First PSU of 2000W!!!

Super Flower has officially announced the first 2000W power supply unit (PSU) on market

  

 The knowledge of one of our own crmaris experts in the field of power supplies units (PSU) and its respected partners on the specific hardware field have made some very positive feedback about this product, a couple of days ago the well known company in power supplies units (PSU) Super Flower officially announced the first model of 2000W on the market.

 According to the company, Super Flower collaborated with one of the top overclockers in the world, the 8Pack to create a power supply unit (PSU) that can handle comfortably setups of 4-way SLI or 4-way CrossfireX with performance levels that hits 94%.

 The best product of Super Flower, the Leadex Platinum 2000W features a modular design while incorporating a fan (DBB) of diameter of 140 mm, heat smart management system ECO, 100% Japanese capacitors (105 ° C) and mono-rail (or single-rail) design + 12V (according to crmaris it can yield up to 166.6 Ampere) and it's supported with a 5 year warranty. The cost of 8Pack Super Flower Leadex Platinum 2000W starts at € 369,90. 

Features

• 100% Full Modular Cabling Design For Easy Cable Management
• 80 PLUS Platinum Certified, 92% 94% 90% Efficiency At 20% 50% 100% Rated Load
• Full Range Auto Voltage Detection Design 100V~240V (Active PFC)
• Comply With Energy Star Standard & EuP (Energy Using Products) Regulation
• Over Voltage Protection / Over Current Protection / Over Power Protection / Short Circuit Protection / Under Voltage Protection
• Support All Intel/AMD Multi-Core CPU & ATX/BTX Compatible Motherboards
• Support NVIDIA SLI & ATI CrossFireX High Performance Graphic Card
• More than 2,000 times On/Off test
• Unleaded Green Materials with RoHS/WEEE Compliance
• Perfect For Professional & High Performance Gaming System

Specifications

• Dimensions: 150 x 86 x 220 mm (W x H x D)
• Fan: 140 mm DBB(automatic control)
• Colour: Black (power supply, fan)
• Fully Modular Design
• Efficiency: max. 94% (230V), 80 Plus Platinum certificate
• Form Factor: ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.92
• Power: 2000W
• Active PFC
• 3.3V: 24 A
• + 5V: 24 A
• + 3.3V & + 5V combined: 120 W
• + 12V: 1999.2 W / 166.6 A
• -12V: 6 W / 0.5 A
• + 5VSB: 15 W / 3.0 A
• Safety: cTUVus/TUV/CB/CE/FCC/C-Tick/BSMI/RoHS/CCC
• Partcode: SF-2000F14HP

Cable/ Connectors

• 1 x 20+4-Pin ATX12V/EPS12V
• 1 x 8-Pin EPS12V
• 1 x 4+4-Pin ATX12V/EPS12V
• 9 x 6+2-Pin-PCIe
• 5 x 6-pin PCIe
• 18 x SATA
• 5 x 4-Pin-Molex
• 2 x Floppy
• 5 Year Warranty 

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     source: super-flower.com
 

Metal that makes the water bounce!

New amazing metal is so hydrophobic it makes water bounce like magic!

 

 Scientists at the University of Rochester have created a metal that is so extremely hydrophobic that the water bounces on it as if it were repelled by a magic force field. Instead of using chemical coatings they used lasers to etch a nanostructure on the metal itself. It will not wear off, like current less effective methods.

 The applications can be revolutionary: From the construction of airplane surfaces—which will avoid water freezing of the fuselage—to non-stick pans to phones to computers to TVs to cars to whatever you can imagine made of metal. They are also thinking of applying the technique to create 100-percent efficient water recollection systems in underdeveloped countries and the creation of latrines in areas where water is not abundant enough to allow for effective cleaning.

 But it gets even better: The lead scientist says that 'the structures created by their laser on the metals are intrinsically part of the material surface' so they will not disappear over time, like current chemical coatings do.

 The material is so strongly water-repellent, the water actually gets bounced off. Then it lands on the surface again, gets bounced off again, and then it will just roll off from the surface.

 Here's Guo in a explanatory video along with the co-writer of the study, Anatoliy Vorobyev, who is a professor at the University of Rochester's Institute of Optics.

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 source: sploid.gizmodo.com

 

Giant Robot Crab Walks

The Crabster CR200 is a 1,400-pound behemoth of a 'bot soon being sent to the ocean floor—for both scientific and commercial use. Up until now, we've mostly seen it in action through still photos and animations, but here it is, menacingly lumbering into video.

The machine you see here isn't complete; it's without the outer shell the Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology team will be adding. But earlier this year the goal was to begin full-depth (656 feet) testing in spring, and it looks like they'll make that deadline, far too late to make a convincing version of Wild Wild West.

