AMD Phenom pricing

The pricing for the AMD phenoms has arrived, but as to whether this is the final pricing for the latest offering from AMD, nobody ain't sure of it yet. But sources say it should be close or rather correct. So folks, get set for an AMD christmas!!!

Phenom is the latest offering from AMD which is quad-core competing with Intel's quad-core.

Sneak Peek: AMD's Phenom Quad-Cores, Spider Graphics Platform

Advanced Micro Devices is getting set to launch its first quad-core desktop processor and accompanying Spider platform for high-performance desktop systems. The specific details are under lock and key until the release date, but Spider is coming sooner than earlier reports indicated, and it's the first desktop platform from AMD that was built from the ground up in concert with the chipmaker's graphics division, ATI.

The Spider release will coincide with AMD's launch of its Phenom quad-core desktop processor. That's no accident, as the platform was built to integrate Phenom with a new series of GPUs and chipsets from ATI that will be released alongside the new CPU. AMD acquired the maker of graphic processors, chipsets and video display cards last October.

Oh, and one quick note, in case you missed it -- Phenom isn't a codename. It's the name of the new brand AMD is launching with these quad-core chips.

Phenom's specs are impressive. It will come as no surprise that the chip's "native" quad-core design bears desktop fruit similar to what AMD's recently-launched quad-core Opteron processor does for servers. We're talking energy efficiency, high floating points for memory-intensive applications and easy switch-a-roos from dual-core Athlons to the new quad-cores. Though it's a bit apples-and-oranges, it's also worth noting that the first Phenoms to hit the market will have higher clock speeds than the initial shipments of quad-core Opterons.

All very tasty, though AMD's stress on performance-per-watt for Phenom did strike as a bit odd. It's one thing to highlight Opteron's energy efficiency for the data centers, but don't those crazy gamers actually get a kick out of burning through more fuel than necessary? AMD's response: True, gamers aren't the most power-stingy customers around, let alone the Greenest. But better energy efficiency is still a good sell, because it means fewer fans, which means more headroom in gaming shells for system builders to drop in more gear.

So there.

While Phenom will be available as a processor-in-a-box, and ATI's new products don't require a quad-core processor, by combining all that good stuff on an optimized platform, AMD banks on hitting the enthusiast and high-end home theater markets hard ahead of the holidays.

The new ATI gear fills a hole in AMD's DirectX 10-compatible Radeon line, in the $200 neighborhood. It will also support DirectX 10.1, when that multimedia/gaming interface update ships with the first Windows Vista Service Pack in January. Also look for boosts in ATI's PCI Express, CrossFire and AVIVO HD technology, as well as a brand new chipset family for Phenom called the AMD 700 series.

And overclockers have something to look forward to as well, thanks to a little surprise AMD has built into Spider.

Spider is already in the hands of some partners in AMD's system builder channel. When you get a chance to see it demoed, it's tough to wipe the silly grin off your face as the platform roars into action. Spider is geared towards gaming, and the way it handles lighting, angles and texture is all very impressive.

So everyone stay tuned for AMD latest punch at Intel. Doesn't it looks good already?

The Firewall In The Mac OSX Leopard Is Mostly Useless, Say Experts

"Best firewall – no firewall" has been a common joke in the IT world for some time. However, it seems that Apple has taken it for serious, and their latest released OS goes to prove it.

As Heise Security's report points out, the firewall included in the Leopard OS managed to fail every security test performed by the firm. - Now that's a bummer

Jurgen Schmidt writes:

“The most important task for any firewall is to keep out uninvited guests. In particular, this means sealing off local services to prevent access from potentially hostile networks, such as the Internet or wireless networks.

But a quick look at the firewall configuration in the Mac OS X Leopard shows that it is unable to do this. By default it is set to "Allow all incoming connections," i.e. it is deactivated. Worse still, a user who, for security purposes, has previously activated the firewall on his or her Mac will find that, after upgrading to Leopard, the system restarts with the firewall deactivated.”

Also, it seems that the firewall is also unable to to make the difference between trusted networks and networks that present a certain risk; Leopard will treat them all the same, at least initially.

Of course, there's always the possibility of blocking all incoming connections, but this time the option won't be much help either. The report points out that potential attackers will still be able to communicate with at least two system services, the time server and the NetBIOS name server.

The report notes that the “problems and peculiarities described here are not security vulnerabilities in the sense that they can be exploited to break into a Mac”. However, it suggests that Apple users would do better not to rely on the firewall for the time being.

PS: all OS have their vulnerabilities, whether you choose to accept it or not.

iPhone will cost a minimum of €1601 in Germany !

As you may have known, in Germany iPhone sales will start on November 9th.

The cheapest subscription will cost €49 per month, for a minimum of 24 months.
And the iPhone and its activation will cost €425 ( 400+25)

so the minimum a iPhone will cost is €1601 in Germany

The cheapest subscription includes, unlimited data transfer, 100 calling minutes and 40 SMS.

While the other two subscription ( €65 & €85 per month ) the iPhone will cost €2081 and €2561

Its certainly a different way to calculate the cost of a iPhone. But it gives a rough guide of how the whole iPhone package costs.

Aussie student makes copper broadband faster

Up to 200 times quicker

A MELBOURNE PhD student has worked out a way to make copper broadband technology 200 times faster.

John Papandriopoulos has managed to get a signal down a copper line at 250Mbps compared with the top speed of 1-20Mbps that can be managed now.

Papandriopoulos has patent applications for the technology being processed in the US and Australia, won one of Melbourne University's top academic prizes yesterday.

He told news.com.au that telephone wiring is poor quality and was not designed for high-speed internet when it was created.

One of the things that slows down broadband is the fact that a telephone line interferes with a neighbour's.

Papandriopoulos' uses mathematic modelling to reduce the interference that slows down downloading.

Vista deludes itself into thinking driver upgrades are major changes

A FEATURE in Microsoft Vista means that something as small as swapping the video card or updating a device driver can trigger a total Vista deactivation.

According to APC mag, minor upgrades to your desktop will result in your PC going into "reduced functionality" mode, where you can't do anything but use the web browser for half an hour.

You'll then need to reapply to Microsoft to get a new activation code.

Hack, James Bannan noticed the flaw when he swapped over the graphics card on his Vista Ultimate box. A few days later he got a Windows Activation prompt and had to speak to a Microsoft customer service representative before he got all his functionality back and the feeling in his toes.

Wondering why he got the shut down request, Bannon obtained some tools from Microsoft which listed all the hardware changes on that machine since activation. Vista thought his disk controller had changed, so the graphics card change was the final change which tripped deactivation.

But Bannan had not changed his disk controller, all he had done was upgraded the Intel Matrix Storage Manager application. Vista reported this driver upgrade as a major hardware change event.

It appears that Microsoft Vista designers had not worked out that if you change device drivers it does not necessarily mean you have changed your hardware. It could be, as in Bannan's case, you have updated or changed the drivers and not the hardware.

This is quite common as some of the drivers which ship with Vista are out of date or not as good as what you can find on the manufacturer's web site.

Wii bubble set to burst

It sits at home and gathers dust

According to the Nikkei magazine, although many Japanese homes have a Wii, they hardly get any use.

One developer quoted in the article said that people had a Wii out of curiosity and have not needed to use it since.

Many companies who rushed to support the console are finding that their support has not translated into sales.

It seems that only Nintendo, who had more time to plan its Wii titles, is the only outfit benefiting from the Wii's success.

Sales of the console fell in September which suggests that the Wii bubble is starting to burst.

3 Nehalem processors in Q4 2008

It looks like the eight core, sixteen thread Nehalem based CPUs will launch in 2009. According to the current plan Intel doesn’t intend to launch an eight core Nehalem in Q4 2008.

The top Bloomfield / Nehalem generation 45 nm CPU will meet the 130W TDP and is supposed to be the successor of soon to be launched QX9770, a 3.2GHz Yorkfield based CPU.

All new Nehalem CPUs will use the new socket LGA 1366 and have four cores and eight threads. This is understandable as the new Nehalem CPU supports DDR3 and has a memory controller on board.

All three CPUs to launch in Q4 2008 are codenamed Bloomfield but the slower parts are positioned as the ones that will replace sub 3GHz non extreme edition Yorkfield quad core parts.

Even these parts have 130W TDP and they supports Intel Visualization Technology, Intel's trusted execution and more importantly Spead step, executive bit and Intel’s 64 marchitecture.

All these CPUs are scheduled for Q4 2008 introduction.

What do 16,000 people 'do' at Google?

On Thursday, the company reported gains of 50 percent or so in quarterly profit and revenue from a year ago, beating analyst expectations. It wasn't a stellar quarter, but it was pretty darn good.

The notable thing was the hiring. The company added 2,130 workers to its roster, bringing the head count to 15,916. What do nearly 16,000 people do at a company that doesn't make widgets (at least in the hardware manufacturing sense of the word)?

