Hasta La Gadget!

Microsoft has just announced the release of Windows Server 2008 Foundation. Codenamed Lima once upon a time, this release is being billed as a low cost alternative to Windows Small Business Server. Squarely aimed at the OEM set (Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, and various Chinese software pirating syndicates have already have expressed interest), this licensing scheme limits the server to fifteen users (even as a member server on a Windows domain), doesn’t include hypervisor, and does away with the need for Client Access Licenses (CALs). With today’s announcement, Foundation is available in 40 countries in English, Traditional and Simplified Chinese, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese, Spanish, and Turkish.

[Via ZDNet]

Filed under: Desktops

Microsoft launches entry-level Foundation Server 2008 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Apr 2009 19:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HP, Lenovo, and Dell haven’t fared too badly in some of Greenpeace’s previous e-waste reports, but it looks like three companies have fallen well short of the organization’s expectations this time around, with each getting called out for failing to live up to their promises. Specifically, all three had said that they would eliminate vinyl plastic (PVC) and brominated flame retardants (BFRs) in their products by the end of this year, but they’ve now apparently told Greenpeace that they won’t be able to meet that timeline, and only Lenovo has come forward set a new deadline (the end of 2010). The big winner, on the other hand, is Philips, which has jumped from 15th place to 4th as a result of some new recycling initiatives, prompted at least in part by public pressure. And, as you can see above, Nintendo is once again dead last, although we’re pretty sure that’s simply a result of sheer mass at this point.

Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, Laptops

Greenpeace slams HP, Lenovo, and Dell in latest report originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Mar 2009 15:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Quite frankly, it’s immensely challenging to find desktops more apt to make computer users fall asleep at the keys than Lenovo’s ThinkCentre line, but thankfully, they’re not exactly aimed at the “1337 gaming crowd.” In an effort to continue shrinking the size of towers and blasting us all with the company’s profound green vibes, the ThinkCentre A58 and M58e have been introduced, bringing with ’em Intel Core 2 Duo / Core 2 Quad CPUs, onboard graphics, up to 1TB of HDD space, upwards of 4GB of RAM, optional Blu-ray drives for the really productive employees and all sorts of bloatware that keeps corporate machines from booting up a second before the coffee’s ready. For those of you still awake, you can buy either of these joyous boxes next month starting at $399.

Filed under: Desktops

Lenovo intros small, green ThinkCentre A58 and M58e desktops originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 10 Mar 2009 14:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lenovo said Monday that it will label eight ThinkPad laptops as “semi-ruggedized,” after those laptops passed special tests designed by the U.S. military to measure the toughness of a notebook.

The ThinkPad X200, X301, X200s, X200 Tablet, T400, T500, R400 and SL300 have all received the special designation, which was arrived at after all eight passed some specialized military tests. However, they have not been officially designed as “ruggedized,” which can also mean compliant with the MIL-STD-810F tests set up by the U.S. government for testing notebooks under a variety of conditions.

(A press release announcing the changes was posted on Engadget. Lenovo representatives could not be reached for comment, or for confirmation.)

Lenovo also said that it would equip its ThinkPad T400 laptop with an optional high brightness, wide angle screen. Prices will begin at about $1,350.

Lenovo’s S10 netbook has always had a reputation for being a bit warm to the touch, but it sounds like the little lappy has some more serious issues with heat — the official Lenovo support forums are flooded with users complaining that the fan endlessly spins up and down. Making matters worse, Lenovo apparently hasn’t acknowledged the problem, and some customers report that S10s sent in for repair return in exactly the same condition. That doesn’t sound totally awesome — anyone else having this problem?

[Thanks, Denis]

Filed under: Laptops

Lenovo S10 users complaining of endless fan noise originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 Feb 2009 09:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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