HDTV Buying Guide: Making Sense of the Specifications

HDTV Buying Guide: Making Sense of the Specifications

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efore you purchase an LCD or plasma flat-panel HDTV, read our comprehensive buying advice to learn what features to consider.


Whether you're buying your first HDTV or replacing an older model, you'll find all sorts of new specifications and features to consider when shopping. Some of these apply to both LCD and plasma sets, while others are significant for LCDs in particular. Here's a quick overview of the different choices and what they may mean for you.
Important Specifications for LCD and Plasma HDTVs

Resolution: Almost all sets 40 inches or larger have 1080p resolution, which is 1920 by 1080 pixels. The 1080p resolution will give you the maximum detail available for almost all HD content. For some smaller HDTV sizes, 1366 by 768 pixels is often a lower-cost choice, but a 720p set has to scale 1080p images down to match its native resolution. This interpolation may introduce imaging artifacts, and the image may not appear quite as sharp or have the depth of the picture on a 1080p set.

While 720p models are available in many sizes as a lower-cost option, they remain prevalent in the 40-inches-or-smaller category. If you're shopping for a small HDTV, expect to pay about a 20 to 25 percent premium (as of this writing) for a 1080p set over a 720p set. All else being equal, we recommend that you pick a 1080p model, which will better match much of the content you can now get from broadcast, streaming, and satellite services, and will match the native resolution of a Blu-ray Disc player.

Contrast: This spec refers to the difference between the darkest images and the lightest images that a screen can produce; in general, it is determined by how dark the blacks are. Contrast is probably the most important factor in determining image quality after resolution. If the blacks are gray and the contrast is lower, the whole image can look washed out. If the blacks are deep and strong, however, the image will look sharper and the colors will pop. Unfortunately, manufacturers' methods for measuring and specifying contrast are almost useless for helping you predict how the screen will look. Manufacturers use full-screen measurements, all black and all white, in a darkened room. An all-black or all-white screen is not what people watch, and in computer terms it conveys precisely zero bits of information. When you have actual content on the screen, you get internal reflections, ambient lighting effects, and other optical crosstalk that results in the light from one section of an image affecting the light levels of another.

Video connections: You have to get the image from your disc player or set-top box into the TV set, and to do so you need to use a video connection. Only three connectors--HDMI, component video, and "VGA"--can deliver HD-resolution images, and of those only HDMI is capable of providing full 1080p HD over an HDCP-protected connection.

* HDMI: This is a digital connection, so it delivers the image data exactly as the player or set-top box sends it. HDMI can also carry sound--eliminating the need for extra cables--and it may let you control more than one device with a single click of the remote. The newest version of HDMI is 1.4, which adds more features such as the ability to carry a network connection, but it is not yet available on many devices. HDMI is definitely the connection of choice, as it gives you the most accurate transfer of the image data, and it also supports the HDCP copy-protection features that can help guarantee that you get the best-quality image from your source. One note: Making HDMI cables doesn't involve a lot of magic--a $12 cable bought on the Internet is likely to perform just as well as a $120 cable purchased in some stores. Try a cheap cable first, and if it works, you're done. If it doesn't, you can then try a more expensive cable to see if it solves the problem.
* Component video: This connection relies on three separate RCA connectors, marked red, green, and blue. An analog connection, it can handle 1080p signals, but it cannot carry the HDCP copy-protection signal required for some devices. In theory, it may not be as good as a digital connection--especially over a long distance--but you're not likely to notice the difference.
* VGA: This label is a misnomer, but it refers to the d-Sub 15 connector that computers use to make an analog connection to a display. In many ways, it's similar to the component video connection. Often it's the easiest way to link a computer to your HDTV. This connection can handle up to 1080p resolution HD.

In addition to those three connectors, you are also likely to find two others: S-Video and composite video. They can carry only standard-definition video images, typically from older devices such as a DVD player, a camcorder, or a VCR. Depending on how you set your HDTV, it can scale standard-def images up to HD (interpolation).

* S-Video: This is a round DIN connector that offers slightly better quality than composite video connections do.
* Composite video: This is a single RCA plug, typically yellow. Cables with this plug often also have the standard red and white RCA plugs for stereo audio channels.

How many connections do you need? Most HDTVs today offer at least three HDMI connectors, while many provide four, and some have even more. Get as many HDMI connections as you can; doing so will allow you the most flexibility in attaching devices. For instance, you'll probably want to connect a set-top DVR, a Blu-ray player, a camcorder, or other gadgets like Western Digital's WD TV Live HD media player, which links a hard drive and your network to your TV for displaying media content. If possible, use HDMI for your high-definition connections, and try to buy an HDTV that has one more connector than you currently need, to allow for the future expansion of your home entertainment system.

If you have too few HDMI ports on your set, you can always add a switch that will multiply how many devices you can connect to a single input on your HDTV; but this device adds a level of complexity and one more remote control to keep track of.

Energy Star logo: The U.S. Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency jointly operate the Energy Star logo program, which sets energy-consumption standards for appliances and consumer electronics. The current standard is Energy Star 3.0. Version 4.0, with more-stringent requirements for televisions, is slated to take effect in May 2010. Manufacturers are eager to promote a TV's energy-efficient status, so it's a safe bet that sets with the Energy Star logo will consume less power than ones without.

Automatic brightness control: This function will adjust the brightness of your set's image depending on the amount of light in the room; it can be a significant power-saving feature.

Automatic volume leveling: This feature will reduce the difference in volume levels, especially between TV programs and their commercials, which tend to be much louder.

