IT News Head Lines (TweakTown) 11/24/2014

Far Cry 4 has an in-game drug called 'Oculus Spliff'
Far Cry 4 is now here, with people finding all sorts of easter eggs in the game, one of which is a new drug. The drug is called the "Oculus Spliff" which is obviously, a riff, on the Oculus Rift.

There's much more in Far Cry 4, according to a Reddit post, with there also being a "Go Bro" in the game, which is obviously a laugh at the GoPro action camera.


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Samsung wants the US government to block GeForce GPU shipments
The legal battle between NVIDIA and Samsung is really heating up now, with Samsung firing back at NVIDIA with a lawsuit, complaining to the US International Trade Commission to block sales of NVIDIA's GeForce and Tegra products.

We don't know which parts Samsung took under consideration, but the dispute does name many third-party device makers that sell GeForce-powered goods. Video card designers would be hit first, with companies like EVGA now in hot water. Tegra-based devices would be affected too, which isn't as big as the GPU side of things, but it's still going to affect NVIDIA if it happens.

Bloomberg spoke with NVIDIA, which said that it hadn't looked at the complaint just yet, but the company "look[s] forward" to going to the ITC with its own dispute.


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Forbes: Ubisoft should 'refund anyone' bought Assassin's Creed: Unity
We've been all over the Ubisoft scandal over the last year or so, since Watch Dogs began experiencing its delays and problems, but it's great to see more of the mainstream sites out there tackling this glaring issue. Forbes contributor Erik Kain has come out with a very damning article, titled ''Assassin's Creed: Unity' Makes A Strong Case For Video Game Recalls'.

His article talks about everything game-related, with multiple games like Watch Dogs, Battlefield 4 and Assassin's Creed: Unity all being released before they were ready. Kain does say that "Ubisoft obviously has the ability to release great video games. Far Cry 4 is great as was Far Cry Blood Dragon and Child of Light and the Rayman series", but Assassin's Creed: Unity has "undermined much of the good will the publisher built with its consumer base recently", and I'd have to agree.

Kain finishes his article saying: "It's time to make that right. Refund anyone who has purchased the game. Recall the copies still on shelves. Fix the game before releasing it to the public. Half-finished, buggy releases like this have no place in today's industry". This statement right there is something that I'm sure many of you will agree with.


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The Steam Fall Sale begins next week, prepare your wallets
When Valve unleashes its Steam sales, all gamers sit up and take notice. Well, according to PayPal, Valve will kick off its Steam Fall Sale on November 26, two days before Black Friday in the United States.

Valve hasn't provided an official date for its Black Friday gaming sale, but PayPal is spreading the news to draw in customers to order themselves some Steam Wallet Codes through its online gift store. We don't know the exact dates just yet, but we should expect Valve to announce the sales in the coming days, which should end on December 1, or "Cyber Monday".


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Activision hates glitch videos of the new COD, issues takedowns
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare is now out, with the franchise itself generating over $10 billion in sales for Activision, but the studio is now going after people who are uploading glitch videos and game-breaking issues onto video-sharing sites like Machinima and YouTube.

Activision is flagging the videos for possible copyright if they show off glitches in the new first-person shooter, with Machinima saying Activision is very trigger happy with takedowns right now. YouTubers and other video-sharing users aren't happy, even if Activision claims they're only going after glitch videos that highlight cheats and exploits in their powerhouse title.

Activision explains: "We're excited that so many fans are having fun playing the game and posting videos of their gameplay. We love watching the videos ourselves. Occasionally, some folks post videos that promote cheating and unfair exploits. As always, we keep an eye out for these videos-our level of video claims hasn't changed. We are appreciative of the community's support in helping to ensure that everyone has the best playing experience possible".

Machinima on the other hand, has the following to say: "Recently Machinima notified it's network partners that posting content about Call of Duty videos may receive a strike if flagged by Activision. Machinima was prompted to take this action in order to inform its network partners so that they would remain in good standing on YouTube. When a channel receives a certain number of strikes it is possible that they may be blocked as a YouTube partner. Machinima's actions are to protect not only its network partners, but its publisher partners as well".


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Employees using work-issued tech for social media, online shopping
Companies are struggling to try to teach their employees appropriate use of work-owned PCs and laptops, as they struggle to keep their networks secure. During typical business hours, 36 percent of survey respondents say they browse social media, while 34 percent enjoy online shopping. Meanwhile, 42 percent play online games and 36 percent use their work laptops to search for a job - all while at home.

"People seem to understand that at work there's a little bit more protection," said Sergio Galindo, GFI Software general manager, while speaking to SCMagazine. "They don't do riskier stuff at the office. They're doing riskier stuff (at home) and then bring this equipment that was exposed at home back to the office."

