Latest Sony Vaio UX490N UMPC

The Japanese consumer electronics giant, Sony has recently announced the launch of its latest UMPC, named as Vaio UX490N. This ultra-portable mobile PC features an Intel Core 2 Solo U2200 ULV running at 1.2Ghz, along with 1GB of memory DDR2 RAM and an 4.5-inches LCD display with nice SVGA 1024×600 resolution displaying pixie-dwarfing text size.

The main improvement of this ultra PC if compared to previous models is a new kind of solid state drive (SSD) with 48GB capacity instead of Ye Olde Hard Diske Drive.

As same as its predecessor, there’re also a built-in microphone, onboard monaural speakers as well as 2 cameras located on the front and on the rear, with 0.3 megapixels and 1.3 megapixels, correspondingly.

The new Sony Vaio UX490N UMPC which incorporates a fingerprint scanner is comes with a suggested price of $2,499. Check more details of this micro laptop on its official site.

Developers Start Develop applications on iPhone

The Much awaited phone developers dream kit the beta version of Apple iPhone SDK Beta 2 Now Available for download Surf to Apple Developer Connection - iPhone Dev Center at http://developer.apple.com/iphone/program/

Apple has released the second beta version of the software development kit (SDK) for developing applications for the iPhone handset and iPod Touch player The latest Add-ons on the new updated beta SDK is

1. GUI interface builder
2. Xcode integrated development environment
3. The phone simulator, frameworks and samples, compilers
4. Shark analysis tool

But many developers are not happy with some of Apple’s terms and conditions which apple ahs put out on a commercial sense that is to Apple’s requirement that all distribution of applications to iPhone users go through the company’s App Store.

But it is not a good news for the developers that Apple iPhone SDK is not allowing access to iTunes application which might have enabled developers create many cutting edge music applications.

Seiko epson creates hi-res e-ink display

This new electronic paper display from Seiko Epson crams an astounding 1600 x 1200 resolution into a 6.7-inch diagonal screen. That’s nearly 2-million pixels in a device that’s about the size of a letter-sized sheet of paper folded in half.

According to my rough math, the display cranks out over 230 pixels-per-inch, about 3 times that of the typical LCD computer screen. Perfect for use in electronic book readers, the flat panel measures in at just 3mm thick, and can display 1400 pages on a single button-cell battery.

While Seiko Epson hasn’t revealed any products which use the new display, it’s only a matter of time before we see these in real world devices.

SONY PRS-505 Digital Book Reader Announced in USA

The new paperback book-sized reader has the capacity to hold up to 160 books, The company provides credits for 100 classic books such as the work of Shakespeare and Jane Austen on an eBook store called the connect.

Users can use the digital book reader for around 7,500 pages views. Moreover, the new digital book reader comes with new control to mimic page-turning. This enables the user to navigate the device quickly.

The SONY PRS-505 Digital Book Reader will be available from this month for $299 (approx: Rs.12000) in US through the Sony Style stores.

Nokia N97 Phone (First Touch-Screen Nseries Phone)

Well, this is a rarity. For the first time in a long time, Nokia launched a surprise announcement with the latest Nseries handset, the N97. Already the first Nseries touch-screen phone, the N97 also packs in a slide-out/tilt-able QWERTY keyboard (can someone say arc slider?) and the usual badass Nseries features.

There’s definitely a lot to like with Nokia’s second official touch-screen handset. Unlike the cheaper 5800 XpressMusic, the quad-band N97 is all about the high-end, with the looks and features to match.

For starters, it’s not a small handset. Measuring 117.2 x 55.3 x 15.9 mm, the N97 also weighs in at 150 grams - that’s 5.3 ounces. Compare that to the original Nokia N95 (120 grams), and the current Xperia X1 (145 grams). Expect some heft with this phone, although not as much as the Nokia N90 aka “the brick.” (173 grams)

So first up in the feature section is the touch-screen, which is a generously-sized 3.5 inch, 640×360 widescreen (16:9) display. It’s impressive despite the fact that the screen is resistive rather than the more sensitive capacitive.

