Personal Computers
While it has taken longer than some anticipated, cloud computing is finally coming of age and whether you have a business, creative or gaming focus, there’s a cloud-based option for just about any application you can think of. Researchers in China are now aiming to go one step further and take the operating system (OS) to the cloud with TransOS, a cross-platform, cloud-based OS. Read More
Windows 8 represents a big change for Microsoft’s industry leading OS. It breaks from tradition by doing away with the long serving Start button and replacing it with a tile-based and touch-friendly Metro UI. While this move has widely polarized opinion, especially in the enterprise sector, it does represent a major trend across the industry, with mobile-tablet operating systems becoming more and more closely related to their laptop and desktop counterparts. This trend is personified by Microsoft’s in-house tablet, the Surface Pro. Read More
After over a year of Mac dominance, the first Intel desktop PC motherboard featuring Thunderbolt I/O technology has been – somewhat quietly – announced. Based on the latest Z77 Express chipset, the DZ77RE-75K has been optimized for the new Intel -K Core processors. It features a new GUI BIOS, comes with integrated HD audio and video, and benefits from RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 support. Read More
The combined computer and guitar amp introduced by Orange Amps last year - and which subsequently found itself being used in a successful Guinness World Record attempt by fingerboard speed king Tiago Della Vega - has just had some of its internals upgraded, and been given a bit a price cut, too. The Windows 7 OPC is now available with up to Core i7 processing power and 8GB of DDR3 RAM, USB 3.0 port connectivity and hundred of dollars worth of bundled music-related software. Read More
Getac's range of rugged notebook computers continues to grow with the release of the company's new flagship X500. Aimed at Getac's core military customers, the X500 is designed to withstand the most extreme working conditions. With Intel Core i5-520M (2.4GHz) and Core i7-620M (2.66GHz) processor options, 2GB of RAM and the option of a NVIDIA GeForce GT330M MXM GPU with 512MB of VRAM, the X500 is also the most powerful ultra-rugged PC in the company's 22-year history. Read More
The Chrome OS avalanche looks to be gaining momentum, with modular computer manufacturer Xi3 announcing a desktop computer addition to the mobile solutions announced by Samsung and Acer earlier in the month. Set to be a new flavor of the company's soon-to-be-generally-available, CES 2011 Innovations Award-winning modular computer range, the cube-like, low power ChromiumPC will be available with single- or dual-core processors and will benefit from a host of new input/output (I/O) modules currently being developed by the Xi3 Corporation and its partners. Read More
Sweden's eye tracking and control innovator Tobii has announced the release of a stand-alone eye control device called PCEye. Like the laptop-based prototype system demonstrated at CeBIT last month, the device tracks eye movement and translates it into mouse cursor action onscreen. Positioned in front of a PC monitor and connected via USB, the company says that the technology is compatible with a wide range of software and has been primarily designed to improve computer interactivity for users with impaired motor skills, such as stroke victims. Read More
Orange Amps has announced that its OPC computer-in-an-amp will be used in a world record attempt at this year's CES in Las Vegas. Guitarist Tiago Della Vega will attempt to break his own speed and accuracy record on Friday January 7. The company has also taken the opportunity to release final specs and pricing for its soon-to-be-released new baby. Read More
Having spent a number of years as the audio weapon of choice for computer sound systems, Creative has announced a couple of USB releases that will allow any sound card to benefit from its Sound Blaster know-how. The Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Surround 5.1 Pro is said to offer true 5.1 surround sound, while the Sound Blaster X-Fi Go! Pro has been designed for mobile listeners. Both benefit from the company's THX TruStudio Pro entertainment system, that provides depth and space to give a more natural feel to stereo output. Read More
Does the name Charles Thacker mean anything to you? Here’s a hint – he has recently been awarded the Turing Award – the most prestigious award honor in computing and considered to be the computing equivalent of a Nobel Prize. What has he done to earn him such an illustrious award? It’s more a case of what hasn’t he done...Charles Thacker designed the Alto – the world’s first personal computer and a prototype for networked personal computers. He also made significant contributions to the Ethernet local area network, as well as the first multiprocessor workstation and the prototype for a tablet PC. Currently employed by Microsoft, Thacker joked that many of his achievements happened way before “Microsoft even existed, when Bill [Gates] was in short pants.” Read More
