Corsair Accelerator 30GB & 60GB Review
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Connected Cars to Share Data
More and more places in the world are becoming connected thanks to wireless networks. Even cars are being built with Wi-Fi transmitters and at least Ford expects that 80% of their vehicles will feature Wi-Fi. Well, Wi-Fi is cheap but data is not always so inexpensive, so researchers at MIT, Georgetown University and the National University of Singapore have developed an algorithm that will enable Wi-Fi connected cars to share data with each other, and save money for the drivers.
The premise is fairly simple, that even though the movements of these mobile networks cannot be predicted, the cars will likely pass by each other, and at that time, data can be shared between them. In any pair of two connected cars, one will collect the information of the other, and later it will transmit all of the information to the Internet.
What the new algorithm does is show this premise can work by having certain cars aggregate information from others. Not only can this system of sharing information work, but it will actually reduce the amount of redundant information being sent, which will then save on how much it costs to send information to the Internet.
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Ouya: The Android-based Game Console for Your TV
An unlikely new entry in the game console market is set to arrive with the Ouya - an Android 4.0 based project that promises to bring open-source mobile gaming to your TV. A peek at the insides show smartphone-like specs: a quad-core Tegra 3 with 8GB of expandable storage with USB 2.0 support, 802.11n WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0, along with 1080p HDMI and a precision RF wireless gamepad that performs like a "high-end knife." The Ouya is designed to be hack-friendly right out of the box to the point that re-tooling its software won't spoil your warranty, you could even tinker around with the hardware using the included circuit board documentation. Although the devs have generated some substantial funding, an ongoing Kickstarter campaign has been set up with a $950,000 goal to further finance Ouya. With a proposed $99 price tag, the Ouya console system could be a healthy breeding ground for quality indie and free-to-play titles that won't get bogged down by traditional console bureaucracies.
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Green Man Gaming and Playfire Merge
Independent online game store Green Man Gaming has announced it will merge with social gaming network Playfire in an effort to combine the services of both websites. This does not mean a new company will appear, but rather a sharing of resources, infrastructure, and more. Both sites will still remain independent, but soon your Playfire login will work on Green Man Gaming and vice versa. Playfire, if you are unfamiliar, lets you connect your Steam, XFire, PlayStation Network, and Xbox Live accounts to the site in order to track gaming achievements and playtime. The merger is designed to improve both companies and introduce many new features, but the process will take a few months for everything to be integrated. Some new features will be unveiled in the next couple of weeks, but GMG and Playfire are playing hard to get. In the end though, this merger should make both companies stronger and provide some competition to the likes of Steam and Raptr.
Sources: Green Man Gaming and Playfire
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HD Remake of Halo 2 on the Way?
When you think of the Microsoft Xbox, you immediately think of the Halo franchise. The series that helped propel the console into popularity has been around since the original Xbox and has gamers flocking to any new release. Bungie, the original creators of Halo, have moved on to other projects, but Microsoft is keeping the series alive with 343 Industries. Recently, an HD remake of Halo: Combat Evolved (the very first game) was released and now it looks like we will receive another HD remake. According to reports, Halo 2 will be receiving the HD treatment, but no specific details were given other than work is apparently under way. Halo 2 originally released back in 2004 and would certainly benefit from an HD remake, but odds are we will not see it until next year. I have a feeling it will not be until 2014 because that would tie in perfectly with a ten year anniversary, but we will just have to see for certain.
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Valve Reveals Steam Greenlight
Valve has announced an addition to the Steam gaming service, Steam Greenlight. This new service was designed to help the gaming community influence what games will be available on the Steam platform. It builds on the Steam Workshop interface that allows gamers to rate content and will allow developers and publishers to submit their games for inclusion to the Steam library of games. Valve will be using the system to allow gamers to decide what games they want to see while taking the decision out of its hands. Anna Sweet of Valve said that “making the call to publish or not publish a title isn’t fun,” and hopefully users will help to ease the burden on Valve.
