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DARPA exhibit offers rare glimpse at a secretive agency
DARPA's has been responsible for countless advancements in cutting-edge technologies since its founding in 1958. During a conference call on Wednesday, DARPA's Deputy director Steve Walker announced that it is partnering with Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry to host a massive exhibit that documents the agency's six decades of accomplishments.
MSI ships its Mac Pro-like Vortex gaming PC
Do you like the Mac Pro's concept of stuffing a lot of computing power into a small cylinder, but wish there was a gaming PC inside instead of workstation hardware? You just got your wish. MSI has started shipping the Vortex, a riff on Apple's formula that crams a full-on game rig into a tube that's just 10.6 inches tall. It uses similar vertical cooling and includes Thunderbolt ports (Thunderbolt 3 in this case), but it's clearly aimed at a crowd that's more interested in Far Cry Primal than Final Cut Pro. The mini desktop is billed as relatively upgradeable, and there's even customizable lighting if you think the system isn't attention-grabbing enough.
You can now buy MSI's eye-tracking laptop
MSI has revealed that people can now pick up the flagship GT72S laptop for the princely sum of $2,599.99. Unlike other high-end gaming devices, this one has a trick up its sleeve: Tobii's eye-tracking sensor technology. We've previously showed you prototypes of the kit, but after six months in the labs, it's now ready for prime time. As before, the device's extra sensors will let your eyes interact with the game as long as there's support for it. So far, titles like Assassin's Creed: Syndicate, Assassin's Creed: Rogue and Elite: Dangerous are all able to take advantage of the GT72S' extra hardware.
Crytek will help colleges train young VR developers
Crytek is best known for Crysis, Far Cry and other games that push the limits of CryEngine, a developer tool that it licenses to other studios. Having gone through a bit of a rough patch, the company is focusing sharply on VR, developing new experiences and now academic partnerships that promote its engine. Called VR First, Crytek's latest initiative aims to help colleges set up dedicated VR labs on campus. It'll "encourage" them to do so and in return offer "full source code access" to CryEngine, as well as PCs and VR headsets supplied by partners.
MSI's flagship gaming laptop gets an eye-tracking upgrade
If you're looking for a big, powerful gaming laptop, the MSI's GT72 Dominator has always been a solid choice -- but it's never been really interesting. The Dominator is known for a strong build, powerful internals, good speakers and a superb keyboard, but it never offered anything unexpected. Now it does. Later this month, MSI will be updating the Dominator with a fancy new gimmick: an integrated eye-tracking camera.
MSI unveils a high-end all-in-one gaming PC
The all-in-one gaming PC is a rare beast, and with good reason: Like a laptop, these machines are typically difficult to upgrade. Like a desktop, however, they aren't portable. It seems like the worst of both worlds -- but not anymore. New machines have been rolling out at CES, bucking the standard with upgradable graphics, and MSI's take is here: the Gaming 27XT all-in-one.
MSI dresses up its gaming lineup with Skylake
With Intel's new Skylake processor inbound, it was only natural that gaming notebook manufacturers would jump on board to offer this latest boost to their machines. MSI is no exception, kitting out a few of their existing machines with the 6th-generation processor. If the promise of a CPU that can be overclocked 30 percent higher isn't enough to entice you, there are plenty of other new goodies packed into the lineup that might be worth the ding to your bank account.
Which gaming laptops are worth buying?
For years, the wisdom has been that if you wanted a dedicated gaming machine, you bought a desktop. Gaming components were too unwieldy to fit in a notebook form factor, and if you tried to put together a machine with desktop-caliber components, it always ended up too big and heavy to be truly portable. However, recent gaming laptops have defied that history, packing lots of power into thinner and lighter chassis. They're still not as slim as Ultrabooks, and meanwhile there's still a gap in performance versus desktop machines. Even so, your days of lugging around a large desktop tower to LAN parties are over. We've taken a look at some of the more recent entries in the race to build a smaller gaming machine to find ones that can fit your needs -- and budget.
We played 'Assassin's Creed' with our eyes... partially
Taiwan's big tech trade show isn't just about CEOs shouting about their newest laptops and tablets. It's also the place for execs to shake hands, make deals and do ole' fashioned business. One deal is putting Tobii's eye-tracking tech inside high-end MSI gaming hardware. Yep, it's a concept, but it's underscored by a deal to work together on developing eye tracking in gaming hardware in the future. But we're not really about doing deals and shaking hands; we're about stabbing enemy soldiers and hiding in haystacks, which is where the Assassins' Creed demo came in. The trio of short-range infrared sensors monitors your eye movement, which (at least how they're utilized in this particular game) allow you to adjust your field of vision to where you want to in the game. Instead of rotating the camera with a mouse or buttons, you simply look to where you want to, and the detection software kicks in and sweeps the camera to where you (more often than not) want it to.
NVIDIA's G-Sync brings smoother graphics to gaming laptops
NVIDIA's G-Sync promised to kill a lot of gaming issues like lag and stutter on desktop PCs, but you need both a supported graphics card and monitor to make it work. However, that's obviously not an issue for laptops, and NVIDIA has just announced G-Sync support for several high-end gaming notebooks. It certified models using the latest 960M, 965M, 970M and 980M discreet mobile graphics chips, including the 17.3-inch ASUS G751, the Aorus X5, the MSI GT72 G and two 4K laptops from Clevo.
How would you change Maingear's Pulse 17?
