From The Blog

20070709-utorrentRemember how we told you that Fox was planning to create a larger delay in their online programming available to non-paid Hulu and Fox.com users? Well as you might have expected the people that are not “subscribers”, you know the ones that are being forced to wait longer, are now downloading these same programs from Torrent and other file sharing sites.

Right after the original announcement, which was designed (according to Fox) to improve their “authenticated” subscribers viewing experience, there was quite an uproar over the delay. Many felt that it was not about improving anything more than Fox’s revenue. After all no matter the delay the cable and satellite viewers are still getting the same experience.

Of course the timing is important as well, many online viewers are disappointed with the available content services right now. Netflix is raising their rates and managed to kick Windows Media Center and other non-web users off their service for a couple of days. All of this is going on while the ISPs are planning to cap the amount of data you can download each month. It makes us wonder about the state of online content. There seems to be a decided effort to push people away from online content and back to the cable and satellite services. The sad part is that this won’t work, but it will give the content providers and ISPs more ammunition to put restrictions, filters and worse on the internet. The same thing is going to happen with the Anon issue. The more we see this happen the more the powers that be can point to these things and say “see, we told you”.

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Sunday, 21 August 2011 22:18

We take the Kingston Wi-Drive out Camping Featured

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wd04Apple is famous for many things. They are famous for making the iPhone and iPad, they are famous for their never ending stream of patents for things that already exist and last but not least they are famous for making sure that you cannot use their mobile products without their approval. You see if you buy an iDevice your core file system is pretty much locked down. Now there are ways to get into the file system and move things around, but it can get messy and things do not always make the transition intact. The other side of this is that there is no way to add more storage to any of their products. It is not like an Android or Windows based tablet with an SD card slot or USB ports. So what can you do if you bought one of the 16GB non-3G iPads or if you only own the iPad touch? Kingston has an answer for you. Kingston has put their expertise in making flash drives to good use and attached a flash drive to a wireless controller that can also act as a wireless bridge. They are calling it the Wi-Drive and when you pair this up with the WiDrive app from the AppStore you might just have a relatively low cost answer to a lot of people’s needs. So follow along as we take a look at the $180 32GB Wi-Drive on a first generation iPad.

Saturday, 20 August 2011 14:47

Apple caught using more misleading evidence

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screenshot-page-28Ok, I could not let this one pass. After hearing about the first instance of inaccurate evidence presented by Apple in court. I honestly thought that occurrence might have been nothing more that old images or an accident involving someone trying to fit both pictures in the same space. However, now we hear about another case where Apple has done exactly the same thing. This time the case in question is in the Netherlands where Apple is trying to get a permanent ban AND a recall of all Galaxy Smart Phones and tablets.


At this point it seems that Apple is willing to lie, cheat and maybe even steal to get what they want (market dominance). I certainly hope that the courts hold Apple responsible on both counts. It is very clear that Apple feels it is above the law in the US where they have led a charmed life with the Patent office and the US International Trade Commission. Now they are taking this to the EU where they managed to get an ex-parte, non-hearing preliminary ban on the Tab 10.1 with inaccurate images as evidence. Thankfully, as of this writing the ban has been lifted (citing jurisdiction issues) in all countries in the EU except Germany. With mounting proof of falsified (or at least wildly inaccurate) visual evidence being used by Apple we would certainly hope these injunction requests are dropped for good and Apple required to face the consequences of their actions.

iPhone_vs_Galaxy-600

Source ITWorld.
Picture credit WebWereld.

Thursday, 18 August 2011 21:38

nVidia's Kepler running a little late

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16-Card-07When I hear the name of nVidia’s next-gen GPU code named Kepler all I can hear is Cave Johnson from Portal 2 saying, “Now if you're part of control group Kepler-7, we planted a tiny microchip, about the size of a postcard, into your skull.”  It is interesting in that Kepler is supposed to be nVidia’s 28nm GPU offering. True a 28nm GPU is a lot smaller than a post card but the other half of Cave Johnson’s statement does seem to have some very nVidia parallels… “Most likely you've forgotten it's even there, but if it starts vibrating and beeping during this next test let us know, because that means it's about to hit about 500 degrees so we're gonna need to go ahead and get that out of you pretty fast.”

