Tuesday 24 January 2012

2012 - Not a blue year for Blu-ray

Despite what the Ancient Mayans may lead you to believe, 2012 will be another good year for the Blu-ray format, with a solid batch of new summer blockbusters, along with many more classics from the back catalogue which have yet to see a high definition release. Let's take a look at what beauties we have to look forward to.

New releases

2012 - Not a blue year for Blu-ray

Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson's visualisation of Herge's classic The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn will arrive in both 2D and 3D versions in the second quarter. The maligned and unnecessary remake of the 80's disco classic Footloose has yet to be set. Before the release of the last part in the saga, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 will see a release, Dreamwork's Shrek spin-off character Puss In Boots will see a 2D and eventual 3D release, Disney's revitalised The Muppets will bow in the second quarter, the blink-and-you'll-miss-it cinema release of The Three Musketeers might find a larger audience on disc in both 2D and 3D versions, the remake of John Carpenters The Thing would be best avoided (trust me). The hilarious Horrible Bosses will definitely be a keeper in January, Sony's The Smurfs was much better than expected and is released in 2D and 3D versions in January and the monstrosity known as The Zookeeper shouldn't be, but will be released in January.

2012 - Not a blue year for Blu-ray

The forthcoming cinema releases will all receive a Blu-ray release before the end of the year pending any sort of disaster, including; Men In Black 3, The Avengers, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Dark Knight Rises, GI Joe: Retaliation, Red Tails, Underworld: Awakening, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, Dr. Seuss' The Lorax, Wrath of the Titans, Battleship, Snow White and the Huntsman, Madagascar 3, Brave, Prometheus, The Amazing Spider-Man, Total Recall, War Horse.

Catalogue

Whilst the last few years has mined a lot of gold, including the late 2011 release of the much loved Jurassic Park Trilogy and the Star Wars Saga, 2012 will continue filling out the gaps in the Blu-ray back catalogue.

2012 - Not a blue year for Blu-ray

Headlining the 100th anniversary of Paramount Pictures will be the release of at least the first Indiana Jones adventure - Raiders of the Lost Ark, but likely the entire trilogy of unreleased titles. Spielberg's Jaws has been confirmed for later in the year and E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial has been rumoured, and likely considering the titles 30th anniversary. To coincide with theatrical release of The Secret World of Arietty, Madman are due to release one of Miyazaki's best, Howls Moving Castle. Sony will release the mediocre Men In Black 2 before the release of the third film, Paramount have set a February release for Transformers: Dark of the Moon in a 3D special edition, to tap into the 100th anniversary of the Titanic disaster Fox will theatrically re-release Titanic in April, and a 3D and 2D Blu-ray release will follow soon after. Similarly, Fox will return to the Star Wars well to release the Phantom Menace in cinemas and a 3D Blu-ray release will likely follow.

2012 - Not a blue year for Blu-ray

Disney plan to fill out the gaps in the classic animation collection with confirmed February releases of Lady and the Tramp Pocahontas, late 2012 release of Cinderella, but releases of Robin Hood, Tarzan and possibly The Hunchback of Notre Dame are all widely tipped. Sony's multi-year restoration of Lawrence of Arabia is finally set for a mid-year release, and their much delayed release of Bad Boys 2 will finally see the light of day. Monty Python and The Holy Grail will return in a 35th anniversary set mid year. Fox will release one of the final entries in the classic Rogers and Hammerstein collection The King and I later in the year. Panasonic's timed exclusitivity for the 3D Blu-ray release of Avatar expires in February, so a wide retail release can be expected along with a new transfer of The Terminator which will likely take centre stage to a special edition Blu-ray re-release, along with first time releases of True Lies and The Abyss. Hitchcock's Dial M For Murder will likely see a 2D and 3D release midyear from Warner, and Universal will unleash The Birds around the same time.

2012 - Not a blue year for Blu-ray

To coincide with the theatrical release of the latest James Bond title Skyfall in November, now that MGM's financial woes are over, look for all of the outstanding James Bond titles including my personal favourite GoldenEye, along with Tomorrow Never Dies, You Only Live Twice, Diamonds Are Forever, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, The Spy Who Loved Me, Octopussy and the truly awful A View To A Kill.

