Three of the biggest laptop computer makers are recalling certain batteries because of a risk they may overheat and catch fire. Sony made the batteries and the recall mirrors -- yet appears a lot smaller than -- a similar one that occurred two years ago.
This time, around 100,000 batteries are affected, a fraction of the 9.6 million [m] recalled in 2006. Dell, Hewlett-Packard (HP) and Toshiba have already issued recalls for the batteries that were used in their products and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said "consumers should stop using recalled products immediately."
The batteries in question were manufactured between October 2004 and June 2005 and to date there have been about 40 incidents reportedly globally of overheating, Sony said Friday.
Most of the incidents are believed to be due to manufacturing line adjustments made during the period that may have affected some batteries, Sony said. Additionally some may have been due to raw material flaws.
Of the 100,000 batteries affected, around 35,000 were used in laptops shipped in the U.S. By far the greatest number, about 32,000, were shipped with HP laptops.
The maker said it is recalling batteries that have a barcode label beginning with A0, L0, L1 or GC that were shipped with HP Pavilion dv1000, dv8000 and zd8000 models; with Compaq Presario v2000 and v2400 machines and with HP Compaq nc6110, nc6120, nc6140, nc6220, nc6230,nx4800, nx4820, nx6110, nx6120 and nx9600 computers.
Toshiba's U.S. recall covers around 3,000 Satellite A70/A75, P30/P5, M30X/M35X and M50/M55 laptops and Tecra A3, A5 and S2 computers.
Dell is recalling battery model OU091 in Latitude 110L and Inspiron 1100, 1150, 5100, 5150 and 5160 computers.
Consumers who believe they have batteries that have been recalled should stop using the batteries and check with their PC vendor.
An additional 2,000 batteries were shipped in the Japanese market and the remaining 63,000 went to consumers in other regions, including Europe and Asia. Recall notices for machines shipped in these other regions are expected to be issued shortly.
Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/153110/.html?tk=rss_news
A revised version of Sony's "LittleBigPlanet" game for the PlayStation 3 has begun shipping days after Sony postponed release of the game because it included a song that drew lyrics from the Quran. "Looks like our production line churned out new copies quicker than our original schedule, and a few of our retailers did what they could to take care of the fans who preordered ASAP," said a message on Sony's PlayStation blog. The game, one of Sony's highest profile titles for the PlayStation 3 this year, was due to launch on Oct. 21 but just a few days prior it was discovered that the lyrics used in one of the songs in its soundtrack were derived from the Quran. The potentially offensive lyric was contained in a licensed song played during the Swinging Safari level in the game. Rather than upgrade the game with a launch-day patch, which would only have reached gamers with an Internet connection, Sony decided to postpone the launch and produce new discs with the song remove. Launch was rescheduled for this week in the U.S. and the following week in Europe. Sony's decision brought a fast response, both positive and negative, from many gamers who filled online forums with discussion of the move. Many were disappointed with the delay because it meant another week waiting for what is one of the most innovative games yet produced for the PlayStation 3, according to critics. The game has won an "editors choice" award from GamePro, been rated "incredible" by IGN, scored 10 out of 10 with Games Radar and been called the "best thing out there" by 1Up. In the long run the incident will likely mean little to the sales of "LittleBigPlanet." In the game players are challenged to create objects and patch them together using a variety of tools and parts at their disposal. Puzzles and challenges are built into the game to test a gamer's creative abilities and objects created can also be shared with others through the PlayStation Network. Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/152847/.html?tk=rss_news
It sounds almost inconceivable: Sony's highly visible, broadly-appealing, and probably most important video game release of 2008 has been globally recalled with less than four days to retail. LittleBigPlanet, UK-based indie developer Media Molecule's surprise water-cooler wonder about a black-button-eyed knitted and zippered creature named Sackboy who bounds and jounces through physically realistic environments was recalled by Sony after the publisher discovered one of the game's background music tracks employs two Arabic-language expressions found in the Qu'ran (Koran). Last week Friday, October 17, Sony director of corporate communications and social media Patrick Seybold issued the following statement by way of Sony's Official PlayStation blog: During the review process prior to the release of