IT-Code-News: IT News HeadLines (HotHardware) 31/08/2010

Ford Using Wi-Fi To Automate SYNC Updates; A New Trend Starting?
Now this...this is progress! With some of the legacy automakers lagging behind in quite a few areas, Ford is hoping to turn the tables by using a commonplace technology in order to better equip their SYNC vehicles. The idea? To install Wi-Fi access points in their assembly lines in order to beam updates, maps and up-to-date firmwares to vehicles as they roll down the line. This move obviously makes assembling the vehicle quicker, but more importantly, it assures consumers that their vehicle will arrive with
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Sony: Downloadable Future In Gaming Is Over 10 Years Away
Here's some interesting fodder to chat about at the water cooler. Sony, the company responsible for producing a disc-free PlayStation Portable game console, is apparently not too keen on going the all-download route in the home console space. In a recent interview, Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Kaz Hirai said that a digital future in the game market is over ten years away. So, is this revelation due to the PSPgo being a general flop? It's hard to say, really. Kaz stated: "We do business in parts of the world
Read More ...

Google Music To Stream Tunes From The Cloud?
The real question is: what isn't Google planning to tackle? The company has evolved heavily since their beginnings as a search company, now dabbling in Internet, flight searches, FCC proposals, image searches, and probably a few things we're overlooking. And now, the company may just be ready to play ball in the same field as Rhapsody, Napster and iTunes. According to a new report from All Things D, Google is actively searching (no pun intended) for a higher-up to run a music service business that doesn't actually
Read More ...

Lenovo Reportedly About To Enter Game Console Market
Wait, what? Can it be true? Is Lenovo really about to enter the same market as Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo? Well, sort of. A new China Daily report has found that Lenovo, the company responsible for the ThinkPad and IdeaPad notebook lines, is about to expand their horizons. Really expand them. Reportedly, the world's number four PC maker has already setup a unit devoted to developing a video game console for the Chinese gaming market. Not as many consoles are battling over there, but both Microsoft and Sony
Read More ...

AMD to Shed ATI Brand, Intro Active DP-To-DVI Dongle
We have a couple of pieces of interesting information coming out of AMD this morning, one of them regarding AMD’s continued use of the ATI brand, the other about an inexpensive, active DisplayPort-to-DVI dongle that should make to cost of entry into multi-screen Eyefinity more palatable for budget conscious consumers. Over the last few weeks, you may have heard rumors about AMD no longer using the ATI brand. We can confirm that this is indeed going to be the case. AMD will shed the ATI brand name
Read More ...

The App Store Reaches 250,000 Apps (Unofficially)
It's not official, because it's not a number that Apple has published, but it's seemingly confirmed by two different counts. That means it will likely be one of the items that Steve Jobs uses to preface the "real content" of Apple's Sept. 1 event. According to 148Apps.biz, the U.S. App Store passed the quarter million milestone on Friday. That was two years and 49 days after it opened. As of Saturday morning, 148Apps.biz's count (which doesn't include apps only available overseas), sat at 251,007 applications
Read More ...

Intel's Next-Generation GPU Will Play Blu-ray 3D
For years, Intel's integrated GPUs were the laughing stock of gaming and a thorn in the side of everyone who purchased what they thought was a high-end laptop or desktop only to find its video solution suffered from a deep delusion of competence. Faced with lacerating low-end graphics competition from the likes of both AMD and NVIDIA, Intel responded with the surprisingly adequate 45nm GPU fused into its Arrandale and Clarkdale processors. Having proven its ability to wheeze once around the track, Intel has
Read More ...

AMD May Use Bobcat Core To Expand Server Products
Earlier this week we discussed new details on AMD's two next-generation cores, Bobcat and Bulldozer. AMD built the two processors to fill two distinct markets, with Bobcat focusing on netbooks/notebooks, and Bulldozer in servers, workstations, and high-end desktops. It's now rumored that AMD is investigating whether or not it could make a decent bit of scratch by launching Bobcat-powered server processors. Don't laugh—it makes more sense than you think. The server industry has embraced virtualization as
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Garmin's Edge 800 GPS Unit Tracks Information For Active Athletes
Who says Garmin GPS units all have to fall into the tried-and-true Nuvi line? The company's latest navigation handheld is quite the feature-packed unit, with the Edge 800 being designed primarily for cyclists but suitable for anyone who needs to keep track of where they're headed. The unit features most of the same aspects found on the Edge 500 and Edge 705, but it adds a touch screen element to make navigating the user interface that much easier and intuitive. New mapping options such as Garmin’s BaseCamp
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Mysterious Verizon Evo-Like Phone Images Leak
A mystery device has emerged on the Web, one that looks a lot like an Evo 4G, but instead one destined for the Verizon network. Unfortunately, the anonymous source of the leaked images didn't give much more detail than that. It is, in fact, very Evo-ish in what is known. It's an HTC device for one, and even has a kickstand like the Evo. Besides that, it has an 8 megapixel camera with dual-LED flash, 4.3-inch screen, 3.5 mm headphone jack, and a front facing camera. Very Evo-ish. Unfortunately, not much is know
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Microsoft Intros Stylish Wireless Mouse 4000 Studio Family
Mice, mice, mice. It's not a pest problem, it's a back to school symptom. With students galore looking for new mice to take to class (and the dorm room), Microsoft is hoping to catch the eye of style-minded students who need a mouse that fits their mood and color patterns. The company is this week taking the wraps off of their Wireless Mobile Mouse 4000 Studio line, which features six different designs that were inspired by the places that people will use them – around the house, at a coffee shop, on a
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AMD to Shed ATI Brand, Intro Active DP-To-DVI Dongle

