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Techconnect Review Round-up 2/9/10

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 11:47:06 PDT

Today's review round-up...

GPU-Z 0.4.6 available for download

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 11:27:32 PDT

A new version of the GPU-Z graphics card information and monitoring tool has now been made available and it adds support for the cards revealed by the GeForce 259.47 driver (GeForce GTS 455, GTS 450, GT 440, GTX 430, GTX 420, GTX 470M, GTX 460M, GTX 445M, GTX 435M, GTX 425M, GTX 420M and GTX 415M).

LaCie serves up the MosKeyto compact flash drive

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 11:16:04 PDT

Still buzzing around the storage market, LaCie has now introduced its newest flash drive which is called MosKeyto, measures just 21 x 16 x 10 mm, weights 10 grams, and can store 4GB, 8GB and soon, up to 16GB worth of blo... of digital content.

Chrome 6.0 goes stable, complete with Form Autofill and extension syncing

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 10:30:09 PDT

Google has today made the 6.0.472.53 version of its Chrome browser available to practically anyone, by releasing it through the Stable and Beta channels for Windows, Mac OS and Linux. This release comes with performance and stability improvements as well as quite a few new features.

SDHC/SDXC memory cards to get 300 MB/s speeds thanks to new design

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 10:08:59 PDT

The first Ultra High Speed (UHS) interface SD memory cards, with transfer speeds of up to 95 MB/s, have barely been announced and already the SD Association is promising even higher performance with its new dual-row pin memory card design which will be part of the SD 4.0 specification.

Toshiba recalling 41,000 T Series notebooks, power plug to blame

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 09:48:13 PDT

Japan-based Toshiba Corp., the US Consumer Product Safety Commission and Health Canada, has today issued a voluntary recall for some 41,000 Satellite T Series laptops sold from August 2009 to August 2010 for $600 and $800.

Samsung America details the QX410, SF510, RF510 and RF710 laptops

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 09:32:39 PDT

Samsung has now announced in the US a bunch of Calpella-based, and Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit-loaded mobile solutions combining an eye-catching design with solid performance - the 14-inch QX410, the 15.6-inch SF510 and RF510, and the 17.3-inch RF710.

Toshiba debuts Folio 100 10-inch tablet, to ship it in Q4

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 09:02:26 PDT

Toshiba Europe didn't wait for IFA 2010 to kick off and today revealed to the world the Folio 100, an Android 2.2-running tablet powered by Nvidia's Tegra 2 SoC that will be pre-loaded with Opera Mobile, FBReader, Document To Go, Evernote, Adobe Flash 10.1 and Fring.

HP makes higher bid for 3PAR, Dell backs down

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 08:47:39 PDT

And the bid war for 3PAR is officially over (unless a new one is just around the corner) as today HP upped the ante for the last time, offering $33 cash per 3PAR share, and Dell announced that it will not be matching the sum.

Toshiba announces full line of UHS-I-compatible SDHC and microSDHC cards

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 08:34:57 PDT

Hot on the heels of Panasonic, who unveiled its first UHS-I SDHC cards yesterday, Toshiba has today announced three SDHC and three microSDHC solutions that utilize the Ultra High Speed interface and deliver maximum read/write speeds of 95/80 MB/s, and 40/20 MB/s, respectively.

Buffalo to deliver Blu-ray 3D-ready external writer this month

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 08:16:27 PDT

Buffalo is going with the 3D trend and will later this month be bringing to market, the Japanese market to be exact, an external Blu-ray writer that has Blu-ray 3D support, and can even 'do' 2D to 3D conversion thanks to the bundled CyberLink PowerDVD 9 software.

Google and AOL extend and expand their search/ad partnership

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 06:57:00 PDT

Google and AOL have just announced the signing of a new deal that will further their already long-lasting collaboration by another five years and enable them to work together even closer.