VESA mount holes: Many people now hang their flat-panel TVs on the wall, and they often do the installation job themselves instead of hiring someone. Most wall mounts are designed to match the standard VESA hole patterns, so you may find it easier to mount a flat-panel TV that offers one or more of these patterns on its case.

Internet connectivity: A growing number of HDTVs offer the ability to connect to your home network's router--either through a cable or wirelessly--so that you can view content stored on the computers on your network, or even access content from the Internet if you have broadband service. Different sets have different features, such as Amazon, Netflix, or YouTube, so if you want a particular service, make sure that it's included before you commit to an HDTV. Manufacturers are adding new services all the time, even to their existing models, so it pays to get the latest information. Note that if you use a wireless connection, 802.11n will give you the fastest performance.

3D display: This feature has been available in rear-projection models for years, but you'll start to see it in flat-panel HDTVs--both plasma and LCD--starting in 2010. It will take a few years for enough content to become available to make 3D TV worthwhile, just as in the early days of high definition, but it's a feature that could help future-proof your choice of set.

LED backlight: "LED TVs" are LCD TVs with an LED backlight instead of a standard fluorescent backlight. LEDs consume less power and produce better color response than traditional backlights do, and they also make it possible to create a much thinner LCD TV.

Dynamic backlight or local dimming: Some LCD TVs with LED backlights have the LEDs in a matrix behind the LCD panel, as opposed to other designs that put the LEDs along the edge of the panel to make a thinner TV set. It is possible to turn the LEDs in some sections down or even off, independently of the rest of the backlight. This means that the set can lower the backlight for portions of an image that are dimmer and do not need the backlight's full power. The result is that the set can increase the contrast significantly, as well as save energy.

120Hz refresh rate: A set running at the 120Hz rate takes the normal 60 images per second from the video signal and creates an intermediate image between every pair to create 120 images per second. This increase in refresh rate can help reduce motion blurring in LCD TVs.

240Hz refresh rate: Some sets double the 120Hz approach, creating three intermediate images per pair of frames. Other models simply use the 120 frames but flash the backlight two times per frame. Both of these approaches are intended to reduce motion blur even more, but you are not likely to notice the difference.

For a general overview of what to look for in an HDTV, see "HDTV Buying Guide: Select the Right Flat-Panel Technology." And for a handy list of items to keep in mind when you're searching for the perfect set, see "HDTV Buying Guide: Shopping Tips."

MSI intros X-Slim X430 with AMD Athlon Neo X2

MSI intros X-Slim X430 with AMD Athlon Neo X2

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MSI has introduced another AMD model to its ultraportable X-Slim line, the X430, which is a revamp of the X410 -- and that was a rehash of the Intel-based X400.

MSI has introduced another AMD model to its ultraportable X-Slim line, the X430, which is a revamp of the X410 -- and that was a rehash of the Intel-based X400. The X430 swaps the X410's single-core AMD Athlon Neo processor for a dual-core Athlon Neo X2. Apart from the additional core, most other components have been unchanged.

The X430 still features a 14" 1366x768 display, and remaining specs include 2GB of DDR2 667MHz RAM (single DIMM, maxed out), Radeon HD 3200 graphics, 320GB or 500GB of storage, 802.11n Wi-Fi, gigabit Ethernet, HDMI, VGA, two USB 2.0 ports, a 1.3 megapixel webcam, a multi-card reader, as well as headphone and mic jacks. The system can also be configured with an optional external DVD or Blu-ray drive, and a four or eight-cell battery.

Full system weight is about 1.5kg (3.3lbs) with a battery, and the X-Slim X430 will ship with Windows 7 Home Premium. MSI has kept quiet about the X430's release date and price. On a semi-related note, we just reviewed the X-Slim X340, which is a worthwhile read if you're at all interested in the series

buffalo ships First USB 3.0 Hard Drive

Buffalo ships first USB 3.0 hard drive

Buffalo Technology seems to have won the race as the first vendor to actually ship a USB 3.0 hard drive.
Buffalo's new USB 3.0 hard drive

Buffalo's new USB 3.0 hard drive
(Credit: Buffalo Technology)

The company announced Tuesday that it is shipping its new SuperSpeed USB 3.0 external DriveStation HD-HXU3. Tapping into the speed of the new USB 3.0 spec, the drive can push data at least three times faster than a USB 2.0 drive.

Available in 1-terabyte, 1.5TB, and 2TB capacities, the drive is backward-compatible with existing USB 2.0 computers, said Buffalo. The company is also releasing a two-port USB 3.0 PCI card, so users can upgrade their desktop PCs to take advantage of the drive's higher speeds.

Since the USB 3.0 Promoter Group finalized the new USB 3.0 standard about a year ago, vendors have been pushing to get their new products out the door.

Buffalo had been dueling with Netherlands-based company Freecom to actually deliver the first USB 3.0 hard drive to consumers, not just announce it. Freecom had issued a press release promoting its own USB 3.0 drive in September. That drive was supposed to be available in Europe by mid-November, but I was unable to find any European vendors selling it online.

Responding to an earlier request for comment, a Freecom representative said that samples of the drive were sent to some PC manufacturers and key customers this month. But due to an order backlog, the drive would not generally be available to all customers until next year.

With its higher transfer rates, the new USB standard is ideal for moving around large images as well as huge audio and video streams. As such, USB 3.0 is seen as competition for other high-speed transfer technologies, such as eSATA and FireWire.

