All about Tech News

Yahoo’s done its best to fend off Microsoft’s aggressive advances until now, but it suddenly looks like the struggling company might be getting some help — both the Wall Street Journal and Reuters are reporting that the Yahoo is “closing in” on a deal to merge with Time Warner’s AOL division and partner up with Google on search advertising. Yeah, that’s pretty major, and it would probably do something about those declining shares Microsoft’s been making noise about. The idea is for Time Warner to sell AOL to Yahoo and make a large investment in the new company, which would probably be valued at around $10B. There’s apparently a lot of work left to do on the deal, and it would still have to be approved by Yahoo and Time Warner shareholders, but it looks like Yahoo is no longer stuck taking Ballmer and Co. to the dance. [Engadget]

Read - WSJ article
Read - Reuters article

Wouldn’t you know it? No, really — didn’t you completely understand that Nintendo wouldn’t be releasing something as magnificent as a stark white GameCube controller in the States? Okay, so maybe NoA hasn’t made that official, but we’re betting the unit you see there on the right will be a (highly coveted) Japanese exclusive. Apparently the Big N is re-issuing a Wii-white GameCube controller in its homeland this month with an extended (3-meter) cord, and while we can’t glean any pricing information from the crumb of information out there right now, go ahead and start stacking those pennies for use on your favorite importer. It will cost around $20.
[Joystiq]

As wonderful as Logitech’s Harmony universal remotes are, there’s still one major piece of media entertainment equipment that it still cannot command: the PlayStation 3. Enter the iPhone, which will soon be able to interface with Sony’s console.
Blu-ray Disc solutions provider Netblender will announce later this week a new SDK for iPhone developers which will expand the features of movie playback on the PS3. One immediate benefit is that the iPhone will be able to act as a wireless remote for the PlayStation 3, perhaps robbing away several sales of Sony’s multimedia remote. [DailyTech]

There is reason to believe that Home version 1.00 is already finished and ready for the open beta to hit shortly. There is definitely no confirmation out of the Sony camp about this; however, a guy over at PS3News has discovered a way for you to download the 1.00 version of Home onto your PlayStation 3.
According to his thread, “I found some interesting thing when i was ‘playing’ with PS3.ProxyServer. I replaced some xml files, and now I can install PlayStation@ Home public BETA Trial from PLAYSTATION@Network servers in XMB. I think it’s to prepare for real open BETA, and that will be unlocked very soon by Sony.”

For those of you wanting to jump onto this wagon and get the client installed onto your PlayStation console, the more power to you. Unfortunately, though the client is obtainable, it will not connect to any servers for you to enjoy the Home experience itself.
With all of the recent Home news coming to the surface like the Warhawk update and SCEE promising users a “special update” once the store’s redesign is complete, it is easy to see how people could be lead to believe that the Home Public Beta is just around the corner. [PSU]

Play.com has sold out of its allocation GTA IV pre-orders - whilst GAME and Gamestation’s online offerings have already put up warning of stock running low.
Play.com’s head of games Gian Luzio told MCV that the title was “far and away the biggest selling title” he’d ever seen on PS3 – but predicted the site would have more stock back in for the game’s release date of Tuesday, April 29th.
He added that it was “already proving a real hardware driver” – especially for Sony’s next-gen console.
Luzio told MCV: “This is the biggest ever title for PS3 by a long way - and probably 360 as well. I’ve been really blown away by how quickly it’s sold on PS3.
“Sales have gone crazy and have proven to be a real hardware driver already. We’ve sold out now, but will be getting in more stock as soon as it becomes available.
“We expect to have some stock back in for the day of release on April 29th.”
GAME’s website at www.GAME.co.uk says: ‘We cannot guarantee delivery on the day of release for orders placed on or after the 7th of April’.
Gamestation’s site reports: ‘Due to unprecedented demand for the standard editions of Grand Theft Auto IV, we are no longer taking pre-orders for this version.’ [mcvuk]

Apple Inc.’s existing MacBook and MacBook Pro notebooks will be the last of their breed, as both product families are destined for major design changes upon their next refresh, AppleInsider has learned.
Of the two, the 13-inch consumer MacBooks will undergo the most significant metamorphosis, shedding their plastic enclosures for ones constructed from more eco-friendly materials such as aircraft-grade aluminum and stainless steel, people familiar with the matter say.
The move, which makes good on a promise by company chief executive Steve Jobs to push towards a “greener Apple,” will also mark an end to Macs that come clad in the now tawdry looking white enclosures that began with front face of original iMac nearly a decade ago.

View: Full article @ AppleInsider.

