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Patriot has announced the release of its PS-100 solid-state drive series. The new lineup is the latest in the company's "cache-based" SSDs, and targets budget-minded consumers seeking the performance and reliability of solid-state technology without having to spend big.

The PS-100 series drives conform to the 2.5" form factor, feature 64MB of cache, have a MTBF of 2.5 million hours, and consume about 5.3W of power during operation and .5W when in standby, which should prove useful in portable systems. The drives deliver sequential read speeds of up to 210MB/s and sequential write speeds of up to 150MB/s. Unfortunately, there are no details about the NAND chips or controller.

The PS-100 series will consist of four drives, including 32GB, 64GB, 128GB and 256GB models. According to Patriot's director of marketing, Eric Ackerson, the drives will be aggressively priced and should arrive just in time for the holidays, but no specifics were given in the press release.

Sony is reportedly gearing up to launch an online portal for digital entertainment. The new store, named Sony Online Service, will sell music, movies, and books along with other downloadable applications for mobile gadgets. The company's new service will enter into a competitive market, with Apple's iTunes and many other digital content providers.

The Sony Online Service will bring much needed change to the company's portfolio. Chairman and CEO Howard Stringer has sought after a software strategy since taking over in mid-2006, and analysts believe the company has been too focused on hardware, saying "it has to focus on networked products [and] delivering digital entertainment to consumers."

Sony hasn't disclosed any hard details, but the Sony Online Service is supposedly going to be based on the PlayStation Network. The service is also expected to allow users to upload content, such as videos or images, and Sony may let third-party developers create apps for the store.

According to Fudzilla, some new information has emerged about Intel's 2011 Atom platform, which will be a successor to the imminent Pine Trail platform. Codenamed Cedar Trail, the 2011 refresh should bring the first Atom processors built with a 32nm fabrication. Behind the scenes, Fudzilla says those 32nm chips are codenamed Cedarview.

Details are scant, but it is expected that shrunken Atom CPUs will feature an integrated graphics core, much like Intel's other 32nm parts. Cedarview is said to support DirectX 10-level 3D, HD video decoding, and should bring dual digital outputs that recognize DisplayPort and HDMI as well as older standards.

Additionally, Cedarview should house a single-channel memory controller with support for 1066MHz DDR3 RAM. There are also other tidbits that really go without saying, like the potential for decreased temperatures and power consumption.

Looking ahead even further, Cedar Trail will be replaced by early 2013 when Intel introduces its 22nm chips.

Looks like the recent wave of Xbox Live bans -- in which as many as one million users were cut off from the service -- is ready to evolve into a into a full on legal showdown. A Texas-based law firm by the name of AbingtonIP is reportedly organizing a class-action suit claiming Microsoft timed the bans to extract the maximum amount of money out of customers.

According to AbingtonIP, this "convenient" timing may have resulted in more Xbox Live subscription revenues for Microsoft than it would have if the console bans had taken place at some point before the release of Halo 3: ODST and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. The company is also said to have earned plenty of game sales revenue from these two titles before dropping the axe on infringing users.

Microsoft for its part says the bans were made to combat piracy and support safer and more secure gameplay, though the law firm contends that it also locked out users who had modified their Xboxes for reasons other than piracy -- which they admit is "arguably" against the terms of service.

AbingtonIP is recruiting plaintiffs through its website and looking for people who have had their Xbox banned from Xbox Live without a refund for their remaining subscription. What's your take on the issue, do they make a convincing case, or is this just a shady attempt to profit at Microsoft's expense?

Why Chrome OS will fail -- big time @ InfoWorld
Does Hidden Text Prove Shroud of Turin Real? @ FoxNews
Microsoft denies it built 'backdoor' in Windows 7 @ ComputerWorld
ASUS Shatters Netbook Conventions with Eee PC 1201N @ Asus
See more articles and reviews.

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There just seem to be no stopping OCZ Technology when it comes to solid-state drive development. The company recently expanded their already impressive lineup with the 3.5-inch Colossus series, and touted a new and improved generation of drives based on controllers from startup SandForce. Now they are looking to introduce the first external SSD to hook up via the super speedy USB 3.0 interconnect.


