namechange
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Twitch will let you change your username every two months
Starting today, you can change your Twitch username. What's more, you can do it every 60 days, and, seemingly as a shot at Microsoft and Xbox Live, it won't cost you a dime to swap from "FluffyJungle9991" to something a that's easier to commit to memory.
Tesla drops 'Motors' from its name
In a move designed to cement the company as more than just a car maker, Tesla has dropped the "Motors" from its name. The firm posted the necessary SEC paperwork this morning and comes as Elon Musk moves his business well beyond its original mission. After all, with the purchase of Solar City, launch of Powerwall and the solar roof, Tesla is as much of an energy company as it is a car maker.
Netgear passes On through FCC with new router, name
What's in a name? Well, from the looks of this FCC filing, it could be something quite significant for everyone who knows the Netgear appellation. This N300R router has emerged from the commission's Washington enclave bearing On Networks branding, along with a spiffy new logo and less boxy look. We found that the new handle was trademarked by the company back in February, so maybe we'll see a corporate rebranding or this is the genesis of a new marque. As far as we're concerned, it can call itself whatever it pleases, as long as it still lets us roam free.
Apple's iPad WiFi + 4G renamed 'iPad WiFi + Cellular' across many of its stores
Remember Apple's new iPad WiFi + 4G? Well, forget that moniker, as this variant of the company's latest slate has been quietly re-dubbed as the iPad WiFi + Cellular. As noticed by 9to5Mac, the change occurred within the last "24-48 hours" across many of Apple's region-specific webstores (update: and retail locations), including (but not limited to) those for the US, UK, Australia, Canada and various countries in Asia. If you'll recall, in many regions the best you'll get out of the slate is HSPA-connectivity, even though it's also equipped for LTE -- something that Apple itself had considered good enough to market it as 4G despite offering refunds to customers in Australia who (like many others) couldn't officially partake in its LTE. Interestingly, 9to5Mac also notes that a similar change hasn't made its way over to the iPad 2, which still has its cellular-equipped variant named, iPad 2 WiFi + 3G. We've reached out to Apple for comment, but the meantime, feel free to hit up the source links below for more insight.
Say goodbye to Symbian, say hello to Nokia Belle
Symbian is already on its last legs as a mobile OS, now Nokia is giving it a bit of a kick while its down by ditching the name it grew up with and rebranding the latest version simply Nokia Belle. That's right, the Symbian title we've all come to know and love is being retired by Nokia, and with very little fanfare. In fact, the switch is relegated to a parenthetical aside in an update on the status of Belle at the official blog of the Finnish manufacturer. Here's the announcement in its entirety: "The all new Nokia Belle (previously Symbian Belle)..." That's it! Of course, functionally, swapping Symbian for Nokia makes little difference, but its still sad to see one of the last vestiges of this long lived platform disappear. We'd say to check out the source for more details, but that's all she wrote.
Nokia slams door on Ovi label, rebranding everything to Nokia Services
Nokia's Ovi Store, Ovi Maps, and Ovi everything else will soon be getting a name change. The Finnish company has announced that it's "evolving" its software brand identity by renaming its service offerings to Nokia services, starting with new devices in July and August. This transition is expected to last into 2012 and was pretty much inevitable in the wake of Nokia's hookup with Microsoft earlier this year. Part of that agreement was for Nokia software, Maps in particular, to be made available in other Windows Phone devices and across Microsoft's range of services, so it makes sense for Nokia to literally put its name on its wares. Nothing structural will be changing about software roadmaps or plans up in Finland, this will be just a new nameplate atop the same strategy as outlined previously.
WePad renamed WeTab to 'clearly differentiate' itself
The WePad has already had to cross a few hurdles and overcome some skepticism on it's way to a release, and it's now undergone another big change -- it's just been renamed the "WeTab." According to the company, that's been done in order to "clearly differentiate our products within the international market for tablet computers." No other changes, from the looks of it, and the company says that pre-orders of the device are not affected by the name switch-a-roo -- although we suppose you can cancel if you're fiercely averse to anything named "Tab." Coincidentally, it seems that the tablet has also recently gone up for pre-order on Amazon.de, with it demanding the expected €449 for the 16GB WiFi version, and €569 for the 32GB 3G model -- still no promised ship date, unfortunately. [Thanks, Mike]
Breakfast Topic: Would you ninja the Onyxia mount?
