CES 2009

The Consumer Electronics Show tends to be about small gadgets, the kind that fit in the hand or a pocket, or at least don't take up too much space on a desk or TV stand.

For Advanced Micro Devices, however, CES 2009 was an opportunity to talk about a supercomputer, the sort of high-tech machinery that even today tends to require at least a modest-sized room.

AMD said Thursday that by the second half of the year, it will be ready to go with the massively parallel "Fusion Render Cloud" supercomputer. And where supercomputers typically are used for rather wonky projects in energy research, weather forecasting, and such, the AMD machine is intended to help in the "deployment, development, and delivery" of high-definition content--and this brings us back to CES--to mobile devices.

Think video games and movies. Says AMD:

The system is being designed to enable content providers to deliver video games, PC applications and other graphically-intensive applications through the Internet "cloud" to virtually any type of mobile device with a web browser without making the device rapidly deplete battery life or struggle to process the content. The AMD Fusion Render Cloud will transform movie and gaming experiences through server-side rendering - which stores visually rich content in a compute cloud, compresses it, and streams it in real-time over a wireless or broadband connection to a variety of devices such as smart phones, set-top boxes and ultra-thin notebooks.

To deliver on that promise, chipmaker AMD is working with a company called Otoy that specializes in software and special effects for the video game and film industries.

The Fusion Render Cloud will use AMD gear including the Phenom II processors, AMD 790 chipsets, and ATI Radeon HD 4870 graphics processors. It is being designed to break the petaflop processing barrier--in layman's terms, to run with the fastest of the fast supercomputers--and "to process a million compute threads across more than 1,000 graphics processors," AMD said.

Cloud computing is one of the most loudly proclaimed topics in information technology these days. Although there are a number of interpretations of what it entails, the basic idea is that applications and heavy-duty processing live in some centralized data center, connected to via the Web, taking much of the workload off individual PCs and other devices.

It's time for an update to the tiny GPUs that let your laptop watch HD videos and play World of Warcraft. AMD is looking to snag a bigger slice of the mobile graphics pie with a new series of ATI Mobility Radeon chips, called the HD4000 series. They offer Microsoft DirectX 10.1 support and the highest-end versions support GDDR5 memory.

Those break down into four categories, which are (with AMD's description of each):

ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4800 Series: For gaming enthusiasts
>Amazing Graphics Horsepower for extreme HD Gamers
>World's most powerful mobile GPU, breaks the TeraFlops barrier
>World's First Mobile GPU supporting GDDR5 memory

ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4600 Series: Optimized for high-performance thin systems
>Multimedia Powerhouse delivering intense HD Entertainment
>Redefine HD Gaming for Performance Thin Notebooks
>Phenomenal Performance Per Watt

ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4300 and 4500 Series: HD performance for mainstream systems plus Low-power for thin and light laptops
>Optimal design and power for Ultra-Thin Notebooks
>Spectacular full HD 1080p video and audio support
>Breakthrough Energy Efficiency for Long Battery Life ... Read more

Even if the case lighting caused consternation for some, we were fans of Dell's XPS 630 gaming desktop, which delivered solid bang-for-the-buck in a sub-$2,000 PC. With this morning's announcement of the XPS 625, Dell once again sets its sights on the midrange gamer. Starting at $999, this configurable PC uses all AMD components, including an option for multiple graphics cards.

One of the highlights of this system is that of the four AMD CPUs available, all are so-called "Black Edition" chips, AMD's term for processors with unlocked clock-speed settings. That means overclockers have leeway to ramp up the clock speeds, and gain more performance for no extra cost.

The new Dell XPS 625 has all AMD hardware under the hood

(Credit: Dell)

Dell also advertises that the XPS 625 supports AMD's new Dragon platform, which essentially means it uses one of AMD's new Phenom II X4 quad-core processors, an ATI Radeon HD 4800-series graphics card, as well as AMD's multiple-graphics-cards-capable 790 motherboard chipset. Dragon also gets you a handful of miniapplications for managing your overclocking settings through Windows, as well as tweaking your system software for improved game performance.

Among its other specs, the XPS 625 comes standard with 64-bit Windows Vista Home Premium, and you get options for up to 8GB of RAM, Blu-ray, and up to 1.5TB of hard drive space. Keep in mind that because it uses AMD's current Phenom II chips and their Socket AM2+ motherboards, the XPS 625 won't support faster DDR3 RAM, at least at launch. We have no word from Dell as to whether it intends to move to the DDR3-capable Socket AM3 motherboards when they ship early this year (according to AMD).

