Nvidia GeForce 8800GT

This October, the G92 core announced its arrival and has got with it the new 65nm fab process, PCI-e 2.0 support, along with enhancements for Multisampling and Supersampling. We received a sample of the Geforce 8800GT card from Nvidia and put it through a rigorous 7-day regime of benchmarks, games, and some more benchmarks.


G92: A New Beginning


The G92 is the first Nvidia GPU to sport a 65nm fabrication process and is also the first to support the PCI-e 2.0 specification that will give a bandwidth of 8 GB/s (bi-directional) with an X38 motherboard. It promises enhanced graphics using MultiSampling and SuperSampling with integrated PureVideo 2 and claims to supports a resolution of 2560x1600. On the HD-Video front, it has onboard HDMI capability and can decode H.264 HD-Videos, but it doesn't seem to be able to decode VC-1 just yet.





Apart from all the flimflam in the media brochures, here's what's new.

Well, for starters, with the new 65-nm fab for the G92, the die's surface shrinks by around 33% as compared to a G84, but the surface area increases two-fold. It uses 754 million transistors (a lot more than the G80's 681 million). A big chunk of these additional transistors power PureVideo 2. It features 112 stream processors (as opposed to the G80's 128) but the texturing units see a jump from 48 to 56 (thus helping with Multisampling and SuperSampling).




The ultra high resolution 2560x1600 support will be more of use to designers than gamers; atleast for now. Maybe an 8800GT in SLI setup would be appropriate for gaming in that resolution.

8800GT Specifications





The Core clock in the 8800GT is tagged to run at 600 (MHz) with the Shaders running at 1500 MHz. With the G92, Nvidia returns to the power of binary with its 256-bit memory interface (as opposed to the 320-bit memory of the G80). The card has 512 MB of DDR3 memory running at 900 MHz.





The 8800GT card itself looks like a shaved down version of the 8800GTS (or GTX for that matter). It's slim and has a single slot design. The card requires external power and sports 2 DVI-D ports and a S-Video port at the back. The pictures below will tell you a better story.


Performance Analysis


Now that is some card.

That's what my teammates (and my editor too) said after they saw those performance graphs of the 8800GT. I felt the same nostalgia when I tested the 7600GT (when it was just out) as it gave a similar fps boost at that time.

The card is, as the clich goes, silent but deadly.

The performance in last generation DX9 games like F.E.A.R and Half Life (which scale really well), and also in games like Serious Sam II, where raw power is what matters the 8800GT is better than it's nearest competitors.

The DX10's performance was even better. Although the pricing and performance of the 8800GTS (320 MB) is good, it doesn't really live up to its name here. Too bad for those who've recently bought the GTS.

OpenGL's performance is not much of a concern at this point as there aren't many games that support it and even lesser are to be expected, if any. For now, DX10 is the way to go and I'm sure the scenario won't change in the near future as well.

We played the much awaited Crysis (on medium to high detail) and really enjoyed the 30-40fps that the card churned out.

The new MultiSampling and Supersampling techniques didn't make their presence felt, at least in the current games.

The 8800GT can take anything you throw at it, and handle it well, I must say.

Overclocking

By default, the 8800GT is clocked at 600/1800 MHz (Core/Memory). We were able to push it up to 775/1940 MHz (Core/Memory) after a bit of tinkering around. Overall, we pushed the core up by around 29% while the memory jumped a measly 7%.




The 3DMark 2005 score jumped up by a pedestrian 2% only, but what we have is an engineering sample from Nvidia so can expect atleast an 8-10% boost in the commercial samples.

Conclusion

A few years back, Nvidia's Geforce Ti 4200 created a furor; something that really created the mainstream segment in graphics cards. They followed it up again with the 6600GT and the 7600GT, both being remarkable cards from their respective series. The 8600GT was no different, but the 8800GT has raised the bar even higher. The price to performance ratio of the 8800GT is one of the best and being able to get it for around Rs. 15,000 makes it a sweet deal.

