Latest News - Page 2867

ASUS has just announced the Chromebox, a small NUC-like compact PC that features Chrome OS. ASUS' Chromebox features deeply integrated Google services thanks to Google's OS, as well as access the popular services such as YouTube, Netflix and Hulu.

The company has used Intel's fourth-generation Core or "Haswell" processors, the latest 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi tech, four USB 3.0 ports, Bluetooth 4.0 and SD card reader. As for display outputs, we have HDMI and DisplayPort, which will drive 4K or Ultra HD displays. A nice touch for something that starts off at just $179.

There will be three CPUs on offer depending on the market you're based in, the Celeron 2955U, Core i3-4010U, or Core i7-4600U. It'll come with 2GB DDR3 1600MHz RAM, but can be optioned with 4GB of RAM. For storage, we have 16GB of built-in M.2 NGFF storage, backed up by 100GB of free Google Drive storage (which is for a limited time).

The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, or WARF, has launched a lawsuit against Apple. WARF's lawsuit alleges that the iPhone maker infringes on a patent held by the University of Wisconsin - Madison, US Patent No. 5,781,752.

The patent in question was granted on July 14, 1998 to four university researchers specializing in microprocessor architecture. The patent is dubbed "Table Based Data Speculation Circuit for Parallel Processing Computer". The scientists' circuit, is a predictor which streamlines microprocessor performance by accurately forecasting dependencies of current instructions on previous instructions.

In non-scientist speak, it speeds up the processor, while lowing required system resources by accurately guessing which earlier instructions will match the new input, and start the desired action before the user has finished entering in the command. This is known as brand prediction in other circles. WARF is now alleging that the A7 chip uses this same specific technology that was developed in Madison.

Those who were excited to see HTC launch its successor to the HTC One at the 2014 Mobile World Congress are in for some disappointment today. A new report our from @evleaks, a very reliable source when it comes to smartphone information, has informed us that HTC will not be launching the M8 (aka HTC One 2) at MWC 2014.

On Twitter, @evleaks said "Starting to look like a late Match, NYC launch for HTC M8." which means that we should still see the HTC One's successor arrive next month, and in a grander fashion than would be possible at MWC 2014 which is held in Barcelona. Rumors speculate that the HTC M8 will feature a 5-inch 1080p screen, and will be powered by a quad-core 2.26GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800. 3GB of RAM could be possible as well, and HTC will most definitely drop the Beats Audio hype this time around.

Less than one year after the public launch of its Chromecast HDTV dongle, Google has finally opened up the software development kit for developers trying to get in on the fun. The Cast SDK was previously available, but was in a restricted form as Google worked with exclusive partners to give them earlier access to create Chromecast apps.

"With the Chromecast, we're resetting consumer applications," noted Rishi Chandra, Google Chromecast director of product management.

App developers now have the ability to integrate Chromecast apps with Google Android, Apple iOS, or Web-based apps - and Google developers believe the potential for Cast-enabled apps is huge - joining Netflix, YouTube, Chrome, and a small number of apps Google immediately included support for from launch.

For many years now, Malwarebytes has been a staple in many Windows users anti-virus / anti-malware toolbox. It gained this position not only because it works so well, but because it was a powerful solution that was completely free. Today the company announced that Malwarebytes 2.0 will be moving away from its free to download model be moving away from a lifetime licence model, and will instead move to an annual subscription licensing model.

The company says that Malwarebytes 2.0 will cost users $24.95 per year with a licensing covering three separate PCs, a fee that is much cheaper than many of the big-name anti-virus programs on the market. "As more and more people have come to rely on us for malware protection and cleanup, our costs in bandwidth, hosting fees, infrastructure, salaries of our researchers, QA department, and more have grown immensely," explained Kleczynski, CEO of Malwarebytes. "Though our company is about more than just making money, we are a company and we do have to make money to pay our staff to continue doing what they love, which is fighting malware. The subscription model will help us to be sustainable for the future while staying true to our roots that we will always make malware cleanup free for everyone"

Malwarebytes says that its customers who have already purchased lifetime licenses will not need to pay the annual subscription fee, and the company will continue to offer lifetime licenses for a short period to ease the transition for those users who have wanted to take the lifetime plunge, but have yet to do so. What do you think about Malwarebytes moving to a paid version only model to a annual subscription over lifetime license model, and will you be jumping in to grab one of the few lifetime licenses left?

