Eaton Corporation has added a hydro-mechanical torque control option and several performance upgrades to its 420 open circuit piston pump product line. The 420 pump with hydro-mechanical torque control automatically senses heavy loads and adjusts hydraulic fluid flow accordingly.
It is intended for moderate-flow, medium-pressure mobile applications such as compact wheel loaders, telehandlers, rough terrain forklifts, telescopic booms, sweepers, backhoe loaders, and refuse trucks operating up to 280 bar continuously.
To accommodate the new torque control, the pump housing was redesigned and a case-to-inlet check valve was added to improve cold weather operation and provide added protection to the seals and rotating group. The new torque control works in parallel with the standard compensator, using a special mechanism to replace the control piston. Other design changes have decreased airborne noise to a typical 76 dBA at 1,800 rpm and 207 bar, providing an environmental benefit both to the operator and those working around the vehicle.
“In compact and mid-size equipment, torque almost always needs to be controlled,” said Eaton’s John Taylor, Product Manager, Power Products. “Limiting the torque at the pump shaft across a wide range of engine speeds provides operators with the benefits of increased productivity, greater efficiency and fewer engine stalls. The result is lower engine emissions and improved fuel economy.
Productivity is enhanced by increasing the speed with which the vehicle function is performed due to flow rate changes made by the torque control system. For example, raising a heavy load with a set of forks on a telehandler places a significant amount of demand on the hydraulic pump and system. To prevent engine stalls without limiting the telehandler’s lifting capacity, manufacturers not using torque control would be forced to use a smaller displacement pump that significantly slows the operation of the forks. Torque control automatically senses heavy loads and adjusts flow accordingly. Limiting the flow in high pressure situations limits the torque the pump can apply to the engine and, as a result, avoids the corner horsepower point and prevents the engine from stalling. It also allows for higher flow and quicker operation when the set of forks is empty, which means higher productivity.”
Eaton’s 420 pumps offer outstanding power density that is not compromised by the use of torque control.
For more information: [email protected]

Below are links to news stories of interest from newspapers that came up during a search today.  These links were active at the time of this e-mail, but should you want to save a story, printing it or cutting and pasting the entire article and saving it to your computer is recommended.    

Statehouse rally for tax increase could be largest in history
Bloomington Pantagraph – SPRINGFIELD — Up to 15,000 citizen lobbyists are expected to descend on the Capitol on Wednesday to rally for a tax increase to help fix the state’s crippled budget. 

City prepares for massive Statehouse rally
Springfield State Journal Register –  the casualty count in terms of people and organizations and institutions and needs unmet,” Bouman said. Representatives of about 100 organizations will attend, he said, including the Illinois Education Association, the Illinois Federation of Teachers, the Service Employees International Union and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees 

Lawmakers preview Wednesday’s teachers rally
Streator Times-Press – public education supporters and members of the Service Employees International Union, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the Illinois Federation of Teachers and the Illinois Education Association will arrive early at the Capitol, where they are scheduled to stay all day to reach out to lawmakers and make their statement. Gov. Pat Quinn, who has been pushing a on 

More dollars sought for education
Alton – part in the rally will include members of the Service Employees International Union, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the Illinois Federation of Teachers and the Illinois Education Association. School districts throughout Illinois are reducing staff and making severe budget cuts as the state is months late – and millions of dollars behind – in reimbursement 

New money-making idea for state: iTax
Chicago Sun Times – An army of union-backed protestors is expected to converge on the state Capitol Wednesday to push for the Quinn income-tax increase. As many as 15,000 members of AFSCME Council 31, SEIU, the Illinois Education Association and Illinois Federation of Teachers are expected for the massive event, which will shut down streets around the Statehouse in order to accommodate 300 buses. 

Thousands expected at Capitol rally today
Arlington Heights Daily Herald – That’s resulted in a $4.5 billion payment backlog, including $1.3 billion owed to schools. “The bottom line is, it hurts the kids,” said St. Charles Education Association President Pam Turriff. “We just want to make the legislators aware that we all feel they need to step up to the plate and fund education for all kids.” 

