Dell Updates Graphic Solutions for Alienware M17x Notebook

Dell is undergoing some major updates for the fourth generation of the popular Alienware M17x gaming notebook. The said machine will reportedly be packed with the next-gen 28nm AMD Radeon HD 7970M and Nvidia GeForce GTX 660M or GTX 675M graphics solutions.

According to Dell's website, this GPU update will also be accompanied by a series of new display options, which includes the usual 1920x1080 Full HD as well as the 1600x900 HD+ panels. Some 3D-enabled 1920x1080 Full HD screen with WLED backlighting will be available as well.

Regardless of the scree panel to be used, these will be connected to the GPU through the new eDP (embedded DisplayPort) interface, which reduces the wiring footprint and reduces power consumption when compared to previous LVDS that's commonly used in laptps.

The Alienware M17x R4 comes with a 240W AC adapter and will be available in black or red. No details regarding the pricing or the release date of Alienware’s gaming notebook have been provided.

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Intel Confirms Release Details of Ivy Bridge CPUs

Intel has finally confirmed the Launch date of Ivy Bridge CPUs. The said chips are to be released between the end of First Quarter and Q2 of 2012. Ivy Bridge was designed primarily to try and reduce power consumption, while boosting integrated graphics performance.

From what we can tell they’ve accomplished both, though the pure CPU performance gains are slightly more modest. Power savings average out to around 19% less than the Sandy Bridge equivalents, with TDP dropping from 95 watts to around 77 watts at the same performance levels.

The delay will have a knock-on effect on the production of the next generation of Ultrabooks which are set to rely upon Intel's Ivy Bridge mobile processor to deliver longer battery life and faster speeds than its predecessor, Sandy Bridge. All of the new chips are based on Intel’s new 22nm process technology.

The arrival of Ivy Bridge should also bring much-needed price drops for Sandy Bridge-based Ultrabooks. Earlier this month, DigiTimes cited unnamed sources who said prices for existing Ultrabooks could fall by 20 percent to 30 percent with the arrival of Ivy Bridge. Theprices of Ivy Bridge CPUs cut to $60-70 that translates into 45 to 53 Euros.

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Acer Launches Aspire V5 and V3 Series Ultrabooks

Acer has launched the Aspire V5 and V3 Series in Hannover, Germany at the CeBIT tradeshow. These cool, stylish and ultrathin netbooks are very convenient and easy to use perfect for users who travels a lot but needs to stay connected.

Most of the V5 Series notebooks are 30% thinner than the same class so they’re easy to handle on the go. The 11.6-inch model is less than 15 mm thin whereas the 14-inch model has an optical drive and is 21 mm and 2.1 kg; the V3 Series comes in 15.6-inch model, also with an optical drive, is thinner than 23 mm, and weighs less than 2.3 kg.

The Aspire V3 Series packed with Intel Core i-series processors and NVIDIA GeForce graphics. While the V5 Series entails powerfulIntel Coreprocessors, and NVIDA, GeForce, GT Series graphics for exciting daily multitasking, content creation and multimedia satisfaction.

This new breed of slimmer netbook makes it easier to share files with other digital gadgets via 3.0 USB ports with LAN/VGA combo port.

Lastly, Acer Instant Connect, which automatically scans and registers most-visited access points, letting userconnect to the Internet in just a matter of seconds, four times faster than standard methods, one of its unique feature.

Acer Aspire One launching with Celeron and Pentium chip start and will be priced at 399€ while the V5 series starts at 499€.

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A Wearable Camera Eye is Cooler than Wearing a Patch

If you can still see clearly on two eyes, you’ll definitely give all the care for them. But if you have been in some sort of an accident which have cost you an eye, then it can be very uncomfortable walking around the streets while people take a glance on you wearing an eye patch. In some cases, it can scare off small children since they often see bad guys wear them on television shows and movies.

Aren't you a sight for a detachable camera eye

A prosthetic eye, on the other hand, can mostly conceal your condition but it cannot provide you the vision of a natural human eye. However, a woman in San Francisco, named Tanya Vlach, was able to wear a customized prosthetic eye by having a small waterproof webcam installed inside the prosthetic eyeball.

The camera can transmit 720p HD video to a wireless mobile app, while its blink-activated sensor enables zooming and capturing images. It also features face recognition, IR/UV capture, dilating pupils based on light changes as well as geotagging.

The implanted eye camera may not replace natural sight. However, it can definitely help make the best out of the rest of your life compared to wearing an eye patch.

Microsoft's Development on Codename: "Windows 8"

The new look of Microsoft's next operating system...

Microsoft Corp displayed a version of its next operating system at the All Things Digital technology conference in late May. This emphasizes touchscreen features , which are optimized for tablet computers.

