Microsoft says the first HoloLens isn't for gamers

With gamers across the world excited for the endless possibilities of Microsoft's upcoming HoloLens wearable, it looks like the first iteration of HoloLens won't be aimed at gamers, and instead it will be targeted towards developers and enterprise scenarios.

Microsoft says the first HoloLens isn't for gamers

The news comes directly from Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, during his recent interview with ZDNet, where he said that HoloLens will be "more about developers and enterprise scenarios". Nadella's statement on HoloLens rides directly from his demo on the wearable at Microsoft's Worldwide Partner Conference, where the CEO focused its concentration of HoloLens on tools like Autodesk and Maya.

Even with the big push of Minecraft on HoloLens at E3 2015 last month, the company isn't pushing HoloLens onto gamers anytime soon. Nadella added: "What we can uniquely do is bridge consumer to enterprise. That's in our DNA. I want every technology of ours to seek that out. In the HoloLens case, when I look at the interest, it's amazing how many are in hospitals, healthcare, retail. That's where I'm seeing the interest and we'll definitely go after it". He continued: "I wanted a hit game even for the new medium of mixed reality. And we will have that. Gaming will always be a scenario and there will be other entertainment broadly. But, with the V.1 of HoloLens, I want us to push a lot more of the enterprise usage".

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Intel posts $13.2 billion in revenue for Q2 2015

Chris Smith | Business, Financial & Legal | Jul 16, 2015 6:27 AM CDT

Boasting revenues of $13.2 billion, an operating income of $2.9 billion, a net income of $2.7 billion and an EPS of 55 cents, Intel posted up impressive Q2 2015 results. These figures show what Intel CEO Brian Krzanich claims to be a "transformation of our business as growth in data center, memory and IoT accounted for more than 70 percent of our operating profit."

Naming the PC market as "challenging," Krzanich further explained that "the launches of Skylake, Microsoft's Windows 10 and new OEM systems will bring excitement to client computing in the second half of 2015." As for further reports, Intel generated around $3.4 billion in cash from operations, it paid dividends of $1.1 billion and used $697 million in order to repurchase 22 million shares of stock.

Looking forward to the third quarter, Intel expects to see a revenue of $14.3 billion, plus or minus $500 million. They also expect to spend $4.9 billion on R&D and MG&A combined.

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Be Quiet! launches its stunning Silent Base 800 windowed edition

Chris Smith | Cases, Cooling & PSU | Jul 16, 2015 4:32 AM CDT

Claiming to be "the market leader in PC power supplies in Germany for nine consecutive years," Be Quiet! has decided to continue its domination by releasing the Silent Base 800 windowed model, assisting users in showing off the orange highlighted innards and any crazy technology featured within this massive chassis.

Be Quiet! launches its stunning Silent Base 800 windowed edition

With the window being made of double-glazed polycarbonate, Be Quiet! claims this design will ensure noise isolation and scratch resistance. The window is also housed within a rubber insert, meaning it wont vibrate when all of your internal fans roar to life and helps to showcase the attention to detail paid in the design. As for fans, this case comes packed with three pre-installed Pure Wings 2 fans which also claim whisper-quiet operations.

Available now for $149.90 excluding taxes, owners of the windowless version can purchase the side panel alone for $29.90 (excluding tax). For a look into exactly how the case fits some mid to high range components, check out the image above.

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Super Talent has supercharged its SATA slim technology

Chris Smith | Storage | Jul 16, 2015 3:28 AM CDT

Boasting transfer speeds of up to 480 MB/s read and 400 MB/s write, Super Talent's new SATA Slim SJ2 technology is designed with medical, point-of-sale, laptop and embedded applications in mind.

Built on a SATA-III interface, these drives also claim to withstand extreme temperature ranges and are quoted as "a great choice when physical space is a limiting factor for a host system" in a recently issued press release.

This NAND storage also brandishes low power qualities, making it useful for numerous industrial applications with sizes ranging up to 128GB. More information can be found out about this model here.

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Apple unveils new range of 2015 iPods, packing a huge camera refresh

Apple has just unveiled its new 2015 iPod, which includes a bunch of new models, starting at $199 for the 16GB iPod touch. This quickly ramps up to $399, if you opt for the 128GB version.

The new iPod touch is the centerpiece of Apple's new push with the iPod this year, but there is a new iPod shuffle and nano, too. The new iPod touch features the same style, but has seen its rear-facing camera increased to an 8-megapixel shooter, while it enjoys a 64-bit A8 processor and M8 co-processor for its number-crunching prowess.