Microsoft is planning to make available to a private group of external testers a first beta of Live Mesh by the end of this month, according to sources claiming familiarity with Microsoft’s plans.
Live Mesh is the future of synchronized storage! Live Mesh would seem to specifically supersede Foldershare; and SkyDrive would have very limited value in such a scenario. Offering a seamless mesh of devices all tied together, including a cloud storage piece allowing for access to information even without access to your devices (kiosk, friend’s house, etc.), collaboration on files with the conflicts handled painlessly, and access to a mesh of devices, it could solve lots of problems in a world that increasingly not only uses computers but many types of devices, all with a desire to be in sync. [WinVistaClub]

The Board of Directors of Yahoo! Inc., today sent a reply to Steve Ballmer, Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft Corporation.
The response letter states “At the same time, we have continued to make clear that we are not opposed to a transaction with Microsoft if it is in the best interests of our stockholders. Our position is simply that any transaction must be at a value that fully reflects the value of Yahoo!, including any strategic benefits to Microsoft, and on terms that provide certainty to our stockholders.”
The letter also states : “We consider your threat to commence an unsolicited offer and proxy contest to displace our independent Board members to be counterproductive and inconsistent with your stated objective of a friendly transaction.”
In short, either Microsoft pays more for a peaceful takeover, or prepares itself for a Corporate War !
View: Yahoo!

A Swedish retailer known as Webhallen today shown off the image of a new PS3 bundle which should hit Europe alongside the launch of GTA IV. The bundle includes a 40GB PS3 console and an actual copy of the game.

Swedish retailer Webhallen has today revealed the first image of a new PlayStation 3 bundle which will be launching in Europe alongside Grand Theft Auto IV. The bundle includes the standard 40GB PlayStation 3 console and a copy of the game.
The price listed is 4499kr, which is the same as the Gran Turismo 5 bundle which launched just over a week ago. While availability in other countries has not been announced, this indicates that the GTA bundle should sell for £299.99 in the United Kingdom and €399.99 elsewhere.

Source: Maxconsole
Bundle: Webhallen

After announcing last month that the next PlayStation 3 bundle would feature Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, new images of the bundle box have been revealed, bringing with it some fine details.
Amazon.com has shown off what looks to be the official box art for the MGS4 bundle and it is a bit different from the original showing that Sony had displayed a little over a month ago. The bundle packaging has been changed from the original black box to a white box and it now features a “DUALSHOCK 3 COMPATIBLE” icon as well as the PlayStation Network logo. The bundle cover also shows the Metal Gear Solid 4 official game box.
This new bundle will come packaged with a 80GB PlayStation 3 console, the Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots game and a DualShock 3 controller. It will be available on June 12 2008 for $499.99 in the US, alongside the standalone release of the title. [GamingBits]

In a letter addressed to Yahoo’s board of directors, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has given Yahoo has three weeks to accept Microsoft Corp’s $31-a-share cash-and-stockoffer. “If we have not concluded an agreement within the next three weeks, we will be compelled to take our case directly to your shareholders, including the initiation of a proxy contest to elect an alternative slate of directors,” Ballmer wrote.
Then he threatened to reduce Microsoft’s offer if Yahoo failed to meet the deadline: “That action will have an undesirable impact on the value of your company from our perspective which will be reflected in the terms of our proposal.” According to a person close to the search engine, Yahoo’s board is currently reviewing the letter.

View: Full Story on Reuters

Future generations will most likely divide the timeline of history at this point: when Quake 3 achieved motion-sensing, wireless network play on two iPod touches. Just think, less than a year ago we were salivating (or at least mildly enthused) at the prospect of rocking Doom on this thing, and now Quake 3 Arena is yours for the taking — or at least will be once we get any sort of hard info on this app. [PMP Today]

Microsoft Corp is evaluating its bid for Yahoo Inc because the Internet company may have lost value since Microsoft made its offer, people familiar with the matter said on Friday. The news, sent Yahoo shares down more than 5 percent in extended trade. 
After weeks of silence, recent comments from various sources to journalists suggest the software maker is hardening its stance and pushing Yahoo for action. The sources told Reuters that Yahoo has lost key personnel, making the company less valuable, while generous severance packages it handed out to executives and full-time employees in the case of a takeover have made it more expensive. [Reuters]

Windows 7 will provide a standardization on the different versions of libraries as its base API instead of managing multiple versions. The reason for the original problem was that certainapplications relied on specific quirks exhibited by libraries that were not properly documented, and therefore fixes to these libraries would break the applications. This clean break will allow MS to focus on a leaner codebase, and will relegate backwards compatibility to a legacy environment similar to the way OS X has “Classic” to run applications from OS 9 and previous. However, this also has interesting implications on the antitrust situation:

This also allows Microsoft to neatly sidestep the DoJ and EU anti-trust rulings, as including the MSHTML library (Internet Explorer’s rendering engine) in the monolithic libraries would provide support for the old rendering functions of Explorer to legacy applications while still remaining hidden from the end-user, the primary complaint in the antitrust cases. [The Beta Guy]

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates on Friday indicated that Windows 7, the next major version of Windows, could come within the next year or so. In response to a question abo ut Windows Vista, Gates, speaking before the Inter-American Development Bank here, said: “Sometime in the next year or so we will have a new version.” Referring to Windows 7, the code name for the next full release of Windows client software, Gates said: “I’m super-enthused about what it will do in lots of ways.” 
Unclear is whether Gates was referring to early testing of Windows 7 coming within the year, as opposed to a widespread release or debut. An early test geared toward developers would be conceivable. [news.com]