Forza 5 won't include all of the game content on the Blu-ray, you'll need to download content before you play
Next-gen gaming is upon us, and it is a weird world we're about to step into. With Forza 5, you'll need to download game content from the Internet before you can buy the game. Yes, even after you've inserted your Blu-ray copy of the game into your console.
So it's not technically DLC, because it's part of the game. I'm kind of on the fence about this, what about those with slow Internet connections? But, it means you get up-to-date content, which is a nice touch. It also gives developers a few extra days to do some last minute changes to the content, which hopefully means we get less issues, and better games.
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Chrome for iOS updated, includes a bunch of new features and 'experimental' data compression Google have released a very nice update to Chrome for iOS which now includes some highly anticipated features such as fullscreen web browsing on the iPad, and giving users full access to their browsing history.
Something Google decided to throw into the Chrome for iOS bag of tricks is an experimental data compression service. This feature has been on the beta version of Chrome for Android for a few months now, but iOS users can now play around with it. I've been using it on my smartphone for a few weeks and it definitely feels snappier to browse the Internet. You can download the latest version of Chrome for iOS from the Apple App Store, here.
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RumorTT: Dell's shareholders could vote against the buyout Dell were meant to be going private, after various investor meetings and reports, but new reports are suggesting that the company might not be going private.
The vote won't happen until later today, but it looks like Dell could be in some trouble here if shareholders start rocking the boat.
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Valve approves Half-Life modders who want to build standalone co-op version of Half-Life Half-Life is one of my favorite games ever, and after fifteen years on the market, the Sven Co-op team have been granted full access to the standalone game based on the mod.
Better yet, Sven Co-op's next version of the game will be free and will include the official Half-Life campaign for co-op play - oh, yeah. If you don't already own Half-Life - and let's face it, if you don't, there's something wrong - you won't have to purchase it, as this version will be free. No ETA has been made, so we don't know when to expect it at all unfortunately.
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RumorTT: Acer preparing a thinner, lighter 8-inch Iconia W3 tablet Acer are the only ones on the market with an 8-inch Windows 8-based tablet, and it looks like they're set to capitalize on this part of the market. A new report claims that the 8-inch slate is going to be refreshed in September, only a few months after it was unveiled.
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Smartphone shipments are expected to reach 1.5 billion by 2017 Smartphones are everywhere these days, with some people even having more than one, but just how many smartphones are expected to ship in the coming years?
IHS' Senior Analyst, Wayne Lam, has said that "possible slowing growth of the iPhone" as well as "the rapid pace of competitive smartphone releases speak to the ferocious nature of the handset business."
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Have you always wanted a robot that can paint in watercolor? Kickstarter has one Here at TweakTown, I have one rule about Kickstarter campaigns and that is that they have to seriously impress me and think very far outside of the box before I will back them. Fortunately, Sylvia's WaterColorBot has done just that. This robot is actually capable of painting you a cartoonish painting out of the same kind of watercolor paints we all used as a child.
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Samsung launches new 840 EVO series of Solid State Drives at annual Global SSD Summit Under the theme of "SSDs for everyone", today Samsung held the 2013 Samsung SSD Global Summit at the Westin Chosun Seoul in celebration of the launch of its new solid state drive (SSD), the Samsung SSD 840 EVO. This is a consumer-oriented entry-level, high-performance SSD that comes in capacities up to 1TB.
Samsung says that the 250GB 840 EVO SSD delivers 520MB/s sequential write speed making it more than two times faster than the previous 250GB 840 SSD. The Samsung SSD 840 EVO series is available in sizes including 120GB, 250GB, 500GB, 750GB, and 1TB. No word was announced on pricing or availability dates.
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LeakedTT: New images surface of "low-cost" iPhone plastic shell being compared to current iPhone 5 It feels like a new leak forms every day about Apple's upcoming "low-cost" iPhone. This time the leak comes in from iOS developer Sonny Dickson who compares the plastic shell that houses the rear of the phone to a current generation iPhone 5. In the images, we can see a green and white version of the shell which appears to be a bit thicker than the iPhone 5 sitting next to it.
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Tumblr pushes out "very important" security update to iOS app This morning, Tumblr issued what it called a "very important" security update for its iOS app. The social networking site said that on Tuesday it discovered a vulnerability in the app that could allow passwords to be compromised. Tumblr said that it cannot stress enough the importance of everyone downloading this update as soon as possible.
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19-year-old spends a year of his life building a Skyrim mod, the results are breathtaking Anyone who knows me knows that I am one of the biggest Elder Scrolls fans on the planet. Naturally, Skyrim is one of my most played games and as a result, I have pretty much worn the game out and seen almost everything there is to see and done everything there is to do. Fortunately, Bethesda knows how much their fans love modding their games and freely releases content creation kits that allow users to customize the game in the form of mods.
That is where 19-year-old Alexander J. Velicky enters the story. Over the last year, Velicky has been hard at work on one of the largest Skyrim mods ever created. Dubbed Falskaar, this new mod adds over 25 hours of content as well as a new landmass a third the size of the original game. Velicky has added new characters, new voices, and dozens of new quest. The mod features 54 new characters which are voiced by 29 different voice actors. If that alone is not impressive, then nothing else in the story will be.
Velicky said that he spent over 2000 hours during the last year inside Bethesda's Creation Kit molding and sculpting Falskaar in an attempt to impress Bethesda and hopefully land himself a job at the development studio. "My dad was incredibly supportive and allowed me to live here, paying for living expenses, and charging no rent," Velicky says. "I was able to not go to school and not have a day job. Meaning, more or less, that Falskaar was my day job."
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LeakedTT: OfficeMax documents suggest next week's Google event will see a new Nexus 7 launch Earlier today, I reported about a press event being held by Google next week. Early on, the speculation seemed to center around Android 4.3 being released and while that still may be possible, recently obtained documents by Engadget suggest that the next-generation Nexus 7 will be unveiled at the event. Engadget says they have obtained official documents from OfficeMax that include a new item number.
This puts the next-generation Nexus 7 series at a higher price point than the original model that still retails for $199 in the Google Play store. With so many sub-$200 7-inch Android tablets being released, it leaves us to wonder if the next-generation Nexus 7 can remain the powerhouse it has been for the last two years.
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Logitech introduces new Z600 Bluetooth stereo speakers Earlier today, Logitech introduced us to its latest set of Bluetooth stereo speakers. Dubbed the Z600, the speakers are targeted at the MacBook Air and UltraBook markets but will work with any Bluetooth A2DP-enabled device including smartphones, tablets, and media streaming devices. Capable of pairing with up to three devices at the same time, users can stream music from each individual device by just making sure music playback on the other two devices are paused.
Logitech has included a small USB Bluetooth dongle that will allow streaming audio from devices that may not be Bluetooth-equipped. No actual launch date was given, but Logitech has the Z600 Bluetooth Speakers up for preorder on their website at a price point of just $150. That price seems a little high when compared to the Panasonic portable Bluetooth speaker we covered earlier today, but I have a feeling the speakers will reproduce a more rich and full-bodied sound.
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Google is planning a press event for July 24, could talk about the next revision of Android One week from today on July 24, Google will be holding a press event which will be led by Android and Chrome boss Sundar Pichai. Google isn't saying what will be discussed during the event, but there is a high possibility that we will finally learn all about Android 4.3 Jelly Bean. There is also the off chance that a new version of Chrome OS will be released or an official announcement for the Motorola Moto X could be made.
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Qualcomm to pay its shareholders a dividend of $0.35 per share If you own stock in QUALCOMM Incorporated, today is a very good day for you. The company announced this morning that it will be paying a quarterly cash dividend of $0.35 per common share which will be payable on September 25, 2013. This dividend comes after record-breaking quarters for the company as the mobile devices market continues unprecedented growth in all sectors.
"We delivered another strong quarter as the worldwide adoption of smartphones continues," said Dr. Paul E. Jacobs, chairman and CEO of Qualcomm. "Looking forward, we are seeing strong traction with our new Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 and 800 processors, and we continue to expect healthy growth in 3G and 3G/4G multimode devices around the world. We are pleased to be raising our calendar 2013 3G/4G device shipment estimates and our revenue and earnings guidance for fiscal 2013."
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WhatsApp removes up-front fee iOS devices, moves to yearly subscription plan WhatsApp has been quickly making its way to the top of the list for the world's most popular messaging platforms. Just a few months ago, its owners claimed that its servers see more than 10 billion messages pass through each day; that's more than Twitter or even iMessenge. The app is free on Android for the first year and then costs one dollar per year thereafter. Unfortunately for iOS users, until now they had to pay that dollar upfront.
Existing iOS users should be ecstatic to hear that since they've already paid for the app, their subscription to the service will be free for life and they will not be required to pay the one dollar subscription fee each year. I use WhatsApp on a daily basis as it appears to be much faster than my carrier's text messaging service, is quite convenient, and is a free way for me to communicate with my brother and sister who live overseas. While none of us are iOS users, I know a few friends will be happy to hear of this announcement.
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Google's Street View now lets viewers experience Paris from the top of the Eiffel Tower Hot on the heels of Google's public beta of its refreshed maps, the company has now updated its Street View service to include views from atop the Eiffel Tower. Google says that they worked with the Eiffel Tower Operating Company to gather a fairly large stack of panoramic imagery from all three of the Eiffel Tower's viewing platforms. Additionally, Google has built an online exhibit that depicts the story of the Eiffel Tower through 50 archival images, plans, engravings, and photographs.
The Eiffel Tower is 324 meters tall and held the title of tallest construction in the world for 40 years after it was built in 1889 until it was dethroned by the Chrysler building in New York City. It is comprised of over 18,000 separately made pieces and is one of the most photographed structures in the world.
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Panasonic unveils a new rugged wireless speaker dubbed the SC-NT10 Panasonic likes building products that can take whatever you can throw at them and their new portable wireless speaker is no exception. The SC-NT10 is a black and orange 4W portable speaker that features two full-range speakers and a passive radiator. Panasonic says that the speaker is "quad proof" and is dust, water, and impact resistant. Panasonic says that the speaker is able to last about eight hours on a single charge but did not disclose standby time battery life.
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Apple and Samsung will head back to court next month, the patent war continues On my Mum's birthday, August 9, Apple and Samsung will head into court to continue their patent battle. The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington, DC said on Monday that it will hear oral arguments from both companies on the day.
Koh determined that the jury's calculations were flawed, and the damages were then softened. Koh also ordered a partial retrial that will happen in November, where Samsung will find out just how much they'll have to sign over to Apple.
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RumorTT: Google ready to reintroduce Google TV to the world Google showed Google TV off before it was fully baked, so all of the goodies inside were oozing out instead of being fully-functional features that blew people away and had consumers throwing money at their product.
