In news that surprises no one HTC has filed a complaint and suit against Apple today for… you guessed it Patent Infringement. All of this began not too long ago when Apple started its campaign against Android Phone makers claiming that Samsung, HTC and a few others have violated Apple’s patents on various functions and even the look and feel of their method of finger scrolling. Apple has one the first round in many of these cases, but things seem to be turning around.

It has recently come to light that Apple’s evidence in the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 case is inaccurate. Apple’s legal team knowingly or accidentally submitted false evidence to show that the Tab was a copy of the iPad and iPad2. We do not know the outcome of this incident yet (but we are keeping our eyes open) but it is probably not going to be good for Apple.

Meanwhile HTC has just announced that it is filing its own patent suit against Apple that covers not only the iPad, iPhone and iPod but also every MAC computer with wireless technology that has “Wi-Fi capability that allows users to wirelessly network multiple devices at home, at work, or in public” as covered by US Patent 7,417,944. There is more to the complaint and suit which covers three specific patents (U.S. Patent Nos. 7,417,944, and 7,672,219 and 7,765,414). This is interesting as HTC has not even broken out their S3 Patents yet. These patents came from a purchase of ADC Telecommunications Patents back in April of this year that cover many wireless and even 4G technologies. ADC was later bought by Tyco Electronics (which became TE Connectivity) who sold its wireless communication division to Harris Corp.

Now think about this, if the ADC Telecommunications patents do not cut it they can always push for action based on the new S3 Patents HTC has recently picked up. As we said a couple of days ago; things are getting rather interesting.

Talk about this in our Forum

Cooler Master GeminII S524: Ultimate Versatility Realized


Chino, California – August 16th, 2011 - Cooler Master, an industry leading chassis, thermal solution, peripheral, and accessory manufacturer, uncovers the ultimate follow-up to the widely popular GeminII CPU Cooler, the GeminII S524. The GeminII S524 is the embodiment of versatility, efficiency, and silence.


Cooler Master’s GeminII reloaded

GeminII S524, a unique alternative to traditional CPU & system memory cooling. Rotated 90 degrees, it harnesses the constant flow of cool air from the side of the system and directs it to the heatsink fins to cool the CPU. Unique to this design, the GeminII S524 channels a portion of this cool air to the system memory to help dissipate the heat generated by critical system components. Benefiting from a larger heatsink surface area, increased clearance for high-end system memory modules, and an easily upgradeable fan, the GeminII S524 claims its position as a transformative cooling solution while maintaining an impressive performance-to-noise ratio.


Electroplated Copper Base and 140mm Fan Support

GeminII S524 is an evolutionary new step in CPU cooling. It features a total of five high-grade 6mm thick copper heat pipes that emerge from a large copper base that, combined, offer optimal heat conduction; quickly spreading and removing heat generated by the CPU. To prevent corrosion of its copper surfaces without impacting its heat conductivity, the GeminII S524 base and all heat pipes have been electroplated with a microscopic layer of nickel. The increased surface area of the heatsink and revised fin design of GeminII S524 not only improve its cooling performance but allow for the installation of a 140mm fan, making it a highly flexible cooling solution suitable for any computing environment.


The GeminII S524 will be available worldwide in August 16th, 2011 for $39.99 MSRP at retail and online locations that carry your favorite Cooler Master, CM Storm, and Choiix products.



Specifications

Product	GeminII S521
Model	RR-G524-18PK-R1
CPU Socket *	Intel Socket LGA1366 / 1156 / 1155 / 775 AMD Socket F1 / AM3 / AM2+ / AM2
Dimension	144 x 144 x 105 mm (5.7 x 5.7 x 4.1 inch)
Heatsink Dimension	144 x 144 x 78 mm (5.7 x 5.7 x 3.1 inch)
Heatsink Material	Copper base / Aluminum fins / 5 Heatpipes
Heatsink Weight	490g (1.08 lb)
Fan Dimension	120 x 120 x 25 mm (4.7 x 4.7 x 1 inch)
Fan Speed	800 - 1800 RPM
Fan Airflow	34.2 – 77.7 CFM
Fan Air Pressure	0.43 – 2.46 mm H2O
Fan Life Expectancy	40,000hrs
Bearing Type	Long Life Sleeve
Connector	4-pins
Noise Level	15.1 – 31.6 dBA
Rated Voltage	12 VDC
Operating Voltage	6 – 13.2 VDC
Rated Current	0.21A **
Input Power	2.52W
Fan Weight	102g (0.23 lb)

* For the latest CPU support information, please visit our website.
** Tested and certificated under a safety current of 0.32A.

