June 30th, 2007
After six months of unprecedented hype, thousands of people Friday will get their hands on the iPhone, the new cell phone that Apple Inc. is banking on to become its third core business next to its moneymaking iPod players and Macintosh computers.
By early evening Thursday, short lines of eager customers were camped out at Apple and AT&T stores across the nation. The gadget, which combines the functions of a cell phone, iPod media player and wireless Web browser, will go on sale in the United States at 6 p.m. Friday in each time zone.
At Apple’s flagship store in New York City, the trickle of customers that began queuing up since Monday grew to about 50 people late Thursday, ready to brave yet another rainy night on the pavement of Fifth Avenue, outside the only 24-hour Apple store.
‘It’ll be interesting to see how well it really works,” Cram, a flight instructor, said Thursday at a cafe next door to the Apple store in Burlingame, where lines hadn’t yet appeared.
Apple has not disclosed how many iPhones will available at launch. But analysts expect it will sell out by early next week - between sales rung up at retail stores and online through Apple’s Web site, which has been a major distribution outlet for other Apple products.
Categories: Launch Pad |
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June 28th, 2007
Google has launched its Desktop search application for Linux, almost three years after the product’s launch for Microsoft Windows operating system.
Google Desktop allows users to search for multimedia files and information on their computer, including Gmail and their web search history. Also, the tool allows the users to access Gmail and web history offline, as the Google desktop index is stored locally on the computer.
A company representative revealed that Google Desktop for Linux was written natively and uses Google’s own desktop search algorithms instead of existing Linux search applications, such as Beagle. However, only computers with x86 processors can use the software. It supports the Debian 4.0, Fedora Core 6, Ubuntu 6.10, Novell Suse 10.1 and Red Flag 5 versions of Linux, and uses either the KDE or Gnome graphical user interface.
Google blog states, "Since some Linux users are program developers, Google Desktop was designed with the ability to search source codes and information contained in .pdf, .ps, .man and .info documents. It also features the Quick Search Box , which you can call up by pressing the Ctrl key twice. Type a few letters or words into the search box and your top results pop up instantly. Keeping with a global focus, you can use it in English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean - and it works with many versions of Linux too."
Categories: First look |
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June 22nd, 2007
Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications is setting up an R&D unit for mobile phones in Chennai in south India.
The handset maker announced earlier this year that it was outsourcing its manufacturing to the Chennai operations of Flextronics Corp. and Hon Hai Precision Industry, which uses the brand name Foxconn.
By having R&D teams in India, the company will be better able to tap into consumer behavior in local markets, Sony Ericsson said Wednesday.
India added 6.57 million mobile telephony subscribers in May this year, taking the total number of subscribers to 178 million, according to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in Delhi.
This mobile telephony boom has translated into heavy demand for mobile phones. Over 62 million handsets have been sold in India in the last 12 months, according to internal estimates by Sony Ericsson. The company is targeting production of 10 million phones from India by 2009.
The new facility will become part of Sony Ericsson’s global network of R&D units, currently comprised of sites in China, Japan, Sweden, the Netherlands, the U.S. and the U.K. The company did not, however, provide details of staffing or the nature of the work to be done at the new R&D facility.
Categories: Tech Industry News |
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June 18th, 2007
Austin, Texas, - Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world leader in advanced memory technology, announced the opening of the largest 300mm NAND flash memory wafer plant in Austin, Texas on Thursday, in ceremonies that included Texas Governor Rick Perry and Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman & CEO Jong-Yong Yun.
The 1.6 million square foot building–as large as nine football fields and one of the largest buildings in Austin–is one of the largest single semiconductor facilities in the United States. The first product of the new plant will be 16GB NAND flash chips using 50-nanometer level process technology. The $3.5 billion facility will initiate operation in the second half of 2007 and ramp up to produce 60,000 wafers per month by 2008.
The plant will manufacture NAND flash memory chips, which are widely used in a host of consumer- related products, such as MP3 players, cell phones, digital cameras, and other mobile devices.
NAND chips can also be found in the ubiquitous flash drives that consumers use to store photos, documents, music and other multimedia data as well as the new solid state drives for PCs.
NAND flash memory is popular in a growing number of mobile products because flash memory does not lose its data when its power supply is turned off.Samsung has committed to an investment of $3.5 billion for the project, making it the largest single foreign investment in Texas and one of the largest in the United States. Previously, the largest foreign investment in Texas was the existing Samsung memory plant, which cost about $1.4 billion in 1996.
The smallest feature size on the first chips, 50-nanometer level, is 200 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair. A nanometer is one-billionth of a meter-a human red blood cell is about 10,000 nanometers wide.