Companies are more focused on trying to keep employees safe from social engineering-based phishing attacks, which lead systems and networks to be compromised by malware and other threats.


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Seattle Police Department will outfit officers with body cameras
The Seattle Police Department will move forward to outfit officers with wearable body cameras, after the deal hit a hiccup due to a large number of open record requests by an anonymous programmer. The programmer operates a YouTube video that posts 911 calls, surveillance and police footage, embracing a beneficial open record laws.

"Under the law, they get requests regardless of whether or not I go away, and they view what I do as part of the solution," the programmer said. The programmer dropped the requests as part of an agreement that will have the police department provide him with video footage of police interactions and arrests with the public.

Police agencies are interested in wearable video cameras for officers as a better method to clear officers - and possibly press additional charges - on suspects. The Seattle Police Department has been under federal monitoring for more than two years, due to excessive force complaints against officers.


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GameStop reportedly unhappy Microsoft, Sony selling direct to gamers
GameStop is unhappy that Microsoft and Sony are selling video games directly to consumers, cutting out retailers. Gamers enjoy the ability to purchase and download digital games, delivering titles instead of needing to go out and purchase physical copies. The Xbox Live Gold and PlayStation Plus services help deliver games directly to consumers, providing game discounts and putting extreme pressure on GameStop and other companies.

"We want to help ensure that our industry does not make the same mistake as other entertainment categories by driving the perceived value of digital goods significantly below that of a physical game," said Tony Bartel, GameStop President, during the company's investor call.

GameStop will have to find a way to work with its partners to ensure digital game sales don't cut into its profits too much - and that will mean approaching Microsoft and Sony to see how they can strengthen their business relationship.


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Army working on small aerial drone that weighs just 0.5 grams
The US Army Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center (NSRDEC) is working on a pocket-sized drone that can fly for 20 minutes, giving ground troops real-time video of the surrounding area. Soldiers would be able to easily carry the drone as part of the Cargo Pocket Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (CP-ISR) program.

Soldiers in the UK have tested the PD-100 Black Hornet palm-sized helicopter, manufactured by Prox Dynamics, and similar drone technologies would be able to benefit US soldiers. Besides the extremely small size of the drone, being able to transmit footage directly to ground soldiers would be extremely beneficial.

"The Cargo Pocket ISR is a true example of an applied systems approach for developing new Soldier capabilities," said Dr. Laurel Allender, NSRDEC acting technical director recently said. "It provides an integrated capability for the Soldier and small unit for increased situational awareness and understanding with negligible impact on Soldier load and agility."


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Intel unleash amazing employee benefit sale
Intel's Retail Edge Program's end-of-year benefits have been released. If you're an employee of certain technology companies (mobile phones included), you can join up to this project and reap the sale rewards. This information has been provided through Chiphell's online forum.

There are two main deals on offer, seeing Intel clear out their Core i7-5930K 3.5 GHz processor's for as low as $159 US, alongside their Core i7-4790K 4.0 GHz for a crazy $79 US.

If you think you're eligible for this program, you can register through your employee's certification to the Intel sales network. Once tasks are completed, you add 'points' to your account, allowing you to reach certain levels of discounts ranging from Producer, to Rockstar and finally Rock Legend - providing the best pricing.

This deal is said to be available twice yearly, as either a summer or holiday deal to North American electronic retail companies. We'll include a copy-pasted list below of the major retailers who have this on offer.

Hey AMD, when are you coming to the party?


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First thoughts: Sony's Smartwatch 3
Sony have just launched their latest offering to the ever-growing smart watch market. Even though originally claiming that they weren't interested in entering the Android Wear market in the beginning, they've decided that they want a slice of the market.

Sony's flagship watch comes with the following specifications:

• 1.6-inch transflective LCD screen with a resolution of 320 × 320
• 420 mA when the built-in battery
• 4GB built-in memory
• Snapdragon 400 processor
• Measurements: 36mm x 10 mm x 51 mm
• Body weight of 38 grams, 36 grams strap
• Light sensor, acceleration sensor, gyro magnetometer, GPS
• IP68 level of protection
• NFC and Wi-Fi

The Smartwatch 3 is designed in a 'low-key' styling, not meant to be so much as of a fashion statement when compared to the Motorola 360, for example. As you may have noticed, the Smartwatch 3 comes in a few very bright color offerings including pink and yellow - not for the feint if heart. Alongside this, Sony's product comes with a silicone wrist strap - giving the feel that this product is designed for an athletic and/or younger audience.

