Hasta La Gadget! Page not found

Oct 06

Kohjinsha dual-screen swivel netbook prototype hands-on

Posted in: AMD, ceatec, Features, hands-on, HandsOn, netbook, prototype, Today's Chili

Sure, gScreen is slowly mastering the art of grainy video teasers with its dual-panel portable, but here at its CEATEC booth, Kohjinsha’s got quite a looker of its own, on display in a very clear and well-lit case. We’re looking at two 10.1-inch LCDs each capable of outputting at either 1024 x 600 or 1366 x 768 resolution, and if one is all you need, it’s a sliding mechanism to hide the other monitor. What’s more, the base of it swivels, although we didn’t get to see it twist behind 15 degrees so we’re not sure the extent of its flexibility. Powering the DirectX 10-compatible little guy is an AMD Athlon MV-40, along with a 2.5-inch SATA HDD, up to 4GB DDR2 memory, and Windows 7 Home Premium, all for a hair under four pounds. There is a bit of bulk in its height, about 1.7 inches at its tallest and 0.75 inches at its shortest, but that’s something we’re willing to live with considering the value we’re getting with the screens. The rep we spoke with says it’s still in prototype phase at this point with no price or release date on the books, unfortunately, and the battery life is something of a mystery — we can’t imagine powering two bright displays is doing its energy reserves any favor. Video after the break.

Gallery: Kohjinsha dual panel netbook prototype hands-on

Continue reading Kohjinsha dual-screen swivel netbook prototype hands-on

Filed under: Laptops

Kohjinsha dual-screen swivel netbook prototype hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 06 Oct 2009 06:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sep 30

ATI Radeon HD 5850 provides scorching performance for a relative pittance

Posted in: AMD, ati, radeon, review, Today's Chili

When the covers were slipped off the HD 5870 last week, what emerged was the new champ in graphics performance that could also boast a pretty aggressive price to performance ratio. The only question left for many was whether the slightly hamstrung version of the same Cypress chip, the HD 5850, would be able to offer even better value for money. With a suggested retail price of $259, lower power consumption under load and a shorter circuit board to cram into your case, the 5850 certainly appeals to the more sensible end of the graphics card market. All we really need to say is that Editor’s Choice awards rained down upon this thing like they were going out of style — so take a deep breath and hit the links below to plunge into the bar chart-intensive analysis.

Read – Hot Hardware review
Read – HardOCP review
Read – Hexus review
Read – PC Perspective review
Read – Tech Report review
Read – Legit Reviews review

Filed under: Desktops

ATI Radeon HD 5850 provides scorching performance for a relative pittance originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 03:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sep 23

ATI Radeon HD 5870 blazes onto the scene, receives approving nods

Posted in: AMD, ati, breaking news, BreakingNews, GraphicsCard, radeon, review, Today's Chili

Watch out now — the evergreen revolution has arrived, right on schedule and with the promised DirectX 11 and Eyefinity in tow. AMD’s new flagship graphics part, formerly known under the Cypress codename, is built on a 40nm process, sports an appropriately inflated 850MHz engine clock speed, 1600 stream processors, 153.6GBps memory bandwidth, over two billion transistors, and the freshly minted HD 5870 moniker. There’ll be a HD 5850 as well, which makes do with a 725MHz core clock, 1440 stream processors and slightly slower (or is it just less fast?) GDDR5 memory as well, but only the headline device has been made available to reviewers, so let’s see what they thought.

HardOCP whipped out their special Gold Award for the ocassion, noting that it “doubles performance, yet remains within the same power envelope.” The Tech Report crew agreed wholeheartedly, commending the “admirably low” power draw, noise levels and GPU temperatures. In fact, a pretty universal consensus shows that the new card spanks everything else out there in terms of performance, and makes a very compelling value proposition — a significant feat for a card that’s aimed at the usually less price-conscious enthusiast market. Hit up the read links below to revel in the full glorious details.

