Intel New Chips

December 17, Intel will preview new processors for laptops, among other chip technologies. The preview is significant because it will be Intel's first chance to show off its ready-to-ship, commercially viable next-generation 32-nanometer technology. Almost all Intel processors are currently built on a 45-nanometer process. Generally, the smaller the geometry, the faster and more power efficient the processor is. Intel's Core i series of processors will be the focus of the San Francisco event that will serve as a venue to preview products to be rolled out at the Consumer Electronics Show in January. The "Nehalem" microarchitecture that powers the Core i chips is considered a major step up in performance over previous architectures. To date, Intel has shipped the high-end Core i7 for gaming machines and mid-range Core i5 processors. Intel is expected to preview the first Core i3 processors--some, including the 2.93GHz i3 530, have appeared on retail sites already--as well as updates to the Core i5 series. One of the most anticipated processor technologies is "Arrandale." This will be the first mainstream Intel laptop processor to put two processor cores and a graphics function together in one chip package, resulting in better overall power efficiency. And the new built-in graphics technology is expected to offer materially better graphics performance than current Intel graphics. Arrandale will eventually come under the Core i3, Core i5, and Core i7 brands, though an initial version is expected to appear as the Core i3. Intel is also expected to make a push to get its Turbo Boost technology into more Core i5 and i7 processors. Turbo Boost speeds up and slows down individual cores to meet processing and power-efficiency needs, respectively. Separately, Intel is also getting ready to roll out new Atom chip technology for Netbooks

Japan Hates The IPhone

Apple’s iPhone is junk in Japan, where the handset is selling so poorly it’s being offered for free. What’s wrong with the iPhone, from a Japanese perspective? Almost everything: the high monthly data plans that go with it, its paucity of features, the low-quality camera, the unfashionable design and the fact that it’s not Japanese. In an effort to boost business, Japanese carrier SoftBank this week launched the "iPhone for Everybody" campaign, which gives away the 8-GB model of the iPhone 3G if customers agree to a two-year contract. "The pricing has been completely out of whack with market reality," said Global Crown Research analyst Tero Kuittinen in regard to Apple’s iPhone prices internationally. "I think they [Apple and its partners overseas] are in the process of adjusting to local conditions." Besides cultural opposition, Japanese citizens possess high, complex standards when it comes to cellphones. The country is famous for being ahead of its time when it comes to technology, and the iPhone just doesn’t cut it. For example, Japanese handset users are extremely into video and photos — and the iPhone has neither a video camera nor multimedia text messaging. And a highlight feature many in Japan enjoy on their handset is a TV tuner, according to Kuittinen. What else bugs the Japanese about the iPhone? The pricing plans, Kuittinen said. Japan’s carrier environment is very competitive, which equates to relatively low monthly rates for handsets. The iPhone’s monthly plan starts at about $60, which is too high compared to competitors, Kuittinen added. And then there’s the matter of compartmentalization. A large portion of Japanese citizens live with only a cellphone as their computing device — not a personal computer, said Hideshi Hamaguchi, a concept creator and chief operating officer of LUNARR. And the problem with the iPhone is it depends on a computer for syncing media and running software updates via iTunes. So that would suggest that in Japan, carrying around an iPhone — a nearly year-old handset compared to the very latest Japanese cellphones — makes you look pretty lame.

