Hasta La Gadget!

Most of us who remember Myst are content to relive the halcyon days of click-and-watch puzzle games by loading up the iPhone port. Mike Ando is slightly more… dedicated. He just spent the past six years building a replica of the Cyan game’s signature, Age-traveling link books that includes a full Windows XP PC with a 1.6GHz Atom, a 2-hour battery, a 5-inch touchscreen and every playable game from the Myst series stored on a CF card. And while we’ve seen books hiding devices before, Ando’s attention to detail might just raise the eyebrows of hardcore custom PC and gaming fans alike: he went so far as to gut and emboss a 135-year-old copy of Harper’s New Monthly Magazine to match Cyan’s reference tome as closely as possible. It’s tempting for anyone who cut their teeth on CD-based gameplay through Myst, but perfect devotion to one of the better-known fictional worlds will cost an accordingly steep $15,625. We wouldn’t have minded seeing some real intra-world travel for the cash outlay.

Continue reading Myst linking book replica goes on sale with full PC inside, won’t quite take us to other worlds (video)

Filed under: Gaming, Alt

Myst linking book replica goes on sale with full PC inside, won’t quite take us to other worlds (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 31 Oct 2012 02:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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I just bought a 27-inch iMac last year, and I really love it. In fact, it’s the best computer I’ve EVER owned, and I’ve owned a whole lot of computers over the years. Between its industrial design, fast processor, the staggeringly-sharp display, and Apple’s solid OS X operating system, it’s really a dream machine. Now, they to tempt us to get rid of our already awesome machines and upgrade them to the 2012 iMac, thanks to its even sexier new form factor.

The new iMac doesn’t have a retina display or lots of new bells-and-whistles. In fact, it no longer has the DVD drive found in the 2011 and earlier models. But what it does have going for it is that it’s a sheer thing of beauty. With a new design that’s just 5 millimeters thick at the edges, and as much as 8 pounds lighter than the previous model, it’s a real marvel of modern engineering.

At first glance – especially from the side – you’ll ask where the heck they fit the computer in this thing. It’s really ALL display. And what a display it is. By redesigning the LED IPS display found in the current iMacs, the new screen manages to cut glare by as much as 75%. Plus, the thinner display offers more vibrant colors than the 2011 model. Plus, Apple is individually color-calibrating each iMac screen as it leaves the assembly line. As with the 2011 models, the displays come in 27-inch, 2560×1440 and 21.5-inch 1920×1080 flavors.

Apple also claims that despite the thin enclosure, that the new iMac’s sound quality is improved. It’s also got dual microphones and a 720p FaceTime HD camera for video chats.

Under the hood, choose from an Intel Core i5 or Core i7 quad-core “Ivy Bridge” CPU, with speeds ranging from 2.7GHz to 3.2GHz for the i5, and up to 3.4GHz for the i7. The machine also has an upgraded NVIDIA GeForce Kepler graphics chipset, which Apple claims to offer up to 60% faster performance than the last generation. You can choose from the 512MB GT 640M, or 650M on the 21.5-inch model, or the 512MB GTX 660M, 1GB G675MX or the top-of-the line 2GB GeForce GTX 680MX for the 27-inch model.

One cool new option available is a drive Apple is calling the Fusion Drive – a new hybrid that combines a 128GB solid state drive with a 1TB to 3TB hard drive – melded into a single volume. This should greatly improve performance of disk intensive apps, as well as system startup. That said, the standard hard drive comes in 1TB to 3TB sizes, and there’s also a (likely to be expensive) 768GB SSD option for the 27-inch model.

Both models come with 8GB 1600MHz DDR3 RAM standard, while the 21.5-inch model is expandable to 16GB RAM, while the 27-inch can accept up to 32GB. Wireless connectivity is provided via 802.11 a/b/g/n wi-fi and Bluetooth 4.0. Each system comes with four USB 3.0 ports, 2 Thunderpolt ports, Gigabit Ethernet, and an SDXC memory card slot (that’s been moved to the back of the display. There’s also still a Mini DisplayPort connector, but it’s not clear where they hid it from the picture below:

Exact release dates haven’t been announced, but the 21.5-inch model will start shipping this November, while the 27-inch model comes out in December. Both models will offer similar pricing to the 2011 line, with the 21.5-inch iMac starting at $1299(USD) and the 27-inch starting at $1799. Pricing for upgrades and options haven’t been announced yet.

