UPDATED: Shiny gadgets mean hazardous waste - Greenpeace

Greenpeace has revealed the unsavoury cost that building the latest gadgets has on the environment, claiming many of the factories where components are built are producing hazardous waste fed directly into water systems. The environmental body's report 'Cutting Edge Contamination: A study of environmental pollution during the manufacture of electronic products' documents how many water samples taken from around these plants showed levels of toxic substances that were many times higher than health bodies recommended. 'Over recent years we have seen an increasing concern over the use of hazardous chemicals in electronic products but attention has focussed on the contamination released during disposal or "recycling of electronic waste",' said Dr. ...more

MacBook debut completes Intel move for laptop Macs

Glimpses of the machines were spotted last week, but now Apple has officially confirmed three new consumer MacBook machines featuring Intel Core Duo Processors. Described by Apple as the world's most advanced consumer notebooks, the designs complete Apple's Intel-based notebook line up (there are 15-and 17-inch MacBook Pros). They replace both the iBook and the 12-inch PowerBook. ...more

Flash security hole revealed

A security hole has been found in versions of Macromedia's Flash Player running on Unix and Windows systems. The breach, discovered by EEye, allows hackers to bypass firewalls and read files on a computer by creating a 'malformed header' within Flash (.swf) files. ...more

EToys goes under

EToys, the Web toy seller that at one point challenged Toys R Us, has filed for bankruptcy. The firm failed to find a buyer and is left with debts of ?190m. At the moment, with shares at eight cents apiece, the firm is only worth ?14m. ...more

IBM makes play with chip stacks

IBM claims it will be able to make microchips faster and more energy efficient by stacking components on top of each other, a breakthrough that shortens the distance an electrical signal needs to travel. The technique works by drilling tiny holes through a wafer of silicon and filling them with metal. Components such as memory can then be stacked on top of the main part of the chip, eliminating the need for wires stretching out to the sides. ...more