15-inch Samsung Series 9 review (2012)

Samsung Series 9 (NP900X3A) laptop review

Samsung unveils redesigned Series 9 laptops with 13- and 15-inch displays, starting at $1,399

Spotted: the elusive 15-inch Samsung Series 9

Before there were Ultrabooks, there was the Samsung Series 9. When it arrived on the scene last year, measuring .64 inches thick, weighing 2.8 pounds and packing a blazing SSD, it seemed to offer Windows users the closest thing to a no-compromise experience -- provided, of course, they were willing to pony up the requisite $1,649. As it turns out, the Series 9 was great -- memorable, even -- but not without flaws. It lacked an SD slot, the trackpad was jumpy and the display resolution topped out at a humdrum 1366 x 768.

A year later, Samsung is back with a second-generation laptop that promises to correct all of these shortcomings, and ushers in an even thinner, even lighter design. Make that two laptops: Sammy's selling a 15-inch Ultrabook, too. And truly, there's nothing quite like it: nothing quite this thin, with this large a screen. (Consider for a moment that it measures just .08 inches thicker than the new 13-inch Series 9, which is already thinner than most other Ultrabooks on the market.) As always, though, luxury doesn't come cheap. The 15-inch Series 9 will cost $1,500 when it ships at the end of this month (the 13-inch version is available for an also-pricey $1,400, though we haven't gotten to take that model for a spin yet.) Ultimately, then, are the Series 9's elegant aluminum design and 1600 x 900 matte display enough to justify the premium you'll pay over other Ultrabooks? And does the 15-inch version offer long enough battery life to match its larger size? Let's find out.

Gallery: 15-inch Samsung Series 9 review (2012)

Continue reading 15-inch Samsung Series 9 review (2012)

15-inch Samsung Series 9 review (2012) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 09 Apr 2012 14:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/09/15-inch-samsung-series-9-review-2012/

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Windows 8 Preview Beats Windows 7 in Most Performance Tests

A desktop running Windows 8 Consumer Preview started up faster and generally ran faster than the same desktop running Windows 7.

Source: http://feeds.pcworld.com/click.phdo?i=a23c32141c317342cc8848319eef7503

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Nvidia Brings Console Gaming to Ultrabooks With New GPU

Nvidia hopes to bring console-style gaming to ultrabooks with its latest GeForce GT 640M graphics processing unit (GPU) for laptops, which was officially...

Source: http://feeds.pcworld.com/click.phdo?i=6c69bf185836d49f13a014c5896ce1bc

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Your Own Star Trek Captain’s Chair

To prevent getting taken by one of their April Fool’s jokes again this year, I’ve stayed away from ThinkGeek for several days.  (Dang it, I wanted light saber popsicles!)  I was checking them out yesterday, and I found a product that they swear is a real product.  The Star Trek Inflatable Captain’s Chair is an [...]

Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2012/04/06/your-own-star-trek-captains-chair/

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Smart Diagram Effortlessly Produces Professional-Looking Results

The much talked about demise of the laptop in favor of tablet device, it could be argued, will be dependent on the tablet offering much of the functionality of the laptop. Gaping holes in tablet function will likely perpetuate the laptop as a tool. A number of work-type Android applications have successfully migrated to the tablet form: Microsoft Office-like apps; printer-sharing apps; document-scanning apps.

Source: http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/74775.html

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Must See HDTV (April 9th - April 15th)

This week the baseball season is in full swing and while we wait for the NBA to get its postseason started the NHL is already kicking off its race for the Stanley Cup. While that and racing action from all the major series should satisfy sports fans there's also a few treats for fans of drama with the series finale of Justified and a Titanic miniseries (spoiler alert: you already know how it ends) and reality TV with the season premiere of Deadliest Catch. Finally, there aren't any big name game releases but long awaited indie effort Fez is finally coming to Xbox Live Arcade April 13th, look for a trailer as well as our weekly listings after the break.

NHL Playoffs
The regular season is over and now the NHL Playoffs begin Wednesday night. The Rangers and the Canucks are at the top of the seeding but as we all know anything can happen. What will almost certainly happen is another fight between the Flyers and the Penguins. Our over/under on players suspended during the series is set at 2.
(All Week, NHL Network & NBC Sports Network)

Eastbound & Down
This week we say goodbye to Kenny Powers for the last time, as his minor and major league baseball hijinks come to an end after their third season on HBO. If you'd like a quick preview of where the story is going, there's a trailer for the finale included after the break, but if you're not a regular viewer it probably won't make any sense.
(April 15, HBO, 10PM)

Justified
This FX series has become one of the best dramas on TV right now and this week in the season finale the interesting and engaging set of characters take each other on one last time. While we're never quite sure what will go on with US Marshal Raylan Givens it's a pretty fair bet that someone will get shot, it's just a matter of who.
(April 10, FX, 10PM)

Continue reading Must See HDTV (April 9th - April 15th)

Must See HDTV (April 9th - April 15th) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 09 Apr 2012 18:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/-WH9aK_q0oQ/

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Diamonds Are a Quantum Scientist's Best Friends

An international group of scientists led by researchers from the University of California in Santa Barbar have taken the first steps toward creating a quantum computer -- in a diamond. So far they've built a two-qubit unit for a quantum computer. A qubit is the quantum computing equivalent of a bit, and it can be both on and off at the same time, unlike a regular bit which must be in one state or the other.

