For today's daily deals on hardware I like to put a focus on the thing that is so essential in your PC .. memory.

The norm these days is for low-end modern machines, 1 GB memory, mid-range 2GB memory and high end we are moving into a 4 GB memory size. Compared to a couple of years ago, this was unheard off. The good thing is however that memory prices plummeted downward so hard that you can purchase 4 G memory for less money than 1 GB two years ago. Let's have a look at some good deals.

Memory DDR2

• Kingston 1GB PC2-6400 DDR2 DIMM Memory for $14.00
• Corsair (2x 1GB) XMS2 DHX 2GB PC2-6400 DDR2 DIMM Dual Channel Memory Kit $25.99
• Crucial 4GB (2x2GB) PC2-6400 DDR2 DIMM what a deal .. 4GB 800 MHz at $51.99 !

Memory DDR3

• Crucial 2GB PC3-8500 DDR3 DIMM Memory at $32.99
• Crucial 4GB PC-3 8500 DDR3 SDRAM Memory Module - 4GB (2 x 2GB) at $69.99

Memory has never been this cheap you guys, roughly 15 bucks per gigabyte.

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One of the more discussed mice on the web, the Microsoft

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Flash memory specialist SanDisk announced two new ImageMate memory card readers, the ImageMate All-in-one and the ImageMate Multi-card. Both readers feature faster transfer rates, packed into a smaller and attractive body compared to the older SanDisk readers.

The ImageMate All-in-one reader provides quick card-to-card copying functionality and supports SD, SDHC, miniSDHC, MMC, MS, MSPD, xD and CF. As for Multi-Card reader, it supports only xD, MS, SD, SDHC and MMC.

ImageMate All-in-one retailed for $29.99 and ImageMate Multi-Card will cost you $19.99. Both are available now from SanDisk.com

 

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Yesterday the GErman based Alphacool launched two new waterblocks for the Intel LGA775/1366/1160 processors; the Alphacool HF 14 Livingstone and Alphacool HF 14 Yellowstone.

There some pictures on Alphacool's website, but most of the specifications are still only available in the German language. International orders are taken though and you can select the English language at the website.

The Livingstone (left) ships for 59.95EUR. And the Yellowstone (right) has a 74.95 EUR pricetag, pretty radical looking CPU blocks really, very nice.

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Using six engineering sample 4GB DDR3 memory modules, a Core i7-920 CPU and Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5 motherboard, Kingston demo'ed a 24GB PC.


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Activision has released a new and trailer for their upcoming temporal themed shooter Singularity (PC/PS3/Xbox 360).

Meanwhile the game's official website has now launched offering a Fall 2009 release window. This site is different from the viral web site MIR-12.com which continues to reveal some of the game's back story.

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Palit Microsystems announces the first own design GeForce GTX285 1GB and 2GB. Armed with NVIDIA PhysX and NVIDIA CUDA

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Let's meet and greet the RV740 graphics chipset, we think the product might be named Raden HD 4750. RV740 is positioned somewhere in the upper segment of budget level products. We are sure this product is going to be cheaper than 99 USD / 89 EUR. And considering where the product is targeted in the market, ATI is pulling rabbit out the hat with a head the size of an elephant.

Two hundred freaking USD dollars ? Thanks, but no thanks.

The Logitech G19 LCD Gaming Keyboard has gone up for pre-order on Amazon, promising macros, switchable key backlighting and a 320 x 240 mini-display.  A panel of twelve programmable macro keys - each storing three macros - runs down the left-hand side, and there

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Aleratec has released a standalone hard drive duplicator, the 1:1 HDD Cruiser, that supports copy speeds of up to 70MB per second. The Cruiser provides a USB 2.0 port that allows access to both SATA drive bays from a PC for editing or viewing. The port can also be used if the two drives are left connected for extra storage or backup. Source and target drives are loaded directly into the drive bays without the need for external cables.

