Apple iPhone contract to Hon Hai?

Several reports are doing the rounds that Apple Computer has given the contract of manufacturing around 12 million units of its iPhone to Taiwan-based Hon Hai Precision, also known as Foxconn, reports Techtree.

However, no specific details on the contract are available yet, and the companies have not released an official statement on the subject.

The Apple iPhone will function like a digital music player, as well as a mobile phone. This long-awaited device is expected to be available somewhere in the first half of 2007.

Nikon has officially unveiled the D40, a new entry-level digital SLR camera that melds together a 6.02 million image pixel CCD sensor, compact body and an overall design meant to be friendly to SLR neophytes, reports Robgalbraith.com.

While the basic specs for this new model have been floating around the Web for a couple of weeks, the camera's most enticing feature - its affordability, at a retail price of $599.95 - managed to stay under wraps, it says.

Zimbra plans to introduce integrated instant messaging to its Web-based e-mail and calendaring software next year, reports CTNET.

The open source software company is also set to release an offline client in December that will allow people to use the Web-based software when disconnected from the Internet.

Zimbra has developed its products using the Web development technique Ajax, which gives users an interactive front-end, allowing them to drag-and-drop items such as calendar appointments.

The computer industry faces a skills crisis, the president of the British Computer Society has told the BBC News.

Unless steps are taken now, there will be insufficient qualified graduates to meet the demands of the UK ICT industry, warned professor Nigel Shadbolt. He said there was increasing demand, but decreasing supply of graduates in computer scence.

"If we're not careful, the UK is going to lose its pre-eminent position as a knowledge-based economy."