The WSJ are reporting that Google has the system developed and is shopping it around to various partners. The world of TV has changed since Google first introduced Google TV, with the likes of Netflix and their smash hits like the fourth season of Arrested Development and House of Cards doing very, very good business online.
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Oculus Rift could one day be free, but for now we should expect a $300 price point I'll be attending PAX AU on Friday, where I'll finally get some hands-on (or is that heads- and soul-on) with Oculus' Rift VR headset. I'll be using the Full HD version, which I'm quite excited about.
During an interview with Edge Online, Oculus' CEO, Brandon Iribe noted how he hopes it would influence how we play games in a better way than next-gen consoles. He talked about the way that Rift will reach the market, acknowledging that "the lower the price point, the wider the audience." It's true, but getting it cheaper than $300 will be hard.
He continued: "You can imagine if Microsoft and Sony can go out and subsidize consoles because there's enough money to be made on software and other areas, then there's the potential that this, in partnership, could get subsidized."
Oculus have thought of ways of getting Rift out to gamers for free, so that more and more gamers experience their technology. Iribe said: "We're not there yet, but we're sitting there thinking all the time, how can we make this free?"
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MSI GeForce GTX 770 2GB Twin Frozr Gaming OC Video Card Review
Introduction
If you wanted to spend a bit more money, though, then the MSI GTX 780 3GB Twin Frozr Gaming OC we looked at and overclocked recently might be a better option. Today, though, we're checking out the video card that sits in between these two models, the MIS GTX 770 2GB Twin Frozr Gaming OC. While we would also normally go down the path of overclocking this card, we won't be today for two reasons.
The first is that we've already looked at the GTX 770 overclocked a few times, but are yet to check out the performance of a pre-overclocked card at its pre-overclocked settings. The second reason is coming up straight behind the MSI GTX 770 2GB Twin Frozr Gaming will be the MSI GTX 770 2GB Lightning, a video card that is designed with overclocking in mind. For that reason we'll be diving into depth of MSI GTX 770 overclocking with that card in the coming days. With a couple of new benchmarks added into the mix, having a record of out of the box speeds is going to make our comparisons stronger in the future.
For now, though, we want to see the final piece of the Twin Frozr Gaming GTX 700 series cards. It's a series that has done a great job of impressing us and we'll have to see if the GTX 770 2GB is also able to do just as great a job. Let's get into the package and move on from there.
Package
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Thermaltake Urban S71 Full-Tower Chassis Review
Introduction
Essentially, the core frame of these chassis designs follow right along with what was found in the Chaser series. This means if the feature set of the Chaser A71 and the layout on the inside of the chassis was something you could see yourself using, moving over to the Urban series gives you a similar foundation. Aesthetically things have changed with the external layout and design, to give a rounded, sleeker, and more subdued external look. I for one am one of those who really liked what the Chaser A71 has to offer, but the styling is too aggressive for my taste to spend any real-time on my desk, and from what I have already gathered in looking at the first Urban chassis design, I really like what I am seeing.
Today we are going to be looking at the largest and best equipped offering in the Urban series with the S71 full-tower chassis. For starters, things are much more rounded for a softer appearance, the light blue accents are gone, but Thermaltake kept things that are most important like great front I/O panel access and a HDD dock, but also does things like adding a front door, changing the windowed side panel, and even adding a basic fan controller.
From what I can tell Thermaltake is really stepping up their game with the release of these new chassis designs, and the Urban S71 is one of those chassis designs that will fit in to most decors or themes, and suits a much wider audience. This is never a bad thing to widen your market, and I really think it is worth the time and energy to stick with me as we get in depth with this new chassis from Thermaltake.
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Aerocool Touch-2100 Fan Controller Review
Introduction
Today we are in the realm of chassis mounted fan controllers, a five channel controller to be exact. In this design, Aerocool stepped up their game and bring a product that is not only technically sound, offers a bit of elegance with the black aluminum front panel, it even offers 3.5mm jacks for HD Audio, and a pair of USB 3.0 ports (and is reverse compatible to USB 2.0). What makes this fan controller worth some real attention is that you have the ability to just touch the screen of this dual bay fan controller, and with just the tip of a finger, you can control a full system of fans.
The new Touch-2100 from Aerocool has a lot to offer in what I have already told you, but as you will see today, it even has more to offer. Things like multi-colored options for the display, the fact that it offers an alarm system that will react to both the failure of one of the fans on the controller, but it even offers temperature probes with controllable alarms. There are a couple more cool features that the Touch-2100 has to offer, but if you want to know about them you are going to need to continue reading to find out what they are.
At first glance and with a bit of time using it now, I really do think that The Touch-2100 is well worth the time to glance through and see what this fan controller is all about over the next lot of pages.
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Patriot Viper PC3-19200 16GB Dual Channel Memory Kit Review
This becomes an even stronger thought with the improvement on the Internal Memory Controller that is brought with the latest generation of Intel chips. When we saw the Ivy Bridge platform launch, we saw a surge in high performance memory kits due to the stronger IMC that was offered. With an even stronger IMC being seen in the latest generation of Haswell chips from Intel, we're surprised that we're not seeing more RAM released.
We do wonder if one of the main reasons we're not seeing a massive surge of memory kits, though, is because companies aren't able to get enough chips at these new high speeds to create the models they want. With 3000MHz DDR being something that seems to be achievable on many CPUs, it's possible that getting a hold of the ICs to create a decent amount of RAM at this speed is difficult. Instead it might take a few months before we see companies offering us a much larger range of new kits.
With all that said, though, let's move away from talking about RAM in general, and start to talk about what exactly we're dealing with today. Towards the end of last year we saw Patriot show of the Viper 3 series in the form of the Limited Edition Intel Extreme Masters memory kit.
Today we're looking at another kit which is part of the new Viper 3 series, but has just been released for the all new Z87 platform. Taking a look below you can see the heatsink design is as you'd expect identical to what we saw from the IEM kit we looked at last year. Of course the big difference is that this one comes in red. Along with coming in red, though, you can also get the kit in black or blue depending on your preference.
Having just finished testing the GIGABYTE Z87X-OC motherboard, we thought that we'd pull out the kit of RAM that was sitting in that and replace it with the Patriot Viper kit we've got on hand today. We headed into the BIOS and set the kit to Profile 1 under the XMP options and proceeded to reboot the system.
If you had a chance to look at some of our recent motherboard coverage, you would know that we got the chance to get a hold of a new CPU that's capable of running at a higher core clock. Unfortunately we don't know the quality of the IMC and until we ultimately get a kit that is guaranteed to do a certain speed, we probably won't know just exactly its maximum limitation is. It's also important to remember that just because a CPU can clock higher on the core, it doesn't necessarily mean that it also carries with it a stronger IMC. Saying that, though, we intend to find out just what we're able to get out of this Patriot kit of RAM today on our new i7 4770K CPU.
Back in the BIOS, we headed over to the memory multiplier section and increased it. We hit 2800MHz DDR and ran into no problems. We then jumped up to 2933MHz, which is the next option, but didn't have any luck. At this speed our system wouldn't boot. So, with 2800MHz DDR being the starting point, we then headed back into the BIOS to adjust the CPU BCLK to see if we could get anything else out of the kit.
Messing around with the BCLK we couldn't get anything else out of the kit. As we moved the memory divider, though, the motherboard also took care of the timings and when we moved to 2800MHz DDR the timings loosened from 10-12-12-30-2T to 11-13-13-35-2T. With no room left on the MHz front, we thought we'd see if we could do anything with the timings.
The numbers above are quite interesting. While we manage to get a good jump in raw MHz, you can see that the loosened timings have brought down read numbers ever so slightly. If we look at the copy write numbers, though, we can see a decent increase in performance. while copy speed also manages to see a nice little bump. Another area where we see a nice performance increase is in latency, which sees a drop of almost 10%.
With those two tests looking good we headed into the BIOS one more time to do a little bit more overclocking. In this case we bumped up our CPU speed by a good chunk to see just what kind of performance we could get. What's really interesting, though, is that the latest Intel platform has brought very little to extra memory bandwidth when overclocking is thrown into the mix.
Just as we expected, you can see that the numbers are nearly identical. We see a little fluctuation here and there, but nothing much to get excited about when it comes to raw MB/s. Saying that, though, you can see the overall latency does get a bit of a drop and now comes in at under 40ns. We don't see those big write number improvements, though, that we saw on the previous generation Intel chips.
In typical Patriot fashion, the company has put together a nice kit of RAM. While we would normally move from this point and get into the price of the kit, it's unfortunately not yet available. We expect to see it in the next few weeks.
If previous pricing is anything to go off, the kit should come in at a good level. Being a 2400MHz DDR kit means that it's not going to carry a massive price premium like kits that go into the 2800MHz DDR and 2933MHz DDR range. Of course we'll have a slightly bump in the price due to the fact we're dealing with a 16GB kit, but overall it's nothing that should shock us.
While not yet available, the Patriot Viper PC3-19200 16GB kit looks to be a good option. The kit looks great, performs as you'd expect out of the box and manages to offer some strong overclocking headroom with an extra 400MHz DDR seen and the ability to lower the Command Rate to 1T.
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ASUS MAXIMUS VI HERO (Intel Z87) Motherboard Review
Introduction
As the weeks go on, though, and we get the chance to test more and more motherboards, while at the same time sometimes sourcing new CPUs, we're able to get a better idea of the platform. With over a month passed since the launch of the new Haswell platform and a new i7 4770K on hand that is clocking better than our initial one, we're looking forward to seeing what the latest ASUS board offers.
Unlike the initial ASUS board we looked at, the MAXIMUS VI HERO, as the name suggests, falls into the popular Republic Of Gamers or ROG category. One that has gained a strong reputation for performance. Of course that performance has always carried with it a significant price tag.
With the "more accessible while packing major ROG features" tag line over at the ASUS website under the new MAXIMUX VI HERO product, ASUS are trying to bring us ROG based boards at a more competitive price point - and this isn't the first time we've seen this. Both ASRock and GIGABYTE offer boards that focus on performance, but cut down on some of the bells and whistles, giving us a strong performing board at an excellent price point.
How's it going to work with ASUS, though, and the new MAXIMUS VI HERO? Well, there's only one way to find out, and that is to get down and dirty with it.
Package
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Palit GeForce GTX 770 2GB JetStream Overclocked Video Card Review
Introduction
It's very one sided, though, with NVIDIA cards really being the only ones popping up lately. This is of course due to the fact that NVIDIA over the past month has chosen to grace us with a new series in the form of GTX 700.
While we thought the series would stop for a while once the introduction of the GTX 770 and GTX 780 had hit us, it seems that NVIDIA had one more model in them with the GTX 760 and while they say this is the last one we'll see for a while now, we wouldn't put it past NVIDIA to have something up their sleeve in the event they need it.
