Nano-Sized I-Phone Could Be Christmas Rage
Every year we see it: some new gizmo becomes the must-have Christmas present. For Christmas 2008 the rumored “next big thing” isn’t the Nintendo Wii — it is a new Apple iPhone, shrunken down to a ridiculously small size.
The iPhone Nano will have a 2.75-inch screen (compared to the iPhone’s 3.5-inch), MultiTouch and come in 4 and 8GB capacities.
The recently launched Apple iPhone 3G comes in a slightly different enclosure compared to the original iPhone – it is now made of plastic and is slightly thicker – but sports the same 3.5†touch-screen with 480×320 resolution, includes support for quad-band GSM, EDGE, UMTS, HSDPA, 802.11b/g Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.0 EDR wireless technologies. The iPhone 3G also features a 2 megapixel (2MP) camera, audio and video playback capabilities as well as assisted GPS function. Depending on the model, the iPhone 3G comes with 8GB or 16GB of memory.
Whether this comes to pass for the 2008 holiday season remains to be seen. Apple is mum on the whole deal but summer media and internet rumor mills have been buzzing. So an announcement is expected at just about any time.
Christmas Travel Nightmares Predicted
Travel industry experts world wide have urgent advice for people looking to travel by plane during the 2008 holiday season: buy your tickets now and bring plenty of patience.
UK newspaper The Telegraph reports that airlines across the world will cut 60 million seats for the holiday. The U.S. will be hit the hardest, losing 20 million, and Europe will lose 5.5 million.
Expect air fares to significantly rise as 275 airports cross the globe will reduce routes, meaning 3,500 airplanes will remain unnecessary. The Official Airline Guide (OAG) reports that the reduction, an average of one in every 14 seats, will come as a consequence of high fuel costs.
An estimated 59.7 million fewer tickets will be available this year when compared to October-December of last year. If you have to travel, book now for best rates.
Elvis Lives! NEW Christmas Duets CD Due Soon
On October 14, Sony BMG Music Entertainment, in partnership with Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc., will release the “Elvis Presley Christmas Duets” CD, which is the first Elvis Presley duet recordings album and the first Christmas compilation of its kind ever produced. This release marks yet another milestone in Elvis Presley’s legacy, 31 years after his death.
The CD will feature many of today’s biggest country artists, including Carrie Underwood, Martina McBride, Gretchen Wilson, Sarah Evans and LeAnn Rimes singing classic Elvis holiday songs with Elvis Presley.
“There has been tremendous excitement from the many artists contributing their voices to these Elvis Christmas classics. We believe Elvis fans will truly enjoy these unique collaborations while introducing Elvis’ holiday classics to the many fans of his duet partners,” says Joe Galante, Chairman, Sony BMG Nashville.
In order to create these classic “duets” Sony BMG used the most advanced and sophisticated audio technology available. For songs that were recorded on one track, mono, musical beds were created to perfectly match the instrumentation and arrangements contained on the originals. In the case of songs that have been recorded in multi-track where Elvis’ vocal is isolated on a single track, the vocal was simply dropped for a given verse or chorus, making room for the duet artist. To be as faithful as possible to the original recordings, the fabled RCA Studio B in Nashville — the same studio that Elvis recorded the 1971 original Christmas session in, was used.
“This is an excellent example of the innovative ways in which we keep Elvis’ catalog fresh for new and existing fans, and continue the history of creating, preserving and celebrating his great music,” says John Ingrassia, President of the Sony BMG Commercial Music Group.
“We are so pleased that these accomplished artists are collaborating with Elvis in this unique way to make exciting new versions of his Christmas songs. I am sure Elvis would be proud to have worked with them,” says Priscilla Presley.
Elvis is one of the biggest-selling artists every holiday season, although he only recorded 20 Christmas songs, his various holiday albums have sold over 25 million copies in the U.S. alone. His existing Christmas releases are seen on the holiday charts year after year.
Partial track listing (not in sequence):
“I’ll Be Home For Christmas” with Carrie Underwood
“Blue Christmas” with Martina McBride
“Here Comes Santa Claus” with LeAnn Rimes
“Silent Night” with Sara Evans
“Merry Christmas Baby” with Gretchen Wilson
“Silver Bells” with Anne Murray
“White Christmas” with Amy Grant
“O Little Town” with Karen Fairchild and Kimberly Schlapman of Little Big
Town
“Santa Claus Is Back In Town” with Wynonna Judd
