Friday, December 29, 2006

Online Shoppers Overwhelm iTunes Store


While browsing Newsvine today, I happened upon this article about iTunes just about blowing up. 1st, imagine what it must be like to be able to download music and 2nd, imagine having a fast internet connection. Oh, we can just dream. I love the quote though....

"What you're seeing is the tremendous success of the iPod," said Michael Gartenberg, vice president and research director with JupiterResearch. "No doubt it was a very, very popular gift, and no matter how well you plan on the server side of the equation, there are always times when you get caught short."


Check the rest here....

Wii- No. 1, PS3- No. 2, Xbox 360- No.3 in Pre-Christmas Sales

PlayStation 3 and Wii have enjoyed the biggest sales last week end in Japan since their launch in November, due to heavy stocks provided by their respective manufacturers.

According to figures from Media Create Co. Ltd, Nintendo’s Wii was the best-selling gaming console for the week 10-17 December, at 108,237 units. The console was previously known by its project code name of Revolution, and is the successor to the Nintendo GameCube. Although Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3, as part of the seventh generation of gaming consoles it competes with the other two on some levels.

The retail market data provider ranked Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.'s PlayStation 3 in second place among consoles at 70,942 units and Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 in third at 17,168 units. The PlayStation 3 is Sony's seventh generation era video game console, third in the PlayStation series. It is the successor to PlayStation and PlayStation 2 and competes primarily against Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii. According to Media Create, 81,639 PS3 systems were sold in the 24-hours of its introduction in Japan. The production cost is estimated to be US$805.85 for the 20GB model and US$840.35 for the 60GB model, so Sony loses a lot of money with every piece of PS3 sold.

The figures mean both the new consoles recorded their best week of sales in Japan in the pre-Christmas shopping season, with the exception of the launch weeks.

Among software sales games for the Wii easily outranked those for the PlayStation 3. Two games, "Wii Sports" and "Pokemon Battle Revolution" made it into the top-ten with sales of 69,923 units and 67,607 units, respectively, for the week. The best-selling PlayStation 3 title was ranked at number 35 in the chart, which is dominated by games for the Nintendo DS handheld and PlayStation 2.

Microsoft's Xbox 360 saw sales drop during the week but they were still relatively good for the year-old machine. During the week, sales of the machine totaled 17,168, Media Create said. That's about half the amount sold the week earlier but well above sales recorded in November. Over 35,000 Xbox 360 consoles were sold in the week from Dec. 4 to 10 thanks to the launch of the Blue Dragon video game.

The game was created by a famous Japanese games developer and had been eagerly awaited in Japan. To push sales of the console Microsoft created a special edition with Blue Dragon face plate and copy of the game bundled with the core edition console for the same price as the console usually sells.

Thursday, December 28, 2006

More lists, The 20 Most Innovative Products of the Year

While we are on the topic of lists, PC World have released what they think are the Top 20 Innovative products made this year. The Wii is there as are some really cool Sure headphones, but the surprise is what is at Number One!!!

See the list here.

50 Coolest Websites

Time Magazine has released a list of, what they think, are the 50 coolest websites around. We didn't make the list but I am not surprised really, are you?

Check out the list here and let me know about your top list.

Tuesday, December 26, 2006

Suns new 3D Desktop


Sun Microsystems this week released "Looking Glass," a 3D desktop interface that provides an OS-neutral version of some of the elements found in OS X and Microsoft's newly-released Vista OS.

Looking Glass, which was first shown off in 2003 and released as an open-source project in 2004, allows users to run a Java-based desktop environment on top of Windows, or on Linux or Solaris. The software allows certain applications to be run in a "2.5D" environment, allowing them to be rotated in 3D space to maximize the available desktop space.

The interface also includes a launch bar along the bottom middle of the screen, similar in appearance to the Apple OS X's Dock.

According to the developers, Looking Glass includes several interesting features not included in either the Apple or Windows OSes: the ability to "fly" left or right to a new virtual desktop, or to use the "back" of a virtual window. Windows can also be organized on their "side," allowing a "bookshelf" view of the available windows.

Users can download the new Looking Glass interface from Sun's Web site.

Friday, December 22, 2006

Phones on Airlines in January

From cell phone use to high-speed Internet access, the connected life is spreading to the skies.

In January, Emirates airline plans to launch mobile phone usage in its planes, making it the first airline to allow passengers to make cell phone calls on its flights.

