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 Gameguru Mania News - Jun,10 2010 - tech 
Just Cause 2 is broken with ATI Catalyst 10.5 - tech
(hx) 10:15 PM CEST - Jun,10 2010 - Post a comment / read (1)
AMD confirmed that Just Cause 2 is broken with the latest 10.5 drivers if you are using a Radeon HD 5970 and Eyefinity. AMD is aware of the problem, presumably it will be addressed by version 10.6.
 Gameguru Mania News - Jun,05 2010 - tech
TechNews - MSI WindPad 100 10-inch W7 tablet - tech
(hx) 03:26 PM CEST - Jun,05 2010 - Post a comment / read (2)
  • AMD Demonstrates World's First Fusion APU - Here's the first public demonstration of an AMD Fusion processor, initiating the accelerated processing era.
  • MSI Big Bang-XPower Motherboard Preview - HardOCP takes a look at the MSI Big Bang-XPower Motherboard
  • USB 3.0 not coming to Intel chipsets until 2012 - Gigabyte confirmed Intel's USB 3.0 chipset will be delayed until 2012. There's no reason given. It claims to have shipped one million USB 3.0 boards already. Other USB 3.0 chips are coming on the market, cheaper than NEC's.
  • Nvidia preparing dual-GF104 card? - Fudzilla claims that Nvidia is preparing a dual-GPU card based on its upcoming chip, GF104. Recent rumours suggest that GF104, on which the GTX 460 is based, is a 240/256 SP, 192-bit chip.
  • MSI WindPad 100 10-inch Windows 7 + Atom tablet hands-on - Cramping on the iPad moniker, the Wind Pad is a 10-incher running on either Google Android OS or Windows 7. MSI actually plans to release the Wind Pad 100 later this year, with future iterations to come. Model 100 will be first, it's going to run a 1.66GHz Intel Atom Z530 processor, 2GB RAM, and a 32GB SSD. Priced at $499 the model 100 will also sport HDMI output, dual USB 2.0 ports and a front-facing camera.
  • MSI's multi-touch 24inch full HD 3D all-in-one PC - MSI have introduced the world's first multi-touch 24inch full HD all-in-one PC that also happens to be a 3D eyepiece. It's called the Wind Top AE 20420 3D. Blessed with an Intel Core 15/17 option, the PC also boasts superior graphics with the ATI Mobility Radeon HD5730 discrete graphics chip. It also feeds more power for the 1080 HD performance.
  • Microsoft's tablet OS concept UI (video) - As previously noted, the new platform, Windows Embedded Compact 7, will provide a 'compartmentalized version of Windows 7 that can be embedded at the hardware level.' It will provide multitouch capabilities, as well as a full desktop browser experience. The new OS will also have full support for Silverlight and Flash 10.1.
  • John Underkoffler Points to the Future of UI - The guy behind the Minority Report UI gave a talk at TED this week on the future of UI.
  • Feature: Win 7's built-in speech recognition - ArsTechnica takes a look at Windows 7's built-in speech recognition.
  • Windows Live Essentials Update Preview - The Windows Team blog has a preview of the new Windows Live Essentials.
  • Attackers Exploiting New Flash Bug, Adobe Warns - The bug affects Adobe Flash Player version 10.0.45.2 and earlier on all operating systems, including Windows, Macintosh and Linux. It is also found in the latest versions of the widely used Reader and Acrobat software, Adobe said. "There are reports that this vulnerability is being actively exploited in the wild against both Adobe Flash Player, and Adobe Reader and Acrobat," Adobe said in its security advisory. When exploited, the flaw can cause Adobe's software to crash, but it can also give attackers control of the computer, Adobe said. There is a solution to this.
  • Microsoft Patch Tuesday for June, 34 vulnerabilities addressed - Microsoft has released a list of bulletins and patches for the upcoming Patch Tuesday. 10 security updates will be distributed next Tuesday, patching a record-tying 34 vulnerabilities. The update will patch vulnerabilities in Windows, Internet Explorer, Office and SharePoint
  • Apple launches HTML5 developers website - Apple has launched a support site for developers who are looking to support HTML 5. The new site shows off many of the new features of HTML 5 and offers resources on how web developers can utilize the new standard on their own web pages. Apple is pushing HTML5 explicitly as it is supported by their devices and circumvents their need for Flash.
  • 3D TVs may not need glasses in 2015 - The Industrial Technology Research Institute in Taiwan recently gave videophiles a lot to look forward to in the coming years. They displayed an awesome 42 inch 3D LCD TV that didn't require viewers to wear those awful glasses
  • Avatar Days, WoW short film - A short film which examines the affect of World Of Warcraft on people, and also features their avatars walking around the city of Dublin.
  • Keanu Reeves Gives 50 Million to Unsung Heroes of 'Matrix' - Man of the moment Keanu Reeves has shown his generosity by giving away £50 million of his earnings from the Matrix sequels. The 38-year-old decided to hand over the money to the unsung heroes.
  • Great Trailer for Rob Reiner's Flipped - Warner Bros is bringing Flipped to theaters starting on August 6th later this summer.
  • Official US Trailer for Israeli Tank Film Lebanon - Sony Pictures Classics has finally debuted the official US trailer for Samuel Maoz's Lebanon, the film set entirely inside a tank set during the First Lebanon War in 1982. Sony Pictures Classics will be bringing Lebanon to limited theaters on August 13th this summer.
  • The Gates of Hell Just Opened In Guatemala - This can't be real; was my first thought.
  • Meet the Superhumans -- Videos of People With Extraordinary Skills - check it out
  • Life Inside The North Korean Bubble (video) - check it out
  • this drummer is at the wrong gig (video) - He is actually really good. Seems like he is a bit more energetic than the rest of the band ;-)
  • Victoria's Secret's Rosie Huntington-Whiteley Congrats Video - Victoria's Secret  just debuted a video on their FB page congratulating 'angel'' Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, who got the big role in Transformers 3 replacing Megan Fox as announced by Deadline last week.
  • Fired For Being Dressed Too 'Sexy' At Work - An ex-banker for Citibank claims she was fired for being too sexy. At 5 foot 6 and 125 pounds, with a well defined figure, Debrahlee Lorenzana is a beautiful woman. Beauty may have initially worked in her favour, scoring the stunning Puerto Rican/Italian a $70,000 a year banker's position with Citibank during the recession. But the once-positive comments soon turned into harassment, Lorenzana says. After two months on the job things started going downhill, states the sexual harassment lawsuit Lorenzana launched against Citibank. Around that time, the business banker's bosses informed her the way she dressed was too distracting for the workplace. Many more (and better) pics here
  • Tori Praver in Marie Claire - The SI Swimsuit hottie - Tori Praver - is back on the beach in the June 2010 issue of Marie Claire
  • Rosie Huntington-Whiteley Sexy in DT - As I already reported, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley is replacing Megan Fox in 'Transformers 3,' this seems like a good time to rectify that oversight.
  • Bianca Balti in photo-shoot for Intimissimi lingerie - No wonder the Italian model replaced Angelina Jolie as the face of St. John sportswear!
 Gameguru Mania News - Jun,03 2010 - tech
Steam Hardware Survey Results: May 2010 - tech
(hx) 11:32 AM CEST - Jun,03 2010 - Post a comment / read (6)
According to Steam's Hardware Survey, most gamers are running Intel powered (mostly dual core) Windows Vista or Windows 7 boxes with 2GB of RAM sporting DirectX 10 or DirectX 11-based video cards.  Another 21.55 percent of Steam PC owners have a DirectX 10/11 supported card while still running Windows XP, which is DirectX 9 only. Those of you that like an abundance of stats should click this link for the complete breakdown of all the stats.
 Gameguru Mania News - Jun,02 2010 - tech
ATI Drivers BFBC2 Hotfix 10.5a Released - tech
(hx) 10:43 AM CEST - Jun,02 2010 - Post a comment
ATI Catalyst Product manager, Terry Makedon tweeted they have released a 10.5a hotfix for non 5 series cards, which fixes the long BFBC2 load times.
Catalyst 10.5 Hotfix is out. It is Cat 10.5 plus the long load time fix for BF:BC2 for HD 2xxx,3xxx,4xxx products

 The ATI Catalyst 10.5a Hotfix provides resolution for the following issue:
 * Battlefield: Bad Company 2 - Long load times for new maps when using a Windows 7 / Windows Vista based system with an:
 o ATI Radeon HD 4xxx series graphics card
 o ATI Radeon HD 3xxx series graphics card
 o ATI Radeon HD 2xxx series graphics card
 Gameguru Mania News - Jun,01 2010 - tech
Nvidia launches mainstream GeForce GTX 465 - tech
(hx) 10:54 AM CEST - Jun,01 2010 - Post a comment / read (4)
Nvidia has officially announced the launch of their mainstream DirectX 11-based card, the GeForce GTX 465. Priced at around ~$279 the GeForce GTX 465 has 1 GB of memory and a 607MHz clock speed. Here a roundup of the first GeForce GTX 465 reviews from PC Perspective, HotHardware, HardwareHeaven, THG and Legit Reviews:
There are few comparisons to be made here, the first of which is the new GeForce GTX 465 pitted against the AMD Radeon HD 5850, both of which will be available in the $279-299 range. In our gaming tests we found that both cards brought the same gaming experience and performance in our array of titles. The NVIDIA offering did take a slight lead HAWX and Metro 2033 while the AMD Radeon option was faster in DiRT 2. Other than that, you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference when seeing them side by side. This is not a coincidence people - NVIDIA has obviously tweaked the specs, clocks and pricing for this exact reason.

The next question is about the intra-NVIDIA comparison of the GTX 465 and the GTX 470. Amazingly, the change in specifications pretty much EXACTLY determined the performance differences between the two options as we saw clear 25-28% performance gaps between the GTX 465 and GTX 470 in all GPU-bottlenecked resolutions of our games. Considering there were 27% fewer shaders, 27% fewer texture units and 25% fewer ROPs that exactness is impressive. I guess we could have just skipped that whole multi-day testing process, huh??

The new NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465 brings the performance and features of the GF100 architecture to a lower price point and does a good job of making a case for itself against the competing AMD products. SLI performance also impressed us with scaling rates as high as 90% in some cases and with a base price of $279 could make for the first consumer-friendly option for NVIDIA Surround support coming later in the summer. The Galaxy version of this GPU is a custom design with a unique fan that is both quieter and more functional with a foldout mechanism for cleaning and maintenance. The Radeon HD 5850 still has a couple of features I wish we found in the NVIDIA options, like support for three displays, but that is somewhat offset by things like CUDA and PhysX that you might not use quite as often but are there only with NVIDIA. GF100 is finally becoming more accessible to the gaming enthusiast and Galaxy's custom design only adds to the package.
 Gameguru Mania News - May,31 2010 - tech
Triple Nvidia SLI vs Triple ATI Crossfire - tech
(hx) 11:32 PM CEST - May,31 2010 - Post a comment / read (7)
The chaps over at GameSpot have posted Triple Nvidia SLI vs Triple ATI Crossfire comparison. They used a $4,500 gaming rig from CyberPower, with an Intel Core i7 980X running at 4.2GHz, to run the batch of tests. Here's an excerpt:
Despite all of the cooling efforts, we still saw high temperatures: 93 degrees. But that was with three GeForce GTX 480s in there and running for hours on end. We saw slightly lower temperature levels with three Radeon HD 5870s. Three power-hungry GPUs jammed into the space of a toaster are bound to cause trouble.