About Cooler Master
Cooler Master was founded in 1992 to provide the world’s best thermal solutions. Since its establishment, the company continues to invest in product development to provide leading-edge innovations. Cooler Master’s line-up includes heat sinks, fans, chassis, power supplies and computing accessories. Headquartered in Taiwan with branch offices located across Europe, America and APAC, Cooler Master offers unsurpassed service to our customers. For more information on Cooler Master, please visit www.coolermaster.com.

Kingston Digital Announces Rock the Bells Festival Giveaway

Prizes Include Concert Tickets, Show Merchandise and Flash Memory

Fountain Valley, CA -- August 16, 2011 -- Kingston Digital, Inc., the Flash memory affiliate of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., the independent world leader in memory products, today announced it is sponsoring a ticket package and product giveaway for the Rock the Bells Festival Series 2011 in the United States. In its 8th year, Rock the Bells is a hip hop festival that brings together top artists such as Ms. Lauryn Hill, Nas, Erykah Badu and Cypress Hill. The festival will be held in Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, and Boston in August and September 2011.

Kingston^® is awarding eight grand prize winners two general admission tickets to a Rock the Bells show of their choice. Other prizes include Guerilla Union/Rock the Bells merchandise and Kingston memory gift packs. Kingston memory gift packs vary depending on availability.

To enter, purchase a Kingston product from a retailer or e-tailer such as Amazon.com, Bestbuy.com, Buy.com or TigerDirect.com, or through the store of your choice. Take a photo or create a video of your purchase that cleverly incorporates the Rock the Bells theme and post to the Kingston Facebook page. All winners will be determined by a panel of judges selected by Kingston and posted here.

“The Rock the Bells concerts are held in some of the best locations across the country and features the biggest names in hip hop for an extremely exciting festival experience,” said Danny Ordway, social media marketing manager, Kingston. “We’re happy to connect our customers with such a fun summer event.”
The Rock the Bells giveaway runs through September 17, 2011. Each contestant must be 18 years of age or older and a legal U.S. resident (void in Puerto Rico and Hawaii). Complete rules and information can be found here.

Kingston can be found on:

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/kingstontechmemory
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kingstontechnology
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/kingstonhq
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/164609?trk=tyah

About Kingston Digital, Inc.
Kingston Digital, Inc. (“KDI”) is the Flash memory affiliate of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., the world’s largest independent manufacturer of memory products. Established in 2008, KDI is headquartered in Fountain Valley, California, USA. For more information, please visit www.kingston.com or call 800-337-8410.  

#  #  #

Kingston and the Kingston logo are registered trademarks of Kingston Technology Corporation. All rights reserved. All other marks may be the property of their respective titleholders.

3DMark 11 World Record Bested 39 Times in Futuremark Lords of Overclocking Contest

Winners on Their Way to MSI MOA Grand Final in Taipei

HELSINKI, FINLAND – AUGUST 16, 2011 - Futuremark® today announced the winners of its annual Lords of Overclocking competition. The MSI sponsored event, which is Futuremark's premier OC contest each year, saw over 10,000 entries from more than 80 countries across the globe. With such worldwide interest, competition was fierce for the top prize: flights, accommodation and qualification to the MSI Master Overclocking Arena (MOA) 2011 grand final in Taipei.

 - Incredibly, 39 scores submitted during the four week competition were higher than the previous world record for a single GPU.

 - MSI graphics cards now hold 44 out of top 50 single-GPU scores in Futuremark's online results database.

 - In a nail-biting finish, the winning score of P12499 from overclocker "SuicidePhoenix" came on the very last day of the competition.

 Proving his mastery of extreme overclocking, overall winner SuicidePhoenix pushed his Intel Core i7-2600K and MSI N580GTX Lightning far beyond their factory settings as his scores demonstrate.

- 3DMark Score: P12499 (Stock setting:P6600)

- Graphics Score: 12349 (Stock setting:6400)

- Physics Score: 13689 (Stock setting:8200)

"This year's Lords of Overclocking event brought together the world's top competitive overclockers in thrilling competition," said Jukka Mäkinen, Futuremark CEO. "We congratulate the winners and thank all participants for making the contest a huge success."