The XPS 625 also uses the same case as the XPS 630, a tidy, well-designed full tower system, but it has changed the case lighting. As with other Dell gaming PCs, Dell has adopted the AlienFX lighting scheme developed by its Alienware subsidiary. We've been fans of AlienFX for a year or two now, as it lets you assign case lighting schemes to system events; imagine your case lights turning blue when you get a new e-mail, for example. Hopefully this move will quell any lingering fear of the old lighting system.

Dell also tells us that the XPS 625 will be available to order today from Dell.com.

Image updated.

AMD's new Dragon platform uses components from several AMD product families

(Credit: AMD)

As the only vendor currently producing CPUs, GPUs, and motherboard chipsets, AMD is uniquely positioned to market its entire product line as a unified PC gaming platform. It began this effort last year with its Spider platform (the original Phenom X4, Radeon HD 3000-series CPUs, and its 700-series chipsets), and with today's launch of its new Phenom II desktop chips, AMD also announced its new Dragon platform. Dragon marries Phenom II with the Radeon HD 4800-line of 3D cards and AMD's 790-series chipsets into a complete, AMD-made gaming PC.

The big news with Dragon is really the Phenom II chips. Available as the 3.0GHz Phenom II X4 940 and the 2.8GHz Phenom II X4 920, these new quad-core CPUs are AMD's first 45-nanometer desktop processors, and they finally bring AMD in line with Intel's 45-nano manufacturing process, used in its Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad, and Core i7 chips.

... Read more

We mentioned AMD and iZ3D's stereoscopic 3D approach earlier, and now we get to take a look at Nvidia's solution with the announcement of its GeForce 3D Vision. Unlike AMD, which is merely a beneficiary of iZ3D offering ATI Radeon customers a deal on drivers for its specialized 3D LCDs, Nvidia's stereo 3D hardware is homegrown, and it's also one of the few products that Nvidia itself is distributing to retail.

For $199, GeForce 3D Vision gets you a set of battery-powered, wireless glasses, as well as an infrared emitter that acts as a go-between for your computer and either a 120Hz PC LCD or a DLP HD television. Where iZ3D's glasses are passive, Nvidia's are active, which is to say they require power to perform the appropriate image processing.

The results of Nvidia's GeForce 3D Vision are impressive. We've sat through press demos with both Nvidia and iZ3D. iZ3D's were fine, but we got to see more games during Nvidia's demo, so we have a bit more experience with GeForce 3D Vision. The visual effect is more than simply cheap Hollywood-style 3D flash. In Left 4 Dead, we had the sense of a much more immersive depth of field than you get from standard 3D games on a 2D display. Nvidia also gives you a dial on the emitter to increase the perception of depth. Adjusting it can be jarring, especially at very high settings, but we liked having the option, and we're not aware of a similar feature on the iZ3D displays.

Nvidia's GeForce 3D Vision glasses and IR emitter.

(Credit: Nvidia)

Despite its active glasses, Nvidia's take on stereoscopic 3D also relies on specialized LCDs, in this case those with a 120Hz refresh rate over dual-link DVI. Samsung and Viewsonic will be offering such displays soon, although initial reports have listed prices at $479 for the 22-inch model. Prices will drop as 120Hz LCDs become less exotic, but that's still about $679 worth of hardware to enjoy Nvidia's 3D tech, compared with only $399 for the display and glasses from iZ3D.

Traditionally, stereoscopic 3D has been scoffed at due to clunky hardware, lackluster game support, and a headache-inducing flicker effect. We haven't sat down for a good gaming all-nighter to see if either vendor has eliminated the headaches, but the vastly enhanced visual effects of the games and movies we've seen over the last month with stereo 3D make us think that the technology might finally be ready for consumer success. And you can scoff at the glasses all you like, but, as Nvidia suggested to us when we scoffed ourselves, if you're willing to jump around your living room with a plastic guitar in your hands, are 3D gaming glasses really all that bad?

We're coming to you from CES 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada and it's all about Netbooks today. I'm sure we'll get more buzz about 3D TVs and more later this week. Also, Ellie doesn't like it when we call out the title of the show, but that makes it easier for Jason to find them for his special edition! (And please excuse a bit of distortion in today's episode. Sorry! -Jason)
Listen now: Download today's podcast

EPISODE 886

Yawn— MacWorld (woohoo iTunes DRM free!!)
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-10133230-37.html
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20090106-apple-mwsf-announcements-new-macbook-pro.html

Apple activates iTunes downloads over 3G, with a caveat
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10133349-1.html
http://arstechnica.com/journals/apple.ars/2009/01/06/apple-labels-both-win-with-drm-free-itunes-tiered-pricing

Free Nine Inch Nails albums top 2008 Amazon MP3 sales charts
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20090106-free-nine-inch-nails-albums-top-2008-amazon-mp3-sales-charts.html

AMD’s Neo processor debuts in HP notebook
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20090106-amds-neo-processor-debuts-in-hp-notebook-whoah.html

