New in Market

Kingston Launches HyperX Pen Drives in India

Kingston has just announced that it is expanding its line of USB Flash drives with the introduction of the DataTraveler HyperX (DT HyperX) model. Designed for ultra-fast read/write speeds and lower price points, the DT HyperX drive is available in capacities up to 8 GB.

“Taking its cue from our HyperX line of industry-setting high-speed memory modules for gamers, enthusiasts and overclockers, the DataTraveler HyperX offers exceptionally fast read and write speeds,” said Nathan Su, Flash Memory Product Manager, APAC Region, Kingston

The DT HyperX has data transfer rates of 30MB/sec. read and 20MB/sec. write. Designed to run on any Windows platform but specifically enhanced for Windows ReadyBoost on Vista-based systems, users can expect to quickly and easily transfer photos, videos, music and data to their desktop, notebook etc. The new Data Traveler HyperX is backed by a five-year warranty and free technical support.

Autodesk Maya 2009

At SIGGRAPH 2008, Autodesk announced Autodesk Maya 2009 3D animation and visual effects software, in celebration of the software's 10-year anniversary. Maya 2009 includes a host of advancements in modeling, animation, rendering and effects that maximize productivity, optimize workflows, and provide new creative possibilities.

"We are celebrating the work done with Autodesk Maya over the past 10 years by many artists and creative visionaries in film, television production and games, as well as in industrial design and architecture," said Marc Petit, Autodesk's Media & Entertainment senior vice president. "We designed Maya 2009 as a tribute to creative innovation and production efficiency. The new release will allow artists to raise the bar and deliver even more ground breaking computer graphics work."

Mike Romey, senior technical director at Zoic Studios was a beta tester for Maya 2009. "The future of Maya is shining brightly with the upcoming release," said Romey. "Autodesk Maya 2009 will change the way artists think about dynamics, rendering, compositing and pipelines. With the solid mental ray multi-render pass workflow, production will be far more effective. This new workflow will optimize render times for multiple render layers and, in turn, elevate the quality of work. The creation of nParticles builds on the unified dynamics engine introduced in nCloth, allowing for greater integration of advanced effects."

Key Highlights of Autodesk Maya 2009

Complexity Managed
While the complexity and size of scenes continue to rise, Maya 2009 provides new tools to make them more manageable. These tools include the new Maya Assets toolset, which enables users to encapsulate a set of nodes into a single container and publish a view of the data suited to the artist's task. The release also offers a new Render Proxy feature in mental ray, and additional multi-threading work and algorithmic speedups that boost interactive draw, simulation and rendering performance for even the heaviest scenes.

Accelerated Modeling Workflow
Maya 2009 gives modelers and texture artists unprecedented control over polygon modeling and UV texturing through powerful selection management features, efficient modeling workflows and precision UV unfolding and layout options.

Collaborative, Iterative Projects and Pipelines
Tighter schedules and budgets demand that projects and pipelines take full advantage of available resources. Maya 2009 supports collaborative, iterative workflows and promotes data reuse. The software has a new animation layering paradigm that provides animators with increased non-destructive flexibility, as well as an updated Render Pass toolset that offers precise control over render output and optimizes integration with Autodesk Toxik procedural compositing software.

New Creative Tools
Maya 2009 offers an innovative Maya nParticles dynamic simulation module and an extensive Maya Muscle feature set. nParticles is part of the Maya Nucleus Unified Simulation Framework, a ground-breaking approach to creating complex physics simulations that interact directly with each other. Furthermore, to help studios capitalize on the growing popularity of stereoscopic 3D films, Maya 2009 offers a flexible new stereo camera rig, complete with in-viewport stereo viewing.

Pricing and Availability
Autodesk anticipates that Maya 2009 will be available in English in October 2008. Maya 2009 will be supported on the Windows and Linux operating systems (64-bit and 32-bit versions), as well as Mac OS X for Intel-based Macintosh and PowerPC computers (32-bit version only).

Autodesk suggested retail pricing is US$1,995* for Maya Complete 2009 (Standalone) and US$4,995* for Maya Unlimited 2009 (Standalone). The upgrade price from Maya Complete 2008 to Maya Complete 2009 is US$899*, and the upgrade price from Maya Unlimited 2008 to Maya Unlimited 2009 is US$1,249*.

http://www.autodesk.com

Autodesk Mudbox 2009: Digital Sculpting and Texture Painting Software

Autodesk launched Mudbox 2009 software for 3D modelers and texture artists working on entertainment and design projects.

