In answer to Motorola’s lawsuit, Apple counter-sued Motorola. On October 29, 2010 the company filed two lawsuits in a U.S. District Court at the Western District of Wisconsin. Apple said that Motorola infringed six patents related to multi-touch technology that was first introduced by Apple via its iPhone in 2007.
Apple’s two lawsuits mentioned names of nine Motorola handsets including Droid, Droid 2, Droid X, Cliq, Cliq XT, BackFlip, Devour A555, Devour i1 and Charm 1. Apple Insider gave out numbers of the six patents:
U.S. Patent No. 7,812,828 - "Elipse fitting for multi-touch surfaces"
U.S. Patent No. 7,663,607 - "Multipoint touchscreen"
U.S. Patent No. 5,379,430 - "Object-oriented system locator system"
U.S. Patent No. 7,479,949 - "Touch screen device, method, and graphical user interface for determining commands by applying heuristics"
U.S. Patent No. 6,493,002 - "Method and apparatus for displaying and accessing control and status information in a computer system"
U.S. Patent No. 5,838,315 - "Support for custom user-interaction elements in a graphical, event-driven computer system."
Earlier this month, Motorola Mobility filed a lawsuit against Apple with the U.S. International Trade Commission. It said that Apple infringed patents over technologies such as 3G, GPRS, 802.11 wireless and antenna design in its iPhone, iPod touch and certain Mac products.
Apple also filed lawsuit against HTC, another major Android handset maker, over infringing 12 patents. Motorola applied for a “declaratory judgment” at the US District Court in Delaware on the ground that Apple had no rights to sue the company over those 12 patents.
These legal battles show how the companies are fighting with each other to stay on top of the smartphone market which is the major growth industry in the mobile phone industry. Both Apple and Microsoft are threatened by the rise of Android phones. At a recent study released by IDC, for the first time Apple made it to the list of top five handset vendors in the world with its iPhone.
On October 28, 2010, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Verizon announced to have reached a settlement over Verizon’s “Mystery Fees.” Verizon has agreed to pay $25 million to the U.S. treasury. In addition, Verizon will refund $52.8 million to its 15 million customers.
Verizon subscribers had to pay extra money over its “pay-as-you-go” service and they were overcharged starting from November 2007. Verizon is currently the top network carrier in the U.S. FCC has been conducting this investigation for the past ten months and this is the largest fine in the history of company settlement in the U.S.
FCC chairman, Julius Genachowski, said, “People shouldn’t find mystery fees when they open their phone bills, and they certainly shouldn’t have to pay for services they didn’t want and didn’t use,……Today’s settlement also includes strong FCC oversight and accountability to ensure that Verizon Wireless fully repays what they owe to their customers and puts new measures in place to improve customer service.”
On October 28, 2010, Verizon issued a statement which says, “We made inadvertent billing mistakes. We accept responsibility for those errors and apologize to our customers who received accidental data charged on their bills.”
Verizon said that five in every six of its customers have been unaffected by this mystery fee. It said that most of the refunds would range between $2 and $6 but some customers would get more than that amount.
For the first time, Apple made it to the list of top five phone makers of the world in the third quarter of 2010. According the latest report of famous research firm IDC, growth in the smartphone segment will be the main force of the worldwide mobile phone market by the end of 2014. Here is the top five list:
After Research In Motion (RIM), Apple is the second smartphone only company to make it to the top five list.Though RIM’s condition is not as impressive as Apple, it did pretty well. In the third quarter, RIM posted record number of unit shipments and its market share increased to 3.6 percent in Q3 2010 from 2.9 percent in Q3 2009.
Apple’s market position further improved after news came out that it is going to launch a CDMA version of its popular iPhone.
Kevin Restivo, Senior Research Analyst, IDC Worldwide Mobile Phone Tracker said that the entrance of Apple on the list of top five mobile-phone vendors of the world shows the “increased importance” of smartphone. He also said that mobile handset makers that are delivering the popular smartphone models are observing the fastest growth in the industry and those who does not have a strong portfolio of smartphones will face serious challengein future.
Restivo further said that the smartphone is becoming the focal point of the personal communications experience and this is why it would fuel new market growth. This year, IDC expects the smartphone sub-market to grow 55 percent on year-over-year basis.
Apple MacBook Air has been torn down by iFixit.com and the website came up with some interesting facts about the device. iFixit took apart the 11.6inch version. The new MacBook Air models are thinner and lighter than its predecessors and come with more I/O ports. However, Apple made huge trade offs to achieve this slim size. MacBook Air has limited processing power, lower storage capacity, no optical drive, lower memory, no Firewire, and the worst you can not upgrade the hardware.
The MacBook Air is like an impenetrable fortress and all its components are fixed with Apple’s proprietary Torx screws and even if you manage to look inside there is no hope because all the components of the device are fixed with the logic board. They can not be replaced. Most of the parts are customized and you would not get them in any regular store.
The bottom part is fixed with 5-point security Torx screws. Inside Apple used normal 6-point T5 and T8 Torx screws.