Though USB 3.0 offers a theoretical maximum burst rate of 625MB or 4.8 gigabits per second, neither the Buffalo nor Freecom drive will come close to that mark at this point. Freecom has rated its drive at 130 megabits per second while a Buffalo representative told me his company's drive would average around 120Mbps.

USB 3.0 has been promoted as offering speeds up to 10 times faster than USB 2.0. But manufacturers will need time to rev up their new drives to approach that threshold.

When will the new Buffalo drive actually hit the stores? The company rep said it's now shipping to online vendor Microcenter and should be available for purchase the week of December 7. Estimated prices are $199 for the 1TB, $249 for the 1.5TB, and $399 for the 2TB.

Five tips for safe Web shopping..

Five tips for safe Web shopping..

by Dennis O'Reilly..
Web shoppers are a suspicious lot. That's the conclusion of a recent poll conducted by Zogby International and funded by Symantec and the National Cyber Security Alliance. The survey found that 63 percent of online shoppers abandoned a purchase due to security concerns.

Among the reasons given for failing to complete the transaction were sites that asked for too much information, uncertainty about how their personal data would be used by the site, and lack of faith in the site's security. These are all valid concerns.

CNET News reporter Greg Sandoval describes recent Congressional hearings on bogus online loyalty programs that sucker Web shoppers into offers that are loaded with fine print. Sandoval's follow-up report indicates that few of the big-name sites profiting from these programs intend to end their relationships with the companies being scrutinized.

Even if you've been making Web purchases for years, it pays to review the top five tips for avoiding unpleasant online-shopping surprises.

Know who you're dealing with
You can get an indication of a site's trustworthiness by using a site-rating browser add-on such as the Web of Trust, LinkExtend, and McAfee SiteAdvisor. I described these and other security add-ons for Firefox in a post on Nov. 17, but these and similar site-rating services are available for Internet Explorer and other browsers as well.

The BBB Online's shopping tips suggest that if you're not sure about completing a Web purchase, look for a toll-free phone number you can call to place your order. Just remember not to volunteer more information than necessary, whether you make your purchase via a Web form or telephone.

Know exactly what you're getting—and when and how you're getting it
Document as many specs as possible about the products you're purchasing, including model numbers, dimensions, item numbers, and guarantees of authenticity. Know beforehand all delivery and handling charges, warranties, and return/refund policies. Get the tracking number of the delivery service the vendor will use.

In my experience, the ability of Amazon and other reputable Web sites to deliver products when they promise goes down as the heart of holiday shopping season approaches. To avoid Christmas morning disappointments, shop very early or stick to brick and mortar for your most important purchases.

Watch for prechecked or disguised 'offers'
Just as you can find your browser sporting a new toolbar if you rush through an update of your media player or PDF reader, being in a hurry when you make a Web purchase can cause you to "sign up" for unwanted offers. Technologizer blogger Harry McCracken found himself an inadvertent enrollee in the SavingsAce affinity program run by Vertrue, which is one of the companies under investigation by Congress.

Maintain a complete paper trail
Print out all transaction records, invoices, order-confirmation e-mails, warranties, return and refund policies, and anything else that documents the transaction. The BBB Online recommends printing Web pages showing the vendor's name, physical address, and telephone number. Also print pages with information about the product you're purchasing and the seller's privacy policy and legal terms.

Watch for unexpected charges after the fact
Some of the most unpleasant surprises may not manifest themselves until you receive your next credit-card statement. Be ready to challenge any unauthorized fees or other added charges. Watch out for mystery charges from third-party vendors such as Harry's experience with SavingsAce.

If you're unable to work out any problems with the vendor, the BBB Online recommends using the Better Business Bureau's complaint form, the Federal Trade Commission's Bureau of Consumer Protection complaint form, or the equivalent complaint form on the site of your state's attorney general.

Unfortunately, when I went this route with the faulty notebook computer HP sold me, I got nowhere fast. Still, you might have better luck with your complaints than I had with mine.

Judging the top 10 Internet moments of the decade

Judging the top 10 Internet moments of the decade

by Lance Whitney
The unveiling of the iPhone, the debut of Twitter, and the growth of Craigslist are just three of the decade's most influential Internet moments, as judged by the Webby Awards.

The folks behind the Webby Awards, presented each year for excellence on the Internet, dove into the top 10 craze this week, laying out their picks for the Internet developments of the past 10 years that have had the greatest reverberations. (And no, they're not a year ahead of schedule, despite the tendency of list makers to rally in years that end in '10. The decade technically runs from 2000 to 2009, with 2010 being the start of the next decade.)

The Webby Awards rundown of the decade in chronological order:

* Craigslist moving outside San Francisco in 2000 to revamp the whole notion of classified ads, striking fear in the hearts of newspapers everywhere.
* The launch of Google AdWords in 2000, opening up a new world of advertising for businesses both large and small.
* The start of Wikipedia in 2001 showing off the Internet's ability to let online strangers collaborate, leading to more than 14 million articles in 271 different languages.
* The takedown of Napster in 2001, triggering a revolution in the way we now grab our music and videos.
* Google's IPO in 2004, creating a massive, dominant, and far-reaching force on the Internet.
* The online video revolution in 2006 triggered by beefy bandwidth, cheap camcorders, and YouTube, flooding cyberspace with an array of professional and not-so-professional videos.
* The expansion of Facebook and the debut of Twitter in 2006, creating a fresh way for us to interact and communicate with friends and family.
* The launch of the iPhone in 2007, helping us hop onto the Internet anywhere, anytime through a cell phone.
* The U.S. presidential campaign in 2008 tapping into the Internet with videos like "Obama Girl," social networking use among voters, and online fundraising.
* The Iranian election protesters in 2009 using Twitter to spread their word, a movement that prompted the U.S. State Department to ask Twitter to keep the site up and running.

