Samsung's i7500 phone turns up in white

Samsung's first effort at an Android-based mobile phone might not have debuted in the UK, but that hasn't stopped the i7500 Galaxy appearing in white ahead of the launch.
The specs of the phone remain the same, meaning we're sadly not seeing the i5700 Galaxy Lite phone Samsung seems to be releasing soon.
But that does mean if you're giddy with excitement over Samsung and Google joining forces but not a fan of black (and we all know it's about the graphite or mocha or whatever other fancy colours manufacturers are after these days) then this picture should make your day a whole lot better.
More than a Hero
Don't forget, we're seeing a phone with a 5MP camera (with flash), a 3.5mm jack and super-thin shell in the Samsung i7500 Galaxy, which still out specs the HTC Hero.
The i7500 should be debuting in the UK any day now - O2 confirmed to us a few weeks ago it would be stocking it around the beginning of August - so we're just sitting here flicking peanuts at one another until that day finally dawns.
Red hot sources say Apple tablet is 100% real
Another day, another Mac OS X tablet computer rumour - this time from the granddaddy of all Apple analysts, Gene Munster.
The prominent Apple watcher says he's absolutely certain that the fabled tablet device will arrive early next year and that it will sell for somewhere between $500 (£295) and $700 (£415).
App Store software
Munster says he knows this because one of the regular Apple hardware suppliers in Asia told him it has orders from the company for a touchscreen device that are due by the end of this year.
He also states that the new tablet Mac will run App Store applications, suggesting it is indeed the swollen iPod touch we all believe it to be.
Kindle rival?
However, Munster throws a wrinkle into the prediction by suggesting Apple could be about to start selling e-books through iTunes, thereby positioning the new machine as a direct competitor to Amazon's Kindle.
As always, Apple has had nothing to say about the speculation, although

I somehow feel this all has a ring of truth to it.
Microsoft buys Office.com domain
Microsoft has finally managed to buy the Office.com domain – as it continues to move towards the release of its next version of the Office software suite.
Although many will be surprised that Microsoft did not already own the Office.com domain, it was in fact owned by a Belgian firm called ContactOffice.
However, Ars Technica has discovered that Microsoft has now snapped up the domain for an undisclosed fee – probably to use it for the increasingly cloud focused consumer offering of Office.
Too early to share
"At this point it's too early to share details on our plans around www.office.com," a Microsoft spokesperson told Ars, when questioned about the domain's future use.
Office remains Microsoft's most profitable software, with programs like Excel, PowerPoint and Word used in homes and offices across the globe.
However, with the likes of Google Docs and OpenOffice improving rapidly and people becoming more up to date with hosted applications, Microsoft is keen for its suite of software to evolve.
Early review code of Office 2010, which as you may expect arrives next year, did not include the web apps, but Office.com could potentially host the mooted free online versions.

Nvidia offering interactive ray tracing engine
Nvidia has announced that it has launched the world's first ray tracing engine – with Nvidia OptiX promising to help developers bring new levels of realism to applications.
OptiX joins Nvidia's other acceleration engines, SceniX, CompleX and PhysX – with all, it seems, containing the X-factor.
The technology, which leverages the GPU, will allow for intricate tasks like examining the way reflection and refraction of light on glass should appear.
In Nvidia's words: "By tapping into the massively parallel computing power of Nvidia Quadro processors, the OptiX engine greatly accelerates the ray tracing used across a spectrum of disciplines, including: photorealistic rendering, automotive styling, acoustical design, optics simulation, volume calculations and radiation research."
Tipping point for GPUs
"Thousands of applications are being created today that harness the phenomenal power of GPUs, a clear sign that GPU computing has reached a tipping point, adds Nvidia's Jeff Brown. Manager.
"The world of computing is shifting from host-bound processing on CPUs to balanced co-processing on GPUs and CPUs.
"NVIDIA application acceleration engines arm developers with the tools they need to further revolutionize both real-time graphics and advanced data analysis."
TomTom on iPhone GPS app and car kit priced
A British online satnav retailer has started taking pre-orders for the TomTom iPhone kit and app, priced at £113.85
TechRadar has spoken with TomTom reps in the UK and I am still awaiting the 'official' confirmation of pricing and a release date, which I should be hearing about soon. For now, the release date is still down as 'summer'.
Pop it in the car
If you are an iPhone owner and are in need of a pocket-friendly GPS device to guide you around the UK and the rest of Europe that you can easily pop into the dashboard car-dock when necessary, then this might prove to be not a bad price at all.
Alternatively, if you are not that desperate to upgrade your current satnav you might want to stick with the good old Google Maps on the iPhone for the time being.
Indeed, opinion in the TechRadar office is currently divided - on the one hand, there are those who argue they would rather invest in a dedicated satnav device for the car; on the other hand, the idea of having satnav functionality on your iPhone at all times seems quite appealing (particularly for road trips to unknown towns).
I've had a go with Navigon on iPhone, which beat TomTom by being the first turn-by-turn app for the iPhone.
For the time being, this is what it looks like.

You can get more details and pre-order the TomTom iPhone car kit for £113.85 over on Handtec right now.

AMD's new chipset aims at Windows 7 market
Chip giant AMD has announced the AMD 785G chipset – which has been designed to be 'at the core of the mainstream PC for Windows 7'.
The massive interest in Windows 7, combined with encouraging pre-orders for Microsoft's successor to Vista, has prompted AMD to push on with a new chipset that is aimed at the 'cost-conscious' mainstream market.
The AMD 785G chipset incorporates the company's ATI Radeon HD4200 graphics technology – allowing computers with motherboards using the chipset to run Direct 10.1 games.
The chipset has been designed to take advantage of AMD's Athlon II processors – giving PC manufacturers, and their customers, a mainstream affordable option that will show off Windows 7 in all its glory come October.
The chipset also offers:
  • DirectX 10.1 support for the latest games
  • UVD2 for accelerated, GPU-enabled, decoding
  • First AMD chipset with ATI Stream technology for amazingly fast video transcoding and application performance
  • Advanced technology to keep your PC running cool and quiet
  • Latest support for HDMI 1.3 and DisplayPort
  • SidePort Memory support for DDR3/DDR2 performance cache
  • Hard disk performance improvements with RAID support
Nikon announces world's first projector camera
Nikon has announced a world's first for the camera world – a compact coupled with a built-in projector.
The Coolpix S1000pj is a move that's certain to shake up both the projector and camera market, Nikon believes that the camera can project images up to 40 inches in size (and as low as 5 inches) and there's also a remote control in the package, so you can set up your own image slideshow on the go.
Autumn release
The camera itself holds a 12MP sensor, 5x optical zoom and a 2.7-inch TFT LCD. ISO levels can be cranked up to 3200 at full res.
As with every compact out at the moment, you can reduce image blur in-camera and there's also a whole host of other features, including a Skin Softening function – which will make your leathery looking grandmother look like Cameron Diaz in no time.
The Nikon S1000pj is out in September and will set you back £399.
And if you want to read if it's any good, the folks at T3 online have been busy and put up a hands-on with the camera already.
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