Type of Article: MacNews News Article

Former Apple exec, Pablo Calamera, has been appointed to the newly-created role of chief technology officer for Thumbplay, a mobile entertainment company. At Apple he oversaw technology development for MobileMe.

As of March 8, Calamera will be based in New York, reporting to Evan Schwartz, Thumbplay CEO and co-founder. Calamera brings with him more than 25 years of experience in computer, mobile, set-top box and cloud-computing. This includes a total of 10 years at Apple, six years at Danger (acquired by Microsoft) and two with WebTV (also acquired by Microsoft).  

Pioneer Electronics (http://www.pioneerelectronics.com) has unveiled a new line of 5.1 channel A/V receivers that are iPhone and iPod compatible.

Also, the Pioneer VSX-520-K and VSX-820-K feature wireless Bluetooth transfer of audio content, allowing users to enjoy their music directly from their Bluetooth-enabled device to their home theater system and are 3D ready with the latest HDMI, version 1.4, providing more high definition connectivity options for the Blu-ray 3D specification. Th

CS Odessa has released a beta version of its mind mapping tool (http://www.conceptdraw.com/en/mindwave) for Google Wave. This is a no-charge add-in to Google Wave that can be used as part of Google Wave to map out a strategy or brainstorm on a critical topic.

The ConceptDraw MindWave for Google Wave tool allows teams to collaborate on a mind map in an interactive flowing manner building a map structure that represents the planned work. The map add-in supports Google Wave playback that allows one to step back through a map.

Skooba Design (http://www.skoobadesign.com) as added a new cable/accessory organizer, as well as a new collection of multi-use protective wraps, to its expanding line of tech-travel carrying cases and accessories.