2012 - Not a blue year for Blu-ray

Finally, if all goes to plan with the current transfer and restoration of the 35mm elements of Star Trek: The Next Generation, we should be able to unwrap a high definition of Season for Christmas.

So save your pennies folks, there is a hell of a lot to look forward to over the course of 2012.

... Read the rest in your browser!

FBI takes down MegaUpload

Yesterday the US government shut down one of world's most popular websites, MegaUpload.com, and arrested seven MegaUpload employees on charges of copyright infringement, racketeering, and money laundering. The feds claim the site earned over $175 million since its founding in 2005, you can read the full statement from the US Department of Justice at this page.

Analysis of why MegaUpload got smashed and some background information about the site's founder can be read at ARS Technica:
The US government dropped a nuclear bomb on "cyberlocker" site Megaupload today, seizing its domain names, grabbing $50 million in assets, and getting New Zealand police to arrest four of the site's key employees, including enigmatic founder Kim Dotcom. In a 72-page indictment unsealed in a Virginia federal court, prosecutors charged that the site earned more than $175 million since its founding in 2005, most of it based on copyright infringement.

As for the site's employees, they were paid lavishly and they spent lavishly. Even the graphic designer, 35-year-old Slovakian resident Julius Bencko, made more than $1 million in 2010 alone.

The indictment goes after six individuals, who between them owned 14 Mercedes-Benz automobiles with license plates such as "POLICE," "MAFIA," "V," "STONED," "CEO," "HACKER," GOOD," "EVIL," and�perhaps presciently�"GUILTY." The group also had a 2010 Maserati, a 2008 Rolls-Royce, and a 1989 Lamborghini. They had not one but three Samsung 83" TVs, and two Sharp 108" TVs. Someone owned a "Predator statue." Motor bikes, jet skis, artwork, and even 60 Dell servers could all be forfeit to the government if it can prove its case against the members of the "Mega Conspiracy."
Anonymous took revenge by going on a hacking spree and taking down the websites of the DoJ, RIAA, MPAA, Universal Music, EMI, FBI, HADOPI and others.
The combination of the hacking nebula's SOPA animosity�they've been a vocal opponent of the bill since its inception�combined with today's sudden Megaupload news has made the group bubble over: hundreds upon hundreds of Anon operatives are in a plotting frenzy, chatting about which site will go down next. In Anon's eyes, the government and media interests are responsible for the undue destruction of Megaupload (and the arrest of four of its operators), so it'll be exactly those entities that're feeling the pain right now. Pretty much every company that makes movies, TV, or music, along with the entirety of the federal government, is in Anonymous' crosshairs.


FBI takes down MegaUpload - More news at DV Hardware

Next-gen Xbox chips for dev kits in production?

Charlie Demerjian from SemiAccurate claims the next-gen Xbox chips are currently in production, these chips will end up in developer kits. The site believes the next Xbox console will once again have a PowerPC-based processor, and possibly a Radeon-based graphics chip from AMD.
If you recall, when we last mentioned the XBox next GPU/GPU/APU chip called Oban, it had just taped out. That was 6 weeks ago or so, and one thing we said in the article was that the devs we queried before that was written all said, �No clue, haven�t heard anything from Microsoft about it yet�. Fair enough, and given the number of them saying the same thing, we rapidly came to the conclusion that there was no info floating. Microsoft had not done any external briefings yet.

...

Now for the new stuff. The XBox Next/720 Oban chip is in initial production. Sources at a foundry with a blue logo, confirm that Oban wafers started running in the final days of 2011. Sources on the other side of the continent in Redmond when questioned, said, �Who the f*&$ told you that? I am going to f#*&ing rip someone�s head off�. We at SemiAccurate take this as confirmation that the initial sources were in the right ballpark.