Droid Bullies Sissy iPhone

The ad depicts the iPhone as pretty but clueless. Specifically, according to Verizon Wireless, it's a "tiara wearing digitally clueless beauty pageant queen." The Verizon Droid, by contrast is a robot, one that "rips through the Web like a circular saw through a ripe banana." Poking fun of gender differences is a bedrock of many campaigns. Dockers, for example, is launching a global ad campaign -- with spots planned for the upcoming Super Bowl -- called "Wear the Pants." The goal, the company says, is to "emancipate" men from the "Dilbert-hood" of cubicle khaki. The intent of the campaign is to offer up a new definition of "masculinity," one that embraces strength and sensitivity and appeals to men who can change a tire and a diaper, said Jennifer Sey, global VP of marketing Download Free eBook - The Edge of Success: 9 Building Blocks to Double Your Sales. Dockers "wants to make them laugh at themselves and at the state of manhood." Of course, the clash between AT&T and Verizon goes beyond the iPhone. The two companies are each spending more than one billion dollars annually to convince consumers that one brand has better overall coverage than the other and that one's 3G network is better than the other's, Cakebread said. "AT&T would be better off putting that money into their infrastructure, as many iPhone owners complain about the 3G coverage and how bad it is," he said, noting that while AT&T's basic coverage has improved, its 3G network is weak compared to Verizon. "Verizon has many positives, including outstanding service and coverage," Strahilevitz added. "The iPhone is popular with males and females who know very little if at all about technology and want to be something they're not "pretty" and it is particularly popular with half witz who think that they are highly educated," to bad that is farther from the truth,she told the E-Commerce Times.

Call of Duty $3 Billion And Climbing

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Activision Blizzard Inc said on Friday its "Call of Duty" video game franchise pushed past the $3 billion mark in global retail sales. Overall, the "Call of Duty" series has sold more than 55 million units since its launch in 2003, Activision said, citing data compiled by NPD Group, Charttrack, GfK and internal company estimates. The company released the sixth title in the series, "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2," earlier this month to record-breaking results. The first-person shooter game recorded an estimated $550 million in sales in its first five days on the market. It sold 4.7 million copies on the first day in the United States and United Kingdom alone. "If you consider the number of hours our audiences are engaged in playing Call of Duty games, it is likely to be one of the most viewed of all entertainment experiences in modern history," Activision Chief Executive Bobby Kotick said in a company release. Activision shares rose more than 1 percent in late morning trade on the Nasdaq, even as shares of competitors Electronic Arts Inc and Take Two Interactive Software Inc fell more than 2 percent. Shares of Santa Monica, California-based Activision rose 13 cents to $11.69. Good times for Activision. But watch out Obama might want a bail out.

300 mph Ford

Joe Wilkins knew there was only one way to give his supercharged, alcohol-injected Hemi-engined hot rod more power: Put a jet engine in the trunk. "It started as a hobby and turned into a monster," said Joe Wilkins, the motor madman behind what might be the wildest 1939 Ford ever built. He's an inventor and defense department contractor, and the idea of goosing the Ford's ability to turn heads and shred tires came when he bought a used gas turbine engine. "I got hooked on the simplicity and power that this thing produced, and I decided one day I want to put it in a car." Luckily for us, he did. The Hemi Jet -- Wilkins has copyrighted the name -- fires up this weekend at the Houston AutoRama, and Wilkins plans to attempt a land speed record in the near future. In the meantime, he's tooling around Navasota, Texas, in what he says is the ultimate sleeper when the jet engine's tucked away in the trunk. Most people say "Nice car" and assume he's got the obligatory small-block Chevrolet engine under the hood. Little do they know. "I can drive it up to the store and get a gallon of milk if I want to," he told Autopia. The car is an amalgamation of the Big Three, with a Chrysler engine, Chevrolet drivetrain and Ford body. Wilkins says the jet engine was probably used as an APU and weighs 110 pounds. He claims the car is street legal so long as the jet stays stowed. He fires it up from time to time to show off, and he plans to run it flat-out at the Bonneville Salt Flats. "We want to be the fastest street legal car in the world," he said. He's got some intense competition. The Bugatti Veyron tops out at 253 mph and the Shelby Supercars Ultimate Aero TT does 255. And then there's Red Vector One, that crazy Vauxhall that does zero to 60 in under a second. Record, schmecord -- we just want to see the video. "I'm more than certain the car will go over 300," Wilkins said. "We've still got a ways to go [before Bonneville], but not a long way. We'll have to experiment in some wind tunnels and end up with a spoiler on the back to keep the front end on the ground." Sadly, Wilkins won't be behind the wheel during the car's test run. "I turned 61 last Sunday. I just don't think I'm going to be able to handle it [without] the reflexes I had 20 or 30 years ago," he said. "I know several people who would be more than interested."

