Starting at $3,000 (and easily reaching $10,000+), the Phobos features a single-pieced aluminum body tastefully coated in black car paint. The DVD drives are slot-loading, the USB/SD card reader pops up from the case and everything is so simple and tucked away that I'd have missed the iPhone doc on top of the case had they not pointed it out.

Its touchscreen LCD, mounted to the front of the monolith, can do everything from boot the system to one-touch tweak its performance settings thanks to the fact that it runs its own processor and custom Linux OS.

The machine, packed standard with luxuries like dual video cards and SSD boot drives—is actually not meant to be opened by the user. Instead, BFG includes a full professional installation and 6-month on-site tune-up in their pricing for the system. They'll also send pros out to install new components like video cards—upgrades they fairly offer for the difference between the price of your old card and the price of the new card. But the Phobos is still very easy to open (the case slides right up).
Looking under the hood, it becomes obvious that BFG has design a normal tower PC and flipped the whole thing 90-degrees so that its sits on its own ports. The design allows the machine to pull in air from the top and expel air out the bottom. It's a smart idea that apparently cuts down on dust and pet hair inhalation.

The processor is water cooled and the cords neatly arranged. But it's all for bragging rights since BFG doesn't want you hassled with cracking the case anyway.

So the Phobos is nice, but I had two ideas for improvements. If the touchscreen popped out of the case, the system would work far better as an HTPC since you could take the remote to the couch.

BFG's next model should have that.

And the size. The Phobos is huge, easily the biggest tower I've seen in some time.

BFG is working on a lower tier Phobos model with a smaller footprint. (It should be mentioned, however, that such advancements are up to 2 years off. BFG's follow up systems aren't on their way any time soon.)

The company is realistic. BFG knows that most hardcore PC gamers prefer to build their own PCs and that many HTPC users would prefer something small. But they're happy in their service-oriented niche, even if it means selling 500 uber PCs a month. Still, shrink the thing and offer me an innovative PC remote...and maybe we'll talk. [BFG Systems]

You've also got dual HDMI ports, four USB ports and what has to be the most straightforward design of anything Alienware's every shipped, which is in and of itself an accomplishment.

They're also selling what appears to be an Alienware-branded version of SteelSeries' nearly 2-year-old 5HV2 headset that they're calling TactX.

And really, we're still using X for Xtreme? Mountain Dew is gross guys.

ALIENWARE PUTS YOU IN THE GAME WITH THE LAUNCH OF THE ALIENWARE OPTX™AW2210 21.5" FULL HD MONITOR AND ALIENWARE TACTX™ HEADSET

· Eye-catching Alienware OptX Monitor boasts 1080p HD, ultra-fast response time and features low-input lag
· New Alienware TactX Headphones single out in-game sounds for a truly immersive experience
· Together, the Alienware OptX AW2210 Monitor and Alienware TactX Headset help to create the ultimate gaming experience

MIAMI – June 30, 2009 –Gamers looking for a completely immersive gaming experience can now arm themselves with two new weapons from Alienware – the 21.5-inch Alienware OptX™ AW2210 Full HD Monitor and the Alienware TactX™ Headset offering a unique custom-engineered audio experience.

The Alienware OptX AW2210 Monitor, which goes on sale today for $299, features a Full HD screen resolution ideal for the latest-generation games and high-definition movies in glorious 1080p. To give gamers that extra edge, the monitor features low-input lag and a 2ms response time for a more real time gaming experience. With sleek looks and a dramatic profile that catch every eye in the room, the display's key features include:

• 21.5-inch Widescreen Flat Panel LCD
• 1920 x 1080 Full HD Resolution
• Ultra-Fast 2ms Response Time
• Low Input-Lag for Intense Gaming
• 16.7 Million Colors for Vibrant Images
• 80,000:1 Dynamic Contrast Ratio
• Tilt, Swivel and Height Adjustable Stand
• 2 x HDMI ports allow for you to plug in to your PC or your TV for either PC or console gaming sessions
• 4 x Universal Serial Bus ports for hassle free connection to flash drives, mouse, keyboard and other peripherals

Serious gamers know that every single component of their set-up is part of creating the best gaming experience possible. The same is true when it comes to their peripherals. Alienware TactX headphones are optimized to single out key in-game sounds, enabling you to detect gunfire, footsteps, reloads and more with precision clarity. The headset also features:

• Convenient Retractable Microphone for Headphone-Only Use
• Custom Audio Environment for Optimized In-Game Sounds
• Closed Circumaural Ear Cups for Long Term Comfort
• Gold-Plated Connectors for Increased Fidelity
• 3-Piece Design for Quick Break-Down and Easy Transport

"The ultimate gaming experience requires more than just a great PC," explained Frank Azor, Dell Gaming. "Alienware is building an ecosystem around our machines to give gamers the complete gaming experience. We're proud to offer peripherals like these that can make all the difference."

The Premium Panel Guarantee
Alienware monitors are designed and built to our highest standards, providing the quality and reliability you expect when you see the Alienware logo. Each has been exhaustively tested and comes backed by a Dell Limited Warranty1. Unyielding commitment to quality and the satisfaction of our customers has driven Dell to offer a Premium Panel Guarantee ensuring replacement of Alienware OptX series monitors with zero bright pixels. Even if only one bright pixel is found, a free panel exchange is guaranteed during the limited warranty period, so customers can rest assured their investment is protected.

[Alienware, Alienware]

I say this as a guy who was baptized into the tech world with a desktop; who still obsessively follows the latest PC components from Intel, Nvidia, ATI and the like; who has built, fixed or upgraded more towers than I care to remember; and who, until a few years ago, was an avid PC gamer. As someone who would be, by most measures, a desktop-PC kinda guy, I just can't go on pretending there's a future for them.

The State of the Industry
This is more than a hunch; a grim future is borne out by the numbers. A week ago, iSuppli issued a broad report on the state of the PC industry. The leading claim was predictable: The PC industry was experiencing lower-than-expected quarterly sales—down about 8% from the same time last year. This included laptops, and made sense, because the whole economy's gone to hell, right? People aren't buying computers.

