A Georgia company is suing Oracle for fraud and copyright infringement, saying the vendor is unlawfully using the company's technology to build user interfaces associated with Fusion Applications, a long-awaited, next-generation product family set for release next year.
MB Technologies of Warner Robins, Georgia, is the developer of Bindows, a toolkit that lets developers create "the exact look and feel" of a Windows user interface for their Web applications, according to the complaint.
The company entered a licensing agreement in 2004 with EPM (enterprise performance management) vendor Hyperion, according to the suit filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
After Oracle acquired Hyperion in 2007, MB asked for an addendum to the original agreement, the complaint states.
The companies met several times, and Oracle executives told MB the vendor intended to use the Bindows technology only in Hyperion products that existed at the time of the acquisition, it adds.
Oracle officials also said the company planned to replace Bindows entirely "in the near future," according to the complaint. Those pledges were used by Oracle to "induce" MB to agree to an addendum "at lower license pricing," it states.
But in October 2007, Oracle sent MB a draft of the addendum that included a section stating it would license Bindows "for use in Oracle Fusion products," something the companies had never actually discussed, and which would "necessarily have changed the pricing of the aforesaid license," according to the complaint.
MB then offered to negotiate a Bindows licensing deal for Fusion, but Oracle ultimately removed the clause from the addendum, according to the complaint.
However, in recent months MB learned that Oracle was in fact using Bindows in connection with Fusion products, according to an e-mail exchange filed with the suit.
"Bindows is used in three EPM components that are add-ons to the Fusion applications," Oracle executive Robert Gersten wrote in reply to MB, according to the filing. "We believe it would be better for my group to not re-write these GUIs of these components. It would be nice to work out something that is favorable to both parties."
But the two sides were apparently unable to agree on a price.
MB claims it made repeated attempts to reach an agreement with Oracle, but that ultimately, its "good faith efforts were in vain."
The company is asking for a variety of damages, including any profits Oracle has made from the use of Bindows. An attorney for MB Technologies could not immediately be reached.
Oracle has not yet filed a response to MB's complaint. An Oracle spokeswoman did not respond to a request for comment.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
5 must-have IT management technologies for 2010
As more companies expand virtualization deployments and consider cloud computing, the average IT environment will grow ever more complex. For enterprise IT managers in 2010, that means they must update the technologies they use to monitor, manage and optimize the environment.
Management must-dos in 2009
Industry watchers say some of the biggest challenges facing IT organizations in 2010 are more cultural than technical. From breaking the trend of working in domains, or silos, and aligning IT services better with business needs, IT departments face many formidable tasks in 2010. Virtualization and cloud computing, for instance, require actions be taken across IT domains and will push IT organizations to break down such barriers to new technologies.
"A big limitation today in achieving the true value of some of the latest tools is IT organization, especially in enterprises. Enterprises work in silos, not only between different domain areas (for instance, network, application, server, desktop and storage) but also within domain areas such as Linux server management, mainframe management, Windows management and virtualization management," says David Williams, research vice president at Gartner. "This situation is understood and is slowly starting to be addressed with new roles and cross-domain teams being established. In 2010, IT organizations will continue to visit how they are organized to allow IT operations to become more service-centric and business-aligned."
Analysts say if the cultural hurdles can be cleared, a handful of tools will make adopting advanced technologies in 2010 easier for the majority of IT departments. Here is a brief look at five technologies industry watchers say could become mandatory for optimized IT service delivery and advanced data center operations in the coming year.
No. 1: IT service assurance
Managing the performance of IT service delivery involves myriad technologies reporting on various perspectives, including the user experience with an application.
That means IT departments need to be able to get visibility into network traffic flows as well as application performance across multiple components supporting IT services. From advanced discovery technology to traffic flow analysis to transaction monitoring, IT departments need to see the entire path of a service -- even as it exits in the corporate network and travels through external cloud environments, for instance.
The premise of IT service assurance isn't entirely new and until recently was more commonly a concern for service providers, but enterprise IT organizations have started to evolve into service providers in their own right. Companies such as BMC, CA, HP, IBM and now EMC are touting the ability to provide insight into the life cycle of an IT service. The speed at which companies are adopting and expanding their use of virtualization and the growing interest in internal and external cloud computing environments heightens the need for such technology in 2010.
Management must-dos in 2009
Industry watchers say some of the biggest challenges facing IT organizations in 2010 are more cultural than technical. From breaking the trend of working in domains, or silos, and aligning IT services better with business needs, IT departments face many formidable tasks in 2010. Virtualization and cloud computing, for instance, require actions be taken across IT domains and will push IT organizations to break down such barriers to new technologies.
"A big limitation today in achieving the true value of some of the latest tools is IT organization, especially in enterprises. Enterprises work in silos, not only between different domain areas (for instance, network, application, server, desktop and storage) but also within domain areas such as Linux server management, mainframe management, Windows management and virtualization management," says David Williams, research vice president at Gartner. "This situation is understood and is slowly starting to be addressed with new roles and cross-domain teams being established. In 2010, IT organizations will continue to visit how they are organized to allow IT operations to become more service-centric and business-aligned."
Analysts say if the cultural hurdles can be cleared, a handful of tools will make adopting advanced technologies in 2010 easier for the majority of IT departments. Here is a brief look at five technologies industry watchers say could become mandatory for optimized IT service delivery and advanced data center operations in the coming year.
No. 1: IT service assurance
Managing the performance of IT service delivery involves myriad technologies reporting on various perspectives, including the user experience with an application.
That means IT departments need to be able to get visibility into network traffic flows as well as application performance across multiple components supporting IT services. From advanced discovery technology to traffic flow analysis to transaction monitoring, IT departments need to see the entire path of a service -- even as it exits in the corporate network and travels through external cloud environments, for instance.
The premise of IT service assurance isn't entirely new and until recently was more commonly a concern for service providers, but enterprise IT organizations have started to evolve into service providers in their own right. Companies such as BMC, CA, HP, IBM and now EMC are touting the ability to provide insight into the life cycle of an IT service. The speed at which companies are adopting and expanding their use of virtualization and the growing interest in internal and external cloud computing environments heightens the need for such technology in 2010.
BlackBerry service hit by second outage in a week
IDG News Service - An outage hit BlackBerry smartphone service in the Americas on Tuesday night, operator Research In Motion confirmed. The outage is the second to affect users in less than a week.
"Some BlackBerry customers in the Americas are currently experiencing delays in message delivery," the company said in a statement. "Our technical teams are actively working to resolve this issue for those impacted. We apologize for any inconvenience."
Hundreds of messages are hitting social-network services like Twitter every few minutes from users experiencing problems. The volume indicates the problems are widespread and affecting users on several carriers.
The support line and RIM's Internet-based support forums offered no additional information on how long the outage is expected to last.
E-mail service was disrupted last week when some users were unable to receive messages for several hours on Thursday morning. The cause of the problem has not yet been revealed. Before that the last wide-scale outage occurred in February 2008 when a software upgrade at RIM took service out for several hours.
At the end of November RIM had about 36 million customers on the BlackBerry service. The company doesn't break down subscribers by region but just under two-thirds of the US$3.9 billion it recorded in revenue during the third quarter came from the U.S. and Canada where the outage is centered.
"Some BlackBerry customers in the Americas are currently experiencing delays in message delivery," the company said in a statement. "Our technical teams are actively working to resolve this issue for those impacted. We apologize for any inconvenience."
Hundreds of messages are hitting social-network services like Twitter every few minutes from users experiencing problems. The volume indicates the problems are widespread and affecting users on several carriers.
The support line and RIM's Internet-based support forums offered no additional information on how long the outage is expected to last.
E-mail service was disrupted last week when some users were unable to receive messages for several hours on Thursday morning. The cause of the problem has not yet been revealed. Before that the last wide-scale outage occurred in February 2008 when a software upgrade at RIM took service out for several hours.
At the end of November RIM had about 36 million customers on the BlackBerry service. The company doesn't break down subscribers by region but just under two-thirds of the US$3.9 billion it recorded in revenue during the third quarter came from the U.S. and Canada where the outage is centered.
iMac firmware update fails to fix flickering problems
iMac have reported that the firmware update released earlier this week has not solved their flickering display problems, according to Apple's own support forum.
Apple issued the firmware update Monday, saying that it was designed to "address issues that may cause image corruption or the display to flicker" on 27-in. iMacs equipped with the ATI Radeon HD 4670 and 4850 graphics cards.
But users continue to complain on Apple's support forum that the update was no fix for them.
"Flickering/tearing has been occurring occasionally (once a day maybe), so I downloaded and installed the firmware update, but I'm still experiencing the same problem," said a user identified as "gjdhks999" today on the massive thread dedicated to the flickering issue. That thread lists more than 1,600 messages and has a view count of more than 263,000, making it the most-read of those on the iMac forum.
"I, like everyone else, has verified that the firmware update does NOT fix the issue," added Joe Liu on the same thread. "Strangely enough I seem to be able to recreate the issue by doing the following things: 1. Use computer all day. 2. Turn off overnight. 3. Turn on in morning -- within 90 minutes it's flickering."
Some users, in fact, claimed that the firmware update had made their iMac start flickering. "Ran the firmware update last night and had no flickering," said Patrick Seguin on Tuesday. "Today I have flickering galore."
Others, however, said the update had at least reduced the flickering. One, dubbed "smakus" on the thread, guessed that the firmware update had reduced the clock speed of the ATI's card's graphic processor. "The power supply and video card have drastically reduced in temperature," smakus reported. "The flickering is still present, although it happens once, then immediately goes away, whereas before, it would flicker then steadily escalate, getting worse and worse until the blackouts started. This tells me one thing. They most likely de-clocked the video card to produce less heat, or are somehow ramping it down until the power is needed."
Display issues have plagued Apple's 27-in. iMac desktop computers since the new machines debuted Oct. 20. Users have reported cracked screens, a yellow tint in part of the display, irritating flickers and black bands.
The problems prompted one Canadian Web developer to collate the complaints on a specially built Web site, and may have been one of the reasons why Apple slapped a two-week shipping delay on 27-in. iMacs earlier this month.
That Web developer, Scott Pronych of Nova Scotia, who created the Apple iMac (Fall 2009) Issues site to track the problems, has added a "Flickering after Firmware Update" category to the site. As of mid-day Wednesday, Pronych had logged 26 accounts of the firmware failing to fix the flickering problem.
Apple issued the firmware update Monday, saying that it was designed to "address issues that may cause image corruption or the display to flicker" on 27-in. iMacs equipped with the ATI Radeon HD 4670 and 4850 graphics cards.
But users continue to complain on Apple's support forum that the update was no fix for them.
"Flickering/tearing has been occurring occasionally (once a day maybe), so I downloaded and installed the firmware update, but I'm still experiencing the same problem," said a user identified as "gjdhks999" today on the massive thread dedicated to the flickering issue. That thread lists more than 1,600 messages and has a view count of more than 263,000, making it the most-read of those on the iMac forum.
"I, like everyone else, has verified that the firmware update does NOT fix the issue," added Joe Liu on the same thread. "Strangely enough I seem to be able to recreate the issue by doing the following things: 1. Use computer all day. 2. Turn off overnight. 3. Turn on in morning -- within 90 minutes it's flickering."
Some users, in fact, claimed that the firmware update had made their iMac start flickering. "Ran the firmware update last night and had no flickering," said Patrick Seguin on Tuesday. "Today I have flickering galore."
Others, however, said the update had at least reduced the flickering. One, dubbed "smakus" on the thread, guessed that the firmware update had reduced the clock speed of the ATI's card's graphic processor. "The power supply and video card have drastically reduced in temperature," smakus reported. "The flickering is still present, although it happens once, then immediately goes away, whereas before, it would flicker then steadily escalate, getting worse and worse until the blackouts started. This tells me one thing. They most likely de-clocked the video card to produce less heat, or are somehow ramping it down until the power is needed."
Display issues have plagued Apple's 27-in. iMac desktop computers since the new machines debuted Oct. 20. Users have reported cracked screens, a yellow tint in part of the display, irritating flickers and black bands.
The problems prompted one Canadian Web developer to collate the complaints on a specially built Web site, and may have been one of the reasons why Apple slapped a two-week shipping delay on 27-in. iMacs earlier this month.
That Web developer, Scott Pronych of Nova Scotia, who created the Apple iMac (Fall 2009) Issues site to track the problems, has added a "Flickering after Firmware Update" category to the site. As of mid-day Wednesday, Pronych had logged 26 accounts of the firmware failing to fix the flickering problem.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Acer 3-D Aspire Laptop, Complete with Glasses, Arrives
The Acer Aspire 5738DG notebook can turn 2-D content into 3-D. It features high-definition playback, Dolby surround sound and a 15.6-inch CineCrystal, LED-backlit display coated with a 3-D film. The 3-D glasses are included.
Acer’s newest notebook, the Aspire 5738DG, announced Oct. 21, comes with its own 3-D glasses.
The entertainment-focused notebook features a TriDef 3-D solution that includes a 3-D screen, software and glasses for 3-D visuals, and it can additionally convert 2-D content into a “vivid 3-D experience,” according to Acer.
“This holiday season, we are seeing 3-D content become more prevalent in popular films and games,” Ray Sawall, senior manager of product marketing for Acer America’s, said in a statement. “The new Acer Aspire 5738DG notebook enables consumers to enjoy exciting new 3-D entertainment on a mobile PC that can also replicate a 3-D experience from standard 2-D content.”
The transition from viewing regular old documents, e-mail and other everyday items to the 3-D experience comes with just a mouse click and results from a combination of the notebook’s 15.6-inch CineCrystal HD display and a 3-D film that’s said to cling to the panel, pixel, by pixel, enabling the LCD technology to deliver 3-D images. The 3-D glasses filter 2-D to 3-D. Videos and photos can be viewed in 3-D via the TriDef Media Player, and a TriDef Ignition tool can convert 2-D games and applications with DirectX 9 to 3-D.
(Microsoft’s DirectX at one time created vulnerabilities that hackers exploited. In July, however, Microsoft addressed the issues and offered fixes.)
Beneath all that entertainment goodness, the Aspire 5738DG-6165 3D notebook runs Windows 7 Home Premium and features a 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor T6600, a Mobile Intel PM45 Express chipset, an ATI Mobility Radeon hard drive 4570 with up to 2304MB off HyperMemory, 4GB of DDR2 1,066MHz memory and a 320FB, 5,400RPM SATA hard drive.
There’s a multi-in-1 digital media card reader, a Crystal Eye Webcam, a Dolby surround-sound system with two stereo speakers and a touchpad with multigesture that allow users to navigate with finger pinches, flicks and swirls.
There’s 802.11 b/g/n connectivity, a 6-cell battery and 4 USB ports, and the notebook weighs 6.16 pounds and measures, at its thickest point, 1.5 by 15.1 by 9.9 inches.
It will be available for $779.99 immediately following Microsoft’s Oct. 22 launch of Windows 7.
In the same month, Acer has also launched two additional laptops, each with exciting features and difficult-to-remember names. The Aspire One AOD250 is a dual-boot netbook with both Android and Microsoft Windows XP operating systems, and the Aspire 5738PG is a 15.6-inch notebook with Windows 7 and a touchscreen.
Acer’s newest notebook, the Aspire 5738DG, announced Oct. 21, comes with its own 3-D glasses.
The entertainment-focused notebook features a TriDef 3-D solution that includes a 3-D screen, software and glasses for 3-D visuals, and it can additionally convert 2-D content into a “vivid 3-D experience,” according to Acer.
“This holiday season, we are seeing 3-D content become more prevalent in popular films and games,” Ray Sawall, senior manager of product marketing for Acer America’s, said in a statement. “The new Acer Aspire 5738DG notebook enables consumers to enjoy exciting new 3-D entertainment on a mobile PC that can also replicate a 3-D experience from standard 2-D content.”
The transition from viewing regular old documents, e-mail and other everyday items to the 3-D experience comes with just a mouse click and results from a combination of the notebook’s 15.6-inch CineCrystal HD display and a 3-D film that’s said to cling to the panel, pixel, by pixel, enabling the LCD technology to deliver 3-D images. The 3-D glasses filter 2-D to 3-D. Videos and photos can be viewed in 3-D via the TriDef Media Player, and a TriDef Ignition tool can convert 2-D games and applications with DirectX 9 to 3-D.
(Microsoft’s DirectX at one time created vulnerabilities that hackers exploited. In July, however, Microsoft addressed the issues and offered fixes.)
Beneath all that entertainment goodness, the Aspire 5738DG-6165 3D notebook runs Windows 7 Home Premium and features a 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor T6600, a Mobile Intel PM45 Express chipset, an ATI Mobility Radeon hard drive 4570 with up to 2304MB off HyperMemory, 4GB of DDR2 1,066MHz memory and a 320FB, 5,400RPM SATA hard drive.
There’s a multi-in-1 digital media card reader, a Crystal Eye Webcam, a Dolby surround-sound system with two stereo speakers and a touchpad with multigesture that allow users to navigate with finger pinches, flicks and swirls.
There’s 802.11 b/g/n connectivity, a 6-cell battery and 4 USB ports, and the notebook weighs 6.16 pounds and measures, at its thickest point, 1.5 by 15.1 by 9.9 inches.
It will be available for $779.99 immediately following Microsoft’s Oct. 22 launch of Windows 7.
In the same month, Acer has also launched two additional laptops, each with exciting features and difficult-to-remember names. The Aspire One AOD250 is a dual-boot netbook with both Android and Microsoft Windows XP operating systems, and the Aspire 5738PG is a 15.6-inch notebook with Windows 7 and a touchscreen.
Samsung, Phoenix Offering Instant-On Technology for Laptops, Netbooks
Samsung and Phoenix Technologies announced that they will work together to bring notebooks and netbooks with instant on-off capabilities to market. Recently, Acer and Hewlett-Packard have offered comparable capabilities.
Samsung Electronics and Phoenix Technologies announced a strategic agreement on Oct. 21, saying they were planning to work together to deliver notebooks and netbooks with instant on-off capabilities, extended battery life and a more secure user experience.
“All-day, instant-on and always-available mobile computing is the very foundation of our P.C. 3.0 vision,” Phoenix CEO Woody Hobbs wrote in a statement. “Consumers expect their notebooks and netbooks to perform with the speed and agility of smartphones, and Phoenix is very pleased to be working with Samsung to offer this user experience across all of Samsung’s notebook and netbook product line.”
Analyst Roger Kay, president of Endpoint Technologies, explains that Phoenix is a BIOS company. The BIOS alternative environment has been used to run before the operating system to make sure a system is free of bugs and that all’s well.
Resource Library:
“It enumerates the hardware and then calls up the operating system,” Kay told eWEEK.
Samsung and Phoenix could be planning to offer dual-boot devices that use BIOS to offer instant-on capabilities, or it could offer a version of the BIOS environment on its own for light devices intended for surfing the Web and checking Web-based e-mail.
They haven’t come out and said that’s what they’re planning, but it’s possible,” said Kay, who explains that, less than delighted with Microsoft Windows Vista, OEMs were looking for alternative environments. However, he adds, “The dynamics are going to change with the arrival of Windows 7. The pressure for other environments is going to decrease.”
