Alienware announced today that it has “reinvigorated” its flagship gaming desktop. The desktop can now be configured with the latest Intel Core i7 processors, an Extreme Edition option is available as well, touting as many as six cores and 15MB of cache while pushing overclock speeds up to 4.3GHz with Turbo Boost technology. These options come as part and parcel of the new Ivy Bridge-E processors that Intel announced today at the IDF 2013.
That’s not all, the Aurora gaming desktop is now also available with the latest NVIDIA GeFore 700 series and AMD 8900 series graphics. Both options provide immersive experience, be it on multiple or 3D displays or those packing more resolution than 1080p. There are four internal drive bays in which users can add additional hard drives or solid state drives, support for quad-channel DDR3 memory is also present. The entry level Alienware Aurora configuration offers 2 terabytes of on-board storage apart from an overclocked Intel Core i7-4820K Ivy Bridge-E processor and an NVIDIA GeFore GTX760 graphics card. This rig can be yours for $1,399, its available starting today from Dell.com, along with additional configurations.
The Intel Developer Forum 2013 takes place between September 10th and September 12th at the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco, California. The agenda includes keynotes, technical sessions and technology showcases. Intel is expected to unveil the Bay Trail-T platform at the IDF. According to new report from the infamous trade publication Digitimes, the chip maker will also be unveiling the high-end Ivy Bridge-E series processors at IDF 2013, this according to sources from “PC players.”
Asus, Lenovo and Acer are expected to showcase their Bay Trail-T based tablets at the event. As far as the high-end Ivy Bridge-E processors are concerned, sources say that they will not be locked to “satisfy” users’ overclocking needs. The Ivy Bridge-E based 6-core 3.6Ghz Core i7-4960X, 3.4GHz Core i7-4930K and quadcore 3.7GHz Core i7-4820K are rumored to be released. These three processors will reportedly adopt the LGA 2011 socket and will support the X79 chipset, PCI-Express Gen 3.0 and DDR3 memory. The sources cited in the report believe that these new processors might be priced as high as $999. Intel hasn’t said anything as yet regarding these new Ivy Bridge-E processors and its highly unlikely that any official information about pricing and availability will be provided prior to the Intel Developer Forum 2013.
The mini PC has slowly transformed from a novelty to something more useful, meeting a variety of needs and working well as everything from a portable PC to an entertainment system solution offering more features than your standard set-top box. Gigabyte has added a new mini machine to the market, the GB-XM1-3537, more easily known as the BRIX.
Gigabyte boasts that the BRIX is very customizable, allowing buyers to configure however they would like for whatever purposes they require it, whether as a peripheral device or an everyday desktop setup. BRIX most obvious feature is its size, which can fit in the palm of your hand at 30 x 108 x 114mm. You can get an idea about the device’s size by checking out the port-side of the computer in the gallery we have below.
Because of its size and some of the uses a mini PC is tailored towards, the device has a VESA bracket for mounting on the back of a display or on a wall, whichever is preferred in the setup. As far as design goes, the BRIX’s frame is made of anthracite aluminum surrounded by a glass surface chassis, lending it the sheen visible in the image above.
The back of the device is home to six ports: HDMI, Mini DisplayPort, USB 3.0, RJ45, Kensington lock, and the power port/DC-in. There’s another USB 3.0 port on the front of the device, bringing the total number of USB slots to 2. There are also a couple expansion options via a single mSATA slot and a half-sized mini-PCIe slot, which is where the wireless card is located.
As far as internals go, the default option ships with an Intel Core i7 starting at 2GHz, with users having the option of choosing either an Intel Core i3 or i5 instead. There are two DDR3 RAM slots, with the device capable of supporting up to 16GB of memory. Graphics are provided via integrated Intel graphics, and LAN from a Realtek gigabit offering. You can grab one for yourself from select retailers, with the price being dependent on the options you choose.
Unveiled during this year CES, LG’s new sexy Windows tablet, the Tab-Book Ultra Z160 is finally set to arrive in Korea’s store this month. Powered by a Core i3 or i5 the Z160 comes with a 11.6″ IPS touch panel, HDMI out, USB 3.0, a SSD in just 1.25kg and for a thickness of 19.4mm and with a 6.4h battery life. Pretty short on Specs LG did not comment as well on the Z160 exact launch date or price. Still if you are interested in something more powerful than the average Android …
Intel’s Ivy Bridge processor architecture has been kicking it in public for almost a year now, but the new chips weren’t very friendly towards the budget crowd. However, the company finally released new Ivy Bridge processors that cater towards the frugal bunch, including new Celeron, Pentium, and Core dual-core chips.
