Lexar to sell XQD flash memory cards

Lexar, one of the top-shelf makers of flash memory cards, said today it will support the new XQD format with new models that will go on sale in the third quarter.

For the mainstream flash card market, SD dominates when it comes to price and usage in cameras, video cameras, and devices including tablets and PCs. But though bulkier, CompactFlash, maintains a foothold in the higher-end market such as professional SLR cameras.

As CompactFlash aged, though, Sony, Nikon, and Lexar rival SanDisk came up with XQD as a faster, smaller successor to CompactFlash. One big selling point is fast transfer speed -- 2.5Gbps initially with 5Gbps planned with an upgrade to its underlying data-transfer technology, called PCI. The first big XQD use was Nikon's top-end D4 SLR, and Sony offers XQD cards, but so far there hasn't been much evidence of enthusiasm beyond that.

SanDisk hasn't announced XQD support, and Lexar had been noncommittal. No more.

"We are committed to offering innovative and industry-leading photography solutions, which is why we're working with Nikon to offer and co-market XQD memory cards. We view the XQD standard as one of the most logical ways to increase interface speed beyond that of existing CompactFlash technology," said Wes Brewer, Lexar's vice president of products and technology, in a statement. … Read more

Android 4.0 tablet gets supersized to 21.5 inches

Calling it a tablet may be a bit of a stretch, but that's the ad copy a Japanese company is using on a new 21.5-inch Android device.

"A 21.5-inch Android tablet comes to market!" -- is how Japan-based Kouziro is advertising a new touch panel display that runs Android 4.0 on top of a Texas Instruments OMAP dual-core 1GHZ processor.

The "Frontier" branded FT103 sports a 21.5-inch 1,920x1,080 touch display, 1GB of memory, 8GB of storage, webcam, Wi-Fi, and HDMI, microUSB, and microSD ports. … Read more

Retinafied 13-inch MacBook Pro not a given, but screens on tap

Displays that could be used on a 13-inch MacBook Pro Retina are slated to begin production this quarter, but "business plans" for Apple are not definite yet, an analyst told CNET.

Retina-class 13.3-inch displays with a pixel density of 2,560-by-1,600 are slated for production this quarter (Q3), said Richard Shim, an analyst with DisplaySearch.

But when this would result in a Retina-endowed 13-inch version of the MacBook Pro is unclear at the moment, according to Shim.

Production of the 13.3-inch Retina-class display is about a quarter behind the Retina screen used in the 15.… Read more

AMD warns on revenue: Trouble ahead for PC makers?

Advanced Micro Devices said today that revenue for the quarter ending June 30 is expected to be off 11 percent sequentially.

That's a very different outlook from what AMD forecast previously when it said that second-quarter 2012 revenue was expected to increase 3 percent sequentially, plus or minus 3 percent.

"The lower preliminary revenue results are primarily due to business conditions that materialized late in the second quarter, specifically softer-than-expected channel sales in China and Europe," the company said.

But AMD also attributed the worse-than-expected result to "a weaker consumer buying environment impacting the company's … Read more

HP, Acer ultrabook prices dip to $648, $699

Economy ultrabook pricing is starting to take hold at $699 and below, where the thin and light Windows notebooks offer a substantial price advantage over Apple's MacBook Air.

The 13-inch Acer Aspire S3 (model S3-391-6616) is now $648 at Walmart.

The model listed on Walmart's site includes a 1.40GHz Intel Core i3-2377M processor, 4GB DDR3 SDRAM, a 320GB hard drive combined with a 20GB solid-state drive, 13.3-inch HD LED-backlit display (1,366x768), two USB 3.0 ports, an HDMI port, a three-cell lithium-polymer battery rated at 5.5 hours, and Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit Edition.

And, like all ultrabooks, it's thin and light at 0.68 inches and three pounds, respectively. … Read more

iPad Mini could take design cues from iPod

Now that there is an increasing likelihood of Apple releasing an iPad Mini, speculation is starting to get more specific.

Japanese-language Web site Macotakara claims the iPad Mini -- rumored to use a 7.85-inch display -- will be almost as thin as the iPod touch (4th generation), citing "reliable Chinese sources."

That would indeed be thin. The iPod touch is a mere 7.2 mm thick -- a couple of millimeters thinner than the Retina iPad.

The dimensions are similar to Google's Nexus 7: the height is about the same, while the width is a "… Read more

Apple's plans in motion for iPad Mini, says DisplaySearch

Apple has plans for the so-called iPad Mini and it may be only a matter of getting production up and running, according to NPD DisplaySearch.

"For the 7.85-inch panel, there's a business plan for it, there's a mass production target for it. And we know that it's for Apple," Richard Shim, an NPD DisplaySearch analyst, told CNET.

"I don't know the name of the product, but I know it's going to be a tablet," he said.

NPD DisplaySearch talks to companies in the "supply chain" -- firms that … Read more

Micron to buy major Apple supplier Elpida, takes on Samsung

Micron will become the No. 2 maker of memory chips worldwide, second only to Samsung as it is set to buy Elpida Memory, a big supplier to Apple.

The Boise, Idaho-based chipmaker will purchase bankrupt Elpida for $2.5 billion, instantly doubling its share of the memory chip market to about 24 percent. Market leader Samsung has about a 42 percent share.

Elpida was formed in 1999 when NEC and Hitachi merged their memory chip businesses. But the price volatility of the memory market forced it to file for bankruptcy in February with $5.6 billion of debt, despite having … Read more

Windows 8 Pro upgrade set for $39.99, Media Center too

Microsoft is trying to make the Windows 8 upgrade more tempting by cutting the upgrade price and throwing in Media Center, too.

Those with Windows XP, Windows Vista, or Windows 7 will qualify for an upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for $39.99 in 131 markets, Microsoft said today.

And Media Center can be added "for free" through the "add features" option within Windows 8 Pro after the upgrade, according to Microsoft.

That might not seem like much but Microsoft said previously that Media Center must be "acquired" via "Add Features to Windows 8" … Read more

New MacBook Pro, Air prices get slash treatment at Best Buy

Best Buy was quick to discount the newest MacBooks, offering savings up to $140 over the weekend.

The biggest discount is on the $2,799.99 Retina Pro with 8GB of memory and a 512GB solid-state drive (Model: MC976LL/A). That is off $140 to $2,659.99.

The least expensive Retina Pro dropped to $2,089.99 (Model: MC975LL/A), shaving $110 off the regular price (see image below).

New MacBook Airs got cut too. The $999.99 Air (Model: MD223LL/A) fell to $949.99, off $50.

The latest MacBooks feature Intel's new "Ivy Bridge" … Read more