Linpus Sets Date With Moblin 2.0 for Netbooks
Taiwanese Linux distributor Linpus Technologies plans to make a version of Moblin 2.0 available for download next week, a move timed to coincide with the annual Computex hardware exhibition in Taipei.
Linpus will show off a new version of its Linpus Linux Lite distribution based on Moblin 2.0 for the first time, including versions based on user interfaces designed by Linpus and Intel, the company said in a notice posted on its Web site.
Linpus Linux Lite will be one of the first distributions based on Moblin 2.0 to be released, it said.
Beta source code for Moblin 2.0 was released earlier this month and the new version of the operating system is tweaked to run on small, low-cost laptops called netbooks as well as handheld computers. Among the features offered with the operating system are the ability to boot up quickly and an improved user interface that allows users to easily update their status on a range of social networking sites, like Facebook.
The earlier version of Linpus Linux Lite was used with some versions of Acer's popular Acer Aspire One netbook.
Moblin started as an effort by Intel to develop a version of Linux for handheld computers it calls MIDs, or mobile Internet devices. The devices have been slow to catch on with users, in part because hardware makers didn't have access to a good operating system customized for small screens and a touch-based interface.
In April, the Linux Foundation took over the project but Intel remains closely tied to it, holding one of four spots on the Moblin steering committee.
Apple Quietly Bumps White MacBook Specs
The $999 MacBook may not feature the same swank aluminum togs as its older siblings, but that doesn't mean that it doesn't get its share of the family love. On Wednesday, Apple marginally bumped the specs on the base configuration, giving customers a little more bang for their sub-thousand bucks.
Strangely enough, the white polycarbonate MacBook actually now sports a 2.13GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor -- faster than its nearest relative, the $1300 aluminum MacBook. Other specs on the $999 configuration have been brought closer to the mid-range model: it now sports 2GB of 800MHz DDR2 RAM (up from the previous incarnation's 2GB of 667MHz DDR2 RAM) and a 160GB SATA hard drive instead of the last model's 120GB drive.
Otherwise, though, the MacBook remains unchanged, retaining a mini DVI port instead of the aluminum's mini DisplayPort connector, the Nvidia GeForce 9400M graphics it added a few months ago and -- we're sure you'll all be happy to know--keeping its FireWire 400 port. Clearly Apple isn't ready to put the white MacBook out to pasture just yet.
India’s PC Market May Have Bottomed Out, Says IDC
India's PC market may be on the rebound, with unit shipments up 7.4 percent in the first quarter of this year from the previous quarter, mainly on stronger buying by the government, education, and state-owned banks, research firm IDC India said on Wednesday.
"This is small indication that the market has bottomed out," said Kapil Dev Singh, country manager at research firm IDC India.
Total PC shipments in the first quarter were 1.68 million units, up from 1.56 million in the previous quarter, IDC said.
Units shipped in the first quarter were however down by 19 percent from the over 2 million PCs shipped in the country in the first quarter of last year, suggesting that the Indian PC market has yet to recover fully.
The current year will continue to be challenging, with growth either flat or negative on a year-on-year basis, Singh said. A return to firm growth can be expected only by the third quarter of next year, Singh said.
The government sector had the potential to spend more in the first quarter, but government purchases slowed down in the run up to the federal elections in the country which ended this month.
Apple Tablet Coming in 2010?
Apple may have turned its nose up at the netbook market, but that doesn’t mean it’s ignoring the void between its $400 iPod touch (32GB) and $1,000 MacBook. Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster believes Cupertino will launch a touchscreen tablet, priced in the $500 to $700 range, in the first half of 2010.
Rumors of an iPod-like tablet have been swirling for months, with some speculating that Apple is developing a large-screen iPod touch—say, a 7- to 9-inch touchscreen device—that would be large enough for HD movies and maybe a few desktop-style apps. Such a device would provide a better gaming experience than the iPod touch too.
But please don’t call it a netbook, a bargain-bin class of laptop that Apple execs have dissed as “junky.”
There’s no smoking gun in the latest report, but it does appear as though Apple is up to something. As reported by CNN, Munster’s sleuthing led him to conclude that an Apple tablet is only months away.
The signs include: Apple’s recent interest in chip designers, including the company’s acquisition of low-power chipmaker PA Semi a year ago; Apple’s efforts to add multi-touch features to its core products, including iPods, iPhones, and Macs; and the quintessentially Apple need to differentiate itself in an established market. (Think iPods, iPhones, Macs, etc.)
