Legit Reviews News History
Super Talent Launches PCIe RAIDDrive Workstations
Super Talent Technology announced it is introducing the PCIe RAIDDrive Workstation. These Workstations use Super Talent's patented RAIDSSD Technology to accelerate the adoption of systems with very high performance solid state disk subsystems through the integration of large numbers of SSDs. PCIe RAIDDrive Workstations are based on Intel's newest Quad-Core Core I7 Processors, and Super Talent's 1333MHz DDR3 DIMMs.
PCIe RAIDDrive Workstations scale up 6TB in a Workstation Tower form factor. Benchmarking data taken with Crystal Disk Mark v2.2 shows sustained sequential read speed of over 1.5 GB/sec (1500 MB/sec), sequential write speed of nearly 1.35 GB/sec (1350 MB/sec). Benchmarking data taken with HDBench showed random read speed of 725 MB/sec and random write speed of 515 MB/sec.
Posted by | Tue, May 26, 2009 - 08:16 PM | Comments
Microsoft and Intel looking to limit netbook sizes to 10.2-inch for Windows 7
Microsoft and Intel have reached a consensus to decrease the upper screen-size limit for netbook PCs equipped with Windows 7 from 12.1 inches to 10.2 inches, according to sources at Taiwan-based ODM notebook makers, who added that this may have a negative impact on VIA Technologies.
The restriction is expected to end PC vendors' 11.6-inch Atom Zxx-based netbook product lines after the launch of Windows 7, the sources noted. Although VIA does not put any restrictions on vendors' choice of specifications when using its CPUs and chipsets, products larger than 10.2-inch will not qualify for the lower Windows 7 licensing rates Microsoft will offer OEMs for their netbook products. This will cut into VIA's price advantage in the 11-inch and above segment, while the 10-inch segment has already been dominated by Intel's Atom platform.
Posted by | Tue, May 26, 2009 - 03:08 PM | Comments
iBUYPOWER Launches 15” Battalion 101 CZ-10 Gaming Notebook
iBUYPOWER just let Legit Reviews know that they announced the new Battalion 101 CZ-10 Premium Gaming Notebook. Starting at just $1,235, the CZ-10 features the powerful Intel Montevina Core 2 Duo Mobile Dual-Core Processor, DDR3 memory, the ATI Radeon HD 4650 graphics card, and a gamer friendly 15.6” WXGA widescreen LCD display with a 1366x768 resolution.
“We felt it was time to refresh our mainstream gaming notebook line," said Darren Su, Vice President of iBUYPOWER. "We are excited by the features and exceptional coverage we are able to offer with the CZ-10 Premium at a very competitive price.“ The Battalion also packs a spacious 500 GB 5400rpm hard drive, 4GB of DDR3-1066 Memory, and one HDMI and four USB ports. The CZ-10 also features a built-in 2MP webcam, built in microphone, 3-in-1 card reader and finger print scanner for added security.
Posted by | Tue, May 26, 2009 - 03:00 PM | Comments
Did Dell Stop Offering NVIDIA Graphics Cards?
Rumors are flying around today that Dell is in the process of removing all NVIDIA graphics cards from their products. Charlie Demerjian over at The Inq. seems to think that the day has come for the mass exodus of NVIDIA products and that Dell is leading the way. Charlie noted that there isn't a single Nvidia card in a Dell machine that he could find other than in the XPS line. I took a quick look at the site and sure enough after glancing at a few systems only the XPS line had NVIDIA options, but oddly enough they are still the recommended card. Time will tell if Charlie is right on this one.
If you go over the Dell desktop lineup and look through the customization options, you will see that, with a few minor exceptions, there are no more Nvidia cards being offered in Dell systems. Whoopsie. I guess the $10M that Nvidia paid Dell wasn't enough to make amends. The lone remaining desktop Dells with Nvidia graphics are in the high end XPS line and some All-In-One (AIW) models. The AIWs and laptops have a lot in common. They have longer design cycles, and Dell can't just swap out graphics parts when things go pear shaped with a particular supplier. What the systems were designed for years earlier is what they have to be shipped with, and what those models will stay with until they are replaced.
Posted by | Tue, May 26, 2009 - 11:09 AM | Comments
World's First NVIDIA ION Laptop - Lenovo IdeaPad S12
NVIDIA Corporation and Lenovo advanced mobile computing today by introducing a low-cost, small laptop that delivers up to 10 times faster graphics performance than today’s small laptops.1 Featuring the NVIDIA ION graphics processor, the Lenovo IdeaPad S12 offers improved application support while still providing long battery life thanks to its energy efficient design. The Lenovo IdeaPad S12 with the NVIDIA ION graphics processor is expected to be available later this summer.
