Gdgt Launches, Goes Down (But Comes Right Back Up)
The gadget startup gdgt, with Peter Rojas and Ryan Block at the helm, has launched. It is something of a gadget-focused community, mixing in traditional editorial content and reviews, with user generated content and a wiki-like gadget database. That wiki is the killer app, is my bet, although gdgt could do just as well with just its content. After all, they clocked in 4.7 million pageviews with their liveblog from WWDC, pre launch. The power of Rojas and Block is not to underestimated.
And gdgt might very well be an interesting site, surely one to follow. It is not like the predecessors, Engadget or Gizmodo, but more of a social beast, which is interesting.
Block has this to say in the announcement post:
While the core concepts that drive the site — gadgets and community — will always stay the same, what we’re most excited about is the fact that we can use gdgt as the foundation for building tons of new features and tools for the gadget world. Stuff like the gadget finder — which lets you search for devices based on specs (finally!) — is only the start. We’re already working like crazy thinking up lots of new stuff to introduce over the coming months.
Having a hard time to grasping the concept? Veronica Belmont explains in a promo video:
So “G-D-G-T” is it? “Gadget” is cooler.
Anyway, the launch has gotten some coverage already, and maybe that’s why the site went down for “upgrades” for a little while. Update: Traffic right now is a bit bumpy still…
We’ll most likely return to this one later one, with more coverage. For now, check it out, and tell me: Will gdgt be a serious competitor to Engadget and Gizmodo?
G-D-G-T? Bit clunky to say.
It will be interesting to see how it goes. The tech space is VERY crowded and IMO it’s hard to carve a space in the niche, even if you’re a big name. It’s certainly got some clout though.