3D gaming, HD video coming to netbooks in 2009

By Jon Stokes | Published: December 19, 2008 - 03:15PM CT
Source:Arstechnica
Netbook users rejoice: NVIDIA has announced plans to pair Intel's Atom processor with a real mobile GPU, the 9400M. It's no secret that Intel's integrated graphics processors stink across the board, and they're the biggest weakness in the company's ultramobile platform. But by pairing the Atom processor with a 9400M, NVIDIA will be able to offer users a mobile x86 platform that supports 1080p video decoding, dual-link DVI out, DirectX 10 graphics, CUDA, and OpenCL.

The entire platform should draw about 18W of power, which is in the same ballpark as the current Intel Atom platform (12 watts). Note that Ion will cut the number of chips in the Atom platform down from Intel's three-chip design (Atom + 945GSE + I/O hub) to just two chips (Atom + 9400M), but the 9400M is substantially more powerful as GPU and you can't get something for nothing.



AMD and VIA also in the game
NVIDIA's and Intel's competition is by no means sitting still. AMD announced its Yukon ultramobile platform last month, and it combines a mobile Radeon GPU with a forthcoming AMD processor. Due out in 2009, the platform will support HD video decoding, but it will have a slightly higher power draw than any Atom-based offerings just based on the CPU alone. (AMD doesn't yet have an Atom or Nano equivalent.)
More recently VIA announced its Trinity platform, which combines the VIA Nano processor, the VX800 northbridge (plus IGP), and a discrete GPU from S3. Like the Ion and Yukon platforms, Trinity will support Windows Vista, DirectX 10, and HD video decoding in a very small form factor.

Adobe enables iPlayer downloads on Mac and Linux

By Julian Clover | December 19, 2008

The BBC and Adobe Systems have launched a public beta of the new BBC iPlayer Desktop download manager. It has been built using the Adobe AIR platform and will allow users of Windows, Mac and Linux to download BBC content to their desktops. It is the first time that Mac and Linux users have been able to download content directly. The two platforms have previously been restricted to streaming.

Initially iPlayer Desktop is being restricted to those who have enrolled as BBC iPlayer Labs users, though the application will be rolled out to all iPlayer users during 2009.

“Since it launched at the end of last year, BBC iPlayer programmes have been available for streaming on Windows, Mac and Linux computers. Today, we’re pleased to display our commitment to providing a cross-platform download solution for BBC iPlayer users, as Mac and Linux users are now able to download BBC iPlayer programmes to play offline,” said Erik Huggers, director, BBC Future Media & Technology.

Jim Guerard, vice president and general manager of Dynamic Media at Adobe, added that the BBC was trusted worldwide as a broadcast innovator. “The BBC iPlayer Desktop beta on Adobe AIR will help extend their popular browser-based Web video broadcasts to more viewers with a high-quality, instant-on Internet TV experience outside the browser and across all major operating systems.”

The BBC already uses Adobe Flash for streaming content within the iPlayer.

Panasonic and Sanyo: the deal is on, merger creates Japan's biggest electronics company

Like all good romances, the relationship looked precarious at times. But it now looks certain that Panasonic will acquire Sanyo, following stakeholder Goldman Sachs acceptance of Panasonic’s latest share offer.

Initially, the financial giant, one of three main shareholders in Sanyo, baulked at Panasonic’s 120 yen per share offer, claiming it was too low.

Panasonic upped its offer to 131 yen yesterday which now looks to have been accepted. The two remaining shareholders, Daiwa Securities SMBC and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking have already signed up to the deal.

It’s expected that Panasonic and Sanyo will officially announce the merger on Friday.
Sanyo is particularly attractive to Panasonic because of its strong solar panel and battery operations.

Sanyo is also pioneering other green technologies, including an electric hybrid bicycle - the eneloop bike.


The merger would create Japan’s biggest electronics company.

Consumer Electronics prices to go up in 2009

If you see a good deal on TV or AV this Christmas – go for it, as the days of cut-price electronics are about to come to a shuddering halt. Home Cinema Choice has talked to a number of CE companies, both specialist and mainstream, and all are now warning that their prices will rise significantly in 2009.