“NVIDIA ION is one of the latest technologies available for the PC industry for small, low cost laptop PCs, and we’re excited to be among the first to use it,” said Stephen DiFranco, vice president and general manager of consumer and commercial channels, Americas Group, Lenovo. “With its 12-inch display, full-size keyboard and rich multimedia options powered by ION, the IdeaPad S12 balances an improved computing experience along with the size and affordability many consumers are looking for today.”
Posted by | Tue, May 26, 2009 - 10:49 AM | Comments
Windows Vista SP2 available for Download
In March of 2008 Microsoft released the Windows Vista SP1. Over a year later you are now treated to the next stand-alone Vista Service Pack. Vista SP2 has been already available to MSDN and TechNet subscribers, but now it is available to all. The new update has a ton of improvements, so I'll just list a few of them and you can read the rest here.
- SP2 adds support for the 64-bit central processing unit (CPU) from VIA Technologies, which adds the ID and vendor strings for the new VIA 64-bit CPU.
- SP2 integrates the Windows Vista Feature Pack for Wireless, which contains support for Bluetooth v2.1 and Windows Connect Now (WCN) Wi-Fi Configuration. Bluetooth v2.1 is the most recent specification for Bluetooth wireless technology.
- SP2 improves performance for Wi-Fi connections after resuming from sleep mode.
- SP2 includes updates to the RSS feeds sidebar for improved performance and responsiveness.
- SP2 includes ability to record data to Blu-Ray Disc media.
Service Pack 2 (SP2) for Windows Vista and for Windows Server 2008 supports new kinds of hardware and emerging hardware standards. This service pack includes all the updates that have been delivered since Service Pack 1, and it simplifies deployment for consumers, for developers, and for IT professionals.
Posted by | Tue, May 26, 2009 - 09:46 AM | Comments
Best Motherboard of Computex 2009 - DFI LanParty UT X58-T3eH8
After two months of keen competition, DFI has won out in the annual “Best Choice of Computex” tournament as the ‘Best Motherboard’ in the motherboards and add-on cards category with the LANParty UT X58-T3eH8 motherboard.
For LANParty, the prize in the “Best Choice of Computex” has remarkable significance. Awarded at the first time entering the competition, LANParty is affirmed by professionals for its excellence in quality and performance after years of hard work. UT X58-T3eH8, the award-winning model, adopts the Intel X58 chipset and features several patents that make it stand out above the competitors.
Posted by | Tue, May 26, 2009 - 08:51 AM | Comments
Silicon Power Announces eSATA/USB SSD II Portable Drive
Silicon Power announced the Portable eSATA / USB SSD II drive this morning. It is the world’s first eSATA (eSATA; External Serial ATA) /USB dual interface portable SSD drive. The new drive emphasis the convenience of USB connection and the ultra fast performance of eSATA interface as an external drive. Overall, the drive has excellent aesthetics and the performance to match. Silicon Power’s Portable eSATA/USB SSD II is available in 64GB and 32GB capacities.
Having won rave reviews with their 64GB eSATA /USB SSD, Silicon Power releases the new lidless and portable eSATA/USB SSD II. Through the eSATA interface, maximum read speed reaches 90MB/Sec and maximum write reaches 50 MB/Sec. Maximum read through the USB connection is rated at 30MB/Sec and 20MB/sec for write. It is the perfect solution for professional multimedia enthusiasts or users that often carry and transfer large capacity files.
Posted by | Tue, May 26, 2009 - 08:34 AM | Comments
ARCTIC COOLING Announces Accelero L6 GPU Cooler
Swiss cooling solution provider ARCTIC COOLING has developed a new OEM project Accelero L6 with the leading nVIDIA card manufacturer, Manli Technology Group. Exclusively for Manli, the Accelero L6 is a multi-compatible VGA cooler designed by ARCTIC COOLING. The 92mm PWM fan produces high airflow at lower fan speed. Together with an optimised heatsink and pre-applied thermal compound MX-2, heat can be easily dissipated out from the core, resulting in a low GPU temperature.
"With our expertise in thermal and noise control management, the unique Accelero L6 can fulfill every need for any Manli mainstream VGA boards. And the success of this new cooler will bring our partnership into a new horizon”, says Magnus Huber, managing director of ARCTIC COOLING.
Posted by | Mon, May 25, 2009 - 10:01 AM | Comments
ASUS Announces Easy Overclocking with the ROG OC Station
ASUS recently shed brilliant light on the dark art of overclocking with the introduction of the ROG (Republic of Gamers) OC Station. The OC Station is a pure hardware-based, bay-mounted device with a large 3-inch display that takes OCing to a whole new level of ease, accuracy and sophistication. When used in conjunction with ROG motherboards, the strikingly-designed OC Station grants users on-the-fly access to overclocking parameters, ROG-exclusive features, fan speeds, system information and even a photo slide show function.
