Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Deals for May 30: GeForce GTX 460 S/C $119.99


Memorial Day deals!
Top Deals





Laptops:
Extra 15% Coupon on ThinkPad T420s & ThinkPad X220 Laptops. (use coupon code).
Desktops:
Computing Hardware & Peripherals:
Logitech Speaker Lapdesk N700 for $42.99 with free shipping (normally $79 - use coupon codelogi_n700_52611).
Home Entertainment:
32" Vizio M320VT 1080p LED-backlit LCD HDTV for $385 with free shipping (normally $580 - use coupon code MH7G$6463G76FG).
Phones & Tablets
Personal Portables:
Logitech Squeezebox Touch WiFi Music Player for $239.99 with free shipping (normally $299 - use coupon code logi_touch_52711).
Logitech S715i Speaker System (Rechargeable) for $94.99 with free shipping (normally $129 - use coupon code logi_s715i_52711).
Apps
iOS
Dragon's Lair for $0.99 (normally $2.99).
TETRIS for $0.99 (normally $2.99).
SimCity Deluxe for $0.99 (normally $2.99).
MADDEN NFL 11 (iPad) for $0.99 (normally $12.99).
Cool Stuff & Freebies:

Monday, May 30, 2011

New Windows for Tablets to be Shown This Week


Will it use a variant of Windows Phone 7?
According to Bloomberg sources, Microsoft this week will be previewing a version of Windows that is optimized for tablet devices.
The timing this week seems appropriate, as it will coincide with the All Things D in California as well as Computex in Taiwan. With the inevitable onslaught of new tablet designs to debut at the Taipei computer show, it is due time for Microsoft to show its answer to Apple's iOS and Google's Android Honeycomb.

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Asus Teases Uber Skinny Eee PC and Tablet Phone


Asus is planning a big week for Computex 2011.
It’s been a long time since we saw the first Eee PC, and to say the brand has changed a lot would be an understatement. Between all the Eee Slates and Eee Pad Transformers, you'd be forgiven for forgetting about the original Eee PC netbook. However, Asus hasn’t forgotten about the very first Eee PC. In fact, the company is planning a new Eee PC, among other things, and it’ll unveil it next month. 

With Computex Taipei nearly upon us (don't forget, our coverage starts next week), Asus has set about whipping fans into a frenzy about what it plans to announce at the tradeshow. Using its Facebook page as a platform for teasing, the company has been posting images all week and dropping hints about what it will have on hand in Taiwan.
First up is what looks like a tablet with the tagline, “Break the Rules: Pad or Phone?” It definitely looks like a tablet, but another posting points towards three additional photos of the device (on Techinstyle) and asks," “Hmmm tablets with bumps... is it pregnant??" Could we be looking at a phone with a larger, tablet dock? We could see this working if the phone clipped in to the back of the tablet...

Friday, May 27, 2011

Google Preps Chrome For IPv6 Test Day


Google has quietly added an IPv6 band aid for Chrome.

In anticipation of the upcoming World IPv6 Day and the possibility of browsers failing to connect to web servers, Chrome now integrates an IPv4 fallback option.
Google officially added the feature in the most recent stable release of Chrome 11 (version 11.0.696.71), while Canary and Nightly versions of the browser received the update already in versions beginning on May 5. The new feature will prevent a timeout of a loading web page by setting the IPv6 connect time to 300 ms. Google said that a parallel IPv4 connect will kick in at that time and the IPv6 connect will race against IPv4. The first completed connect will be given priority.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Samsung's Explore 3D Service Hits the U.S


amsung last week launched its Explore 3D service for customers in the United Kingdom and promised that a U.S. launch was on the way. Sure enough, here it is.
UK owners of Samsung TV sets have been enjoying 3D video streaming since last Tuesday, and, just seven days later, U.S. users are able to join the party. Samsung yesterday announced the launch of its Explore 3D streaming service in the United States. The service comes via the Explore 3D app, which is available from Sammy’s SmartHub UI, and will offer "dozens of pieces of 3D content" for free. Streaming in HD, the current line up includes movie trailers, music videos, educational content and full-length TV shows from Wealth TV. Samsung says that later in the year it plans to offer users access to paid content, including movies, shorts and documentaries. 

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Rumor: Cisco May Consider Selling Linksys


There is a persistent rumor that Cisco has no more use for Linksys and is intending to sell it.