"We appreciate all the efforts and amazing achievements made by worldwide participants." said Zona Lin, Marketing Manager at MSI. "We congratulate the winners and expect another success in the coming MSI MOA 2011 grand final competition!"

Lords of Overclocking was a worldwide online qualifying event for the prestigious MSI MOA 2011 competition in Taipei which will see the world's top overclockers go head to head in a fiercely fought battle of extreme overclocking.

Futuremark holds a number of overclocking competitions each year. For details of upcoming contests, please visit http://www.3dmark.com/competitions/ or follow Futuremark on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Futuremark

###

About Futuremark® Corporation

Futuremark® Corporation creates the world's most popular benchmarks and PC performance tests. Futuremark's free 3DMark®, PCMark® and Peacekeeper™ tests have helped millions of people measure and improve their PCs' performance for games, media, applications and web.  Futuremark Games Studio creates original games with new and entertaining gameplay such as Hungribles™, a skill shot puzzle game for iPhone® and iPad® and Shattered Horizon, a zero gravity FPS for PC. The studio is currently developing Unstoppable Gorg for PC, Xbox LIVE® Arcade and iPad® and has one further unannounced title in development. Futuremark has offices in Saratoga, California and Helsinki, Finland. http://www.futuremark.com/

About MSI

Founded in 1986, MSI is one of the nation’s leading technology companies that possess strong R&D capabilities. Composed of more than 2,000 excellent engineers, we continue our more than 20-year history of being one of the most widely respected and recognized name in the IT industry. Our hard work and dedication have led us to become one of the finest brands in the industry with accumulated sales in more than 120 countries, 150 million mainboard users and 100 million graphics card users worldwide. MSI has been listed in the “Top 20 Taiwan Global Brands” for two consecutive years (2008 & 2009), adhering to perfect faith that deserves recognition. The thousands of awards we earned every year encourage us to continue to develop high-level of quality excellence in our products and services, customer satisfaction and global competitiveness. As part of MSI’s commitment, we will continue to enhance our product design and quality, as well as implement high-quality service to become one of the world’s renowned leading brands. More information can be found at: www.msi.com

© 2011 Futuremark® Corporation. Futuremark® and 3DMark® trademarks and logos, character names and distinctive likenesses, are the exclusive property of Futuremark Corporation. The names of other companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Lian Li Launches HTPC PC-V353 and Mini-Tower PC-Q25

All-aluminum, High-end, Beautifully designed

16 August 2011, Keelung, Taiwan  – Lian Li Industrial Co. Ltd, maker of high-end, all-aluminum computer chassis for over 13 years, is proud to announce the release of two new PC cases: the HTPC PC-V353 and Mini-Tower PC-Q25. A new edition to Lian Li's HTPC chassis series, the PC-V353 features a handsome front mesh design and is available in eye-catching black or silver. The aluminum-front mini-tower PC-Q25 offers a contemporary design that lends itself to any professional or home environment, and is available in black and silver colors. Both of these models offer impressive engineering, the convenience of tool-free installation, and excellent air-flow.

PC-V353

Boasting the ability to accept Micro-ATX or Mini-ITX motherboards, this HTPC chassis also allows energy-saving and quiet, fan-free operation. The entire chassis is geared towards users wanting a noise-free, passively cooling system, but users still have a choice to install their own fans for active airflow, if desired. In addition to four ventilated PCI slots, the front-panel mesh cover forms a clever ventilation system with excellent cool air flow. Hot air also leaves the frame through the top using the chassis's unique “thermal flow” top.

The side panel is screw-less and the sliding motherboard tray is another tool-free convenience, as are the removable HDD racks. Internally, the PC-V353 supports two 3.5” and two 2.5” HDDs, and there is enough room for a 300mm  video card.

On the front panel, Lian Li has provided easy access to the power switch along with two USB 3.0 ports, one e-SATA port, as well as HD Audio ports. The PC-V353's dimensions are 288mm x 286 mm x 397mm (W, H, D) and its net weight is 4.13kg.

PC-Q25

The PC-Q25 is a compact, mini-tower case that, despite its size, can actually hold up to seven HDDs, allowing users to store a vast amount of data even with a small system. Its future-proof design uses a standard Mini-ITX motherboard, 3.5 or 2.5-inch hard drives, and a standard ATX PS/2 power supply. The PC-Q25's thermal solution is a large 140-mm fan placed at the front panel for intake to push cool air through the HDD cage, and a 120mm exhaust fan at the top of the chassis.

