IT News Head Lines (TweakTown) 2/6/2015

theScore release an exciting new eSports app for Android
theScore just released a new app that centers around the world of eSports, dubbed "theScore eSports" that will provide users with everything happening in the world of eSports, in the palm of their hand.

There will be more games added to theScore eSports app, but for now it includes League of Legends, DOTA 2, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Call of Duty, StarCraft II and Hearthstone. Major tournaments can be followed with real-time scores, standings, ladders and curated links to the live streams of the events as they're happening.

theScore says that they are "the first major sports media company to launch a dedicated mobile app for eSports" which is huge, as eSports just isn't slowing down. If you want to grab theScore eSports for Android, check it out on the Google Play Store.


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Kim Kardashian game developers are working on a game for Katy Perry
Kim Kardashian is enjoying her millions of dollars earned from her game, Kim Kardashian: Hollywood, but it looks like it will soon be Katy Perry's turn to make money from a game.

Glu Mobile, the company that worked on Kim Kardashian: Hollywood, has announced it's working on an untitled game for Katy Perry. Glu Mobile said: "Katy is arguably the most recognized musician in America following her Super Bowl XLIX Halftime performance this past Sunday. She is a cultural icon and we expect to translate key elements of her success into an innovative, highly entertaining mobile experience. We anticipate that Katy's significant global audience, including more than 170 million fans on social media, will make her a strong gaming partner for Glu".

The game will launch later this year on both iOS and Android, featuring Perry's voice, likeness, and much more.


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G.SKILL breaks DDR4 RAM records with 4355MHz on its Ripjaws 4 DDR4 RAM
G.SKILL is back again this week, with a new world record for DDR4 RAM frequency, with the company using its Ripjaws 4 DDR4 RAM to hit a huge 4355MHz. Yes, 4.35GHz on RAM.

The company used an ASUS Rampage V Extreme motherboard with Intel's Core i7-5960X processor cooled with LN2 to achieve the record. As you can see in the image above, the record was achieved with the Ripjaws 4 DDR4 RAM in single channel. Most people will cry fowl over this, but RAM overclocking is pretty much an art, and you can't have this gear running in quad channel at these speeds.

G.SKILL memory has been used in 9 world records since January 2015, which really is saying something.


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Sony shuts down the factory building processors for the PS3
It looks like the end of an era is approaching, with news that Sony is shutting down the production facility that makes the RSX processors for the PlayStation 3 console.

Sony had recently said it would discontinue any and all operations at the factory responsible for the RSX chips in the PS3, but it looks like this is now happening. Oita TEC who was previously responsible for the memory packaging recently starting the production of advanced packaging for the CPUs that power the PlayStation consoles. The plant itself was producing the packaging of the Cell and RSX processors for the PS3, but is now being shut down keeping the "changing business landscape" in sight.

With 220 employees at the factory, usually their jobs would be lost, but this isn't the case. All of their jobs will be transferred to other plants that are used to make image sensors, or to other factories at alternate Sony Semiconductor Corporation sites.


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Samsung will reportedly make 14nm chips for NVIDIA, Qualcomm and Apple
There are going to be big shifts in manufacturing nodes this year, with Samsung reportedly making 14nm FinFET chips for the three biggest players in the industry: NVIDIA, Apple and Qualcomm.

Samsung will be capable of doing this as the company only reached an important breakthrough recently, which has allowed the South Korean giant to increase yields, and reduce costs. On top of this, TSMC has been experiencing various delays which have seen big companies having to shift over from TSMC to Samsung. Qualcomm also reportedly stopped their production of 16nm FinFET chips at TSMC just three weeks ago, jumping over to Samsung and its next-gen 14nm FinFET processors.

Apple's upcoming A9 processor will be based on its main competitors technology, with Samsung making the 14nm FinFET A9 processor. NVIDIA had originally partnered up with TSMC to make 16FF+ GPUs, but then we have the legal battle between Samsung and NVIDIA stepping in the way. We don't know if Samsung will choose to make its discrete GPUs using Samsung's next-gen 14nm node, but right now NVIDIA will be making its next-gen GPUs with TSMC on its 16FF+ process. NVIDIA will be having its Tegra processors made over at Samsung, however.


