Intel has announced today that a dozen new netbooks will be released this week using the company's new dual-core Atom processors, the fastest CPUs available for netbooks.

Netbooks are hitting stores from Acer, ASUS, Fujitsu, Lenovo, LG, Samsung, MSI, and Toshiba.

"Acer strives to continually improve on our customers' total mobile experience, whether it is increased responsiveness or extended Internet interactivity through longer battery life," added David Lee, associate vice president of Acer's Mobile Computing Business Unit. "We are pleased to select dual-core Intel Atom processors for Acer netbooks, helping to empower netbook users achieve even more – both at work and at leisure."

The new powerful processors will give netbook owners better support for gaming, at the very least.

Each netbook uses the Intel Atom processor N550, which also adds DDR3 RAM support with the same battery life as the single-core N450 Atom.

"In their short history, the netbook category has experienced impressive growth," says Erik Reid, director of marketing for mobile platforms at Intel. "Having shipped about 70 million Intel Atom chips for netbooks since our launch of the category in 2008, there is obviously a great market for these devices around the world."

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Earlier in the month, former Apple employee Paul Devine was arrested and charged with selling secrets to Asian suppliers in exchange for over $2 million in kickbacks.

Devine, one of Apple's global supply managers, was charged "with offenses that include wire fraud, money laundering and unlawful monetary transactions," which began in 2006.

Today, federal prosecutors have alleged that Devine stashed over $150,000 in cash in shoe boxes in his home, which were then discovered by federal agents during a raid.

Devine is also said to have been hiding $20,000 in different foreign currencies.

To be released from prison on bail, Judge Howard Lloyd says Devine must transfer all cash he has in foreign bank accounts and post that along with $600,000.

It is unclear how much money will be transferred over, but prosecutors say it is "very significant."

Devine has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

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According to multiple reports, Indian citizen Gopal Gujjar was killed last week when his Nokia mobile phone exploded while he was making a call.

Gujjar died of injuries to his right ear, neck and shoulders.

The body was found with blasted remains of the phone near Gujjar's farm in Banda village, Kota.

Police say the phone was a basic level Nokia 1209, which was released in the nation in 2008.

Reports claim the incident is the first time in Indian history that a mobile phone has exploded while not being charged.

Earlier in the year, a 27-year old Indian woman was killed when her phone exploded during a call. In her case, however, the phone was charging while she made the call.

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Apple has said today that iTunes U downloads have reached 300 million, three years after the store launched.

The service offers 350,000 files, and over 800 universities have active iTunes U sites.

Apple says a few of the most respected institutions, including Harvard, MIT, Cambridge, Oxford, University of Melbourne and Université de Montréal all "distribute their content publicly on the iTunes Store."

iTunes U content is usually free, but can be restricted to each university's student body. The content includes audio, video, PDFs, podcasts and slideshows.

"iTunes U makes it easy for people to discover and learn with content from many of the world's top institutions," added Eddy Cue, Apple's vice president of Internet Services. "With such a wide selection of educational material, we're providing iTunes users with an incredible way to learn on their computer, iPhone, iPod or iPad."

Apple's service can be accessed from your PC or Mac, but only from an iPad, iPod touch, or iPhone if you need to use a mobile device.

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ColombiaReports, an English-language news site in the South American nation has posted today that three Colombian teens have been murdered after a death threat against them and other teens was posted on social networking giant Facebook.

The three victims, aged 15,16 and 17, were killed just outside of Puerto Asis, in southern Colombia.

In total, 69 teens were named in the death threat, which "kindly" asked all to leave Puerto Asis within 72 hours or get killed.

Volmar Perez, Colombia's ombudsman, said that the murders "coincide with ... the publication of a (Facebook) list with the names and aliases of 69 teenagers where (it) is said that they have three days to leave Puerto Asis and if not, be killed."

Perez condemned the threats and the violent deaths.

Added the news report: "It is unclear whether the murders are carried out by leftist guerrilla group FARC or drug cartel 'Los Rastrojos,' both highly active in the southern department."

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According to Bloomberg, Apple is currently deep into negotiations with News Corp., CBS and Disney trying to allow iTunes users to rent TV shows for 99 cents.

Says one analyst: "This is a smart move by everyone. Something like this a la carte rental service is an incremental opportunity and it doesn't upset the existing ecosystem."

The move would also help Apple take back some share from Netflix and Amazon, which offer streaming or on-demand video services.

Bloomberg cited sources close to negotiations who also said Apple is set to introduce an updated iTouch with a higher-resolution screen, and an updated, cheaper Apple TV set-top box.

Apple had initially wanted to create a subscription TV service but the media companies balked, claiming it would strain relations with cable providers such as Comcast.

Apple, Fox, CBS and Disney all declined comment.

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Huge electronics maker Toshiba has said today that is currently developing 3D HDTVs that do not require any special glasses.

The Yomiuri newspaper said that Toshiba plans to release the TVs by the end of the year, but spokesperson Yuko Sugahara declined to comment on the timetable.

Panasonic and Sony have already released 3D HDTVs, both the displays require special (and usually expensive) glasses.

The new TVs would use technology that "involves transmitting different images at various angles to create an illusion of dimension and depth, a principle used by current glasses-free monitors," says Sugahara, via Yahoo.

Nintendo announced earlier this year that its upcoming handheld, the 3DS, would use similar technology, allowing for 3D gaming without glasses.

"Many people don't like to wear glasses to watch TV for a long time, especially people who must wear 3-D glasses over regular glasses," concluded Sugahara.

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Dell has launched their first smartphone in the United States since 2007, following up on their Axim line with the release of the Aero Android device.

The smartphone will sell via AT&T for $100 with contract, making it cheaper than the carrier's current Android offerings.

Dell is also selling the device for $300 without contract.

The device weighs just 3.67 ounces, making it one of the lightest Android devices ever created.

Dell's low-end device runs a customized Android 1.5, has a 624-MHz processor, a 5MP camera with 8x zoom and 2GB of internal memory with an expandable MicroSD slot.

Despite not running Android 2.2 Froyo, owners will be able to playback Adobe Flash videos, thanks to built-in Flash Lite, giving it an immediate advantage over the Apple iPhone.

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Amazon's highly anticipated third-generation Kindle e-readers will begin shipping on Friday, but the e-tailer says that any orders placed this week will not ship until at least September 17th.

The e-tailer is selling their new Kindle Wi-Fi for $139, the cheapest model yet. A third-gen Wi-Fi/3G version will sell for $189.

Each new model is slimmer and include higher contrast screens and "crisper text." Both have six-inch screens, but weigh 15 percent less and are 21 percent slimmer. Each also has twice the storage of the original Kindles, allowing for up to 3500 books to be stored.

Due to strong demand for the products, both are temporarily sold out.

Says the site: "Due to strong customer demand, Kindle is temporarily sold out. Order now to reserve your place in line. Orders are prioritized on a first come, first served basis. Orders placed today are expected to ship on or before September 17th."

Amazon had announced the devices in late July.

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