HP Omni 220-1125 Desktop

The HP Omni 220-1125 Desktop All-in-One PC saves space and eliminates messy cables—it’s a desktop computer and display in a slim, all-in-one unit. This HP desktop PC features a 21.5" diagonal widescreen Full HD LED backlit display, wireless networking, a built-in webcam/microphone for video chatting and a Slim Tray SuperMulti DVD Burner for watching your favorite videos in HD and creating your own DVDs. It also features a 6-in-1 digital media reader for easy file transfer.

IDEAL FOR
Saving space and eliminating cables, easy productivity, fun with music, photos and videos. An edgy, modern design makes the HP Omni 220 PC cool; it's amazingly easy to set up and it's loaded with fast processors, brilliant HD and responsive, energy-efficient performance.

THIS PRODUCT HAS
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SPECIFICATIONS

Intel Pentium
Processor
Intel® Pentium® Processor G630

Windows 7 Home Premium Logo
Operating System
Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium 64-bit

Display
21.5"diagonal widescreen Full HD LED backlit display

Memory (RAM)
6GB PC3-10600 DDR3

Hard Drive
1TB (7200RPM) SATA

Wireless
Wireless LAN 802.11b/g/n

Optical Drive
Slim Tray SuperMulti DVD Burner

Video Graphics
Intel® HD Graphics. Up to 1696MB Total Available Graphics Memory as allocated by Windows® 7

HP Omni 220-1125 PC Front View

HP Omni 220-1125 PC Left View

FEATURES

Multicore Processor
Get better performance and work more efficiently
6-in-1 Digital Media Reader
Transfer photos from a digital camera to your desktop PC without using cables
Built-in HP Webcam
Video chat live using your HP Omni 220-1125 All-in-One PC
Wireless LAN 802.11b/g/n
Connect to a wireless printer and other accessories

Pentagon considers on-demand disposable satellites

Squads of disposable mini-satellites able to provide reconnaissance to soldiers at the "press of a button" are being considered by the US military.

The Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) says the machines could provide tactical information at times when existing satellites were not in position.

Darpa has invited manufacturers to discuss the project.

It says the satellites should cost $500,000 (£318,500) apiece.

"We envision a constellation of small satellites, at a fraction of the cost of airborne systems, that would allow deployed warfighters to hit 'see me' on existing handheld devices and in less than 90 minutes receive a satellite image of their precise location to aid in mission planning," the agency says in a statement.

It adds that each constellation should consist of about 24 satellites able to stay in low-Earth orbit for 60-90 days before burning up on re-entry.
Beyond drones

Darpa says that contractors will probably have to make use of rapid manufacturing techniques more commonly associated with the smartphone industry to meet its price target.

It adds that they will also need to "develop advanced technologies for optics, power, propulsion and communications to keep size and weight down".

The US Army already has access to drone aircraft to provide intelligence from the skies. Last year it announced new helicopter-style machines equipped with 1.8 gigapixel cameras were due to go into service in Afghanistan.

However, Darpa says such unmanned aircraft cannot cover extended territory without frequent refuelling.

"With a SeeMe constellation, we hope to directly support warfighters in multiple deployed overseas locations simultaneously with no logistics or maintenance costs beyond the warfighters' handhelds," said Dave Barnhart, the programme's manager.
Cost challenge

Elizabeth Quintana from the Royal United Services Institute defence think tank said that the challenge would be keeping the new technology to budget.

"Currently UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles] and other airborne ISR [intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance] assets are very popular with ground troops but the criticism is that there is never enough and that bandwidth demands make it difficult to get imagery products forward to the front line," she said.

"UAVs were adopted with affordability and disposability in mind but the most popular platforms are too expensive to use in this way. The trick will be to keep the costs low enough that the system will be cheaper than existing airborne programmes and can be truly disposable."

Darpa has organised a "Proposers' Day" to discuss the project further on 27 March.

The announcement coincides with news that the organisation's director is leaving to work for Google.

Wired revealed that Regina Dugan is expected to leave "sometime in the next few weeks". Google said that it was not yet ready to disclose what role she would assume.

HP donates WebOS system code to open source developers

The code behind the mobile operating system, WebOS, is being released to open source software developers by Hewlett Packard.

