Technology News and Gadgets Updates: 01/07/11

Friday, January 7, 2011

Facebook documents reveal strong profits - source

Facebook is generating profits at a faster-than-expected rate, and will likely attract so many investors this year that it will have to disclose financial data similar to a publicly traded company by April 2012, according to a document distributed by Goldman Sachs.

The move could set the stage for a much-anticipated Facebook initial public offering in 2012, though there is no guarantee that the social networking company would choose to sell shares to the public simply because it is required to open its books to the public.

Facebook, the world's No. 1 Internet social network, earned $355 million in net income in the first nine months of 2010 on revenue of $1.2 billion, according to a source who received the documents that Goldman Sachs provided to its clients on Thursday.

Goldman began hand-delivering copies of the 101-page private placement memorandum for a $1.5 billion Facebook offering to its wealthy customers a little after lunchtime in New York, according to the source.

The Goldman customer said he received a separate six-page financial statement containing information on the social networking company.

The document provides some of the most detailed financial information yet about Facebook, which Goldman recently valued at $50 billion in a separate, $450 million funding.

That valuation is high, but not outrageous based on the glimpse into the company's financial performance and the growth that it implies, said Ryan Jacob, of the Jacob Internet Fund.

"It just shows you that these businesses can generate 30 percent to 40 percent, potentially, operating margins," he said. "They probably did at least $500 million in net income in 2010."

Wedbush Securities analyst Lou Kerner, who owns Facebook shares, said, "The revenue kind of are in line with our expectations."

"The surprise was on the profitability. I think it highlights that Facebook is likely to have margins that are going to exceed Google's margins," he said.

The memo said Facebook is likely to have more than 500 shareholders this year, according to another person who reviewed the documents, and that the company may begin filing public reports of its financial performance by April 2012.

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Dell Unveils Tablet PCs, Smartphone

Dell Inc. on Thursday unveiled several new tablet-style computers and a smartphone, part of a strategy to attract more consumers and move beyond its corporate customer base.

The Round Rock, Texas, computer maker introduced a tablet PC with a seven-inch touch screen display that it calls "Streak 7" at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The new Streak tablet follows the release of a model with a five-inch screen that Dell launched last summer.

The newer version will include 4G wireless Internet connectivity from Deutsche Telekom AG's T-Mobile USA unit and carries a dual-core processor by Nvidia Corp. The device, which weighs less than a pound, runs a version of Google Inc.'s Android operating system for mobile devices.

Dell also unveiled a 4.1-inch smartphone that it calls "Venue."

Both the smartphone and Streak will be available in coming weeks, the company said. The Streak initially will be sold exclusively in the U.S. Its pricing will be disclosed in the future.

The computer maker said it also plans to release a tablet computer with a 10-inch screen, and is also aimed at consumers. That tablet, which will be available later this year, is part of an effort to challenge Apple Inc.'s popular iPad computer.

The new tablets come as Dell struggles to spread beyond its roots in corporate technology, which has historically been the largest driver of profits for the industry.

Recently, the tech industry has become more reliant on consumer sales, an area Dell has had difficulty cracking in the past. The company's consumer and retail businesses have struggled to remain profitable.

It's unclear whether the original Streak has helped raise the company's profile with consumers. The device has been approved by more than 300 communications carriers around the world, but the company has not released sales data, and Chief Executive Michael Dell in the past has called revenue from the Streak "immaterial."

The new version speaks to Dell's broader strategy for the consumer market, said John Thode, who manages Dell's handset device group. For example, the company has focused on design to appeal to consumers, he said, referencing the company's Inspiron duo notebook PC, which has a touchscreen that flips to reveal a keyboard underneath.

The Streak 7 is designed to play graphics-intensive games and wirelessly surf the Internet at high speeds. Mr. Thode didn't provide specifics on battery life but indicated it would be robust.

"We want to be able to fly from New York to Los Angeles and be able to watch a whole movie without a battery recharge," he said.

Dell also showed a second 10-inch tablet PC optimized for the company's corporate clients. That device also will be available later this year.

Though it carries a different name for branding, the smartphone is closely related to the Streak series, Mr. Thode said.

"It's everything you see in a Streak 7, but in a smaller form factor," he said.

A Tablet for Panasonic’s Television

If the two prevailing themes at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show have been Internet-connected televisions and tablet computers, then Panasonic is aiming to kill both birds with one stone.
The company is showing off a prototype tablet, the Viera Tablet, that is primarily intended to complement its Viera Connect Internet television service, which allows viewers to use a series of apps on their televisions. The television can also interact with various devices, including a scale and an armband that Panasonic is touting as way to turn a television into a home-workout system.

