The IEEE is forming a group to revise the IEEE 1625 standard for lithium-ion laptop batteries and guess which two companies will chair it ... wait for it ... Sony and Dell. These two companies have extensive experience in exploding batteries which makes them eminently qualified to chair the group.
Dude, your Dell just exploded...
El Segundo (CA) - The introduction of Windows Vista will have an immediate impact on the investment that is required to build a PC. The often discussed memory upgrade that is required to achieve a decent Windows Vista experience, will increase the bill of materials by about 20%, market research firm iSuppli estimates in a report released today.
Nvidia will introduce its first integrated graphics processor (IGP) chipset (MCP 73) for the Intel platform in the first quarter of 2007 at the earliest, according to industry sources.
We've always brought you news about new hardware and software, but wouldn't it be great to actually learn how to use the darn stuff? Our new HowTo video section contain short, high-quality videos that clearly explain new features or show how to perform important tasks.
Adobe Acrobat, the popular PDF reader and creator, is getting a face-lift with its new version 8. Adobe has just released new versions of its Acrobat Reader and Acrobat Professional which includes a streamlined menu bar, GPU acceleration and built-in document security.
Belkin's new Wi-Fi Skype phone will now work with more than 60,000 Boingo Hot Spots around the world. People who buy a Boingo unlimited account for $7.95 a month will be able to make free Skype calls in more than 60 countries.
Microsoft and third-party security sites are warning of a new "extremely critical" Microsoft Word vulnerability. Specially crafted Word documents could corrupt a computer's memory and allow attackers to gain system access. Both Windows and Macintosh computers are affected.
We've all heard about overheating laptop batteries, but in Japan NTT DoCoMo and Mitsubishi Electric are recalling 1.3 million potentially hot potato cellular phone batteries. The companies said the batteries were all made before June 2006 and could overheat and catch on fire. NTT says it knows of at least 18 cases where the batteries have either ruptured or overheated.
An Eastpointe Michigan woman has been thrown in jail after one of her house guests walked outside to use a cell phone. 23-year-old Carmen Granata was cited for violating the city noise ordnance and was given 30 days in county jail along with two years of probation.
Microsoft has released a first public version of a search engine that allows Internet users to search through "tens of thousands of out-of-copyright books."
The U.S. Department of Energy has announced a new solar cell that can convert more than 40% of sunlight into electricity. The cell, made by Boeing-Spectrolab, uses mirrors and prisms to boost the sunlight going into the cell. The DOE says the cells could be sold for $3 per watt and make electricity for 8 to 10 cents per KW/hour.
Forget about the $650 liquid-cooled 1.15 GHz memory you may have just ordered for your rig. Turns out that the OCZ PC2-9200 FlexXLC devices aren't cutting edge anymore, just two weeks after their announcement. Bragging rights for the memory with the highest clock speed are moving over to Kingston's HyperX PC9600 modules, which are clocked at 1.2 GHz. The company also offers a PC-9200 version (1.15 GHz).
Santa Clara (CA) - Intel has announced that it built its first WiMAX baseband chip for laptops. The WiMAX Connect 2300 chip, combined with a radio antenna, could be a long-range replacement for 802.11 Wi-Fi and cellular networks by providing multi-megabit speeds over several kilometers. Intel has also incorporated multiple antennas to increase speed and signal strength.
A man tapping messages on his BlackBerry phone caused a six car pileup on Interstate 5 on Tuesday morning. The Mercer Island, Washington resident was driving in the express lanes in his minivan when he rear-ended a car. That crash careened into four other vehicles which included a passenger bus.