Next-gen Xbox chips for dev kits in production? - More news at DV Hardware

AMD rolls out Radeon HD 7900 driver

AMD has published the 8.921.2 RC11 driver for the Radeon HD 7900 series.
Feature highlights of the 8.921.2 RC11 AMD Radeon� HD 7900 driver

Super Sampling Anti-Aliasing and Adaptive Anti-Aliasing Preview support for DirectX� 10 and DirectX� 11 applications
AMD Radeon� HD 7900 users can now enable Super Sample Anti-Aliasing and Adaptive Anti-Aliasing through the AMD Catalyst� Control Center for DirectX� 10 and DirectX� 11 applications.
Applications must support in game Anti-Aliasing for the feature to work (Forced on Anti-Aliasing through the Catalyst� Control Center is not supported for DirectX 10 and DirectX 11 applications)

Performance highlights of the 8.921.2 RC11 AMD Radeon� HD 7900 driver
8% (up to) performance improvement in Aliens vs. Predator
15% (up to) performance improvement in Battleforge with Anti-Aliasing enabled
3% (up to) performance improvement in Battlefield 3
3% (up to) performance improvement in Crysis 2
6% (up to) performance improvement in Crysis Warhead
10% (up to) performance improvement in F1 2010
5% (up to) performance improvement in Unigine with Anti-Aliasing enabled
250% (up to) performance improvement in TessMark (OpenGL) when set to �insane� levels

Resolved issues: highlights of the 8.921.2 RC11 AMD Radeon� HD 7900 driver
Folding@Home: intermittent stability issues have been resolved for the OpenCL version of Folding@Home
Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 no longer experiences minor flickering with Tri CrossFireX� configurations
Dragon Age 2 no longer experiences minor flickering with Tri CrossFireX� configurations
StarCraft 2 no longer encounters issues when quitting campaign with Tri and Quad CrossFireX� configurations
BattleForge stability has been improved with Tri CrossFireX� configurations
Improved stability when enabling / disabling CrossFireX� and installing the AMD graphics driver on AMD CrossfireX� configurations

Known Issues:
Just Cause 2 - Launching the application will cause a hang for single GPU and CrossfireX� configurations


AMD rolls out Radeon HD 7900 driver - More news at DV Hardware

MIT researchers develop up to 10x faster Fourier transform algorithm

The Tech Report writes data compression and wireless signal processing may get a speedup as MIT researchers have developed a new Fourier transform process that is up to ten times faster than the existing function.
A group of MIT researchers has developed a new algorithm that improves upon the fast Fourier transform. In some situations, the algorithm is claimed to be 10 times faster than the existing function, which is good news for computing applications. The fast Fourier transform allows computers to decompose irregular signals into their component frequencies; it's used in everything from data compression to wireless signal processing, so a faster version has potentially wide-ranging applications.


MIT researchers develop up to 10x faster Fourier transform algorithm - More news at DV Hardware

Acer, Asus and Lenovo to debut Thunderbolt ultrabooks in Q2 2012

DigiTimes reports Acer, Asustek and Lenovo will all three release ultrabooks with Thunderbolt support in Q2 2012:
Acer, Asustek Computer and Lenovo are expected to offer ultrabooks based on Intel's Ivy Bridge platform which supports Thunderbolt in the second quarter of 2012, while Gigabyte Technology will take the initiative to offer Thunderbolt-enabled motherboards, according to industry sources.

Intel's Ivy Bridge is already set to natively support USB 3.0 technology and will be mainly equipped in mid-range to high-end PC models in 2012 and be fully standardized by 2013; however, limited by the increasing cost of more than US$20, the company's Thunderbolt technology is only expected to be adopted among high-end notebooks or desktops in 2012, the sources noted.


Acer, Asus and Lenovo to debut Thunderbolt ultrabooks in Q2 2012 - More news at DV Hardware

WD: Return to pre-flood production level by September

Western Digital announced it expects to restore its production output to pre-flood levels by September:
Western Digital expects to rebuild its production capacities to pre-flood levels by September, 2012, the company said this week. The manufacturer aims to repair its two factories in Thailand and bring back its output to normal levels in several months from now. Until then, shortages of hard drives will likely persist.

