LR News History - Legit Reviews

Legit Reviews News History

Are Chip Makers Headed South?

As chip equipment goes, so goes the electronics industry and the rest of high tech. It's a pretty simple equation. Electronics gadget makers get silicon from chipmakers, which get production gear from companies like Applied Materials and ASML. So when chip gear suppliers go south, you can bet the entire electronics industry (and the overall tech industry) is in a funk.

Appearing on CNBC Thursday morning, Peter Wennink, chief financial officer of Netherlands-based chip equipment maker ASML, said the "sudden drop in end demand for electronic products...is forcing our customers to announce severe cuts in their production." Who are ASML's customers? Companies like Toshiba, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Samsung, and Intel, which supply the electronic guts to customers like Sony, Nokia, Compal Electronics, and Hewlett-Packard. (Samsung and Toshiba are also large consumers of silicon from the chip-making arms of their companies.)

Posted by | Sun, Dec 21, 2008 - 12:34 PM

Electronic Arts to Cut 1,000 Jobs, Close Studios

Electronic Arts, the second-biggest video game publisher, boosted planned job cuts to 1,000, or 10 percent of its work force, and will consolidate or close at least nine studio and publishing locations. At least the announcement comes before the holidays and the cuts won't happen till next year.

The changes, to be carried out by March 31, will yield savings of about $120 million a year and cost as much as $65 million over the next several quarters, the Redwood City company said Friday in a statement. The actions expand on a 6 percent reduction announced in October.

SiliconValley.com

Posted by | Fri, Dec 19, 2008 - 09:31 PM

December 19 News from Around the Web

Thermaltake Spedo Advance Case Review on Technic3D and other reviews from around the web can be found by visiting our forums!

"The Thermaltake Spedo Advance is the next PC Case in the Technic3D Editorship. See you in the following Review which qualities and Features the Gaming Tower from Thermaltake presents. Better with Cable Routing Management, Advance Thermal Chamber, Support up to 8 fans and side 23cm fan?"

Posted by | Fri, Dec 19, 2008 - 07:53 AM

Corsair Launches 850 Watt Power Supply for Enthusiasts

Corsair today announced the launch of the Corsair TX850W power supply unit (PSU), the latest addition to the award-winning TX-series of high-quality PSUs. The Corsair TX850W boasts a dedicated +12V rail capable of delivering 70A (840W), which equates to 98.8% of the PSU’s total power output.

“Corsair’s TX650W and TX750W PSUs have led the market in terms of offering superior quality at affordable prices,” said Jim Carlton, VP of Marketing at Corsair. “The TX850W raises the bar even further by offering even more power while retaining the unmatched standards of quality that has led to Corsair recently being voted ‘Best PSU Manufacturer’ for the second consecutive year.”

Posted by | Fri, Dec 19, 2008 - 06:34 AM

DDR2 prices jump nearly 20% as makers start to control shipments

Following Hynix Semiconductor's 20% cut in DRAM output and the governments in several countries offer their commitment to rescuing the DRAM industry, DRAM prices have finally been pulled up, according to Taiwan DRAM makers.

DRAM related distributors have been clearing inventories for several months meaning they are now short on supplies, said DRAM makers. With the backing of the government assured, DRAM makers have started to fight back by strictly selecting customers and orders to drive up prices. On December 18, effective tested (eTT) 1Gb DDR2 pricing jumped 18%, and branded 1Gb DDR2 prices also saw a 13% increase, according to industry players.

DigiTimes Daily IT News

Posted by | Fri, Dec 19, 2008 - 06:30 AM

Toshiba Launches Industry's First 512GB Solid State Drive

Toshiba has announced plans to unveil the industry's first 512GB NAND-flash-based solid state drive. The 2.5-inch 512GB SSD expands Toshiba's family of fast read/write SSDs based on their 43-nanometer NAND. The new drives will be shown at this years International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Toshiba 512GB SSD

In addition to the 2.5-inch, 512GB drive, the 43nm NAND SSD family also includes capacities of 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB, offered in 1.8-inch or 2.5-inch drive enclosures or as SSD Flash Modules. Samples of the new drives will be available in the first quarter (January to March) of 2009, with mass production in the second (April to June) quarter.

