Noctua Offers Free LGA 1150 Haswell Mounting Kit Upgrade for Older Heatsinks

Subject: General Tech | March 20, 2013 - 12:05 AM | Tim Verry
Tagged: noctua, lga 1150, hsf, heatsink, haswell, cpu cooler

Noctua has recently announced that the company is providing free mounting kits to owners of existing coolers to make them compatible with Intel's latest LGA 1150 (Haswell) motherboards. The new NM-i115x mounting kit will allow enthusiasts to recycle their older Noctua coolers with the new platform without issue. The kit includes a new back plate with fixed struts and the necessary connectors (screws, springs, et al) to make alignment and mounting easier than previous setups.

Because the LGA 1150 socket keeps the same mounting hole spacing as the current LGA 1156 and LGA 1155 sockets, many newer Noctua cooler will not need the mounting kit upgrade, and can simply be installed into the Haswell machine as is. In other words, if the heatsink worked with your Lynnfield, Sandy Bridge, or Ivy Bridge-based system, it will work in a Haswell system as well. According to Noctua, the following coolers are already compatible with Haswell:

NH-C14, NH-D14, NH-C12P SE14, NH-L12, NH-L9i, NH-U12P SE2, NH-U9B SE2

If your cooler was released prior to LGA 1156, you will need to grab the NM-i115x mounting kit upgrade by filling out this form. Noctua will make the kit available on its website as well as in retail stores (for a minimal charge, though the company did not provide specific pricing). You will need to provide proof of purchase for your existing cooler by sending Noctua a scan or screenshot of your invoice or receipt.

For more information on the NM-i115x, head over to the Noctua product page.

It is nice to see Noctua standing behind its products like this, even if it only affects a small number of users that will be making the jump for LGA 775/ect to LGA 1150.

GTC 2013: TYAN Launches New HPC Servers Powered by Kepler-based Tesla Cards

Subject: General Tech, Graphics Cards | March 19, 2013 - 06:52 PM | Tim Verry
Tagged: GTC 2013, tyan, HPC, servers, tesla, kepler, nvidia

Server platform manufacturer TYAN is showing off several of its latest servers aimed at the high performance computing (HPC) market. The new servers range in size from 2U to 4U chassis and hold up to 8 Kepler-based Tesla accelerator cards. The new product lineup consists of two motherboards and three bare-bones systems. The S7055 and S7056 are the motherboards while the FT77-B7059, TA77-B7061, and FT48-B7055.

The TA77-B7061 is the smallest system, with support for two Intel Xeon E5-2600 processors and four Kepler-based Tesla accelerator cards. The FT48-B7055 has si7056 specifications but is housed in a 4U chassis. Finally, the FT77-B7059 is a 4U system with support for two Intel Xeon E5-2600 processors, and up to eight Tesla accelerator cards. The S7055 supports a maximum of 4 GPUs while the S7056 can support two Tesla cards, though these are bare boards so you will have to supply your own cards, processors, and RAM (of course).

According to TYAN, the new Kepler-based HPC systems will be available in Q2 2013, though there is no word on pricing yet.

Stay tuned to PC Perspective for further GTC 2013 Coverage!

Bungie jump for your mouse from ROCCAT

Subject: General Tech | March 19, 2013 - 06:25 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: input, roccat, apuri hybrid, gadget

The Apuri Hybrid USB Hub & Mouse Bungie looks a little familiar, though it does have more functionality that the Cooler Master version as it is also a 4 port powered USB 2.0 hub with an LED.  Not only will your mouse tail look snazzy hanging from a scorpion like device but you can also keep a variety of USB devices close to hand.  Neoseeker was a little disappointed at the $40 price tag, rather high for a non-USB 3.0 hub, but if you are looking to get your cords out of the way the added functionality is a nice feature.

"If you have a very particular need for a USB hub that also serves to reduce mouse cable clutter and keep your work area in order, ROCCAT just might have you covered with the Apuri. This unique peripheral is both mouse cable bungie and 4-port USB 2.0 hub in one scorpion-shaped package, so hit our review to see whether the Apuri delivers good value for its proposed convenience."

