General Gaming Article

---

• iBuyPower Teases White Steam Machine Prototype
• The Swapper Review
• Worldwide Smartphone Shipments to Exceed 1 Billion This Year, 1.7 Billion by 2017
• Acer First to Market with a Touchscreen Chromebook, Retails for $300
• Microsoft Enlists Pawn Stars to Call Chromebook ‘Not a Real Laptop’
• Black Friday Ads 2013 Round Up
• Motorola's Unlocked Moto G Smartphone Heads to U.S. Ahead of Schedule
• Canalys: Microsoft to Own Just 5 Percent of Rapidly Expanding Tablet Market in 2014
• Powercolor Rolls Out Overclocked PCS+ R9 270X Graphics Card
• Newegg Daily Deals: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB DDR3-1333 RAM, Asus 23.6-inch LCD, and More!

iBuyPower Teases White Steam Machine Prototype Posted: 26 Nov 2013 03:26 PM PST Update: Now with more pics of iBuyPower's Steam machine!  Microsoft's Xbox One and Sony's PlayStation 4 both raced to 1 million unit sales in the first 24 hours of availability, but come 2014, gamers may be talking about a console of a different kind. Boutique system builder iBuyPower is jumping aboard Valve's Steam Machine bandwagon with a prototype system it plans to launch sometime in 2014. In the meantime, iBuyPower has offered up a sneak peak of its prototype Steam Machine, which it also plans to show off at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January. iBuyPower's system looks very similar to a white Xbox One console, but with a green LED strip wrapping around the sides and Steam's logo imprinted on top. Like the Xbox One, iBuyPower's Steam Machine is built around an AMD foundation, though in this case it's a multi-core CPU of some sort and Radeon R9 270 graphics. It will also feature a 500GB hard drive, Bluetooth, and built-in wireless connectivity, Forbes reports. There will be two versions codenamed Gordan and Freeman. One will be clear or white with a customizable light strip (as shown), and the other will be a black box without a light strip. While no specific release date has been announced, iBuyPower said it's targeting a $499 retail price point. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

The Swapper Review Posted: 26 Nov 2013 01:05 PM PST You got your puzzles in my quantum mechanics Writing a review of The Swapper by Facepalm Games—a studio surely named after the gesture you'll perform when you finally solve the tougher challenges in this space-based puzzle scroller—is a bit like trying to talk about The Prestige to someone who's never seen the film. If that's you, it's best you just go ahead and skip this review. Our guilt would be too great if we accidentally spoiled your cinematic enjoyment. One light blocks clone-creation, the other disables swapping. Welcome to the bane of your puzzle-solving existence. If it sounds a little odd to be mixing movies with gaming, we counter that it would be odder still to not bring up an obvious inspiration behind The Swapper's mechanics and storyline—of which we're a bit loathe to spoil too much, given the precision behind its grand reveal. You're not a magician in The Swapper; rather, the game starts you off as a nameless space explorer who's been (unwittingly) jettisoned from orbiting Research Station Theseus onto the surface of the planet Chori V. Once you're done basking in the loveliness of the game's cinematic opening—get used to it, because The Swapper's atmospheres only get prettier—you quickly come across the game's Portal mechanic. Enter the (appropriately named) Swapper device. The Swapper—the gun, not the game—is a handheld version of Calvin and Hobbes's Duplicator with a fun twist. You create copies of yourself (that mirror your every move) by holding down the right mouse button, painting an outlined target of your body over a particular area, and releasing the mouse button. The "swapping" portion of the deal relates to the gun's secondary capability, which allows you to jump around between the five different copies of yourself that can simultaneously exist (if you have line-of-sight to shoot them) In Prestige terms (Warning: some Prestige spoilers ahead), it would be akin to Hugh Jackman's character being able to transfer his "active consciousness" from clone to clone as he sees fit, thus sparing him the unpleasant aftermath of having to drink so much water following a successful performance of his Transported Man "illusion." Of course, that explanation makes an assumption about where Jackman's core consciousness exists when the trick goes off, a fact that's hardly ignored by The Swapper's increasingly philosophical plot. To Facepalm Games's credit, the game doesn't beat you over the head with Stephen Hawking–like displays of metaphysics—all those clones notwithstanding. The Swapper feels evenly paced as its story devolves from "simple puzzle game" to a push to discover who you are, who the game's antagonists are (if there even are any), and how a bunch of giant intelligent rocks littered around the Theseus fit into the grand picture. Rocks, we note, that take over your screen with their telepathic thoughts. Hey, we never said this game was that straightforward. You'll be hard-pressed to find an environment in this game that isn't downright