Read the official release here
Categories: Tech Industry News |
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June 18th, 2007
NVIDIA? Corporation has announced the GeForce? 8700M GT graphics processing unit (GPU) for notebook PCs, a new high-end GPU designed for the most demanding notebook users. The GeForce 8700M GT GPU extends the award-winning GeForce 8M Series product line to include high-performance notebooks, continuing five generations of leadership for the highest performance notebooks on the market.
The GeForce 8700M GT GPU, the newest and fastest GPU in the GeForce 8M series of notebook graphics processors, raises the bar for DirectX 10 graphics and video performance. As with the entire GeForce 8M Series notebook GPU lineup, the GeForce 8700M GT delivers great DirectX 10 gaming performance, stunning Microsoft? Windows Vista? graphics, and stellar HD DVD and Blu-ray video playback. These features continue to make NVIDIA GPUs the most popular discrete notebook graphics solutions on the market.
"For our new top-end Toshiba Satellite notebook PC we are proud to be the first company to use the NVIDIA GeForce 8700M GT GPU to deliver greatly enhanced graphics and video," said Shimpei Kunii, General Manager of PC Product Planning Department at Toshiba Corporation. "We believe these new notebooks will provide the ultimate high-resolution DirectX 10 gaming experience for our mobile customers."
The GeForce 8700M GT GPU will be available in notebooks from leading partners in North America, Europe, and Asia, including Toshiba, Sager, Maingear, Prostar, Eurocom, Biohazard, Connoiseur, Cybersystem, Hypersonic, MALIBAL, Multirama, rock, Evesham, Falcon Northwest, Plaisio, XS2, Nexoc, Hyrican, Vigor Gaming, Voodoo PC, and many others.
In addition to accelerating existing DirectX 9 and DirectX 10 content, such as the new DirectX 10 version of Company of Heroes, the GeForce 8700M GT will provide the ultimate visual notebook solution for highly anticipated, upcoming releases such as Crysis from Crytek and Lost Planet from Capcom.
Read the complete press release at:
http://www.nvidia.com/object/IO_43357.html
Categories: Launch Pad |
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June 18th, 2007
With blogging becoming an increasingly powerful medium both in India and around the world, this weekend Rediff.com launched its latest offering, "Rediff blogshowcase" at an event held in Pune.
The company said ‘Rediff blogshowcase’ (www.blogshowcase.rediff.com) is a new platform for India’s fast growing blogging community to showcase their blogs simply by sharing RSS feeds, even as they continue to blog on sites of their choice.
This is Rediff’s second offering for bloggers in the country, their first being "Rediff Hand" a blogging and social networking platform.
Manish Agarwal Vice President Marketing said, "Blogging has emerged as a very powerful medium worldwide and bloggers are now acknowledged as the voice of the people. Even in India most of the readers are always looking for avenues to participate and access the good quality blogs. Rediff Blogshowcase is our endeavor to offer a unique platform to both bloggers and readers to enjoy the best of blogging action across the country and form a well informed and vibrant community."
Rediff stated that with the current base of over 5.6 million bloggers, the blogging community is expected to grow at the 83%(source COM Score).
Initially the access to bloggers for Rediff Blogshowcase will be through invitation only and would be made open to all shortly.
Categories: First look |
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June 16th, 2007
Bluetooth-watches from Sony Ericsson > Created together with Fossil, a world expert in watch technology, the new line up of Sony Ericsson MBW-150 Bluetooth watches is ahead of its time, offering contemporary design and advanced Bluetooth technology. The product comes in 3 editions: Music, Classic and Executive.
The Bluetooth Watch MBW-150 Music Edition is made in black with orange details, the Bluetooth Watch MBW-150 Executive Edition has a classical stainless steel bracelet and the Bluetooth Watch MBW-150 Classic Edition features a leather strap and black face.All the MBW-150 models scratch-resistant mineral crystal glass face with an antiglare coating. When not using them as the phone they look exactly like a regular watch, thanks to a discreet OLED display, which is active when in use. Besides Bluetooth technology let
Categories: Launch Pad |
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June 15th, 2007
Sony Ericsson recently announced a series of new phones, including the K850 and Z320 Cybershot phones, the W910 and W960 Walkman phones, and the K530 and Z250 handsets.
The K850 Cybershot phone is a tri-band HSDPA and quad-band GPRS/EDGE clamshell phone with a 5-megapixel camera with auto focus and Xenon flash. The phone features a 2.2-inch display with an auto rotate function that automatically adjusts photos on the display to the orientation of the phone. The phone has a new media browser, which allows access to photos, video, music or podcasts from one location, according to Sony Ericsson. The K850 will be available in selected markets from early in the fourth quarter of 2007 and will come in either blue or green.
