Posted 11/20/09 at 10:00:00 PM by Norman Chan

Set 30 years after Star Trek: Nemesis (the last film before the J.J. Abrams reboot), Star Trek Online puts you in the shoes of a captain in a newly sparked war between the goody-two-shoes Federation and savage Klingon empire. The promise of exploring the final frontier, massive space battles, and obscure Star Trek references fills us with geeky glee. We went down to Cryptic Studios’ offices to play the game and quiz Executive Producer Craig Zinkievich to ensure that fans of Star Trek and MMOs are getting the best of both worlds.

Craig had some interesting things to say about making a game for Star Trek fans and competing with World of Warcraft. Plus, we're giving away some invites to Star Trek Online's closed-beta!

Read More

Posted 11/20/09 at 08:10:29 PM by Ryan Whitwam

You may not be aware, but Qualcomm holds a number of patents on modern 3G cellular technology. Any company making a 3G cell phone has to pay patent royalties to Qualcomm. Analyst Sanford Bernstein pointed out in a report this week that Apple appears to be taking advantage of a licensing loophole to avoid paying all those fees for the iPhone. The loophole is estimated to save Apple $290 million in fiscal 2009 alone.

Licensees must pay 5% of the wholesale price of a 3G device to the patent owner. Qualcomm’s website lists over 145 companies that have licensed their 3G technology. The list includes all major makers of 3G handsets. The one notable exception? Apple. One surprise on the list is Foxconn, the Taiwanese manufacturer of the iPhone.

The Bernstein report says that Qualcomm is being paid royalties not on the price Apple charges (average $590), but on the unit price Apple pays Foxconn, a mere $244. So instead of making $23.60 per iPhone, Qualcomm is only seeing $9.70. Apple is able to get away with this because the entire manufacturing process is done externally. Qualcomm seems fine with the arrangement. After all, $9.70 per iPhone is pretty good considering how they fly off the shelves.

Read More

Posted 11/20/09 at 07:00:42 PM by Ryan Whitwam

An interesting Microsoft product roadmap has turned up. The document shows the year 2012 as the tentative timeframe for a “major release” code named Windows 8. This would put it at about three years out from the release of Windows 7. The interval between Vista and Win 7 was also three years. This could signal a new regular release cycle for Microsoft. No indication if the “code name” will stick, or if Redmond will decide to change naming schemes once again.

Vista was pushed back three years from its original release date after much of the code was scrapped. If this image is to be believed, Microsoft is confident in its ability to avoid such delays again. The timeframe fits with previous rumors we’ve heard, so there’s no reason to be overly skeptical.

Is the three year plan reasonable? We’ll have to wait and see what Microsoft can cook up in another three years.

Read More

Posted 11/20/09 at 06:36:43 PM by Ryan Whitwam

In the wake of a major service outage a few weeks ago, fourth place US carrier T-Mobile may be shopping around for investment money from another US cell provider. Compared to the other US carriers, T-Mobile has a very small 3G footprint. Recognizing a need to expand, rumors indicate that parent company Deutsche Telekom is courting the likes of MetroPCS, Clearwire, and even AT&T.

Any of these investors would receive a small stake in T-Mobile in exchange for investment to expand their network. MetroPCS is of particular interest as the smaller carrier uses the same odd 1700Mhz 3G frequency that T-Mobile does. Collaboration with AT&T would be risky due to possible anti-trust allegations. AT&T is the only other GSM carrier in the US.

Deutsche Telekom’s T-Mobile UK was recently forced to merge with Orange UK. Could their US arm be headed in the same direction?

Read More

Posted 11/20/09 at 05:56:39 PM by Pulkit Chandna

Just recently an American man accused of robbery was exonerated after a Facebook status update posted at about the same time as the robbery became his alibi. But Nathalie Blanchard, a 29-year-old Canadian woman, witnessed a different side, a much darker side, of using Facebook. Her rather jaunty Facebook alter ego has cost her dearly.

This IBM employee has been on sick leave for the last year and a half after being diagnosed with major depression. As if her long-drawn battle with depression wasn't enough, her insurance company, Manulife, withdrew her monthly sick-leave benefits this fall, using her happy Facebook pics as a pretext. Pics of Blanchard partying and holidaying were enough to convince the insurance company that she was back to normal.

The fun she was having, or trying to have, was strictly therapeutic - just what the doctor ordered, says Blanchard. She is also miffed at Manulife's meddlesome ways: the insurance company accessed her photos despite the fact that she has chosen to limit her profile to only friends. "My client was diagnosed with a major depression. And there were pictures of her on Facebook, in a party or having a good time. It could be that she was just trying to escape," Blanchard's lawyer Tom Lavin told CBC News.

The insurance company admits using social networking sites to keep a tab on clients. But it claims that it does not terminate claims "solely based on information published on websites such as Facebook."

Read More

Posted 11/20/09 at 05:42:38 PM by Pulkit Chandna

As one of the leading developers of games for mobile phones, Gameloft wields considerable clout. The France-based games developer has decided to cut back on the development of games for Google's Android platform just like other developers. According to Gameloft finance director Alexandre de, the Android Market is not all that conducive to paid applications.

He revealed that his company sells "400 times more games on iPhone than on Android." But with the number of Android-based phones growing with each passing day, it will be difficult for games developers to completely ignore the platform. However, there are a lot of issues that Google will have to address, if it wants Android to be taken seriously as a games platform.

Read More

Posted 11/20/09 at 04:43:18 PM by Bart Salisbury

For those who have expressed the need to streak a glossy, high resolution, 17-inch display with your greasy fingers, Dell has just made your dream come true. Today, Dell announced a multitouch display version of its Studio 17 laptop.

According to Anne C at the Direct2Dell community blog, the Studio 17 will come equipped with a suite of touch software applications. You’ll be able to finger your way through photo editing, music playlists, manage video playback, and paint. Naturally, you’ll need forearms like Popeye the Sailor to reach across the keyboard for any length of time, but that’s a small price to pay for way-cool technology.

The Studio 17 has a number of processor options for you: starring from the Pentium Dual Core T4300, running at 2.1Ghz, all the way up to the Core i7-720QM quad core, running at 1.6Ghz. You also can pile in up to 4Gb of DDR memory, a 640Gb SATA 5400 RPM hard drive, an ATI Mobility RAdeon HD 4650 with 1Gb of video memory, and a 17.3-inch high definition (900p) LED display. There’s also an option for a blu-ray player, if you are so inclined.

Multitouch, unfortunately, will be paired with the Core i7 processor only. Anne C says the multitouch system will be available in a few weeks. And the starting price will be $899.

Read More

Posted 11/20/09 at 04:11:40 PM by Bart Salisbury

So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, goodbye: to YouTube’s API access. From now on, it’s through the front door or you’re not getting inside.

The word comes from Syabas, the maker of the Popcorn Hour set-top box. They, along with pretty much every set-top box maker, used YouTube’s API access to video’s which provides a neater integration to video than the regular Flash-based web interface. Besides better video, advertisements were also avoided. Good deal all around.

But no more. Google has changed the agreement for using API access--which it has a right to do. Google has decided to cut off access, except perhaps to a few of the powerful set-top makers, like Sony or Nintendo. Could be Google has figured out a new way to generate revenue, which certainly wasn’t coming from those who skipped the ads.

Final farewells take place on December 2.

Read More