| Comcast to Obtain Time Warner Cable for $45.2 Billion Posted: 13 Feb 2014 04:01 PM PST 
Mass media company continues to grow Comcast has announced plans to acquire Time Warner Cable in a stock-for-stock transaction that would total $45.2 billion. The transaction would involve Comcast exchanging 23 percent of its stock, valued at $55.12, for 284.9 million shares of Time Warner Cable stock, valued at $158.82. The merger would open up new areas for Comcast since neither company overlaps each other and giving it access to areas such as New York City, Texas, Southern California, and North and South Carolina. In addition, Comcast would have access to around 11 million new subscribers from Time Warner Cable. However, the company plans to divest three million of those subscribers to allay competitive concerns. If such a thing occurs, Comcast's total number of subscribed users would amount to around 30 million once the acquisition takes place. According to Comcast, the merger is expected to close by the end of 2014 pending approval between both companies' shareholders and regulatory review. However, the merger could be stopped by either the Department of Justice or the Federal Communications Commission, given that Comcast would have around 30 percent of paid TV subscribers in the US. Should the DoJ or FCC stop Comcast's acquisition of Time Warner Cable? And is Comcast becoming too big? |
| Microsoft's Tami Reller Touts Over 200 Million Windows 8 Licenses Sold Posted: 13 Feb 2014 11:56 AM PST  Redmond finally provides an update on Windows 8 sales
We haven't heard a whole lot from Microsoft in regards to Windows 8 sales, so it was a nice surprise when Redmond's Executive Vice President of Marketing spilled the beans on exactly how many license have been sold to date. According to comments Reller made at a Goldman Sachs technology conference, Microsoft has sold more than 200 million Windows 8 licenses since launching to the public in October 2012 (and to OEMs in August 2012). "We've surpassed 200 million licenses now on Windows 8, which is pretty stunning," Reller said, according to The Verge. In a way, that is stunning, considering all the criticism Microsoft took for forcing desktop users to accept a touch-friendly interface that's best suited for touchscreen devices like tablets and hybrids. At the same time, Microsoft sold over 240 million Windows 7 licenses a year after it debuted, so Windows 8 isn't doing as well as its predecessor. The slower sales can't all be blamed on the overhauled UI. Some of the blame has to be put on the PC market as a whole, which finds itself in a slump as users flock to tablets and smartphones in place of secondary systems. Still, Microsoft isn't blind to the concerns of traditional desktop users. "We're being very thoughtful about what's going well, what's not going well, and how do we change that," Reller said. Windows 8.1 represented the first major step in addressing customers' concerns. It brought back the Start button (not the Start menu) and introduced a number of other user-friendly changes. Microsoft is also planning a robust update to Windows 8.1 in spring. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Score an Ouya Android Console and $25 Game Credit for $85 Posted: 13 Feb 2014 11:14 AM PST  Lowest price yet for Ouya
Following a successful Kickstarter campaign, Ouya's developers have been trying to drum up interest in its Android-based micro console by offering different color options and, most recently, a model with twice the amount of storage. Color and storage options are nice, but if it's all about the price, here's a heads up that you can purchase an Ouya console for $85 from StackSocial's website. A wireless controller and AA batteries come standard with the console, though in this case you'll also receive a $25 digital coupon for purchasing games. That's not a bad deal considering Ouya normally sells for $99, and that's sans the $25 games credit. The Ouya console that's up for grabs at StackSocial comes with 8GB of storage, HDMI output, 802.11n Wi-Fi, and an Ethernet port. There are over 650 Android games for Ouya, all of which are free to try. Be advised that all sales are final -- there are no refunds. If you're still interested, head over to StackSocial's website. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Intel Rumored to Delay Broadwell Until Q4 2014 Posted: 13 Feb 2014 10:42 AM PST  A Broadwell delay isn't what the PC industry needs
