Intel's mSATA SSD 310 reviewed: a pint-size performer through and through

Intel's mSATA SSD 310 reviewed: a pint-size performer through and through:

The forecast for speedy, razor-thin laptops is looking pretty sunny right about now, because it seems Intel's SSD 310 truly does bring the power of a full-sized solid state drive on a tiny little board. Storage Review and The SSD Review thoroughly benchmarked the tiny 80GB mSATA module this week, and found it performs even better than advertised -- easily tearing through 200MB / sec reads and 70 MB / sec writes -- which put it slightly behind Intel's legendary X25-M series but well ahead of the company's X25-V boot drives. While we're still not seeing Sandforce speeds from Intel's tried-and-true controller and 34nm silicon and they might not make Toshiba's Blade run for the hills, we can't wait to test it out in some new Lenovo ThinkPads when they integrate the SSD 310 later this year. Oh, by the way, that big green board up above isn't the drive. It's actually the tiny one on top.

Visualized: Google's periodic table of APIs

Visualized: Google's periodic table of APIs:

The world of Google APIs and developer tools can be a confusing one, but the company has now at least brought a bit of order to the chaos with its own take on the periodic table of the elements. As you can see above, Android occupies the top spot normally reserved for hydrogen in the actual periodic table, and the remaining APIs and developer products are all grouped into their appropriate categories -- and, of course, linked to their respective websites. Hit up the link below to check out the table in its interactive form.

Motorola lifts our spirits with new Atrix 4G video

Motorola lifts our spirits with new Atrix 4G video:

Been feeling down this cold and dreary January? Well, let Motorola 'introduce' you to its new smartphone! The CES conqueror we already know as the Atrix 4G has received its first promo video from the mothership, highlighting its laptop and HD multimedia docks (giving us a decent peek at the docked UI for both), dual-core processor and related gaming credentials, and, of course, that gorgeous qHD screen resolution on the handset itself. It's all set to a very uplifting soundtrack, connoting all the beautiful opportunity and potential that our collective smartphone future holds.

Motorola Xoom to boast barometer, budding meteorologists have found their next tablet

Motorola Xoom to boast barometer, budding meteorologists have found their next tablet:

To say Motorola's Xoom had a coming-out party at CES would be understating things greatly. It was easily one of the highlights of the show, and the potential that was shown was obviously just part of the story. According to Moto's developer page, there's actually a barometer included, right alongside an accelerometer, magnetometer, ambient light sensor and gyroscope. Oddly enough, a proximity sensor is left out of the mix, but seriously... a barometer? Truth be told, this is actually just an oft overlooked point that was first shown in VZW / Motorola's joint press release, but it's good to know that at least one flagship slate will be compatible with Android 2.3's barometer support. Here's hoping it'll be useful for helping you sidestep ugly weather patterns, or something of the sort.

Bigfoot Networks intros Killer E2100-powered motherboards from ASUS, MSI and Gigabyte

Bigfoot Networks intros Killer E2100-powered motherboards from ASUS, MSI and Gigabyte:

Looks like that tease was more than just a tease. It's a truism. Back at Computex, Bigfoot Networks' CEO told us that his next major target was motherboards. The company already infused its Killer E2100 gaming network card into a GPU, and here at CES, it's formally announcing three partnerships with major mainboard makers. MSI, ASUS and Gigabyte are all onboard, with the latter to offer a new line of G1-Killer mobos later in the year. ASUS will be dishing out a ROG Rampage III Black Edition (shown above) which will feature the E2100 on a combined LAN / audio called dubbed ThunderBolt, but your guess is as good as ours when it comes to specifications and CPU compatibility. Pricing and release information remain a mystery across the range, but it's practically a guarantee that we'll see more of these tie-ups in the coming months.

