Two years ago, Apple launched its Find My iPhone service, which provided MobileMe subscribers with lost device location functionality. Apple expanded its Find My iPhone (and Find My iPad) service to all customers in November, including those who didn’t fork over $99 annually for MobileMe. Earlier today, Research in Motion (RIM) launched an open beta of BlackBerry Protect — a free service which duplicates some of Apple’s Find My iPhone and MobileMe sync functionality, providing BlackBerry users with remote backup and restore, lost device tracking and wipe, and the ability to remotely activate loud ringer mode, so you can annoy the hell out of your friends for hours after losing your BlackBerry in their couch. BlackBerry users can download Protect through App World.

Take a seat, Apple In-Ear Headphones — it’s Gummy Bears all the way, today. About a month ago I wrote a somewhat-sarcastic post about Gummy Bear Earbuds, for the “From the Inbox” tech- or travel-related product series. Every day I receive literally dozens of emailed pitches about tech and travel products and services, and on a “slow news day,” I’m more than happy to choose a product at random to feature on the blog. Well, my sample of Gummy Bear earbuds arrived yesterday (or perhaps even a few weeks ago, since I haven’t been around to receive packages in quite a while), and I’m using them exclusively today.

First impressions:

- The “Gummy Bear Scent” definitely complements Aerosmith’s Love in An Elevator (I’m gearing up for Monday’s Aerosmith Roller Coaster ride at Disneyland Paris)
- They look better than they sound — even with some fine-tuning of the EQ settings in iTunes
- They’re not edible my teeth aren’t strong enough to decapitate the (R) bear — correction: they are in fact not edible … from the packaging: “This is not Candy. Do not eat!”

Working in the tech industry, it’s reasonable to say that my colleagues and I have overlooked the fact that outside of the bubble — OK, FAR outside of the bubble — Jim Jones iPhone owner might not realize that each of the over-350,000 iPhone apps was not actually developed by an Apple employee. After hearing a CNN reporter declare on a live broadcast today that Apple recently “developed” a Catholic ‘Confession’ iPhone app, I’ve decided to launch a one-part series, titled “Where do Apps Come From?“

Sure, iPhones were flying off shelves in 2007 when the only apps available were the standard “widgets” still pre-installed by Apple, including Phone, Mail, Safari, iPod, Stocks and Weather, among others, but the creation of the App Store — and subsequent third-party app development — has added significant value to Apple’s flagship mobile product.

By definition, third-party apps are developed by a third-party (i.e. not the phone’s manufacturer), which means that the now hundreds of thousands of apps that now populate the app store were created by tens of thousands of individual developers — from a 13-year-old kid in his parents’ basement to multi-billion-dollar giants like Google and Microsoft — even The White House developed an app. So there you have it; all but a tiny fraction of the apps available today were not developed by Apple.

Each day, I receive dozens of emails about novelty products, cruise “deals,” and hotel restaurants in the middle of nowhere — all with offers for “more information and high-resolution images upon request.” Well, today I decided to take one PR rep up on her offer.

Just three or four months from now (OK, sometime in Q2), you’ll be able to walk into a Hot Topic store (those still exist?) and pick up a pair of these totally awesome and equally practical “Gummy Bear Earbuds,” seen in the high-resolution image above. At $9.99, I’m going to assume they sound as great as they look. For those investors out there, don’t go running out to buy up $BEAR just yet — these little guys are actually manufactured by electronics giant “Sakar.com,” with licensing fees going to HARIBO (yes, spelled in all CAPS) *Correction: Street Players Holding Corporation. Oh, and a word of warning from the manufacturer: “I wouldn’t recommend consumption.” If anybody decides to pick these up, please let me know how they sound (and taste, if that’s your thing). And just in case you landed on this page after scouring the Web for reviews, I’m gonna give these gummy dummies a rating of 4.5. Yes, 4.5. Out of 4.5.

Are you a Gummy Bear collector? Accessorize your earbuds with officially-licensed Gummy Bear iPod cases and a Gummy Bear mp3 player (yes, these do exist, and I’ll update you with pricing and availability just as soon as that hits my inbox).

For as long as I can remember (OK, fine, it’s only been two years), I’ve spent the first full week of January in Las Vegas, covering the massive Consumer Electronics Show for PC Magazine. Nearly every major consumer electronics company has a significant presence at CES (with Apple as a notable exception), announcing new products in every established electronics category, including home theater, computers, cell phones, e-book readers — even LED lightbulbs. This year, as manufacturers release countless Android tablets and even more 3D HDTVs (consumers are definitely going to eat them up this year — right???), I’ll be heading to Hawaii for some travel writing and R&R. I plan to be back in the game at CES 2012, but in the meantime, here are just a few of the people and sites I’m following at the show:

PCMag.com: @saschasegan, @lanceulanoff, @dancosta, @wwwendyyy

Blogs: @engadget, @gearlog, @gizmodo

Bloggers: @joannastern, @joshuatopolsky, @ryan, @fruhlinger

And, if you want to follow everyone at CES (myself included, for some reason), head over to @NBCUCES’s CES 2011 list.