The PC-Q25 has a removable HDD tray at the bottom of the cage that can mount either two 3.5" HDDs or one 3.5" HDD plus two 2.5" HDD, all add up to maximum of 8 hard drives. The chassis supports a video card that is 320mm long. The PC-Q25's dimensions are 199mm x 280mm x 366mm (W, H, D) and it weighs 3.1kg.

Traditional Durability

The secret of Lian Li's success is the craftsmanship of its engineering. Intrinsic to the workmanship and quality of Lian Li's products is their customization capabilities, which include a whole host of optional extras that can be added to an already feature-rich product.

Product photos and detail specs are available:

PC-V353: http://www.lian-li.com/v2/en/product/product06.php?pr_index=582&cl_index=1&sc_index=25&ss_index=63&g=f
PC-Q25: http://www.lian-li.com/v2/en/product/product06.php?pr_index=584&cl_index=1&sc_index=25&ss_index=64&g=f

About Lian Li

Lian Li Industrial Co. Ltd is an Aluminum Chassis and Chassis peripheral manufacturer and provider of industrial wholesale as well as OEM & ODM services for the PC industry as required. With over 20 years of service excellence, ISO 9001 certification and a team of professional staff willing to do the utmost to deliver durable, superior quality products, all backed by a *2 year guarantee; your satisfaction is guaranteed.(*conditions apply)
###End

Press Releases and Archive: http://globalpr.com.tw/press-room/

Highlights of PC-V353 and the PC-Q25
Quality aluminum casing Tool-free, anti-vibration mounts for hardware USB 3.0 ready Fan-free design (PC-V353) Up to 8 HDD (PC-Q25) MSRP for PC-V353: $199 MSRP for PC-Q25: $149	Product Pictures (Click for more)

According to a few articles on the internet and a few things that are rumbling along the “usual lines” nVidia could already have working 28nm Silicon. Although no one seems to know what this silicon is a good guess would be Tegra.  Jen-Hsun Huang, nVidia’s CEO, has been quotes are saying they have an entire team working to make this move much smoother than the one to 40nm.

If you were not around for that one let’s just say it was a mess and nVidia lost a lot of money due to bad yields and other issues that were spawned by TSMC (Taiwanese  Silicon Manufacturing Company) and their own rough transition to this die size. However, if you remember during this troubling time for both nVidia and TSMC there was an announcement that TSMC had already begun work moving to 28nm.

This announcement was made by TSMC around September/October which would make the timing for this about right. So, if TSMC has gotten their 28nm process right and nVidia is truly moving Tegra to 28nm first (and has working silicon) then the logical guess for this working Silicon is Tegra. The question now is which Tegra? It is highly unlikely to be Kal-El, but considering the claims that Jen-Hsun is making, a quad core ARM based SoC (System on Chip) that uses less power than the current dual core, we have to wonder. This is speculation of course but we do have some evidence for this supposition. It would also seem to fit the delays of this new mobile chip that we have heard about (now they are saying Holiday Season). It would not be beyond the realm of probability to see these SoCs ready for December and products out in January/February time frame which again could mean the Kal-El will show up as 28nm and not 40nm… But to be honest it is VERY unlikely.

Discuss in our Forum

It looks like Apple may have made a serious blunder in their EU case against Samsung. As we have told you previously Apple has made the claim that Samsung copied the iPad2 in their design of the Galaxy Tab 10.1. As such they have sought an injunction and been granted a preliminary one banning sales of the Tab 10.1 in all areas of the European Union except the Netherlands.

However, we are hearing now that some of the evidence presented was inaccurate. According to Macworld and WebWereld.nl the images used do not show the Tab 10.1 properly. According to Samsung’s site the Tab 10.1 has dimensions of 257.7 x 175.3mm this represents an aspect ratio of 1:1.46. Careful review of the image in Apple’s complain reveal that it has an aspect ratio closer to 1:1.36 putting it very close to the dimensions of Apple’s iPad2.

Now the question is whether Apple actually manipulated this image or if they used outdated images (knowingly or not). If it is the former then Apple is in serious trouble as they have presented false evidence in a legal proceeding. If it is the later then they will still face some serious consequences as it is the plaintiff’s responsibility to present accurate information in any litigation (even in the EU). Samsung has filed an appeal to the original injunction and with this new evidence they have a very good chance of winning. No matter the cause I am sure that the Court System will be keeping a closer eye on Apple in the future. Let’s remember Apple’s presentation during the “grip of death” problem and the iPhone 4 where they cherry picked three phones to prove the grip issue was global. After that incident it was shown that even with those phones the issue was very limited and not the same as what Apple was trying to show. It actually prompted statements and the threat of legal action from Samsung and HTC at the time. So we would honestly not be surprised to find that Apple knowingly used an outdated image of the Tab 10.1 in their evidence to further their case.

