Thursday, February 12, 2009

Microsoft: Windows 7 No 'Magic Bullet' for Enterprises

Microsoft warned enterprise customers this week that the migration path from XP to Windows 7 won't be any easier than it is to Vista, and offered recommendations for how companies can move from older versions of Windows to one of its newer client OSes.

windows 7, microsoft"Moving from XP to Windows 7 is not a magic bullet," said Gavriella Schuster, a senior director of Windows product management, in an interview Tuesday. "You have the same level of application compatibility from XP to Windows Vista or Windows 7."

Enterprise customers who would have had to replace applications in a move from XP to Vista will still have the same task when they move to Windows 7, she said. However, if customers have already made the leap to Vista, it will be easier to move applications to Windows 7 because it's on essentially the same code base, she said.

In a company blog post attributed to Schuster, Microsoft made recommendations to business customers to help them decide whether they should upgrade to Vista now or wait for Windows 7, which is expected later this year or, at the latest, early next year.

Many companies chose to stick with Windows XP instead of upgrading to Vista, causing Microsoft to keep new PCs with XP pre-installed in the market longer than originally planned. Once Windows 7 is released, which most expect before the end of the year, Microsoft will have two OSes built on essentially the same code base in the market at the same time, and Schuster said customers have asked the vendor how to choose between them.

To no one's surprise, Microsoft recommends that business customers still running XP or older versions of the OS upgrade as soon as possible, citing security and remote-management capabilities in both Vista and Windows 7 that weren't baked into the original XP release.

XP also was released before the majority of PCs in enterprises were laptops, and both Vista and Windows 7 have features that allow IT managers to better manage and secure laptops and mobile devices for the type of mobile workforce found in many enterprises today, Schuster said.

"When you think about Windows XP in that context -- it came out in 2001, when less than 10 percent of devices were laptops," she said. "There wasn't ubiquitous broadband. There weren't the levels of compliance and regulatory requirements. There weren't data protections."

What may be surprising in Microsoft's message, however, is that the company doesn't care which of its newer OSes customers move to -- Windows Vista or Windows 7 -- as long as they do what's best for their individual IT environments.

"What strikes me is that Microsoft is being fairly pragmatic about what the options are for customers," said Al Gillen, an analyst with IDC. "Microsoft seems to recognize the reality that customers aren't going to do what Microsoft tells them to do. They're going to do what's right for them."

Indeed, Schuster said Microsoft is "agnostic" about which OS customers upgrade to. She said Microsoft is just trying to set expectations for any upgrade that may be planned or in progress, so that customers aren't surprised by problems or complexities they may encounter.

Customers should examine their application and hardware environments closely to see which would be the best fit for them. "It really depends on the environment," Schuster said.

She did have some advice for customers depending on what OS they are currently running, and whether or not they have begun migrating to Vista already.

For customers still running Windows 2000, "they clearly need to move fast and need to move to Windows Vista," she said. Extended support for Windows 2000 ends in April 2010, and it will take a company 12 to 18 months to complete the upgrade. "They can't wait for Windows 7," Schuster said.

For companies that are halfway through a migration to Windows Vista Service Pack 1, they should continue that migration as planned, she said. However, if a company has begun piloting Vista and is not yet halfway through the migration process, moving to Vista Service Pack 2 -- which should be generally available in April -- is a better option.

Some customers have already said they plan to wait for Windows 7, and Microsoft is not recommending they change that course.

When Windows 7 is available, it won't be the first time Microsoft will have two OSes on the same code base in the business market at the same time. Windows 2000 Pro and Windows XP Pro were built on the same code base as well, and many business customers on Windows 98 waited for XP instead of moving to 2000, Gillen noted.

Windows 7 is essentially the second release of Vista, an incremental update that will include some usability features but not "cause a rift for Windows Vista applications" during a migration, he said.

It will essentially be about as painful for customers to move from XP to Vista as it will be to move from XP to Windows 7, Gillen said, corroborating Schuster's warning. He agreed, too, that a migration from Vista to Windows 7 will be far easier.

However, Gillen said that Microsoft's argument that customers should pick one or the other is more in its own self-interest than an actual necessity for enterprise customers.

"[Microsoft] is trying to use every lever they have to try to encourage customers to move," he said. "But customers are going to make their own decisions based on [their own needs]." Some customers may find they can stay on XP indefinitely as long as they can continue to patch and support their applications on it. Microsoft ends extended support for XP in April 2014.

One company that has already migrated to Windows Vista, and plans to upgrade to Windows 7 as well, is computer reseller Heartland Technology Solutions in Harlan, Iowa. Heartland is a Microsoft partner that participated in the Vista beta-testing program.

Arlin Sorensen, CEO and president of Heartland, said that Vista increased worker productivity, particularly because of its the improved desktop search functionality.

Heartland serviced about 1,900 individual small-business customers last year, each with its own set of unique IT needs, he said. However, one of the most common problems customers needed help with was finding documents or files they couldn't locate.

"This is where the ability to search more quickly and efficiently for files immensely improved productivity," Sorensen said.

"The whole Vista experience has helped in simple but very productive ways," he said. "There's a significant amount of time people waste looking for documents."

2:20 AM by Nitesh Bhatia · 0 comments
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FriendConnect, the Google service that lets Web publishers add social networking features to their Web sites, has gained a new feature that aggregates basic social media functions in a toolbar that can be added to Web pages.

The "social bar," as Google calls it, puts functions like logging in, editing profiles and settings, activity streams display and discussion wall postings into a strip that can be placed at the top or bottom of Web pages, Google said Wednesday. People can expand the view of each function by clicking on it.

FriendConnect is Google's offering for data portability, which allows people to control the information and content they enter at social networking sites and social media-sharing sections of Web sites, so that they don't have to manually update multiple accounts.

For example, one idea of data portability calls for people to have an online dashboard of their social information and content -- friends lists, photos, video clips, blog items -- that would be independent from any individual site. From there, people can control what information and content they post where, avoiding data lock-in.

Although data portability has gained popularity among users and Internet companies, it has proven technically complicated to implement as well as controversial, because it brings up questions about users' data privacy and protection.

In a prime example of the complexities of bringing broad data portability into reality, Facebook blocked FriendConnect's access to its site in May, saying the Google service violated its terms of service by redistributing the data of Facebook members "in a way users might not expect or understand."

Garmin-Asus announces Windows Mobile-based nuvifone M20


We'd been secretly holding out hope that Garmin-Asus would pull an Android piece out of its pocket in time for MWC next week, but it's looking pretty unlikely with the announcement of the M20. The second model in the nuvifone series following the G60, the new piece runs Windows Mobile 6.1 and features a 2.8-inch VGA touchscreen, quadband EDGE / triband HSDPA up to 7.2Mbps, WiFi, Bluetooth, and -- naturally -- Garmin-provided satellite navigation. You'll also find support for real-time traffic, weather, movie times, and other tidbits of information you're probably interested in when you're navigating, either 4 or 8GB of onboard storage, and a service Garmin is calling Ciao! -- basically a friend-finder along the lines of Google's Latitude. Look for pricing and availability to be announced in the first half of the year.

Sony Ericsson exec dismisses rumors of a schism

2:16 AM by Nitesh Bhatia · 0 comments
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Despite some nasty financial losses and a rumored smackdown of a PSP phone proposal, the Sony Ericsson joint venture is apparently as strong as ever. That's what Senior Marketing Manager Richard Dorman is saying, denying any talks of a split. He also noted that both companies had been losing money in their respective handset division prior to the assimilation, and the partnership is "full steam ahead." That's great, now how about showing us some more Hikaru, hm?

Samsung's Android phones delayed, won't show up at MWC


Looks like Samsung will be one of the few companies not to show off an Android device at next week's Mobile World Congress. Head of marketing for mobile device division Younghee Lee told The Guardian that none of their Google-powered handsets would be making it out to the show. As for that June launch on Sprint and T-Mobile we heard about back in December, the new plan is to launch in the second half of this year. Hey, at least we've got the i8910 to look forward to.

mophie's Juice Pack Air: world's thinnest iPhone 3G battery / case


mophie's iPhone 3G Juice Pack received universal praise, and while the additional baggage bothered some, most users just appreciated being able to utilize 3G for more than 47 seconds without needing an AC outlet. Not one to rest on its laurels, the company has today introduced the new and improved version: Juice Pack Air. Contrary to popular belief, this actually isn't intended for Apple's MacBook Air (now there's an idea to capitalize on, mophie), but instead, it's the planet's thinnest external iPhone 3G battery / case. The device houses a rechargeable 1,200mAh battery that "virtually doubles the amount of time you have to rock, talk, surf, and send messages." Eager consumers can pre-order theirs now in black, purple or white, while patient souls can mellow out until they hit mophie's website and Apple stores everywhere this Spring. Full release is after the jump.
Mophie Unveils Juice Pack Air - The World's Thinnest 'Works with iPhone' External Battery/Protective Case

Ultra-thin, light-weight juice pack air virtually doubles iPhone 3G battery life and offers the full protection of a hard-shell case in a low-profile design

Los Angeles, CA – February 11th, 2009 – mStation | mophie announces juice pack air, the world's thinnest apple-certified external battery for iPhone 3G. The rechargeable 1200 mAH lithium polymer battery housed in an ultra-thin case virtually doubles the amount of time you have to rock, talk, surf, and send. Juice pack air will be available to consumers world-wide this spring at Apple stores and mophie.com for $79.95 in Black, White, and Purple. http://www.mophie.com/products/juice-pack-air

Juice pack air features an innovative "standby mode" that allows users to control when they want to take advantage of additional battery support versus simply using it as a protective case. The integrated 4 LED charge status indicates how much juice is remaining in the external battery. Unique pass-through design allows users to simultaneously charge their juice pack air and sync their iPhone 3G with iTunes with the included USB cable.

"The juice pack air is a simple yet elegant battery boosting solution for iPhone 3G power users" says Ross Howe, Sales and Product Development Director for mStation | mophie. "Advanced features like standby mode and ultra-thin design make juice pack air the ideal option for both extended battery support and protection."

Additional Battery Time Provided by juice pack air

Standby Time: Up to 270 hours
Talk Time: Up to 4.5 hours (3G) Up to 9 hours (2G)
Internet Use: Up to 4.5 hours (3G) Up to 5.4 Hours (Wi-Fi)
Audio Playback: Up to 20 hours
Video Playback: Up to 6 hours


The mophie juice pack air will be available at Apple stores and mophie.com this spring with an MSRP of $79.95. For more information, please visit www.mophie.com

About mStation | mophie
mStation is consistently praised for its ability to create quality products with cool Industrial Design. mStation recently acquired mophie, an iPod accessory company with a wide array of award-winning cases. Their products can be found in Apple Stores and major retailers worldwide.

Jakks Pacific unveils EyeClops mini projector for the little ones

We see a ton of tiny little projectors these days around here. This one, by toymaker Jakks Pacific, is still pretty eye-catching, anyway. Expected to be on hand next week at the Toy Industry Association's annual International Toy Fair in New York, the EyeClops is obviously designed with children in mind, with a build similar to adult picos. We don't have full specs on this one yet, but it's capable of projecting a 70-inch images via its LED, and can be hooked up to all your child's favorite gadgets -- DVD players, digital cameras, and gaming consoles. The real kicker here is that the EyeClops is expected to sell for under $100 -- much less than most projectors for oldies.

Samsung licenses Sandbridge's reconfigurable baseband tech

Reconfigurable baseband processors aren't a new concept by any stretch of the imagination, but so far, the idea that we might move from CDMA to HSPA to LTE to WiMAX on our handsets with little more than some creative firmware flashing is -- sadly -- science fiction. Samsung's taking that dream a little closer to reality this week by revealing that it's licensing Sandbridge Technologies' software radio tech for integration in future devices; odds are, they're looking at this as a power play for reducing manufacturing expenses and not as a too-easy way for users to switch network technologies on the go, but as the old adage goes, "where there's a hacker, there's a way." Once this is implemented, the only remaining hurdle will be configurability of the actual frequencies in use -- it's dictated as much by the antenna as it is by the baseband itself, so we'll have to wait for tiny antenna robots before that sitch works itself out.

i-mate's rumored "Hummer" rugged handset set to appear as 810-F?


It's been some time since we've seen anything new come out of i-mate, and while we glimpsed the 810-F as a rumor ages ago, we're enthusiastic that mayhaps i-mate's got a few tricks left up its sleeve. The i-mate 810-F apparently runs Windows Mobile 6.1, a 624MHz CPU, HSDPA, QVGA display, GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth, and a big 'ol QWERTY pad, all tacked together by a rubberized housing and some hex screws. Other notable features include a 2 megapixel camera for rugged shots, and 2.2GB of internal storage space. Warranty? It's lifelong, if it breaks they replace it. Not a bad outing i-mate and judging by the date on the pic above, I expect we'll be seeing you in Barcelona.

Sony's BRAVIA KDL-46V5100 LCD HDTV goes on sale


Sony told us not to expect its newest BRAVIA V-, S-, and L-series HDTVs until this Spring, but apparently the 46-inch KDL-46V5100 is ready to roll. Available for ordering right now on the company's B2B website, the 52.6 pound set checks in with a 1080p panel, 120Hz Motionflow technology to remove judder, integrated stereo speakers, the BRAVIA Engine 2 and an NTSC / ATSC / ClearQAM TV tuner. Get yours on the way now for $1,899.99, and keep a close eye for availability on all of its siblings -- surely they aren't too far from the shipping dock, either.

Update: Whoa, Charlie! Sony pinged us to say that someone pulled the trigger a tad early, and that this set won't actually ship until early March. Hate to burst your bubble!

Gigabyte to debut GSmart S1200 WinMo phone and more at MWC


Gigabyte is understandably saving most of the details for its official announcement at Mobile World Congress, but the company has let out word that it'll be introducing three new series of phones at the big show, which it says fall under the Multimedia, Business, and Style categories. The former of those will apparently include the MS820, which made a brief appearance last year, as well as an all new model with "higher specifications." Gigabyte is even less specific about its new business offering, with it only saying that it'll be "something very different to what they have before," but it does thankfully have quite a bit to say about the GSmart S1200, which fills out the company's style quotient. As you can see above, this one's a touchscreen phone, and runs on Windows Mobile 6.1 with a new Gigabyte-developed interface atop it dubbed Smart Zone. At 0.43-inches, the phone is also reasonably slim, and it doesn't look to be too underpowered with a 528MHz Qualcomm 7200A processor under the hood. More details as we get 'em.

Mitsubishi temporarily suspends production of LaserVue HDTVs


We had heard that certain Mitsubishi representatives had been telling Diamond dealers that production had been suspended on the outfit's flagship LaserVue HDTV, and sure enough, the story is true. We have confirmed with Mitsubishi Digital Electronics America that the outfit has "temporarily suspended production of LaserVue televisions due to a problem with manufacturing equipment used to produce LaserVue TVs." We're also informed that "Mitsubishi Electric engineers are taking the necessary action to ensure that the company resumes production as quickly as possible, while maintaining the highest standards for product quality and reliability." So far as we know, this isn't a sign of sudden discontinuation, as Mitsu has affirmed that it's "expecting production to resume in early 2009." We'll update with more as we get it in.

Update: We asked a few followup questions, and we did find that Mitsu isn't anticipating any supply issues, which indicates the problem may be short lived (or at least it hopes so). As for an official comment on what went wrong? "LaserVue production was suspended due to a manufacturing equipment issue." That's all we've got

NVIDIA shows off Ion Windows 7 multitasking, confirms launch details


We've already gotten a pretty good idea of Ion's capabilities, but NVIDIA doesn't seem to be one to turn down an opportunity to show it off, and it did just that recently at a joint press conference with Microsoft. As you might have guessed, the pair was especially keen to show off Windows 7 multitasking on the platform and, judging from the video available at the read link below, it seems to be more than up to the task, with it able to convert a 1080p video file to a more portable size while the video was playing, and play Left 4 Dead at 720p resolution without any noticeable hiccups. In other news, NVIDIA also confirmed that the first Ion-based system would, in fact, be a desktop, and that it'll begin shipping sometime this spring. Unfortunately, there's no word as to who may be manufacturing said desktop, with NVIDIA's Drew Henry only going so far as to say that it'll be "very small" and "affordable."

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Twitter Won't Charge For Corporate Accounts

Twitter will not charge organizations for commercial accounts on the microblogging service. "Whatever we come up with, Twitter will remain free to use by everyone-individuals, companies, celebrities," wrote in a blog post yesterday Biz Stone, one of Twitter's co-founders.

Confusion sparked earlier this week around the web, as reports emerged that Twitter was identifying ways to charge for commercial accounts. But Twitter has "nothing to report just yet" on this topic, and Stone claims that they've just "been thinking out loud" lately.

Twitter has seen a massive spike in popularity over the last year and is now ranking at number 3 in Compete's list of social networks. According to Compete's measurements, Twitter climbed 19 spots last year and has now almost 6 million unique visitors monthly that visit the site around 54 million times during this time.

Twitter is now in the top 5 social networks list, after climbing 19 places in under a year.

However, Twitter's Biz Stone still leaves space for speculation. Although he says the microblogging service will remain free to use by everyone, Twitter is "thinking about adding value in places where we are already seeing traction, not imposing fees on existing services." So basically, all current services will remain free, but future corporate services might not.

Twitter and other social networks like Facebook are still due to come up with a viable business model. But so far, the companies' goal is to gain an even larger user base, which probably at some point will be used as a revenue source.

Intel Updates Laptop, Desktop Chip Plans

Intel on Tuesday accelerated plans to release two dual-core laptop and desktop processors, tweaking its road map as it juggles manufacturing efforts to cut costs.

The company will ship dual-core processors for mainstream laptops and desktops made using the 32-nanometer process, skipping plans to release similar chips manufactured using the 45-nm process. The chips will ship in the fourth quarter.

The road map update will quickly bring the latest technologies to laptop and desktop chips, company officials said during a press conference in San Francisco on Tuesday. Intel officials could not say when those chips would reach laptops and desktops.

The 32-nm-process chips will be an upgrade over existing 45-nanometer chips that go into current desktops and laptops. The chips will be cheaper to manufacture, work faster and draw less power.

The early shift to the 32-nm process will reduce Intel's manufacturing cost, said Jack Gold, principal analyst at J. Gold Associates.

The new chips could also bring excitement to a sore laptop market and provide users a reason to upgrade. For essentially the same cost, users will get a jump in performance with the latest technology Intel has to offer, Gold said.

The new dual-core laptop chips code-named Arrandale replace Nehalem-based Auburndale processors, Intel said. Intel will also ship 32-nm dual-core desktop chips code-named Clarkdale, which will replace Nehalem-based Havendale chips.

Arrandale will boost graphics performance while drawing less power than Core 2 processors, said Stephen Smith, vice president and director of group operations at Intel. The new chips will also be more energy-efficient, which could improve laptop battery life.

The clock speeds will be similar to chips used in existing laptops, but offer better performance at a similar power envelope by running more threads via each core.

The new chips will be part of Westmere microarchitecture, which is a shrink of Intel's existing Nehalem microarchitecture. Nehalem, which is used in Intel's Core i7 desktop, integrates a memory controller and provides a faster pipe for the CPU to communicate with system components. It is considered a significant upgrade over Intel's earlier microarchitectures, as it cuts bottlenecks to improve system speed and performance-per-watt. Intel earlier said it would ship dual-core laptops and desktops built around Nehalem in the second half of 2009.

Demand for chips is shrinking, so Intel has to take a drastic step to improve demand for its products, said analyst Gold.

With chip demand slowing, the returns on developing 45-nm laptop chips may also be minimal, Gold said. Intel's shift to the 32-nm process is smooth, which provides an incentive to quickly move to Westmere chips, he said.

"The optimum time to shift is when demand is down and risk is less," Gold said.

Earlier on Tuesday, Intel CEO Paul Otellini said the company would spend US$7 billion over the next two years to revamp manufacturing plants.

