AMD Launches "Puma" Mobile Platform

AMD goes after Centrino with its "Puma" platform

AMD today paper launched its Puma platform in a press event streamed live over the web. Puma is AMD’s third-generation mobile platform based on AMD’s Griffin processor and RS780M chipset.

AMD first broke news of its Puma platform in April of last year. Information at that time was mainly about the platform’s CPU, Griffin, and the only details revealed about the CPU were rather conceptual in nature.

Puma is AMD’s first attempt at a “complete” mobile platform. Whereas AMD’s previous mobile platforms had a diluted set of requirements, Puma’s specifications are stronger than previous mobile AMD platforms.

In order to be branded as part of the Puma platform, notebooks must come with a Griffin CPU, RS780M chipset and WiFi adapter -- a discrete graphics card is optional. Since AMD believes in offering its partners “diversity”, it chooses not to follow the route paved by Intel’s Centrino, which requires a Core 2 processor, GM965/PM965 chipset and an Intel wireless adapter to be branded as a Centrino notebook.


Currently, AMD’s Griffin processor, which is officially named Turion Ultra, is only dual core. Although there is a possibility of a quad core Griffin processor, as of right now it is not on AMD’s roadmap.

Griffin chips currently feature 1MB L2 cache per core along with support for DDR2-667 and DDR2-800 SO-DIMM memory (up to 8GB). The two cores communicate with each other via an internal crossbar switch. In addition, the CPU runs on AMD’s updated HyperTransport 3.0 specification.
                              
In order to reduce power draw, AMD says that Griffin features three independent power planes. One power plane is given to each CPU while the third one is taken by the Northbridge. To further help promote power efficiency, AMD says each core can also run at independent frequencies. AMD claims that the cores can dynamically shift frequency levels while executing a thread.

The RS780M includes an integrated Direct X 10 graphics controller which AMD says is four to five times faster than Intel’s X3100 IGP, and brings support for HDMI and HDCP + Audio to Puma via AMD’s Universal Video Decoder. The chipset also features built-in support for two display controllers. Puma does support DisplayPort functionality; however, it is up to each individual board maker to implement in the feature.

To help save power when running off of battery power, AMD says its PowerXpress technology dynamically switches, without any reboot, from external graphics to integrated graphics. According to the company, the change happens instantly and unnoticeably when changing power sources, however, the option is provided to disable this feature. Likewise, Hybrid Crossfire technology will allow you to use a discrete graphics controller with the integrated graphics controller for increased gaming performance.

As AMD’s answer to Intel’s Santa Rosa, analysts predict that the launch of Puma is crucial to the company’s success and financial well being.

AMD says that Puma plays a pivotal role in the period leading up to the release of its Fusion chips. According to AMD, the tighter integration of the CPU and chipset in Puma serves as a milestone to Fusion.

AMD says that it has over 100 design wins with Puma and that systems will ship at the end of Q2. Puma-based notebooks will be included on notebooks ranging from $699 to $2,500 at launch.

Nokia Nanotech "morph" Concept Phone

Nokia and the University of Cambridge unveil the Morph 


Mobile phones are one of the most common pieces of technology used in our daily lives. Some reports put the number of cell phones sold in 2007 worldwide at 1.1 billion. With that number of cellular phones sold in 2007 alone, the market is very hot leading to expanded research and development of new handsets.                                                          
                                   

Nokia and the University of Cambridge have teamed up on a new concept phone called the Morph described as a nanotechnology concept device. The concept design was launched at the “Design and the Elastic Mind” exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.
                       
According to Nokia, the Morph is a concept intended to demonstrate how devices in the future could be stretchable and flexible allowing the user to change the shape of their device on a whim. The nanotechnology construction is capable of providing users with flexible materials, transparent electronics and self-cleaning surfaces.

Nokia Chief Technology Officer Dr. Bob Iannucci said in a statement, “Nokia Research Center is looking at ways to reinvent the form and function of mobile devices; the Morph concept shows what might be possible.”


Nokia claims that certain elements of the Morph could be integrated into high-end handheld devices in the next seven years. Nokia adds that nanotechnology could at some point lead to low cost manufacturing solutions providing complex devices at low prices.    
                                      

University of Cambridge Professor Mark Welland added, “Developing the Morph concept with Nokia has provided us with a focus that is both artistically inspirational but, more importantly, sets the technology agenda for our joint nanoscience research that will stimulate our future work together."