Who said Apple’s event was all about the little things? Apple just unveiled its first redesign to its iMac desktop in three years. The new all-in-one makes the widely expected leap to Intel’s Ivy Bridge Core i5 and Core i7 processors, but also represents a much leaner and meaner replacement for the 2009-era template — its edges are just 5mm thick, and it’s constructed with “friction stir welding” as well as a gapless, less reflective display that’s laminated together with the glass. Screen sizes remain the same and include both a 21.5-inch, 1080p model and a 27-inch, 2,560 x 1,400 model — sorry, no Retina displays this year. They share 720p-capable front cameras with dual mics as well as NVIDIA’s GeForce 600-era graphics, up to 32GB of RAM and a panoply of storage options that peak at 3TB of spinning storage, a 768GB SSD or what Apple calls a Fusion Drive that mixes both 128GB of flash with 1TB or 3TB of conventional storage (a hybrid drive, for those of us who’ve seen it before). There’s no optical drive unless you plug in a USB option.

The 21.5-inch model ships in November, and will set you back $1,299 for a 2.7GHz Core i5, 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive; pony up for the 27-inch model at $1,799 and you’ll get a 2.9GHz Core i5 as well as the same memory and storage. Apple’s larger iMac doesn’t ship until December, however, which will give some impulse buyers at least a brief respite.

For more coverage, visit our Apple Special Event hub!

Continue reading Apple unveils next-generation iMac with slimmer design and Ivy Bridge, starting at $1,299

Filed under: Desktops, Apple

Apple unveils next-generation iMac with slimmer design and Ivy Bridge, starting at $1,299 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Oct 2012 13:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Back during CES 2012, I had a chance to go hands-on with Vizio’s sexy new all-in-one PCs, and I was quite impressed with the industrial design, build quality and overall value at the time. With the impending release of Microsoft Windows 8, Vizio has announced two new AIO PCs with full 1080p touchscreen displays.

This only makes sense, given Microsoft’s touch-friendly user interface that’s the front doorway to Windows 8. What’s really cool is that these are actual capacitive-touch displays, allowing for full 10-finger input. I personally have an HP Touchsmart that used the older infrared sensing tech, and multitouch was limited to just 2 fingers – and not so good at that. This sort of display will provide the type of swiping, stretching and pinching interactions you’re used to on tablets and smartphones.

The systems are available with 3rd-generation Intel Core CPUs, and NVIDIA Kepler-Class GeForce GPUs for speedy graphic rendering. The 24″ comes with a Core i3-3110M running at 2.4GHz and 4GB RAM and a 500GB hard drive, while the 27″ comes with a speedy quad core i7-3630M, also at 2.4GHz and 8GB RAM. The 27″ system bumps up to a 1TB hard drive and has a small 32GB SSD built-in to cache OS and speed up the system even more. Both have GigE ports and 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi.

Each has dual HDMI inputs for connecting external devices like a PS3, Xbox 360 or a satellite receiver, and a 2.1 sound system with an included 6-watt subwoofer that doubles as the system’s power supply. Best of all, Vizio continues to ship their machines with Microsoft Signature – which ensures that you only get the core operating system and anti-virus software – with no pre-installed crapware you’d just have to remove anyway.

The Vizio All-in-One Touch PCs start at $999 and top out at $1539 (USD), and available in both 24″ and 27″ screen sizes. If you’re looking for an alternative to a pricey iMac, you should definitely check these out. They’re not yet available for pre-order, but should be in time for the 2012 holiday season. You’ll also be able to find select configurations at major retailers including Walmart, Sam’s Club, Amazon.com and MicrosoftStore.com.

Xi3, a company that has been designing tiny modular computers for a couple years now, is hitting up Kickstarter to gain funding for all-new modular units that will be more powerful than the company’s previous builds. Xi3 is looking to manufacturer two different models, one for budget-minded users and the other for power users. Both of these computers will be roughly the size of a grapefruit and will be powerful enough to act as a full-blown desktop computer.

We first heard from Xi3 back in November 2010, when they initially unveiled their modular computer, and they later showed the device off at CES 2011. Now, the company is running a Kickstarter campaign through the end of the month to try and get at least $250,000 in funding to start producing two new models. This marks the first time that desktop computers are getting crowd-funded.

The X3A will be the company’s budget modular PC, which will run a 1.65GHz dual-core processor and boast 4GB of RAM with at least 32GB of SSD storage (up to 1TB). If Xi3 meets their funding goals, the X3A is expected to ship this January for a price starting at $499. The company’s more-powerful model, the X7A, will feature up to a 3.2GHz quad-core processor with 4GB-8GB of RAM and at least 64GB of SSD storage (up to 1TB as well). This model is expected to ship in February for a starting price of $1,100.

Xi3 is looking to completely change the computer market forever with these new modular machines. Not only are they wanting to shake things up by introducing a completely new type of computer, but the smaller devices are also meant to cut down on the amount of materials that are used in traditional computers. By turning a full-blown PC into a small package the size of a softball, Xi3 is looking help the environment by cutting back on building materials and saving electricity.

Xi3 hits Kickstarter to fund X3A, X7A modular computers is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
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