Antec presents Dark Fleet, a new line of four cases with the company's new Fleet-Release and Fleet-Swap features:
Antec, Inc., the global leader in high-performance computer components and accessories for the gaming, PC upgrade and Do-It-Yourself markets, today announced the Dark Fleet series, its newest line of enclosures designed to meet the cooling and convenience demands of PC gamers and professional users.

The Dark Fleet series is available in four models: one full-tower chassis, the DF-85, and three mid-tower enclosures, the DF-35, DF-30 and DF-10, and all are designed to support the most current high-end graphics cards, extensive drive arrays and multi-CPU motherboards. The Dark Fleet series also introduces two new Antec-exclusive innovations giving convenient access to high-speed data interchange: Fleet Release

Fighting PC game piracy with restrictive copy protection is 'a losing battle', Blizzard has said. While Ubisoft going so far as to require an uninterrupted connection to its authentication servers, Activision Blizzard purports to be taking another approach, focusing on content and features in an effort to encourage purchases.  For example, Blizzard hopes the new and improved Battle.net service, which connects players from across Blizzard's stable of games, will be attractive enough to convince would-be pirates to buy the game.

"If we've done our job right and implemented Battle.net in a great way people will want to be connected while they're playing the single player campaign so they can stay connected to their friends on Battle.net and earn the achievements on Battle.net," Frank Pearce, Blizzard co-founder and executive producer on StarCraft II told VideoGamer.com.

"The best approach from our perspective is to make sure that you've got a full-featured platform that people want to play on, where their friends are, where the community is," he added.

"That's a battle that we have a chance in. If you start talking about DRM and different technologies to try to manage it, it's really a losing battle for us, because the community is always so much larger, and the number of people out there that want to try to counteract that technology, whether it's because they want to pirate the game or just because it's a curiosity for them, is much larger than our development teams.

"We need our development teams focused on content and cool features, not anti-piracy technology."

A new WHQL driver  hit the web, this is revision 197.77 WHQL which carries support for pretty much any GeForce graphics cards in the series GeForce 6000 and upwards. The first reports are that these drivers run extremely well.

We do not have release notes just yet but we do have an open and active discussion thread live right here.

 Forceware 197.77 Win 7 | Vista 64-bit WHQL
 Forceware 197.77 Win 7 | Vista 32-bit WHQL
 Forceware 197.77 Win XP 32-bit WHQL

The Shrimps and other media were kindly invited to the lovely town of Utrecht in the Netherlands last week for the Asus Tech Conference. Head of
Marketing and sales mister Wu Josh was present to present the latest two creations from Asus : the Crosshair 4 Extreme and the Rampage Gene III.

Core i5 655K and Core i7 875K processor review

Intel today releases two new processors targeted at a somewhat more enthusiast audience. Yes, processors for tweakers and overclockers. On socket LGA 1156 Intel now releases two K series processors. The 32nm Intel Core i5-655K processor has the very same specifications as the Core i5 650; it will operate at 3.2 GHz, will feature two cores with Hyper-Threading technology, sport 4MB of L3 cache and will be made using 32nm process technology. The difference between the 650 and 655K is the unlocked multiplier only.

Then we have the enthusiast class Intel Core i7-875K processor, it has the very same specifications as the Core i7 870; it will operate at 2.93GHz, will feature four cores with Hyper-Threading technology, sport 8MB of L3 cache and will be made using 45nm process technology. The only difference between the two central processing units (CPUs) will be the unlocked multiplier on the 875K chip, which will allow overclockers and enthusiasts to easily boost clock-speed of the product without the necessity of overclocking other parts of their systems.

Check out rhe Guru3D review rigth here.

The first curiousity goes by the name of HD5770 Sniper, a Juniper RV840 based card that sports not only a GPU but also an onboard Ethernet connector, the likes of the ones we see from Bigfoot Networks, that is, Killer Xeno Pro. NPUs give users a slight edge in gaming as they prioritise gaming network packets to reduce possible latency.

We say .. the most latency is to be found inbetween your chair and the keyboard.

The second item is even more curious. Powercolor has mounted a Hydra chip onto its HD5770 design making it possible to do multi-vendor multi-GPU without, what seems to be, the need for a brand new motherboard.

Lucidlogix, the maker of the Hydra chips, had laid out this plan way back in late 2008. The original idea was to get the chip running in one of two configurations, the first being integrated into the motherboard as an add-on chip, and the second as an add-in card. Of course, an add-in card for such a small chip would've cost too much and sold too little. The option is then made to strap it onto the graphics card. Thus is born the HD5770 Evolution.

According to Powercolor,this will allow Tri-GPU configurations with SLI and CrossfireX combinations. Personally we tested Hydra .. and aren't to fond of it at all.

