| It's a Touchy-Feely World: All In One Shipments Outshine Traditional Desktop Growth Posted: 11 Jul 2012 10:45 AM PDT Touchscreens might not necessarily be the entire future, but they're definitely a big chunk of it. Smartphones and tablets have been selling at a brisk pace over the last couple of years, and now the obsession with smearing fingerprints on your screen has crossed over to desktops; IHS iSuppli reports that all-in-ones are the only shining star in an otherwise flat desktop market. 
Well, kinda. Several million more AIOs are expected to ship this year compared to last year, but they're still just a small fraction of traditional desktop sales. The firm forecasts 16.4 million AIO shipments in 2012, compared to 132.3 million traditional desktops. The fuss is about the relative percentage growth for each category: those AIO shipments represent a 20 percent increase over last year's 13.7 million, while the traditional desktop number is basically staying static after shipping 132.0 million units in 2011. Whaddaya think: will touchscreen screens become more commonplace once Windows 8 hits the streets, or will they remain a novelty for most desktop users? IHS iSuppli thinks the upward trend will continue, with AIOs hitting a still-modest 24.8 million shipments in 2016. |
| Microsoft Offers Robo-Tool For Killing Desktop Gadgets and Sidebar Due to Vulnerability Concerns Posted: 11 Jul 2012 10:21 AM PDT  Are you disappointed that Windows 8 might not support Desktop Gadgets? Then you really won't like this news: Microsoft wants you to stop using them on Windows 7 and Vista, too. Immediately. That's not because of some deep-rooted hate for the visual helpers, but because of concerns that hackers could use new Gadget and Sidebar exploits to deep-root your PC.
In a security advisory released yesterday, Microsoft announced that it has developed an automated Fix It for completely disabling Gadgets and Sidebars in current Windows devices. There's no word if a future patch would allow users to safely reactivate the software. What's all the hub-bub about? Microsoft isn't saying, but ComputerWorld notes that two researchers plan on disclosing "a number of interesting attack vectors" in a seminar entitled "We Have You By The Gadgets" at the Black Hat conference later this month. In fact, the Microsoft security advisory specifically thanks Mickey Shkatov and Toby Kohlenberg -- those very researchers -- "for working with us on Gadget vulnerabilities." |
| Ouya's $99 Android Game Console Raises $2.8 Million on Kickstarter, Now Needs Direction Posted: 11 Jul 2012 08:31 AM PDT  Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo may think they have the game console market cornered, but they could be in for a rude surprise if Ouya's Android-based game system is able to gain traction. Serving as a wake-up call to the big three, Ouya has already managed to raise almost three times its $950,000 pledge goal on Kickstarter, getting commitments for over $2.8 million from more than 22,000 backers in less than two full days.
The idea is to revolutionize console gaming as we know it. Ouya aims to be a $99 device consisting of an Nvidia Tegra 3 processor, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of internal flash storage, HDMI output, 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB 2.0 port, wireless controller, and Android 4.0 running the show. What's more, the developers encourage rooting without worry that you'll void you're warranty. "Have at it: It's easy to root (and rooting won't void your warranty)," Ouya's developers stated on their Kickstarter page. "Everything opens with standard screws. Hardware hackers can create their own peripherals, and connect via USB or Bluetooth. You want our hardware design? Let us know. We might just give it to you. Surprise us!" The big thing, however, is to encourage developers to build affordable games through an open market ecosystem. All games will be at least partially free-to-play, which might make it difficult to attract big name publishers. At the same time, paid games should end up being significantly cheaper than on other consoles. Ouya is seeking funds to convert its prototype into production-ready models, but beyond that, the company needs help with how best to spend the millions it's already raised on Kickstarter. "We are blown away by your support. With your help, we just raised $2 million. And it's only the first day. Now we want to blow you away," Ouya said. "The biggest thing for us right now: we are working on our stretch goals, what we can do if we raise more money. It might take us a few days to figure that out, and we want your help." If you have an idea to share, you can hit the developers up at ideas at ouya dot tv. In addition, there's still 28 days left to offer a pledge and claim one of the reward tiers, which start at $10. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Amazon Reportedly Begins Testing Potential Game Changing Smartphone Posted: 11 Jul 2012 07:31 AM PDT  Where there's smoke, you'll often find fire, which turned out to be the case when it was rumored Amazon was working on a low-cost tablet, a device that would turn out be the Kindle Fire. Now we're hearing that Amazon wants to try its hand at the smartphone business. It was being reported less than a week ago that Amazon was in the process of collecting patents as part of its upcoming smartphone strategy, and now there's chatter that Amazon is currently testing what it hopes to be a game changing device.