Creative readies D220W wireless soundbar speaker for Q4

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 06:17:59 PDT

And we have yet another announcement from X-Fi maker Creative, one that details the D220W, a wireless soundbar speaker with a high-gloss piano black finish that is paired up with the Sound Blaster Wireless USB transmitter.

MSI Afterburner VGA utility reaches version 2.0

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 05:39:25 PDT

MSI has now made available the 2.0(.) version of the Afterburner tool which enables graphics cards monitoring, overclocking, VGA fan speed adjustment, and even stress testing via the included Kombustor tool.

Logitech intros the colorful Ultimate Ears 100 earphones

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 04:12:37 PDT

Logitech's Ultimate Ears team has today revealed the UE 100 noise-isolating in-ear headphones that target music lovers and are available in five music genre-inspired designs (colored red, green, blue, purple and grey).

Samsung Galaxy Tab 7-inch tablet finally announced

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 03:47:57 PDT

It certainly took its time but today Samsung has officially announced the Galaxy Tab 7-inch tablet running Android 2.2. The new mobile device (codenamed GT-P1000) measures 190.09 x 120.45 x 11.98 mm and can be used for browsing, e-mail, voice and video calls, and for staying socially connected.

Samsung HMX-T10 HD camcorder is easy on the hands and eyes

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 03:18:04 PDT

Later this month Samsung is promising to release a new HD-capable compact digital camcorder, the HMX-T10 model which makes use of an 'innovative' 20-degree Slanted Lens that ensures users can record for long periods of time and not experience any discomfort to their arm or wrist.

Zalman rolling out the VF3000F Fermi-compatible VGA cooler

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 02:45:40 PDT

As promised, Zalman has developed a new version of its VF3000 dual-fan VGA cooler, one that is compatible with Nvidia's GF100-powered GeForce GTX 465, GTX 470 and GTX 480 cards - the VF3000F.

Elpida and Spansion make the first-ever charge-trapping NAND Flash chip

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 02:09:33 PDT

Elpida and Spansion have just announced that they have managed to develop the world's first NAND Flash memory chip to feature the latter's MirrorBit charge-trapping technology which enables a more scalable cell structure and higher read and write speeds.

Google releases SketchUp 8

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 01:44:46 PDT

Google's SketchUp 3D modeling tool has now moved up to version 8, bringing even more features and options like Google Maps integration, Match Photo improvements, and Add Location - a tool that enables users to import terrain directly into SketchUp without opening up Google Earth.

Creative preps two new Sound Blaster-branded gaming headsets

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 01:08:40 PDT

Creative Technology is soon going to treat gamers to more surround sound via the new Sound Blaster Tactic 3D Alpha and Tactic 3D Sigma headsets which feature THX TruStudio Pro Surround Audio technology enabling a high-end 360-degree audio experience.

MSI GeForce GTX 460 Hawk card made official

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 00:31:59 PDT

MSI has today officially introduced its newest graphics cards powered by the 40nm GF104 GPU, an uber-custom GeForce GTX 460 dubbed N460GTX Hawk which is slightly factory-overclocked and comes equipped with the Twin FrozR II dual-fan/dual-slot cooler.

Sony unveils two new SD Handycam camcorders

Cristian — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 00:06:47 PDT

Although high definition has been 'in' for quite a while now, Sony ignored it when it came to developing the Handycam DCR-SX15E and DCR-SR15E, two digital camcorders that are only capable of standard definition video recording.

CoreTemp 0.99.7.10 released, brings more fixes, tweaks

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 23:43:53 PDT

No, it's not 1.0, but this latest update for the CoreTemp processor temperature monitoring utility is still worth a mention and it comes with better chip recognition, an overheat protection option, and more.

Transcend updates its 2.5-inch SSDs, makes them faster, more spacious

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 23:27:17 PDT

Trying to keep up with the competition, Transcend has introduced an upgraded line of 2.5-inch solid state drives which make use of a new controller (which one, they don't say), have higher transfer speeds, and higher densities - up to 512GB.

