intel

With the release of the Windows 8 Surface Pro, Microsoft has reclaimed some of the good will it lost with the Surface RT. Unlike the earlier Surface product, the Pro features the full version of Windows 8, uses a powerful Intel Core i5 CPU, and can install and run just about any software app that a standard laptop or desktop PC can.

But while it's probably the single best example of a Windows tablet we've seen to date, it's far from perfect. The modest battery life, high price, and lack of features all mean the Surface Pro … Read more

You can't blame computer makers as they try to shake off the low margin shackles of the commodity PC market. It's reasonable, though, to ask that they put out a product worthy of a premium price tag.

The touch-screen version of the Envy 23 line starts at $1,049, but HP submitted a $1,949 version for review. The implication is that that HP wants you to think of this PC as a serious computer for performance or home entertainment. The problem is that its distinguishing features, Windows 8 Pro and 16GB of RAM, are easily added to … Read more

The iPad-killing Windows 8 tablet-laptop has arrived. Problem is, most aren't ready to dispatch the iPad -- or the MacBook Air for that matter -- yet.

So far, reviewers of shape-shifting Windows 8 tablets have not been kind. Otherwise known as "detachables," the devices can take the form of a standalone tablet or attach to a keyboard base to become a close facsimile of a full-fledged laptop. … Read more

I can hold my Facebook profile in the palm of my hand. It's shaped like a pink butternut squash with a top hat, no arms, and a bit of blood dripping from its teeth.

This strange creature came about through the Creators Project, a globe-hopping initiative from Intel and Vice that supports artists working through technology. The initiative has been around since 2010, but the Facebook 3D-printable figures project just started this year.

The 3D-printable Facebook project can take three different forms. There's Monster Me, which turns out a little monster. There's Crystallized, which interprets your social data as a pretty crystalline form. There's also Astroverb, which turns out a personalized visual horoscope. These are all pretty abstract concepts. Given the choice, I had to go with the monster.… Read more

Intel will be on hand later this month at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona with some smartphone technologies in hand.

The company yesterday announced that at its booth at Mobile World Congress it'll show off "a new dual core, dual graphics platform." Intel also plans to have Android-based handsets on display that will be running its Atom Z2420 platform -- a low-powered, low-cost chip for smartphones designed for emerging markets.

Intel has been left behind in the mobile processor market. ARM, which develops chip architecture that's produced by a wide array of companies, has taken … Read more

Similar to the Toshiba LX835 I reviewed last week, the Dell's Inspiron One 2330 offers a mainstream entry point for PC buyers interested in Windows 8. Unlike the Toshiba system and its higher-end silicon, this Dell is almost entirely pedestrian in terms of its core features.

A handsome design and a collection of less common audio-video ports give this otherwise unremarkable PC some identity. A comparatively low $1,199 price tag puts the Inspiron One 2330 on the most accessible tier of 23-inch touch-screen all-in-ones. For those with light-duty performance needs interested in a basic Windows 8 desktop, the … Read more

Tech companies may score a victory in their hopes to get immigration reform passed for skilled tech workers.

President Obama urged Congress today to work on immigration policy that would allow foreign-born startup founders to stay in the country. At the same time, several U.S. senators introduced a bill focusing on the same. As U.S. immigration policy currently stands, U.S.-educated computer programmers and engineers could be deported once finishing school.

"Right now in one of those classrooms there's a student wrestling with how to turn their big idea -- their Intel or Instagram -- … Read more

Intel has the go-ahead to construct a $4 billion plant in Ireland where it will design the next generation of 14 nanometer processors.

The chip giant received the OK from Ireland's lead planning agency, according to Ireland-based tech news site Silicon Republic. With that approval a done deal, the project just needs authorization from Intel's board to move forward.

Construction is expected to take two years and could create 3,500 construction jobs and 800 full-time permanent positions. The plant will be located at Intel's campus in Leixlip, County Kildare, where 4,000 people already work, Silicon … Read more

Safaricom today announced a smartphone based an Intel design -- part of the chipmaker's effort to enter the global low-cost phone market.

The Yolo smartphone is aimed "cost-conscious...first-time buyers" in Kenya, said Intel, which is responsible for both the core electronics and phone's design.

That design was announced at CES 2013.

Inside the 3.5-inch Yolo is an Intel Atom Z2420 processor that can run at speeds up to 1.2 GHz and Intel's XMM 6265 modem with HSPA+ support for global roaming.

Yolo will be sold in Safaricom shops in Kenya at an … Read more