Posted by | Thu, Dec 18, 2008 - 12:45 PM

NASA Plans To Give Old Shuttles Away

Here is your chance to have your very own Space Shuttle...kind of. NASA in addressing what to do with the space shuttles once they retire in 2010 are soliciting proposals as to where these shuttles should call their final home. Most likely, those who are associated with institutions such as museums and higher learning will have a better chance than others.

Sponsored by NASA's Office of Infrastructure, the RFI seeks input from appropriate officials and decision makers from museums, science centers, institutions, and other organizations dedicated to education or educational outreach with experience in public display of space hardware and nationally-recognized historical artifacts," NASA said in a release. NASA will use information gained from this RFI to develop strategies for eventual placement of two space shuttle orbiters and a minimum of six unassembled space shuttle main engine display "kits."

Posted by | Thu, Dec 18, 2008 - 12:33 PM

Microsoft and Mozilla Release Browser Patches

As the holidays quickly approach, there has been a surge in malicious activity on the net. Both Microsoft and Mozilla want you to make sure you have the latest official patches to fix your Internet Explorer and Firefox browsers.

Microsoft's Internet Explorer security patch is now available, as is a security update for Mozilla's Firefox browser. Here's a breakdown of what you need and where you can get it. Microsoft's IE patch, coded KB960714 and part of Security Bulletin MS08-078, is considered a critical update for all Internet Explorer users. It fixes the much-publicized Internet Explorer flaw found last week that can let remote attackers gain access to your passwords and personal information. The fix is recommended for users of IE5, IE6, IE7, and IE8 beta 2.

Washington Post

Posted by | Thu, Dec 18, 2008 - 12:26 PM

NVIDIA Now Providing Notebook Graphics Drivers On NVIDIA.COM

Users with notebooks equipped with NVIDIA graphics processing units (GPUs) now have the added flexibility of downloading upgradeable graphics drivers directly from NVIDIA.com so they can immediately take advantage of new features, improved application compatibility, and performance optimizations. The first graphics driver release from NVIDIA will extend the NVIDIA CUDA architecture to notebook GPUs, enabling the growing number of consumers moving to a notebook-only lifestyle to immediately experience the wide range of CUDA-based applications—from heart-stopping GPU-accelerated game physics to GPU-accelerated video conversion.

“NVIDIA is committed to giving the rapidly growing number of customers using notebook GPUs the same performance optimizations and innovative graphics features that desktop customers have grown accustomed to,” said Dwight Diercks, vice president of software engineering at NVIDIA. “To accomplish this, we have worked diligently over the past year to modularize our driver architecture and develop a unified driver install package that will not only work with notebooks from all manufacturers but also maintain all of their specific model customizations such as hotkeys and suspend and resume functionality.”

Posted by | Thu, Dec 18, 2008 - 11:39 AM

December 18 News from Around the Web

NVIDIA GeForce 295 Video Card Preview @ Hardware Canucks and other reviews from around the web can be found by visiting our forums!

Naysayers have long said that the GTX 200-series would never be compatible with a dual GPU, single card solution due to the immense power requirements and heat output of the 65nm G200 core. Well, enter a die shrink to 55nm and Nvidia has made into reality what many thought was impossible. We should also mention that pricing is….are you sitting down?...pegged at around $500 USD which puts it into direct competition with the HD 4870 X2.

Posted by | Thu, Dec 18, 2008 - 08:51 AM

Corsair Dominator GT DDR3 2000MHZ CL7 Memory Kit Exposed

It looks like the marketing crew over at Corsair Memory let Hexus leak out the details on their upcoming Dominator GT memory series that will be shown off at CES 2009. The 6GB DDR3 memory kit shown below is rated has tight CL7 timings at just 1.65V, which is mighty impressive. The image below looks to list the timings at 7-8-7-20, with the RAS-to-CAS delay keeping it from being 7-7-7. The new two tone color look is new for Corsair as the red trim on the label, but remember these are the GT's. With all the marketing leaks happening before CES I wonder if there will be anything left to show off during the expo.