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Tech Talk

• Razer DeathAdder 2013 (4G) Gaming Mouse Review @ Custom PC Review
• FUNC MS-3 Laser Gaming Mouse @ Tweaktown
• AZiO Levetron GM533U Gaming Mouse @ Benchmark Reviews
• Razer Naga Hex, Goliathus League of Legends Gaming Peripherals Review @ Custom PC Review
• AZiO Levetron GM533U Gaming Mouse Review @ OCC
• Genius Gila GX Gaming Mouse @ Benchmark Reviews
• Razer Ouroboros Wireless Gaming Mouse @ eTeknix
• ROCCAT Sense Chrome Blue Gaming Mouse Pad Review @ Neoseeker
• Cooler Master CM Storm Power-RX Mouse Pad Review @ Ninjalane
• Roccat ISKU FX Gaming Keyboard @ eTeknix
• Razer Blackwidow Ultimate gaming keyboard @ Rbmods
• Enermax Aurora Micro Wireless Keyboard @ Kitguru

GTC 2013: Jen-Hsun Huang Takes the Stage to Discuss NVIDIA's Future, New Hardware

Subject: General Tech, Graphics Cards | March 19, 2013 - 02:55 PM | Tim Verry
Tagged: unified virtual memory, ray tracing, nvidia, GTC 2013, grid vca, grid, graphics cards

Today, NVIDIA's CEO Jen-Hsun Huang stepped on stage to present the GTC keynote. In the presentation (which was live streamed on the GTC website and archived here.), NVIDIA discussed five major points, looking back over 2013 and into the future of its mobile and professional products. In addition to the product roadmap, NVIDIA discussed the state of computer graphics and GPGPU software. Remote graphics and GPU virtualization was also on tap. Finally, towards the end of the Keynote, the company revealed its first appliance with the NVIDIA GRID VCA. The culmination of NVIDIA's GRID and GPU virtualization technology, the VCA is a device that hosts up to 16 virtual machines which each can tap into one of 16 Kepler-based graphics processors (8 cards, 16 GPUs per card) to fully hardware accelerate software running of the VCA. Three new mobile Tegra parts and two new desktop graphics processors were also hinted at, with improvements to power efficiency and performance.

On the desktop side of things, NVIDIA's roadmap included two new GPUs. Following Kepler, NVIDIA will introduce Maxwell and Volta. Maxwell will feature a new virtualized memory technology called Unified Virtual Memory. This tech will allow both the CPU and GPU to read from a single (virtual) memory store. Much as with the promise of AMD's Kaveri APU, the Unified Virtual Meory will result in speed improvements in heterogeneous applications because data will not have to be copied to/from the GPU and CPU in order for the data to be processed. Server applications will really benefit from the shared memory tech. NVIDIA did not provide details, but from the sound of it, the CPU and GPU both continue to write to their own physical memory, but their is a layer of virtualized memory on top of that, that will allow the two (or more) different processors to read from each other's memory store.
Following Maxwell, Volta will be a physically smaller chip with more transistors (likely a smaller process node). In addition to the power efficiency improvements over Maxwell, it steps up the memory bandwidth significantly. NVIDIA will use TSV (through silicon via) technology to physically mount the graphics DRAM chips over the GPU (attached to the same silicon substrate electrically). According to NVIDIA, this new TSV-mounted memory will achieve up to 1 Terabytes/second of memory bandwidth, which is a notable increase over existing GPUs.

NVIDIA continues to pursue the mobile market with its line of Tegra chips that pair an ARM CPU, NVIDIA GPU, and SDR modem. Two new mobile chips called Logan and Parker will follow Tegra 4. Both new chips will support the full CUDA 5 stack and OpenGL 4.3 out of the box. Logan will feature a Kepler-based graphics porcessor on the chip that can “everything a modern computer ought to do” according to NVIDIA. Parker will have a yet-to-be-revealed graphics processor (Kepler successor). This mobile chip will utilize 3D FinFET transistors. It will have a greater number of transistors in a smaller package than previous Tegra parts (it will be about the size of a dime), and NVIDIA also plans to ramp up the frequency to wrangle more performance out of the mobile chip. NVIDIA has stated that Logan silicon should be completed towards the end of 2013, with the mobile chips entering production in 2014.

Interestingly, Logan has a sister chip that NVIDIA is calling Kayla. This mobile chip is capable of running ray tracing applications and features OpenGL geometric shaders. It can support GPGPU code and will be compatible with Linux.

NVIDIA has been pushing CUDA for several years, now. The company has seen some respectable adoption rates, by growing from 1 Tesla supercomputer in 2008 to its graphics cards being used in 50 supercomputers, with 500 million CUDA processors on the market. There are now allegedly 640 universities working with CUDA and 37,000 academic papers on CUDA.

Finally, NVIDIA's hinted-at new product announcement was the NVIDIA VCA, which is a GPU virtualization appliance that hooks into the network and can deliver up to 16 virtual machines running independant applications. These GPU accelerated workspaces can be presneted to thin clinets over the netowrk by installing the GRID client software on users' workstations. The specifications of the GRID VCA is rather impressive, as well.

