Friday, August 12, 2011

Mad Catz Announces Shipping of the Cyborg R.A.T. Albino 6400 DPI Gaming Mouse

Mad Catz Interactive, Inc. announced today the shipping of the Cyborg R.A.T. Albino Gaming Mouse, compatible with both PC and Mac and available for order today. A special edition of the Guinness World Records-winning R.A.T.7, the Cyborg R.A.T. Albino comes complete with an enhanced 6400DPI sensor, improved tracking capabilities and a matt Albino white finish.

“Our range of Cyborg R.A.T. Gaming Mice continues to perform impressively at retail and show sustainable longevity in the range.” said Darren Richardson, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Mad Catz Interactive, Inc. “We recently announced compatibility with Mac OS via a free download and we are excited to introduce the special edition Albino model, which we believe will allow us to continue our strong growth in this sector and keep us at the forefront of gaming technology.”




For more information, visit the product page.

MSI Announces A75A-G55 Socket FM1 Motherboard

The world-renowned motherboard and video card manufacturer MSI has officially announced the all-new AMD Llano series motherboard – A75A-G55 today. In addition to continuing the motherboard advantages of the first model A75MA-G55 and scoring P1646 points for 3DMark 11's built-in display performance record, it also displayed MSI's superb R&D strength, crossing the OC Genie II technology onto the AMD Llano platform. There are no complicated settings, and it only requires one button (step) and one second to easily boost the system's overall performance by 110%.

It is the simplest and easiest overclocking tool whether it's for beginners or advanced computer enthusiasts. In addition, different from the AMD Dual Graphics technology used by other manufacturers, the MSI A75A-G55 motherboard can even work with MSI's video card overclocking software, Afterburner, to increase performance. The overall 3D operation performance can be increased to a maximum of 390%, again showing the outstanding features and multiplied effects of MSI's motherboard and video cards.



A75A-G55 uses MSI's second generation military class materials and parts that have passed military class certification allowing the motherboard to have the highest quality and the best stability. It is equipped with the ClickBIOS Concept, which allows enthusiasts to use the mouse to operate the BIOS. It also has a built-in native USB 3.0 and STAT 6GB/s interface. In addition, it can work with AMD CPUs that have a maximum of four cores and is equipped with a Radeon HD 6000 series display core processor (APU), which compares favorably to stand-alone video card's performances. Furthermore, it supports the newest DirectX 11 standards and can smoothly run current mainstream games such as DiRT 3, StarCraft 2 and WoW* etc. If you want to select an AMD Llano series motherboard with high quality, high performance and high convenience, MSI is your best choice.



OC Genie II overclocking in one second: The easiest overclocking tool
MSI's AMD A75 series motherboard also supports the newest OC Genie II overclocking technology, enthusiasts can easily enjoy one-second overclocking fun whether the OC Genie II is started from the BIOS, which overclocking veterans are used to, or from the Control Center for beginners. The system's CPU, memory, or built-in GPU can immediately receive a performance boost of at least 110% with only one button. There is no need for complicated settings or complex overclocking knowledge. OC Genie II is the simplest and easiest overclocking tool whether it is for beginners or advanced enthusiasts.

Awesome OC capability of Dual Graphics technology
The AMD A75 chipset supports the Dual Graphics technology. The GPU's computing power can be enhanced through the collaborative computing of specific stand-alone video cards and the APU. The AMD A75 series motherboard is equipped with MSI’s R6770-MD1GD5 video card while the Dual Graphics technology is operating. In addition to displaying excellent compatibility, when the video card performance is boosted with MSI's Afterburner overclocking software, the 3DMark Vantage P-Score for running Dual Graphics surges from 8308 to 13351. When compared to the AMD A8-3850 APU's default score for built-in video cards – 3425, the game performance could be increased to a stunning maximum of 390%, completely exerting the AMD Dual Graphics technology to a maximum!

Second generation military class materials and parts: Guaranteed for the highest quality and stability
In order to provide consumers with the highest quality motherboard, the MSI Llano series motherboards also imported second-generation military class standard materials and parts. Not only did they pass the rigorous testing of impartial third-party laboratories and match the MIL-STD-810G test standards, they also demonstrated extreme quality and stability. Through the blessing of Hi-c CAP, SFC and Solid CAP, not only did it allow the product’s overall lifespan to vastly increase, even if operating in rigorous environments under heavy loads for long periods, they still had excellent stability.