Apple's new iPod nano and iPod shuffle come in a variety of new colors including darker blue, pink, and gold. Other than that, they're the same iPod shuffle and nano that we've been used to for a while now. Apple's new iPod touch, shuffle and nano are available from the usual retailers, and Apple's website, now.

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Tesla says batteries and solar will usher in cheap electricity soon

Tesla has come along way from being an electric vehicle manufacturer, as it is now stepping out into the limelight of battery technology, and so much more. It wasn't too long ago that Tesla unveiled Powerwall, its Internet-connected home battery.

Now we have Tesla Motors' Chief Technology Officer, JB Straubel, taking to the stage of Intersolar's opening ceremony talk about energy density and other benefits of lithium-ion batteries for electronic cars. The Tesla CEO also said that the company is confident in renewable energy to make solar and wind available on-demand after sunset, or when the wind starts to slow down.

Straubel said that battery costs will tumble much quicker than expected, and that demand for energy storage equipment will expand rather quickly, with the same going for solar panels. This one-two punch will create a great path for cheaper electricity, especially when compared to what the world currently pays from fossil fuel-based power plants. Straubel added that "we are within grasping distance of that goal". He added: "I'm quite certain that it will happen in the next 10 years".

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Microsoft finishes its work on Windows 10, which has now hit RTM

Anthony Garreffa | Software & Apps | Jul 15, 2015 10:34 PM CDT

The day is here... Windows 10 has reached build 10240, which Microsoft has selected to be the final release to manufacturing (RTM) copy of Windows. The RTM version of Windows 10 will now be sent out to PC makers to bake into their new machines, as well as manufacturing the physical copies of Windows 10.

Microsoft internally signed off on the RTM release of Windows 10, but will most likely announce the RTM publicly later this week. With the official release of Windows 10 set for July 29, we're only two weeks away from Microsoft's next-generation operating system.

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Disney developing live-action 'Aladdin' prequel 'Genie'

Ben Gourlay | Celebrities & Entertainment | Jul 15, 2015 7:21 PM CDT

Disney is continuing to shamelessly exploit, sorry 'remake' its stable of classic animated hits, with live action remakes of 'Dumbo' and 'Beauty and the Beast' joining this years 'Cinderella' and next year's 'Alice in Wonderland' sequel 'Through the Looking Glass'. Next cab off the rank is a slightly controversial choice - the 1992 smash hit 'Aladdin', which famously featured the voice of Robin Williams as the voice of Genie.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the studio are pitching the in-development prequel focussing "on the realm of the Genies and reveal how Aladdin's Genie ended up enslaved in the lamp", with a "long-term plan is to have the project lead into an Aladdin live-action movie."

The film is not expected to released until 2017, at the earliest.

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King Leoric makes an entrance to Heroes of the Storm

Chris Smith | Gaming | Jul 15, 2015 7:28 AM CDT

Explained as having an "odd mixture of damage, control and mobility" by Curse in a spotlight video, the Skeleton King is shaping up to be a formidable force on Blizzard's Heroes of the Storm battlefield.

King Leoric makes an entrance to Heroes of the Storm

Set as a warrior and team tank, this extra-tall hero comes with a trait which enables him to still partially function even after death, a 'skeletal swing' which deals damage and slows enemies, 'Drain Hope' which serves to drain a foe's hit points over a four second period and 'Wraith Walk' which enables you to travel as a ghost for a short time, allowing you to teleport to it before the time runs out - similar to an ability as seen in Sylvannas. Finally, his first ultimate allows you to create a medium-range barrier in order to lock all friends and foe within for a few seconds.

The other ultimate on offer is named 'March of the Black King' and puts your Leoric on a rampage, marching forward and swinging his weapon. If these abilities interest you, Heroes of the Storm is a free to play multiplayer online battle arena game and can be found here.

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NETGEAR launches the feature-packed AC1750 Smart Wi-Fi router

Chris Smith | Networking | Jul 15, 2015 6:29 AM CDT

Do you remember when routers were simple units, providing maybe a single Wi-Fi antenna and 100 Mbps Ethernet? Those days are gone - long gone. Offering a SuperSpeed USB 3.0 port, network management through the NETGEAR genie app and more, the NETGEAR AC1750 Smart Wi-Fi router (R6400) is designed for home use applications where Wi-Fi devices are in abundance.

With 802.11n technology and claimed stutter-free streaming of multiple HD videos supported through this single connection, 202.11 a/b/g devices are also able to connect and enjoy the speeds. The hardware includes three antennas couipet with Breamforming+ in order to improve the reach.

1750 Mpbs total speed is on offer here through dual band Wi-Fi technology (450 + 1300 Mbps), utilizing banded 2.5GHz for range and 5 GHz for performance. There are also QoS options available for when your internet can't keep up.

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