ATi Catalyst 4.8 Beta Tested

P4 3.2E / 865PE / RadeonX800 ProCatalyst 4.7Catalyst 4.8 Beta3DMark2001SE19871208543DMark20031042310524Aquamark 355.2455.94Wolfenstein: ET84.785.5Serious SamSE106.4107.2

Assassin's Creed III in trouble over plagiarism claims

The author of a science-fiction novel has sued Ubisoft over the alleged plagiarism of his ideas for the popular Assassins Creed game series.

John L. Beiswenger wrote the novel Link and self-published it through Infinity Publishing in 2003, years before the first Assassins Creed game was launched. Beiswenger claims that much of the games ideas and setting is stolen from his book.The story involves a Bio-synchronizer, which can allow people to explore their ancestors memories in a similar fashion to that employed in Assassins Creed. His book also involves assassins, though these do not appear to play as big a role as in the game.Beiswenger even goes so far as to accuse Ubisoft of copying thematic elements such as biblical references, but this might be stretching his case a little far, as biblical allusions are made in a wide variety of books, games and movies, and no on can claim copyright over them.However, the machine that allows people to experience the life of their ancestors could be a deciding factor in whether Ubisoft is found innocent or guilty of plagiarism, as this is a pivotal element of the game and appears to be equally important in Beiswengers novel.If Beiswenger believes he has such a good case its not clear why he waited so long to launch his lawsuit, considering the first game was released in 2007. It may be that he was not aware of the story elements of Assassins Creed, was researching how strong his case might be, or was simply waiting for the most opportunistic time to bring Ubisoft to court.The author wants damages of no less than $1.05 million, but the figure could rise to as much as $5.25 million. He also wants the third installment of the game, due out on 30 October, to be blocked, which could cause a nightmare situation for Ubisoft and might result in negotiating some kind of licensing deal if the judge finds the game studio guilty of copyright infringement.Source: CVG

As expected, Intel launches Cedar Trail-M Atom's

Were fairly certain that none of our regular readers are surprised to see the arrival of Intels Atom N2600 and N2800 Cedar Trail-M based Atom processors today, as we reported about it launching at the very end of the year over a month ago. That said, no products will be available for at least a couple of weeks, although wed expect that the first Cedar Trail-M netbooks will be shown off at CES.

Weve also covered most of the specifications of the N2600 and N2800 Atom processors in the past, but well do a brief re-cap here. The N2800 is a 1.86GHz part with its graphics core clocked at 640MHz and it supports DDR3 memory at speeds of up to 1066MHz. The N2600 on the other hand is clocked at 1.6GHz with a 400MHz graphics clock and it only supports slower 800MHz DDR3 memory. One other major difference is that the N2600 can be cooled passively thanks to its 5W peak TDP, although Intel is apparently claiming an average power consumption of the processor and the NM10 chipset of under 2W, whereas the N2800 has a TDP of 8W, although average power is meant to be less than 2.7W.

As weve already reported, Intel only managed to concoct DX9 drivers for the platform, at least as far as Windows 7 is concerned, but we can apparently still expect a doubling of the 3D graphics performance over the previous generation of Atom processors. Not that this is going to make a huge difference for most netbook users, but at least there should be a decent increase in performance for casual gamers. More interesting then is hardware decode support for H.264 video and support for Intels WiDi, albeit only at 600p.

According to Anandtech we can expect to see Cedar Trail-M netbooks with a starting price point of as little as US$199-229 and part of the reason for this is that Intel itself has reduced the price of the Atom processors compared to the previous generation. That said, these machines are likely to be very basic and lack features such as WiDi. Intels partners are apparently Acer, Asus, HP, Lenovo, Samsung and Toshiba and weve already seen examples of models from Asus and Samsung, despite the latter promising to pull out of the netbook market in 2012.

Still, wed rather pay a little bit more for an AMD Brazos powered machine, despite not having seen final hardware based on Cedar Trail-M, as AMD is likely to have the upper hand in terms of performance even though Intel has finally gotten Atom to the kind of level where it should have been from the beginning. Intel might have a more power efficient option on offer, but there simply are too many things missing to make Cedar Trail-M a competitive platform.

Source: Intel

ASUS O!Play HDP-R1 HD Media Player

Today, ASUS announced the first member of its new O!Play Series digital media player line: the O!Play HDP-R1 HD Media Player. Aimed at providing stunning 1080p Full High Definition entertainment across a wide variety of media formats, the O!Play HDP-R1 HD Media Player boasts several exclusive features—such as a Music Shuffle feature and ultra-fast eSATA interface—for the best living room digital entertainment experience.

Stunning Full HD 1080p Resolution and Vast File Format Support
The O!Play HDP-R1claims to be the world's only High Definition media player which supports an extremely wide range of file formats, including MPEG1/2/4, H.264, VC-1, and the popular RM/RMVB. Users can share their videos and photos instantly from their PCs and notebooks in enhanced clarity and high definition with friends, family and colleagues - all in the comfort of their living rooms or conference rooms.