While the GTX 760 is the latest model, we've actually got partner designs of all the new NVIDIA models so we'll be of course working our way through them in the coming weeks. Today we're going to be looking at a GTX 770 2GB which comes from Palit. This particular model falls under the JetStream name that we saw Palit launch last year. With big coolers and big out of the box overclocks, it looked to be a good series for the company.
Today we'll be taking the time to see just what the model can do once we push the clock speeds up even higher. As always there's a few things we've got to do before we look at the overclocking side of things. Let's see what's going on with the package first.
Package
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Western Digital WD Se Enterprise HDD Review
Introduction
We have all read about the continuing data explosion. As mobile computing continues its expansion, and higher resolution video and images proliferate, the need to store this vast amount of data is becoming paramount. A recent Digital Universe study revealed that the amount of data created, replicated and consumed in a single year is growing at an annual rate of 46%. This is leading to a future literally overran with data, as evidenced by the prediction that we will be generating 40,000 Exabyte's of data per year in 2020.
This flood of data has created a quandary for many organizations. Through the magic of big data and analytics, even the most mundane unstructured 'disposable' data is valuable. This has led to a redesigning of the datacenter to meet the changing demands of data storage. Facebook is leading the way with new datacenters designed specifically to handle these large amounts of unstructured data in a cost-effective manner.
The WD Se enterprise-class HDD looks to offer these type of applications an economical means of storing large amounts of data in NAS and replicated environments that do not require high performance. The WD Se fits well for users with a need for mass storage for bulk cloud storage, Big Data storage, backup and archiving. Providing this class of HDDs with enterprise features that ensure a higher level of reliability is key. WD accomplished this by leveraging the design and components of the WD Re HDD's.
The WD Xe resides in the Tier-1 slot and provides high-density performance storage for demanding applications. The Xe is followed closely by the WD Re, which comes in both SAS and SATA flavors. This splits the Tier-2 into two categories, one focused on durability and the other focusing on scalable high capacity storage. The Xe and Re are well suited for RAID environments with higher performance and reliability.
One of the primary differentiators between the Re and the Se is the throughput rating per year. WD is using this new metric to fine-tune their offerings for customers with specific workloads. The WD Re fulfills the durability requirement for Tier-2 with its higher workload rating of 180 TB/year. This higher workload averages out to 1.5TB of data transfers per day. For those with less demanding workloads the WD Se fills out the lower portion of Tier-2 with 550 TB/year or 500 GB per day of use.
The Se also features a markedly lower power consumption in comparison to the Re and Xe HDDs. The Se features a power draw of 9.5W, a reduction of 2 Watts. This is accomplished in large by the relaxed Advanced Format 4K sectors and disabling of unnecessary features in the SOC. The lower performance of the Se will not result in vastly improved IOPS-to-Watts measurements, but in replicated environments the overall power reduction is a welcome addition.
While the Se offers less durability than the Re HDD's, it still provides plenty of enterprise-class features to provide a great solution for those looking to store large amounts of data reliably. TLER, StableTrac, RAFF, an SED option and a five year warranty round out the feature set of the WD Se. Let's take a closer look at these technologies on the following page.
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Corsair Carbide Series Air 540 High Airflow ATX Cube Chassis Review
Introduction
Along the line, since that release, we have seen more Obsidian chassis designs, but why stop there? Corsair also brought forth two other new series' of cases with the Graphite and the Carbide series lineups. While most of these designs have been a logical evolution in the original design, maybe shrunk down in form factor, but they all seemed to fit a specific mold that made them easily recognizable in each respective series. That was until now. Corsair has again come up with something revolutionary, and while not exactly the first to deliver this concept to the public, they are the first to deliver this concept to me. This truly is a chassis that breaks the mold when you think of what a Carbide series chassis is supposed to be.
Today we are venturing into looking at the Carbide Series Air 540. That bit of the name isn't so much different, but as the title stated, this is an ATX Cube chassis. The main concept with this design was to compartmentalize the motherboard, CPU and video card from the rest of the build. To do this they had to develop a much wider chassis than we normally see. In the second section of the chassis, if you will, is where you can put extra storage drives, optical drives, the power supply, as well as having plenty of room for the wiring. On top of just the basic idea in the frame design, Corsair also offer things like good water cooling compatibility, HDD bays with back planes, and most importantly this chassis is very well ventilated in all aspects.
With all of this information swimming in your head, I say we get to covering all of the technical bits so we can move on to the images, where I am almost certain that the Carbide Air 540 ATX cube will win your heart over.
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GIGABYTE Z87X-OC (Intel Z87) Motherboard Review
Introduction
Today we're looking at the Z87X-OC which of course follows the OC Series of boards from the company. I've become quite a fan of these motherboards for a few reasons. The first is the black and orange color scheme that is present. This is really something different and helps the board stand out against others. The other is the price, you'd think that a board designed for overclocking would be expensive, but to the contrary, they are generally priced quite aggressively.
GIGABYTE are also a board that we tend to have very little issues with when it comes to getting them up and running. But we must admit that any time we're greeted by something that is more performance orientated, we do become a little bit more concerned as more and more options are thrown in front of us.
We won't say much more. We've had a chance to look at a couple of GTX 700 series based video cards in the past few days and from there we've jumped into a motherboard based on the new Z87 chipset. Next up we'll be looking at a new kit of RAM. For now, though, it's all about the new GIGABYTE Z87X-OC. Let's take a look at the package and then move from there to find out just what exactly GIGABYTE are offering us with their latest OC based motherboard.
Package
Some of these we'll be looking at in more detail in just a moment, but some of the key features include the OC-Touch buttons, OC Ignition, OC Connect, All IR Digital Power Design and 15u Gold Plated CPU, Memory and PCIe power connectors.
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MSI GeForce GTX 780 3GB Twin Frozr Gaming OC Overclocked Video Card Review
Introduction
The fact that AMD continue to be quiet on the video card front also means that NVIDIA have really been able to suck up the lime light the last few months. While we thought it would become a little quiet after Computex, NVIDIA turned around and released the GTX 760 bringing a new mid-range model to the market as well.
Today, though, we're looking at something a little higher-end than that. The highest model under the new GTX 700 series, the GTX 780, sits as the second fastest model in the NVIDIA line up. The GTX TITAN continues to sit at the top of the list. As much as we love that model, though, it's hardly the best representative of value.
Today we're checking out the GTX 780. This particular one is from the folks over at MSI and falls under the new Gaming Series which is something we've seen them use under both the motherboard and video card category so far. We've mentioned before and we'll quickly say it again, it's great to see MSI create some unity between the video card and motherboard department. This is something that's been missing and we're hoping that it works for them as we're really liking what we're seeing so far. Let's get into just what exactly we're dealing with today.
Package
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GIGABYTE Z87X-UD3H (Intel Z87) Motherboard Review
Introduction
Due to that we're really looking forward to the overclocking side of things to see just what we're able to do today. Of course there's a couple of things we need to do before we get to that area.
So, with that said let's get into the package and move forward to see what GIGABYTE is bringing to the table with the new Z87X-UD3H motherboard.
Package
Looking at some of the main ones you can see we've got Durable Black Solid Caps, 15u gold Plated CPU Socket and all IR Digital Power Design to help keep the power strong and stable throughout. Extras include the Gaming Headphone Amplifier for an enhanced audio experience, 2x Copper PCB and UEFI DualBIOS to name a few more. We've got a couple more that are highlighted, but we'll take a closer look at them when we move onto the board.
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HGST Ultrastar SSD800MM Enterprise 12Gb/s SSD Review
Introduction
HGST, a Western Digital company, has a long history of innovation in the SAS space. Developing the next generation of 12Gb/s SSDs also requires the other end of the hardware to be in place, such as an HBA or RAID controller. LSI and HGST have been working hand-in-hand and we are using the still-under-development LSI SAS 9300-8e to test the performance of the SSD800MM.
The SSD800MM is the middle child in a family of three Tier-0 12Gb/s SSDs from HGST, with each member providing a different level of endurance. The top-level offering is the High Endurance Ultrastar SSD800MH. The MH version features sequential throughput of 1,200/750 MB/s read/write, and 145,000/100,000 sustained read/write IOPS, respectively. This SSD provides the highest endurance with up to 25 DW/D (Drive Writes per Day) for the toughest workloads, such as HFT and OLTP environments.
The Read Intensive Ultrastar SSD1000MR brings up the low-end of the endurance pyramid, and features sequential speeds of 1,200/700 MB/s read/write and 145,000/70,000 read/write IOPS, respectively. With an endurance rating of 2 DW/D, this SSD is clearly intended for the write-once, read-many class of applications, such as audio/video streaming, cloud computing and other internet applications. While the other models top out at a capacity of 800GB, the SSD1000MR offers a larger 1TB capacity point.
The Mainstream Endurance Ultrastar SSD800MM in the lab today is for the middle ground, with up to 10 DW/D of endurance on tap. The SSD800MM brings blistering sequential throughput of 1,200/700 MB/s read/write, and 145,000/70,000 sustained read/write IOPS. This mid-level of SSD endurance is well suited for Big Data, online gaming and cloud computing applications.
The previous generation Ultrastar products employed varying types of flash as endurance technology has improved. The SSD400S utilized ultra-rugged 34nm SLC, and as NAND processes shrunk the SSD400S.B made the switch to 25nm SLC. The SSD400M brought about the inclusion of eMLC into the Ultrastar family, providing a lower level of endurance, but a more palatable price point as well.
The SSD800MM utilizes 'enterprise grade' 25nm MLC. eMLC brings higher endurance than standard consumer-grade MLC, yet still provides a much lower price point than SLC NAND. The eMLC provides up to 36.5 PB of endurance in the highest capacity SSD800MH, providing an excellent amount of endurance from MLC. The SSD800MM features 14.6 PB of endurance for the 800GB model.
HGST and Intel have enjoyed a great partnership over the years, with the jointly developed HGST/Intel DB29AA11AB0 controller and firmware powering the HGST enterprise SSDs. The strategic collaboration leverages Intel's industry leadership in core NAND and controller technologies and HGST's vast experience with the SAS interface.
The LSI SAS 9300-8e is built around the Fusion-MPT LSI SAS 3008 Fury controller. The 9300-8e provides eight ports of 12Gb/s connectivity that communicates via a x8 PCIe 3.0 interface. The 9300-8e supports RAID 0, 1 and 10 and utilizes the new Mini-SAS HD SFF-8644 external connectors. We will cover the new connectors and 12Gb/s SAS enhancements on the following pages.
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G-Technology G RAID Mini 2TB External Storage Review
The G RAID Mini we have in the lab today continues on where the G Drive left off. Offering 2TB of storage capacity with the ability to configure it in RAID 0, for maximum performance or RAID 1, for an added bit of security. The G RAID Mini arrives from the factory ready for your Macintosh computer, formatted with the Journaled file system. However, a simple reformat allows you to access the G RAID from your Windows PC. Warranty included with the G RAID stands at three years.
