April 26th, 2011 Published by: VR-Zone

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VR-Zone.com | Stuff for the Geeks!VR-Zone | Stuff for the Geeks is a bi-weekly publicationcovering the latest gadgets and stuff for the geeks.

First Looks: ASUS P8Z68-VPRO (Intel Z68 Express)Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/first-looks-asus-p8z68-v-pro-intel-z68-

express-/11972.html

April 26th, 2011

We had a visitor to our labs yesterday evening, the ASUSP8Z68-V PRO motherboard. The P8Z68-V PRO uses Intel'supcoming Z68 Express chipset, which primarily combinesfeatures present in the current P67 Express and H67 Expresschipsets. While the media is not allowed to publish reviews (ofany Z68-based product) just yet, we can still share some detailsof this new board.

We had a visitor to our labs yesterday evening, the ASUSP8Z68-V PRO motherboard. The P8Z68-V PRO uses Intel'supcoming Z68 Express chipset, which primarily combinesfeatures present in the current P67 Express and H67 Expresschipsets. In this short preview, we take a look at what this newboard has to offer.

Compared to the P8P67 PRO, some components may havemoved about printed circuit board (PCB) and a few more

were added, but the expansion slots offered and connectorplacements are unchanged.

The Firewire and Super I/O controllers are now placednear the front of the board. The MOSFET heatsinks forthe processor's voltage regulation module (VRM) have beenslightly re-designed as well.

Two switches at the right corner enable ASUS' EnergyProcessing Unit (EPU) and TurboV Processing Unit (TPU).The EPU is a real-time power saving and monitoring chipthat can detect workloads and intelligently moderate powerconsumption, while the TPU will overclock the system for youby raising the BCLK and processor multiplier automatically.

Memory power supply is regulated via a 2-phase VRM.There are two pairs of DIMM slots for dual-channel memoryconfiguration.

The four light blue and two grey SATA ports are linked to theIntel Z68 Express chipset. The light blue ones support SATA

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3Gbps and the grey ones SATA 6Gbps. The two dark blue SATAports are also SATA 6Gbps-capable, but they are connected toa third-party Marvell controller.

A USB 3.0 front panel header, linked to an ASMedia ASM1042SuperSpeed USB Host Controller, can be found to the right ofthe eight SATA ports. As ASMedia is a subsidary of ASUS, itcomes as no surprise that there are quite a number of ASMediacomponents on the P8Z68-V PRO.

Apart from the USB 3.0 front panel header, there are anotherthree sets of (blue) headers for six USB 2.0 ports and two(black) ones for two Firewire ports.

Just right behind the row of headers, there are three chips.The ASMedia ASM1083 (partially hidden) is a PCI Express x1to 32-bit PCI bridge, Firewire is provided by VIA's VT6308P2-port IEEE 1394 host controller and the last one is a NuvotonNCT6776F LPC Super I/O IC.

A total of seven expansion slots here: three PCI Express x16slots, two PCI Express x1 slots and two PCI slots.

Only the first PCI Express x16 slot in dark blue is capable ofthe full x16 link.; the grey colored one can provide only an x8link while the black one a maximum of x4.

However, as PCI Express bandwidth from the Z68 Expresschipset is limited, the default setting in the BIOS is an x1configuration for the black slot. (First two PCI Express x16slots are connected directly to the processor.) Alternatively,the user can force 'x4 mode' on the black slot but that willresult in the USB 3.0 front header, eSATA ports and both PCIExpress x1 slots to be disabled.

ASRock's Z68 Extreme4motherboard smiles for thecameraSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/asrock-s-z68-extreme4-motherboard-

smiles-for-the-camera/11976.html

April 26th, 2011

We're getting very close to the launch of Z68 chipsetbased motherboards now and details of the first boards arealready starting to arrive en masse. A picture of ASRock's Z68Extreme4 motherboard has turned up over at TechPowerUpand we're looking at a pretty feature packed board that has acouple of interesting things of note.

We're getting very close to the launch of Z68 chipset basedmotherboards now and details of the first boards are alreadystarting to arrive en masse. A picture of ASRock's Z68Extreme4 motherboard has turned up over at TechPowerUpand we're looking at a pretty feature packed board that has acouple of interesting things of note.

The base configuration is actually quite similar to that of Asus'P8Z68-V Pro as both boards have three x16 PCI Express slotsin a dual x8 and one x4 configuration, as well as two x1 PCIExpress slots and two PCI slots. Both boards also feature apair of additional SATA 6Gbps ports as well as on-board powerand reset buttons. However, things start to look up for ASRockonce we take a look at the rear I/O as the Z68 Extreme4 isloaded to the brim with features here.

For starters and maybe most importantly to a Z68 board is thefact that we have a DisplayPort, an HDMI port, a DVI port anda D-sub connector here, although only two of them can be usedsimultaneously. Then we have a PS/2 port, four USB 2.0 ports,and eSATA port, a FireWire port, two USB 3.0 ports, GigabitEthernet, 7.1-channel audio with optical S/PDIF out and evena clear CMOS button. The only thing potentially missing herewould be a Bluetooth dongle, but we can manage without it.

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ASRock has also added support for a pair of front USB 3.0ports, just like Asus, but ASRock has gone for host controllersfrom Etron rather than ASMedia if it makes any difference.The rest of the front connectors include three headers for sixUSB 2.0 ports (one designed to work with ASRock's SmartRemote), a FireWire header and for some reason a parallel andserial port header which we don't really think is of much useon a board like this. We're also curios about the inclusion of aPLX bridge chip as ASRock is using an ASMedia PCI Expressto PCI bridge, so the PLX bridge is intended for something todo with the PCI Express peripherals.

Overall so far this looks like one of the better Z68 boards foranyone that's looking at taking advantage of the video outoptions on offer as ASRock hasn't cut any corners here. It's nothard to see why ASRock has gained the number three spot inthe motherboard market space, as the company is starting tomake some really appealing motherboards with overall goodfeatures.

Compro shows off new, easyto use home security IPcamerasSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/compro-shows-off-new-easy-to-use-

home-security-ip-cameras/11975.html

April 26th, 2011

If you're concerned about your home security, or just want tobe able to check in at home from time to time over the web,an IP camera is a good way of doing this. However, most ofthem aren't that easy to use unless you're tech savvy, or at leastthat used to be the case. Compro was showing off its new rangeof IP cameras for home use at Secutech and it has partneredup with a new service that makes it as easy to access your IPcameras as it is to use an online messaging service.

If you're concerned about your home security, or just want tobe able to check in at home from time to time over the web,an IP camera is a good way of doing this. However, most ofthem aren't that easy to use unless you're tech savvy, or at leastthat used to be the case. Compro was showing off its new rangeof IP cameras for home use at Secutech and it has partneredup with a new service that makes it as easy to access your IPcameras as it is to use an online messaging service.

Normally using an IP camera involves accessing it remotelyvia an IP address to watch the video stream, but Comprohas teamed up with Seedonk to use its very simple utility toaccess its cameras. The Seedonk software looks by an onlinemessaging app by all intents and purposes, although it's tiedin with Seedonk's online service which is also required for itall to work. The idea here is that you sign up to Seedonk'sonline service which offers a free basic service and a paidfor premium service. You then set up your camera once via

Seedonk's website and after that you can access it easily via thesimple app without any need of entering IP addresses or anyother kind of hassle.

You have full camera control via the Seedonk app and it workswith Compro's PTZ (Pan Tilt Zoom) cameras as well. On topof that you can share your video feeds with anyone that usesthe Seedonk app so you could actually use your IP cameraas a high-end webcam as well, as the Seedonk Windows appalso doubles as an IM client. There are of course also mobileapps available for both iOS and Android based devices whichmean that you can easily access your IP camera on devices thatgenerally don't work with well with most IP cameras. Seedonkalso offers a cloud based DVR service where you can have yoursurveillance videos stored for you.

Compro was also showing off a new model called the IP55Gwhich supports 3G dongles for places where a wired or wirelessinternet connections isn't available. The 3G connection isn'tintended to be used in lieu of an always on broadbandconnection, but rather as a means of accessing the camerafeed remotely when needed. As such the IP55G doesn't streamvideo constantly over the 3G connection as you'd normally dowith an IP camera; instead it keeps the 3G connection live andonly streams video when accessed. The trick here is that theIP55G has a built in micro SD card slot like many of Compro'sother cameras and you can use this as the recording media ifthere's a need to constantly record video on an offsite locationthat lacks a broadband connection.

