| No BS Podcast #219: Maxwell Architecture, AMD's Kaveri, Rig of the Month & Windows 8 Posted: 25 Feb 2014 05:12 PM PST 
New GPUs, new APUs, and the same ol' Windows 8 complaints It's time for Episode #219 of the No BS Podcast! We kickoff with AMD's continuation of its Kaveri APU line and discuss whether or not you need one in your next build. Next, we announce the return of Rig of the Month, a segment where you, the reader, can submit photos of your badass custom PC. After that, we switch gears and focus on Nvidia's new power-saving architecture and share our thoughts of the new GPU code-named Maxwell. We wrap it up by answering your questions, sharing editors' picks and delivering a no BS rant.   
Editors' Picks Tom McNamara: Intel Ark App for Android & iOS Gordon Ung: Centech USB power meter Josh Norem: BF4DB.com & Hurricane 2 Canless Air System Jimmy Thang: Plantronics Backbeat go to Bluetooth wireless stereo earbuds Stalk us on the following networks: Subscribe to the podcast on iTunes Become a fan on Facebook Tweet us on Twitter Subscribe to us on Youtube Check out our Windows 8 app in Microsoft's app store Subscribe to our RSS feed If you have any feedback or questions feel free to: Email us at maximumpcpodcast@gmail.com or Leave us a voicemail at 877-404-1337 x1337 Subscribe to Maximum PC in print or on Google Play, iTunes, Kindle, Nook and Zinio. Thanks for listening! |
| GammaTech's Durabook R8300 is 13.3 Inches of Rugged Laptop Posted: 25 Feb 2014 11:47 AM PST  A tough laptop for outdoor types
If your daily work space is on a mountain top or some other tough terrain, an Ultrabook may not be what you need. Instead, GammaTech offers a line of rugged systems, including its new Durabook R8300, a 13.3-inch notebook that's certified to stringent MIL-STD-810G and IP64 specifications. It can withstand drops, getting wet, dust, temperature fluctuations, and other variables that are likely to occur in hostile environments. The 13.3-inch laptop comes standard with an Intel Core i7 3555LE or Core i5 3437U mobile processor. It has two DDR3 SO-DIMM memory slots with support for up to 32GB of RAM, quick-release HDD storage capability, a mini-card slot for wireless LAN, USB 3.0, and other amenities. "It is easy to produce a computer that works well in a climate-controlled environment, where Mother Nature is held at bay," remarked Jen Chen, GammaTech president. "It is something entirely different, however, to engineer a computer to withstand long exposure to wind, dust, rain, and extreme temperatures as well as surviving bumpy rides, drops, and working in sweltering heat or frigid temperatures. Designed specifically for outdoor usage, our new R8300 notebook offers unsurpassed performance, even in the most hostile environments." There aren't many outlets in the middle of the desert and other extreme locales, and GammaTech claims the Durabook R8300 can last through a full 8-hour shift. In addition, you can install a second battery that boosts battery life to 12 hours while adding hot-swap support. The Durabook R8300 will be available in the second quarter of this year. No word yet on price. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Toshiba Announces Fast and Capacious TransMemory Pro USB 3.0 Flash Drive Posted: 25 Feb 2014 10:56 AM PST 
Toshiba's newest flash drives top 200MB/s Tired of slow file transfers? Assuming your PC has a USB 3.0 port, it might be worth upgrading to a USB 3.0 flash drive. Not all of them are created equal, however, though Toshiba just announced its large-capacity TransMemory Pro USB 3.0 flash drive family with high-speed transfers. Specifically, Toshiba rates the read and write speeds at up to 222MB/s and 205MB/s, respectively. That's not the fastest rating we've seen for a USB 3.0 flash drive, though it's certainly far from pokey, at least on paper (we haven't played with one to see how real-world performance compares with the rated performance). We also like that Toshiba is offering its new line in 64GB and 128GB models, though it'd be nice if smaller (and more affordable) capacities were offered as well. "Featuring the best performance, highest speed, and largest capacity of any Toshiba USB flash drive to date, this storage device offers blazing fast data transfers while ensuring that all digital information is securely protected," said Maciek Brzeski, vice president of product marketing and development, Branded Storage Products, Toshiba Digital Products Division. "We wanted to create a better on-the-go storage solution." 