Except that's not quite what's happening. In the same period, laptop shipments—already higher than desktop shipments on the whole—grew 10% over last year. Desktops were entirely to blame, dropping by an astounding 23%. That's not decline—it's free fall.

Stephen Baker, an analyst for industry watchers NPD, shared with me a wider picture of how retail PC sales break down. The way he put it made measuring the rise and fall of sales percentages seem dumb—there really aren't any sales to lose: "In US retail, 80% of sales are notebooks now," he said. "Start throwing in stuff like iMacs and all-in-ones"—which share more hardware DNA with laptops and netbooks than traditional desktops—"and it gets even higher."

The Buyer's Dilemma
To understand why this is happening doesn't take anything more than a little empathy. Put yourself in the shoes of any number of potential consumers, be it kids, adults, techies, or luddites. In virtually any scenario, a laptop is the sensible buy.

Take my dad. Despite spending three decades in front of commercial jet instrument panels, his relationship with computers is, at best, strained. When he came to me a few months ago asking for advice about a laptop to replace his desktop, I assumed it was a just a whim, based on what he saw happening around him. It wasn't, at all. As someone who uses a computer mostly for news, email, music, etc—like a significant part of the population—he was actually being intensely rational. A laptop would do everything he needs simply and wirelessly, with a negligible price difference from a functionally equivalent desktop. If he wants a monitor, keyboard and mouse, he can just attach them. Choosing a desktop PC wouldn't just be a not-quite-as-good choice—it'd be a bad one.

The TradeoffsLet's look at mainly stock examples taken (hastily) from Dell's current product line. Their configurations could be tweaked and changed to make desktops look slightly better or slightly worse, but we chose them because they are typical budget-minded consumer choices. We are not talking about workstations, and we're not talking about all-in-ones, because if anything, they are keeping this category alive. When it comes to pure household computer buying, you can hunt for deals all you want, but laptops and desktops are more closely paired than you might expect.

That's not to say that there aren't noticeable tradeoffs. Graphics performance, although I wasn't specifically angling for that with these configurations, is generally better in a desktop. Likewise, hard drives—being that desktops use larger, cheaper 3.5-inch units—are faster and more capacious across the board. Greater amounts of RAM can be had for less in a desktop, the optical drives can be slightly faster, and the ports for those and other drives can be used for expansion.

But these tradeoffs aren't nearly as pronounced as they once were, nor are they as consequential. On account of the huge demand and sales volume, newer mobile processors have become a hotbed for innovation, now rivaling most any desktop processor, and mobile graphics engines—though still markedly inferior to dedicated desktop cards—have improved vastly in recent years, to a point where most consumers are more than satisfied.

And if you really look out for them, there are some amazing deals to be had on new notebooks. (Look at Acer's 15-inch, 2.1GHz Core 2 Duo, 4GB DDR3 RAM laptop with 1GB GeForce GT130 graphics card and Blu-ray for $750, and then try to build the equivalent in a desktop at the same price.)

The important takeaway here is that the performance sacrifice you make in owning laptop is minimal, and mitigated, or even outweighed, by its practical advantages. Want a bigger screen on your notebook? Hook it up your HDTV. Want more storage? Buy a cheap, stylish bus-powered external USB drive. Want to use your desktop on the toilet? Good freakin' luck.

The Fall of the Gaming PC
But to say that the average user doesn't have any reason to buy a hulking beige box isn't that controversial, and even borders on obvious. The real, emotional, diehard support for the form factor is going to be found elsewhere anyway. I mean, hey, what about gamers? Have you ever tried to play Crysis on an Inspiron? Let's jump back to the numbers.

Last year saw a huge 26% increase in game sales across platforms, powered mostly by Xbox 360, Wii and Nintendo DS sales, according to NPD. Breaking that number down, we see PC game sales down by 14%. That decrease barely even registered in the broader scheme of things, since total PC game sales amounted to just $700m of the industry's $11b take. This year is looking even worse. You know what, let's just call this one too: PC gaming? Also dead. Update: Luke at Kotaku points out that NPD's numbers only cover retail game sales, where PC gaming is hurting the most. Due mostly to MMOs—hardly the exclusive domain of desktops—the PC gaming industry take is actually higher.

As the laptop is to my old man, the console is to the gamer. Just a few years ago, buying—or just as likely, building—a high-end gaming PC granted you access to a rich, unique section of the gaming world. Dropping a pile of cash for ATI's Radeon 9800 to get that precious 128MB of VRAM was damn well worth it, since there was no other way to play your Half Life 2 and your Doom 3. PC titles were often demonstrably better than console games, and practically owned the concept of multiplayer gaming—a situation that's changed, or even reversed, since all the major consoles now live online. We even spotted a prominent PC magazine editor (and friend of Giz) copping on Twitter to buying an Xbox game because it has multiplayer features the PC version doesn't. Yes, things are different now.

NPD's Baker sees it too: "Go back two years ago and think about all the buzz that someone like Falcon or Alienware or Voodoo was generating, and how much buzz they generate now, that might be a little bit telling." He adds, "There's considerably less interest in high powered gaming machines." They're luxury items in every sense, from their limited utility to their ridiculous price to their extremely low sales.

A Form Factor on Life Support
But no matter how irrational a choice the desktop tower is for the regular consumer, sales won't hit zero anytime soon. As we've hinted, much of this can be explained by simple niche markets: Some businesses will always need powerful workstations; older folks will feel comfortable with a familiar form factor; some people will want a tower as a central file or media server; DIY types will insist on the economy and environmental benefit of desktop's upgradeability; and a core contingent of diehard PC gamers, despite their drastically thinning ranks, will keep on building their LED-riddled, liquid-cooled megatowers until the day they die.

Baker sees another factor—less organic, more cynical—that'll keep the numbers from bottoming too hard. "Desktops are a lot more profitable than notebooks for a lot of reasons, not the least of which is that big shiny monitor, which has a nice margin attached to it. For the retailers, people tend to buy a lot more peripherals and accessories when they buy desktops than when they buy notebooks." Even if the volumes are ultra-low and concept is bankrupt, retailers are going to keep bloated, price-inflated desktops and desktop accessories out there on the sales floor until they've drained every last dollar out of them.