We have a couple of pieces of interesting information coming out of AMD this morning, one of them regarding AMDâ€™s continued use of the ATI brand, the other about an inexpensive, active DisplayPort-to-DVI dongle that should make to cost of entry into multi-screen Eyefinity more palatable for budget conscious consumers.

Over the last few weeks, you may have heard rumors about AMD no longer using the ATI brand. We can confirm that this is indeed going to be the case.Â AMD will shed the ATI brand name soon but it is not happening immediately and will have no effect on existing product. We were told by AMD that moving forward, with the eventual introduction of Fusion-based processors and next-gen graphics cards, the ATI name will not be used.

When AMD first acquired ATI in â€˜06, the ATI brand was very well respected; it continues to be today. It wasnâ€™t something that could quickly be tossed aside. However, now that AMD has overtaken NVIDIA (according to the latest Mercury research data), further cementing its position in the discrete graphics space, and is readying its first Fusion-based processors that mate CPU and GPU cores on a single die, AMD felt it was the right time to shed the ATI brand name.

In the short term, nothing will change from a consumer standpoint. All of the existing product on store shelves will be continue to be known by the same names. Moving forward, however, graphics products will be branded AMD Radeon or AMD FirePro. Official branding for Fusion-based processors was not disclosed.

Eyefinity Just Got Cheaper
AMD is also introducing a new active DisplayPort-to-DVI dongle today. As weâ€™ve mentioned in the past in much of our Radeon HD 5000 series coverage, to take advantage of AMDâ€™s Eyefinity multi-display technology, at least one of the monitors in the display group had to use a DisplayPort connection. For most users, this meant buying at least one new monitor, because DisplayPort isnâ€™t nearly as widespread (yet) as the more common DVI. If a user already had one (or more) DVI-equipped monitors and wanted to use a three-screen (or larger) Eyefinity configuration, they were out of luck. It meant either buying a third monitor that likely wouldnâ€™t match the originals, or rolling the dice and buying an expensive active DisplayPort-to-DVI dongle and hoping that it would work, because they werenâ€™t universally compatible.

After working in conjunction with its partners to ensure Eyefinity compatibility, however, AMD is now ready to release a $29.99 active DisplayPort-to-DVI dongle, thatâ€™ll make virtually all single-link DVI equipped monitors function as a DP monitor in an Eyefinity configuration. The single-link nature of the dongle means the resolution of the screen attached is limited to 1920x1200 or below, but that should be an issue as only a small fraction of LCD monitors currently on the market, usually 27â€ or larger, support resolutions any higher.

The new dongle will be sold separately from a number of AMD partners including XFX, PowerColor, Sapphire, Accell, Wieson and others, and will be included with some new graphics cards moving forward.

Free Tacos
You can get free taco coupons from Del Taco and Rubio's

http://www.deltaco.com/ravingfansignup.html

http://www.rubios.com/beachclub/

And if you need to, you can edit the expiration date using one of these browser plugins.

Firefox
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/182865/
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/5753/

Chrome
https://chrome.google.com/extensions/detail/aaeihialfalefmaflljmebodiilljloi

Lenovo Reportedly About To Enter Game Console Market

Wait, what? Can it be true? Is Lenovo really about to enter the same market as Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo? Well, sort of. A new China Daily report has found that Lenovo, the company responsible for the ThinkPad and IdeaPad notebook lines, is about to expand their horizons. Really expand them. Reportedly, the world's number four PC maker has already setup a unit devoted to developing a video game console for the Chinese gaming market. Not as many consoles are battling over there, but both Microsoft and Sony definitely rely on China for some of their overall game sales.

The report states that around 40 Lenovo software engineers have already been "spun off from the company to work for Beijing eedoo Technology, which will be tasked with developing and marketing the 'eBox' game console." Neither Lenovo nor eedoo are opening up for comments, but this wouldn't be the first time Lenovo did something out of the o Lenovo's accustomed to dealing with the region. And if it's successful there, who knows -- maybe kids across North America will be asking for a Lenovo console for Christmas, rather than Nintendo/Sony/Microsoft.

