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• Digital Economy Act: cost of free appeals shouldered by ISPs and rights holders
• Microsoft Surface headed for homes: fancy a touchscreen dining table?
• Steve Jobs: ninja throwing stars latest weapon in war against Adobe?
• Twitter name @Israel sold for six figures
• Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood single player trailer revealed
• Nokia C7 hands on photos
• Pandora handheld sells out: preorders open for Christmas
• Nokia C6 hands on photos!
• Nintendo DSi XL gets three new colours
• Nokia E7: hands on photos and first impressions!

Digital Economy Act: cost of free appeals shouldered by ISPs and rights holders Posted: 14 Sep 2010 08:15 AM PDT The Digital Economy Act has understandably, never been met with cheers from the general populous, and has been criticised and booed from the get go. At last, today, there's some (moderately) good news for the average web user. Under the anti-piracy scheme set up under the Digital Economy Act, rights holders will send the IP addresses of those ignoring copyright rules to ISPs, whose responsibility it will be to send out warning letters to users, on a three strikes per year basis, after which legal teams can swing into action. Users facing a legal wrangle will have the right to a free appeal, which is good news. Even better news is that the ISPs and rights holders will have to foot the bill for these appeals, creating a major dissuading factor for those wanting to take a legal case forward. The Internet Service Providers Association, the representative body for ISPs, are understandably annoyed. It said: "The internet offers excellent opportunities for rights holders to access their target market with relevant lawful content without the significant costs associated with a non-digital environment and views today's announcement as contrary to the promotion of the digital economy." Under the Digital Economy Act, 25 per cent of the costs will be paid by the ISPs, and 75 per cent by the rights holders. ISPs though, are understandably disgruntled, as the proceeds of any successful legal action will go stright into the pockets of the rights holders, without ISPs seeing a penny. The worry for end users is that the ISPs, facing charges for legals action they cannot recoup, may just pass costs onto users anyway, meaning that the cost of those free appeals is just shouldered by everyone, rather than individuals. What do you think? Will this stop the giants of the entertainment industry throwing their weight around? Should it? Should there be a free appeal? Let us know in the comments? [via PCPro] Related posts: Digital Economy Act: ISP showdown Digital economy bill passed by Commons BBC iPlayer upgrade will cost small ISPs yet more cash

Microsoft Surface headed for homes: fancy a touchscreen dining table? Posted: 14 Sep 2010 08:02 AM PDT The Microsoft Surface tables we've seen so far are a little hefty to put it mildly but principal researcher Bill Buxton says we'll see a radically thinner version headed for our homes within the next three years. Are you ready for a camera-packing Microsoft Surface with image recognition skills built in to your dining table? In a recent interview with The Globe and Mail, Buxton claims that the next gen Microsoft Surface will be super-thin and small enough to hit our homes. He explains why the current model is so bulky: "Right now it has five cameras in it and a projector and a bunch of other stuff." Buxton says Microsoft Surface will be abel to slimmed down thanks to advances in camera tech: "What will happen is that [Microsoft Surface] will become no thicker than a sheet of glass. It's not going to have any cameras or projectors because the cameras will be embedded in the device itself." He reveals that Microsoft has a new type of screen in development to make miniaturising Microsoft Surface possible. His simple explanation sounds intriguing: "The best way to think about it is like a big LCD where there's a fourth pixel in every triad. So there's red, green and blue pixels giving you light and a fourth pixel which is a sensor that will capture stuff." Buxton predicts that the next gen Microsoft Surface will be part of our future homes: "These things will come in at really cost effective prices and will start appearing in people's living rooms, dining rooms…I believe you will see that in three years." Is he right? Microsoft does have an awful habit of keeping interesting research locked up in its labs or ditching it entirely (remember the Microsoft Courier?). Sling your future gazing predictions into the comments now? Will Microsoft Surface join Kinect in our living rooms? Out TBC | £TBC | Microsoft (via The Globe and Mail) Related posts: Microsoft Surface 2 rumours crushed Microsoft Surface 2 by 2012 BMW uses Microsoft Surface to customise cars

Steve Jobs: ninja throwing stars latest weapon in war against Adobe? Posted: 14 Sep 2010 07:21 AM PDT Tick tock it's technology celebrity rumour o'clock, with everyone’s favourite cranky emailer, Steve Jobs. Today we're hearing reports that Steve Jobs is packing ninja throwing stars – or was trying to, on a private flight home from Kyoto. After the luggage hoo-ha about him not being able to take weapons onto his own plane, Jobs apparently threw his toys (in this case, ninja weapons) out of the pram and said he would never go back to Japan. Ever. So ner. (He might not have said that last bit.) [via Bloomberg] Related posts: Adobe says it wants Steve Jobs to talk Steve Jobs slams Google and Adobe Steve Jobs Flash attack: open letter slams Adobe

Twitter name @Israel sold for six figures Posted: 14 Sep 2010 06:59 AM PDT One Twitter user has sold his Twitter name @Israel to the state of Israel for six figures, despite Twitter policy stating it prevents username squatting, and has a ban on the sale of accounts. Early Twitter adopter (he's in the adult website game) Israel Meléndez bagged a Twitter account under his first name in 2007. He set up the account, which was his second Twitter account, to escape an ex, or so the story goes. Skip to 2010, and the state of Israel puts in an offer to buy the Twitter name. To buy the Twitter user name, Israel bought his password. “They don’t permit the sale of accounts, so what they did was to buy the user,” Meléndez said. “At the end of the day the result is the same, but you are not doing anything illegal.” [via Media Guardian] Related posts: Twitter buys Tweetie, Twitter iPad app next First Tomb Raider sold best, but which sold worst? Apple jumps on Twitter bandwagon

Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood single player trailer revealed Posted: 14 Sep 2010 06:32 AM PDT With Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood arriving November, Ubisoft is ratcheting up the excitement with a new Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood single player trailer. Head through to see Ezio in action alone and check out the curious choice of soundtrack… The new Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood single player trailer shows off Ezio's extended suite of killing moves, some even more extreme parkour action and a growing pile of dead guards for his trouble. We loved getting a look at the gameplay in the Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood single player trailer but couldn't help but be a little bit distracted by the crooning in Unkle's Burn My Shadow which soundtracks the action. It does seem a little out of place over renaissance-based battles. Want more Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood? Check out our Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood preview and the latest news on the Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood multiplayer beta. Out November 16 | £varies | Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood Related posts: Assassin's Creed Brotherhood multiplayer beta: more details revealed Assassin's Creed 3 named Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood? Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood official details

Nokia C7 hands on photos Posted: 14 Sep 2010 06:19 AM PDT The newly announced Nokia C7 just fell into our waiting palms. It’s an achingly thin Symbian 3 smartphone with a gorgeous AMOLED screen on its front and a HD camera around the back. Come and take a peep! The Nokia C7, edged in chrome and with a stainless steel back, is the premium cousin of the plastic-clad Nokia C6. Inside though, it’s the same Symbian 3 that’s had tongues wagging at Nokia World 2010. In the hand, the C7 is a peach. The touchscreen is light and responsive with apps loading almost as soon as our digits made contact with their icons. The C7 will be on sale later this year, catering for Nokia fans who want a smartphone that also fits in their shirt pocket. At 10.5mm thick, Nokia’s certainly done that. Get an eyeful in the gallery above. Related posts: Nokia C6 hands on photos! Nokia N8 hands on photos: Symbian 3 lives! Nokia E7: hands on photos and first impressions!

Pandora handheld sells out: preorders open for Christmas Posted: 14 Sep 2010 06:01 AM PDT Planning on picking up Pandora, the open-source Linux-rocking handheld? Well you'll have to get in line again. The eminently hackable little gamer that dares to battle the PSP and the Nintendo 3DS has sold out. Their first 1000 pre-orders have flown out of the warehouse and into the waiting hands of adventurous gamers. Don't worry though, if you read our Pandora review and found yourself pining for some of that 8-bit and 16-bit emulator goodness, you can punt in a preorder. Pandora will set you back €330 and the next batch will be shipping in December just in time for a retro-gaming fuelled Christmas. Out now | €330 | Pandora Related posts: iPhone 4 UK preorders open today iPad UK preorders open today Natal UK preorders open Sunday: will you be signing up?

Nokia C6 hands on photos! Posted: 14 Sep 2010 05:39 AM PDT No, you’re not imaging things. A Nokia C6 already exists. It’s just Nokia has chosen to replace it after a few weeks on sale with a new Nokia C6. And based on our play with it this morning, it’s a substantially better one. Read on for first thoughts and photos! While the Nokia E7 is a stunning flagship smartphone, we reckon the new Nokia C6 is going to be the dark horse success story of Symbian 3. It’s the most “entry level” of all the Symbian 3 phones we’ve seen so far, but it’s still very impressive, with an eight megapixel camera and shockingly speedy performance. And it’s not a clunker like the Nokia C6 we reviewed a few weeks ago either. The new Nokia C6 sports a subtle design with great grip and a lovely curved back. If Espoo can get this free on reasonable contracts, we reckon it’s on to a winner. Check out the Nokia C6 up close in our gallery – is Nokia back with a bang? Related posts: Nokia C7 hands on photos Nokia N8 hands on photos: Symbian 3 lives! Nokia E7: hands on photos and first impressions!

Nintendo DSi XL gets three new colours Posted: 14 Sep 2010 05:37 AM PDT Nintendo is vamping up its DS range in time for Christmas. The Nintendo DSi XL has had three new colours added to its range. The new Nintendo DSi XL colours will be headed to Europe on 8 October. The DSi is currently only available in dark brown and dark red, so these will be a boon for those hankering after a DSi XL with a bit more pop. Click through for gallery of all three… Related posts: New Nintendo DSi colours incoming! Pentax K-x DSLR gets 8 new colours Sonic Colours 2010 new extended gameplay trailer

Nokia E7: hands on photos and first impressions! Posted: 14 Sep 2010 05:18 AM PDT The Nokia E7 stole the show at Nokia World this morning in London. It’s a sensational QWERTY sliding Symbian 3 smartphone with an AMOLED screen, and we got a good look at it up close, so read on for the photos and first impressions. Is this the real Symbian saviour? When closed, the Nokia E7 looks a lot like the N8 from a distance, but with a 4-inch screen, it’s actually a fair bit larger. The 640×360 screen is absolutely stunning, and so fast that everything seems very smooth indeed. The keyboard meanwhile is an enormous treat for heavy emailer: it’s roomy, with no typical Nokia flaws like an errant space bar. If anything, it reminded us of typing on an old Psion organiser – there’s an audience out there who are going to fall in love with it. Check out our Nokia World 2010 coverage here We’re surprised at just how thin the Nokia E7 is when closed, but the screen pops up and rests at a useful angle for your thumbs and fingers to roam on the keyboard. And we’d never thought we’d say this about Symbian, but well, it flies – the performance on this prototype is already first rate. Truth be told, we’re a little bit puzzled as to why Nokia’s been touting the Nokia N8 as its flagship Symbian 3 phone all this time with a stunner like this around the corner. Still, when there’ a choice, who’s complaining? Not us. Have a look at the Nokia E7 up close right here in our hands on gallery, and stay tuned for plenty more coverage from Nokia World. Out Q4 2010 | £TBC | Nokia Related posts: Nokia N900 hands-on impressions Nokia C6 hands on photos! Nokia C7 hands on photos

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