HP's new Android-based Slate 7 tablet starts at $169

del.icio.us Tags: HP,tablets,Android

Agam Shah, IDG News Service@agamsh

• Feb 24, 2013 1:07 PM
• print

Hewlett-Packard re-enters the consumer tablet market with its Slate 7, an Android-based device with a 7-inch screen with pricing that starts at $169.

The Slate 7 will run Android 4.1, also known as Jellybean, and have a dual-core processor based on ARM's Cortex-A9 design. It will start shipping in the U.S. in April, HP said. It didn't provide availability details for other countries.

This will be HP's first tablet based on Google's Android OS. HP quit the consumer tablet market in 2011 when it killed off its WebOS-based TouchPad, but it's now back to take another swing.

HP's ill-fated TouchPad

HP already offers tablets and hybrids running Windows 8, including the ElitePad 900, that are aimed primarily at business users. Rumors of HP developing an Android device emerged earlier this month. The company has also adopted Google's Chromebook OS for its low-power laptops.

Competitive pricing for the Slate 7

At $169, the tablet has a competitive price. It's lower than Samsung's Galaxy Tab 2 7.0, which also runs a dual-core Cortex-A9 processor and is priced at around $199 on Amazon.

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0

The Slate 7 weighs 368 grams and provides speedy access to Google services, HP said. Other features include a 3-megapixel camera on the back and a VGA camera on the front. The tablet has 8GB of storage, expandable with an SD card slot, and Wi-Fi capabilities. The display shows images at 1024-by-600 pixel resolution.

HP announced the product Sunday at the Mobile World Congress show in Barcelona, Spain. Earlier Sunday, Samsung announced a Galaxy Note 8.0 tablet running Android 4.1.

ALERT! UPnP vulnerability leaves millions of devices exposed to attack

del.icio.us Tags: network,security,UPnP

WARNING! This is not a joke, or a scam, people. Please inform your friends, and family.

Here's how to check and see if you are safe:

Step 1) Go to www.grc.com

Step 2) click on Services in the menu, and select ShieldsUP!

Step 3) on the next page click the "Proceed" button

Step 4) Click on the "GRC's Instant UPnP Exposure Test" button

Step 5) Depending on the result, you will be instructed if any further steps need to be taken. (I was safe) All of you should do this A.S.A.P.

ALERT!    

http://www.klocwork.com/blog/embedded-software/universal-plug-and-play-vulnerabilities-leave-millions-of-devices-exposed/

https://protect.iu.edu/blog/2013/02/08/upnp-vulnerabilities-network-devices

http://www.symantec.com/connect/articles/microsoft-upnp-universal-plug-and-play-vulnerability

Intel shrinks its SSDs, aims for tablets, smartphones

del.icio.us Tags: SSD Drives

Intel's new Solid-State Drive 525 packs performance identical to a standard 2.5-inch SSD into a device one eighth of the size, according to the company.

The SSD 525 Series comes in 30GB, 60GB, 90GB, 120GB, 180GB, and 240GB sizes, and uses the same 25nm memory architecture as Intel's larger solid-state options. The drives use mini-SATA connectors, which allow them to be plugged into smaller PCIe slots common to notebooks while still providing a full SATA 6GB/s data rate.

The 120GB and 180GB models are already shipping, and Intel has promised that the rest of the drive sizes will be available within the quarter.

Entree into the tablet/smartphone market?

The diminutive new line could help raise Intel's profile in the mobile marketplace—despite its desktop and laptop dominance, the company has not seen its processors widely used in smartphones and tablets, and could benefit from an improved reputation among mobile OEMs.

Intel also hopes that the SSD 525 line will appeal to embedded device makers, for applications like digital signage and in-flight entertainment.

Intel says that the SSD 525 series offers 50,000 I/O operations per second of random read speed and 550MB/s of sequential read, as well as 80,000 IOPS random write and 520MB/s sequential write—the same numbers as the larger SSD 520 series.

Independent testing by noted review site AnandTech found that the SSD 525 line was "almost equal" to the best of the full-size solid-state drives currently on the market.