The camera is the high-end industry standard 5 megapixels, with Carl Zeiss optics, dual LED flash, TV-out, and 30 fps video to boot. With 32 gigabytes of internal memory plus expandable memory that supports up to 16 more gigabytes, my guess is that you won’t be running out of space any time soon. Compare that to last year’s N81 which I believe had a grand total of 5 megabytes of internal memory. Phones have definitely come a long way.

Music features are pretty much what we’ve come to expect from Nokia. Stereo speakers, A2DP, and even the 3.5mm jack.

Battery life, at least on paper, looks good. The N97 uses a 1500 mAh battery, which is good enough for 6.6 hours of talk time (GSM) or 5.3 hours (3G). Sweet.

There’s always a huge drawback when it comes to this much awesomeness, and the drawback in this case is the wait. The N97 ain’t comin’ out until the first half of 2009, which is damn long time. There might even be an Xperia X2 by then. Don’t forget to add +5 months to that date if you live in the USA.

Finally, expect the N97 to be priced at 550 euros, or $698 USD.

Nokia E63 Phone (E71 Clone)

The Nokia E63 takes the E71 a step sideways.

Today Nokia dropped an E-bomb on the world with the (completely random) announcement of the E63 smartphone. Essentially it’s a budget E71, with the exception of a couple nice features aimed towards the consumer market. Since it’s an Eseries device, it still retains business-y features such as the ability to switch work/personal modes. More details inside.

In a nutshell, here’s the differences between the E63 and E71:

Nokia E63

Size 113 x 59 x 13 mm
Camera 2 megapixel camera
Audio Jack 3.5 mm standard audio jack
Talk Time 11 hours
GPS No


Nokia E71

Size 114 x 57 x 10 mm
Camera 3.2 megapixel camera
Audio Jack 2.5 mm audio jack
Talk Time 10.5 hours
GPS Yes


-”Better” features are highlighted in bold.

The E63 isn’t what I’d call a step forwards or backwards, even though it loses the GPS and the higher pixel count camera. It’s more or less a step sideways. The way I see it, Nokia is just starting to recognize the trend towards Blackberry-ish devices with full keyboards. Look at the success of recent Blackberry models as well as the Palm Centro, a phone that I personally think has a horrible shape and design:

Three Vertu Ferrari Phones Hit the Streets

Nokia’s uber-expensive Vertu line of non-smartphones now has an uber-expensive name attached to it: Ferrari. And Nero, Rosso, and Giallo.

The Nero is a limited-edition Vertu, and besides being obscenely priced, it’s the only one of the three with an overlaid red sapphire crystal earpiece. There will be a mere 2,009 Ferrari Nero Vertu phones sold, so get yours before they’re gone.

All three phones share PVD-coated ceramic battery covers that resemble Ferrari car hoods, Ferrari-specific themes and ring tones featuring the exclusive Ferrari engine sound. No word on actual features, but we’d expect private access to the Vertu Concierge and Vertu Bunker (Fortress). And possibly 3G and wi-fi, if the previous Vertu Signature is anything to go by.

Get the lowdown on the Vertu Ferrari Ascent Ti collection at Sybarites.

Nokia’s 5800 XpressMusic Starts Shipping

The 5800 XpressMusic is shipping...to select countries.

Originally code-named the Tube, the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic touch-screen midrange smartphone has officially started shipping to select countries, according to a Nokia press release. It’s part of the XpressMusic line, which generally means a lot of music-oriented features and plastic, but in all honesty the device is one of the few affordable touch-screen phones out there.

How affordable is affordable, you ask? Try 279 Euros ($359), unsubsidized.

Unfortunately, the list of countries actually getting the 5800 is rather…random. Included are Russia, Spain, India, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Finland, but a previous article also mentioned Indonesia and the U.A.E. Of note is the lack of most European countries, excluding Nokia’s own native Finland. A previous article by Reuters suggested that Nokia’s strategy might be to focus on the more emerging markets rather than the established ones first.