"Our focus today is on bringing back our capacity to rapidly support our customers," said John Coyne, chief executive officer of WD, adding the impact of the floods had reduced its output by 30%, according to Reuters news-agency.


WD: Return to pre-flood production level by September - More news at DV Hardware

AMD Radeon HD 7950 clock speeds revealed?

TPU spotted a rumor over at DonanimHaber regarding the supposed clockspeeds of AMD's Radeon HD 7950 video card:
eliable sources revealed to DonanimHaber the reference clock speeds of the HD 7950. The core of the HD 7950 will be clocked at 800 MHz, and the memory at 1250 MHz (actual), 5.00 GHz (GDDR5 effective). This, compared to the 925 MHz (core), 1375 MHz (memory actual)/ 5.50 GHz (memory effective) clock speeds of the HD 7970. The HD 7950 will hence be a good overclocker considering the speeds it comes with, there is scope for quite a few factory-OC models from AIBs.
The Radeon HD 7950 is expected to be around $100 to $150 cheaper than the Radeon HD 7970, which would put it around $400 to $450.

AMD Radeon HD 7950 clock speeds revealed? - More news at DV Hardware

Zalman sells LGA2011 upgrade kit for its waterblocks

TPU spotted that Zalman has released the ZM-OC2011, a new retention kit that makes the company's WB5 and WB5 Plus waterblocks compatible with Intel's upcoming LGA2011 processors. In Japan the kit is sold for the equivalent of $19, which seems quite excessive for two metal plates and some nuts and bolts.
The kit consists of brackets that let you use the mount-hole spacing of all previous Intel LGA sockets, including LGA775, LGA1366, LGA1155/1156; nuts and bolts.


Zalman sells LGA2011 upgrade kit for its waterblocks - More news at DV Hardware

Skyrim mod tools and patch 1.4 to arrive soon

Bethesda announced patch 1.4 for Skyrim will be finalized next week, and that the Skyrim Creation Kit for modders is on track for a public release near the end of the month. A full list of changes in Skyrim patch 1.4 can be found at the company's blog.
The Creation Kit and Steam Workshop are nearly ready. We�re currently working with members of Valve and our modding community to do some final testing, and we�re on track for a public release near the end of the month. We think Skyrim modding is one of the game�s best features, and we have the best modders of any game. It�s been a lot of exciting work for us, and we can�t wait to unleash it.

Skyrim�s 1.4 update is currently undergoing testing on all three platforms. The update will include fixes and optimizations for the most common issues people have been reporting (see below). We�re hoping to finalize this next week, and submit it to the console manufacturers for certification, as well as release on PC.

Our current update plan for the PC is to first release our updates as �beta� versions through Steam. This is something you�ll be able to opt into through Steam and back-out of if needed. This is an extra safety check for everyone going forward and should expedite and improve our updating process for our PC users. We�ll have more info soon on how this will work.


Skyrim mod tools and patch 1.4 to arrive soon - More news at DV Hardware

TSMC anticipates 28nm will be 10 percent of its sales in 2H 2012

TSMC reports the ramp up of its 28nm process will be fast, the company anticipates the new process will contribute to 10 percent of its wafer revenue in the second half of 2012, up from 2 percent in Q4 2011.
"Our 28nm entered volume production last year and contributed 2% of Q4 2011's wafer revenue. Defect density and progress is ahead of schedule and is better than 40/45nm at the corresponding stage of the ramp-up. We expect 28nm amp this year to be fast and we expect 28nm will contribute more than 10% of total wafer revenue this year," said Morris Chang, chief executive officer and chairman of TSMC.

