ADATA Has Large Showing at Computex

ADATA showed off a number of current and new products at the Computex show in Taiwan this year. The DashDrive Elite HE720 is a slim external hard drive with a brushed metal finish and one touch backup. The DashDrive Air AE400 is able to create a wireless hotspot for up to 10 devices while also offering the ability to charge devices through USB. The DashDrive Elite UE700 is a USB 3.0 flash drive with capacities up to 64GB and transfer speeds up to 200MB/s. The DashDrive UV150 is an entry level USB 3.0 flash drive with capacities up to 32GB. Rounding out the current products was the XPG Series V2 memory modules, which are compatible with the latest Intel Core processors and the Z87 platform while offering an interesting heatsink design.

The AE800 is a USB 3.0 external hard drive that offers wireless data transfers with compatibility up to 802.11n and can also act as a wireless hotspot for up to eight devices. The DashDrive Durable UD311 is a USB 3.0 flash drive that is built to withstand impacts and water in a compact design. The DashDrive Elite SE810 is a solid state drive that can be connected using USB 3.0 SuperSpeed or Thunderbolt for read and write speeds up to 490MB/s and 400MB/s, respectively.

Source: Press Release

G.Skill Breaks Six Overclocking Records at Computex

G.Skill has released the results of its overclocking efforts at Computex 2013, and a number of world records were broken using its products. Memory frequency of 4283.2MHz was achieved using G.Skill TridentX memory by Hiwa, Christian Ney, and Young Pro. A PI Fast time of 9.78 seconds was achieved with Trident memory by Fredyama, Shamino, and Young Pro. The same trio completed Super Pi 32M in 4 minutes 36.672 seconds using TridentX memory. K|NGP|N set records in 3DMark Fire Strike and Fire Strike Extreme with scores of 31125 and 20089, respectively. A 3DMark05 score of 70106 was set by HiCookie, Dinos22, and Young Pro.

Source: Press Release

Kingston Joins Open Data Center Alliance

Kingston has announced that it will be joining the Open Data Center Alliance as a solutions provider member. The ODCA is "an independent consortium comprised of global IT leaders working together to define and deliver a unified set of common standards and the highest level of interoperability for data centers and cloud computing." Kingston is seen as a strong partner for big data initiatives due to its "DRAM server memory solutions and enterprise-class solid-state drives." Server memory business manager at Kingston Sim Phengdara said “We're excited to join the ODCA as it has attracted such a diverse group of industry elites —customers, vendors and service providers — all sharing the same passion and commitment in driving future innovations for data center and cloud computing initiatives."

Source: Press Release

MSI Announces Just Game! Giveaway

MSI has announced a new giveaway that will put some of its newest products into the hands of some lucky winners. The grand prize is a full gaming system built around the MSI Z87-GD65 Gaming motherboard and N770 TF 2GD5/OC graphics card. An Intel i7-4770K powers the system that also features a case and cooling from Cooler Master, memory and storage from Kingston, and peripherals from Corsair. The second place prize is a gaming notebook with an Intel Haswell processor and GeForce GTX 760M 2GB GPU. A 128GB solid state drive and 750GB mechanical drive provide a combination of speed and storage. An additional giveaway will award a Corsair Vengeance K70 keyboard, Cooler Master CM Storm Sonuz headset and Inferno mouse, and Kingston DataTraveler 16GB USB 3.0 flash drive each day from July 1-5.

Source: MSI

Apple Makes Several Announcements at WWDC 2013

Apple had a plethora of announcements at this years iteration of the annual WWDC in San Francisco earlier today. The most notable appears to be the latest redesign of the mobile operating system, iOS 7. The visual changes appear very dramatic to me, and represent a major overhaul of the user interface. In addition to the obvious visual changes, iOS 7 brings improved multitasking, quick-tap toggle settings, several updates to Siri, and much more. Apple is also working on integrating the iPhone with cars in addition to the turn-by-turn navigation that was added in the last version of the OS. An "iOS in the Car" system is being developed with partners including Kia, Honda, and Ferrari with an expected availability of 2014.

