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Dell's Inspiron Zino HD on sale now in America: starts at $229, doubles as an HTPC

by Darren Murph posted Nov 12th 2009 at 9:59AM

Dell has taken its sweet time in bringing the 7.75- x 7.75- x 3.5-inch Inspiron Zino HD to market, but just 24 hours after it made its market debut across the pond, this little zinger is finally available to the Yanks in attendance. Starting at just $229, the mini PC is far more exhilarating than most ho hum nettops. Oh sure, the base configuration is fairly unexciting, but thankfully Dell enables you to add up to 8GB of memory, a 1.8GHz dual-core AMD Athlon Neo X2 6850e CPU, up to 1TB of HDD space, an optional Blu-ray drive, a 512MB ATI Radeon HD 4330 discrete GPU and WiFi to the mix. 'Course, speccing it out will obviously raise the price substantially, but it's always nice to see more power than anticipated within such a minuscule box. Of note, Dell also mentions that an optional TV tuner, wireless keyboard and mouse are available, but at least for now, the TV tuner is nowhere to be found in the configuration pages. Other inclusions are a 4-in-1 card reader, four USB 2.0 sockets and a pair of eSATA ports. Who says HTPCs have to breathe fire?

Update: We've just heard that the TV tuner won't be available at launch (sounds a lot like what happened with the Mini 10), so there goes those dreams of immediately gratifying your urge for a new HTPC of the smallest scale.

Gallery: Dell's Inspiron Zino HD on sale now in America: starts at $229, doubles as an HTPC

AMD 's new Athlon II processors aim to go easy on the power, your wallet

by Vladislav Savov posted Oct 20th 2009 at 4:12AM

AMD has just outed a selection of new Athlon II procs, which do little to help it reclaim the performance crown, but will be of interest to anyone who likes to keep things minimal -- whether we're talking about prices or temperatures. Starting at $69 per chip (when bought in bulk) with the 2.7GHz dual-core X2 235e and topping out at $143 for the 2.3GHz quad-core X4 605e, AMD's new e-tagged processors operate within a 45W thermal envelope, as opposed to the relatively standard 65W TDP. The Sunnyvale outfit makes some ill-advised claims of "up to 75 percent" better performance versus comparable Intel CPUs -- the small print tells us that number is derived from 3DMark Vantage while testing with different GPUs -- but we suppose until the Thuban six-core shows up, AMD will have to take performance gains from wherever it can get 'em, including its own imagination.

AMD pops out sub-$100 quad-core Athlon II X4 CPU: review roundup

by Darren Murph posted Sep 16th 2009 at 8:53AM

AMD has always been one to play the pricing card in its never-ending tussle with Intel, but we get the feeling this introduction may pack more of a punch than any before it. It's a simple concept -- the $99 quad-core CPU -- and given just how in love we Americans are with value menus, you can bet new PC builders will at least give the new Athlon II X4 620 ($99) and 630 ($122) a look. Reviews around the web essentially came to the same conclusion: it's not the fastest quad-core chip around, and the lack of L3 certainly doesn't make it the most attractive, but the 620 somehow manages to compete with all of the processors in its price range while being the cheapest. The "cut-down Phenom II," as HotHardware calls it, suffers a bit on the gaming side due to the L3 removal, but in general scenarios it was plenty potent. Hit the links below if you feel like digging in way, way deeper.

Read - HotHardware
Read - TechSpot
Read - MaximumPC
Read - PC Perspective
Read - TweakTown
Read - PC Pro
Read - AMD Zone

MSI ships 12.1-inch, Athlon Neo-equipped Wind U210

by Darren Murph posted Sep 15th 2009 at 5:24PM

MSI's Wind U210 has certainly been making the rounds, but it has yet to plant its feet firmly on US soil. Until today, obviously. Checking in at 3.2 pounds, this 12.1-inch netbook is equipped with a larger-than-usual 1,366 x 768 display, AMD's 1.6GHz Athlon Neo MV-40 processor, 2GB of DDR2 RAM, a 250GB hard drive and a 6-cell battery that's reportedly good for four hours of usage. The rig's also packing an ATI Radeon X1250 in the graphics department, a 1.3 megapixel webcam, HDMI output, three USB 2.0 sockets, a VGA port and a 4-in-1 multicard reader. For those interested in buying a Vista-equipped machine just a month before Windows 7 swoops in to save the day, both Amazon and NewEgg would be more than happy to make your wallet $430 lighter.

