PCs

Nvidia's Tegra mobile chip business hits a wall with growth

The market has pretty high hopes for Nvidia's Tegra mobile chip business, but this year is shaping up to be a disappointment.

Chief Executive Jen-Hsun Huang said that while Tegra has been growing "very quickly," the business will be "about flat" this year. That's because Nvidia pushed back the launch of its Tegra 4 chip by a quarter in order to ready its 4G LTE capabilities, he said. The company introduced Tegra 4 at the Consumer Electronics Show in January and then launched its chip that integrates LTE with its app processor,Tegra 4i, … Read more

Tablets conspire with 'good enough' PCs to nuke Windows 8

Maybe the PC isn't dead, but the upgrade cycle may be at death's door, according to an IDC analyst.

In the wake of very ugly numbers released today by market researchers IDC and Gartner, Windows 8 is getting a lot of the blame.

But there's more going on than just a lack of interest in Microsoft's latest operating system.

The problem begins with the tablet -- a market dominated by Apple's iPad and to a lesser extent Android tablets. "When you buy a tablet you use your PC 25 to 30 percent less. That'… Read more

PCs hit by an ugly quarterly drop as Windows 8 flops

It's really ugly in the PC market right now. How ugly? About the worst it has ever been, according to new reports from a couple of tech research firms.

First-quarter global computer shipments dropped 14 percent from the previous year, said International Data Corp., much worse than its forecast for a 7.7 percent decline. The pullback marked the worst-ever quarter since IDC began tracking quarterly PC shipments in 1994, and it's the fourth consecutive quarter of year-over-year shipment declines.

Rival tech research firm Gartner, meanwhile, said its data showed an 11 percent decline in first-quarter global PC … Read more

Indications show Apple's Retina MacBook Pro still overpriced

Even with recent price cuts, the Retina MacBook Pro is still plagued by inventory problems, according to an Asia-based report.

Component suppliers in Asia have not seen a major increase in orders, forcing Apple to sit on unsold inventory, according to a report in Digitimes.

That won't come as a surprise to U.S. retailers who have already indicated that the 13.3-inch Pro isn't selling as expected. Last week, the base 13.3-inch Retina MacBook Pro model plunged temporarily to $1,299 at MacConnection, a whopping $400 off its original price.

The model debuted at $1,699 … Read more

Intel confirms USB bug in 'Haswell' chipset

Intel confirmed a USB bug in its next-generation "Haswell" chipset.

The bug can cause USB (Universal Serial Bus) 3.0 devices, like thumb drives, to disappear after entering standby. In some cases, removable devices have to be reconnected again, according to a report at BSN.

The company issued the following statement this afternoon. The bug, in Intel parlance, is referred to as an "errata." The chipset is silicon that accompanies the main Haswell processor:

4th gen Core is on track for a midyear launch. Intel issued a PCN (Product Change Notification) documenting a chipset USB errata … Read more

Intel's next-gen 'Haswell' chip now shipping to PC makers

Intel's "Haswell" chip is now shipping to major PC makers, a source close to the company told CNET today.

Intel's fourth-generation core, aka Haswell, is "shipping to customers now and will launch later this quarter," the source said.

Intel is expected to make a statement to this effect at the IDF Beijing conference next week.

Haswell, expected by June, is the next-generation mainstream Intel processor that will power ultrabooks and a variety of hybrids that straddle tablet and laptop designs. Haswell's new microarchitecture will deliver "the single largest generation-to-generation battery life improvement … Read more

Hey, HP board, how do you like them Apples?

commentary Back in 2011, Hewlett-Packard's chairman Ray Lane was photographed using an Apple MacBook Air as he was trying to turn HP around. Personal preference speaks volumes about HP and the fate of the PC industry.

Lane stepped down today as chairman of HP just after, coincidentally, Gartner released a report forecasting dim prospects for the PC industry.

Things seem to get dimmer with each forecast, as the tablet -- which means Apple's iPad for the most part -- takes a bigger bite out of PC sales.

Here's what Carolina Milanesi, research vice president at Gartner, said … Read more

Microsoft Store slashes prices on Windows 8 tablets, hybrids

In what could be a sign of things to come, the Microsoft Store is slashing prices on a variety of hybrid laptop-tablet models.

Here are some of the highlights now appearing on the Microsoft Store "Tablets and Convertibles" page:

Toshiba Satellite U925t-S2130 Convertible Ultrabook: Cut to $799 from $1,149. 12.5-inch screen, Core i5 Intel chip, 128GB solid-state drive (SSD). ( Read the CNET review.) Acer Iconia W510-1674 Tablet: reduced to $399 from $499. 10.1-inch display, Intel Atom 1.8GHz "Clover Trail" Z2760 chip, 32GB SSD. ( Read the CNET review.) HP ENVY x2 11-g012nr Touchscreen: … Read more

April Fools: Apple 'bounce back' campaign for Mac users

Update 4:57 a.m. PT: We were fooled by April Fools' Day. We have corrected and recast the story accordingly.

Wouldn't it be nice if Apple planned a "bounce back" campaign to win back customers who defected to Windows machines? It would dovetail with the expected reawakening of the company's dormant high-end Mac Pro line -- but the idea is just a joke.

Video producer Lou Borella, the creator of the "We want a new Macpro" Facebook group, had said yesterday -- April Fools' Day -- that Apple itself contacted him about the … Read more

Dell cites uncertain prospects for PCs, Windows 8 in SEC filing

Dell painted a somewhat bleak depiction of its prospects in a recent SEC filing.

In a 274-page filing on Friday, the PC maker indicated market and product challenges on several fronts. In the filing, Dell makes a case for accepting a $24.4 billion offer to go private so it can be in a better position to deal with the myriad challenges facing the company.

Those included "the deteriorating outlook for the PC market as a result of, among other things, smartphones and tablets cannibalizing PC sales," according to the filing.

The SEC filing also cited "the … Read more