General Gaming Article |
- Acer Exec Expects Ultrabook Prices to Fall Below $500 by 2013
- 8 Things We Hate About Windows 8
- Apple Unveils New iPad
- Report: Netflix, Cable Companies In Talks To Join Forces In Your Cable Box
- G.Skill Shows Off Blazing Fast Memory Kits
- Hey Look, It's a New Motherboard from EVGA (Classified SR-X)
- Fable Creator Peter Molyneux is Leaving Microsoft; Lionhead Studios Loses Its Head
- Beware of Ultrabook Imposters (or Don't Be and Save a Few Bucks)
- Say Goodbye to Android Market and Hello to 'Google Play'
| Acer Exec Expects Ultrabook Prices to Fall Below $500 by 2013 Posted: 07 Mar 2012 08:37 PM PST
Weng is reported to have talked about the possibility of ultrabooks dropping below $500 in 2013 at the ongoing CeBIT trade show in Germany. Actually, this is merely a reiteration of what he said around three month back. But according to The Verge, which talked to a number of other Acer executives at CeBIT, Weng's optimism doesn't seem to reflect the "attitudes on the ground." Christoph Pohlmann, a member of Acer's laptop division, was one of the people our friends at The Verge spoke to. According to the tech blog, Pohlmann seemed skeptical of ultrabook prices dropping below $500. Not only that, but he also revealed that Acer is just breaking even at the current $799 price of its entry-level Aspire S3 ultrabooks. |
| 8 Things We Hate About Windows 8 Posted: 07 Mar 2012 01:36 PM PST Like a Sith to a Jedi, a Cylon to a human, an Apple to a Gordon Mah Ung, every good thing said about Windows 8 seems to be matched by an equal and opposite reaction: Something bad. To trade in our angel wings and prop up our Google Hangout devil horns for a moment, there's plenty about Windows 8 that you just aren't going to like. Unless you're one of those stalwarts still clinging to Windows XP as if it was a stuffed animal from your childhood that you need to squeeze just to sleep at night, the announcement of a new Windows operating system usually summons up one singular question: When can I upgrade? Note, we said usually. For Windows 8's errors are so flagrant and its annoyances so widespread, this might be the first operating system in your Windows lifetime that you're going leave right there on the retail shelf. That's right. We said it. Microsoft's not only created a new operating system; the company has also created a healthy amount of doubt in the minds of potential purchasers. Here are some of the main ingredients that make up our tasty Windows "8-erade:" 1. Bring on the Advertisements
Because Windows 8 comes on the back of a bird with the word "apps" spray-painted on its side, you'll find that Microsoft does plenty to integrate its virtual storefronts into the OS at any cost – go figure. We'd expect nothing less from Redmond, or Apple, or Google. But here's the kicker: Microsoft's implementation is just downright ugly. Case in point? The Video app. Not only does this thing struggle to play videos that Media Player itself can handle (why the app doesn't correctly integrate your system's codecs, we'll never know), but the first thing you see upon launching it is not a gallery of your videos, or a top-20 list of local videos you've watched, or anything like that. No, you get a spotlight of all the quote-unquote awesome content you can purchase from Microsoft directly – your videos require you to scroll a full screen's width to the right just to access, and all you get is a big box for the video you've most recently played and a "show more" button that lets you check out other videos in your User folder. Yuck we say to that, yuck we say to the similar treatment found in Microsoft's Music and Xbox Companion apps, and yuck we say to Microsoft putting its paid-for content blatantly front and center. 2. Where the Heck Am I?