Gallery: MSI ships 12.1-inch, Athlon Neo-equipped Wind U210

Continue reading MSI ships 12.1-inch, Athlon Neo-equipped Wind U210

Acer's Congo-based 11.6-inch Ferrari One: finally, a netbook with speed

by Darren Murph posted Sep 10th 2009 at 7:22PM

We've seen a couple of netbooks that we'd actually consider to be mildly quick, but given that locating an Ion-based netbook is about as easy as entering North Korea with a US passport, we haven't had much of a chance to really love on 'em. Today, Acer is extending its boutique Ferrari lineup with the Ferrari One, an 11.6-inch machine that is among the first to rely on AMD's newly announced Congo platform. Packed within the chassis is a dual-core 1.2GHz Athlon X2 L310 CPU, ATI's Radeon 3200 graphics, an XPG port for connecting an external graphics solution, a 1,366 x 768 panel, WiFi, Bluetooth, optional WWAN and a 6-cell battery. You'll also notice AMD Vision and Windows 7 badges alongside the obligatory prancing pony, but you can bet you'll be paying dearly for this when it ships on (surprise, surprise) October 22nd. How dearly? Try £435 ($724), or roughly the cost of a single lug nut on an F430.

[Via TrustedReviews]

AMD's integrated 785G graphics platform review roundup

by Darren Murph posted Aug 4th 2009 at 5:29AM

It's mildly hard to believe that AMD's DirectX 10-compatible 780 Series motherboard GPU was introduced well over a year ago now, but the long awaited successor has finally landed. This fine morning, a gaggle of hardware sites around the web have taken a look at a number of AMD 785G-equipped mainboards, all of which boast integrated Radeon HD 4200 GPUs, support for AMD's AM3 processors and a price point that's downright delectable (most boards are sub-$100). Without getting into too much detail here in this space, the general consensus seems to be that the new platform is definitely appreciated, but hardly revolutionary. It fails to destroy marks set by the 780G, and it couldn't easily put NVIDIA's GeForce 9300 to shame. What it can do, however, is provide better-than-average HD playback, making it a prime candidate for basic desktop users and even HTPC builders. For the full gamut of opinions, grab your favorite cup of joe and get to clickin' below.

Read - HotHardware review
Read - The Tech Report review
Read - Tom's Hardware review
Read - PC Perpective review
Read - Hardware Zone review
Read - Hexus review

Continue reading AMD's integrated 785G graphics platform review roundup

eMachines intros ET1300-02, ET1810-01 and ET1810-03 desktop PCs

by Darren Murph posted Jul 1st 2009 at 10:47AM

Just a few short weeks after eMachines outed its EL1300 line of SFF PCs, the company is hitting us up again with a new trio of full-size desktops. The ET1300-02, ET1810-01 and ET1810-03 are all encased within a luminous white mini-tower and ship with a matching LCD monitor, speakers and a keyboard. As for specs, the $449.99 ET1300-02 checks in with an AMD Athlon X2 4850e (2.5GHz) CPU, Vista Home Premium, NVIDIA's GeForce G100 (512MB), 3GB of DDR2 memory, a 160GB hard drive, 18x SuperMulti DVD burner, multicard reader, HDMI / DVI / VGA outputs and an 18-inch E182H display. The $369.99 ET1810-03 steps to a 2.2GHz Pentium E2210 CPU, GeForce 7500 integrated graphics and just a single VGA port, while the $299.99 ET1810-01 cranks it down to a 1.6GHz Celeron 420 and 2GB of DDR2 RAM. The trio should be filtering out to respected retailers as we speak.