It's also interesting to note that this product can be held under 1.5 meters of water for 30 minutes without damaging the internals. Alongside this, the Smartwatch 3 can be easily detached from its silicone wrist strap to allow for cleaning, storage or a change of straps.

With all of this information at hand, Sony seems to provide the upper hand to consumers looking for a product a little more in-depth than a fit-bit and less 'fashionable' than a Motorola 360.

Sony's Smartwatch 3 is available for $250 US in major retailers - priced similarly to the MOTO 360. Below you can see a comparison in sizing of the three major smart watch contenders on the market by Sony, Motorola and LG.

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Sony's new 5.9-inch, 6.4-inch smartphone leaked to public
TKTechNews has just informed us of a new Sony Xperia Z Ultra flat mobile phone to be released in 2015.

Set to contain a 5.9-inch touchscreen, ensuring that it's the 'perfect fit' for most consumers - not to big, nor too small. Sony's new smartphone offering is rumored for release in black or white color options.

However, we've also received information of a possible Xperia Z4 Ultra. This is rumored to contain a 6.4-inch display supporting a 2K resolution (2560 x 1440), with 4K also a realistic possibility. As far as hardware specifications are concerned, nothing is confirmed but it is rumored to contain similar architecture to the original Xperia models, with a focus on updating the inbuilt camera.

Will this be a trend that is seen more commonly by mobile manufacturers? We've seen Apple recently bring out their iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, now we're seeing Sony bring out two models of the same phone with different screen option sizes. For a while now we've seen Samsung offer consumers their S product and an S-Mini, so maybe it's time that there was a phone for all sizes - or do too many models make things confusing? Let us know your thoughts.

We will continue to report as the story develops.

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Amnesty anti-spyware app informs users if government is snooping
Amnesty International's Detekt is a free, open source tool that will help allow journalists and human rights activists if they are being targeted by surveillance spyware. This is the first time Amnesty International and several non-profit coalitions have released something publicly.

"Governments are increasingly using dangerous and sophisticated technology that allows them to read activists and journalists' private emails and remotely turn on their computer's camera or microphone to secretly record their activities," said Marek Marczynski, Amnesty International Head of Military, Security and Police, in a press statement. "They use the technology in a cowardly attempt to prevent abuses from being exposed."

The global market for surveillance technologies is estimated to be worth $5 billion per year, and is climbing even higher.

Internet users face increased spying and surveillance from national governments and foreign state-sponsored hackers - but it's telling that tools are being released to help shut out government spying over hackers. Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden's disclosures of organized spying by the NSA and British GCHQ proved to be a serious wakeup call to many Internet users that were caught off guard.


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Apple feeling the pressure, lashing out at No. 3 manufacturer Xiaomi
Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi has been on a tear, after being founded in 2010 and releasing its first smartphone in 2011. The company is now the No. 3 smartphone maker in the world, trailing behind only Samsung and Apple, with company officials already having their sights set on further growth.

"I believe that no one thought the Xiaomi from three years ago, which just made its first phone, would later rank as the third largest player," said Lei Jun, Xiaomi founder and CEO, recently said. "India is becoming our largest overseas market. Within five or 10 years, we have the opportunity to become the number one smartphone company in the world."

The smartphone market is fiercely competitive, and Xiaomi will likely need to expand its consumer smartphones to the United States and Western Europe to fully move forward.

However, since Xiaomi and Apple were both present at the China World Internet Conference, it's not a surprise to hear Apple quickly issue its own statement regarding Xiaomi's ambitions: "It is easy to say, it is more difficult to do," said Bruce Sewell, Apple general council fired back, when asked about Xiaomi's claims they would be able to overcome Apple.


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Intel announces 3D NAND design
Rob Crooke, the Vice President and General Manager of the NVM (Non-Volatile Memory) Solutions Group at Intel, announced the impending release of 3D NAND at Intel's Investor Meeting. Incidentally, the presentation was running on an Intel 3D NAND SSD to demonstrate the progress Intel has already made in integrating their new 3D NAND into a workable device. The launch was a bit light on technical details of the new 3D NAND, but now that images from the presentation are available we are posting more information.

The first Intel SSD was developed in 1992 and featured a whopping 12MB capacity, and continued die shrinks have led to 128Gb dies. The transition to mainstream Intel SSDs began in 2008, and the initial revisions utilized 2D planar NAND. The continued path of NAND development has led to denser designs that sped adoption by lowering the cost per bit. Samsung released the first 3D NAND product in 2014 with 128Gb of density, and Intel's 3D NAND is slated for release in 2015.