Forum, rallies focus on state budget
Marion Daily Republican – Melody Sexton, the local Illinois Educators Association chair, expressed her frustration at more than 100 education staff riffed in the past few months due to budget concerns. “As a teacher, I’m upset about the whole deal,” she said. “Already some schools were working on a shoestring budget. If you don’t step up, we’re going to lose totally and next year 

Lawmakers preview Wednesday’s teachers rally
Streator Times-Press – Federation of Teachers and the Illinois Education Association will arrive early at the Capitol, where they are scheduled to stay all day to reach out to lawmakers and make their statement. Gov. Pat Quinn, who has been pushing a one percentage point income tax increase, said lawmakers should vote for the 33 percent tax hike because it would help education, which otherwise is slated 

More dollars sought for education
Alton Telegraph – Web site (www.illinoiseducationassociation.org) explains its position: “We support a balanced approach to fixing the state budget. That means budget cuts and a revenue increase. IEA supports Gov. Quinn’s proposed 1 percent income tax increase for education. Our schools and communities would be devastated by the layoffs and budget cuts that have been proposed. 

Our View: State budget requires answers, not evasions or excuses
Peoria Journal Star –  up to 15,000 is expected to descend on the Illinois Statehouse today to demand that lawmakers get serious about fixing a $13 billion budget hole by raising taxes and avoiding dramatic cuts to education funding. Should the anticipated number materialize, it would rank as the largest such rally in state history. That doesn’t mean they’ll get what they want:

State News

Four-day school week hits a roadblock in Senate committee
Journal&Gazette Times-Courier – SPRINGFIELD—An Illinois Senate panel Tuesday shot down a proposal that would allow Illinois school districts to hold classes four days a weekJust two of 11 members of the Senate Education Committee supported a plan to allow local districts to give students a full school year of three-day weekends.Although the measure received widespread backing in the House 

State shirking responsibility for education
Bloomington Pantagraph – have watched equalized assessed valuation fall or not kept pace with the demands of a growing student body. As a result, districts across the state have sent out layoff notices to about 30,000 teachers. Unit 5 has sent layoff notices to 120 first-year teachers. In District 87, 26 teachers have been given layoff notices. These “reduction in force” notices are a rite of spring 

Athletic activity fee implemented in ROWVA
Galesburg Register Mail – Galva will field co-op junior and senior high teams of football, football cheerleading and senior high golf and cross country teams in the fall. A memorandum of understanding with the ROWVA Education Association was approved by the board Monday that will “allow the board or superintendent to talk to individual REA members regarding opportunities for individual members to negotiate 

Class sizes, teacher salaries headline District 201 public forum
Westmont –  Parent Melissa Kemp said class sizes are already at capacity and said larger classes would not help students academically. Instead, several parents suggested pay freezes for teachers and staff, which has yet to be discussed by the board. The board is expected to begin negotiating a new teacher contract within the next couple of months, officials said. 

Du Quoin school board cuts 26 jobs; pay freeze invoked
Carmi Times –  wore pink Friday, not only in support of their fellow educators but in protest of the Illinois General Assembly’s failure to deal with the state’s fiscal crisis. In addition, both the Du Quoin Education Association and the board have voted to invoke a one-year salary and wage freeze, which affects both the educational staff and the administration. 

State shirking responsibility for education
Bloomington Pantagraph – have watched equalized assessed valuation fall or not kept pace with the demands of a growing student body. As a result, districts across the state have sent out layoff notices to about 30,000 teachers. Unit 5 has sent layoff notices to 120 first-year teachers. In District 87, 26 teachers have been given layoff notices. These “reduction in force” notices are a rite of spring 

Wheaton Warrenville teachers approve 2-year contract
Chicago Tribune – “This agreement represents a strong commitment from the teachers of District 200 to be part of the solution,” Bryce Cann, the president of the Wheaton Warrenville Education Association, which is the district’s teachers union, said in a statement. “As education funding from Springfield becomes increasingly less dependable, 

