Last night, at the Alphaland Tents, HP unveiled the latest additions to their mobile and desktop computing lineup: The H9 Phoenix and the Envy14 Spectre.
The HP Phoenix is HP’s dedicated gaming machine. Under the hood, you’ll find a third-generation Intel Core i5-3570K “unlocked” Processor ready-made for user overclocking, a maximum capacity of 16GB DDR3-1600 memory, 1TB of hard disk space and a Radeon HD 7770 graphics card with 2GB GDDR5 dedicated memory. It promises unparalleled performance in a sleek, mean-looking package.
For the savvy consumer, HP presents the Spectre Envy14 notebook. The Spectre has a beautiful Gorilla Glass lid, display and wrist rest, which makes it tough, but but keeps it sleek. It comes with a 14-inch screen, an Intel® Core i7 processor, a maximum of 4GB of dual-channel DDR3 memory and Beats audio technology. With such a heavy focus on design and some serious hardware, the Spectre gives top-tier looks and performance in a single package.
Aside from trying out the CM Storm Sirius S at the Cooler Master booth at COMPUTEX, we also had the opportunity to briefly touch and feel their newest mice – the Sentinel Advance II and Recon. These two new mice are the newest gaming mice that the company has, and both were designed with hardcore gamers in mind.
The Recon is an ambidextrous mouse, and features a multi-color mouse wheel for profile selection, and uses an Avago 3090 optical sensor that can deliver 800 to 4000 DPI. The mouse has 9 programmable buttons (left, right and middle mouse buttons included).
The Sentinel Advance II is a right-handed design, and is an update to the company’s previous offering, the Sentinel. It features 200 – 8200 DPI tracking resolution, On the fly DPI adjustments (increments of 200 DPI), 8 programmable buttons, 9 additional virtual buttons via button combinations, customizable OLED logo and customizable multi color LED light system.
Interestingly, the Sentinel Advance II has removable weights on the bottom of the mouse, which allows users to customize the overall balance of the device to their preference.
We passed by Cooler Master’s conference room here in COMPUTEX today to check out their CM Storm line of PC peripherals. One of the devices that caught our eye was the CM Storm Sirius S 5.1 surround sound gaming headphones. This particular gaming headphone has 4 discrete speaker channel pairs (front, rear, center, and sub) for full surround sound. Additionally, the headphones also allow users to individually set the levels of each speaker channel pair – you can tone down the rear channel if you want while keeping the front ones as loud as possible, for example. The omni-directional microphone on the Sirius S minimizes background noise pickup and ensures clear conversations with teammates. It also features interchangeable ear-cups, micro weave for breathable audio.
Negosyantech is the program name chosen by Intel to help entrepreneurs make their business more productive and efficient through the use of affordable technology solutions. According to statistics, 20% of the market of PCs (personal computers) in the Philippines is small-to-medium business (SMBs). Furthermore, only 25% of these SMBs use PCs in their operations. Intel aims to change this, and they’ve launched a campaign to make these enterprises (as well as micro businesses) more aware and start making use of more relevant technology.
Intel has collaborated with 8layer Technologies, Inc. to design software applications and easy-to-use business solutions that achieve cost-effectiveness. This includes the Kasosyo Apps Suite with a sales, inventory, and cash flow application to keep micro businesses and SMBs more efficient and entrepreneurs updated. 8layer also designed BigBiz technology, which integrates services such as Firewall, Email, File Server, DNS, Proxy Server, and more into a single hardware server.
Intel also partnered with Multiply.com, a site that has gone from becoming a social networking site to an e-commerce platform. Multiply has vast expertise and success in the local e-commerce field with over 127,000 merchants (or micro businesses and SMBs) selling on the site. With the strong online presence of Multiply, it’s only right that Intel collaborates with them to reach these SMBs.
Intel is also working together with PLDT in this campaign—the latter becoming the communications and information provider for Negosyantech. Some of the other companies that Intel has partnered with for this campaign are Acer, Dell, Lenovo, HP, and Samsung. These companies will be providing the hardware that Intel can suggest to SMBs.
