Top Tech News

Intel Core i7 Extreme Boosts Portable Workstations

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 14:45:31 -0500

Intel this week offered a preview of platforms using its Core i7 Extreme Edition processor. Although the company is aiming the processor heavily at the gaming market, analysts said there are also clear business applications for the processor.

Code-named Gulftown, the i7-980X Extreme Edition processor is the industry's first 32nm, six-core processor with 12 computing threads. Intel introduced the i7 family last September with its exclusive Turbo Boost technology and Hyper-Threading Technology.

Turbo Boost is built into the latest-generation Nehalem micro-architecture and automatically allows processor cores to run faster than the base operating frequency if the chip is operating below power, current and temperature specification limits. Hyper-Threading Technology, along with Turbo Boost, works to increase performance of both multi-threaded and single-threaded workloads.

Portable Workstation Benefits

"The Core i7 chip has a special sensor built into it. If it detects that an application that would benefit from high throughput is launched, it can actually boost the clock speed and throughput of the chip by about 10 to 15 percent," said Charles King, principal analyst at Pund-IT. "So if you've got a graphics application where you need an extra oomph, the Turbo Boost can give you that extra kick-start to get a little bit better performance."

This is a clear win on the gaming front, but King said it also shines in the portable workstation market. With a Core i7 chip featuring Turbo Boost, engineers can take their workstation on the road without losing speed or productivity. A second business application for the Core i7 is support for HDMI high-definition video output in notebooks. King pointed to Dell's Vostro 3000 laptops, announced last week, as a prime example.

"If you are an executive or high-end salesperson who's going out on calls, this gives you the ability to run sophisticated graphics applications, high-def video, and other kinds of...

iPad Will Read Books Aloud, Support Open EPUB Format

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 14:00:22 -0500

Eager to be the first on your block with an iPad? Apple started taking orders for the tablets on Friday. Wi-Fi models running from $499 to $699 will be available on April 3; 3G models, costing $629 to $829, won't be available until late April.

Along with the advance orders, Apple released some details on what's expected to be a key app for the new device -- e-books. Promoting the iBooks feature of the iPad, Apple's web site explains, "iBooks works with VoiceOver, the screen reader in iPad, so it can read you the contents of any page. Even with all these extras, reading is so natural on iPad, the technology seems to disappear."

The site also promotes iBooks as a totally new reading experience. "Turn iPad to portrait to view a single page. Or view two pages at once by rotating to landscape. Change the text size. Even change the font. Touch and hold any word to look it up in the built-in dictionary or Wikipedia, or to search for it throughout the book and on the web," the site says.

Support for EPUB Format

And in a positive sign for open-source books, Apple announced the iPad will support the EPUB format for digital books -- even those that are not offered through Apple's e-commerce sites.

"The iBooks app uses the EPUB format -- the most popular open book format in the world," Apple's site says. "That makes it easy for publishers to create iBook versions of your favorite reads. And you can add free EPUB titles to iTunes and sync them to the iBooks app on your iPad."

EPUB features advanced presentation for digital books, including in-line raster and vector images, embedded metadata, digital-rights management support, and Cascading Style Sheets styling.

Authors Demand a Voice

That support could go a long way to making the...

Geolocation Stars at South by Southwest

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:58:43 -0500

What's likely to be the hottest tech trend at this weekend's trendy South by Southwest Interactive in Austin, the powwow that has become a launch pad for the coolest, hippest new technology? Location, location, location.

The conference is shaping up to be a coming-out party for Foursquare, an application that lets people flag where they are -- and for the entire category of fledgling geo-location services. A bumper crop of services, notably Gowalla, Brightkite, Loopt and Where.com, are being embraced by smartphone owners to socialize and play games.

Venture capitalists are pouring in money. Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers has invested $9.5 million in Booyah, maker of a location-based social-gaming iPhone app.