Changes:
The new MacBook Air models comes with two USB 2.0 ports. There is an extra USB on the right edge of the machine. Apple scrapped the flip-open door, IR sensor and sleep LED. Apple also shed off the 45gram HDD that can be found in earlier MacBook Airs and used SSDs weighing only 10grams. Due to the flash drive, the machine takes less time to start up.
Battery:
The battery takes up majority of the space inside the machine. Upon opening up the bottom case, the first thing you would see is six separate lithium-polymer cells which makes up the 35 Watt hour battery. These cells are held by five T5 Torx screws. Crunchgear.com says:
As you can see, by far the largest component is the battery cells, which have been split and spread out for maximum balance and heat dispersal. This thing is going to get warm, especially when charging. Remember to use a pillow or lap desk if you’re going to do some couch computing, or else be at risk for toasted skin syndrome.
The batteries themselves total 35 watt-hours; a little calculation puts the 11.6″ MacBook Air’s power consumption at a rather low 7W when active, and 50 milliwatts when sleeping. You can thank LED backlighting, a low-voltage processor, and solid-state storage for that.
Chips, memory and SSD:
The MacBook Air contains Broadcom BCM943224 Wi-Fi/Bluetooth chip that can also be found in MacBook Pro series notebooks. The chips used in Air come in a different form factor.
The BCM5976 chip powers the multi-touch trackpad.
iFixit suggests that people should go for the 4GB RAM instead of 2GB because it is irreplaceable. It soldered to the logic board which means whatever you choose you have to live with it for the rest of your life.
The 64GB SSD can store two songs and one movie. It comprises of four 16GB flash chips from Toshiba. There is also a ToshibaT6UG1XBG SSD controller and Micron DDR DRAM cache chip. Like all other parts, the SSD is screwed to the logic board with T5 Torx screws but you can remove them easily. The SSD uses a mini-SATA connector which means hackers can increase their machine’s storage capacity but there is a catch, it would have to fit into the frame of the machine.
Display:
The MacBook Air has a LED-backlit display with an improved resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels that is almost equal to the 13inch MacBook and MacBook pros. The screen is also the most expensive component of the device costing Apple $180.
Speaker:
The MacBook Air speakers are quite powerful. According to iFixit, they are probably one or two watts.
Score:
In terms of repairability, iFixit gives the new MacBook Air a score of 4 out of 10. It is very difficult to open the machine and customized components inside.
Apple’s new MacBook Air would fetch huge revenue for the company this holiday season. According to the research arm of Concord Securities, the recently unveiled 11.6inch and 13.3 inch MacBook Air models will have a sales of 700,000 units this quarter.
The firm predicted that this fall Mac products would have an estimated sales of 4.1million units of which MacBook Air would account for 17 percent. Mingchi Kuo, VP, Research unit, Concord Securities, further said that the 11.6inch Air model will account for 60 percent of the total MacBook Air sales.
If this comes to be true then it would be another achievement for Apple. On October 18, 2010, Apple announced its fourth quarter financial result where it reported to have sold 3.89 million Mac products which is a 27 percent increase on quarter-over-quarter basis.
On October 20, 2010 at the “Back to the Mac Event” the company unveiled their latest version of Mac OS X, Mac OS X Lion and new MacBook Air models with 11.6 inch and 13.3 inch screen. The notebooks have instant on feature. The entry-level MacBook Air is priced at $999.
On October 22, 2010, Gleacher & Co. analyst, Brian Marshall estimated that the smaller MacBook Air generates better profit margin compared to other notebook products of Apple.
On October 22, 2010, Apple announced that the new versions of Mac OS X will not support Adobe Flash but that does not mean Mac users would not be able to install Flash on their systems, they can but Apple would not provide any Flash security updates with its OS patches. Users would have to find security updates and download on their own.
Apple spokesman Bill Evans said, "We're happy to continue to support Flash on the Mac, and the best way for users to always have the most up to date and secure version is to download it directly from Adobe,"
On October 20, 2010, Apple unveiled two new MacBook Air models and they are the first Apple devices to run without flash and gradually other devices would also get rid of Adobe Flash in near future.
Apple and Adobe are not in good terms. It all started when Apple did not allow Adobe to run on its popular iPhone. Over time, the dispute became intense and CEOs of both companies had heated exchange of words. In April, Steve Jobs criticized Adobe. He said, "Flash has not performed well on mobile devices. We have routinely asked Adobe to show us Flash performing well on a mobile device, any mobile device, for a few years now. We have never seen it." Steve Jobs said that Adobe’s Flash is the number one cause of crashing Mac systems. In May 2010, Adobe board of directors criticized Apple.
Call center hiring sparked Verizon iPhone rumors. Two call centers- Ryla and Teleperformance, are looking for thousands of customer service representatives for a “major wireless cell phone service retailer.” Many believe that the cell phone retailer is Verizon.