Basically, Intel is offering 3 things—(1) PCs, which include the best hardware based on Intel processors; (2) software solutions, which are simple applications to suit the needs of SMBs; and (3) communications and information tools for SMBs through PLDT KaAsenso.
Left to Right: Ron Cruz, Warren de Guzman, Karmina Constantino, Lexi Schulze, Coco Alcuaz, and Boyet Sison
For the past five weeks on ANC, we watched live uninterrupted coverage of the Philippines’ Chief Justice Impeachment trial. Now that it’s all done, what now? Well, ANC is launching a series of new afternoon programs and niche primetime talk shows starting on June 11, 2012.
At 2 p.m, news anchor Ron Cruz will be presenting major national, business, and foreign news. At 3 p.m, Coco Alcuaz will take over to give a rundown on major news developments, business stories, updates on Asian markets, and live interviews from the Philippine Stock Exchange while Warren de Guzman delivers updates directly from the PSE trading floor. Warren de Guzman states that he “will only give credible information to help viewers make the right investment choices”. “The Bureau”, anchored by Karmina Constantino, will cater to Filipinos abroad by reporting the biggest national and regional stories in the country—letting viewers know how these affect the global Filipino. ANC’s weather presenter and anchor Boyet Sison will be presenting the hourly weather updates and forecasts, and Lexi Schulze will be providing the latest buzz and trends from the social media realm.
ANC will also launch a first-of-its-kind social media news program called “@ANCalerts” that will air on weekdays at 4:30 p.m with anchors TJ Manotoc and Lexi Shulze. The show actually started as ANC’s Twitter account that now has more than 450,000 followers, and will be presenting the hottest social media buzz, user-generated content, “Bayan Mo, iPatrol Mo” stories, and real-time feedback from viewers.
As if all of that isn’t enough, ANC will also have “Inside Business” on its Wednesday 7 p.m primetime slot, which is a niche talk show about business and science and technology, anchored by Coco Alcuaz. Tony Velasquez will also be launching a 30-minute science and technology show airing at 7:30 p.m on Wednesdays, where he will feature the latest inventions, gadgets, and technological devices. At 9:30 p.m on Fridays, entertainment reporter Phoemela Baranda will be the new host of “Cityscape”, which is ANC’s guide to the hippest food establishments, fashion trends, and the hottest events and getaways in and out of the metro.
That my friends, is the future of All-in-One PCs. Not gimmicky control schemes or crazy thin designs. The module that we held in Intel’s booth at COMPUTEX earlier today is the future of All-in-One PCs, and possibly consoles and notebooks.
Let us explain. All-in-One PCs, like HP’s TouchSmart PC are excellent devices in their own right, but suffer from one serious flaw – the PC components that make them tick are usually obsolete in about a year or two years, simply because their innards are non-user replaceable. The display, ports, keyboard and touchscreen is still fine after two, three, or even five years of use, but the heart of the PC – the motherboard, processor and graphics are usually junk by the second or first year (depending on when in the refresh cycle you buy it in).
Intel’s Pluggable Module Architecture (PMA) is set to change all of that. Because that little circuit board you see in our hands contain all the necessary parts that make the PC tick – processor, memory and graphics. You plug that into a All-in-One PC and away you go. In three or two years time, when newer, faster processors have been made, you take it out and replace it with a new one, essentially reducing the cost of upgrading your device. Everything else is kept intact, which include the display, storage, hardware accouterments attached to the design.
Intel’s booth at COMPUTEX had a demo device that was running the PMA. The concept device was made with Compal, Celetica and LG and boasted a large 21:9 display. At the base of the display on the back was the space for the Intel processor compute module pictured above. Aside from the PMA, the concept device was also sporting a wireless charging module that an Intel rep said could charge the keyboard as well as the mouse wirelessy, which means in the future you no longer have to swap out batteries of the two devices, lessening the hassle of going completely wireless.
