4th

I told you the new dock connector change was awful.

Apple unexpectedly unveiled a new fourth-generation iPad today, just six months after the birth of the cheekily dubbed "new iPad." That's the shortest planned obsolescence window I've ever seen from Apple, and CNET's Roger Cheng is not alone in feeling burned at spending $500 (or more) on a gadget that's just been significantly upgraded at the same price.

Make no mistake, though -- the suddenness of the iPad update has nothing to do with the faster A6X processor, expanded LTE support, and 10-hour battery … Read more

Just got a third-gen iPad? Apple might be willing to exchange it.

In an unexpected move, Apple refreshed its 10-inch iPad today, leaving many third-generation iPad owners groaning at a suddenly subpar device.

Apple customers like Roger Cheng have (until now) slept soundly knowing that any Apple product purchased is the "latest and greatest" for at least one year. Today, Apple killed that notion.

Considering the fourth-generation iPad offers relatively incremental upgrades, not all iPad owners will be peeved. However, if you know you'll lose sleep over the iPad you purchased less than one month ago, you'… Read more

So, just how thin will future touch screen ultrabooks get? Intel provides plenty of guidance on how to get there.

Ultrabooks these days typically range between 17mm (0.66 inches) and 20mm (0.78 inches) in thickness. With the emergence of Windows 8 tablet-esque ultrabooks with touchscreens, Intel wants to shave off a few more millimeters.

At its annual conference today, Intel released a slide (above) showing a touch screen ultrabook with a thinly-sliced 2.5mm keyboard (Microsoft's Surface tablet has a keyboard that is 3mm thin by comparison), a sub 0.5mm touch panel, and a 5mm hard … Read more

Apple take note. An Intel executive says everything is going the way of touch.

"Intel has put its money where its conviction is" and invested heavily in touch screens, Rob DeLine, director of Ultrabook product marketing at Intel, said in an interview.

DeLine pointed out that although there are plenty of touch screens that are 10 inches and smaller avaialable, that isn't the case for larger sizes.

The larger-screen ecosystem "really didn't exist," he said. "The ecosystem for 10-inch and below for tablets is pretty mature. So, we've made investments to ensure … Read more

Intel will disclose a new series of ultra-power-efficient chips aimed at tablets and convertibles at the Intel Developer Forum next week.

The Intel 4th Generation Core chips, codenamed "Haswell," will come close to cutting the power consumption in half compared with the most power-efficient mainstream 3rd Generation Core "Ivy Bridge" chips today.

Ivy Bridge chips used today in the skinniest, lightest laptops like the MacBook Air and Hewlett-Packard's Envy Spectre XT are rated at 17 watts.

The new chips, due in the second half of 2013, will be rated initially at 10 watts -- that … Read more

Independence Day is coming on July 4th, and that means people will be getting together to light fireworks or watch fireworks shows, and--perhaps most importantly--cook great food.

Though this might seem early with the 4th of July more than a week away, we wanted to make sure everybody had time to figure out their menus and get their supplies ready before the mad rush to the grocery stores. With these apps, you can start planning for the perfect Independence Day feast.

This week's app collection is all about cooking apps for iOS. The first lets you browse recipes from famous chefs on the Food Network; the second gives you a giant database of recipes and cooking guidance for any time of year; and the third is perfect for planning and cooking outdoors on the barbecue.… Read more

PopCap Games has created a new development studio aimed at delivering fast-to-market titles, the company announced today.

Dubbed 4th & Battery, the new "experimental" studio is made up of current PopCap developers who want to "create smaller, simpler, and sometimes edgier games," the company said. PopCap pointed out that in traditional gaming development models, creating a title can take a long time. And in the process, fewer titles are actually released. With 4th & Battery, the company hopes to get more titles to the market far more quickly.

PopCap Games is no slouch in the gaming … Read more

Last week, I had the privilege of telling you about new underwear featuring allegedly TSA scanner-proof radiation shields designed to cover your naughty bits. The privacy-protecting garb is one way to protest the airport body scanners that many people find to be invasive and in violation of Fourth Amendment rights.

We've asked the Transportation Security Administration how the undies will fly in the security line and haven't yet heard back whether the leaf-shaped blockers will single you out for a hands-on search, which could be even worse.

So if you want to let the TSA agent know you're not happy about mandatory virtual strip searches, check out this new line of T-shirts, skivvies, and socks from artist Mike McQuade called 4th Amendment Wear.

It's a series of underwear with either the phrase "Read the 4th Amendment, perverts" or the text of the Fourth Amendment printed in magnetic ink, so it can be read by the people manning the scan machines. I like this passive-aggressive way of letting a stranger know you don't like them seeing you naked. … Read more