Mudbox combines an intuitive user interface with a powerful toolset for creating highly-detailed 3D models. The software gives artists the freedom to create without worrying about technical details. Mudbox has shaped characters in blockbuster movies and games, including Journey to the Center of the Earth, The Mist and Mass Effect.

"Our goal is to make early stage digital assets resemble their final 'on-screen' forms as closely as possible," said Dave Cardwell, Mudbox product designer at Autodesk Media & Entertainment.

"Starting with accurate models makes the production process more efficient and provides a higher-quality end result. For example, you'd want to know early on whether a prominent brow will shadow a character's eyes.

That's why Autodesk Mudbox 2009 has texture painting tools and on-target display features; these will help artists build and refine better 3D models."

Autodesk anticipates that Mudbox 2009 will be available in October 2008.

www.mudbox3d.com

Serif PagePlus X3

While indesign, Quark XPress and Microsoft Publisher divvy up much of the desktop publishing market, Serif ’s PagePlus adopts the role of underrated gem. The veteran layout tool can produce both print and web publications, but most of Serif PagePlus X3’s new features are sensibly aimed at satisfying the program’s core constituency: print designers.

Perhaps the best of these improvements is Serif Page- Plus X3’s tool to extract backgrounds from images in the new Image Cutout Studio. You can select any document image and remove unwanted areas using a paintbrush to distinguish between the parts of the image to retain and those to remove. Serif PagePlus X3 now offers a built-in logo creation tool, LogoStudio. You can select artwork – or use a template – and bring it into a customized illustration environment where you can add effects such as text on a path and predefined shapes.

Of more everyday benefit to the working designer is a ‘package’ feature that gathers all fonts and linked images used in a document before sending it to a printer. It’s a feature usually found only in expensive desktop publishing programs and cements Serif PagePlus X3’s deserved status as a professional- level tool. PagePlus’s PDF-editing abilities are exceptional.

Print-standard export settings come as standard, and importing existing PDFs proved flawless. Better, cheaper and as easy to use as its predecessor,  Serif PagePlus X3 is an ideal choice for a desktop publishing on a budget.

http://www.serif.com/pageplus/pageplusx3/

Logitech introduces Cordless Precision Controller for PS3

Logitech has launched Cordless Precision controller for PLAYSTATION 3. It has been specially designed to enhance gamer’s experience with PLAYSTATION 3. The Logitech Cordless Precision controller for PLAYSTATION 3 offers gamers an affordable cordless gamepad with the reliable 2.4 GHz Cordless Freedom technology. It provides precise control
over a 30-foot range with no lag, ensuring that the gamer has smooth and exciting gaming experience. Featuring Logitech´s critically acclaimed floating D-pad design, the Logitech Cordless Precision controller for PLAYSTATION 3 is extremely accurate and responsive. The advanced power-saving technology of Logitech's Cordless Precision controller for PS3 lets gamers play for well over 150 hours on a single set of two AA batteries.

Logitech Cordless Precision controller for PLAYSTATION 3 is priced at Rs.2,990 and is available across all the leading electronic stores in India. It enjoys a warranty of 2 years. Origin Marketing Pvt. Ltd. distributes Logitech Cordless Precision controller for PLAYSTATION 3.

GeForce 8800 GTS 512MB Roundup

Looking for a cheaper, more cost effective alternative to the GeForce 9800 GTX and GeForce 9800 GX2? If so, the GeForce 8800 GTS 512MB and GeForce 8800 GT 512MB are pretty tough to beat.

Both of these GPUs are based on the same G92 GPU used in the 9800 GTX and 9800 GX2, only they run at different clock speeds. In the case of the GeForce 8800 GT, it runs at the same core and shader speeds as the GeForce 9800 GX2 – 600MHz core/1500MHz stream processors – while the memory on the 9800 GX2 is just 30MHz faster than the 8800 GTS 512MB. In fact, the GeForce 9800 GX2 is so similar to the 8800 GTS 512MB, one FiringSquad reader, Labotomizer, ran into an issue where a 9800 GX2 system he was building for a customer ID’ed the GX2 board as a pair of GeForce 8800 GTS 512MBs!

On the single GPU front, the GeForce 9800 GTX runs just 25MHz higher than the GeForce 8800 GTS 512MB, while the GTX’s memory is 130MHz faster. In fact, the stock 9800 GTX actually runs slower than some factory overclocked GeForce 8800 GTS 512MB cards! This has actually prompted some board manufacturers to stop producing factory OC’ed GTS 512MB cards entirely: some 8800 GTS 512MB cards are so fast it’s actually confusing to some consumers because these OC’ed GTS cards are faster than the newer, supposedly faster, 9800 GTX.

