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Intel's Sandy Bridge CPUs to arrive ahead of schedule, could be with us this year
Right now, Intel has every right to lay contentedly atop the laurels of its biggest quarterly profit ever, but that's not what the company is doing at all. Instead of protracting the life of its current-gen processors unduly, Intel is planning to accelerate the roadmap for its next generation of multicore parts, codenamed Sandy Bridge. The difference between the Nehalem-based stuff we have today and the upcoming chip is that the Sandy Bridge architecture takes everything down to 32nm -- including the graphics processor and memory controller which are built at 45nm at present -- while keeping it all within the same enclosure. Enthusiastic feedback from customers who were given tasters of the Sandy stuff has been to blame for this haste on Intel's part, and we're told that with additional investment in 32nm infrastructure, the chip giant plans to make deliveries late this year. That in turn could potentially result in some eager vendor pushing a Sandy Bridge laptop or desktop out before 2010 is through -- which would be all kinds of nice.
Gartner: Symbian is 're-arranging the deck chairs,' losing buoyancy fast
We all know that Symbian is still holding the fort as the globe's most widely used mobile OS, but anyone interested in criticizing it nowadays will have to get into a queue. Nick Jones from Gartner is latest to launch a broadside against the apparently complacent market leader, opining that its user experience has been surpassed by iOS and Android, and arguing that future iterations do not promise enough innovation to make the platform stand out. He underpins these observations with his firm's latest estimates, which indicate Symbian's decline in share is accelerating, before positing the idea that the Foundation sets aside some talent for skunkworks projects in order to give itself fallback options should Symbian^4 not be blindingly marvelous. Nick might be going a little overboard with the bleakness of his outlook, but there's no questioning his "Android iceberg" analogy -- if Symbian doesn't find the right course soon, Google might well end up collecting a big chunk of its exasperated users.
Chevrolet bringing 10,000 Volts in 2011, but it's the current of change that will kill you
Good news for all electric heads out there: "intense interest" in the Chevy Volt has led General Motors to expand its launch markets to now include Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, and Texas. They join California, Michigan and Washington DC, although only Austin in Texas and New York City will have the honor of retail Volts before 2010 is through; the rest of the new markets will get their fill in 2011. Though Chevy still hasn't set down a final date and price for its electric car, late 2010 availability seems to mesh well with a November 1 rumor we heard earlier. Beyond this year, 10,000 units are planned to be built in 2011, with 30,000 more coming up in 2012. So it's gonna be a pretty exclusive club however you look at it, now can we get a cheesy music video going for this car or what? Oh wait...
Sprint: EVO 4G users getting Android 2.2 'in the near future' (Update: No upgrade for Moment, Hero)
It looks like EVO 4G users will soon have one more thing to smile about, as Sprint has just announced that an Android 2.2 (aka Froyo) upgrade will indeed be coming to the "superphone." With the Android 2.2 upgrade, customers can expect improvements to include the following benefits: updates to user interface, improved EAS Support, improved browser performance, including Flash 10x Support, voice dialing over Bluetooth and application storage on external memory. No word on a timeframe yet, but you'll know as soon as we do -- promise. Update: According to this tweet from the carrier: "HTC EVO will be updated to Android 2.2; Samsung Moment & HTC Hero will not. Future devices launching w/ 2.1 will be also be updated to 2.2."
Android 2.2 coming to Droid in 'late July,' Droid X in 'late August?'
Care for some more specificity on when exactly to expect the Droid X to become even awesomer? Well, according to one "very reliable" source over at Droid Forums, we can look forward to a late August landing for Android 2.2 on the X, which will be preceded by a late July delivery on the venerable Droid. Both dates are caveated with an ominous "currently planned" proviso, so don't consider them carved in (Mile)stone, but we're liking the idea of Motorola having both its flagship devices tasting of Froyo by summer's end. There's no mention of the Droid 2, however, which may mean nothing or might suggest that handset's still a fair way away from its release. We shall see.
Acer expects to overtake HP as world's biggest laptop vendor by year's end (updated)
Ah, the inexorable rise of a once-small Taiwanese company. Acer chairman JT Wang has told investors in a conference call this week that his company is on track to overtake HP in worldwide laptop shipments before the year is through. That assertion is backed up by Gartner's data, cited in the Wall Street Journal, which indicates that Acer shipped 9.49 million mobile computers in the first quarter of 2010, just ahead of HP's 9.47 million. Positive vibes are also being felt on the desktop front, where Acer aims to shift 10 million units this year, while a decent $15 million is being invested into "developing a smartphone platform based on Google Inc.'s Android." We'll be curious to see whether this thrifty strategy pays off against HP's ebullient $1.2 billion acquisition of Palm, but one thing's for sure: PC vendors are hungry for some of that sweet smartphone pie. Update: Gartner has corrected Acer's worldwide shipments number down to 9.12 million, placing it a close second behind HP for Q1.
