Nokia Corp. this week announced financial results for the first quarter of 2014. While the company did not provide a lot of information regarding performance of its handset businesses, it clearly stated that there was a major decline. Apparently, as Nokia transits its devices and services division to Microsoft Corp., …
Read More »Apple drops price of entry-level MacBook Air to $899/£749/€899
Apple on Tuesday introduced refreshed versions of its MacBook Air laptops aimed at consumers and also said that from now on the most affordable Apple notebook will cost starting from $899/ £749/€899. Previously it was expected that the company would introduce 12″ MacBook Air model, but the company decided only …
Read More »Sales of Microsoft Surface grow, but losses deepen too
Microsoft Corp. said last week that sales of its Surface media and business tablets grew significantly year-over-year in the third quarter of its fiscal 2014. While this is generally a good for the company, since the growing amount of consumers chose Surface over rivals, this also meant that the company …
Read More »Nvidia to bundle Watch_Dogs with GeForce GTX graphics cards
Nvidia Corp. said on Tuesday that it would bundle the highly-anticipated Watch_Dogs video game by Ubisoft with select graphics cards. The game will not only be free for those who purchase a qualifying Nvidia GeForce graphics cards this spring, but will also feature Nvidia-exclusive effects that will make it look …
Read More »AMD unveils new-generation low-power, ultra-low-power APUs
Advanced Micro Devices on Tuesday unveiled two new families of accelerated processing units with low and ultra-low power consumption. The new chips, previously known as Beema and Mullins, will power thin laptops, 2-in-1s, as well as various Microsoft Windows-based tablets. Unfortunately, the majority of actual devices based on AMD’s new …
Read More »Nvidia indefinitely postpones launch of GeForce GTX Titan Z – reports
Although Nvidia Corp. was expected to begin sales of the GeForce GTX Titan Z dual-chip graphics card on Tuesday, partners of the company did not start to sell the new flagship graphics solution. According to several media reports, Nvidia decided to postpone the release of the GeForce GTX Titan Z …
Read More »Asus introduces 4K 28-inch gaming display for $799/£475
Asustek Computer on Monday announced the PB287Q 4K/UHD (ultra-high-definition) 28” monitor designed for prosumers and gamers. The new display will cost starting from only $799 (€576, £475) without taxes, but will deliver everything a gamer needs: UHD resolution, 60Hz refresh rate, 1ms response time, audio in/audio out and so on. …
Read More »Microsoft has no plans to keep Nokia brand on smartphones
As it appears, the Nokia brand-name will disappear from smartphones and mobile phones produced by the former devices and services division of Nokia Corp. that now belongs to Microsoft rather sooner than later. Microsoft Corp. is already working on consistent brand for its new devices. “The Nokia brand is available …
Read More »Analyst: PC games revenue has surpassed console games globally
Many believe that video game consoles are preferable platforms for game publishing because of the lack of piracy and therefore better opportunities to earn higher revenue. However, since PCs are so widespread these days that even with piracy the market of PC video games is now larger than the market …
Read More »Samsung unveils enterprise-class SSDs with TLC NAND memory
Samsung Electronics on Monday said that it had begun mass production of the world’s first enterprise-class solid-state drive based on triple-level-cell NAND flash memory. The new SSDs combine affordable TLC NAND with enterprise-grade performance and reliability for the first time. The number of erase/write cycles a TLC NAND flash cell …
Read More »4K 10.1-inch display for media tablets announced, demonstrated
Japan Display said this week that it had developed the world's first 10.1″ liquid crystal display (LCD) module with an ultra-high-defition resolution of 3840*2160 pixels (4K) for future tablets. The company said that it had already begun to ship samples to interested parties. It will likely take at least a …
Read More »Nike: relationship with Apple will continue, we will focus on software
Although we may not see another Apple iPhone-compatible fitness tracker from Nike, the company will continue to offer fitness applications and will keep on working with Apple, its chief executive officer said. Many believe that after Apple releases its own smartwatch later this year, it is going to cease working …
Read More »AMD’s x86 processor market share rises, thanks to game consoles
New-generation video game consoles from Microsoft Corp. and Sony Corp. not only help AMD to offset declines of PC chips sales, but actually drive the company’s share on the market of x86 microprocessors. In the first quarter of 2014 AMD managed to gain share, whereas Intel Corp. lost some ground. …
Read More »AMD to release ‘Beema’ APU next week, chips already shipping
Advanced Micro Devices has started a countdown till the announcement of an important chip in three days from now. The company wants its customers to guess, what is going to be unveiled. Based on the image that AMD demonstrates, it is fairly easy to guess that it plans to reveal …
Read More »First photo of Microsoft Surface Mini published by case maker
A smaller version of Microsoft Corp.’s Surface media tablet has been discussed ever since the launch of the original Surface back in 2012, but the software giant has never confirmed plans to release such a product. Nonetheless, in many cases rumours do materialise and the so-called Surface Mini tablet is …
Read More »64-bit Google Android devices will only emerge by Christmas