TSMC has so far completed 36 individual tape-outs and have scheduled another 132 individual product tape-outs in this year. At present the company produces chips using 28LP (SiON), 28HP (HKMG) and 28HPL (HKMG) versions of the process. The 28HPM flavour entered risk production this quarter and the manufacturer expects to start volume manufacturing of chips using 28HPM in the second half of 2012. At present the majority of 28nm chips made by TSMC are produced using 28nm LP process technology that relies on silicon oxynitride, but by the end of the year TSMC expects 50% of its 28nm chips to rely on more advanced high-K metal gate (HKMG) technology. In Q1 2012 TSMC expects wafers processed using 28nm process technologies to account for 5% of revenue.
Future Horizons analyst Mike Bryant on the other hand paints a bleak picture over at EE Times, he heard from contacts at multiple companies that TSMC's 28nm process suffers from poor yields:
Bryant said that there are 10 designs in manufacture from seven companies. "We're now hearing none of them work; no yield anyway," he told an audience at a one-day market forecast conference organized by Future Horizons, here on Thursday (Jan. 19). "Ten designs going through; we have heard about problems on six of them," Bryant added. Bryant's comments echo those made by Bob Johnson, research vice president at market research firm Gartner in November 2011.

However, Bryant's description of the situation at TSMC is quite different to that of the company's CEO and chairman Morris Chang. Speaking to analysts about TSMC's fourth quarter financial results on the previous day, Chang said: "Our 28-nm entered volume production last year and contributed 2 percent of 4Q11's wafer revenue. Defect density and new progress is ahead of schedule and is better than 40-45-nm at the corresponding stage of the ramp-up. We expect 28-nm ramp this year to be fast and we expect 28-nm will contribute more than 10 percent of total wafer revenue this year."


TSMC anticipates 28nm will be 10 percent of its sales in 2H 2012 - More news at DV Hardware

CES 2012 roundup of the day

CES 2012 � Cooler Master Shows Off New Notebook Coolers for Both PC and Mac Users
It can be tough finding the perfect notebook cooler, especially since there are different needs for different people. In the pursuit of a great cooling solution, I met up with Dennis Liu at the Cooler Master suite at CES 2012 in Las Vegas and he showed off the company�s newest creations.



CES 2012 � LG Unveils New 3D Television and Gaming Technology
The MEGA goodness continues at CES 2012, where LG was showing off some pretty fantastic Cinema 3D innovations. We�ve seen smarter homes, but we still want a smarter living room too. They've got some very compelling console gaming and casual gaming innovations too that you won't want to miss in our video coverage.



2012 CES: Cooler Master @ OCIA.net
We visited with Cooler Master at the Bellagio after they hosted one heck of a party the night before. Cooler Master is celebrating their 20 year anniversary with a plethora of new products for 2012. The PR team first showed us their upcoming heatsink known as the TPC-812 which utilizes a new technology called Vertical Vapor Chamber. We were told that Cooler Master is one of only two companies in the world that are capable of producing this technology.


CES 2012 roundup of the day - More news at DV Hardware

2012 - Not a blue year for Blu-ray

Disney plan to fill out the gaps in the classic animation collection with confirmed February releases of Lady and the Tramp Pocahontas, late 2012 release of Cinderella, but releases of Robin Hood, Tarzan and possibly The Hunchback of Notre Dame are all widely tipped. Sony's multi-year restoration of Lawrence of Arabia is finally set for a mid-year release, and their much delayed release of Bad Boys 2 will finally see the light of day. Monty Python and The Holy Grail will return in a 35th anniversary set mid year. Fox will release one of the final entries in the classic Rogers and Hammerstein collection The King and I later in the year. Panasonic's timed exclusitivity for the 3D Blu-ray release of Avatar expires in February, so a wide retail release can be expected along with a new transfer of The Terminator which will likely take centre stage to a special edition Blu-ray re-release, along with first time releases of True Lies and The Abyss. Hitchc ock's Dial M For Murder will likely see a 2D and 3D release midyear from Warner, and Universal will unleash The Birds around the same time.

To coincide with the theatrical release of the latest James Bond title Skyfall in November, now that MGM's financial woes are over, look for all of the outstanding James Bond titles including my personal favourite GoldenEye, along with Tomorrow Never Dies, You Only Live Twice, Diamonds Are Forever, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, The Spy Who Loved Me, Octopussy and the truly awful A View To A Kill. Read more at Tweaktown.

