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Gateway unveils slimmer NE laptops, updates DX, SX and One ZX desktops
Gateway may live in the shadow of its parent company Acer, but it's getting the spotlight today with refreshed versions of its entry-level PCs. New versions of its 15.6-inch and 17.3-inch NE Series laptops are slimmer than their ancestors, carry Kabini-based AMD A4 and A6 processors and offer up to 1TB of storage. Desktops remain largely the same on the outside, but there's a few welcome tweaks on the inside. Although the small SX Series isn't radically different, regular DX Series towers now have the option of a Haswell-era Intel Core i5 alongside recent AMD A-series chips; there's also a new entry-level version of the One ZX all-in-one that puts a 3GHz Pentium behind the 21.5-inch LCD. Gateway is now shipping the two NE portables at baseline prices of $380 (15.6-inch) and $450 (17.3-inch), while the DX, SX and One Z lines respectively start at $298, $398 and $530. A KX Series of desktop displays is shipping at the same time, starting at $99 for a 19.5-inch screen. %Gallery-194229%
Creative reveals Sound Blaster ZxR, Zx, and Z PCI-Express sound cards, pumps up the volume
Along with your first day at school, and (for the boys at least) growing your first peach fuzz mustache, many of you might also never forget your first Sound Blaster soundcard. In the present day (unless you're blessed with youth) only the Sound Blaster can be enjoyed again, and today Creative introduces its new Z-series. The latest PCI-Express cards use the firm's Core3D quad-core sound and voice processor and come in three variants: the Sound Blaster ZxR, the Zx and the Z. As you might have guessed, the more letters, the higher up the food chain it is. The flagship ZxR ($249.99) boasts a 127dB SNR, sockets for swappable Op-Amps, 80mW into 600 ohm headphone pre-amp, plus RCA / optical connectivity (via additional daughter board) and an external "ACM" control module for less fiddling around the back of your machine. You can save yourself $100 with the Zx model, if you don't want the ZxR's "DBpro" daughter board, and the Z edition saves a further $50 at the expense of the external controller. Want to dive into the full specifications? Plug in to the PR after the break.
OCZ intros Vertex 3 Pro, Vertex 3 EX and Z-Drive R3 PCIe SSD at CES
Hello, speedsters! OCZ Technology has just busted out a new trio of solid state solutions here at CES, so we won't waste any time getting down to business. Up first is the performance-oriented, MLC-based Vertex 3 Pro, which runs along quite hastily on the SATA 6Gbps interface. We're told that it's built with a next-generation SandForce controller, enabling it to approach 80,000 IOPS and demonstrate 550MB/sec transfer rates. Up next is the Vertex 3 EX, which also utilizes a SATA 6Gbps interface but relies on SLC Flash memory. It's also capable of pushing a similar read rate (and the write rate of 525MB/sec ain't too shabby, either), with both the EX and Pro to be offered in capacities of 50GB, 100GB, 200GB and 400GB. Finally, the third-generation Z-Drive is being officially revealed, with the Z-Drive "R3" PCI Express SSD being the company's first SandForce-drive PCIe SSD. It's engineered for Tier-0/1 data applications, and offers performance rates of 1GB/sec and 135,000 IOPS. Those with absurdly deep pockets can buy one with up to 1.2TB of onboard storage, but alas, OCZ's not serving up MSRPs on any of these guys. The full release is after the break, complete with details on its new ZX Series of power supplies. %Gallery-112480%
Gateway gives its ZX One multitouch all-in-ones a new look and some new specs
Having trouble finding an all-in-one PC that fits you? We have no idea why, they're everywhere these days, but just in case you're still striking out you might want to check out Gateway's new ZX One series refresh. The desktops have a fresh little curved look to them, with prices starting at $900 for a 21.5-inch machine (ZX4951) with a 2.8GHz Pentium G6950 processor, while a 23-inch number (ZX6951) with a 3.2GHz Core i3-550 processor is a mere $100 more. If those prices sound steep to you for machines with Intel HD integrated graphics, you should know that multitouch screens and Blu-ray come standard in this lineup. Both computers are available now online and at retail.
Gateway introduces One ZX series of multitouch all-in-one desktops
It's been done before by the likes of MSI and HP, but given the finger-friendly nature of Windows 7, we aren't shocked at all to hear that Gateway's getting in on the action. The splotchy PC maker is unveiling the One ZX lineup tonight, which will initially be comprised of the ZX6800 series and ZX4800 series. Both crews will ship with Win7, and Gateway's hoping that you'll fall in love with its custom suite of multitouch-supporting media management tools. If you're curious about specs, the ZX6810-01 will include a 23-inch multitouch LCD (1,920 x 1,080), 2.33GHz Core 2 Quad Q8200S CPU, 1GB ATI Radeon HD 4670 GPU, 8GB of DDR3 memory, an 8x slot-loading DVD burner, a 1TB HDD (or 64GB SSD), WiFi, Gigabit Ethernet, six USB 2.0 ports, an eSATA socket, bundled wireless keyboard and mouse, integrated HD webcam, a hybrid TV tuner and built-in speakers. The lower-end ZX4800-02 steps down to a 20-inch LCD (1,600 x 900), a 2.1GHz T4300 CPU, GMA X4500HD integrated graphics, 4GB of DDR2 RAM and a 750GB SATA HDD. Both lineups should be in US stores later this fall, with prices starting at $1,399.99 and $749.99, respectively.%Gallery-74874%
12-inch not-Eee PC S101 followup expected this year
If you think ASUS has a lot of Eee PCs in its product portfolio then you should check out its laptop lineup sometime. Last we counted, ASUS was offering over 50 different models of laptops. Here's another: a rumored 12-inch, 16:9 aspect followup to the svelte 10.2-inch Eee PC S101. However, since this edges above Jerry Shen's maximum Eee PC size-threshold of 10-inches, the new slimster will be launched under ASUS' ZX-series and hopefully come packing something a bit heartier than say, an Atom processor. Only, with an expected NT$30,000 (about US$912) launch by year's end, we're forced to stubbornly let go of our hope to find a refreshed Core 2 Duo on the inside.
