It looks like Apple’s attempt to market the iPhone 3G to a more economically diverse market has succeeded. Comscore recently reported that the largest growth in iPhone users is those earning less than the median household income. Comscore believes that this change reflects more people turning to the iPhone as a multimedia and Internet device in difficult economic times.

“As an additional household budget item, a $200 device plus at least $70 per month for phone service seems a bit extravagant for those with lower disposable income,” said Jen Wu, senior analyst, comScore, the report’s author. “However, one actually realizes cost savings when the device is used in lieu of multiple digital devices and services, transforming the iPhone from a luxury item to a practical communication and entertainment tool.”

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Jeff Ventura, spokesperson for the Chief Administrative Office, has a simple reason why the Apple iPhone could someday be the official phone of Congress. He says, “a lot of people want the option to have them.” The CAO, which oversees the communications systems for the House, has begun testing a small number of iPhones within its ranks to see if they are compatible with the working needs of lawmakers and staff. The popular device is famous for its intuitive and pleasurable interface but is still criticized for its touch-screen keyboard and slow data connection.

The CAO will decide whether or not to give members the option of using the phones by this January. Most in the house will probably stay with the nearly 8,200 BlackBerry devices being actively used. If they do decide to switch to the iPhone, they will have to pay for it from the Member’s Representational Allowance. If the expense is determined to be predominantly official, then it may even be reimbursed.

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A Lala cheerleader may have told you about purchasing songs at 10 cents each. Now let’s not cannonball into the pool just yet. While Lala.com can boast over 170,000 independent distributors and labels, the release represents an ominous sign in the digital industry—buying music saved onto hard drives at remote data centers.

For one, YouTube’s playlist service already offers Lala’s primary function for free, but this soon may not be the case. There has been an increase in ostensible copyright violations on YouTube’s music videos. Secondly, the rumors of the ten-cent song amount to an obvious foot in the door technique that is really almost the same price as iTunes.

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The computer laptop market is changing, but for better or for worse? While Apple is making moves into the cheaper laptop market, Samsung is moving into Apple’s territory by releasing its own premium line—price at $1599 and up. The NP-X360 and NP-X460 (picture right), designed to compete with Apple’s Air, symbolizes Samsung’s reentrance into the laptop market. But perhaps Samsung should have listened to its marketing department before designing its new line.

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After a strong second half Monday, tech stocks continued their free fall Tuesday. We’re really starting to get an idea of how analysts erred on the side of optimism believing the technology sector was insulated from the market’s troubles.

At the 4:00 pm trading deadline, Dell had dropped 6.39%, from 15.04 to 13.55. Apple fell 9.15% to 89.16, Microsoft dropped 6.74% to 23.23, and Cisco ended the day at 18.84, down 7.92 from Monday’s close.  Sun Microsystems dropped 10.45%, from 6.61.

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Google is the fastest growing global brand, according to Businessweek and Interbrand’s Best Global Brand Survey.

The online search company first appeared in the top 100 list in 2005, at number 38; today, it is 10th on the list. Google’s brand value is calculated to be more than 25 billion dollars, and has risen 43% from its 2007 value of $18 billion. The key is Google’s quest for omnipresence:

“Innovations like Google Mobile, Google Docs & Spreadsheets and Google Book Search extend the brand’s reach and ubiquity and make it an increasingly important part of our everyday lives.”

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Revamped designs to the iPod Nano and the iPod Touch are the prevalent rumors being spread in the wake of Apple’s recent announcement to hold a special event September 9 in San Francisco. For the past four years, new digital music player introductions have been the practice of Apple prior to the holiday season. Also speculated is a decrease in price to the iPod Touch.

One rumor is that the iPod Touch will have a curved outer shell, which is inferred from the recent upgrades to the iPhone 3G. Additionally, many expect the iPod Nano to receive substantial redesign. The 4th generation Nano may have a slimmer design, while not affecting the screen size of the current model.

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Microsoft and Apple have been getting all the attention when it comes to touchscreen computing, but it will be a long time until the average user has the future as promised by Minority Report in their own home.

Surface’s high cost, which will retail for between five and ten-thousand dollars, ensures that the Microsoft touchscreen will be available only in stores, hotels, restaurants, and other corporate environments for several years following its release. Apple’s touchscreen, it seems, is only in the early stages of development — if one’s being developed at all.

What appears to be the way of future computing might come to home computing years early, thanks to open source.

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Best Buy will be the first major U.S. retail store beyond to sell the iPhone 3G, beginning September 7.

The Minneapolis retailer announced Wednesday that it will sell the iPhone at its 970 stores. “Quite honestly, many of our customers come to our store every day asking for it,” said Best Buy’s mobile division president Shawn Score. “We’re excited we’re going to be able to say yes.”

Despite its incredible popularity and enviable sales, Apple’s phone is currently only available in two places, Apple and AT&T stores. Best Buy will sell the iPhone at the same prices as at the other outlets, and will still require a two-year AT&T contract for activation.

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Kevin Cronin, chief investment officer for Putnam Investments, finds upside in four tech stocks in an economy he believes is currently suffering from inflation and deteriorating economic growth. “The tech sector and the utility sector have been two of the more defensive sectors over the course of the last year and we do find some attractive names there,” Cronin told Erin Burnett and Mark Haines on CNBC’s Squawk on the Street.

The four stocks Cronin believes have promise are Microsoft [MSFT], Adobe [ADBE], Apple [AAPL], and EMC Corp. [EMC]. EMC Corp., based out of Hopkinton, Massachusetts, specializes in information infrastructure technology and solutions. “We debate whether Apple is a consumer company or a tech company, but we like Apple as well,” Cronin said. Cronin recognized that the current deterioration of economic growth is not only an American issue, but a global issue as well.

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