Archive for the ‘Announce’ Category
Tuesday, July 31st, 2012
Dell announced today its new mobile workstations for engineering and design professionals working on the move. The 15-inch M4700 and 17-inch M6700 are available now with prices starting from S$2,854 and S$3,669 respectively.
The popular Covet Edition is back on the 17-inch version, featuring a brilliant Phoenix Red color finish for extra appeal and edge to edge Corning Gorilla Glass 2 for brighter images and increased resilience and protection.
The powerful mobile workstations are targeted towards those demanding high computing performance on the go.
Dell Precision M6700
Examples include film editors on movie sets, architects at construction sites, and geophysicists in the field.
The Dell Precision M4700 and M6700 incorporate the latest Intel Core i5, i7 and Extreme Edition processors with Turbo Boost Technology for optimal performance and an extensive choice of professional graphics including the NVIDIA Quadro K-series GPUS and AMD FirePro graphics.
The M6700 offers the AMD FirePro M6000 with PCIe x16 Gen 3 for fast data throughput.
Dell Precision mobile workstation.
Additionally, Dell provides DDR3 SDRAM with up to 32GB of system memory and 1600MHz of memory speed and up to 16GB of 1866MHz memory, the fastest memory available on a mobile workstation, for high performance and fast access to large data sets.
They also offer an optional SATA3 512GB solid state drive (SSD).
Both systems expandable in the form of RAID 0/1/5 and additional storage devices.
The M4700 can have up to three storage devices with up to 1.8TB of total storage, while the M6700 can have up to four storage devices with up to 2.8TB of total storage.
The M6700 will be the first mobile workstation to offer optional 10+ finger multi-touch in the coming months.The M4700 and M6700 can power up to three simultaneous displays when undocked and up to five displays when docked and are compatible with the Latitude E-family dock.
As desktop replacements, the M4700 and M6700 offer a wide array of ports to connect to a greater number of formats and devices.
The I/O ports include two USB 3.0, two USB 2.0 and one eSATA/USB combo ports and three integrated video ports – one VGA, one HDMI and one DisplayPort 1.2.
An optional slice battery, ExpressCharge battery is also available.
Refer to the press release for the full details.
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Tags:AMD, availability, DELL, eSATA, Intel, laptops, M4700, M6700, mobile workstations, notebooks, NVIDIA, Precision, RAID, SSD
Posted in Announce, Availability, Dell, Gadgets, Prices, Specifications | No Comments »
Monday, July 30th, 2012
One of the first and most frequently asked questions from my readers when Microsoft first unveiled its Customer Release for Office 2013 – was the difference between Office 365 and Office 2013.
Microsoft has now clarified on its nomenclature.
Microsoft’s logo for “the new Office”. The new logo is highly reminiscent of the new Windows mark and is part of Microsoft’s company-wide approach to deliver a more consistent branding experience across all of its products.
The paras below are how Microsoft differentiates between Office 365 and Office 2013.
- Office 365. This is our services brand. Office 365 services are subscriptions with multiple installs for different devices and are always the latest technology every day of the year. Last week, we announced an extension of our Office 365 services for consumers – Office 365 Home Premium – and a new option for business users – Office 365 ProPlus, which join our Office 365 services for small businesses, enterprises, education and government.
- Office Client – Release Year Editions. Just like a car, these editions are the latest technology up to that year. The new release is the “2013” edition. You’ll see this label in suites such as “Office Home and Student 2013.” These editions are also in the cloud and save to SkyDrive by default, but people buy and install once on a single machine.
- Note: Individual client applications such as Word, Excel, Outlook, OneNote and PowerPoint carry a year-model moniker no matter how you get them. If you are a subscriber, the year model edition is updated as part of new updates.
Question from Seow HM (Microsoft unveils Customer Preview for Office 2013):So is it Office 2013 or Office 365? Totally confusing when I went to the Microsoft website.
My reply: It’s the next version of Office. Think everyone can relate to Office 2013. I believe Office 365 is more the packaging and subscription plan. The Office 365 was previously for business customers, but will now be extended to Office Home Premium version for home users as well. If you install the Customer Preview, you’ll find that they call it Office 15. Even more confused now?
In addition, the Office Web Apps are free browser-based companions to Office, which are available to everyone for quick viewing and light editing.
My interpretation? Office 2013, or Word 2013 and Excel 2013 marks the version number of each of the software components.
But Office 365 is more the subscription package, like the various previous Office bundles (eg. Office Professional, Office Home and Office) which included different combinations of the various component software.
By the way, Microsoft is now calling the new release – “the new office” (as in “the new iPad”).
This is something new in itself – at least to me, since I didn’t notice this term when the Customer Release was first unveiled. Does it refer to Office 365 or does it refer to Office 2013?
