General Gaming Article

---

• Razer Announces 14-inch Razer Blade Laptop
• Microsoft Teases Return of Start Button in Windows 8.1
• PCKeeper Antivirus Tests Pay-What-You-Want Business Model
• Acer Upgrades $199 Chromebook Model with Faster Storage
• Newegg Daily Deals: Graphics Cards Galore!
• AMD's Opteron X-Series Processors to Challenge Atom in Microserver Market
• GeForce GTX 770 Benchmarks

Razer Announces 14-inch Razer Blade Laptop Posted: 30 May 2013 07:40 PM PDT The gaming laptop that's thinner than a dime Today Razer announced a 14-inch version of the Razer Blade. Known simply as the Razer Blade (yea, we don't get this new-age naming conventions either), the small gaming laptop is incredibly svelte being thinner than a standing dime. Measuring .66 inches tall, Razer boasts that it is the world's thinnest gaming laptop and that it is actually skinnier than the fattest section of a MacBook Air.  Though the notebook is extremely slim, Razer says that it will have beefy components and will come with either an Core i5 or i7 Haswell CPU and an Nvidia's GeForce GTX 765M GPU. In terms of storage, the laptop will come with either a 128, 256, or 512GB SSD (this means no mechanical hard drive).  Other features of the notebook include a 16x9 matte screen, a battery life capable of six hours, and Dolby speakers outfitted with the sound company's Home Theater Version 4 software. In terms of ports, the laptop is pretty barebones and comes with three usb 3.0 ports and an HDMI port. To ensure its portability, the new Razer Blade will also come with a small and light 150-watt power supply. Razer Blade Specs •      Future 4th gen Intel® Core™ processor (formerly codename 'Haswell') •      8 GB Onboard Memory (DDR3L – 1600 MHz) •      NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 765M (2 GB GDDR5) & Intel HD4600 •      Windows® 8 64 Bit •      128 GB SSD, with optional 256/512 GB SSD (mSATA) •      Qualcomm® Killer™ NIC N1202 (802.11a/b/g/n + Bluetooth® 4.0) •      14.0 in. HD+ 16:9 Ratio, 1600 x 900, with LED backlight •      Built-in stereo speakers •      3.5 mm audio microphone/headphone combo jack •      Array microphone •      (3x) USB 3.0 port (SuperSpeed) •      HDMI 1.4a audio and video output •      Dolby® Home Theater® v4 •      7.1 Codec support (via HDMI) •      Built-in full HD webcam (1.3 MP) •      Compact 150 W Power Adapter •      Built-in 70 Wh Rechargeable lithium ion polymer battery •      Razer™ Anti-Ghosting Keyboard (with adjustable backlight) •      Razer™ Synapse 2.0 Enabled •      Kensington Lock •      13.6 in. / 345 mm (Width) x 0.66 in. / 16.8 mm (Height) x 9.3 in. / 235 mm (Depth) •      4.135 lbs. / 1.876 kg Pricing for the unit will start at $1,799 and you'll be able to pre-order it starting June 3.  17-inch Razer Blade Pro In addition to the 14-inch form factor, Razer also announced a refresh model for its 17.3-inch Razer Blade unit. Now dubbed the "Razer Blade Pro," the larger laptop will also come with the same GeForce GTX 765M GPU and Haswell CPUs in either Core i5 or i7 configurations. Performance-wise, the company asserts the owners will be able to see up to two times the speed boost in certain games compared to its predecessor. Furthermore, the Razer Blade Pro will be upgraded from a 60-watt hour battery to a 74-watt hour battery.   Chassis wise, the laptop will use the same industrial design (ID) as its 17.3-inch predecessor which means it will retain its relatively thin .88-inch thickness and 6.5-pound weight along with the same matte TN panel.  Razer Blade Pro Specs •      Future 4th gen Intel® Core™ processor (formerly codename 'Haswell') •      8 GB DDR3L (2 x 4 GB 1600MHz) •      NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 765M (2 GB GDDR5) & Intel HD4600 •      Windows 8 64 Bit •      128 GB SSD, with optional 256/512 GB SSD (mSATA) •      Qualcomm® Killer™ NIC N1202 (802.11a/b/g/n + Bluetooth® 4.0) •      17.3-in. Full HD 16:9 Ratio, 1920 x 1080, with LED backlight •      Stereo 2.0 speakers •      3.5 mm audio microphone/headphone combo jack •      HD Webcam (front-facing, 2.0 MP) •      Array microphones •      (3x) USB 3.0 port (SuperSpeed) •      Codec supports 7.1 (via HDMI 1.4) •      Dolby® Home Theater® v4 •      Razer™ Anti-Ghosting Keyboard (with adjustable backlight) •      Razer™ Switchblade User Interface •      Razer™ Synapse 2.0 Enabled •      Built-in 74 Wh Rechargeable lithium ion polymer battery •      Kensington Lock •      16.8 in. / 427 mm (Width) x 0.88 in. / 22.4 mm (Height) x 10.9 in. / 277 mm (Depth) •      6.58 lbs. / 2.98 kg The refreshed Razer Blade Pro unit will be available for $2,299 which is roughly $200 less compared to its older counterpart. Pre-orders for it will also open beginning June 3. The company also announced that indie developers will be able to purchase the Razer Blade Pro for the discounted rate of $999, although the company vaguely had a foot note on a slide that read, "terms and conditions apply."  For images of the 14-inch Razer Blade, check out our gallery below!