GPU that compares favorably against stand-alone video card performances
There is no need for the extra purchase of stand-alone video cards to smoothly play the current hottest DX11 games; MSI's Llano series motherboard supports AMD 4 core / Radeon HD 6000 stand-alone video card class APU. In addition to the ordinary work demands, it can even satisfy the general consumer's wish to be able to play current major games and experience the smoothness as if using a stand-alone video card. For example, when running StarCraft II (DX9), this year's car racing game series representative DiRT3, or the timeless World of Warcraft: Cataclysm under the mid-high material effects setting, users can enjoy the visual impact of all the smooth high resolution games. This allows the majority of users to easily advance to the next generation enthusiast platform without having to change power supplies or purchase additional stand-alone video cards.

The simplest and easiest Winki 3 tool software
Providing consumers with more convenient usage solutions has always been the goal MSI was striving for. And this time, MSI's Llano series motherboard also supports Winki 3, the simplest and easiest set of tools software, allowing you to quickly go online to browse web pages, type reports and edit photos, send instant messages to friends, voice chat, or even restore backed-up hard drive contents when the computer is malfunctioning. All this can be done as soon as you boot up, providing consumers with the most comprehensive free operating environment.

Native USB 3.0 & SATA 6Gb/s standards providing ultra high data transfer bandwidth
MSI's Llano series motherboard supports native USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gb/s high speed transfer standards, which can reach traditional USB 2.0 and SATA 3Gb/s specifications' 10 times and 2 times respectively, which is the 5Gb/s and 6Gb/s ultra high data transfer bandwidth. When used with USB 3.0 external devices or products that support SATA 6Gb/s and SSD solid-state hard drives, it can effectively satisfy all of the consumer's demand for high-speed storage devices.

Click BIOS that supports mouse operations
MSI's Llano series motherboard supports the UEFI architecture Click BIOS Concept. In addition to the traditional keyboard operations, it also supports the mouse-clicking method, satisfying the needs of more users. Moreover, it supports massive hard drives of more than 3TB, vastly increasing enthusiasts' storage capacity ability.

Supports the i-Charger charging function, allowing your iPad to be fully charged at any time
In response to the growing popularity of mobile Internet devices such as the Apple iPad, MSI's Llano series motherboard also has a built-in i-Charger charging technology. All you have to do is install the dedicated software and activate the i-Charger function. It will quickly help you charge your iPad, allowing your iPad to be fully charged at any time and allowing you to fully enjoy the convenience of going online anywhere, anytime.

For more information, visit the product page.

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

NVIDIA GeForce 280.26 WHQL Software Suite Released

NVIDIA today released this month's first major GeForce software update, version 280.26. The suite provides the latest WHQL-signed drivers for all NVIDIA GeForce GPUs since 6-series, and ION platform. It includes updated PhysX system software (v9.10.0514), and NVIDIA HDMI audio drivers (v1.2.23.3). The new drivers include support for SLI on AMD 990FX, 990X, and 970 desktop chipsets (on certified motherboards only). Apart from that, the 3D Vision component has undergone a massive overhaul.

The 3D Vision Controller driver is now included with all GPU driver installations. The 3D Vision player now supports windowed mode. Support is added for new 3D Vision compatible monitors, such as ViewSonic V3D245, and 3D Vision compatble projectors such as Acer X1111, BenQ W710ST, and NEC NP-V300W.

DOWNLOAD: NVIDIA GeForce 280.26 WHQL for Windows 7/Vista 64-bit | Windows 7/Vista 32-bit | Windows XP 32-bit | Windows XP 64-bit

New 3D Vision profiles are added for a number of game titles, namely, Alice: Madness Returns, Back to the Future (Episodes 1-5), Call of Juarez: The Cartel, Chuang Shi Xi You, Dao Jian 2, The Darkness 2, Dead Island, Deep Black, Dou Zhan Shen, Dragon Ball Online, Dungeons and Dragons: Online, Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1, L.A. Noire, League of Legends, LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean, Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar, The Lord of the Rings: War in the North, Mars, Might & Magic Heroes VI, Mount & Blade: Warband, Mount & Blade: With Fire and Blade, PROUN, RAGE, Red Orchestra 2: Heroes of Stalingrad, Rise of the Immortals, Rusty Hearts, Serious Sam 3: BFE, Virtua Tennis 4, and Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine.

