Announcing TR's 10th anniversary giveaway
by Cyril Kowaliski — 5:07 PM on November 6, 2009

On November 8, 2009, The Tech Report will be ten years old. Can you believe it?

TR has grown from a part-time hobby into a in-depth resource on PC hardware producing daily news and multiple articles each week, complete with a thriving community of readers and a crack team of full-time staffers scattered across three countries.  We feel incredibly fortunate to be able to do what we're doing each day, and we want to thank each of our readers for helping make it possible.

As anyone who's been following us for a while ought to know, we like celebrating by giving away a whole bunch of hardware. What better way to commemorate our years of covering PC hardware than by letting a bunch of lucky readers get some of the best of it for free?

This isn't just any anniversary, though. We've been in business a whole decade. When we started off, people were still searching the web with AltaVista, sharing their MP3s with reckless abandon on Napster, and raising their eyebrows at that newfangled "Athlon" processor from AMD. Making a phone call usually involved getting off the Internet first, and Pets.com was still in business.

We needed to kick things up a notch this time.

And so we did. Thanks to the tremendous support of Asus, Corsair, Gigabyte, OCZ, and XFX, we've orchestrated our grandest giveaway ever. Over the next week, we'll be giving out over 118 prizes (yes, over one hundred and eighteen) with a total dollar value exceeding $8,000. One lucky winner will also walk away with the grand prize, which should please anyone familiar with our system guide.

You don't have to buy anything, sign up for a new credit card, or start selling computer hardware door-to-door to enter the contest. Just read the rules and regs below, and then fill out the form further down with answers to three easy questions about The Tech Report and your contact information. (We won't share that information with anyone.)

Rules and regulations
Sorry, but this contest is open to residents of the U.S. and Canada only. By submitting an entry you are agreeing to these terms.

Fill out the form below, correctly answering three easy questions about TR and its history. Only one entry allowed per person, household, or e-mail address. Multiple entries per person, household or address are not permitted. Please don't try to game the system by entering your girlfriend, wife, kids or pets. We'll probably disqualify you if you do.

We will be accepting giveaway entries between November 6, 2009 and November 13, 2009 at 12:00 AM CST. Each day from November 9 through November 13, we will choose two to nine winners in random drawings from among all eligible entries received at that time. Then, on November 14, we will choose the winner of our grand prize (again in a random drawing from among all eligible entries). Randomly chosen winners are only eligible for a single prize each, and their chance of winning depends on the number of entries received. In total, there will be 27 winners of hardware donated by our sponsors. We will announce the names of winners on the site and also notify these winners via the e-mail addresses they provided in the submission form.

You must include your full name and a physical shipping address with your entry. Only the winners' names will be announced on the site. We will not share the address or other personal information with our sponsors or anyone else. Incomplete entries will be disqualified. TR reserves the right to disqualify entries that appear to be attempts to game the system or circumvent the rules in any way.

The staff of The Tech Report and their immediate families may not enter the giveaway and are not eligible to win.

We will accept entries only from residents of the United States and Canada. No purchase is necessary. This giveaway is void where prohibited by law. Neither TR nor any of the sponsors are responsible for any taxes on the prize, damage in shipping, damage caused by using the prize with other products, or health issues such as RSI, eye strain, or chemical addictions that may result from prolonged use of the prize. We may answer questions and offer clarifications of the rules in this comments thread.

Questions
The answers to the questions below all lie somewhere on TR:

• Question 1: TR forum members are ranked as different incarnations of which furry mammal?


• Question 2: What nickname did we give to the loud cooler on the GeForce FX 5800 Ultra?


• Question 3: The scatter plots in our value articles have two axes. One axis represents performance; what does the other axis represent?

You can enter for a chance to win by filling in the following form:

Answer to question 1:
Answer to question 2:
Answer to question 3:
First name:
Last name:
Address:
City:
State or province:
ZIP or postal code:
Country:
E-mail (will not be shared):

92 comments —
Last by murray at 6:22 AM on 11/07/09

Intel working on fix for latest SSD firmware issue
by Cyril Kowaliski — 3:00 PM on November 6, 2009

Well, all those user reports weren't flukes. Intel has posted a note on the Support Community forum saying it managed to reproduce a bricking problem induced by its latest solid-state-drive firmware update, and that the company is working on a fix.

