| Canonical Unveils Deeply Integrated Ubuntu For Android, Mixes Phones With Desktops Posted: 21 Feb 2012 11:27 AM PST As smartphones grow more and more powerful, they've come to resemble miniature computers more than the rotary phones of our past. In fact, smartphones and tablets are becoming so powerful that some analysts have posited that we're moving into a post-PC world. Maximum PC's response? Post PC my ass -- but that's a lot harder to say in the wake of the new Ubuntu distro for Android devices. When you're squawking, it's a normal Android phone, but the second you connect the phone to a monitor and keyboard -- BAM! -- you're greeted by a full Ubuntu desktop experience. 
This ain't no namby-pamby slap-dash conversion, either; Android and Ubuntu run side-by-side and share the same address book, calendar, settings, photos and social media passwords to make the whole thing seamless. You'll be able to make calls and texts while using the Ubuntu desktop, too. The magic happens because Android and Ubuntu for Android use the same kernel. It's a really intriguing concept, but be forewarned: you'll need a pretty beefy phone to pull it off, plus the aforementioned monitor and keyboard. Here are the phone requirements: - Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) or higher
- Dual-core 1GHz CPU or higher (multi-cores required)
- Video acceleration: shared kernel driver with associated X driver; Open GL, ES/EGL
- 2GB storage for the OS disk image
- 512 MB RAM
- HDMI video out with secondary frame buffer device
- USB host mode
Canonical plans on showing off Ubuntu for Android at Mobile World Conference next week; hopefully, we'll get more details then. In the meantime, here's the list of specs and features. The OS is only available to OEMs at the moment, alas. Does Ubuntu for Android get you jazzed, or do you consider it another unwanted attempt to blur the line between PC and smartphone? No matter what, it's a nifty out-of-the-box idea. |
| Nvidia Releases WHQL-Certified 295.73 GeForce Drivers Posted: 21 Feb 2012 10:47 AM PST Good news if you're the proud owner of a Nvidia GeForce graphics card: after a flood of beta drivers, the first WHQL-certified drivers from the Release 295 family are ready to roll. Nvidia promises that the 295.73 WHQL drivers pack in all the upgrades found in the recent beta drivers, "plus a few other treats." Every GeForce card ever released looks to be supported. 
The 295.73 drivers increase performance and offer a slew of compatibility upgrades for all kinds of Nvidia technology, including 3D Vision, PhysX and SLI support. Numerous titles earned new bells and whistles. Nvidia even threw in SLI support for the Mass Effect 3 demo, and Skyrim, Modern Warfare 3 and Battlefield 3 all see significant tweaks. Graphics aren't the only beneficiary of these drivers, by the way: HD Audio and Nvidia Surround received updates and additional mobo support. Normally, we'd list games that received 3D Vision or SLI improvements, but the 295.73 drivers include a lot of changes. For specific info about improvements for Skyrim and ME3, check out the blog post announcing the release, or just head over to the GeForce drivers page, enter your PC's info, and see the complete list of improvements for yourself. Heck, why not download the drivers while you're there? |
| Sapphire Unveils AMD E450-Powered Edge-HD3 Mini PC Posted: 21 Feb 2012 10:14 AM PST  Not too long ago, Sapphire rolled out the diminutive Edge-HD Mini PC, which was hailed as the teeny-tiniest PC in all the land. (The company also oddly claimed the PC's "less than half a liter in volume!" You know, in case you wanted to fill it with Kool-Aid or something.) Despite its small size, the Atom-based Edge-HD packed a decent punch and racked up a lot of fans. Now, Sapphire's pulled the curtain off the Mini PC's follow-up. The aptly named Edge-HD3 ditches Intel for a 1.6GHz AMD E450 APU that gives the PC a performance boost over its predecessors.