Microsoft Teases Return of Start Button in Windows 8.1 Posted: 30 May 2013 12:31 PM PDT This isn't the Start button you're looking for. Sound the trumpets and cue the chorus line to begin singing songs of praise, Microsoft is bringing back the Start button! That's right, in a sneak peek at Windows 8.1, the Redmond software giant displayed the Start button's triumphant return, which at a glance is cause for celebration. Are you excited!? Well, don't be. Sorry to play with your emotions like that, but even though the Start button is making a return, clicking it only drops you right back into the modern UI. You can toss those trumpets aside and tell the chorus line to put a sock in it. Surely Microsoft must know that the disdain for its decision to remove the Start button in the first place has nothing to do with users wanting a quicker way to jump back into the tiled UI. Nevertheless, the company isn't willing to concede that a real Start button -- one that will bring up a list of programs and settings -- is truly needed, so this is what you get, along with the ability to now boot directly to the Desktop (as well as other screens), so at least there's that. Grumble, grumble...let's move on. Microsoft says you'll be able to do more to personalize their experience in Windows 8.1, starting with the ability to load up a slide show of pictures on the Lock screen. These can be photos that are stored locally or in the cloud in SkyDrive. You can also take pictures from a device's built-in camera from the Lock screen, negating the need to first log-in. Global search results, improvements to built-in apps, updated PC settings, and better mouse and keyboard options are all part of the many upgrades Microsoft will introduce in Windows 8.1, which will be available later this year as a free update to Windows 8. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