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Compro offers a wide range of rather compelling consumeroriented IP cameras, of which most have features such as two-way audio (for building access usage), motion detection, microSD card video recording and simple Wi-Fi upgradability via aUSB dongle. Some of the higher-end models also support IRLEDs for night usage, power over Ethernet, H.264 video andof course PTZ, although only its top of the range model hasoptical zoom. Now if we could just think of a reason why we'dneed one of these…

The Daily VR-Zone NewsSummary - 26 April 2011Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/the-daily-vr-zone-news-summary--26-

april-2011/11971.html

April 26th, 2011

In today's news roundup: ARM is reportedly next in line tosupport OpenCL, which means that the standard is now beingofficially backed by all major CPU and GPU manufacturers;AMD hints at what might eventually be a partnership withthe likes of ARM in its upcoming software developersconference; Sony has announced two "Sony Tablet' that willreportedly be optimized for multimedia and productivity andwill run off Android 3.0 Honeycomb operating system; TheSamsung Galaxy S II tablet gets reviewed; Nintendo has finallyannounced its Wii successor that will be unveiled in 2012, andA new demo of Star Ocean showing off the game's "out of thisworld" graphics engine has been released.

Hardware news

ASUS E35M1-I Deluxe Motherboard Review @ VortezDescription: That drive to produce excellence no matter whatthe product has helped them to secure an enviable reputationas one of the PC world's top manufacturers. Even the HTPCmarket is in their sights with ASUS aiming squarely at thecompact home cinema market with their brand new E35M1-I Deluxe. Using the ultra compact ITX form factor the boardpacks a truck load of current features like USB 3.0, SATA6.0Gbps (courtesy of AMD's Hudson M1 chipset) and AMD'slow power Zacate E350 dual core processor.

HIS Radeon HD 6850 & 6870 IceQ X Turbo Crossfire Review

Description: The factory-overclocked 6870 IceQ X Turbo Xand HIS Radeon HD 6850 IceQ X Turbo have upgradedcoolers and are meant to be the fastest 6850 and 6870 graphicscards available out of the box -- albeit at a premium price. The6870 IceQ X Turbo X is currently retailing for $250, whilethe 6850 IceQ X Turbo costs $190. Being the inquisitive type,we're determined to see if the extra fee is worthwhile.

Sentey Arvina GS-6400B Full Tower Case Review @Hi TechLegionDescription: The Sentey Arvina is a feature packed full-towergaming case. The Arvina full-tower case is part of Sentey’sExtreme Division line and comes in red, blue or black. TheSentey Arvina supports the latest dual-GPU video cards andthe largest aftermarket heatsinks. To keep system componentsin optimal thermal condition, the Sentey Arvina comes out ofthe box with six fans pre-installed, which can be turned offthrough a fan controller at the top. Users can also connectan eSATA enclosure or a SATA HDD through an externalextension on the top I/O module of the Sentey Arvina.

Sapphire Radeon HD 6670 1GB DDR5 DX 11 Video CardReview @Hi Tech LegionDescription: The Radeon HD 6670 looks to take over itspredecessor's, the 5670, position in the market. With the6670, we get an increase in architecture that boosts computingperformance. The core clock is set to 800 MHz and thememory 1GHz, 4GHz effective. Onboard memory for the HD6670 equals 1GB of 128-bit GDDR5. There is an increasedSIMD core, giving a total of 480 stream processors and 24texture units. Similar to the previous generation, there are 32Z/Stencil ROP units and 8 color ROP units. The 6670 hassupport for DX11, Eyefinity, and AMD App Acceleration.

Kingston sees stable DRAM prices, slight NAND supplyconstraintsDescription: Contract prices for DRAM chips are set to beflat in the current second quarter of 2011, and will likelytrend upward in the third and fourth quarters, according toKingston Technology. Kingston said it has so far seen littleimpact on the worldwide DRAM industry supply chain fromthe recent disasters in Japan. There are rumors of shortagesof manufacturing-use raw materials, such as silicon wafers,circulating in the market.

ARM jumps in to OpenCL with both CPU and GPUsDescription: It looks like ARM is jumping aboard the OpenCLtrain, meaning all the major players are now behind thestandard. It may not sound like all that big a deal, but it is,OpenCL is now officially supported top to bottom.

AMD Hints at Possible ARM PartnershipDescription: AMD will be holding its first software developersconference, the AMD Fusion Developer Summit, from June 13to 16. The purpose of the event is, we were told, to educatedevelopers how to take advantage of AMD's hardware, whichwould be primarily its APUs. However, AMD also said thatit would be releasing some information about its next-genGPUs and how they can interact with software. The reallyinteresting part of this conference is the fact that AMD sendsout announcements highlight one of the big keynote speakers,ARM's Jem Davies.

Corsair Obsidian 650D review

April 26th, 2011 Published by: VR-Zone

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Description: We review the Corsair Obsidian 650D. And yeah,they stripped away the removable front drive bays, made thechassis smaller and boom, the Obsidian 650D was born. Achassis that is just as impressive as its bigger brother the 800Dreally.

Consumer Electronics and Software news

Creative Labs Sound Blaster Tactic 3D Sigma Headset ReviewDescription: Today we are looking at the Sound Blaster Tactic3D Sigma, which most notably uses the company's famousSound Blaster name in order to swing attention away fromcompetition and towards this product. Nothing really exitingwith regards to the specifications list except that Creativehas chosen to use a large 50mm driver like much of thecompetition. This large driver allows for greater mid rangeextension and clarity while providing an overall bigger soundfrom the headset.

Google Gmail Speeds Up with Background SendingDescription: The concept is fairly straightforward: rather thanclicking send and waiting for a message to shoot off to theintended recipient, you can click send and move on right awaywhile Google worries about getting your message throughthe wires. If any issues arise with sending the message, anotification will appear at the top of the screen, prompting theGmail user to pop back and resolve the problem (e.g., wrongemail address, internet connection timed out, etc.). Otherwise,the user will get a notification once the message has officiallybeen sent.

Sony Announces Optimally Designed “Sony Tablet” withAndroid 3.0 that Complements Network Services for anImmersive Entertainment ExperienceDescription: Sony Corporation (“Sony”), announces “SonyTablet” that delivers the perfect combination of hardware,content and network with seamless usability for a high-quality, engaging entertainment experience. Based on decadesof engineering heritage, Sony is developing two tablets withunprecedented design, including S1 (codename) which isoptimized for rich media entertainment and S2 (codename)which is ideal for mobile communication and entertainment.“Sony Tablet” will become available in the global marketstarting in fall 2011.

Samsung Galaxy S II - Thin @ Computing on DemandDescription: Samsung is doing a good job at hyping us up fortheir Galaxy S II Android powered smart phone. The Galaxy SII is impossibly thin at just 8.49 mm and still manages to packa 4.3" Super AMOLED screen. Meanwhile, the thin designdoesn't look like it will inhibit processing power as the phonecomes with a Dual Core processor accompanied by 16/32GBof memory. With all the excitement surrounding the seconditeration of the Galaxy phone, I can only hope that the cellphone carriers will not cripple this as they did with the firstseries...

Open Office and Libre Office duel over versioningDescription: During all of the fuss over Oracle’s (NASDAQ:ORCL) announcement that it intends to move OpenOffice to acommunity based project, the release of OpenOffice 3.4 Beta1 flew under most people’s radar. This is the first beta releasesince The Document Foundation split from the OpenOfficeproject, and released the competing Libre Office suite by

forking the OpenOffice code base. Conflicts in the versionnumbering is causing confusion.

Dell's New Mobile Workstations: These Are The LaptopsYou're Looking ForDescription: Having had the chance to check out Toshiba's andHP's impending enterprise-class notebooks, more and moreI'm convinced spending up is the way to go when it comes tobuying a notebook that both looks and feels like quality. WhileDell's Precision notebooks are still a little boxy and aren'tquite the ladykillers the new HP EliteBooks are, there's stillsomething very austere and functional about them that putsconsumer-grade laptops from any manufacturer to shame. Ifyou're one of the people that didn't much care for Dell's newXPS line, these may be for you.

Android 2.3.4 rumored adding GTalk video chat supportDescription: The next update for Google’s Android 2.3.4 forsmartphones is rumored to be adding Google Talk with videochat support. An alleged Samsung employee with the Twitterprofile @MAFiA303 has tweeted that they have used thefeature on the Nexus S, equipped with the yet to be releasedGingerbread 2.3.4. The features is expected to be officiallyunveiled at Google’s I/O developer conference scheduled inthe next two weeks.