Nokia made headlines earlier this month when the German government demanded $60.5 million in a refund of subsidies it provided.

 

eBay Hit Hard by Boycott, Refuses to Change

Some sellers have had enough of eBay and call it quits in a massive boycott, others keep coming back to the same abusive system

eBay angered many sellers when it raised its fees and overhauled its feedback system in ways which many perceived to be very anti-seller. The changes particularly hurt sellers of small, low-priced items like CDs and video games, which were faced with sharp hikes in their fees upon successful sales.

These sellers had to decide to either put up with it, or take their business elsewhere. DailyTech's Shane McGlaun wrote in a blog an open letter to eBay, voicing his frustration and the frustration of many others. He cited that he was not alone -- CNN recently reported that five of eBay's top sellers called it quits after the changes.

Since the blog, the fallout against eBay continued. A group of angered users called for a complete boycott of buying and selling on eBay until the company makes amends. The boycott, which ends today, had a devastating effect on the already stagnant eBay.

The total auction listings at eBay.com dropped approximately 13% since the boycott commenced in full on February 18. This brought listings to a low of roughly 13 million items. The boycott was made particularly potent by a YouTube video, which was viewed over 143,000 times. The video helped raise the boycott above other, shorter boycotts, in terms of impact to eBay and helped it win coverage on many online and video media outlets.

The boycott was led by Valerie Lennert, who was flabbergasted by eBay's new bias against sellers. She remarked, "When I heard the changes, I thought it was April Fool's Day."

Lennart, who sells doll clothes on eBay, unhappily discovered that eBay was not fooling around. So she took her fight to YouTube and urged sellers to join her. eBay promptly banned her account. Throughout the course of Lennart's campaign and other protests, eBay tried to dull the impact by offering special deals on listings to boost sagging listing numbers. Meanwhile, Lennart continued onward, making many media appearances.

Jim Griffith, dean of eBay Education, refuted news reports that eBay's listings had declined stating the boycott "has had no impact on our listings." Griffith referenced internal metrics, which eBay refuses to release, and which run counter to the numbers run by major news outlets.

Meanwhile a member of the protest, Nancy Baughman, an eBay PowerSeller who deals in collectibles and antiques, hopes the listing drought worsens with future boycotts. She says, "If [eBay's listings total] falls below 12 million, we've made a pretty good impact."

According to Griffith, however, eBay will stand firm till the bitter end and will not change its new policies. Griffith says, "A lot of deliberation went into these decisions."

David Steiner, president of AuctionBytes.com, a publication for online merchants, says that this kind of attitude could be eBay's undoing. He remarked on the boycott's impact, adding, "The protestors made a loud statement."

eBay has faced fierce competition from Amazon, which charges no listing fees. Even before the policy changes, growth had stagnated. The company will also see a changing of the guard as Meg Whitman steps down to make room for John Donahoe as CEO of eBay in March.

eBay changed its policies in hopes of increasing revenue from listings and reviving sales by making the site more buyer-friendly. With Donahoe soon to assume control, some tough decisions are in store for eBay's executives which may decide the site's fate.

Meanwhile, until eBay changes its policy, more boycotts are surely in store, continuing to draw more attention and further punish eBay for its decisions.

Microsoft Says it Has Plenty of Jobs for Microsoft, Yahoo Employees

Microsoft says it has incentives ready to retain its employees and Yahoo employees if the takeover goes through


Microsoft and Yahoo have been rivals in Internet search for years. While Microsoft has grown and maintained its profitability, Yahoo has seen a drop in stock prices and a loss in market share.

DailyTech reported in February 2008 that Microsoft made an unsolicited offer of $44.6 billion to purchase Yahoo. The $44.6 billion offer placed a premium of 62% on Yahoo stock breaking down to about $31 per share.

Yahoo’s board rejected the Microsoft offer saying that it undervalued the company. After Yahoo rejected the offer, Microsoft moved ahead with plans of a hostile takeover of Yahoo. The takeover made some employees within both Microsoft and Yahoo fearful for their jobs since an overlap of positions would be expected if the merger happens.