That's an average of about 35 people showing up for their first day of work each business day during the past three months. Granted, that is in offices around the world, but still, that's impressive. By comparison, Yahoo has 13,600 employees, after hiring 1,200 during the past quarter. (Actually, when you think about it, that's even more crazy given the need for Yahoo to retrench right now.)

Those numbers may seem surprising given the fact that Google attributed last quarter's 3-cent earnings miss to overspending on hiring, and promised to curb that impulse. However, during the conference call with analysts Thursday afternoon, Chief Executive Eric Schmidt said many of the people hired during the quarter had been given offers before the previous quarter had closed.

The fast pace of hiring at the search giant is the one concern Jordan Rohan, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, mentioned in an interview with CNET News.com after the Google earnings call.

"Half the company has been hired in the last 12 months. That's chaotic," he says. "The new employees find it difficult to figure out how to get things done. It's not a normal company."

I can only guess that the new hires are working on the much-anticipated "Google phone," which is probably going to be a Google operating system for mobile devices, and on the new copyright content filtering technology deployed at YouTube this week. They're also probably tasked with taking over the advertising world with the company's lucrative online automated ad platform.

"They have possibly the best core business in the history of the Internet," Rohan says. "That is supporting them as they attempt to find an Act II. I don't know if it will be media, display, mobile or what."

Microsoft Windows 7 revealed

Still hesitating about the big move to Vista? Maybe you're best off waiting for Windows 7, the successor to Vista, which Microsoft is already hard at work on. Where's the proof? Long Zheng, the Australian hacker behind the blog istartedsomething, has posted a clip from what seems to be the first public demonstration of the forthcoming operating system. Sure, it's not scheduled to be released until 2010, but still, when it arrives, it'll be super neat-and well worth the wait! Let's cros our fingers that the software is not bloated as always since the kernel has been stripped down to only 25MB.

So what can be gleaned from the video? The portion Zheng highlights is a discussion of the Windows 7 core, which turns out to be a relatively lean machine. In it, engineer Eric Traut shows off a streamlined app called MinWin, not a product itself but probably the basis for future products, he points out. The Windows 7 source code is about 25MB on disk, an interesting comparison to the 4GB that the full Windows Vista takes up. Oh, and there's no graphical system yet, which explains the ASCII logo.

There's also an interesting walk through the history of Microsoft's operating systems. You knew Vista was OS 6, right? And that XP was 5, and NT 4.0 was 4, and Windows 3.1 ... well, you get the picture. If Windows 7 doesn't interest you, watch the clip for a quick walkthrough of Windows 2 and 1 as well.

Source: http://www.istartedsomething.com/20071019/eric-talk-demo-windows-7-minwin/

AMD already produces 45nm CPUs

Although we still haven't seen the native quad-core Messiah known as Phenom, AMD is already starting to talk about 45nm processors which, according to CTO Dirk Meyer, are already being made in Fab 36 in Dresden.

The 45nm production ramp is (still) planned for H1 2008 while the first 45nm CPUs are set for a release in H2 of 2008 with the first arrival being the server processors codenamed Shanghai.

As for the things closes to our hearts and pockets, the Phenom processors, they are set to arrive next month, at speeds that top 2.5 GHz.

Celeron goes dual core, pricing revealed

Intel will begin the phase out of single-core processors for desktops in first quarter of 2008 with the launch of an entry-level dual-core series, the Celeron E1000, according to sources at PC makers. The company will also add two 45nm processors in its E4000 family during the quarter.

The first dual-core Celeron processor, the E1200 will have core frequency of 1.6GHz, 800MHz FSB and 512KB L2 cache with price of US$53 in thousand-unit quantities. Although Intel will enter 45nm process production this November, entry-level processors such as those in the E1000 series will still be fabbed at 65nm using a Conroe-based core, noted the sources.

Many PC makers have started to clear out old, single-core processor inventory in order to avoid overstock problems, the sources added.

Intel will also launch two E4000 series processors based on its 45nm process in the first quarter. The E4700 will have a frequency of 2.6GHz, 800MHz FSB and 2MB L2 cache. The CPU will launch with a price of US$133 in thousand-unit quantities. The model number for the second CPU has not yet been set, but the sources detailed that it will support a 1066MHz FSB and have 3MB L2 cache.

Sony slashes and burns PS3 price in US

AFTER MAKING cuts in Asia and Europe, Sony US has followed their lead and cut the price of units in America.

Let's hope you just haven't bought one.

The 80GB Playstation 3 will cost $499, $100 down from the previous price.

A 40GB model is bundled with the Spiderman movie and will cost $399. It won't go on sale until November the 2nd.

AMD Sheds Additional Phenom Details

AMD reveals the model names and operating frequencies of its quad-core Phenom desktop processors

AMD guidance revealed information on the model names and clock frequencies of its forthcoming quad-core Phenom desktop processors.

AMD plans to debut its initial quad-core Phenom processors in late November: the Phenom 9600 and 9500. The 9600 will come clocked at 2.4GHz and the 9500 will have a slightly lower operating frequency of 2.2GHz.

Both Socket AM2+ processors feature a 512KB of L2 cache for each core and a shared 2MB pool of L3 cache. In addition, both processors will operate on a 3.6GHz HyperTransport bus and will have an 89 Watt Thermal Design Power envelope.

In December the slightly higher-end Phenom 9700 will become AMD's third desktop Barcelona-derivative. All technical aspects of the processor will be the same as those for the 9600 and 9500, save for a few improvements. The processor will run at a slightly higher operating frequency of 2.6GHz. The downside of these improvements is a higher 125-Watt Thermal Design Power envelope.

An additional Phenom 9xxx desktop processor is on the horizon and is expected to make its debut in Q2 2008. Although the official clock speed has not been set for this new processor, AMD guidance suggests that it will not exceed 3GHz. The company has demonstrated its 3GHz Phenom processors since July 2007.

Whereas Intel usually releases its high-end chips first, AMD seems to have a completely reverse policy. AMD will be launching its high-end Phenom desktop processors after the initial launch of lower-end Phenom desktop models. AMD's high-end Phenom FX chips will appear on the market in Q1 and Q2 of 2008.

In Q1 2008 the Phenom FX-82 will be the first Phenom FX chip to make its debut. The chip will feature a clock speed equal to or greater than 2.6GHz . Like all of the other Phenom models, it will also come with 512KB of L2 cache for each of its four cores and a shared 2MB L3 cache. The Thermal Design Power of the chip is yet to be decided.

An additional Phenom FX-8x model will make its way to market in Q2 2008. AMD has yet to release additional details of this new processor.

All quad-core Phenom desktop processor are manufactured on a 65nm node.

This week AMD announced additonal price cuts and new chips for its Athlon brand of processors. These are expected to be the last Athlon price cuts before the Phenom launch.

In September AMD launched its newest Opteron server processors. The company has also confirmed that it's next-generation graphics processor, RV670, and its next-generation desktop chipset, RD790, will launch at the same time as Phenom.

Microsoft Vista has a memory problem

MICROSOFT'S latest operating system, Vista is running out of memory faster than a politician in a corruption scandal.

According to users, the 'Out of Memory' error, which is the same as Terry Pratchett's 'out of cheese' error, is seriously stuffing up Vista's file handling.

The problem can be clearly seen when a user tries to copy 16,400 files or smaller groups of files that add up to 16,400 between reboots.

After you get the 'Out of Memory' message you will also suffer from menus and tabs disappearing within the Windows environment and even reboots and BSODs are reported.

The problem occurs where users are running Kaspersky security products, but it is not the software that is causing the problem. Other software also suffers but it seems that the Kaspersky software shows the error in its full glory.

The kicker is that despite Microsoft knowing about the problem for months it is not going to be fixed in SP1. Microsoft is currently offering a hotfix for the problem but you have to ask it nicely.

Users have also found some other file handling problems in Vista when it handles more than 1,500. A quick look at the memory use shows that it is causing serious spiking which does not go away until a reboot.

Intel to up 45nm Core 2 Extreme prices by 50% next year

Reghardware.com reports that the upcoming 'Penryn'-based 45nm high-end quad-core CPUs may well attract an even higher price premium than before, it has emerged. INTC has apparently informed customers that next year's Core 2 Extreme processors will cost up to 50% more than today's models. According to newly released Penryn pricing data posted by a number of websites, Nov's Core 2 Extreme QX9650 will cost $999 when sold in batches of 1000 chips. That's the price point Intel has maintained for the Extreme line of gaming processors since the family was introduced back in the Pentium D days. However, 1Q08 will see the 3GHz, 12MB L2, 1333MHz FSB chip joined by two 3.2GHz models: the QX9770 and the QX9775, priced at a staggering $1399 and $1499, respectively.

Intel posts 43% jump in profit, sets more job cuts

Longtime CFO Bryant is replaced by an aide as part of his move to new post

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Intel Corp., the world's No. 1 chipmaker, reported a 43% increase in third-quarter profit Tuesday, benefiting from a robust personal-computer market, but also announced plans to shed 2,000 more jobs as part of a continued reduction in staff.

