Sony Closing CD Manufacturing Plan In Pitman, N.J.

The inevitable death of the CD will be one step closer and 300 residents of Pitman, New Jersey out of a job come March 31st. It is on that day that a Sony spokesperson confirmed with CNET that Sony will close 1 of 2 remaining CD manufacturing plants. The reason for the closing is a given — digital media is far superior in every way, and as such, has caused more people to turn away from physical media. Of course, Sony also adds in a sagging economy and piracy (in some part) as other contributing factors to their CD woes.

While it is sad that countless families and an entire city will be feeling the pinch once Sony closes up shop, no one can say that they didn’t see this day coming. The CD/DVD medium has been on a steady decline for many years. It just isn’t economical nor efficient to lug them around anymore. On that note, some of the employees at the Pitman, N.J. plant told CNET that they planned on seeking employment at the remaining Sony CD manufacturing plant in Terre Haute, Indiana. Given the current outlook on physical media, we’d advise finding a slightly more “secure” job. But hey, if it’s all you know…

Motorola Atrix Android Phone Passes FCC Certification.

Hands down the coolest Android device of 2011 is the Motorola Atrix. With the bleeding edge hardware and unique docking station that turns the phone into its own laptop, the certification above is certainly cause for celebration. Because once we start seeing the FCC’s paper trail blessing, public release can’t be too far behind. As awesome as the Atrix is, does anyone out there have a phone they’re even more excited for? It’s ok to put the Atrix down a few spots from #1, we won’t judge you.

Sony Vivaz 2 Breaks Cover!

Fancy a Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc but are drawn towards smaller phones? The SE Vivaz 2 is your phone. Originally dubbed the “Hallon”, this mini-Arc brings to the table several higher-end features such as 1GHz ARM 7 processor, 512MB of RAM, 480 x 854 Bravia-quality display, 8 megapixel camera with Exmor sensor, Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) and a 1500mAh battery. The improved hardware reportedly results in much smoother navigation with Sony Ericsson’s graphic-rich mediascape “Rachel” UI. Hardware aside however, it is the “sort by install date” option in the application menu that has us really impressed. Alphabetical sorting is nice and all, but sometimes having another option or two to pinpoint that seemingly lost app is all that matters.

The Sony Ericsson Vivaz 2 is expected to *officially* show its face in a couple weeks time at Mobile World Congress, with a scheduled release time frame around April. Check back in the coming weeks for more information.

Google CEO Eric Schmidt Steps Down. Larry Page Steps Up.

Tonight in an extremely surprising and left field move, Google CEO Eric Schmidt, announced via Google’s corporate blog in a post titled “A Note From The Chairman”, a massive change-up taking place through Google’s upper management. Most shocking: Eric Schmidt will step down as CEO and take up the role as Executive Chairman. Co-founder Larry Page will move up to fill the CEO position, while the other Google co-founder, Sergey Bin, will have a rather vague title of…”Co-founder”.

As the blog post describes it, Schmidt will handle external and governmental affairs — the “image of Google in Washington” if you will. Larry Page will handle internal affairs and your typical “CEO stuff”. And Sergey Bin will lead all of Google’s project teams and experimental ventures, with Schmidt saying this new position will perfectly exemplify Sergey’s entrepreneurial attitude and personality.

Anyone care to weigh in on the Google Mashup of 2011?

FAA: “GPS Tests” Conducted By DoD Will Affect GPS Users And Devices In Southeastern U.S. For A Month.

We normally deal with technology news here at Gadgetsteria. Though every once in a while, something unique and “different” makes its way to the front page. This month’s unique topic — Department of Defense “GPS Tests” and a month-long GPS-less spell for the southeastern United States. According to a publich announcement by the FAA (PDF), special “GPS tests” being conducted by the DoD will apparently cause GPS issues for humans and GPS devices alike beginning today, January 20th and stretching through February 11th from 0000-0245 UTC. After which, tests will halt for a few days and then resume February 15th and last until February 22nd, again from 0000-0245UTC. During the scheduled times, tests will follow a 45-minute on/15-minute off approach, with any changes being detailed at least 24 hours in advance.

We’re not making this up — really.

Geohot Launches “Ra1nb0wra1n” Web App Jailbreak Tool.

With each iOS device and firmware version released, another something-ra1n is pushed out not too long after. With that said, the number of different jailbreaking utilities carrying the “rain” name tag was getting out of control. With Geohot’s latest “ra1nb0wra1n”, the list grows unfortunately. But it’s actually a good thing. The new http://www.ra1nb0wra1n.com/ is an all-in-one web app jailbreak tool to help simplify the jailbreaking process no matter what device you have. Since Apple isn’t going to stop locking down their iOS devices anytime soon (with eager and determined iOS hackers to follow their lead), we suppose this new web app is a good thing. Video inside…

T-Mobile’s Samsung Vibrant Android 2.2 (Froyo) Rollout Starting Tomorrow, January 21st.

Amidst an ongoing scandal that claims Samsung is charging for Android updates, T-Mobile CEO Cole Brodman, has confirmed that the carrier’s Samsung Vibrant will be the first Galaxy S device to receive Android 2.2 (Froyo) starting tomorrow, January 21st. As is now customary with Android updates, the initial pool of users will be rather small all things considered. Over the coming weeks, groups of users will receive the update until the update is halted (due to some unforeseen bug) or the update reaches 100% of T-Mobile Vibrant users.

Besides the public denial of the “paid Android updates” claim, Samsung hasn’t said much else in regards to Galaxy S Froyo upgrades. But if T-Mobile’s move is any indication of the matter, it may not be too much longer before other carriers’ Galaxy S devices follow suit.