Al Gore has many admirers and critics, but on Friday the spotlight was on him again as the Nobel Peace Prize committee showered him with praise for his work promoting climate awareness and climate research. "[The IPCC] creates an ever-broader informed consensus about the connection between human activities and global warming. [The IPCC] lays the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract [climate] change," said the committee about the IPCC. It cited that a major justification for awarding this prize to the IPCC and Gore was to bring more attention to the increased risks of wars and violent conflicts that are posed as our climate changes. In Washington D.C., Gore greeted the announcement by first praising the IPCC and how "tirelessly and selflessly they have worked for many years." Gore added, "We face a true planetary emergency. It is a moral and spiritual challenge to all of humanity." Gore will donate half of his $1.5 million dollars in Nobel Prize money to Alliance for Climate Protection. James M. Taylor, senior fellow for environment policy at The Heartland Institute, blasted Gore for his work on The Inconvenient Truth. "The British High Court properly recognized that Al Gore's movie is nine parts political propaganda and one part science. Virtually every assertion that Gore makes in the movie has been strongly contradicted by sound science."
l Gore and the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on climate change just won the Nobel
The Nobel Peace Prize was not the first award received by Al Gore, 59, for his environmental work, but it was certainly the largest. Al Gore had previously won an Oscar for his documentary An Inconvenient Truth, which was a surprising box office hit.
Gore shares the Peace Prize with the United Nations' International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), found in 1988, which is widely considered by scientists and governments worldwide as the top authority on global warming and climate change.
The IPCC has over 2,000 leading climate change scientists and experts that conduct research into climate change and collate data and information from research papers of thousands of other scientists worldwide.
The Norwegian Nobel Peace Prize committee praised Gore as "Probably the single individual who has done most to create greater worldwide understanding of the measures that need to be adopted."
IPCC chairman Rajendra Pachauri was overwhelmed by the awarded. The India-native told his cheering supporters outside his Delhi office that he hopes the award will help further awareness and a greater sense of urgency about climate change. Rajendra Pachauri's full reaction is documented on the IPCC website (PDF).
Gore's work has had a major effect on the technology industry. With his help, public sentiment has shifted as people realize that oil dependence will only last so many years. This shift in turn has led to all the major car companies heavily pursuing, promoting, and investing in hybrid vehicles, many of which have been featured at DailyTech.
While his efforts to promote global warming research have often overshadowed his other environmental initiatives, Gore has also been a strong promoter of equally controversial rainforest protection, toxic waste control, and National Park System expansion initiatives.
The news follows the announcementsthat a British court declared An Inconvenient Truth unfit for British schools, as it has nine alleged factual inaccuracies. Michael Asher elaborates more in his DailyTech blog.
10/13/07
Al Gore Announced Corecipient of Nobel Peace Prize
Apple, AT&T Sued for iBricking, Monopolistic Behavior
Cupertino-based Apple Inc. has been busy writing firmware to lock the iPhones and iPod Touches from third party applications and unlocking. Now after trying to put out one literal iFire, as predicted in a previous DailyTech article, Apple Inc. has found itself the target of not one, but two separate lawsuits seeking class action status. One lawsuit was filed at the state level by Saratoga attorney Damian Fernandez, who is representing California resident Timothy Smith. The suit demands a jury trial. It asks the court to issue an order to Apple to unlock iPhones and support hacked iPhones. Finally, it is seeking unspecified monetary damages.
The consumers are bringing the fight to Apple Inc.
Apparently Apple's answer to owners of frozen iPhones that they should “buy a new phone” did not go over well.
The federal suit was filed by the offices of Hoffman & Lazear in Oakland and Folkenflik & McGerity in New York, on behalf of two individuals Paul Holman and Lucy Rivello; both iPhone owners.
The federal case accuses Apple of unfair business practices, violations of antitrust laws, violations of telecommunications laws and violations of warranty laws. It states that by disallowing user modification of phones to work on other networks, Apple and AT&T willfully and knowingly intended from the initiation of their partnership to maintain a monopoly.
The suit further points to Apple's actions with its latest firmware update which unlawfully restrict consumer choice by preventing people from "unlocking" their iPhones, locking out third party applications from its file system and disabling unlocked iPhones turning them into "iBricks."
The suit officially stated that it did not know how large the effective class would be, but filed it under 100 or more. The firms are predicting big though -- they stated that they think the "there will be millions" who will join the class action.