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source:Popular Science

TSMC is producing the A8 chips for the next iPhone amidst rumors of final Apple-Samsung break-up

 Reports from Taipei claim that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. has started production on A8 chipsets for Apple's next iPhone. TSMC, the world's leading contract chip-maker, is now making A8 processors.

 According to Taipei's Commercial Times, TSMC is handling the bulk of the orders for logic and power management integrated chips that will be featured in the handset. The same media claims that the new iPhone is slated for the third quarter of 2014, which has been the regular schedule for Apple so far.

 TSMC have declined to comment, but its shares managed to rise up 2.33 percent after the rumors went wild. It's not clear at the moment whether Samsung, Apple's chip-manufacturing partner to Cupertino's woe, is involved in the A8 production at all. Taipei website TechNews claimed that TSMC has become the sole chipset contractor to Apple. 

 Still, it is more likely that the iPhone maker has merely diversified its supply chain, as we assume that Korean media would have went ballistic if Samsung were to lose such an important contract.

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  source: phonearena.com

  

Cortana Revealed, Microsoft's digital assistant for Windows Phone

Leaked screenshots reveal Cortana, Microsoft's digital assistant for Windows Phone

 We already know that Microsoft is set to become the last major player to launch a digital assistant, but previews of what "Cortana" will look like have been almost non-existent. Now, thanks to leaked screenshots from The Verge, we're getting our first look at what to expect when the company's Siri rival makes its public debut with the launch of Windows Phone 8.1. Confirming earlier reports, Microsoft has opted for a circular animated icon as its primary UI element, which will use the same highlight color you've chosen on your Windows Phone device. That icon will reportedly jump about the screen as it asks you questions and responds to your requests.

 Cortana can also be tweaked to personalize greetings, allowing you to change your name or set a nickname for when it provides alerts, offers suggestions or displays reminders. Microsoft appears to be taking a few pages out of Apple's and Google's playbooks, which is further evidenced by the inclusion of a setting that will index your emails in order to track flights and other services -- just like Google Now. It's not clear whether Microsoft will add more services to its assistant before Windows Phone 8.1 makes its way to devices, or if it will even stick with the Cortana codename, but we may only have to wait a month until we find out for sure.

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 source: engadget.com

First Consumer Graphics Card With 8 GB GDDR5 VRAM

Sapphire Radeon R9 290X VAPOR-X Unveiled – First Consumer Graphics Card With 8 GB GDDR5 VRAM

 Sapphire Technology’s upcoming Radeon R9 290X VAPOR-X which would go on to become the first consumer graphics card with 8 GB GDDR5 VRAM has been leaked by Videocardz. The memory has doubled over AMD’s reference design which would result in better performance in high resolution gaming.

 The Sapphire Radeon R9 290X VAPOR-X features the AMD Hawaii XT GPU sporting 2816 Stream processors, 176 TMUs, 64 Render back-ends and a 4 GB GDDR5 memory operating along a 512-bit bus interface. The core and memory frequencies were not mentioned but we are certain that the card would be clocked beyond the 1000 MHz mark for the core since the card is equipped with a non-reference PCB design which equates into greater stability and overclocking capabilities over the reference variant.

 The Radeon R9 290X VAPOR-X is a leap over the Tri-X OC variant from Sapphire in terms of board power and cooling. The Tri-X OC comes with a reference design while the cooler is a beefy tri-fan dual slot heatsink with enough capability to cool the massive Hawaii chip. We are short of details regarding the PCB design at the moment but it would certainly be made of high quality components considering the premium price tag you *consumers will have to dish out for this product.

 Sapphire has taken a step forward in cooling with their VAPOR-X variant which in addition to the better fan tri-fan cooler which cools a large aluminum fin heatsink beneath it and houses several heatpipes, the Radeon R9 290X VAPOR-X also features a massive backplate that helps cool down the memory chips and several heatshrinks do provide cooling to the MOSFETs beneath the PCB. The cooler is massive and may take three expansion slots space while installation so that would limit the use of four of these cards in CrossFireX unless you’re using a high-end E-ATX form factor motherboard with PCI-E slots stacked in the proper arrangement. Display outputs include Dual-DVI, HDMI and a Display port slot, price for the Radeon R9 290X VAPOR-X is not confirmed yet but we can expect a huge premium over the $549 possibly going past the $799 mark. Launch is expected just around the corner as with other non-reference R9 290X products such as MSI’s Radeon R9 290X Lightning.

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 source: wccftech.com

Nintendo to axe online DS and Wii services

Nintendo to axe online DS and Wii services

Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection to close May 20

 Nintendo has announced it will terminate its Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection services worldwide in a matter of months.

 This means certain online services across the Nintendo DS, DSi and Wii consoles will no longer be available after May 20, including online play, leaderboards and matchmaking.

 The shutdown, set to take place on May 20, will affect all regions.

