G-Slate by LG, on T-Mobile USA

T-Mobile is launching a new Android tablet, the GSlate by LG.

Google Capex for Data Centers Grows

Google invested $890 million in its data center infrastructure in the first three months of 2011, the second-highest total in its history.

In fact, it’s Google’s biggest capital expenditure spending for any quarter in which it hasn’t bought real estate for other reasons.

Of course, Google also slowed investment in 2008 and 2009.

Google spent a record $2.55 billion on capital expenses in the fourth quarter of 2010, most of it related to the purchase of 111 8th Avenue, a 2.9 million square foot building in New York that is one of the city’s premier Internet and telecom hubs. It also serves as the main New York office for Google, which has about 2,000 employees on site.

Google 1Q 2011 Earnings

Google says there have been three billion Android apps downloaded. Apple just passed 10 billion app downloads mark in January 2011. But sales of Android phones are growing fast, so Google app downloads should accelerate as well. The first billion installs took 20 months, the second billion installs took another five months, and the third billion took only two months.

Alcatel-Lucent Explores Sale of PBX Business

Alcatel-Lucent SA is exploring the sale of its enterprise phone system business, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The company has hired advisers and during recent days began to examine options for the business, which has about $1.5 billion in annual sales.

Lucent, you will recall, sold off its enterprise phone system unit as Avaya, in 2000. You might argue that a business phone system business these days requires a level of concentration that might be easier in the context of a stand-alone company. Lucent certainly came to that conclusion over a decade ago.

Alcatel Explores Sale of Telecom-Gear Enterprise Business - WSJ.com (subscription required)

Hawk Cam: Live From the Nest

This is a live video feed from the 12th floor of Bobst Library at New York University where a pair of red-tailed hawks — Violet and Bobby — have built a nest, stick by twig, outside the office of the university’s president, John E. Sexton, overlooking Washington Square Park.

Just another way to waste a bit of time, but I admit, I watched it.

Hawk Cam: Live From the Nest - NYTimes.com

Worldwide PC Shipments Decline in 1Q 2011

"Worldwide PC shipments totaled 84.3 million units in the first quarter of 2011, a 1.1 percent decline from the first quarter of 2010, according to preliminary results from Gartner. Although the first quarter is traditionally a slow one for PC sales, these shipment results indicate potential sluggishness, not just a normal seasonal slowdown. These figures are below Gartner's earlier forecast for three percent growth in the first quarter of 2011.

Low prices for consumer PCs, which had long stimulated growth, no longer attracted buyers. Instead, consumers turned their attention to media tablets and other consumer electronics.

With the launch of the iPad 2 in February, more consumers either switched to buying an alternative device, or simply held back from buying PCs. Gartner is not yet sure whether this is a temporary situation or indicative of a trend.

Gartner Says Worldwide PC Shipments in First Quarter of 2011 Suffer Decline

Global Telco Capex Stable to 2014, Wireless Grows

Capital expenditures by the top 100 global telecom operators between now and 2014 suggests carriers collectively will decrease their capex-to-sales ratio to 16.5 percent of revenues by 2014, down from 18.4 percent of sales in 2008.

With industry revenues expected to grow at a modest two percent a year to 2014, overall capital expenditure will remain stable (0.7 percent CAGR) to 2014. Wireless access infrastructure, already accounting for 43 percent of total telecom infrastructure capex, will increase its overall share as spending continues to shift away from fixed infrastructure.

As a consequence, the rollout of LTE networks in Europe and North America, and 3G deployments in India and South America will be key drivers of overall equipment revenues.

Read more here