beautiful. To borrow Prestige language once again, the turn eventually comes; we won't tell you when, but we will note that the game's dénouement actually does wrap up the story in a manner that's hardly displeasing. Save for, perhaps, the game's ultimate ending—you're going to feel a great compulsion to play The Swapper again. Or, at the very least, you're going to find it difficult to avoid YouTube once the credits start rolling. We love that Facepalm Games does such a good job of easing you into its story's complexities, because the raw mechanics of this five-to-seven hour game (nine, if you're that bad at puzzles or really try to find the 10 hidden achievements) don't demand nearly as much of a leap. We're not criticizing; if anything, we think The Swapper is ideally timed for what it expects and delivers. We didn't feel any tedium during our puzzle-solving, unlike Portal 2's seemingly endless test levels and murky behind-the-scenes tours. While The Swapper (mostly) confines its plot to the Theseus and uses a bit of creative backtracking to avoid trapping players in a strictly linear map progression, the game's frequent inclusion of teleportation portals allows you to travel sans headache to areas you've previously discovered. Solving the puzzles of various rooms, mostly split off from key sections by The Swapper's Super Metroid–style doors, allows you to obtain Trigon Orbs. Collect enough orbs and you unlock new sections of the ship to progress through. The Swapper seamlessly zooms in and out to give you a better sense of scale during your jaunt through the Theseus. Our only real criticism is that the game's setup still makes you feel like a train on a single track, as you aren't given much creative flexibility to go beyond the confines of the formula: unlock area, solve branched puzzles, unlock new area, etc. There are no bonuses in The Swapper; there are no extras. You must pick up every single orb in the game to get to the big ending, all of which makes The Swapper's framing feel a bit restricted. The puzzles themselves follow the Portal formula: Introduce a concept, let the player master it after one or two iterations, then introduce another new concept. [Warning: Swapper spoilers below] These can be new mechanics, like colored lights that prevent you from using the various traits of the ol' Swapper gun in critical areas, or reinvented ways of thinking—our personal favorite, given all those times we had to kill ourselves to perform simple tasks. Yes, kill ourselves. To bring The Swapper full circle, much of the game's core centers on the question of consciousness: Who are you? When you swap, what happens to "active you"? What happens to your soul? Do you even have a soul? Who's in the Prestige box? To craft a gameplay mechanic around this very question—forcing you to constantly send an army of clones to their deaths to complete puzzles, survive falls, or, in a moment that made us cackle when we first realized it, navigate up and down through the ship—is just plain brilliant. Facepalm Games intertwines its plot and its mechanics perfectly. By the time you've fully jumped into The Swapper's philosophical rabbit hole, you'll be killing enough copies of yourself to make an army. You might find yourself questioning your clones' fates—whether you just broke the legs of you, as your clone, or whether your clone is you and you just sent a useless husk of yourself on a 75-foot free-fall. You might even start to feel bad. Absolutely beautiful visuals, excellent voice-over work (over a soothing soundtrack), and the frustrating creativity behind some of the game's puzzles make The Swapper a must-try as-is. Consider the primer on human mortality an added bonus—an extra clone, if you will. $15, facepalmgames.com, ESRB: Pending

Worldwide Smartphone Shipments to Exceed 1 Billion This Year, 1.7 Billion by 2017 Posted: 26 Nov 2013 12:53 PM PST Decline in average selling prices encouraging sales, IDC says The IDC says that smartphone shipments should be more than 39 percent higher than those in 2012 by the close of this year with totals exceeding 1 billion units.  By 2017, the number is expected to approach 1.7 billion units worldwide. The major culprit is a steady decline in average selling prices (ASPs). This year, the IDC suggests that the average selling price of a smartphone will be just $337, a 12.8 percent decrease from $387 last year. With an ASP as low as $267 by 2017. The lower prices and accompanying carrier subsidies mean that many people who would otherwise have purchased a dumbphone are walking out of stores with smartphones.  "Particularly within emerging markets, where price sensitivity and elasticity are so important, prices will come down for smartphones to move beyond the urban elite and into the hands of mass market users," says Ramon Llamas, IDC Mobile Phone team research manager. "Every vendor is closely eyeing how far down they can price their devices while still realizing a profit and offering a robust smartphone experience." With phone manufacturers fighting for the lowest price, how do you think companies are going to maintain profit margins? Let us know in the comments.

