Dec 16 - Northgate Innovations Announces Athlon XP
Processor Media Center PC. Continuing to forge into breakthrough
technologies, Northgate Innovations Inc. (OTCBB:NGTE), in collaborating
with AMD, and Microsoft, today announced the Northgate Media Center
PC, featuring the AMD Athlon(TM) XP processor.
Based on Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition, the new Northgate
Media Center PC brings together numerous digital media experiences
in one complete system, bringing the vision of the PC being at the
center of all things in the home, one step closer.
Functions include TV viewing, television recording, digital music,
digital photography, digital video and DVD playing. In addition, the
system will come with a multi-function printer and Dolby(TM) 5.1 sound.
"We continue to support the convergence of personal computers
and the entertainment world. Our new Media Center PC really begins
to bridge that gap," said Bob Anderson, vice president of business
development at Northgate.
Anderson continued, "This is the perfect system for media enthusiasts
at a reasonable price. Many of the newly incorporated functions will
change they way we watch TV and video, how we share family photos
and listen to our favorite music."
The Northgate Media Center PC combines the full functionality of
a PC with numerous media applications, such as television with full
recording capabilities, as well as stereo and digital media. These
key functions can be managed by a remote control unit so customers
can use the Media Center PC from up to 26 feet away.
When combined with a 17-inch CRT display, the Northgate Media Center
PC starts at just $1,548. This configuration includes the AMD Athlon
XP processor 2100+ to 2600+, 512MB SDRAM, separate CDRW and DVD drives,
remote and receiver, TV tuner, 64 MB Graphics, 80GB HDD, 6 in 1 card
reader, 5.1 speakers and subwoofer and much more. The system is also
available with a 15-inch or 17-inch LCD display.
This system is available for purchase through resellers listed at
www.northgate.com.
Dec 16 - Memory Segment Leads Semiconductor
Market to Slight Increase in 2002. The worldwide semiconductor
industry returned to positive growth in 2002, with revenue totaling
$155.4 billion in 2002, a 1.4 percent increase from 2001, according
to preliminary statistics by Dataquest Inc., a unit of Gartner, Inc.
(NYSE: IT and ITB). In 2001, worldwide semiconductor revenue declined
32 percent.
"Weak end markets continue to depress the semiconductor industry,
leaving scant opportunities for growth," said Richard Gordon,
principal analyst for Gartner Dataquest's worldwide semiconductor
group. "However, some vendors with a particular product or applications
focus did manage to impress in 2002; the most notable of these is
Samsung, which is now second only to Intel in total semiconductor
sales worldwide."
Intel remained the No. 1 vendor based on worldwide semiconductor
revenue in 2002, despite a 3.1 percent revenue decline. It was the
11th straight year that Intel has held the top-ranked position. Samsung's
growth was attributed to strong DRAM and flash memory sales.
While the semiconductor industry posted a 1.4 percent growth in 2002,
the industry would have suffered another year of revenue decline if
not for the DRAM segment. If DRAM revenue is excluded from the total
semiconductor market, worldwide semiconductor sales revenue would
actually decline by 2 percent.
Gartner analysts said during industry downtimes such as these, only
those vendors with solid strategies and business focus can hope to
survive and to be able to invest in next-generation technology and
capacity.
"Intel continues to dominate the microprocessor and NOR flash
markets today, while using its ability to generate cash to invest
in technologies, products and manufacturing capacity to target the
mobile, portable and wireless markets of tomorrow," Gordon said.
"Samsung is the complete memory vendor, with an extensive range
of products spanning DRAM, SRAM and flash memory, and a brand that
allows it to command premium pricing in the marketplace."
"Infineon continues to gain market share in DRAMs and has lined
up an impressive array of partners in the trench capacitor camp. Its
leadership in 300mm manufacturing demonstrates a commitment to remain
a leading DRAM player."
Additional information is available in the Gartner Dataquest Alert
"Early Worldwide Semiconductor Share Rankings Reflect Weak 2002."
This Alert provides preliminary rankings for the top 20 companies
worldwide as well as the top 10 vendor in the Americas, EMEA, Asia/Pacific
and Japan.
More information about Gartner Dataquest semiconductor programs and
reports can be found in the Gartner Semiconductor Focus Area at www.gartner.com/semiconductor-mkt.
Dec 16 - Ulead DVD MovieFactory 2.0 Now
Available. Ulead Systems, Inc., a leading developer of video editing,
image editing and DVD creation software, today announced the availability
of Ulead(R) DVD MovieFactory(TM) 2.0, Ulead's popular, consumer-level
DVD creation software.
DVD MovieFactory 2.0 gives home and office users an affordable and
intuitive tool for sharing high-quality videos and digital image slideshows
on DVDs and CDs. Users can create interactive scene selection menus
with ready-to-go templates that are customizable, while adding music,
text, and captions to liven-up DVD presentations.
The software's new "on-disc" editing and "Disc-direct"
capture technology make it easy for anyone to quickly transfer videos
and photos onto a professional-looking DVD with the flexibility to
re-edit +RW and -RW DVD discs even after they are burned.
Ulead DVD MovieFactory 2.0 is now available for download from Ulead's
Web site at www.ulead.com for $44.95 with
the download upgrade version available for $34.95.
The software will be available in North American retail stores and
catalogs starting in January 2003 for $49.95 for the box edition and
$39.95 for the box edition upgrade.
Dec 16 - Software Shelf Releases File-Rescue
Plus 3.0. Software Shelf today announced the release of File-Rescue
Plus(TM) 3.0. The five star ZDNet award winning network utility has
been upgraded with two new scan methods to recover accidentally deleted
files or pictures, even from "quick formatted" or virus
damaged drives on any Microsoft(R) operating systems.
The power of the Deleted File Scan, Cluster Scan, and Picture Rescue
Scan as well as the low cost of File-Rescue Plus puts this latest
Software Shelf(R) tool in a class by itself. File-Rescue Plus can
recover files or photos from all types of media such as hard disk,
digital cameras, 3.5 floppy, Jaz drives, Zip drives, Flash media,
Smart media, and others.
Software Shelf CEO Bill Feeley said: "Recovery methods are fast
and easy. Features include not only quickly recovering deleted files
or photos, but scanning hard drive clusters to undelete from corrupted,
`quick formatted' or virus damaged drives. These features surpass
the capability of other products in its class."
Mr. Feeley added, "Another feature needed by many is the recovery
of deleted JPEG, PNG, GIF, BMP, PSD and/or TIFF files from the computer
and/or digital camera media. Picture Rescue scans and displays thumbnails
of deleted pictures for easy selection of files to undelete."
The Home User price: $29.95. Enterprise Networks get volume discounts
at a fraction of the cost of similar software. A free fully functional
trial version can be downloaded from www.softwareshelf.com/products/prod_main.asp?p=11.
Dec 15 - Sunday Shopping Watch.
Best Sunday Deals - See our Best
Sunday Ad Deals Table below for specific system prices.
Weekly Comparison. It's
another very good weekend to go out and buy a new computer.
All stores offered no interest financing. Prices were again lower
this week than last week. Details follow.
Laptops - Prices on Intel processor laptops prices
were lower than last week. Prices were higher on AMD processor laptops.
Desktops - Prices on all desktop PCs were lower.
Few AMD desktops were advertised.
This Sunday's Special Discounts and Financing.
In addition to sales on specific items, the following store-wide sales
are advertised this week. (Note that these
ads are for the Dayton, Ohio area. Prices or offerings may be different
where you live.)
Best Buy is offering 6 months of free MSN with any computer purchase.
They also have 12 month no-interest financing on all laptops and 18
month no interest financing on all desktops.. In addition, they are
offering mail-in rebates of $100-$250 on all desktop packages and
laptops.