Corsair Dominator GT DDR3 2GHz CL7 Triple-Channel Memory Kit

The kit, pictured above in tri-channel form for Intel's X58 platform, consists of three 2GB modules that'll hit 2,000MHz at just 1.65V with low latencies of 7-8-7-20. That's pretty damn fast, and the low voltage should leave ample room for pushing these beauties a whole lot further.

Posted by | Wed, Dec 17, 2008 - 04:35 PM

Western Digital to slash 2,500 jobs, cut executive pay

Hard drive maker Western Digital said Tuesday it plans to cut 2,500 jobs, or about 5 percent of its global workforce, and will reduce executive pay in response to weakening demand for its products linked to the economic turmoil. Western Digital said demand for the current quarter is "significantly below" what it expected when it issued revenue guidance in October. The company now expects fiscal second-quarter sales of $1.7 billion to $1.8 billion, with a "consequent reduction in operating results."

Western Digital will also stop its manufacturing operations from Dec. 20 through Jan. 1, reduce manufacturing hours by 20 percent through employee attrition and trim its use of temporary workers and overtime shifts. It is also closing one of its three hard drive factories in Thailand and will close or sell one of two facilities in Malaysia.

SiliconValley.com

Posted by | Wed, Dec 17, 2008 - 11:38 AM

Chaintech Launches APOGEE GT Triple-Channel DDR3 Memory Kits

Walton Chaintech introduced new APOGEE GT Triple-Channel DDR3 Memory Module Kits yesterday that are specifically for the Intel Core i7 processor / Intel X58 Express Chipset. The Chaintech kits come in DDR3-1333, DDR3-1600 & DDR3-1866 triple-channel speed grades, so they are launching numerous kits. These new modules will also be available in both 3GB and 6GB sits.

Chaintech APOGEE GT DDR3 Triple-Channel Memory Kit

At the same time, all series of APOGEE GT Triple-Channel DDR3 Memory Module Kits are made of 8-layer PCB and chips of famous memory manufacturer, which are well known for their outstanding overclocking capability. Each chip is handpicked for meeting strict quality requirements. Not only that, all chips are manufactured of using Fine-Pitch Ball Grid Array (FBGA) packages to have better thermal dissipation and electrical efficiency. These unique technical features will ensure optimal performance via combination of lower voltage requirements, higher speed, and instantaneous overclocking ability.

Posted by | Wed, Dec 17, 2008 - 09:04 AM

December 17 News from Around the Web

Sapphire HD4870x2 Atomic Review @ OCC and other reviews from around the web can be found by visiting our forums!

"The Sapphire Atomic HD4870x2 is not what you usually see in a high performance video card. This is a different animal. It still boasts all of the HD4870x2 features such a 1600 stream processors, two gigabytes of GDDR5 memory on a 2 x 256 bit bus, HDMI over DVI, second gen UVD and more. It is also equipped with a single slot cooling solution that incorporates a water pump/CPU block, single 120mm radiator and fan to exhaust the heat generated by the CPU and GPUs. A pretty neat package in and of itself. No more hair drier in the case to keep you awake at night."

Posted by | Wed, Dec 17, 2008 - 08:12 AM

OCZ Announces FLEX EX Performance Memory Series

OCZ Technology Group today unveiled the Flex EX memory series, featuring breakneck speeds reaching 2000MHz that have demanded by enthusiasts in an updated compact form factor to maximize memory configurations on your motherboard. The new Flex EX series will be initially available in high-end solutions for gamers and overclockers utilizing water or passive cooling with more mainstream kits coming out down the road.

OCZ Flex EX Memory Kit

“Memory is the primary storage device of any modern computer system and defines how fast the CPU can access data,” commented Dr. Michael Schuette, VP of Technology Development at OCZ Technology. “Density, frequency, and access latencies of the system memory are the critical factors for overall performance of any PC and that is where the new OCZ Flex Ex series sets new standards by providing the optimal combination of the three factors for any system architecture by offering unprecedented speed and latencies at 4GB density with advanced cooling options to enhance stability and performance in even the most demanding environments.”

