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Intel

Submission + - Intel targets AMD with affordable unlocked CPUs (techreport.com) 3

Submitted by EconolineCrush
EconolineCrush writes: For years, AMD has catered to gamers and enthusiasts with mid-range Black Edition processors whose unlocked multipliers make overclocking easy. Intel has traditionally reserved unlocked multipliers for its ultra-expensive Extreme CPUs, but it has now brought the feature to affordable models that compete directly with AMD's most popular processors. The Core i5-655K and Core i7-875K have two and four cores, respectively, and they're priced at just $216 and $342. It appears that both will easily hit speeds in excess of 4GHz with air cooling. Surprisingly, even at stock speeds, the i7-875K offers better performance and power efficiency per dollar than just about any other desktop CPU out there.
Data Storage

Submission + - USB 3.0 flash drive has internal RAID array (techreport.com)

Submitted by EconolineCrush
EconolineCrush writes: Next-gen USB 3.0 ports are already common on mid-range and high-end motherboards, and they're slowly starting to trickle out into laptops. But what about drives that can take advantage of the faster interface? Super Talent's RAIDDrive is one of the first USB 3.0 flash drives on the market, and its internal RAID array is certainly capable of exploiting a SuperSpeed USB link. Unfortunately, the drive's body is so large that it blocks adjacent USB ports. The casing is also crafted from smudgetastic glossy plastic, which is a tough pill to swallow when faced with the prospect of paying $250 for a 32GB thumb drive.
Intel

Submission + - Intel announces low-voltage, 32-nm mobile CPUs (techreport.com)

Submitted by EconolineCrush
EconolineCrush writes: Intel has announced a new line of Consumer Ultra-Low Voltage mobile CPUs designed for thin-and-light 10-13" notebooks. Fabricated on the same 32-nm process as the company's flagship Core i7-980X Extreme desktop chip, the new mobile line spans multiple models between budget Celeron and Pentium models and more expensive Core i3, i5, and i7 offerings. Intel claims a TDP of just 17W for the new CPUs, which is less than half the power draw of standard notebook chips. Systems based on the new CPUs are expected to arrive on the market starting early next month.
AMD

Submission + - Asus budget ultraportable notebook sold sans OS (techreport.com)

Submitted by EconolineCrush
EconolineCrush writes: Tired of paying the Windows tax on notebooks? Asus' Eee PC 1201T budget ultraportable comes without a traditional operating system and sells for only $380. The 12" system has promising specifications, sporting an Athlon Neo processor, Radeon HD 3200 graphics, Bluetooth, and 802.11n Wi-Fi. It weighs just 3.2lbs with a 6-cell battery and can even handle light gaming duties. However, battery life in Ubuntu is considerably shorter than it is under Windows. Are there any better options for would-be laptop Linux users?
Data Storage

Submission + - SandForce SSD controller put to the test (techreport.com)

Submitted by EconolineCrush
EconolineCrush writes: A solid-state drive's controller chip largely determines its destiny, and now there's a new one on the market in SandForce's SF-1200. The chip uses a secret blend of compression, deduplication, encryption, and RAID-like redundancy that promises to enable cheaper flash technologies and extend drive lifespans. And it's no slouch in the performance department, offering phenomenal random-write throughput. The only problems? A relatively high cost per gigabyte due to aggressive overprovisioning and an apparent issue with transfers that don't take advantage of command queuing. The controller looks promising overall, and its SF-1500 twin has some interesting potential for enterprise applications.
AMD

AMD Multi-Display Tech Has Problems, Potential 138

Posted by Soulskill from the emptying-my-bank-account-is-a-problem dept.
EconolineCrush writes "While AMD's Eyefinity multi-display gaming tech is undeniably impressive at first glance, digging deeper reveals key limitations. Some games work well, others not at all, and many are simply better suited to specific screen configurations. A three-way setup looks to be ideal from a compatibility perspective, and given current LCD prices, it's really not all that expensive. But would you take that over a single high-resolution display or a giant HDTV?"
Displays

Submission + - AMD multi-display tech has problems, potential (techreport.com) 2

Submitted by EconolineCrush
EconolineCrush writes: While AMD's Eyefinity multi-display gaming tech is undeniably impressive at first glance, digging deeper reveals key limitations. Some games work well, others not at all, and many are simply better suited to specific screen configurations. A three-way setup looks to be ideal from a compatibility perspective, and given current LCD prices, it's really not all that expensive. But would you take one over a single high-resolution display or a giant HDTV?
Data Storage

Submission + - Intel's X25-V SSD a good value for boot drives (techreport.com)

Submitted by EconolineCrush
EconolineCrush writes: The cost per gigabyte of solid-state drives has never been competitive with their mechanical brethren. However, even budget SSDs can deliver phenomenal value if you consider IOps per dollar. Intel's X25-V is a perfect example. The drive offers impressive throughput with both multi-tasking and multi-user loads. At 40GB, it's also big enough for a neat and tidy OS and applications drive. Sequential write speeds are a clear weakness, but combining a few drives in RAID can help on that front and yield even more performance elsewhere. At $115 a pop, why not?
AMD