Part of the dilemma is in knowing how many unlocked iPhones there are. Hundreds of thousands of copies of the unlocking software have been sold or downloaded. Adding in the numbers of people who performed hardware hacks and the number of unlocked iPhone owners may be 100,000 or more. This would be significant portion of the iPhone population, which currently numbers around 1.3 million.
The civil suit accused Apple and AT&T of similar violations, only on a state level in California. It says Apple and AT&T willfully violated many state laws in engaging in its monopolistic and malicious behavior.
Damian Fernadez, the attorney who filed the state suit explains in court documents what Apple is accused of: Apple punished consumers for exercising their rights to unlock their iPhones. Apple issued a software update that 'bricked' or otherwise caused iPhone malfunctions for consumers who unlocked their phones and installed the update. Apple's unlawful trust with AT&T substantially lessens competition and tends to create a monopoly in trade and commerce throughout the entire United States.
Apple spokeswoman Susan Lundgren and AT&T spokesman Mark Siegel both declined to speak to the media, despite request on Wednesday.
Apple CEO Steve Jobs has in the past compared Apple's war against unlockers to a game of cat and mouse. His comparison now seems to border on comedy as it appears that after being battered and hunted, the "mouse" has turned and is now attacking "the cat."
When Apple Inc. and AT&T's actions drew the companies into the spotlight, it seemed inevitable that a class action suit would be on the way. Now as user anger has erupted at Apple and AT&T, they face not one but two class actions suits. Likely more damaging than any possible outcome will be the negative light that the coverage of these cases will cast on both companies. Apple Inc., which regained leadership as a mainstream tech firm by portraying an rebellious outsider image, will now have to face unpleasant comparisons to its corporate rivals, whom it once poked fun at.
RIAA Case Juror Speaks: 2 Jurors Wanted $3.6M Fine
It turns out that Jammie Thomas could have been worse off
The tech news industry has been buzzing with news of the $222,000 verdict in the precedent setting civil case Capitol Records v. Jammie Thomas, the first instance of an RIAA complaint going to a trial by jury.
Now a juror from the case has opened up and discussed their feelings about the case and what went on inside the courtroom.
While some may feel the $9,250 per song fine levied against Thomas was extreme and unreasonable, she could have been far worse off, if a couple of the jurors had their way.
In an interview with THREAT LEVEL on Tuesday, Michael Hegg, one of the jurors from the case, reported that two jurors had tried to sway the other jurors to adopt the maximum fine per violation, $150,000 per piece of copyrighted material.
As Thomas was found guilty of 24 such violations, this would have resulted in a $3.6 million fine.
Another juror, according to Hegg, was insistent on making the fine as low as possible. The minimum amount per violation, by law is $750. This would have led to a far lesser fine of $18,000, still a significant sum, but over $200,000 less than the $222,000 jury decision.
Hegg, a 38-year-old steelworker from Duluth, Minnesota who had just returned home from a 14 hour shift when the interview took place, was unsympathetic at Thomas's plight.
He elaborated, "She's a liar. She should have settled out of court for a few thousand dollars. Spoofing? We're thinking, 'Oh my God, you got to be kidding.' [The verdict was] a compromise, yes, we wanted to send a message that you don't do this, that you have been warned."
Hegg felt that the fact that Thomas turned a different hard drive over to investigators than the original was particularly damning. He repeated his feelings that she was being deceptive. "She lied. There was no defense. Her defense sucked," he elaborated.
Hegg is a married father of two and says his wife is an "Internet guru," but admits to not knowing much about technology issues.
Hegg said his opinion and that of the jury was swayed by a number of pieces of evidence presented by the RIAA. One exhibit, viewed multiple times showed that there were 2 million users on Kazaa, the network Thomas was accused of using, on the night RIAA investigators found Thomas's alleged folder. Also, Thomas's use of the name "Terreastarr" on other online accounts, the same as the name on the Kazaa account, helped convince them. Then there was the fact that the RIAA's technical experts matched the IP and MAC address to her computer. Expert testimony had revealed that Thomas had not used a wireless router, casting further doubt on her claims that she was hacked.
Hegg seemed almost enraged at Thomas as he concluded the interview by saying, "I think she thought a jury from Duluth would be naïve. We're not that stupid up here. I don't know what the f**k she was thinking, to tell you the truth."
Hegg's statements echo the Bush administration's statement earlier this week, that the punishment fit the crime and serves as a good warning to potential violators.