Asus says Netbooks can be upscale with the S121
http://ces.cnet.com/8301-19167_1-10131423-100.html
http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/06/asus-s121-with-worlds-first-512gb-ssd/

…and new Eee PC with swiveling screen
http://ces.cnet.com/8301-19167_1-10131412-100.html

MSI XSlim MacBook Air-like thing
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2009/01/msis-super-thin.html

LG’s Watch Phone: production please?
http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/07/lg-shows-off-gd910-watch-phone-production-later-this-year/

LaCie breaks off quad-interface 2big Quadra RAID drive
http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/06/lacie-breaks-off-quad-interface-2big-quadra-raid-drive/

Google’s Android runs on a Netbook — Google OS in the offing?
http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/opensource/?p=316
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20090105-android-netbook-port-leaves-some-pondering-google-os.html

Phishing is a minimum-wage job
http://news.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09%2F01%2F06%2F2213256&from=rss

SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone announced
http://www.cnet.com/8301-19515_1-10131943-234.html

Pay-as-you-go airline charges by the minute
http://blog.wired.com/cars/2009/01/new-airline-pla.html

What piracy? Movie biz sees record box office in 2008http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20090105-what-piracy-movie-biz-sees-record-box-office-in-2008.html

E-MAIL

Hey jamoto,
As one of your UK listeners, I’d just like to clarify the ‘liveness’
of the BBC iPlayer. It actually broadcasts tv shows on the internet an
hour after they are first broadcasted on tv. Just thought that you
should know.

LTS,
DanieInHell

**********

Hey Jamoto++,

Web Developer Matthew Horoszowski (say Horoshofski) here and just
wanted to point out this article,
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/technologynews/4126913/Mind-game-where-players-use-brainwaves-to-float-ball-through-hoops-unveiled.html
,
which talks about a new game that uses your brainwaves to control a
small ball and move it through hoops and things.

Guess that one prediction for this year down!

**********

Hey JaMoTo + 1:

On the dial tone issue from Monday’s show: when someone moves out of a
house or and apartment, the phone company *should* leave dial tone on
the line, but with no account information. This gives access to 911 and
611 (to be able to call the company to fully activate the line). When I
worked for BellSouth, that service was called a QuickServe.

However, QuickServes can be disabled if the line is needed at another
residence or business and no other cable pairs are immediately
available, hence the reason that Tom’s line didn’t have dial tone.
FWIW, no dial tone, no 911.

Barry Stubbs

**********

Stop it!!! Stop with the announcing of the title in the actual show!!

Stop it, stop it, stop it, stop it, stop it, STOP!!!

<3 Ellie

iz3D, makers of 3D-capable LCDs, is showing off a few prototypes of its technology on the CES show floor. This news is actually from the end of December, so we're playing a bit of catch-up, but as you'll find out throughout the show, stereoscopic PC gaming may finally gain some traction this year.

Specifically to iZ3D, according to a news release, it will have three prototypes on display. From the release (PDF):

"New iZ3D Immersion Series that gives users an incredible total 3D effect. It is a Triple iZ3D monitor setup with a flight or racing game simulator that really puts players in the experience!

26" iZ3D Prototype - Thought the 22-inch widescreen was awesome? Wait until you see the 26-inch version!

22" Widescreen Console Game Compatible Prototype - Now play many popular Xbox or PS3 games in 3D on the new iZ3D 22-inch game compatible monitor.

iZ3D's special 3D LCD's don't appear that different from normal PC displays.

(Credit: iZ3D)

Prior to this news, iZ3D also cast its lot with AMD, by way of a free $50 credit for a stereoscopic driver designed to pair ATI Radeon 3D cards and iZ3D's specially designed LCD's. To get the 3D effect, you need to purchase one of iZ3D's LCDs ($399 for the standard 22-inch model), which also includes three pairs of special polarized glasses. The glasses look relatively nondorky (you can see for yourself here), and by wearing them while playing a game or watching a 3D-enabled movie, you get the full 3D, pop-out-of-your-screen effect.

AMD and iZ3D may not be the only vendors with a new 3D PC solution in mind, and having seen the affect in action, at least briefly, we can report that it is indeed impressive, and better than the either the old red-and-blue lens-style 3D, or other, more recent efforts. Aside from the required purchase of a new, specialized LCD (that still works fine with standard 2D images), the major obstacle is whether gamers will be willing to don a pair of special glasses to play a game. But if you'll wear a clunky headset, are special glasses that much of a leap?

Updated at 11:05 p.m. PST with additional information throughout.

Another Netbook? No, not exactly. Hewlett-Packard's new Pavilion dv2 is an ultraportable, thank you. And the new Athlon Neo silicon inside from Advanced Micro Devices will try to prove that point.