The machine can live in a well-cooled area, but we'd hesitate to recommend using it in a room with no air conditioning, and we definitely wouldn't recommend running it in the dead of summer. Of course, if you have nearly $5,000 to spend on a computer, it's likely you're not skimping on air conditioning. After multiple hours of testing on both setups, we would see the occasional graphical glitch or corrupted texture, which went away if we simply let the GPUs cool down a bit. The cooldown is relatively quick and probably took no longer than 10 to 20 seconds once all graphical load was gone. Complexity

Running two GPUs in a system is complicated, but adding a third and possibly a fourth doesn't help matters. In testing both setups, we encountered our fair share of anomalies; quirks that one might expect from being on the bleeding edge. But they certainly weren't something anyone would be thrilled about after spending more than $1,500 on the GPUs alone.

With triple Crossfire, we could not get Eyefinity working with all three cards enabled in Crossfire mode, leaving us to game on a single monitor. The moment we disabled triple Crossfire mode, we regained the ability to play on multiple monitors. We imagine ATI will address this in time. Until then, it's certainly not a great reason to grab three of these cards. We did get Eyefinity working with two GPUs, though.

On the Nvidia side, the company has yet to enable 3D Vision Surround, a feature that requires SLI. The company aims to enable this feature with the next release of its 256 driver, which should occur at the end of June. 3D Vision Surround enables multimonitor gaming, as well as 3D, which requires special monitors and Nvidia's 3D glasses.
 Gameguru Mania News - May,29 2010 - tech
TechNews - New Apple TV revealed - tech
(hx) 11:44 PM CEST - May,29 2010 - Post a comment / read (1)
  • Intel Not Bringing Larrabee GPU to Market - Intel's Director of Product and Technology posted a blog revealing the company will not be bringing Larabee as a discreet graphics product to market :-( I'm sad for the Larrabee GPU.
  • Core i5 655K and Core i7 875K Tested - Strictly from a stock performance standpoint, the new Core i7-875K and Core i5-665K processors perform exactly like their locked counterparts, the Core i7-870 and Core i5-650. If you're not overclocking and taking advantage of the unlocked multipliers on the new K-Series processors, there's little to differentiate them from the standard Core i7-870 and Core i5-650 other than their higher model numbers.
  • Galaxy and Palit GeForce GTX 470s in SLI Overclocked - Unlike the GTX 480, the GTX 470 loves to be overclocked. There's really some massive performance on tap with the overclock we achieved on the Galaxy GTX 470 OC GC of 803MHz on the core, taking the lead over the much more expensive GTX 480. Doing the math, the GTX 470 SLI setup when overclocked should be able to beat out the HD 5970 TOXIC in both forms
  • Microsoft Windows 7 SSD Performance Comparison - The results are pretty clear-cut. In most instances, the performance of the solid state drives improved significantly when we switched from Windows Vista to Windows 7.
  • Mafia II - Nvidia PhysX Trailer - Particularly, the Windows PC version of Mafia II will feature a thorough integration of NVIDIA PhysX and 3D Vision technology into 2K Czech's Illusion Engine. The integration of PhysX and NVIDIA APEX technology, including the APEX Clothing and Particle modules, enable the city and personalities of Empire Bay to truly come alive on Windows PC. With the implementation of NVIDIA APEX Particles, players are engulfed in lifelike explosions that are bigger and brighter, including weapon fragments, in-game debris and destructible environments that are amplified in both quantity and realism through the integration of APEX Particles.
  • DIY 13.4inch Carbon Fiber Touchscreen Tablet PC - This thing puts half the retail tablets to shame!
  • Chrome 5 Released - Google has announced the official release of Chrome 5, a new stable version of the company's increasingly popular Web browser. This is the first stable release with official support for Linux and Mac OS X. Grab it if you want it, try it if you haven't.
  • New Apple TV revealed; cloud storage, iPhone OS for $99 - The next version of Apple TV has been revealed by Engadget, stating a source very close to Apple has confirmed the next version will support Cloud storage, with the iPhone OS interface and best of all, it will retail for $99. The device is said to be based on the 4th generation iPhone, right down to the internals, including the A4 processor. The device will have 16GB of storage and 1080p HD output.
  • New iPhone vulnerability leaves your data wide open - Bernd Marienfeldt and Jim Herbeck discovered the vulnerability, and said it can even access most of the users data. The vulnerability can even work on an iPhone 3GS running firmware 3.1.3, when you connect it to a computer running Ubuntu Lucid Lynx, even when the phone is in a locked state. This vulnerability can't be spread like the iPhone iRickRoll'd worm, which changed users backgrounds on their jailbroken iPhones, running SSH and who haven't changed their default password. This new vulnerability appears to only be when the phone is tethered to a computer running Ubuntu Lucid Lynx, so any person wanting your data will need to get a hold of your iPhone first.
  • New Type of Phishing Attack Goes After Your Browser Tabs - Aza Raskin, the creative lead for Firefox, has just posted about a new type of potential phishing attack, dubbed 'tabnabbing.' Raskin has a proof-of-concept and an explanation for how this type of attack could work. Tabnabbing operates in reverse of most phishing attacks in that it doesn't ask users to click on a obfuscated link but instead loads a fake page in one of the open tabs in your browser. Pretty scary, right?
  • Google Pac-Man Logo Ate Up 5 Million Work Hours? - Five million work hours were lost because people were playing the Google Pac-Man logo?
  • Meguru - Japanese traditional crafts electric car - It's a cute looking three wheeler that looks very Japanese in style complete with a large paper Japanese fan-like door. The main body is iron coated with lacquer and the flooring is made from real bamboo.With a single charge this baby can drive non-stop for about 25 miles and hit speed of up to 25mph. It'll be out in the smaller Japanese towns like Kyoto and Nara and would be priced somewhere around 1 Million Yen which comes up to about $10,000.
  • 2011 Audi A8L W12 reminds us that we aren't rich enough (video) - Audi has just released the first promotional 2011 Audi A8L W12 video which shows the car's various new features and detailed views of its interior. The 2011 Audi A8L W12 was unveiled back in April and will go on sale in July with a price tag of 58,000 GBP. The 2011 Audi A8L W12 is powered, as the name implies, by a monster W12 6.3-litre FSI engine developing 500PS and 625 Nm of torque. Apart from the massive amounts of output, the 2011 Audi A8L W12 also offers the possibility to travel in comfort and style, with 130mm of extra room for your legs.
  • After a century, Mark Twain will finally reveal all - The great American writer left instructions not to publish his autobiography until 100 years after his death, which is now.
  • Gary Coleman Dies - Gary Coleman, best known for his role as Arnold in the 1970s-80s sitcom Diff'rent Strokes, died yesterday of injuries he suffered in a fall at his Utah home. Coleman, who also appeared in 2003's Postal 2, was 42. TMZ reported Coleman's death just past 12:30 p.m. U.S. Mountain time. He had been in a Provo, Utah hospital since Wednesday, admitted in critical condition with unspecified injuries. TMZ reported Coleman died of a brain hemorrhage associated with falling and hitting his head.
  • Rosie Huntington-Whiteley to Replace Fox on Transformers 3? - According to GeekWeek director Michael Bay has hired Victoria's Secret model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley to replace Megan Fox as Sam Witwicky's love interest in Transformers 3. his casting hasn't been officially confirmed, but with filming currently underway we will likely hear confirmation one way or another very soon. What are your thoughts on Rosie Huntington-Whiteley possibly joining the cast?
  • International Knight and Day Trailer Online -  A new Knight and Day trailer is online, and this International version makes the movie look better
  • The Last Exorcism Trailer - Lionsgate has debuted the official trailer for The Last Exorcism, an Eli Roth produced and Daniel Stamm directed (A Necessary Death) horror film.
  • Epic TV Spot for Shyamalan's The Last Airbender! - Paramount recently debuted this epic new TV spot for M. Night Shyamalan's The Last Airbender to build some extra hype these last few weeks. T
  • LOST In 3 Minutes - Everyone's talking about it, few people seem to understand it - but I do, so I thought I'd help you out!
  • Incredibly Fast Fighter (video) - This clip is purely demonstration, you wouldn't punch or kick thin air with full force, and you don't want to hurt people you are trying to teach either. Power comes from the feet, and the body alignment the waist barely needs to rotate when using the JKD bijong stance. 
  • Maker Faire San Mateo 2010 (video) - check it out
  • Dog Surprises Officer After Being Freed From A Fence - I was not expecting that ending.
  • Smart Parrot - Parrot knows well :P
  • Victoria's Secret Angel Alessandra Ambrosio - Victoria's Secret Angel Alessandra Ambrosio makes any beach a little piece of heaven in these small wonders from the VS 2010 collection.
  • Jennifer is Just Perfect in Esquire - If you haven't already heard of actress Jennifer Lawrence, you will. Not only is she sexy as hell, this girl can really act!
  • Olivia Gets Wilde for GQ Russia - Actress Olivia Wilde showed off her sexy curves for the June 2010 issue of GQ Russia.
 Gameguru Mania News - May,27 2010 - tech
Aliens vs. Predator DirectX 11 Benchmark Tool - tech
(hx) 01:21 AM CEST - May,27 2010 - Post a comment / read (1)
The folks at AMD have let us know that Rebellion, SEGA and Twentieth Century FOX have just released the Aliens vs. Predator DirectX 11 Benchmark to the public.
Rebellion, SEGA and Twentieth Century FOX have released the Aliens vs. Predator DirectX 11 Benchmark to the public.

As with many of the already released DirectX 11 benchmarks, the Aliens vs. Predator DirectX 11 benchmark leverages your DirectX 11 hardware to provide an immersive game play experience through the use of DirectX 11 Tessellation and DirectX 11 Advanced Shadow features.

In Aliens vs. Predator, DirectX 11 Geometry Tessellation is applied in an effective manner to enhance and more accurately depict HR Giger’s famous Alien design. Through the use of a variety of adaptive schemes, applying tessellation when and where it is necessary, the perfect blend of performance and visual fidelity is achieved with at most a 4% change in performance.

Your DirectX 11 hardware also allows for higher quality, smoother and more natural looking shadows as well. DirectX 11 Advanced Shadows allow for the rendering of high-quality shadows, with smoother, artifact-free penumbra regions, which otherwise could not be realized, again providing for a higher quality, more immersive gaming experience.

