What is Pepsi thinking?

Source: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/TheDieline/~3/430862354/what-is-pepsi-t.html

Pepsi has announced that they are undergoing a drastic relaunching of their branding and packaging to bring "new life" to their flagship brands. The most dramatic element is a redesign of the Pepsi Globe logo, which for some reason is now supposed to represent a smile.

"Pepsi's Chief Marketing Officer Dave Burwick set the tone for the change at a meeting of Pepsi bottlers when he said "If we don't change quickly, we run the risk of being a footnote to history," according to Beverage Digest.

PepsiCo Chief Executive Officer Indra Nooyi told BD she didn't expect the changes to immediately stop the decline of Pepsi CSDs in the face of a difficult economy, but she expects the initiative to slow the decline until it eventually flattens out.

BD also reported that the changes generally excited bottlers, and that Frank Cooper, vice president of sparkling brands, promised to help bottlers convert their fleet to display the new Pepsi Imagery, which is due to hit the market late this year or in early 2009." via BevNet

What are they thinking? Seriously, this is a big step backwards in my opinion. With the change to the classic Pepsi globle logo, it looks like a cheap knockoff brand. I don't get it, just how is this supposed to increase or even sustain sales in a dwindling economy? Your thoughts?

Tesla's 4-door, all-electric Model S sports sedan gets pictured

Source: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/431358960/

Filed under: Transportation

We knew good and well it was on the way, but now we're bubbling over with excitement. The forthcoming Model S -- an all-electric, five passenger sports sedan that will ride on a platform developed entirely by Tesla -- has apparently been revealed. Of course, there's still a real possibility that the image you're drooling on above isn't a finalized look, but Road & Track has a pretty good record to fall back on. We're also hearing that the 2010-bound whip will get around 240 miles per charge while still doing the zero to sixty in under six ticks, and the $60,000 base price just makes it all the more appealing. For those with a thing for rear bumpers, check out Autoblog's link below for a sneak peek of the fanny.

Read - Road & Track writeup
Read - Sneak peek of the rear

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Dell preloading music mixes, CinemaNow movies, world again asks "Why?"

Source: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/431431585/

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops

When Dell started pre-loading digital copies of Iron Man in new systems for $19, we didn't think that was very enticing, but at least it was a pretty good movie, right? Quite possibly encouraged by thousands of accidental purchases (we kid, sort of), Dell's announced two new content pre-loading partnerships -- Universal Music Group and CinemaNow. The music comes in 50 and 100 song bundles starting at $25, but at least it's DRM-free, so if you don't mind a mega mix chosen entirely by Dell it's not all evil. CinemaNow, though, offers $25 and up bundles including (among other flicks) world-renown classics like The Fast and the Furious and the Matrix sequels. Fear.

Read - Universal Music Group
Read - CinemaNow

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Use the T-Mobile G1 Without Activating It [T-mobile G1]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/430782975/use-the-t+mobile-g1-without-activating-it

If you don't wanna spring for the two-year contract or wait out the 90 days 'til T-Mobile will unlock the G1 for you, getting it going without actually activating it is remarkably easy. Just snag an active T-Mobile SIM card from a friend (or foe), pop it in to get through the setup process, and after enabling Wi-Fi, you can drop it like it's hot. 'Course, it won't make any phone calls, but that's not why you wanted a G1 anyway, right? [Love for Biz via Ubergizmo]

DARPA's Acoustic Coagulation Cuff Stops Internal Bleeding with Sound Waves [Medical]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/430871562/darpas-acoustic-coagulation-cuff-stops-internal-bleeding-with-sound-waves

Internal bleeding is bad, bad news, especially if you're on the battlefield and far away from a hospital. That's why the military is very interested in any technology that can help stop internal bleeding that can be applied by people other than doctors. And they may have come upon a pretty amazing solution: an ultrasound cuff that uses sound waves to stop internal bleeding. Amazing.

DARPA is working on what they've dubbed the Deep Bleeder Acoustic Coagulation Cuff (DBAC). It's a "semi-automated, ultrasound device designed to cut blood loss and shock resulting from combat limb injuries, one that can be operated by any GI with minimal training." Since an injured soldier can lose up to 25% of their blood volume while waiting to be transported, it would be hugely helpful to be able to stop that bleeding and stabilize them before being treated in a hospital.

