Geek deals: $180 discount Dell XPS 12 convertible, 50-inch plasma

When it comes to laptops, there is one major thing that catches my eyes: the screen. Not only do I have a preference towards high resolution (as we’ve covered many a time in these deals), but the quality of the screen is paramount as well.

When you can get an ultraportable laptop with a top notch screen and great performance, it is nearly an event worth celebrating. When the same machine is available in an innovative, convertible chassis, that’s pretty sweet. Toss in some rare discounts and we’ve got the makings of a hot deal.

 

Dell’s XPS 12 is definitely one of the more unique laptops available today. The 12.5-inch display serves up an impressive 1920×1080 pixels and does it on an IPS multi-touch LCD panel. Not only is it super crisp and gorgeous high resolution, but the wide viewing angles, rich colors, and of course touch capability combine to make for one killer screen.

Then consider the XPS 12′s unique chassis: the screen rotates within the display frame itself, allowing you to use it as either a traditional laptop or slate tablet. We’ve seen similar tricks before on other tablets, but none that achieved it quite like this and the reviews look good.

Right now you can get a bonus $80 coupon on any of the XPS 12 models. Combining this with $100 instant savings on the base model with Core i5, 4GB of RAM, and 128GB SSD nets you the lowest-ever price on an XPS 12 — $1019.99.

If you can front a little more coin, you can snag an upgraded model with 8GB RAM and 256GB SSD for $1419.99 after coupon, plus a $300 Dell e-gift card. This gift card is good for anything sold by Dell.com, so presuming you want to snag some new electronics anyway, this results in a net out of pocket cost of just $1119.99 for a well spec’d premium machine.

Read more »

Thinner MacBook Pro using a Haswell processor expected at WWDC

On June 10 Apple kicks off its 4-day Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco, better known as WWDC. Last year’s conference saw a new MacBook Pro unveiled complete with a Retina Display and a resolution of 2560 x 1600. And this year the focus is yet again expected to be on the MacBook Pro and Apple’s thinner and lighter laptop the MacBook Air.
Of course, Apple isn’t saying anything until WWDC begins, but that doesn’t stop analysts taking educated guesses as to what we can expect to see. This year, Intel’s Haswell processors are expected to allow Apple to make a few changes to their laptop line up. More specifically, it’s expected the Pro models will get even thinner.

Currently, both the MacBook Pro and Air use Intel’s Ivy Bridge processors. Haswell improves upon Ivy Bridge in a number of ways, but most significantly for Apple, reduces power consumption and adds an advanced power saving system. That means less heat production and the same battery life from a smaller battery.

If Apple embraces Haswell early, which it is expected to do, we could see a new MacBook Pro unveiled that’s even thinner than the current 0.95-inch 2012 version. Alternatively, we could see the thickness stay the same, but the battery life extended beyond the existing 7 hours Apple quotes.

KGI securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes Apple will opt for a thinner MacBook Pro. The FaceTime HD camera is also expected to improve from the existing 720p part to a 1080p-capable solution. As for the MacBook Air, alongside a similar move to Haswell processors, it’s also expected that dual built-in microphones will be added for improved voice quality.

Such improvements are just speculation, but I’m sure many would argue the MacBook Pro is already thin enough and improved battery life is more desirable. Apple shipping a new Pro that looks the same as the existing model, but achieves 10 hours of battery life surely wouldn’t lose it any fans. A similar battery life improvement for the MacBook Air would also no doubt be welcomed.

Read more »

Asus Brings Intel Haswell Processors To Laptops & Desktops

Intel recently announced their 4th-Generation Core Processor codenamed Haswell and PC makers are already making news about including them in their upcoming systems. Among them Asus has announced their next desktops and all-in-ones which would be housing the Haswell chips right before Computex trade show, which is to be held at Taipei. The other companies include Cyberpower and MicroCenter. At Computex, other PC makers are expected to display their new PCs including the major manufacturers like Dell, Acer and others.