In their joint statement, Samsung and Phoenix point out that netbook shipments are “exploding” and expected to reach 25 million units by the end of the year, according to Gartner.
Should the pair offer a netbook-like device with a unique environment, but that’s “a strange beast people don’t recognize, people will avoid it,” said Kay. Alternately, he went on, should it be positioned as an inexpensive device for light e-mailing and surfing, Samsung might makes its first significant contact with consumer PC owners in the United States.
On Oct. 15, Acer introduced the Aspire One AO250 netbook, which features two operating systems, Windows XP Home and the open-source Android. Acer attributed to Android the ability to equip the netbook with instant-on Internet capability.
Hewlett-Packard’s thin-and-light 5310m, set to arrive with the Oct. 22 debut of Microsoft’s Windows 7, similarly offers QuickLook3, which offers 10 seconds of e-mail capabilities on a powered-down notebook, and QuickWeb, for 20 seconds of browsing. These instant-on tools can be used without fear of viruses, HP has noted, since they run separate from the operating system.
“As the world’s fastest-growing vendor in the ultra-mobile computing market, Samsung is committed to bring to market innovative technology solutions that simplify consumers’ lives,” offered Samsung in the joint statement. “Working with Phoenix, we plan to deliver to our mobile consumers innovative and intuitive next-generation mobile computing devices that fit their emerging needs and desires.”
Samsung Electronics and Phoenix Technologies announced a strategic agreement on Oct. 21, saying they were planning to work together to deliver notebooks and netbooks with instant on-off capabilities, extended battery life and a more secure user experience.
“All-day, instant-on and always-available mobile computing is the very foundation of our P.C. 3.0 vision,” Phoenix CEO Woody Hobbs wrote in a statement. “Consumers expect their notebooks and netbooks to perform with the speed and agility of smartphones, and Phoenix is very pleased to be working with Samsung to offer this user experience across all of Samsung’s notebook and netbook product line.”
Analyst Roger Kay, president of Endpoint Technologies, explains that Phoenix is a BIOS company. The BIOS alternative environment has been used to run before the operating system to make sure a system is free of bugs and that all’s well.
Resource Library:
“It enumerates the hardware and then calls up the operating system,” Kay told eWEEK.
Samsung and Phoenix could be planning to offer dual-boot devices that use BIOS to offer instant-on capabilities, or it could offer a version of the BIOS environment on its own for light devices intended for surfing the Web and checking Web-based e-mail.
They haven’t come out and said that’s what they’re planning, but it’s possible,” said Kay, who explains that, less than delighted with Microsoft Windows Vista, OEMs were looking for alternative environments. However, he adds, “The dynamics are going to change with the arrival of Windows 7. The pressure for other environments is going to decrease.”
In their joint statement, Samsung and Phoenix point out that netbook shipments are “exploding” and expected to reach 25 million units by the end of the year, according to Gartner.
Should the pair offer a netbook-like device with a unique environment, but that’s “a strange beast people don’t recognize, people will avoid it,” said Kay. Alternately, he went on, should it be positioned as an inexpensive device for light e-mailing and surfing, Samsung might makes its first significant contact with consumer PC owners in the United States.
On Oct. 15, Acer introduced the Aspire One AO250 netbook, which features two operating systems, Windows XP Home and the open-source Android. Acer attributed to Android the ability to equip the netbook with instant-on Internet capability.
Hewlett-Packard’s thin-and-light 5310m, set to arrive with the Oct. 22 debut of Microsoft’s Windows 7, similarly offers QuickLook3, which offers 10 seconds of e-mail capabilities on a powered-down notebook, and QuickWeb, for 20 seconds of browsing. These instant-on tools can be used without fear of viruses, HP has noted, since they run separate from the operating system.
“As the world’s fastest-growing vendor in the ultra-mobile computing market, Samsung is committed to bring to market innovative technology solutions that simplify consumers’ lives,” offered Samsung in the joint statement. “Working with Phoenix, we plan to deliver to our mobile consumers innovative and intuitive next-generation mobile computing devices that fit their emerging needs and desires.”
enovo ThinkPad SL Series Laptops Offer Windows 7 at Low Cost
Lenovo introduced two new ThinkPads for cost-conscious businesses, each with Windows 7 and complementary features such as multitouch touchpads. More Think- and Idea-branded Lenovo PCs will also feature Windows 7.
With the Oct. 22 release of Microsoft’s Windows 7, Lenovo has announced it is offering a portfolio of Think- and Idea-branded PCs running the new operating system, as well as the availability of two new laptops — the ThinkPad SL410 and SL510 — both of which are particularly geared toward businesses with limited IT resources.
“For three years, Microsoft and Lenovo engineers have worked tirelessly together to jointly create a PC experience that is better, faster, more stable and more secure,” said Rory Read, president and CEO of Lenovo, in a statement.
“This has been an unparalleled effort to integrate hardware and software from the ground up,” Read added. “As a result, we’ve created new innovations in touch technology, improved speed and performance across the board and developed a host of other enhancements that will make a meaningful difference to our customers worldwide.”
The SL models feature 16:9 high-definition screens, Intel Core 2 Duo processors and options for 3G connectivity, Wi-Fi, Ethernet and Bluetooth connectivity. Plus, playing to Windows 7’s touch strengths, the touchpads feature multitouch, for two-finger scrolling and expanding and minimizing screen views.
There’s VibrantView and anti-glare technology and HDMI and VGA output for high-definition and standard displays. VOIP calls being a small-business conferencing mode of a choice, Lenovo has increased the resolution of the webcam, improved the digital microphone and added a microphone mute button.
Also for those challenged on the IT staffing front, the laptops come with ThinkVantage Technologies (TVTs), which Lenovo describes as hardware and software tools that assist users in connecting to the Internet, recovering data, managing passwords and similar tasks.
The SL models are said to be among Lenovo’s “greenest,” as they’re the first ThinkPads to use post-consumer recycled materials. They’re also EPEAT Gold and Energy Star 5.0 compliant.
As for the rest of the updated portfolio, on those certified for “Enhanced Experience,” Windows 7 starts up 56 percent quicker than Windows XP or Vista and shut down in as few as five seconds. There are security and productivity TVTs, and two models, the ThinkPad X200 Tablet and T400 laptop, feature SimpleTap, which works in conjunction with touchscreens.
(On Oct. 14, Acer debuted the Aspire 5738PG, a 15.6-inch notebook with a multitouch display.)
“Our collaboration and joint innovations have resulted in faster and more reliable scenarios so customers can use their PCs in more new and exciting ways,” said Steve Guggenheimer, corporate vice president of Microsoft’s OEM division, in the statement.
The ThinkPad SL410 and SL510 are now available, with pricing starting at $529.
With the Oct. 22 release of Microsoft’s Windows 7, Lenovo has announced it is offering a portfolio of Think- and Idea-branded PCs running the new operating system, as well as the availability of two new laptops — the ThinkPad SL410 and SL510 — both of which are particularly geared toward businesses with limited IT resources.
“For three years, Microsoft and Lenovo engineers have worked tirelessly together to jointly create a PC experience that is better, faster, more stable and more secure,” said Rory Read, president and CEO of Lenovo, in a statement.
“This has been an unparalleled effort to integrate hardware and software from the ground up,” Read added. “As a result, we’ve created new innovations in touch technology, improved speed and performance across the board and developed a host of other enhancements that will make a meaningful difference to our customers worldwide.”
The SL models feature 16:9 high-definition screens, Intel Core 2 Duo processors and options for 3G connectivity, Wi-Fi, Ethernet and Bluetooth connectivity. Plus, playing to Windows 7’s touch strengths, the touchpads feature multitouch, for two-finger scrolling and expanding and minimizing screen views.
There’s VibrantView and anti-glare technology and HDMI and VGA output for high-definition and standard displays. VOIP calls being a small-business conferencing mode of a choice, Lenovo has increased the resolution of the webcam, improved the digital microphone and added a microphone mute button.
Also for those challenged on the IT staffing front, the laptops come with ThinkVantage Technologies (TVTs), which Lenovo describes as hardware and software tools that assist users in connecting to the Internet, recovering data, managing passwords and similar tasks.
The SL models are said to be among Lenovo’s “greenest,” as they’re the first ThinkPads to use post-consumer recycled materials. They’re also EPEAT Gold and Energy Star 5.0 compliant.
As for the rest of the updated portfolio, on those certified for “Enhanced Experience,” Windows 7 starts up 56 percent quicker than Windows XP or Vista and shut down in as few as five seconds. There are security and productivity TVTs, and two models, the ThinkPad X200 Tablet and T400 laptop, feature SimpleTap, which works in conjunction with touchscreens.
(On Oct. 14, Acer debuted the Aspire 5738PG, a 15.6-inch notebook with a multitouch display.)
“Our collaboration and joint innovations have resulted in faster and more reliable scenarios so customers can use their PCs in more new and exciting ways,” said Steve Guggenheimer, corporate vice president of Microsoft’s OEM division, in the statement.
The ThinkPad SL410 and SL510 are now available, with pricing starting at $529.
Windows 7 Prompts All-In-One PC Surge
Touch is the hot new interface, and with the arrival of Microsoft’s Windows 7, with its integrated multitouch capabilities, the trend is set to continue, says a new report, which additionally calls out Apple and Hewlett-Packard as trend setters.
On the eve of Windows 7’s Oct. 22 arrival, the all-in-one computer market has been on the rise and will continue to “surge,” according to an Oct. 21 report from the NPD Group.
The growth is said to be the result of more entry-level price points and the use of touch as an interface — a feature particularly suited to Windows 7, with its integrated multitouch capabilities.
While 3.2 million AIO desktop PCs shipped worldwide in 2007, MPD Group expects the number to rise to 5.9 million in 2010. It sees “clear momentum for the next input interface to be touch,” said the research firm in a statement, “with other possibilities like voice recognition also in the works.”
On Oct. 7, Gateway — which is owned by Acer, which introduced an AIO in August and a touchscreen notebook in October — introduced a ZX Series of AIO desktops with touchscreens and Windows 7. Packed with features, the ZX Series includes a 20-inch-display model starting at $750, and a 23-incher starting at $1,400.
And on Oct. 20, Apple introduced two updated versions of its iMac AIO, though instead of putting touch on the screen, it incorporated it into the mouse. Called Magic Mouse, it’s the first with multitouch.
Hewlett-Packard is taking still a third approach to touch.
“HP seems to be taking a bigger-picture view in leveraging touch as an interface for PCs, beginning with inclusion of touchscreen displays in its TouchSmart line of PCs in 2006,” states the report. “HP’s direction for touch recognizes that it is becoming a new way to interface with the PC, and that new ways to compute and access or manipulate data are evolutionary rather than revolutionary.”
Other notable AIO announcements this year, according to NPD, came from, or will arrive before the holidays, from Dell’s Studio 19 and Lenovo’s IdeaCentre, as well as from Asus, BenQ, Fujitsu, MSI, Sony and ViewSonic.
“This wave of new AIO products was targeting entry-level price points for desktop PCs until LCD panel prices rose in the second half of 2009,” said Chris Connery, a vice president with the DisplaySearch research firm under the NPD umbrella. “Many of these products have been repositioned to emphasize the enhanced features of Windows 7; lower-priced AIO products, including [netbooks], may emerge in 2010.”
NPD’s growth projections for AIOs additionally take into account increasingly price-conscious U.S. consumers, China’s first-time PC buyers and new form factors for emerging markets.
On the eve of Windows 7’s Oct. 22 arrival, the all-in-one computer market has been on the rise and will continue to “surge,” according to an Oct. 21 report from the NPD Group.
The growth is said to be the result of more entry-level price points and the use of touch as an interface — a feature particularly suited to Windows 7, with its integrated multitouch capabilities.
While 3.2 million AIO desktop PCs shipped worldwide in 2007, MPD Group expects the number to rise to 5.9 million in 2010. It sees “clear momentum for the next input interface to be touch,” said the research firm in a statement, “with other possibilities like voice recognition also in the works.”
On Oct. 7, Gateway — which is owned by Acer, which introduced an AIO in August and a touchscreen notebook in October — introduced a ZX Series of AIO desktops with touchscreens and Windows 7. Packed with features, the ZX Series includes a 20-inch-display model starting at $750, and a 23-incher starting at $1,400.
And on Oct. 20, Apple introduced two updated versions of its iMac AIO, though instead of putting touch on the screen, it incorporated it into the mouse. Called Magic Mouse, it’s the first with multitouch.
Hewlett-Packard is taking still a third approach to touch.
“HP seems to be taking a bigger-picture view in leveraging touch as an interface for PCs, beginning with inclusion of touchscreen displays in its TouchSmart line of PCs in 2006,” states the report. “HP’s direction for touch recognizes that it is becoming a new way to interface with the PC, and that new ways to compute and access or manipulate data are evolutionary rather than revolutionary.”
Other notable AIO announcements this year, according to NPD, came from, or will arrive before the holidays, from Dell’s Studio 19 and Lenovo’s IdeaCentre, as well as from Asus, BenQ, Fujitsu, MSI, Sony and ViewSonic.
“This wave of new AIO products was targeting entry-level price points for desktop PCs until LCD panel prices rose in the second half of 2009,” said Chris Connery, a vice president with the DisplaySearch research firm under the NPD umbrella. “Many of these products have been repositioned to emphasize the enhanced features of Windows 7; lower-priced AIO products, including [netbooks], may emerge in 2010.”
NPD’s growth projections for AIOs additionally take into account increasingly price-conscious U.S. consumers, China’s first-time PC buyers and new form factors for emerging markets.
Dell Latitude XT2 XFR Tablet Is Thin, Rugged
Dell says its new Latitude XT2 XFR — which shares components with its Latitude XT2 tablet — is the industry’s thinnest 12.1-inch rugged convertible tablet.
Dell has released what it says is the industry’s thinnest 12.1-inch rugged convertible tablet, the Latitude XT2 XFR. Designed for physically demanding vertical markets such as military, police, field service, factory fulfillment and first responders, the new tablet extends Dell’s mobile solution portfolio, which includes the Latitude E6400 XFR and semi-rugged E6400 ATG laptops.
The Dell XT2 XFR can perform in temperatures from 140 to negative 10 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s compression-sealed to protect against moisture and dust, and Dell soon expects an MIL-810G rating, which is related to the amount of multi-axis shaking the device can withstand.
“The typical tablet wasn’t prepared for dust or wind — or cheese powder or chocolate sauce,” David Lord, a Dell senior manager, told eWEEK, further indicating Dell’s expected customer base. For those who “need to be able to wash it off at the end of the day, we’ve taken the functionality of XT2 tablet and fused it with the ruggedness of XFR.”
The new XFR, which Dell announced Oct. 27, is 1.5 inches thick, weighs 5.4 pounds and features an impact-resistant, sunlight-viewable 12.1-inch LED display that’s multi-touch enabled. It also runs Microsoft’s Windows 7, which Lord says enabled Dell to offer enhanced functionality, such as not only using four-finger touch to manipulate photos and other items but using touch for various commands.
The XFR features a choice of several Intel Core 2 Duo processors and up to 5GB of DDR3 (double data rate 3), 1,066MHz memory. There are four-, six- and nine-cell battery options, and security features include a fingerprint reader and Dell’s ControlVault, for protecting passwords, biometric templates and security codes safe, and ControlPoint interface for management across multiple applications.
There’s an optional, hot-swappable module coming soon for GPS and a 2-megapixel “sliver,” says Lord, that attaches to the bottom of the device, enabling the screen to act as a camera or viewfinder.
Connectivity options include mobile broadband, 802.11 a/g/n and Bluetooth 2.1.
“We are listening and delivering purpose-engineered products based on unique usage models within customers’ environments,” said Steve Lalla, vice president and general manager of Dell’s Business Client Product group, in a statement.
“The Latitude XT2 XFR is a perfect example where feedback told us that customers needed the innovative functionality of the Latitude XT2 with the ability to perform in rugged environments.”
Lord says the XT2 XFR is also another example of Dell’s building “specialty or purpose-built solutions” for particular markets, which is a goal of the company’s. In May, for example, Dell introduced the Latitude 2100 netbook to the K-12 education market. The ruggedized netbook comes with an easy-to-grip case, an anti-microbial keyboard and the option of a rolling cart that can house and simultaneously charge a classroom’s worth of device, while also enabling them to be remotely managed by an IT department.
The rugged XT2 XFR will be available in the United States, Canada, France, Spain, the U.K., Germany and Italy, with pricing starting at $3,599.
Dell has released what it says is the industry’s thinnest 12.1-inch rugged convertible tablet, the Latitude XT2 XFR. Designed for physically demanding vertical markets such as military, police, field service, factory fulfillment and first responders, the new tablet extends Dell’s mobile solution portfolio, which includes the Latitude E6400 XFR and semi-rugged E6400 ATG laptops.
The Dell XT2 XFR can perform in temperatures from 140 to negative 10 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s compression-sealed to protect against moisture and dust, and Dell soon expects an MIL-810G rating, which is related to the amount of multi-axis shaking the device can withstand.
“The typical tablet wasn’t prepared for dust or wind — or cheese powder or chocolate sauce,” David Lord, a Dell senior manager, told eWEEK, further indicating Dell’s expected customer base. For those who “need to be able to wash it off at the end of the day, we’ve taken the functionality of XT2 tablet and fused it with the ruggedness of XFR.”
The new XFR, which Dell announced Oct. 27, is 1.5 inches thick, weighs 5.4 pounds and features an impact-resistant, sunlight-viewable 12.1-inch LED display that’s multi-touch enabled. It also runs Microsoft’s Windows 7, which Lord says enabled Dell to offer enhanced functionality, such as not only using four-finger touch to manipulate photos and other items but using touch for various commands.
The XFR features a choice of several Intel Core 2 Duo processors and up to 5GB of DDR3 (double data rate 3), 1,066MHz memory. There are four-, six- and nine-cell battery options, and security features include a fingerprint reader and Dell’s ControlVault, for protecting passwords, biometric templates and security codes safe, and ControlPoint interface for management across multiple applications.
There’s an optional, hot-swappable module coming soon for GPS and a 2-megapixel “sliver,” says Lord, that attaches to the bottom of the device, enabling the screen to act as a camera or viewfinder.
Connectivity options include mobile broadband, 802.11 a/g/n and Bluetooth 2.1.
“We are listening and delivering purpose-engineered products based on unique usage models within customers’ environments,” said Steve Lalla, vice president and general manager of Dell’s Business Client Product group, in a statement.
“The Latitude XT2 XFR is a perfect example where feedback told us that customers needed the innovative functionality of the Latitude XT2 with the ability to perform in rugged environments.”
Lord says the XT2 XFR is also another example of Dell’s building “specialty or purpose-built solutions” for particular markets, which is a goal of the company’s. In May, for example, Dell introduced the Latitude 2100 netbook to the K-12 education market. The ruggedized netbook comes with an easy-to-grip case, an anti-microbial keyboard and the option of a rolling cart that can house and simultaneously charge a classroom’s worth of device, while also enabling them to be remotely managed by an IT department.
