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Started by H Needles; Last updated Feb 27, 08 7:36 AM CST by D Lim | View history

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Consumer Electronics

"Technology is a way of organizing the universe so that man doesn't have to experience it." -Max Frisch

Consumer electronics, gadgets and digital entertainment have redefined virtually every aspect of how we live our lives. What's on the horizon for flash-memory hard drives, ultra-thin TVs, GPS units and digital music players?

Stories

Stories 41 - 60 of 90

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April 2008
- AMD to Slash 10% of Jobs in '08
  
  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 »
- Files May Be Fleeting
  
  Boston Globe | Apr 7, 08 1:29 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Cuneiform tablets have kept information safe across millenia, but hard drives have lifespans of just a few years. Even if your CDs survive the century, their players might have become obsolete, warns the Boston Globe . "Who knows how long they're going to last—how much time before the information on a zip disk just goes into cyberspace heaven," said one archivist. More »
- New Gadget Strikes a Chord
  
  Seattle Post-Intelligencer | Apr 7, 08 12:24 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - One less thing is standing between you and a perfect jam session: tuning your electric guitar. A newly launched battery-powered compact device that mounts on the instrument's body is accurate to within 2% of a note, reports the Seattle Post-Intelligencer . "It's just a dream, being able to pick up the guitar and see whether it's in tune or tune it quickly," says a beta user. More »
- Intel Scores on Mobile Internet Devices
  
  Wall Street Journal | Apr 2, 08 11:47 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Twenty-five hardware companies will use a new Intel chip technology for mobile internet devices that are somewhere between a cellphone and a laptop computer in size, reports the Wall Street Journal . Intel hopes the gadgets they've dubbed MIDs will become a new product category, helping the company make up for missing out on the cellphone market. The devices will retail for around $500 and arrive first in Asia this summer. More »
March 2008
- Silicon Valley Unplugs for Meetings
  
  Los Angeles Times | Mar 31, 08 1:09 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Tired of competing for attention with iPhones, BlackBerrys and laptops, some Silicon Valley companies are banning them from meetings. One exec calls it going "topless," short for laptopless, and the Los Angeles Times reports that it's boosting some companies' efficiency. "Aside from just being rude," an exec wrote, "partial attention generally leads to partial results." More »
- Tech Toy Splurges for That Tax Return
  
  ComputerWorld | Mar 30, 08 8:33 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - This year, the government’s economic stimulus package will add $600 to the average $2,300 refund each taxpayer receives. That’s a sizable chunk of change, perfect for a little tech-toy indulgence, reports ComputerWorld. Casio Exilim Pro Ex-FI high-speed digital camera: Snag 60 frames in a single second, to score a shot in which everyone’s eyes are open. More »
- Your Phone May Soon Know If You're Sick
  
  ComputerWorld | Mar 28, 08 2:45 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Your cell phone might soon be able to tell you if you’ve caught the flu. Researchers with Japan’s NTT DoCoMo have developed a workable method of “molecular communications”—a system for the transport of microscopic samples from a user’s sweat into their phone for analysis, Computerworld reports. More »
- New Electronics Can Stretch, Fold
  
  MIT Technology Review | Mar 28, 08 1:42 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - New research showing that it’s possible to make stretchable, bendable complex electrical circuits could open the door to wearable computers and to health-monitoring systems that can be implanted, Technology Review reports. Previous bendable circuitry was too slow for complex computing, but the new circuits, of ultra-thin silicon on plastic or rubber, perform as well as traditional rigid ones. More »
- It's Not Too Late for Old School Technology
  
  New York Times | Mar 23, 08 4:17 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Older technologies frequently face predictions of their demise as they are replaced with cutting-edge innovations, but so-called progress is rarely the sea change it’s chalked up to be, writes Steve Lohr in the New York Times . If old tech can adapt, it can often stay alive. Case in point: PCs were supposed to kill the mainframe computer, but the back office workhorse is still kicking thanks to investment and improvements. More »
- iPod Touch Paves Way for Pocket PCs
  
  BusinessWeek | Mar 13, 08 11:25 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Take Apple’s iPod Touch, give it a little more innovative juice, and you get the next big thing in handhelds, blurring the line between consumer electronics and computers, writes Arik Hesseldahl in BusinessWeek . The Touch, now considered the “flagship” iPod, can already run the major media formats—music, movies, etc.—and access Wi-Fi. With a few changes, it could become a full-fledged computer in your pocket. More »
- PC Makers Aim Overseas
  
  USA Today | Mar 7, 08 12:23 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - PC makers are increasingly setting their sights on markets outside the US, which are making up an ever-larger share of the worldwide computer market, USA Today reports. PC sales are growing in the US, still the world’s largest market, but are rising much faster elsewhere. Last year, the US accounted for 26% of worldwide sales, compared to 35% 5 years ago. More »
- Intel: Cheap Memory Won't Erase Profits
  