Acer First to Market with a Touchscreen Chromebook, Retails for $300 Posted: 26 Nov 2013 12:07 PM PST Finally, an affordable Chromebook with touch support Google owes Acer a pat on the back for making its Chromebook platform a more attractive option. How so? Acer just introduced the C720P Chromebook, the newest addition to its C720 line and the first to feature an 11.6-inch touchscreen panel. What's equally impressive is that Acer managed to bolt on a touchscreen panel without tacking on an obscene premium -- this sucker retails for $300 MSRP. "Our new touchscreen C720P gives customers an intuitive way to browse sites online, enjoy apps, and do more with the Chromebook," said Arif Maskatia, CTO for Acer. "The Acer C720 Chromebook line has been praised for its performance and battery life, and this new touchscreen model allows us to address the needs of an even wider range of customers with exciting new capabilities. We're certain many holiday shoppers will jump at the chance to get a touchscreen Chromebook for just $299.99." The rest of the laptop is standard Chromebook fare. The 11.6-inch screen boasts a 1366x768 resolution powered by an Intel Celeron 2955U processor based on Haswell, 2GB of DDR3 memory, and a 32GB solid state drive. It also features built-in 802.11n Wi-Fi, USB 3.0 and 2.0 ports, HDMI output, built-in webcam, and up to 7.5 hours of battery life. Physically, the 720p measures just 0.78 inches thick and weights a hair under 3 pounds, making it highly portable for toting to classes or meetings. The C720p will be available in various configurations in early December at Amazon, Best Buy, and through Acer's online store. Each one will come with 100GB of free Google Drive storage for the first two years, plus 12 free GoGo Inflight passes. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Microsoft Enlists Pawn Stars to Call Chromebook ‘Not a Real Laptop’ Posted: 26 Nov 2013 11:43 AM PST An advertising war between Microsoft and Google is brewing Microsoft doesn't want anyone to get Scroogled and is continuing its anti-Google campaign by recruiting the Pawn Stars to take a few swipes at Google's Chromebook. The ad masquerading as a scene from the reality TV show boils down to a few cheap insults and the claim that the Chromebook isn't a real laptop.  "[This isn't] a real laptop. It doesn't have Windows or Office. Without Wi-Fi, it doesn't do much at all," Rick Harris, host of the popular History channel show, says. "And when you are online, Google tracks everything you do so they can sell ads. That's how you get Scroogled." This comes right off the heels of Google's response to Microsoft's Scroogled campaign. It looks like Microsoft isn't backing down in what looks to be the continuation of a small marketing battle between the two companies. What do you think? Does Microsoft have a point or should it focus on its own products?

