MSI B85I and B85M Gaming, Mini-ITX/Micro-ATX Military Class 4 Motherboards

Micro-Star International's Gaming line of hardware has just welcomed a new pair of motherboards, one of which isn't exactly as large as one would expect, but should enable some decent PC specs regardless. Even now, gaming hardware and computers come in large, solid, sophisticated packages, but there has been a steady rise in the number of small products as well. Most notably, mini PCs have begun to provide specs on par with those of the high-end desktops of half a decade ago. And since DirectX 11 support is pretty much always included in the spec sheet, that basically means that it's possible to play even the latest game on a mini personal computer now. It all boils down to the power supply unit, the cooling, how big the case is (on...

Read more »

ASUS ROG G56JR with NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760M Sells for €999 / $1,373

The Republic of Gamers line of notebook has a new member addition. ASUS quietly introduced the ASUS G56JR, an elegant new laptop with a more classic look than what we're used to seeing with this line. The notebook boasts a 15.6-inch screen and comes with a brushed metal surface, but compared to other ROG models looks like it’s targeted at the average consumer. However, the red trim around the notebook’s edges and the red ASUS logo plus the blacklit keyboard help maintain the overall ROG feel. In the specifications department, we have a decent configuration, although ASUS doesn't go as far as it did with the brand new ASUS G750. The idea is that the laptop has been designed in such a way as to attract a larger number of customers,...

Read more »

HTC One M8 with 2.5GHz CPU (Asian Version) Tops Benchmark Scores

Only two days have passed since Taiwanese mobile phone maker HTC Corporation took the wraps off of its latest flagship Android-based device, the HTC One M8, and people have already found out that it can perform much better than other high-end devices. According to a recent article on ePrice, the Asian version of HTC One M8, which was unveiled with a 2.5GHz processor inside, is capable of delivering higher benchmark scores than Samsung Galaxy S5 and Sony Xperia Z2. The LG G Pro 2 was also compared to the new device. The phone comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 MSM8974-AC CPU, which is faster than the 2.3GHz MSM8974-AB processor inside the US version of the handset, thus offering better performance capabilities, it seems. Screenshots...

Read more »

Axiomtek Designs Overpowered Half-Size Single-Board Computer

Single-board computers used to be small, meek, unassuming things barely ever used for anything more than point-of-sale cash-in boxes and the like, but companies have been releasing stronger and stronger ones over the years, like Axiomtek has just done. The new product to leave the company's labs, called SHB230, is a half-size single-board computer with an LGA 1150 socket, meaning it supports 4th Generation Intel Core i7/i5/i3 and Celeron processors. It also has a pair of DDR3-1333/1600 memory slots, SO-DIMM slots to be exact, for up to 16 GB RAM. A pair of SATA-600 slots are present too, along with a CFast socket, four USB 2.0, two USB 3.0 and two RS-232/422/485 ports. There's support for RAID 0/1, and Axiomtek also tossed in a PCI...

Read more »

NVIDIA Jetson TK1 Developer Kit, a $192 / €192 Mobile Supercomputer

For a mobile processor, the Tegra K1 is pretty overpowered, and because NVIDIA itself is well aware of that, it decided to use it for a new type of supercomputer: the embedded supercomputer. Granted, that's not the way NVIDIA phrased it, since it described the new product, called NVIDIA Jetson TK1, as a developer kit. Still, the Santa Clara, California-based company did mention that, among other things, the Jetson TK1 should be used in the "rugged and industrial embedded market." The actual list of potential applications is quite long in fact, including human-computer interface and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), computational photography, robotics, and augmented reality. Ultimately, NVIDIA was thinking of robots that would...

Read more »

ZTE Nubia X6 Goes Official with 6.44-Inch Screen, Snapdragon 801 CPU

Today, Chinese mobile phone maker ZTE made official a new high-end smartphone in its Nubia lineup, in the form of ZTE Nubia X6. The handset has been rumored quite a few times before and is now fully unveiled, set to arrive on shelves in China in the not too distant future. ZTE launched the phone during a press event in Beijing, but it did not announce specific info on when the phone might become available for purchase in other markets around the world as well. Although ZTE is expected to focus mainly on the Chinese market with the release of this device, there is a chance that it would be launched in other countries as well, so as to grab some more market share. In China, the smartphone will be released in three different flavors,...