 While Wii U and 3DS software will not be affected due to their use of the Nintendo Network, Wii games accessed via Wii Mode on the Wii U will lose their online features following the termination.

Some online features will still be available, as listed below:

• Internet Channel
• Nintendo DS Browser
• Nintendo DSi Browser
• Nintendo DSi Shop
• Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection Pay & Play
• Wii Shop Channel
• YouTube

A full list of affected titles can be found on the Nintendo website.

 Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection - Nintendo's answer to PSN and Xbox Live - was absorbed by the Nintendo Network when the 3DS was released in 2011.

 While the Wi-Fi Connection was a pared back, services-oriented platform, Nintendo Network introduced more social features with the arrival of the 3DS and Wii U platforms.

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 source: computerandvideogames.com

Xbox One Patch Could Unlock GPU, But Will It Beat The PS4?

Xbox One Patch Could Unlock GPU,
But Will It Beat The PS4?

 The Xbox One GPU could be unlocked with a possible patch, but would the performance increase be enough to rival the PlayStation 4?

 In a related report by The Inquisitr, Microsoft is considering selling a cheaper $399 console by removing the Xbox One disc drive and increasing the size of the hard drive. The idea would be to force gamers to purchase digital games but some analysts think that’s a bad business strategy at this time.

 A PS4, Xbox One hardware comparison shows the two consoles are almost identical in most respects. They both have a 1.6 GHz 8-core Jaguar CPU, 8 GB of memory, a 500GB HDD,Blu-ray drive, WiFi, HDMI ports, and USB 3.0. But Sony chose to go with a GPU with significantly more streaming processors and also higher bandwidth GDDR5 memory. Microsoft, on the other hand, chose to offset the GDDR3 bandwidth with the Xbox One eSRAM, which offers both high bandwidth and low latency in a 32MB package attached directly to the CPU and GPU via a SoC design.

 While discussing the differences can get quite technical, long story short is that the Xbox One GPU offers a max of 1.33 TeraFLOPS/s versus the PS4 GPU performance of 1.84 TeraFLOPS/s. Xbox One provides 68.3 GB/s and 102 GB/s of memory bandwidth, while the PS4 once again wins with 176 GB/s. In practice, what these hardware differences mean is lower resolutions, performance, and sometimes slight tweaks to certain effects.

 Call Of Duty: Ghosts was famously limited to 720p on the Xbox One while the PS4 was able to handle the full 1080p experience. More recently, it was proven there were major differences between the Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition for Xbox One and PS4.

 Unfortunately, it turned out to be an apples vs oranges comparison because two different studios did the ports and the Xbox One was framerate capped at 30 FPS while the PS4 was capped at 60 FPS. This means the average FPS results are useless for comparison, but the lowest, or minimum, framerate is another story. The Xbone posted 27 FPS while the PlayStation 4 was 32 FPS. Hands-on tests cite the Xbox One experience as being more consistent, leading some to wish their was an option on the PS4 version for a 30 FPS cap.

 Video: Tomb Raider Definitive Edition: PS4 vs. Xbox One Cut-Scene Frame-Rate Tests

 Assuming this particular scene isn’t being bottlenecked by the CPU, this also allows us to compare the Xbox One GPU and PS4 GPU at a point where they are both under stress. Despite the PS4 theoretically being much faster on paper the minimum results don’t show the expected difference. This either means the Xbox One is performing better than expected or the Tomb Raider game is indeed CPU bottlenecked. Some also claim the Xbox One drops down to 900p for certain cutscenes, which would explain a lot. There’s also the potential for optimization issues with the PS4′s LibGNM API but some developers claim the Xbox One driver is still in need of work, as well.

 This also brings up the potential for a Xbox One patch that unlocks the GPU from the Kinect. Apparently, Microsoft currently demands that eight percent of the GPU is reserved for Kinect video and another two percent for Kinect voice. This means that when a game doesn’t use the Kinect at all about 10 percent of the Xbox One GPU is sitting idle. Worse, one industry insider named Pete Todd claims Microsoft purposefully chose to go with a cheaper/slower GPU because of the cost of the Kinect although they couldn’t have known Sony was shooting so high with the PS4 GPU.

 Although this Xbox One patch hasn’t been confirmed or denied by Microsoft, it’s been said that game developers have been clamoring for access to the unlocked potential of the GPU. What do you think Microsoft should do?

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 source: inquisitr.com

Apple has Siri, and Microsoft is about to get Cortana

Apple has Siri, and Microsoft is about to get Cortana

Cortana Notebook is Microsoft's privacy control

 Microsoft has been in a state of "shut up and ship" with Windows Phone for more than a year now. While the company has released a few minor updates to Windows Phone 8, its feature set hasn’t changed significantly from when Microsoft first introduced the mobile OS in October 2012. The software giant refuses to discuss or acknowledge an upcoming update, Windows Phone 8.1, but a recent software development kit leak has highlighted the huge number of feature changes that will arrive in the coming months and put Windows Phone more on par with iOS and Android. One of the main feature additions is Cortana, a personal digital assistant named after Microsoft's Halo game series.

