| Newegg Daily Deals: Corsair HX750 750W Power Supply, SanDisk Ultra Plus 128GB SSD, and More! Posted: 10 Jul 2014 11:12 AM PDT |
| AMD Survey Shows Laptops Vastly Outnumber Smartphones and Tablets on College Campuses Posted: 10 Jul 2014 10:46 AM PDT  College students cherish laptops more than any other electronic device
Within the next year or so, there's a good chance that tablet shipments will outnumber traditional PC sales. Be that as it may, tablets are still relegated to being mostly content consumption devices, and if you want to get some real work done, you'll need a real PC. That sentiment is underscored by a new AMD survey that reveals the laptop as the most important electronic device among college students. Harris Poll conducted the Back-to-School Technology Usage Survey on behalf of AMD. The poll revealed that even though more than half of today's college students carry at least two devices at all times, the laptop is the most cherished piece of technology and the one that's used most often. Some 85 percent of those polled said they own a laptop, which outnumbered smartphone owners and was more than double the number of tablet owners. The poll asked students to rank their devices in order of importance, to which 41 percent ranked their laptop as number one, followed by their car, tablet, bicycle, and television. "Students expect more from their computers than ever before – they want them to be equally as good at streaming their favorite TV show as they are at crunching numbers in a math class," said Gabe Gravning, director of product marketing, Client Business Unit, AMD. "The processor is a pivotal part of enabling these experiences and AMD APUs are a versatile solution that offer an ideal combination of productivity and entertainment performance to handle virtually all the things today's students need and want from their technology – including long battery life, industry-leading AMD Radeon graphics, and a smooth, sharp streaming video experience." Over a quarter of respondents said they'd purchase a new PC if they won $1,000, and more than two-thirds said one of their biggest fears is having their technology stop working. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Bell Labs Zips Past Google Fiber to Set Broadband Speed Record Posted: 10 Jul 2014 10:08 AM PDT  Can we get some of that 10Gbps, please?
Records are meant to be broken, but sometimes they're downright shattered. Case in point -- Bell Labs, the research arm of Alcatel-Lucent, just set a new broadband speed record of 10 gigabits per second using traditional copper telephone lines combined with a prototype technology that's intended to show how existing copper access networks can be used to deliver 1Gbps symmetrical ultra-broadband access services. The prototype technology is called XG-FAST and is an extension of G.fast technology, a new broadband standard currently being finalized by the ITU. G.fast, which is expected to be commercially available in 2015, uses a frequency of 106MHz to deliver broadband speeds of up to 500Mbps over a distance of 100 meters. By comparison, XG-FAST uses an increased frequency range of up to 500MHz to achieve faster speeds, albeit over shorter distances. Using XG-FAST technology, Bell Labs was able to hit 1Gbps symmetrical over 70 meters on a single copper pair, and 10Gbps over 30 meters using two pairs of lines (bonding). "Our constant aim is to push the limits of what is possible to 'invent the future', with breakthroughs that are 10 times better than are possible today," explains Marcus Weldon, President of Bell Labs. "Our demonstration of 10Gbps over copper is a prime example: by pushing broadband technology to its limits, operators can determine how they could deliver gigabit services over their existing networks, ensuring the availability of ultra-broadband access as widely and as economically as possible." Interesting stuff, though Bell Labs set the record in a lab under ideal conditions. Quality of wire, crosstalk, and other factors can all affect real-world results. Nevertheless, it's pretty exciting that 10Gbps speeds are visible in the distance. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| IDC: PC Market Performed "Markedly Better" than Projected in Second Quarter Posted: 10 Jul 2014 09:43 AM PDT  PC segment is starting to rebound