The RIAA has a strong ally in the current U.S. administration, which has made major efforts to police copyright infringement and raise the fines for violators, including championing and signing into law the Family Entertainment and Copyright Act of 2005. This law mandated that possession of even a single copy of a film unreleased on dvd could subject the owner to a stay in prison. The law included no provisions for currently unreleased or untranslated foreign films, but so far the motion picture industry has been slightly less zealous in prosecuting infringers than the RIAA. Recent reports put the RIAA settlements at nearly 36,000 individual settlements, by certain estimates.
Still there are many around the country who feel that she got off too lightly or was fined too heavily or unjustly. Even the jury seems to have mirrored this same split. One wanted to just fine her the minimum amount, others wanted to fine her the maximum amount $3.6 million dollars.
somehow succeeds. Meanwhile the RIAA can rest content with their victory as they ponder their The end result is still the same though: Thomas is going to have to pay, unless her appealnext plan of attack in their colorful battle against copyright infringement.
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Windows XP SP3 Specifics Revealed
News on Microsoft's aging Windows XP operating system has surprisingly been coming in at a steady pace over the past few weeks. Although Windows Vista is Microsoft's current bread-and-butter consumer operating system, there is still much love to go around for Windows XP. In late September, DailyTech reported that Microsoft is providing XP downgrades for unhappy Vista customers. Microsoft followed up on that news a few days later with the announcement that Windows XP sales would be extended to June 30, 2008. The company followed up with a new build of Internet Explorer 7.0 for Windows XP that doesn't require product activation and released a Service Pack 3 (SP3) beta for a select group of testers. The latest SP3 beta is labeled as build 3205 and is a rather small 334.92 MB download. The bloggers over at NeoSmart have gotten a hold of the new SP3 release and have detailed many of the new features and bugfixes with the software update. According to NeoSmart, SP3 contains 1,073 hotfixes and patches; 114 of which are security related. SP3 also adds four major features to the Windows XP operating systems. The first is a new activation scheme which will not require a product key during installation. The second feature is a new Network Access Protection Module first featured in Windows Vista. Other new items include a Microsoft Kernel Mode Cryptographics Module and a Black Hole Router detection algorithm. The release of SP3 coupled with the announcement that XP will be available to businesses and consumers for a longer period of time could breathe new life into the venerable operating system. Many gamers have stuck by the operating system and OEMs like HP and Dell still offer XP on brand new systems.
NeoSmart goes over SP3's new features
10/11/07
Samsung SPH-P9200 UMPC Details Surface
Information on Samsung’s latest Ultra Mobile PC is surfacing today: the SPH-P9200. This device uses a folding keyboard that gives the device what appears to be a nearly full-size QWERTY keyboard. Specifications for the SPH-P9200 reported by SlashGear show that it will feature a VIA C7-M processor, 512MB of RAM and a 30GB hard drive. The operating system is Windows XP Home, the standard battery is a 20Whr battery good for up to 2.5 hours of runtime and the extended battery will provide up to 5 hours of work time. A 1.3-megapixel camera is built-in as well. Perhaps the best feature of the device is the multiple connectivity options that include WiFi, WiBro and HSDPA. Samsung also included a SIM card slot, a 15-pin accessory port assumed by SlashGear to be for accessories like headsets or dongles and a port replicator. The screen is a 5-inch 800x480 display that reportedly can do higher resolutions via interpolation. Samsung includes MyPen software and an optical joystick with mouse buttons is included. Samsung has declined to comment on pricing or availability. The Samsung user’s manual for the SPH-P9200 can be seen on the Samsung website (PDF). Power users may be more inclined to use a UMPC with more performance, which in this case could be systems like the ASUS Eee PC that is now shipping.
Samsung SPH-P9200 details surface boasting great connectivity options
Intel Finally Hits Launch Date for X38 Express Chipset
Intel today launched its X38 Express chipset, which DailyTech has been covering for a while now. The chipset was previously known by its codename, Bearlake, and first surfaced last year. Engineers at the time cited problems with vendor microcode support as major contributors to Intel's decision to slide the date back even further. The launch date for the X38 Express chipset was then changed to October 10th, and today Intel was finally able to hit its launch target.
Intel launches X38 Express chipset with ASUS, MSI and Gigabyte mainboards ready
In October 2006 DailyTech broke the news that Intel would release six versions of its Bearlake chipset and that one of those six versions, the Bearlake-X, would be the X38 Express.