To test external storage platforms, I utilize three of the most well-known and respected benchmark applications. ATTO Disk Benchmark is the first and is recognized as the industry standard for marketing specifications. The second, CDM or Crystal Disk Mark offers sequential read and write metrics, 512K random read and writes and 4K data with Queue Depths up to 32.
Through DiskBench we offer real-world testing as it offers a custom data set that can be controlled by the user. For our testing I use a 10GB directory of mixed data that includes, pictures in both the RAW and JPEG file formats, AVCHD video and documents in both the XLS and DOC formats.
The G-Technology G RAID Mini in its 2TB configuration is a great solution for creative professionals looking for a sleek storage solution that fits right in with their iMac or MacBook. Even PC users would find this as an attractive solution as the build quality is truly excellent.
Performance of the G RAID in all of our testing was notable. Even with the overhead of RAID 1, the G RAID was capable of 120MB/s in sequential testing. Out of the box, the G RAID is configured as a RAID 0 storage solution, as this is where all the performance lies. In RAID 0, we saw the G RAID touch 265MB/s in ATTO, and real-world testing netted us 178MB/s.
Pricing of the G RAID Mini in the 2TB configuration tested here today sits at $449.99 direct from G-Technology. However, the availability of the G RAID Mini 2TB model appears to be quite slim at this point, with direct from the manufacturer being the only option I was able to find.
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Top 10 TweakTown Content from the past week [08 July 2013] Here are our top 10 articles, reviews and guides from the past week!
- MSI MPOWER MAX (Intel Z87) Motherboard Review
- Transcend JetFlash 760 64GB USB 3.0 Flash Drive Review
- Thermaltake Chaser A71 Full Tower Chassis Review
- Lexar JumpDrive P10 64GB USB 3.0 Flash Drive Review
- RunCore Pro IV 256GB PATA ZIF SSD Review
- Western Digital My Passport Ultra 500GB Portable HDD Review
- The Great SSD Flash Shortage of 2013 - EOL 25nm, the pain and the future
- Corsair Neutron GTX 19nm 2013 Edition SSD (120GB, 240GB and 480GB) Review
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Aerocool Xpredator X3 Devil Red Edition Full-Tower Chassis Review
Introduction
Looking at what the Xpredator X1 offered, for that time, it was a good mix of a basic case design on the interior, and I would go as far as to say somewhat dated, even for that time. What sold me on the chassis design was the aesthetics that were very original then, as well as the louvered top. Some things I look back at now and dislike about that bay drive system that was so 2005, the rainbow of wires that are coming from the front I/O panel, and with what is offered now, there was little to no water cooling support. They covered things like wire management and space behind the motherboard tray, because I was nowhere near as good wiring cases then as I am today, and I don't recall any sort of panel fit issues.
The Xpredator X3 Devil Red Edition chassis we are looking at from Aerocool today is a take off on the original X1. While many things both internally, and externally have been changed, most of the aesthetics that sold buyers on the X1, will be very easy for those user to appreciate. Even for those who were completely unaware of Aerocool or their cases will have a hard time passing this chassis by when considering aesthetics and features.
In this review I plan to cover those factors, but I also will be looking for overall strength in the build, airflow, noise levels, and just how well the build comes together. If the Intro image of the Xpredator X3 has you intrigued, continue reading to see just how well this Devil Red Edition stacks up against other cases.
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DEEPCOOL M6 Audio Cooling Laptop Pad Review
Introduction
If this market was to continue on the route it was going originally, and I think companies were seeing poor sales in this area, I don't think laptop coolers as they were could survive. So now, along with using bright colors, a mixture of textures and materials, there is a definite added bonus to newer developments in this market. Additional audio is always welcomed in my mind, the louder the better in most cases, but if you have a few of your friends around the laptop by itself to watch a video, you already know that while everyone can see what is going on, one guy has to pay attention to the words and tell everyone what was said after. With DEEPCOOL going this new route that I have seen other companies show only in beta form so far, I think they could stand a real chance to swoop customers from many of the larger and more well-known names already offering tons of solutions in this category.
What DEEPCOOL is bringing forward today is the M6 Audio Cooling Pad. Their site states that the M6 stands for Marvelous Sound, with the additional 2.1 speaker system to deliver more audio pleasure to its users. The shape and styling of the cooler is said to be inspired by Need for Speed, and takes on a pointy nose, red and silver "windows", and the back does seem like the rear of a Ferrari or other high-dollar exotic vehicle.
The M6 has plenty of other "cool" features, as well as offering a USB hub in the back, but to get to the finer details, you must keep reading to see if DEEPCOOL ends up in the Winner's Circle, or if it took to the wall with three laps to go.
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Peter Pan (1953) Blu-ray Movie Review
Ordered to stop their playful acting out of the Peter Pan legend by their exasperated father, Wendy and her brothers John and Michael are visited one night by Peter Pan, the boy who never grew up, and through the assistance of his magical friend Tinkerbell, whisks the children to Neverland and straight into the war between the natives and Captain Hook.
Younger viewers who are more familiar with the spin-off Tinkerbell animated adventures may be taken aback at her personality change here, but the majority will continue to flock to one of the more naive and innocent of the Disney features, a flight of fancy perhaps, but an endearingly classic one nonetheless.
Peter Pan is presented in the aspect ratio of 1.33:1 encoded with AVC MPEG-4 compression.
Disney has a solid reputation for restoring their classic and whilst not all will be satisfied (especially the most strident of film purists), Peter Pan fares quite well with its latest round of visual nips and tucks.
The image is generally clear and sharp, although appearing a little soft at times. The applied level of digital noise reduction is far less egregious than on some live action films, but its new found smoothness does jar against how the film has traditionally looked. Color is particularly fantastic, although it appears to be slightly revised at times when viewed against previous home video transfers. I'd like to think that this transfer is the most accurate yet against the original animation, however I unfortunately don't have any on hand to give a definitive answer.
Overall, a pleasing transfer for one of Disney's beloved classics, and undoubtedly the best it has looked on home video yet.
Peter Pan is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1, at 24 bits.
Presumably working off the same 5.1 mix created for the 2007 DVD, Peter Pan now features an additional two rear channels, which is no mean feat for a film originally mixed in mono. It doesn't automatically make Peter Pan an aural powerhouse, but it does create a gently involving mix, which I've no doubt remains true to the original intentions of the original sound designers.
Voices come through perfectly audible, although a little shrill at times. Unsurprisingly, much of the music is very thin sounding, with plenty of treble and a dash of bass, but noticeably strangled in the mid-range frequencies. Of course, this is not a complaint of the Blu-ray per se, but more of the limitations surrounding 1950's recording. Musical numbers feature reasonable bleed into the rears channels, although not as much as a 7.1 mix would suggest.
Overall, bar some kind of sonic overhaul which re-records much of the sound elements, Peter Pan is never going to sound better than it does here.
The UK branch of Disney Home Entertainment previously released Peter Pan on Blu-ray last year with the extras prepared for the 2007 DVD release, however Disney U.S. released an updated Blu-ray version this March with additional enhancements and to Disney Australia's credit - this is the version we get locally. Let's jump in.
The Audio Commentary hosted by Walt's nephew Roy Disney (now deceased) has been cobbled together from vintage interviews with Walt and others involved in the production. It's certainly an interesting feature and one that would be nice to have on other vintage Disney feature films.
The longest of the featurettes is only peripherally concerned with Peter Pan; Growing Up with Nine Old Men is a great tribute to the folks who helped establish the Disney name into an entertainment powerhouse. Whilst they have all since passed on, family members and friends provide warm recollections and anecdotes on long and prosperous careers.
The Introduction by Diane Disney-Miller is a nice tribute to Walt from his daughter, who briefly relays Walt's fascination with J.M. Barrie's story.
Carried over from the previous DVD release is the 15 minute long You Can Fly: The Making of Peter Pan, which utilizes a mix of new and vintage footage to give a brief run through of production. In Walt's Words: Why I Made Peter Pan featurette is a dramatized, abridged version of an original article penned by Walt himself,
Tinker Bell: A Fairy's Tale which looks at the development of the character through various incarnations. The Peter Pan that Almost Was discusses the original treatment of the production over its gestation, while The Peter Pan Story is an original 1953 featurette, which briefly looks at production, including some early story reels.
Finally, we have a total of five Deleted Songs and Scenes and two Music Videos, one sung by Disney voice artist Paige O'Hara (whom you might know as the voice of Belle in Beauty and the Beast and one by a band called T-Squad, whom I have never heard of before and am not expecting to again.
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Plextor PX-M5M mSATA 256GB SSD Review
Introduction
I think Haswell will deliver a well-rounded experience for everyone, from notebook users to power users looking for the highest performance from every component. At this time there are very few Haswell notebook/ultrabooks on the market, but over the next three months that'll change. With everything heading Haswell's direction, the dream of $400 notebooks from Walmart with 8-hour battery life and SATA III is nearly a reality.
This opens a really wide channel for Plextor and other SSD makers to sell products to mainstream markets. A $400 notebook isn't going to ship with a large, high performance or for that matter any SSD at all.
A $400 notebook should include an mSATA port and with storage still the slowest component in a PC, it's also the first part that should get upgraded.
Today we spend time look at Plextor's PX-M5M mSATA 256GB SSD to see what it can do.
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Norton Mobile Security (reviewed on an Android device) Something I've personally never bothered with is mobile security, but when the opportunity to review it comes up - I'm not going to knock it back. I'm someone who is usually willing to give anything a try, so I jumped at the chance to test Norton's Mobile Security application.
I tested Norton Mobile Security on a phone I'm currently using to review - Samsung's latest and greatest Galaxy S4 - an Android-powered smartphone. The Android variant of Norton Mobile Security has many more features compared to the iOS version, something you should consider if you want to purchase this software.
The last screenshot shows you the six sections that Norton Mobile Security has on offer - Anti-Malware, Anti-Theft, Backup, Call Blocking, Web Protection and Norton Apps.
The user-interface is quite nice, with a slick loading bar when doing a scan. The UI of any application is something that is going to stand out, and I'm always a fan of first impressions - so, good work on the UI there, Norton!
You can backup all of your contacts, restore them all if something were to happen to your device, as well as schedule backups to a certain time (once a week or month, for example).
I can't make judgment on the iOS version, but with just three features, I think it would be pretty useless purchasing Norton Mobile Security for your iPhone or iPad. But for Android? It is a layer of security that some would find comforting. For me personally? I don't see the point of using it - I'll keep it installed, but I won't renew the license. This is because I have all of my information within my Google account anyway - look at all of the NSA PRISM news we've been posting lately - all of your information is at someone's fingertips, they just need the knowledge and power to get it.
Norton Mobile Security will protect you against those pesky websites and crappy apps from the Google Play Store, but beyond that, you always need to be vigilant with your smartphones and accounts to various apps and websites.