The rumors have become more intense since Cisco shut down the Flip division and finger-wagging analysts offered advice that Cisco should be focusing on its core business and enterprise customers rather than playing in the consumer field.
There is not much money to be made in the consumer networking business these days, but it is unlikely that Cisco will simply shut down Linksys - a company Cisco bought for $500 million in 2003. Linksys' product line has remained largely stagnant over the past few years and not evolved with the market. For example, products such as a NAS, are completely missing from the product portfolio, which make Linksys a rather unattractive acquisition target for traditional consumer networking companies.

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Apple Replaces Paper Signs with iPad 2s


Apple has revamped its retail stores and replaced paper signage details specs and pricing with iPads.

If you’ve ever been to an Apple store, you’ll likely be familiar with the setup inside. The store is organised by product, with each having its own dedicated section; the iPods, iPhones, iPads and MacBooks all sit on separate wooden tables around the store. Next to each product is a little piece of paper (protected from wear and tear by plastic casing) that details the specs and pricing of the product. However, your next visit to the Apple store is going to be quite different.

Monday, May 23, 2011

AT&T Tests LTE Network ''Real World'' 4G Speeds


Hit your data caps faster than ever!

The wireless carriers in the U.S. love throwing around terms of 4G this and 4G that, but the real excitement is still just a little ways away.
AT&T is currently trialing its Long Term Evolution network at its Foundry space in Plano, Texas. Stacey Higginbotham of GigaOM got a first look at what sort of speeds AT&T's LTW could push and pull to and from the network.

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Explosion in iPad 2 Factory at Foxconn Kills Two

ragedy strikes tech factory.

An explosion at one of the factories Apple uses to make the iPad 2 has claimed the lives of at least two workers.
At approximately Friday 7 p.m. local time in Chengdu, China, the A05 building at the Foxconn campus exploded, propelling debris away from the site. The building structure remained intact, but smoke billowed out from the damage. The situation is now under control, with attentions now turned to the wounded.

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Credit Card Phishing Site Found on Sony Servers


Uh oh ...
Poor Sony hasn’t had an easy time as of late. Between PSN going down, discovering the information of 77 million users had been stolen, facing questions from Congress, and a new password exploit that could see customer’s accounts compromised, the company has certainly been busy fending off a storm of bad PR. Today the company was dealt another blow as it emerged that a credit card phishing scam is apparently running on one of the its servers.

Friday, May 20, 2011

LinkedIn Shares Double in NYSE Debut


LinkedIn, the social network aimed squarely at professionals eager to connect with colleagues and score potential business opportunities, began trading on the New York Stock Exchange this morning, and things are looking extremely bright for the company.
TechCrunch yesterday reported that LinkedIn had priced its IPO (Initial Public Offering) at $45.00 per share. That per-share figure amounts to a $4.5 billion valuation. The company, which posted Q1 revenues of $93.9 million, was said to be aiming to raise as much as $406 million in the offering.

"Today marks an important milestone in LinkedIn’s history – we started trading at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) – following our recent IPO filing," Nick Besbeas, VP of Marketing at LinkedIn said in a blog post. "Our stock symbol is LNKD (as you may have guessed from this post) and we’ve announced our initial public offering of 7,840,000 shares of common stock at a price to the public of $45.00 per share."

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Intel: Our Nokia Partnership Was a Mistake


Hindsight is always 20/20, right?

Following the announcement of their landmark partnership, Nokia and Microsoft have been acting like a pair of newlyweds and singing each other's praises. However, it seems one of the Finnish phone company’s other partners isn’t quite so pleased with the way its relationship with Nokia panned out.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Intel: No, We're Not Using Arm To Create CPUs


Why would Intel even think of using ARM's technology when it already has a plans to dominate the mobile sector with its x86 architecture?

Evidently there's some silly notion that Intel plans to use ARM's technology to build mobile processors despite anything the company may have previously said to shoot down such an idea. Sigh.
The main reason behind the speculation of an Intel/ARM marriage is that, according to experts, Intel's x86 architecture, originally intended for the PC platform, will be "inherently tough" to adapt into mobile chips. Thus, using ARM's architecture would be a better, quicker option given that Intel is a late-comer to the mobile sector.

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Samsung Announces Retina Tablet Display


Samsung will be revealing an ultra-high resolution display for tablets at the SID Display Week 2011, which will opened its doors over the weekend.

