News Bits: Averatec 64-bit, Apple in London, ATI Growth, Asus in China

New Averatec 6240 Multimedia Notebook IncludesAMD 64 3000+ Processor

Averatec has released a new member in its 6200 series of Mobile Theatre notebooks. The 6240 includesan AMD 64-bit processor for faster overall notebook speed.Like the other members in the series, the AV6240 combines standalone DVD player functionality with a fully equipped multimedia notebook. Users can watch up to three 90-minute DVD movies, or listen up to 7+ hours of audio CDs or MP3 files, without powering on the notebook's operating system. The DVD player is readily controlled with a dedicated audio/video wireless remote control, which is conveniently stored in the unit's PCMCIA slot.

Averatec 6240 Mobile Theatre

AV6240 Specifications:

• Processor: Mobile AMD Athlon 64 processor 3000+ for thin and light notebooks
• Screen: 15.4" WXGA
• Memory: 512 MB DDR333
• Hard Drive: 80 GB
• Optical Drive: DVD+/-RW Burner
• Ports: (4) USB 2.0, (1) VGA 15-pin port, (1) S-Video Out, (1) Audio Out, (1) Microphone In, (1) RJ-11, (1) RJ-45, (1) Type II PC Card/Card Bus slot, (1) DVD wireless remote control
• Connectivity: 802.11g wireless, 10/100 Mbit network LAN, 56k data/fax modem
• Size and Weight: 13.98x10.04"x1.18", 6.2lbs
• Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP Home

More: NotebookReview.com Averatec 6200 Review

More: http://www.averatec.com/notebooks/6200series.htm

Apple Opens first Store in England on London's Regent Street this Saturday

Can we still callApple a computer company, or are they completely in the musicplayer realm now with their iPod? Well, they still make cool notebooks and desktops I guess,even if sales there aren't so hot.

Apple's 99th retailstore, which will be its largest yet,will open up on Regent Street in London this Saturday. The storefeatures two floors of products, 15 cash registers, a 64-seat theatre and 138 staff who speak 24 languages. Oh yeah, and there's a bar too.

In addition to selling iBooks, PowerBooks, iPods and other Apple products, Apple will sell third party products that compliment their own line.

Pictures:

Apple Store Interior in London

Grab a drink at the "Genius Bar" and talk to an Apple "Genius" about tech related questions or problems while there

When it comes to branding and presentation for electronics products, you just can't beat Apple (although Sony fans may disagree).

More: http://news.zdnet.co.uk/software/mac/0,39020393,39174369-1,00.htm

ATI Optimistic for Graphics Chip Growth

ATI is optimistic it can carve out a bigger piece of the graphics chip market in 2005,even though consumer spending is predicted to decline.

"Right now, it doesn't look like great growth from a semiconductor standpoint and I think that data is coming from the fact that consumer spending is viewed to go down," CEO Dave Orton said ahead of a technology conference in Ottawa.

"Are there other things we can do through innovation and overall economic growth to overcome that and create more growth in 2005 and 2006? As a company we're trying to do that and, hopefully, as an industry we can."

ATI owns 72% of the market share of notebook graphics card sales, a very impressive number. ATI simply hopes to help grow the notebook market to boost its profits. As notebooks become more popular than desktops ATI should benefit greatly. ATI owns about 50% of the market share of graphics cards sold for desktop computers, so they actually hope to grow their market share there. According to ATI CEOOrton, "We think that we have a great road map as we move into the first quarter of calendar '05 and through '05 we get more optimistic, actually, as we look forward." nVidia of course is the major competitor to ATI in the graphics chip market, and they have their own plans of grabbing market share. Looks like a heated battle will occur between both nVidia and ATI over the coming months.

More: http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=reutersEdge&storyID=6833128

Asustek replaces Acer as sixth-largest Notebook Seller in China

China is a hot market right now as companies around the world battle to put themselves at the forefront of being the top computer maker. Asustek just scored a victory by leapfrogging Acer as being the sixth-largest notebook vendor in the Chinese market.

Asustek Computer shipped 29,200 notebooks in China in the third quarter, replacing Acer as the sixth-largest notebook vendor in the domestic market. Acer notebook shipments in China declined 20.3%fromthe previous quarterto about 20,000 units, or a 3.7% market share, pushing it down the rankings five spots to number 11 in the market.

More: http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20041117A1002.html

Sony VAIO A Series to includeAtheros Communications Super AG Wireless Card

Sony has chosen to incorporate the Atheros AR5004X 802.11a/b/g wireless LAN chipset, featuring Super AG technology, into its flagship notebook PCs, the 17" screen VAIO A series notebookseries. The Atheros chipset offers multi-standard 802.11a/b/g support for universal wireless connectivity to any 802.11 network and delivers the highest performance of any wireless card on the market.

More: http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/11-17-2004/0002461600&EDATE