LittleBigPlanet , it has been brought to our attention that one of the background music tracks licensed from a record label for use in the game contains two expressions that can be found in the Qur’an. We have taken immediate action to rectify this and we sincerely apologize for any offense that this may have caused. We will begin shipping LittleBigPlanet to retail in North America the week of October 27th. Sorry for the delay, and rest assured, we are doing everything we can to get LittleBigPlanet to you as soon as possible. Update: Sony Computer Entertainment Europe adds that LittleBigPlanet "will start to appear in stores no later than the week commencing Monday 3rd November in the UK, Europe, Middle East, Australia and New Zealand, on a country by country basis." Note that the US ship date remains the week of October 27th as noted above. The music in question plays in the now recalled versions of LittleBigPlanet during the first level of the third world, "Singing Safari." The game contains a fairly broad and eclectic range of songs, and it appears no one at either developer Media Molecule or Sony was aware of the specific Koranic references until the proverbial eleventh hour. Some are speculating that the catalyst may have been a concerned letter, but nothing's confirmed at this point. Before we consider whether Sony's stadium-clearing punt amounts to either brilliant public relations or massive overreaction, let's have a look at the passages in question. The song is titled "Tapha Niang," composed by world musician and Malian kora player Toumani Diabate. Have a listen to it here on Diabate's MySpace page, if you like. Sounds innocuous enough, doesn't it? It's certainly hard to argue with the subdued and peaceful sounding strains of Diabate's plucking and the general mood and timbre of the music itself. But if you listen carefully and happen to understand Arabic, you'll apparently hear two lines which also appear in the Koran (aka the sacred scripture of Islam and, at least for Muslims, the literal word of God). So? So. While the Koran doesn't explicitly forbid the marriage of transliterated Koranic text and music, some interpreters of the text apparently find such mingling "deeply offensive." Why is a bit of a mystery that's beyond the scope of a games blog, but suffice to say there's considerable debate over what the Koran does and doesn't say about music, as well as whether subsequent Islamic interpretations and teachings which do raise these sorts of interdictions are in fact canonical. The two lines that appear in Diabate's song are from 3:185 ("Every soul shall taste of death") and probably 55:26 ("All that is on earth will perish"). See below for the translations provided by M.H. Shakir courtesy the University of Michigan's digital library collections and publications. [3:185] Every soul shall taste of death, and you shall only be paid fully your reward on the resurrection day; then whoever is removed far away from the fire and is made to enter the garden he indeed has attained the object; and the life of this world is nothing but a provision of vanities. [55:26] Everyone on it must pass away. In a Friday post to its website, developer Media Molecule wrote: As some of you may have noticed, LBP has been slightly delayed in some territories. At MM we were as shocked and dismayed by this as anyone - shellshocked and gutted. We can’t wait for you all to get playing and creating! According to Edge this morning, Media Molecule immediately prepared a 0-day patch, ready to update the game and remove the potentially offensive tracks, but Sony decided that wasn't good enough, citing PS3 owners who might not have online access, and opted to recall the disks anyway. Nevertheless, some copies slipped through, and of course those of us in the press have had copies for a while now. In the meantime, copies of the recalled version of the game are being offered for as much as $249 on Ebay. My two cents: Speaking as someone who's not at all religious, I think Sony should have left the recalled version alone. Speaking as someone who's not religious but also highly respectful of others' beliefs, I still think this mostly just empowers and emboldens doctrinal censors who ultimately exist in the cultural margins. More important, what no one's really saying is that the other edge of Sony's attempt to pacify certain Muslim sects involves censoring the music in the game. Speaking with my journalist's cap on: Censorship bad. Especially once the horse is out of the gate, which for all practical purposes it was here. In the end, you'll have to play jury and judge for yourself, but it's worth noting that Diabate considers himself "a devout Muslim, with his own prayer room next to his office." Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/152477/littlebigplanet_recall.html?tk=rss_news
