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Apple files plans for Oregon data center
The Apple Oregon data center is moving closer to reality. Apple has filed formal plans with the city of Prineville, and it looks like Apple will build a 500,000-square-foot facility. It's likely the data center will serve the Apple app stores and iCloud. The plan shows two buildings with more than 500,000 square feet of what are described as 'data halls,' The Bend Bulletin reported Wednesday. The plan doesn't say when Apple might start building. "They really didn't say how long they are looking at," Prineville senior planner Joshua Smith said. An Apple spokeswoman, Kristin Huguet, referred Wednesday to the company's early statements on the development, which forecast "hiring dozens of people and bringing hundreds of construction jobs to the area" but didn't set a construction schedule." Facebook also is building a similar facility in the central Oregon town. The two data centers will be neighbors across the street from the other. [via KTVZ and The Associated Press]
Come hang with us at Ground Kontrol in Portland, OR, this Wednesday
Live in Portland, Oregon? Read Engadget? Love classic arcade games? If you answered "yes" to all three of those, we've got some great news. We'll be in Stumptown this week and figured it might be fun to have an impromptu meetup at one of our favorite locales in the Rose City. If you haven't been (and shame on you if you haven't, Portlandians), Ground Kontrol is an insanely awesome classic arcade / bar, located right next to PDX's Chinatown (not to mention a few blocks from places like Floating World Comics and Voodoo Doughnut) at 511 NW Couch St. Swing by a little before 1PM, and we'll be letting people in first come, first serve (capacity is limited) -- and best of all, since it's too early to open the bar itself, it'll be an all-ages function. We'll be hanging out, shooting some video and playing with old video games and new gadgets. More information on the venue can be found in the source link below. [Image credit: Lincoln Barbour]
Apple makes a tax deal for Prineville, Oregon data center land
We've heard before that Apple plans to build a data center on land it previously purchased in Oregon, but now the Associated Press reports on part of the cost. The company has reportedly agreed to pay US$150,000 per year to local governments, and has signed off on at least 35 jobs. Those jobs will be paid at a rate that's at least 150% of the average wage in the Oregon county. Finally, according to the AP, Apple will have to invest at least $250 million into the data center building itself. In return for all of that, Apple will be exempt on property tax payments for the next 15 years. Whether that will be worth it or not depends on exactly how much they build there, but odds are Apple's accountants aren't that worried. The company already paid $5.6 million for the land earlier this year, and it's setting up plans to both build up the infrastructure of the local power company to keep the data center running, as well as a green energy site there on the spot. Oregon is apparently a popular place for data centers like this. Google, Amazon, and Facebook all have similar sites in the surrounding area. [via MacRumors]
Apple to build second data center in Oregon
News network KTVZ has confirmed with Apple that the company plans to build another big data center on a 160-acre section of land just outside of Crook County, Oregon. The land that the data center will be built on cost Apple US$5.6 million. Until February 15, the paperwork that solidified the deal was hidden from public eyes, with Apple only being referred to as "Project Maverick." A piece of paper filed earlier this month identified Apple's address as "1 Infinite Loop," and Apple has now confirmed that it's going to be developing the land. Apple's other data center in North Carolina has gotten a lot of press, but this new one isn't quite so surprising. We can expect it'll be used for Apple's extensive App Store traffic, plus various iCloud services and things like iTunes Match. Building in Oregon is smart as well; land is cheaper there than almost anywhere else along the West Coast (Facebook happens to have a data center nearby as well), and the proximity to big tech cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Seattle will set Apple up well for future Internet-based services. While $5.6 million may sound like a lot, it's a drop in the bucket for both the cost of the data center and compared to Apple's considerable (to say the least) cash holdings. Apple also confirmed that this data center will be a "green" facility (as it's come under fire from environmental concerns for its data centers in the past), but given that plans probably aren't finalized yet, we'll have to wait and see what that means. [via Mac Rumors]
Daily Update for December 5, 2011
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen.
