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Samsung Galaxy Tab: What the analysts say

admin — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 10:10:25 +0000

Samsung's new tablet computer signals an understanding that it takes more than hardware to be successful, say analysts Samsung's new Android-powered tablet computer, the Galaxy Tab, has been well-received by industry analysts – even though full pricing details have still not been released. The Tab, launched at the IFA show in Berlin, is expected to herald a charge against the early success of the Apple iPad. Consumers should benefit, with a price war predicted to kick off in 2011. Here's some of the early reaction. Ben Wood, director of research at CCS Insight Apple has legitimised the tablet category with its iPad and the Samsung Galaxy Tab sees the tier-one brand go head-to-head with Steve Jobs' creation. Samsung is betting big on the tablet category with this device. It's the first major manufacturer to unveil a device targeting this segment but we expect a flurry of further announcement from an array of other players. The Galaxy Tab signals Samsung's understanding that it takes more than hardware to be successful

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Samsung Galaxy Tab: What the analysts say

IFA consumer electronics fair opens in Berlin

admin — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 09:57:52 +0000

The trade fair is one of the world's biggest consumer electronics and home appliances shows

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IFA consumer electronics fair opens in Berlin

In search of tablet computers’ sweet spot: screen size and battery life

admin — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 15:54:35 +0000

Apple has some competition from a slew of companies. But it made its design decisions in a vacuum: so why did it go for the features that it did, and do they matter more than others? Here's a question: why is the screen of Apple's iPad 9.7 inches across? Why that size? Why not bigger? Or smaller? If we examine this question, we may be able to figure out the answer to another question: how are the slew of tablets being released now (hello Samsung) going to fare in the market? Consider what the iPad was going up against when it was being designed: the range of Windows-based tablet computers, which would have had screens in the 12 to 13-inch range; the Amazon Kindle, a dedicated e-reader, with a 7" screen; and the Kindle DX, launched in May 2009, which has a 9.7" screen

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In search of tablet computers' sweet spot: screen size and battery life

Samsung Galaxy Tab revealed at IFA

admin — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 13:41:00 +0000

Samsung enters mobile computer market with 7in Galaxy Tab, launched at IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin Samsung made its eagerly awaited new entry into the mobile computing market today with the launch of the Galaxy Tab, and hinted that further versions will be unveiled next year. The 7in Android-based tablet computer with built-in phone capabilities is expected to challenge the Apple iPad. However, with pricing details still not available today, it is not clear quite how the Tab will compare with other products. Weighing in at just 380g, the Galaxy Tab is being pitched as a single portable device that can be used to browse the internet, make video calls, watch television or listen to music. "This is not just another tablet. We call it a Smart Media device," Thomas Richter, Samsung's head of product portfolio, told a packed press conference at the at the IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin. Samsung executives said that the company will probably launch several more Tab models next year, possibly with different screen sizes, to target different audiences. "Based on our research, customers have different needs ... next year you might see very different tablets coming out of our company," hinted DJ Lee, a senior Samsung executive. The Galaxy Tab has a 1024x600 TFT colour screen, which can flip between portrait and landscape view dependng how the user holds it. It will be sold with 16GB or 32GB of memory, expandable with another 32GB. It has two built-in cameras for and will be shipped with several applications from Google pre-installed, including Maps and Places. The Tab also supports a wide range of connectivity methods, including Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, HSDPA and HSUPA. and includes a GPS chip. It will also run HTML5 and Adobe Flash.

Ping! Apple enters social media market via music

admin — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 22:18:39 +0000

Apple announces social networking service which will display the music interests of friends via iTunes, iPhones and iPod Touch Having cornered the MP3 player, mobile phone and computer tablet markets with the iPod, iPhone and iPad devices respectively, last night Apple announced its latest expansion – into social media – with Ping. Ping will be integrated into Apple's latest iTunes software update and will enable users, or "Pingers", to follow musicians, friends and others to see details including what music they're buying and what concerts they're attending. Steve Jobs, Apple's chairman and chief executive, said the information will arrive in a long stream of updates, similar to the way Facebook and Twitter work. "Be as private or as public as you want. The privacy is super-easy to set up," he said adding that users can choose to automatically accept followers or decide on a follower-by-follower basis – similar sounding controls to those on Twitter. The service is available immediately to more than 160 million iTunes users, Jobs said, and will also be available across the iPhone and iPod Touch ranges.