Gateway's AMD-packing LT3100 netbook unleashed

by Ross Miller posted Jun 23rd 2009 at 1:21AM

Last time we saw Gateway's 11.6-inch LT3100 it was buried in a heap of other Acer / eMachines netbook reveals, including the Timeline. Now it's gone official, and the big surprise here is that the self-proclaimed netbook is sporting a processor from AMD -- you know, the company who has largely shunned netbooks while later looking to differentiate with the "ultra-portable" Athlon Neo processor. The 1.2GHz Athlon 64 L110 is what's packed in here, in addition to integrated ATI Radeon X1270 graphics, WXGA resolution, up to 2GB RAM and 250GB HDD, card reader, 802.11b/g, webcam, three USB 2.0 port, and a 6-cell Li-ion battery. Not sure if it's because they shied away from Atom or not, but instead of XP we've got Windows Vista Basic for the OS. Available in NightSky Black and Cherry Red, it should be out soon-ish with prices starting at $400.

Update: Now with even more officialness.

New AMD Neo Athlon / Turion chips emerge in HP Pavilion dv2z

by Darren Murph posted Jun 11th 2009 at 9:22AM

Well, well -- what have we here? HP's newly unveiled Pavilion dv2z just so happens to have a bit of fresh silicon within, as AMD's latest Neo chips are front and center in the configuration options. The thin-and-light machine can be ordered with single- or dual-core AMD Athlon Neo and Turion Neo dual-core processors, and if you're looking for specifics, you'll find the new 1.6GHz Athlon Neo X2 L335 and 1.6GHz Turion Neo X2 L625. Other specs on the 12.1-incher include a LED-backlit WXGA panel, optional Blu-ray drive, discrete ATI Radeon graphics, up to 500GB of HDD space, a built-in webcam, WiFi, optional WWAN (Verizon, Sprint or AT&T) and a 6-cell battery. It's up for order right now starting at $599.99, but if you're looking to leave that aged Neo MV-40 behind, you'll have to pony up a bit more than that. Full release is after the break.

Gallery: New AMD Neo chips emerge in HP Pavilion dv2z

Continue reading New AMD Neo Athlon / Turion chips emerge in HP Pavilion dv2z

AMD debuts Athlon II X2 250 and Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition CPUs

by Darren Murph posted Jun 1st 2009 at 9:00PM

If you're AMD, you've got to be feeling pretty good right now. Intel's busy handling a lawsuit bigger than the left half of Russia, you're finally free of that dreaded manufacturing business and you've got a new pair of mainstream CPUs debuting at Computex. The first of the two is the dual-core 45nm Athlon II X2 250, which features a TDP of 65-watts and can whittle power consumption down to 50 percent when handling just "basic tasks." Then there's the first-ever dual-core AMD Phenom II, the X2 550 Black Edition. Built from the ground-up for its 'Dragon' platform, this here chip also supports OverDrive 3.0 and should provide some higher-end features on a budget. Unfortunately, details beyond that are inexplicably scant, but we'll be sure to pass on whatever surfaces at the show. Full release is after the break.

Gallery: AMD debuts Athlon II X2 250 and Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition CPUs

Read - HotHardware review
Read - AMDZone review
Read - OverclockersClub review
Read - PC Perspective review
Read - LostCircuits review
Read - BenchmarkReviews review
Read - TechSpot review
Read - X-bit Labs review
Read - Legion Hardware review

Continue reading AMD debuts Athlon II X2 250 and Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition CPUs

eMachines delivers EL1300 line of small form factor PCs

by Darren Murph posted May 20th 2009 at 9:36AM

Once the laughing stock of the PC world, eMachines has managed to pull together some rather stylish looking rigs over the past few months. As the comeback continues, the company has outed two new Mini PCs in its EL1300 line, the $298 EL1300G-01w and the $398 EL1300G-02w. Both systems include a chassis that's 10.7-inches tall, 4.2-inches wide and 15-inches long (not exactly "mini" in our books...), and while the power ain't anything to write home about, it should handle Word processing and the occasional YouTube video fine. Speaking of specs, both rigs boast a 1.6GHz AMD Athlon 2650e CPU, NVIDIA's GeForce 6150SE integrated graphics, a 160GB SATA HDD, 18x SuperMulti DVD burner, nine USB 2.0 sockets and a multicard reader. Personally, we'd select the more pricey of the two, as that one arrives with a 20-inch LCD (E202H) and Windows XP rather than Vista Home Basic. Totally your call though, boss.

