Microsoft Surface Pro reviews are in, mostly positive
I'm sure some of you have seen that I'm personally
excited about Microsoft's Surface Pro, but Microsoft aren't working with us to provide me with a sample to review unfortunately. So I'm waiting until it's released and shelling out $999 to buy it personally.
There are a few reviews of the Surface Pro floating out now, where we've listed a few below. The reviews are mostly positive, which is a great first step for Microsoft. I really think the second-generation Surface Pro's are going to be where the money is, so we'll have to wait and see how the Surface Pro does in the market first. On to the reviews:
The Verge
Engadget
SlashGear
Business Insider
Gizmodo
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Magnitude 8 earthquake strikes off the coast of the Santa Cruz Islands
An 8-magnitude earthquake has struck just off the Santa Cruz islands, after weeks of tremors. I've been reading that most sites are reporting that there have only been a few tremors, but there has been nearly two weeks of tremors averaging at 5-magnitude.
The earthquake has resulted in tsunami warnings for many places, including Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Tuvalu, New Caledonia, Kosrae, Fiji, Kiribati, Wallis and Futuna. There is also a tsunami watch in effect for American Samoa, Australia, New Zealand and eastern Indonesia. The earthquake happened at 12:12pm local time.
It struck at a depth of 5km, just off the Santa Cruz Islands, which are part of the Solomon Islands nation. The above picture shows just the last few days, where the Santa Cruz-based EQs have been rattling along for days now.
For those interested, you should look into space weather involvement, with videos from YouTube poster
suspicious0bservers pretty much predicting these things. It just goes against mainstream science, but NASA are now walking along the same lines as some of these posters like s0.
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Google lets users share websites hosted on Google Drive
If you need a place to prototype your latest website and don't want to pay for a host, Google has your back. Google Drive will allow you to host your website by placing all of the necessary HTML, CSS, and other files on Drive. You then simply share the HTML file publicly and the website will load via the link.
Ironically, Google explains the process on
this website that is hosted on Google Drive. The change isn't a big one, and certainly not one we expect users to switch to Drive for, but existing users should certainly like the new feature and it may be enough to keep them on Drive if they had thoughts of leaving.
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Zynga shares see a boost after company beats Q4 earnings expectations
Zynga, the social gaming company that made it big on Facebook, has seen a boost in its share prices after beating fourth quarter expectations. The company announced its fourth quarter results today, which were higher than previously expected and included a 1 cent per share earning on an adjusted basis.
Previous estimates had Zynga losing 3 cents per share. Zynga's stock has received a "buy" rating from Bank of America/Merrill Lynch and has ticked up in after hours trading. First quarter results are expected to be a loss between $32 million and $12 million on revenues of $255 million to $265 million.
- Revenue: $311.2 million.
- Bookings: $261.3 million, down 15 percent from year earlier but an increase of 2 percent compared to the third quarter of 2012.
- Net loss: $48.6 million compared to $435 million net loss in fourth quarter of 2011.
- Diluted EPS: ($0.06) for the fourth quarter of 2012 compared to ($1.22) for the fourth quarter of 2011 and ($0.07) for the third quarter of 2012.
- Cash and cash flow: As of December 31, 2012, cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities were approximately $1.65 billion.
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Mophie ships iPhone 5 extended battery case called Juice Pack Helium
Looking to extend the battery life of your iPhone 5? Look no further than Mophie's Juice Pack Helium. While it certainly isn't the first extended battery case on the market, Mophie has quite a bit of experience in the extended and portable battery market. Mophie says this extended battery case is their best one yet.
The 1,500mAh case will set you back $80, which isn't something to scoff at. For that, you get a case that is 13 percent thinner than previous Mophie cases and that will provide a reported extra six hours of battery life. The case will basically double the amount of power that the iPhone 5 has available to it.
Another nice feature of the Mophie case is that it charges via a microUSB and will charge both the phone and case at the same time. This has the effect of providing the iPhone 5 with a universal connector, something that many people would appreciate. You can pre-order the case, which will ship February 15, on
Mophie's site.
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ORIGIN launches in-game support client, chat with tech support while gaming
ORIGIN has announced a new way to contact their customer support. The new method is a bit different than most companies and should help users reach technical support in the most convenient way possible. ORIGIN's Nexus client will allow users to chat with technical support while in-game or on the desktop.
Along with contacting support, the client will allow users to chat with friends, take screenshots and video, and live broadcast gameplay. A nice feature of being able to contact support in-game is the ability to be looking at exactly what isn't working while talking to support. This allows you to get the best description of the problem.
Kevin Wasielewski, CEO and co-founder of ORIGIN PC:
ORIGIN PC's focus has always been to provide the best PC experience to our customers and we are proud to continue our legacy of providing the best support in the PC industry. Thanks to the great client from the Xfire team, ORIGIN Nexus makes it even more convenient for our customers to contact us without ever having to leave their game, and we're really excited to be the first and only company to offer this new level of support in our industry.
Chat is available to users during normal business hours. This means you can reach out to ORIGIN's in-game support from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. EST. More information about the new feature can be found on the
ORIGIN Nexus webpage.
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Cool, hackable quadrotor drone will set you back just $149
Want a drone and can't afford the crazy expensive models? Well, Bitcraze has you covered with their new quadrotor drone that measures just 4-inches across. This pint-sized drone is extremely extensible due to the use of open-source code and components. The best way to let you check out the drone is with the following video:
It's small, which allows it to be used indoors. This is something you can't necessarily do with larger drones. Another benefit of the small size is that it makes it safer to use. It's pretty hard to do much damage with something as small and light as the Crazyflie Nano.