Now, I am saying this with humor, but we have seen some rather hot GPUs from nVidia over the years. If Kepler has the same issues that Fermi had then the first run could be quite the space heater.  Of course, if you ask the typical gamer they will more than likely tell you that they do not care as much about the heat as long as the FPS is through the roof.

Which brings us to the real crux of the issue, nVidia has already admitted that they will be at least a month or more behind their original timeline for this release (like Fermi) and they will be far behind AMD’s Southern Islands. In the gaming and GPU market it is often the person that gets to market first that wins the acceptance. This is not like the DX11 shift when it was Fermi Vs the Other Islands from AMD where there were almost no compelling games using that technology. Now we are looking at a few good DX11 games so we are going to see people looking to pounce on the next generation products as long as they are faster than what is currently on the market from both companies and the prices are right.

nVidia really needs to get on the ball to get their timelines back in order or they do stand to lose quite a few Holiday sales to AMD which will hurt their own sales numbers when they finally do get Kepler out the door.

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Thursday, 18 August 2011 20:58

HP Ditches WebOS and Spins off PC Business

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HP_TouchPadLess than a year ago HP bought Palm for their WebOS and Mobile business. At the time HP made the claim that they were going to move forward with Palm and maintain the mobile side of things. Now they want to shut down the WebOS business and (if the announcement is to be believed) either spin off or close down their PC business. Reading the announcement from HP it sounds like they are cutting some dead weight and cleaning up after some disappointing losses. However, if you dig a little deeper you will find that HP is looking to make a business shift. It is no secret that the consumer market (at least the PC and software market) is something of a loss-leader. This means that you expect to lose a little money on your PC systems while making it back in service, and support costs. The problem is that companies like HP are losing their support money to people like Best Buy, Staples, and others who now have their own service departments that they make money off of.

This leaves companies like HP (who bought up Compaq thinking that would help sales) out of touch and losing more money than they should on their PCs. So what do you do when this happens? Well you take a leaf from IBM’s book. You sell off your PC business and shift back to the Enterprise. Here you can sell a support contract for $3-4,000 per unit (and more in some cases). Corporations that purchase servers and server accessories demand these and pay for them willingly. So HPs announcements today are nothing more than a way of saying to the community at large “Hey, wanna buy our PC and Mobile divisions? We do not want them anymore”. I would not be surprised to hear about offers for both departments soon.

Now the question is; can HP really compete with IBM and Dell? If a recent shift in enterprise purchases is any indication HP is in for a rough year.

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Wednesday, 17 August 2011 22:52

Gigabyte A75-UD4H Design and Feature Review Featured

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board-01AMD has been throwing the term Fusion around since the early days of the AM2 CPU. We heard rumors of AMD “fusing” the GPU and the CPU together, integrating the MCP (media control processor) into the CPU and a bunch of other stuff. Each of these rumors was dismissed by AMD one at a time. AMD continued to state that Fusion was not a single thing but a platform (of course the media was not going to let that happen). It was only last year when we finally found out what AMD was talking about. It was a CPU with and APU (auxiliary processing unit) that is there to assist in complex tasks that the core CPU was not able to deal with. Interestingly enough this was not a new idea but was actually a return to some of AMD’s roots. AMD began their CPU debut with the purchase of a company called Nexgen. Nexgen CPU did not include a math co-processor (at least the original ones). If you wanted one you could buy one and attach it as an… you guessed it APU. Well many years have passed since that time and we are sure the APU is a little more than a simple math co-processor.  Fortunately for you, we have an AMD A6 3650 and a Gigabyte A75-UD4H motherboard to play with. So let’s take a look at this new motherboard from Gigabyte and while we are at it the AMD Llano A6 3650 CPU…

Tuesday, 16 August 2011 22:20

Who Will Benefit more? Google or Motorola?

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motorola_droid_x1Although the news of Google’s purchase of Motorola Mobility is days old we have to wonder about the slew of articles that have come out recently. We all know (whether we choose to admit it or not) that the purchase of Motorola was to bolster Google position in the market of the mobile OS. They, like others, have a lot to fear from Apple’s seemingly endless supply of accusations of copying, patent infringement and friendly venues. However, the deal is more than that in reality.