When Maingear's Pulse 17 launched, it was famous for being the world's thinnest 17-inch gaming laptop (not that that's a big achievement) and its sports car paintjob. Jam packed with top-of-the-line hardware, the Pulse 17 was an easy device to fall in love with, except for a few minor gripes that knocked some of the sheen of the experience. After all, if you're spending $3,000 on a laptop, you expect a working keyboard, right? Still, now we turn the question over to you, so head over to our forums and talk about what you loved and loathed about this device.
MSI GT72 Dominator review: a worthy successor to a great gaming notebook
The last time I saw MSI's Dominator laptop, I was sick of it. There wasn't anything wrong with it, but at the time, the product name belonged to the GT70: a powerhouse gaming machine that hasn't evolved much since its introduction in 2012. Back then, I loved the machine's heavy chassis, superb keyboard and excellent sound -- but over time, the machine's aesthetic trappings began to bore me. Someone at MSI must have felt the same way: Earlier this year, the company released the GT72, a new Dominator with a whole new design. Soon after, it relaunched the machine with NVIDIA's latest graphics architecture. OK, MSI, let's see if you can make me fall in love again.
MSI's laptop dock is bigger than the desktop it's designed to replace
There are several reasons to buy a gaming laptop over a desktop, but the biggest two would be portability and desktop footprint. That's what makes MSI's GamingDock such a curious proposition, since it trades both features in exchange for more raw power. Essentially, GamingDock is a big-ass box with a PCIe x16 slot that's designed to take a top-of-the-line desktop graphics card. Then, all you have to do is dock your GS30 Shadow into the top and you'll be able to dump the pixel crunching on the more heavyweight hardware. There isn't much more to it than that, but if you're interested, the GamingDock will launch in January at a price that's yet to be decided.
MSI (almost) has the thinnest pro laptop ever
Bragging rights are a tricky thing. It's easy to say that you're the first or best, but backing up that claim is another matter. Take MSI's brand new WS60, for example. The company bills the 15-inch laptop as the "world's thinnest and lightest mobile workstation," and it's definitely on the featherweight side at 0.78 inches thick and 4.36 pounds. There's only one problem: it's actually a runner-up. Dell's Precision M3800 is both slimmer (0.71 inches) and lighter (4.15 pounds), so that's the machine you want in your bag if sheer portability is the major deciding factor.
MSI's latest gaming laptop brings a more grown-up design, a couple big-ass fans
It seems like just yesterday we reviewed MSI's beastly GT70 Dominator gaming laptop. Indeed, that was only a month ago, but it seems MSI has already moved on: The company is now showing off the GT72, a redesigned version with a slightly thinner profile, an improved cooling system and a less dorky aesthetic. We'll get to that last bit in a minute, but first: the fans. MSI apparently took a lot of flak for the GT70's single-fan setup. Not effective enough, according to some hardcore users. Well, in case that wasn't heavy-duty enough for you, MSI has stepped up to two fans, with the vents taking up pretty much the entire bottom side of the notebook (have a look at the photo after the break if you don't believe us). Only time (and review-testing) will tell if the new setup is quieter, but MSI says if nothing else the heat management should be better this time around.
Engadget Daily: inside the mind of Cortana, a desk/PC hybrid and more!
Today, we give Microsoft's Cortana a psych eval, take a closer look at Lian Li's desk/PC hybrid, go hands-on with the MSI GT70 Dominator and learn about the HP's latest slate, the Pro x2 612. Read on for Engadget's news highlights from the last 24 hours.
MSI GT70 Dominator review: everything it's supposed to be, not much else
Thin and light gaming notebooks may be a new trend, but they're by and large the exception. Traditional gaming rigs look more like MSI's GT70 Dominator: large, heavy and questionably portable. It's an old-school gaming laptop, one that truly fits the term "desktop replacement." It's also the complete antithesis to the sleek gaming notebooks that have swept the market in recent years. Is bigger still better? Let's find out.
MSI's '3K' gaming Ultrabook lands in the US for $1,999
When we reviewed MSI's GS60 Ghost gaming Ultrabook, we suggested that you hold out for the "3K" (really, 2,880 x 1,620) display of its higher-end cousin, the Ghost Pro. Well, it's here -- you can now buy the Ghost Pro 3K in the US starting at $1,999, complete with that extra-sharp 15.6-inch screen and a 4.4-pound, 0.8-inch thick body that should be easy to carry. You'll also get GeForce GTX 870M graphics that can handle the high resolution, and resource-intensive games should be happy with the quad-core 2.4GHz Core i7 processor, 16GB of memory, 128GB solid-state drive and 1TB hard disk.
Daily Roundup: Street View vs. captchas, living in a connected home and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
MSI GS60 Ghost review: a gaming rig in Ultrabook's clothing
It's the natural order of things: NVIDIA releases a new line of mobile GPUs and suddenly the market is flooded with new gaming laptops. It is spring, after all. Most notebooks in the category follow a standard form, but every now and then someone breaks the oversized, hulking mold. This year, it's MSI. Until now, the company's lightweight series consisted of one machine, the GS70 Stealth. It was praised for being thin, light and having a more premium feel than most gaming laptops, but its 17-inch screen still made it unwieldy. Enter the GS60 Ghost: everything you loved about the Stealth, but with a 15-inch display and -- wouldn't you know it -- NVIDIA's new GeForce GTX 800M series GPU. Let's see how it stacks up.