The 10.1-inch screen features a resolution of 2560x1600 pixels, which is four times the pixel density of common 10.1" (Android) tablets such as the Motorola Xoom (1280x800 pixels). Apple's iPad and iPad 2, by the way run with 1024xz768 pixels.
The Samsung display has a density of 300 dpi, which falls just short of the iPhone 4's 326 dpi an could be considered the first "Retina" display for tablets. According to the manufacturer, the screen delivers a brightness of 300 cd/m2 indoor and outdoor as much as 600 cd/m2 to, which should be enough to see content on the display even in direct sunlight.

Monday, May 16, 2011

Make your build.



Last week we unveiled the Tom's Hardware System Builder application for Facebook users. For those trying to put together a new rig, this is an excellent too to create and customize your own unique systems from a huge library of components.
Share and compete by showing off your builds with your fellow hardware enthusiasts and check out the latest, hottest rigs around.  And best of all, you can answer that age-old question “What kind of system should I get?” by building it with a few swift clicks and sharing it right on your Facebook wall.
If you need some guidance on how to pick the components that are right for you before you start putting together your virtual build, check out the Guide to Choosing Parts thread on our forums. It’s a great refresher and one of the most viewed threads of all time here at Tom's.

Saturday, May 14, 2011

The World's Safest Browser: BitBox


There is no such thing as an entirely secure browser. Let's be realistic: You will always need a good portion of common sense and Internet smarts to avoid nasty attacks hijacks.

However, if you are paranoid about security, there is one browser that will reliably protect you from virtually all threats. It's a browser you already know: Firefox 4.0.1. Well, a boxed version of Firefox 4.0.1.
I am not exactly an adventurous Internet user as far as the dark corners of the web are concerned. Just I am not the kind of person to enjoy the silence in a dark alley in Chicago's south suburbs after dawn, I typically avoid websites I don't generally trust. I have had my fair share of spyware, trojans and other malware that caused me quite a bit of headache in the past and I am just more cautious than I was 10 years ago. Yet, that might change. I have just discovered a bulletproof wrapper for Firefox and, at least for now, I don't care that much anymore what is happening below the content the browser shows. There might be lots of malware and I really don't care anymore.

Thursday, May 12, 2011

Samsung Working on Solar-Powered Netbook?


Samsung revealed a solar-powered netbook during the Africa Regional Forum in Nairobi.

During the second annual Africa Regional Forum in Nairobi,Samsung reportedly revealed a solar-powered netbook called the NC215S. Although additional information regarding the device wasn't provided at the show, the netbook's unique power feature will enable it to operate in environments where electrical power may be intermittent or even non-existent.
Wednesday's netbook reveal follows a denial by Samsung that owner Lee Kun-hee told the company that it needed to reconsider plans for developing solar batteries due to technology limitations. But as seen with the NC215S netbook, Samsung has already embarked on its journey into the solar-powered business, saying it's one of many future engines of growth.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

OCZ Reveals Agility 3, Solid 3 SSDs


OCZ revealed two new SSD lines featuring the SandForce SF-2200 processor and an SATA 6 Gbps interface.

Tuesday OCZ announced two new SSD lines catering to speed-seeking enthusiasts in search of the best value for performance. Called the Agility 3 and Solid 3, both new SSD lines use the same MLC NAND Flash while taking advantage of SandForce's SF-2200 processor and a SATA 6 Gbps interface to provide super-zippy read and write speeds.

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

HP Launches Pre-paid 3G Service for Notebooks


Hewlett Packard today announced a service that will see the company provide pay-as-you-go 3G mobile broadband for its freshly announced business laptops.
HP today launched a new service that will see the company offer 3G broadband on a pay-as-you-go basis. Dubbed HP DataPass, the service promises high-speed mobile broadband through a range of different plans starting from $5 for 75MB over five hours. The top-tier plan offers a 1GB data allowance over a 30-day period for $30. The service is made possible thanks to an agreement with Peregrine Network that allows HP to hang onto the coattails of the Nationwide Sprint Network owned by Sprint Nextel. 

