Intel is courting entertainment 
content makers with its new processor chip.
Big Blue formally unveiled its second-generation Core processor – code named Sandy Bridge – at CES Wednesday, focusing the spotlight on the chip’s video processing capabilities and security enhancements for studios.
Panasonic is opening an app 
store – and launching a tablet.
The company announced plans Wednesday to transform its VieraCast service, which embedded a limited number of apps on select HDTVs, into Viera Connect – a market that will welcome apps from a larger pool of developers.
Panasonic is getting its game on. The electronics giant
has struck a deal with Oberon Media to carry that company’s I-play TV in all 2011 Vierra Connect HDTVs.
It’s a big opportunity for the casual gaming service, which is also announcing today that it has locked up the Smart TV rights to “Tetris”. New Internet-enabled sets from one of the industry’s leading manufacturers will now feature its top franchises, which also include “Dream Day Wedding” and “Bubble Town” – along with casual standards such as “Solitaire” and “Texas Hold’em”.
Streaming movies directly to Internet-enabled TV sets has already become familiar, but manufacturers are about to begin adding top-tier videogames to their bag of tricks — which could prove to be a fundamental shift in the vidgame industry.
OnLive, a cloud-based game streaming service that has been making headlines for the past few months, announced Tuesday that it has struck a deal with Vizio that would put the service on all 2011 model HD TVs and Blu-ray players as well as forthcoming smart phones and tablets from the company.
In just eight months, Apple has managed to create one of the computer world’s fastest-growing and most lucrative sub markets. And the competitors are getting tired of Steve Jobs and Co. hogging the spotlight.
Launched in April 2010, the iPad has quickly come to define tablet computing. Consumers have snatched it up, with 2010 sales expected to total between 15 million and 19.5 million units. With prices ranging from $499 to $829, the iPad is a huge breadwinner for the company; Apple can’t keep up with demand.
Apple might have a tight grip on the tablet market today, but at CES, the competition will come at it with both guns blazing. Here’s a look at what you can expect:
The Android tablets – Google’s mobile operating system is the de facto choice for companies going up against Apple. The problem is it’s optimized for phones, not tablets. At CES, there will be a lot of talk about devices using Honeycomb, a new version of the OS designed for tablets. Asus, Acer, Samsung, Toshiba and others are expected to have new tablet offerings revolving around Honeycomb, which should hit the street sometime in the second quarter.
Read more at Daily Variety
While there are plenty of companies gunning for Apple as the tablet market heats up, most have one thing in common: They’re planning to use price as a battlefield.
The iPad might be affordable by Apple standards, but it’s hardly a cheap piece of hardware, with prices ranging from $499-$829. And many competitors see that as an opening.
It’s press conference day here 
at CES. That means the news floodgates are about to open big time.
Pretty much every major consumer electronics manufacturer attending the show has their moment in the spotlight Wedensday, with some 15 press conferences scheduled – including the evening’s keynote by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.
The 3D holdouts that are using the mandatory ridiculous 
glasses as an excuse might want to start coming up with another reason.
Toshiba has taken the wraps off of a prototype laptop that offers stereoscopic 3D images without the need for any sort of headwear. The machine uses the same technology Toshiba is using to power similar 3D TVs in Japan and lets users play games and watch movies in 3D. There’s one slight difference here: Those TVs are 12 inches. This machine boasts a 15 inch screen.
OnLive, one of the most promising 
streaming game services, has just become a legitimate threat to consoles.
The cloud-based gaming company today announced it has signed an alliance with Vizio to bring OnLive to that company’s TVs and mobile devices.
Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog
OnLive, one of the most promising streaming game services, has just become a legitimate threat to consoles.
The cloud-based gaming company today announced it has signed an alliance with Vizio to bring OnLive to that company’s TVs and mobile devices.
Chris Morris: Journalist 