Dell’s e-waste disposition policy “exceeds the requirements” of the Basel Convention, the company said Monday in its fiscal 2010 corporate responsibility report. The company expanded the definition of electronic waste to cover all computer nonworking parts or devices, “irrespective of material composition,” and required that they be tested and certified as “working” before being exported, it said. The last change was aimed at preventing the “unauthorized dumping of electronic waste in developing counties,” Dell said. During the year, the company became the first major computer maker to “officially” ban exports of nonworking electronics to developing countries, it said.

To expand its reach to more mainstream consumers, Velocity Micro is entering the e-book and tablet markets with devices scheduled to ship next month. According to Josh Covington, marketing manager, there’s a limited market for the $3,000 desktop computers that the company is known for. “We're still selling a lot of them, but realistically, there aren’t a ton of people out there willing to spend that kind of money,” he said. “As we continue to expand our brand, we're trying to look at more products that will appeal to a mainstream audience."

Staples is dipping into the CE retail management ranks as it seeks to turn around a struggling business in China.

ST. CHARLES, Mo. -- The Basel Action Network’s e-Stewards certification program for e-waste recyclers is imposing huge fees on participating recycling companies and is penalizing larger companies unfairly, Dan Fuller, president of EPC USA, one such e-Steward, told us in an interview at his shop Thursday. BAN officials responded by saying if Fuller doesn’t like the voluntary e-Stewards program, he’s free to drop out. They also said the fees BAN charges are fair and for the average e-Steward will more than pay for themselves in new business generated from the certification program.

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Hewlett-Packard has been a big role player “behind the scenes” in such massive 3D projects as Avatar, but wants to do more to promote better live 3D sports telecasts and other 3D content, Phil McKinney, chief technology officer in HP’s Personal Systems Group, told the DisplaySearch Emerging Technologies Conference Thursday. The company has devised an ultra-widescreen 3D format in full HD that it’s willing to license to CE and media companies, McKinney said.

Executives at Dell and Hewlett-Packard gave updates on their companies’ tablet PC plans, in earnings calls late Thursday, while reporting mostly improved results for their most recent quarters. Despite the improved results, shares in HP fell 91 cents, 2.23 percent Friday possibly in part due to it reporting weakness in the consumer sector. Dell closed up 3 cents in an otherwise down market.

The burgeoning market in online video is “highly unlikely” to become a full-fledged pay-TV competitor anytime in the “foreseeable future,” Comcast, NBC Universal and NBCU parent General Electric told the FCC. Consumers and programmers alike see Web video as a complement to and not substitute for service from multichannel video programming distributors (MVPD), they said in the last round of comments on commission review of Comcast’s planned purchase of control in NBC Universal.

Accessories supplier iGo received its second U.S. patent (No. 7,779,278) for its “novel approach” to reducing wasted standby “vampire” power, the company said. The company estimates its green technology can automatically reduce vampire power loss up to 85 percent.

Comparable store sales of video at Trans World Entertainment grew 3 percent in Q2 ended July 31, “driven by the performance of Blu-ray” at its f.y.e. (For Your Entertainment) and other chains, CEO Robert Higgins said. “We are starting to see broad acceptance of the format,” he said on an earnings call.

GameStop is getting strong initial results from its PowerUp customer-loyalty program and in-store downloadable content (DLC) sales pilot program, executives said Thursday on an earnings call. Based on that success, the retailer said, the programs will be rolled out across all its U.S. stores in Q3, which runs through October.