PCKeeper Antivirus Tests Pay-What-You-Want Business Model Posted: 30 May 2013 11:55 AM PDT Security software vendor lets YOU set the price. One of the arguments software pirates throw around for stealing digital content is because they can't afford the asking price. That doesn't exempt them from the moral implications of paying for versus stealing software, but what if a company was willing to let you set your own price? It's not a new concept -- there's the awesome Humble Indie Bundles, and we've seen music artists go this route, too -- but it's not something we've seen among security vendors, until now. A company called Kromtech is letting its customers decide how much or how little to pay for its PCKeeper security software. Pitched as an all-in-one security solution, PCKeeper is a collection of 14 different tools bundled in a single application, including antivirus, anti-theft, file recovery, disk cleaner, and several other tools. "Letting people choose their own price is an interesting way to open up our product to consumers who price shop and also build trust with those customers once they use the software and see just how useful it is. The belief is that once users try it they will like it and they will tell their friends they are PCKeeper user," says PCKeeper Communications Manager Ilias Melikov. The software normally runs $40, though you can pay as little as $1 or as much as $80. What's it really worth? Well, we've never heard of the program, let alone used it, though a little research led us to discover that it's a ZeoBit product, which you can find entries for in Virus Bulletin's comparatives. A Kromtech rep tells us that PCKeeper goes one step further than any other AV program by including a human element that actually looks at the reports the program generates for system errors or conflicts. "We call it Human Inside and we are the only ones who do it," Kromtech tells Maximum PC. Intrigued? You can find out more on PCKeeper's website. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Acer Upgrades $199 Chromebook Model with Faster Storage Posted: 30 May 2013 09:29 AM PDT Be on the lookout for new Chromebook models. Psst! Hey, you there. Yes, you, the one browsing Acer's C7 Chromebook. Which would you rather have, capacity or speed? Speed, you say? Well in that case, go ahead and take that Chromebook out of your shopping cart and head over to Best Buy. It's there that you'll find the first of several planned new models in Acer's C7 Chromebook line, including an upgraded version of the $199 model you were holding. Acer swapped out the 320GB mechanical hard disk drive (HDD) for a 16GB solid state drive (SSD). You don't need to be a math major to figure out that there's a pretty big discrepancy in storage space there, but keep in mind that Chromebooks are all about living in the cloud. What you lose in capacity, Acer says you make up in performance. The new Acer C710-2833 follows in Samsung's footsteps by switching to an SSD, only the price remains unchanged, so Acer's model is still $50 cheaper and the least the expensive Chromebook model around. In case you need a refresher on the other specs, it boasts: 11.6-inch display (1366x768 resolution) Intel Celeron 847 processor clocked at 1.1GHz 2GB RAM 16GB SSD Intel HD Graphics 2-in-1 memory card reader Three USB 2.0 ports HDMI 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi; 10/100 Ethernet LAN 4-cell battery Google Chrome OS It's not a bad buy for the money if you're looking for a secondary PC to surf the web with, or need a machine for the kids. You can't run Windows software on it, obviously, but there are tons of apps available, plus you can access Google's various services like Docs, Gmail, and so forth. It's basically today's take on the netbook. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Newegg Daily Deals: Graphics Cards Galore! Posted: 30 May 2013 09:13 AM PDT Top Deal: We've been inundated with new GPU releases lately, which inevitably means price drops on older parts. If you're in need of a video card upgrade, we have plenty to sift through, including today's top deal for an EVGA GeForce GTX 580 (Fermi) FTW Hydro Copper 2 for $340 with free shipping (normall $540 - additional $40 mail-in-rebate). This part has a license to chill courtesy of its Hydro Copper waterblock, and it fits in a single slot! Other Deals: XFX Double D Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card for $200 with free shipping (normally $230 - additional $30 mail-in rebate; Free games with purchase) HIS IceQ  Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition 2GB Video Card for $220 with free shipping (normally $250; Free games with purchase) PowerColor Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition 1GB Video Card for $110 with free shipping  (normally $120 - additional $20 mail-in rebate; Free games with purchase) Sapphire Radeon HD 6670 1GB Low Profile Video Card for $85 with shipping for $3(normally $90 - additional $15 mail-in rebate)

