Sony has announced yet another notebook battery recall affecting approximately 35,000 notebook battery packs in the U.S. and an additional 65,000 units sold worldwide. The recall involves notebook systems sold by several PC manufacturers using Sony 2.15Ah lithium ion cell batteries.  40 incidents have been reported worldwide involving overheating of these batteries – some of which included smoke and/or flames. Sony believes the incidents were related to “manufacturing line adjustments made from October 2004 till June 2005. According to DigiTimes, affected notebook systems come from HP, Toshiba, and Dell. Here’s a breakdown of affected models:

HP models:

• HP Pavilion: dv1000, dv8000 and zd8000
• Compaq Presario: v2000 and v2400
• HP Compaq: nc6110, nc6120, nc6140, nc6220, nc6230, nx4800, nx4820, x6110, nx6120, nx9600

Toshiba models:

• Satellite: A70/A75, P30/P5, M30X/M35X, M50/M55
• Tecra: A3, A5, S2

Dell models:

• Latitude: 110L
• Inspiron: 1100, 1150, 5100, 5150, 5160

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Sony, notebook battery recall

eMachines has launched the new affordable eMD620-5777 notebook system which will be available at Best Buy for $429.99. Ideal for consumers on a tight budget, the eMD620-5777 features:

• AMD Athlon 2650e processor running at 1.6GHz
• 1GB of DDR2 memory
• Integrated ATI Radeon X1200 graphics with up to 1919MB of ATI HyperMemory
• 14.1 inch widescreen display with 1280 x 800 resolution
• 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi
• Super Multi-format Dual Layer DVD-R/RW drive
• 160GB HDD
• Two built-in HD stereo speakers
• Headphone/speaker jack
• microphone jack
• Two USB 2.0 ports
• Windows Vista Home Basic

The system will be available at Best Buy starting on November 1st for $429.99.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: eMachines eMD620-5777 notebook, Best Buy

Mobile broadband is certainly great to have but it’s also a pricey investment for most customers. AT&T, Lenovo, and Sony Ericsson are looking to change all of that with a new alliance that will help make mobile broadband more accessible and affordable to customers. Through this alliance, customers will pay up to $150 dollars less for 3G enabled notebook systems.

Participating Lenovo ThinkPad notebooks will come factory-equipped with Sony Ericsson built-in mobile broadband modules which will be enabled for AT&T’s LaptopConnect 3G service. Supporting ThinkPad notebooks for this offer include three ThinkPad SL notebooks, all Lenovo T series notebooks, and all Lenovo X series notebooks.

Finally, if you purchase a ThinkPad notebook with embedded mobile broadband AND you establish an account with AT&T, you will receive 30 days of free AT&T DataConnect service.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: AT&T, Lenovo, Sony Ericsson, mobile broadband

Lenovo has introduced their greenest, securest, and most manageable desktop PC yet in the form of the ThinkCentre M58/M58p series. The new desktops feature Lenovo’s new “Power Manager” technology which allows users to remotely control their PC’s energy consumption. The systems also passed stringent testsing from EPEAT and the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute. Finally, these boxes support Hardware Password Manager which allows “for oversight of user, supervisory, BIOS and HDD passwords.”

The ThinkCentre M58/M58p series is available in three form factors – Tower, Small Form Factor, and Ultra Small Form Factor. Specs include:

• Intel vPro processing technology
• Intel Core 2 Duo E8×00 or Core 2 Quad Q9xx0 processors
• Intel Q45 chipset with ICH10-D0

Prices for the ThinkCentre M58 start at $499 while the ThinkCentre M58p starts at $899. Check out the press release for additional information.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Lenovo, ThinkCentre M58/M58p

Best Buy is looking to make Black Friday truly special for 25 “lucky shoppers” out there with the “Black Friday VIP Content”. Launched yesterday, consumers will get VIP treatment from Best Buy as well as a $1,000 Best Buy Gift Card.

