TTL - The Tech Link http://thetechlink.net The most interesting tech news from around the web! Wed, 29 Oct 2008 23:24:17 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en TTL - The Tech Link http://thetechlink.net/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/ttl-logo-feed.gif http://thetechlink.net 88 44 The most interesting tech news from around the web! Dell’s Computers Come With Music Recently, Dell started offering pre-installed movies on their computers during online checkout. They are now pushing the media distribution further by offering pre-installed “music packs” on their PCs. Dell’s agreement with Universal enables the computer maker to offer attractively priced music when a customer buys a new computer. A 50-song pack will cost $25, and a [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/29/dells-computers-come-with-music/ Fortune’s Top 20 Most Admired Companies Apple is the #1 most admired company according to more than 3,700 industry experts. The experts were surveyed by Fortune and the Hay Group and asked to select 10 companies they admire the most and rate them in eight key areas: innovation, people management, use of corporate assets, social responsibility, quality of management, financial soundness, long-term [...] No related posts.]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/29/fortunes-top-20-most-admired-companies/ Netflix HD Soon On Your Xbox Netflix, the company that started out as an online over-the-mail DVD renting service, is expanding rapidly towards online streaming and promising high definition (HD) content delivered directly on the Xbox 360. Netflix has chosen to make the HD service available only on the Xbox 360 at first and then turn to the PC market. The service [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/29/netflix-hd-soon-on-your-xbox/ Artists Use The App Store For Promo P!nk, along with LaFace/Zomba Label Group and Sony BMG, has entered yet another new kind of marketing with a free application available on the iPhone and iPod Touch. The application is available on the Apple App Store. Once installed, users will be able to listen to 30-second samples of all tracks available on P!nk’s newest album, [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/28/artists-use-the-app-store-for-promo/ 1956-20xx Is VCR Dying or Dead? It’s been more than 50 years since the first appearance of a videocassette recorder (VCR) in this world and the technology is slowly disappearing in American households. With the arrival of the recordable DVDs and PVRs, who needs VCRs anymore? JVC was one of the last companies that was still making standalone VCR recorders/players and now decided [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/28/1956-20xx-is-vcr-dying-or-dead/ Superspeed USB Coming to a Computer Near You Superspeed USB (or USB 3.0) is currently in the last stages of its development and should start being integrated into computers and peripherals within the next 12 months. This new technology promises speeds that are up to 10 times faster than current USB 2.0 we all know and love. Superspeed USB will be a welcomed upgrade [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/28/superspeed-usb-coming-to-a-computer-near-you/ RadioShack “Buys” Your Old Gadgets $89.25 for my Acer Aspire 3623WXMi laptop and $229.71 for my HTC P3300 PocketPC phone… Here’s what you are looking at with the new RadioShack trade-in program. The program allows you to trade in your old stuff (GPS, cell phones, video games, computers, laptops, mp3 players, etc.) and receive a RadioShack gift certificate in return. If [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/28/radioshack-buys-your-old-gadgets/ Dell’s New 12in Laptop: The Inspiron Mini 12 Dell has just announced that the new Inspiron Mini 12 laptop will be available globally sometime in the month of November for around $600. Dell refers to this product as being a laptop (not a netbook). This sounds rather unusual, as this product runs on an Intel Atom-type CPU which, so far, has been used only [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/27/dells-new-12in-laptop-the-inspiron-mini-12/ Truphone for BlackBerry Truphone is a VoIP application that you install on your cell phone and allows you to make cheap (very cheap) international and overseas calls, and it is now available for BlackBerry devices. Truphone will also be available for other devices (LG, Samsung, HTC, etc.) in the future. If you own a compatible phone, you can download the [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/27/truphone-for-blackberry/ Casio EXILIM Keitai W63CA: 8.1Mpix Phone! The Asians will never cease to amaze us. One of the latest phones from Casio is the EXILIM Keitai W63CA. This “flip and twist” phone packs an 8.1 megapixel camera lens with 9-point autofocus and flash, and a 3.1in OLED display (480×800). Casio is well known for their cameras here in America but not for their phones, [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/27/casio-exilim-keitai-w63ca-81mpix-phone/ 2009 E3 Expo: Dates and More The Entertainment Software Association has announced the official date for the E3 Expo. The 2009 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) will be held in the Los Angeles Convention Center from June 2nd to June 4th, 2009. This event gathers professionals and companies focused primarily on the video games industry, and helps them showcase their new and upcoming [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/24/2009-e3-expo-dates-and-more/ Autodesk Acquires Softimage Softimage, the Canadian company behind the visual effects in movies such as Jurrassic Park, Titanic, The Fifth Element, Happy Feet, 300, and many other movies and video games has been acquired by Autodesk. The acquisition will cost $35 million to Autodesk. Autodesk are the makers of widely used 3D design software like Maya, and popular CAD [...] No related posts.]