The Mandatory Fourth of July 2008 Post

Celebrate your 232nd year of independence you Americans you! It’s clear that in terms of gadgets, the US is king.

It’s all about American Gadgets, Folks

Everyone talks about American gadgets like the iPhone (notable exceptions include Nokia and Korean manufacturers like Samsung, and you can see them try their best to appeal to the American market). The top 5 trafficked websites according to Alexa (Google, Windows Live, Facebook, Wikipedia, and Gmail) were all created by Americans (and some would say for Americans). A similarity among high-profile gadget celebrities, such as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and even Walt Mossberg, is their American blood.

You can of course argue that the rest of the world is catching up, or already has. Forget Japan, let’s look at connected powerhouses like Korea and of course China. But when you limit the scope to the English language, it’s clear that the most prominent stuff continue to be American.

Let’s realize for a moment that the ICANN, a non-profit organization dedicated to making sure everyone on the Internet can find each other, is based in the US. Let’s also remember that the art of tech-reporting was created and refined in the US. Don’t believe me? Guess where websites like Engadget, Gizmodo, and The Gadget Blog are based? I also bet that tech-savvy people from other countries are quite envious of how easy it is for Americans to turn their tech ideas into paper wealth.

American Standards

And what about the standards that help gadgets interact with each other?

• USB: “The USB 1.0 specification was introduced in November 1995. USB was promoted by Intel (UHCI and open software stack), Microsoft (Windows software stack), Philips (Hub, USB-Audio), and US Robotics.”
• VGA: “The term Video Graphics Array (VGA) refers specifically to the display hardware first introduced with the IBM PS/2 line of computers in 1987″
• WiFi: “The precursor to Wi-Fi was invented in 1991 by NCR Corporation/AT&T (later Lucent & Agere Systems)” [in the Netherlands, but still under the management of an American entity

Of course, you’ve got GSM, a European cellular standard, trumping America’s CDMA. But again, can you tell me which GSM phone currently gets a lot of media mileage? (answer: the iPhone)

I apologize if I’m coming off as a jingoist. But my point is still clear: in the world of gadgets, America rules. And that’s something Americans should celebrate as part of their independence.