Intel’s Atom processors have rocked the global computing market since their release last year, but plans for migration from the existing N270 and N280 parts to the successor Pine Trail platform, are not as clear. The Pine Trail platform consists of the new netbook CPU and southbridge which will reduce Atom to a two-chip system and cut netbook power consumption while increasing performance, but the timing of the platform’s rollout has run up against conflicts between the interests of different players in the netbook segment.

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Apple, Microsoft, and 18 other companies are being sued for patent infringement by Texas-based Tsera which claims to have invented the touchpad. The lawsuit, filed last week in the US District Court Eastern Texas Division, claims the company owns “all right, title, and interest in” patent 6,639,584, which was filed in 1999 and granted in 2003. Here is the abstract of the patent in question:

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Intel’s Atom processors have rocked the global computing market since their release last year, but plans for migration from the existing N270 and N280 parts to the successor Pine Trail platform, are not as clear. The Pine Trail platform consists of the new netbook CPU and southbridge which will reduce Atom to a two-chip system and cut netbook power consumption while increasing performance, but the timing of the platform’s rollout has run up against conflicts between the interests of different players in the netbook segment.

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“Physicalization” is an awkward name for an approach to server consolidation that seeks to offer a hardware-based alternative to virtualization by cramming multiple, low-power processors into a small amount of rack space. These processors are invariably mobile processors, designed for power-sensitive mobile products, and server vendors are building very small, modular server nodes around them and packing them as densely as possible into rack units.

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Inside sources again claim that Apple has a tablet ready to release “in time for the holidays,” and will be partnering with Verizon to provide mobile data services and possible subsidies, though those details have apparently not been worked out. This new rumor seems to confirm rumors from earlier this year that Verizon would be carrying an Apple “media pad,” as well as reports earlier this month that Chinese suppliers had already received orders for parts to produce the device in time for a possible October launch.

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With the release of its second quarter earnings yesterday, AMD now has 11 straight quarters of losses under its belt (the company was last profitable in the third quarter of 2006). Even more importantly for its share price, which is down around 14 percent after yesterday’s earnings, the company underperformed analysts’ expectations by about 2 per share, with losses coming in at $0.49 per share.

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There were several moans and groans when Apple announced last fall that it would be standardizing on Mini DisplayPort for all its computers, but the reality is that Mini DisplayPort is with us to stay—at least for the foreseeable future. Luckily, a number of sources are now available for an array of adapters and cables to help in situations that don’t necessarily involve Apple’s 24″ LED Cinema Display.

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iPods smoking and bursting into flames: freak accidents, or more common than we think? It’s at least the former, but according to a recent disclosure by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), there may in fact be far more of these incidents than previously thought. Apple’s legal team appears to have tried to keep the information under wraps, too, though the CPSC itself doesn’t yet consider the issue to be a serious one.

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Intel has announced two new solid state disk drives made on its leading-edge 34nm process. The two new SSDs are X25M SATA parts weighing in at 80GB and 160GB, and they’re meant to replace Intel’s existing X25M drives in those capacities, but at 60 percent less cost and with better performance. The 80GB X25-M is $225 in lots of 1,000 (down from $595), and the 160GB is $440 (from $945). That’s some serious discounting, and it may well drive even more SSD uptake in the coming quarters despite the ongoing IT spending crunch.

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iPhones are up, iPods are down, and Apple has $8.34 billion in the bank. Apple has announced its third quarter 2009 fiscal results, and you can read all about the dirty details via our front page coverage. The company then held its customary conference call to discuss the results, with a team of executives prepared to answer questions from analysts. We listen in so you don’t have to stab your eyes out for an hour, and here are some of the highlights:

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