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Wanda Kamarga.

"Once we replace the personal computer with a closed-platform device such as the iPad, we replace freedom, choice and the free market with oppression, censorship and monopoly."

Tom Conlon for Popular Science on the iPad’s closed system

Ladies and gentlemen, it looks like Apple may have changed the tech world once again: This morning, Steve Jobs announced the company’s newest product: the iPad.

Some interesting specs:

• About 8 by 10 inches.

• No multitasking applications.

• No Flash built-in, as expected.

• Rebuilt Notes, Safari, Mail, Photos, iTunes, Videos, Calendar, and YouTube apps, specifically for the iPad.

• Syncs with iPhone OS, all apps will be available after purchase.

• Introducing iBook, a new app specifically for purchasing eBooks and interactive reading.

• Contains Apple A4, Apple’s own processor.

• New developer software, SDK 3.2, in beta for iPad.

• Will be able to use both Wi-Fi, and 3G through AT&T.

Starting prices:

• $500 for 16 GB, $600 for 32 GB, and $700 for 64 GB

• $630 for 16 GB on 3G, $730 for 32 GB on 3G, and $830 for 64 GB on 3G

AT&T’s 3G data plans:

• $14.99 for up to 250 MB per month

• $29.99 per month for unlimited data

• New accessories include a add-on keyboard.

• Release date: April 2010

From what I’ve seen so far, it looks fantastic. Very good first attempt at a tablet from Apple. Can’t wait to hear more.

Google’s Nexus One may be a fantastic phone, but one of its “features” is just ####### pointless. Chris Matyszczyk reports for CNET:

It will, dare I utter the word when referring to a product from the newly emancipated Google, censor you. You see, the pungently polite people at Reuters were playing with their Nexus One when they noticed something about its built-in voice-to-text feature. Every time they said something naughty into the phone, the naughty word came out as “####”, and not just “f—.” It even censored the “S” part of BS.

"Here’s a riddle: How do you make your book a best seller on the Kindle? Answer: Give copies away."

Motoko Rich’s “With Kindle, Publishers Give Away E-Books to Spur Sales” for The New York Times

Haiti: 360°

CNN has created an amazing moving map of Port-au-Prince, Haiti. By using an ever-moving camera, you can get four different three hundred and sixty degree view of the living hell that Haiti is right now. Imagine if Google Street View met video.

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Sweethearts, the heart-shaped conversation candies that bill themselves as the official love candy, have unveiled new technology-driven expressions for Valentine’s Day. Because there’s nothing more romantic then whoring out your internet persona.

Fed up of lugging a heavy laptop around? Soon you could be typing documents and browsing the web on any nearby surface with the aid of a pioneering pocket-sized projector. An innovative British company called Light Blue Optics has created the Light Touch, which transforms any surface into a 10.1in touch screen, reminiscent of the film Minority Report. (via Daily Mail)

Randall Munroe.

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Daring Fireball T-Shirts have been released, just in time for the holidays! The shirts are $29, and all come with a one-year subscription to Daring Fireball. The perfect present for the geek in your life.