Here's the meaty part from the message by Alan Frost of Intel's NAND Solutions Group:

We have been contacted by users with SSD issues after using the firmware upgrade tool (version 1.3) in a Windows 7* 64bit environment. Intel has replicated the issue on 34nm SSDs (X25-M) and is working on a fix. If users have downloaded 02HA firmware and not upgraded, Intel recommends they don't upgrade until further notice. Intel is pursuing the resolution of this as a high priority. No related issues have been reported by users who have successfully upgraded to 02HA firmware via the firmware upgrade tool (version 1.3)."

As we reported last month, Intel pulled the new TRIM firmware for its 34-nm solid-state drives after some users started complaining that the update rendered their drives inoperable. The update normally adds support for Windows 7's TRIM function, which circumvents the block-rewrite performance penalty by clearing flash pages instead of marking them as available. (Thanks to The Register for the tip.)

8 comments —
Last by OneArmedScissor at 10:53 PM on 11/06/09

Nvidia lashes out at Intel with cartoons
by Cyril Kowaliski — 1:11 PM on November 6, 2009

After trash-talking about Intel last year, Nvidia is now taking another approach in its public-relations war against the semiconductor giant: newspaper-style cartoons.

Specifically, Nvidia has put up a website with a handful of seemingly professionally drawn cartoons meant to poke fun at Intel. Much like many political cartoons, Nvidia's satirical panels hit their target somewhat awkwardly and with overstretched metaphors. One of the items apparently draws a parallel between Intel CEO Paul Otellini denying anticompetitive behavior and former U.S. President Bill Clinton denying involvement with Monica Lewinsky:

Comedy gold, folks.

The site, entitled "Intel's Insides," bears an Nvidia logo at the bottom right as well as the mention, "This website is not provided, sponsored or endorsed by Intel Corporation." A whois lookup shows the "intelsinsides.com" domain is tied to an address in Portugal, but it uses the same DNS servers as Nvidia's website.

50 comments —
Last by GreatGooglyMoogly at 6:11 AM on 11/07/09

DFI readies P55 Mini-ITX motherboard
by Cyril Kowaliski — 11:04 AM on November 6, 2009

You might think a 95W power envelope is a tad too high for a Mini-ITX build. However, that hasn't stopped DFI from developing a P55 Express motherboard based on the diminutive form factor—and the guys at Clunk.org.uk have nabbed a few photos and specifications.

The DFI MI P55-T36 has an LGA1156 socket, just as you might expect, alongside a couple of DDR3 memory slots, one PCI Express x16 slot, and three Serial ATA ports. No legacy parallel connections here. The photos don't show the I/O area, but Clunk mentions six USB ports, Gigabit Ethernet, and 7.1-channel audio with coaxial and S/PDIF ports.

DFI looks to be targeting enthusiasts with this board. The box bears DFI's LanParty trademark, and the company reportedly added many of the trimmings of full-sized enthusiast mobos: a POST-code display, a CMOS reset button, six CPU power phases, and all-solid-state capacitors.

We'll no doubt see more LGA1156 Mini-ITX boards once Intel's 32-nm, dual-core Clarkdale processors come out, but those boards may end up using a different chipset and including display ports to accommodate Clarkdale's built-in graphics core. In the meantime, you'll probably want to invest in some nice cooling before building a Mini-ITX LGA1156 PC. Lynnfield-based Core i7 processors may sip power at idle, but their four 45-nm cores still draw plenty of it under load.

20 comments —
Last by OneArmedScissor at 10:48 PM on 11/06/09

Nvidia turns a profit once again
by Cyril Kowaliski — 9:34 AM on November 6, 2009

After a few tough quarters, Nvidia is finally out of the red. The company has posted $107.6 million in net profits for the third quarter of its 2010 fiscal year (ended on October 25), contrasting with sizable losses in its fiscal Q2, fiscal Q1, and the fourth quarter of its previous fiscal year.

Here's how the latest results compare against the previous quarter and the same quarter a year ago:

	Q3 FY2009	Q2 FY2010	Q3 FY2010
Revenue	$897.7 million	$776.5 million	$903.2 million
Net income	$61.7 million	-$105.3 million	$107.6 million
Gross margin	41.0%	20.2%	43.4%

Nvidia actually managed to beat last year's numbers, posting 6% higher revenue and 74% higher net profits. Company CEO Jen-Hsun Huang credits "healthy market demand across the board" for the growth, adding that Nvidia saw improvements in each of its businesses. That growth sounds roughly in line with what AMD and Intel have reported recently.

Looking at the ongoing quarter, Nvidia expects revenue to go up slightly ("approximately 2 percent"), while gross margin should remain in the 40-42% range.