And Australian carrier Qantas plans to start evaluating technology that lets fliers use their cell phones and PDAs during flight early next year.

Fliers have long been able to keep in touch with those on the ground by using phones built into the backs of airplane seats. But the costs of those seatback phones can be upwards of $10 a minute, plus a connection fee.

In contrast, the cost of calls made in-flight on Emirates will be in line with international roaming rates, the airline said. Those rates vary by mobile carrier and by location but can be as low as $1 to $2 a minute.

But while some upscale, long-haul airlines are installing equipment onboard that will allow for cell phone use, it may be a while before the service makes its way to the U.S.

U.S. carriers don't allow in-flight cell phone calls, although the FAA is reviewing the safety concerns associated with mobile calls made in the air.

The regulatory agency has asked a committee to conduct a study looking at whether portable electronic devices like cell phones interfere with aircraft navigation systems. Findings of the study are due at the end of December.

Furthermore, airlines in the troubled U.S. industry are struggling to survive and new in-flight services may not attract new customers, analysts say.

"There's no economic incentive for them to do it. Domestically they're not going to bring anyone extra on to their airplane with that service," said airline industry consultant Michael Boyd.

A majority of business travelers (61 percent) oppose the idea of being able to use their phones in the sky, according to a global survey conducted by travel management company Carlson Wagonlit Travel early this year.

But if the technology is there, the service will eventually make its way to the skies, said Chris McGinnis, editor of Expedia Travel Trendwatch.

"Whether people like it or not, in-flight cell phone use is going to become a reality," he said.

Airlines are also exploring less intrusive ways to keep in-step with the increasingly connected lifestyle of their passengers.

According to the annual Airline IT Trends Survey conducted by industry group SITA and Airline Business magazine, 59 percent of airlines plan to offer in-flight Internet access by the end of 2008.

One company helping U.S. carriers make that leap is Louisville, Colorado-based AirCell, which won a license earlier this year to provide exclusive broadband connectivity to U.S. airlines starting in 2008.

Companies have attempted to tap the market for in-flight Internet access before -- the most notable being Boeing, which launched its Connexion high-speed broadband business in 2000.

Several international airlines installed Boeing's system, which cost travelers from $10 to $30 a flight. But in August, Boeing said it was closing Connexion because the market for it hadn't materialized as expected.

AirCell CEO Jack Blumenstein said Connexion's fate doesn't spell doom for the future of onboard Internet access.

For one, Boeing's system was expensive -- it cost about $1 million to outfit a single plane. In contrast, airlines can equip a plane with AirCell's technology for about one-tenth of that cost, Blumenstein said.

Expedia's McGinnis thinks people will take advantage of onboard Internet access as long as it is cheap enough.

"If you can sit there and stream movies and read your email or do research -- it's absolutely something people would use," he said.

Blumenstein said the price of in-flight Internet access offered by AirCell should be comparable to or slightly higher than what users pay to access "hot spots" on the ground.

Accessing a Wi-Fi hot spot at a cafe can run anywhere from $8 for a single day of access to around $30 a month for unlimited access, depending on the service operator.

Tuesday, December 19, 2006

PHOTOLURKING, BLOG STREAKING AND CHEESEPODDING -- THE NEW INTERNET ADDICTIONS

The Internet has given birth to a quirky range of modern addictions and maladies, the British weekly New Scientist says in its Christmas issue published this Saturday.

They include these:

- EGO-SURFING: When you frequently check your name and reputation on the Internet.

- BLOG STREAKING: "Revealing secrets or personal information online which for everybody's sake would be best kept private."

- CRACKBERRY: "The curse of the modern executive: not being able to stop checking your BlackBerry, even at your grandmother's funeral."

- GOOGLE-STALKING: Defined as "snooping online on old friends, colleagues or first dates."

- CYBERCHONDRIA: "A headache and a particular rash at the same time? Extensive online research tells you it must be cancer."

- PHOTOLURKING: Flicking through a photo album of someone you've never met.

- WIKIPEDIHOLISM: Excess devotion to contributing to the online collaborative encyclopaedia, Wikipedia. (Wikipedia even has a page where you can test whether you're an addict

- CHEESEPODDING: Downloading of a song "so cheesy that you could cover it in plastic wrap and sell it at the deli counter." Cheesepodders are especially vulnerable to soft-rock favourites from the 1970s.

