Panda Security Releases Free Cloud Antivirus Published on Security |

Offering a free sample of your security software is one way to increase public awareness and, eventually, sales, so Panda Security jumped on the wagon and unveiled the beta version of Panda Cloud Antivirus.

The software is based on the information it automatically gathers from users and then sends it back to them from Panda labs as protective signatures. According to Panda, the software will grow in strength as more and more users try it out, since the volume of information will be growing as well.

On the other hand, stressed out the company, this “cloud” approach proves to be much less demanding for the users’ computers, while, in the mean time, being able to protect against malware 100 times faster than traditional solutions.

A recent survey conducted by Panda unveiled that 24% of users with up-to-date signature-based antivirus software were infected with malware. The cloud-based approach, the company claimed, can reduce the rate of infection to only 4%.

Panda Security plans to follows a business model that seems to be working very well for AVG. The basic service will be offered for free but additional, more complex services will be available only on a fee-based scenario.

Nintendo Wii Sales Record: 2 Million In November Published on Top Stories |

Nintendo’s Wii console set a new sales record in the US: over two million units. A really high figure for a non-December month.

Worldwide sales for Wii this November were of 3.6 million, according to data from NPD Group. The console was released in November 2006 and its total sales amount to an impressive 15.4 million only in the United States.

In the mean time, Nintendo’s handheld DS console doesn’t appear to be selling too bad either. The Nintendo DS system was the runner-up in November’s best seller content, with over 1.56 million sold. On the other hand, the DS surpasses the Wii in terms of total sales in the US: 24.6 since its release in November 2004.

"Nintendo's record-breaking sales demonstrate that consumers are looking for the best value not only among video games, but also among all entertainment options," said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America's executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. "Shoppers are looking for gifts that can be enjoyed by the whole family, and Nintendo provides an incomparable range of experiences that gets the whole family involved."

Nintendo was also proud to point out that four games made for its systems got in the top U.S. best-sellers for November: Wii Play (3), Wii Fit (4), Mario Kart (5) and Wii (9)

The Android Alliance Attracts New Members Published on Telecom |

Android seems to be growing in popularity, as 14 more companies decided to join the Open Handset Alliance (OHA).

OHA's latest batch of new members includes the following names: AKM Semiconductor Inc., ARM, ASUSTek Computer Inc., Atheros Communications, Borqs, Ericsson, Garmin International Inc., Huawei Technologies, Omron Software Co. Ltd, Softbank Mobile Corporation, Sony Ericsson, Teleca AB, Toshiba Corporation and Vodafone.

“New members will either deploy compatible Android devices, contribute significant code to the Android Open Source Project, or support the ecosystem through products and services that will accelerate the availability of Android-based devices. With these commitments, the Open Handset Alliance will continue to drive greater and faster innovation for the benefit of mobile users and everyone in the industry,” the OHA said in a statement.

Mobile makers joining the group promised that devices designed for the Android OS are part of their plans. Asus and Sony Ericsson mentioned that such devices were already in development in their labs, but refrained from saying anything about a release schedule.

Amazon Unveils Kindle 2 Published on Hardware |

The second version of the Kindle reading device has been finally unveiled by Amazon. The Kindle comes pack with a lot of improved features, but will they be enough to boost its sales?

The device itself comes along an enhanced offer in the Kindle Store: over 230,000 books, including 103 of 110 current New York Times Best Sellers and New Releases.

“Kindle 2 is everything customers tell us they love about the original Kindle, only thinner, faster, crisper, with longer battery life, and capable of holding hundreds more books. If you want, Kindle 2 will even read to you — something new we added that a book could never do,” said Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com Founder and CEO.

The Kindle 2 hardware offer includes a 6-inch, 600 x 800 electronic paper display with 16 shades of gray, 2 GB of memory (around 1,500 books) and an improved battery life: four to five days on one charge with wireless on and over two weeks with wireless turned off.

On the software side, Kidle 2 takes pride in the 20% faster page turn and especially in the “Text-to-Speech” feature. Users can choose to either read or just listen to the book, which will be read by either male or female voices.

Kindle 2 is available for pre-order for $359 and will hit the market on February 24.