The Santa Clara, Calif.-based semiconductor maker (INTC:Intel Corporation
INTC 25.48, -0.27, -1.0%) also named Stacy J. Smith as its new chief financial officer, replacing Andy Bryant, in what one analyst said was an expected transition in the company. Smith, currently a deputy CFO, will report to Bryant, who was promoted to chief administrative officer.

Shares of Intel, a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, rose more than 4% in after-hours trading following the report.

"It was not a surprise to the investment community," analyst John Dryden of Charter Equity Research said of Bryant's new post. "I believe it has been a known transition that was coming. It was just a matter of timing."

Noting that Bryant is the company's longest-serving CFO having started in 1994, Dryden said, "It's just time for new blood. I would say it was a planned change. It was not based on Andy's performance."

Intel also set in motion more staff cuts, saying it would shed 2,000 jobs in the fourth quarter, reducing the company's head count to about 86,000. That's down about 9% from where it stood in the end of 2006.

The company reported profit of $1.9 billion, or 31 cents a share, for the period that ended Sept. 29 compared to $1.3 billion, or 22 cents a share, for the comparable period last year.

On Wall Street, analysts on average estimated Intel would earn 30 cents a share, according to a Thomson Financial survey.

Revenue grew to $10.1 billion compared to $8.74 billion in the same period last year. Analysts were expecting revenue of $9.6 billion.

Intel exceeded its own higher revenue projections of between $9.4 billion to $9.8 billion. It also projected fourth quarter revenue to be between $10.5 billion and $11.1 billion, higher than the $10.4 billion predicted by analysts.

Analyst Doug Freedman of American Technology Research said the chipmaker offered "very strong" fourth-quarter earnings projections.

"This should push next year's numbers higher, as the gross margin starting point is higher and ripples through the model," he added.

Analyst John Dryden of Charter Equity Research said "PC demand continues to exceed expectations globally ... The mix to mobile is providing an added benefit to Intel."

Noting Intel's projected 57% gross margin for the fourth quarter, Dryden said: "I was bullish, but didn't target 57% gross margin until [the second half of 2008]." He said this suggests that Intel is gaining share in the market for server microprocessors.

In a written statement, Chief Executive Paul Otellini cited "a combination of great products, strong and growing worldwide demand, and operational efficiency" as the key factors for the growth seen in the quarter. The company said its performance was driven by growth in chips for laptop and other mobile devices, along with the corporate market.

Last month, Intel raised its revenue projection to between $9.4 billion to $9.8 billion, from a previous range of $9 billion to $9.6 billion.

Intel is the No. 1 chipmaker in the world, with about 13% of the industry's total revenue in 2006, followed by Samsung Electronics with 8%, and Texas Instruments Inc.

Mac OS X Leopard to be released on October 26

The most pretty OS since Vista, Mac OS X Leopard is ready for its time in the spotlight and will be officially released on October 26. Already available on pre-order, the new operating system comes with more than 300 new features and introduces a brand new desktop with Stacks, a new way to easily access files from the Dock; a redesigned Finder that lets users quickly browse and share files between multiple Macs; Quick Look, a new way to instantly see files without opening an application; Spaces, an intuitive new feature used to create groups of applications and instantly switch between them; and Time Machine, an effortless way to automatically back up everything.

“Leopard, the sixth major release of Mac OS X, is the best upgrade we’ve ever released,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. And since the Jobs Man couldn't resist not kicking Microsoft in its soft part he also added - “And everyone gets the ‘Ultimate’ version, packed with all the new innovative features, for just $129.” It's a good thing (for Microsoft) Leopard doesn't really 'do' PCs.

Intel P45 and G45 Eaglelake info

In the second quarter 2008 , intel will release the desktop chipsets Intel eaglelake. They will propose support to PCI express 2.0 for the wide population, and the south bridges series ICH10 will forget about old interfaces as PCI, PS/2, COM and LPT. The memory controller in eaglelake chipsets will preserve compatibility with DDR- 3 and DDR-2.

Eaglelake chipset found the proper names: Intel p45 for the discrete version and Intel g45 for the integrated version. This Last has the graphic core GMA x4500 with directX 10 support , which will be three times more productive than graphic system in chipset intel g33. This chipset will also support interfaces DVI, HDMI and DisplayPort. The decoding of high quality video from blu-ray disks and HD DVD will be accelerated at the hardware level.

In the third quarter 2008 , intel will present Eaglelake- Q chipset , which will find use in corporate segment. Let us recall that the south bridges series ICH10 will also move in the chipset tylersburg-DT, which will ensure the support of nehalem generation processors in the fourth quarter 2008. In the third quarter the portion of eaglelake chipsets will exceed 20%.

I note that the wholesale cost of chipset intel x48 will be $70- much more expensive than Intel x38 ($50); . I hope that this additional payment is not only due to the support of DDR 3-1600 and 1600 MHz system bus, but for the improved overclocking potential.

Barcelonas are hard to come by

A month on since the native quad core Barcelona launch it seems that AMD has run into some supply troubles. ChannelWeb talked to several channel partners, to check out how AMD's new baby was doing and these chaps had some interesting things to say.

Brian Corn, VP of marketing and business development at Source Code, and Corn made several interesting remarks concerning the availability of quad core Opterons. As far as the hardware side of things goes, Corn had only words of praise for AMDs new part.

"There are no hardware conflicts and the power draw is as promised. They delivered on their technicals. On these high-performance compute and memory-intensive applications, they're kicking Intel's butt," said Corn.

But he was far from pleased when it comes to AMD's customer relations in the system builder channel.

"We're extremely disappointed with AMD on a product delivery level. What's nice about the product is it runs great, it's rock solid, it really performs. The real problem seems to be is that AMD doesn't have any of these things," he said.

Corn went on to say that AMD offered no response to numerous questions concerning the availability of the new products and that the company had turned its back on the channel, taking care of their teir ones and favored partners instead.

Not all partners have experienced similar problems, but the delivery of quad core Opterons has been an issue among some.

Shah Gautam, president of custom server builder Colfax also praised the new chip, but he too said that it looks like AMD is focused on tier one customers in the initial phase.

Appro International has ordered some 48 thousand Opterons for its Linux computing clusters ordered by the Lawrence Livermore, Los Alamos and Sandia national labaratories. It claims that the new CPU is a winner, but John Lee, VP of advanced technology solutions, says that "the rollout wasn't as crisp as we would have liked."

Demand seems to be great, but it's beginning to look as if the numerous delays have chained AMD to tier one customers in this initial phase, and that it's forced to put the channel on hold, at least until it can fulfill its obligations to tier ones. Hopefully this situation won't last long.

List of all Opteron (3rd gen) K10 Processors [Including Budapest]

Here it is folks.
All these CPUs shall be in the market from January/2008.
I've also heard about some 2362SE & 1362SE Optys @ 2.6GHz, that would probably debut in March.

Intel X48 chipset supporting DDR 3 memory only

Intel X48 chipset to ditch DDR 2?



Intel's X48 high-end gaming-oriented chipset, the anticipated successor to the only-just-released X38 chipset, is set to debut in Q1 2008 - supporting DDR 3 memory only, it has emerged.

According to leaked Intel presentation slides posted by Chinese-language site HKPEC, the X48 will not support DDR 2 memory, though it will up the frontside bus clock frequency to 1600MHz.

It will handle DDR 3 DIMMs clocked at 800, 1067, 1333 and 1600MHz - the latter using Intel's so-called XMP (eXtreme Memory Profile) specification, designed to make overclocking a less hit and miss operation.

X48-based boards will sport up to four DIMM slots, two per channel. However, only two 1600MHz, 1.8V DIMMs can be added to the board. Anyone using 1600MHz memory will only be able to connect up a 1066MHz or 1600MHz FSB processor. Only non-ECC memory modules are supported.

The X48 supports two x16 PCI Express 2.0 slots and connects to Intel's ICH9 southbridge chip, which brings six 3Gbps SATA ports, Gigabit Ethernet, 12 USB ports and six PCIe lanes for configuration as two x1 ports and either a x4 connector or four more x1 slots.

The first X38 motherboards began to be launched this week, less than a month after it was first claimed Intel was readying the X48.

Hitachi promises 4TB hard drives by 2011

Funky hard drive making division of Hitachi, Hitachi Global Storage Technologies have just announced that they have developed the world’s smallest read-head technology for hard drives. The technology, which enabled Hitachi to make new heads in the 30-50 nanometer (nm) range is expected to bring 1TB notebook drives and 4TB desktop hard drives by 2011.

“This is an achievement for consumers as much as it is for Hitachi. It allows Hitachi to fuel the growth of the ‘Terabyte Era’ of storage, which we started, and gives consumers virtually limitless ability for storing their digital content.” said Hiroaki Odawara, Research Director at Hitachi.

The new heads are called "current perpendicular-to-the-plane giant magnetoresistive" (CPP-GMR) and are said to enable densities of up to one terabit per square inch (Tb/sq. in.). This new technology is set to be implemented in shipping products in 2009 and reach its full potential in 2011.