 Cortana first emerged after a Microsoft employee lost a phone running Windows Phone 8.1 last year. Sources familiar with Microsoft’s Windows Phone work have revealed to The Verge that Cortana will replace the built-in Bing search feature, which is currently launched through a dedicated hardware key, and acts as a digital assistant with a mix of Siri and Google Now functionality. We’re told that Cortana will take the form of a circular animated icon with the hue of your selected Windows Phone accent color, and will have a personality not dissimilar from Apple’s Siri. Cortana will animate when it’s speaking or thinking, and bounce around or frown with "emotion" depending on the queries involved. Cortana will be backed by data from services like Bing, Foursquare, and others to give it some of the contextual power of Google Now.

 Central to Microsoft’s vision for Cortana is a Notebook feature that will allow Windows Phone users to control exactly what information is shared with the digital assistant. Notebook will allow the Cortana digital assistant to access information such as location data, behaviors, personal information, reminders, and contact information. We’re told it’s designed as a privacy feature to ensure Cortana doesn’t freely access information without a level of user control. While Cortana will learn things about users, it won't store them in the Notebook without asking you, and any information that's stored can be edited or deleted. Cortana will then use this information to provide answers to search queries by voice or text, and provide suggestions, alerts, and reminders. Cortana could greet you by name and ask if you need help or answer questions, much like Siri.

 Through search queries and just general phone usage, Cortana will learn more about a user and offer to store personal data like home and work locations and general interests in its Notebook. Cortana will also react to messages or emails that contain phrases like "let’s meet tomorrow at 8PM" and ask if you'd like to set up reminders or calendar entries. Cortana can also provide guidance on weather, stocks, directions, appointments, and music that’s contextual based on location and other data. As Cortana is a digital assistant, it will also be able to manage a do-not-disturb feature, similar to iOS, that’s designed to mute notifications. An "inner circle" of contacts will allow Cortana to manage notifications and phone calls during "quiet hours" when notifications are muted.

 Although the initial Cortana digital assistant that will ship in Windows Phone 8.1 will have a lot of capabilities, Microsoft will need to extend it to third-party apps and its Windows and Xbox devices to improve its functionality in the future. The real test of Cortana will be how well it works with voice commands and its ability to understand natural phrases and questions. Microsoft’s recent voice work with Xbox One is impressive, but it also requires that you follow a strict pattern of commands for it to work successfully. Microsoft will have to ensure Cortana is at least as good as Siri for the company to position this as a full personal digital assistant.

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 source: theverge.com

How termite-inspired robots could build for us

How termite-inspired robots could build for us

 Human construction projects are generally centrally planned, with people in leadership roles supervising how everything is put together, and builders aware of the overall progress.

 But termites and other animals go about building in a different way, working independently. Each termite reacts directly to what it encounters, rather than having a preconceived notion of what to do. Collectively, the insects can create a mound much larger than themselves.

 "They do all of their coordination indirectly, by changing their shared environment," says Justin Werfel of the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University.

 Werfel and colleagues used this model of decentralized, reactive building to create robots operating under those principles. Robots that behave this way could be useful for construction projects that would be too dangerous for humans, such as underwater research stations or in outer space. Another possible application would be building levees out of sandbags in flood zones, Werfel said.

 "If you had a robot system to handle that kind of building automatically, that would let you keep people out of harm's way," Werfel said.

 The findings are published in the journal Science and presented at the American Association for the Advancement of Science meeting this week.

 These robots are small -- 4.7 inches high, with a footprint of about 4 x 7 inches. The "bricks" that they can manipulate, made of expanded urethane foam, are bigger than these critters: 8.5 x 8.5 x 2 inches.

 Researchers created algorithms governing the behavior of the robots, so that they know what to do when they encounter specific situations. It's not the blueprint that guides the robots, but rather these predefined simple rules.

 The construction begins with a single "seed" brick in a particular location.

 The robots can move forward, backward and turn in place. They were designed to be able to climb up or down a step that is the height of one brick and build staircases with the bricks to get themselves higher up.

 Importantly, these robots only detect bricks and other robots that are in their immediate area; they have no idea how far along the overall structure is or what more distant robots are doing.

 Video: Watch a YouTube video of the robots in action

 "Robots obtain information about where bricks have been attached only through direct inspection," researchers wrote.

 The design of the robots in this research wasn't intended to be "cute," although they may appear that way -- some researchers call them "frog-bots" or "squirrel-bots," said Kirsten Peterson, a co-author on the study. They have rounded features for the sake of simplicity and using less material.