Mionix released a new mouse today, this gaming mouse is named after the star Naos, a blue super giant and one of the brightest stars in our galaxy. Naos means

Intel today releases two new processors targeted at a somewhat more enthusiast audience. Yes, processors for tweakers and overclockers. On socket LGA 1156 Intel now releases two K series processors. The 32nm Intel Core i5-655K processor has the very same specifications as the Core i5 650; it will operate at 3.2 GHz, will feature two cores with Hyper-Threading technology, sport 4MB of L3 cache and will be made using 32nm process technology. The difference between the 650 and 655K is the unlocked multiplier only. Then we have the enthusiast class Intel Core i7-875K processor, it has the very same specifications as the Core i7 870; it will operate at 2.93GHz, will feature four cores with Hyper-Threading technology, sport 8MB of L3 cache and will be made using 45nm process technology. The only difference between the two central processing units (CPUs) will be the unlocked multiplier on the 875K chip, which will allow overclockers and enthusiasts to easily boost clock-speed of the product without the necessity of overclocking other parts of their systems.

I'm, not even gonna name the site anymore. NVIDIA officially denied a rumor that stated the firm would kill its GeForce GTX 470 graphics card.

The rumor mill doesn't always hit the mark. A story that said Nvidia had stopped taking orders for its GeForce GTX 470 graphics card, presumably to make way for a rumored GTX 465 product. We've now just gotten off the phone with Nvidia, and the firm strongly ruled out any such action:

The GTX 470 is really important for us from a product perspective. It's basically our best price-performance product in the enthusiast line, so we have absolutely no plans of discontinuing that. Actually we are enhancing that part of the product line over the next month or so.

In addition to a copy of the highly anticipated Mafia II game, the Mafia II Collector's Edition will contain the following content:

• Collectible SteelBookTM Casing: Brushed metallic SteelBook hard case with debossed logo containing two pieces of art featuring Vito and Joe, the stars of Mafia II.

• Made Man Pack:

Free access to in-game downloadable pack that lets players get behind the wheel of two different luxury automobiles modeled after cars from the period. In addition, Vito will look the part with two new "made man" suits, including a vintage tux.

Mafia II Orchestral Soundtrack:

Immerse yourself in Empire Bay's symphonic masterpiece with the Mafia II score recorded by the Prague FILMHarmonic Orchestra on CD.

Next to all that, check out the video which shows off NVIDIA's PhysX embedded into the game.

Particularly, the Windows PC version of Mafia II will feature a thorough integration of NVIDIA PhysX and 3D Vision technology into 2K Czech's Illusion Engine. The integration of PhysX and NVIDIA APEX technology, including the APEX Clothing and Particle modules, enable the city and personalities of Empire Bay to truly come alive on Windows PC. With the implementation of NVIDIA APEX Particles, players are engulfed in lifelike explosions that are bigger and brighter, including weapon fragments, in-game debris and destructible environments that are amplified in both quantity and realism through the integration of APEX Particles.

Rebellion, SEGA and Twentieth Century FOX have released the Aliens vs. Predator DirectX 11 Benchmark to the public.

As with many of the already released DirectX 11 benchmarks, the Aliens vs. Predator DirectX 11 benchmark leverages your DirectX 11 hardware to provide an immersive game play experience through the use of DirectX 11 Tessellation and DirectX 11 Advanced Shadow features.

In Aliens vs. Predator, DirectX 11 Geometry Tessellation is applied in an effective manner to enhance and more accurately depict HR Giger

ATI just released Catalyst 10.5 drivers for Windows XP, 7 and Vista.

New Windows Features

Support for 120 Hz displays for ATI Radeon

To all Team Guru3D folders hail ! Now if you are in luck have a GeForce GTX series 400 card and want to fold for our team .. I heard that the computation power of the GPU is doing miracles for Folding.

The latest Folding@Home GPU client core released by Pande Group adds support for NVIDIA's latest GeForce 400 Series GPUs, using the NVIDIA CUDA GPU compute technology. Dubbed GPU3 core, this beta release of the Folding@Home client core packs several optimizations to harness the new GPUs. Apart from GeForce 400 Series, the core supports the full range of GPUs.

The developers don't recommend using it with ATI GPUs at this moment, as the software doesn't offer any advantage and could be buggy. They are, however, working on improving the software for ATI GPUs. The graphical and console clients using this core can be downloaded from here.

Mean while I'd like to point out that we recently moved into spot 74 (!) and we are averaging a 250k points a day. That certainly can be more you guys, hope ya'll can join us. Here is the current top 20 Guru3D.com folders, great job you guys !

Join us, Team Guru3D has number 69411.

The much anticipated HAF X debuts as the most powerful HAF (High Air Flow) chassis yet. Designed for performance systems, this chassis is able to house today's latest and hottest CPUs, motherboards, graphics cards and is even compatible with USB 3.0 devices. With specialized support and cooling for graphic cards, massive airflow with the help of up to four gigantic fans and easy access to installed components, this is as close as it gets to a system builder's 'dream case'.

Extreme Airflow: Simply Cooler
HAF X provides powerful airflow with the help of massive-sized fans: dual 200mm top fans, front 230mm red LED on/off fan provide outstanding system cooling and extreme airflow for the entire system. An additional 200mm fan with dedicated air duct has also been added for unsurpassed VGA cooling.