The rugged XT2 XFR will be available in the United States, Canada, France, Spain, the U.K., Germany and Italy, with pricing starting at $3,599.
Lenovo IdeaPad, IdeaCentre PCs Grow with Intel, Windows 7
Lenovo introduced three new IdeaPad laptops and IdeaCentre desktops, all with Microsoft’s Windows 7 and Intel processors and encompassing a variety of price points and features. The new PCs should increase Lenovo’s consumer offerings.
Lenovo is rolling out three new IdeaPad laptops and three IdeaCentre desktops, all of which feature Microsoft’s Windows 7 operating system, new Intel processors and Lenovo’s Enhanced Experience for Windows 7, which the company developed with Microsoft in order to offer faster boot-up and shutdown times, as well as multimedia features and maintenance tools.
“Our idea products are designed with the user experience in mind — every aspect of product design and technology is engineered to improve how consumers seamlessly use these products to enrich their daily lives,” said Liu Jun, a Lenovo senior vice president, in a Oct. 26 statement.
The three new IdeaPads are the U150, U550 and Y550P.
The IdeaPad Y550P is the most powerful laptop in Lenovo’s consumer portfolio and is the company’s first to feature the Intel Core i7 processor with Intel Turbo Boost Technology, which is said to automatically speed up the processor when additional performance is needed. Additional features include Nvidia discrete graphics, a 15.6-inch HD widescreen display, Dolby Home Theater surround sound and a touch-sensitive SlideNav bar above the keyboard for more quickly navigating documents and between programs. It’s priced at $1,149.
The very portable IdeaPad U150 is 0.5-inches thick, weighs 3 pounds and features an 11.6-inch HD widescreen display. The processor is an Intel Core 2 Duo, and up to 8GB of DDR3 (double data rate 3) memory is supported. An Active Protection System protects the hard drive, when the laptop is bumped or dropped, and a OneKey Rescue System performs data backups scans for viruses before the operating system loads. Available in red or black, the U150 will retail for $585.
The final new laptop, intended to offer a balance between home and office, is the IdeaPad U550. It’s just under an inch thick and features a 15.6-inch HD widescreen display and an Intel Core 2 Duo processor. The discrete graphics card can be easily turned on and off, to extend battery life, and there’s an integrated fingerprint reader and VeriFace facial recognition software for password-free login. There’s also a DVD drive for accessing and sharing content, a Dolby Sound Room sound system and an ambient light sensor that automatically adjusts the screen’s brightness to its environment. The U550 is priced at $650.
Among Lenovo’s new desktops the IdeaCentre H230 is the most value-minded. At $449, it offers a range of hard drive and DDR3 memory configurations, plus integrated tools such as Lenovo Rescue System software for data recovery.
The IdeaCentre K300 is optimized for power and control, which means it includes high-performance RAID-configured hard drives, Lenovo’s Power Control Switch, for adjusting the machine’s power and efficiency, and an Intel Core 2 Quad processor. It’s priced at $499.
And finally the beast of the bunch is the B500, which features a 23-inch HD screen and JBL integrated speakers. There’s an Intel Core 2 Quad processor, discrete graphics, up to 8GB of DDR3 memory and 1TB of HDD storage space. Ideal for gamers, its 4-in-1 remote control can be used as a controller for driving games, and there’s a Voice over IP (VoIP) handset, wireless mouse, media remote and a CamSuite for controlling the webcam’s focus and special effects.
On top of its six-strong new lineup, Lenovo announced that its IdeaPad U350 can now be purchased in a “brown lizard print, white lamb skin print and red light weave” for $649. Additionally, it has given its S10-2 netbook a visual lift and is now offering it in, according to Lenovo, “pop art, violet floral, red floral, green floral, phoenix, garden, sailing and origami” designs for $349.
Lenovo is rolling out three new IdeaPad laptops and three IdeaCentre desktops, all of which feature Microsoft’s Windows 7 operating system, new Intel processors and Lenovo’s Enhanced Experience for Windows 7, which the company developed with Microsoft in order to offer faster boot-up and shutdown times, as well as multimedia features and maintenance tools.
“Our idea products are designed with the user experience in mind — every aspect of product design and technology is engineered to improve how consumers seamlessly use these products to enrich their daily lives,” said Liu Jun, a Lenovo senior vice president, in a Oct. 26 statement.
The three new IdeaPads are the U150, U550 and Y550P.
The IdeaPad Y550P is the most powerful laptop in Lenovo’s consumer portfolio and is the company’s first to feature the Intel Core i7 processor with Intel Turbo Boost Technology, which is said to automatically speed up the processor when additional performance is needed. Additional features include Nvidia discrete graphics, a 15.6-inch HD widescreen display, Dolby Home Theater surround sound and a touch-sensitive SlideNav bar above the keyboard for more quickly navigating documents and between programs. It’s priced at $1,149.
The very portable IdeaPad U150 is 0.5-inches thick, weighs 3 pounds and features an 11.6-inch HD widescreen display. The processor is an Intel Core 2 Duo, and up to 8GB of DDR3 (double data rate 3) memory is supported. An Active Protection System protects the hard drive, when the laptop is bumped or dropped, and a OneKey Rescue System performs data backups scans for viruses before the operating system loads. Available in red or black, the U150 will retail for $585.
The final new laptop, intended to offer a balance between home and office, is the IdeaPad U550. It’s just under an inch thick and features a 15.6-inch HD widescreen display and an Intel Core 2 Duo processor. The discrete graphics card can be easily turned on and off, to extend battery life, and there’s an integrated fingerprint reader and VeriFace facial recognition software for password-free login. There’s also a DVD drive for accessing and sharing content, a Dolby Sound Room sound system and an ambient light sensor that automatically adjusts the screen’s brightness to its environment. The U550 is priced at $650.
Among Lenovo’s new desktops the IdeaCentre H230 is the most value-minded. At $449, it offers a range of hard drive and DDR3 memory configurations, plus integrated tools such as Lenovo Rescue System software for data recovery.
The IdeaCentre K300 is optimized for power and control, which means it includes high-performance RAID-configured hard drives, Lenovo’s Power Control Switch, for adjusting the machine’s power and efficiency, and an Intel Core 2 Quad processor. It’s priced at $499.
And finally the beast of the bunch is the B500, which features a 23-inch HD screen and JBL integrated speakers. There’s an Intel Core 2 Quad processor, discrete graphics, up to 8GB of DDR3 memory and 1TB of HDD storage space. Ideal for gamers, its 4-in-1 remote control can be used as a controller for driving games, and there’s a Voice over IP (VoIP) handset, wireless mouse, media remote and a CamSuite for controlling the webcam’s focus and special effects.
On top of its six-strong new lineup, Lenovo announced that its IdeaPad U350 can now be purchased in a “brown lizard print, white lamb skin print and red light weave” for $649. Additionally, it has given its S10-2 netbook a visual lift and is now offering it in, according to Lenovo, “pop art, violet floral, red floral, green floral, phoenix, garden, sailing and origami” designs for $349.
Recession Continues to Take Its Toll on the Market, Even Server Virtualization, Although There Are Signs of Recovery as Customer Adoption Expands, Acc
According to IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Server Virtualization Tracker, 16.5% of all new servers shipped in the second quarter of 2009 (2Q09) were virtualized, an increase from 14.5% in 2Q08. However, actual shipments decreased 21.0% year over year to 246,000 physical servers in 2Q09 as customers continue to limit spending on new server hardware relative to last year. Similarly, worldwide virtualization software revenue declined 18.7% year over year in 2Q09 to $344 million. Virtualization licenses did grow quarter over quarter in 2Q09. The server virtualization market continues to shift towards the use of paid hypervisors, with paid virtualization software now running on 60.8% of all new server hardware shipments virtualized in 2Q09, an increase over 57.2% in 2Q08.
"In the second quarter, IDC observed a number of signs indicating that stability is beginning to take hold in the worldwide server market," said Matt Eastwood, group vice president of Enterprise Platforms at IDC. "The worldwide server installed base has aged significantly and virtual machine densities on these systems have increased sharply over the past year. As a result, the market is poised for the beginning of a significant infrastructure refresh cycle in the months ahead. IDC believes that virtualization will be a cornerstone technology as medium and large enterprise organizations around the globe accelerate the need for more dynamic and converged infrastructure designed to support the business needs of the next economic cycle."
Server Virtualization Maturity Signals Changing Behaviors and Buying Intentions
“Server virtualization has forever changed how customers manage their datacenters,” said Michelle Bailey, research vice president of Datacenter Trends at IDC. “'Virtualization First’ is now the default approach for new server deployments at most enterprise IT organizations and is quickly becoming the foundational platform for cloud computing initiatives among service providers. Additionally, growth in emerging regions is accelerating as the economic downturn limits the ability of organizations to raise capital. The next phase in virtualization will require a reinvention of IT policies and procedures and continued adoption of automation tools will be key as virtual machine densities rise and customers find themselves facing virtual server sprawl issues.”
Overall New Server Shipments Virtualized Market Standings, by Vendor
Hewlett-Packard held onto the number 1 spot for worldwide new server shipments virtualized with 36% market share. HP's shipments declined 18% year over year in 2Q09 but grew 1% sequentially. These results were driven primarily by its x86 Proliant server business. Dell continues to distance itself from the remainder of the field as the number 2 vendor with its market share growing 9% over 1Q09. Dell’s relatively strong performance was driven by growth of Intel-based x86 servers in a weak market. IBM remained in the third position with 15% market share. IBM achieved 14% sequential growth driven by a solid performance from its converged System p and x86-based servers.
x86 Virtualization License Market Standings, by Virtualization Platform
VMware continues to hold the number 1 (VMware ESX) and number 2 (VMware Server) virtualization platforms despite revenues declining 22% year over year. This was slightly more than the decline of 21% in total x86 virtualization licenses. Microsoft saw its virtualization license shipments decline 16% year over year, due to the continued depreciation of Virtual Server 2005. However, Hyper-V showed a sharp increase of 54%, one year after its official launch and entrenching itself into 4th place while it cannibalizes itself into the number 3 position, past Virtual Server 2005. Parallels Virtuozzo rounds out the top 5 with license shipments declining 36% year over year. Citrix XenServer showed the largest increase, growing 108% year over year due to the company changing its business model and offering the product for free with certain management functionality. It’s a bold seeding strategy that will see market share gains, but will take some time, if ever, to monetize.
“Despite economic worries, we are seeing the continued increase of paid virtualization platforms, as it now accounts for more than 60% of all x86 virtualization license shipments,” said Brett Waldman, research analyst for System Software at IDC. “This is due to the maturation of virtualization deployments and the need for greater control with higher quality, fine grained management tools as IT departments continue to strive towards internal cloud computing environments.”
IDC's Server Virtualization Taxonomy
Virtualization licenses represents the amount of virtualization platform shipments for a given vendor in a given quarter. New server shipments virtualized maps the amount of virtualization platforms shipments that are sold directly by the hardware vendors. Virtualized server revenue represents the hardware revenue of new server shipments virtualized. Virtualization software revenue represents the software revenue associated with virtualization platform sales.
IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Server Virtualization Tracker is a quantitative tool for analyzing the global server market on a quarterly basis. The Tracker includes quarterly virtualization license shipments, new server shipments virtualized, virtualized server revenue and virtualization software revenue, segmented by region, cpu type, vendor, form factor, sockets, virtualization platform, and primary guest operating system. For more information, please contact Hoang Nguyen at 508-935-4718 or hnguyen@idc.com.
"In the second quarter, IDC observed a number of signs indicating that stability is beginning to take hold in the worldwide server market," said Matt Eastwood, group vice president of Enterprise Platforms at IDC. "The worldwide server installed base has aged significantly and virtual machine densities on these systems have increased sharply over the past year. As a result, the market is poised for the beginning of a significant infrastructure refresh cycle in the months ahead. IDC believes that virtualization will be a cornerstone technology as medium and large enterprise organizations around the globe accelerate the need for more dynamic and converged infrastructure designed to support the business needs of the next economic cycle."
Server Virtualization Maturity Signals Changing Behaviors and Buying Intentions
“Server virtualization has forever changed how customers manage their datacenters,” said Michelle Bailey, research vice president of Datacenter Trends at IDC. “'Virtualization First’ is now the default approach for new server deployments at most enterprise IT organizations and is quickly becoming the foundational platform for cloud computing initiatives among service providers. Additionally, growth in emerging regions is accelerating as the economic downturn limits the ability of organizations to raise capital. The next phase in virtualization will require a reinvention of IT policies and procedures and continued adoption of automation tools will be key as virtual machine densities rise and customers find themselves facing virtual server sprawl issues.”
Overall New Server Shipments Virtualized Market Standings, by Vendor
Hewlett-Packard held onto the number 1 spot for worldwide new server shipments virtualized with 36% market share. HP's shipments declined 18% year over year in 2Q09 but grew 1% sequentially. These results were driven primarily by its x86 Proliant server business. Dell continues to distance itself from the remainder of the field as the number 2 vendor with its market share growing 9% over 1Q09. Dell’s relatively strong performance was driven by growth of Intel-based x86 servers in a weak market. IBM remained in the third position with 15% market share. IBM achieved 14% sequential growth driven by a solid performance from its converged System p and x86-based servers.
x86 Virtualization License Market Standings, by Virtualization Platform
VMware continues to hold the number 1 (VMware ESX) and number 2 (VMware Server) virtualization platforms despite revenues declining 22% year over year. This was slightly more than the decline of 21% in total x86 virtualization licenses. Microsoft saw its virtualization license shipments decline 16% year over year, due to the continued depreciation of Virtual Server 2005. However, Hyper-V showed a sharp increase of 54%, one year after its official launch and entrenching itself into 4th place while it cannibalizes itself into the number 3 position, past Virtual Server 2005. Parallels Virtuozzo rounds out the top 5 with license shipments declining 36% year over year. Citrix XenServer showed the largest increase, growing 108% year over year due to the company changing its business model and offering the product for free with certain management functionality. It’s a bold seeding strategy that will see market share gains, but will take some time, if ever, to monetize.
“Despite economic worries, we are seeing the continued increase of paid virtualization platforms, as it now accounts for more than 60% of all x86 virtualization license shipments,” said Brett Waldman, research analyst for System Software at IDC. “This is due to the maturation of virtualization deployments and the need for greater control with higher quality, fine grained management tools as IT departments continue to strive towards internal cloud computing environments.”
IDC's Server Virtualization Taxonomy
Virtualization licenses represents the amount of virtualization platform shipments for a given vendor in a given quarter. New server shipments virtualized maps the amount of virtualization platforms shipments that are sold directly by the hardware vendors. Virtualized server revenue represents the hardware revenue of new server shipments virtualized. Virtualization software revenue represents the software revenue associated with virtualization platform sales.
IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Server Virtualization Tracker is a quantitative tool for analyzing the global server market on a quarterly basis. The Tracker includes quarterly virtualization license shipments, new server shipments virtualized, virtualized server revenue and virtualization software revenue, segmented by region, cpu type, vendor, form factor, sockets, virtualization platform, and primary guest operating system. For more information, please contact Hoang Nguyen at 508-935-4718 or hnguyen@idc.com.
Liquidware Labs Launches Stratusphere 4.5 - Providing Support for VMware View 4, Citrix XenDesktop and Windows 7
Liquidware Labs Inc. (LWL), the leader in User Experience Management for next generation desktops, today announced the availability of version 4.5 of its’ flagship product, Stratusphere, and the award of its’ fourth patent from the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
LWL is seeing a huge upsurge in the deployments of virtual desktop infrastructures (VDI) and hosted virtual desktops (HVD) based on its award-winning assessment and service level assurance solution Stratusphere. The latest 4.5 version includes significant feature enhancements to enable businesses to thoroughly understand what they have, what they’re using, and what they need to move to VDI; including:
• Support for VMware View 4, Citrix XenDesktop 4, Microsoft Windows® 7
• Integration of ProfileUnity in the Stratusphere Hub – LWL’s profile management and user configuration solution
• New and powerful assessment and diagnostic dashboards
• Query driven analytic reports, trend analysis and capacity planning
• Correlation of user, desktop OS and VMware ESX Server performance metrics
• Plug-in to allow dynamic query from within Excel (or any other 3rd party tool that supports ODBC)
• Publically available evaluation download
“Many of the largest, next generation VDI deployments include Stratusphere as part of the solution to drive the most optimal user experience and guarantee service level assurances. We continue to provide superior levels of granularity in our Stratusphere product to allow organizations to assess and diagnose both their physical and virtual desktop environments alike. Stratusphere allows you to “right-size” your infrastructure for VDI and next generation desktop designs – both from the user and application perspective – bringing cost-savings to organizations and serious productivity gains to users,” commented Jason E. Smith, vice president product marketing, LWL. “Combined with our latest patent, we continue to innovate in the VDI/HVD space.”
The latest patent awarded to LWL from the US Patent Office (number 7,591,001 issued September 15th) covers LWL’s innovation that embeds the health status of a Connector ID™ key enabled machine into each packet. This health status is established by comparing the existing configuration, usage or performance of the Connector ID enabled machines (either physical or virtual) to previously defined IT policies. Stratusphere can provide real-time audits of the health status of these machines using the network, along with controlling how machines connect to the network or to specific servers and applications based on their health status.
LWL is seeing a huge upsurge in the deployments of virtual desktop infrastructures (VDI) and hosted virtual desktops (HVD) based on its award-winning assessment and service level assurance solution Stratusphere. The latest 4.5 version includes significant feature enhancements to enable businesses to thoroughly understand what they have, what they’re using, and what they need to move to VDI; including:
• Support for VMware View 4, Citrix XenDesktop 4, Microsoft Windows® 7
• Integration of ProfileUnity in the Stratusphere Hub – LWL’s profile management and user configuration solution
• New and powerful assessment and diagnostic dashboards
• Query driven analytic reports, trend analysis and capacity planning
• Correlation of user, desktop OS and VMware ESX Server performance metrics
• Plug-in to allow dynamic query from within Excel (or any other 3rd party tool that supports ODBC)
• Publically available evaluation download
“Many of the largest, next generation VDI deployments include Stratusphere as part of the solution to drive the most optimal user experience and guarantee service level assurances. We continue to provide superior levels of granularity in our Stratusphere product to allow organizations to assess and diagnose both their physical and virtual desktop environments alike. Stratusphere allows you to “right-size” your infrastructure for VDI and next generation desktop designs – both from the user and application perspective – bringing cost-savings to organizations and serious productivity gains to users,” commented Jason E. Smith, vice president product marketing, LWL. “Combined with our latest patent, we continue to innovate in the VDI/HVD space.”
The latest patent awarded to LWL from the US Patent Office (number 7,591,001 issued September 15th) covers LWL’s innovation that embeds the health status of a Connector ID™ key enabled machine into each packet. This health status is established by comparing the existing configuration, usage or performance of the Connector ID enabled machines (either physical or virtual) to previously defined IT policies. Stratusphere can provide real-time audits of the health status of these machines using the network, along with controlling how machines connect to the network or to specific servers and applications based on their health status.