3D Vision profiles were updated for Crysis 2, Deep Black and Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition.

SteelSeries Announces World of Warcraft Legendary Edition Gaming Mouse

SteelSeries, a leading manufacturer of professional gaming peripherals and creator of the MMO Gaming Mice based on Blizzard Entertainment’s World of Warcraft and World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, today announced their latest custom product for World of Warcraft players. The SteelSeries World of Warcraft MMO Gaming Mouse Legendary Edition is a finely crafted weapon of precision balancing style and function. This sleeker, more compact option shares the enhanced features of the previous World of Warcraft mice including in-game integration and superior illumination and software functionality.

“We’ve established an incredible partnership with Blizzard Entertainment and the amazing World of Warcraft community. We’ve taken all the excellent suggestions and feedback we’ve received, merged it with the latest gaming technology, and come up with a truly unique lineup of MMO Mice for World of Warcraft players.” said Bruce Hawver, SteelSeries CEO. “The new Legendary Edition allows us to meet the needs of gamers looking for a smaller, less complex gaming mouse that delivers the same impressive functionality found in the original and Cataclysm versions.”



The World of Warcraft MMO Gaming Mouse Legendary Edition features 16.8 million illumination color options and 11 programmable buttons, ergonomically positioned for comfortable gameplay. The player’s precision and control will be enhanced with the ability to assign all 11 button controls and multiple macros from directly within the World of Warcraft game interface. In addition to in-game support, the intuitive drag & drop interface of the SteelSeries software empowers users to:
  • Program all 11 buttons with more than 130 preset game commands
  • Create custom macros and/or use the in-game macro scripting language
The technical specifications for the new SteelSeries World of Warcraft mouse will include:
  • Illumination: 16.8 million color options with 4 levels of pulsation
  • Frames Per Second: 3,600
  • Counts Per Inch: 800 – 3,200
  • Adjustable Polling Rate
  • Optical Sensor Technology
  • 11 Programmable Buttons
  • Cable: 6.5 ft Braided Nylon
  • PC and Mac Compatible
The World of Warcraft Legendary Mouse will be available in late September online and in select retail locations for $79.99 / €69.99. For additional product information please visit this page.

EVGA Rolls Out Trio of Z68 Motherboards

After much delay, EVGA released its first wave of LGA1155 motherboards based on the Intel Z68 chipset featuring Intel Smart Response technology. Quite surprisingly, none of EVGA's Z68 motherboards feature display outputs. The series is topped by Z68 FTW, designed for enthusiasts and overclockers; followed by Z68 SLI, geared for gamers with NVIDIA SLI graphics setups; and Z68 SLI Micro, an SLI-ready board in the micro-ATX form-factor.

The Z68 FTW uses a similar layout to the P67 FTW. It uses a strong VRM to power the CPU and memory, it provides as many as six PCI-Express x16 slots, making use of a nForce 200 bridge chip that makes it 3-way and 4-way SLI ready. It is loaded with overclocker-friendly features such as EVbot support, a front-panel OC controller, and an overclocking gauge. The Z68 FTW is also available as a package without those two accessories.



The Z68 SLI is a typical ATX motherboard designed for 2-way SLI. It features three PCI-Express x16 slots, but only two of them are wired to the CPU. The board assumes that all its users have SLI setups, and hence does away with lane switches. Both PCI-Express graphics slots are permanently wired to be electrical x8 slots, irrespective of the second slot being populated. It is a similar case with the Z68 SLI Micro. All three motherboards lack PCI slots. The EVGA Z68 FTW is priced at US $299.99, its package without the ECP V4 and OC gauge accessories is priced at $264.99, the Z68 SLI goes for $209.99, and the Z68 SLI Micro for $159.99.


