Sonnet launches 802.11n wireless PCI adapter card ...

Sonnet Technologies recently launched its Aria Extreme N PCI 802.11n wireless PCI card for Power Mac G4 and G5 as well as Windows desktop computers. The new product has three 2TX/3RX antennas, and the card is backwards compatible with 802.11b and 802.11g routers and related equipment. It connects to any Windows PC via a PCI or PCI-X card slot and supports WEP, WPA and WPA2 security protocols, while network encryption is handled by AES and TKIP standards.

Logitech launches Harmony 510 remote...

Logitech has recently added another universal remote to its Harmony line with the Harmony 510. The entry-level remote sports 45 buttons and is capable of controlling five different devices. Based on the familiar shape shared with new and old remotes such as the Harmony 550 and Advanced Universal Remote for Xbox 360, the Harmony 510 has a different color scheme and a slightly different key configuration, including two fewer buttons. Unlike the 550, however, the less expensive 510 includes a battery status indicator and guided online set-up, in addition to what Logitech calls Onboard Intelligence and One-Touch Activity-Based control functions.

Apple, Dell, HP stock forecasts cut...

Financial researchers at UBS today helped trigger a major share sell-off at the three top US-owned computer builders by dramatically reducing the institution's target share prices. Company analyst Maynard Um today dropped the expected prices of Apple, Dell and HP from their original $195, $50 and $20 to $125, $48 and $17 respectively and attributed the cut exclusively to poor economies in Europe, the UK and the US having a negative impact on PC buying.

AOL, Yahoo to merge by October's end?...

AOL and Yahoo have revived and even accelerated merger talks and may be ready to strike a deal by the end of October, say alleged sources of TechCrunch. The claimed proposal would have Yahoo pick up all of AOL's content business as well as a $2 billion cash infusion in exchange for a one-third Time Warner stake in the resulting company.

Sony intros first iPod-ready marine head units...

Sony on Monday introduced its first marine CD receivers that are able to connect directly to compatible iPod, iPhone and other music players through a USB cable. The CDX-H910UI and CDX-M60UI head units also come with Sony’s MemoryBackup and ZAPPIN features, with the former saving radio station presets when the boat is in storage and the latter offering a short preview of a song to allow users to navigate large music collections. At the same time, the company rolled out the Remote Commander RM-X60M remote control, which is compatible with the head units. All three new products were unveiled at the International Boatbuilders' Exhibition and Conference (IBEX) show.

Netflix drops estimates based on economy...

Subscriber numbers for Netflix are on a slight decline, the company has announced. The movie rental outfit says that in figures for the third quarter of the year, it recorded only 8.672 million subscribers, below predictions of 8.675 to 8.875 million. Final revenue figures, which will be announced on October 20th, are expected to end up between $343 and $348 million. CFO Barry McCarthy notes that while July subscriber growth was fine, it dropped significantly in August, only to resume growth in September.

EchoStar, DISH pay TiVo $104m in long patent suit...

EchoStar and DISH today were told by the US Supreme Court to pay TiVo $104 million for allegedly infringing on some of the DVR maker's patents. The decision comes following an unsuccessful appeal of an original 2006 decision by EchoStar and DISH and will potentially increase further if additional patent lawsuits and claims of contempt are decided in TiVo's favor. The set-top box producer last month accused DISH and EchoStar of violating a stop placed on their own DVRs by continuing to sell satellite TV DVRs with software TiVo says copies its features.

Toshiba’s 14.1-inch E105 coming soon to Best Buy...

An online Best Buy store listing reveals the specs and prices of Toshiba’s new, 14.1-inch Satellite-series E105 notebook. The advertised version sports a backlit keyboard, Intel’s dual-core 2.26GHz processor and 4GB of RAM. The laptop includes a 320GB hard drive and is just 1.2 inches thick while weighing in at 5lbs. Graphics processing for the 1280x800 screen is handled by the onboard GMA 4500 MHD chipset that brings with it an HDMI output; an FM tuner is also unusually built-in.

Telstra readies 21Mbps 3G+ in late 2008...

Australian cell carrier Telstra this morning said it was on track to be one of the first providers in the world to use Enhanced HSPA, or eHSPA. Also known as HSPA+, the feature will give peak Internet download speeds of about 21Mbps per second, or about three times the best 7.2Mbps speed on regular HSPA devices. The move is made possible in part by having a new Ethernet-based network backbone and should supply 'true' mobile broadband across the island country.

Sanyo develops 12X, 100GB Blu-ray laser...