What will you do with all this capacity? I can only shudder at what you'll do because my imagination precludes speculation on such matters.

Intel prepares 1600FSB Extreme quad-core CPU

November 12 will see Intel release its first 45nm-built desktop processor, the $999-tagged QX9650, an Extreme-branded quad-core CPU clocked at 3.0 GHz and running with a 1333 MHz bus. Just two months after this CPU releases Intel will have a new high-end chipset, the X48, and since this one will 'officially' support' the 1600 MHz FSB, Intel will release a new Extreme processor to go with it.

The QX9770 will be clocked at 3.2 Ghz, will have that 1600 FSB, 12 MB of L2 cache and will come with a price tag of $1399. The QX9770's release date is Q1 2008.

1600FSB QX9775 Yorkfield XE Pricing



Even though there are not a lot of single-core chips in Intel’s microprocessor lineup now, quad-core processors are not going to become really affordable soon enough. After Intel introduces its new 45nm central processing units in January, 2008, the company will not cut pricing of its Intel Core 2 Quad below $266.

The new code-named Yorkfield processors, which will be sold under Intel Core 2 Quad trademark with Q9550, Q9450 and Q9300 model numbers, will be priced at $530, $316 and $266 in 1000-unit quantities, respectively. Intel will also not cease to offer its 65nm quad-core microprocessors Q6700 and Q6600 for $530 and $266, respectively. The newer chips are projected to deliver considerably higher performance compared to predecessors thanks to improved micro-architecture, higher-speed processor system busses and cache sizes.

The fact that Intel has no plans to reduce pricing of its quad-core chips signals that the company feels itself comfortabe selling products with four processing engines at price-points starting at $266 and expects no substantial competition from Advanced Micro Devices, who is struggling to deliver quad-core enthusiast-class chips in late 2007 and quad-core and tri-core desktop processors in Q1 2008.

Intel officials did not comment on the news-story.

The new Q9000-series/45nm microprocessors are projected to have greater instructions per clock (IPC) execution compared to today’s chips, which means that they will be faster and more efficient even at the same clock-speeds with the current generation chips.

The major micro-architectural improvements for new Intel Core 2 processors, besides SSE4 instruction set, include the so-called Unique Super Shuffle Engine and Radix 16 technique. The Super Shuffle Engine is a full-width, single-pass shuffle unit that is 128-bits wide, which can perform full-width shuffles in a single cycle. This significantly improves performance for SSE2, SSE3 and SSE4 instructions that have shuffle-like operations such as pack, unpack and wider packed shifts. This feature will increase performance for content creation, imaging, video and high-performance computing. Radix 16 technique, according to Intel, roughly doubles the divider speed over previous generations for computations used in nearly all applications. In addition, Intel also improved virtualization technology as well as added some features to dynamic acceleration technology, which is supposed to boost single-threaded applications’ performance on multi-core chips.

Intel Preps Dual-Core Celeron Microprocessors

Intel Readies Dual-Core Microprocessors for $35 - $50

It was just a matter of time before the leading makers of central processing units (CPUs) start to sell dual-core chips for value computers and it now seems that the time will come in the first quarter of next year, when Intel Corp. unveils dual-core Intel Celeron microprocessors aiming the most affordable personal computers (PCs).

The first Intel Celeron E1200 dual-core processor working at 1.60GHz, utilizing 800MHz processor system bus and featuring 512KB of unified secondary-level cache will emerge in the first quarter of 2008 to target cost-effective desktops. Later during the year Intel plans to add more chips into the Intel Celeron E1000 dual-core lineup, creating a comprehensive family of affordable chips with two processing engines.

Intel’s Celeron E1000 dual-core processors are set to be made using 65nm process technology and are projected to fit into 65W thermal design power envelope. The new CPUs will be drop-in compatible with all platforms that support code-named Conroe processors, e.g. Intel Core 2 Duo or Intel Pentium dual-core E2000-series.

According to documents seen, Intel plans to describe the new Intel Celeron dual-core processor as delivering “entry multi-tasking experience for value-conscious customers”. Currently Intel sells Celeron processors for $34 - $59, therefore, it is possible to expect that the new E1000-series will also fit into that gap. It is interesting to note that the launch of the new Celeron dual-core chips will not mean end of life for Intel Pentium processors, which will continue to serve upper segment of low-cost desktop systems.

Given relatively low clock-speed and not a large cache, it is unlikely that Intel Celeron E1000 dual-core microprocessors will show incredible performance. Nevertheless, the forthcoming emergence of the new chips proof that multi-core technology are rushing into the value segment of the market.

The launch of low-cost dual-core Intel Celeron E1000-series processors will cause the chip giant’s rival Advanced Micro Devices to either waterfall prices of its entry-level single-core AMD Athlon LE and AMD Sempron chips, or to introduce value dual-core processors as well and reconsider pricing of single-core offerings.

Windows Home Server Software Now Available to Consumers

Newegg lists Windows Home Sever OEM for $190

Microsoft is finally ready to roll with its Windows Home Server software platform. The Redmond, Washington-based software company pushed out a release candidate version of the software in June and released it to manufacturing in mid-July.

Microsoft Windows Home Server (32-bit) is now available to purchase by anyone looking to turn an old PC into a multi-functional storage/media/backup/remote access hub. Newegg lists the OEM version of the software on its website for $189.99.

Windows Home Server doesn't feature outlandish system requirements and will likely run just fine on a machine that is four or five years old. The bare minimum requirements are a 1GHz Pentium III processor and 512MB of RAM and many users have found much success with similar hardware.

For those that would prefer to buy a pre-built Windows Home Server system, there are plenty of solutions on the way. HP has a $599, 500GB EX470 server and a $799, 1TB EX475 server while competing solutions from Velocity Micro are also in the works.

Other companies who will produce Windows Home Server systems include Fujitsu-Siemens, Gateway, Iomega LaCie and Medion.

Google bought what?

A SURE SIGN that someone has more money than sense is that they go out and buy shiny things that they don't need, just because they can.

That observation might apply to the news that Google just bought something called Jaiku.

What is Jaiku? It's apparently a Web 2.0 addressbook and text messaging application for PCs and cellphones, the essence of which seems to be that it lets users tag text messages to their friends with picture icons or - if they're pressed for time - enter just the icons alone.

As Farhad Manjoo noted over at Wired, this sort thing is really useful to keep all your close friends, co-workers and even casual acquaintances apprised, on a minute by minute basis, of all your varied activities in your extremely important life.

Google hasn't said what it plans to do with Jaiku and it seems like Jaiku has no idea, either. The service will remain up during the transition, but new subscriptions are closed for now.

It probably has something to do with a phone that Google is going to release soon.

Intel Launches CoolSoftware Community Site

CoolSW: http://coolsw.intel.com/

Intel has launched a new Web 2.0-inspired community site CoolSoftware (CoolSW) to gather information from users about software companies and technologies.

The site is similar to Digg, where users submit and vote for their favourite software company or product.

The categories in the site are: Digital Home, Mobility, Enterprise, and Healthcare, all of which are similar to the platforms Intel supports. The site also includes a category called “Other.”

The CoolSW is an online community about software where members post information about new software company and the community votes if they think the company is "cool."

Companies that receive the maximum votes get projected to the site's front page where any user can see what community members consider the most interesting software.

The forum was initially meant only for Intel staff, but the company made it public to increase its popularity. The RSS feeds feature enables users to keep up-to-date with new submission, tags, so that submitted companies are searchable by keyword.

Ceramic White PlayStation 3 With DualShock 3 Set For Japan

PlayStation 3 dreaming of a Ceramic White Christmas



Sony Computer Entertainment Europe ended weeks of speculation with its announcement of the 40GB PlayStation 3, landing in the region starting October 10. While the new model has yet to be confirmed for North America, Japan will receive the 40GB PlayStation 3 on November 11 with what appears to be an exclusive color.

The Japanese market will see the new 40GB PlayStation 3 in both “Clear Black” and “Ceramic White” colors next month for 39,980 yen ($341). The white PlayStation 3 marks the first official color variation of the console, though professionally painted have appeared in the custom market in white, silver and red.

In another bit of good news for Japan, the new 40GB PS3 units will come packaged with a matching DualShock 3 controller instead of the SIXAXIS. The European 40GB PS3 will ship with the SIXAXIS controller, as the DualShock 3 isn’t expected outside of Japan until spring 2008.

Confirming another piece of expected news is SCEJ’s announcement that it will give free copies of Spider-Man 3 movie on Blu-ray Disc to the next 200,000 purchasers of all PS3 consoles in Japan, including the 20GB and 60GB models beginning October 17.

100 Gb/s Internet2 completed

San Diego (CA) – At its Fall 2007 member meeting, the Internet 2 consortium announced that its updated infrastructure is ready to go online and provide an initial capacity of 100 Gb/s to researchers and educators.

The blazingly fast network connection was demonstrated for the first time when the organization established a connection between the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) and Fermilab in Batavia, IL and was able to transfer a third of a terabyte within five minutes over a 10 GB/s connection.