Reuters is reporting that Microsoft president of platforms and services division, Kevin Johnson, sent an email to employees in his unit saying that Microsoft will dedicate “significant rewards and compensation” to retain both Microsoft and Yahoo employees. According to Johnson, “While some overlap is expected in any combination of this size, we should remember that Microsoft ... has hired over 20,000 people since 2005, and we would look to place talented employees throughout the company as a whole. We have no shortage of business and technical opportunities, and we need great people to focus on them."

Yahoo issued a statement earlier this week that it put generous severance packages in place for any employees that might lose their jobs if the company was sold. The chance of Yahoo being sold must be increasing considerably for Yahoo to admit that such severance packages were in place already.

Reuters also reports that two pension funds have independently sued Yahoo and its board of directors for refusing Microsoft’s offer. According to the suit, Yahoo is pursuing other possible deals that are not as beneficial to shareholders as the Microsoft offer.

Microsoft Makes Windows XP SP3 RC2 Publicly Available

Microsoft opens the floodgates for XP SP3 RC2


While Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1) has received the bulk of the attention for the past few months, there's another service pack eagerly awaited for Windows users: Windows XP SP3.

Microsoft released SP3 to testers last week, but the general public can now download the service pack via Windows Update. Users have to first download a small registry file from Microsoft which gives them special access to Windows Update to download SP3.


"The script sets a registry key on your system. The registry key is required for Windows Update to recognize your machine as a valid target for Windows XP Service Pack 3 RC2," states Microsoft. "It is recommended that you apply the resulting update package to an activated, genuine copy of Windows XP, in a test environment."

Users are also asked to remove any previous beta or release candidate versions of SP3 before proceeding with the latest update.

Some of the new functionality included with SP3 include Black hole router detection, Network Access Protection, Credentials security service provider and the Microsoft Kernel Mode Cryptographic Module.

Microsoft says that the RTM version of Service Pack 3 will be available during the first half of 2008. If all goes well with RC2 testing, we should see the final code shortly.

Microsoft Calls Yahoo Rejection "Unfortunate," Pursues Hostile Takeover

Microsoft plans to take its bid for Yahoo directly to shareholders


In the world of mergers, there are numerous levels of "hostility" which characterize bids. There are unilateral talks, mutually agreed upon, which are typically labeled as more germane, even if one company ends up absorbing the other.

Then there are unsolicited bids, such as Microsoft's initial offer to Yahoo, which are often labeled as "partially hostile". On the far end of the spectrum are "fully hostile" bids, in which one company tries to bypass another company’s executive and board leadership by offering a buyout directly to shareholders. Among the famous examples of takeovers considered "hostile" was the HP and Compaq merger, which passed by a meager 51% margin in a shareholder vote.

Having been rejected by Yahoo's board, Microsoft commented that it was "unfair" that Yahoo did not embrace its "full and fair proposal to combine" the companies. Now, Microsoft indicates it is planning to bypass the board and take the issue directly to a shareholder vote. Microsoft states, "We are offering shareholders superior value and the opportunity to participate in the upside of the combined company. The combination also offers an increasingly exciting set of solutions for consumers, publishers and advertisers while becoming better positioned to compete in the online services market."

Microsoft's statement continues, "The Yahoo! response does not change our belief in the strategic and financial merits of our proposal. As we have said previously, Microsoft reserves the right to pursue all necessary steps to ensure that Yahoo!'s shareholders are provided with the opportunity to realize the value inherent in our proposal."

The decision by Microsoft to pursue a fully hostile takeover is truly a sign of the times at Yahoo. Yahoo despite promising big changes continues to lose ground to Google in search engine market share, which in turn leads to sinking advertising profits. The company dismissed 1,000 employees recently. Yahoo aggressively acquired companies throughout last year, but its investments left it with little to show for it.

The hostile bid by Microsoft may nix a future board-arranged merger with Yahoo, but at this point it may be a moot issue. If Microsoft has to, it can simply wait out the company until it falls further towards its demise, though it would prefer a quick merger while the company still has some vitality.

Yahoo has a lot to offer Microsoft. Despite its dropping search engine share, Yahoo still represents a significant portion of the market and a major market name. An alliance with Microsoft could establish a strong competitor to Google. Further, Yahoo has a wealth of intellectual property, domain names, and other assets that could come in handy to an ever-evolving Microsoft.

