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Filed under: Digital Cameras

We've already seen it unboxed, but if you've been waiting for a slightly more thorough look at Canon's new Rebel XSi DSLR (otherwise known as the EOS 450D) before you drop $800+ on it, you can now get your fix thanks to a steady stream of reviews that are now pouring in. Among the earliest to get its hands on a unit was Digital Photography Review, which reserved final judgment because it only did a preview but nonetheless provided one of the most exhaustive looks at the camera, complete with comparisons to its predecessor and its nearest competitors. Offering more opinions was Camera Labs, which found the XSi to be a "worthy successor" to the XTi, although it warns that new buyers should consider whether the upgrades are really worth the extra cost. The folks at LetsGoDigital were a bit more enthusiastic, calling the XSi a "perfect camera for everybody," although they were slightly disappointed by the camera's plastic casing. That also proved to be sticking point for Digital Camera Review, which went as far as to call the camera "cheap looking" and "less refined" than those with a lightly textured finish. On the upside, it says that the camera's low-noise sensor "raises the bar for entry-level DSLRs," with its extensive customization options, and Canon's expectedly strong AF system also winning it some high marks. If you're still not swayed one way other the other, you find plenty more details by diving into the links below.

Read - Digital Photography Review (preview)
Read - Camera Labs (88%)
Read - LetsGoDigital (82%)
Read - Digital Camera Review ("a fairly conservative upgrade")

Inquisitor augments Safari by autocompleting search queries and showing results.

(Credit: Yahoo)

Yahoo has acquired Inquisitor in a move to improve how search results appear on Apple computers.

The Safari browser plug-in offers autocompletion of search queries and shows a pane with search results as users type queries. The plug-in, now in version 3, is a free download.

Terms of the deal weren't disclosed, but Inquisitor founder and developer David Watanabe is joining Yahoo.

"David and our team of Macphiles will continue to innovate on both form and function for Inquisitor," Ariel Seidman, director of search product management for Yahoo, wrote in a blog posting Friday.

It has been known for a while that Microsoft’s Zune is the number two digital music player in the United States. However, just how far behind the number one device, Apple iPod, has not always clear since Microsoft has been slow to release its sales numbers. Now we have some.

Since its launch in November 2006, the Zune has sold 2 million units. For comparison, Apple sold 10.6 million iPods last quarter. That equates to right around 2.65 million iPods sold a month. Since its launch in 2001, the iPod has sold, get ready: 140 million units. For the Zune, the phrase “distant second” comes to mind.

Yet there is hope for Microsoft. iPod sales really didn’t start taking off for Apple until 2004 — almost three years into its lifespan. It took a full two years for sales to surpass 2 million, Microsoft beat that time, but the portable music world is quite a different place nowadays. When the iPod launched, most people were still listening to portable CD players.

The Zune also now has J Allard, Microsoft’s Corporate Vice President of Design and Development, Entertainment and Devices Division (how’s that for a mouthful?), overseeing the strategy for the device. Allard is one of the key figures behind Microsoft’s successful Xbox gaming console.

Microsoft also recently revealed that popular hobbyist games will be coming to the Zune soon.

[photo: flickr/raybdbomb]

Filed under: Cellphones

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Cold calls from telemarketers and other companies that ignore the do-not-call list are one of the banes of modern day civilization.

A simple Google search for a mystery number you've received usually lets you know who's on the other end before you have to pick it up. The problem is that cell phones don't have the same quality of caller ID landlines get (numbers not names); so that call you're getting could be something important like an overdue library book, or a pushy desk jockey trying to sell you a heavily discounted hafnium-forged non-stick pan set.

In most cases the telemarketers don't leave messages and will simply call you back, resulting in an endless cycle of you not knowing who's calling and having to call back to find out--something you're unlikely to do. To avoid this, there's Caller Complaints, a crowd-sourced index of the phone numbers of law breaking companies that have called folks on the do-not-call list. Users come together to list these numbers, what was being pitched--and the frequency of the calls. If you find someone else has already listed the number and shared their negative experience, you can pile on and leave your experience, which votes it up.

The most popular (or in this case unpopular) companies rise to the top and are tracked on leaderboards. Users can also browse by area code and what type of call it was, from political phone spam to prank calls and debt collectors. The idea is that there will be enough resources to help you get to the bottom of who's calling to either leave a complaint with your carrier or simply blacklist the number from calling again.

So far the site has amassed nearly 200,000 number searches from curious call recipients. If you're adding a number to the database you also have the option to do a little quick research on ReversePhoneDetective, which will tell you where the call originated from and give you the option to pay for a full report.

Related:
Reverse Mobile helps track down mystery callers
SlyDial lets you call straight to voice mail

You can browse bad numbers by how many folks have complained about it, which area code it's from, or how often it's searched for.

(Credit: CNET Networks)