Nothing official for the time being Canadian mobile phone maker Research In Motion is reportedly working on a new BlackBerry handset, one that will come to the market with a sliding form factor. The company has been long rumored to be considering the launch of a sliding device that would also sport a QWERTY keyboard, and it seems that things might be moving closer to be officially unveiled to the world. According to a recent article on BGR, Research In Motion has been working on this device for quite some time, and now some details on what the sliding Blackberry is all about emerged into the wild. Unfortunately, no leaked image with the upcoming mobile phone is available for the time being, and the leaked hardware specs should suffice at the moment.
mong the details available on the handset, we can count the fact that it should be a portrait sliding device, and it seems that the phone might end up with a Palm Pre-like form factor when released. Although nothing is said on this matter, if the rumor pans out, it means that the handset might include both a sliding QWERTY and a touchscreen display, a combination quite common these days.
Other details on the handset include: - The phone will run BlackBerry OS 6.0. - The rumored device will 100% support Wi-Fi 802.11n. - The resolution unfortunately has not improved, it is still 360×480. - The phone will not be a Verizon exclusive — it’s supposed to be a GSM/HSPA device.
According to BGR, in case the device comes with a touchscreen display on board, it might prove to be none other than the previously rumored BlackBerry Storm slider. Moreover, the touch capabilities would also suggest that the mobile phone has something to do with the rumored BlackBerry Magnum/Dakota, a hybrid handset from RIM with QWERTY keyboard, optical trackpad and touchscreen display, though in a candybar form factor.
Most chemical elements become superconducting at low temperatures or high pressures, but until now, copper, silver, gold, and the semiconductor germanium, for example, have all refused superconductivity. Scientists at the Forschungszentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (FZD) research center were now able to produce superconducting germanium for the first time. Furthermore, they could unravel a few of the mysteries which come along with superconducting semiconductors.
Superconductors are substances that conduct electricity without losses when cooled down to very low temperatures. Pure semiconductors, like silicon or germanium, are almost non-conducting at low temperatures, but transform into conducting materials after doping with foreign atoms. An established method of doping is ion implantation (ions = charged atoms) by which foreign ions are embedded into the crystal lattice of a semiconductor. To produce a superconducting semiconductor, an extreme amount of foreign atoms are necessary, even more than the substance would usually be able to absorb. At the FZD, germanium samples were doped with about six gallium atoms per 100 germanium atoms. With these experiments, the scientists could prove indeed that the doped germanium layer of only sixty nanometers thickness became superconducting, and not just the clusters of foreign atoms which could easily form during extreme doping.
As the germanium lattice is heavily damaged by ion implantation, it has to be repaired afterwards. For such purposes, a flash-lamp annealing facility has been developed at the FZD. Its application allows for a repair of the destroyed crystal lattice by rapidly heating the sample surface (within few milliseconds) while the distribution of the dopant atoms is kept almost the same.
From a scientific point of view, the new material is very promising. It exhibits a surprisingly high critical magnetic field with respect to the temperature where the substance becomes superconducting. For many materials, superconductivity occurs only at very low temperatures, slightly above the absolute zero point of -273 degrees Celsius or 0 Kelvin. The gallium doped germanium samples become superconducting at about 0.5 Kelvin; however, the FZD researchers expect the temperature to increase further by changing various parameters during ion implantation or annealing.
Physicists have been dreaming about superconducting semiconductors for a long time, but saw only few chances for the semiconductor germanium to become superconducting at all. Germanium used to be the material for the first generation of transistors; however, it was soon replaced by silicon, the current material for microelectronics. Recently, the “old” semiconductor material germanium has aroused more and more interest, as it allows, compared to silicon, for more rapid circuits.
Experts even believe germanium to be rediscovered for micro- and nanoelectronics. The reason for such a renaissance lies in the fact that miniaturization in microelectronics industry using silicon is coming to an end. Today, extremely thin oxide layers are needed for transistors, down to a level where silicon oxide does not work well any more. Germanium as a new material for chips would come along with two big advantages: it would enable both faster processes and further miniaturization in micro- and nanoelectronics. Superconducting germanium could thus help to realize circuits for novel computers.
The scientists at the Forschungszentrum Dresden-Rossendorf followed a targeted approach when searching for a new superconducting semiconductor. Instead of doping with boron, which had resulted in superconducting silicon two years ago in France, the scientists choose gallium because of its higher solubility in germanium. In many systematic experiments they proved that the superconductivity of germanium can be reproduced. Furthermore, they were able to show that the transition temperature marking the start of superconductivity can be raised within certain limits.