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Battlefield Hardline requires 60GB of HDD space and a decent GPU
The new open beta for Battlefield Hardline has kicked off, with EA revealing the PC requirements of the game. Gamers will need 60GB of HDD space to play Battlefield Hardline, as well as a 64-bit version of Windows.

The bare minimum specifications aren't too bad, with an Intel Core i3/i5 at 2.4GHz or an AMD Athlon II/Phenom II at 2.8GHz required. 4GB of RAM is also required, with Windows Vista SP2 64-bit being the minimum OS to get it going. As for EA's recommended specifications, they are asking for a quad-core Intel, or six-core AMD processor, 8GB of RAM, 3GB of VRAM on either an AMD Radeon R9 290 or NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760.

Battlefield Hardline reports for duty on March 17 for the Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3, PS4 and PC.


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Not Rocket Science: The Layman's Guide to Creating a Smart House
The interconnected age is upon us, and the proliferation of smart devices has made them consumer accessible and easy to use. The "Internet of everything" is everywhere. Business Insider estimates that by 2018 there will be more than 18 billion connected devices in use globally, ranging from smartphones to cars and wearable tech. Creating a connected home has never been easier. Here's a look at just a few of the devices you can use to move your home into the smart age. And you don't even have to be a rocket scientist or engineer to make it happen.

August Smart Lock

The August Smart Lock lets you control your home locks from the palm of your hand, and even issue keys with various accessibility permissions. You can issue one key for a family member that allows 24/7 access and another for a cleaning person or guest who will only unlock the door at a certain time. August Smart Locks even keep a log of who entered and when, allowing you to know precisely who has been in and out of your home. August sends you reminders if the batteries in the lock are low and can even unlock the door automatically as it senses your approach.

Philips Hue Smart Lighting

Smart lighting is more than just being able to turn your lights on and off from your phone. Philips Hue Smart Lighting systems let you create macros and parameters for your lights. Hue can brighten gradually over time to wake you up in the morning or dim slowly to help you fall asleep. Perhaps the most impressive feat of the Hue system is the ability to re-create light parameters from photographs, such as bathing your home in the colors of your favorite sunset or even match the ambiance to events in the movie you are watching.

Lorex Security Cameras

Lorex Security Camera Systems allow users to monitor their homes or offices through a securely encrypted and password-protected connection. Best of all, they require no networking-technology knowledge to install or use. By simply connecting the security camera system to a router and running a user-friendly install CD, you can quickly set up the system to be accessed via your computer or smartphone. With minimal effort, you are on your way to monitoring your home with both video and audio. The basic system package comes with three cameras equipped with dual-lens technology which allows the cameras to function regardless of lighting conditions.

Waterpebble

A simple solution that leads to big savings, Waterpebble memorizes the length of your shower and then indicates through LEDs when you should be finishing up. Each time you shower, Waterpebble shortens the time, with indications in green, yellow and red, helping you to cut down on your water costs without even thinking about it. For those looking to make their home both smart and eco-friendly, Waterpebble is an elegant solution. Simply place it next to the drain and let it do the rest. Before you know it you will see your overall household water usage decrease. It really is that simple to start building a smart home.


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Redesigned, slimmer PS4, Xbox One consoles teased by... Netflix
We've already heard that a redesigned PS4 is coming, as well as a redesigned Xbox One on AMD's new 20nm APU, but now Netflix is teasing that the redesigned consoles are coming.

Samsung has some shiny new high-density GDDR5 memory that should be baked into the redesigned PS4 Slim, while the redesigned Xbox One should feature AMD's new 20nm-based APU. Both consoles are now close to 18 months old, which is about the time the previous generation consoles saw their slimmer, faster, redesigned models. Netflix's Chief Product Officer Neil Hunt said at CES 2015 that the company is expecting a "traditional two-year refresh" which should see both consoles with 4K abilities.

