of a deep-water dive to expand our underwater Street View collection. Captain Kidd was rumored to have buried his treasure around the world, and tales of a long-lost treasure map have lingered for generations.
Google+ Photos And +Emotion
Google+ now lets you add real emotions to your photos. This would be hilarious if 25 startups weren’t currently working on/pitching this idea — outside of Google+. Because the best Google+ April Fools joke is, really, well, Google+.
Google Analytics
Some users of Google Analytics may begin noticing that they have a few new international visitors checking out their sites. I’m just glad Google didn’t say that they were “totally out of this world.” Google is now including active visitors from the International Space Station, Control Room, who clearly have nothing better to do than to check out your WordPress blog. Here’s Carl to explain.
Is your house looking a bit tired and shabby? Want to make your narky step-aunt jealous? Trying to keep up with the Joneses but don’t have the money to complete an expensive reno?
Now you can give your house a lick of fresh paint for free on Street View with Google SCHMICK (Simple Complete House Makeover Internet Conversion Kit). Forgot to mow the nature strip? Deck it out with some fresh buffalo grass. Front steps falling down? Swap them out for doric columns and a pergola. Graffiti on the front fence? Cover it with so many palm trees people will think they’re on the Vegas strip.
Google’s Levity Algorithm
For your Google Apps pleasures:
Toshiba Gets A Console
That’s right. Today, Toshiba is announcing its first-ever gaming console: The Shibasphere. Look out, every gaming console ever made, past, present or future. The Shibasphere is here.
The Shibasphere features unprecedented computing power, a completely controller-free interface, and Logical Aggression Monitoring that deploys positive therapeutics to prevent emotionally devastating rage-quits. Available accessories include the Shibadome, Shibasuit and Shibatote that enhance the sound, motion detection and portability of the console, and also features:
12 core 3.5 Ghz Processors
8192 MB GDDR5 RAM Graphics Card
809.3b Infrared Motion Detection
1080p Full HD
7.1 Channel Surround Sound
5 Stereo Mini Jacks
8 HDMI Ports
AC Power
SoundCloud’s Dropometer
Sometimes you just don’t know when “the drop” is going to hit in a song. Not sure what I’m talking about? If you’ve ever seen a Harlem Shake video, it’s that very short, euphoric moment where the music drops out for a second and suddenly everyone is dancing/humping something. (See a notable example from my alma mater here.) Well, now, using its patent-pending algorithm, SoundCloud will tell you when that “unpredictable and surprising moment” is going to happen, via The Dropometer:
… The Dropometer is designed to help you prepare yourself for the big moment, whether that means getting in the mental space where you can really break it down, or fixing yourself a fortifying snack.
While we first innovated the Dropometer around dubstep, we’ve identified broad utility for this new functionality across all genres. Look to the Dropometer to find out when to expect a key crescendo in a 17th-century symphony or the emotional climax in an episode of This American Life.
Love with Food Gon’ Get You High
Love With Food is announcing a new product line called Love With WEED — a monthly subscription that delivers a new high every month. For every box sent, we’ll plant a cannabis shrub along CA Route 1. It’s like Tom’s, but greener. Here it is.
Sphero PeaceKeeper
Robotics takes a step forward today with “Sphero — Peacekeeper Edition.” The robotics maker is now offering a super-sized version of Sphero that you can control from your smartphone or tablet. And cats love it. It measures 3-feet in diameter, weighs over 150 pounds but is totally fun and lightweight and agile. The future is now, people. GoSphero.
StumbleUpon
StumbleUpon has put together a big list of things you can to do prank your colleagues, family members and loved ones. See it here.
RunKeeper
The next revolution in running is here. Now. And it’s really big.
Despite the best efforts of my administration, prolonged partisan debates in Congress are preventing us from a solution to our mounting national debt. Instead of bickering over taxes, we’re taking a new approach: asking everyday Americans to chip in so we can pay off our debt once and for all.
With your help, it’s time to act.
HELP PAY OFF our NATIONAL DEBT
Samsung’s Eco Trees
Really hilarious, Samsung: “Samsung Electronics announced Eco Trees, a smart, eco-friendly air purifier that runs on solar energy.” Get it? Chlorophyll? More like Bore-ophyll. Here are all of their fresh new Eco Tree products.
We are delighted to announce a significant new extension to Nokia’s product offering with the Nokia 5AM-TH1N6 Constellation, a touch-screen microwave oven. The Constellation sets itself apart with a superfast, water-cooled 8-core high-voltage transformer, which brings a combined performance of 5,000 watts to end-users, letting them heat up turnkey meal solutions within seconds.
‘Nokia has a proven track record and extensive IPR in working with microwave radios, so for us this was a logical next step. We can attack our competition in their core business,’ says Olavi Huhtikuu, Nokia’s director of household innovation.
‘That’s why we developed the highly innovative 5AM-TH1N6 Constellation, which will revolutionize everything from single households to canteen kitchens.’
The new Nokia 5AM-TH1N6 has even more innovative features. The device comes with the latest eye-tracking technology, which stops the food from rotating when you look at it, and it automatically adjusts the temperature depending on how hungry you look.
BMW Gets Into Strollers
With a royal baby due this summer, we are proud to announce the launch of our limited edition BMW P.R.A.M. (Postnatal Royal Auto Mobile). Available in Princess Pink or Royal Blue, this soft-top convertible has been designed using our EfficientDynamics technology. With two or four-wheel-drive, it rides as smoothly on a polo field as it does down The Mall and comes with air conditioning and built-in extendable flagpoles as standard. For those who are ‘too posh to push’ this masterpiece of motherhood even comes fitted with N.A.P.P.I.E. (Nanny-Assisting Petrol-Powered Injection Engine).
A Piet Mondrian painting is unmistakable for its big blocks of primary colors set in grids of horizontal and vertical black lines on a white background. The Mondri 3 in 1 vase is very clearly inspired by the late De Stijl movement artist, and it breaks apart into three pieces so you can create your own neoplasticism masterpiece. More »
The life of a hotshot Hollywood publicist isn't one you'd envy under the best of circumstances. But the guy who has to cover Chris Brown's back? That's some kind of martyr. More »