Pre-orders for this awesome little drone are up on
Seeed and will set you back $149. If you want a more advanced drone with more sensors, you can pick up the $173 version that comes with a magnetometer and altimeter, which could be useful for flying without actually looking at the drone.
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Instagram gets an updated website that functions like the mobile apps
Instagram users will finally have a place to go on the web to view pictures posted on the Facebook-owned service. Today, Instagram has introduced a new website that functions primarily like its mobile apps, save for one small feature. The website doesn't offer a way for users to upload pictures to the service.
Other than that, the website will serve all of the same functions as the mobile apps. "
As of today, you can now browse your Instagram feed on the web -- just like you do on your mobile device," Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom said. "
Your Instagram Feed on the web functions much like it does on your mobile phone. You can browse through the latest photos of people whom you follow with updates as people post new photos."
The website took two years to become a reality as Instagram was primarily focused on helping users capture photos on the go. With Facebook now owning the company, they are looking to expand their horizons and provide access to the service across any platform a user would like to use.
You can head to
Instagram.com to check out the new site.
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HTC Thunderbolt getting Android 4.0
Verizon's first LTE-equipped smartphone is finally entering the 21st century. HTC has officially started rolling out an update to the Thunderbolt that will bring the two-year-old device up to Android Ice Cream Sandwich version 4.0.4. The new version of Android even comes complete with Sense 3.6, HTC's Android UI overlay.
If you're a Thunderbolt device owner, you may still have to wait a few days for the rollout to reach you, but you can rest well tonight knowing that you will soon have access to a fairly recent version of Android. It's doubtful that the Thunderbolt will ever get upgraded again as it is almost out of contract.
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GoDaddy sees great results from questionable Super Bowl ad
Whether you liked GoDaddy's ad or thought it was disgusting, you have to give them credit as it seems to have worked. The company is reporting that they saw their biggest sales day in the history of their company. The stats are pretty impressive, as you can see by the list below:
- Hosting sales jumped 45%.
- Dot-com domain sales rose 40%.
- New mobile customers increased by 35%.
- The company added 10,000 customers in total.
When looking at the ad, USA Today found that the "Perfect Match" ad spot, created by GoDaddy, scored dead last in its Ad Meter. Apparently the ad was successful, even though people didn't necessarily like the ad. What did you think of GoDaddy's ad? Disgusting or great?
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Rebox Instant app coming exclusively to Xbox 360
Yet another option is coming for streaming movies and TV to your home. Redbox Instant will be competing with Hulu, Netflix, Amazon Prime, and others and has decided to release an app for the Xbox 360. For whatever reason, Redbox Instant has decided to exclusively support the 360 for launch, which could limit how pervasive they become.
Microsoft's Major Nelson confirmed that early beta testers will soon be invited to download and install the app.
Redbox will likely eventually come to all of the home consoles. After all, Netflix has said that they see the most streaming from the PlayStation 3. Redbox wouldn't want to miss out on the ability to sell its services to a wider audience. We'll continue to watch what Redbox does and keep you up to date on any big changes.
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Evasi0n jailbreak sees itself installed on 1.7 million devices
Since its release just yesterday, the new iOS 6/6.1 untethered jailbreak, Evasi0n, has seen itself installed on over 1.7 million devices, showing continuing want and need for these jailbreaks and jailbreak teams. The jailbreak managed to be installed 800,000 times within the first six hours yesterday.
That's some incredible adoption, for a hack anyway. The mass jailbreaking put strain on Cydia's servers with roughly 1,200 downloads per minute. I know I had trouble with Cydia yesterday, but the wait was definitely worth it. If you have an iOS 6 device, you should consider jailbreaking the device.
Forbes talked with the Cydia appstore developer and found out why jailbreaks are rare:
According to David Wang, one of the evad3rs' four developers, the program takes advantage of at least five distinct, new bugs in iOS's code. (For reference, that's one more than Stuxnet, the malware built by the NSA to destroy centrifuges in Iran's nuclear enrichment facilities.)
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Google gearing up to release Android 4.2.2 this month
It's widely known that we will be seeing a debut of Android 5.0 Key Lime Pie at Google's annual Developer's Conference in May. However, before Key Lime Pie hits our phones and tablets, Google will be releasing at least one more update to the 4.2 branch of Android.
Android 4.2.2 is more of a very minor update that includes a number of security updates, bug fixes and some performance improvements. The Nexus 7 will also see improvement in its Bluetooth streaming with the new update. We can expect 4.2.2 to launch as early as next week, but it could release as late as mid-March.
Key Lime Pie is reportedly already being tested on Galaxy Nexus, Nexus 4, Nexus 7 and Nexus 10 devices by Google employees and there is supposed screenshots floating out in the wild. As an Android user from the start, I am quite excited to get my hands on a device running Key Lime Pie. What about you? Leave us your thoughts on a new Android version in the comments.
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NVIDIA's Project Shield demoed running Borderlands 2, content streamed over Wi-Fi from nearby PC
Last month most of the gaming buzz centered on Valve's Steam Box thanks to a clever marketing scheme in which reps could be seen playing the device behind a guarded glass CES booth in Las Vegas. Other new gaming systems did manage to generate some buzz though, and one of those systems was NVIDIA's Project Shield.