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Thursday, August 4, 2011

Sapphire Launches Radeon HD 6950 TOXIC Edition, Fastest HD 6950 Yet

SAPPHIRE Technology – the world leading supplier of graphics solutions, mainboards and other PC products - has just announced the SAPPHIRE HD 6950 TOXIC Edition, the fastest production card in its class.

The SAPPHIRE HD 6950 TOXIC Edition ships with clock speeds of 880MHz for the core and 1300Mhz (5.2 Gb/sec effective) for the memory making it the fastest production HD 6950 on the market. This has been achieved by building the card on a high specification PCB with digital VRMs for excellent power regulation and 8 + 6 pin power connectors. It has a high performance cooler featuring a Vapor Chamber, blower fan and a new perforated backplate to increase airflow out of the system case.



Like the standard HD 6950, the SAPPHIRE HD 6950 TOXIC Edition boasts true DX 11 capability and the powerful configuration of 1408 stream processors and 88 texture processing units. A Dual BIOS feature allows enthusiasts to experiment with alternative BIOS profiles and settings. Performance can be further enhanced with SAPPHIRE TriXX – the company’s dedicated overclocking tool which allows memory and core clock speeds and voltages to be modified and monitored and is available free to download.

With its two DVI, one HDMI and two mini-DisplayPort outputs, the SAPPHIRE HD 6950 TOXIC Edition supports a wide range of monitor configurations, including AMD Eyefinity with up to four screens.

The SAPPHIRE HD 6950 TOXIC Edition has the latest Gen3 on-board hardware UVD (Unified Video decoder), considerably reducing CPU load and delivering smooth decoding of Blu-ray and other video content for both VC-1 and H.264 codecs, as well as Mpeg files. The UVD can decode two 1080p HD video streams simultaneously and display HD video in high quality with Windows Aero mode enabled. The card has HDMI 1.4a which also supports Stereoscopic 3D output.

The SAPPHIRE HD 6950 family is supported by AMD's DirectX 11 WHQL certified graphics driver which delivers support for all of the key DirectX 11 level features required for new gaming experiences and acceleration of the latest generation of browsers, transcoding and other high performance applications (AMD APP acceleration).


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Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Cooler Master Ships Hyper 612 PWM CPU Cooler

Cooler Master, an industry leading chassis, thermal solution, peripheral, and accessory manufacturer, unleashes the overwhelmingly powerful Hyper 612 PWM CPU Cooler. Striking a delicate balance between cooling potential and noise, the Hyper 612 PWM outperforms all-in-one liquid coolers and high-priced counterparts alike while maintaining minimal noise levels.

The Hyper 612 PWM CPU Cooler is designed for optimum heat dissipation at low fan speeds thanks to wider fin gaps, a PWM fan with a special fin blade design, and a precise heat pipe layout that directs each of its six heat pipes across CPU "hot zones". Employing this unique heat pipe layout allows the heat pipes to multiply into twelve virtual heat pipes that cool the hottest parts of the processor.



Easy installation of fans and dual fan design options
Break the bonds that tie you to wire clips and fan screws with the included quick-snap brackets. With these brackets changing, adding, and cleaning fans becomes a simple matter of a few moments to remove and reattach everything. Those with more extreme cooling needs may attach an optional second fan with the extra included quick-snap fan bracket. The Hyper 612 PWM comes equipped with a high performance PWM controlled fan that can be adjusted via BIOS or OS-based motherboard tuning applications. Be it overclocking or stock speeds, PWM enables the included fan to become a versatile cooling option that tailors noise and performance to any need.



For more information, visit the product page.

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

SilverStone to Release Nightjar 500W Silent PSU Later This Week

SilverStone is on course for releasing the Nightjar ST50NF this Thursday. The ST50NF is a 500W, fan-less (completely silent), 80 Plus Gold compliant, non-modular power supply (PSU). The PSU does away with the 120 mm fan, and replaces it with a large aluminum heatsink that draws heat from numerous smaller heatsinks below that in turn draw heat from the various hot components. To try and offset the weight it puts on with all those heatsinks, and to make the unit airy, the outer body is made of thin perforated aluminum sheets.

