Latest News - Page 2944

Frickin' laser beams, am I right? Yeah, well, Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC has just announced the Mini+, a multifunctional device that is pretty much just a flashy-looking laser poniter.

It features a 1.5-inch white color 4 gray OLED display with a 128x128 resolution, and can do quite a few things with its features. It can 'stay connected' with calls, SMS and more, it can take control of what you see on the TV and 'facilitate presentation with remote control and laser pointer' in the words of HTC.

It features NFC technology and Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, features PowerPoint controls, and a 320mAh embedded battery. Talk time on the Mini+ is rated at 9 hours while the standby time is a hefty 95 hours. The HTC Mini+ is compatible with HTC's One mini, Butterfly S, Desire 200 and Desire 500 smartphones. It costs just $50, which isn't too bad at all.

This has been a long time coming, but Samsung should be moving away from the plastic chassis found in their smartphones and tablets to a magnesium- or aluminum-based chassis on the upcoming Galaxy S5 smartphone.

We heard about this earlier in the year, but now the rumors are getting stronger as we get closer to the Galaxy S5 launch. The news is coming from Korean news site, ET News, who is reporting that the South Korean company has kept with plastic until now in order to keep the price down on its products, on top of it being more durable and lightweight.

But, with HTC and Apple having more premium exteriors, Samsung now needs to play in the same league. We shouldn't expect Samsung to unveil anything that is non-plastic until at least 2014, with the Galaxy Note III to most likely use a plastic exterior. I think we'll see a refresh of the Note next year, with the Note IV, which will use this new chassis.

Sony announced during its PAX Prime 2013 panel a new division of the company dubbed Third-Party Production, which is a new division that will work on porting and localizing games for the PS4, PS3 and Vita.

The division was founded as a result of the Borderlands 2 port for the Vita, with former lead producer at LucasArts and executive producer on the now-defunct Star Wars 1313 coming on-board to run the operation. Most people will skip past this news, but this is a gigantic step for the Japanese giant. This means that we might see more games that don't come to US shores, released in the US and vica versa.

It also means that the portable gaming device, the PS Vita, will see more games released on it, which is definitely not a bad thing.

We loved the Intel NUC when we looked at it, but we always need more power, speed and features. This is something Intel is working on, where they were showing off a new Haswell-powered NUC at PAX Prime 2013.

The new NUC is dubbed Intel NUC D54250WYK DIY kit that uses the Intel NUC Board D54250WYB. Intel will be releasing the Intel NUC kits under the Intel NUC D54250WYK DIY kit that uses the Intel NUC Board D54250WYB, which will be released later this year. Intel looks to be dropping Thunderbolt from the next-gen NUC units, which is a shame.

The Intel NUC Kit D54250WYK featured a Core i5 4250U processor, which runs at 1.3GHz but can be pushed up to 2.6GHz with Turbo enabled, and is a dual-core part with 3MB of smart cache. Intel HD Graphics 5000 is included, with the entire processor coming in with a TDP of just 15W, which is just incredible.

We heard about Intel allowing 'overclocking' on its SSDs, but now we have a little more proof. The chipmaker was showing off some SSD overclocking to PAX attendees, but Legit Reviews thinks that Intel will release a 'K' series SKU of SSDs that would be overclockable.

This would fall in line with Intel's current K series of processors, such as the Core i7-4770K, which can be overclocked. If Intel do indeed unleash a K series of SSDs, the chipmaker would unlock the 'dials' on the SSD which would give users the ability to increase clock speeds on the controller frequency as well as the NAND flash memory bus frequency.

Intel has already added overclocking features to their Intel Extreme Tuning Utility, or XTU. The drive Intel were using at PAX was a prototype SSD made for overclocking, so we're not talking about anything official right now. So, let's get into what it can do, at the moment, and what people saw at PAX.

An Ohio-based surgeon has used Google Glass to live stream a knee surgery to his colleagues, a great demonstration on how the wearable device would change the medical world as we know it.