During an AMA (Ask Me Anything) post on Reddit, President of Sony Online Entertainment, John Smedley, all but confirmed the existence of a Sony-made virtual reality headset. During the AMA, Smedley was asked about possible future support for the Oculus Rift pertaining to the upcoming Everquest Next game, and his reply more than hinted at the existence of a Sony-branded VR Headset competitor to the Rift.

"Hearing good things about 2 competitors... one of which actually comes from Sony. So I'm thinking this is real and we may have our Snowcrash (a book about a VR based internet by Neal Stephenson) after all." was Smedley's reply. While rumors of a Sony VR Headset have been circling for months now, this is the first word on the matter from someone high up in Sony's management. Since Smedley runs SOE, he would be the person to know if such a headset exist, and exactly how much he could divulge on the matter.

With Oculus making huge leaps forward with its Rift headset, Sony has some tough shoes to fill in making a VR headset that people will actually use. Lets hope they listen to the wealth of feedback available online about the Oculus Rift Developers Kit, and include at minimum; 1440P resolution, and wireless operation. If Sony is going to enter this market, then they need to step out of the dugout with their best foot forward and swing for the fences on the first pitch, otherwise, a VR Headset from Sony will not survive the game Oculus is already dominating.

This morning, Sony announced that the next system software update for the PlayStation 4 will be available late tonight. The update will bring the PS4's system software up to version 1.60 and will bring in support for the PULSE and PULSE-Elite Edition, Sonys official wireless headsets for the PS4.

Alongside the update announcement, Sony unveiled the latest member in its wireless headset lineup. The Gold Wireless Headset is a 7.1 virtual surround headset that features dynamic profiles that can be tuned by game developers to get the most out of their games audio. The Gold Wireless Headset will retail for $99 when it goes on sale early this month. Sony says the Gold Wireless Headset is compatible with its PS3 and PS4 consoles, and it will even work with your Mac or PC.

Word has came in this morning about yet another incident where someone was severely burned due to a faulty battery in a mobile device. The smartphone in question this time is one of Apple's new iPhone 5C models, and the victim of the fire is a 14 year old girl from Kennebunk, Maine. The girl is said to have suffered second degree burns to her hands after the phone burst into flames in her pocket.

The girl fell to the ground and rolled around extinguishing the flames from her burning clothes, and students and staff at her school quickly helped her remove her pants to prevent further injury. She was then wrapped in a blanket while waiting for emergency teams to arrive. She was then taken to the hospital and treated for second degree burns before being released to go home. This is not the first incident of an iPhone, or many other smartphones with lithium-based batteries catching fire. We reported on the same thing happening to a Samsung Galaxy S4 last year.

Lenovo only just whipped out its card to buy Motorola Mobility from Google for $2.91 billion last week, but now the Chinese giant is reportedly in talks with Sony about a possible joint venture to take over Sony's struggling VAIO PC business.

Japanese broadcaster NHK is behind the juicy news, with Sony saying in a statement: "Sony continues to address various options for the PC business, but the press report on a possible PC business alliance between Sony and Lenovo is inaccurate". Sony says it has plans to revamp its VAIO line of devices, which has been slammed by the smartphone and tablet business.

But with Lenovo earning around 80% of its revenue from PCs, this rumor could turn out to be a very interesting one going into 2014.

Just a few hours away from the Super Bowl between the Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks, TV viewers will have the ability to watch the game in standard definition, high-definition, and ultra-HD (4K). FOX Sports will use six Sony 4K cameras to broadcast the game in UHD, utilizing five F55 and one F65 cameras, which will be used for the FOX "Super Zoom" technology.

The cameras will be position down each sideline and in both end zones, along with one located above the field, providing overall field video.

"It's all about the clarity of the replay and giving viewers the best possible look at a play, and that's what we can do with these cameras," said Jerry Steinberg, FOX Sports SVP of Technical Operations, in a statement. "Since we're starting with such a high-resolution image, we can zoom in multiple times on a shot and still get a completely clear picture with zero pixel degradation. You see everything in extreme detail, in fact with an extra amount of detail you wouldn't see in a traditional replay."

