computing
Chrome OS on the cheap, but at what cost?
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/11/26/acer-c7-chromebook-review/
It’s been just over a month since Google unveiled its gorgeous and affordable $249 Samsung Chromebook only to surprise us days later with an even cheaper system, the $199 Acer C7 Chromebook. At first glance, these two laptops are very similar, both in purpose (cloud-based computing on a budget) and in specs (11.6-inch display, dual-core CPU, 2GB of RAM), but there are significant differences under the hood. Samsung’s offering achieves its svelte form factor, 6.5-hour battery life and attractive price via a fully integrated and fanless ARM-based design while Acer takes a more conservative approach — cramming standard off-the-shelf components like a 2.5-inch hard drive, small-outline memory module, mini-PCIe WiFi card, and Intel Celeron processor into a traditional netbook-like chassis. Does being $50 cheaper make up for the C7’s lack of sex appeal and short 4-hour battery life? What other compromises in performance and build quality (if any) were made to achieve this lower cost? Most importantly, which budget Chromebook is right for you? Find out after the break.
Gallery: Acer C7 Chromebook review
Continue reading Acer C7 Chromebook review: Chrome OS on the cheap, but at what cost?
How Crypto Keys Can Be Stolen Across the Cloud
Source: http://gizmodo.com/5958778/how-crypto-keys-can-be-stolen-across-the-cloud
Most people are happy to give their neighbours a spare house key in case of emergencies, but you probably wouldn’t want to give them your digital passwords. Now security researchers have shown that you may not have a choice, at least when it comes to cloud computing.
Cloud servers let users run simulations of an ordinary computer, called virtual machines (VMs), on remote hardware. A VM performs exactly as an ordinary computer would, but because it is entirely software-based, many of them can run on a single hardware base. Yinqian Zhang of the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and colleagues have discovered that it is possible for one VM to steal cryptographic keys – used to keep your data secure – from another running on the same physical hardware, potentially putting cloud-computing users at risk.
The attack exploits the fact that both VMs share the same hardware cache, a memory component that stores data for use by the computer’s processor. The attacking VM fills the cache in such a way that the target VM, which is processing a cryptographic key, is likely to overwrite some of the attacker’s data. By looking at which parts of the cache are changed, the attacking VM can learn something about the key in use.
Zhang and team did not test the attack in the cloud for real, but used hardware similar to that employed by Amazon’s cloud service to try stealing a decryption key. They were able to reconstruct a 4096-bit key in just a few hours, as reported in a paper presented at the Computer and Communications Security conference in Raleigh, North Carolina, last month.
This attack won’t apply in all situations, as an attacker would have to establish a VM on the same hardware as yours, which isn’t always possible. What’s more, an attack would not work on hardware running more than two VMs. Still, those looking to use cloud services for high-security applications may want to reconsider.
Image by David Malan/Getty

Google Is Selling Almost 1 Million Nexus 7 Tablets Per Month (GOOG)
Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/google-nexus-7-sales-2012-10
Google is selling almost one million Nexus 7 tablets per month, according to Asustek CFO David Chang.
Chang tells the Wall Street Journal, “At the beginning, it was, for instance, 500K units a month, then maybe 600, 700K. This latest month, it was close to 1 million.”
The Nexus 7 is a $199 seven-inch tablet, Google designed in conjunction with Asustek. It is Google’s attempt to slow sales of Amazon’s Kindle Fire, and challenge Apple’s iPad dominance.
It is also Google’s best effort at creating a true tablet computing experience with Android. While Android is the leading smartphone operating system, Apple’s iOS is leading in tablets.
Apple sold 14 million iPads last quarter, which is roughly 1 million per week. So, Google is still far behind. But this increasing growth is encouraging, and perhaps one of the reasons Apple decided to release a cheaper iPad mini.
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When People Use Mobile Devices (AAPL, GOOG, MSFT)
Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/chart-of-the-day-mobile-and-pc-content-2012-9
Ad company Kontera tracked data from 15,000 publishers to find out when people are using their PC versus iPhones, Android phones, and tablets, which are lumped as “mobile” in the chart below.
