Western Digital Denies Rumours Regarding Shipment Issues.

Western Digital on Thursday denied reports that it ceased shipments of hard disk drives to Taiwanese customers. The company continues to serve all its clients worldwide in the situation when most of its production capacities are halted.

Early on Thursday a Taiwan-based web-site reported that Western Digital had "notified its distributors in Taiwan that the company [would not] distribute any hard drives [...] to Taiwan in November". Apparently, the reports are "greatly exaggerated" and the company continues to provide hard drives to its customers around the world, probably in limited quantities.

"The statements made [by the web-site] are false. We understand our customers' concerns. WD and our suppliers are significantly supply constrained. Our intent is to be as balanced as possible in our approach to satisfying all of our customer's requirements, in all regions, countries and market segments," said Heather Skinner, a spokeswoman for WD.

Due to severe flooding in Thailand, Western Digital had to halt all of its hard drive manufacturing facilities, which responded for 60% of its output. Nonetheless, the company continues to make hard drives at other factories and has stockpiled drives available for shipments.

Independent industry analysts believe that the industry will hard enough hard disk drives for Q4 2011 and actual shortages may occur in the first quarter of next year. Nonetheless, this does not exclude local situations of tight supply.

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DuPont May Play Leading Role In Your Next AMOLED Display

DuPont may not strike you as a technology company. But they are, in a weird, weird way. They make a ton of chemicals and off-the-wall internal products that help compose many of the doodads that we all use in day-to-day life, but hardly do you see their named stamped on the exterior of something. Turns out, they may play a leading role in your next television. DuPont announced today that it has signed a technology licensing agreement with a leading Asian manufacturer of Active Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode (AMOLED) display products.  

 

 

The agreement will enable process technology developed by DuPont to be used in the company’s production of large AMOLED television displays.  The DuPont AMOLED process technology enables large displays to be produced at significantly lower cost than alternative technologies.  Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

"AMOLED televisions clearly represent the future.  They are preferred by consumers for their superior performance, they are more energy efficient and the process technology we’re licensing allows them to be manufactured much more cost effectively,” said David B. Miller, president, DuPont Electronics & Communications.  “We look forward to helping make the promise of AMOLED television a commercial reality at a price point that is within reach for the mass consumer market.”

DuPont has developed a proprietary solution-based printing technology that efficiently dispenses liquid OLED materials that it has developed to optimize display yields and performance.  The process is designed to significantly cut production costs for television-sized displays when compared to the current methods of producing AMOLED or LCD displays.

“Over the last several years, DuPont has used its substantial resources as a market-driven science company to solve significant technical challenges associated with the cost-effective manufacture of AMOLED displays. As a result, DuPont has developed a unique manufacturing  and innovative materials tailored to work with it,” said William F. Feehery, global business director, DuPont Electronics & Communications.  “By licensing display manufacturers to make AMOLED displays using DuPont process technology, we will also build a business selling proprietary DuPont OLED materials.”

We're still waiting to hear who exactly is signed on to take advantage of this stuff, but either way, we're all for cheaper AMOLEDs. Bring it on!

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Dialug Concept Wall Outlet

 How many times had you forgotten to unplug your gadgets that were charging via wall outlet?

Dialug is a very useful design concept designed by four designers: DanBee Lee, JangSoo Kim, KyoYeon Kim and WooRi Kim. As we can see from the images, the wall outlet comes with two sockets, and a timer has been creatively integrated into the upper socket. According to the designers, “Turn it counter-clockwise to power sign to set for regular use and clockwise to set timer for gadgets that need only limited time of power”. No doubt, the idea will effectively protect your precious electrical devices and save power.

Dialug is a 2011 iF concept design entry. We wish the practical design concept will become reality as soon as possible.

 

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Stealth.com Announces Small, Rugged, Fanless Mini PC

Stealth.com announced the LPC-125LPFM, a nearly palm-sized PC designed for industrial, mobile, and embedded applications. The little fellow is fanless yet can operate in a wide range of temperatures and pulls just 20W.

The PC runs on an Intel D525 Pineview 1.8GHz dual-core CPU (with Hyperthreading) and sports a 55GB SSD (or with a 2.5-inch 750GB HDD) and 4GB of DDR3 (SODIMM) memory. For I/O, the LPC-125LPFM features Gigabit LAN, three USB ports, two serial ports, video, audio in/out, two PS/2 ports, an external ExpressCard slot, and a mini PCI-E slot

The price isn’t so tiny, however, starting at $895.

Stealth.com Releases a Small Rugged Fanless Mini PC Ideal for Industrial, Mobile and Embedded Applications

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Doxie Go Portable Scanner

Generally we need to connect our scanner with computer for scanning and printing. If you want a wireless way to scan and print documents and photos, Doxie Go portable scanner may be more suitable for you.

 

Doxie Go is a portable paper scanner that measures 10.5 x 1.7 x 2.2 inches and weights 14.2 ounces. As we can see from the images, the paper scanner features slim design in order that you can conveniently scan paper in various sizes from business card to 8.5 x 12 inches without connecting with computer, and the portable scanner features built-in memory that allows you to store up to 600 pages or 2400 photos, while the integrated USB ports and SD card slot let you expand its storage capacity.

In addition, the built-in rechargeable battery can provide you 100 scans after fully charged in about 2 hours. Doxie Go supports multiple file formats, including PDF, JPEG, PNG, Color and black & white, and through optional iPhone/ iPad sync kit, you can also directly sync the scans to your iPhone or iPad, and further upload to your Evernote or Flickr account or print them in wireless way.

