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Feeding Your Gadget and Tech Obsessions
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NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480/470 to lose cores over poor GPU yield?
Early adopters beware: if you were planning on picking up one of NVIDIA’s new Fermi-based GeForce GTX 480 or GTX 470 graphics cards when they go on sale later on this month, you could end up getting a less capable card than expected. According to leaks out of graphics cards manufacturers, lower than expected 40nm yields at NVIDIA’s suppliers have prompted the company to block those cores with problems; as a result, the GeForce GTX 480 will only have 480 cores and the GTX 470 just 448.
That’s significantly reduced from the initial targets of 512 cores per card. The specific details behind the production issues haven’t been leaked, but Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) – who are responsible for the production of the NVIDIA GPU – are believed to have seen a yield lower than 50-percent for their 40nm processes.
Both GeForce GTX 400 series cards will go on sale on March 26th, according to the sources, with the GeForce GTX 480 priced at $499 and the GeForce GTX 470 at $349. However volume shipments aren’t expected to kick off until April 6th; previous leaks had suggested NVIDIA’s shortage of reference boards had delayed mass availability.
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Viliv S5, X70EX and S7 arrive at Best Buy
Tempted by Viliv’s range of MIDs and convertible netbooks, but wary of ordering sight-unseen from importers online? That’s all set to change this week, with the announcement that select Viliv devices will be showing up in Best Buy Mobile stores. The range will include the Viliv S5 and Viliv X70EX MIDs and the 7-inch S7 convertible touchscreen netbook.
It’s a decent selection, and reviewers have generally been positive about the Viliv line-up. One of the more frequently repeated criticisms of tablet PCs, MIDs and UMPCs is that, since they never reached mainstream retail, would-be users never knew what they were missing out on. With prices kicking off at $549 for the S5 (the X70EX starts at $879 and the S7 at $579) it’s not going to be an impulse purchase, perhaps, but the touchscreen functionality might sway a few people who were previously considering a netbook.
[via jkOnTheRun]
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Chevrolet Volt gets geeky video overview
Let’s face it, the Toyota Prius – while still a reasonable hybrid – has lost one of its more important draws: its newness. That leaves the floor open for a new generation of earth-friendly vehicles, and one of the more eagerly anticipated is the Chevrolet Volt. Set to hit driveways in November 2010, Chevrolet brought the Volt along to SXSW last week for the geeks to play with.
Video demo after the cut
Robert Scoble grabbed some in-car time with the Volt, and below you can see his fourteen minute video covering not only how the car drives but all the other tech which Chevrolet have packed into it. That includes a touch-sensitive dashboard – we’ll have to wait and see how easy it is to locate buttons while not looking away from the road ahead – and a “friendly horn” for use in parking lots so that you don’t scare pedestrians because the Volt is too quiet.
There’s also an iPhone app with remote-unlock and remote-start, and the usual huge display which can show economy stats and other information. Unlike the Prius the gas engine is only used to recharge the battery while on the move; everything else is electric. More details in the video below.
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ASUS Rampage III Extreme motherboard gets official
If the early preview shots of ASUS’ Rampage III Extreme motherboard got your juices flowing, then the full information about the Intel X58-based ‘board should be enough to knock you off your feet. The Rampage III Extreme is the latest in ASUS’ Republic of Gamers range, and supports the newest hexacore Intel Core i7 CPUs – such as the Core i7-980X Extreme – along with straightforward overclocking, NVIDIA 3-way SLI and ATI CrossFireX support, and a pair of USB 3.0 ports.
ASUS’ new overclocking system means you can actually control the speed of the system from a nearby Bluetooth phone. Alternatively you can backup or move BIOS overclock settings on a USB stick. Meanwhile their Extreme Engine Digi+ system improves heat dissipation by 30-percent over traditional MOSFET, while conductivity has gone up by 40-percent.
There are also dual 8-pin power connectors and two 4-pin Molex plugs for powering the CPU and GPU with room to spare, while other connectors include nine USB 2.0, four PCIe2.0 x16 slots, seven SATA 3.0Gb/s, two SATA 6.0Gb/s, eSATA, gigabit ethernet, FireWire, six memory channels and more. Full specs in the gallery below; the only thing we need to know now is pricing, though the ASUS Rampage III Extreme is unlikely to be cheap.
Press Release:
ASUS Introduces the Rampage III Extreme Motherboard
Drive your System Beyond the Limit
ASUS Republic of Gamers reveals the latest addition to their roster of performers, the world-record shattering Rampage III Extreme. Delivering Intel’s X58/ICH10R chipset with support for the Intel® processors in the LGA1366 package up to six cores and a plethora of features demanded by intense users, this board is the only choice for PC speed demons.
