S Korean police seek to equip GPS system to cell phone users

In a bid to combat the increasing incidence of kidnapping and other crimes against women and children, the South Korean government is pushing a bill to allow the South Korean police to require all new mobile phones to be equipped with GPS. However there are concerns the measure will infringe on the privacy of mobile users as well as raise the prices of mobile phones. In addition, GPS does not work well indoors, where satellite signals are blocked.

Only about 20% of mobile phones in S. Korea are currently equipped with GPS.

Full article is available at China View.

A New Goldmine For Intel: The $6 Atom Processor

According to Tom's Hardware Intel will be launching its Atom CPU (previously codenamed Silverthorne) soon, which the company is expecting to be its next big cash cow due to its low extreme low pricing. According to the writer, Theo Valich, a credible source has placed the Atom production/packaging/shipping cost in the range of USD6 to USD8. If true, this would mean Intel can earn as much as USD40 per chip.

If the low price allows the Atom to take off in a spectacular manner and spark a new generation of MIDs and UMPCs, then it could conceivably end up earning more money than Core 2 Duos, much in the same way the Eee PC line-up could potentially become Asus' bread-and-butter.

Five scams you may not know about

An informative article from Yahoo! Tech re five scams you need to know about -

Along with identity theft here are five scams you should be aware of -

Tax and Rebate Scams

You get a call or email claiming to be from a government agency (e.g. IRS or SSA) asking for personal information to process a rebate check. If you resist giving out information, you're told you cannot receive the rebate.

Cheap Electronics Scam

Online site sells electronic products at extremely low prices but has a minimum purchase (e.g. USD500), lacks a secure payment transaction form, or has a new domain registration, questionable contact information, grammatical and spelling errors, a no return policy, and untraceable payment methods. Research first before buying.

Chatroom Scams

Some scams use a software robot that poses as a human in chatrooms. These bots can do multiple chats, persuading victims to give personal information. Information harvested are then used to carry out various forms of fraud. Unsuspecting victims may also be tricked into visiting a 'personal site' that could load malware onto their computers that captures your keystrokes.

Local Charity Scams

Scammers claiming to be from the police department or DARE solicit donations purporting to benefit police officers. Police say many victims have reported the phone number used appears to be from the local police department, so don't be fooled.

Cancer Cure Scam

Some websites tadvertise natural products they claim will prevent or cure everything from cancer to diabetes. Unfortunately, there is no such thing as a miracle cure for cancer. The reality is many of these products are not proven, effective, or safe, and the sites are full of false testimonials.

Design and Make Your Own OpenMoko Phone

From Gizmodo -

OpenMoko is taking its open philosophy a step beyond its Linux soul and has released the CAD files for the Neo1973 under a ShareAlike Creative Commons license.

DreamCom 10, Ergonomic Laptop Transformer

From Crunchgear -

The DreamCom 10 is an Intel-based laptop featuring UMTS/HSDPA with one identifiable trick. Check out the video below.



More details at the Dreamcom website.

Building the Perfect Laptop

Businessweek features the Lenovo X300 in its cover story and provides riveting details regarding how the portable was conceived as part of Lenovo's efforts for leadership in the high-stakes world of laptops.

Complete article can be read here.