The story behind the Intel X38 Express has been one of numerous missed launch dates. At first, it seemed that X38 would launch in time for Computex Taipei in June. Intel then set an official launch date of September 23 for the chipset. That launch date, however, was pushed back yet again.
ASUS, Gigabyte and MSI all have X38 Express-based offerings. ASUS announced today its P5E3 Deluxe, which comes with the option of an embedded install of Linux. MSI launched the X38 Diamond, which features a new Circu-Pipe cooler design; and Gigabyte launched its GA-5BXWV-RH mainboard.
The main features of the Intel X38 Express chipset include support for DDR3 RAM, next generation dual 16x PCI Express 2.0, and Intel Extreme turning. The chipset has support for all current and some future Intel processors like Penryn with front side bus speeds of 800, 1066 and 1333MHz. Other interesting features include the ability to disable SATA and USB ports as needed.
HDTVs and Laptops Most Desired Tech Gifts for Holiday 2007
Tech gadgets are increasingly becoming hot coveted items, as found by a Solutions Research Group. More than three-quarters of the 1,200 American men and women surveyed had at least one digital lifestyle products on their holiday season wish lists.
Men and women want high-definition televisions for their holiday gift
By far the most popular item on everyone’s tech list is a flat-screen high-definition television, making up 35 percent of mentions in the subgroup. Interestingly enough, those very same that put HDTVs on their lists may not use the technology to its full potential. Only 6 percent listed Blu-ray Disc or HD DVD players and only 2 percent intended to get HD boxes from their cable or satellite company.
Some of those HDTVs, however, maybe used for high-definition gaming. For men’s top 10 lists, the PlayStation 3 led all consoles at sixth spot, with both Xbox 360 and Wii taking ninth and tenth, respectively. When considering women’s wishlists, the Wii was the only games machine in the top 10, listed at eighth. With both genders combined, the Wii became the most desired console at eighth, just one spot ahead of the PS3.
Common wants for both men and women were HDTV, laptop computers, digital still cameras, digital video cameras, desktop computers, GPS car navigation systems, Nintendo Wii and cell phones.
Despite the broad appeal of its products, Apple did not show up on the overall top 10 list. The iPhone was specifically named for 15th place, with the MacBook at 11th. Women appeared to prefer Apple computers more than men, placing the MacBook at ninth place.
For more on the Digital Life America – Holiday 2007 Edition report, see the full news release (PDF).
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10/10/07
MSI Announces First AMD RD790 Board
MSI announces its first RD790-based board
MSI today announced its K9A2 Platinum Motherboard based on AMD’s RD790 chipset, officially dubbed the 790FX. The 790FX serves as AMD’s primary single and dual-processor platform and replaces AMD’s antiquated 580X chipset. The new MSI board comes with support for a host of new features, including support for AMD quad-core processors and Crossfire X.
The K9A2 Platinum supports all AM2+ processors, which means it will work with AMD’s upcoming Phenom quad-core, tri-core and dual-core desktop processors. Existing AM2 processors are also supported by the newest board BIOS.
The 790FX also brings 41 PCIe 2.0 lanes to AMD’s AM2+ platform, allowing manufacturers flexibility in the number of PCIe slots integrated on the board. The K9A2 comes with four PCIe 2.0 x16 slots and supports AMD’s Triple-Play Technology. In addition, MSI goes a step further by offering Quad Crossfire capability on the mainboard.
As of right now, AMD has not officially launched Triple-Play technology. MSI indicates, however, the official debut should take place soon. AMD guidance claims ATI RV670, Phenom and RD790 will simultaneously launch together next month.
Clash of the Sub-titans: AMD and NVIDIA's Next GPU Offerings
Much of that changed when AMD acquired ATI last year. Not only did ATI miss the Radeon HD 2900 launch window by almost six months, but NVIDIA's high-end GeForce 8800 became the undisputed ultra-high-end GPU as well. The one thing that didn't change on G92 is the process node. NVIDIA's foundry partner, TSMC, forwarded a second memo to DailyTech confirming G92 is in mass production at the company's Fab 12 with samples available now on 65nm process node. NVIDIA's GeForce 8500 and GeForce 8600 are manufactured on TSMC's 80nm node; GeForce 8800 GT will be the company's first 65nm graphics processor. NVIDIA guidance suggests G92 will be here next month, followed by AMD's marketing blitz for RV670, RD790 and Phenom. All three AMD offerings are expected to launch on the same day, which AMD distributors have penciled in for late November. Intel is expected to launch its 45nm Penryn processors on November 12, and any NVIDIA launch will likely coincide with that announcement. Late last week, Maximum PC reported that NVIDIA senior vice president Dan Vivoli commented that NVIDIA would be releasing new hardware to go along with the upcoming title Crysis. The confirmed launch date by Electronic Arts for Crysis is November 15, 2007. Neither AMD nor NVIDIA have released "firm" pricing for the products, though we can reasonably infer several key points regarding the price. Since RV670 is effectively a smaller R600, performance will be very similar to existing R600-based cards on the market today. However, since the card only utilizes a single-slot cooler and a considerably smaller die, the cost of these cards should be lower than existing R600s. G92, which was originally called GeForce 8700 until just last week, has a soft suggested retail price of $250, according to NVIDIA board partners. Since the GeForce 8800 GT will be launching first, it's fairly likely that AMD will adjust the suggested price of RV670 depending on the outcome of initial GeForce 8800 GT feedback.
