Another day, another Tech Digest CES 2010 round-up. Fancy Tweeting hands-free in your car or controlling your PC by breathing? Check today's top stories below and find out how.

Twitter coming to Ford cars
The digital equivalent of drink-driving?

Motorola announce Backflip Android Phone
Hinged smartphone is Motorola's big CES 2010 offering

Ion launch the iType full QWERTY keyboard add-on for the iPhone
Making the portable unwieldy

Vuzix demo Wrap 920AR Augmented Reality visor
Turning your trip to the shops into a scene out of Robocop

Zyxio's new breathing-based PC controller, the Sensawaft
Affordable accessibility gadget, perfect for disabled PC users

3D gaming headed to the Palm family
Apple isn't the only mobile now capable of some hardcore gaming action

Is the Viliv P3 the underdog tablet to look out?
Dual-booting tablet is looking very tasty indeed

Razer and Sixense bring motion gaming to the PC
But will it catch on within the incredibly competitive PC gaming peripheral market?

UK getting the Dell Mini 3i
Android phone hitting UK shores in the not-so-distant-future

Video- Armour Home Q2 Tilt Internet radio
Innovative and simple radio from Brit-based Armour

Video - "World's smallest Windows PC" the UMID M Book 1
It makes a gnat's bum look big. Well...not quite. But you get the idea

Video- Casio's Digital Art Frame
Making all those dodgy Facebook snaps look good

Video - The coolest retro iPhone hi-fi ever, Lasonic's i931
Bring 80's boom box street-chic bang up to date

Video - Toshiba's Cell TV that is controlled by hand gestures
Innovative tech, but it makes you look a bit of an idiot; not sure I want a work out in front of the telly

Video - Sony's BRAVIA XBR-52HX900 3D TV
Their flagship 3D set is a stunner

Video - Panasonic's 3D camera
Bet the adult-entertainment industry cant wait to get its mitts on this one

Click here for more CES 2010 coverage from Tech Digest

Tech Digest at CES is sponsored by Best Buy. For more CES stories and videos go here

A beacon of hope in an otherwise drab Microsoft keynote at this year's CES, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer unvilied the HP Slate, a touchscreen tablet PC that the two companies have been working closely together on.

"It's a beautiful little product," Ballmer said, showing off a "prototype of a coming HP slate PC."

"Slate PCs that will be rolling into the marketplace this year [are] perfect for reading, for surfing the Web and for taking entertainment on the go," he said.

It may not be the Courier that many were hoping for, but the HP Slate looks to be a slick tablet PC in its own right.

With only a prototype on show here at CES 2010, there's still no pricing, availability or hardcore specification details ready yet. We'll wing them your way as soon as we have them.

Click here for more CES 2010 coverage from Tech Digest

Tech Digest at CES is sponsored by Best Buy. For more CES stories and
videos go here

Canon are set to launch the imageFORMULA P-150 portable duplex scanner on Monday 9th November, and Tech Digest were on hand at Canon HQ today to have a test.

Weighing less than a bag of sugar, the P-150 is incredibly compact. It measures up at 280 x 95 x 40 mm when closed, folding out to 280 x 222.7 x 202.2 mm to reveal the loading tray. It'd easily fit in a hand-bag or "man-bag", and is light enough to not be too much of a hassle when travelling.

Despite its size, the imageFORMULA P-150 packs a lot of punch for a scanner so small. Capable of 15 pages per minute/30 image per minute duplex scanning in black and white and 10 ppm/10 ipm in full colour, it churns through paper work at a pretty pace.

In a nice touch, the P-150 is fully powered by USB, and thanks to built in software can be plugged into any PC and used instantly, without the need to install any extra programs.

For the high-volume user, the P-150 will be compatible with Therefore software, offering remote management and streamlined indexing of scanned items. An Office-style UI will make the management system instantly familiar to most users.

According to Canon, 23% of office space is filled with filing cabinets. With the imageFormula P-150 not much bigger than a handheld gaming console, it could be a great solution for the space-conscious.

Look for a full Tech Digest review on the imageFORMULA P-150 early next week.

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Seth McFarlane, creator of Family Guy, confirmed that a Windows 7 themed, Microsoft sponsored episode of the irreverent TV show will air soon.