In total, there are three Celeron CPUs, four Pentiums, and a new Core i3-3210, which all range from $42 to $117. All of the Celeron chips have 2MB of L3 cache, HD integrated graphics, and range from 2.3GHz to 2.7GHz. The Pentiums have 3MB of L3 cache, HD integrated graphics, and clock in from 2.5GHz to 3.2GHz. The Core i3-3210 is the flagship CPU out of the bunch, and it comes with HD 2500 graphics and clocks in at 3.2GHz.
All of these new processors are compatible with Intel’s existing Socket 1155, so there’s no need to upgrade motherboards if you’re looking to downgrade to one of these budget CPUs. However, the Celeron and Pentium chips don’t include hyper-threading, so if you’re looking to get the most performance, the $117 Core i3 might fit the bill.
The best part is, these new chips will be available starting today. We’re not seeing them on retailers’ websites just yet, but it should only be a matter of time. And while the Ivy Bridge architecture won’t last for much longer, we can’t say that it’ll be a huge deal for budget builders looking for a decent CPU at a really great price.
Now that Intel has its efficient and expensive Ivy Bridge microarchitecture in tablets and computers everywhere, it’s decided to launch a budget-friendly line of processors which use the same 22nm manufacturing process. More »
Was Sony’s Tap 20 too small for you? Then what about a gorgeous 27″ Lenovo then? Yep you are reading this right, Lenovo announced today the IdeaCenter Horizon a gorgeous 27″ 10 point multi-touch screen (Full HD) that comes with a Ivy Bridge Core i7, an Nvidia GeForce GT 620M, WiFi N, USB 3.0, Optional SSD and an Internal Battery that will give you up to 2h of battery life for just 1699 USD. Sure this new IdeaCentre Horizon may not be for everyone but if developers start …
Not so long ago, mobile processors from Intel had thermal design points (TDP) of 45W. TDP designates the energy that the chip and its cooling system are designed to dissipate. It is not really a measure of power draw, but both are correlated because dissipating more heat, means that more energy is consumed to produce that heat. (more…)
The larger of the two big-hitters in the Acer Aspire S7 series Ultrabooks sits here on our desk like a high-powered glass-covered knife, ready to bring the best we’ve seen in touchscreen-toting Windows 8-optimized notebook action to the market. This machine has been delivered to our doorstep in its most powerful configuration, all $1,649 USD of it – complete with a 3rd Generation (Ivy Bridge) Intel Core i7-3517U Processor clocked in at 1.9GHz. The 13.3-inch display here is a beastly Full HD 1920 x 1080 pixel resolution widescreen CineCrystal LED-backlit bit of technology with 10 finger touch and a 16:6 aspect ratio. Now we’ve got to see if this is enough to match up with that price – or if after all is said and done, the price will be the last of your thoughts in this next-generation experience!
Hardware
This machine works with a set of two USB 3.0 ports, one micro-HDMI-out port, a combo headphone/mic jack, and a DC-in jack for your power cord. On the right you’ve got a dual memory card reader for SD and MMC, and also included in the box you’ve got a couple of adapter cords, one made for VGA output, the other allowing you to use an Ethernet cord (USB to RJ-45). The camera up front is a 1.3 megapixel HD webcam able to pick up 1280 x 1024 for video chat, the battery inside is a 4-cell lithium polymer at 4680mAh, and you’ve got 4096MB DDR3 dual-channel memory (4GB onboard memory) as well as Intel HD Graphics 4000 to keep that massively dense display high-powered.
This machine works with Optimized Dolby Home Theater v4 audio enhancements with two built-in stereo speakers and high-definition audio support. There’s also a built-in digital microphone for use with your video chat adventures, and under the hood you’ve got a lovely 256GB SSD drive as well. The touchpad is what Acer calls their “ZoomPerfect” unit with single and multi-finger scroll action – that’s up to 5 fingers to scroll, pinch, rotate, flip, and the like.
Weighing in at 2.86 lbs / 1.3kg and measuring in at 17.2″ W x 3.58″ D x 10.67″ H (437mm W x 91mm D x 271mm H), you’ll find this mix of metal and glass to be a joy to use – and to look at. When you open it and feel the unique edges around the touchscreen as well as the Gorilla Glass top, you’ll find yourself dually impressed. This machine is an Acer triumph without a doubt in its hardware build – the aesthetics alone make this easily one of the most beautifully full-looking notebooks on the market – and not just in the Windows 8 category.