For the PlayStation Portable, firmware update 5.0 has been released, bringing with it the opportunity to browse and download content directly to your PSP from the PlayStation Store. Previously, content needed to be downloaded to a PC or PS3 first before being transferred to PSP using a USB cord. New to PS3 version 2.5, also available Wednesday, are more than a half dozen updates, including screenshots, which like a "print screen" function to save in-game images directly to your hard drive using a keyboard, and auto-off for idle controllers to save battery life (nice!). Also new to PS3 firmware 2.5 is a standby option to auto turn off your PS3 after 1-5 hours of use (much like Xbox 360), Flash 9 support for the PS3 web browser, improved trophy management, the ability to see when a friend last signed on, and a faster PlayStation store. Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/152456/sony_psp_ps3_games.html?tk=rss_news
Sony plans to acquire the portion of its optical disc joint venture with NEC that it doesn't already own and make the company a subsidiary, it said Thursday. Sony already holds 55 percent of Sony NEC Optiarc and will acquire the remaining 45 percent for an undisclosed sum, both companies said in a statement. Sony NEC Optiarc was formed in 2006 and combined the optical disc drive businesses of the two companies. Sony had a greater strength in the optical pick-up devices used inside drives while NEC's strength was in the chips that control drives. The merger came at an interesting time as NEC was backing and developing the HD DVD format, which went up and lost against the Sony-backed Blu-ray Disc format in the battle to replace DVD for high-definition video. The acquisition is scheduled to be completed in December this year at which time the company's approximately 320 employees will become Sony staff. Following Sony's acquisition of the company NEC will continue to work with what will become Sony's optical drive business by developing some of the chips for the drives। Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/150941/.html?tk=rss_news
Sony has developed next-generation prototype speakers that hang from a ceiling or come with an entire home audio system built-into the base, utilizing the same technology in its distinctive Sountina . The two working prototypes were unveiled Wednesday at a Sony event in Tokyo held for electronics retailers and its dealers. Like the Sountina, they emit sound from long, glass tubes, said Nobukazu Suzuki, an acoustic system engineer in Sony's audio business group and developer of the speakers. Also like the recently-launched Sountina, the glass tube in the prototypes is energized by small drive devices that couple with the tube and vibrate vertically. Waves travel up through the tube and are dispersed in a 360 degree spread horizontally from the tube. What all this means is that sound spreads out from the tube in a uniform manner and can be heard equally well from any position around it. The hanging speaker, dubbed "Hibiki," looks like a stylish light and is envisaged as something that could be positioned over a table or in a room where it could hang without looking like a speaker, said Suzuki. The second prototype, named "Kanade," is an upright speaker not dissimilar to the Sountina only smaller and not as imposing. Just under the speaker a digital audio player is integrated into the device so the unit can function as an all-in-one audio system with nothing but a power cable required. Technology development of both devices is complete, so the biggest hurdle standing between them and the store shelf is a marketing decision. That's something that Sony hasn't yet taken so there's no word on when or if they might ever become products. Sony's NSA-PF1 Sountina, which was unveiled in May, went on sale in Japan in June at the premium price of ¥1 million (US$9,295)। It's also becoming available in major markets around the world. Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/150934/.html?tk=rss_news
Sony Ericsson's Xperia X1 handset, based on Windows Mobile but with a distinctive touchscreen design, will launch for the U.K., Germany and Sweden on Sept. 30. The phone, announced earlier this year and intended as the first in a line of devices, can have a variety of home screens, called "panels." Each panel can include icons for a variety of applications, links and content. Users can choose among nine different panels displayed as icons on the phone's main page. Like other handset makers, the joint venture of Sony and LM Ericsson is grappling with the runaway success of Apple's iPhone, which can display applications and functions of the user's choice on its home screen. The iPhone already has a large following of third-party developers and a central location for buying applications, in Apple's App Store. Earlier this month, Sony Ericsson introduced an SDK (software development kit) to allow third-party developers to create a wide variety of panels for the phone. The SDK is based on Microsoft Visual Studio, but Sony Ericsson said it has also done its own work to make the SDK easy to work with. Developers will be able to distribute