Hardware

Razer is by no means a new firm, but it is new to the world of manufacturing hardcore, high-end PCs. Having built world-renowned PC peripherals for years, Razer is now getting ready to release its first ultra-portable but also ultra-powerful gaming ... laptop, dubbed "The Blade." Blade Laptop: Super-Powerful, Super-Light Razer is best known for its high-quality mice and keyboards, both of which are built specifically for Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing games (MMORPGs) like World of Warcraft or First-Person Shooters (FPSs) like Call of Duty: Black Ops. Razer's devices offer not ... (view more)

Hewlett-Packard (HP) has in recent weeks stirred up a media hornet's nest by knocking $300 off its discontinued TouchPad tablet. But the low priced tablets aren't over yet -- Lenovo has just announced a cheap tablet, but unlike the TouchPad, it's ... not yet obsolete. On Thursday Lenovo unveiled the IdeaPad Tablet A1, which comes with a relatively small 7-inch screen and runs Google's Android operating system (OS). It's also just 400 grams and is only a half-inch thick, making it a portable little device. According to Lenovo, it also boasts a seven hour battery life. (Source: pcworld.com ) ... (view more)

About 2 weeks ago, Hewlett-Packard (HP) announced it would discontinue its TouchPad, and later drastically slashed it's prices by 75%. This of course stirred much interest in the product, as they flew off store shelves in only a few days time. ... Questions remain as to the usefulness of a tablet that has been discontinued, as software updates are critically important to patch bugs and vulnerabilities. Thankfully, a new update by HP may have increased the life of the doomed device. HP Says it's "Fully Committed" to Supporting Doomed TouchPad According to the company the new update means ... (view more)

Hold on to your hats: the Hewlett-Packard (HP) TouchPad tablet firesale isn't over yet. HP recently announced that it's planning to make one more production run of the doomed device, meaning that lots more people will get their chance to buy a $99 ... tablet PC. HP created a ton of buzz last week when it knocked hundreds of dollars off its TouchPad tablet, which has been discontinued after only a few months of being on the market. In an effort to clear out stock, HP cut the price at a number of popular retailers, including Amazon.com and Best Buy. At brick and mortar stores people lined up for ... (view more)

According to a new report, it's expected that Windows 8 will ship with a number of new, low-cost notebook computers. Looking ahead, analysts expect a price battle between ARM and Intel that may result in a favorable market for consumers. "After more ... than 30 years of domination by a single micro-architecture -- Intel Corp.'s X86 -- the PC microprocessor... market finally is set for some real competition," said Matt Wilkins, an analyst for IHS-iSuppli. Wilkins contends that a growing rivalry between Intel and ARM will drive down the cost of laptops around the time Microsoft releases Windows 8. ... (view more)

It appears Amazon.com Inc. will introduce its own tablet computer this October. It's a move that will add a new dimension to Amazon's ongoing rivalry with Apple, as the two continue to compete for digital app consumers. It's expected that Amazon's ... tablet will feature a nine-inch screen and will run Google's Android operating system (OS), already a popular option on smartphones. In addition, it appears most of the manufacturing process will be outsourced to a still unknown Asian company. A Cheaper Alternative to an iPad An anonymous source indicated that the device will not have a camera, a ... (view more)

Kodak is set to host a new feature never before offered on a printer model: 3D photo printing. The Kodak ESP Office 2170 All-in-One is the first inkjet printer of its kind to offer prints with image depth and perception. The included Kodak AiO Home ... Center PC software allows users to select a few pictures of the same subject taken from slightly different angles. Once the images have been selected, the printer prints them off as a three-dimensional visual. Viewing the image in 3D, however, requires 3D glasses (the old-fashioned cardboard frames with blue and red lenses will do). Beyond this ... (view more)

It's only been a few weeks since Canadian tech company Research in Motion (RIM) shipped its PlayBook tablet , a direct rival to Apple's ubiquitous iPad. And while buzz surrounding RIM's device has led to decent sales, a recent report announcing a ... PlayBook recall is unlikely to spur further momentum in an already tough market. In a statement issued Monday, Waterloo, Ontario-based RIM admitted that it was issuing a recall for 1,000 PlayBook tablet computers, citing operating system (OS) problems. The company noted that the issue "may result in the devices unable to properly load software ... (view more)

A British organization has produced what appears to be the cheapest fully-functional computer ever made. The device, made by the Raspberry Pi Foundation, is the size of a USB stick and costs just $25. The computer, which runs the open source Linux ... system, has a particularly creative design. In effect it's a silicon chip attached to three sockets: an HDMI socket to connect to a monitor or TV screen, a USB slot to plug in a keyboard, and a memory card slot for storage. While it's small enough to carry anywhere, it carries out the same functions as a full-fledged desktop PC. $25 Pocket PC ... (view more)

Last week's report that thousands of U.S. libraries were set to receive Kindle eBooks marked a major step ahead for digital reading devices. But a new app-based copy of a book written by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore is not only changing the ... approach to commercialized reading, but also the very definition of what we consider a "book" to be. Push Pop Press, a company established by former Apple employees Kimon Tsinteris and Mike Matas, has published an app version of "Our Choice," the popular 2009 book about global warming. Apple Features Alter Book Layout The app is said to take full ... (view more)