Submission + - AMD undercuts Intel with six-core Phenom IIs (techreport.com) 1

Submitted by EconolineCrush
EconolineCrush writes: As Slashdot readers are no doubt aware, Intel's latest "Gulftown" Core i7-980X is an absolute beast of a CPU. But its six cores don't come cheap; the 980X sells for over a grand, which is more than it would cost to build an entire system based on one of AMD's new six-core CPUs. The Phenom II X6 line starts at just $200 and includes a new Turbo capability that can opportunistically raise the clock speed of up to three cores when the others are idle. Although not as fast as the 980X, the the new X6s are quick enough to offer compelling value versus even like-priced Intel CPUs. And the kicker: the X6s will work in a good number of older Socket AM2+ and AM3 motherboards with only a BIOS update.
Intel

Submission + - Intel goes after ARM with new Atom Z600 series (techreport.com)

Submitted by EconolineCrush
EconolineCrush writes: Despite fueling a netbook revolution, the Atom processor has always been destined for smaller devices. Intel's pint-sized platform moves firmly into tablet and smartphone territory with the new Atom Z600 series, whose power draw has been cut dramatically. This detailed look at the "Moorestown" platform explores the extensive power-saving measures Intel employed to bring about a claimed 50X reduction in idle power draw. The article also delves into improvements to the Atom's underlying system architecture, its integrated graphics component, and its x86 CPU core. x86 compatibility looks to be the new Atom's biggest asset over competing platforms, but it remains to be seen whether that will matter as much with tablets and smartphones as it has with netbooks.
Data Storage

WD, Intel, Corsair, Kingston, Plextor SSDs Collide 56

Posted by timothy from the will-it-collide dept.
J. Dzhugashvili writes "New SSDs just keep coming out from all corners of the market, and keeping track of all of them isn't the easiest job in the world. Good thing SSD roundups pop up every once in a while. This time, Western Digital's recently launched SiliconEdge Blue solid-state drive has been compared against new entrants from Corsair, Kingston, and Plextor. The newcomers faced off against not just each other, but also Intel's famous X25-M G2, WD's new VelociRaptor VR200M mechanical hard drive, and a plain-old WD Caviar Black 2TB thrown in for good measure. Who came out on top? Priced at about the same level, the WD and Plextor drives each seem to have deal-breaking performance weaknesses. The Kingston drive is more affordable than the rest, but it yielded poor IOMeter results. In the end, the winner appeared to be Corsair's Nova V128, which had similar all-around performance as Intel's 160GB X25-M G2 but with a slightly lower capacity and a more attractive price." Thanks to that summary, you might not need to wade through all 10 of the pages into which the linked article's been split.
Data Storage

Submission + - WD, Intel, Corsair, Kingston, Plextor SSDs collide (techreport.com)

Submitted by J. Dzhugashvili
J. Dzhugashvili writes: New SSDs just keep coming out from all corners of the market, and keeping track of all of them isn't the easiest job in the world. Good thing SSD roundups pop up every once in a while. This time, Western Digital's recently launched SiliconEdge Blue solid-state drive has been compared against new entrants from Corsair, Kingston, and Plextor. The newcomers faced off against not just each other, but also Intel's famous X25-M G2, WD's new VelociRaptor VR200M mechanical hard drive, and a plain-old WD Caviar Black 2TB thrown in for good measure. Who came out on top? Priced at about the same level, the WD and Plextor drives each seem to have deal-breaking performance weaknesses. The Kingston drive is more affordable than the rest, but it yielded poor IOMeter results. In the end, the winner appeared to be Corsair's Nova V128, which had similar all-around performance as Intel's 160GB X25-M G2 but with a slightly lower capacity and a more attractive price.
Hardware

Submission + - System guide recommends five desktop PC configs

Submitted by EconolineCrush
EconolineCrush writes: The Tech Report has updated its system guide, providing a comprehensive set of recommendations for desktop PCs at around $500, $850, $1400, and well over $3,000. This latest guide takes into account recent releases like Intel's six-core Core i7-980X and Nvidia's Fermi-derived GeForce GTX 400-series graphics cards. It also features a new one-off build designed to be a quiet yet powerful microATX system. Recommended reading for anyone putting together a new desktop PC.
Intel

Submission + - A six-core desktop CPU? How many cores is enough? (techreport.com) 2

Submitted by Dr. Damage
Dr. Damage writes: Less than two years after introducing its quad-core Core i7 processors, Intel will soon unveil a six-core CPU for the desktop that works as a drop-in replacement for older Core i7-900-series parts. The first previews of the six-core "Gulftown" reveal a chip with 50% more cores and cache that fits into the silicon area and power/thermal envelope as the quad-core it replaces. Performance in multi-threaded applications scales up nicely, but clock speeds—and thus single-threaded performance--remain the same. Do we really need six cores on the desktop? That depends, it would seem, on what you do with your computer.
AMD

Submission + - Radeon HD 5830 compared... to GeForce 7900 (techreport.com)

Submitted by Dr. Damage
Dr. Damage writes: AMD has a new $239 graphics card out, the Radeon HD 5830, that might be a good upgrade for some folks. What if you're upgrading from a graphics card in that same price range that's two, three, or four years old? How much of an improvement can you expect? And is the new Radeon a good value for the money? This review compares it, and a host of today's other graphics cards, to products dating back up to four years ago, including a couple of GeForce 7900s.

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