Intel and $100 laptop join forces

The laptop has already been put through its paces in some countries

Chip-maker Intel has joined forces with the makers of the $100 laptop.

The agreement marks a huge turnaround for both the not-for-profit One laptop per Child (OLPC) foundation and Intel.

In May this year, Nicholas Negroponte, the founder of OLPC said the silicon giant "should be ashamed of itself" for efforts to undermine his initiative.

He accused Intel of selling its own cut-price laptop - the Classmate PC - below cost to drive him out of markets in the developing world.

"What happened in the past has happened," said Will Swope of Intel. "But going forward, this allows the two organisations to go do a better job and have a better impact for what we are both very eager to do, which is help kids around the world."

"Intel joins the OLPC board as a world leader in technology, helping reach the world's children. Collaboration with Intel means that the maximum number of laptops will reach children," said Nicholas Negroponte, founder of One Laptop per Child.

Intel inside

The new agreement means that Intel will sit alongside the 11 companies, such as Google and Red Hat, which are partners in the OLPC scheme.

It will also join rival chip-maker AMD, which supplies the processor at the heart of the $100 laptop.

"Intel's apparent change of heart is welcome, and we're sure they can make a positive contribution to this very worthy project for the benefit of children all over the world," read a statement from AMD.

Software developed for the Classmate could run on the XO

Initially there are no plans to switch the processor to one designed by Intel. However, the servers used to back-up the XO laptops, as they are known, will have Intel technology at their core.

Decisions about the hardware inside the XO laptop would be made by OLPC, said Mr Swope.

"OLPC will decide about which products they choose to offer or not offer," he said.

OLPC, however, indicated that it would consider using Intel chips in its machines in the future.

Walter Bender, head of software development at OLPC, told the BBC News website that he believed OLPC would eventually offer different computers with different hardware.

"I think we will end up with a family of products that run across a wide variety of needs," he said. "Intel will be part of that mix."

Price test

In addition, the partnership will have a practical pay off for software developers.

"Any software you build is going to run at least on our two platforms," said Mr Swope.

An application developed for the XO laptop should work on the Classmate and vice versa.

"That's the exciting thing for me," said Mr Bender.

Currently both laptops are being tested in schools around the world. In parallel, OLPC is finalising orders for the first batch of computers.

Participating countries are able to purchase the XO in lots of 250,000. They will initially cost $176 (£90) but the eventual aim is to sell the machine to governments of developing countries for $100 (£50).

Intel says it already has orders for "thousands" of Classmates, which currently cost over $200 (£100).

Like the OLPC machine, Intel expects the price to eventually fall.

iPhone Auctioned for $100,000

Relax. Current iPhone auctions aren't remotely profitable, unless the auction is in the name of charity. Stuff.tv got the scoop regarding the latest Keep a Child Alive auction whose mission is to raise money to provide medicine and support services for children dying of AIDS in Africa. Alicia Keys will personally present the winning bidder with his uber-expensive iPhone at the Black Ball in New York, which will be honoring Bono on October 25th.

One anonymous, yet generous bidder (going by 'ccerc') wrote a big check for $100,000 for an iPhone purchased by film director Spike Lee at Apple's Soho Store in New York. According to the eBay page, the package also includes two Jawbone headsets, a special celeb voicemail, two round trip domestic flights, and two VIP passes to the Black Ball. While I'm glad the money is going to charity, I still can't get over the fact that someone paid $100,000 for an iPhone. An iPhone!

I guess this bidder's friends can't really complain about how expensive the iPhone is now...

How do you top that?

Harry Potter Game Review

Format:PSP
Price: $70.00
Publisher: EA Games
Players: Multiplayer Action
Genre: Adventure

What's the game all about?
The Ministry of Magic and the press have branded Harry Potter a liar. It's his fifth year at Hogwarts and everyone is in denial about Harry's recent encounter with the one who must not be named (Lord Voldemort of course). Playing as Harry, it's your job to stop the rumours, join Dumbledore's Army and prepare for battle.

What are the controls like?
There's so much to explore at Hogwarts and you might wonder why Harry isn't tired all the time, walking up and down those stairs all day. The controls are quite easy but sometimes creating a magic spell can be tricky. To be a really good wizard you're going to have to practise your spell casting.