26 comments —
Last by Wintermane at 12:59 AM on 11/07/09

Early Windows 7 unit sales beat Vista's by 234%
by Cyril Kowaliski — 6:00 AM on November 6, 2009

So far, the hype surrounding Windows 7 has been much more positive than what accompanied Windows Vista. Has all the upbeat chatter translated into higher popularity? Yes, according to early numbers from NPD.

The research firm writes that, in the United States, unit sales of boxed Windows 7 copies eclipsed Vista's by a whopping 234% when comparing the "first few days" after the launch of both operating systems. Microsoft didn't take long to relay the statistic on the official Windows Team Blog, citing it as proof of the excitement surrounding the new OS.

That datum doesn't tell the entire story, though. Because of discounts and a lack of promotion surrounding Windows 7 Ultimate, NPD says, Microsoft actually made less money from early Windows 7 sales than early Vista sales (only 82% as much). Also, while the Windows 7 release helped raise PC sales by 95% compared to the previous week and by 49% compared to the year before, those increases pale in comparison to the 170% week-over-week and 68% year-over-year gains NPD recorded after Vista's debut. The economy probably didn't help, though.

Regardless, the research firm is giving Windows 7 a thumbs up overall. NPD Industry Analysis VP Stephen Baker comments, "Microsoft's program of early low-cost pre-sales, high visibility marketing, and aggressive deals helped make the Windows 7 software launch successful."

43 comments —
Last by flip-mode at 5:19 AM on 11/07/09

Friday Shortbread
by Ronald Hanaki — 2:42 AM on November 6, 2009

Friday

1. Nvidia reports financial results for third quarter fiscal year 2010
2. NordicHardware reports Nvidia is hiring x86 engineers
3. Fudzilla reports Nvidia impresses people with Tegra 2
4. NGOHQ reports Nvidia mocks Intel with editorial cartoons
5. Google CEO: Hopefully, we won't repeat Microsoft's past mistakes
6. Ars Technica reports EU adopts "Internet freedom" provision on Internet
   cut-offs and bill could kill ISP safe harbor in cases of financial fraud
7. Will 'three strikes' come to the United States?
8. U.S. regulators mull changes to phone access rules
9. DigiTimes reports TSMC clarifies reports on SMIC lawsuit
10. NordicHardware reports Eee keyboard delayed again, new screen and Wi-Fi
11. Verizon to sell HTC Android phone for $99.99
12. Antec preps Lanboy Air for CES (in French)
13. Hexus.net's Asus P55 motherboard giveaway
14. Futurelooks has 750W Ultra PSU tweetaway
15. Dealzon's deals: $356 off Dell Vostro 220 PC & 24" LCD, $270 off
    13" Lenovo IdeaPad U350, and $150 off 24" ViewSonic LCD HDTV

Software

1. Windows 7 sales exceed Vista sales by 234%
2. DailyTech reports Sophos finds Windows 7 UAC fails to block 7 out of 10 pieces of malware
3. Microsoft security bulletin advance notification for November 2009
4. TechRadar UK: 12 common Windows 7 problems solved
5. SuperSite for Windows: Clean install Windows 7 with Upgrade media
6. Tech ARP on Windows 7 installation woes
7. New Mac OS X 10.6.2 build restores Atom support
8. Mac|Life: 50 common Mac problems solved
9. ATi-Forum: Catalyst 9.11 on 25th November (in German)
10. Linux graphics driver updates from AMD and Nvidia
11. Browser rivals to register official complaints about Microsoft's ballot screen proposal
12. Firefox 3.5.5 release notes
13. C|Net reports near-final Thunderbird 3 due next week
14. Inside the Unity web player
15. Google Dashboard gives you a bird's eye view of your cloud
16. Psystar's Rebel EFI software and customer service are shady
17. Zero-day flaw found in web encryption
18. Mark Russinovich: The machine SID duplication myth
19. Try SharePoint 2010
20. DPM 2007 hotfix package
21. Ad-Aware Game Edition

Gaming

1. Video games climbing the ladder of American pastimes
2. Shacknews reports Battlefield: Bad Company 2 beta details
   surface - PS3 on November 19, PC in December
3. Blizzard targets "first half of 2010" for StarCraft II according to Activision CC
4. Dedicated servers and Rage - News you probably don't want to hear
5. id's Carmack says iPhone Fallout for Bethesda possible
6. Ars Technica on PC Modern Warfare 2: It's much worse than you thought
7. Shacknews: First Halo Reach screenshots, details leak?
8. Torchlight coming to retail stores in early January
9. Behind the quest for the ultimate Dungeons & Dragons machine
10. C|Net on Mac game: Art project or malware?
11. Ninjalane conducts PhysX performance tests
12. PC Luchs reviews Need for Speed Shift (in German)
13. Dragon Age: Origins update released
14. Steam's weekend deal - 50% off Mass Effect

