August 16, 2006, 5:54 PM PDT
Facebook launches API and bill-sharing service
Posted by: Andrew Gruen

Remember the Billmonk bill-sharing service we posted about a few weeks back? Well now it has some serious competition in the form of FaceBank, the first application to take advantage of Facebook's new API. As of now, FaceBank is pretty underdeveloped, but is has a huge advantage in that virtually every college student (the obvious targets for bill-sharing services) already has a Facebook account.

Using FaceBank is a bit confusing. The service is designed around the concept of lending to and "mooching" from friends organized in groups called piggy banks. A bank is a group of people you define by selecting from a list of your Facebook friends. FaceBank keeps track of all the loans within a piggy bank and will minimize the number of transactions required for the entire group to settle up. For example, if I owe Noah $20, and he owes Matt $20, FaceBank will instruct me to pay Matt $20 and mark both debts as settled. Entering a loan or a mooch consists of selecting the person you owe or owes you from a list and entering the dollar amount with an optional description of the credit or debit.

Unfortunately, there's no way to enter a large bill and split it between multiple people; instead shared costs must be entered as a loan, forcing you to do the division to determine how much each person owes. There's also no way to select more than one friend at a time when entering a loan or mooch, nor is there a mechanism to limit the friend list to the particular piggy bank you're in at the moment. Another obvious missing feature is the ability to turn a pre-existing Facebook group into a piggy bank.

Though it's undoubtedly rough around the edges, with a bit of development--from Facebook themselves or a third party developer with the API--it could dominate the college micro-loan and bill-sharing market.

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August 11, 2006, 5:01 PM PDT
A college student's dream...in a router
Posted by: Andrew Gruen

Asus's new router, the WL-700gE, just arrived at our offices this morning. We haven't finished testing it yet, but if the router can do just half of what the company claims, it's going to be awesome. At first glance, it looks like an 802.11b/g router tricked out with NAS functionality, thanks to its 160GB internal hard drive. Looking closer reveals it can do so much more. And all for about $260 from some online retailers.

Perhaps most interesting, and potentially controversial, is the router's ability to manage FTP, HTTP, and BitTorrent downloads itself. According to Asus, you can initiate downloads from the router and they'll be saved to its internal hard drive. For all those college students who download the latest--cough--Linux distributions on 6 DVDs--cough--overnight, the WL-700gE will let them turn off their noisy PCs and save data right to the router. The router also has a USB port, which lets you connect an external hard drive for more storage or as a backup--the router has RAID 0 and 1 capabilities. You can also plug in other USB media and have the device's contents transferred to the router with the push of a button. Plugging a printer or a Webcam into the port will let any computer connected to the network share the peripheral.

The router also supports a multitude of internal and external file sharing protocols. It has a Web server, so you can host your own pages and files both inside your network and, with its DDNS service, out to the rest of the Internet. The router can also share music stored on its hard drive to computers running iTunes and Xbox 360s connected to the network (for the geeks out there, it has both a DAAP and a UPnP/DLNA server, so it is compatible with any devices that work with those standards).

Verizon may claim it sells the "Ultimate Media Razr," but the Asus WL-700gE has the potential to be the Ultimate Media Router. We're testing it now, so check back soon for a full review.

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August 08, 2006, 3:24 PM PDT
The Hummer of laptop cases
Posted by: Andrew Gruen

Some thought we were crazy when we dumped a cup of coffee on our Panasonic ToughBook 74. Others wished their laptop could withstand that kind of beating. For all of you out there who want a truly rugged notebook but aren't ready to upgrade, Slashgear has a review of the Otterbox Laptop Case. The company claims the case is strong enough to stand on and waterproof, so the guys at Slashgear tested that by jumping on the case and submerging it in a pool with a MacBook Pro inside (it survived). Overall they really liked the case, but at $170 and about 8 pounds, OtterBox is certainly not right for everyone.

Check out their review for a video of the unboxing and, of course, submerging the MacBook Pro.

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August 07, 2006, 12:33 PM PDT
Macs are cheaper than PCs? Yes
Posted by: Andrew Gruen

As Rich Brown posted earlier this morning, the the new Mac Pro is here. Now that all Apple's machines run on commodity, Intel-based hardware, Apple can't get away with charging much more for its products. Sure, there's value in Mac OS X. There's also value in Apple's legendary industrial design. But now we get to see exactly how much it's charging for it.

