Windows 7 SP1 nears release as final beta build is pushed
Microsoft has rolled out the release candidates of Windows 7 Service Pack 1 (SP1) and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, the last of the beta builds before the update's final release to manufacturing.
Windows 7 SP1 constitutes a bundle of minor updates for the client version of Windows 7 and has been in beta since June (Though a version leaked two months beforehand.) The main updates to Winddows Server 2008 R2 include new features in the virtual desktop infrastructure called RemoteFX, and Dynamic Memory.
Sony Ericsson PlayStation Phone raises questions about Android, mobile gaming
Tech blog Engadget got its hands on some photographs of a device purported to be a prototype "PlayStation Phone" from Sony Ericsson. The phone is a landscape slider that bears a strong resemblance to the PSP Go when opened, and instead of Sony's XMB interface, it will supposedly run Android 3.0.
As expected, Sony Ericsson would not comment to us on the photographs this morning, but Engadget apparently has a decent source of information, and they have been getting exclusives on the device since August.
Barnes & Noble goes the way of the tablet with new Nook Color e-reader
Tueday evening, Barnes & Noble unveiled NOOKcolor, the book retailer's second generation Android-powered e-reader. While the first generation Nook utilized both an electrophoretic "e-paper" screen and a full-color touch panel, this generation goes for the pure tablet experience, and uses a 7" (1024 x 600) LCD touchscreen.
The NOOKcolor is just under half an inch thick and weighs 15.8 ounces, it features 802.11b/g/n, comes with 8GB of storage, supports microSD cards up to 32GB. The battery life is purported to be around 8 hours if the Wi-Fi is turned off.
Who is buying MacBook Air?
Apple had better not do its market research at Betanews, and executives should hope that you, our readers, aren't the measure of interest in MacBook Air. In response to last week's question "Will you buy MacBook Air," the majority responded "No." However, as usual, there was a marked difference between those folks commenting to the story and readers responding by e-mail. A slightly greater number of e-mail respondents say they will buy one of Apple's two thin-and-light models.
Apple unveiled new MacBook Airs -- in new 11.6-inch and updated 13.3-inch display sizes -- during an October 20 media event dubbed "Back to the Mac." Standard configs for the 11.6-inch model sell for $999 and $1,999 and $1,299 and $1,599 for the 13.3-inch Air. Many respondents used the more typical speeds-and-feeds measure to evaluate the, ah, Air quality. Nicholas Gerstenberger expressed sentiments shared by many other Betanews commenters responding in comments: "Old CPU tech, 64GB max drive (even if it is SSD) and a $999 price tag place way over a fully optioned laptop with optical drive 500GB 7200 rpm hard drive and loads of RAM. Sorry I'll pass."
Latest move by broadcasters to mandate implanting radios into cell phones
Fearing that over-the-air radio may be nearing extinction faster than predicted, the US National Association of Broadcasters has been backing legislation requiring mobile phone manufacturers to install "radio-activated chips," making them into de facto FM radios. . . whether consumers actually want them or not. But in an effort to accelerate legislation to make this happen before, say, next January, the NAB signaled yesterday it's willing to make a bargain with its most valuable negotiating chip: radio's decades-old exemption on paying performance royalties.
For over a year, the NAB has boasted that it has the support of a majority of members of the US House of Representatives, backing a bill that would extend the broadcast radio industry's exemption from paying performance fees to musicians (and their designated rights holders) indefinitely. But the political careers of many of those representatives are now somewhat less than definite, as many pollsters predict a change of party leadership in the House next January.
Microsoft launches Office 2011 for Mac
Microsoft on Tuesday officially launched Office 2011 for Mac in retail. The Mac OS version of Microsoft's popular productivity suite includes Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Messenger, and new to this edition, Outlook.
In addition to adding Outlook for Mac, Office 2011 adds a new focus on cloud-based creation and collaboration. It meshes with Office Web apps, SkyDrive, and SharePoint, and brings new co-authoring tools that let users simultaneously edit documents or share presentations with remote users through their browser.
Frak Firesheep: The whole Internet needs to run on SSL -- NOW
I used to like cookies. Oatmeal raisin. Chocolate chip. Oreos, if dipped in frosty milk. No longer. I hate cookies, thanks to all the privacy-snooping bits left on my computer -- whether or not I want these crumbs. Today, I've got another reason to hate cookies and to demand that all the frakers sending information in the clear over the Internet cease and desist: Firesheep.
What? You haven't heard about the new Firefox plug-in that lets anyone as capable as four year-olds to snatch your log-in information out of thin air? Well, hell, put down your damn Starbucks cup and disconnect from the open WiFi network (after reading this post, of course)! This plug-in, which quietly released yesterday, is literally hacking for idiots. If you're smart enough to install a Firefox plug-in, you, too, can snatch credentials from backwater, unsecured services -- like Facebook.