Admittedly, Munster’s evidence is pretty slim. But when combined with other reports, including one from the Chinese-language Commercial Times that says Taiwan-based Wintek will soon supply touch panels for an upcoming Apple subnote, an touchscreen tablet seems very possible.
One thing’s for sure: An Apple tablet, subnote, or whatever you want to call it, won’t copy the successful-if-unspectacular netbook formula of a shrunken laptop with a cramped keyboard and tiny screen.
There’s certainly a market for a portable media player larger than the iPod touch, iPhone, or other smart phones. But what would people pay for such a device? If Apple’s sweet spot is $700, the alleged tablet would need some fairly robust wireless communications and productivity tools too.
Apple would be foolish to ignore the growing netbook market, which is attracting more and more potential laptop buyers. Odds are, it won’t.
See more like this: apple, ultraportable, future technology
Apple Cuts More Than 10 Percent of Full-time Retail Workers
Apple's financial results for its second-quarter of 2009 were very favorable despite a few dark spots. But though the company may have posted its most successful non-holiday quarter ever, there are still some signs that Apple is scaling back on costs in order to combat the effects of the current economic situation.
Apple's 10-Q form filed with the SEC noted that the company had 14,000 full-time retail employees as of the end of the past quarter. That number stands in sharp contrast to the 15,600 employees the company reported in the same document filed at the end of the December 2008 quarter.
Did Apple lay off 1,600 retail workers? There are other possible explanations, including shifting workers to part-time status or cutting excess personnel employed during the busier holiday quarter, but given that the figure represents more than 10 percent of Apple's retail workforce, it seems likely that a number of those employees were let go.
That jibes with other figures that Apple's disclosed about its retail segment, too. For example, the company said that it opened only one store in the second-quarter of 2009, compared with four in the year-ago quarter. In looking forward to the rest of the year, CFO Peter Oppenheimer said that Apple planned to open a total of 25 stores in fiscal 2009, half of which would be outside of the country. That's just half of the 50 stores Apple opened in 2008. Retail revenue was down year-over-year as well, going from an average of US$8.5 million per store in the second quarter of 2008 to an average of $7 million per store in this past quarter.
Retail is an expensive segment for Apple, as it requires not just hiring more workers than the company would otherwise employ, but also necessitates long-term investments like property leases and expenses like store construction and maintenance. In an environment where consumer spending has dropped off, that could make the retail segment particularly vulnerable.
Despite that, Apple has yet to close a single one of its retail outlets in the almost eight years that they've been operating. By all accounts its retail stores have been an incredible success in that time, attracting millions of customers and generating substantial revenues for Apple. However, the company's investments there are not without their risks, as Apple notes in the same 10-Q document, saying "The Company would incur substantial costs if it were to close multiple retail stores and such costs could adversely affect the Company's financial condition and operating results."
It seems that Apple has instead focused its cost-cutting measures on personnel to help avoid closing stores, but it's not inconceivable that we could see our first Apple Store shutter if the economy continues in the direction that it's been going.
New Acer Aspire One Netbooks Sport Beefy Specs, Low Price
Acer has announced two new Acer Aspire One netbooks featuring high-definition screens, full-sized keyboards, multi-gesture touchpads and 3G connectivity. The new models, named AO751h and AOD250, are thinner than their predecessors with a one-inch thick body, both weigh less than three pounds and are available in four different colors: Diamond Black, Ruby Red, Sapphire Blue and Seashell White. Pricing starts at $349.99 for the 751h, and $298 for the D250.
Both devices come with 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi and the company says select models are available with optional 3G connectivity. Other shared specs between the include 1 GB DDR2 RAM, 160 GB SATA hard drive, Acer Crystal Eye Webcam, three USB 2.0 ports, Multi-in-1 Card Reader, dedicated SD Card slot, and Windows XP with Service Pack 3. The 751h and the D250 come packing Intel's 1.6 GHz Atom N270 processor, but you could also load the 751h with Intel's Atom Z520. According to Acer's press release, the Z520 runs at 1.22 GHz, but what has me scratching my head is that Intel has always said the Z520 runs at 1.33 GHz. Regardless, the Z520 is definitely a slower chip than the N270, but makes up for it with much lower power consumption and support for Intel's VT virtualization technology-- the N270 does not support Intel's VT.
Weighing in at 2.75 pounds, the AO751h leads the way in Acer's new lineup with an 11.6-inch LED high-definition screen with a 16:9 ratio and full sized keyboard. If you're looking for a multi-gesture touchpad, the 751h will let you pinch, flick and swirl your way through Google Earth and other gesture-capable programs. For battery life, it's your choice of a 3- or 6-cell battery that Acer says will last up to four or eight hours respectively.
