NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690: Dual-Kepler GPUs

After teasing us for most of last week, NVIDIA has finally launched its GeForce GTX 690, a graphics card powered by two GPUs based on the “Kepler” architecture. The new card was announced at an odd hour in the USA, but that’s because Jen-Hsun Huang (NVIDIA’s CEO) presented it in Shanghai, China.

Now, you finally get to see the card in all its glory, and NVIDIA is rather proud of the reference design, which uses thixomolded magnesium alloy (instead of plastic) for the fan housing because this material provides better heat dissipation. Like previous designs, the heat sink uses vapor chambers, which is not too much to help cool the “beast”.

In ideal conditions, the GeForce GTX 690 should perform close to 2X faster than the GeForce GTX 680, but in reality, performance does not scale linearly with the number of GPUs. If you have a specific game in mind, wait for the independent benchmarks, but most likely, you will be able to crank the resolution and image quality to the maximum settings. All in all, the GeForce GTX 690 embarks 3072 CUDA cores, which are basic processing building blocks. But that’s not it, you can pair two GeForce GTX 690 to achieve a -mind blowing- total of 6144 CUDA cores.

The card should be available “by May 7″, “in limited quantities”, says NVIDIA. You can expect NVIDIA’s closest partners to have those “bragging rights” cards, namely (but not limited to) ASUS, EVGA, Gainward, Galaxy, Gigabyte, Inno3D, MSI, Palit and Zotac. Finally, the card may be the fastest in the world, but it won’t come for cheap, the price is $999, which seems to be the price for the ultimate graphics experience of the moment.

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How to Increase Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Battery Life

Recently Samsung introduced Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Tablet. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Tablet has speed of 1 GHz dual-core NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor for fast multi-tasking and multimedia viewing. By the 3 megapixels with LED flash digital camera a tab user can capture pictures with quality and record the video in 720p HD video mode. It also has the secondary camera of 2 megapixels. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Tablet is Equipped with Android OS v3.1 (Honeycomb). The Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Tablet features a brilliant 10.1 inches (800 x 1280 pixels) WXGA TFT LCD display.

It plays almost all types of audio and video formats. The supported audio formats are MP3/WAV/eAAC+/OGG and the video formats are MP4/DivX/Xvid/H.264/H.263. For watching a video, the 10.1 inches WXGA TFT LCD display gives the full view satisfaction compare to other tablets in form of the big screen. Though this Tab does not feature GSM and 3G capabilities it still catches your eye as we know what this powerful device can mean. Support for Flash 10.2, which enabled you to play your YouTube videos directly from within the browser. It has 3.5mm audio stereo jack, so you can also use your personal headphones for great sound quality. It offers Bluetooth 3.0 with A2DP and also comes with Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n. Being a fully-featured multimedia tablet, the battery plays the major role in it. The proper management of battery will give you the long period of usage of this highly featured and powerful Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Tablet.

Here are some steps to follow to increase the battery life of Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Tablet.

• Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Tablet has Wi-Fi b/g/n support. When you turn ON the Wi-Fi setting then don’t forget to turn OFF when not in use. Because when Wi-Fi is ON it drains the battery. So try to avoid the frequent use of Wi-Fi setting.
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Tablet has 10.1 inches (800×1280 pixels) of large screen. So one of major battery drain problem is the brightness level of the tablets. Maximum the brightness level, drain the battery faster. So to avoid this major battery drain problem, keep the brightness level as low as you can view the content in the tablet easily.
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Tablet is GPS enabled. If the GPS is turned ON, it continuously searches for the location. Because of this it drain small amount battery power. By turning it OFF you can save that small amount of battery power. Only turn ON the GPS when you require.
• In Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Tablet most of applications have their check for updates setting is ON and they run in the background, which help to drain the battery fast. So just disable these types of settings, which check for updates frequently.
• Whether or not you have limited applications that automatically check the internet, your tablet is still active and checking almost all of the time. This is a part of the reason why you may see major battery drain even though the tablet was idle for a while.
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Tablet comes with LED Flash light with autofocus facility. Only use the LED Flash when it is necessary or in less amount of visible light. So mostly try to avoid LED Flash function during adequate light.
• Use the manage applications setting in the application settings in order to keep control on background applications.
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Tablet has Bluetooth v3.0. Turn OFF the Bluetooth when not in use.
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Tablet is a fully-featured multimedia tablet. So try to use the sound level moderate or low for video and audio playback, so that you can use this for long period of time hours. Maximum sound level uses the more power of battery.
• Ensure that Sync function is turned OFF when not in use. Only use sync settings when it is necessary.

