Toshiba outsources chip production to Samsung

Toshiba is set to significantly restructure its silicon chip manufacturing operations in 2011, outsourcing some production to Samsung and selling a manufacturing plant to Sony.

Toshiba Corp plans to reduces its non-memory chip exposure in an effort to claw back revenue, following an operating loss of $3.4 billion in its 2008 financial year, in the midst of the global financial crisis.

System chip design
Outsourcing to Samsung and others is part of the plan to cut capital investment outlays in the next financial year starting in April 2011.

"Thanks to this tie-up Toshiba will gain a stronger position," said Yumi Nishimura, a senior market analyst at Daiwa Securities Capital Markets.

"In a situation when bigger capacity is required, the burden of capital investment can be too big for one company, so the accord is a positive factor for Toshiba."

Toshiba has also announced that it will sell its system chip production line in Nagasaki to Sony. That line produces chips for Sony PlayStation 3s – and is located in a factory already owned by Sony.

Source: Reuters

10 Most Popular Digital Cameras in 2010

	1. Canon PowerShot SX20 IS –Interest in the Canon SX20 remains strong even after the announcement of the SX30. The 20x ultrazoom continues to offer plenty of picture-taking power.
	2. Nikon Coolpix P100 – Nikon's flagship ultrazoom is not far behind the SX20 in second place. The P100 was a very strong performer in our testing with a 26x optical zoom and full 1080p HD video.
	3. Canon Rebel T2i – Jumping up a few more spots is the flagship Rebel, the T2i. It's still a great value with an 18 megapixel CMOS sensor and plenty of premium features handed down the line from the 7D.
	4. Canon PowerShot SD1400 IS –The slender PowerShot SD1400 continues to hold a place in the top five with 14.1 megapixels of resolution and a 28mm wide angle lens. For just over $200, it's extremely pocketable and easy to use.
	5. Olympus E-5 – The freshly-reviewed E-5 makes its way into the top ten for the first time. The rugged follow-up to the E-3 features a 12.3 megapixel sensor, a 3.0-inch flip-out LCD and in-camera image stabilization.

	6. Nikon D3000 – The Nikon D3000 drops a few more places on our list this month, which may be fitting considering the introduction of the D3100. The 10.2 megapixel, DX-format D3000 is still in Nikon's online catalogue for the moment.
	7. Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7 –Slipping just one spot, the ZS7 is holding steady in the top ten with a 12x optical zoom lens, in-camera geo-tagging and a 12.1 megapixel sensor.
	8. Nikon D5000 – The D5000 shifts downward by one spot, still offering a 12.3 megapixel sensor and 720p HD video for just over $600.
	9. Sony Alpha SLT-A55V  – Sony brought translucent mirror technology back with the a55 and a33 earlier this year, and the SLT-A55 lands on our tep ten list for the first time. It boasts 10 fps burst shooting, lightning fast AF and a swiveling 3.0-inch LCD.
	10. Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S2100 - The no-frills, wallet-friendly S2100 hangs on to the last spot on our top ten with a 3x optical zoom lens, a beginnner-friendly Easy mode and a splashy orange color option.

Sony delays the release date of its "Gran Turismo 5"

PUSHED BACK: Sony delays the release of Gran Turismo 5 again.

Sony expected to delay the global release of the latest version of its popular Gran Turismo car-racing game, which was due early next month, to later this year.

Gran Turismo 5 for the PlayStation3 videogame console was to hit US and European markets on Nov 2 and Japan the following day, but the release will now be "this holiday season," said Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

The delay is due to "production reasons," said Makiko Noda, a spokesman for the electronics giant's game unit, without elaborating.

She said it was not clear whether the release would be in time for "Black Friday," the day after US Thanksgiving in late November, and considered the biggest shopping day in the United States, the largest market for the game industry.

The Gran Turismo series is one of the biggest money makers for Sony's game business, having sold more than 56 million copies worldwide since making its debut in 1997.

The release of Gran Turismo 5 had already been delayed from March this year.

Japanese videogame rival Nintendo last month said that its hugely anticipated handheld 3DS console would miss the key Christmas season - a factor in the company sharply reducing its profit forecast for the year.

Xperia X10: Keep in touch with style

Managing Facebook and Twitter updates becomes even easier with the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10.

When you look at the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10, the first thing that will grab your attention is its large 4in screen.

The screen dominates the front of the smartphone and is capable of displaying beautiful and vivid pictures.

The X10 runs on Android 1.6 which is a tad older than other smartphones in the market which use Android 2.1.

I'm really new when it comes to the Android operating system or even smartphones so it took awhile to adapt to the user interface. I found it cool that I could switch screens by just swiping my finger horizontally or vertically on the screen.

However, I was not thrilled that applications took a littler longer to launch. As I am a little impatient, the screen will be covered with fingerprints due to repeated tappings by the time the app actually launched.

Notebook using its 2.15Ah lithium-ion cells facing global recall

After 40 global incidents of overheating involving notebook which using 2.15Ah lithium-ion battery .. several notebook vendor such as Dell, Toshiba and Hewlett-Packard notebooks with Sony-made batteries are being recalled. These incidents involved smoke and/or flames but there were four cases involving small burns and 21 resulting in minor property damage.

According to the official statement posted on Sony’s website (www.sony-asia.com), the recall involves only notebook computers using its 2.15Ah lithium-ion cells. Sony said its Vaio notebook computers use different battery types so they are not part of the recall.

Hewlett-Packard has confirmed a free replacement programme for the specified battery pack at its centres. Malaysian customers should go to its website 

(www.hp.com/support/batteryreplacement) for more details. Or, they can call HP Service and Support at 1-800-88-4848. The affected models include HP’s Compaq and Pavillion notebooks. A detailed list is available at the site.

Dell customers can check if they are having the affected models by surfing to www.dellbatteryprogram.com 

  
Potentially affected batteries were sold with the following models of Dell notebook computers or separately as secondary batteries:

Latitude: D410, D500, D505, D510, D520, D600, D610, D620, D800, D810, D530, D620ATG
Inspiron: 500M, 510M, 600M, 700M, 710M, 6000, 6400, 8500, 8600, 9100, 9200, 9300, 9400, E1505, E1705
Precision: M20, M60, M70, M90
XPS: XPS, XPS Gen2, XPS M170, XPS M1710

I'm using Latitude D830. So my battery is OK. But if your battery is really hot... you can also call your vendor to check the condition of your battery.

Tool-free-number for DELL customer

Australia 1300-662-087

New Zealand 0800-203-355

Singapore 1800-395-7932

Malaysia 1800-88-0432

Hong Kong 852-2969-3187

Thailand 1800-060-143

Taiwan 00801-86-1015

China 800-858-0614

India 1800-425-2069