Certeon Adds Future Com as a Strategic Reseller of Its aCelera Virtual Appliance for WAN Optimization
optimization and application acceleration, today announces it has added Future Com as a reseller of Certeon’s aCelera Virtual Appliance. Future Com is a supported provider of network security solutions, representing customized best fit solutions to suit any of today’s networking needs.
Future Com is committed to providing clients with high performance, cost-effective and flexible networking solutions. Adding aCelera to its wide array of networking solutions was a direct response to customer requests. As a software-based solution for WAN optimization, aCelera provides Future Com customers with the level of flexibility and scalability demanded in today’s virtual environment.
aCelera virtual appliance software products are the perfect union of virtualization and application acceleration technology, providing businesses with performance, scalability, and easy management. By utilizing aCelera, Future Com customers will be able to maximize application acceleration for all traffic with performance enhancements for mission-critical applications and business continuity environments, improving network bandwidth optimization and performance by more than 95 percent. When compared to proprietary hardware appliances, aCelera software saves IT departments up to 60 percent in capital and operations costs.
“At Future Com, we pride ourselves on listening to our customers and doing all that we can to provide a solution that directly meets their needs,” states Douglas Hollenshead, CEO & President, Future Com. “Following several requests, we looked to Certeon to help Future Com deliver top quality application acceleration, and with aCelera, our customers can experience a solution that makes better use of their current resources and ensures the highest returns for their IT networking investments.”
“Our commitment to embracing the move to virtualization and developing cost-effective and innovative products complements Future Com’s vision of delivering value-added business solutions to their customers,” states Peter Dougherty, Co-founder and President, Certeon Inc. “Our aCelera virtual appliance enables Future Com’s customers to take advantage of their current resources without any heavy proprietary hardware upgrades.”
Certeon was the first vendor to introduce a truly virtualized WAN optimization and application acceleration solution. Certeon’s aCelera virtual appliance software enables the reduction in remote application response time, increased scalability, and lower IT costs. Certeon’s newly introduced aCelera Sync software is the industry’s first virtual appliance that also dramatically accelerates disaster recovery for the business continuity market, without requiring costly proprietary hardware appliances.
Future Com is committed to providing clients with high performance, cost-effective and flexible networking solutions. Adding aCelera to its wide array of networking solutions was a direct response to customer requests. As a software-based solution for WAN optimization, aCelera provides Future Com customers with the level of flexibility and scalability demanded in today’s virtual environment.
aCelera virtual appliance software products are the perfect union of virtualization and application acceleration technology, providing businesses with performance, scalability, and easy management. By utilizing aCelera, Future Com customers will be able to maximize application acceleration for all traffic with performance enhancements for mission-critical applications and business continuity environments, improving network bandwidth optimization and performance by more than 95 percent. When compared to proprietary hardware appliances, aCelera software saves IT departments up to 60 percent in capital and operations costs.
“At Future Com, we pride ourselves on listening to our customers and doing all that we can to provide a solution that directly meets their needs,” states Douglas Hollenshead, CEO & President, Future Com. “Following several requests, we looked to Certeon to help Future Com deliver top quality application acceleration, and with aCelera, our customers can experience a solution that makes better use of their current resources and ensures the highest returns for their IT networking investments.”
“Our commitment to embracing the move to virtualization and developing cost-effective and innovative products complements Future Com’s vision of delivering value-added business solutions to their customers,” states Peter Dougherty, Co-founder and President, Certeon Inc. “Our aCelera virtual appliance enables Future Com’s customers to take advantage of their current resources without any heavy proprietary hardware upgrades.”
Certeon was the first vendor to introduce a truly virtualized WAN optimization and application acceleration solution. Certeon’s aCelera virtual appliance software enables the reduction in remote application response time, increased scalability, and lower IT costs. Certeon’s newly introduced aCelera Sync software is the industry’s first virtual appliance that also dramatically accelerates disaster recovery for the business continuity market, without requiring costly proprietary hardware appliances.
Mellanox Advances IBM Networking Solutions with 10 Gigabit Ethernet Adapter Cards
Mellanox Technologies, Ltd., a leading supplier of high-performance, end-to-end connectivity solutions for data center servers and storage systems, today announced its ConnectX® EN 10 Gigabit Ethernet adapter cards are now available directly from IBM for the company’s IBM System Cluster 1350™ and iDataPlex systems. With industry-leading performance, power efficiency, integration and feature-set, ConnectX-enabled servers and storage systems provide an optimized solution for high-transaction databases, financial services, cloud computing and virtualized server and storage data center environments.
“Mellanox is pleased to provide its leading ConnectX EN 10 Gigabit Ethernet solutions through IBM, to enable IT managers with the most efficient, flexible and high-performance Ethernet solution,” said John Monson, vice president of marketing at Mellanox Technologies. “The combination of Mellanox’s ConnectX EN 10 Gigabit Ethernet adapters and IBM System Cluster 1350 and iDataPlex systems enables end-users to improve their business results while reducing data center infrastructure power and to maximize their return on investment.”
“Customers in a broad range of enterprise computing environments, with applications such as database clusters, grid systems, cloud computing and server virtualization are working with ever more complex data sets requiring 10 Gigabit Ethernet bandwidth,” said Alex Yost, vice president, IBM Systems & Technology Group. “Mellanox 10 Gigabit Ethernet adapters provide our customers with a solution that effectively scales and provides the high efficiency required for green and cloud computing.”
Mellanox’s ConnectX EN 10 Gigabit Ethernet adapters provide the required flexibility and efficiency to enable true I/O consolidation for virtualized and enterprise data centers. ConnectX EN provides line rate and very low-latency and supports all the stateless offload features, virtualization accelerations, Converged Enhanced Ethernet (CEE) and Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE). Mellanox ConnectX EN 10 Gigabit Ethernet adapters support a broad array of major operating systems including Windows, Linux, VMware ESX 4.0, Citrix XenServer and FreeBSD.
Availability
Mellanox ConnectX EN 10 Gigabit Ethernet adapters are available today through the IBM website at www.ibm.com.
“Mellanox is pleased to provide its leading ConnectX EN 10 Gigabit Ethernet solutions through IBM, to enable IT managers with the most efficient, flexible and high-performance Ethernet solution,” said John Monson, vice president of marketing at Mellanox Technologies. “The combination of Mellanox’s ConnectX EN 10 Gigabit Ethernet adapters and IBM System Cluster 1350 and iDataPlex systems enables end-users to improve their business results while reducing data center infrastructure power and to maximize their return on investment.”
“Customers in a broad range of enterprise computing environments, with applications such as database clusters, grid systems, cloud computing and server virtualization are working with ever more complex data sets requiring 10 Gigabit Ethernet bandwidth,” said Alex Yost, vice president, IBM Systems & Technology Group. “Mellanox 10 Gigabit Ethernet adapters provide our customers with a solution that effectively scales and provides the high efficiency required for green and cloud computing.”
Mellanox’s ConnectX EN 10 Gigabit Ethernet adapters provide the required flexibility and efficiency to enable true I/O consolidation for virtualized and enterprise data centers. ConnectX EN provides line rate and very low-latency and supports all the stateless offload features, virtualization accelerations, Converged Enhanced Ethernet (CEE) and Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE). Mellanox ConnectX EN 10 Gigabit Ethernet adapters support a broad array of major operating systems including Windows, Linux, VMware ESX 4.0, Citrix XenServer and FreeBSD.
Availability
Mellanox ConnectX EN 10 Gigabit Ethernet adapters are available today through the IBM website at www.ibm.com.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Intel Introduces New Core i7, i5 Processors
After months of whispers, Intel today officially introduced the next major platform for its processors with the introduction of the Core i7 and updates to the Core i7 and Xeon 3400 series for mainstream desktop and entry server markets.
Formerly codenamed "Lynnfield," these new chips are based on Intel's award-winning Nehalem microarchitecture and are designed for consumers who need high-end performance for digital media, productivity, gaming and other demanding applications. These processors, along with the new Intel P55 express chipset, are available today.
The new Core i7 and i5 processors are the first Intel processors to integrate both a 16-lane PCI Express 2 graphics port and two-channel memory controller, enabling all input/output and manageability functions to be handled by the single-chip Intel P55 Express Chipset. Previous Intel chipsets required two separate chips – a northbridge and a southbridge.
Check out our three feature articles today for the full scoop:
Intel Core i5 And Core i7: Intel’s Mainstream Magnum Opus
In Theory: How Does Lynnfield's On-Die PCI Express Affect Gaming?
Core i5, Core i7, CrossFire, And SLI: Gaming Paradise, Redux?
Formerly codenamed "Lynnfield," these new chips are based on Intel's award-winning Nehalem microarchitecture and are designed for consumers who need high-end performance for digital media, productivity, gaming and other demanding applications. These processors, along with the new Intel P55 express chipset, are available today.
The new Core i7 and i5 processors are the first Intel processors to integrate both a 16-lane PCI Express 2 graphics port and two-channel memory controller, enabling all input/output and manageability functions to be handled by the single-chip Intel P55 Express Chipset. Previous Intel chipsets required two separate chips – a northbridge and a southbridge.
Check out our three feature articles today for the full scoop:
Intel Core i5 And Core i7: Intel’s Mainstream Magnum Opus
In Theory: How Does Lynnfield's On-Die PCI Express Affect Gaming?
Core i5, Core i7, CrossFire, And SLI: Gaming Paradise, Redux?
Phoenix BIOS Boots in 1 Second, Loads Win 7
One difference between many consumer electronics and the PC is the time it takes from hitting the power button until it's fully functional.
PCs have had to contend with far more complexities in its system, as well as slower storage media such as hard disk drives. While much of that we have to live with, the advent of faster storage solutions such as SSDs make the wait from power-to-desktop shorter.
Now Phoenix has created a new BIOS that will boot (or POST) a PC in just one second. Such a quick boot process means that it can shave a significant portion of the total load time of a cold system, with the rest of the wait being the loading of the operating system.
Phoenix demonstrated its technology on a Lenovo T400s equipped with an SSD. Just one second after the system was powered on, the drive access light began to flicker and a clean Windows 7 was loaded to the desktop in about 10 seconds.
Check out a video of the technology in action at LaptopMag.
PCs have had to contend with far more complexities in its system, as well as slower storage media such as hard disk drives. While much of that we have to live with, the advent of faster storage solutions such as SSDs make the wait from power-to-desktop shorter.
Now Phoenix has created a new BIOS that will boot (or POST) a PC in just one second. Such a quick boot process means that it can shave a significant portion of the total load time of a cold system, with the rest of the wait being the loading of the operating system.
Phoenix demonstrated its technology on a Lenovo T400s equipped with an SSD. Just one second after the system was powered on, the drive access light began to flicker and a clean Windows 7 was loaded to the desktop in about 10 seconds.
Check out a video of the technology in action at LaptopMag.
Toshiba to detail Cell-based TV in early October
Toshiba will soon unveil its first television based on the Cell processor, the same multimedia chip that sits at the heart of the PlayStation 3 game console.
Toshiba has been showing prototypes of the television with Cell technology for the last couple of years and its unveiling on Oct. 5 will come just before its first public showing at the upcoming Ceatec electronics show. While a launch date has not yet been announced, the timing of the unveiling suggests it will be on sale in Japan before the end of this year.
The Cell chip was developed by Toshiba, IBM and Sony and each chip contains a single Power PC core and eight co-processors. Together the chips make heavy-duty processing of video a breeze.
During previous demonstrations of Cell TV prototypes, Toshiba has put the chip to use providing real-time enhancing of standard definition to a quality closer to that of high definition. It has also been shown streaming multiple chapters from a recorded TV show, similar to the multiscreen menus on some DVDs, to make program navigation easier.
But for all the neat tricks the Cell chip can do with video there's one thing it almost certainly won't do: run PlayStation 3 games. Toshiba has said several times that it has no intention of offering any sort of PlayStation compatibility in a Cell-based TV.
Toshiba has been showing prototypes of the television with Cell technology for the last couple of years and its unveiling on Oct. 5 will come just before its first public showing at the upcoming Ceatec electronics show. While a launch date has not yet been announced, the timing of the unveiling suggests it will be on sale in Japan before the end of this year.
The Cell chip was developed by Toshiba, IBM and Sony and each chip contains a single Power PC core and eight co-processors. Together the chips make heavy-duty processing of video a breeze.
During previous demonstrations of Cell TV prototypes, Toshiba has put the chip to use providing real-time enhancing of standard definition to a quality closer to that of high definition. It has also been shown streaming multiple chapters from a recorded TV show, similar to the multiscreen menus on some DVDs, to make program navigation easier.
But for all the neat tricks the Cell chip can do with video there's one thing it almost certainly won't do: run PlayStation 3 games. Toshiba has said several times that it has no intention of offering any sort of PlayStation compatibility in a Cell-based TV.
As complaints roll in about iPhone MMS, AT&T says activation went smoothly
AT&T activated Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) on Apple Inc's iPhone 3G and 3GS phones starting mid-day Friday nationwide, with some early users reporting transmission problems on AT&T's Facebook page.
It wasn't clear how significant or widespread any of the problems were early on, however. Some experts have wondered how well AT&T's network will perform with the added network load from pictures and other media sent via iPhones.
Complaints on AT&T's Facebook page ranged from taking 15 to 20 minutes to send a photo wirelessly, to having an MMS transmission halt part-way through. Others said MMS service was up but then dropped out on a later attempt.
However, despite the complaints, an AT&T spokesman said MMS was working: "We said we'd have MMS working today and it is," said AT&T's Mark Siegel at 5 p.m. ET, several hours after activation began. "From what we can see, it's going smoothly."
While many comments were critical of the service of the hundreds that were quickly posted just hours after the turn-on, many others on AT&T's Facebook page were also positive about the new MMS capability.
Jeff Neves in Sacramento reported the service was "working great" at about 4:40 p.m. ET, adding: "I'm doing my part to help CRASH the network!!"
The MMS activation through iTunes required the phones to have an iPhone OS 3.1 update installed, a fact that some customers apparently had missed.
Some early commenters reported problems of not being able to send MMS data at all, while others noted delays in sending pictures wirelessly.
Joey Edison reported on the AT&T Facebook page that sending a picture to a coworker shortly after 4 p.m. ET and said the co-worker hadn't received it 15 minutes later. "Fifteen minutes later, really? Maybe it's because we're obsessing and taking up all the data!"
Tamim Sekander wrote at about 4:20 ET: "Working good in Dallas, but to receive one, it's like 20 minutes to get it."
Another comment from James Rosenberg in Des Moines, Iowa, at about 4:20 ET said the network was "down hard," with no ability to send pictures.
Yet others commenters said they could start to send a picture and find it would stop transmitting about three-fourths of the way through.
Some experts said that MMS messages don't always get through on other networks and other devices because of interoperability problems between networks.
Some who couldn't get MMS to work properly urged other customers to complain and seek refunds, while others complained that iPhone still needed the ability to tether their phones to laptops for wireless transmissions.
It wasn't clear how significant or widespread any of the problems were early on, however. Some experts have wondered how well AT&T's network will perform with the added network load from pictures and other media sent via iPhones.
Complaints on AT&T's Facebook page ranged from taking 15 to 20 minutes to send a photo wirelessly, to having an MMS transmission halt part-way through. Others said MMS service was up but then dropped out on a later attempt.
However, despite the complaints, an AT&T spokesman said MMS was working: "We said we'd have MMS working today and it is," said AT&T's Mark Siegel at 5 p.m. ET, several hours after activation began. "From what we can see, it's going smoothly."
While many comments were critical of the service of the hundreds that were quickly posted just hours after the turn-on, many others on AT&T's Facebook page were also positive about the new MMS capability.
Jeff Neves in Sacramento reported the service was "working great" at about 4:40 p.m. ET, adding: "I'm doing my part to help CRASH the network!!"
The MMS activation through iTunes required the phones to have an iPhone OS 3.1 update installed, a fact that some customers apparently had missed.
Some early commenters reported problems of not being able to send MMS data at all, while others noted delays in sending pictures wirelessly.
Joey Edison reported on the AT&T Facebook page that sending a picture to a coworker shortly after 4 p.m. ET and said the co-worker hadn't received it 15 minutes later. "Fifteen minutes later, really? Maybe it's because we're obsessing and taking up all the data!"
Tamim Sekander wrote at about 4:20 ET: "Working good in Dallas, but to receive one, it's like 20 minutes to get it."
Another comment from James Rosenberg in Des Moines, Iowa, at about 4:20 ET said the network was "down hard," with no ability to send pictures.
Yet others commenters said they could start to send a picture and find it would stop transmitting about three-fourths of the way through.
Some experts said that MMS messages don't always get through on other networks and other devices because of interoperability problems between networks.
Some who couldn't get MMS to work properly urged other customers to complain and seek refunds, while others complained that iPhone still needed the ability to tether their phones to laptops for wireless transmissions.
Sony brings out a big-screen, general-purpose entertainment laptop with a budget-friendly price
Forget playing games, how about a semi-stylish 15.5-inch widescreen notebook that's built with movies in mind? If this sounds appealing to you, then check out the Sony VAIO VGN-NW125J. For $800, this model offers up a decent experience--and a whole lot of software (some of it even useful).
The big selling points on the stickers scream: "HDMI-output (cable sold separately)!" and "A Stunning LCD!" That's as good a cue as any to tackle some of the multimedia claims for the VGN-NW125J. The 1366-by-768-pixel panel delivers good results on the 15.5-inch screen. Blue colors popped a little when you set the brightness to full blast (and tilt the screen back to a 45-degree viewing angle), but at midlevel brightness and contrast settings, the machine seems a little muted. Its glossy coating doesn't really help matters because it picks up a glare. Trying to watch episodes of Lost streamed over Hulu requires a little more monkeying with contrast than I'm accustomed to, but at least the effort pays off in the end.
Plug the NW125J into an HDTV set through the HDMI port and you can actually get a decent picture from the on-board DVD-ROM drive. Yeah, and that'd be one of my complaints. I know that Sony is trying to keep prices down, but for less than 100 bucks more, you can invest in Sony's VGN-NW180J/S that comes with a Blu-ray drive. Y'know, Sony's own home video format that the company is desperately trying to push on consumers.
On the audio side, the sound isn't exactly full--or cubemate-annoyingly loud. But it is crisp enough and even throws in some of that psuedo-spatial-sound tomfoolery to make it seem more "3D." However, the absence of good bass makes it a little hollow when you listen to Jack caterwauling about wanting to get off, and then back, on the island. In short, it's good for a base-level all-purpose machine, but not great.
For such a big notebook, I found myself hitting the wrong keys a disproportionate amount of the time. Are the keys comfortable? Yes, the cut-out buttons feel springy enough when you're typing--they are plenty large as well. It's even hard to find fault with the function buttons and the few shortcut keys that line the top row (buttons for quick Web launching, muting, and display toggling). I think the problem lies in the spacing of the keys. Though the NW125J is big and wide, the keys feel scrunched a little too tightly. About one and a half inches are on either side of the keypad--not a major gripe, more an observation.
Sony scores back a couple of brownie points by loading this laptop up with every major port or slot you're likely to want: three for USB and one each for HDMI-out (as mentioned earlier), VGA-out, FireWire, PC Express, and Memory Stick and SD cards.
