For modern computing technology, you can’t really find many companies that are more committed to bringing the cutting edge to the consumer than Nvidia — and perhaps for that reason, the graphics company isn’t entirely thrilled with the Intel Atom, at least not in its current implementations.

In fact, Nvidia is still trying to wrap its head around the whole netbook idea. “We’re all trying to figure out what a netbook is. From my perspective, anything that has an X86 processor and has Windows running on it is really a PC,” said Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang in an interview with Laptop. “If I were to ask a million people, What do you call something with a Microsoft operating system called Windows and X86 processor from Intel, I would think that 99.9999 percent of them, except for the Intel marketing person, would call it a PC.” (continuare…)

Rather than choosing between dual-core or quad-core processors for an expected revision to the iMac, Apple may have decided to use both.

Shaw Wu of Kaufman Brothers, who just last week opined that an iMac refresh was around the corner, thinks Apple has resolved its dilemma over using quad-core or dual-core processors for the new systems by creating two tiers in the iMac line: a high-end version with a quad-core chip, and a low-end version with a dual-core chip. Apple currently offers two different screen sizes (20-inch and 24-inch) for the all-in-one iMac, and offers two different configurations for each size. (continuare…)

Wistron chairman Simon Lin has said that the company will not compete for netbook orders in 2009 since netbook products do not provide much toward overall profitability, however, he is optimistic about 11.6-inch panel-based ultra-thin notebooks and believes they could replace netbooks in the market.

Wistron has also received four large orders for its all-in-one PC lines and will start shipments later this quarter.

As for the company’s acquisition of Lite-On Technology’s display business, Lin admitted that LCD monitor inventory was rather high during the initial stages after the acquisition, but returned to a healthy level in December.

Lin pointed out that the utilization rate of Lite-On’s display business after the acquisition was only half of total capacity and Wistron is slowly increasing it.

Lin believes overall PC market demand should rebound in the second quarter this year.

BYD Electronics, the Hong Kong-listed OEM handset subsidiary of China-based BYD Company, plans to venture into the production of OEM netbooks.

While optimizing its own capability in the manufacture of molds and batteries, BYD may use an R&D team from China-based PC maker TCL to develop its netbook-manufacturing capability.

The reports indicated that BYD is eventually following the development steps of its handset clients in China, many of whom have begun to develop white-box netbooks for the China market.

It may cost Taiwan notebook makers as much as 1.6 million yuan (US$231,884) to develop a mold for the production of one netbook model. However, the OEM white-box netbook makers in China are able to reduce the mold cost to as low as 300,000 yuan, according to the reports.

Some China-based notebook vendors, including Tsinghua TongFang and Haier, are now outsourcing the production of their netbooks to OEM makers – a trend which is likely to propel more China-based companies like BYD to move into the OEM netbook production.

Nortel Networks’ recent decision to end its mobile WiMAX business as well as to repudiate its joint WiMAX cooperation agreement with Alvarion and transfer its mobile WiMAX customers to the Tel-Aviv-based company will eventually benefit some Taiwan network equipment makers.

Alvarion is currently outsourcing the production of mobile WiMAX products to Taiwan-based Accton Wireless Broadband (AWB), its joint venture with Taiwan-based Accton Technology, and related equipment of WiMAX base stations to Tecom.

AWB and Tecom are set to secure more orders for WiMAX products from Alvarion if Nortel transfers its mobile WiMAX customers to Alvarion as promised, the sources argued.

AWB recently has seen a substantial increase of WiMAX CPE orders, with its shipments of WiMAX CPE products likely to reach 120,000 units in the first quarter of 2009, pointed out the sources.

AWB’s WiMAX CPE shipments are to generate revenues of US$4-4.5 million in the first quarter, surpassing the WiMAX revenues for all of 2008.

India urmeaza sa produca un laptop al carui pret de vanzare va fi de 10 dolari, destinat zecilor de milioane de scolari din mediul rural, scrie marti agentia oficiala de presa Press Trust of India (PTI), informeaza AFP.

Calculatoarele, cele mai ieftine din lume, vor fi produse in cadrul unui program educational guvernamental in valoare de 46 miliarde rupii (939 milioane dolari), potrivit aceleasi agentii.

Vineri, secretarul educatiei R.P. Agrawal a asigurat ca acest laptop “revolutionar” va putea fi disponibil in aproximativ sase luni.

“Dupa finalizarea prodcesului de productie, calculatorul se va vinde cu 10 dolari americani. Parinti vor putea cumpara usor acest produs pentru copii”, a declarat acesta. Calculatorul ar urma sa aiba conexiune wireless pentru internet.

In urma cu cateva luni, guvernul indian a refuzat un proiect pentru producerea unui calculator de 100 dolari, propus de informaticianul american Nicholas Negroponte de la Institutul de Tehnologie din Massachutts (MIT), invocand costuri de productie reale mult mai mari.

Sursa: Mondonews

Bucuresti, 3 februarie 2009. SCOP Computers, unul dintre cei mai importanti distribuitori de produse si servicii IT&C din Romania si VMware – lider global in furnizarea solutiilor de virtualizare, anunta semnarea unui parteneriat intre cele doua companii.

SCOP Computers include in portofoliul sau de produse si servicii, solutiile Vmware – solutii performante de virtualizare pentru servere bazate pe standarde industriale. Recunoscute pentru eficienta lor, solutiile VMware ofera companiilor posibilitatea de reducere a costurilor departamentelor IT, ridicand gradul de utilizare a serverelor fizice prin intermediul virtualizarii. (continuare…)

Several Taiwan-based motherboard makers have decided to not attend CeBIT 2009, since recent shows have not provided as much of a marketing benefit as in earlier years, according to sources at the makers.

Motherboard makers including Gigabyte Technology, Elitegroup Computer Systems (ECS) and Albatron Technology will not have an official booth at CeBIT, but will still rent private rooms for visitors.

In addition to motherboard makers, several Taiwan-based companies have decided they will not attend largely because of booth-raids conducted by the German police during CeBIT 2008 due to patent issues.

It is said that AMD is also not planning to set up an official booth, but will still rent a convention room for visitors. Currently, AMD is not listed on CeBIT’s exhibitor’s list.

The Taiwan-based players said they are planning to focus their efforts this year on Computex.