Dr. Christopher Kaeding, a surgeon at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, was performing knee surgery on a 47-year-old patient's injured knee ligament using Glass. Kaeding wore Google Glass during his procedure in order to show his live point-of-view to people at a remote location. His colleagues and several medical students watched the surgery, live, and from Kaeding's point-of-view from different locations within Columbus, Ohio.

Kaeding said in a news release: "To be honest, once we got into the surgery, I often forgot the device was there. It just seemed very intuitive and fit seamlessly." Glass' potential for the medical world goes far beyond the operating theater, as it can be used for remote observation and collaboration with colleagues anywhere in the world.

PAX PRIME 2013 - We got our first chance to take a look at the Omni Virtuix, a new virtual reality item designed to be used in conjunction with the Oculus Rift VR headset. Combining the two really takes you into the game and into another world. There are still a few bugs to be worked out, but the premise of the device is pretty awesome.

The system requires special shoes, or shoe attachments, a kinect sensor, sensors, and the Virtuix itself. Right now, your motion is just tracked as controller inputs, so you can theoretically map your walking to any key you want and type by walking. At $499, the system could be combined with the Oculus Rift and the entire VR set would set you back less than $1000. Could this get gamers into better shape?

PAX PRIME 2013 - PAX Prime has been a good show for those looking to buy a new gaming mouse or keyboard. Gaming peripherals have been a huge aspect of this year's PAX Prime and Logitech didn't want to be left out. They brought out their recently unveiled G602 wireless mouse, which we got to go hands-on with.

The G602 gaming mouse had a good feel and provides up to 250 hours in performance mode, or up to 1400 hours in economy mode. If you'll be gaming, you'll want to make use of the performance mode. For everyday use, however, the economy mode proves to be perfectly adequate and you'll have to deal with dead batteries less often. The mouse provides a great feel and comes in at a reasonable price.

Today NVIDIA announced a partnership with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment that will give those who purchase new NVIDIA GeForce-based GPU's the highly acclaimed Batman: Arkham Origins video game. The new title in the Batman series features an expansive Gotham City, and introduces a new original prequel storyline set several years before the events that took place in Batman; Arkham Asylum, and Batman Arkham City.

"The Batman: Arkham games are visually stunning and it's great that we are able to continue building upon the amazing graphics with Batman: Arkham Origins," said Samantha Ryan, Senior Vice President, Production and Development, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. "With NVIDIA's continued support, we are able to deliver an incredibly immersive gameplay experience."

And if you're attending PAX PRIME this weekend, anyone attending the sneak peek of Batman: Arkham Origins will also have the chance to purchase a bundle package at the special kiosk inside the NVIDIA booth, and will receive a limited-edition Batman lithograph. Eligible GPU's include the GeForce 660, 660TI, 670, 680, 760, 770 or 780 high-end graphics cards.

Earlier this morning I covered a new leak that showed off the Android app that is said to control Samsung's upcoming Galaxy Gear smartwatch. Now, additional details of leaked surrounding the device's hardware, and what kind of battery life users can expect to see. This morning GigaOm is reporting that the galaxy gear will have up to 10 hours of battery life.

Additionally the smartwatch is said to feature a 320 x 320 pixel, 2.5-inch OLED display alongside 1GB of RAM and 8GB of storage. Rumors are also circling that the Galaxy Gear will feature a 4-megapixel camera that is capable of shooting 720p video. Finally the Gear will run a version of Android 4.2 and as we saw earlier will pair with other Galaxy devices using near field communication (NFC). The gear will launch next week on September 4th at the IFA trade show in Berlin Germany.

Early this morning GIGABYTE unveiled the latest addition to its 8 series motherboards. The GIGABYTE H81.AMP-UP supports the latest 4th generation Intel Core processors and is aimed at appeasing audiophiles who enjoy the ability to tune the audio output to fit their personal taste.