Ryla is going to hire approximately 1,700 employees across Indiana, Colorado, Virginia and California. News reports said that Ryla is looking for 500 people in Clovis California who would answer customer-service calls on behalf of a “Fortune 500 cellular/telecommunications company” which is planning to increase its marketing and sales. CNET.com says:
Teleperformance's Careerbuilder post says employees in Pennsylvania will field calls for a "major wireless cell phone service retailer."
Duties will include processing and explaining rate plan changes and assisting customers with "general inquiries about billing rates, roaming, features, and services."
Additional postings on Teleperformance's Web site list positions in Salt Lake City, Texas, Ohio, and South Carolina as being dedicated to either a wireless, cell phone, or communications company. What's more, applicants for positions in Lindon, Utah, will offer technical support for personal computers and portable devices like MP3 players and smartphones.
Both Ryla and Teleperformance have the experience of working for Verizon and Apple. Teleperformance worked for both companies while Ryla have been working for Verizon for more than 10 years.
The rumor became stronger after Verizon released its third quarter financial result on October 22, 2010, which revealed that the company lost market to its arch-rival AT&T. In the third quarter, Verzion added 5,84,000 new subscribers against 7,45,000 of AT&T. This led many to believe that the company is now quickened the pace of its preparation to launch the new iPhone next year.
On October 20, 2010, Apple unveiled its newly designed MacBook Air. From its inception, the MacBook Air has been pitched as the thinnest laptop in the world by Apple and the company remained true to its words. The new MacBook Air models are thinner, lighter, packs more ports, and comes at a price tag which makes it an ideal device to use for general purpose.
Design:
The new MacBooks have aluminum unibody and are 0.68 inches on the thickest side and 0.11 inches on the other. The smaller Air measures 11.8 inches in length and 7.56 inches in width and the bigger one measures 12.8 inches in length and 8.94 inches in width. Both the machines have full size keyboards and multi-touch track pad and palm rest. Apple Insider says:
For a very portable notebook, which is the intended role of the Air, the 11 inch model shaves off a little weight and significant size while retaining a full sized keyboard and trackpad. It does give up some display area, and the subtraction is most obvious in the vertical axis. So much so that you may want to reposition the Dock on the side or configure it to hide in order to have enough vertical room to work on your documents.
Here is a video clip of MacBook Air:
Here is another video clip:
Inside MacBook Air:
The iFixit teardown revealed that Apple use four 16GB flash chips from Toshiba including a Toshiba SSD controller and Micron DDR DRAM cache chip. It has six individual lithium-polymer cells. The rigidity of the display of the machines has also been improved highly and they are the most expensive component of the machine. The screen of the 11.6 inch MacBook Air costs $180.
According to Brian Marshall, analyst, Gleacher & Co., the estimated bill of materials for MacBook Air is $718 allowing Apple to have a profit margin of 28 percent to 37 percent which is approximately 20 percent higher compared to the margins of the company’s notebook line and makes it more profitable than other Apple laptops. This has happened mainly Apple’s ability to drive profit using flash drives in all its devices.
The 64GB SSD used in the entry-level 11.6 inch MacBook Air costs $80. The SSD memory along with the Intel Core 2 Duo processor is the second-most expensive component of the device after the screen. The margin for the 64GB MacBook Air is at 28.1 percent which becomes 34 percent with 128GB version. For using more powerful flash storage, Apple spends only $73.60 but charges customers $200 more for the larger flash.
For the 13.3 inch MacBook Air, the 128GB SSD costs Apple $154 resulting into a profit margin of 33 percent. However, 256GB version yields a profit margin of 37 percent as Apple spends only $141 and charges customers extra $300.
Display:
The new MacBook Air models come with LED-backlit screens that have higher resolution compared to older and existing Mac laptop models. The smaller version has a resolution of 1366 x 768p which is almost equal to the existing 13inch MacBook and MacBook Pro’s 1280 x 800p resolution. On the other hand, the 13inch MacBook has a resolution of 1440x900 which is same as the older 15 inch MacBook Pro. There are VGA cameras fitted on the bezels to support FaceTime video calling.
CPU, storage, GPU and memory:
The 11-inch Air has two CPU options- 1.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo with 3MB on-chip shared L2 cache or 1.6GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 3MB shared L2 cache. Both the processors have 800 MHz FSB. The 13inch Air also has two CPU options- 1.86GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 6MB on-chip shared L2 cache or 2.13GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 6MB shared L2 cache. The processors contain 1066MHz FSB.
Mac products are known for their capability of handling HD photos and videos. The iLife suite of Apple is well known for its ability to create, edit and organize music, images and videos.
The biggest challenge for Apple was to fit in equipments in the smaller and thinner compartment of MacBook Air that would provide high graphics performance to users.For this reason, Apple used an on old Intel Core 2 Duo processor and NVIDIA GeForce 320M graphics processor and made a trade off for processing power to graphics performance. Forbes.com says:
The twist: Nvidia’s GPU brings more than just better gaming. Apple’s OS X Snow Leopard operating system uses an Apple-backed technology called OpenCL to tap into some of the GPU’s unique capabilities to speed up certain tasks, Brookwood explains. There’s a real chance they’re the kind of tasks that make iLife on a Mac fly through the sorts of multi-media tasks that other computers choke on.
