Apple’s iPad will be launched globally on May 28th, the company announced today. Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK have been confirmed in the second release wave, with the pre-ordering period commencing next Monday, May 10th.

UK pricing has been set higher than the US (no change there, then):

• iPad 16GB Wi-Fi Only – £429
• iPad 32GB Wi-Fi Only – £499
• iPad 64GB Wi-Fi Only – £599
• iPad 16GB 3G – £529
• iPad 32GB 3G – £599
• iPad 64GB 3G – £699

The iPad will launch in a third wave of countries in July – territories include Austria, Belgium, Hong Kong, Ireland, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand and Singapore. Apple confirmed that iBooks for iPad will be made available in selected countries as a download on May 28th.

With over a million units shipped already in the US alone, the iPad looks set to take the rest of the world by storm over the summer. Breakthrough device, or just a big iPod Touch? Let us know whether you’ve bought one already, or will be picking one up this month?

More Info: Apple

iPad Available in Nine More Countries on May 28th

Pre-Orders Begin May 10th

CUPERTINO, California — May 7th, 2010 — Apple today announced that iPad will be available in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK on Friday, May 28th. Customers can pre-order all iPad models from Apple’s online store in all nine countries beginning on Monday, May 10th. In the US, Apple has already sold over one million iPads and customers have downloaded over 12 million apps from the App Store, as well as over 1.5 million ebooks from the new iBookstore.

iPad allows users to connect with their apps and content in a more intimate, intuitive and fun way than ever before. Users can browse the web, read and send email, enjoy and share photos, watch HD videos, listen to music, play games, read ebooks and much more, all using iPad’s revolutionary Multi-Touch user interface. iPad is 0.5 inches thin and weighs just 1.5 pounds—thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook—and delivers up to 10 hours of battery life.*

The App Store on iPad lets you wirelessly browse, buy and download new apps from the world’s largest app store. iPad includes 12 new innovative apps designed especially for iPad and will run almost all of the more than 200,000 apps on the App Store, including apps already purchased for your iPhone or iPod touch. Developers have created more than 5,000 exciting new apps designed for iPad that take advantage of its Multi-Touch interface, large screen and high-quality graphics.

Pricing & Availability
iPad is available in the UK for a suggested retail price of £429 (inc. VAT) for 16GB, £499 (inc. VAT) for 32GB, £599 (inc. VAT) for 64GB for Wi-Fi models and £529 (inc. VAT) for 16GB, £599 (inc. VAT) for 32GB and £699 (inc. VAT) for 64GB for Wi-Fi + 3G models. iPad will be sold through the Apple Store, Apple’s retail stores and select Apple Authorised Resellers. The iBooks app for iPad including Apple’s iBookstore will be available as a free download from the App Store on May 28th.

Apple plans to release iPad in Austria, Belgium, Hong Kong, Ireland, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand and Singapore in July. Apple will announce availability, local pricing and pre-order plans for these nine additional countries at a later date.

*Battery life depends on device settings, usage and other factors. Actual results vary.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution with the Apple II, then reinvented the personal computer with the Macintosh. Apple continues to lead the industry with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system, and iLife, iWork and professional applications. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store, has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and has recently introduced its magical iPad which is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices.

This has been a very busy week for me at my “day job”.  As a result, I’ve been having to play catch-up on some of the news that is of interest to the WGS readers.

Earlier this year, I wrote a review of the archiving program, Digital Archound.  It is fast approaching 2010, and the folks at Group Seven Technology, Inc., have been busy working on a new version of their program

We are very proud to announce the Digital ArcHound 2010 Release coming soon. This release will utilize the new “Ribbons” made popular by Office 2007 including streamlined features with quicker response time and a whole new level of intuitiveness.