Desktop users weren't left out and a number of changes and new products are coming in this area. New MacBook Airs will be available with the latest Haswell processors from Intel and are available immediately at an MSRP of $999 for an 11-inch model and $1099 for a 13-inch model. A new Mac Pro boasts a much smaller form factor than the previous generation and claims to deliver "7 teraflops of performance." The latest offering features dual AMD GPUs, Thunderbolt 2, and support for 4K displays. Version 10.9 of OS X, known as Mavericks, will also be available soon with a number of visual and functional improvements in areas including navigation, web browsing, and multiple displays.

Source: The Verge

Take a Tour of Gearbox Studios and Home of CEO Randy Pitchford

As part of the NVIDIA SHIELD Showcase: Cribs Edition, we are able to take a video tour of Gearbox Studios, the developer behind the Borderlands series. CEO Randy Pitchford shows you where the "magic happens" and gives a brief glimpse into some of the work required to make the games. After the tour through the studio, we follow Randy to his home where he gives a look at some of the features of the upcoming handheld device from NVIDIA, Project SHIELD, in addition to seeing the inside of his home.

Source: Press Release

Haswell Won't Eliminate the Need for GPUs

The latest CPU family from Intel, Haswell, has improved graphics performance relative to previous generations of Intel CPUs. A recent interview with VP and GM of computing products at NVIDIA Rene Haas has pointed out that the integrated graphics are still far from the performance of discrete GPUs. The area where the most glaring differences can be seen is when gaming, where integrated graphics are still well short of the power required to play the latest games. Haas feels that the improved performance of Haswell will even help NVIDIA in the notebook market segment.

Source: NVIDIA

Corsair to Host Overclocking Contest at Computex

Corsair will be hosting the Computex OC Main Event at Computex on June 3 in collaboration with Intel. Top overclockers from around the world will use Intel fourth generation Core processors and a line of not yet announced Corsair memory. The competitors will be fighting for $20,000 in prizes and the competition will be broadcast live from 13:00 – 18:00 GMT +8. Senior VP and GM of Memory and Enthusiast Component Products at Corsair Thi La said, “Together we’ll be unleashing the world’s top overclockers for the first time on the latest Intel processors and our new line of Corsair memory. With the sheer level of overclocking talent and the capabilities of the new hardware, I anticipate seeing groundbreaking levels of performance.”

Source: Press Release

MSI Wins Two Computex Best Choice Awards

MSI has revealed that a pair of its products have won Best Choice Awards for the upcoming Computex show in Taiwan. The Z87-GD65 GAMING motherboard took home the Best Choice Golden Award for motherboards and is described as a "joint effort of MSI and FNATIC, the world-renowned gaming team." The board uses the Intel 8 series chipset and Killer E2205 networking to help prioritize gaming related networking traffic. The other award went to the Funtoro HD Media On Demand system, which provides in-vehicle "infotainment." The unit is available with seven or ten inch screens and provides access to FM radio, HD movies, and satellite TV, among other features, with access through a touch screen.

Source: Press Release

German Rail Road Company Employs Drones Against Graffiti

The German national rail road company, Deutsche Bahn AG, is now fed up with all the graffiti that keeps getting painted on their trains despite preventive measures. Deutsche Bahn had its trains defaced about 14,000 times in 2012, which ended up costing the company close to $9.8 million in cleanup expenses.

Deutsche Bahn has a new trick up its sleeve though. A small army of drones will be on the lookout at large rail depots to hopefully record vandals in the act. The drones will be used during the night, which is when most of the crimes happen. The drones, however, should be up to the task, since they are almost completely silent and have sensitive infrared cameras installed. The drones can fly up to 150 meters vertically with a top speed of 53 km/h and have an uptime of 80 minutes. 

In 2010 it was made possible for Germans to opt out of Google's Street View feature, which ensured that the Germans' houses would be blurred out. Almost three percent used that option, which means that a total of 244,240 houses have been blurred. Google was also faced with a lawsuit in Germany recently. A woman felt that Google's Street View was violating her privacy rights, but the case was ruled in favor of Google, allowing them to take street level photographies. It is safe to say that the Germans value their privacy, with Deutsche Bahn needing to focus only on its rail depots to avoid any legal problems.