Apple reportedly considering Prineville, Oregon for data center
Apple may follow in the footsteps of Facebook and build a 31-megawatt data center in Prineville, Oregon. The Cupertino company is considering the 160-acre property because of Oregon's low energy cost. The state also has a favorable tax break that could save Apple millions in property taxes. Apple is supposedly negotiating under the code name Maverick and is close to making a decision, said people familiar with the matter. According to Crook County planning director Bill Zelenka, Maverick has the option to purchase 160 acres, currently owned by the county. The company must make a decision by the end of the month or risk losing the option to buy this parcel of land. What makes this deal possible is an ongoing upgrade in the county's electrical transmission capacity. This improvement should be completed by June 2013 and will give companies like Apple the power it needs for a large data center. Cheap power and low taxes make this rural area attractive to companies like Apple and Facebook. One monkey wrench, though, is a law that lets the state tax a company on intangibles like the monetary value of a company's brand name. Both Apple and Facebook are concerned this "central assessment" could significantly raise taxes. Lawmakers plan to introduce a bill to stop this tax when they reconvenes in February, but that won't help Apple now. Zelenka notes that the company has not asked for an extension, which is an option if it wants to wait for the outcome of this legislation. [Via 9to5Mac]
Apple donates iPads for Oregon pilot program to help the disabled vote
Apple has donated some iPads to Oregon for use in a pilot program to deliver votes with Apple's magical tablet. A new movement to reach disabled and home-bound voters will head out to nursing homes and other places, armed with iPads, and then use those devices to record and register votes in advance of a special election. Not only does a touchscreen allow voters to record their preferences with simply a finger, but it also allows for zooming in to bigger text and otherwise reading ballots and other documents. The current initiative is just a test, but it's set to be used in the next general election as well. If things go as planned, Oregon will likely deploy the program all across the state. Apple reportedly donated five iPads to begin with (and the state spent $75,000 on the custom software), but officials only estimate they'd need about 72 iPads to carry the plan out across the entire state. There is one issue, however: Apparently this system still relies on a paper ballot, which is printed out after the actual choices are made on the iPad. Many of these users don't have the ability to read their choices back, so the iPad plan may still not work even for this limited solution. But if that problem gets fixed, some Oregonians will be able to register their votes with the iPad. [photo credit: AP]
The Faraday electric bike shows us all how retro the future will be
This ain't no fixie with a minty fresh paint job, this is the Faraday. Built for the Oregon Manifest design competition, ideas factory Ideo teamed up with bike builders Rock Lobster Cycles to produce this retro-technotastic electric bike. Everything futuristic has been hidden inside the frame: those parallel top tubes hold a series of lithium-ion batteries which juice up the front-hub motor -- all controlled from the green box tucked beneath the seat cluster. Those two prongs up front serve as built-in headlights and the base of a modular racking system, letting you swap out various carrying mechanisms like a trunk or child seat with the pop of a bolt. Tragically, the bike is just a concept -- so unless the teams responsible cave into peer pressure and get it into production, you'll have to use old-fashioned leg power to get you over those steep hills. [Image courtesy of Mike Davis] %Gallery-136151%
IBM and Portland team up to see into city's future
Is it possible to see into a city's future? Perhaps, if you're backed by a company like IBM. The computing giant has teamed up with Portland, Oregon for its Systems Dynamics for Smarter Cities program, creating a simulation of the city (a veritable "Sim City," as it were), so governmental leaders can see the ways in which public policies might affect its future. IBM approached the northwestern cultural mecca back in 2009, working with representatives from a number of professions, including teachers, economists, city planners, and business leaders in the interim. The information collected was combined with governmental data to create a computer-based model of the city. Among other things, city leaders have used the model to work out a plan to reduce the city's carbon emissions 80 percent by the year 2050. Add in a guide to those famous Portland food carts and we'll be 100 percent behind the project.
Select IKEA stores to host Blink electric vehicle charging stations, Volts now suitable for furniture pickup
Need to pick up a foursome of Detolf display cases? Better know a pal with a pickup, bub. Unless, of course, your nearest IKEA happens to be one of ten situated in Arizona, California, Oregon and Washington. The famed furniture retailer has just nailed down a partnership with ECOtality, with a smattering of its western US stores to host Blink electric vehicle charging stations. Each of the sites be evaluated for feasibility and installation needs, and we're told that the first stations should become operational this fall. The pilot program is currently set to last through December of 2012, but we're guessing it'll end up surviving quite a bit longer -- after all, it was already tough enough to resist a weekly trip to this place. Now? Swedish meatballs just become a daily affair.
