The techs that went missing in 2009

Posted on 30 Dec 2009 at 11:00

Microsoft Zune HD

You may or may not have been excited about the Zune – much probably rides on your investment in Apple's audio hardware – but nevertheless, more media player manufacturers challenging the iPod can only be a good thing. When the Zune HD launched in the US in September, we hoped the UK launch would follow soon enough, but Microsoft pretty much killed those chances by saying: "we are looking at potential future hardware experiences for [18] markets, but do not have anything to announce right now [regarding the UK]."

Those other 18 markets will get a 16GB or 32GB player with an OLED touchscreen, HD radio and a web browser. We get nothing. Perhaps Microsoft could have followed Amazon's Kindle example and shipped UK buyers the US version – complete with US plug and a lack of licensed content – but then the reviews probably would have been less than positive. Right now the Zune HD is not arriving in the UK "any time soon".

Hulu

In November 2008 we reported that owners of the Hulu video service were looking to expand into the UK at the first opportunity. They were so keen, in fact, that by July 2009 that had been upgraded: an arrival on UK shores was now "its number one priority". Hooray! By Christmas we'll all be streaming the latest must-see TV and enjoying an on-demand roster that makes the iPlayer look miniscule!

It's now Christmas. Rather predictably, Hulu isn't here. After the demise of Project Kangaroo – the proposed BBC, ITV and Channel 4 venture – and with web TV service Joost going into administration, we'd hoped to see something – anything at all – from Hulu. We're still waiting.

Nvidia's Fermi graphics cards

It's safe to say ATI has owned the desktop graphics card market this year. The Radeon HD 4000 and 5000 series were both hugely successful, and Nvidia barely even bothered offering alternatives, preferring to concentrate on mobile and embedded markets. The new desktop Fermi architecture was meant to wrest that control back with a vengeance, with Nvidia claiming it to be the fastest GPU ever made.

We're told it's not only a graphics processor, it's a supercomputing specialist that's perfect for all those CUDA tasks Nvidia wants us to get involved with. It all sounds jolly exciting in a press release kind of way, the kind of way that really wants you not to buy an ATI card for Christmas.

The only problem is that, after a year of pretty much no new Nvidia desktop cards, we were told to expect the first Fermi parts in 2009, most likely December. That didn't materialise. Latest call might be January or February 2010, but we're beginning to wonder if Nvidia hasn't forgotten about the desktop PC market altogether.

Author: David Bayon

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