Read more »

BlackBerry to Launch 1080p Smartphones, BlackBerry 10.3 Code Unveils

Canadian mobile phone maker BlackBerry might be preparing the launch of smartphones that would pack 1080p touchscreen displays, the latest news on the matter suggests. Earlier this week, a BlackBerry 10.3 build leaked online for the BlackBerry Z10 smartphone, unveiling some of the new features and capabilities that the platform would pack inside when made available for download. Some of those who took their time to have a closer look at the code discovered that there is support for 1080p screen resolution included, which suggests that a handset featuring such a display might arrive on the market sooner rather than later. As PhoneArena notes, the company has been previously rumored to plan the release of high-resolution smartphones,...

Read more »

NVIDIA Intros Pascal GPU, 3D Stacked Memory Chips, and NVLINK Technology

Even though NVIDIA hasn't even launched the real Maxwell GPU yet (that will only happen in late 2014, and the GTX 750 / 750 Ti don't count), the company has already introduced the Pascal GPU, scheduled for 2016. Well, technically the company hasn't actually released the chip. More like it revealed its presence in the roadmap. The real highlight of the ongoing GTC, taking place in between March 24-27, 2014, in San Jose, California, was the NVLINK technology. What NVLINK does is unify the GPU and CPU cache in a system, allowing the two distinct processing units to divide tasks between each other much faster than right now. As allowed by the PCI Express 3.0 interface, this means that performance for the card, over PCI Express, can rise...

Read more »

ASUS B85-Pro Gamer ROG Motherboard Has Elaborate Heatsink and 8-Phase VRM

The Republic of Gamers brand is one that ASUS only slaps on top of its absolute best consumer hardware, so it stands to reason that the B85-Pro Gamer has a lot of things to offer despite the choice of chipset. Which is to say, the motherboard boasts the B85 chipset instead of the Z87 commonly found on high-end / gaming platforms. ASUS does have Z87-based motherboards, like the Z87-A. The ATX B85-Pro Gamer actually resembles it quite a bit, or at least its PCB does. For one, it has an 8-phase VRM (voltage regulation module), which controls the power that makes it to the LGA 1150 CPU socket. A single PCI Express 3.0 x16 slot is available, but there is a PCI Express 2.0 x16 slot as well, even if it does work in physical x4 mode (it is...

Read more »

Leaked Screenshots Detail Upcoming BlackBerry OS 10.3 Features

Earlier today, we learned that a new OS flavor has leaked online for the BlackBerry Z10 smartphone, in the form of BlackBerry OS 10.3, and we can now have a look at some of the enhancements that it will offer, courtesy of a host of leaked screenshots with the software. As mentioned before, the upcoming operating system should bring along an updated user interface for the platform, with black and red accents dominating it, and the leaked screenshots, available courtesy of zonablackberry.com.ve, confirm that. Moreover, they also show that the shadow border of icons on the homescreen has been removed, transforming the overall looks of the platform into a flatter, minimalistic style, as GSMArena notes. At the same time, the leaked images...

Read more »

Nokia X Now Receiving Software Update Version 11.1.1

Nokia X, the very first smartphone in Nokia’s lineup to run under Google’s Android operating system, has already started to receive a new firmware upgrade, it seems. According to a recent post on Nokia’s support portal, the new software release is available for download over-the-air for the Nokia X devices out there and will land on them as version 11.1.1. Moreover, the company has unveiled that the update is designed to bring along a small set of improvements when compared to what the previously available 10.0.3 software flavor had to offer. Thus, following the update, users will see that they have the option to change the colors for third-party applications and that the overall performance capabilities of their smartphones have...

Read more »

Karbonn Plans a Snapdragon-Based Octa-Core Smartphone for May Release

Indian mobile phone maker Karbonn has officially confirmed plans to bring to the market a new octa-core smartphone sometime in May, after making official two such devices only yesterday. However, while the newly announced Titanium Octane and Octane Plus are powered by MediaTek CPUs, the upcoming handset will feature a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor inside. According to a recent article on BGR India, the company also said that the smartphone would pack a Snapdragon 615 chipset inside, and that it would also feature a 5-inch screen capable of delivering a full HD resolution. Running under the Android 4.4.2 KitKat, the handset will also feature Karbonn’s new user interface on top. Additionally, Karbonn said that it will release the device...