Black Friday Ads 2013 Round Up Posted: 26 Nov 2013 11:22 AM PST Black Friday 2013 PC/Accessories Deals It takes a special kind of bravery to venture out to retail stores on Black Friday, which is the Friday following Thanksgiving and the unofficial start of the holiday shopping season. Bad drivers, big crowds, and rude shoppers who won't think twice about trampling over your grandmother in a foot race to the electronics section to save $30 on a Blu-ray player are just some of what you'll have to contend with. These are the deals you are looking for! Lucky for us PC geeks, many of the items we covet can be found online, negating the need to leave our cozy homes and deal with unruly shoppers. Just as we did last year, we're putting together a dynamic collection of PC-related parts, accessories, and games deals all organized into handy categories. All you have to do is browse the categorized deals and click on any that interest you. That sure beats the alternative, doesn't it? Here's how this works. If you see "(BF") next to an item, it's a Black Friday deal. Since deals come and go, we'll cross out the ones that have expired. We'll also be listing Cyber Monday sales, which we'll tag with "(CM)" so you can easily distinguish between the two. Finally, we're not big on mail-in-rebates, so if a Black Friday or Cyber Monday discount is mostly represented by having to jump through a mail-in-rebate hoop, we'll probably omit it unless it's an exceptionally good deal. For the few that do include, we'll put an asterisk next to them. We'll be updating this list throughout Black Friday weekend and up through Cyber Monday, so be sure to bookmark this page and check back frequently. In addition, some of the deals will be live BEFORE Black Friday, so don't be shy about clicking ahead of time. Also, if you know of a PC-related deal we missed, feel free to share it in the comments section below! *Note: As you may know, supplies for Black Friday deals are often highly limited, so keep that in mind if these deals are quickly snatched up! Amazon We're giving Amazon it's own category because from Sunday, November 24 through Black Friday weekend, the online retailer will be running new deals as often as every 10 minutes. Prices will be valid at select times and while supplies last. Some examples of items that will be on sale at different points include: Seiki 32-inch 720p 60Hz LED HDTV: $98 Seiki 50-inch 1080p 60Hz LED HDTV: $229 Xbox 360 250GB Holiday Value Bundle including Halo 4 and Tomb Raider: $190 Google Chromecast streaming media player: $30 You'll find these deals at www.amazon.com/blackfriday. CPU/Processors AMD FX-4130 Zambezi 3.8GHz: $80, Newegg (BF) RAM and Digital Media Corsair Memory Accessories: Save at least 50 percent, Corsair (BF) G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3-1866: $110, Newegg (BF) Corsair XMS 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3-1333: $130, Newegg (BF) G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-1866: $53, Newegg (BF) Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3-1600: $75, Newegg (BF) Storage Velocity Micro Vmultra Drive: $100 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) SanDisk 32GB Flash Drive: $8, RadioShack (BF) Adata 16GB Flash Drive: $9, Newegg (BF) Kingston SSDNow V300 120GB SSD: $70, Newegg (BF) Seagate Backup Plus 1TB 2.5-inch USB 3.0: $60 (w/ promo code EMCWWVR32), Newegg (BF) Toshiba Canvio Basics 3.0 2TB USB 3.0 External Drive: $100 (w/ promo code EMCWWVR35), Newegg (BF) Click the next page for graphics cards, motherboard, and PSU deals.   