Some of the new features also included:

• Professional user interface with selectable skins
• Ability to append or add to an existing PDF file
• Password protection for individual PDF files
• Improved management for categories and subcategories
• Smart category selection; the familiar auto fill feature
• Support for TWAIN scanners, two-sided scanning, scanned image cleanup, more
• Enhanced META Tag embedding for PDF files
• Direct Import Tool for large numbers of PDF files
• Recovery Tool to allow users to recreate their Digital ArcHound Vault database

As can be seen below, it appears as though there are some nice front-end enhancements being incorporated into Digital Archound.

When can you upgrade, or try out this new version?  Hopefully, soon.

Over the past few months, I’ve heard increasing reports of Windows Home Server being utilised in small and home offices (SOHO), where a product like Microsoft’s Small Business Server would simply be overkill.

Canadian developer Level Platforms Inc have now announced that its Managed Workplace remote monitoring application will now be supported on Windows Home Server, allowing outsourced IT suppliers to remotely monitor and support Windows Home Server based networks.

This is the first application we’ve seen which directly supports the business market for Windows Home Server and is a really interesting extension of WHS’ proposition.

Are you using Windows Home Server in your business? Let us know how.

Here’s the press release:

Level Platforms’ Managed Workplace and Microsoft’s Windows Home Server deliver full managed services capabilities to peer-to-peer networks

January 29, 2009

Ottawa, ON, Canada – January 29, 2009 – LPI Level Platforms Inc, the global leader in remote monitoring and management software for solution providers and managed services providers today announced that the Small Office/Home Office (SOHO) market is now “open for business” with Microsoft’s Windows Home Server.

While the millions of SOHO businesses have the greatest need for outsourced IT, cost and technology limitations have made this an elusive target for managed services providers.  With Level Platforms award-winning Managed Workplace installed on a Windows Home Server, solution providers can now deliver end-to-end remote management of workgroup networks including monitoring of all devices (servers, PCs, network devices, printers, IP telephony, etc.), all applications running on Windows devices, alerting, full asset management, remote control, patch management, back up and security, extensive reporting, local storage and much more at a very low cost easily affordable to SOHO businesses.

Many small businesses aren’t yet ready to make the leap to Windows Small Business Server but need the added features, performance, flexibility and security that result from the deployment of a server on their networks.  Now solution providers can deploy Windows Home Server with Managed Workplace and deliver a high value fully managed solution for these businesses.

This addition further extends Managed Workplace’s deep integration with the entire family of Microsoft Servers that already includes Windows Server 2008 and 2003, Small Business Server 2008 and 2003 (SBS), Essential Business Server 2008 (EBS), and full support for Hyper-V, Microsoft’s hypervisor-based virtualization solution.

Built on the same codebase as Windows Server 2003, Windows Home Server represents a powerful solution for the SOHO market. While the backup and recovery features are limited to 10 workstations (including Macs), Managed Workplace running on Windows Home Server can monitor and manage any number of devices operating in a workgroup environment with 100% of the functionality of larger sites including the full management of the Windows Home Server itself as well as any other servers on the network. Solution providers can also deploy additional remote backup software, specialized applications and other server based applications on the Windows Home Server to extend their service offerings.

“The SOHO market represents a tremendous opportunity for solution providers looking to provide cost-effective best-in-class support to smaller businesses,” said Peter Sandiford, CEO Level Platforms.  “Most of our 3000 Partners worldwide provide managed services to the Windows Small Business Server market.  With this announcement we are radically expanding the size of their available market and bringing the benefits of managed services to millions of businesses that were not previously accessible to the service provider community.”

“This is great news,” said Aaron Booker, President of Hardlines, a Washington-based solution provider focused on the small business market. “By adding the Windows Home Server as a supported platform for Managed Workplace, Level Platforms has opened the doors to a hugely underserviced and important segment of the business market.”

David Schmidt, CEO of Fusix Corporation, based in Ontario, added, “Fusix focuses on smaller businesses that often struggle with the effective use of technology. Larger organizations already receive enhanced benefits through the deployment of servers. Now, with a flexible and cost-effective solution for smaller businesses, Level Platforms and Windows Home Server eliminates the difference between the haves and have-nots.”