The GRID VCA features:

• 2 x Intel Xeon processors with 16 threads each (32 total threads)
• 192GB to 384GB of system memory
• 8 Kepler-based graphics cards, with two GPUs each (16 total GPUs)
• 16 x GPU-accelerated virtual machines

The GRID VCA fits into a 4U case. It can deliver remote graphics to workstations, and is allegedly fast enough to deliver gpu accelerated software that is equivalent to having it run on the local machine (at least over LAN). The GRID Visual Computing Appliance will come in two flavors at different price points. The first will have 8 Kepler GPUs with 4GB of memory each, 16 CPU threads, and 192GB of system memory for $24,900. The other version will cost $34,900 and features 16 Kepler GPUs (4GB memory), 32 CPU threads, and 384GB system memory. On top of the hardware cost, NVIDIA is also charging licensing fees. While both GRID VCA devices can support unlimited devices, the licenses cost $2,400 and $4,800 per year respectively.

Overall, it was an interesting keynote, and the proposed graphics cards look to be offering up some unique and necessary features that should help hasten the day of ubiquitous general purpose GPU computing. The Unified Virtual Memory was something I was not expecting, and it will be interesting to see how AMD responds. AMD is already promising shared memory in its Kaveri APU, but I am interested to see the details of how NVIDIA and AMD will accomplish shared memory with dedicated grapahics cards (and whether CrossFire/SLI setups will all have a single shared memory pool)..

Stay tuned to PC Perspective for more GTC 2013 Coverage!

GTC 2013: Prepare for Graphics Overload

Subject: General Tech, Graphics Cards, Mobile, Shows and Expos | March 18, 2013 - 09:10 PM | Scott Michaud
Tagged: GTC 2013, nvidia

We just received word from Tim Verry, our GTC correspondent and news troll, about his first kick at the conference. This... is his story.

Graphics card manufacturer, NVIDIA, is hosting its annual GPU Technology Conference (GTC 2013) in San Jose, California this week. PC Perspective will be roaming the exhibit floor and covering sessions as NVIDIA and its partners discuss upcoming graphics technologies, GPGPU, programming, and a number of other low level computing topics.

The future... is tomorrow!

A number of tech companies will be on site and delivering presentations to show off their latest Kepler-based systems. NVIDIA will deliver its keynote presentation tomorrow for the press, financial and industry analysts, and business partners to provide a glimpse at the green team's roadmap throughout 2013 - and maybe beyond.

We cannot say for certain what NVIDIA will reveal during its keynote; but, since we have not been briefed ahead of time, we are completely free to speculate! I think one certainty is the official launch of the Kepler-based K6000 workstation card; for example. While I do not expect to see Maxwell, we could possibly see a planned refresh of the Kepler-based components with some incremental improvements: I predict power efficiency over performance. Perhaps we will receive a cheaper Titan-like consumer card towards the end of 2013? Wishful thinking on my part? A refresh of its GK104 architecture would be nice to see as well, even if actual hardware will not show up until next year. I expect that NVIDIA will react to whatever plans AMD has to decide whether it is in their interest to match them or not.

I do expect to see more information on GRID and Project SHIELD, however. NVIDIA has reportedly broadened the scope of this year's conference to include mobile sessions: expect Tegra programming and mobile GPGPU goodness to be on tap.

It should be an interesting week of GPU news. Stay tuned to PC Perspective for more coverage as the conference gets underway.

What are you hoping to see from NVIDIA at GTC 2013?

Turn half your GTX 690 into a Quadro or Tesla?

Subject: General Tech | March 18, 2013 - 02:23 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: nvidia, hack, GTX 690, K5000, K10, quadro, tesla, linux

It will take a bit of work with a soldering iron but Hack a Day has posted an article covering how to mod one of the GPUs on a GTX690 into thinking it is either a Quadro K5000 or Tesla K10.  More people will need to apply this mod and test it to confirm that the performance of the GPU actually does match or at least compare to the professional level graphics but the ID string is definitely changed to match one of those two much more expensive GPUs.  They also believe that a similar mod could be applied to the new TITAN graphics card as it is electronically similar to the GTX690.   Of course, if things go bad during the modification you could kill a $1000 card so do be careful.

"If hardware manufacturers want to keep their firmware crippling a secret, perhaps they shouldn’t mess with Linux users? We figure if you’re using Linux you’re quite a bit more likely than the average Windows user to crack something open and see what’s hidden inside. And so we get to the story of how [Gnif] figured out that the NVIDIA GTX690 can be hacked to perform like the Quadro K5000. The thing is, the latter costs nearly $800 more than the former!"