Circuit City is offering
$100 instant gift cards for all Intel Pentium 4 processor desktop
package and laptop purchases. They also have 12 month no-interest
financing on all laptops and desktops.
Office
Depot
has 6 months no payment, no interest financing for new computer purchases
over $298.
CompUSA is giving 12 month no
interest financing for desktop complete systems and laptops $749 and
higher. They are also offering $100-$150 mail in rebates on AMD XP
processor and Intel Pentium 4 processor laptops. In addition, they
are offering 3 months of free AOL with any computer purchase.
Staples is offering $150 mail-in rebates
an all desktops and laptops. They are also offering 12 month no interest
financing for purchases over $799..
Compare
to Online Prices - Compare the Sunday ad prices to
those being offered at DealTime, it searches over 160 online computer
stores.
InfoHQ Related Shopping Pages
Shopping Alerts
- Our latest shopping advisories on buying digital cameras and camcorders,
desktop computers, and laptops.
Windows XP
Upgrade Guide - All about upgrading to Windows XP.
What You Need to Know
About Dial-up Internet Service Rebates - The pros and cons of
'free' Internet service deals.
Definitions. A complete desktop system/package/complete
package is defined as a computer with monitor and printer
or scanner.
A build-to-order system is customized at the retailer
and then ordered from a computer manufacturer. In addition to the
computer's stated price, you still pay sales tax and shipping charges
(if you order direct from the vendor without going through the chain
store, you may not have to pay sales tax and you could get a better
warranty).
Caution about advertised prices.
When reading advertisements, read the fine print of the ad to make
sure you know what is being advertised and what it cost. For example,
many advertisers will show a complete system with computer, monitor,
and printer but advertise a price for the computer only.
* Prices discussed in this article. We report
prices after rebates and discounts are subtracted.
Items highlighted in Black are good deals.
Items highlighted in Red means prices have
gone up and the system is not a good buy this week.
Items in normal text means prices are about the same as the previous
weeks.
|
Best Sunday Ad Deals
|
|
Category
|
Product Description
|
Price* (see above)
|
Prices up or Down this Week
|
Store
|
|
Best Celeron Deal
|
HP 1.7 GHz complete system
|
$549
|
-$150
|
Best Buy
|
|
1. Best High-end Pentium 4 System
|
HP 2.53 GHz system with
17 inch monitor (build-to-order)
|
$949
|
-
|
Staples
|
|
2. Best High-end Pentium 4 System
|
HP 2.53 GHz complete system
|
$1199
|
-
|
Best Buy
|
|
3. Best High-end Pentium 4 System
|
Sony 2.4 GHz complete system
|
$1199
|
-
|
CompUSA
|
|
4. Best High-end Pentium 4 System
|
HP 2.53 GHz complete system with DVD-RW
|
$1499
|
-
|
CompUSA
|
|
Best Low-cost Athlon XP System
|
HP 2200+ complete
system
|
$849
|
-$150
|
Best Buy
|
|
Best High-end Athlon XP System
|
None advertised
|
|
|
|
|
1. Best Low-cost Notebook
|
Toshiba 1.5 GHz Celeron with DVD
|
$499
|
(10 per store)
|
Best Buy
|
|
2. Best Low-cost Notebook
|
HP 1.7 GHz Pentium 4 with DVD/CD-RW
|
$999 (build-to-order)
|
-
|
Staples
|
|
3. Best Low-cost Notebook
|
Compaq Athlon XP 1600+ with DVD/CD-RW
|
$949
|
+$200
|
Best Buy
|
|
1. Best High-end Notebook
|
Toshiba Pentium 4-M 2.0 GHz with DVD/CD-RW
|
$1099
|
-$200
|
Best Buy
|
|
2. Best High-end Notebook
|
Toshiba Pentium 4-M 2.4 GHz with DVD/CD-RW
|
$1299
|
-$300
|
Best Buy
|
|
|
|
Peripherals
|
|
Best Sunday Deal
|
Asylum 128 MB GeForce 4 Ti 4600
|
$229
(after rebates)
|
-
|
Best Buy
|
|
Best Sunday Deal
|
Maxtor 60 GB 7200 RPM Hard Drive
|
$69
(after rebates)
|
-
|
Best Buy
|
|
Best Sunday Deal
|
TDK 52X CD-RW
|
$79
(after rebates)
|
-
|
Best Buy
|
|
Best Sunday Deal
|
PNY 64 MB GeForce 4 Ti 4200
|
$149
(after rebates)
|
-
|
Circuit City
|
|
Best Sunday Deal
|
Sound Blaster Audigy Gamer Sound Card
|
$59
(after rebates)
|
-
|
Circuit City
|
|
Best Sunday Deal
|
ATI Radeon 9000 PRO 64 MB
|
$99
(after rebates)
|
-
|
CompUSA
|
|
|
Additional Information. For additional technical
information, advice on how to buy a laptop or desktop, and vendor
and manufacturer links, please see our Computer
Buying Advice page.
About Sunday Shopping Watch. Sunday Shopping
Watch appears every Sunday (except some holidays like Easter and Christmas)
in our News and Rumors column. It is a review of local (Dayton, Ohio)
computer chain store advertisements. While we can not guarantee your
local chain store has the same items, this article can help you make
informed buying decisions.
Dec 13 - HP and Wal-Mart
Delivering Celeron 2 GHz to Shoppers. HP (NYSE:HPQ) today announced
it is delivering with Wal-Mart to holiday shoppers an HP technology
package that includes a full-featured desktop PC, a high-resolution
17-inch color monitor and a sophisticated color printer -- all for
the low price of $698.
Available through Dec. 25, 2002, the package offers consumers a bundle
of products that provide powerful performance, connectivity and software
for advanced digital entertainment experiences for everything from
editing digital photos to playing PC games. The package includes an
HP Pavilion 533w desktop PC, HP Pavilion v70s 17-inch color monitor
and an HP Deskjet 3320v color printer.
The full-featured HP Pavilion 533w desktop PC is ideal for families
looking for an affordable PC that's easy to set up and use for work
or play. It also makes for a great second PC for the home.
The PC features a 2.0 GHz Intel(R) Celeron(R) processor, generous
60 GB hard drive, HP CD-RW/DVD-ROM combo drive and 256 MB DDR SDRAM
memory. In addition, the HP Pavilion 533w offers users integrated
Intel Extreme Graphics, with up to 64 MB of shared video memory, Polk
Audio stereo speakers, an HP Pavilion keyboard, mouse and six-foot
USB cable.
The 17-inch HP Pavilion v70s color monitor features a 15.9-inch viewable
screen. The monitor's multimedia display complements and enhances
the HP Pavilion PC with high-resolution performance and added features.
The simple-to-use HP Deskjet 3320v color inkjet printer provides
users with vibrant, photo-quality color and black text with up to
1,200 x 600 color dots per inch on photo papers. The printer is USB
compatible with PC and Macintosh computers. All printing software
is conveniently pre-installed on the HP Pavilion PC, allowing immediate
use by consumers.
More information about HP is available at www.hp.com.
Dec 13 - Digital Video Recorders Here to
Stay. Digital Video Recorders (DVRs), through the incorporation
of a hard disk and specialized software, allow viewers to pause live-TV,
rewind, and even fast-forward through commercials. Until recently,
DVRs had suffered from slow adoption due to a lack of consumer understanding,
high-cost, and entrenched viewing habits. All this is now changing,
and DVR is here to stay.
IMS Research forecasts that the worldwide market for
DVRs will grow from approximately 2.4 million units shipped in 2002,
to 16.2 million units in 2007. This translates to a market worth $3.8
billion in 2007.