Adobe expects Flash on 250 million smartphones by end of 2012
While in the midst of fixing a unicorn-sized hole in the security of its desktop software, Adobe has been talking about its future in the mobile space. According to its rose-tinted forecasts, Flash Player will be featured in a quarter billion handsets by the end of 2012, including 53 percent of all smartphones shipped that year. Those are pretty strident words for a company that has yet to ship Flash Player 10.1 in even one new handset, but we're reminded that Android 2.2's leading position on the issue will be swiftly followed by BlackBerry OS, Symbian, webOS, and Windows Phone 7 supporting the full fat Flash experience. Whether all that momentum will be enough to produce an install base of 250 million, we don't know. What we do know, however, is that people want the blasted thing and Adobe had better start doing a bit more work on its mobile player and a little less talking about it -- that's what we're here for.
Motorola wants a 2GHz Android by year's end, so do we
Looks like we didn't get the full dish from Sanjay Jha's bout of loquaciousness this morning. It turns out Moto's chief of handsets has also expressed his company's intention to bring the world its first 2GHz smartphone and to do so on an aggressively accelerated roadmap. By the end of the year, Sanjay? Yes please. Another Moto exec is cited as saying NVIDIA Tegra will be providing the graphics prowess, Flash 10.1 will be fully supported, and a gyroscope will accompany HD video recording and output on the dreamy spec sheet. We wouldn't invest all of our trust in the conveniently anonymous exec's promised specs, but that 2GHz number comes straight from the top -- let the countdown begin.
Motorola selling Droids faster than it can make them, has up to four videophones in pipeline
In case you're not yet convinced that video chat is the next big thing phone makers are going to push on us, let Motorola's Sanjay Jha enlighten you. Having just launched the video-centric Motorola XT720 in Europe (sans a front-facing camera), Jha is promising that his crew will deliver between two and four handsets this year with the equipment necessary to carry out video calls. Funnily enough, Moto's co-CEO describes himself as someone who's "never been a great believer" in the functionality, but clearly his company's seeing a trend it feels the need to be a part of. Speaking of trends, Moto has also fallen afoul of supply shortages similar to those constraining Droid Incredible inventory, with Jha saying about the Moto Droid, "if I could build more, I'd sell more." And if you could get Android 2.2 on them, you'd have some really happy customers too.
30 million Windows Phone 7 devices sold by the end of 2011? Microsoft says yes (update: not exactly)
We've got to hand it to Microsoft -- when it sets a goal, it really sets a goal. As you can see in the slide above shown during a ReMix event in Paris yesterday, Microsoft is apparently expecting to sell 30 million Windows Phone 7 devices by the end of 2011, based on IDC projections. To state the obvious, that's pretty ambitious any way you slice it -- especially considering that the first Windows Phone 7 devices are still quite a few months away from hitting the market, giving Microsoft just over a year to reach that mark. Even more impressive is the fact that the figure apparently doesn't include other "Windows Phone" devices like the Kin, but maybe that'd just make 30 million a piece of cake. [Thanks, Greg] Update: Well, it looks like Microsoft may not be quite this ambitious after all. As John Paczkowski of All Things Digital reports, IDC says the numbers cited by Microsoft are actually for all Windows Mobile devices combined, not just Windows Phone 7, and even that figure is a bit off -- the actual number is 32 million. Microsoft itself has also now admitted the error, saying the slide was "inaccurate" and that it isn't providing any sales forecasts for Windows Phone.
Ubisoft remains refocused on Xbox 360, PS3 in new year
In January, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot told investors that the company would "refocus"' its development efforts on Xbox 360 and PS3 in 2010, with particular emphasis on iterating its major franchises on the HD consoles. Today, as Ubisoft reported its earnings (actually, losses) for the fiscal year ending March 31, the company remained committed to the ongoing strategy outlined earlier this year. "We will have more 360 [and] PS3 revenue this [fiscal] year than we had last year," Guillemot said during an investor call today. "The big franchises -- seven of the eight franchises -- will be on 360; and six will be on PS3. And we will have around six or seven on the Wii." CFO Alain Martinez put last fiscal year's combined sales from PS3 and Xbox 360 software at "about 45 percent" of revenue for the publisher, adding, "I wouldn't be surprised if we are over 50 percent on these two platforms" at the end of the current fiscal year (April 2010 – March 2011). Martinez noted that Wii software sales accounted for "about 26 percent" of revenue in the last fiscal year and hopes sales to be close to that percentage again this fiscal year. In total, Ubisoft is looking to draw "about 77 percent" of its revenue from the three console platforms over the next four quarters.