The new Sony Ericsson Z320 is a GSM/GPRS 900/1800/1900 and 850/1800/1900 clamshell phone with a 1.3-megapixel camera. The phone has a 1.8-inch 65k color main display and can store up to 100 pictures, according to the company. The handset will be available in selected markets from the third quarter of 2007 in red or blue.
Sony Ericsson’s W910 is an HSDPA Walkman phone with a 2.6-inch display and 3.2-megapixel camera. The phone features Sony Ericsson’s new Media Manager for access to content on the phone and will feature the latest version of the PlayNow mobile download service (PlayNow 4.0), which allows users to download games and music. The phone comes with a 1GB Memory Stick Micro card. The Sony Ericsson W910 Walkman phone will be available in either red or black from the fourth quarter of 2007. The phone will ship in various network versions with the W908c shipping as GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900, while the W910 will have UMTS/HSDPA 2100-GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900 connectivity.
The Sony Ericsson W960 Walkman phone is a UMTS 2100-GSM/GPRS 900/1800/1900 phone, which has a 2.6-inch touchscreen. The phone supports up to 8GB of memory and a stereo portable handsfree unit and a Stereo Bluetooth headset will be included with the phone. The W960 will be available in black from the fourth quarter of 2007.
Sony Ericsson’ K530 is a UMTS 2100 and GSM/GPRS 900/1800/1900 phone that is 14mm thick and has 16MB of built-in memory with support for Memory Stick Micro cards. The 3G phone features a 2-megapixel camera, FM radio, media player and a full Web browser, according to Sony Ericsson. The phone is compatible with the company’s new GPS Enabler HGE-100, which also was announced with the phone. The GPS Enabler plugs into the phone to turn it into personal satellite navigation system. The K530 is available in silver in selected markets from the third quarter of 2007.
The HGE-100 GPS Enabler plugs in to compatible phones and is a personal GPS navigator that is built-in to a stereo portable handsfree unit, which allows users to control calls and music on the device or switch to GPS mode when needed. Users can choose between voice or text commands, with the device having a graphical, icon-based display. The GPS Enabler HGE-100 will be available in selected markets from the third quarter of 2007.
Sony Ericsson also announced its Z250 clamshell phone, which is 19mm thick and comes with a 0.3-megapixel camera. The Sony Ericsson Z250 will be in shops worldwide from the third quarter of 2007 in the following versions: Z250i and Z258c (GSM/GPRS 900/1800/1900); Z250a (GSM/GPRS 850/1800/1900).
View the pictures at
The Sony Ericsson K850 Cybershot handset
http://www.onlygizmos.com/geek/linkp/1se.jpg
The Sony Ericsson Z320 Cybershot phone
http://www.onlygizmos.com/geek/linkp/2se.jpg
The Sony Ericsson W910 Walkman phone
http://www.onlygizmos.com/geek/linkp/3se.jpg
The Sony Ericsson W960 Walkman phone
http://www.onlygizmos.com/geek/linkp/4se.jpg
The Sony Ericsson K530 handset
http://www.onlygizmos.com/geek/linkp/5se.jpg
The Sony Ericsson Z250 handset
http://www.onlygizmos.com/geek/linkp/6se.jpg
Read more at
http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20070615PR203.html
http://www.3g.co.uk/PR/June2007/4792.htm
http://www.engadget.com/2007/06/14/a-closer-look-at-sony-ericssons-w910-and-w960/
Categories: Launch Pad |
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June 15th, 2007
Following discovery of new cooling measures inside Xbox 360 consoles, questions to Microsoft regarding its hardware changes were met with intentionally vague responses.
?Regularly updating console components is commonplace within the industry and is a standard aspect of the business for a variety of reasons including cost reduction, improved manufacturability and improved performance,? a spokesperson said to GameDaily.
Users who received repaired consoles back have been reporting a revised heatsink with a heatpipe extension to help better cool the GPU.’, ‘Does this mean that the original heatsinks were faulty? Could the original coolers be the cause of the rising number of (anecdotally) reported console failures? And are these new coolers being installed into brand new Xbox 360s?
We?ve not heard any official word from Microsoft about this nor have we heard if any locally repaired consoles have this fancy new heatsink installed. Without wanting to be seen encouraging people to void their warranties, please let us know if you?ve been bold enough to crack open your newly repaired Xbox 360.
http://blogs.pcworld.co.nz/pcworld/products/2007/06/microsoft_adding_heatsinks_to.html http://www.dailytech.com/Microsoft+No+Comment+on+Upgraded+Xbox+360+Heatsinks/article7690c.htm
Categories: Tech Industry News |
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June 14th, 2007
Indonesia’s Communicator Community was invited to a VIP party by Nokia where the first 1000 units of E90 available in that country were sold.