Project Shield is a handheld Tegra 4 powered gaming device, and while it was on display at CES, journalist were forced to wait a little bit for hands-on demos. The first of those demonstrations is now online. In the video above Borderlands 2 can be seen being played on the device and it looks quite good.
The device is actually used as a game streaming device, letting a more powerful PC handle the heavy lifting. In this demo, the game is actually being streamed from a PC over Wi-Fi. What amazes me is the utter and complete lack of any lag to be seen during game play. No word on a release date or any pricing structures is available at this time.
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Amazon unveils new virtual currency "Amazon Coin" for Kindle Fire customers
The virtual currency game has been played many times by many companies trying to seek a new form of payment. In the end, they all seem to fizzle then pop, resulting in a failed product. Amazon is seeking to buck that trend and has created a virtual currency of its own.
Dubbed Amazon Coin, the new virtual currency is being billed by Amazon as an "
easy way for Kindle Fire customers to spend money on developers' apps in the Amazon Appstore." Amazon will release the new currency in May and give Kindle Fire users "tens of millions of dollars' worth of free Amazon Coins to spend on developers' apps.
Unlike other virtual currency services, current Amazon App developers will not need to do anything to begin accepting the coins. Apps in development that have yet gained approval will need to get approved by April 25th to be ready when the new currency launches.
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Dell is officially a privately held company again - Microsoft coughs up $2bn to help make it happen
This morning the AP is reporting that Dell has indeed decided to go private, as
we recently reported. We have heard rumors of this for weeks and now it will become a reality as soon as next Tuesday. Michael Dell, Silver Lake and Microsoft are the key players in the deal with shareholders not suffering in the deal.
The deal includes a massive investment from Michael Dell himself as well as a loan of $2 billion from Microsoft and $1 billion from private equity firm Silver Lake. Dell shareholders stand to make a decent profit as well when the company buys back all the public stock at $13.65 a share.
Analysts have mostly been split on the decision to take the company private. Some see it as a great move as it would allow decisions to be made out of the public eye, make restructuring easier, and would allow the company to sell off less than stellar performing parts of the company. Others argue that this will only prolong the death of the once great company. What do you think?
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A nationwide free-to-use super Wi-Fi network could be coming to the US
Every couple of months we hear another plan to put the old analog TV spectrum back to good use. The discussion bounces from idea to idea, but always seems to come back to Wi-Fi as the perfect use in most cases.
If FCC chairman Julius Genachowski has his way, a "super" Wi-Fi network will be built using the currently silent analog TV spectrum. It would span from coast to coast, boarder to boarder and would provide free internet and VOIP calling to all US residents.
Naturally ISP's and cable companies have begun lobbying against the proposed network, while tech giants like Google and Microsoft are supporting the idea of a free nationwide WiFi network, as naturally it suits their business models perfectly. What do you think? Does a free nationwide internet connection sound appealing to you? Let us know in the comments.
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Apple 128GB iPad's go on sale today - $799 for WiFi and $929 for LTE
It never fails, just when you are finally getting comfortable with your new Apple device, the company releases an upgraded model that you just have to have. That just may be the case for iPad owners across the US today as Apple has just released the 128GB version of its latest tablet.
The new 128GB iPad is the company's most expensive yet with the WiFi model costing a hefty $799. If you want the LTE capable version, you will need to add $130 to the price tag, bringing you to $929 total. The new device is available for purchase now at the Apple Store online with the WiFi version making it to your house within three days.
Apple, as well as its fan boys, has stated that the 128GB iPad could be a true laptop killer. While I think that some users will inevitably switch over, I feel that for the most part, laptop users will continue to augment their PC usage with a tablet. This is mainly because neither the iPad nor any Android tablet out there has the functionality to fully take over the duties of a notebook at this point. What do you think? Let us know in the comments.
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OUYA Android gaming console pre-orders open today, all set for June retail launch
OUYA, the little Android based gaming console, is right on track with its timeline of a March release to its Kickstarter backers. While that is excellent news, the rest of the world has found out when we will be able to have an OUYA of our own.
Pre-orders opened today for individual customers, with MSRP set at $99 for the console and a single controller. Additional controllers can be purchased for an additional $49.99 each with a maximum of four controllers per console. To secure your pre-order you will need to visit the company's website listed at source #2 below.
Julie Uhrman, OUYA's founder, said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that those who pre-order through the company's website will receive their units in April, with the retail outlets having product on the shelves in June. She did not mention any specifics, but she said that the number of units sold greatly exceeds the 68,000 backers from the Kickstarter campaign.
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UK military use mini helicopters as unmanned aerial drones
The UK military are using tiny helicopters, and by tiny, I'm talking just 4-inch by 1-inch in size. They're using them to grab information on conflict activity in Afghanistan.
The tiny helicopters sport even tinier cameras which take pictures and record video, blasting them back down to handlers on the ground. The helicopters are perfect for hovering around a corner or over a wall to spot targets that would otherwise not be seen. Britain is the first country to deploy these drones into conflict situations.
While they may be tiny, they have a very big name - "The Black Hornet", yeah. Seargent Christopher Petherbridge of the UK's Brigade Reconnaissance Force said that The Black Hornet definitely "
adds value, especially considering the light weight nature of it". He elaborated with Sky News:
We used it to look for insurgent fire points and check out exposed areas of the ground before crossing. It is very easy to operate and offers amazing capability to the guys on the ground.