This chart shows for each hour of the day what percentage of total mobile and PC content is consumed. As you can see, mobile usage is strongest from 6 PM to midnight. PC usage is strongest from 11 AM to 5 PM.
What this tells us is that people are using PCs at work, and mobile gadgets at home. Sort of a duh, right? Maybe, but it suggests a big shift in what “personal computing” really means. If we’re doing mobile computing largely during our personal time, which is when we’re out of work, it means people are more likely to buy tablets than traditional PCs in the future.
Follow the Chart Of The Day on Twitter: @chartoftheday
When People Use Mobile Devices (AAPL, GOOG, MSFT)
Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/chart-of-the-day-mobile-and-pc-content-2012-9
Ad company Kontera tracked data from 15,000 publishers to find out when people are using their PC versus iPhones, Android phones, and tablets, which are lumped as “mobile” in the chart below.
This chart shows for each hour of the day what percentage of total mobile and PC content is consumed. As you can see, mobile usage is strongest from 6 PM to midnight. PC usage is strongest from 11 AM to 5 PM.
What this tells us is that people are using PCs at work, and mobile gadgets at home. Sort of a duh, right? Maybe, but it suggests a big shift in what “personal computing” really means. If we’re doing mobile computing largely during our personal time, which is when we’re out of work, it means people are more likely to buy tablets than traditional PCs in the future.
Follow the Chart Of The Day on Twitter: @chartoftheday
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The Collapse Of The Microsoft-Intel Monopoly (INTC, MSFT, AAPL, GOOG)
Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/chart-of-the-day-personal-computing-platforms-2012-9
Here’s an awesome chart from Horace Dediu of Asymco that shows the collapse of Microsoft and Intel’s monopoly in personal computing. It’s been making the rounds today.
As you can see, Android and Apple have successfully eaten into Wintel’s marketshare. That’s not to say Microsoft is going to collapse. It has a number of successful businesses. It’s just not going to run the world like it once did.
Follow the Chart Of The Day on Twitter: @chartoftheday
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Search Is The Biggest Driver Of App Discovery
Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/search-is-the-biggest-driver-of-app-discovery-2012-8
Business Insider Intelligence a new research and analysis service focused on mobile computing and the Internet. The product is currently in beta. For more information, and to sign up for a free 30-day trial, click here.
Search is the top app discovery tool. According to Nielsen, 63 percent of Android and iOS users have utilized search to discover new apps in their respective app stores.
While most developers focus on cracking the top 25, search is becoming an increasingly important tool in the “long tail” of mobile apps. App revenue is no longer as concentrated with the proliferation of apps, which helps explain why Apple is buying a company like Chomp to revamp search in the App Store.
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Chinese Smartphone Shipments Skyrocket
Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/chinese-smartphone-shipments-skyrocket-2012-8
Business Insider Intelligence a new research and analysis service focused on mobile computing and the Internet. The product is currently in beta. For more information, and to sign up for a free 30-day trial, click here.
Chinese smartphone shipments were 27 percent of global shipments in the second quarter, according to Canalys. That’s up from 16 percent of shipments during the first quarter of 2011. China surpassed the U.S. as largest smartphone market in the world last year, according to Strategy Analytics.
Android is the dominant platform in the country, accounting for 81 percent of shipments last quarter. That’s up from 68 percent at the end of last year. In addition to! cheaper price points, Android’s rise has been aided by Apple’s botched entry into the market—it initially decided to carry with only one of the country’s three major carriers.
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China Has More Mobile Internet Users Than Broadband Users
Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/china-has-more-mobile-internet-users-than-broadband-users-2012-7
Business Insider Intelligence a new research and analysis service focused on mobile computing and the Internet. The product is currently in beta. For more information, and to sign up for a free 30-day trial, click here.
The mobile web is king in China. According to the China Internet Network Information Center, mobile internet users outnumbered broadband users for the first time.
Mobile internet connections have surged with the growth of smartphones, while broadband connections have contracted by 70 million over the past 18 months. CNNIC says that half of new internet users come from rural areas, 60 percent of whom access the web from their phones.
Broadband is probably faltering because mobile web access is cheaper than fixed access, as is true in most of the developing world. Boston Consulting Group forecasts that most of the growth in G-20 internet connections will come from mobile access.
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