Systems and storage

1. Digital Trends reviews Dell Adamo XPS
2. HotHardware reviews Toshiba Satellite T135 Win 7 CULV notebook
3. InsideHW reviews Lenovo IdeaPad U350
4. Legit Reviews on ASRock M3A785GXH/128M
5. PCShopTalk reviews 4GB Patriot Viper II Sector 5
   PVV34G2000LLK dual channel memory kit
6. OCC reviews 4GB Kingston HyperX KHX1600C9D3K2/4G memory kit
7. PCStats reviews LiteOn iHAS424 dual-layer DVD writer
8. ProClockers review Synology DS209 Advance NAS

Multimedia

1. PC Perspective has AMD Vision program analysis for desktop and mobile
2. TweakTown on video card benchmarking: Goodbye Vista and XP, hello Windows 7
3. techPowerUp! reviews Sapphire Radeon HD 5750 1GB
4. Madshrimps review Leadtek WinFast GeForce GT 220 1GB
5. HardwareZone's hands-on with the Olympus E-P2
6. Digital Trends reviews Yamaha RX-V2065 A/V receiver
7. Benchmark Reviews on Eagle Arion ET-AR504LR-BK 2.1 soundstage speakers
8. HotHardware reviews Motorola Droid
9. TestFreaks review Pantech C790 Reveal

Power, cases, and cooling

1. Madshrimps review Cooler Master Lab Test Bench V1.0
2. Technic3D reviews 950W Sapphire Pure PSU (in German)
3. Hardware Secrets reviews SilverStone Grandia GD04 case
4. ThinkComputers reviews Chieftec BL-01B case
5. [OC]ModShop reviews nMedia wood HTPC 8000 case
6. Metku reviews Thermaltake Element Q Mini-ITX case
7. FrostyTech: Heatpipe wick structures exposed

29 comments —
Last by Thanato at 5:21 PM on 11/06/09

Dell Adamo XPS has Core 2 Duo, costs $1,799
by Cyril Kowaliski — 5:09 PM on November 5, 2009

After last month's teaser announcement, Dell has finally spilled the beans about its unusual-looking Adamo XPS laptop. The PC maker expects to start selling the sleek ultraportable "in time for the holidays" at a starting price of $1,799.

Specs-wise, the Adamo XPS packs a 13.4" "high-definition" display, a low-voltage 1.4GHz Core 2 Duo processor, 4GB of DDR3-800 memory, a 128GB solid-state drive, 802.11n W-Fi, and Windows 7 x64. The machine weighs in at "just over 3 pounds" and is an unbelievable 0.4" thin (that's almost exactly a centimeter, if your ruler happens not to split inches into tenths).

As we noted last month, the Adamo XPS's lid unlocks via a touch-sensitive strip, and it opens in a somewhat strange fashion, with the display panel extending well below the keyboard. Dell claims this setup enhances cooling, but official PR videos make it look slightly awkward to use.

39 comments —
Last by sweatshopking at 5:48 AM on 11/07/09

Could low-power 'Fusion' CPUs be built on a 40-nm bulk process?
by Cyril Kowaliski — 4:20 PM on November 5, 2009

The last AMD roadmap we saw described Ontario, a 32-nm "accelerated processing unit" with two cores, 1MB of cache, support for DDR3 memory, and a built-in graphics processor. We haven't heard much about this future product since then, but today, Fudzilla claims AMD now intends to build that product on a 40-nm bulk silicon process.

Using that type of process might allow AMD to more easily integrate a GPU into the same die as the processor. However, since current AMD CPUs use silicon-on-insulator technology, a retooling of the processor design would also be in order.

Fudzilla says that's also on the menu. AMD will reportedly base Ontario on its next-generation Bobcat processor architecture, the low-power sidekick of Bulldozer. We first heard about Bobcat way back in July 2007; back then, AMD talked of a processor designed from the ground up for "mobile, ultra-mobile and consumer electronics" and tweaked to "scale as low as 1 watt."

Intel's Atom CPU also fits that description—and as you might recall, Intel recently partnered up with TSMC to port the processor to a bulk silicon process. Fudzilla's story therefore doesn't sound all that unbelievable. It doesn't answer the question of whose bulk 40-nm process AMD will choose, though.  TSMC already fabs AMD's graphics processors, and GlobalFoundries was recently chosen by STMicroelectronics for the production of unannounced devices.

