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Intel and rival Advanced Micro Devices are posturing to capture the attention of computer buyers looking for crisper high-defi nition video playback on their laptops and less battery drain.
The latest from Intel is its new Centrino 2 platform -- which includes a processor, related chipset and wireless communications chip. Intel is releasing five new processors in different versions of the bundle. Three of those use just 25 watts of energy, a 30 percent reduction from the previous generation, Intel said.
AMD, meanwhile, has improved the visual capabilities of its chips. AMD overhauled its mobile lineup in June with the release of its new Turion processor and related chipset. AMD said those chips deliver three times better 3-D performance and fi ve times better high-definition image quality than competing models. The processors consume as little as 32 watts of power.
Games for iPhone
A flood of game titles is available in Apple's new online App Store for the iPhone and iPhone 3G. Most of the games are typical cell-phone fare (Tetris, sudoku, poker, etc.), but there are some cool, high-end titles, such as the racing game Cro-Mag Rally.
In September, Electronic Arts is shipping an iPhone version of Spore, a hotly anticipated simulation game.
Xbox cuts prices
Microsoft has cut the cost of the Xbox 360 Pro (the one with the 20-gigabyte hard drive) by $50, from $350 to $300. A new model of the 360 Pro, with a 60 GB drive, has been introduced with the $350 price tag.
The game console will be able to stream thousands of movies over the Internet thanks to a deal with Netfl ix.
The arrangement will give Netfl ix's 8 million subscribers another way to stream movies on a TV instead of a computer.
The Netflix streaming service -- which operates in addition to its DVD-by-mail program -- offers 10,000 movies and TV shows. The Xbox had movies available before, but not nearly as many.
Site focuses on photos
A O L a n n o u n c e d t h e launch of PIXCETERA (www. pixcetera.com), a site focused on top-quality photography. It features thousands of professional images and galleries from across the AOL Network for users to browse, rate and review. In addition, AOL's photo editors blog on trends in photography, as well as ways readers can take better pictures.
The site includes a weekly showcase of the best professional photos.
Documentaries online
Retired AOL executive Ted Leonsis is turning his passion for documentaries into an Internet service meant to give independent filmmakers broader viewership.
SnagFilms will show documentaries for free at the site -- or embed them in profile pages at Facebook, MySpace and other social networking hangouts. Fifteen-second ads will run every eight to 10 minutes.
Help for the blind
Blind people generally use computers with the help of screen-reader software, but those products can cost more than $1,000, so they're not common on public PCs at libraries or Internet cafes. Now a free new Web-based program for the blind aims to improve the situation.
WebAnywhere (webany where.cs.washington.edu) is an Internet application that can make Web surfi ng accessible to the blind on almost any computer.
Once online, a blind Web surfer can use the WebAnywhere browser, which can link to and then read out loud any page -- as long as the computer has speakers or a headphone jack. The program can skip around the section titles, tab through charts or read the page from top to bottom.
To see more of the Reading Eagle, or to subscribe, go to http://www.readingeagle.com. Copyright (c) 2008, Reading Eagle, Pa. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.
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