Can AMD's Puma Dent Intel's Dominance in the Notebook Market?

Is anyone at this point surprised that Intel's processors are found in the majority of notebooks on the market? Doubtful. Where the ultraportable is concerned, as the Nanotech blog points out, Intel has a huge monopoly. Of course, what else would you expect? Intel is currently churning out the most efficient chips on the market, so it makes business sense to continue shoving them in the machines.

Currently, AMD's processors are mostly found on sub-$1,000 notebooks, which, while somewhat underpowered, tend to be feature-rich at the given price-range. But with the upcoming Puma chipset, AMD is looking to shake things up a bit, and they very well could. Puma is based on a 65nm process and enables DirectX 10, HDMI with HDCP and could even include DisplayPort.

Most notably, the new chipset opens up support for Hybrid Crossfire, which allows a separate GPU to be installed other than the integrated solution. This means lower power consumption during normal use, but better gaming performance when plugged in, since the two GPUs will essentially work together to deliver a higher average FPS.

Puma might still be a little ways off, but we'll no doubt be seeing many notebooks utilizing the new chipset at next month's Computex in Taiwan.

Puma-based notebooks will be based on the AMD Turion X2 Ultramobile processor which uses Hypertransport 3 bus for extremely fast (20.8GB/s) data transfer between CPU and chipset, power management that can turn whole segments of the chip off on a millisecond-by-millisecond basis to save power. Intel is only now catching up to AMD’s use of Hypertransport after many years, with its competing QuickPath technology, which will debut in its Nehalem-class Core 2 Duos later this year.

Source: APC Mag

Microsoft Continues to Deny Blu-ray Add-On

If there is one rumor that just will not die, it's 'Blu-ray on Xbox 360'. Rumors somehow keep on starting, and Microsoft is always quick to debunk each and every one of them. I don't think there is any doubt that Microsoft is indeed in talks with Blu-ray drive manufacturers, but nothing seems to have been finalized so far.

As quoted at Shacknews by Microsoft, "Games are what drive consumers to purchase game consoles", and of course, the natural inclination would be to continue focusing on that. The fact is, Blu-ray as a format is not that well known outside of the technically-savvy crowd. Anyone I know personally who actually understands what Blu-ray is, is either a tech buff or works for a retailer. Others have a hard time even knowing that Blu-ray and HD DVD are completely separate things.

Not to mention the lack of overall demand. As noted in the news last week, Blu-ray hardware sales are going up at a snail's pace, with a 2% increase in March over February. That is horrible, given how early we are in the high-def scheme of things. Microsoft is no doubt waiting for adoption to pick up, and that will require better pricing on both Blu-ray hardware and content. It's now all just a waiting game.

Much like the competing HD DVD or any other optical media, the Sony-backed Blu-ray format requires specialized equipment to operate. As Microsoft produced, and subsequently axed, an Xbox 360 add-on to enable HD DVD playback, many have speculated that the Blu-ray format will eventually make its way to the Xbox 360.

Source: Shacknews

OCZ Releases Ultra-Fast 2000MHz 4GB DDR3 Kit

DDR3 hasn't been out too long - less than a year - but it's progressed quite a bit since then. Whereas "good" 2GB kits would set you back over $500 just last summer, far superior kits can now set you back only $250, or less. Though much better, it's still difficult for adoption to speed up when quality 2GB DDR2 kits retail for well under $100. But the fact remains, DDR3 is faster, and as a result, it's the future (well, you know, until DDR4).

One problem up to now has been the lack of memory density in DDR3 kits. If you wanted to pick up 4GB worth, you were either going to have to remortgage your house, or suffer with lackluster performance. No more, says OCZ, with their latest Platinum kit, which surpasses the recently released DDR3-1800 Super Talent kit.

Just how fast is this 2x2GB kit? Would you believe 2000MHz? Yes, it's fast, and to be honest, I didn't expect to see such 2GB modules so soon. The general rule is that the higher the density and frequency, the harder it becomes to remain stable (harder being an understatement). The timings of 9-9-9-28 are highly unimpressive, but the ultra-high frequency helps make up for it. But, when realizing that the 2GB kits at those speeds use the same timings, it's a bit easier to stomach.

Pricing is not currently known, but you can expect it to hover just over $600 once it hits the channel.

OCZ Platinum DDR3-2000 modules will be available in up to 4GB (2x2048MB) dual channel kits. OCZ has been working closely with the leading platform providers to ensure optimal performance and compatibility on all the next generation computing platforms.

Source: OCZ's Product Page

Alles Gute zum Geburtstag! Wolfenstein 3D Turns 16

It's a common misconception that id Software's 'Doom' was the first popular 3D-shooter for the PC, but it was actually Wolfenstein 3D, a Nazi-infested game that was released a full 18 months earlier. If you grew up with a PC and happened to be a gamer, then chances are good that you've played it. I know I did, and at nine-years-old, I shouldn't have (I was good at sneaking things).

Wolf 3D was the first game to actually scare me bad enough that I had to leave the room. Walking around a corner after a five-minute lull and having a Nazi shout in German at you and a rabid dog bark its yap off might do it for anyone. It was then that I knew I should have been playing Ken's Labyrinth instead.

Thanks to Wired's never-ending knack of remembering things, we know that the game has just turned sixteen... incredible. In reality, that's far from being long ago, but to look at where gaming is today and looking back, the situation is nothing short of spectacular. Who would have played Wolf 3D or Doom and even thought for a second that gaming would be what it is today? If you spoke out loud about it, you may have found yourself in protective care for a while.