The weakness of the pound against the Euro and the strength of the yen are principal factors in what will be very apparent price hikes throughout the coming 12 months.

‘There’s no way to avoid it, ‘Pioneer product specialist Jim Catcheside told HCC. ‘We’re currently preparing our 2009 ranges and entry-level products are coming in higher than the step-up models we have now.’

Pioneer recently reduced the average selling price of its Kuro plasma TV range by £500, but the price-drop will apply only to stock already in the country. ‘I think people will kick themselves if they hang on thinking things will continue to get cheaper,’ said Catcheside. ‘They won’t.’

Shinichi Mizuuchi, Toshiba’s Group manager for Overseas Sales & marketing, is responsible for the Japanese giant’s European DVD business. He told HCC: ‘We’re in discussions with our European sales offices at this moment regarding pricing for 2009, but the economic situation is creating real headaches for us. It’s going to be a difficult year.’

Companies are predicting prices rises of around 30 per cent in every category. One factor that could mitigate against the spiralling cost of TVs would be an oversupply of panels from the major glass makers. But production is already being curtailed at plants in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, to prevent this.

Leading LCD maker Sharp has announced the closure of its older panel-making facilities, while other vendors are ‘controlling’ supply. HCC was recently invited to inspect Samsung's plasma factory in Korea, but to the embarrassment of our hosts, we found the plant completely idle upon arrival.

Market research firm DisplaySearch is predicting a drop in supply by nearly 12 million screens from previous forecasts. The category which will see the largest reduction in supply is expected to be 32in models.

The message is clear: buy it cheap while you still can. The UK is in the eye of an economic storm right now. AV products introduced earlier this year are being heavily discounted and the VAT cut to 15 per cent is an extra sweetener. But it’s not going to last.

Motorola, SXBN integrated DTV platform

Motorola has confirmed that its set top producing subsidiary in China, Hangzhou Motorola Technologies (HMT), has signed a strategic cooperative agreement for its integrated Digital TV (DTV) platform with one of China’s largest broadcasting operators.

Under the terms of this agreement, HMT and the Shaanxi BC & TV Intermediary (SXBN) will establish a joint laboratory to design integrated DTV hardware platforms and software solutions that will provide digital video and information services as well as unified user interfaces for all DTV subscribers in Shaanxi. Aimed at improving SXBN’s operational efficiency and performance, this lab will position SXBN as China’s only broadcast operator to own a wholly integrated DTV platform. In addition, the lab will conduct further research on the future demands for DTV and value-added services platform.

Sky runs 3D test

Satellite Broadcaster BSkyB has said it has made the first broadcast test of 3D television in the home. Over the past few months the broadcaster has captured the boxer Ricky Hatton, England rugby matches, Liverpool football matches and the Gladiators revival using 3D cameras.

The broadcast was made over a standard Sky HD set-top box, but a specially modified television display made by Hyundai was required, along with a pair of 3D glasses.

In March the BBC demoed coverage of the Six Nations rugby championship in the 3D format with France Telecom’s Orange Labs showing a similar demonstration at the French Open Tennis championships in May. The Czech O2 TV platform claimed to be offering its subscribers 3D content as long ago as April 2007.

It is anticipated that a number of consumer electronics manufacturers will be showing 3D equipment at the forthcoming CES exhibition

DLNA approves MoCA standard for new guidelines

December 17, 2008 - The Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) has approved the Multimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA) technology standard for incorporation into the next version of its Networked Interoperability Guidelines, to be released early next year, joining WiFi and Ethernet as the only LAN standards approved for inclusion in the DLNA guidelines.

The DLNA's Interoperability Guidelines are designed to unite various consumer electronics, personal computer and mobile device technologies into a cohesive home networking environment, enabling network operators and consumers to add new services and products into the home network seamlessly. The Multimedia over Coax Alliance is an open initiative intended to promote the distribution of digital video and entertainment via existing coaxial cable in the home, and the inclusion of the MoCA standard is a major addition to the DLNA framework.


