Tech Tales

Corbin Davenport
  • 4.5 (4)
  • TECHNOLOGY

Tech Tales is a podcast exploring the technology world's epic failures, forgotten successes, and everything in between. Hosted by Corbin Davenport. Made without generative AI.

  1. Microsoft Kin

    10/08/2025

    Microsoft Kin

    Microsoft Kin was a phone platform "designed specifically for people who are actively navigating their social lives," but was deemed a failure before it even launched. Two Kin phones finally arrived in May 2010, and two months later, the entire platform was shelved. Hosted by Corbin Davenport, guest starring Joe Fedewa. Follow on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/techtalesshow.com Follow on Mastodon/Fediverse: https://mas.to/@techtales Support the Show: https://techtalesshow.com/support Videos: • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wscAwANF684 • https://www.lightpress.tv/microsoft-kin-basement-party • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pwyb7kwlL44 Sources: • https://news.microsoft.com/source/2010/04/12/microsoft-ushers-in-the-next-generation-of-the-social-phone-with-kin-a-new-windows-phone/ • https://www.engadget.com/2010-07-02-life-and-death-of-microsoft-kin-the-inside-story.html • https://web.archive.org/web/20201023040414/https://gigaom.com/2008/02/12/how-much-did-microsoft-pay-for-danger-find-out-here/ • https://www.engadget.com/2010-05-25-microsofts-robbie-bach-j-allard-leaving-as-part-of-broader-sha.html • https://web.archive.org/web/20090508022801/http://www.crn.com/software/217300212 • https://www.theregister.com/2010/04/19/microsoft_kin_ad_boob/ • https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2010/01/05Apples-App-Store-Downloads-Top-Three-Billion/ • https://www.wired.com/2010/05/pr-microsft-kin/ • https://www.engadget.com/2010-05-05-kin-one-and-two-review.html • https://www.phonearena.com/reviews/Microsoft-KIN-ONE-and-TWO-Review_id2442 • https://web.archive.org/web/20100702062008/http://gizmodo.com/5576764/microsoft-kills-kin • https://web.archive.org/web/20110113123732/http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-20009013-56.html • https://web.archive.org/web/20120813082650/http://news.cnet.com/8301-10805_3-20023398-75.html • https://www.theverge.com/2018/5/9/17335634/microsoft-jon-friedman-courier-kin-ultra-mobile-pcs-spot-build-2018 Chapters: 0:00:00 Intro 0:01:10 Development 0:08:42 The Launch 0:18:31 The Reviews 0:26:39 Kin's Death 0:35:46 Outro

    37 min
  2. Movie Club: Pirates of Silicon Valley

    07/22/2025

    Movie Club: Pirates of Silicon Valley

    Watch Pirates of Silicon Valley: https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/pirates-of-silicon-valley Hosted by Corbin Davenport, guest starring Zachary Wander and Katie Janzen. Follow on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/techtalesshow.com Follow on Mastodon/Fediverse: https://mas.to/@techtales Support the Show: https://techtalesshow.com/support Videos: • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nfgRf2A0Tc • https://archive.org/details/1999-07-21-macworld-new-york-keynote Sources: • https://fortune.com/2011/10/07/noah-wyle-on-playing-steve-jobs/ • https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/18bhme/comment/c8ddpwq • https://web.archive.org/web/20120420071253/https://kensegall.com/blog/2012/04/noah-wyle-and-steve-jobs-moment-of-truth/ Chapters: 0:00:00 Intro 0:00:52 Movie Discussion 0:36:14 Steve Jobs and Noah Wyle 0:42:56 Outro

