On this week’s show: Google previously bought seven robotics companies, and this week it buys the Big Dog (literally), Sprint guns for T-Mobile, Instagram wants a piece of Snapchat‘s action, Twitter changes blocking–then changes their mind, are the NSA‘s actions unconstitutional?

Podcast

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What We’re Playing With

Andy: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug in HFR 3D
Dwayne: New Pebble Update
Greg: Google Music All Access; woes with the Nexus 4

Headlines

• Google acquires robot manufacturer Boston Dynamics
• Sprint Working on a bid for T-Mobile US
• Instagram Direct Debuts, Send Videos and Photos Directly To Friends
• Twitter Reverts Blocking Policy After User Outrage

Audible Book of the Week

• A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
• Sign up at AudibleTrial.com/TheDrillDown

Music Break: God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen/We Three Kings by Barenaked Ladies (ft. Sarah McLachlan)

Hot Topic: NSA Held to Account

• Judge: NSA phone program likely unconstitutional
• The NSA: An Inside View (lengthy, but a fascinating read)
• Tech firms push back against White House efforts to divert NSA meeting
  • Obama Discusses Surveillance With Tech Execs
• Obama Panel Recommends New Limits on N.S.A. Spying
• Snowden: NSA’s indiscriminate spying “˜collapsing’

Music Break: Rapper’s Delight by Sugar Hill Gang

Final Word: Everything is a Remix

• Everything is a Remix
• James Burke’s Connections – A must-watch for tech history buffs.

The Drill Down Video of the Week

Everything is a Remix Case Study: The iPhone

Outro: Long December by Counting Crows

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Geeks Of Doom’s The Drill Down is a roundtable-style audio podcast where we discuss the most important issues of the week, in tech and on the web and how they affect us all.

Hosts are Geeks of Doom contributor Andrew Sorcini (Mr. BabyMan), marketing research analyst Dwayne De Freitas, and Box tech consultant Tosin Onafowokan. Occasionally joining them is Startup Digest CTO Christopher Burnor.