News Archive for 09/09/07

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LG booth shows its first Android phone

09/07, 2:00pm

LG Etna Android at booth

Although overlooked by most, LG's first Android-based phone was spotted at last week's IFA technology show. So far nicknamed the Etna Android, the phone seen by German magazine Chip is a typical QWERTY slider design but with a 3-inch touchscreen and a 5-megapixel camera. Little else was revealed by LG, though it's very likely the phone will also have 3G, GPS and Wi-Fi on top of expected features like Bluetooth.

Google opts to pull Euro books from online deal

09/07, 1:40pm

Google pulls Euro books from online deal

Google today agreed to a truce with the European union in its deal to create an online book rights registry. The search engine firm's settlement will prevent Google from offering as public domain any European book that's still listed as commercially available in Europe. Any of those books will still be available in the US, but only if those with rights to the book agree to make it available.

ASUS e-readers to involve dual screens, color

09/07, 12:50pm

ASUS reader to get two screens, color

ASUS' promised e-book reader debut should not only involve more than one model but could represent a number of rarities or even firsts for the technology. While the mentioned Eee-branded reader would be basic and trade on its price -- an estimate has it costing as little as $164 -- ASUS chief Jerry Shen told the Times a second upscale model would have two color touchscreens and fold like a real book to give users two pages of content at once. It may also have basics like speakers and a webcam to provide simple audio and video conversations online.

Leaks point to HP's first CULV, Core i7 notebooks

09/07, 12:20pm

HP CULV and Core i7 notebooks leak

HP's impending plans to revamp its notebook line have likely been uncovered in advance today courtesy of a pair of leaks (one, two). Leading the group should be the Pavilion dv8, one of the first systems to use Intel's mobile Core i7; it should be an 18.4-inch desktop replacement with an early 1.6GHz quad-core processor that scales up to 2.8GHz when it can ramp down one or more cores. It's also expected that the system would come with a Blu-ray drive as well as 4GB of RAM and 640GB of storage, likely spread across two disks.

PS3 sales surge 999% in UK, top Wii thanks to slim model

09/07, 11:05am

PS3 Sales Surge in UK

Sony achieved a rare feat in the past week with the PS3 clearly outselling every other console in the UK, data from ChartTrack shows. In what's also the first week the slim PS3 has been available, the smaller and less expensive model helped PS3 sales jump 999 percent. The research firm wouldn't provide hard numbers to MCV but said that the DS Lite, Wii and Xbox 360 all sold in similar numbers and that the PS3 sold roughly three times as many units as these.

Sony unveils two 1080p wireless HDTVs

09/07, 10:40am

Sony BRAVIA ZX5 in Japan

Choosing an uncharacteristic Monday launch date, Sony today launched the BRAVIA ZX5. The line brings wireless TV and uses the 60GHz Wireless HD format to pipe content from a separate TV Station hub to the set itself without wires. As they use ultra-wideband, the new sets are far more efficient than the ZX1 and can handle up to 1080p video at 60 frames per second over the wireless link instead of the older series' 1080i picture.

Future Firefox updates to check for outdated plug-ins

09/07, 10:30am

May close some common vulnerabilities

Beginning with two Tuesday updates, all future iterations of Mozilla's Firefox browser will check for at least some outdated plug-ins, the company has announced. Firefox 3.5.3 and 3.0.14 will both scan for the latest version of Flash, prompting users to visit a link where an updated plug-in can be downloaded. "For now, our focus is on the Adobe Flash Player both because of its popularity and because some studies have shown that as many as 80 percent of users currently have an out-of-date version," says Firefox security team member Johnathan Nightingale.

Nokia tests its first LTE-based 4G modem

09/07, 9:50am

Nokia 4G modem trialled

Nokia on Monday said it has launched its first modem to ever support the upcoming Long Term Evolution (LTE) format for 4G cell data. The Internet Modem RD-3 (not yet pictured) can both support the new technology, which peaks at 100Mbps, but also 3G data over HSPA and 2G over EDGE to give users support of more established networks. It should support world roaming on 4G, though the frequency bands haven't been detailed.

Microsoft giving Best Buy anti-Linux training

09/07, 9:20am

Best Buy told to misrepresent Linux

Microsoft has been sending Best Buy retail staff "training" material that deliberately attacks and in some cases distorts Linux, according to a leak from an anonymous Best Buy employee. The materials present obvious and at times true assertions about the lack of software support and users preferring a "comfortable" experience but also makes controversial statements about security and other features. Among these are contradictory claims that Linux doesn't get regular updates and yet is a problem to maintain precisely because it gets "hundreds of updates" per month.

Monster outs Beats Solo, Heartbeats earphones

09/07, 7:50am

Monster Beats Solo and Heartbeats

Monster unusually chose Labor Day to add two sets of earphones to its mix, including its first not primarily backed by Dr. Dre. The Heartbeats were co-designed by Lady Gaga and are meant to produce audio quality much like the Beats Tour in-ears but with the pop star's visual input, such as a jewel-like cap on the earpiece and a metal body. They still have Monster's unique ribbon-like cables that cut down on tangling and should also reduce the likelihood of a cable break.