That's a pretty good list, but of course it immediately started us thinking about the influential Internet-related moments and developments from 2000 to 2009 that got short shrift or that got left off entirely.

Our list, in no particular order:

* The debut and growth of Firefox: The first browser to challenge the IE monopoly, Firefox now holds a 25 percent market share, paving the way for other players like Google Chrome.
* The arrival of blogging: Started as simple online diaries, blogs have grown to become a valid and valued source of news, opinion, and information. As a corollary, there's the rise of RSS, which lets the latest information come to us instead of our having to go out and find it.
* The surge in broadband: The availability of DSL, cable, satellite, and now Fios put a nail in the coffin for dial-up access, letting us download files in seconds, watch each other on webcams, and stream high-res videos.
* The allure of torrents: Whether used for legal or illegal file sharing, technologies like BitTorrent let us share and download all types of content across the Web from movies and TV shows to software. And speaking of movies and TV--the popularity of sites like Hulu and Netflix demonstrated that you no longer need a costly cable TV subscription to indulge your viewing inclinations.
* The reinvention of the telephone. On the one hand, there were VoIP services such as Skype, which saved us from expensive long-distance bills. On the other was 3G technology and mobile broadband, which let us jump into cyberspace from our phones, Netbooks, and a host of other portable gadgets.
* The rise of home workers: Thanks to the Internet, you can now run a full-fledged business or work for your employer without having to leave the house. There's also online education--with many accredited schools now online, today you can attend college or graduate school and get a full degree from your own computer.
* The ascent of Salesforce and cloud computing: With the success of cloud-computing providers like Salesforce, companies can now run much of their business online without the hassle of maintaining their own internal resources.
* The looming menace of cyberwarfare: On the downside, the Internet showed signs of becoming a new virtual battleground between countries, as in the purported cyberattacks against Estonia and Georgia.
* The lessons of the dot-com crash: The decade was barely under way when that bubble burst hard; wildly inflated stocks were tanking and Wall Street was reeling, frenetically hyped Web companies were imploding, and our retirement plans took a beating. That seem so long ago now, what with the current miserable state of the economy, post-housing bubble crash.

buffalo ships First USB 3.0 Hard Drive

Buffalo ships first USB 3.0 hard drive

Buffalo Technology seems to have won the race as the first vendor to actually ship a USB 3.0 hard drive.
Buffalo's new USB 3.0 hard drive

Buffalo's new USB 3.0 hard drive
(Credit: Buffalo Technology)

The company announced Tuesday that it is shipping its new SuperSpeed USB 3.0 external DriveStation HD-HXU3. Tapping into the speed of the new USB 3.0 spec, the drive can push data at least three times faster than a USB 2.0 drive.

Available in 1-terabyte, 1.5TB, and 2TB capacities, the drive is backward-compatible with existing USB 2.0 computers, said Buffalo. The company is also releasing a two-port USB 3.0 PCI card, so users can upgrade their desktop PCs to take advantage of the drive's higher speeds.

Since the USB 3.0 Promoter Group finalized the new USB 3.0 standard about a year ago, vendors have been pushing to get their new products out the door.

Buffalo had been dueling with Netherlands-based company Freecom to actually deliver the first USB 3.0 hard drive to consumers, not just announce it. Freecom had issued a press release promoting its own USB 3.0 drive in September. That drive was supposed to be available in Europe by mid-November, but I was unable to find any European vendors selling it online.

Responding to an earlier request for comment, a Freecom representative said that samples of the drive were sent to some PC manufacturers and key customers this month. But due to an order backlog, the drive would not generally be available to all customers until next year.

With its higher transfer rates, the new USB standard is ideal for moving around large images as well as huge audio and video streams. As such, USB 3.0 is seen as competition for other high-speed transfer technologies, such as eSATA and FireWire.

Though USB 3.0 offers a theoretical maximum burst rate of 625MB or 4.8 gigabits per second, neither the Buffalo nor Freecom drive will come close to that mark at this point. Freecom has rated its drive at 130 megabits per second while a Buffalo representative told me his company's drive would average around 120Mbps.

USB 3.0 has been promoted as offering speeds up to 10 times faster than USB 2.0. But manufacturers will need time to rev up their new drives to approach that threshold.

When will the new Buffalo drive actually hit the stores? The company rep said it's now shipping to online vendor Microcenter and should be available for purchase the week of December 7. Estimated prices are $199 for the 1TB, $249 for the 1.5TB, and $399 for the 2TB.

Firefox hopes to one-up IE with fast graphics

Firefox hopes to one-up IE with fast graphics

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Last week, Microsoft showed off some browser technology that could help Internet Explorer leapfrog the competition. But if Mozilla succeeds in its hope, Microsoft could be playing catch-up instead.


The technology in question is hardware-accelerated graphics and text using interfaces called Direct2D and DirectWrite that provide an easy way to use graphics cards' computing power. They're built into Windows 7, and Microsoft is bringing them to Windows Vista but not Windows XP.

The performance boost from Direct2D and DirectWrite was the centerpiece of Microsoft's demonstration of Internet Explorer 9 goodies shown last week. Online maps flashed on the screen quickly and tracked mouse movements responsively; text was clearer and changed sizes more gracefully.

