Being Ahead of NVIDIA in Graphics Is Essential, AMD Says

If anyone was afraid that AMD would pull the plug on any of its video products, they can rest easy knowing that in this field, at least, the company intends to put all the effort it can muster, instead of canceling plans and letting things stagnate.  Today is AMD's Financial Analyst Day (February 3, 2012), when the company outlines what it wants to do from now on.  So far, the feelings caused by its announcements have been mixed, though one cannot truly state that the decisions made public came entirely by surprise.  On the one hand, the company wants to move swiftly towards truly fused APUs, which can detect on their own when a program can benefit from GPU acceleration.  On the other hand, the CPU, GPU and APU maker...

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Sony Xperia NX Lands at NTT Docomo on February 24

We already know that Sony Xperia S won’t be making it to shelves until March. However, Japanese Android fans might be luckier than Europeans, as major carrier NTT Docomo has just confirmed it will launch the Xperia NX on February 24. The Japanese version of the Sony Xperia S was unveiled last month at the International Consumer Electronics Show, in Las Vegas. NTT Docomo has also stated that customers who wish to pre-order the smartphone will be able to do so beginning February 10. Unfortunately, no pricing options have been unveiled yet, but the carrier promises more details will be disclosed closer to the pre-order period. Sony Xperia NX offers similar specs as the Xperia S, but comes with some Japanese-specific features. In addition, the...

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AMD Trinity Low Voltage APU 3DMark Scores Revealed

AMD’s Trinity ultra-low voltage APUs, that are scheduled to be released by the company in the middle of this year in order to counter Intel’s ULV processors, are expected to provide up to 100% better graphics performance than today’s Ultrabook CPUs. At the end of the presentation held by Lisa Su, SVP and general manager, Global Business Units at AMD, during the Financial Analyst Day, the Sunnyvale-based chip maker included a series of performance projections for its upcoming chips. These cover the performance of its chips, as well as that of Intel’s ULV processors, in 3DMark Vantage, where testing has shown that an A6-Series Trinity APU with a 17 Watt TDP scores 2355 points. According to AMD, this is twice as fast as a Sandy Bridge Core...

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Fake Core i7-990X CPU Makes Appearance, Uses LGA 775 Socket

Intel’s as well as AMD’s processors have been counterfeited for a long time now, and most recently a user on the Intel forums has reported that he has received an LGA 775 processor that was marked as a Core i7-990X chip. The provenience of this CPU was not detailed, but just looking at the processor reveals that it comes in a different packaging, which is significantly smaller than the one used for LGA 1366 parts. Despite this, the processor heatspreader bears the same markings as those found on the Core i7-990X, including its clocks speed, amount of Level 3 cache memory and QPI speed. These markings were apparently enough to fool the user, who bought it thinking he actually got a Core i7-990X, although anyone knowledgeable about processors...

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AMD Hondo Tablet APU Arrives in 2012 with 4.5W TDP

AMD has officially announced that 2012 will witness the introduction of a new low-power APU, code-named Hondo, specially developed to be used in tablet devices, which will improve upon the specs of the current Desna Z-01 accelerated processing unit. AMD made the existence of this chip official during the company’s 2012 Financial Analyst Day, when it also unveiled a series of details regarding the Hondo APU. Much like the Z-01 accelerated processing unit that it’s designated to replace, Hondo will also use the Bobcat CPU core, which will be paired with a DirectX 11 capable onboard GPU. According to AMD, Hondo APUs can include either one or two x86 computing cores and will be built on the 40nm node, while its TDP is estimated at a rather low...

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RIM’s Music Store 1.1.0.34 Available for BlackBerry

Owners of BlackBerry smartphones out there can now download and install a new application on their devices, the Music Store client.  The app will provide them with fast access to a variety of songs, regardless of their location. They will be able to find new music, purchase it, integrate it with playlists, and more.  The application is available for download in the BlackBerry App World today, compatible with all devices powered by OS flavor 5.0.0 or higher.  It also delivers browsing capabilities, the ability to have music stored in the cloud via 7Digital Music Locker, and the downloading of songs via Wi-Fi or 3G networks.  Moreover, the app will enable users to keep friends posted on the songs they are listening to....