Although Intel Corp. already offers 64-bit microprocessors for ultra-mobile devices that are compatible with Google Android operating systems and a number of ARM partners plan to reveal their 64-bit system-on-chips featuring ARMv8 architecture in the coming months, actual 64-bit Android-based devices will only emerge by end of 2014. “We have …
Read More »OCZ unveils workstation/enthusiast PCIe SSD with 1.8GB/s performance
OCZ Storage Solutions, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Toshiba Corp., on Thursday introduced a new RevoDrive 350 solid-state drive with PCI Express interface that is designed for workstations and enthusiast-class personal computers. The new SSDs feature incredible performance previously obtainable only from enterprise-class drives. OCZ RevoDrive 350 is powered by four …
Read More »Sapphire ships world’s first factory-overclocked Radeon R9 295X2
Sapphire Technology, the largest supplier of AMD Radeon graphics cards in the world, on Thursday said that it had begun shipments of its dual-chip AMD Radeon R9 295X2 graphics solutions. Especially for those who demand something more than just the world’s fastest graphics card (read our review of the Radeon …
Read More »Nvidia GeForce GTX Titan Z to hit the market next week
Just in case the AMD Radeon R9 295X2 is not enough for you, then wait till next week when Nvidia Corp. and its partners start to sell its dual-GPU graphics card with incredible performance and unbelievable price. Nvidia GeForce GTX Titan Z graphics card featuring two GK110 graphics processing units …
Read More »Samsung sells-out initial batch of Gear Fit smart-watch in 10 days
While wearable electronics gadgets in general and smart-watches in particular remain a mystery for the vast majority of users, the interest towards such gadgets seem to be growing. A media report claims that Samsung Electronics has sold-out the first batch of the Gear Fit smart-band, the most affordable product of …
Read More »Release of Mac Pro did not help Apple to sell record amount of Macs
Although Apple Mac Pro workstations have been in short supply for over five months after the launch and customers have to wait weeks to get one, it does not look like the popularity of the new cylindrical desktop was really overhelming in Q1 2014: it did not catalyse record sales …
Read More »Asus: our future mainboards will be 100% SATA Express-compliant
Although Intel Corp. decided not to bring support for next-generation solid-state drives with Serial ATA Express (SATAe) interface this year, Asustek Computer earlier this year demonstrated motherboards with SATA Express connectors and vowed to bring the new interface to the market. On Wednesday the company said that it can now …
Read More »Windows 8.2 may be due this Fall, Windows 9, Windows 10 are en route
Microsoft Corp. has just released Windows 8.1 update 1, but the work in Redmond, Washington, continues. Based on a new leak allegedly made by Wzor, a well-known source of Microsoft-related news with a good track record, the software giant may release a new Windows 8 update this year. The general …
Read More »Apple extends its trademark to include jewellery and watches
While Apple has yet to confirm introduction of its smart-watches known as iWatch later this year, it looks like the preparations for the announcement are in full swing. Recently the company extended usage of its own trademark to include products like “jewellery, clocks and watches”. International trademarks are split into …
Read More »Nvidia already testing Shield 2 portable video game console
Although Nvidia Corp.’s first-generation Shield video game console has not managed to become popular, the company is not giving up and is already working on the second-generation system. One of the first prototypes of the new Shield based on Tegra K1 system-on-chip has even been spotted in AnTuTu benchmark database, …
Read More »Toshiba, SanDisk start mass production of 15nm NAND memory
Toshiba Corp. and SanDisk Corp. on Wednesday said that they would start to produce multi-level cell (MLC) NAND flash memory using 15nm fabrication process later in April. The new manufacturing technology allows Toshiba to make world’s smallest and potentially cost-efficient 128Gb NAND flash memory. Initially, Toshiba and SanDisk will produce …
Read More »Broadcom debuts 3.20Gb/s 802.11ac six-stream platform for routers
Broadcom last week introduced the industry's first six stream 802.11ac MIMO platform for home networks. Broadcom claims that its 5G WiFi XStream is up to 50 per cent faster than MU-MIMO routers and gateways. What is important is that the company’s technology can boost network performance of existing devices. Broadcom's …
Read More »Micron reveals datacenter-optimized SSDs with Serial ATA interface
Micron Technology on Tuesday unveiled its new lineup of solid-state drives that are optimized for datacenters, yet are relatively affordable, are based on consumer-grade MLC NAND and use Serial ATA interface. The reliable, high-endurance M500DC SSDs are designed to achieve two drive fills per day for five years. Micron M500DC …
Read More »Aqua Computer unveils full-cover water-block for Radeon R9 295X2
AMD’s Radeon R9 295X2 graphics card is among the fastest graphics solutions that money can buy nowadays. It features extreme performance and has high overclocking potential thanks to hybrid cooling solution. But what if you just want more? An ultimate graphics card that would wed extreme performance and utter quiet …
Read More »AMD hints on 20nm GPUs in 2014, shares FinFET tech adoption plans
Advanced Micro Devices last week confirmed that it is developing chips that would be made using 20nm manufacturing technology. The company also re-affirmed plans to continue adopting new fabrication processes, including those with FinFET transistors. “What we have said in the past is [that] this year all of our products …
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