Next-generation GPUs are the fastest things on the planet -- if they were released a year ago
Traditionally the Fall graphics refresh has been the battle of the titans -- ATI and NVIDIA both would debut behemoth video cards in an attempt to snag the headlines from one another.
ATI's RV670 has been called many things in the past. It was originally a 65 nanometer die-shrink of the R600 class GPU; then a 55 nanometer shrink. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Asia's largest core-logic foundry, confirmed AMD would go with a 55nm R600 shrink in a memo forwarded to DailyTech earlier this year.
When TSMC debuted its 55nm process earlier this Spring, the company claimed "significant die cost savings from 65 nm, while offering the same speed and 10 to 20 percent lower power consumption." Since R600 was manufactured originally on a 80nm node, thermal improvements should be fairly dramatic on RV670.
Last week at the World Cyber Games, Sapphire demonstrated a working RV670 using a dual-slot cooler. Sapphire and ATI engineers alluded to DailyTech that this dual-slot configuration will likely be replaced with a single-slot solution by time of launch.
NVIDIA's G92 has also carried many names. Originally slated as the 65nm "fill-in" GPU between GeForce 8600 and GeForce 8800, the company began changing documentation earlier this month as ATI's offerings began to firm up.
NVIDIA confirmed the specifications of G92 with board partners earlier this week. The GeForce 8800 GT will feature a 600 MHz core clock, a 900 MHz memory clock and a 256 bit memory interface.
Apple Acknowledges iMac Freeze Issue
Apple launched updated iMac computers in August to lots of praise and fanfare. Recently some iMac owners tell Apple that their iMacs are freezing and require a hard reboot to resume normal operation. AppleInsider reports that its iMac review unit from Apple operated as expected until the 1.1 update, and then began to experience the lockup issues reported by forum users. The problem appears to be related to the ATI Radeon HD graphics card and its required driver. Apple has made no official statement on the cause of the freeze issue and has only stated that a repair for the issue is coming. AppleInsider also reports that some users of the new iMac have been able to fix the freeze issue by simply uninstalling the graphics drivers and reinstalling drivers of a previous version. The report states that fix did not work as expected, and many users on Apple's official support forums also met the driver-swap procedure with mixed results. Owners of affected units sometimes say they can initiate the freeze issue by launching a game or other application that taxes the graphics hardware. Other users tell DailyTech the issue is random and doesn’t require a graphically intensive application to freeze the system. Some also sstate that when their system locks up, they can still move the mouse pointer and activate the num lock key, but they are unable to click any programs. Neither ATI nor Apple responded to DailyTech for comment on the freeze-ups.
Apple admits a problem is causing some iMac computers to freeze and require hard reboot
Ceramic White PlayStation 3 With DualShock 3 Set For Japan
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.
PlayStation 3 dreaming of a Ceramic White Christmas
Microsoft Confirms Free Games for Xbox 360 "Holiday" Consoles
Microsoft today confirmed what has been rumored on the Internet for a few weeks with regards to its Xbox 360 console. The Redmond giant will include Forza Motorsport 2 and Marvel Ultimate Alliance with its Xbox 360 Premium and Xbox 360 Elite consoles. News of the two bundled games first leaked to the web via Best Buy's online website -- the store later took the product pages down (likely after being contacted by Microsoft). Bundled games are nothing new and retailers often bundle free games with new consoles during special promotions. When the Xbox 360 price cuts went into effect over the summer, Circuit City offered Rockstar Table Tennis for free with the Xbox 360 Premium. This move, however, marks the first time that Microsoft itself has officially included two high profile games with its console. The holiday season should prove to be quite fulfilling for potential Xbox 360 customers. Microsoft has already rolled out HDMI ports on the current crop of Xbox 360 Premium, Xbox 360 Elite and Xbox 360 Halo 3 Special Edition consoles. In addition, cooler-running 65 nanometer Falcon CPUs are starting to show up in Halo 3 Special Edition consoles and will likely rollover to the rest of the Xbox 360 range shortly.