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Toshiba Excite 10 LE gets March 6th launch date, confirmed $530 price, yet another name

First it was the AT200, then the Excite X10, and now it's the Excite 10 LE. But behind the onion-like layering of names sits a singular and rather beautiful slate, with a 10.1-inch LED backlit display, a 7.7mm (0.3-inch) chassis and a righteous 1280 x 800 resolution. Toshiba says it'll arrive at select US retailers on March 6th, which happens to coincide pretty closely with another possible technology incident. And since there could well be some tough buying dilemmas on the horizon, let's recount just a few more specs: The $530 version of the 10 LE has 16GB of storage, while 32GB can be had for $600. Both variants are WiFi-only and will run Android 3.2 out of the box, but they'll be upgradeable to ICS sometime in the spring. The 1.2GHz TI OMAP 4430 processor will whirr for up to eight hours on a charge; connectivity includes micro-USB, HDMI and microSD; the rear camera shoots 1080p video and 5-megapixel stills. There, does that make things any easier? No? Then there's a full press release after the break. Gosh, you're demanding.

Toshiba Brings World's Thinnest 10-Inch Tablet to U.S. Market

World's Thinnest and Lightest 10-inch Tablet, Excite 10 LE, Available for Purchase on March 6, Starting at $529.99

IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Toshiba's Digital Products Division (DPD), a division of Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., today announced that the Excite™ 10 LE tablet will be available for purchase from select U.S. retailers on March 6. Previously introduced as the Excite X10, the Excite 10 LE is the world's thinnest and lightest 10-inch tablet measuring just 0.3 inches (7.7mm) thin and weighing just 1.18 pounds (535g).

"We have engineered this tablet with premium materials and components, given it elegant yet durable styling and more connectivity options than any other tablet in its class, while fitting everything into an astonishingly thin and light design."

The Excite 10 LE tablet, powered by Android™, carries a starting price of $529.99 MSRP2 for the 16GB model and $599.99 MSRP for the 32GB model.

"Excite 10 LE embodies what a luxury tablet should be," said Carl Pinto, vice president of product development, Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., Digital Products Division. "We have engineered this tablet with premium materials and components, given it elegant yet durable styling and more connectivity options than any other tablet in its class, while fitting everything into an astonishingly thin and light design."

A More Premium Design with All the Essentials

The thin and light Excite 10 LE features a vivid high-resolution 10.1-inch diagonal AutoBrite™ display3, delivering optimum browsing, reading and entertainment. Designed for durability and style, the device also features a high-quality magnesium alloy surface and scratch-resistant Corning® Gorilla® Glass display with an anti-smudge coating for greater resiliency.

The tablet also comes with an array of connectivity interfaces and ports on board, including micro-USB and HDMI® ports, a micro-SD slot to share content and files with other devices, plus Wi-Fi® and Bluetooth® connectivity. Stereo speakers with exclusive sound enhancements by Toshiba and SRS® Labs deliver superior audio capabilities. Front and back HD cameras provide convenient photo capture, plus 1080p video recording and video chatting.

Smart Multicore Performance with Long Battery Life

Powered by the 1.2GHz Texas Instruments OMAP™ 4430 multicore mobile processor4 and dual-channel memory, the Excite 10 LE offers smooth web browsing and multitasking plus the performance for high definition video and entertainment. Extremely power efficient, the Excite 10 LE delivers up to 8 hours of battery life.

Powered by Android

The Excite 10 LE tablet features Android 3.2, Honeycomb, and will be upgraded to Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich later this Spring. Also included is a full suite of familiar Google™ Mobile Service applications, including the Android Market™, YouTube™, Gmail™, Google Maps™, Music, Videos. Additionally, the tablet comes pre-loaded with a mix of Toshiba software and third-party applications including TOSHIBA App Place, TOSHIBA Book Place, TOSHIBA Media Player, TOSHIBA File Manager as well Netflix™ and Zinio™.