Hewlett-Packard Starts Selling Enviro Batteries Published on Hardware

The Enviro batteries are the latest offer from HP: the company promises that the batteries won't lose any capacity over the lifetime of the notebook.

Don't get too excited, this time frame only cover three years. However, it's a better offer, and the company also claims that the batteries recharge much faster than traditional models.

The Enviro batteries are produced by Boston-Power under its Ecolabel-certified battery technology and are available under the Sonata label name. The new batteries are available as accessories for 18 existing notebook models representing approximately 70% of HP’s consumer notebook PC portfolio.

“From the beginning, our goal has been to help notebook computer users benefit from optimal mobility with dependable, high-performance, environmentally sustainable batteries,” said Boston-Power Founder and CEO Dr. Christina Lampe-Onnerud. “HP’s endorsement of Sonata is a great step forward in popularizing this battery technology.”

Vodafone Gets Palm Treo 500v Exclusive Deal Published on Telecom

Palm and Vodafone shook hands and issued the following announcement: the Palm Treo 500v smartphone will hit th market this October. The device will be available only to Vodafone customers.

At first, the new phone will be available for customers in seven European countries (Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom) and in South Africa ( Vodacom customers only).

The Palm Treo 500v smartphone is based on Windows Mobile 6. It includes a full QWERTY keyboard, large screen, video streaming capability and support for Instant Messaging, SMS, email and phone.

The list of features for Palm Treo 500v also includes the following:
- Automatic delivery of Hotmail/MSN, Yahoo!, and Gmail, email as it arrives
- Large, high-resolution screen
- Internet Explorer Mobile full-featured browser
- Access to Google Maps and eBay
- Vodafone live! for news, sports, and entertainment on the go
- 3G/UMTS network
- Planner with address book, calendar, to-do lists, and more
- View Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Adobe PDF files - Windows Media Player Mobile for music and videos - 2.0 megapixel camera captures video too
- 150MB of memory, expandable with microSD expansion card
- Microsoft Direct Push technology for delivery of Outlook email
- Bluetooth wireless technology

The Palm Treo 500v will be available in two colors: glacier white and charcoal grey. Vodafone has yet to announce a clear price policy.

Apple And China Mobile Finally Getting Along Published on Telecom

Negotiations between Apple and the government-run China Mobile have finally found some common ground and are going well.

Up till recent Apple found it to be impossible to impose the same conditions as it did (nearly) everywhere else in the world. China Mobile is the only official gateway guarding the huge Chinese market, a thing that finally made Apple to sweeten the tone and cut the list of demands.

The most important concession made by Apple was to drop its demand on revenue sharing. The company is known to be a very stubborn negotiator, but this time rumor has it that Steve Jobs is very keen on getting the iPhone in China before the end of the year.

Add to that the analysts' estimations that over 800,000 iPhones are already in use in China, and you might see why China Mobile is gaining more ground with every passing day.

According to a report on government-owned business paper, the companies are now getting along fine and a deal might be announced in the near future.

Apple would not comment on such speculation, while China Mobile's CEO Wang Jianzhou pretended to back the rumor, only so he could poke Apple a bit more:

"We are discussing this issue but we do not have an agreement," said Wang during the ITU Telecom Asia 2008.

With the iPhone officially in China Apple would gain access to 1.2 billion potential customers, a figure that would certainly look well on Apple's reports to shareholders. The gadget itself would be too expensive for the vast majority of the Chinese population, but these are just details which can be easily disregarded.

Amazon Expands HD Offer On Amazon Video On Demand
Published on love sign

Amazon’s Video On Demand got a significant boost recently, adding over 500 HD TV shows and movies from major studios and networks such as Warner Bros, Sony Pictures, Paramount Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., Universal Studios Home Entertainment and Showtime Networks.

Customers can now order and watch movies and TV shows in HD on their televisions through compatible devices including: the Roku digital video player, TiVo Series3, HD, and HD XL DVRs, and the Sony Bravia Internet Video Link.