Okoro's OMS-ZX100 Media PC does Blu-ray, HD DVD and SSD
Okoro Media Systems has been offering up well-spec'd HTPCs for quite some time, but it has finally seen fit to jump on the flash-based storage bandwagon. The firm's new ZX series of Extreme Digital Entertainment Systems gets going with the OMS-ZX100, which comes standard with a 32GB SSD (for the OS and such) and a 1TB HDD for media storage. Moreover, you'll find a 3.0GHz Core 2 Extreme QX6850 processor, 3GB of DDR2 RAM, NVIDIA's 256MB GeForce 8600 GT graphics card, Blu-ray / HD DVD playback and your choice of "any automotive color" on the chassis. 'Tis a shame it costs $5,995 to even join the ZX100 club, but look to spend even more if you're hankering for a built-in CableCARD tuner and WiFi adapter.
You got Mega Man ZX Advent commercials
Striking while Mega Man ZX is still fresh in our minds (and our Sales posts), Capcom has two new commercials advertising the action platformer's sequel, Mega Man ZX Advent, for its Japan release this July 12th. The US version won't arrive until October, but we love to oversaturate our minds with previews and media to the point where we lose interest in a game long before it even hits store shelves. Depressing, isn't it?If you enjoyed the anime cut-scenes that were scattered throughout Mega Man ZX, you'll be happy to see their return with these clips of Grey -- one of the two new heroes in Advent -- dodging about a jillion bullets and lasers. Jump past the post break and defeat one of the Pseudoroid bosses for the video.
Now is the time to buy some RockMen
Online import shop Play Asia is trying to lighten its stock of mega-robot guys, hosting a week-long sale on RockMan 3 Zero. Capcom's GBA action-platformer has been discounted to $9.90, almost a fifth of its original price! RockMan 2 Zero boasts a similar discount as a limited time offer, but you get an additional dollar off if you bundle the two games together for your order, bringing the total cost to $18.80.And in case you've already forgotten, Renchi has also marked a number of its DS import titles down to $9.99, one of them being RockMan ZX! Geologists, rejoice![Via CAG]
Decent sale on imports at Renchi
We love region-free consoles! Not only does it allow us to play games that never get released in the US, but it also gives us freedom to choose the cheapest version of worldwide-release games. Renchi.com has marked down a load of DS games, and there's plenty of stuff for US gamers to enjoy. First, the Japanese versions of US games. You can get Yoshi Touch & Go (Catch! Touch! Yoshi!), Mega Man ZX (Rockman ZX), Star Fox Command, the just-released Honeycomb Beat, and a few others for $10. If you want a uniquely Japanese experience, there's a bunch of stuff including Mawasunda!!, a lot of miscellaneous non-games and puzzle games (including an amusing-looking coloring game), and a nice selection of D3's Simple Series stuff. Stock is rapidly diminishing, so go browse right now.[Thanks, joe!]
Mega Discount Man ZX
Missed out on Mega Man ZX last year? Now is the time to make things right! Amazon has slashed the action-platformer's price down to almost half of its original $29.99 cost, offering the title up for $16.16 ((free shipping on orders over $25).ZX was praised for its punishing difficulty and Metroidvania design, hailed by some critics as the best release to hit the Capcom series since Mega Man 2 for the NES. Does that sound like a title you'd want to skip? We can't guarantee that this sale price will last for long, so buy it now while it's still cheap! Check past the post break for a trailer if you're still not convinced. [Via CAG]
New Rockman ZX Advent screens and character art
Capcom released a ton of screens today for the new Megaman ZX sequel, Rockman ZX Advent, and they show exactly what we want to see in our Megaman games: running from left to right and shooting at robots, all delivered in gorgeous hand-drawn 2D. We could look at stuff like this all day. Coincidentally, that's kind of our job.In the first ZX, kids use "Biometals" ("Livemetals" in the Japanese version) to transform into robots similar to X and Zero from the Megaman X series, as well as a fused ZX form. The kids from last time, Vent and Aile, have been replaced by a pair of functionally-identical crimefighting children, called Grey and Ashe.They operate a new Biometal, called Model A, which enables transformation into a dual-wielding robot seemingly based on Axl from Mega Man X7, a game that we're glad is on the PS2 (so we don't have to like it).We've included character designs and a selection of screens for you. Bask in their 2D-ness after the break, won't you? We shrunk them down a bit from Dengeki's original display, to make the basking more successful. Over-enlarged DS screens are not cool.
Mega Man ZX interacts with Zero 3 and 4
It looks like the first side-scrolling Mega Man for the DS, Mega Man ZX, has some functionality with Mega Man Zero 3 and Mega Man Zero 4. Japanese gamers obviously already know this, likely already having difficulties quelling a robotic revolution, but for us gamers outside those islands, this is news. Right now, the only confirmed feature is the ability to revive bosses from Zero 3 and 4, should the player have either of those GBA games in the slot on his/her DS while playing ZX.[Via Go Nintendo]
Mega Man ZX screenshots and artwork
There's a plethora of gameplay screenshots and artwork for the upcoming Mega Man ZX over at ITmedia. The sprites aren't looking too great, yet that can be largely attributed to the fact that the gameplay screenshots are not actual size. Some of the artwork looks very good, along with the backgrounds. The current word on the net is that the player can choose either Van or Eile who, upon collecting some form of "living metal" throughout the game, augment their armor in various ways. [Via QJ.net]