The tablet would serve as the remote. At Panasonic’s booth, it is using ESPN broadcasts for its demonstration. The basic broadcast is showing on the television, while the user can look at different camera angles—or different channels—on the tablet, which is connected via a Wi-Fi network. This allows a viewer to watch two things at once, or to preview another channel on the tablet and then push it onto the big screen. Someone could also wander into another room with the tablet while continuing to watch the programming.

The tablet runs Google’s Android operating system. There was no information on when it would be available or how much it would cost.

A representative at the Panasonic booth said that the tablet is primarily intended to be used in tandem with the television. He also said that while Panasonic is considering developing the functionality as software that would run on tablets made by other manufacturers, it is not actively doing so now.

Intel's second gen chips bring new graphics, video

Intel Corp. has unveiled the second generation of its Intel Core processor family that are expected to be used in more than 500 desktop and laptop PCs from all the major OEMs worldwide throughout the next year. These include Intel Core i7, i5 and i3 processors, Intel 6 Series Chipsets, and Intel Centrino Wi-Fi and WiMAX adapters.
The chips feature a new version of the company's Intel Wireless Display (WiDi) that adds 1,080p HD and content protection for those sending HD content from their laptop screen to their TV. The company also reported it has been working with film studios and content distributors.

The processors offer what the company calls "visibly smart" microarchitecture that incorporates Intel HD Graphics on each 32nm die to enable significant graphics performance improvements over previous-generation graphics for both HD media processing and mainstream gaming. And on top of improved performance, the chips offer improved battery life and the ability to design thinner, lighter and more innovative laptops and all-in-one PCs.

A new feature of the next-generation PC and laptop processors, Intel Insider will give consumers access to movies on their PCs in full HD that were not available before.

Kevin Tsujihara, president, Warner Home Entertainment Group, explained, "Warner Bros. sees the PC as one of the most broadly available and versatile platforms for delivering premium digital entertainment, and now that Intel has made it more secure, we're able to provide new releases and popular catalog titles in full HD to the PC through our WBShop storefront and from partners like CinemaNow on the same day as DVD and Blu-ray releases."

In collaboration with Hollywood and Bollywood studios and content distributors such as CinemaNow, Dixons Retail plc, Hungama Digital Media Entertainment, Image Entertainment, Sonic Solutions, Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment and Warner Bros. Digital Distribution, Intel offers a protected environment for the distribution, storage and playback of premium content. This enables content owners and video services to release more movies in HD. Commercial distribution of HD premium content using the Intel Insider technology is expected to begin during Q1 11.

Missing link between Big Bang & star creation found

The "missing link" between the Big Bang and the evolution of the universe has been uncovered by a team of international scientists.

The missing link or the period between the Big Bang some 13.7 billion years ago and the creation of the first stars is known as "dark ages" of space which scientists have known nothing for years.

But Cambridge University researchers have now captured light emitted from a massive black hole to peer into this unknown portion of the history of the universe.

They discovered remnants of the first stars and evidence of the aftermath of an exploding star, which was a staggering 25 times larger than the sun.

Professor Max Pettini, of Cambridge's Institute of Astronomy, believes the discovery of these gases could help reveal the origins of the universe.

"We have effectively been able to peer into the Dark Ages using the light emitted from a quasar. The light provides a backdrop against which any gas cloud in its path can be measured," Prof Pettini was quoted as saying by the Daily Mail.

He said, "We discovered tiny amounts of elements present in the cloud in proportions that are very different from their relative proportions in normal stars today.

"Most significantly, the ratio of carbon to iron is 35 times greater than measured in the sun.

"The composition enables us to infer that the gas was released by a star 25 times more massive than the sun and originally consisting of only hydrogen and helium.

"In effect, this is a fossil record that provides us with a missing link back to the early universe."
The Cambridge scientists teamed up with researchers at the California Institute of Technology to carry out the ground-breaking research.

They used light emitted from a massive black hole, called a quasar, to 'light up' gases released by the young stars.

These early stars are believed to hold the key to how the universe evolved from being filled with hydrogen and helium to one rich in heavier elements such as oxygen, carbon and iron.

Lasting half a billion years after the Big Bang, this period is inaccessible to telescopes because the clouds of gas that filled the universe then were not transparent.

Now, a helmet that can alert the pilot about enemy planes

British military pilots will soon don a new helmet which will allow them to shoot down enemy jets by just looking at them -- a breakthrough that could put an end to the century-old concept of the aerial dogfight.

The 'Striker Integrated Display Helmet' is fitted with tiny optical sensors that pick up when the pilot locks onto enemy aircraft.

They are are then picked up by further sensors in the cockpit, allowing pilots to fire a missile to a target.

According to experts, the innovative 250,000-pound headset marks one of the biggest leaps forward in attack capabilities in military history, the Daily Mail reported.

All a pilot has to do is glance at an enemy aircraft and then steer a missile towards it with his, or her, mind.

Targets pop-up in the pilot's visor, at which point he can select by voice command and fire.

