Stories by Mike Elgan

The wristwatch will rise again

Conventional wisdom says people don't wear wristwatches anymore -- especially young people. The story goes that because we now have cell phones, we no longer need to lash anything to our wrists.

Is augmented reality just a cheap gimmick?

Augmented reality, long a staple of science fiction, is here, there and everywhere. A search on Google News brings up nearly 700 recent stories about the technology and the companies that claim to offer it.

Why the $35 tablet will never exist

"India unveils $35 computer for students," says CNN.com. "India unveils prototype for $35 touch-screen computer," reports BBC News. "India to provide $35 computing device to students," says BusinessWeek.

Why you'll use Foursquare

Suddenly, there are two kinds of people. The first kind loves location-based social networking services like Foursquare. They speak in an alien language about "Mayors" and "Badges" and broadcast their locations to the world.

Are you a social networking mutant?

Have you ever tried to get an older person to use Facebook?

Why the iPad is a creativity machine

You've heard the case against Apple's iPad. It's a media consumption device for mindless couch potatoes. It's a step back in the evolution of computing, because it turns users into passive consumers of content, rather than creators.

15 iPad mysteries remain

Steve Jobs is such a great salesman that he can actually give us a sense of familiarity with something we don't know anything about.

How Buzz, Facebook, Twitter create 'social insecurity'

An insurance expert told the Britain's Telegraph newspaper that using location-centric mobile social services like Google Buzz, Twitter, Facebook and Foursquare could raise your home insurance premiums, or even result in the denial of insurance claim...

How Google Buzz for mobile will change your life

Everybody's talking about Google Buzz. Most of that chatter is centered on how to use it, and whether it's better or worse than Twitter or Facebook. Almost all the talk is about using Buzz from a PC.

Dark clouds gather over online security

Google may have threatened to leave China to keep us all from concluding that "the cloud" cannot be secured. If that's true, isn't that precisely what we should conclude?

Google quietly changes the world again

Do you remember where you were the day they unveiled Facebook? No? How about Twitter? Amazon.com? Google Search?

Is that the Library of Congress in your pocket?

I used to own a copy of National Geographic magazine from 1911. It was packed with black-and-white photographs of "natives" and village ethnic minorities in various countries posing awkwardly in ceremonial costumes. The issue was part of a larger col...

Why 3D will fail in 2010

James Cameron's hotly anticipated 3D movie, "Avatar," hits theaters across the U.S. today. Besides stunning computer generated imagery and a predictable-but-appealing storyline, the movie will become well known for high-quality 3D.

Hello, tablets. Good-bye, netbooks!

Look, I know you like the netbook idea -- and you love netbook prices. If you're like most people, you think tablets are expensive, slow, heavy and a pain to use. But if you've bought one, you know that netbooks aren't as great as they sound. And nex...

How to fix the keyboard crisis

Everything gets better, right? Cheaper. Faster. Smaller. This is especially true for the smallest devices -- cell phones, netbooks and e-book readers.