  Associated Press | Mar 5, 08 11:17 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Steep drops in the price of NAND flash memory have hit Intel's profits, but CEO Paul Otellini vows it's not going to put the company in the red, the AP reports. Prices of the chips have fallen more than 50% recently, much more than the chipmaking giant had predicted. Otellini says the company will move into new markets to offset the effect of the cheap chips. More »
February 2008
- DreamWorks in Limbo over HD DVD Format
  
  Reuters | Feb 27, 08 12:34 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Despite the fact that Toshiba lost its war with Sony’s Blu-ray disc technology, DreamWorks Animation says it plans to release its upcoming movies in the HD DVD format, unless it hears otherwise from Toshiba, Reuters reports. DreamWorks’ “Bee Movie” is scheduled for release in March. The studio said it asked the Japanese manufacturer “What would you like us to do?” More »
- LG Pulls Laptop Model After Battery Melts
  
  Associated Press | Feb 22, 08 6:54 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - LG pulled a laptop model from stores following a report that the battery melted while in use, the AP reports. A company spokesman said it had opened an investigation into the meltdown, adding that the model is no longer in production and is sold only in South Korea. More »
- Toshiba Throws in HD Towel
  
  Associated Press | Feb 19, 08 3:30 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - Toshiba is quitting the HD DVD player business after taking a licking in the protracted market competition, the company announced today. Toshiba's exit, which leaves Blu-ray's technology alone at the vanguard of digital video, comes after Warner Brothers joined the crowd of Blu-ray backers, leaving HD DVD in the cold, AP reports. More »
- Toshiba Set to Cede DVD-Format Fight - WSJ.com
  
  Wall Street Journal | Feb 18, 08
  
  Toshiba Corp. is expected to pull out of the HD DVD business early this week, people familiar with the situation said, marking the end of one of the biggest and most-expensive format battles in the electronics industry since the VHS format's defeat of Betamax nearly three decades ago.
- Toshiba May Pull HD DVD Plug
  
  PC World | Feb 17, 08 2:08 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Toshiba has temporarily halted production of players and movies in the HD DVD format, and is contemplating dropping the format altogether, PC World reports. The move would cost the company tens of billions of dollars, but the defection of several studios and retailers to the rival Blu-Ray format has left HD DVD’s future very much in doubt. More »
- Wal-Mart Chooses Blu-Ray Over HD DVD
  
  CNET | Feb 15, 08 3:24 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - The blows just keep coming for HD DVD: Wal-Mart announced today that it will sell Blu-Ray high-def movies and players exclusively, CNET reports. A buyer for Wal-Mart disclosed the decision on her blog, saying that the company had been influenced by Netflix and Best Buy's recent announcements by they will back Blu-Ray. More »
- Netflix Goes Blue
  
  CNET | Feb 11, 08 5:36 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - The Netflix DVD rental service has decided to go exclusively with Blu-Ray as its hi-def format for customers, rather than HD DVD. By the end of the year, Netflix will no longer offer HD DVDs, reports CNET. The service made the decision based on the momentum towards Blu-Ray by Hollywood studios, including the recent decision by Warner Bros. to go commit solely to the format. More »
- Polaroid Out of Instant-Photo Biz
  
  Bloomberg | Feb 8, 08 7:40 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - The Polaroid photo company, whose familiar white-bordered snapshot has become an "icon," is leaving film behind to zoom in on digital equipment, Bloomberg reports. The Massachusetts company was founded in 1937 and in 1948 released the first instant camera, pulling in huge profits—but with the popularity of digital cameras, Polaroid has faced “a technologically driven decline,” said COO Tom Beaudoin. More »

Stories 41 - 60 of 90

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A Cruzin Cooler, a motorized scooter with a cooler and a cup holder, is displayed at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Thursday, Jan. 10, 2008. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) (Associated Press)

Attendees uses Intel products at the Intel booth at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Thursday, Jan. 10, 2008. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma) (Associated Press)

Attendees look at the Mio navigation system booth at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2008. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma) (Associated Press)

Attendee Natalie Lui tries a zebra BlueTrek Bluetooth ear piece at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2008. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma) (Associated Press)

Sony Rollys, egg-shaped MP3 players, dance to the music at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Thursday, Jan. 10, 2008. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) (Associated Press)

A leopard print Taser gun, right, and 1GB music player holster are shown at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas in this Monday, Jan. 7, 2008 file photo. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, file) (Associated Press)

Voltaic Systems' backpack with waterproof solar panels is shown at the Consumer Electronics Show(CES) in Las Vegas, Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2008. The backpack can charge MP3 players, cell phones and most digital... (Associated Press)