The majority of DVRs shipped in 2002 were integrated satellite DVRs,
which include an integrated satellite tuner for the reception of satellite
television programming. This is due to the fact that major satellite
operators such as DISH Network and DirecTV in the US, BSkyB in the
UK, and Canal Satellite in Europe have been aggressive in offering
the technology to their subscribers.
IMS Research believes that satellite providers will continue to be
aggressive with DVR as it is a highly effective way of reducing churn,
and it is the easiest way for them to offer near video-on-demand (nVOD)
to compete with the increasing rollout of cable providers' true video-on-demand
(VOD).
IMS Research also forecasts that shipments of integrated cable DVRs
will grow to overtake those of standalone DVRs (standalone DVRs do
not include a television tuner) in 2005, to end 2007 with approximately
26% of the DVR market.
Digital video recording is a fascinating technology that is finally
beginning to gain momentum. "Widespread adoption of DVR will
come with consumer education, the rollout of DVR by pay-TV operators,
and the modification of entrenched viewing habits," comments
Alison Bogle, IMS Research analyst.
For further information, visit www.imsresearch-usa.com.
Dec 13 - Broadband Version of Free World
Dialup Internet Telephone Service Launched. Jeff Pulver made the
launch of the broadband version of Free World Dialup official at a
New York Grand Hyatt launch event.
Free World Dialup does for telephone customers what Napster did for
music listeners. Anyone with broadband access to the Internet can
use an IP phone to talk with any other IP phone user by registering
with Free World Dialup (FWD).
FWD provides the centralized directory that allows IP phone users
to find each other. "Free World Dialup will make voice the killer
app for broadband. Once someone buys an IP phone they can make as
many calls for as long as they want. We don't pay every time we listen
to a CD, so why should telephone usage prove any different?"
said Jeff Pulver, CEO, pulver.com.
Jeff Pulver quietly launched the broadband version of Free World
Dialup (www.pulver.com/fwd)
by incorporating recent advances in VoIP as he has several times since
the original launch of Free World Dialup in 1995. This time he pulled
the plug on connectivity with the traditional telephone network and
removed the analog portion of the call associated with several miles
of copper wire connecting a user's premise to the incumbent telephone
company's central office.
Members can now only call other members, but they enjoy sound quality
that far exceeds Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS). "Once someone
makes FWD call they don't use POTS again, unless they have to call
someone who remains a non-member. This represents almost everyone
at the moment, but it doesn't seem so long ago when no one had an
email address," said Jeff Pulver. FWD membership has continued
to grow rapidly giving Free World Dialup one of the largest user bases
among Internet telephony service providers after only a month in service.
Dec 13 - Formac Introduces New Mac DVD
Authoring System. Formac Electronic Inc., a leading manufacturer
of performance enhancing peripherals and advanced visualization solutions,
today announced the second release of its DVD authoring software.
Formac's new devideon(TM) x.2 software allows users to custom design
the DVD menu, add chapters and use parallel encoding to accelerate
the DVD creation process. The software is shipped with Formac's next
generation devideon(TM) superdrive, incorporating the latest Pioneer
A-105 mechanism with a 4X DVD writing speed.
Existing customers can download the software for free at Formac's
website. Formac devideon(TM) x.2 is compatible with Apple's FireWire
G3, G4, iMac, PowerBook, and iBook computers and works on OS9 and
OSX platforms.
"Formac's software development team focused on two key objectives
for the devideon(TM) x.2 software," said Oliver Bergmann, Ph.D.,
Chief Executive Officer and President of Formac Inc. "Increasing
the feature set and accelerating the encoding speed. At a price of
$399, including the latest Pioneer mechanism, professional DVD authoring
is now more affordable than ever."
Formac's devideon(TM) x.2 software features a new intuitive interface,
allowing users to create their own DVD menu in few easy steps. Text,
pictures and movie chapters can be added by simple drag-and-drop.
Size, color, position and other settings can be adjusted via an intuitive
tool window. To increase the encoding speed, Formac's devideon(TM)
x.2 takes advantage of a proprietary PARENC(TM) routine, encoding
several movie chapters simultaneously to MPEG2, the format required
for DVD creation.
To further improve the encoding performance, the new software comes
with a customized devideon(TM) screen-saver for OSX. Once activated,
the screen-saver identifies and turns off redundant processes, focusing
all available processing power on the encoding task. Unique to Formac's
devideon(TM) software is also the ability to influence the encoding
quality of video and audio, allowing the user to record up to 6 hours
of video on one DVD media.
Pricing and Availability
Formac's devideon(TM) x.2 is shipped immediately with the new devideon(TM)
superdrive. The bundle is available through Formac Certified Resellers
and online at www.formac.com for a suggested
retail price of $399. Existing devideon(TM) owners can download the
new software release for free on Formac's website.
Dec 12 - MessageLabs Reports Email Threats
Increasing At Alarming Rate. How significant a risk did malicious
email pose to your computers in 2002?
According to email security firm MessageLabs, VERY. The company's
annual report on mass mailing email security threats, specifically
including virus and spam activity, announces that a disturbing one
in every 212 emails contained a computer virus (one every 3 seconds),
and a whopping one in 12 emails was recognized as unsolicited spam
(one every half-second).
The company reports that one of the most worrying trends is a pattern
in which spammers are deploying techniques traditionally used by virus
writers making spam much more difficult to detect. MessageLabs' advanced
and patented artificial intelligence, called 'Skeptic,' is able to
identify both viruses and spam instantly and without the need for
time-consuming updates.
"Email security must remain a high priority for every business
in 2003. Email has become a gateway for billions of business transactions
per year, yet most companies continue to leave their servers wide
open to unknown threats," said Mark Sunner, chief technology
officer at MessageLabs. "With virus writers and spammers becoming
more sophisticated by the day, proactive protection is more crucial
now than ever before."
Sunner will discuss the role of email security and the value of "practicing
safe email" at this week's Information Security Conference in
New York City. On Thursday, December 12, he will host a panel discussion
entitled, "Defense-in-Depth: Defining a Layered Security Architecture."
Virus Trends
The company has observed a number of interesting trends in 2002,
one of the most notable being the increased use of "blended threats"
where spam emails are combined with viruses. MessageLabs has also
seen a rise in trojans aimed at specific companies or individuals.
This trend is expected to continue in 2003.
Virus Numbers and Characteristics
The virus-to-email ratio has grown worse during 2002, chiefly because
a vast number of home users and small businesses do not keep their
security up to date. Popular virus characteristics of the past year
included spoofing the sender's email address and deleting locally
installed desktop AV software. These trends are expected to continue.
Klez
Staying power proved to be a popular quality in computer viruses
in 2002. This was exemplified by the Klez virus, which began infecting
computers across the globe in April and continues at high rates even
now, eight months later. Klez easily topped the charts as the number
one virus of the year, with MessageLabs intercepting over five million
copies. In November alone, 423,000 copies were captured. In addition,
several variants of the virus were intercepted, highlighting a new
trend of virus writers continuously altering programs and unleashing
new versions in order to outsmart traditional A/V software.
Other Top Viruses
Klez was by no means the only viral threat unleashed in 2002. MessageLabs
intercepted over 237 new viruses throughout the year and expects this
number to rise throughout 2003. The Yaha virus was the second most
prolific virus with close to two million copies intercepted since
June. The recent BugBear outbreak has also garnered significant numbers
- over 800,000 since September. Interestingly, the fourth largest
virus intercepted in 2002 was Sircam, which first crept onto the scene
in July 2001 and has persisted due to globalization and over-reliance
on traditional reactive A/V protection.
Spam
While viruses caused the most immediate damage to corporate networks
in 2002, the threat of spam continued to rise. In November, this surge
topped out with one in three emails identified as spam. MessageLabs
predicts that spam will continue its exponential growth into 2003,
surpassing the amount of non-spam email by around July. This growth
will likely slow down later in the year, but still remain the bulk
of email sent every day through the end of 2003.