Source: CNET

G.Skill Hosting Overclocking Event at Computex

G.Skill will be hosting a four day overclocking event at Computex from June 4-7 as it attempts to retake the title of “The world’s fastest memory manufacturer.” Each day will feature three representatives from G.Skill and a representative from ASUS, MSI, EVGA, or Gigabyte. The teams will be using unlocked Intel fourth generation Core processors, Z87 motherboards, and the latest extreme DDR3 memory from G.Skill in an attempt to break a number of overclocking and benchmark records. The tests setups will also use Cooler Master SPM2 1500W power supplies and Kingpin liquid nitrogen cooling. A live stream will be setup for  those unable to attend in person, and can be found by following the link.

Source: G.Skill and HWBot

Diamond Helps to Extend Wireless Range

Diamond Multimedia has announced an upgrade to its WR300N wireless range extender with the WR300NSI. The new device offers three capabilities in one compact package, acting as a wireless repeater and range extender, wireless access point, and wireless bridge device. The WR300NSI plugs directly into a wall outlet and can take an Internet connection from an Ethernet cable or an existing wireless signal. It is able to deliver Internet connections using either wireless or Ethernet access and can extend the wireless range of your network by up to 30 meters. The WR300NSI offers security for your connections using WEP, WPA, or WPA2 encryption with the latest AES and TKIP algorithms. An MSRP of $49.99 gives users a cheap and easy method to extend the reach of their home or office networks.

Source: Press Release

NVIDIA Demos New LTE Modem

NVIDIA first announced the i500 LTE modem as part of the Tegra 4i at Mobile World Congress in February. The company has shown off an updated demo at CTIA 2013 in Las Vegas this week, featuring a new software update. The latest update allows the modem to reach speeds of 150Mbps, an increase from the MWC demo of 100Mbps. The combination of software-defined radio technology and Deep Execution Processors allowed NVIDIA to increase the performance without the need of new hardware, showing the potential for further upgrades as the software development proceeds.

Source: Press Release

NVIDIA Shows Off Project SHIELD Mold

As the release of Project SHIELD, the portable gaming console from NVIDIA, gets closer the company has decided to show off the mold that will be used to create the device. A polycarbonate mixture is used in an injection mold process to create the lightweight casing to hold the numerous components found in Project SHIELD. Contained within the enclosure will be a Tegra 4, 5" 720p touchscreen, speakers, and more.

NZXT Offers New Fan Controller

NZXT is breathing new life into the Sentry Mix line of fan controllers with the Sentry Mix 2. The Sentry Mix 2 can handle up to six fans with continuous power of 30 watts, and is compatible with a variety of fans including PWM. A matte-black finish, glossy black sliders, and LED lights round out the visual aspect of the device. The Sentry Mix 2 will be available with an MSRP of $29.99.

Thermaltake Releases Soft Laptop Cooler

Thermaltake has announced a new laptop cooler designed with consideration for comfort. The LifeCool Series features a padded cooler that will give users a soft cushion to relieve any pressure that other coolers might apply. Heat dissipation is provided by the aluminum surface, and laptops up to 17" in size are compatible. The LifeCool Series is available in eight colors including white, red, and orange.

Cooler Master Releases New Laptop Stand

The NotePal ErgoStand II is a new laptop stand and cooler from Cooler Master that was designed with ergonomics in mind. The stand has five different viewing and typing angles to provide comfort when using a laptop for an extended period of time. A 140mm fan provides strong cooling potential while keeping noise to a minimum. Up to four USB 2.0 devices can be plugged into the included ports, and laptops up to 17" in size can be accommodated.

Cooler Master Wants to Take You to School

Cooler Master has announced a new website aimed at informing customers about their products, Cooler Master University. The first guide takes a look at the variety of Cherry MX switches available in mechanical keyboards. Future topics include gaming surfaces and mouse grip styles. Senior Product Marketing Manager Bryant Nguyen said, “We’re committed to educating new users and enthusiasts to better understand how the technologies implemented by Cooler Master can augment their computer experience.”

Source: Cooler Master

Intel has a New CEO as Current COO Takes Over on May 16

Intel CEO Paul Otellini's retirement from the company has been known since last November, but it wasn't clear who would suceed him. He planned to retire this May, and since we're now a couple of days in, we finally know who is next in line. Intel announced that current Chief Operating Officier (COO) Brian Krzanich will assume the CEO title on May 16, during the company's annual stockholders' meeting. Krzanich has been with Intel for 31 years, so he's the perfect internal candidate for the job. The company also announced Renée James was elected president of the board of directors, and she'll begin her new role on May 16, too. Both executives are looking forward to their new roles, with Krzanich particularly looking forward to moving Intel faster into "ultra mobility."