As long as the enemy's aircraft is in sight -- whether that be below, above or to either side -- a missile can be directed towards it.

The breakthrough is said to have brought to an end the century-old concept of the aerial dogfight, in which one plane must be directly behind another in order to hit it with firepower.

"It means the end of the dogfight,' leading RAF pilot Mark Bowman was quoted as saying.

"Traditionally you have to get behind an aircraft to lock on. With this, I steer the weapons with my head."

The helmet has been developed by Britain's BAE Systems and has been subjected to extensive flight trials in RAF Typhoon planes.

A spokesperson for BAE said: "An advanced optical head tracker is integrated into the helmet system to provide a high accuracy/low latency solution for low, medium, and high altitude operations.

"While the system has been designed for the Eurofighter Typhoon, its modular design can be applied to all platforms, both rotary and fixed wing."

Microsoft needs ARM to move to mobile-ARM exec

Microsoft Corp's decision to make its Windows operating software compatible with ARM Holdings chip designs allows the US software maker to finally establish a major presence in mobile Internet, ARM's president said Thursday.

It's still not too late for Microsoft to expand into a tablet and smartphone market now dominated by the likes of Apple and Google, Tudor Brown said.

Microsoft's move throws open computer markets previously dominated by Intel Corp . The move is seen as an overdue acknowledgment by Microsoft that computing is moving away from desktop PCs dominated by Intel's chips, to mobile devices where power-efficient ARM microprocessors have a clear lead. [ID:nLDE70516N]

"With Microsoft, for some time it's been more a question of when, not whether, and finally it's now," he said on the sidelines of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. "We've been coaching and cajoling Microsoft for some time to do this."

"Microsoft needs ARM to have any chance of playing in that (mobile Internet) space."

Apple Takes Wraps Off Mac App Store

Apple Inc. delivered on plans to launch an app store for its Macintosh computers Thursday as it seeks to extend the popularity of the store concept beyond its mobile devices.

The company said the new store initially contains more than 1,000 computer apps in 21 categories, such as productivity, games and education. Among the apps are some by Apple, including a Pages word processor and Keynote presentation software, which will each sell for $19.99.

The store will also include contributions by third-party developers, such as apps from the social-networking site Twitter Inc.; Evernote Corp., which makes a free digital-file-management app; and the design-software company Autodesk Inc., which launched both a free and $29.99 professional version of its paint and drawing software SketchBook. Rovio Mobile Ltd. is also offering its Angry Birds game, a hit on Apple's iPhone and iPad, for $4.99.

"We think users are going to love this innovative new way to discover and buy their favorite apps," said Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs in a statement.

The Mac App Store is seen as a way for Apple to capitalize on the popularity of its iPhones and iPads to sell more computers. While Macintosh sales have been strong—increasing 22% in the quarter ended in September—that business has been overshadowed in recent years by the faster-growing mobile-device businesses.

Apple's new app store is also an indication that Apple is aligning its Mac strategy more closely with that of its mobile devices. Last October, for example, the company unveiled a new line of thin MacBook Air notebooks that have no disk drives. They rely instead on the flash-memory chips used in iPhones and iPads that contribute to longer battery life and lighter weight and allow computers to boot up faster. Mr. Jobs said Apple believed that was the future of notebooks.

The company also previewed a new version of its operating system with features that allow users to organize their screens and manipulate applications in a way that's similar to the iPhone and iPad.

Apple's new store has the potential to be a new revenue source for the company, which will take a 30% cut of revenue. The mobile app store, which includes more than 300,000 apps, already makes about $2 billion to $2.5 billion a year for Apple, according to a rough estimate by Kaufman Brothers.

The store could also stoke more interest in developing software for Mac computers, which have not been as attractive a target for independent software makers as the bigger market of PCs that run Microsoft Corp.'s Windows operating system.

The Mac App Store will also provide application developers with a new opportunity to expand their businesses. "I'm genuinely excited about this," said Phil Libin, chief executive of Evernote. While the company already has software for the Mac that can be downloaded online, Mr. Libin said the app format will be much easier for consumers to get.

Online-auction site eBay Inc. also said it is working on a Mac app that it plans to launch this quarter. Steve Yankovich, vice president of eBay Mobile, said it plans to take advantage of the always-on ability of the apps to offer features that it can't include on its website, such as notifying users when bidding on an auction item is about to end. "If I'm just in the browser I need you to launch the browser, but if I'm an app, we can grab your attention," he said.

The announcement from Apple comes as the tech industry is gathering in Las Vegas for the annual Consumer Electronics Show. Companies from Taipei, Taiwan, to Round Rock, Texas, are expected to show off a bevy of new gadgets, ranging from smartphones to tablets, all aimed at taking a chunk out of markets that have been reinvigorated by Apple products. The Cupertino, Calif., company is not attending the show.