“This is a great day for our customers because our best-in-class HD offering just became even better with HD movies and TV shows now being offered by Amazon Video On Demand,” said Tara Maitra, vice president and general manager of Content Services and Advertising Sales at TiVo Inc. “Adding HD content from Amazon Video on Demand to an existing vast library of options shows once again that with a TiVo remote you truly can have it all. Consumers can access Amazon Video On Demand HD movies and TV shows, all with the simplicity people have come to expect from TiVo.”Movies rented in high definition are priced between $3.99 and $4.99. Television episodes are only $2.99 each. Top titles available now in HD on Amazon Video On Demand include new-release movies such as “Frost/Nixon,” “Twilight” and “Yes Man” and hit TV series including “Californication,” “The Tudors,” “Smallville,” and “Gossip Girl.”It’s certainly a good step forward for Amazon. Still, one should wonder if this will prove enough to catch up with Netflix. We’d say Amazon should start training for a lengthy marathon.

Murderdrome Has No Place on iTunes, Says Apple
Published on Internet

Publisher Infurious Comics has a state of mind reflecting its name right now: one of the company's comics has been banned from the iTunes Store due to its violent content.
Officially, the comic, dubbed Murderdrome, has been rejected because it failed to comply to Apple's 'community standards'. On the other hand, the publisher considers the decision to be plain old censorship.
As it follows, Infurious has posted the first issue of the comic online and asks everyone to leave a comment backing their cause:
“Here at infurious, we would love to work with Apple to ensure a content rating system can be put in place to allow material that is no more offensive than many of the R rated films available to download on iTunes,” reads the announcement.
“PLEASE leave a comment committing your support to us - we’ll forward ALL of these to Apple, so that we can ensure that not only Murderdrome, but that ANY comic submitted to Apple doesn’t fall foul of the same censorship.”
The episode is available here. We've read it: it's a bit violent and filled up with cliches. If we were Apple, we would've benned it for being totally not-funny.

Psystar Sues Apple For Violating Anti-Trust Laws Published on Top Stories |

It's the old American Wild Law way: you got sued? Counter-sue your opponent! This time, the legal ring has Apple in one corner and Psystar in the other.

Psystar's business of selling systems featuring pre-installed with Apple's OS X made the Cupertino company to take matters to court in July. In the filing, Apple accuses Psystar of copyright infringement and illegally distributing OS X in violation of the company's end-user license agreement (Apple's EULA specifically states that it's forbidden to install the company-made OS on non-Apple computers).

Now Psystar decided to hit Apple with an antitrust case. The Apple-clone maker alleges that Apple's way of bundling the OS with the hardware doesn't comply to current antitrust laws.

If the plaintiff wins the case, the road for Apple-clones is clear and the Cupertino company will be anything but happy: after all, the Mac is one of the biggest (if not the biggest) source of revenue for the company.

The bad new for Apple is that Microsoft's bundling the Internet Explorer browser with the Windows OS was met with the same kind of criticism and Redmond eventually lost a lot of legal ground in both Europe and the US.

LimeWire Goes Legit, Plans Online Store Published on Top Stories |

LimeWire has decided to follow Napster's example and go legitimate by opening its own online music store. The good news is that the upcoming MP3 downloads will be DRM-free and offered at 256Kbps. More good news follow shortly.

The P2P software maker added that the unprotected MP3s will be available a la carte or through a monthly subscription plan. However, no time frame has been made available. For the time being, LimeWire has the support of two distributors - IRIS Distribution and Nettwerk Productions.

And now, the bad news. First of all, the RIAA took LimeWire to court on accounts of facilitating illegal file sharing and faces penalties of $150,000 for every song illegally downloaded. The move may be meant to appease music companies but it's hard to say how many of them will prove eager to join the new service.

LimeWire's big chances stand with EMI and Universal Music Group, as both of them stated to add DRM-free tracks to their business plan.

The second bad news for LimeWire comes from the market itself, which looks to have become overcrowded. The dominance of Apple's iTunes was too great even for a big name like Napster. The latter also turned legit following a copyright infringement lawsuit by has failed in achieving a serious chuck of market share.

Online Video Flourishes, But Gaming Keeps Its Crown Published on Internet |

Online videos and social networking sites are great ways to gather a serious number of net surfers, but the crown still sits comfortably on online games, states a new report.

Dubbed “Casual Gaming Market Update”, the Parks Associates report brings some pretty interesting figures. While both online video and social networking sites have been booming in the last years, their actual dominance is really not that high. It seems that only
29% of U.S. adult Internet users watch short online videos on a weekly basis. The figures go much lower in the case of social networking sites: only 19% visit them every week.