Gigabyte shows off its new S1080 Windows 7 slate in Taiwan to little fanfare and even less excitement

Gigabyte shows off its new S1080 Windows 7 slate in Taiwan to little fanfare and even less excitement:

So, while all the cool kids were showing off their wares at CES, the good people at Gigabyte decided to throw their own tablet party across the Pacific. The S1080 is the slate you never asked for, in that it runs Windows 7 on a dual core Atom N550 processor underneath a 10.1-inch capacitive touchscreen with 1024 x 600 resolution. If multitouch navigation isn't your thing (an odd preference for those buying tablets), there are a couple of tactile mouse buttons on one edge and an optical mouse on the opposite side for thumbs-only operation. The device has a massive (for a tablet) 320GB hard drive, SD card reader, ethernet port, and USB 3.0 connectivity to sate your computing needs. Also included is a 1.3 megapixel webcam, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, and Bluetooth 3.0. Lastly, in what can only be considered an odd design choice, our Taiwanese friends elected to give the S1080 a VGA port instead of an HDMI connection. Word on the street is that the device will be less than $300 when it goes on sale next month, so if you are a member of the (presumably small) group of people who aren't interested in an Android, Apple, Blackberry, or HP slate, the S1080 may be the tablet for you.

Motorola Atrix: another look (video)

Motorola Atrix: another look (video):

Every CES there's something so alluring that we can't help going back for seconds (or thirds). This year it happens to be the Motorola Atrix, which is undoubtedly our gadget of the show, and which Myriam already put together an in-depth hands-on for. We've been using every excuse we can to swing past Motorola's booth 'on our way' to other stuff on the show floor, and we finally broke down and went in for another hands-on. Check out our video walkthrough after the break, which hopefully should help explain the transition the Atrix can make from phone to desktop to laptop to set-top box. And please excuse our enthusiasm.

MSI Wind Top AE2420 3D all-in-one review

MSI Wind Top AE2420 3D all-in-one review:

When MSI builds an 'all-in-one' PC, it doesn't mess around -- the MSI Wind Top AE2420 3D has everything but the kitchen sink ensconced in a plastic frame. Where most consolidated computers aim for the lowest common denominator with low-power components, MSI's dropped a high-end multimedia bomb here -- a 23.6-inch, 120Hz, 1080p, LED-backlit touchscreen LCD panel paired with a desktop-grade 2.53GHz Core i7-860S processor, Mobility Radeon HD 5730 graphics, a Blu-ray drive, 4GB of RAM, and a terabyte of storage. Active shutter glasses spit out 3D images to your eyes while THX speakers (and a built-in subwoofer) pump out jams, and 802.11 b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth and USB 3.0 sockets round out a connectivity laundry list. It's got a spec sheet to die for and an equally lethal $1,800 price -- but is the AE2420 3D more than a bucket of primo parts? Is it worth your cash?

Google's Android 3.0 Honeycomb for tablets: a guided tour of the UI (video)

Google's Android 3.0 Honeycomb for tablets: a guided tour of the UI (video):

A funny thing happened after Google posted (and subsequently pulled) its Android 3.0 Honeycomb video: T-Mobile celebrated its G-Slate announcement by posting the same video. And about six more after that (to be fair, they're also on the Motorola / Verizon Xoom we demoed). Today it was made official during Verizon's keynote, with Google itself narrating a hands-on demo. We've scrutinized these videos to no end and we think we've come up with the most complete picture of Google's tablet OS experience at this point. Join us after the break for all the goods.

ASUS Eee Pad Slider and Transformer are here for those that can't imagine using a tablet without a physical keyboard

ASUS Eee Pad Slider and Transformer are here for those that can't imagine using a tablet without a physical keyboard:

Here they are: ASUS's duo of Tegra 2-powered, 10.1-inch tablets with unique physical keyboards. Starting with the craziest of them, is the Eee Pad Slider (pictured on the left), which reminds us a lot of HTC's old school Shift with its slide out QWERTY keyboard. The device is planned to run Google's Honeycomb, sports a IPS, 1280 x 800-resolution display, and houses mini-HDMI and miniUSB ports as well as a microSD card slot. The 2.2-pound / .5-inch thick slab also has dual cameras -- a 1.2 megapixel front-facing one and a 5 megapixel one with an LED flash on the back. We have to say we love the idea of always having that keyboard around, but if you don't want to drag along a physical keyboard all the time, ASUS has something for you too. It's the Transformer, and like the Eee Pad we saw at Computex, it's a 10.1-inch tablet that will come with a laptop like dock with a full size keyboard and touchpad. The tablet part -- like the Slider -- will run Android 3.0 and packs a dual-core Tegra 2 processor, two cameras, and a 1280 x 800-resolution IPS display, however, the dock has an integrated battery that will keep the tablet running for 16 hours on a charge -- the tablet on its own should last eight. We're obviously aching in our seats here waiting to get these two in our hands so stay tuned for some crazy videos of the two in action -- until then we leave you with the specs after the break.