The bays feature internal non-scratch SATA connectors that are designed to exceed 50,000 swap cycles. A metallic lining surrounds each drive to promote thermal conductivity.

The Aleratec 1:1 HDD Cruiser is now available for $315. The standard version is equipped for 3.5-inch drives, while an optional pair of 2.5-inch adapters is priced at $37. Customers that purchase the device before the end of March can receive the adapters for free with a mail-in rebate.

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This is a funny fact, and sure .. quite an accomplishment when you think about it. Intel unveiled on its website that each of the 45nm transistors in the upcoming 8-core Xeon processors uses 1/7,000th the power and takes up 1/40,000th the area of the original 4004 transistors that Intel was manufacturing in 1971:

''Each of the 45nm transistors in the upcoming 8-core Intel

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Gamesindustry.biz has interviewed Microsofts VP Chris Lewis who says their upcoming OS refresh Windows 7 will actually be a boon for PC games:

Q: PC gaming is still pretty popular for certain genres, so how do you feel that the Games For Windows campaign has progressed - is there more development planned there?

Chris Lewis: We're happy there, and we're very mindful that there's a strong and vibrant PC gaming community out there. Not all console games lend themselves to the PC - when it is appropriate we bring games to both platforms, when it's not we don't, and that will continue to be the case.

Ultimately we're a Windows and PC company at heart, and that's not going to change, and the development on both platforms will remain central and important. The business ebbs and flows, and there will be times when we do more on one platform than the other, but they do co-exist very nicely, and as a company we're in a pretty unique position that we have a strong legacy on PC.

We now have a similarly robust position on console, but we're excited about all screen sizes, whether they be phones, consoles via the television, or PC. We're uniquely placed to offer a very rich experience on all of those screen types to consumers, and we'll continue to invest across all platforms.

We remain focused on it, you'll see more from us there in the future, and long may that continue.

Q: Are you aware of any changes in the next Windows platform that are specifically aimed at the gaming community?

Chris Lewis: Windows 7 will be great for games, undoubtedly. It's all good news - it's even more robust, it's quicker relatively, and the early testing cycles are proving very promising overall. I think it'll be nothing but good news for PC gamers, but we'll have more to say on that later on this year.

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It is not exactly a secret that Phenom Triple core processors in fact are a quad-core processor with one core disabled.  Now before we begin out little tail and you storm off to the stores, realize this .. one core being disabled is always for a reason. It might be a problematic core, slightly instable or just downright damaged. But if you are in luck, the 4th core works properly.  And now let me continue my little tail ..

A Korean user has discovered that it is rather easy to unlock the disabled core on Phenom II X3 processors, provided the motherboard supports the Advanced Clock Calibration (ACC) feature (790GX motherboards) and this trick seems to work with Triple core Phenom II X3 720 and Phenom II X3 710, codename Heka.

Only with the 904xxxx-stepping; this tweak seems to work, not with 0849xxxx. On an ASUS motherboard this little trick did not work, but it's confirmed to work on 790 motherboards from Biostar and Asrock.

In this example a Phenom II X3 710 was paired with a Biostar TA790GX 128M motherboard. The CPU was overclocked to 3.12 GHz, with a vCore setting of 1.37 V.

Here's what you could try out:

Set the appropriate BIOS setting for the Advanced Clock Calibration feature to "Auto", save settings and restart. The system will be able to deal with the disabled core, and off load some work to it. The processor with the "additional" core was tested to be Prime95 stable and was able to boost 3DMark06 CPU score by as much as 1,000 points. More screenshots here.

For those interested, the Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz sells here for $149.99

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Within a few hours, the public beta version of Quake Live (formerly known as Quake Zero) is going to be made available today. Completely financed by in-game advertising, Quake Live is a free first-person shooter game, based on the popular Quake III Arena from id Software - playable through your browser. It is targeting mainly multiplayers, while the underlying game engine is id Tech 3. Expect the download to be about roughly 200 MB in size.