The tech company acquired the software when it bought the smartphone maker Palm for $1.2bn (£767m) last year.

HP used the code to power its short-lived range Touchpad tablet computers before it abandoned the product line.

The firm said it would continue investing in the project to help third parties add enhancements.

"By contributing this innovation, HP unleashes the creativity of the open source community to advance a new generation of applications and devices," said the firm's president and chief executive, Meg Whitman.
Investment

A statement from the company said it would make the underlying code behind WebOS available under an open source licence. It said third-party developers, partners and HP's own engineers could then "deliver ongoing enhancements and new versions into the marketplace".

The firm added that it intended to be "an active participant and investor in the project".
'U-turn'

Analysts said the decision secured the platform's future, at least in the short to medium term.

"Given how successful HP was in selling off their tablet computers cheaply when they scrapped the platform we always suspected there would be some sort of u-turn," said Chris Green, principal technology analyst at Davies Murphy Group Europe.

"However we still don't think it will become a major platform to rival Google's Android and Apple's iOS. It will appeal to many generic tablet makers out there - but its long term future will probably be to power HP printers, and other peripheral devices."

Colin Gillis, senior tech analyst at BGC Partners, said HP had ultimately missed an opportunity to disrupt the market with a line of mobile computers powered by its own software.

"The real winner here is Microsoft," he said.

"It no longer has to contend with what would have been another viable operating system as it prepares to launch its Windows 8 tablets."

Motorola gains Apple wireless patent battle in Germany

A German court has ruled in Motorola Mobility's favour in a patents dispute with Apple.

The Android smartphone maker had complained that Apple failed to license one of its wireless intellectual properties.

Apple uses the technology in its iPhones and 3G iPads.

Motorola could now try to force Apple to remove the feature from its devices or halt sales in Germany. However, Apple said it intended to appeal.

Motorola said the ruling validated its "efforts to enforce its patents against Apple's infringement".

Apple responded: "We're going to appeal the court's ruling right away. Holiday shoppers in Germany should have no problem finding the iPad or iPhone they want."

If Motorola does decide to pursue an injunction blocking sales of Apple's products the case could result in a clash between the iPad maker and Google - Motorola's shareholders have approved the search giant's takeover of their company and the deal is due to be completed in 2012.
Fighting times

The case relates to Motorola's patent for a "method for performing a countdown function during a mobile-originated transfer for a packet radio system".

Motorola licenses this patent to others on Frand (fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory) terms.

The owner of a Frand-type patent is obligated to license out its technology to third-parties because the invention has been declared to be essential to an industry standard.

Apple had offered to pay a Frand-set fee going forward and was willing to pay a similar rate for past infringements. But it lost the case because it tried to retain the right to contest the validity of the patent with a view to past damages.

It tried to do this because Motorola had defended its right to charge an above-Frand rate for Apple's use of its technology over the past four years. This could have been many times higher than the rate Apple was willing to pay and potentially very expensive.

Motorola will have to post a 100m euro (£85m; $133m) bond if it wishes to enforce a sales injunction against Apple. The cash would cover compensation to Apple if the ruling was later overturned.

Motorola welcomed the ruling.

"We will continue to take all necessary steps to protect our intellectual property, as the company's patent portfolio and licensing agreements with companies both in the US and around the world are critical to our business," said Scott Offer, senior vice-president and general counsel of Motorola Mobility.

"We have been negotiating with Apple and offering them reasonable licensing terms and conditions since 2007, and will continue our efforts to resolve our global patent dispute as soon as practicable."
Appeal details

Patent watchers say it could be years before the case is resolved.

"This is really a given between such large players in high stakes disputes," said Florian Mueller, a patent consultant who revealed the court's verdict on his blog.

"In Germany you get a first ruling by a regional court rather quickly - this litigation started in April this year. Usually between companies of this stature the disputes go to the higher regional court and that could take a couple of years," Mr Mueller told the BBC.

Mr Mueller advises Microsoft and others and has campaigned for patent reform in Europe.

He said Apple could try to revise its products, but noted that Frand-type patents were, by their nature, hard to work around. He added that doing so could run the risk of causing communication problems with the mobile networks' equipment.
Samsung tablet ban

Although Apple is on the receiving end of this lawsuit it has also been very active in the courts suing HTC, Samsung and Motorola among others for claimed patent infringements.