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Tech Talk

• The TR Podcast 130: A series of grunts about convertible tablets
• Microsoft updates its Kinect for Windows SDK @ The Inquirer
• Asustek to launch new Intel-based smartphone in June @ DigiTimes
• The 2013 Top 7 Best Linux Distributions for You @ Linux.com
• Watch out, office bods: A backdoor daemon lurks in HP LaserJets @ The Register

Western Digital 3TB Red 3.5" SATA Internal Hard Drive (WD30EFRX) $145.95

Subject: General Tech, Storage | March 18, 2013 - 12:51 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: deals

Top deal

Western Digital 3TB Red 3.5" SATA Internal Hard Drive (WD30EFRX) for $145.95 with Free Shipping (normally $170).

Laptops

15.6" Dell Inspiron 15R Special Edition Core i5 Laptop w/2GB Radeon HD 7730M, Backlit Keyboard, 6GB RAM for $549.99 with free shipping (normally $799.99 - use $150 Coupon Code: 2Q?XNXR2DXQ13G).

23.6" HP Spectre ONE 23-e010se Core i5 Slim All-in-One PC w/TrackPad for $974.99 with free shipping (normally $1,299.99 - use coupon code: DT2617).

Entertainment

90" Sharp AQUOS LC-90LE745U 3D 1080p 120Hz LED HDTV + Free Wall Mount for $7,390 with free shipping (normally $10,000 - use coupon code: FREEMOUNT).

Components

Two (2) Dual UltraSharp U2412M IPS LCD Monitors with Dual Monitor Stand for $594.99 with free shipping (normally $699.99 - use coupon code: 6DBNK$ZJLR$L4J).

128GB OCZ Vertex 4 SATA III Solid State Drive for $116.99 with free shipping (normally $129.99 - use coupon code: VZQG7WPT?PJ4C4).

Netgear Universal WN3000RP Wi-Fi Range Extender for $69.00 with free shipping (normally $90).

Gadgets

Boombotix BB2 Bluetooth Speaker Limited Edition for $69.95 with free shipping (normally $79.99).

Waterfi iPod Shuffle Waterproof Swim Set (5th ten) for $154.95 with free shipping (normally $179.99).

Audio-Technica Portable Stainless Steel Headphones for $109 with free shipping (normally $249.99 - use coupon code: VMESAVESU20).

New Beta NVIDIA GeForce Drivers for Tomb Raider

Subject: General Tech | March 16, 2013 - 11:36 PM | Scott Michaud
Tagged: nvidia, tomb raider

The last month has been good to PC gamers: from Starcraft, to SimCity, to Tomb Raider, all with the promise of Bioshock Infinite just around the corner. We are being dog piled by one bulky release after another... most of which we are theoretically able to play.

Of course this is a call to action for GPU driver engineers. The software required to make your video card run is extremely complex with graphics instructions being compiled and interpreted at runtime for routinely shifting architectures. Performance increases are often measured in the double digit percentages albeit for some set "X" of components in some set "Y" of games.

GeForce 314.14 beta drivers launched early in the month with decent performance increases particularly for setups with SLi-paired 680s. Tomb Raider fans found themselves quite a bit left out with the reboot of the franchise doing everything but rebooting their PCs with NVIDIA and Intel hardware.

Now, two weeks later, NVIDIA has released yet another beta driver, dubbed 314.21, aimed squarely at Tomb Raider. Performance increases are claimed to be an average 45% higher than previous versions with some configurations seeing upwards of 60% increases in performance. The delay was allegedly caused by the hardware developer not receiving the game code with enough time before launch to create the updates.

If you are a Tomb Raider, check out the drivers at NVIDIA's website.

PiixL Launches EdgeCenter PC, Hides Powerful Media Center Behind Your TV

Subject: General Tech | March 16, 2013 - 03:08 PM | Tim Verry
Tagged: piixl, PC, Media Center, htpc, edgecenter

London-based startup PiixL recently launched a new media center PC called the EdgeCenter that attaches to the back of your television via VESA mount to turn any TV into a so-called smart TV. The PC comes in one of three configurations with (Media, Gamer, and Max) Windows 8 and increasing levels of hardware performance. The aluminum EdgeCenter chassis will attach to most TVs larger than 32-inches and can extend to bring the optical drive and other front IO ports to the edge of your TV for easy access. The EdgeCenter reportedly offers a quiet cooling system capable of dissipating 500W in a chassis that is (up to) 54mm thick. Users can use traditional mouse, keyboard, or remote to control it, or they can use gesture-based controls from up to 5 meters away.