Let’s not forget ATI Eyefinity Technology! As an ATI Eyefinity Validated title, Aliens vs. Predator has undergone extensive testing to ensure a great experience, providing an easy path to a truly immersive gaming experience.
ATI Catalyst 10.5 Drivers - tech
(hx) 01:15 AM CEST - May,27 2010 - Post a comment
ATI Catalyst 10.5 drivers are now out! The new driver adds support for 120Hz displays, as well as overclocking enhancements for multi-monitor users and the raft of Windows 7 bug fixes outlined below:
 * 'Battlefield 2: Bad Company' maps no longer takes unusually long to load.
 * Enabling hardware shaders (perfect mode) no longer causes text and on-screen menu corruption while loading missions in 'IL-2 Sturmovik: 1946″ game.
 * Re-logging into a system after a Remote Desktop connection no longer results in 'Catalyst Control Center is not supported…' warning message or the Graphics menu for Catalyst Control Center Advanced view to go missing.
 * HDTV resolutions are now properly reported by the tooltip when the mouse cursor hovers over the CV display icon under 'Desktops & Displays' in Catalyst Control Center.
 * Alt-Tabbing to desktop and back into 'Mass Effect 2″ game no longer causes the display to go black.
 * In-game Anti-Alias can now be applied when other in-game options like Volumetric Effects are enabled in 'Empire: Total War' and 'Napoleon: Total War' games.
 * Enabling Anti-Alias in 'Empire: Total War' no longer causes a performance drop.
 * Running 'Unigine Heaven Benchmark 2.0″ in wireframe mode with tessellation enabled no longer causes the application to fail on ATI Radeon HD 5000 Series cards.
 * Changing in-game resolution in 'Alien vs. Predator' no longer causes the screen to flicker under Multi-GPU configurations.
 * Catalyst Control Center now remembers the position of fourth monitor in Eyefinity group.
 * Black screen no longer observed with 'Unigine Heaven Benchmark 2.0″ application with OpenGL mode settings.
 * Enabling dynamic contrast in Catalyst Control Center video settings no longer causes vertical stripes to appear during XVID content playback.
 Gameguru Mania News - May,25 2010 - tech
Splinter Cell:Conviction Gameplay Performance & IQ - tech
(hx) 02:33 AM CEST - May,25 2010 - Post a comment / read (2)
The chaps over at HardOCP have posted their Splinter Cell: Conviction - Gameplay Performance and Image Quality article. Want to know which card to buy for this game?
Splinter Cell: Conviction is a departure from the normal format for this franchise, focusing on kinetic action rather than the more deliberate, stealth-sensitive progress of the earlier games. From a technological perspective, Splinter Cell: Conviction performs admirably on a range of hardware thanks to the utilization of a 6-year-old graphics engine that has been updated to include modern features like HDR and ambient occlusion. However, it does prove surprisingly to be a burden to the GTX 470 and HD 5850 at 2560x1600 not being playable and needing to drop to 1920x1200. Once dropping resolution they are capable of running a high AA setting.

If you want just the very best performance possible in this game, the Radeon HD 5870 and the GeForce GTX 480 are equally powerful options, but the Radeon HD 5870 is definitely a better buy. If your budget is more modest or if you have a smaller than 30" display, the Radeon HD 5850 is going to give you the best bang for your video card upgrade buck. If you game above this resolution, even though it uses an older engine, you are going to have to spring for the HD 5870 or GTX 480 for this game.
 Gameguru Mania News - May,24 2010 - tech
3DMark 11 gaming PC benchmark announced - tech
(hx) 10:12 PM CEST - May,24 2010 - Post a comment
Futuremark today announced its plans to release the latest entry in the series 3DMark 11 which will fully support the new DirectX 11 graphics API. There's no word yet on the pricing for the full version although a version with limited features will be released for free.
3DMark 11 is the latest version of the world’s most popular benchmark for measuring the 3D graphics performance of gaming PCs. 3DMark 11 uses a native DirectX 11 engine designed to make extensive use of all the new features in DirectX 11, including tessellation, compute shaders and multi-threading. 3Dmark 11 is the best way to consistently and reliably test DirectX 11 under game-like loads. 3DMark is trusted by gamers and enthusiasts worldwide to cut through marketing hype and technical jargon to give accurate and unbiased guidance for PC hardware purchasing decisions. Coming Q3 2010.
NVIDIA BETA 256 Drivers Released - tech
(hx) 06:38 PM CEST - May,24 2010 - Post a comment / read (1)
NVIDIA has rolled out its first beta in the expected 256.xx driver (download) series for Linux, Windows, and other supported platforms. The new driver incorporates several new features, including support for 3D Blu-ray playback, new visual quality modes (including up to 96xAA for GeForce GTX 400 3-Way SLI users), new multi-GPU setup controls, and full support for CUDA 3.1 and OpenGL 4.0.
 Gameguru Mania News - May,22 2010 - tech
TechNews - ExoPC slate with Windows 7 - tech
(hx) 02:28 PM CEST - May,22 2010 - Post a comment
  • Inno3D GeForce GTX 480 iChill Review - Water-Cooled Fermi - The Inno3D GTX480 iChill Black Series graphics card is a beast, there is no denying that fact based on what we have seen. Those prepared to do a little overclocking, which we suspect will include anyone looking at buying a water-cooled graphics card, will be rewarded.
  • Dual-core Atom netbooks may have larger displays - Intel plans to launch a dual-core Atom processor, the Atom N550, in the second half of 2010, and will also lift restrictions on the panel sizes of netbooks using the CPU, meaning vendors will be allowed to bring out 11.6-inch and 12.1-inch models, according to sources from notebook players. Intel's previous Atom CPUs carry restrictions which do not allow devices to have a panel size larger than 10.2-inch, to avoid netbooks cutting into demand for traditional notebooks. Netbooks adopting the Atom N550 will feature 1GB of DDR3 memory, and a 32GB sold state drive (SSD) or 250GB hard drive.
  • ExoPC slate with Windows 7 demonstrated (video) - Set to be showcased at Computex Taipei early next month, the ExoPC 'slate' is a tablet device that comes powered by a full build of Windows 7. Despite using a true desktop operating system as its platform, the slate actually has a pretty good bootup time and the video playback is 'flawless.' They haven't released any pricing information, but we do hear that they'll have four different models available for purchase. The ExoPC slate will start out with a 32GB WiFi version as the entry-level unit, and then get bumped to include 32GB WiFi+3G/GPS, 64GB WiFi, and 64GB WiFi+3G/GPS.
  • Intel Wireless Display Review - No Wires? No Problem! - Intel's Wireless Display promises a single-touch bridge between your notebook and your display. Though there are limitations currently, it's almost more exciting to think of where this technology can go in the next 1 to 3 years.
  • Microsoft aiming for Gmail with safer and more functional Hotmail - The Windows Live Team are giving you a preview of the new Windows Live Hotmail. Hotmail 'Wave 4', as it is currently dubbed internally, will introduce a new set of features with security at the heart of the popular webmail service.
  • Isohunt gets a permanent injunction - may have to close down - newteevee.com reports that Isohunt, a popular torrent site, was issued a permanent injunction by US Judge Stephen Wilson of the District Court of California, Southern District. The injunction forces owner Garry Fung to immediately block access to most copyrighted content.
  • Where in the world is J Allard? -  ZDNET, among a multitude of others are reporting that J Allard, a driving force behind the design of the Xbox (and the Zune) is leaving Microsoft, after his latest dream project was canceled by the company.
  • Google Logo is Playable Pac-Man - 'Google Pacman' is what will be seen when you browse Google website. An amazing playable logo will appear on your internet browser... a Google Pacman. From here you will be able to play the Pac-Man game.
  • Encrypted Search Comes to Google - Scared of snoops finding out what you're searching for on Google? Have no fear: the comany has introduced encrypted search which gives the user the option to use SSL (Secure Socket Layer) to prevent packet sniffing which in turn could reveal user's searches on the site.
  • Google and Android to takeover your TV next - The platform will be available at Best Buy in the fall, US-only launch at first. TV watchers can search for content on TV much as we do on the web. And web content is fair game for the this TV offering, as well as DVR. Oh, and of course, TV. The device will be manufactured by Logitech with an Intel 1.2GHz Atom processor, 4GB memory, 802.11n Wi-Fi, dual HDMI-out ports, Dolby 5.1 surround sound and dual USB ports. Since we are in the world of open-source now, you will be able to hook up a webcam for 720p video chat.
  • HTC Mondrian specs leak; Windows Phone 7, 1.3 GHz processor? -  As pointed out by Engadget, XDA-Developers has posted a chunk of code from a Windows Phone 7 ROM leak, which made its way to the Internet over the weekend. The phone is manufactured by HTC and will have specs, the likes of which have yet to be sold in today's smartphone market.
  • Project Emerald = HTC + T-Mobile + Sidekick + Android? - Based on the latest rumors, Project Emerald will resurrect the Sidekick line or, at the very least, become its official successor at T-Mobile. After all, the Microsoft Kin doesn't look like it's coming to T-Mo any time soon. But wait. There's more. The yet unnamed Sidekick-esque device could be manufactured by HTC and powered by Google Android 2.1. We're also hearing about a Snapdragon processor, front-facing camera, 16GB storage, and 4.3-inch Super AMOLED display.
  • Android 2.2 'Froyo' Announced - Google announced at their Google I/O keynote, that Android 2.2 'Froyo' will be available soon, and are releasing the SDK revision 4 to developers. Android 2.2 promises to improve speed, API and services, browser and improved Android market to all Android-based headsets. Some of the new user features include new home screen tips widgets, providing tips on how to configure the home screen with shortcuts and widgets, optimizing the use of the multiple home screens. The phone, application launcher and browser have been moved to dedicated shortcuts on the home screen.
  • Apple iPod touch 4G with 2-megapixel camera 'leaked' - According to the most recent leaks spewing from Apple and out of Vietnam, the upcoming fourth-generation iPod touch will boast a two-megapixel digital camera.
  • Immersive Gaming - iPhone + laser pico projector - Using an iPhone 3GS and laser pico projector, I can convert a room of my house into a 360 degree gaming theater!
  • Google Phone Service Whispers Targeted Ads In Your Ear - check it out
  • Firefly environment brings the floor to life (video) - It was commissioned for Shanghai World Expo 2010. The new trend of urban lighting that it defines is likely to be commonplace in a decade or so. The smaller parts of light are supposedly supposed to react as if they were tiny insects. The tiny insects (parts of light) in the original formation disperse and then reform.
  • 'Artificial life' breakthrough announced by scientists - Bioethicists have reacted with caution to the announcement that scientists in the US have created the first synthetic living cell. (ed.note: Damn, replicators coming!)
  • 'Methuselah' gene: Scientists find secret to living to 100! - Scientists have discovered that living to the ripe old age of 100 may have nothing to do the lifestyle you lead and everything to do with the type of genes you have - provided you have the right DNA. 
  • A-Team 2010 Google Earth game by PlanetInAction.com - Video of A-Team Gameplay in 'Drive the Van' game based on Google Earth technology. This project was done for Fox as part of their promotion campaign for their A-Team 2010 movie. The game was hosted by Google on a youtube brand channel and combines various Google Technologies in one application.
  • Official Trailer for DreamWorks' New Megamind - With DreamWorks' Shrek Forever After hitting theaters this weekend, the animation studio has decided to unleash the first full-length trailer for Megamind, their new superhero comedy hitting theaters later this year featuring the voice talents of Will Ferrell (as Megamind), Brad Pitt (as Metro Man), Tina Fey and Jonah Hill.
  • Seinfeld Trailer - 'George' RE-CUT - A re-arrangement of Seinfeld scenes into a dramatic movie trailer. Even creepier if you actually watched the show.
  • Badass Early Teaser for Xavier Gens' The Divide - Content Film has launched an early teaser trailer, that will only show for 24 hours, on the official website for French director Xavier Gens' new film The Divide (originally titled The Fallout). No release date is set yet and it doesn't have a US distributor.
  • Will One of These Angels Replace Megan Fox? - Since the news broke that Megan Fox's bad-mouthing director Michael Bay got her fired from 'Transformers 3,' everybody's been wondering which lucky young actress would replace her as Shia LaBoeuf's love interest. It seems like a definite possibility, since Bar Rafaeli, Miranda Kerr and Brooklyn Decker are among the candidates to replace Fox.
  • 50 Women with the Hottest Boobs on Television - Check it out! That actually gave me an 'oh my God' moment :-)
  • Kate Moss in Vogue - Kate looks pretty good in this layout from Vogue Paris.
  • Audrina Comes Clean! - Audrina Patridge showed off her amazingly sexy bod in Ralph magazine, and she cleans up nice.
  • Adriana Heats Up Spanish Vogue - Adriana Lima posed for her first post-baby layout in Vogue Spain, and the Brazilian beauty is one hot mama!
 Gameguru Mania News - May,21 2010 - tech
Google TV explained - tech
(hx) 01:02 AM CEST - May,21 2010 - Post a comment
For those of you that are interested, Google TV explained here:
Right now, there are three places we'll see Google TV: a set top box by Logitech, Sony televisions (and one Blu-ray player) and an upcoming DISH box. They all share the following common specs: An Atom (or better) processor, discrete GPU, HDMI-out, Bluetooth, IR (with a transmitting "blaster"), Wi-Fi, and Ethernet, all while supporting a keyboard and a pointing device, as well as more traditional remotes such as Logitech's Harmony universals. From what we understand, all of these products will be available at Best Buy in fall of 2010 (though it's possible DISH may be later).
 Gameguru Mania News - May,17 2010 - tech
Leaked GeForce GTX 465 Information - tech
(hx) 06:18 PM CEST - May,17 2010 - Post a comment / read (3)
The chaps over at Guru3D have re-posted some leaked GeForce GTX 465 numbers that were originally posted by the Chinese website eNet.com:
According to the driver control panel screenshots, though, Nvidia has disabled quite a few bits and pieces: there are only 352 stream processors, 1GB of RAM, and a 256-bit memory interface. Clock speeds look to be 607MHz for the GPU, 1,215MHz for the shaders, and an effective 3,206MHz for the GDDR5 memory.