Internet 2 is often confused with a next-generation Internet infrastructure for the public. However, the Internet 2 is limited to currently 207 connected universities that use the high-speed network as infrastructure to quickly exchange data and test new technologies that one day could find their way into the public Internet.

12 years after the unveiling of the idea for the Internet 2 – the concept dates back to a presentation at the Monterey Futures Conference in September 1995, the Internet 2 has reached an initial capacity of 100 GB/s, which can be provided to researchers and educators in dedicated bandwidth chunks of 10 Gb/s beginning in January of next year. According to the consortium, the new optical infrastructure provides a “uniquely scalable platform on which to build side-by-side networks that serve different purposes, such as network research and telemedicine.” Representatives for Internet2 said that the network will be continuing to provide an advanced Internet Protocol (IP) Network that supports production networking technologies such as IPv6, multicast, and other high-performance networking technologies.

"Today's milestone marks the completion of an ambitious effort to exponentially increase the capacity and flexibility of the networking resources available to serve the rapidly changing needs of the Internet2 community," said Doug Van Houweling, Internet2 president and CEO. "More importantly, we believe the Internet2 Network and its new capabilities will play an integral part in enabling our members to provide the robust cyber-infrastructure our community requires to support innovative research and education."

Internet2 currently has provisioned ten 10 Gb/s links on each segment of the network, which however can be scaled to 20 or 40 or 100 or more wavelengths. The consortium is also working with partners such as Level 3, Ciena and Juniper to test and develop new 40 and 100 Gb/s technologies.

Windows XP SP3 goes Vista-ish

THE next service pack for Windows XP contains bits and pieces from Vista.

According to NeoSmart Technologies, which is among those who have received the first version of Windows XP SP3 build 3205 as part of the Windows Server 2008/Windows Vista SP1 beta program, SP3 has more than 1,073 patches/hotfixes including security updates.

Among these are a few things that have been backported from Vista including the new Windows Product Activation model, Network Access Protection modules and policies.

There is also the new Kernel Mode Cryptographic Module so that the kernel now includes an entire module has access to multiple cryptographic algorithms and is available for use in kernel-mode drivers and services. It also has the " Black Hole Router" detection so that Windows XP SP3 can detect and protect against rogue routers that are discarding data.

Looks like XP is becoming a much better alternative to Vista, again.

New AMD price cuts go live

As reported last week Barcelona developer AMD had one more price cutting session in plan for the beginning of this week. The new prices for AMD's dual- and single-core line-up are now in effect and look like this:

- Athlon 64 X2 6400+ - $220 from $251 (price in 1000-unit tray quantities)
- Athlon 64 X2 6000+ - $167 from $178
- Athlon 64 X2 5600+ - $146 from $157
- Athlon 64 X2 5200+ - $125 from $136
- Athlon 64 X2 5000+ Black Edition - $136
- Athlon 64 X2 5000+ - $115 from $125
- Athlon 64 X2 4800+ - $104 from $115
- Athlon 64 X2 4400+ - $89 from $94
- Athlon 64 X2 4200+ - $78 from $83
- Athlon 64 X2 4000+ - $68 from $73
- Athlon 64 4000+ - $58
- Athlon 64 3800+ - $50
- Athlon 64 3500+ - $45

Google's Phone Project Aims at Microsoft

Is Google about to produce the next iPhone? Find out here!

Google, the internet media giant, has had a large group of engineers working on a secret project for nearly two years now. Rumors had leaked that Google was planning to manufacture a next generation of cell phones, which some observers creatively dubbed the "GPhone." Now as a new report indicates Google's true intentions, it appears that the company has not only done a good job keeping the wraps on its secret project, but that the project is much more complex than expected.

Google has been working on developing a software platform for cell phones, which it hopes will create a new business sector. It begins with the phone operating system (OS). The OS that Google has been working on is a modified version of Linux, the open source OS. Atop the OS, Google is modifying its Office suite, organization tools, maps, messenger, and email, along with the rest of its programs to run in cell phone environments. The final piece of the puzzle is what Google hopes will make the phone truly profitable -- advertising.

Currently cell phone advertising is a fairly small and specialized business. Google hopes to expand and transform this niche into a thriving new market sector.

Rather than competing with the iPhone, these developments reveal that Google intends to challenge Microsoft for mobile phone OS dominance. Google has one clear advantage when it comes to its OS: the software comes at no cost, while Microsoft charges cell phone companies for use of its Windows Mobile OS.

The developments from Google are intriguing. While it becomes clear that its focus is on providing a software platform, the possibility of a Google-backed iPhone smartphone competitor remains. Perhaps the party that should be most worried, however, is Microsoft, as Google looks to provide an OS with similar capabilities to Microsoft's free of charge. Furthermore, Google's new advertising based business dynamic is set to provide the latest chapter in an ongoing move to provide media content for free, funded by advertising.

40GB PlayStation 3 Officially Announced by SCEE

The 40GB will be the cheapest PS3 yet, but no PS2 backwards compatibility will be the price to pay


Putting an end to one of the worst-kept secrets of the year, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe today confirmed the existence of a lower-priced 40GB PlayStation 3 model by announcing its availability across Europe, Middle East, Africa and Australasia starting October 10. The new model will retail for €399, or about 20 percent less than the 60GB bundle.

To help keep costs down, the new 40GB model does with only two USB ports, instead of four on all previous PS3 consoles, and no memory card reader. This falls in line with Sony’s filings with the FCC, saw only two USB ports tested with no mention of a memory card reader examination.

The now-extinct 20GB PlayStation 3 also was without a memory card reader – which on the 60GB and 80GB models read Compact Flash, Secure Digital and Memory Stick media – in the interest of cost savings. Unlike the entry-level 20GB, however, the 40GB PS3 appears to retain the same silver-trim bling of the 60GB and 80GB models.

Oddly enough, the new 40GB model is not compatible with any PlayStation 2 titles. Dedicated PlayStation 2 hardware was removed previously in a PlayStation 3 hardware revision, though machines still retained some backwards compatibility functions through software emulation. It is still unclear if the 40GB model represents a further simplified PS3 hardware specification, though that is likely the case.

Sony’s press release explained that the removal of backwards compatibility in the 40GB model reflects “both the reduced emphasis placed on this feature amongst later purchasers of PS3, as well as the availability of a more extensive line-up of PS3 specific titles.”

Sony UK boss Ray Maguire elaborated in an interview that the company would be “better off” diverting the funds for backwards compatibility into either investing in new games or further reducing the PS3’s price.

Maguire admits that the removal of all PS2 backwards compatibility “was a big decision... and we know it is a very emotive subject as lots of people think that backwards compatibility is high on the agenda and yet few really use it.”

SCEE spokesman Nick Sharples further added, “We have made clear on many occasions that our priority is on developing innovative new features and services for PS3 and not on backwards compatibility. The 40GB model no longer contains any elements of the PS2 chip set which powered backwards compatibility in previous models, and is therefore only compatible with PS one titles.”

Sharples added that the 60GB bundle will be price reduced for those who are keen in playing PS2 games on the newer system. “For those who consider backwards compatibility important, the 60GB Starter Pack with extra SIXAXIS controller, two first party titles and extensive backwards compatibility remains available until stocks run out. With a 100 Euro price reduction from 10th October, this model is a real bargain,” he said.

Sony’s opinion regarding importance of backwards compatibility differs greatly from that of before the PlayStation 3’s launch. As Joystiq points out, Sony Worldwide boss Phil Harrison said in a GamePro interview from 2006, “Backwards compatibility, as you know from PlayStation One and PlayStation 2, is a core value of what we believe we should offer. And access to the library of content people have created, bought for themselves, and accumulated over the years is necessary to create a format. PlayStation is a format meaning that it transcends many devices -- PSOne, PS2, and now PS3.”

The ability to serve as an excellent home theatre device, however, remains a part of the 40GB model. In addition to being one of the Blu-ray Disc players on the market, the PS3 can also make DVDs look better with the 1080p upscaling capabilities of the latest firmware.

Although PlayStation fans finally got their wish for the return of force feedback after Sony unveiled the DualShock 3 at the Tokyo Game Show, the new 40GB package will still include the SIXAXIS controller. The DualShock 3 is scheduled for availability next month in Japan, with North America and Europe releases planned for spring 2008.

SCEA has yet to confirm or deny the existence of the 40GB model for North America, despite the product already being listed in the inventory at several retailers and the UPC database for availability sometime late October.

Vista Add Linux Equals Vixta

Vixta: A Fedora Linux-based Windows Vista clone



Since everyone likes the new look of Vista with its Aeroglass feature, Linux has decided to implement it.

Vixta could be the Linux distribution with the smallest possible target audience ever: Linux users who love the look and feel of Windows Vista and wished their Linux desktops could look more like Windows.

Vixta is a Fedora-based distro with a custom KDE-based interface. You get widgets, a Vista-like start menu and taskbar, and evil looks from your die-hard open-source buddies. Under the hood, there's no mistaking Vixta for Windows. If you're a Linux user, that's probably a good thing, but somehow we doubt Vixta will convince many Windows users to switch to Linux.