The Media Edition offers up an AMD A10 5700 APU with HD7660D graphics, 1TB of mechanical storage, and 4GB of RAM.  The Gamer Edition steps things up a notch with an Intel Core i5 3550 processor, an AMD 7870 2GB graphics card, 2TB of mechanical storage, and 8GB of RAM. Finally, the Max Edition features an Intel Core i7 3770 CPU, a NVIDIA GTX 680 4GB graphics card, 2TB HDD, 20GB SLC SSD (Intel SRT), and 16GB of RAM. Not bad at all for a PC that sits behind the TV. Having a PC mounted via VESA mount is not a new concept, but the EdgeCenter looks to pack the most horsepower an OEM has managed to cram into such a PC.

All three models support Gigabit Ethernet, USB 3.0, Blu Ray playback, optical and analog audio output, and an SD card slot for getting your media onto the device. The Media Edition EdgeCenter has VGA, HDMI, and DVI vidio outputs, while the Gamer edition has DVI, HDMI, and two mini-DisplayPort outputs. Finally, the Max Edition EdgeCenter PC has one DisplayPort, one DVI, and one HDMI port. It is definitely an interesting design with plenty of computing horsepower for gaming and media center needs. PiixL has fitted each model with an 80+ Gold power supply and has stated that the PCs are designed with 24/7 operation in mind.

The PiixL EdgeCenter is available for purchase now, but the performance will cost you a lot more money than your typical media center PC. The Media Edition, Gamer Edition, and Max Edition PCs start at £720.28, £1,116.76, and £1,513.25 respectively. For US customers that works out to about $1,085.97, $1,683.74, and $2,281.45. And that’s the bad news, it offers some impressive hardware, but is fairly expensive. Hopefully, if the EdgeCenter does well, we will see cheaper versions stateside at some point.

You can find more information about PiixL’s EdgeCenter PC on the company’s website. A full specifications comparison chart is also available here.

Deals for March 15th - PNY Prevail Elite 120GB SATA 6Gb/s SSD for $93

Subject: General Tech | March 15, 2013 - 04:00 PM | PCPer Staff
Tagged: deals

Top deal

PNY Prevail Elite 120GB SATA 6Gb/s SSD for $93.09 with Free Shipping (normally $159 - use coupon code VZQG7WPT?PJ4C4).

Laptops

17.3" Toshiba Satellite L870-ST4NX3 Core i7 Laptop w/12GB RAM, 1TB HDD for $799.99 with free shipping (normally $900).

11.6" ASUS VivoBook X202E-DH31T Touchscreen Core i3 Laptop w/Windows 8 for $478 with free shipping (normally $500).

Tablets

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 8GB 7" Tablet (Refurbished) for $149.99 (normally $200).

Apple iPad 3 16GB WiFi Tablet (refurbished) for $399.99 (normally $200).

Components

Lexar 64GB Echo MX Backup USB 2.0 Flash Drive for $53 with free shipping (normally $68).

Kingston DataTraveler Special Edition 16GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive for $7.99 with free shipping (normally $28).

Netgear Universal WN3000RP Wi-Fi Range Extender for $69.00 with free shipping (normally $90).

Mobile

Nokia Lumia 920 LTE WP8 Smartphone [AT&T] (refurbished) for $9.99 with free shipping

amsung Galaxy S III Smartphone [Verizon] for $0.01 with Free Shipping

All I know about the Galaxy S4 ... was not learned on the live stream

Subject: General Tech | March 15, 2013 - 01:12 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: Samsung, galaxy s4, exynos 5, bad acting, Android 4.2.1

It is a close race between Blackberry and Samsung as far as which company provided the most stilted and uncomfortable launch of a new smartphone but those who survived it managed to pass on details about the brand new phone.  We have not seen it dissected yet, nor blended, but we know inside the phone you will find an Samsung Exynos 5 5410 Octa 8-core processor clocked at 1.8GHz, a PowerVR SGX 544 graphics chip, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of firmware flash and runs Android 4.2.1, similar to the S3.  On the outside is a 5" Gorilla Glass 3 Super AMOLED screen at 1920 x 1080 resolution, or 441ppi which is certainly higher than others but close enough to the limits of a perfect human eye as to make very little real difference.