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Olympus OM-D Retro-Looking ILC Camera Pictured

With just a few more days to go until the Olympus OM-D becomes official, the first picture of this keenly awaited camera made its way to the Web. While it definitely doesn’t reveal too much, the image does show the top part of this retro-looking mirrorless snapper, which is said to include a 16MP Micro Four Thirds sensor with a built-in 1.44m dot electronic viewfinder (EVF).  A water sealed magnesium body and a brand new auto-focus (AF) system will round up the specs list, together with a 3-inch 610k dot OLED screen that 43 Rumors suggests can be tilted, so you can have a better look at the images you want to capture. All these however will come at a price, as it seems that Olympus’ interchangeable lens creation will retail for somewhere...

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Dell Alineware M18x R2 Gaming Notebook Packs Super-Strong GPUs

Dell will soon launch a new notebook from the Alienware series, the line known for being both powerful and good-looking. Bearing the name of M18x R2, it will be so powerful that it will barely break a sweat when playing a game, regardless of how hardcore the graphics settings are. The again, when a PC has mighty, next-generation graphics inside, that goes without saying. Alineware M18x R2 actually goes beyond that: it will have options for SLI or CrossFire X multi-GPU setups too. The strongest AMD graphics component that can be part of its spec sheet is the Radeon HD 7970M, while NVIDIA fans can choose between GeForce GTX 660M and GTX 675M (only the latter can be in SLI). An optional WirelessHD card is tossed in for good measure too. The...

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RIM Promises Free PlayBooks to Android Developers

Canadian mobile phone maker Research In Motion is trying to lure more developers into coming up with applications for its Blackberry PlayBook, and is offering free devices to those who do deliver software for it.  To be more precise, the company is informing Android developers that there are free PlayBook devices available for them, if they launch applications compatible with its tablet PC.  It should not be too hard for Android developers to come up with applications that would fit the tablet PC, the handset vendor explains.  “As an Android developer, you have a couple of tools you can use to help you convert your apps for the BlackBerry PlayBook OS. You can use these tools to verify that your app is compatible with the BlackBerry...

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Gigabyte MSH61QI Thin Mini-ITX Motherboard Supports Intel LGA 1155 CPUs

Better known to embedded computing developers than to end-users, the thin mini-ITX form factor gained quite a lot of ground in the last couple of months, so Gigabyte has decided to take advantage of this trend with the release of the GA-MSH61QI motherboard for Intel LGA 1155 processors. Just as its name implies, the Gigabyte board is built around Intel's H61 chipset, which offers a basic set of features for entry-level Sandy Bridge systems, as well as support for the integrated graphics found inside Intel's CPUs. Speaking of CPUs, the GA-MSH61QI is compatible with all processor models that have a TDP of 95W or lower, and also supports up to 8GB of DDR3 memory clocked at 1333MHz via two SODIMM slots placed right above the LGA 1155 socket. The...

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Nethra Intros HD 1080p60 Visual and Computing System-on-Chip

Nethra has just announced the impending availability of a system-on-chip, dubbed NI-5035, which can assume a variety of roles. The NI-5035 is the first member of the N1-5 family of visual platform System-on-Chip (SoC) devices and is composed of several parts. One is an advanced Image Signal Processor, the second is a High Definition H.264 Codec and the third is a Video processor. The newcomer boasts full hardware acceleration and supports multiple encoding stream in up to 1080p at 60 Hz. Nethra made it possible for the SoC to be used in everything from action/sports/activity camcorders to network IP security applications and even surveillance cameras and IP encoders. “Unlike DSP based solutions available today, the NI-5035’s unique true...

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MSI Teases the Z77A-GD45 Motherboard for Intel Ivy Bridge CPUs

Two more months separate us from the launch of Intel’s Ivy Bridge processors, so motherboard makers are already hard at work preparing their new solutions based on Intel’s 7-series chipsets. MSI is of course among them, and just now is putting the final touches on the Z77A-GD45, which will become one of the most budget-friendly Ivy Bridge motherboards in the company’s arsenal. Specs wise, the GD45 will include all the MSI features that we have grown accustomed to, such as Military Class III components, OC Genie II and ClickBIOS II, to name just a few. Sadly, this is all that we can tell right now judging from the picture provided by eTeknix, but more info should be available soon. Until that happens, you can check out the GD45’s older brother,...

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Photoshop CS6 Flaunts GPU-Driven Liquify Tool

In the past few days we’ve been fed snippets of what’s to come into Photoshop CS6. It’s been only two videos but I’m already sold for the new version. The first video shows the progress that has been made in Camera Raw, which is used by Brian O’Neal Hughes, senior product manager, to boost shadows and recover highlight information or paint tones and reduce noise with the adjustment brush. In the second video, however, things are focused on performance improvements in Photoshop CS6, and Liquify tool in particular, which is backed up by hardware acceleration in order to complete the job. Using the GPU-boosted tool you will be able to edit the image in real time, as the video above shows. Another feature presented by Zorana Gee, Photoshop product manager, in the second sneak peak is the ability...

