Microsoft to build Zune plant in China

Microsoft is building its own manufacturing plant in China to assemble a new version of the Zune portable media player. Among the criticisms aimed at the original Zune released in the US last November was that it was little more than a re-badged and repackaged Toshiba Gigabeat and contained little innovation, save a battery-hungry and DRM-encumbered wireless music sharing feature. Microsoft believes that having its own plant will give it greater control over the design and manufacture of the device, which has conspicuously failed to dent the popularity of Apple's iPod. ...more

Microsoft takes on .jpg

Microsoft is taking a shot at removing the JPEG file format as the standard for images. At this week's Windows Hardware Engineering Conference, the company showed off the new format which will be supported in the upcoming Vista operating system. The company claims that the new image format can display better images with file sizes only half of those of a . ...more

Skype signs up four telcos for calling fixed and mobile phones

Internet telephony service Skype has signed deals with four network operators to allow Skype users to call fixed and mobile phones. COLT, iBasis, Level3 and Teleglobe, operate networks across the US, Europe and Asia. Although the financial details of the agreements have not been disclosed, Skype users will soon be able to make low-cost calls to phones on fixed and mobile networks through its SkypeOut service. ...more

iTrip illegal in the UK

The Griffin iTrip, a device that allows you to transmit music from an iPod to an FM radio, is illegal in the UK, according to UK dealer AMMicro. In a brief statement on its website, the company says that, 'Use of the iTrip in the UK is prohibited under the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949.' The act forbids the installation or use of radio equipment without a licence, with some exceptions. ...more

Farm out your rendering

Render-It is a new service designed to provide a reliable, speedy and high quality rendering service at low cost. Comprising a network of 82 CPUs, Render-It's render farm is capable of rendering 3D work in a fraction of the time that it would take in an average design studio. Typically all 82 CPUs are dedicated to each project, enabling not only high-speed rendering but also a much broader range of effects than might otherwise be used. ...more