Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Tuesday, June 07, 2011

Social Lending Marketplace Prosper Raises $17.2M From Eric Schmidt, DFJ, Others

Source: http://techcrunch.com/2011/06/07/social-lending-marketplace-prosper-raises-17-2m-from-eric-schmidt-dfj-others/

Prosper.com, a social lending marketplace that connects borrowers with individual and institutional investors, this morning announced that it has raised $17.2 million in funding from new investors Draper Fisher Jurvetson and Crosslink Capital.

Existing investors Accel Partners, CompuCredit, Omidyar Network, Eric Schmidt’s TomorrowVentures and Volition Capital also participated in the round.

Prosper also announced that Tim Draper, founder and managing director of DFJ, and Jerome Contro, general partner and COO of Crosslink Capital, will join the company’s board of directors.

According to its website, Prosper’s peer-to-peer lending marketplace currently boasts more than 1,080,000 members and over $236,000,000 in funded loans.

Prosper has raised close to $75 million to date. Its closest competitor, Lending Club, has secured $52.7 million in venture capital.

CrunchBase Information

Prosper

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Juniper: NFC Payments To Reach $50 Billion Worldwide By 2014

Source: http://techcrunch.com/2011/06/07/juniper-nfc-payments-to-reach-50-billion-worldwide-by-2014/

We know Google has made a big bet on near field communications (NFC) as a payments system with the launch of Google Wallet, but does the technology have the potential to be the future of how money is transacted? Juniper Research seems to think so. The company is releasing a new report that forecasts that global NFC mobile contactless payment transactions will reach nearly $50 billion worldwide by 2014.

Juniper says that NFC is steadily gaining traction, and because of the latest rollout of the technology both in the U.S. and outside the U.S., 2011 and 2012 are expected to be “banner years for NFC service rollouts.”

For background, NFC enables people to make transactions, exchange digital content and connect electronic devices with a simple touch. As we’ve seen with Google, Android phones such as the Nexus S are being built with NFC chips, making your cell phone a mobile wallet. It’s unclear if Apple will add NFC technology to the iPhone 5.

Of course, NFC has gained traction in international markets before the U.S. Orange Mobile is using the technology, and Starbucks is set to sign on to use the technology to enable payments in the U.K.

Juniper says that in the next 18 months, we will see implementations of the technology in up to 20 countries. In fact, Juniper is forecasting that North America and Western Europe together will exceed the Far East region in under three years based on transaction value. North America and Western Europe will account for 50% of NFC payments market by value in 2014.

As we’ve written in the past, there are a number of barriers that could prevent NFC technology from becoming a mainstream technology, so it’s not a sure thing that NFC will reach the sort of scale that Juniper is forecasting.

Photo via MacRumors

Tesla Model S is almost production-ready, does photo shoot to prove it

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/07/tesla-model-s-is-almost-production-ready-does-photo-shoot-to/

You're looking at an unlikely picture: two Tesla EVs on the same street. The Silicon Valley carmaker is hoping to become more mainstream, however, when it releases its Model S sedan next year to complement the exuberantly expensive Roadster 2.5. Tesla has just released photos of the latest, nearly production-ready build of the Model S to whet our appetites. The shots reveal a couple of sleek cosmetic changes to the front bumper and body panels, but mainly we're just happy to see the S rolling on schedule. Oh yes, and there's another glimpse of the 17-inch infotainment console, which Auto Evolution now reports will be accompanied by built-in 3G. Sounds dandy, but that $57,400 starting price had better include a data plan. Man, who are we kidding?

[Thanks, Lucian]

Tesla Model S is almost production-ready, does photo shoot to prove it originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Jun 2011 06:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Business Insider | source

Auto Evolution, Tesla | Email this | Comments

New and improved Droid Bionic getting a 4.5-inch display and docking connection?

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/07/new-and-improved-droid-bionic-getting-a-4-5-inch-display-and-doc/

Since Motorola delayed the launch of the LTE-equipped Droid Bionic to carry out "several enhancements," we've debated if this might entail swapping out Tegra 2 in favor of a PowerVR GPU. But now leaked photos are starting to surface, and it would seem that Motorola went and redesigned the body, too. These pics reveal a phone with a 4.5-inch qHD display running Gingerbread -- not the 4.3-incher with Froyo that was originally slated to ship this spring. Even more intriguing, the revamped handset sports an Atrix-like docking connection, suggesting that new and improved user experience will include the option of a so-called lapdock. And, as an added flourish, Motorola smoothed out the rubberized back cover, nixing the pattern it had at CES. No further word on a launch date, but for now you can get your fill of spy shots at the source link.

New and improved Droid Bionic getting a 4.5-inch display and docking connection? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Jun 2011 10:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Android Central, Mobile Gearz, Smartphone News | source

PhoneHK | Email this | Comments

SSI's rugged Spark S9T brings triple-screen computing to power-hungry road warriors (hands-on)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/07/ssis-rugged-spark-s9t-brings-trial-screen-computing-to-power-hu/

A portable desktop tower with three LCDs mounted on its side, you say? Why yes, there is such a thing. At Computex, we spotted SSI's camouflaged booth demoing this eccentric Spark S9T rig: a rugged ATX case sporting a handle, a keyboard with a touchpad, plus three 17.3-inch 1920 x 1080 LCD panels. As you've probably already guessed, the keyboard and the screens can be folded up for storage convenience. Let's be clear, though: you'll still need to find a wall socket to power this beastly machine, but such all-in-one solution should still appeal to video editors, military personnel, or even gamers that are regularly on the road. Alas, we couldn't get a price for single purchases, but feel free to check out the full detail over at SSI's website -- maybe a nice postcard will get you a deal.

Gallery: SSI's rugged Spark S9T brings trial-screen computing to power-hungry road warriors (hands-on)