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SGI to sell itself for just $25m, throw huge sadness party
Man, the difference a few years decades makes. In the 90s, Silicon Graphics helped create silver screen mega-hits like Jurassic Park and Terminator 2, and in 1997, its fiscal year sales totaled $3.66 billion. Today, the company's mired in its second bankruptcy, which has occurred just three years after the first. In order to just terminate the dream before it gets any more nightmarish, SGI has announced plans to sell itself to Fremont-based Rackable Systems for a mere $25 million -- and some analysts are even concerned that the suitor here could be sinking its teeth into a sour deal. The agreement still has to be approved by a bankruptcy judge, and of course, there's still a few more inches of red tape to cut through, but we'll be sure to let you know when the fantasy ends and the wake begins.
Sony's mylo 2 only available in refurbished form -- is the end near?
Sony's mylo 2 -- wait, you do remember what this thing is, right? -- could be headed for the grave... as if it wasn't already there in the minds of most. After Sony hacked a hundred bucks from the asking price during the run-up to Holiday Season 2008, we heard absolutely nothing further until now. Today, the very same order page shows that no new models are available to purchase, leaving prospective buyers with two clear-cut options: 1) walk away or 2) snag a refurb model in black or white for $149.99. So, is this the end for Sony's own Internet Device? Or is this just the calm before the sure-to-be-ferocious mylo 3 storm?[Thanks, Ali]
Pioneer outlines KURO plasma exit, insinuates that you should buy one now
Okay, so maybe that harshly translated version of Pioneer's recent KURO-related press release doesn't actually encourage prospective buyers to snag a unit while they still can, but it may as well have. Following up on the outfit's curious decision to abandon a product line that was universally adored, Pioneer has decided that just four of its PDPs will stay in production until April 11th. After 3,000 or so of the KRP-500A, KRP-500M, KRP-600A and KRP-600M units have been produced, the lines will be shut down and we'll all be invited to what will undoubtedly be a tear-filled memorial service. The company has also made clear that warranty service will still be provided for an undisclosed amount of time (at least in Japan), but there has yet to be a statement made specifically regarding the North American market.[Via Slashgear]
Apple iPhone Bluetooth Headset now discontinued
Would it be too cruel to say we're shocked it lasted this long? Apple's iPhone Bluetooth Headset never was too popular outside of the hardcore Apple faithful, with a litany of respectable (and let's face it, far superior) alternatives available for a fraction of the $99 MSRP. To that end, Cupertino has seen fit to discontinue the peripheral, though prospective customers can apparently still buy 'em until supply runs dry. Here's a tip, though -- wait for the fire sale.[Thanks, Richard]
Nokia set to shutter MOSH, direct thrashers to Ovi
Nokia never put an awful lot of marketing dollars behind its MOSH (MObile SHaring) initiative, but it still managed to reach millions. By and large, it was completely unchecked and unmoderated, enabling users to share all sorts of positive and negative content without Nokia poking around to see what was what. At long last, the mostly underground service is scheduled to be shut down, and it'll be a much more scrutinized Ovi taking over. As of now, there is no definite end date for MOSH, but there's no question that it'll be canned soon. So yeah, you should probably head on over and get one last fix while you still can -- who knows if Ovi will satisfy the same way.
All Circuit City stores closing permanently on March 8th
To an icon in the consumer electronics retail space, we wave goodbye. And for the hordes of employees already / soon to be looking for new uniforms elsewhere, we empathize. Circuit City has just announced that on March 8th, all of its stores will lock up for the last time. Granted, some locations have already shut their doors in permanent fashion due to stock depletion, but regardless of leftover wares, March 8th is the end of the line for the laggards. We'd say you might want to stop by your local outlet to catch any last-last-minute sales, but even at a penny, you're not going to want that open-box 4MB SD card.[Via HotHardware, image courtesy of wbeebe]
LG denies withdrawing from plasma market... in the UK, anyway
Take this as you will, but George Mead, the Marketing Manager for Digital Displays at LG Electronics UK, has informed T3 that LG Electronics UK has no intention to withdraw from the plasma TV market." To be perfectly clear here, this statement probably is in relation to UK market plans only; after all, those words from company VP Lee Gyu-hong were pretty strong. At any rate, Mead continued by noting that "we have recently implemented a bespoke strategy to promote and market plasma TVs here in the UK," but he failed to specifically touch on LG's worldwide plans (and understandably so). So yeah, it looks like LG PDPs are still safe for the moment across the pond, but we wouldn't be so sure about the rest of the developed world.