Posted by | Tue, Dec 16, 2008 - 03:42 PM

Cryostasis: Sleep of Reason - Demo Released Today That Shows Off Impressive Physics

Cryostasis: Sleep of Reason is a First-person shooter/Survival horror video game by Action Forms and if you haven't heard much about it you will over the next couple months. The physics used in the game are out of this workd and you have to see them to believe them. I made a five minute video clip using high image quality settings and uploaded it to YouTube, so you can check it out. Be sure to check out our benchmarking of the Cryostasis demo that was posted this morning here. If you want to download the TechDemo and try it on your own system you will have to wait as NVIDIA is still trying to get things sorted out on nZone.

The game is being developed on the proprietary top-of-the-edge AtmosFear 2.0 engine. Some of the engine features are: Unified Dynamic Shadowing system - fully dynamic, moving light sources casting soft shadows on all objects. Parallax mapping/displacement, alpha and color projective, depth of field, gloss map, tone mapping. Advanced characters' and objects' physics. Realistic fur dynamically illuminated by light sources.

Posted by | Tue, Dec 16, 2008 - 03:23 PM

Kingston HyperX T1 Series Memory Heat Speaders - Ice Cold

I just got my hands on a triple-channel kit of the newly released Kingston HyperX T1 series memory modules and they are pretty slick. They just got off the FedEx truck and were ice cold as you can see from the picture below so I had to take a temperature reading. These heat spreaders were much taller than I expected, but they look really cool, no pun intended since the surface temperature was under 8C!

Kingston HyperX T1

"The HyperX T1 Series heatspreaders are made of heavy-duty extruded aluminum with extended fins and HTX technology for maximum thermal conditions when users take their systems to the extreme,” said Dara Sun, product manager, Kingston®. "Any gamer or overclocker who intends to dominate with memory will want to use Kingston's T1 series, which is a great complement to our existing line of HyperX modules with the lower profile heatsink.”

Posted by | Tue, Dec 16, 2008 - 01:05 PM

NVIDIA First to Offer Full Support For OpenGL 3.0

NVIDIA today released fully supported drivers for OpenGL 3.0 for Windows XP, Windows Vista and Linux on its select GeForce and Quadro solutions. These drivers enable software developers to take full advantage of all OpenGL 3.0 capabilities, accelerating their delivery of cutting-edge media platforms and applications.

Building on four months of public beta testing, NVIDIA is now the first hardware developer to offer full support of the Khronos Group's new cross-platform 3D graphics standard. The new drivers implement the OpenGL 3.0 API and the GLSL 1.30 shading language to offer developers a broad set of programmable 3D and 2D graphics rendering, visualization and hardware acceleration functions. Developers can immediately begin using these drivers to build OpenGL 3.0 functionality into their software to give end-users new, superior graphics reproduction and visualization features.

Posted by | Tue, Dec 16, 2008 - 12:42 PM

Apple Releases Patches for 21 Security Flaws

Today, Apple released security updates for Mac OS X 10.4 and 10.5, client and server, updating these products to versions 10.4.11 and 10.5.5. This update addresses 21 vulnerabilities including 7 from Adobe's Flash plug-in.

Apple has released software updates to fix at least 21 security vulnerabilities in its Mac OS X operating system and other software for the Mac. The patches are available via Software Update or Apple Downloads. Seven of the updates included in this patch bundle fix flaws for the Mac version of Adobe's Flash player, flaws that Adobe patched last month in two separate releases.

Washington Post

Posted by | Tue, Dec 16, 2008 - 10:54 AM

AMD and XFX Announce Technology Partnership

AMD announced today that XFX is now an official AMD technology partner, joining other successful AMD add-in-board (AIB) partners. XFX, a world leader in graphics cards, motherboards and computer accessories, plans to provide new products based on the award-winning ATI Radeon HD 4000 series GPUs to consumers, beginning in early 2009.