A point-of-sale malware designed to steal debit and credit card information has been found on systems in 11 different countries, according to security company RSA. Dubbed ChewBacca, the malware was first discovered in late October, and has been found on in-store POS, directly blamed for stealing at least 49,000 account numbers to date.

The Tor-based malware threat communicates with the Command and Control (C&C) server using the anonymous Internet network - protecting the IP addresses of controllers. ChewBacca has proven successful in encrypting traffic and slipping through network-level detection, despite being a relatively simple piece of malware.

In-store POS threats, typically malware to steal customer information, typically go unnoticed, but consumers are becoming more aware of current threats. Criminals want to do whatever is necessary to steal data that they can either use, trade, or sell to other criminals - at the expense of retailers and consumers.

Automaker Ford is using the Oculus Rift virtual reality headset to aid in development of new cars, including vehicle color, materials, design, and possible modifications. Ford reportedly is using three systems in Detroit, and plans to expand the next-generation engineering platform to new facilities in the near future.

Working inside a 3D program, engineers are able to visualize vehicles while manipulating the environment to make improvements. Ford worked with Vicon, a company specializing in motion-capture technology, which captures engineer position and orientation from installed motion-capture video recorders.

Each system has an estimated cost of about $30,000, making it a fairly affordable design platform that has great potential for Ford - and other automakers will certainly follow Ford's progress.

The upcoming iOS 8, Apple's latest mobile operating system due to be delivered later this year, is rumored to be health-centric. The headlining feature of the new operating system is said to be "Healthbook", an app that will function similar to how Passbook functions, but will be all about tracking a user's health-related data.

It's likely that the Healthbook app is being designed to interface with the long-rumored iWatch that Apple is reportedly developing. The Healthbook app will reportedly be able to track numerous different aspects of a person's health, in addition to the usual steps walked and calories burned. The iWatch/Healthbook combo is rumored to be able to track blood pressure, hydration levels, heart rate, and possibly several other blood-related data points. Users can also enter information about medications and the software will remind users to take medication at appropriate times.

Of course, this is just a rumor, so take it with a grain of salt. The source also warns that health integration could be removed for the final cut of iOS8. However, it's fairly likely that the iWatch will make a debut sometime in 2014.

AT&T has recently filed for a patent that would institute a credits-based system. The new system is designed to allow AT&T to lower the bandwidth allotment for file-sharers, but the implications of the patent go much further than that. The new patent could have a chilling effect on content distribution networks, including Steam, Origin, and Netflix.

The patent, titled "Prevention Of Bandwidth Abuse Of A Communications System", would theoretically allow AT&T to create Internet plans that would only allow access to certain sites or protocols. The patent has a brief description:

The Open Compute Project (OCP) is an initiative started by Facebook to build the most efficient computing infrastructures at the lowest possible cost. OCP focuses on total control of the architecture, from custom-designed server components to software and operating systems. This has led to massive disruption in the enterprise space and the upending of the old model, which relied upon massive systems provided by a group of OEMs that were prohibitively expensive. The Open Compute Project relies heavily upon the open source model of information sharing and has drawn in the other titans of the computing world. Apple, Google, and Microsoft are among the 150 members, along with a bevy of hardware suppliers, that contribute to the OCP and their ideals.

The Open Compute Summit is the yearly meeting of the leaders of the movement, and a great forum to showcase the ideas and resulting hardware driving the movement forward.

This radical new way of thinking has saved tremendous amounts of both energy and money, with Facebook disclosing that they saved 1.2 billion dollars over the last three years, and also saved the equivalent of enough energy to power 40,000 homes and the emissions equivalent of 50,000 cars. Facebook's leading challenge revolves around how to store relatively cold data (data that is written once and seldom read) for long periods of time. Facebook intends to keep those pictures you shot five years ago forever, and storing all that data in a cost effective manner is their most pressing issue. Enter the 42U Blu-Ray storage cabinet. This robotic cabinet holds 10,000 triple-layer 100GB discs storing up to a petabyte of information, and future implementations will store an amazing 5PB per cabinet.