You can't run Windows apps without the help of WINE, and while the menu system may look like Windows, all the underlying programs are Linux equivalents. That means you get Konqueror instead of Explorer, OpenOffice instead of Office, and Firefox instead of, well, Firefox. OK, maybe switching isn't really that hard, but try telling that to your grandma.

AMD launching the world’s first triple-core processor in Q1 2008

AMD throttles back with first triple-core processor
Phenom chip designed to outperform dual-core silicon, but undercut quad-core prices

AMD plans to buck the trend for dual-core and quad-core processors by launching the world’s first triple-core processor early next year.





The AMD Phenom triple-core chip for desktop PCs will be the first to integrate three computational cores on a single die of silicon. AMD’s quad-core Phenom chips are set to arrive before the end of the year.

AMD said there is a market for a triple-core processor, especially given the slow take-up of expensive quad-core processors to date.

According to Mercury Research, quad-core chips represented less than two per cent of desktop shipments in the second quarter of 2007. AMD believes it will have more success with a processor that delivers more power than dual-core chips, but at a more acceptable price than its quad-core counterparts.
“With our advanced multi-core architecture, AMD is in a position to enable a wider range of premium desktop solutions, providing a smarter choice for customers and end users,” said Greg White, vice president and general manager of AMD’s desktop division.

“This innovation is a direct result of our development of the industry’s first true, native quad-core design, coupled with our manufacturing flexibility to create multi-core processors in two, three and four computational core configurations on a single die of silicon.”

Bill Mitchell, corporate vice president of the Windows Hardware Ecosystem at Microsoft, said: “We see potential for improvements through triple-core processing in the industry and are exploring with AMD the possibility of taking advantage of this in the Microsoft family of products.”

The triple-core processor uses the same Direct Connect Architecture as AMD’s quad-core chips. It will have an integrated memory controller and use AMD’s Balanced Smart Cache for rapid access to memory, with a shared L3 cache for faster performance with multi-threaded applications.

AMD will target it at the business and performance consumer markets. Its chip has up to 16Gbit/s of bandwidth I/O for high-definition video and gaming applications.

AMD said that early Sysmark 2007 and 3DMark 2006 benchmark scores were higher than for its dual-core chips and even the quad-core chips on some applications.

“The advent of triple-core processors is a valuable market opportunity for the channel to deliver compelling solutions to end users and further differentiate themselves within the desktop PC market,” said Richard Shim, research manager for IDC’s personal computing programme.

Microsoft Releases New Reliability Update for Windows Vista, XP SP3 Beta

Microsoft releases KB941649 hotfix which "improves the compatibility, reliability, and stability of Windows Vista"


Microsoft Releases New Reliability Update for Windows Vista, XP SP3 Beta
Microsoft releases KB941649 hotfix which "improves the compatibility, reliability, and stability of Windows Vista"



When people talk about Windows Vista these days, two things often come to mind: the perceived inferiority to the six-year-old Windows XP operating system (which also just happened to get a new lease on life) and what Service Pack 1 (SP1) will bring to the table as far as improvements are concerned.

In the mean time, Microsoft is proceeding with continual improvements to Windows Vista ahead of the official release of SP1. Microsoft yesterday released a new hotfix, KB941649, which "improves the compatibility, reliability, and stability of Windows Vista."

KB941649 address the following issues:

It extends the battery life for mobile devices.

It improves the stability of portable computers and of desktop computers that use an uninterruptable power supply (UPS).

It improves the reliability of Windows Vista when you open the menu of a startup application.

It improves the stability of Internet Explorer when you open a Web page.

It improves the stability of wireless network services.

It shortens the startup time of Windows Vista by using a better timing structure.

It shortens the recovery time after Windows Vista experiences a period of inactivity.

It shortens the recovery time when you try to exit the Photos screen saver.

It improves the stability of Windows PowerShell.

A compatibility issue that affects some third-party antivirus software applications.

A reliability issue that occurs when a Windows Vista-based computer uses certain network driver configurations.

If you're running Windows Vista it might be wise to install this latest hotfix to see if it may fix some of your OS woes.

Updated 10/4/2007
Microsoft just sent an email to beta testers informing them that a beta of Windows XP SP3 is now available for download. The update weighs in at 1,037.24 MB. No other details are available on the update.

Sony plans to cut price of PS3 by Christmas

Sony plans to cut price of PS3 by Christmas

Ok!!! Now this is definitely good news to those who are playstation's fanboys. It seems that Sony has finally decided to slash prices to improve sales. As of now Nitendo Wii has seen the most sales compared to Microsoft xbox 360 and Sony playstation 3. Wii is currently holding top spot in the console market. Below is the news excerpt. Again, console price wars are benefiting consumers.

PARIS - THE Japanese group Sony is to cut the price in Europe of its new generation video game console PlayStation 3 (PS3) by 100 to 200 euros (S$209-S$418) in order to boost sales ahead of Christmas, a report said here Thursday.

A new model, equipped with a 40 gigabyte hard drive, will go on sale in Europe at 399 euros, 200 euros less than the current sales price of Sony's more powerful, 60-gigabyte device, which is already in stores, according to the newspaper Les Echos.

The more powerful version will see its sales price lowered by 100 euros to 499 euros, the paper said.

A Sony spokesman would not confirm the figures cited by Les Echos but said an announcement was 'imminent.'

After reducing the sales price of the PS3 by US$100 in the United States, Sony has made it clear it wants to take similar measures in Europe, where it is confonting competition from Nintendo's Wii, sold for 249 euros, and Microsoft's XBOX 360, which sells for 349 and 279 euros depending on the model. -- AFP

New iMacs face widespread random freezing and lock up issues

ATI graphics forcing iMac freeze?
Widespread problems being reported by new iMac owners

From the iPod Touch to the latest incarnation of the MacBooks, Apple just can’t seem to guarantee the quality of the product you will receive. It’s hit or miss as to whether the one you get will be without problems and it seems this has expanded to new iMacs as well.

AppleInsider reports on the problems as well as users on Apple’s support forum that the new iMacs continue to run when the freezing occurs but it is not possible to control or switch programs without a reset.

One person writes, “Whatever was going on at the time continues, so if you were listening to music it continues to play.”

Some items on the system continue to respond such as the mouse and basic keyboard functions.

The problem appears to be linked to the ATi Radeon HD graphics hardware and related drivers but this has not been proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Some owners are able to reliably cause the freeze and for others it occurs at random.

Apple isn’t trying to deny this problem exists and says it is aware of the issue but has been unable to produce a permanent fix for it. Two update packages have been released, mostly containing updated video drivers but failed to fix the freezing issue.

Some iMacs were made worse by the updates, but reverting to older drivers corrected that problem for a handful of owners.

AppleInsider claims that its review iMac, while fine for a couple weeks now suffers the same fate as the others and the above fix did not correct the problem.

For anyone considering buying a Mac, this should be cause to second guess that decision. It’s really been nothing but problems since Apple switched over to Intel processors, which may or may not be related.

Windows Vista SP1 lack "WoW" factor

Vista SP1 offers no new features, focuses on OS tweaks, security

If you've been waiting for Windows Vista SP1 to come out before you make the leap to the new operating system, don't, says Microsoft. Now this is news one do not want to hear. I mean, you've probably been waiting for a long time and a good reason to upgrade to Vista, however Microsoft has now put a dent on your plans.

Microsoft's Pete McKiernan, a senior product manager for Windows, says that one of the purposes of a service pack is to include all the patches that have been released in one package. Windows Vista SP1 will have that, but little else for the home user.

Unlike the buzz surrounding Windows XP SP2, Windows Vista SP1 won't include a new version of Internet Explorer, and won't include any new features that are considered must haves. Most of the enhancements within Windows Vista SP1 are under the hood and for enterprise customers. In short, Windows Vista SP1 lacks "wow."

Currently, Microsoft is beta-testing the Windows Vista Service Pack 1 on about 12,000 machines worldwide. As the beta continues, more users will be invited, but the numbers will not match the estimated 5 million that tried the operating system prior to RTM (release to manufacturing) last summer.

It is suprising that Microsoft is really downplaying this service pack. Why? Because, unlike Windows XP, Windows Vista includes automatic updates, so for most users the Windows Vista SP1 release won't be dramatic. This is abit depressing as it took about two hours to install SP1 on a newly installed Windows Vista machine, in part because the operating system had to be up to date with various patches and updates before the upgrade could be installed.

What is included in the "upgrade"? McKiernan called out two features expected to be within Windows Vista SP1, neither is likely to excite consumers already on the fence about Windows Vista. One is an improvement to the BitLocker drive encryption system, available only in the Enterprise and Ultimate editions of Windows Vista. Under SP1, BitLocker will be able to encrypt multiple drive volumes; all drive volumes, that is, except for USB drives.

A second feature touted by Microsoft is support for emerging hardware and standards. Windows Vista SP1 will support Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI), Intel standard for the interface between software, the operating system and firmware, and Extended File Allocation Table (exFAT), a new Microsoft file system that may eliminate the need for defragmentation in the future.