“In the world of PC gaming, XFX is synonymous with the extreme performance that enthusiasts crave,” said Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager, Graphics Products Group, AMD. “Their decision to partner with AMD and launch AMD GPU-based XFX graphics cards, including the ATI Radeon™ HD 4870 X2, widely regarded as the world’s fastest graphics card1 by technology enthusiasts around the world, speaks to the level of excellence achieved by the ATI Radeon HD 4000 series.”

Posted by | Tue, Dec 16, 2008 - 10:31 AM

December 16 News from Around the Web

Find reviews from around the web by visiting our forums! The following is from the Sapphire HD4850 Dual-Slot Graphic Card Review on Technic3D:

"The Sapphire HD4850 Dual-Slot arrived Technic3D. The Graphic Card with a Dual-Slot Heatsink and a good price better than AMD Reference-Design? Technic3D will see the RV770 Chip in the following Review with 2560x1600 up to 1280x1024 against more Cards on Windows Vista 32 Bit SP1. And what say the real Power Consumption?"

Posted by | Tue, Dec 16, 2008 - 08:10 AM

Luke Skywalker's Lightsaber Sells for $240,000

Somebody wanted to get all their holiday shopping over in one trip. At an auction of Hollywood memorabilia last Friday where X-Men, Superman, and Star Wars were sold, the star of the show was the lightsaber used in Episodes IV and V by Mark Hamill.

The star of the auction, the lightsabre used in the first two movies (Episodes IV and V) was sold for the tidy sum of $240,000 (about £150,000), while C-3PO's helmet from Return of the Jedi, making some Star Wars fanboi a very happy camper.

Posted by | Mon, Dec 15, 2008 - 11:31 AM

Bluetooth Technology Blocks Mobile Phones While Driving

Researchers at The University of Utah have developed an automobile ignition key that prevents users from talking on cell phones or sending text messages while driving. The university obtained provisional patents and licensed the invention "Key2SafeDriving" to a private company that hopes to get it to market within six months with a target cost of less than $50 per key plus a yet-undetermined monthly service fee.

"The key to safe driving is to avoid distraction," says Xuesong Zhou, an assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering who co-invented the system with Wally Curry, a University of Utah graduate now practicing medicine in Hays, Kan. "We want to provide a simple, cost-effective solution to improve driving safety." Zhou notes that "at any given time, about 6 percent of travelers on the road are talking on a cell phone while driving. Also at any given time, 10 percent of teenagers who are driving are talking or texting." Studies have shown drivers using cell phones are about four times more likely to get in a crash than other drivers.

Posted by | Mon, Dec 15, 2008 - 10:50 AM

Palm to Announce Nova at CES

According to numerous reports, Palm will announce the long awaited replacement for their current OS at CES next month. Palm is due to unveil the long-awaited operating system, code-named Nova, as well as the first of a family of products that will run on it.

Palm needs to hit its mark. The company has lost share and its stock price has plummeted 80% since Rubinstein joined. With about six quarters of cash currently in the bank, Palm's last best hope may be Nova, to be released by mid-2009. Cash-strapped carriers are loath to take on the cost of supporting another platform and software developers are busy building software for other devices, including the iPhone, BlackBerry, and phones that use Google's (GOOG) Android software. "If they can't show me a large, active audience, I'm not going to be interested," says Jeff Holden, CEO of Web 2.0 company Pelago, maker of a social networking tool for the iPhone. "At this point in the game, you're toast unless you have something completely unbelievable."

Posted by | Mon, Dec 15, 2008 - 10:28 AM

December 15 News from Around the Web

In-Win Commander 850W PSU Review @ Rbmods and other reviews from around the web can be found by visiting our forums!

Today we get a chance to check out a new power supply manufacturer, In-Win, which is a company that makes a wide range of PC products. They sent us a sample of their latest power supply offering, the In-Win Commander 850W PSU, which boost a military paint scheme. Will this power supply be ready to battle some of the more established brands? Let’s find out in this review.

Posted by | Mon, Dec 15, 2008 - 07:34 AM

Microsoft confirms that all versions of IE have critical new bug

If you have not made the switch to Firefox or another IE alternative - many of you haven't according to recent statistics, beware of a bug that could leave your PC vulnerable.

