Many have tried, but all of them have failed. And now, Sony Corp. is the newest kid trying to take over Apple Inc.’s block.

Citing unidentified sources, the Wall Street Journal said Sony is developing a line of handheld devices that would go head-to-head with Apple’s niche products, particularly the iPhone and iPad.

Much like the iPhone, Sony’s upcoming smartphone would have multimedia functions such as video gaming while its iPad equivalent would have the traits of a netbook, an e-reader and a portable gaming device.

Aside from those new products that would be launched later this year, Sony will also be launching this month a new online media platform initially called as Sony Online Service, which is being billed as its answer to iTunes.

The Sony Online Service will offer similar contents being offered by iTunes, but it is banking on its wider range of device matches, offering old game titles to get a step ahead.

Sony’s aggressive push toward Apple’s portable market is in response to its lagging mobile device business, and its Chief Executive Howard Stringer said the new products are at the heart of its turnaround plan.

While Sony is gearing for Apple’s market, Steve Jobs’ technology giant is also doing the same, eyeing the portable gaming industry largely occupied by Sony’s Playstation.

Well, Sony and Apple’s face-off should be a good thing for consumers. Let us just hope, at least for Sony’s sake, that its new line of products can really challenge Apple’s leadership so we can see quality hikes and price drops. (Grace R)

Source: Wall Street Journal

The Asus Eee PC Seashell Karim Rashid collection has just been launched with a modicum of shock factor. Karim Rashid, the venerable, multi-decorated designer who can probably turn any landscape the color he wants, had been tapped to lay over the fashion in this model. The result is a sleek, pad paper- thin netbook that looks like it’s made with an undiscovered hot pink element that refracts light in an organized, wave-like pattern. The texture is rippled with lines that are said to adhere to a golden ratio. continue reading…

QNAP has been at the top of the networked-attached storage (NAS) since the release of the TS-509 Pro Turbo NAS. It has been competing with Thecus with their N7700. As if it’s not overkill, QNAP has now produced the TS-809 Pro Turbo NAS which is so fast that your Ethernet cable is now the limiting factor.

The unit improves on user management thanks to the latest AJAX interface with firmware updates, and which now also features automatic setup for easier configuration.  As such, the “NAS Server” suffix seems to be an understatement; it can be called Everything-you-will-ever-need-server or the-only-server-you-will-ever-need.

Running at its heart is a Core 2 Duo running at 2.8GHz which makes the unit capable of running application after application without the need to disable some features. There is also 2GB RAM in there, which is enough to run applications. continue reading…

Okay, so now that we’ve got your attention, here’s an interesting survey result discovered by MTV and the Associated Press. In a poll of young people between the ages of 14 and 24, around a third of young adults had admitted to “sexting” while a fourth of teenagers had done the same.

“Sexting,” for those who don’t know, is sharing naked pictures of yourself via photos, videos or chat using your cell phone or online. Usually these pictures are sent to a romantic interest.

In the same survey, half of those who knew about sexting weren’t bothered about the practice while the other half regarded it as a serious problem but did it anyway. continue reading…

Image from iSuppli

From one of the fastest growing companies in the world, Dell is slowly losing its grip at the top.  Taiwan-based PC maker Acer has managed to supplant the Round Rock-based company as the second-largest PC builder in the world.

According to the third quarterly report by iSuppli, Acer has jumped over Dell to second spot with their computer shipments up with a 16.6 percent year-on-year growth. This is equal to almost 10.74 million PCs or 13.4 percent of the worldwide market of 79.9 million units. continue reading…

After a year-and-a-half of going at it on court, computer giant Apple and clone computer maker Psystar declared a ceasefire on their copyright dispute.

According to reports, Apple reached a partial agreement with Psystar, regarding the latter’s marketing of clone computers pre-installed with Apple’s Macintosh operating system.

Psystar has been marketing what it calls “Open Computers”, which are powered by Apple’s Mac OS X Leopard. Four months after the Doral, Florida-based vendor began selling its devices, Apple filed a copyright infringement suit in July 2008. continue reading…

There was a time when a CPU with more than one processing core was truly a revolutionary idea. Look under the hood of any current generation computer and it’s likely powered by a multi-core processor. For next year, there’s the expected release of 6-core and 8-core processors.

Although actual time travel is still uncertain, chipmaker Intel has certainly brought back something from the future. Definitely filed under the ‘futuristic computer’ category, Intel’s team of computer engineers and researchers have created an experimental 48-core CPU. That’s right, a forty-eight core processor in the year 2009. No need to rev up the DeLorean to 88 mph. continue reading…

Kindle (Photo Credit: Amazon)

Some market watchers were worried that the recession would hit post-Thanksgiving shopping, but apparently they made the wrong call based on online numbers.

Tight-gripped consumers gave in to “e-tailers” or online vendors’ mouth-watering discounts and other shopping perks like free shipping. These strategies, CNN said, are driving online sales.

As of 2:20 p.m. ET, Internet monitoring company Akamai said the 270 retailing sites they were monitoring drew over 4.3 million visitors per minute in North America alone. continue reading…

For those techies who really are hard on their computers, GemmaTech’s new Durabook D14RM might just be the right machine.

The Durabook D14RM combines power, performance, and security all in a rugged construction design implementation. Yes, its casing is made of magnesium alloy to protect the machine’s important components from damage. Thus, it can survive drops and shocks.

For those who give their machines enough trouble, the D14RM features an anti-shock design that guarantees that the LCD and hard drive are free from damage. continue reading…

Windows 7 seems to be flying everywhere. After appearing in TV series Family Guy, now it’s in posh Saks Fifth Avenue making a holiday scene. It can be quite hard escaping the hype.

Microsoft has opened interactive in-store lounges for shoppers. The specially constructed lounges feature Windows 7-based PCs, with Microsoft experts on hand to answer questions about the software and hardware. continue reading…