In the mean time, playing games online on a weekly basis proved to be a favorite activity for 34% of the subjects.

“Despite the growing popularity of YouTube, MySpace, and Facebook, gaming remains the king of online entertainment, driven largely by casual gaming activities. Gaming also has business advantages. Unlike sites for social networking and video streaming, which rely solely on advertising revenue, casual gaming has more mature and heterogeneous revenue models, including web-based and in-game advertising, try-before-you-buy, subscriptions, and micro-transactions.” (James Kuai, a research analyst at Parks Associates)

However, Kuai also issued a warning alongside the good results:

“The casual gaming industry cannot rest on its laurels. In order to counter the growing competition from other online activities, the industry needs to continue to grow its fan base and find ways to better monetize its existing audience.”

The report shows that the year-over-year growth rate for frequent online gamers was 79%, much below the growth rate for frequent users of video streaming sites (123%). On the other hand, social networking sites don't seem to pose a real threat, as their growth rate is only 46%.

3G iPhone Too Slow? Blame The Carriers! Published on Telecom |

Early 3G iPhone adopters have been complaining for some time about the 3G performance and now their complaints have a target: local mobile carriers.

According to a recent study conducted by Wired, the fault for the 3G iPhone's of speed falls on local mobile companies, which lack the appropriate 3G networks. The report reads:

"In our view, this data is a strong indicator that performance of the mobile carrier's network is affecting the iPhone 3G more than the handset itself."

"Altogether, this furthers our thesis that it's highly unlikely that Apple is going to wave a magic wand and say, '3G problems, be gone,' with a software update."

The study also points out that the European branch of T-Mobile had fastest 3G network, while the “slower than ever” award went to Australia and should be shared by local carriers Optus and Virgin.

The United Stated occupied a special position in the statistics: the most reports of “no 3G connection available”.

This is the latest study claiming to have found the cause of the 3G's sluggishness. Previously, researchers blamed this on either Infineon's use of bad hardware or on Apple's rush to launch the product, leaving it unfinished in the firmware department. .

AT&T Adds More Appealing International Plans For iPhone Published on Telecom |

Using the Apple phone abroad was not of AT&T best features up till recent. The US carrier now comes up with a new offer.

Two new data plans have been unveiled by AT&T. The first one offers 100 MB of data for $120 a month, while the second costs $200 and offers 200 MB.

"AT&T has worked diligently to provide affordable options for international roaming because the feature-rich mobile experience of iPhone is indispensable to users," said Bill Hague, executive vice president of International for AT&T's wireless operations. "With these new international data plans, iPhone users can access more data in more countries for less cost."

According to AT&T, the new plans cover 67 countries, the same countries that already feature the 20 MB and 50MB plans. Users will be charged 1 cent per kilobyte outside these countries.

The new offer is aimed at business travelers and are available on an as-needed basis, with no long-term commitment being associated with the two plans.

Sony Ericsson Unveils The T700 Published on Telecom |

The latest phone on Sony Ericsson's list is the T700, a slim, stylish candybar aimed at the mainstream market.

“Become a real head turner with the T700” said Sven Totté, Head of Marketing for the design category at Sony Ericsson. “Sleek and shiny, the slim elegance of the T700 gives users a premium experience at a mid-range price point - perfect for the design conscious. Everyone who bought and adored the iconic T610 will be keen to get their hands on the new T700.”

T700's list of features includes:
- 2” TFT display
- Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)
- 3.2 megapixel camera – snap a great shot and share with your friends via your blog or web page
- High quality stereo speakers – share your music with friends
- High speed sharing – via the operator network or Bluetooth
- 512MB memory card memory in box – and even more to expand

The T700 will be available in selected markets starting in Q4 2008. Color options include Black on Silver, Black on Red and Shining Silver.

Pure Digital Announces Two New Flip Ultra Devices Published on Hardware |

The new Flip Ultra and Flip UltraHD are Pure Digital’s first products of the second generation of its Flip Ultra line, the company recently announced.

