Hasta La Gadget!

Now this might explain Apple’s curious choice to not upgrade the 13-inch MacBook Pro to a Core 2010 CPU. Yahoo! News is reporting shortages of the more budget-minded Core i3 and i5 laptop processors launched by Intel this January, which has led to chip buyers outbidding each other to the point of paying 20 percent premiums on contract prices. That’s according to US chip distributor Converge, while research firm CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets estimates that product rollouts could be delayed by up to three months as a result. What has Intel got to say for itself?

“We don’t comment on speculation, what I can say is that we are pleased with the strong product demand for our laptop platforms.”

Well sure, you get paid more on a per-CPU basis, why wouldn’t you be pleased? On a more serious note, during Intel’s latest earnings call both Paul Otellini and CFO Stacy Smith expressed their surprise at the vast demand for their 32nm products, with Smith noting that their production of 32nm chips is the fastest ramping process in the company’s history. So there’s not really any villainy afoot here, just good old demand catching supply napping.

Intel Arrandale shortages leading to premium prices, potential product delays originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 24 Apr 2010 07:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Molasses, snails and glaciers: none are slower than an organization developing a new wireless standard. The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) is no exception — it’s been nearly three years since it announced it would roll Wibree into Bluetooth and four months since it made Bluetooth 4.0 official, but still no dice. This week, the SIG says the low-power specification is ready for action, its minutiae finalized. However, fine print in the org’s press release disagrees. The main reason for Bluetooth 4.0 was to include lower power devices, but that all-important integration is still pending a “before June 2010” completion date. That means we still won’t see Bluetooth-toting cats till the end of the year, and we have no idea what SIG has accomplished in the meanwhile. Press release after the break.

Continue reading Bluetooth 4.0 with low energy (almost) finally ready to roll

Bluetooth 4.0 with low energy (almost) finally ready to roll originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Apr 2010 06:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Uh oh. Looks like all that US popularity has taken Apple by surprise and the European arrival for the iPad will be shifted back from the earlier promised “late April” to the end of May. Citing more than 500,000 tablets sold in the first week of American availability, the Cupertino brain trust urges its international audience to look forward to May 10, which is when availability and pricing for the rest of the world will be specified.

Update: Rogers has come forward and confessed that it’ll be offering the 3G iPad “from the end of May in Canada,” though it’s keeping monthly price points close to the chest for now.

iPad international launch delayed until the end of May originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Apr 2010 08:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft Kin notifications have up to fifteen minute delay originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 13 Apr 2010 02:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rumors of Intel delaying processors to avoid stepping on some of its other processors’ toes? Stop us if you’ve heard this one before. This latest instance concerns some unspecified ultra-thin laptop CPUs that Intel has reportedly now put on hold until the third quarter of the year and, according to DigiTimes, a launch then will still depend on what demand looks like at that point. All of this is supposedly at least due in part to Acer’s decision to shelve some of its ultra-thin laptops that would have used the processors, and instead focus on thin-and-light Calpella-based laptops. No word from Intel, of course, but past history suggests we could see some further back and forth before things finally shake out.

Intel putting some ultra-thin laptop CPUs on hold to gauge demand? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 02 Apr 2010 14:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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