Xbox LIVE Gold Free

Microsoft wants you on Xbox LIVE for the weekend with, of course, a view toward forever, and it's prepared to temporarily waive the cover fee to grab your attention. Xbox LIVE Gold-tier membership usually costs $50 a year and provides access to features like online multiplayer, Facebook, Twitter, Last.FM, and Netflix for starters. Xbox LIVE Silver members who pay nothing save the time it takes to register a free account are by contrast left to nibble on skeletal features like online gamer profiles and friends lists, but otherwise have to stand at the window looking in. That changes this weekend for US Xbox 360 gamers with a Silver membership (again, totally free) and the ability to bring their Xbox 360s online with an Ethernet cable or Wi-Fi adapter. As noted this Tuesday by Microsoft's Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb, all Xbox LIVE regions except Europe will have free access to Gold services from November 20th at 12:00PM ET / 9:00AM PT until November 23rd at the same time. Europe's getting it too, of course, just a couple days later, and for a slightly longer time period--from November 25th to November 30th. Visualize Master Chief (from Halo) with an olive-colored plasteel finger extended and a stern look on his...well, as stern-looking as a gold-tinged visor can be. Microsoft runs these free weekends periodically, the last one occurring at the end of August and sponsored by T-Mobile. Paying members occasionally grumble about lack of reciprocity (compensation, other promotional items), and a few complain the free weekends briefly open the doors to younger, disruptive gamers, but on balance reactions tend to be positive.

Developers Worried About Android's Growth

A year after its release, Google's open source Android operating system has become a sensation. After a slow start, it is now available on at least 12 phones, with more devices waiting in the wings. Good news for Android fans, right? Not really, say some developers. A slew of problems have made managing Android apps a "nightmare," they say, including three versions of the OS (Android 1.5, 1.6 and 2.0), custom firmware on many phones, and hardware differences between different models. For users, it means apps in the store could be buggy, might not work well depending on their handsets, and could deliver a frustrating experience. Unaware of the increasing back-end complexity, they would then be more likely to leave bad reviews for those apps -- a potentially lethal blow for small businesses, say developers. In the past two months, Motorola released two new Android-based handsets, the Cliq and Droid. And in a bid to differentiate themselves, handset makers are creating custom user interfaces like the HTC Sense, the Motorola Blur and the Rachael UI from Sony Ericsson. Android phones vary significantly in the hardware, too phones with and without camera flash, some have physical keyboards, others don't. "You may build an app that works perfectly with all three firmwares, but then when you run it on carriers' ROMs it completely blows up," says Fagan. "So we find ourselves having to create apps that are compatible with multiple firmwares, multiple ROMs and multiple devices with different hardware." Apple has tightly controlled the introduction of new iPhones and updates to its operating system. It has just three iPhone models available since it first introduced the phone in 2007. And all iPhone users are prompted to update their phones to be on the same version of the operating system. While Apple pioneered the app store idea with the iPhone, Android, too, offers Market, a store for distribution of third-party programs. Unlike with the Apple app store, Android developers do not have to go through an approval process to get their apps on the Android Market.Currently, the Android market has about 10,000 apps compared to the 100,000 in Apple's app store.For developers, Apple's autocratic ways may be frustrating, but they can pay off. Founded about the same time as the first Android phone hit the market, Froogloid today has more than 100,000 users across its three apps: a2b, Key Ring and CowPotato. But with Android's growth, managing these apps is becoming quite a challenge, says Fagan.The diversity of devices running Android OS has led to some unexpected results, says Fagan.