Exclusive Music Shuffle Feature for One-touch Music Playback
The O!Play HDP-R1 is the first high definition media player to provide a music shuffle function via a dedicated button on the remote control. With a simple touch of a button, the O!Play HDP-R1 collates all the music files in storage and then starts playing the music in random order. With the music shuffle function, users can enjoy their tunes both instantly and effortlessly without having to manually import any music files into the O!Play HDP-R1.

Exclusive eSATA Support—6 Times Faster than USB 2.0
While high definition content delivers stunning images, it also requires huge bandwidth to render the image quality to perfection. With the exclusive eSATA interface on the O!Player HDP-R1, users can experience up to 6 times faster transfer speeds* as compared to USB 2.0, virtually eliminating any delays in delivering high definition entertainment to the user.

Easy Access to Networked Content with LAN Support
The O!Player HDP-R1 is equipped with LAN support which allows users to stream their files effortlessly from their PCs—doing away with manual transfers of multimedia data from one device to another. Users can simply download and keep the multimedia files in their notebooks or PCs and still be able to enjoy them through the O!Player HDP-R1, be it in the living room or study.

Source: ASUS

Asetek New VapoChill LightSpeed

ABIT® Computer Corporation, ATI® Technologies, Kingston® Technology andasetek® Incorporated have teamed up at this year’s CeBIT to present the ultimatecommercially available gaming PC 2004. The system based on VapoChill® CPUcooling, WaterChill™ graphics and motherboard chipset cooling, ABIT IC7-MAX3motherboard, ATI® RADEON 9800XT graphics card, Kingston HyperX® PC4300 DDR RAMand Intel P4 3.4 GHz EE CPU is displayed at the ABIT booth [C42] - Hall 23

The new VapoChill LightSpeed represents not only the most powerful CPUcooling system commercially available - its superiority extends to controlfeatures, upgrade flexibility, CPU-mounting mechanism, CPU support, emergencyshutdown features and especially Lowest Temperatures & Lowest Prices. By coolingIntel and AMD CPUs to subzero temperatures it is possible to reach sky highfrequencies up to 60% above standard CPU performance.

1. Lower Price
2. Supports AMD K8 and Intel P4 in one kit
3. VapoChill Control Panel (USB)
4. 100% motherboard compatibility
5. Maximum CPU/Motherboard upgrade flexibility
6. No mounting tools necessary
7. CPU kit can be rotated 360o
8. Mounting holes Mach II compatible
9. Emergency shutdown features

Apple CEO Steve Jobs Takes Medical Leave Again

Steve Jobs, a pancreatic cancer survivor, announced thathe would take an extended medical leave yet again. Unlike in 2009, he did not mention when he expects to return.
During Jobs’ absence, Chief Operating Officer, Tim Cook willtake responsibility for the company’s day-to-day operations. Cook, whois predicted to be the logical successor to Jobs, ran the company for two months in2004 and again in 2009 when Jobs took time off to fight cancer.

No further details were provided, though here’s his email to employees expressing his love for the company and his wish to return as soon as he can:
Team,
At my request, the board ofdirectors has granted me a medical leave of absence so I can focus on myhealth. I will continue as CEO and be involved in major strategic decisions forthe company.
I have asked Tim Cook to beresponsible for all of Apple's day to day operations. I have great confidencethat Tim and the rest of the executive management team will do a terrific jobexecuting the exciting plans we have in place for 2011.
I love Apple so much and hopeto be back as soon as I can. In the meantime, my family and I would deeplyappreciate respect for our privacy.
Privacy, indeed.
Source:Yahoo! News

Apple announces hard disk replacement program for iMacs

Apple users, especially iMac owners who have bought their machines recently this year might want to take note of Apples latest announcement. Apparently, the Cupertino giant has discovered thatsome of the1TB Seagate hard disks that are currently being used in its 21.5-inch and 27-inch iMacs are currently affected by an issue which could cause it to "fail under certain conditions".

Apple has not disclosed any details about the alleged issue which could cause the aforementioned hard disk to fail prematurely, although it did mention that the issue is currently isolated to only "a very small number" of hard disks, and only on iMacs which were sold between May and July this year. To resolve this issue, the company has announced the commencement of a "Hard Drive Replacement Program" for the aforementioned iMacs, and that it has already sent out emails to consumers who are currently in the possession of an affected machine to inform them about the program. In addition, users can also visit Apples support page here to check if their machines are eligible for the free hard disk replacement program,although they will need to supply their iMacs serial number if they wish to perform the manual verification.

Lastly, Apple has announced on its support page that the hard disk replacement program will run until July 23 next year, so there is more than enough time to back up your work before making an appointment with Apple to have the faulty hard disk replaced.

Source: Macworld

Arctic Cooling announces the Accelero Mono PLUS, a new VGA cooler

Arctic cooling designed the Accelero Mono Plus with a unique mounting plate design, meaning that the cooler is designed for maximum compatibility over a wide range of graphic cards. The 120mm PWM controlled fan combined with the 5 heatpipes give an ample cooling capacity of up to 200W. The design of the cooler also improves the cooling of the RAM and VR modules, while the company claims that this cooler is virtually silent.