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AMD Slows Down in Launching Powerful CPUs

If anyone was looking forward to AMD kicking things into high gear on the high-end CPU market, they will have to live with the disappointment of learning that nothing of the sort is going to happen.  That is not to say that the Sunnyvale, California-based company will completely stop making high-end CPUs (central processing units).  Nevertheless, the company revealed, during the Financial Analyst Day, that it would be slowing down the rate at which new such chips turned up.  Currently, the FX-series next-generation Vishera CPUs, based on Piledriver x86 cores, are scheduled for official availability in November-December this year, or a bit sooner, but still in the second half of 2012.  They will be faster than current...

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AMD 2013 Roadmap Also Gets Detailed, Includes Tamesh, Kabini and Kaveri APUs

Together with its APU and CPU plans for 2012, AMD also made public the company’s 2013 processors roadmap, which includes the Tamesh, Kabini and Kaveri accelerated processing units fabricated using 28nm process technology. The most important change introduced by AMD with its 2013 APUs is the move to the GCN graphics architecture, which is expected to bring an important increase in computing performance. According to AMD, this advanced graphics architecture will be used in all of its 2012 APUs, including the low-power Tamesh processor targeting the tablet space. Destined to come as a replacement for the 2012 Hondo APU, Tamesh will use a system-on-a-chip (SoC) design and will include the “Jaguar” low-power x86 cores. The chip will also take...

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Windows Phone 8 with Multicore Support, Better Cameras

Later this year, Microsoft is expected to bring to the market a new flavor of its mobile operating system, one that would arrive on shelves under the name of Windows Phone 8.  Rumors on what the platform could bring to devices have been around for some time now, but nothing has been officially confirmed on the matter until now.  Today, however, we can get a better picture of what’s to come in Windows Phone 8, courtesy of leaked details that emerged over at Pocketnow.  A video featuring Joe Belfiore, senior vice president and Windows Phone manager, and intended for partners of Nokia, unveiled the main features and enhancements that Microsoft planned for the upcoming OS flavor.  Thus, we should expect support for dual-core...

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10-Core Intel Ivy Bridge-EP CPU Tested, Has 20 Threads

As Sandy Bridge CPUs were followed by Sandy Bridge-EP units, Ivy Bridge central processing units will get similar successors, one of which has actually been tested. The engineering sample of the Ivy Bridge-EP CPU that got put through its paces not long ago is the sort of thing that will leave onlookers starry-eyed. Intel probably didn't mean for this chip to land in the hands of someone so eager to publish the results for all to see. Nevertheless, a person in Taiwan did get a hold of it somehow and has big and clear screenshots to prove it (CPU-Z, Windows 8 task manager, the works). Quite simply, nothing on the consumer CPU market has even come close to the sort of performance that this thing is bound to demonstrate. Of course, it was obvious...

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Samsung Galaxy Y DUOS and Galaxy Y Pro DUOS Go on Sale in Europe

Unveiled two months ago, Samsung Galaxy Y DUOS and Galaxy Y Pro DUOS are slowly going on sale in Europe. The smartphones have just been launched in Russia and Greece, but the price tags are very different.  While the Galaxy Y Pro DUOS can be purchased for only 140 EUR (180 USD) in Greece, the same device is worth no less than 250 EUR (330 USD) outright in Russia. Samsung Galaxy Y DUOS is also available in Russia for only 200 EUR (262 USD) off-contract. Both Android-based smartphones are dual-SIM, but are aimed at different targets. While the Galaxy Y Pro DUOS comes with a full QWERTY keyboard, the Galaxy Y DUOS sports a large 3.14-inch touchscreen display. Another difference between the two smartphones is the battery. The Galaxy Y Pro...

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PowerColor Builds LCD HD7970 Liquid Cooled AMD Graphics Card

Over the past week, the video market has been filled with news about AMD's latest graphics card, Radeon HD 7950, but PowerColor is now going back to the stronger HD 7970, even giving it liquid cooling. Going right to the point, PowerColor has revealed the LCD HD7970, a new iteration of the AMD Radeon HD 7970 graphics adapter. Alas, not all is known about it, particularly the clock frequencies and the price. Fortunately, word is that PowerColor will provide these final details by the end of the month (February, 2012). That said, the single-slot waterblock from EK will make it easy for multi-GPU setups to be established on any motherboard with CrossFireX support. That is just a very useful side benefit, though, as the real advantage is, obviously,...

