Ad: Manage updates with the Download App
ie8 fix

trails

Intel shifts focus to laptop graphics technology

Intel will focus on next-generation laptop technology that combines graphics functions with the main processor, in the wake of the cancellation of its initial "Larrabee" graphics processor.

Despite the market-rattling news from Intel late on Friday--which pushed rival Nvidia's stock up more than 12 percent on Monday--Intel still remains the leader in the high-volume "integrated" graphics market.

And the world's largest chipmaker is about to up the ante in this market for low-cost graphics technology, which many consumers opt for instead of high-performance chips from Nvidia or Advanced Micro Devices's ATI unit.

Later … Read more

Major Intel chip upgrade coming to new Netbooks

Intel is set to announce the biggest makeover for its Atom processor since it was introduced back in the spring of 2008. And PC makers are ready with new Netbook models, some due before the mammoth Consumer Electronics Show in January.

Netbooks--tiny laptops used for Web surfing and light production tasks--have gained in popularity as a cheap alternative to a laptop. They can be had for as little as $250--or under $100 when bought as part of a two-year contract at phone carriers such as a Verizon.

Inside new Netbooks will beat Intel's latest "Pine Trail" Atom … Read more

Toyota details the 2010 4Runner

When we last discussed Toyota's 2010 4Runner, I was nitpicking a very silly gimmick called "Party Mode." Since then, the new model has been released and is available.

Starting with the basic SR5 model, the 4Runner's upper trim levels (Limited and Trail) head in two very different directions with two very different sets of suspension technologies.

The Limited features X-REAS, a sort of pneumatic sway bar system that links the dampers of each front wheel with the rear wheel on the opposite side of the vehicle. When the left side of the vehicle is compressed during, … Read more

Jogger's iPhone companion

RunKeeper Pro is the paid version of the already great free fitness app RunKeeper. Like the free version, RunKeeper Pro can help track your speed, pace, distance, and location of workouts on any GPS-enabled iPhone. Whether you're running, cycling, or walking, RunKeeper can track your location so long as you have adequate GPS strength.

The simple two-button interface--Stop/Start and Pause--and a large display shows time elapsed, current speed, pace per mile (or kilometer), distance traveled, and GPS strength, with live graphs and the ability to check your current location and post pictures and status updates. You can track … Read more

Intel to rev up Atom development, executive says

Intel will accelerate development of the Atom processor, according to an executive, marking a different tack than the slow-but-steady strategy to date.

The Atom chip is used most prominently in Netbooks, and its hallmark has been power efficiency--not speed. But Intel will put more focus on speed, according to Sean Maloney, an Intel executive vice president.

"We'll spin Atom more frequently. Do more like a tick-tock on Atom. Make it faster, faster, faster," said Maloney in an interview at Intel Developer Forum last week.

The tick-tock Maloney refers to is Intel's strategy for its mainstream processors: … Read more

Windows 7, new laptop designs to converge

A rip-out-the-carpet PC refresh of both software and hardware is in the offing as Microsoft's latest operating system and new laptop designs converge later this year.

At the Intel Technology Summit in San Francisco on Wednesday, an executive described the imminent mobile future, including a major refresh of Netbook silicon, better-designed "ultrathins," and turbo-powered high-end laptops.

Netbooks may undergo the biggest change. Models that appear after Windows 7 ships in October will see the most significant overhaul internally since the Netbook category debuted back in the spring of 2008. Intel's new "Pine Trail" Atom … Read more

Intel says new Atom chip not delayed

The general manager of Intel's mobile group said the chipmaker's next-generation Netbook technology is not delayed, refuting earlier reports.

Reports surfaced this week that Intel's next-generation "Pine Trail" Atom silicon would be delayed. Speaking at the Intel Technology Summit on Wednesday in San Francisco, Mooly Eden, general manager of the Mobile Platforms Group at Intel, said the Netbook silicon is not delayed.

"Pine Trail is on schedule," Eden said.

Eden described Pine Trail as the "next generation of Atom that we are going to put into Netbooks." Pine Trail will integrate … Read more

Gameloft goes west

The Oregon Trail, an Apple II classic, is coming to the iPhone and iTouch. The original Oregon Trail computer game was developed in 1971 by Don Rawitsch, Bill Heinemann, and Paul Dillenberger. The game taught school children about the realities of 19th century pioneer life. The player assumed the role of a wagon leader guiding his party of settlers from Independence, Missouri, to Oregon's Willamette Valley along the Oregon Trail via a Conestoga wagon in 1848.

This old-school, side-scrolling voyage was entirely remade to take advantage of the multitouch display on the iPhone or the iPod Touch. The game … Read more

Tubetrail makes your YouTube watching social

Back in early 2007 YouTube released Active Sharing, a feature that keeps an eye on what videos you're watching and shares that information with other users. One thing that's missing, however, is a way to see that list outside of YouTube, something that's been remedied by a new service called Tubetrail.

Tubetrail does not depend solely on Active Sharing to figure out what you're watching. Instead you have to install a small browser extension (currently Firefox only) which keeps an eye on your viewing habits. Videos you've watched are then presented as embeds on a … Read more