As much as some would like to envision a world entirely bereft of disk-based media, with Blu-ray being the medium's swan song, that ain't happening. Sony's already looking to the future, and in cahoots with Tohoku University, it has developed a blue-violet laser capable of 100 watt output. That's reportedly more than 100 times the "world's highest output values for conventional blue-violet pulse semiconductor lasers." In the press release, the company said its tested using such technology for next-generation, large-capacity optical disc-storage, and while that doesn't say too much at face value, the Examiner reports (by way of various Japanese news outlets) that it equates to 20 times the storage of current Blu-ray disks,or about 1TB of data. Don't worry, we're sure all those 4K 3D films will still find a way to justify a "barebones" release dearth of features before magically making room for a second (and even third) Special Edition in time for respective holiday seasons.

All About Apple Apple starts refunding Bumper purchases automagically Apple keeps antennagate alive with Droid X's 'kill switch' Apple begins iPhone 4 Case Program: apply for your free case or Bumper now Apple delays white iPhone a second time, won't ship until 'later this year' iMac refresh is imminent, according to reseller sources

Other news of import Microsoft wants employees to code Windows Phone 7 apps 'in their spare time' Verizon posts $198m net loss, picks up healthy amount of new wireless subs Samsung dispatching free Galaxy S handsets to iPhone 4 whiners on Twitter?

It may be America's first 4G smartphone, but if we had to guess, we'd surmise that not everyone sees it as perfect. Even if we (almost) did. HTC's EVO 4G was (and still is) a showstopper of epic proportions, boasting one of the largest screens in the smartphone universe and offering blistering speed under the hood. But with phone innovation happening faster than anyone could've ever imagined just a few years ago, we're sure that some ideas have been planted in your head since its launch earlier in the year. For those who've been toying with this here phone, we're keenly interested in learning how you'd change things if given the chance. Would you offer a 3G-only version for those uninterested in paying that extra $10 / month surcharge? Would you be a lot more satisfied with Android 2.2 loaded on? Toss it over to another carrier? Go on and get vocal in comments below, cool?

A recent report in the New York Times details a myriad issues that led up to the eventual explosion that started the mess known as the "BP oil spill," but aside from obvious mishandling of warnings and red flags, one particular issue was troubling those working on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig long before April 20th. Mike Williams, the rig's chief electronics technician, has come forward with a multitude of icky details surrounding the negligence that was involved in the catastrophe, with the one most germane to our discussion being the following: "For months, the computer system had been locking up, producing what the crew called the Blue Screen of Death." Williams continued, noting that "it would just turn blue," with "no data coming through." Of course, it's not as if BSODs are totally uncommon out in the working world -- Microsoft's Windows powers the vast majority of systems that corporations rely on daily -- but this one rubs just a wee bit differently. Hit the source link for the full spill.

[Image courtesy of Ultrasaurus]

Once again, China has proven to the world that it's the place to be for all sorts of gadgetry miracle. Just look at this 10-inch Windows 7 tablet here -- it may not be a full clone of the forthcoming 8.9-inch HP Slate, but it does come with a couple of interesting features: a 1366 x 768 resistive multitouch display (ideal for tackling the complicated Chinese characters with a stylus) and a webcam. You'll also find a handful of regular tidbits on this 1.66GHz Atom N450 device: a regular USB port coupled by a mini version, 3.5mm headphone jack, VGA port, LAN port, accelerometer, Bluetooth, WiFi and 3G. Oh, and you'll get a free stand, too, but we'll be minding our own business until this no-frills tablet gets a price.

This is no ordinary electric organ, my friend. Swedish software engineer Linus Åkesson loves chiptune so much (don't we all?) that he felt the urge to convert this old-school instrument into an 8-bit synthesizer. By rewiring the keys, pedals and buttons to a couple of microcontrollers (which isn't quite our usual weekend project in the garage), the reborn organ -- dubbed the Chipophone -- can now reproduce classic hits like Super Mario Bros' theme tune on the fly. Oh, and you can even record loops and change their tempo on this bad boy. We're not sure if Linus is planning on publishing the full details of his fabulous mod, but he'll be performing here all week anyway. Well, on YouTube at least -- check him out after the break.

