Disk Inserted

We’ve been moaning about middling AIO performance for a while now, and outside of Apple’s spendy iMacs, not many have stepped up to the plate with equivalent grunt to what you might be able to splice together with a separate case and a bit of elbow grease. That won’t stay true for long, however, if Asetek’s prototype gets picked up by one of your favorite vendors. This liquid-cooled beastie — which proudly proclaims it has the same profile as the iMac at 58mm in thickness — is capable of powering and chilling both a 2.66GHz Core i7-920 and a GeForce GTX 280M. That’s a total TDP output of over 200W, which is handled by a proprietary radiator design that’s integrated into the stand and some pump-assisted action convecting the heat away from the chips. It both sounds and looks like a winner to us — check it out after the break to see what you think.

Continue reading Liquid-cooled Asetek prototype redefines our all-in-one expectations (video)

Liquid-cooled Asetek prototype redefines our all-in-one expectations (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 02 Jul 2010 05:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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No matter which three-legged sentry turret you pick, Steam games run fine if it houses a decent graphics card. That said, stick this in your breech and shoot it — the latest edition of Valve’s hardware survey shows the glossy white Apple models outgun Windows counterparts in a number of areas. Whereas the majority of Windows PCs have 2GB or 3GB of memory, 53 percent of Macs sport 4GB of RAM — though that’s likely attributable to the popularity of 32-bit OS. While 17 percent of Windows users are also stuck with a single CPU, over 90 percent of Macs running Steam have a dual-core… and internet connectivity’s biased towards Mac gamers too, with 65 percent reporting download speeds over 2Mbit compared to under half of PCs. Of course, where it truly counts for games, Macs still sorely lag behind; the top six Windows GPUs reported are all capable performers, but only 32.5 percent of Macs surveyed had anything but a bottom-barrel graphics card. Get with the times, Apple — even your mobile guys know gaming’s not a niche anymore.

[Thanks, Ryan B.]

Macs running Steam are more powerful than PCs, on average originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 Jun 2010 01:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ASUS‘ ARES line of gaming PCs has been kicking for a few years now, but regardless of how many iterations we see, we’re still a wee bit terrified when approaching a chassis this gargantuan. Just after the outfit’s press conference in Taipei, we daintily hurried over to the newest member of the family in order to snag a few shots and get the low-down on what users could expect when it ships between now and next century. Aesthetically, we’re told that the CG8490 was inspired by “ancient and modern armor of both Eastern and Western cultures,” likely a politically correct statement with no actual meaning. Regardless, this monster can overclock itself by as much as 20 percent without boiling over, and the six-core Intel Core i7-980X Extreme Edition CPU is suited for slicing up even the most complex of tasks. There’s also 12GB of DDR3 memory, 2TB of hard drive space, a standard DVD burner and a pair of overclocked ATI Radeon HD 5870 GPUs to handle DirectX 11 and Eyefinity duties. Mum’s the word on a price or release date, but we’re going with “too much” and “not soon enough.”

Oh, and be sure to peek the limited edition ARES GPU as well as the company’s Rampage III Extreme motherboard in the gallery below.

Continue reading ASUS showcases ROG CG8490 gaming desktop: Core i7-980X, dual OC’d Radeon HD 5870s

ASUS showcases ROG CG8490 gaming desktop: Core i7-980X, dual OC’d Radeon HD 5870s originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 May 2010 19:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Golly. We never thought to invest in a 20-inch all-in-one PC just to watch converted versions of Free Willy in 3D, but darn if we’re not reconsidering now. NEC has today revealed its Valuestar N range, with the VN790/BS being the standout in the range. The machine offers up a native 1,600 x 900 resolution panel, integrated Blu-ray drive, 4GB of RAM, a 1TB hard drive, WiFi, six USB 2.0 sockets, an undisclosed Intel Core 2010 CPU, Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit), and of course, native 3D support. You’ll need to spring for an optional (but not really) pair of glasses to fully enjoy the third dimension sans intense headache-inducing blur, but given that they aren’t of the active variety, any ole set will probably get you through. Pricing looks locked at ¥220,000 ($2,422) for a June debut in Japan, with approximately none of that actually going to save the whales. A crying shame, we say.