LG considering withdrawal from plasma market
Man, plasma's headed downhill -- and fast. Hot on the heels of both Pioneer and VIZIO tendering their resignation in the plasma market, LG's vice president Lee Gyu-hong has reportedly stated that his company is currently pondering its own future in the sector. Should LG pull out, just Panasonic and Hitachi will be left holding down the PDP fort. Purportedly, LG's plasma business is deteriorating in terms of profitability, and the VP stated that future cost savings were practically impossible. At this point (and after coming clean like this), it'd be sort of crazy for LG not to drop out, but what's even crazier is going from five major plasma makers to two within the course of two months. Yikes.[Via Whirlpool, thanks Stas]
Does the death of KURO signal the end of the plasma?
It's kind of amazing, really. Not even a year ago, Pioneer was busy pimping its second-gen KURO, and by and large, everyone that witnessed one in person came away impressed. So, if Pioneer's plasmas were so spectacular, how on Earth did we find ourselves asking if PDPs even have a future beyond 2010? Not long after the economy began to soften, LCDs began to catch up. Sure, a side-by-side test would likely show that an Elite KURO has deeper blacks than the average LCD, but as GigaOM points out, the average consumer was beyond the point of caring. Since the beginning of this year, we've already seen two plasma players drop out completely, and one must wonder how long those other guys will keep holding on. Is the death of the KURO the tipping point for plasma? We'd love to think otherwise, but our gut is leaning to "yes." What say you, dear readers?
S-Video disappearing from AV receivers, few seem to notice
Not like it's any shock to see a legacy port slowly fade away as new technologies come along, but really, it's kind of amazing that S-Video has hung around as long as it has. So far as we can tell, the format has been in existence since at least 1987, and no matter the adoption rate, 22 years in the consumer electronics industry is a milestone to be proud of. CNET has a new piece up that points out just how many AV receivers are dropping S-Video connectors entirely, with Yamaha's new RX-V family among the latest to bid the port a fond farewell. Our question to you is this: do you mind? When's the last time you actually used an S-Video socket over component, HDMI, DVI, VGA or DisplayPort? We're guessing most of you won't even be able to recall.
TZero closes up shop, UWB all but dead
It's been a slow, painful death, but it's about time to just pull the white sheet over ultra-wideband and let the wireless standard rest in peace. After Intel pulled its support for UWB and proponent WiQuest shut down late last year, all that the format really had left was TZero. After successfully surviving some legal issues, we thought the company was good to go in fighting a hopeless battle against wireless HD upstart AMIMON. Now, it seems that WHDI (that's AMIMON's magic) is free to take the market by storm, but only time will tell if wireless HD is even remotely close to mainstream. In one sense, we're sad to see competition die, but on the other hand, it's always good to see fruitless format wars fade away. Don't be too down on yourself, TZero -- it's not like anyone really had high expectations for you or anything.
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The Queue: To fly or not to fly
Welcome back to The Queue, WoW Insider's daily Q&A column where the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today. Starting this week, we have a little change coming to The Queue. Adam Holisky and I will be tag-teaming the column, taking turns writing it each day. Today is me, Alex. Tomorrow is Adam. The day after is me. The day after that is him. I think you get the picture. It'll let both of us do a lot more work on the site as a whole, while still keeping The Queue fresh and awesome. I think it'll work out well!Ezzy asked...Did they remove the ability to buy Ruby Shades from Haris Pilton? I camped them for a while and the never spawned.
The Daily Grind: A full MMO or an MM-No?
Last night while talking about some of the recent news, we hit upon an interesting question in regards to smaller MMOs and sunsetted (or currently being sunsetted titles) Smaller MMOs sadly don't often get a lot of investment in terms of money or developer time, so many times they wind up locked into near-stasis, with perhaps one large content patch per year, if that.This morning we thought we'd ask - if presented the choice of seeing your MMO which was in heavy development change, which would you prefer? Would you rather it just be shut down altogether; going out at its peak, as it were? Or would you prefer your game to essentially land on life support with only the occasional update and very long development times between them?