Nokia 2608 Phone (CDMA-ified 3555)

Continuing Nokia’s time-honored tradition of releasing dumbphones aimed at the CDMA market, the Nokia 2608, at first glance, actually looks like a slick phone. It’s very similar to the 3555, complete with the seamless back, although the keypad more closely resembles a Nokia N90 than anything. And it looks extremely thick.

In terms of features, however, the 2608 is pretty lacking. There is the standard integrated loudspeaker, “quick-press” flashlight, FM radio, some LED indicators for missed calls (something I wish was on every phone), and voice recorder. Nothing really out of the ordinary, except “quick touch access to one’s PC”, which I’m still trying to puzzle out. Is it VNC? Or simply a USB cable connection?

The Nokia 2608 hasn’t been priced yet, but the official bulletin board press release states that it’s the cheapest CDMA phone around. Expect the phone to hit select markets (not including the USA) some time in the first quarter of 2009, when it’ll be overshadowed by the release of the N97.

The Nokia “Aeon”

The “Aeon” seems to be your “typical” razr-thin candybar form factor cell phone with no actual buttons. No, it’s not the next generation of Nokia’s L’amour Fashion Collection. The bottom half of the prototype pictured here is actually a touch-screen display that can change (I might be going out on a limb here) into any kind of menu, button, keypad, whatever. It’s so damn cool that I’m almost speechless. I mean, yeah, the touch screen method brings up a ton of quirky problems - like causing damage to the display with those pointy thumbs of yours, among others - but it’s also so innovative and (brilliantly simple) that I can’t even associate it with the Nokia name. What happened to those super thick oversized fatso phones that Nokia keeps churning out?

So the Aeon got me pretty excited about what’s coming in the future of wireless technology. Of course, by the time this phone actually comes to market (if ever), I’m sure Motorola will have similar devices available, all with those really annoying vowel-less names that nobody wants to pronounce. I really hope their next set of phones are called KRPR or something. It’d be more fitting.

A side note on technology , feasibility and the New Product Development process.

As a trained brain innovator for now over 50 product innovation brainstorming sessions in the past 15 years, I am amazed at the fumbling that goes on AFTER the session is over. Most innovation sessions end up with hundreds of potentially great product ideas, which are then filtered down to maybe a dozen really good, viable new product concepts. The best of course, are based on the application of new technological solutions to the problems at hand.

Immediately after an innovation session is over, most marketing groups run out to test the viability of the concept in the “marketplace” via VoC (Voice Of the Customer) research or focus groups before they even know if the product is technically feasible: They try to get a feel for whether the market will buy it and under what conditions. I have seen way too many products come back from focus groups “good to go”, beloved by the customer, all featured up, before they have been thought through from a technical and engineering standpoint. The marketing group comes back to engineering with a big smile on their face and a big “thumbs up” saying “OK, the customers love it, now go build it.”

If engineers know anything, it is that almost anything can be built, but at what price and what misery. So the marketers and builders of “business cases” ignore at least four of the six significant areas of feasibility in this rush to Market Feasibility testing: They miss Technical (Engineering) Feasibility, obviously; Manufacturing Feasibility -if you don’t know the technology and the engineering, how the heck do you know if and how you can build it; Pricing (part of the Financial Feasibility), like duh, how much can I charge for it or more appropriately, how much will the customer pay for it; and Patent Feasibility - if you don’t know the technology how can you know if you can protect it or, more importantly, are you infringing on someone else patent. (That only leaves Distribution Feasibility- which means do you have channels in which to get this thing to market untouched.)

The most logical approach, an approach that is from my standpoint cheaper, both in time to market and sunk cost, in the long run, is to look into the technological feasibility of the product, BEFORE you start showing wild ass NPD concepts to the market. If you try to build something to test its technological feasibility, to prove that from an engineering standpoint you can build it, you will by default come up with: 1) A notion of how and if you can manufacture it . 2) You will also get a guess at what it might cost along with what the feature set will cost; 3) You will no doubt go to the patent archives to look for ways of solving the problem, since one of the best ways to solve a problem is to find out how people have solved it in the past. So by going straight to the technological feasibility exercise, you will reduce uncertainty (which is what this feasibility thing is all about) much quicker than if you simply go to the market research first.