Gaming news

Nintendo Sees Profit Falling 66%, Announces Wii SuccessorFor 2012Description: Nintendo posted a new financial report today,and in a nutshell, things aren’t looking too good. Thecompany’s net profit dropped a whopping 66% to $944 millionin the fiscal year that ended March 31, compared with $2.78billion in the same period a year earlier. Revenue in the sametime frame fell 29.3% to $12.2 billion.

Five Things That Will Surprise You About Prey 2Description: Bethesda Softworks recently invited membersof the gaming press to Park City, Utah, where the publisherrevealed some of the games it plans to release in the comingyear. Among those games was Prey 2 -- a follow-up to the long-delayed 2006 shooter Prey, from developer Human Head. ButPrey 2 isn't quite the game any of us expected. Here are the fivebiggest surprises that Prey 2 has in store for fans.

Star Ocean developer's real-time graphics demo is out of thisworldDescription: This video shows off the new graphics enginecreated by Star Ocean dev tri-Ace to great effect. While notbased on any existing game (or future title), it does featureclever cameos by a couple recognizable characters -- and looksabsolutely stunning...

Targus new 360-degreerotating case/stand for theApple iPad 2Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/targus-new-360-degree-rotating-

casestand-for-the-apple-ipad-2/11973.html

April 26th, 2011 Published by: VR-Zone

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April 26th, 2011

Targus has launched their complete and unique range of AppleiPad 2 accessories including the first-of-its-kind 360-degreerotating case/stand (THZ045AP) . The THZ045AP is a uniquestand that can be used in portrait and landscape orientations.

Targus has launched their extensive and innovative range ofiPad2 products. The company claims to offer an enhanced andadvanced range of products for the Apple iPad 2 that comes ina gamut of silhouettes, colors, materials, functionalities.

Part of the range includes the 360-degree rotating stand/case(THZ045AP). A unique dual function 360-degree rotating caseand stand.As a case, the form-fitting design securely holds iPad2. Thehard-shell exterior provides a sturdy, protective cover, whilethe microfiber faux suede interior stylishly lines and protectsthe iPad 2 against scratches.

It is also a unique stand that allows presentation or use in bothportrait and landscape orientations. The two-in-one case/stand creatively frames the Apple logo and allow users to rotatethe iPad 2 vertically and horizontally inside the case.

The case/stand features three different viewing angles, and theeasily accessible ports and buttons to ensure optimal hands-free viewing comfort and convenience.

Suggested Retail Price: S$99.90

Available at

1.Targus® Boutique - Funan Ctr #05-09

2.Apple Shop @ Best Denki - Century Sq, City Sq, Compass Pt,Great World City, IMM, Junction 8, Parkway Parade, PlazaSingapura, Takashimaya, Vivo City

3.Challenger - Ang Mo Kio Hub, Bedok Pt, Clementi Mall,Eastpoint, Funan Ctr, Hougang Mall, IMM, Jurong Pt, Nex,Parkway Parade, Plaza Singapura, Sembawang, Tampines1, Thomson Plaza, Tiong Bahru Plaza, United Square, VivoCity, White Sands

4.EpiCentre - 313 Somerset, Bugis, ION Orchard, Marina BaySands, Suntec City, Wheelock Place

5.Infinite - Millenia Walk #01-108, Vivo City #02-11

6.Inforcom Technologies - Funan Ctr #04-20

7.istudio - Change Alley, Changi T3, Novena, OrchardCentral, Paragon, Plaza Singapura

8.Multimedia Integrated – Funan Ctr #05-06/08

9.PK Computer - Funan Ctr #04-07

10.South Asia Computer - Funan Ctr #03-01

11.Sprint-Cass - Changi T1 to T3

HTC Flyer coming toSingapore in MaySource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/htc-flyer-coming-to-singapore-in-

may/11968.html

April 26th, 2011

HTC held a media event today to unveil their highlyanticipated Android tablet, the HTC Flyer. The HTC Flyer isscheduled to be available in May. Read on for the coverage.

Wayne Tang, product manager of HTC Singapore, says that thecompany did well in 2010 with sales of 25 million handsets,which is double the figure shipped the year before, andrevenue grew 93% while the global brand awareness grewmore than 50% as compared to 18 months ago whereby thenumber was 15%. Tang also introduced the new HTC Flyer, themanufacturer's first Android tablet with HTC Sense.

"One thing that really sets HTC devices from other devices onthe market today, is the great experience you get with HTCSense. Today, we are expanding the experience of HTC Sensefrom smartphone, to tablet. And with the new Sense, the HTCFlyer features an immersive 3D user experience that bringsto life, all your favorite content - weather, email and evenebooks."

Tang then introduced the HTC Scribe technology that isincorporated the tablet which lets users take notes, drawpictures, or scribble using a special Magic pen, and you cansave or share with friends.

In addition, the HTC Flyer will come with HTC Watch thatallows users to watch Hollywood movies on the fly and the

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service is scheduled to be available in Q4 this year. Goodnews is, the tablet which is selling next month, will come withHTC Watch Lite that enables you to watch movie trailers.The company is still negotiating with OnLive gaming, to offercloud-based gaming in Singapore. OnLive gaming is currentlyavailable in the US.

The HTC Flyer has a aluminium unibody and feels solid. It is a7-inch tablet which is similar size to the Samsung Galaxy Tabthat was launched in November last year.

There aren't many physical buttons on the HTC Flyer. On theright are the volume controls.

The power button and 3.5mm audio jack are at the top,while the 5-megapixel camera with auto-focus and capable ofcapturing 720p high definition videos is at the rear. There isalso a 1.3-megapixel front camera for video conferencing.

The HTC Flyer comes with the magic pen that lets you writeor draw on the display, even on the home page. According toHTC, the pen uses a single 4A battery.

So how much is the HTC Flyer? It is priced at S$1,068 beforetelco subsidies. Quite expensive compared to the MotorolaXoom which run Android 3.0 and with a retail price of S$888. However, the company says that the HTC Flyer will beupgradeable to Android 3.0 with the HTC Sense UI, though noword as to when the upgrade will be available.

NVIDIA Quadro SuccessStoriesSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/nvidia-quadro-success-

stories/11970.html

April 26th, 2011

NVIDIA has a very successful Quadro line-up based onFermi architecture from the very high end like Quadro 6000,5000 and all the way down to their value solutions likeQuadro 600 and 400. Today, we bring you two of the manysuccess stories of NVIDIA Quadro and they are Mars-500and Bandito Brothers. Mars-500 is an international virtualspace expedition that simulates a manned flight to Mars. Themain aims of the project are to study medical, biological,psychological, technical and organizational aspects of anactual, planned long-run interplanetary expedition, as well astrain the crew. With the help of NVIDIA Quadro, they are ableto simultaneously render complex landscapes, various specialeffects (dust storms, meteorite showers) and correctly managemoving objects like the Mars-rovers. As for Bandito Brothers,it is a L.A. based filmaker who specializes in using technologyto create authentic action/adventure content. With the helpof NVIDIA Quadro, Bandito Brothers is able to edit its workin real-time and at full-scale resolution.

The future is now with NVIDIA Quadro

NVIDIA technology delivers real-time, virtual reality for theinterplanetary expedition crew of “Mars-500”

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The international virtual space expedition, “Mars-500,”composed of 6 cosmonauts and astronauts from Russia, theEuropean Union and China, started on June 3, 2010, andhas just reached a new milestone this month (February 2011).Last June, the state research center of the Institute of theMedical and Biological Problems of RAS (IMPB) started a520-day international experiment, simulating a manned flightto Mars. The main aims of the project are to study medical,biological, psychological, technical and organizational aspectsof an actual, planned long-run interplanetary expedition, aswell as train the crew.

To achieve these goals, NVIDIA Quadro professional graphicssolutions, with their massively parallel processing capabilities,have become an important component of modeling anddisplaying the virtual reality of the flight to the ‘red planet.’

The landing portion of the virtual expedition, which started240 days after the flight began last June, is one of the keyaspects of the project. When the expedition reached the near-Mars orbit on February 12th, three crewmen moved to thetake-off and landing suite, where they carried out the landingto the Mars surface, and will be conducting research studieson the planet the rest of this month.

Helping with the project is JCSI Group, Russia’s largestprovider of broadcast automation, computer graphics anddigital movie services, which also develops and deploysreal-time, 3D visualization technologies, virtual reality andindustrial design.

In order to fulfill take off and landing, and model thecosmonauts’ and astronauts’ activity on the Mars surface,JCSI created a 3D, interactive, 10x10 km virtual model of theRed planet’s surface, equipping one of the modules of theterrestrial experimental suite with a virtual reality modelingsystem.