The real life Artoo boards Space Shuttle Discovery
Next Monday, Robonaut 2 (R2) --GM and NASA's 300-pound humanoid-from-the-waist-up robot-- will be blasted into space to begin his job aboard the International Space Station. Today, he was prepped and packed onto the space shuttle Discovery in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
R2 is the product of a collaboration between GM and NASA engineers, who have been working together since 2007. He is made up of a head, torso, two arms, and two hands, and will be a complement to Dextre, the robot built by the Canadian Space Agency that was first brought to the International Space Station in March 2008. While Dextre is meant to work in space, R2's job will be to work alongside humans in the space station's Destiny laboratory.
Sony stopping sales of iconic Walkman tape player in Japan
After nearly three decades on the market, Sony quietly stopped sales of its Walkman portable cassette recorder in Japan on Friday. While the company will continue to sell the model in developing countries, its exit from the Japanese market seems to suggest its time is running out.
"There is still demand in certain regions, including emerging markets, but in Japan there has been a shift to other forms of recording media," a spokesperson said of the company's decision. Indeed, Sony itself did its part to speed up the death of the market it had all but created on its own.
Sprint subsidies knock $200 from retail price of Samsung Galaxy Tab
Network operator Sprint announced its pricing and availability for the Samsung Galaxy Tab today, along with the related plans it will offer. Unlike Verizon Wireless, Sprint will offer Samsung's new Android tablet subsidized with a two-year service contract.
Last Week, Verizon Wireless announced it would begin selling the Galaxy Tab on November 11th for $599.99, with pay-as-you-go data plans starting at $20 per month for 1GB.
Ray Ozzie falls from grace but not the cloud
Microsoft's former Chief Software Architect is blogging again -- after nearly five years' absence. Ray Ozzie has posted a disturbing memo, "Dawn of a New Day," sent to Microsoft "executive staff and direct reports." Eh, I thought Ozzie no longer had direct reports. The memo cheers Microsoft's services strategy extending Office and Windows to the cloud. Early sections of Ozzie's missive reads more like a press release for the past -- dawn of the old day -- and bears little resemblance to the interoperable, operating system in the clouds pitch that he made for years -- at least until PDC 2009. That said, he also issues a warning about a post-PC era Microsoft executives shouldn't ignore. Seeing as Ozzie was ignored before, what hope is there that they'll listen now? As I asserted 10 days ago, "It's a shame about Ray Ozzie."
The memo's timing is most certainly not coincidental. October 18th news about Ozzie's demotion and imminent departure came the day before Microsoft announced Office 365, essentially a forthcoming extension of the existing cloud-based productivity suite strategy. Office 365 represents a cloud services strategy many steps removed from the one Ozzie originally articulated for Microsoft. Ozzie represented a different vision. Microsoft dispatched the visionary before asserting an extension to the Office-Windows-Windows applications stack, rather than fully embracing the cloud-connected -- anytime, anywhere and on anything -- strategy he long advocated. Ozzie's memo comes just days before Microsoft convenes PDC 2010, on October 28th. In the strangest of coincidences -- or not if Ozzie is trying to make another point -- the memo is dated the 28th. There is no date stamp on the blog post, but it looks like an October 25th posting. His last gargantuan memo was Oct. 28, 2005, so timing has two points of significance -- the five-year anniversary and his last word before the next Microsoft developer conference.
Amazon says 3rd gen Kindle is fastest seller yet, still doesn't say how many sold
Though Amazon doesn't disclose how many Kindle e-readers it sells, the online retailer today announced that the latest generation Kindle devices are the fastest selling Kindles so far. 24 days into the fourth quarter 2010, the 3rd generation Kindle has already passed total Kindle sales for the entire fourth quarter last year.
This sales explosion is no doubt the result of the Kindle's increased availability after it launched in retail stores early in September. Consumers who may have never seen a Kindle before finally gained the ability to feel how lightweight it is, and see its new higher contrast screen.
First 'Bluetooth Killer' Wi-Fi Direct hardware gets certified
Wi-Fi Direct certification has begun. The Wi-Fi Alliance announced today that products from Atheros, Broadcom, Intel, Ralink, Realtek, and Cisco will be the first Certified Wi-Fi Direct hardware in the test bed for the new wireless networking standard.
The key feature of the new Wi-Fi Direct standard is that it lets devices with 802.11 wireless radios communicate directly with one another without the need of a wireless router between them. Wi-Fi Direct devices near one another can transfer content at speeds 25 times faster than they could with Bluetooth 2.0. As a result, the standard has been referred to as a Bluetooth Killer in IEEE meetings.
Microsoft to open web-based gaming store November 15
In an attempt to keep the PC in the minds of consumers as a capable gaming console, Microsoft on Friday announced that it would launch a web-based gaming store that would allow for the purchase of digital copies of both new and old titles. The store opens on November 15.
While Microsoft itself is a producer of some titles through its own in-house game development subsidiaries, the store would also house titles from its partners as well. "We plan to deliver some of our biggest and best PC franchises on Games for Windows Marketplace from day one," Capcom strategy chief Christian Svensson said in a statement.
HP Slate 500 shows how far the enterprise tablet has come
After providing nearly a whole year of sneak peeks, HP has finally made its first Windows 7 Slate available for purchase, the enterprise-aimed Slate 500.
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