A lesson in point: after a brainstorming session a customer brought a focus group “annoited” product to us and said “OK, now they want this thing and we want to use this motor on it, the thing is absolutely feasible with this motor at this cost!” We looked at it for a while and snickered back: “It’s really good that you could do this with this motor, but what about the transmission of the power into the device?” They had based their belief about the feasibility of the product on cost of the motor, without looking at how they were going to get the power into the device”. If they had gone down a path to see if the thing could be engineered and prototyped, to look at its true technical feasibility, they would have more seriously understood where the uncertainty, the risk, was really.

Sometimes, we base our belief about the feasibility of a product on the LEAST important part. If companies would do a little technical feasibility homework BEFORE they take it out for a drive at the church of consumer evaluation, they would save themselves big heartache latter. So remember, GET PHYSICAL FAST!

WiFi Tablet PC Designed for Medical Professionals Saves Time, Money

The latest innovation from Motion Computing is a Tablet PC for medical professionals aimed at saving time, effort, and money. They project that it can save doctors and nurses from as much as 60 minutes of paperwork per day.

The Intel and Motion Computing folks spent a full 18 months observing and gathering feedback from doctors, nurses, and clinicians. That homework is evident in the presentation and the features list.

The C5 is a Vista- or XP-powered portable PC that is filled with medicine-friendly features, among them a barcode scanner, RFID reader, digital camera, and 802.11 wireless connectivity. All of these things make it a solid alternative to the deskwork and paperwork that fill so much of doctors' and nurses' days. It is also, most importantly, disinfectable.

The guts of the matter are an Intel Core Solo U1400 processor, a 10.4-inch touchscreen, up to 60GB hard drive, and even Bluetooth. AIt weighs just 3 pounds and has a top-mounted handle for easy transport. All of this together will set you back US$2,199, which we're guessing isn't a whole lot when you start to factor in the hassles you'll avoid. Do keep in mind, though, that the battery life is only four hours at most.

New Danger Smartphone from Microsoft?

“A Dangerous Future”
Monday, October 27th, 2008

Uh, oh, this doesn’t sound so good for our beloved DangerOS. From an article on Brighthand.com:

Microsoft recently acquired Danger, Inc. as a way to widen its appeal to consumers. Danger is the company behind the Sidekick — a line of smartphones popular for their ease of use. Myerson indicated that its expertise will be used to make future versions of Windows Mobile more appealing to the average user.

Terry Myerson recently took over as the head of the Microsoft Mobile Communications Product Group. Hopefully this doesn’t mean that the DangerOS will be scrapped and all work focused on Windows Mobile.

Nooka ZOT AL Watch

Design brand Nooka kicks off their design initiative with a series of watches with more projects on the horizon. Named after the local accented way of saying New York, the brand represents Nooka’s love of New York with a series of innovative watches. The ZOT AL offers an unconventional method of telling time, using a dotted display on an aluminum face. Other standard features include a chronograph and alarm. Available at select dealers and online via Nooka.

Hublot Bigger Bang Watch

The latest innovation from Hublot is the world's first tourbillon column-wheel chronograph. The sequel to their popular Big Bang watch, the Bigger Bang has a direct coupling on a flying tourbillon cage. The chronograph mechanism and column-wheel are visible via the dial at 12.00 o’clock. The watch has a dial-side column-wheel chronograph and flying tourbillon housed in a 13mm diameter cage without ball bearings. The watch has 262 components and the tourbillon is fitted with 33 rubies and a circular-grained right bottom plate decorated in black gold, The watch is available in three versions of 18 pieces each, there is a platinum case with a black ceramic bezel, an 18K red gold chase with a black ceramic bezel and an all back ceramic version.

Sony unleashes the next big thing

Everything is going organic these days, including the latest innovation in television technology.