In the future, the scientists at the two FZD institutes “Ion Beam Physics and Materials Research” and “Dresden High Magnetic Field Laboratory” will combine their know-how in order to fine-tune different rather complex parameters for further experiments, thus hopefully discovering further mysteries of superconducting semiconductors.
1. Commoditization pressure on the lower network layers
2. Wireless transformation to data services
3. Explosion in provider consumption of vendor professional services
4. Business model transformation focus on the service layer
5. Merging network and IT infrastructure into a common
1. Commoditization pressure on the lower network layers. As fiber transport gets cheaper, the value of running fiber directly to points of traffic concentration increases. The trend to fiber-connect cell tower sites, for example, constitutes a good strategy in preparing for 4G rollout.
The same pressure is generating interest in creating agile optical networks and opto-Ethernet hybrid networks that would reduce complexity and management costs in part by creating a larger capacity pool to reduce concerns about congestion and traffic engineering. Some very large network operators are already issuing requests for information (RFIs) on this structure for their core networks, with some considering it in metro deployments as well. In 2010, the formulation of a new transport architecture based on optical and opto-Ethernet advances will create both risks and opportunities for vendors but will certainly cause a major shift in operator procurements.
2. Wireless transformation to data services. Wireless voice has been the major driver of landline losses, despite market hype about alternative broadband wireline voice services, but the increase in all-you-can-eat wireless voice pricing puts a cap on voice average revenue per user (ARPU) and makes it essential for wireless operators to broaden their services to wireless users in order to kick-start ARPU growth.
Efforts to encourage a user transition to wireless data services have so far focused primarily on smartphone support, and while these fancy handsets create opportunities, they also cause problems. In 2010, the problems will have to be resolved, at least in terms of planning, to prepare for Long Term Evolution (LTE) and WiMAX rollouts already under way in markets like Asia and North America.
Network operators could increase ARPU by at least 30% if they could achieve widespread adoption of data services without significant cannibalization in voice revenues, and that creates the risk. The only real driver of consumer data services for wireless is Internet access; as a result, the smartphone revolution could simply cut operators out of the market for emerging services. Over-the-top (OTT) players have garnered most incremental service success for wireline broadband, after all. Since Skype is now going to be an independent business and Google's M&A shows it may be going after wireless users more directly, operators will need to counter this risk to ensure that their data plans net them a financial reward.
3. Explosion in provider consumption of vendor professional services. In the past, the network operators have tended to self-integrate based on a religious dedication to network standards. During the last year, though, these same operators jumped on professional services from equipment vendors and software/integration firms to build next-generation networks (NGNs) and manage them. This trend will accelerate in 2010.
Two main factors will drive the shift: the increased integration of information technology components (software, storage and servers) into services and the increased complexity of modern service ecosystems. It makes more sense to outsource the complex integration and management tasks, particularly in the near term, when the technology is in a state of flux.
One indirect indicator of this trend is increased provider support for procurement zones that divide their network purchases into inter-reactive product groups, then assign responsibility for each group to two key vendors. It's up to these prime contractors to offer integration within and between groups and to incorporate smaller vendors' products as needed. All of this makes it less risky to undertake major network changes.
4. Business model transformation focus on the service layer. With optical and lower-layer technology improvements continuing to commoditize bandwidth, and wireless showing signs of falling into the same unlimited-usage pricing model as wireline, operators realize they can't be successful in the long run selling bits alone. Operators have relied on vendors and standards to advance their technology goals, but neither has kept pace with market demands and opportunities.
Vendors are now starting to deploy service-layer solutions, some converted into products and others bundled with professional services. In 2010, we'll see what operators will accept in terms of the framework of a vendor service-layer solution and which specific service areas might be targeted by network operators. Service layer technology could be used to improve network operations, add new services to compete with over-the-top (OTT) players, or both. Operators could primarily target mobile users, wireline broadband and IPTV, or fixed-mobile convergence. The nature of the applications that drive early commitments may be critical in determining which vendors win or lose in 2010.
5. Merging network and IT infrastructure into a common cloud. Service providers need architectures to guide their infrastructure deployment. Some NGN standards -- like those of the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) and International Telecommunication Union -- have implicit IT components, but they don't deal with the way these components are deployed in the data center environment. service oriented architecture (SOA) standards and the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL), operators assume relatively little risk by putting their operations and service platforms into a cloud infrastructure. Since the emerging network equipment vendor architectures for the service layer are also SOA-based, these architectures could be readily integrated into a cloud computing conception of network/IT integration.