The board is left to ponder Microsoft's words, and their significant decision -- as it may be their last.

More Details on AMD "Stars" Chipsets

AMD prepares to launch four discrete graphics and three new IGP chipsets for Socket AM2+ and 1207+

AMD plans to release its K10-derived Stars-family desktop processors later this year. The new Stars-family processors take advantage of AMD’s Socket AM2+, an updated Socket AM2 platform that adds support for the faster Hyper Transport 3.0 bus. AMD’s latest roadmap divulges information on its upcoming Hyper Transport 3.0 compatible chipset family, arriving in Q3’2007.

The new AMD discrete graphics chipset family includes four new chipsets ranging from the entry-level RX740 to the flagship RD790. At the top of the discrete graphics lineup is the RD790, which replaces the current AMD 580X. The RD790 serves double duty in AMD’s chipset lineup, powering AMD’s Quad FX Socket 1207+ and Socket AM2 platforms.

AMD’s flagship packs plenty of PCI Express flexibility with up to four physical PCIe x16 slots. The four slots can electrically operate with four 8-lane slots, one 16-lane and three 8-lane, or two 16-lane slots. There are six additional PCIe lanes for additional expansion. The RD790 is fully PCIe 2.0 compatible. AMD plans to target RD790 towards the $150 plus market.

Taking place of the AMD 480X is the upcoming RD780. The new RD780 supports two physical PCIe x16 slots in dual eight-lane configurations. The two PCIe x16 slots are fully PCIe 2.0 compatible. Slotted below the RD780 is the RX780, which does away with CrossFire multi-GPU support. The RX780 supports a single PCIe 2.0 x16 slot. Both chipsets support AMD’s Hyper Transport 3.0 bus. RD780 will target the $70-100 price points while the RX780 takes on the $50-70 price points.

AMD also intends to offer more value conscious consumers the RX740. This chipset features support for AMD’s Socket AM2+, however, it only supports Hyper Transport 1.0. The RX740 does not support PCIe 2.0 either.RX740 will take on the same $50-70 price points as the RX780.

AMD RD780, RX780 and RX740 can also share the same motherboard design, simplifying the design process. The four new chipsets pair up with AMD’s existing SB600 south bridge, as the SB700 won’t be ready until Q4’2007.

The new chipsets will also feature a Windows-based tweaking utility – AMD System Utility. The AMD System Utility allows users to tweak memory settings, automatically overclock the processor, test system stability and benchmark the processor and memory.

AMD is also preparing its next-generation integrated graphics chipsets for Q1’2008 as well. The new IGP family includes the DirectX 10 compatible RS780 and RS780C. AMD’s upcoming RS780 has all the processing and connectivity goodies. RS780 is the first IGP chipset to feature AMD’s Universal Video Decoder, which debuts with the ATI Radeon HD 2000-family.

UVD provides hardware acceleration for H.264/AVC and VC-1 high-definition video formats up to 40Mbits. Joining the UVD is support for DVI, HDMI and DisplayPort output connectivity. Targeting the value market is the RS780C. RS780C does away with UVD and DisplayPort support. Nevertheless, RS780 and RS780C support PCIe 2.0 and Hyper Transport 3.0.

Slotting below the RS780C is the DirectX 9 compatible RS740. RS740 supports Socket AM2+, but is limited to Hyper Transport 1.0 like the RX740. It is limited to PCIe 1.0 as with the RX740. Nevertheless, RS740 supports DVI and HDMI video outputs. AMD plans to launch RS740 before the RS780 and RS780C in Q4’2007.

In addition to upcoming chipsets, AMD’s roadmap divulges HQV Benchmark scores for its RS780 and RS740 chipsets. AMD’s upcoming RS780 will score a perfect 130 points while the RS740 scores 105 points. The current AMD 690G scores 80 points while Intel’s G965 scores 48 points.

Unlike AMD’s discrete graphics chipsets, the IGP products pair up with the upcoming SB700 south bridge. SB700 delivers six SATA 3.0Gbps ports with RAID 0, 1, 10, 5 support, fourteen USB ports and NAND flash memory option.