Monday, May 9, 2011

An Update to Our Hardware Comparison Charts


Another month rolled by and we have a fresh update to our hardware comparison charts. Click through to the categories below to see the new additions to the section.
USB Thumb Drive Charts
Sandisk Cruzer 4GB

2011 Gaming Graphics Cards
Gainward GTX 580 Phantom Geforce GTX 580 1.5 GB
AMD HD 6990 Radeon HD 6990 4GB
AMD HD 6990 OC Radeon HD 6990 4GB OC-BIOS
Nvidia GTX 550 Ti Geforce GTX 550 Ti
HIS HD 5750 IceQ Plus Radeon HD 5750 1 GB
HIS HD 5550 Passiv Radeon HD 5550 512 MB GDDR5
HIS HD 5570 Passiv Radeon HD 5570 512 MB GDDR5
HIS HD 5670 IceQ Radeon HD 5670 512 MB GDD5
ATI HD 6750 Radeon HD 6750 512 MB GDDR5 OEM
ATI HD 6770 Radeon HD 6770 1GB OEM
MSI  440 GT Geforce 440 GT 1GB DDR3
Asus GTX 590 Geforce GTX 590 3GB GDDR5
MSI HD 6850 Cyclone Power Edition Radeon HD 6850 1GB GDDR5
MSI HD 5450 Passiv Radeon HD 5450 1GB GDDR3
HIS HD 5450 Passiv Radeon HD 5450 1Gb GDDR3
MSI 450 GTS Cyclone Geforce 450 GTS 1 GB GDDR5
AMD HD 6790 Radeon HD 6790 1GB GDDR5
MSI HD 6870 Twin Frozr II Radeon HD 6870 1GB GDDR5
HIS HD 5770 Radeon HD 5770 1GB
MSI GT 430 Geforce GT 430 1GB GDDR3
MSI HD 4890 Gaming Edition Radeon HD 4890 1 GB GDDR5
AMD HD 6790 OC Radeon HD 6790 1GB OC GDDR5
AMD HD 6450 Radeon HD 6450  512 MB GDDR3
SAPPHIRE HD 6790 Radeon HD 6790 1GB GDDR5
AFOX HD 6850 Radeon HD 6850 Single Slot 1 GB GDDR5
AMD HD 6570 Radeon HD 6570 1GB GDDR5
AMD HD 6670 Radeon HD 6670 1GB GDDR5
PowerColor HD 6790 Radeon HD 6790 1GB GDDR5

SSD Charts 2010
Crucial P300
Intel 320
OCZ Vertex 3
Plextor M2
PQI S535
Silicon Power E20

iSCSI NAS
Synology DS1010+
Synology DS1511+
Synology DS211+
Thecus N5200XXX
Thecus N4200Pro

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Apple Dumping Intel For ARM Chips In Laptops?


There's talk that Apple is eying ARM for notebooks and desktops, ditching Intel.

On Friday, reports surfaced that Apple officials have decided to dump Intel processors for ARM-based solutions in its upcoming MacBooks and MacBook Pros-- and possibly even Mac desktops. The transition, stated as a "done deal" by unnamed insiders, won't take place immediately, but is expected to happen "as soon as possible"-- probably in mid-2013.

Friday, May 6, 2011

Sony subpoenaed by N.Y. Attorney General

Sony just this week responded to questions from congress regarding the PSN and SOE breaches that resulted in a massive amount of user data, including the details of thousands of credit cards, being stolen. Now the company is apparently facing a subpoena from the New York Attorney General.

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Mass Effect 3 Delayed, New Screens


BioWare has delayed the release of Mass Effect 3 without giving any specific reason... but the wait won't be too painful.

Wednesday BioWare's Mass Effect executive producer Casey Hudson said that the highly-anticipated third installment will not hit store shelves this holiday season. Instead, the release date has been pushed back to Q1 2012 for unknown reasons.
"Today we have confirmed that Mass Effect 3 will be released in the first three months of 2012," he stated on the BioWare forums. "The development team is laser focused on making sure Mass Effect 3 is the biggest, boldest and best game in the series, ensuring that it exceeds everyone’s expectations. We'll have more details about specific dates as we get closer to release."

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Apple Announces New T-Bolt, Quad-core iMacs


Apple has announced a refresh for its iMac line, adding in support for Intel’s Thunderbolt technology and next generation quad-core CPUs.

Those of you holding off on purchasing an iMac because you were expecting a refresh any day can breathe easy and prepare for a little shopping, because Apple today announced the new line. The 2011 models marry Intel’s quad-core Core i-series CPUs with AMD Radeon HD graphics and a little Thunderbolt action for good measure. Facetime users will be pleased to note that the new iMacs will ship with support for that, too.