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The Witcher 3 gets announced, will arrive as a 'next-generation' RPG for PC and 'high-end platforms' in 2014
The Witcher 3 has been announced from CD Projekt Red, with the full game title being The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. The latest entry in the RPG series is set to be one of the biggest open-world games, said to be bigger than Skyrim and larger than any environments from the first two Witcher games.
CD Projekt Red's new graphics engine, REDengine 3 is the magic behind The Witcher 3, with the company saying it has been built with next-gen platforms in mind. Wild Hunt is set to be incredibly huge, with the game world set in a fictional place 20% bigger than Skyrim, and an astounding 40 times bigger than The Witcher 2. So big, in fact, that it would take 30-40 minutes to cross the game world on horseback.
There will be no load screens in Wild Hunt, because the team at CD Projekt Red wanted to same kind of freedom in games like Skyrim. Weather effects are next-gen in The Witcher 3, where we'll see dynamically generated and fully modeled volumetric clouds - awesome.
You can read much, much more on The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt,
here.
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RumorTT: Google to release unified messaging system
The image below has been posted by developer Francois Beaufort, which shows a Chrome OS desktop with a notification system and a new app icon that hasn't been seen before.
The first four icons we are all familiar with, but that last icon - is different, showing four cascading Google-themed chat boxes. This screenshot alone opens up Pandora's box, and now we can begin to try and work out what this icon means. Could we see see a new unified messaging service from Google? We could just be looking at something new, and not a messaging system, but something to do with Google+ Messenger, or similar.
If we are looking at a world of Google releasing a unified messaging system, it would really change things for Google and their Android platform, that's for sure.
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Ask the Experts: I'd like to know about the advantages of 120Hz monitors
Our
Ask the Experts section has a new question, where we have Bryan in the US wanting to know about the benefits of using a 120Hz-capable monitor.
Q: Hello. :D
First this my Gaming PC:
- Intel core i5 3570K
- Gigabyte G1.Sniper M3 Z77
- Corsair H80
- 7870 or GTX 660 (coming soon on 2 weeks)
- Samsung MV3V-4G3D/US DDR3 2x4GB 1600MHz
- Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB
- Cooler Master 690 II Advanced
I have a question about is necessary use 120Hz (1920x1080) monitors for more smooth movements and better peformance for gaming over 60 FPS without activate V-Sync.
And so if using their monitors improve on Full-HD movies. (all formats)
I seen on many forums but don't sure about buy a 120Hz monitor or 60Hz monitor and 60GB SSD.
PD: Not interested in using 3D, just a Full-HD monitor with more frequency than 60Hz.
A: You can view the answer to Bryan's question right
here.
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Anonymous target bank executives in their latest attack, unleash personal information of over 4000 executives
Anonymous have struck again, this time into the hearts of US banking executives - over 4000 of them. These 4000+ bankers have had their personal information leaked in Anonymous' latest campaign dubbed
Operation Last Resort.
Anonymous' campaign is designed to provoke computer crime law reform
after the suicide of Internet activist and Reddit co-founder Aaron Swartz. Anonymous have reportedly hacked into the Alabama Criminal Justice Information Center's website over the weekend, where they used the site to host the spreadsheet of the executives' information. This spreadsheet includes the information of bankers' names, phone numbers, computer log-in credentials and IP addresses.
The Twitter account of Anonymous talked about getting the information from Federal Reserve computers, and when contacted for a comment by the Huffington Post, a spokesperson refused to comment on Anonymous' claims, nor would they confirm if a statement was on its way.
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Behind closed doors, South Korean giants Samsung and LG will settle their patent dispute
South Korean electronics giants Samsung and LG have been having fisticuffs over their recent patent dispute, but it looks like they're both about to man up and settle their dispute, behind closed doors.
The report comes from the Yonhap News Agency, where shortly after LG employees were charged with stealing advanced OLED display technology from Samsung, the company very quickly filed a lawsuit. Samsung display big wig Kim Ki-nam said that the companies plan to
"resolve the issue one by one", but didn't get any more specific than that.
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ASRock Z77 Extreme11 (Intel Z77) Motherboard Review
Introduction
17. That's the number of motherboards that ASRock currently have using the Z77 chipset. It's truly a massive amount of boards for one chipset, but the Z77 is a mainstream one and ASRock are known for making boards for so many categories. The chipset saw Nick Shih's first board in the
Z77 OC Formula which did a fantastic job of impressing us.
We also saw a Mini ITX board in the
Z77E-ITX which was absolutely awesome and showed us just how much power can be packed into a Mini ITX motherboard. We had a look at the
Z77 Pro3 which comes in under $100 along with the slightly more expensive
Z77 Extreme6. Finally we checked out the Fatal1ty branded
Z77 Professional which looked good and performed extremely well.
If that wasn't enough ASRock Z77 boards for you, today we're checking out the brand new Z77 Extreme11 which sits at the top of the Z77 food chain. We're not too sure what to expect so we'll simply just get into the package side of things and get the ball rolling.
Once we've done that we'll take a look at the board itself, move onto the BIOS, have a look at the overclocking side of things and finally get down and dirty with the performance.