Tags:Excel, logo, Microsoft, nomenclature, Office, Office 2013, Office 365, Office Web Apps, OneNote, Outlook, Powerpoint, Word
Posted in Announce, App, Microsoft, Office, Software | 4 Comments »
Friday, July 27th, 2012
The two new apps joins more than 400 other apps available for the Samsung Smart TV, with more to come in the next few months.
Angry Birds is developed by Rovio Entertainment. Throughout game play, all actions – including level of difficulty selection and screen zoom in/out – are performed using motion control. Players can activate the unique skills of each bird and even control the game’s trademark slingshot action using arm movement enabled by the built-in camera.
The two new apps are part of a slew of high quality content that Samsung has lined up for consumers in the next few months.
New Smart TV apps in the pipeline
- Entertainment: Angry Birds, SingTel mio TV PLAY, StarHub Video Store, WOWtv and Viki Premiere
- Edutainment: Yummy Science, Calculus, Ferog in the Well, My First World and E-Assessment
- Information: Maybank
The new Angry Birds app for Samsung Smart TV utilises Samsung’s Motion Control technology, which works with just the wave of a hand in front of the screen.
The SingTel mio TV PLAY is an over-the-top (OTT) video streaming application providing access to web video content in SD, HD and 3D format through an online catalogue and an online video store with Hollywood and Asian movies.
Four interactive edutainment apps developed by the local developer community will be launched in September 2012.
The two Angry Birds and SingTel mio TV PLAY apps will be preloaded on the Samsung Smart TV.
Some of the new Smart TV apps in the pipeline are listed in the table below, together with a brief description and when they will become available.
These apps are a result of a joint call-for-proposal for the development of educational TV apps for the Samsung Smart TV platform and ecosystem announced in September 2011 with the Media Development Authority of Singapore’s (MDA) Interactive Digital Media Programme Office (IDMPO).
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Tags:Angry Birds, Apps, edutainment, local developers, Samsung, Singapore, SingTel, Smart TV
Posted in Announce, App, Gadgets, Samsung, SingTel, Software, TV | 1 Comment »
Thursday, July 26th, 2012
SolarWinds has announced today that it is launching the SolarWinds Web Help Desk. Prices for the IT Help Desk solution start at US$495.
SolarWinds has announced today the launch of the SolarWinds Web Help Desk.
SolarWinds Web Help Desk is a boost to the growing portfolio of IT Management products from SolarWinds, which provides powerful and affordable IT management software for companies.
SolarWinds Web Help Desk highlights:
- Easily perform help desk ticketing support and management operations from a single, centralized web-console, purpose-built for IT processes and organizations.
- Automate change management operations with powerful and customizable change management functionality.
- Simplify asset management for both hardware and software assets through a centralized IT Asset Repository.
- Leverage the extensive KnowledgeBase Engine for capturing and sharing ITSM best practices and solutions.
SolarWinds Web Help Desk is a cross-platform, web-based solution that allows IT professionals to remove complexity from their IT service processes and to improve service to their end-users through practical, flexible tools.
Read the press release below for more details.
(more…)
Tags:enterprise IT, IT management tool, software, SolarWinds, Web Help Desk
Posted in Announce, Availability, Enterprise IT, Software, Utility | No Comments »
Tuesday, July 24th, 2012
There will be numerous road disruptions in London during the 2012 Olympics. TomTom will be providing – at 6pm every day – the latest map updates on road changes for the following day, via the Map Share community.
TomTom will provide free map updates to help alleviate traffic congestion during the London 2012 Olympics.
Good news for those driving in London during the Summer Olympics, which opens on 27 July and ends on 12 August.
Map updates via Map Share
Special daily map changes during the coming weeks include the more dynamic, frequent changes that drivers are likely to encounter in and around the London Metropolitan Area such as:
- Blocked roads
- New traffic directions
- Altered turn restrictions
- New Points of Interest (POIs)
Drivers can also report their own changes through Map Share in addition to downloading the daily map changes provided by TomTom.
They can choose to accept changes submitted by some, or many, other Map Share users, or only those verified by TomTom during the coming weeks.
TomTom’s map experts have predicted that 28 July is likely to be the most disrupted travel day in and around London with more than 9000 road changes.
The next most congested day is likely to be August 1 when more than 3000 changes will be made.
With the temporary road closures, changes in traffic flow and turn restrictions, TomTom will be helping drivers avoid travel disruptions with additional daily updates to their maps via the Map Share community.
After 6pm (GMT) every day, TomTom users will be able to download – for free – the following day’s road changes to their navigation device and reset any changes no longer required from the previous day for free.