Deeper in the guts, the 2.GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T6500 CPU and 4GB of RAM should be enough to muscle through basic tasks and provide a little extra oomph, but they won't break any land-speed records. The NW125J winds up with a WorldBench 6 score of 80; a similarly loaded, and similarly priced, Gateway U7807u scored 84 in WorldBench 6 a while back, so the new Sony's score is a little disappointing. The lackluster, integrated GPU ensures that you won't be aiming much higher than casual games on this laptop (not a bad thing). As for its endurance, it's able to last 4 hours, 13 minutes in our battery drain tests. In other words it's a fairly average machine, able to last as long as most all-purpose machines already out there--the NW125J just tries doing it for less.
The software bundle looks promising for the most part, with only a couple of dogs in the mix. On the utilitarian side, you have the fairly vanilla VAIO Control Center that parks everything you'd need to tweak on the PC in one place. The SmartWi (for wizards) utility is a little goofy and caused more confusion than help. (Let me interject a little anecdote: I'm trying to set up a wireless connection and the Wireless wizard asks me to....plug in....an ethernet cable! Really?)
The boatload of multimedia-minded apps range from the not-bad to the not-needed. On the positive side: Roxio Easy CD Creator 10 and a couple of basic video- and photo-editing apps are the headliners, but here's something that had potential: the VAIO Content Exporter. Of course, it's only optimized to export content to three settings: PSP, Memory Stick, and Mylo. Would it kill Sony to acknowledge that other devices exist? Another dark-horse app worth noting is the PMB. It lets you manage and organize videos and pictures. A handy calendar view lets you put all your pictures in perspective. The biggest disappointment: The basic MusicBox is a prime example of trying to remake the wheel without rounding the edges. (I know that Sony wants to put its stamp on music software, but do we really need it at this point?)
The NW125J is an oversized and promising machine that does what it says: That is, give your kids the basics they need for the new school year along with a mild multimedia boot in the keister. But with limitations like the lack of a discrete GPU, I'm wondering if Sony could have made a couple of smarter moves to keep the price down at the $800 level.
Other laptops specially configured for retail sale at Best Buy include the Dell Studio 14z, the HP dv4-1465dx, and the Toshiba Satellite M505-S4940. And check out our video coverage of the four laptops from Best Buy in "Back-to-School Laptops: We Review Best Buy's Exclusives."
The big selling points on the stickers scream: "HDMI-output (cable sold separately)!" and "A Stunning LCD!" That's as good a cue as any to tackle some of the multimedia claims for the VGN-NW125J. The 1366-by-768-pixel panel delivers good results on the 15.5-inch screen. Blue colors popped a little when you set the brightness to full blast (and tilt the screen back to a 45-degree viewing angle), but at midlevel brightness and contrast settings, the machine seems a little muted. Its glossy coating doesn't really help matters because it picks up a glare. Trying to watch episodes of Lost streamed over Hulu requires a little more monkeying with contrast than I'm accustomed to, but at least the effort pays off in the end.
Plug the NW125J into an HDTV set through the HDMI port and you can actually get a decent picture from the on-board DVD-ROM drive. Yeah, and that'd be one of my complaints. I know that Sony is trying to keep prices down, but for less than 100 bucks more, you can invest in Sony's VGN-NW180J/S that comes with a Blu-ray drive. Y'know, Sony's own home video format that the company is desperately trying to push on consumers.
On the audio side, the sound isn't exactly full--or cubemate-annoyingly loud. But it is crisp enough and even throws in some of that psuedo-spatial-sound tomfoolery to make it seem more "3D." However, the absence of good bass makes it a little hollow when you listen to Jack caterwauling about wanting to get off, and then back, on the island. In short, it's good for a base-level all-purpose machine, but not great.
For such a big notebook, I found myself hitting the wrong keys a disproportionate amount of the time. Are the keys comfortable? Yes, the cut-out buttons feel springy enough when you're typing--they are plenty large as well. It's even hard to find fault with the function buttons and the few shortcut keys that line the top row (buttons for quick Web launching, muting, and display toggling). I think the problem lies in the spacing of the keys. Though the NW125J is big and wide, the keys feel scrunched a little too tightly. About one and a half inches are on either side of the keypad--not a major gripe, more an observation.
Sony scores back a couple of brownie points by loading this laptop up with every major port or slot you're likely to want: three for USB and one each for HDMI-out (as mentioned earlier), VGA-out, FireWire, PC Express, and Memory Stick and SD cards.
Deeper in the guts, the 2.GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T6500 CPU and 4GB of RAM should be enough to muscle through basic tasks and provide a little extra oomph, but they won't break any land-speed records. The NW125J winds up with a WorldBench 6 score of 80; a similarly loaded, and similarly priced, Gateway U7807u scored 84 in WorldBench 6 a while back, so the new Sony's score is a little disappointing. The lackluster, integrated GPU ensures that you won't be aiming much higher than casual games on this laptop (not a bad thing). As for its endurance, it's able to last 4 hours, 13 minutes in our battery drain tests. In other words it's a fairly average machine, able to last as long as most all-purpose machines already out there--the NW125J just tries doing it for less.
The software bundle looks promising for the most part, with only a couple of dogs in the mix. On the utilitarian side, you have the fairly vanilla VAIO Control Center that parks everything you'd need to tweak on the PC in one place. The SmartWi (for wizards) utility is a little goofy and caused more confusion than help. (Let me interject a little anecdote: I'm trying to set up a wireless connection and the Wireless wizard asks me to....plug in....an ethernet cable! Really?)
The boatload of multimedia-minded apps range from the not-bad to the not-needed. On the positive side: Roxio Easy CD Creator 10 and a couple of basic video- and photo-editing apps are the headliners, but here's something that had potential: the VAIO Content Exporter. Of course, it's only optimized to export content to three settings: PSP, Memory Stick, and Mylo. Would it kill Sony to acknowledge that other devices exist? Another dark-horse app worth noting is the PMB. It lets you manage and organize videos and pictures. A handy calendar view lets you put all your pictures in perspective. The biggest disappointment: The basic MusicBox is a prime example of trying to remake the wheel without rounding the edges. (I know that Sony wants to put its stamp on music software, but do we really need it at this point?)
The NW125J is an oversized and promising machine that does what it says: That is, give your kids the basics they need for the new school year along with a mild multimedia boot in the keister. But with limitations like the lack of a discrete GPU, I'm wondering if Sony could have made a couple of smarter moves to keep the price down at the $800 level.
Other laptops specially configured for retail sale at Best Buy include the Dell Studio 14z, the HP dv4-1465dx, and the Toshiba Satellite M505-S4940. And check out our video coverage of the four laptops from Best Buy in "Back-to-School Laptops: We Review Best Buy's Exclusives."
Take HP's Mini 1000 netbook, but make it less expensive and a little thicker. That, in a nutshell, is HP's Mini 110.
What do you do when you already have a couple of well-received netbooks? You make another one, of course. And sure as Shadrach, HP is following up on the success of its consumer-friendly Mini 1000 and business-centric Mini 2140 netbooks (not to mention its designer-minded Mini 1000 Vivienne Tam) with the HP Mini 110.
The big difference between the new model and its predecessors is a couple hundred bucks. Available since June of this year, the Mini 110 XP (available in "Black Swirl") sells for $329, while the Linux-based 110 Mi edition starts at $279. Compare those prices with the $549 tag on the Mini 1000 that we reviewed last fall.
The hardware hasn't changed too much: The Mini 110 carries the same N270 Atom CPU, the same 1GB of RAM, the same 160GB hard drive, the same awesomely large 92-percent-of-full-size keyboard--even the same crummy mouse button layout that's been driving me bonkers since HP introduced it on the HP Mini 2133. The new model also comes loaded with a three-cell battery--as did the Mini 1000, which achieved a mediocre battery life of 2 hours, 47 minutes on a charge. In our tests, the Mini 110 survived for 1 minute longer. (Travelers' advisory: Consider popping an extra 40 bones for the BX06 Mini Battery, to pick up a little extra on-the-go gusto.) That's miles hours behind pack leaders such as the Toshiba NB205-310, which posted a magnificent 10-hour run-time. On our WorldBench 6 test suite, the Mini 110 unsurprisingly notched a mark of 33--a hair better than the Mini 1000's original score of 30.
What do you gain and what do you lose with this more affordable model? Well, HP swaps out the multimedia dongle port in favor of a built-in VGA port (plus a built-in RJ-45 ethernet jack for good measure). The sweet-looking speaker grille planted inside the 1000's hinge is absent from the 110, replaced by a horrid-sounding speaker mounted beneath the display. That display offers a 10.1-inch-diagonal image with a native resolution of 1024 by 576, and the slick edge-to-edge plastic cover has has vanished in favor of a big plastic bezel that makes the Mini 110 look like the love child of the Mini 1000 and the Acer Aspire One.
Upgrade options exist, naturally: 802.11b/g not enough, and you want wireless WAN? Done. Wish you could get this netbook in "White Swirl" or "Pink Chic"? It's yours, for a price. Feeling cramped? You can slot in a 250GB hard drive and boost the RAM to 2GB.
I also appreciate the Mini 110's software selection, which is slightly more robust than the usual feeble bloatware. For instance, Syncables allows you to sync five PCs on a network.
Otherwise, this looks like a slightly thicker, economy-class version of last year's model. The 110 measures 10.3 by 6.6 by 1.2 inches and weighs 2.33 pounds, compared to the Mini 1000's 10.3 by 6.6 by 0.99 inches and 2.25 pounds. And that isn't a bad trade-off when you consider the extras inside the machine--and the lower price.
And really, that's what the Mini 110 boils down to: an econobox that delivers just enough of what you need, without spoiling you. You get all the required ports, plus a little extra beef, for a very low price. Not worried about saving maximum money on your next netbook? The HP Mini 5101 does a stand-up job, but neither it nor the Mini 110 can match the value that the Toshiba NB205-310 offers.
The big difference between the new model and its predecessors is a couple hundred bucks. Available since June of this year, the Mini 110 XP (available in "Black Swirl") sells for $329, while the Linux-based 110 Mi edition starts at $279. Compare those prices with the $549 tag on the Mini 1000 that we reviewed last fall.
The hardware hasn't changed too much: The Mini 110 carries the same N270 Atom CPU, the same 1GB of RAM, the same 160GB hard drive, the same awesomely large 92-percent-of-full-size keyboard--even the same crummy mouse button layout that's been driving me bonkers since HP introduced it on the HP Mini 2133. The new model also comes loaded with a three-cell battery--as did the Mini 1000, which achieved a mediocre battery life of 2 hours, 47 minutes on a charge. In our tests, the Mini 110 survived for 1 minute longer. (Travelers' advisory: Consider popping an extra 40 bones for the BX06 Mini Battery, to pick up a little extra on-the-go gusto.) That's miles hours behind pack leaders such as the Toshiba NB205-310, which posted a magnificent 10-hour run-time. On our WorldBench 6 test suite, the Mini 110 unsurprisingly notched a mark of 33--a hair better than the Mini 1000's original score of 30.
What do you gain and what do you lose with this more affordable model? Well, HP swaps out the multimedia dongle port in favor of a built-in VGA port (plus a built-in RJ-45 ethernet jack for good measure). The sweet-looking speaker grille planted inside the 1000's hinge is absent from the 110, replaced by a horrid-sounding speaker mounted beneath the display. That display offers a 10.1-inch-diagonal image with a native resolution of 1024 by 576, and the slick edge-to-edge plastic cover has has vanished in favor of a big plastic bezel that makes the Mini 110 look like the love child of the Mini 1000 and the Acer Aspire One.
Upgrade options exist, naturally: 802.11b/g not enough, and you want wireless WAN? Done. Wish you could get this netbook in "White Swirl" or "Pink Chic"? It's yours, for a price. Feeling cramped? You can slot in a 250GB hard drive and boost the RAM to 2GB.
I also appreciate the Mini 110's software selection, which is slightly more robust than the usual feeble bloatware. For instance, Syncables allows you to sync five PCs on a network.
Otherwise, this looks like a slightly thicker, economy-class version of last year's model. The 110 measures 10.3 by 6.6 by 1.2 inches and weighs 2.33 pounds, compared to the Mini 1000's 10.3 by 6.6 by 0.99 inches and 2.25 pounds. And that isn't a bad trade-off when you consider the extras inside the machine--and the lower price.
And really, that's what the Mini 110 boils down to: an econobox that delivers just enough of what you need, without spoiling you. You get all the required ports, plus a little extra beef, for a very low price. Not worried about saving maximum money on your next netbook? The HP Mini 5101 does a stand-up job, but neither it nor the Mini 110 can match the value that the Toshiba NB205-310 offers.
Samsung's upscale netbook is almost as bulky as a standard laptop, without the full features.
Netbooks are all the rage these days, and some companies, like Dell, are practically giving them away.
So of course, someone's bound to bulk up a netbook. The 10-inch screens that max out at 1024-by-600 resolution seem just too restrictive. And how about throwing in better battery life, too?
That's the thinking behind Samsung's $549 NP-NC20. The 12.1-inch screen offers a full 1280 by 800 pixels--enough for true 720p high-definition playback. The good news is that playback of DVDs and 720p high-def movies does look pretty good, and the frame rate is fairly smooth. The display, while adequate, won't win awards for color fidelity or contrast. Black levels and viewing angles are the limiting factors, given that this panel seems to be a 6-bits-per-pixel TN type.
Unfortunately, the NP-NC20's display, like those of many current laptops, has one of those glossy-finish screens that make reading and viewing media difficult when there's any glare whatsoever. By comparison, two other netbooks currently host 12-inch displays: Lenovo's IdeaPad S12 and the HP Pavilion dv2 (HP's machine is technically a tweener-class netbook/notebook).
The bad news: Audio is pretty poor through the speakers, and why would you want to lug this around just to play movies? I say "lug" because this machine is a little weighty. With the power brick, it's 4.1 pounds. And it measures closer in size to a laptop than many netbooks--11.6 by 8.5 by 1.5 inches. To be fair, the NC-20 has a lot of things going for it. That extra girth enables a more robust keyboard layout, making typing less of a chore than on some netbooks. However, you have to press the function (Fn) key when using Home or End--keys often used in word processing or browsing the Web. The trackpad is a little wonky as well. It's got a single button; press the button on the left side, and it's a left mouse button; press it on the right side, and you get a context click. But it's easy to get it wrong if you strike near the center of the bar. I'd have preferred two distinct buttons.
All the I/O ports are on the two sides, not buried in the rear. One USB, VGA, audio, and ethernet port each grace the left side, while the right panel contains two more USB 2.0 ports, a Kensington lock slot, and the power connector. The SD card slot is recessed slightly under a lip in the front, but is still readily accessible. That's about it. Nothing mind-blowing or new compared to what's already on the market.
Performance is a different matter. The Via Nano processor seemed to chug a bit if we opened up more than about six tabs in Firefox 3.5. Word 2007 also ran pretty slowly, with visible stuttering through scrolling of large documents. It's odd that DVD playback is crisp and smooth, while scrolling a Word or Excel file is on the slow side. And you wouldn't want to run any games on this, even though the built-in S3 Chrome graphics is theoretically DirectX 9-capable. Some older games may run, but there's just not enough main memory after allocating 128MB for graphics.
But let's put all that in a little bit of perspective here. The average netbook, powered by an Intel Atom CPU, scores about 36 in our WorldBench 6 tests. The NC-20 clocks a 41. Hardly a speed demon, but a slight clip faster. As for battery life, it survives for 5 hours, 53 minutes on a charge, which is toward the higher end of the netbook spectrum. (To date, Toshiba's NB205-310, with its nearly 10-hour battery life, has yet to be unseated.)
Given that you can buy a Lenovo IdeaPad G530 notebook for $499--$50 less than price of this netbook--I have to question the overall utility of the NC-20. Just ask yourself: Why bother with a netbook, when I can get a full-featured laptop that's a little heavier but costs less? If you're hell-bent on a 12-inch screen, consider Lenovo's IdeaPad S12 (an nVidia Ion-based version is due out soon) or HP's pricier--and more potent--Pavilion dv2.
So of course, someone's bound to bulk up a netbook. The 10-inch screens that max out at 1024-by-600 resolution seem just too restrictive. And how about throwing in better battery life, too?
That's the thinking behind Samsung's $549 NP-NC20. The 12.1-inch screen offers a full 1280 by 800 pixels--enough for true 720p high-definition playback. The good news is that playback of DVDs and 720p high-def movies does look pretty good, and the frame rate is fairly smooth. The display, while adequate, won't win awards for color fidelity or contrast. Black levels and viewing angles are the limiting factors, given that this panel seems to be a 6-bits-per-pixel TN type.
Unfortunately, the NP-NC20's display, like those of many current laptops, has one of those glossy-finish screens that make reading and viewing media difficult when there's any glare whatsoever. By comparison, two other netbooks currently host 12-inch displays: Lenovo's IdeaPad S12 and the HP Pavilion dv2 (HP's machine is technically a tweener-class netbook/notebook).
The bad news: Audio is pretty poor through the speakers, and why would you want to lug this around just to play movies? I say "lug" because this machine is a little weighty. With the power brick, it's 4.1 pounds. And it measures closer in size to a laptop than many netbooks--11.6 by 8.5 by 1.5 inches. To be fair, the NC-20 has a lot of things going for it. That extra girth enables a more robust keyboard layout, making typing less of a chore than on some netbooks. However, you have to press the function (Fn) key when using Home or End--keys often used in word processing or browsing the Web. The trackpad is a little wonky as well. It's got a single button; press the button on the left side, and it's a left mouse button; press it on the right side, and you get a context click. But it's easy to get it wrong if you strike near the center of the bar. I'd have preferred two distinct buttons.
All the I/O ports are on the two sides, not buried in the rear. One USB, VGA, audio, and ethernet port each grace the left side, while the right panel contains two more USB 2.0 ports, a Kensington lock slot, and the power connector. The SD card slot is recessed slightly under a lip in the front, but is still readily accessible. That's about it. Nothing mind-blowing or new compared to what's already on the market.
Performance is a different matter. The Via Nano processor seemed to chug a bit if we opened up more than about six tabs in Firefox 3.5. Word 2007 also ran pretty slowly, with visible stuttering through scrolling of large documents. It's odd that DVD playback is crisp and smooth, while scrolling a Word or Excel file is on the slow side. And you wouldn't want to run any games on this, even though the built-in S3 Chrome graphics is theoretically DirectX 9-capable. Some older games may run, but there's just not enough main memory after allocating 128MB for graphics.
But let's put all that in a little bit of perspective here. The average netbook, powered by an Intel Atom CPU, scores about 36 in our WorldBench 6 tests. The NC-20 clocks a 41. Hardly a speed demon, but a slight clip faster. As for battery life, it survives for 5 hours, 53 minutes on a charge, which is toward the higher end of the netbook spectrum. (To date, Toshiba's NB205-310, with its nearly 10-hour battery life, has yet to be unseated.)
