Intel previews replacement for flash memory

Intel has completed development of the first prototype of a new type of non-volatile memory chip that its executives think could someday supplant flash memory, reports eweek.com.

"Intel, as part of a lengthy joint venture with ST Microelectronics, has produced the first Phase Change Memory, or PCM, chips - non-volatile memory chips that work well for both executing code and storing large amounts of data, giving it a superset of the capabilities of both flash memory and dynamic random access memory," explains the article.

This means it can execute code with performance, store larger amounts of memory and also sustain millions of read/write cycles.

The BBC has signed a memorandum of understanding with Microsoft to work together on next-generation digital broadcasting technologies, according to News.com.

BBC director general Mark Thomson, BBC director of new media and technology Ashley Highfield and Microsoft chairman Bill Gates signed the memorandum on Wednesday in Seattle.

Though the memorandum does not commit the BBC to buying any Microsoft technology for digital services in the future, a BBC representative said this was "definitely on the cards". The BBC is working on several digital broadcasting projects, including a scheme to make its programming archive available online.

Games performance PC company VoodooPC is selling itself to HP, according to a report in The Register, which attributes the announcement to VoodooPC CTO Rahul Sood.

VoodooPC will become part of the gaming division in HP`s Personal Systems Group. Rahul Sood becomes CTO for the division and his brother Ravi will be director of strategy for the division.

The value of the deal is not yet known.