First Windows 8 PCs appear early, crapware included  —  Summary: Microsoft's official launch party for Windows 8 is still weeks away, but one well-known retailer has jumped the gun.  Cable shopping giant HSN has five Windows 8 PCs for sale on the web.  All are, unfortunately, fully loaded.

In Technology Wars, Using the Patent as a Sword  —  When Apple announced last year that all iPhones would come with a voice-activated assistant named Siri, capable of answering spoken questions, Michael Phillips's heart sank.  —  For three decades, Mr. Phillips had focused on writing software …

Apple Publicly Responds to Complaints of Purple Lens Flare on iPhone 5 Photos  —  Soon after the release of the iPhone 5, some users began noticing a purple flare or halo showing up in photos taken with the device's camera pointed at or near bright light sources.

What Happened to Diaspora, the ‘Facebook Killer’?  It's Complicated  —  It's impossible to grasp the consequences or outcomes of new technology, especially when that technology is developed by a twenty-something hacker.  —  That much was already clear in January 2010 …

U.S. Lawmakers Say Huawei Poses Security Threat  —  Congressional Probe Says Huawei Poses National-Security Threat to the U.S.  —  WASHINGTON—A Chinese telecommunications giant that has been attempting to expand in the U.S. poses a national-security threat and may have violated U.S. laws, according to a congressional investigation.

Motorola confirms death of Webtop, laptop accessories  —  The company said adoption wasn't strong enough to justify additional resources.  —  Motorola Mobility's Webtop concept, which enabled its phones to act as the brains of a laptop or television entertainment hub, has quietly been killed off, the company confirmed to CNET today.

YouTube Adds 60 More Web Video “Channel” Deals In Europe, US  —  YouTube is ramping up its channel experiment.  —  Google is funding a new batch of video-makers to join the 100 it launched in the last year.  And it's making an international push, by adding content for the UK, German and French versions of the site.

Apple reportedly orders 10M iPad Minis for fourth quarter  —  Component makers in Asia say they have received orders for the unannounced tablet that eclipse Amazon's orders for the Kindle Fire, The Wall Street Journal reports.  —  Apple is apparently thinking big for its iPad Mini …

EBay Battles Back With Mobile, Local, Personalization, And A More Streamlined PayPal  —  It's not easy for a $63 billion company to make a successful pivot, but if eBay manages to pull it off, it will be one for the history books.  The e-commerce giant has been shifting focus from being primarily …

Google Launching AdWords Business Credit Card To Boost SMB Search Ad Spend, Starting First In UK, Extending To U.S.  —  When small businesses need to make investments in IT or other operations, it's often the companies selling them the goods that help with financing solutions.

Tech Titans Peter Thiel, Matt Jacobson, Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, Mich Mathews, Elon Musk Buy Homes in Los Angeles  —  As Silicon Valley moguls go on a home-buying spree in Los Angeles, they're reshaping the real-estate landscape  —  Andrew Frame, founder of the Internet-telephone company Ooma …