18 comments —
Last by SomeOtherGeek at 10:14 AM on 11/06/09

Epic lets devs make standalone Unreal Engine 3 titles for free
by Cyril Kowaliski — 1:35 PM on November 5, 2009

id Software often gets credit for opening the source code of old game engines a few years after their release. Epic Games has now pulled a comparable feat, except with two major differences: the new Unreal Development Kit doesn't include game-engine source code, but it does give developers all of the tools they need to create standalone titles using Unreal Engine 3, Epic's latest and greatest engine, free of charge.

Unreal Engine 3 powers a wealth of current and upcoming titles, including the Gears of War series, Unreal Tournament 3, the BioShock series, Borderlands, the Mass Effect series, Mirror's Edge, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas 2, and many more.

According to Epic, the Unreal Development Kit features the "most recently added features and technological enhancements, including many that have yet to be seen in an Unreal Engine game." The company also intends to deliver "ongoing, upgraded builds of UDK for free." UDK tools include Epic's Unreal Editor level-editing software, plus the following:

Unreal Content Browser, a revolutionary tool for browsing, searching and organizing game assets with collaborative metadata tagging system.

UnrealScript object-oriented programming language and Unreal Kismet, a visual scripting system that enables rapid prototyping on the fly.

Unreal Matinee, a powerful tool with movie director-class controls for building in-game cinematics and gorgeous cut scenes.

Unreal Cascade, an advanced particle physics and environmental effects editor that aids the creation of fire, fog, explosions and other visuals.

NVIDIA® PhysX®-powered physics system with Unreal PhAT visual modeling tool for creating character and object physics rigs.

Unreal Lightmass, a global illumination system that dramatically lights and shadows with minimal effort required by artists and designers.

AnimSet Viewer and AnimTree Editor, which give animators precise control over every muscle and bone movement.

You can grab the UDK and associated documentation here on the official website. Usage is free for non-commercial endeavors, but Epic also says it offers licensing options with terms favorable to independent developers.

Epic stresses that games built using the UDK are completely standalone, so they'll run happily on any PC without a copy of Unreal Tournament 3 to latch onto. (Console support is currently "under consideration," however.) The UDK Showcase already includes a couple of sample games from third-party studios, including one title that was originally a UT3 mod.

28 comments —
Last by OneArmedScissor at 1:01 PM on 11/06/09

Tight Radeon HD 5000-series supply may be causing delays
by Cyril Kowaliski — 11:29 AM on November 5, 2009

At this point, it's pretty clear that AMD's Radeon HD 5800-series graphics cards are in short supply—especially the 5850. What you may not know is that, according to DigiTimes, this scarceness has forced both PC makers and AMD to rejigger their roadmaps.

DigiTimes writes that tight supply "has caused several PC vendors to delay their mass shipment schedules by about two months to the first quarter of 2010." AMD, meanwhile, has reportedly postponed the release of Mobility Radeon HD 5000-series products, code-named Manhattan, from the fourth quarter of this year to the first quarter of 2010.

Radeon HD 5000 cards aren't the only affected products, either. DigiTimes claims Radeon HD 4000-series GPUs built on 55-nm process technology have also become harder to come by because of "AMD's conservative attitude towards its 55nm GPU sales after the launch of 40nm products."

TSMC, which makes the majority of AMD and Nvidia GPUs, recently admitted that its 40-nm yields had fallen to 40%. The foundry pledged to get yields back on track by the end of this quarter, though.

37 comments —
Last by Johnny5 at 12:51 AM on 11/06/09

Toshiba crams 320GB into new 1.8-inch hard drive
by Cyril Kowaliski — 11:03 AM on November 5, 2009

Hard-drive makers don't just ramp capacities in their 3.5" and 2.5" products—teeny 1.8" drives are also quietly growing in storage density. This morning, Toshiba announced a new 1.8" mechanical hard drive lineup, the MK3233GSG series, which combines capacities of up to 320GB with 5,400-RPM spindle speeds and Serial ATA interfaces.

Toshiba aims these puppies at "thin and light mobile PCs and portable external hard disk drives." The company boasts about having reached a platter density of 516 gigabits per square inch, which is purportedly the industry's highest for 1.8" hard drives.

MK3233GSG products include a single-platter 160GB offering as well as dual-platter 250GB and 320GB models, all with the same rotational speed and 16MB caches. The latter two drives have 19-dB seek noise levels, while the 160GB variant pulls off seeking while generating just 17 dB. Power consumption amounts to 1.3W during seeks for all three drives.