The other major components received a boost, too; while the Atom-powered original includes just 2GB of RAM and a 250GB HDD, the Edge-HD3 packs 4GB of RAM and a 320GB HDD into the same small frame. There's an HDMI port onboard for 1920x1080 output and even better yet, you'll find both an HDMI and an HDMI-DVI converter cable in the box. The one thing missing: a baked-in operating system. So yeah, it'll handle Microsoft Office, but Sapphire also says the setup "takes most mainstream games in its stride" and claims that "even the more hardcore LAN party visitors will find the easily portable EDGE-HD3 a useful weapon in their armoury." To that end the PC sports 2 USB 3.0 ports, 2 USB 2.0 ports, an Ethernet port and built in Wi-Fi. And despite the claims, we'd casually suggest that hardcore LAN party visitors steer away from playing BF3 on the thing. No word yet on pricing or availability, but there's a full list of Edge-HD3 specs up on the Sapphire website. |
| It's Official: Barnes & Noble Rolls Out 8GB Nook Tablet for $199 Posted: 21 Feb 2012 07:26 AM PST  Barnes & Noble on Tuesday officially introduced a previously rumored 8GB version of its low price Nook Tablet. By cutting internal storage in half from 16GB and reducing the amount of RAM to 512MB, B&N was able to shave $50 off the retail cost and sell the new version for $199, the same exact price as Amazon's competing Kindle Fire tablet, which happens to be the second most popular slate on the planet behind Apple's iPad.
"For any customer who likes to read digitally, watch movies or TV shows, browse the web, or help their kids read and learn through interactive books and apps, our new $199 Nook Tablet with 8GB is the best product value on the market," said William Lynch, Chief Executive Office of Barnes & Noble. The 8GB Nook Tablet has more in common with the Kindle Fire than ever. Both sport the same amount of internal storage (albeit the Nook Tablet only gives users access to 1GB for non-B&N content), same amount of RAM, the same 1GHz dual-core processor, and now the same price tag. Spec for spec, they're nearly identical, though the Nook Tablet has a few things the Kindle Fire doesn't, like physical controls, a microphone, and a microSD card slot for expandable storage. B&N also announced a new low price for its Nook Color device, which has been reduced to $169, or $30 cheaper than both the Kindle Fire and 8GB Nook Tablet. You can buy the 8GB Nook Tablet now. Image Credit: Barnes & Noble |
| Origin PC's EON17-X3D is First 3D Laptop with Dual Graphics Cards Posted: 21 Feb 2012 06:44 AM PST  Three-dimensional laptop displays have been done before, and so have dual graphics cards configured in SLI. According to the boutique system builders at Origin PC, they've just never been done at the same time in a mobile form factor. That is, until now. Origin PC's EON17-X3D is supposedly the world's first 3D laptop to come with two videocards crammed inside for an insane amount of pixel-pushing power.
It's pretty much the same system as Origin PC's recently announced EON17-X, but with 3D capabilities. As a refresher, this desktop replacement is built around Intel's X79 chipset with support for second generation hexacore processors. It supports up to 32GB of 1333MHz Corsair quad-channel or up to 16GB of 1866MHz Corsair Vengeance quad-channel memory, up to three hard drives with RAID support, it has a backlit keyboard, and several other high-end amenities. Specific to the EON17-X3D is a built-in 3D emitter and 1080p 3D display. The system comes with a pair of Nvidia 3D Vision 2 wireless glasses with LightBoost technology. The fully customizable EON17-X3D is available now starting at $3,032. Image Credit: Origin PC |
| Lenovo IdeaPad U300e Ultrabook Now Up for Pre-order Posted: 21 Feb 2012 06:29 AM PST  There seems to be something new on the ultrabook front almost everyday, with the ultrabook models that were announced at last month's Consumer Electronics Show now hitting store shelves one by one. Lenovo's IdeaPad U300e, one of several models showcased by the vendor at CES, is the latest, having gone up for for pre-order on the company's website. Hit the jump for more.