Acer making the Aspire One D255 a shiny, happy netbook

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 23:08:12 PDT

Acer apparently decided to give its Aspire One D255 a fresh new kick, so it will be releasing some extra versions of the 10-inch netbook (all called 'Happy') that will feature an overall white chassis, with a bright color on the display cover and palm rest.

Nokia shutting down Ovi Files service on October 1st

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 22:51:59 PDT

Through a notice posted on ovi.com, Nokia announced that Ovi Files, its very own cloud storage service enabling remote data access, will be discontinued as of October 1st. Users won't have to hurry to backup any data though as the files uploaded are 'mirrored' on their PC/Mac.

Windows 7 Family Pack making a comeback next month

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 22:35:27 PDT

For people who still haven't made the transition to Windows 7, Microsoft has revived the Family Pack (three upgrade licenses of Windows 7 Home Premium) offering and will be making it available as of next month at a price tag of $149.99 (US pricing).

Windows Phone 7 goes gold/RTM

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 22:25:25 PDT

Terry Myerson, Corporate Vice President of Windows Phone Engineering, has yesterday proudly announced that Windows Phone 7, Microsoft's latest and wannabe greatest mobile operating system has reached 'Release to Manufacturing' stage, and is being delivered in this final form to partners.

Swiftech intros two new all-in-one liquid cooling systems

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 22:13:40 PDT

Swiftech has this week rolled out a couple of new liquid cooling kits which cater even to those who are unfamiliar with anything but air cooling. Named H20-220 Edge and H20-320 Edge, the LC solutions are factory sealed, which mean they require no install tinkering or regular maintenance.

Samsung develops new, speedy wireless USB chipset

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 22:00:49 PDT

Samsung has now started sampling a fresh wireless USB solution, one that goes by the name S3C2680/ S5M8311 and promises to provide transfer speeds of up to 200 Mbps to a multitude of devices, including cameras, camcorders, TVs, PCs, tablets, printers and portable drives, and also to SD cards.

AMD 8-core Orochi die pictured at GlobalFoundries conference

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 21:44:09 PDT

Yesterday at the very first Global Technology Conference held by young manufacturing giant GlobalFoundries, Chekib Akrout, the senior vice president of AMD's Technology Group, took the stage and revealed a die picture of the upcoming Orochi 8-core processor.

Techconnect Review Round-up 1/9/10

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 14:50:23 PDT

Today's review round-up...

iTunes 10 released - has new logo, intros 'Ping' social network

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 13:26:01 PDT

To complement the new iPods and pretty much all other hardware it makes, Apple has today also let loose a new version of iTunes whch features a nice new logo, a tweaked, streamlined interface, and Ping, a music-oriented social network that lets you discover new artists by connecting with friends.

New Apple TV keeps things small, simple and streaming

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 12:41:58 PDT

Apple today also introduced a new iteration of the Apple TV which is just 1/4 the size of its predecessor, and has a minimalistic design but promises to flood your TV with HD movies and TV shows sourced from iTunes, Netflix, YouTube, Flickr and MobileMe.

iPod touch gets iPhone 4 hardware upgrade, keeps its curves

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 12:15:38 PDT

The always a player, never an iPhone that's the iPod touch has also been updated, with Steve today announcing the new model to have a slimmer design (not borrowed from the iPhone 4), a battery life of up to 40 hours, and some sweet upgrades in terms of hardware and features.

Sixth generation iPod nano packs multi-touch display,

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 11:58:55 PDT

iPod shuffle check, next up is the new iPod nano, which has received a major makeover and is 46% smaller and 42% lighter than its predecessor, includes a built-in clip, and has a multi-touch display, volume buttons, and a battery life of up to 24 hours.

New iPod shuffle has buttons, costs $49

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 11:42:52 PDT

As expected, the Jobs man today unveiled Apple's new and improved iPod line, and the first model discussed was the small but reasonably feisty iPod shuffle. The new-gen shuffle features buttons for easier operation and comes in five colors - silver, blue, pink, orange and green.