You'll see plenty of desktop towers for years to come, in megamarts if not in people's homes. You'll still hear news about the latest, greatest graphics cards, desktop processors and the like. Enthusiasts and fansites will stay as enthusiastic and fanatical as they've ever been. These, though, are lagging indicators, trailing behind a dead (or maybe more accurately, undead) computing ideal that the computer-using public has pretty much finished abandoning.

Acer's rise to the number two spot behind Hewlett-Packard was fueled in part by netbooks and other low-cost PC models, as well as what people in the biz call "vision" as it pertains to introducing new PC features months before the competition even knew consumers wanted them. The souring economy has helped too, notes the New York Times, as consumers were naturally inclined to reward PC companies that could sell them cheaper hardware.

Perhaps the biggest piece of the explosive growth puzzle, however, is Acer's relatively recent acquisition spree. The short list read, to me, like a laundry list of PCs that friends and I had owned in the early 1990s:

Over the last two years, it has acquired brands like eMachines, Gateway and Packard Bell. It pitches eMachines as its most affordable brand, while Acer-branded products cater to the mainstream. The Gateway moniker covers more expensive, flashier computers in the United States, while the Packard Bell brand serves the same purpose in Europe.

The four-front branding assault adds a thick layer of complexity to the company's ultimate goal of establishing a consistent image around the globe. But Mr. Lanci says PC makers must follow the lead of automobile companies and the likes of Procter & Gamble with a brand for every occasion now that consumers make up such a large part of the computer business.

These factors have combined to give Acer a sure shot at dethroning the mighty Dell as the No. 2 PC maker. That fact sat strangely with us at Gizmodo today, if only because of the scant anecdotal evidence we've associated with the brand: Neither Blam or I could name one person we know who owns an Acer computer.

Obviously someone is buying all these computers (and that comment isn't meant as a sleight against Acer at all), but who? You? [NYT]

I don't have any details as to the components in this thing, but really, who cares? This is more of a piece of art than anything you'd sully by playing Solitaire on. [MDPC via TechEBlog]

The T400s is essentially a cross between the bulkier T400 and the super-slim X300. It's got business-dude-friendly features like a dock connector on the bottom, a fingerprint scanner that can boot into your login with a single swipe and components that are easy to upgrade. It's also rugged as hell, as you can see in this video. It's available now starting at $1,599, but that price goes up fast when you stick in stuff like 8GB of RAM or a Blu-ray drive.

The Best of Both Worlds: Lenovo Combines Thin and Light With Powerful Performance in Latest ThinkPad Laptop

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC – June 23, 2009: Lenovo today announced the ThinkPad T400s laptop, created to give business users a thin and light yet powerful, feature-packed PC.

Lenovo's designers sweat every detail, and the new laptop includes a series of significant enhancements invented to make the laptop more intuitive and easier to use, leading to an improved overall computing experience.

Designed for Thin and Light

Inspired by Lenovo's thinnest and lightest full-function laptop, the featherweight ThinkPad X300, Lenovo engineered its latest laptop to be super-slim at just 0.83 inches thin and ultra-light starting at under four pounds1. The laptop achieves its skinny frame thanks to the thin 14.1-inch LED screen, solid state drive storage and the second generation Top Cover Roll Cage, which Lenovo first introduced in the ThinkPad X300 laptop. The roll cage's monocoque carbon reinforced fiber, also used in bicycle frames and airplanes, helps keep the laptop extremely light yet surprisingly sturdy. With this design the laptop weighs nearly 20 percent less than its ThinkPad T400 predecessor, making it much thinner and lighter than the Dell E6400 and HP 6930P laptops.

Loaded for Performance

The T Series is comprised of Lenovo's most powerful and performance-heavy laptops. The ThinkPad T400s laptop allows users to enjoy the best of both worlds – thin and light mobility without sacrificing the powerful performance they need.

The laptop comes with:

* Choices of Intel 2.53 GHz Core2Duo processors (standard voltage) and graphics
* Choices of solid state drive storage up to 128 GB or 250 GB hard drive storage
* 9.5 mm slim DVD burner or Blu-Ray player
* Ethernet, WiFi, and optional WiMAX2, WWAN,2 Bluetooth and ultrawideband connectivity
* 34mm Express Card slot or 5-in-1 multimedia card reader
* Support for Lenovo's ConstantConnect and Protect technology that allows users to maximize integration of their BlackBerry smartphone and ThinkPad laptop
* Nearly six hours of battery life
* Supports up to two monitors via a Display Port and VGA connectors
* Meets the criteria for energy efficiency for Energy Star 5.0
* Built-in USB/eSATA port

Lenovo is also introducing three new options for ThinkPad T400s laptop users who want to expand their work space by connecting to other peripherals such as mice and keyboards, printers and monitors. The ThinkPad Port Replicator Series 3, ThinkPad Mini-Dock Series 3 and ThinkPad Mini Dock Plus 3 feature new slim and sleek footprints, provide one-step "rip and go" docking and include a range of multi-monitor support while meeting a variety of needs including support for USB, Display Port and eSATA.

Design Matters

Users spend a lot of time on their keyboards. A comfortable, easy to use keyboard plays a big role in their overall satisfaction with their PC. Knowing this, Lenovo spends a lot of time perfecting the design of its keyboard. The average user hits the Delete and the Escape key 700 times a week. To make it easier, Lenovo made them larger. With many people eating lunch now at their desks, crumbs inevitably end up piling up inside the keyboard. To help keep crumbs out, Lenovo tightened up the spaces between the keys. To keep the laptop thin, the touchpad lays flush with the palm rest. So to make sure users know whether their fingers are on the trackpad, Lenovo developed a textured material to help them feel the trackpad's location. And with multitouch technology on the trackpad, users can easily scroll, pinch and zoom through documents.

