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HP CEO Dion Weisler will step down in November
Following four years at the helm of HP, CEO Dion Weisler will step down in November. The Palo Alto-based PC maker today announced that its Australian chief executive will be leaving his role due to "family health" reasons. Enrique Lores, the current president of HP's printing and imaging solutions arm, will take Weisler's place.
HP Enterprise is acquiring supercomputing giant Cray
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) has a shiny new toy. The information technology firm announced today that is spending $1.3 billion to acquire supercomputer manufacturer Cray. HPE, which is a business-facing spin-off of the Hewlett Packard company, will instantly become a bigger presence in the world of academia and the federal government, where Cray has a number of significant contracts. It will also enable HPE to start selling supercomputer components to corporate clients and others.
Teaming humans with robotic AI will remake modern manufacturing
Your public school education exists, in large part, thanks to the Second Industrial Revolution. When the revolution took hold of America in the 1870s, 30 years after the end of the first, half of the US population still spent their days toiling in fields. Education was typically voluntary, assuming the family was wealthy enough to afford tutors or school fees, and usually reserved for boys. With the development of commercial fertilizer and the internal combustion engine, productivity exploded while the number of farmers dropped to less than two percent of the population. It lessened the demand for child labor which in turn led to increased support for compulsory education for both sexes.
HP's Envy x2 detachable PC returns with a new look and price
The original Envy x2, which was released early last year, had a lot going for it in the portability and looks department -- it was super light and relatively slick. However, its actual real-world performance left a lot to be desired. Fast forward to now, and HP is refreshing its tablet/laptop device with a completely fresh design, one that's very reminiscent of Microsoft's Surface line. In addition to the newly added kickstand, HP's new Envy x2 comes in two different sizes: there are 13-inch and 15.6-inch models, starting at $750 ($100 less than the first-generation).
HP reveals Sprout: The strange 3D-scanning, multi-display all-in-one PC
We've seen some strange devices here at Engadget, but honestly, we've never seen anything quite like Sprout. It's a unique machine that combines an all-in-one Windows 8 PC with a set of 3D scanning cameras, a giant tactile touchpad and a downward-facing projector (for displaying graphics on said touchpad). The design is built around a concept HP is calling "blended reality" that blends the 3D physical world with our 2D digital one. The obvious target audience is creative types. You know: makers, tinkerers, designers, etc... Rather than the traditional method of control built around mice and keyboards, Sprout focuses on touch and pen input. The 23-inch LCD serves as the primary display, but it's the bottom display, the 20-inch capacitive pad positioned under the camera and projector that serves as the primary point of interaction.
From beginning to breakup: a history of HP's highs and lows
HP's recent decision to split into two companies is undoubtedly a big deal. It's a cornerstone of Silicon Valley, and it has been synonymous with PCs for much of its lifetime. However, this is really just the latest chapter for a technology legend that has witnessed plenty of triumphs and disasters throughout its 75-year history. We've rounded up some of its greatest and lowest moments in a gallery, ranging from its humble beginnings in a garage to the webOS era and a series of scandals -- check them out if you want to know how HP reached yet another turning point. [Image credit: Kimihiro Hoshino/AFP/Getty Images]
Daily Roundup: Samsung's Milk Music, a stun gun-equipped drone and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
How would you change HP's Envy Sleekbook 6z?
HP's range of thin-and-light notebooks like the Sleekbook 6z were designed to undercut the Ultrabook with cheaper internals. However, when the base model retails for around $600 and a bone-fide Ultrabook isn't that much more expensive, was there any point to this device? When we reviewed it, we found that the performance was sluggish and there was a finicky touchpad that detracted from its comfortable keyboard and decent battery life. So, let's imagine that Meg Whitman invited you to design the follow-up, tell us, how would you change it?
gdgt's best deals for September 30th: Fujifilm FinePix JX650, Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX80 cameras
Ready to save some cash on your tech buys? Then you've come to the right place. Our friends at sister site gdgt track price drops on thousands of products every day, and twice a week they feature some of the best deals they've found right here. But act fast! Many of these are limited-time offers, and won't last long. Today's top deals include a pair of well-regarded cameras that help casual photographers get professional-looking pictures with ease. The Fujifilm FinePix JX650 is a bargain-basement option, while those looking to spend (and receive) a bit more can opt for the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX80. Hoping to grab one or the other? Join gdgt and add the gadgets you're shopping for to your "Want" list -- every time there's a price cut, you'll get an email alert!