Toshiba expects to start mass-producing MK3233GSG hard drives in December. It doesn't quote pricing, but for reference, the firm's current 1.8" 250GB drive costs around $150 right now.

36 comments —
Last by UberGerbil at 9:34 PM on 11/06/09

Thursday Shortbread
by Ronald Hanaki — 9:16 AM on November 5, 2009

Thursday

1. SemiAccurate reports Nvidia crushes MSI's Lucid-based board
2. TG Daily reports AMD discovers several Fusion mantras, disses Larrabee
3. Expreview reports Intel denies promoting Larrabee to graphics card makers
4. 2nd update: NY AG claims Dell got $6B via secret Intel pact
5. Ars Technica takes a close look at the new antitrust allegations against Intel
6. San Diego supercomputer to use Intel chips, SSDs
7. TC Magazine reports Lenovo to offer BIOS option to switch Fn / Ctrl keys
8. DailyTech reports motherboards supporting USB 3.0 & SATA 6Gbps now available
9. DigiTimes reports AMD GPU shortage causing PC vendors to delay products to 1Q10
10. Fudzilla reports Nvidia's GT 240 shows up in retail
    and demand for GeForce GTX 260 cards still huge
11. Expreview reports PowerColor readies passively-cooled Radeon HD 5750
12. NordicHardware reports XFX Radeon HD 5970 Black Edition at the end of November
13. Gizmodo on Microsoft Courier's swipes, snips, and scribbles: The leaked interface
14. DigiTimes reports TSMC to demand $1 billion compensation from SMIC
15. LiveScience on what Bing does best
16. Microsoft CEO eyes Yahoo! partnership outside U.S
17. DailyTech reports Microsoft slashes more jobs
18. Comcast is simply getting huge
19. TG Daily reports former hp CEO Carly Fiorina to run for Senate
20. TorrentFreak reports Pirate Party gets second seat in European Parliament
21. Beatles remasters heading to USB
22. AnandTech's giveaway: Win a Lynnfield Core i7 system
23. Ars Technica's November Thanksgiving giveaway
24. Win a Zotac GTX 295 from Hexus.net
25. Win an 850W Ultra X4 PSU (separately) from Big Bruin and DriverHeaven
26. Dealzon's deals: $285 off 14" Asus laptop, $400 off 22" hp TouchSmart IQ500t
    all-in-one, $40 off Dell Inspiron Mini 9n, and $30 off Garmin Oregon 400t GPS

Software

1. Natural user interface is the future of PC industry, says Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer
2. Intel's James Reinders on parallelism: Part 1
3. The Register reports bug in latest Linux gives untrusted users root access
4. Ars Technica: New tool seeks to block rootkits by protecting their targets
5. C|Net posts FAQ: Buying the right Windows 7 upgrade
6. Windows Live Sync: Now on Snow Leopard
7. SuperSite's Windows 7 vs. Snow Leopard part 2: Pricing
8. Microsoft says Windows 7 doing well so far
9. Supporting Exchange 2007 on Windows Server 2008 R2
10. TG Daily reports Parallels takes on VMware
11. Moblin v2.1 project release for netbook and nettops - It's here
12. KDE 4.3.3 release announcement
13. Java SE 6 update 17 release notes
14. VirtualBox 3.0.10 released
15. C|Net reports T-Mobile says software error behind outage
16. Apple's App Store hits six digits; how many apps do you need?

Gaming

1. Expreview reports first DirectCompute benchmark released
2. Gamasutra: Xbox 360 gamers defecting to PS3 for holiday sequels?
3. Bright Side of News on Batmangate: AMD vs. Nvidia vs. Eidos fight analyzed
4. Ars Technica reports Dragon Age launch fails: Some can't play, others no DLC
5. Fudzilla reports CoD: MW2 multiplayer on PC only supports 18 players
6. American McGee's blog: Return of Alice (video madness)
7. John Carmack talks 'Doom Classic,' 'Rage'-themed racing game
8. Left 4 Dead 2 TV spot #2 hits the airwaves
9. Shacknews reports Epic launches free Unreal development kit
10. Legit Reviews on Shattered Horizon
11. Welcome to the Torchlight mods database
12. Shacknews has Natural Selection 2 interview: The evolution of a mod
13. Steam news - Dragon Age: Origins available in mainland
    Europe and Shattered Horizon now available
14. Absolute Minesweeper now available on the App Store
15. Win a copy of Shattered Horizon from Elite Bastards