Never one to turn a blind eye to a potential dollar, McFarlane's hugely successful Family Guy and American Dad shows have already made him a multi-millionaire many times over. No doubt a tidy sum exchanged hands when this deal was brought to the table.

According to Arstechnica.com: "There will be no commercial ad time, no network promotions, and no commercial breaks--just a 30-minute Windows 7 trailer" when the show airs Stateside in November, and will feature "original animation, live-action performances of Family Guy's most memorable musical numbers, comedy sketches, and surprise celebrity guests."

So can we expect quick-fire satire on forced restarts, programs that won't respond or the global domination of the mega-corporation? Unlikely; Peter, Brian, Stewie and company will probably be kept on a tight leash as Microsoft tailor every last detail of the massive Windows 7 launch.

Is that a shark on the horizon that needs jumping, Seth?

Here's a rather unfunny sneak-peek at the episode:

Microsoft has pulled its Windows 7 discount pricing after apparently overwhelming demand lead to its online store crashing and has continued its EC hissy-fit confirming that their will be no Vista to 7 upgrade option.

Microsoft claim that they sold more copies of Windows 7 in the first eight hours than it did in 17 weeks in 2006 with a simliar offer for Windows Vista.

The blogosphere is already awash with rumours that actually, Microsoft were going to do it all along, to the fan the flames of hype around 7. Hype which hasn't been seen for a Microsoft OS since Windows 98.

And after pulling IE 8 from the Euro version of 7 following their EC anticompetitive fine, Microsoft have also said that there will be no Vista upgrade option in Europe.

Although Windows 7 will be released in Europe for the price of an upgrade package in the rest of world.

Microsoft's Leila Martine said: "What we are saying is 'we don't care as a consumer if you had Windows Vista or not because we can't tell that and we don't want to penalise you for our decision to take IE8 out of the Wndows 7 E version and to not give an upgrade option."

You can still download the release candidate which will work until late next, and which I have partitioned onto my macbook HD. Aren't I cool?

I'm not cool.

(Via PcAdvisor)

Anyone planning to buy themselves a copy of Windows 7 needs to be on their mark at midnight tonight. From 12:01am on Wednesday 15th July, you can pre-order a copy of Windows 7 Home Premium for £49.99 or Windows 7 Professional £99.99 saving yourself up to £120.

They haven't said how many cheaper copies there'll be but have quoted that "stocks are limited". So, with RRP set at £149.99 and £219.99, the smart move is to get in fast.

If you don't fancy it, there's probably still time to download a free copy of the Windows 7 RC and that'll last you a year before you have to do something about getting a new one. Otherwise, get yourself over to the Windows 7 pre-order site tonight or to any of their UK partners below is stocks run thin.

Windows 7 pre-order sites UK

Amazon
Currys
Dixons
Micro Anvika
PC World
Play.com
Tesco
Microsoft
Argos
Comet
Ebuyer.com,
John Lewis Partnership,
Littlewoods,
Staples

Microsoft has announced the release dates and prices for its latest operating system - Windows 7.

From 15th July the public can pre-order their copy of Windows 7 Home Premium for a special introductory price of £49.99 - not bad when you consider the RRP of £149.99. From the release date of 22nd October until the end of December, consumers will be able to buy a copy of Home Premium for £79.99.

If you were holding off buying a new PC because you were waiting for Windows 7 there's no need to wait any longer. From tomorrow until the end of January any new PCs bought with Vista installed will receive free upgrades to Windows 7. Make sure you agree with your PC dealer that the upgrade deal is in place before parting with your cash.

Users should also be aware that, because of Microsoft and the EC's little spat, the European version of Windows 7 (7E) will not be a simple upgrade - it will require a clean install. Make sure you back up all of your stuff before you do this - a clean install will wipe everything.

This all sounds like good news, until you consider that the Americans can pre-order their copies for $49.99 - not really fair when you look at the latest exchange rates.

Windows 7 Professional will also be available to pre-order for £99.99 and, along with the Home Premium version can be pre-ordered on Amazon or via the DSGi group (Dixons, Currys, PC World) from 15th July to 14th August or until they run out.

