Note: this article originally appeared on TechCrunch: Designing for Mobile: 7 Guidelines for Startups to Follow
As an investor, I’ve seen hundreds of mobile application pitches. And as a consumer, I’ve downloaded hundreds more – some …

I’ve long argued that Apple’s iTunes and the app store are woefully unintelligent. They are akin to merchandising in a storefront… when there is data available to make the store experience more compelling and better …

I’m perplexed by best buy. Terrific customer service, convenience and return policy (30 day, return anything – no questions). But high pricing (see hdmi cables and blu rays) and limited inventory (other than tvs).

In the last month alone, I have purchased three books on the Amazon Kindle store (I use the Kindle app on the iPad)… had Amazon’s new Kindle Lending Library program been live, I would have …

Amazon finds a promotional ad unit they like… and they stick to it. I’ve written before about Amazon effectively selling the “buy / create once, access anywhere” tagline. It’s simple and it speaks to:

Forbes spotlighted LegalZoom earlier in the week: “Silicon Valley Sees Gold In Internet Legal Services” (a Polaris Ventures backed company).

When Amazon announced the new Kindle product line and the $199 Kindle Fire – I declared that Amazon did more than introduce a disruptive product… they changed the non-iPad market with remarkably disrupitive pricing:

There are several reasons why Amazon’s new Kindle Fire – and the larger Kindle line – is disruptive (my take here).

Amazon’s $199 tablet, the Kindle Fire, is now available for pre-order. The product page is really terrific: colorful, informative, fun and all on a single page. It’s great:

In addition to Amazon’s navigation menu promoting its digital properties ahead of the core business… notice anything interesting?
It features dynamic taglines for three of the core properties:
- MP3s & Cloud Player: 16m available songs
- …

The downtown Palo Alto Borders is closing and the entire store is marked at 60-80% off. Everything is on sale – from the books to the bookshelves. I walked in with the intention of buying …

Have you looked at Amazon’s core navigation pane recently… you know, where Amazon users start browsing through the online mega-store?