Given that you can buy a Lenovo IdeaPad G530 notebook for $499--$50 less than price of this netbook--I have to question the overall utility of the NC-20. Just ask yourself: Why bother with a netbook, when I can get a full-featured laptop that's a little heavier but costs less? If you're hell-bent on a 12-inch screen, consider Lenovo's IdeaPad S12 (an nVidia Ion-based version is due out soon) or HP's pricier--and more potent--Pavilion dv2.
This tightly integrated package is great for on-the-go office and Web use, but not for multimedia.
The Lenovo IdeaPad U350 is one of those rare products where actually using it makes it seem much stronger than its test results and feature set might make it seem on paper. This first hits you when, after you fire up and start typing, you realize that the keyboard is actually--dare I say it?--usable for touch typists. The LED-backlit, 13.3-inch, 1366-by-768-pixel screen appears more than adequate for typical office use and even light-duty photo editing. What you get is a decent ultraportable machine at a pretty reasonable price (our unit, as configured sells for $749).
Performance is about what you should expect for a unit sporting the Intel U2700 ultra-low-voltage, single-core CPU. The WorldBench 6 score of 54 is just a tad under that of the slightly more expensive MSI X340, despite the latter's faster CPU. Certainly the 4GB of DDR3-1066 SDRAM helps overall performance--and is a step above what you get in netbooks and the AMD Athlon Neo-based tweener, the HP Pavilion dv2--but this IdeaPad is no barn-burner.
Battery life is par for its 2700-mAH (milli-Amp-Hour) battery, at 4 hours, 32 minutes. This compares favorably with the MSI X340, which has a 2150-mAH battery, and gets only 3 hours, 42 minutes on our battery life tests. The Acer Timeline we recently reviewed arrived with a 5160-mHz battery, so it ran for a full work day (8 hours, 21 minutes).
Despite the single-core processing, multitasking performance seemed snappy; the 4GB of RAM certainly helps. We had Firefox open with about a dozen tabs (some with performance-sapping flash video playing) and TweetDeck running in the background, all while scrolling through a large Adobe Acrobat document. Overall responsiveness appeared to hold up well in that environment.
Wi-Fi performance did seem a little slower on our 802.11n network than Wi-Fi on other, similar laptops. Transferring a 4.5GB video took a little longer than we'd normally expect. This didn't seem to affect Web browsing or normal Internet usage, however.
The IdeaPad isn't as thin as MSI's unit, though, nor is it as light. Yet the unit felt lighter than its 3.6 pounds (sans power brick.) It helps that the IdeaPad's weight distribution seems very even, so you can just grab it from any angle without awkwardness. Display output ports (VGA and HDMI) are on the left side, along with one USB 2.0 port, gigabit ethernet, and the Kensington lock slot. The right side houses the pair of audio ports (one in and one out), two more USB 2.0 parts and a slot that supports SD, xD, and Memory Stick flash memory cards.
While the Lenovo seems ideal for general office work and some photo editing, its multimedia capabilities seem more limited. We noticed visible aliasing with DVD-quality video scaled to the full resolution of the display. Vertical viewing angles are very poor--just a slight shift above or below the ideal viewing angle results in nearly unwatchable visual quality. The built-in speakers are pretty bad, too, so you'll want to use headphones.
The U350's software includes Adobe Acrobat Reader 9, Lenovo's own Webcam utilities, and RealNetworks game trialware, plus a trial version of Lenovo's own Carbonite online backup utility. No security or antivirus software is included, however. Documentation is adequate, if a little thin, but well written and easy to follow.
In the end, the Lenovo IdeaPad U350 offers a fairly standard feature set with average performance, but it's all built into a nicely integrated, slick-feeling package that makes it a real joy to use as an adjunct to an office desktop. Just don't expect to watch a lot of movies on it.
Performance is about what you should expect for a unit sporting the Intel U2700 ultra-low-voltage, single-core CPU. The WorldBench 6 score of 54 is just a tad under that of the slightly more expensive MSI X340, despite the latter's faster CPU. Certainly the 4GB of DDR3-1066 SDRAM helps overall performance--and is a step above what you get in netbooks and the AMD Athlon Neo-based tweener, the HP Pavilion dv2--but this IdeaPad is no barn-burner.
Battery life is par for its 2700-mAH (milli-Amp-Hour) battery, at 4 hours, 32 minutes. This compares favorably with the MSI X340, which has a 2150-mAH battery, and gets only 3 hours, 42 minutes on our battery life tests. The Acer Timeline we recently reviewed arrived with a 5160-mHz battery, so it ran for a full work day (8 hours, 21 minutes).
Despite the single-core processing, multitasking performance seemed snappy; the 4GB of RAM certainly helps. We had Firefox open with about a dozen tabs (some with performance-sapping flash video playing) and TweetDeck running in the background, all while scrolling through a large Adobe Acrobat document. Overall responsiveness appeared to hold up well in that environment.
Wi-Fi performance did seem a little slower on our 802.11n network than Wi-Fi on other, similar laptops. Transferring a 4.5GB video took a little longer than we'd normally expect. This didn't seem to affect Web browsing or normal Internet usage, however.
The IdeaPad isn't as thin as MSI's unit, though, nor is it as light. Yet the unit felt lighter than its 3.6 pounds (sans power brick.) It helps that the IdeaPad's weight distribution seems very even, so you can just grab it from any angle without awkwardness. Display output ports (VGA and HDMI) are on the left side, along with one USB 2.0 port, gigabit ethernet, and the Kensington lock slot. The right side houses the pair of audio ports (one in and one out), two more USB 2.0 parts and a slot that supports SD, xD, and Memory Stick flash memory cards.
While the Lenovo seems ideal for general office work and some photo editing, its multimedia capabilities seem more limited. We noticed visible aliasing with DVD-quality video scaled to the full resolution of the display. Vertical viewing angles are very poor--just a slight shift above or below the ideal viewing angle results in nearly unwatchable visual quality. The built-in speakers are pretty bad, too, so you'll want to use headphones.
The U350's software includes Adobe Acrobat Reader 9, Lenovo's own Webcam utilities, and RealNetworks game trialware, plus a trial version of Lenovo's own Carbonite online backup utility. No security or antivirus software is included, however. Documentation is adequate, if a little thin, but well written and easy to follow.
In the end, the Lenovo IdeaPad U350 offers a fairly standard feature set with average performance, but it's all built into a nicely integrated, slick-feeling package that makes it a real joy to use as an adjunct to an office desktop. Just don't expect to watch a lot of movies on it.
Friday, September 4, 2009
D-Link DSM-210
As one would expect from D-Link, a company known for its networking products, its DSM-210 10-inch digital picture frame is Wi-Fi enabled, and it also have 10/100 Ethernet support. The 800-by-480 pixel resolution frame comes with snap-on white or black borders; I preferred the black, which give the frame a modern look. The DSM-210 doesn't really resemble a traditional picture frame, however; it looks far more like a tech gadget. But sadly, some of this frame's limitations will be problematic for techies and non-techies alike.
The frame has memory card slots for SD, MMC, and Memory Stick, and it also has a USB port for plugging in a USB flash drive. When I loaded my test photos to the DSM-210, the images transferred very slowly to the frame's 1GB internal memory--the DSM-210 only allows you to copy pictures one by one. The only way to copy multiple images at a time is by using a software widget, which is for Windows only. (The DSM-210 can also read images off a Windows PC on a network, but not a Mac.)
Once the images were loaded, the displayed pictures had a slightly desaturated look with a cool cast. The screen is bright and can be viewed from different angles without losing image visibility, but no brightness or contrast controls are available. The slide show ran smoothly, and you can choose from multiple transition effects, but the frame has limited slide-interval adjustments. Also, it cannot handle nested folders, or run images from multiple cards and internal memory into one show.
The DSM-210 allows you to stream photos (but unfortunately, not video) through FrameChannel, an RSS utility. Oddly, the default settings are limited to a meager five photos. It's as if D-Link were conspiring to limit the number of pages in your virtual photo album. In addition, as with the multimedia cards, the frame cannot stream content from more than one channel at a time (meaning only Picasa, or only Flickr, or other service). This may not be an issue for those who don't use more than one image-sharing network, but it is another unexpected limitation.
One pretty cool feature on this frame is motion detection: The device will power off when no one is around, thus conserving energy and the frame's lifespan. I also liked that you can receive pictures via e-mail on the frame.
Macworld's buying advice
The DSM-210 has some good features, but a lot of compromises are made within those features. If all you want to do is simply display pictures, you should be able to find a 10-inch frame at a more affordable price. The streaming and Internet access features can be found on other frames without the limitations found on the DSM-210.
The frame has memory card slots for SD, MMC, and Memory Stick, and it also has a USB port for plugging in a USB flash drive. When I loaded my test photos to the DSM-210, the images transferred very slowly to the frame's 1GB internal memory--the DSM-210 only allows you to copy pictures one by one. The only way to copy multiple images at a time is by using a software widget, which is for Windows only. (The DSM-210 can also read images off a Windows PC on a network, but not a Mac.)
Once the images were loaded, the displayed pictures had a slightly desaturated look with a cool cast. The screen is bright and can be viewed from different angles without losing image visibility, but no brightness or contrast controls are available. The slide show ran smoothly, and you can choose from multiple transition effects, but the frame has limited slide-interval adjustments. Also, it cannot handle nested folders, or run images from multiple cards and internal memory into one show.
The DSM-210 allows you to stream photos (but unfortunately, not video) through FrameChannel, an RSS utility. Oddly, the default settings are limited to a meager five photos. It's as if D-Link were conspiring to limit the number of pages in your virtual photo album. In addition, as with the multimedia cards, the frame cannot stream content from more than one channel at a time (meaning only Picasa, or only Flickr, or other service). This may not be an issue for those who don't use more than one image-sharing network, but it is another unexpected limitation.
One pretty cool feature on this frame is motion detection: The device will power off when no one is around, thus conserving energy and the frame's lifespan. I also liked that you can receive pictures via e-mail on the frame.
Macworld's buying advice
The DSM-210 has some good features, but a lot of compromises are made within those features. If all you want to do is simply display pictures, you should be able to find a 10-inch frame at a more affordable price. The streaming and Internet access features can be found on other frames without the limitations found on the DSM-210.
Modern Combat: Sandstorm FPS Game Comes to IPhone
Gameloft has announced the release of Modern Combat: Sandstorm, a new first person shooter game for the iPhone and iPod touch. It's available for $7 from the App Store.
You're a soldier assigned to Mission Sandstorm, and it's your responsibility to locate and neutralize a new terrorist cell that's mobilizing and recruiting insurgents in a remote desert location.
The game features 10 missions in various locations ranging from city streets to a hospital, sewers, training camp, and more. You will be equipped with authentic weapons like assault rifles and a sniper rifle, RPG, shotgun, submachine gun, and more. The game features a level system that lets you progressively unlock weapons and use munitions you find on the bodies of your enemy. Modern Combat: Sandstorm also sports three different control systems, including tap control and "Virtual Sticks."
System requirements call for an iPhone or iPod touch running iPhone OS 2.2.1 or later.
You're a soldier assigned to Mission Sandstorm, and it's your responsibility to locate and neutralize a new terrorist cell that's mobilizing and recruiting insurgents in a remote desert location.
The game features 10 missions in various locations ranging from city streets to a hospital, sewers, training camp, and more. You will be equipped with authentic weapons like assault rifles and a sniper rifle, RPG, shotgun, submachine gun, and more. The game features a level system that lets you progressively unlock weapons and use munitions you find on the bodies of your enemy. Modern Combat: Sandstorm also sports three different control systems, including tap control and "Virtual Sticks."
System requirements call for an iPhone or iPod touch running iPhone OS 2.2.1 or later.
Android OS Developers to Revamp App Marketplace
In a bid to compete more squarely with Apple's App Store the developers of the Android mobile OS are improving the way people browse for applications on Google phones through what is known as Android Market. As part of a software upgrade (Android 1.6, aka Donut) Android handset owners will be able to browse more easily third-party apps by previewing screen shots of apps and sort apps by criteria such as most popular and newest. There is no official date set for the release of Donut.
Google announced update to Android Market in a blog post late Thursday stating upgrades to its mobile applications store will "improve the overall experience for users." Despite the update, improvements are also likely to irk some Android developers who feel the Android 1.6 doesn't go far enough.
What's New at Android Market
Navigation is key for the tweaked marketplace, which must be viewed on a mobile phone if you want to see the complete store and the new improvements. The main navigation buttons for Apps, Games and Downloads have been moved to the top of the screen, leaving valuable screen space for featured apps. When you are shopping for programs in category view, three buttons at the top of the screen will also let you filter apps by Top Paid, Top Free and Just In.
Other improvements to Android Market include screenshots to get an idea of what a particular application looks like, promotional icons and longer descriptions from developers. There are also four new sub-categories to improve navigation including sports, health, themes and comics.
Cranky Developers Not Satisfied with Update
Google's tweaks come on the heels of recent criticisms over Android Market's profitability for third-party developers. On Monday, the metrics firm Ad Mob released a report claiming Android Market typically produces $5 million in sales every month versus $200 million at the iPhone App Store.
One complaint takes issue with Android Market's payment options and Google's return policy. Currently, all Android users must purchase apps through Google's own payment system Checkout. But according to a recent IDG report some developers would like to see other payment options that users might find more convenient. Developers are also up in arms over Google's 24-hour return policy, which they say makes it too easy for users to return an application after using it for just a few hours. Apple's App Store, by comparison, does not grant refunds for any reason except in cases where a purchased product is not delivered within "a reasonable period."
Google announced update to Android Market in a blog post late Thursday stating upgrades to its mobile applications store will "improve the overall experience for users." Despite the update, improvements are also likely to irk some Android developers who feel the Android 1.6 doesn't go far enough.
What's New at Android Market
Navigation is key for the tweaked marketplace, which must be viewed on a mobile phone if you want to see the complete store and the new improvements. The main navigation buttons for Apps, Games and Downloads have been moved to the top of the screen, leaving valuable screen space for featured apps. When you are shopping for programs in category view, three buttons at the top of the screen will also let you filter apps by Top Paid, Top Free and Just In.
Other improvements to Android Market include screenshots to get an idea of what a particular application looks like, promotional icons and longer descriptions from developers. There are also four new sub-categories to improve navigation including sports, health, themes and comics.
Cranky Developers Not Satisfied with Update
Google's tweaks come on the heels of recent criticisms over Android Market's profitability for third-party developers. On Monday, the metrics firm Ad Mob released a report claiming Android Market typically produces $5 million in sales every month versus $200 million at the iPhone App Store.
One complaint takes issue with Android Market's payment options and Google's return policy. Currently, all Android users must purchase apps through Google's own payment system Checkout. But according to a recent IDG report some developers would like to see other payment options that users might find more convenient. Developers are also up in arms over Google's 24-hour return policy, which they say makes it too easy for users to return an application after using it for just a few hours. Apple's App Store, by comparison, does not grant refunds for any reason except in cases where a purchased product is not delivered within "a reasonable period."
Microsoft wants people to throw Windows 7 launch parties
A new version of Windows is not typically a reason to throw a party, but Microsoft is hoping people will do just that to celebrate Windows 7, and has teamed with House Party to help them do so.
Through a House Party promotional Web site, people can apply to throw a Windows 7 launch party any time between Oct. 22 and Oct. 29. Microsoft is releasing Windows 7 globally on Oct. 22.
"You host the party. We'll bring the favors," Microsoft declared on the site calling for applications. House Party is a community-based site that helps people around the world host parties that are usually held on the same day and are focused on a corporate event or product launch.
If chosen to throw a party, hosts will receive a Signature Edition of Windows 7 Ultimate and a Windows 7 Party Pack based on a theme of their choosing to help them organize the party. The themes for the party packs pertain to features of the new OS and, as listed on the Web site, are: PhotoPalooza, Media Mania, Setting up with Ease and Family Friendly Fun.
Every host also has a chance to win a PC worth $750, according to the Web site. Winners will be notified and their prizes delivered after Oct. 30.
Windows 7, which has been in the hands of testers and early adopters, has gotten generally positive reviews. Many say it's the OS Microsoft should have delivered when it released Windows Vista -- an overall disappointment among Windows users -- in early 2007.
Microsoft isn't the first company to ask enthusiasts to throw a geek-themed party in honor of a software launch. Fans of Mozilla's Firefox browser were asked by the company to host download parties when it released Firefox 3 in June. The company hoped to set a Guinness World Record for the number of software downloads in 24 hours, and claimed to log more than 8 million downloads of the browser in a day.
Through a House Party promotional Web site, people can apply to throw a Windows 7 launch party any time between Oct. 22 and Oct. 29. Microsoft is releasing Windows 7 globally on Oct. 22.
"You host the party. We'll bring the favors," Microsoft declared on the site calling for applications. House Party is a community-based site that helps people around the world host parties that are usually held on the same day and are focused on a corporate event or product launch.
If chosen to throw a party, hosts will receive a Signature Edition of Windows 7 Ultimate and a Windows 7 Party Pack based on a theme of their choosing to help them organize the party. The themes for the party packs pertain to features of the new OS and, as listed on the Web site, are: PhotoPalooza, Media Mania, Setting up with Ease and Family Friendly Fun.
Every host also has a chance to win a PC worth $750, according to the Web site. Winners will be notified and their prizes delivered after Oct. 30.
Windows 7, which has been in the hands of testers and early adopters, has gotten generally positive reviews. Many say it's the OS Microsoft should have delivered when it released Windows Vista -- an overall disappointment among Windows users -- in early 2007.
Microsoft isn't the first company to ask enthusiasts to throw a geek-themed party in honor of a software launch. Fans of Mozilla's Firefox browser were asked by the company to host download parties when it released Firefox 3 in June. The company hoped to set a Guinness World Record for the number of software downloads in 24 hours, and claimed to log more than 8 million downloads of the browser in a day.
Apple patches critical Java bugs, but leaves Leopard users vulnerable
Apple today patched 15 vulnerabilities in three versions of Java used by Mac OS X 10.5, or Leopard, bringing the operating system up to par with fixes that Sun issued a month ago.
Today's Leopard updates take that OS to the same edition of Java 6 included with Snow Leopard, which Apple shipped last week. At the same time, however, the update doesn't include the very latest Java fixes, which Sun delivered Aug. 11.
According to Apple's advisory, the upgrade patches 15 distinct vulnerabilities in Java, and updates Java 6 to version 1.6.0_15, Java 5 to version 1.5.0_20 and Java 4 to version 1.4.2_22. Sun issued those updates on Aug. 4.
All the vulnerabilities could allow for "arbitrary code execution," Apple-speak for the type of bug attackers can use to plant malicious code on a computer. Although other major software makers, like Microsoft and Oracle, assign threat rankings to their bug fixes, Apple does not. For example, Microsoft dubs the same kind of flaws as "critical."
"Visiting a Web page containing a maliciously crafted untrusted Java applet may lead to arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the current user," Apple said in its advisory, explaining how an attack might work.
The Java update applies only to the client and server editions of Mac OS X 10.5, which are currently at v. 10.5.8. Users still running Mac OS X 10.4, aka Tiger, remain stuck on older versions of Java. Tiger's Java components were last updated by Apple on June 15, when it bumped up Java 5 to 1.5.0_19 and Java 4 to 1.4.2_21.