eNet says its benchmarks show the GTX 465 is slightly quicker than the Radeon HD 5870 in Far Cry 2, "significantly slower" than the Radeon HD 5830 in Crysis Warhead, and in between the Radeon HD 5850 and 5870 in Unigine's Heaven benchmark. That doesn't sound like a bad effort if the card ends up launching at around $300 as those European listings suggested.
 Gameguru Mania News - May,15 2010 - tech
Technews - Chrome OS Conceptual Shots - tech
(hx) 09:01 PM CEST - May,15 2010 - Post a comment
  • GeForce GTX 470 2 and 3-way SLI Review - Guru3D take a look at SLI scaling of the GeForce GTX 470. They look at single card performance, dual-card performance but also triple (3-way) SLI performance to see how well these puppies will scale.
    The article first covers SLI performance among the new GTX 470's in several configurations and games, and then they check a little one on one with 2-way Multi-GPU gaming in a multi-GPU slaughter-fest article in the ATI versus NVIDIA kind of way to see who and what scales the best. 
  • Chrome OS Conceptual Screenshots - Chromium has been posting some conceptual screenshots of what the Chrome OS may look like. The Chromium site is full of reminders that the UI is under development and that "designs are subject to change", but I suspect that we'll see many of these ideas incorporated into the final builds of Chrome OS.
  • How to Quit Facebook Without Actually Quitting Facebook - LifeHacker wants to help you quit Facebook without actually quitting Facebook.
  • Wi-Fi Sync wirelessly syncs jailbroken iPhones with iTunes - Wi-Fi Sync is an app for the iPhone that allows you to sync your iTunes library on your Mac over a Wi-Fi connection; the clincher, it has to be jailbroken. Apple doesn't allow wireless syncing for god knows what reason, but if they were planning on it than we would have probably heard of it in the iPhone OS 4 update. 
  • A Cellphone Exploded In My Face - Holy crap man, just look at the picture of this exploded cell phone!
  • Google Can't Sell Their Own Phones, Shuttering Web Store - Google decided to stop selling the device through their online portal and instead focus on the typical retailer channels.
  • Gizmodo E-mail to Jobs: 'We Have Nothing to Lose' - In what seems to be the clearest evidence yet that Gawker Media editors didn't talk to an attorney before buying a lost or stolen prototype iPhone, new court documents reveal the gadget blog balking after Apple CEO Steve Jobs personally requested its return. The affidavit, prepared by detective Matthew Broad in the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office, says Jobs contacted Gizmodo editor Brian Lam on April 19, the same day the gadget blog published a story about the 4G iPhone.
  • Tearjerker Charlie St. Cloud Trailer with Zac Efron - Universal has debuted the official trailer for Charlie St. Cloud, an adaptation of the beloved novel "The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud" written by Ben Sherwood. Universal is bringing Charlie St. Cloud to theaters starting on July 30th this summer.
  • Official: NBC cancels 'Heroes' - It's official. NBC has cancelled 'Heroes.' The network seriously mulled bringing back "Heroes" for a shortened final season to wrap up the serialized show. In the end, given the fairly high cost of the drama, the show's consistently declining ratings and the number of new hour-longs coming to NBC next season, the network decided the UMS-produced series wasn't worth an additional season. Sources say the network is still leaving the door open to conclude the show with a special or movie.
  • Parents Go Nuts While Passing Top Gear Crew (video) - Oh, come on. How could you not get excited for Top Gear?! ;-)
  • Impossible motion: magnet-like slopes (video) - In this video, wooden balls roll up the slopes just as if they are pulled by a magnet. The behavior of the balls seems impossible, because it is against the gravity. The video is not a computer graphic, but a real scene. What is actually happening is that the orientations of the slopes are perceived oppositely, and hence the descending motion is misinterpreted as ascending motion. This illusion is remarkable in that it is generated by a three-dimensional solid object and physical motion, instead of a two-dimensional picture.
  • This is the coolest time lapse video of an active volcano - check it out
  • Marisa Miller is a Biker Babe - Let's face it-have you ever seen a chick as hot as Marisa Miller riding her own motorcycle?
  • Lucy Pinder Goes Nuts - Lucy Pinder showed off her major assets on the cover of weekly lad mag Nuts.
  • Collien Fernandes Mega Hotness in German FHM! - These Collien Fernandes lingerie pictures are crazy sexy!
 Gameguru Mania News - May,14 2010 - tech
TechNews - AMD/ATI vs. Intel/Nvidia - tech
(hx) 03:14 AM CEST - May,14 2010 - Post a comment / read (2)
  • AMD/ATI vs. Intel/Nvidia Gaming Performance - The chaps over at ocaholic compared the gaming performance of AMD/ATI vs. Intel/Nvidia.
  • CPU Round-up: Sub-$100 Intel and AMD Processors Tested - TechSpot posted a CPU roundup of sub-$100 Intel and AMD Processors.
  • AMD Phenom II X4 960T cancelled for retail/e-tail - AMD has notified the press that its Phenom II X4 960T, which is known for its ability to unlock to a fully fledged six core processor , will not reach retail/on-line stores, however it will still be available as an OEM- only part. The dream of having a six core 45nm thuban-based CPU for the same price as a quad core has been shattered by AMD, and honestly we can't blame them. This is mainly down to the bad publicity that AMD received when they released the X3 CPU's that had problems unlocking, even though AMD made it clear to all users that the unlock was at their own risk not AMD's. Can't really blame them for that, can we? If you happen to get a processor that can unlock cores, then you are one of the lucky ones.
  • High End Storage Comparison - The chaps over at PC Perspective have posted a high end storage comparison today that pits a pair of SSDs against Quad Velociraptors. Who wins?  As it turns out, both configurations performed very well under these criteria and there is little doubt that the Areca 1230 card is responsible for some of that leveling between the SSDs and traditional hard drives. The raw performance edge still obviously goes to the pair of SiliconEdge SSDs though I was impressed at how close the Velociraptors were able to get. Obviously if you are worried about capacity and price more than the top speed result here, I think the Western Digital Velociraptors are easily the best pick.
  • A faster Wi-Fi format aims to eliminate most wires - At a speed of 7 gigabits per second, WiGig can easily handle the transfer of high-def video. That positions it as a replacement for wired HDMI connections or optical audio cables.
  • Microsoft offers PC makers Office Starter for $2 - Microsoft is planning to offer PC manufacturers $2 per copy of Microsoft Office Starter 2010, if they pre-install the Bing bar and Windows Live Essential.
  • May 2010 Security Bulletin Release - Microsoft issued two critical bulletins on Tuesday fixing holes in its e-mail programs and the Visual Basic for Applications programming language implementation built into Office.
  • Highly critical Safari vulnerability - Secunia last week published a new vulnerability affecting Apple's desktop Safari browser. The new exploit can be used by malicious users to execute arbitrary code on the system and is deemed to be 'highly critical'. The security research company found the exploit to grant system level access when a user 'visits a specially crafted web page and closes opened pop-up windows'. Affected versions include Safari 4.0.5 for Windows, though other versions and operating systems might also be affected.
  • MS is hoping free Office Mobile will stop users from switching - Microsoft announced that Office Mobile 2010 is now a free upgrade for all Windows Mobile 6.5 users with the previous version of Office Mobile.
  • FCC hands Hollywood the keys to your PC, home theater and future - According to BoingBoing, the FCC has given Hollywood permission to activate the 'Selective Output Control' technologies in your set-top box. These are hidden flags that allow the MPAA to deactivate parts of your home theater depending on what you're watching. The FCC says that they're doing this because they believe that if they do so, the MPAA will start releasing first-run movies (the ones that are still in theaters) for TV. They say that Hollywood won't make these movies available unless they get Selectable Output Control because SOC will stop piracy. WTF?!
  • BlackBerry Bold 9800 slider caught on video - Check out the new BlackBerry Bold 9800 device running OS 6.0 on video. Who's excited about this new addition to the Bold family?
  • Border's Kobo e-reader launches June 17th for $149 - Border's ebook reader is now official. The Kobo produced device will be available on June 17th for $149 featuring a 6" e-Ink display, 1GB of internal storage, and an SD card slot. This is a very aggressive price point when considering its closest competition, Amazon's Kindle and Barnes & Noble's Nook, both clock in at $259. The Kobo e-reader will ship preloaded with 100 classic books, and will have over a million e-books available for purchase.
  • JaicraB Releases KeyFindPuP v0.1, Details PS3 LV2 Dump Progress - Just over a month ago JaicraB attempted to dump the PS3 Hypervisor LV2 (GameOS) and revealed how it was done, and today he has released a KeyFindPuP application alongside details on their PS3 LV2 dump progress.
  • Microsoft's Translating Telephone - Microsoft has developed a translating-phone that combines speech recognition, machine translation, and text-to-speech technology allowing two people of different languages to carry on a phone conversation.
  • Impossible motion: magnet-like slopes (video) - In this video, wooden balls roll up the slopes just as if they are pulled by a magnet. The behavior of the balls seems impossible, because it is against the gravity. The video is not a computer graphic, but a real scene. What is actually happening is that the orientations of the slopes are perceived oppositely, and hence the descending motion is misinterpreted as ascending motion. This illusion is remarkable in that it is generated by a three-dimensional solid object and physical motion, instead of a two-dimensional picture.
  • Pixar's Summer 2011 Newt Movie Has Been Officially Canceled - The Pixar Blog reports that Newt, a 3D film that was originally scheduled for release in summer of 2011, has been canceled.
  • J.J. Abrams' Super 8 Official HQ Teaser Trailer! - Paramount has debuted the teaser trailer for J.J. Abrams' secret alien project Super 8 online in high def on Apple. Paramount will be releasing Super 8 in theaters everywhere sometime next summer in 2011 (a date has not been set).
  • The making of Dubai 45 Gigapixels (video) - Creating the worlds largest digital panoramic photo www.gigapan.org/gigapans/48492/.
  • How Not to Demonstrate Your Car's Auto-Brake Feature (video) - Volvo (now a Chinese brand) shows how not to demonstrate your car's "Collision Warning with Auto Brake" system in front of a live audience. As you can probably already tell, the S60 doesn't fare too well when it came time to brake.
  • 2011 Porsche 911 GT2 RS (video) - Only 500 of these beasts will be produced, retailing from $245,000 when the first deliveries begin this October.
 Gameguru Mania News - May,12 2010 - tech
The State of DirectX 11 -Image Quality&Performance - tech
(hx) 11:43 PM CEST - May,12 2010 - Post a comment / read (7)
HotHardware.com takes a look at the state of DirectX 11:
We've tested five of the earliest available DirectX 11 titles and we're happy to report that the situation this time around is looking quite favorable for early adopters. While we observed performance hits when switching to DirectX 11 from DirectX 9 in all five games, we also observed a noticeable corresponding image quality improvement. The drop in performance for DirectX 11 in our tests can be attributed to the added image quality. Effects like tessellation, screen-space ambient occlusion, advanced post processing and DX11 exclusive anti-aliasing in some games brought the performance down in our testing, but they also boosted image quality.