This powerful system utilizes a professional workstationequipped with a pair of NVIDIA Quadro professionalgraphics processing units (GPUs), which render real-timecomplex interactive graphics scenes on two 26”, high-resolution monitors (running at 1920?1200). Depending onthe application* these monitors display control panels ofmoving objects, including: the takeoff and landing suite;automatic and manned Mars-rovers; 3D animated modelsof spacemen, and more. In addition, the display also showsinformation on the external environment, which reflectsthe main features of the Mars landscape—low naturalillumination, dust storms and other atmospheric phenomenaunique to Mars.

“NVIDIA’s Quadro professional graphics were chosento solve the complex problems of real-time processingand visualization of the 3D environment,” said EvgenyChernyakov, CEO of JCSI. “The model we created is intendedto simultaneously render complex landscapes, various specialeffects (dust storms, meteorite showers) and correctly managemoving objects like the Mars-rovers. Chernyakov concludes,“Such problems can be solved only with a top visualizationsolution, such as NVIDIA Quadro. We achieved great results,pushing the limits of visualization.”

In addition to utilizing NVIDIA Quadro pro graphics, theworkstation is connected to a full-color helmet display systemwith a ‘head attitude position sensor,’ which lets the userfeel like he’s inside a spacesuit. Various interactive tasks aredone with two multifunctional joysticks, including: choosingrequired tools, selecting soil samples, and placing scientificinstruments on the field.

The cosmonauts and astronauts in orbit also took part in theproject’s Mars landing with NVIDIA 3D Vision stereoscopicviewing technology. A part of the content prepared for the 3Dvirtual reality model was copied to their notebook PCs. Thisis useful in providing high quality, 3D stereoscopic images to

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deliver the required level of psychophysiological stress as partof the research study.

*3D models of virtual reality, natural effects, spacemen, roversand others were created using software from Presagis, DI-Guy,CMLabs Vortex, and DiSTI.

MARS-500 Virtual Reality (photos and video) – http://mars500.jcsi.ru/gallery.html

Other useful links:

Kingston HyperX Plug andPlay (PnP) Series AnnouncedSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/kingston-hyperx-plug-and-play-pnp-

series-announced/11969.html

April 26th, 2011

Kingston today announced the new HyperX Plug and Play(PnP) series of high-performance enthusiast memory speciallyfor Sandy Bridge chipset in both desktop and notebooks.The memory SPD is pre-programmed with faster frequenciesof either 1600MHz or 1866MHz so when 'plugged' in, itwill automatically 'play' at that speeds without the need tooverclock or tune from the BIOS.

Hsinchu, Taiwan -- April 26, 2011 -- Kingston TechnologyCompany, Inc., the independent world leader in memoryproducts, today announced the new HyperX Plug and Play(PnP) series of high-performance enthusiast memory. HyperXPnP are the first modules to scale the higher memory heightsthat are a part of the second generation Intel Core i5 and i7CPUs. The memory is programmed with faster frequencies andwhen ‘plugged’ into a system using the Sandy Bridge chipset,will automatically ‘play’ at either 1600MHz or 1866MHz inboth desktop and notebook PCs.

The modules are programmed using JEDEC-compliantsettings, allowing 1600MHz and 1866MHz frequency support.It is as simple as plugging in the memory and turning on

the machine, as the system automatically recognizes fastermemory speed with no further BIOS settings required. Userswill notice performance gains as overclocking is automaticwith the HyperX Plug and Play modules. In addition, themodules are backwards compatible with previously releasedDDR3 systems on the market.

“The HyperX engineering team has been thoroughlyinnovative in designing a memory module that automaticallyraises performance with no overclocking steps required,”said Ann Bai, DRAM Memory Sales Director, APAC Region,Kingston. “By using JEDEC-compliant settings to createperformance timings, enthusiasts can max out nativefrequencies on current Sandy Bridge systems and older DDR3machines.”

HyperX Plug and Play is available through Kingston’s channelof authorized distributors, resellers, and retailers. KingstonHyperX memory is backed by a lifetime warranty and freetechnical support. For more detailed product informationplease visit the Kingston Web site at www.kingston.com/asia.

Xbox 360: Portal 2 ReviewSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/xbox-360-portal-2-review/11955.html

April 26th, 2011

Portal 2 is the sequel to its acclaimed predecessor back in2007. The first-person action puzzle game has grown froma single-player campaign to include a co-operative gameplaywhich is equally, if not, more challenging than the single-player campaign. How good is this game ? Let us make thejump into the portal to find out

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Portal 2 is available on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3consoles and PC (via retail copy and Steam)

The console versions are published by Electronic Arts (EA)

The original Portal came with 19 missions, each filled withvarious puzzles to solve before you make your escape fromGLaDOS, an AI existance that administrates the AperatureLaboratories who is pretty much "omni-potent". Well, that isuntill you tear her piece by piece and throwing them into theincinerator.

Many questions were left unanswered in the ending until now

The sequel sets you in perspective with events taking placeafter the original story, your name is Chell and returning toAperature Laboratories will not be a walk in the park. Yourjourney will be accompanied by Wheatley, a metal sphere who

wakes you up and tries to be friendly and at most occasions,wacky.

Returning to the facility will be filled with many surprises, thearea is in a wreck and you will eventually run into GlaDOS,the 'female' anatagonist in Portal 1. She calls you a monster forruining her life but she will be put the past behind her in thename of science.

The usual tests will continue with growing intensity since youhad returned to be her test subject once again. Very often,she will throw junvenile insults at you using her signaturemalevonlent tone. She bitches quite a lot as an AI but she ismore complex than you think and you will learn to love herduring the course of your game.

From the story standpoint, Portal 2 is a remarkableachievement, packed with brillaint voice acting and characters(or robots) with depth. Gameplay-wise, Portal 2 puts you backin Aperature Laboratories again with a twist.

Many things have changed, from a squeaking clean facility to a ruined surroudings beyond repair with crumbling wallsand overgrown fauna. The Portal Gun is still your trustycompanion which you will learn to use in the current dynamicenvironment.

You don't need complicated puzzles to ramp up the difficulty,the dynamic changes in the puzzle will often leave you stumpedand pressed for time to make desperatre choices. Havingsaid that, the new mechanics added to Portal 2 makes theentire puzzle solving session more fun and mind-boggling aswell. There are mirror cubes which can be used for redirectinglasers to unlock doors or trigger certain mechanisms. Lightbridges are also the new tools of the game that can beredirected using your portal gun to reach different places.

Later in the game, there is yet another but an interesting toolwhich you will use. They are gels or blobs of different coloursthat splatter onto the floor that produce different effects.

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There are three colours: blue, orange and white. The white gelis the most basic; it paints the surface white which allows youto create a portal. The blue gel creates a surface you can bounceoff, while orange gel grants you an acceleration boost when yourun on it.

The Excursion Funnel defies gravity

Another feature is the Excursion Funnel, glowing tunnels thattransports you on a straight path. They defy laws of physics intheir path so imagine the possibilites when you create a portalwith the funnel running through it.

The explorable surroundings have grown larger, some of theenvironments are filled with various environmental obstacles,forcing you to look around for a solution. It is amazing thatValve has created incredibly made surroundings that focuson thinking while making a well-paced story with plenty ofhumour. No thanks to GlaDOS and her new dose of sarcarsticquotes.

You will come to understand the events in Portal and theeventual happenings in Portal 2 that brings about a surpriseending.

A tip to our gamers is to observe the surroundings andobjects carefully which gives you hints on what happened inAperature Laboratories and also the unseen character's (Ratman) doings. You will want to try the "Zoom" function toobserve the far surroundings.

The single player campaign should clock an estimated eight tonine hours of gameplay, a huge leap than the original classicbut what happens after that ? Cooperative gameplay comesinto play

Nikon D5100 Digital SLRCamera AnnouncedSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/nikon-d5100-digital-slr-camera-

announced/11802.html

April 26th, 2011

After much anticipated wait, Nikon D5100 is real and official.Product availability and prices will be announced at a laterdate but let us look at the official specs. Update: The NikonD5100 is available from today, at S$1,199 with AF-S DXNIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR lens.

Update: The Nikon D5100 is available from today, at S$1,199with AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR lens.

Nikon announces the D5100 Digital SLR camera, introducingnew features and upgraded specifications as compared to itspredecessor.

The D5100 will come with Nikon’s latest CMOS image sensorand the new EXPEED 2 image-processing engine. The updatedsensor will bump the effective megapixel count to 16.1, thesame that was found in Nikon D7000. The camera adds anew High Dynamic Range (HDR) feature that captures twoshots of varying exposure each time the shutter-release buttonis pressed, and then combines the two shots into a single imagewith a broad dynamic range.