The Haswell chips add about 10 to 15 percent increase in their performance compared to the previous 3rd-Generation Core Processors codenamed Ivy Bridge. These chips are said to have lesser power consumption and lower heat generation and a considerable increase in the efficiency in battery life in laptops also.

Intel has announced only 4th-Generation Core i5 and i7 processors, with several others to be announced later at Computex. Among the two, the latter is the most powerful. Gaming desktops with Haswell processors, along with graphic cards would be able to handle any high demanding games out there. The Haswell has better speed and power efficiency over the previous Ivy Bridge processors which is equal to the same jump it had from the Sandy Bridge processors. With Haswell, consumers could have a mean desktop computer in their homes.

Haswell processors are expected to be rolled into the upcoming desktops and laptops soon, and will eventually make their way into ultrabooks. It didn't take long for the 4th-Generation Processors to be released after the previous Ivy Bridge Processors which came out just last year. Intel has always dominated the desktop and laptop processor market with AMD fighting with their processors and APUs. With the fabrication of these processors going down and the efficiency going sky high, a lot is expected for the future architecture of processors fron Intel. People might have always thought why Intel hasn't entered the mobile processor domain where Samsung and Qualcomm are leading the race, but who knows, Intel may have something up its sleeve, hidden from us.

Read more »

Yahoo Chucks 'Classic Mail', New Upgrade Mandatory

From today, June 3rd, Yahoo will get rid of its "Classic" Mail once and for all. In fact, beginning this week Yahoo! Mail will no longer support older versions. It's either the new, upgraded version of Yahoo Mail or no Yahoo Mail at all. The company has sent out emails informing its users of the same and has notified them of the pending upgrade. Until now, Yahoo had allowed its users to continue using the old versions of the Mail even though the webmail interface was redesigned sometime around last year. But, it seems that this upgrade is more concerned with the refurbishing of the company's goals than the technical up-to-dateness. With the proposed upgrade comes the prerequisite of accepting the Communications Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. This grants Yahoo the permission to scan and analyze your incoming and outgoing mails, quite like Gmail does. This automated content scanning is purposed to deliver product features, relevant advertising, and abuse protection to the customers. If you're not interested in contextual-based advertising, you could change the settings using the Ad Interest Manager.

Now, if for some reason, you absolutely do not wish to upgrade, you are left with two options. The first option is to download your Yahoo Mail using IMAP, which will allow you to access your email from a different email program, such as Outlook, Mac Mail, or your mobile app. This, however, does not count as an exception and you'll still have to accept the Communications Terms of Service. If you don't want to do that, then as you might have guessed it, the only option is to close your account and leave. What would you choose?

Read more »

Cisco Predicts Major Global Internet Traffic Surge by 2017

At its seventh annual Visual Networking Index, Cisco suggested the possibility of a drastic increase in the global internet traffic. According to the company, a growth rate of 23 percent is expected between 2012 to 2017. This dramatic burst isn't supposed to last but will be enough to aggregate to 1.4 zettabytes (ZBs) of global traffic by 2017. That amount alone is greater than the history of internet from 1984 to 2012 (1.2 ZB). Cisco predicts that by the year 2018, almost half of the world's population will be online. The surge in online activity could be attributed to more users, users connecting more devices, growing network and broadband speeds and more media-rich content in the next few years. With that many users, comes the need of sustainability. The average internet speed is expected to go up too. Mobile connections will target 8Mbps by 2017 and Wi-Fi speeds are anticipated to reach 30Mbps.

Technological advances will broaden the aspects of connectivity with more and more devices connected to the Internet. Cisco also forecasts a potential rise of M2M (Machine to Machine) products. It highlights the increasing interaction of quotidian devices with the real-world. For example, a refrigerator that can talk to people or is able to interact with other machines. 2017 is likely to see a total of 8 billion devices connected as M2M, combined with the support of IPv6-capable devices.

Read more »