Microsoft to include Forza Motorsport 2 and Marvel Ultimate Alliance with the Xbox 360 Premium, Elite
10/9/07
Verizon Hopes to "Kill the iPhone" With Voyager
Verizon's new LG made Voyager, unveiled on Wednesday, is just in time for the holiday season. The new phone is going up against Apple’s popular iPhone and carries with plenty of ammunition for a full-on assault of Cupertino’s best.
Verizon's murderous thoughts toward the iPhone are manifest in its shiny, faster Voyager phone
This "iPhone killer" features a strikingly similar design to the iPhone, but it has something that the iPhone doesn't: a faster network. The LG Voyager also hinges open to feature a full keypad and a smaller screen, for users who dislike the iPhone's tactile keypad. Other features include full Internet browsing, V CAST Video and Music access, 2MP digital camera and support for .mp3, .wma and unprotected .aac files.
"We think it'll be the best phone ... this year. It will kill the iPhone," Verizon Wireless Chief Marketing Officer Mike Lanman said in an interview.
Analyst Avi Greengart thinks this homicidal claim is a bit outlandish. He thinks that the Voyager will likely attract many at Verizon who don't want to switch providers. Greengart doesn't see the Voyager as hurting the iPhone's red hot sales though.
"People who want a high-end media phone and want to stay with Verizon will certainly give that one a hard look. I don't know that it would pull anybody away from an iPhone."
Perhaps, but Apple's latest draconian tactics to prevent iPhone unlocking may cause some users who were pondering an iPhone to defect to Verizon.
Verizon is focusing its guns on the iPhone, but the other three phones in the release may cause some stir as well.
The other three models are the Samsung Juke, BlackBerry Pearl, and the LG Venus. The Juke is stylish and candy bar thin and sports 2GB of storage, A2DP Bluetooth and a 1.3 megapixel camera. The Venus has some interesting touch screen features of its own including vibration feedback as well as a miniSD expansion, A2DP and a 2 megapixel camera. The BlackBerry Pearl offers a 1.3 megapixel camera, BlackBerry Maps, easy-to-use email (the main draw), a fully function multimedia player and miniSD expansion.
Verizon's new phones are certainly good looking. While it focuses on gunning down the iPhone with its LG voyager, many will likely also be drawn to the allure of the small sized Juke or the take-care-of-business-and-play-too Blackberry Pearl.
Update: Microsoft Releases New Reliability Update for Windows Vista, XP SP3 Beta
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: 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 releases KB941649 hotfix which "improves the compatibility, reliability, and stability of Windows Vista"
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.
Hitachi Develops 100GB Blu-ray Disc Compatible With Existing Drives
Throughout the life of the format, DVD has been primarily limited to at most two layers, keeping the format at a maximum storage space of under 9GB. The new high-definition formats, however, appear to have taken a page from hard disk drives when it comes at adding additional storage. Just as how adding additional platters inside a hard disk drive provides more storage, optical media makers are finding ways to stack layers of readable surface inside a polymer disc to increase capacity. Hitachi revealed this week at CEATEC JAPAN 2007 that it has successfully developed a quad-layer Blu-ray Disc that is capable of storing 100GB of data. The concept multi-layer discs is practiced by many other media labs, but Hitachi claims that its quad-layer technology would be compatible with existing Blu-ray Disc drives after a firmware update. Prior developments of greater than dual layer discs have required special hardware to read the new media. Hitachi is now working on improving the signal quality of its quad-layer technology so that it will be ready for market. The company also said that it is working on an eight-layer variant of the technology, which would yield a Blu-ray Disc capable of holding 200GB. Although no new hardware may be required to read the additional layers of Hitachi’s Blu-ray Disc, it is still unclear what costs, if any, would be added onto the manufacturing side of the equation. Should expensive equipment be required to manufacture the discs, movie studios may opt to release their titles across two Blu-ray Discs rather than cram movie and special feature data onto a single disc. While the Blu-ray camp has its hopes in Hitachi’s multi-layer disc technology, the HD DVD group recently approved a triple-layer disc that is capable of holding 51GB. In order to reach a dual-layer Blu-ray Disc-besting capacity, an extra 2GB per layer was squeezed in, for a total of 51GB. Toshiba states that continued improvement in disc mastering technology has achieved further minimization in the recording pit, allowing for the boost in capacity to 17GB in single layer and a full 51GB on a single-sided triple-layer disc. Interestingly enough, blue-violet laser technology has not stopped endeavors in increasing the capacity of red laser-based media. UK-based New Medium Enterprises revealed in March that it developed a quad-layer DVD, called the Versatile Multilayer Disc (VMD), which is capable of storing 20GB. Even with four layers, the VMD can’t best the storage offered by today’s HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc media. Adding just one or two layers may just be the tip of the iceberg in optical media technology. Media specialist company Ritek told DailyTech at CES 2007 that not only has it been able to produce three-layer and four-layer HD optical discs, but to have successfully designed HD media with a full 10 layers. Ritek said that its multi-layer process can be applied to both HD DVD and Blu-ray formats, making the latest developments in 20GB DVD, 51GB HD DVD and 100GB Blu-ray Discs look like just the beginning.