Video Cards EVGA GeForce GT 610: $40, TigerDirect (BF) PNY GeForce GTX 770: $370, TigerDirect (BF) Motherboards Asus Rampage IV Extreme: $395 (w/ promo code EMCWWVR26), Newegg (BF) ASRock Z77 Extreme 4: $100, Newegg (BF) Gigabyte GA-Z887M-D3H: $90, Newegg (BF) Cases, Power Supplies, and Accessoreis Cooler Master HAF 932 Advanced Full Tower Chassis: $100, Newegg (BF) Corsair PSU Accessories: Save at least 50 percent, Corsair (BF) Rosewill Capstone 550W 80 Plus Gold PSU: $65 (w/ promo code EMCWWVR39), Newegg (BF) League of Legends Razer Naga Hex Mouse: $70 (w/ promo code CYBERPREVIEWUS), Razer (BF) Battlefield 4 Razer Taipan Mouse: $70 (w/ promo code CYBERPREVIEWUS), Razer (BF) Battlefield 4 Razer BlackWidow Ultimate Keyboard: $120 (w/ promo code CYBERPREVIEWUS), Razer (BF) Desktop Systems Velocity Micro Raptor Signature: $3,849 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) Velocity Micro Raptor Z95: $2,299 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) Velocity Micro Edge Z40: $1,069 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) Velocity Micro Edge Z55: $1,624 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) Velocity Micro Holiday Edition: $649 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) Velocity Micro Edge Mini: $669 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) Velocity Micro Vector Z35: $1,149 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) Velocity Micro Vector Z25: $849 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) Velocity Micro Vision M35: $2,099 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) Velocity Micro Promagix HD60: $1,119 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) Velocity Micro Promagix HD80: $1,899 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) iBuyPower A10-Series (A10-8600K, 8GB RAM, 1TB HDD, Windows 8.1): $500, Newegg (Pre-BF) Click the next page for laptop, tablet, game deals and more!   Notebooks/Ultrabooks Laptop Bundle with Choice of Laptop, Case, Flash Drive, and Printer: $299, Walmart (BF) Velocity Micro Notemagix M17: $1,849 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) Velocity Micro Notemagix M15: $1,549 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) Velocity Micro Notemagix M15 LE: $1,099 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) Microsoft Surface 32GB: $199, Microsoft (BF) Microsoft Surface 64GB: $349, Microsoft (BF) Dell Inspiron 15z Touchscreen (Core i5, 6GB RAM, 500GB HDD + 32GB SSD): $399, Microsoft (BF) Asus VivoBook S400 Ultrabook: $500, Newegg (BF) Asus ZenbookPrime (Core i7, 4GB, 128GBx2 SSD, Nvidia GT 620M): $950, Newegg (BF) HP Winter Blue 15.6-inch (AMD E-300, 4GB RAM, 320GB HDD, Windows 8: $278, Walmart (BF) MacBook Pro 13.3-inch (4GB R AM, 500GB HDD): $1,000, Best Buy (BF) Mobile Devices Nextbook 8-inch Dual Core Tablet with 8GB Memory: $99, Walmart (BF) Nextbook 7-inch Tablet with 8GB Memory: $59, Walmart (BF) RCA 7-inch Tablet with 4GB Memory: $49, Walmart (BF) Apple iPad 2 16GB Wi-Fi + Bonus Accessory Kit: $389, Walmart (BF) Visual Land Prestige Pro 7-inch Tablet Dual Core with 16GB Memory: $90, Walmart (BF) Monster M7 7-inch Dual Core Tablet with 16GB Memory: $129, Walmart (BF) Google Nexus 7-inch Tablet with 32GB Memory (2012): $189, Walmart (BF) Trio Stealth Pro 7-inch 4GB Tablet: $50, Radio Shack (BF) LG G Pad 8.3-inch Tablet: $279, Newegg (BF) Apple iPad w/ Retina Display 16GB Wi-Fi: $399, Walmart (BF) Monitors AOC E2752SHE 27-inch LED Monitor: $179, nationwide November 28 through December 2 (BF) Asus 27-inch LED Monitor: $190, Newegg (BF) Hanns-G 27-inch LED Monitor: $180, Newegg (Pre-BF) Samsung C150 SEries 21.5-inch LED Monitor: $115 (w/ promo code EMCWWVP29), Newegg (Pre-BF) LG IPS224V-PN 21.5-inch LED IPS Monitor: $110 (w/ promo code EMCWWVP32), Newegg (Pre-BF) Games and Software Adobe Photoshop Photography Program: $9.99/month, Adobe (BF) Call of Duty: Ghosts: $40 (Xbox 360), $50 (Xbox One), Microsoft (BF) Grand Theft Auto V: $40, Microsoft (BF) Battlefield 4: $39 (Xbox 360), Microsoft (BF) FIFA 14: $25 (Xbox 360), Microsoft (BF) Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag: $34 (Xbox 360), Microsoft (BF) Madden 25: $25 (Xbox 360), Microsoft (BF) Skylanders Swap Force: $39, Microsoft (BF) Minecraft: $15, Microsoft (BF) Printers and Routers Buffalo AirStation Extreme AC 