But the day of Microsoft's demo, Mozilla evangelist Chris Blizzard had this to tweet: "Interesting that we're doing Direct2D support in Firefox as well--I'll bet we'll ship it first."

There's work to back up his rhetoric. On Sunday, Bas Schouten, the programmer who's been leading the work for Mozilla, posted a prototype of Firefox using the Direct2D and DirectWrite.

However, any Firefox fans tempted to crow about a victory should be cautious. Mozilla wouldn't commit to including the technology, much less to a release schedule such as Firefox 3.7 due in the first half of 2010. "We are currently investigating Direct2D for Firefox, but do not have a target for shipping it in Firefox at this time," the organization said in a statement..
This Mozilla demonstration of photos and Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG), with transparency and click-and-drag resizing, works more than twice as fast Direct2D graphics.

This Mozilla demonstration of photos and Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG), with transparency and click-and-drag resizing, works more than twice as fast Direct2D graphics.
(Credit: Screenshot by Stephen Shankland/CNET)

The race is on
Microsoft declined to comment for this story, referring readers just to last week's blog post about coming Internet Explorer 9 features. "While we're still early in the product cycle, we wanted to be clear to developers about our approach and the progress so far," the company said while sharing a Direct2D demonstration video.

There's no doubt the race is on, though, given the potential benefits of the new interface and the commercial success of Window 7. Microsoft is lighting a fire under its developers, but the company's browser has lagged Firefox and other rivals in many technological areas for years, and many Web developers loathe earlier versions of IE still widely used. IE's market share has steadily eroded, though it remains dominant overall.

The attention is giving Google ideas, too. In a Chrome issue logged Sunday, Chrome programmer Peter Kasting pointed to Chouten's blog post on the subject as "motivation."

"If we can speed up the rendering time, the most noticeable benefit will probably be smoother-feeling scrolling," Kasting said. He also directed attention in October to DirectWrite support in Chrome, though cautioning that it might not work with the browser's present "sandbox" design to isolate elements of the browser for security reasons.

Mozilla has its own results to show off, too. Schouten offered a graph showing improved performance displaying a variety of Web pages. Facebook, Google, and Twitter rendered on the screen in half the time using the Direct2D; Slashdot and a Wikipedia entry were barely changed. One taxing page using the Scalable Vector Graphics format (SVG) to show movable, resizable graphics showed more than twice as fast, dropping from about 11 milliseconds to less than 4 milliseconds.
Microsoft's DirectWrite permits smoother display of many fonts.

Microsoft's DirectWrite permits smoother display of many fonts.
(Credit: Microsoft)

What actually changes?
Direct2D replaces an older technology called Graphics Device Interface (GDI) used in Windows XP. Both offer a way for programs to tap into computing hardware without having to worry about the particulars of video card capabilities and settings, but Direct2D taps into hardware acceleration features.

The technology lets programmers control basic elements such as transparent boxes, curved lines, and resizable photos. Out of these, user interface elements are constructed; Direct2D calls upon a computer's graphics processor to speed that up. It's particularly helpful for dynamic situations that change element properties such as color, size, or opacity.

DirectWrite offers a similar graphics chip boost to the task of displaying text. That may not sound computationally intense, but some parts of it are. In particular, DirectWrite offers a more sophisticated mechanism for displaying text to take advantage of something called sub-pixel positioning of letters.

Each pixel on an LCD screen is actually made of three tiny slices--for red, green, and blue components--and sub-pixel technology subtly draws letters using pieces of these pixels to make the overall appearance smoother. The older GDI permitted some sub-pixel positioning, but only smoothed letters in the horizontal direction; DirectWrite smooths curves vertically as well.

Using the graphics chip in Direct2D and DirectWrite operations brings several advantages. Performance is the first: some operations are faster or smoother, and having more power on hand lets programmers tackle more ambitious projects. Second, the general-purpose central processor, relatively inefficient at handling graphics tasks, is unburdened, freeing it up for other tasks and saving battery power.

Firefox already has a graphics system of its own called Cairo. Schouten has been adding a Direct2D and DirectWrite.

Firefox is of course a browser that doesn't just work on Windows. The DirectWrite technology helps that operating system catch up to its rivals, said Mozilla's John Daggett in a blog post Sunday. "Platform APIs [application programming interfaces] on Mac OS X and Linux already do a good job rendering Postscript CFF [Compact Font Format] fonts," he said. "This just brings them up to parity under Windows 7."

Direct2D is used elsewhere in the browser. "We've made significant progress and are now able to present a Firefox browser completely rendered using Direct2D, making intensive usage of the GPU," or graphics processing unit, Schouten said. And because Cairo is used by other open-source software, other projects will benefit from the work, he added.

The Direct2D work is Mozilla's second hardware acceleration effort; the company also is working on one using a different hardware acceleration interface called OpenGL for mobile devices using Nvidia's Tegra chips, according to Mozilla.

The interactive Web
Microsoft went out of its way to emphasize that the Direct2D and DirectWrite work will help existing Web pages without programmers having to change a line of code. Dean Hachamovitch, general manager of Internet Explorer, contrasted that to other hardware acceleration efforts including Native Client and O3D from Google and WebGL from Mozilla and the Khronos Group.

Native Client, O3D, and WebGL are part of a long list of developments designed to transform the Web into a foundation not just for static pages but also for interactive applications. Those technologies, though, require new programming skills and tools.