The models come with 2GB built-in memory which can be further increased to 4GB but you would not be able to upgrade the memory on purchase for they are soldered into the logic board. It would be better if you directly go for the 4GB upgrade.
The MacBook Airs never had any optical drives and this time Apple also shaded off the HDD and fitted them with smaller SSDs (64GB/128GB for the smaller version and 128GB/256GB for the larger version). This provides the MacBook Air lower storage capacity but there is also an advantage. The MacBook Air would take less time to start up.
I/O ports:
Compared to the old models the new Airs have more ports but they do not have Firewire. The 11-inch has one mini display port while the larger version has one microSD card slot. Both have 2 USB 2.0 ports, 1 MagSafe adapter port and one microphone and headphone jack.
Wireless communication:
The Air models have AirPort Extreme Wi-Fi wireless networking and Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR.
Accessories:
You will have software reinstall drive which is actually a USB dongle containing Mac OS X installer and iLife 11. CNET.com says:
When plugged into the computer, holding down the "C" key as you boot up treats the USB stick just like an optical disc, letting you run system diagnostics, or do a clean re-installation of OS X. Apple has long included the same tools on CDs, and later DVDs, but given the Air's reliance on external disc drives, this proves to be a much more user-friendly option for those without.
Is this pack-in a sign of things to come from the hardware and software maker? It very well could be a future option of bringing upgrades, like the upcoming 10.7 Lion to the Air when it arrives next summer. Either that, or through the Mac App Store, which Apple said will be coming to computers running Snow Leopard (10.6) in the next 90 days.
Here is a video clip of unboxing MacBook Air:
Battery life:
Compared to their predecessors, the new MacBook Air models have higher battery life. The 11inch Air has 5hour battery back up while the 13inch has 7 hour battery backup. Both have 30 days standby time.
Instant on Windows vs. MacBook Air:
Apple took lots of cues from Apple iPad while creating the new MacBook Air. One of the features is the “Instant On” that is very popular on iPhone and iPad. The new MacBook Air has Instant On feature which makes it very enjoyable to use.
Price:
11" MacBook Air with 1.40GHz CPU and 64GB SSD: $999.00
11" MacBook Air with 1.40GHz CPU and 128GB SSD:$1,199.00
13" MacBook Air with 1.86GHz CPU and 128GB SSD:$1,299.00
13" MacBook Air with 1.86GHz CPU and 256GB SSD:$1,599.00
With the entry-level MacBook Air priced at $999, the MacBook Air becomes very much competitive. Customers will have a hard time choosing between MacBook Air, Pro and MacBook laptops. Apple Insider reported that most of the buyers are going for the smaller version.
In conclusion, the MacBook Air with its slim built, I/O ports and longer battery life can be a great alternative for iPad but you can not use it like the iPad. You would have to do everything in the landscape mode.
Considering mobile computing and connectivity, Acer has come up with Aspire One D255 netbook for the frequent travelers. D255 offers more than what users can expect from a typical netbook. Users can work for up to 8 hours without needing to plug in- meaning its 6-cell battery offers back up for a full working day. At the same time, this netbook boasts of some other features which any mobile user would just love to have while on the go.
Acer Aspire One D255 comes with a 10.1-inch CrystalBrite LED-backlit display. Another excellent feature comes with D255 is Intel’s Graphics Media Accelerator technology which promises an excellent viewing experience. So, users would find the video quality much better than that of many other netbooks.
Acer Aspire One D255 is powered by Intel Atom N550 dual-core processor which is very good at multitasking. The netbook also packs in 1GB of DDR3 RAM, 250GB of storage capacity, Windows 7 starter edition and Microsoft Office Starter 2010. The netbook is currently available in black, red, brown and white.
For smooth access to internet, D255 has 802.11 b/g/n wireless, Wi-Fi, and Ethernet. Its integrated 1.3 megapixel high definition webcam is more than enough for producing excellent image quality during online chats and video conferencing. It also comes with a built-in microphone which ensures superb voice quality minimizing background noise.
For a netbook, all these abovementioned features are an excellent package, but that does not mean that you have to compromise with portability. D255 is just 1-inch thin and weighs just 1.25 kgs. It has a keyboard which is 93% of a full size keyboard, and thus, ensuring confortable typing experience while on the go.
Overall, Acer Aspire One D255 could be a perfect netbook for those who work outdoor for a long time and need to remain connected during work time. Most importantly, all these come in a package with a price tag of $329.99.
Dell has added some multimedia features to its XPS series of laptops ahead of the holiday season. The revamped XPS laptops boast of a number of multimedia features including 3D TV technology. Using NVIDIA 3DTV Play software, users can enjoy 3D HDTV, Blu-ray 3D movies, play games in 3D and enjoy photos and videos in 3D.
