Sony extends Vaio laptop warranty for Nvidia glitch

Sony said that a small percentage of Vaio laptops with Nvidia graphics chips may experience problems and the company offered to provide an extended warranty to cover the cost of repair. This follows nike air max 88  similar statements by Apple, Hewlett-Packard, and Dell.

Sony Vaio VGN-AR series laptop

(Credit: Sony)

Nvidia first disclosed the problem with its graphics chips in July 2008 nike air max tn 360 , saying at the time that graphics processors manufactured with a certain material set were failing in the field at a higher than normal rate.

In a Sony eSupport USA notice dated nike air max tn plus 360  August 3, the company said: "Sony, in cooperation with Nvidia, has been looking into any possible effect to Vaio notebooks with Nvidia graphic processors. Until recently we had not air max plus  identified any Vaio models that were affected by this issue."

The statement continues. "However, after closely monitoring the situation, Sony has now determined that a very small perce nike air max tn 10 ntage of Vaio computers with the Nvidia graphics chips may experience this issue. These PCs may exhibit distorted video, duplicate images or a blank screen due to a failure of the Nvidia  nike air max tn 10th anniversary edition graphics chip."

The belated notice from Sony comes a year after Dell--in August 2008--made a similar revelation. Apple disclosed the problem in October of la nike tn requin st year. HP began addressing the problem in support forums in November 2007.

Sony lists models affected by the issue on the eSupport Web site, which include the Vaio VGN-ARxxx, VGN-FZ nike tn 360 xxx, and VGC-LTxxx series. Though Sony doesn't specify the graphics processor, Nvidia chips cited in the past include the GeForce 9600M and 8600M.

"For any customer who requires repair o nike tn 2009 f their Vaio computer due to the Nvidia graphics processor issue, Sony will cover the cost of repair (parts and labor) at no charge and, in addition to the standard limited 12 month warranty, S nike air max tn women ony will provide a three year warranty extension for the Nvidia graphics chip," the company said.

Nvidia said earlier this month that its financial results were negativ nike air max tn 8 ely affected by an additional net charge of approximately $119.1 million to cover costs related to this problem.

The Sony problem was covered Monday on technology Web site SemiAccu nike air max tn orange rate, citing a Sony Europe discussion forum.

Brooke Crothers has been an editor at large at CNET News, an analyst at IDC Japan, and an editor at The Asian Wall Street Journal Wee 

 kly, among other endeavors, including co-manager of an after-school math-and-reading center. He writes for the CNET Blog Network and is not a current employee of CNET. Disclosure. Topics: Laptops, Graphics, Nvidia Tags: Nvidia, Apple, GPU, graphics, GeForce 9600M, 8600M, packaging material, Dell, HP Share: Digg Del.icio.us Reddit Facebook Twitter

Sony execs detained by workers over severance pay

When employees at Sony's operation in France didn't get severance packages they considered fair, they took matters into their own hands.

On Friday, union workers freed Serge Foucher, CEO of women's nike air max 97  Sony France, and Roland Bentz, head of human resources, from the company's factory in southwest France where they had been held since Thursday afternoon, according to a repo air max tn 360 rt by the Associated Press. Employees were angry over the terms of their severance, and kept the two from leaving as a way of protest.

The union representing the employees freed the  air max87 two executives on the condition that Sony management restart discussions regarding the pay packages. The employees say they want vocational training to help them find new jobs, as well as relocati blue huarache on packages if necessary.

Sony announced it would be closing the plant, along with several others worldwide in an attempt to save the company $1.1 billion annually by 2010.

  Erica Ogg is a CNET News reporter who covers Apple, HP, Dell, and other PC makers, as well as the consumer electronics industry. She's also one of the hosts of CNET News' Daily Podcast. In 

  her non-work life, she's a history geek, a loyal Dodgers fan, and a mac-and-cheese connoisseur. E-mail Erica. Topics: Corporate & legal Tags: Sony, economy, layoffs, Sony France Share: Digg Del.icio.us Reddit Facebook Twitter

Sony Ericsson's U

The U.S. market has been a struggle for Sony Ericsson's well-reviewed but expensive smartphones, such as the Xperia X1.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

Sony Ericsson's struggling handset business airmax95  is losing its top North American executive.