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Ping! Apple enters social media market via music

Climate scientists should not write their own software, says researcher

admin — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 12:08:06 +0000

Computer scientist urges software developers to help climate scientists produce better modelling tools. From BusinessGreen , part of the Guardian Environment Network A study by a computer scientist at the University of Toronto suggests that the computer models used to predict climate change may be undermined due to a lack of programming expertise. Steve Easterbrook at the University's Department of Computer Science, has had his paper, Climate Change: A Grand Software Challenge, accepted by the 2010 FSE/SDP Workshop on the Future of Software Engineering Research. In the paper, he suggests that because many climate prediction software modelling tools are built by climate scientists rather than software engineers some of the resulting software has room for improvement. Climate scientists commonly use so-called Global Circulation Models (GCMs) that simulate the atmosphere, oceans, cryosphere and biosphere at a global scale, Easterbrook said. Underpinning them are data analysis tools designed to crunch the underlying numbers. "Most of this software is built by the climate scientists themselves, who have little or no training in software engineering," said Easterbrook in his paper. "As a result the quality of this software varies tremendously: The GCMs tend to be exceptionally well engineered, while some data processing tools are barely even tested." Easterbrook called for climate scientists to use applications written by experts in software design that would enable cross-disciplinary work to address climate change questions. These analysis tools would be proven capable of processing "earth models", he said. Secondly, Easterbrook argued that information sharing systems, such as games, reputation analysis software, and crowdsourcing tools could help to disseminate information on climate change efficiently and responsibly. Finally, he said that energy efficient green IT systems are needed to reduce power consumption in all areas where climate modelling software is used. "A massive mobilisation of talent will be needed

You ask, they answer: Dell

admin — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 07:00:00 +0000

Post your questions on the computing giant's green track record - it will be online until 5pm Friday to answer Bamboo boxes , low-energy PCs and tree-planting are just three of the ways computing heavyweight Dell says it is limiting its ecological footprint. This week, Dell joins us on You ask, they answer to answer your questions on its eco-credentials - just post yours below. Want to know more about its recycling scheme for PCs and peripherals

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You ask, they answer: Dell

William Gibson: I’m agnostic about technology. But I want a robotic penguin | Celebrity squares

admin — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 23:05:58 +0000

The science fiction writer on his relationship with technology What's your favourite piece of technology, and how has it improved your life? Whatever piece of word processing software I'm using. I never learned to touch-type. When was the last time you used it, and what for? To answer the previous question. What additional features would you add if you could

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William Gibson: I'm agnostic about technology. But I want a robotic penguin | Celebrity squares

Dell tops Hewlett-Packard’s bid for cloud computing specialist 3Par

admin — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 19:13:18 +0000

America's two largest computer manufacturers lock horns as they seek to profit from expected growth in online IT services Texas-based computer maker Dell has struck back at its larger US rival, Hewlett-Packard, in their struggle to buy data storage firm 3Par by slapping down an improved offer of $1.52bn as the two hardware manufacturers jostle for position in the potentially lucrative market for so-called "cloud computing". America's two largest computer manufacturers are going head-to-head in a rare outright confrontation to take over 3Par, a hitherto obscure business which is considered well placed to benefit from higher information technology spending when the corporate world eventually stages a recovery from the recession. Dell's bid of $24.30 a share is a sharp rise from its earlier $18 offer, which was made a week ago

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Dell tops Hewlett-Packard's bid for cloud computing specialist 3Par

John Aris obituary

admin — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 17:09:26 +0000

Computer engineer who encouraged the use of PCs in business John Aris, who has died aged 76, was a pioneer of the application of computers for business use. In the late 1970s, he was one of the first to recognise that the future of business computing lay with smaller, cheaper machines more than with mainframes; and with widely available pre-programmed applications rather than custom-built software. Working at the Imperial Tobacco Group, he was one of the first computing managers in the world to oust a mainframe in favour of end-user-managed minis and to encourage the advent of personal computers. John's career in computing began in 1958 when he was recruited to the Leo (Lyons Electronic Office) computer team by J Lyons, then the major food business in the UK, and initiators of the notion that the future of computers lay in their use as a business tool. At the time, the prevailing view was that work with computers required a trained mathematician. The Leo management thought otherwise and recruited using an aptitude test. John, an Oxford classics graduate, passed with flying colours, noting that "the great advantage of studying classics is that it does not fit you for anything specific". When a series of mergers brought about the formation of International Computers Ltd (ICL) in 1968, John became chief systems engineer and had the unusual experience of explaining to the board of the new company what, in the eyes of its customers, its products were for. After a spell as ICL's technical director for western Europe, based in Paris, in 1975 he joined Imperial as head of computer development. With this move from a supplier to a user company, John discovered that he had underestimated the knowledge and skill of users at all levels. He used that insight at first within Imperial, and subsequently, from 1985, as full-time director of the National Computing Centre (NCC), set up by the government to encourage computer use, and of the computer club Impact, a forum for users. Many of the UK's leading companies and public sector bodies participated in Impact: in reviews, detailed comparisons with best practice, seminars, debates and lectures. As NCC director, John had to concentrate on moving away from a heavy financial dependence on government contracts. Perhaps the most striking achievement of his term of office was selling NCC-developed telecommunications standards-testing software to the official standards bodies of both the US and Japan as their main enforcement tool. He succeeded in raising the NCC's non-government revenue by 71%. Nonetheless, he had to reduce the workforce substantially when the government contracts dried up, and in 1990 he resigned. Born in London, John was a clever child, and his parents, an insurance executive and a painter, who were far from rich, gambled on his winning an Eton scholarship, which he did. His father was a keen amateur actor and John's brother Ben became a well-known professional actor, but John's stage career never progressed beyond schoolboy productions. Aged 15, he decided that classics was more interesting than mathematics, his best subject, and pursued it, despite teachers' disapproval

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John Aris obituary