AeroVironment to light up I-5 with EV chargers, add 'Oregon Trail' to the Green Highway
Retire your oxen and sell your wagon, the Oregon Trail just went electric. Okay, not the real, historic Oregon Trail, but a respectable 150-mile stretch of Interstate Five. The Oregon Department of Transportation is teaming up with AeroVironment to dot an undisclosed number of 480-volt Level 3 chargers between the California / Oregon state border and the Willamette Valley area as part the West Coast Green Highway initiative. The project aims to cover the entire I-5 corridor with electric vehicle chargers, spanning from the tip toe of the Golden State, all the way up to Washington's hat. Oregon's leg of the project should be ready for drivers this fall, making roadtrips to the Beaver State accessible to EV owners -- dysentery free. Hit the break for dry, but factual press release.
Google Offers rolling out in Portland, Oregon tomorrow, SF and NYC this summer
If you've been watching our liveblog of Eric Schmidt at D9, you'll know that the Floyd's Coffee ad above isn't just a mockup -- this evening, the Google chairman announced his company's Groupon-like Google Offers service will launch in Portland, Oregon tomorrow. We'll also see it in San Francisco and New York City this summer, delivering daily deals directly to our NFC-equipped Nexus S smartphones.
Garmin announces rugged, camera-equipped Montana GPS, trademarks name of another US state
Watch out Oregon, Garmin's getting ready to throw you to the grizzlies. Montana, the GPS-maker's new handheld series, offers three models, including two with a built-in 5 megapixel camera. We wouldn't expect image quality to best that of a good cellphone, but we assume you'll at least be able to get a fix for your geotags. The base model Montana 600 includes a 3-axis compass and 4-inch sunlight-readable touchscreen display for $550, while the 650 adds the camera for $630, and the 650t pairs that cam with pre-loaded topographic maps for $700. All three rugged models include a 16-hour battery, or you can toss in three AA's for up to 22 hours of juice on your next off-road or whitewater rafting adventure, or whatever else you do for fun in Montana. [Thanks, Kyle]
Facebook's Open Compute Project shares plans for energy-efficient data center
We know, you've seen an awful lot of Zuckerberg and crew here lately, and the Facebook news just keeps rolling in. This time the social networking giant is doing some sharing of a different sort by offering public access to the specifications and best practices behind its new, more efficient data center in Prineville, Oregon. According to the company, the center, built in collaboration with AMD, Dell, HP, and Intel, has boosted energy efficiency by 38 percent while lowering cost by 24 percent. The information now available through the Open Compute Project includes technical specs and mechanical CAD files for everything from servers to building design. Basically, if you want to erect your own multi-million dollar Facebook-style data center, you've got the go ahead. Full PR after the break.
CHAdeMO EV quick-chargers to get wider tests across US, 80% capacity in 30 mins or less
The idea of waiting around for hours for your EV to recharge is soon to become a thing of the past -- or rather it already is in Japan, where the CHAdeMO-style chargers are enabling cars like the Nissan Leaf to get to 80 percent battery capacity in just 30 minutes. Now they're properly starting their US invasion. The first assault came in Portland a few months back, with 310 more stations lining up for deployment in Arizona, California, Texas, Tennessee, Oregon, and elsewhere in Washington according to Yomiuri. The move will cost about $230 million total, though there's no word on whether they'll be publically available like the one in Portland is. CHAdeMO, which is a play on the Japanese "O cha demo ikaga desuka" ("let's have tea while charging"), works by handling the AC to DC conversion externally and providing power at up to 500VDC and 125 Amps, much higher than on-board AC/DC converters can handle. This drives down recharging time massively -- even if you don't like tea.