Mozilla, Google, Apple, and Opera have been pushing this interactive Web agenda, and Microsoft is showing signs of interest, too. However, for now, Microsoft emphasizes that Direct2D support will help the existing Web. But the browser makers have their eyes on interactive technology as well. Direct2D will help with complex sites that use 2D graphics interfaces such as SVG and Canvas, Mozilla said.

Added Schouten, "As Web sites become more graphically intense, dynamic graphics will start playing a larger role, especially in user interfaces."

YouTube introduces automatic captions for deaf viewers

Image via Wikipedia

YouTube introduces automatic captions for deaf viewers

YouTube introduces automatic captions for deaf viewers
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YouTube's parent company Google has announced on its blog that automatic captions are to begin to roll out across the site.


The machine-generated captions will initially be generated in English. At first they will only be found on 13 channels.

These include National Geographic, Columbia, as well as most Google and YouTube channels.

The software engineer behind the technology, Ken Harrenstien, is deaf.

Currently YouTube offers a manual captioning service but video makers tend not to use it.

"The majority of user-generated video content online is still inaccessible to people like me," Mr Harrenstien wrote in the Google blog.

His solution combines automatic speech recognition with the current caption system.

The translation is not always perfect (in a demonstration the phrase "sim card" becomes "salmon" in text), but Mr Harrenstien says that the technology "will continue to improve with time".

Alternatively users can upload a transcript of their video and auto-timing algorithms will match the text to the words as they are spoken.

Vint Cerf, vice president at Google, is widely recognised as a founding father of the internet. He is also hard of hearing and has worn a hearing aid since the age of 13.

"One of the big challenges of the video medium is whether it can be made accessible to everyone," he told news agency AFP.

Earlier in the week YouTube announced the launch of YouTube Direct, a feed of uploaded amateur videos of newsworthy events such as protests and extreme weather conditions.

It is aimed at the media industry, and editors who subscribe will be able to request the phone numbers of contributors. So far it has been trialled by a select group of radio stations, newspapers and websites in the US.

Microsoft Delays relesing Open Source Win & Tool

Microsoft Delays Releasing Open Source Win 7 Tool

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Those without optical drives will have to wait a bit longer.

Two weeks ago, Microsoft pulled its Windows 7 USB/DVD download tool off its Microsoft Store as the piece of software violated the GNU General Public License.

As the name suggests, the Windows 7 USB/DVD download tool creates a bootable USB stick from a Windows 7 install DVD for use with systems that do not contain an optical drive.

At the time of the pull, Microsoft said in a statement, "Microsoft is looking into this issue and is taking down the (Windows 7 updating) tool from the Microsoft Store site until its review is complete. We apologize to our customers for any inconvenience."

Microsoft eventually decided that the best course of action is to release its software tool under the GPL as well, but likely for reasons that point to the company not wanting to share its proprietary code, those waiting for the tool will have to wait a little longer.

As spotted by Ars Technica, Microsoft posted on its Port 25 open source blog, "While we worked extremely hard to try and get the code ready for release by today, we still need to test and localize it. Our goal is now to release the tool in all languages on the same day in the next few weeks.

"We appreciate your patience and understanding as we work to make the Windows 7 USB/DVD Tool available once again."

Are you still sitting around, anxiously waiting for the tool's release so that you can put Windows 7 on your netbook or notebook? Let us know in the comments below!

U.S. Air Force Buying 2,200 PlayStation 3s

U.S. Air Force Buying 2,200 PlayStation 3s

U.S. Air Force Buying 2,200 PlayStation 3s
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This is real modern warfare.

Since the PlayStation 3 went cheaper, slimmer and lighter, more people have been drawn to picking one up. Interestingly, the U.S. Air Force is now looking to grab 2,200 – yes, that's right – PS3 consoles to use as part of its supercomputing cluster.

Last year, the Air Force acquired at least 300 PS3s for test purposes of the Cell Broadband Engine. The systems, now numbering at 336 PS3 units, are at Air Force Research Laboratory's information directorate in Rome, N.Y.

Now the Air Force wishes to at another 2,200 consoles to the mix, which presumably means that the initial test batch yielded pleasing results.

According to InformationWeek, the Air Force has used the PS3 cluster to stitch multiple radar images into higher resolution composite images, video processing, and building computers with brain-like properties.

After inspecting the document on the Federal Business Opportunities site, it appears that the Air Force is not interested in the new, cheaper slim model. Rather, it is after the 160 GB model (CECHP01 or 989038) that was available in limited quantities before the 120 GB slim model arrived.

Also, it's likely that the Air Force is looking to run custom networking software on the PlayStation 3 consoles, meaning that it will need all the older, larger models which support the installation of custom operating systems such as Linux. While the Air Force can do its own hard drive upgrades, it will have to run to grab the older hardware model before they're all gone.

Sony PlayStation 3 Firmware 3.0 Official preview

Playstation 3 (PS3) Wireless Keypad Review

Symantec Website Hacked

Symantec Website Hacked

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Blind SQL injection vulnerability disclosed

The Romanian ethical hacking outfit HackersBlog shames yet another antivirus vendor – Symantec. A SQL injection vulnerability in a section of the Symantec website allows unauthorized access to the database.

Symantec is one of the biggest IT security companies in the world, developing a wide range of products for both home and enterprise consumers. It is a veteran on the antivirus market, its flagship product being Norton Antivirus.

According to “unu,” a Romanian hacker associated with HackersBlog, the Document Download Centre section of the Symantec website contains a poorly-sanitized parameter, which facilitates SQL injection attacks. Successful exploitation results in giving an attacker access to the database.