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Need for Speed: The Run Gets New PC Patch, Includes Free Cars

Electronic Arts has just deployed a fresh patch for Need for Speed: The Run on the PC platform, via its Origin service, that solves a variety of problems and even adds new cars. NFS: The Run impressed with its gameplay and, despite its lackluster story, managed to delight quite a few racing game fans across platforms like the PC, PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360. Now, after EA and developer Black Box deployed the Italian DLC car pack for The Run on consoles, they’ve now released a patch for the PC version of the racing game.  The update, besides fixing quite a lot of issues encountered by players, adds a few free cars, in the form of those that appeared in the Signature Edition DLC, which was released for consoles late last year. For a full...

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Asus Unleashes Radeon HD 7970 DirectCU II TOP Video Card

About two weeks after the first pictures of the Radeon HD 7970 DirectCU II TOP graphics made their way to the Web, Asus sent out an official press release announcing the launch of this highly customized graphics card which comes with a 1GHz factory overclocked GPU. Much like its predecessors, the DirectCU II edition of the HD 7970 features a massive tri-slot cooler, a highly customized PCB and a series of other overclocking optimizations. These include a series of voltage measurement points, a 12-phase VRM circuitry with supper alloy caps and chocks, as well as a special SAP capacitor added to maximize overclocking headroom, according to Asus. The tri-slot cooling system is also just as impressive, since it uses two 100mm fans sitting on...

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AMD Details 2012 Roadmap: Trinity, Hondo and Vishera Get Ready for Launch

During the company’s 2012 Financial Analyst Day, AMD outlined its APU and CPU strategy for 2012, thus confirming the Brazos 2.0, Hondo and Vishera processors, together with their approximate launch schedule. Out of the three, Brazos 2.0 will be the first chip to see the light of day, as these APUs are scheduled to arrive in the first half of 2012. Much like the first revision of the Brazos platform, this new iteration of AMD’s low-end APUs also targets the essential desktop and notebook space, but AMD says that it will deliver increased CPU and GPU performance, longer battery life, and a bevy of integrated I/O options. The AMD Steady Video technology included in these APUs will also receive a series of improvements, while TDPs will range...

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AMD Will Have “Full” CPU and GPU Fusion in 2014

Advanced Micro Devices, having just changed its Opteron CPU plans, has reportedly made a very intriguing promise in regards to its Heterogeneous Computing roadmap and the year 2014.  One of the main disadvantages of AMD's APUs (accelerated processing units) is that they cannot be used properly unless the software is specifically designed for them.  The current limitations of the architecture dictate that x86 and Radeon stream processing cores use dedicated memory, which is not famous for efficiency.  For this reason, the software has to know  on its own when and how to use the resources available in the accelerated processing (APU) unit of a PC.  In other words, those highly parallel stream processors that are...

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Galaxy S II Gets New Ice Cream Sandwich ROM

Samsung promised it would update its highly-acclaimed Galaxy S II units to Ice Cream Sandwich operating system sometime in March. However, until then, owners can play with some of the unofficial Android 4.0 builds that are now available online.  The folks over at XDA Developers are doing a great job delivering customized Ice Cream Sandwich ROMs for a wide range of handsets. This time it was SamMobile that managed to bring another unofficial Android 4.0.3 Ice Cream Sandwich ROM for Samsung Galaxy S II. According to them, the new alpha/beta build is more stable than other versions. In addition, the guys over at SamMobile claim that this ROM is ready for daily use, unlike the previous LP6 build. Some of the positive changes included in...

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AMD Cancels 10-Core and 20-Core Chips, Changes Opteron CPU Plans

Advanced Micro Devices has announced a decision to change its roadmap for server processing units, though it did not give a specific reason for this. The update plans do away with certain chips and, one might say, slows down the rate at which new Opterons get to the selling stage. One change is that the existing server platform will remain in effect throughout both 2012 and 2013, meaning that AMD-based systems won't be able to adopt new features as fast as the prior roadmap implied. Also, Sepang units with up to 10 cores, as well as Terramar chips of up to 20 cores, have been effectively canceled, even though they were supposed to show up this year, alongside G2012 and C2012 server platforms. Now, though, the Sunnyvale, California-based...

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