Motorola has an 82 year legacy of working with wireless (not the wireless we think of today but radios as well).  Because of this they not only have a nice stable of patents but also the technology and the innovation to survive in the cut throat world of mobile devices. The problem has been their “IBM” attitude in the past. Anyone that knows (or would like to Google) the IBM culture will know that the uniform was black slacks, white button down and tie. This is what you wore no matter where you worked. Motorola was the same way until very recently. That kind of rigidity in your culture does stifle innovation to a great degree. After all if you always wear the same thing, you can find yourself always thinking the same things. People that are locked down by their environment can become stagnant and, in extreme cases, ineffective.

So adding the fresh and open culture of Google to this can help out the struggling Motorola quite a bit; while the structure of Motorola may also help Google. It also gives Google something they want and need; a direct market for their OS. Google has been slowly closing the “Open Source” of Android with each successive release and we are looking at a completely closed source Kernel and OS in the very near future. Although Google invites other phone makers to use and customize Android’s UI they still want to have phones of their very own and with Motorola’s $86 Million dollar loss on top of their still popular “Droid” line of smart phones I am sure this looked like a ready-made situation for Google.

Motorola does get to keep operating as its own entity (for now) but you can rest assured that Google is also banking on those nice new Patents to keep Apple’s lawyers at bay.

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Tuesday, 16 August 2011 20:41

HTC fights back against Apple’s latest ITC Win

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73In news that surprises no one HTC has filed a complaint and suit against Apple today for… you guessed it Patent Infringement. All of this began not too long ago when Apple started its campaign against Android Phone makers claiming that Samsung, HTC and a few others have violated Apple’s patents on various functions and even the look and feel of their method of finger scrolling. Apple has one the first round in many of these cases, but things seem to be turning around.

It has recently come to light that Apple’s evidence in the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 case is inaccurate. Apple’s legal team knowingly or accidentally submitted false evidence to show that the Tab was a copy of the iPad and iPad2. We do not know the outcome of this incident yet (but we are keeping our eyes open) but it is probably not going to be good for Apple.

Meanwhile HTC has just announced that it is filing its own patent suit against Apple that covers not only the iPad, iPhone and iPod but also every MAC computer with wireless technology that has “Wi-Fi capability that allows users to wirelessly network multiple devices at home, at work, or in public” as covered by US Patent 7,417,944. There is more to the complaint and suit which covers three specific patents (U.S. Patent Nos. 7,417,944, and 7,672,219 and 7,765,414). This is interesting as HTC has not even broken out their S3 Patents yet. These patents came from a purchase of ADC Telecommunications Patents back in April of this year that cover many wireless and even 4G technologies. ADC was later bought by Tyco Electronics (which became TE Connectivity) who sold its wireless communication division to Harris Corp.

Now think about this, if the ADC Telecommunications patents do not cut it they can always push for action based on the new S3 Patents HTC has recently picked up. As we said a couple of days ago; things are getting rather interesting.

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GeminII S524


Cooler Master GeminII S524: Ultimate Versatility Realized


Chino, California – August 16th, 2011 - Cooler Master, an industry leading chassis, thermal solution, peripheral, and accessory manufacturer, uncovers the ultimate follow-up to the widely popular GeminII CPU Cooler, the GeminII S524. The GeminII S524 is the embodiment of versatility, efficiency, and silence.


Cooler Master’s GeminII reloaded

GeminII S524, a unique alternative to traditional CPU & system memory cooling. Rotated 90 degrees, it harnesses the constant flow of cool air from the side of the system and directs it to the heatsink fins to cool the CPU. Unique to this design, the GeminII S524 channels a portion of this cool air to the system memory to help dissipate the heat generated by critical system components. Benefiting from a larger heatsink surface area, increased clearance for high-end system memory modules, and an easily upgradeable fan, the GeminII S524 claims its position as a transformative cooling solution while maintaining an impressive performance-to-noise ratio.


Electroplated Copper Base and 140mm Fan Support

GeminII S524 is an evolutionary new step in CPU cooling. It features a total of five high-grade 6mm thick copper heat pipes that emerge from a large copper base that, combined, offer optimal heat conduction; quickly spreading and removing heat generated by the CPU. To prevent corrosion of its copper surfaces without impacting its heat conductivity, the GeminII S524 base and all heat pipes have been electroplated with a microscopic layer of nickel. The increased surface area of the heatsink and revised fin design of GeminII S524 not only improve its cooling performance but allow for the installation of a 140mm fan, making it a highly flexible cooling solution suitable for any computing environment.