The unpatched bug in Internet Explorer 7 (IE7) that hackers are now exploiting also exists in older versions of the browser, including the still-widely-used IE6, Microsoft Corp. said late yesterday. Today, a Danish security researcher added that Microsoft's original countermeasure advice was insufficient and recommended that users take one of the new steps the company spelled out. In a revised security advisory, Microsoft said research confirmed that the bug is within all its browsers, including those it currently supports -- IE5.01, IE6 and IE7 -- as well as IE8 Beta 2, a preview version that the company doesn't support through normal channels. Users running any of those browsers on Windows 2000, XP, Vista, Server 2003 or Server 2008 are at risk, Microsoft said.

Posted by | Sun, Dec 14, 2008 - 09:56 PM

Microsoft makes iPhone App

Microsoft has decided to enter the foray and develops its own app for the iPhone called "Seadragon". This app allows you speedily zoom into HQ images. Head to iTunes for the FREE download. In other news, hell officially freezes over.

Microsoft apparently isn’t going to ignore the iPhone completely. They released a Seadragon application for the iPhone today that lets users “infinitely zoom” on high quality images with near zero transition times. The embed below shows Seadragon in action, and the experience on the iPhone is very similar. We’ve covered Seadragon applications like TouchWall and pptPlex previously, and in March Microsoft built it into Silverlight. You can browse a few photosets included in the application or add your own content from Photosynth or any RSS feed.

Posted by | Sun, Dec 14, 2008 - 09:50 PM

Game industry booms amid the economic gloom

During the Great Depression, Hollywood thrived because it offered Americans a cheap, communal escape from gloomy times. Now there's the Wii. Overall retail sales are horrible, the stock market has cratered, industry giants are laying off thousands with one hand and begging for billions with the other. But for the video game business, the good times continue to roll.

"The whole gaming industry is not only recession-proof, it can thrive in times of recession," said Robert Thompson, a professor of popular culture at Syracuse University. The latest evidence of that came Thursday, when market research firm NPD Group released its monthly report on the video game industry's retail sales. Through November, retailers have sold $16 billion worth of game hardware, software and accessories this year. That's a record for the first 11 months of a year, up 22 percent from the same period last year, according to NPD.

SiliconValley.com

Posted by | Fri, Dec 12, 2008 - 11:00 AM

December 12 News from Around the Web

Cooler Master Cosmos Black Label Computer Case @ BmR and other reviews from around the web can be found by visiting our forums!

Back in September of 2007 Benchmark Reviews tested Cooler Master's Cosmos RC-1000 full-tower computer case, and was so impressed with the fine attention to detail that it earned our Golden Tachometer Award. Then, a few month later in February of 2008, we witnessed the Cooler Master Cosmos S arrive to the scene with a darkened appearance and sport-car curves. So it's fitting then that Cooler Master offer their most revered computer case in a limited edition set. In this article, Benchmark Reviews tests the Cooler Master Cosmos Black Label Limited Edition E-ATX full-tower computer case kit (SKU: RC-1000S-KKN2-GP), as a supplemental installment to our original comprehensive Cosmos 1000 review.

Posted by | Fri, Dec 12, 2008 - 10:21 AM

Logitech G18 Keyboard Pictured With Full Color LCD Display

With the G13 gameboard officially introduced, Logitech is apparently preparing to unveil a new gaming peripheral, the G18 keyboard. Seen below, the G18 has quite a secsi design, 12 programmable G keys on its left side and an LCD screen at the top. As opposed to the G15, the G18 has a color LCD to display various things you want to see on a keyboard.

Logitech G18 Gaming Keyboard

We spied the Logitech G13 Gamepad when it was announced earlier today, and now Engadget Chinese has caught wind of something else that may be in store for us. The keyboard pictured above is apparently the G18, and we while we have almost no solid info on it, we can glean a few things, such as the apparent groupings of fast function keys on the left side of the board (some which seem to be numbered G11-G15), not to mention that tiny display at the center. We don't know when we can expect this beast to arrive, but the G13 Gamepad is expected in January so fingers crossed.