Because more people are using voice over IP (VOIP) for communicating at the office, at home or on the road, Lenovo optimized its latest laptop to make VOIP calls simple. There are three main ingredients for a high quality VOIP experience – the quality of the video, the quality of the audio and the quality of the network connection. For a great VOIP experience, Lenovo equipped the laptop with a two megapixel camera for better quality images and to help in low lighting conditions. Lenovo also pumped up the speaker volume more than two times greater than audio levels on the ThinkPad T400 laptop and added a convenient toggle switch at the top of the keyboard to easily increase and decrease volume. A similar feature can be found on the steering wheel of sports cars. Finally, Lenovo's range of connectivity options give uses flexibility in how they want to connect online.

The constant clicking of keys can be distracting when on a conference call, so Lenovo added dual digital microphones. This helps reduce ambient noise and improve speaker clarity. So users know whether they are on or off mute, Lenovo added separate speaker and mute buttons with LED lights to indicate which button is on. For an even faster VOIP experience, users can activate VOIP applications using the HotKey combination of the Function and F6 keys.

For even more convenience, Lenovo added the ability to power on the laptop with just the swipe of a finger on the finger print reader. And an always-on USB port keeps MP3 players, cameras and other peripherals charged when the laptop is in standby and hibernate or off completely.

Pricing and Availability3

The ThinkPad T400 laptop is available beginning immediately through Lenovo business partners and www.lenovo.com. Models start at approximately $1,599.

The 2UNFOLD laptop works as an urban briefcase, shoulder bag, safecase, rucksack, leather courier, canvas courier (it's reversible!), leather clutch or canvas clutch. No, I don't know what all those variations mean either, but the link at the end of this post contains handy photographs.

In vertical modes, the 2UNFOLD holds laptops up to 17 inches. In horizontal modes, it's suited for 13-inch notebooks. But either way, it makes for a zippy, pockety, and stylish bag that's a bit too beautiful for us to toss haphazardly onto the airport floor. $483.

(Sorry if that price part stings a bit.) [2UNFOLD via bbGadgets]

The system features a 15.6-inch LED LCD (1366x768), 2.1Ghz Core2 Duo processor, 4GB of DDR3 RAM and a GeForce GT130 graphics card packing an extra 1GB of memory. (That card can't run Crysis in high settings, but it can run something lighter weight like Left4Dead, according to Notebookcheck.)

There's also an 8X Blu-ray drive, 250GB hard drive, Dolby 5.1 output, fingerprint recognition and multitouch support. Oh, and it's not even ugly (though it's quite likely heavy as all hell). The Aspire AS5739G is available now.

Acer® Aspire AS5739G, Mobile Multimedia Powerhouse

Taking mainstream entertainment performance another step up, the Aspire AS5739G offers even more power and extras. It's fueled by the power of Intel Core 2 Duo processing for experiencing the ultimate in digital media.

Increasing dynamic visual quality, a 15.6-inch HD CineCrystal display delivers lifelike images in a high 1366 x 768 pixel resolution. Dedicated NVIDIA GeForce® GT130M graphics provide crystal-clear images with brilliant color, making games and digital media appear incredibly crisp and realistic.

The system also comes outfitted with a Dolby Home Theater surround sound system, two built-in stereo speakers, an Acer Tuba CineBass booster and 5.1-channel output. Combined these high-fidelity features liberate the senses with vibrant audio that brings movies and music to life.

Security features include an Acer PowerSmart Key that backs up data without a hassle by duplicating files to another location with just a push of a button. An Acer Bio-Protection fingerprint reader for securing and privatizing personal information is also incorporated.

The Acer Aspire AS5739G notebook will be available end of June for U.S. customers at leading retailers. Specifications and pricing follow.

Acer® Aspire AS5739G Notebook PC – Prices Begin at $749.99
15.6-Inch HD Acer CineCrystal™ LED-Backlit Display (16:9 Aspect Ratio)
Intel® Core2™ Duo Mobile Processor T6500 (2.1GHz, 2MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB)
4GB DDR3 1066MHz Memory
NVIDIA® GeForce® GT130M Graphics with 1GB Memory
250GB SATA Hard Drive(2)
8X Blu-ray Disc/DVD-Super Multi Double-Layer Drive
Acer Bio-Protection Fingerprint Solution
Acer PowerSmart Tech/Key
Intel® WiFi Link 5100 802.11 a/b/g/Draft-N Wi-Fi CERTIFIED®
Multi-Gesture Touchpad

More notably, that price also includes a 128GB SSD, GPS and Verizon Mobile Broadband module. Still...$1500? That's like...a whole lot to spend for an internet connected makeup case—as pretty as that makeup case may be. [SonyStyle via Engadget]

Apple can't say that in their I'm a Mac ads, can they? But Microsoft can, now that Stealth Computer contends users could throw everything, including the kitchen sink, at their WPC-500F PC and it'd come out unscathed. Actually, throw the thing in the sink and it'd be fine too, because it's 100% waterproof.

Now, what companies say and what their products actually do in the hands of consumers are often dubious stretches of reality at best (see also: laptop battery life claims), but in Stealth's defense they do advertise this thing by dumping water on it.

But enough Saturday morning infomercial crap—what about specs? There's few to be had, unfortunately, but we do know the WPC-500F is tiny, like netbook tiny (almost), and is powered appropriately by an Intel Atom processor. There's Windows Vista/XP support, and for you penguin heads thinking about bolting this thing to your Torvalds-branded power boat, there's Linux support too.

The WPC-500F is billed as shock-proof to begin with, but Stealth says there's an SSD hard drive option if you're being extra careful. Base model starts at $1,995. [Stealth Computer via Coolest Gadgets]

We've only seen Windows XP versions of the computer-inside-a-keyboard before, but sticking Intel's Linux-based Moblin on there actually makes sense. I've always pictured the Eee keyboard as something you'd have hooked up to your TV rather that a traditional monitor, and Moblin looks like it'd be great for casual internet use from the couch.

No word on if it'll actually come as an option on the Eee Keyboard, but we'll keep you updated. [NetbookNes.de via SlashGear]

Anyone who speaks un-English is welcome to pillage Ikea's Swedish forum for more details than we could excavate with the assistance of Google Translate, but from what we can tell, this bar desk is a quasi-custom job that could turn your shameful WoW addiction into a mature, metropolitan hobby that's fully capable of wooing the most reserved of Banana Republic lady's section employees. Just stash any snacks that end in a Z when company comes around. [IKEA via Unplggd]

Price: $15

The Verdict: Somewhat slippery compared to cloth, your mouse movements are going to feel a little too fast until you get used to it (which is the case with all plastic pads). It's in a "widescreen" format, and a little smaller overall than most mousepads. But overall, surprisingly good, and worth $15 if you need to take a mousepad everywhere 'cause you don't want swine flu on the bottom of your mouse.