OLED_main Sony recently began selling their organic light emitting diode (OLED) TVs to much excitement and twittering in the videophile community.

Sony’s OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) TV, the XEL-1, is truly the next big thing in television technology. It boasts a 3 millimeter thin panel and offers unparalleled picture quality with amazing contrast, outstanding brightness, exceptional colour reproduction, and a rapid response time. It delivers astounding performance in all the key picture quality categories. OLED technology can completely turn off pixels when reproducing black, resulting in more outstanding dark scene detail and a contrast ratio of 1,000,000:1. OLED also creates unmatched colour expression and detail and enables rapid response times for smooth and natural reproduction of fast moving images like those found in sports and action movies. The XEL-1 features the latest connectivity options including two HDMI™ inputs, a digital tuner, and a Memory Stick® media slot for viewing high-resolution photos.

Only the geekiest of geeks will get excited by talk of 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio and “blacker blacks.” And let’s be realistic here… this first iteration is an 11-inch screen, half the resolution of true High Definition and is selling for $2,500.

Cowon iAudio O2 16GB Portable Media Player

Cowon iAudio have consistently delivered high quality ground breaking players such as the incredible A3 the first Portable Media Player that was able to support High Definition content. The latest player in this long line of quality media players is the Cowon iAudio O2. Based on the adaptable and flexible solid state flash memory the O2 is incredibly robust and isn't affected by jarring bumps or knocks – no more skipping sound or picture break up. Without the need for moving parts the battery life increases to 18 hours for music playback or 8 hours for movies made even more remarkable by the vibrancy of the 4.3” 16.7 million colour TFT screen. Best of all unlike other portable media players which restrict you to specific formats or time consuming conversions the O2 liberates you with native support for virtually all of the most popular video formats. Hi Def DVD rips downloads or recordings – there’s almost nothing that you can throw at it that it can't play thanks to the Da Vinci chipset that Cowon utilize to ensure quick and stable playback of all it's supported Codecs. Whilst you’re assured of your files being able to be played instantly all Cowon aficionados have come to expect superb class leading sound and audio quality and peerless format support. With a jaw dropping 64mW of sound output 32mW per channel the Cowon O2 punches like a heavyweight champion whilst Cowon’s famous JeffEffect audio enhancement technologies direct sound with the dexterity balance and precision of a featherweight. An unsurpassed range of audio formats are supported including MP3 WMA AC3 AAC FLAC OGG Vorbis OGG FLAC APPLE Lossless True Audio Monkey Audio MusePack WavPack G.726 and PCM. With a high quality movie taking up almost 2GB capacity is a key feature for any portable media player. Users ...
Price: £209.00 from Advanced MP3 Players

Intel Unveils Second-Generation Classmate PC

INTEL DEVELOPER FORUM, Shanghai, 2008 – Intel Corporation unveiled a new design of the Intel-powered classmate PC today at the Intel Developer Forum in Shanghai. As announced in a keynote by Andrew Chien, Intel vice president, Corporate Technology Group and director of Intel Research, the second-generation Intel-powered classmate PC is an affordable, fully functional, rugged Internet-centric computer platform. These simple-to-use PCs have wireless capability, longer battery life, water resistant keyboards and are more shock resistant if dropped. Intel is calling this category of PCs “netbooks.”

The Intel designed computer offers different choices to manufacturers so each can tailor laptop models for a variety of education needs. The new classmate PC blueprint is the latest innovation and educational tool for parents and teachers to use technology, computers and Internet access to better educate students around the world.

“Only 5 percent of the world’s children today have access to a PC or to the Internet,” Chien said. “Education is one of the best examples of how technology improves our lives. We have seen how technology helps teachers create fun learning experiences more efficiently. We have also been touched by children’s excitement when they are inspired by technology. The Intel-powered classmate PC is one of the ways we support the IT industry in spreading the benefits of technology in education for children around the world.”

