LG stretches new monitors to the limit

No, your screen doesn't need adjusting. This photo you see here depicts LG's new 38-inch "stretched" LCD monitor.

It's one of two elongated models, the other being 29 inches, for situations where extra-wide displays are needed, such as commercial signage. That must be why its resolution--1,366 x 480--is relatively low, as it's probably not ideal for close-up reading.

The company says these monitors, which are destined for the UK market, work equally well either vertically or horizontally. Just keep your distance.

Via CNET Crave

Compact external hard drives now spin faster, too

More and more vendors have been joining the bandwagon of pocket-size portable external hard drives and it's interesting to see how each of them manages to make their product unique in its own right. The G-Drive mini Triple from G-Technology is one example of this.

The drive sports a very rugged, metallic look with its aluminum casing that also works as the cooling solution. Despite having metal all over, the drive is still very light, weighing only around 9 ounces. Designwise, the G-Drive is compact, however, if the Signature Mini appeals to the ladies, the G-Drive definitely screams masculine.

The version I have in my hands on today is the first drive I've run into that not only operates at a fast 7,200rpm (as opposed to 5,400rpm of other drives), but also backs that up with a high 200GB capacity. Whether this translates into higher throughput remains to be seen and CNET Labs will figure this out soon. The G-Drive mini Triple also comes in other sizes ranging from 160GB to 250GB. However, the high-speed version is only available in 200GB. (While the 5,400rpm 2.5-inch hard drives hit the 500GB mark a while ago, the top space for 7,200rpm version still remains at 200GB for now).
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Intel announces 4 Series desktop chipset family

Intel has four new desktop chipsets to show off from this year's Computex tradeshow in Taiwan. The G45 and the G43 focus on HD video playback by way of a new Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X4500HD integrated graphics chip. The P45 brings support for faster memory and is the first mainstream Intel-made chipset with two graphics card slots. A scaled-down P43 chipset rounds out the new 4 Series. All of the chipsets use Intel's familiar LGA 775 processor interface, which means support for Intel's Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad desktop CPUs. Intel has also added a 1,333MHz front side bus to each chipset, as well as support for DDR3 RAM, as well as DDR2 or DDR3 RAM at speeds up to 1,333MHz.

The new integrated graphics chip in the G45 and G43 is probably the most significant part of this announcement. First, according to Intel's claims, the GMA X4500HD chip gives the G45 and the G43 chipsets the ability to play HD video without requiring a discrete graphics card. The new chipsets include support for HDMI and DisplayPort video outputs, making them ready out-of-the-box to connect to HDTV and new PC monitors. AMD already has an HD-capable chipset in its AMD 780G circuitry, but that chipset has not achieved broad mainstream adoption.
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ASUS officially announces Eee Box details

Word got out a little early this morning regarding ASUS' small Eee Box, so we can share what we saw in a preview in our offices a few weeks back. The small, Wii-looking PC will hit the US via online retailers (and perhaps a few specialty brick-and-mortar shops) later this year.

The listed dimensions of the unit are 8.5-inches high, 1-inch wide, and 7-inches deep, standing upright on its included stand. It can also lie down flat.

Official specs are as follows:

• Operating system: Linux System/ Hardware Compatible with Windows XP
• CPU: Intel Atom N270 (1.6 GHz, FSB 533)
• Memory: 1 GB / 2 GB DDR2
• Hard drive: 80GB / 160GB 5,400 rpm
• Chipset: Intel 945GSE + ICH7M
• Integrated graphics chip: Intel GMA 950
• Networking: 10/100/1,000Mbps LAN, 802.11n WLAN, Bluetooth optional
• Media card reader supporting: SD, SDHC, miniSD, (microSD through adapter); MMC, MMC plus, MMC4.x, RS MMC, RSMMC4.x (MMC mobile through adapter); MS, MS PRO

For its rear ports you get two USB 2.0, one Gigabit LAN, a DVI output, left and right audio line-out with S/PDIF, and an input for a Wi-Fi antenna. There is no optical drive, but the Eee Box does feature a user removable hard drive to simplify upgrades and repairs.
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Hey, look! Full-size systems from ASUS

Lest you be mistaken, ASUS makes full-size systems, too. In addition to introducing its Eee Box SFF PC at Computex today along with adding WiMAX to its Eee PC minilaptop, ASUS had its first gaming desktop on display along with its G70 gaming laptop. The Ares Gaming PC serves up the expected high-end components, including an Intel Core 2 Extreme CPU, up to 8GB of DDR3 memory, and support for either Nvidia Quad SLI or ATI CrossfireX graphics. It'll carry up to 4TB of drive space and keeps all its parts running smoothly with a liquid-cooling system. As for the case itself, ASUS claims the design "draws upon ancient and modern armor concepts from both Eastern and Western cultures for a uniquely designed upper faceplate". I'd say it looks vaguely similar to Alienware's tried-and-true design. Though the Ares was seen earlier this year at CeBIT, ASUS still isn't talking price or availability; I'll update this post should my query to ASUS be met with any concrete figures or dates.
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