Crazy thin

Good mousepad

Wide format might take some getting used to

[Razer]

Our goal is to provide products that are better than Apple's.

I actually find this quote refreshing. It's rare that any company admits shortcomings of their products, and it's even rarer that a company points to another company who is doing things better, who can serve as a model.

Of course, Asus probably sees Apple as less of a competitor than Acer, the king of netbooks. More on that little rivalry over at the NYT. [NYT via Engadget]

Featuring a 7-inch WSVGA screen (that's more than 2 inches larger than the S5), the X70 also includes an Atom 1.2/1.3GHz processor, 16/32GB SSD, optional HSPA, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth Sirf Star3 GPS, 5-second XP booting and 5.5 rated hours of video playback. And yet the X70 measures less than an inch thick and but 1.4lbs in its anti-heaviness.

I still could never see myself using the keyboardless munchkin, but in case you are interested, Dynamism has the systems on pre-order. [Dynamism]

It counts a 2.5GHz Intel Pentium Core 2 Duo, inbuilt analog and digital TV tuner and remote, 8x DVD burner, 802.11n wireless, 4GB of RAM and a 320GB internal hard drive among its base specs, and all the little extras we've come to expect on AIOs like this—like a webcam, card reader, and wireless keyboard and mouse—are present. Unfortunately, this HD-capable quasi-TV doesn't come standard with a Blu-ray drive, and you'll have to wrestle with Vista, the only OS option. But still! $1000! [Chipchick]

In short, if you buy a PC at Best Buy starting on June 26th, you're guaranteed a free copy of Windows 7 when it comes out on October 22nd. Not a bad deal! Unless you're Best Buy and are hoping to sell some computers in the next three weeks, which no well-informed customers will do now.

As for the trash talking, you've gotta love the first graf:

"Microsoft is launching Windows 7 in mid-October 2009. This new operating system isn't just a "Vista that works" program - it's a new operating system with improved productivity, functionality and creativity that uses less computer resources."

Nice work, Best Buy. In any case, if you're in the market for a new PC, it probably pays to wait until after the 26th if you don't want to pay for Windows 7 in October. [Engadget]

The keyboard houses an entire Atom chipset inside its body which is separate from the touchpanel. But the touchpanel also uses the XP power to run Skype and MSN and serve as a media remote, among other things. Engadget Chinese said it worked pretty well, and if the video is any indication, the 5-inch, 800x480 screen uses a capacitive panel. The keyboard is rumored to launch sometime in June, in either wired or wireless-UWB models, but little is known beyond that. [Engadget]

From the Altair to the IBM PC (my first computer), they have put together a closer look at the machines that shaped our home computing experience today. Taken as a whole, they found the most surprising thing to be the sheer variety that existed in the past. They argue that regardless of the hardware or software you use today, most computers are fundamentally the same—but in the days before the internet and the modern OS, computer hardware and software varied dramatically. If you are interested in a little history lesson, hit the following link for the full list. [Maximum PC]

NVIDIA ENERGIZES COMPUTEX WITH NEW ION-BASED PC PRODUCTS

Highly Anticipated Platform Takes Off With 21 New Products for Small PCs

COMPUTEX, TAIPEI, TAIWAN-JUNE 2, 2009-NVIDIA, the world leader in visual
computing technologies and the inventor of the GPU, announced broad adoption of its award-
winning NVIDIA® ION™ graphics processor at the Computex tradeshow today. The new
products – introduced at an NVIDIA press conference in Taipei and on display at the show –
include small desktop PCs, thin and light notebooks, all-in-one PCs, and low power motherboard
solutions which all deliver a full PC experience in a small, low-power system.

The new products include:
Acer Desktop AspireRevo
AsRock Desktop ION 330
ASUS Motherboard C2N7A-I
ASUS All-in-one eeeTop ET2002
Colorful Desktop iHTPC
ECS Desktop 7AT-3L
ECS All-in-one Morph-I
Flextronics All-in-one Cobra-2
Flextronics Desktop Dove-2
Funtwist Desktop FION 330
ICD All-in-one Kitchen PC
Lenovo Notebook IdeaPad S12
MSI Desktop Windbox D200
MSI All-in-one Windtop AE2201
Pegatron Desktop IPP7A-CP
Pegatron All-in-one IPP7A-DF2
Pegatron Motherboard IPX7A-ION
TCL All-in-one Ruiyi 1010
Telcast Notebook TL-1000N
Weibu Notebook N10A
Zotac Motherboard ION-ITX

The new NVIDIA ION-based PCs and platform solutions are great for high definition video,
mainstream gaming, and GPU-accelerated video and photo editing applications that take
advantage of NVIDIA CUDA™ technology.

ION also supports DirectX Compute as part of Microsoft's upcoming Windows 7 operating
system. DirectX Compute running on NVIDIA's CUDA compute hardware architecture delivers
a major boost for small form factor PCs because it accelerates applications like video editing that
run poorly or not at all on today's low-powered PCs. Other GPU-accelerated applications like
vReveal and Badaboom let users quickly edit video and convert it for use on a portable media
player like an iPod.

"NVIDIA is really shaking up the small form factor space with ION graphics," said Rob Enderle,
Principal Analyst for the Enderle Group. "Netbooks and nettops are the hottest selling items in
the PC space right now, but most are severely limited. ION removes the major chunk of that
performance limitation allowing PC vendors the perfect blend of design, performance, and value
that drives sales in hard times."

"Consumer interest in the Acer AspireRevo featuring NVIDIA's ION graphics has been
overwhelming," said Gianpero Morbello, senior vice president of corporate marketing for Acer.
"The Acer AspireRevo clearly demonstrates the power of ION to deliver a full and unique
multimedia experience for an amazingly low price. We see strong consumer demand in this
space."