"This is the year of location (at the show)," says Booyah CEO Keith Lee. Last week, Twitter said it would supply developers with richer geo-location data. In January, review site Yelp added a check-in option to its iPhone app. About 5 percent of iPhone apps have location services. Facebook officials won't comment, but independent tech analyst Greg Sterling and others expect it to soon add location-sharing features.

The service with the most buzz is the year-old Foursquare, with just 500,000 users.

Foursquare players earn points by visiting restaurants, bars or museums in major cities. The payoffs range from special deals to Boy Scout-like badges and "mayorships," essentially bragging rights for hanging out at certain locations. "This isn't mainstream, but it's the talk of tech insiders," says Sterling.

To build buzz as Twitter did a few years ago, the services are using the show to reach the general public. Last year, Foursquare benefited from a marketing blitz in which it doled out special badges, digital mayorships and other goodies. This year, rival Gowalla is throwing a big party with Lance Armstrong's LiveStrong foundation, and it has a partnership with Chevrolet.

"All the early...

Microsoft Xbox 360 Leads Gaming Sales in February

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 14:02:50 -0500

Microsoft's Xbox 360 video-game console moved to the top of the U.S. market in February. The software giant's console had been number two behind the Nintendo Wii for nearly three years.

The popularity of the new BioShock 2 game may have been behind Microsoft's sales of 422,000 Xbox 360s in February, an eight percent increase from a year earlier, according to NPD Group. Nintendo sold 397,900 Wiis and Sony sold 360,100 PlayStation 3 consoles in February.

The BioShock 2 game for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 was released on Feb. 10 and sold 750,000 units. Of those, 75 percent, or 562,900, were for the Xbox 360.

"We're excited about the biggest February in Xbox 360 history," said Dennis Durkin, COO of Microsoft's interactive entertainment business, in an e-mail. "We know consumers are hungry for our 2010 portfolio of exclusive blockbuster games, industry-leading online experiences over Xbox LIVE, and for the holiday release of Project Natal for Xbox 360."

A Sense of Excitement

While BioShock 2 has created a buzz among gamers, so have sensing controllers. Microsoft's Project Natal system will let Xbox players use body motions to control the game instead of pressing buttons or waving a controller.

Microsoft wasted no time in getting celebrities to praise Project Natal's potential. Boxer Sugar Ray Leonard called the technology "amazing"; former NFL quarterback Willie Gault said it was one of the "most realistic game experiences" he has had; and pro beach volleyball player Misty-May Treanor said it's great for someone who, like her, is in physical therapy.

This week, Sony revealed additional information about its own new motion-control sensor. Dubbed the PlayStation Move, Sony first provided details last June. The controller allows PS3 gamers to use an Eye web camera and a wand to detect motion.

The controller will be packaged as a starter kit...

Barnes & Noble Will Be on Apple's iPad, a nook Rival

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 11:39:24 -0500

With the e-book industry expected to explode into a multibillion-dollar business in the next three years, Barnes & Noble wants to open a new chapter in sales by making sure its products are available on Apple's iPad. The retail giant on Thursday confirmed reports that it is preparing an iPad application in time for the anticipated April 3 release.

Digital Library Preserved

"Designed specifically for the iPad, our new B&N eReader will give our customers access to more than one million e-books, magazines and newspapers in the Barnes & Noble e-bookstore, as well as the existing content in their Barnes & Noble [online] digital library," Barnes&Noble.com administrator Paul Hochman wrote on a company blog.

The app will allow customers who have already downloaded content to Barnes & Noble's nook e-reader to access the same material on the iPad, Hochman said.

While the iPad is a direct attack on the nook, which debuted over the holiday season, as well as Amazon.com's Kindle e-reader, the B&N eReader shows that Barnes & Noble is doing everything it can to adjust to the digital age as paper books sit longer on the shelves.

"Barnes & Noble is first and foremost a content retailer, not a gadget maker," said consumer-devices researcher Avi Greengart of Current Analysis. "It is far more important for [the company] to ensure that when -- or if, as the case may be -- reading moves from the physical realm to digital that Barnes & Noble maintains its place in the distribution chain."