Source: Engadget

Build Your Own HAL 9000 for $100

The lovable murderbot supercomputer from 2001: A Space Odyssey, HAL 9000, holds a special place in the hearts of many sci-fi fans. HAL's distinctive red eye and calm voice has often been replicated, be it in other movies or even expensive props you can buy. However, if you're more of a do-it-yourselfer and want to save some cash, you can build your own HAL 9000 for less than $100. It does require a fair bit of technical and soldering know-how, not to mention a laser cutter and plenty of patience, but this craft project is well worth it. Adding sound to your own HAL 9000 requires an Arduino Uno and Adafruit Wave Shield, but both can be had for around $50 and really, what good is a murderous computer without that calm voice telling you something can't be done?

Head on over to the source to see everything involved with getting your own HAL 9000 up and running. Remember, if it starts singing "Daisy Bell," find a spacesuit.

Source: Adafruit

Apple Announces Dates for WWDC

Apple has announced that its developer conference, the WWDC, will return to the Moscone Center in San Francisco for the eleventh straight year. The event will take place from June 10-14 and will maintain the same price that it has had since 2010 for attendance, $1,599. The company is planning to show off the latest iterations of iOS and Mac OS X.

Source: Computer World

Amazon Rumored to be Developing Set Top Box

According to Bloomberg, Amazon is currently developing a set top box that will serve Internet based videos to users. The device will connect to a TV and give users access to Amazon Instant Video and the Video on Demand store. It is being developed by the Lab126 division and has a number of veterans of similar technologies on board. This new device will add to the app already offered by Amazon and will also position it well to compete with the number of similar devices that are planned or rumored.

Source: CNET

CISPA Bill Passed in the House, Moves to Senate - Anonymous Urges Websites to Go Dark

The other day, the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) was passed in the House of Representatives by a vote of 288 to 127. At this point it's moved along to the Senate where it's unknown if it'll pass or die out. You may remember last year when the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect IP Act (PIPA) were stalled and then ultimately delayed. CISPA shares some traits with both to accomplish similar goals, namely that it allows for IPs to share emals and texts with the government if there's a security risk. All information is to be handled by a civilian group to "ensure Americans' civil liberties are protected," if CISPA becomes reality. The White House has threatened to veto CISPA if it passes both the House and Senate, so if it does then hopefully it's vetoed.

Yesterday, Internet hacktivists Anonymous urged websites to go dark today in protest. It's a similar call to the SOPA and PIPA protests last year, so if you happen to notice some of your favorite websites, Facebook pages, or Twitter accounts with a black color scheme, a protest page, or even silent, you know why. There are also petitions to sign to add your voice to the growing numbers.

Source: PC Mag

New Java Patch on the Way to Fix More Exploits and Bugs

Java hasn't exactly been the most secure product of late, but luckily Oracle is going to try and rectify that tomorrow. An update is scheduled to arrive tomorrow, April 16, to fix 39 critical vulnerabilities with the Java browser plugin, which should definitely be welcome news for computer users. In actuality, 42 bugs are being fixed, just 39 of them are listed as critical due to their abilitiy to be "remotely exploitable without authentication, i.e., may be exploited over a network without the need for a username and password." Oracle didn't specify which bugs are being patched, but Polish company Security Exploration has a running list of Java bugs here to give you an idea of what could be fixed.

Oracle's also adding some help to let users make better decisions on which code is executed in their browsers. Various messages and warning boxes will appear to let you know if there's a potential security risk, and if you don't like the looks of it, just click cancel. Higher-risk apps will have more visible warnings, too, so you'll know exactly what's going on. Basically, when Java 7 Update 21 arrives, be sure to download it to make sure your computer is safe.

Source: Ars Technica

ECS Details Durathon Technology

ECS has announced the latest technology that it is adding to its motherboards, known as Durathon. The word is a combination of durable and marathon and signifies that the boards have gone through extensive testing and will be able to operate for long periods of time under strenuous conditions. Durathon qualification is defined through four attributes by ECS. Bi-Directional Splitting Glass Fabric provides three times more humidity protection than general glass fabric. ECS Superior Solid Capacitors will operate for up to 200,000 hours while electrolytic capacitors will only last 32,000 hours. Extreme Temperature Resistance certifies that the board will be able to operate at temperatures 10°C above and below similar boards. Finally, the 1.5K Marathon Test puts the boards through a 1507 point test to check all aspects of the motherboard.