Charles Cerino, President of MoCA, added: "At the end of the day, home entertainment networking is all about sharing and distributing. DLNA, like MoCA, is an enabling organisation dedicated to making the home network experience simple and easy for the consumer."

The news follows the recent approval by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) of a new global home networking standard for the delivery of room-to-room HDTV, promising high quality multimedia delivered over power, coaxial, phone and other home network wiring. Together the two announcements make 2009 look even more likely to witness some key growth in home networking adoption and multi-room multimedia distribution.

Microsoft knew about Xbox 360 disc-scratch problem, employee claims

Microsoft knew prior to the Xbox 360’s launch that the console can damage discs if gamers tilt the unit while a disc’s spinning inside, documents from a lawsuit focused on the problem reveal.

The revelation was made by Hiroo Umeno, a Microsoft programmer, in an ongoing case that was filed with the Seattle District Court in July 2007. The plaintiffs are seeking class-action status on behalf of affected gamers, but the documents containing Umeno’s confession have only just been unsealed at the court, according to a report by website Seattle Tech.

The documents - seen by Register Hardware - state that the problem was initally discovered by Microsoft back in “September or October” of 2005. The console launched Stateside in November 2005.

After the 360's launch, Microsoft dispatched a team of engineers to retail stores across the US to investigate complaints that the console was scratching discs. It’s at this point that Microsoft determined that “if you tilt the [console] to the left or forward... you’ll cause a scratch”, it’s claimed in the documents.


Microsoft’s engineers, according to Umeno's testimony, found that scratches were caused by game discs becoming “unchucked” and colliding with the optical pickup unit. This action causes “deep circular rings” on discs.

It’s worth noting that Microsoft has already issued several ‘fixes’, including a disc replacement programme for gamers and a warning sticker placed on new Xbox 360s that tilting the console with a disc inside could result in disc damage.

Roughly 55,000 Xbox 360 owners had complained about scratched discs as of 30 April this year, according to the court documents. Several other lawsuits have also been launched against Microsoft from disgruntled gamers with scratched discs.

India finalises mobile TV policies

The Indian government is considering a policy to allow the opening up of terrestrial television broadcasting so as to enable operators to offer mobile TV services. The proposed policy will cover all issues such as licensing, regulatory mechanism, cross-media restrictions, foreign investment and sharing of infrastructure, according to Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Anand Sharma.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India had in January this year recommended a composite foreign investment limit including FDI of 74 per cent for mobile TV services while reiterating its earlier recommendations for a complete review of FDI policy relating to carriage of electronic media as a whole so that it is consistent across all sectors. The Authority also recommended that foreign investments up to 49 per cent may be permitted automatically, beyond which FIPB approval will be required.

India finalises mobile TV policies

The Indian government is considering a policy to allow the opening up of terrestrial television broadcasting so as to enable operators to offer mobile TV services. The proposed policy will cover all issues such as licensing, regulatory mechanism, cross-media restrictions, foreign investment and sharing of infrastructure, according to Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Anand Sharma.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India had in January this year recommended a composite foreign investment limit including FDI of 74 per cent for mobile TV services while reiterating its earlier recommendations for a complete review of FDI policy relating to carriage of electronic media as a whole so that it is consistent across all sectors. The Authority also recommended that foreign investments up to 49 per cent may be permitted automatically, beyond which FIPB approval will be required.

MTV cuts 80 UK jobs

MTV in the UK is to cut up to 80 jobs - around 10 per cent of its workforce - as part of Viacom's global plan to save $250 million in 2009.

MTV UK, which encompasses channels such as MTV One, VH1 and TMF, told staff last Thursday that it would begin a 30-day consultation on the cuts, which are expected to affect most departments.

As part of the changes, MTV is also currently consulting on whether to outsource its short-form production, which includes programme links and shows such as its chart rundown. Currently, these are produced in-house at MTV's studio complex in Camden, north London. MTV already outsources all its long-form programming.

Viacom last week announced it would be shedding 850 jobs globally as part of a cost cutting initiative as well as freezing senior management pay. The group, which also owns film studio Paramount Pictures and TV channels including Comedy Central, Nickelodeon and BET, said the job cuts would reduce its global workforce of 12,300 by about 7 per cent.