Package
Starting off with the front of the box you can see we've got a fairly typical ASRock design with a large focus on the 555 XFast Technology. Flipping the front over we're greeted with some of the major features that are present on the motherboard. Some of the highlights here include the integration of eight SAS2 ports, 3-Way SLI and 4-Way CrossFireX support. We can also see mention of Digi Power, Dual-Stock MOSFET along with the inclusion of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
Moving onto the other side of the box we get our first look at the Z77 Extreme11. Turning over to the back of the box we again have a run down on some of the major features that are included on the board with the 555 XFast technology taking up a large portion. We've also got Premium Gold Caps, 8 + 4 Power Phase Design, 2oz Copper PCB, 12x USB 3.0, Lucid Virtu MVP, Fast Boost and UEFI to round out the major highlights.
As we move inside we've got a fairly typical paperwork line up with a couple of manuals, a guide on Lucid Virtu MVP and what it does along with a larger explanation on the 555 XFast technology. Above we can also see the driver CD and the standard I/O shield.
Finishing off the bundle we've got a massive eight SATA cables, two Molex to SATA power connectors along with a SLI and 3-Way SLI bridge. Finally we have the ASRock Wi-SB BOX, which is something that is new to us. This box offers two USB 3.0 ports which you can clearly see along with an SSD mount. Also included are two wireless antennas to help boost the wireless signal. It's a nice addition and beats the standard antenna that you might find yourself having sit on top of your chassis.
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Patriot Memory for Ultrabook - Scaling SODIMM RAM Density vs. Battery Life
Introduction
Last month we jumped on an opportunity presented to us to use our SSD Notebook Power Test system to observe battery life with a new product from Patriot. Patriot released a new product called Memory for Ultrabook. The name is exactly what it is, but we would of preferred something cool like Battery Saver SODIMM or something a little less...err, well whatever the hell Memory for Ultrabook is.
Despite the funky product name,
Patriot's 1.35v Memory for Ultrabook RAM delivered and in a big way. In our initial testing, we observed a 17 minute increase to battery life just by replacing our OEM Samsung 4GB SODIMM with a Patriot Memory for Ultrabook 8GB SODIMM. The Patriot model we used ran at the same 1600MHz speed as our original OEM Samsung 1.5v stick so we don't lose performance in any way.
When we finished the article only one question remained in my mind, what happens when you replace two memory sticks with one and what happens to battery performance when you run four sticks?
So, today we are back and with four Patriot Memory for Ultrabook sticks running at 1600MHz. We're going to test with one, two and finally four sticks to see how physical density affects battery performance. Let's take a look at Patriot's Memory for Ultrabook specs, see the product and go over the benchmark configuration before the test results.
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ZOTAC Refreshes ZBOX nano XS with AMD Radeon HD 7340 Graphics
ZOTAC International, a global innovator and leading manufacturer of graphics cards, mainboards and mini-PCs, today refreshes the extra small ZBOX nano XS series. The refreshed ZOTAC ZBOX nano XS with AMD Radeon HD 7340 graphics maintains the pocket-sized form factor while delivering an extra injection of performance.
"ZOTAC is pleased to deliver AMD's latest Brazos 2.0 platform in our tiny ZBOX nano XS chassis. The latest update brings greater performance while reducing power consumption from the previous generation," said Carsten Berger, marketing director, ZOTAC International.
The ZOTAC ZBOX nano XS with AMD Radeon HD 7340 graphics is available as a barebones or with 2 GB of DDR3 memory and a 64 GB SSD (PLUS). Users are free to install their preferred operating system on the ZOTAC ZBOX nano XS with AMD Radeon HD 7340 graphics - the system is Windows 8, 7 and OpenELEC ready.
General details
- ZOTAC Refreshes ZBOX nano XS series
- New AMD Radeon HD 7340 graphics processor
- AMD E2-1800 APU
Dual-core (1.7 GHz)
PLUS models available with preinstalled memory and hard drive
- 2 GB DDR3
- 64 GB mSATA SSD
- HDMI output
- 802.11n Wi-Fi (USB)
- High-amperage USB charging capable (yellow ports)
- Bundled MCE-compatible remote w/ USB IR receiver
- Bundled VESA75/100 mount
ZBOX nano XS with AMD Radeon HD 7340 Graphics Specifications:
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AMD Names Bernd Lienhard as Corporate VP and General Manager, Client Business
AMD (NYSE: AMD) announced today that Bernd Lienhard, 48, has joined the company as corporate vice president and general manager of its Client Business Unit, reporting to Dr. Lisa Su, senior vice president and general manager, Global Business Units. In his role, Lienhard will apply his 22 years of experience in the semiconductor industry to lead AMD's client business as it expands its product lineup to include differentiated system-on-chip (SoC) solutions targeted at high-growth mobility and traditional client markets.
"A pivotal part of AMD's ability to win in high-growth markets is having the right leadership team in place with a diversity of semiconductor industry knowledge. Bernd's track record and experience translating business strategy into operational execution across large teams makes him the ideal leader for our client business," said Dr. Su. "Bernd's deep background of growth across a wide range of markets will accelerate our client business as we bring our strongest-ever line-up of APUs and first SoCs to market in 2013 and continue our expansion into ultraportable and ultra low-power form factors."
Lienhard steps into his new role at an important time for AMD, as the company prepares to accelerate its business in 2013 by executing the delivery and launch of a new set of powerful product offerings. Upcoming products include the newly introduced and currently shipping "Richland" Accelerated Processing Unit (APU), as well as AMD's first true SoC APUs, codenamed "Temash" and "Kabini," which will be the industry's first quad-core x86 SoCs. Both APUs are scheduled to ship to customers in the first half of 2013.