their panels through Handango. In addition to a touchscreen, the device also has a slide-out Qwerty keypad and a four-way button and optical joystick for navigation. It is equipped with HSDPA (High-Speed Downlink Packet Access) for data speeds as high as 3.6M bps (bits per second). Following the three initial countries, Sony Ericsson will roll out the Xperia in other markets across Europe, Asia and Latin America throughout the third quarter. Among others, those will include Indonesia, Singapore, Australia, India, Malaysia and Taiwan in Asia; Spain, France, Italy and Poland in Europe; Saudi Arabia and Kuwait in the Middle East; Argentina and Chile in South America; and South Africa. Sony Ericsson wasn't ready to announce availability for North America but said it will reveal that on Nov। 3. Dates for China and Russia also will come later, the company said. Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/150919/.html?tk=rss_news
Two years after entering the digital single lens reflex (DSLR) camera market, Sony has capped off its Alpha range of cameras with a high-end model that features a full-frame sensor and 24.6-megapixel resolution. Sony is aiming the camera at serious photographers and it carries a price to match: around US$3,000 for the body alone. Behind the lens of the Alpha 900 sits the full-frame image sensor that Sony first unveiled earlier this year. A full-frame sensor is the same size as a 35mm film frame and is about double the size of the sensors used in most other digital cameras with interchangeable lenses. The sensor was developed by Sony and is a proprietary unit that integrates 6,000 analog-to-digital convertors. Sony said the inclusion of the convertors in the sensor means analog signals are converted to digital at an earlier stage so noise is reduced. It's also faster than feeding the entire frame into a single convertor, the company said. The sensor works hand-in-hand with two of the company's Bionz image processing chips to capture and deliver images. The processing speed of the system means continuous shooting at full resolution is possible at up to 5 frames per second. To match the new sensor full-frame lenses are required for full resolution. Optics specifically designed for use with earlier Alpha digital cameras with the smaller sensors can be used on the Alpha 900 but the resolution of the images will be lower. Other features include an in-camera anti-shake system and the ability to evaluate different camera settings without taking multiple shots. By pressing the depth-of-field button the camera grabs a preview image. Using the 3-inch LCD (liquid crystal display) it's possible to try different white balance settings and adjust the dynamic range and exposure compensation before taking an actual shot. The camera has a built-in HDMI (high-definition multimedia interface) connector so it can be connected to a TV for photo viewing and records to MemoryStick or Compact Flash cards. It measures 156 millimeters by 117mm by 82mm and weighs 850 grams. The Alpha 900 will be available later this year। In Europe it will launch in October and in the U.S. in November. Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/150884/.html?tk=rss_news
Sony on Tuesday introduced its first full-frame digital Single Lens Reflex (DSLR) camera. The DSLR-A900 is coming in November for US$3,000. The A900 is Sony's first full-frame DSLR, with a 24.6-megapixel sensor.The DSLR-A900 features a 246-megapixel, 35mm full-frame CMOS sensor. It uses a new processing engine and is the first Sony alpha model to sport body-integrated image stabilization. The viewfinder offers 100 percent field of view coverage and 0.74x magnification. The focusing screen is user-replaceable, so you can switch it with an L-type (grid pattern) and M-type (super spherical acute matte) if you prefer. The camera can shoot continuously at 24।6 megapixels at five frames per second. You can fine-tune white balance, adjust exposure compensation and check histogram data using a raw preview image that's discarded when the actual image is written to the camera's memory card. Other features include a dynamic range optimizer, EV bracketing with a +/-2EV range, thirteen "creative styles," a 3-inch LCD display, HDMI output and Photo TV HD mode. Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/150847/.html?tk=rss_news
Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. (SCEA) announced last week that Resistance 2 will be released in North America on November 4. Additionally, the game will be offered in a special collector's edition for US$79.99. What's in this premium priced edition? Headlining the set is a Chimera hybrid figure, created by DC Unlimited. There's also a double-sided hard-cover Resistance 2 art book that covers the war-torn U.S. from "two unique perspectives." And, taking a page from the upcoming Gears of War 2 collector's edition, Resistance 2's bundle will have an in-game upgrade that's only available to those who purchase the special edition (HVAP Wraith multiplayer weapon skin). The collector's edition also includes a bonus DVD that includes a preview of the Resistance novel by William Dietz; behind the scenes video of Resistance 2; and a chronology of the Resistance story line. Oh, and there's a comic book, too: A digital copy of Issue #0 of the Resistance comic book series published by Wildstorm। Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/150701/sony_resistance_2.html?tk=rss_news