Although the June update -- which also affected Leopard -- plugged holes that Sun had filled six months earlier, today's update came harder on the heels of Sun's fixes for Windows and Linux. "That's not too bad for Apple, actually," said Andrew Storms, director of security operations at nCircle Network Security, in an instant message.
Apple maintains its own versions of Java and is responsible for delivering patches to users. Typically, Apple is slow to patch the problems that Sun fixes, with a six-month lag not unusual. When Apple refreshed Java in September 2008, for example, it fixed more than two-dozen vulnerabilities, some of which had been patched in updates for Java for Windows, Linux and Solaris as far back as March 2008.
Apple has come under fire for its sluggish pace. Last May, for instance, a security researcher angered by the delays posted attack code that exploited one of the then-unfixed Java bugs.
Even with today's updates, however, Leopard still doesn't have the most up-to-date version of Java 6, which is 1.6.0_16. Sun shipped that update Aug. 11.
Snow Leopard, which caught flak this week for shipping a vulnerable version of Flash, also isn't in sync with Sun's latest Java. Computerworld today confirmed that Snow Leopard installs Java 1.6.0_15 during its upgrade, making it on par with today's Leopard update but still one version behind Sun's newest.
The Java security updates, identified as Java for Mac OS X 10.5 Update 5, can be downloaded manually from Apple, or installed using Mac OS X's integrated update service.
Users can verify that the updates have taken by using the JavaTester.org site created by Computerworld blogger Michael Horowitz.
Today's Leopard updates take that OS to the same edition of Java 6 included with Snow Leopard, which Apple shipped last week. At the same time, however, the update doesn't include the very latest Java fixes, which Sun delivered Aug. 11.
According to Apple's advisory, the upgrade patches 15 distinct vulnerabilities in Java, and updates Java 6 to version 1.6.0_15, Java 5 to version 1.5.0_20 and Java 4 to version 1.4.2_22. Sun issued those updates on Aug. 4.
All the vulnerabilities could allow for "arbitrary code execution," Apple-speak for the type of bug attackers can use to plant malicious code on a computer. Although other major software makers, like Microsoft and Oracle, assign threat rankings to their bug fixes, Apple does not. For example, Microsoft dubs the same kind of flaws as "critical."
"Visiting a Web page containing a maliciously crafted untrusted Java applet may lead to arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the current user," Apple said in its advisory, explaining how an attack might work.
The Java update applies only to the client and server editions of Mac OS X 10.5, which are currently at v. 10.5.8. Users still running Mac OS X 10.4, aka Tiger, remain stuck on older versions of Java. Tiger's Java components were last updated by Apple on June 15, when it bumped up Java 5 to 1.5.0_19 and Java 4 to 1.4.2_21.
Although the June update -- which also affected Leopard -- plugged holes that Sun had filled six months earlier, today's update came harder on the heels of Sun's fixes for Windows and Linux. "That's not too bad for Apple, actually," said Andrew Storms, director of security operations at nCircle Network Security, in an instant message.
Apple maintains its own versions of Java and is responsible for delivering patches to users. Typically, Apple is slow to patch the problems that Sun fixes, with a six-month lag not unusual. When Apple refreshed Java in September 2008, for example, it fixed more than two-dozen vulnerabilities, some of which had been patched in updates for Java for Windows, Linux and Solaris as far back as March 2008.
Apple has come under fire for its sluggish pace. Last May, for instance, a security researcher angered by the delays posted attack code that exploited one of the then-unfixed Java bugs.
Even with today's updates, however, Leopard still doesn't have the most up-to-date version of Java 6, which is 1.6.0_16. Sun shipped that update Aug. 11.
Snow Leopard, which caught flak this week for shipping a vulnerable version of Flash, also isn't in sync with Sun's latest Java. Computerworld today confirmed that Snow Leopard installs Java 1.6.0_15 during its upgrade, making it on par with today's Leopard update but still one version behind Sun's newest.
The Java security updates, identified as Java for Mac OS X 10.5 Update 5, can be downloaded manually from Apple, or installed using Mac OS X's integrated update service.
Users can verify that the updates have taken by using the JavaTester.org site created by Computerworld blogger Michael Horowitz.
Oracle delays security updates for user conference
Oracle database administrators who are worried they might have to skip Oracle's user conference next month to fiddle with security updates can relax. Oracle is cutting them a break and releasing its next set of patches a week later than planned.
The updates, which are released on a set schedule every three months, had been due for release on Oct. 13, slap in the middle of Oracle's OpenWorld conference in San Francisco. But after thinking things over, Oracle has decided to delay the patches. They're now due on Oct. 20.
Oracle announced the change Thursday on its Web site, saying it was moving the patches back because "many Oracle customers with responsibility for deploying the Critical Patch Update within their respective organizations will be attending Oracle OpenWorld."
The database vendor plans to release its advance notification information, detailing which products will be affected by the updates, a week later than expected too. It's due on Oct. 15.
Admins responsible for Windows systems will still have some work to do during the conference, however. Oct. 13 is the day Microsoft is expected to release its set of security updates for the month.
The updates, which are released on a set schedule every three months, had been due for release on Oct. 13, slap in the middle of Oracle's OpenWorld conference in San Francisco. But after thinking things over, Oracle has decided to delay the patches. They're now due on Oct. 20.
Oracle announced the change Thursday on its Web site, saying it was moving the patches back because "many Oracle customers with responsibility for deploying the Critical Patch Update within their respective organizations will be attending Oracle OpenWorld."
The database vendor plans to release its advance notification information, detailing which products will be affected by the updates, a week later than expected too. It's due on Oct. 15.
Admins responsible for Windows systems will still have some work to do during the conference, however. Oct. 13 is the day Microsoft is expected to release its set of security updates for the month.
AT&T sets Sept. 25 for launch of MMS on iPhone 3G, 3GS
AT&T Inc. today finally set a firm date of Sept. 25 for making multimedia messaging service (MMS) available for the iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS.
The carrier had said at the launch of iPhone 3GS in June that MMS capability would be available by the end of the summer. AT&T went beyond that promise by a few days since autumn begins on Sept. 22.
The MMS will be enabled through a software update that day. A spokeswoman said the MMS service is available through a user's data plan at no extra cost.
The carrier said in an online note that it had to prepare the network for the "record volumes" of MMS traffic expected from iPhone users. The company wants to "ensure an excellent experience from Day One."
AT&T also said in the online note to customers, "We appreciate your patience as we work toward that end."
The carrier also cited an "explosion of traffic" with smartphone usage, and reported wireless usage growth of 350% year-over-year for the past two years. "We want you to know that we're working relentlessly to innovate and invest in our network to anticipate this growth in usage and to stay ahead of the anticipated growth in data demand, new devices and applications for years go come," the note stated.
When Apple announced the 3GS on June 8, crowds jeered when it was mentioned that AT&T would not immediately have MMS available on the shipment date. The delay brought plenty of customer complaints and helped fuel concerns over the value of a carrier having an exclusive deal for a smartphone.
For AT&T, missing the end-of-summer target by a few days was justified by the need to get the network ready. When asked why that target date was missed, a spokeswoman responded in an e-mail: "It was important to us to give our customers a positive experience from day one. We took the time necessary to make sure our network is ready to handle what we expect will be a record volume of MMS traffic. We appreciate our customers' patience and hope they'll understand our desire to get it right from the start."
The carrier had said at the launch of iPhone 3GS in June that MMS capability would be available by the end of the summer. AT&T went beyond that promise by a few days since autumn begins on Sept. 22.
The MMS will be enabled through a software update that day. A spokeswoman said the MMS service is available through a user's data plan at no extra cost.
The carrier said in an online note that it had to prepare the network for the "record volumes" of MMS traffic expected from iPhone users. The company wants to "ensure an excellent experience from Day One."
AT&T also said in the online note to customers, "We appreciate your patience as we work toward that end."
The carrier also cited an "explosion of traffic" with smartphone usage, and reported wireless usage growth of 350% year-over-year for the past two years. "We want you to know that we're working relentlessly to innovate and invest in our network to anticipate this growth in usage and to stay ahead of the anticipated growth in data demand, new devices and applications for years go come," the note stated.
When Apple announced the 3GS on June 8, crowds jeered when it was mentioned that AT&T would not immediately have MMS available on the shipment date. The delay brought plenty of customer complaints and helped fuel concerns over the value of a carrier having an exclusive deal for a smartphone.
For AT&T, missing the end-of-summer target by a few days was justified by the need to get the network ready. When asked why that target date was missed, a spokeswoman responded in an e-mail: "It was important to us to give our customers a positive experience from day one. We took the time necessary to make sure our network is ready to handle what we expect will be a record volume of MMS traffic. We appreciate our customers' patience and hope they'll understand our desire to get it right from the start."
BMW and Windows 7: Why the car maker is upgrading now
German automobile maker BMW is many things: Manufacturer of luxury cars and motorcycles; a brand name famous around the world; a giant corporation with a reputation for efficiency.
You can now add Windows 7 early adopter to that list.
The Munich-based car giant, whose headquarters building is considered an architectural icon in Europe, has 100,000 employees in 250 locations in countries such as South Africa, the United States, Canada and China. Within this vast environment, with users ranging from auto engineers to salespeople, sits 85,000 Windows machines.
BMW has been running Windows XP in its broad client environment since 2001. Happy with XP, the automaker passed on Windows Vista, so its planning for Windows 7 started early, says Bernhard Huber, BMW's Head of IT Workplace Systems.
"We identified a lot of functional and monetary benefits of Windows 7 early on," says Huber, adding that BMW first started testing the Windows 7 beta in the first quarter of this year and has increased the number of pilot users since the RTM (release to manufacturing) version of Windows 7 became available in late July.
"It is expected that 200 to 500 key users will participate in the pilot program until the end of 2009," he says.
Huber mentioned that BMW IT will increase compatibility testing with 5,000 users in a production environment in 2010, after which the rollout of Windows 7 on all machines at BMW will begin in 2011, probably around the time of Windows 7 Service Pack 1.
Better UI, Speed, App Virtualization and Memory
Huber said he sees life getting easier for BMW employees with the redesigned user interface and improved memory management of Windows 7.
The desktop features of the new OS, such as the revamped taskbar, are not usually mentioned as enterprise benefits. However, Huber envisions improved worker productivity with features like thumbnail previews, which allows for quicker switching between applications.
Huber also expects Windows 7 will further promote efficiency via its speedier startup times and improved memory management.
"Windows 7 uses its resources well and starts the applications perceptibly fast," he says. "This will make the upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 7 easier than it would have been with Vista."
Huber adds that BMW will be using XP Mode, a free virtualization feature for enterprises in Windows 7 that runs older XP-only applications through a Microsoft virtual machine containing a licensed copy of Windows XP SP3.
"With the help of application virtualization features like XP Mode, whatever software we have that is still not compatible with Windows 7 can be further used as we roll out the new OS. We can migrate legacy applications immediately and establish Windows 7 readiness later," he says.
You can now add Windows 7 early adopter to that list.
The Munich-based car giant, whose headquarters building is considered an architectural icon in Europe, has 100,000 employees in 250 locations in countries such as South Africa, the United States, Canada and China. Within this vast environment, with users ranging from auto engineers to salespeople, sits 85,000 Windows machines.
BMW has been running Windows XP in its broad client environment since 2001. Happy with XP, the automaker passed on Windows Vista, so its planning for Windows 7 started early, says Bernhard Huber, BMW's Head of IT Workplace Systems.
"We identified a lot of functional and monetary benefits of Windows 7 early on," says Huber, adding that BMW first started testing the Windows 7 beta in the first quarter of this year and has increased the number of pilot users since the RTM (release to manufacturing) version of Windows 7 became available in late July.
"It is expected that 200 to 500 key users will participate in the pilot program until the end of 2009," he says.
Huber mentioned that BMW IT will increase compatibility testing with 5,000 users in a production environment in 2010, after which the rollout of Windows 7 on all machines at BMW will begin in 2011, probably around the time of Windows 7 Service Pack 1.
Better UI, Speed, App Virtualization and Memory
Huber said he sees life getting easier for BMW employees with the redesigned user interface and improved memory management of Windows 7.
The desktop features of the new OS, such as the revamped taskbar, are not usually mentioned as enterprise benefits. However, Huber envisions improved worker productivity with features like thumbnail previews, which allows for quicker switching between applications.
Huber also expects Windows 7 will further promote efficiency via its speedier startup times and improved memory management.
"Windows 7 uses its resources well and starts the applications perceptibly fast," he says. "This will make the upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 7 easier than it would have been with Vista."
Huber adds that BMW will be using XP Mode, a free virtualization feature for enterprises in Windows 7 that runs older XP-only applications through a Microsoft virtual machine containing a licensed copy of Windows XP SP3.
"With the help of application virtualization features like XP Mode, whatever software we have that is still not compatible with Windows 7 can be further used as we roll out the new OS. We can migrate legacy applications immediately and establish Windows 7 readiness later," he says.
Microsoft to deliver five critical Windows patches next week
Microsoft today said it will deliver five security updates on Tuesday, all affecting Windows and all ranked "critical," the company's highest threat rating.
Unlike some months when Microsoft provides its usual advance notification for upcoming updates, this time there weren't any hints of what may be coming, said Andrew Storms, director of security operations at nCircle Network Security.
"It's a foggy advance warning," said Storms. "I'm a little bit at a loss for words. There doesn't seem to be anything here that has been disclosed publicly."
That didn't stop Storms from speculating, though. "We could see another ATL update," he said, referring to the flaws in Active Template Library (ATL), a Microsoft code "library" that it and third-party developers use to create software.
Microsoft acknowledged the ATL vulnerabilities in July, when it issued two emergency updates to patch six bugs in its own software. Since then, it and several other vendors, including Adobe, have released additional patches for programs that inherited the ATL flaws.
"It wouldn't be surprising if Microsoft still had some ATL bugs to fix," said Storms, "although I think it's also likely that we'll see more third-party patches than ones from Microsoft."
All five of the security updates slated to ship next week are rated critical, and all five were tagged as affecting various versions of both the client and server editions of Windows. "I guess you could say that they're batting five for five on Windows," observed Storms. "It's also batting four for five for Vista and [Windows] Server 2008."
As Storms said, four of the five updates apply to Windows Vista -- all four of those are ranked critical -- while the same four will also impact Windows Server 2008, the newest production version of Microsoft's server software. Three of those Server 2008 updates were pegged critical, while the fourth was rated as "important," the next-lowest threat level.
Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 will also receive updates Tuesday.
"We usually don't expect to see Microsoft's new OSes to be critical," noted Storms. "It's also unusual that they're all for Windows. So this is out of the ordinary."
Microsoft won't be patching the just-revealed vulnerability in its popular Internet Information Services (IIS) Web server, according to Storms. "We couldn't expect Microsoft to patch it that fast," he said, reading the tea leaves of the advance notification to dismiss any thought that the bug in IIS 5.0, 5.1 and 6.0 will get a fix next week.
Even though Microsoft promised Tuesday that it would patch IIS at some point, other analysts had said it was very unlikely that Microsoft would have an IIS patch ready in time.
Next week's five updates follow the nine issued Aug. 11, the two emergency updates released in late July, and the six it shipped July 14, that month's regularly-scheduled Patch Tuesday.
Microsoft will release the five updates at approximately 1 p.m. ET on Sept 8.
Unlike some months when Microsoft provides its usual advance notification for upcoming updates, this time there weren't any hints of what may be coming, said Andrew Storms, director of security operations at nCircle Network Security.
"It's a foggy advance warning," said Storms. "I'm a little bit at a loss for words. There doesn't seem to be anything here that has been disclosed publicly."
That didn't stop Storms from speculating, though. "We could see another ATL update," he said, referring to the flaws in Active Template Library (ATL), a Microsoft code "library" that it and third-party developers use to create software.
Microsoft acknowledged the ATL vulnerabilities in July, when it issued two emergency updates to patch six bugs in its own software. Since then, it and several other vendors, including Adobe, have released additional patches for programs that inherited the ATL flaws.
"It wouldn't be surprising if Microsoft still had some ATL bugs to fix," said Storms, "although I think it's also likely that we'll see more third-party patches than ones from Microsoft."
All five of the security updates slated to ship next week are rated critical, and all five were tagged as affecting various versions of both the client and server editions of Windows. "I guess you could say that they're batting five for five on Windows," observed Storms. "It's also batting four for five for Vista and [Windows] Server 2008."
As Storms said, four of the five updates apply to Windows Vista -- all four of those are ranked critical -- while the same four will also impact Windows Server 2008, the newest production version of Microsoft's server software. Three of those Server 2008 updates were pegged critical, while the fourth was rated as "important," the next-lowest threat level.
Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 will also receive updates Tuesday.
"We usually don't expect to see Microsoft's new OSes to be critical," noted Storms. "It's also unusual that they're all for Windows. So this is out of the ordinary."
Microsoft won't be patching the just-revealed vulnerability in its popular Internet Information Services (IIS) Web server, according to Storms. "We couldn't expect Microsoft to patch it that fast," he said, reading the tea leaves of the advance notification to dismiss any thought that the bug in IIS 5.0, 5.1 and 6.0 will get a fix next week.
Even though Microsoft promised Tuesday that it would patch IIS at some point, other analysts had said it was very unlikely that Microsoft would have an IIS patch ready in time.
Next week's five updates follow the nine issued Aug. 11, the two emergency updates released in late July, and the six it shipped July 14, that month's regularly-scheduled Patch Tuesday.
Microsoft will release the five updates at approximately 1 p.m. ET on Sept 8.
Appeals court grants Microsoft reprieve in Word case
A federal appeals court late today granted Microsoft's request to suspend an injunction that would have barred the company from selling its Word software next month.
In a short order filed near the end of the day, the Court of Appeals for the Federal District approved Microsoft's earlier request for a stay of the injunction.
"Without prejudicing the ultimate determination of this case by the merits panel, the court determines based upon the motion papers submitted that Microsoft has met its burden to obtain a stay of the injunction," the court said.
The injunction would have prevented Microsoft from selling Word 2003 and Word 2007 in their current forms after Oct 10, and was ordered by U.S. District Court Judge Leonard Davis on Aug. 11, after the company was found guilty in May by a Texas jury of infringing a patent held by Canadian software developer i4i. Davis also awarded i4i more than $290 million in damages and interest.
On Aug. 18, Microsoft filed a motion to stay the injunction while it took the case to appeal. In that motion, Microsoft warned of "massive disruptions" to its sales, as well as those of important OEM partners such as Dell and Hewlett-Packard, if the injunction was not put on hold.
Microsoft also said that the injunction, and the resulting need to retool Word to remove the infringing "custom" XML feature, could keep Word 2003 and Word 2007 -- and the suites that they are part of, Office 2003 and Office 2007 -- off the market for months.
Several days later, Microsoft was granted a fast-track appeals process, which requires i4i to file a response to Microsoft's appeal by next Tuesday, Sept. 8. Microsoft's rebuttal must reach the court by noon on Sept. 14.