Nigerian Scam
2002 saw a marked increase in "malicious spam" - dangerous
cocktails of spam appearing with virus-like qualities or financial
scams that prey on naive and elderly individuals. The most well-known
of these, the 'Nigerian scam,' (also known as the 419 scam) spread
to every point of the globe in 2002. Recently, Americans in particular
seem to be falling victim to the scam. A recent report by the U.K.'s
National Criminal Intelligence Service stated that up to five Americans
per day have been witnessed waiting in London hotel lobbies to meet
people connected with the scam. If this trend continues, MessageLabs
predicts that Nigerian scam operations will gross over two billion
dollars in 2003, becoming the second largest industry in the country.
FriendGreeting
Another piece of malicious spam that raised email users' ire in 2002
was the recent FriendGreeting applet, which used a legal trick to
scam end users into downloading mass mailing software that then did
the spammers' dirty work for them. MessageLabs has intercepted over
70,000 copies to date, and expects to see not only additional greeting
card scams in 2003, but stronger and smarter tricks as well. Specifically,
the company predicts that software installed on end-user machines
will send spam not only to people in the victim's address book, but
also to any email addresses the software can find in the Internet
Explorer cache, again in a manner similar to techniques deployed by
virus writers.
About MessageLabs
MessageLabs is a leading Managed Services Provider (MSP) specializing
in managed e-mail security services. Its revolutionary SkyScan portfolio
of services enables customers to be protected from threats such as
viruses, unsolicited mail, malicious and sensitive content, and pornography,
which are all intercepted before they reach the customers' network
boundaries. For further information, go to
www.messagelabs.com.
Dec 12 - Scientia Reinvents The Automated
Home. Scientia Technologies announced today that it will launch
a groundbreaking home and life automation system at the Consumer Electronics
Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Jan. 9-12, 2003. The Plexus Home & Life
Automation system delivers features previously found only in costly
proprietary home automation systems, yet it is designed to be affordable
and easy to use for mainstream consumers.
"Today, homeowners pay enormous sums for proprietary systems
that require special wiring and installation," says Fred Pandolfi,
president of Scientia Technologies. "At the other end of the
spectrum, they can settle for a basic universal remote-type device
-- even the best of which don't offer much functionality or intelligence.
Plexus will give them a very appealing third option, with advanced
high-end features in a user-friendly, affordable and accessible solution."
Control with any smart device
Hardware-independent, Plexus will enable consumers to control household
electronic appliances and information using the smart platform of
their choice, including palmtop PCs, pocket PCs, Palm(R) devices,
cellular telephones and Microsoft(R) Windows-based personal computers.
It also supports a variety of wireless and wired signal standards,
including consumer infrared, X10, IP/HTTP, S-Link(TM), Bluetooth(TM)
and more.
Unprecedented intelligence
"This system isn't just about turning on and off the DVD player,"
says Steve Hayes, vice president for development at Scientia. "It's
about managing and accessing anything in your home or life in a very
visual, intelligent way. You can easily catalog and access your entire
CD collection, for example; stream video from a security camera or
baby monitor; or access detailed, searchable TV listings in real time
-- all via any smart device."
First to fully exploit Bluetooth(TM) wireless technology
Plexus will be the first system of its kind to fully integrate and
support the flexibility of Bluetooth(R)(a) wireless technology.
Bluetooth is a short-range wireless specification developed by the
Bluetooth Special Interest Group, comprising technology leaders such
as 3Com, Ericsson, IBM, Intel, Lucent, Microsoft, Motorola, Nokia,
Toshiba and more than 2000 Adopter/Associate member companies.
"Many PDAs, palmtops, cell phones and other smart devices support
Bluetooth wireless technology today, but few home electronics are
compatible yet," said Pandolfi. "Plexus not only bridges
that gap, it will also let consumers transition seamlessly to the
wave of Bluetooth-compatible home electronics headed our way."
Compatibility with Bluetooth wireless technology is expected to be
widespread in the next generation of household electronics. However,
Plexus enables consumers to control their legacy equipment using Bluetooth
today.
With Plexus, consumers can use the smart device of their choice to
communicate commands using Bluetooth. The Plexus Echo(TM), a small,
pod-like device located discreetly within the home, translates the
signal into the standard understood by the target appliance.
Scientia integrated Bluetooth support into its solution to give consumers
complete flexibility in choosing a controller device and because the
technology offers a number of features unavailable from other wireless
standards. "For one thing, Bluetooth is non-directional, so you
don't have to 'point' your controller directly at the device or worry
if the dog's in the way," says Michael Ingson, vice president
and lead developer at Scientia. "That enables Plexus to be a
much more flexible and household-wide control solution."
Plexus also has an exclusive feature called SystemSense(TM), which
uses signal strength measurement, unique Bluetooth discovery processes
and a number of other methodologies to automatically determine where
you are in your home and to display controls on your smart device
accordingly.
"Bluetooth offers some exciting advantages for short-range wireless
communications. Plexus is the first home automation system to really
put it to work for consumers," concludes Pandolfi.
Scientia Technologies will unveil the Plexus Home & Life Automation
system on Friday, Jan. 11, 2003, 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., in Press
Room S227 at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas (www.cesweb.org.).
You can try out Plexus and visit with the Scientia Technologies team
at CES booth #27196 in the LVCC South Hall.
Scientia Technologies (www.scientiatech.com)
is a Northern Virginia-based software innovator.
Dec 12 - Toshiba Ships New Self-Installing
Wireless Cable Modem. Toshiba America Information Systems, Network
Products Division (NPD) today announced that its PCX5000 DOCSIS Wireless
Cable Modem Gateway bundled with the JumpMASTER(TM) Self-Installation
Wizard is now available in select CompUSA retail stores throughout
the United States.
The PCX5000 represents the only device in its class to include, in
one unit, a cable modem, wireless router, self installation software,
and Internet security technology based on Check Point Software Technologies'
VPN-1(R)/FireWall-1(R).
The PCX5000 is Toshiba NPD's first home networking product. It will
be marketed through retail stores and is available for purchase by
major cable operators.
The PCX5000 Wireless Cable Modem Gateway self-installation tool,
JumpMASTER Home Networking Wizard, proactively configures the wired
and wireless local area network (WLAN) for users. Designed to intuitively
guide users through the entire network set-up in a matter of minutes,
the JumpMASTER drastically reduces installation time for both consumers
and broadband service providers planning to roll out home networking
services in the near future.
The unit comes standard with Safe@ security software developed by
SofaWare, a Check Point company. Safe@ provides critical Internet
security protection to home networking users based on Check Point's
professional-grade and industry standard Stateful Inspection technology.
The MSRP for the gateway is $299.99.
"The wireless gateway's JumpMASTER self-installation software
solves the primary challenges that consumers have experienced when
moving to a wireless home network," said Fred Berry, vice president
and general manager of Toshiba's Network Products Division. "It
is so easy to use that the average computer user can set up a wireless
local area network (WLAN) in a matter of minutes with only a few clicks."
The gateway includes both wired and wireless networking features,
with four 10/100 ports and an 802.11b wireless interface. Users have
the ability to create a flexible local area network (LAN) and a wireless
local area network (WLAN) with a range of 300 feet, and can connect
up to 250 computers via a broadband cable connection simultaneously.
Toshiba's PCX5000 gateway has been approved by the Wi-Fi Alliance,
CableLabs and Microsoft's WHQL laboratories, having met the stringent
standards for compatibility for cable broadband, Wi-Fi and Microsoft
systems as established by the three organizations.
More information can be found at www.toshiba.com.