Sony is recalling 73,000 Vaio TZ laptops because of a possible manufacturing defect that may cause them to overheat, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said Thursday. The recall relates to a problem with wiring near the computer's hinge, which could short-circuit and overheat in certain circumstances, perhaps burning the user. One person has suffered a minor burn as a result of the latest defect, and Sony has received 15 other reports of overheating computers, according to the Commission. The affected models are the VGN-TZ100, VGN-TZ200, VGN-TZ300 and VGN-TZ2000 -- although not all laptops in these series are affected. Sony suggests users contact the company to see whether their computer is part of the recall, and if so to stop using it immediately. The overheating could be caused by misplaced wiring near the hinge, or if a screw in the hinge falls out and short-circuits the wires. In 2006, Sony was forced to recall millions of laptop batteries used in its own and other manufacturers' laptops because they presented a fire hazard, causing some computers to burst into flames. Further battery problems prompted Sony, Dell and Hewlett-Packard to issue another recall in August last year, with Acer following suit in April this year with a recall of 27,000 laptops batteries containing Sony-made cells. The Commission has published one other laptop safety recall this year: In May, Dell recalled almost one million notebook electrical adapters because of a risk of fire and electric shock। Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/150647/.html?tk=rss_news
Sony has unveiled a couple of DV-tape based, high-definition camcorders that will be going on sale in the next couple of months. The HDR-FX1000 is aimed at the high-end consumer market, with the HVR-Z5J at the professional market. The former will hit Japan in November, the latter in December, and should be heading to other regions but precise international launch timing wasn't announced. Both cameras share the same look and feel as many other Sony camcorders in the same portion of the market including the distinctive LCD (liquid crystal display) panel placement next to the microphone above the main camera body. They have Sony G-series lenses with 20X optical zoom in front of 3-CMOS optical pick-up sensors and Sony's Exmor image processing chip. The HVR-Z5J comes with some additional features for professional users. There are, for example, XLR audio inputs and the camera can handle the DVCAM format in addition to DV/HDV. It is also compatible with both the PAL and NTSC color systems. A solid-state memory recorder can be added to the HVR-Z5J and the camera configured to either record to the memory only or to both tape and memory. It's also possible to record, for example, to tape in HDV and to the memory unit in DVCAM. Recording video directly to a solid-state device means it can be imported and edited much faster than from tape and so is an advantage in situations where time is important, such as news coverage. The memory recorder can also connect to other HDV camcorders using a standard IEEE1394 cable. The HDR-FX1000 will go on sale in Japan on Nov। 10 and will cost around ¥400,000 (US$3,700). The HVR-Z5J will be available from early December for ¥554,400 and the HVR-MRC1K memory recording unit will hit the shelves later this month and cost ¥98,490. Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/150645/.html?tk=rss_news
Sony and Panasonic will both unveil new digital SLR (single lens reflex) cameras next week, the companies said Wednesday. Sony's camera, a new member of its "alpha" family of cameras, will be shown at a company event that is scheduled to take place in Tokyo on Wednesday. Sony didn't offer any other information about the camera but it's likely to be the long-anticipated high-end camera in the alpha line-up. Earlier this year Sony said the camera will have a full-frame sensor -- an image sensor the same size as a 35mm film frame -- with a resolution of 24.6 megapixels and image stabilization to reduce the effects of camera shake. Two days later Panasonic will show the successor to the DMC-L10 at a Tokyo news conference. Panasonic said the new camera "offers unique features to set a new trend in digital SLR photography" but didn't reveal any information about the camera. The camera follows on from the DMC-L10 and will be presented at a Tokyo news conference on September 12. Panasonic said the new camera "offers unique features to set a new trend in digital SLR photography" but didn't reveal