We should expect thinner, cooler, hopefully more powerful consoles from the redesign. AMD's 20nm APU should provide some added performance thanks to its lower heat and power outputs, while the better GDDR5 RAM from Samsung will give Sony a boost to its PS4. Let's just hope it's not a redesign, as in a smaller/thinner console, and that we get some added performance with them, too.


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Samsung's marketing boss quits, before the launch of the Galaxy S6
It looks like Samsung is about to hit a bump in the road, with Kim Seok-pil resigning from his position as the executive in charge of the company's upcoming Galaxy S6 smartphone.

Seok-pil only joined the company in December, and was goign to take the company through the launch of the Galaxy S6, which should be unveiled on March 1. The launch of the upcoming flagship handset is being watched by many, after not-so-great things came from the Galaxy S5. December was a bad month for Samsung as it is, with multiple executives being laid off due to a planned restructuring process.

D.K. Lee left the company, with Seok-pil replacing him, but with Seok-pil now leaving the company, what happens now? For the meantime, Samsung Russia's boss, Lee Sang-chul will take over, until the South Korean giant can find a replacement.


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Seagate Enterprise Performance TurboBoost 15K 600GB HDD Review

Introduction

The chasm between HDD and SSD performance has led to a variety of approaches to merge the capacity and economy of HDDs with the low-latency performance of flash storage. Many of these approaches leverage software and hardware in a multitude of caching and tiering schemes, but these approaches invariably result in host overhead, and require management oversight. Seagate has taken a divergent path in developing their Enterprise Performance TurboBoost SSHD (Solid-State Hybrid Drive) models. TurboBoost drives merge the positive aspects of both storage mediums in a holistic manner, and require no host overhead, and absolutely no management oversight.

Initial TurboBoost revisions were released as Turbo SSHD models, but the newest revision has been rolled into Seagate's Enterprise Performance 15K HDD lineup. This reflects that the Turbo SSHD has matured to mainstream status, and the new model is updated with a 12Gb/s SAS connection. The TurboBoost 15K HDDs still spin at 15,000 RPM, but also employ a 32GB eMLC NAND layer to cache hot data. eMLC provides a very durable and fast storage layer, and Seagate's proprietary AMT (Adaptive Memory Technology) algorithms identify hot data at the block level, and promote or evict data from the flash layer accordingly. A copy of the data is also retained on the platters, but hot data is served from the NAND to realize up to a 3x application performance improvement.

The NAND layer also improves performance of the standard multi-segmented 128 DRAM cache, allowing it to be used as write-back cache. This boosts random write performance without wearing the NAND by allowing the drive to coalesce random write activity in the DRAM layer, and then writing it down to the platters. A portion of the eMLC is assigned as SLC to function as a NVC (Non-Volatile Cache). The drive flushes data stored in DRAM to the NVC with back EMF in the event of an unsafe power loss, creating an extra layer of power-loss protection not provided by standard HDDs.

The new TurboBoost models spin at 15,000-RPM, and step up to the 12Gb/s SAS connection. TurboBoost models come in the standard 2.5" form factor in capacities of 300GB and 600GB. TurboBoost is geared for transactional workloads in blade, rack or tower servers, and it works well in both DAS and SAN/NAS environments. The specifications of the TurboBoost models are identical to the standard 15K models, including power consumption rated at 8.7W active and 5.3W idle. The SDR is also identical with 246 to 180 MB/s from outer to inner, which isn't surprising in light of the fact the TurboBoost models only cache random data. A standard average latency of 2.0ms is also identical to regular models, but data served from cache will perform significantly faster.

The Turbo SSHD features a Non-recoverable Read Error Rate of one per 10E16, and a MTBF of two-million hours, or an AFR of 0.44%. 512e and 4Kn models are available. The drive also features an enterprise-standard five-year limited warranty, and self-encrypting and SED FIPS 140-2 models.

Enterprise Performance TurboBoost 15K has the typical features, and expected reliability and durability of standard 15K HDDs, but offers higher performance in transactional workloads. Let's take a closer look at its caching performance.

PRICING: You can find the Seagate 600GB Enterprise Performance TurboBoost 15K HDD 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 Seagate 600GB Enterprise Performance TurboBoost 15K HDD retails for $643.00 at Amazon.
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