AMD is introducing new chips at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas that target the no-man's land between Netbooks and notebooks. Typically, these designs are referred to as ultraportables--the most salient examples being Apple's MacBook Air, the Toshiba Portege, and the Sony Vaio TT series.

So what makes AMD's platform different? In one word, price. Ultraportables fall into the boutique category of laptops: very stylish, very slim, very light--and very expensive. Usually ranging between $1,500 and $3,000. HP's notebook with Athlon Neo silicon cuts the price in half. The Pavilion dv2 will start at $699 and top out at $899 for standard configurations.

HP 12-inch Pavilion dv2 ultraportable starts at $699, at least half the price of traditional ultraportable notebooks like the MacBook Air, Toshiba Portege, and Sony Vaio TT series.

(Credit: Hewlett-Packard)

The dv2, at 3.8 pounds, is slightly heavier than ultraportables that typically weigh between 2.5 and 3 pounds. It is 0.9-inches thick, slightly thicker than more expensive ultraportables like the MacBook Air.

But the Pavilion dv2 will pack features such as an AMD-ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3410 separate (discrete) graphics chip, a relatively large hard disk drive (HP lists drives up to 500GB), and a 12.1-inch LED screen. Features that differentiate it from Netbooks and put it squarely into ultraportable territory.

AMD Athlon Neo silicon details

(Credit: AMD)

The dv2 will also come with WWAN (Wireless Wide Area Network) options as well as standard Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.

Bahr Mahony, AMD's manager of mobile products, said in an interview that one of the few ultraportables available today with discrete graphics is the MacBook Air, but this starts at a whopping $1,800. (The Air uses Nvidia's GeForce 9400M graphics and Intel's Core 2 Duo low-voltage processors.)

The Athlon Neo platform can handle 1080p HD playback and a "casual" gaming experience with realistic 3D graphics, using the optional ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3410 graphics chip.

AMD's Athlon Neo processor--formerly code-named "Huron" under the platform codename "Yukon"--runs at 1.6GHz and has a power envelope of 15 watts, comparable to Intel ULV (Ultra Low Voltage) Core 2 Duo processors that power ultraportables today.

AMD's Neo does fall short in one respect, however. Currently it is only single-core, whereas Intel ULV processors are dual-core at a comparable power envelope, and, moreover, typically integrate 6MB level-2 cache memory to boost performance. AMD's Neo has only 512K of cache memory.

A dual-core chip, code-named "Conesus," will come in the second half of this year, according to AMD's Mahoney.

The first HP Pavilion dv2 ultrathin notebook is expected to be available from HP in the second quarter.

(Credit: AMD)

You and I may see the laptop market as completely oversaturated, but chipmaker AMD sees only opportunities and underserved markets. Hence the new Athlon Neo, which AMD calls a "platform for ultrathin notebooks."

The company sees Netbooks as occupying the space between 7- and 11-inch displays with prices under $499, while traditional ultraportrable laptops run from 11 to 13 inches and cost $1,499 or more. Somewhere in there, AMD reckons, there's room for systems with slightly bigger screens than Netbooks, and that cost slightly more.

The 1.6GHz Neo handles multiple apps better than the Intel Atom, and comes paired with either ATI Radeon X1250 graphics, or ATI Radeon HD3410 graphics. The higher-end graphics option runs the Windows Vista Aero interface smoothly, can handle some basic 3D gaming, and can play back full 1080p video--something that would bring the average Atom-powered Netbook to its knees.

The new Athlon Neo platform is turning up first in HP's Pavilion dv2, a 12-inch laptop that manages to be not only thin and light, but also inexpensive, starting at well under $1,000.

AMD still has to convince the public that it needs a midpoint between low-price Netbooks and mainstream laptops. With decent Netbook configs dropping to $399 or less, and only HP releasing Athlon Neo systems at first, it may be an uphill battle.

HP's new Pavilion Dv2.

The highlight of HP's CES lineup is this new, thin, 12-inch AMD-powered model, called the Pavilion Dv2. At first glance, another glossy HP laptop with an AMD processor may induce yawns, but when we learned this was the first system to use AMD's new Netbook-like Athlon Neo platform, our ears perked up.

Pitched as a kind of step-up from Netbooks, Neo provides for a little more processing muscle--at least enough to power Windows Vista. The CPU is called the Neo MV-40, runs at 1.6GHz, and comes paired with ATI Mobility Radeon HD3410 graphics.

Besides that, the Dv2 also has a fairly large keyboard for a 12-inch laptop, starts at about 3.8 pounds, and is 1.3-inches thick at its thickest point. The display is a 1,280 x 800 LED.

Look for the HP Dv2 later in January, somewhere north of $500. Check out some more photos after the jump. ... Read more