The new doodle from Google marks the 57th anniversary of the day the first patent was made on the bar code.

Granted to American inventors Norman Joseph Woodland and Bernard Silver three years after it was filed, patent number 2,612,994 was for a pattern of concentric circles, rather than the set of straight lines used today.

Mr Silver and Mr Woodland, a fellow graduate student and teacher at Drexel, first tried using patterns of ink that glowed under ultraviolet light, but it proved too expensive and unreliable.

Mr Woodland then came up with the linear bar code, and later replaced the lines with circles so that they could be scanned from any angle. The pair patented their “bull’s eye” design the next year.

WASHINGTON - US TELECOM giant AT&T said on Tuesday that Apple iPhone owners would be allowed to use Internet voice calling on its wireless network, paving the way for services such as Skype.

‘Today’s decision was made after evaluating our customers’ expectations and use of the device compared to dozens of others we offer,’ said Ralph de la Vega, president and chief executive of AT&T mobility and consumer markets.

AT&T, the exclusive US carrier of Apple’s smartphone, said it had informed the computer titan and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) of its decision to allow Voice over Internet Protocal (VoIP) calling on its third-generation (3G) wireless network.

FCC chairman Julius Genachowski welcomed the move. ‘When AT&T indicated, in response to the FCC’s inquiry, that it would take another look at permitting VoIP on its 3G network I was encouraged,’ he said in a statement. ‘I commend AT&T’s decision to open its network to VoIP.

WASHINGTON - US TELECOM giant AT&T said on Tuesday that Apple iPhone owners would be allowed to use Internet voice calling on its wireless network, paving the way for services such as Skype.

‘Today’s decision was made after evaluating our customers’ expectations and use of the device compared to dozens of others we offer,’ said Ralph de la Vega, president and chief executive of AT&T mobility and consumer markets.

AT&T, the exclusive US carrier of Apple’s smartphone, said it had informed the computer titan and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) of its decision to allow Voice over Internet Protocal (VoIP) calling on its third-generation (3G) wireless network.

FCC chairman Julius Genachowski welcomed the move. ‘When AT&T indicated, in response to the FCC’s inquiry, that it would take another look at permitting VoIP on its 3G network I was encouraged,’ he said in a statement. ‘I commend AT&T’s decision to open its network to VoIP.

Consumers won’t see a “Qualcomm Inside” sticker on new Windows Mobile phones, but the chip supplier is playing a big role in powering the first crop of phones based on Microsoft’s new operating system.

Microsoft announced on Tuesday, the first phones to carry the Windows Phone brand and run the Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system–which offers Adobe Flash support, an upgraded browser, and menus that can be navigated with a finger. AT&T has already announced the smartphones, with dozens more expected to be rolled out by the end of the year.

The Tilt 2 and Pure both use Qualcomm MSM7000 series processors, as do a number of other new Windows Mobile phones. These chips typically run at 528GHz–a fairly common speed grade for mobile phones.

But it’s at the high end where things get interesting. The Apple iPhone-like HTC HD2 and Acer neoTouch use Qualcomm’s latest-and-greatest processor, the 1GHz Snapdragon, also known as the QSD8250.

Anyone living within North America can now fill their iPod with tracks purchased from the iTunes Store, as Apple has launched the store in Mexico. Mexican residents will now be able to purchase music from the four major labels and hundreds of indie labels, take advantage of features like “Complete My Album” and snag advance tracks. Tracks will cost 12 Pesos (around 92 cents) and albums will run 120 pesos (about $9). iPhone users will be able to download tracks over the 3G network. On the video end, music videos and podcasts are available for purchase, but movies and TV shows so far are not. For Mexicans looking for an easy-out from gift-giving, Apple will be offering gift cards in 200, 300 and 600-peso varieties at a variety of outlets. [via PC World]

No sooner had we written about reports that Sony would be dropping its 80GB PS3 in Japan on August 9, that two more
PS3-related news items surfaced.

