Second-generation Razer Blade hands-on (update: video)

Razer Blade 20 handson

Razer’s second attempt at a gaming laptop is just as sleek as its first try, and even more powerful. The second-generation Razer Blade — Razer Blade 2.0, we’re calling it — packs some serious hardware: an unannounced Core i7 processor, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660M graphics (a big step up from last year’s GT 555M inclusion), 8GB of 1600MHz DDR3 RAM, a 500GB 7200RPM hard drive, and 64GB of solid state storage. All that hardware is stuffed in a nigh identical aluminum chassis to the first edition, with a 17.3-inch high def screen and the infamous multitouch LCD Switchblade interface (read: that bizarre little touch screen built into the keyboard). And all this for the low, low price of … nearly $2,500. Yikes.

For the savvy, independently wealthy gamer on the go, however, little else on the market compares to Razer’s Blade laptop. The second generation focuses on beefing up the tech specs from last year, and that’s immediately apparent with the inclusion of the Kepler-grade GTX 660M. Not much else is changed in the hardware department otherwise, with the exception of the USB slots all being upgraded to 3.0 — the same LCD touch panel display sits on the right side of the keyboard, and its been bolstered with a new software suite.

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Second-generation Razer Blade hands-on (update: video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Sep 2012 12:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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JEDEC announces final DDR4 RAM specification

JEDEC announces final DDR4 RAM specification

A couple of companies have been jumping the gun on DDR4 production, but the JEDEC Solid State Technology Association is finally bringing order to the industry by releasing its official standard for the next-gen DRAM. It calls for “higher performance, with improved reliability and reduced power” — which we roughly take to mean: less gigs for better rigs. The DDR4 per-pin data rate standard is 1.6 gigatransfers per second (GT/s) at the minimum and 3.2 GT/s at the top-end, although this cap is expected to increase in future updates (given that DDR3 also surpassed its initial target). Speeds will begin at 2133MHz, a significant jump from your average DDR3 stick, and will also operate at lower power thanks to the Pseudo Open Drain Interface. Check out the PR below if you want to delve deeper into the specs, and if even that’s not enough to sate you, head to the source link below to tackle the full documentation. Godspeed!

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JEDEC announces final DDR4 RAM specification originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 26 Sep 2012 10:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Panasonic outs the Let’s Note AX2, a new Hybrid laptop tablet computer

Here you are new, very interesting, Hybrid computer from Panasonic, the Let’s Note AX2 or CF-AX2, a compact 11.6″ (1366×768) notebook that comes with an hybrid design allowing you to turn your computer into a Windows 8 Slate or Tablet. The CF-AX2 come obviously with a 10 finger capacitive touchscreen as well as LTE support thanks to Docomo Xi technology and even WiMax.
By default the CF-AX2 is proposed in two flavors with a Core i7-3517U version that comes with 4GB of RAM a …

MSI makes AMD-laden GX60 gaming laptop official with A10 heart, Radeon HD 7970M graphics

MSI launches GX60 allAMD gaming laptop with A10 processor, Radeon HD 7970M graphics

We can’t say that there’s a huge cross-section of buyers who want a gaming laptop but refuse to touch Intel components. Whatever the size, MSI likely has that group sewn up with the official unveiling of the GX60 following a stealth appearance at Computex. The 15.6-inch portable is built as showcase for AMD’s latest mobile technology: it revolves around a 2.3GHz, quad-core A10-4600M processor using the Piledriver architecture as well as a Radeon HD 7970M to feed its 1080p screen at full speed. Thankfully, the PC is more than just a marketing vehicle and carries some of the gamer-tuned parts that we’ve seen in other MSI rigs, such as dual SSDs in a RAID stripe, a low-lag Killer networking chipset and a heavy-duty SteelSeries keyboard. Buying a GX60 may prove to be the real obstacle — in keeping with most MSI introductions, there’s no mention of a price or ship date, and none of the usual suspects have it in stock as of this writing.

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MSI makes AMD-laden GX60 gaming laptop official with A10 heart, Radeon HD 7970M graphics originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Sep 2012 23:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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N-trig release teases that Fujitsu’s Stylistic Q702 will come with active pen support

Ntrig release teases that Fujitsus Stylistic Q702 will come with active pen

Stylus maven N-trig has revealed that Fujitsu’s Stylistic Q702 laptop/tablet hybrid will be the first to shop with the company’s new G4 DuoSense pen and multi-touch digitizer. As such, it’ll be able to use a new active pen stylus that the company, perhaps unsurprisingly, promises will provide a “pen-on-paper handwriting experience.” Of course, we won’t be able to judge that for ourselves until the units arrive on our doorstep some time after Windows 8 does next month, but rest assured, we’ll be checking.

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N-trig release teases that Fujitsu’s Stylistic Q702 will come with active pen support originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 24 Sep 2012 14:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ideo honors co-founder Bill Moggridge with Galaxy Tab-based Grid laptop

Ideo owners cofounder Bill Moggridge with Galaxy Tabbased GRiD laptop

How to honor your legendary late-co-founder? If you’re Ideo, it involves putting a modern spin on one of his most iconic creations. The design firm is paying tributing to computing pioneer Bill Moggridge with this Grid Compass-based Galaxy Tab dock, which combines the first laptop with Samsung’s slate to add content to a tribute site for the innovator. Like the original Grid, the Tab shows off content with an orange tinge — oh, and the keyboard works and it’ll charge when plugged in. Check out a break down of the Galaxy Grid’s creation in the source link below.