We mention a ninja of the Onyxia mount in this week's Guildwatch, and while researching that, some other forum threads came up, including these two, both from General, where people say with conviction that given the chance, they'd take the Onyxia mount and never look back. They have a point -- it's one of the rarest random mounts in the game, on a raid that's definitely PuG-able. Chances are low that you'll ever see it, much less win it on a random roll, and so for a lot of people, it'd be worth the namechange and the server transfer you'd have to pay to escape your new ninja reputation. Personally, I wouldn't do it, but that's really only because I know there are lots of rare mounts in the game that I'll never get (sigh, Red Proto-drake, I covet you), and one more isn't that big a deal. Not to mention that I like the guilds I'm in and the people I play with, and who knows what they'd think of me if I stole the mount from them or someone else. But not everyone feels the way I do, I'm sure, so let's ask: if you had the chance, in a PuG or a guild run, to steal the Onyxia mount as your own, would you take it? And if you would, is it just because it's so rare and special?
The Shack, short on money for new signs, asks for your help
Like the rest of America, we've gotten some serious LOLs out of Radio Shack's current bid for relevance. But, as you know, rebranding comes at a price -- all those new signs excising the word "Radio" from the chain's storefronts aren't exactly cheap, you know. That said, we were equally amused and annoyed by today's email blast urging consumers to carry around little pieces of paper with the word "THE" printed on it. That way, you can obscure the offending noun whenever you find yourself within close proximity of one of these signs -- saving the company money on signage and increasing brand recognition in one bold move. Still unclear of the concept? Get yourself detailed instructions after the break, or hit up that read link to catch some rockin' videos on the company's Facebook page... and prepare to be underwhelmed.
Radio Shack rebranding to 'The Shack'?
tweetmeme_url = 'http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/02/radio-shack-rebranding-to-the-shack/'; tweetmeme_source = 'engadget'; Details are a bit light on this one, but thanks to a tipster and some chatter we picked up on the interblogs, it looks like Radio Shack may be about to undergo a pretty noticeable rebranding. The above image was taken from a terminal within a store, and while it's not completely clear if this is a short-term promotional push or long-term strategy (apparently the company will remain Radio Shack on the corporate side), our tipster says that in-store signs will reflect the change this week, and storefront signage will begin to be reworked as "The Shack" sometime later this year. When you think about it, it makes perfect sense -- radios aren't exactly considered cutting edge these days, and from the sounds of things, the store is about to launch a full assault on the mobile space, bringing T-Mobile into the fold this month, and attempting to cover the gamut on cellphone reselling. Still, we're not sure "The Shack" is the right direction... unless they wanted us to immediately picture a remote location where very, very bad things happen. Update: Apparently we're not the only ones talking about this -- someone has added detailed info on the rebranding to the company's Wikipedia page. According to the writeup, the switch will kick off with celebrations "in San Francisco and New York featuring '14 foot tall laptops' streaming the images from their webcams from one city to the other, live music in both locations, as well as television coverage of the event." Uh, okay! Update 2: Guess they weren't kidding. Here's the promo page on Radio Shack's site. Thanks Ellis D.!
Samsung 'selectively' drops OmniaHD name in some countries
Rumors have been flying the past couple days that the OmniaHD is no more -- at least, not in name -- and it turns out that's partially true. We've received official word from Samsung that the S60-based superphone will be "selectively" renamed to "i8910 HD" in some countries "due to business issues." The spokesperson didn't expand on what those business issues were or what countries would get the name change, exactly, but let's be perfectly honest: this is one of those phones that could be called "Rotten Eggs in a Box" for all we care and we'd still line up to buy it at any price. Anyhow, Sammy says it'll still be using the Omnia name going forward for other products -- just not this one.