With the OC Station, ASUS has stamped its authority on an area that has proven elusive to other PC component manufacturers—pure hardware-based overclocking. The OC Station provides users with quick access to system voltages and frequencies without having to enter the BIOS. Users can overclock their systems on-the-fly via a knob, even during busy benchmark runs or actual gameplay. The OC Station also interfaces seamlessly with the embedded iROG controller on ROG motherboards, enabling users to manage ROG-exclusive features such as CPU Level Up and ASUS EPU-6 Engine at a hardware level. This allows users to achieve performance boosts and perform energy consumption tweaks instantly.
Posted by | Sat, May 23, 2009 - 08:43 AM | Comments
XFX To Introduce Power Supply Line Soon - 850W Black Edition
XFX, one of the world's largest video card manufacturers, is getting ready to announce their very first power supply line at Computex Taipei 2009 next month. Details have emerged on the XFX 850W Black Edition power supply, which features one single +12V rail with a massive 70Amp/840W rating. The power supply is modular as you can see in the image below and is 80 plus silver certified, since it is 88% efficient. No word on pricing yet, but it looks like the power supply market just got a little more crowded. Check out the forums for more images and the entire power point presentation for this new power supply!
- Industrial Design: It’s what’s on the inside that counts but we got both bases covered.
- Power On Demand: With a Single Rail +12V, it gives ample 12V output with OCP for reliability.
- Modular Cables: Giving the user the option of what cables they need, it clears up cable clutter and improves airflow within the PC.
- Tight Voltage Regulation(+/-3): Improved load regulation to reduce voltage variations gives the user a more stable machine.
Posted by | Fri, May 22, 2009 - 07:14 PM | Comments
Air Force waves off warnings about GPS accuracy
A government report says the accuracy of GPS signals could deteriorate in the next few years because of delays in satellite launches, but the Air Force says it has plenty of ways of keeping up the navigation system increasingly relied on by drivers and cell phone users.
The next generation of GPS satellites, dubbed IIF, has been beset by launch delays and budget overruns. Contractor Boeing said the delays were due to design changes necessary to ensure that the satellites would last. The work is now done, and the first IIF is slated to launch in November, nearly three years behind schedule. The GAO, the investigative arm of Congress, said the chief risk is that the following generation of satellites, IIIA, will be delayed in a similar fashion. Lockheed Martin is building that series, and the first are scheduled to launch in 2014.
Posted by | Fri, May 22, 2009 - 10:41 AM | Comments
Computer virus strikes U.S. Marshals, FBI
Law enforcement computers were struck by a Mystery computer virus Thursday, forcing the FBI and the U.S. Marshals to shut down part of their networks as a precaution.
The U.S. Marshals confirmed it disconnected from the Justice Department's computers as a protective measure after being hit by the virus; an FBI official said only that that agency was experiencing similar issues and was working on the problem. "We too are evaluating a network issue on our external, unclassified network that's affecting several government agencies," said FBI spokesman Mike Kortan. He did not elaborate or identify the other agencies.
Posted by | Fri, May 22, 2009 - 10:21 AM | Comments
AMD to move desktop CPU production to 45nm process in 3Q09
AMD plans to move production of its desktop CPUs to its 45nm node process in the third quarter, helping to reduce costs, according to sources at motherboard makers. Currently, only AMD's quad-core Phenom II X4 800 and 900 series (Deneb) and triple-core Phenom II X3 700 series (Heka) CPUs are manufactured under a 45nm process. The company plans to move its dual-core Phenom II X2 500 series (Callisto) and Athlon II X2 200 series to 45nm in June, and quad-core Athlon II X4 600 series and triple-core Athlon II X3 400 series (Rana) in September, the sources noted.
The chipmaker also plans to launch several CPUs during the period between the end of the second quarter and the third quarter. The dual-core Phenom II X2 550 and 545 will launch at the end of the second quarter, and the quad-core Phenom II X4 945 (95W) and 8xx (95W), triple-core Phenom II X3 7xx (95W), quad-core Athlon II X4 630 and 620, triple-core Athlon II X3 435 and 425, and dual-core Athlon II X2 250, 245 and 240 will launch in the third. AMD also plans to launch 10 low-power consumption CPUs including the Phenom II X4 905e, Phenom II X3 705e and Athlon II X4 605e.
Posted by | Fri, May 22, 2009 - 10:15 AM | Comments
EU Fines Intel $1.44 Billion
Intel has been hit with a $1.44 billion fine by the European Commission for illegal sales tactics - a record punishment - although the company plans to appeal the decision. The fine was issued with respect to Intel's battle with AMD and noted that the company broke European Union competition laws in the process.
Intel Corp.'s top lawyer says that fighting the European Union's record $1.45 billion antitrust fine will be an "uphill battle." It punishes Intel for allegedly selling some of its chips below the cost of making them, and paying retailers and computer makers not to use chips from rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc. Intel has denied the charges.