Saturday, December 16, 2006

Speedy broadband triple play coming in 2007

2007 should see South Africans accessing a new broadcast offering, with triple play delivered directly into the home via an ordinary wall socket. Service provider Goal Technology Solutions uses power-line communication (PLC) to bring a combined offering of broadband Internet access, voice telephony and television programming directly into the home via an established electrical connection. "In essence this means that you can get all your telecommunications and broadcast packages from a single service provider that enters your home through a single plug point," explains CEO Adrian Maguire.

A licence to provide GTV, a subscription-TV bouquet that will offer video-on-demand and pay-per-view television, is how GTS intends to achieve the goal of competing seriously. "Firstly we must deliver our services at an affordable rate and secondly we need to offer something unique," says Maguire.

Maguire guarantees that its broadband service will operate at a speed of 90 Mbps, supposedly 22 times faster than Telkom's fastest broadband offering. This will enable users to enjoy multiple high-definition television channels at the same time as having access to broadband Internet and telephony.

At the helm of GTV is former CEO for ICASA's broadcasting, Eric Nhlapo. "Eighty one percent of South Africans have electricity in their homes and as this is the means by which we can provide them with GTV, there are 37 million people who can subscribe to our services and select particular channels they would like to watch. Eventually we will expand into video surveillance and gaming as well," he explains.

GTS expects to receive its license to broadcast well before the middle of next year and is committed to broadband for all. Maguire says, "Our business model has been developed to ensure job creation and sustainable skills transfer and, above all, to provide all South Africans with a multifarious communications offering that they can afford."

Thursday, December 14, 2006

PS3 Backwards Compatability

This is a shocking video from Youtube.com made to show just how bad the PS3 is when playing PS2 and PS1 games on it. The whole reason I wasn't going to buy an XBox was so that all the money I have spent on PS games over the last few years won't be wasted. Seems as if I must not bother.

Will Sony fix it? I am sure that if there are enough complaints, then they will, but how long will we have to wait?




The price of the PS3 is still very high and I am wondering if I should rather buy Windows Vista, a game box or a really cool coffee machine.

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

More on Windows Vista

Now that the initial hype on the new gaming consoles has washed over, the technology sites on the web are starting up with Windows Vista. The good guys and gals at Wired show that you don't really need Vista, at least not yet.

When Microsoft stop supporting older versions of Windows, then we are going to HAVE to upgrade. It is not going to be cheap as Wired tells us.

35007 MAKES FLYING THIS FESTIVE SEASON HASSLE FREE

With reports of congested airports and busy runways making the news, many would-be travellers are concerned about being on time for flights, as well as to avoid inconveniencing people delegated to pick them up from the airport.

However, this festive season flight details and up-to-the-minute departure and arrival times are an SMS away.

Contemporary mobile download service provider, NXT Mobile, and Airport Company of SA (ACSA) have teamed up in an effort to make travelling to and from South African airports easier, thanks to an innovative service called NXT Flights.

By SMSing the required flight number to 35007, users will receive a reply SMS containing the latest estimated departure time, arrival time, take-off location and landing destination.

“NXT Mobile is pleased to have been able to join forces with ACSA to launch this new and very exciting service to the South African market. With NXT Flights all the flight information is at your fingertips and the thought of missing a flight or hanging around at airports due to delays is a thing of the past”, says Bryan Diamond, managing director of NXT Mobile.

The NXT Flights service supports all local and International airlines and major airports and each SMS costs only R3. For more information on NXT mobile, available downloads and services please visit www.nxtmobile.co.za

Read My Lips AGAIN!!!!

After finding an article the other day that proves that cell-phones do not cause cancer, another doctor has taught these health nuts another lesson.

It seems that parents in the UK would rather have stupid children than have a Wi-Fi connection
at the school. The doctor says that the Wi-Fi is 50 times less than the radiation coming from the cell-phones. Get rid of the Wi-Fi (I hate typing that) then you must get rid of the cell-phones.

At last, people are speaking out about these stupid health nut, tree-hugging morons.

Just as well as my Wi-Fi (I had to type it again) is rubbing my right arm as I type this. My heart could have been in big trouble.

Tuesday, December 12, 2006

SEE YOUR LOVED ONE’S OPEN THEIR CHISTMAS GIFTS THIS FESTIVE SEASON!