HP 2133 Mini-Note PC official

Today VIA announced that the HP 2133 Mini-Note PC will be powered by VIA’s low power C7-M ULV processor. Read the full press release from VIA below. The HP 2133 Mini-Note PC starts at $499 and is expected be available later this month.

VIA enables the HP Mini to deliver performance and portability to the fast growing student market

Taipei, Taiwan, 8 April 2008 - VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient x86 processor platforms, today announced that the low power VIA C7®-M ULV processor will be used to power the new HP 2133 Mini-Note PC, a sleek and stylish, small form factor notebook targeted at today’s connected student lifestyle, where portability, productivity and affordability are highly prized.

The HP Mini provides all the benefits of a notebook PC in an ultra-compact form factor, enabling students to take notes, research information online, share photos, and effortlessly carry all their homework and personal files around in one tiny device.

“We are delighted that HP has leveraged the leading power efficiency and size of the VIA C7-M ULV processor in the HP 2133 Mini-Note PC,” said Richard Brown, Vice President of Corporate Marketing, VIA Technologies, Inc. “This highly portable ultra mobile notebook is the perfect size for today’s students, and offers all the performance, features and connectivity they require.”

“The HP Mini epitomizes the direction of HP’s growing portfolio of innovative products that are designed to meet customers’ diverse sets of needs,” said Carol Hess Nickels, Director of Business Notebook Marketing, Personal Systems Group, HP. “By leveraging VIA’s processors, we are able to offer students a portable, yet affordable, creative notebook PC that better prepares them to live, learn, and work in an information-rich environment.”

About the VIA C7-M ULV Processor

The VIA C7-M ULV processor is available at speeds from 1.0-1.6GHz with a maximum thermal design power (TDP) of only 3.5 watts, and idle power as low as 0.1 watt, helping to ensure enhanced battery life. It also features a low profile nanoBGA2 package measuring just 21mm x 21mm, enabling designs with drastically reduced weight, size, and thickness.

The VIA C7-M ULV processor delivers rich multimedia performance when paired with the VIA CN896 digital media chipset, which features the VIA Chrome9™ HC integrated graphics processor (IGP) with DirectX® 9.0 support for brilliant 3D graphics, and the Chromotion CE video display engine for a stunning video experience. Warm multi-channel sound is provided through the integrated VIA Vinyl Audio technology.

The VIA C7-M ULV processor is the number one choice for Ultra Mobile Devices with over 30 global design wins, the most on the market today. For more details on the VIA C7-M ULV processor, please visit the VIA website at:

www.via.com.tw/en/products/processors/c7-m_ulv/

About VIA Technologies, Inc.

VIA Technologies, Inc is the foremost fabless supplier of power efficient x86 processor platforms that are driving system innovation in the PC, client, ultra mobile and embedded markets. Combining energy-saving processors with digital media chipsets and advanced connectivity, multimedia and networking silicon enables a broad spectrum of computing and communication platforms, including its widely acclaimed ultra compact mainboards. Headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, VIA’s global network links the high tech centers of the US, Europe and Asia, and its customer base includes the world’s top OEMs and system integrators. www.via.com.tw

Digital Digest 8 Inch

Sahara releases affordable 8-inch sub-notebook

Sahara Computers, a supplier of information, communication and digital lifestyle technology to local and international markets, proudly announces the release of its latest 8-inch sub-notebook into the market.
sahara
This latest model, a new addition to Sahara’s Image Book Series, is an entry level, sleek and classy product which comes with lots of features in a small package.

It is one of the smallest notebooks with 60GB hard drive. The 8-inch LCD TFT display screen is bright and sharp. Weighing just 1.1kg, it will certainly provide a great solution for people looking for portability, style and affordability.

Sahara’s Image Book NB552221 series is Linux-based notebook, focused for entry-level users, students and frequent travellers. It has an extended battery life of 4.5 hours, which is one of the most important features for go anywhere computing. It is a WiFi-enabled notebook and has a PCMCIA slot, card reader and comes with one-year carry-in warranty.