The machine folds down to a thinness that’s straight up surprising, making it opening it for the first time an experience that may very well have you skipping the pleasantries and kicking your pocketbook out immediately. But you’ll want to take heed: there are some drawbacks to such a thin beast with a display that’s both touch-capable and incredible sharp, not to mention bright as you could possible want it to be. Battery life – as I’m sure you’re wondering about – will betray you if you’re expecting to go more than 4 hours at full-blast high-action video streaming and interactive touchscreen gaming.
But if you’re a realist and never go anywhere with your notebook computer without a power cord anyway, you’re going to have a bit more difficult a time finding reasons not to want this machine. Of course the price is always going to be a factor here in our present when it’s above $1,600 USD. That’s a massive price for a computer, especially if you only plan on using it to impress your friends and surf the web. That’s not what this computer is made for.
Instead you’re going to want to focus on what you get for the price. Acer has created a masterpiece for the Windows 8 generation. This is the computer Steve Ballmer should be carrying around to show off what Windows 8 can do – it’s that slick.
Peruse the rest of the reviews of this machine as they appear popping up across the web over the next few weeks and see where the low points are – you’ll find many folks saying the price is prohibitive while the rest suggest that the battery life in any notebook should be 6 hours or more. First you should know that we’ve gotten 5+ hours out of the device on multiple heavy-use occasions – great by your average user’s standards. Next you’ll be glad to hear that standby time for this notebook is undeniably great – Acer assures that with “Acer Hybrid Standby Technology” you’ll be able to get 80 days of standby power: that’s intense, and we’ve not seen any evidence yet to suggest they’re telling us anything less than the truth there with months of up-time. These “low points” are completely forgivable for what Acer is presenting here in the Autumn of 2012.
Software
The 10-finger touchscreen you’re working with here includes some software enhancements – most of them aesthetic – that make your Windows 8 experience the best we’ve seen thus far. You get tiny momentarily-visible transparent dots wherever you tap the screen, and as you move your fingers around, you get ghostly trails from your fingertips, allowing you to instantly understand how your tips are touching and moving. Having used several touchscreen PCs before the dawn of Windows 8, we can safely say that this is a major leap forward in real-world usability, without a doubt.
Have a peek also at our full Windows 8 review to see exactly what we’re dealing with here, with a few additions that include mostly new apps and security measures from Acer. You’ve got Acer Theft Shield, Acer Cloud, Acer Backup Manager, ePower Management, and eRecovery Management, and a whole lot more. For the most part, Acer’s additions to the basic Windows 8 build include connections to their own ecosystem – most of which are entirely positive and worth the effort you’ll be using to attach yourself.
System – Acer Aspire S7-391
Manufacturer
Acer
Product Type
Notebook
Operating System
Microsoft Windows 8 (64-bit)
Motherboard
Acer Storm
Processor
Intel Core i7-3517U
Processor ID
GenuineIntel Family 6 Model 58 Stepping 9
Processor Frequency
2.39 GHz
Processors
1
Threads
4
Cores
2
L1 Instruction Cache
32.0 KB
L1 Data Cache
32.0 KB
L2 Cache
256 KB
L3 Cache
4.00 MB
Memory
3.82 GB DDR3 SDRAM 666MHz
FSB
99.8 MHz
BIOS
Insyde Corp. V2.05
You’ll be using your touchpad here in combination with the touch screen, but you’ll be able to use one or the other exclusively if you’re up for it. There’s an on-screen touch keyboard you can use if for some reason you want to move your hands up 4 inches above your perfectly capable physical keyboard, and the touchscreen isn’t necessarily required, so to speak, for anything if you don’t want to. You also get a Bluetooth mouse with the package if you’re feeling like some standard plastic mouse action – it’s standard, and certainly usable, but not a whole lot more than that. The physical keyboard also uses the computer’s light sensing abilities to keep your eyes happy, with backlighting activating as the atmosphere dims.
If you have trouble with “setting up” your computer, you can refer to the included “Setup Poster” included in the box, or you can use your Wireless Setup Card too – Acer has made the process simpler than ever before here – strange since the process includes no more than a few button taps and maybe even a connection with password to your wireless network. Important point here is that it’s simple enough for your parents to do themselves – really!
Have a peek at our standard benchmarking results here with Geekbench and feel the power – it’s a top of the line experience whether you’re cruising through your newest massively power-hungry game or viewing your favorite HD feature film.