McKiernan categorized other expected changes within Windows Vista SP1 as:

Security enhancements: There is nothing here that the desktop consumer will notice. Under the hood, Microsoft will provide more opportunities for third-party security vendors to communicate their product status with the Windows Security Center. In x64-bit editions, third-party security vendors can work with the kernel patch protection, a source of controversy last summer. Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) files will be signed. The Windows Pseudo-Random Number Generator will have Elliptical Curve Cryptography (ECC) added. And BitLocker will add multifactor authentication combining Trusted Platform Module (TPM) with a Startup key stored on a USB device, meaning that the startup key must match the hardware you are trying to use.

Reliability enhancements: Microsoft has been analyzing crashes of Windows Vista reported by users and will be making improvements. In particular, more compatibility with newer graphics cards and printers; greater reliability with extended displays on a laptop, various networking scenarios, in systems that were upgraded from Windows XP, and when Windows Vista enters sleep or resumes from sleep.

Performance enhancements: Microsoft says SP1 will offer performance boosts including the speed to copy and extract files, time to become active from Hibernate and Resume, CPU utilization within Internet Explorer 7 and CPU utilization in laptops, thereby reducing battery drain, and shortening the time when browsing network shares.

None of these is a compelling reason to wait for Windows Vista SP1. Users who have automatic updates turned on will have a significantly shorter time when upgrading to Windows Vista SP1 than users who don't have it turned on or are planning to upgrade or purchase Windows Vista when SP1 becomes available. That appears to be Microsoft's message with this release: The more you use Windows Vista, the better it gets. So why not get started today?

In short, judging by what we've seen, don't expect SP1 to be the impetus to get you or your corporation to upgrade to Windows Vista.

Microsoft revamped Zune still no match for Ipod

Despite its better screen and improved wireless capabilities, analysts suggest Microsoft's second attempt at dethroning Apple still lacks innovation.

Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) unveiled its revamped Zune on Tuesday, introducing a smaller, sleeker device with a better screen and new wireless capabilities. In addition, the company launched Zune Social, an online community for music lovers, whether or not they own a Zune.

However, most experts agree that Microsoft's second-generation Zune is unlikely to have an impact on the success of Apple's iPod, and much more innovation is needed for the Zune to pose a threat to the market-leading digital music player.

Microsoft's new lineup includes an 80Gbyte Zune with a 3.2-inch display for $250. The flash versions include an 8Gbyte player for $200 and a 4Gbyte player for $150. The largest Zune is only available in black, while the others are also sold in pink, green and red.

Analysts on Wednesday welcomed the improvements Microsoft made, saying the new and improved Zune contains the baseline enhancements to hold on to customers and attract new ones -- mostly at the expense of iPod alternatives from companies like SanDisk and Creative. "By and large, it's not going to impact Apple at all," Van Baker, analyst for Gartner, told InformationWeek on Wednesday. "But it will impact the other alternatives to Apple."

That's because the iPod remains in a league of its own, accounting for more than 70% of the music players sold worldwide. While Microsoft has sold 1.2 million Zune devices since releasing it last holiday season, Apple between October 2006 and June of this year sold 41.4 million iPods, according to figures from each company, respectively.

In trying to build an iPod killer, Microsoft has been innovative in its use of Wi-Fi. The first version let people share music wirelessly, a feature not on the iPod. Due to negotiations with record companies, however, music shared would expire in a few days, and there was a limit as to how many times music could be shared.

The new Zune, which is scheduled for release in mid-November, will hold music from other Zune players indefinitely and will allow unlimited sharing. The original restriction of playing shared songs only three times on each Zune remains.

Besides loosening up the conditions on sharing music, Microsoft also has made it possible for Zune users to synchronize the device wirelessly with a PC. The Zune, however, can't buy music wirelessly from an online store, a feature Apple added to its new iPod Touch and iPhone.

Other Zune improvements included a reworked navigation button, and the use of flash memory, a form of storage with no moving parts that's sturdier than a hard drive and accommodates smaller devices. Apple also uses flash memory in some of its iPods.

While all the improvements are welcome, they only keep Microsoft in the game, analysts said. "They're going to have to do a lot more to compete with Apple, but at least they have the base-level stuff they need," Baker said.

Samir Bhavnani, analyst for Current Analysis West, agreed, adding that Microsoft needs to be more innovative. "If you look at what Apple has done in the last two years, and what they'll do in the next two years, then Microsoft will have to make greater advances if they're going to be a serious player," he said.

Microsoft's use of Wi-Fi, for example, shows some real innovation, but the company will need to push the technology further. "They've got to enhance that innovation, or find a new innovation that will set them apart from what Apple is doing," Baker said. "That's going to be tough because Apple is pretty innovative. They're a tough competitor to attack."

Among the innovations Apple introduced in September was a touch-screen iPod that could buy songs wirelessly from the iTunes music store. In addition, the company revamped its entire portfolio.

"They're still behind Apple, and there's not a single person in Microsoft who will tell you they're ahead," Bhavnani said.

Apple gets sued over iPhone price cut

Now this is really funny news. As an early adopter, there are bound to be bugs and price cuts with regards to a new technology gadget. This is the disadvantage of being an early adopter, however one gets their hand on the latest gadget that not many people has (a boastful factor). Seriously i think that the lawsuit being filed against Apple is meaningless and bound to fail. In this case, Apple may sue back the former over tarnishing their reputation. Apple will do all they can to win this case if not others will do the same and sue Apple. This will be costly for Apple. Below is the funny news.

The price 'adjustment' that saw $200 being cut off the iPhone's price tag after just a couple of months from the official release has finally caught up with Apple. Affected by the hasty price cut and not happy by the $100 iTunes gift card Dongmei Li from Queens, New York has decided to sue Apple for $1 million in damages.

Filled on September 24, the new lawsuit claims that due to the massive and quick price cut of the iPhone Li could not resell the device without loosing a substantial amount of her investment. Li purchased a 4GB model for $499 and was left (as everyone else who bought the 4GB iPhone) with a shiny black device that was no longer produced and no $100 gift card. That's certainly worth $1 million in damages. Pay up Apple.

How to make XP look like Vista

Not ready to take the plunge into Vista land but still find yourself wanting the cool new Aero Glass UI that all versions of Vista feature, except Basic edition? As a matter of fact, people upgrading to Vista usually have to purchase a new PC as Vista is consumes alot of system resources and require at least 2GB of ram to ensure that Vista runs along smoothly with all the features enabled and unique to Vista. Vista was suppose to replace XP as the next operating system, however due to its high hardware requirements, inappropriate pricing, lack of new features and the fact that XP still performs admirably without much problems has actually slowed the takeup of Vista. As of now people wanting to upgrade to Vista are waiting for Vista service pack to roll out before migrating to Vista.

This is where the power freeware and internet comes in. There are groups of people that think that upgrading to Vista is not worth it and that they are better off with a stable product of 5 years. So tools/programs were borned that enabled one to change their XP interface to look like Vista without paying for Vista features.

Contained below is some free software that will convert the look and feel of XP into Vista (more or less) for free. Keep in mind that you will still need sufficient hardware to run the advanced effects, meaning at least 1GB of memory (RAM) and a dedicated graphics card with at least 128MB of memory. I’m going to start with Vystal Vivid which is compatible with Windows 2000, XP or Vista Basic and will bring the Aero Glass style UI to any of those operating systems.

Vista has Thumbnail previews on any minimized program so you can see what’s going on without actually opening the window so you will need to get Visual Task tips to bring that functionality to Windows XP. In order to run Visual Task tips you will need to be running the default Windows XP theme or a Vista theme to use it, classic themes are not supported by this program.

That takes care of most of the UI stuff but Vista also has the Flip 3D task switcher so to get that for XP head on over to the Shock Aero site and download their program. Shock Aero features both a Flip 3D mode and Macintosh Style task switching mode.

Lastly and this is totally optional, Transbar is a utlity that will give you a transparent taskbar. Although the taskbar is transparent in Vista, it is only transparent when open windows are not maximized.

Get them while you can because I don’t think Microsoft will stand for this very long but considering it has just extended the life of XP, it might have to allow some give and take here and there.

Then again, there are those who think XP looks fine just like it is.

AMD Price Cuts

Ok. The price war is heating up again as the holiday season nears. It is usually during november till feburary where people change their aging or outdated PCs. As such it is ebb that prices are slash to increase sales. Come to think of it, price wars between chip makers are only going to benefit consumers as they will have more choices to choose from.

Compared to the 90s where Intel was the sole chip maker, the 20s is definitely much better. Back in those days, one would have to shell out at least $2000 for a PC compared to now in which one can practically get a PC for under $1000. Its always good that a certain market has competitors.

Well i do recommend anyone wanting to change his/her PC to consider AMD if you're on a budget, otherwise you can choose between Intel or AMD.