To enter into the contest, Best Buy is looking for consumers to ”share how Black Friday shopping is an important holiday tradition for them and their family, and what kinds of rituals they have to make the morning after Thanksgiving an enjoyable kick off to the holiday season”

Consumers can submit stories to http://www.AskABlueShirt.net/blackfridayvip from October 29th till November 18th, 2008. One winner in each city will be notified by November 24th. The cities involved are as follows:

Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis, Tampa, Washington DC.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Best Buy Black Friday VIP

AT&T and Pantech Wireless announced the availability of the new Pantech Slate – the world’s thinnest QWERTY keyboard handset.  The Slate measures less than one centimeter deep and features raised and tactile buttons, a color screen, and a rubberized back panel for comfortable grip.

Features include:

• Quick and simple access to text messaging, multimedia messaging, IM, and email
• Multimedia capabilities including support of AT&T’s MEdia Net
• Bluetooth support
• Video recording and picture taking with 1.3 megapixel camera

The full specs include:

• 2.2 inch 176 x 220 LCD display with 260K colors
• 1.3 megapixel camera with 2x zoom
• IM support for AOL, Windows Live, and Yahoo! Messenger
• email support for AOL, Yahoo, and Windows Live
• Web browser
• Calendar, Alarm clock, Call waiting, Caller ID, Personal Organizer
• Address book
• Conference calling
• Quad band GSM
• Bluetooth 1.2 + stereo support
• Measures 4.2 x 2.5 x .39 inches and weighs 3.2 oz
• 20MB memory

The Pantech Slate is available now for $49.99 after a two year agreement and a $50 dollar mail-in-rebate.

Technorati Tags: Pantech Slate, AT&T

According to IDC, notebook shipments surpassed desktop shipments in the U.S. for the first time ever during the third quarter of this year. The notebook share of the market stood at 55.2 percent – made possible thanks to a record number of notebooks shopped during the quarter – over 9.5 million units. Nearly all major vendors saw a rise in notebook volumes for the quarter.

The rise in notebook sales really isn’t much of a surprise. This trend has been occurring for years now as more and more consumers and businesses opt for portability over a desktop presence. Falling prices for mainstream notebooks as well as the growth in inexpensive low end netbooks have helped to contribute to the meteoric rise of this sector.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Notebook, PC, shipments, Q3 2008

HP expands their netbook lineup today with the introduction of the new HP Mini 1000 line of netbook systems. The Mini 1000 consists of three new systems – the HP Mini 1000, the HP Mini 1000 Vivienne Tam Edition, and the HP Mini 1000 with MIE (Mobile Internet Experience). Here’s what you need to know about these three new systems.

Common features across all three Mini 1000 netbooks:

• Less than one inch thick
• Weighs a little more than two pounds
• 92 percent keyboard size
• BrightView widescreen Infinity display (1024×600 resolution) with flush glass and LED backlight
• Built-in webcam and microphone
• Intel Atom N270 1.6GHz processor

First up, there’s the HP Mini 1000:

Key features of the Mini 1000 are as follows:

• Piano black finish with HP Imprint swirl design
• Windows XP Home
• Ethernet
• Two USB 2.0 ports
• Wi-Fi
• Bluetooth
• 3G versions coming in December
• Choice of either 8.9 inch or 10.2 inch display
• Choice of SSD or regular hard drives
• Prices start at $399

Here are the full specs:

• Windows XP Home with SP3
• Choice of 8.9 inch or 10.2 inch WSVGA HP LED BrightView Infinity Display
• 512MB or 1GB of RAM
• Intel GMA 950 graphics
• Intel Atom N270 processor
• 8GB/16GB SSD or 60GB 4200 RPM PATA HDD
• HP Mini Webcam with HP Imprint Finish
• Wireless G card with optional Bluetooth support
• 3 cell Lithium Polymer Battery
• Measures 10.3 in (L) x 6.56 in (W) x 0.99 in (H)
• Only 1 DIMM slot for a maximum of 1GB of memory
• Weighs 2.23 lbs
• Integrated stereo speakers

Note – a fully decked out system can be as high as $549.99 – that’s including a 60GB HDD, 1GB of RAM, and a 10 inch display.

The Mini 1000 is available now for purchase.