Show full PR text

AMD Changes the Game with ATI Radeon[TM] HD 5800 Series DirectX(R) 11-Compliant Graphics Cards, Harnessing the Most Powerful Processor Ever Created
World’s Most Advanced Graphics Processor Allows Consumers to Expand, Accelerate and Dominate Their PC Experience with First Full Support for Microsoft DirectX 11
SUNNYVALE, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–AMD (NYSE: AMD) today launched the most powerful processor ever created1, found in its next-generation ATI Radeon[TM] HD 5800 series graphics cards, the world’s first and only to fully support Microsoft DirectX(R) 11, the new gaming and compute standard shipping shortly with Microsoft Windows(R) 7 operating system. Boasting up to 2.72 TeraFLOPS of compute power, the ATI Radeon[TM] HD 5800 series effectively doubles the value consumers can expect of their graphics purchases, delivering twice the performance-per-dollar of previous generations of graphics products. AMD will initially release two cards: the ATI Radeon HD 5870 and the ATI Radeon HD 5850, each with 1GB GDDR5 memory. With the ATI Radeon[TM] HD 5800 series of graphics cards, PC users can expand their computing experience with ATI Eyefinity multi-display technology, accelerate their computing experience with ATI Stream technology, and dominate the competition with superior gaming performance and full support of Microsoft DirectX(R) 11, making it a “must-have” consumer purchase just in time for Microsoft Windows(R) 7 operating system.
“With the ATI Radeon HD 5800 series of graphics cards driven by the most powerful processor on the planet, AMD is changing the game, both in terms of performance and the experience,” said Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager, Products Group, AMD. “As the first to market with full DirectX 11 support, an unmatched experience made possible with ATI Eyefinity technology, and ATI Stream technology harnessing open standards designed to help make Windows 7 that much better, I can say with confidence that AMD is the undisputed leader in graphics once more.”
Dominate your competition with Microsoft DirectX(R) 11 support
With the ATI Radeon[TM] HD 5800 series of graphics cards, gamers will enjoy gaming supremacy and the ultimate advantage, realizing incredible HD gaming performance and the most engaging experience possible with DirectX(R) 11 gaming done right:
* Designed and built for purpose: Modeled on the full DirectX 11 specifications, the ATI Radeon HD 5800 series of graphics cards delivers up to 2.72 TeraFLOPS of compute power in a single card, translating to superior performance in the latest DirectX 11 games, as well as in DirectX 9, DirectX 10, DirectX 10.1 and OpenGL titles in single card configurations or multi-card configurations using ATI CrossFireX[TM] technology. When measured in terms of performance experienced in some of today’s most popular games, the ATI Radeon HD 5800 series is up to twice as fast as the closest competing product in its class,5 allowing gamers to enjoy incredible new DirectX 11 games – including the forthcoming DiRT[TM]2 from Codemasters, and Aliens vs. Predator[TM] from Rebellion, and updated version of The Lord of the Rings Online[TM] and Dungeons and Dragons Online(R) Eberron Unlimited[TM] from Turbine – all in stunning detail with incredible frame rates.
* Generations ahead of the competition: Building on the success of the ATI Radeon[TM] HD 4000 series products, the ATI Radeon HD 5800 series of graphics cards is two generations ahead of DirectX 10.0 support, and features 6th generation evolved AMD tessellation technology, 3rd generation evolved GDDR5 support, 2nd generation evolved 40nm process technology, and a feature-rich compute shader, all geared towards delivering the best gaming experience money can buy.
* The ultimate in game compatibility: The DirectX 11 API was developed on AMD graphics hardware and represents the cornerstone of DirectX 11 gaming. All initial DirectX 11 games were developed and/or continue to be developed on AMD DirectX 11 hardware. With more than 20 DirectX 11 games currently in development, this innate optimization for ATI Radeon graphics cards, in combination with monthly ATI Catalyst[TM] driver releases, help ensure a stable, reliable and high-performance experience for the latest games.