The Nightjar ST50NF delivers 500W of continuous power, it is standards-compliant with ATX 12 V2.3 & EPS 12V. It features active PFC (power factor correction), and uses a single +12V rail design. All its cables are fixed to the unit. There should be enough cabling for a performance PC with a single graphics card. The PSU carries an MTBF rating of 50,000 hours. SilverStone's Nightjar ST50NF will be priced at €129.



Source: TechConnect Magazine

ASUS Ready with HD 6770 DirectCu Silent Graphics Card

ASUS is ready with a new silent (passive-cooled) graphics card based on the AMD Radeon HD 6770 graphics processor, the ASUS HD 6770 DirectCu Silent. ASUS designed a new passive GPU cooler from ground up, which makes use of heat pipe direct-touch design, which ASUS refers to as DirectCu (direct copper). The cooler is essentially a large aluminum fin heatsink that uses four nickel-plated copper heat pipes, conveying heat to a large aluminum fin stack, that is longer than the card's PCB itself.

Based on the 40 nm "Juniper" silicon, the HD 6770 is a rebrand of the HD 5770, it packs 800 stream processors, and a 128-bit wide GDDR5 memory interface to hold 1 GB of memory. The core is clocked at 850 MHz, and memory at 1200 MHz (4.80 GHz effective). The card draws power from one 6-pin PCI-E power connector. It uses high-grade "Super Alloy" VRM components, that are efficient, and don't lose energy to high-pitched noise on load. The card's display outputs include one each of DVI, D-Sub, and HDMI 1.4a. There's no word on the pricing and availability.

Thermaltake Announces Level 10 GT Snow Edition Professional eSports Chassis

Thermaltake Technology continues to fulfill the corporate mission of “delivering the perfect user experience”, and regard “building Thermaltake Technology into a cultural brand for the enjoyment of entertainment, e-Sports, technology and lifestyle” as a vision, in order to bring the joy to all the users worldwide. Since the collaboration with BMW DesignworksUSA for the creation of “Level 10” and got awarded with “red dot design award : product design 2010”, the “Level 10 GT”, especially built for e-Sports gamers and DIY enthusiasts, deriving from the concepts of Thermaltake and BMW DesignworksUSA, has also got the award of “red dot design award : product design 2011” which is recognized as the Oscar Award of the designing field this year, breaking an impressive record.

This July, with the special and unique aesthetics evolutionism that Thermaltake has, the new exciting professional eSports chassis Level 10 GT Snow Edition captivates with a purist design and expresses a passion for visual aesthetics combined the dark black and pure white to give all users a new visual experience. It is more than just a high-end gaming chassis, but rather a true piece of art, allowing gamers and enthusiasts to experience the power of their high-end computers through the sophisticated design.



Superior Cooling system
Level 10 GT Snow Edition is a solid quality eSports chassis, featuring superior air flow to prolong the life of the computer accessories. In order to meet the demand for both DIY and eSports with a trendy look and fulfill gaming quality requirements, the implementation of Thermaltake’s QuadFan (Three oversized 200mm ColorShift fans and one 140mm TurboFan) Ventilation concept creates an ideal environment for your components to unfold their full potential. In corporation with the superior cooling system, the water-cooling ready design for enthusiasts features an innovative top removable panel that can be easily transformed to accommodate high-efficiency 24cm radiator. Moreover, all intake fans come with convenient built-in dust filter that can be easily cleaned.

Extras for customers who want even more from the Level 10 GT Snow Edition
Thanks to an innovative technology, Thermaltake is very sensitive to its customers' requests, and always think ahead, the Level 10 GT Snow Edition professional eSports chassis emphasizes on the interior space, and has 5 sets of hot swappable hard drive trays for convenience and upgradeability. It provides greatest storage flexibility and maximum data transfer speeds. The side panels and hard drives are secured by an advanced lock system to keep data and hardware safe and secure. With 2 SuperSpeed USB 3.0 connectors right on the top of the Level 10 GT Snow Edition professional eSports chassis, that guaranteed to operate multimedia peripherals at tremendous data transfer velocities. Moreover, Level 10 GT Snow Edition professional eSports chassis has implemented intelligent layout and abundance of room for supporting largest components in each category and graphic card up to 370 mm.


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