Android Ice Cream Sandwichis coming to 11 Sony Ericsson Xperia smartphones released in 2011.

While this is without a doubt good news for Xperia owners, Sony Ericsson hasn'tsaid just when its Xperia handsets will get the latest version of Google's mobile operating system. Many hardware makers such as HTC and Motorola have said Ice Cream Sandwich will hit their handsets early next year sometime.

"There have been a few questions here on the blog and in our support forums regarding our upgrade plans beyond Gingerbread," wrote Martina Johansson, a Sony Ericsson spokeswoman, on the company's product blogTuesday. "We can today confirm that we plan to upgrade the entire 2011 Xperia portfolio to the next version of Android known as Android 4.0 or Ice Cream Sandwich.

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It seems Nokia and Microsoft's multi-billion dollar relationship will encompass not just smartphones, but Windows 8 tablets as well.

Paul Amsellem, the head of Nokia France, told the French newspaper Les Echos in a Wednesday article that the Finnish phone maker is planning to launch a tablet running the next Windows operating system as early as next summer.

"In June 2012, we will have a tablet that runs on Windows 8," Amsellem told the newspaper, according to a translation of the article.

Amsellem didn't offer Les Echos details on a Nokia Windows 8 tablet beyond that, but I did take a look at Windows 8 back in September running on an HP prototype slate and the new operating system, which will run on both tablets and desktop PCs, brought over a touch interface very similar to the Windows Phone software.

Amsellem also told Les Echos that Nokia is planning to expand its lineup of Windows Phone handsets, which currently consists of the Lumia 710 and Lumia 800. Both of those phones are available outside of the U.

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Meet Silicon Valley's version of Martha Stewart.

Stewart may have invented lifestyle branding, but Brit Morin is determined to give it a digital makeover.

Morin, a 25-year-old former employee of Apple and Google, is launching a new lifestyle brand that she describes as a cross between Real Simple and Wired magazines. She says she's hoping to help people channel their digital domestic diva with a company that publishes content, creates software and rolls out products. And, like Stewart, she's branding her business with her first name, Brit.

She says her website, hellobrit.

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Google is now sharing its Ice Cream Sandwiches with everybody.

The tech giant has released the source code for its eagerly anticipated Android Ice Cream Sandwich operating system -- the first version of Android designed to run on both phones and tablets.

The version of Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0.1) released by the Mountain View, Calif., company is the same software that will run on the upcoming Galaxy Nexus smartphone, built by Samsung and exclusive (so far) to Verizon Wireless.

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Four in five consumers would rather receive a tablet instead of a laptop for the holidays this year, according to a shopping survey conducted by PriceGrabber.

Those who preferred tablets said they liked that they were easy to carry and transport, lightweight, convenient and had touchscreens.

Apple's iPad remained the top tablet, with 83% saying they preferred the iPad or iPad 2. Five percent said they wanted the new Amazon Kindle Fire, 4% said they liked the Samsung Galaxy Tab and 2% said they hoped to get the HP TouchPad. Other tablets, including the BlackBerry PlayBook and Motorola Xoom, ranked lower.

Graham Jones, PriceGrabber's general manager, said the company expected that tablets would "be a clear gift choice for many multitasking, budget-conscious consumers looking for an efficient and convenient computer at a relatively reasonable price.

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Does Nintendo's new Super Mario 3D Land game promote the wearing of fur?

That's what the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals is asserting in the organization's latest attempt to grab attention for its pro-animal, anti-fur agenda.

PETA explains its gripe with Mario, a graphic character from a video game, on its website:

"When on a mission to rescue the princess, Mario has been known to use whatever means necessary to defeat his enemy -- even wearing the skin of a raccoon dog to give him special powers.

Tanooki may be just a suit in the game, but in real life tanuki are raccoon dogs who are skinned alive for their fur. By wearing a Tanooki, Mario is sending the message that it is OK to wear fur.

The statement is accompanied by a sinister looking Mario in a fur suit dripping with blood, holding the head of a dead raccoon dog.

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Research In Motion is planning on releasing new phones running its next operating system -- BBX -- sometime early next year, but it isn't yet done releasing handsets running the soon-to-be-outdated BlackBerry OS 7 just yet.

On Tuesday, RIM introduced the Bold 9790 and Curve 9380 smartphones, which are set to hit mobile carriers "around the world over the coming weeks."

The two phones will come with the Documents To Go Premium app (which enables users to open and edit Microsoft Office documents and view PDF documents on their phone) preinstalled, as well as BlackBerry Balance, which enables users to separate their personal data and work data on the device, RIM said in a statement. Both phones also feature a 5-megapixel rear camera that shoots VGA resolution (640 x 480 pixel) video.

The Bold 9790 sticks with BlackBerry tradition and features a full physical keyboard, but transitions RIM faithful toward touch-centric interfaces with a 2.45-inch touchscreen sitting above the keys, which is smaller than the 2.

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In the first change to Apple's boardroom since the death of Steve Jobs last month, the company announced that Walt Disney Co. President and Chief Executive Robert Iger will be the Cupertino electronics maker's newest board member.

At the same time, Genentech Inc. Chairman Arthur Levinson, an Apple board member since 2005, will become the company's non-executive chairman of the board, filling the role Jobs occupied briefly after his resignation as Apple's chief executive in August.

Apple has long ties to Disney, largely through Jobs himself, who in 2006 became a Disney board member-- and the entertainment giant's largest shareholder -- after Disney bought Pixar, the hit-making animated movie studio that Jobs built.

Tim Cook, Apple's chief executive, said he had come to know Iger in recent years, and that Disney's emphasis on new technology platforms and international markets aligned with Apple's current strategy.

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If you checked your Facebook NewsFeed on Monday night and found a dirty Photoshopped picture ofJustin Bieber or an image of a beaten and bloodied dog, you are not alone.

Facebook users report that for the last 24 hours the social networking site has been infested with a mix of hardcore pornographic images, doctored pictures of celebrities in sexual situations,photos of extreme violence, and yes, a picture of a beaten dog.

Now, Facebook says it has identified the problem -- but not the culprit.

In a statement, Facebook spokesman Andrew Noyes acknowledged that the site was the target of a coordinated spam attack and explained how it went down.

"During this spam attack, users were tricked into pasting and executing malicious javascript in their browser URL bar causing them to unknowingly share this offensive content," he said. "Our engineers have been working diligently on this self-XSS vulnerability in the browser.

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The great tech horse race of 2011 pits the iPad, that thoroughbred of tablet computers, against a pair of new lightweight fillies, the Kindle Fire and Barnes and Noble's Nook.

But this year, the race may not be decided by horsepower alone. Indeed, in the run-up to the frenzied holiday buying season, the Android manufacturers are focusing less on their devices' technical prowess, and more on the kinds of things that people can do with them.

Last week, Amazon announced that the Kindle Fire will feature a "Lending Library" that will let paying users borrow a limited selection of books. Then Amazon pushed Hulu Plus, saying the for-pay TV and movie rental service would also be available on its Kindle Fire, along with music apps Pandora and Rhapsody.

And now, not to be left behind, Netflix is joining the party, announcing a revamped tablet app now available for the Fire and the Nook.

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