Connectivity can come through WiFi, BlueTooth, HSPA+ 42Mbps, 4G LTE and even infrared transmitter for remote control functions.  User interaction sees some new tricks however, eye tracking software will scroll webpages and documents as you read through them and those who despair over smudges on their screens will like the ability to control the phone with a finger hovering over the screen, not quite touching it.  It bears two cameras, a 13MP on the back capable of recording at quite respectable resolutions as well as a 2MP front facing camera for video calls.  On this translated page, the only connectivity seems to be a microUSB port, but there is is mention of  MHL which can provide HDMI out, or you might be able to use the infrared transmitter to send your pictures and movies to another device.  Charging can be done wirelessly via Qi in theory, though that did not work so well during the demonstration.  You can follow the various links for a bit more detail but until a reviewer can get a Galaxy S4 in hand to benchmark it and perhaps tear it apart we don't know exactly how this phone will fare against the competition.

"Samsung Galaxy S4 will be available from the second quarter globally including the US market, partnering with telecom carriers such as AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless, as well as US Cellular and Cricket, Samsung said. In Europe, Samsung Galaxy S4 is partnering with global mobile operators such as Deutsche Telecom, EE, H3G, Orange, Telenor, Telia Sonera, Telefonica, and Vodafone."

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Tech Talk

• Stealing cars and ringing doorbells with radio @ Hack a Day
• Enabling an unused touchscreen overlay on a consumer LCD @ Hack a Day
• HOT SWEATY RACKS blamed for Outlook.com, Hotmail MELTDOWN @ The Register
• Roxio Game Capture HD Pro @ LanOC Reviews
• Google Reader Alternatives for Android & iOS @ Techgage
• Jabra And NikKTech Joint Giveaway

Podcast #242 - AMD's new Richland APUs, Steam Box Prototypes, Seagate Hybrid Drives and more!

Subject: General Tech | March 14, 2013 - 03:36 PM | Ken Addison
Tagged: Strider, steambox, steam, sshd, Silverstone, Seagate, Richland, quadro 6000, quadro, podcast, hybrid, APU, amd

PC Perspective Podcast #242 - 03/14/2013

Join us this week as we discuss AMD's new Richland APUs, Steam Box Prototypes, Seagate Hybrid Drives and more!

You can subscribe to us through iTunes and you can still access it directly through the RSS page HERE.

The URL for the podcast is: http://pcper.com/podcast - Share with your friends!

• iTunes - Subscribe to the podcast directly through the iTunes Store
• RSS - Subscribe through your regular RSS reader
• MP3 - Direct download link to the MP3 file

Hosts: Ryan Shrout, Jeremy Hellstrom, Josh Walrath and Allyn Malventano

This Podcast is brought to you by MSI!

Program length: 0:59:45

Podcast topics of discussion:

1. Week in Reviews:
   1. 0:01:30 Silverstone Strider Power supply
   2. 0:03:00 Richland Unveiled: AMD releases new A10-5750M
2. 0:14:33 This Podcast is brought to you by MSI!
3. News items of interest:
   1. 0:15:35 Steam Box Prototypes in the next few months
   2. 0:24:00 NVIDIA allegedly part Quadro 6000 GK110 card
   3. 0:25:30 Seagate SSHD Lineup
   4. 0:30:00 WebM now official with Google and support from MPEG LA
   5. 0:33:40 GF Actually Shipping 28 nm Product!
4. Closing:
   1. 0:42:40 Hardware / Software Pick of the Week
      1. Ryan: Tranquil PC Intel NUC case
      2. Josh: Cheap and Pretty!
      3. Allyn: Automatic
      4. Morry: Edimax 150mbps wireless nano USB adapter

1. 1-888-38-PCPER or podcast@pcper.com
2. http://pcper.com/podcast
3. http://twitter.com/ryanshrout and http://twitter.com/pcper
4. Closing/outro

Be sure to subscribe to the PC Perspective YouTube channel!!

Crysis returns to its abusive roots

Subject: General Tech | March 14, 2013 - 01:57 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: gaming, Crysis 3

While the actual content of the game might not live up to the original the hardware requirements certainly do, [H]ard|OCP reports that "no single-GPU video card tested today able to play it at the highest in-game settings at 2560x1600".  For those gaming at a mere 1080p you will be able to max out settings on AMD or NVIDIA's top single GPU cards.  It is not just about the resolution, this iteration of CryEngine features four different anti-aliasing technologies to choose from, each with their own benefits and costs.  Check out [H]'s review to see the screenshots of the various settings as well as estimating the kind of performance your system can achieve.