Docking and Accessories

Toshiba will also offer a suite of tablet accessories for the Excite 10 LE, including a docking station, multiple cases and more.

Specifications

•  Android 3.2, Honeycomb (upgradeable to Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich)
•  10.1-inch diagonal LED Backlit widescreen Corning Gorilla Glass display with IPS technology and 10-finger multi-touch support
•  1280 x 800 resolution, 16:10 aspect ratio
•  Texas Instruments OMAP 4430 multicore processor; 1.2GHz with 1GB LPDDR2 RAM
•  16GB and 32GB configurations6
•  2 megapixel front-facing camera
•  5 megapixel rear-facing camera with LED flash
•  Micro USB, Micro HDMI ports
•  Micro SD card slot
• Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n) and Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
• Gyroscope, Accelerometer, GPS, eCompass and Ambient Light Sensor
• Stereo speakers with sound enhancements by Toshiba and SRS Labs
• Built-in 25 watt-hour rechargeable lithium ion battery
• 10.1" (W) x 6.9" (D) x 0.3" (H)
• 1.18 pounds (535g)

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Google Play

Google Play is a digital multimedia content service from Google which includes an online store for music, movies, books, and Android apps and games, as well as a cloud media player. The service is accessible from the web, Play Store mobile App on Android and Google TV.Purchased content is available across all of these platforms/devices.Google Play was introduced in March 2012 when Google rebranded and merged its predecessors Android Market and Google Music services.

Products

Apps and games

Free apps are available worldwide,while paid applications are available in 129 countries.Applications can be installed from the device or the Google Play website.According to Google there are over 450,000 titles available as of March 2012.Google Play can update the apps the user selects automatically, or users can update then on a per-case basis or update all apps at once.

Google Play filters the list of applications to those compatible with the user's device. In addition, users may face further restrictions to choice of apps where developers have tied-in their applications to particular carriers or countries for business reasons. Carriers can also ban certain applications, for example tethering apps.

Some carriers offer direct carrier billing for Android Market app purchases. Purchases of unwanted applications can be refunded within 15 minutes of the time of download. There is no requirement that Android applications be acquired from Android Market. Users may download Android applications from a developer's website or through a third party alternative to Android Market.

Developers in 29 countries may distribute applications on Google Play.However developers pay $25 for registration to distribute on the Android Market. Application developers receive 70% of the application price, with the remaining 30% distributed among carriers and payment processors. Google itself does not take a percentage.Revenue earned from the Android Market is paid to developers via Google Checkout merchant accounts, or via Google AdSense accounts in some countries.

On 17 March 2009, about 2,300 applications were available in the Market, according to T-Mobile chief technical officer Cole Brodman.On 10 May 2011, during the Google I/O, Google announced that Android Market had 200,000 apps listed and 4.5 billion apps installed.

Movies

According to Google there are thousands of movies available on Google Play Movies, some in HD, including comedy, drama, animation, action and documentary. Movies can be rented and watched on the Google Play website or via an app on an Android device.Alternatively, users can download movies for offline viewing and view them later using the Google Play Movie app.

Movies are available in US, UK, Canada, Japan and France.

Music

On 16 November 2011 Google introduced Google Music with a music store, Google+ integration, artist hubs, and purchasing reflected on T-Mobile phone bills. The three major label partnerships announced were with Universal Music Group, EMI, and Sony Music Entertainment, along with other smaller labels. To celebrate the launch, several artists released free songs and exclusive albums through the store. The Rolling Stones debuted the live recording Brussels Affair (Live, 1973) and Pearl Jam made available a live concert recorded in Toronto on the tenth anniversary of the September 11 attacks as 9.11.2011 Toronto, Canada.

A cloud media player was first hinted at at the Google 2010 I/O Conference, where Google Senior Vice-President of Social Vic Gundotra showed a "Music" section of the Android Market that would allow users to download music through the market.The music streaming service that was announced by Google on 10 May 2011 at their I/O conference as Music Beta and released as Google Music before the rebrand to Google Play. The service supports streaming music to desktop browsers, Android phones and tablets, and any other device that can use the Adobe Flash platform.At launch, the service was available through invitation to US residents only. In November 2011, however, it is open to the public, but still only for US residents.