The smaller AOD250 comes in at 2.44 pounds, with a 10.1-inch LED screen with a 16:9 ratio and 1024x600 resolution. Acer says the D250 will last up to three hours and 15 minutes with a 3-cell or up to six hours with a 6-cell battery. The D250 doesn't come with a full-sized keyboard, high-def screen or multi-touch; instead the D250 is geared towards people who want a lightweight yet capable netbook.
This is the second time Acer has refreshed its Acer Aspire One line this year. In March, PC World's Darren Gladstone gave the Aspire One AOD150 a PC World rating of 83 for its impressive battery life and big, bright screen; however, Gladstone complained the D150's mouse was a little unresponsive. The original Linux-powered Aspire One was one of the earliest low-cost netbooks to hit store shelves along with models from Asus and MSI. In October 2008, Acer released a Windows-based model that received a PC World rating of 80. Acer is becoming a big leader in the super-hot netbook market; the company says it shipped 1.8 million devices in the first quarter of 2009 and claims 30.5 percent of the netbook market worldwide.
For more netbook information check out:
"How to Buy a Netbook" and PC World's "Top 10 Netbooks"
Connect with Ian Paul on Twitter (@ianpaul).
See more like this: netbook, acer, mini laptop
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Climbing Mount Everest With a MacBook Pro and IPod
If you're planning an exhibition to conquer Mount Everest, you need to make sure you have all have of the necessary supplies. If you're list of supplies is anything like the most recent group to take on the Everest challenge, you should pack your MacBook Pro and a few iPods, too.
On the First Ascent Web site, Gerry Moffat, head of production for the team, films daily dispatches and uses his MacBook Pro to transfer and edit the data. All of the footage is shot on a solid state cards on the mountain.
"It's then put into the trusty MacBook Pro," Moffat said in a video on the Web site. "These have been functioning superbly all the way up -- we're at about 21,000 feet."
After the footage has been backed up, the card goes to one of the sherpas who takes it to the base camp for editing. The video editor, Tom, then makes another backup of the data and begins editing the footage for public viewing.
The relevant clips are imported into Final Cut Pro, Apple's professional video application. Music is added, the video is edited and the dispatch is ready to be encoded for the Internet. The files are uploaded via satellite connection to an FTP server in the U.S. and posted to the Internet.
Documenting the journey is not the only reason to carry Apple gear on Everest. Each climber has an entertainment pack that they carry for rest periods. Many of them chose to bring their iPods.
During a rest day, some of the climbers give us a glimpse of what they take with them to pass the time.
"This is what's turing out to be the best entertainment on this trip -- my iPod touch," one of the climbers said.
"Of course, I've always got my trusty [iPod] shuffle," said another climber when he was going over his entertainment kit.
One of the other climbers brought her iPod nano on the trip to sit back and rest with.
The team is scheduled to make the ascent to the peak of Mount Everest Friday. You can view all of the video dispatches on the First Ascent Web site.
Acer Beat Asus in Netbooks Last Year, to Ship 12M This Year
Acer edged out rival Asustek Computer to lead the world in netbook shipments last year.
The world's third largest computer vendor shipped just over 5 million netbooks last year, said Gianfranco Lanci, Acer's president and CEO, during the company's first-quarter investors' conference in Taipei.
The company expects to ship between 10 million and 12 million netbooks this year, he added.
Asustek, which pioneered netbooks with its popular Eee PCs, has said it shipped 4.9 million units last year.
Acer managed to win the 2008 netbook title despite Asustek's six month lead in the market. Acer didn't start shipping its first netbook, the Aspire One, until the second half of last year. The device was a hit, and sales soared mainly because Acer was able to launch globally, analysts say.
The victory for Acer, however, was incomplete. The company missed its own target of shipping 6 million netbooks last year because the global economy soured.
Lanci said sales of the Aspire One were strongest in the U.S. last year, despite a brighter start in Europe. Netbook sales have been less successful in other regions, such as Asia.
Netbooks were a big help to Acer during the first quarter of this year.
Instead of dragging on the company by hurting laptop PC sales, Acer chairman J.T. Wang said that without the Aspire One, Acer's revenue and shipments would have been much lower.
Consumers were spooked by the financial crisis, he said, causing them to look for deals such as netbooks instead of more expensive products.
Netbooks are mini-laptop PCs designed for mobility, typically sporting 7-inch to 10-inch screens, weighing less than 2 kilograms and costing under US$400. They are designed with less powerful components and chips than full-fledged laptops and do not carry DVD drives.