NVIDIA ION graphics processors deliver big performance from small PCs with up to 10X faster
graphics than similar systems1. ION graphics support:

• Windows 7 and Windows Vista Home Premium
• Low-power CPUs including Intel Atom, Intel Celeron, and Via Nano processors
• Outstanding 1080p HD video with true-fidelity 7.1 audio
• Popular games including The Sims 3, Lego Batman, World of WarCraft, and
Battlefield Heroes
• DirectX 10 graphics with advanced digital display connectivity
• Accelerated video enhancement and transcoding using NVIDIA® CUDA™ and
DirectX Compute technology

You can also stuff it with up to 8GB of DDR3-1333 RAM, 1TB HDD or 512GB SSD, Blu-ray and all important for gaming, an edge-to-edge 1920x1200 display. It has an Nvidia GeForce 9400M integrated GPU, so you can boost our battery life from 15 seconds to 26.3 seconds when you need to go that extra mile. And ports, ports, ports—the thing is so beastly the USB ports are arranged vertically: 4 USB, eSATA/USB combo, DisplayPort (go Dell) and HDMI.

And yes, it's completely blinged out—lights pour out of it like it just landed on earth after a long trip from a planet populated entirely by a evolved race of disco lights. It's heavy, too—almost 12 pounds—but despite being thicker than a 18-wheeler it's easily the best-looking machine Alienware has put out (at least once you turn off the lights). It starts at $1800, but don't expect to stay that way once you start tricking it out with heavy-duty firepower. [Alienware]

PopMech's quad-core beast is loaded with just the kind of pricey hardware you'd expect from such a flamboyant mod—4 GB of Kingston HyperX DDR3 RAM, a GeForce GTX 280 graphics card, two 300GB, 10,000RPM VelociRaptor HDDs, and an Antex kilowatt power supply—all centered around an 3.0-GHz Intel Core 2 Quad processor. It's the case, though, that's the star of the show.

The main structure of the desk is made up of two massive panels of acrylic, bolted to a custom-built aluminum frame. A glycol liquid cooling system snakes through the whole of the machine, stopping off to suck heat away from both the main processor and the graphics card. Built into the top is a custom-built Synaptics touchpad—a mostly useless but nonetheless cool design flourish.

PopMech has included a short how-to with their story, but it's less of an instructional guide than a point-by-point summary of why you can't build one of these yourself. [PopMech]

According to the the company (via the NYT), the new laptops will be most closely comparable to the Dell Adamo, MacBook Air and Voodoo Envy. They'll be a bit thicker, but still under an inch; they'll have slower processors, but not Atoms; they'll be light, but not feather-light. This concerted effort of "buts" means that these almost ultrathin (semiultrathin? kindathin?) laptops will ship in at less than half the price of their expensive cousins, some even dipping below the $600 threshold.

This wouldn't be a revolutionary category, but it would be an attractive one: ultrathin laptops, as recently exemplified by the Adamo, are already rife with compromise, as they're slow, they don't have optical drives, contain wimpy video hardware and they're not very expandable. They just represent the wrong kind: a compromise with a singular, obsessed focus on weight and size, with no regard for price. A re-balancing of the formula, like the one Intel is predicting, would be more than welcome. [NYT]

How ionic winds differ from typical cooling system is that by ionizing the air and passing it over a processor chip, the ionized air increased airflow on the surface, thus creating a cooling breeze over a hot microprocessor (as illustrated above).

Apparently, Tessera's cooling system not only consumes half as much power as other conventional laptop fans, but also can eliminate up to 30% more heat as well. It's pretty much the same technology from a couple years ago, yet reduced in size to fit your personal, portable needs. [Technology Review via BBG]

Meco offers a series of home theater PCs that look more than worthy enough to go in your average living room. The Vista-based, quad-core and i7 systems feature 8GB of RAM, 4+ TB of storage, ATi Radeon HD 4850 graphics, 7.1 surround sound with analog and digital outputs and a wide variety of finishes.

Of course, the systems aren't exactly financiapocalypse-friendly. The case alone starts for over $2000, with complete systems running between $4k-$5k. But I'm sure at least a handful of you will steal the design and build your own for like $25 or something. [Meco via bbGadgets]

If you've got a crappy ISP, obviously, a special thingamajig on your end won't help you—it can't fix the whole internet, and it doesn't claim to. What it claims is that network traffic running through it bypasses the Windows network stack, so it's a more direct connection to your game, and less load on your CPU, resulting in less lag and theoretically a higher framerate. Different from the older Killer cards, this also has a built-in voice processor to offload chat. You can customize network and bandwidth priority, app by app—giving your games the highest priority, obvs—so theoretically you can leave your torrents running and game normally.

Did it work? No and yes. I really didn't notice any difference in my framerates or latency playing Team Fortress 2. I keep the game's netgraph feature running by default, and I always play on the same server, so I have a pretty solid grip on what's typical of my machine in terms of framerate and latency. Playing 10 minutes on my standard connection and then switching immediately to the Killer Xeno for 10 minutes, and repeating this sequence three times, it was about the same every time—if it improved my connection or framerate, I couldn't taste it.

It does do a pretty decent job as a local QoS (quality of service) client. I ran a bunch of torrents and my game played perfectly okay, just like if I wasn't downloading a whole bunch of crap. However, if you've got a decent router, you could do the same thing if you know what you're doing. And really, router-level QoS is the only way to deal with your roommate's crazy torrent habits—the Killer Xeno Pro can't do anything about what the other people on your network are doing, so even then, its application is fairly limited.

Is it worth $130? If your computer's crappy enough, getting back that slight amount of overhead used by the Windows network stack and your usual chat client could make a difference. And if you can't figure out QoS, its software is pretty easy to use. But if your computer's that crappy, why are you spending $130 on a network card? [Killer Xeno Pro]

Acer Debuts Industry's First 11.6-inch Aspire One Netbook;
Part of Thinner, Lighter Second-Generation Line

New 11.6-inch Model Delivers Mobile Productivity with Largest Netbook
Display, Full-Sized Keyboard; This and New 10.1-inch Model Provide Continuous Internet Access, Enhanced Battery Life

SAN JOSE, Calif., May 18, 2009 - Acer America, part of the world's third largest PC company1, today extends its industry-leading line of netbooks with two new models optimized for mobile customers - the industry's first 11.6-inch Acer Aspire One AO751h and the 10.1-inch Acer Aspire One AOD250.