Reports are coming in that this device is available in Finland as well, so get ready to start importing! I hope you have a part time job because you’re going to have to cough up at least $1000 to own the latest and greatest from Nokia’s Enterprise Division.
Just a month ago a E90 pre-release model was sold in an auction for $5000.
Hartono Gunawan won the eagerly-awaited smartphone at auction for the equivalent of $5,000?far more than what the E90 will go far when it ships.
Proceeds from the auction are slated to go to UNICEF, while Gunawan became the owner of the first commercially available E90 in the world.
Categories: Launch Pad |
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June 14th, 2007
Sony Ericsson will most probably today announce its latest multimedia phones featuring an iTunes-like service. Sony Ericsson has chosen Gracenote’s music platform for all its music-enabled handsets. Starting with the new Walkman models W910, W960i (8 GB version of the W950) and the K850i Cyber-shot model, Sony Ericsson joins the ranks of iTunes as the latter is already using Gracenote
Sony Ericsson will also unveil the latest in its line of Cybershot camera phones, a 5-megapixel device. Several new accessories will be introduced in Berlin, including a Global Positioning System unit that can be connected to a mobile phone and new Bluetooth headsets. What is Gracenote? http://onlygizmos.com/public_html//article.php?story=20070614071451519
Categories: First look |
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June 14th, 2007
Gracenote, Inc. maintains and licenses an Internet-accessible database containing information about the contents of audio CDs.
The company provides embedded software and metadata to businesses that enable their consumers to better manage, enjoy and discover digital media. Gracenote provides its media management technology and global media database of digital entertainment information to the mobile, auto, portable, home and PC markets.
Several computer software applications that are capable of playing CDs, such as iTunes, use Gracenote
Gracenote
Categories: Concept / Educative |
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June 12th, 2007
Search engine giant Google and chip maker Intel have thrown their weight behind a massive scheme to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
The plan aims to cut the amount of electricity computers consume in half by 2010 using existing power-saving technologies. Currently, the average PC wastes about half of the power it consumes, while the average server squanders about one-third, officials said. The scheme is expected to cut emissions by 54 million tonnes a year - equal to 11 million cars or 20 coal-fired power plants, company officials say.
”Let’s create a more efficient IT industry by driving up the efficiency of computers,” said Pat Gelsinger, senior vice president for Intel’s Digital Enterprise Group. ”We think we can have huge savings in terms of carbon footprint and energy costs.”
IT is estimated that using energy-efficient technology would make computers about $20 (
Categories: Tech Industry News |
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June 12th, 2007
As reported earlier by us and as per rumors Sony indeed has filed a patent for a advanced Gaming Cellphone but it is learnt that its NOT based on its popular PSP. Sony has previously used its brand names CybetShot & Walkman to promote its cellphones.
In a phone interview with Reuters UK, Sony Ericsson spokesperson Merran Wrigley commented that, "We’re continually evaluating other propositions but they have to be credible propositions. We’re not interested in sticking parts on phones that destroy the brand equity that’s been built up by Sony,"
Sony Ericsson plans to unveil products featuring music and imaging capabilities rather than gaming features at an event scheduled to take place in Berlin on June 14, Wrigley said.
The announcement comes two weeks before Apple launches sales of its widely anticipated music-playing iPhone in the United States on June 29
Categories: Gaming |
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June 12th, 2007
Steve Chen, co-founder of YouTube, has hinted that his site will be coming to cell phones. Chen was speaking at a forum in Taipei, Taiwan when he told the crowd he expected much of the world to have access to YouTube on their mobile phones by next year.
Chen explained that the brevity of YouTube videos is perfect for commuters. He estimated that between 30 and 60 seconds is the ideal length for subway or bus rides while commuter train riders would digest up to 10 minute clips.
Chen was born in Taiwan in 1978 and emigrated to the U.S. with his family at the age of eight. He set up the video-sharing Web site in San Mateo, Calif., with colleague Chad Hurley in 2005 when they found their video files too large to e-mail to others.
Within a year of launch, they sold the Web site to Google for $1.65 billion.
Categories: First look |
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June 12th, 2007
Reuters reports that Google’s YouTube is ready to begin testing their video fingerprinting tool on Time Warner and Walt Disney video content.
YouTube has also been testing technology to help identify the audio tracks of video clips with major record labels using technology provided by privately held Audible Magic as early as the first two months of 2007, the company said.