What's more, it would seem that some of the games actually performed noticeably better in DirectX 11, compared to DirectX 10 and 9, when the extra image quality features exclusive to DirectX 11 were not enabled, as we observed in Alien vs. Predator. This suggests that DirectX 11 rendering paths can be faster than their DirectX 9 counterparts while maintaining the same image quality level in some scenarios.

In terms of image quality, the new effects and graphical tricks we saw with DX11 added some extra realism not available in DirectX 9. Effects like screen-space ambient occlusion, depth of field, and tessellation really brought the graphics up a notch, adding extra atmosphere and realism to games like Aliens vs Predator, Bad Company 2 and Dirt 2. However, these effects were generally quite subtle and are nothing as dramatic as the image quality changes brought on by DirectX 8 or 9 in the past, which both offered major milestones in shader technology. It's also worth noting that, except for tessellation, these effects are all technically possible without DirectX 11 and compute shaders, as proven by Crysis.

DirectX 11's hardware tessellation and DirectCompute API have great potential, but currently they're being used to implement effects we've seen before since Crysis was introduced. While that certainly doesn't sound very impressive, it's worth noting that although the graphical effects are nothing new, DirectCompute now makes them much more efficient. So efficient, that all five games were able to run at full HD resolution (1920x1200) with all the graphics setting cranked to max without much trouble, even on the affordable $150 Radeon 5770. This means that game developers will be much more willing and likely to implement these effects in their titles, so watch for them in the coming months. Overall, performance in currently available DirectX 11 games is excellent.
 Gameguru Mania News - May,10 2010 - tech
NVIDIA Forceware 197.75 drivers for GTX 470/480 - tech
(hx) 09:57 PM CEST - May,10 2010 - Post a comment / read (7)
NVIDIA has just released new WHQL-certified ForceWare drivers (v197.75) for the new GTX 400 series cards. There's not much to speak of: just that they appear to be needed for the APB beta and add 4-way SLI support (480 only).
Wolfenstein Case Mod - NZXT Panzerbox - tech
(hx) 04:18 PM CEST - May,10 2010 - Post a comment / read (1)
The case was modded in tribute the gaming franchise Wolfenstein. While most of the artwork was taken from the newest installment released last fall, the whole project was done in tribute to the series. All of us have fond memories playing the game way back when it was the FIRST first person shooter and felt a great mod was called for. (thanks VE3D)