100GB on a single Blu-ray Disc that will work with today's machines, promises Hitachi
Bungie Studios Officially Splits From Microsoft
Earlier this week, reports from around the web stated that Bungie Studios, developers of top Xbox franchise Halo, would be splitting off from its owner Microsoft. Today, the news was officially confirmed as Microsoft issued a press release announcing a plan for Bungie Studios to embark on a path to become an independent company. As expected, Microsoft confirmed its ownership of Halo intellectual property, ensuring multiple new chapters in the series, with or without Bungie’s involvement. Microsoft has already started farming out new Halo games to other developers. The appropriately themed real-time strategy game Halo Wars is currently in development by Ensemble Studios, the creators of the Age of Empires series and also a Microsoft-owned developer. "Our collaboration with Bungie has resulted in 'Halo' becoming an enduring mainstream hit," said Shane Kim, corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios. "While we are supporting Bungie's desire to return to its independent roots, we will continue to invest in our 'Halo' entertainment property with Bungie and other partners, such as Peter Jackson, on a new interactive series set in the 'Halo' universe. We look forward to great success with Bungie as our long-term relationship continues to evolve through 'Halo'-related titles and new IP created by Bungie." Microsoft will retain an unstated equity interest in Bungie, and will continue a publishing agreement between the developer and Microsoft Game Studios for Halo intellectual property as well as other future properties developed by Bungie – corroborating reports that Microsoft will hold the “first right of refusal” for an unknown number of titles. "This exciting evolution of our relationship with Microsoft will enable us to expand both creatively and organizationally in our mission to create world-class games," said Harold Ryan, studio head for Bungie. "We will continue to develop with our primary focus on Microsoft platforms; we greatly value our mutually prosperous relationship with our publisher, Microsoft Game Studios; and we look forward to continuing that affiliation through 'Halo' and beyond." The separation between Microsoft and Bungie came just a week after the release of Halo 3. The third chapter in the Halo series was met with incredible success, with first day sales over $170 million, thanks in part pre-orders in the seven-digit range, with first week sales amounting to more than $300 million. Despite the market success and critical acclaim from Halo 3 and the two games that preceded it, Bungie was reportedly unhappy with its relationship as a Microsoft-owned developer. According to anonymous sources, Microsoft expected Bungie to continue working on further installments of the Halo series, while the developer may have wanted to explore other themes and genres. Prior to Halo, Bungie developed third-person action game Oni and real-time strategy game Myth. Sources also believe that Bungie was unhappy with its lack of control over the marketing of its games. Bungie Studios was acquired by Microsoft on June 19, 2000 following the developer’s impressive Halo for PC and Mac demonstrations. Throughout Bungie’s years as a Microsoft property, certain key personnel have left the studio to form new, independent game companies. New companies spawned from former Bungie staff include Wideload Games, Certain Affinity, Double Aught and Giant Bite. The now-independent Bungie Studios will remain in its current location in Kirkland, Wash.