The Intel rep also told us that their PMA concept has already attracted the eye of console makers, and though he didn’t want to reveal who, he said that the chip company is already in talks with a console company to integrate the new technology into future consoles. Traditionally, consoles have short lives because of the limitations of the hardware – the PMA concept could change that, as companies like Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo could have a hardware refresh of their consoles every three or two years, which lessens development cost dramatically, instead of creating and assembling brand new designs from scratch. This also gives developers a semi-stable set of hardware to work with, which allows them to create new gaming experiences without having to adjust to a whole new set of hardware, which should reduce the price of developing new games.
The Intel rep also told us that they are also working hard to integrate the wireless charging module into future notebooks and ultrabooks, and are working to release the tech late this year or early next year. We’ve embedded a video of the tech in action below.
If you haven’t felt the need to jump on the Vita bandwagon, this latest news might just convince you to take the plunge. Sony has announced that the Vita will officially support PS one games through a software update this summer. It is yet unclear exactly how games will be transferred from game disc to Vita, but official support will likely mean better ports and a smoother experience overall. So if you miss the good old days, you can relive all the classics (Resident Evil, anyone?) anywhere you go. Stay posted for more news about the planned system update.
Smart is giving you the chance to win a trip to Boracay with the my.Smart Boracay Getaway promo!
To earn a raffle entry, all you have to do is register at https://my.smart.com.ph and do any of the following:
For postpaid subscribers: Enroll in e-pay or e-statement, enabling you to view your billing statements and pay your bills online
For prepaid subscribers: Enroll in any promo package or make a call-and-text card inquiry through my.Smart
A lucky Smart, Talk ‘N Text, or Smart Broadband subscriber will be drawn from the pool of entries on July 2 (covering May 25-June 24), August 3 (covering June 25-July 24), and on September 3 (covering July 25-August 25).
The winners will receive two roundtrip plane tickets to Boracay with free hotel accommodations at the Boracay Plaza.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with my.Smart, it is an online portal that lets you manage your prepaid, postpaid, and broadband accounts easily. So when you register from now until August 25, you not only get easy access to your Smart accounts–you also get a chance to win an island getaway!
No, you’re not seeing things. That motherboard above is indeed a gold plated, Z77 motherboard made by ECS. And though it looks too blingy to actually be used in a gaming rig, thee’s a method to the madness – gold plated electronic parts do not oxidize in air and its conductivity stays consistent over time. ECS says that their golden board features triple-thickness gold plated connectors that won’t wear out after extensive component upgrades. This particular model has features like ATI CrossFireX and NVIDIA SLI graphics support with next generation PCI Express 3.0 ,QoolTech IV visible temperature technology to protect your valuable PC components, and support for the fastest 3rd generation Intel Core processors.
The Z77H2-AX has three PCI Express 3.0 x16 slots, so you can go wild if you ever decide to slap on an enormous number of videocards in your future rig. The Z77H2-AX also incorporates the Mini PCIe feature that provides mini SATA or mini PCIe interface in order to support Intel Smart Response / Intel Smart Connect / Intel Rapid Start technologies, enabling better power saving as well as system longevity with greater responsiveness. The Z77H2-AX is also equipped with an eSATA x2 (6Gb) and SATA x6 (6Gb/s x4 + 3Gb/s x2), which means that it’s able to handle large amounts of storage with greater speed. The board also allows users to enjoy Wireless LAN, Bluetooth and Gigabit LAN and offers multiple USB 3.0 slots.
ECS says that this board should now be hitting stores worldwide, and each purchase is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity personally signed by the Director of Research and Development of ECS. We have no idea what the price will be for one of these things will be once it hits the Philippines, but you can be sure it’s definitely not going to be cheap.
[album: https://gadgetsmagazine.com.ph/wp-content/plugins/dm-albums/dm-albums.php?currdir=/wp-content/uploads/dm-albums/[email protected]/ECS Black Z77H2-AX/]
It’s been roughly a year when Intel demoed mobile devices running on their Atom processor, and we thought it would be a good idea to see how the PC chip maker was coming along in regards to making Android-friendly chips for mobile applications. And wouldn’t you know it, we managed to see three Intel Atom powered smartphones running Android in their booth at COMPUTEX earlier yesterday, so we decided a bit of a hands-on was in order. The three Atom powered smarthphones in question was the XOLO X900 that’s now heading to Indian subscribers, the Orange San Diego for UK customers and the Lenovo K800 (pictured above) that’s destined for the China market.