Highly recommended for those building a robust midrange gaming rig.

notepad X

Notepad needs no introduction. It is a standard, very basic, and light word processor included in Windows OS. The other day I was just typing out some notes in Notepad and wished it was able to deliver just a little bit more. Obviously, I wasn't looking for fancy accessories, else I'd just go ahead and use Microsoft Word. So I googled for a Notepad alternative and came across many, but Notepad X was the one that caught my attention.





Features

Here's a list of features that got me to try out Notepad X.

Tabbed Interface




Just like Opera or Firefox have tabbed browsing interface, Notepad X supports it as well. It goes without saying that working with tabs is comfortable. A tabbed interface helps you work with many .TXT files in one window, saving space on your Windows taskbar instead of clustering it with many windows.

Switch between Tabs

Unfortunately, this doesn't switch between tabs the way I'd want it to. Generally with most browsers, "Tab" and "Shift + Tab" for "Next tab" and "Previous tab" are the defaults. Although in Notepad X, the shortcuts are provided, but they're currently not functional since the program is still in the development stages and is not the final release.

Rich Text Formation





Notepad X provides you with a Rich Text Formation toolbar. The toolbar is very similar to the one seen in Word, but is a much stripped down version. It consists of the following buttons -- Bold, Italics, Underline, Strikeout, Left Align, Center Align, Right Align, Bullets, Font, Font Color, and Insert Image.

These are too little, but then this is better than the basic facilities that a simple Notepad offers. In standard Notepad, one change to the text formation will lead to the change in the entire matter but here you can even format just a word or a portion of the text. That is in relation with the font and the color as well as the adding bullets and text alignment.

The New Rich MacBook PRO

Computer Choppers has something for the jewelry obsessed MacBook owner. The company has modded a MacBook Pro in an all 24-carat gold plating.




If that wasn't enough, the Apple logo on the Book is a 3-carat diamond stud.




It'd make a rich gift for a wife or for those who love to go bling bling on the natural beauty of the MacBook. There are different versions ranging from USD 7,000 (Rs.2,80,000) to USD 8,000 (Rs.3,20,000).

Apple Unveils the iPod Touch

Putting an end to all the speculation of these past weeks, Apple Computer yesterday launched its all new iPod, the iPod Touch.

The reported whoops and hollers might go to justify Apple CEO, Steve Jobs' claim that 'the seventh wonder of the world' had just been unveiled. Also dubbed as 'the God machine', the newbie iPod looks a lot like the iPhone -- except that it is no phone.


A sleek looking touch-controlled iPod, the iPod Touch sports a 3.5-inches color screen, built-in WiFi Internet access, and Apple's Safari Internet browser.

The iPod Touch will come in 2 versions: an 8GB version priced at GBP 199; and a 16GB version costing GBP 269.

Both versions are expected to be on the British market this month.




Apart from unveiling the iPod Touch, Apple revamped its iPod line that includes a reworked iPod Nano and the iPod Classic.

The new Nano features 22 hours audio playback and 5 hours video playback. The flip side is the Nano suddenly looks as if it has put on some weight

The 4GB iPod Nano comes in Silver for $149, while the 8GB iPod Nano comes in Silver, Black, Blue, Green, and a special Red edition for $199. Both new Nanos come with 3 fun games, and additional games can be purchased from the iTunes store (www.itunes.com).

Both 4GB and 8GB iPod Nano models for Windows or Mac are immediately available worldwide through the Apple Store (www.apple.com), Apple retail stores, and Apple Authorized Resellers.

Meanwhile, the iPod Classic comes in Silver and Black in 2 versions; 80GB model and 160GB model. The 80GB iPod Classic is priced at $249 and the 160GB iPod Classic costs $349. Both models are immediately available worldwide.

Interestingly, while Apple was making announcements, Microsoft announced a slash in the price of its Zune digital media player by $50 to $199. The software major claimed it had been planning a price cut all this while...





Apple also unveiled the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store, offering fans the ability to browse, search, preview, purchase, and download songs and albums from iTunes over a Wi-Fi network directly onto their iPod Touch or iPhone, sans any computer as intermediary.

When owners of the iPod Touch or iPhone connect their gizmos back to their PCs or Macs, the downloaded music would automatically sync back to their iTunes library. In case they have only partially downloaded a song or album onto their Touch or iPhone, the computer would complete the download automatically.