Meanwhile, Channel 4 is set to make 200 staff redundant in the coming weeks - 50 more than first planned when it unveiled a £100 million cost-cutting programme in September.

Bleak outlook for 2009 Web ad-spend

A report by research firm eMarketer has forecast that UK Internet ad spend growth will diminish by more than 50 per cent in 2009 and predicted that the digital media sector will not fully recover from the economic downturn until the London Olympics in 2012.

eMarketer predicts that the Internet will continue to outperform other media with positive growth in 2009, but will still take a "big hit" as advertisers tighten up on all forms of marketing expenditure. The report states that 2009 will be a "very tough year" for UK digital media. In May, the firm was forecasting 17.2 per cent year-on-year growth in 2009 for the sector – now it has cut this by more than half to 7.2 per cent, or £3.58 billion (E3.89 billion).

The research company added that the UK online ad market should improve again within two years, "but slowly". eMarketer forecasts 10 per cent year-on-year growth in 2010 to £3.94 billion, and a 12.3 per cent rise in 2011 to £4.43 billion.

However, in 2012, the year of the London Olympics, digital growth will surge by 14.6 per cent year on year, to just more than £5 billion, according to eMarketer. The rate of growth will slow the following year, to 10.8 per cent – but the UK digital media market will still be worth £5.62 billion.

Dell setting to Launch Mac Airbook rival

This is the only content displayed on http://adamobydell.com/.
It is believed that Adamo is a Mac airbook killer
Lets wait

Google snatches search share from rivals

Google's search share encroached on rivals, rising 0.4 percentage points to 63.5 percent from October to November.

(Credit: ComScore)

Google grabbed a chunk of market share from rival search engines in the United States in November, new figures from ComScore show.

Google's share increased 0.4 percentage points to 63.5 percent from October to November, while Yahoo dropped 0.1 percentage points to 20.4 percent and Microsoft dropped 0.2 percentage points to 8.3 percent.

Further down the pecking order, Ask.com dropped 0.2 percentage points to 4.0 percent and AOL rose 0.1 percent to 3.8 percent, ComScore said.

The total searches performed dropped 3 percent to 12.3 million, though, so even Google lost out in absolute terms even as it gained share. Each search holds the potential to show search ads, so the query total is financially significant.

Samsung Plans Android Phone for U.S. in 2009

Samsung will release at least one Google Android device in the US next year, according to a Korean news report. According to etnews.co.kr, the Samsung Android phone will come out on Sprint and T-Mobile in the second quarter of the year.

Samsung's U.S. press representatives, as well as Sprint's and T-Mobile's press people all declined to comment on this story. (Not a big surprise.)

According to the Korean report, the new devices will use a full-touch-screen form factor, like their existing Instinct for Sprint and their Behold phone for T-Mobile. Just as with the Instinct and Behold, we expect that the two phones will be significantly different inside, but look pretty much the same from the outside.

Samsung, LG and HTC are all rumored to be bringing new Android phones to the US this year, with dark-horse candidates possibly coming from Motorola, Kyocera and Sony Ericsson. We don't expect to see any of these phones at CES in January, but we expect a big roll-out of European models at the Mobile World Congress trade show in February followed by some US models at the CTIA show in early April.

Right now, the only Android phone on the market is T-Mobile's G1, made by HTC.

Apple to Stop attending Mac Expo

After some 25 years, Apple has decided that it can do without the Macworld Expo.

Apple announced that CEO Steve Jobs had given his last keynote address at Macworld in San Francisco and that January's Macworld would mark its last year participating at the show. Apple said Phil Schiller, the company's senior vice president of worldwide marketing, will deliver the keynote, usually handled by Jobs.

An Apple representative declined to comment on Jobs' health, a prominent topic of discussion this year. Jobs' keynote addresses at Macworld have become almost legendary events, launch pads for some of the company's most important products and strategies. His absence from what many in the Apple community consider their Super Bowl has once again revive rumors that Jobs is ill.

Steve Jobs in January 2008 giving what we know now was his final Macworld keynote.