The TransMemory Pro line comes with built-in EX II Pad Locker security software and encrypted password protection. Using the software, you can create your own private and public partitions. Toshiba says the 64GB and 128GB models will be available at the end of March for $130 and $200 MSRP, respectively. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| AMD Catalyst 14.2 Beta Driver Launches Alongside Thief Posted: 25 Feb 2014 09:48 AM PST  Thief reboot and new beta drivers from AMD are both available today
Let's get the bad news out of the way first. In a blog post earlier this week, Eidos confirmed that Thief, which launched today, doesn't have Mantle or TureAudio support at the outset. However, support is coming soon (March), and in the meantime, AMD is serving up its Catalyst 14.2 beta drivers specifically with Thief in mind, though there are other reasons you might want to install the latest driver release as well. In addition to updating its Crossfire profile and introducing performance improvements for Thief, AMD said it fixed some issues with Mantle in Battlefield 4 so that multi-GPU configurations (up to 4 GPUs) are now supported. AMD also added support for Frame Pacing for dual graphics and non-XDMA configurations above 2560x1600 with BF4 and Battlefield 3, and fixed a few additional issues, such as missing textures in Minecraft and corruption issues seen in X-plane. You can find out more in the release notes and then download the driver direct from AMD. As for Thief, minimum system requirements include a high-performance dual-core or quad-core CPU, 4GB of RAM, AMD Radeon 4800 series or Nvidia GTS 250 or higher graphics card with DirectX 10 support, and 20GB of storage space. Recommended specs include an AMD FX 8000 series or better or Intel Quad i7 Core CPU, 4+ GB of RAM, AMD Radeon R9 series or better or Nvidia GTX 660 series or better graphics card with DirectX 11 support, and 20GB storage space. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Samsung Galaxy S5 is Bigger, Faster, and Still Made of Plastic Posted: 25 Feb 2014 09:01 AM PST  This is Samsung's new flagship smartphone
As expected, Samsung introduced its Galaxy S5 smartphone at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, a handset that represents an attempt at returning "back to basics" with a focus on capabilities that consumers want most, the South Korean phone maker said. It starts with a big size display -- a 5.1-inch Full HD 1080p (1920x1080) Super AMOLED powered by a peppy 2.5GHz quad-core processor. It also wields 2GB of RAM, 16GB or 32GB of internal storage, a microSD card slot with support for memory cards up to 128GB, 2-megapixel front-facing camera, 16-megapixel rear-facing camera, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, USB 3.0, NFC support, and a spattering of other specs all wrapped in Android 4.4.2 KitKat. As previously rumored, the Galaxy S5 features a Finger Scanner. However, one rumor that didn't come true is that of a material switch to a metal casing -- the Galaxy S5 is still made of plastic. Instead of using premium materials, Samsung focused its attention on other areas, such as making the Galaxy S5 IP67 dust and water resistant. For fitness gurus, the Galaxy S5 offers tools to stay in shape, including a personal fitness tracker, pedometer, diet and exercise records, and a built-in heart rate monitor. The Galaxy S5 will be available starting in April. No word yet on price. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Western Digital Pounces on Surveillance Storage Market with Purple Hard Drives Posted: 25 Feb 2014 08:03 AM PST  Purple is the new color of surveillance
Western Digital continues the trend of color coding its hard drive line by adding a Purple model built specifically for surveillance applications. The Purple line differs from regular hard drives in that they're better suited for 24/7 always-on conditions, whereas standard HDDs are built to run for only short intervals, WD says. In addition, Purple drives can withstand high temperature fluctuations and equipment vibrations inherent in typical surveillance applications. Outside of ruggedness, WD's Purple family uses AllFrame technology, which helps to reduce video footage loss with a proprietary cache policy management technology that's intended to help improve data flow and playback. "Different from ordinary desktop hard drives designed for eight hours of daily operation, WD Purple drives have the built-in reliability to operate in Hikvision home and small business system installations so critical video footage is available when it is needed most," said Ying Yang, director of testing, Hikvision. "An additional benefit of WD Purple drives is they support up to eight drives and 32 HD cameras so there is the flexibility to expand for future system coverage." The Purple line consists of 3.5-inch HDDs with 64MB of cache and a SATA 6Gbps interface. They come in 1TB, 2TB, 3TB, and 4TB capacities ranging in price from $90 to $200 MSRP. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Origin PC Launches Own Brand Memory Built by Kingston Technology Posted: 25 Feb 2014 07:13 AM PST  Underneath Origin PC's custom heat spreaders are HyperX modules
Boutique system builder Origin PC has teamed up with Kingston Technology to deliver a line of its own brand memory modules offered in the company's Genesis, Millennium, and Chronos desktops. Though the DDR3 memory kits bear Origin PC's name on the low profile black heat spreaders, they're essentially rebadged Kingston HyperX modules, only they've been factory tested and approved by both Kingston and Origin PC engineers. Capacities range from 8GB to 64GB. All kits are compatible with Intel XMP auto-overclocking settings and use carefully selected premium chips for maximum performance and overclockability, Origin PC says. "HyperX is proud to team up with Origin PC to offer our best-selling high-performance system memory with a customized heat spreader featuring the Origin logo," said Lawrence Yang, HyperX business manager. "We built, tested and optimized our special-edition memory specifically for Origin. They are known for high performance, quality and high-end designs that cater to gamers and enthusiasts who want the best-in-class notebooks and desktops. HyperX shares many of the same qualities and we look forward to a long and successful partnership with Origin." A rose is a rose by any other name, so the question here is, should you care whether or not Origin PC's own-brand memory is built by Kingston? Perhaps there is. Back in December, Puget Systems posted data on component failures and noted that it almost exclusively uses Kingston brand RAM these days because, for them, it's been more reliable than the competition. While on the topic of Kingston memory, take a look at the company's manufacturing process for RAM and solid state drives. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Newegg Daily Deals: Corsair Carbide Series 500R Case, EVGA GeForce GTX 780, and More! Posted: 25 Feb 2014 06:25 AM PST |