Dec 12 - Logitech Sells Over 30 Million
Cordless Peripherals. The market for cordless peripherals, including
mice, keyboards and gaming controllers, is hot. And Logitech, creator
of the first cordless RF-based mouse in 1992, has emerged as the category's
clear market leader, according to company sales figures and industry
research. Logitech recently shipped its 30 millionth cordless peripheral
and has introduced a broad range of new cordless devices now on shelves
for the holiday season.
Industry analysts in both the U.S. and Europe confirm Logitech's
leadership position in this market. According to NPDTechworld Point
of Sale data, which tracks U.S. sales, Logitech showed a 57 percent
revenue share in cordless mice, and a 93 percent revenue share in
cordless keyboards during the time period of October 2001 through
September 2002. Europe-based GFK Data reported similar results for
Logitech's major European markets (France, U.K., and Germany), with
a 61 percent revenue share in cordless mice and an 85 percent revenue
share in cordless keyboards.
"Thirty million people can't be wrong," said David Henry,
senior vice president and general manager of Logitech's Control Devices
Business Unit.
"Since the introduction of our first cordless mouse in 1992,
they have counted on Logitech to deliver cordless products that combine
great design and leading-edge technology. We are committed to advancing
cordless technology even further as we explore more areas where cordless
freedom makes a difference in productivity and enjoyment."
To celebrate the 30-Million Cordless Milestone, Logitech's North
American Region (U.S. and Canada) has announced a Customer Thank-You
initiative. On December 20, 2002, the company will be giving away
20,000 Logitech(R) Cordless Navigator Duo(TM) SE mouse & keyboard
combinations to randomly selected people who visit a special Logitech
website -- www.logitechcordless.com
-- between 12:00 P.M. and 5:00 P.M. Eastern Standard Time.
For more information on Logitech and its products, visit the company's
website at www.logitech.com.
Dec 11 - DSL Popularity Accelerates
as Gap Widens in Broadband Race. Global DSL subscribers grew by
five million in the third quarter of 2002, reaching a total of more
than 30.6 million, according to figures announced by DSL Forum at
its San Francisco meeting today and provided by London-based industry
analyst Point Topic.
That is an average of 1.67 million people per month
choosing DSL broadband, up from 1.13 million per month on average
for the first six months of 2002. If growth continues at this rate
approaching 20%, by the end of 2002 more than 36 million homes and
businesses around the world will be online with DSL broadband.
"With an extra half a million people every month choosing DSL
for their broadband connections in the past quarter, the pace of subscriber
growth is accelerating fast," said Bill Rodey, DSL Forum chairman.
"We are on track for 100% growth in global subscribers this calendar
year, ensuring that DSL widens the gap in the broadband race. It is
clear that we are well on the way to our target of a global mass market
of 200 million DSL broadband subscribers in 2005. In a tough consumer
and business economy, this is a significant achievement, demonstrating
a growing appreciation of the real benefits that DSL broadband delivers."
Asia Pacific continues to lead the way with a 40% share of the world's
global broadband DSL subscribers. Western Europe has moved into second
place with 24.34% share, just ahead of North America at 23.84%.
Highest growth countries in the third quarter were China at 214%,
Norway at 211% and Croatia at 150%. Korea continues to be the only
country in the world with a true mass market already in place with
more than six million DSL subscribers (26.74% of main phone lines).
Nearly 40% of its households now have DSL broadband services.
More information on the DSL Forum is available from its industry
site www.dslforum.org.
Dec 11 - Audi Accelerates Bluetooth Adoption.
Bluetooth Developers Conference--CSR (Cambridge Silicon Radio) today
announced that car maker Audi will be using CSR's BlueCore technology
to bring Bluetooth technology to the road with the world's first car
to be offered with a Bluetooth enabled GSM car phone and a cordless
Bluetooth handset.
The Audi Bluetooth enabled Telematics Control Unit (TCU) is combining
an embedded GSM module and an embedded Bluetooth module with a powerful
CPU. It is connected to the Multi-Media-Interface (MMI) through an
optical MOST Bus system.
The System also is equipped with an in-car rechargeable cordless Bluetooth
handset. It allows the passengers to place and accept calls directly
through the TCU Bluetooth link. The user is thus able to place calls
over the Bluetooth handset and to transfer that call to the Bluetooth
enabled hands-free phone system in the Audi.
One of the eagerly awaited benefits of Bluetooth, possible with this
system, is the ability to also connect a Bluetooth-enabled portable
PC or PDA to exchange emails and surf the Internet via a cellular
system while connected through the TCU.
Bluetooth in-car hands-free kits are likely to play a key role as
hands-free operation of mobiles becomes preferable, and increasingly,
legally required in the near future. Industry experts estimate that
up to 70 percent of all mobile phone calls are made from cars. Bluetooth
hands-free systems provide a safe, convenient alternative and are
set to become the first killer app for automotive Bluetooth. Audi
identified the benefits of Bluetooth and took the step of integrating
the wireless technology into its vehicles ahead of the competition.
CSR is the only automotive grade Bluetooth solution available which
can run the complete Bluetooth protocol stack and application software
on-chip, without the need for an optional external microprocessor.
CSR's mature, single-chip automotive Bluetooth device is also produced
under very stringent QS-9000 and PPAP (Production Part Approval Process)
automotive requirements and is available in a 0.8mm pitch package
for low cost printed circuit board construction.
In the future, CSR will make available implementations of new automotive
profiles for vehicle diagnostics, streaming video and mp3 file streaming
for multimedia and info-entertainment. CSR will also work towards
further extending the guaranteed temperature range of BlueCore2-External
and future products.
More information about CSR can be found on the web site at www.csr.com.
Dec 11 - Dell Enhances Microportable Projector
Offering. Dell (Nasdaq:DELL) today introduced a portable projector
that delivers crisp images and new features for fast, simple set-up,
all in a lightweight form factor.
Priced at $2,199, the Dell 3200MP replaces Dell's first microportable
projector, the 3100MP. The new unit uses Digital Light Processing
(DLP)(tm) DDR technology to produce clearer images from the same 3.5-pound
form factor. The 3200MP projects native XGA resolution (1024 x 768),
and will automatically adjust to accommodate the resolution of the
source device. The new projector also features a 25% increase in maximum
brightness over the 3100MP, to 1300 ANSI lumens (max)(b), as well
as a contrast ratio of 1800:1.
"The 3200MP incorporates the latest projection technology and
features several enhancements, based directly on customer feedback,
that make it even easier to use than the previous model," said
Scott O'Hare, vice president, Dell Software & Peripherals.
These changes include modifying the cooling vent to redirect airflow
away from meeting participants, reducing the number of cords to ease
set-up and increasing range of the height adjustment.
The 3200MP is housed in a sturdy magnesium chassis and can be used
on a desktop, mounted to a ceiling (with available kit) or easily
adjusted to project from behind a screen. Other standard features
include integrated zoom lenses, digital keystone correction, built-in
2-watt speaker and a full-function remote control with integrated
laser pointer. The projector ships with cables (M1-DA to VGA, S-Video,
component video, composite video, RCA audio, and mini pin to mini
pin) and a fitted carrying case.
Information on Dell and its products can be obtained at www.dell.com.
Dec 11 - New Decoder Chips from Philips
Deliver Stereo TV to Consumer PCs. Royal Philips Electronics (NYSE:PHG)(AEX:PHI)
today announced two new additions to its industry-leading lineup of
integrated PCI video/stereo decoders that bring TV reception to consumer
PCs worldwide.
Designed for high-end applications, one of the new decoders (the
SAA7135) is the world's first single-chip PCI video/stereo decoder
to support stereo audio enhanced with Dolby Pro Logic(R) decoding.
