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NEC launches PowerMate P4000 and P6000 all-in-ones


We've noticed a pattern with NEC -- compact, minimalist computer designs with low-end to run-of-the-mill specs. There's nothing wrong with having a specialty, and NEC Asia Pacific is sticking with what it knows with the PowerMate P4000 and P6000 all-in-ones. The P4000 is a light worker (to put it perhaps too kindly), with a 1.9GHz AMD Athlon 64 X2 processor, 1GB of RAM, 250GB of hard disk space, an NVIDIA GeForce 9100M G integrated graphics chip, and a 16-inch display at 1366 x 768. We'd go instead for the P6000 (pictured above), which is actually competitive with similarly priced all-in-ones like the Gateway One. It's got a 2.53GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, twice the storage and memory of its lesser sibling, integrated NVIDIA GeForce 9300, and a roomier 19-inch, 1440 x 900 display. Both systems are due for release in Asia next week, the P4000 at S$1,899 ($1,270) and the P6000 at S$2,499 ($1,675). The latter is clearly the better deal, but they're both expensive compared to bulkier alternatives -- desk space is at a premium these days. Pic of the P4000 after the break.

[Via PCLaunches]

Microsoft's desktop-equipped mass transit bus is a boss' dream


Those 45 to 90 minutes you spend stuck in traffic each day, inhaling noxious fumes and watching your paycheck dwindle in the form of consumed gasoline, are about to get a lot more nightmarish should you choose to ride this. Though the origin of these images are unknown, we're assuming they were snapped somewhere in Asia (or the ninth circle of Hades); essentially, this here public transportation option enables riders to login via a connected PC and get to work before work technically begins. Of course, we've all ideas most riders just fire up Quake III and get a little LAN action going, but seriously, what kind of torturous mind thought this up? Ever heard of telecommuting?

Update: Seems these buses are all about bringing technology to rural areas that might not otherwise have access. Killer!

Comprehensive Intel Health Guide seeks to provide in-home health monitoring


In-home medical monitoring systems are far from new, but everyone takes notice when a firm like Intel formally announces that it's diving in headfirst. According to a new report from The Wall Street Journal, Intel is gearing up to launch a series of trials with health-care organizations in order to "show whether the new tools bring improved results in treating conditions such as diabetes, hypertension and heart disease." More specifically, the Intel Health Guide -- which includes a "simplified computer and software system that are designed to help elderly people and other patients monitor and manage their conditions at home" -- will connect to medical equipment and then transmit that information with specified individuals (namely health professionals) over the 'net. Admittedly, the initiative is far from being implemented in non-trial form, but it should be good to go by the time you start forgetting things and kvetching about the taste of your tap water.

[Via PC World]

Silicon Mountain's Allio: 42-inch HDTV with built-in PC / Blu-ray player


Talk about putting all of your eggs in one basket. Silicon Mountain has evidently taken a note from Lumenlab with its incredibly multifaceted Allio. For starters, the 42-inch set arrives with a full-blown PC within, including an Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 CPU, 4GB of RAM, a 1TB hard drive and Windows Vista Home Premium. You'll also find a smorgasbord of inputs, a number of USB ports, wired / wireless networking options and a 1080p panel; speaking of the TV itself, it features a 2,000:1 contrast ratio, 400 cd/m2 brightness and twin 12-watt speakers. On top of all that, the California-assembled unit even includes a slim-line Blu-ray player, theoretically beating both Sharp and Funai to the market with Blu-ray-infused HDTVs. As of now, six different configurations are available (including a 32-incher) starting at $1,599, and the company is planning on offering "low-cost" versions with Ubuntu in the near future. Head on past the break for the full release.

Rambus takes aim at NVIDIA over alleged patent infringement, again

While there still doesn't seem to have been any developments in the lawsuit Rambus filed against NVIDIA earlier this year, that doesn't seem to be stopping the company from opening up another front against its would-be arch rival, and it's now taken its case to the International Trade Commission. As before, Rambus is alleging that NVIDIA and its partner companies are infringing on a whole slew of its memory-related patents, and it's asking for a ban on all imports and sales of NVIDIA products that include DDR, DDR2, DDR3, LPDDR, GDDR, GDDR2, and GDDR3 memory controllers -- or anything with an NVIDIA logo on it, basically. For its part, NVIDIA doesn't seem to be commenting on the matter just yet, but Rambus said in a statement that it believes the action was "necessary given NVIDIA's continued willful infringement of our patents." Look for the ITC to make a decision on whether to start an investigation into the matter or not within the next 30 days, and you can keep tabs on any future Rambus litigation on the Litigation Update section of its website which, yes, actually exists.

Read - Rambus Press Release, "Rambus Files Complaint Against International Trade Commission"
Read - Rambus Litigation Update

[Via The Inquirer]

Meet Sparky, the DIY Mac mini telepresence robot

Meet Sparky, the DIY Mac mini telepresence robot
When robot builders try to put a human face on their creations, the results usually range between mildly creepy and downright disturbing. Sparky, the Self Portrait Artifact Roving Chassis, dodges that problem entirely by displaying the face of a real, live person on an Erector- and bungee-mounted LCD, creating a package that's far more charming than iRobot's ConnectR. Based on a Mac mini, the bot uses Skype for the video and chat, with a plugin enabling the disembodied head to steer the thing about the room, tossing out Max Headroom quotes all the while. A short vid below gives the basics of how to bolt one of these together, while full instructions are at the read link. We just wish they could teach us how to build ourselves a charming smile like that.

