Filed under: Desktops, Laptops

Sad news brewing in Round Rock this morning. After slashing “dozens” of call center employees in Ottawa yesterday (and scrapping plans for 1,200 more), it looks like Dell is taking its cost cutting initiatives retail. Unfortunately, we’re not talking lower prices here. We have word from a number of sources that Dell’s 150+ Dell Direct Stores are about to meet the business end of the corporate axe. Whether that be in full or a partial reduction we don’t know. Nevertheless, with Dell now firmly entrenched in Wal-mart, Staples, and Best Buy, the mall kiosks sure seem redundant. Expect more on this later in the AM after Michael Dell’s had a chance to address the troops.

Read — Dell Ottawa closures

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Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds, Portable Audio, Portable Video

Oh yes, Skype for your PSP-2000 series is now a reality. At least outside of Japan. It’s only available via network update at the moment and adds expanded support for PLAYSTATION Network titles. You do have your $20 PSP Headset right? Good, so what are you waiting for punk, get outta here and let us know how it goes.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

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Filed under: Desktops, Home Entertainment, Laptops

Just as we feared, Asus is getting ready to dilute their Eee branding until it’s RAZRed down to a hint of its former panache. The new family of low-cost, Eee products will include the E-DT (desktop), E-TV, and E-Monitor. The $200 – $300 E-DT will initially sport a Celeron processor when it ships without a monitor sometime in April or May. The E-Monitor is more than just a display — it’s a 19- to 21-inch all-in-one PC with built-in TV tuner and a remarkable $499 price tag. It’ll be based on Intel’s Shelton platform when the AIO launches in September. The 42-inch E-TV will also launch in September and feature a Linux PC integrated into the LCD. It’s expected to list for a $200 premium over the low-cost 42-inch sets it will compete with. Just don’t get too hung up on those prices, kid. The Eee PC was only supposed to cost $200 when it was announced.

Now for the bad news. ASUS will not be offering a touch-panel in their next generation Eee PC after all — their market research shows limited demand. Not avid Engadget readers, are we ASUS?

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Filed under: Gaming

We know that there’s plenty of folks out there eager to get their hands on Sony’s rumbling DualShock3 controller, but we’re hoping there’s not many desperate enough to consider something like this contraption in the interim. Apparently known only as the “Wireless Vibrating Grip,” the device rather obstructively attaches to your controller and presumably makes it vibrate with no rhyme or reason whatsoever at your command. Apparently sensing that wasn’t enough of a selling point, however, the manufacturer which seemingly does not want to be named has also seen fit to throw an FM radio into the mix, which surely must have Sony reconsidering their whole controller strategy right about now.

[Via Tech Digest]

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