Sony estimates $3.2b loss this year, $171 million cost for PSN breach

It has not been a good year for Sony, which was affected both by the massive earthquake in March and the PSN outage that spanned from April into May. There couldn't be any doubt that those things would have a drastic impact on the company's bottom-line, and it's now taking the time to give investors an idea of just how big an impact that could be -- even though the financial issues lie largely elsewhere. Sony is set to announce its full financial report for its fiscal year this Thursday and, to soften the blow, estimates have been revised steeply downward. Previously Sony predicted a ¥70 billion ($855 million) profit, but now thinks a ¥260 billion ($3.14 billion) loss is rather more accurate -- a ¥360 billion non-cash charge taking the wind out of ¥200 billion in operating income.

The earthquake was directly blamed for a loss of ¥22 billion, but that figure could certainly grow as this estimate is only through the end of March. Additionally, Sony has provided a early guess of a ¥14 billion (about $172 million) total cost for the PSN breach. That's less than two bucks per exposed account, but again we wouldn't be surprised if it's a figure that increases through the year. You know, once the lawyers start having their fun.

The Wall Street Journal, gamesindustry.biz

Sony [PDF]

ASUS gets Computex 2011 started early with a tablet teaser, asks us 'pad or phone?'

Oh ASUS, what are you up to now? The company that brought us the wildly popular Eee Pad Transformer has another new tablet brewing in its design labs, which we're promised we'll get to witness for the first time at Computex 2011. Until then, we've been provided with a trio of images to pore over and get the guessing games going. The slate device, whose size and software remain unspecified, is said to feature a bump (above left) and a clip (above right), though there are no explanations given about the function of either. You may see both images in their full size after the break, along with a teaser image from ASUS' Facebook page with the slogan "break the rules: pad or phone?" stood in front of a tablet silhouette. That provides plenty of clues for aspiring Sherlocks out there, but little concrete knowledge. Ah well, Computex is just a week away.

Notebook Italia

TechinStyle.tv

Breitling Superocean 44 Watches For 2011

Last year Breitling came out with an entirely new Superocean watch. It featured a modern looking design in a smaller 42mm case. While a lot of people wanted a smaller Breitling diver, even more didn't. So, just one year later, the Superocean II has been refreshed and enlarged. Now, for 2011, Breitling offers the Superocean 44. It comes in two versions: A three-hand, and a chronograph. There is also a GMT version but that comes in the 42mm wide case and will be discussed elsewhere.
Aside from being 44mm wide versus 42mm wide, the Superocean dial has been cleaned up and is now more legible. For comparison purposes you can check out the Breitling Superocean for 2010 here. The dial retains the core look of the watch that came out last year, but I think you'll agree it is more legible. There is more space between the hour markers, and more use of applied baton hour markers versus the stylized Arabic numerals.

The case has some minor differences in terms of styling. Though the differences are nothing too major, upon side by side comparison you can see that these are indeed different pieces. The biggest change for the case is the water resistance. The old three-hand model was water-resistant to 1,500 meters while the new one goes down to 2,000 meters. The chronograph and GMT are water-resistant to 500 meters each.


The bezel style is slightly different as well. Still no lume but the rubberized bezel insert now has minute markers from o - 15. Like last year, both the chronograph and basic automatic versions will come in a slew of color options. I do love all the color options that Breitling makes available. They feel sporty and fun, adding a positive sense of character to the collection. Both watches will have Swiss automatic movements that are COSC Chronometer certified.


With the Superocean 44, the Superocean Heritage, and other Superocean models there are plenty of Superocean watches to choose from. The consumer has more choices than ever for Breitling's venerable dive watch range and they are all available on the great rubber strap (with an awesome deployment), or a steel metal bracelet. These are some great looking timepieces and, in my opinion, are an improvement over the model offered last year. Look for these watches soon.