Sanyo on Monday revealed a new Blu-ray laser that could significantly speed up recording while also doubling the amount of available storage. By increasing the power of the laser to about 450mW, the Japanese electronics maker says it can not only produce the pits that hold data at a 12X rate versus the current 8X ceiling but penetrate up to four layers deep, allowing as much as 100GB on one disc versus the 50GB of a current two-layer disc.

iPhone 3G now 17% of US smartphone market...

The iPhone 3G's launch propelled Apple to the top of the US smartphone market in the summer and near the peak of the smartphone ranks in the US, according to NPD Group data. The phone outsold the BlackBerry Curve, BlackBerry Pearl and Palm Centro in the June through August window and used the spike generated by the launch to give all iPhones about 17 percent of the US smartphone business from January through August, or more than one in six smartphones sold in the country.

Verizon outs Moto Rapture VU30, VU204...

Verizon today continued its phone launches with a pair of Motorla phones as well as a Bluetooth headset. The Rapture VU30 carries the partly touch-sensitive external display concept of the RAZR2 flip phone to a lower-cost device while sacrificing few of the features from the earlier designer phone; it too carries a two-megapixel camera, stereo Bluetooth, assist-only GPS and a microSDHC slot for its storage. EVDO provides direct access to Verizon's online music store.

AT&T picks up $29 Pantech 3G phone...

AT&T this morning set a baseline for its faster 3G network with the launch of the Pantech C610. The clamshell gets faster browsing and access to music downloads, media streaming and one-way video calls through HSDPA. In return, Pantech uses a handful of minor hardware choices to save on the final cost. A 1.3-megapixel camera and assist-only GPS help keep the price down, though the C610 still supports stereo Bluetooth audio and microSD Storage.

Samsung Sway music phone hits Verizon...

Verizon this morning added an unusual slider media phone that combines some budget and mid-range features in the same device. The Samsung Sway is capped at 1X RTT for data and so needs to use USB to sync with Verizon's V CAST Music store rather than download over EVDO. However, the phone counters this with a two-megapixel camera that supports video capture, full Bluetooth with stereo audio and a microSDHC slot that holds up to 8GB of music and other media.

BlackBerry Storm gets copy/paste, app store...

RIM's BlackBerry Storm will try to better the interface of the iPhone as well as emulate it, a pair of leaks show. A BGR scoop shows that the cellphone maker's first touch device will still include a copy-and-paste function despite the absence of typical controls; a multi-touch input lets users tap the ends of text to highlight the relevant sections; users can then refine where the text starts and copy it to paste it later.

Judge temporarily blocks RealDVD sales...

A judge today issued a temporary ban on sales of RealNetworks' RealDVD as part of proceedings for major movie studios' copyright lawsuit against the video software firm. The move, which officially lasts until Tuesday, is primarily to give the judge an opportunity to review filings made in the case but may be extended if more time is needed or the court decides to support a longer injunction against sales until the end of the case.

Briefly: Sony Walkman S730 review

After years of insisting on little-used proprietary formats and software, Sony has recently been mending its ways: the company's latest Walkman players have virtually become champions of cross-platform standards (including the Mac), beautiful design and the no-fuss interface. The S730 promises to be an evolution of an already solid formula, especially with its active noise cancelation feature, but it remains to be seen how well the S730 stacks up against the veteran iPod nano and Microsoft's latest Zune software. Click through for our full S730 review.

Amazon Kindle 2 leaked to the web...

Amazon's second-generation Kindle reader has already surfaced in a new leak to BGR this evening and promises to solve many of the first-run issues with the e-book device, which was nicknamed the "iPod of reading" in its first generation. The new model appears to have a similarly sized, high visibility e-paper screen as the original but has the promised rounder styling, albeit in a slightly larger form; this extends to the narrower but taller keyboard and iPhone-like metal back with conspicuous grills for speaker vents.

Microsoft XP downgrades extended to July?...

Microsoft has extended its Windows XP downgrade program for six months past its original cutoff date, according to an email reportedly circulating among system builders. Though the company had originally set the XP pre-install option to shut down as of January 31st 2009, the new message is said to extend that deadline to July 31st. The official goal is to transition businesses, which were the original targets of the extension, over to Windows 7 by allowing them to buy new XP-based systems up to a point where the subsequent upgrade would demand Windows 7.

CyberPower unveils Gamer Xtreme XI desktop system...

CyberPower has unveiled its latest desktop system, the Gamer Xtreme XI, for gaming or other high performance needs. Although the company leaves almost all of the hardware options open for customization, the standard package features a quad-core Intel Core 2 Extreme processor overclocked to 4GHz at 1600FSB, with 12MB L2 cache. CyberPower claims the overclocking can be used by games that put heavy loads on processing power, or HD video encoding or editing. The EVGA nForce 790i SLI mainboard provides 7.1 channel audio output.