Do you have family and close friends living overseas? Do you yearn to spend Christmas with them to watch them open their Christmas gifts? Are you physically unfit to travel or maybe you can’t afford the airfares? With the weakening Rand, many South African’s will be in this position and need to look at alternatives to spend time with family and friends.

“There is a quick, cheaper and easier way to be in touch and see your loved one’s opening their Christmas gifts in person,” says Cindy White, Microsoft Group Marketing Manager for Entertainment and Devices.

Microsoft Hardware and the Windows Live team have joined forces to introduce a line of LifeCams including the LifeCam VX-6000 and LifeCam VX-3000. “The new line of webcams dramatically simplifies the video communications experience to let people see, hear and share life’s experiences in an extraordinary way,” explains White.

The LifeCam’s are optimised for use with Windows Live Messenger, the world’s largest instant messaging network. LifeCams meet the growing demand for easier, more meaningful connections. “All you have to do is press the Windows Live Call button located at the top of each LifeCam. Use the buddy picker, a tool that shows only current online buddies, and then simply select your contact’s name and you are on your way in seeing them ‘live’. “Making a video call is really easy even for uneducated technology users,” says White.

These products have a built-in dashboard providing easy access to tools that users need during the video call, including tilt, pan and zoom. The LifeCams feature a built-in acoustic noise-cancelling microphone to ensure crystal-clear audio performance without adding clutter from extra headsets or external microphones.

In addition, both new LifeCams come with fun Video Effects, such as falling snowflakes and twinkling stars, to personalise and enhance the background of video conversations. The LifeCams also have a Universal Attachment Base for easy and secure attachment to virtually any size monitor.

The Lifecams are available at leading retailers at the following estimated retail prices:
Microsoft LifeCam VX-6000: R899,00
Microsoft LifeCam VX-3000: R499,00

“Consumers are increasingly embracing technology that supports relationship-centered digital communications. Christmas is a time for giving and sharing and we are glad that we can help bring friends and family living on different continents together this Festive Season,” concludes White.

Monday, December 11, 2006

EA Delivers the Final Word on Speed and Destruction With New Title

Get ready for complete and total domination. Electronic Arts today announced that Burnout(TM) Dominator is in development exclusively for the PlayStation(R)2 computer entertainment system and PSP(R) (PlayStation(R)Portable) system.

Burnout Dominator is an all-new installment of the legendary and multi-award winning Burnout(TM) series, loaded with intense racing action and dozens of retina-searing World Tour events. Burnout Dominator challenges gamers to face off against a series of hot-blooded rivals in brutal tests of aggressive driving techniques where performing burnouts gives you the advantage and multiplies your score potential. For the ultimate nerve-wracking experience, Burnout Dominator takes you to the very edge of control, punishing the smallest mistakes and rewarding drivers for taking outrageous risks.

"The series was born on the PlayStation 2, and Burnout Dominator is about celebrating the essence of Burnout," said Nick Channon, senior producer of Burnout Dominator. "Burnout Dominator focuses on the reckless skill-based racing and fear of crashing that fuelled the first games."

Burnout Dominator will ship in 2007 under the EA(TM) brand and is developed by EA's UK Studio team in Guildford, UK. For more information about the Burnout franchise, please visit http://ea.com

Saturday, December 09, 2006

The computer helper: Making the switch to Windows Vista

While browsing the web this morning, there are 2 major tech stories from around the world. The one is that Console sales are up in November. Well, DUH!!!! Three new consoles gets released, who would have seen that coming??

2nd is this Windows Vista launch. Early next year, we should be able to buy our own copy of Windows Vista. Is it a good idea and will it work on your 6 month old machine?

The guys at Monster and Critics could help you out here....

Friday, December 08, 2006

PLay XB0x 360 on a REALLY big screen

In a first for South African cinemas, Nu Metro Theatres and Cinevation have joined forces with Microsoft to launch an innovative big-screen gaming competition to be held at selected cinemas in December this year.

From the 8th to 20th December gaming consoles will be placed in Nu Metro foyers at Canal Walk in Cape Town, The Pavilion in Durban, Menlyn Park in Pretoria and Montecasino in Johannesburg. Cinema-goers will have free access for the day to test their Xbox driving skills and register their top Project Gotham Racing score. Those players registering the highest scores will then be invited to compete in the grand finale on the big screen in each region on Saturday 23 December 2006.