By focusing a high-powered ultrasound beam at the bleeding area, the cuff can coagulate the blood and stem the bleeding quickly. They're hoping to have a prototype ready within 18 months. [CNET]

MSI Wind Scores 30% Performance Boost in Free Update [NetBooks]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/430960444/msi-wind-scores-30-performance-boost-in-free-update

Overclocking is nothing new, but rarely is it promoted by a PC manufacturer, let alone in a netbook. But MSI has released the v1.09 BIOS update for their Wind mini-notebook that allows users to function key toggle an 8%, 15% or 24% automatic overclock that can translate to a 30% performance boost (as independently tested). You'll notice the extra power in apps like Photoshop especially, but keep in mind that it probably won't do wonders for the battery life. All in all, however, it sounds like an absolute must-have update. [Electric Vagabond]

Dealzmodo: $50 Off Oprah's Favorite Gadget, Amazon Kindle [Dealzmodo]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/431176266/dealzmodo-50-off-oprahs-favorite-gadget-amazon-kindle

Officially becoming Oprah's favorite gadget will no doubt do wonders for Amazon Kindle sales. You know what else will? Knocking $50 off the price for her viewers. It's okay, you don't actually have to watch Oprah. Through Nov. 1, enter the discount code OPRAHWINFREY (no really) to slap $50 off the price at checkout. No one ever has to know. [Oprah via ZDNet]

BMW asks other automakers to collaborate on in-car open source platform

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/430528260/

Filed under: Transportation

In March of last year, we heard that Toyota had a mind to create its very own in-car operating system to "boost efficiency and speed up development." Now, it's bruited that BMW is asking any automaker who will listen to join hands in order to jointly develop an open source in-vehicle platform. The company has stated that it plans on having an open source system in a vehicle that sells 200,000 or more units within the next five to seven years, and while employees from rivals were on hand when the proclamation was made, no one was rushing to call dibs on first. Still, it sounds as if BMW will be forging ahead with or without any assistance, though bigwig Gunter Reichart did assert that BMW was "inviting other OEMs to join it [and] to exchange with it." In an apparent attempt at providing comic relief, Jim Buczkowski (Ford's director of global electrical and electronics systems engineering) stated that through its partnership with Microsoft, it already had 280,000 vehicles on the road with an open system. Hmm, clearly our definitions of "open" are somewhat incongruent.

[Via Motor Authority, thanks Laminaatplaat]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Confirmed: Kids like Sugar better than XP

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/430651671/

Filed under: Laptops

It's hardly a scientific test, but when a Cnet editor's 8 year old daughter was given the choice between an OLPC XO laptop running Windows XP or the Linux-based Sugar UI, Sugar was the winner. As Cnet points out, either OS when properly incorporated into the teaching curriculum should serve the children of developing nations equally well. Only one, however, promises to prepare our youth for middle management.

P.S. Amazon's Give One, Get One program will be limited to Linux according to Cnet and confirmed in the OLPC Wiki -- no dual-boot for you Santa.

[Thanks, Justin G.]

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Electric Motorsport's GPR-S e-motorcycle available now for $8,000

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/430755437/

Filed under: Transportation

When we spotted Electric Motorsport last year the company was pushing a high-ish performance electric motorcycle prototype, with a top speed of 100 MPH, 100 mile range, a $15,000 pricetag, and a whole bunch ugly battery strapped underneath. Lucky for us, they've taken a very mass-market approach to their next bike, the GPR-S. Boasting a 60-70 MPH top speed and 35-60 mile range, the sleek little bike just might be the perfect commuter ride, and the $8,000 pricetag is much more palatable. The bike can charge in about four hours, or 1.5 hours with an optional speed charger. Even better, the bike is modular in nature, which means you'll be able to swap in a better power system once one comes along with a minimum of hassle. Electric Motorsport has sold 25 of these so far, but they're up and running and ready for sales at volume -- which is surprisingly still an incredibly rare feat in the electric transportation industry, even in 2008.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sprint launches Touch Pro at "select national retailers" this week

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/430806226/

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Locked in a footrace with AT&T's Fuze to become the first US national carrier to launch a variant of the HTC Touch Pro, Sprint has announced that folks can start ordering the QWERTY smartphone this week from "select national retailers," making good on a promise made at CTIA last month. That's not quite as cool as a full-scale launch, but at least we'll start to get 'em in the wild in the next few days -- meanwhile, a more full-scale, fanfare-filled launch is planned for November 2 when the Touch Pro is made available online, via phone, and in all Sprint stores. Any Touch Diamond buyers feeling lingering regrets right about now?

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments