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FiOS could give more 'economic stimulus' to Verizon than others

Publié: janvier 31, 2009, 4:02am CET

Bloggers from Verizon and The New York Times slugged it out on Friday over parts of the economic stimulus package considered by Congress that give broadband providers extra incentives for ultra-fast services like FiOS.

Infinite Canvas revealed

Publié: janvier 31, 2009, 2:52am CET

For comics fans, any tech that unfurls the promised "infinite canvas" of digital comics is something to behold. Microsoft Live Labs has taken a crack at bringing that ideal -- a comics workspace in cyberspace, unconstrained by print thinking and limitations -- with a "funky side project" that's attracting attention from some of the greats.

eJamming Audiio P2P music collaboration launches beta 14

Publié: janvier 31, 2009, 2:35am CET

At CES 2008, Intel's Paul Otellini used eJamming Audiio, BigStage, and the band Smashmouth to show off how a group of musicians located on various corners of the globe could get together via P2P and play live in a virtual environment. BetaNews tested the eJamming Audiio software last year and found that it was suitable for recording and collaborating with others in a VoIP-enhanced environment, but playing instruments live had too many latency issues to be feasible. In using MIDI drums, a guitar and bass in three different locations in the United States, each musician found they had to get accustomed to latency in their own signal, and then the latency of the others as well. In the end, it was nearly impossible to play live. Today, The site has launched Beta 14, which includes a near zero latency "Jam Mode" as the default. The team says a user's own instrument will now play back with nearly no delay, and audio streams from other musicians will be synched together to make live collaboration easier. The site is still accepting new beta testers, and users will have to download the eJamming P2P client in order to start playing.

Myka TorrentTV gets facelift, shows off UI

Publié: janvier 31, 2009, 1:46am CET

The BitTorrent-fed set top box by Myka which was promised to be released by April has evoked skepticism in some, but the company persists. Today it has updated its site, complete with a UI walkthrough (on a prototype device) and a new look for its product...with no BitTorrent logo on it. Last week, BitTorrent told us that Myka had not been cleared to use the BitTorrent logo despite being cleared to use the technology. Myka appears to have remedied this swiftly and simply.

Phishers use Facebook to launch targeted attacks

Publié: janvier 31, 2009, 1:23am CET

From the Red Tape blog over at MSNBC.com, an amazing tale of a vicious -- and profitable -- phishing scheme that appears to be extraordinarily targeted toward its victim and his friends. It ends poorly, especially if you were hoping Facebook wasn't going to give you the creeps afterward.

Fannie Mae dodges a contractor's logic bomb

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 11:46pm CET

A disgruntled contractor at Fannie Mae, fired for coding incompetence, attempted to stash a logic bomb on the mortgage giant's servers. Fortunately, it was incompetently implemented, and the 35-year-old accused man is in custody.

What hath Mac wrought? A remembrance after a quarter-century

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 11:12pm CET

The reason there's a Macintosh today is not because of some brilliant flash of engineering genius, as many revisionists like to believe. It's because Apple had the audacity to make a few big mistakes first, and learn from them.

Open source gaming console Pandora shows up on video

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 10:55pm CET

A video of a working prototype of the open-source gaming handheld Pandora, nearly complete in its fabricated case, has emerged. The device has been in the later stages of development since late last year.

Google Chrome gets updates, pretends to be Safari

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 9:20pm CET

Remember Google Chrome? The new browser that was one of Betanews' Top 20 Stories of 2008, and certainly across the Internet as a whole? Well, after the initial hype that Chrome (and its subsequent first vulnerabilities) caused, the browser quietly broke the 1 percent mark of browser share this month. Google this week released updates addressing one moderate, and one severe security threat, and provides fixes for Yahoo Mail and Windows Live Hotmail. The Moderate security update addresses a cross-site scripting vulnerability linked to the Adobe Reader plugin, and the severe update is for a bug in the V8 JavaScript engine that could allow malicious users to "clickjack" sensitive information by bypassing same-origin checks. Previously, the ability to send an email would break Yahoo's Webmail, this issue has been fixed. The Hotmail bug is actually being worked on by Microsoft's team, as it is not so much a problem with Chrome as it is with Hotmail's recognition of Chrome. Google has deployed a workaround that changes the user agent string that Google Chrome sends when requesting URLs that end with "mail.live.com." The result is that Chrome reportedly changes its user agent string to tell Hotmail that it's Safari.

Free online games see sharp increase

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 8:37pm CET

comScore data released this week showed online casual gaming has reached 86 million users in 2008, an increase of 27% year over year. Additionally, the time individual users spend on gaming sites increased 42%. Casual gaming is the category where Yahoo is definitely king, with 19.5 million unique visits in December, a 20% increase over 2007 and 4 million visits more than second place EA Online, and 6 million more than Disney Games, which holds third place. Edward Hunter, comScore's Director of Gaming Solutions said "Not only have consumers turned to outlets such as gaming to take their minds off the economy, but as they curtail their discretionary gaming-related purchases they are turning to free alternatives." Because users are opting to play ad-supported games, it is not surprising that the ad market in this sector is booming. Some 8.6 billion ads were viewed in 2008 at a stable 127 ads per viewer, a nearly 30% overall increase over 2007. This is attributed to a reduction to what is known as ad clutter, or the amount of display ads per page view, which decreased 17%.

Whitehouse.gov incorporates RDFa mashup lingo

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 7:54pm CET

President Obama's TIGR (Technology, Innovation and Government Reform) team has already extolled the merits of mashups, and now we're seeing the beginnings of mashup language RDFa take root on WhiteHouse.gov. Viewing the site's copyright policy source reveals the use of RDFa tags such as xmlns,and property. These provide a set of XHTML attributes (metadata) to augment the visual data with information meant for other machines to read, recognize and catalog.

Survey finds Netbooks to be secondary devices: surprised?

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 6:53pm CET

ABI research released the results of a survey today called "U.S. Consumer Interest in Netbooks," which found that of more than 1000 netbook users, only 11% used theirs as their primary household computer. Sales of netbooks in 2008 were in excess of 11 million, and analysts began to track the effect it was having on notebook and desktop sales. In November, marketing executives from Acer and Asus estimated between 8-20% of netbook buyers were lost notebook sales. ABI's Philip Solis says, "While their low price does cause some consumers to view netbooks as a replacement for a laptop given the current economic conditions, the majority view a netbook as being a secondary device." An overwhelming 79% of those surveyed relegated netbooks to the backup tier.

Exec confirms more G-series T-Mobile phones

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 6:20pm CET

T-Mobile's Senior Vice President of Engineering and Operations Neville Ray was quoted yesterday in an interview as saying: "We will be launching more G series phones and other products. You will see us launch a data card product. This will be happening in the coming weeks and months." Ray discussed T-Mobile's expanded 3G coverage in the U.S., and elaborated a bit on the company's plans for its AWS spectrum, saying, "We did purchase a large volume of spectrum and doubled our spectrum assets in the U.S. with the 1700 MHz spectrum and 2100 MHz spectrum. We effectively doubled our assets. So the network we are launching uses 10 MHz of spectrum and we have 30 MHz so we have headroom to grow. There also are spectrum efficiencies with HSPA and HSPA+. "We have been in extensive discussions with FCC over AWS-3 spectrum. We are trying to bring that to market in a way most beneficial to the U.S. consumer, and would enable existing operators to grow using this significant piece of spectrum that's available."

Britain considers whether its citizens are entitled to 2 Mbps broadband

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 5:59pm CET

In a sweeping proposal yesterday, the UK's communications and technology minister, Lord Carter, has proposed a system whereby all citizens are guaranteed broadband Internet service with as much as 2 Mbps bandwidth, by 2012.

Details leaked on unannounced Sidekick LX 2009

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 5:27pm CET

While it's unofficial, the long rumored but still unannounced Sidekick LX 2009 could well include 3G support, GPS with turn-by-turn instructions, and more, according to a detailed spec sheet that appeared online.

The oldest trick in the book, literally, defeats UAC in Windows 7

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 5:03pm CET

Though the fellows sounding the warning today are the best in the business, it didn't take a lot of know-how to develop a proof-of-concept that the new User Access Control panel can be disabled by VBScript.

Google's rumored GDrive personal cloud service gets real description

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 4:42pm CET

Google's GDrive -- a rumored forthcoming service for storing personal software files on cloud-based Google servers -- looks likely to launch soon, if a reference in a file used by GooglePack is a good indication.

Report: 40 Gbps DWDM in 1/3 of fiber optic networks by 2013

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 3:57pm CET

Networking and Telecommunications researchers The Dell'Oro Group published a report yesterday forecasting the next five years for DWDM in long haul fiber optic networks that expects the market for 40 Gbps wavelengths to grow by 50% every year. Short for Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing, DWDM is an optical technology used to fit more traffic (thus making it "dense" with signals) on existing fiber optic backbones. This week, General Cable Corp and Fujitsu won their bid for a 1,000 mile long haul submarine fiber optic cable project connecting the Indonesian islands of Kalimantan and Sulawesi. That project is scheduled for completion in mid-2010. "While the near term outlook is for the total optical market to contract 9 percent due to factors such as the economic downturn, " Said Jimmy Yu, Director of Optical Transport research at Dell'Oro, "There continues to be an opportunity for technologies that will help service providers reduce their capital expense while still expanding their network capacity...40 Gigabit is one of those technologies as the price per bit of a 40 Gbps wavelength starts to be lower than that of a 10 Gigabit wavelength in a DWDM Long Haul system."

NEC to cut workforce by 20,000

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 3:16pm CET

This Morning, Japanese electronics company NEC posted its third quarter earnings, showing a ¥124.8 billion drop year-over-year. Part of the cost-cutting measures the company announced today included workforce reductions to its chip, component, and LCD divisions, which will total 20,000 employees. 60% of these layoffs will take place outside of Japan, and the majority of those cut will be full-time employees. All cuts are expected to be completed before March 2010.

Report: Dell smartphones draw near

Publié: janvier 30, 2009, 3:04pm CET

Like Acer, number two computer company Dell is expected to unveil its long-rumored smartphone products at GSMA in Barcelona on February 16. According to Wall Street Journal reports, Dell has been working for over a year on Android and Windows Mobile devices and will have prototypes to show off at the convention, one of which is a touchphone, the other a slider of some sort. Details remain scant, but when Dell enters the smartphone business it will mean all of the US top five computer manufacturers will be represented in the mobile handset sector.

Arr-ptui! TechCrunch head splits after spit

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 10:39pm CET

A lot of tech journalists will tell you that unpleasant reader interactions -- everything from incoherent hate mail to death threats -- are an occasional part of the job. But Michael Arrington, leader of TechCrunch, has always modeled himself as a remarkable specimen, and so he's taking an entire month off after getting spit on at a conference yesterday.

'Google for films' site helps Britons find media

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 10:16pm CET

A "Google for films" type of search engine site just rolled out this week lets you quickly peruse a database of 60,000 titles to find movies for downloading, in cinemas, to watch online, and on TV, standard DVD, and Blu-ray.

Stimulus package contains broadband open access provisions

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 9:59pm CET

A legislative measure to fund broadband deployment in rural and underserved areas is one of the attachments to the hotly debated economic stimulus package.

The Sony PSP perception problem: Is it losing its luster?

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 9:50pm CET

Sony's PSP was Time's "Gotta Have it" device for 2005, which was like being voted "Person of the Year." Now as the PSP enters its middle-age, it is the subject of less adulation, and more dismissive grumbling.

FCC's McDowell: Stay focused on February 17

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 9:22pm CET

In remarks this morning at a Media Institute Luncheon in Washington, FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell told attendees that he believes the government should concentrate on the existing DTV transition date of February 17: I think it is important for all of us to stay focused on February 17 regardless of what Congress does or does not do. Most broadcasters are prepared to shut off their analog signals on that date, and with good reason. Not only has the government been working with them for three years to realize this goal, but broadcasters have invested hundreds of millions of dollars in new DTV equipment in the past few years.

Move to fast-track DTV delay fails in the House

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 8:57pm CET

A move to suspend the rules of the House in order that the DTV Delay Act would be brought to the floor immediately, was defeated minutes ago.

Cox experiments with an 'anti-throttling' alternative

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 5:57pm CET

While throttling is still being treated by some Internet users as an implicit form of discrimination, the nation's ISPs must find both a technologically and politically correct method of managing their traffic congestion problems.

Audacity X gets 1.3.7 beta update

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 5:25pm CET

Download Audacity for Mac OS X from Fileforum now. Audacity X, the Mac version of the free open source audio editing and recording tool created by Google Dev Dominic Mazzoni, quietly received a beta upgrade this morning, fixing a handful of bugs and including some new features. The new features include Full Screen mode, a pitch shift/time scale slider effect, a WCAG2 accessibility testing function, improved latency correction and effect grouping.

AT&T earnings drop 23.6 percent, despite strong iPhone sales

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 5:23pm CET

While AT&T added 1.9 million Apple iPhone 3G subscribers during the fourth quarter of 2008, and the giant's overall revenues also rose, the company has reported an earnings dip of 23.6%.

House Republicans invoke bin Laden to expedite DTV transition

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 5:02pm CET

"Osama bin Laden isn't fictional, and he isn't waiting," stated Rep. Joe Barton (R - Texas), in a vehement defense of the February 17 hard date.

US cell phone camera law might not really click

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 4:53pm CET

Although its intent seems to be in the right place, a newly proposed US law imposing an audible alert on cell phone cameras raises thorny issues about actual implementation in the real world.

Sony 3mm thick OLED hits UK stores

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 4:50pm CET

The Sony Bravia XEL is tiny. The Organic LED screen measures only 11" across, and has a profile of only 3 millimeters, roughly the thickness of two stacked pennies. But this size carries with it a heavy pricetag, and in the US, units cost between $2,400 and $2,600 each. Today, the OLED screen is available in the UK at a price point twice that of North American retailers, £3,489 ($4,944).

Acer smartphones coming in February

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 3:31pm CET

An invitation to Acer's press conference at GSMA in Barcelona on February 16 confirms that the third largest PC manufacturer will be entering the smartphone market. Acer's Gianfranco Lanci talked about the company's plans for launching a Windows Mobile smartphone last year, after the company announced that it was acquiring Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer E-TEN.

ICANN group ponders fixes to fast-flux abuse

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 9:37am CET

"Fast flux" is a technique used by highly respectable service providers and content networks to handle serious traffic loads. It has also become a favored tool of scammers and spammers.

Wednesday is Data Privacy Day

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 4:11am CET

Unfurl the festive banners and prepare the parades: Wednesday is the second annual Data Privacy Day, celebrated by the U.S., Canada, and 27 European countries. Intel co-sponsors the project, which includes a variety of events held on and around the special day.

Gmail rolls out its offline options

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 2:15am CET

If you use Google's Gmail service for your correspondence, check underneath the Labs tabs in the upper right corner. You may be one of the lucky ones in the first wave of those with access to the service's new option for reading and composing mail offline.

AMD's bid for server redemption: 45 nm high-perf, low-power Opterons

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 12:35am CET

In the second phase of its effort to put the disappointment of Barcelona behind it, AMD yesterday launched its low-power and high-performance versions of its 45 nm server processors.

Yahoo reports Q4 loss, unleashes its new CEO

Publié: janvier 28, 2009, 12:18am CET

On its Q4 earnings call Tuesday, Yahoo reported a loss of $303 million, due in part to various restructuring underway. But if the impression given by freshly minted CEO Carol Bartz is correct, the company's wise to look forward, not back.

The rumored Skype sale by eBay: Much ado with little to go by

Publié: janvier 27, 2009, 11:50pm CET

Commentary is swirling in the blogsphere this week over the prospect of eBay selling its VoIP property Skype to an acquirer. But does the online auctioneer really have some sort of "plan" in that direction?

IBM resolves suit against Apple-bound former exec

Publié: janvier 27, 2009, 11:48pm CET

IBM today announced that it has resolved its suit against former PowerPC chip and blade server executive Mark Papermaster. In November of last year, the company filed for a preliminary injunction that would have denied Papermaster an advisory position at Apple because he knew too many of IBM's secrets. Papermaster and IBM agreed on a resolution that would keep the executive from beginning work at Apple until April 24 of this year, whereupon he will remain subject to all of his former contractual obligations at IBM, including the obligation to not divulge any of IBM's confidential information. Papermaster will be under the watchful eyes of the court until October 24, 2009, a full year after he officially left IBM. In that time, he will have to legally certify in July and October that he has adhered to his legal obligations. There was no announcement regarding the monetary terms of this settlement.

Wired.com discovers Google Docs flaw, but that's not the only one

Publié: janvier 24, 2009, 4:06am CET

A writer at Wired.com this week pointed to a document editing issue in Google Apps, and that's just the latest in a list of security holes -- of varying severity -- uncovered by users of Google's suite.

The DTV delay -- would this be the last?

Publié: janvier 24, 2009, 2:57am CET

How much could you accomplish in 115 days? The DTV Delay Act, provisionally delaying the switchover to DTV, appears to have overcome GOP objections and is moving toward a full Senate vote sometime next week. The Act would push mandatory rollover back to June 12.

Air Force applies brakes to satellite program

Publié: janvier 24, 2009, 1:55am CET

Nextgov reports that the ambitious Transformational Communications Satellite (TSAT) project, a $16 billion program that would allow surveillance satellites to move masses of data to troops in and near battle, is in a holding pattern.

Your multitouch update: Apple: "Grr." Palm: "GRR."

Publié: janvier 24, 2009, 12:35am CET

That didn't take long: After Apple's cranky comments concerning multitouch and intellectual-property rights on Wednesday, Palm has responded with a tone that suggests that Apple execs might want to invest in asbestos undies if they insist on proceeding along their apparent current path.

Analysis: After yesterday, it's time to reset

Publié: janvier 24, 2009, 12:03am CET

Among the comments we received yesterday after our all-day, wall-to-wall coverage of the deluge that struck the technology industry, was a complaint asking, why we didn't pick some happier news?

Garlinghouse resurfaces, without stripes

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 11:46pm CET

Let's pause for a moment to enjoy peanut butter without salmonella: peHUB today reports that Brad Garlinghouse, the former Yahoo senior VP who in 2006 compared that company's overextended online efforts to a thinly-spread sandwich topping, is up to something.

On the anti-piracy beat with Cryptography Research

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 11:07pm CET

Psst! Hey buddy! Wanna buy a Snoy TV, an Appel Mic, or a bottle of Vaigra? Probably not -- not only are counterfeit products inferior, they can be downright hazardous. Paul Kocher wants to help ensure you never do.

Obama taps Sun's McNealy for open source advice

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 11:05pm CET

Scott McNealy, Sun Microsystems chairman and co-founder

Scott McNealy, Sun Microsystems' co-founder and chairman, says that President Barack Obama has asked him to write a white paper on the benefits of open source technology. In an interview with the BBC, McNealy contended that government should mandate the use of open source products to "improve security, get higher quality software, lower costs, [and obtain] higher reliability -- all the benefits that come with open software."

Google whittles down free access to Apps

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 11:04pm CET

Google has been steadily shrinking the number of users it lets access a business' free Google Apps account. When the service first launched, it allowed up to 200 users per business. Then, Google announced its $50 per-user premier platform and the the user limit on free accounts was reduced to 100. Now, Techcrunch reports that the number has shrunk yet again, hitting the 50 mark. Google says there are over 1 million businesses using Google Apps for their collaborative online workspace.

Will Huawei actually preview an Android phone next month?

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 10:13pm CET

After the scuttling of Kogan's Agora smartphone earlier this month, will Huawei be the next to enter the world stage with an Android phone?

Cloud-based document sharing service SugarSync 1.5 released

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 9:35pm CET

Sharpcast began rolling out the 1.5 version of its cross-platform synching service SugarSync today. The upgrade includes the new "shared folders" feature, which adds a document collaboration aspect to the nearly one-year old sync service. SugarSync is a subscription cloud service that makes documents and files remotely accessible through synched Windows and Mac PCs or through mobile handsets including iPhone and BlackBerry. Current subscribers may not receive the SugarSync Manager upgrade until Monday or Tuesday, but the shared folders feature in the Web interface is available to all immediately.

Adobe Labs releases new Photoshop Lightroom and Camera Raw RCs

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 9:14pm CET

Adobe Labs has made Photoshop Lightroom 2.3 and Photoshop Camera Raw 5.3 release candidates available for download. Both release candidates provide additional raw file support for the Nikon D3X and Olympus E-30 cameras. Lightroom 2.3 also fixes a memory leak that was discovered in the 2.2 release.

HTC expands WinMo touch market with Cruise

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 9:07pm CET

Yesterday, HTC officially unveiled the updated Touch Cruise that had leaked to the Web as "Lolita." Pushed more as an update rather than a full-blown new phone, the new Touch Cruise features many of the same features found in AT&T's Fuze, and the previous Cruise model.

MSN Mobile Music timidly tests the English Channel with DRM

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 8:21pm CET

MSN Mobile Music, a browser-based music shop designed for mobile handsets and completely unrelated to Zune marketplace was formally launched in the UK this week. Microsoft may have taken a step backward by protecting downloads with DRM.

Catholic Church steps up to YouTube

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 6:38pm CET

Today, Google and YouTube announced the launch of www.youtube.com/vatican, the YouTube channel dedicated to the activities of the Pope and events in the smallest state in the world, Vatican City. Footage on the channel comes from Centro Televisio Vaticano (CTV) and Vatican Radio (RV), so the primary language is Italian, but there will be information in Spanish, English, and German as well. Pope Benedict XVI stated that the page has been set up "so that the Church and its message continue to be present in the great Areopagus of social communications...and so that it is not a stranger to those spaces where numerous young people search for answers and meaning in their lives."

Google cuts the ribbon on its AJAX Playground

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 5:56pm CET

Google's AJAX API playground, which opened January 23, 2009.

Having written three books on programming in a series that was called "By Example," I know first-hand that sometimes several hundred pages of written text doesn't really beat the ability to see something for yourself, tweak it, and find out what happens. Not that Google has ever really been that big on documentation anyway; but this morning, it's unveiled something that's perhaps several hundred times better: Its new AJAX API playground lets JavaScript programmers not only sample all the major API calls in Google's toolbox in the context of functions, but tweak those samples and see the results live.

Samsung posts losses, maintains strength in telecommunications

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 5:52pm CET

Like the majority of its fellow electronics companies this week, Samsung today posted a loss for the fourth quarter of 2008.

Obama picks Copps to temporarily chair the FCC

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 5:34pm CET

Until President Obama's nominee for the next FCC chairman, replacing the departed Kevin Martin, is confirmed, current Commissioner Michael Copps will assume the temporary role of chairman of a temporarily four-member panel, the White House announced yesterday. Copps had earlier been reported to be the only Democrat on Pres. Bush's list to replace former chairman Michael Powell. He is generally liked on both sides of the aisle, and yesterday, generally outspoken Commissioner Robert McDowell added his support for the appointment.

US' brightest hope for DRAM competitiveness files for insolvency

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 5:01pm CET

It has been a hard uphill battle for memory maker Qimonda ever since parent company Infineon began its plan to spin it off in 2006. Today, that battle may have come to a premature end.

Google posts 18 percent sales gain, details how it's coping

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 4:49am CET

Google's 18% revenue jump didn't come as any huge stunner, but execs revealed this evening how their company is weathering the financial crisis, through measures that include a new stock option plan aimed at employee retention.

Pirate to pwned with Apple's iWork '09

Publié: janvier 23, 2009, 12:05am CET

File sharers picking up pirated copies of the newly released iWork '09 apps suite may be biting into a poisoned Apple. Various Mac-security sites and sharing sites such as BitTorrent are reporting that some versions of the file are carrying a Trojan that can phone home and install additional malware.

Live from the AMD Q4 earnings call

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 11:02pm CET

In the first test of its strategy of divesting its foundries and concentrating on developing IP assets, AMD reveals the extent to which an historically negative chain of events is impacting the already ailing CPU manufacturer.

In wake of record loss, Sony announces big changes

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 10:51pm CET

Its first full-year operating loss in 14 years is a scorcher: Sony on Thursday set up a last-minute analyst-and-press call to announce a 2009 forecast predicting 260 billion yen (about $2.93 billion) in operating losses.

Future of Android 'Cupcake' update uncertain

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 10:39pm CET

A hotly-rumored branch of updates to the Android operating system that goes by the unusual moniker "cupcake" may not be released to the public. AndroidTapp received a message from the T-Mobile Forums admin which was traced all the way back to Google via T-Mobile's Product Development and PR departments. In the message it said, "According to the Android team, "Cupcake," which is the code name for an Android software build, is still a work in progress that is considered to be a development branch and not for general availability." While still not more than a rumor, the very existence of the Cupcake branch and its ability to bring video camera functions and an onscreen keyboard to the T-Mobile G1, is still only rumor as well.

US unreadiness for DTV declines to 5%, says Nielsen

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 10:32pm CET

In its latest month-by-month analysis of the relative state of readiness of US citizens for the DTV transition, still scheduled for February 17, analysis firm Nielsen now estimates that based on its analysis of 37,000 metered households, about 5% of US households remain unprepared -- down from 6.8% in December, 7.7% in November, and 8.4% in September. Nielsen's numbers were revealed this morning by Broadcasting & Cable So the trend is positive, generally speaking. However, legislators remain concerned that some 6.5 million Americans remain unprepared. On the other side of the picture, the National Association of Broadcasters believes Nielsen's numbers may be exaggerated. An NAB spokesperson told Betanews this afternoon that it believes Nielsen's estimates "do not count customers who have yet to set up their converter boxes, or who are waiting for coupons."

Former Netscape attorney may be named DOJ antitrust chief

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 10:16pm CET

A name floated this morning by The Wall Street Journal as a likely choice by President Obama to head the Justice Dept.'s antitrust division, may not exactly be the choice Microsoft would have preferred.

Google expected to brighten an otherwise dismal earnings day

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 10:11pm CET

Google today is expected to follow the lead of IBM and Apple, defying the economy by making a positive showing in its results for the latest financial quarter. In spite of the financial downturn, many analysts predict that Google will post an increased profit in results set for delivery before the clang of the stock market's closing bell.

Downadup worm causes confusion over Autorun

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 9:55pm CET

The DHS' US-CERT (Computer Emergency Readiness Team) released a security alert yesterday that disabling Autorun in Windows, an action meant to stanch the spread of the Downadup virus, is actually a vulnerability itself.

Myka BitTorrent Box: Is '4 to 6 weeks' enough?

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 8:21pm CET

Earlier this week, TorrentFreak said the upcoming Myka BitTorrent set-top box looks like a scam after the company purported to be on schedule to ship the box in four to six weeks. Betanews sought clarification.

Nokia profits drop 69% in Q4

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 8:11pm CET

There's not much fun in Finland either today, as mobile-phone giant Nokia turned in an earnings report reflecting glum economic outlooks worldwide.

Try, try again: Seagate issues a second fix for 7200.11 hard drives

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 7:41pm CET

Seagate Technologies spokesperson Michael L. Hall gave Betanews an update this afternoon on the company's situation with its Barracuda 7200.11 hard drives, which have been failing in record numbers. Hall acknowledged that some units manufactured up until last month do have an issue where data is rendered inaccessible after power-up, and went on to acknowledge that the company's initial fix for the problem only made matters worse. "While we believe that the vast majority of customers will not experience any disruption related to this issue, as part of our commitment to customer satisfaction, Seagate is offering a free firmware upgrade to proactively address those with potentially affected products," Hall stated. "This new firmware upgrade corrects compatibility issues that occurred with the firmware download provided on our support Web site on Jan. 16. We regret any inconvenience that the firmware issues have caused our customers."

Apple pushes a QuickTime 7.6 security update

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 7:36pm CET

Addressing security issues for both the Mac and Windows platforms, Apple has released an update to QuickTime not unlike the one released last spring, only less prolific.

IBM confirms job layoffs, won't say how many

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 7:19pm CET

Although he wouldn't specify where or how many, an IBM spokesperson today confirmed to Betanews that IBM is sending out pink slips this week. An IBM employee union known as Alliance@IBM is predicting 16,000 job cuts.

Next step for WiMAX: Global Roaming

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 6:33pm CET

The WiMAX Forum launched its Global Roaming Program today, a means for regional WiMAX network operators to interact with each other in order to implement roaming services. The program, available at Wimaxforum.org, includes a "how-to" manual for launching roaming services, spec sheets, contract templates, and a pre-launch roaming test plan. While WiMAX deployments are still vastly spread apart, there are currently more than 407 in place across 133 countries.

LG posts big quarterly loss, plans restructuring

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 5:22pm CET

South Korean Consumer Electronics maker LG posted a big loss in its fourth quarter 2008 earnings report this morning, and like Samsung last week, the company will restructure its business.

LG posts a big quarterly loss, plans restructuring

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 5:22pm CET

South Korean Consumer Electronics maker LG posted a big loss in its fourth quarter 2008 earnings report this morning, and like Samsung last week, the company will restructure its business.

Seagate suffers $496M loss, admits to HDD 'execution' problems

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 5:11pm CET

Returning to his old job, Seagate CEO Stephen Luzco reported worse than expected financial results last night, adding that job layoffs, salary cuts, and building closings announced last week will save the storage specialist $300 million.

Live from the Microsoft Q2 earnings conference

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 4:51pm CET

The lack of guidance in Microsoft's accelerated earnings report this morning triggered a selloff in stocks on the NASDAQ and NYSE exchanges, and there are indications that the company has suspended trades.

AOL Web Mail gets updated

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 4:29pm CET

This morning, AOL launched its latest version of Web Mail, which gives users the ability to tailor their Web Mail window with gadgets from the myAOL Gallery, and integrate their mailboxes with third-party mail services like Yahoo and Gmail. Additionally, the AOL Mail Synchronization feature that has been in beta testing since November has been added to the completed feature list. Rounding out today's update is the ability for users to skin their AOL Web Mail page, similar to Windows Live Home and iGoogle.

Windows weighs down on Microsoft, which will cut jobs now

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 3:58pm CET

The news from Redmond is actually worse than analysts estimated, with sharply lower revenue from the Client segment (Windows Vista) triggering one of the most substantial layoffs in its history.

TomTom announces layoffs

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 3:53pm CET

TomTom, Europe's leading provider of Personal Navigation Devices, announced a cost-cutting program and re-alignment which involves cutting around 7% of its staff, or about 115 individuals. Citing a "challenging consumer spending environment," the layoff announcement precedes the company's fourth quarter earnings report by just over one month, and is expected to save TomTom an annual €35 million.

A blue Christmas for eBay

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 4:10am CET

Slower consumer spending hurt eBay's results for its fiscal fourth quarter, and depressed its forecast for Q1 2009.

Intel to close some plants, thousands could be affected

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 1:01am CET

In a filing with the SEC this afternoon, the company revealed it will streamline some older operations in order to focus on the 32 nm transition.

Ads re-emerge in Pandora audio stream

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 12:40am CET

Web radio service Pandora has announced plans to start playing short audio ads, now and then between songs. The ads were first introduced on Pandora's Twitter feed. The company pledged to be "prudent" and "respectful" in delivering the commercial interruptions to the personalized listening service. In press interviews today, Pandora founder Tim Westergren made clear this may be the only way the company can afford its now-higher royalties, while avoiding layoffs or even a possible shutdown. Yesterday, the company's Twitter feed read, "So you know, we did not take on audio ads lightly. We try to be extremely respectful of your listening experience, & p romise to be prudent [sic]." This isn't the first time that Pandora has resorted to audio ads, though. A couple of years ago, the company ran a series of campaigns which included a 9-second spot for McDonald's restaurants.

Canada investigates P2P blocking, finds it just about everywhere

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 12:35am CET

With the United States' FCC continuing to crack down on Comcast, the Canadian government is finally starting to take action, too, against ISPs that slow down Internet traffic.

Virtual subdomain patent struck down

Publié: janvier 22, 2009, 12:21am CET

One of the more obvious, though still practical, permutations of domain name usage is now no one's intellectual property in particular.

Supreme Court lets online porn filtration law expire

Publié: janvier 21, 2009, 11:50pm CET

There's a saying that goes, I may not agree with what you say, but I'll fight to the death for the right to keep folks from hearing it. Or something like that. No, the Supreme Court said today, that's not how it goes.

Apple reports best quarter ever, but gets snarly re Palm Pre

Publié: janvier 21, 2009, 11:16pm CET

For the first time in history, Apple surpassed $10 billion in quarterly revenue during its previous quarter. But a question late in Wednesday's earnings call raised interesting questions about IP and the company's multitouch interface.

What lessons can we learn from the Heartland credit card breach?

Publié: janvier 21, 2009, 11:03pm CET

The company's response is raising troubling questions about the security of such processing centers and laws ostensibly intended to protect consumers in general.

Mobile malware menaces money

Publié: janvier 21, 2009, 9:26pm CET

Kaspersky is reporting this morning that a Trojan affecting Symbian systems looks to transfer money from the accounts of users of a certain mobile-phone operator and into the accounts of someone else, presumably the person or persons responsible for the malware. The Trojan's not new -- but the target certain is.

Zoho prepares for an exodus of former Google Notebook users

Publié: janvier 21, 2009, 9:23pm CET

One of the canceled projects on Google's list last week was a surprise: a cloud application with at least the hope to become ubiquitous. It was called Google Notebook, and it was essentially a way for individuals to jot down notes in a way that they could be retrieved from multiple locations. We learned today that Zoho, a cloud application provider that began deployment of some of its services on Google's App Engine just last month, is more than happy to pick up the slack. A Zoho spokesperson told Betanews today that the latest beta of its Zoho Notebook, which includes a plug-in for Firefox, will feature an interesting kind of on-screen interface that will let users who are logged onto both services simultaneously export their Google Notebook content (while that service is still active) directly into the plug-in, hopefully without change of format or function. Previously, Zoho Notebook had discontinued its audio reporting capability, but now says it has been added back in. And since Google Notebook entries were basically designed around text, Zoho Notebook has added a simplified way to enter "text-only content," we're told.

Court tells Kentucky 'no dice' on seizing gambling domain names

Publié: janvier 21, 2009, 8:44pm CET

Kentucky is just about out of luck in its attempts to leverage its own state legislature and court system for protecting online horse race betting from competition by overseas gambling Web sites.

Conficker, Downadup, Kido: A skunk by any other name

Publié: janvier 21, 2009, 8:39pm CET

It's hard to blame Microsoft for the latest mega-infection sweeping the Windows world: The vulnerability that's enabled the new Downandup (or Conficker or Kido or whatever) worm was patched back in October of last year. Still, because at least 9 million machines haven't been patched are now infected, here's what you need to know.

They talked over Obama's speech in China, too

Publié: janvier 21, 2009, 8:26pm CET

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions...To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history, but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist. If you live in China and read only Chinese, you didn't see those lines from President Barack Obama's inauguration speech yesterday, and if you were watching the inauguration live on television, you didn't hear them, either.

Seagate confronts an overflow of bricked hard drives

Publié: janvier 21, 2009, 8:09pm CET

Faced with a firmware bug fix that is making many of its hard disk drives even harder -- to read, that is -- Seagate is offering a firmware upgrade and free data recovery services if users still cannot read their data.

EFF asks for public's help in fighting against locked phones

Publié: janvier 21, 2009, 6:52pm CET

Has a locked cell phone ever frustrated you? The Electronic Frontier Foundation is now organizing consumers and software developers to tell their "real stories" on this subject to the US Copyright Office.

Openly BOSSing around the Internet

Publié: janvier 17, 2009, 3:05am CET

It's too soon to know what will remain standing as new CEO Carol Bartz makes her way through the the halls of Yahoo, but here's a modest proposal from one admirer: Show some love to the BOSS.

Senate considers delaying DTV transition until June

Publié: janvier 17, 2009, 1:31am CET

On the theory that some two million eligible customers have yet to receive their $40 coupons toward the purchase of an over-the-air DTV signal converter, Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D - W.V.) introduced a bill giving them more time.

DHS to take on core routing vulnerability

Publié: janvier 16, 2009, 11:10pm CET

No serious security geek has forgotten last year's big reveal of the hole at the heart of the net's routing protocol, but is the Department of Homeland Security the outfit you'd imagined patching it?

Agora Android phone gets curtailed by Kogan

Publié: janvier 16, 2009, 10:00pm CET

Promising prospective early adopters refunds on their pre-orders, Australia-based Kogan today imposed an indefinite delay on the Android-enabled Agora phone, citing issues around interoperability, screen size, and resolution.

Samsung to divide into consumer and component divisions

Publié: janvier 16, 2009, 8:11pm CET

Samsung announced today that it will split itself into two parts, with one new division to focus on consumer electronics items such as mobile phones and TVs and the other on semiconductors and LCDs.

Data: Nintendo drives the video game industry

Publié: janvier 16, 2009, 5:43pm CET

NPD group yesterday released its figures representing the video game industry at large, and with total sales up 19% over 2007, Nintendo was responsible for nearly all of that growth.

IFPI: 95% of all music downloads are unauthorized

Publié: janvier 16, 2009, 5:08pm CET

Although sales of digital music are increasing worldwide, the global recording industry's representatives are now calling on ISPs to temporarily shut down music pirates' Internet accounts if all else fails.

Is the Atom saving Intel?

Publié: janvier 16, 2009, 4:38pm CET

Falling consumer demand for PCs is triggering declining orders for CPUs, Intel admitted yesterday, but not across the board. As it turns out, its smallest consumer processor may be the mightiest of all this year.

Remotely control your TiVo with kwiry

Publié: janvier 16, 2009, 4:01pm CET

Your DVR may rule your world, but it's also given you a special new sick feeling in the pit of your stomach when you're away from home and remember that you forgot to punch something in. Enter kwiry, giving a lift to both you and your TV.

Twitter gets terms of service, finally

Publié: janvier 16, 2009, 3:03am CET

It was never the legendary Wild West of the early Web (as if that ever accurately described the early years, then or in retrospect), but on Wednesday, Twitter gained a list of rules designed to reign in current and future mayhem.

Palm still noncommital on Best Buy, although deal makes sense

Publié: janvier 15, 2009, 11:57pm CET

Neither confirming nor denying bloggers' accounts of a supposed deal with Best Buy around the Palm Pre, Palm today essentially issued a "no comment" to Betanews.

Google to 'share the wealth' with partners on Apps Premier Edition

Publié: janvier 15, 2009, 11:55pm CET

Expanding on its efforts to drive revenues from its online application suite, Google this week launched a plan to help authorized reseller partners sell, customize and support the Premier Edition of Google Apps.

Economic downturn cancels out 15% annual PC market growth

Publié: janvier 15, 2009, 11:30pm CET

Separate reports released almost in tandem this morning by two of the world's three leading hardware analysis firms, show that what could have been a stellar year for PC manufacturers was wiped out in one quarter.

Analysts: Social networks used to find old friends, not new ones

Publié: janvier 15, 2009, 9:42pm CET

Adults and teens alike use social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace more so to stay in touch with old friends than to make new ones, according to a new report by analyst group Pew/Internet.

Motorola slashes 4,000 jobs, cites slowing mobile phone sales

Publié: janvier 15, 2009, 5:45pm CET

With sales of its mobile phones falling, Motorola announced on Wednesday that it will cut another 4,000 jobs and incur a fourth-quarter loss.

Now it's Google's turn: Big changes in a bad economy

Publié: janvier 15, 2009, 4:08pm CET

In a very different business climate from last year, Google's classic strategy of firing up all burners evenly to see what projects cook first, may have abruptly ended this morning.

Analysts: WiMAX will lag, and LTE might catch up

Publié: janvier 15, 2009, 3:43pm CET

Could the current financial crunch push back additional WiMAX deployments to 2010, the same time frame projected earlier for LTE, the 4G network adopted by AT&T and Verizon Wireless? That's what one analyst group said this week.

In praise of Windows Media Center

Publié: janvier 15, 2009, 3:42pm CET

Microsoft showed off developments on Windows Media Center last week at CES. Despite the Ballmer bluster, despite the inexorable march of Microsoft to seize control of all your screens, something important needs to be said.

Apple draws new and conflicting Psystar arguments

Publié: janvier 14, 2009, 11:29pm CET

Apple clone-maker Psystar keeps scraping down deeper to the bottom of the barrel to turn up new claims in its Apple court battle, and its latest arguments seem at odds with its earlier attempts.

Steve Jobs takes leave for a medical sabbatical

Publié: janvier 14, 2009, 11:01pm CET

The Apple CEO's health problems are "more complex than [he] originally thought," so today, Tim Cook will be placed in control as Jobs takes a medical leave of absence.

The next net neutrality showdown, on the edge of the network

Publié: janvier 14, 2009, 10:44pm CET

The deck chairs are being shuffled all over Washington this month, but some familiar net neutrality legislation may be brought up once again. This time, one of the nation's biggest content providers is ready to face it down.

LG Skycharger embraces the sun, the wind, the marketing

Publié: janvier 14, 2009, 10:29pm CET

When LG showed off the Skycharger last week, your reporter was within earshot of two other press folk. All three saw the same huge device -- and each had an utterly different idea about what to do with a 104-port charger in a tent.

IPTV overtaking cable worldwide, analyst says, but what about the US?

Publié: janvier 14, 2009, 7:35pm CET

Now that consumers are pinching pennies, an analyst group is predicting that high-speed broadband prices will fall to levels that will make IPTV a preferable alternative to cable and satellite TV...in some parts of the planet, at least.

Report: Nintendo DSi on its way April 4

Publié: janvier 14, 2009, 6:45pm CET

Nintendo's third incarnation of its popular DS touchscreen handheld game system went on sale in Japan on November 1 with no announcement of worldwide availability. Various reports have pegged US launch for early November.

LG feeds wrist watch talk wish

Publié: janvier 13, 2009, 11:49pm CET

Is it that at any other CES, we'd all be chirping about the advent of a working, non-hideous wrist phone? Or are we all just too jaded to believe? Either way, LG may have lost a perfectly reasonable wrist-mounted mobile phone in the stampede.

More PCs in 2009 to sport Switchable Graphics, says Intel exec

Publié: janvier 13, 2009, 11:07pm CET

In 2009, a lot more notebook PCs from Lenovo and other big manufacturers will implement Intel's game- and video-friendly Switchable Graphics, predicted Michael Trainor, chief technology evangelist at Intel.

HD in the long term: Sony's view on video creation

Publié: janvier 13, 2009, 10:28pm CET

At the Studio Visionaries panel at CES on Friday, a cast of entertainment industry experts gathered to chat about the challenges that the high-definition era brings to the art of video and movie production, as well as re-production.

Upper-case and straight lace: What Carol Bartz might bring to Yahoo

Publié: janvier 13, 2009, 9:13pm CET

There is nothing the least bit low-key about Carol Bartz, the longtime Autodesk executive and former Sun Microsystems key executive who is widely considered to replace Yahoo co-founder Jerry Yang as CEO.

Experts: GPS alone just won't cut it for location-based cell phone services

Publié: janvier 13, 2009, 8:06pm CET

Location-based services (LBS) -- delivered to people on cell phones depending on where they're situated at the moment -- are now on the way to becoming more commonplace.

Intel's convertible Classmate is only the second in a netbook PC series

Publié: janvier 13, 2009, 7:29pm CET

Intel's second Classmate netbook for kids, introduced at CES, will be followed by more Classmate PCs, not necessarily devised in a "lunchbox" style, said Mark Parker, global launch manager for Intel's Classmates.

Google Quick Search gets dev release, may replace Quicksilver

Publié: janvier 13, 2009, 5:52pm CET

In Google's Mac blog last night, the team announced the developer preview of Google Quick Search for Mac (OS X 10.5+), what they call a much more experimental version of the app for iPhone.

Violent video game labeling bill enters Congress

Publié: janvier 13, 2009, 4:26pm CET

Last Wednesday, legislation was introduced in the House that would make the Electronic Software Ratings Board (ESRB) affix a health warning label on T-rated games that links their violent content to real-life aggression.

The Palm Pre: Final thoughts (for now)

Publié: janvier 13, 2009, 4:01am CET

It could be here in five months; it could be here sooner. But even before the Palm Pre has a firm release date, there are a few datapoints and checkpoints you need to keep an eye on.

The Betanews ground crew sum up CES 2009

Publié: janvier 12, 2009, 11:45pm CET

It was a week with more than the usual chaos, but it left us all with a different perspective on the CE industry than we had going in. Angela, Jackie, and Tim share their thoughts on "green," on Pre, widgets, and 3-D football.

CES 2009: What have we learned this week?

Publié: janvier 12, 2009, 11:09pm CET

Last year's Consumer Electronics Show was marked by decisive, pronounced changes in direction for the electronics industry. This year, the battle lines are being completely redrawn.

China experiences the onset of a 3G boom

Publié: janvier 12, 2009, 7:22pm CET

All three Chinese telecommunications companies received 3G licenses last week from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and each has a different standard of choice.

Analysis: Is IPTV finally the key to convergence?

Publié: janvier 12, 2009, 7:01pm CET

A world of choice and opportunity in televised media was offered up last week at CES, with the Internet enabling new channels and greater viewer choices. Of course, that world won't get here on its own.

TV.com delivers TV content rather than just TV listings

Publié: janvier 12, 2009, 5:29pm CET

CBS' TV.com, a site formerly providing information about television programming has begun its transition to a video site, and is expected to announce some critical distribution deals today.

Microsoft on Win7 Beta: 'The download experience was not ideal'

Publié: janvier 12, 2009, 4:38pm CET

After adding some server horsepower to the Windows 7 beta download over the weekend, some testers did manage to receive working copies. That's not to say everything's working perfectly just yet.

Behind the first live 3D bowl game at CES

Publié: janvier 11, 2009, 1:13am CET

Some CES attendees who had the opportunity to watch the Oklahoma Sooners get creamed during a BCS game Thursday -- always a glorious experience (though not for Scott) -- were also the first to watch a live 3D college football game.

Macworld attendees want Newber....for their BlackBerry

Publié: janvier 11, 2009, 12:32am CET

FreedomVOICE's Newber iPhone application has been in beta since September, but getting listed in the App store has its difficulties.

1 MenQ Easy PC = 11.5 feet of sandwich

Publié: janvier 11, 2009, 12:01am CET

And you thought breaking the $400 netbook price barrier was a milestone? Okay, maybe it was, but what would you want for...say, $89?

Analyst: Consumers don't want widgets on their TVs

Publié: janvier 10, 2009, 11:48pm CET

Amidst all the announcements about widgets this week was one ominous note: a survey from Strategy Analytics saying that consumers it surveyed weren't all that hot on widgets.

Toshiba shows off its WiMAX Portege

Publié: janvier 10, 2009, 11:04pm CET

In Toshiba's booth, a section is dedicated to technologies the public can expect to find in upcoming products from the company in 2009. Part of the display is dedicated to WiMAX support.

Live from the FCC Chairman's one-on-one

Publié: janvier 10, 2009, 10:30pm CET

So has the nation's transition to digital television gone completely off track, and is it time for the incoming Obama administration to call time out? Kevin Martin, Chairman of the FCC, speaks directly to CES 2009.

