By Peter

NEW YORK, N.Y. – While Microsoft is touting next week’s launch of Windows 8 as the savior of the computer industry, PC makers and analysts are increasingly skeptical that the new operating system will lure consumers away from tablets and smartphones. Even Intel Corp., which makes the processors at the heart of 80 percent of personal computers, doubts that Windows 8 will have a big impact on sales. CEO Paul Otellini said this week that he’s “very excited” about the new operating system but expects the usual holiday bounce in PC sales to be half of what it usually...

LAS VEGAS — Cheaper tablets, thinner laptops and an array of sleeker TVs stood out at this year’s International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. More than 140,000 people gathered there last week, for an event that’s growing despite the absence of Apple and more recently, the decision by Microsoft to make this the last year it participates. A bevy of celebrities, including 50 Cent, Will.i.am, and Kelly Clarkson, stopped by to add glitz to the proceedings —but they were hardly the stars of the show. Here are some of the more significant gadgets that shined at CES: Cheaper...

NEW YORK — The Kindle was always an odd product name. Amazon used a verb to name a thing, raising the question: Kindle what? Now we have the answer: Kindle Fire. The Kindle Fire is the first full-color, touch-screen Kindle. It’s available in the U.S. starting Monday for $199. A price like that for what’s essentially a small iPad is bound to light the flames of desire this holiday season. I want to cool those down a bit, or some of you will buy the Fire and feel burned. The Fire is the best Kindle yet, no doubt about...

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on Wednesday showed off the Kindle Fire, a $199 tablet computer, challenging Apple’s iPad by extending its Kindle brand into the world of full-color, multipurpose devices. Bezos also took the opportunity to show off a new line of Kindle e-readers with black-and-white screens and lower prices, further pressuring competitors like Barnes & Noble Inc. that are trying to break Amazon.com Inc.’s dominance in electronic book sales. (Technical specs: Read here.) The Kindle Fire will go on sale Nov. 15. It’s about half the size of the iPad, making it a close match with Barnes &...

NEW YORK — U.S. eye specialists are welcoming the Nintendo 3DS game device, dismissing the manufacturer’s warnings that its 3-D screen shouldn’t be used by children 6 or younger because it may harm their immature vision. On the contrary, the optometrists say, it’s a good idea to get your kids to try the 3-D screen, especially if they’re younger than 6. It won’t do any harm, they say, and it could help catch vision disorders that have to be caught early to be fixed. “The 3DS could be a godsend for identifying kids under 6 who need vision therapy,”...

By PETER SVENSSON, AP Technology Writer NEW YORK, N.Y. – Hulu, the popular website with TV shows, now comes as a subscription-based application for iPhones and iPads. Although it isn’t perfect, it works well enough that it may make you wonder if the TV’s reign as the center of family life is coming to an end. Instead of gathering to turn our faces to the blue glow of the living-room set, maybe we’ll curl up, each in our own little world, with a phone or tablet in our lap. They don’t look as good as HDTVs, but we won’t...

By PETER SVENSSON, AP Technology Writer NEW YORK, N.Y. – For wireless subscribers, commitment is out and short-term relationships are in. This year, customers have been making a big shift away from two-year contracts toward "prepaid" cell phone service, which often costs less and does not require contracts. This is happening even though contracts are needed to get popular phones such as the iPhone and the Droid. Now prepaid service looks like it will get even more attractive, with further price cuts. That’s because wireless carriers have hit a wall when it comes to finding new customers who will...

Get the latest news alerts: at Twitter. By PETER SVENSSON (AP Technology Writer) NEW YORK – While Microsoft Corp. prepares to release the next incarnation of Windows on Oct. 22, Apple Inc.(Nasdaq: AAPL) is cutting ahead, launching a new version of its operating system for Mac computers on Friday. Apple’s new software isn’t as big of a step forward from its predecessor as Windows 7 will be from Windows Vista. The most important changes in the Apple operating system are under the hood, allowing software developers to rewrite their programs to run much faster. Snow Leopard is a relatively...

Editor’s note: Peter Ryan is head of contact center outsourcing analysis at Datamonitor. Datamonitor is one of the world’s leading provider of online data, analytic and forecasting platforms in a variety of business sectors. LONDON – Recent media reports of drug-related violence at the U.S.-Mexico border have led many observers of contact center outsourcing to question the viability of Mexican offshore delivery. This has been compounded by U.S. State Department travel warnings issued in late February indicating that American citizens need to exercise extreme caution when visiting certain Mexican regions. However, Datamonitor believes that outsourcing clients and vendors looking...