Posted by | Fri, May 22, 2009 - 09:54 AM | Comments
MSI Announces Availability of the Wind U123 Netbook - $379.99 MSRP
MSI Computer, a leading manufacturer of computer hardware products and solutions, is excited to announce availability of the new Wind U123. The innovative Wind U123 features the powerful new Intel Atom 1.66 GHz N280 processor, EasyFace identification software and other MSI exclusive technologies. Like its award winning predecessors, the Wind U123 is equipped with an ergonomically designed keyboard and touch pad, and an enlarged 10.2” LCD display for comfortable typing and browsing respectively.
“We are excited to launch another version of our award winning line of Wind netbooks,” said Andy Tung Vice President of Sales, MSI US. “The U123’s brilliant colors, upgraded Atom N280 processor, and aggressive pricing make it our best Wind model yet.”
Posted by | Thu, May 21, 2009 - 04:19 PM | Comments
More Americans play games than go to movies
A greater percentage of Americans play videogames than go out to the movies, according to a new report published this week.Extracts from the "Entertainment Trends in America" suggests that 63% of Americans have played a videogame in the past six month, compared to just 53% for those going to a movie.
Based on responses from 11,000 U.S. consumers, the study finds 63% have played video games. During the same six-month period, only 53% report going to a movie. "Video games account for one-third of the average monthly consumer spending in the U.S. for core entertainment content, including music, video, games," said NPD analyst Anita Frazier in a statement. "While a portion of that share stems from the premium price of console games, we’re also seeing an overall increase in the number of people participating in gaming year-over-year."
Posted by | Thu, May 21, 2009 - 10:03 AM | Comments
May 21 News from Around the Web
Real World Gameplay CPU Scaling @ [H]ard|OCP and other reviews from around the web can be found by visiting our forums!
Real World Gameplay CPU Scaling - Four processors; Intel Core i7 920, Intel Core 2 QX9650, AMD Phenom II X4 810, & AMD Phenom II X3 720 BE. Seven games. REAL WORLD GAMEPLAY at stock clocks and all overclocked to 3.6GHz, head to head, & apples to apples.
Posted by | Thu, May 21, 2009 - 07:40 AM | Comments
Corsair Dominator GT DDR3 Memory Hits 2533MHz - New World Record
Corsair announced today that Corsair Labs has set the world record for DDR3 frequency on a Core i7 system. Corsair Labs achieved an astounding speed of DDR3-2533MHz with the aggressive memory timings of 7-8-7-20 using a triple-channel 6GB memory kit. This new world record, verified and validated by CPU-Z, the industry-standard tool for verifying overclocking results, is the first time this frequency has been achieved on a Core i7 system with 6GB of memory using three modules; most world record attempts use only a single 1GB module. Corsair Labs engineers used the award-winning Dominator GT 2000C7 memory with eVGA’s X58 3X SLI Classified motherboard to shatter the world record for memory frequency.
“When it comes to overclocking and memory, Corsair has proven—once again—that its engineering team truly is the best”, said Kevin Conley, Vice President of Engineering for Corsair, “As the new world record shows, Corsair’s modules are second-to-none in terms of performance, stability and quality.” Corsair Labs selected the new EVGA X58 Classified motherboard for setting this new world record, along with a Corsair HX1000W power supply and the newly-announced Corsair Storage Solutions P256 SSD, creating a system truly designed for maximum performance.
Posted by | Wed, May 20, 2009 - 01:21 PM | Comments
Google announces first PowerMeter partners
Google wants to give consumers near real-time visibility to their consumption and usage patterns via Google's PowerMeter software and utility-supplied "smart meters." The hope here, is that those aware of their energy consumption habits will change them to save money, and in turn, the planet. The initial list of partner utilities represent millions of homes spread across cities and country-sides in the US, Canada, and India have finally been released and are shown below. More companies and cities will likely sign up, so this is a solid start.
- San Diego Gas & Electric® (California)
- TXU Energy (Texas) JEA (Florida)
- Reliance Energy (India)
- Wisconsin Public Service Corporation (Wisconsin)
- White River Valley Electric Cooperative (Missouri)
- Toronto Hydro–Electric System Limited (Canada)
- Glasgow EPB (Kentucky)
Posted by | Wed, May 20, 2009 - 10:37 AM | Comments
OCZ Technology Introduces Summit Series SSDs - 128MB Cache
OCZ Technology Group today released the highly anticipated Summit Series 2.5” Solid State Drives, tailored to meet the stringent demands of business professionals, enthusiasts, and entry-level enterprise applications. Building on their premium flash-based storage solutions, OCZ’s Summit Series strives to bridge the gap between the needs of high-end gaming and professional desktops and notebooks to small scale server PCs that require amplified criteria for maintaining a solid and stable work environment.
