Alienware's Area-51 m17x gaming laptop now on sale

For most, Alienware's AlienNetwork debut was somewhat of a letdown. Nevertheless, at least one good thing did come out of the whole event, and that's the availability of the m17x gaming monster. This 17-inch beast of a laptop finally has its own dedicated page, and yes, you can get your order in starting today. Packed within, you'll find your choice of Intel Core 2 Duo processor, twin GPUs for that sweet SLI action, a WUXGA (1,920 x 1,200) display, up to 4GB of DDR2 RAM, oodles of hard drive space, a dual-layer DVD writer (or optional Blu-ray burner), enough ports for you and your cousin and a 12-cell battery that'll likely last an hour on a good day. Sadly, this Crysis destroyer starts at $2,949 (and breaks the $5k mark with ease), and it looks as if units won't start arriving until late May at best.

Video: Dell's XPS M1530 and M1330 now pink like flowers and pigs

Ugh, it's springtime again. So in addition to the pools of human secretions warming into an olfactory howdy-do on city sidewalks, we get these, the pink laptops. The pink XPS M1530 and M1330 now official. Check the late-nite Dell Infomercial after the break; Ron Popeil Productions must be so proud.

Source : www.engadget.com

Epson, Sanrio team up for two more Hello Kitty laptop designs

Don't bother asking if the madness will ever end; you know good and well it won't. Now that we're clear, let's focus on the latest Hello Kitty-blasted laptop: the May-bound Endeavor NJ2100. Available in either a floral-inspired or airplane-dominated theme, the predominantly Pearl White machine touts rather exceptionally modest specs (shocked?) including a 15.4-inch WXGA display, 1.86GHz Intel Celeron processor, 1GB of DDR2 RAM, an 80GB hard drive, 3-in-1 multicard reader, gigabit Ethernet / WiFi and Windows Vista Home. You'll also find a FireWire socket, four USB 2.0 ports, a PC Card slot and around one measly hour of battery life from the standard cell. Totally not worth the ¥147,000 ($1,409) asking price, but then again, cuteness demands a serious, serious premium these days.

Falcon Northwest's portable FragBox 8500 gaming rig gets reviewed

Oh yeah, you've options oozing everywhere for a bona fide gaming desktop that takes up some serious square footage in your domicile, but what about those looking for a potent portable? And we're not talking laptops, either. Falcon Northwest's FragBox 8500 -- which sports a chassis that hasn't changed much in years -- was recently reviewed by the folks over at PC Magazine, and put simply, it was deemed a "game system without apologies." Checking in at $1,895, critics found the internals to be "neatly put together," the unit as a whole satisfactorily mobile and yes, they confirmed that "you will definitely be able to play the DX10-heavy versions of Crysis and World in Conflict at very decent frame rates." Did you hear that? They said Crysis. Head on down to the read link for the full review of the Editors' Choice-awarded machine.

NVIDIA pushing up GeForce 9900 to outgun Radeon HD 4800?

NVIDIA's been on a hyper-competitive tear lately, and while the latest rumor isn't quite on par with Roy Taylor saying that the Intel CPU is "dead," it reinforces the company's new win-at-all-costs attitude. Seems ATI's upcoming RV770-based Radeon HD 4800 might threaten NVIDIA's dominance of the high-end graphics market, and that's just not acceptable -- so the company is planning on pushing up the release of the GeForce 9900 to July. That's one billion transistors and GDDR3 memory, if you haven't been memorizing rumored graphic card specs -- we're guessing that blue screen of death will render mighty fast on that rig.

NVIDIA VP joins the smack-talk fun, says the Intel CPU is "dead"

Alright, we're loving this new hyper-aggressive, sorta-nasty version of NVIDIA. Not only has CEO Jen Hsun-Huang promised to "open a can of whoop-ass" on Intel, the company has been touting its new sub-$45 integrated platform as far superior to Celeron-based systems, and now we've got VP of Content Relations Roy Taylor sending out emails saying that "a war has started" and pronouncing the Intel CPU "dead." Roy says Intel is "panicking" because CPUs have "run out of steam," and that they "no longer make anything run faster." According to Roy -- whose nickname is "Big Pipe," no joke -- the only thing that needs to get faster is the GPU, and NVIDIA's going to make it happen. That's some brash talk, all around -- let's hope NVIDIA's ready when Intel brings Nehalem out to play. Check out the whole email at the read link.