2012 - Not a blue year for Blu-ray - More news at DV Hardware

CES 2012 roundup of the day

CES 2012 � Cooler Master Shows Off New Notebook Coolers for Both PC and Mac Users
It can be tough finding the perfect notebook cooler, especially since there are different needs for different people. In the pursuit of a great cooling solution, I met up with Dennis Liu at the Cooler Master suite at CES 2012 in Las Vegas and he showed off the company�s newest creations.



CES 2012 � LG Unveils New 3D Television and Gaming Technology
The MEGA goodness continues at CES 2012, where LG was showing off some pretty fantastic Cinema 3D innovations. We�ve seen smarter homes, but we still want a smarter living room too. They've got some very compelling console gaming and casual gaming innovations too that you won't want to miss in our video coverage.



2012 CES: Cooler Master @ OCIA.net
We visited with Cooler Master at the Bellagio after they hosted one heck of a party the night before. Cooler Master is celebrating their 20 year anniversary with a plethora of new products for 2012. The PR team first showed us their upcoming heatsink known as the TPC-812 which utilizes a new technology called Vertical Vapor Chamber. We were told that Cooler Master is one of only two companies in the world that are capable of producing this technology.


CES 2012 roundup of the day - More news at DV Hardware

FX GamExperience Day 2012 coverage at Legit Reviews

Legit Reviews has some coverage of the FX GamExperience Day 2012:

The AMD & HardOCP FX GamExperience Day 2012/
Yesterday roughly 600 people headed to Eddie Deen�s Ranch in downtown Dallas, Texas to attend the AMD and HardOCP FX GamExperience. The FX GamExperience was a a free event that showcased the AMD gaming technologies available for PC gamers and to make it really special over $50,000 worth of prizes were given away from 21 sponsors during the eight hour event! Read on to take a quick peak at the event!



AMD Reality Check at FX GamExperience
AMD conducted a reality check for gamers down in Dallas, Texas for the FX GamExperience today that we were able to watch and tally up the results with them. For the challenge AMD setup up an area of the FX GamExperience venue with four test systems for two heads up tests. One system was powered by an Intel platform and the other by AMD and gamers had to pick which system played games the best.


FX GamExperience Day 2012 coverage at Legit Reviews - More news at DV Hardware

Corsair teases PSU with individually sleeved cables

Legit Reviews got to see Corsair's new individually sleeved PSU cables. These cables will be released as upgrade kits for the Gold AX120, AX850/AX750/AX650, Professional Series HX, and Enthusiast Series TXM power supplies. Available in black, blue, red and white, these kits will have a MSRP of $79.99 to $99.99!
Corsair usually makes a ton of noise when they launch new products, but for some reason the company silently launched a new product line on Facebook yesterday that went unnoticed by most tech sites. Corsair has announced individually sleeved modular cables! We bumped into Corsair at the FX GamExperience down in Dallas, Texas today and got a chance to check out the cables in person. Read on to check them out!


Corsair teases PSU with individually sleeved cables - More news at DV Hardware

Monday 23 January 2012

Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Cards in 3-Way CrossFireX

Introduction

Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Cards in 3-Way CrossFireX

Since the launch of the AMD Radeon HD 7970 we've looked at the reference model to see how it performs when the card sits on its own. With that done we then took the time to install a second reference design card into the mix and see how performance with the HD 7970 running in CrossFire.

Today we grab a third card and see what happens when we move to a three way CrossFireX setup. Since we've already looked at the Sapphire card in full detail in our CrossFire review mentioned above, we'll be getting into the performance side of things fairly quickly today.

The first thing we need to do is just take a quick look at our testbed, if you've been following our HD 7970 series of content, though, you shouldn't see anything out of the ordinary. Once we've done that we'll move onto the performance of the setup and see how it compares to other HD 7970s we've looked at.

When we've moved away from two cards and onto three and four card setups we've seen that performance can tend to get hit a fair bit. Quite often we don't see the gains we'd like to see and that ultimately makes three and four card setups quite overpriced and sometimes impractical. Still, the HD 7970 has shown us some wonderful performance so far... fingers crossed it translates over to today's 3-Way CrossFireX setup.