Moreover, users would also find speakers designed and certified by JBL, and these speakers come with integrated Waves MaxxAudio 3 processing technology which ensures excellent sound quality. The 15-inch and 17-inch models also pack better bass with 12-watt ubwoofers.
All three models (14-inch, 15-inch and 17-inch) are certified by Skype and feature integrated webcam with 720p HD video streaming facility. Some other features offered by the revamped Dell XPS laptops include Audio control panel, keys for Windows Mobility Center and a launch button that users can configure as they like.
Dell XPS 17 features 17.3-inch WLED display, Intel Core i5 460M processor running at 2.4GHz, 4GB DDR3 SDRAM, 500GB hard drive and many other features. Configurations of two other models, Dell XPS 15 and Dell XPS 14, are pretty much similar to XPS 17. All three models feature a number of ports including HDMI 1.4, Wi-Fi Wireless-N, Ethernet etc.
Overall, the new Dell XPS series laptops have something special for those who would love to have enhanced entertainment during the upcoming festival season.
Steve Jobs and President Barack Obama had a meeting on October 21, 2010, and the two talked about America’s education and job creation. The President is currently on a four-day campaign tour through the western U.S. states for the midterm elections that would take place on November 2, 2010. On that day, he was in Washington to host a rally for Democratic Senator Patty Murray.
According to Robert Gibbs, Press Secretary, White House, the two met at the Westin Hotel in San Francisco. He said, "They discussed American competitiveness and education, especially reforms such as the president's Race to the Top initiative,…They then talked about energy independence and ways to increase job creation."
Obama and Jobs first met in 2008. Barack Obama is known to use Apple products in White House and Steve Jobs is a big democratic supporter. In 2000, Jobs donated $50,000 to the Democratic National Committee and in 2003, former Vice President Al Gore joined Apple’s board of directors. In 2006, he donated $26,700 to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
That day President also attended a $30,000-a-plate fund-raising dinner at the home of Marissa Mayer, Vice President, Search Products & User Experience, Google, Inc. and another at the home Steve Westly, VC, Clean tech.
Toshiba is going to launch two new Dynabook mini laptops in the Japanese market by the end of October 2010. Dynabook N510/06A and Dynabook N510/04A, the two new members of the Dynabook family, will come with some excellent features, but not at the expense of portability. The mini laptops will be available in Japan from 29 October 2010.
Both N510/06A and N510/04A feature 11.6-inch high definition LED backlit displays with very good resolution. Users will find 2 GB DDR3 memory, 320 GB hard drive and Windows 7 operating system. Toshiba features two powerful processors from Intel with both the laptops.
Dynabook N510/06A comes with Intel Core i3 380UM ULV dual core processor running at 1.33 GHz. This is one of the latest ULV processors from Intel’s Core family and is pretty good at multitasking.
Dynabook N510/04A offers Intel Pentium Dual Core ULV U5400 processor with a clock speed of 1.20 GHz. This processor may be a bit less powerful, compared to that of N510/06A, but still users can expect an excellent performacen from the dual core chip which is good enough at multitasking.
Despite featuring some powerful features, both the machines can offer excellent portability as both weigh just 1.48 kg which is pretty similar to a typical netbook. Moreover, both the laptops will provide up to 6.4 hours of battery back up, and thus, making it more perfect for travelers.
Toshiba Dynabook N510/06A will come with a price tag of $1400, while Toshiba Dynabook N510/04A will cost $1160. No doubt, prices are pretty high. In fact, you can find laptops with better features even paying less, but the prices of these two mini laptops could be justified considering its features and portability.
On October 20, 2010, Apple unveiled new Mac products at “Back to the Mac” event including iLife 11, beta version of FaceTime for Mac, Mac OS X Lion, Mac App Store, and new MacBook Air.
At the event, Apple showed iPhoto, iMovie, and Garage Band apps of the iLife 11 suite. The new iPhoto comes with Facebook integration. You can also watch photos in full-screen mode. With the slide show, you can add music tracks and ensure better transitions. Apple also added photo books with new features and letter press cards. You can also email photos directly from the app and it would show you where you shared the photos.
The iMovie app comes with a simple audio editing tool. With waveform editing, you can increase or decrease the volume of a specific section of your audio. You can also add audio effects and video-effects. You can also create trailers of your movie with trailer creation tool in 15 different genres.
The Garage band app comes with features like Flex Time, Groove Matching, new stompbox effects, 22 music lessons to teach piano or guitar and many more. The iLife 11 will come free with all new Mac PCs and upgrades would cost $49 or $79 for a family pack of 5 licenses.
Apple unveiled the beta version of the Face Time app for Mac. Till date, Apple shipped more than 19 million Face Time devices. You can download the beta version of the Face Time from Apple.com but you would require Snow Leopard and an Apple ID.