any information about the camera. The DMC-L10 was launched in September last year at the Photokina camera show in Germany and was the second digital SLR to be presented by Panasonic. The new camera will become the third Lumix digital SLR and is likely to be a main feature of Panasonic's Photokina line-up. Likewise, the new Sony Alpha will be a key item at its Photokina booth. Photokina begins in Cologne on September 23. The digital SLR is becoming increasingly competitive with long-time leaders Nikon and Canon facing stiff competition from newcomers including Panasonic, Sony, FujiFilm and Olympus। The most recent new digital SLR, Nikon's D90, was announced in August and brought a feature not present on other models: the ability to record high-definition video. Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/150592/.html?tk=rss_news
Sony launched three new models of Walkman players on Thursday at the IFA electronics show in Berlin, including the new S-series that are the slimmest yet. The devices are 7.5 millimeters thin and will be available in two main types: the S630 and S730 series. The main difference between the two is noise canceling on the S730 models. Both can play MP3 audio files and also support video playback via a 2-inch display with QVGA (320 pixels by 240 pixels) resolution. Features include the ability to select one of ten pre-installed themes or a favorite picture as wallpaper and drag-and-drop transfer of songs from iTunes via supplied software. They also support several audio and video formats including MP3, WMA, non-secure AAC, PCM, JPEG for photos, Windows Media Video with digital rights management, H.264/AVC and MPEG4. The S730-series models will be available from September in North America and both the S630 and S730 series from October in Europe. The NWZ-S736F has 4G bytes of storage and will cost US$150, while the NWZ-S738F has 8G bytes and will cost US$180. Sony didn't announce European pricing. The S-series models will come pre-loaded with 8 video tracks from Sony BMG artists, including Chris Brown, Sandi Thom and The Ting Tings. Sony also announced several other new Walkman players. The E-series has a similar look to the S-series but doesn't include features like noise reduction. The are four color variations: blue, pink, red and black. Also available in the same four colors is the entry-level B-series that just plays back audio and connects straight in to a USB (Universal Serial Bus) socket for music transfer. On some models, there's an FM radio and voice recorder function. Battery life when playing audio for the S series is up to 40 hours (30 hours with noise cancellation enabled), for the E series up to 45 hours and for the B series up to 16 hours. For video, it's about 10 hours for the S series and 8 hours for the E series. The E- and B-series players will be launched at the same time as the S-series। In the U.S., the NWZ-E438F with 8G bytes of storage will cost $140 and the NWZ-B135F with 2G bytes of storage will cost about $60. Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/150433/.html?tk=rss_news
Pushing new boundaries in LCD (liquid crystal display) TV size, Sony will launch later this year a set that's considerably thinner than others on the market, it said at the IFA electronics show in Berlin on Thursday. The ZX-1 is a 40-inch TV that measures just 9.9 millimeters at its thinnest point along the edges. In comparison Sharp's new XS-series sets, which were also unveiled on Thursday at IFA, are 23 millimeters thick while new plasma TVs from Panasonic due next year will be about 25 millimeters thick. Sony has so far only announced a precise launch date for Japan, where it will go on sale on Nov. 10 and cost ¥490,000 (US$4,540), but it should be available in Europe at around the same time. Launch plans for the U.S. were not disclosed. The thickness of a TV is fast emerging as a new battleground in the market and manufacturers are concentrating on slimming down the backlight, which sits behind the actual LCD panel and generates the light that shines through the screen. Sony also focused on the backlight but instead of making it thinner moved it from behind the panel into the edge of the set around the LCD panel. LED (light emitting diode) arrays provide the light from the side, which is shone in and reflected out through the LCD panel. Another secret to its size it that the TV tuner and some other signal processing technology have been removed from the TV case and put into a stand-alone unit. To connect the TV to the box Sony has developed a wireless transmission system that is capable of sending high-definition video over a distance of around 30 meters. This means a power cable is all that is required to be run to the set. The unit is compatible with DVB-T terrestrial and DVB-C cable television and has an integrated MPEG4 AVC-HD tuner for high-definition broadcasting। It can also hook up with devices such as a Blu-ray Disc player or games console. And because the unit won't necessarily be sitting close to the TV Sony employs radio technology in the remote control, so it isn't limited to short-range, line-of-sight like current infrared remote controls. Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/150419/.html?tk=rss_news
