Correction: This story misidentified E*Trade's chief marketing officer. His name is Nicholas Utton.

The US Patent Office revokes fundamental patents on human embryonic stem cells that critics say had stifled stem cell research

US start-up offers MVNO DIY

Ever dreamed of setting up your own Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO)?

Heading for the moon in 2012

China is planning to send a nuclear powered rover to the moon in 2012 on its first unmanned mission to our natural satellite.

Unannounced chipset confirmed

AMD's anticipated top-of-the-line chipset, the RD790, has won the approval of PCI Express overseer, the PCI SIG, for its compatibility with version 1.1 of the standard.

$2.6bn Microsoft spoiler

Google is preparing a spoiler to slap down Microsoft's bid to acquire online advertising broker DoubleClick, according to reports.

Filed under: Digital Cameras, HDTV

You know that pair of Panasonic 3CCD AVCHD camcorders recently announced for the US? Yeah, the HDC-SD1 and HDC-DX1. Well, you might want to give a tug on your wallet reins cowboy 'cause Panny just announced their HDC-SD3 and HDC-DX3 (pictured) HD camcorders. Besides bringing new desktop software to the show, these 1080i recorders are now H.264 capable for superior image quality. Like the pair before them, the SD3 and DX3 are feature identical except for the fact that the SD3 records to SDHC cards (4GB card in the box) while the DX3 records to 8-cm DVDs. Expect both cams to pop in Japan on April 25th: the HDC-SD3 should go for ¥150,000 ($1,269) while the HDC-DX3 will demand a tad less at ¥140,000 or about $1,185 by the time they arrive in the US after a few month lag. Check a picture of the SD3 after the break.

Continue reading Panasonic's HDC-SD3 and HDC-DX3 bring the H.264

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

While the early switch to daylight savings didn't cause many real problems, it was something of a nuisance. Part of the supposed rationale for the early switch -- in addition to reduced crime, less traffic accidents and increased economic activity was to save energy, because there will be more light in the evening and people will use less lighting. Of course, there's less light in the morning, so people's power needs then will increase. So what was the end effect of this early shift? Essentially nothing, as several large utilities say they haven't seen any noticeable change in their customers' power consumption. But don't let that detract from the warm, fuzzy feeling you get knowing American politicians are serious in their hunt for ways to conserve energy.

With most of the world's software written with x86 in mind, it's doubtful that any future chip architecture would be able to displace it.