Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing
  3. Best Ofs

Oracle, Sun Link Up for New Product; HP Snubbed

By

oracle-sunWith the fate of its proposed $7.4 billion takeover of Sun Microsystems Inc. uncertain amid antitrust scrutiny, Oracle Corp. is moving ahead with a new product incorporating both companies’ technology, and snubbing Hewlett-Packard Co. in the process.

Sun and Oracle unveiled a new database machine Tuesday built from Sun hardware and Oracle software.

Recommended Videos

The companies claim the Exadata machine works twice as fast as the previous generation of the device. The earlier version of the machine was built by Oracle and Hewlett-Packard Co. and when it was introduced last year marked the first time in Oracle’s history that the company sold computer hardware.

The machines are a combination of servers, which carry out heavy computing chores, and database software, which companies use to store and retrieve information they’ve stored, such as payroll data. Oracle is the world’s No. 1 database software company.

Oracle confirmed that it is no longer making database machines with HP. HP declined to comment.

Oracle’s proposed takeover of Sun, which is being held up by European Union regulators, has touched off a fight for Sun’s computer-server customers. Sun rivals HP and IBM Corp. have sought to lure business from Sun by raising concerns among customers about the future of Sun’s hardware products under Oracle.

The tactics have been working. Sun’s worldwide market share in servers stood at 10 percent in the latest quarter, down more than a percentage point from last year, according to data from research firm IDC.

Oracle has fought back with advertisements promising to invest more deeply in Sun’s products than Sun, which has struggled with financial problems for nearly a decade, could do. Oracle has also said it will “dramatically improve” the performance of Sun’s hardware by designing it to run better with Oracle’s software.

The U.S. Justice Department has already approved the Oracle-Sun deal. European Union regulators are concerned about Oracle’s plans for Sun’s MySQL software, an open-source database that competes with Oracle’s proprietary database. If EU regulators find problems with the deal, one way it could be handled would be to force Oracle to sell or spin off the MySQL business.

Oracle is scheduled to report fiscal first-quarter earnings Wednesday after the market closes.

The new database machine was unveiled by Oracle CEO Larry Ellison and Sun’s Executive Vice President, John Fowler.

Editors’ Recommendations

Dena Cassella
Dena Cassella
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Haole built. O'ahu grown
I have Meta Quest 3S and this is the best VR accessory yet — it’s on sale
Kiwi Design best VR accessory Meta Quest 3 headstrap

Ahead of the holidays and some prime family time, I've picked up the Meta Quest 3S. So far, my family is absolutely loving it, and my kids are constantly bugging me to play games, explore worlds, and get virtual. Naturally, I manage the time we're all spending -- you don't want too much screen time. But regardless, every one of us ends up becoming immersed, which means spending a lot of time with the headset on. One of the biggest drawbacks of the stock setup is that the headstrap is uncomfortable, and it puts a lot of pressure on your face. That means, the Meta Quest 3S's best VR accessory -- and the Meta Quest 3, too -- is a new, custom strap.

We grabbed the Kiwi Design Quest 3-Quest 3S headstrap and it's fantastic. It's also on sale right now for 20% off. Normally $30, it's discounted to $24 with a coupon code. Why am I sharing? If you pick up a Meta Quest 3 or 3S for yourself, or you're planning to gift one to someone over the holidays, I highly recommend ordering one of these straps. It vastly improves the experience and makes wearing the headset much more comfortable. It's also easy to adjust the fit, which is a big deal for kids. You have no idea how frustrating it was to constantly adjust the headstrap for my children between each turn.

Read more
Best early GPU Black Friday deals: Save on top graphics cards now
The Gigabyte RX 6750 GRE graphics card over a dark background.

Building a PC from scratch can be a lot of fun, and with the upcoming Black Friday on November 29, it's a perfect time for you to pick up hardware. One of the most fun bits of any build is picking the parts, and for that, graphics cards are probably the most fun to pick between. That said, GPUs also tend to be the most expensive pieces of hardware that go into a desktop, especially if you're trying to aim for something in the mid-to-high-end range that can easily reach $500 or even $1,000. That's why we've gone out and collected some of our favorite early Black Friday GPU deals for you below.
GIGABYTE NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 -- $290 $350 17% off

This RTX 3060 is a great starter card for those who want to be on a budget and will handle most slightly older games pretty well at 1080p and 60Hz, potentially up to 100. It may struggle a bit with newer titles without compromises, but that's fine given the reduced $290 price point.

Read more
Nvidia just scaled down DLSS 3, and that’s a good thing
The RTX 4080 Super graphics card sitting on a pink background.

Nvidia's signature tech, DLSS 3, just got yet another update -- and although it's subtle, it actually seems like a good thing for some of the best graphics cards. The latest version, 3.8.10, bundled with the GeForce 566.14 driver, doesn't seem to introduce any major changes, but Nvidia enthusiasts noticed that it's about half the size that it used to be. Where's that difference coming from?

No, Nvidia didn't downgrade DLSS 3 -- at least not in any major way. Although this hasn't been confirmed by Nvidia itself, it appears that the company removed a whole bunch of DLSS presets and replaced them with just two. These presets make it easier for gamers to choose the type of focus they want to apply to each game.

Read more