The world's biggest software company is expected to release the new system, what’s known as Windows 8, in 18 months time since it is trying to catch up with the success of Apple's iPad that was released on the market more than a year ago.

In an exhibition at the D9 conference held in Palos Verdes, California, a Microsoft executive presented an opening page that is similar to Microsoft's most recent phone software, with live “tiles” that are controllable by pressing and swiping the screen.

Steven Sinofsky, head of Microsoft's Windows unit, said that the product did not have a name until now, but he did not also mention the exact date of its availability.

“The release date is a ‘Defense Department secret’,” Sinofsky joked, adding that it is not going to be this autumn.

Microsoft usually aims for 24 to 36 months between major Windows versions, assuming that the release date for the next Windows is in between October 2011 and October 2012.

Sinofsky, who mentioned that Microsoft was not out of the game in tablets, guaranteed more details at a developers' conference that is going to be held in September.

He did say Microsoft is working to combine Internet telephone service Skype into the new system, following its agreement to buy the company last month.

The exhibition shows Microsoft is progressing toward the new operating system that should guarantee to run on a variety of hardware devices from desktop PCs to laptops and tablets, with both touchscreen as well as mouse and keyboard commands.

Five months back, Sinofsky displayed a crude version of the new Windows system working on ARM Holdings chips – which work better on mobile devices because of their low power requirements – at the Consumer Electronics Show in January.

That indicated a change in importance for Microsoft toward mobile devices, even though the new Windows will still run on chips made by their traditional partner, Intel Corp.

Heads Up for Windows x64 and Mac OS Users

The latest malware is now on the loose, threatening both Microsoft's Windows x64 and Apple's Mac operating systems. This is composed of a 64-bit rootkit that works on 64-bit versions of Windows with a rogue antivirus for Mac computers.

According to Kaspersky Lab Expert, Vyacheslav Zakorzhevsky, the threat executes a downloader to download fake antivirus programs, including one for Mac. The downloader will also run under Windows, the fake Mac antivirus is also downloaded, but it will not be executed.


Zakorzhevsky also mentioned that this may show those behind the fake antivirus for Mac are distributing it by all possible means, without knowing what they are going to install on target computers.

"Interestingly, one link leads to Hoax.OSX.Defma.f which we recently wrote about. Most importantly, the rootkit tries to run it... under Windows! It appears that the developers of the latest rogue AV program for MacOS are actively distributing it via intermediaries, who don’t really understand what it is they are supposed to install on users’ computers,"


– as mentioned on Zakorzhevsky's blog post.


Zakorzhevsky said that the rogue program is downloaded and installed with the BlackHole Exploit Kit, exploiting the weak points in Java as well as in Adobe PDF reader software.


Both drivers are basic rootkits with high functionality. One is a 32-bit while the other a 64-bit driver.


The 64-bit driver is signed using a so-called testing digital signature that executes Windows Vista and 7 if it is booted in "TESTSIGNING" mode. A "TESTSIGNING" mode lets drivers and applications being developed by software developers to launch in Windows.

Where's the "Panic Button" when you need it..?

"Cybercriminals also use this loophole: they execute the command ‘bcdedit.exe –set TESTSIGNING ON’ that enables them to launch their driver without an authorized signature," Zakorzhevsky noted.


When the driver is loaded successfully and runs on the system, the rootkit halts the execution of drivers belonging to anti-rootkit and antivirus products.

Do Not Fall for Facebook's Latest Spam Scam

If you’ve logged on to Facebook lately, there are certain invitation that intends to show you a list of people who viewed your profile. If you come across with something like this, don't ever think about clicking the link

Trend Micro’s Malware Blog warns the users that clicking on the link, or accepting the invite would cause the user to share spam without their unknowingly. Here is a walk through on how this scam works.

If you have received an ‘invitation’ on your Facebook account and it showed up in the Events section with the heading “How to Find Out Who’s Viewing Your Profile,” you could get curious and click on the link.

Whatever you do, do NOT click the link

Once you have read the instructions and  it says: You NEED TO FOLLOW ALL INSTRUCTIONS BELOW TO FIND OUT WHO’S IS VIEWING YOUR PROFILE. Even if it has some typographical error, you read that you have to invite your friends to be able to “attend” said event. Once your done, you will receive a message that goes like, WHEN DONE GO TO http://bit.ly/...AND SEE WHO’S IS VIEWING YOUR PROFILE.

This will not actually direct you to the link that shows the list of your friends viewing your profile. Instead, you just executed a script that shares the same link to your other friends on Facebook.

Spammers are the bottom feeders of the cyber world these days. Their latest strategy plainly shows the lengths they will go to just so they can make some money out of their unsuspecting prey.