Accelerate with ATI Stream technology
With the ATI Radeon HD 5800 series of graphics card, PC users can unleash Windows 7 and realize the potential of a better computing experience to help do more with their PC:
* Harness the home supercomputer: One ATI Radeon HD 5870 graphics card would have been one of the top 10 supercomputers in the world just six years ago – today that same processing power can be found in your home PC, working with high-performance CPUs to deliver a superior experience.
* Windows(R) 7 done right: Windows 7 is the first compute-capable operating system and the ATI Radeon HD 5800 series of graphics cards with ATI Stream technology accelerate it like nothing else, being the first and only card to support DirectCompute 11.
* Create and do more, faster than ever before with ATI Stream technology: Enjoy new features, functionality and improved performance in top media, entertainment and productivity applications made possible by ATI Stream technology.6
* Most expansive support of industry standards: The ATI Radeon HD 5800 of graphics cards fully support both DirectX 11 and OpenCL, ensuring broad application support now and the future.
Expand the PC experience with ATI Eyefinity multi-display technology
Enjoy multi-monitor computing with seamless enablement of the biggest game environments ever seen:
* The ultimate in seamless flexibility: Arrange one to three displays using the ATI Radeon[TM] HD 5870 and ATI Radeon[TM] HD 5850 graphics cards, or up to six displays using the forthcoming ATI Radeon[TM] HD 5870 Eyefinity6 graphics card, in a variety of configurations – any mix of portrait or landscape.
* See them before they see you: Unlock the potential of multi-monitor gaming at up to 12 x full HD resolution, the largest game environments ever displayed.10 Experience more visual detail and expanded battlefields that your gaming competitors may lack.
* Enjoy visual computing in eye-definition: Virtually obsolete scrolling by taking advantage of vast desktop real estate to put more information at your fingertips. Enjoy the best of today’s latest visually-enhanced online applications – social networking, video conferencing, video entertainment, and satellite imagery – all in stunning detail.
Ecosystem support
* The ATI Radeon[TM] HD 5800 series of graphics cards is supported by a dozen add-in-board companies, including ASUS, Club 3D, Diamond Multimedia, Force3D, GIGABYTE, HIS (Hightech Information Systems), MSI, Multimedia, PowerColor, SAPPHIRE Technology, VisionTek and XFX.
Supporting Quotes
“By incorporating the ATI Radeon[TM] HD 5870 graphics processor’s revolutionary DirectX 11 and ATI Eyefinity multi-monitor capabilities into the Alienware desktop gaming system, Dell Gaming continues to lead the industry in delivering performance, immersion and visual experience levels that shatter all previous limitations,” said Arthur Lewis, head of Dell gaming group.
“I had high expectations of AMD’s new DirectX 11 GPUs, but nothing really prepared me for the breathtaking experience that I’m now enjoying,” said Dirk Ringe, vice president, EA Phenomic. “Frame rates are so silky-smooth at ultra high-resolutions, even with all effects turned to max, that the new hardware makes previous hardware look like a quaint antique! The quality of the rendering in BattleForge is something that I used to dream about only a year ago – and the flexibility and power of DirectCompute 11 opens our eyes to a multitude of new possibilities. We applaud AMD’s and Microsoft’s vision in creating the DirectX 11 API and this amazing new hardware and we can say without hesitation that it represents the future of gaming.”
“We were simply astonished by the performance of the DirectCompute 11 hardware in AMD’s DirectX 11 GPUs,” said Ruslan Didenko, project lead, GSC Gameworld. “By meeting the full DirectX 11 hardware spec AMD has created a beast of a GPU that is light years ahead of its DirectX 10.1 and DirectX 10 predecessors. We strongly recommend a full-on DirectX 11 GPU from AMD as very simply the best way to experience our stunning new game, S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat. A vision of loveliness, in every gut-wrenching detail!”