Greengart also predicted an iPad app for the Kindle, which is already available for Apple's iPhone and iPod touch. The app, he noted, would have to be optimized for the iPad's higher screen resolution.

Stiff Competition

A ChangeWave survey last week found that 40 percent of the firm's research-network members who plan to buy an e-reader...

New Google Feature Will Hunt for Products Nearby

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 10:01:43 -0500

You're standing on a street corner and remember that you need to pick up a video game for your sister's birthday. On your smartphone, you search Google and tap on the "in stock nearby" link next to the blue dots that show up for some of the search results. Google then shows you which local retailers have the game in stock.

That buying omniscience, where your mobile device can tell you whether what you want is nearby, was announced Thursday by the search giant.

iPhone, Palm, Android

The blue dots in the search results link to participating retailers, which currently include Best Buy, Sears, Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn, and West Elm. The "in stock nearby" link connects to the seller's page, where the retailer near you notes whether the given item is "in stock" or has "limited availability." The distance from your current location is also indicated if you have enabled My Location or manually specified your location.

Google also has forms online so other retailers can become part of the program.

The U.S.-based functionality is available for an iPhone, a Palm webOS phone, or any device using the Android mobile operating system. After going to Google.com, the user clicks on the "more" link, and then "shopping," or, alternatively, looks for "shopping results" in the search results. Mobile product search with local inventory was first shown in December by Vic Gundotra, Google's vice president of engineering.

Andrew Frank, a research director at Gartner, noted that local-inventory product search is "part of a trend" where new functionality is coming about because the technical feasibility of various pieces have come together.

In this case, GPS, inventory feeds, and powerful mobile devices are combining with cloud-based search services to allow a user to find the nearest product in stock.

'Lot More Pressure' on Retailers

This kind of...

FCC Posts Tools To Measure Broadband Speeds

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 09:25:09 -0500

The Federal Communications Commission unveiled three digital tools Thursday that will enable consumers, businesses, schools and other organizations to test the real-world performance of their fixed and mobile broadband connections and help identify gaps in the nation's broadband coverage. The tools include downloadable applications for mobile devices based on Google's Android platform and Apple's iPhone OS.

With the launch of the testing apps, the commission's goal is to empower consumers, promote innovation and investment, and encourage competition by fostering transparency, noted FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski.

"The FCC's new digital tools will arm users with real-time information about their broadband connection and the agency with useful data about service across the country," Genachowski said. "By informing consumers about their broadband service quality, these tools help eliminate confusion and make the market work more effectively."

Seeking the Public's Input

The fixed broadband test tool at broadband.gov measures connection speed and latency, and reports the results directly to users as well as the FCC. What's more, the commission has launched a broadband reporting tool that will enable Americans to submit the address of a "dead zone" where broadband connectivity is unavailable.

The mobile test tools for Android and iPhone OS devices are available from the Android Market and Apple's App Store. "In the future, the FCC anticipates making additional broadband testing applications available for consumer use and across different mobile platforms," noted broadband task force attorney-adviser Jordan Usdan in a blog.

All three offerings will help the commission gather data to analyze broadband performance and availability on a geographic basis, Usdan noted. To protect user privacy, the FCC said it will not release any personal information gathered by the new tools.

The FCC's national broadband plan, which is slated for release next week, will recommend ways in which Congress can help consumers understand the difference between...

Palm Teeters in Crowded Smartphone Market

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:40:34 -0500

Last year, Palm thought it had all the pieces for a turnaround in the market it pioneered: A new CEO known for making the iPod a household name, a sleek new smart phone called the Pre and fresh, intuitive operating software.

Instead, the company is in danger of going the way of its 1990s Palm Pilot, making it the latest innovator to learn that great technology and an accomplished leader don't guarantee success.

Several analysts say Palm Inc. might not remain an independent phone maker for more than a year or two. It just could be too late to stop the momentum enjoyed by Apple Inc.'s iPhone and Research In Motion Ltd.'s BlackBerrys -- not to mention a growing crop of phones running Google Inc.'s Android software.