Google has released both its Q4 2013 and full year 2013 financial results, with the Mountain View-based search giant seeing increases in both revenue, and income.

For Q4 2013, Google saw revenues of $16.86 billion, up 17% year-over-year. Operating income for the three-month period was $3.92 billion, or 23% of its total revenues. Net income reached $3.38 billion, up from $2.89 billion from the same time last year. Google owned-site revenue was up 22% year-over-year to $10.55 billion, representing 67% of Google's total revenues.

Paid clicks were up around 31% for the quarter, with an 11% year-over-year decrease on cost-per-click. Motorola Mobility, which Google just sold to Lenovo for $2.91 billion, saw a $384 million operating loss for Q4 2013.

We were mostly alone when we posted a few stories from Edward Snowden's world-first interview with German TV outlet NDR, but that video was removed from YouTube a couple of hours ago.

Attempting to access the video results in the following message: "This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by ARD". That's ok though, because some sites have a full transcript of it. It doesn't take away from the fact that the video was removed, and then more so, it was cut down from the reported 6 hours, to just 30 minutes long. You can read the transcript of Snowden's startling video interview, here.

Ever since its GPU2013 event in Hawaii, AMD enthusiast have been chomping at the bits waiting to get their hands on the Mantle drivers for Battlefield 4, and today the patch finally came through. The update is here, and AMD has released the 14.1 Beta drivers for its GPUs for 64-bit versions of Windows 7 and 8.

At the moment, Mantle support for Battlefield 4 is only available on the R9 290X, R9 290, R7 260X and the latest AMD Kaveri APU's. Support for other cards and APUs will come as AMD works the bugs out of the system. Along with today's release, DICE has released the first performance numbers from Battlefield 4 running on Mantle. The first test was ran on a AMD A10-7850K APU with the game set to 720p at medium settings. Mantle gave the game a 14-percent boost in frame rates from 39fps to 43fps on the Singapore Beach map.

Up next DICE tested Battlefield 4 running an AMD FX-8350 CPU paired with a Radeon HD7970 at 1080p with settings set to ultra and MSAA set to 1x. While playing at these settings on Siege of Shanghai, Mantle increased performance by 25.1-percent taking the frame rate up from 53fps to 67fps. Finally, DICE tested the game on a Intel Core i7-3970x Extreme CPU paired with two R9 290X video cards, and the game set to 1080p ultra settings and MSAA set to 4x this time. Mantle increased performance again this time in the single player level, South China Sea, with frame rates being increased by a whopping 58-percent, going from 78fps to 116fps.

Today ROCCAT announced the launch of its latest gaming headset, the Kave XTD 5.1. The Kave XTD is a true 5.1 digital gaming headset and is built on the foundation of the original Kave headset, with an entirely new ground-up design. The Kave XTD 5.1 features a fully-equipped desktop remote that incorporates a full 5.1 digital sound card as well as several other exciting features.

The Kave XTD 5.1 features ROCCAT Smart Link technology that lets users pair their smartphone with their headset and can make and receive calls during a gaming session by pressing a button on the remote control. The phones audio is piped into the headset, and allows gamers to take their call while in-game without the need to remove their headset. The Kave XTD's software mutes any incoming or outgoing audio from the game or chat software during calls, so no one hears your conversation but you.

The Kave XTD features 3 drivers per ear cup that have been aligned at a 12 degree angle to provide clean, crisp, and immersive sound. The remote control also features the ability to connect a true 5.1 audio speaker system to your PC from the 5.1 sound card built into the remote, and users can switch from headset mode to speaker mode with the push of a button. Finally, the Kave XTD 5.1 features a sensitive boom mic that is positioned perfectly for accurate communication with your fellow players.

U.S. officials are still trying to come to terms with former NSA analyst Edward Snowden's spying disclosures, with James Clapper, the Director of the National Intelligence, demanding his journalist "accomplices" return leaked documents.

Clapper didn't place blame on specific "accomplices," but reporters at The Guardian, for example, would likely be an obvious choice.

Clapper's spokespeople later clarified and said the U.S. official "was referring to anyone who is assisting Edward Snowden to further threaten our national security through the unauthorized disclosure of stolen documents related to lawful foreign intelligence collection programs."