Pioneer finally kills production of its remaining laserdisc players
Yes, we're just as shocked and horrified to hear the news as you are, but it seems to be true. Pioneer, the last major electronics manufacturer to continue production of laserdisc players, has announced they'll discontinue all three of the models they currently offer, leaving dozens of hardcore fans in the dust. But cheer up: we'll always have the memories, and this poster.
VHS distribution grinds to a halt
We already gave VHS a proper burial after JVC became the last firm to shut the door on VHS player production, but there was still one nail in the coffin that wasn't quite hammered shut. Today, it all ends. The last notable distributor of VHS films -- Distribution Video Audio out of Palm Harbor, Florida -- has shipped its final truckload of tapes, probably to a small town library or a mom 'n pop shop in a place you'll never hear of. According to co-owner Ryan J. Kugler: "It's dead, this is it, this is the last Christmas, without a doubt." An unceremonious way to exit, sure, but we have a sneaking suspicion that it'll one day be able to say it made it longer than practically every other physical film format that succeeded it. Here's one last tear for the format that was -- now, time to plan a trip to the local flea market.[Via CNET]
More deceased taking cellphones, PMPs to their graves
It's been happening for centuries in one form or another, but packing in a favorite diecast car or trophy just seems a bit different than sending your loved one six feet under with a BlackBerry 7290. According to the London-based The Future Laboratory think tank, the amount of people arranging to have their cellphones or portable media players buried with them is on the rise, with a family service counselor for Hollywood Forever funeral home and cemetery stating that "it seems that everyone under 40 who dies takes their cellphone with them." Truth be told, the psychology behind it isn't all that odd; after all, in today's world, mobile phones go a long way to connecting one person with other loved ones. Just make sure to not go down with a Vertu or the like -- wouldn't want to get unwillingly exhumed, now would we? [Image courtesy of cc275, via The Inquirer]
Sharp halts Zaurus PDA production, smartphones to blame
It sure made it longer than Dell and Fujitsu-Siemens, but really, this was inevitable. Today, yet another icon in handheld computing has died, as Sharp has already scheduled the burial of its famed Zaurus lineup. Said devices were all the rage in the white hot 90s, with everyone from Zack Morris to Dawson Leery sporting one while strutting around Hollywood. We're led to believe that the ubiquity of more functional cellphones are to blame for the waning demand in PDAs, and we even pinged Captain Obvious to make sure that assertion was on point. Sayonara, dear Zaurus -- we will never forget.[Via CodeZine]
Has the Atom-powered WiBrain i1 UMPC fallen off the map?
Or more importantly, do you even care? One quick glance over at WiBrain's website will leave you searching to no avail for any traces of the i1, and while it's a shame we might not ever see this hardware package mass produced, we can't say we're terribly surprised. We mean, really, how many of your nerdy friends have saved up for one of these unwieldy UMPCs over, say, a netbook or the like? If the i1 really puffed its last breath at IFA, at least we can say we went to its farewell party. Ah well, onward and upward, right?[Via Slashgear]Update: The unit is still hanging around on WiBrain's German website, which possibly explains its IFA presence. Maybe it's being reserved for a Europe-only introduction? Thanks, xtron!
Rogers Communications founder Ted Rogers passes away at 75
Edward Samuel "Ted" Rogers, the founder of Rogers Communications, has passed away this week at 75. It only takes a brief glance to recognize what a giant Mr. Rogers built, and his legacy will obviously live on for years to come. Ted had suffered from congestive heart failure and was seeing his health decline, but thankfully he was surrounded by friends and family when he passed in his Toronto home. As for now, Alan Horn, Chairman of Rogers Communications, will serve as CEO and president until the Board of Directors can complete a thorough search for a proper successor.[Via Boy Genius Report, image courtesy of TheStar]
Sony Ericsson's P10 (Paris) gets another hands-on, full-blown review
We know it's the season for giving and all, but you're probably ready to stop being handed all these postmortem looks at Sony Ericsson's P10 (Paris). The UIQ-based handset, which was inexplicably canned earlier this year, was recently acquired and handled by the SE lovers over at SEMC Blog. As with most everyone else that has been fortunate enough to play with this here slider, these critics also couldn't figure out why the firm didn't forge ahead with production. Of course, it could just be the sentimental factor making the phone feel a bit more awesome than it actually is, but even with a bit of bias taken into account, it still seems like a winner. Too bad the powers that be deemed it a loser. Check the read link if you're okay with one last shower of tears.