Maker of Halo feverishly scratches the seven-year itch after being with Microsoft since 2000
Kim Jong-il: Internet Expert
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il met with South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun this week in the North Korean city of Kaesong. This meeting is only the second ever meeting between North and South Korean leaders. One topic of conversation during the meeting put forth by Roh was a request that South Korean companies operating in an industrial park in the North Korean city of Kaesong be allowed the use of the Internet. The response from the Dear Leader, according to Yahoo! News, was, “I'm an Internet expert too. It's all right to wire the industrial zone only, but there are many problems if other regions of the North are wired.” Kim went on to say, “If that problem is addressed, there is no reason not to open [web access].” Kim did not elaborate on the "many problems" caused by opening Internet access to all of North Korea, though clearly the intention of Roh's suggestion is to increase North Korean exposure to South Korean and Western influence. North Korea explicitly prohibits its 23 million citizens from accessing the Internet and mobile phones outside of government research groups. South Korea, by comparison, is one of the world's most digitally connected countries.
Kim Jong-il claims to be the world's Internet expert; Al Gore jealous
What is known, is that Kim and the ruling party has a definitive taste for all things Western. Kim's son, Jong-nam, was arrested and expelled from Japan while trying to enter Disney Land in 2001. Late last year, the U.S. imposed a ban on all luxuries originating from the U.S. destined for North Korea, including the Great Leader's beloved iPods.
40GB PlayStation 3 Officially Announced by SCEE
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.
The 40GB will be the cheapest PS3 yet, but no PS2 backwards compatibility will be the price to pay
Google's Phone Project Aims at Microsoft
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.
Is Google about to produce the next iPhone? Find out here!
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.
To demonstrate its technology, it turns out that Google did build phone prototypes, which it has shown to manufacturers. It has given no indication that it will put these designs into production, though. Analysts think that such a move would be unlikely, due to Google's lack of hardware expertise.
Karsten Weide an analyst for IDC spoke to the possibility of them developing phone hardware. “Running a Web site and a search engine is one thing, but developing a phone is a whole different game. It will not be easy for them,” said Weide.
While no definitive word has been released by Google at this time, it seems clear that developing hardware was not the focus of its project.
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.
Some see deeper motives to Google's moves than simply gunning for Microsoft. They see Google's moves as an attempt to loosen the control that cell phone carriers have on their services and software on their network.
This may trouble some carriers such as AT&T and Verizon who have poured millions into developing proprietary network services. As a resulth, they are unlikely to jump at Google's new technology until they see returns on their own.
Few have voiced opinions on Google's move, but the move is being criticized by one of Google's own partners. Arun Sarin, the chief executive of Britain’s Vodafone Group, which currently carries Google Service on its phones, said it is unclear what compelling functions Google's platform would offer that are not currently available.
Sarin elaborates, “What is it that is missing in life that they are going to fulfill? It is not a no-brainer. You can reach Google already through a number of devices. You don’t need a Google phone to do that."
Google’s actions over the past few years seem to confirm speculation that it is looking to cut control that carriers have over their network software and services. The company recently successfully lobbied the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to impose a set of rules on any carriers that win wireless spectrum bids in the upcoming auction. The rules state that winning bidders who use their spectrum must open their phones to software and handset applications from any company. Google may even bid for part of the spectrum according to recent reports.
Google's mobile phone team was built largely around Android, a small mobile software company it acquired in 2005. Andy Rubin, co-founder of Android, had founded Danger, which produced the popular T-Mobile Sidekick. Rubin is currently working on the mobile phone projects at Google's Mountain View headquarters.
Its chief competition, Microsoft, has released multiple versions of the Windows Mobile OS and is currently on its sixth iteration. Microsoft currently has distribution agreements with 48 handset makers and 160 carriers around the world. Microsoft does not have a huge market share, though. This year 12 million phones have been sold that are based on Microsoft’s software, giving it only 10 percent of the smartphone market, according to IDC. This leaves much of the market up for grabs, which is where Google hopes to muscle its way in.
Richard Doherty, director for the Envisioneering Group consulting firm, thinks small carriers will be among the early adopters as they will jump at Google's free software offerings. If these are well received, carriers may be forced to adopt Google's platform. “No one wants to be the last carrier to endorse Google,” Mr. Doherty said.
Yet another possibility is that if the software platform is easy to download and install on a majority of phones, individuals who enjoy Google's online offerings may download its OS for their phones. Such a system would be highly dependent on user effort, but users’ ability to unlock the iPhone has demonstrated that they can have the willingness and the ability to modify their phones, as long as helpful software is provided. If Google goes this route, carriers like AT&T and Verizon with proprietary technologies may try to lock their phones from Google's software or "brick" phones that carry it, similar to Apple and AT&T's latest move to "brick" unlocked iPhones.
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.