XOLO X900
Overall the look and feel of the three devices were quite reminiscent of the early days of Android – the devices themselves weren’t flashy and have simple yet functional designs. Both the XOLO X900 and the Orange San Diego had similar sized displays (4.03-inches) and very similar designs, with minimal differences.
Orange San Diego
We gather that from a distance, you probably couldn’t tell them apart. The Lenovo K800 is different – not only does it have a bigger, 4.5-inch IPS display, it sports a body that’s more angular than the rectangular designs of the XOLO X900 and the Orange San Diego.
No matter how similar or different the three phones are, they all run Intel’s 1.6 GHz Z2460 Atom processor and tweaked versions of Google’s Android OS (2.3). All three are also capable of high-speed mobile internet via HSPA+, and have 8-megapixel cameras that’s capable of burst shooting. All three is also capable of beaming video and other content to compatible HD TVs via Intel’s wireless display technology.
Overall all three devices were quick and snappy, and generally responded well to our touch. All three devices had Android, and it was nice to see that the Intel Atom processor inside them was able to handle general smartphone duties well. Of course, we didn’t have a lot of time with the three devices, so it’s not possible to make an assessment of how these units will fare in the long run. It’s interesting to see how far Intel’s gone into making its plans to break into the mobile processor market, a market that’s already crowded with different companies that are quickly establishing deep relationships with manufacturers – brands like Samsung, NVIDIA, Qualcomm and Texas Instruments.
As for the prices of the devices? Well, it varies. Orange is offering the San Diego in their Pay As You Go plan for £199.99, which is roughly equivalent to Php 13,375. The XOLO X900 is being offered in some Indian stores for INR 21,999, equivalent to Php 17,199. The Lenovo K800 is being offered by Chinese carrier Unicom for about RMB 3,299 which is equivalent to Php 22,452.
Honda Cars Philippines, Inc. (HCPI) added two big beauties to their stable today with the launch of the all-new Honda Odyssey and all-new Honda Pilot.
Developed with the concept of being the “Ultimate Family Vehicle,” the all-new Honda Odyssey combine cool styling, class-leading performance, safety and utility. As a mom, that just about sums up everything you look for when choosing a family vehicle. An interesting factoid shared Odyssey’s by Stephen Frey (Principal Engineer / Manager, Chassis Design, Honda R&D Americas, Inc.) at the launch was that they actually used Honda associates and their families as their first test market — since they actually fit the demographic the Odyssey was created for. The Odyssey is fitted with power sliding doors at both sides of the vehicle to allow effortless opening and closing, as well as a power tailgate that allows for easy closing. With the kiddies in mind, the side and back doors all have an anti-pinch function to prevent anyone from accidentally being caught when closing. In 2011, this CBU from the US not only received a five star rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), but also got a Top Safety Pick rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).
The all-new Pilot is Honda’s first full-sized SUV in the Philippine market. “Intelligent Family Adventure” was the peg for this vehicle, and one of its aims is to provide each member of the family (or passenger) an equally enjoyable experience from the various amenities and flexible cargo options, while staying true to Honda’s core of being fuel efficient, fun to drive, as well as environment friendly. While Kerry McClure (Principal Engineer, Engineering Operations, Honda R&D Americas, Inc) explained that the Pilot shares many features with the Odyssey, the Pilot caters to the more adventurous lot who need to go off road and/or pull heavy loads like jetskis or the like. Also like the Odyssey, the Honda Pilot also received top marks from both the NHTSA and IIHS.
For more details, please visit www.hondaphil.com.
