Byte size news: Gadgets harder to get post-quake

Too poor for a PC? Too stingy for a smartphone?
Buying the gadgets you have your eye on could get harder after the Japanese tsunami, with the disaster expected to push the prices of some gadgets up.
"From semiconductors to displays, to automotive and consumer electronics, the effects of the Japan earthquake continue to reverberate throughout the world," Dale Ford, senior vice president at research firm IHS iSuppli, said.
"Beyond the damage to Japan's own industrial base, the earthquake has impacted the production of basic electronic raw materials."
Japan produces between 15 and 20 per cent of the world's electronics.
Dauvin said 30 per cent of the video games, 40 per cent of video and still cameras and 15 per cent of television sets sold around the world are manufactured in Japan.
The disaster is expected to affect the supply chain and lead to higher prices, especially because Japan's factories usually work at full capacity from April to May to push out products for Christmas.
Snake a cyber hit
Birds tweet and now so do snakes.
Well, one AWOL snake that goes by the Twitter name @BronxZoosCobra. The cobra at New York City's Bronx Zoo has more than 150,000 followers on Twitter. It went missing from the zoo's reptile house and someone has since started tweeting on its behalf.
Talk show host Ellen Degeneres has also given the snake a shout-out.
The creator of the BronxZoosCobra account is unknown and refuses to respond to reporters' emailed enquiries.

MP grabs iPad cred
How do you make a politician cool? Give them an iPad.
At least that was probably what British Labour MP Kerry McCarthy was hoping when she became the first British politician to read from an iPad instead of printed notes while delivering a House of Commons speech.
McCarthy's ground-breaking use of the iPad was reportedly accidental, caused by repeated editing of her speech as the debate progressed.
"I did have a printed version, but was called so late I started playing around with the speech on iPad, so read it from there," she said.
Baby beats Gaga
Justin Bieber has pipped Lady Gaga in the race to 500 million views on YouTube with his Baby music video.
Bieber's clip topped the Bad Romance music video by Lady Gaga that had been viewed nearly 362 million times.
The top amateur video of all time at YouTube is "Charlie bit my finger - again", a 56-second snippet of a baby chomping on his bigger brother's forefinger.
The video had been viewed more than 296 million times.
Got any news, gadgets or queries? Contact lindsay.harvey@apn.co.nz