Posted by | Thu, Dec 11, 2008 - 10:00 AM

Elpida Completes Development of New 50nm Process 2-Gigabit Mobile RAM

Elpida Memory announced late yesterday that they had completed development of a 50nm process 2-gigabit Mobile RAM product using 50nm process technology with 193nm (ArF) immersion lithography and copper interconnect. The ultra low-power features of Mobile RAM are ideal for use in mobile phones, portable multimedia devices, portable internet-related devices and other handheld device applications. This is important as it will remove the delay found when doing video playback on smart phones like the Blackberry Bold. The Blackberry Bold plays movies fine, but good luck skipping a scene.

The new product optimizes the pad layout for PoP (Package on Package), MCP (Multi Chip Package) and other packaging technology and is designed to meet the need for smaller yet higher capacity memory packages for use in mobile devices. It uses an x32-bit I/O configuration based on double-data rate (DDR) that can operate at an extremely fast speed of 400Mbps (200MHz) to transmit data at the rate of 1.6 gigabytes per second. Thus it can meet demand for high-resolution high-quality graphics display and high bandwidth video play.

Posted by | Thu, Dec 11, 2008 - 09:50 AM

U.S. sues Sony Music over children's online privacy

Sony BMG, which is changing its name to Sony Music Entertainment, was sued on Wednesday by the U.S. government, which accused the music company of violating federal rules aimed at protecting the online privacy of children. The music company improperly accepted registrations on its music websites from users who were under 13, without obtaining consent from their parents, according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan.

The civil suit, which seeks unspecified monetary penalties, said Sony Music was in violation of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Rule, which is enforced by the Federal Trade Commission. The case was brought by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan. A Sony BMG executive told Reuters that the litigation is in the process of being resolved, with the company agreeing to pay a fine of $1 million, to put in place a screening process that complies with the FTC rules and hire a Web compliance officer to monitor the issue.

Reuters Technology News

Posted by | Thu, Dec 11, 2008 - 09:37 AM

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 295 Video Card Pictured

VR-Zon leaked out the first picture of the upcoming NVIDIA GeForce GTX 295 video card this morning. The GeForce GTX 295 is slated to launch at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) this coming January.

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 295 Video Card

The GeForce GTX 295 is based on the sandwich design again like the 9800GX2 with two 55nm GT200 GPUs. As you can see, there are 2 DVI and 1 Display Port. As for the power connectors, it uses 8+6 pins so that gives you a clue how much power this card needs. The pricing is yet to be disclosed but card makers are speculating that Nvidia will price it competitively against AMD 4870X2 card this time.

Posted by | Wed, Dec 10, 2008 - 10:50 AM

Intel Completes Next Generation, 32nm Process Development Phase

Intel Corporation has completed the development phase of its next-generation manufacturing process that further shrinks chip circuitry to 32 nanometers (a billionth of a meter). The company is on track for production readiness of this future generation using even more energy-efficient, denser and higher performing transistors in the fourth quarter of 2009.

Intel will provide a multitude of technical details around the 32nm process technology along with several other topics during presentations at the International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM) next week in San Francisco. Finishing the development phase for the company’s 32nm process technology and production readiness in this timeframe means that Intel remains on pace with its ambitious product and manufacturing cadence referred to as the company’s “tick-tock” strategy.

Posted by | Wed, Dec 10, 2008 - 10:45 AM

Sony to Launch "Home" Virtual Community for PS3

Sony Corporation has announced that its much delayed virtual community for owners of the PlayStation 3 game console will launch worldwide this Thursday. "Home" has been running in beta for that past few months and after many delays is ready to be rolled out. PS3 owners will be able to download Home software and create three-dimensional avatars to interact with friends and other PS3 owners. Multiplayer games such as Motostorm and SOCOM will be easier to organize as well.

The new service is aimed at giving users a place to interact with other PS3 users. As in the "Second Life" virtual world, Home users create online characters or avatars. They can chat with other visitors, play games and customise their own sites in the virtual world.