Do I recommend Norton Mobile Security? If you're the kind of person who downloads lots of apps and visits many websites that aren't so mainstream - yes. If you have kids - heck yes. If you're a power user, you probably skipped over this entire review for this sentence - this isn't for you.
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Casetagram Nexus 4 Custom Case Review Casetagram e-mailed me in the middle of last month out of nowhere, asking me if I'd like to check out their website. I didn't know what they did, but after reading their e-mail and checking out their website, I discovered they made custom phone covers for certain smartphones.
Casetagram do cases for a wide variety of devices, covering most of Apple's devices right up to the iPhone 5, the Galaxy S II, S III, S4, Note II and Note smartphones from Samsung and of course, the Nexus 4.
You're looking at around $40-$50 for the case, which includes free international shipping - something they don't need to do, but it makes it much more appealing as shipping can really be a killer. I'm based in Australia and my case took around eight days to get to me, which I thought was pretty impressive.
I noticed my case creaks when I squeeze it - for example, if I reach for my volume rocker and accidentally squeeze the sides. If I just squeeze it in general, it will squeak which makes it feel (and sound), cheap.
Mostly because of the way I'm used to using my phone, if I'm receiving a call and go to put it on silent by reaching for the volume rocker and pressing the volume down button. But, with a cut out under it, sometimes my finger will reach for that hole instead of the volume rocker. Sure, it's a small issue - but it's something definitely worth considering - and again, should be optioned in the custom making process.
A Casetagram case for a smartphone is the perfect gift for a loved ones birthday or Christmas present, which is something I suspect the company sees a huge spike in sales for. Highly recommended, and it would be a perfect score if they fixed the issues that I personally didn't agree with.
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Far Cry 3 PC Review
In Far Cry 3 you take control of Jason Brody, a young college kid with rich parents enjoying life to the max on an island paradise when things go awry. Jason and his friends are captured by pirates and the infamous Vaas. Taken for ransom from their wealthy parents, Jason manages to escape with his brother and from there the story becomes that you as Jason must rescue your friends, but also as you build acquaintances on the island, decide how you want the future to be for those people. There is a point where the story just becomes boring and formulaic unfortunately, but until then it's one of the best stories of this generation.
As expected based on the first two games, Far Cry 3 puts you in a massive open world with side missions and main story to complete. One of the key facets of the title is exploration and the game significantly rewards you for exploring. Whilst there are scripted elements to some of the missions, sometimes it's just interesting to wander about the island and see what the enemy and other NPCs are doing. One example was we were closing in on an enemy kill, only to see a crocodile jump out of the water to take him alive. If someone else was to go to that exact spot, it may not happen because those sequences are not scripted.
For example, if you get some shark skins, you can craft a new pouch which improves your inventory level - something which is a lot more interesting to do than just buy a new pouch. You can pick up leaves and plants to help you concoct medicine to heal Jason. At no real point in the game are you forced to buy things. For example, one area which encourages exploration is the local stores. If you manage to take over the local radio tower, the shops will give you free weapons as a reward whilst that tower is not held by the enemies. It's a really interesting mechanic that rewards exploration in a manner that is tangible rather than just 'let's see this entire island'.
For the most part the missions are also enjoyable to play as well. There are over thirty campaign missions with quite a number more side missions to complete. To complete Far Cry 3 without doing side missions will take you about 10 hours and so it is a fairly meaty game when you compare it to most releases. The game does contain fast travel once you have visited a location although sometimes it is better to just explore and see the world on offer.
What Far Cry 3 manages to achieve is a believable world. This island could be a real world thing (although it's not), and the developers have clearly put a lot of work into building a fantastic world for the game. It has the crazy professor and the tribal warriors to complete the mix. But what takes it to the next level is the various fauna milling about the place. You can be swimming quietly in the rivers or ocean and the next minute a shark or crocodile attacks. The first time this happens you will literally jump in your seat and it's generally over before it even starts. You can imagine this is how it happens in the real world as well with most victims attacked before they even know it's happening.
On the PC at least, Far Cry 3 is a visual tour de force and one of the best games graphically we have ever played. If you have the hardware and video card to push this to the max you will see a visually stunning world with amazing graphics. Tone the graphics done a little and the game still shines even on older hardware, so it is clear Ubisoft has done its job in optimizing this game for fairly run of the mill systems as well. This is something that the original Far Cry game was criticised for not doing.
The game also features a co-operative multiplayer portion for up to four players to take part in. It is set six months before the actual events of the single player campaign and so in many ways is its own story. Introducing co-operative into such an awesome, open world game is something that Ubisoft had to do to take this game to the next level. With a length of about six hours, you certainly get your money's worth even though it's not the main campaign.
Far Cry 3 started out with a great E3 presentation that put the hype levels through the roof. Usually when this happens games significantly let us down, but in this case Ubisoft has delivered. No doubt they felt the pressure of such an awesome opening with Vaas and our main character, but instead of crumbling, they produced what is sure to be one of the best games of 2012.
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Hitman: Absolution Xbox 360 Review
This game became Kane & Lynch which had middling success in both sales and critical format. So six years later we have the return of Agent 47 and it's not without changes. Absolution completely changes up the series in many ways and we still aren't sure if all the changes and decisions made were the right ones.
Absolution picks up with Agent 47 being tasked to kill his agency handler Diana. She has gone rogue and has been selling secrets to enemies of the agency so his final contract becomes her. The agency has produced another agent from a child, Victoria with Diana on her deathbed asking 47 to protect her at all costs. This is what the story primarily revolves around; the protection of Victoria and escaping from the agency that 47 once called home. From the outset this shows just how much of a departure Absolution is to the regular format with previous games tasking 47 with contracts to fulfil for the agency.
This is only apparent on some of the levels. On many levels within the game there are no targets and instead it is 47's goal to reach another area to continue the story. As well as this there are times where the game takes control from you and performs kills in cut scenes. For a series which has focused so much on clean quiet kills from a gameplay perspective, to have this happen is frustrating. There are some sections in the game where quiet kills just cannot occur.
This is where you will like this game or not. Whilst in the past each mission was one huge environment for 47 to traverse and come up with sneaky ways to take out the target, in this game you are instead tasked with basically getting from point a to point b. Hitman in many ways becomes a third person shooter with the amount of sandbox missions able to be counted on less than two hands. Given that there are 20 missions overall in the game, this is a bit disappointing.
However, on those levels which do give you the freedom to explore and come up with various ways to take out the targets, the game absolutely shines. Previously seen at E3, the King of Chinatown level is one such example where there is many different ways to take out the target such as poisoning fish or blowing up a car. And it is these missions that you will revisit over and over again to try and come up with different ways to end the mission without being seen.
As well as the actual targets each mission contains a number of challenges to complete. Sometimes these challenges are to take out the targets in various different ways whilst other times it can be tasks such as finishing the mission only using 47's suit. Given that you very often traverse areas where you should not be, doing this is harder than it sounds.
Many of the elements we have seen in previous titles have again come back. You can still take the disguises of other characters although this is a bit harder than last time around.
Enemies will spot that you are not one of them quite easily and so it becomes a case of still having to focus on stealth even when blended in. To aid with this, 47 now has an instinct ability which allows you to see enemies through walls and walk near enemies in disguise without being spotted. You gain more instinct by performing quiet kills and tasks.
One of the more frustrating elements of Absolution is the change from limited save games to checkpoints. Instead of being able to save at any point in the game (within a limited number), you now have to track down and find checkpoints in the level. They are generally off the beaten track and this can be very frustrating especially on the tougher levels. The checkpoints also do not get retained if you leave your game which we have no idea why IO Interactive decided that was a good idea.
On the visual and environmental side of things the game is generally impressive. Whilst there is quite a variety to the locations that you will visit during your time with the game, it is not as varied as it was in Blood Money with some locations being visited more than once. Some of the missions are quite large in size whilst others are almost corridors only. It goes without saying the larger missions are the ones where 47's abilities can really shine. One thing that is true is that in general IO Interactive has used the environments to the best of their abilities with 47 being able to perform numerous environmental based kills on his targets.
Multiplayer comes in the form of contracts mode and in an ironic twist this system is much closer to that of the older games. You can either build or download contracts from other users and basically you are dropped into a world and have to kill targets silently to fulfil the contract. As you do so you gain money which can be used to upgrade your weaponry in multiplayer. This is an interesting take on multiplayer and we hope that users really embrace this system because it's entirely possible this could give the game a lot of legs.
Hitman: Absolution is a game that made us think about how we review games in many ways. Should we review a game based on what the name is on the box, or what the content actually is. Of course the latter is the answer, but we can't help but feel that this is not the greatest Hitman game. It's significantly different to other Hitman titles, but it's also not a bad game. If you come into the game expecting Blood Money 2 you will be disappointed, but if you look past this you will find a competent Hitman game that has just enough elements of its predecessors to ensure you should play as 47 again.
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Assassin's Creed III: Liberation PlayStation Vita Review
However, with the release of a new platform, the PS Vita, Ubisoft decided to give the portable space another crack with the AC series and have come out with mixed results. Liberation is not necessarily a bad game, but there are some areas which can be quite infuriating to play.
Liberation for the first time introduces a female character as the main lead. You play as Aveline, the black daughter of a rich businessman in the 1700's. A result of infidelity, Aveline lives with her step mother and father in New Orleans as one of the wealthy and famous. However, Aveline wants to rid the world of slavery, especially for her people and sets about trying to bring down the tyranny which existed in the time. Set in the 1700's, the game takes place during the same timeline as that of the main console game, and to get the most out of the story, you need to play both.
This is probably the most interesting change to the franchise because it means you often have to change your clothing to complete tasks. Having to change clothing to complete a task can be a tad tiresome (especially when it's not clear which clothing you should be wearing), but all the same the addition enhances the franchise.
As well as the main city, you will also visit the bayou of New Orleans which gives you the opportunity to partake in tree climbing and jumping. Ripped directly from the console game with Connor you can at will climb trees and often have to when completing assassination tasks. The game controls well and it's very obvious when you can and cannot climb trees. The Bayou has a very Metal Gear Solid 3 feel to it - a large, lush jungle full of crocodiles and other animals that can hurt Aveline. The main difference being that Aveline does not need to eat animals to survive.
The structure of the game takes on that of its console big brothers. The game includes nine sequences to complete which is a little on the short side and you will have this game down in around six to eight hours depending on how good you are at it. There is no difficulty setting so once you finish it, that's it really.
There are a number of side tasks to complete and there is a meta game where you can control a shipping company to gain money, but really in the grand scheme of things, you can ignore these and easily complete the game. One of the interesting elements is that the story you get if you just play the main missions is not the actual story. To get the real ending you need to take out a particular hidden character in each sequence.
