Hitachi announced a new optical drive, a Hybrid SATA III which combines the optical technology with SSD. Details are non-existent, but combining an optical drive and with an SSD drive and you’re going to have one hot device. Hitachi announced the drive at the CEATEC trade show today, but didn’t mention any launch date, price, or capacity. [via Akihabara News] → Read More
Although everybody seems to recognize the Tegra brand, there are precious few products actually using it, though it is suited to tablets and the next year may bring surprises. Certainly today brought a surprise in the form of NVIDIA CEO Jen-Hsun Huang casually noting that Tegra 3 is nearly done and work beginning on Tegra 4. → Read More
Every once in a while, when I’m digging around in my PC’s guts, trying to connect one thing or disconnect another, I get ideas about how things could be better if only the mobo had this thing there and that thing over here. If you have similar flashes of insight, maybe tell ASRock, maker of quality mobos, who is currently running a contest: tell them ideas for what you want in your… → Read More
For years, makers of computer processors have worked to shrink the size of their components. The smaller your circuits and gates, after all, the more you can fit on a wafer, and the more work a processor can do per unit of area. Intel has traditionally done a die shrink every other year, and reorganized their chips on the “off” years. Interestingly, I wrote two years ago about how engineers… → Read More
Intel is showing off its Light Peak interface at IDF (naturally) and there are a few new morsels of info about this promising next-generation connectivity technology. One thing to note is that they’ve delayed the real roll-out until some time in 2011; their original target was late 2010, but you know how it is. → Read More
The Intel Developer Forum is starting off, and the keynote by CEO Paul Otellini and others has just finished up. If you’re interested in what PC hardware is going to be moving towards over the next year, head over to Hot Hardware’s coverage of the festivities. Spoiler alert: nothing really revolutionary. Lots of media optimization with on-die GPU and dedicated hardware, so viewing and… → Read More
Jeroen Domburg, aka “sprite”, has written an excellent step-by-step security analysis of the iStorage DiskGenie. The DiskGenie is a hardware encryption solution for portable hard drives that operates completely free of client-side software. The hard drive inside the DiskGenie is unlocked by way of a keypad built into the casing. I’m always a little skeptical of the real-world security of consumer… → Read More
For a long time, using a motherboard’s on-board resources was considered… uncivilized. But nowadays, you can run decent 3D on integrated graphics, and sound cards are less and less necessary as boards provide excellent built-in surround sound. Could storage be far behind? Well, yes, but it might not be long before you at least have your system partition baked right on in. → Read More
In case you didn’t know: BFG, a hardware company known for high-end gaming laptops, desktops, and components, is killing off its graphics card business. Yet even though this has been known for a couple months, they’re still selling off their existing inventory and, contrary to previous statements, it now looks as if these cards will not be supported. So if you get a bum fan or… → Read More
I’ve expressed my opinion on, as I put it, this performance NIC nonsense. But it’d be silly to pretend that if you’re interested in the best performance possible, you shouldn’t lay out out a little extra to make sure every piece of your computer is optimized. Alienware knows people like doing that, and they’ve partnered Bigfoot to offer the Killer 2100 NIC in their… → Read More
So Digital Storm is offering (along with other high-end gaming PC makers soon, if not already) pre-built systems with triple-monitor setups using 3D-ready displays and everything already set up to blast you with 3D content from all sides. It’s expensive as hell, but it will work, and 3D gaming is pretty awesome. Should you be tempted? → Read More
We don’t cover driver updates a lot here at CrunchGear because the changelog is usually pretty trivial — small performance gain here, bug fix there. But the latest update to the NVIDIA Optimus drivers (the ones governing hybrid graphics on notebooks) has some features I wish I’d had years ago. The ability to see when your GPU is in use, the load, and what’s causing it are… → Read More
This is pretty funny. You’ve probably seen some of the propaganda over the last year or so about how GPUs are orders of magnitude faster than CPUs at certain tasks, due to their parallel processing engine. Intel got tired of hearing about it, I guess, and decided to debunk the myth. They set out to disprove the notion that a GPU can be 100 times faster than a CPU. They kind of did it, but I think… → Read More
I wrote a week or so ago that the A4 ain’t that special. I stand by that provocative headline, but the real point was that the magic of effective devices is only partially enabled by the hardware; creative and skilled developers provide the bulk of the experience.
That said, an extraordinary component can enable extraordinary devices — it’s clear now, however, that the A4 is not an… → Read More
I really don’t understand what the big deal is about the A4. ARM designed the chip, Apple customized it, and Samsung built it. How is that any different from any other phone or device manufacturer?