Both devices feature two hours of recording time, a high-resolution two-inch screen, and an AA rechargeable battery pack that can be recharged through the camera’s built-in USB arm. The two cameras come pre-loaded with FlipShare, the on-board software used for organizing, editing and sharing videos.

“The original Flip Ultra changed the way the world captures and shares video by making it easy, accessible, and, most of all, fun,” said Jonathan Kaplan, chairperson and CEO of Pure Digital. “Our new Flip UltraHD takes this to the next level by making it incredibly simple and affordable for anyone to capture and share hours of video in stunning HD.”

The Flip Ultra is available in black, white, yellow and pink and retails for $149. The Flip UltraHD is priced at $199 and is available only in black and white.

Flip Ultra Camcorder Features:
- Video Resolution: 640 x 480
- Records: 2 hours (4GB built-in memory)
- Screen: 2 inch – transflective (anti-glare)
- Batteries: 2 x AA (optional rechargeable AA battery pack sold separately)
- TV Output: SD Composite Video
- Zoom: 2 x Digital

Flip UltraHD Camcorder Features:
- Video Resolution: High Definition, 1280 x 720
- Records: 2 hours (8 GB built-in memory)
- Screen: 2 inch – transflective (anti-glare)
- Batteries: 2 x AA (rechargeable AA battery pack included)
- TV Output: Widescreen with HDMI™ output
- Zoom: 2 x Digital

One Third Of US And UK Consumers Are DVD Pirates, Says Study Published on Internet

One third of the respondents to a recent study admitted that they have been copying commercial DVDs withing the last six months.

The study was conducted by Futuresource Consulting and included consumers in the US and the UK.

According to the findings, 18 to 24-year old males form the demographic group most eager to copy DVDs. Most curious, UK consumers proved to be more sincere (or just more fond to the idea that it's their right do copy discs): 36% of them admitted such activities, as compared to only 32% in US.

Most of the respondents stated that the copies they'd made were for personal use. Still, this is just bad news for companies, which see disc-copying as a mean of losing revenue:

"The vast majority of these copiers admit they would purchase at least some of the titles on DVD if they had not been able to copy them -- clearly indicating the significant levels of lost revenue due to home copying."

"If they had not been able to make copies of DVDs, 63% of respondents in the UK and 77% in the USA would have purchased all, some or at least a few of the titles; clearly indicating the scale of the lost revenues to the home video industry from home copying."

It may be so. On the other hand, one can't say for sure that these people would've chosen to buy the DVDs and not to spend their money on other forms of entertainment. But companies must blame piracy in any form they can, so don't be amazed of the gloomy tone of the report.

Apple Offers 500 iPhone Apps This Week Published on Internet

The iPhone software portal is coming up this week and Apple's offer is one worth checking out: over 500 software applications available at launch.

There's good news for iPhone users fond of mobile gaming, as approximately a third of these apps will be games.

According to what Steve Jobs told The New York Times, almost 75% the new apps will retail for $9.99 or less. There will be some applications featuring a special price tag. However. 25% of the apps will be made available at no charge.

“The reaction we have gotten so far has been really strong,” said Steve Jobs “The quality and the sophistication of the applications you can write for the iPhone is in a different class.”

Apple doesn't see the upcoming portal as a way to significantly increase its revenue, given the fact that developers will get 70% fo sales. Instead, the new portal is seen as a way to further promote and increase the sales of the soon to be released 3G iPhone.

Will Google Give Up On YouTube? Published on Internet |

Despite its ever-growing popularity, YouTube’s situation is as fragile as ever: the website brought Google a lot of bills and less revenue. Will Google eventually cut its losses by closing YouTube?

The math is currently working against the video-sharing site: this year’s operating costs will go as high as $711 million. In the mean time, the projected revenue from advertising will go as high as $240 million. That’s a hefty $471 million that Google will have to pay out of its own corporate pocket.

Furthermore, Google, as all companies, has been significantly hit by the recession wave in the advertising department, with companies acting more careful when it comes to spending money on web commercials.

Last but not least, YouTube is losing its audience to other such website. The first example that comes to mind is Hulu, which is currently offering content from FOX and NBC. In ther mean time, professionally-developed content brought YouTube just a couple of lawsuits.

