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HD DRM under strain

Just days after the organisation behind HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc's AACS copy-protection technology said it had patched a hole exposed by hackers earlier this year [1], their opponents figured out how to get an Xbox 360 external HD DVD drive to play copies of discs by bypassing part of AACS' encryption-key authorisation process [2].

None of this dissuaded Samsung from admitting, yes, it is indeed planning to offer a player capable of handling both next-gen optical formats. The Duo HD will arrive before Christmas [3].

iPod hits 100m

Wireless iPod Yes, Apple has sold more than 100m iPods [4] - quite a few, we suspect, to consumers who've upgraded over the years or decided they want Shuffles in all the colours. Maybe they'll upgrade again when the rumoured Wi-Fi fitted iPod [5] ships. If it ships...

Intel guns for gamers

Intel launched its fatest gaming-oriented processor, the Core 2 Extreme QX6800, releasing the 2.93GHz quad-core chip at least three months earlier than anticipated [6]. Mind you, benchmark test results published ahead of the introduction of upcoming Core 2-based Celeron processors showed they're no slouch [7] either.

A feast of phones

Orange SPV E650 Orange announced its first Windows Mobile 6 handset, a model based on HTC's Vox candybar phone with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard [8]. Samsung's Blackberry-like i600 has its keyboard on the front, and while Orange didn't say it was going to offer the i600 too, its website revealed otherwise [9].

Separately, LG said its Shine slider phone would go 3G [10], but we'll see Samsung's ultra-skinny slider, the Ultra Edition II 10.9, much sooner [11].

Palm logo Finally, Palm admitted it's working on its own operating system again, this one mixing Linux and the current Palm OS, Garnet [12].

Special Feature How to get your Wi-Fi working again [13]

Best of the rest

AMD preparing Turion challenger for next-gen Centrino? [14]
Samsung spins SpinPoint 2.5in drives [15]
Evesham motors in with car-friendly second-set LCD TV [16]
LG rolls out Beetle-branded MP3 player [17]
Microsoft brings instant messaging to Xbox Live [18]

Hot reviews

Sony Walkman video MP3 NW-A800 [19]
A great Flash player with excellent bundled earphones, but too small a screen to do video justice

Samsung YP-T9 MP3 player [20]
Only die-hard Apple-devotees would refuse to consider the T9 as their next media player.

Griffin ExpressCard 5:1 Card Reader [21]
Pricier than a stack of USB 2.0 card adaptors but much more convenient.

Orange SPV M700 Windows Mobile smart phone [22]
The addition of GPS, 3G, extra camera functions and video calling turns an already impressive handset into a must-have.

Griffin Elevator laptop lift [23]
Elevator lifts your laptop to new heights. But it's pricey compared to a stack of books.

Sapphire Radeon X1950 GT-based graphics card [24]
Sapphire's Radeon X1950 GT is an underclocked X1950 Pro that sells for under £100. Deal or no deal?

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