Intel is prioritizing its move to the new 32-nanometer process technology to lower chip-manufacturing costs and increase production. That will help the company make more chips at lower costs and add efficiencies to the production process, Intel officials said on Tuesday.

The new manufacturing process will also help create tiny integrated chips that can be fit into devices like set-top boxes and TVs, Intel said during its fourth-quarter earnings call in January. That could help Intel enter new markets and add revenue opportunities.

Intel will begin producing chips with 32-nm circuitry in four fabs starting in late 2009. A nanometer equals about a billionth of a meter. In chip manufacturing, the figure refers to the denser features etched on the surface of chips. Chip manufacturers like Intel and AMD are building smaller and smaller transistors into chips to perform quicker and draw less power.

Southwest details in-flight WiFi plans, announces partnership with Yahoo!


Southwest got official with its WiFi plans late last month, but avid travelers who favor the only airline worth flying anymore (okay, Virgin America and JetBlue aren't bad either) were left wondering about most of the details. Today, the company has fired up a single Row 44-equipped flight, and it has announced plans to equip three more airplanes with in-flight WiFi by early next month. Furthermore, it has nailed down a partnership with Yahoo! in order to offer an in-flight homepage with "destination-relevant content." The service, which has yet to receive final FCC approval, will be tested over the next few months, and if all goes well, we're left to hope, pray and beg that the airline rolls it out fleet-wide. There's no mention of an actual price here, but it would totally rule if it bucked the trend and provided it to everyone for free. Right, everyone?

Screen Grabs: Fringe's Olivia Dunham investigates zombies with Samsung BlackJack II

Screen grabs chronicles the uses (and misuses) of real-world gadgets in today's movies and TV. Send in your sightings (with screen grab!) to screengrabs at engadget dt com.


Given the scrutiny which Barack Obama underwent, you'd expect Fringe's Olivia Dunham -- who's responsible for matters far more serious than "fixing economies" and "creating domestic stimulus packages" -- to use some sort of highly specialized Sectera Edge for work. But given that AT&T sponsors her program, we suppose the FBI has made an exception here. As you can see, she (and her partners) were recently caught wielding Samsung's BlackJack II (and getting perfect reception on AT&T) while investigating the spontaneous morphing of humans. Turns out, this nifty little live video trick helped lead to some resolution in her life, but we'll spare you the spoilers.

Gallery: Screen Grabs: Fringe's Olivia Dunham investigates zombies with Samsung BlackJack II

Modu showcases production phone and accessories


Thought you'd seen the last of Modu, did you? Well, you were dead wrong. Dov Moran and his team have been hard at work -- since we last chatted with them at Mobile World Congress in '08 -- finishing the modular device that was definitely one of the gems of the MWC show. As a recap, the Modu's charm and versatility lays in the fact that the handset proper (pictured left) can be moved from one Modu Jacket (right) to another depending on the type of functionality needed. The heart of the magic lies in the tiny and light -- lightest handset in the world we're told -- Modu phone unit, and while details are thin, we know it has been rebuilt to be tougher, memory has been upped to 2GB, and is running a new UI. Also launching are 4 jackets that Modu slips into: the night jacket, street-art jacket, classic, and express. Each jacket (priced from $25 up to $100) can add features the Modu itself doesn't have, like night imaging, stereo speakers, music functionality, gaming, or just about anything else you can dream up. Dov stands by his hopes to get this thing into peoples hands with 2 jackets for a cool $200, here's hoping they land here soon. Engadget Mobile has the gallery, so feel free to wander over to have a look-see.

Samsung's tiny 120Mbps Wireless USB chipset ready for Q2 launch


Today things are a bit more clear as to why Intel abandoned its own Ultra Wide-Band efforts in favor of off-the-shelf solutions: Samsung just announced its ultra-fast Wireless USB chipset. Samsung's tiny 8 x 8-mm (0.31 x 0.31-inch) chip operates in the traditional 3.1 ~ 10.6GHz Certified Wireless USB space and delivers a relatively blistering 120Mbps data transfer rate (measured, not theoretical) compared to the 50Mbps achieved by current solutions -- that's a single ripped 700MB film transferred in about a minute from a range of about 3 meters. It also features 128-bit AES encryption and other security mechanisms meant to safeguard your data during transmission. The SystemOnChip design consumes 300mW of power and brings a built-in ARM core, UWB (ultra wide-band) physical layer, and memory controller while interfacing with SD cards, MMC, NAND, and USB 2.0 without any additional circuitry. In other words, expect to see Samsung's Wireless USB in digital cameras, MP3 player, speakers and more when these chips hit mass production in Q2.

It's worth noting that Samsung is a member of the Wireless USB Promoter Group that pushes the "Certified Wireless USB" standard. However, with Wireless USB start-up WiQuest out of the picture and zero references made to the standard or use of the group's logo, this might very well be a proprietary grab at the short-range wireless space that has received very little interest from vendors to date. We'll find out more more when Samsung presents its WUSB solution for the first time at Mobile World Congress next week.