NEC’s 3D Valuestar N all-in-one PC: orcas all up in your retinas originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 May 2010 16:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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And you thought your Driving Force GT was pricey. Thrustmaster is today introducing its newest gaming accessory, a startlingly expensive new racing wheel designed to give PlayStation 3 and PC gamers the chance to feel as if they truly are screaming ahead in hopes of being first to fly under the checkered flag. The Ferrari Wireless GT Cockpit 430 Scuderia Edition is a complete wireless cockpit ensemble, requiring far more space than an NYC studio apartment affords to completely unfold, and given that it weighs 23 pounds, you may need to bust out your Ricky Bobby uniform to make sure you aren’t roughed up when leaning hard into turns. The wheel itself measures 11-inches in diameter, and it’s said to be an exact replica of that found on the Ferrari 430 Scuderia (“down to the smallest details,” we’re told), and the all-metal pedals should provide quite the sensation to those who prefer to roll shoeless. Check it this June if you’re having trouble ridding yourself of disposable income.

Continue reading Thrustmaster gets fancy with Ferrari Wireless GT Cockpit 430 Scuderia Edition racing wheel

Thrustmaster gets fancy with Ferrari Wireless GT Cockpit 430 Scuderia Edition racing wheel originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 26 May 2010 12:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tablet PC shocker! Fujitsu LifeBook T730 official, smaller version of T900 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 May 2010 10:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s always been possible to run webOS on a PC using the emulator built into Palm’s SDK, but it turns out that the OS image used for the emulator can actually be installed on an IDE hard drive and booted from — which is exactly what one enterprising member of the PreCentral forums did with his Dell C600 laptop. It’s not too surprising webOS can do this, since it’s built on Linux, but don’t get too excited yet; the OS runs in a funky aspect ratio in a small portion of the screen and the lack of a touchscreen means you’re stuck using the keyboard to navigate. Still, it’s hard not to watch this without visions of webOS running on all manner of HP hardware in the very near future — a tablet, perhaps? Video after the break.

Continue reading webOS booted up on a PC, just for kicks (video)

webOS booted up on a PC, just for kicks (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 16 May 2010 23:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It appears HD Netflix Watch Instantly streams aren’t just for living room set-top boxes anymore now that Netflix is streaming more than half of its 720p-encoded titles to Macs and PCs (through the Silverlight web player, no word on the Media Center add-on.) According to Hacking Netflix, you can tell which ones are ready to go by checking the mouseover box for the (HD Available) tag as seen above. Our experience matches several other reports that not everyone is seeing the tag on all the same titles, so until it’s rolled out fully, YMMV. It’s not the new release flicks or surround sound add-ons that many are waiting for, but it could slide PQ up another notch for HTPC owners and everyone who just has to watch Killer Klowns from Outer Space at work — but you’d never do that.

[Thanks, @DaveZatz]

Netflix stealth launches HD streaming to PC and Mac originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 May 2010 16:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Not down with piecing together a gaming rig for yourself, eh? We’ll forgive you… this time. Thankfully for you, Digital Storm forgives eternally in situations such as this, with the pre-fab PC builder today cranking out one of its most beastly rigs to date. The Black | OPS Assassin is hailed as the planet’s “most advanced vertically cooled PC,” boasting an Intel Core i7-930 that’s factory overclocked to 4.4GHz. Other specs include 6GB of DDR3 RAM, an EVGA X58 motherboard, 750 watt power supply, Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit) and your choice of an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 470 (1.2GB), ATI Radeon HD 5870 (1GB) or GeForce GTX 480 (1.5GB). Go on, wade over and start customizing — that $2,387 base price won’t sting too badly.

Continue reading Digital Storm tempts with 4.4GHz Black|OPS Assassin gaming desktop

Digital Storm tempts with 4.4GHz Black|OPS Assassin gaming desktop originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 May 2010 04:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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When you’ve got a footprint of just 7.4- x 7.4- x 1.73-inches, it’s hard to make too big of an impression. That said, Zotac’s new ZBOX looks to be just the thing for those scouting a diminutive HTPC or bedroom machine that can handle the best Glee re-runs and all of that YouTube HD footage that your long-lost siblings continue to email you from the wilds of Wisconsin. Originally launched back in March, this pint-sized PC is just now starting to make its way out to reviewers, which hopefully means that it’s ever closer to shipping to end users, too. The benchmarking lords over at Hot Hardware took the time to unbox and preview the device, giving you the opportunity to wade through a gallery of images while it undergoes all sorts of torture. Head on down and have a look if an Ion-based machine that can fit inside your shoebox sounds even marginally appealing.

Zotac’s ZBOX HD-ID11 tiptoes into the wild, should ship soon originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 May 2010 11:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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