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

The decision reveals an Apple that has decided it no longer needs to make an appearance at the event that has come to define the company in recent years. In doing so, it's also preparing for a future when its iconic founder no longer dominates the stage the way he currently does while confirming a shift in its strategic thinking when it comes to reaching customers.

But industry events like Macworld Expo have been losing their luster inside Apple for some time. This is not a company that spends much time hanging out with its peers in the personal computing and mobile phone industries. And quite simply, the nature of technology marketing has changed a great deal as tech has evolved from something reserved for professionals to something that almost everyone uses on a day to day basis.

The announcement "completely blindsided" IDG, according to a source familiar with the negotiations, coming just weeks before the event was scheduled to take place. IDG World Expo, a division of tech publishing giant IDG, had no reason not to expect Jobs would make his customary appearance at Macworld. Then came the word from Cupertino, Calif.

What is not clear is when Apple decided Jobs would skip the keynote. The source indicated that Apple had strung IDG along for weeks, implying that it was business-as-usual concerning Jobs' pending appearance up until the moment that it wasn't. One big question is how this will go down with the Mac faithful who have flocked to this annual event through good times and bad. To be sure, there will be official Apple events in the future, like the Worldwide Developers Conference. But most fans--the civilians--likely won't be able to gain access to such events, which are usually reserved for press, analysts, VIPs, and developers.

So, as one colleague put it, Macworld has long been the public carnival for Mac fans, and Apple's decision to get out after the 2009 version doesn't bode well for Macworld's future or for the future of a single, mass event for the hardcore Mac community.

Researcher Revives 'Shocking' Human Experiment

After Four Decades, Torture Experiment Still Raises Eyebrows

By AUDREY GRAYSON
ABC News Medical Unit

In the early 1960s, Yale University psychologist Stanley Milgram shocked America when he demonstrated that ordinary people will commit acts of violence that conflict with their personal conscience and moral convictions if instructed to do so by an authority figure.

Now, a replication of that famous experiment is uncovering some of the same findings and controversy.

In the original experiment, Milgram asked ordinary people to administer painful -- and in some cases, even fatal -- shocks to other people posing as research subjects. The maximum voltage they could administer was 450 volts -- enough to cause permanent damage or even death to the study subject.

In reality, the "research subjects" were not receiving any shock. But the act of inflicting harm on another individual was still very much real to the people administering the voltage.

Windows 7 Preview

Finally "iphone" from HP

Two new consumer-minded iPAQ handhelds have emerged on HP's website. Without much fanfare, the Windows Mobile 6.1-powered iPAQ Data Messenger and Voice Messenger have been granted dedicated sites, complete with imagery, specifications and recommended accessories. Starting with the touchscreen-heavy Data Messenger (seen above), you'll find a 2.81-inch LED-backlit display (320 x 240), a full QWERTY slide-out keyboard, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR / WiFi, HSDPA, quad-band GSM support, aGPS, a 3.1-megapixel camera and a microSD card slot. As for the Voice Messenger (pictured after the break), it's packing a 2.4-inch 320 x 240 LED-backlit screen, a 20-key "keyboard" and so on.

Intel to launch its Clarksfield Processor in 2009

Intel said today that Clarksfield, its Nehalem-based mobile CPU, will go into production in the second half of next year; sadly, there was no word on when the chips will actually be available to consumers in the Calpella platform, which will have built-in WiMAX. Clarksfield will include an onboard memory controller and a bunch of other new techs

3D Displays that doesnt require glasses for viewing

One day, not too far off in the distant future, we have a dream that all 3D displays will be able to engross us in the third-dimension sans goggles. That these no-glasses-required 3D displays will be the rule, and not the exception. Till that fateful day arrives, however, we're still going to be impressed with ones similar to NEC's latest, a 12.1-incher with an SVGA (800 x 600) resolution. Reportedly, the outfit has developed the prototype screen to show off 3D material without requiring the viewer to ugly up their face with a set of those wonky glasses. There's no sign of a commercial release just yet, but we'll be keeping our naked eyes peeled just in case that changes.