Rumors are a dime a dozen, but this one comes from The Wall Street Journal, which claims to have heard from "people familiar with the situation" that Amazon is testing a smartphone with mass production slated for later this year, or possibly early 2013. Unfortunately, most details are still non-existent. Nobody seems to have a clue exactly how large the screen will be (one of WSJ's sources says between four and five inches), what kind of processor Amazon plans to use, and other hardware specifics. All we really know is that Amazon will face fierce competition, not just from Apple and its upcoming iPhone 5, but also all the low-cost Android devices that are already on the market. Standing out from the crowd might be harder in the smartphone sector than Amazon anticipates, and certainly more challenging than in the tablet arena. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Sprint's Security Update for Galaxy S III Kills Universal Search Feature Posted: 11 Jul 2012 06:51 AM PDT  If you're a Sprint customer using a Samsung Galaxy SIII smartphone, there's plenty of blame to go around for why your universal search feature is now broken, provided you installed the latest security update. You can blame Apple, which holds U.S. patent number 8,086,604 related to "using a plurality of heuristic algorithms" to search multiple locations at once. You can blame U.S. patent law and hate the game, not the player. Samsung and its legal team deserve a bit of scorn for not putting together a better legal defense, and Sprint gets some blame for not making it clear that Galaxy SIII owners were about to lose their 'Quick Search' feature by installing the latest update.
Wherever you decide to place the blame, the end result is the same. Samsung Galaxy SIII owners who installed the recent update screwed themselves out of the ability to search through contacts, apps, and the Web all at the same time, according to user complaints on Android Central's forums. "If you got used to this feature, it's a pain in the butt to lose it, especially if you want to search contacts. You have to go into contacts, then search, versus just using the global search," forum user 'eyecon82' posted. Fortunately for other users in the same boat, eyecon82 didn't just post to complain about the update, he provided a solution by way of an Android Application Package (APK). We haven't tested this ourselves, but based on user comments, the GoogleQuickSearchBox.apk file he links to effectively restores the universal search function after applying Sprint's latest update. As always, be extra cautious when installing software outside of official markets like Google Play and Amazon's App Store. Image Credit: Android Central forum user bojackr1 Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Dropbox Doubles Storage Capacity for Paying Customers, Adds 500GB Plan Posted: 11 Jul 2012 06:10 AM PDT  Congratulations are in order for Dropbox Pro subscribers, who went to bed one night and woke up the next morning to find they had double the online storage capacity to play with at no additional charge. As competition in the cloud sector starts stacking up a mile high, Dropbox bumped its 50GB ($9.99 per month) and 100GB ($19.99) Pro plans to 100GB and 200GB, respectively, and added a 500GB plan that runs $49.99 per month.
"Since time immemorial (2008), folks have been asking us for a bigger Dropbox. We've heard from architects with giant drafting files and photographers with huge portfolios, but mostly we hear from families who have more than 100 GB of photos, docs and videos," Dropbox stated in a blog post. "Today we're happy to announce that our upgrades are getting a huge upgrade." A 'Packrat' option that affords users unlimited undo history can be added to any of the three plans for $39 per year. And of course Dropbox still offers a free storage tier that gives non-paying customers 2GB, or up to 18GB via 500MB referral bonuses. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