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A few days ago, Microsoft Research revealed a PDF outlining a new browser called Gazelle, which is supposed to make surfing the Internet a lot safer. The research paper introduces a new approach towards browser security by implementing a different kind of kernel. Using this new kernel, the browser is constructed to work just like an OS - differentiating it greatly from other currently available products. Besides researchers from Microsoft, the universities of Illinois, and Washington are both participating in the current project as well. The core idea behind Gazelle is that every opened web site resembles a new instance, running completely independent of all other instances. A prototype was already built for Windows Vista and seems to be working with most web sites, although, there are currently no plans for releasing this browser.

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We test the Palit GeForce GTX 260 Sonic SP216 edition, a card that probably can't get much better. Why ? Get this, custom board design, 896MB GDDR3 memory, 216 Shader processor version, custom dual-fan cooler, custom higher clock frequencies and due to that cooler, immense overclocking capabilities. Yeah, that is a lot to mention in one small little paragraph.

Yea, we just caught your attention didn't we? You can click on the link to read this 21 page Guru3D review, right here.

 

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So that makes the new 4870 card an 'update' rather than new technology. AMD's next high-end graphics card is as you guys all heard, built on ASIC RV790. It's however still based on a 55 nm manufacturing process.

Sources tell German website Hardware-Infos that the new GPU perform better and run at higher clock-speeds than RV770 (4870). The ASIC is absed of an improved 55 nm manufacturing process.

RV790 engineering-samples undergoing testing are known to be coming in two flavours according to the source: a base model and an overclocked model. The base model comes with the same exact clock speeds as the RV770XT: 750/900 MHz (core/memory), while the overclocked model is known to come with clock speeds of 850/975 MHz (core/memory). To achieve that 100 MHz increment in core frequency, the voltage is known to be stepped-up from 1.24 to 1.30 V.

Products based on this GPU are known to surface by April [via TPU and Hardware-Infos]

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JC Hyun Systems, a premier leader in car infotainment systems announced the RUNZ CI-7100 Car Infotainment System, the world's first car infotainment system which is developed exclusively using Creative's award-winning Xtreme Fidelity (X-Fi) technology to enhance the overall in-car audio experience of motorists. The audio experience of watching movies or listening to music in cars with X-Fi technology will be truly amazing.

Main Features of RUNZ CI-7100
The RUNZ CI-7100 Car Infotainment System is built using a powerful Intel dual-core (360/300MHz) processor. It features the MMSP2 MPEG video hardware engine, SiRF III GPS chipset and Creative Technology's revolutionary X-Fi Audio Processor. The RUNZ CI-7100 features an intuitive 7-inch digital LCD touch screen capable of displaying 800 x 480 high-resolution images and videos. Audio quality is digitally restored and improved using both Creative X-Fi Crystalizer and Creative X-Fi CMSS-3D. Additional features of the RUNZ CI-7100 include two AV in/out ports, USB 2.0 and SD memory card interfaces and Bluetooth 2.0 Enhanced Data Rate (EDR) support.

"I believe all motorists seek to enjoy music and videos of the highest quality when travelling in their cars. They expect the same high standards of entertainment experience they enjoy at home, something which most car audio or car infotainment systems in the market have been unable to match so far. By integrating the state-of-the-art Creative X-Fi audio technology to the RUNZ CI-7100, I am confident that we can propel car infotainment enjoyment to the next level and set the standard for next generation systems to come in the near future." said JH Lee, Senior Sales Director of JC Hyun Systems.

"We are thrilled to bring the world-renowned X-Fi technology to motorists and their passengers who will now be able to experience compelling audio quality when listening to music or watching movies," said Low Long Chye, Senior Product Manager of Audio at Creative Technology. "The X-Fi technology is fully optimized so audio and visual entertainment in the car can be enjoyed in amazing high-definition audio clarity and detail".

