The less credible data about Nvidia Corp.’s next-generation graphics processing units is available, the more market rumours emerge. The recent set of unofficial pieces of information claims that Nvidia will tape-out its new-generation code-named GM204 (GM104) and GM206 (GM106) chips already this month, will manufacture them using 28nm process technology …
Read More »AMD to provide free games with entry-level graphics cards too
Advanced Micro Devices on Monday announced that starting today it would provide free video games not only with high-end and performance-mainstream graphics cards, but also with entry-level models. In addition to that, AMD will also give its customers a choice and will offer them titles from independent makers in addition …
Read More »Nokia’s devices and services unit to be renamed to Microsoft Mobile Oy
The sale of Nokia Corp.’s devices and services business unit to Microsoft is set to be closed this month and it looks like the situation with Nokia brand and the future of Nokia itself are getting clear. A letter from Microsoft suggests that the company will give its smartphone division …
Read More »Intel to increase Thunderbolt 3.0’s bandwidth to 40Gb/s
Although Thunderbolt interconnection technology is not an industry standard that is broadly adopted by all players on the market, it is an interconnection of choice for many creative professionals who work with large amounts of data. Thus, it is not surprising that Thunderbolt is evolving and becomes faster over time. …
Read More »AMD plans to reveal new-gen ‘Beema’, ‘Mullins’ APUs this quarter
Advanced Micro Devices said this week that its next-gen accelerated processing units for ultra-mobile devices were on-track for launch in calendar Q2 2014. The company's new management did not not reveal any peculiarities about the news chips. Yet, the company clearly has plans to reveal them commercially this quarter. “For …
Read More »Samsung preps high-end, mainstream phones based on Tizen
Samsung Electronics said this week that was working on two smartphones based on Tizen operating system. The company said that thus far it had delayed introductions of Tizen-based handsets due to various reasons, but in the second quarter of 2014 it would introduce two models on select markets. Samsung planned …
Read More »Microsoft Xbox One total sales exceed five million units
Microsoft Corp. early on Friday said that total life-to-date sales of its Xbox One video game consoles have totaled five million units. The company is about two million units behind its arch-rival Sony Computer Entertainment, which has managed to sell over seven million PlayStation 4 consoles to date. It appears …
Read More »TSMC reveals new 16nm FinFET+ process, vows to start 10nm production in Q4 2015
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. this week unveiled an improved version of its 16nm FinFET process technology that will hit volume production in 2015. In addition, the company revealed some details regarding its 10nm FinFET fabrication process and said that it would start risk production using the technology in Q4 2015, …
Read More »AMD shows off next-generation Opteron X “Berlin” APU in action
Advanced Micro Devices this week demonstrated its next-generation AMD Opteron X-series accelerated processing unit code-named “Berlin” running Fedora Linux operating system. The new APU is projected to significantly boost performance of servers running APUs and bring heterogeneous system architecture (HSA) capabilities to servers. AMD Opteron X-series “Berlin” APU in many …
Read More »Nokia halts sales of tablet due to charger fault, advises not to use it
Nokia Corp. on Thursday halted sales of its Lumia 2520 media tablet and asked current owners to stop using the charger supplied with the device. The company said that at least some of the AC-300 chargers supplied with the slate are dangerous and can pose a hazard of an electric …
Read More »Intel to ship SoFIA chip with built-in 3G for low-cost phones in Q4
Intel Corp. has been offering application processors for smartphones and tablets for several years now, but none of those chips featured integrated baseband capabilities, which is why the company was unable to address the mass market of mobile devices. However, this is going to change in the fourth quarter of …
Read More »GlobalFoundries and Samsung to jointly produce 14nm FinFET chips
GlobalFoundries and Samsung Semiconductor, two leading contract makers of chips, on Thursday signed a pact under which they will be able to jointly produce chips using 14nm FinFET fabrication process. The two foundries will “synchronise” not only their general jointly-developed process technologies, but peculiarities of their manufacturing processes that are …
Read More »Toshiba introduces notebook with 15.6” 4K display
Toshiba Corp. this week unveiled the industry’s first 15.6” laptop with ultra-high-definition display that has earned Technicolor colour certification. The laptop is designed for both creative professionals as well as multimedia enthusiasts who want to enjoy video, photos and applications in resolution never available before on laptops. The new Toshiba …
Read More »VisionTek CryoVenom R290LE: Radeon R9 290 with custom liquid cooling
VisionTek, a supplier of graphics cards from the U.S., this week announced a unique AMD Radeon R9 290-based graphics card designed for extreme enthusiasts who not only want high performance, but desire maximum customisation too. The CryoVenom R290LE comes with a custom water-block developed specifically for custom liquid-cooling systems and …
Read More »Intel shipped five million tablet processors in the first quarter
Intel Corp. on Tuesday said that it had shipped around five million of application processors designed for tablet computers in the first quarter of 2014. The company hopes that it would achieve its goal of selling 40 million tablet chips this fiscal year. The firm did not reveal any additional …