Since Windows 8 is like Windows 7 with a fancy new tablet design bolted onto the side (we'll get to that later), Microsoft has done an amazing job of splitting important content and options between the two different environments. And by amazing, we mean not-so-amazing. For example, your standard Control Panel sits in what we'll call the "Windows Classic" environment – same ol' Control Panel you should be used to using by now. You can jump to the main Control Panel shortcut from Metro, but not its individual components. Similarly, you can't use the Control Panel to edit the individual settings found within Metro – that requires you to go to Metro's PC settings application, which can be found quasi-buried in Metro's general Settings sidebar. Got it? In essence, you set up your system settings in two different settings locations. And while we see how that might work on paper – Metro settings follow Metro, Desktop settings follow Desktop – this walled garden approach is unnecessary. Settings are settings; If you can't adjust Metro in Desktop, Microsoft should at least give users a better way to access each environment's settings options from the settings panels of the other. One scant link in the Control Panel's "Users" menu doesn't cut it. 3. Strapping a Bomb to a Monkey
We brought it up, so we might as well finish the thought. The Windows Metro UI could not feel any more like its own operating environment that's been strapped, rather crudely, onto the back of Windows 7. Sure, there are a few cosmetic upgrades to the classic desktop – many we like, in fact. That doesn't remove the disjointing effect of having to constantly shift your focus between a svelte, common experience and a graphical monstrosity. From clearly understood data and organization to pictures! Huge, pretty pictures with small amounts of text and lots of square graphics! From the good ol' Windows we've come to love over the years – one you can truly navigate with just the click of a mouse – to a storm of giant panels that can't be closed or minimized unless you start mashing your keyboard or start dragging your content all around your pretty solid-color display. From awesome and easy file management in Windows Explorer to… whatever the heck you consider the process of selecting files within, say, SkyDrive and the Metro UI. Shoot, plug-ins aren't even supported on the Metro version of Internet Explorer. You have to select the "View on the desktop" option, hidden beneath a wrench icon near IE's Metro address bar, just to watch a freakin' YouTube video. Come on. There was really nothing Microsoft could have done to prevent this mash-up: It was destined to happen as the company tries to push more than a decade of collective user experience toward a completely new kind of interaction. We just wish Microsoft did it better. Or, heaven forbid, gave users the choice to abandon Metro entirely and run Windows 7+, er, Windows 8's "Desktop mode" if they wanted. 4. Pooping on the Power User
We, at Maximum PC, love the ability to tweak, customize, and control our gadgets, hardware, and software however we see fit. It's the Maximum PC way. What isn't the Maximum PC way, however, is Windows 8's Metro UI. Is it really that hard, Microsoft, to allow advanced customization within your smorgasbord of squares? Sure, you can make some tiles take up two horizontal spaces, and you can shrink some of these larger tiles back to a single tile's worth of space. And yes, you can grab tiles and slap them into new columns – yippee! – but that's about it. You know what would have been amazing and incredible to see in the Metro UI? At least the same level of customization that one could find on (or hack into) one's smartphone. Why not give users the option to set their tiles to any square size they want? If Metro is supposed to be a tablet interface, why can't you mash multiple tiles onto a single "group" tile that expands when clicked or tapped on? Why do some tiles carry live information, but tiles that should display data or act as visual hotspots in theory (like, say, the tile for your Video app, or Messaging app) just exist as naked icons? Why can't you select and shuffle around multiple tiles at once? Why can't you use a gesture to "paint" tiles to select them, instead of having to right-click everything? Why do Metro windows only scroll horizontally? Why can't you edit the color, title, or icon of individual tiles? Why can't you quick-launch into applications from your lock screen (what good is a mere icon), or highlight over these icons for a quick look at whatever new tidbits might be lurking within your OS? Why, why, why?
On the next page: Letting users pick third-party tie-ins, Our epic list of That Which Windows 8 Broke, and cloud complaints!
5. Let Users Dictate Services
It's great and all that Microsoft has made an attempt to integrate third-party services directly into Windows 8 – in fact, the feature (found in both the People and Messaging apps, to name a few) made our list of "8 Things We Love About Windows 8." What we don't love, however, is the fact that Microsoft's the one dictating which services get invited to the Windows 8 party and which are left sad and alone at home. We envision a future where we can only use Windows 8 to manage a handful of social networks and instead have to use Internet Explorer – or, more likely, a browser that isn't horrible – to catch our friends elsewhere. Or perhaps some other third-party apps: You're not going to find your Steam contacts within Windows 8's contact list, nor your AIM, Yahoo, or Google Chat friends within Messaging (as of right now within the Consumer Preview), et cetera. We would have much preferred Microsoft to make a handshake instead of a closed fist. Why not offer an easy method for giving third-party apps and services the ability to organize a data stream that could then be pulled into Windows 8's big apps? And then, if users wanted, they can go about setting up their Windows apps almost like an RSS reader, adding the services they care about instead of integrating third-party services Microsoft thinks they should care about. And heaven help the person who runs more than one Twitter account or checks more than one Gmail account– you can currently only tie your Windows apps to a single account per Windows user account. 6. Why Break What Worked Great?