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Tags:GPS, London 2012 Olympics, Map Share, map updates, navigation, PND, TomTom, traffic congestion
Posted in Accessories, Announce, Gadgets, GPS, Tech news, TomTom, Utility | 1 Comment »
Friday, July 20th, 2012
RSA, The Security Division of EMC, recently released key findings from the RSA Archer GRC Executive Forum held in June, during which governance, risk and compliance (GRC) leaders from 34 leading corporations discussed enterprise risk management strategies and best practices.
Key Findings of the RSA Archer GRC Executive Forum
Top executives say GRC Programs must better align to strategic priorities to meet board needs. The results affirm the earlier Carnegie Mellon CyLab 2012 Governance Report.
Some key findings
- Mounting and multiplied business risks due to growing regulatory requirements and greater business complexity.
- The need to align GRC to business priorities to get organizational leaders on board.
- Moving away from a siloed GRC program to one which is unified to make enterprise-wide risk assessment.
It was noted that the shift towards increased regulatory and compliance requirements is being observed across Asia Pacific and Japan as well, with organizations looking to better calibrate their risk assessment frameworks and set guidelines for assessing organisation risks.
The need for business continuity management programs is also gaining traction, with the occurrence of natural disasters in Japan and Thailand prompting organizations to reassess their risk environment.
Read the press release below for more details.
(more…)
Tags:best practices, EMC, enterprise IT, risk management strategies, RSA, RSA Archer GRC Executive Forum, security
Posted in Announce, Enterprise IT, Press Release, Security, Study | No Comments »
Friday, July 20th, 2012
BlackBerry Mobile Fusion is RIM’s next-generation mobile device management solution for Government and Business Customers in Singapore.
It promises to be a secure, reliable, and scalable solution to easily manage BlackBerry, iOS and Android devices.
From left, Ian Gardner, Director, Enterprise Sales, RIM; and Charles Dufourcq, Director, Singapore, RIM sharing the advantages of BlackBerry Mobile Fusion
BlackBerry Mobile Fusion consolidates the management of smartphones and tablets running BlackBerry OS (which includes BlackBerry PlayBook and future BlackBerry 10 devices) as well as Android and iOS.
“For businesses and government, managing a mix of mobile devices on any scale is chaotic. Organizations face pressure to allow employees to bring their own devices into the workplace,” said Charles Dufourcq, Director for Singapore at Research In Motion.
BlackBerry Mobile Fusion provides a single, unified, web–based console to manage the wide range of mobile devices that the employees of an organisation may bring and use for work.
BlackBerry Mobile Fusion integrates the market-leading features and security architecture of BlackBerry Enterprise Server (version 5.0.3), providing advanced IT management and controls, a single outbound security connection (256-bit AES encrypted “BlackBerry VPN”), enforceable IT policies, support for BlackBerry Balance technology, and over-the-air app and software installation capabilities for the management of BlackBerry smartphones and PlayBook tablets (as well as future BlackBerry 10 devices).
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Tags:Android, BlackBerry, BlackBerry 10, enterprise IT, iOS, MDM, mobile device management, mobile devices, Mobile Fusion, Research In Motion, RIM, smartphones, tablets
Posted in Android, Announce, BlackBerry, BlackBerry 10, BlackBerry OS, BlackBerry Tablet OS, Enterprise IT, Gadgets, iOS, Operating Systems, Phones, Prices, RIM, Security, Software, Specifications, Tablets | No Comments »
Thursday, July 19th, 2012
The Walkman NWZ-E470 and NWZ-E470K digital media players will be available from August 2012, while the Walkman NWZ-F800 mobile entertainment player will be available from the end of October 2012. Prices TBA.
The Sony Walkman NWZ-E470 series of digital media players comes in many bright colours.
Following the launch of the Z1000 series Walkman in May, Sony has announced today three more personal audio visual Walkman players for music players on the go.
Enjoy your music wherever you are with the Sony Walkman NWZ-F800.
All of them enhance sound quality using four Sony Clear Audio Technologies (Clear Stereo, Clear Bass, DSEE and MDR-EX083 headphones).
SensMe Channel analyses your music and automatically categorises music tracks into different channels so you can conveniently listen to music that matches your mood.
Walkman NWZ-F800
The NWZ-F800 emphasises on audio quality and targets audiophiles with Sony’s S-Master MX digital amplifier, promising an enriched stereo image, tight bass and crystal clear highs.
The multi-app mobile entertainment player features the Clear Phase technology which ensures reduced distortion and increased sound presence, offering outstanding high quality sound in a portable audio device.
Sony Walkman NWZ-F800
Lyrics are displayed so you can sing along to your favourite tunes; and Visualisers and Cover Art View provide brilliant visuals on the vibrant 3.5” WVGA multi-touch screen LCD, bringing you closer to your music.