“We are excited to work with Level Platforms to extend the value of Windows Home Server to the Small Office/Home Office market,” said Charlie Kindel, General Manager, Windows Server Solutions Group, Microsoft.  “This solution will help Microsoft Partners introduce the benefits of Windows Server technology to a large and important market segment establishing a solid foundation for improved performance and reliability today and growth for the future.”

More Info: Level Platforms

A small gift from the Windows Home Server team to celebrate the New Year.

Today the Windows Home Server team is releasing a small update to the product.  The update improves the capability of Windows Home Server to repair abnormalities detected in the home computer backup database.

The update should be automatically downloaded and installed on your home server over the next several days, if you have Windows Update turned on.  You can check if you have Windows Update turned on, by opening the Windows Home Server Console – Settings – General page.

The Knowledge Base article will be up later today.

More Info: WHS Team Blog

Alex Kuretz over at mediasmartserver.net has the lowdown on a software update for the HP MediaSmart Server (EX470/475).

The update brings some minor improvements and bug fixes to the home server, and now includes the ability to manually rollback the update if there’s an issue.

Check out Alex’s post for more.

More Info: mediasmartserver.net

Fresh from last week’s news around the release of Tranquil PC’s new CD & DVD ripping application, they’ve already released an update to the product!

Fresh to AVA Media comes the ability to edit your audio file metatags within the Windows Home Server console.

Whilst AVA Media does a great job in automatically tagging ripped music files, sometimes the tags aren’t exactly as you want them, so this is a great new feature for those (like me) who take a slightly obsessive interest in ensuring music on the home server is tagged correctly.

More Info: AVA Media

Kentdome Technlogies, developers of Grid Junction, Remote Alert and Vista Call-ID for Windows Home Server, are seeking a panel of beta testers to get involved with the development of new versions of those add-ins as well as brand new add-in releases.

If you’re interested, contact them over at http://www.kentdome.com/news/register-now.html

D-Link were showing off a couple of new routers at CES this year, and whilst in general, routers are pretty unimaginative pieces of kit that we just want to work (especially uPnP port forwarding!), these caught my eye for slightly different reasons.

Xtreme N 450 Router 

The Xtreme N 450 is D-Link’s fastest router, with claimed speeds up to 450 Megabits per second (which compares to other devices which have claimed speeds of 300 Megabits per second – note the word “claimed” on both of these examples).

The Xtreme N 450 is a dual-band router (running at 2.4 and 5 GHz simultaneously) with 4 gigabit ethernet ports, printer sharing features and the company’s new D-Link Green technology which reduces power consumption through scheduling wi-fi only when needed and reducing power output by detecting port activity and cable length.

No pricing or availability as yet.

D-Link Xtreme N All-In-One 11 Router (DIR-685)

If you’re the kind of person who thinks tech should be hidden away in a cupboard you’re going to hate this one, but I thought it was pretty cool – the DIR-685 is an 802.11n wireless router with a couple of tricks up its sleeve.

Firstly, you’ll have noticed that 3.2″ LCD screen right in the centre – this is used for displaying diagnostics, but can also serve as a digital photo frame, connecting to an online service to display your photos along with streaming video, weather forecasts and more.

Secondly, slide a 2.5″ internal hard drive into the side of the router and it’s transformed into an all-in-one router and network storage device. Maybe not as powerful as your home server, but a neat solution all the same.  Again, pricing and availability is still to be released.

Who said routers were dull?

More Info: D-Link

At CES on Saturday I spent an hour with D-Link talking through the range of new products they’re releasing for 2009. Whilst their business has traditionally been focused on wireless routers (and indeed there’s a pretty cool new router slated for release this year with a built in digital photo display) their range of networked storage devices and peripherals is growing all the time.