The motherboard features and upgradable operational amplifier (OP-Amp), A small chip that users can replace with varying models. This is something that GIGABYTE says has never been seen before on a mainstream platform motherboard. The board's audio circuit is designed around GIGABYTE's exclusive USB DAC-UP circuitry which is said to provide a noise-less USB power to the digital two-to analog converters, and slide switches to boost overall game levels. Additionally high-end Nichicon capacitors are used to help smooth out the audio signals.

"The GIGABYTE H81.AMP-UP is like no other motherboard currently available, addressing the important market of audio enthusiasts that don't necessarily require high-end PC gaming features," commented Henry Kao, Vice President of GIGABYTE Motherboard Business Unit. "Delivering a potent combination of our exclusive audio technologies, and backed by our signature Ultra Durable design philosophy, the GIGABYTE H81.AMP-UP has certainly upped the ante in terms of must have features for mainstream H81 motherboards."

Today Samsung announced that it has began mass-producing what it says is the most advanced DDR4 memory being made for enterprise servers in next-generation data centers. Designed run a 20nm-class process the modules facilitate demand for 16Gb and 32GB capacities.

"The adoption of ultra-high-speed DDR4 in next-generation server systems this year will initiate a push toward advanced premium memory across the enterprise," said Young-Hyun Jun, executive vice president, memory sales & marketing, Samsung Electronics. "After providing cutting-edge performance with our timely supply of 16GB DDR3 earlier this year, we are continuing to extend the premium server market in 2013 and will now focus on higher density and added performance with 32GB DDR4, and contribute to even greater

growth of the green IT market in 2014."

This is one of those "why didn't I think of that?" devices, which is sitting on Kickstarter right now known as "Pressy." Pressy is a tiny button that sits in the 3.5mm headphone jack of your device, turning it into a multi-function button.

The company who designed Pressy says that the Android-based device can perform pretty much any task you can think of. There's an app required, with the default Pressy settings seeing three pre-set actions: one short click toggles your flashlight on or off, one long click toggles the phone in and out of silent mode, and a double-press will take a photo.

But, thanks to Android, Pressy will see lots of customization. These options will include the ability to use Pressy to record a phone call, toggle Wi-Fi/Bluetooth on or off, capture a screenshot, or close all of the running applications. Pressy requires Android 2.3 and above, which covers nearly all of the devices on the market right now.

After an outcry in UK over rape and bomb threats sent to female journalists and a member of Parliament, Twitter has updated all of its platforms with a 'report abuse' button. The social networking/microblogging site is also adding more staff to help go through the flagged tweets from the rape and bomb threats.

This all began with UK activist Caroline Criado-Perez, who successfully lobbied to have novelist Jane Austen featured on a UK banknote. People seemed to be completely outraged at this, after which she was slammed with multiple rape threats over Twitter.

It culminated in one of her followers opening up a Change.org petition pressing Twitter to make it easier to report abuse. Before Twitter implemented this change, users needed to search the site in order to find out how to report abusive messages. The Change.org petition was a huge success, taking in over 139,000 signatures.

It's been a long time coming, but the World of Warcraft movie finally has a filming date: January 2014. Duncan Jones is going to be getting into the director's chair for this, with his previous movie, Moon, being one of my favorite of recent years.

Legendary showed off some decent test footage at Comic-Con, announcing the studio would start filming in early 2014. Warcraft will start shooting in Vancouver on January 13, 2014, with casting yet to be announced. Since January is only a few months away, we should begin to hear about casting very, very soon.

Rumors are pegging the movie to not be some PG-rated flick, but will be a full-blooded fantasy flick, in the same path as The Lord of the Rings and will reportedly follow the RTS games from the 90s, and not World of Warcraft. The World of Warcraft, er, world, will be used in a future movie, with the current movies taking it slower and concentrating on the mid-90s titles.

It appears that YouTube has been quietly changing its logo across the various social networking platforms it uses to promote its content. Additionally both the Android and iOS apps now feature the new logo. We're still not sure though, if this is an official permanent logo update as YouTube.com still features the old bubbly style logo.

