Gearfuse

I hope you’ve been preparing for the new Xbox experience because it’s going to change the way you play your 360. No doubt you’ve heard that Microsoft has completely revamped the dashboard, bringing with it a new design and avatars that give core players the casual feel of the Wii. Is this a good thing? It sure is according to Engadget.

Joshua Topolsky of Engadget wrote up a positive preview of the new Xbox experience which will soon be your new dashboard. In the preview, he comments on the likeness between the Xbox 360’s marketplace and iTunes. Additionally, he mentions the Netflix feature which allows you to shuffle through movies in your queue. I’m thrilled about the new Xbox experience, I just hope my 360 doesn’t turn into a Wii. Look for the update to hit your system come November 19th.

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Today, Intel launched its first ever six-core processor: the Xeon 7400. While the name might not be as complex as the name Sony is giving to their new line of laptops, it certainly should be. Everything about this processor is “no joke” as it is geared towards high-end computing, like those used by the scientists working on the Large Hadron Collider.

An estimated 50-percent speed boost over its predecessor is possible as this processor peaks around 2.66GHz with 130W of power.  The new Xeons are going to be the last of their kind before Intel makes the jump to the new Core i7 architecture. Things are certainly looking fast for the computing world.

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Sony has launched two new laptops that are so technologically advanced that even the tech-savvy Jerry Seinfeld has to get his hands on one. The VAIO VGN-CS180J/R and VGN-NR485E/L are their names and it just makes me wonder why computers can’t be named in the same manner that cars are. The Sony VAIO Panther would be much easier to bring up in a conversation than the mindfuck of a name that is the VGN-CS180J/R.

The one pictured above is the NS series. It’s packing a 2.0 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU, a 15.4″ display, 200GB hard drive and 4GB of memory all for around $600. Not bad.  There is also the CS series, where smaller means pricier seems to be the motto. The specs are about the same but this display is only 14.1″ and the price starts at around $920. Both laptops have an add-on feature for a Blu-ray, which increases the price to a little above a grand.  Also, no Sony VAIO would be complete without a slew of colors to choose from, just remember to choose based upon your gender and not your sexual orientation.  I don’t care what anyone says, pink is not the new black. Purple is.

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This time next year, when you’re buying Apple’s newly updated Macbook Pro or Mac Pro, you’ll likely see Intel’s latest line of CPUs in your machine. It’s called “Core” and the first CPU due out under the new moniker is the Intel Core i7 and i7 Extreme Edition. Not the most exciting thing, I know, but just think back to that old 486 DX and you’ll be smiling in no time. Just don’t expect Psystar to make the upgrade.

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For the emerging digital trend of the Terabyte, computer scientists are realizing that if there are going to be terabyte sized applications, theres a need for a processing chip that can handle that amount of information.

The Intel R&D department have made a chip that has eighty, thats right, eighty processing cores. The chip can perform more then a trillion operations at once time. And we thought quad core processors were exciting?

The chip is the first to ever display Teraflop performance. Enough processing speed and power to control terabytes of information at a time. Don’t have yourself a coronary now. We know it’s exciting, but as it is still in reasearch and development, we still have some time to wait to see these in common operation.

Even more impressive? The entirety of the chips cores fit in a space smaller then a fingernail. While also using less electricity then most home appliances. Ahh, the wonders of technology. (more…)