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One of the biggest bugbears we have with the game is the PS Vita controls. The main controls themselves are fine, but when the developer is trying to shoe horn in the touch mechanics of the game, it just starts to break. For example, the game will at times ask you to put the Vita camera near a bright light. It took us a while to find a light that would give the Vita what it wanted, and there was no indication at all whether we were getting closer or not.
There are also other sections of the game which use the back touchpad such as paddling a canoe. There is nothing wrong with trying to include Vita specific controls, but when they work like they do in Liberation (it's a lucky dip as to whether your motions will be picked up), it would have been best to leave them out.
The environments that the game is set in are impressive for a handheld product. The city of New Orleans is beautifully represented by period buildings and the actual city itself is quite large, but nowhere near what you find in the console games of course. The split of the bayou and the city is an interesting feature with both environments having graphical problems as well as also some impressive sections. Voice acting on the system is impressive especially for a handheld and whilst the soundtrack can become repetitive, it suits the game and setting well.
There is no doubt that Assassin's Creed III: Liberation is the most impressive handheld version of the series yet. Ubisoft has used some of Vita's power well, but also included some utterly frustrating mini games based on the touch and camera features. It is on the short side and that means it's not really suitable as something for a long distance trip, but for short spurts on the way to work, it works almost perfectly.
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Samsung Unveils New Solid State Drives at its Annual SSD Global Summit SEOUL, Korea - July 18, 2013 - Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world leader in advanced memory technology, today held the 2013 Samsung SSD Global Summit at the Westin Chosun Seoul in celebration of the launch of its new solid state drive (SSD), the Samsung SSD 840 EVO. Along with the announcement of its latest SSD and under the theme of "SSDs for everyone," the Samsung SSD Global Summit also explored the future of the global SSD market, which is quickly replacing the hard disc drive (HDD) market.
"After accelerating the growth of the SSD market with last year's launch of entry-level, high-performance SSDs, we are introducing much faster SSDs with up to 1TB capacities offering consumers a wider range of choices," said Young-Hyun Jun, executive vice president, memory sales & marketing, Samsung Electronics. "Samsung continues to enhance its SSD brand image by delivering the industry's highest quality solutions and continuously increasing its SSD market share by expanding the adoption of higher density SSDs especially in client PC segments."
At this year's event, Samsung unveiled new high-performance, high-density SSDs. Among the highlights were the 840 EVO, a consumer-oriented entry-level, high-performance SATA based SSD offering up to 1TB capacity.
As part of its strategy to expand into the consumer market and further popularize SSDs, Samsung plans to initially introduce the Samsung SSD 840 EVO to major global markets in early August. Samsung will expand into additional markets at a later date.
The new Samsung SSD 840 EVO line-up makes use of the industry's most compact 10-nanometer class** 128Gb high-performance NAND flash memory, which Samsung began mass producing in April. With these chips and Samsung's proprietary multi-core MEX controller, the Samsung SSD 840 EVO achieves unrivaled value for performance with improved sequential read and write speeds.
At this year's Samsung SSD Global Summit, approximately 150 global business press, consumer media and power bloggers from twelve countries were invited, allowing Samsung to introduce high efficiency SSDs to global consumers and show participants just how simple it is to install and utilize SSDs in their notebooks.
Consumer-Oriented High-Performance Entry-Level SSD '840 EVO' Line-up Launch (up to 1TB)
Samsung has released the entry-level SSD '840 EVO' line-up with significantly higher sequential write performance. Utilizing the industry's most compact 10nm-class 128Gb high-performance NAND, Samsung proprietary controller and Turbo Write drive, the Samsung SSD 840 EVO boasts superior performance.
Compared with the 250GB 840 Series SSD, the highest selling capacity of the 840 lineup, the new 250GB 840 EVO now delivers 520MB/s sequential write speed - making it more than two times faster than the previous generation. In the case of 120GB model, the 840 EVO achieves up to 410MB/s sequential write speed, which is approximately three times as fast as that of the 120GB 840 Series SSD.
For the 1TB 840 EVO SSD, the sequential read/write performance has reached 540MB/s and 520MB/s. Furthermore, both the random read and write performance have improved, reaching 98,000 IOPS (Input Output Operations Per Second) and 90,000 IOPS, respectively. This significantly enhances the user's real-world computing experience, especially when he or she is dealing with very large data files.
The Samsung SSD 840 EVO line-up is available in five capacities: 120GB, 250GB, 500GB, 750GB, and 1TB, supporting a wide range of computing environments and IT applications. It has also significantly narrowed the capacity-induced differences in performance, which gives consumers a broader spectrum of devices to choose from.
For more information about Samsung's memory and SSD products, please visit http://www.samsung.com/GreenMemory and http://www.samsung.com/SSD.
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Top 10 TweakTown Press Releases from the past week [08 July 2013] Here are our top 10 posted press releases from the past week!
- Chromium-Based Opera 15 Has Arrived
- HighPoint Unveils the Industry's first 6Gb/s SATA Expander Module
- Windows 8.1 Preview Now Available
- 3x Battery Life for Nexus 4 From Mugen Power
- Biwin Introduces Half Slim H6201 Embedded SSD
- TRENDnet Ships Powerful NAS Media Server
- ADATA Launches Sleek New DashDrive HV620
- Origin PC Announces its New Online Gear Shop
- SteelSeries Siberia V2 Now in Heat Orange
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OCZ Technology Group Updates Investors on Restatement Progress OCZ Technology Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: OCZ), a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) and power management solutions for computing devices and systems, is updating investors on its restatement process.
As previously disclosed, on December 17, 2012, the Audit Committee of OCZ Technology Group, Inc. concluded that the Company should restate its previously-issued consolidated financial statements for fiscal year 2012 and the first quarter of fiscal 2013. In the course of its restatement work for these periods, the Company identified two misclassification items in its previously-issued consolidated financial statements for fiscal years 2009, 2010 and 2011.
These items include: 1) the recording of certain previously-expensed manufacturing and freight costs that should have been capitalized in inventory and recorded in cost of goods sold upon shipment, and 2) the classification of certain customer incentive program credits as operating expenses that should have been recorded as an offset to reported net revenue. The aggregate impact of these items on the Company's previously-reported net income or loss for these periods is expected to be de minimis, although gross profit levels will be reduced from amounts previously-reported. We believe the impact to periods prior to 2012 will be isolated to these two items, though we have not yet completed our restatement work.
The impact of all adjustments made during the restatement process will be disclosed in more detail in the Company's restated financial statements, which will be provided as soon as practicable. Until the restatements are released, in addition to the financial statements for the periods referenced in the paragraph above, related press releases and shareholder communications describing the results reported in these financial statements should no longer be relied upon.
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Silicon Power Launches Sky Share S10 Wi-Fi SD Card Silicon Power, the world's leading provider of memory storage solutions proudly launches its brand-new Wi-Fi SD card - the Sky Share S10 Wi-Fi SD card. Combined with the application of Wi-Fi technology and the storage function of an ordinary memory card, Sky Share S10 features its multiple functions allowing users to transfer and share photos instantaneously. Are you not a fan of photos or videos taken on your mobile phone camera? Do you get annoyed having to find a card readers or computer for uploading images? Now, with the convenience of Sky Share S10, it will clear all the troubles away by allowing you to share each happy moment captured with your friends anytime and anywhere! With the simple concept of "shoot and view" and "instant sharing", Sky Share S10 offers you an ideal way to preserve and share all your precious memories with ease and convenience.
Share your joy with incredible speed and capacity Possessing Class 10 speed rating, Sky Share S10 Wi-Fi SD card delivers outstanding transferring speed and stable performance. Not only offering incredible speed, S10 also provides users with high capacity of 16GB and 32GB. Furthermore, Sky Share S10 is superior to other Wi-Fi SD cards with its excellent design of Web UI, which enables non-App users to enjoy the benefits of Wi-Fi SD card and share their photos simultaneously. Sky Share S10 comes with 2 years warranty. For more information, please visit the SP/Silicon Power website: http://www.silicon-power.com
Sky Share S10 Product Features:
- "Shoot and View" and "Instant Sharing"
- Easy to use: no setup required
- Exclusive "Sky Share SD" APP for free download
- Support iOS and Android APP
- Support up to 5 people for photo sharing simultaneously
- Class10 speed performance
- Excellent design of Web UI
- Card dimension: 32 x 24 x 2.1mm
- Weight: 2 g
- Interface: IEEE802.11b/g/n
- Operation temperature: 0C ~ 60C
- Operation voltage: 2.8V~3.3V
- Frequency: 2.4GHz
- Operating system: iOS and Android
- Capacity: 16GB & 32GB
- Warranty: 2 years warranty
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Cooler Master Announces CM Storm QuickFire XT Mechanical Keyboard Cooler Master, a leading creator, innovator and manufacturer of desktop components, mobile accessories, and gaming peripherals, today announced the long awaited QuickFire XT, the full 104 key sibling to the top-rated QuickFire Rapid. Exhibiting the same extremely solid construction that won the hearts of QuickFire Rapid owners, QuickFire XT is sure to impress gamers once again.
To learn more about CherryMX switches and the benefits of mechanical keyboards, visit this page.
Hassle-free Travel and Size Travel with ease by simply removing the included braided USB cable and storing it. At all times, the QuickFire XT makes itself a more journey-ready partner with its super-slim body. It allows the keyboard to be more ergonomically-friendly while being easier to transport than most full-sized mechanical keyboards.
The QuickFire XT will be available July, 2nd 2013 in Green, Red, Blue, and Brown Cherry MX Switch models. Price and availability may vary based on region. For more information, visit the product page.
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Cooler Master Introduces the JetFlo 120 Cooling Fan Cooler Master, a leading creator, innovator and manufacturer of desktop components and more, today announced the unveiling of a high-performance, long-lasting LED fan, the JetFlo 120. It enters the market as the first premium quality LED fan.
JetFlo 120 was created to be a single, no compromise solution to cooling computer systems. Designers and engineers focused on "Performance", "Style", and "Silence" as core principles that should be tuned and brought to the forefront of the JetFlo 120 experience.
JetFlo 120 fans each contain ultra-thin, yet surprisingly strong fan blades that minimize resistance and maximize performance. These advanced fan blades cut through the air at speeds ranging between 800 - 2000 RPM and produce up to 95 CFM when operating at full power.
Power is nothing without a strong foundation. Fortunately, JetFlo 120 is built to last far longer than traditional case fans. It features a high-efficiency motor with a low starting voltage. The motor is even protected by a Smart Jam Protection design that automatically stops operation when obstructions are present. The fan motor auto-starts when these obstructions have been cleared. The JetFlo 120 motor is even protected against reverse polarity.
Utilizing exclusive Cooler Master POM bearing technology, JetFlo 120 is nearly dustproof and will last up to 160,000 hours. This extended lifespan is owed to POM bearings being self-lubricating and experiencing little friction during operation.