Features of X-Fi Technology (X-Fi Crystalizer and X-Fi CMSS-3D)
The RUNZ CI-7100 Car Infotainment System supports Creative X-Fi Crystalizer and Creative X-Fi CMSS-3D. Creative X-Fi Crystalizer technology restores fine details and vibrance lost in compressed music and movies. All the highs and lows are also intelligently enhanced to ensure that users hear everything in ultra-realistic audio quality. Creative X-Fi CMSS-3D technology expands stereo MP3s and digital movies into surround sound over multi-channel speakers within the car. The 3D positional audio function allows voices to be centered to the front of users and ambient sounds to encapsulate the audience.

Pricing and Availability
The RUNZ CI-7100 Car Infotainment System is now available in Singapore through its authorised dealer, Navigator Systems Pte Ltd at a suggested retail price of S$1,999.00. The RUNZ CI-7100 Car Infotainment System is also equipped with the latest Tele-Atlas Maps from Sygic.

 

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Inno3D certainly has a tatse for different cooled products. Meet the latest one with Freezer X2 cooler. Inno3D are excited to launch the Inno3D GeForce GTX 260 with FreezerX2 cooler that offers double the cooling performance and better value for your buck.

The new pictures show Inno3D's new Freezer X2 cooler with Direct Heatpipe Touch, or simply DHT technology.

This card should use Nvidia's new P897 PCB, and feature a 6-phase power design. Inno3D will show this card at CeBIT but the exact clocks are still unknown, although we suspect that it will be overclocked due to the use of DHT Freezer X2 cooler.

The cooler is based on three heatpipes that are in direct contact with the GPU and a rather large heatsink which is cooled by the two fans. The large heatsink makes this card a dual slot solution and we have no doubt that this kind of cooling can cope with GTX 260's temperatures.

FreezerX2 Features

* Dual 8 cm ball bearing PWM fan, cooling power x 2
* DHT Technology, cooling efficiency x 2
* 2 mm fin distance, airflow x 2
* Smooth sanded base, contact area x 2
* Triple heatpipe cooling performance
* 55 nm Manufacturing Process
* Less power consumption with 175 W

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Microsoft's near-final Release Candidate version of Windows 7 could be due in less than two months, says a source within Microsoft. The company is reportedly making progress according to its exact schedule and will purportedly launch the RC build for both testers and the public on April 10th. The update would come just three months after the public beta build and would give Microsoft a full eight months to produce the fully finished version that represents the last milestone.

The company has long promised a shortened development schedule for Windows 7 but has publicly insisted that it doesn't anticipate a release before early 2010, or three years after Vista's release. The quickened RC process, if not struck with delays, hints that the company fully intends an accelerated launch that would have the software released by the end of 2009. Multiple leaks and other clues have suggested that a production version will be ready by July to ensure that PCs are ready with the major upgrade before the holidays.

While considered stable, the sped-up OS release is believed prompted by a continued hostile perception of Vista that sees multiple PC makers selling XP downgrades several months after the 2001 software was to have left the market. Business reception has also been cold with just a fraction of companies having installed Vista two years since its release.

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One of the games I liked very much last year was Mass Effect. The RPG sequel is expected to hit between January and March of next year.

The game will hit multiple platforms, but no specifics have been announced as of yet. BioWare has confirmed that players will be able to continue Mass Effect 2 using their saved games from the first title, carrying over their characters.

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Crymod has a news update regarding the WIP level currently in development by community member and modder atsest. The aim of the level is to recreate the 2005 CG trailer for Killzone 2 and the author has recently released a new ingame trailer video as well as some great new iamges showing off the features of the level; today we have this to present.

Trailer Video
Shown below is the embedded low quality version of the video, that displays the various features and environments that will be featured in the level. To see it in high quality visit the YouTube page here. Also shown are a selection of images provided by atsest that display the quality of the level further.


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