Hardware

1. Legit Reviews has Chris Morley interview on Maingear's Shift PC
2. TG Daily: Notebook benchmarks fail to convey performance, price
3. TweakTown's ASRock Ion 330HT-BD nettop unboxing video
4. EOC, HotHardware, HT4U, PC Perspective and
   PCStats review Phenom II X4 965 B.E. C3 revision
5. TWL reviews Athlon II X3 435
6. Neoseeker reviews MSI NF980-G65
7. Hardware Canucks review 2TB Western Digital Caviar Black
8. AMD Radeon HD 5870 Eyefinity Edition previewed
9. TweakTown reviews HIS HD 5850 1GB
10. Neoseeker reviews Sapphire Radeon HD 5770
11. ThinkComputers reviews Sparkle GeForce GTX 260 Plus 1792MB
12. Björn3D reviews Gigabyte GeForce GT 220
13. Hardware Secrets: Can we trust the 80 Plus certification?
14. PureOC reviews 1250W Enermax Galaxy Evo PSU
15. [H]ard|OCP reviews 1000W Kingwin LZ-1000 PSU

36 comments —
Last by OneArmedScissor at 9:48 PM on 11/05/09

New Chrome beta is faster, has bookmark sync
by Cyril Kowaliski — 6:00 AM on November 5, 2009

Mozilla Firefox may be getting all the market share points, but Google is still hard at work improving its own web browser. The search giant has released a new Chrome beta that features both improved performance and the ability to synchronize bookmarks across different PCs.

The bookmark sync feature looks pretty simple: a menu option in Chrome's wrench menu prompts users to enter their Google Account details. Once that's done, modifying bookmarks on one machine almost instantaneously propagates the change to other synchronized systems. Check out this video of the feature in action:

Mozilla is also working on a bookmark sync feature, Weave, but it hasn't integrated it into Firefox just yet (not even the new Firefox 3.6 beta).

Otherwise, this Chrome beta release purportedly brings a 30% performance improvement over the latest "stable" release. Google got that number from Mozilla's Dromaeo document object model benchmark, which ought to reflect page rendering speed, among other things. You can download the latest Chrome beta and see the changes for yourself by hitting this page.

51 comments —
Last by Trymor at 5:59 AM on 11/07/09

Super Talent unveils USB 3.0 flash drive
by Cyril Kowaliski — 4:26 PM on November 4, 2009

Now that both Asus and Gigabyte have USB 3.0-compatible motherboards on the way, the next step is devices. Super Talent hasn't skipped a beat, announcing a trio of USB 3.0 flash drives with hefty capacities and impressive top transfer speeds.

The new SuperSpeed USB 3.0 RAIDDrive series includes 32GB, 64GB, and 128GB models, all with USB 3.0 interfaces backward compatible with current USB 2.0 ports. Super Talent says the drives can reach speeds of up to 200MB/s when hooked up via USB 3.0 thanks to "multiple pairs of differential serial data lines technology." Obviously, though, these things won't break any speed records when hooked up to a second-gen USB port.

Expect to see SuperSpeed USB 3.0 RAIDDrives at "resellers worldwide" in December, Super Talent says. These may remain something of a niche product for a little while, though—according to the rumor mill, Intel might not add USB 3.0 support to its chipsets until 2011. Until then, motherboard makers will have to rely on third-party USB 3.0 controllers, which could make support for the next-gen interface somewhat rare.

35 comments —
Last by spanky1off at 9:10 PM on 11/05/09

Firefox beats Internet Explorer 6 in popularity
by Cyril Kowaliski — 2:27 PM on November 4, 2009

Web developers rejoice: more people are now browsing the web using Firefox than Internet Explorer 6, according to Net Applications figures quoted by Ars Technica. The data show Firefox commanded 24.1% of the market last month, compared to 23.3% for IE6. (In September, the same two browsers had 23.8% and 24.4% market shares, respectively.)

Of course, IE6 is growing long in the tooth—even downright senile by modern standards. Microsoft first introduced that browser in August 2001, and it's since released Internet Explorer 7 and 8. However, the Net Applications market share numbers show IE6 remains the single most popular version of the browser: version 7 only has 18.6% of the market, while IE8 commands around 20.5%.

In case you're wondering, Apple's Safari and Google's Chrome both resided around the 4% mark in terms of usage share in October, and Opera barely got over 2%. So, until last month, IE6 was the single most popular browser on average. Progress is great, isn't it?