Intel helped pioneer the SSD market, and their continued innovation has led to a huge chunk of SSD data center market share. These statistics reflect the current market share of major industry SSD manufacturers. The chart is incomplete and only lists two competitors with NAND fabrication capability. Intel includes the market share of the WD subsidiary HGST in their overall market share numbers due to the HGST and Intel JDA (Joint Development Agreement). The JDA provides Intel NAND to HGST, and in turn HGST collaborates on engineering and manufactures the SAS SSD products.

Micron and Intel produce NAND together in their IMFT (Intel-Micron Flash Technologies) partnership, and Micron's market share is not listed. Toshiba is another fab-enabled competitor not present on the chart, in spite of their recent increase in market share. Toshiba is aggressively pushing further into the datacenter and has publicly disclosed their intention to capture 30% market share by 2016. SanDisk recently acquired Fusion-IO, so the SanDisk and Fusion-io categories of this chart actually need to be combined to get an accurate picture of their market share. SanDisk, according to IDC data, currently has the second largest market share, and SanDisk is also aggressively moving on several fronts to increase their market share. Samsung already has 3D NAND products shipping, but their market penetration lags behind the other competitors on the chart. Intel notes that in spite of the heated competition, they still control twice as much of the data center market as their nearest competitor.

Current planar (2D) NAND spreads bits in a checkerboard fashion, but 3D NAND spreads bits out into tube-like structures. Intel's implementation features over 4 billion tubes. Micron is producing Intel's 3D NAND, which offers a whopping increase in density to 256Gb for MLC NAND. Intel has indicated they can also produce the NAND at their own factories, but has no impending plans to do so. Intel also revealed they have relaxed the lithography of the new 3D NAND, but did not provide specifics. By moving back to a larger process Intel will be leveraging an existing process with good yields to begin the transition to 3D NAND. Most industry insiders speculate that Intel is likely 3xnm (30-39nm). The 32-layer design will also provide up to 384Gb of density with 3D TLC NAND. The new 3D NAND will be produced at the IMFT Lehi, Utah facility, which currently manufactures over 20,000 300mm planar NAND wafers per week.

Samsung is the only manufacturer currently shipping 3D NAND with 24 and 32-layer designs. Samsung's 24 layer design features 128Gb die, and the 32-layer NAND features 86Gb die. Samsung has new versions of their 3D V-NAND in the works, but once Intel begins shipping their 256Gb product in 2015 they will have the density advantage. Density equates to lower production costs, which will serve to provide lower prices overall. 3D NAND, in general, features much more endurance and lower power consumption than its planar counterpart. All of the major NAND fabricators have 3D NAND designs that are working their way to market.

SSD market penetration is still in the early stages. In spite of its relatively low market percentage, the market has expanded from a few hundred thousand dollars in 2008 to $13 billion dollars today. 3D NAND designs will enable stunning capacities, up to 1TB of storage in a 2mm thick package, which will speed the adoption curve as prices lower and capacity increases.

Intel initially focused on selling NAND to the open market to spread the technology and gain market share. Intel is increasingly moving their focus from selling NAND on the open market to providing complete SSD solutions.

Intel projects their 3D NAND will enable SSDs with 10TB of capacity in the near future. This remarkable density increase provides tremendous performance advantages. To match the speed of a 4-inch thick rack it would take 500 feet of datacenter floor space with typical HDD products. HDDs will continue to have a huge place in the datacenter due to the lower cost per gigabyte, but from a performance standpoint SSDs are untouchable. The move to NVMe, an optimized interface designed specifically for non-volatile memory (covered in our Defining NVMe article), will serve to widen the huge gulf between HDD and SSD performance.

Intel isn't stating where the new 3D NAND will make its debut, but precedent dictates they will likely release the first 3D NAND products into the datacenter. Micron will presumably offer products based on the same NAND, and with Toshiba and SK Hynix due to release products next year the NAND market is heating up with new designs that promise more endurance, lower power consumption, and increased performance.


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Xbox One, PlayStation 4 outpacing Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 sales
It looks like console gamers are having fun with the Microsoft Xbox One and Sony PlayStation 4, as both next-generation game consoles outpace their predecessors. Since both consoles launched in November 2013, both consoles have a 73 percent higher installation base, than the Xbox 360 and PS3 over the first year of introduction for both consoles.

As the United States economy continues to recover, Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo hope to see gamers spend more on gaming hardware - and new game titles - as hardware companies, game developers, and retailers are finding success.

During its Q3 financial earnings call, GameStop reported new hardware sales rise 147.4 percent, with thanks largely to the Xbox One and PS4. The gaming market is very much alive and well, and with numerous anticipated game launches in 2015, gamers will have plenty of new titles to choose from.