1200 Dual Band Wireless Router: $80, Newegg (Pre-BF) TP-Link TL-SG108 8-Port Gigabit Switch: $18, Newegg (Pre-BF) Edimax EW-7238RPD N300+ Concurrent Dual-Band Wi-Fi Range Extender: $30, Newegg (Pre-BF) Brother MFC-7860DW All-in-One Wireless Laser Printer: $170, Newegg (Pre-BF) MISC LG 24LN5200 42-inch 1080p 60Hz LED Ultra Slim HDTV: $379, Walmart (BF) Sceptre 50-inch Class LCD 1080p 60Hz HDTV: $399, Walmart (BF) Sceptre 32-inch 720p 60Hz LED HDTV: $179, Walmart (BF) Sceptre 40-inch Class LCD 1080p 60Hz HDTV: $249, Walmart (BF) Emerson 26-inch Class LCD 720p 60Hz HDTV and DVD Player: $169, Walmart (BF) Nintendo Wii U Holiday Bundle: $329, Walmart (BF) Nintendo 3DS XL Holiday Bundle w/ Choice of 2 Games and Accessory: $219, Walmart (BF) Nintendo 3DS Starter Bundle: $179, Walmart (BF) Nintendo 2DS Holiday Bundle w/ Choice of 2 Games and Accessorty: $149, Walmart (BF) Ematic Portable Wireless Speaker and Speakerphone with Bluetooth: $22, Walmart (BF) Garmin Refurbished nuvi 50LM 5-inch GPS w/ U.S. Map Coverage and Lifetime Map Updates: $69, Walmart (BF) Garmin nuvi 50LM Bundle 5-inch GPS w/ Lifetime Map Updates and Friction Mount: $109, Walmart (BF) Xbox 360 Ultimate Bundle: From $234, Walmart (BF) Velocity Micro Cinemagix Multiplex: $1,899 + free shipping, Velocity Micro (BF and CM) Xbox 360 4GB: $179, Microsoft (BF) Xbox 360 250GB: $199, Microsoft (BF) MartinLogan MLT-2 5.1 Home Theater Speaker System: $150, Newegg (BF) LG 42-inch 1080p LED HDTV: $340, Newegg (BF) Aluratek 7-inch Digital Photo Frame: $25, Newegg (BF) Corsair Outlet Store (Refurbished Items): Save at least 50 percent, Corsair (BF) Battlefield 4 Razer BlackShark Headphones: $110 (w/ promo code CYBERPREVIEWUS), Razer (BF)

Motorola's Unlocked Moto G Smartphone Heads to U.S. Ahead of Schedule Posted: 26 Nov 2013 10:07 AM PST Budget smartphone could be a hot holiday item Motorola has a holiday surprise for the mobile crowd. The company announced that its unlocked and affordable Moto G smartphone is now available to purchase in GSM form from Motorola's website with no contract, no SIM lock, and an unlocked bootloader for $179 with 8GB of storage or $199 with 16GB of storage. Those are full retail prices - you own the device outright for less than the subsidized cost of most high-end smartphones. Following the U.S. launch of the GSM version, Motorola said it will offer a CDMA handset in January. Both versions feature a 4.5-inch HD display, 1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor, 1GB of RAM, 5MP rear-facing camera, 1.3MP front-facing camera, and a 2070mAh battery that Motorola claims will last a full day. The Moto G ships with Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, though Motorola says it's "guaranteed" to get an Android 4.4 KitKat upgrade in the beginning of 2014. Furthermore, it's a clean build of Android -- no skins or funky customizations to slow down performance. Bear in mind that the Moto G does not come with 4G LTE support or expandable storage. Some people will find those omissions to be deal killers, though overall, the Moto G is a good value for the money. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Canalys: Microsoft to Own Just 5 Percent of Rapidly Expanding Tablet Market in 2014 Posted: 26 Nov 2013 09:29 AM PST Tablets will make up half of the overall PC market next year Desktops aren't going anywhere, but neither are tablets, the latter of which are forecast to out-ship all other PC form factors combined to account for nearly half of the client PC market, according to Canalys. Tablet PC shipments grew 40 percent in the third quarter of 2013, which helped the overall PC market grow 18 percent even though traditional desktop and notebook shipments declined. Amid all this growth is a window of opportunity to monetize the frenzy, just like Intel did when netbooks were all the craze. Apple is still the top tablet vendor, and with the recent launch of the iPad Air and new iPad mini with