PC users will be hoping that Windows 7 is a major improvement on the disappointing Vista and not mereley a Vista Upgrade as was claimed by Apple's Bertrand Serlet at the WWDC.

(via The Guardian)

I'd like to sit here all smug saying we told you so after Acer let the cat out of the bag about a month ago but, as it stands, Windows 7 will actually be available one day earlier than we said. Can you ever forgive us?

Microsoft has promised that most retailers and manufactures will run an upgrade scheme for those who recently purchased Vista machines - we already know that Dell is a likely candidate - but it looks like only those with Vista Starter, Home Premium, Professional, Enterprise and Ultimate will be included with no joy for those who opted for Basic. That'll teach you to skate cheap.

Both the Windows 7 beta and release candidate have been well received and you'd think that the this full version will sit far better with the public than Vista ever has, despite being more or less identical. I'd still rather run XP after using the 7 beta for a while now but then perhaps I'm just a stick in the mud. It's very sticky and muddy down here. Probably best you do your own thing.

(via Windows Blog)

"23rd October is the date the Windows 7 will be available" says Bobby Watkins, Acer's UK MD. The company will be releasing its all-in-one Z5600 PC on that date, and it will come pre-loaded with Windows 7.

Microsoft is still claiming a release date of January 2010, but the company has acknowledged that it's running ahead of schedule on the follow-up to its poorly-received Vista. Any of Acer's Vista-based PCs purchased within 30 days prior to 23rd October will be eligible for a free upgrade.

Stay tuned for more news on Acer's 2009 lineup. We'll have the full details for you shortly.

Ladies and gentlemen, start your browsers. The release candidate for Microsoft's new operating system, Windows 7, is now available. Well, available to MSDN and Technet subscribers, anyway. If you're not one of them, then you'll have to wait till next Tuesday, May 5th.

The release candidate is what Microsoft hopes to release commercially in a few months time. They claim they're still aiming at a January 2010 release, but they've been running ahead of schedule up to this point, so it's entirely possibly that'll be brought forward a couple of months to hit the holiday season if there are no major issues with the OS between now and then.

The release candidate will be available from now until the release of the OS, and it'll work until June 1st 2010. Microsoft's basically giving you 12 months of a free operating system, in exchange for you letting them know when you have difficulties with it.

The company has seen well over a million downloads of the Windows 7 beta, and over 100,000 of those in the UK. They're hoping that demand for the release candidate will be even higher.

If you've been running the Windows 7 beta, then you'll already know about what it gives you over Vista or XP - considerably improved performance, security, usability and support for touchscreens and internet-enabled appliances, so that you can right-click files to send them to your television, for example.

Since the beta was released, Microsoft's made more than thirty major changes to the OS. There's changes to taskbar scaling, improved driver support, remote media streaming and more gestures for users of touchscreens, but the biggest addition is a virtual machine running Windows XP. This'll be available to small businesses who might be running software that has trouble with Windows 7 in the 'Professional' edition of the OS,

Microsoft has also removed a couple of bits of functionality from the beta. They've taken out Bluetooth audio support, as well as the ability for people to log on as a 'guest' to the computer. Interestingly, they've also taken out the ability for USB sticks to autorun programs when they're inserted. This is to help guard against virus infection by rogue USB sticks.

If you want to give it a shot, then keep an eye on this website on May 5th. When we get a proper download link, we'll update this post.

Have you been testing out the Windows 7 beta, and clicking that little 'feedback' button in the top right of every Window? Well, Microsoft has been listening, and they've just announced a massive list of the changes they've made as a result of the feedback.

The full list is here, but there's a few highlights that I'll share with you if you can't be bothered to read the whole thing. Firstly, there's plenty of functionality for making things more obvious on the taskbar, along with keyboard shortcuts. There's also a multi-touch onscreen keyboard (so you can shift-tap stuff).

There's better format support too, and anything that can't be played will be filtered out of Windows Media Player, so it doesn't bother you. There's also resuming video from sleep with actual files, like you would with a DVD, and some changes to what the Windows team call 'needy windows' - so you can see when a program wants your attention.

The full list is worth a look, because it's got a lot more detail in. Most of this stuff we're unlikely to see until release, though. Are you looking forward to it? Is there anything missing that you think needs changing? Let us know in the comments.

