Oct 30

NVIDIA ION LE hack adds DirectX 10 support, raises interesting questions

Posted in: hack, mod, nvidia ion, NvidiaIon, speculation, Today's Chili, windows 7, Windows XP, Windows7
If myHPmini forum member runawayprisoner is to be believed (and why not?), rather than featuring some sort of dumbed-down hardware, the sole difference between the NVIDIA ION and the XP-friendly ION LE is that the latter has DirectX 10 support disabled in the device drivers. Indeed, when the full-blown ION drivers are hacked to recognize the ION LE device ID, not only do you get to run DX10, but performance increases markedly as well. Of course, DX10 is Windows 7 only, but you should conceivably be able to take your ION LE machine, install Windows 7 and the driver hack, and get on with your life (and save a few bucks in the process). Why bother with the charade, you ask? Theories abound, but we think it’s a pretty good guess that NVIDIA is merely adhering to Microsoft licensing requirements here, and that in the long run crippling an existing chipset is cheaper than developing an entirely new one for an OS that’s likely to be phased out sooner than later.

[Via SlashGear]

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NVIDIA ION LE hack adds DirectX 10 support, raises interesting questions originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 28

Albatron’s 42 inches of optical touch monitor get examined on video

Posted in: hands-on, monitor, multitouch, screen, Today's Chili, touchscreen, video, windows 7, Windows7

While Dell and HP were busy holding a competition to see who could do a worse job of announcing their new optical multitouch displays, Albatron was crafting away a 42-inch monstrosity to completely steal their thunder. The optical part refers to a pair of CMOS sensors embedded in the bezel which are responsible for touch detection, a cheaper alternative to your typical capacitive and resistive tech, which requires an extra USB connection between the monitor and computer. Although some issues were found with Windows 7’s multitouch implementation, the promise of recognizing more than two fingers with the proper software support and the general responsiveness of the unit whet our appetite for more. Alas, nobody dares speak of a price, but a 1080p 22-inch model is already available for $450, in case you wanted to add to your touchy-feely shortlist. The video after the break contains the hands-on and a little mystery — why is there Bulgarian handwriting on the whiteboard in the background?

Continue reading Albatron’s 42 inches of optical touch monitor get examined on video

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Albatron’s 42 inches of optical touch monitor get examined on video originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 28

MSI’s Wind Top AE2220 all-in-one PC brings 21.6-inch multitouch panel, Win7

Posted in: desktop, msi, multitouch, Today's Chili, windows 7, Windows7

MSI’s Wind Top line seems to be expanding at a breakneck pace, and the latest entry is actually worth bending over backwards to get a look at. Boasting a 21.6-inch multitouch display (1,920 x 1,080 native resolution), the all-in-one desktop also features Windows 7 Home Premium, 4GB of DDR2 memory, a 640GB hard drive, NVIDIA’s GeForce 9300 integrated graphics set (or Ion, if you please), an HDMI output, a bundled wireless keyboard / mouse and your choice of a 2.2GHz Core 2 Duo T6600 or 2.1GHz Pentium T4300 processor. You’ll also get eSATA support, WiFi, a 1.3-megapixel camera and a 6-in-1 card reader. Three versions are up for pre-order right now at Amazon, with the cheapest pegged at $659.99 and the most pricey at $899.99.

[Via Engadget Korea]

Read – MSI’s announcement
Read – Amazon pre-order page

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MSI’s Wind Top AE2220 all-in-one PC brings 21.6-inch multitouch panel, Win7 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 28

Windows 7 receives 7,000 domino salute (video)

Posted in: launch, Microsoft, Today's Chili, video, Windows, windows 7, Windows7

If 7,000 dominoes fall in a forest of cheering Microsoft employees, do they make enough noise for us to care? We don’t usually tell Microsoft how to run its promotions, but a domino installation that takes a full three minutes to topple is pretty much an open invitation for “slow boot-up” jokes, and a climactic finale that revolves around a hot air balloon version of your logo crashing against a glass ceiling might also create the wrong impression. Ah well, these guys are engineers and not choreographers, after all — you can see the fruit of their labor after the break.

[Thanks, Colin]

Continue reading Windows 7 receives 7,000 domino salute (video)

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Windows 7 receives 7,000 domino salute (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 28 Oct 2009 08:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 28

Lenovo’s IdeaPad S12 finally on sale with Windows 7, NVIDIA Ion

Posted in: available, lenovo, netbook, now available, NowAvailable, nvidia ion, NvidiaIon, on sale, OnSale, Today's Chili, windows 7, Windows7

Lenovo made us a promise back in August that the Ion-powered version of its IdeaPad S12 would finally be loosed after the introduction of Windows 7, and lo and behold, that very machine is now available to order directly from the outfit itself. The lone Ion configuration starts at $599, and as predicted, it packs a 1.6GHz N270 processor, Windows 7 Home Premium (32-bit), a 256MB Ion GPU, 2GB of DDR2 memory, a 12.1-inch display (1,280 x 800), a 250GB hard drive, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, WiFi and a six-cell battery. So, if you’ve held on this long, are you finally jumping in now that the opportunity has presented itself?