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/24/autodesk-acquires-softimage/ Microsoft is Still The Software Leader Microsoft kept it’s title as the world’s software leader by posting optimistic results for the 3rd quarter that closed on September 30. Revenues were up by 9% on one year at $15.06 billion. Profits were up by 1.8% at $4.37 billion ($0.48 per share). Although Microsoft posted fairly positive results in the 3rd quarterd comparted to the [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/24/microsoft-is-still-the-software-leader/ Deezer for iPhone and iPod Touch Music site Deezer has now released the first official version of their iPhone and iPod Touch player, and it’s available for download directly on the Apple App Store. For those of you not familiar with Deezer, it is very similar to iMeem. You can search for songs, artists, albums and stream them directly on your computer [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/24/deezer-for-iphone-and-ipod-touch/ Do We Really Need Another Netbook? By releasing their new LaVie Light Netbook, NEC seems to think so. NEC’s new netbook will be available in Japan on November 6th. No dates or prices for America as of now, but I’m sure we can all continue living our lives without another netbook. Here are the main specifications for this new product: Intel Atom N270 CPU 1GB [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/24/do-we-really-need-another-netbook/ Lala.com: Take Your Music to “The Cloud” Lala.com just launched a new service for its U.S. users called Music Mover. The idea is simple and quite similar to blueTunes.net, where the service will scan you entire music library (it’s iTunes compatible) and upload only the songs that are not present in the Lala.com music catalog. Once this process is complete, the user’s entire music [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/22/lalacom-take-your-music-to-the-cloud/ Circuit City’s Survival at Stake Electronics retail store Circuit City might have to close up to 150 locations and even declare bankruptcy if the current market doesn’t see some kind of revival during the Christmas season. From BetaNews: “The management team, board of directors, and its strategic financial advisers are conducting a comprehensive review of all aspects of our business to [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/22/circuit-citys-survival-at-stake/ Apple UP. Yahoo! DOWN. This week saw 3rd quarter results announcements from many companies including Apple and Yahoo!. While Yahoo! were announcing a 10% workforce reduction, a 64% drop in profits, and an overall goal to cut expenses, Apple were showing optimistic results for the 3rd quarter that ended in September 2008. Apple, along with its iPhone, is now considered to [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/22/apple-up-yahoo-down/ iKIT: Tiny PC by IMOVIO I don’t really see the point in this product but here it is: The iKIT by IMOVIO. It’s a super small portable “laptop” that has a small 2.8 inch screen and a full QWERTY keyboard. This “computer” is to be used as a mobile messaging device. Features and specifications are not very impressive compared to the [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/21/ikit-tiny-pc-by-imovio/ HP Releases Two New SmartPhones HP just released two new smartphones with Vodafone (Europe) today. The new iPAQ Voice Messenger and iPAQ Data Messenger both run on Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional. The Data Messenger features a full slide-out QWERTY keyboard and a touchscreen. The Voice Messenger doesn’t have a touchscreen, and features a standard alphanumeric keypad, as it is focused primarily on [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/21/hp-releases-two-new-smartphones/ eBay to Prohibit Auctions of Ivory Items In an effort to protect elephants, and reduce the illegal traffic of ivory in and out of the originating countries, eBay will completely prohibit auctions that showcase products containing large amounts of ivory. The new policy will take effect in December 2008 and will be enforced starting in January 2009. washingtonpost.com Related posts:eBay to Force PayPal Payments Only? Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/21/ebay-to-prohibit-auctions-of-ivory-items/ Electric Mini: Drivers Wanted. BMW released some information about their upcoming all-electric vehicle, the MINI E. The car will only be available as a one-year lease from BMW. You will be able to register on MiniUSA’s web site (link bellow) in mid-November 2008. Only 500 lucky drivers will qualify for the “test lease”. This car will rely solely on electric power. [...] No related posts.]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/20/electric-mini-drivers-wanted/ Asus EeePC: 1 Year and 4 Million Units Later It’s hard to believe, but it has only been one year that the netbook “trend” started, with the arrival of the first Asus EeePC in mid-October of 2007. Since then, Asus has sold as much as 4 million units of the EeePC line. It wasn’t long before other companies hopped on the netbook train with their [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/20/asus-eeepc-1-year-and-4-million-units-later/ Over 1,000 Jobs to be Cut at Yahoo! Yahoo! and their employees have all been suffering from the tough financial climate in the U.S. since the beginning of 2008. We should be hearing from Yahoo! tomorrow as they will be announcing their plans to cut on expenses and avoid loosing to much ground over #1 competitor Google. This will also include many job cuts; [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/20/over-1000-jobs-to-be-cut-at-yahoo/ What’s Next for Apple? After the notebook event of October 14th, one might be wondering what’s next for Apple. Consumers thinking of buying an iMac should reconsider and wait as speculations of a new iMac lineup are surfacing around the web. This should happen before the end of the year and most probably before Christmas season. The iMac is a great [...] Related posts:]]> http://thetechlink.net/2008/10/20/whats-next-for-apple/