It was last October when Intel CEO Brian Krzanich said a "defect density issue" was negatively affecting yields, prompting the Santa Clara chip maker to delay its 14nm Broadwell launch by a quarter. Production was to begin in the first quarter of 2014, though there's a rumor going around that Intel might postpone Broadwell's big debut to the fourth quarter of this year. Is that really the case? The rumor originates from Digitimes and its "sources from the upstream supply chain." Sometimes Digitimes is spot on with its inside information, and other times it's dead wrong. In this case, it's difficult to figure out because Intel stopped short of outright denying there's another delay. "We continue to make progress with the industry's first 14nm manufacturing process and our second generation 3-D transistors. Broadwell, the first product on 14nm, is up-and-running as we demonstrated at the Intel Developer Forum in Q3 2013. We're now planning to begin production this quarter with shipments to customers later this year," Intel told ExtremeTech when asked about the rumored delay. On the surface, it sounds like everything is proceeding as planned, though Intel certainly left the door open to a delay by not outright saying everything is still on schedule and that the rumors are false. At the same time, this is one of the reasons why companies like Intel don't comment on rumors or speculation. According to Digitimes and its supply stream sources, it's not so much technical difficulties this time around, but "slow digestion of Haswell processor inventories" that's to blame. If that's true, this could be yet another blow to the PC market as a whole. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Lenovo Shipped Nearly 5 Devices Per Second in Q4, Posts Record Revenue Posted: 13 Feb 2014 09:41 AM PST  World's No. 1 PC player continues to kill it
It's been a few quarters since Lenovo shoved Hewlett-Packard aside to become the leading PC maker in the world (in terms of shipments), and whatever the Chinese OEM is doing, it seems to be working. Lenovo on Thursday announced record results for its third fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2013, noting that it generated $10.8 billion in revenue. That's a 15 percent year-over-year increase and also marks the first time Lenovo's topped the $10 billion mark. To put things in perspective, Lenovo said it shipped a record 32.6 million devices during the quarter, which is nearly 5 devices every second. Not all of those were mobile devices. In fact, Lenovo's desktop PC shipments grew -- yes, GREW! -- 9.1 percent year-over-year. By Lenovo's count, its share of the desktop PC market grew by 2 share points to 18 percent. In addition, Lenovo said its laptop sales contributed the most to its revenue, generating 50 percent of the money it made. That said, combined shipments of smartphones and tablets came to 17.3 million, surpassing the 15.3 million PCs Lenovo sold during the quarter. Lenovo's tablet shipments reached a record high 3.4 million units, up over 300 percent compared to the same quarter a year prior. The OEM credited its Yoga Tablet for the spike in shipments. "Lenovo had outstanding performance last quarter, delivering both record revenue and record profit. Leveraging strong execution of our strategy, innovative products and growth in our PC Plus business, we continue delivering on our commitment to improve our profitability and we are confident we will maintain this momentum in our existing businesses," said Yang Yuanqing (PDF), Chairman and CEO of Lenovo. "Further, the Motorola and IBM server acquisitions that we just announced are a perfect fit with our PC Plus strategy. While our top priority now is full participation in the regulatory approvals process, I am confident that from day 1 after closing, these businesses will quickly begin contributing to our performance and develop into pillars for long-term, sustainable growth." Lenovo spent big last quarter on the Motorola and IBM server acquisitions, but it also posted a net profit of $1.36 billion, up 15 percent year-over-year. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Survey Says You're Doing More Sexting These Days Posted: 13 Feb 2014 08:47 AM PST  "I want to be on you" - Ron Burgundy
