Tech News update 23/01/09

FIXES COMING FOR FAULTY SEAGATE HARD DRIVES
Seagate will issue fixes soon for faulty firmware that's causing several models of the company's hard drives to freeze. The models due for a fix are the Barracuda 7200.11, DiamondMax 22 and the SV35, said company spokesman Ian D. O'Leary. Last week, Seagate posted new firmware for the Barracuda ES.2, another model also affected by the problems. However, that firmware will not repair drives that have become inoperable.


PANDA SECURITY: DOWNADUP WORM NOW INFECTS 1 IN EVERY 16 PCS
The computer worm responsible for the biggest attack in years has infected at least 1 out of every 16 PCs worldwide, a security company said, and may have managed to compromise as many as nearly 1 in 3. According to Panda Security, almost 6% of the Windows systems scanned with its antivirus technology were found to be infected with "Downadup," a worm that began aggressive attacks just over a week ago.


WINDOWS VISTA SP2 RELEASE DATE SLIPS
Microsoft has delayed Windows Vista Service Pack 2 (SP2) by at least a month, and will now ship it to manufacturing sometime in May or June, according to a website that has accurately predicted Windows release dates in the past. TechARP.com, a Malaysian website that correctly predicted the release dates for Windows Vista SP1 and XP SP3 in 2008, said that Microsoft will deliver a release candidate - the final test version - of Vista SP2 in March.


INTEL ATOM 2 'PINEVIEW' DETAILS EMERGE
Details are emerging of Intel's upcoming Pineview CPU, the next iteration of the popular Intel Atom chip found in almost all low-cost netbooks and nettop PCs. The Intel Atom 2 chip is expected to launch in the second half of this year. There will be both a single core Intel Atom 2 and a more powerful dual-core chip aimed at low-power desktop PCs, or 'nettops'. Pineview chips will be manufactured using a 45nm (nanometer) process.


APPLE LOOSENS ANTI-PIRACY PROTECTION IN IWORK '09
Buyers of the latest version of Apple's rising iWork productivity suite -- iWork '09 -- no longer need to type in a serial number when installing from a CD, according to a note on Apple's Web site posted Monday.That allows owners of the boxed, retail version of iWork '09 to install the software on as many Macs as they want. They can apparently even share the software, which costs $79( Rs. 3900) for a single user version ($49 (Rs. 2,400) if bought at same time with Mac OS

SUPERSPEED USB 3.0: MORE DETAILS EMERGE

The focus of the new spec is three-fold: Retain backward compatibility, increase speed, and provide better power handling. USB has been the most successful interface in history of personal computing. Over 6 billion products are in the market, and over 2 billion ship a year now. SuperSpeed USB 3.0's 5Gbps data rate (compared with Hi-Speed USB 2.0's 480Mbps) should help--and with very clear real-world advantages.

OLYMPUS: ONCE AGAIN THE MEGAZOOM MASTER

No sooner did Kodak announce the record-setting 24x optical zoom Kodak Z980 at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas than Olympus swooped in and took the crown back with a 26x optical zoom camera. The Olympus SP-590 UZ, a follow-up to the 20x optical zoom SP-570 UZ megazoom camera boasts a 26x optical zoom that ranges from 26mm on the wide-angle end to 676mm on the telephoto end.

AMD LAUNCHES PHENOM II CPU, ITS FASTEST YET

Two days shy of a year since Intel launched Penryn, its first 45nm chip, AMD is finally ready to counter with a few 45nm CPUs of its own--Phenom II has finally arrived. AMD is positioning Phenom II in between Intel's Core 2 Quad and Core i7 offerings. Phenom II chips are available in two versions, the X4 920 and the X4 940 Black Edition, which compete tit-for-tat against Intel's highest Core 2 Quad CPU frequencies at 2.8 and 3.0 GHz, respectively.

DUAL-CORE VIA NANO COMING THIS YEAR

Via Technologies says plans for a dual-core Nano processor remain on track, but said recent news reports about its product plans confused this chip with another upcoming version of the processor, the Nano 3000. Via said the Nano 3000 isn't dual-core. It's a different version of the Nano that's based on a more advanced manufacturing process. In May, Via disclosed plans to release a dual-core Nano processor produced using a 45-nanometre process. .