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Using Polymers to Generate Electricity from Friction
Friction is something we have all come to live with as it slows us down and heats us up, but soon it may be used to power our devices. Researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology have developed a triboelectric generator that uses friction to create an electric current. The phenomenon being used has been known to exist for years, but this is the first time it has been implemented to provide useable power.
When two materials rub against each other, it is possible for one to donate electrons to the other. If the materials are then separated, before the electrons could move back, the charge differential can be used to create a current. For their experiments, the researchers used sheets of polyester and polydimethysiloxane (PDMS) that had specific patterns on their surfaces. While a current can be produced with the smooth sheet, the researchers found that putting a pyramid pattern on one of the surfaces created the most charge.
As the generator is made from polymers, it can be made at low cost and be scaled up in size. Also, the plastics used are as much as 75% transparent, which gives it a variety of potential uses, including as a touchscreen system that does not need to draw power from a battery. The researchers’ next step is to develop storage mechanisms for the electricity the triboelectric generator produces.
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Steam Summer Sale Deals Leaked Early?
Everyone is waiting on the Steam Summer Sale, and while Valve is still remaining quiet, the team at the Open Steamworks Database have found a new file that reveals the sale. The Steam Summer Sale, according to the Database, will last for eleven days and feature a plethora of indie titles. All eleven days will feature a different batch of indie games, from Braid and A Valley Without Wind to Jamestown and Dungeons of Dredmor. There will also be a variety of bundles on sale, like Duke Nukem, Batman (featuring Arkham Asylum, Arkham City, and Gotham City Impostors), Dawn of War, Stardock Collection, and even a Bethesda pack with Skyrim, Fallout: New Vegas, BRINK, and Hunted: The Demon's Forge. Remember, all of this is from a leaked list and Valve has not said a word edgewise, but if it is legit (and starts soon), I foresee a lack of money in my future.
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One Chip Harvests Multiple Energy Sources
Our world is rife with energy in the form of light, heat, and vibrations, and each of these three sources we can harvest, through different means though. Having to use different technologies to collect this energy makes it difficult to collect them all at once, but researchers at MIT have figured out a way to do it.
Other researchers have created devices with the appropriate technology to harvest these different sources, but they are limited to just working on one energy source at a time. This is because the different sources require different circuitry to control, due to each technology producing different amounts of energy. Traditionally the devices were designed to switch to the technology that is producing the most power at the time, but this means the other energy collected from the other sources will just go to waste. The MIT researchers changed that by including capacitors that will temporarily store the energy from these other sources, until it can be used.
As just collecting energy from all three sources at the same time is not enough for the MIT researchers, they decided to make their device with a dual-path architecture. What this allows is for the device to directly power whatever it is connected to. This is different from other, similar devices that would charge a battery, or other storage device, that would then power the sensor or whatever. Bypassing the storage system like this further increases the efficiency of the device. Potentially we could see the advances in this device being used for biomedical implants and other devices in remote locations that are difficult to power.
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Windows 8 Arrives in October - RTM in August
It does not seem all that long ago when Windows 7 was released, but now Windows 8 is nearly upon us. Microsoft has confirmed the earlier reports by stating Windows 8 will arrive in late October. It will be released to manufacturing (RTM) in August, which means we do not have all that much longer to go to see the latest OS. Users wishing to upgrade from Windows XP, Vista, or Windows 7 will be able to for $39.99, which is the lowest (non-student) price to upgrade yet. Whether or not you go for the upgrade is up to you, as many people are not happy with the move to Metro UI and the removal of familiar elements. Still, Windows 8 should perform well, especially when you consider the Surface tablets that appear to be the most interesting Windows item of the last few years. The ARM-powered tablet will arrive in October, while the Intel-powered one will arrive a few months after. There will be plenty of other PCs and tablets running Windows 8 that will be available in October as well.
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Acoustic Tweezers for those Pesky Little Cells
To study something it always helps to have a firm grasp on it, but that is not very easy when working with cells are small parasites. At such small sizes, physically holding the object could actually damage it, making it impossible to effectively study it. Optical tweezers have existed for a while now as a means to safely hold cells in a trap, without damaging them, but these devices have some limitations, so Penn State researchers developed Acoustic Tweezers that use sound instead of light to hold objects.