At the WWDC keynote, Phil Shiller, Apple's senior VP of marketing, told us that the "standard" Mac Pro configuration is about $1,000 less than a similarly configured Dell. A Mac Pro with dual 2.6GHz Xeons, 1GB of 667MHz RAM, a 250GB hard drive spinning at 7,200rpm, and an Nvidia GeForce 7300GT video card with 256MB of dedicated video memory is $2,499 on Apple's site, as promised. A Dell Precision 690 workstation with the same specs except for an Nvidia Quadro NVS 285 video card will run you $3,709. An HP Workstation xw8400 with that same Quadro NVS 285 hits $3,791. So if our elementary-school arithmetic is correct, the Mac Pro is $1,210 less than the Dell and $1,292 less than the HP. With Apple's free Boot Camp utility that lets you run Windows on a Mac, it's easy to imagine folks opting for the Mac Pro even if they never plan to use Mac OS X. Obviously, Apple hopes that the price differential will get more power users onto the Mac platform to at least give OS X a spin.

Before leaving WWDC, we had the chance to eye one of the new Mac Pros. From the outside, they look remarkably similar to the PowerMac G5s. External differences include an additional optical drive bay, additional USB and FireWire 800 ports on the case's front, and space on the back to prevent blocking one of the machine's four PCI Express slots when using one of the latest, double-wide video cards. Also on the back, there's now only one fan grille, and the power jack is now at the top center of the case.

We don't have one of the Mac Pros in the Labs yet, but check back soon for a full review. Also be sure to bookmark CNET's full coverage of WWDC 2006.

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August 01, 2006, 2:52 PM PDT
Dell to add AMD chips to notebook lineup for Q4 2006?
Posted by: Andrew Gruen

Though Dell already broke up with Intel in the server market this May, Digitimes reports that the company is about to do the same for its notebooks. According to anonymous "sources at Taiwan-based notebook makers," Dell is set to launch a full range of AMD-based laptops based on the Sempron, Athlon 64, and Turion 64 X2 processors in the forth quarter of this year. AMD-powered Dell notebooks should mean less-expensive computers and more consumer choice--and of course, inexpensive, low-end notebooks hitting the streets during the holiday buying season.

Adding AMD Turion 64 X2 processors would also shake up Dell's high end. Using both the Core 2 Duo with EMT-64 and the Turion 64 X2 in, say, the XPS lineup, would give power users a choice of dual-core, 64-bit processors, which will be particularly useful when the 64-bit capable Windows Vista goes mainstream early next year. Digitimes thinks lower prices would also seriously heat up competition between Dell and HP--one of AMD's biggest customers.

So what would you call cheaper notebooks, more choice for high-performance machines, and more competition in the industry? A triple treat for consumers.

When (if) Dell does launch AMD-based notebooks, be sure to check CNET for full reviews.

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July 31, 2006, 11:38 AM PDT
More battery problems... This time at Apple
Posted by: Andrew Gruen

It looks like Dell isn't the only laptop manufacturer with battery problems these days. Some MacBook Pro users reported batteries that stopped powering machines after using just 10 percent of their capacity. In response Apple started a silent recall program that required you to wrangle with AppleCare if you wanted a new battery. Well, as of today, it's silent no longer. If you have a 15-inch MacBook Pro battery with a model number of A1175 and a serial number that ends with U7SA, U7SB, or U7SC, head over to Apple's recall page.

The battery recall is hot on the heels of Apple's official recognition of the MacBook discoloration and the MacBook Pro whine. Apple is finally taking care of all the Intel early adopters...

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July 27, 2006, 1:46 PM PDT
Core 2 Duo desktop demos
Posted by: Andrew Gruen

Under the big top (we're in a giant air-conditioned tent), Intel released Core 2 Duo, its latest line of processors. Core 2 Duo marks the first time Intel has used the same architecture across its entire line of server, desktop, and notebook processors. The company is billing the Core architecture as the biggest launch since the Pentium processor first went on sale 13 years ago. And rightfully so. By abandoning NetBurst, which was the architecture introduced with the Pentium 4, Intel-based desktops now enjoy some of the same performance and power savings that Intel notebooks have known since the introduction of the first Pentium M. According to Intel spokespeople onsite, Core 2 Duo Extreme Edition desktops are both 40 percent faster and 40 percent more efficient than prior-generation Pentium 4s.