One major new product line for this year is a new home/small business surveillance system utilising 802.11n wireless cameras.

To date, there has been no IP camera solution available for Windows Home Server, and whilst these new cameras cannot currently be controlled via a WHS add-in, D-Link tell me there are plans to support Windows Home Server in the future (they were displaying the camera plugged into the new Acer easyStore Home Server).

The new DCS-1130 is currently controlled via a website, and features easy installation and setup, mobile 3G and Web monitoring, 16x digital zoom, sharp resolution, and multiple profiles. It connects to the home or small business network using 802.11n Wi-Fi with WPS support, or via a standard network cable. You’ll also be able to pick up a wired-only camera (DCS-1100) if you don’t need a wireless connection.

Other cool feature is the ability to monitor the cameras via a live feed through any 3G enabled phone or mobile device, using a 3GPP player.

The cameras all come with stands, or can be wall mounted easily via screwholes on the rear of the device.

So, if you’re looking for a home surveillance solution that’ll record to a storage device and allow you to monitor you home through the day, make sure you check this out. Expect the new models to land in the first half of the year.

More Info: D-Link

You know, it’s funny – I caught up with a couple of people from the Windows Home Server team yesterday morning at CES about various things including the fact that TwonkyMedia really needed to release their TwonkyMedia Server to all Windows Home Server owners. (Currently, the add-in is only available to HP and Fujitsu-Siemens SCALEO owners – everyone else has the complexity of using the standard Windows edition).

Not sure if the guys over at TwonkyMedia were eavesdropping, because this was just announced in their forums:

We have a special version of TwonkyMedia that runs as an Add-in on WHS. Currently it’s only available when you buy an HP MediaSmart server, but we’re hoping to offer this to all WHS users — as soon as it’s properly tested…. We understand that many of your have built your own Windows Home Servers and plan to sell a version designed for you guys as well. I don’t have an ETA yet, and won’t have one for at least a week because I’m at CES all this week.

Great news – looking forward to giving it a try-out.

With today’s announcement of Shuttle launching two new Windows Home Servers here at CES, I headed over to Shuttle’s booth at the show to check them out. They didn’t have the final (WHS logo-compliant) hardware on show at the booth, so you’ll see a few extra ports on the back and on the SH-K4800 the DVD drive you see here is replaced with a hot swappable hard drive bay. These photos below are of the barebones chassis – the home server editions will be very similar.

SH-K4500

SH-K4800

Shuttle have now released full details of both home servers on their website.

SH-K4500 Specification

OPERATING SYSTEM
Windows® Home Server
PROCESSOR
Intel® Celeron®
Intel® Core™2 Duo (Optional)

MEMORY
1GB
2GB (Optional)
Supports up to 4GB

CHIPSET
North Bridge: Intel 945GC
South Bridge: ICH7

GRAPHICS
Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 950
(1) VGA Output

AUDIO
5.1 Channel High Definition Audio

INTERNET
10MB/s,100MB/s,1GB/s
Wireless Ethernet (Optional)

STORAGE

500GB Hard Drive
750GB Hard Drive (Optional)
1TB Hard Drive (Optional)
Supports up to 2 Hard Drives

POWER
100W Flex PSU

NETWORK
Gigabit LAN

BACK PANEL
(1) PCI slot
(1) PS/2 keyboard
(1) PS/2 Mouse
(1) Gigabit LAN port
(1) Serial port
(1) D-sub port
(4) USB 2.0 ports
(1) Front out connector
(1) Rear Surround out connector
(1) Center / Bass connector
(1) Printer port
(1) Wireless port perforation
(1) PS/2 keyboard
(1) PS/2 Mouse
(1) Gigabit LAN port
(1) Serial port
(1) VGA Output
(1) D-sub port
(4) USB 2.0 ports
(1) Front out connector
(1) Rear Surround out connector
(1) Center / Bass connector
(1) Wireless port perforation