Meanwhile, prices and selection on the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store would remain the same as on the regular iTunes Store. Both the new iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store and custom iTunes ringtones for iPhone will be available later this month.

Additionally, Apple announced lowering the price of its iPhone (8GB) from $599 to $399 in the US. The iPhone 4GB model will be sold until supplies last, Apple said.

Microsoft SideWinder Gaming Mouse

Microsoft is again showing its gaming peripherals the light of the day; SideWinder - the gaming brand from Microsoft lives again. They have a mouse which has a 2,000 DPI, a wired critter, and sports a Quick Turn feature which lets users check their perimeter at any angle. It has a weight cartridge system with a variety of feet to get the best gaming comfort.

It also has a cable management system to boot, and on-the-fly DPI adjustment with an LCD to display the current DPI set. Microsoft claims that this is the first gaming mouse to arrive with an LCD built right in, which allows users to "easily keep track of key gaming actions, including their DPI and steps for recording macros." The mouse will be released in October with a price tag of $79.95 (Rs. 3,200).

5 megapixel camera phone from LG Electronics

LG Electronics today announced the LG-KU990 (LG Viewty) mobile phone with a 5.1 megapixel camera.

LG Electronics today announced plans to launch 'LG Viewty' (Model: LG-KU990), its very first professional-level high feature camera phone, destined to steal the spotlight.

LG Mobile, which led design innovation in the mobile handset arena last year, is once again turning the tables on mobile phone trends by expanding their product category to introduce series of high feature phones.

The 'LG Viewty', the first handset representing LG Mobile's new feature-oriented category, combines ultimate functionality with sensational style that one can expect from LG Mobile. The name 'LG Viewty' has been chosen to encapsulate the enjoyment of viewing and sharing high-quality photos. This is made possible through the large LCD screen and extensive functionality of the camera phone.

Users of the 'LG Viewty' will be able to enjoy a complete mobile digital imagery experience. Boasting its 5.1 megapixel camera with manual focus and image stabilizer features, the 'LG Viewty' takes high quality photographs with endless possibilities to allow users to enhance their images through the extensive editing features of the phone.

The sleek handset, whose size defies its amount of features, introduces world's first 120 fps video recording feature in a mobile camera phone. A single-click connection to YouTube allows users to share their very own film moments with others on the internet.

Dr. Skott Ahn, CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company says "This is a very exciting time for LG Mobile. The LG Black Label Series and our collaboration with PRADA have cemented our position as an innovator in design and style. With the launch of the new 'LG Viewty we are now also proving our commitment to technical enhancement and look forward to taking the feature phone category by storm."

The 'LG Viewty' which will be available for buy from October, will first be revealed during the IFA 2007 in Berlin on August 31, 2007.

Toshiba announces 16 GB & 32 GB SD High Capacity memory cards

Toshiba adds new SD High Capacity (SDHC) cards and microSDHC card to memory card line-up.

Three new cards were announced, including the worlds first 32-gigabyte (GB) memory card in this high density. Alongside the 32GB SDHC card, Toshiba also announced a 16GB SDHC card and an 8GB microSDHC card. All the new cards meet the Class 4 specification in the SD Speed Class, ensuring they deliver the high level performance and functionality essential for advanced mobile phones and other personal digital products.

The 16GB SDHC card will be available worldwide from October, and the 32GB SDHC card and 8GB microSDHC card will be launched worldwide in January next year.

SDHC Memory Cards can be used with devices that support the SD Memory Card Ver. 2.00 standard. They are not backward compatible with standard SD Memory Cards. Toshiba say that they have only been able to produce standard SD cards up to a maximum size of 2GB. In order to meet high-capacity needs, the new SDHC-standard cards was presented. SDHC cards use the FAT32 file system and are high-capacity.

The market for high density memory cards is growing fast, driven by increasing demand for personal digital equipment able to handle motion pictures and high resolution images. Demand for high density microSDHC cards is expected to emerge in the mobile phone market, as on-board cameras advance multi-megapixel capacities, and demand for music and motion pictures are expanding as well.

The expanded new card series will be featured at the IFA 2007, in Berlin, Germany from August 31 to September 5.