Demonstrations showcased both the multitasking performance and the raw speed of these new CPUs. One machine equipped with a 2.93GHz Extreme Edition managed to keep Quake 4 pumping out 139.7 frames per second (fps) while running a virus scan. Another similarly equipped rig managed a maximum frame rate on F.E.A.R. that topped out at more than 500fps and averaged 169fps. A demo during the keynote used a new gaming engine under development by Offset to render what Intel chief sales and marketing officer Sean Maloney called "Shrek-like" character animation in real time. An incredible streaming video of the demo is available.

If you're not a gamer and the Extreme Edition (along with its extreme price of more than $900 for the processor alone) sounds like a bit much for you, fear not. Intel's other Core 2 Duo desktop configurations should make their way into home and office desktops, with performance increases as well. The first batch of systems to pass through CNET Labs has been impressive, with prices ranging from $999 to nearly $6,000.

Though Intel PR had little in the way of hard numbers to share, it ran a Microsoft Office demo that recalculated an Excel spreadsheet while simultaneously conducting a virus scan. The recalculation took about 20 seconds on a 2.66GHz Core 2 Duo-powered machine and about a minute on a 3.8GHz Pentium 4. Non-Extreme Edition configurations include 1.86GHz and 2.13GHz chips with 2MB of cache in addition to 2.4GHz and 2.66GHz chips with a whopping 4MB of cache. Extreme Edition chips are in stores today, while other Core 2 Duo desktops will start shipping throughout August.

For more information on Core 2 Duo, see News.com's coverage and CNET's latest reviews of Core 2 Duo-based machines.

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July 27, 2006, 8:21 AM PDT
Apple to fix whine and discoloration in its notebooks
Posted by: Andrew Gruen

Remember the fiasco over scratching the iPod Nano? People were really upset, and that was over the aesthetics of a sub-$300 music player. Apple notebook users are fickle folk, too--they pay top dollar for their hardware and expect near perfection from it. So when reports of the MacBook Pro emitting a high-pitched whine started coming in just days after the machine's release, many would-be upgraders were dismayed. Then, just a short while after the release of the consumer-oriented MacBook, stories of early aging and case discoloration made their way to the Web. For a few months now, Apple repair staff have either been telling customers that these problems were normal or quietly went about fixing the issues.

It looks like that's all changing. Apple has posted two of what might be the shortest support documents ever in its support knowledge base. Titled "MacBook Pro with noise under the keyboard" and "About white MacBooks' palmrest area", they suggest that affected users should "contact AppleCare for service."

Though it's good to see that Apple has officially admitted to problems and is taking care of them, users have had issues since the MacBook Pro's release in March. There's little praise to be given for fixing a problem more than four months after it cropped up.

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July 26, 2006, 2:01 PM PDT
Web 2.0 log.os are funr
Posted by: Andrew Gruen

They say that emulation is some form of flattery, so perhaps these artists are expressing their love for Web 2.0 by creating a series of "updated" logos for decidedly 1.0 companies. Or maybe they're just making fun at Flickr's expense--take this SuperSoakrs logo for example. The logos manage to mock all the key features of any Web 2.0-compliant logo including: a beta badge; solid-color, Mac-like "lickable" icons; a reflection below the logo; and, of course, shortening the suffix -er to just -r. Perhaps someone wants to speculate what CNET 2.0 will look like?

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July 26, 2006, 12:41 PM PDT
A (NAND) flash of the future
Posted by: Andrew Gruen

We here at CNET have a need for speed (just take a look at our reviews of the BMW M5 and the Chevy Corvette Z06), so we'll really be excited to see flash-based hard drives as soon as they're available. When we heard that an Intel and Micron joint venture, IM Flash Technologies, had started sampling new, higher-capacity NAND flash memory on July 25, 2006, we got excited. The new chips are manufactured using a smaller process: 50 nanometers down from 72 nanometers. Smaller processes are key to both lowering cost and increasing capacity. They allow for higher capacity at the same physical size and therefore, lower the price. As prices head down and capacities increase, we should start seeing flash-based hard drives in notebooks and other models where durability and size are critical. These hard drives should also offer serious seek-time improvements over traditional spinning disk drives.

To tide us over, TG Daily reports that the world's largest NAND flash manufacturer, Samsung, has released a 4GB flash drive that works with the Ready Boost feature of Windows Vista. The technology combines the capacity of spinning disks with the speed of flash and decreases power consumption to boot. It transfers commonly used applications and data to the flash dis, meaning a notebook can function for extended periods of time without spinning up its hard drive. It can also use the flash memory to restore from sleep or hibernation faster.

Until we see flash in ridiculously high capacities, we're dreaming of a RAID of 127 USB memory keys...

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