According to Google there are "hundreds" of free songs in Google Play and "millions" available for purchase.Users can also upload up to 20,000 of their songs to the service, for free.Songs in Google Music are priced at US$1.29, $0.99, $0.69, and free. Users also get personalized recommendation based on what they listen the most.Music can be played on the Google Play website, or any Android device.Music can also be stored for offline playback.

Google also noted "From time to time we'll be showcasing exclusive concerts and interviews available in Google Play."

The service allows the user to automatically create a playlist of "songs that go well together"using a feature known as Instant Mix Music imported from iTunes will retain its playlists

Books

According to Google there are over 3 million ebooks on Google Play, "nearly 3 million" are free and there are "hundreds of thousands" available for purchase. Books can be read online at the Google Play website, or offline, via the Android app.

Google Play's books are available in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia.

Play Store App

                                                        Home Screen of Google Play

The Play Store Android App allows users to download movies, applications, music and books. According to Google, users with the old Android Market on an Android device will have the application automatically update itself.

History

This section is in a list format that may be better presented using prose. You can help by converting this section to prose, if appropriate. Editing help is available. (March 2012)

Google announced the Android Market on August 28, 2008, and made it available to users on 22 October 2008. They introduced support for paid applications on 13 February 2009 for US and UK developers,with additional support for 29 countries on 30 September 2010.

In December 2010 Google added content filtering to Android Market and reduced the purchase refund window from 24–48 hours to 15 minutes.

In February 2011 Google introduced a web client that provides access to Android Market via PC. Apps requested through the Android Market web page are downloaded and installed on a registered Android device.

In May 2011 Google added new app lists to Android Market, including "Top Grossing" apps, "Top Developers", "Trending" apps, and "Editors Recommendations". Google's Eric Chu said the goal of this change was to expose users to as many apps as possible.

In July 2011 Google introduced a redesigned interface with a focus on featured content, more search filters, and (in the US) book sales and movie rentals.

In September 2011 the Motorola Xoom tablet received an update that brought the redesigned Android Market to an Android 3.x Honeycomb based device.

In November 2011 Google added a music store to the Android Market.

In March the maximum allowed size of the app APK file was also increased from 50MB to allow two additional files for a maximum of 50MB for the APK and 2 addidional files of 2GB each, totalling 4050MB/4.05GB.On March 6th, 2012, the Android Market was re-branded as Google Play.

Device compatibility

The Google Play application is not open source. Only Android devices that comply with Google's compatibility requirements may install and access Google's closed-source Google Play app, subject to entering into a free-of-charge[59] licensing agreement with Google.[60] In the past, these requirements had included 3G or 4G cellular data connectivity,[61] ruling out Android-powered devices comparable to Apple's iPod touch, but this requirement had been loosened by the 2011 release of the Samsung Galaxy Player.

Android Market applications are self-contained Android Package files. The Android Market does not install applications; it asks the devices's PackageManagerService to install them. The package manager becomes visible if the user downloads an APK file directly into their device. Applications are installed to the phone's internal storage, and under certain conditions may be installed to the devices's external storage card.

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iPhone 5 Release With Liquid Metal To Compete Against Galaxy S III

Probably some of you might recall that news about Apple partnering with a company called “LiquidMetal” for its future iDevices. And that’s probably it.

Today, rumors are suggesting the catchy name isn’t just for a show — it’s the real deal. And the Cupertino giant is investing with this new technology to create super-thin and lightweight iPhones in the future.

According to ETnews, a korean publisher, Apple is planning to introduce this to its next flagship phone (iPhone 5) that’s not only thin and light but highly durable as well able to resist impacts. Interestingly, the site also suggests Samsung is aiming for a related technology on manufacturing “Galaxy S3”. The reason? both companies can’t find a decisive edge with one another in terms of software and hardware specs, so they’re now focusing with features and design.

The kicker part? ETnews claim both of these technology are already presented with the upcoming iPhone, which is most probably going to be presented on Q3 (July-September); and for the Galaxy S III which will be announced on May 3. Likewise, we advice everyone to take this news with a grain of salt since pundits suggest the basis of this leak came from just another rumor.

Just so you know, this is not the first time we’ve heard some interesting tales about the iPhone 5. Even last year, rumors are spilling around it will have a bigger screen display, buttonless home key and 3D display. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

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