Gotta Have My (Barbie) MP3

OK, one day before iPod's birthday, but still...

(NEWSER) - Almost exactly nine years to the day after Apple started selling the iPod, Sony announced it will stop making and selling its classic Walkman. The portable cassette player wasn’t an overnight sensation when it was introduced in 1979, but gained must-have status by the 1980s and ultimately sold 200 million units. The iPod, of course, brought portable music into the 21st century, but it was actually the Discman portable CD player that effectively killed the Walkman, Gizmodo reports. Click here to see how Sony "celebrated" the Walkman's 30th birthday. More»

Cut affects Cocoa Puffs, Lucky Charms, 8 other breakfast treats

(NEWSER) - General Mills is bowing to consumer pressure and cutting the amount of sugar in all of its cereals aimed at children, the third time in three years the food giant has taken its sweet breakfast treats down a notch. The goal this time is bring the amount of sugar per serving below 10 grams for all cereals advertised to kids under 12. That does not include products like Chocolate Lucky Charms, which goes unadvertised—and is almost half sugar. More»

Do you know when you're being sold something?

(NEWSER) - You can tell when you’re watching a commercial, right? Not at all, writes NE Marsden , and that’s a huge problem. A new FTC measure seeks to expose the practice of paid consideration—“stealth advertising” is a better phrase—online by requiring bloggers and marketers to disclose remuneration, but that hasn’t worked too well on TV. You didn’t know producers have to disclose product placement on TV? Exactly. More»

(NEWSER) - Apple tried to silence an angry British father and daughter with a gag order after the girl's iPod Touch exploded and "went 10 feet in the air," said the dad. The company offered a full refund of $275 for the music player, but only if the two agreed to sign a confidentiality agreement about the settlement—which threatened a lawsuit if they talked, reports the Times of London. "We didn’t ask for compensation, we just asked for our money back," the father said. More»

Teen trades his Apple for a Sony for 1 week

(NEWSER) - In honor of the debut 30 years ago this week of the Sony Walkman, 13-year old Scott Campbell tried using the device for a week in place of his iPod. Campbell found the gadget took some getting used to, he writes for the BBC: “It took me three days to figure out that there was another side to the tape." More»