The Mac OS X Lion is the 8th release in the Mac OS X series. The OS has many features that are currently available on iPad such as multi-touch gestures, full-screen access. The new OS also enables you to purchase and download apps from the all new Mac App Store. The Mac OS X Lion will be available in Summer 2011 but the Mac App store will be opened in 90 days and it could be accessed from Mac OS X Snow Leopard as well.
Finally, Apple showed off its all new MacBook Air with 11.6 inch or 13.3 inch screens. The new MacBook Air is smaller and lighter and there are no hard drives or optical drives. Instead there is flash storage. The new MacBook Air is only 0.68inches thick on the thickest side and 0.11 inch on the other side and weighs 2.9 lbs. It has a complete unibody construction. Base price starts from $999 and would go all the way to $1599.
Taiwanese computer manufacturer Acer now wants to see the collaboration between China and Taiwan to create the popular broadband technology named WiMAX. Acer chairman JT Wang during a forum organized in Taiwan’s capital city Taipei asked both the neighboring countries to work together for the development of WiMAX technology in this region.
Mr. Wang also urged China not to spend all its money on the prevalent TDLTE technology which he believes would take 2 to 3 years to reach the maturity.
“By working together, Taiwan and China can create broadband wireless production value of over NT$10 trillion. Let's not let the Apples and Googles take away all of the market. It'll take about two to three years for TDLTE to mature. China should team up with Taiwan on WiMAX,” said Wang during the forum.
Acer chairman also confirmed that the Taiwan dollar’s sudden 4% increase against US dollar was not a big impact on the company as it well-prepared for the situation. Mr. Wang also said that the impact can sometimes be positive and sometimes negative and it depends on portfolio management of company’s assets.
However, Mr. Wang refused to reveal Acer’s fourth quarter target. Here, it should be mentioned that the company lost market share in the US and its netbook sales were largely affected due to the huge popularity of Apple iPad.
Future of traditional computer is now said to be shrouded of uncertainty amidst the surging popularity of tablet PCs like Apple iPad. Since its launch in April 2010, Apple iPad has become a new craze and many believe that it would gradually replace netbook and notebook. The company sold 3 million iPads within 80 days of its launch. Apple CEO Steve Jobs strongly believe that tablet PCs would take over the reign from traditional computers.
JT Wang, chairman of Taiwan-based computer maker Acer, has, however, dismissed all doubts over the future of netbooks and notebooks. Mr. Wang thinks that people are currently just focusing on the advantages of iPad i.e. its design, form factor etc. and he insists that people would ‘return to their senses’ once they start to look at the downsides of iPad. He also mentioned that users had already started to go back to traditional computers to write text documents and work on spreadsheets.
Acer chairman also dismissed reports suggesting that the popularity of iPad was the reason behind Acer’s loss in US market share during the third quarter. Rather, he thinks that Acer’s loss in market share was mainly because of their competitors’ pricing policy. Where competing companies were ready to cut prices, Acer just did not act accordingly.
In terms of market share in the US, Acer finished fourth behind Apple during the third quarter of the year. The most surprising and important thing is that Acer’s low-priced netbooks and notebooks for the budget-conscious people were outperformed by Apple’s high-priced Macs. Apple’s Mac shipment saw a sharp 24.1% increase in Q3 compared to the same period last year. Mac’s strong performance helped Apple to grab 10.6% market share, while Acer finished close with 10.3% share in the US market.
Acer chairman also confirmed that his company would not rush to introduce a tablet; rather they would wait for the right design before introducing their iPad counterpart.
Two upcoming Eee PC netbooks from Asus are going to feature Intel’s dual core Atom N550 processor with 1.5GHz of clock speed. The two netbooks, Eee PC 1015PEM and 1018P, will also offer some features which have so far been available mainly in notebooks.
In terms of configuration, both the netbooks are pretty much similar. Both feature a 10.1-inch LED backlit display with 1024x600 resolution. Users would find multi-touch trackpad too in both models. Generally, a netbook does not offer multi-gesture facility because it can not offer as much space required for experiencing the advantage of this facility. Still, Asus is offering it mainly because of the current craze for multi-touch trackpad among the users.
Both the netbooks are equipped with 1GB of RAM which can be upgraded up to 2GB and Windows 7 Starter edition. Some other attractive features common in both models include Bluetooth 3.0, WiFi 802.11n for networking, few USB 3.0 ports and a USB 2.0 port.
Despite packing all these attractive features, Eee PC 1015PEM and 1018P do not compromise with form factor and battery life. With 6-cell battery, Eee PC 1018P offers up to 11.5 hours back up, while Eee PC 1015PEM can run up to 9 hours thanks to its 4-cell battery.
So, both models stand tall on battery life as frequent travelers would just love to have their hands on either of the Eee PC netbooks. Features are attractive, battery life is excellent; now you must be wondering about its weight i.e. portability.
Well, you do not have to be disappointed on this part too. Eee PC 1015PEM weighs at 1.25kg, while Eee PC 1018P fares even better with a weight of 1.1kg.