Lienhard was most recently vice president and general manager of Freescale Semiconductor's Networking Processor Division, with global responsibility for product management, engineering and operations. Prior to this role, he served as vice president and general manager of the company's Multimedia Applications Division, a division responsible for providing ARM application processors to the automotive, consumer and industrial markets.
Before Freescale, Lienhard held a variety of leadership positions at Conexant Systems, Infineon Technologies, Siemens Semiconductor, and Siemens Defense.
Lienhard earned a Diplom-Ingenieur degree in electrical engineering from Fachhochschule in Munich, Germany.
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Dell Enters into Agreement to Be Acquired by Michael Dell and Silver Lake
Dell Inc. today announced it has signed a definitive merger agreement under which Michael Dell, Dell's Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, in partnership with global technology investment firm Silver Lake, will acquire Dell.
Under the terms of the agreement, Dell stockholders will receive $13.65 in cash for each share of Dell common stock they hold, in a transaction valued at approximately $24.4 billion. The price represents a premium of 25 percent over Dell's closing share price of $10.88 on Jan. 11, 2013, the last trading day before rumors of a possible going-private transaction were first published; a premium of approximately 35 percent over Dell's enterprise value as of Jan. 11, 2013; and a premium of approximately 37 percent over the average closing share price during the previous 90 calendar days ending Jan. 11, 2013. The buyers will acquire for cash all of the outstanding shares of Dell not held by Mr. Dell and certain other members of management.
The Dell Board of Directors acting on the recommendation of a special committee of independent directors unanimously approved a merger agreement under which Michael Dell and Silver Lake Partners will acquire Dell and take the company private subject to a number of conditions, including a vote of the unaffiliated stockholders. Mr. Dell recused himself from all Board discussions and from the Board vote regarding the transaction.
A Special Committee was formed after Mr. Dell first approached Dell's Board of Directors in August 2012 with an interest in taking the company private. Led by Lead Director Alex Mandl, the Special Committee retained independent financial and legal advisors J.P. Morgan and Debevoise & Plimpton LLP to advise the Special Committee with respect to its consideration of strategic alternatives, the acquisition proposal and the subsequent negotiation of the merger agreement.
The Special Committee also engaged a leading management consulting firm to conduct an independent analysis, including a review of strategic alternatives for Dell and opportunities for the company as a public entity, and thereafter engaged Evercore Partners.
The merger agreement provides for a so-called "go-shop" period, during which the Special Committee - with the assistance of Evercore Partners - will actively solicit, receive, evaluate and potentially enter into negotiations with parties that offer alternative proposals. The initial go-shop period is 45 days. Following that period, the Special Committee will be permitted to continue discussions and enter into or recommend a transaction with any person or group that submitted a qualifying proposal during the 45-day period. A successful competing bidder who makes a qualifying proposal during the initial go-shop period would bear a $180 million (less than 1 percent) termination fee. For a competing bidder who did not qualify during the initial go-shop period, the termination fee would be $450 million.
Mr. Mandl, lead director of Dell's Board of Directors, said: "The Special Committee and its advisors conducted a disciplined and independent process intended to ensure the best outcome for shareholders. Importantly, the go-shop process provides a real opportunity to determine if there are alternatives superior to the present offer from Mr. Dell and Silver Lake."
Mr. Dell said: "I believe this transaction will open an exciting new chapter for Dell, our customers and team members. We can deliver immediate value to stockholders, while we continue the execution of our long-term strategy and focus on delivering best-in-class solutions to our customers as a private enterprise. Dell has made solid progress executing this strategy over the past four years, but we recognize that it will still take more time, investment and patience, and I believe our efforts will be better supported by partnering with Silver Lake in our shared vision. I am committed to this journey and I have put a substantial amount of my own capital at risk together with Silver Lake, a world-class investor with an outstanding reputation. We are committed to delivering an unmatched customer experience and excited to pursue the path ahead."
"Michael Dell is a true visionary and one of the preeminent leaders of the global technology industry," said Egon Durban, a Silver Lake Managing Partner. "Silver Lake is looking forward to partnering with him, the talented management team at Dell and the investor group to innovate, invest in long-term growth initiatives and accelerate the company's transformation strategy to become an integrated and diversified global IT solutions provider."
Following completion of the transaction, Mr. Dell, who owns approximately 14 percent of Dell's common shares, will continue to lead the company as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and will maintain a significant equity investment in Dell by contributing his shares of Dell to the new company, as well as making a substantial additional cash investment. Dell will continue to be headquartered in Round Rock, Texas.
The transaction will be financed through a combination of cash and equity contributed by Mr. Dell, cash funded by investment funds affiliated with Silver Lake, cash invested by MSD Capital, L.P., a $2 billion loan from Microsoft, rollover of existing debt, as well as debt financing that has been committed by BofA Merrill Lynch, Barclays, Credit Suisse and RBC Capital Markets (in alphabetical order), and cash on hand. There is no financing condition.
The transaction is subject to other customary conditions, including receipt of required regulatory approvals, in addition to the Dell stockholder approvals described above. The transaction is expected to close before the end of the second quarter of Dell's FY2014.
For further information regarding all terms and conditions contained in the definitive merger agreement, please see Dell's Current Report on Form 8-K, which will be filed in connection with this transaction.
