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HD DRM under strain

Just days after the organisation behind HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc's AACS copy-protection technology said it had patched a hole exposed by hackers earlier this year (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/10/aacs_la_hinders_hd_hack/), their opponents figured out how to get an Xbox 360 external HD DVD drive to play copies of discs by bypassing part of AACS' encryption-key authorisation process (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/10/aacs_hold_exposed/).

None of this dissuaded Samsung from admitting, yes, it is indeed planning to offer a player capable of handling both next-gen optical formats. The Duo HD will arrive before Christmas (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/13/samsung_readies_dual-format_hd_player/).

iPod hits 100m

Yes, Apple has sold more than 100m iPods (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/10/ipod_sales_pass_100m/) - quite a few, we suspect, to consumers who've upgraded over the years or decided they want Shuffles in all the colours. Maybe they'll upgrade again when the rumoured Wi-Fi fitted iPod (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/13/wifi_ipod_on_the_horizon/) ships. If it ships...

Intel guns for gamers

Intel launched its fatest gaming-oriented processor, the Core 2 Extreme QX6800, releasing the 2.93GHz quad-core chip at least three months earlier than anticipated (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/10/intel_ships_qx6800/). Mind you, benchmark test results published ahead of the introduction of upcoming Core 2-based Celeron processors showed they're no slouch (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/12/intel_core_celerons_benchmarked/) either.

A feast of phones

Orange announced its first Windows Mobile 6 handset, a model based on HTC's Vox candybar phone with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/11/orange_unveils_spv_e650/). Samsung's Blackberry-like i600 has its keyboard on the front, and while Orange didn't say it was going to offer the i600 too, its website revealed otherwise (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/12/orange_readies_samsung_i600/).

Separately, LG said its Shine slider phone would go 3G (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/11/lg_readies_3g_shine/), but we'll see Samsung's ultra-skinny slider, the Ultra Edition II 10.9, much sooner (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/12/sams_u600_hits_europe/).

Finally, Palm admitted it's working on its own operating system again, this one mixing Linux and the current Palm OS, Garnet (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/11/palm_develops_own_os/).
 
 
 

 

Best of the rest

AMD preparing Turion challenger for next-gen Centrino? (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/10/amd_preps_turion_tl-66/)
Samsung spins SpinPoint 2.5in drives (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/11/sams_spinpoint_launch/)
Evesham motors in with car-friendly second-set LCD TV (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/11/evesham_unveils_9dot2inch_lcdtv/)
LG rolls out Beetle-branded MP3 player (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/10/lg_preps_vw_beetle_mp3_player/)
Microsoft brings instant messaging to Xbox Live (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/10/im_on_xbox/)

 

Hot reviews

Sony Walkman video MP3 NW-A800 (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/12/review_sony_nw-a800/) A great Flash player with excellent bundled earphones, but too small a screen to do video justice

Samsung YP-T9 MP3 player (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/06/review_samsung_yp-t9/) Only die-hard Apple-devotees would refuse to consider the T9 as their next media player.

Griffin ExpressCard 5:1 Card Reader (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/05/review_griffin_expresscard_5in1/) Pricier than a stack of USB 2.0 card adaptors but much more convenient.

Orange SPV M700 Windows Mobile smart phone (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/04/review_orange_spv_m700/) The addition of GPS, 3G, extra camera functions and video calling turns an already impressive handset into a must-have.

Griffin Elevator laptop lift (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/03/review_griffin_elevator/) Elevator lifts your laptop to new heights. But it's pricey compared to a stack of books.

Sapphire Radeon X1950 GT-based graphics card (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/04/02/review_sapphire_x1950_gt/) Sapphire's Radeon X1950 GT is an underclocked X1950 Pro that sells for under £100. Deal or no deal?

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