 The robots have four types of sensors, Peterson said. A pattern-recognition system, composed of seven infrared sensors, can detect black and white patterns on the bricks and helps with navigation.

 In addition to tactile sensing, the robots have a pattern recognition system, an accelerometer to sense tilt, and five ultrasound sonar units to detect other robots and help maintain distance from the perimeter of the structure.

 To move around, the robots have wheel-legs called "whegs."

 This study did not optimize the robots for speed. It took three robots half an hour to build a "trident" structure with eight blocks, Peterson said.

 A decentralized system of robots has some advantages over a centrally planned method of building. If individuals perish, the plan doesn't fall apart, because it doesn't depend on how many builders there are.

 When everything is planned out, you'd have to go back to the drawing board if some of the robot builders bit the dust. But a decentralized system readily adapts to the loss of participants, Werfel said, just like what happens in nature with termites.

 "If half the colony gets eaten by an aardvark, the rest can carry on," he said.

 There are still some engineering challenges that would need to be solved to ramp this up to large-scale projects on Earth, the study said, but Werfel said it's conceivable that designing robot systems such as these for disaster zones would in the realm of years away, Werfel said.

 For more extreme environments such as other planets, scaling these kinds of robots up to the task might take decades, Werfel said. But conceivably the principle of this study could be applied to send robots to build a base on Mars.

 If they build it, maybe we will come.

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 source: cnn.com

3D-printed food technology

Hershey and 3D Systems join forces to develop 3D-printed food technology

Hershey and 3D Systems are partnering together to develop new products (Photo: Shutterstock)

 We've seen a cornucopia of 3D food printers specialized for consumer and prosumer chefs, from the multipurpose Foodini to 3D Systems' ChefBot. Now a major corporation has expressed interest in the sprouting 3D-printed food industry – chocolate-maker Hershey has announced a development partnership with 3D Systems.

 The announcement mentioned plans to develop not only new candy confections with the technology, but also a new class of printers. The press release described Hershey as embracing new technologies to move its candies into the future, though also left the language vague enough to include foods that weren't candies.

 3D Systems made headlines earlier this month when it announced a sugar printer which doesn't print in chocolate, though a representative of the company describes some of their recipes as tasting like a chocolate cookie and others as having more of a candy consistency.

 Chocolate printing systems have unique complexities inherent with chocolate, such as keeping the chocolate flowing and tempering it properly for a nice finish and snap.

 The partnership is part of 3D's described goal of mainstreaming 3D printing and expanding into edibles.

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 source: gizmag.com

Buy a bottle of water, get free a Sony MP3 player

Buy a bottle of water, get free a Sony MP3 player

 It’s worth mentioning that the bottle of water will cost the same price as the MP3 player.

 Sony’s W Series Walkman MP3 player has an interesting marketing tool that highlights its waterproof nature: Sony has decided to package it in a bottle of water.

 It’s a brilliant way to tout the waterproof nature of the device in a way that immediately grabs consumers’ attention. Sony has decided to take it a step further and offer their W Series Walkman’s in water bottles in gym vending machines.

 It’s a clever new spin on Apple’s iPod vending units. Check out the video below to see it for yourself.

 Video: Sony 'The Bottled Walkman'

 What do you think of Sony’s marketing strategy? Are you impressed? Or do you think standalone MP3 players are kind of useless now that every smartphone is essentially an MP3 player, with many more capabilities?
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 source: gsmarena.com

Sony exits the PC market

Sony exits the PC market

Sony is to exit the PC market, selling its Vaio division to a Japanese investment group as it concentrates on more profitable ventures including high-end TVs and smartphones.

 Sony has officially announced plans to exit the PC market, selling its Vaio division to a Japanese investment group as a plan to stem its overall financial losses.

 Earlier this week, Sony denied plans to sell the PC division to Lenovo, but in such a way that didn't rule out a sale to someone else. Now, the reason behind the company's careful wording is clear: it is indeed leaving the PC market altogether, selling its entire PC arm to investment group Japan Industrial Partners.

 The move comes as Sony's losses in the PC market mount, dragging down its overall earnings to a loss of around $1.1 billion for its latest financial year. With the Vaio arm making the biggest loss overall, it's natural the company would be looking to trim the fat - although that will come as little consolation for the 5,000 workers, 1,500 in Japan and 3,500 internationally, who are to be out of a job as a result of the sale.

 Sony also confirmed that it would be spinning off its display division into a separate company, and concentrating purely on high-end HDTV and UHDTV sets in the future. While its TV arm has been making a loss of late, the company predicts a return to profit by the end of financial year 2014.