It appears that Google’s marketing team has failed so far in finding the right way to sell YouTube’s huge audience to advertisers. It may indeed be hard to offer a mixture of nice clips and downright dumb videos, but, all in all, YouTube is a brand that should be albel to attract far more revenue than it currently does.

Then again, angry shareholders might see it otherwise and unless something is donw soon enough, YouTube might see itself falling out of Google’s top priorities list.

Adobe Flash Arrives On Mobile Phones

Adobe aims to conquer new territory: the company announced the availability of the Adobe Flash Lite 3.1 Distributable Player on mobile phones.

The first models to support the new player will be the Nokia S60 and Windows Mobile devices, Adobe announced at the GSMA Mobile World Congress. Interesting enough, nobody said anything about availability on Apple's iPhone.

“The Distributable Player enables a direct distribution of our mobile player similar to the distribution model for Flash Player on the desktop,” said David Wadhwani, general manager and vice president, Platform Business Unit at Adobe. “With this new runtime and Adobe’s popular authoring tools, Adobe Flash Platform developers can unleash their creativity, develop new, innovative games and other mobile applications, and reach a much broader audience across screens and different platforms.”

At present time, the Distributable Player supports over-the-air downloads for consumers in the United States, U.K., Spain, Italy and India, with more countries to be added over time. No waiting list has been unveiled.

In addition, Adobe also announced the Flash Lite Developer Challenge, a development contest featuring a great prize of $30,000. The competition begins at 12:00 GMT on 16 February 2009 and will end at 12:00 GMT on 31 May 2009.

Nokia 5800 XpressMusic Update Published on Software |

The Finnish phone maker announce a new update for its Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, aimed at improving the performance and adding new functionalities.

"The update includes great improvements in the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic. As mobile devices become more and more advanced, additional features and new functionalities are easy to install to the existing device. We recommend people to take advantage of the new features and upgrade their Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, and get more from their existing device," said Soren Petersen, Senior Vice President, Devices, Nokia.

Improvements in the new software version include faster data download from Internet, improved e-mail experience, better search experience with in-device search. Many additional features are also included in the software update:

- Faster user interface and faster download times
- New camcorder features: second camera support for still image capture in addition to video calls, burst mode that allows people to take multiple pictures one after another without needing to repress the picture taking button
- Mobile Dictionary: built-in dictionary functionality with voice playback of words utilizing text-to-speech technology, support for 38 languages
- Application Update: with Application Update people can check for available updates for applications and update them directly in the device. Applications can also be kept up-to-date by setting the checking to automatic.

The software update is immediately available for download on Nokia Software Update website free of charge.

Cablevision Unveils 101 Mbps Broadband Offer Published on Internet |

Cablevision’s latest offer is bound to give Verizon a few headaches: the first 101 Mbps high-speed Internet service.

Dubbed Optimum Online Ultra, the new offer leverages the new DOCSIS 3.0 technology and will become available on May 11. Cablevision will charge a monthly fee of $100.

Cablevision expects to gain a significant slice of market share, being the first cable company to come up with such an offer. The company stressed out that 101 Mbps means that users will be able to download 150 MP3 tracks or 750 high-resolution digital photos in one minute or full-length HD movies in around 10 minutes. With HD downloads service gaining speed, the offer might look very tempting to consumers.

By comparison, Verizon’s only offer able to compete with Cablevision;s is the FiOS fiber optic service, which reaches a mere 50 Mbps and charges $140 per month

Still, Cablevision has yet to unveils additional information on its new offer. The company didn’t say anything about download caps and additional fees for those going over the monthly plan.

In related news, Cablevision also announced plans to double its wireless Internet access speed to 3.0 Mbps.

Khursheed Akbar Junjua
0300-9506418




Pearl Real Estate
Bank Road Saddar

Samsung Plans Three Android Smartphones Published on Telecom |

The first Android-based Samsung phone will arrive this summer, with two more devices scheduled for later this year.

Samsung announced that the first smartphone will become available in the European markets this June. The remaining two device are being prepared for the US, the company added. According to Samsung, only two carriers will have the new phones in their offers.

The names of the two companies were not disclosed. Still, chances are that T-Mobile and Sprint Nextel will be the ones chosen by Samsung, given that both of them are part of the Open Handset Alliance.