The D5100 another new feature known as the "Effects mode"found on the Mode selection dial which is essentially specialeffects applied on images and videos. A total of sevenspecial effects, including Selective Color and Color Sketch areincluded.

Night Vision is another feature which ramps up the ISO to102400 which enables shooting under conditions of darknesswhile verifying the subject and composition in the monitor(this feature shoots in JPEG format and in black and white.RAW recording is not possible)

Visibility has been increased with the large 3-inch displayfound on the D5100 that has approximately 921k-dot high-resolution that supports viewing on various angles.

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Nikon adopts a side hinge for the vari-angle monitor thatprevents the monitor from hitting the tripod when it is openedwhile the camera is mounted on a tripod.

The vari-angle monitor opens from 0 to180° to the side, andcan be rotated up to 90°clockwise and up to 180° counter-clockwise when it is open. Say yes to self-portraits.

Additional Features and Functions

- High-speed continuous shooting at up to approximately 4 fpsand a very precise and

durable shutter unit that has passed testing for 100,000 cycles

- Equipped with Quiet shutter-release mode for shooting insituations in which quieter shutter

operation is desired. Infrared receivers for remote controloperation on the front and back of the camera enable wirelesscontrol over the shutter from both in front of and behind thecamera (optional

ML-L3 wireless remote control supported).

- Equipped with 16 scene modes that enable the simple captureof beautiful photos of the

desired scene with automatic optimization of camera settings

- Built-in HDMI-CEC compatibility enables control overplayback of still images and movies

using the television's remote control when the camera isconnected to a high-definition TV

via the HDMI connector.

- HD movie recording and editing

1Manual focus, M or S mode, shutter speed 1/250 s or faster,and other settings at default values

Specification Chart

Type Single-lens reflex digitalcamera

Lens mount Nikon F mount (with AFcontacts)

Effective pixels 16.2 millionImage sensor 23.6 X 15.6 mm CMOS sensormage size (pixels) • 4,928 X 3,264 (L)

• 3,696 X 2,448 (M)

• 2,464 X 1,632 (S)File format 1) NEF(RAW), 2)JPEG,

3)NEF(RAW)+JPEGMedia SD (Secure Digital) memory

cards *1SDHC, and SDXC memorycards

Frame advance rate Up to 4 fps *2ISO sensitivity ISO 100 – 6400 in steps

of 1/3 EV. Can also be setto approx. 0.3, 0.7, 1, or 2EV (ISO 25600 equivalent)above ISO 6400; auto ISOsensitivity control available

Movie Frame size (pixels) and framerate :

• 1,920 X 1,080, 30 p/25p/24 p, high/normal

• 1,280 X 720, 30 p/25p/24 p, high/normal

• 640 X 424, 30 p/25p, high/normal

A frame rate of 30 p (actualframe rate 29.97 fps) isavailable when NTSC isselected for video mode.25 p is available when PALis selected for video mode.Actual frame rate when 24 pis selected is 23.976 fps.File format/Videocompression:

MOV, H.264/MPEG-4Advanced Video Coding

Audio recording device:

Built-in monaural or externalstereo microphone; sensitivityadjustable

Monitor 3-in., approx. 921k-dot(VGA), vari-angle low-

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temperature polysilicon TFTLCD with 170° viewing angle,approx. 100% frame coverage,and brightness adjustment

Power source Battery : One rechargeable Li-ion EN-EL14 batteryAC adapter : EH-5b ACadapter; requires EP-5Apower connector (availableseparately)

Dimensions (approx.)(W×H × D)

128 X 97 X 79 mm

Weight (approx.) 510 g without battery,memory card, or body cap560 g with battery andmemory card but withoutbody cap

Major supplied accessories EN-EL14 rechargeable Li-ion battery, MH-24 batterycharger, AN-DC3 strap, EG-CP14 audio/video cable, UC-E6 USB cable, DK-5 eyepiececap, BS-1 accessory shoecover, DK-20 rubber eyecup,BF-1B body cap, ViewNX 2CD-ROM

• *1Not applied to Multi Media Card

• *2Manual focus, mode M or S, shutter speed 1/250 s orfaster, and other settings at default values

• Unless otherwise stated, all figures are for a camerawith a fully-charged battery operating at an ambienttemperature of 20° C (68° F).

HTC Incredible S red edition.Now in storesSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/htc-incredible-s-red-edition.-now-in-

stores/11967.html

April 26th, 2011

The HTC Incredible S was on the shelves in Singapore sinceearly March, and today, the company has come up with a rededition of the popular Android smartphone.

The Android-powered HTC Incredible S that has madewaves since its recent inception for its superb design andmobile experience now looks set to turn the heat up on thecompetition draped in a striking new red finish.

The HTC Incredible S brings the HTC Sense experience andcutting-edge innovation to its users in a simple and naturalway. The red edition features the same stunning body contoursas its sleek black counterpart that highlights the internalhardware makeup of the device and at the same time, providebetter grip in-hand. The HTC Incredible S also features an8-megapixel camera (with dual flash) that can capture high-definition videos and crystal clear 4-inch display that bringsimages to life.

Pricing and AvailabilityThe red edition of the HTC Incredible is available now at allauthorized resellers at a suggested retail price of S$758 (beforeoperator subsidies).

Logitech launches WirelessKeyboard K270Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/logitech-launches-wireless-keyboard-

k270/11966.html

April 26th, 2011

Looking for a new keyboard? Check out the new LogitechWireless Keyboard K270. The sleek and stylish peripheralincorporates Logitech Advanced 2.4 GHz wireless connectivityand features battery life of up to two years.

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Logitech has introduced their Wireless Keyboard K270, a sleekkeyboard that delivers Logitech Advanced 2.4 GHz wirelessconnectivity and up to two years of battery life.

With the Logitech Advanced 2.4 GHz wireless connectivity,you will enjoy virtually no signal loss from up to 10 metersaway. The Logitech Wireless Keyboard K270 also delivers upto 24 months of battery life as well as auto-standby, whichhelps you save energy when you are not using the keyboard.

The Logitech Wireless Keyboard K270 also features thetiny USB receiver, which is small enough to stay in yourlaptop. Plus, you can easily add another compatible mouse orkeyboard — without the hassle of multiple USB receivers.

The sleek, compact keyboard saves space without sacrificingcomfort while having full-size keys and a wide-curved spacebar. And Logitech’s newest keyboard offers hot keys that giveyou instant access to your favorite websites, e-mail, play/pause, volume and more.

Pricing and AvailabilityThe Logitech Wireless Keyboard K270 is now available for asuggested retail price of S$32.

InFocus unveils low cost shortthrow projector IN146Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/infocus-unveils-low-cost-short-throw-

projector-in146/11965.html

April 26th, 2011

InFocus has introduced their latest IN146 shortthrow projector that boasts widescreen resolution,HDMIconnectivity and 3D at affordable price. If you are looking fora projector like this one, the InFocus IN 146 is available now.

InFocus has announced their InFocus IN146 short throwprojector is available in Singapore. With native WXGA (1280x 800) resolution to project today’s widescreen notebooks andhigh definition video without scaling, the IN146 offers big,beautiful images in tight spaces at an exceptionally low price.

Short Throw Capabilities Offer Great Flexibility

The short throw and wide resolution makes the IN146 ideal foruse with interactive whiteboards. It can be easily installed on awall or ceiling or placed on a tabletop or media cart, projecting

a vivid 1.5 metre image from as little as 0.75 metres away.With the projector placed close to the wall, shadows causedby tabletop objects or presenters are virtually eliminated.The short throw of the IN146, combined with its small size,low profile design and 2,700 lumens brightness, offers anextremely versatile and portable display solution that willwork beautifully in a variety of environments and lightingconditions.

Built for Long-Life at a Low Cost

The IN146 is future-ready with 3D capability and an HDMIinput. It can be turned into a wireless and networked displaywith the optional InFocus LiteShow III wireless adapter,andthe RS232 port allows connection to Creston, AMX or anyother room control system. The IN146 offers years of worry-free operation with a long lamp life ofup to 6,000 hours, filter-free DLP technology, and 5-year limited warranty.

Pricing and AvailabilityThe IN146 (WXGA, 1280 x 800) model is available now witha list price of S$1,399.