BlackBerry Curve 8900 finally available to one and all on T-Mobile


Alright, business customers, just wipe that smug grin off your faces, won't you? The unwashed masses (read: us) have finally been given the green light to rush into T-Mobile stores (and online) to pick up the BlackBerry Curve 8900 for $199.99 on a two-year contract after rebates -- not exactly the $149.99 we were hoping for, but we can always hope for Best Buy to get this sucker out the door for a few bucks less than T-Mobile proper.

HP netbooks likely to run "at least" three versions of Windows 7

How many versions of Windows 7 can a netbook run? Three, and possibly more, according to HP's Kyle Thornton, who recently attempted to "clarify" the situation in an interview with Computerworld. Those include in the main Professional and Home Premium editions, as well as the low-end Starter edition which, among other things, is limited to running no more than three applications at a time. According to Thornton, HP has also been testing Windows 7 Ultimate on its Mini netbook line, although it apparently isn't saying if it actually intends to offer it on future netbooks or not. But that's not all. Thornton also says that HP "hopes" that it'll be able to continue to offer both Windows XP and Vista Business on its business-oriented netbooks even after Windows 7 ships... and ships, and ships.

Toshiba Tecra A10, M10 laptops now available

5:15 AM by Nitesh Bhatia · 0 comments
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Because you can never have too many Tecra laptops in your life, Toshiba's announced that the A10-S3511 and M10-S3411 are currently making their way through retail channels. Both PCs sport a 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 processors, 2GB DDR2 SDRAM, 160GB HDD, built-in webcam, WiFi, Bluetooth, Toshiba's EasyGuard technology, a Li-on battery that's expected to last just under 3 hours per charge, and Windows Vista Business with media to downgrade it to XP Professional. As for their differences, the A10's has a 15.4-inch screen with WSXGA+ resolution, NVIDIA's Quadro NVS, a 7200rpm disk speed, and a shiny new $1249 price tag,while the M10's got a 14.1-inch TFT LCD with WXGA+ resolution, an Intel GM45 integrated graphics chip, a 5400rpm disk speed, and a $1100 asking price, which is a bit lower than what we heard back in July.

Hands-on with Dell's Latitude XT2 tablet


Official word just arrived this morning of Dell's Latitude XT sucessor, the Latitude XT2, and Laptop Magazine's already spent some quality time with the tablet. They note the XT2's aesthetic similarity to the previous model, but point out a few standout upgrades, most notably the 12.1-inch LED backlit capacitive touch-screen, which they say is significantly brighter than the last iteration, and the up to 1.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo ULV SU9400 CPU (with a Montevina chipset). They also point out that the finger navigations are "smooth as butter" -- but hit the read link for full details and video of the tablet in action. The Latitude XT2 is going to have a starting price of $2,399.

ASUS N81Vg: first laptop with NVIDIA's GeForce GT 120M

Not quite an ultraportable, but not quite a behemoth -- the 14-inch ASUS N81Vg fits nicely between the two laptop extremes, and given that it's the first to house NVIDIA's GeForce GT 120M graphics card, even gamers can feel free to sneak a deathmatch or two in between conference calls. The rig itself can be ordered with one of many Core 2 Duo processors, up to 4GB of DDR2 RAM, upwards of 500GB of hard drive space, an optional Blu-ray burner, 1.3 megapixel webcam and a battery good for three to four hours. The newfangled 120M GPU features NVIDIA CUDA technology, 32 processing cores, DirecX 10 support, 1080p video playback and 110 gigaflops of computing power. Per usual, ASUS is keeping quiet when it comes to pricing and release details, but it ought not be long now, tiger.

iriver P20 PMP priced and dated in Japan


We're still no closer to understanding if iriver's P20 is destined for a US release, but at least the thing's about to ship in one corner of the globe. The company has decided on a February 27th release date in the wonderfully brilliant nation of Japan, where eager PMP shoppers will be able to exchange ¥39,800 ($436) for an 80GB model. For those who've forgotten the details, it sports a 4.1-inch OLED touchscreen (480 x 272), a built-in FM tuner, USB 2.0 connectivity, support for a litany of file formats, an optional card reader for extra expansion and a rechargeable battery good for at least nine hours of playback. Look on the bright side -- you've been itching for an excuse to visit Osaka, right?

[Via Slashgear]

Gallery: iriver P20 PMP priced and dated in Japan

Intel demos first-ever 32nm processors


Intel had a little roadmap event today to shed some light on its massive $7b fab investment, and the focus was mostly on the upcoming transition to 32nm processors -- highlighted by the first-ever demo of a working 32nm Nehalem-based Westmere chip. It was just a demo, so there aren't any hard benchmarks available, but eventually the tech will show up in the Calpella platform's dual-core Clarkdale laptop processors that integrate two processor cores, a graphics core, and a memory controller all in a chip the size of one 45nm quad-core Clarksfield chip. (Yes, the codenames are confusing as hell.) Intel wouldn't lock down the schedule for any of this stuff, but when we asked them about the rumored Calpella delays we heard about this morning we were told that parts of the platform will definitely go into production sometime in 2009. Video, slides, and the full press release after the break.