OCZ continues to expand its reach to all areas of computing interests and system preferences by going beyond the enthusiast PC to workstations and small-scale enterprise. The OCZ Summit Series is the result of the latest breakthroughs in SSD technology that translates to professional-class data storage enthusiasts have come to expect from OCZ. These next-generation drives feature speeds up to 220MB/s read and 200MB/s write, along with 128MB of onboard cache for faster data access. Available in capacities of 60GB(64), 120GB (128), and 250GB(256), Summit SSDs offers ample room for all your data and are backed by OCZ’s exemplarity service and support.
Posted by | Tue, May 19, 2009 - 03:35 PM | Comments
Nvidia's insurance company sues them over bad chips
In a bizarre turn of events, graphics company Nvidia faces legal action by the most unlikely of parties. Its own insurance company doesn't seem to want to pay up for defective chips in notebooks last year. The National Union Fire Insurance Company (NUFI) of Pittsburgh filed a case in a California district court, calling on the court to make a declaration concerning insurance coverage. The filing says that certain claims asserted by Dell, Toshiba, Apple, Quanta, Compal, Asus, Samsung, Fujitsu-Siemens and others may either bring or have brought claims against Nvidia, alleging that graphic processing units (GPUs) designed and sold by Nvidia and used in notebooks have failed. This issue gives me a chance to post up this flier I saw at NVISION 08 again.
"Concurrently with, or prior to, placing National Union on notice of the chip claims, Nvidia has engaged in settlement negotiations with the chip claimants and, on information and belief, has agreed to settlements and/or the material terms of settlements with respect to some or all of the chip claims," the filing says. But, complains NUFI: "Nvidia has not permitted National Union to participate in Nvidia's negotiations of the chip claims or the determination of any settlement or agreements."
Posted by | Tue, May 19, 2009 - 02:40 PM | Comments
ATI Releases Catalyst 9.5 Video Card Drivers for Download
AMD has released the ATI Catalyst Software Suite 9.5 drivers. As always, there are a number of fixes and enhancements to be had. Check out the list of changes in our forums and see if you should download the updated drivers today!
Performance Improvements
- Unigine Tropics DX9 – performance gains of up to 11% for single GPU and ATI CrossFireX configurations with anti-aliasing enabled.
- Company of Heroes – performance gains of up to 10% for both single GPU and ATI CrossFireX configurations.
- BattleForge– performance gains of up to 10% for ATI CrossFireX configurations.
Posted by | Tue, May 19, 2009 - 02:32 PM | Comments
Nvidia accuses Intel of unfair Atom processor pricing
Jen-Hsun Huang, chief executive officer of graphics chip maker Nvidia, called Intel's chip pricing unfair but said his company will not seek antitrust action against the world's largest chip maker for now. Nvidia makes graphics chips that pair with Intel's low-powered Atom in lower-priced netbook computers. He said Intel sells an Atom chip by itself for $45, but sells a three-chip set for $25 to lure business away.
Intel brushed off Huang's suggestion. "We compete fairly. We do not force bundles on any computer makers and customers can purchase Atom individually or as part of the bundle," said Bill Calder, a spokesman for Intel. "If you want to purchase the chip set, obviously there is better pricing." For now, Huang plans no legal action.
Posted by | Tue, May 19, 2009 - 09:52 AM | Comments
Dell launches 10.1-inch Latitude 2100 netbook series for students
Inspired by close cooperation with hundreds of students, teachers, parents and administrators, Dell designers created a purpose-built education netbook that focuses on what’s most important – learning. The Latitude 2100 is part of Dell’s connected classroom ― innovative technology products, services, software and training that make learning in the digital age a reality. With the Latitude 2100, students can access enhanced learning resources and digital content on a school network or via the Internet. As a result, the Latitude 2100 blends into student life, from lesson plans to homework, increasing time spent learning versus managing technology. The Dell Latitude 2100 10.1" netbook system is available today, and starts at $369.
“The Latitude 2100 shows that Dell thinks about, cares about, and designs products with education in mind,” said Paul Bell, president of Dell’s global public sector division. “This system is an extension of our efforts to support educators as they transform technology access in classrooms worldwide. We will continue to respond quickly to their needs and work with governments to deliver technology that modernizes education, excites students and arms them with the skills they need to succeed in the digital age.”
Posted by | Tue, May 19, 2009 - 08:57 AM | Comments
ASUS Eee PC 1008HA Seashell Launches in North America
ASUS today announces the availability of the long-awaited Eee PC 1008HA Seashell in North America. ASUS has taken one of nature’s most beautiful designs and combined it with the best of today’s innovations to provide consumers with the most stylish Eee PC yet. The Eee PC 1008HA Seashell sold out immediately at its debut in other regions like the UK and Taiwan. The introductory MSRP of the Eee PC Seashell is $429.99 USD. For a limited time, an additional $20 instant discount will apply to the pre-orders. The Eee PC Seashell will be available in both black and white initially in North America.