Transducers attached to a piezoelectric substrate are used to produce the ultrasonic waves needed for operation. The waves from the four transducers are carefully tuned to be standing acoustic waves. This keeps the resulting waves in the liquid medium around the specimen effectively still, with certain areas of high pressure and low pressure. Careful adjustments to the frequency of the sound allow the researchers to precisely move the specimen, whether it be a single cell or a C. elegans roundworm.
For the time being, optical tweezers will still reign for nanoscale objects, as the acoustic tweezers would need to reach much higher frequencies to trap such small particles. For these larger organisms though, acoustic tweezers may be the tool of choice as they require 10,000,000 times lower power densities and can work with tens of thousands of cells at a time.
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Nokia's PureView Camera Technology Soon to Hit Lumia Series
The Nokia 808 PureView is no doubt a 41 MP technological mobile marvel that outperforms the optics of any other cameraphone out there, but it's simply held back by the underwhelmingly ancient Symbian OS. That may change sometime in the near future though, as Nokia's worldwide developer relations VP Richard Kerris hinted that Pureview technology will be coming to the Lumia series "very soon." This strategy almost echoes what the Finnish giant did previously with the MeeGo-based Nokia N9, where the company first introduced its gorgeous neon unibody design which we now prominently see in its current Windows Phone lineup. Assuming Pureview is seamlessly implemented into next range of Lumia phones, expect a lot of cameraphone afficionados to flock back to the house of Nokia. But if the vague "very soon" release date is too far-off for you, an unlocked AT&T / T-Mobile compatible Nokia 808 PureView is already available in Amazon for $699.
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Telltale's The Walking Dead Game To Continue With Season 2
Telltale's brilliant horror/adventure adaptation of The Walking Dead will continue past its five-episode run and well into Season 2. Backed by a gripping and well-told narrative that put gamers in control over the storyline, the first episode alone has sold almost 1.7 million digital copies eight weeks after its release. A retail version will be made available to North America shortly after episode five's release. Whether the characters Clementine or Lee Everett will survive the zombie plague after the first season is likely up to the player, but Telltale's Senior Marketing VP Steve Allison assures fans that "this will not be the last The Walking Dead game series that we do." After the generally mild reception of the Jurassic Park and Back to the Future games, The Walking Dead marks a solid comeback for Telltale.
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Smartphones Affecting Behaviors Like Gaming
Once a year researchers at the University of Gothenburg perform a nationally representative survey of media use by the Swedish people. This year the researchers have noticed some interesting trends amongst smartphone users, even when just comparing the results to last year. The amount of online game-playing has more than doubled since the previous survey and 60% of 9-14 year olds are playing one of more video games on the average day.
The survey also found that for young people (15-24 years old) only 75% watch television each day, but 90% use a social media tool, like Facebook, each day. No other age group has the difference quite this extreme, with TV viewing being more common. Younger adults (25-44 years old) were found to use the Internet more than the other groups, with 50% using it get traditional media that is now served on the web (online-editions of newspapers, for example). However, the reading of periodicals and books has not decreased in this group, though listening to the radio has.
Of course Sweden's people and culture is different from ours in the United States, but it is entirely possibly similar trends exist here as well. As smartphones can act as a gateway to things previously limited to larger computers, such as video games and the Internet, it is reasonable to expect an increase in these behaviors, as more people get smartphones.
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Amazon Working on a Smartphone?
According to a pair of anonymous sources, Amazon is currently developing a smartphone to compete with the iPhone and numerous Android devices already on the market. Amazon is reportedly working on the smartphone with Foxconn, the same Chinese company that manufacturers the iPhone. A smartphone would help extend the reach of Amazon and would be a nice addition to a lineup that features several different models of Kindle. Amazon is also working to acquire a variety of intellectual property in an attempt to avoid any infringement lawsuits that could be brought against the company if it released a phone.
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