Source : AC

ASUS unveils X-series laptop in Singapore

The ASUS X-series notebooksare designed to provide no-frills mobile computing experience. It features the innovative Palm Proof Technology which can intelligently differentiate betweencontact surfaces of the palm and fingertips to prevent unintentional onscreen cursor movements. The ASUS X42Jrhas an ergonomic, streamlined design that housesvarious user-friendly features including a chiclet keyboard, a touchpad with Palm Proof Technology, and Power4Gear power management system.

Incorporating Intel's latest processor, theASUS laptopclaims to deliver thesuperb performance, be it for multimedia or productivity. With discrete ATI Mobility Radeon HD5470 graphics with 1GB DDR3 VRAM, it offer usersan immersive multimedia experience throughits 14-inch 16:9 high definition LED-backlit panels and Altec Lansing speakers with SRS Premium Sound.

The ASUS X42Jralso comes with ASUS Power4Gear - a power management system that helps prolong battery life by adjusting the power settings to suit the computing task at hand.

Priced from S$1,798 (depending on configurations), the ASUS X42Jr is available since October, and will be selling at the SITEX Show next week at the Singapore Expo - 24 to 28 November.

ASUS PhysX Card Ready

ASUS PhysX Card

AGEIA PhysX Reference Card

Heres a pic on how the PhysX card using AGEIA PhysX processor from ASUS will look like. In comparison with the reference card, there are some differences in the PCB and components layout. Now the PhysX card looks more like a graphics card with 128MB onboard GDDR3 memories, a heatsink fan to cool the PPU and also a 12V Molex connector for additional power source. The PPU is made on 0.13 micron technology and contains 125M transistors. Upcoming game titles like Unreal Tournament 2007 featuring Unreal Engine 3.0, Bet on Soldier: Blood Sport, Dogtag, Sacred™ sequel will be able to support AGEIA physics technology. BFG will be making the PhysX cards too and is slated for this Christmas release.

2012-12-21-368

AC Ryan announces firmware updates for Playon! HD2 and Playon! Mini 2 in Singapore

AC Ryan has recentlyannounced new firmware upgrades for the Playon! HD2 and Playon! Mini 2 media players. Some of the new improvements include scan storage function that can update without rebooting; displaying of titles in the ID3 tag of audio files during playback, fixed problem of continuous loading when entering Shoutcast Radio. On top of that, Muzee Internet Radio and TV services have been added in Internet Media.

AC Ryan Playon! HD2- http://www.acryan.com/web/support/ACR-PV73700/

AC Ryan Playon! Mini 2 - http://www.acryan.com/web/support/ACR-PV73800/

There are two flashing procedures, Safe Mode and NormalMode.

For Safe Mode:-

1. Copy install.img to the root directory of a USB flash drive and connect it to any USB host port of the unit.
2. Switch off the main power to the unit.
3. Press and hold on to the power button on the front panel of the unit.
4. Switch on the main power.
5. Release the power button when the firmware update starts flashing on your display in a moment and will automatically reboot when update is completed.
**Do not power off the unit during the flashing process!**

For Normal Mode:-

1. Copy install.img to the root directory of a USB flash drive and connect it to any USB host port of the unit.
2. Enter the Setup menu, System, USB Upgrade and Enter to confirm.
3. The firmware update will start flashing on your display in a moment and will automatically reboot when update is completed

2012-12-21-354

ABIT Introduces Silent OTES

ABIT Engineering has done it again; but unlike the high performance coolerslike OTES™, OTES AeroFlow™ and Dual OTES™ before it, this one won't be making asound.

Today ABIT is proud to announce its latest innovation, the Silent OTES™ (SilentOutside Thermal Exhaust System), a device specifically designed to silently coolthe motherboard's North Bridge chipset.

Silent OTES uses ABIT-designed heatpipe technology to transfer unwanted heatfrom the North Bridge to the fins of the Collection Module. From there, heat isexhausted outside of the case by air flowing from the CPU fan. The result, atotally silent platform offering excellent cooling efficiency while utilizingthe existing CPU fan, ultimately providing enhanced performance, stability and aquieter experience for the end user.

The cooling system is derived from the finest materials to ensure excellentcooling performance. The North Bridge comes in contact with a high-gradealuminum heatsink with an all-copper base, which is fastened securely withscrews to ensure maximum contact for heat transfer. Pure red copper fins on theCollection Module are angled for optimum air flow, and utilizing existingairflow from the CPU fan, deliver excellent cooling with minimal noise thanks totheir large surface area.

"Silent OTES will be a great boon for performance users who need optimal coolinga quiet environment," notes ABIT Product Marketing Manager Michael Chen. "Eightmonths in development, Silent OTES follows in ABIT's tradition of bringinginnovative solutions to users world wide."

The first motherboards to feature ABIT's patent pending Q-OTES technology willbe announced in May.