The new logo as seen above appears to be more Windows 8 friendly and looks like it would fit in perfectly with the live tiles on any Windows 8 home screen. Additionally the logo does appear to more closely align with other Google-owned services such as Chrome and Drive, which both are quite minimalist and features double drop shadows. I have sent a request to YouTube for more information and will update this post as soon as I know more.

Today system builder Digital Storm announced what it says is the "New Standard in PC Cooling" by unveiling its new HydroLux complete desktop cooling solution. The new liquid cooling system is available exclusively on Digital Storm desktops and combines liquid and airflow cooling with a fully integrated customizable control suite that lets you manage and change things from the desktop.

"We work hard to differentiate the Digital Storm brand by engineering powerful systems that meet our customer's high-performance demands," said Rajeev Kuruppu, Digital Storm's Director of Product Development. "HydroLux delivers on that promise by providing an industry leading cooling solution that can be fully customized to meet each user's unique needs."

HydroLux allows users to monitor their systems cooling performance and the software will automatically adjust to temperature fluctuations in real-time, making this one of the first liquid cooling solution that allows users to control their system from the desktop environment.

PAX PRIME 2013 - Today Corsair announced that it would be unveiling several new high-performance gaming peripherals at the PAX PRIME 2013 expo being held this weekend in Seattle Washington. The company says that it will unveil five new gaming headsets alongside a brand-new gaming keyboard and will wrap things up with two gaming mouse mats.

Up first will be the all new, top-of-the-line Vengeance 2100 Dolby 7.1 Wireless Gaming Headset which features a 2.4GHz wireless connection with a 40 foot range, and boast a battery life of up to 10 hours of constant use. The headset features Dolby 7.1 surround sound for an accurate the creation of real-world audio. The headset features 50mm drivers and microfiber-covered memory foam ear pads. THe Vengeance 2100 is expected retail for $149.99.

Up next from Corsair is an improved version of its Vengeance 1500 v2 Dolby 7.1 Gaming Headset. As its name implies it will feature Dolby 7.1 surround sound, with new 50mm drivers that provide a deep and rich bass as well as clean, crisp highs. Like its bigger brother the ear pads are covered and microfiber and features a noise-canceling microphone. The Vengeance 1500 v2 will retail for $99.99.

Today, BitFenix announced the unveiling of the newest budget-friendly addition to its already impressive lineup of high-end PC chassis. Dubbed the Shadow, BitFenix says that this case features a multitude of DIY-friendly features while still maintaining a trifecta of style, functionality, and value.

While very monolithic in design, the BitFenix Shadow follows the company's tradition of clean, ultramodern themes while still maintaining a minimalist façade. The case is finished in BitFenix's signature SoftTouch Surface, with the front door accented by a machined aluminum logo. Accent lighting is featured at the bottom of the front door, which can be switched from red to blue via a button on the top I/O panel. Also located on the top I/O panel are two USB 3.0 ports alongside HD audio ports.

While this case may be of the budget-friendly variety, it still packs in many features you expect to find on a much more expensive chassis. The Shadow is able to accommodate CPU coolers up to 165mm in height, while graphics cards up to 320mm in length are able to fit without the removal of any drive cages. The case also features two removable dust filters to help keep your GPU and CPU cooling apparatuses dust free.

This is something I might have skipped, because I didn't know about it until now. But the upcoming next-generation console from Sony is capable of auto-downloading your games after you've purchased them from another platform.

The capable platforms include the PS Vita or your smartphone, where after you've purchased a game using your smartphone for example, the PlayStation 4 will wake up and start downloading your game digitally. A very awesome feature. After the PS4 is finished downloading your game, it will go back to sleep.

This auto-downloading feature is great for those who might buy a game once they get to work, wanting to play it when they get home, so they can whip their smartphone out, make the purchase, knowing their PS4 has woken up from its slumber, downloaded the game and has it ready to go when they get home. Nice work, Sony.