What do you think of the graphics?
The graphics are magical. The characters look really similar to the film so it is like you are actually chatting to Ron or Hermione. All of the details around Hogwarts are great, especially the moving portraits and ghostly figures.

What are the game's best bits?

The best bit of the game is creating spells! You learn them one by one so they are quite easy to remember. Dueling with other wizards is fun too especially if they're from Slytherin.

What is not so good about the game?
The Marauders Map is supposed to guide you through Hogwarts but it can be difficult to read sometimes and makes the tasks feel like chores.

Closing comments?
If you are a Harry Potter fan then you will love this game. Even if you don't like Harry and his spell binding adventures you will still be hooked to this game, as quick as you can say Wingardium Leviosa.

Sony refines PSP console design

The new PSP looks very similar to the old model

Sony has unveiled a re-designed PlayStation Portable which is slimmer, lighter, and comes with a video-out port for watching content on TVs.

The form factor of the portable console is virtually unchanged but the device is now 33% lighter and 19% slimmer.

Sony has shipped more than 25m PSPs since its launch in 2004.

No release date or price was given for the new PSP. It lags behind sales of the Nintendo DS, which has shipped more than 40m units worldwide.

At a press conference in California, Sony also said it was working with Epic Games to optimise its Unreal graphics engine for use on the PlayStation 3.

Unreal Tournament 3, which uses the engine, will be available exclusively on PS3 in the Autumn. Seven developers, working on 20 more games, will use the optimised engine.

Sony also said it had secured exclusivity for much-hyped shooter Haze, at least for the "holiday season".

Nintendo conference

The firm also ended speculation that Metal Gear Solid 4, from veteran developer Hideo Kojima, would appear on the Xbox 360 as well as the PS3.

Sony said the game was "set for a simultaneous worldwide launch in early 2008 exclusively on PS3".

The press conference was also used to demo upcoming games, such as Killzone 2, and the latest iteration of the online portal, PlayStation Home.

Nintendo also held a press conference, at which it announced more games that it hopes will continue to broaden the gaming demographic.

Games announced included exercise title Wii fit, a new Mario Kart game for the popular console and the first Zelda game to appear on the Nintendo DS.

Nintendo of America president, Reggie Fils-Aime, said: "We're building on that foundation with games and accessories appealing to our current fan base and drawing in even more new players."

Samsung to Release New Blogging Phone

Samsung Electronics will launch in Europe this month its Mobile Blog 3G Phone (SGH-L760), which allows users to upload content directly to blog sites on the Internet.

The phone is expected to further fuel the current boom in mobile Internet and user-created content services, as it can upload directly to popular UCC sites like YouTube, Ublog and Buzznet.

A Samsung spokesman said the model will meet the demands of the new generation of users who want to share their everyday life with others in real time.

The mobile blog function's speedy data transmission will distinguish the phone from other handsets, he added.

Available in metallic silver, the slide phone has a 2-megapixel camera and Bluetooth technology and operates in line with the UMTS technology (Europe’s 3G wireless technology).

The phone will debut in Germany and Spain this month and next hit the Southeast Asian market

Google Accounts landing soon

Spring is a time for change, when couples fall in love, the trees bloom -- and swallows and AdSense publishers both begin their migration. That's right, they' have  just started our first Google Account migration tests for older AdSense accounts. When you log into your account, you may be greeted by a screen like the one below, asking you to upgrade your login to a "Google Account".

they're rolling out this migration slowly, so please don't be alarmed if you don't see this wizard in your account yet. If you like the email address you're already using, in most cases you'll be able to upgrade it to a Google Account and keep the same login and password. However, if you use another email address for other Google products like Gmail and Picasaweb, you already have a Google Account and you can finally use the same login for AdSense. Please note, however, that at this time it's not possible to update your login to an email address that is already being used as a login for AdWords or another AdSense account. We're working on fixing this, and you won't be required to migrate until we do.
Finally, please keep in mind that only older AdSense accounts need to be migrated, so you may not be affected. You're also welcome to skip the migration wizard for now if you like, although this means you may miss out on some cool new features!

Xbox revamp hits Europe in summer

 

A revamped Xbox 360, designed to store and display high-definition video, will go on sale in Europe on 24 August.

The black Elite console has a 120GB hard drive and outputs high definition video through a digital connection.