Namco Bandai game segment records annual losses ... but Ben 10 sales soar!
Namco Bandai's "Content" segment, which combines its video game software and arcade machine products, recorded ¥6.86 billion ($74.68 million) in operating losses for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2010. The division proved the most costly for the company, which also runs a successful "Toys & Hobby" segment, in addition to several other businesses. Overall, Namco Bandai suffered ¥29.08 billion ($317.28 million) in net losses for fiscal 2010, but the company forecasts a modest turnaround in net income of ¥4.5 billion ($49.1 million) for the current fiscal year. The games segment, which this fiscal year includes the previously separate "Visual and Music Content" division, is forecast to post ¥3.5 billion ($38.19 million) in operating income over the next four quarters; aided by an estimated 90 game releases, which are predicted to bring in ¥88 billion ($960 million) in sales. In fiscal 2010, Namco Bandai software sales, which encompassed 86 titles (or 225, if you're counting localized versions), totaled 22.737 million units and ¥77 billion ($840 million); with portable games accounting for a significant 9.701 million units sold. Multiplatform versions of Ben 10 Alien Force and its sequel, Ben 10 Alien Force: Vilgax Attacks, in the US and Europe during the fiscal year, combined to sell 1.89 million copies alone. The console version of Tekken 6 was the publisher's only title to move more units than either of those two Ben 10 games. A third Ben 10 title, Protector of the Earth, added another 610,000 units sold in the fiscal year. Across all Namco Bandai products, "Ben 10" the franchise racked up ¥17.9 billion ($195.3 million) in sales. Not quite Mobile Suit Gundman numbers (¥34.6 billion), but still. Head past the break for the complete list of Namco Bandai's top-10 bestsellers and sales distribution by platform.
First Look: Weather HD for iPad
VIMOV's Weather HD combines standard weather forecasting with video backdrops. Although I doubt the application comes with the new age music track, you can tell from this preview that it focuses on looks. I was a little surprised to see the floaty utility-style palette. You'd think that new weather applications would provide some kind of "Find Me" Core Location-powered feature, but I guess people do want to check on places they're about to visit or are away from as well. Weather HD is availablel for US$0.99 on the App Store.
iPad suppliers forecast shipments of 8 - 10 million for calendar year 2010
Analyst Katy Huberty at Morgan Stanley has published a research note forecasting shipments of 8 - 10 million iPads during calendar year 2010. That's significantly more than previous estimates, which showed shipments of about 5 million devices. The note, as reported in a WSJ All Things Digital post, still maintains a sales estimate of greater than 6 million iPads for the year, since shipments are not necessarily equal to sales (some production remains in distribution channels at year-end). Huberty notes that investors who are bearish on the iPad say that it lacks a "killer app." She counters with speculation that the near-term target is for the sub-$800 notebook computer market, which currently appears to be in the range of 30 million units in the United States and 120 million units globally. In the long run, media (video, magazines, books) and apps that have been optimized for the iPad will significantly increase the market size. For the short term (through May, 2010), suppliers are expecting to ship 2.5 million iPads. This is up sharply from Huberty's initial estimate of 750,000 units through the end of June. Earlier this month, analysts were reporting that delays in early iPad production would limit the quantities available at launch. Huberty has not been particularly bullish on Apple in the past several years, but has recently been citing Apple's leadership in the mobile device space and talking about "bull case scenarios" for Apple's future.
AT&T CEO: iPad will be mostly used on WiFi, won't drive many new 3G subscriptions
We all know by now that AT&T has secured the rights to furnish US iPad owners with 3G connectivity, but apparently the market desire for that service won't be quite as big as we might have expected. That comes straight from Randall Stephenson himself, AT&T CEO and eternal believer in the power of i-branded devices, so it may have some legitimacy to it. Surely Randall's dearest wish would be to announce his network is about to be overwhelmed by new subscribers, and the rather cooler news has already caused a small dint in AT&T's stock price. Then again, this is hardly shocking news given that 3G on the iPad can be had on a month-by-month basis without contract, and in truth any subscriptions related to it would have to be achieved by AT&T's own ingenuity -- which, judging by its CEO's comments, won't be suffering any undue exertions any time soon. Not only that, Randall's also taken the opportunity to advise us that higher data rates are likely for intensive users of unlimited 3G data plans -- whether on the iPad or on smartphones. Way to endear yourself to the masses, dude.