Apple details iOS 4.1 - includes fixes, HDR photos, Game Center

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 11:30:11 PDT

After some bragging about Apple Stores, Steve Jobs announced the first major update for the iOS 4 platform which powers the iPhone and iPod touch. Known as iOS 4.1, the update, which is set to become available next week, will include various fixes and also some new features.

Sharkoon Bandit mid-tower case goes on sale

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 10:54:56 PDT

Sharkoon Technologies has now rolled out in Europe the Bandit, an all-black mid-tower case that comes with a pre-installed multi-card reader, and a built-in top-mounted HDD/SSD dock which can handle one 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch SATA drive.

Sony debuts the Bloggie Touch 1080p-ready pocket camcorder

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 10:20:23 PDT

Sony is keeping up busy until Apple's event by announcing its newest pocket-sized camcorder, the Bloggie Touch model which comes with 108p HD video recording capabilities, a 3-inch capacitive touchscreen and pre-installed software enabling quick uploads to Facebook, YouTube, and other sites.

Creative to introduce the T12 Wireless 2.0 speaker system

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 10:01:55 PDT

Beside headsets, Creative is releasing a new 2.0 speaker system, the T12 Wireless which, like its name exposed, has wireless connectivity, more specifically, it uses Bluetooth (2.1) to grab sound waves from the PC.

Microsoft Arc Touch Mouse launched, to ship in December

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 09:41:41 PDT

Putting another worst kept secret to rest, Microsoft has now officially unveiled the Arc Touch Mouse, a wireless rodent with touch controls (and touch scrolling) and a slim, flexible design that best suits always-mobile users.

Creative announces the HQ-1600 and HQ-1450 headphones

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 09:17:06 PDT

Creative Technology popped up with a few releases too (it's an epidemic) today, and they talk about two headsets targeting active, on-the-move and music-loving users, the €39.99 HQ-1600 and €29.99 HQ-1450.

Stealth's KYBX-400 keyboard has built-in trackball, can take a beating

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 08:57:29 PDT

Stealth Computer has today let loose an interesting new peripheral, the KYBX-400 hardened keyboard featuring a solid, stainless steel chassis, a red adjustable backlighting, and includes a built-in 38mm optical trackball with a 800DPI resolution.

Panasonic develops 60 MB/s SDHC memory cards

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 08:40:49 PDT

Panasonic today announced its first SDHC (Secure Digital High Capacity) memory cards that make use of the UHS-I interface which is part of the SD Memory Card Specification Ver.3.01. Thanks to UHS-I, Panasonic's cards can offer transfer speeds of up to 60 MB/s.

Sharp recalling 9,000 32-inch LCD TVs due to flimsy neck support

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 07:05:29 PDT

Sharp, together with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, have yesterday issued a recall for about 9,000 32-inch LCD TVs that were manufactured in China and sold in the US from March 2010 through August 2010 for about $550.

OmniVision makes 720p video-capable CMOS sensors for lower-cost mobiles

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 06:35:17 PDT

OmniVision Technologies is set on bringing 720p (@ 30 fps) HD video recording to mid- and lower-end mobile phones and to do that it has developed the OV2643 and OV2659, two cost-effective 2 megapixel system-on-a-chip (SOC) CMOS image sensors.

Lantic details its own custom, overclocked GeForce GTX 460 card

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 05:51:04 PDT

After toying around quite a bit with Nvidia's popular GeForce GTX 460, Lantic Technology has developed a custom version of the DirectX 11 card which features a higher-end cooling solutions, and higher-than-stock frequencies.

Sony's ebook reader offering gets an upgrade

Cristian — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 04:37:42 PDT

Feeling the pressure in the e-reader market, Sony has made a move by introducing new versions of the 5-inch PRS-350 Pocket Edition, 6-inch PRS-650 Touch Edition and 7-inch PRS-950 Daily Edition devices that are slimmer, and have a better display contrast and speed.