J.P. Morgan and Evercore Partners are acting as financial advisors and Debevoise & Plimpton LLP is acting as legal advisor to the Special Committee of Dell's Board of Directors. Goldman, Sachs & Co. is acting as financial advisor and Hogan Lovells US LLP is acting as legal advisor to Dell. Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz is acting as legal advisor to Mr. Dell. BofA Merrill Lynch, Barclays, Credit Suisse and RBC Capital Markets (in alphabetical order) are acting as financial advisors to Silver Lake, and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP is acting as legal advisor to Silver Lake.
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Huntkey Debuts FX Series of Power Supplies
Huntkey Enterprise Group, a global professional power supply provider, debuted its latest FX Series of power supplies, including an FX500SE power supply, which is 80Plus Platinum certified, and an FX620M power supply, which is 80Plus Bronze certified.
The FX Series of power supplies are fully compliant with 80Plus Platinum (FX500SE) and Bronze (FX620M) efficiency requirements. It features powerful 12V output delivery (up to 90% power available on +12V rail) for extreme gamers only, enough to power up most high end VGAs and CPUs at greatly quiet operations. It is specially designed for hardcore gamers who desire extremely high efficiency and powerful gaming products.
The FX500SE power supply is certified by 80Plus Platinum, rated at 500 W. Its efficiency is up to 92% at typical load. The FX500SE uses a 12 cm fan, which is smartly started or stopped when a change in temperature is detected, in order to optimize the cooling system and minimize noise.
Japan-made bulk capacitors and solid state capacitors are used for extreme environments. The power supply also features excellent voltage regulation, +12V voltage regulation being about +/-1%.
Features:
- 80Plus Platinum certified - up to 92% efficiency at typical load
- Complies with Intel ATX 12V V2.31 & EPS 12V V2.92
- Full range input voltage 90~264V
- Active PFC (PF>0.99)
- ErP Lot 6 Ready! The standby mode consumes less than 1W when +5VSB is less than 0.1A
- Japan-made bulk capacitors and solid state capacitors
- LLC resonance circuit with DC-DC converter module
- Dynamic smart fan
- Excellent voltage regulation
- Powerful +12V output delivery
- Multiple protections: OVP, UVP, OPP, OTP & SCP
The FX620M power supply is certified by 80Plus Bronze, rated at 620W. Its efficiency is up to 87% at typical load.
The power supply also features excellent voltage regulation, +12V voltage regulation being about +/-1%, and Japan-made bulk capacitors. The FX620M power supply adopts a hybrid module cable management design in order to make your case tidy and improve the airflow inside the case.
The power supply also uses a 14cm intelligent-thermal fan, whose speed is adjusted based on the environment temperature, and therefore provides the best silent performance.
Features:
- 80Plus Bronze certified - up to 87% efficiency at typical load
- Complies with Intel ATX 12V V2.31 & EPS 12V V2.92
- Full range input voltage 90~264V
- Active PFC (PF>0.99)
- Japan-made bulk capacitors for extreme environment
- Hybrid module cable management
- 140 mm intelligent-thermal fan
- Excellent voltage regulation
- Powerful +12V output delivery
- Multiple protections: OVP, UVP, OPP, OTP & SCP
The Huntkey FX Series of power supplies will be available in PICO, Tran Anh , Hoanlong and Sang Tao in Vietnam, Vatan in Turkey, shop.ww.kz, Logycom shop and Pulser shop in Kazakhstan, DNS shop in Russia, Massmart in South Africa and other leading computer resellers all over the world.
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Thecus Launches N16000PRO and N12000PRO NAS
Since Thecus has entered the enterprise level NAS market with the N12000 and the N16000; they proved that the reliability and stability already found within its existing line of NAS could be tailor made to service heavy storage and heavy demand businesses. And to better serve the needs of the diverse enterprise users, the N12000V and N16000V followed which offered a choice between more value and more power. As the technology evolves quickly, Thecus is now proud to announce its new large business solution, the N12000PRO and N16000PRO.
"Thecus is dedicated to serve enterprise level needs with the best technology available," said Florence, CEO and General Manager of Thecus Technology. "Paired with powerful Intel processors and functions which provide advanced security features, our customers can rest assured that their data is being managed by professional hands."
Better processors for better performance
The new PRO series of 12 and 16-bay NAS comes with the fastest Intel technology ever seen at Thecus. The N16000PRO and the N12000PRO are equipped with the Xeon E3-1275 processor that runs at 3.4 GHz. The quad-core processors are matched by 8GB of DDR3 RAM on both devices to make sure that the biggest commands fly through without an itch. And to make sure the full power of the processors is used, a 10GbE network card can be added to the available PCIe slot and link aggregation can be used to make sure your network doesn't slow you down.
Store big with Volume Expansion and Daisy Chaining
Brought on by the ThecusOS 5.0, users can now dynamically stack their NAS units for more capacities in a single volume; simply designate your N16000PRO or N12000PRO as a stack master and implement a 10GbE switch to connect additional target devices. Scalability is the key notion when it boils down to volume expansion. In fact, an amazing eight target devices can be intertwined for a massive volume of multi TB capacity when utilizing 10GbE switch.
Daisy-chaining is the most innovative function to expand storage volume while keeping cost down. Up to four D16000 DAS can be added to your N16000PRO and N12000PRO for an additional 64 bays of storage. As a result, IT enterprises or consumers who utilize large amounts of storage can obtain massive expansion and save cost. Another perk about daisy-chaining is that transfer speeds are fast! Thanks to the SAS cables that are put-to-use to daisy-chain the DAS to the NAS. If paired with volume expansion, daisy-chain can help large businesses expand their storage capacity to up to 2.5 PB!
