Nvidia is admitting that some of its notebook chips are failing at "higher than normal rates" in a new filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The chip failures will cause Nvidia to take a US$150-200 million charge this quarter to cover what it calls "warranty, repair and return and replacement" for laptops with unspecified Nvidia graphics chips and chipsets.

In a move that could give a welcome, if short-lived, boost to consumer electronics makers and retailers, consumers up and down the West Coast are snapping up headsets that let them talk on cell phones while driving –and stay in compliance with a law that took effect in California and Washington state on July 1. The law, which stipulates penalties for driving while talking on a handheld cell phone, is a boon for Bluetooth wireless connectivity.

In two separate cases, the companies accused each other of falsely claiming to hold patents that were essential to the UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) 3G (Third-Generation) standard. Vendors who make equipment that complies with the standard must pay licensing fees to the developers who contribute patents to it.

Nokia agreed to buy Navteq, the largest maker of maps used in car-navigation equipment, in October to add maps to its phones and compete with TomTom and Garmin. The European Commission, the EU's antitrust regulator in Brussels, said the Nokia purchase raised no competition concerns. The case is the second acquisition of a digital map company to receive EU clearance this year. The commission approved plans by TomTom, Europe's biggest maker of car-navigation devices, to buy Tele Atlas NV on May 14.

...Sources say that the DoT wants the WiMax launch be initially restricted to only three players who will operate this service in the 2.5 GHz frequency band where one of the slots is reserved for state-owned BSNL/MTNL. This contradicts the recommendations of telecom regulator TRAI which had suggested that wireless broadband be rolled out in 3.3-3.4 GHz and 3.4-3.6 Ghz frequencies and up to 13 players be allocated spectrum to offer WiMax services....

China's Huawei Technologies said it has been selected by Mobilink, the largest GSM operator in Pakistan and a subsidiary of Orascom Telecom, to deploy a commercial WiMAX 16e network. In a statement, Huawei said the network will cover central business districts and hot spots in Islamabad, Karachi, Sialkot, Lahore, Faisalabad and Rawalpindi.

Hitachi and Canon have agreed to jointly develop and manufacture small and midsize organic electroluminescence (EL) displays (OLED) for digital cameras within two years.

Samsung SDI said today that it will be spending over $500 million USD to boost production of next-generation OLED displays to six times its current level by mid-2009.

AnalogicTech's AAT2860 allows designers to minimise component count, board space and cost whether they are building a high end PDA-type phone with a single large display or a traditional clamshell design with two displays.

Idemitsu Kosan said Monday it will adopt LED in place of fluorescent lamps for store signs and price boards at all of its 4,800 gas stations in order to cut costs and carbon dioxide emissions.