Earlier in the week, Gartner predicted a "revival" of the global PC market in 2014, and hot on the heels of that prediction, market research firm International Data Corporation (IDC) reports that worldwide PC shipments totaled 74.4 million units in the second quarter of 2014. That represents a soft year-on-year decline of 1.7 percent, though that's "markedly better" than IDC's projected decline of 7.1 percent, the company said. It's the smallest decline in global PC shipments since the second quarter of 2012 when a surge in tablet sales disrupted the market. However, there's evidence to suggest that consumers are content with their current tablet devices, while the end of Windows XP support is prompting traditional PC upgrades in mature markets. At the same time, IDC warns not to get too excited. "The recent strength in mature regions is a positive sign," said Loren Loverde, Vice President, Worldwide PC Trackers. "However, an important part of this strength is driven by the rebound from weaker demand last year and to potentially short-term replacement activity. We can look for some recovery in emerging regions going forward, but it may coincide with slower growth in mature regions. We do not see the recent gains as a motive to raise the long-term outlook although 2014 growth could get closer to flat, rather than the May projection of -6 percent." Lenovo increased its lead over HP as the No. 1 PC supplier and now holds a 19.6 percent share of the market, up from 16.7 percent in the same quarter a year ago, versus HP's 18.3 percent share, up from 16.4 percent last year. Dell is in third place with a 14 percent share, followed by Acer at 8.2 percent, Asus at 6.2 percent, and all others at 33.6 percent. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Discusses Company's Future in Open Email to Employees Posted: 10 Jul 2014 08:31 AM PDT  Email provides a glimpse into Microsoft's future
In some ways, you could argue that Microsoft's spinning in circles chasing its tail. So are a lot of companies during this transitional period into mobile, which is one that seemed to catch a number of tech firms off guard. Recognizing that Microsoft could benefit from some new blood, former CEO Steve Ballmer voluntarily stepped down and eventually handed the reins to Satya Nadella. So, what does the future hold? Nadella issued an open email to employees calling for a return to Microsoft's core. "More recently, we have described ourselves as a 'devices and services' company. While the devices and services description was helpful in starting our transformation, we now need to hone in on our unique strategy," Nadella said. "At our core, Microsoft is a productivity and platform company for the mobile-first and cloud-first world. We will reinvent productivity to empower every person and every organization on the planet to do more and achieve more." Nadella goes on to explain that productivity goes far beyond just documents, spreadsheets, and slides. He wants to "shift the meaning of productivity" by building brand new tools, ones that will be more predictive, personal, and helpful. Nadella also wants to ensure harmony between its cloud OS infrastructure and device OS and first-party hardware. In the past, there's been some doubt as to whether Microsoft will continue to promote its Xbox platform. Rest assured, "Microsoft will continue to vigorously innovate and delight gamers with Xbox," Nadella stated. You can read the entire email here. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Double Fine Confirms Grim Fandango Remake is Headed to PC Posted: 10 Jul 2014 08:02 AM PDT  Classic rises from the dead
A virtual high-five is in order for Double Fine Productions, which confirmed via Twitter and on its website that Manuel "Manny" Calavera and the rest of the gang from Grim Fandango will appear on the PC in remastered form. The remade classic will also launch to Mac and Linux, along with console exclusives PlayStation 4 and Vita. It was announced back in June that Grim Fandango would launch to Sony's game console and handheld, but until now, it was only rumored that PC platforms would also be in the mix. "And that's not all, folks! All versions will be launching simultaneously, so everyone can play on day one and not have to worry about those spoilers you've been successfully avoiding for the past fifteen years. (Pro-tip: stay off Twitter.)," Double Fine announced on its website. According to Joystiq, Grim Fandango's resurgence came about when Tim Schafer, the game's original product leader and founder of Double Fine Productions, found out that Adam Boyes, PlayStation VP of Publisher Relations, was poking around his old intellectual property. Schafer made a phone call to Boyes, and it was from that conversation that the idea of bringing back Grim Fandango was born. Grim Fandango is set in the Land of the Dead where souls of the deceased head to the Ninth Underworld. The better a person lived, the more enjoyable his or her soul's travel will be, culminating in Number Nine, a train that takes just four minutes to reach the gate of the Ninth Underworld. You play the part of Manny, a travel agent at the Department of Death. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