“The irony of the situation is that it’s done on https, on a login page, a page that promotes security products like Norton AntiVirus 2009 and Norton Internet SECURITY,” the hacker, who doesn't specify what sensitive information, if any, is stored in that particular database, notes.

The documented attack is actually a “blind” SQL injection. As opposed to regular SQL injections, such attacks are harder to instrument, because the website does not respond back with useful error information that would give the hacker an idea of how to proceed.

According to the few items of information “unu” has provided, the website runs on an Apache Web server with PHP 5.2.6 and a MySQL 5.0.22 backend. The published screenshots demonstrate how executing SQL commands through URL manipulation alters the content of the page.







“Unu” claims to have contacted Symantec regarding the problem, or at least attempted to. “[...] On the website there is no contact email address for cases such as this, I’ve sent an email to webmaster@symantec.com and security@symantec.com. The email didn’t bounce, so someone must have received it. No answer as of yet,” he writes, while pointing out that more detailed info could be revealed after the company fixes the issue.

During the past two weeks, hackers from the HackersBlog crew have been disclosing various SQL injection vulnerabilities on websites belonging to no less than four antivirus vendors: Kaspersky, F-Secure, Bitdefender, and now Symantec. The site operated by the Bitdefender business partner in Portugal has also been compromised by the same group through SQL injection.

Antivirus vendors are not the only targets of the Romanian group of hackers. Yahoo! has also made the subject of attacks from them more than once, while “unu” has just recently disclosed a similar vulnerability on the website of the International Herald Tribune, the global edition of the New York Times.

MainGear Warms Up New Line of Personal Supercomputers

MainGear Warms Up New Line of Personal Supercomputers

MainGear Warms Up New Line of Personal Supercomputers
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MainGear Warms Up New Line of Personal Supercomputers


MainGear has introduced Shift, a new line of gaming desktop PCs designed to offer high performance, easy component customization and efficient temperature control. Despite the increasingly affordable prices of game consoles, pricey PCs boasting huge horsepower are still hitting the market and maintaining their appeal among a niche set of buyers.
Boutique gaming PC maker MainGear on Monday announced a new line of what it describes as "personal supercomputers." The Shift, a large desktop built to user specifications, runs at up to 4 GHz and features its a liquid cooling system. Prices begin at US$2,199.


What this computer shares with supercomputers used in places like the Oak Ridge National Laboratory is a heavy emphasis on the processing ability found in latest-generation graphics chips.

MainGear has designed the Shift line to exploit the natural behavior of heat, according to the company. The internal components have been rotated so that all heat is radiated through the top vents and cool air is drawn in from the bottom. The case has large ventilation grates and inlets for increased air flow.

That's necessary because Shift PCs use up to three graphics processor cards from Nvidia (Nasdaq: NVDA) and ATI (Nasdaq: ATYT). "The configuration is designed to accommodate these large, high-heat cards inside the chassis," Chris Morley, chief technology officer at MainGear, told TechNewsWorld.

CPUs generally do not dissipate more than 130 watts of heat, but graphics cards put out between 150 and 200 watts of heat each, Morley explained. "Even Intel's (Nasdaq: INTC) fantastic core i7 CPU can't keep up," he said. MainGear puts a 180mm fan below the intake to draw in cool air as heat escapes upwards through the vents.

Shift PCs have stainless steel frames for strength and airbrushed aluminum exteriors.
The Technical Details

Peripheral connections for users' monitors, keyboards, mice and speakers are placed on the top of the Shift's case. They are concealed by a cover which has a grill to let hot air out. The case has a pop-up panel for Firewire, audio and multimedia memory cards.

Shift PCs have six removable internal drive bays that pop into a backplane. Each drive cage mount has a built-in SATA power and data adapter. "You can pull out the drive cage, insert a drive and it will connect automatically," Morley said.

Each drive bay can hold a 3.5-inch 2 TB SATA drive or two 2.5-inch solid state drives (SSDs). That makes for a total of 12 TB of potential storage.

Shift PCs use Intel's Core i7 and Xeon processors. They also offer support for integrated dual- and triple-channel memory controllers and PCI Express 2.0 expansion.

These PCs use up to three Nvidia CUDA and AMD (NYSE: AMD) ATI Radion graphics cards. "The Shift recognizes the increasing role of the GPU (graphics processing unit) in personal computing," Morley said. Nvidia last month announced its next-generation CUDA GPU, code-named "Fermi."

MainGear is not alone in recognizing the ability of the GPU to turn a desktop into a supercomputer. The Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the largest science and energy lab in the Department of Energy, will build a new supercomputer based on Fermi. Cray (Nasdaq: CRAY), IBM (NYSE: IBM), HP (NYSE: HPQ), Dell (Nasdaq: DELL) and other computers have also come out in support of the Fermi's architecture, which is designed for general-purpose computation.

Intel is also moving into graphics. In September, it demonstrated the first chip based on its Larrabee architecture for graphics-centric processors. This is a hybrid chip.

Shift PCs use a modular power supply design. They use Silverstone power supplies rated at up to 1.2 KW. The PCs are rated for 50,000 hours of operation. "We test every PC before we ship," Morley said. They are water-cooled to keep the processors' temperatures low while offering performance speeds of up to 4 GHz.

MainGear uses Kingston's HyperX DDR3 memory chips. These offer speeds of up to 2,000 MHz. "We use extremely good components from memory to motherboards to video cards to processors instead of loading up on megabytes and gigabytes but sacrificing on components like the big Tier 1 companies do," Morley said. "All our parts are 100 percent industry standard, and you can swap them out any time you want."