It temporarily managed to have Samsung's tablets banned from sale in Australia, although the restriction was overturned earlier today.

The US International Trade Commission is expected to rule on its dispute with Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC on 14 December. The judgement could lead to shipments of HTC's products being blocked in the US.

Although the targets of Apple's lawsuits are often firms which use Google's Android software, the two firms have avoided suing each other. That is set to change when Google's takeover of Motorola Mobility is completed early next year.

"Google with its pending acquisition will be watching this case with great interest as any victory is an endorsement of Motorola's patent portfolio that it is seeking to acquire," said Ben Cross, director of research at the telecoms consultancy CCS Insight.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday US online sales soar

Online sales rose faster than expected in the US on Black Friday, according to surveys.

Internet sales totalled $816m (£524m), a 26% gain on last year, said Comscore. IBM Coremetrics put the rise at 24%.

Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, is treated by many retailers as the start of the Christmas shopping season. They offer one-off discounts to mark the occasion.

Analysts said heavy promotional activity helped drive demand.

By comparison, a report by Shoppertrak suggested that in-store Black Friday sales were up by 7% on last year, at $11.4bn.
Beating the rush

Around 50 million Americans visited online retail sites on Friday, according to Comscore.

It said Amazon was the most popular destination, with 50% more visitors than any other retailer.

Walmart, Best Buy, Target and Apple were next in line, said the analytics company.

"Despite some analysts' predictions that the flurry of brick-and-mortar retailers opening their doors early for Black Friday would pull dollars from online retail, we still saw a banner day for e-commerce," said Comscore's chairman, Gian Fulgoni.
Mobile shopping

IBM Coremetrics also noted a trend towards shopping on smartphones and tablet computers.

It said Black Friday purchases made on mobile devices had accounted for 9.8% of all online sales, compared with 3.2% last year.

IBM described mobile shoppers as having had a "laser focus" since they had been more likely to view a single page on a retailer's site rather than browse what else was for sale.

IBM said Apple's iPhone and iPad had generated the most mobile internet visits to online stores, accounting for more than double the traffic originating from devices running Google's Android system.

The company also noted a jump in Black Friday related chatter on social networks. It recorded a 110% rise in discussion volumes after consumers had shared tips on how to secure products before they sold out and the best places to park.
Cyber Monday

Friday's internet sales are expected to be eclipsed today on what is referred to as Cyber Monday - which many experts believe will be the US's busiest online shopping day of the year.

Close to 123 million Americans plan to make an online purchase according to a survey commissioned by the US National Retail Federation, an industry lobby group. That would be a 15% increase on last year.

NRF said nearly eight in ten online retailers would run special promotions including "flash sales that last an hour" and "free shipping offers".

The federation also highlighted the shift to mobile devices, saying it expected 17.8 million Americans to use them to shop today, nearly five times the number in 2009.

"Retailers have invested heavily in mobile apps and related content as the appetite for Cyber Monday shopping through smartphones and tablets continues to rise," said Vicki Cantrell, executive director of the NRF's website shop.org.
Cyber confusion

UK internet retailers said it was less clear which day will be the UK's busiest online shopping day this year.

"Over the last couple of years we have seen a fortnight of peak activity over the period corresponding to both this and next week," said Andy Mulcahy, a spokesman for the industry body Interactive Media in Retail Group (IMRG).

"We expect £3.72bn will be spent online over the two week period."

Mr Mulcahy said that although some retailers are trying to generate interest in the idea of a cyber event in the UK, but they are split over which day to mark.

Visa Europe said it believed today will be the UK's busiest internet shopping day, with £303m spent online.

eBay has forecast that it would experience its peak in activity this Sunday with more than 5.5 million people expected to log onto the UK version of its auction website.

Amazon said it expected to experience more demand the following day.

"In recent years, the first Monday in December has been Amazon.co.uk's busiest day with orders for over 2.3 million items being placed on Monday 6th December last year," said Christopher North, the website's managing director.

United Kingdom cybersecurity project a 'promising step' but with hazards

The UK government has today released its 2011 Cyber Security Strategy.

With an increased focus on cybercrime, and renewed focus on cyberspace as an engine of economic and social prosperity, the strategy continues to hone Whitehall's understanding of this vibrant, complex and increasingly global domain.