Next, we have the HP Mini 1000 Vivienne Tam Edition:

Key features for this netbook are as follows:

• Vibrant red with peony flower inspired design
• 10.2 inch BrightView display
• Windows XP Home
• Ethernet
• Two USB 2.0 ports
• Wi-Fi
• Bluetooth
• 3G versions coming in December
• MSRP of $699

You can reserve the Vivienne Tam edition today.

Finally, there’s the HP Mini 1000 with Mobile Internet Experience (MIE). What makes the MIE model particularly interesting is the fact that it’s an HP designed user interface for accessing digital content – including videos, photos, music, and email. The system runs a Linux OS and has Ethernet, two USB ports, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth. Prices for the Mini 1000 are expected to start at $379. This system will be coming out soon.

HP rounds out the new netbook announcements with several accessory announcements also including a new HP Mini Mobile Drive which comes in 2, 4 or 8GB storage capacities and an optional six cell lithium-polymer battery due out in January.

[Check it out via NetbookTech]

Technorati Tags: HP, Mini 1000, Mini 1000 MIE, Mini 1000 Vivienne Tam Edition

Dell has a new line of OptiPlex commercial desktop PC systems designed “to reduce costs throughout the desktop lifecycle” – an important element to any company’s IT infrastructure planning. According to Dell, the new systems reduce costs in four areas – Management, Security, Stability, and Environmental Responsibility. Details are as follows:

• “Management – remote system maintenance; designed for easy serviceability; Dell ProSupport offerings.
• Security – automated data security with full disk encryption and solid state drives for added data protection on select systems; improved chassis intrusion prevention; Dell Control Point security management, smart card authentication; remote patching and isolation.
• Stability – factory-built, pre-configured and delivered to customer specifications; up to 36-month product lifecycle; global standard platforms available on select systems.
• Environmental Responsibility – energy efficient design; post-consumer recycled plastics on select systems; recyclable packaging; leading power supply efficiency on select systems. “

Dell announced four new OptiPlex systems – the flagship OptiPlex 960, their fist thin client, the OptiPlex FX160, the “mainstream” OptiPlex 760 and the “essential” OptiPlex 360 desktops.

The specs to the systems are as follows:

OptiPlex 960:

• 43 percent less power consumption over previous generation of OptiPlex desktops
• Up to 89 percent recyclable packaging
• At least 10 percent post-consumer recycled plastic on small form factor (desktop and mini-tower available in December 2008)
• An average of 28 percent faster service time than a comparable system from HP and 43 percent from Lenovo
• Optional QuietKit technology reduces noise by as much as 60 percent
• Available in three chassis styles (mini-tower, desktop and small form factor)
• Full disk encryption hard dries to help protect critical data
• Intel Core 2 Duo or Quad processors
• Windows Vista
• Intel Q45 Express Chipset
• NVIDIA, ATI, or Intel graphics
• SSD or HDD
• Prices start at $863.

OptiPlex 760:

• Offers mainstream security, productivity and energy efficient features with improved management capabilities
• Requires an average of 22 percent less time to service than a comparable system from HP and an average of 38 percent less time than a Lenovo
• Intel Core 2 Duo processors
• Windos Vista
• Intel Q43 Express Chipset
• ATI Radeon or Intel Graphics
• Up to 38% reduction in serviceability time over the competition
• Up to 88% energy efficient power supply options
• Prices start at $593.

OptiPlex 360:

• Long lifecycles, managed transitions, and stable images
• Intel Core 2 Duo, Intel Pentium Dual Core, Intel Celeron processors
• Windows Vista
• Intel G31 Express Chipset
• Intel or ATI graphics
• Gigabit LAN
• Prices starts at $476.

OptiPlex FX160:

• Dell’s first thin client
• Supports embedded or streamed operating systems for virtual desktop implementations
• Prices start at $399.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Dell OptiPlex, OptiPlex 960, OptiPlex FX160, OptiPlex 760, OptiPlex 360

It took a bit longer this morning for me to get out of bed but alas.. I’m here at the Los Angeles Convention Center for Day Three of the Microsoft PDC. It looks like today is a focus on Microsoft Research with Rick Rashid giving the keynote,

We’re about to start… again forgive the initial typos. I’m typing as I listen to the keynote here.

(more…)

Technorati Tags: Microsoft PDC, Day Three, Microsoft Research Keynote