The Daily VR-Zone NewsSummary - 25 April 2011Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/the-daily-vr-zone-news-summary--25-

april-2011/11961.html

April 26th, 2011

In today's news roundup: Hitachi DeskStar 7K3000 3TBHDD reviewed; Commander PC gets benchmarked ; NookColor gets Froyo update and app store; Dell readies 10-Inchtablets to fend off the Apple iPad, and Nintendo says successorto Wii coming in 2012

Hardware news

Description: Another thing that sets the Lian Li PC-A04 apartfrom the norm is that it's limited to micro-ATX motherboards.Two or three years ago, this would have been a showstopper,but in recent times there have been some excellent uATXboards hitting the market.

Description: The DeskStar 7K3000 3TB model by Hitachi GSTis a real star since not only does it combine excellent single/Raid0 performance with low temperatures and noise levels butit also comes at a bargain price.

Description: The NZXT Sentry LXE is not your standard run-of-the-mill fan controller. Combining the ease of a touchscreenand the flexibility of having an external controller add to itsappeal - and not having to bend down under the desk to changea setting is nice.

Description: As we treat the Commander PC as a system, wewill take a slightly different approach to it than we normallywould when reviewing a video card; instead we'll add somesystem benchmarks into the mix.

Description: Microstar's latest Hawk video card is here,packing a highly overclocked NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 Ti.

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Can its enhanced PCB and cooler fend off the Radeon HD6950's falling prices?

Consumer Electronics and Software news

Description: Barnes & Noble on Monday announced a majorupdate to its Nook Color tablet that includes access to a newapp store and a built-in email system for organizing Web mailaccounts.

Description: That's the period during which the company'sonline Firefox 4 download tracker climbed into the nine-digitterritory. The milestone achievement happened in just a littleover a month after the software was made available on March22.

Description: A leaked roadmap suggests Dell has in store twoWindows 7 tablets and a 10-inch Android Honeycomb tabletfor release later this year, as the company aims to grab tabletmarket share.

Description: Low Carbon PC aims to take this one step furtherby putting together eco-friendly systems that use little powerbut deliver big on performance, while looking rather stylish atthe same time.

Description: These earphones are designed for both stereoplayback and as a hands free device for cell phones. The in-line remote helps the user control music playback and volumewithout having to handle one’s cell phone or mp3 player.

Gaming news

Description: Nintendo says the successor to the hit Wii consolewill arrive next year, but isn't saying anything about what thenew system will do.

Description: Sony has yet to determine the full scope of anattack on its PlayStation Network and Qriocity services thathas left more than 75 million people without access for morethan four days.

PSU Review - Corsair TX850V2Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/psu-review--corsair-tx850-

v2/11964.html

April 26th, 2011

Corsair owes much of that reputation to their TX powersupply series, which were designed to offer great electricalperformance at the best possible price to performance ratio.Today we are going to have a have a look at a power supplyfrom their updated version of the TX series, the TX850 V2 unit.

Not too long ago Corsair subtly diversified towards the PSUmarket by releasing a handful of products, yet their reputationgrew so rapidly that today their company is one of themost respected brands in the PSU market and has tensof power-related products available. Corsair owes much ofthat reputation to their TX power supply series, which were

designed to offer great electrical performance at the bestpossible price to performance ratio. Today we are going to havea have a look at a power supply from their updated version ofthe TX series, the TX850 V2 unit.

• Conforms to the latest ATX12V v2.31 and EPS 2.92standards, and is backward compatible with the ATX12V2.2 and ATX12V 2.01 standards

• A dedicated single +12V rail offers simple configurationand maximum compatibility with the latest graphicscards and other components

• An ultra-quiet, 140mm double ball-bearing fan deliversexcellent airflow with exceptionally low noise levels byvarying fan speed in response to temperature

• Complies with the European Union ErP Directive(2009/125/EC) so the power consumption of the wholesystem, in either standby or off mode, can be less than 1Wwhen used with a properly configured, ErP-compliantmotherboard

• 80 PLUS® Bronze certified, delivering up to 85% energyefficiency under real-world load conditions

• Active Power Factor Correction (PFC) with PF value of0.99

• Universal AC input from 90~264V

• Over-voltage, under-voltage, over-current, and shortcircuit protection provide maximum safety for yourcritical system components

• High-quality Japanese capacitors provideuncompromised performance and reliability

• A five year warranty and lifetime access to Corsair'slegendary technical support and customer service

• Safety Approvals: cTUVus, CE, CB, FCC Class B, TÜV,CCC, C-tick

Asrock released "real AM3+"motherboardsSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/asrock-released-real-am3--

motherboards/11963.html

April 26th, 2011

Most motherboard manufacturers claim that their latest AM3motherboards are AM3+ capable after a mere BIOS update.ASRock claims that this is not the case and claims that thereare no less than six reasons to buy an ASRock "real AM3+motherboard".

The company makes the 6 following claims regarding theirnew motherboards:

1. The new "black" AM3b CPU socket make you recognizethe new AM3+ motherboard at the first sight! With the 11%bigger pin hole size, it can get rid of the possible mechanicalmismatch when installing the CPU, and avoid the CPU pin-bent problem.

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2. Thanks for the AM3+ MB 3.4 MHz Serial VID support,it provides faster link between CPU and power controller.Compare to the old AM3 MB 400 KHz link, the new AM3+ MBcan support better power management & Power saving.

3. Not only meet AMD's requirements, the new AM3+ MBdesign provides efficient power supply up to 11.8% better CPUpower saving. An added bonus will be its environment-friendlyfeature.

4. As we know, the lower CPU noise, the better system stability.When the system is at the same loading, the new AM3+ MBdesign improves the Vcore variation and reduces the CPUpower noise up to 22%!

5. Compare to the old AM3 CPU only needs 110A current, thenew AM3+ CPU needs higher 145A current! The New AM3+MB can satisfy the demand of 32% higher current and get ridof any power shortage issue.

6. With the new C.C.R. (Combo Cooler Retention Module)design, the ASRock new AM3+ MB can get better coolingeffect for CPU, memory and power components. Accordingto our test result, it makes the CPU power choke 5.4 °Ccooler! Besides, the C.C.R. is backward compatible with the oldAM3 / AM2+ CPU cooler as well.

Gigabyte shows off first TouchBIOS screenshotsSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/gigabyte-shows-off-first-touch-bios-

screenshots/11962.html

April 26th, 2011

Pictures of Gigabyte's upcoming Touch BIOS have been postedon the unofficial Gigabyte blog as well as Gigabyte's Facebookpage and they're detailing what appears to be a Windows utilityrather than an actual graphics UEFI. In fact, if anything thesenew screenshots bring more questions with them than theyanswer.

Pictures of Gigabyte's upcoming Touch BIOS have been postedon the unofficial Gigabyte blog as well as Gigabyte's Facebookpage and they're detailing what appears to be a Windows utilityrather than an actual graphics UEFI. In fact, if anything thesenew screenshots bring more questions with them than theyanswer.

The logo itself is suggesting that Gigabyte is still sticking toits guns by using the Award BIOS, as so far the additionsof GPT boot and support for 2.2TB+ hard drives are thebiggest changes that UEFI has brought with it and Gigabytehas implemented both of these in their BIOS and simply calledit Hybrid EFI technology. The subtitle to the logo is just that,Hybrid EFI technology and as such we're thinking that we'relooking at a Windows utility for adjusting the BIOS settingshere rather than a graphics UEFI interface.

The main screen consists of nine main icons as well as fivethat represent what appears to be a power button, a resetbutton, an adjustment up/down button, a snapshot buttonand one icon we can't quite figure out what it stands for, butwe'd guess it's a save button of some kind. The nine mainicons as far as we can make sense of it are for quick boot,hard drive settings, Q-Flash (BIOS flashing), system settings,@BIOS (second BIOS flashing option?), USB, power settings,download and security. That said, it's just us making guesseshere based on Gigabyte's current technology, so some of thisis likely to be wrong.

Moving on we can see that Gigabyte has put its overclockingsettings in the Touch BIOS, although the screenshot doesn'tgive away too many details. However, it appears that you havethe option to change the colours here via an icon that wasn'ton the main screen.

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The fourth and final screen shot shows the Boot Disk settingswhich actually seem to be general boot settings and not justrelated to the boot disk. The other three menu options arefairly self-explanatory as well and aren't likely to hold any greatsecrets.

Below the main screen is a Save CMOS button, a close icon, ahelp icon, an @ icon which Gigabyte in general tends to assignfor internet updates and finally an exclamation mark whichwe're not sure what it's for. It should hopefully not be too longuntil all is revealed and we'll be pestering Gigabyte for somehands on time with whatever it is that they're working on.