The SAA7135 reduces the chip count of Dolby-enhanced PC TV cards from
three chips to one, enabling cinematic surround sound capabilities
for even cost sensitive PC TV applications.
The second chip (the SAA7133) is the world's first PCI video/stereo
decoder optimized to support North American and Japanese TV and audio
standards. The SAA7133 incorporates high quality, multi-standard video
decoding and low-noise stereo decoding in accordance with the US stereo
television broadcast and reception standard BTSC-dbx (Broadcast Television
Systems Committee), and the corresponding standard for Japan set by
the EIAJ (Electronic Industries Association of Japan).
"Microsoft believes the convergence of PC and TV technology
applications is something consumers are looking forward to,"
said Kevin Eagan, General Manager of the Windows eHome Division, Microsoft
Corp. "This will set the stage to reinvigorate the consumer PC
and consumer electronics industries. Philips has strong technology
practices in place to help reduce hardware costs and improve performance
in such applications."
"Our PCI video/stereo decoder family brings superior performance
and picture quality to PC-based video capture systems," said
Martin Maloney, international product marketing manager for Philips
Semiconductors. "Philips is dedicated to driving this technology
in to the high-volume consumer markets."
Philips is located online at www.philips.com.
Dec 11 - Automobile Manufacturer Web
Sites Are Increasing Sales. Overall site usefulness continues
to increase for visitors to automotive manufacturer Web sites, and
these visits are increasing consumer likelihood to test drive a vehicle,
according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2002 Manufacturer Web Site
Evaluation Study(SM)-Wave 2 released today.
The study finds that 43 percent of vehicle shoppers rate the site
they visit as outstanding. Additionally, those rating a manufacturer
site as outstanding are more likely to test drive a vehicle from that
make than they were prior to visiting the Web site. With an industry
average index score of 728, overall site usefulness is up 11 points
from the Wave 1 measurement just six months ago.
"Manufacturer Web sites are continuing to improve and are successfully
driving incremental consumer traffic to dealerships," said Scott
Weitzman, senior director of Internet research at J.D. Power and Associates.
"Consumers identify the Web site's home page as the key to the
impression a brand makes online. A strong presentation focusing on
the models and their features can translate the virtual visit into
a potential sale on the lot."
Jeep.com is the highest-ranked Web site in the study, improving from
11th overall in the first wave of the 2002 study (published in May
2002). Jeep's Web site benefits from an uncluttered design, use of
clear, clean pictures and a consistent focus on the models.
Kia.com retains its second-place ranking with unique design attributes
and a clean and simple-to-use interface. Subaru.com improves from
19th place to third overall on the strength of a redesigned site that
clearly resonates with consumers. Lexus and Mercedes-Benz round out
the top five, respectively. The Mercedes-Benz site was ranked highest
in Wave 1.
"It is interesting to see that the most successful Web sites
run the gamut from high-end luxury brands to the entry-level makes,"
said Weitzman. "Consumers are clearly more interested in the
online experience than in confirming preconceived notions about products."
J.D. Power and Associates can be found online at www.jdpa.com.
Dec 10 - AMD Athlon MP Processor 2400+
Delivers Increased Performance. AMD (NYSE:AMD) today introduced
the AMD Athlon(TM) MP processor 2400+, designed for enterprises and
research institutes that rely on software applications that require
intense computing power. The AMD Athlon MP processor 2400+ enables
business customers and the scientific community to achieve more work
in less time through its superior x86 processor architecture, including
state-of-the-art floating-point capability for intense number crunching.
"AMD is focused on delivering processor innovations
to help meet our customers' business and research computing needs,"
said Marty Seyer, AMD vice president, CPG's server business segment.
"With the AMD Athlon MP processor and its superior floating point
capability, leading enterprises and research institutes can get the
high performance they need to stay in front of their computing requirements."
AMD Athlon MP processor-based servers can be combined
via high-speed interconnect technologies to create powerful clusters
that bring commercial customers and research institutes increased
computing capabilities. AMD Athlon MP processors provide the powerhouse
for high-end workstations running applications that benefit from AMD's
impressive floating-point capabilities. AMD Athlon MP processors are
often the processor of choice for high performance computing (HPC)
solutions for government and university research, life sciences, geophysics,
automotive, aerospace and entertainment industry customers.
The Tokyo Institute of Technology (TITECH) has one
of several AMD Athlon MP processor-based supercomputers on the TOP500
Supercomputer list. "We have been able to demonstrate that a
single university lab can achieve terascale performance within the
restrictions of a typical university lab budget," said Dr. Satoshi
Matsuoka, professor of Global Scientific Information and Computer
Center at TITECH.
"AMD Athlon MP processors, known for tremendous
floating point capability that compute-intense applications require,
are an important part of that equation. TITECH uses its AMD Athlon
MP processor-based system for building a large grid computing infrastructure,
which is in turn used for various high-end applications such as terascale
data processing in high-energy physics, advanced bioinformatics, large
scale numerical optimizations, etc."
Availability
Systems featuring the AMD Athlon MP processor 2400+ are expected
to be available immediately from 47 system builders worldwide. For
information on where to buy an AMD Athlon MP processor 2400+-based
system seewww.amd.com.
Dec 10 - Nintendo Offers Holiday Shoppers
Rebates On GameCube. To make the holiday season even merrier,
Nintendo of America Inc. is offering two, one-week rebate offers to
help consumers nationwide save when they purchase Nintendo's popular
holiday products.
The
first offer allows consumers to save $25 on the purchase of a Platinum,
Indigo or Black Nintendo GameCube(TM) or Super Mario Sunshine(TM)
Nintendo GameCube Bundle Pak. The second provides up to $25 off when
purchasing a WaveBird(TM) wireless controller or select Nintendo GameCube
games ($5 off each, up to five items). Combined, these offers could
mean as much as $50 in total savings. The offers run through Saturday,
December 14.
Consumers can download and print a mail-in rebate form from www.nintendo.com/coupon.
Also, a double-sided, full-color, mail-in rebate was included in nearly
30 million Sunday edition newspapers across the country. Rebate forms
can also be found at participating retailers.
"Nintendo GameCube, combined with incredible momentum of Game
Boy Advance sales, gives shoppers terrific choices this holiday season,"
says Peter MacDougall, executive vice president, sales and marketing,
Nintendo of America Inc. "The one-week offer is an irresistible
invitation to join the millions of gamers who've already discovered
the world's greatest video game console."
More than two dozen of the best Nintendo GameCube games are part
of the rebate program, including Metroid(R) Prime, Capcom's Resident
Evil(R) 0, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater(TM) 4 from Activision, and Mortal
Kombat(R): Deadly Alliance(TM) from Midway.
The manufacturer's rebate offer is valid on purchases made between
Sunday, December 8 and Saturday, December 14. Official rules for the
rebate program can be found online at www.nintendo.com.
Dec 10 - Epson Introduces Three New 6.4-Pound
``Value Series'' Projectors. Epson is introducing three new 6.4-pound
portable multimedia projectors with new sleek designs and high-value
performance for as low as $1,299.
The new EPSON PowerLite 52c, EPSON PowerLite 53c and EPSON PowerLite
73c are designed to give today's on-the-go business presenters and
educators a higher level of image quality and versatility while remaining
attractive to constrictive budgets.
The EPSON PowerLite 52c -- Priced to Please for Quality Presentations
The EPSON PowerLite 52c is designed to deliver quality presentations
at one of the most attractive price levels on the market. The projector
sells for $1,299 (estimated street price, following a $200 mail-in
rebate), offers 1,200 ANSI lumens for performance in both dark and
well-lit rooms, SVGA (800 x 600) native resolution for vivid detail
and a 400:1 contrast ratio for blacker blacks and whiter whites. The
projector also features three new 0.5-inch high-aperture LCDs for
rich color saturation across the screen, monitor out capability that
allows presenters to use their computer monitor as a prompt, and a
unique space-saving portable design.