Retina-class display, it will probably stay in the lead. Meanwhile, Canalys believes Microsoft will carve out a 5 percent share of the market next year, which would be more than double its 2 percent stake in 2012. In order to really compete, however, there's a sense that Microsoft needs to consolidate its operating systems. "To improve its position it must drive app development and better utilize other relevant parts of its business to round out its mobile device ecosystem," said Canalys Research Analyst Pin Chen Tang. "A critical first step is to address the coexistence of Windows Phone and Windows RT. Having three different operating systems to address the smart device landscape is confusing to both developers and consumers alike." Funny Canalys should mention OS consolidation. As coincidence would have it, Microsoft's Executive Vice President of Devices and Studios, Julie Larson-Green, recently went on record saying Microsoft has too many OSes. "We have the Windows Phone OS. We have Windows RT and we have full Windows. We're not going to have three," Larson-Green said. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Powercolor Rolls Out Overclocked PCS+ R9 270X Graphics Card Posted: 26 Nov 2013 07:56 AM PST Factory overclocked and custom cooled Powercolor today announced that it's given its first R9 Series graphics card the PCS+ treatment, which consists of using in-house materials and a custom cooling design for added performance and stability. The lucky candidate is the Powercolor PCS+ R9 270X. It has 2GB of GDDR5 memory just like the reference design, though Powercolor goosed the GPU to 1060MHz base and up to 1100MHz boost. The card was built using Powercolor's Gold Power Kit, which includes a Digital PWM, Ferrite Conducting Power (FCP), and a multiphase design. On top of it all is a PCS+ cooling design consisting of dual 90mm fans, three heatpipes, a large section of cooling fins, and a pure copper base. According to Powercolor, its custom cooler delivers 16 percent lower temps than reference and 20 percent better airflow to keep dust bunnies from settling in. An optional accessory for the card is Powercolor's Turbo Timer. This device keeps the graphics card's fans running for a period time after powering off the PC to ensure all the parts are adequately cooled. No word yet on when the Powercolor PCS+ R9 270X will be available or for how much. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Newegg Daily Deals: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB DDR3-1333 RAM, Asus 23.6-inch LCD, and More! Posted: 26 Nov 2013 06:03 AM PST Top Deal: How much RAM do you really need? The answer depends on a number of factors, though you can safely assume you'll need more than 640K. It never hurts to go big, especially when you can do so without robbing a bank. Such is the opportunity presented by today's top deal for a G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB DDR3-1333 Memory Kit for $105 with free shipping (normally $140). These are tightly timed modules (9-9-9-24) with unique looking heatsinks. Need even more? Go hog wild and pick up two kits! Other Deals: Asus VS Series VS247H-P Black 23.6" 2ms LED Backlight Widescreen LCD Monitor for $150 with free shipping (normally $200 use coupon code: [EMCWWVV23]; additional $20 Mail-in rebate) Intel Core i3-3220 Ivy Bridge 3.3GHz LGA 1155 55W Dual-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 2500 BX80637i33220 for $115 with free shipping (normally $125 use coupon code: [EMCWWVV35]) Western Digital WD AV-GP WD20EURS 2TB 64MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5-inch Internal Hard Drive Bare Drive for $85 with free shipping (normally $100 use coupon code: [EMCWWVV28]) Gigabyte GA-Z77-HD3 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS for $85 with free shipping (normally $110 use coupon code: [EMCWWVV36]; additional $15 Mail-in rebate)

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