If you happen to inhabit the same deadly underground hacking world (forum) as the creator of the "Conficker" virus that's been wreaking havoc on PCs since last October and even left France vulnerable to aerial invasion, you might be in luck.

Microsoft has put up a $250,000 reward for information leading the the capture of the creator of the worm/virus, hoping that some of the man's internet friends might be a bit keen on grassing him up and bringing him to justice in return for more than enough money to buy a gaming rig and a Vaio P for on-the-go.

"People who write this malware have to be held accountable," George Stathakopulos from Microsoft's Trustworthy Computing Group said, rather worryingly, adding that "whoever wrote this caused significant pain to our customers and we are sending a message that we will do everything we can to help with your arrest."

Arrest. Then trial. Then EXECUTION by lethal injection.

Meanwhile, on the side of RIGHT and JUST and HONOURABLE, Microsoft has revealed it's planning a move into the retail world - and will be opening a worldwide chain of shops to flog PCs and software.

We cannot wait to go inside a Microsoft Store. It'll be like an Apple store, only with geekier, more dishevelled staff and much more swearing at crashed display machines.

(Via BBC)

Oh dear. It's the move that everyone was hoping Microsoft wasn't going to make, but it looks like it's going to make it. Seems that Windows 7 will come in a bunch of versions - much like Vista - titled Starter, Home Basic, Home Premium, Business and Ultimate.

The news surfaced in a screenshot on a Chinese blog depicting Beta build 7025. Most people are running 7000 - which is the version currently (but not for much longer) available to the public.

Microsoft's forthcoming OS has been getting rave reviews from all corners of the internet - even those traditionally very pro-Apple. I'm a big fan myself - I've got it installed on a laptop that struggled with Vista, and it runs like a dream. It remains to be seen exactly how cut-down the 'Home' versions will end up being, and if unlike Vista, the Ultimate edition is worth the extra cash.

UPDATE: This has been CONFIRMED by Microsoft. Six versions will arrive.

(via Engadget, image courtesy of regular commenter Leon)

Related posts: Microsoft extends availability of Windows 7 beta | Windows 7 public beta available NOW

Did you have trouble picking up the Windows 7 beta over the weekend? I sure did. I didn't manage to get my hands on it till last night, when I finally got it burnt to DVD and installed on a spare laptop.

In light of the massive demand, Microsoft has wisely decided to drop the 2.5 million downloads limit, and is instead letting you download it as many times as you want within the next two weeks - until the 24th January. Every time you download, you'll be given a CD key.

As a result of not getting my hands on the OS till last night, I'm still formulating my first thoughts. So far, though, I like what I've seen very much. It's very responsive, and usable. It seems to fix almost everything people didn't like about Vista and improve a bunch of other features, too. Full thoughts later in the week.

Get Windows 7 (via Lifehacker)

Related posts: Windows 7 public beta available NOW | Windows 7 hits public beta on Friday - here's how to give it a try

Thought you might like a heads-up that the Windows 7 beta is available for download right now. I'm pleasantly surprised, I was expecting more like sometime this evening. Of course, you can't get near the download page right now, because it's so busy. Don't worry, within an hour, it'll be all over Bittorrent.

A quick recap, for those of you who didn't see this post. Windows 7 is Microsoft's new OS, and they're looking at a release somewhere in the second half of this year. This is a public beta, which means that it's unsupported. If it screws up your PC, then you've got to fix it, so unless you're happy mucking about with PC innards, don't install it.

Download Windows 7 Beta (via Ars Technica)

Related posts: CES 2009: Windows 7 hits public beta on Friday - here's how to give it a try | Merry Christmas extremely bored men - Windows 7 beta hits the torrent sites

As of this Friday - the 9th January, Microsoft is going to release a beta version of its new operating system - Windows 7 - to the first 2.5 million people to download it. The new OS is eagerly anticipated, which Microsoft must be pleased about, given that Vista has been a PR disaster.

Windows 7 promises a tonne of improvements to Windows' basic functionality. It's quicker, less bloated and more secure than Windows Vista - which suffered from bloat and compatibility issues on release. Although it's dramatically improved since, many users are refusing to upgrade from XP, and Microsoft continues to trickle users away to OS X.