How to get Discounted Movie Tickets using Fandango
So the other day I was checking movie times on Fandango, when I noticed that they had an option to buy Senior Discount Tickets. These tickets were a lot cheaper than the regular priced tickets, and I thought, I wonder if I could just buy that one. So yesterday I gave it a try. The only problem was that the ticket that you print out says on it SENIOR TICKET (ID required). Then I thought, if only I could take that off, and it turned out to be super easy. There are several browser extensions that allow you to edit a webpage before printing. Here are a few that I found

Firefox
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/182865/
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/5753/

Chrome
https://chrome.google.com/extensions/detail/aaeihialfalefmaflljmebodiilljloi

And if you have to use IE
http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/12076/edit-text-in-any-webpage-with-ie8/

Before

After

The machine that they use to print the tickets scans the barcode, and prints out a regular movie ticket. Its really fast, and I doubt very much that the guy at the door will notice. This should work everytime.

This, however, does not generally work for matinee or early bird shows, since they are usually the same price as the senior tickets.

I edited the images above, so that this could not be traced back to me, by the way.

Sony: Downloadable Future In Gaming Is Over 10 Years Away

Here's some interesting fodder to chat about at the water cooler. Sony, the company responsible for producing a disc-free PlayStation Portable game console, is apparently not too keen on going the all-download route in the home console space. In a recent interview, Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Kaz Hirai said that a digital future in the game market is over ten years away. So, is this revelation due to the PSPgo being a general flop?

It's hard to say, really. Kaz stated: "We do business in parts of the world where network infrastructure isnâ€™t as robust as one would hope. Thereâ€™s always going to be requirement for a business of our size and scope to have a physical medium. To think everything will be downloaded in two years, three years or even ten years from now is taking it a little bit to the extreme." We are on the same page with some of that, but not all. Particularly the part about "always" being a requirement for a physical disc. That sounds like someone else we've heard of saying that a certain amount of RAM will "always" be enough for the PC consumer.

We definitely think that physical discs will fade someday. It'll probably take 50+ years for the entire globe to get to that point, but considering that Sony already produced a portable game console that cannot accept physical discs, it's sort of surprising to hear that same company say that their next home console (in theory, anyway) won't be download-only. Maybe they learned their lesson, after all?

Asus Laptop Prototype With Built-in Projector

One of the more curious items spied at this week's Computex trade show in Taipei, is an Asus laptop prototype with a built-in mini projector. There is still not too much known about the unlabeled notebook, other than that the laptop has a large space above the display's bezel, in which a working, pivoting mini projector is housed.
Â

Mini projectors are just now starting to hit the market. Earth Trek recently just released its 90-805R mini projector, and Samsung showed off its P400 Pocket Projector prototype in May. Both Texas InstrumentsÂ and 3M have developed micro-projector technologies, which will be driving many of these new mini projectors.

In fact, Foxconn was displaying a micro projector at Computex, which uses a Texas Instruments DLP chip. EngadgetÂ reports: "Foxconn's PD-W1001, which features a 0.3-inch Texas Instruments DLP chip, WVGA (854 x 480) resolution and 25 Lm -- all within a 55- x 46- x 26-millimeter package that weighs just 65-grams."

Engadget also reports on the Honlai MP100 LED mini projector, which "utilizes LCoS micro-projection technology and can throw up a 640 x 480 image between 5- and 37-inches. We're also hearing that it packs a modest 200:1 contrast ratio and a lamp good for some 20,000 hours of use. Not a peep on pricing / availability..."

It is starting look as though the mini-projector revolution is in full swing. Not only are frequent business travelers who give presentations going to benefit from these technology advances, but expect to also see the technology used in innovative ways for advertising in retail spaces.

Intel's Next-Generation GPU Will Play Blu-ray 3D

For years, Intel's integrated GPUs were the laughing stock of gaming and a thorn in the side of everyone who purchased what they thought was a high-end laptop or desktop only to find its video solution suffered from a deep delusion of competence. Faced with lacerating low-end graphics competition from the likes of both AMD and NVIDIA, Intel responded with the surprisingly adequate 45nm GPU fused into its Arrandale and Clarkdale processors.

Having proven its ability to wheeze once around the track, Intel has set its eyes on a loftier goal. According to industry sources, the GPU partnered with the upcoming Sandy Bridge processor will be capable of smoothly playing Blu-ray 3D. Sandy Bridge will also integrate CPU and GPU into the same package (like Llano will), and shrink the GPU die down to 32nm. That gives Intel room to expand the GPU core's size/capabilities, but the degree to which the company will choose to do so is debatable. For all its improvements, Arrandaleâ€”launched in 2010â€”added support for technologies (fast Z-clear and hierarchical Z, among others) that ATI incorporated into the Radeon 8500 back in 2002. Despite substantial improvements, Intel isn't going to be shooting for the moon.