Fujitsu's MHZ2 CJ series drives take crypto seriously

Coming in capacities ranging from 80 to 320GB, Fujitsu's new MHZ2 CJ series drives don't just spin at 7200rpm -- these security-conscious drives also have full-disk hardware-based AES-256 encryption, which ought to forestall indefinitely any potential laptop-nappers. We don't yet know how much the extra security will tack on to the bottom line, but they'll be out by the end of next month (in Japan, anyway).

Yoggie's Gatekeeper ExpressCard keeps your laptop secure

Yoggie, the company that just loves to take those pesky security duties off of your computer's plate, is offering up yet another Linux-based mini-computer designed specifically to safeguard your laptop (and keep it focused on more important duties). Rather than utilizing USB, however, the Gatekeeper Card Pro slides right into that oft-neglected ExpressCard slot, giving laptop owners 13 security applications and the ability to rest easy. Of course, whether or not this convenience is really worth $199 is another question entirely.

Sony buys Gracenote for $260m

You remember Gracenote, right? They're the company that some years back kinda sorta misled everybody that populated the CDDB with data by selling the whole thing and closing off the platform. Well, they're laughing all the way to the bank once again: Sony just bought 'em up for $260m, with the deal set to close in late May.

ASUS replacing Eee PC 900 batteries with longer lasting versions

Attaboy, ASUS. Not even 24-hours after reports starting flooding in over end users receiving less capacious Eee PC batteries in Hong Kong than expected, the firm is stepping up and doing the right thing. According to an admittedly rough translation of a statement on its website, ASUS is openly thanking its supporters for their business, and while it seems as though it's still chalking the whole mishap up as a simple mistake, every single Hong Kong-based customer will be receiving a free (5800mAh) replacement.

Microsoft finally releases new Vista Ultimate Extras, still "ultimate" in name only

Last year Microsoft really carried on about fulfilling its commitment to all the power users that anted up to get untold future Vista Ultimate Extras -- yet none really materialized besides the disappointing early stuff like DreamScene and Texas Hold 'Em. Well, get ready to feel a whole new wave of Ultimate justification wash over you, because today Microsoft is releasing a trifecta of new Extras: sound schemes, DreamScape animations, and OS language packs. Oh yeah, there's definitely some Vista "Wow" in here -- but it's mostly from being kind of appalled at these sorry post-apologetic excuses for "ultimate"-grade software additions. Someone wake us when Microsoft decides it cares about making good on its many unfulfilled promises to Vista users.

Dell unveils tiny bamboo-cased eco-computer concept

Michael Dell spoke at Fortune's Brainstorm:Green conference today, and he took the wraps off this funky bamboo-encased eco-PC concept. Said to be Dell's smallest-ever computer, the machine is 81 percent smaller than a standard desktop and uses 70 percent less power. There's no word on what's inside yet, but Dell says the machine is due to be released later this year, and should cost between $500 and $700. Hit the read link for a couple more shots, and check out a render after the break.

Sanyo's Xacti DMX-CA8 waterproof camcorder drips VGA weak sauce

Not much to get excited about here unless you've got a thing for shooting 640 x 480 VGA video underwater. Shipping in May for a bit less than $500, Sanyo's latest waterproof Xacti packs a 5x optical zoom and 8 megapixel CMOS sensor for stills and MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 video recordings at 60fps to SDHC media. It also carries JIS IPX5 and IPX8 waterproof ratings which means it'll go to a depth of 1.5-meters for up to 1-hour without electronic seizure. Video riot after the break.

Video: Hands-on Samsung's 10 megapixel / 720p NV24HD shooter

Samsung and pretty much everyone else is taking a long hard look at their clumsy UIs as consumer electronics continue to commodify. We've certainly seen that demonstrated with striking effect with the Samsung F480's unfortunately named TouchWiz interface. Now take a look at the UI for Samsung's NV24HD. Besides shooting 720p video, this 10.2 megapixel shooter with 24-mm ultra-wide angle lens features a series of touch-sensitive buttons surrounding a brilliant 2.5-inch AMOLED display. An interesting twist on the lifeless touch-screens we've seen on other cameras. However, it does so at the expense of screen size on a crowded back panel. Still, we're a bit smitten by the user experience which we quickly got the hang of. See for yourself in the video after the break.