Palit's Radeon HD 4870 X2 has preposterous clock speeds, marketing hype


Hong Kong-based video card manufacturer Palit is excited about its Revolution 700 Deluxe video card -- so much so that we're a little frightened by the force of its enthusiasm. The ATI Radeon HD 4870 X2 GPU is no slouch to begin with, but this iteration has cores overclocked to 750MHz and 2GB of GDDR5 memory at a face-melting 3.8GHz. As imposing as clock speeds are, they likely can't measure up to the epic hype from Palit. "All other cards beware," the press release boldly cries, "there is a new king in town and it only comes from Palit!" Tap the read link for the whole thing -- best enjoyed while listening to the Mortal Kombat theme song.

Microsoft disses Hybrid SLI and CrossFire, won't support them in Windows 7


We're expecting a ton of new laptops to support hybrid graphics thanks to chipsets like NVIDIA's soon-to-be-ubiquitous GeForce 9400M, but Microsoft isn't as enamored with hybrid graphics as most everyone else seems to be -- it says it won't be natively supporting them in Windows 7. In a just-released document titled Guidelines for Graphics in Windows 7, the company discourages manufacturers from shipping systems with hybrid graphics like ATI's CrossFire and NVIDIA's Hybrid SLI, claiming they're "unstable and provide a poor user experience." Oh, snap. One less reason to install Windows 7 on your MacBook Pro, eh wot?

Axe falls again at AMD, 500 more employees laid off


Merely seven months after AMD hacked 1,600 employees from its roster, we're seeing 500 more head for the exits. The latest round of layoffs at the Sunnyvale-based chip maker amounts to 3% of its global workforce, and according to spokesman Michael Silverman, the "headcount reduction is part of the company's efforts to reduce [its] cost structure." The firings come a month to the day after a breakup was announced, and they'll affect every division of the company save for the manufacturing operations -- which are, in fact, precisely what's being spun off. Just another day in paradise, eh AMD?

[Via MarketWatch]

Seguente Express5800 M1a is small, not necessarily remarkable


There's no doubt about it, the NEC Seguente Express5800 51Ma is very small -- weighing in at only 2.5kg (about 5.5 pounds). The details are surprisingly scant at the moment, but it looks like the minute beast is going to come in two variations: a Celeron 550 model with 512MB of RAM and 160GB hard drive, and an even more tantalizing Core 2 Duo T9300 model with 1GB of RAM and 160GB hard drive. Other selling points? Um... it's supposedly "very quiet." And... yes, that's all we've got. We don't know when or where it'll be available, or how much it's going to cost you, the lucky, excited, noise-sensitive consumer.

Core i7 dated for November 17th, approximately priced

Intel will launch its Core i7 processors at a press event in San Francisco on the 17th of this month and already we have pricing estimates sliding off whispering lips. Distributors buying in bulk will pay a modest $284 for the 2.66GHz Core i7-920, $562 for the 2.93GHz 940, and $999 for the 3.2GHz Extreme 965 -- consumers will pay more of course, but we don't know exactly how much. Even the 920 squarely defeated the Core 2 Quad Q9650 in benchmarks, and we'll admit we had fun playing with the 965 over the weekend. As for those of you who haven't been so lucky, your chance to run up that credit card debt is fast approaching.

[Via TG Daily]

VIA and NVIDIA axe netbook platform, questions abound


Something is definitely going awry with VIA's Nano platform: the company just lost HP's Mini 1000 to Intel, and now Digitimes says that VIA and NVIDIA are backing out of their plan to develop a netbook platform. Remember, Nano was announced back in May, so it's a little odd that we haven't seen a single shipping machine with the chip, even as VIA has hyped its performance advantages over the ubiquitous Atom 230 -- the closest we've come is the imini S1 in June, which has since disappeared. Now, we're always a little suspicious of Digitimes' anonymous reports, so nothing's written in stone, but things just seem pretty bleak 'round VIA way right now -- especially since it just dropped out of the mobo biz entirely to focus on processors. Hopefully we'll see some good news in the form of shipping products soon.

[Via Electronista]

Poll: Which OS do you prefer?

We were just wondering for no particular reason: which OS do you prefer?

Which OS do you prefer?

Fujitsu buys out Siemens' share of computing joint venture, logo designers rejoice


It's not the first, and certainly won't be the last, now Fujitsu Siemens Computers becomes the latest victim of corporate restructuring under the pressure of a global economic turn down. Fujitsu announced that it's acquiring beleaguered Siemens AG's 50 percent share of the joint venture for €450 million (about $580 million). The partnership established back in 1999 should be dissolved by April, assuming government approval naturally. Hey US, you're not the only country with a stake in today's presidential election -- oh you betcha.

Apple chimes in to debunk those Mac mini / iMac rumors


There was a day during an age not far removed from our memory in which Apple would remain dead silent on any murmuring going on regarding its wares -- clearly, that day has passed. In a rather unprecedented move, an actual spokesman named Bill Evans emerged from the Cupertino cocoon in order to put to rest all those wildly speculative rumors going on about new iMacs and / or Mac minis. Quite frankly, he uttered that "[Apple's] holiday line-up is set." Our take? This move is likely being made in order to assure prospective holiday shoppers that buying now is "safe," and that new gear isn't just weeks / days / nanoseconds away. C'mon, you know a well-oiled machine like Apple doesn't want all sorts of about-to-be-outdated Mac inventory clogging its supply chain when Macworld rolls around, don'tcha?

[Via CNET]




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