 Sony will continue to produce home entertainment products, including its latest PS4 console, in-house with no plans as yet to sell or spin off any other business units.
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 source: bit-tech.net

Seagate Readies 6 Terabyte Hard Drive for Q2

 Seagate Readies 6 Terabyte Hard Drive for Q2

 Seagate is reportedly working on a 6 terabyte hard drive, which it plans to roll out in Q2 (April-June), 2014. 

 According to leaked company road-maps, the drive could be launched in the later part of the quarter, and could be branded in the new Constellation ES.3 Megalodon series. The drive will be built in the 3.5-inch form-factor, its interface, however, remains unclear (whether it's SATA or SAS). 

 The drive tucks in six 1000 GB platters. Competitor HGST's 6 TB Helium drive, in comparison, runs seven 857 GB ones. Given its enterprise credentials, Seagate could give it at least 7,200 RPM spindle speeds.

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 source: techpowerup.com

PS4 Users Suffering From A Strange Issue

PS4 Users Suffering From A Strange Issue: Odd Grid-like Display Appearing On-Screen

Grids everywhere.

 A new error for the PlayStation 4 has cropped up. Users are apparently suffering from an issue which results in no audio, the controller not working and an odd grid-like display appearing on-screen.

 Switching to safe mode does nothing apparently and occurs as soon as the console is turned on. Other users, especially on GAF, have been facing a similar issue ranging from games like Battlefield 4 (and no, it’s nothing like the earlier CE-34878-0 error which affected the multiplayer), Killzone: Shadow Fall and Assassin’s Creed 4. It’s not as strong as the above picture, but still very noticeable. You can check them below:

 The HDMI cable isn’t the problem this time around – which resulted in some display problems in the beginning for the PlayStation 4. It looks to be more of a GPU issue this time around or simply a firmware glitch. Who’s to say? As it stands, the best advice that has been offered as of now is to simply “Call Sony”.

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 source: gamingbolt.com and reddit.com and Playstation Forums

Eye-Controlled Gaming May Be Closer Than It Appears

Eye-Controlled Gaming May Be Closer Than It Appears

 Eye tracking peripherals like the one being developed by Tobii and SteelSeries could offer an enhanced gaming experience, but unless they get support from major platform manufacturers like Microsoft, Sony or Nintendo, "I'm skeptical about the ability of such a product to be anything more than a niche product," said Lewis Ward, research director for gaming at IDC.

 One of the biggest bugbears for gamers has long been the need to use a joystick to both track a target and control the motion of their avatar or weapons, but at International CES 2014 next week, Tobii Technology will demonstrate a new solution.

 Tobii has teamed up with SteelSeries, the companies announced Friday, to produce what they claim will be the first mass-market eye tracking peripheral for gamers.

Tobii Video: Tobii & SteelSeries create the future of gaming with eye tracking technology

 Tobii will demo its EyeX Controller at CES as well as offering a Tobii EyeX Developer Kit for preorder to developers at the show for US$95, presumably to encourage the creation of games that rely on eye tracking.

 An eye tracking gaming peripheral "will make targeting in first-person shooting games far quicker and far more fun," Rob Enderle, principal analyst at the Enderle Group, told TechNewsWorld.


 SteelSeries will announce further details about the partnership and products over the next several months.

 Tobii's Technology

 Tobii's eye tracking technology uses one or more near-infrared illuminators that are invisible to the human eye to create reflection patterns on the corneas of users' eyes.

 Image sensors capture the images of the users' eyes. Those images are processed to detect the exact position of the pupils and/or irises, identify the correct reflections from the illuminators and pinpoint their exact positions.

 A mathematical model of the eye is then used to calculate the position of the user's eyes in 3D along with the point of gaze.


 "I can understand the value of eye tracking in the context of video games," Lewis Ward, research director for gaming at IDC, told TechNewsWorld. "It goes along with the idea of natural user interfaces or more human-centric approaches to technologies."

 'First' is Such a Strong Adjective

It's not clear whether Tobii's gaming peripheral will indeed break new ground.

 "We've had eye tracking technology around for a while," Enderle said. "There have been some attempts to create eye tracking products, but I'm not aware of anything that has made it to volume."

 Mirametrix Gaming already offers the S2 Eye Tracker and associated software to gamers, and claims that is the first such product on the market.
Here's the catch: The S2 Eye Tracker starts at CA$5,000. Academic and volume discounts are available.

 Mirametrix did not respond to our request for further details.
Other companies offering eye tracking products include LC Technologies, SMI and Dynavoxtech. While their products are not offered to gamers, the technology could be adapted for such use.


 Meanwhile, LG and Samsung both offer eye tracking technology in mobile phones, and Apple will reportedly include eye tracking in a forthcoming hybrid product called the iPad Pro. It's not clear how eye tracking technology in mobile devices might impact gaming.

 Will the Market Love the Product?