The new Aspire One AO751h lets customers attain a new level of productivity and efficiency with its large 11.6-inch high-definition screen and full-sized keyboard. Thinner than previous generation netbooks, the AO751h still comes with all the same easy-to-use features, sophisticated design and incredibly portable form factor that have made Acer netbooks so wildly popular. The netbook's large 11.6-inch high-definition LED-backlit widescreen (16:9 ratio) display is large enough to easily view multiple windows and reduces the need to scroll to view Internet sites, providing a better end user experience. Plus, the full size keyboard is easier and more comfortable to use, even for touch-typists.

"As the worldwide leader in the netbook market, we designed our new 11.6-inch AO751h after careful consideration about how customers use and most enjoy their netbooks," said Sumit Agnihotry, vice president of product management for Acer America. "We predict that the larger display and keyboard will be a game-changer for mobile consumers looking to take it to the next level with the ultimate mobile device." Acer is the global market share leader in the netbook category with 30.5 percent marketshare with 1.8 million units shipped in Q1 2009 according to DisplaySearch2. The company will deliver these new offerings in the U.S. through its extensive network of retailers and distributors.

In addition, the Acer Aspire One AOD250 will satisfy the demands of mobile consumers who want a compact, light-weight netbook for Internet access and communications. With a 10.1-inch display and a thinner and lighter design than its predecessor, this new netbook is ideal for anyone on the go.

Agnihotry added, "These two new Acer Aspire One offerings will satisfy the needs of today's extremely diverse mobile users - from professionals who need a streamlined, highly mobile form factor to students who want a productivity-enhancing large keyboard and display. In all cases, Aspire One customers get a reliable, easy-to-use, stylish device that will let them remain connected."

The new Acer Aspire Ones models offer the ultimate in mobile Internet connectivity. They can provide continuous access to the Internet via WiFi 802.11b/g to browse websites, check email, make VOIP calls, and
enjoy online music. In addition, Acer Aspire One netbooks are the ideal device for the millions of people who are using the latest social networking platforms like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, to give them a
quick and easy way to post updates, send tweets, view and respond to video links, and stay connected. Select Acer Aspire One models come with the option for 3G broadband wireless connectivity.

Consumers can enjoy being productive and staying in touch even longer with the new Acer Aspire One netbooks; they deliver exceptional everyday battery life. The extended 6-cell battery for the AO751h can provide uptime of up to eight hours, while the 3-cell battery can provide four hours of uptime.2 The AO250's standard 3-cell battery can provide up to three hours and 15 minutes of battery life, while the 6-cell battery can provide up to six hours.2 The new devices use the latest Intel(r) Atom(tm) processors (N270 on the AOD250 and N270 or Z520 on the AO751h) that further extend battery life and power efficiency to deliver excellent mobile performance and Internet connections on the go.

Sleek, Eye-Catching Design is Highly Portable, Useful
The new Acer Aspire One models have been designed to be even more streamlined than their sales-leading predecessors; they now measure only one inch thin. The sleek aerodynamic design includes elegant touches
such as the color-rich chassis choices (Diamond Black, Ruby Red, Sapphire Blue and Seashell White) along with the metallic hinge with a colored accent. Both models weigh less than three pounds (2.75 pounds for the AO751h and 2.44 pounds for the AO250), so they won't weigh down a compact backpack or purse.

The Acer Aspire One AO751h uses a clever Multi-Gesture Touchpad that allows users to pinch, flick and swirl their fingers across the touchpad for more natural photo and video viewing as well as intuitive navigation of websites such as Google Earth. The Multi-Gesture Touchpad allows users to scroll, zoom in and out and flip through web pages, photos, spreadsheets and more. Both new models feature a soft-touch palm rest to increase typing comfort.

Packed with Additional Performance Features
The Aspire One AO751h has a high definition WXGA 11.6-inch CrystalBrite(tm) LED backlit display, offers the largest viewing area on a netbook. The Aspire One AO250's large 10.1-inch WSVGA LED backlit
display also includes a large viewing area for Web page navigation and reviewing documents. Well-equipped with a full 1GB of memory and 160GB of hard drive space, the new Acer Aspire Ones are ready for customers who want to take their digital media and files with them. Select new models will feature up to 2GB of DDR2 memory and up to a 250GB internal hard drive, providing even more capabilities and storage space for mobile enthusiasts.

The Acer Crystal Eye(tm) webcam delivers smooth video streaming and high quality images for online chats and business video conferences, even in low-light situations. The built-in digital microphone conveys superior voice quality, keeping background noise levels low and minimizing echoes. Consumers will enjoy music and video sound with the Dolby Headphones and two built-in stereo speakers. Connecting to the latest peripherals such as printers, a display and consumer electronics such as digital cameras is easy with the Acer Aspire Ones' useful ports (three USB 2.0, Ethernet, VGA) as well as Bluetooth capabilities that can be activated with the Easy Launch Bluetooth key. Both new models also feature a multi-in-one digital card
reader, while the AO751h also features a dedicated SD card slot.