Alton schools switch bus provider
Alton Telegraph – trying to react to a state fiscal crisis,” Elson said. He said the state is $1.7 million behind in reimbursing the district for transportation costs so far this school year. Also, he said Gov. Pat Quinn is proposing a 25 percent cut for state reimbursements for transporting students in his next budget, which would cost the district $795,000. Three parents spoke against pushing back start time

Political News

Governor Quinn Calls for More Budget Cuts MyStateline.com – Quinn met with lawmakers to propose an additional 400 million dollars in cuts to the spending plan. His also wants an extension to the state’s time frame … 

Lawsuits over Illinois budget mess could be coming
Bloomington Pantagraph –  Thousands of state vendors could face the prospect of having to go to court to collect money they are owed by the state. In a memo to legislative leaders Tuesday, Gov. Pat Quinn acknowledged the possibility that the state’s budget mess could force angry vendors to file lawsuits with the Illinois Court of Claims this fall.   

Our View: State budget requires answers, not evasions or excuses
Peoria Journal Star –  For a change, it would be appropriate if they did not just place blame to score political points or make excuses while pledging action … someday. Gov. Pat Quinn took a tiny step in that direction Tuesday in announcing an additional $400 million in cuts. Now it’s time for another step.   

Quinn to Cohen: Bring it on
Arlington Heights Daily Herald – Gov. Pat Quinn said he’s ready to take on Scott Lee Cohen in the general election if the embattled Chicago pawnbroker publicly announces he’s making an independent run for the state’s highest office.   

Brady says he’ll release tax returns
WLS Chicago – Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Brady will release his income tax returns after all, announcing the change of heart Tuesday just hours after his Democratic opponent, Gov. Pat Quinn, took him to task over the issue.   

Gov. Pat Quinn pressures rival Bill Brady into releasing tax returns
Chicago Tribune – After coming under sharp criticism by Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn for declining to release his tax returns, Republican challenger Bill Brady switched course Tuesday and said he will disclose them this week. Brady, a state senator from Bloomington,   

Fair Map Amendment backers falling short on signatures
Quad Cities Dispatch Argus Leader – SPRINGFIELD — The Fair Map Amendment proposal touted by supporters as an anti-corruption tool is falling way short in a quest to get it on the November ballot, with a deadline fast approaching. More than 120,000 people have signed petitions to get the proposed citizen initiative on the ballot, but that’s less than 50 percent of the 288,000 needed.   

Kirk to return Goldman Sachs donations
Chicago Daily Herald – Congressman Mark Kirk said he plans to return campaign contributions from employees of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to his campaign for a U.S. Senate seat once held by President Barack Obama in Illinois. “I will err on the side of caution,” Kirk said at a news conference in Chicago. Kirk said his campaign is still determining how much Goldman employees donated to him   

 Blagojevich Fundraiser’s Suicide at Issue for Prosecution
Chicago WFLD (Fox) 32 – Prosecutors asked a federal judge on Monday to bar former Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s lawyers from telling the jury at his racketeering and fraud trial about his chief fundraiser’s suicide. Prosecutors said Christopher G. Kelly’s suicide in September has no bearing on anything at issue in the Blagojevich trial, which is due to get under way June 3 before federal Judge James B. Zagel.   

Blago calls feds ‘cowards and liars’
Crystal Lake Northwest Herald – Former Gov. Rod Blagojevich described the federal prosecutors who have brought racketeering and fraud charges against him as “cowards and liars” Tuesday and challenged Chicago’s U.S. attorney to meet him face to face in court if he is “man enough.” In an extraordinary outburst timed to go live on evening news shows,   

Blago due in court after blasting feds
Chicago WLS (ABC) 7 –  Former governor Rod Blagojevich is scheduled to head to court for a status hearing in his corruption case Wednesday, where he will face the prosecutors he called cowards and liars. On Tuesday at his lawyer’s office, Blagojevich again said he was innocent and that the government was out to get him. That is nothing new, but in his two-minute speech   

Why did he say that? Rahm says it was a slip
Chicago Sun Times – Chicago political tea readers were pondering on Tuesday what was behind the timing of White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel’s admission to PBS’ Charlie Rose that he wants to run for mayor of Chicago when Mayor Daley quits. After all, Emanuel tried mightily in January to douse chatter about his mayoral ambitions when such talk first surfaced.   