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Project Cars will run on Microsoft Xbox One at 60fps
Bandai Namco's Project Cars video game will run at 60 frames per second on the Microsoft Xbox One when it is released on March 17, 2015. Game developer Slightly Mad Studios wanted to reach 1080p resolution for the Xbox One and Sony PlayStation 4, but didn't confirm if that goal was reached just yet.

"You've played it in Dubai, London, Madrid, and Paris, but for those that couldn't jet-set around the world, sit back and take a more leisurely look at Project Cars on Xbox One, running at 60 frames per second," according to Bandai Namco.

The game will launch for the Xbox One, PS4, Nintendo Wii U, and PC. It was originally scheduled for a November 2014 launch, but was forced to delay the game without specific details offered to gamers.


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Acer launches 32-inch UHD B326HK monitor, sporting $999 price tag
Acer has launched the 32-inch ultra-high-definition B326HK monitor, aimed at both consumers and business workers. The IPS display has 178 degrees of horizontal and vertical viewing, with connectivity via DVI, HDMI with MHL charging, mini DP, USB 3.0 and DisplayPort. The screen supports a 3840x2160 UHD resolution, 16:9 aspect ratio, and 6ms response time, Acer says.

"Our newest 4K display available in an ergonomic 32-inch model was built for those who want to view games, movies, videos and other graphic intensive content on a big screen," said Ronald Lau, Acer America senior business manager of peripherals. "The UHD resolution delivers incredibly vibrant images with very sharp detail and an adjustable stand makes viewing as comfortable as possible."

The Acer B326HK display is available now with a $999.99 MSRP price tag.


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Survey: One-third of IT failures caused by employee browsing habits
At least 38.6 percent of companies suffered a major IT disruption due to employees visiting non-work related websites and other questionable material on work-owned electronics, leading to malware and other IT issues, according to a survey conducted by GFI Software.

Almost half of employees, 48 percent, report using Dropbox, OneDrive, Box, or some other personal cloud-based solution to store company information - something that isn't necessarily shocking, but a concern for companies trying to keep data secure. If their employment ended, 35.8 percent admitted they would try to save company data, including customer lists and confidential data, despite knowing it is illegal to do so.

"Data protection is a big problem, and one that has been exacerbated by the casual use of cloud file sharing services that can't be centrally managed by IT," said Sergio Galindo, GFI Software general manager. "Content controls are critical in ensuring data does not leak outside the organization and doesn't expose the business to legal and regulatory compliance penalties. Furthermore, it is important that policies and training lay down clear rules on use and reinforce the ownership of data."


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3D-printed body parts helping save the lives of medical patients
Using 3D printing technology to create replicas of the human heart presents the opportunity to save babies' lives, according to a new study submitted to the American Heart Association. Surgeons have the ability to better treat congenital heart defects, while also being able to strategize where they cut tissue and make other improvements.

The ability to 3D print hearts gives surgeons the opportunity to prepare prior to surgery, but it's unsure if heart replicas will help increase success from surgical outcomes. A clinical trial would give medical experts the chance to work on enough cases to see how 3D-printed hearts could help, especially among young children with complicated heart defects.

"From the first two cases straight out of the gate, we've had this dramatic impact," said Dr. Matthew Bramlet, pediatric cardiologist at the University of Illinois College of Medicine and Children's Hospital of Illinois and study co-author.


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US government worried China could down US power grids with cyberattack
China is on the short list of countries that have the ability to launch a cyberattack that would be able to shut down the US power grid along with other critical infrastructure, US government officials believe. It would appear these countries already launch reconnaissance probes that have found gaping security holes they can exploit in cyber defenses.

"We seem them attempting to steal information on how our systems are configured, the very schematics of most of our control systems, down to engineering level of detail so they can look at where are the vulnerabilities, how are they constructed, how could I get in and defeat them," said Admiral Michael Rogers, NSA head and US Cyber Command head. "We're seeing multiple nation-states invest in those kinds of capabilities."

Beyond China, Admiral Rogers didn't publicly disclose other nation states believed to be sponsoring cyberattacks, though Russia almost certainly is on the list.


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Helicopter drones could one day be used to help fight wildfires
Lockheed Martin is promoting its helicopter drone, the K-MAX, as a potential asset to help fight wildfires, helping protect firefighters and pilots. The K-MAX can fly in tandem with the four-pound Indago drone that is used as a fire scout, while the firefighting drone dropped 12 tons of water in one hour.

