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December 2, 2008 9:35:03 PM CST

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9 Stories

product review

Computer Shopping? No Need to Go for Broke

Typical users don't have to break the bank: Mossberg

Wall Street Journal Wall Street Journal Oct 30, 08 10:36 AM CDT
(Newser) - Economic conditions being what they are, you might not have a ton of dough to spend on a new computer. So in his annual PC buyer’s guide, Wall Street Journal tech expert Walter Mossberg adopts a budget-focused mindset. His advice: The current Mac OS, Leopard, is much better than Windows, but Macs don’t come cheap. Look for a computer with Windows XP; downgrading from Vista may cost money, but you can then buy a cheaper machine. More »

More about:  computer • holiday shopping • shopping • consumer electronics • computer hardware • low-end computers

PC Makers See Big Trouble
in Smaller 'Netbooks'

Web-focused computers, starting at $300, yield little profit, may forecast trend

New York Times New York Times Jul 21, 08 11:22 AM CDT
(Newser) - Smaller and lighter than most textbooks, “netbooks”—the latest generation of computers used for light computing and surfing the web—are causing heartburn among PC manufacturers who see the low-cost innovation as a threat to already-slim profit margins, the New York Times reports. Perhaps more worrisome to giants like Microsoft and Dell is that the trend could signal a major industry shift. More »

More about:  Hewlett Packard • computer hardware • Dell Inc • Netbooks • Acer

Printers Let Big Brother Connect Privacy Dots

Watchdogs worry about anti-counterfeit marks left by laser models

USA Today USA Today Jul 15, 08 3:13 PM CDT
(Newser) - The growing popularity of laser printers has privacy watchdogs worried, USA Today reports. Many such printers have a feature, designed to foil currency counterfeiters, that puts a signature of microscopic dots on each page. In the US, only the Secret Service can decode the information, but there are concerns the feature could be used to track down dissidents and whistleblowers. More »

More about:  privacy • counterfeit • computer hardware • laser printer • printers

PRODUCT REVIEW

 Digital Pens
 Becoming
 Ever
 Mightier 

Dane-Elec's ZPen, able to transcribe notes from any paper to PC, deserves more buzz

New York Times New York Times Jul 3, 08 10:10 AM CDT
(Newser) - Though the Pulse digital pen has won hearts of gadgeteers looking to transcribe written notes to their PCs, David Pogue, in the New York Times , finds the special paper needed to use it limiting, and turns to a pair of pens that can write anywhere. In a side-by-side comparison, "the Dane-Elec ZPen makes the Iogear Mobile Digital Scribe look like an amateur." More »

More about:  computer hardware

Qualcomm Aims to Unseat Intel
in Low-Power Chip Battle

Snapdragon may make Intel's Atom bomb

New York Times New York Times Jun 30, 08 6:53 AM CDT
(Newser) - Qualcomm might be looking to unseat industry top dog Intel with its new Snapdragon chip—which uses half the power of Intel’s new Atom, will likely be cheaper, and is due out next year. As personal computers and mobile Internet devices continue to converge, the need for speed has shifted to a need to power-sip, reports the New York Times —and Intel is falling dangerously behind More »

More about:  computer chip • computer hardware • Qualcomm • Intel Corp • Atom

 Keyboards 
 'Dirtier Than
 Toilet Seats' 

Microbiologist warns that filthy keys can make people ill

Guardian (UK) Guardian (UK) May 1, 08 7:01 AM CDT
(Newser) - A microbiologist studying computer keyboards discovered that some of them harbored more bacteria than the average toilet seat, the Guardian reports. The dirtiest—which had to be removed from an office—had 150 times the level of acceptable bacteria, putting the user at risk of catching bugs that cause diarrhea and vomiting. "It was off the scale," the researcher said. More »

More about:  computer • bacteria • E. coli • hygiene • computer hardware • cleaning • dirt

World's Smallest Transistor Sets Path to Better Chips

Newfound material could replace silicon

BBC BBC Apr 18, 08 2:27 PM CDT
(Newser) - Scientists in England have created the world’s smallest transistor, the BBC reports. At 1 atom thick and 10 atoms wide, it could be the key to creating microchips beyond the power of silicon. The transistor is made of graphene, a single layer of graphite and an excellent conductor of electricity. And unlike with silicon, the smaller a graphene transistor is, the faster it works. More »

More about:  computer • electricity • computer chip • computer hardware • semiconductor • transistor • silicon

AMD to Slash 10%
of Jobs in '08

Chip maker was hurt by defective product, slumping sales

Wall Street Journal Wall Street Journal Apr 8, 08 12:02 AM CDT
(Newser) - Advanced Micro Devices will shed 10% of its workforce this year and predicts a 15% first-quarter revenue drop, down to $1.5 billion, the Wall Street Journal reports. Slumping desktop sales and the company's line of defective chips and have hurt AMD, which will lay off workers worldwide at "all levels within the company," a spokesman told the San Jose Mercury News today. More »

More about:  Intel • job cuts • AMD • first quarter earnings • computer hardware • microchip • processor

Intel Sets Bar High with SSDs

Companys says it will launch 80-160GB solid state chips in the second-quarter

CNET CNET Mar 8, 08 10:43 AM CST
(Newser) - Intel will bring a bigger—and faster—solid state drive to market in the second quarter that will heat up the competition between chipmakers and launch a new generation of laptops and PCs based on SSDs rather than hard drives, reports CNET. Intel’s 80-160GB SSDs are twice as fast as current hard drives and outpace rival Samsung’s 100mbs SSD. More »

More about:  Intel • Samsung • Toshiba • computer hardware • SanDisk • flash memory • NAND chips • solid state drives

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