Both Dell and HP have filed amicus curiae, or "friend of the court," briefs, arguing that Word's revision, and the resulting changes necessary on their part to re-image new PCs, would "require extensive time- and resource-consuming retesting."
Dell and HP also asked that, assuming a stay was not granted, that the injunction be postponed by 120 days.
"We are happy with the result and look forward to presenting our arguments on the main issues on September 23," said Microsoft spokesman Kevin Kutz in an e-mail today.
Kutz's reference was to the oral hearing before the Court of Appeals, during which both sides will present their cases. The three-judge panel will render its verdict at some point after the Sept. 23 hearing.
Representatives for i4i were not available for comment late Thursday.
In a short order filed near the end of the day, the Court of Appeals for the Federal District approved Microsoft's earlier request for a stay of the injunction.
"Without prejudicing the ultimate determination of this case by the merits panel, the court determines based upon the motion papers submitted that Microsoft has met its burden to obtain a stay of the injunction," the court said.
The injunction would have prevented Microsoft from selling Word 2003 and Word 2007 in their current forms after Oct 10, and was ordered by U.S. District Court Judge Leonard Davis on Aug. 11, after the company was found guilty in May by a Texas jury of infringing a patent held by Canadian software developer i4i. Davis also awarded i4i more than $290 million in damages and interest.
On Aug. 18, Microsoft filed a motion to stay the injunction while it took the case to appeal. In that motion, Microsoft warned of "massive disruptions" to its sales, as well as those of important OEM partners such as Dell and Hewlett-Packard, if the injunction was not put on hold.
Microsoft also said that the injunction, and the resulting need to retool Word to remove the infringing "custom" XML feature, could keep Word 2003 and Word 2007 -- and the suites that they are part of, Office 2003 and Office 2007 -- off the market for months.
Several days later, Microsoft was granted a fast-track appeals process, which requires i4i to file a response to Microsoft's appeal by next Tuesday, Sept. 8. Microsoft's rebuttal must reach the court by noon on Sept. 14.
Both Dell and HP have filed amicus curiae, or "friend of the court," briefs, arguing that Word's revision, and the resulting changes necessary on their part to re-image new PCs, would "require extensive time- and resource-consuming retesting."
Dell and HP also asked that, assuming a stay was not granted, that the injunction be postponed by 120 days.
"We are happy with the result and look forward to presenting our arguments on the main issues on September 23," said Microsoft spokesman Kevin Kutz in an e-mail today.
Kutz's reference was to the oral hearing before the Court of Appeals, during which both sides will present their cases. The three-judge panel will render its verdict at some point after the Sept. 23 hearing.
Representatives for i4i were not available for comment late Thursday.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Veeam Extends Its Leadership in VMware Backup Market with New Veeam Backup & Replication 4.0
Veeam Software, award-winning provider of systems management tools for VMware virtual datacenter environments, today announced version 4.0 of Veeam Backup & Replication, the #1 backup solution for VMware environments. With version 4.0, Veeam will be the first to support new VMware vSphere 4 vStorage technology. With this new release, Veeam extends its leadership in the VMware backup market with the most innovative features and the most customer value. Backup & Replication 4.0 will be demonstrated in Veeam’s booth, #1202, at VMworld 2009 in San Francisco next week.
Only Veeam Backup & Replication offers full native support for new VMware vSphere functionality, and version 4.0 takes full advantage of the VMware vStorage API. This includes:
Support for thin-provisioned disks, which enables faster full backups and restore of virtual machines
The ability to leverage ESX4 changed block tracking for much faster incremental backups
Support for virtual applications (vApp), resulting in more flexibility when setting up backup jobs
The vStorage API is a VMware Consolidated Backup (VCB) replacement that enables local area network-free backups directly from storage area network (SAN) storage, without affecting an organization’s production ESX or ESXi hosts.
“With VCB being phased out, the vStorage API is the recommended API for VMware vSphere backup,” explained Ratmir Timashev, Veeam President and CEO. “Native support for the vStorage API makes Veeam Backup & Replication the most advanced and future-proof solution available on the market, extending its technology leadership with innovative features and functionality requested by our customers.”
“Not only is Veeam Backup & Replication easy to deploy and manage, but it is also cost-effective,” commented Veeam customer Paul Redpath, Technical Director, Catalyst2 Services Ltd. “We’re getting more for our money as we grow our infrastructure because with Veeam, we’re experiencing 30 to 40 percent data compression during backups. It adds up to real storage cost savings.”
Veeam Backup & Replication 4.0 also includes a new Enterprise Management Server that enables enterprise customers to manage multiple installations of Veeam Backup & Replication through a single web console. This allows customers to centralize backup and decentralize restore processes according to their administrative, business, geographical, and security requirements and boundaries. Native support for this distributed architecture offers the ability to easily scale VMware backup infrastructure as the virtual environment grows, while also providing centralized management and reporting capabilities.
Additional new features in Veeam Backup & Replication 4.0 include:
Near real-time replication leveraging new vSphere ESX4 functionality to provide five-minute increments to achieve better recovery point objectives (RPOs)
Hot VM copy capability to mirror production environments to test lab storage, for datacenter migrations or for ad-hoc backups
Backup storage space monitoring with alerts for advanced backup storage capacity planning
Replica seeding for the initial replication using removable storage to minimize traffic over WAN
And much more
The full list of new features is described in a three-page document “What’s New in Veeam Backup & Replication 4.0” available at www.veeam.com/go/backup40.
Pricing and Availability
Veeam Backup & Replication 4.0 is expected to be generally available in early October. North American pricing for the new version starts at $599 per socket, but the previous version’s price of $499 per socket will be honored on orders placed by Dec. 31, 2009. More information, including a product video, is available at www.veeam.com/go/backup40.
Only Veeam Backup & Replication offers full native support for new VMware vSphere functionality, and version 4.0 takes full advantage of the VMware vStorage API. This includes:
Support for thin-provisioned disks, which enables faster full backups and restore of virtual machines
The ability to leverage ESX4 changed block tracking for much faster incremental backups
Support for virtual applications (vApp), resulting in more flexibility when setting up backup jobs
The vStorage API is a VMware Consolidated Backup (VCB) replacement that enables local area network-free backups directly from storage area network (SAN) storage, without affecting an organization’s production ESX or ESXi hosts.
“With VCB being phased out, the vStorage API is the recommended API for VMware vSphere backup,” explained Ratmir Timashev, Veeam President and CEO. “Native support for the vStorage API makes Veeam Backup & Replication the most advanced and future-proof solution available on the market, extending its technology leadership with innovative features and functionality requested by our customers.”
“Not only is Veeam Backup & Replication easy to deploy and manage, but it is also cost-effective,” commented Veeam customer Paul Redpath, Technical Director, Catalyst2 Services Ltd. “We’re getting more for our money as we grow our infrastructure because with Veeam, we’re experiencing 30 to 40 percent data compression during backups. It adds up to real storage cost savings.”
Veeam Backup & Replication 4.0 also includes a new Enterprise Management Server that enables enterprise customers to manage multiple installations of Veeam Backup & Replication through a single web console. This allows customers to centralize backup and decentralize restore processes according to their administrative, business, geographical, and security requirements and boundaries. Native support for this distributed architecture offers the ability to easily scale VMware backup infrastructure as the virtual environment grows, while also providing centralized management and reporting capabilities.
Additional new features in Veeam Backup & Replication 4.0 include:
Near real-time replication leveraging new vSphere ESX4 functionality to provide five-minute increments to achieve better recovery point objectives (RPOs)
Hot VM copy capability to mirror production environments to test lab storage, for datacenter migrations or for ad-hoc backups
Backup storage space monitoring with alerts for advanced backup storage capacity planning
Replica seeding for the initial replication using removable storage to minimize traffic over WAN
And much more
The full list of new features is described in a three-page document “What’s New in Veeam Backup & Replication 4.0” available at www.veeam.com/go/backup40.
Pricing and Availability
Veeam Backup & Replication 4.0 is expected to be generally available in early October. North American pricing for the new version starts at $599 per socket, but the previous version’s price of $499 per socket will be honored on orders placed by Dec. 31, 2009. More information, including a product video, is available at www.veeam.com/go/backup40.
Sybase Works With Symantec and VMware to Strengthen Data Infrastructure for Grid and Cloud Computing Environments With Latest Release of Adaptive Serv
Sybase, Inc. (NYSE:SY), an industry leader in delivering enterprise and mobile software, today announced the newest release of Adaptive Server® Enterprise (ASE) Cluster Edition, its enterprise data management solution that reduces the complexity of deploying a database application across a shared disk server cluster environment.
Sybase has worked with its early customers and partners to help enterprises realize the benefits of grid and virtualized deployment in its latest version of ASE Cluster Edition. By providing dynamic resource management for a virtualized database environment, ASE Cluster Edition allows enterprises to meet customer service level agreements (SLAs) of their critical databases for availability while also reducing infrastructure costs through optimal resource utilization.
“Historically, deploying clustered systems on physical hardware has been complex and costly to test, develop, deploy and manage,” said Parag Patel, vice president, alliances at VMware. “Now, with Sybase Adaptive Server Enterprise Cluster Edition running on the industry-leading VMware platform, customers have further proof that they can virtualize their mission-critical workloads, simplify their management, and achieve levels of availability and continuity not possible on physical systems.”
“Together, Symantec and Sybase are delivering a truly integrated database and storage clustering solution to joint customers,” said Josh Kahn, vice president of product management, Storage and Availability Management Group at Symantec. “The combination of Sybase’s ASE Cluster Edition database and Veritas Storage Foundation for Sybase® ASE CE empowers customers with significant improvements in performance, availability and data management.”
ASE Cluster Edition’s newest enhancements provide key enabling technologies to ease manageability and improve availability in grid and cloud computing environments. Sybase has developed the latest version of ASE Cluster Edition to include:
Expanded partner ecosystem
Integration with Veritas Storage Foundation™ and Veritas™ Cluster Server – increasing the manageability, performance and availability of shared storage environments
Participation in the VMware® vCloud initiative – providing support for cloud computing environments
Extended Availability
Disaster recovery site support – allowing cluster support at remote sites if a primary site goes down
Ease of Manageability
Local installation - each node can be installed independently, improving flexibility and increasing availability of other nodes should one go down
Foundation for rolling upgrades – enabling independent maintenance of each node
“Because of its ability to provide agile deployment of physical resources, including servers and storage, and to deploy databases in a highly virtualized way, defining virtual servers and virtual clusters within the managed set of physical resources, Sybase ASE Cluster Edition provides features that enable the kind of flexibility and scalability necessary to deploy a database in the cloud. Also, because grid computing requires great flexibility and places highly variable workload demands on databases, features such as those in Sybase ASE Cluster Edition would seem essential to deploying database applications in a grid-based fashion,” said Carl Olofson, research vice president for Information Management and Data Integration, IDC1.
“The latest release of ASE Cluster Edition incorporates the feedback we've received from our customers, who run some of the world's most critical data in areas such as financial services, telecommunications and government,” said Brian Vink, vice president Database Products at Sybase. “We continue to work closely with our customers and partners to deliver innovative database technologies like ASE Cluster Edition that offer superior availability, resource optimization and low total cost of ownership.”
Availability
Sybase ASE Cluster Edition is currently available. Please visit http://www.sybase.com/clusters for more information.
Sybase has worked with its early customers and partners to help enterprises realize the benefits of grid and virtualized deployment in its latest version of ASE Cluster Edition. By providing dynamic resource management for a virtualized database environment, ASE Cluster Edition allows enterprises to meet customer service level agreements (SLAs) of their critical databases for availability while also reducing infrastructure costs through optimal resource utilization.
“Historically, deploying clustered systems on physical hardware has been complex and costly to test, develop, deploy and manage,” said Parag Patel, vice president, alliances at VMware. “Now, with Sybase Adaptive Server Enterprise Cluster Edition running on the industry-leading VMware platform, customers have further proof that they can virtualize their mission-critical workloads, simplify their management, and achieve levels of availability and continuity not possible on physical systems.”
“Together, Symantec and Sybase are delivering a truly integrated database and storage clustering solution to joint customers,” said Josh Kahn, vice president of product management, Storage and Availability Management Group at Symantec. “The combination of Sybase’s ASE Cluster Edition database and Veritas Storage Foundation for Sybase® ASE CE empowers customers with significant improvements in performance, availability and data management.”
ASE Cluster Edition’s newest enhancements provide key enabling technologies to ease manageability and improve availability in grid and cloud computing environments. Sybase has developed the latest version of ASE Cluster Edition to include:
Expanded partner ecosystem
Integration with Veritas Storage Foundation™ and Veritas™ Cluster Server – increasing the manageability, performance and availability of shared storage environments
Participation in the VMware® vCloud initiative – providing support for cloud computing environments
Extended Availability
Disaster recovery site support – allowing cluster support at remote sites if a primary site goes down
Ease of Manageability
Local installation - each node can be installed independently, improving flexibility and increasing availability of other nodes should one go down
Foundation for rolling upgrades – enabling independent maintenance of each node
“Because of its ability to provide agile deployment of physical resources, including servers and storage, and to deploy databases in a highly virtualized way, defining virtual servers and virtual clusters within the managed set of physical resources, Sybase ASE Cluster Edition provides features that enable the kind of flexibility and scalability necessary to deploy a database in the cloud. Also, because grid computing requires great flexibility and places highly variable workload demands on databases, features such as those in Sybase ASE Cluster Edition would seem essential to deploying database applications in a grid-based fashion,” said Carl Olofson, research vice president for Information Management and Data Integration, IDC1.
“The latest release of ASE Cluster Edition incorporates the feedback we've received from our customers, who run some of the world's most critical data in areas such as financial services, telecommunications and government,” said Brian Vink, vice president Database Products at Sybase. “We continue to work closely with our customers and partners to deliver innovative database technologies like ASE Cluster Edition that offer superior availability, resource optimization and low total cost of ownership.”
Availability
Sybase ASE Cluster Edition is currently available. Please visit http://www.sybase.com/clusters for more information.
VMware Announces More Than 21,000 New Customers in the First Half of 2009 and Strong Customer Traction With VMware vSphere
VMware, Inc., the global leader in virtualization solutions from the desktop through the datacenter and to the cloud, announced strong customer traction for VMware's industry-leading virtualization platform. In the first half of 2009, more than 21,000 new customers have purchased VMware solutions -- equivalent to an average of 121 new customers per day. In addition, VMware vSphere™ 4 has reached more than 350,000 downloads in the first 12 weeks of general availability -- at an average rate of 140 downloads per hour. According to a recent poll on http://www.vmware.com/, approximately 75 percent of customers that responded are upgrading or plan to upgrade to VMware vSphere™ 4 within the next six months.
VMware vSphere™ 4 delivers customers the following critical benefits: offers unmatched cost savings; delivers the efficiency and performance required to run business critical applications; provides uncompromised control over application service levels, and preserves customer choice of hardware, OS, application architecture and on-premise vs. off-premise application hosting.
Unmatched Cost Savings Even Compared to So-Called "Free" Offerings
VMware vSphere™ 4 helps customers reduce capital expenses by up to 60 percent and operational expenses by an average of 33 percent. By allowing companies to make more efficient use of today's powerful servers, VMware vSphere™ 4 also enables unmatched cost savings even when compared to so-called "free" offerings.
"As a result of upgrading to VMware vSphere 4, the museum has saved $200,000 AUD on hardware procurement costs since migrating from VMware Infrastructure 3. We've also reduced our power requirements by 33 percent and have achieved a server consolidation ratio of 12:1," said Dan Collins, manager of information technology at Powerhouse Museum. "VMware vSphere 4 has also dramatically improved our infrastructure responsiveness and flexibility, and most importantly enhanced our recoverability of systems and information."
Boosted Performance and Improved Service Levels for Business Critical Applications
With VMware vSphere 4, customers are extending the benefits of virtualization to business critical applications such e-mail, database, ERP, CRM systems and others. Customers are reporting significant increases in application performance, reliability and scalability after deploying VMware vSphere™ 4.
"After seeing the benefits of virtualizing our infrastructure applications, we wanted to move our SQL database into the virtualized environment," said Roy K. Turner, server systems engineer, Frederick Memorial Hospital. "The improved performance and enhanced reliability in VMware vSphere 4 have been invaluable in exceeding our SLAs and preventing revenue loss from our mission-critical applications. VMware Fault Tolerance further improves uptime for our most critical applications by providing zero-downtime recovery from hardware failures, while VMware Data Recovery helps us easily back up and protect our critical data."
"With VMware, we've found that we can roll out new services much faster, as well as increase the reliability of existing services, while cutting the costs of doing both," said Bob Plankers, technical architect, University of Wisconsin - Madison. "With VMware vSphere 4, our infrastructure management becomes much simpler through the use of new VMware vNetwork Distributed Switch and Host Profiles. VMware vSphere 4 also increased the amount of I/O, memory, and CPU available, meaning we can virtualize nearly every workload we have."
VMware vSphere™ 4 delivers customers the following critical benefits: offers unmatched cost savings; delivers the efficiency and performance required to run business critical applications; provides uncompromised control over application service levels, and preserves customer choice of hardware, OS, application architecture and on-premise vs. off-premise application hosting.
Unmatched Cost Savings Even Compared to So-Called "Free" Offerings
VMware vSphere™ 4 helps customers reduce capital expenses by up to 60 percent and operational expenses by an average of 33 percent. By allowing companies to make more efficient use of today's powerful servers, VMware vSphere™ 4 also enables unmatched cost savings even when compared to so-called "free" offerings.
"As a result of upgrading to VMware vSphere 4, the museum has saved $200,000 AUD on hardware procurement costs since migrating from VMware Infrastructure 3. We've also reduced our power requirements by 33 percent and have achieved a server consolidation ratio of 12:1," said Dan Collins, manager of information technology at Powerhouse Museum. "VMware vSphere 4 has also dramatically improved our infrastructure responsiveness and flexibility, and most importantly enhanced our recoverability of systems and information."
Boosted Performance and Improved Service Levels for Business Critical Applications
With VMware vSphere 4, customers are extending the benefits of virtualization to business critical applications such e-mail, database, ERP, CRM systems and others. Customers are reporting significant increases in application performance, reliability and scalability after deploying VMware vSphere™ 4.
"After seeing the benefits of virtualizing our infrastructure applications, we wanted to move our SQL database into the virtualized environment," said Roy K. Turner, server systems engineer, Frederick Memorial Hospital. "The improved performance and enhanced reliability in VMware vSphere 4 have been invaluable in exceeding our SLAs and preventing revenue loss from our mission-critical applications. VMware Fault Tolerance further improves uptime for our most critical applications by providing zero-downtime recovery from hardware failures, while VMware Data Recovery helps us easily back up and protect our critical data."
"With VMware, we've found that we can roll out new services much faster, as well as increase the reliability of existing services, while cutting the costs of doing both," said Bob Plankers, technical architect, University of Wisconsin - Madison. "With VMware vSphere 4, our infrastructure management becomes much simpler through the use of new VMware vNetwork Distributed Switch and Host Profiles. VMware vSphere 4 also increased the amount of I/O, memory, and CPU available, meaning we can virtualize nearly every workload we have."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)