No details regarding performance or storage capacity are available for the device yet, but the renders above show a micro-USB connector, as well as 8 NAND memory modules. Additionally we know that the SandForce controllers on upcoming drives from OCZ support up to 260MB/s sequential read and write speeds. The company is said to be crowdsourcing a name for the device before its launch, which is expected to take place at CES 2010 in Las Vegas in early January. Feel free to leave your suggestion in the comments.

The expected took place this week after ATI launched their latest dual-GPU graphics card. In our review we praised the card for its performance and relative efficiency, however we were quick to conclude that its immediate success would primarily depend on availability. Other cards in the Radeon 5000 series have been equally well received, however shortage issues have kept them out of enthusiasts' hands for the most part.

An initial report from Fudzilla indicates that a 'decent' amount of Radeon HD 5970 card inventory was pushed to retailers this week, but due to pre-orders and general high interest in the product, the available cards disappeared in a matter of hours.

There are scattered reports about retailers carrying some inventory, but those are quick to go. In other words, if you want to have a Radeon HD 5970 in your hands soon you will have to hunt for it. Taking a quick look at Newegg's stock, you can see 5 different flavors of the HD 5970, all of them unavailable for ordering – despite price tags north of $600.

Microsoft stepped up its game in more ways than one with the advent of Windows 7. The graphical user interface, for example, looks and functions better in than previous releases and is easy to customize. Without digging deep, even inexperienced users coming from Windows XP and Vista can see that Microsoft really attempted to bring a degree of style to its latest and greatest operating system.

Windows 7 ships with several unique themes and desktop backgrounds, ranging from the traditional scenic landscapes to creepy character art. In all, though, there are only about 13 accessible themes, which can't really cover the broad spectrum of individual taste. While it's a breeze to tweak themes to something you like, having more stock configurations to choose from certainly wouldn't hurt, right?


As you may have noticed, at least one of the bundled themes is region-specific. This is determined during the installation or setup process when you select your location, which means that there are many more themes lurking on your hard drive. Finding and using these hidden theme packs is very simple.

Read our Tech Tip of the Week.

The Mozilla Foundation has revealed some financial figures from last year, showing 5% rise in revenue to $79 million during 2008. Much of that money came from the foundation's search ad deal with Google, which currently lasts through 2011.

Unfortunately, that growth has tapered off dramatically in the last couple of years. For comparison, in 2007 the Mozilla Foundation reported $75 million in revenue, a 12% increase over 2006. Mozilla chairperson Mitchell Baker goes into much greater depth on her blog, if you are interested.

Dollars aside, Mozilla's Firefox has steadily climbed to the world's second most used Web browser, chipping away at Microsoft's Internet Explorer. Firefox currently holds approximately one quarter of the global market share, and recently surpassed IE6, the most used version of Internet Explorer.

In somewhat related news, a rumor sprouted today which suggests that Sony may have plans to use Firefox on its PlayStation 3 console. The move is surely welcomed by most, as the PS3's built-in browser is considered to be less reliable and accurate at handling websites than a desktop-grade browser.

Dell quietly rolled out the Studio 17 Touch today, making it the company's first multitouch laptop. The system kicks off at $800 and sports a 17.3" (1600x900) LED display, a 2.1GHz Intel Pentium Dual Core T4300, 4GB of DDR3 1066MHz RAM, an ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4570, a 320GB 7200RPM HDD, a dual-layer DVD burner, 802.11g connectivity, a six-cell battery, and Windows 7 Home Premium x64.


If desired, the Studio 17 Touch can also be configured with a full 1080p display, an Intel Core i7 720QM or 820QM CPU, 8GB of DDR3 1333MHz RAM, a 1GB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4650, dual 500GB HDDs, a Blu-ray burner, 802.11n, a Soundblaster X-Fi audio card, a nine-cell battery, and Windows 7 Ultimate x64. Naturally, those additions come at a premium, and maxing out the specifications brings the price up to about $2,900.

Systems come with a minimum one-year warranty, and orders placed now will ship in early December -- just in time for the holidays.

Computer giant Dell took a huge hit in profit for the previous quarter, following a slump in sales. Overall, Dell says their profit has been cut by more than half, falling 54% below the previous quarter. The largest losses have primarily come from enterprise and business customers, which represent the bulk of Dell's profitable sales.

