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iBuyPower Turns 10, Giving Away a System to Celebrate

Paul Lilly — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 09:30:37 -0600

To kick off it's tenth anniversary, boutique system build iBuyPower has launched its second-gen Chimera 2 gaming system. Like the original, the follow-up act sizzles on stage with a fiery exterior, but with a "completely redesigned signature Chimera Inferno II Chassis."

The color scheme now wraps around the entire chassis, with the chimera flame design covering 4 exterior surfaces (front, right, left, and top panels). Underneath it all sits either a Phenom II X3/X4 or Core i5/i7 foundation, depending on which base configuration you start out with. The Core i5 base comes standard with a Core i5 750 processor, Asus P7P55D LE motherboard, 4GB of DDR3-1333 memory, an ATI HD 5750 videocard, 750GB hard drive, 700W PSU, 22X DVD burner, and Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit. Surprising affordable, pricing starts at $1,100 (or $999 if building around AMD).

Don't feel like buying one? To celebrate its 10th birthday, iBuyPower said it's giving away a Chimera 2 system with a Killer Xeno Pro Gaming card.

"We are excited to be celebrating our tenth anniversary and wanted to thank all our customers that helped make it happen with a giveaway and hot new system," said Darren Su, VP of iBuyPower. "The Chimera 2 gaming systems are fully loaded and feature a new aggressive design sure to impress."

To enter, ~~follow iBuyPower on Twitter and/or Facebook~~ became a Fan of iBuyPower on Facebook or follow them on Twitter, and then fill out the contest entry form here. Good luck!

Image Credit: iBuyPower

New Custom System Maker Origin Enters Fray with Genesis, EON18

Paul Lilly — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:00:37 -0600

Move over Alienware, Voodoo PC, Hypersonic, Maingear, BFG, Widow PC, Falcon Northwest, Velocity Micro, Vigor Gaming, Apple (sike!), Overdrive PC, Digital Storm, and any other vendor of high-end gaming PCs we may have left out, and make way for Origin, the newest custom gaming PC maker on the block.

Origin makes its debut with a pair of flashy looking systems, the Genesis desktop and EON18 notebook. To set the systems part, Origin has teamed with Killer Paint to offer custom paint jobs and airbrushed designs, including custom requests. Cost of entry for the desktop starts at about $1,600 for an AMD Phenom II-based system, $1,700 for Core i5, or about $2,000 to jump up to Core i7. That buys you a 750W Corsair power supply, EVGA GTX 260 videocard, 4GB of DDR3-1333 memory, a 320GB hard drive, and a few other odds and ends.

The EON18 notebook, on the other hand, starts at $2,576 and includes an 18.4-inch glossy LCD screen, GeForce GTX 280m graphics, an Intel Core 2 Duo P8700 processor, 2GB of DDR3-1333 memory, 250GB hard drive, 8X DVD burner, Wi-Fi, and Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit.

Upgrade options abound for both setups, nearly all of which are name brand parts. And resurrecting a name we've been quite content not to see in the headlines as of late, Origin has apparently teamed with Fatal1ty for select branded components.

"I have known the founders of Origin for several years and have selected them as my premier gaming PC partner," said Johnathan "Fatal1ty" Wendel. "With Origin, I want to focus on what true, hardcore gamers and enthusiasts want from their gaming PC: high-performance, personal customization, and a PC that delivers the best gaming experience in collaboration with my licensed partners."

Take from that what you will.

If you want to see more, Origin's already all over the web:

Origin Website
Twitter
Facebook

Image Credit: Origin

Maingear Stuffs Two HD 5970 Videocards into Shift PC

Paul Lilly — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 08:30:13 -0600

A little prerequisite reading is in order. If you haven't done so already, be sure to check out Lloyd Case and Gordon Mah Ung's article covering ATI's Radeon HD 5970, a videocard we've dubbed "The Undisputed Performance Champ." Once you read through that feature, you'll be in a better position to appreciate the awesome power that comes from cramming two HD 5970 videocards into a CrossFire X configuration, and that's exactly what Maingear has done.

The boutique system vendor today announced the immediately availability of said cards into its Shift PC. By doing so, Maingear says gamers are afforded 10 teraflops of pixel pushing power when enhanced with the company's Redline technology.

"The Maingear Shift was designed specifically to harness the incredible amount of GPU power that is on the horizon," said Wallace Santos, CEO and founder of Maingear. "The ATI Radeon HD 5970 truly ushers in a new era of everyday supercomputing for the consumer. Besides having a total of 3200 stream processors each for an incredible gaming experience, with Windows 7 and DriectCompute, these cards can be used to accelerate everything from video editing and transcoding to advanced photo manipulation."

As we previously reported, the Shift can be configured with either an Intel P55 or X58 foundation, and you can outfit either one of them with a pair of HD 5970 videocards. All that power doesn't come cheap, however, and you'll be looking at about an additional $1,500 over the base configuration, which includes an Nvidia GeForce GTS 250.

