Samsung head quits, company vows reform...

Samsung chief Lee Kun-hee on Tuesday criminal indictment over allegations of breach of trust and tax evasion in his native Korea. The move fulfills claims made by Lee that he would consider stepping down to assume responsibility for financial irregularities at Samsung, though to date the executive has so far denied personal connection to the claims, which have also accused him of practicing nepotism to ensure his son takes over the company.

Windows XP SP3 available April 29th...

Microsoft has announced that Windows XP SP3 has been released to manufacturing and will be released for download on April 29th as a standalone installer. It will be available in early Summer as an automatic update. Windows XP SP3 includes all previously released Windows XP updates, including security updates and hotfixes, and select out-of-band releases. Microsoft says it's not adding significant Windows Vista functionality to Windows XP through SP3. However, SP3 does include Network Access Protection (NAP) to" help organizations that use Windows XP to take advantage of new features in the Windows Server 2008 operating system."

Apple revises MacBook Pro firmware with v1.5.1...

Apple today released its MacBook Pro EFI Firmware Update 1.5.1, which it says provides fixes several issues to improve the stability of MacBook Pro computers. The update revises a recently-issued MBP firmware update that came alongside similar updates for most of its other Mac families, including the MacBook, MacBook Air, and iMac computers -- as well as a specific MacBook Air Bluetooth update -- and also comes with updated version of the Firmware Restoration CD 1.7. "After the firmware is successfully applied to your Mac, your Boot ROM Version will be:
 MBP21.00A5.B08 or MBP31.0070.B07," the company notes.

Briefly: Apple Q2 results call...

In brief: Apple will broadcast its second quarter results conference call on Wednesday, Odysseus, the Eudora clone/successor, is available for pre-order, O'Reilly has published a new edition of the big book of Apple Hacks, and Carbon fiber cases for the iPhone are once again shipping ... Apple will broadcast its 2008 second quarter results conference call on Wednesday, April 23, 2008, 2:00 p.m. PDT/5:00 p.m. EDT. The conference call will be available as a continuous rebroadcast utilizing QuickTime. The live audio webcast will be accessible through Apple's website. Viewers need a copy of QuickTime 6 or QuickTime 7 to listen to the conference call.

New extended laptop battery, Solar Bluetooth car kit...

Promate on Monday unveiled a universal laptop back-up battery it calls the ProBattery as well as solar-powered Bluetooth car kit. The company, which makes electronics accessories that range from protective screen films for PDAs to external media drives, promises to keep laptops running for up to eight hours. To make it compatible with a wide variety of laptops, the 6600mAh Lithium Polymer battery uses a selectable 5V, 16V or 19V power output and 15 modular notebook connectors.

iPhone price cut triggers UK sales rush...

Sales of iPhones jumped rapidly throughout England last week, according to reports. O2 stores in London, Newcastle and Birmingham are said to have sold out entirely on April 16th, and only recently replenished their stocks. Meanwhile, a staffer from Carphone Warehouse's Oxford Street store in London says the location received a one-time doubling of daily sales from 30 to 60.

USBfever adds IR remote, Nano case/photo stand...

Aside from its PPS2, USBfever has added two other products to its lineup for Apple portables. The first of these is an infrared remote (right), which operates at distances of up to 32.8 feet, and controls basic iPhone/iPod functions such as play/pause, skipping forward and backward, and adjusting volume. To work, users must plug the remote's included dongle into a player's dock connector; supported devices include everything from the third generation iPod onwards, with the exception of Shuffles and the first-generation Nano. The remote package costs $20.

Agenda, Magic Dice get updates...

Yenco.com has updated two of its flagship products, Agenda and Magic Dice. Agenda is a calendaring and event/take management tool. The new release, version 4.0, features multiple calendar view, repeating events, task management, a reminder application, journal editor, built-in iEvents to create calendar or journal websites, quick searching, monthly scenes, multiple window sizes, iCal import and export, and more. For a limited time users who purchase Agenda 4 will get a free Magic Dice registration code. The tool is priced at $40. Registered Agenda 3 and iEvents 2 users can also enter their existing code into the registration window for a discount.

IssueTrak 8.0 adds classes, filters, more...

IssueTrak has released a major revision of its self-titled call center/help desk software, bringing it to v8.0. A number of changes have been made, among these the ability to divide issues into categories, such as "incident and "change request." Issue types, subtypes and quick picks can similarly be filtered, directed to particular groups as necessary; tasks can be canceled after a defined response, and a new pop-up can identify a caller and their relevant issue information.