    44 min
  3. Internet Time and Sputnik 99

    05/04/2025

    Internet Time and Sputnik 99

    Swiss watch company Swatch came up with a new way to tell time in 1998, known as "Internet Time" or ".beats time." It led to an international controversy over advertising, radio frequencies, and Russia's Mir space station. Hosted by Corbin Davenport, guest starring Cody Toombs. Follow on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/techtalesshow.com Follow on Mastodon/Fediverse: https://mas.to/@techtales Support the Show: https://techtalesshow.com/support Watches: • https://www.swatch.com/en-en/webmaster-ii-sqb101c/SQB101C.html • https://www.swatch.com/en-en/great-australian-byte-sqz100/SQZ100.html • https://www.swatch.com/en-en/webstream-green-yqs1001ag/YQS1001AG.html • https://www.swatch.com/en-en/moon-or-beat-iv-yfs4010/YFS4010.html • https://www.swatch.com/en-en/sonic-the-hedgehog-sqk101/SQK101.html Sources: • https://www.zdnet.com/article/swatch-wont-take-apple-to-court-over-iwatch-trademark/ • https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-37350870 • https://www.wnyc.org/story/tldr-15-internet-time/ • https://www.wired.com/1998/12/time-for-a-change/ • https://news.mit.edu/1998/summit-1118 • https://segaretro.org/Press_release:_2000-02-24:_Sega_and_Swatch_Team_Up:_Two_Major_Players_Meet_in_Cyberspace • https://lpcwiki.miraheze.org/wiki/Ericsson_T20 • https://novayagazeta.eu/articles/2024/05/14/lost-in-space-en • https://www.wired.com/1999/04/spam-thats-out-of-this-world/ • https://web.archive.org/web/19991110070006/http://www.ccr.jussieu.fr/physio/amsat-france/Press-rel-05.htm • https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/sputnik-40.htm • https://www.pso-world.com/sections.php?op=viewarticle&artid=883 • https://web.archive.org/web/20010215002746/http://hamradio-online.com/1999/apr/arrl-swatch.html • https://latimes.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-swatch-beatnik-can/170703674/ • https://www.n2yo.com/satellite/?s=25685 Chapters: 0:00:00 Intro 0:00:27 Swatch & Internet Time 0:07:50 The Watches 0:16:44 Adoption of Internet Time 0:20:05 Sputnik 99 0:36:18 Swatch vs. Apple 0:38:00 Outro

    40 min
  4. WannaCry

    12/26/2024

    WannaCry

    The WanaCry ransomware quickly spread to hundreds of thousands of Windows systems on May 12, 2017, impacting everything from car manufacturing to hospitals. A few hours later, it was stopped by a cybersecurity researcher. Hosted by Corbin Davenport, guest starring Joe Fedewa. Follow on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/techtalesshow.com Follow on Mastodon/Fediverse: https://mas.to/@techtales Support the Show: https://techtalesshow.com/support Video: • https://youtu.be/S70zd_ysZag Sources: • https://www.wired.com/story/confessions-marcus-hutchins-hacker-who-saved-the-internet/ • https://www.cloudflare.com/learning/security/ransomware/wannacry-ransomware/ • https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/cambrian-college-ransomware-hack-1.4093634 • https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/boeing-hit-by-wannacry-virus-fears-it-could-cripple-some-jet-production/ • https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/05/13/cyber-attack-hits-german-train-stations-hackers-target-deutsche/ • https://apnews.com/article/36406e3cebe34b148f1fd9bbe6205ace • https://www.reuters.com/article/us-honda-cyberattack-idUSKBN19C0EI/ • https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/case-study-wannacry-attack/ • https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/wdsi/threats/malware-encyclopedia-description?Name=Ransom:Win32/WannaCrypt • https://blogs.microsoft.com/on-the-issues/2017/05/14/need-urgent-collective-action-keep-people-safe-online-lessons-last-weeks-cyberattack/ • https://blogs.microsoft.com/on-the-issues/2017/05/14/need-urgent-collective-action-keep-people-safe-online-lessons-last-weeks-cyberattack/ • https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/aug/03/researcher-who-stopped-wannacry-ransomware-detained-in-us • https://www.zdnet.com/article/how-us-authorities-tracked-down-the-north-korean-hacker-behind-wannacry/ Chapters: 0:00:00 Intro 0:00:54 EternalBlue & Marcus Hutchins 0:09:39 WannaCry Attack 0:25:10 The Aftermath 0:38:04 Outro

