Wire Service

Apple is more known for iPods than storage. But in the business market it is storage that is benefitting from a relationship with Apple.

The constant use of iPods PDAs, laptops and mobile phones, is contributing to visual fatigue and discomfort and in some cases forcing people into the use of glasses a UK expert has claimed.

 “The unique characteristics and high visual demands of computer work and play make many individuals susceptible to the development of vision-related problems, ” said Dr Jeffrey Anshel, a practicing optometrist and author of Visual Ergonomics in the Workplace. “With the proliferation of portable electronic devices it is no surprise that eye care professionals are seeing more patients who complain of ocular discomfort.”

A recent US survey of doctors of optometry found that more than 14 per cent of patients reported eye or vision-related symptoms resulting from computer work. Staring at a computer monitor or the small screens on most devices can lead to a variety of ailments, including headaches, eyestrain, blurred vision, dry and irritated eyes, neck and/or backache, and sensitivity to light, Dr Anshel warned.

“Eye stress and strain may be caused by a combination of individual visual problems, improper viewing habits, and poor environmental conditions, such as glare, improper workstation set up, dirty screens, poor lighting and viewing angles,” he said. Dr Anshel has helped companies and government agencies, including Mitsubishi, American Airlines, 3M, and the US Department of Labour to address the high stress area of vision demands in relation to working with computer monitors. “Uncorrected or under-corrected vision problems can be major contributing factors to computer-related eye stress, affecting visual performance and comf ort,” he explained. “The good news is that many potential eye and/or vision problems can be reduced or eliminated by the appropriate adjustment and placement of computer monitors, lighting control, good preventive vision care habits, and regular professional eye care.”

Fujifilm who recently underwent a management shakeup in Australia is set to start releasing new digital cameras, among the new models will be an all-weather camera and a super telephoto model.

The Fujifilm FinePix XP200 is a ruggedly built camera featuring a 16-megpixel CMOS sensor, 28-140mm telephoto lens, image stabilization, 3-inch 920,000-dot LCD monitor, 10 fps continuous shooting mode, 1080/60i HD video capture, and built-in Wi-Fi connectivity with mobile device linking app.

Click to enlarge

The waterproof camera can withstand depths of up to 1545 centimetres, temperatures down to 14 degrees F and a drop from 3 metres.

The S8400W is a bridge-style camera with a 44x f/2.9-f/6.5 (24-1,056mm) super-zoom lens with optical image stabilization and a Super Macro mode for shooting subjects as close as 0.39 inch from the lens.

 It includes a 16-megapixel backside illuminated CMOS sensor, ISO sensitivity to 12,800, 1080/60i video capture, a 10 fps continuous shooting mode and built-in Wi-Fi.

 It adds a 3-inch, 460,000-dot LCD monitor and a 201,000-dot electronic viewfinder.

Microsoft’s much talked about portable PC is more what could be than what they will deliver over the next few months it has been revealed.

 It now appears according to research group Gartner that the technology needed to deliver the device envisioned by the software giant is at least two years away, a research firm said.
According to TechWeb, in a recent analysis, Gartner  said the device scheduled to ship in the second quarter is more of a “tweener” gadget that’s too big to be a personal digital assistant, or PDA, and too small to be a useful notebook.
For future models of the UMPC to match Microsoft’s hype of a “lifestyle computer,” a new category of device, a number of factors need to fall into place, some of which is not technologically possible today.

For one, the 1.6 kilo computer with a 7-inch touch screen will need an eight-hour battery and a sub-$400 price, both of which are at least two years away, Gartner said. Current pricing is in the $799-to-$999 range. In addition, low-cost, compelling software bundles, which Microsoft and Intel say they’re working on, will be needed to help launch the device in the mainstream, which Gartner defines as unit sales in the millions, rather than the thousands.
Other needed features include a better interface running on Windows Vista, text-entry options beyond thumb-typing and sustained market momentum by Microsoft and Intel, Gartner said.
“Today, we believe it isn’t possible to produce compelling UMPC products — just proofs of concept,” Gartner said. “The low battery life, high price and non-Vista operating system will likely hurt the UMPC’s market acceptance in this first go-round, and the negative backlash could damage its future chances.”

Because the device isn’t ready to fulfill the promise, Gartner questioned the timing of the launch, and said it was likely mainstream acceptance wouldn’t occur until after 2009.
Microsoft,  and Intel, unveiled the device March 9, saying that the first version would run Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005. The touch-screen feature would run on Microsoft Touch Pack software, code-named Origami. The lineup of manufacturers included Founder, Samsung, Asus, TabletKiosk and PaceBlade Japan, Gartner said. They also said that it would act as an automation screen for the home. The device is being marketed as a “lifestyle computer” that can store all of a person’s digital content, such as photos, videos and MP3 music files, while also providing the interface for anytime access to email, web, entertainment and home aotomation software The latter would require a wireless wide-area network card, which isn’t currently available, Gartner said.

Samsung Electronics is facing legal action from the big five US movie studios which claims one of its DVD players can be used to avoid encryption technology.

According to reports, Samsung is being sued by 20th Century Fox, Paramount Pictures, Time Warner, Walt Disney, and Universal. The Korean Times said Samsung had not yet received the complaint. But the spokesman, “guessed that the film makers take issue with DVD-HD841, which Samsung sold in between June and October 2004.

“If so, I do not know why the movie studios are complaining about the products, of which production was brought to an end more than 15 months ago. We stopped manufacturing the model after concerns erupted that its copy-protection features can be circumvented by sophisticated users.”

In the US Samsung has revealed plans to cash in on what it believes will be a US$370 million market springing up later this year for computer owners who want to upgrade to Windows Vista, but who do not want to buy a new PC.

SanDisk and Sony have snared the top spots in the $11.5 billion memory card and USB flash drive (UFD) market according to DRAMeXchange. SanDisk who pipped Sony to the top spot posted $2.93 billion in sales, followed by Sony with $1.73 billion. Coming in third at $1.13 billion is Kingston.

The run-up towards Microsoft’s expected launch of its next-generation Vista software line and other factors are expected to cause a slowdown in PC sales in 2006, according to a new report from Lehman Brothers.

 The Investment banking firm Lehman Brothers ha lowered its PC unit forecast to 9.8 percent from 12.4 percent in 2006 and decreased its revenue forecast to 1 percent from 5 percent this year. “We are updating our PC forecast based on our recent trip to Asia and other channel checks, which indicate that notebook PC sales are running below normal seasonality in the March quarter,” said Harry Blount, an analyst with Lehman Brothers, in the report.

“In addition, our desktop forecast in 2006 reflects the possibility of a pause in front of the Vista launch,” he said, saying that Microsoft’s software introduction is slated for October 2006. Vista is the next generation operating system from Microsoft. Lehman Brothers also lowered its 2007 PC revenue estimate to 1 percent from 4 percent and its unit estimate to 10.5 percent from 10.9 percent.

“However, our 2007 unit forecast includes an upward desktop unit revision (to 6.3 percent from 0.3 percent) due to the potential benefits of Vista post-launch and a downward notebook revision (to 18.2 percent from 27.7 percent) due to difficult year-over-year comparisons,” Blount said. Some see a rise in chip sales due to Vista. Vista is set to drive NAND flash memory sales in the personal computer, rapidly increasing demand for the non-volatile memory, according to Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.