Brazil has a 200+ million headset market, roughly split equally between 4 major carriers (Vivo, Oi, TIM and Claro). This phone doesn't need to be the iPhone or Android killer - it just needs to be cheap and useful. I

f they're able to get 10% of Vivo's market share, it's a success - I mean, 5 million phones in Brazil alone meanss a lot of phones. I suppose other emerging markets would also have such similar characteristics, so a successful launch here in Brazil would pave the way for rolling this out to other South American countries and then, later, to other Asian emerging markets.

An current-gen iPhone here costs US$1000. If they're able to bring something that has good usability at a local US$200 price-point, they'll sell a lot of headsets, since the Android phones you can get here in Brazil in the US$200 are only fake Chinese crap (lower-end from Samsung start at US$250-300).

Not sure where you got this idea that developers are gods here in Brazil. It is seen by the general public as a good career choice (while, in the US, that doesn't seem to be the norm anymore) but it doesn't really pay that well for the average guy. And a great salary here is about what the average guy earns in the US. Living cost isn't that much lower: rent is cheaper but nearly everything else is 1.5-3x more expensive. In other words: you wouldn't be able to afford a view to the beach.

Also, the economy is not doing very well. Our current government has managed to fool the international community, but if the current economic crisis goes on for a couple of years more, Brazil will be in trouble. They gambled the crisis wouldn't last for a long time... but their bet is already starting to fall apart.

Finally, as a foreigner, you'd be a prime targe for robberies, purse snatchers, etc.

You know, somehow, I have a feeling the parent comment should be remembered for posterity. :)
iPod launch jokes, anyone?

I'm Brazilian and keeping your stuff with yourself all the time in South America is called "common sense" around here.
People will even tell you it's your fault you've been stolen if you don't do so.

I'm also from Brazil and I share the feeling... sadly, I think it's the same thing everywhere in the world.
I guess we're entering the next Dark Ages of knowledge...

Sorry, but in the first page of results there isn't a single case where Google is suing anyone.
Have you bothered actually reading the links instead of relying on bad journalists writing story titles?

Well, you might want to point exactly to where I did that and, if I wasn't corrected right at the spot by another reader, then, please do so.
I'm always glad when people correct me and show I'm wrong. I read through my first page of comments and couldn't find anything that seemed wrong to me - feel free to help me out. ;)

Nevertheless, it's a flawed argument. Just because I can't shoot a movie, it doesn't mean I can't say a movie sucks and be right about it.

Since software patents are, unfortunately, allowed in the US I'd say it's better to secure as many as you can, even if you're against them. Otherwise, your competitors (which are clearly pro-patent litigation) will grab them eventually and you'll have a much harder time in court when they sue you. This is basic common sense.

What you're saying is equivalent to saying that only murderers should own guns. You can clearly be against murderers and still own a gun. Cops needs guns in order to effectively fight murderers. In fact, this is a much better analogy.

[citation needed]

I honestly don't understand what you were implying by linking to my profile. If you go and read my posts you'll basically see a lot of stuff about Brazil, because that's where I'm from. I occasionally comment on other technology and random subjects as well.

Am I a paid shill from the Brazilian Govt. trying to spread information about the country on a "News for Nerds" board? I better go collect my payment then, before a corrupt politician robs it first...

Google has never sued anyone for patent infringement. They only use their own patents defensively and have spoken in public they're against software patents.
Please stop spreading misinformation and FUD.

Maybe you need to be brain-damaged in the first place in order to actually like American football and become a professional player?
Just sayin'...

Actually, as a Brazilian, I can say that Brazilian workers have more rights than the ones in the US and a lot of other places in the world.
Yet, strikes here are commonplace because people always like to bitch about everything...

I actually saved this quote for posteriority - sums up my personal beliefs pretty well.
Thanks for writing the idea in a such concise manner.

Use this tool and have fun: http://matrix.itasoftware.com/
You can't actually buy the tickets, but once you've found what you want, you can just go to any other travel site, airline site or real-world travel agent and issue the tickets.

Because Apple is the company which promised to replace his laptop up to 4 years after the date of purchase if it failed but then refused to replace it 3 years later?
Sure, the problem is with the GPU, but since Apple itself *promised* to do something for a customer, they should respect their own words.

The "fasten seatbelt" lights are on for good reason: if the airpline suddenly loses altitude, you won't crack your skull on the roof.
You should avoid spending any time at all without your seatbelts in an airplane because, in some rare occurrences, these drops will happen without any warning at all.

I've tried really hard to like OpenStreetMaps, even contributed several street names and fixed some bad street geometry issues in my neighborhood... but overall it's next to useless here in Brazil. And I live in one of the largest cities here (metro area with 6 million people).

So, yeah, maybe it's useful in the US and Europe, but not everywhere...