    39 min
  5. Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln

    09/12/2024

    Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln

    Abraham Lincoln was the 16th president of the United States, helping guide the country through the Civil War and advocated for an end to slavery. Nearly 100 years later, he was resurrected as a robot for the 1964 New York World's Fair. Hosted by Corbin Davenport, guest starring Mason Conrad. Follow on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/techtalesshow.com Follow on Mastodon/Fediverse: https://mas.to/@techtales Support the Show: https://techtalesshow.com/support Videos & Photos: • https://youtu.be/mvfjvBO2l2Y?t=138 • https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lincoln_Audio-Animatronic_(42346731335).jpg Sources: • https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abraham-Lincoln • https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-emporia-gazette-electric-robots/154380075/ • https://web.archive.org/web/20110717093240/http://d23.disney.go.com/articles/070709_NF_FEAT_StoryofHall.html • https://www.disneyhistoryinstitute.com/2014/04/disney-history-institute-celebrates.html • https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-edwardsville-intelligencer-disney-de/154344993/ • https://archive.org/details/IllinoisLandOfLincolnIllinoisPavilionInformationNewYorkWorldsFair19641965/mode/1up • https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-register-live-lincoln-created-by-d/154516626/ • https://www.newspapers.com/article/sun-tattler-disneys-lincoln-star-at-fai/154518175/ • https://www.newspapers.com/article/wilmington-news-journal-lincoln-at-1964/154519665/ • https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-herald-review-of-lincoln-figur/154520514/ • https://www.newspapers.com/article/mt-vernon-register-news-electronic-abe/154523531/ • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvfjvBO2l2Y • https://d23.com/reliving-one-mans-dream-in-this-walt-disney-world-attraction/ • https://www.ocregister.com/2021/07/31/disneyland-blinkin-lincoln-animatronic-used-to-go-crazy-and-smash-his-chair-in-a-robotic-fit/ • https://www.newspapers.com/article/freeport-journal-standard-animated-abe-l/154552579/ Chapters: 0:00:00 Intro 0:01:26 Abraham Lincoln 0:06:08 Building Robot Lincoln 0:20:25 The 1964 World’s Fair 0:22:33 Great Moments With Mr. Lincoln 0:29:08 Reactions to Robot Lincoln 0:38:07 Lincoln at Disneyland 0:41:10 Outro

    43 min
  6. Movie Club: Tron Legacy (2010)

    05/18/2024

    Movie Club: Tron Legacy (2010)

    Watch Tron Legacy: https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/tron-2-0 Hosted by Corbin Davenport, guest starring Zachary Wander and Joe Fedewa. Follow on Mastodon/Fediverse: https://mas.to/@techtales Support the Show: https://techtalesshow.com/support Videos: • https://youtu.be/e1dHhktFLPs Sources: • https://web.archive.org/web/20010418103554/http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/news/0%2C4586%2C2301037%2C00.html • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1dHhktFLPs • https://variety.com/2024/film/news/jeff-bridges-returning-tron-3-1235985702/ • https://screenrant.com/tron-legacy-behind-the-scenes/ • https://web.archive.org/web/20110524020458/http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/40548535/ns/today-entertainment/t/tron-legacy-reverse-ages-jeff-bridges Chapters: 0:00:00 Intro 0:00:41 Production 0:04:27 Flashback & CGI Jeff Bridges 0:14:16 ENCOM & The Grid 0:31:54 The music 0:34:31 Quorra 0:40:38 The dinner 0:48:01 End of Line Club 0:53:33 Solar Sailer 0:59:23 The Rectifier 1:10:16 The portal 1:15:31 Final thoughts 1:20:16 Outro

