Sony recalls 440K Vaio laptops for overheating

TOKYO – Sony announced Thursday it is recalling 440,000 Vaio laptop computers worldwide due to a wiring flaw that could cause overheating. Sony Corp. said the recall involves 19 models in the Vaio TZ series manufactured between May 2007 and July 2008. The Tokyo-based consumer electronics company said improperly placed wires near the hinge connecting [...]

Regulator rejects small mobile companies’ 3G applications

MANILA, Philippines – Five small mobile phone content providers have been barred from offering 3G (third-generation) services in the country for failing to meet regulatory requirements. In a 34-page decision, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) denied separate motions for reconsideration filed by Pacific Wireless, Inc., Multimedia Telephony, Inc. (MTI), Bayan Telecommunications, Inc. (BayanTel), Next Mobile, [...]

New Intel-powered notebooks to help bring more Filipinos online

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine unit of the world’s largest semiconductor company is banking on its smallest processor to connect more Filipinos to the internet. Intel Corp. launched on Thursday the Atom processor in the Philippines, which measures 45 nanometers, or roughly the size of an adult fingernail. Navin Shenoy, Intel Asia Pacific vice president [...]

Microsoft slashes prices of XBox 360 in Japan

TOKYO – Microsoft on Monday slashed the prices for the Xbox 360 video game consoles in Japan, an intensely competitive market where the US software company has long been struggling against formidable rivals Nintendo and Sony. The cheapest of three models, Xbox 360 Arcade, will cost 19,800 yen ($180) as of September 11, down nearly [...]

Solar plane makes record flight

(BBC NEWS) – A UK-built solar-powered plane has set an unofficial world endurance record for a flight by an unmanned aircraft. The Zephyr-6, as it is known, stayed aloft for more than three days, running through the night on batteries it had recharged in sunlight. The flight was a demonstration for the US military, which [...]

Analog TV shutdown kills free cell-phone TV

NEW YORK – Picture whipping out your cell phone and catching up with “Lost” or “Jeopardy,” or watching the local 11 o’clock news, all for free. You can do this with an imported Chinese phone, but you can’t with any phone sold in the US — at least not without monthly charges. This is one [...]

Robot plane sweeps over UK fields

The robot plane can stay aloft for about an hour on battery power The first flights have been conducted of an autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to monitor UK farmland. The robot plane flew over fields in England and Wales to map the nitrogen levels in soil, to determine whether fertiliser applications were needed. The [...]

Libraries step into the age of iPod

NEW YORK (Reuters) – It may be about time to dig out that old library card. Hoping to draw back readers, libraries have vastly expanded their lists of digital books, music, and movies that can be downloaded by their patrons to a computer or MP3 player — and it doesn’t cost a cent, unlike, say, [...]

Space Tech May Stop Elderly Falls

(BOSTON) — Scientists working to help astronauts regain balance after extended flights in zero gravity say they’ve found a way to use the research to help elderly people avoid catastrophic falls. An “iShoe” insole contains sensors that read how well a person is balancing. The point is to gather information for doctors and to get [...]

‘Laser jumbo’ testing moves ahead

The ABL is based on a high power chemical laser A US military plane equipped with a powerful laser has moved a step closer to becoming a viable weapon. Engineers have started flowing chemical fuel through the laser to test its sequencing and control. This will set up the first test firing of the weapon [...]