Update: How much will it cost you to keyboard-ify your slate and how long will you have to wait? ASUS says the Transformer will run between $400 and $700 and the Slider from $500 to $800. Expect them in April and May respectively.

Gallery: ASUS Eee Slate Slider and Transformer

Gallery: ASUS Eee Pad Slider and Transformer

HP updates Envy 17, dv6, and dv7 with Sandy Bridge, gives Mini 210 some new threads

HP updates Envy 17, dv6, and dv7 with Sandy Bridge, gives Mini 210 some new threads:

No surprises here -- HP just updated a bunch of its consumer laptops here at CES, and the biggest change is that the Envy 17 and Pavilion dv6 and dv7 have been kicked over to Intel's Sandy Bridge second-gen Core processors. In addition to the new chips, the Envy 17 is getting HP CoolSense cooling and switchable AMD Radeon 6850M graphics with support for Intel Wireless Display -- pricing and availability haven't been determined yet, but we wouldn't expect it to be cheap. On the other hand, the dv6 and dv7 are mostly the same apart from the processor bump, and they'll be $899 and $999 when they hit on January 9th.

AMD announces first Fusion chips: 10+ hour battery life with DirectX11 graphics

AMD announces first Fusion chips: 10+ hour battery life with DirectX11 graphics:

Is this real? Is this happening? It's been over four years since AMD and ATI completed their $5.4 billion merger with the promise of Fusion hybrid CPU / GPU chips, and after what's seemed like nearly endless delays, the company's delivering here at CES 2011. And it's delivering in a big way -- the first Fusion chips are a direct assault on Intel's Atom and the netbook market, offering what AMD says is better CPU performance, vastly better GPU performance with DirectX11 support, dedicated 1080p HD video processing and HDMI out, and 'all day' battery life that can hit 10 or more hours. There are four total chips in two families built around the new 'Bobcat' CPU core to start: the 'Zacate' E-Series for mainstream laptops, AIOs and small desktops will have an 18W TDP and come in the 1.6GHz dual-core E-350 and the 1.5GHz single-core E-240, while the 'Ontario' C-Series for HD netbooks and 'other emerging form factors' will clock in at 9W TDP and come in the dual-core 1.0GHz C-50 and the single core 1.2GHz C-30. The 'Llano' A-Series designed for mainstream laptops will offer up to four cores and arrive later this year.

We're expecting to see a number of systems based around the E-Series -- the Lenovo X120e and HP Pavilion dm1 have already been announced -- and we're anticipating quite a flood in the days ahead, which we're more than eager to test out. AMD's making some serious claims -- it says 'Fusion processors are, quite simply, the greatest advancement in processing since the introduction of the x86 architecture more than forty years ago' -- and if can deliver on its performance promises, it'll pretty much turn the entire netbook market upside down. What's more, the company says tablets and other embedded devices are coming in the first half of 2011, so things could get seriously interesting. PR after the break.

Dell's IPS and multitouch ST2220T finally shipping to tilting monitor seekers

Dell's IPS and multitouch ST2220T finally shipping to tilting monitor seekers:

Well, it took a bit longer than we anticipated for Dell's glorious 21.5-inch multitouch ST2220T monitor with an IPS panel to roll into e-tailers -- last we had heard it was planned for late Fall 2010 -- but we promise you, this one is better late than never. The 1920 x 1080-resolution display is finally available through both Dell and LogicBuy, and if you're anything like us, just a glance at the picture above has you figuring out just how quickly you can get together $310 (there's a $20 discount now and free shipping from LogicBuy). Naturally, the IPS display is said to provide extra wide viewing angles, but perhaps even more enticing is the monitor's A-frame stand, which tilts the screen forward, backward and even flat. Put that all together with its infrared multitouch and you've got a larger than life tablet for gaming and watching Netflix. So, you blowing some of that Christmas cash or what?