Read more »

Leaked 5-Inch Screen for QWERTY BlackBerry Phone Emerges

Canadian mobile phone maker BlackBerry might be on a descendent curve right now, but the company is still planning the launch of new devices, and info on one of them has allegedly emerged online in the form of leaked photos with the handset’s screen. The smartphone in question is reportedly featuring the codename of Windermere and has already leaked online before as a 5-inch smartphone that would also arrive on the market with a QWERTY keyboard on the front. BlackBerry has already released devices with both touchscreens and physical keyboard, and it does not come as a surprise that it plans a new one, though the screen size is rather unusual, that’s for sure. In fact, the newly leaked images show that the 5-inch screen of the upcoming...

Read more »

Xiaomi Redmi Note Goes Official, Now on Pre-Order in China

Today, Chinese mobile phone maker Xiaomi officially introduced the Redmi Note smartphone, which is yet another mid-range device from the company, but which packs some highly appealing capabilities inside. The handset was been teased a few times before, but it was not fully unveiled until today, when it also went up for pre-order in China. Users in the country interested in grabbing the device can head over to Qzone for that. However, they will have to wait for March 26 to arrive in order to be able to actually purchase the phone. Just as previously teased, the smartphone was made official with a 5.5-inch touchscreen display capable of delivering a 1280 x 720-pixel resolution, which also packs OGS technology, and which can deliver...

Read more »

AMD Carrizo APU Leaked, Has DDR4, but Is Crippled in PCI Express Support

AMD's Kaveri accelerated processing unit, sold under the A-Series brand, was released back in January, and will be succeeded in 2015 by Carrizo, whose preliminary specs have just been uncovered. Bright Side of News, BSN for short, somehow uncovered some of the information regarding the next-generation APU. As you may know, the Kaveri is powered by the Steamroller architecture, or at least the central processing unit cores are. The GPU part, 8 SP modules based on Graphics Core Next, take up more of the die than the four CPU cores themselves, but we digress. For the first time, AMD will implement a full Fusion Control Hub in the APU, on on-die southbridge so to speak. The FCH will only have two SATA 6.0 Gbps ports though, four USB 3.0...

Read more »

Oppo Find 7, The Baby Beastie

Oppo has just announced the upcoming availability of two new smartphones that will certainly appeal to any Android enthusiast, the Find 7 and Find 7a. Both devices will be launched in China soon, but there’s a chance they will go on sale globally at some point. Here is hoping that will happen sooner rather than later. We have already reported on top-tier Oppo Find 7, so now let’s take a look at what its “less featured” twin brother has to offer. Before getting your hopes too high, unless you are living in China, you won’t be able to get any of the two smartphones announced by Oppo. According to the Chinese company, the Find 7a will be launched in China on March 20 and will be available for purchase for only 3,000 yuan outright, which...

Read more »

Oppo N1 Mini Coming in May/June with 5-Inch Display, Octa-Core CPU

Oppo fans will be pleased to know that their favorite company will embrace the current trend and will launch a “mini” version of one of its most popular smartphones, the N1. According to Hardwarezone, the Chinese company plans to release a variation of the popular N1, which will be called Oppo N1 Mini. The smartphone has yet to be unveiled officially, but word is that Oppo will launch the device on the market sometime in May or June. Unlike the original Oppo N1, which boasts a huge 5.9-inch capacitive touchscreen display that supports full HD (1080p) resolution, the mini version will “only” pack a 5-inch display. No word on resolution yet, but we suspect it will only offer HD (720p) support. On the inside, the Oppo N1 mini won’t...