The A4 variant (an unfortunate name considering the A* naming convention in ARM chips) is just an A8-based chip with a setup specific to the iPhone or iPad’s PCB layout and processing needs. Apple… → Read More
Generally when we talk about integrated GPUs, it’s with a sniff. Onboard graphics? Please. They can’t even handle Windows’ visual effects, much less Call of Duty’s. This new motherboard from Asus, shown at Computex, will break the cycle by integrating not some bargain bin silicon, but a real GPU you can buy on the street. In this case it’s a Radeon HD 5770 (no slouch), and with HYDRA capability… → Read More
I’ve never succumbed to the Micro-ATX temptation, but I can see the draw. Not everyone has room for a full tower under their desk, and not everyone even wants the kind of hardware you generally fill a full tower with. If your graphics card is under a foot long, and your CPU doesn’t need an 8-inch tall cooling apparatus, you might find Micro-ATX to your liking. And with this new Vulcan case from… → Read More
The world of memory timings, latency, and voltage is a strange one, but usually you can count on the fact that more RAM is better. OCZ, purveyor of fine system components (and super cheap ones), wants you to know that you can have as much DDR3 as you like — no more stacking up DIMMs up in your measly four slots for a paltry total of 8GB. No, they have doubled the capacity to 4GB/DIMM… → Read More
AMD reps have been seen zooming around the Apple campus, taking meetings and presumably hawking their wares. With the recent MacBook Pro update proudly proclaiming the power of the Core i5 and i7 processors inside, and the work with Intel and NVIDIA to produce seamless hybrid graphics acceleration, it seems a rather odd time to be window-shopping with other vendors. But Apple has always been coy… → Read More
Are you the kind of person who likes to overclock like a madman? Maybe you’re the kind of person who needs room to tri-SLI your two-slot graphics cards? This is probably the mobo for you. → Read More
If you’re getting one of the new MacBook Pros and don’t feel like paying the Apple tax on memory and storage, there are options for you. OWC has your upgrade options all laid out, although I imagine if you wrote down the specs you could probably save a few extra bucks by shopping around. Either way, it’s probably a good idea to be aware of the insides of your new laptop, so… → Read More
Its worth noting that the VRM on the P7P55D Deluxe makes use of a hybrid 16+3 phase configuration, where 16 phases are dedicated to the processor cores and three to the CPU’s integrated memory controller. Additionally, the VRM contains low Rds MOSFETs, ferrite core chokes, and Japanese capacitors. That’s from the motherboard round-up over at Hot Hardware that I’m reading right… → Read More
Well, it looks like XFX packaging is going to be a little more secure then the stuff that Amazon uses. You’ll have to be careful leaving the store with this stuff, XFX appears to be packaging their version of the ATI HD 5970 in a replica of a H&K P90. Catchy, but hopefully they don’t lose any customers to gunfire. → Read More
There’s been a lot of buzz about the code-name Fermi series of cards NVIDIA has been cooking up. They’re the company’s first DirectX 11-compatible cards, and rival AMD has had the DX11 58xx series on the market for months now, giving them a definite head start. The hope (among NVIDIA fans) was that the Fermi/GF100 cards would blow AMD’s out of the water despite the delays. That doesn’t seem to be… → Read More
Toshiba is releasing one high-capacity HDD after another lately. Today, the company announced [PDF] two new hard discs, which are poised to find their way into our notebooks very soon, the MK7559GSXP (750GB/pictured) and the MK1059GSM (1TB). The 750GB model is the world’s most capacious 2.5-inch/9.5mm high HDD. Toshiba released its predecessor (holding 640GB) back in September last year. → Read More
Despite repeated statements to the contrary, the rumors are true: Microsoft will be selling a 250GB hard drive separate from a console. Better news, the drive is available today at your favorite retailer. → Read More
Gigabyte’s USB 3.0-capable motherboards have gone platinum, as they say in the record biz. Gigabyte announced that it has shipped 1 million USB 3.0 motherboards, giving them 1/3 of the overall USB 3.0 market share worldwide.
This is a landmark number to be reached, and a signifier of Gigabyte’s rising stock with aficionados. Besides, who would be caught dead using USB 2.0? → Read More
Here’s a fun diversion for your Thursday: the “Ben” 本 NanoNote laptop palmtop miniature computer netbook smartbook thingie! Described as a “full copyleft hardware” device, this thing isn’t going to win any performance competitions — it runs OpenWRT, which you normally find on hacked Linksys routers — but it does represent an interesting option in the realm of traditionally expensive small… → Read More
Are you a woman? Are you sick of seeing all those manly USB sticks around you every day? Then these four new models announced [JP] by Buffalo in Japan today might be right for you. → Read More
I haven’t been keeping up with the hardware. Last year I was all set because I’d recently built my PC, but all this dag-nabbed Macintosh-using has made me lazy. So when Kingston says their new HyperX 2400MHz DDR3 RAM is the fastest in the world and is timed at 9-11-9-27-2, all I can do is nod my head, open a new tab, and hit “New Post.” The result… is what you see. → Read More
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