G.Skill RipjawsX 1600MHz CL74GB DDR3 Kit ReviewSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/g.skill-ripjawsx-1600mhz-cl7-4gb-

ddr3-kit-review/11890.html

April 26th, 2011

Having just a fast processor isn't really enough these days; ahigh-speed memory kit can provide quite a bit of performanceboost to your bandwidth-hungry Intel 'Sandy Bridge'platform gaming rig. VR-Zone.com finds out how much animprovement there can be with the F3-12800CL7D-4GBXMkit from G.Skill. Overclocking included.

G.Skill, a leading manufacturer of high performance memory,was one of the first to introduce new memory kits designed forthe 'Sandy Bridge' platform. Known as the RipjawsX, there areover twenty different configurations available for enthusiastsand gamers to choose from for their new rig.

This weekend, VR-Zone.com tries out theF3-12800CL7D-4GBXM. Well, that is the SKU code, andwe shall call it the RipjawsX 1600MHz CL7 4GB DDR3 kitfor simplicity's sake. This particular kit is a matched pairof two 2GB double-sided memory modules, programmedand tested for 1.5V operation at 1600MHz CL7-8-7-24-2N.Offering impressive specifications and excellent pricing as itspredecessors, it would be interesting to see if this new kit canperform in the overclocking department.

The G.Skill kit comes in an easy-to-open blister pack and thememory modules can be comfortably popped away from thepackaging.

Nothing much to see on the other side; we have a shortintroduction about the RipjawsX series and a label affixed atthe bottom right corner for you to make sure the right memorykit is in there.

Here is a quick run through of the G.Skill kit's specificationsbefore we proceed further.

Type 240-pin DDR3Designed for Intel P67Capacity 4GB (2 x 2GB)Speed PC3-12800 (1600MHz)Latency CL7-8-7-24-2NVoltage 1.5VRegistered / Unbuffered UnbufferedError checking Non-ECCWarranty Lifetime

Rumour: NVIDIA releasingGeForce GTX 560 on May 17thSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/rumour-nvidia-releasing-geforce-

gtx-560-on-may-17th/11959.html

April 26th, 2011 Published by: VR-Zone

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April 26th, 2011

The GeForce GTX 560 we first heard about 4 weeks ago, isnow rumoured to release on May 17th. Not to be confused withthe GTX 560 Ti, the GTX 560 will be a direct replacement tothe GTX 460. The specifications are expected to be remarkablysimilar to the outgoing GTX 460 1GB - 7 SM enabled for 336SP, 56 TMU, a 256-bit memory interface tied to 1GB GDDR5.However, the main difference would be the core frequency, upfrom 675 MHz to over 800 MHz.

Needless to say, the GTX 560 is aimed straight at the RadeonHD 6870. A majority of stock-clocked HD 6870s are nowselling in the $200-$210 range and it would thus make sensefor the GTX 560 to release at around the $199 price point.Other details are still sketchy and there's still four weeks to goto May 17th so things could change.

innoDisk shows off new SSDproducts at ComposecSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/innodisk-shows-off-new-ssd-products-

at-composec/11960.html

April 26th, 2011

You don't have to worry if you've never heard of innoDiskbefore, as the company mostly makes solutions for theembedded market rather than the consumer market and assuch it's not a company you'd come in contact with regularly.During Composec last week, innoDisk was showing off someof its new storage products, including what is currentlythe world's fastest mini PCIe DOM as well as some otherinteresting products.

You don't have to worry if you've never heard of innoDiskbefore, as the company mostly makes solutions for theembedded market rather than the consumer market and assuch it's not a company you'd come in contact with regularly.During Composec last week, innoDisk was showing off someof its new storage products, including what is currentlythe world's fastest mini PCIe DOM as well as some otherinteresting products.

Although a mini PCIe DOM (Disk on Module) looks identicalto an mSATA SSD, the mini PCIe DOM uses the PCI Expressinterface as the name implies, rather than the SATA interface.The downside of a PCI Express connected SSD is of coursethat most computers won't boot from it and that's pretty muchhow the mSATA standard came up. That said, innoDisk isoffering some impressive performance figures from its secondgeneration mini PCIe DOM as the company is promising read

speeds of 330MB/s and write speeds of 160MB/s which is upthere with full-size 2.5-inch SSDs.

The company also offers mSATA SSDs, but these have muchlower speeds of 120MB/s for reads and 110MB/s for writes,but at least the write speed compares favourably to that ofIntel's 310 series of mSATA SSD's which top out at 70MB/s,although Intel does offer much better read performance at upto 200MB/s depending on model.

Other peculiarities that we spotted at innoDisk's boothincluded their new EverGreen Plus series of MLC SSDs whichcomes with a six year warranty. However, innoDisk suggeststhat this series of SSDs' are best for usage scenarios wherefiles of 128KB or smaller are written to the SSD which seemsto be a very limited market. The performance figures aren'timpressive either with read speeds of 180MB/s and writespeeds of a mere 55MB/s, but it's not always about speedeverywhere an SSD is used and we're sure that there are plentyof vertical markets where this SSD would find a comfortablehome.

Next up we have an SSD with a SAS 6Gbps (Serial AttachedSCSI) interface, although it seems like innoDisk needs to gettheir hands on some much faster NAND Flash here as thisdrive offer read speeds of 190MB/s but unless it's a typo onthe little sign, write speeds of a mere 30MB/s. That said, thisis an interesting product if you take into account that Intel willoffer native SAS support on its high-end LGA-2011 consumerplatform later this year and it's likely that we'll be seeing a lotmore SAS SSD's as we get closer to that launch.

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Finally innoDisk was showing off its CFast cards, yet again astandard that hasn't really taken off outside of the embeddedmarket. CFast cards are meant to replace the Compact Flashstandard at some stage and rely on the SATA interface insteadof the almost defunct IDE interface which CF cards use.innoDisk's CFast cards offer read speeds of 120MB/s and writespeeds of 100MB/s and are of course SATA 3Gbps compliant.The only downside is that due to their relative small size, CFastcards require a passive adaptor to be attached to a computer;much like CF cards do, although of course a USB card readerwould work as well.

innoDisk might not be target the consumer market spacedirectly, but many of the products the company showed off atComposec do have consumer applications and we suggestedthat they'd consider the consumer upgrade market with someof its more exotic products. The representative we talkedto said that innoDisk will be launching faster mSATA SSDproducts with performance similar to that of its secondgeneration mini PCI DOM and if the price is right, we can see areasonable demand from performance hungry consumers thatwant a faster mSATA SSD in their notebook.

Google ordered to pay $5million over infringement ofLinux patentSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-ordered-to-pay-5-million-over-

infringement-of-linux-patent/11957.html

April 26th, 2011

Search engine giant Google has been ordered by the court topay US$5 million for infringing a Linux patent. The Linuxsoftware is used by the company for its server platformsand extends to the Android mobile platform.

Google has been found guilty of infringing patents related toLinux kernel and was ordered to pay US$5 million in fine. Thecompany has been using Linux software on its server platformsand even on its Android mobile platform. With the victoryagainst Google, it could mean trouble for Yahoo, MySpace,Amazon, Paypal, Match.com and AOL who have all been suedby Bedrock Computer Technologies. While the amount maynot be a huge sum, it just serves as a reminder to Linux userswho are required to pay royalties. More of such law suits couldbe expected against companies who rely on Linux open sourcesoftware.

"Gears of War 3" multiplayerbeta kicks off todaySource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/-gears-of-war-3-multiplayer-beta-

kicks-off-today/11954.html

April 26th, 2011

It has been over two years when Gears of War 2 was launched.Well, the wait is over. If you have preordered your Gears of War3, you can get into the multiplayer beta that launches today.Full news release inside.

April 26th, 2011 Published by: VR-Zone

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Singapore, 25 April 2011 - The multiplayer beta for this year’smost anticipated blockbuster, “Gears of War 3,” officiallylaunches today on Xbox LIVE. Die-hard fans who havepreordered “Gears of War 3” from Funzcentre, Cyberactive,Challenger and Comics Connection, can now jump into theaction and help perfect the multiplayer experience in the epicfinale to one of gaming’s most celebrated sagas.

Over the next three weeks, players will have the opportunityto get an early taste of three brand new competitive modes onfour breathtaking maps:

Beta Content Schedule

· April 25 – May 1

- The beta kicks off with the new Team Deathmatch and King ofthe Hill modes on three explosive battlegrounds: Thrashball,Checkout and Trenches.

· May 2 – May 8

- The action amps up with the addition of Capture the Leaderand a fan-picked map from the Facebook voting contest, OldTown.

· May 9 – May 15

- The mayhem continues with Team Deathmatch, King of theHill and Capture the Leader on all four maps.