... Read the rest in your browser!

Radeon Gallium3D: A Half-Decade Behind Catalyst? @ Phoronix

What happens when you pull out some vintage computer hardware and run the latest Linux software as well as go back and run some of the oldest software available? Well, in the case of systems with antiquated R300-era ATI Radeon graphics, you are left with a downward slope in performance. Not only is the latest open-source Radeon graphics driver not always performing as well as an ancient Catalyst driver, but also the power consumption of the latest Linux code remains on an incline.

Read more about Gallium3D's performance at Phoronix.

Radeon Gallium3D: A Half-Decade Behind Catalyst? @ Phoronix - More news at DV Hardware

Vending machines will now scan your face � Find out how?

Nowadays, when we are trying to get the most out of the devices and machines at our service then why should the vendor machines be lagging behind? In the new year, the vendor machine will do more than you ever expected it to do and more than it could ever do for you. You have something really interesting to do this year. Try out a new dress with matching stylish purse, jewelry, belt and whatever great and unique stuff you can think of, with the help of a Microsoft Kinect camera in less than a few seconds.

With this amazing camera you easily become a paper doll on the television monitor with the exceptional FaceCake Swivel. A virtual dressing room will be easily introduced in some stores in the third quarter of the new year. However, your choices will also be equipped with a home option for programming your personal and favorite wardrobe - which was only a dream until now.



Transparent LCD screens built within drink fridge were also showed off recently at the NRF's 2012 show � turning a monotonous Gatorade cooler into an attractive and eye grabbing animated marketing tool certainly generated the desirable �wow factor�. It was Intel that worked closely with Kraft foods in order to produce a vending machine with touch-screen features capable of detecting the age and gender of the user. Currently, it�s being used to promote a new line of Jell-O pudding to adults. Apart from just serving as a typical vending machine it also holds the capability of playing games. When serving as a typical vending machine, it�s also able to display nutritional facts before you finally get down to buying something.

If all this sounds interesting, you will be glad to know that there are more interesting things lined up for you! Technology from Wincor Nixdorf is the next big thing in the pipeline. This 360 degree product scanner does not need a barcode. It�s capable of detecting the product, not dependent on the way it's placed on the conveyor belt. This new and interesting kind of technology is scheduled to hit the supermarkets of the United States in the month of April. For scanning of non-packaged goods such as veggies and the fruits, humans are still required.

Most of the exhibits at NRF�s show revolved around what�s safe and relatively practical. The desire and demand for better software that can track customer data, new mobile commerce solutions, and shiny cash registers! By pushing the limits of what retail in general could do so far, vending machines like these not only gather the big crowds but also enhance typical customer experience that has been flowing into our lives for years.

Vending machines that scan your face will not only set your adrenaline high with soaring excitement till it arrives but they will also change your shopping habits. It�s time to change the way you act and think when you are shopping, and vending machines will contribute to this idea. Plans of today will shape vending machines of tomorrow � gear up!

About the Author: Britney Danila is a Freelance and Staff writer who writes informative & creative articles on Television and Technology for various technology related companies including broadband expert. Her expertise are in writing articles related to internet providers, Satellite TV deals, Satellite Connections, etc.

Vending machines will now scan your face � Find out how? - More news at DV Hardware

Intel starts selling overclocking protection plan

Intel has unveiled the Performance Tuning Protection Plan, a new insurance plan for overclockers. Covered under the plan are unlocked processor (with a X or K suffix), and any LGA2011 processors. One year of protection against overclocking damage costs $20 to $35, depending on the CPU model.
The Performance Tuning Protection Plan being offered by Intel is a chance for you to experiment with the overclocking features of your processor without the worries of what will happen if you push the processor too far. The Plan allows you a single processor replacement, hassle-free, from our customer support. This is in addition to your standard 3 year warranty. In other words, if it fails under normal usage, we will replace it under the standard warranty; if it fails while running outside of Intel's specifications, we will replace it under the Performance Tuning Protection Plan.


Intel starts selling overclocking protection plan - More news at DV Hardware