Following rumors of a looming Xbox 360 price drop, Sony says those hoping for a PlayStation 3 drop at next week's Games Convention in Germany "will be disappointed." "It's not going to happen," a SCEA spokesman told Reuters on Friday. "If you're coming for that you'll be disappointed." Earlier this month, a proven confidant said Microsoft would drop the price of the Xbox 360 in September, from US$279 to $199 for the Arcade model, and $349 to $299 for the Pro model with hard drive. Microsoft has declined comment on the rumor. Both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 saw their first price drops in late 2007. As consumers continue to gobble up the industry-leading Wii for $250 a pop (or more if resold), many gamers wonder when Sony and Microsoft will respond with a more enticing mainstream price. The Leipzig Games Convention runs from August 20-22. Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/149898/2008/08/.html?tk=rss_news
Sony will expand sales of its 11-inch OLED (organic light emitting diode) television to Europe in 2009, according to a Japanese press report. Detailed launch plans for the TV, which went on sale in Japan in December 2007 and in the U.S. in January 2008, including its price are yet to be determined, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported in its Wednesday morning edition. OLED is an emerging flat-panel display technology that uses an organic material in the pixels that emits its own light, so a backlight isn't needed. That helps make the displays thinner and much less power-hungry. OLED screens also handle fast-moving images better and offer richer color reproduction than current LCDs (liquid crystal displays) and PDPs (plasma display panels). Sony didn't confirm the report but said the XEL-1 television has received a positive reception from consumers in Japan and so an expansion of sales into other markets is being considered. Should Sony decide to launch the set in Europe the announcement could come as soon as the IFA trade show, which begins on Aug. 29 in Berlin and is Europe's largest consumer electronics show. Sony's XEL-1 has won broad praise for its thinness and bright, vivid images. But at around ¥200,000 (US$1,829) in Japan and around US$2,500 in the U.S. the TV set remains too pricey for most consumers. For Sony to significantly expand sales it will need to increase production from the current 2,000 sets it manufactures per month but technical hurdles remain as OLED is a new technology and production processes are still being refined. Several of Sony's competitors are also working on OLED screens. Panasonic is working on the technology and a recent report said it plans to have a set of around 40-inches screen size on sale within the next three years। Toshiba has also said it plans to launch a 30-inch-class OLED set but hasn't provided details while Samsung has also been showing OLED panel prototypes. Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/149744/2008/08/.html?tk=rss_news
Sony on Thursday announced two new models added to its line of Cyber-Shot digital point-and-shoot cameras. The DSC-T700 and DSC-T77 are expected to be released in September for about US$400 and $300, respectively. The new Cyber-Shot DSC-T77 is Sony's thinnest digital camera, measuring less than 5/8th of an inch thick.The DSC-T77 is Sony's thinnest model. It measures less than 5/8th of an inch thick but features a 3-inch, 16 x 9 touch panel LCD display. The new camera sports intelligent scene recognition technology, "Smile Shutter" and face detection technologies with adult and child priority, and ISO support up to 3200. It also has eleven built-in scene modes and in-camera image management. The DSC-T700 has all the features of the T77 and adds 4GB of built-in memory, suitable for nearly 1,000 full-resolution photos; a 3.5-inch wide touch panel LCD display with 210 pixel-per-inch (PPI) resolution with high contrast and wide-angle viewing. It measures slightly more than 5/8th of an inch thick to accommodate the extra features. Both cameras tout 4x optical zooms and "Optical SteadyShot" image stabilization. They'll come in different color choices. Sony's Web site had not been updated with information about the new cameras as Macworld posted this article। Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/149546/2008/08/.html?tk=rss_news