Says Nu Metro’s Gavin Caseley: “Gaming is one of the fastest growing sectors of the entertainment industry worldwide. The December gaming promotion will enable Microsoft to demonstrate leading edge gaming technology on a large scale and Nu Metro Theatres to showcase its investment in an advanced digital projection platform nationally.”

John Press of Microsoft adds: “The Xbox 360 is about next generation gaming and what better way to experience the benefits of the next generation than on the “Big Screen.”

“Nu Metro’s digital projection allows us to showcase high definition gameplay that is larger than life and simply breathtaking,” he explained.

Cinevation has a long standing relationship with Nu Metro in that it is contracted to handle the sales and marketing for Popcorn, the company responsible for Nu Metro’s cinema advertising sales. “It is very exciting to be working with such a forward thinking company that has moved so rapidly into the digital era,” adds Marisa Torrani, Director of Cinevation.

“What makes this promotion unique is that the finals will be played on cinema screens making the visuals and sound larger than life – a mind-boggling experience for any gaming fan”.

Thursday, December 07, 2006

LG Mobile Phones get new Lenses

LG Electronics (LG) has signed a contract for technical co-operation with Germany’s Schneider-Kreuznach, well-known for the world’s highest quality camera lenses.

This is the first partnership of Schneider-Kreuznach with a mobile phone company, and solidifies LG’s expertise in the camera phone space. LG’s upcoming handset, “Shine,” will be the first camera phone equipped with a certified Schneider-Kreuznach lens and will be launched in South Africa early 2007.

“Today’s mobile phone consumer demands high-quality camera functions as part of a handset’s multimedia features,” said Kevin Lee, GSM Product Manager, LG South Africa. “With Schneider-Kreuznach’s technical expertise, LG will introduce more premier handset models, bolstering LG’s position in the high-end mobile phone market.”

“With our support, LG will be able to provide the most advanced camera phones to its abundance of multimedia-conscious consumers,” said Schneider-Kreuznach CEO, Dr. Josef Staub.

To mark the beginning of this partnership, Skott Ahn and Dr. Josef Staub participated in a signing ceremony at LG Electronics Mobile Handset R&D Centre in Seoul earlier this year. The agreement between the two companies includes joint branding, technical certification and collaborative technical development.

According to IC Insight, a leading market research company, the global camera phone market will reach 910 million units by 2010. The company expects dramatic growth of the camera phone segment, and forecasts that camera phones will comprise 54 percent of the market by 2006, 68 percent by 2008 and 75 percent by 2009.

VIA K8M890 and P4M900 IGP Chipsets Certified by Windows Vista™ Logo Program

As the whole world waits for Windows Vista to be on sale to regular mortals like you and me, it seems that the hardware guys are working overtime to make sure that their products are ready. One of the big things about Vista will be the 64bit operating system and it seems that VIA are more than ready.

The VIA K8M890 and the VIA P4M900 chipsets have passed the Microsoft® Windows Vista™ 32bit/64bit Basic logo tests, enabling customers get ready for Vista with confidence.

This certification means that customers will enjoy the assuredness of digitally signed drivers and the ability to update drivers distributed via Windows® update. The testing involved in the certification program also confirms trouble-free installation of Windows Vista, including Ultimate, Enterprise, Business, Home Premium and Home Basic editions.

In addition, the Microsoft Windows Vista Basic logo verifies that the VIA K8M890 and VIA P4M900 chipsets support functions that take advantage of some of the latest Windows installations, guaranteeing a secure, reliable and stable experience with the new operating system.

The VIA K8M890 and VIA P4M900 North Bridges both feature the VIA Chrome9™ IGP (Integrated Graphics Processor) core which provides DirectX® 9.0 graphics support with hardware pixel shaders, supported by a WDDM driver for Microsoft Windows Vista. Both chipsets also offer support for the latest PCI Express add-in graphics cards, giving SIs and OEMs unparalleled flexibility to provide systems for a wide range of market segments.

“VIA is very pleased to have both an AMD IGP chipset and an Intel IGP chipset achieve this certification,” commented Chewei Lin, Vice President of Product Marketing, VIA Technologies, Inc. “This gives our customers confidence in building Vista ready systems for either platform.”

The VIA P4M900 chipset supports up to 1066MHz FSB Intel® processors including the latest Intel Core™2 Extreme processors, as well as support for up to 667MHz DDR2 memory. The VIA K8M890 chipset supports the full range of AMD Athlon64™ and AMD Sempron™ processors, including those supporting the latest AM2 socket.