Read more »

Gigabyte Launches P34G Gaming Laptop with NVIDIA GeForce GTX 860M

Today Gigabyte launched a new gaming laptop, called the P34G that comes bundling a sleek and elegant look. The company says the device could prove to be the right solution for business users who like to kick-back and relax by playing the most advanced in the industry today. The new P34G is kept alive by virtue of a powerful and efficient 4th-gen Intel Core i7 quad-core processor and bundles NVIDIA’s next-gen GPU, in the form of the GeForce GTX 860M GGR5 4GB discrete graphics (based on the Maxwell/Kepler architecture). The flagship laptop bundles Super-Cool technology which packs dual heat pipes plus two dedicated fans for CPU & GPU, a system which is said to be able to maintain an optimal overall temperature even while playing...

Read more »

Zotac Outs Fastest GeForce GTX 750 Ti Graphics Card, Called Thunderbolt

The GeForce GTX 750 Ti graphics card is one of the only two video boards powered by NVIDIA's Maxwell graphics processing unit architecture, and also the best, which means that it's the one most prone towards factory overclocking, something that Zotac has just proved. The company has formally released the GeForce GTX 750 Ti Thunderbolt, which features a base GPU clock frequency of 1229 MHz, and a GPU Boost maximum setting of 1320 MHz. For the sake of comparison, the normal, reference card from NVIDIA works at 1020 MHz and 1085 MHz, respectively. Obviously, the company went to great lengths to push the board as high as it could go while still making do with air cooling. Speaking of which, the cooler is a large thing, with a thick aluminum...

Read more »

Intel's 64-Bit Mobile Chips Will Have OS-(B)Locking Features

Bad news for Android users planning to purchase smartphones powered by Intel’s next-generation 64-bit Merrifield chipsets, as the company has confirmed that these SOCs will be OS-locked. According to German site Golem.de, Intel’s Technical Account Manager Frank Kuypers said in an interview that his company’s upcoming Merrifield 64-bit mobile chipsets would be added a new feature called “hooks,” which is meant to block some of the features, more or less important, if it detects that a new OS has been installed on the device. Kuypers claims that Intel’s new chipsets will be able to detect if an Android user replaces the operating system on their smartphone with another version or with a completely different one, and then block some...

Read more »

Alleged LG G3 Benchmark Screenshot Confirms QHD (2560x1440) Display, Octa-Core CPU

The first details on LG’s upcoming flagship smartphone, the G3, leaked last week when the phone’s UAProf (User Agent Profile) confirmed that its display would support QHD (2560 x 1440 pixels) resolution. The second leak came shortly afterwards in the form of the first screenshots taken from the alleged LG G3, which, once again, confirmed that the smartphone would indeed boast a stunning QHD display. The third leak regarding the LG G3 comes today via lgg3.com blog site and reveals slightly more details on the smartphone’s specs sheet. It appears that the Dutch site was able to take a screenshot from some benchmarking scores supposedly achieved by the upcoming LG G3. According to the benchmark shown in the screenshot, the LG-D850, which...

Read more »

Xiaomi’s Tablet Said to Be Launching Later Today

As I told you before, Xiaomi has been expected to launch its first tablet product for months now. And since its tablet optimized MIUI interface is already a reality awaiting to be installed by Nexus 7 2013 users, it could only make sense, the slate per-se would see the light of day soon. As Gizchina reports, the smartphone maker is gearing up to roll out the Xiaomi tablet in Beijing later today, alongside a 5.5-inch phablet called Xiaomi Hongmi. In anticipation of the launch, a couple of new pictures showcasing the slate have been leaked online. Granted, they aren’t particularly clear, but one can make an idea about what’s coming our way, soon. According to the latest information, the tablet will have a 9.7-inch screen with a pretty...

Read more »

iOS 8 Removes Game Center, Enhances Notification Center

The latest iOS 8 leak is out by means of a list containing some of the refinements and tweaks planned by Apple for the next major revision of its mobile operating system. Focus areas include Notification Center, inter-app communication, Voice Memos, Messages, Game Center, and CarPlay. 9to5mac boasts a list “provided by sources” of just “some” of the retouches Apple is “considering” for some of the apps and services in the upcoming iOS 8. Notification Center is one of the major elements Apple is looking into for some imminent changes. The sources said the translucent drop-down menu for managing alerts “may be simplified,” and that Apple is considering reducing some views from the panel to only include “Today” and “Notifications.” Apparently...

Read more »