The notebook’s features allow users to access data files and content with ease, communicate via e-mail and also connect various peripheral devices such as personal storage drives. Its rich and varied features would surely make it a choice over others.

Philips Intros GoGear MP3 Players

Philips Electronics India has launched its new range of 'GoGear' digital audio/video MP3 players for the Indian market.

The four new 'GoGear' digital audio/video MP3 players include: SA3125, SA6025, SA1355, and SA3115. The 'GoGear' series features: MP3 and WMA playback, voice recordings, Digital FM Radio with 10 station presets, wide color screens for easy navigation/photo viewing, support for video files up to QQVGA (160 x 128 pixels) resolution, Philips Video Converter software for conversion of video files, and extensive battery life.

The SA3125 features: flash audio video player 2 GB memory; 1.8-inch color screen for easy navigation and photo viewing; music with 10 FM station presets; and 10 hours music playback.

Whereas, the SA6025 features: flash audio video player 2 GB memory to enjoy WMV video on-the-move; 2.2-inch color LCD for easy navigation and video viewing; super scroll for fast search; MP3 and WMA (DRM) music plus FM radio; and 15 hours of music play back or 4 hours of video play back.

Talking about the 'GoGear' series, Gunjan Srivastava, Director of Entertainment Solutions, Consumer Electronics, Philips Electronics India, said Philips is committed to using innovation to bring convenience to its customers for an enriched user experience. The GoGear range provides customers with an 'ultimate control' over playback and browsing, and is testimony to this philosophy.

New Sony Products Powered by Intel’s Latest CPUs

Sony announced new specifications for its products planned to be released this year, including several VAIO notebooks with the latest Intel Core 2 Duo processors.
VAIO AR60 series equipped with a 17-inch WUXGA widescreen display having 1080p and X-black LCD screen technology, 50GB Dual Layer Blu-ray Disk drive, 4GB SDRAM memory, NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GT graphics processing unit with 512 MB dedicated, will be powered by the advanced Intel Core 2 Duo T8300 processor to deliver outstanding graphics and will feature also the Deep Power Down technology for longer time on the go between charges.

The notebook uses super-bright double lamp illumination, integrates hybrid DVB-T digital/analogue tuner with remote control and supports HDMI for watching HD movies on the compatible TVs.

VAIO FZ30 series, besides the characteristics mentioned for VAIO AR60, is lightweight and has a durable magnesium alloy housing, measuring 15.4 inches, unlike the VAIO SZ70 series which uses carbon fiber chassis material.
The latter model is powered by the other powerful known Intel processor, the Core 2Duo T9300 for turbo performance in a notebook weighting only 1.79Kg, which comes with the Stamina Mode switch type to allow the user change the graphic chipsets and extend the battery working time of 5 hours.

This series brings with the integrated HSDPA WWLAN technology to let users access the Internet on the go with speeds of up to 3.6Mbps. One single model from this series is available at the moment on Sony’s online store and it sports 250GB HDD, 4GB SDRAM and the rest of the components mentioned in the first series.

There is also a stylish notebook series powered by the Intel Core 2 Duo T8100 technology, the VAIO CR30, but its configurable and you can integrate even a T8300 CPU, depending on what you need and on the financial resources.
These notebooks are sporting a 1.3MP camera with Motion Eye technology and an AV Mode with dedicated buttons for watching movies on DVD without having to start the operating system.

New Sony Products Powered by Intels Latest CPUs


Sony VAIO TP2 Home Entertainment Centre is the round complex and stylish piece which you see in the image, and is designed to fit any corner of your home, being capable of working with TV displays and personal computers displays.
It too integrates an Intel Core 2 Duo T8100 processor, a Blu-ray Disc Combo Drive for high definition movies, and is equipped with HDMI connectivity, a hybrid DVB-T digital/analogue tuner and a massive HDD with 500GB storage.
Its BRAVIA Sync technology is compatible with BRAVIA TVs via the HDMI support and controlled by the remote.

Latest Apple tablet rumor: 12-13 inch display

The latest Apple tablet tease is that one with a 12- or 13-inch display will appear in September-October.