Samsung intros two eco-friendly desktop PCs...

Samsung Korea has unveiled it will soon begin shipping two ultra-low power desktop PCs, the MV100 Tower and the MZ100 Slim Tower. Both will use Intel’s G43 chipset with support for Intel’s Core 2 Duo, Quad and Celeron processors, though exactly which CPUs Samsung will ship the PCs with is unknown. The desktops’ main selling point, however, should prove to be their low power consumption ratings of just 1W while in stand-by mode and 60W while operating in power saving mode.

Toshiba interested in buying Fujitsu HDD unit...

A Toshiba executive on Thursday said the Japanese electronics company would consider purchasing Fujitsu’s hard-disk drive unit if Fujitsu approached Toshiba, says a Friday WSJ report. The news comes after last month’s rumored bid by Toshiba to acquire flash-memory maker SanDisk, in an attempt to stop its sale to competitor Samsung, which Toshiba President Atsutoshi Nishida denied at an industry event, according to the same report. Nishida feels the current relations between Toshiba and SanDisk are fine.

Yamaha intros pair of iPod-ready mini systems...

At the CEATEC show earlier this week, Yamaha’s electronics arm introduced two new mini audio systems with integrated iPod/iPhone docking stations, the TSX-120 and TSX-130. Both systems also share a built-in FM radio tuner and the same 15WRMS x 2 amplifier to drive the pair of 3.1-inch speakers. The main difference between the two is the TSX-130’s inclusion of a CD drive, USB port for reproducing audio files from flash drives or other MP3 players, along with a black color option that includes a darker wood grain finish as well. The TSX-120 replaces the USB port with a more common 3.5mm stereo jack.

New ASUS EeePC 904HA breaks cover in red and green...

ASUS on Friday has added yet another portable notebook model to its EeePC line-up of netbooks with the 904HA. The newest notebook packs a 1.6GHz Atom CPU along with 1GB of RAM for processing power, and includes a 160GB hard drive for storage. It includes a 6-cell battery and, as the photos reveal, will be available in red and green in addition to the already offered black version. It includes the same 8.9-inch display as the smaller EeePC offerings, with a 1024x600 resolution.

Kid Rock snubs iTunes, turns to Rhapsody...

Popular rap-rocker Kid Rock has chosen Rhapsody as the exclusive online sales venue for his music, the owner of latter party has announced. Real notes that Kid Rock's albums have not been available online in any legal manner in the past, whether for download or streaming; as of today, the artist's entire collection should be available for purchase or streaming through the subscription version of Rhapsody.

Nintendo pedometer add-on for use with DS game...

Some questions regarding the leaked pedometer from Nintendo have been answered on Friday, as multiple reports reveal the device will ship with the game entitled Your Life Rhythm for the existing Nintendo DS and upcoming DSi portable gaming console. Judging from the game’s screen captures, the game will keep track of not only how many steps users have taken and when or how often, but also how much energy they have used and therefore calories burned.

GPS-enabled Motorola V9x shipping to AT&T stores ...

Motorola has quietly began shipping its V9x RAZR2 clamshell to AT&T stores, though the handset is not offered on the wireless carrier’s website. The handset differs from the currently available V9 in two key ways, most noticeably the black color instead of mahogany and the inclusion of GPS functionality via AT&T’s Navigator service. The GPS directions can be delivered either via the large internal screen or the smaller external display, albeit with less detail. Motorola and its competitors are adding GPS functionality to more affordable, non-PDA phones.

Fusion-io preps 700MB/sec home flash drive...

Normally known for its business storage, Fusion-io today provided a glance at an upcoming solid-state drive built for very high-performance home systems. The ioExtreme card will hold just 80GB but switches from SATA to PCI Express and is tuned for sheer transfer rate above all else: data reading speeds hover between 500MB and 700MB per second, or about five times as quick as current SSDs. The extra speed is pitched as ideal for particularly disk-heavy tasks such as compiling code, content editing or large games.

ASUS releases high-end S101 netbook...

ASUS on Friday began formally releasing details for the S101, its first upscale netbook. The PC builder characterizes the 10.2-inch portable as both a designer item with brown, champagne gold and graphite gray outer shells but also gives it features that would previously have been considered off-limits to some netbooks, ranging from solid-state storage up to 64GB, 802.11n Wi-Fi and a four-in-one card reader. A 1.6GHz Atom and 1GB of memory are its key ties to regular netbooks in the class.