Both chipsets feature the Ultra V-Link bus for connecting to VIA’s feature rich range of South Bridge chips including the VT8251 which supports high fidelity VIA Vinyl HD audio codecs featuring up to 24-bit/192KHz audio resolutions and up to eight audio channels.

Find out more about the Chipsets and their prices here...

Wednesday, December 06, 2006

Read my lips, Phones do NOT cause cancer!!

At last, Time Magazine is reporting that cell phones do not cause cancer. Now, we can finally stop those sharks from 'celling' those metal protectors and all those other people going on and on about it.

Use your phone and be happy about it!!!!

Tuesday, December 05, 2006

AMD DRIVES NEXT GENERATION OF ENERGY-EFFICIENT COMPUTING with 65nm TECHNOLOGY TRANSITION

Launching the next generation of energy-efficient computing, AMD (NYSE: AMD) today announced the transition to 65nm process technology, beginning with the immediate availability of energy-efficient AMD Athlon 64 X2 dual-core desktop processors. The move to 65nm process technology enables AMD to produce more processors on a 300mm wafer, for increased production capacity, while continuing to aggressively scale performance and reduce power consumption. AMD processors built with 65nm line-widths are designed to deliver exceptional performance when running multiple applications, as well as enable small form factor PCs that complement both home and office environments. By mid-2007, AMD expects to be fully converted to 65nm production at Fab 36. With the rapid conversion to 65nm process technology, AMD is scaling capacity intelligently to meet growing demand worldwide for x86 processors.

“With AMD’s established leadership in desktop and server performance-per-watt, both businesses and consumers can benefit greatly from our energy-efficient AMD Athlon 64 X2 dual-core processors,” said Gaith Kadir, Regional Vice President, Middle East and Africa, AMD. “Customers continue to demand solutions that focus on low-power consumption and quieter operation. AMD is responding by increasing manufacturing efficiency to deliver on the next generation of energy-efficient desktop processors, enabling OEMS to innovate using highly reliable AMD64 processors and without compromising performance.”

Advancing Silicon Process and Manufacturing Technology
Building on AMD’s industry-leading 90nm high-performance, low-power Silicon-on-Insulator (SOI) technology, AMD’s 65nm SOI technology takes full advantage of our 90nm high-performance technology, scalability and power efficiency. The move to 65nm allows for reductions in line widths which enable AMD to produce more processors on a 300mm wafer, for increased production capacity. As a result, AMD can deliver high output volumes and enhanced products for its customers. AMD’s 65nm processes have evolved from a technology agreement with IBM that has been highly beneficial to AMD.

Continued Commitment to Global Environment
Energy-efficient AMD Athlon 64 X2 dual-core processors can deliver improved performance-per-watt and reduced power consumption. AMD will continue within the 65nm technology generation to enhance both AMD64 processors and process technology, to offer even more energy-efficient processors that demonstrate AMD’s commitment to an improved global environment. The next generation of energy-efficient processors complement AMD’s award-winning Cool‘n’Quiet technology, allowing a system to match processor utilisation to the performance actually required.

Stable Platform for Innovative Solutions
AMD enables best-of-breed technologies designed for outstanding mainstream PC experiences that result in superior graphics performance, enhanced video quality and minimal idle power draw. Through relationships with leading OEMs and system builders, as well as major chipset, graphics and motherboard vendors, AMD provides an open platform approach that allows our customers to select leading-edge, stable technologies and build differentiated and innovative solutions. Socket AM2- compatible processors are designed to enhance the award-winning AMD64 architecture, enabling next-generation platform innovations such as AMD-Virtualisation technology and high-performance, un-buffered DDR2 memory. Additionally, the use of socket AM2 streamlines the work for motherboard manufacturers, while reducing costs through economies of scale, which can result in better products at lower prices.

AMD64 processors are ready and capable today to provide users with the foundation needed to experience the power of Windows Vista.

“Microsoft and AMD have been working together to ensure customers get the quality, security and computing experience they deserve and expect using the upcoming Windows Vista operating system,” said Mike Sievert, corporate vice president, Windows, Microsoft. “We look forward to processor advances in energy efficiency and performance made possible with AMD's transition to 65nm technology, and expect that they will continue to enhance the customers' experience using Windows Vista.”