MainGear Shift PC Open view
MainGear Shift PC Open view

The Shift PC is 21.6 inches deep, 8.6 inches wide and 24 inches high.
Is the Price Right?

With the economy still limping along and dedicated game console makers cutting prices, is this the right time to come up with a gaming PC line that starts at about $2,200?

There is a market for these products, insists Laura DiDio, principal at ITIC. "Gamers are willing to spend that money, or get their parents or grandparents to buy them a gaming PC," she told TechNewsWorld.

Wouldn't gamers stick to the far less-expensive dedicated consoles like Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3? Or will gaming PCs cut into sales Increase Customer Sales with Email Marketing -- Free Trial from VerticalResponse of those consoles? No and no, Stephen Baker, vice president of industry analysis at NPD told TechNewsWorld. "This has little to do with competition with console games," he explained. "Most hard-core gamers are likely to use both."

Gaming PCs appeal to a niche market where profits are high but volume is not, and the gaming PC market looks set to remain strong. "With the Windows 7 launch and the Intel i7 chip coming out, there's lots of opportunity here to give gamers the latest and the greatest, which is what they want," NPD's Baker said. For example, MainGear has had record-breaking sales for four straight months, the company's CEO Wallace Santos said during an interview with Big Download.

MainGear isn't the only company seizing this opportunity; Dell revamped its Alienware line of gaming PCs in September. It released three new models, the most powerful being the M15x starting at $1,499.

"These gaming PCs are elite now, but once they get these features out in the market, you'll see a trickle-down effect to office computers," ITIC's DiDio said. "They'll probably go to power users like network administrators and software developers first

ATI Radeon HD 5970 2GB: The World's Fastest Graphics Card

ATI Radeon HD 5970 2GB: The World's Fastest Graphics Card
Download ATI Radeon HD 5970 2GB: The World's Fastest Graphics Card at High Speed


Know what really sucks? Developing a piece of hardware that everyone wants, and then not being able to make enough of it to go around. Of course, what happens next is a result of supply and demand. Suddenly your $249 Radeon HD 5850s cost $300—when they’re in stock.


Wouldn’t it follow, then, that a card with two of those über-valuable ASICs would do little to address supply issues of ATI’s Radeon HD 5800-series cards? According to the company, the exact reason it held off on launching its potent Hemlock board related to availability. Now, it says, there are enough Cypress GPUs to support sales of this…monster.

Clearly, Size Matters

Meet the Radeon HD 5970. Apparently, Radeon HD 5870 X2 too-conspicuously conveyed the dual-GPU nature of this card—an attribute that has not necessarily been celebrated in the past by those wary of scaling or stuttering issues.

Nevertheless, this is ATI’s dual-GPU, single-PCB follow-up to the Radeon HD 5870 (and answer to Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 295—a card that, up until today, was the fastest discrete graphics board you could buy). Gone are all auspices of value. This thing is set to sell for $600. Almost ironically, though, the 5970 might end up being the way to go for anyone who was previously considering a pair of Radeon HD 5850s in CrossFire, which would add up to $600 today anyway.

ATI’s approach here looks a lot like what Nvidia did with its GeForce GTX 295 earlier this year.

1) Take two top-end GPUs. In Nvidia’s case, it was the GT200 with 240 stream processors. In ATI’s, it’s the 1,600-shader Cypress found in its Radeon HD 5870.
2) Drop clock rates a bit in order to keep power and thermals under control.
3) ???
4) Profit

It goes 5970, 5870, and 5850It goes 5970, 5870, and 5850

The most significant difference is that, while Nvidia hacked and slashed the back-end of its GPU to match what you’d get from a pair of GeForce GTX 275s, cutting ROPs and 64-bits of the originally-512-bit memory interface, ATI’s Radeon HD 5970 sports a pair of uncut Cypress chips. Only the clocks are dropped (to Radeon HD 5850 levels), and for a fairly sensible reason that we'll get into shortly, too.

What results is a massive, single-PCB card that stretches a foot long—an inch more than the already-lengthy Radeon HD 5870 and an inch and a half longer than ATI’s Radeon HD 4870 X2. This will unquestionably be a sticking point for enthusiasts with cramped enclosures. Enthusiasts are a resourceful bunch, though.

More Sweet Spot Action

Hemlock represents the third of four projected launches based on the Evergreen family, first discussed in early September. The first, of course, was Cypress—the Radeon HD 5870 and Radeon HD 5850. The second was Juniper—the Radeon HD 5770 and 5750. The next launch, after today’s, is expected in the first quarter of 2010 and will consist of the entry-level Cedar and Redwood components.

Zoom

At least on paper, AMD’s Sweet Spot strategy is going off without a hitch.

In reality, the same availability issues that plagued the Radeon HD 4770 shortly after launch are taking their toll on Radeon HD 5870 and Radeon HD 5850 supply (the 5770 and 5750s seem to be a little more widely available). Blame, of course, is being directed at TSMC’s 40nm manufacturing node and its resulting yields.

Of course, that’s a shame since supply affects pricing. But ATI tells us that only the 5850 is being hit by a $50 price jump. The 5870 remains at its $399 price point (though you’ll see some vendors selling the card for more). Moreover, the Radeon HD 5970’s $599 MSRP is being set with already-known supply issues priced in—expect it to remain around that $600 level.

Now, let’s dig into more depth on what you’re getting for $600—$100 more than Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 295.

ATI HD 5970 Review (Benchmarks)