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Ideo honors co-founder Bill Moggridge with Galaxy Tab-based Grid laptop originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Sep 2012 17:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Suitcase Laptop Support Gives You a Standing Desk Wherever You Travel [Laptops]

The next time you’ve got time to kill at the airport—whether at the hands of inclement weather or a never ending security line—you can still stay productive with this laptop stand that turns your suitcase into a miniature office. More »

German prosecution charges HP staff with bribing Russian officials to clinch PC contract

HP prints money

The legal system’s engines can take awhile to get churning, but there’s no questioning the impact when they’re at full bore. German prosecutors have wrapped up an almost three-year investigation into allegations of HP managers’ bribery by charging the executives involved. Hilmar Lorenz, Päivi Tiippana and Ken Willett, along with claimed accomplice Ralf Krippner, have all been indicted for supposedly funneling €7.5 million ($9.7 million) in bribes through a German subsidiary and far-flung shell accounts to land a €35 million ($45.3 million) PC supply deal with Russia’s Prosecutor General Office early in the previous decade. While only the people directly attached to the scandal currently face any consequences if found guilty, German lawyers are motioning to have the PC builder attached to the case, and there’s a chance the formal charges could fuel an ongoing US investigation. HP is cooperating even as it’s trying to distance itself from the indictments as much as possible — these are for old allegations and a “former HP company,” it says. While we don’t yet know the whole story, it may be a protracted tale knowing that at least Tiippana and Willett plan to fight the accusations.

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German prosecution charges HP staff with bribing Russian officials to clinch PC contract originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Sep 2012 10:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HP announces Envy m4 thin-and-light, along with two slimmed-down Sleekbooks

HP announces Pavilion m4 thinandlight, along with two slimmeddown Sleekbooks

Remember the Pavilion m6? It was one of many, many lightweight laptops HP announced last spring. To recap, it didn’t technically fit Intel’s Ultrabook specifications, but it was still quite thin, and offered features not normally found on ultraportables — things like discrete graphics and a subwoofer. In any case, HP is expanding that particular line: it just announced the Envy m4, a 14-inch companion to the 15-inch m6 that went on sale this summer.

Like the m6, it has an aluminum design, along with Beats Audio and a subwoofer. Spec-wise, it’ll be offered with Core i3 and i5 processors, up to 8GB of RAM and either a solid-state drive or up to 1TB of HDD storage. The display resolution is fixed at 1,366 x 768 — typical for mid-range laptops. (Note: only one configuration will be available in the US, though additional variants will be offered in other countries.) Intel Wireless Display is standard, and the battery promises up to eight hours of runtime. It also has a fingerprint reader, which you can use with HP’s SimplePass technology to log into the PC and as well as websites.

Meanwhile, HP added two models to its growing line of Sleekbooks (read: thin-and-light laptops that for whatever reason don’t meet Intel’s Ultrabook requirements). These new models include the Pavilion Sleekbook 14 and 15, which look like the company’s entry-level G series, but are significantly trimmer. The laptops, available in black and red, will be offered with Ivy Bridge chips, optional discrete graphics, 1080p displays, up to 8GB of RAM and up to 1TB of HDD storage. In both cases, the battery life is said to max out at six hours — less than the m4 or most Ultrabooks, but still decent.

Last thing — and this really is apropos of nothing — HP also mentioned in its press release that the existing 11-inch Pavilion dm1 will be offered with an HSPA+ radio capable of running on T-Mobile’s network. HP says it will offer up to 200MB of free data per month, for two years. That deal is effective next month, on October 26th.

The Envy m4 will start at $900 while the Pavilion Sleekbook 14 and 15 will go for $500 and $560, respectively. These, too, will arrive on the 26th, the day Windows 8 launches. For now help yourself to photos galore past the break.

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HP announces Envy m4 thin-and-light, along with two slimmed-down Sleekbooks originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Sep 2012 00:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HP refreshes four of its business PCs with AMD Trinity chips

HP refreshes some of its business PCs with AMD Trinity chips

If you’ve been waiting for some spankin’ new designs for HP’s business machines, we hate to disappoint you, but we’ve only got a spec bump to report here. The company just announced that it’s freshening up its ProBook 4445s, 4446s and 4545s with AMD’s newish Trinity-series APUs. While it was at it, the outfit also announced the Compaq Pro 6305 desktop, which is also powered by AMD’s A-Series chips (the A10, A8, A6 and A4, to be exact). The refreshed ProBook 4545s is available now, starting at $499. (The 4445s and 4446s will only be available in Japan and other Asia-Pacific countries.) Meanwhile, the Compaq Pro 6305 desktop lands October 8th, starting at $539 with both Windows 7 and Win 8 configurations available.

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HP refreshes four of its business PCs with AMD Trinity chips originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Sep 2012 00:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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