Wolfenstein 3-D may not have been the very first "first-person shooter," as the genre came to be known, but it was by far the most successful. Technically the genre goes back to the '70s, but no one really paid any attention to it. Even id released an earlier FPS called Catacombs 3D, but again, it wasn't nearly as good as Wolfenstein.

Source: Wired

eVGA's UV Plus+ USB Graphics Adapters Now Available

While at CES this year, eVGA surprised me when they pointed to a small square box sitting on a table. What could eVGA have to do with such a small and simple-looking product, I thought. Well, upon further inspection, it turned out to be a gadget for adding displays to your rig, which I later found out was handled by a DisplayLink USB graphics chip.

I took a deeper look at DisplayLink in February and was actually floored by how easy it was to setup. The installation was simple, and performance (non-3D) was incredible. For those who are too lazy not interested in checking out the article, the concept is simple. With the help of USB connectors, and this device, you can hook up to four additional displays, all from the same PC.

The benefits are obvious. It means you don't need a second GPU or to open your PC at all. Or for notebook users, it means you can use multiple displays with ease. The exact device I took a look at was rather plain in style, but thankfully, eVGA had no intention of holding back. Their UV Plus+ series are gorgeous in comparison, as you can see in the below photo.

Two models will be immediately available, the UV-16 and UV-12. The former will allow up to 1680x1050 per display, while the latter will allow up to 1400x1050 or 1440x900. So far, I found NewEgg to carry the UV-16 for a reasonable $80.99 (the competition is well over $100). Now all we need is perfected Mac OS X drivers and hopefully in the near future, some Linux support.

PALO ALTO, CALIF.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--DisplayLink and EVGA today announced that they have teamed to deliver a new generation of affordable USB graphics adapters (UGAs) for mass-market retail consumers. EVGA’s new UV Plus+ Family of products which consists of the UV12 and UV16 USB graphics adapters, are based on DisplayLink network display technology, enabling Windows XP and Vista users to quickly and easily connect multiple displays to a PC or notebook via simple USB connection.

Source: DisplayLink & eVGA Press Release

Super Talent Releases (Somewhat) Affordable SSD Lineup

Less than two months ago, memory manufacturer Super Talent released one of the largest solid-state disks we've seen to date, and at 256GB, it was undoubtedly impressive. But at $6,000, it became more exclusive than a Rolex. The fact is, SSDs started out expensive and haven't gone down in price much at all, but Super Talent's latest release is looking to change that.

Though not stated, their new MasterDrive series are more appropriate for end-users over their original models, as most of them are going to retail for well under $1,000. The 'MX' series will include three different models, 30GB, 60GB and 120GB, the latter of which is rather staggering considering many popular SSDs on the market don't currently go beyond 64GB. Prices are $299, $449 and $699, respectively.

The reason for the lower prices is due to the use of MLC flash chips, rather than the faster SLC. So while the read speed will be on par with what we've seen (120MB/s), the write speed drops to around 40MB/s. The 'DX' series by comparison stick with SLC while boosting the write speed to 70MB/s. Is the speed boost worth the extra cost? At $699 for the 30GB and $1299 for the 60GB, that's a question you will have to answer yourself.

MasterDrive SSDs use NAND Flash rather than magnetic platters as the storage medium, giving them many advantages over HDDs. These drives have no moving parts, and therefore are completely silent, lighter weight and more reliable than HDDs. Moreover, they consume a fraction of the power of HDDs, meaning they produce less heat and offer longer battery life in mobile computing.

Source: Super Talent Press Release

May 6th Tech Roundup

Motherboards & Processors
• MSI K9A2 Platinum - Motherboards.org

Displays & Video Cards
• Diamond Viper Radeon HD 3650 1GB - HotHardware
• ECS GeForce 8800 GT 256MB - Legit Reviews
• Foxconn 9800GTX Extreme OC - Bjorn3D
• Gigabyte GeForce 8800GT TurboForce 512MB - APH Networks
• MSI GeForce 9600GT 1GB OC - TweakTown
• XFX GeForce 9800GTX Black Edition - Gamepyre

Memory & Storage
• ASRock Penryn 1600SLIX3-WiFi 680i - Think Computers
• Corsair Voyager 32GB Flash Drive - Pro-Clockers
• Kingston HyperX DDR2 PC-9200 - Techware Labs
• Patriot Memory PC3-15000 LLK - ClubOC

Peripherals & Gadgets
• Honeywell Airlite 700 Wireless Bluetooth Headset - 3D Gameman

Cooling
• Akasa AK-TT12-80 Thermal Adhesive Tape - FrostyTech
• Cooler Master Hyper Z600 - Overclockers Club
• CoolIT PURE CPU Cooler - Hardware Canucks
• CoolJag Falcon 92-AL Heatsink - MikhailTech
• Noctua NH-C12P CPU Cooler - DragonSteelMods
• Noctua NH-C12P CPU Cooler - Overclock3D
• Noctua NH-U12P Heatpipe CPU Cooler - Benchmark Reviews
• Thermolab Micro Silencer TLI-S Heatsink - FrostyTech

Chassis & Power Supplies
• Cooler Master Real Power M850 850W - techPowerUp!
• GlacialPower GP-PS550BP Power Supply - JonnyGURU
• Lian Li PC-C1110 Super Mid-Tower Chassis - OCIA
• Tuniq Miniplant 950w Power Supply - Virtual-Hideout