gdgt's best deals for August 12: Epson Expression Inkjet, Panasonic 50-inch 120Hz Smart 1080p LED HDTV
Ready to save some cash on your tech buys? Then you've come to the right place. Our sister site gdgt tracks price drops on thousands of products every day, and twice a week they feature some of the best deals they've found right here. But act fast! Many of these are limited-time offers, and won't last long. Today's hottest deals include a remarkably cheap Epson Inkjet printer/scanner/copier, as well as an impressive 50-inch Panasonic Smart HDTV at a hefty discount. Join gdgt and add the gadgets you're shopping for to your "Want" list. Every time there's a price cut, you'll get an email alert!
gdgt's best deals for July 24: 47-inch LG LED 3D HDTV, HP Officejet Pro All-in-one
Ready to save some cash on your tech buys? Then you've come to the right place. Our sister site gdgt tracks price drops on thousands of products every day, and twice a week they feature some of the best deals they've found right here. But act fast! Many of these are limited-time offers, and won't last long. Today's hottest deals include an eye-popping price on a sexy 47-inch LG LED 3D HDTV, an intriguing sale on HP's high-end all-in-one and a slew of cheap products for students and professionals. Want the latest deals delivered to your inbox? Join gdgt and add the gadgets you're shopping for to your "Want" list. Every time there's a price cut, you'll get an email alert!
gdgt's best deals for July 17: HP Envy TouchSmart, Logitech Bluetooth Illuminated Keyboard
Ready to save some cash on your tech buys? Then you've come to the right place. Our sister site gdgt tracks price drops on thousands of products every day, and twice a week they feature some of the best deals they've found right here. But act fast! Many of these are limited-time offers, and won't last long. Today's hottest deals include a a sweet Costco deal on an HP touchscreen laptop, as well as a glowing offer for a Logitech Bluetooth Illuminated Keyboard. Want the latest deals delivered to your inbox? Join gdgt and add the gadgets you're shopping for to your "Want" list. Every time there's a price cut, you'll get an email alert!
gdgt's best deals for July 8: Brother InkJet all-in-one, Target iPad gift card offer
Ready to save some cash on your tech buys? Then you've come to the right place. Our sister site gdgt tracks price drops on thousands of products every day, and twice a week they feature some of the best deals they've found right here. But act fast! Many of these are limited-time offers, and won't last long. Today's hottest deals include an unbelievably low price on a Brother InkJet all-in-one, as well as Target's spot-on gift card offer for iPad purchases. Want the latest deals delivered to your inbox? Join gdgt and add the gadgets you're shopping for to your "Want" list. Every time there's a price cut, you'll get an email alert!
LightScribe software for optical disc labels finally updated
Optical discs... Apple hates them, but lots of people still use them. Blu-ray has been a relatively slow starter in the computer world and we will never see that technology in an Apple product. LightScribe software has been around since 2004 when HP brought it to market. If you had a LightScribe-compatible disc burner, you could use a LightScribe-branded CD or DVD and create a label using the laser in the CD burner. It could be plain text, or even etched photographs on the label. It was a great system, but when Apple updated to a new version of Mac OS X the LightScribe software tended to fail, and you were back to using an ink marker or a stick-on label. Finally, the LightScribe system software has a Mountain Lion-friendly update. The LightScribe free applications are running again, and so are some of the third-party apps I've tested. The LightScribe free apps give you pretty basic disc labels, but Roxio Toast and apps like Disc Cover 3 (now on sale for US$14.99 through the Mac app store) can output some very detailed and attractive discs. If you already have a LightScribe-enabled disc burner, rejoice. If you don't have one, it's dead easy to burn permanent labels on your optical discs. LightScribe-enabled DVD burners are available from Samsung, LG, LaCie and others. Other World Computing keeps a good stock of LightScribe hardware and blank discs. Hopefully, HP will do a better job of keeping its software up to date, because optical discs are not dead, and Apple's OS X Mavericks is just around the corner. We can't be sure HP will stay committed to LightScribe forever. Updates may remain spotty on both the Mac and Windows side, but the LightScribe software is working now, so grab it if you like LightScribe and its easy labeling features.
HP Wireless Portable Speaker with NFC spotted in regulatory paperwork
HP will soon have an NFC-enabled Bluetooth speaker to go along with its NFC-enabled mouse, not that we reckon the two will ever have much to say to each other. The manufacturer's Wireless Portable Speaker (model no. S9500) has just been revealed in an FCC filing, where it managed to pass inspection without giving away a great deal of information beyond its physical styling (more retro than HP's current wireless speaker) and the name of the engineer who signed the test report ("Apple," confusingly). Beyond that, we know this speaker would have to pair manually with a Slate 7, since that tablet lacks NFC. Also, the Quick Setup Guide says "First Edition: June 2013", which suggests an official launch could be just around the corner -- potentially alongside other unknown, NFC-enabled products from HP.