Study: mobile Linux at 20% share by 2013...

Market research company ABI Research says in a new report that a Linux-based mobile operating system will find its way into in almost one out of every five mid- to high-end cellular phones by 2013. The study cites efforts by the LiMo Foundation, Google's marketing of its Android OS, as well as Nokia's Maemo and Trolltech purchases as some of the reasons the open-source OS system will grow. ABI's findings also conclude that despite the added cost of hardware necessary to support open-source operating systems, the move will offer better value because of the greater number of supported applications.

HTC Dream, MDA Compact IV spotted?...

Two of HTC's more anticipated phones are likely to have been spotted today courtesy of a photo displayed in a forum post. Asking if viewers can identify all the devices, a user shows a large, QWERTY slider device (left) that appears to closely resemble the Dream; the device is large enough to match the description and includes both the large screen and hardware controls previously suggested before. The phone interface also appears different than normal and may hint at the Dream's use of Google Android for its operating system.

Analyst: 10M iPods sold in Apple Q2...

Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster estimates that Apple sold 10 to 10.5 million iPods in its fiscal second quater (January, February and March). Munster views this data point as a "slight positive, given recent Street chatter of a very weak iPod number for the quarter." The Piper Jaffray analysis looks at the percentage contribution in NPD data from each month of the quarter in past March quarters. The analyst says that the cheaper iPod shuffle drove sales in February and March. Munster previously said that the iPod will be a slower growing segment than the Mac or iPhone, and expects iPod unit growth to be flat in the calendar year 2008, but also thinks that Apple can maintain iPod unit growth and slightly exceed street expectations. Munster believes that the iPhone will replace the iPod as a driver of significant growth for the company.

Google holds throne in brand value over Apple, MS...

Google remains the number one company in the world in terms of estimated brand value, says the research group Millward Brown Optimor. Google has held its spot for a third consecutive year, with a recent valuation of $86.1 billion, an increase of 30 percent over earlier results. General Electric holds second place in the current survey at $71.4 billion, while Microsoft is valued at $70.9 billion. The results are based on interviews with over a million people worldwide.

Sony PS3 video store due this summer?...

Sony's anticipated PlayStation 3 video store could be available as soon as this summer and with wide support, sources tell the LA Times. The console maker is allegedly in talks with multiple major studios and would open the store with a mixture of full-length movies and TV shows. No information has yet been supplied as to which companies are likely to be onboard or whether Sony will offer any videos in HD.

Unlimited Skype: $3 US/Canada, $10 international...

Skype on Monday announced it will offer unlimited international calling to land lines in 34 countries for $10 a month under its Unlimited World plan. In a few countries, including US, Canada, China, Hong Kong and Singapore, the VoIP company's newest plan includes calling to cell phones as well. With the plan, subscribers will also be able to use their cell phones or traditional land lines to call a local number, which then forwards their call to one of the 34 countries and does not incur long distance charges.

Apple looks to expand iTunes trademarks...

Apple is working to greatly expand the reach of its iTunes trademark, a filing at the European Trademark Office reveals. While Apple already owns multiple trademarks related to its combination music and video software, the new application would see the number of applicable categories jump from four to 19, making it extremely difficult for other companies to poach the name. Apple has in the past encountered conflicts with names such as "iPhone" or "iTV," due to other companies laying early claim. Problems with the latter resulted in the Apple TV.

Dell using XP until 2012, Audible on Zune...

Dell will keep using Windows XP until as late as 2012, a company representative has reportedly told users. Although Microsoft has said it would discontinue the option for XP this year in all but very low-cost notebooks, the claimed Dell message says the PC creator will continue offering XP Professional until 2012 on all its higher-end business offerings, including the Latitude, Optiplex, and Precision lineups.

GizMac announces XRackPro2 Studio...

GizMac has announced the newest addition to its line-up of XRackPro2 low-noise server racks with a Studio version. The designer and manufacturer adapted its server racks for use in recording or music studios, home theater and other applications that do not require a computer server, noting that customers who previously bought the racks for such applications found them too deep. The racks are acoustically engineered to reduce fan and mechanical noise emitted by modern recording, computer or other digital equipment by as much as 75 percent. To keep their contents cool, the racks feature four ultra-quiet fans along with a user-customizable air intake system.

First Look: Freeway 5 webpage designer...