The GeminII S524 will be available worldwide in August 16th, 2011 for $39.99 MSRP at retail and online locations that carry your favorite Cooler Master, CM Storm, and Choiix products.



Specifications

Product GeminII S521
Model RR-G524-18PK-R1
CPU Socket * Intel Socket LGA1366 / 1156 / 1155 / 775
AMD Socket F1 / AM3 / AM2+ / AM2
Dimension 144 x 144 x 105 mm (5.7 x 5.7 x 4.1 inch)
Heatsink Dimension 144 x 144 x 78 mm (5.7 x 5.7 x 3.1 inch)
Heatsink Material Copper base / Aluminum fins / 5 Heatpipes
Heatsink Weight 490g (1.08 lb)
Fan Dimension 120 x 120 x 25 mm (4.7 x 4.7 x 1 inch)
Fan Speed 800 - 1800 RPM
Fan Airflow 34.2 – 77.7 CFM
Fan Air Pressure 0.43 – 2.46 mm H2O
Fan Life Expectancy 40,000hrs
Bearing Type Long Life Sleeve
Connector 4-pins
Noise Level 15.1 – 31.6 dBA
Rated Voltage 12 VDC
Operating Voltage 6 – 13.2 VDC
Rated Current 0.21A **
Input Power 2.52W
Fan Weight 102g (0.23 lb)

* For the latest CPU support information, please visit our website.
** Tested and certificated under a safety current of 0.32A.
About Cooler Master
Cooler Master was founded in 1992 to provide the world’s best thermal solutions. Since its establishment, the company continues to invest in product development to provide leading-edge innovations. Cooler Master’s line-up includes heat sinks, fans, chassis, power supplies and computing accessories. Headquartered in Taiwan with branch offices located across Europe, America and APAC, Cooler Master offers unsurpassed service to our customers. For more information on Cooler Master, please visit www.coolermaster.com.

Kingston Digital Announces Rock the Bells Festival Giveaway

Prizes Include Concert Tickets, Show Merchandise and Flash Memory


Fountain Valley, CA -- August 16, 2011 -- Kingston Digital, Inc., the Flash memory affiliate of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., the independent world leader in memory products, today announced it is sponsoring a ticket package and product giveaway for the Rock the Bells Festival Series 2011 in the United States. In its 8th year, Rock the Bells is a hip hop festival that brings together top artists such as Ms. Lauryn Hill, Nas, Erykah Badu and Cypress Hill. The festival will be held in Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, and Boston in August and September 2011.

Kingston® is awarding eight grand prize winners two general admission tickets to a Rock the Bells show of their choice. Other prizes include Guerilla Union/Rock the Bells merchandise and Kingston memory gift packs. Kingston memory gift packs vary depending on availability.

To enter, purchase a Kingston product from a retailer or e-tailer such as Amazon.com, Bestbuy.com, Buy.com or TigerDirect.com, or through the store of your choice. Take a photo or create a video of your purchase that cleverly incorporates the Rock the Bells theme and post to the Kingston Facebook page. All winners will be determined by a panel of judges selected by Kingston and posted here.

“The Rock the Bells concerts are held in some of the best locations across the country and features the biggest names in hip hop for an extremely exciting festival experience,” said Danny Ordway, social media marketing manager, Kingston. “We’re happy to connect our customers with such a fun summer event.”
The Rock the Bells giveaway runs through September 17, 2011. Each contestant must be 18 years of age or older and a legal U.S. resident (void in Puerto Rico and Hawaii). Complete rules and information can be found here.

Kingston can be found on:

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/kingstontechmemory
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kingstontechnology
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/kingstonhq
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/164609?trk=tyah

About Kingston Digital, Inc.
Kingston Digital, Inc. (“KDI”) is the Flash memory affiliate of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., the world’s largest independent manufacturer of memory products. Established in 2008, KDI is headquartered in Fountain Valley, California, USA. For more information, please visit www.kingston.com or call 800-337-8410.  

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Kingston and the Kingston logo are registered trademarks of Kingston Technology Corporation. All rights reserved. All other marks may be the property of their respective titleholders.