1. HP Jump Starting Compaq Brand with Ultra-Cheap Machines

    November 27, 2009 by admin

    Hewlett-Packard bought over Compaq in 2002, but never promoted it in any way except as a secondary brand. Choosing to keep it alive mainly in Asia where the brand is very popular, HP, more or less, ignored the brand. But that train of thought has now changed.

    HP now aims to position Compaq not just as cheap computer equipment label, but rather a brand that will have mainstream appeal in the U.S. With that strategy in mind, Hewlett-Packard announced the rollout of a line of ultra-inexpensive PC. This line will include both laptops and desktops, and with a view towards extreme budgets.

    For example, the first Compaq on offer (the CQ61z), is a 15.6-inch laptop with an AMD Sempron CPU, 2GB of RAM, DVD burner, 160GB hard drive, and discrete graphics. The machine will run Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium as the OS. These all sound fairly run-of-the-mill and mundane till you get to the price. At $399, it puts the laptop in price comparison with your average netbook, and while it compares equally in price, in features it is far ahead. With this approach, Compaq aims to break the netbook market and return to a mainstream IT product level. On the desktop front, the Compaq Presario 4010f has almost similar specs albeit with a bigger 250GB hard drive, and is priced at $309 after a $100 rebate.

    The ramifications of this positioning will be interesting to watch, as the inexpensive Laptop will not only have an impact on the netbook market, but it will also have an effect on the more expensive full featured laptop market.

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  2. MSN Direct to shut down in 2012

    November 26, 2009 by admin

    It is official, Microsoft has announced that the MSN Direct service will be shut down in 2012. The announcement was made via the MSN Direct Support blog which revealed that the service would come to an end on January 1, 2012. So what happens to the subscriptions? If you have paid for beyond 2012, a pro-rated refund strategy has been put into place, but complete details are yet unknown. Lifetime members will similarly get a refund ONLY IF their subscription is less than three years old at the time of cancellation.

    The MSN Direct service provides traffic reports, weather information, gas prices, stock quotes, and data for navigation systems via FM subcarrier signals. Although the Direct service will not work beyond 2012, Microsoft has given the assurance that the navigation systems will work in 2012.

    “The delivery of location-based services in the US and Canada has evolved since Microsoft began offering MSN Direct in early 2004″ said Microsoft. Reading between the lines, this simply means MSN Direct’s inability to evolve, adapt, and innovate were the reasons for its failure to continue.

    The MSN Direct service was launched in 2004; the FM radio-based digital service enables “spot” portable devices to receive data from MSN services. Using this technology, Microsoft was able to broadcast to a wide range of devices which included wristwatches, atomic desktop clocks, in-car GPS satellite navigation units, and even coffee makers. Paid channels were also included and ranged from weather, news, sports to even calendar notifications. In its blog, Microsoft offered another excuse that “unused FM radio spectrum to broadcast data represented a step forward in 2004, however, many choices today including Wi-Fi, cellular, FM RDS and other digital networks are now readily available and continuing to grow in popularity”.

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  3. Want Windows 7 for 30 bucks? Go to college

    November 21, 2009 by admin

    Sounds too good to be true, but you can legally get an upgrade copy of Windows 7 Home Premium for $29.99. So why is Microsoft being so generous and dropping the price from an almighty $119.99? Well the catch is that it is not for everyone; you have to be a student, specifically, a college student or affiliated with a university.

    As long as you have an .EDU e-mail address, you can go to the microsoft website and download it. Among the list of educational institutions are community colleges, seminaries, cooking schools, technical schools, message therapy schools, etc. For exact lists just visit the microsoft site, and in case you do not see you college or educational institution listed there, they provide an option to apply for it to be included.

    Although it is necessary to be enrolled in a course to be eligible for this offer, there is hope for those who have left college. If you are lucky enough to have a working .EDU email address, you can still apply. However, chances of this may be slim as most colleges do switch you to a .NET address or something similar after you graduate and join the alumni.

    Before you do move to Windows 7, be sure to back up your data just to be safe. In addition, you should note that this is an upgrade copy of Windows 7. Therefore, to be safe run the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor that will advise you of any upgrade/ incompatibility issues you might have with your current hardware setup.

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  4. Apple approaches TV networks on $30 subscription model

    November 13, 2009 by admin

    According to multiple anonymous sources, Apple executives are trying to create some interest from the big broadcast and TV networks for a $30 a month all-you-can-watch buffet of TV programs on iTunes. The rumors put the launch of the service at some point early next year. However, that particular date is in doubt as not a single network has signed up as content providers. The networks are showing some interest in the idea, possibly because of the new revenue stream that it implies, but are wary of signing up because of the response they may face from powerful cable and satellite operators.

