News

• Windows 8 puts end to endless reboots

  Microsoft yesterday promised that a feature it's added to Windows 8 will put a stop to endless reboots.

• Via announces $49 PC with Android OS

  The price bar for PCs keeps dropping, with chip maker Via on Tuesday announcing a US$49 APC computer with a customized version of Google's Android operating system.

• Thunderbolt cable options open up for Apple Mac users

  The number of options available for Mac users to buy Thunderbolt cables from outside Apple is growing, with companies announcing longer and competitively priced cables that will also work with upcoming Windows PCs with Thunderbolt ports.

• No price cuts for Windows 8 upgrades, says analyst

  Microsoft will not reduce the price of Windows 8 upgrades, as it did three years ago before the roll-out of Windows 7, a retail sales analyst said today.

• Italian court upholds Apple warranty fine

  An Italian court has upheld a €900,000 (US$1.2 million) fine imposed on Apple by Italy's competition authority for allegedly violating consumer protection laws, Italian media reported late Friday.The Regional Administrative Tribunal (TAR) of Lazio rejected Apple's appeal against the fine imposed by the Antitrust Authority last December for "unfair commercial practices that damage the consumer."The court found that Apple Italy was not fully applying a two-year guarantee that is obligatory under European law and was providing unclear information on its own additional commercial warranties, the online edition of the Corriere della Sera newspaper reported.An Apple Italy spokesman was not immediately available for comment.The Antitrust fine applies to Apple Sales International, Apple Italia and Apple Retail Italia and concerns their alleged failure to inform customers of their right to a 24-month warranty from the vendor under European Union regulations and insufficiently clear information on the company's own AppleCare Protection Plan and its partial duplication of the existing legal warranties.A campaign to force Apple to modify its behavior in Italy was spearheaded by the Milan-based consumer association Altroconsumo.

• Microsoft reprises free Xbox back-to-school PC promo

  Microsoft will repeat last year's back-to-school promotion, kicking off the deal Sunday with an offer of a free Xbox 360 game console to eligible U.S. students who buy a new Windows 7 PC.

• Microsoft anti-bloatware service to apply to Windows 8 PCs, too

  A Microsoft in-store program that scrubs "bloatware" from Windows PCs will also be offered when Windows 8 machines reach the market later this year, a company representative said Wednesday.

• Microsoft to charge $15 for Windows 8 upgrade deal

  Microsoft will charge users who buy a new Windows 7 PC $14.99 for an upgrade to Windows 8, according to a report.

• Microsoft preps Windows 8 upgrade deal for early June debut, says report

  Microsoft will kick off a Windows 8 upgrade program for buyers of Windows 7 PCs in early June, according to a report.

• LG to launch Cloud for sharing content across smartphones, TVs and PCs

  LG Electronics will launch a beta of its LG Cloud service on Tuesday, that will allow users to access content across various electronic devices, the company said on Monday.

• Lenovo expands recall of ThinkCentre desktops due to fire hazard

  Lenovo is expanding the recall of some ThinkCentre all-in-ones due to a component defect that can cause the PCs to overheat and catch fire, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said on Tuesday.

• Macs more likely to carry Windows malware than Mac malware, study finds

  One in five Mac computers is likely to carry Windows malware, but only one in 36 is likely to be infected with malware specifically designed for the Mac OS X, according to study performed by antivirus firm Sophos.

• Samsung claims Apple infringed eight patents in reply to Apple suit

  Samsung Electronics alleged in a counterclaim to an Apple patent infringement lawsuit in a federal court in California that the maker of the iPhone and iPad has infringed eight of its patents.

• Microsoft remains mum on Windows 8 upgrades from Vista, XP

  Microsoft today declined to confirm whether users of Windows XP and Vista will be able to upgrade their PCs to Windows 8 when the latter launches later this year.

• Intel's first Ivy Bridge chips will be high-end quad-core parts

  Intel will announce its first Core processors based on the Ivy Bridge microarchitecture next week, and the company says the first chips won't be for ultrabooks, but will be quad-core parts for high-end desktops and laptops.