Vicious Spyware on thousands of Rental PCs, New Nooks and more

By RyanKamauff

Will the Nook HD (and HD+) be too little, too late? Only time will tell

Here is yesterday’s top technology news and stories.

• Gizmodo has reported on PC Rental Agent on rent-to-own computers – PC rental agency has been reported to be on over 420,000 computers rented worldwide. The laundry list of crimes this software has committed against users is too long to list here, be sure to check out the complete story here. Via Gizmodo, more here.
• Chrome for Android is now available on Intel x86 chipsets – While the only x86 device out right now is the RAZR M i edition, it is clear that x86 is coming to Android in a big way. Intel is hoping to leverage their current chipset capabilities to compete in this world (as TI is “de-emphasizing” OMAP) there might be some room for competition. Via Droid-Life, more here.
• TI dropping OMAP as an emphasis – Apparently the smartphone and tablet market is a little too cut-throat for TI. Even though their OMAP chipset can be found in tens of devices, they are dropping their efforts. Apparently, they have been struggling in Q’s 2 and 3. Via MarketWatch, more here.
• In a weird happenstance, HTC and O2 will be selling a smartphone without a charger – While the new iPhone is coming with a new charger, most (read Android) smartphones have been using the same charger since 2009 (microUSB). So to cut down on waste and save money on shipping and production, HTC and O2 will be shipping a new device without the charger. Via SlashGear, more here.
• The new Nooks have been announced – if the line up of Barnes & Noble Nooks looks familiar, it’s because they are almost the same as the new Amazon Kindle Fires. A 9″ tablet, a 7″ tablet, and some updated readers. As they are a little late to the party (and do not offer near the ecosystem that Amazon does, it might be hard for these to sell well). Via Droid-Life, more here.
• TechCrunch has a detailed analysis of the latest Forrester Research report on US mobile device users, make sure to read it, here.

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