We had a feeling Apple wasn't done showing off the apparent reception woes of its competitors -- after all, the company already updated once this week with the Nokia N97 mini. Now it's going after Motorola's celebrity of the moment (and known iPhone 4 bully), the Droid X. You can see Cupertino's results in the video after the break, but unlike Apple's other videos, we can't seem to recreate this one as easily with our Droid Xs. But hey, it's not like anyone's gonna buy a big phone anyway, right?

Marantz has unveiled its 2010 line of high end receivers, amplifiers, pre amplifiers and Blu-ray players, and naturally the headlining upgrades have to do with streaming internet video access, Blu-ray 3D and HDMI 1.4 compatibility. You can check out the press releases for all the details, but we'll highlight the UD7005 ($899, due in September) and UD5005 ($499, August) "Universal Media Players," which earn the tag by including everything SACD, DVD-Audio, DivX and even Blu-ray 3D playback, plus improving on their predecessors by featuring DLNA v1.5 streaming access and built in Netflix and YouTube compatibility. One disappointment however, while some are still waiting for an updated version of the flagship SR8002 receiver, with only new editions in the form of the SR5005, SR6005 and SR7005 receivers. The SR7005 features six HDMI 1.4a inputs, with Windows 7-compatible DLNA, iPod, IP control, Pandora and the other usual feature boxes checked when it ships next month for $1,599.

Well, well -- what have we here? It looks as if AT&T is fixing to rebundle its wireless plans starting on July 25th, obviously with intent to push those newly created data packs onto folks who may otherwise be inclined to pass right over. Furthermore, these new plans encourage users to select unlimited messaging, which -- as everyone and their third cousin knows -- is highway robbery. But then again, it's not like you're about to kick your texting habit, so you might as well pony up. So far as we can tell, the actual value propositions aren't changing (for example, a single user Nation Plan with 450 minutes, unlimited messaging and a 2GB Data Pro plan will cost you $84.99 either way), but it's clear that AT&T's aiming to narrow its offerings. The only real question revolves around the packages that include "pay-per-use" messaging -- will the carrier let users add smaller messaging plans, or just force us all to go unlimited or PPU? The 25th is right around the corner, so we ought to know for certain soon enough.

Update: We've scooped the family plans as well. We've also confirmed that nothing at all should be changing (you can still add select messaging plans to PPU options) in terms of pricing -- it's mostly just reshuffling the furniture, if you know what we mean.

[Thanks, Anonymous]

A lot of people told us that two podcasts in a single week was impossible, that it couldn't be done. But you know, it turns out that most people -- most people -- don't mind a second podcast. And because we make the whole thing -- the hosts, the production, even the segue noises -- we were able to bring all of our talents together and make something truly magical. We think you're really going to like it. We're starting at 530PM EST, but the chat after the break is open now, so get comfy.

P.S. And don't forget that Ustream has Android and iPhone clients as well, if you out and about and you can't join in on the Flash-based fun below.

Update: We're all wrapped up, but don't worry if you missed it -- our regular podcast post will be up tomorrow!

Yeah, we know that the Prez was once seen rocking a Verizon-branded BlackBerry 8830, but just bend your mind a bit and bear with us. Shortly after lighting up Wall Street with an exceedingly excellent quarterly earnings report, AT&T has announced an Encrypted Mobile Voice service that'll hit later in the year. Assuming Obama actually does own an AT&T-branded 'Berry, he'll soon be able to enjoy what AT&T calls "the first mobile-to-mobile voice encryption solution using two-factor authentication offered by a US operator." Said service is expected to provide a higher level of security for calls across the AT&T wireless network, and naturally, it'll be shopped to government agencies, law enforcement organizations, financial services institutions and international businesses, all of which will pay far too much for what's likely a false sense of security. We mean, haven't these guys ever seen 24?