The player runs on an NVIDIA Tegra II dual-core processor and the Google Android 4.0 platform.
Housed in a compact aluminium body, it also includes FLAC support for true CD-quality sound, 512MB memory, GPS, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, as well as up to 25 hours of music playback.
Walkman NWZ-E470 series and NWZ-E470K
The NWZ-E470 series comes in 4GB (NWZ-E473), 8GB (NWZ-E474) and 16GB (NWZ-E475) capacities and many eye-catching colours, while the NWZ-E470K comes with a speaker.
The Sony Walkman NWZ-E470K comes with a speaker.
They are only 7.4 mm thin and provides good sound quality through Sony’s VPT and Dynamic Normaliser features.
The players offer up to 36 hours of music and six hours of video playback, easy drag and drop file transfer function and two free pre-installed games (‘Puyo Pop Fever’and ‘NUMBER PLACE’).
In addition, Karaoke Mode, Synchronised Lyric, Voice Recording and Language Learning features let users have tons of fun.
Below are the specifications for the new Sony Walkman gadgets.
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Tags:audio, media players, NWZ-E470, NWZ-f800, personal mobile entertainment, Sony, Walkman
Posted in Android, Announce, Audio, Gadgets, Lifestyle, Media player, Sony, Specifications | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, July 18th, 2012
LG will debut its first Quad-Core smartphone in Singapore on 28 July. The Android 4.0 smartphone has an RRP of S$738 and comes with a free leather case, while stocks last.
LG Optimus 4X HD Android smartphone, available on 28 July, 2012.
The Optimus 4X HD runs on NVIDIA’s 4-PLUS-1 Quad-Core mobile processor – the Tegra 3. This is the same processor that is used in powerful tablet computers.
| Key Specifications |
| OS |
Android 4.0 (ICS) |
| Screen |
4.7″ IPS |
| Resolution |
1280 x 720 |
| Battery |
2,150 mAh |
| Processor |
1.5 GHz Quad-core NVIDIA Tegra 3 |
| Camera |
Rear: 8mp |
| Front: 1.3mp |
| Video |
1080p |
| Memory |
Int: 12 GB |
| Ext: 64 GB microSD |
| Size /mm |
132.4 x 68.1 x 9.19 |
| Weight |
141 g |
| Price |
S$738 |
The 1.5GHz Tegra 3 automatically activates all four cores when maximum power is needed but defaults to a fifth, battery-saver core when less power is required, such as during standby mode or music playback mode.
The Optimus 4X HD has a large 4.7-inch IPS display with a high resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels, giving a high pixel density of 313 ppi.
The 16:9 Stripe RGB IPS Panel offers sharper and crisper text. The smartphone also comes with a huge 2,150mAh battery.
The LG Optimus 3.0 UI includes QuickMemo which lets users instantly jot memos or notes from any screen, without having to open a separate application.
The smartphone also comes with MediaPlex, which combines a range of functions to enhance image and video playback such as Fingertip Seek and Live Zooming.
MediaPlex also includes Time Catch Shot, which allows one to select and save the best shot among the images taken just before the shutter button is depressed.
Tags:Android 4.0, available, Ice Cream Sandwich, ICS, LG, Optimus 4X HD, Singapore, smartphones
Posted in Android, Announce, Availability, Gadgets, LG, Operating Systems, Optimus, Phones, Prices, Software, Specifications | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, July 17th, 2012
In a surprise move, Yahoo has hired Google’s vice president from rival Google to be its fifth CEO in four years. 37-year-old Marissa Mayer will take over today from interim CEO Ross Levinsohn.
37-year-old Marissa Mayer takes over as Yahoo CEO on Tuesday.
Marissa Mayer was one of Google’s earliest employees and first female engineer. She joined Google in 1999 as its 20th employee.
“Her challenge will also be wooing advertisers that have shifted marketing budgets away from Yahoo,” reports Bloomberg.
Her appointment is seen to signal Yahoo’s desire to re-establish its web presence in the presence of onslaughts from relative newcomers Google, Facebook and Twitter.
In being hired by Yahoo, Mayer pipped hot contender – the interim CEO Ross Levinsohn – who had taken custody of Yahoo when Scott Thompson resigned in May over inaccuracies in his academic record.
Mayer is the therefore the third Yahoo CEO in less than one year.
Yahoo’s sales tumbled 21 percent to $4.98 billion last year. They had peaked at $7.21 billion in 2008, according to Bloomberg. The company is reporting its second-quarter earnings tomorrow.
Tags:CEO, Google, Marissa Mayer, Ross Levinsohn, Scott Thompson, Yahoo
Posted in Announce, Facebook, Google, Internet, Tech news, Tickers, Twitter, Yahoo | 2 Comments »