Word of the Day for Wednesday, April 21, 2010

empyrean \em-py-REE-uhn; -PEER-ee-\, noun:

1. The highest heaven, in ancient belief usually thought to be a realm of pure fire or light.
2. Heaven; paradise.
3. The heavens; the sky.

adjective:
1. Of or pertaining to the empyrean of ancient belief.

Filed under: Crossover, Hatchback, BMW, Design/Style, Luxury

It’s safe to say you won’t be seeing this BMW art car lapping Sarthe any time soon. The Bavarian automaker teamed up with textiles manufacturer Kvadrat and Flos to create “The Dwelling Lab” – a design installation. The brain child of artists designers (Thanks, Lorenzo!) Patricia Urquiola and Guilio Ridolfo, the exercise was designed to strut both BMW’s and Kvadrat and Flos’ commitments to creativity. Or something.

We won’t pretend to be art critics, so we’ll avoid strutting our ignorance by throwing judgment against the fabric-covered 5-Series Gran Turismo. Instead, we’ll do our best to describe the piece and let you do the judging for yourself.

Urquiola wanted to draw the viewer’s focus to the interior of the car, so she created the massive fabric cones called “diamonds” to pull your look inward. Sure enough, it’s effective. You can’t help but look toward the car’s cloth-swaddled guts. The piece will be on display during the Salone Internazionale del Mobile, held in Milan all this month. You’ll find the press release after the jump.

[Source: BMW]

Continue reading BMW 5 Series Gran Turismo gets artsy with Patricia Urquiola and Giulio Ridolfo

BMW 5 Series Gran Turismo gets artsy with Patricia Urquiola and Giulio Ridolfo originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 21 Apr 2010 08:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If you hadn’t heard, the Palm Pre Plus and Palm Pixi Plus are coming to O2 Germany and Vodafone on April 28th. As is (distressingly) becoming the norm, pricing wasn’t officially announced when the phones were officially announced.

We’ve got the prices for O2 now, anyway. They come courtesy of O2, and along with golem.de, you might say that Germans will be paying a bit of a premium over their French neighbors: 389 Euro for the Pixi Plus, 509 for the Pre Plus. Of course, you can also opt to purchase the phones at just 29 Euro to start and pay out the rest over time. It also helps that since this is O2 Germany, these phones are straight-up unlocked.

Thanks to everybody who sent this in!

Erin Kutz wrote:

Cambridge, MA-based car-sharing company Zipcar announced it has acquired Streetcar, a U.K.-based car club that operates under a similar model. Zipcar chairman and CEO Scott Griffith said in the company statement that “when considered along with our investment in the largest car sharing company in Spain in late 2009, this transaction gives us a very strong base from which to expand to additional European markets.” The announcement did not reveal the financial details of the deal, which brings the combined membership of the two companies to over 400,000, but the Wall Street Journal pegged it at $50 million.

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Hiring at venture-backed startups picked up speed in the first quarter of this year, according to figures released by the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) and job board StartUpHire.com. A total of 13,314 jobs were posted by startups on the web site in the first quarter — an average of 4,400 new positions each month — and a 16 percent increase since the end of 2009. The report is another indicator that the pace of hiring is starting to recover in the technology sector, after a downturn caused by the recession and other economic factors over the past two years.

There have been other recent signs that the technology job market could be turning around: Google told analysts in its earnings conference call last week that it hired 768 new employees in the first quarter, and Chief Financial Officer Patrick Pichette said it expects to “continue hiring aggressively through the year.” Intel has also said that it plans to hire between 1,000 and 2,000 people this year, its first major hiring wave in five years, and Cisco is planning to expand its workforce by 2,000-3,000 employees. LinkedIn has also been hiring, adding 154 people already this year, and Twitter has boosted its headcount to 170 from about 45 in the past year and says it plans to continue hiring.