Weighing just 2.4lbs, the Eee PC Seashell is a highly portable companion that is equipped with a 10.1-inch display, an ergonomically designed keyboard, an intelligent energy management system and an intuitive multi-touch touch-pad. The Eee PC 1008HA Seashell aims to provide consumers with the best mobile computing experience, wherever their journeys take them.
Posted by | Tue, May 19, 2009 - 08:31 AM | Comments
WD AV-GP 2 TB hard drive (model WD20EVDS) Announced for A/V Users
As demand for higher capacity storage continues to increase due to large video applications, including high-definition video, Western Digital (WD) today expanded its WD AV-GP line of hard drives to include a 2 TB capacity, the industry’s largest available drive to-date. WD AV-GP hard drives with WD GreenPower Technology provide cooler and quieter operation and lower power consumption. The WD AV-GP 2 TB hard drive (model WD20EVDS) is available now from select e-tailers and distributors with an MSRP of $299.00 (USD).
Designed to withstand the stringent environment of the surveillance and security markets, the WD AV-GP line of hard drives for audio and video applications reduces power consumption by as much as 40 percent over standard drives in their respective classes. The new WD AV-GP 2 TB hard drive is perfect for applications such as DVRs (digital video recorders), media centers, media servers, as well as surveillance video recording that demand a higher capacity hard drive and exceptional reliability.
Posted by | Tue, May 19, 2009 - 08:15 AM | Comments
Survey Shows Workaholics now working 2-6 hours a week in bed
Over a quarter of UK employees are so work obsessed they can’t resist using a mobile device such as a laptop in bed before they go to sleep according to a survey released today by CREDANT Technologies. The survey discovered that of those people who do work in bed, 57% do so for between 2 and 6 hours every week, little wonder that the survey also found that the majority of their bed companions found their partners’ obsession with their mobiles “a very annoying habit”.
The survey into “Laptop use in bed and the security implications” was conducted amongst 300 city workers who were interviewed to determine whether the UK has become a nation of work obsessed, laptop dependent, key tappers and to highlight the security implications of unsecured mobile devices. Almost half the respondents (44%) admitted they are holding important work documents on their mobile devices of which 54% were not adequately secured with encryption. This will sound alarm bells for the many in-house IT departments who are tasked with trying to secure an ever increasing mobile workforce who are using data on the move and consequently losing more unsecured data than ever before.
Posted by | Tue, May 19, 2009 - 07:05 AM | Comments
Oh’Snap! It’s the PNY Prom Photo Contest!!
PNY Technologies has launched the “Oh’Snap! It’s the PNY Prom Photo Contest.” Prom-goers across the nation will have the chance to enter their flashiest prom photo for a chance to win big! PNY will choose one Grand Prize Winner to receive a $2,000 scholarship award to their college or university and a PNY Flash Memory product assortment valued at $250.
Beginning today through Wednesday, July 15, prom fashionistas can upload their best prom photo and enter to win at www.PNY.com/OhSnap. Photos will be judged based on the following criteria: theme (30%), originality (25%), creativity (25%), and innovation (20%). The winner will be selected on or about August 1, and eligibility is limited to current high school seniors attending a prom and who reside in the United States. All entries will be posted on the PNY contest site.
Posted by | Tue, May 19, 2009 - 07:00 AM | Comments
Google CEO urges grads: 'Turn off your computer'
The head of the world's most popular search engine urged college graduates on Monday to step away from the virtual world and make human connections. Speaking at the University of Pennsylvania's commencement, Google chairman and CEO Eric Schmidt told about 6,000 graduates that they need to find out what is most important to them — by living analog for a while.
"Turn off your computer. You're actually going to have to turn off your phone and discover all that is human around us," Schmidt said. "Nothing beats holding the hand of your grandchild as he walks his first steps."
Posted by | Tue, May 19, 2009 - 06:50 AM | Comments
Futuremark announces world's largest PC overclocking competition
Futuremark Corporation today announced a new competition for PC overclockers everywhere. The contest will see game, DIY, and overclocking enthusiasts from Europe, Asia and the Americas competing for the "Lord of Overclocking" title for their region. With Futuremark anticipating over 200,000 entries, the online contest will be the largest overclocking competition ever staged.
The contest will run from May 18th to June 14th with prizes on offer for the top weekly, random, and overall winners in each region. Furthermore, one overall top winner will also be invited to attend the MSI Master Overclocking Arena 2009 event in Beijing, China in September 2009. Grand Prize includes: MSI P45 Diamond motherboard and N260GTX VGA card, Huntkey X7 900W power supply, Thermaltake Element S pro case, GlacialTech XWing NB Cooling Pad, Enermax Apollo (8cm+12cm) cooling fans.