No doubt, in terms of features and portability both Asus Eee PC 1015PEM and Eee PC 1018P can outperform many of the netbooks available in the market.
So, it is pretty much justifiable that the two models would cost you some extra buck. 1015PEM is priced at £279 including VAT and 1018P will come with a price tag of £349.
Asus has introduced a nicely designed laptop with superb audio and video quality. Asus N53 features a number of excellent features including Blu-Ray drive, USB 3.0, webcam, HDMI port and card reader. However, its gorgeous design, audio and video quality are perhaps the best part of the laptop.
ASUS N53 comes with a 15.6-inch LED backlit display with 1366×768 resolution, and thus, ensuring high quality video watching experience for the users. However, watching movie during daytime could be problematic because its glossy display screen creates too much reflection.
Audio quality is another good part of the Asus N53 notebook. It features Sonic Master Audio, and even though its speakers are not very large in size, users can have a very high quality sound experience with this laptop. Its speakers offer loud sound with excellent music effect.
Asus’ association with Bang & Olufsen ICEpower in the making of N53 is reflected in its eye-catching design. Its burnished aluminum finish would attract the users who always keep an eye on the style. The display screen is well-placed on two hinges which make it look like a well-built device.
Priced in between £650 and £1000, Asus N53 would start to hit the shelves by the end of this year in the UK.
Acer has released two new Aspire laptop lines with some attractive features and affordable prices. The two lines are: Aspire AS5742 and Aspire AS5745. At the moment, there are 5 laptops available from these two lines, featuring some of today’s best technologies including Intel Core processor and DDR3 RAM.
All the 5 models come with 15.6-inch high definition LCD display, Acer Crystal Eye 1.3 megapixel webcam, 6-cell battery, and run on Windows 7 Home Premium operating system. Acer Aspire AS5742 line has two laptops: A32 and A52, while there are three models in Aspire AS5745 line: A54, N54 and N74. I am giving some configuration details of all these 5 laptops here:
Acer Aspire AS5742-A32
Powered by Intel Core i3-370M 2.40 GHz processor, this laptop features 2GB DDR3 memory, a 320GB SATA hard drive with an optional 500GB available, Intel HD graphics card and a two-in-one card reader. For networking, it has WiFI/Ethernet facility. The basic version is now available for $740 with the upgraded version available for $990.
Acer Aspire AS5742-A52
A52 comes with Intel Core i3-460M 2.53 GHz processor, 2GB DDR3 RAM with 1066MHz clock speed, 500GB SATA hard drive, Wi-Fi, Ethernet, 2-in-1 card reader and Intel high-definition graphics card. The basic version is available for $860 and the upgraded version is priced at $1110.
The three models of Aspire AS5745 line offer improved features including Intel Core i5 (A54 and N54) and Intel Core i7 (N74) processors, 4GB of DDR3 RAM and NVIDIA GeForce graphics card (available in N54 and N74 models).
Aspire AS5745-N74 also features Blu-ray, Bluetooth, 5-in-1 card reader, HDMI port, 4 USB 2.0 ports. Its NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M graphics card offers 1GB of cache memory. Among the three laptops from Aspire AS5745 line, only A54 has its price announced. It is priced at $990. Prices of N54 and N74 are yet to be revealed.
Acer has recently come up with Aspire One AO532h netbook with 3G technology. The netbook has almost all the features of a typical netbook, but its long battery life and a much fuller keyboard have given it an edge over some of its competitors.
Aspire One AO532h comes with a 10-inch display featuring a pretty good resolution of 1024 x 600. Because of its pretty high resolution, the netbook offers a very good video quality. With Acer Crystal Eye webcam, users can have a very good experience of video chatting and video conference, and thus, proving its video quality. Its audio quality is up to the mark too.
Another good part of the netbook is its Intel Atom processor N450 which is from Intel’s new Atom Pine Trial platform. Its 1GB RAM and storage capacity of 160GB are of average features for a netbook, but the fact that it supports 3G technology besides featuring Wi-Fi and Ethernet means the netbook has something attractive for the users. Its 6-cell lithium-ion battery provides up to 9-hour of battery life. It runs on Windows 7 starter edition.
Acer Aspire One AO532h may not have a spectacular design, but its two hinges holding the display mean the netbook afford some rough usage. Users would find typing pretty much comfortable mainly because of its larger keyboard compared to typical netbooks. However, the low part of the netbook is its touchpad as it is not smooth enough to take input.
The netbook also features WLAN, VGA port, Ethernet port, multi-in-one card reader and Bluetooth.
Overall, Acer Aspire One AO532h could be a very good choice for the frequent travelers because of its form factor, long battery life, easy and smooth access to internet, and comfortable typing experience.
Toshiba has now added 4G WiMAX technology to its already popular Portégé R700 ultraportable laptop. Users of newly launched Portégé R700 models would be able to have easy access to internet in 54 cities in the US. A number of other American cities including New York, Los Angles, Miami, Denver, Cleveland, Minneapolis, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and San Francisco will come under WiMAX coverage very soon.