Meanwhile, a report released recently by the Silicon Valley Leadership Group said that tech sector hiring is definitely picking up. Over half of companies surveyed said they expect to see job growth in their sector, compared with just 17 percent the previous year. Although the demand for talented technology employees could make it harder for startups to compete for those hires with larger firms like Google and Intel, the NVCA report seems to show that venture-backed startups are managing to grow regardless. And that growth is important for the overall economy: A report published last year by the Kauffman Foundation found that startups are a key driver in job creation.

Related content from GigaOM Pro (sub req’d): What the VC Industry Upheaval Means for Startups

Post and thumbnails courtesy of Flickr user The Truth About

What happens when you put a picture of a Sesame Street character on vegetables? Something like this:

Findings from Sesame Workshop’s initial “Elmo/ Broccoli”
study indicated that intake of a particular food increased if it
carried a sticker of a Sesame Street character. For example, in the
control group (no characters on either food) 78 percent of children
participating in the study chose a chocolate bar over broccoli, whereas
22 percent chose the broccoli. However, when an Elmo sticker was placed
on the broccoli and an unknown character was placed on the chocolate
bar, 50 percent chose the chocolate bar and 50 percent chose the
broccoli. Such outcomes suggest that the Sesame Street characters could
play a strong role in increasing the appeal of healthy foods.

Two points.

1. If Elmo can make broccoli cool, imagine what pictures of Justin Bieber could do for Grape Nuts and Brussels sprouts.

2. It’s important to read these studies with a critical eye. Big Bird isn’t The Answer to childhood obesity. Healthy cereals have been branding with athletes since at least the 1980s, and Americans’ waists have only widened. Wheaties, after all, still tastes like Wheaties no matter who’s on the box. But still, studies like this are important. Americans eating habits are probably more elastic than we think, and a thousand small, experimental framing devices might accomplish more than a single tax strategy.

This isn’t the first time that we have heard news about HP’s Compaq AirLife 100. This is an Android powered netbook that we have known about since MWC. It has finally passed through the FCC and now the full specs are now available.

It features a 10-inch screen, 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor with Wi-Fi / 3G connectivity, 512MB of RAM, and 16GB of flash storage. The screen is a resistive touch screen but it doesn’t have multi-touch capabilities. It’s not yet known if this device will have market access but HP has a list of apps that will come preloaded. The AirLife is set to launch soon in Latin America and in parts of Europe, it has been spotted on their US site as well so it could be available here at some point. The official word from HP is expected soon.

[via engadget,HP]

Do I need to find my Burt? Apparently so, says an online promotion for Burt’s Bees and an event that’ll be happening in Times Square on Thursday, which is Earth Day. I don’t know about the rest of you, but even as a fan of the products (the Super Shiny lip gloss is fantastic!), I’ve never given much thought to the guy himself. That would be Burt Shavitz, a Maine-based beekeeper and co-founder of the nature-loving company. But I’m considering Burtifying myself via webcam on the FindYourBurt.com site, which involves getting a bushy beard, mutton chops and a goofy hat. Why not? It’ll also tell me how Earth-friendly I am (so I can be closer to Burt-ness). While I’m there, I’ll see factoids like this: "The Burt’s Bees manufacturing facility has zero landfill waste." If you’re out and about in midtown on Earth Day, you can see the marketer’s philosophy at work. Five bearded Burt look-alikes will be pedaling human-powered bike blenders and making smoothies entirely out of Burt’s Bees beauty product ingredients (stuff like milk, honey, mango, yogurt, banana and pomegranate). There will be other sampling, like zero-waste "Burt Kits," giveaways and a free yoga class in Central Park, all via the marketer’s new agency, Baldwin& of Durham, N.C. So, go ahead and Burtify. You can always beautify later.