Could you imagine if Ron Burgundy owned a cell phone? Actually, it's probably best if you don't visualize what he'd do with one, such things have a tendency to burn a permanent spot in your brain requiring years of therapy to remove. Though you may not want to picture Ron Burgandy firing off sext messages, there's a good chance you or someone you know actively engages in sexting. According to a report released by Pew Research, sexting -- sending sexually suggestive nude or nearly nude photos and videos via cell phone -- is on the rise and is practiced by couples and singles alike. Specifically, 9 percent of adult cell phone owners have sent a sext of themselves to someone else, up from 6 percent who fessed up in 2012. One in five cell phone owners say they've received a sext from someone they know, up from 15 percent in 2012, and 3 percent of cell phone owners admit to having forwarded a sext to someone else. "Married and partnered adults are just as likely as those not in a relationship to say they have sent sexts; single adults are more likely to report receiving and forwarding such images or videos," Pew Research says. The topic of sexting is just one subset of the entire report, which itself focuses on how couples interact with technology. For example, 25 percent of cell phone owners who are married or in a partnership felt their spouse or partner was distracted by their cell phone when they were together. At the same time, 9 percent said they resolved an argument with their partner online or by text message when they were having difficulty resolving the problem in person. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| AMD Announces Radeon R7 265 Graphics Card, Hits Retail in Late February for $149 Posted: 13 Feb 2014 05:40 AM PST  Radeon R7 265 pairs 2GB of GDDR5 memory with a 256-bit bus
AMD is relentless in its assault on the graphics card market, especially the budget and mid-range tiers as represented by the Radeon R7 Series. Today AMD added to the heap by announcing the Radeon R7 265, the highest-end model in the R7 Series and a seemingly tantalizing option at $149 MSRP. As things are starting to get a little crowded in this segment, AMD is dropping the price of the Radeon R7 260X to $119. Before we go on, let's take a quick glance at the Radeon R7 Series. From top to bottom, here's what it looks like: - Radeon R7 265
- Radeon R7 260X
- Radeon R7 260
- Radeon R7 250X
- Radeon R7 250
- Radeon R7 240
Two of those cards are new launches -- the Radeon R7 250X, which AMD officially introduced on Monday, and today's debut of the 265. 
The Radeon R7 265 flexes 1,024 stream processors, an engine clock of up to 925MHz, and 2GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus running at up to 5.6Gbps. It serves up 1.89 TFLOPS of compute performance, a bit higher than the Radeon HD 7850 that it's rumored to be based on. Compared to the R7 260X, AMD says the 265 is about 25 percent faster. AMD's newest graphics card requires just a single 6-pin PCI-E connector and draws 150W (typical) of power. It supports CrossFire, DirectX 11.2, OpenGL 4.3, Eyefinity, and Mantle. 
The Radeon R7 265 will be available in late February. AMD says several board partners have silicon ready to go, including Sapphire, PowerColor, XFX, Asus, Gigabyte, MSI, HIS, and Club 3D. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Newegg Daily Deals: LG Black 14X Blu-ray Burner, ViewSonic 27-inch LCD Monitor, and More! Posted: 13 Feb 2014 05:39 AM PST  
Top Deal: Sometime in the future, Blu-ray will join the likes of HD-DVD, LaserDisc, Betamax, VHS, and other defunct formats, but that time hasn't come yet. For now, Blu-ray is still very much relevant, and is also the topic of today's top deal, which is for an LG Black 14X BD-R BDXL Blu-ray Burner for $55 with free shipping (normally $68; additional $5 mail-in-rebate). LG's burner supports BDXL (128GB) discs, along with offering 3D Blu-ray playback and M-Disc support. Other Deals: WD AV-GP 4TB IntelliPower 3.5-inch Internal Hard Drive for $175 with free shipping (normally $190 - use coupon code: [EMCPHPC26]) Western Digital Black 500GB 7200 RPM 3.5-inch Internal Hard Drive for $65 with free shipping (normally $71 - use coupon code: [EMCPHPC24]) Rosewill THOR V2 Gaming ATX Full Tower Computer Case for $100 with free shipping (normally $130 - use coupon code: [EMCPHPC34]) ViewSonic VA2703-LED Black 27-inch 3.4ms LCD Monitor for $200 with shipping for $2 (normally $230 - use coupon code: [EMCPHPC52]) |