AMD is cutting prices on several of their high end Athlon 64 X2 parts next Monday. Here are the parts that are being cut with details below.
X2 5000+ Newegg current price $109.99
X2 5200+ Newegg current price $119.99
X2 5600+ Newegg current price $139.99
X2 6000+ Newegg current price $169.99
X2 6400+ Newegg current price $239

I would expect pricing drops to start happening early as we near the weekend.

As we begin a new quarter and prepare for the busiest time of the year, selected AMD dual-core desktop processors will have a reduction in suggested prices effective next Monday, October 8.

This will be a great opportunity to upgrade customers to dual-core, as the AMD Athlon™ X2 5000+, 5200+, 5600+, 6000+ and 6400+ processors all will feature new pricing. Please contact your authorized AMD distributor for specific pricing and availability details.

Web 2.0 The Future of web interactivity

What is Web 2.0? The concept was first coined by a brainstorming session between O'Reilly and MediaLive International. The term might suggest a new version of the World Wide Web, it does not refer to an update to Web technical specifications, but to changes in the ways software developers and end-users use the web as a platform. What platform you ask? Well now the web is used as a platform for social networking,online banking,online buying & selling etc. The list goes on. Before, the web was only used as a tool for finding information, however now it has evolved into a platform whereby users can do a lot of stuffs. E-mails used to be popular back in the 90s, but it has been overtaken by web messaging - msn messenger, yahoo messenger.

Web 2.0 can refer to one or more of the followings:

• The transition of websites being isolated information silos to sources of content and functionality, thus becoming computing platforms serving web-applications to end-users
  
• A social phenomenon embracing an approach to generating and distributing Web content itself, characterized by open communication, decentralization of authority, freedom to share and re-use, and "the market as a conversion"
• Enhanced organization and categorization of content, emphasizing deep linking

The web has certainly changed over the years since its inception. Below, i'll list a few examples between web 1.0 which is the old web and web 2.0.

Web 1.0
Ofoto
Britannica Online
Personal Websites
DoubleClick

Web 2.0
Flickr
Wikipedia
Blogging
Google Adsense

The complex and evolving technology infrastructure of Web 2.0 includes server-software, content-syndication, messaging-protocols, standards-based browsers with plugins and extensions, and various client-applications. These differing, yet complementary approaches provide Web 2.0 with information-storage, creation, and dissemination capabilities that go beyond what the public formerly expected in Web 1.0.

Web 2.0 websites typically include some of these features:

• Rich Internet application techniques, optionally Ajax-based
• Cascading Style Sheets to separate presentation from content
• Semantically valid HTML markup and microformats
• Syndication and aggregation of data in RSS or Atom feeds
• Human readable URLs
• folksonomies (in the form of tags or tagclouds, for example)
• Wiki or forum software to support user generated content
• use of Open source software, such as the LAMP solution stack
• XACML over SOAP for access control between organisations and domains
• Weblog publishing
• mashups, merging content from different sources
• REST or XML Webservice APIs

Web 2.0 may be short-lived as another emerging technology is appearing on the horizon. That technology that will replaced Web 2.0 is Web 3.0. Web 3.0 is about transforming the Web into a database, a move towards making content accessible by multiple non-browser applications, the leveraging of artificial intelligence technologies. An example would be having a database that websites can tap into such as your credit card number, personal details,address. Right now i'm sure that no one would want to share these details but however it will happen sooner or later probably in about 5-8 years time.

Below is a video on Web 2.0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gmP4nk0EOE

Prices of Intel 45nm desktop CPUs revealed

Intel has done it again. It seems that the war between AMD & Intel is hotting up again as the battle for market share among computer users heats up. Intel has supposely drawn first blood by releasing 45nm processors compare to AMD who is still stuck in the 65nm era of processor.

The chaps over at TechConnect Magazine have gotten their hands on some model numbers, clock speeds, launch time frames, and most importantly pricing information for Intel's upcoming lineup of 45nm desktop processors. If the site has its facts straight, Intel will begin its 45nm desktop offensive in November with a $999 Core 2 Extreme QX9650 processor. That chip will run at 3GHz, pack a total 12MB of L2 cache-6MB per dual-core die-and have a 130W power envelope.

Intel will reportedly follow with a set of seven additional 45nm desktop chips in January 2008. Three of those chips will be quad-core models, and the other four will be dual-core. In the quad-core camp, the upcoming Core 2 Quad Q9300 will run at 2.5GHz and carry a $266 price tag, while the Core 2 Quad Q9450 will run at 2.66GHz and cost $316, and the Q9550 model will run at 2.83GHz and cost $530. All three models will have the same 95W power rating, but the Q9550 and Q9450 will have 12MB of cache, whereas the Q9300 will have only 6MB.The dual-core processors will start off from where the Q9300 ends and will have the 3.16GHz E8500 costing $266. The 45nm line-up ends with the E8200 that costs just $163.

5 Cool Google Tools You Should Know About

Google (GOOG) is so vast that it's hard to keep up. But it's not just search, or even the new Web-based apps, which is extending the tentacles of the search-engine giant into territory beyond the reach of Microsoft (MSFT). Here are 5 lesser-known but nevertheless interesting Google tools, code snippets, and professional tech training materials.

Before I get to the list, some musings on how Google approaches product development, which is certainly unlike any other company.

On the one hand, Google is incredibly retro in its research model; it's like the old Bell Labs, or IBM when it was in its glory days. You've got engineers, programmers, and PhDs of various specialties working on stuff, with little or no pressure to produce stuff that can be monetized.

However, whereas Bell Labs or IBM (IBM) keep projects in their respective labs—and many never saw the light of day--until they were refined into a commercial product with a clearly defined market, that concept seems to be alien to Google. The search-engine giant rolls out anything and everything, from the tiniest Java widget to the biggest app (like Google Earth), and everything in between.

This is vexing on several fronts. First off, Google seems to give little guidance as to how "baked" something is. (As is, in it half-baked or fully cooked?) At least with Microsoft, there's a clear model: The first release of a product is bit rough, with improvements to come in the first service pack.

Secondly, Google gives no hints as to where its thousands of projects might ultimately take the company. Sure, the search business is throwing off so much money that Google can pursue this take with nary a care about its bottom line. And we know that Web apps, followed by mobile (gPhone anyone?) are the next big areas after search.

Probably, Google itself doesn't know where it's headed, and its leadership believes that this "throw stuff against the wall and see what sticks" model is a far better way to pick winners and losers than to make bets internally. They're probably correct about this.

I guess I shouldn't complain. Google has so much stuff going, that there's always something to peer into. Plus, its model of releasing anything and everything provides us all with universal, and usually free, access to the fruits of its research.

Here are the latest five:

Free Security Training

Check out this security video: "What Every Software Engineer Needs To Know About Security."

Neil Daswani, the Google engineer and security expert who hosts the video, has posted accompanying slides.

This stuff is like getting university-level security training, for free.

But wait, there's more (as they say on late-night TV)! Here's another one, called How To Break Web Software.

Summer Of Code Update

Summer's over, but Google's Summer of Code 2007 lives on (here.)

This is the annual deal where actual Googlites invite student-aged Google wannabees to apply for grants and mentoring to pursue their open-source software projects. The 2007 edition of this software Woodstock of sorts involved 900 students. Since it's all open source, detailed info and much of the source code on everything is posted.

While there's a wealth of material, most of it is low-level stuff, i.e., software modules which add functionality to existing projects such as Eclipse, OpenOffice.org, and hundreds of less-known efforts.

All in all, it has the feel of a valuable resource for software professionals, but it doesn't easily yield its secrets, especially to a blogger who has to crank out daily posts.

Flight Simulator

Credit for turning up this one goes to the uber-geek magazine and blog MAKE: (The capital letters and colon are part of the name, so don't blame me, blame them. I guess "Stuff" was taken, and "Electronics" is old-fashioned.)

Anyway, MAKE:'s blog, here, discovered that you can turn Google Earth into a flight-simulator game, using a cheat sheet that Google has posted, here.

Google cheat sheets

Speaking of cheat-sheets, there's a third-party site, called Google Guide. Set up by one Nancy Blachman, it's billed as an interactive tutorial and search reference for users at all levels.

Google Guide has a nice cheat sheet for search, posted here.

Another blogger who specializes in search tips is Mary Ellen Bates, of Bates Information Services. Here's her Feb. 2007 article on Little-Known Google Tools. (It's a perfect adjunct to my it 5 Google Tips To Improve Your Search Experience.

Also check out Bates's collection of InfoTips. They extend beyond Google to include Yahoo, Ask.com, and other sites.

Google itself has posted a rather rudimentary cheat sheet, here.

Ajax Stuff

Number five on our list is more courseware, this time on Ajax, the asynchronous JavaScript and XML that's the newest big thing in Web development.

Google has posted a text and code Ajax tutorial.

There's also a video, Creating Tools for Ajax Development.

By the way, if you're not all videoed out, Google has its own developer channel on YouTube on which it's posted nine videos on Javascript, cluster computing, the Google Web Toolkit (aka GWT), and more. Watch that on your iPhone!