Oh, sure -- you've got at least 893.1 options (at last count, anyway) when it comes to noise cancelling headphones for your iDevice, but do any of those plug directly into the dock connector instead of requiring a separate battery? Exactly. That's the claim to fame for Blackbox's i10, a new set of earbuds that rely on power from your iPod or iPhone in order to achieve that active noise cancelling action that the youngsters are so crazy about these days. According to the company, these will filter out 92 percent of background noise using Phitek Systems' ANR technology, and the inline remote makes it easy to adjust volume and the like. They're available today for £79.99 ($123) over in the UK, but only heaven knows when they'll mosey over to North America.

[Thanks, Sharmee]

Well this is one lucky Tiffany here, but she's not alone. Wired UK was first to report that Samsung's been quietly dishing out free Galaxy S handsets (the European flavor) to a few lucky British Twitter users. How so? Oh, four of them just made a fuss about their iPhone 4s, and the fifth guy needed help to choose between the Desire, iPhone 4 and Galaxy S. Before you all start tweeting your way to a free Android phone, though, it looks like the Korean giant's only picking certain influencers for some cheap publicity -- turns out our Tiffany here works in Digital Marketing for Condé Nast, which is coincidentally Wired's parent company. Tut tut tut. The other tweeples all appear to be similarly involved in marketing or publishing, with the exception of one student.

As if it hasn't already rubbed enough salt into Apple's wound, Samsung UK's also running new Galaxy S ads that take an indirect shot at the iPhone 4's antenna controversy with a clever bit of typography -- you can see the dirty work after the break. Very nice, Sammy, but you better be careful playing with fire here, as we've found it pretty easy to death grip Galaxy S phones like the Captivate into losing a fair bit of signal.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Verizon Communications, the majority shareholder of Verizon Wireless, just tossed out its Q2 2010 earnings, and unlike the majority of the other big boys we've seen, this company actually lost money over the past few months. All told, the mega-corp posted a $198m net loss compared to a $1.48b net profit this time last year, but if you were to exclude "special charges" for a workforce reduction, Verizon as a whole would've seen net profits of $0.58 per share. When focusing strictly on mobile, Verizon Wireless managed to pick up 1.4 million net customer additions, which is 200,000 shy of the 1.6 million that AT&T recently picked up. What's crazy is that one carrier has the iPhone while the other doesn't, and it doesn't take the imagination of Peter Pan to figure out how those numbers would shift if Apple's smartphone somehow picked up a CDMA radio and headed over to Big Red. Other fun facts about VZW's second quarter include a 3.4 percent uptick in total revenues year-over-year, a 5.2 percent increase in service revenues and a staggering 28.3 percent boost in data revenues. With all that cash flowing in, is there really a need for these newfangled caps? Consumers say "no," but Sir Capitalism says "yes."

Update: We've been pinged by Verizon and given some clarification to the awful mess known as filing quarterly reports in accordance with GAAP with varying shares of ownership. We also learned that Verizon Wireless added 665,000 new net wireless customers under contract in the prior quarter, whereas AT&T added 496,000 contract customers. It's pretty easy to make these numbers say whatever you want them to, apparently.

You'd think after running into ASUS's next generation Eee PC 1018P and 1015PE over five months ago at CeBIT, our excitement may have waned for the stylish netbooks. Oh, but it's actually the opposite, and when the brand new netbooks arrived last week, we grabbed the X-Acto knife (safely, of course) and eagerly unboxed them to see if the aluminum clad little laptops were as svelte as we'd remembered them. Sure, the $350 1018P and 1015PE have standard netbook internals (an Intel Atom N450 CPU, 1GB of RAM and Windows 7 Starter), but without a doubt they're some of the best quality netbooks ASUS has made in quite a while. Hit that read more link for an in-depth look at these two, and to see if they're all we had hoped for and more.