On the other hand, negotiations must be still going on and changes might occur if Samsung receives a better offer.

The company chose not to unveil anything about the devices themselves, in hope that secrecy would turn into a big boost for hype. On the other hand, the company is one of the many seeking to release Android-based devices this year.

HTC, Motorola, Sony Ericsson, and Asus-Garmin also announced the release of multiple device this year, so competition might prove fierce.

Firefox Updates To 3.09 Published on Security |

The latest Mozilla Firefox update patches up nine security flaws, one on them rated “critical”.

According to Mozilla, the critical vulnerability involved memory corruption problem, allowing attackers to cause run arbitrary code. The organization advises users to disable JavaScript until a the fix is installed.

The update pack also comes with two fixes for high-risk flaws, both involving involve same-origin violation security bugs. The first exploit is based on loading an Adobe Flash file via the view-source: scheme. Apparently, the Flash plugin misinterprets the origin of the content as localhost, leading to two specific vulnerabilities.

First, the Flash file can bypass restrictions imposed by the crossdomain.xml mechanism and initiate HTTP requests to arbitrary third-party sites, thus enabling attackers to perform CSRF attack. Second, the Flash file can read and write Local Shared Objects on a user's machine and would enable attackers to place cookie-like objects on a user's computer and track them across multiple sites.

The other high-risk flaw enables users to create a document whose URI does not match the document's principal using XMLHttpRequest. This type of mismatch leads to incorrect results in principal-based security checks and could be used to execute arbitrary JavaScript within the context of another site.

Users will automatically receive the new update in the next 48 hours.

Pure Digital Announces Two New Flip Ultra Devices Published on Hardware |

The new Flip Ultra and Flip UltraHD are Pure Digital’s first products of the second generation of its Flip Ultra line, the company recently announced.

Both devices feature two hours of recording time, a high-resolution two-inch screen, and an AA rechargeable battery pack that can be recharged through the camera’s built-in USB arm. The two cameras come pre-loaded with FlipShare, the on-board software used for organizing, editing and sharing videos.

“The original Flip Ultra changed the way the world captures and shares video by making it easy, accessible, and, most of all, fun,” said Jonathan Kaplan, chairperson and CEO of Pure Digital. “Our new Flip UltraHD takes this to the next level by making it incredibly simple and affordable for anyone to capture and share hours of video in stunning HD.”

The Flip Ultra is available in black, white, yellow and pink and retails for $149. The Flip UltraHD is priced at $199 and is available only in black and white.

Flip Ultra Camcorder Features:
- Video Resolution: 640 x 480
- Records: 2 hours (4GB built-in memory)
- Screen: 2 inch – transflective (anti-glare)
- Batteries: 2 x AA (optional rechargeable AA battery pack sold separately)
- TV Output: SD Composite Video
- Zoom: 2 x Digital

Flip UltraHD Camcorder Features:
- Video Resolution: High Definition, 1280 x 720
- Records: 2 hours (8 GB built-in memory)
- Screen: 2 inch – transflective (anti-glare)
- Batteries: 2 x AA (rechargeable AA battery pack included)
- TV Output: Widescreen with HDMI™ output
- Zoom: 2 x Digital

Acer Launches AspireRevo Published on Hardware |

Acer’s latest release on the market is the Acer AspireRevo, a new nettop based on the the Nvidia Ion platform, which combines the Intel Atom 230 processor with the Nvidia Ion graphics processor.

The new release is marketed as a “true entertainment center for the entire family”, as it offers access to music, video and images, but can also transmit and stream HD content and be used as a gaming console.

“The Acer AspireRevo with our new NVIDIA ION GPU is a shockingly small home PC,” said Drew Henry, general manager for MCP products at NVIDIA. “You will be stunned and amazed watching HD videos, editing photos, surfing the web and playing the latest online games.”

Under the hood, the Acer AspireRevo packs together 802.11b/g/draft-n Wi-Fi, Ethernet, HDMI, DirectX 10, up to 4GB RAM, SSD option, Mini PCI Express slot, Windows Vista and the option to VESA mount the device.

The device also comes packed with a game controller with 3D motion sensors offering numerous functionalities: a pointing-device (air mouse) or remote control for the media center.