Additionally, fans can look forward to special events andsurprises throughout the beta, and unlock exclusive medals,weapon skins and character variants, which they can carryover to their retail copy of "Gears of War 3" when it launcheson 20 Sep. For example, players can complete 50 matchesin any game type to unlock Thrashball Cole during the beta.Completing 10 matches as the Thrashball athlete during thebeta period will permanently unlock the character variant forthe retail version of "Gears of War 3". For additional details onthe unlockables and the beta, please refer to the official EpicGames FAQ.

Powered by dedicated servers, “Gears of War 3” offers theseries’ most feature-packed versus multiplayer experience yet,and raises the bar with new game types, weapons, visceralexecutions, playable characters, squad communication tools, adeep player rewards system, and more. New players will enjoythe finely balanced gameplay and streamlined game types,

which make “Gears of War 3” deeper and more accessible thanever before, allowing anyone to instantly jump into the action.

Developed by acclaimed studio Epic Games, “Gears of War3” is available for preorder today in three distinct editions– Standard (US$59.99), Limited (S$84.90) and Epic (US$149.99). For additional details on the game and the beta,please visit gearsofwar.xbox.com.

MacBook clone runningAndroid OS selling at US$76Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/macbook-clone-running-android-os-

selling-at-us-76/11956.html

April 26th, 2011

A Macbook Air clone has been spotted in China, and it looks tobe running Android operating system. But the most appealingfactor is not the design or the OS; it is selling at an affordableUS$76. Read on for the details.

Netbooks are still very much in demand, despite the growingmarket for tablet devices. It seems that a Macbook Air clonehas been spotted online with a black finish instead of the usualApple's aluminium body. It looks very similar to the previousgeneration Macbook Air and features a 10-inch display, frontfacing camera, 4GB flash memory and runs on AMLogicCortex A9 processor.

This one also runs Android operating system instead of MacOS or Windows, and claims to be able to handle web browsing,flash content and high definition videos without much issues.No details on the version of the Android OS version though.

The Macbook Air clone will also comes with a 12000mAHbattery which touts a battery life of about 20 hours.However,with a price tag of just 500 yuan (or US$76), it may well beusing a 1200mAh battery instead that gives three to four hoursof usage.

April 26th, 2011 Published by: VR-Zone

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Intel SSD Caching Feature forZ68 Chipset ExploredSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/intel-ssd-caching-feature-for-z68-

chipset-explored/11953.html

April 26th, 2011

Intel plans to officially launch Z68 Express chipset on May18th but you will be able to see reviews online from 12thonwards. Of course, those who can't wait for the official launchcan already purchase the Gigabyte Z68X-UD7-B3 board fromthe retail market, first available in Taiwan and then the rest ofthe world in the coming weeks. Other brands like ASUS andASRock are set to hit the retail next. Those enthusiasts hopingthey can overclock their Sandy Bridge better on Z68 than theP67 will probably be disappointed but there is one importantfeature of Z68 that matters, and that is the SSD caching.

Intel plans to officially launch Z68 Express chipset on May18th but you will be able to see reviews online from 12thonwards. Of course, those who can't wait for the official launchcan already purchase the Gigabyte Z68X-UD7-B3 board fromthe retail market, first available in Taiwan and then the rest ofthe world in the coming weeks. Other brands like ASUS andASRock are set to hit the retail next. Those enthusiasts hopingthey can overclock their Sandy Bridge better on Z68 than theP67 will probably be disappointed but there is one importantfeature of Z68 that matters, and that is the SSD caching.

The SSD caching feature on the Z68 Express chipset is to beofficially known as Intel Smart Response Technology which isone of the new feature of the Intel Rapid Storage Technology(RST) 10.5. This feature is unique only to Z68 which makesit stands out among the rest of the Cougar Point chipsetslike P67 and H67. Intel Smart Response Technology basicallyallows you to use a SSD as a cache between the hard driveand memory. It provides a SSD-like system performance whilehaving maximum storage capacity from the hard drives (singleor RAID). Intel Smart Response Technology is implementedas a single drive letter solution so no additional drive letter isneeded for the SSD.

Let's take a closer look at this neat feature, the requirementsand its limitations.

System Requirements:

• Z68 chipset

• Intel Core processor

• BIOS with the RST Smart Storage caching enabled

• BIOS with SATA mode set to RAID enabled

• BIOS that is PCI 3.0 and PMM (POST MemoryManagement) compliant to allow the OROM to handledirty shutdowns of Accelerated disks/volumes

• PMM must be able to allocate a minimum of 130MB oftemporary, nonaligned, extended memory to the LegacyOROM

• Intel RST 10.5 version release or later

• “Cache SSD” must have 18.6GB minimum capacity. Themax. cache size is 64GB so any capacity over 64GB willbe used for user data

• Only one ”Cache SSD” is allowed per computer system.

Feature Limitations:

• A total of only one pass-through disk (RAID Readysystem) or RAID volume can be 'Accelerated’ percomputer system

• Accelerated Volume criteria:

o Accelerated RAID volumes are limited to 31.5TB orless

o RAID levels 0, 1, 5, and 10 (No RRT volumesallowed to be accelerated)

o All array member disks must be HDDs (No arrayswith SSD member disks allowed to be accelerated)

• No Acceleration of a RAID volume that is one of thevolumes of a Matrix array (multiple volumes on a singlearray)

• The SSD to be used as the “Cache SSD” must be attachedto an internal SATA port of the computer

There are 3 Acceleration modes :

Mode Performance Dual Boot Safe Data CachingOff No

AccelerationN/A N/A

Enhanced(Default)

Boot-time

Run-time reads

Paging

Yes Write-Through

Maximized Boot-time

Run-time reads

Run-timewrites

Paging

No Write-Back

Enhanced mode is the default acceleration mode as it offersdata protection in the case of disk failure. It uses write-

April 26th, 2011 Published by: VR-Zone

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through data caching method to write data to the SSD andhard drive simultaneously. For user who wants maximum diskperformance, you can choose the maximized mode but thereis a high risk of data loss during disk failure. It uses the write-back cache method where data is written from the Cache SSDto the disk at intervals. For even better disk performance, youcan first stripe your hard drives then choose maximized mode.User can change acceleration mode at any time as long as theSSD and hard drive are working normally.

The former president andchairman of Sony and father ofCD's, dies aged 81.Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/the-former-president-and-chairman-

of-sony-and-father-of-cd-s-dies-aged-81./11952.html

April 26th, 2011

The former president and chairman of Sony, Norio Ohga, whowas credited with developing the compact disc, has died aged81, the company has said. Ohga was still a senior adviser to thecompany at the time of his death.

In 1953, Sony's co-founders recruited Ohga while he was stillstudying at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts andMusic and hoping to pursue a career as an opera singer.They sensed his knowledge of sound and electrical engineeringwould benefit the firm.

During the development of the CD, it was Ohga who pushed fora disc that was 12cm (4.8in) in diameter, because it providedsufficient capacity at 75 minutes to store all of Beethoven'sNinth Symphony.

Sony sold the world's first CD in 1982 and CDs overtook LPrecord sales in Japan five years later. Ohga's specificationsare still used today, and have shaped formats developed since,including MiniDisc and DVD.

Ohga also presided over the launch of Sony's game business,which went on to develop the successful "PlayStation" console.

Ohga stepped down as Sony's president in 1995 and continuedto serve as chairman and representative director until2000. He was also the chairman of the Tokyo PhilharmonicOrchestra.

NVIDIA To Launch DesktopOptimus / Synergy atComputexSource: http://vr-zone.com/articles/nvidia-to-launch-desktop-optimus-

synergy-at-computex/11946.html

April 26th, 2011

NVIDIA plans to launch their Desktop Optimus a.k.a Synergyat COMPUTEX Taipei this coming June and the best thing isthat it is available freely and no license agreement is needed.This technology works pretty much similar to LucidLogix'sVirtu where it allows dynamically swap between iGPU anddGPU based on nature of application and also uses Intel SandyBridge Quick Sync technology while doing video transcodingjobs.

NVIDIA plans to launch their Desktop Optimus a.k.a Synergyat COMPUTEX Taipei this coming June and the best thing isthat it is available freely and no license agreement is needed.This technology works pretty much similar to LucidLogix'sVirtu where it allows dynamically swap between iGPU anddGPU based on nature of application and also uses Intel SandyBridge Quick Sync technology while doing video transcodingjobs. Desktop Optimus a.k.a Synergy seems to work with anyNVIDIA discrete graphics cards on H67/H61 and Z68 boardswith updated BIOSes and graphics drivers. It is not knownwho's implementation is actually better but NVIDIA solutionis available for free while LucidLogix's solution requireslicensing fee.