 Gameguru Mania News - May,08 2010 - tech
TechNews - 10GHz Processors By 2011? - tech
(hx) 07:44 PM CEST - May,08 2010 - Post a comment / read (6)
  • 10GHz Processors By 2011 - Intel is predicting that its microprocessors will hit 10GHz by the year 2011. In addition, it is currently working on a system bus that is 10 times faster than its upcoming 400 MHz (4*100MHz) Pentium 4 system bus, working at effective speeds of around 4 GHz. Think they'll make it?
  • Computer Pioneer Skeptical of Computers - Max Palevsky, the computer industry pioneer and early investor in Intel who died at age 85 on Wednesday, had, ironically, a fairly well-documented skepticism of computers, cells phones, Google, and games later in his life, according to reports.
  • Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD9 Motherboard Sneak Peek - check it out
  • ATI Radeon HD 5870 Overclocked Round-up - Gigabyte, MSI, HIS - HotHardware.com posted an ATI Radeon HD 5870 Overclocked Round-up.
  • Toshiba Satellite L555D-S7930 17.3-inch Notebook Tested - The Toshiba Satellite L555D-S7930 isn't a multimedia machine. It is not a high-powered workstation and it's not a gaming rig. What the Toshiba Satellite L555D-S7930 is, is a cheap and moderately capable general use computer with a big screen. If what you are looking for is a machine with a large keyboard and a big screen to make you more productive in the home or office setting for surfing the web or doing word processing, the Toshiba Satellite L555D-S7930 is more than capable.
  • Apple's Gianduia framework to rival Flash and Silverlight? - Apple is reported to be developing their own native and standards based web framework to compete with Adobe Flash Player and Microsoft Silverlight. Named 'Gianduia', the client-side javascript framework would enable developers to create rich, desktop class web apps without the need for additional browser plugins.
  • Chrome is Fast! (video) /updated/ - These speed tests were filmed at actual web page rendering times.
  • Worm Spreading via Yahoo Messenger - Apparently there is a new worm spreading via Yahoo Messenger.
  • Facebook fixes embarrassing security flaw - Facebook has rushed to fix a security flaw that allowed users to eavesdrop on the live chats of their friends and see their pending friend requests
  • Most internet pirates say they would pay for content - News.com.au and CoreData conducted a survey about illegal downloads, the survey got over 7000 responses and found that the majority of people would pay for things they download illegally if it was made available for the right price.
  • UK iPad pricing revealed - Apple announced on Friday that the UK version of the iPad will go on sale May 28. Pre-orders for the device begin on Monday May 10.
  • Microsoft's Building 99 (video) - Read this CNET story to see how Microsoft researchers turned this wobbly short video into a surprisingly sharp panoramic still image.
  • Microsoft Software Prank with alarm - Microsoft Office Ultimate with alarm build in it.. Check out the reactions of the people picking it up, it's hilarious!
  • Full Theatrical Trailer for Chris Nolan's Inception - Warner Bros debuted the full-length theatrical trailer for Chris Nolan's Inception. Warner Bros is bringing Inception to theaters starting on July 16th this summer.
  • New 'Scariest Thing I Ever Saw' Website - As expected, following the in-theater premiere of Steven Spielberg and J.J. Abrams' Super 8 trailer is the launch of a new viral game to follow until the release of the movie next summer. Not only does it look like they're making things very complicated (and hard to find), but they're already setting the tone by launching a website with a URL that spells out Scariest Thing I Ever Saw. Creepy.
  • Woman claims she became pregnant after watching porn in 3D - A white American woman who had a black baby claims she fell pregnant whilst watching a porn movie in 3D. According to reports, the childs father , who is white was serving in the military in Iraq when she became pregnant. His wife Jennifer told him the child was conceived whilst watching a porn movie in 3D. 'I see it as suspicious. The films in 3-D are very real. With today's technology, anything is possible', he said.
  • 15 Examples of the Worst Advice on Men - from Women's Mags - Here are 15 examples of the worst man advice that you can get from any of dozens of women’s magazines on the shelves today.
  • New $100 Bill Released Today by U.S. Treasury - The U.S. Treasury refreshes its currency every once in a while to stay a step ahead of counterfeiters, and this time they're refreshing the new $100 bill. The new bill will contain a security feature called Motion, where each bill will contain up to 650,000 microlenses embedded in the printing which will allow for an underlying image to shift when the bill is moved.
  • Just 2 Fingers! - It's hard enough to find someone who could do this trick using their hands, so to witness someone execute it so flawlessly with the help of only their index fingers is nothing short of ridiculous.
  • Jessica Jane Clement shows two sides of her - British beauty Jessica Jane Clement shows two sides of her!
  • Mandi Ray posing in a pink dress - Mandi Ray is turning up the heat posing in a pink dress!
  • Jessica Gomes Totally Sizzles In Esquire's Video Pick-Me-Ups - Here's a groovy little video put together by out buddies over at Esquire magazine featuring uber hot supermodel Jessica Gomes.
  • Angelic Jessica Alba! - Jessica Alba looks as ethereal as an angel in these dreamy shots from Tatler magazine. What could be better than a slightly naughty angel in a diaphanous skirt that shows her undies!
 Gameguru Mania News - May,06 2010 - tech
TechNews - MSIE 9 preview #2 - tech
(hx) 12:59 AM CEST - May,06 2010 - Post a comment / read (1)
  • Core i7 CPU Water Block Roundup - Looking for the top CPU water block on the market? We set out with a mission to take several of the best CPU water blocks on the market and evaluate them after close inspection. Aesthetics, cost, quality, and performance are all important criteria, so we'll pit them head to head and see which is victorious
  • StarTech 2-port PCI Express USB 3.0 controller review - Perhaps unsurprisingly, the first thing we can see if just how diminutive this controller card is, fitting into the length you'd expect of a PCI Express 2.0 1x card perfectly, with the board supporting both PCI Express 2.0 and 1.1 while also serving to act as a half-height card when equipped with the correct mounting bracket. At the heart of this device is the same NEC chip seen on most of the motherboards which have added USB 3.0 support to their specification, with this chip supporting two devices as per the specification of the card itself.
  • Microsoft releases IE 9 preview #2 - Microsoft has released its IE 9 preview #2 and is touting the many improvements made over the previous releases.
  • New Creative Audigy Drivers 2.18.0017 - Creative has released new version 2.18.0017 drivers for Creative Sound Blaster Audigy series sound cards. The drivers were release on April 8, and are said to fix a number of issues. They also warn these are not to be used for Sound Blaster Audigy LS, Sound Blaster Audigy SE, or Sound Blaster Audigy Value cards
  • Win7codecs 2.4.9 Final - Win7codecs is an audio and video codec package for Windows 7. The installer will automatically remove most other popular codec releases from your computer before installing this concise yet comprehensive package. You won't need to make any adjustments or tweaks to enjoy your media content immediately. Windows Media Player and Media Center will instantly recognize all your files as playable.
  • Ubuntu 10.04 Is More Power Hungry Than Windows 7 - Well, it seems that Ubuntu is more power hungry than Windows 7.
  • Firefox add-ons gets an overhaul - Mozilla is planning to do a major overhaul of their add-on manager UI for Firefox. The new add-on manager will change from the existing popup window, to its own tab. The add-on manager will move from the existing top navigation to side-tabs, keeping the same list view of available and installed add-ons. Users will be able to manage their languages, search engines, extensions, themes and plug-ins all in the same window, being able to search for addition add-ons through the built in Mozilla search
  • Skype to Unveil Group Video Chat Function - Skype has announced a public beta of its upcoming group video calling feature that will allow up to 5 people to chat at once. The new video chat feature will be available to Windows users next week. Mac users will have to wait until later this year.
  • Facebook security flaw lets you see friends' chats - This morning, TechCrunch has pointed out a shocking security flaw in Facebook that allows users to see the live chats of any of their friends. The discovery furthers the concern that Facebook's security is not yet where it needs to be.
  • Infinity Pre-Alpha Tech Demo April 2010 - This video shows the latest version ( as of April 2010 ) of the game client/engine, and features the seamless planetary engine, a ring with asteroids, a space station, basic navigation/camera/controls and a few effects. The game is still heavily a work in progress.
  • 60 Minutes: The full Conan O'Brien Interview (story & video) - Conan breaks his silence on the Tonight Show and his exit from NBC, telling 60 Minutes that it's not possible for the Tonight Show to have lost money under his watch. He also tells all on Jay Leno.
  • Street Fighter Legacy Trailer Online - An independent filmmaker and martial arts actor (Bourne Ultimatum) has made the effort to put out a short film online that captures his vision for what these films could have been.
  • Fan Made Rendezvous with Rama Movie Trailer! - Vancouver Film School student Philip Mahoney and visual artist Aaron Ross teamed up to create this trailer for an adaptation of Arthur C. Clarke's sci-fi novel Rendezvous with Rama. This is obviously just a trailer created out of computer visuals, but it's an absolutely mesmerizing look at how great a movie based on the book could be...
  • Teaser Trailer for Anton Corbijn's The American - Focus Features has debuted a teaser trailer for Anton Corbijn's The American starring George Clooney as a hitman on his last assignment in Italy.
  • Robert Rodriguez's 'Illegal' Machete Trailer! - Robert Rodriguez has premiered a brand new 'illegal' trailer for Machete starring Danny Trejo. 0th Century Fox will be bringing Machete to theaters on Labor Day Weekend, September 3rd this fall. I can't wait to see this!
  • Going sideways, on two wheels, Abarth-style (video) - If you carry too much speed into the corner in most racing cars, you're liable to spin out. But then most racing cars have a low center of gravity and a suitably long wheelbase. Suppose, then, that you're driving something a little stouter, like a race-tuned Fiat 500 in the Trofeo Abarth.
  • Cats Attack Babysitter (video) - Two house cats come running into a room after hearing a glass break and try to protect the kid by attacking the babysitter.
  • Real life Modern Warfare mission (video) - Here's a video from a recent Dutch special forces action where they stormed a freight ship that was taken over by pirates. We get the whole thing in first person perspective from a camera mounted on one of the soldier's helmets.
  • LEGO Sequential Gearbox (7+R) on a Bugatti Veyron 16.4 (video) - You don't have to be a kid to dig on this remote controlled LEGO Bugatti Veyron. Watching this thing run through the gears is pretty damn impressive!
  • Tornado Forms in Front of Car (video - April 25, 2010) - Raleigh, North Carolina - Couple returning home come face to face with a tornado developing in front of there car:
  • Video of SWAT Raid on Missouri Family (NOT SAFE for work, children or the emotionally sensitive!) - It's horrifying, but I'd urge you to watch it, and to send it to the drug warriors in your life.
 Gameguru Mania News - May,02 2010 - tech
TechNews - Adobe CS5 now shipping - tech
(hx) 01:36 AM CEST - May,02 2010 - Post a comment / read (5)
  • Phenom II X6 Reviews Roundup -  While clock for clock, speed for speed, the Intel i7 980X brings the 1090T to its knees, but if you factor in the costs of each one and the price to performance ratio then they start to equal out. The current pricing for the Intel 980X is about $999 just for the processor and when released the Phenom II X6 1090T will cost only around $285 which is almost a quarter of the price of the 980X. For that price, you could also add all of the components of the Leo Platform including the motherboard and a 5800 series graphics card, so comparing apples to apples is fine if the apples cost the same. If you look at the price per core, the AMD Phenom II X6 1090T calculates to about $50 per core versus about $166 per core for the Intel i7 980X. Disable all but two of the Intel cores and run the tests and I bet that the AMD Phenom II X6 price for price will take away the competition.
  • GeForce GTX 480- Worth upgrading from Radeon HD 5870? - If you have already have a 5870, I don't really think you will see much of a difference moving to the GeForce GTX 480
  • AMD FirePro V5800 and V3800 Tested - With half of the shader processors of the V8800, the V5800 performed right in that window in the tests with CineBench and SPECviewperf. The V3800 was obviously much lower than that - expected again with the drop to 400 shader processors and the slim $109 price tag. Compared to the NVIDIA Quadro FX 3800, the V5800 looks like a fantastic performer as well. In a few cases the FX 3800 did beat out the V5800, but not usually by much. When the AMD FirePro took the lead though it was more dominant and of course the severe price difference doesn't hurt either.
  • Super Talent SuperCrypt USB 3.0 32GB Thumb Drive Tested - If you have USB 3.0 in your system already, or were thinking about the ASUS U3S6 or ECS add-in cards, then you need a device like this to truly see its potential. You can use it for speedy backups or moving large amounts of data between USB 3.0-ready systems or just sit there and read and write to it to see how fast it can go.
  • Microsoft cancels innovative Courier Tablet - Microsoft has canceled their internal Courier project, according to sources close with the project. Gizmodo reports that CEO Steve Ballmer put the brakes on the project this week
  • HP Slate cancelled Too? - After Microsoft announces the end of their Courier project, TechCrunch reveals that sources close to HP are now saying that their upcoming HP Slate has also been canned
  • Macbook Pro Helps Core i7 Hit 101 Degrees Celsia - During a recent review, the chaps at PC Authority noticed that the Core i7 in the MacBook Pro they were testing was hitting 101 degrees Celsia!
  • HP buys Palm for $1.2 Billion - Profitable smartphone and connected mobile device markets. Palm's current chairman and CEO, Jon Rubinstein, is expected to remain with the company and the deal is expected to close during HP's third fiscal quarter ending July 31, 2010.
  • Adobe CS5 now shipping - Adobe announced that their flagship production and design software collection, Creative Suite 5, has reached RTM and is now shipping. Adobe has also posted 30-day trial downloads for every application and suite in CS5. Users can either download trials of the different suite editions or choose individually between different applications. Trial downloads require a free Adobe ID registration. Adobe has posted a comparison table of the various editions, what they include, and how much they will cost.
  • Ubuntu 10.04 brings new user interface -Ubuntu 10.04 is now available for download in regular and netbook remix editions for both 32-bit and 64-bit systems. Version 10.04 has the LTS label, which stands for long-term support and means Canonical will continue to provide updates for three years after release.
  • McAfee Compensating Home Users Affected by Update - Say what you will about McAfee after that whole 'bad update' debacle last week but at least they have pledged to cover the cost of repairs needed to get your system back up and running.
  • Hybrid PhysX Mod Package Contained Trojan - HardOCP learned that the Hybrid PhysX Mod from NGOHQ.com posted earlier this month contained the Infostealer.Gampass trojan. According to Symantec, Infostealer.Gampass specifically targets video game credentials, log-ins and passwords. I would recommend uninstalling this and doing a full scan on your computer.
  • 1.5M stolen Facebook IDs up for sale - A hacker named Kirllos has a rare deal for anyone who wants to spam, steal or scam on Facebook: an unprecedented number of user accounts offered at rock-bottom prices. Researchers at VeriSign's iDefense group recently spotted Kirllos selling Facebook user names and passwords in an underground hacker forum, but what really caught their attention was the volume of credentials he had for sale: 1.5 million accounts. IDefense doesn't know if Kirllos' accounts are legitimate, and Facebook didn't respond to messages Thursday seeking comment. If they are legitimate, he has the account information of about one in every 300 Facebook users. His asking price varies from $25 to $45 per 1,000 accounts, depending on the number of contacts each user has. To date, Kirllos seems to have sold close to 700,000 accounts, according to VeriSign Director of Cyber Intelligence Rick Howard.
  • Windows Phone 7 videos illustrate Office, productivity features - New videos of Microsoft's upcoming mobile OS have surfaced demonstrating its strong depth in productivity features. The two short clips from Mobility Digest show real world scenarios that users would encounter when using Windows Phone 7
  • Steve Jobs: 'Folks who want porn can buy an Android phone!' - Apple CEO Steve Jobs is on a roll. While he's probably had better days than today, he's lately been shooting off emails left and right in response to customers' concerns. We just were sent what appears to be one such Jobs response, sent last week surrounding the whole Mark Fiore situation. And it's a good one. When questioned about Apple's role. When questioned about Apple's role as moral police in the App Store, Jobs responds that 'we do believe we have a moral responsibility to keep porn off the iPhone.' Better, is what he said next: 'Folks who want porn can buy and [sic] Android phone.'Looks like I'm buying an Android phone ;-)
  • Google Confirms Android 2.2 Will Fully Support Flash - Google's Andy Rubin revealed that the upcoming version of the Android mobile operating system will fully support Flash technology.
  • Gizmodo editor Jason Chen gets house raided, assets seized - Jason Chen, Editor of Gizmodo.com, came home Friday night to a surprise visit from California's Rapid Enforcement Allied Computer Team, according to Gizmodo. Following the issuing of a warrant from the Judge of the Superior Court of San Mateo, CA, officers seized four computers and two servers from his residence. The warrant clearly states that the search was for any material surrounding the controversial iPhone 4G prototype, and that anything deemed related to the iPhone prototype would be brought in and analyzed by forensic experts for any signs of misconduct or felony. Now Gizmodo considers suing police after iPhone raid.
  • Depressing $1800 home office fits in your closet - What do you do when you want to have a home office, but don't really have the room to fit it? What do you do if you live in a 400 square foot shoebox in the sky, but need to run your home-based business? Simple. For all 5 of you, just buy the Armoire Box Office.
  • Hypersonic Air Force Glider traveling mach 20 disappeared - The Falcon is a different type of weapon, it's equipped with high-power, but non-nuclear explosives that should remain undetected by nuclear defense systems. But everything didn't work out as planned. 'Preliminary review of data indicates the HTV-2 achieved controlled flight within the atmosphere at over Mach 20. Then contact with HTV-2 was lost,' said Johanna Spangenberg Jones, a spokeswoman for DARPA. Where did it go? Nobody knows yet 
  • Husqvarna DXR 310 - Demolition robot (video) - The new remote-controlled demolition robot from Husqvarna, the DXR 310, is the very latest in compact demolition robot technology. High power, low weight and functional design make it an obvious choice for consumers who want a highly maneuverable, super-strong and sturdy machine with a long reach. The remote -control for the DXR 310 features a unique user-friendly and well-considered design, unlike anything on the market.
  • Avatar Director Pitching In on 3-D Cameras for Mars - James Cameron is taking his science fiction and turning it into science fact. He is in collaboration with NASA developing a 3-D camera which will rival human presence on the planet.
  • Is Stephen Hawking right about aliens? - Stephen Hawking thinks that making contact with aliens would be a very bad idea indeed. But with new, massive telescopes, we humans are stepping up the search. Have we really thought this through?
  • Alexandre Aja's Piranha 3-D First Teaser Trailer - This horror film boasts an impressive cast including Elisabeth Shue, Adam Scott, Christopher Lloyd, Ving Rhames, Dina Meyer, and Richard Dreyfuss. The Weinstein Company will be bringing Piranha 3-D to theaters everywhere on August 27th this fall.
  • Second Full Trailer for Vincenzo Natali's Splice! - Elsa and Clive, two young rebellious scientists, defy legal and ethical boundaries and forge ahead with a dangerous experiment: splicing together human and animal DNA to create a dangerous new organism. Warner Bros is bringing Splice to theaters, in wide release, starting on June 4th this summer. I had a feeling this would turn out to be a hit and it definitely looks like it will be!
  • Brand New Trailer for 'The Complete Metropolis' - The Complete Metropolis hits theaters on May 7th and will continue to show 'in all major markets throughout the US and Canada.'
  • Official Trailer for Jonah Hex - The story in this movie will follow Jonah Hex (seen with the gun), a disfigured bounty hunter who tracks a voodoo practitioner that wants to raise an army of the undead to liberate the South. Former Pixar animator Jimmy Hayward, who is a big fan of both comics and westerns, is directing.
  • Stallone Says That Rambo is 'Done' & There Won't Be Another - Well, found in the latest issue of Empire are some new quotes, re-published by TheShiznit , from Stallone himself that stating that the Rambo franchise is finished and that there will no longer be a fifth movie. So if you're a Rambo fan you better be content with the way Expendables looks, because that will probably be filling in for Rambo. Stallone has a few other action projects in development, but it looks like he's finally decided to leave Rambo and Rocky behind.
  • Chris Nolan's Third Batman to Hit Theaters in Summer 2012 - Not only has Sony already announced it will release its Spider-Man franchise reboot on July 3rd of 2012, but Warner Bros has finally announced today that they will be releasing the third installment of the Batman franchise from Christopher Nolan on July 20th, 2012.
  • Official Teaser Trailer for Ryan Reynolds' Buried - A U.S. contractor working in Iraq awakes to find he is buried alive inside a coffin. With only a lighter and a cell phone it's a race against time to escape this claustrophobic death trap. Buried hits theaters in October!
  • The Gift Is A.I. Meets Children Of Men (video) - The Gift is apparently being turned into a feature-length film, a la District 9. If the feature-length film, called Small, is anywhere near as good as this short, it will get an Oscar nom as well. Here's the film. Prepare to have your mind fucking blown.
  • The World Would Be Better If Everyone Watched This Video - The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena.
  • Where did OW and OUCH come from? (video) - Where did OW and OUCH come from? Why do we say those words?
  • Lady Gaga Chosen 'Most Influential' by Time - Time magazine has revealed its annual list of their 100 Most Influential People, and alongside obvious choices President Barack Obama and Oprah Winfrey are pop culture faves like Lady Gaga, Robert Pattinson, Conan O’Brien, Taylor Swift, Sandra Bullock and Ashton Kutcher.
  • Quake Creates Pool Tsunami (video) - A security camera in Mexicali was rolling when the 7.2 quake hit on Easter.
  • North Korean Film Madness (video) - Vice founder Shane Smith visits North Korea to try and penetrate the Korean Feature Film Studio, the state-run film production facility west of Pyongyang: a sprawling lot that at its height produced around 40 films a year. I highly suggest watching the whole thing, it's awesome
  • Glee's Lea Michele, ASOS UK May 2010 - Lea Michele who plays the shy Rachel Berry on Glee is sizzling up the pages with not a hint of shyness going on. The world has gone absolutely Glee mad, the cast are popping up on covers and inside editorials everywhere and it's awesome.
  • Olivia Munn (Iron Man 2) in FHM - Here's Olivia Munn showing her undies in the latest issue of FHM. 
  • Nina Mascunana defines the word 'exotic' - Nina Mascunana defines the word 'exotic', with her multiethnic combination of Spanish, Chinese and Filipino blood
  • Jessica Alba Cosmopolitan UK March 2010 - These outtakes from Cosmopolitan UK layout show Jessica Alba is more gorgeous than ever.
  • Amazon Deals - Avatar (Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo) [Blu-ray] (2009) (save $20) || Saving Private Ryan [Blu-ray] (1998) (save $17)
 Gameguru Mania News - Apr,29 2010 - tech
ATI Catalyst 10.4 driver available - tech
(hx) 12:41 AM CEST - Apr,29 2010 - Post a comment
ATI Catalyst 10.4 drivers are now out! The new Catalyst 10.4 drivers support Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Linux.
Performance improvements
 * S.T.A.L.K.E.R. - Clear Sky
 o Improves up to 6% with ATI Radeon HD 5970 graphics products
 o Improves up to 3% with ATI Radeon HD 5800 graphics products
 o Improves up to 3% on ATI Radeon HD 5700 Series products