—Posted by T.L. Stanley

Well well well, look at what we have here!   Not only do we get a glimpse of OS 6.0 and its capabilities, but we get decent pictures of a rumored device from RIM sporting the sexy new OS all in one day.  Thanks to BGR, there is a full picture gallery, with the clamshell BlackBerry device shown at every angle.  So far there have been tons of mixed emotions about the device.  While some are claiming that RIM is headed in the wrong direction with the design, some people are really liking the new sleek, rounded look, and others are brushing it off just as they did the full QWERTY slider last month.

The specifications that this baby holds puts me on the fence.  I’m not a big fan of moving parts, but this is one I would have to try before I knock it.  The device sports a 5.0-megapixel camera, Wi-Fi, full QWERTY keyboard (9700 style), and OS 6.0, giving it the heaviest spec sheet of any BlackBerry to date (rumored or official).  Judging by the device model number (9670), it looks like this clamshell BlackBerry is destined to fall into the CDMA Bold family. 

What are your thoughts on a flip style BlackBerry?  Sound off in the comments!

Via BGR

Merger talk is swirling around United Airlines (UAL), with reports of a deal in the works first with US Airways (LCC) and more recently with Continental Airlines (CAL).

We’re sure there are plenty of operational reasons United’s management might be looking for a deal. But we also couldn’t help noticing that the company has made it substantially more attractive for the top officers themselves to seal a deal — in the case of Chairman and Chief Executive Glenn Tilton, more than three times as attractive as in prior years.

According to the proxy that UAL Corp., parent of United Airlines, filed at 5:25 p.m. on Tuesday, Tilton’s payout if there’s a change of control rose to $9 million last year — up nearly fourfold from the $2.4 million listed in last year’s proxy. If he loses his job within two years after a deal, his payout would be $14.3 million, up 78% from $8 million last year.

Other executives have seen similar jumps. Executive Vice President John Tague, also president of United Airlines, would see his payout in a change-of-control rise to $3.7 million, from $1.1 million. Total cost for the top five officers under a change in control scenario, even if none of them are fired: $17.6 million.

A change of control, for what it’s worth, includes

“(i) certain acquisitions by a third-party or third-parties, acting in concert, of at least a specified threshold percentage of the Company’s then outstanding voting securities; (ii) consummation of certain mergers or consolidations of the Company with any other corporation; (iii) stockholder approval of a plan of complete liquidation or dissolution of the Company; (iv) consummation of certain sales or dispositions of all or substantially all the assets of the Company; and (v) certain changes in the membership of the Company’s board of directors. “

The rise in payouts hinges not on the cash severance the executives are promised — that figure has stayed pretty steady at a little over $5 million for Tilton, for example — but in the treatment of their equity and option grants. Whereas last year, getting fired after a merger would have accelerated $2.4 million in restricted stock awards for Tilton, now it would mean $1.4 million in restricted stock, $3.2 million in stock options and $3.6 million in restricted stock units, as well as $866,667 for an additional cash bonus. (Not to worry: They’ll still get travel benefits on their airline when they go, for whatever reason — a $23,683 value for Tilton, plus a whopping $119,240 to defray taxes that would be due on the benefit.)

All that, of course, is above and beyond what they get from any merger itself, in return for the shares and options they already own outright, plus the pensions and deferred-compensation benefits they have accumulated over time.

For good measure, the company also boosted the payout executives would get outside of a change-in-control, if they are fired “without cause” — including if, say, performance isn’t up to snuff or a deal falls through. For Tilton, that figure almost doubles to $12.6 million, from the $6.6 million listed in last year’s proxy. (His everyday pay rose, too.)

If UAL ultimately does tie up with another airline, we’re sure to hear soundbites about synergy and the value that shareholders and passengers can expect from the deal. As with any merger, only time will tell how much of that value really is there.

Meantime, for UAL’s top executives, the value of a deal is there in black and white.

Image source: Deanster1983 via Flickr

Former CIBC economist Jeff Rubin couldn’t make it to Lisbon for the Portuguese launch of Why Your World Is About to Get a Whole Lot Smaller: Oil and the End of Globalization.