Specifications:

Blur game is out, finally, and Gamespot did a complete review and granted the game a score of 8.0 which is great for Gamespot standards. Even when the review talks about the X360 version, it's still valid since PC version is out also and they are all very similar, granted the PC version will have the option to improve graphics even more as we all know.

MSI Big bang X58 XPower motherboard review

We test and review the XPower from MSI. Last month Intel added a new processor in the line-up, the ever so strong Core i7 980 Extreme six-core processor. Seriously breathtaking, and to date the fastest consumer processor on the globe with very decent overclock potential as well. That was reason enough for most ODM to make new updates and revisions of the X58 chipset based motherboards, as next top the new processor we also have seen the gradual adoption of features like USB 3.0 and SATA3 6G.

MSI is on of the ODMs releasing something really special, today we'll review the Big Bang X58 XPower motherboard. It is chucked full with the latest gadgets and features, it is equipped to make sure you get the very best overclock out of it and heck, even if you can't overclock, flick a button and the motherboard will do the work for you, completely automated.

Let's arm it with a Core i7 980X and go where no-one has gone before ... you can read the full article right here.

Armed with a Zalman VF3000N cooler that eats up three  (!) PCIe slots Zotac presents the GeForce GTX 480 AMP! Edition along with the GeForce GTX 470 AMP! Edition. These graphics card feature a cooling solution with two 92mm fans and according to Zotac they're world's fastest air-cooled GeForce GTX 400 series cards. The GeForce GTX 480 AMP! Edition features a 756MHz GPU, 1512MHz shaders and 1536MB GDDR5 clocked at 3800MHz, while the GeForce GTX 470 AMP! Edition has a 656MHz core, 1312MHz shaders and 1280MB GDDR5 clocked at 3402MHz.

Enhancements to the ZOTAC GeForce

The company is now planning to release GeForce GTX 480, 470 and 465 cards with the Twin Frozr II cooler.
During its pre-Computex press event held in Holland, among other things, MSI has practically confirmed Nvidia's upcoming GTX 465 card. MSI apparantly didn't show any pictures the slide stated that there is a plan for Fermi N480/N470/N465 Twin Frozr II cards. The cards/coolers should be formally added during Computex and will mostly be faced with the Radeon HD 5830.

 MSI has taken the final step and, whether willingly or not, confirmed this card

Intel's Director of Product and Technology posted a blog today revealing the company will not be bringing Larabee as a discreet graphics product to market, we already knew this but Intel always stated it was puches back to a later time-frame:

In a nutshell, Intel has three visual computing efforts. The first is the aforementioned processor graphics. Since we began integrating graphics inside our chipsets back in 1999 (and now integrate graphics inside our processor products), the majority of PC users are now using integrated solutions. Second, for our smaller Intel� Atom� processor and System on Chip efforts, and third, a many-core, programmable Intel architecture and first product both of which we referred to as Larrabee for graphics and other workloads. Here's the latest:

1. Our top priority continues to be around delivering an outstanding processor that addresses every day, general purpose computer needs and provides leadership visual computing experiences via processor graphics. We are further boosting funding and employee expertise here, and continue to champion the rapid shift to mobile wireless computing and HD video - we are laser-focused on these areas.
2. We are also executing on a business opportunity derived from the Larrabee program and Intel research in many-core chips. This server product line expansion is optimized for a broader range of highly parallel workloads in segments such as high performance computing. Intel VP Kirk Skaugen will provide an update on this next week at ISC 2010 in Germany.
3. We will not bring a discrete graphics product to market, at least in the short-term. As we said in December, we missed some key product milestones. Upon further assessment, and as mentioned above, we are focused on processor graphics, and we believe media/HD video and mobile computing are the most important areas to focus on moving forward.
4. We will also continue with ongoing Intel architecture-based graphics and HPC-related R&D and proof of concepts.

Retrieved information's are presented in a logical and easily understandable form and can be exported into various types of reports.

• Comprehensive hardware information
• System health monitoring
• Basic benchmarks
• Text, CSV and XML report formats
• Periodical updates
• For Windows NT/2000/XP/Vista/Server 2003; Windows 9X/Me (limited)

The new version of the HWiNFO32 hardware information and diagnostic tool and it features:

Changes:

• Fixed possible crash after having graphs opened for longer time.
• Updated reporting of IDA capability.
• Added reporting of VIA P4M800 memory timings.
• Reduced ATI I2C sensor scan time.
• Added support of Atmel DIMM Temperature sensor.
• Improved sensor monitoring for MSI NF980-G65 (MS-7612).
• Improved reporting of GPU memory clock for AMD Evergreen family.
• Added nVidia GeForce GTX 465.
• Improved sensor monitoring for ASRock 890GX Extreme3 and 890FXDeluxe3.
• Improved sensor monitoring for ASUS NCCH-DL and NCT-D(A).
• Improved monitoring of CPU/PCH (Ibex Peak) power consumption.
• Improved monitoring of nVidia GPU diode temperature.
• Added monitoring of nVidia GPU Fan duty cycle.

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