That said, Net Applications' numbers cover 160 million visitors across a broad pool of websites each month. Market share numbers look a tad different for sites that draw in more tech-savvy folks: Ars, for instance, says only 19% of its readers run Internet Explorer, while most of the rest run either Firefox or Safari. TR, too, sees more visits from Firefox users than IE users overall.

77 comments —
Last by Palek at 12:53 AM on 11/06/09

NY Attorney General slaps Intel with antitrust suit
by Cyril Kowaliski — 11:44 AM on November 4, 2009

It ain't over yet for Intel. After receiving a $1.45 billion fine from the European Commission for antitrust violations, Intel has now gotten sued by New York Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo for similar transgressions.

According to the New York Times, this latest lawsuit accuses Intel of "abusing its dominant position in the chip market to keep its main rival, Advanced Micro Devices, at bay." Cuomo, like the European Commission, claims Intel coerced PC vendors into limiting their use of AMD processors.

"Rather than compete fairly, Intel used bribery and coercion to maintain a stranglehold on the market," Mr. Cuomo said in a statement. "Intel's actions not only unfairly restricted potential competitors, but also hurt average consumers who were robbed of better products and lower prices." . . . During the press conference, New York prosecutors said Intel abused its monopoly power "as a central business strategy" rather than just in isolated incidents.

If you'll recall, AMD filed its own antitrust lawsuit against Intel in 2005, and the Federal Trade Commission subsequently launched an investigation into Intel's alleged antitrust activities last year.

The AMD case will go to trial next year. Quoting a source familiar with the case, the Times says Cuomo's move may prompt the FTC to take legal action against Intel, as well. Officially, Cuomo stated in a press conference about today's suit, "We have been cooperating with the F.T.C. We have a good, productive dialogue on this matter." On its end, the FTC says its investigation remains in progress.

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Last by MadManOriginal at 7:42 AM on 11/06/09

Report: New AMD desktop platforms coming in May
by Cyril Kowaliski — 11:03 AM on November 4, 2009

AMD may no longer have the high-end power-efficiency crown, but it's nevertheless cooking up a pair of new desktop platforms. So writes DigiTimes, basing its story on tips from insiders at motherboard manufacturers.

These platforms will include Leo at the high end and Dorado for the mainstream. Leo should bring together current Phenom IIs, future Thuban six-core desktop CPUs, and new 890-series chipsets with SB850 south bridges. DigiTimes mentions an 890FX and 890GX; if those are anything like the 790FX and 790GX, the latter will have integrated graphics and multi-GPU support.

Before you go thinking Thuban will launch in May 2010, too, DigiTimes specifies that Leo will merely have "support" for the six-core design. Then again, the same site reported earlier this week that Thuban should be out in the second quarter of next year.

Moving down to the mainstream platform, Dorado will bring forth a new 880G integrated graphics chipset and SB810 south bridge, both destined to sit alongside Athlon II processors. AMD's new Radeon HD 5000-series graphics cards are also part of the Leo and Dorado platforms. Perhaps the Radeon HD 5850 will finally be widely available by the time the new platforms arrive.

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Last by Rza79 at 7:43 PM on 11/04/09

Etc.
by Scott Wasson — 8:00 AM on November 4, 2009

Those of you who don't visit every day will want to check the site more frequently over the next little while.  We're hitting a significant milestone and celebrating it with substantial goodness.  Couldn't be more vague, could I?  Yet it's all true, whatever it is.  You'll have to check back in soon to see.  You won't want to miss... something.

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Last by MadManOriginal at 11:14 AM on 11/05/09

Nvidia x86 processor rumors resurface
by Cyril Kowaliski — 6:00 AM on November 4, 2009

The rumor mill is at it again. According to EE Times, an equity research firm has revived last year's speculation by claiming Nvidia is covertly developing an x86 processor to compete with AMD and Intel.

Broadpoint AmTech analyst Doug Freedman says in his report, "We believe that Nvidia has hired former Transmeta staff extensively, and that instruction code 'morphing' requirements have declined as more x86 instructions have come off of patent coverage." Transmeta, of course, developed low-power, x86-compatible processors before turning into an intellectual-property licensing firm and eventually folding in September of 2008.

The analyst thinks Nvidia is likelier to come up with its own design than to buy out Via, as other sources suggested early last year.

Why launch an x86 processor at all? "By necessity to preserve both GPU and chipset revenue," Freedman says. Last month, Nvidia announced that its chipset business was on life support because of a licensing dispute with Intel. Also, once Intel starts churning out discrete graphics processors next year, Nvidia should become the only major GPU vendor without the ability to offer processor, chipset, and GPU bundles.

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Last by StuG at 1:14 PM on 11/06/09

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