Companies simply have lower budgets for new technology, and that has affected Dell's loss more than increased competition from the market leaders, HP and Acer. The bad news also set Dell stocks back a bit, falling about 19 cents a share, though they are still doing better than they were in the first quarter of this year. While they may not be a bulk of the issue, Acer has been putting incredible pressure on both them and HP, so it's understandable that Dell is struggling.

Dell does have a lot on the horizon though, introducing several new products this year, such as the Inspiron Zino HD nettop and the ultra-thin Adamo XPS. Still, they will have to work harder than that to recover ground lost to Acer and HP.

AT&T announced today that it plans to expand its line of 3G-connected netbooks with the HP Mini 110. The carrier expects to begin shipping the Mini 110 on November 22, which will cost $199 after a mail-in rebate and signing a two-year contract. Plans will include a 200MB limit for $35 per month, or a hefty 5GB for $60, which is paired with free access to some 20,000 AT&T Wi-Fi hotspots in the US.

The HP Mini 110 features a 10.1" LED display, an Intel Atom processor, 1GB of RAM, a 160GB HDD, an HP webcam, an integrated microphone, and Windows 7. The system weighs in at 2.57lbs and will ship with HP QuickSync to automatically sync files with home or work PCs when connected to the same network. Also included is the AT&T Communication Manager (ACM) 7.0 which automatically connects the system to AT&T hotspots.

Of course, if mobile wireless connectivity isn't important to you, HP offers the Mini 110 for $300 through its online store.

Microsoft has made energy efficiency a key design element of Windows 7. By default, the operating system is now smarter than previous releases about what devices to turn on and when. It also includes fairly detailed power management options and offers three power plans out of the box to help end users extend battery life or reduce energy consumption in certain scenarios.


Power Plan Assistant for Windows 7 makes use of these features and adds some extra functionality to make things even easier for you. Among them is the ability to automatically change power plans based on the active power source. For example, a notebook can use High Performance settings when plugged-in, switch to Balanced when it is running on battery, and change to Power Saver mode when battery level falls below 40%.


Users can create custom plans and manually switch between them via an icon in the taskbar notification area that changes in accordance with an active power plan. There are also a few other handy features like the ability to instantly power off the display or customize the notification icon's appearance and behavior.

The software is "donationware" but your free copy expires every week so you are forced to download a new version in order to continue using it. Those who really like Power Plan Assistant and use it often make a voluntary donation in exchange for a serial number to permanently disable the expiration date check.

Google offered a preview of its upcoming Chrome OS during an event today. Stressing its target audience, Google said it is building Chrome OS with web users in mind, and that it probably isn't going to be a replacement for Windows, OS X or Linux desktops. Instead, the search giant is trying to form a new niche.

The unique aspect of Chrome OS is that it will be completely executed inside the Chrome browser. For example, things like applications, configuration, and file management are all contained within tabs on the Chrome interface.

One key characteristic of Chrome is that actual data storage and programs themselves are all stored and run online -- local machine storage is only used to speed up those processes. You can liken Chrome OS to a thin client of sorts, though the application is clearly different.

Chrome OS is also fully open source, and will run on a wider variety of hardware than standard x86-based PCs. However, it is specifically tailored to the hardware Google intends to support, meaning you may have to seek out "Chrome OS approved" hardware. The demo, which you can watch here, was done with an Eee PC. That being the case, I have a feeling Google will push to make Chrome OS available on a very wide variety of mobile devices.

Google hasn't given any timetables or specific release dates, only assuring people that development is underway.

According to leaked information cited by Fudzilla, Intel plans to introduce its first Arrandale-based mobile Celeron processor in the second quarter of next year. It is reported that the new Celeron P4500 will be built on a 32nm process, feature a dual-core design with a clock frequency of 1.86GHz, and 2MB of L2 cache. If the rumors hold true, Turbo Boost and Hyperthreading will be disabled to keep the cost down.

There are few other details, though Fudzilla speculates that one last 45nm Celeron (the T3300) will precede the Celeron P4500. The Penryn-based T3300 will contain two cores that operate at 2.0GHz, 1MB of cache, and an 800MHz FSB. This chip should launch on January 17 for $86, which could be an indication of a general price range for the 32nm P4500.