Video Streaming Service Vudu Victim of Burglary; Hard Drives with Customer Info Stolen

Digital theft has been all over the news in recent years, but earlier today video streaming service Vudu reported a more conventional theft. On March 24, someone broke into the Vudu offices and took a number of items, including hard drives full of customer information. Yes, you read that right, a physical burglary occured at Vudu and not a website hack. The hard drives contained customer names, email addresses, street addresses, phone numbers, account activity, birth dates, and the last four digits "of some credit card numbers." Vudu doesn't store full credit card information on the hard drives so that is safe. Passwords aren't either, but only if you log in through another site. Stored passwords are encrypted, and while Vudu doesn't believe it can be compromised, it doesn't want to risk it so every customer's password has been reset.

As a precautionary measure, Vudu is allowing every affected account to receive the protection benefits of AllClear ID. It runs for one entire year starting today, and includes pretty much every kind of protection possible just in case someone's identity is compromised. Accounts who never set a password with Vudu and used another means to login aren't eligible for AllClear since there's no risk of password hacking. More information can be found at the source below, including how to contact Vudu if you suspect any fraud.

Source: Vudu

Sony Prices 55 and 65-Inch Ultra HDTVs; Arrive on April 21

Ultra HDTVs, formerly known as 4K TVs, have been shown off and even available for some time now, but the extravagant price tag means many can't afford them. Sony has something a little more affordable, however, so long as you don't mind dropping down to 55 or 65" instead of 84". The tech giant announced the XBR-55X900A and XBR-65X900A are priced at $4,999 and $6,999, respectively, when they launch on April 21. It's still a high dollar amount, but it's similar to the price of plasma TVs when those first arrived in stores. To go with the UHDTVs, Sony is also offering the FMP-X1, a 4K Media Player, and a video distribution service so you'll have some content to show off on that new 3840x2160 resolution screen.

The FMP-X1, due to arrive this summer, is priced at $699 and comes with ten feature films, plus some short videos, in 4K resolution. The feature films include: Bad Teacher, Battle: Los Angeles, The Amazing Spider-Man, Salt, Taxi Driver, The Bridge on the River Kwai, The Karate Kid (2010), That's My Boy, The Other Guys, and Total Recall (2012). The video distribution service is expected to arrive in the fall.

Source: Engadget

Thermalright Holding Easter Egg Hunt

Thermalright is holding a contest through its Facebook and Twitter accounts that require very little effort to enter. Two entries can be obtained each day through Facebook and Twitter mentions of Thermalright, and an additional five entries can be obtained by finding the hidden TR Easter Egg in the Product Archives section of the Thermalright page. The contest will award three winners with Thermalright coolers. The grand prize is a pure copper AXP-100 with customized white fans, first prize is an Archon SB-E X2, and second prize is a HR-02 Macho Rev.A BW.

Source: Thermalright

Noctua Offers Mounting Upgrade for Intel Haswell Systems

Noctua has announced plans to offer free mounting kit upgrades for older coolers that aren't compatible with the newest Intel Haswell processors. New heatsinks from Noctua will support the LGA1150 socket right away, and proof of purchase of a Noctua heatsink and a Haswell CPU or motherboard will upgrade the older models. Noctua CEO Mag. Roland Mossig said, "We're determined to provide the best possible support to our customers and over the years, we've sent many thousands of mounting kits free of charge to users who wanted to upgrade to new platforms."

Source: Noctua

Gigabyte Hosting Overclocking Contest with HWBOT

Gigabyte has announced a new overclocking contest that will be put on with the help of HWBOT called Dig for Victory. The two stage competition will be focused around the AMD Bulldozer and Trinity platforms and entrants must also use Gigabyte motherboards. The first stage uses the AMD Trinity APU for the 3DMark Cloud Gate benchmark. The second stage requires a Bulldozer core and HD 5000 GPU to obtain a high score for 3DMark Fire Strike. The winner of each stage will receive a Gigabyte 990FXA-UD5 Motherboard and AMD FX-8350 Processor. The contest runs until April 12 and full rules can be found on the HWBOT page.

Source: HWBOT