Tech News
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Microsoft Drops $100 from Surface Pro Price
Who saw this one coming?
Following the drastic price cuts on Surface RT tablets the Redmond giant has slashed $100 from the Surface Pro price in hopes of selling a few.
Microsoft is discounting its Surface Pro tablet this weekend, following heavy reductions to its Surface RT costs recently. The 10 percent price cut to Surface Pro reduces the cost of the 64GB and 128GB models by $100 each in the US. Not all regions appear to have Surface Pro price cuts just yet, but the US, Canada, Hong Kong, and Taiwan are all showing price cuts on both models.
I am not surprised it came to this, assuming Surface Pro is a failure. Microsoft is accustomed to meeting expectations but in terms of selling computer hardware they have a lot to learn. The first lesson: "just because you build it doesn't mean people will buy it". Most content creators don't like Windows 8 and hardware reviewers still compare Slate style tablets to the iPad and those things aren't good for selling powerful tablet devices.
Of course some have speculated that Surface Pro 2 might be coming out which would explain the price drop. Still, i'm not holding my breath, Haswell is a great processor and should help with battery life issue but when it comes down to actually using the tablet you're going to be faced with "meh" performance and a butthurt wallet. -
Corsair Carbide Air 540 Case Review on Technic3D
Most cases you can buy are designed to conform to a variety of different situations such as that single person who wants to run ten hard drives at once, or another person with a fan fetish wanting the largest fans possible because large fans equal less noise right? (The answer is "No" in case you were wondering).
Most normal people don't need these things in a mainstream chassis, especially when you have to sacrifice stuff like cable routing or cooling performance. Thankfully Corsair has revived an old server design based on the cube format. The Cube allows you to separate components for better cooling and cleaner lines.
The Corsair Carbide Air 540 is the next PC-Case in the Technic3D Editorship. The Air 540 Cube supports E-ATX, ATX, Micro-ATX and Mini-ATX motherboards and have place for five 120mm Cooling-Fans or five 140mm Fans. We will check this and many more in the following Review.
No telling what this case can do provided you are logical in your component choices.
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PowerColor HD 7870 Devil 2048 MB @ techPowerUp
Some people may be wondering what AMD is thinking by not releasing a new GPU this year. However, had they gone ahead with a new chip launch companies like Power Color couldn't pump out "Devil" cards at an alarming rate.
The PowerColor HD 7870 Devil is a highly overclocked custom design that comes with a triple fan cooler and software voltage control. Priced at $240, it sits right in the sweet-spot segment of cards that provide a decent gaming performance without breaking the bank.
If HWBot is any indication of current GPU power you'll find many record holders still running the MSI HD 7970 Lightning. Seems that after you disable tessalation the vast number of stream processors really does make a difference.
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Has Walmart sold out of Microsoft Surface RTs?
That is the question that CNET is asking after checking Walmart and not finding any tablets for sale. We all know Walmart responds quite well to the stinky wind and when something stops selling they cut bait and walk away. Well, that might be what has happened.
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Walmart discounted the crap tablets in hopes of clearing some wareshouse space for boxes and other assorted storage stuff. Basically if this was "Office Space" the Windows RT Tablet is Milton and he is headed down to the basement.
Don't look now, but Walmart may have just sold out temporarily of Microsoft's recently discounted Surface RT devices.
Yes, those same Surface RTs that Microsoft repriced and are now $350 (plus $100-plus for a keyboard/cover). The Surface RTs that were responsible for Microsoft's $900 million write-down which it took in the fourth quarter of 2013.Sounds a lot like what HP did back in the day, the difference was the HP fondlepad was actually some good hardware with a crap OS.
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Razer Hammerhead Pro In-Ear Gaming Headset Review @ Custom PC Review
As a hardware enthusiast I rarely concern myself with headphones but that doesn't mean I don't care, in fact that is just the opposite.
Luckily it seems like Razer is catching onto the fact that there is such a void in the market and have introduced the Razer Hammerhead along with the Hammerhead Pro – the only difference between the two is that the Hammerhead Pro comes with an inline microphone and play/pause/call/stop/etc. button while the Hammerhead standard doesn’t. Today though we’ll be reviewing the Hammerhead Pro..
This should be an interesting review.
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Online pornography to be blocked by default in UK
This is interesting, I really had no idea that pr0n was such a huge deal in the UK and instead of just blocking "the really bad stuff" they decided to block everything and call it a day.
Most households in the UK will have pornography blocked by their internet provider unless they choose to receive it, David Cameron has announced.
In addition, the prime minister said possessing online pornography depicting rape would become illegal in England and Wales - in line with Scotland.I wonder what process someone would have to go thru to get pr0n unblocked and what happens when someone shares out their wireless (with pr0n enabled) to people who don't want to see it?. I suspect it would be 60 days in the stocks with Internet privileges revoked for 2 years. (you know something harsh)
Of course if they request to have access to pr0n they might go into a national register of sex watchers and be denied simple things in life like walking in a park during the day or getting married.
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ASUS MAXIMUS VI HERO (Intel LGA 1150) @ techPowerUp
Is it just me or does it seem that ASUS has started releasing more motherboard versions than before? I have also noticed that the "gold" boards haven't featured in many reviews lately.
New to the ASUS ROG line-up, the ASUS MAXIMUS VI HERO is for those looking to get that high-end ROG "GENE" experience in a full ATX format, but does stretching the GENE also stretch the HERO's ability too thin, or has the ASUS MAXIMUS VI HERO come to save the day?