DIMENSIONS
11(L)x7.5(W)x6.7(H) Inch

SH-K4800 Specification

PROCESSOR
Intel® Celeron®
Intel® Core™2 Duo (Optional)

MEMORY
1GB
2GB (Optional)
Supports up to 4GB

CHIPSET
North Bridge: Intel 945GC
South Bridge: ICH7

GRAPHICS
Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 950
(1) VGA Output
(1) DVI Output

AUDIO

5.1 Channel High Definition Audio

INTERNET
10MB/s,100MB/s,1GB/s
Wireless Ethernet (Optional)

STORAGE

500GB Hard Drive
750GB Hard Drive (Optional)
1TB Hard Drive (Optional)
5.25” Removable Internal Hot Swappable Hard Drive Enclosure(Optional)

COOLING
Intel Stock Cooling

POWER

100W Flex PSU

BACK PANEL
(1) PCI slot
(1) PS/2 keyboard
(1) PS/2 Mouse
(1) Gigabit LAN port
(1) Serial port
(1) D-sub port
(4) USB 2.0 ports
(1) Front out connector
(1) Rear Surround out connector
(1) Center / Bass connector
(1) Printer port
(1) Wireless port perforation
(1) PS/2 keyboard
(1) PS/2 Mouse
(1) Gigabit LAN port
(1) Serial port
(1) VGA Output
(1) D-sub port
(4) USB 2.0 ports
(1) Front out connector
(1) Rear Surround out connector
(1) Center / Bass connector
(1) Wireless port perforation

DIMENSIONS
11(L)x7.5(W)x6.7(H) Inch

11.6(L)x7.3(W)x7.9(H) Inch

WARRANTY
1 Year Limited Hardware Warranty

I’m guessing that some of those ports listed will actually not be available on the final hardware due to Windows Home Server’s logo requirements (e.g. the audio and display ports etc)

Both units will come with a 500Gb hard drive in the base specification, but as you can see, there are a lot of upgrade options. Both chassis can take 2 internal hard drives, but the SH-K4800 will have the option of a third hot swappable drive if you need the extra storage.

We’ve seen a lot of enthusiasts building great home servers with barebones Shuttle hardware, so it’s great to see them now offering fully built home server systems too.

The SH-K4500 will start at $449 with the SH-K4800 starting at $499.

Look out for a review of both systems in the coming weeks.

Whilst over the past few days, we’ve seen a lot of new NAS hardware announced here at CES, the good news for Windows Home Server enthusiasts is that three new hardware partners will be releasing hardware for the platform in the first half of 2009. Let’s take a look at what’s coming:

Acer Aspire easyStore Home Server

The Acer Aspire  easyStore Home Server will run on an Intel Atom 230 processor, with 1Gb of RAM on board and by the looks of things has 4 hot-swappable internal drive bays. 640Gb of storage is included along Anti-virus protection from McAfee Total Protection Service (free for first 6 months) is confirmed for the product and Acer also plan to include add-ins to enable easily copying data from external USB hard drives, a Power Saver Scheduler and a DLNA compliant media streaming server (likely to be TwonkyMedia Server, I guess).

Shuttle SH-4500 & SH-K4800 Home Server

Two models will be released – a basic, single drive 500Gb model (SH-4500)and an alternative 500Gb with hot swap capability. Both units have space for a second internal hard drive and can be expanded externally thanks to 4 USB 2.0 ports.

VIA NSD7800 Home Server

мебели

VIA Technologies will be releasing a mammoth 8 drive home server, making it the largest available on the market, providing up to 12Tb of storage for your home.

I’ll be working on getting a lot more information on these new home servers tomorrow here at CES, so keep an eye on the site. But it’s great to see new manufacturers supporting Windows Home Server which, along with the release of the new HP MediaSmart Server and upgrades planned for the Fujitsu-Siemens SCALEO Home Server mean that there’s going to be a very strong WHS line-up for 2009.