"We have a full-look at Crysis 3 with the new patch that just released. We take it through its paces on eight GPU configurations. We find out what's playable, how it performs apples-to-apples. We look at all the AA modes compared in performance and image quality, and we find out if this game is a step forward for PC gaming, or a step backward."

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Gaming

• Shadowrun Returns Alpha Footage @ Rock, Paper, SHOTGUN
• Starcraft II Heart of The Swarm Launch Event @ Bjorn3D
• SimCity Is Inherently Broken, Let’s Not Let This Go @ Rock, Paper, SHOTGUN
• Tomb Raider Tested, Benchmarked @ Techspot
• Hitman: Absolution Benchmarked with AMD EyeFinity at 5760 x 1080 @ Tweaktown
• Mass Effect 3 Citadel: The Journey’s End @ Techgage
• Tomb Raider Benchmarked with AMD EyeFinity at 5760 x 1080 @ Tweaktown
• Tomb Raider @ Kitguru
• Finally, A BioShock Infinite Trailer! @ Rock, Paper, SHOTGUN
• Tomb Raider Xbox 360 @ Tweaktown
• Humble Bundle with Android 5 Review @ OCC
• 5 of The Best Free-to-Play Games Available on Android @ eTeknix

The thirteenth labour of Hercules; save OCZ

Subject: General Tech | March 14, 2013 - 01:37 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: ocz, Hercules Technology Growth Capital

OCZ has just received $30 million and a new credit line from Hercules Technology Growth Capital, separating their future from Wells Fargo who have been displaying a distinct lack of faith in OCZ.  The April 8th deadline for OCZ to file reports on their last two quarters still stands and Hercules has tied that submission into the loans being offered by requiring up to date SEC filings from OCZ.  Hercules has a warrant to purchase 688,073 OCZ shares at $2.18 a piece which is $0.08 more than market worth and demonstrates that Hercules has some faith in OCZ's ability to remain viable.  Check out the full terms and conditions at The Register.

"Obtaining this new credit facility is the first step in providing OCZ with a complete capital structure going forward. This capital will be used to strengthen the business, fund future growth, and support emerging enterprise opportunities."

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Tech Talk

• AMD explains Radeon HD numbering scheme @ The Inquirer
• TSMC to tape out Apple A7 processor in March, say sources @ DigiTimes
• Samsung's Exynos Octa chip has a PowerVR SGX544 GPU @ The Inquirer
• Disk drive kingpin WD whips out wallet for upstart Skyera @ The Register
• The problem with Windows convertible tablets @ The Tech Report
• How to Optimize a MySQL Server @ Hardware Secrets
• Unigine Heaven 4.0 Benchmark Tool Walk Through @ OCC
• Twitter Global Weekly Giveaway - Corsair Hydro Series H90 and H110 CPU Liquid Coolers @ Tweaktown

WebM Survived MPEG LA, Nokia Right Back Down

Subject: General Tech | March 13, 2013 - 09:21 PM | Scott Michaud
Tagged: webM, MPEG LA, h.264

Apparently it is very difficult to make a free and clear video codec. Nothing says promote the advancement of science and the useful arts like having almost every industry player, big or small, scared to promote innovation because of patent holding firms and their lawyers.

Well Google, current owner of the VP8 codec, has just finished their long drawn-out conflict with MPEG LA. Google will be allowed access to all the patents which are essential to VP8 from the licensing firm and sub-license as they please. Everyone benefited from the deal.

And then... Nokia.

According to FOSS Patents, the day after the MPEG LA – Google deal to support VPx, Nokia sued HTC with VP8-based terms as a part of their suit. While this lawsuit is just ironically coincidental, Nokia is not a member of MPEG LA and thus could be the first of many others who have patent claims against Google's video decoder.

And now they know Google is willing to settle. Well I guess this fight is not over yet.

Deals for March 13th - Dell Inspiron 15R (5521) 15.6" Core i5 Laptop for $499

Subject: General Tech | March 13, 2013 - 01:02 PM | PCPer Staff
Tagged: deals

Top deal

Dell Inspiron 15R (5521) 15.6" Core i5 Laptop for $499.99 with Free Shipping (normally $688.99 - use coupon code HCV9LCWDGXR7WZ).

Laptops

15.6" Dell Inspiron 15R Special Edition Core i7 + 1080p + Radeon HD 7730M Laptop for $699.99 with free shipping (normally $1,000 - use coupon code ZB4W4PS0B8CH4B).

17.3" Toshiba Qosmio X870-BT3G23 Core i7 Quad-core Gaming Laptop w/8GB RAM, 750GB Hard Drive, 3GB GeForce GTX 670M, Backlit Keyboard & 1080p LCD for $1,099.99 with free shipping (normally $1,599.99).