The K-MAX has the ability to lift and transport up to 6,000 lbs. of cargo while at sea level, or more than 4,000 lbs. while flying at 15,000 ft. density altitude. The helicopter has more than 750 hours of autonomous flight since live testing began in 2007, Lockheed Martin reported.

"The FAA would designate the airspace in the vicinity of the fire area as restricted airspace," said Keith Little, Lockheed spokesman. "We would coordinate with the FAA prior to any actual usage regarding obtaining COA (Certificates of Waiver or Authorization) approval for K-MAX that would allow a quick approval for use of K-Max in support of firefighting operations in the designated restricted area."


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Valve tells Early Access developers to 'lift their game'
Valve has made the 'PC Master Race' proud, sending out an updated set of Early Access rules and guidelines to supported developers earlier this week. This is said to ensure that they 'set proper expectations' of their game when customers decide to utilize this offering.

This announcement has reportedly come around due to users being generally unhappy with Early Access protocols and offerings. It's been claimed that developers have been releasing Early Access games before fans felt they were properly complete or have stopped development on the game all together - meaning Valve had to remove them from their Steam platform. Giant bomb originally released this information to the public which follows an interesting report that claims most Early Access games still function in BETA even after 20 months have passed, alongside this only 25% of games have been fully released.

This seems like not only a way for Valve to ensure customers are happy with the games that they are playing, but for developers to actually carry out the purpose of Steam Early Access which is quoted as by Wikipedia: "Early access, alpha funding, or paid-alpha is a funding model in the video game industry by which consumers can pay for a game in the early stages of development and obtain access to playable but unfinished versions of the game, while the developer is able to use those funds to continue work on the game."


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An analysis: Dell's 24 and 27-inch 4K monitors hit the market
Dell has launched their latest 4K monitor offerings to the global market, coming in the form of a 23.8-inch P2415Q and a 27-inch P2715Q supported by IPS and TN panels and priced at $599.99 and $699.99 respectively.

As reports claim, besides these two monitors being of different measurements, they're practically the same units. Alongside them both including 99% of the sRGB wide color gamut, they're apparently not using true 10-bit panel technology. Dell have gotten around this by enhancing 8-bit panels instead, enabling them to reach 10.7 billion colors of display.

Both monitors support 60Hz functionality, as opposed to previous dell offerings at a 'cinematic' 30Hz. They also feature a large viewing angle of 178-degrees and a 1000: 1 dynamic ratio supported by a 'fast' 6ms response time. Slight differences come with the 24-inch model providing an 8ms response, on average, alongside its big brother giving the user a 9ms response time most of the time. There's no doubting that these monitors look gorgeous and it's interesting that they don't have true 10-bit displays integrated. One question we have to ask is, when will we be seeing 120Hz and 144Hz integrated into the massive 4K resolution as a standard practice with these high profile releases?


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Army researching soldier-generated power for troops on patrol
US soldiers in the field could be able to one day generate power using wearable technologies that also reduce the weight of their gear. The Maneuver Fires Integration Experiment (MFIX) project was conducted at Fort Benning earlier in the year, with researchers testing prototypes of energy-harvesting products.

The Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center (NSRDEC) is leading the effort, with a focus on smaller, lightweight, and energy efficient batteries. Small amounts of energy can be harvested, and would have otherwise would have been wasted as heat, sound, vibration, movement or light, according to researchers.

"MFIX is looking at new concepts with energy-harvesting devices and how they fit in a tactical environment," said Noel Soto, NSRDEC Warfighter Directories' project engineer on the Power and Data Management Team.

The research was first demonstrated to Army and government officials earlier this year, and received initial interest.

"MFIX is an important opportunity that allows us to quantify the energy-harvesting technologies that generate Soldier power on the move," said Henry Riolamo, Emerging Concepts and Technologies, Warfighter Directorate lead, in a statement.


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Omni-directional single-person speaker on Kickstarter
"Snap" is a directional sound system, utilizing ultrasonic sound to carry waves in a straight path toward the listener meaning that any others not standing in the exact direction of this speaker will not be affected.

Regular speakers distribute sound in a cone shape and alongside bouncing off objects in a room, allowing multiple users to listen to the same sounds in unison - you know, like a party. What we've got here is a parametric speaker, which through the methods displayed above, allow just one user to easily listen to sounds without disturbing others.

Think about it this way. Forget your headphones on the bus, plane trip or library study visit? Not to worry, set up your parametric speaker (or laptop with them already installed) and blast your hardstlye or death-metal away without getting in trouble from those around you. Developers have claimed that Snap is not their first directional speaker, saying that other models have been developed coming in at around $275 US retail price. Also due to Snap coming as a bunch of accessories, the users must assemble their own device.