But he’s taking the opportunity to harp on peak oil. The past week’s chaos could become standard when rising prices make air travel impractical.

Rubin’s blog:

[It’s] not just people who aren’t able to get around. A good chunk of the global food supply chain also relies on air transport to ensure worldwide distribution. Think of all the havoc caused by broken supply chains in our interconnected global economy. From fresh pineapple from Ghana to fresh flowers from Kenya, Northern Europe’s already beginning to notice the disruption from the loss of air freight. The Freight Transport Association in the UK recently warned that British supermarkets could soon start running out of imported fruit and vegetables if the air embargo continues much longer.

Of course, the wind could change or the volcano could suddenly stop belching and all could quickly return to normal. But while it lasts, take careful note. It may well be a dress rehearsal for what lies ahead. What volcanic ash is doing today, triple-digit oil prices will do tomorrow.

Rubin expects triple-digit oil by year end, so get used to being stranded.

Don’t miss: Oh No! Our Most Important World Leaders Are Stranded By The Volcano!

Join the conversation about this story »

Fiat SpA and Chrysler Group CEO Sergio Marchionne is in Turin, Italy today presenting his 5-year business and product plan. One of the exciting things Sergio announced was that Ferrari will introduce a “new special series Enzo” in 2012.

He said that special-edition Ferrari Enzo will follow the upcoming 458 Italia Spyder in 2011. Also, we can expect a refreshed California in 2013.

Sergio also said that Maserati is working on a sub-Quattroporte sedan that will compete with the likes of the Mercedes-Benz E-Class and the BMW 5-Series. Hey, if Aston Martin can do a subcompact based on the Toyota iQ (Aston Martin Cygnet), than Maserati should be allowed to compete with luxury mid-size sedans.

Marchionne also confirmed that a new Quattroporte is in the works.

Click here for prices on the 2009 Maserati Quattroporte.

– By: Omar Rana

Source: WOT

A credible report from content analytics network PostRank highlights that Internet bots are posting around 89% of all Google Buzz’s content. The percentage is overwhelming, but more curious is how it falls around on categories.

From all the content automatically posted in Google Buzz, Twitter amasses for 62.57%, transforming Google Buzz into a… (read more)

After second quarter results from Apple Inc. that the Street called “stunning,” analysts have raised their price targets on the smartphone and computer maker.

One of the more bullish of the group, Mike Abramsky of RBC Capital Markets, hiked his forecast for the stock from US$275 to US$350. The analyst said Apple is positioned for multi-market share gains at healthy margins.

While the past 12 months was all about the entry of the iPhone, Apple now faces four large market opportunities that he estimates will see a total two billion units sold. Also due to the company’s strong competitive advantages; Mr. Abramsky told clients that the next leg of valuation may be about iPhone global market expansion, the entry of iPad, further PC share gains and iPod/iTunes contribution.

Apple beat Canaccord Adams analyst Peter Misek’s near-consensus estimates by 12% on the top line and a whopping 38% on the bottom line.

Driven largely by strong iPhone and desktop shipments, his fiscal 2010 revenue estimate climbs to US$59.3-billion from US$56.6-billion. His earnings per share (GAAP) estimate rises to US$13.32 from US$11.91. The also analyst raised his price target on Apple from US$300 to US$325.

J.P.Morgan’s Mark Moskowitz hiked his forecast for the stock from US$305 to US$316, telling clients that the company’s quarterly results and outlook should be more than enough to keep pushing the stock higher.

“While there was some noise around gross margins, particularly as relates to the iPad in the early stages, we believe that the overall revenue and earnings growth profiles have no rivals in large cap technology,” he said.

Over the next few years, the analyst believes that Apple’s revenue and earnings growth could stay well above 20%, which would require a favorable reset to the stock’s valuation.

Richard Gardner at Citigroup boosted his price target from US$300 to US$320 and raised his estimates for 2010 through 2012. Apple remains near the top of his list of preferred hardware names.