Blue Kitty People + 3D + Integrated Intel Graphics. ZOMG!

We're more enticed by the idea of improved Intel graphics than by the announcement of Blu-ray 3D playback support. It doesn't seem likely that the majority of would-be purchasers would be interested in Blu-ray 3D. In order for the standard to catch, the laptop to feature a 3D-capable display and a Blu-ray drive, while the customer needs to have the appropriate 3D-encoded version of the movie. Stack those on top of each other when the overwhelming percentage of laptops ship with DVDs, and Blu-ray 3D is little more than a niche within a niche.

According to Dean McCarron of Mercury Research, Intel's new GPUs will still be a win-win for consumers. While integrated GPUs dominate both mobile and desktop sales, the percentage of notebooks sold with discrete GPUs has actually been growing in recent years.Â "There is a growing interest in switchable graphics, in which laptops have both integrated and discrete graphics, McCarron said. That allows users to switch between them depending on the application they're using. More laptops are shipping with both graphics processors -- up to 45 percent of the laptops worldwide in the second quarter.

"Irony here is that each graphics solution -- whether it's Intel integrated or discrete -- is succeeding on its merits," McCarron said. "It's not like you're picking one or another."

Early, unofficial benchmark results have indicated that the Sandy Bridge GPU could perform equivalently to an AMD HD 5450, but we're not ready to trust those numbers just yet. In additional to being unofficial, when Intel launched Clarkdale early this year, it sampled a version of the chip whose GPU was clocked substantially faster than the average part. If it does the same with SB, reviews may not match what the average customer sees.

AMD and NVIDIA will undoubtedly counter with faster low-end parts if Sandy Bridge's GPU starts stealing sales, but the news shouldn't have much impact on AMD's plans for Bobcat and Llano. Bobcat's integrated GPU is still virtually certain to make hash of Atom's, while Llano's integrated part, according to rumors we've heard, is targeting a performance level well above the 5450. If the integrated market was eating away at discrete sales it could mean trouble for NVIDIA, but McCarron's comments imply that's not happening.

Google Music To Stream Tunes From The Cloud?

The real question is: what isn't Google planning to tackle? The company has evolved heavily since their beginnings as a search company, now dabbling in Internet, flight searches, FCC proposals, image searches, and probably a few things we're overlooking. And now, the company may just be ready to play ball in the same field as Rhapsody, Napster and iTunes.

According to a new report from All Things D, Google is actively searching (no pun intended) for a higher-up to run a music service business that doesn't actually exist yet. Unspecified sources have confirmed that Google has been speaking with numerous digital media executives in hopes of landing the perfect candidate, but as of now, no one has been hired. Of course, since the service isn't official to the public, the actual description of it remains behind closed doors.

But honestly, it's not too hard to dream. Google has a grip on searches already, and their fancy algorithms would probably have no trouble figuring out song recommendations based on those searches. It's somewhat difficult to know whether Google would be entering a subscription-based business (like Rhapsody) or a per-song business (like iTunes), but we could definitely see either (or both) scenarios playing out well for the company. The prevailing rumor now is that "Google Music" would be "a could-based streaming service," and we wouldn't be surprised if it's an integral part of the eventual Chrome OS.

And with Apple having a music-related event planned for September 1st, we'd say Google probably has all the more reason to hasten the search and get a move on before Steve Jobs steals away any extra market share.

The App Store Reaches 250,000 Apps (Unofficially)

It's not official, because it's not a number that Apple has published, but it's seemingly confirmed by two different counts. That means it will likely be one of the items that Steve Jobs uses to preface the "real content" of Apple's Sept. 1 event.

According to 148Apps.biz, the U.S. App Store passed the quarter million milestone on Friday. That was two years and 49 days after it opened. As of Saturday morning, 148Apps.biz's count (which doesn't include apps only available overseas), sat at 251,007 applications from 50,304 publishers. AppShopper.com keeps a similar list, and it has a total of 253,777 apps, including 24,334 iPad apps.

Of course, at this point, we know there's a ton of fart apps, risque noise apps, and other useless dross in there. Nowadays, it's not about quantity, but quality. Simple numbers don't mean much any longer.

On the other hand, there are differences between the makeup of the two store. According to an analysis posted by Royal Pingdom on Friday, about 70 percent of the apps in the App Store are paid (not free) apps. Meanwhile, on Google's Android Market, 64 percent are free.

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

IT News HeadLines (HotHardware) 31/08/2010

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