Unless the new products from Tobii and SteelSeries get support from major platform manufacturers such as Microsoft, Sony or Nintendo, they may not take off, IDC's Ward suggested.

"Until it's built into a given platform as a standard piece of technology that would be propagated for the next five to 10 years and you could count on it as a developer or a publisher, I'm skeptical about the ability of such a product to be anything more than a niche product or something that's going to move beyond the novelty stage," Ward explained.

Eye tracking might provide a subtle yet immersive and more powerful gaming experience, but "whether that's worth $95 and X amount of time or money from game developers to create games is doubtful, because all you have to do to provide a better experience is to tweak the controller half an inch," Ward stated.


"If you look at eye tracking technology as just for gaming, it's not that interesting," Maribel Lopez, principal analyst at Lopez Research, told TechNewsWorld. "But if you look at gaming as the first real-world application, then it's opening the door to other applications of the technology."
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 source: technewsworld.com

China IS Lifting Videogame Console Ban

China IS Lifting Videogame Console Ban

 At 07/01/14 in international tech news: Beijing has decided to lift China's ban on foreign videogame consoles -- at least partially.

 China will temporarily lift a sales ban on foreign videogame consoles, according to China's State Council, reversing a 14-year prohibition.

 Companies like Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo -- which long have salivated over the heretofore obstructed gold mine of Chinese videogamedom -- will be allowed to make game consoles in Shanghai's free trade zone and then sell them in China.

 The free trade zone is something of an experiment for Chinese authorities. They also lifted online bans there on Facebook, Twitter, The New York Times and other previously blocked sites.


 China's plan to scrap its embargo on foreign videogame consoles surfaced last January in reports by many outlets, including The China Daily. The fact that a Beijing mouthpiece would say it was true lent credence to the rumor. Stock prices for Sony and Nintendo accordingly darted north. Within days, however, Chinese authorities shot down the report, confirming that the ban would stay in place.

 It is not clear how long the new videogame consoles will be permitted in the country.
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 source: technewsworld.com

World’s first affordable powered exoskeleton is almost here: Prepare for mech wars

World’s first affordable powered exoskeleton is almost here: Prepare for mech wars

 The first affordable, mass-produced robotic exoskeleton will be on sale next year from Panasonic. For 500,000 yen, or slightly under $5,000, this full-body power garment will let you hoist 100-kilo (220-pound) objects and move at speeds up to 8 kph (5 mph). While this device would make a nice addition to any wardrobe, will it have immediate practical value, or will it mainly be purchased by hobbyists and educators as a base platform for mere experimentation?

 Activelink, the Panasonic subsidiary responsible for the suit, plans to begin rollout of the first batch of 1000 starting in 2015. At its heart will be a lithium-ion battery pack that can provide for several hours of general purpose activity. We might suppose such activities would just be the familiar exoskeletal fare — hefting small vats of nuclear soup in disaster situations, or carrying cases of munitions. However, if enough designers get hold of this potentially hackable, wearable toolbox, we might actually begin to see some interesting applications emerge.

Video: Power Loader power amplification exoskeleton robot.

 While the suit might let you out thumb a lobster, the included grippers are no jaws of life. Lacking high-tech hydraulics, there will be no car crushing. Once some video of the suit performing some real field tests is released we might get a better idea of how fast, and accurate, under load, the suit might be. Where this exoskeleton may shine, would be if interchangeable tool systems can be developed to swap in for the grippers. The designers envision a suite of tools for things like hammering, drilling, or scooping operations, similar in fact, to those already designed into one the most innovative robotic systems ever built — the Athlete rover now under testing at NASA’s JPL (Jet Propulsion Labs). It is probably worth mentioning a few things about this system, to give some idea of where practical exoskeletal worksuits could be headed.

 The hexapodal Athlete is not an exoskeleton for a person; it is of a much larger scale, more of an exoskeleton for a car. Actually, it is a kind of car itself, having wheels affixed to one side of each end effector, and tool-changer interface on the other. In theory one could chop up a handful of Segways, and affix them to off-the-shelf Fanuc robotic arms using standard CNC tool holders on each end, but that does not seem to be what was done by JPL. I asked the head engineer on the Athlete program, Brian Wilcox, why they did not go with industry standards here. He indicated that in order to meet the stiff requirements for spaceflight (like weight, reliability, and withstanding harsh environmental conditions) hydraulics and heavy steel designs would be precluded.

 That is unfortunate because a modern CNC tool interface, with clamping forces measured in tons of pressure, spindle “run-out” accuracies in ten-thousands of an inch, RPMs in the tens of thousands at 20-hp, and angular positioning to tenths of a degree, would make one heck of a hand. Once the limb hardware designs move into this regime, the major limitation will probably become one of control. Although we are owed a mind-controlled robot exoskeleton by the 2014 World Cup to make the opening kickoff, nervous control of actual tools will be a challenge. Wearable 3D printers giving one the ability to go from mental construct directly to physical construct, while imaginable, are still in the realm of fiction.