Sony's mylo 2 magically transforms from 'Personal Communicator' to 'Internet Device'
According to hot, hot reports from the interblogs, interwebs, and yes -- internets -- Sony has made some shocking changes to its mylo 2. Did we say shocking? We meant not shocking. At all. Apparently in an attempt to re-market (and thusly sell) the odd little handheld, the company has begun branding the gadget an "Internet Device" as opposed to its previous (circa 2006) title of "Personal Communicator." We're all for the new convention (we love the hell out of new names) but it remains to be seen what kind of effect, if any, it will have on the gadget's not-so-hot sales. The next step? Lose the Spider-Man font.[Thanks, Penny]
MHD to be renamed Palladia HD, confuse HD viewers everywhere
As we've seen with Discovery's Planet Green, and -- to a lesser extent, History HD, Food HD and SPEED HD -- these high-def channels prefer to change up (or shorten, at least) their names every now and then. The latest to take on a new identity is MTV Networks' MHD, which is apparently being redubbed Palladia HD in DISH Network / TWC's EPG. We've all ideas the name change will filter down to all carriers in short order, but we're just letting you know to not get overly excited upon seeing it emerge in your channel lineup. Sadly, you actually haven't gained another channel -- it's just that the one with the loudest commercials has been renamed.[Image courtesy of Photobucket]
Video: Zune Guy begins name change quest, drives Ford Focus just like Bill
By now you're probably aware of the Zune Guy's mission to change his name to Microsoft Zune, right? He's now documenting the entire process to the delight of amateur psychologists and identity thieves everywhere (seriously dude, at least edit out your phone number). You'll find step 1 of his vision quest -- a call into Microsoft to discuss the legality of the move -- recorded after the break.Look, we know that our continued attention just rewards the monkey for his dance. But like any good car crash, our morbid curiosity won't let us look away. Especially when we learn that the Zune Guy drives a Ford Focus, just like Bill Gates. We're guessing that's not a coincidence. Click through for the action.[Thanks, TomTom]
Zune Guy's name change endeavor is back on
We can't say we'd follow in this guy's footsteps for any amount of money, but boy, does it make for fantastic drama. Shortly after the famed Zune Guy (you know, that cat with a trio of Zune-inspired tattoos?) decided to legally change his name to "Microsoft Zune," the plan was put on hiatus after hearing that it cost a whopping $500 to get a name swap. After getting curious, investigating and discovering that he only needed $150 to have it done, he put the mission squarely back on the front burner. Unfortunately, there still stands a chance of the aforesaid name being denied, so he's posted up a poll in order to let the general public give him a list of backups. Personally, we're feelin' McZunin.[Thanks, Brian]
What's in an obscene name?
After a snow day and a night of staying up way, way too late getting to level 68, I felt in the mood for something light-hearted today. And thus I stumbled upon this thread in the Guild Relations forum, where the guildmaster of "Two Dollar Horde" complains that Blizzard made her change her guild's name. What follows is a rollicking discussion of sexual innuendo in WoW. Many people come to the guildmaster's defense, arguing that Blizzard itself has more innuendo in the game (i.e. the /flirt emotes) than what was in the guild's name. Rising and Tori of the guild "One" on Blackrock take the opposite position -- according to them, prostitution is a much worse evil than the mild stuff Blizz puts in the flirt emotes. And it just kind of ... goes from there, in many weird and wonderful directions, about defiling sacred unions, frost mages named "Hoar", and the existence of certain establishments in Nevada. At the end, Rising and Tori are revealed to simply be cleverly trolling. I kind of suspected this, since both of them are usually informed and intelligent contributors to the Guild Relations forum, which in itself is like the big soft teddy bear of the WoW forums. However, one of the last posts -- by the guildmaster of the former "The Spreading Taint" on Proudmoore -- made me start laughing all over again. I know a couple of people and guilds on my server who have been forced to change names. A guild called "Domestic Violence" was reported, and Blizzard sent them a tell saying that their guild name had been deemed inappropriate. For the next few months, "Deemed Inappropriate" was one of the top guilds on Magtheridon. A druid formerly named Fukanocturna was complaining in Nagrand general chat that Blizz made him change his supposedly computer-generated name. In protest, he changed his name to something involving the phrase "your mom." Have you known of any forced name changes on your server? Do you think this is a good policy of Blizzard's, or should people be able to make all the juvenile guild name jokes they want?
CNET still not over it
And by "it", we of course refer to the cataclysmic tugging of the carpet that Nintendo so infamously performed when they quelled the Revolution (the what now?) and released the Wii. After Nintendo's powerful showing at E3, most people seem to have gotten used to saying the new name without breaking a sweat or breaking into laughter, content in knowing that the name means little in the face of a game like Super Mario Galaxy. The folks at CNET must not have played it, then.In their "Worst Tech of Q2 2006" article, CNET reserves the ninth spot for the Wii, awarding it with "Worst name change." Their justification is short, noting that "'Nintendo Revolution' sounds cool. 'Nintendo Wii' sounds dumb. That's about all there is to say." Well, fair enough ... coming from a website that sounds like something you catch fish with! ZING!On a more serious note, we also preferred the Revolution, but to put the name mame on the same list as Segway Polo and iPod imitations is just mean.[Via VGGEN, thanks AssemblyLineHuman!]