Read More »Corning unveils optical USB 3.0 cables with max length and price
Corning this week said that it had begun to sell its optical USB 3.0-compatible cables that can extend data transmission beyond the 3-meter limitation of comparable copper cables. Corning’s cables can send data at up to 5Gb/s data-rate at distances up to 30 meters. Unfortunately, such cables are rather expensive. …
Read More »Intel to start making ‘Skylake’ microprocessors next year
Intel Corp. said this week that despite the delay that occurred to mass production of the code-named Broadwell microprocessor, the company is on-track to start manufacturing of chips based on the all-new next-generation micro-architecture known as Skylake in 2015. “We have a lot going on, the ramp of Broadwell, the …
Read More »MSI readies Intel Z97 mainboards: images and details unveiled
MicroStar International is working on a new family of mainboards based on Intel Corp.’s upcoming Z97 core-logic that will support the forthcoming microprocessors for enthusiasts code-named Devil’s Canyon as well as future chips based on the Broadwell micro-architecture. All mainboards will be aimed primarily at gamers, but who said that …
Read More »First alleged photo of Apple iPhone 6 front panel get published
A Chinese blogger has published what it is claimed to be the front panel of the next-generation iPhone with enlarged display. The design of the panel resembles that of Apple iPhone smartphones and its existence may confirm that the Cupertino, California-based company is working on larger handsets. Sina Weibo user …
Read More »First photos and specs of Amazon smartphone revealed
Amazon is expected to formally announce its highly-anticipated smartphone only in June, but the first details as well as pictures of the device were revealed already on Tuesday. The final specs and design of the handset are unknown, but from what we do know, it seems that the product will …
Read More »BlackBerry buys stake in healthcare IT firm, seeks new opportunities
BlackBerry on Tuesday said that it had bought a stake in NantHealth, a healthcare IT company. The companies intend to collaborate on the development of HIPAA and other government privacy certified, integrated clinical systems. BlackBerry hopes that the new business will allow it to finally earn hefty profits. NantHealth describes …
Read More »TVs, displays will not be feasible in a few decades – founder of Oculus VR
Televisions and computer displays have been growing in sizes ever since their very inception simply because it is more exciting to watch large-screen TVs and more convenient to use large monitors. But Palmer Luckey, the founder of virtual reality headset developer Oculus VR, believes that in a few decades such …
Read More »Intel adds ‘Haswell Refresh’ chips into the price-list, starts shipments
Intel Corp. on Monday quietly added numerous microprocessors that belong to the so-called “Haswell Refresh” family into the price-list. The addition of certain chips into the list indicates that the world’s largest chipmaker has begun to sell and ship them to customers. At present the lineup of “HSR” chips lacks …
Read More »Total sales of Oculus Rift VR headset approaching 100K units
Although Oculus Rift virtual reality headset has been primarily targeted at software designers and Oculus VR has always been very open about this, its sales numbers are so high that its popularity among non-developers is evident. According to the developer of the VR gear, so far it has managed to …
Read More »Chief exec of BlackBerry denies plans to dump handset business
John Chen, chief executive of ailing handset maker BlackBerry, said in a new interview that he was not looking forward to exit the hardware business and cease selling smartphones. Contrary to the previous statement, Mr. Chen is now looking forward to make money on handsets. “I actually do plan on …
Read More »Intel aggressively drops prices on system-on-chips for tablets – report
In a bid to boost its share on the market of media tablets, Intel Corp. has aggressively lowered the price on some of its system-on-chips designed for media tablets. While the chips are most probably outdated, it looks like Intel is extremely serious about winning designs in the tablet space, …
Read More »Upgrades of iPad in 2014 seem minor, but they are important – analyst
In many ways, Apple dictates the fashion in the world of media tablets. The company was the first to offer slates with retina-class display, 64-bit application processor and some other promising hardware. This year Apple is expected to traditionally introduce new versions of its iPads and again offer something that …
Read More »Sony welcomes Oculus VR takeover – helps to promote VR
Shuhei Yoshida, an executive from Sony Computer Entertainment and a renowned video game expert, welcomes acquisition of Oculus VR by Facebook. According to him, this validates feasibility of virtual reality in general as well as work done by Sony’s PlayStation division in particular. “I woke up that morning and saw …
Read More »Apple iWatch: Two sizes, precious materials, bended form-factor
A rumour has it that Apple is on track to release its long-awaited iWatch smart-watch later this year. While Apple’s iWatch will functionally resemble existing devices, they will have one significant difference: they will be made to look like fine watches from leading brands, will be made using precious metals …
Read More »Amazon to unveil smartphone in June, begin shipments in September
The world’s largest e-tailer Amazon is on the finish line with its long-awaited smartphone, a media report citing people familiar with the matter claims. The company reportedly intends to unleash the smartphone and services associated with it in June and plans to start shipments in late September. Unfortunately, it is …
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