Millions of cell phone users are suddenly talking about cell phone locking and asking themselves, "Why is my phone locked?" And that's a good thing. It's time consumers demand unlocked cell phones from their carriers.

Forget the iPhone, <I>all</I> phones should be 'unlocked'

Strange eh?

Techdirt: Apple Sued For Cutting iPhone Price

A new startup called Ooma (which apparently boasts TV's Ashton Kutcher as its "Creative Director"), is bringing a new model to phone service:

Companies such as Vonage had better look to their laurels, as new kid on the block Ooma is looking to steal their thunder with a product that offers VOIP calls - but with a twist. From September, you will be able to get your hands on the Ooma, a hub that combines VOIP with regular landlines. But you have to shell out a lot of dosh first…And that's $400 - or $399, to be exact. This is what happens. You buy your Ooma Hub and connect it. It gives you free internet calls, but also works with your existing landline. If you have to dial 911 it does so on your landline (VOIP apparently can have problems connecting to the emergency number). International calls are automatically routed through the internet - which means they are gratis.

Cheap Calls: $400 Ooma Gives You Free VOIP and Landline Calls for Life - Gizmodo

If you've never tried on a pair of noise-canceling headphones, you're missing out.  Even if you don't see yourself listening to music in noisy places, they do an amazing job blocking out all of the roar and clamor of airplane cabins.  See the times review of several pairs below for more info:

Until you try them, you won't believe what a difference such headphones can make. As tiny microphones monitor the mind-numbing roar around you, circuitry in the device creates a sound wave 180 degrees out of phase with the original sounds. Presto: the roar of the engines is magically subtracted from the sound that would otherwise have ground away at your well-being for six hours.

Headphones to Shut Out the World - New York Times

Along with the iPhone comes the iPhone accessory business, featuring products to protect, enhance and show off those $500 or $600 electronics investments.

First Comes the Hype, Then the Actual iPhone; Now, the Accessories - New York Times

Need I say any more?  I walked by the Apple store on Fifth Avenue to gawk at the poor saps waiting in line to buy the $600 right to brag to their friends.  By 11:30 am, there was a line that reached around the block and back to Madison Avenue- and there were a ton of news vans and reporters scoping out the scene.

My favorite sap was a gentleman holding a sign offering to sell his place in line to the highest bidder.  As if the iPhone weren't expensive enough!

From the New York Times:

Talk about hype. In the last six months, Apple's iPhone has been the subject of 11,000 print articles, and it turns up about 69 million hits on Google. Cultists are camping out in front of Apple stores; bloggers call it the "Jesus phone."  All of this before a single consumer has even touched the thing.

The iPhone Matches Most of Its Hype - New York Times

From the New York Times, an article about a new printer from Kodak that is trying to break the cycle of exorbitantly high printer ink costs:

In some ways, the world of electronics is a great big game of Us vs. Them, filled with imbalances of power that the little people can't do anything about. Through learned helplessness, we've come to accept that the gadget we buy today will be passe in a year, period. Calling technical support is going to be a nightmare, tough rocks. Buying cartridges for an inkjet printer will cost twice as much as the printer itself each year.

Paying More for a Printer, but Less for Ink - New York Times

There are some pretty nifty new AA batteries out- when the charge runs low, you just plug them into the USB port on your laptop or desktop computer and recharge them:

The USBCELL, a AA battery that charges via USB port, has kinda taken the internet by storm, and for good reason. The batteries are sturdy, powerful, and take the annoying clutter of a charger completely out of the equation.

USBCELL: I am not an Alkaline (TreeHugger)

Hooray!  Prepare ye 'selves for the coming of the iPhone!

Ever since Steve Jobs' keynote at the Macworld Expo in January, we've known that the iPhone is being released sometime in June. But we haven't known exactly when.Now Cingular is confirming that the release date will be June 11.

Apple's iPhone will be released on June 11 | News.blog | CNET News.com