Source: http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/74812.html

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Exclusive Preview: Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #8

If you're reading DC Comics these days, you've had to have heard of writer Jeff Lemire. He's everywhere! What is he writing, like, 10 books per month? Okay, so it's probably not quite that. But it's a few. And generally, the creepier or more offbeat the character, the more comfortable the man seems to be. This works out splendidly, as one of their family of books is pretty much devoted to the oddities of The New 52. The Dark line of comics includes titles such as Justice League Dark, Dial H, Animal Man, Swamp Thing, and more. Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. is another of those series tied to the magical side of things.

Source: http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2012/04/preview-frankenstein-8/

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Smart Diagram Effortlessly Produces Professional-Looking Results

The much talked about demise of the laptop in favor of tablet device, it could be argued, will be dependent on the tablet offering much of the functionality of the laptop. Gaping holes in tablet function will likely perpetuate the laptop as a tool. A number of work-type Android applications have successfully migrated to the tablet form: Microsoft Office-like apps; printer-sharing apps; document-scanning apps.

Source: http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/74775.html

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Sugru – Hack it Better in Primary Colours

In my review of Sugru I mentioned that it would be great if it came in primary colours, which would give you yellow and reds and allow you to mix almost any colour. Well they must have listened to me. Announced today, it’s now available in packs of  8 x 5 gram packs of red, [...]

Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2012/04/06/sugru-hack-it-better-in-primary-colours/

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Nokia 306 manual hints at keyboard-free Asha handset

The team at Unwired View has bagged a PDF that purports to be the user manual for Nokia's 306, the first full-touch member of the keyboard-loving Asha family. None of the images in the document (we've collated a handful above) show a handset with a hardware keyboard, but it's not clear if it's running S40 either. The images show that the device can support multiple home screens, an Android-style notifications bar and pinch-to-zoom, but this could either be evidence of the S40 re-skin (codenamed "Sonic") or, fancifully, the first appearance of Espoo's Linux-based Meltemi OS for low-end phones. The big question now is, will Nokia confirm its existence (perhaps at its Asian conference in June?), or will the secretary deny all knowledge?

Nokia 306 manual hints at keyboard-free Asha handset originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 09 Apr 2012 09:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/A-pP1ITEhdo/

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PSA: Nokia Lumia 900 available today

Did our thorough Lumia 900 review convince you that a mix of polycarbonate hardware and Metro UI is where your smartphone future lies? Well, it's time to head to your nearest AT&T vendor because Nokia's latest effort to break America is here. Just don't forget those 100 bucks.

PSA: Nokia Lumia 900 available today originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 08 Apr 2012 12:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/08/psa-nokia-lumia-900-available-today/

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Android emulator jump-started with GPU support

Firing up the Android emulator historically has been a lot like going to the DMV, or maybe the pediatrician's office. You can do it, and you'll have something to show for it at the end of the day, but you'd better take the day off work. Point is, that sucker was slow. Notice we're writing in the past tense here, though. Google's just unwrapped an update to the emulator that does a couple things. First and foremost is that GPU support has been added, which gives a much better experience as far as graphic and rendering are concerned. It's night and day. Second is that there's better hardware emulation, and you can now use a tethered device to provide input. Very cool. And finally there's better CPU performance, and operations are performed twice as fast.

What's that mean to most of us? Not a whole hell of a lot. But it will mean happier developers. And that's certainly good for everyone.

Source: Android Developers Blog

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/5o-OW7jI_Gg/story01.htm

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Diamonds Are a Quantum Scientist's Best Friends

An international group of scientists led by researchers from the University of California in Santa Barbar have taken the first steps toward creating a quantum computer -- in a diamond. So far they've built a two-qubit unit for a quantum computer. A qubit is the quantum computing equivalent of a bit, and it can be both on and off at the same time, unlike a regular bit which must be in one state or the other.

Source: http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/74812.html

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The Official Masters Tournament App for iPad (2012)

I’ve noticed there’s been a surge in the number of people reading the 2011 post about the Masters Tournament app for iPad, and that reminded me to check to see if there’s an update for this year’s tournament.  The Official Masters Tournament app is free, and it again gives you access to CBS’s live simulcast [...]

Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2012/04/05/the-official-masters-tournament-app-for-ipad-2012/

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