The Torch is the first BlackBerry to run 6 OS, and the device’s performance was much more reliable than the BlackBerry Storm and Storm 2, both of which I’ve used in the past. I didn’t have any issues with the device locking up, as I have on a weekly basis with my Bold 9650. The Twitter and Facebook apps also run much more efficiently than they do on my Bold, and their Social Feed integration makes it simple to track all of my social media from one app. The Torch’s built-in keyboard is also incredibly useful — I’m still much faster at typing on a physical keyboard, and tend to type without looking at the device, which isn’t possible when using the iPhone’s virtual keyboard.

That said, the iPhone 4 is still significantly faster, more stable, and more intuitive than the Torch, and its app catalog cannot be beat. While the Torch’s GPS tended to place me in Brooklyn when using Google Maps, the iPhone 4 was always accurate, marking my location correctly, several miles away in Manhattan. Call quality is comparable, as is battery life, and as both phones are locked to the crummy AT&T network (it’s still pretty terrible in NYC), you can expect mediocre voice and data coverage.

Along with my iPhone, I typically carry my Bold 9650, which I use to communicate with friends and coworkers over BlackBerry Messenger. As the iPhone does not offer any kind of BBM compatibility, the Torch is still somewhat attractive, as it would eliminate the need to carry a second device. Still, without the benefit of a superior network, BBM and a physical keyboard alone are not enough to convince me to abandon my iPhone (or even delay replacing it). I’m happy to have it home.

Perhaps most impressive were Canon’s prototype ultra-high-res displays — capable of displaying 4K video (think HD, but so sharp you can’t distinguish individual pixels), and 8-megapixel still images at full resolution.

Canon also had 4K video cameras on display, but without an ultra-high-res display on hand at that particular exhibit, it was difficult to grasp just how impressive these cameras were.

There was plenty more to see at the Canon Expo, including this full-wall display demonstrating the evolution of the Canon ELPH, and I hope to post more soon if time allows. I can’t even imagine what we’ll see at Canon Expo 2015!

I was optimistic after seeing an image of the Apple iPad on the box, but a few seconds later I was holding the most pathetic excuse for an Apple knockoff I had seen among multiple trips to Beijing and Shanghai over the last two years. After much negotiation, we settled on a price of 1,000 RMB (about $150), and an hour after first setting eyes on my doorstop to be, I was walking out of the market with an obnoxiously shiny new Android iPad in hand.

I have to admit that I might be a bit biased – I’ve spent the past two months with an authentic Apple iPad, and I couldn’t be happier with it – but this Android tablet doesn’t come close to the real thing. With a $150 price tag, however, you can take this piece of garbage home for much less than its far superior role model – that is, unless you happen to be the German tourist who snagged one just a few minutes before me, paying twice as much and still leaving with a smug grin on her face.

As you might expect from a $150 device, performance was incredibly sluggish, and the display wasn’t nearly as sharp or responsive as that on the Apple iPad. The accelerometer worked well, however, and the included micro-SD card slot is a nice touch. The Android iPad is nothing more than a novelty, and the photo leaves you salivating, you might want to save up for the Apple version.

I’m leaving to pursue a career in real estate. Yeah, you heard me correctly – real estate. I’ve grown to love the ins and outs of Manhattan’s real estate market after making some recent investments – to the extent that I come home every night to check the latest listings, and even get text alerts on my phone when the closing price of a property in my neighborhood becomes public. I couldn’t pass up this opportunity, even if it meant walking away from a job I worked so hard to get. I’d be happy to explain exactly what I’ll be doing when I see you in person – the position couldn’t be a better fit.

I’ll still be the geek who refreshes the live stream frantically during Apple keynotes, and the guy you ask which entry-level DSLR to get your dad for Father’s Day. I plan to continue writing for PC Magazine and other publications on a freelance basis as time allows. You might even see me at parties and media events, as a “plus 1” of one of my very good industry friends, or perhaps representing my soon-to-be-frequently updated Tech, Travel & Tuna blog (look up – this is it).

The good news: not being tied to a magazine frees me up to post here more, to be more blunt in my Twitter posts, and gives me time to really play with some of the gadgets I never had a chance to before. The bad news: I’m leaving a corps of incredible journalists and some very hard-working vendors, who made my job a constant adventure.

As always, you can reach me at zshonig [at] gmail [dot] com.

Zach

P.S. Below you will find the job description for my soon-to-be-vacant position at PCMag.com. Please let me know if you have any questions about the required qualifications or job responsibilities.

Staff Editor – Consumer Electronics

Job Responsibilities:
–Produce, line edit, and write product reviews
–Write news stories, blog posts, and weekly newsletters
–Write and edit product roundups and buying guide
–Maintain a product reviews database and provide general support for analysts
–Help to maintain and update 15 landing pages on PCMag.com
–Prepare product photos for landing pages
–Meet with vendors for product briefings
–Represent PCMag at industry events

Applicant Requirements:
–At least 4 years of editing and online production experience, preferably in the tech arena. Knowledge and experience with the aforementioned product categories is a plus.
–Solid writing and editing skills and a keen eye for detail. Copy editing experience is a plus.
–Experience working with a content management system. Image editing experience is a plus.
–Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, competitive, deadline-driven environment
–Self-starter and proactive problem solver with a positive attitude
–Interest in and experience with social media is a plus
–Bachelors Degree (Journalism, Communications, or English preferred)