EPSON PowerLite 53c and 73c -- Rich Features and Brilliant Value
Engineered to deliver both power and flexibility, the PowerLite 53c
is priced at $1,699 (estimated street price), incorporates a new/sleeker
exterior and is rated at 1,700 ANSI lumens with a 500:1 contrast ratio.
This projector also uses three 0.7-inch, high-aperture LCDs for sharper
images, also offers monitor out, features Epson's exclusive auto-keystone
correction for quick and easy setup and has several other user-friendly
features that don't require any costly expansion modules.
The EPSON PowerLite 73c offers 1,500 ANSI lumens of brightness and
all other features found in the PowerLite 53c including its sleek
exterior, but raises the bar on performance by offering XGA (1,024
x 768) native resolution for even sharper image quality. The PowerLite
73c has an estimated street price of $2,499.
For more information on Epson's current projector product line, visit
the company's website at www.epson.com.
Dec 10 - Hynix Offers Highest Speed DDR
Graphics Memory. Hynix Semiconductor Inc. today announced it has
developed a 500MHz-128Mb (4Mx32) DDR-I SDRAM for supply to the graphic
chipset manufacturing market.
This high speed DDR-I SDRAM product, an industry first, features
500MHz frequency ( 1Gbps) speed, 32bit wide I/O and 144-ball FBGA
package type. The new product supports the high speed needs of desktop
and work station graphics and switch and router applications.
The new product has the highest speed in the DDR-I product line and
is compatible with the DDR-I board. Hynix forecasts the combination
of speed, compatibility, and an estimated cost advantage of 10% over
DDR-II, will gain quick acceptance for the new product from the graphics
and network industries. Farhad Tabrizi, Vice President of Worldwide
Marketing, stated "providing the highest performance at the lowest
possible price is the key for differentiating the product by end application.
DDR-I at 500 MHz does just that."
Samples of the product, reaffirming the company's position as a frequency
leader, have already been distributed to major graphic chipset manufacturers.
Hynix will introduce availability of a 500 MHz 4Mx32 DDR-II SDRAM
in Q1 2003.
For more information on Hynix Semiconductor visit www.hynix.com.
Dec 10 - Macworld Magazine Announces 2002
Editors' Choice Awards. Macworld magazine, IDG's premier Macintosh
publication and Web site, has named the winners and finalists of its
prestigious eighteenth annual Editors' Choice Awards for 2002.
The Eddy Awards, the Apple Macintosh industry's highest distinction
for breakthrough product development, are being given to the year's
top software and hardware products in 27 categories. The Macworld
editors looked at virtually every new Mac product on the market between
November 1, 2001 and November 1, 2002, evaluating them for their overall
quality as well as their utility, innovation, and elegance.
"During the last twelve months, the Mac development community
gave us a wide array of ingenious and intriguing products for Apple's
new operating system, as well as old standbys updated to take advantage
of the changes Apple's software engineers have wrought on the Mac
platform," stated Jason Snell, editor or Macworld magazine. "This
year's award-winning products clearly indicate that the Macintosh
is entering a remarkable new era of innovation."
For further details, check out the full feature article on www.macworld.com.
Dec 09 - Technology breakthrough
harnesses energy from the molecular structure of water. Genesis
World Energy, a privately funded consortium created by a group of
military and space program research and development specialists, today
unveiled a scientific breakthrough that allows consumers to easily
access the energy contained within the hydrogen and oxygen molecular
structure of ordinary water.
This scientific breakthrough provides a limitless, low cost and environmentally
clean source of energy that can be implemented with minimal cost and
effort. The viability of using water as an energy source, previously
a theoretical concept, is now a reality. "Water has always been
the source of life on this planet, now it will also transform the
way we create energy," said Charles Shaw, corporate counsel and
spokesperson for Genesis World Energy. "The implications for
worldwide energy generation and consumption are nothing less than
staggering."
The Genesis Project
The technology is the result of nearly two years of continuous effort
by a team of more than 400 visionaries from a wide spectrum of disciplines,
including science, technology and engineering. Assembled as the "Genesis
Project," the team discovered a way to extract far more energy
from water than the extraction process itself required; differentiating
this new fuel cell technology from any other development efforts thus
far.
The key component of the Genesis Project technology is the Genesis
gCell, which through a series of electro-chemical processes separates
hydrogen and oxygen molecules in water. The resulting gas molecules
can either be burned cleanly as a replacement for natural gas or various
other traditional forms of fuel, or may be remarried within Genesis
eCells (an advanced fuel cell) to generate large amounts of electrical
current.
When both Genesis gCells and eCells are combined, the entire process
becomes self-generating, recycling both water and electricity from
the molecular reattachment phase.
The Edison Device
The first application of this technology is represented in the "Edison
Device," a self-contained, self-sustaining energy generation
unit. Roughly the size of an outdoor air conditioning system, the
power source can be quickly and easily installed in any home or business
to provide virtually unlimited energy from any available water source.
The Edison Device utilizes the existing electrical wiring and natural
gas plumbing in a home or business to replace the energy provided
by utility companies. The home version of the Edison Device produces
approximately 30 kilowatts of combined gas and electrical energy per
day. By comparison, the typical home uses between five to six kilowatts
per day. The commercial model is capable of producing 100 kilowatts
of energy per day. The energy generation portion of the devices has
no moving parts. In fact, the only "mechanical" aspects
of the equipment are small circulation pumps and micro-valves, making
the Edison Device both silent and virtually maintenance-free. A minimum
amount of water is used over an estimated 20+ years of service life.
Market Ready
The commercialization of the devices is the responsibility of two
business entities, Genesis World Energy and World Energy Management.
Genesis World Energy is a technology development, production and supply
consortium, while World Energy Management functions as the exclusive
licensing representative for the worldwide distribution of Edison
Devices.
According to Nejhla Shaw, World Energy Management President, "We
will make Edison Devices rapidly available to governments and industries
on a worldwide basis, with special licensing opportunities for those
industries that will be most affected by the technology. For the first
time in the history of the world, a clean and abundant source of renewable
energy is as simple as the attachment of three wires, a gas line and
a water hose."
A more detailed description of the process can be found on the Genesis
World Energy Web site www.genesisworldenergy.org.
Dec 09 - IBM Announces World's Smallest
Working Silicon Transistor. IBM today announced the world's smallest
working silicon transistor. With this transistor IBM has been able
to push silicon to limits on a molecular scale not previously achieved.
At six nanometers in length, this new transistor is at least 10 times
smaller than the state-of-the-art transistors in production today.
A nanometer (nm) is one billionth of a meter. The Consortium of International
Semiconductor Companies in its 2001 International Technology Roadmap
for Semiconductors projected that transistors have to be smaller than
9 nanometers by 2016 in order to continue the performance trend. IBM
is the first company to make working transistors below that gate length.
"The ability to build working transistors at these dimensions
could allow us to put 100 times more transistors into a computer chip
than is currently possible," said Dr. Randy Isaac, vice president
of science and technology, IBM Research. "Moreover, this achievement
underscores the fundamental challenges of scaling, namely power density,
that must be addressed as silicon is pushed to molecular dimensions."
Transistor scaling, or the reduction of the gate length (the size
of the switch that turns transistors on and off), improves the performance
and speed of chips as well as lowers their manufacturing cost and
power consumption per switching event. The IT industry has been scaling
down transistors for the past 30 years to meet demand for smaller
and more intelligent electronic devices.
Scaling to this new molecular level demonstrates that the basic transistor
concept still functions at this size. Continued innovation will be
required to simultaneously achieve high performance and to manage
power density and heat dissipation. The IBM results will lead to further
research into small, high-density silicon devices and allow scientists
to introduce new structures and new materials.