ATI Catalyst - Video enhancements

 * H.264 Level 5.1 support
 o ATI Catalyst can now playback 5.1 level streams on all support players
 o Allows for playback of high resolutions (4Kx2K)
 o Mosquito noise removal
 o Reduces mosquito noise seen in highly compressed progressive video, during playback .
 o Supported on the ATI Radeon HD 5000 Series and ATI Radeon HD 4000 Series of products

AMD video transcoding updates
 * This release of ATI Catalyst provides enhanced support for the Windows 7 Drag and Drop video converter
 o Performance improvements
 o New formats supported (H.264 file formats - MTS and WMV9 Complex profile interlaced content)
 o ATI Catalyst Control Center option for enabling/disabling GPU acceleration
 * Support for the ATI Video converter is now available in the advanced view of the ATI Catalyst Control Center

Resolved Issues: Highlights
 * Desktop mouse cursor will no longer intermittently appear enlarged
 * Pressing the "Page Down" button while configuring the last display in Eyefinity group will now properly switch to the next display instead of closing the bezel user interface
 * Shortcut keys to configure the bezel now functions properly
 * "Battlefield 2: Bad Company" maps no longer takes unusually long to load for ATI Radeon HD 5000 Series
 * Performance on 2D applications and benchmarks has now been fixed
 * Flashing no longer visible in "Shattered Horizon" game with CrossFire enabled
 * Changing in-game resolution in "Alien vs. Predator" no longer causes screen flickering under multi-GPU configuration
 * Tint setting under Catalyst Control Center - Basic Color now displays smooth transition when adjusted for Blu-ray playback
 * In-game anti-alias now functions properly when other in-game options like Volumetric Effects are enabled in "Empire: Total War" and "Napoleon: Total War"games
 * Flickering corruption and flashing textures are no longer visible in "Battlefield 2: Bad Company"

Highlights of the Linux ATI Catalyst 10.4 release include:

Support for new Linux operating systems
 * This release of ATI Catalyst Linux introduces support for the following new operating systems:
 Ubuntu 10.04 early look support
 Gameguru Mania News - Apr,27 2010 - tech
StarCraft II Beta: Game Performance Analyzed - tech
(hx) 12:47 AM CEST - Apr,27 2010 - Post a comment
Tom's Hardware put Blizzard's upcoming super-RTS, StarCraft II to the test in order to see how much CPU and graphics power it needs to run smoothly. Here's an excerpt:
True to Blizzard Entertainment form, StarCraft II doesn't need a lot of horsepower to deliver attractive visuals. And this is the beta we're talking about--who knows what performance enhancements the developers may make to the game before it releases. In any case, based on this early release, we think it's safe to say that most gamers will find playable performance accessible without worrying about a PC upgrade. It's just not that kind of game.

If there are any surprises, it's the CPU dependence this game demonstrates. While even the lowest-end graphics card we tested (a Radeon HD 5570) could handle attractive medium graphics settings at 2560x1600, there is a definite reliance on processor speed. The good news is that any modern dual-core CPU over 2.0 GHz should be able to run the game acceptably, and more megahertz will only help. Folks with legacy single-core CPUs below 3.0 GHz are going to have to sacrifice a lot of visual fidelity for playable performance, though, regardless of the graphics card they use.

If you're looking for a comprehensive review of the gameplay, I think it's too early for that. Blizzard Entertainment is still tweaking the title with regular patches and there will likely be a lot more patching and changes before the game is released.
 Gameguru Mania News - Apr,25 2010 - tech
TechNews - 19 Tips Every Windows 7 User - tech
(hx) 09:57 PM CEST - Apr,25 2010 - Post a comment / read (1)
  • Dell Vostro V13 laptop Tested - The most expensive iteration comes with just 2GB of RAM (as opposed to 4GB). Usually it is easy for support staff to upgrade RAM but in this case the aluminium chassis which helps make this laptop look so stunning is a single sheet -  there is no hatch which support staff can remove to add RAM.
  • 19 Tips Every Windows 7 User Needs to Know - MaximumPC present a bottle of their favorite Windows 7 tips, each designed to help you extract the very last bits of convenience and GUI-navigating performance from your own personal dream machine. And if you haven't yet upgraded to Win7, we trust you will after reading this article, as its core features - let alone its actual Lab-benchmarked performance - kicks Vista and XP ass.
  • Office 2010 now available on MSDN/TechNet - Microsoft has released the final build (4763.1000) of Office 2010 to MSDN and TechNet subscribers today. Microsoft said on Friday that its new Office suite, due in May for businesses and June for consumers, had reached the released to manufacturing (RTM) milestone. The build leaked shortly after the official RTM announcement last Friday. Volume License customers with Software Assurance will be able to download the RTM bits on April 27. Microsoft is holding business launch event for Office 2010 in New York on May 12. Consumers will not be able to purchase the product until June.
  • MS and Facebook Announce Docs.com - Social Online Wordprocessing - TheNextWeb is reporting that at Facebook's F8 developer conference, Microsoft and Facebook announced the beta release of Docs.com. The site is built on, what seems to be, a stripped down version of Microsoft's upcoming Office 2010 Web Apps platform, and can be used to create and share Office documents with Facebook friends. The service can be used for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents.
  • Microsoft Touch Pack for Windows 7 released for download - The Microsoft Touch Pack for Windows 7 was first introduced last May as a series of 6 applications that are designed to showcase Windows Touch in Windows 7 and to help people learn touch gestures. It consists of 3 casual games, and 3 Microsoft Surface applications that have been created for Windows 7.
  • Google Street View Scanning & Mapping Your MAC Address? - Why in the world would Google's Street View cars be scanning for MAC addresses? According to the German Federal Data Protection Commissioner, Street View cars are equipped with Wi-Fi scanners that are mapping the location of wireless networks. WTF?
  • Hulu to start $10 subscription service - Sources close to Hulu are reporting that the video streaming company is gearing up for a new subscription service to launch on May 24. The new paid service, named Hulu Plus, would provide customers with additional TV episodes and content for a monthly $9.95 fee. The current free, ad-supported service would remain untouched to provide only the five latest episodes of a TV show. n addition to the new paid subscription service, its owners are contemplating more frequent and longer commercials akin to regular network television.
  • Microsoft Courier coming in 2011 (+video) - An early report from the New York Times claims that Microsoft is aiming for a 2011 release for their famed Courier tablet.
  • Dell Lightning: the ultimate Windows Phone 7 device leaks out - Engadget has just posted a major phone leak. Although not as hype-worthy as the iPhone 4G, this upcoming phone by Dell is sure to make you think again before deciding Microsoft is out of the running for king of the smartphone market. The device is called the Lightning, and is an extremely thin portrait slider with some pretty amazing specs.
  • ASUS Eee Keyboard Unboxing Video - Someone made a 3 minute unboxing video.
  • 99 year-old loves her first computer - an iPad - Virginia Campbell, a 99-year-old woman from Lake Oswego, has finally bought her first computer -- an Apple iPad. "It's changed her life," one of her daughters told OregonLive.com. Virginia has been an avid reader most of her life, but she suffers from glaucoma, making reading increasingly difficult. Because of the iPad's ability to adjust the brightness of the page and to increase the font by simply tapping, Virginia has been able to take up her beloved past-time again.
  • Android Running On iPhone (video) - The best new app for the iPhone? ;-)
  • Legal spying via the cell phone system - If you weren't paranoid enough already about people spying on you, this article should put you over the top. Two researchers say they have found a way to exploit weaknesses in the mobile telecom system to legally spy on people by figuring out the private cell phone number of anyone they want, tracking their whereabouts, and listening to their voice mail.
  • Air Force Launches X-37B Space Plane - Though the 11,000-pound vehicle--about 29 feet long, with a wingspan of just under 15 feet--is designed to stay in orbit for 270 days, the exact duration of its first flight hasn't been revealed. Upon completing its first mission, the Boeing-built X-37B is due to touch down at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
  • Spanish Hospital Claims First Full-Face Transplant - The Spanish patient, who was not identified, now has a completely new face from his hairline down and only one visible scar, which looks like a wrinkle running across his neck, said Barret, who headed the 30-member surgical team.The man cannot yet speak, eat or smile, but he can see and swallow saliva, the surgeon said. He is expected to be able to eat and breathe on his own in about a week.
  • Alan Wake Live Action Movie Teaser Trailer - Microsoft hopes TV fans will find this six-part series evokes the same ghostly chills as Twin Peaks did when it premiered 20 years ago this month.
  • Fun Little Featurette About Iron Man 2's Villains - With the world now aware of his dual life as the armored superhero Iron Man, billionaire inventor Tony Stark faces pressure from the government, press, and the public to share his technology with the military. Paramount will be bringing Iron Man 2 to theaters everywhere starting on May 7th, 2010 this summer.
  • Final Trailer for Shyamalan's The Last Airbender - Paramount has debuted the final full-length trailer for M. Night Shyamalan's The Last Airbender. his is such an epic and unbelievably awesome trailer. I can't frickin' wait to see this now! The effects look fantastic and the story looks great, too! Paramount is bringing The Last Airbender to theaters everywhere starting on July 2nd this summer.
  • Full Trailer for Twilight Saga Eclipse - As a string of mysterious killings grips Seattle, Bella, whose high school graduation is fast approaching, is forced to choose between her love for the vampire Edward or her friendship with werewolf Jacob Black. Summit Entertainment is bringing Eclipse to theaters everywhere on Wednesday, June 30th, this summer.
  • How Europeans See America (Map) - I'm guessing that an american did this, only an american would think pizza was invented in America ;-)
  • Amazing Anamorphic Fire Illusion (video) - Lots of candles. Lots of heat. But it turned out neat!
  • Guy is Completely Wasted, Needs Flip-Flop (video) - I love how when he finally gets it on and composes himself, he stands up and immediately loses both ;-) Check it out!
  • The Lane Bryant Lingerie Commercial That ABC/Fox rejected - Who doesn't enjoy TV commercials with scantily clad ladies? Some folks at ABC and Fox, apparently. The nets rejected this spot for Lane Bryant lingerie featuring bountiful, busty beauty Ashley Graham, despite airing other undie commercials including that one from Victoria's Secret that seems to be on every show we watch lately.
  • Candace Rae in Bikini - Candace Rae is smokin' hot in skimpy red lingerie for Ralph magazine.
  • Jessica Alba is Lethally Stunning! - After taking some time off from films, Jessica Alba is back with the Robert Rodriguez action thriller Machete, coming in September. The sultry babe decorates the cover of June's Total Film magazine. We think Jessica is totally gorgeous!
  • Amazon Deals - Avatar (Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo) [Blu-ray] (2009) (save $20) | Blu-ray up to 52% off
 Gameguru Mania News - Apr,21 2010 - tech
ATI Catalyst 10.4a Preview driver available - tech
(hx) 11:12 PM CEST - Apr,21 2010 - Post a comment
As promised ATI has updated the ATI Catalyst 10.4 preview to the ATI Catalyst 10.4a preview driver which includes the Battlefield: Bad Company 2 performance improvements for the ATI Radeon HD 4000, ATI Radeon HD 3000, and ATI Radeon HD 2000 Series of products.
The ATI Catalyst 10.4a Preview provides resolution for the following issue:

 Long load times for new maps in Battlefield: Bad Company 2 when using a Windows 7 / Windows Vista based system with an:
 * ATI Radeon HD 5xxx series graphics card
 * ATI Radeon HD 4xxx series graphics card
 * ATI Radeon HD 3xxx series graphics card
 * ATI Radeon HD 2xxx series graphics card
 * The XP driver is provided only as an early look of Catalyst 10.4
 Gameguru Mania News - Apr,19 2010 - tech
TechNews - GeForce GTX 480 Overclocking = 82dB - tech
(hx) 09:39 PM CEST - Apr,19 2010 - Post a comment
  • CPU Round-up: $100 - $200 Intel and AMD Processors Tested - In a nutshell, if you are looking to spend ~$200 on a CPU then we recommend the Core i5 750 without exception. At the half way point of $150 we recommend either the Phenom II X4 925 or the Core i3 540 depending on your needs, and as much as we like Intel’s offering here we are leaning towards the Phenom II X4. Finally, at $100 it’s all AMD and we feel the Phenom II X2 555 is the best option here.
  • NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 Overclocking with Voltage Adjustment - TweakTown posted an article on NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 Overclocking with Voltage Adjustment. The first thing we have to say is that this isn't practical. When we say that we mean it's not practical in the sense that you cannot have the fan running at 100% when you're gaming; honestly 82dB is loud. I mean - it's really loud! ;)
  • Definitive 2TB HD Roundup: WD, Seagate, Samsung - The chaps over at HotHardware have posted a definitive 2TB HD Roundup: WD, Seagate, Samsung. In this roundup they take a look at a total of nine 3.5-inch, SATA, 2TB hard drives, from Samsung, Seagate, and Western Digital. For the enterprise drives, the WD RE4 2TB offers the best value
  • Super Talent RAIDDrive 64GB USB 3.0 Flash Drive Tested - According to review, it can reach speeds of 280MB/s read and nearly 130MB/s write!
  • Benchmark Performance SSD Testing: AHCI vs IDE - Ryan and the gang at PC Perspective put together a rather informative SSD performance article that could help enthusiasts avoid making a mistake when tweaking SSD drive settings.
  • FRAPS 3.2.2. - The new version (actually from March 31) fixes problems opening movies with some applications, fixes a problem capturing stereoscopic movies at 1920x1080 and 1920x1200, and fixes occasional corruption with loop recordings
  • Infected XP owners left unpatched - According to BBC, some of the latest security updates for Windows XP will not be installed on machines infected with a rootkit virus. A rootkit is sneaky malware that buries itself deep inside the Windows operating system to avoid detection. Microsoft said it had taken the action because similar updates issued in February made machines infected with the Alureon rootkit crash endlessly. The latest updates can spot if a system is compromised by the Alureon rootkit and halt installation.
  • Microsoft Launches 'Fix It Center' - Microsoft has just launched the Fix It Center (beta), a downloadable tool combined with an online service that makes it easy solve Windows technical issues.
  • One of the first news reports about this thing called 'Internet' - This report is as old as the internet :-D Broadcast Date: Oct. 8, 1993.
  • This Is Apple's Next iPhone - It was found lost in a bar in Redwood City, camouflaged to look like an iPhone 3GS. Gizmodo got it and disassembled it. It's the real thing, and here are all the details.
  • iPhone OS 4.0 shows social network integration - Engadget has unveiled a new look at social networking on the iPhone OS 4.0. The files were discovered on a jailbroken iPhone running the 4.0 SDK, which found native Facebook integration built into the phone. It's hard to tell exactly what the feature does, or even how it works right now, but the file system shows support for linking contacts with Facebook to your contacts on your phone. The Facebook app already allows photo syncing with contacts, but this will now be integrated into the phone.
  • HTC Incredible video walkthrough (video) - The new HTC Incredible will feature the Android 2.1 OS, HTC Sense, 1GHz Snapdragon processor, 8GB onboard memory an an 8 mega pixel camera. It will be available April 29 but can be pre-ordered starting today.
  • Incredible Teaser for Chinese Earthquake Movie 'Aftershocks' - Here's a teaser trailer for a disaster film called Aftershocks coming out of China about the devastating 1976 Tangshan Earthquake that killed over 240,000 people. The film will be released in China in July of this year, but it does not have a US release date. In fact, it doesn't even have a US distributor yet.
  • Sony bundling 4 3D games with 3DTV - Sony is really pushing 3D technology just as they did with Blu-ray. In fact, they want you to buy their new HX803-series Bravia 3DTV that is going on sale in Europe this June that they are bundling 4 free 3D PS3 games with it. Those games include WipEout HD, MotorStorm Pacific Rift, Super Stardust HD and PAIN. Of course, if you don't want to buy the sure to be high priced TV you can just hop online and snag them from the PSN, for a price.
  • Gmail gets Drag and drop attachments onto messages - On The Official Gmail Blog, Google has posted two new features that have been added to their popular Gmail webmail service. Unlike many recently rolled out features, these particular ones aren't categorized as Labs. These are fully functional, hard coded features, baked right into Gmail. The new features are drag and drop attachments, and insert calendar invitation.
  • Second Featurette for Nimrod Antal's Predators - This is a reboot of the Predator series created by Jim & John Thomas and directed by John McTiernan in 1987. I'm not sure what the actual plot is, but all we need to know is that it's about a bunch of badass elite warriors who fight a bunch of predators out in the jungle. 20th Century Fox is bringing Predators to theaters worldwide on July 7th this summer.
  • Woman Falls Off Wii Fit, Becomes a Sex Addict - Yahoo has an interesting story of Amanda Flowers, 24, who fell off her Wii Fit Board the wrong way (maybe it was the right way.) She now has persistent sexual arousal syndrome.
  • Kin promo video edited after 'sexting' complaints - Microsoft has apologised via tweet after it was suspected one of the promotional videos for the recently announced Kin mobile phone series contained material encouraging 'sexting'.
  • Octobus Steals Camera and Filmmaker Chases it Down (video) - An underwater photographer was peacefully cruising along a reef when this speedy octopus snaked out an arm and grabbed his Lumix away. The cephalopod then proceeded to jet away at top speed, while filming the whole thing -- unfortunately, with more than a couple of its thumbs covering the lens.
  • Live Footage Iceland Volcano 2010 April - Hot weather & video from Iceland Volcano. Live footage.
  • Masterpieces in 3D Ad (video) - With new 3D TV technology getting better all the time, haven't you wondered what classic works of art would look...
  • Kitten Plays With iPad (video) - That cat probably got more use out of that thing that the person who bought it did ;-)
  • Bond Beauty Olga Kurylenko - Olga Kurylenko, best known for her role as Camilla Montes in the James Bond thriller 'Quantum of Solace,' posed topless for the May issue of Esquire.
  • Candice is a Bikini Babe! - The stunning Victoria's Secret Angel is also modeling for the Agua Bendita swimsuit line. Aren't you happy that it's almost summer? ;-)
  • Candice Swanepoel Gets Kinky in GQ South Africa - As you might expect, South African Superhottie Candice Swanepoel has some superhot pictures in the South African edition of GQ magazine!
  • Miranda Kerr Needs to Take Her Bikini Off - Well, it's that time again for new Miranda Kerr bikini pictures, this time for Ayyildiz Swimwear!
 Gameguru Mania News - Apr,16 2010 - tech
A look through the eyes of Natal (video) - tech
(hx) 01:54 AM CEST - Apr,16 2010 - Post a comment / read (1)
Engadget has posted a video demonstration from NextGen-News showing how Project Natal actually views people interacting with it. One interesting thing about the video is the gender recognition.

 Gameguru Mania News - Apr,15 2010 - tech
ATI Beta Drivers Fixes Bad Company 2 Load Times - tech
(hx) 06:46 PM CEST - Apr,15 2010 - Post a comment
ATI has released the ATI Catalyst 10.4 Hotfix, aimed at fixing long level load times in Battlefield: Bad Company 2 for players with Radeon series 5 video cards. ATI warns that these drivers won't work on HD5800 Eyefinity 6 products, while ATI's Terry Makedon says on Twitter that a fix for series 4800 cards is planned for next week.
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