Posted by | Tue, May 19, 2009 - 06:47 AM | Comments
May 18 News from Around the Web
Gigabyte GeForce GTX275 GV-N275UD-896H Video Card Review @ motherboards.org and other reviews from around the web can be found by visiting our forums!
The Gigabyte GeForce GTX 275 is an interesting beast of a card. It is designed to compete directly with the ATI Radeon HD 4890 and does a great job of doing just that. In the vast majority of cases the Gigabyte card beats the HD 4890 in performance with the exception of a DirectX 10.1 title like Tom Clancy's HAWX. NVIDIA made some good choices with the GTX 275, including having the GTX295 core but with the memory controller of the GTX 260. This hybrid combination offers higher performance across the board versus a GeForce GTX260 216 core card and nearly competes in a lot of cases with the GeForce GTX 285. The Gigabyte card overclocks to 620MHz totally stable, which is just a tad over 10% over the standard clocked reference board. To play games with PhysX effects turned on, NVIDIA cards are the only way to go. Cryostasis, the latest game to use PhysX, has its frame rate drop to single digits on a Radeon HD 4890 while it is playable on a GTX275.
Posted by | Mon, May 18, 2009 - 07:37 AM | Comments
ASUS Eee PC 1008HA Netbook - The Seashell
ASUS has taken one of nature’s most beautiful designs and combined it with the best of today’s innovations to provide users with the most stylishly functional Eee PC yet. Weighing just 1.1kg, the Eee PC Seashell is a highly portable companion that users can carry about, allowing them to surf the Internet, watch videos or keep in touch with their friends and family—even while at the beach. Equipped with a more-than-ample 10-inch display, ergonomically designed keyboard, intelligent energy management system and an intuitive multi-touch touch-pad, the Eee PC Seashell aims to provide users with the best mobile computing experience, wherever their journeys take them.
With a design inspired by a seashell, the Eee PC Seashell is enveloped in an opalescent glossy exterior—created through In-Mold Roller technology—that is not only a head-turner wherever it goes, but also serves as a protective shell providing scratch resistance for day-to-day durability. Like the light sprinkling of fine sand on the exterior of a seashell, the lid is graced with tiny reflective specks which glisten in the light, adding the crowning touches to an already exquisite design. Likened to prying open an oyster to reveal its treasure within, the subtly curved lid reveals a 10-inch LED-backlit WSVGA glare-type display which provides users with a more-than-ample view for documents and multimedia files. An ergonomically designed keyboard makes typing on-the-move a breeze, measuring in at 92% compared to its conventional desktop counterpart.
Posted by | Fri, May 15, 2009 - 10:04 AM | Comments
Super Talent Upgrades UltraDrive Series SSDs Firmware With TRIM Support
Super Talent announced it is now shipping its UltraDrive SSDs with Firmware version 1370 which enables improved performance when used with Microsoft Windows 7. The Super Talent "UltraDrive Performance Refresh Tool" allows users to refresh their performance, should they experience performance degradation associated with all SSDs when files become fragmented and data becomes stale. The update also improves the performance of UltraDrive SSDs, which is nice as it is a free performance boost.
With the new firmware Super Talent has increased the maximum sequential read speed of both the UltraDrive ME and UltraDrive LE to 260GB/sec max and the sequential write performance of the UltraDrive ME to 200GB/sec max and the UltraDrive LE to 210GB/sec max, delivering the world's fastest SATA 3Gb/s SSDs in a small 2.5" form factor.
Posted by | Thu, May 14, 2009 - 08:20 PM | Comments
Craigslist Discontinues Erotic Services Advertisements
Craigslist, the online classified site said Wednesday it will drop its controversial "erotic services" category in response to law enforcers who said the ads were a front for prostitution. The old category will be replaced with one listing "adult services," and a fee will be charged, the company said.
The current controversy over the "erotic services" section of Craigslist was kicked-off by an incident in Boston where a man is alleged to have used the section to meet women, one of whom was abducted and one of whom was murdered.
Posted by | Thu, May 14, 2009 - 10:10 AM | Comments
Sony reports $1B annual loss, first in 14 years
Sony Corp. reported its first annual net loss in 14 years and forecast a bigger loss this year, saying the pressure from sliding sales, competition in gadget prices and a strong yen was expected to continue.
The Japanese electronics and entertainment company said Thursday it lost 165 billion yen ($1.72 billion) in the January-March quarter, compared to a 29 billion yen profit for the same period the previous year. That brought its full fiscal year loss to a 98.9 billion yen ($1 billion). Sony, which makes Bravia flat-panel TVs and Cyber-shot digital cameras, said it is closing three plants in Japan to help turn its business around. It is also in the midst of cutting 16,000 workers.