"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world: the unreasonable one persists to adapt the world to himself." – George Bernard Shaw Or, to say it another way, there's no need to fix that which wasn't broken. Worse, that which Windows users were familiar with (and fond of) based on their experiences with operating system's many versions over the last many years. Here's a "brief" list of things we miss, having made the (temporary) switch to Windows 8:
7. Puff up the Cloud
Now that Microsoft is playing in the cloud – giving users the ability to transfer their files and settings across any Windows 8 systems they log into with their Microsoft Account – it's time for Microsoft to up the ante when it comes to the security options it offers its accountholders. We'd love to see at least some information on the Microsoft Account website to indicate which systems a person has logged in on using his or her Microsoft Account – better still, some way to block that login from being accepted on a particular PC if you don't want that system or its user to have access to you any longer. Cooler still would be some kind of two-way authentication factored into Microsoft's login process (we know, we know; more security steps) to ensure that even an attacker with physical access to your system and all your credentials will still have a heck of a time breaking into your Window 8 account. In a perfect world, Microsoft would even give Windows 8 users a nuclear option: The ability to set a previously registered computer for a complete and full format the next time Windows 8 boots. While an Internet-based kill switch might be a little drastic, it's a pretty big deal that Windows 8 is tying so much of one's life into the cloud. If we live in a day an age where we can safely eliminate all of the information on our missing smartphones via a website, surely it's time to build a little more peace-of-mind into Windows 8's cloud security. 8. No Obvious Reason to Upgrade
We touched on it in the intro, but we'll etch it in stone in our final point: Windows 8 presents no compelling reason for a user to upgrade, period. If it seems as though we spent a lot of time critiquing the look and feel of Windows' new interface, and for good reason: At the end of a day of Windows 8, that's all you're left with. Minus a few fun features here and there (Storage Space, File History, Shutdown Hibernation, et cetera), there's little more than window dressing to inspire users to flock to their local Microsoft stores upon Window 8's final release. Windows 8 is, for lack of a better word, a new makeup kit for Windows 7. Touchscreen systems aside – you're really going to want Windows 8, given that Metro was made for you – the quote unquote improvements built into Windows 8's Metro apps definitely appear pretty. And there's no question that the future, full-screen Metro treatment of third-party apps like Facebook, or Twitter, or Angry Birds will surely be something to see. But we don't think that cosmetic trumps functionality in every occurrence: A huge-font Twitter app with one user profile per screen swipe pales in comparison to what you get from the best Twitter apps already available on Windows 7 today, for example. In other words, Windows 8 is going to give a lot of pretty people plenty of new methods for interacting with their information in a prettier way. It's also going to confuse the bejesus out of them if they've used Windows at any point over the last, say, ten years, and we don't think that Microsoft's latest OS is going to deliver best overall user experience. Prettier, yes. Better, no.
Coming tomorrow: 8 Must-Have Apps for Your New Windows 8 Installation! For more from David, former Maximum PC editor and Windows enthusiast, follow him onFacebook or Twitter (@thedavidmurphy). |
| Posted: 07 Mar 2012 11:03 AM PST
The rumored "Retina-level" display actually exists: the iPad packs 3.1 million pixels in its 2048x1536 resolution for a 264ppi. It also sports a new dual core A5X processor with a quad-core GPU. According to Apple, that setup boasts twice the speed and four times the graphics performance of the vaunted Tegra 3 proc found in, say, the Asus Transformer Prime. Big talk! The new iPad will include a 5 megapixel camera capable of capturing 1080p video and outfitted with the same software found in the iPhone 4S. The virtual keyboard also includes a dictation button so you can finally scream at your Apple gear in frustration the same way you do your Android devices. You won't find Siri, however, which seems like an odd move by Apple. Apple finally jumped into the 4G waters with the newest iPad: the onboard LTE radio will work with Verizon and AT&T networks stateside and Telus, Rogers and Bell networks elsewhere. It also contains the same 3G world radio found in the iPad 2. To compensate for the battery draintitude of LTE radios and the high-end display, the new iPad packs a bigger battery that Apple claims will imbue the tablet with a 10 hour battery life. The new iPad will ship on March 16, with preorders starting today. Wi-Fi versions are 16GB for $499, 32GB for $599 and 64GB for $699, while LTE models of the same size cost $629, $729 and $829, respectively. Interested?* *Yeah, the iPad doesn't necessarily appeal to a lot of the MPC crowd, but this is big tech news nonetheless; for the majority of America, "tablet" = "iPad". That's a picture of an older model iPad, by the way. |