Iron Man first on Blu-ray to support iPhones, iPods...

An upcoming Blu-ray disc will be the first of its sort to support iPhones and iPods, a report claims. The French release of Iron Man is expected to support NetBlender's BD Touch technology, which lets users interact with movies when both the player and the disc are compatible. Through a supporting iPhone app called Remote Haxey, French owners of Iron Man should be able to access trailers, play an original game, and use their handheld as a form of remote, much in the way that Apple's Remote utility controls iTunes.

Delta to filter in-air Wi-Fi...

Delta will filter the content on its in-flight Wi-Fi service, the airline said today. Although the company has previously been concerned about the ramifications of active censorship on its GoGo-based service and has intended to rely on attendants alone to screen out adult sites and other material that might make some passengers uncomfortable, it now says it will implement a content filter that automatically blocks certain sites before they reach cellphones, notebooks and other devices capable of a Wi-Fi link.

Wii Speak to get own channel for 4-way chats...

Owners of Nintendo's upcoming Wii Speak won't have to use games just to talk with friends, the console maker's Cammy Dunaway said at its Fall Summit on Thursday. The Wii itself will receive an update that adds a Wii Speak Channel and so allows as many as four friends to join a voice chat at the top-level interface for the system. It's unknown whether any other features will be included or if the Wii Speak can be replaced with a similarly USB-based speakerphone or headset.

T-Mobile Shadow II launch info, photos leak...

T-Mobile's Shadow II is on the verge of launch, a leak of final launch details at BGR would indicate. The carrier's second custom-designed Windows Mobile phone from HTC is now said to be launching in less than two weeks, shipping with the American provider on October 15th. Pricing would increase sharply from the discounted current Shadow and result in a $150 price after signing a two-year agreement.

Kingston teams up with Intel to supply SSD drives...

Memory maker Kingston has joined up with chipmaker Intel to produce flash-memory based drives for popular-brand notebooks and servers, according to a Thursday report. Traditionally, Kingston has made flash memory cards for consumer electronics devices such as digital cameras, which make up a quarter of the company’s business. Under the deal with Intel, Kingston will resell drives made by Intel, providing technical support and testing to buyers at Dell, HP and IBM, among others.

ATI to ship DirectX 11 GPUs in 2009, more ...

At a press conference at the CEATEC show currently held in Japan, ATI graphics department senior vice president and general manager Rick Bergman announced the company’s products will support DirectX 11 in 2009, hinting at a new range of graphics processing units (GPUs), among other news. Along with support for the new programming interfaces, the update will bring with it more advanced OpenGL 2.x features. The AMD-owned graphics label also revealed it will use a 40nm process to make its chips and use the GDDR5 memory standard more widely, both of which should make for considerably higher performance graphics processors.

MS reaffirms porting Zune UI to Win Mobile...

Microsoft is still committed to including aspects of the Zune interface to Windows Mobile devices, company chief Steve Ballmer said in an interview with CIO published late Thursday. The company co-founder supports the public company position and makes no mention of a rumored, internally developed Zune phone but instead says some form of the Zune shell will eventually be ported to Windows Mobile to give the device a better media experience than today's smartphones.

HP Oak, Silver smartphone rumors resurface...

HP is nearing the release of two important touchscreen phones previously only hinted at earlier in the year, according to a pair of reports. The Wall Street Journal now hints that one of HP's first true touchscreen-focused iPAQ smartphones is due in Europe as soon as two months from now; the report directly corroborates a leak early in the year of the Oak that reveals a hybrid touch and keyboard design intended for Vodafone. The earlier and more specific leak would give the phone a side-slider design with 7.2Mbps, HSDPA-based 3G as well as GPS and Wi-Fi.

Garmin rolls GPSMAP 600s for driving, boating...

Garmin finished its week by unveiling a new GPSMAP all-in-one for those boaters who also want to take their GPS navigators on the road. The 600 series has a large, 5.2-inch 800x480 screen friendly to sea navigation with a bird's eye view above the sea as well as 3D underwater mapping; on land, however, it converts into a proper road navigator with spoken street names as well as support for photo-keyed landmarks and custom points of interest beyond those bundled with the map set.

Sprint close to finding Nextel buyer, hurdles appear...

Sprint has discovered several interested parties who wish to purchase its Nextel business unit, but the wireless provider is facing several obstacles before the sale can be finalized. The Wall Street Journal reports that Sprint's $35 billion 2005 purchase would likely see a deal in the area of $5.4 billion at least, due to the amount of debt that would come with the acquisition. Interested bidders have expressed some resistance to this expense, unless the equity included in the deal were insubstantial in comparison.