    1h 22m
  7. Apple's Intel Transition

    04/22/2024

    Apple's Intel Transition

    Apple helped develop PowerPC processors as competition against Intel in the 1990s, but by the early 2000s, the architecture was falling behind. Apple's switch to Intel x86 processors revived its Mac computers, kicked off the Hackintosh era, and made AMD jealous. Hosted by Corbin Davenport, guest starring Cody Toombs. Follow on Mastodon/Fediverse: https://mas.to/@techtales Support the Show: https://techtalesshow.com/support Videos: • https://archive.org/details/wwdc-2005 Sources: • https://lowendmac.com/1998/powerpc-vs-pentium-ii-escargot/ • https://lowendmac.com/2014/cpus-powerpc-604-and-604e/ • https://lowendmac.com/2015/cpus-powerpc-g5/ • https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2003/06/23Apple-Unleashes-the-Worlds-Fastest-Personal-Computer-the-Power-Mac-G5/ • https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2004/06/09Apple-Unveils-New-Power-Mac-G5-Line/ • https://www.cnet.com/tech/computing/apple-on-g5-powerbook-not-so-fast/ • https://www.macworld.com/article/174337/pbg5-2.html • https://www.cnet.com/science/amd-says-intel-only-deal-struck-at-apple-in-2005/ • https://www.macstories.net/stories/this-is-not-a-product-the-apple-developer-transition-kit/ • https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2006/05/16Apple-Unveils-New-MacBook-Featuring-Intel-Core-Duo-Processors/ • https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2006/01/10Apple-Unveils-New-iMac-with-Intel-Core-Duo-Processor/ • https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2006/02/28Apple-Unveils-Mac-mini-with-Intel-Core-Duo/ • https://forums.macresource.com/read.php?1,261038,261270 • https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2006/01/10Apple-Introduces-MacBook-Pro/ • https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2006/05/16Apple-Unveils-New-MacBook-Featuring-Intel-Core-Duo-Processors/ • https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2007/12/santa-rosa-macbook-review/ • https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2006/08/macpro/ • https://www.macworld.com/article/666300/15-inch-macbook-pro-2006-review.html • https://www.wired.com/2005/08/mac-hacks-allow-os-x-on-pcs-2/ • https://www.anandtech.com/show/7204/ibm-offers-power-technology-for-licensing-forms-openpower-consortium • https://www.theregister.com/2020/08/17/ibm_t7nm_power10/ Chapters: 0:00:00 Intro 0:00:48 The PowerPC era 0:12:00 The Intel announcement 0:23:01 Apple Developer Transition Kit 0:26:03 The Intel Macs 0:35:51 The reviews 0:40:34 Hackintosh PCs 0:44:49 AMD's complaints 0:47:36 Farewell to PowerPC 0:50:28 PowerPC after Apple 0:53:16 Outro

    55 min
  8. Google AMP

    02/25/2024

    Google AMP

    Google introduced AMP in 2015 as a solution for slow and unresponsive mobile websites. It didn't go well. Hosted by Corbin Davenport, guest starring Adam Conway. Follow on Mastodon/Fediverse: https://mas.to/@techtales Support the Show: https://techtalesshow.com/support Sources: • https://www.uky.edu/~jclark/mas355/WAP.PDF • https://developers.secure.facebook.com/blog/post/2015/09/22/instant-articles-from-CMS/ • https://buffer.com/library/facebook-instant-articles/ • https://blog.google/products/search/introducing-accelerated-mobile-pages/ • https://searchengineland.com/what-happened-when-we-turned-off-amp-378591 • https://www.axios.com/2022/10/14/meta-facebook-ending-support-instant-articles • https://searchengineland.com/amp-top-stories-now-live-243314 • https://searchengineland.com/google-opens-amp-firehose-259569 • https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ha00dSGKmjoEh2mRiG8FIA5sJ1KihTuZe-AXX1r8P-8/edit?usp=sharing • https://www.theregister.com/2017/05/19/open_source_insider_google_amp_bad_bad_bad/ • https://searchengineland.com/what-happened-when-we-turned-off-amp-378591 • https://www.theverge.com/23711172/google-amp-accelerated-mobile-pages-search-publishers-lawsuit Chapters: 0:00:00 Intro 0:00:37 The early mobile web 0:08:55 Facebook Instant Articles 0:12:09 Google AMP 0:24:13 Everyone hates AMP 0:38:07 The post-AMP web 0:47:26 Outro

    49 min
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4.5
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

Tech Tales is a podcast exploring the technology world's epic failures, forgotten successes, and everything in between. Hosted by Corbin Davenport. Made without generative AI.

Information

  • Creator
    Corbin Davenport
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2025
  • Episodes
    60
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © All rights reserved
  • Show Website
    Tech Tales