[Via Mark’s Technology Blog]

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Lenovo’s IdeaPad S12 finally on sale with Windows 7, NVIDIA Ion originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 28 Oct 2009 02:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 27

HP Pavilion dv3 with multitouch screen spotted in the wild, we go hands-on

Posted in: europe, Features, hewlett-packard, HP, laptop, multitouch, notebook, Today's Chili, touchscreen, uk, windows 7, Windows7
Our curious British fingers managed to stumble upon a European HP Pavilion dv3 blessed with Windows 7 and multitouch on both the screen and the trackpad. The keyboard was great to type on with negligible flex, but the trackpad suffers from the same glossy issues on other recent HPs — although it responded to our multitouch gestures better than the capacitive screen did. Our major annoyance came from the attempts to rotate pictures on the screen: we learned the hard way that the laptop (or Windows 7 itself) seemed to prefer more exaggerated rotation gestures than the MacBooks — perhaps one would get used to it over time. The hinge is fairly solid, but we still preferred holding the screen while touching it. On a brighter note we totally dig the inclusion of an HDMI port and an eSATA port, plus you’ll get up to seven hours of sweet battery juice from this 2.24kg (4.94 pounds) machine. Read on for our hands-on video and photo gallery.

Continue reading HP Pavilion dv3 with multitouch screen spotted in the wild, we go hands-on

HP Pavilion dv3 with multitouch screen spotted in the wild, we go hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 27 Oct 2009 19:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 27

Intel pulls SSD Toolbox for killing drives under Windows 7

Posted in: intel, SSD, Today's Chili, windows 7, Windows7

Well, that was a short honeymoon — Intel’s now pulled its SSD Toolbox and associated TRIM firmware update amid reports that it was bricking drives under Windows 7. We haven’t heard more than anecdotal evidence about this, but we’d definitely pick having a functional drive over the promised 40 percent speed boost from the code, so you should probably hold off if you’ve downloaded but haven’t updated yet. We’re looking into things, we’ll let you know — but man, the X-25M just hasn’t had an easy life, has it?

Update: Intel just gave us its official statement on the matter:

Yes, we have been contacted by users with issues with the firmware upgrade for our 34nm SSDs and we are investigating. We take all sightings and issues seriously and are working toward resolution. We have temporarily taken down the firmware link while we investigate.

[Thanks, Joseph and Ty]

Read – Former SSD Toolbox download page
Read – Intel support forum page

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Intel pulls SSD Toolbox for killing drives under Windows 7 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 26

Microsoft ditches Family Guy special… for being Family Guy

Posted in: ad, ads, advertising, Microsoft, Today's Chili, Windows, windows 7, Windows7

Face? Meet palm. Microsoft’s decided to pull out of its co-sponsoring of “Family Guy Presents: Seth & Alex’s Almost Live Comedy Show” after execs attending the taping came to the sudden conclusion that Family Guy-caliber jokes were to be told, tackling such topics as “deaf people, the Holocaust, feminine hygiene and incest.” We’re not sure how 10 years and over 120 episodes of offensive precedence bypassed Redmond’s radars, but man, that’s gotta be some strong personal bubble. A Microsoft representative said of the taping, “it became clear that the content was not a fit with the Windows brand.” The show will still air November 8th, pre-recorded Microsoft references in tow, but with a new as-of-yet unnamed sponsor. All we have of the now-doomed partnership is this brief video from the Windows “741” student site — it’s after the break.

[Via The Raw Feed]

Continue reading Microsoft ditches Family Guy special… for being Family Guy

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Microsoft ditches Family Guy special… for being Family Guy originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 26 Oct 2009 18:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 26

eviGroup’s Pad is a 10-inch 3G tablet with personality

Posted in: handheld, MID, tablet, Today's Chili, touchscreen, windows 7, Windows7

Time to freshen up the old netbook market with a dash of Windows 7, a pinch of touchscreen functionality, and a generous helping of… Seline10? eviGroup, the crew responsible for the attractive 5-inch Wallet MID, has announced the 10.2-inch Pad, whose pièce de résistance is the Seline10 artificial intelligence software that’s been in development for a decade, if you can believe it. Its purpose is to act as your secretary / assistant, and while the novelty’s good, we all know how well Clippy worked out. Fret not though, it’s just an optional extra and shouldn’t detract from the appeal of a device that offers 3G and a/b/g WiFi connectivity, one VGA and three USB ports, multicard reader, webcam, microphone, and the old faithful 1.6GHz of Atom power. A price of under €500 is being touted, with further details set to emerge over the coming days.

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eviGroup’s Pad is a 10-inch 3G tablet with personality originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 26 Oct 2009 14:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 26

Lenovo gets official with Win7-powered IdeaPad and IdeaCentre machines

Posted in: desktop, laptop, lenovo, netbook, Today's Chili, windows 7, Windows7

Lenovo already got official with a couple of its Windows 7-powered machines last week, but it looks like the rest of the crop is landing today. Of course, we’ve already seen the 11.6-inch IdeaPad U150 and 15.6-inch U550 pop up in various corners of the globe this month, and the IdeaPad U350 has been around since the summer. That said, we’ll take the OS refresh and minor spec bumps any day of the week (along with new colors on the S10-2), and that’s exactly what we’re getting. We’ll spare you the rehash (it’s all there in the read link if you need a refresher), but over on the desktop front, we’re pretty stoked about the stylish (and previously rumored) all-in-one IdeaCentre B500. Packing a Core 2 Quad CPU, 1TB of HDD space, up to 8GB of DDR3 RAM and a 23-inch LCD, this thing may actually perform fairly well in tasks more strenuous than checking email. The business-minded K300 and bargain-priced H230 ($299 starting point) are less thrilling from a hardware perspective, but they’ll certainly fit their respective molds quite well. The whole lot should be available to order soon directly from Lenovo, and there’s bound to be plenty of options for those not content with base configurations.

Gallery: Lenovo gets official with Win7-powered IdeaPad and IdeaCentre machines

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Lenovo gets official with Win7-powered IdeaPad and IdeaCentre machines originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 26 Oct 2009 12:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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