"It will run the full Mac OS X and have a slot loading SuperDrive, an ‘iPhone-type’ GPS chip and an Intel Core Duo processor, presumably Intel’s Atom," claims Jason D. O’Grady in a ZDnet blog.

"Whether it’ll be a based on the iPhone or MacBook form-factor remains to be seen. You’ll recall that Intel Germany CEO Hannes Schwaderer spilled the beans that an “iPhone” that will be using Intel’s new Atom processor after which he was quickly corrected by Apple. Where there’s smoke, there’s fire indeed."

True? Who’s to say? Still, it’s fun to imagine Mobipocket and eventually a native ePub app running on the inspiration for the tease.

Microsoft unveils new Surface PC

Microsoft Corp. has taken the wraps off "Surface," a coffee-table shaped computer that responds to touch and to special bar codes attached to everyday objects.

Surface is essentially a Windows Vista PC tucked inside a shiny black table base, topped with a 30-inch touchscreen in a clear acrylic frame. Five cameras that can sense nearby objects are mounted beneath the screen. Users can interact with the machine by touching or dragging their fingertips and objects such as paintbrushes across the screen, or by setting real-world items tagged with special bar-code labels on top of it.

Unlike most touchscreens, Surface can respond to more than one touch at a time. During a demonstration with a reporter last week, Mark Bolger, the Surface Computing group's marketing director, "dipped" his finger in an on-screen paint palette, then dragged it across the screen to draw a smiley face. Then he used all 10 fingers at once to give the face a full head of hair.

With a price tag between $5,000 and $10,000 per unit, Microsoft isn't immediately aiming for the finger painting set. (The company said it expects prices to drop enough to make consumer versions feasible in three to five years.)

Guitar Hero "Latest Video Game"

Unleash your inner hidden rock star with Guitar Hero and other legendaries of rock and relish the band along with a plethora of some outstanding games. In fact a rock band is now at your home. Authentic videogame drum kit ever in addition to numerous amazing modes. Get ready for a redefining rock and roll experience with excellent tracks.

Features

* Crank it up to 11 and get ready to rock - Featuring over 70 percent master recordings over 40 years of music.
* Truly exclusive music - Multiple tracks that can only be found in the game include guitar icons Slash and Tom Morello.
* An authentic look and feel - Improving the graphics from the ground up have created a more intense visual element
* Rock this way - The arcade-inspired battle mode adds a new dimension to the Guitar Hero franchise.
* You've got to beat the best, to be the best - Battle mode lends itself to the boss battles featuring Slash and Tom Morello.
* It takes two - new Co-op Career mode to progress through career with a friend.
* Rockin' around the world - Compete head-to-head in any of the competitive game modes online.

Over 70 Rockin' Tracks, Including:

Sex Pistols - Anarchy in the U.K.
Kaiser Chiefs - Ruby
Beastie Boys- Sabotage
Muse - Knights Of Cydonia
Guns N' Roses - Welcome To The Jungle
Iron Maiden - Number Of The Beast
Metallica - One
The Rolling Stones - Paint It Black
Black Sabbath - Paranoid
Bloc Party - Helicopter
Smashing Pumpkins - Cherub Rock
Rage Against The Machine - Bulls On Parade
The Stone Roses - She Bangs A Drum
The Who - The Seeker
The Killers - When You Were Young
Slipknot- Before I Forget

Compatibility

New Apple iPod? The iPod Touch

Rumors of two new advanced iPod's are circulating and if the images and alleged spec is to be believed this should be a very exciting product launch!

The devices are expected to be called either the iTouch or iPod Touch and could be based on a touch screen technology as the name would suggest.

If the rumors turn out to be true, we expect one to essentially be a phoneless iPhone and feature as a smaller version of the nano. With a larger screen and compact size it would fit easily in your pocket and provide the option to watch video's. The other will be based on the original iPod video and allow video's to be viewed in wide screen.

It has been also rumored that Apple will be holding a press conference in 2 days time to perhaps announce the launch of these new products.