Many of the strategy objectives - in particular those related to securing critical infrastructure - will require close engagement with the private sector.

These public-private partnerships are essential, and, as noted in a recent Chatham House report on critical national infrastructure, they require awareness, engagement and trust among senior decision makers on all sides.

This is not an easy process and requires a keen understanding of the incentives that guide actions in the public and private sectors.
Links to business

The government will also have to balance the tension between building a more secure environment - which requires standards and regulation - and encouraging businesses to set up shop in the UK.

However there are signs that Whitehall is aware of these complexities and the need to experiment with potential solutions.

One new initiative is a three-month pilot scheme among five business sectors: defence, finance, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, and energy.

It will exchange "actionable information on cyber threats", "analyse new trends" and work to "strengthen and link up our collective cyber security capabilities".

The strategy also supports existing independent initiatives such as Get Safe Online (raising awareness of cyber threats) and Cyber Security Challenge UK (searching for new talent), both of which have taken a good idea and implemented it in a simple and straightforward manner.
Risks

Cybercrime is topic that receives significant focus, in particular for the damage it does to the financial and social fabric of the country.

One primary initiative will create a "national cyber crime capability as part of the new National Crime Agency by 2013".

Another will create, by the end of 2011, a "single reporting system for citizens and small businesses to report cyber crime".

These are all encouraging steps that will require patience and persistence but which are essential.

One idea that looks slightly riskier is a "government-sponsored venture capital model to unlock innovation on cyber security in SMEs" (small and medium enterprises).

The appetite for risk varies widely between Silicon Roundabout and Whitehall, and government experimentation with venture capitalism has often produced mixed results. For example the US government's $535m (£345m) loan to Solyndra - the now-bankrupt solar panel manufacturer.
First steps

The new strategy is more detailed than the 2009 version, and in many ways reads more like a cyber and economic security strategy.

It continues the process set in motion by the recent Foreign Office-led London Conference on Cyberspace, which emphasised the economic and social benefits of a secure cyberspace and called for development of "rules of the road".

The introduction to the strategy notes that the government will report back in 2012 on progress made toward these objectives.

This strategy is a promising step and has ambitiously laid out a task list of dozens of actions.

The real challenge will be to prioritise and deliver in a climate of financial austerity.

David Clemente is a research assistant specialising in international security, at the Chatham House think tank.

He is the co-author off the organisation's recent report "Cyber security and the UK's critical national infrastructure".

Black Friday iTunes infected credit malware alarm

Criminals are targeting internet users with a new gift certificate scam, according to security experts.

Users receive an email that claims to be from Apple's iTunes store, warns the Eleven security blog.

The ZIP file attached contains malware that may allow hackers to gain access to the recipient's computer.

The blog says the attack appears to have been timed to coincide with Black Friday, one of the US's busiest shopping days.

Black Friday was the name used by Philadelphia's police department in the 1960s to describe the day after Thanksgiving because of all the traffic jams caused by people visiting the city's stores.

It is now viewed by many retailers as the start of the Christmas shopping season. They mark the day with one-off discounts and other special offers.

Eleven says the period has become one of the most popular times for internet scammers to target users.
Infected offer

The security firm says that users are told they have been sent $50 (£32) of iTunes store credit and need to open an attached file to find out their certificate code.

The file contains a program known as Mal/BredoZp-B.

PCthreat.com says the software opens up a backdoor on the users' computers and may also capture passwords and other information.

It says the code may also slow down the infected computer's performance and make files disappear.

The malware can be removed with the use of anti-spyware tools.
Facebook phishing

Security adviser Sophos warns of a separate threat linked to Facebook.

It says users are receiving emails claiming that they have violated the social network's policy regulations by annoying or insulting other members.

An attached link take users to a web page that presents them with a fake "Facebook Account Disabled" form.

The firm says that members are then asked to fill in a series of forms requesting their login details, country of residence and the first six digits of their credit card number.

If the users refuse they are told their account will be blocked automatically.

"New day, new attempt," writes Sophos's security writer Lisa Vaas on the company's blog.

"All these phishing scams boil down to a naked grab for your account details. Remember, neither Facebook nor other reputable social media sites would ask for this information."