NewsSony Voluntarily Recalling 440,000 Vaio Laptops
Posted 09/05/08 at 12:41:45 PM by Paul Lilly
Most times when you read about a notebook recall the problem typically stems from a defective battery. But that's not the case with Sony's voluntary recall of 440,000 Vaio TZ notebooks. Sony says "irregularly placed wires near the hinge, or a dislodged screw inside the hinge, may create a short circuit, causing localized overheating." Affected models include:
- VGN-TZ100 series
- VGN-TZ200 series
- VGN-TZ300 series
- VGN-TZ2000 series
The issue potentially affects all modes sold between July 2007 and August 2008. If you own one of the above models, Sony advises visiting http://esupport.sony.com/fixmypc where you'll be prompted to input your product code and serial number to see if your unit is affected. Alternately, you can call 1-888-526-6219, and if your model qualifies, Sony will provide a free inspection and on-site repair.
NewsDell: Free Netbooks for Everyone!, (As Long as You Pay for 3G)
Posted 09/04/08 at 02:29:42 PM by Florence ion
Dell CEO Michael said Wednesday at the Citigroup Technology Conference that notebooks will eventually become subsidized by wireless telecom carriers, who will no doubt sell the devices with 3G service and capabilities in an effort to profit from the growing mobile market.
The prediction merely came off as an indication of the company’s strategy to stay afloat among the sea of competition infiltrating the notebook market, especially considering that the company has had less than expected profit margins. With the rising popularity of 3G, Dell expects that telecom carriers will take over the laptop market in order to sell the services and prepare for the eventual initiation of 4G. Notebooks will ultimately become netbooks.
At the conference, Citigroup said that netbooks will account for about a third of global notebook sales. Dell agreed, saying that “(Netbooks are) a market expansion,” according to ZDNet. Dell will no doubt follow this strategy as it attempts to reinitiate itself into the notebook market.
NewsDell Inspiron Mini 9 Now Official with Specs and Pricing
Posted 09/04/08 at 11:18:32 AM by Paul Lilly
If you've been waiting for Dell to officially release its Mini 9 notebook line, your wait is now over. On the high end, a starting price of $449 buys a Mini Inspiron 910 with an Intel Atom N270 processor (1.6GHz, 533MHz frontside-bus, 512K cache), 1GB of DDR2 RAM clocked at 533MHz, a 16GB SSD, and other odds and ends tied together with Windows XP. Cut the hard drive and RAM in half and you can knock $50 off the price, or drop down to the Inspiron 910u for $349. It comes with the same goodies as the higher end models, except with a 4GB SSD, 512MB DDR2, and Ubuntu 8.04 instead of Windows XP.
For those willing to wait one more day, Dell's blog claims that as of 6 a.m. Central tomorrow, "you'll be able to get a Mini for only $99with the purchase of a Studio 15, XPS M1530, or XPS M1330 laptop through 6 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 9 (U.S. only)."
Anyone feeling enticed?
NewsNvidia to Optimize Drivers for VIA Nano Machines
Posted 08/29/08 at 01:12:03 PM by Paul Lilly
Forget about daytime television, the real drama takes place in the tech industry. Intel and Nvidia's relationship can be described as rocky at best, and now the GPU maker has said it will make "a significant investment in optimizing software" for VIA's Nano processor. VIA's low power chip has already been spotted outperforming Intel's Atom CPU, making this latest announcement all the more interesting for anyone paying attention to the ultraportable market.
The announcement also puts to rest an earlier rumor alleging Nvidia of using its relationship with VIA as a bargaining chip with Intel. Recent speculation suggested Nvidia's motive all along was to convince Intel to let its Atom processor support Nvidia's MCP73 IGP chipset, and in return, the GPU maker would terminate its alliance with VIA.
With the ultraportable market seemingly exploding as of late, should Intel be worried about a more solidfied relationship between Nvidia and VIA?
NewsSamsung's New Ultraportable is Lighter than "Air"
Posted 08/28/08 at 01:25:16 PM by Paul Lilly
It might not be able to float, but Samsung can get away with claiming its new X360 laptop is lighter than "Air." MacBook Air, that is. At a scant 2.8 pounds, the X360 weighs a smidgen less than Apple's MacBook Air, while also touting a slightly larger screen at 13.3-inches (compared to 12.8-inches). With regards to body fat, the X360 measures 0.66-inches thick on the low end, and 1.2-inches on the fatter end.
Samsung's new ultraportable is based on a Centrino 2 ULV processor with 1GB RAM standard (upgradable to 4GB). For storage duties, buyers can choose between a 5400RPM 120GB hard drive, or a 64GB or 128GB SSD. Visuals are handled with the X4500 integrated graphics allowing the screen to run at 1280x800. Other features include:
- 7-in-1 card reader
- Three USB ports
- PCI ExpressCard/34
- HDMI / VGA inputs
- WiFi and Bluetooth
- Integrated 1.3 megapixel webcam
Noticeably missing is an optical drive. Samsung says battery life will be in the vicinity of 6 to 10 hours. No word yet on price or availability.
ReviewsTBI Audio Systems MMD-1R 
Posted 08/27/08 at 01:00:00 PM by Michael Brown
TBI Audio Systems bowled us over last year with its passive Majestic Diamond peakers; the company recently sent us the follow-up to those speakers (the Majestic Diamond IR) along with the new hybrid-powered Millennia MG3 Class D amplifier. (Buying the components as a package shaves $100 off the cost of acquiring them separately.)
Hybrid power means the amp can operate on either A/C power (using the included power supply) or eight AA batteries (not included). Plugging in the power adapter shuts off the batteries (but it won’t refresh any rechargeable batteries you might be using). Add a set of strong passive speakers and a digital media player capable of playing tracks encoded using a lossless codec (we used Cowon’s FLAC-friendly A3) and you have a fabulous audio system you can listen to just about anywhere.
Read on for the full review.
NewsReport: Nvidia Notebook Failures Due to Material Problem
Posted 08/27/08 at 11:32:11 AM by Paul Lilly
Nvidia's woes in the mobile graphics arena have been well documented, but here's a quick refresher for anyone who hasn't been following along. After several users complained of graphics glitches and outright failures in their 8M-based notebooks, Nvidia announced it would set aside a one-time hit of $200 million to cover warranty and repair costs associated with the "abnormal failure rate." According to the graphics chip maker, the failures only affect a limited number of notebook GPUs produced from a bad batch, but just how limited the problem remains a point of contention. Charlie Demerjian from news and rumor site The Inquirer has been particularly outspoken on the issue, claiming the failures resonate into the G92 and G94 lineup, and according to rumblings, he might not be too far off.
Hit the jump to find out the latest speculation and just how many GPUs might be affected.
NewsScientists Use Viruses to Make Batteries
Posted 08/25/08 at 11:39:21 AM by Paul Lilly
Engineers have come up with a bit of sick technology, and we're not using that term as slang. Instead, they've found a way to assemble a key component of a microscopic battery using viruses, potentially paving the way for cheap and simple construction of pint-sized power sources.
The MIT group had previously been able to genetically engineer viruses to make a protein skin capable of attracting bits of metal, and this new research builds on that by having those same viruses build a specific part. In the MIT experiment, the genetically engineered viruses would help build the anode portion of a battery by attracting cobalt oxide. And more than just a proof of concept, the process has been drawing attention because of its ease-of-use and low cost.
One stumbling block preventing the widespread use of viruses in battery construction is a lack of application. There currently aren't any devices that would require a battery roughly one tenth the width of a human hair, though future applications could see the technology being used in nanotechnology.
Anyone else see the plot for a bad B-movie shaping up?
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