Picture Credit WeWerld.nl

It will be interesting to watch the outcome of this one.

Discuss this in our forum
Credit to forum member Kelevmor for passing this one along.

Intel is offering another upgrade plan for some of their Core i3 and Pentium G CPUs (the Core i3 2312 and 2102 and the Pentium G622). This is similar to an upgrade offer that was given last year for another group of CPUs. For a small fee (it was $50 last year) you can purchase a code that will unlock features in the CPU to increase performance. These features are reportedly able to bring an alleged 11-15% performance boost over the “locked” CPUs.

Of course the fact that Intel locked off those features to begin with have some a tad bit annoyed, but a quick look around finds that most of these are not retail CPUs but OEM ones. This means a quick and easy upgrade for just about any consumer. We do not have any information on how much this will cost, but it should not be more than $50-$60. Check out Intel’s site for more information.

Discuss this in our Forum

Apple has been having a blast dropping patents for vague concepts and even an entire device type (with their pending Pico Projector patent) regardless of prior art and at times regardless of if the patent is actual technology or not (the look and feel of something). Then they take these patents and wave them in the face of judges that have no real idea of what the patent is (or is not) covering asking for injunctions and outright bans on products from companies that are relatively underfunded in the legal department. If you ask Apple about this they will stand and say that they are protecting their Intellectual Property (which in many cases was “borrowed” from another company that cannot afford a legal fight with Apple like S3). This abuse of the patent and copyright system is detestable, but is an article for another day.

The question I am wondering is, why has Apple not gone after Microsoft? Windows 7 on a tablet has Pinch to Zoom, finger gestures and even the same “look and feel” when you scroll with your finger. Now, I could be wrong, but if Apple is trying to protect their IP you would think they would be going after Microsoft in a big way. I am also pretty sure they would be adding Asus (who has one of the best-selling Windows Based Tablets on the market right now) to their legal wish list as well. So, why do they leave these two obvious copy cats out of the litigation arena?

Well, here are a few reasons that we were able to come up with based on research. Microsoft is safe simply because they have bailed out Apple multiple times in the past and also have several patents and items that Apple needs to survive (Office for Mac is still a huge seller). Whether the Apple faithful and Steve Jobs want to admit it or not Apple owes it very existence to their rival; without Bill Gates and Microsoft we would be talking about Apple in the past tense. Right now Adobe is wishing they had dropped money into that bailout instead of just spending time and money making their products work on Apple’s RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computer) based systems (the PowerPC days). If they had, they perhaps they would have some leverage in the whole HTML5 Vs. Flash competition. This also applies to Microsoft’s net generation operating system Windows 8. In fact is applies even more as Microsoft is writing it to work on ARM based CPUs. The previews that we have seen also make it very tablet friendly and an obvious threat to Apple’s weakening hold on the tablet market. Yet, we have heard no call to arms from the Apple legal team over this.  

So, what about Asus and their tablets? Asus is also untouchable right now because they also have something that Apple wants; A manufacturing facility. Apple has been looking for alternatives to Foxconn due to the bad press surrounding the company’s many suicides. The world now knows that the iPhone, iPod and many other Apple products are assembled there and with the many deaths over working conditions at these plants the eyes are turning to look at Apple. The question has already been raised by many humanitarian groups “why has Apple done nothing about this?” You would think that a company that claims to be so “Green” and Earth Friendly would be appalled by what is happening over there. However, other than a few press releases (which usually tame the faithful) Apple has done nothing. At least on the surface, we have heard rumors that Apple is courting Pegatron as an alternative manufacturing site for the next generation of iToys. If this is true (and as of now we have no evidence to the contrary) then Apple would not want to get Asus upset. After all Asus owns Pegatron. It is their manufacturing company.

So then next time you hear an Apple press representative standing on the soapbox and loudly declaiming how they are protecting their Intellectual Property from the masses of thieves and copy-cats out there, just remember that they are only throwing this around at the companies they feel they can bully into submission. In the end no one likes a bully, and bullies usually reap what they sow in the long run.