Palm spokesman Derick Mains said the company had no comment.

Consumers have gravitated toward smart phones for their versatile features, such as Internet access and applications that can be downloaded. One out of six U.S. adults had a smart phone last year, according to Forrester Research.

But Palm -- a leader in the early days of handheld computing -- was slow to adapt. It began fighting back in earnest in January 2009 at the International Consumer Electronics Show. It unveiled the stylish touch-screen Pre and webOS, software that allows Palm phones to do something the iPhone can't -- run multiple apps simultaneously.

Ed Colligan, who was then Palm's CEO, said at the time that the new products somewhat marked a relaunching of Palm itself. But it hasn't gone as smoothly as Palm hoped.

Palm released the Pre last June, for use on Sprint Nextel Corp.'s wireless network, and followed it in November with a cheaper model, the Pixi. Verizon Wireless started selling upgraded models of these phones in January, and AT&T Inc. plans to offer webOS phones later this year.

Despite...

Could New Cisco High-Speed Router Save the Internet?

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 09:33:32 -0500

It won't make your iPhone run any faster right away, but Cisco says its new generation of high-speed routing equipment -- unveiled to much fanfare Tuesday -- is designed to handle a rising tide of video and mobile data transmissions that is threatening to flood the Internet.

Cisco executives said the company's new carrier routing system has the potential to handle 322 terabytes of data per second, or enough to let every person in China make a video call simultaneously.

"It's the foundation for the next generation of the Internet," CEO John Chambers said as the company announced the new system, dubbed CRS-3, in a Web broadcast for analysts and reporters. Chambers said the system, which AT&T is already using in field tests of a new high-speed Internet service, is key to Cisco's vision of a future where businesses and consumers communicate increasingly with mobile devices and Internet video, which requires far more capacity than simple text or still images.

Routers are the traffic cops of the Internet, steering packets of information to their intended destinations across vast and complex networks. Cisco said its new equipment can handle three times the volume of its previous system, introduced in 2004, and has 12 times the capacity of competing systems from other networking companies.

Analysts said the China analogy was somewhat overheated, since in practical terms that much traffic would completely overwhelm other components of existing networks. And in the continuing horse race of research and development, experts said it won't take long for Cisco's rivals to match or beat at least some of the new system's technical specifications.

Anticipating the Cisco news, rival Juniper Networks announced Monday that another telecommunications provider, Verizon, is using Juniper's equipment in pilot deployments of Internet networks capable of operating at 100 gigabits per second, or the...

Software Allows Cross-Platform Gaming Competition

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 09:33:54 -0500

The iPhone lets users play games with 3-D graphics, but with a key limitation: They can compete only against other iPhone users.

Now new game software is promising to allow them to play those same complex games against friends using other devices, such as PCs or phones running Google's Android operating system.

The development is an important one for the video game industry and for the smart-phone platforms, said Ben Bajarin, a consumer technology analyst at Creative Strategies, an industry analysis and consulting firm.

"It makes games more valuable when they can (be played) cross-platform," that is, on a variety of devices, Bajarin said.

On Thursday, game maker Namco Networks plans to begin selling a new version of its pool game, "Pool Pro Online 3," in the iPhone app store. The game features new technology developed by Namco called UniteSDK. Later this year, Namco, best known for making "Pac-Man," will release the game for other devices, including Mac and Windows-based PCs, Android and Windows Mobile smart phones and so-called features phones, which don't have a full operating system.

Once those versions are released, iPhone users will be able to shoot pool against players on those platforms. Namco also plans to incorporate the technology into some of its other games and to license it to developers.

Namco's announcement follows a related one by online gaming company Bigpoint and game development company Unity Technologies. On Monday, Bigpoint said it has created a racing game using Unity's software that will allow iPhone users to compete in real-time against friends who are playing on PCs.

Although the game is only a test version, company officials said Bigpoint plans to release the game at the E3 trade show in June and that it will eventually be playable on a range of devices, including other smart phones.

The idea...