“Trinigy remains committed to supporting the game development industry with top-notch game engine technology that combines efficiency, creative freedom and performance,” said Dag Frommhold, managing director at Trinigy. “We’re extremely excited to be working with AMD to support their DirectX 11 graphics processors. AMD’s quality drivers and hardware complement our commitment to game developers perfectly by empowering them to produce higher-level in-game graphics than ever before.”

Read – Hot Hardware review
Read – AnandTech review
Read – Driver Heaven review
Read – HardOCP review
Read – Hexus review
Read – PC Perspective review
Read – Tech Report review
Read – Legit Reviews

Filed under: Desktops

ATI Radeon HD 5870 blazes onto the scene, receives approving nods originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 Sep 2009 04:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sep 21

AMD to bring six-core ‘Thuban’ processor to the consumer realm

Posted in: AMD, processor, Today's Chili

Look out, Intel — six cores are mightier than four, don’tcha know? Shortly after introducing a six-core processor in the server sector, AMD is reportedly angling to issue a hexa-core chip over on the consumer side. The chip maker has confirmed to Maximum PC that a six-core slab of silicon (codenamed Thuban) will be released in 2010, with the real kicker being that it’ll be fully backwards compatible with existing AM3 and AM2+ mainboards. It’ll be based on 45nm process technology and will boast an integrated DDR3 controller, 3MB of L2 cache and 6MB of L3 cache, and while the outfit wouldn’t confirm, word on the street has it that the final product will sport a Phenom II X6 moniker. So, Core i9 — what have you to say now?

Filed under: Desktops

AMD to bring six-core ‘Thuban’ processor to the consumer realm originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 21 Sep 2009 21:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sep 16

AMD pops out sub-$100 quad-core Athlon II X4 CPU: review roundup

Posted in: AMD, processor, roundup, Today's Chili

AMD has always been one to play the pricing card in its never-ending tussle with Intel, but we get the feeling this introduction may pack more of a punch than any before it. It’s a simple concept — the $99 quad-core CPU — and given just how in love we Americans are with value menus, you can bet new PC builders will at least give the new Athlon II X4 620 ($99) and 630 ($122) a look. Reviews around the web essentially came to the same conclusion: it’s not the fastest quad-core chip around, and the lack of L3 certainly doesn’t make it the most attractive, but the 620 somehow manages to compete with all of the processors in its price range while being the cheapest. The “cut-down Phenom II,” as HotHardware calls it, suffers a bit on the gaming side due to the L3 removal, but in general scenarios it was plenty potent. Hit the links below if you feel like digging in way, way deeper.

Read – HotHardware
Read – TechSpot
Read – MaximumPC
Read – PC Perspective
Read – TweakTown
Read – PC Pro
Read – AMD Zone

Filed under: Desktops

AMD pops out sub-$100 quad-core Athlon II X4 CPU: review roundup originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Sep 2009 08:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sep 15

MSI ships 12.1-inch, Athlon Neo-equipped Wind U210

Posted in: AMD, available, msi, netbook, now shipping, NowShipping, Today's Chili

MSI’s Wind U210 has certainly been making the rounds, but it has yet to plant its feet firmly on US soil. Until today, obviously. Checking in at 3.2 pounds, this 12.1-inch netbook is equipped with a larger-than-usual 1,366 x 768 display, AMD’s 1.6GHz Athlon Neo MV-40 processor, 2GB of DDR2 RAM, a 250GB hard drive and a 6-cell battery that’s reportedly good for four hours of usage. The rig’s also packing an ATI Radeon X1250 in the graphics department, a 1.3 megapixel webcam, HDMI output, three USB 2.0 sockets, a VGA port and a 4-in-1 multicard reader. For those interested in buying a Vista-equipped machine just a month before Windows 7 swoops in to save the day, both Amazon and NewEgg would be more than happy to make your wallet $430 lighter.