    Apart from getting the service up and running, Apple’s biggest problem will be to convince subscribers. Even though a cable bill can run up to $80 a month, getting people to switch to iTunes will only succeed if it is able to get all the big broadcast and cable TV networks committed to the platform. Apple knows the difficulty in getting content providers to sign up, as they went through a similar issue with the à la carte downloads for iTunes.

    At the moment though details are sketchy and even simple facts, such as whether TV shows will be available for download immediately after the broadcast or having to wait for the next day, are rare. Even if the service does get off the ground, Apple stands to face stiff competition from Hulu, which currently offers on-demand ad-supported TV shows free.

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  5. Movies on USB flash drives arrive

    by admin

    It was only a matter of time before it happened, and so Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen has the honor of being the first movie on a USB thumb drive. The product is the result of the deal between Paramount Digital Entertainment and Kingston Digital. “This unique agreement enables PDE to make available its entertainment offerings on USB and SD cards,” said Alex Carloss, EVP and GM of Paramount Digital Entertainment. “As more and more movies are viewed on computers and other portable devices, having a relationship with Kingston will become increasingly important to Paramount for years to come.”

    The movie will use the Kingston 4GB “DataTraveler I” USB drives as part of bundle packages and for sale. Kingston covers all DataTraveler drives with a five-year warranty and 24/7 tech support for that period.

    Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, is now available at all OfficeMax stores for the princely sum of $29.99. The pricing has raised a few eyebrows, considering the Blu-ray version of the movie is cheaper and Kingston has not said anything about their product being in HD format. Since a normal DVD (single layer) can hold only 4GB of data, one can only assume the quality of the movie will be as good or less than that of a DVD movie. There is no information about DRM, and if the movies have copy protection mechanisms. However, since most laptops now ship without optical drives and with Carloss’s statement in mind the USB alternative just might be the way forward.

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  6. TwitterPeek: A $99 handheld for Twitter, and only Twitter

    November 8, 2009 by admin

    From the makers of the Peek email only handheld device comes the TwitterPeek, a device that lets you keep tabs on the Twitterverse while on the move. On sale now at Amazon, the mobile device is priced at $99. Features of TwitterPeek include battery life of about 3 - 4 days, a QWERTY keyboard and a large sized screen. This dedicated handheld lets you perform all the basic Twitter chores such as checking your feed, posting tweets, tracking @mentions, and sending and/or replying to direct messages.

    TwitterPeek does not have many of the features of a standard cell phone. TwitterPeek does not even have a camera, a web browser, text messaging or even email. TwitterPeek does only one thing and that is Twitter. However, since it does not have a web browser you cannot open twitter links. TwitterPeek is so simple it does not even require a wireless contract. Instead you simply pay $8 per month for a nationwide coverage including unlimited tweeting. Another available option is the $199 version of TwitterPeek, which comes with lifetime service.

    Although it does not seem like the TwitterPeek will make many inroads in mobile communication. However according to the developers of TwitterPeek there is a market for dedicated devices such as TwitterPeek, especially for those who do not want to spend $100 a month for cell phone service with a data plan.

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  7. A review of Apple’s Magic Mouse

    by admin

    Apple attempts to reinvent the mouse with its new Magic Mouse, which offers multi touch gestures and scrolling. However, with the magic mouse you lose a few useful features from Apple’s older mouse. The Magic Mouse is a wireless, Bluetooth mouse that is powered by batteries. It is easy to setup and configure and brings a whole new dimension to using a mouse on your Apple devices.

    One of the most notable features is the pair of rails on the underside of the mouse that allows it to glide smoothly atop your desk. The mouse also features improved tracking on any type of surface, be it wood, plastic, granite or anything else. Apple boasts that the Magic Mouse is the “world’s first Multi-Touch mouse.” The multi-touch surface makes scrolling and browsing smoother than with a regular mouse. Also, since there is no mechanical track wheel or ball, users do not have to worry about dirt or grime getting in to it and making it stuck. You can also select scroll with momentum and without momentum. If you have scroll with momentum on, a single swipe will get your curser to the bottom of a giant window. The mouse also features many options such as right click scrolling, screen zoom, and swipe navigation.

    There are a few issues related to the new Magic Mouse as well. If you want to right click you need to lift your index finger off the mouse in order for it to register. The mouse also does not support middle clicks and for Expose and Dashboard functions.

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