QUICK SPECS
2012 Honda Odyssey
Variant: 3.5 EX-L
Engine: 3.5L i-VTEC V6, 24 valves
Variable Cylinder Management (VCM)
Horsepower: 250 ps @ 5,700 rpm
Torque: 35 kg-m @ 4,800 rpm
Active Noise Control
Mechanical: 5-speed automatic transmission
Unit-body construction
MacPherson strut front suspension
Multi-link double wishbone rear suspension
Ventilated disc front brakes
Drum in disc rear brakes
Dimensions: Length: 5,152 mm
Width: 2,011 mm
Height: 1,737 mm
Wheelbase: 3,000 mm
Turning radius: 10.8 m at wheel center
Curb weight: 1,970 kg
Exterior: Power sunroof with anti-pinch function
Power tailgate with key-integrated remote
Power sliding doors on both driver and passenger sides with key integrated remote
Fog lights
17” alloy wheels
Seating: 8 passengers seating capacity
All leather seats
10-way power adjustable driver seat
4-way power adjustable front passenger seat
3rd row 60:40 folding Magic Seats with seatback adjustment
Comfort & Convenience: Tri-zone auto climate control air conditioning system with independent controls for the driver, front passenger, and 2nd row passengers
Cooler box
Cruise control
Bluetooth Hands Free Link
Rear back-up camera with backing sensors
Front and rear corner sensors
8-inch high resolution QVGA multi-information display
Leather-wrapped steering wheel with mounted audio controls
Audio: Module-type single CD in-dash with MP3 and WMA playback capability
2GB flash memory CD library
USB connection and exterior auxiliary jack
Bluetooth audio streaming
7 speakers including 1 sub-woofer
Safety: Dual-stage, multiple-threshold front SRS airbags for driver and passenger
Front airbags
Side curtain airbags with rollover sensor for all 3 rows
Advance Compatibility Engineering (ACE) body structure
Anti-lock Braking System (ABS)
Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD)
Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA)
2nd and 3rd row Lower Tethers and Anchors for Children (LATCH)
Exterior color: Smoky Topaz; Mocha Metallic; White Diamond
Suggested Retail Price: Php 2,800,000 (+ Php 25,000 for White Diamond)
2012 Honda Pilot
Variant: 3.5 EX-L
Engine: 3.5L i-VTEC V6, 24 valves
Variable Cylinder Management (VCM)
Horsepower: 257 ps @ 5,700 rpm
Torque: 35.4 kg-m @ 4,800 rpm
Active Noise Control
Mechanical: 5-speed automatic transmission
Four-wheel drive (4WD)
Hill Start Assist
Variable Torque Management 4-Wheel Drive System (VTM-4)
Unit-body construction
MacPherson strut front suspension
Multi-link with trailing arm rear suspension
Ventilated disc front brakes
Drum in disc rear brakes
Dimensions: Length: 4,875 mm
Width: 1,995 mm
Height: 1,845 mm
Wheelbase: 2,775 mm
Turning radius: 5.63 m at wheel center
Curb weight: 2,087 kg
Exterior: Power sunroof with anti-pinch function
Tailgate with glass hatch with key-integrated release button
Auto on/off and manual leveling multi-reflector halogen headlights
Fog lights
17” alloy wheels
Integrated tow hitch with cover
2,045 kg towing capacity
Seating: 8 passengers seating capacity
All leather seats
10-way power adjustable driver seat
4-way power adjustable front passenger seat
Comfort & Convenience: Tri-zone auto climate control air conditioning system with independent control for the driver, front passenger, and 2nd row passengers
Cruise control
Bluetooth Hands Free Link
Rear back-up camera with backing sensors
Front and rear corner sensors
8-inch high resolution QVGA multi-information display
2nd and 3rd row reading lights
Leather-wrapped steering wheel with mounted audio controls
Audio: Module-type single CD in-dash with MP3 and WMA playback capability
2GB flash memory CD library
USB connection and exterior auxiliary jack
Bluetooth audio streaming
7 speakers including 1 sub-woofer
Safety: Dual-stage, multiple-threshold front SRS airbags for driver and front passenger
Front side airbags
Side curtain airbags with rollover sensor for all 3 rows
Advance Compatibility Engineering (ACE) body structure
Anti-lock Braking System (ABS)
Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD)
Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA)
2nd and 3rd row Lower Tethers and Anchors for Children (LATCH)
Exterior Colors: Taffeta White; Crystal Black; Dark Amber
We swung by Samsung’s booth here in COMPUTEX and spotted one of their ultrabooks that was just a little bit different from the rest. Ladies and Gents, meet the Samsung Series 5 Ultra Convertible, an ultrabook that can also double as a (somewhat akward) tablet. The premise is not unlike Lenovo’s Yoga ultrabook – the Samsung Series 5 Ultra Convertible has a display that can flip all the way back, with the 13-inch display doubling as the main touch interface. The body of the device looks like it was made with a combination of metal and plastic, and the build quality looked ok. There’s a good amount of ports scattered all around the body of the unit, which include USB 3.0 ports. The keyboard feels suspiciously like the one on the Series 5 Ultra, which is a good thing. Flipping the display over is pretty easy, although carrying it around this way will be a bit of a bother as the keys will be protruding on the bottom while it is on tablet mode. We have a feeling that the build quality and usability will improve once the retail model hits, though no firm word has been set for the release of this notebook hybrid. It goes without saying that this particular device will ship with Windows 8 on-board. We’re uploading a demo video of the device as we speak, so stay tuned.