Benchmark Score – Acer Aspire S7-391
Section
Description
Score
Total Score
Windows x86 (64-bit) – Microsoft Windows 8 (64-bit)
Integer
Processor integer performance
6089
8100
Floating Point
Processor floating point performance
11149
Memory
Memory performance
7016
Stream
Memory bandwidth performance
6638
Sound
The speakers on this machine are good enough for a personal computing experience and accurate even up to their loudest positions. Acer isn’t messing around with the external speaker sound quality here, with two Acer 3DSonic stereo speakers backed up with sound enhancements by Dolby. The fans on this machine, working with Acer TwinAir cooling technology, can get a bit louder than we’d like to hear on a regular basis. It’s not an issue unless you’re working with high-powered gaming or hours and hours of streaming video, and the trade-off is a rather pleasant lap experience – we’ve not felt anything hot going on yet.
Unique Touchscreen Experience
This machine has a hinge that allows it to fold back to 180 degrees – that means you’ll be able to go flat against a table, keyboard and touchscreen included. If you’ve used a machine that folds back further than this, you’ll find yourself feeling a bit limited by the flat-stop. If you’ve only ever used a notebook that folds back to 45 degrees, on the other hand, you’ll be surprised by how often you’ll want to push that screen back further, and further, and further. The viewing angles on the display are also near-perfect, making any angle look as great as the next (unless you count the high-gloss reflection-intense glass, of course).
This will also be a new experience for those of you used to using a tablet computer exclusively, as it really does combine the notebook and tablet experiences into one. If you’ve ever found yourself tapping your notebook screen after extensive tablet use, you’ll fall right in line with the S7′s experience. Windows 8 and the developers optimizing their applications for touchscreen action here in the first Windows 8 wave of app upgrades make this touch-and-tap combination one we’re really, truly enjoying. Working with the Aspire S7 will make you want to convert to this new universe – it’ll make you want to change and be assimilated.
Wrap-Up
This machine is Acer’s best effort yet. It’s an Ultrabook that makes the Windows 8 experience an enjoyable one – and on a personal note, it’s the first in many moons that’s made certain Apple-exclusive family members of mine think about trying a switch (having seen it at Thanksgiving, of course). You’ll certainly have to weigh the benefits of having this top-class machine in your position against the amount of cash you’re going to have to dish out since it’s certainly not the most budget-minded beast on the market, but after that, it’s all smooth sailing.
As with all of our reviews of products large and small, this is not the end of the review – let us know if there’s anything else you’d like to know about the machine and we’ll do our best to let you know what we know! We’ll continue to test this machine into the future and will let you know if anything ground-shattering changes our experience in any grand way – meanwhile feel free ask any and all questions you may have and make requests to your heart’s content!
We just got more hands-on time with MSI’s S20 Slidebook, which we first spotted at Computex 2012. This ultra light (2.3 pounds / 1kg) and thin (0.78-inches / 19.8mm) convertible Ultrabook runs Windows 8 (naturally) and packs an Intel Core i5 processor (Ivy Bridge), 4GB RAM and a 128GB mSATA SSD. In front, there’s a gorgeous 11.6-inch 1920×1080-pixel IPS display with a 10-point capacitive multitouch layer plus an HD front-facing camera. A glossy white plastic bezel surrounds the glass panel and incorporates the MSI logo and the Windows button. The back cover is made of a silver magnesium alloy with matching plastic antenna covers for the built-in WiFi b/g/n, WiDi and Bluetooth 4.0 radios. Most of the ports are on the right edge along with the power / lock key and LED indicators — this includes the power input, a standard 3.5mm headphone jack, a mini-HDMI output and a pair of USB 3.0 connectors. You’ll find a gigabit Ethernet port on the left side plus an SD card reader, orientation lock button and volume rocker in back.
Of course, what sets the S20 apart is its ability to switch instantly from a tablet into a usable laptop. The screen slides up and tilts forward to reveal a chiclet keyboard with excellent key travel and decent spacing. You’re not limited to any specific angle here — the display is fully adjustable from flat to almost perpendicular with the keyboard. The sealed 3-cell 3900mAh battery is rated for 7 hours of continuous operation. We spent several minutes using the Slidebook and came away pretty impressed — it’s incredibly light for its size, the screen is bright and crisp, and the keyboard is comfortable. Even in prototype form, performance and build-quality are top-notch. MSI plans to make its convertible Ultrabook available late November for $1,099 through major US retailers both online and in stores. The company expects to sell other configurations in other markets as well. Take a look at our gallery below and hit the break for our hands-on video.
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