Welcome to the Overclockers’ Delight
Serious overclockers have been clamoring for this kind of monster board for years, and ASUS listened. With Rampage III Extreme (R3E) the company puts forth a record-setting piece of hardware replete with highlights that meet the needs of dye in the wool tuners—all clad in stylish Republic of Gamers attire and backed by indefatigable ASUS quality.
Remote tweaking becomes effortless thanks to built-in ROG Connect and RC Bluetooth, giving users the freedom to unchain true hardware potential. That’s only part of the picture, since this board comes with a host of accoutrements, including the outlandish Extreme OC Kit overclocking tool, which takes the concept way beyond the norm. USB BIOS Flashback allows for easy instant flashing of the BIOS, all the better to drive the most spectacular results through multiple GPUs—up to four full graphics cards. R3E contains the latest iteration of Extreme Engine Digi+ voltage modulation technology for purer, more stable power. All these indicate ASUS’ commitment to innovating and foreshadowing demand from users – the result is a motherboard that not only guarantees mind-blowing output, but also great, rewarding fun.
It’s Got the Power
There can be no assurance of awesome performance without solid power management – something every overclocker worth their salt knows. Extreme Engine Digi+, included on the Rampage III Extreme, does just that. It melds all the advantages of analog and digital VRM design to cut on switching latency and improve overall fidelity in the board. Pulse width modulation (PWM) likewise gains in finesse for added board tolerance, paving the way for exploratory overclocking of the way-out-there variety. Heat dissipation is improved 30% over traditional MOSFET, while conductivity has gone up by 40%, both thanks to use of FET+ in construction. Not content with all this goodness, ASUS has taken comments from competitive overclockers to heart and included a newly-designed signal choke that handles up to a humongous 40 amperes.
This bedrock of power makes radical experimentation more than a possibility – it makes it desirable. And because ASUS believes in doing things fast and easy, the aforementioned USB BIOS Flashback is the easiest way to transport BIOS versions or simply flash them from machine to machine. All that’s needed is a USB stick.
Target Benchmark
Few things are as feel-good rewarding as putting a new piece of hardware to the test, then basking in the glow of exhilarating scores. That’s the mindset Rampage III Extreme captures, and it does so with superlative zeal. The OC Kit strikes a formidable pose as an interface to meet the strenuous requirements of even the techiest overclocker, with LN2 mode and a Q reset that addresses cold boot problems and enables fast operation even under very low temps during extreme overclocking. Dual 8-pin power connectors and two 4-pin Molex plugs furnish CPU and GPU with ample room, freeing power while preventing mishaps.
Thoughtful touches encourage inventive testing, the hallmark of true overclocking. For example, convenient PCIe X16 lane signal disabling—users can test each graphics card individually for optimized results. The road to benchmarking fame passes through the Republic of Gamers, and R3E is the ticket.
All Bases Belong to Rampage III Extreme
Drawing inspiration from everything that makes overclocking such a great pastime, R3E takes it to the next level. It’s a dream come true, empowering the art of hardware tinkering like never before. With a thermal design revamped from the ground up, overclocking tools to keep a gearhead happy ad infinitum, gorgeous looks and performance that’s frankly out of this world, the Rampage III Extreme is the only choice for those looking to make every MHz count.
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Kindle for iPad & tablets detailed: screenshots, animated wallpaper, more
Amazon have released early details of their upcoming Kindle app for tablets, which the bookseller is also hoping will see duty on the Apple iPad. Screenshots of the app have been posted on the company’s site, and they’ve apparently been demonstrating it to the NYT. According to their report, Amazon have looked to make the Kindle experience more playful than on their standalone readers, taking advantage of the color display to add animated wallpapers and adjustable background colors.
“The Kindle app for the iPad, which Amazon demonstrated to a reporter last week, allows readers to slowly turn pages with their fingers. It also presents two new ways for people to view their entire e-book collection, including one view where large images of book covers are set against a backdrop of a silhouetted figure reading under a tree. The sun’s position in that image varies with the time of day.”
According to Amazon VP for Kindle, Ian Freed, the developer team approached the tablet app looking to have “fun with it.” The retailer has “actually developed a tablet-based interface that redesigns the core screen and the reading experience” he describes, but Amazon expect to wait until after the iPad’s launch until submitting the software to Apple for App Store inclusion.
They NYT piece also claims that B&N’s iPad ebook app – which the company confirmed was in-development a little over a week ago – has been the work of fourteen developers since January. It remains to be seen how open Apple are to third-party ebook apps on the iPad; the company will have their own electronic bookstore via the iBooks app, and neither Amazon nor B&N were given early access to an iPad.
[via Everything iPad]
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