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Archaic PlayStation Concept Art

Wed, 30 Dec 2009 23:28:21 GMT

Siliconera: Before PlayStation became a household name Sony was working on a CD drive for the Super Famicom. You probably heard this story already and know the end result – a plastic gray console.

In between splitting with Nintendo and finalizing the design of the CD media console everything was on the table. Concept art for potential PlayStations like this model were floating around.

Ten gadgets that defined the decade

Wed, 30 Dec 2009 19:13:13 GMT

As 2009 winds down and we try to come up with new and clever ways of referring to the early years of this century, there's really only one thing left to do: declare our ten favorite gadgets of the aughts and show them off in chronological order. It's arguable that if this wasn't the decade of gadgets, it was certainly a decade shaped by gadgets -- one which saw the birth of a new kind of connectedness. In just ten years time, gadgets have touched almost every aspect of our daily lives, and personal technology has come into its own in a way never before seen. It's a decade that's been marked the ubiquity of the internet, the downfall of the desktop, and the series finale of Friends, but we've boiled it down to the ten devices we've loved the most and worked the hardest over the past ten years. We even had some of our friends in the tech community chime in with their picks on what they thought was the gadget or tech of the decade -- so join us for a look back at the best (gadget) years ever!

'The Hangover' Dominates the Charts

Wed, 30 Dec 2009 11:56:56 GMT

The new releases of Hangover and inglorious basterds have propelled blu-ray to its highest earning week ever.The Hangover generated 24% of its first-week sales from Blu-ray Disc, another sign that the high-definition format is fast moving into the mainstream. Inglorious Basterds generated 33% of its first-week sales from Blu-ray Disc.

NVIDIA Fermi continues to have problems according to multiple sources

Wed, 30 Dec 2009 11:02:59 GMT

Earlier in December we reported that NVIDIA had more than likely lost the big high-performance computing win with Oak Ridge Labs, and the lack of any kind of response pretty much confirms that.

Well, as the holiday approached and then passed us by, the news does not appear to be getting any better for NVIDIA. This story on Semiaccurate claims that NVIDIA has *ahem* lowered the number of shader processors on the architecture from 512 to 448 - a drop of nearly 15% of the compute power of the GPU. The SA article quotes from a Tesla product PDF that mentions the shader count and shader speed (1.4 GHz) along with a board power listing of 225 watts. Consider that the last 10% of any GPU/CPUs performance costs well more than 10% of the total power, had NVIDIA wanted to keep the 64 shaders it is apparently dropping on these first products it would easily be 260+ watt card!

We are also hearing news that the GPU is being delayed once again into March of 2010 - this is a quite a bit later than the initial November 2009 release planned during the summer. Another potential time frame was even said to be at next month's Consumer Electronics Show but that also appears to be out.

Leaked Footage of Half-Life 2 Played on Project Natal

Tue, 29 Dec 2009 22:30:41 GMT

Someone secretly leaked out a clip of Microsoft's upcoming system 'Project Natal' playing 'Half-Life 2'. This is most likely early footage of the beta testing for a FPS game on the Natal and of course, there is no confirmed source where the video came from so take it as you like (most likely will get you fired if you come out).

Sony PSPgo (PSP-N1000) vs. PSP-3000 : Side-by-side comparison and system menu differences [pictures]

Tue, 29 Dec 2009 01:51:08 GMT

The PSPgo is Sony's latest addition to the PlayStation Portable family. It was released in October 2009. The PSPgo is the first major form-factor change for the PlayStation Portable since it launched in 2005. The PSP-1000 and PSP-2000 are no longer in production, so if you're looking to pickup a new PSP from retailers, you pretty much have these two options. Hopefully a look over some detailed comparison pictures and features will answer some of your questions on which PSP system is right for you. There's also details on all Firmware 6.20 differences on each system. Both systems have 6.20 installed, but did you know all the menu differences?

See 30 comparison pictures and notes of the PSPgo vs. PSP-3000 here.

Ferrari engineers most advanced Driving Simulator

Mon, 28 Dec 2009 22:55:17 GMT

Ferrari has developed one of the most advanced driving simulators to date.

Apple's tablet is the iSlate ?

Mon, 28 Dec 2009 14:05:05 GMT

The "iSlate" brand name had been patented back in November 2006 by a Delaware based company called Slate Computing. This screen-company would have served as a shield for Apple to protect the brand name of the future most wanted Apple product while remaining discrete.

No Electronics on International Flights to the U.S.?

Mon, 28 Dec 2009 14:04:01 GMT

Due to that Yemeni moron that tried to blow up Detroit - and yes, he's absolutely a moron for targeting a city that has become so minor due to rampant crime and dreadful unemployment - it looks like electronics will not be allowed on international flights headed for U.S. destinations. That's right, some travelers have reported that they were not allowed to use electronic devices at all during flights headed to America. What's even more ridiculous is that the restriction isn't limited to personal electronics - airlines were instructed to turn off their in-flight entertainment, leaving some passengers with nothing to do but sleep for 13+ hours.