Designing webpages is often a compromise. Hardcore enthusiasts may prefer hand-coding entire pages, which allows precise control in exchange for complexity; novices often prefer simplified programs, with templates that do most of the work for you, but this often comes at the cost of customization. Even professional programs like Adobe’s Dreamweaver requires designers to learn the complexities of HTML coding in order to create the results they want. If you’d rather spend your time designing the appearance of pages rather than learning the complexities of HTML or Javascript coding, you may prefer Freeway 5, which feels more like a desktop publishing program that lets you precisely drag and position items on a page.

Smartphones in short supply, Apple recovering?...

Three of the most dominant smartphone makers in the US are all suffering from low supply of their devices at the same time, Morgan Keegan analyst Tavis McCourt says in a new investor's note. In addition to the still ongoing iPhone shortage, McCourt also observes that Research in Motion's standard BlackBerry Pearl has not been reliably available at retail at AT&T since March and may only begin to offer the Pearl 8120 to home users by April 24th at the earliest.

Portable Power Station 2 serves iPhones, Nanos...

Generic dealer USBfever has released a second Portable Power Station intended for the iPhone. The device serves as a backup battery, temporarily recharging the internal one when connecting to wall socket is impractical; it attaches directly to an iPhone's dock connector, and starts the recharge process immediately. A second port at the base of the PPS2 lets users charge both the internal and external batteries simultaneously, or alternately sync with a computer as usual.

iStyles ships Crystal Cases for modern Nanos...

iStyles has begun shipping the latest version of its Crystal Case iPod protectors, now tailored for the third-generation iPod nano. The cases conform specifically to the dimensions of Apple's latest Nano, and are made of translucent polycarbonate, with colors tinted to the shade of each different Nano model. Exposed areas of a player include the clickwheel and the headphone jack; the screen, Hold switch and dock connector remain covered most of the time, but a door allows access to the latter two components as needed.

TimeDrawer 2.0 aims to supplement Time Machine...

Japan's Oneriver has released the second version of TimeDrawer, its special file versioning software. The program operates similarly to Time Machine, in that it automatically makes incremental backups of documents such as text or code files; unlike Apple's application, however, TimeDrawer backs up the instant it detects changes, instead of waiting until an upcoming scheduled interval. This allows users to recover information from as little as a few minutes ago.

Intel debuts Celerons, Core 2s, cuts prices...

Intel late yesterday refreshed its processor line with a combination of new chips and price cuts. Among the new lineup, the Celeron E1400 is unique as the semiconductor firm's first budget processor to crack 2GHz while also offering dual cores; the refinement is a significant boost from its 1.6GHz predecessor but occupies the same $53 price point as the earlier design, making it feasible for budget desktops. It should be available today and will see the price of the older chip drop to $43. A single-core, 2.66GHz Celeron 570 ships for $134 and contributes to a price drop on the 1.8GHz Celeron 430 to $34.

Italian iPhone due within weeks, unlocked?...

An Italian iPhone will be released "in weeks," according to one of the country's newspapers. Repubblica claims that a contract was signed last week in Apple's home city of Cupertino, California, after a visit from the CEO of Telecom Italia. The first version of the phone in Italy should be the highly-anticipated 3G model, rather than the current 2.5G edition; more importantly however, Apple is said to be experimenting with a completely new pricing scheme in the country.

WD intros "fastest" hard drive at 300GB...

Western Digital says it has blurred the lines between drive classes with the release of the VelociRaptor, the latest generation of its Raptor high-speed hard disks. The 300GB drive is targeted as much at enthusiasts as professionals and holds twice as much as the most recent Raptor while outperforming it: while spinning at the same 10,000RPM, the VelociRaptor benchmarks about 35 percent faster, the company claims.

PayPal: No plans to block Safari...

Users of Apple's Safari browser will be able to continue making PayPal transactions, according to a representative from the latter company. PayPal has been critical of Safari, noting that it lacks direct anti-phishing safeguards, or EV SSL certificates. News emerged last week, however, of a internal security white paper, which suggested that the company might block such "unsafe" web browsers entirely as a means of protecting its customers. Permitting access through unsecure browsers is "equal to a car manufacturer allowing drivers to buy one of their vehicles without seat belts," the paper argued.

Details of AMD's ATI Radeon HD 4800 leak...

AMD is moving up the launch of its next-generation video processors, say sources aware of the hardware at TGDaily. The company's Canada-based graphics division has reportedly seen breakthroughs in its development process and now plans to replace some of its Radeon HD 3800 cards with the 4800 series. Manufacturing improvements will give these higher clock speeds: the mid-range 4850 will jump from a 670MHz core (in the 3850) to more than 800MHz, while the 4870 should be the first mainstream graphics chipset ever to top 1GHz, the leak suggests.