Toyota demonstrated on Friday a Segway-like personal transportation device called the Winglet that is partly based on robotics technology from Sony. The Winglet looks something like a slimmed-down version of the American-built Segway and is ridden in a standing position. It can carry an average-sized person a distance of up to 10 kilometers at a speed of around 6 kilometers per hour, Toyota said at a Tokyo news conference. It was developed by a 10-man team that includes five engineers on loan from Sony. The consumer electronics giant approached Toyota last year about transferring some of its technology to the auto-maker's robotics program after Sony closed down its own robotics work, which was symbolized by the Aibo robot dog. In addition to the five Sony employees, two of the Toyota employees on the team previously worked for Sony. The Winglet is considerably lighter than the Segway, but has a shorter range and runs more slowly. The rider pushes a handle forward to make the device move ahead, pulls back to reverse or stop and pushes the handle to the side to turn. Three versions of the Winglet have been developed. The biggest difference between them is size of the handle. On the large version it comes right up to waist height and gives the rider something to hold on to, while the smallest of the three has a much lower bar that rises to midway up the rider's shins. The smallest weighs 10 kilograms and has a range of about 5 kilometers. The medium and large models both weigh a little over 12 kilograms and have double the range. All have the same cruising speed of 6 kilometers an hour -- a brisk walking pace. In comparison, the Segway i2 weighs 48 kilograms, can travel up to 38 kilometers and has a top speed of 20 kilometers per hour. All three versions of the Winglet occupy a footprint 26 centimeters long by 46 centimeters wide, which is smaller than the amount of space usually occupied by a human, according to Toyota. Toyota envisages the device will be someday used by people to travel around urban areas and is small enough for a commuter to carry with them on the train or in the trunk of a car, it said. However the company doesn't have any immediate plans to commercialize the device. Trials will begin later this year at Chubu International Airport in Nagoya and at a nearby resort and are scheduled to continue next year at the Tressa Yokohama shopping mall near Tokyo. Toyota has an active robotics program and have previously shown humanoid robots that can play musical instruments. The robotics program is a test-bed for numerous technologies that eventually make their way into industrial robots used by Toyota to assemble cars and, as is the case with the Winglet, into transportation devices that might one day supplement or replace traditional cars. It hopes to commercialize its first partner robots in the early 2010s। Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/article/149246/2008/08/winglet.html?tk=rss_news
Sony is joining Intel's Centrino 2 launch party with its unveiling of four laptops based on the new processor. Centrino 2 is the first major refresh to the Centrino platform since it was launched in 2003 and the new chips offer better multimedia performance and lower power consumption. Wireless networking has been improved with 802.11n and optional WiMax support and there is an integrated graphics processor for handling heavy computations. Headlining the Sony range is the Vaio Z. It has a 13.1-inch widescreen display and comes with an optional Blu-ray Disc drive. While the screen's 1,600 pixel by 900 pixel resolution can's support Blu-ray Disc at full high-definition (1,920 pixels by 1,080 pixels) there's an HDMI (high definition multimedia interface) connector for hooking the laptop up to a high-def TV. A model with 128G-byte SSD (solid-state disk) is also available. The Vaio Z will be available in the U.S. from August with prices starting at US$1,800. The SSD model will retail from $2,300. Sony's Vaio SR has a slightly larger 13.3-inch screen and boasts an LED-backlight that should mean a brighter, crisper image than conventional LCD (liquid crystal display) panels. The computer also comes with Sony's Vaio Media software, which allows content on the laptop to be streamed around the home to other devices across a DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) network. It will be available from this month with prices starting at US$1,400. A step-up in size from the Vaio Z and SR is the Vaio FW, which has a 16.4-inch screen. A premium model combines Blu-ray Disc playback with a full high-def screen so movies can be watched at maximum resolution on the machine. The FW has the same network streaming software as the SR. The Vaio FW will be available this month with prices from US$1,000 for the standard model and US$1,750 for the premium model with full high-def screen. The BZ-line is targeted at business users and has a 15.4-inch widescreen display and spill-resistant keyboard. Some models come with Intel's vPro, which allows corporate IT managers to access and fix PC problems remotely. Windows Vista Business is standard but an XP downgrade is offered on some models. Look for the machines from July with prices from US$1,००० Reference : http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/148413/sony_unveils_centrino_2based_vaio_laptops.html
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