This just in: Netflix appears to be set to launch Watch Instantly for some new devices—namely, the Nintendo Wii console and the little handheld platform from Apple. The source of this rumor is “an industry executive familiar with Netflix’s plans” who spoke on (we assume) the condition of anonymity to Multichannel News. That executive says that Netflix plans to launch streaming for the iPhone, iPod touch, and Nintendo Wii very soon.

Rumours of a tablet computer – similar to a large-screen iPod touch – have
swirled for months, but many analysts and experts dismissed the chatter as
wishful thinking rather than indicating any solid plans from Apple.

But according to the Financial Times, which quotes sources close to the
company, Apple is hoping to launch a tablet computer this September.
Although details of the device, jokingly dubbed the MacBook Touch, remain
scarce, the Financial Times reports that it will have a 10in screen, Wi-Fi
connectivity, and the ability to download e-books as well as music, which
would pitch it in direct competition with Amazon’s Kindle ebook reader.

Panasonic released a bundle of home theater systems at CES 2009, but the
SC-ZT1 is easily the best of the bunch. The SC-ZT1 is a wireless home theater
system that uses the 2.4GHz band to send uncompressed audio to all four
speakers. Like all wireless systems, you’ll need need to run a power cable for
each speaker–so it’s not completely wireless–but you won’t have to deal with
long speaker cable runs all over your living room.

The SC-ZT1 is somewhat unusual as its technically a 4.0 system–there are
just the four, spindlelike speakers (Panasonic calls them Sound Slim Speakers),
pictured in the image. These four speakers each have four vertically aligned
speakers within them, which the SC-ZT1 uses to create a virtual 7.1 surround
sound effect. Sure, it probably won’t sound as good as a real 7.1 system, but
you’ll be dealing with a lot fewer wires. You’ll also notice that the SC-ZT1
lacks a dedicated, separate subwoofer.

This week, Dunkin’ Donuts launched an application for the iPhone and Web that helps organize and automate group orders.

Using their computers and mobile devices, customers can initiate orders through ‘Dunkin’ Run’ and alert friends and colleagues that they are willing to be the “Runner.”

Each member of the group can add their order to the list and then the Runner can print the choices or use the iPhone to create a checklist so that when they get to the store, they don’t miss anyone’s order. The app doesn’t yet transmit the order to the local donut shop.

“We conceived of Dunkin’ Run as a social application that helps hard-working Americans stay slightly more productive,” said Baba Shetty, Hill Holliday’s Chief Media Officer. “It’s based on the idea of reciprocity — I’ll get your coffee today and hopefully you’ll get mine tomorrow — in a way that perfectly complements the ‘we’re in it together’ ethos of the Dunkin’ Donuts brand.”

Adobe is set to introduce Flash Player 10 for most mobile operating systems later this year, including Google Android, Microsoft Windows Mobile, Nokia Symbian, and Palm WebOS.

Adobe’s CEO Shantanu Narayen said during a recent earnings call that multiple partners of the company have already received an early version of Flash Player 10. Developers will be able to get their hands on a beta version of Flash Player 10 mobile later this year, at Adobe’s Max conference in October.

Flash Player 10 will enable smartphones running on the above-mentioned operating systems to benefit from a richer Internet browsing experience, including watching videos embedded on some websites. Web-based applications can also be built on this platform, theoretically freeing developers from any applications stores.

T-Mobile announces a mea culpa Monday in the form of the myTouch, a new Android phone that addresses the most common complaints. The myTouch will be available to T-Mobile subscribers at the end of July, the company said.

Not that T-Mobile is throwing the G1 under the bus. It has sold a million G1 phones, enough to qualify it as a hit, they say, with a crowd they call “tech seekers.” But that is a comparatively small crowd.

To reach to the less tech savvy customer the new myTouch has been given a friendlier look. It’s thinner than the G1, and available in black, white and maroon. It is missing the curved “chin” of the G1, which made the phone pop a wheelie if the phone was on a flat surface when the track ball was used. The buttons stand higher than the face of the phone than on the G1, making them easier to press.