Market researcher Gartner estimates that mini-notebook shipments will increase to 20.2 million units this year, up from 11.7 million units last year.
Safe Sleep and the ‘White Screen of Death’
Going hand in hand with my earlier observations about the MacBook's sleep battery usage, I gave myself quite a scare by leaving my MacBook asleep unplugged for an extended amount of time. I plugged in my mouse and wireless headset USB receivers. However, as the sleep light was absent, I assumed it ran out of power and shut down.
I pressed the power button to rouse it and got greeted by a blank white screen. No Apple symbol or spinning wheel appeared to reassure me. My companion stared back at me with a cold, blank expression. I waited. Nothing happened. I turned it off and tried turning it on again. No matter what I did, the result was the same.
Some quick research into the white screen symptom for MacBooks yielded a common answer--the hard drive was fried. Every person who experienced what I seemed to be going through ended up replacing the hard drive. While I'm well within the warranty period, I was more upset that I would have to postpone my computing plans.
Out of desperation, I took out both receivers and tried it again. After a short blank screen greeting, I was treated to a translucent version of what I was doing when I put my to sleep computer originally. Safe Sleep had apparently captured what I was doing and started restoring it before my eyes.
The next time you leave your MacBook asleep for a long time, be wary about plugging in USB devices before trying to wake it.
Apple Benefits from Consumer Confidence
The first uptick in consumer confidence in 17 months is good news for Apple Inc., market research firm ChangeWave said Thursday.
According to Paul Carton, ChangeWave's research director, the company's April survey of 3,200 consumers showed a two-point increase, from 6% to 8%, in the number of people who said they planned to buy a laptop in the next 90 days -- the first gain since November 2007.
If it pans out, the increase means Apple can breathe a little easier. "The economy is finally starting to move in Apple's direction," Carton said during a conference call Thursday. "Overall, laptop sales look like they'll be hopping in the future, and that means Apple is well-positioned going forward."
Carton based his optimism on the fact that, of those consumers who said they would buy a laptop in the next three months, 29% planned to buy an Apple laptop. While that number is down a point from February, it's up two points from January.
That would be good news for Apple, which last month said it had sold just 2.2 million Macs -- 1.4 million of them laptops -- to report its first year-to-year decline in computer sales in nearly six years.
But netbooks, the smaller, lighter and cheaper laptops that are quickly gaining market share, are the proverbial fly in Apple's ointment, said Carton. Almost one-fourth of the people who said they planned to buy a laptop added that the machine would be a netbook; the 23% who said last month they planned to buy one in the next 90 days was up from February's 18% and January's 14%, a noteworthy surge.
Apple doesn't have a product in the under-US$500 range that traditionally defines the netbook category -- its cheapest laptop is the $999 last-generation MacBook. And although rumors continue to swirl about Apple rolling out something to compete in the category this year, nothing has been announced.
"There are some contradictory trends here [for Apple]," acknowledged Carton, referring to the upside of a better outlook for laptops in general but the downside of encroaching netbooks. "Sometimes the world is filled with many shades of gray."
Mike Abramsky, a Wall Street analyst with RBC Capital who joined the conference call, was blunter, though like Carton, he was optimistic about Apple. "The market is definitely shifting down in price, so Apple may need to introduce products to target that low end," said Abramsky. "That could show as lower pricing of existing products, or it could be a tablet, but it's not likely that Apple is going to shift away from its existing value proposition." That last phrase is Wall-Street speak for Apple's high prices, and resulting high margins, something rival Microsoft Corp. has used to its advantage in recent television advertising.
"How Apple wrestles with this growing netbook category will be important," Abramsky said. "But the Mac franchise isn't dead at all."
Like other analysts, Abramsky added that although Macs will remain a major revenue stream, he's pinning most of his hopes for Apple's growth on the iPhone and App Store business. "At June's WWDC [Worldwide Developers Conference], we think Apple will introduce a "pro" version of the iPhone, as well as a price cut on the existing iPhone," he said. "The pro won't be as revolutionary as the iPhone 3G last year, but it will continue the advantage that Apple has in the smartphone market."
Contrary to other rumors, Apple won't launch a smaller, cheaper version of the iPhone -- some have dubbed it an "iPhone Nano," referencing the small iPod -- said Abramsky. "We're not convinced that a nano iPhone will be introduced this year, but we know one's in the pipeline for next year," he said, adding that such a model would be perfect as pre-paid phone or as an inexpensive iPhone to sell in countries like China.
"What [ChangeWave's] data shows is that consumer sentiment is improving, and will allow Apple to sustain support for its value proposition," concluded Abramsky.