IBM will present details of this research breakthrough in a paper
titled "Extreme Scaling with Ultra-thin Silicon Channel MOSFETs"
at the International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM) being held from
December 9-11 in San Francisco. For more information visit www.research.ibm.com.
Dec 09 - 2003 Brings Largest International
CES In History. The 2003 International CES will feature a record-breaking
amount of exhibit space surpassing 1.2 million net square feet, the
Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) announced today. The 2003 International
CES, produced by CEA, runs January 9-12 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
"We are thrilled that the 2003 CES has surpassed our record-breaking
year in 2002 to claim the largest amount of exhibit space in our 36
year history," said CEA President and CEO Gary Shapiro. "CES
truly is the World Cup of technology. Our show is as strong as ever
with a healthy number of pre-registrants, a strong international presence
and, of course, the latest and greatest in consumer technologies."
CES is North America's largest technology tradeshow by a factor of
two. The 2003 International CES will showcase the latest innovations
from 2,000 international exhibitors in wireless communications, gaming,
digital video, high-end or "extreme" audio, accessories,
CE fashion, consumer technology networking, broadband, mobile electronics,
content media, new business technology, delivery systems and the Internet.
"Beyond our key retail and manufacturer audience, we've also
reached out extensively this year to bring in more industry audience
segments such as federal and state government, entertainment, travel,
hospitality and higher education to name a few," said CEA Vice
President, Events and Conferences Karen Chupka. "CES is the key
venue to network and conduct business with the industry elite who
help fuel our global economy."
"Having a healthy 2003 International CES stresses the importance
of the tradeshow industry on the overall worldwide economy,"
said Steven Hacker, president of the International Association for
Exhibition Management (IAEM). "IAEM continues to look to CES
as a vital platform to network, conduct serious business and showcase
new and innovative consumer electronics technologies that will keep
the industry moving forward. The International CES demonstrates the
enormous power and economic impact that exhibitions deliver to the
nation and the world. We look forward to a great show in 2003."
Online registration is now available at www.CESweb.org,
the interactive source for CES information.
Dec 09 - VIA Introduces EPIA M Digital
Media Platform. VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator and
developer of silicon chip technologies and PC platform solutions,
today announced the worldwide availability of the VIA EPIA M-Series
Mini-ITX mainboard, the smallest, most highly-integrated, and lowest
power platform for the emerging new generation of innovative lifestyle
products featuring full PC functionality and consumer electronics
design values.
"The challenge for the industry is to capitalize on the popularity
of digital media applications and combine x86 computing technology
with consumer electronics functionality and aesthetics to serve the
living room," said Richard Brown, Director of Marketing at VIA
Technologies, Inc.
"The VIA EPIA M is the first x86 platform that meets this challenge,
delivering optimized digital media application performance in a highly
connected, space saving, and quiet form factor that enables the development
of exciting new products that merge traditional computing power with
the style and functionality appropriate to the living space."
VIA EPIA M-Series Mini-ITX Mainboard: Dream Catalyst
Optimized for digital audio and video applications - the new "killer
apps" of the digital home - the VIA EPIA M-Series incorporates
the advanced VIA Apollo CLE266 chipset with an integrated hardware
MPEG2 decoder for silky smooth DVD playback, six-channel audio for
a rich surround sound experience, and USB2.0 and 1394 ports for fast
and easy connectivity to all the latest digital media peripheral devices
such as digital cameras and digital camcorders.
It also comes with a choice of low power x86 processors, the VIA C3
E-Series or fanless VIA Eden ESP, eliminating the need for large,
loud and power-hungry coolers, as well as support for up to 1GB high-bandwidth
DDR266 SDRAM - all on a highly integrated platform that measures only
17cm x 17cm.
About the VIA EPIA M-Series Mini-ITX Mainboard
The VIA EPIA M-Series Mini-ITX Mainboard is a revolutionary 17cm
x 17cm platform optimized for today's killer digital video and audio
applications, and is fully compatible with Microsoft® and Linux-based
operating systems. Available with an embedded VIA Eden™ ESP processor
core for fanless, ultra-quiet systems, or an embedded VIA C3™
E-Series processor for more demanding digital multimedia applications,
the EPIA M-Series is the perfect platform for a whole range of small
form factor, low-power digital media devices and home entertainment
centers.
Featuring the new VIA Apollo CLE266 chipset with embedded MPEG-2
decoder and a new integrated 2D/3D graphics core, the VIA EPIA M-Series
platform provides smooth DVD playback and a rich overall entertainment
experience. With the sizable memory bandwidth of DDR266 SDRAM and
the high data transfer speeds of ATA/133, the VIA EPIA M-Series ensures
the high performance levels required of today's most popular digital
media and productivity applications. The user's digital media experience
is further enhanced by support for 5.1 surround sound, courtesy of
the onboard VIA VT1616 6 Channel AC'97 codec.
Further information on the VIA EPIA M-Series Mini-ITX mainboard may
be found at www.viavpsd.com.
Dec 08 - Sunday Shopping Watch.
Best Sunday Deals - See our Best
Sunday Ad Deals Table below for specific system prices.
Weekly Comparison. It's
another very good weekend to go out and buy a new computer.
Prices were even lower this week than last week. Details follow.
Laptops - Low-end and high-end laptops prices
were lower than last week.
Desktops - Prices on almost all desktop PCs
were lower.
This Sunday's Special Discounts and Financing.
In addition to sales on specific items, the following store-wide sales
are advertised this week. (Note that these
ads are for the Dayton, Ohio area. Prices or offerings may be different
where you live.)
Best Buy is offering 6 months of free MSN with any computer purchase.
They also have 12 month no-interest financing on all laptops. In addition,
they are offering mail-in rebates of $100-$200 on all desktop packages
and laptops.
Circuit City is offering
$100 instant gift cards for all Intel processor desktop packages and
laptop purchases.
Office
Depot
has 6 months no payments, no interest financing for new computer purchases
over $298.
CompUSA is giving 12 month no
interest financing for desktop complete systems and laptops $749 and
higher. They are also offering $100-$150 mail in rebates on AMD XP
processor laptops, Intel Pentium 4 processor laptops, and Intel processor
desktops with monitors.
Staples is offering $100 mail-in rebates
an all desktops and laptops..
Compare
to Online Prices - Compare the Sunday ad prices to
those being offered at DealTime, it searches over 160 online computer
stores.
InfoHQ Related Shopping Pages
Shopping Alerts
- Our latest shopping advisories on buying digital cameras and camcorders,
desktop computers, and laptops.
Windows XP
Upgrade Guide - All about upgrading to Windows XP.
What You Need to Know
About Internet Rebates - An in-depth discussion of Internet Rebates.
Definitions. A complete desktop system/package/complete
package is defined as a computer with monitor and printer
or scanner.
A build-to-order system is customized at the retailer
and then ordered from a computer manufacturer. In addition to the
computer's stated price, you still pay sales tax and shipping charges
(if you order direct from the vendor without going through the chain
store, you may not have to pay sales tax and you could get a better
warranty).
Caution about advertised prices.
When reading advertisements, read the fine print of the ad to make
sure you know what is being advertised and what it cost. For example,
many advertisers will show a complete system with computer, monitor,
and printer but advertise a price for the computer only.
* Prices discussed in this article. We report
prices after rebates and discounts are subtracted.
Items highlighted in Black are good deals.
Items highlighted in Red means prices have
gone up and the system is not a good buy this week.
Items in normal text means prices are about the same as the previous
weeks.
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Best Sunday Ad Deals
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Category
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Product Description
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Price* (see above)
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Prices up or Down this Week
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