Microsoft's Shane Kim said he did not think recent reports of faulty Xbox 360s would damage future sales. The Elite machine is capable of storing more high definition video

Speaking ahead of the E3 games show, he added there were no plans for an Xbox 360 price cut, saying they were "very comfortable with the price".

"We are selling the Elite console as fast as we can make them," he said of the black Xbox 360, but was unable to give specific sales figures.

He said Microsoft felt no need to reduce prices in light of Sony's cut of $100 (£50) from the cost of the 60GB PS3.

"Since our rivals launched last year, in the US we are neck and neck with the Wii and we are just about double the sales of PlayStation 3," he added.

Mr Kim, Microsoft's corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios, said he did not feel Sony had genuinely cut prices as the firm had maintained a $600 (£300) price point for the 80GB PS3.

"We really feel like we are driving the next generation console market," he said.

Mr Kim assured consumers that the firm had taken steps to resolve concerns over many Xbox 360s being returned because of faults.

The firm has set aside more than $1bn (£500m) to cover the cost of offering extended warranties.

'Remove concerns'

"It's been somewhat positive because we had been able to remove people's concerns and show that we are standing behind the product.

"Customers have responded very well - reaction has been neutral to positive."

A new Halo 3 trailer was shown

Microsoft also used the E3 press conference to reaffirm its commitment to a video download service for Xbox users in Canada and Europe.

"We're launching in UK and Ireland, France and Germany first and then rolling out to other countries as soon as we can," he said.

In the US, Xbox Lives' video marketplace offers more than 2,100 hours of content from 28 networks and studios, with nearly 500 hours of high definition content.

A Microsoft press conference in Santa Monica highlighted some of the key titles being launched on Xbox 360 this year, including Halo 3 and Grand Theft Auto IV.

A new trailer for Halo 3 was shown, featuring some of the first video of the single-player campaign in action.

Microsoft also unveiled a "digital short film" made by Neill Blomkamp, who had been ear-marked for the stalled Halo movie, in conjunction with Peter Jackson's special effects wizards Weta Workshop and Origami Digital.

The company also trumpeted another title to move to the Xbox 360 after years of Nintendo and PlayStation exclusivity: Resident Evil 5 will make its debut on the console next year.

The award-winning first-person shooter Gears of Wars was also unveiled for Windows PCs.

Spielberg's gaming vision emerges

 

Two video games developed with director Steven Spielberg are to be shown off at the E3 conference in Los Angeles.

Spielberg is the Oscar-winning director of Saving Private Ryan.

The filmmaker has collaborated with Electronic Arts, the world's largest games publisher, on three titles.

The first, codenamed LMNO, is a contemporary action adventure, said Neil Young, general manager of EA's Los Angeles studio.

The second, with the codename PQRS, is a puzzle game designed for Nintendo's Wii console.

In an interview with Newsweek magazine, Spielberg said the puzzle game "seemed like a great thing for the entire family to play together over Christmas; although you don't need the excuse of a holiday to enjoy it."

The game has been described as a mix of Saturday-morning cartoon and Jenga.

'Chemical reaction'

Mr Young said: "Of course just playing with blocks does not a game make.

"Now imagine there are up to 50 different properties that can be associated with them. They can explode or form a chemical reaction."

In LMNO, being designed for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, the player partners with a female character who evolves over time depending on how she interacts with other characters in the game.

Newsweek described the title as "North by Northwest meets ET".

Spielberg told Newsweek: "The challenge is, can the game have an emotional impact on players while they are actively manipulating the world?"

In a separate statement about his involvement with EA, he said: "I am truly enjoying the creative collaboration and we hope that gamers will be as excited as we are about what we can bring to the medium through our shared vision."

No details about the third game Spielberg is working on were released.

Trillian Astra chat / IM software for iPhone

Those hankering to get your chat on with that shiny new iPhone now have an option other than waiting 'til who knows when for a (potential) Apple update -- if you're cool with alpha software invading your handset, that is. According to Cerulean Studios', the Trillian Astra application has actually been "designed for iPhone, it doesn't just happen to work with it." The result is a polished interface that is "compact" and fit to the screen, meaning that you won't be dragging and moving windows in order to hold a decent text-based conversation. Currently, the software updates your contact list and message windows, and enables the sending and receiving of messages so long as your browser window is open. Interested? Curb your enthusiasm a bit, sign up to be an alpha tester, and exercise your patience "for the next few weeks."