KODAK TAKES THE MEGAZOOM RACE TO 24x

At the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Eastman Kodak announced a new 24x optical zoom digital camera, a zoom range that eclipses the 20x optical zoom mark held by the Olympus SP-570 UZ, Canon PowerShot SX10 IS, and Casio EX-FH20. The 12-megapixel Kodak Z980 will offer a 26mm wide-angle to 624mm telephoto zoom range, as well as optical image stabilization. The Z980 will also have a high-definition movie mode and a hot shoe.

HTC UNVEILS THE ITS ENTERTAINMENT HANDSET - TOUCH HD

HTC today unveiled the HTC Touch HD an entertainment focused mobile handset that features a large 3.8-inch touch screen that has a resolution of 480 x 800 pixels. It has a 5 MP camera with auto focus capability for still and video recording. A standard 3.5mm jack for audio-out allows users to connect it to any headset of their choice or other audio equipment

RELIANCE LAUNCHED GSM SERVICES

Chandigarh and Mumbai saw the launch of GSM services by the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group. While its CDMA network spans more than 20,000 towns and 450,0000 villages, its GSM services was launched to provide high quality, congestion-free and zero call drop services. The GSM network from Reliance was launched across 11,000 towns in the country. Chairman Anil Ambani was quoted as saying the company is six months ahead of its schedule

BHARTI AIRTEL AND RIM LAUNCH THE NEW BLACKBERRY PEARL FLIP SMARTPHONE

Airtel and Research In Motion (RIM) today announced the launch of the BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 smartphone in India. As the name indicats, the new BlackBerry Pearl Flip is a flip type smartphone, a first from RIM. It has a spacious keyboard that allows easier typing and dialing, and the flip design opens to a large internal display. The phone has an external display for previewing calendar reminders, email, text messages and phone calls at a glance.

TRANSCEND LAUNCHES TRIPLE CHANNEL DDR3-1333 MEMORY KITS IN INDIA

Transcend Information Inc. has announced the availability of its DDR3-1333 triple channel memory kits in India for use with Intel Core i7 processors and Intel X58 Express Chipset motherboards. The triple channel memory kits are to be used with the Core i7, Intel's latest high-performance processor, that features an integrated memory controller and introduces three channels of DDR3 memory that provide lower latency and higher memory bandwidth

NOKIA 5800 XPRESSMUSIC (AKA TUBE) GOES ON SALE

The long-waited Nokia 5800 XpressMusic finally hit the store starting 3rd January 2009. With the price tag of Rs. 21,800/- (inclusive of taxes), Nokia fans can get it from most Nokia Priority Dealers. And it will also be available at other mobile phones stores starting 15th January. Pre-booking for this XpressMusic phone started last week of December 2008, and customers could get a hands-on experience with the phone on Nokia Priority Dealers.

BENQ ANNOUNCES ITS NETBOOK, THE JOYBOOK LITE IN INDIA

BenQ announced the launch of BenQ Netbook, Joybook Lite in India. BenQ Joybook Lite U101 features a 10.1-inch 16:9 wide LED backlight screen and weighing only 1.1 kg and comes with 160GB storage capacity. It has a relatively large keyboard that is 90% size of generic notebooks facilitating easier typing. Its battery life is upto 7.2 hours. Stylish and appealing, BenQ Joybook Lite U101 has been designed with faceplates patterned with emoticons on a scratch-free, In-Mold Roller (IMR) cover.

Kolkata auto drivers protest ban

Kolkata autorickshaw drivers protesting the ban on two stroke vehicles set a state transport bus on fire at Hazra crossing in the Bhowanipore area on Friday. They also refused to show their vehicles registration documents.

MLA admits role in PWD killing

BSP MLA Shekhar Tiwari, now in police custody, has confessed to his involvemnet in the killing of PWD executive engineer M.K. Gupta in Auraiya district, additional director-general (law and order) Brijlal told reporters on Friday.

4 terrorists killed in Poonch Encounter

Four terrorists died during a gun battle with soldiers in Jammu & Kashmir's Poonch district on Friday, Jauary 2, 2009. The army shot them dead in Pati Tar's mountainous forest area in MEndhar. Identification will be carried out and the operation is on, an army spokesperson said.