Seagate: 1 billion drives served

Seagate claims it's the first company to hit the magical "one billion drives shipped" mark, and doesn't plan on slowing down any time soon. The company was founded in 1979, with its first drive offering up 5MB of storage for a whopping $1,500. We've certainly come a long way in 29 years, and Seagate expects to ship its next billion drives in less than five years. Of course, with all this "cloud computing" talk we'd think drive sales have to slow down at some point, but there's certainly no sign of our GB appetites abating just yet. Now if you'll excuse us, we need to download this 7GB MMO demo to a secondary hard drive.

Lenovo axes the 4:3 ThinkPad T61 -- are widescreens better?

Lenovo's the latest laptop vendor to go to a mostly-widescreen lineup today, as it retires the 4:3 14.1-inch ThinkPad T61. All that's left in the standard ratio are the 12.1-inch X-series laptops, and even those are something of a novelty in today's 13.3-inch dominated market. It's not a formal move and there's no announcement, but it's clearly a growing trend -- Apple, Sony, and HP don't offer any 4:3 laptops either -- and it's got us wondering what people prefer. Just amongst Engadget editors there's no clear agreement: some of us prize vertical real estate, while others say tiling windows horizontally provides maximum multitasking power, and one ed rocks both 16:9 and 4:3 displays side-by-side -- but that's probably crazy.

PS3 gets armor plating, can now withstand the crushing boredom of no games

MGS4 and GT5 are going to rock and you know it. Still, that doesn't excuse the existence of Messiah Entertainment's "Hardwear Console Armor," which apparently enables your PS3 to deflect bullets in addition to playing games and Blu-ray movies. Don't forget to add the controller armor, which'll actually probably impart some much-needed weight to the SIXAXIS and also let you break the crap out of your TV when you toss the thing in frustration. Seriously, take the $30 these things'll cost you and put it towards a DualShock 3, alright? You'll be much happier, your console will look less ridiculous, and no one will make fun of you.

Wiimote cuff links: an accelerometer short of greatness

It's somewhat unfortunate that they kept you waiting, but the same folks who brought those Sony fanboys their very own PlayStation controller cuff links have now doled out an option for Mario's closest of friends. The Wiimote cuff links don't stop with just a sterling silver Wiimote -- oh no, you'll also find a finely crafted nunchuk on the bottom end to keep the purists smiling. Sure, an actual Wii console only demands an extra Benjamin over the $150 pair, but it's not like you can find the former in stock anywhere, anyway.

Virtual Wall concept protects pedestrians, livens up crosswalks

Let's face it -- pedestrians are already running amok in major city crosswalks; it's not like we really need to help them hold up the line of traffic any longer while their light is red, is it? All pent up aggression aside, Hanyoung Lee's brilliant Virtual Wall concept could certainly assist the non-hardened tourists cross from one side to another without fear of being flattened. Essentially, the light-formed barrier would keep cars and Earthlings separated while individuals are cleared to walk, and while we aren't sure if bumping into said obstacle would cause tire deflation, engine stall or any other totally tough consequences, we can't imagine it being too effective (or fun, in a devilish way) otherwise.

Eee PC 900 owners find weaker batteries than those used by reviewers

This isn't going to end well for Asus. Early adopters of the Eee PC 900 in Hong Kong are in a spat with Asus over batteries. Seems the Eee PC 900 ships with a standard 4-cell, 4400mAh battery whereas the battery shipped to the Hong Kong media (and presumably others) was a 4-cell, 5800mAh; the latter Asus is calling a mistake. That would certainly account for the wide ranging Eee PC 900's battery life reviews which have varied from a very disappointing 1.5 hours to a decent 2.5-hours. Of course testing methods will also contribute to lifespan. Regardless, ASUS is now considering giving 900 buyers a free upgrade. Our suggestion? Just do it Asus, and pronto. Else the Eee PC brand you've become so dependent upon is going to take a serious beating.

Samsung expects affordable medium to large OLED displays in 2009 / 2010

Remember Samsung's 14- and 31-inch OLED panels on display at CES? With any luck, we'll see them hitting assembly lines sometime in the next two years. Woo-Jong Lee, VP Marketing at Samsung SDI says that medium and large size displays like monitors, laptops, and TVs will get the OLED treatment in 2009 and 2010. Nothing we haven't heard before. Still, given the group's recent distractions it's good to hear it again. Samsung is expected to achieve a production capacity of 3 million OLED panels in 2009 (double the current capacity) before hitting 6 million or so in 2010. That type of output should allow Samsung to start pushing down costs in '09 thanks to economies of scale -- good news for consumers. They'd better hurry though; we're this close to dropping $2,500 for Sony's 11-inch XEL-1. Silly, we know, but you'd understand if you've ever seen the display.