Posted by | Thu, May 14, 2009 - 09:08 AM | Comments
May 14 News from Around the Web
Super Talent UltraDrive ME 120GB MLC SSD FTM28GX25H @ Benchmark Reviews and other reviews from around the web can be found by visiting our forums!
Performance enthusiasts have been keeping notes on SSD technology for a while now, and until recently the price and performance of Solid State Drives were not within reach for casual consumers. SSD products are quickly moving mainstream, and former marketing points like power consumption is now the least impressive of all benefits a Solid State Drive delivers. The real payoff is in the practically instant response time and high-performance throughput. Capacity and stuttering were once the only problems keeping SSDs from replacing HDDs, but now it's just capacity. Quick to solve that problem, Super Talent now offers their 512GB MasterDrive RX SSD which provides capacity matched to performance. The Super Talent UltraDrive ME adds 64MB of Elpida DRAM to the buffer has permanently solved stuttering problems, making raw performance the last bottleneck. An Indilinx 'Barefoot' internal controller commands the bank of Samsung K9HCG08U1M DRAM modules, allowing the UltraDrive ME SSD to offer an impressive capacity with top-speed performance. Benchmark Reviews tests the reaction time and bandwidth performance for the FTM28GX25H 120GB model against over two dozen other products in this article.
Posted by | Thu, May 14, 2009 - 07:32 AM | Comments
Corsair Launches New Cooling Options for Dominator Memory Kits
Corsair today announced the new Corsair Cooling range of advanced cooling solutions for Dominator and Dominator GT modules, including the world’s first sub-ambient cooler for PC memory. The new cooling solutions include the Corsair Cooling Hydro Series H30 water-block and Ice Series T30 thermo-electric cooler, which is capable of cooling memory to below room temperature for enhanced overclocking performance and reliability. The Corsair Cooling Hydro H30 water cooling block is $59.99, while the Corsair Cooling Ice T30 sub-ambient cooling subsystem is $199.00.
“Corsair has always led the field with the development of advanced cooling solutions for computer memory, such as the patent-pending DHX heatsink, which uniquely cools the memory chips and PCB,” said Jim Carlton, VP of Marketing for Corsair. “The Corsair Cooling Hydro Series H30 and Ice Series T30 extend that technology and performance leadership, providing even higher levels of cooling power, including the world’s first sub-ambient memory cooler for enthusiasts and overclockers.”
Posted by | Wed, May 13, 2009 - 10:27 PM | Comments
AMD Phenom II X4 955 at 6.4GHz - Record Overclock Video
Gigabyte and AMD worked together on an awesome overclocking video “The Proving Grounds” featuring the work and the accomplishment of overclocker chew*’ with an AMD Phenom II 955 processor on Dragon Technology featuring the GIGABYTE GA-MA790FXT-UD5P motherboards. The video shows the performance of Phenom II 955 processors and the extreme overclocking capability of Dragon platform with 3DMark06 World Records. If that doesn't float your boat read the comments on that video over at YouTube and be sure do bring a fire extinguisher as it is a flame fest.
Overclocking Guru Chew* relentlessly overclocks “Dragon Technology” with stock AMD Phenom II X4 955 processors on GIGABYTE GA-MA790FXT-UD5P, and recently published his results spanning air, phase, dry ice, and liquid nitrogen. He pushes DDR3 and the extraordinary north bridge of the 955 to the limit. The stock 955 has tremendous north bridge scaling potential and achieved overclocks at significantly lower voltages than prior processor models. The achievement was accomplished on GIGABYTE GA-MA790FX-UD5P and GA-MA790FXT-UD5P motherboards
Posted by | Wed, May 13, 2009 - 04:05 PM | Comments
AMD Comments on European Commission Ruling that Intel Violated EU Law
The European Commission today found Intel guilty of abusing its dominant position in the global x86 microprocessor market, saying that “Intel has harmed millions of European consumers by deliberately acting to keep competitors out of the market for computer chips for many years. Such a serious and sustained violation of the EU’s antitrust rules cannot be tolerated.” The Commission also stated that “there is evidence that Intel had sought to conceal the conditions associated with its payments.” The EC decision requires Intel to change its business practices immediately and fines Intel a record EUR 1.06 billion (US $1.45 billion).
The EC decision stated specifically that:
- “Intel gave wholly or partially hidden rebates to computer manufacturers on condition that they bought all, or almost all, their x86 CPUs from Intel”.
- “Intel made payments to major retailer Media Saturn Holding from October 2002 to December 2007 on condition that it exclusively sold Intel-based PCs in all countries in which Media Saturn Holding is active.“
- Intel “interfered directly in the relations between computer manufacturers and AMD. Intel awarded computer manufacturers payments - unrelated to any particular purchases from Intel - on condition that these computer manufacturers postponed or canceled the launch of specific AMD-based products.”
Posted by | Wed, May 13, 2009 - 11:39 AM | Comments
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