                                         Doxie Go portable scanner is priced at $199 USD.

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Dell XPS 14z Launches in China, US Launch Coming Soon

The Dell XPS 14z,  is rolling out in China this week with a US launch soon to follow.

We (and others) noted the XPS 15z's resemblance to the MacBook Pro, and the 14z continues in the same vein: the laptop is less than an inch thick and weighs 4.4 pounds, but still includes dual-core Sandy Bridge processors, an optional Optimus-capable NVIDIA GT 520M GPU, USB 3.0 ports, and an optical drive. The screen resolution is reported to be an unexciting 1366x768, though it isn't mentioned whether the 14z will share the 15z's 1080p upgrade option.
For my part, I find 14" laptops to be a good deal: you can usually get the same amount of power as a bulkier 15" laptop in a package that's not as cramped as smaller laptops can sometimes be. I'm always excited to see PC makers put some thought into their products' designs - hopefully the 14z impresses when it comes to other territories in the coming weeks.

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Film Roll Styled Tissue Holder

We have never seen so big film roll before, but u fortunately the film roll can’t be used to take photos, but hold your tissue roll. If you’re curious, let’s go on checking the film roll styled tissue holder.

This is an interesting tissue holder that measures 16 x 13.5 x 12.5cm. As we can see from the images, the tissue holder is shaped as a huge 35mm film roll, and comes with subtle details and vibrant colors. Open the top cover, you can easily mount the tissue roll in the huge film roll, while the removable centre axis allows you to take out tissue from the top or the side. In addition to putting the film roll tissue holder on the desk, you can also mount it on the wall.

The film roll tissues holder is available in 3 colors, including green, yellow and red, each one is priced at $16 USD. If you’re interested, jump to Brando for more details.

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Transformers USB drive keeps your files safe and opens bottles

If you’re a fan of Transformers, you’ll love these thumb drives from Edgewave Electronics. The thumb drives feature die cast metal bodies shaped into the insignias of the Autobots and the Decepticons. These thumb drives also glow blue when in use, and the can act as bottle openers in addition to their regular jobs of storing and keeping your files safe. While it might be a little late to cash with the Transformers 3 movie, these drives still serve their purpose and work well.

The drives are available in 4GB and 8GB varieties, with prices starting at $33.99. If you’re interested in purchasing them, head over to Amazon to check them out.

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Elecom U2H-YS4B 4-Port USB Hub with Switches

What kind of USB hub is your favorite, more interesting or more easy-to-use? If you choose the latter, Elecom U2H-YS4B 4-port USB hub with switches may be able to catch your eyes.

 

Elecom U2H-YS4B is an easy-to-use USB hub that measures 84 x 31.8 x 16.3mm and weights approx 32g. The USB 2.0 hub comes with 4 USB ports on the same side in order that you can conveniently insert your USB flash drive, mouse, and other USB gadgets into the ports. And as we can see from the images, the power strip styled USB hub also features four switches on the top side. So you can quickly disconnect a USB device from your computer without pulling it out from the USB hub. Apart from that, the built-in LED light can also show you which devices are working.

Elecom U2H-YS4B 4-port USB hub with switches is available in two colors, including white and black, each one is priced at $29.99 USD. If you’re interested, jump to AudioCubes for more details.

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Sony’s PlayStation 3D Monitor Arrives Mid-November

Wednesday Sony said that its sleek-looking PlayStation-certified 3D Display will go on sale for $499.99 USD on November 13, 2011. As seen back in June at E3 2011, the display will fit right in with your other PlayStation products sporting curved sides, mirroring the PS3 console, PSP and Xperia PLAY. Of course, the gadget will look good on any shelf or tabletop whether customers are gamers or merely entertainment junkies.
On the technical side, the 24-inch 3D display will sport two HDMI 1.4 inputs, one component cable input, and a stereo headphone output jack. Naturally it will support a Full HD 1080p resolution (1920 x 1080) and a 240 Hz refresh rate. It will also include Edge LED backlighting, SimulView technology, built-in speakers and a subwoofer to enhance the audio.


"The 3D Display’s integrated subwoofer enhances low-frequency audio, giving an extra kick to bass-filled sound effects," the company said Wednesday. "This means that booming explosions, growling demons, and throaty engines will sound more immersive compared to the tinny audio provided by many display speakers. You can also connect a stereo headphone jack and use your favorite pair of stereo headphones, or use the new Wireless Stereo Headset that interfaces directly with your PS3."
The Sony 3D Display come packed with a pair of PlayStation-certified universal 3D glasses, and a copy of MotorStorm: Apocalypse. Sony said that Gran Turismo 5, Killzone 3, and Super Stardust HD -- all sold separately -- will support SimulView, but each player will need to have a pair of Sony's $69.99 3D Glasses, as these are currently the only 3D glasses available that support Sony's SimulView.
According to the company, SimulView allows users to have their own full (2D) HD screen while wearing the 3D Glasses for the 3D Display. Typically two-player multiplayer modes are played in a split-screen format on a single display, but Sony's display will utilize the left/right imaging process used in 3D to project the whole left image to the player sitting on the left, and the whole right image to the player sitting on the right via the 3D glasses.
"The 3D Glasses are noticeably lighter and less obtrusive than existing active 3D glasses. Due to advancements in 3D technology they also suffer from less crosstalk in 3D images," Sony said. "They also feature an integrated rechargeable battery that you can charge using the included micro-USB cable instead of installing a new battery."
To pre-order the Sony 3D Display, head here.

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