Microsoft, Intel to Cede Tablet Market to Apple?

Sun, 27 Dec 2009 23:16:16 GMT

So, here's the $64,000 question, uh, make that the $64 billion question. Why can't the combined R&D smarts, market clout, and overall technological resources of Microsoft-Intel-HP-Dell come up with a thin, sexy compelling tablet and/or media pad that will turn heads and convince the unbelievers (the average why-would-I-need-something-like-that consumer) that a tablet is a must-have product?

Answer: Because Apple will.

New Cash for Your Old Technology

Sun, 27 Dec 2009 20:58:45 GMT

But for folks looking to recoup a few dollars from their tech-buying habits, it doesn't have to be that way, thanks to a handful of online services, such as Gazelle (http://www.gazelle.com) and YouRenew.com, that offer to pay a few bucks for last year's iPod or BlackBerry. Log on, answer a few questions about the condition of your old digital camera, phone or music player, and you'll get an automatically generated cash offer, tendered as quickly as your browser window takes to refresh.

Soldiers in Afghanistan using £19 iPhone app to kill Taliban fighters

Sun, 27 Dec 2009 20:44:33 GMT

Soldiers in Afghanistan are using a £19 iPhone "app" created from computer game technology to kill Taliban fighters.

BulletFlight helps sharpshooters work out how the wind and the rotation of the Earth will affect their bullet - and even predicts the wounds the enemy will suffer if it hits him. Snipers are using the ballistics program downloaded on to their iPhones to target the enemy over long distances.

Allied forces already use adapted Xbox 360 video game controllers to pilot robotic vehicles.

Intel hoping Nintendo will include Larrabee processor in next console, says writer

Sun, 27 Dec 2009 19:09:12 GMT

According to writer Hiroshige Goto, Intel is hoping that Nintendo will include the Larrabee processor in the next Nintendo console.

Infamous Chinese pirates launch Ubuntu that looks just like Windows XP

Sun, 27 Dec 2009 17:08:16 GMT

From the Chinese pirate masters of the non-sea-faring variety comes ... Ylmf OS! Not happy with pirating Windows XP itself, these creative Chinese have gone one step further and hacked Ubuntu to look exactly like Windows XP. Why have they moved to Ubuntu? Because their previous release -- a pirate version of Windows XP itself -- is being cracked down on by Microsoft.

Latest HDMI 1.4 specification to add 3D support

Sun, 27 Dec 2009 12:37:00 GMT

HDMI Consortium is preparing to add 3D support to its latest 1.4 specification, which could bring 3D gaming and movie watching to high-definition TVs.

The Biggest Technology Flops of the Decade

Sun, 27 Dec 2009 01:19:53 GMT

HD DVD

Backed by Toshiba and friends, HD DVD lost a battle that ran most of the decade to be the format for high-definition video disks. Sony and its movie studio pushed Blu-ray in an echo of the fight over Betamax and VHS tape formats, except that Sony lost that one. HD DVD actually had the early lead over Blu-ray, but movie studios eventually sided with the Sony group. Blu-ray is selling more players this holiday season (some can be bought for $100 or less). But the nasty format fight cost high-def disks crucial time in trying to be the successor to DVD, and Blu-ray faces growing competition from Internet downloads.

Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD6 USB-3 SATA-6G Motherboard Review

Fri, 25 Dec 2009 08:40:43 GMT

Benchmark Reviews: Computer hardware always evolves, and in the interest of making lives more productive technology continues to advance. Gigabyte has recently launched their P55-A series of motherboards on the Intel P55-Express chipset, which incorporate a new 3-3-3 theme of features: Super-Speed USB 3.0 and 3x the USB power output, as well as SATA-3.0 for 6Gbps bandwidth. In this article, Benchmark Reviews tests the Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD6 and inspects the new SATA-6G functionality in-depth. Performance will be measured between the Intel Core i7-860 fitted to the LGA1156 socket on the Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD6 motherboard and the Core i7-920 equipped GA-EX58-UD4P. Testing a Core i7-860 against an i7-920 might not seem fair, and it's a little biased to compare P55 against X58, but the final outcome might just surprise you.

OnLive Beta Still Expanding, Public Launch On Track For 2010

Thu, 24 Dec 2009 21:42:55 GMT

OnLive vice president John Spinale thanked the cloud gaming service's beta participants in a new blog post today. He also gave a general status report.

I Don't Think You Understand How Cheap Blu-ray Really Is

Thu, 24 Dec 2009 19:31:48 GMT

Gizmodo - "The downward trajectory of Blu-ray player prices matches DVD almost to the dollar-actually, Blu-ray's cheaper. And that's not considering inflation, or that the best players do a whole lot more than Blu-ray."

Most Expensive PS3: Sony PS3 Supreme Unveiled

Thu, 24 Dec 2009 16:20:57 GMT

GG posts, "Stuart Hughes has now unveiled the gold and diamond studded Sony PS3 Supreme video game console. Fashioned and designed specifically by Stuart Hughes, the company states that the system is the most expensive PS3 in the world."