Style
JetFlo 120 fans come equipped with high quality LED lighting that spreads evenly from the motor, creating a more clean and consistent ambiance. Models will be available in Red, White, and Blue. Those with more discrete tastes will be able to procure a stealth black fan blade model with no LEDs.
Silence
Despite producing up to 95 CFM, JetFlo 120 still only registers in at 36 dBa. This is attributed to a completely re-imagined mounting system and the exclusive POM bearing. The mounting corners are now constructed of a durable rubber that contains threaded steel inserts. These corners assist in absorbing much of the vibrations and noise produced by the fan. The POM bearings low friction operation means that less vibrations and noise will be produced overall. All JetFlo 120 fans fully support BIOS or software control of fan speed via PWM functions. Should users not want to hassle with software, two silent mode adapters are included to lock the fan speed at 1600 RPM and 1200 RPM, respectively.
The JetFlo 120 will be available from the middle of July for a price of around €14,95 / £10,95.
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SteelSeries Siberia V2 Now in Heat Orange SteelSeries, the industry leader in competitive gaming peripherals today announced the newest edition of the iconic Siberia headset, the Siberia v2 Heat Orange Edition is now available in North America. The new edition headset glows with orange LED lights on the outside of each ear cup that can be customized to exact user specifications via the SteelSeries Engine. The headset is equipped with large, premium driver units for the loudest and clearest sound while the circumaural earcups are wrapped in soft leather for comfort and increased passive noise reduction. The Siberia v2 Headset is used by competitive players from around the globe, because of the superior audio performance and SteelSeries' signature over-the-head suspension system, which provides an unmatched lightweight, comfort for long game sessions.
Awarded for its unique design and superior sound quality, the Siberia v2 Heat Orange Headset combines the classic Siberia style with illumination, control, and features including:
- HEAT ORANGE ILLUMINATION: Super-bright, orange LED lights that glow through the outer mesh grill on each earcup. The illumination offers 6 different modes and can be assigned to behavior and game specific profiles through the SteelSeries Engine, including: Active Mode (responsive pulsing to sound effects, music, and/or voice), Slow Pulse, Fast Pulse, High Bright, Low Bright and Off.
- SUPERIOR SOUND & COMFORT: It has an incredibly lightweight, over-the-head SteelSeries suspension design with an active noise-cancelling microphone and circumaural earcups that feature large, premium driver units, covered by black leather cushions for comfort and passive-noise reduction.
- NOISE-CANCELLING MICROPHONE & CONTROLS: The Siberia v2 Heat Orange features an active noise cancelling microphone system. The microphone processor reduces the "noise" and focuses on the sound that is closer to the mic, your voice. It can also retract into the left earcup when not in use. The headsets in-line volume and mute controls are found on a durable cord with a USB connector.
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Chromium-Based Opera 15 Has Arrived With the travel season just around the corner, the Scandinavian browser-maker Opera Software today released the final version of its all-new Opera for Windows and Mac, debuting with a fresh look and completely new features.
Download
Download the completely new Opera for Windows and Mac for free. Go to Opera, click the download button, close your eyes and think about spectacular blue fjords. When Opera finishes installing, you will be ready to explore.
Do your research
Plan ahead for travel. Opera's refreshed Speed Dial gives you a smarter way to organize your favorite websites. Drag one Speed Dial entry on top of another to group them by topics, like hotel options, sightseeing ideas or whatever you wish. With a new search option, Speed Dial gets you to your top sites in a flash.
Compare
If you're not the Grand Master of Memory, keeping track of all your discoveries can be tricky when doing a lot of web research. Now, comparing articles, hotels, sights or flights is way easier with the new Stash feature. Stash allows you to collect snapshots of saved webpages in one place, which can be resized to give you a preview of each page. This gives you and your travel mates a more intuitive way of cherry-picking.
Fire up the new engine
The new Opera for Windows and Mac runs on a Chromium engine, so you can access all your websites in a blink of an eye and have a smoother experience when you get there, thanks to improved site compatibility.
Discover
Discover the world around you, from the comfort of your beach lounger. Lean back and get fed with new, inspiring content brought to you by Opera. The new Discover feature brings you top articles from the location and categories you choose, all in one place. Get inspired by local food recipes or destinations while traveling abroad, or scan the top headlines from your country.
Go off-roading
The Opera browser easily transforms into an off-road vehicle for all those who love to escape from the mainstream tourist routes. Off-Road mode, Opera's unique compression feature, enables loading webpages faster, even while on the most sluggish connection.
"The world of fascinating web content is expanding faster than space, and we've delivered a browser that helps you to truly discover it," says Lars Boilesen, Opera Software, CEO. "Get inspired by new ways of exploring web horizons, and stay tuned for some of our most beloved features, as we continue to develop the next generation of Opera."
Read more about the all-new Opera for Windows and Mac in our Reviewer's Guide.
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Toshiba Expands its Semiconductor Facility at Yokkaichi Toshiba Corporation today announced that it will expand its state-of-art No. 5 semiconductor fabrication facility (Fab 5) at Yokkaichi Operations in Mie, Japan, to secure manufacturing space for NAND flash memories fabricated with next generation process technology and for future 3D memories. Fab 5 second phase construction will start at the end of August this year and be completed in summer next year. Decisions on equipment investment and production will reflect market trends.
In addition to securing capacity for future generations of NAND Flash memory fabricated with the company's latest process technology, Toshiba will also use Fab 5 phase 2 for production of 3D memories that are expected to find growing application in coming years. The extension will allow the company to boost competitiveness and enhance its responsiveness to technology advances and market demands.
Fab 5 phase 2 will have an automated product transportation system and quake-absorbing structure and will be designed to minimize environmental loads. Deployment of LED lighting and up-to-date energy-saving production facilities, along with full and effective use of waste heat, are expected to cut CO2 emissions by 13% compared with Fab 4.
Going forward, Toshiba will expand its memory business and boost competitiveness by timely investments, leadership in advanced process technology and the development of new generation memories that answer market needs.
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Apotop Announces AP-U6 Compact USB 3.0 Flash Drive Apotop, a provider of memory, storage, and personal cloud devices, is pleased to announce the AP-U6 USB 3.0 external storage drive is now available in North America. Thanks to its ultra-compact size and slim profile, the AP-U6 is a cost-efficient way to expand the storage capacities of MacBook Air notebooks.
Available in 32GB and 64GB models, the AP-U6 provides a significant boost to the storage capacities of MacBook Air notebooks. Plus, with its USB 3.0 speeds data can be quickly transferred between the AP-U6 and the internal drive.
Price and Availability The Apotop AP-U6 will be available on Newegg and Amazon for the suggested retail price of $49.99. For more information, visit the product page.
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BIOSTAR Announces Hi-Fi A85W 3D Socket FM2 Motherboard BIOSTAR, maker of embedded/IPC solutions, graphics cards, and motherboards, has introduced their latest motherboard that supports AMD's FM2 APU family (Trinity / Richland), the Hi-Fi A85W 3D. It comes with BIOSTAR's own in-house audio technology called "Hi-Fi 3D".
- Hi-Fi 3D Technology enables high definition multi-dimensional sound where it matters the most with height, width, and depth in front of the listener. It's based on the physics of reproduced sound and the basic human perception of sound. The high resolution sound reproduction goes beyond existing sound enhancements or virtualization technologies.
- Smart Ear 3D provides true reproduction of a virtual 3D space using any typical set of headphones. It delivers true 3D sound for music, movies, and games.
- Choose from six types of 3D Sound Fields; including Hi-Fi Theater, Hi-Fi Hall, Hi-Fi Game spots, Hi-Fi Studio, Hi-Fi Conference, and Hi-Fi Bistro for different applications. BIOSTAR Hi-Fi 3D technology involves the virtual placement of sound sources anywhere in 3 dimensional spaces, including behind, above or below.
- With the new generation built-in 3D amplifier, BIOSTAR Hi-Fi-3D motherboards can drive major high-end headphones with an over 100dB load and up to 600ohm impedance. It allows you enjoy a fuller range of dynamic sound with crisper details and less distortion when you are using any typical set of headphones.
- Smart ? is BIOSTAR's Hi-Fi 3D exclusive function. No matter what kind of gain your headphones are capable of, it will auto detect the appropriate gain and assign a suitable impedance range.
- Hi-Fi 3D Technology has a "pre-amp", a built-in power amplifier to boost the speaker volume. It can increase the volume level by double with high-quality HD audio output. Hi-Fi 3D Technology not only improves on the headphones performance but also enhances your speakers' sound volume.
- The Hi-V Cap is a Metalized Polypropylene Film Capacitor for each audio channel circuit. The customized audio capacitors deliver low noise, low distortion, and a wide bandwidth to achieve the highest sound resolution and sound expansion.
- BIOSTAR Hi-Fi series motherboards have a sampling rate of 192kHz/24-bit which delivers a high quality audio through an analog connection to your home theater system, multi-channel speakers or high-end headphones. Enjoy true Blu-ray grade high-definition sound that you've never experienced with a regular PC before.
- Multi Channel Calibration (MCC) can transform any room into an ideal listening environment. With (MCC), audio performance is automatically calibrated according to the dimensions of your room. Simply place the speaker and setup the microphone at your usual listening spot, position the speakers and connect them. The user can set the speaker settings easily by using the free bundled MCC software.
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ASUS Announces PQ321Q Pre-Order: The World's First Consumer 4K Monitor ASUS, a worldwide leader in high performance large screen displays, today announced the exclusive pre-order for the highly-anticipated PQ321Q True 4K UHD monitor. Starting July 1st, US consumers will be able to pre-order the world's first consumer 4K monitor through Newegg, Amazon, or TigerDirect at an introductory MSRP of $3,499 USD. The PQ321Q True 4K UHD Monitor, a desktop display with a stunning Ultra HD 3840 x 2160 resolution, delivers a screen resolution equivalent to four Full HD displays combined. It has a 31.5-inch LED-backlit 4K Ultra HD display (140 pixels-per-inch) with a 16:9 aspect ratio, and supports 10-bit RGB 'deep color' for vibrant images with more natural transitions between hues.
The ASUS PQ321Q True 4K UHD Monitor uses cutting-edge Indium Gallium Zinc Oxide (IGZO) rather than traditional amorphous silicon for the active layer of its LCD panel. IGZO panels support much smaller transistors than amorphous silicon, enabling much smaller pixels. This allows the PQ321Q to have four times the amount of pixels compared to a 1920 x 1080 Full HD display. Despite the increase in pixels, the PQ321Q offers peace of mind by coming with a 30-day Zero Bright Dot warranty.
To ensure the ultimate visual experience, 176-degree wide viewing angles on both vertical and horizontal planes minimize onscreen color shift, while the 350cd/m² brightness rating and 8ms gray-to-gray response time ensure smooth, bright, and vibrant moving visuals. IGZO technology also gives reduced energy consumption compared to amorphous silicon and reduces bulk, maximizing your available space. At 35mm at its thickest point, the PQ321Q is not only the first True 4K UHD consumer monitor but also the thinnest available today.