GENE was a good motherboard type, compact and powerfui. Out of all the MicroATX motherboards I have reviewed I did like that one the best.
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The 7 Types of Hashtag Abusers - An editorial for awareness
Now that hashtags have been added to Facebook you have to wonder how people will use them, or in this case abuse them. Here is an editorial talking about the 7 types of abusers while I don't fully agree with the first one I do think that a person doing "air hashtags" is pretty darn stupid and speaks to their level of mentality.
2. The Verbal Hashtagger
Someone who actually says the word “hashtag” in conversation. Exhibit A: Kasey, the Bachelorette contestant, who charms women with phrases — spoken out loud! — like “hashtag marriage material” and “hashtag let the journey begin.” If a Verbal Hashtagger is hiking Machu Picchu, say, he might observe the ancient ruins, feel overwhelmed with emotion, and say, “Hashtag…. breathtaking.”I suspect there will be more of this in the coming months/years, at least until someone comes up with something better.
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New CYBERPOWERPC Zeus HTPC Series - The Ultimate HTPC
CITY of INDUSTRY, CA (July 9, 2013) – CyberPower Inc. www.cyberpowerpc.com, a global manufacturer of custom gaming PCs, today announced the Zeus HTPC, a sleek new series of Windows-based home-theatre PCs that can double as your primary desktop.
The Zeus HTPC combines the compact and stylish design of a home theatre system with the power and performance of a gaming PC. The Zeus HTPC is your DVR, enthusiast home theatre PC, gaming console and DVD/Blu-Ray Player all in one thin micro-ATX chassis that fits perfectly in your home theatre stack or on your desk. The chassis utilizes a passive cooled heatsink technology paired with razor fins for maximum heat dissipation and minimal noise. CYBERPOWERPC will offer six Zeus HTPC models.
The Zeus HTPC is a multimedia monster powered by your choice of a 4th Generation Intel® Core™ processor or AMD APU to provide easy access to all your favorite multimedia applications from PC gaming and movie streaming to surfing the web. Combined with discrete graphics with the AMD Radeon HD 7750 users can dive into the latest PC gaming titles in full HD and beautifully rendered graphics in rich detail.
CYBERPOWERPC took special care to ensure the Zeus HTPC is seen and not heard. The system delivers silent operations even at maximum loads with its passively cooled chassis and optional silent edition video card. The only thing users will hear is the crisp sound of their game, movie or TV program and not annoying background fan or system noise.
In spite of its sleek design, which measures just 17.125x15.35x2.75 inches (L× W×H), the Zeus HTPC is the quintessential multi-purpose system with a host of features, including Windows Media Center compatibility. The Zeus HTPC’s on-board IR receiver makes it easy and convenient to connect the system to you favorite remote. Buyers also have the option of adding the InfiniTV Cable Tuner card or other TV tuner options, which can record live TV in high definition. The Zeus HTPC can record up to four channels simultaneously so you can watch want you want when you want.The Zeus TV Pro A100 powered by an AMD APU is priced at $699 and features:
- AMD A8-6400K Quad-Core CPU
- 8GB System memory
- 1TB 7200 RPM HDD
- Slot-loading DVDRW
- 802.11n WiFi
- Media Center Remote
- Logitech K400 Wireless Keyboard with built-in Touchpad
The Zeus TV Pro i100 powered by a 4th Generation Intel® Core™ processor starts at $895 and includes:
- Intel® Core™ i5-4430 Quad-core Haswell CPU
- 8GB system memory
- 2TB 7200 RPM HDD
- Slot-loading DVDRW
- 802.11n WiFi
- Media Center Remote
- Logitech K400 Wireless Keyboard with built-in Touchpad
All six Zeus HTPC models can be customized with a number of performance hardware and component upgrades such as CPU/GPU upgrades, solid state drives, hard drive, performance gaming memory, gaming peripherals, business productivity software, and more at the company’s website, www.CYBERPOWERPC.com.
All CYBERPOWERPC gaming PCs include an industry best 3-year limited warranty. -
Inside the Box: A look at Borderlands 2 Mission Editor
Articles like this are really good on a number of levels. First you get to see a glimpse into what it takes create a mission after it has been storyboarded. This would include actual game programming and take into account art direction (at some point). This is followed up with a look at actual game engine programming and how things are timed. The one thing I have discovered about games after playing Borderlands 2 is that no matter how good the level design is there are always repeated elements based on "time". For instance when you have completed the game every time you visit the "Bank" in Sanctuary you hear Lilith, Brick and Mordecai talking about what to do next.
This happens every time and its because the game time hasn't advanced. Every time you come back after exiting the game the interaction is reset. This quote kinda sums it up.
If the level just loaded was Sanctuary, but Hunting the Firehawk isn't yet complete, then the Lilith that lives in Sanctuary is destroyed. This is because even though her Pawn is placed in the Sanctuary level, the story says she isn't supposed to be there yet. Likewise, if the level just loaded was Frostburn Canyon, but this mission is complete (i.e. the story says she's moved to Sanctuary), then the Lilith in Frostburn Canyon is destroyed. Don't worry, I'm told the process is humane and she doesn't feel a thing.
The article is a little long but worth a read if you are interested, or just love all Borderlands 2 related stuff.