Reuters Technology News

Posted by | Wed, Dec 10, 2008 - 10:07 AM

Office Depot to Close 112 Underperforming Retail Stores

Office Depot says it will close 112 stores over the next three months and open fewer stores in 2009 in an effort to cut costs. I can't locate a list of store closing, but I was at the local Office Depot here in Missouri yesterday and I was the only person in the store. Not a good sign as I would guess some locations in Missouri will be on that list.

The office-supply retailer will reduce its store base to 1,163. Locations being closed include 45 in the Central U.S, 40 in the Northeast and Canada, 19 in the West and eight in the South. Office Depot also will close six of its 33 North American distribution facilities. In 2009, Office Depot will close 14 stores and open just 20 stores, half of what it had planned.

Associated Press

Posted by | Wed, Dec 10, 2008 - 10:04 AM

Intel takes SKorea's fair trade watchdog to court

Intel Corp. said Wednesday it is taking South Korea's fair trade watchdog to court over a decision to fine the semiconductor giant for undercutting competitors. Intel filed a formal complaint at the Seoul High Court to try and overturn the Korea Fair Trade Commission decision, the Santa Clara, California-based company said in a statement.

he company said it was reacting to a final written decision by the commission last month ordering Intel to pay 26.6 billion won ($18.6 million) for violating fair trade rules. The regulator ruled that Intel paid rebates to South Korean computer companies to undercut main rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc. of Sunnyvale, California. The commission charged Intel last year with violating antitrust laws after completing a two-year probe and released an initial decision in June.

SiliconValley.com

Posted by | Wed, Dec 10, 2008 - 10:00 AM

DRAM contract prices fall another 10% in 1H of December on weak demand

Contract prices of DRAM chips are seen to drop another 10% in the first half of December, reflecting a continuation of low order visibility and weak end-market demand, according to DRAMeXchange. During the fourth quarter, DRAM contract prices have so far declined 37% on average, DRAMeXchange added.

The average price of 1GB DDR2-667 modules currently stands at US$8.5 and contract quotes for 2GB DDR2 modules have slid to US$18, DRAMeXchange said. The disappointing pricing trend has emerged as a result of huge orders cuts by PC system vendors. Over the past five months, the price of 1Gb DDR2-667 chips has edged down by 63% to US$0.94, according to DRAMeXchange. Meanwhile, contract prices of 2Gb DDR2-667 chips have been slashed by almost 60%, DRAMeXchange added.

DigiTimes Daily IT News

Posted by | Wed, Dec 10, 2008 - 09:58 AM

Logitech Introduces Game-Changing G13 Gameboard

Logitech has just announced the G13 Advanced Gameboard, a hybrid gaming keyboard designed to complement your keyboard and mouse that gives you comfort and control for long sessions of PC gaming. The G13 gameboard features a powerful built-in LCD screen, 25 programmable keys and even has onboard memory to help take your gameplay to the next level. The LCD shows not only your game stats, but also system information, and communications and in-game information from other players.

Logitech G13 Gameboard

Delivering increased comfort, the iconic contoured design complements the natural shape of your hand and fingers, while the smooth, concave home-row keys make it easy to locate buttons by touch. With three game modes, 25 programmable keys and a programmable analog stick, the G13 gameboard offers up to 87 ways for you to control your game (software installation required). And you can set up custom button-profiles for each one of your favorite titles. You can even create macros on the fly without having to pause your game.

Posted by | Wed, Dec 10, 2008 - 02:43 AM

Sony to cut 16,000 jobs to reduce costs

Japan's Sony Corp said it will cut 16,000 jobs, curb investment and pull out of businesses to save $1.1 billion a year as the financial crisis ravages demand for its electronics products. The job cuts are the biggest announced by an Asian company so far in the crisis and underscore the challenges facing Sony, which has fallen behind Apple Inc's iPod in portable music and is losing money on flat TVs.

Sony said it would cut 8,000 regular workers, or roughly 4 percent of its workforce of 185,800, and an equal number or more temporary and contract staff. But analysts warned the measures may not be bold enough to streamline a sprawling empire that ranges from semiconductors to movies and insurance. The cuts are also risky because they mean Sony will be investing less in future growth.

Reuters Technology News

Posted by | Tue, Dec 09, 2008 - 12:01 PM

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