Available Configurations Pricing and Availability
The new Acer Aspire One AO751h and AOD250 are available in several configurations. Sample configurations follow:

Acer Aspire One AO751h-1192 Specifications
* Intel(r) Atom(tm) Processor Z520 (1.22GHz, 490MHz FSB, 512KB L2
Cache)
* Genuine Microsoft Windows XP(r) Home (Service Pack 3)
* 11.6-inch WXGA 16:9 ratio Acer CrystalBrite(tm) High Definition
LED back-lit TFT LCD (1364 x 768 resolution)
* Mobile Intel(r) US15W Express Chipset
* 1024MB DDR2 533 MHz SDRAM Single Channel Memory
* Integrated Intel(r) Graphics Media Accelerator 950
* 160GB SATA 5400RPM Hard Drive
* Multi-in-1 Digital Media Card Reader and Dedicated SD Card
* Acer InviLink(tm) 802.11b/g Wi-Fi CERTIFIED(r)
* Acer Crystal Eye Web Camera
* Two Built-in Stereo Speakers
* Three USB 2.0 Ports
* 6-cell Li-ion Battery (5200mAh)
* 11.18" (W) x 7.79" (D) x 1" (H)
* Sapphire Blue
* One-Year Standard Warranty
* Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price: $379.99

Acer Aspire One AOD250-1042 Specifications
* Intel(r) Atom(tm) Processor N270 (1.60GHz, 533MHz FSB, 512KB L2
Cache)
* Genuine Microsoft Windows XP(r) Home (Service Pack 3)
* 10.1-inch WSVGA 16:9 ratio Acer CrystalBrite(tm) LED back-lit
TFT LCD (1024x600 resolution)
* Mobile Intel(r) 945GSE Express Chipset
* 1024MB DDR2 533 MHz SDRAM Single Channel Memory
* Integrated Intel(r) Graphics Media Accelerator 950
* 160GB SATA 5400RPM Hard Drive
* Multi-in-1 Digital Media Card Reader
* Acer InviLink(tm) 802.11b/g Wi-Fi CERTIFIED(r)
* Acer Crystal Eye Web Camera
* Two Built-in Stereo Speakers
* Three USB 2.0 Ports
* 3-cell Li-ion Battery (2600 mAh)
* 10.17" (W) x 7.24" (D) x 1" (H)
* Ruby Red
* One-Year Standard Warranty
* Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price: $298.00

The Acer Aspire One AO751h 11.6-inch netbook line has a starting manufacturers suggested retail price (MSRP) of $349.99. Several models are avaialble with an extended 6-cell battery at an MSRP starting at
$379.99. The Acer Aspire One D250 10.1-inch netbook line has a starting MSRP of $298. Models in these lines are available now.

The Acer Aspire One comes with additional preinstalled software includes Microsoft Works with Office Home and Student 2007 Trial, Microsoft Office Personal 2007, Acer eRecovery Management, Acer Launch Manager, Adobe(r) Reader(r), McAfee(r) Internet Security Suite, Microsoft(r) Office Trial 2007.

The new Acer Aspire One models come with a standard one-year parts and labor warranty, which can be extended to three years with the Acer Advantage service. Additionally, some models have longer warranties
offered through specific channel partners. All Acer netbooks are backed by toll-free service and support.

[Acer]

I'm sure Mac fansites will point out the MacBook Pro she sneers at for being $2000 is two inches bigger than the 13-inch Dell Studio XPS she winds up with, and she should've looked at the regular MacBook, which starts at $999, close to what she pays for the Dell. But we all know that's not the point. It's a flame war, people—just one with a budget.

I liked the old Lauren better. [YouTube]

On the DDR3 question, with AMD's latest AM3 Phenom II chips, they found no difference between DDR2 and DDR3. Which is good, since DDR2 memory is way cheaper than DDR3, meaning you can buy way more of it.

Going from DDR3-1066 to DDR3-1600 RAM generated some real results in some instances—slight boosts in gaming—with the Intel's Core i7 processor, but DDR3-1066 is still just fine.

And yeah, more RAM is still better, though you can get by on 2GB of RAM if you just do one thing at a time. But who the hell does that? Check out the full testing gauntlet and article, which is packed with other RAM trivia obscura: [Maximum PC]

Inspired by this keyboard pants concept, modder Zach Hoeken scanned a silicone keyboard, programmed key holes to be laser-cut from the pant material and then sewed the keyboard directly into his jean shorts. Since he sliced the keyboard in half, only 50% of its keys are functional (through USB). But hey, YUIOP are overrated anyway. [Thingiverse via NYC Resistor via MAKE]

Specifications
* Monocoque chassis laser-cut from 1.6 mm Aluminum
* Powercoated in 1 of 3 colors
* Flex ATX Power Supply included : Sparkle Power SPI270LE with 80 Plus certification
* Cross-Flow Cooling system featuring a push-pull design with one fan on the base and one at the rear of the enclosure. Uses Scythe Kama-Flex 80 mm fans.
* 1 hard drive suspension system that accomodates a single 3.5" or 2.5" hard drive.
* 1 Slim DVD bay on the base that will handle laptop DVD drives. A Slim-SATA adapter cable is included.
* Side-mounted ports for easy multimedia connections
o 2 X USB 2.0
o 1 X IEEE 1394 (Firewire)
o Audio In and Out
* Removable panels. With varying degrees of effort, all panels can be removed using a supplied hex key tool
* 3 connected LEDs reflect hard drive activity and contribute to the aesthetic
* 1 Bulgin vandal-style LED switch for Power On and aesthetics
* Motherboard : Fit Micro-ATX motherboards. Smaller motherboards such as ITX will likely fit but have not been tested.
* Dimensions :
o Sides attached at a 52 degree angle to the base panel
o 10.24" (H) x 16 " (W) x 16" (D)
o 26 cm (H) x 40.6 cm (W) x 40.6 cm (D)

Kinda cool for a small computer—but if you are willing to spend $400 on one you had better hurry. They are being sold through Etsy, so you know stock is limited. [Etsy via Geeky Gadgets]

I mean, it's a mini convertible touchscreen laptop with GPS and a TV tuner. It's also under an inch thick and weighs two pounds. That's why I'm glad to see that Asus has finally scheduled it for releases (be it in the UK only) this June for £449. We'll see what the localized price turns out to be, because $670 is a little steep for anything packing an Atom processor. [Electricpig]

The device attempts to solve a problem that doesn't exist—cooling netbooks that generally run pretty cool—while simultaneously destroying a netbook's main purpose on this earth, portability. Because the USB Mini Netbook Cooling Pad + 3-Port Hub + 2.5" HDD Dock is almost as big as the netbook itself. Almost. In this case, the USB Mini Netbook Cooling Pad + 3-Port Hub + 2.5" HDD Dock is just small enough to make the resting state of your computer into a dangerous challenge of physics.

And then it's painted pink to top it all off, a color that matches everything.