HP tells Chinese factories to stop raiding schools for cheap labor
We know that HP's Chinese sub-contractors enjoy a spot of opera on the production line. What's always been harder to determine though, is who those workers are and what employment rights they have. In an effort to preempt the sort of headlines that have afflicted other brands, HP has issued new guidelines to its Chinese partners -- including Foxconn -- designed to limit the use of students and temporary personnel and give those people more control over their hours. Students often seek work during vacations, but high schools close to factories have also been known to pressure their pupils into taking on shifts during bouts of heavy demand -- even if it's to the detriment of their studies. That won't do for a global manufacturer that needs to be seen as education friendly, so from now on "interns" will only be accepted for work that tallies with their course area, and the School Administrator will just have to find his kickbacks elsewhere.
HP becomes a platinum member of the Linux Foundation
Snagging a first-class upgrade might empty out the contents of your wallet, but be glad you're not trying to buy your way to the Linux Foundation's top table. With a strategic investment of $500,000, Hewlett Packard has just become a platinum member of the body, alongside companies like Intel, Qualcomm and Samsung. In exchange for all that cash, HP gets a seat on the Foundation's board of directors and will have a say in how to advance the foundation's aims -- and hopefully give Open webOS a gentle push, too.
Gartner and IDC: PC shipments tumbled over 8 percent in Q3, only ASUS and Lenovo escaped unhurt
We don't often summarize market share in one word, but: ouch. Both Gartner and IDC have trotted out their preliminary estimates for PC market share in the third quarter, and the two agree that this summer was a dire one for the traditional computer. Outside of ASUS and Lenovo, whose price-focused strategies and key acquisitions kept them ahead of rivals, virtually every major vendor saw its PC shipments collapse versus a year ago, often by more than 10 percent. Total worldwide shipments declined by more than 8 percent in either estimate -- enough to make a flat second quarter seem rosy by comparison. Lenovo took the top spot in Gartner's study, although IDC is counting workstations and kept HP in its usual lead. As for the US, it's almost better that we don't look. Gartner and IDC believe that the American market sank by respective 13.8 or 12.4 percent amounts, and the steep global declines repeated themselves in the one country for everyone but Lenovo. Even a market share gain for Apple came only because its shipments dropped at a gentler rate than most of its peers. Whether it's the US or worldwide, don't assume that inventory clearances ahead of Windows 8 were the only factors at work, though. Both research teams point to continuing world economic troubles as influences, and IDC contends that buyers are still skipping PCs in favor of smartphones and mobile tablets. There's often a jump in computer sales between the summer and the fall, especially with a new OS on the way, but we wouldn't count on a return to the halcyon days.
W3C teams with Apple, Google, Mozilla on WebPlatform, a guide to building the open web (video)
The World Wide Web Consortium might just be the United Nations of web development, as it's bringing together some frequent enemies to fight for a common cause through WebPlatform.org. The collaboration will see Adobe, Apple, Facebook, Google, HP, Microsoft, Mozilla, Nokia and Opera pool educational resources to create a comprehensive, frequently updated guide to creating HTML5 and other content for the open web. The companies' instructional oversight is just the start, however -- visitors will have chats and forums to devise their own solutions, and they'll even have a better than usual chance at influencing mid-development web standards. It may be some time before we'll see the first fruits of the organization's work, but we're already happy to see technology companies set aside some of their differences.
Meg Whitman says HP has to 'offer a smartphone'
HP bet big on the smartphone world when it purchased Palm, but the company fell flat on its face and webOS failed to take off. The reasons for the failure are numerous, but the new CEO Meg Whitman is smart enough to realize it can't simply abandon the market entirely. In an interview with Fox Business, she said that HP "ultimately has to offer a smartphone." Though she was willing to acknowledge that the company is "working on this," she would not divulge too many details about its mobile plans. Whether or not webOS may rise from the ashes as a largely community-powered platform remains to be seen, but we wouldn't be shocked to see HP pivot towards its longtime partner Microsoft, and release a Windows Phone 8 device. Perhaps the best glimmer of hope for the former Palm system was Meg's focus on developing markets. She rightly points out that, in some parts of the world, the first and only "computer" a person may own is a smartphone -- and reaching that audience is essential to Hewlett-Packard's success. Going back to the webOS well (with its open source support) would allow the company to save a few dollars on the cost of a new handset. Check out the video after the break for the full quotes in context.