'Intel Inside' moves outside the PC, and fast

Publié: janvier 10, 2009, 10:12pm CET

When Intel sold off its networking processor group to Marvell three years ago, some said Intel was letting go of its dream of connecting the planet's media devices. Wrong.

The DTV launch is a shambles, say FCC commissioners

Publié: janvier 10, 2009, 10:03pm CET

The call earlier this week by President-Elect Obama's transition team to perhaps delay next month's DTV switch didn't just "come up" at Saturday's "2009 Regulatory Outlook" panel at CES. It electrified it.

First impressions of HP's Pavilion DV2

Publié: janvier 10, 2009, 9:01pm CET

Betanews took a closer look at HP's forthcoming Pavilion DV2 this morning, a 12.1" notebook that the company is pushing as an ultra lightweight entertainment device, and the first one sporting AMD's Yukon platform.

The case for VESA DisplayPort: Both open and shut

Publié: janvier 10, 2009, 8:34pm CET

The Video Electronics Standards Association announced the next steps in its DisplayPort specification, but copy-protection features that can make it difficult for users to play back legitimately acquired content are still there.

Tikitag: A barcode-based alternative to personal RFID tags

Publié: janvier 10, 2009, 8:19pm CET

In the same week as Microsoft's own rollout of Tags, smaller personal electronic tag maker Tikitag -- an Alcatel-Lucent venture -- talked up the future addition of less expensive barcode tags to its existing RFID offering.

Reading Palm's fortune: Does its life line now lead to glory?

Publié: janvier 10, 2009, 7:51pm CET

It's a question worth asking: With the Pre looming upon the horizon, is this the same Palm we were talking about only 48 hours ago -- the Palm that was very near to being buried in the desert and fed upon by vultures?

Verbatim's new keyboards add not only sound, but light

Publié: janvier 10, 2009, 7:17pm CET

Having trouble finding space for speakers amidst the clutter on your desk? How about building them into the keyboard?

Palms-on with the Pre

Publié: janvier 10, 2009, 12:52pm CET

A little quality time with the Palm Pre (and some very happy, very tired Palm folk) reveals more of the details...but one crucial one goes unanswered.

Sony's Vaio P: Slim and sexy, but don't call it a 'netbook'

Publié: janvier 10, 2009, 11:39am CET

Never mind the tiny physical footprint of the Vaio P, if you ask Sony, they will tell you they have never made a netbook. If you ask me, however, I'll tell you they just did.

Live from the Panasonic press conference

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 11:46pm CET

No longer "Matsushita," and given a big boost with the pending acquisition of Sanyo, how will the world's most recognized brand in consumer electronics, geographically speaking, react to this sluggish economy?

Samsung shows slimmer LED TVs, slimmer Blu-ray console

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 11:19pm CET

In an era when HDTVs are being measured in terms of pinky-width, Samsung promises to squeeze that figure even more, while adding new interactive features to its displays' built-in IPTV functionality.

Sharp stays (mostly) on point at lunchtime CES event

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 11:07pm CET

A very big room, journalists on the feedbag, and the tricky task of pitching big pretty TVs in an ugly economy made the Sharp press conference at CES 2009 something of a tangled affair.

Audiovox flashback features Elvis and rabbit-ears

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 10:35pm CET

Elvis! The season's first sighting of the King occurred at the Audiovox press event. The King was in relatively svelte form (for jumpsuit-era Elvis); also, Audiovox announced some products.

DivX finds its way into another HDTV, in a likely IPTV move

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 10:19pm CET

Samsung has announced that its first DivX Certified flat-panel high-definition televisions will be available in March. The company announced a licensing agreement with DivX last year.

$200 Blu-ray price point now matched by Vizio

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 10:13pm CET

Vizio has announced its first Blu-ray disc player, also supporting BD-Live content and also priced at $199.99.

Live from the Cisco press conference at CES 2009

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 10:00pm CET

Known worldwide as an infrastructure company, Cisco now plays a bigger role in the CE field for being the parent of major consumer router manufacturer Linksys, and for finding its way into the IPTV infrastructure.

CES Countdown #3: Can environmentally sensitive technology pay off this year?

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 9:46pm CET

CES has been the scene of "environmentally sensitive" consumer electronics fare from its beginnings. But this year, more corners of the show than ever are going green.

Toshiba focuses on mid-range DTV for everyone

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 9:03pm CET

Toshiba's press conference at CES 2009 this morning featured announcements in the areas of LCD TVs, DTV/DVD combos, and standalone DVD players.

First word on Toshiba's eco-friendly netbooks

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 8:38pm CET

Toshiba has released two ultraportable notebooks intended to be ecologically friendly -- but they're not ultra-low-price.

LG unleashes its annual flood of announcements

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 7:50pm CET

Holding down its traditional CES-opening spot at 8:00 am, LG on Wednesday ran through a dizzying number of announcements across multiple product lines.

Memorex Blu-ray tests the $200 price point

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 7:27pm CET

Following the prediction before the holiday shopping season that prices for Blu-ray players would fall further into the $150-to-200 range, Memorex has announced its MVBD-2520, a Blu-ray player for $199.99.

Netgear debuts a BitTorrent-enabled set-top box

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 7:24pm CET

The first of NetGear's three big product announcements at CES this morning is its Internet TV player set top box which carries on it, among the usual Web-based offerings, a built-in BitTorrent client.

MicroSDHC capacity to grow yet again

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 7:18pm CET

For people whose phones are crammed full of photos, music, video, and other space-intensive content, SanDisk has announced a 16 GB microSDHC card.

Lexar tries to make USB thumb drives fashionable

Publié: janvier 7, 2009, 7:11pm CET

For those who like to make a fashion statement with their solid-state memory -- as well as for those who keep losing the caps on the darn things -- Lexar has announced two new families of USB drives that don't have removable caps.

CES Countdown #5: Are the world's digital plans killing mobile DTV?

Publié: janvier 2, 2009, 10:48pm CET

Here's a very familiar theme for us every year: Despite not only manufacturers' own best efforts but also certain governments' own regulatory bodies to drive and even enforce industry standards, there's no one way to do digital mobile TV.

CES Countdown #6: Can the PC adapt to the commodity business model?

Publié: janvier 2, 2009, 7:25pm CET

With the consumer economy changing radically and rapidly, Microsoft and others are experimenting once again with applying the pay-as-you-go model to computing, since it seems to work well enough for other industries.

CES Countdown #7: Will someone please do something about battery life?

Publié: janvier 2, 2009, 5:06pm CET

Vendors at CES 2009 will be displaying some interesting new workarounds to the persistent issue of short battery life, ranging from an "ECO On Mode" in MSI's Wind U115 netbook to a solar battery charging gadget from Energizer.

Web rates UK Web ratings proposal an 'F'

Publié: janvier 1, 2009, 12:24am CET

Every so often, the Web provides a form of entertainment that almost everyone can enjoy -- a punching bag. Enter Andy Burnham, the UK Culture Minister, and his recent musings on a movie-style ratings system for the Internet.

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