Comprehensive Video Inputs for UHD Content
The ASUS PQ321Q True 4K UHD Monitor features DisplayPort and dual HDMI ports with Picture-by-Picture support. DisplayPort's Multi Stream Transport mode allows 60Hz refresh rates at 3840 x 2160 resolution using graphics cards from NVIDIA, AMD, and integrated video from 4th Generation Intel Core processors. Built-in 2W stereo speakers remove the need for additional desktop clutter and, in addition to being wall-mountable, the monitor stand offers full height, swivel, and tilt adjustments.
Specifications:
- Model: PQ321Q
- DISPLAY PANEL: 31.5" (80.1 cm), 3840x2160, IGZO WLED Backlit, 0.182mm Pixel Pitch
- DISPLAY COLORS: 1073.7 million colors /100% sRGB/80% NTSC CIE1976 / 72% NTSC CIE1931
- BRIGHTNESS: Min < 80cd/m2 Max: 350cd/m2
- CONTRAST RATIO: Native 800:1
- VIEWING ANGLE (CR ? 10): Horizontal: 176 / Vertical: 176
- RESPONSE TIME: 8ms (GTG)
- LOOK-UP TABLE: 14 bit LUT
- COLOR AND GAMMA: Standard, Vivid, and sRGB color modes. 18 levels of color temperature 3K-10K in 500K increments.
- 5 Gamma Modes: 1.8, 2.0, 2.2, 2.4, Standard
- VIDEO I/O: DisplayPort 1.2, 2x HDMI 1.4, RS-232C
- AUDIO I/O: 2W x 2 stereo, 3.5mm In, 3.5mm Out (for HDMI and DP only)
- HEIGHT ADJUSTMENT: 0 ~ 150mm / 0 - 5.9"
- PIVOT / SWIVEL / TILT: Swivel +45 to -45 / Tilt +25 to -5
- FEATURES: Picture-by-Picture, Screen/OSD Rotate, Kensington Lock
- VESA WALL MOUNT: 100mm x 100mm
- DIMENSION (WxHxD): 750 x 489 x 256 mm (with stand) / 29.5 x 19.2 x 10 inches (with stand)
- NET WEIGHT: 13Kg / 28.6lbs
- REGULATORY APPROVALS: UL/cUL, FCC, ICES, RoHS, WEEE, Windows 7 and 8 WHQL
- MAX. POWER CONSUMPTION: Operating ? 93W / Standby < 6W / Low Power < 1W
- ACCESSORIES: DisplayPort cable, Power Cord, RS-232C conversion cable, Warranty card, Cable Tie
- MSRP: $3,499 USD
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Origin PC Announces its New Online Gear Shop ORIGIN PC celebrates the grand opening of their new online "gear shop" where you can now purchase exclusive items like ORIGIN PC branded peripherals, ORIGIN PC apparel and much more! Featuring exclusive items like an ORIGIN PC branded ASTRO A40 Audio system with incredibly crisp Dolby 7.1 surround sound, the online gear shop is the best source for customers to order their favorite ORIGIN PC branded peripherals, apparel and accessories to complement their existing ORIGIN PC systems.
To celebrate the launch of the new Gear Shop the ORIGIN PC branded Astro A40 Audio System is 10% off for one week only. For more information, please visit the ORIGIN PC Gear Shop here.
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3x Battery Life for Nexus 4 From Mugen Power Mugen Power Batteries (http://www.mugen-power-batteries.com) the manufacturer of high-capacity batteries for handheld devices, today announces the new CC-E960 Mugen Power 4500mAh Extended Battery Case for LG Google Nexus 4 which extends the time consumers can use this popular device. The battery case is immediately available from Mugen Power Batteries with free shipping worldwide.
As well as delivering longer life, the new battery case is also exceptionally reliable. Like other Mugen batteries, the Mugen 4500mAh Extended Battery case for Google Nexus 4 has undergone vigorous QA testing to ensure the highest quality and lowest return rate. The battery is also in compliance with the CE requirements.
"Google Nexus 4 owners are often reported to complain about short battery life of the device. We worked hard on this project and managed to fit 4500mAh capacity into that new battery case. Our solution gives customers added battery life to stay connected longer without recharges and make more with the smartphone than ever before," says Nikolai Lebedovsky, CEO at Mugen Power Batteries
Pricing and Availability
Mugen Power 4500mAh Extended Battery case for Google Nexus 4 is available for US$89.50 direct from Mugen Power Batteries at http://www.mugen-power-batteries.com/mugen-power-4500mah-power-case-for-lg-nexus-4.html. Price includes free shipping worldwide and 365 days warranty.
More information on the product: http://www.mugen-power-batteries.com Connect with Mugen Power Batteries on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MugenPowerBatteries Follow Mugen Power on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MugenBatteries
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Top 10 TweakTown Press Releases from the past week [01 July 2013] Here are our top 10 posted press releases from the past week!
- World's Top Overclockers to Compete at Computex OC Main Event Sponsored by Corsair
- Windows 8.1 Preview Now Available
- OCZ Technology to Showcase its Leading Solid State Drives and Launch New Power Management Solutions at Computex 2013
- Gainward Rolls Out GTX 780 Phantom GLH (Goes Like Hell) Edition
- LSI Expands its Nytro Product Portfolio of PCIe Flash Adapters
- HAVOK RELEASES PROJECT ANARCHY, COMPLETELY FREE END-TO-END MOBILE 3D GAME ENGINE
- Western Digital to Strategically Expand Its Position in Enterprise Solid State Storage With the Acquisition of STEC, INC.; Company to be Fully Integrated Into HGST
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HighPoint Unveils the Industry's first 6Gb/s SATA Expander Module July 2013, Milpitas CA - HighPoint Technologies unveils the Industry's first 6Gb/s SATA Expander Module with Built-in Enclosure Management - the Rocket EJ340. Rocket EJ340 SATA Expander Modules are ideal for applications that demand cost-effective, high-capacity 6Gb/s storage configurations, and are available for PC and Mac platforms. The Industry standard Mini-SAS connectors and Centronics compliant form factor allow Rocket EJ340 expander modules to be easily integrated into a variety of storage Enclosure.
The Rocket EJ340 allows RocketRAID series 6Gb/s HBA's support up to 16 SATA hard drives from a single connector, effectively quadrupling the storage capability of each external Mini-SAS port! Rocket EJ340 SATA Expander Modules EXPAND the Storage Capability of RocketRAID 6Gb/s Mini-SAS RAID HBA's: 400% more Storage Capacity and Scalable Performance!!
Best Cost/Performance Alternative for SAS Expander Solutions
Rocket EJ340 paired with RocketRAID HBA's deliver a wide-range of SATA Storage Solutions suitable for any platform: from Professional Server & Workstation Applications to Entry-Level RAID Storage upgrades. The Rocket EJ340 can support a wide-range of RAID configurations such as RAID 0, 1, 5, 6, 10, 50 and JBOD. RAID level support varies depending on which card the expander is paired with. Advanced features such as Online Capacity Expansion (OCE) and Online RAID Level Migration (ORLE), which allow clients to expand, upgrade or convert RAID existing configurations as needed without compromising data.
Built-In Storage Management Capability
The EJ340 delivers comprehensive enclosure management and monitoring features designed to simplify and streamline storage maintenance. Each EJ340 featured integrated temperature sensors and 3 fan ports with automated speed-control to help maintain a consistent temperature for the local storage environment. In addition, EJ340 Expander Modules provide connectors for up to 2 additional temperature sensors, an audible alarm, and LED pins for enclosure monitoring, error and warning notifications.
Rocket EJ340 Expander Modules include a comprehensive storage monitoring suite, which merges seamlessly with RocketRAID RAID Management interfaces.
An intuitive web-based interface provides users with clear, concise summaries of all hosted storage devices; the status of individual drives, RAID & JBOD configurations, storage enclosure hardware, and any hosted RocketRAID HBA.
The comprehensive selection of real-time monitoring services analyze internal temperature readings of storage enclosures and individual SATA drives, provide controls for cooling apparatus, and actively monitor the status of power supplies.
Comprehensive Operating System Platform Support
HighPoint has developed a series of software packages that allow professional solution providers to craft custom-tailored storage configurations suitable for any computing platform. Device drivers and storage management suites are readily available for Mac and PC platforms, and support all major operating systems including Windows Server 2012, 2008, 2003, Windows 8, Linux Distributions, FreeBSD and Mac OS X.
Availability and Pricing
The Rocket EJ340 6Gb/s SATA Expander Module will is available immediately from our worldwide network of Distribution and Reseller channels.
Distribution Channels: ASI, D&H Distribution, MaLabs
E-Commerce Channels: Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, B&H, Newegg.com
MSRP
Rocket EJ340 - USD$119.00
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Tt eSPORTS Reveals the VOLOS Gaming Mouse and CRONOS Gaming Headset Tt eSPORTS, the top gaming gear brand appreciated with the "2012 Taiwan Excellence Award", proudly introduce its latest gaming peripherals - the fierce "VOLOS Gaming Mouse" and high efficiency "CRONOS Gaming Headset" to worldwide players! Tt eSPORTS brings the most personalized and the highest quality weapons for the most competitive cyber battles, provide you unprecedented digital entertainment experience! The market launch of the new Tt eSPORTS VOLOS Gaming Mouse and CRONOS Gaming Headset start in mid-July 2013.
For more details on the Tt eSPORTS VOLOS Gaming Mouse information please visit: http://www.ttesports.com/newsdetail.aspx?s=8594
CRONOS Gaming Headset - Premium sound for increased gaming awareness CRONOS, the "COMPUTEX d&i Awards 2013" winner, is an intricate blend of form and function, presenting strong gaming style, the Battle Dragon LED lighting on the earmuff adds more gaming element. It's the first in the Tt eSPORTS lineup that's both optimized for gaming and mobile use; the CRONOS comes with a set of removable cables for PC use as well as a set for mobile use. The LYCRA head-pad design reduces the pressure on head with Hi-performance frequency response. Bendable and pivotable microphone boom to increase the sound quality and Microphone mute switch for controlling on the fly with 3.5mm gold-plated plug for smooth the signal and data transmission. An optimal gaming experience via USB plug and Black and Red cross braid cable for durable use and stylish which is focus on target group of Casual and competitive gaming enthusiasts.
Suggested price of the Tt eSPORTS CRONOS & CRONOS Combat White : USD59.99 each
Tt eSPORTS CRONOS will be available worldwide during mid-July 2013; CRONOS Combat White will be available worldwide around August 2013.
For more details on the Tt eSPORTS CRONOS Gaming Headset information please visit: http://www.ttesports.com/newsdetail.aspx?s=8586
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