The SKU currently listed on Lenovo's website does not appear to be the base model, which is supposed to rock a 1.4GHz Core i3-2367M and carry a $799 price tag. This particular model (U300e 269224U) not only has a more powerful 1.6GHz Core i5-2467M processor but also sports a higher price tag. The specs of the U300e 269224U are as follows: - Display: 13.3" HD Glare with integrated camera 1366x768
- Processor: 2nd generation Intel Core i5-2467M Processor ( 1.60GHz 3MB )
- OS: Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64
- Memory: 4 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz
- Storage: 500 GB HDD + 32 GB SSD
- Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 3000
- Camera: Integrated 1.3MP Camera
- Pointing device: Multi-finger one-piece TouchPad without buttons
- Battery: 4 Cell Li-Polymer
- Network Card: Intel 1030 BGN+BT Wireless
The IdeaPad U300e is supposed to be a budget alternative to the more powerful and leaner IdeaPad U300s. However, at $959 it's only marginally cheaper than the identically configured U300s 10802BU. According to the listing, the U300e will begin shipping in more than 4 weeks. |
| Analyst: Chip Sales Off to a Slow Start in 2012 Posted: 21 Feb 2012 06:24 AM PST  A perfect storm of contributing factors led to disappointing chip sales in January, which fell 15 percent globally compared to the same period one year prior, according to Bruce Diesen, an analyst with Carnegie Group in Norway. One of those factors is easy to guess and belongs to the hard drive shortage that resulted from flooding in Thailand, which in turn has been driving up costs. But that's not the only reason sales are slumping.
Overall weakness in the PC market and lower than expected demand in the mobile phone and automotive business markets have also contributed to January's slow start. Based on Diesen's calculations, the three-month average of global chip sales for January is expected to be $22.7 billion, EETimes reports. "Although several chip makers indicated the inventory correction in Q4 has ended, our early indicator indicates that it continued into Q1," Diesen said. Looking ahead, February's sales figures will likely be higher, which will come as a result of China having celebrated an early New Year. Image Credit: public-domain-photos.com |
| Ultrabooks Attracting Unpopular Fans Posted: 21 Feb 2012 05:54 AM PST  Intel's Ultrabook initiative might have been met with early skepticism, some of which still remains, but by and large, the light and powerful form factor is proving popular. It's also creating demand for small size components that can be squeezed into a pancake thin frame. As time goes on, expect to see Ultrabook models start to adopt 4mm micro fans that were originally developed for the handset market.
Citing sources entrenched in the cooling fan game, DigiTimes reports Acer's second generation Aspire S5 Ultrabook will rely on 4mm micro fans to keep its insides nice and chilly, or at least from burning up. Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, and LG have all shown interest in using micro fans as well. Those who develop cooling fans tell DigiTimes that 4mm is as thin as it gets with current technology, and while they were originally intended for handsets,4mm fans are a bit too loud for devices designed to sit up next a person's ear. That problem doesn't exist with Ultrabooks, which currently use 5.5mm or 7mm fans, depending on the model. Switching to 4mm micro fans will drive up costs, though not by much. A typical fan used in today's Ultrabooks runs about $1.15 to $1.20, whereas 4mm micro fans can cost around $1.60 to $1.70. Image Credit: Jaro Thermal |
| Valve-Branded Gaming Hardware on the Way? Gabe Newell Says It Could Happen Posted: 21 Feb 2012 03:45 AM PST 
If you're currently imagining a dystopic future in which we all nervously salute guards clad in Combine outfits while texting on our Steam-powered phones and breathing the Steam-branded air, calm down. Gabe Newell has no aspirations of heading up his own ill-gotten evil empire. In truth, he'd prefer that Valve forever avoids getting its hands dirty with the greasy innards of some proprietary piece of hardware. However, if it's the "only" way to keep innovation's gears churning, then he won't hesitate to bite that particular bullet. "Well, if we have to sell hardware we will," he told Penny Arcade. "We have no reason to believe we're any good at it, it's more we think that we need to continue to have innovation and if the only way to get these kind of projects started is by us going and developing and selling the hardware directly then that's what we'll do. "It's definitely not the first thought that crosses our mind; we'd rather hardware people that are good at manufacturing and distributing hardware do that. We think it's important enough that if that's what we end up having to do then that's what we end up having to do." The newly bearded Newell also noted the Valve hivemind has been abuzz about wearable computers and biofeedback as of late, so – on the off-chance something like this occurred – it probably wouldn't be another cookie-cutter console war competitor. For now, though, Valve's figurative Swiss army knife that might very well include a Swiss army as one of its many features is but a pipe dream. Instead, Steam and an ever-expanding suite of games are the orders of the day. So then, is Half-Life 2: Episode 3 among them? "We're trying to be careful not to get people too excited and then have to go and disappoint them," he replied when asked about "Episode 3 or Left 4 Dead 3." "So we're sort of reacting in the other direction and saying 'okay, well let's have things a little more baked before we start getting people all excited about it.'" |
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