Google rolls out NFC-equipped Places business kits, muscles in on location-based territory in Portland
Yelp may be the raconteur of restaurant recommendations and Foursquare the cardinal of check-ins, but Google has an ace up its sleeve: NFC chips. The company's embedded near-field communications chips into each and every one of these "Recommended on Google Places" window stickers, which you'll be able to trigger with a shiny new Nexus S -- just hold your handset up to the black dot, and voila, your phone gets a "tag." Google's now distributing the signs on a trial basis to Portland, Oregon businesses as part of a larger Google Places kit, though it doesn't explain how (or if) they'll be able to program the chips. Either way, if you own a hot new joint in Portland, you might as well give it a spin. Find the sign-up form at our more coverage link, or peep a Nexus S doing its thing after the break.
Intel confirms Oregon plant will be ready to make 450 mm wafers
Intel's already boasted of its massive investment in a new 22 nanometer manufacturing process, and it's now confirmed that it's new plant in Hillsboro, Oregon, dubbed D1X will be ready to produce 450 millimeter wafers. Of course, "ready" seems to be the keyword here -- Intel will apparently stick with 300 mm wafers for a while yet, but have all the necessary preparations put in place to kick start 450 mm production when the industry is ready for it. That shift promises to both increase efficiency and cut costs by allowing more chips to be produced at a time, but it will likely still be years before we see any actual results -- one analyst speculates it could be 2018 at the earliest before 450 mm fabrication tools are ready.
Intel announces plans to spend up to $8 billion on U.S. factory upgrades
Apple and Google may be sitting on their piles of cash, but Intel sure is dipping into its reserves in a big way these days -- the company has just announced that it's following up its nearly $8 billion acquisition of McAfee with a multi-billion dollar investment in upgrades to its factories in Arizona and Oregon. That investment will total between $6 billion and $8 billion, and include the development of an entirely new fabrication plant in Oregon, in addition to upgrades at the two existing facilities that will allow Intel to move forward with its 22-nanometer manufacturing process. As you can no doubt guess, the investment will also be quite a boon to both areas -- Intel says that the upgrades, which will take place over "several years," will create as many as 8,000 construction jobs and between 800 and 1,000 permanent jobs at the facilities. Head on past the break for the full press release.
Inhabitat's Week in Green: the world's largest laser fired, icy roof tiles admired, faucet lamps inspired
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green. This week scientists took a step towards unlocking the holy grail of alternative energy as they unleashed a one megajoule test blast from the world's largest laser. We were also excited to see the DOI give the green light for the first solar-thermal power tower in the United States, and we saw big things brewing beneath West Virginia as a project funded by Google discovered massive geothermal vents that could double the state's energy generation capacity. Not to be outdone, Oregon announced plans for a 845 megawatt wind farm that stands to be the largest in the world. We also watched the world of architecture heat up - literally - as Soltech unveiled a set of glimmering glass roof tiles that can capture solar energy to heat your home. We also checked in on the development of Masdar, the world's first carbon neutral zero-waste city, and we were shocked and appalled by the recently completed largest and most expensive house in the world. In other news, this week we showcased a dazzling array of energy-efficient lights - from an amazing animated LED pillar to a set of liquid lights made from recycled faucets to a chandelier decked out with luminous dandelions. We also kicked up our heels for a vending machine that dispenses biodegradable shoes and we saw a set of ghetto-fabulous boom boxes made from old suitcases hit the streets. Finally, we rounded up a gaggle of our favorite smartphone games that are perfect for keeping kids entertained!
Garmin's $23 Chirp wireless beacon brings geocaching thrills to Oregon, Dakota GPS units
Looking for an avenue to join millions of others in geocaching, eh? We know, there's hardly a better way to spend a weekend than by playing a sophisticated game of hide-and-seek, and Garmin's right there with us. If you, like it, are stuck in Kansas with nary a Jayhawk game in sight, this here pebble is the answer to all of your boredom woes. The Chirp is a wireless beacon that's designed to work with any compatible wireless-enabled Garmin handheld (the Oregon, Dakota and the recently announced GPSMAP handhelds are mentioned by name), and once you've set it up to cooperate with your device, it'll automatically transmit program coordinates so other cachers can find each stage of your multicache -- it's touch-and-go in its simplest form. The whole thing measures just 1.3- x 0.9-inches, weighs under an ounce and can be had for just $22.99. So yeah, good luck sticking to Segway polo with an offer like that. Update: Video after the break!