AMD's Opteron X-Series Processors to Challenge Atom in Microserver Market Posted: 30 May 2013 08:34 AM PDT AMD makes a run at Atom. Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) this week announced a new family of low power server processors optimized for scale-out server architectures. The Sunnyvale chip designer also attached a couple of interesting claims to its new Opteron X Series, formerly known as "Kyoto," the first of which is that these are the highest density, most power-efficient small core x86 processors ever built. The other claim has to do with how they compare to Intel's top Atom chip. Compared to Intel's Atom S1260 processor, AMD says its new X1150 and X2150 processors trump Santa Clara's part in key performance benchmarks, including single-thread and throughput performance by way of more cores, more L2 cache, a more advanced pipeline architecture, higher integration, and support for up to 32GB of DRAM, which is four times more than Atom supports. "The data center is at an inflection point and requires a high number of cores in a dense form factor with integrated graphics, massive amounts of DRAM and unprecedented power efficiency to keep up with the pace of innovation of Internet services," said Andrew Feldman, corporate vice president and general manager, Server Business Unit at AMD. "AMD has a proud history of server innovation, and the AMD Opteron X-Series processors challenge the status quo by providing unmatched capabilities to drive the most energy-efficient servers in the industry." AMD's new Opteron X chips consist of four Jaguar 64-bit x86 cores. The X1150 is strictly a CPU clocked at 2GHz, whereas the X2150 is an APU clocked at 1.9GHz with 128 Radeon HD 8000 cores. Both parts boast 2MP of L2 cache, the former rated at 9-17W TDP and the latter at 11-22W TDP. The X1150 costs $64 and the X2150 runs $99, both prices representative of 1,000 unit tray quantities. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

GeForce GTX 770 Benchmarks Posted: 30 May 2013 06:00 AM PDT Nvidia delivers a juiced GK104 in the GeForce GTX 770 Today the embargo lifts on the second GeForce GTX 700 series GPU to be announced in a week's time; the Titan-cooled but GK104-powered GeForce GTX 770. Unlike the GTX 780 announced last week, this card does not use the monstrous GK110 GPU, but instead opts for a highly-clocked version of the GK104 chip found previously in the GeForce GTX 680, GTX 670, and GTX 660 Ti. It's the highest clocked-part of all of those cards though, and also has 7Gb/s memory instead of the 6Gb/s variety found in all the previous Kepler cards, giving it a signficant bump in memory bandwidth. It also features all the cool features we've already covered in our GTX 780 article, including GPU Boost 2.0 and Adaptive Fan Control. If you haven't read that article, go check it out right here. The GTX 770 will also be offered in both 2GB and 4GB flavors, and Nvidia's board partners will be offering boards that are overclocked even more than the Nvidia reference design as well. The GeForce GTX 770 will retail for $400, though versions that are overclocked or have more memory will obviously cost a bit more, but we don't have the exact prices for you as of press time. Watch this space, as we'll add information about the new cards as it comes in today. GTX 770 specs Here are the GTX 770's specs. You will note this is the highest-clocked GK104 GPU to roll off the fab yet, and its memory is also the highest clocked that we've ever seen on a GTX board. And with that sweet Titan cooler, not to mention what third-parties can come up with, you can expect even more overclocking and overvolting goodness. The card is the same 10.5-inch length as the GTX 780 and Titan, and also uses one six-pin and one eight-pin PCIe connector, which is two more pins than what is found on the GTX 670.   How Fast is The GTX 770? We ran all of our tests on our standard GPU test bench, which consists of an Intel Core i7-3960X CPU, 16GB of RAM and an Asus PX79 motherboard, so this system is no slouch. In our tests we saw what we think is the basic argument for the GTX 770, which is you get GTX 680 performance for $400, which is a great deal. Based on the marketing materials we received from Nvidia prior to launch it seems like the company's target for this card was the HD 7970, though we threw the HD 7950 into our chart too since it was the GTX 670's nemesis. Looking at the chart, all three of these cards - the GTX 770, GTX 680, and HD 7970 GHz are damn close to one another, but the rub is that the GTX 770 is the least expensive, and the most silent, of all of them. The HD 7950 is a lot more competitive though, as a quick check on Newegg shows you can get one for around $300 including Tomb Raider, Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon, and Bioshock Infinite. That's a tough deal to pass up, and we think the GTX 770 will be a bit of a tougher sell for Nvidia than the GTX 780 or the Titan, which for now stand alone as the leaders in their price range. Then there's word of some new AMD cards arriving soon so it looks like the $400 price point is about to get real interesting, especially when prices on the GTX 670 and GTX 680 drop now that the GTX 770 has been announced. Will AMD hit back hard, and will we also see a GTX 760 Ti soon? We certainly can't wait to find out.

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
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610