Different color ASUS Eee PC notebooks are seen on display at the ASUS booth at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2008. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma) (Associated Press)

A South Korean woman walks by a Samsung logo in downtown Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Nov. 23, 2007. South Korea's National Assembly passed a bill Friday demanding an independent investigation into allegations... (Associated Press)

An employee of Samsung Electronics shows the world's first 30-nanometer 64-gigabit NAND flash memory device during a news conference in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2007. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man) (Associated Press)

Customers browse DVDs at a Best Buy store in Mountain View, Calif., Monday, Dec. 17, 2007. Best Buy Co. on Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2007 said third-quarter profit jumped 52 percent, ahead of analyst expectations,... (Associated Press)

A reserved parking sign is seen in the parking lot at a Best Buy store in Mountain View, Calif., Monday, Dec. 17, 2007. Best Buy Co. on Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2007 said third-quarter profit jumped 52 percent,... (Associated Press)

Flat screen televisions are seen on display at a Best Buy store in Mountain View, Calif. in this Sept. 18, 2007 file photo. Best Buy Co. on Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2007 said third-quarter profit jumped 52... (Associated Press)

A lot of Americans will probably buy TVs next year, ahead of 2009's switch to digital. (Getty Images)

Samsung's flat-panel television display is shown at Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in this Jan. 5, 2007 file photo. The CES is the world's largest technology trade show. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong,... (Associated Press)

The Sony booth is shown at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, Thursday, Jan. 3, 2008, as exhibitors get ready for the opening of the Consumer Electronics Show. The CES, the world's largest... (Associated Press)

Visitors walk by Sony's Bravia flat panel TV screens on display at the Sony Plaza in Tokyo in this July 26, 2007 file photo. At least three dueling wireless technologies for high-definition TVs will be... (Associated Press)

Toshihiro Sakamoto, President of Panasonic AVC Networks and Senior Managing Director of Matsushita Electric Industrial Company pictured next to the world's largest Plasma display, a 150-inch one of a... (Associated Press)

Michael Ahn, President and CEO of LG Electronics North America, holds up a combo Blu-Ray and HD-DVD player by LG with other LG products in the background during a news conference at the Consumer Electronics... (Associated Press)

Blu-ray Disc spokesperson John Grantham rehearses his presentation at the Blu-ray Disc booth at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2008, as exhibitors get ready for the opening... (Associated Press)

Comic figures from the television show "The Simpsons" are on display at the Blu-Ray Disc booth at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Monday, Jan. 7, 2008. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma) (Associated Press)

Studio executives discuss Blu-ray Disc's strong showing in 2007 at a news conference Monday evening at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. (Photo (Associated Press)

A music video of Beyonce plays at the Blu-Ray booth at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2008. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma) (Associated Press)

Attendee looks at Blu-ray discs at the CMC booth at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Thursday, Jan. 10, 2008. CMC makes CDs and DVDs. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma) (Associated Press)

A Blu-ray Disc logo is shown on a flat-panel television at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2008. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) (Associated Press)

Sony's new Blu-ray Disc(TM) player is being shipped to consumer electronics retailers and specialty dealers nationwide for $499. The BDP-S300 is expected to broaden the HD disc player market while delivering... (Associated Press)

A PlayStation 3 console from Sony is shown in New York in this Feb. 22, 2007 file photo. The PS3 has a built-in Blu-ray drive and is one of the most affordable Blu-ray players on the market. (AP Photo/Mark... (Associated Press)

A Sony Blu-Ray disc player and a DVD of the movie "Eight Below" are seen in this file photo taken in Buena Park, Calif. on Aug. 8, 2007. Warner Bros. Entertainment said Friday it will release high-definition... (Associated Press)

A Toshiba HD-DVD disc player is seen at a Ken Crane's Big Screen Headquarters store in Buena Park, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2007. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon) (Associated Press)

The new 200mm wafer-based semiconductor production fab at Kaga Toshiba (Photo (Associated Press)

In a file photo Howard Stringer, head of Japanese electronics and entertainment company Sony Corp. speaks to a group of reporters in Tokyo Monday, June 26, 2006. Stringer, said Thursday, Nov. 8, 2007... (Associated Press)

Akio Ozaka, President and CEO of Toshiba America Consumer Products, speaks about Toshiba's HD-DVD and other Blu-Ray players during a news conference at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas,... (Associated Press)

A Toshiba sign is shown at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2008, as exhibitors get ready for the opening of the Consumer Electronics Show. Toshiba Corp. executives had a... (Associated Press)

HD DVD logos are shown at the Toshiba booth during the Consumer Electronics Show(CES) in Las Vegas, Monday, Jan. 7, 2008. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) (Associated Press)

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