“While the shares may take a breather following Wednesday’s rally, we would use any pull-backs as enhanced buying opportunities ahead of what should be a truly banner Holiday season for the company,” he said. “The fact that Apple was able to deliver such significant upside before this year’s significant product introductions/refreshes makes us all the more confident in our positive stance through year-end.”

Mr. Gardner reminded clients that iPad should contribute to revenue beginning in the second quarter of calendar 2010, followed by an iPhone refresh in July, an iPod refresh in September and perhaps a CDMA iPhone on Verizon’s network in time for the peak Holiday season.

Deutsche Bank analyst Chris Whitmore, who raised his target from US$325 to US$350, noted that Apple’s revenue upside was driven by “enormous iPhone results” that came in at 8.75 million versus his forecast of 7.25 million. He also pointed to an iPod beat of 10.89 million units compared to Deutsche Bank’s expectation of 10 million.

As expected, Apple issued conservative guidance. However, Mr. Whitmore expects iPhone and Mac demand will remain robust, in addition to strong international expansion and new product cycles.

“The iPad is off to a very strong start with demand characterized as ‘shocking’ and tracking ahead of management expectation,” he told clients. “In addition, we expect the iPhone to be refreshed this summer which remains immensely profitable and continues to ramp internationally.”

Jonathan Ratner

The browser options for Android just are growing all the time. If you don’t like the stock browser or just want a change of pace, hit the market and replace the browser (unlike other unnamed OSX’s). Now you can beta test the upcoming Skyfire browser. The XDA has gotten a hold of this app and has shared it with the rest of us.

Skyfire is nothing new, all you Windows mobile and Symbian users has being enjoying this browser for a long time now. Tired of waiting for Flash 10 to finally hit? You don’t have to now because this browser supports flash 10, all major Web 2.0 standards, including Ajax, JavaScript. So without prolonging your agony, click this link to download it now.

[via xda]

I was a PC for the longest time. In the late 90s Apple caught my attention as Macs were all we had in grade school. Then, in 2001, the iBook G3 was released, then iTunes and then the iPod. After spending an hour on Mac OS X 10.1, I was hooked and decided it was time to switch to Mac. Soon after switching, I started blogging about Apple but given that I was only 13 years old, the content was less than readable. That didn’t stop me from writing about Apple nearly every day.

In 2003, I attended my first Macworld and attended every expo from NYC, Boston and San Francisco until the most recent MWSF in January. I became a total conference junkie and even found myself at CES and Photoshop World finally earning the grand invitation and attending Apple Town Hall events and WWDC as press. All the while, I was a lone blogger with a passion for spreading the word about Apple and its products.

Today, at the ripe old age of 23 I’ve seen Steve Jobs speak nearly 30 times, have written over 5,000 articles and reviews about Apple and was even interviewed in the movie MacHeads which premiered last year. It’s safe to say that I am a Mac head and I’m happy to be joining the TAB team as a contributor among the ranks great writers like Darrell Etherington, Charles Jade and Nick Santilli.

I enjoy writing editorials that excite readers and inspire others to give their thoughts. When I’m not writing, I enjoy taking photographs, tweeting and blogging about food & life.

photo by Scott Beale / Laughing Squid

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Content: LOST PLANET 2 Multiplayer Demo
Price: Free
Availability: All Xbox LIVE regions
Dash Text: LOST PLANET returns with the long-awaited sequel to the 2 million-plus selling action shooter! LOST PLANET 2's all-new co-op feature allows up to 4 players to team up in Campaign Mode, forming new tactics and strategies to tackle situations that would be impossible alone. In this multiplayer demo, you and 15 other players battle it out on an all-new map, Turbulent Jungle. Choose from one of two modes popularized in the original LOST PLANET: Elimination or Post Grab. All the new VSs, weapons, and support items from the Campaign mode are also available in multiplayer. Grab your weapon of choice, plan out your attack, and get into the heat of battle with players from all over the world!

Add the free LOST PLANET 2 Multiplayer Demo to your Xbox 360 download queue

Like the demo? Pre-order the full game