Gallery: eMachines delivers EL1300 line of small form factor PCs

AMD's $69 2.8GHz Athlon X2 7850 Black Edition CPU launched, reviewed

by Darren Murph posted Apr 29th 2009 at 12:18PM

AMD already showed us yesterday what kind of graphical prowess could be crammed into a sub-$100 GPU, and today it's attempting to pull the same kind of stunt on the CPU front. The Athlon X2 7850 Black Edition -- a 2.8GHz chip with 2MB of L3 cache and loads of overclocking potential -- has just been loosed, and with a downright stunning $69 MSRP, we'd say it'll have budget gamers across the nation paying attention. Reviewers across the web voiced their appreciation for the low price, and while the processor didn't burn any barns down along the way, it did manage to garner a sufficient amount of praise while on the bench. NeoSeeker seemed to capture the general consensus with this: "the Athlon X2 7850 is a decent processor that is able to power even the latest games." 'Course, the performance-per-watt was a bit lacking given the 65nm manufacturing process, but it's not like you can have your cake and eat it too.

Read - NeoSeeker ("a decent processor")
Read - HiTechLegion ("performed very well")
Read - Guru3D ("packs decent muscle and has reasonable overclock potential")
Read - Bit-tech ("unsurprisingly underwhelming compared to the 7750 Black Edition")
Read - Overclocker's Club ("impressed with the increased performance")
Read - Benchmark Reviews ("an incredible value")
Read - Detailed specifications
Read - AMD press release

When netbook processors compete, everyone wins

by Tim Stevens posted Apr 14th 2009 at 7:23AM

You know the drill: the Atom is the king of all netbooks, with a domain stretching as far as the eye can see. But, upstarts like the Via Nano and AMD's Athlon Neo are encroaching on Intel's domain, and Crave took the time to pit examples of the three against each other in a series of benchmarks to see which should rule the land. Rather sadly for us, each of the three tests had a different winner, with the Atom N280 excelling in multi-tasking, the Nano U2250 best for iTunes encoding, and the Neo MV-40 quickest under a Jalbum-based benchmark. So you know what that means: everyone gets a prize, nobody has to go home crying, and you should just go ahead and buy whichever netbook you like best already.

Update: It's actually unclear which proc won which test, as the table at the source shows one thing, but the text swaps the Neo and Nano around. But, again, there's not much between these three.

HP's 12.1-inch Pavilion dv2 on sale and photographed

by Darren Murph posted Apr 6th 2009 at 4:22PM

Ah, there we go. Not quite a week after HP's Pavilion dv2 was spotted on sale in Thailand, the Blu-ray-packin' ultraportable has now surfaced here in North America. Starting right now, prospective buyers can select a machine directly from HP, and if you're still curious to see what exactly you'll be buying, there's even a link to a few hands-on images for your perusal. Oh, advice on financing? Sorry, that one's on you.

[Thanks, Chad]

Read - HP Pavilion dv2 on sale
Read - HP Pavilion dv2 hands-on

HP greets us with 13.3-inch Pavilion dv3 entertainment laptop

by Darren Murph posted Jan 6th 2009 at 12:55AM

While you and HP can argue the rest of the night away about the most accurate moniker for its Pavilion dv2, the dv3 is definitely an ultraportable. The AMD-powered machine comes in a plethora of configurations with CPUs ranging from 2GHz (Athlon X2 QL-62) to 2.4GHz (Turion X2 Ultra ZM-86), ATI's Radeon HD 3200 graphics, up to 8GB of DDR2 RAM, 160/250/320/400GB hard drive choices, WiFi / Bluetooth, a dual-layer DVD burner, gigabit Ethernet, an ExpressCard slot and a satisfactory array of ports including three USB 2.0 sockets, VGA, HDMI, eSATA combo (with a third USB port) and audio in / out. Users can select from a six or nine-cell battery, and there's even an optional fingerprint reader if you're unashamedly paranoid. Interested? It's available today, junior, for $799 and up.