Najmi Jarwala, president of Sony Ericsson USA and head of the company's North American operations, is leaving Sony Ericsson "to pursue other care nike air max tn shoes er opportunities," the company said in a statement Monday. Last week Sony Ericsson revealed that it expects to lose between $460 million and $528 million during the first quarter of th airmax90 e year, as demand falls for its phones.

Sony Ericsson has had some success in the U.S. with its Cybershot and Walkman phones, but hasn't come up with a major breakthrough in the U.S. and co air 95 ntinues to emphasize the entertainment capabilities of its lower-end feature phones through carriers such as AT&T and T-Mobile, rather than its smartphones. For example, Sony Ericsson's Windows Mobil air 90 e-based Xperia X1 has received positive reviews but no U.S. carrier offers the phone, which means it costs a prohibitively expensive $799.99 in this country.

The company plans to announce a r nike air max 90 vivid blue eplacement for Jarwala "in due course."

Tom Krazit writes about the ever-expanding world of Internet search, including Google, Yahoo, and portals, as well as the evolution of 

  mobile computing. He has written about traditional PC companies, chip manufacturers, and mobile computers, spending the last three years covering Apple. E-mail Tom. Topics: Corporate & legal Tags: Sony Ericsson, Najmi Jarwala Share: Digg Del.icio.us Reddit Facebook Twitter

Sony Ericsson warns of deepening losses

The Sony Ericsson C905.

(Credit: Sony Ericsson)

Sony Ericsson has warned of worsening losses in its upcoming quarterly financial results, blaming weak consumer demand for a drop in sales.

In a statement released by the handset  nike air max trailbreak maker Friday, Sony Ericsson said its results for the first quarter of 2009 would probably reflect losses of 340 million to 390 million euros ($460 million to $528 million). T air classic hose results will come out on April 17. In the previous quarter, the company lost 187 million euros.

Sony Ericsson estimated it would ship around 14 million handsets during the quarter, with an average selling p nike air max tailwind rice of 120 euros.

Gartner analyst Carolina Milanesi said in a separate statement that the global handset market "continues to be challenging," despite some signs of quart air max90 er-on-quarter improvement in China and India.

"Imaging and music are now features that most vendors have in their portfolio and this is making it more difficult for Sony Ericsson's product cheap air max shoes s to stand out," Milanesi said. "Increased competition in Western Europe coupled with a slower market and the delay in adopting touchscreen devices are heavily impacting Sony Ericsson's performance."

In  air solas January, Milanesi warned that 2009 would be a deciding year for Sony Ericsson, after the manufacturer announced its losses for the fourth quarter of 2008. A week later, Ericsson--one of the join nike air max wright t venture's two parent companies--cited a "dramatic drop in the contribution" from Sony Ericsson as one reason why its profits for that quarter showed a 31 percent year-on-year fall.

David Meyer of ZDNet  air 97 UK reported from London.

Topics: Corporate & legal, Personal communications Tags: Sony Ericsson, mobile phones Share: Digg Del.icio.us Reddit Facebook Twitter

Sony Ericsson unveils new strategy

BARCELONA--Sony Ericsson has been hit hard by the global recession, but the company says it has a new strategy focused on services and entertainment that it hopes will get it back on track.

Steve Walker, head of product marketing for S nike air max 2010 ony Ericsson, and Lennard Hoornik head of global marketing for Sony Ericsson show off the Idou phone at the company's press conference at Mobile World Congress.

(Credit: Marguerite Reardon CNET News/CBS In 

 teractive)

On Sunday evening here on the eve of GSMA's Mobile World Congress, the cell phone maker, which is a joint venture between consumer electronics maker Sony and telecom equi air max shoes pment maker Ericsson, unveiled a new strategy that it says fuses "communication and entertainment."

At the core of its new strategy is something Sony Ericsson calls "Entertainment Unlimited." Executives were t men huarache hin on details at the press conference here, but the company is planning a strategy that will bring together cell phones with PCs and the TV to share entertainment content.

As part buy air max shoes  of this strategy, the company announced MediaGo, which is an extension of its PlayNow Music service. MediaGo adds a service that lets users download movies onto their PC and then transfer them over to a Sony Eric black huarache sson device. The company announced the W995 Walkman phone, which will be able play the feature-length movies.

The service will also allow the transfer of other media, such as mus air max 360 ic, photos, and podcasts. The service will also allow users to sync their phone's music library automatically, subscribe to podcasts, and auto-convert files for the best quality playback.