[B]Dell Announces XPS M1710 Gaming Notebook
Dell’s latest XPS notebook brings Core Duo support and GeForce Go 7900 GS/GTX graphics[/B]
Dell has unleashed its fastest notebook for the consumer market, the 8.75 pound XPS M1710. The XPS M1710 leverages the power of Intel’s Core Duo processors and dedicated 256MB GeForce Go 7900 GS and 512MB GeForce Go 7900 GTX mobile GPUs.
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According to Dell, the XPS M1710 delivers 35% better performance than its predecessor thanks to its support for Core Duo processors up to T2600 and up to 4GB of 667MHz DDR2 memory.
As is the usual case with an XPS model, the M1710 comes fully loaded with a magnesium-alloy reinforced RoadReady chassis, TrueLife 17" UXGA display, 5-in-1 card reader and an optional TV tuner.
The Windows XP Media Center Edition based XPS M1710 will be available in Metallic Black for a starting price of $2,600. A Special Edition Formula Red model will be available for $3,400.
[break=Maxtor Launches Tiny Backup Drive]
Maxtor Launches Tiny Backup Drive
Maxtor unveiled its new OneTouch III Mini Edition external hard drive today. The small device weighs a mere 7 ounces and is designed for extreme portability. Connecting to Windows computers via USB 2.0 or slower USB 1.0 ports, the cute little drive comes in 60GB and 100GB capacities ($149.95 and $199.95 respectively).
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The OneTouch III Mini Edition sports a rugged design with rubber side panels, so you should be able to toss the OneTouch into bags without fearing damage, just as you would a flash drive. Guarding your data is Maxtor’s DriveLock system to encrypt info and Maxtor Synch software to automatically back-up the contents living on your main storage drive (both preloaded on the Mini).
[break=Nvidia touts ‘flagship’ GeForce Go 7900 GPUs]
Nvidia touts ‘flagship’ GeForce Go 7900 GPUs
Nvidia has formally unveiled the GeForce Go 7900 mobile graphics chip family notebook maker Toshiba pre-announced last month. Then, Toshiba debuted a laptop based on the 7900 GS - today, Nvidia added the 7900 GTX to the line-up.
The two 7900 GPUs are fabbed at 90nm. The “flagship” 7900 GTX has a fill rate of 12bn pixels per second and can process 1bn vertices in the same timeframe. The 7900 GS, which is pitched at “slimmer performance notebooks”, offers a 7.5bn pixels per second fill rate and a 656m vertices per second rate.
Both provide all the key features of other, lesser 7000-series mobile GPUs - Shader Model 3.0 support, PureVideo H.264 hardware acceleration, CineFX 4.0, Intellisample 4.0, PCI Express, GDDR 3 memory support etc. - but presumably with higher memory and core clock frequencies. Nvidia didn’t provide numbers, but the two new chips’ memory clocks are 600MHz and 500MHz, respectively, making for effective clock speeds of 1.2GHz and 1GHz.
Nvidia said the 7900 GTX and 7900 GS are now available to order in notebooks from Toshiba and Dell, with product coming “soon” from the likes of Gateway, ABS, Voodoo PC, Vicious PC, AJP, Evesham, Hypersonic and others. Alienware is notable by its absence from the list.