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Intel Demonstrates First Working 32nm-based Microprocessor
in Both Mobile and Desktop Systems
Feb. 10, 2009 - At a media briefing in San Francisco today, Intel Corporation discussed new milestones for 32nm manufacturing and progress toward future products. Earlier that day, in Washington, DC, Intel President and CEO Paul Otellini disclosed that Intel is making the largest- ever investment in a single process technology in the United States to support upgrades to advanced manufacturing facilities in the country and the move to its next-generation, 32nm chip manufacturing technology. Intel is investing approximately $7 billion in 2009-10 on 32nm manufacturing technology, raising the total by the end of that timeframe to approximately $8 billion (for 32nm investment in the United States).

Below is a summary of the product roadmap news at the briefing in San Francisco:

First-ever demonstration of a working 32nm-based microprocessor:
  • Intel is demonstrating the first 32nm working microprocessor in both mobile and desktop systems.
  • Great 32nm process and product health are enabling Intel to accelerate 32nm product ramp
    • Westmere mobile and desktop processor production in the fourth quarter of 2009
    • 32nm enables increased performance and power flexibility
  • Intel processors based on Westmere will ramp into mobile, desktop, and server segments over time, as the 32nm process ramps
For client, Westmere brings Nehalem through Intel's mainstream processor product line
  • Increased performance, smaller processor core size
  • New multi-chip package with graphics integrated in the processor
  • Repartitioned system architecture, simplified motherboards
  • Volume ramp; expect 32nm in server market in 2010
Westmere key features
  • Intel® Turbo Boost technology
  • Intel® Hyper-Threading technology (2 Cores, 4 threads)
  • Integrated graphics, discrete/switchable graphics support
  • 4MB cache, Integrated Memory Controller (IMC) – 2ch DDR3
  • AES Instructions
The 32nm process with second-generation high-k + metal gate transistor era begins
Intel's strength as an integrated device manufacturer allows the company to continue to deliver new generations of advanced process technology on a 2-year cadence. Intel has developed a 32nm logic technology with industry-leading features:
  • Second-generation high-k + metal gate transistors
  • 32nm marks the first time Intel uses immersion lithography on critical layers
  • 9 copper + low-k interconnect layers
  • About 70 percent dimension scaling from 45nm generation
  • Pb- and halogen-free packages

LiveSpeakR iPod / iPhone sound system gets reviewed


Many wondered whether the unique LiveSpeakR would ever break through the concept stage; clearly, it has succeeded in hitting mass production, and our pals over at TUAW were able to spend some quality time with it. Hailed as a "super cradle," this device can latch onto an iPhone (original or 3G), iPod Classic and iPod Touch. Once attached, it can provide audio horizontally or vertically, depending on how you'd like to spin it. During testing, critics found the audio quality to be surprisingly nice, with them even being "astonished that such a big sound was produced by such a small speaker system." As expected, bass notes were a bit hush-hush, but reviewers did appreciate the RF shielding that enabled iPhones to remain on while not introducing buzz. All in all, they felt it was a bargain at $129.99 (and even more so at the sale price of $99.99), but we'd suggest reading the full spill before handing over your hard-earned dollars.

LG Arena KM900 hangs onto limelight, reveals multitouch capabilities

At this rate, LG isn't gonna have any secrets left about the Arena KM900 when it takes the stage for its Mobile World Congress press conference on Monday. The company's released a few more snippets via its Korean site, chief among them being multitouch capabilities for image and web page zooming. Other details include a dedicated multimedia chip and designations for each of the four sides of the interface's 3D cube: phone, widgets, shortcuts, and multimedia. One of our favorite lines, which is almost certainly made funnier by the machine translation, is that this UI is the culmination of 100 years of interface research. We'll have more on the KM900 -- assuming they don't reveal everything before then -- next week in Barcelona

Monday, February 9, 2009

LG Previews Arena Flagship Cell Phone

lg, arena, cell phone, multimediaLG Electronics offered a glimpse on Sunday of its new flagship multimedia cell phone, called Arena, that will debut at next week's Mobile World Congress expo in Barcelona.

The Arena KM900 handset features a new LG user interface based around the concept of a cube. The user can switch screens within the three-dimensional interface by turning from one face of the cube to the next. Underneath the main display are four icons that provide quick access to functions such as phone calls and e-mail, according to an image released by the company.

The phone is the latest in a line of handsets from major manufacturers that feature highly graphical user interfaces. Many of them take design cues from Apple's successful iPhone. Like the iPhone the Arena also has a large display that occupies most of the front face of the phone.

Other features of the handset include Dolby and Divx support, HSDPA (High-speed Downlink Packet Access) data at 7.2Mbps, Wi-Fi and GPS (Global Positioning System).

It is scheduled to be officially unveiled at a news conference on February 16.

Decades-Old NASA Concept Art Imagined Slightly More People Living On Space Stations By Now

In the 1970s, NASA conducted a number of summer studies to create artwork depicting the future of space colonies. At 10,000 people, these colonies housed slightly more people than the current three-person ISS crew.

That said, progress is being made. What, with six crew members scheduled for ISS duty in the near future, Earth will have literally doubled the population in orbit.