| Report: Netflix, Cable Companies In Talks To Join Forces In Your Cable Box Posted: 07 Mar 2012 10:26 AM PST
Netflix honcho Reed Hastings has recently met with major cable representatives, Reuters claims. Specific names aren't named, but the publication says that talks were held with "some of the largest U.S. cable companies." While several sources stepped forward to say Netflix could be added to cable company set-top boxes-- presumably similar to the apps found in Smart TVs -- one said that the deals could involve cable companies directly selling Netflix to their customers, with a Netflix charge appearing on customer cable bills. Several major hurdles could halt the rumored deals, however: Netflix may need to revisit their existing streaming contracts, and, well, Netflix and the cable companies don't exactly hold a lot of love for each other in their hearts. Last week, Hastings told investors that moving to cable is "not in the short term, but it's in the natural direction for us in the long term." If a deal was struck, cable companies could come out looking user-friendly and Netflix could become available to a more mainstream user base that doesn't necessarily have Rokus, Smart TVs or gaming consoles. Is this another in a long line of questionable actions by Netflix, or a genuinely good move? What do you think? |
| G.Skill Shows Off Blazing Fast Memory Kits Posted: 07 Mar 2012 09:59 AM PST If you've already laid out the dough for a Sandy Bridge-E proc and an X79 motherboard, there's no point skimping on the RAM. Lots of memory is, without a doubt, a good thing; lots of speedy memory is a very good thing. G.Skill's Ripjaws line of high performance RAM has a long history of pushing DDR3 to its limits, and the company continued the proud tradition at the CeBIT exhibition in Germany, where G.Skill showed off what it calls "the fastest quad channel memory" around.
How fast is fast? CeBIT's 1.65V, 16GB kit (4x4GB) clocked in at 2666MHz with timings of 10-12-12-31. Other memory sticks top out at 2400MHz. G.Skill knows how to pitch to its audience, too: "(The kit) allows extreme overclockers to unleash the maximum power of their X79 systems," the company boasts in its press release. The rig holding the RAM consisted of an Asus ROG Rampage IV Extreme mobo, a Core i7-3960X CPU and a Thermaltake cooler. Unfortunately, there's no word yet on release dates or prices, but don't expect RAM like that to come cheap. Image credit: G.Skill |
| Hey Look, It's a New Motherboard from EVGA (Classified SR-X) Posted: 07 Mar 2012 06:55 AM PST
Yes folks, this beastly board is built around Intel's C606 chipset and supports up to two Intel Xeon socket 2011 processors. It has a dozen DIMM slots for up to a whopping 96GB of DDR3-800/1066/1333/1600MHz+ memory, four SATA 3Gbps ports, two SATA 6Gbps ports, RAID 0/1/5/10/ and JBOD support, ten USB 2.0 ports, half a dozen USB 3.0 ports, two GbE LAN, 8-channel audio, seven PCI-E x16 slots with support for 4-way SLI and CrossFireX, a pair of mini SAS ports, and even Firewire. That's just the tip of the iceberg, believe it or not. EVGA also boasts 300 percent more gold content, a 2x6 Phase PWM, onboard Bluetooth, PCI-E disable switches, triple BIOS support, EZ Voltage read points, 100 percent POSCAP capacitors, DIMM disable switches, and a whole bunch more. The only things that are missing are price and release date details. Image Credit: EVGA |
| Fable Creator Peter Molyneux is Leaving Microsoft; Lionhead Studios Loses Its Head Posted: 07 Mar 2012 06:35 AM PST
"I remain extremely passionate and proud of the people, products, and experiences that we created, from Black & White to Fable to our pioneering work with Milo and Kate for the Kinect platform," Molyneux said in a statement to Kotaku. "However, I felt the time was right to pursue a new independent venture. I'd like to thank the team at Lionhead, as well as our partners at Microsoft Studios for their support, dedication, and incredible work over the years." Every indication is that this is a peaceful split between Molyneux and both Lionhead Studios and Microsoft, and we'd have been shocked if it wasn't. Molyneux is one of the 'good guys,' so to speak, and has been making (or involved in the making of) popular games seemingly since the beginning of time, including Populous from way back in 1989. Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons |
| Beware of Ultrabook Imposters (or Don't Be and Save a Few Bucks) Posted: 07 Mar 2012 06:09 AM PST
DigiTimes claims to have spoken with "industry sources" who tipped the news and rumor site to an upcoming crop of systems that will appear similar in style to Ultrabooks with ultra slim cases, but will use cheaper components and sell for much less. Hollow hinges, metal/aluminum bodies, and solid state drives (SSDs) are all things you won't find on these Ultrabook alternatives. Details are sparse at this point and it's unclear if these lower priced systems will feature AMD hardware inside or perhaps slower Intel processors like Celeron CPUs, nor was there mention of any other specific corners that would be cut. |
| Say Goodbye to Android Market and Hello to 'Google Play' Posted: 07 Mar 2012 05:45 AM PST
It's also entirely cloud-based. If you purchase and start watching a movie on your smartphone, you can pick up where you left off on your LCD monitor. Google Play keeps your content in sync, but without downloading content to each of your devices. There are some perks, too. Google points out that with Google Play you can:
It's Google's version of iTunes and iCloud rolled into one. And it's a solid idea, though some have criticized the name choice, none more comically than Lamarr Wilson, creator and host of WilsonTech1, a daily video show on all things tech. In this video, Wilson points out some obvious problems with Google's name choice, right after he throws down some wicked dance moves (interpret 'wicked' however you want). A short-term perk of Google Play is Google's "7 Days to Play" promotion. Starting today, Google is slashing prices on different content each day for the next seven days "In the U.S., today's titles include the collection of top 40 hits Now That's What I Call Music 41, the popular game Where's My Water, the novel Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and the movie Puncture for just 25 cents each. In addition, you'll find great collections of hip-hop, rock and country albums for $3.99 all week, detective novels from $2.99, some of our editorial team's favorite movies from 99 cents, and our favorite apps from 49 cents," Google said. What are your thoughts on Google's rebranding effort? Image Credit: Google |
Ultrabooks haven't really been flying off store shelves as Intel and its PC vendor friends had hoped. The underwhelming performance of first-generation ultrabooks notwithstanding, they are unlikely to abandon the whole idea anytime soon. An obvious way of making these ultra-thin and -light laptops more inviting to buyers is to lower their prices. While vendors are currently having a hard time keeping ultrabook prices under $1,000, Acer Global President Jianren Weng has already started talking about sub-$500 ultrabooks.
After weeks of rumors and mouth breathing from the techorati, Apple just confirmed what everyone already suspected: Another year, another new iPad. Say what you want about Apple, but at least they're consistent. Earlier debate swirled around its name: would the new tablet be called the iPad 3 or the iPad HD? (Because that's vital information!) Neither, as it turns out. The new iPad is called simply, well, the iPad. Some other rumors turned out true, however. 
Netflix is killing cable. 
The last motherboard announcement from EVGA came in November of last year when the company unveiled its X79 lineup. It's been relatively quiet since then, until now. Figuring four months was enough of a hiatus, EVGA is now 
Well known game developer Peter Molyneux is leaving Lionhead Studios, which he founded 15 years ago in 1997, and is also walking away from his position as Creative Director of Microsoft Game Studios, Europe. He plans to walk away from both companies as soon as Fable: The Journey for the Kinect is finished in order to found a new company called 22 Cans.
Intel's Ultrabook iniative is an attempt make notebooks sexy again, inside and out. Ultrabooks compete with Apple's MacBook Air and are designed to be both ultra stylish and ultra responsive, and of course feature Intel's Sandy Bridge platform inside. There are certain specifications vendors must meet to call a system an Ultrabook, some of which are not cheap to implement. For this reason, notebook makers are working on lower cost alternatives they can sell for around $600 and still flip a profit.
Google's app store is no longer called Android Market; it's now Google Play. Take a moment to wrap your head around that one if you must, and then see how long it takes to mentally transition to Google's rebranding effort. More than just a name change, however, Google Play is fully-fledged digital entertainment hub for purchasable content, including apps and games, music, eBooks, and videos.| You are subscribed to email updates from Maximum PC - All Articles To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
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