News

• Google I/O: The buzz from this Google-extravaganza is decidedly quieter

  Google I/O week is here, and Android-watchers in particular as well as Google fans in general are buzzing over what the Goog is planning to wow us all with in San Francisco. A slick new phone? A brand-spanking new version of Android? Another one of whatever the heck this was?

• Intel loses ground as world's top semiconductor company, survey says

  As Intel mulls a plan to expand its contract-manufacturing operations, the company has lost ground as the world's top semiconductor company to chip suppliers benefitting from the success of mobile devices, according to a study by IC Insights.

• Virginia Tech researchers create underwater spy robot

  Researchers at Virginia Tech have built an autonomous, robotic jellyfish that could someday work as an underwater military spy.

• Desktop chips zip past 4GHz; next stop 5GHz?

  Mobility has all but eclipsed speed and anything else as the capability garnering the most attention in desktop processors.

• Space station springs a leak; NASA preps spacewalk to fix it

  Astronauts on board the International Space Station are preparing for a possible spacewalk tomorrow to repair an ammonia leak.

• Houston, we have a leak. Space station losing ammonia

  NASA ground engineers and astronauts aboard the International Space Station are working together to fix an ammonia leak on the station.

• Reports: Icahn, Southeastern make alternative bid for Dell

  Investor Carl Icahn and Southeastern Asset Management have made a counter-offer for Dell that would keep the computer company still publicly traded, according to reports.

• 3D-printable gun maker ordered to take down blueprints

  U.S. Department of Defense Trade Controls has apparently ordered Defense Distributed to removed the blueprints for a 3D printable gun from its website.

• Amazon may be working on a smartphone with hologram-like 3D

  Amazon is reportedly developing a smartphone that sports a 3D screen that relies on retina-tracking technology to make images seem to float above the screen like a hologram.

• Google boosts Glass with Google+, search upgrades

  Google Glass developers and early adopters should be getting a software upgrade within the next week that adds tweaks to Google+, Gmail and search.

• Western Digital and SanDisk deliver their first hybrid drive

  Western Digital has unveiled more information on its first hybrid solid-state drive, revealing that it worked with SanDisk to create the 500GB drive.

• Dell buys Enstratius to beef up multi-cloud management chops

  Dell has purchased Enstratius, a company that allows customers to manage cloud resources across multiple providers from a single management console for an undisclosed sum this week.

• Commodity hardware will be hallmark of SDN networks

  Don’t get too attached to your specialised network hardware – you’re not going to need it in the future, says one researcher.

• iPad 5 rumour rollup for the week ending May 8

  The iOSphere seems to have lowered itself from mere rumor to mere guesses for iPad 5 and the iPad mini 2, though with just as much assurance.

• New boot firmware a step toward 64-bit Windows RT

  A standards organisation has created a boot environment for tablets and PCs that could potentially run a 64-bit version of Windows RT.