Image Credit: Maingear

Windows 7 OEM EULA Excludes Home Builds not for Resale

Justin Kerr — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 15:58:12 -0600

Whenever we recommend a build list for new systems, we inevitably turn to Windows OEM editions for the OS. They are bit for bit just as powerful as their retail cousins, but may require a bit of telephone tag with Microsoft when upgrading and you were stuck with nobody to call if you need support. Overall the experience wasn't so bad given the discount, but an important, albeit subtle change in the Windows 7 EULA could permanently alter this recommendation. The specific clause found in prior OEM editions of Windows is as follows:

"OEM system builder software packs are intended for PC and server manufacturers or assemblers ONLY. They are not intended for distribution to end users. Unless the end user is actually assembling his/her own PC, in which case, that end user is considered a system builder as well."

As you can see from the above passage, prior versions clearly made allowance for those that assembled their own system, sadly, this is no longer the case in Windows 7. Assuming this isn't a mistake (and when do lawyers ever make mistakes), then Windows 7 OEM editions can legally only be installed on machines you intend to sell. I suppose you could always pawn off your new machine to a family member for a song, then politely ask them to return it, but Microsoft clearly wants to push more home users over to the retail edition.

You can still buy OEM editions as easily as before from online retailers such as Newegg, but if your moral compass points true north, you'll need to buy retail editions on new systems you aren't selling from now on. Will this stop you from using OEM editions?

(Image Credit: winsupersite.com)

Windows 7 Activation Bypassed (Yes Again) for Keyless Activation

Justin Kerr — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 11:15:45 -0600

It has long been said that software activation merely inconveniences and punishes honest customers, while pirates rarely have to deal with the same restrictions. It was true in the past, and it has been proven true again today with new reports from the pirate community claiming that the Windows 7 online activation has been successfully bypassed (yet again). Not only do those using the new crack not have to activate, but they don't even need a CD key at all. The crack apparently nullifies sppcompai.dll, and even takes care of those pesky popup reminders that would normally keep nagging you to activate.

The most unfortunate part of this story however, is the fact that the crack seems to take advantage of the leniency of the activation mechanism which was tweaked in Windows 7 to try and reduce false-positives or accidental activation errors. We can only hope that Microsoft's response to this hack will be even handed, and not encourage them to tighten up the activation process so much so that it makes it harder on legitimate purchasers or upgraders.

Have you had any "unfortunate" experiences with online activation? Feel free to share them below.

New Dell Zino HD is a Technicolor HTPC for $230

Paul Lilly — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 11:30:07 -0600

If the Mac Mini and a bag of Skittles were to share a night of unbridled love, we're pretty the love child of such an affair would look identical to the Zino HD, Dell's new line of colorful low-power home theater PCs.

Dell kicks off the HTPC line with several base configurations, each one built around an AMD processor. The least expensive Zino HD starts at just $230 and includes an AMD Athlon 2560e processor (1.6GHz, 512KB L2 cache), 2GB of DDR2-800 memory, 250GB hard drive spinning at 7200RPM, integrated ATI Radeon HD3200 graphics, 2.1 audio, an 8X DVD burner, and Windows Vista Home Basic. The OS is a bit of a surprise, considering each of the three other configurations come with Windows 7 Home Premium in 64-bit trim.

The highest priced model checks in at $650 and kicks the processor up to an AMD Athlon 2850e (1.8GHz, 512KB L2 cache), doubles up on memory (4GB), adds twice as much storage (500GB), tosses in an ATI Radeon HD 4330 videocard with a 512MB frame buffer, and includes a 20-inch Dell ST2010 widescreen monitor.

All of the models come with 4 USB ports (2 each on the front and back) and 2 eSATA ports.

The Zino HD is available now through Dell.com.

Image Credit: Dell via Gizmodo

Windows Mobile 7 Could Go Out to OEMs in Early 2010

Ryan Whitwam — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:02:18 -0600

Reports are surfacing that indicate a certain Redmond software company could be giving OEMs access to a certain mobile OS in just a few short months. After the lackluster reception of Windows Mobile 6.5, Microsoft is looking for a hit. Anything to keep Microsoft’s mobile head above water as the iPhone, Blackberry, and Android continue to move in for the kill.

The new software is reportedly code named “Maldives”, and should be in OEMs' hot little hands in the first quarter of 2010. The final release to consumers isn’t expected until later in the third quarter. This jives nicely with earlier rumors indicating a release to manufacturing in Spring 2010. It may be a while yet before you can get a WinMo 7 device, but you can certainly expect leaked ROMs to make the scene before too long.

Nvidia Hits Intel with Cartoon Sucker-punch

Ryan Whitwam — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:06:14 -0600

It’s no secret that Nvidia and Intel are having a dispute over chipset licenses. Now it seems like Nvidia is getting a little fed up with the whole situation. On a new Nvidia website called “Intel’s Insides”, you’ll find a series of editorial style cartoons with some sharp criticisms of chip maker Intel.

The cartoons take aim mostly at Intel’s legal woes, which have gotten that much more severe with new US federal action this week. The US case is related to the same scandal that ended with Intel receiving massive fines in the EU. Intel is accused of bribing OEMs to keep them from using rival AMD’s chips. It all makes for some good cartoon fodder.

Editorial cartoonist Steve Lait creates the cartoons for Nvidia. The site explains that the series “is intended to be a parody of events occurring within the semiconductor sector, with particular focus on its largest and most commented-upon competitor." In all honesty, the cartoons aren’t that funny. But really, how amusing can the nuances of the semiconductor world be?

Image from "Intel's insides"