Set for release in February 2015, Snap can be found on a rapidly filling Kickstater campaign.

I can't wait to get my hands-on some sound provided by lasers!


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Snoop Dogg to make an appearance in into DOTA 2
Dota 2 is one of the big-hitters in the global eSports scene, seeing millions of dollars in prize money distributed each year in a massive once-off event named "The International", which is viewed live by hundreds of thousands of screaming fans around the globe.

As amazing as this sounds, you can't forget the small things that make a game worth playing. Dota 2 is well known for keeping in constant contact with its community members, providing support through community generated tournaments being published in their in-game client and even giving model developers the ability to sell their products officially through Valve services.

In comes the latest installment in Dota's lifespan - Snoop Dogg. If you're interested in a little variety in-game play, Dota2 allows players to change up their 'announcer' voice pack, meaning that all in-game announcements will come through a different voice than the official standard one supplied. Thanks to Snoop Dogg's popular involvement in meme culture, some savvy Dota 2 players decided to create a partition to get the Dogg in on this project, linking it back to Reddit.com's Dota2 section. Guess what, Snoop Dogg replied.

This information was made known to us through a well-known community member Matthew Bailey, more commonly known as "Cyborg Matt". Bailey is self described on his Twitter profile as "Dota 2's Master Patch Eviscerator" and is often seen providing in-depth analysis of Dota 2 patch release notes - being seen as a kingpin in the wider community.

Snizzle my nizzle, we can't wait until this becomes available - I've already begun throwing money at my monitor.


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Aussie ISP iiNet blames customer problems on line owners neglect
Just this week, iiNet's chief executive David Buckingham accused Telstra of failing to maintain its copper line networks, resulting in many customers experiencing connectivity and speed issues across Australia.

I know what you're thinking straight away - "copper, what the hell?". Unfortunately for Australians, Telstra owns almost all of the phone and internet infrastructure - so when another company like iiNet wants to provide these services to consumers, they must do so through Telstra's existing lines. The claim here is that iiNet is not to fault for their poor performance as of late, but it's Telstra's issue - basically 'passing the blame' onto the older brother.

Theories have emerged that Telstra are refusing to maintain their copper network because it is set to be sold to the government as plans ramp up for the 'National Broadband Network' (NBN) to be implemented - this is developed into either 'Fiber To The Node' (FTTN) or 'Fiber To The Home' (FTTH) depending on where you are located.

A shareholder of iiNet who was present during their annual general meeting last Tuesday afternoon commented "The network that Telstra owns around Perth is pretty much a mess and the Telstra technicians seem only to be prepared to patch it up, they're told they can't replace it in a wholesale manner," and "My neighbor has lost his land-line eight times in two years and I've lost it five times in two years." - further adding that he wants Buckingham to pressure Telstra into fixing their issues as soon as possible.

Buckingham stated that he has personally written to Telstra's Wholesale Business Managing Director as recently as two weeks prior, with no specific advancements as of yet. Adding to the conversation, he commented: "Telstra naturally is un-inclined to spend lots of money on maintaining that copper right now when it essentially is going to give some kind of access or ownership ... to the NBN, which is frustrating".

Telstra's sale of lines toward the NBN is rated at $11.2 billion and their non-upkeep of said lines is certainly something of concern. Telstra generally have a rather bad 'rap' among Australian culture, known as being historically slow to fix their issues and unresponsive when asked for adequate customer support. The internet is already bad enough here in Australia, here's hoping they'll start the repairs soon.

After this information was made public, Telstra's Regulatory Affairs Executive Director Jane Van Beelen simply released a statement which simply read: "No it's not [true]". We will continue to report as the story develops.


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Valve sneaks in-game ads into DOTA2
A post on the DOTA2 subreddit has shown the world that Valve has just sneaked in some form of in-game ad for DOTA2, which popped up onto a Redditor's game asking them if they'd like to buy a Charm of the Defender's Vision.

You can click 'No Thanks!' but this still doesn't take away from the fact that Valve just slipped in-game ads into their games. The title of the post in the DOTA2 subreddit is pretty harsh, and rightly so: "Valve has now introduced IN-GAME ADS, I hope nobody is ok with this."

What do you think about Valve introducing in-game ads to DOTA2?


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Elon Musk says the pace of progress is 'close to exponential' for AI
In a comment made on an essay written by 'virtual godfather' Jaron Lanier, titled "The Myth of A.I." on Edge.org last week, SpaceX and Tesla founder Elon Musk the threats of AI might become real, and that he is worried that "the risk of something seriously dangerous happening is in the five year time frame. 10 years at most" according to CNET.