Two new Portégé R700 models with 4G WiMAX have been introduced today by the Digital Products Division of Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc. Portégé R700 has already become a highly popular laptop among the business users.
Toshiba Portégé R700 provides both performance and ultraportability to the users. It is the lightest 13.3-inch ultraportable in the world, but still comes with an integrated DVD drive which ensures users would not miss entertainment.
Its form factor is really eye-catching. The laptop weighs just 3 pounds and is 1-inch thin. All the laptops of Toshiba Portégé R700 models feature Intel’s latest Core processors and several ports including eSATA/USB combo port with Sleep-and-Charge functionality and ExpressCard slot. It also comes with 4GB of DDR3 RAM, a built-in DVD SuperMulti drive and a 6-cell battery ensuring long battery life.
Toshiba Portégé R700 also feature an eye-catching design which would attract users who always prefer stylish laptops. Its 13.3-inch diagonal HD LED-backlit screen provides high-quality picture.
Overall, users can find almost everything in Toshiba Portégé R700. It offers high-battery life- meaning users can work for a long time while they are on the go; it provides some of today’s best features including Intel Core family processors and DDR3 memory, a DVD drive; still it has excellent form factor, and thus, making it comfortable for the frequent travelers.
Now, 4G WiMAX has been added, so it is pretty much clear that the current popularity of the Toshiba Portégé R700 would continue to grow.
Realizing the growing popularity of Light Emitting Diode (LED) monitors, Dell has now come up with a series of multimedia LED monitors which are ENERGY Star 5.0 compliant. These eight LED displays use environment-friendly objects such as glass which is free of arsenic and panel devoid of mercury. These materials ensure less energy usage.
Moreover, this series of LED monitors also offer high multimedia experience for the users who can enjoy watching movie, gaming and photo editing with high-quality display.
Regarding these monitors, Scott Crawley GM, Consumer & SMB Software and Peripherals, Dell said, “Our new LED monitors ensure our customers are staying ahead of the curve, enjoying their multimedia with a stunning front-of-screen experience and energy conscious design.”
Users can find these monitors in three different sizes: 22-inch, 23-inch and 24-inch. All the monitors offer a superb HD resolution of 1920 x 1080, 16:9 aspect ratio, dynamic contrast ratio and 5ms black to white response time. It provides options of both digital and analog connectivity with VGA, DVI and HDMI ports.
The 22-inch monitors are now available for $199.99, while the 23-inch and the 24-inch are priced at $229.99 and $259.99. Pricing of the monitors seem to be highly attractive.
Meanwhile, Dell has also revealed the arrival of two 20-inch HD monitors featuring 1600 x 900 resolution and some other features, and the company’s first 21.5-inch monitor with multi-touch facility will arrive this fall.
According to KDDI and Okinawa Cellular Telephone Company, Toshiba is going to introduce three new Android-based smartphones in Japan in December this year. Though details of the three phones: Regza ISO4, Regza ISO5 and the SIRIUSα ISO6- are not yet available in the media, it has been reported that Regza ISO4 will sport a 12 megapixel camera.
The high megapixel camera would be perhaps the most attractive feature of Regza ISO4. The phone will also feature Android 2.1 Éclair operating system and a 4-inch full width VGA (FWVGA) touch screen. It will come with 1GHZ Snapdragon processor.
However, this is not the first time an Android phone is going to feature such a high megapixel camera. Altek Leo, another Android phone, featured 14 megapixel camera during this year’s CommunicAsia.
Reports also suggest that Toshiba Regza ISO4 will only be available in Japan as it would be produced targeting Japanese users. Other features of the phone seem to be pretty much attractive, but the 12mp camera will be the center of all attraction.
Though nothing regarding specification of the two other Android phones is available at the moment, it is expected that Toshiba would offer some eye-catching features with those two smartphones too.
Three tech companies: Dell, HP and IBM- have become the most environment-friendly companies in the US. Newsweek magazine has recently revealed Green Rankings 2010 which shows eight of the top ten places are occupied by the tech companies. IBM has been announced the greenest company in the world.
Newsweek and some environmental researchers came up with the 100-point scorecard last year and all the companies were evaluated on this 100-point scale. For the evaluation, US-based 500 publicly-traded companies came under consideration to decide the greenest company in the US. Biggest 100 international companies from around the world were considered for the evaluation to find out the greenest company in the world.
Dell and HP have been credited for their innovative ideas and technologies which ensure less energy usage. Newsweek has revealed that Dell could produce PCs which consume 25% less energy than those of 2008. Similarly, HP could lower its energy usage by 66% compared to that of 2005.
Besides Dell, HP and IBM, the remaining top ten US companies include Johnson & Johnson, Intel, Applied Materials, Yahoo, Nike, Sprint Nextel and Adobe Systems.
Top ten global companies are: IBM, Hewlett-Packard, Johnson & Johnson, Sony, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis, Deutsche Telekom, Panasonic, HSBC Holdings, and Toshiba.
