Why did Samsung want to sell its hard-drive business?

April 19, 2011
Samsung’s hard-drive unit sale could lead to massive market consolidation
ZD Net
John Hazard writes that according to the Wall Street Journal, Samsung Electronics is quietly trying to find someone to buy its hard-drive business.

“Samsung Electronics is quietly trying find a buyer for its hard-drive division and the most likely suitor is Seagate, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. If such a deal were to proceed, it would put 90 per cent of the market share for hard drive sales in the hands of two companies – Seagate and Western Digital. Seagate, the second-largest manufacturer of hard-disc drives behind Western Digital, holds about 30 per cent of global hard-drive sales, according to iSuppli. Acquiring Samsung’s hard-drive business would add another 10 per cent and put it in a better position against Western Digital, which will hold about 50 per cent market share when it wraps up its $4.3 billion acquisition of Hitacchi’s hard-drive business.”

What’s your opinion?

MSI rolls out Core i3-based CX640, CR640 laptops
Engadget
Donald Melanson shares some details of MSI’s latest laptops.

“MSI’s already had a fairly productive month when it comes to new laptops, but it’s not done quite yet — the company has now also rolled out its new 15.6-inch CX640 and CR640 models, which each boast what MSI calls a ‘clutter free design,’ as well as some budget-friendly prices. As for specs, both pack an Intel Core i3-2310M processor, 4GB of RAM and a 500GB hard drive (not to mention two USB 3.0 ports), while the silver CX640 upgrades things from the basic integrated Intel HD 3000 graphics on the black CR640 model to NVIDIA’s GeForce GT 520M with Optimus technology.”

What’s your opinion?

Viewsonic G Tablet gets firmware update with Flash, USB peripheral support
Engadget
Donald Melanson writes about ViewSonic’s G Tablet.

“Viewsonic’s G Tablet may not have made much of splash when it debuted last fall, but it’s certainly been picking up a bit of steam as of late. A recent price drop brought its cost down to just $280, and hackers have even managed to overclock its processor to 1.4GHz and get it running CyanogenMod 7 to boot. Now Viewsonic itself has given the tablet a further boost, with a new firmware update bringing support for both Flash and USB peripherals, which can apparently also be used with a docking station. The update’s of the over-the-air variety, and should be waiting for you if you haven’t turned on your G Tablet in the past few days.”