Google Earth 5.0 Beta Released, Looks Incredible


Yahoo launches Connected TV - Yahoo Widgets will now run in your TV!!

3:51 AM by Nitesh Bhatia · 0 comments
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Yahoo! Connected TV brings the best of the Web right into your living room. Connected TV integrates Yahoo!‘s most popular services with the latest in big-screen home entertainment. So, there’s no more crowding around a laptop to share family photos. And news, traffic, and weather updates are just a click of the remote away. Yahoo is working with partners like AT&T, Sony, Apple, TiVo, and Intel to bring the best possible Internet and entertainment experience to millions of homes across the United States and around the world.

TV Widgets give you the best of the Internet in perfect harmony with the simplicity and reliability of your television. They’re as rich, varied, and useful as your favorite sites on the Web, reinterpreted for TV. Check out behind-the-scene interviews from popular TV shows, read the blogs on your favorite actors, or catch up on missed episodes. No complexity, no keyboard or mouse. Just lean back and stay connected. Enjoy Internet content while watching your favorite TV programs.

Interact with content and services that complement your TV viewing with TV Widgets. Press one button on your remote to bring up the TV Widget Dock, select a TV Widget, and view content, designed for your TV screen. Track your favorite sports team, watch financial stocks, share photos with friends and family, go shopping, play games, view movies or web videos while you watch your favorite show.

Personalize your viewing experience with TV Widgets from popular online media and Internet services. Select your favorite TV Widget, like eBay, MySpace, or CBS Entertainment, from the Widget Gallery, create a “Snippet,” and save it in the Widget Dock—for quick access to the content you want. By pressing your remote, you can view a friend’s new status on MySpace, purchase an item on eBay, or see the latest episode of your favorite CBS TV show.

Samsung introduces Lapfit monitors in a fit of insanity


Samsung's Lapfit monitors are here to solve a problem most laptop owners are familiar with: the secondary monitor offset. See, a laptop's integrated display typically sits just a few centimeters above the desktop. That can create an unnatural panning effect when trying to move the mouse or drag a window from your laptop's display to the higher secondary. Samsung's solution is to offer these new low-profile monitors that sit at the same height as your (desktop replacement-sized) laptop's display. The 19- (LD190G) and 22-inch (LD220G) UbiSync Lapfit monitors offer a 10-30 degree tilt, a 1,360 x 768 (16:9 aspect) pixel resolution, 4ms response, and a 20,000:1 dynamic contrast. Great, a physical solution to a problem solved long ago by laptop stands or by your laptop's OS -- way to go Sammy.

Samsung's TouchWiz UI getting a MWC makeover


With Mobile World Congress around the corner, Samsung is prepped to launch the latest version of its increasingly impressive, finger-friendly TouchWiz UI. Already spotted on the Ultra Touch S8300 slider, the interface has been fitted with new 3D-effects eye candy, enhanced haptic feedback, and new gesture and voice controls. A new widget dock allows you to more easily manage an increased variety of downloadable widgets while Samsung's new Photo Contact feature provides better integration of your photos and contacts with what appears to be face recognition technology. We'll know more after getting our hands on with the UI at WMC next week -- an event that's shaping up to be the biggest cellphone show in years.

Samsung melds slate, slider with Ultra Touch S8300


If having your cake and eating it too is just how you roll, you're probably the kind of hard-to-please son of a gun that wants a numeric slider keypad to go along with your phone's AMOLED WQVGA touchscreen. Wait, let us guess: you also want an 8 megapixel camera, AGPS with geotagging, integrated FM radio, stereo Bluetooth, and microSD support up to 16GB. And naturally, you want it all somehow magically packed into a shell measuring no more than 12.7mm thick. Well, guess what, sweet pea? Samsung's gone and called your bluff with the rumored Ultra Touch S8300, earning itself an official announcement ahead of MWC -- and as long as a real smartphone OS isn't on your shopping list, this 7.2Mbps HSDPA monster should fit the bill. We don't have launch territories or pricing just yet, but see that little "Barcelona" on the weather widget there? Yeah, we suspect we'll be seeing plenty of this one on the Mobile World Congress show floor.

Kohjinsha livens up netbook game with shockingly green Gachapin edition

3:46 AM by Nitesh Bhatia · 0 comments
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Generally speaking, Kohjinsha is better known for its dabbling in the UMPC / convertible tablet arenas than netbooks, but there's nothing like a retina-searing lime green shell to bring attention to your latest. Reportedly, the outfit has teamed up with famed toy maker Bandai in order to create a Gachapin and Mukku netbook aimed at kids with no sense of style and a simple desire to smile at all times during the day. As for specs, everything's pretty much par for the course, with a 1.6GHz Atom N270 CPU, 160GB HDD, 8.9-inch display (1,024 x 600 resolution), WiFi, a 3-in-1 card reader, a 1.3 megapixel webcam and 1GB of RAM. We must say, the inclusion of a 1Seg digital TV tuner is a nice touch, and one we're sure your TV-loving youngsters will greatly appreciate. The bad news is that this rig is selling for a whopping ¥79,800 ($866), so you can be certain those fuzzy cartoon characters are getting some serious royalties.

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