While we patiently wait to see what Apple has in store with its traditional Black Friday sale, MacMall and Ideal Purchase have already kicked the sale into gear. Superior yet, MacRumors has created a handy summary chart that links you directly to the ideal possible deal. With no hardware updates expected through the end of the year and Apple’s own Black Friday discounts typically falling between meager and stingy (and discounts being a rarity in general), this is likely your best-bet opportunity to hop on the switcher wagon or step up to a new unibody MacBook. Just click that read link to get started.

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops

Black Friday Mac discounts underway originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 03:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Just six short months after Fedora 9 hit the tubes, in flies Fedora 10 to give you something new to tinker with over Thanksgiving break. The latest iteration of the Linux-based OS bundles in OpenOffice 3.0 and touts a “wide range of improvements in areas such as virtualization management, networking, boot time and security.” Don’t mind us, though — you can delve as deep as you like in the release notes while your download progresses.

[Via Personal computer World]

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops

Fedora 10 goes live: your download awaits originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 03:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In the battle between new 16-inch multimedia notebooks, it’s safe to say that Laptop Mag likes Acer’s rig over Samsung’s R610. The Aspire 6930 (or 6930G-6723, if we’re speaking specifics), was said to have an eye-catching design, great Blu-ray playback and solid all-around performance suitable for a media-minded lappie. Not to mention the sub-$1,000 sticker — that helped, too. In actuality, the only real knock was the fact that a 1080p display wasn’t included at the $999 price point, but we all know that’s just being greedy. These critics didn’t hesitate to dish out a 4 out of 5 star rating for Acer’s latest 16-incher, calling it “a winner” for anyone looking for a “relatively lightweight desktop replacement that’s not too costly.”

Filed under: Laptops

Acer’s 16-inch Aspire 6930 reviewed: right on the money originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Nov 2008 21:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HP broke some considerable new ground by creating the very first “memristor” earlier this year, but it looks care about it didn’t rest on its laurels for very long, as it has now also taken the wraps off the first hybrid memristor-transistor chip at (where else?) the inaugural Memristor and Memristor Systems Symposium. According to the researchers at HP Labs, the memristors are able to do the job of the transistors they replace more efficiently, letting you use less of them when space is a priority, or the same amount or, conceivably, more of ‘em to get some increased performance, which the researchers state could “give Moore’s Law a boost.” As if that wasn’t enough, the researchers also say that memristors could also grant for faster, smaller, and more energy-efficient flash storage, and grant for field-programmable gate array (or FPGAs) that are not only more efficient, but considerably less pricey as well. Of course, there’s plenty more experimenting that needs to be done, but HP states that the first commercial circuits using memristors could arrive within the next three years.

[Via Slashdot]

Filed under: Desktops, Misc. Gadgets, Laptops

HP shows off first hybrid memristor-transistor chip originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Nov 2008 18:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Among Samsung’s first line of self-branded laptops in America, you’ll find the 16-inch R610. Designed to be amongst the thinnest, lightest and least high-priced 16-inchers on the market, the unit succeeded at its core missions. Sadly, it didn’t fare so well when it came time to get to business. In terms of sheer performance, critics found it to be “acceptable” overall, but the graphics scores and HDD test results left a lot to be desired. Also, the bundled six-cell battery only lasted 2.5 hours before needing a recharge, though you could fork out a bit extra to get nearly six hours with the 9-cell pack. At the end of the day, reviewers just couldn’t recommend this over, say, Acer’s feature-packed 6930G, though those on a budget might be willing to overlook the shortcomings to have the footprint they’re really after.

Filed under: Laptops

Samsung’s 16-inch R610 laptop reviewed: more mediocre than memorizing originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Nov 2008 16:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We already caught a brief glimpse of eMachines’ new budget-priced eMD620-5777 laptop when it was first announced, but if you’re still pondering a buy, you might want to head on over to Laptop mag, which now has a full review of the unit. As you’ve no doubt surmised, there’s some considerable trade-offs with this one, with the 1.6GHz Athlon processor and all around low-end specs placing a considerable drag on performance, and the battery barely managing to top two hours in their tests. On the upside, it’s $379 price tag places it squarely in competition with the masses of netbooks out there, and its 14.1-inch screen, while glossy, should do the job just fine for those that like a bit more real estate. Hit up the link below for the complete breakdown and, of course, a few more pics.

Filed under: Laptops

Sub-$400 eMachines eMD620-5777 laptop gets reviewed originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Nov 2008 15:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s never been much of a secret that the Dell Mini 9 has been 3G-ready from day one, and Vodafone customers have been able to get a 3G-equipped model direct from the carrier for a little while now, but it looks like folks in the US can now finally get in on the mobile broadband action as well, with a built-in 3G option now configurable on Dell’s site. Unfortunately, anyone that already took the plunge on a Mini 9 is out of luck, as the $125 upgrade is only available new orders (and only available on Windows XP-equipped models). If that doesn’t preclude you, however, you can also anticipate to get a $120 rebate if you’re willing to sign a two-year contract for AT&T’s DataConnect service, although it looks like you’ll also have to put up with a delay in your ship date at the moment.

[Via Mobility Site, thanks Chris]

Filed under: Laptops

Dell Mini 9 gets built-in AT&T 3G option originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Nov 2008 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s just been a few short days since Dell’s still unofficial Inspiron 1425 made an impromptu appearance on the company’s website, but it doesn’t look like the leaks are showing any signs of stopping just yet, with the also unannounced XPS 1340 now making its debut in an equally roundabout manner. Unfortunately, apart from the fact that it’ll apparently have a 64GB SSD option, there aren’t exactly many details to be found on the system, even though it seems pretty safe to bet that it’ll be an update of some sort to the popular XPS m1330. Unless, of course, Dell intends to make its line-up even more unnecessarily confusing, which is also a possibility.

[Thanks, Omer]

Filed under: Laptops

XPS 1340 appears on Dell’s website in name only originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Nov 2008 13:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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When MSI rolled out its v1.09 BIOS, we’re willing to wager it totally did not have anything like this in mind. The mad scientists in Team Australia are at it again, this time overclocking a netbook to the point (almost, anyway) of implosion. The unafraid members grabbed hold of a hopeless Wind U100 with 2GB of RAM, hooked up a little liquid nitrogen and proceeded to push the poor 1.6GHz Atom N270 CPU to an extraordinary 2.385GHz. No telling how quickly the whole thing was over, but still, this is pretty ridiculous, mate.

Filed under: Laptops

Liquid nitrogen-cooled MSI Wind U100 overclocked to 2.3GHz originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Nov 2008 07:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Acer’s top-selling Aspire One is set to break into 10-inch territory as early as February or March. This according to Scott Lin, Acer Taiwan president. Also on the books are 12.1-, 13.3-, and 15.6-inch LED-backlit laptops for 2009 — a 14.1-incher should hit this year with a price of NT$40,000 or about $1,200 of the green, presidential stuff.

Filed under: Laptops

Acer readies 10-inch Aspire One for Q1 launch originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Nov 2008 05:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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