10GBASE-T High Availability (HA)
The N12000PRO and N16000PRO both run on ThecusOSTM 5.0 which supports one of the most important features within the storage industry, High Availability. In short, HA allows users to replicate the data on an active NAS to another standby NAS via 10GbE synchronization. The importance of HA is quickly noticeable, whether there is data corruption or if the active NAS has any HDD problems or downtime, the standby server keeps all vital data saved and is available at all time to take over the active NAS' responsibilities.
Total backup solution
Also supported by the N16000PRO and the N12000PRO is the total backup solution, Data Guard. This backup solution is the ultimate feature as it provides both local and remote backup under one roof. Currently, data is backed up across RAID volumes, external USB drives, and eSATA. In addition, Data Guard uses innovative technology to sync data across the network to other NAS, take advantage of real-time remote replication to keep your data safe. More importantly, Thecus Data Guard is the total backup solution which makes managing NAS user-friendly and convenient.
Additionally, to cover enterprises backup needs, Thecus joined hands with Acronis and gives five free registered copies of their Backup & Recovery 10 Server for Windows. Acronis offers a wide range of critical features which includes scheduling and hot backups with password protection, advanced compression functionality to help save space, incremental backups to save time and FTP/SFTP remote backup. Windows Server users now have a seamless, practical and secure system disaster recovery solution with the features offer by Acronis Backup & Recovery 10 Server for Windows (OEM).
Antivirus solution
In a multiple users environment, it is easy to spread a virus or malware through the data stored on the NAS. Adding an antivirus to the already comprehensive software bundle will provide the necessary software protection by scanning the files on your NAS and defending it against possible threats. McAfee is the world's largest dedicated security technology company and shares Thecus' spirit of dedication and quality. By establishing a strong partnership with them, Thecus allow users the benefit of McAfee's powerful software on their NAS entirely for free.
Conclusion
The N16000PRO and the N12000PRO from Thecus are designed to meet the needs of large businesses with large amount of data and who expect professional performance out of their NAS. With unified storage, the users will have the ability to plug their NAS to an iSCSI network, and at the same time, use your Thecus NAS as an IP Storage pool for both protocols. This way, the NAS can be compatible with any existing or future architecture. Now with faster processors, the N16000PRO and the N12000PRO will deliver quicker response time and handle multitasking with even better ease than before. The N16000PRO and the N12000PRO are a statement that Thecus promises to always provide professional level NAS for all.
For more information, visit the product pages of
N12000PRO, and
N16000PRO.
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Cooler Master Announces CM Force 500 Case
The CM Force 500 is the first of the all new Cooler Master case series: CM Force. These black, classy and affordable cases will be hitting Europe soon and the CM Force 500 will be the first. Even though the price lies at a very decent €39.99 this case offers a lot of the latest features.
Every modern PC needs decent cooling to handle the components that keep getting hotter and hotter. The CM Force 500 will have you covered for this demand with a possibility to install up to 6 fans, of which 2x 120mm can be installed in the front. Even more impressive is the fact that this case gives a lot of freedom to add water cooling. It support one 240mm and one 120mm radiator or you have the option to install 3 120mm radiators. This case is ready for everything you throw at it.
This case offers brilliant cooling options for a reason: It offers room for a lot of high end hardware. The CM Force 500 can fit virtually any VGA card on the market; even the monstrous HD7990 does not pose any kind of problem. Next to that you also have the possibility to mount the PSU at the top of the case, a feature that is sought after more and more in modern cases to make sure virtually every PSU can be fitted into this case. Of course there is also plenty of space for getting the cable mess out of view to give this case the clean look it deserves.
The CM Force 500 will be available in Europe by the middle of February (this may vary per region) for a recommended price of 39.99 euros.
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Logitech Introduces Award-Winning Ultrathin Keyboard Design for the iPad mini
NEWARK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Logitech (SIX: LOGN) (NASDAQ: LOGI) today introduced the Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard mini, a slim protective keyboard cover designed to enhance the iPad mini experience. The Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard mini helps you make the most of everything you do on your iPad mini - from enjoying apps, movies and photos to giving you a comfortable typing experience - while keeping your tablet's thin, light and sleek style.
"
We are excited to bring the award-winning Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Cover design - recognized across the industry as the best mobile keyboard for iPad - to the iPad mini," said Alexis Richard, director of brand development for tablet accessories. "Think of it as the other half of your iPad mini. Its clever seven-inch design fits perfectly with the iPad mini while offering full-size keys for easy typing, saving your screen space for content."
Attaching securely with the click of powerful integrated magnets, the Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard mini has a slim aluminum cover that matches the iPad mini and brings durable protection to it with minimal weight. When you're ready to use it, flip the Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard mini around to reveal its built-in Bluetooth EasyType keyboard, offering a traditional typing layout in a small seven-inch form factor, plus iPad mini function shortcut keys for the commands you use most often, such as copy and paste. It also doubles as a hands-free view stand so you can use your iPad mini without having to hold it.
The Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard mini has an instant On/Off feature, which means your iPad mini automatically wakes up when you open the cover and switches to standby when you close it. The keyboard itself has a three-month battery life (based on usage of two hours per day) so you can spend more time exploring your new tablet and less time worrying about your keyboard losing power.
Pricing and Availability
The Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard mini is expected to be available in the U.S. and Europe beginning in February 2013, for a suggested retail price of $79.99. For more information please visit
http://www.logitech.com or our blog.
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