Gallery: MSI ships 12.1-inch, Athlon Neo-equipped Wind U210

Continue reading MSI ships 12.1-inch, Athlon Neo-equipped Wind U210

Filed under: Laptops

MSI ships 12.1-inch, Athlon Neo-equipped Wind U210 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Sep 2009 17:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sep 14

HP MS200 all-in-one barely putters past nettop status, saves face with Windows 7

Posted in: AMD, Features, hands-on, HP, nettop, Today's Chili

An AMD Athlon X2 3250e Dual-Core Processor clocked at 1.5GHz isn’t going to be churning through the next Pixar masterpiece anytime soon, but it might just make for a passable (and certainly cheap) all-in-one PC in HP’s new MS200. HP has paired the chip with 2GB of RAM, a 320GB HDD, DVD burner and ATI integrated graphics (which wasn’t running Aero when we spotted this thing) and a fairly low resolution 18.5-inch LCD. The upside is of course the $599 pricetag, but you’ll have to wait until October 22 to buy and behold the glorious visions of Windows 7. PR is after the break.

Gallery: HP Pavilion MS200 press shots

Gallery: HP MS200 hands-on

Continue reading HP MS200 all-in-one barely putters past nettop status, saves face with Windows 7

Filed under: Desktops

HP MS200 all-in-one barely putters past nettop status, saves face with Windows 7 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sep 14

OTOY uses AMD GPUs, black magic to put Crysis on iPhone

Posted in: AMD, Apple, iPhone, Today's Chili

No need to dust off your spectacles — Crysis on the iPhone has been achieved. Just last week we took a peek at the graphical enhancements on the iPhone 3GS, but this demonstration didn’t rely on the factory goods from Apple. Instead, a recent OTOY demonstration put to use some of AMD’s newest GPU technology in order to play back one of the leading-edge 3D titles on a smartphone. In short, OTOY renders the game on remote servers and then sends information to a recipient; needless to say, an HDTV displayed all sorts of artifacts, but on a screen that’s just a few inches large, those flaws become invisible. So, is this really the killer app to supplant Apple’s own App Store for gaming on the iPhone? We get the feeling OTOY needs at least few clean-cut commercials with little-known underground music before they can bank on that.

[Via SlashGear]

Filed under: Cellphones, Gaming, Handhelds

OTOY uses AMD GPUs, black magic to put Crysis on iPhone originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Sep 2009 21:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sep 11

Video: ATI Radeon Eyefinity eyes-on, featuring Left 4 Dead on a 175-inch display

Posted in: AMD, ati, Features, hands-on, HandsOn, monitor, radeon, Today's Chili, video

Vision rebranding wasn’t AMD’s only big unveil yesterday, as the company had on display a number of different stations for its ATI Radeon Eyefinity technology. Sure, there’s three-monitor Google Earth and airbrushing, but the real kicker, in case you doubted earlier claims that playing Left 4 Dead on three 30-inch screens “absolutely changes the experience for the better,” is footage of the game being playing on a 175-inch display, comprised of six HD projectors and boasting 5,500 x 2,000 pixel resolution. Sure, it’s not the greatest gaming screen we’ve seen, but short of having access to your own football stadium, it’s mighty impressive. See for yourself after the break.

Continue reading Video: ATI Radeon Eyefinity eyes-on, featuring Left 4 Dead on a 175-inch display

Filed under: Desktops, Displays

Video: ATI Radeon Eyefinity eyes-on, featuring Left 4 Dead on a 175-inch display originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 12:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sep 11

Acer Ferrari One hands-on, and more from AMD’s VISION event

Posted in: AMD, ASUS, Features, hands-on, HandsOn, HP, msi, netbook, Today's Chili, Toshiba

Despite the infamous logo and hot red lid, Acer’s Congo-based Ferrari One “ultrathin notebook” (read: netbook) managed to blend in rather well among a number of other laptops (at least 15, by our count) on display at AMD’s VISION event yesterday. The chassis felt pretty sturdy and the keys had the right amount of bounce… and we’d love to tell you more, but like all but a handful of portables on display, it was resolved to play the same video over and over again, refusing to acknowledge our key-pressed directives. We also decided to take snapshots of the entire display lineup, although more than a few here are previously-seen models — it was pretty much just a rebranding, after all. See them all for yourself in the galleries below!

Gallery: Acer Ferrari One hands-on