Survey finds initial iPad demand to be greater than initial iPhone demand
So there's no question that the iPad has generated plenty of interest and debate, but the big question remaining is how that will translate into actual sales. According to a new RBC / ChangeWave survey, however, it seems that the iPad is at least on track to do slightly better than the iPhone did, at least initially... maybe. To be a bit more specific, the survey found that of the 3,200 respondents, 13% were either somewhat likely or very likely to buy an iPad, compared to 9% who said the same thing about the iPhone way back in April, 2007. Of course, that says little about the potential long-term success of the iPad, and there's also the small issue of the iPhone already existing, which no doubt factors considerably into anyone's potential iPad purchase. Not surprisingly, RBC also says that the iPad relatively low price is a significant factor, and adds that only 8% of respondents were unwilling to pay Apple's prices for the iPad, compared to hefty 28% that said the initial iPhone prices were out of the question for them.
IDC: Symbian should keep dominating the market, Android to take second
We have absolutely no idea what kind of voodoo, pseudoscience, and black magic goes into making an analyst-grade industry forecast, but considering that our local weather dude can barely tell us whether it'll be raining in a few hours -- much less a year or two from now -- you've got to take these sorts of things with a healthy dose of skepticism. That said, we're finding it pretty notable here that IDC's latest worldwide smartphone shipment forecast through 2013 has Symbian continuing to dominate the field of ever-stronger competitors thanks "primarily to the strength of Nokia in markets outside of the United States," while Android will surge past Windows Mobile, BlackBerry, and iPhone to become number two in the world on shipments of some 68 million devices. Falling back a bit in IDC's Utopian vision are generic Linux devices along with webOS, which -- while "growing steadily" -- will be held back by a wee number of carrier partnerships. Everything that IDC's saying seems plausible enough, and we've got every reason to believe that Android's going to continue to heat up -- particularly with four of the top five mobile players (Nokia notably excluded) devoting significant portions of their smartphone lineups to the platform over the coming months. As for Symbian, it's an absolute juggernaut by any measure, so we can see it staying king for a while even in a complete vacuum of serious innovation -- it'll just be interesting whether to see Nokia and the Foundation can keep these hungry upstarts firmly in their rear-view mirror for much of the decade.
In-Stat sees Blu-ray players closing in on DVD sales in 2013
While Futuresource may still be sticking to its 2012 predictions of Blu-ray software dominance, In-Stat has taken a break from the tea leaves to mention it expects Blu-ray player sales to near 80 million by 2013. In its vision of the near-future that's not enough to overtake DVD player sales of 90 million, but with a higher average selling price Blu-ray players will own most of the dollars being spent. Naturally, Blu-ray recorders (and, we'd expect Blu-ray/VHS combos) are most popular in Japan, while Europe produces the most revenue for players. We're not ready to lay down $3,495 to find out more detailed forecasts, but we'll put a pin in the calendar and ask Jeremy Toeman to save the date for our 2013 podcast about whether or not Blu-ray sales have lived up to expectations.
Gartner forecasts phones overtaking PCs as most common web browsing device by 2013
Predictions about phones overtaking PCs at one task or another are hardly anything new, but research firm Gartner has gotten a bit more specific than most with its latest forecast -- which, among other things, foretells of a day when cellphones will be the most common device used for browsing the web. That momentous event will supposedly happen by 2013, when Gartner expects the number of browser-equipped phones to exceed 1.83 billion, compared to 1.78 billion old fashioned computers in use. According to Gartner, however, while browser-equipped phones will outnumber PCs by then, they won't actually be most folks' primary browsing device until sometime in 2015. In other prognostication news, the firm also says that fully three billion of the world's population will be able to make electronic transactions via mobile or internet technology by 2014, and that by as soon as 2012, 20% of businesses will "own no IT assets" -- meaning that employees would be using their own personal computer, and that the businesses themselves would be relying on cloud-based services.
Component shortages lead analysts to forecast rise in prices of personal electronics
As you might well know, we're not the biggest fans of analyst blather, but this piece of research by Gartner is backed by some substantial numbers. The FT reports that DRAM prices have recently risen by 23 percent, followed closely by LCD prices with a 20 percent jump, both in response to the financial crisis the whole globe seems to be suffering from. Because the effects of recently renewed investment in capacity building won't be felt for a while, we're told to prepare for higher prices throughout this year -- a significant combo breaker from the previous decade's average of around 7.8 percent drops. Oh well, let's just cling to the encouraging signs for the future and ignore this bump on the road to gadget nirvana. [Thanks, Ben W]