Even though India, Singapore, Mexico or the Philippines are generally more appealing as locations for technological support call centers, HP seems to want to distinguish itself from the fold by building such centers in northern African countries. The company has not revealed how many facilities it plans to open but has disclosed that it is set to hire at least 1,000 people by the end of 2010.HP seems to have chosen a rather difficult period for founding such a center, especially since customers don't exactly enjoy having to work with foreign tech support. In addition, the actual consumer segment will likely be more prone to harsh criticism considering the high unemployment, especially in the United States. Still, HP doesn't appear to be overly concerned, at least not enough as to follow the flock and build its tech support centers in India, Singapore, Mexico or the Philippines."We see Africa as a potential base for providing all sort of services and technical support for customers outside of Africa," said Rainer Koch, HP Managing Director, in a statement to Reuters. "We plan to invest more in the future on the continent on that perspective."HP has not revealed which countries it is considering for the establishment of its centers, but it will likely have to choose wisely considering the many w...
HTC HD2, the most appealing handset running under Microsoft's Windows Mobile operating system that the Taiwanese mobile phone maker HTC Corporation delivered to the market during the ongoing year, is expected to arrive on the US market in early 2010, and T-Mobile might be the carrier to have it. HTC hasn't stated anything official in this direction, although it promised that HD2 would be available globally; yet, a recently leaked pre-release ROM for the handset shows that the operator will have it. According to a recent article on WMExperts, the HTC HD2 is indeed on its way to T-Mobile in the United States, as showed in the .nbh file from the aforementioned ROM. Moreover, it seems that there are also some more goodies that T-Mobile's users can expect for this behemoth to bring around, including Leo ROM 2.01 (far updated from the recently leaked ROMs for the handset, it seems), and the WM 6.5 build 21869. [img=2]At the same time, the ROM also shows that HTC HD2 is set to arrive stateside with Opera 9.7.0.35627 on board, Teeter 2.0, TMOUS_Manila_Core 2.5.1921401, and there is also reference to OzIM_US_1.0.5.1.139. One way or the other, if this rumor pans out, T-Mobile USA will put on sale a handset clearly upgraded when compared to the version that is already available for purchase in a series of markets around the world.
So your new laptop computer died in inside of a year. "I'll never buy a computer from [insert manufacturer name here] again!" I've heard the protests time and time again.
Yeah, maybe you got a lemon, but no matter which brand you bought, you truly are not alone in this situation: An analysis of 30,000 new laptops from SquareTrade, which provides aftermarket warranty coverage for electronics products, has found that in the first three years of ownership, nearly a third of laptops (31 percent) will fail.
That's actually better than I would have expected based on my experience and observations on how people treat their equipment.
SquareTrade has more detailed information (the full PDF of the company's study is available here) on the research on its website. But here are some highlights about how, why, and which laptops fail:
> 20.4 percent of failures are due to hardware malfunctions. 10.6 percent are due to drops, spills, or other accidental damage.
> Netbooks have a roughly 20 percent higher failure rate due to hardware malfunctions than standard laptops. The more you pay for your laptop, the less likely it is to fail in general (maybe because you're more careful with it?).
> The most reliable companies? A shocker: Toshiba and Asus, both with below a 16 percent failure rate due to hardware malfunction.
> The least reliable brands? Acer, Gateway, and HP. HP's hardware malfunction rate, the worst in SquareTrade's analysis, is a whopping 25.6 percent.
None of the numbers are overly surprising. As SquareTrade notes, "the typical laptop endures more use and abuse than nearly any other consumer electronic device (with the possible exception of cell phones)," so failures are really inevitable.
Want to keep your notebook running for longer than a few years? Ensure your laptop is as drop-proofed as possible (use a padded bag or case, route cords so they won't be tripped on, lock children in another room), and protect it as best you can from heat and dust.
Following rumours claiming that Nintendo was going to release a new version of its portable console, the Japanese manufacturer decided to act quickly to confirm the information. The new version is a redesign of the DSi model equipped with a larger screen. Fittingly, it will be called the Nintendo DSi XL.
The console will be available in Japan from the end of November and should reach other markets during the first quarter of 2010. It's nice to think that players on the move will be able to enjoy greater visual comfort, isn't it?
Nothing official for the time being