These tools will be made available to all content owners later this year, YouTube executives said on Monday.
YouTube executive Chris Maxcy is reported to have said that the tool would be tested in a month’s time.
Breach of copyright has been an ongoing problem for YouTube, and in March, the media company Viacom launched a lawsuit against YouTube for $1bn (
Categories: Concept / Educative |
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June 11th, 2007
Reuters reports that South African Graham Ford changed his mind about becoming India’s new cricket coach after confirming his readiness to take the post, a senior cricket board official said on Monday.
For reportedly said in a statement "After careful consideration, I have decided to continue my work here at Kent. This has been a really difficult decision. I am honoured that India have shown such interest in my capabilities, but feel that this is the right decision for me and my family."
Former skipper Sunil Gavaskar, a member of the panel which interviewed Ford, said his decision should be respected.
"His unavailability makes us go back to square one," he told reporters, suggesting India could appoint a domestic coach as an interim step, as they did for the Bangladesh series which followed the World Cup.
Graham Johnson, Kent’s chairman of cricket, described Ford’s decision as "great news", adding: "I would like to say how much we appreciate the way Graham has handled the last few days.
"He has made a significant contribution to our playing performance during his time with us, as well as the system to produce local cricket talent in Kent."
Read more at:
http://in.today.reuters.com/news/NewsArticle.aspx?type=sportsNews&storyID=2007-06-11T205912Z_01_NOOTR_RTRMDNC_0_India-302594-3.xml
Categories: Sports |
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June 11th, 2007
A New York jeweler will pay $400,000 to settle a fraud complaint. The jeweler was accused of directing his employees to inflate the price of his company’s goods by secretly placing bids under false names on eBay.
According to the settlement, the jeweler, Ezra Dweck, and his company, the EMH Group, have been barred from taking part in online auctions for four years.
The investigation found that Dweck, who sold jewelry on ebay, the nation?s largest player in the online auction market with about 200 million registered users, frequently lured unsuspecting shoppers with the promise of ?no reserve? auctions.
Items sold in this type of online auction have no minimum or reserve price set. The lowest bidder begins the auction; the highest bidder wins.
ebay is the largest online market with over 200 million registered users. Anyone can buy or sell items on ebay, from jewelry and cars to rare antiques.
Categories: Tech Industry News |
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June 11th, 2007
New York state lawmaker Michael Gianaris has called on Google Earth to blur views of potential terror targets on its maps.
Google Earth is a handy tool for mapping directions to a restaurant or theatre, but providing satellite images of airports and power plants are not only unnecessary, but also a threat to national security, state Assemb. Michael Gianaris of Astoria said Sunday.
Gianaris called on the company to blur or obstruct its images of "tempting targets."
"While a great product for its customers, it does pose a very serious danger and problem," Gianaris said at a news conference outside Google’s office in Manhattan.
The call comes after reports that the terrorists who were plotting to blow up a pipeline feeding JFK airport, used the site to plan their attack. Gianaris said he had written three letters to Google Earth’s CEO and had received one response, saying the website has enough security measures in place.
Google said in a statement: "Anyone who flies above or drives by a piece of property can obtain similar information. Google takes security concerns very seriously, and is always willing to discuss them with public agencies and officials."
New Yorkers have mixed feelings about Gianaris’ concerns. Some think the information is already out there. Some think a general map does not constitute a threat.
On June 2, the Federal Bureau of Investigation exposed an unfledged terror plot masterminded by a Brooklyn man and three foreigners intending to blow up the fuel line at JFK Airport.
If the plot were carried out, the consequences would be unthinkable, city officials said.
Categories: Tech Industry News |
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June 10th, 2007
A row has developed between Manchester Cathedral in England and Sony, about its Playstation game Resistance: Fall of Man that has the church threatening to take the giant game manufacturer to court.
At the heart of the conflict is a scene in the war game that takes place in the cathedral nave involving the shooting and killing of hundreds of virtual enemies.
The Church of England asserts that Sony didnt
Sony Replies:
"Sony Computer Entertainment Europe is aware of the concerns expressed by the Bishop of Manchester and the Cathedral authorities about the use of Manchester Cathedral in the game Resistance: Fall of Man, and we naturally take their concerns very seriously. Resistance: Fall of Man is a fantasy science fiction game and is not based on reality. The game is set in an alternate and mythical version of Europe in the 1950s, in which the enemy are strange looking alien invaders seeking to destroy humanity."
The statement continues:
"Whilst we believe that we have sought and received all permissions necessary for the creation of the game, we will be contacting the Cathedral authorities in order to better understand their concerns in more detail."
Categories: Tech Industry News |
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