Desktop

Dell Vostro 470 Core i7 Quad-Core Desktop w/Windows 7 Pro & Radeon HD 7570 for $649.99 with free shipping (normally $899.99 - use coupon code W9D06J14FX10WM).

Components

Refurb Linksys EA2700 App-Enabled Wireless-N600 Dual-Band Gigabit Router for $37.99 with free shipping (normally $100 - use coupon code HSDISH5).

Tablets

10.1" Dell Latitude ST 64GB Windows 7 Tablet (Refurbished) for $309.99 with free shipping (normally $450).

HDTV and Theater

Klipsch QUINTET 5.0 Speaker System for $373.19 with free shipping (normally $549).

LG 65LM6200 65" 3D 1080p 120Hz LED HDTV for $2,079.00 with free shipping (normally $3,000).

LG 47LM6700 47" 1080p 120Hz 3D LED HDTV for $865.00 with free shipping (normally $1,600).

Gadgets

Activator RX-9 Infrasonic Home-Security Alarm for $19.99 with free shipping (normally $100).

iFrogz Transport EarBuds with Mic (Green) for $15.99 with free shipping (normally $34.99).

Lenovo still might have a taste for Blackberrys

Subject: General Tech | March 12, 2013 - 02:05 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: blackberry, Lenovo, rumour, purchase

As we have heard before there are rumours that Lenovo is interested in possibly buying Blackberry, or at least trying.  The hurdle they face is not economic, not only do they have 2 billion in cash lying around looking for something useful to do they managed to make some impressive profits in the PC business at a time where their competitors were feeling the downturn in the economy.  The hurdle will be regulatory, as mentioned before the Canadian Government is leery of trend for major Canadian companies to sell themselves to foreign investors.  On the other hand, would the government be willing to watch a company go down the path Nortel was forced to travel, with the entire company and IP being sold piecemeal?  It is hard to predict, especially since this is still at the rumour stage, but from the information The Register published it would seem that the rumours were enough to float Blackberry's stock up by 10%.

"Shares in BlackBerry, the company formerly known as both RIM and a world leader in smartphone shipments, jumped up ten per cent on Monday after Lenovo CEO Yang Yuanqing said that a buyout "could possibly make sense."

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Tech Talk

• Intel may obtain 10% of Apple A7 processor orders, say institutional investors @ DigiTimes
• Microsoft Flash FLIP-FLOP: it's now IE10 default for Win8, WinRT @ The Register
• 'Wireless charging' in Galaxy S4 will betray Samsung's best pal @ The Register
• ASUS RT-N66U Dual-Band Gigabit Wireless-N Router Review @ Hi Tech Legion
• Samsung DV150F Review @ TechReviewSource

Deals for March 12th - Seagate Barracuda 2TB SATA 6Gb/s Hard Drive for $94

Subject: General Tech | March 12, 2013 - 11:47 AM | PCPer Staff
Tagged: deals

Top deal

Seagate Barracuda 2TB SATA 6Gb/s Hard Drive for $94.99 (normally $120).

Laptops

15.6" Dell Inspiron 15 (3521) Core i5 Ivy Bridge Dual-core Laptop w/4GB RAM, 500GB Hard Drive for $479.99 with free shipping (normally $649.99).

17.3" Toshiba Qosmio X870-BT3G23 Core i7 Quad-core Gaming Laptop w/8GB RAM, 750GB Hard Drive, 3GB GeForce GTX 670M, Backlit Keyboard & 1080p LCD for $1,099.99 with free shipping (normally $1,599.99).

Components

2TB WD My Passport USB 3.0 Portable Hard Drive for $124.99 with free shipping (normally $149.99 - use coupon code DIG5).

Linksys E2500 Simultaneous Dual-Band Wireless-N Router (Refurbished) w/90-day warranty for $33.24 with free shipping (normally $59.99 - use coupon code HSDISH5).

Office

Alera Neratoli Mid-Back Slim Profile Chair for $176.89 with free shipping (normally $449).

Mayline Eastwinds Argo Mobile Metal Computer Desk for $96.01 with free shipping (normally $192).

Gadgets

Uniden UDW155 Wireless Security Surveillance System w/rechargeable 3.5" color LCD & two outdoor cameras for $119.99 with free shipping (normally $249).

Miikey Wireless Rhythm Bluetooth Headphones (4 color options) for $79.99 with free shipping (normally $149).

iFrogz Transport EarBuds with Mic (Green) for $15.99 with free shipping (normally $34.99).