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<title>Haaze.com / junje / Published News</title>
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<pubDate>Thu, 28 Apr 2011 07:10:26 +0000</pubDate>
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<title><![CDATA[PC sales slump will likely bring Windows down too]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=pc-sales-slump-will-likely-bring-windows-down-too</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=pc-sales-slump-will-likely-bring-windows-down-too</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 28 Apr 2011 07:10:26 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>junje</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=pc-sales-slump-will-likely-bring-windows-down-too</guid>
<description><![CDATA[When Microsoft announces its fiscal third quarter earnings after the market closes today, most analysts will zero in on one data point--how Windows is selling. Windows--one of the three engines that powers Microsoft sales and profits, along with Office, and server software--seems likely to have a sluggish quarter. Two weeks ago, research firm IDC surprised industry watchers with a report that global PC shipments declined 3.2 percent during the first quarter, compared with the year-ago period, citing &quot;cautious business mentality and waning consumer enthusiasm.&quot;(Credit:Microsoft)&quot;Clearly, the PC market is under pressure,&quot; said Adam Holt, a Morgan Stanley analyst. And since the vast majority of PCs run Windows, Microsoft earnings are under some pressure too. There's little doubt that Microsoft will report its best-ever fiscal third quarter revenue. But with slowing PC shipments, Windows, which should account for about 28 percent of Microsoft's overall sales this quarter, will be a drag on earnings. Slowing sales of Windows, long the fuel for Microsoft's economic engine, is cause for some concern. On Tuesday, Holt cut $200 million from his projections for Windows sales in the fiscal third quarter to $4.47 billion, a 4 percent decline from the year-ago period. And since Windows accounts for about 28 percent of Microsoft's overall revenue, Holt nudged his overall quarterly estimates downward, expecting the company to earn $4.47 billion on sales of $15.8 billion. Microsoft seemingly got a boost from Intel's solid earnings report last week. The chipmaker cited healthy PC demand as a driver. And Intel was particularly bullish on sales in emerging markets, where PC penetration is low. While Microsoft, too, could benefit from sales in those markets, Holt noted that Microsoft's results don't directly map to Intel's numbers. &quot;Intel is seeing strength in emerging markets where Microsoft has high levels of piracy,&quot; Holt said. Microsoft has had little success staunching the use of illegal copies of Windows in many of those markets. If that continues, the company is unlikely to reap the same sort of significant sales growth in emerging markets.Related links&amp;149' The 'post-PC era' might be closer than we think&amp;149' Microsoft opens up Office 365 as public beta&amp;149' Report: Microsoft sending Windows 8 to PC vendorsThe biggest challenge Microsoft faces with Windows is in the consumer market. The data from IDC suggest that consumers are holding onto their older laptops longer. &quot;PC lifetimes are extending,&quot; said IDC analyst Bob O'Donnell. And when consumers do decide to spend money on technology, they are increasingly opting fortablet computers such asApple's iPad. A February Morgan Stanley report estimated that 29 percent of the tablet sales this year will come at the expense of new PC purchases, reducing PC market growth by 3 percentage points. That cannibalization suggests to some, most notably Apple CEO Steve Jobs, that the industry is entering the &quot;post-PC&quot; era. Despite the enthusiasm for the iPad, O'Donnell says the PC still has plenty of life left. Apple has sold 4.7 million iPads in the quarter, compared with the 80 million PCs that computer makers sold. &quot;You know, 4.7 million iPads is great, but it's not killing the PC,&quot; O'Donnell said. Moreover, Apple seems to be the only tablet maker that's having any success. Sales of Motorola's Xoom have been anemic, and Samsung has acknowledged that its Galaxy tablet hasn't met revenue expectations. And the newly launched Research In Motion PlayBook hasn't won over reviewers. While questions linger over the consumer PC market, most analysts expect corporate PC sales to improve as businesses continue to upgrade toWindows 7, launched in October 2009. Last week, Microsoft announced it sold 350 million Windows 7 licenses. Corporate IT departments have created virtually immovable infrastructures around buying, fixing, and upgrading Windows PCs. &quot;PCs are definitely losing cool and buzz,&quot; said longtime analyst Roger Kay, president of Endpoint Technologies. &quot;But there's a tremendous amount of inertia holding them in place, particularly in the corporate space.&quot;That's one reason why IDC is forecasting PC shipments of 372.9 million units worldwide in 2011, a 7.4 percent increase from 2010. And the worldwide forecast for PCs from 2012 to 2015 is all double-digit growth, based largely on the corporate upgrade cycle and computer sales in emerging markets.Windows will no longer generate the sort of buzz that keeps investors excited. And the recent decline in PC sales is ominous. But the post-PC era hasn't arrived just yet. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[The 411: Bluetooth headset for the hearing impaired]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-411-bluetooth-headset-for-the-hearing-impaired</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-411-bluetooth-headset-for-the-hearing-impaired</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 25 Apr 2011 07:10:21 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>junje</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-411-bluetooth-headset-for-the-hearing-impaired</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Welcome to the 411, my column answering all your questions about cell phones and cell phone accessories. I receive plenty of questions about these subjects via e-mail, so I figured many of you might have similar queries, too. At times, I might solicit answers from readers if I'm stumped. Send your questions and comments to me at nicole.lee@cnet.com. If you prefer to remain anonymous, let me know in the e-mail.The Sound ID 510 is even better with its EarPrint app that lets you customize the volume and tone of incoming audio.(Credit:Sound ID)Question: My wife is hearing impaired and uses hearing aids - but not when on the cell phone. I purchased a Motorola H560 for her to try. She can hear the conversation without any problem however, the voice prompts generated by the cell phone - an LG Accolade 5600 - are too low in her audio registration to be able to use the unit hands free. Are there any blue tooth headsets available with a tone/pitch adjustment so that the pitch might be increased into her audio registration zone. Any help on this would be great as I have not yet come upon a unit that has this type of feature. -- Josh, via e-mailOne particular headset stood out to us as a great option for your wife, but it might be dependent on you getting a BlackBerry, Android, oriPhone to go along with it. The Sound ID 510 is a great little Bluetooth headset with decent noise cancelling, A2DP, multipoint connectivity, and voice prompts. Voice prompts are generally more pronounced when it's built into the headset, so that feature alone might be useful.However, it gets even better with the help of Sound ID's own EarPrint app. The app adds plenty of functionality like a Find My Headset feature plus an Environmental mode that lets you listen to the sounds around you while the headset is plugged in -- this might even act as a sort of hearing aid for your wife. Most importantly, the EarPrint app has a Personal Sound mode that acts as a personal audio equalizer, letting you fine-tune incoming audio by adjusting not just the volume, but also the tone.But, as you might have guessed, the additional features of the EarPrint app are not available if you don't have a compatible smartphone. I still think the Sound ID 510 would be a great headset for her, but you could try looking for any headset with voice prompts if you would rather not get her a smartphone. Many headsets have the voice prompt feature these days, including the BlueAnt Q2 and the Plantronics Voyager Pro Plus. Readers, if you have any other suggestions, let us know in the comments!<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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