 For now Panasonic is looking to partner with companies that can move the suit to the masses. Rental agreements, much like those which have been successful with the Segway are envisioned, and before too long we try one out at the local mall. The jury is still out however on whether the suit will remain little more than a gimmicky plaything, or something for the next year’s Craftsman catalog.

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 source: extremetech.com

Microsoft Research: The 5th edition

Microsoft Research: The 5th edition of WorldWide Telescope now available with new features.

Back in 2008, Microsoft had announced, at TED conference in California, the program called WorldWide Telescope, through which users could explore the universe as known to date, the program continues for several years in a trial form.

 To celebrate it's fifth birthday, Microsoft has released the fifth version of the application with several new features. The WT offers, according to the company, a "cinematic" experience with full three-dimensional models of all the known planets, and an enormous map. The 5.0 version offers high-resolution modeling experience, while also incorporates a faithful reproduction of the International Space Station.

 For those interested, you can download the WorldWide Telescope via the link below. It should be noted that the program is still in beta version, so several corrections are expected in the coming period.

Download Link: wpcentral.com

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 source: wpcentral.com

Laser makes ultra-light mirror out of tiny beads

Laser makes ultra-light mirror out of tiny beads

A surprising kind of mirror (Image: Tomasz M. Grzegorczyk, 

Johann Rohner and Jean-Marc Fournier)

 Shooting a laser at polystyrene beads, scientists have made a mirror that is held together by light. The creation could be a step towards putting ultra-light mirrors in space that would be big enough to see continents and forests on planets orbiting far-off stars.

 Current space telescopes have limited vision because is it costly and complicated to send large, heavy mirrors into orbit. The mirror on NASA's premiere planet hunter, the Kepler space telescope, is just 1.4 metres across and cannot see planets directly. Instead Kepler spots the tiny changes in brightness when a world crosses in front of its host star.

 When NASA's James Webb Space Telescope launches in a few years, it will carry the largest mirror yet into space: a 6.5-metre behemoth made of 18 interlocking segments. To fit into the launch vehicle, the mirror itself will have to be folded up and then unfolded in space.

Jean-Marc Fournier of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, Switzerland, and his colleagues have revived an old idea for building much larger mirrors by exploiting the force produced when laser beams hit tiny particles. Previous work has used this force to make optical tweezers, which can trap and manipulate a few particles at a time.

Self-healing mirror

 In 1979, astronomer Antoine Labeyrie, now at the Collège de France in Paris, suggested that the force could also trap a collection of particles into a flat plane to form a mirror. In theory, shooting two lasers at a central point should cause their optical forces to interfere, creating a stable region where particles line up to make a two-dimensional surface.

 Such a mirror would be exceptionally light, relatively inexpensive and even self-repairing, as any particles knocked out by micro-meteors, which are constantly zipping through space, would simply be replaced by others nearby.

 With funding from NASA's Institute for Advanced Concepts, Fournier's team took a first step towards this goal. They used a single laser to trap 150 micrometre-sized polystyrene beads against a sheet of glass (pictured). Light would normally bounce off a single bead in all directions, but grouping them together produces a flat reflective surface that acts exactly like a mirror, says Fournier.

 To prove the mirror worked, the team shot light through a transparent ruler, so that it bounced off the beads and onto a detector. The resulting picture was murky, but they were able to make out an image of the number 8 on the ruler, which wasn't possible when the beads were removed from the glass.

Spying on exo-Earths

 Fournier thinks the technology could be scaled up to make a 35-metre mirror that would weigh just 100 grams, although he admits there are a number of hurdles to overcome before this technology can be used in telescopes. At the moment the beads are in water, which helps cool them and keep them together, but this wouldn't be possible in the vacuum of space.

 "The water is cheating, we know that," he says. "At least it helps us move a little bit towards another step." Replacing the glass with a second laser will also be a challenge, as will finding a cost-effective power source for the lasers.

 "Whether this technology could be ready for a James Webb successor is quite speculative and would depend on many engineering and mission details that are not yet known," says Jonathan Arenberg of Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems in Redondo Beach, California, who is the chief engineer for the telescope.

 Labeyrie says he would like to see the team repeat the experiment in a vacuum and in microgravity, perhaps on the International Space Station. If the technology holds up, he envisions sending up an array of laser-trapped mirrors that would act collectively like a single large one.

 "Ten or 100 kilometres may become feasible in this way, and this can provide direct images of exo-Earths, where continents and forested areas such as the Amazon Basin become directly visible," he says.

Journal reference: Physical Review Letters, DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.112.023902

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 source: newscientist.com