[album: https://gadgetsmagazine.com.ph/wp-content/plugins/dm-albums/dm-albums.php?currdir=/wp-content/uploads/dm-albums/[email protected]/Samsung Series 5 Ultra Convertible/]
The next iteration of the Asus ROG Maximus Extreme line is here. The Maximus V Extreme is the ultimate motherboard that serious overclockers and gamers want, and has a ton of features that’ll definitely excite peeps who take overclocking seriously. Asus’ ROG Extreme Engine DIGI+ II technology ensures optimum energy efficiency through the use of digital controllers for precise overclocking control over the CPU, DRAM, and iGPU, while top tier Japanese Nichicon GT-Series 10K black metallic capacitors ensure that the board is built to last. Asus has also seen fit to include their patented OC Key which allows an hardware basedd overclocking graphical overlay that displays the parameters of OSD TweakIt and OSD Monitor. Along with the new hardware features, Asus has also created a real-time leaderboard called ROG Exchange and OC Knockout which allows overclockers to compete with like-minded individuals in real-time. No word on the price for the Philippines yet, but you can expect this to cost you a pretty penny once it lands.
[album: https://gadgetsmagazine.com.ph/wp-content/plugins/dm-albums/dm-albums.php?currdir=/wp-content/uploads/dm-albums/[email protected]/Maximus V Extreme Z77/]
If you know your tech, you know E3 is happening right now, and if you have been following this site, you’ll remember we posted about E3 and Sony. You should. We just posted it. In any case, the E3 news keeps rolling in, and if you haven’t already seen the press conferences, the video replays are available for streaming and direct download from the E3 site. This Sony keynote is almost an hour and a half long, so make sure you get some popcorn and drinks ready before you hit play.
Sony has just finished its E3 presentation, and while most of it puts the spotlight on PS3, Sony also managed to throw in some other updates.
The PlayStation Suite, which was intended to bring PlayStation-style gaming to other devices, was first announcedearly last year as a PlayStation Store with games for Android. At E3, Sony revealed that PlayStation Suite will be renamed as PlayStation Mobile, thereby emphasizing the mobility of PS-level gaming.
As part of the PS Mobile expansion, HTC joins Sony’s PlayStation Certified license program. HTC and Sony will team up to develop and expand PS support for HTC portable devices. These devices, including the HTC One X, One S, and the One V, will be PlayStation Certified. According to Sony, PS Mobile content is also compatible with PS Vita.
Speaking of PS Vita, Sony has also scheduled the Vita to undergo system software updates to allow support for classic PS1 games such as Twisted Metal 2, Tomb Raider, Final Fantasy VII and Crash Bandicoot. Currently–although there is a huge setback in quality–PS1 classics are also being supported on PS3.
![Samsung Series 5 Ultra Convertible first impressions [Update: now with video]](https://gadgetsmagazine.com.ph/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/IMG_0291.jpg "Samsung Series 5 Ultra Convertible first impressions [Update: now with video]")