Musk posted his comments on the Edge.org, but they were quickly removed; not quick enough for some media outlets to pick it up, though. Musk talked about his involvement as an early investor in the British artificial intelligence company, DeepMind, which is now a cog in Google's ever-growing machine. He wrote: "The pace of progress in artificial intelligence (I'm not referring to narrow AI) is incredibly fast. Unless you have direct exposure to groups like DeepMind, you have no idea how fast-it is growing at a pace close to exponential".

The founder of SpaceX continued, saying that AI companies "recognize the danger" and are working toward controlling the "bad" superintelligences "from escaping the Internet". Well, that sounds safe enough.


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Nintendo hopes consumers open up their wallets for Christmas
The Nintendo Wii U game console has been available for two years, but with the upcoming launch of Super Smash Bros., Nintendo hopes to see a higher sales boost. Since launching Mario Kart 8 in May, there have been more than 1.1 million Wii U consoles sold - and as consumers have extra cash to spend ahead of Christmas, Nintendo wants shoppers to spend.

Nintendo has taken a few different public shots against Microsoft and Sony in recent weeks, trying to remind shoppers the company has products for them to consider. Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime shrugged off the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 game consoles, saying the two platforms have too much overlapping shared content.

He also said the Wii U provides a better value than both consoles, despite recent price cuts that have made the console gaming market extremely competitive.


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Transcend Drive Pro 200 Wi-Fi Car Video Recorder Review

While Transcend is a global leader in flash memory technologies, today we take a look at a product that has them moving into an emerging market.

The Drive Pro 200 is a small form factor action camera featuring a 2.4" LCD screen. The image sensor used is a 3 mega-pixel CMOS, while the lense carries a 7-layer glass design with a 160-degree viewing angle.

Resolution support includes 720p at 30FPS and 1080p at 30FPS. In addition to those specifications, the DP200 carries a G-sensor that can enable recording in the event of a crash. Encoding is done with H.264 with the .MOV file format.

MSRP of the Transcend Drive Pro 200 is set at $164.99 with a one-year warranty.

Scope of delivery for the DP200 includes a quick start guide, car power adapter, and video out cable.

The front of the camera houses both the microphone and speaker on opposing ends.

The left side of the camera houses the micro SD slot, along with the emergency record button.

On the top of the unit, we have the mounting tab for the camera.

On the right side of the camera, we have the video out connection, along with the mini USB power input.

With the Transcend Drive Pro 200 supporting Wi-Fi, we connected our iPhone 5s and loaded up the app. While the Drive Pro App does allow you to view the live camera feed, a warning is issued first thing when you load up the application.

The Drive Pro carries quite a few options within its menu. Here we have everything from resolution settings to adjusting the exposure and video length.

In the second image of the settings, we have options for the G-sensor and Wi-Fi, among a few others.

Resolution options include both 720p and 1080p both at 30FPS.

Within the G-sensor menu, you can choose how sensitive you would like it to be before recording automatically.

Wi-Fi options are pretty basic; here you can edit the SSID and password.

The last menu item is the information tab. Within this menu, you can see how much free space you have left on your SD card, along with the IP, if you have it connected via Wi-Fi.

With the few weeks I have spent using the Drive Pro 200, I have come away quite surprised at how well the camera performs. The build quality seems to be pretty good, though I do have some concerns on how well it would handle a drop from any reasonable height. The LCD screen, while being a great option to have on any camera, doesn't have the best resolution, but is enough to playback videos. The menu options are plentiful, but basic at the same time, and the G-Sensor while being a great feature to have was a bit too sensitive for me even at the lowest setting.

While having the Drive Pro 200, I did get the chance to shoot some video while driving and I can say the video clarity is quite amazing to be honest. The downfall is the microphone on the camera is extremely too sensitive and had some sort of buzzing noise throughout the entire video. Low light shooting with the DP200 does redeem some of the downfalls of the unit, as it's actually much better than my Mobius ActionCam I've used previously to this.

Overall, with my only previous experience with action cameras being the Mobius, the Transcend DP200 is a great device, with very minor flaws that could be fixed with a firmware update.

PRICING: You can find the Transcend TS16GDP200 16GB Drive Pro 200 Car Video Recorder with Built-In Wi-Fi for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.

United States: The Transcend TS16GDP200 16GB Drive Pro 200 Car Video Recorder with Built-In Wi-Fi retails for $126.19 at Amazon.

Canada: The Transcend TS16GDP200 16GB Drive Pro 200 Car Video Recorder with Built-In Wi-Fi retails for CDN$129.99 at Amazon Canada.

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