Between the GeForce 8800 GT and 8800 GTS 512MB, the GeForce 8800 GTS 512MB is the card we recommend the most for hardware enthusiasts on a budget, simply because it runs at higher clocks than the 8800 GT, and more importantly, it boasts 128 stream processors (compared to the 8800 GT which sports just 112), yet it often sells for just $20-$40 more than the GeForce 8800 GT. Don’t get us wrong, the GeForce 8800 GT is a great card, particularly if you’re on a strict $200 budget, but if you can afford to splurge $20 or so, the 8800 GTS 512MB is the board to get amongst the two.

With this in mind we’ve rounded up seven of the hottest GeForce 8800 GTS 512MB cards on the market right now. All of the boards included in today’s roundup run at different cock speeds and ship with different software bundles, but with the exception of the Palit card, all the boards included in today’s roundup are based on NVIDIA’s reference board design for the GeForce 8800 GTS 512MB.

We know that you’re probably disappointed by this, but unfortunately this is the reality you often have to deal with at the higher end of the graphics market. NVIDIA wants to ensure a consistent level of quality regardless of the board manufacturer, and the board partners themselves are often content to play along to keep their own R&D costs down.

BFG launches GeForce 8800 GT/9600 GT cards with Thermointelligence

While NVIDIA's board partners at Computex are excited about GeForce GTX 200 series, the cards are expected to sell for a significant premium over today's GeForce GPUs. With this in mind many board partners are refreshing their GeForce 8800 GT and 9600 GT lineups, adding newer SKUs with higher clock speeds and more robust cooling.

BFG is the latest board partner to do this, announcing their newest GeForce 8800 GT OCX and 9600 GT OCX cards with Thermointelligence cooling. Both cards ship with the same all-copper, nickel-plated dual-slot cooler with green LED lighting. BFG claims their cooler outperforms the stock NVIDIA reference design cooler by 18 degrees and 30 degrees Celsius for the 9600 GT and 8800 GT respectively. Both cards are also OC'ed from the factory, with the 8800 GT OCX running at 700MHz core/2.0GHz memory and the 9600 GT OCX at 725MHz core/1.85GHz memory.

SanDisk Launches New MicroSD and M2 Cards

SanDisk has announced the availability of SanDisk Mobile Ultra, microSD, microSDHC and Memory Stick Micro (M2) flash mobile memory cards. These cards are a part of SanDisk’s “Wake Up Your Phone” series for multimedia. The cards come bundled with a MobileMate Micro Reader that plugs directly into a USB 2.0 port.

“This product launch further proves SanDisk’s ability to anticipate changing user needs and provide the market with the right mobile storage solutions at the right time.” said David Kerr, vice president mobile research, Strategy Analytics.

Michael Romero, vice president of Mobile Retail Business, SanDisk, said, “SanDisk’s new Mobile Ultra line will make consumers’ digital lifestyle more manageable by offering them greater ability to quickly transfer photos, maps, music, videos, games and other large file size content wherever they go. These cards are truly the most convenient way for people to store, move and play content using their mobile phones, so we’re excited to introduce this high-performance, premium product to market to meet this need and growing demand.”

The SanDisk Mobile Ultra microSDHC are available in 2GB, 4GB and 8GB capacities and are priced at Rs. 1,492 ($34.99), Rs. 2,558 ($59.99) and Rs. 5,117 ($119.99) respectively. The Mobile Ultra Memory Stick Micro M2 are also available in the same capacities and are priced at Rs. 1,705 ($39.99) for the 2GB, Rs. 2,985 ($69.99) for the 4GB and Rs. 5,543 ($129.99) for the 8GB models. The SanDisk Mobile Ultra cards also come with a 10-year limited warranty.

http://www.sandisk.com/Corporate/PressRoom/PressReleases/PressRelease.aspx?ID=4200

Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard

Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard is Apple's first major operating system upgrade since Tiger more than two years ago. The changes include more than 300 new features, which, while not earth-shattering, further streamline the experience of using a Mac.

Should you pay for Leopard? If you're happy with the way Tiger works, then maybe not. If you need Bootcamp, however, then you must have Leopard. And if you're considering the purchase of a new computer, Leopard makes Macs more enticing than Tiger did. Plus, Leopard makes it far easier to find documents and applications than Windows Vista . Leopard's interface niceties made the daily mechanics of using the computer more pleasurable. Mundane chores, such as finding files and backing up data, become a visual treat (See our photo gallery of screenshots .)

Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard costs $129 out of the box, or $199 for up to five users. Those who bought Macs after October 1 must pay $9.95 to have Leopard shipped to them.

Setup and installation
It took us about 40 minutes to install Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard on an Intel-based MacBook. That's a bit longer than it took to install than Windows Vista, but not by much. However, installation didn't run so smoothly on some systems. Leopard took a painfully long hour or so to install on an iBook G4, the 933 Mhz processor just grazing the minimum requirements.

You should proceed carefully when migrating the files and applications you'll need. Apple steps you through the process, but take your time to avoid overwriting valuable data. Leopard changed the personal desktop image during one migration from Tiger, while leaving the desktop photo alone in other cases. After installing Leopard on MacBook Pro 2.33 Core 2 Duo with 2GB of RAM, there were problems with various applications, including Parallels and GroupCal.

Leopard ran bug-free on a 2Ghz Core 2 Duo Macbook. Some users, however, reported the fabled " blue screen of death " historically associated with Microsoft Windows; Apple addressed the issue .

To run Leopard, you'll need an Intel or PowerPC G5 Mac. A PowerPC-based G4 Mac with an 867MHz or better processor will work, as well. Apple suggests having 512MB of RAM. Additionally, you'll need a USB or FireWire external backup drive (or a file-sharing volume on a network) to use Time Machine. Features on iChat require a Webcam.

Interface
The new look and feel of Leopard is different without demanding that you relearn the layout. The Dock organizing applications and files becomes a bit more transparent. Bump it over to one side, and the Dock looks a bit flatter. A drop shadow now highlights the active window, and all windows share a unified visual design.

Click on an icon on the Dock and related items fan out in the order you last accessed them. New Stacks help to unclutter your desktop by showing icons of items in the order they were last accessed. This is especially helpful for keeping downloads in one place, although you can't resize the icons. If the Stack is packed with items, you can display them as a grid.

The souped-up Finder introduces a sidebar that allows you to rearrange items in the Places section, while Search For submenus can locate files based on type and when you last worked on them. Click on Today, for instance, and you'll see everything you've touched lately in chronological order. If you work on a network, checking out another person's desktop starts with the simple Share Screen option.

Spotlight scours through files in shared folders on a network, as well as within Safari's Web History (which you should regularly dump to fend off snoops). It gets smarter, reading "Not" and "Or," dates and phrases, and even serving as a calculator for trig equations.

Many new design elements reflect what you've already seen in iTunes and iPhone. Cover Flow, for instance, shuffles through folders as you hold down an arrow key. This makes perfect sense for browsing files. Plus, you can peek at most documents instantly. Quick Look provides previews that can pop up files from iWork, iLife, Microsoft Office, PDFs, as well as popular image and video formats. In each instance appear relevant options, such as Full Screen view or Add to iPhoto. Select several files, double-click them, and you've got a custom slide show.

In addition to making it easier to find your work, interface additions are intended to make multitasking less stressful. Virtual desktops, called Spaces, cluster open windows into categories or boxes. This can cut the number of windows you may otherwise stack around your desktop, especially helpful for tiny monitors. For example, you could move everything you need to edit a vacation video into one space, and in another Space place the files and apps needed to write a dissertation. Spaces were a cinch to set up (such as drawing a chart in a word processor), but a tad awkward for us to master until we learned the keyboard shortcuts. You can also use the mouse to drag items between Spaces, and to drag the Spaces themselves around.

Time Machine immediately detected our external hard drive via two USB ports and we started backing up within a few minutes. You cannot back up to your Mac's hard drive. You can check out the drives of fellow Leopard users with Time Machine, too. However, Apple doesn't offer password-protection and encryption options upfront showing you how to lock that drive from curious outsiders. Only longtime Mac users are likely to know to explore such options within Leopard's Security settings.

iChat lets you and Leopard-using buddies share files and control each others' desktops, expanding the tool's potential professional use. And you can record iChat sessions as AAC audio or MPEG video files ready for an iPod, which is a great feature for podcasters.

iChat Theater's silly effects can distort your face like you're looking in a fun-house mirror. Green-screen backgrounds within iChat Theater let your talking head appear in a video conference in front of, say, included images of the moon or your own pictures. (We still wish the "Star Wars R2D2" theme were included.) Other chat buddies can see these, whether they're using an older iteration of OS X or they're using AIM on a Windows PC. iChat enables you to share files as you gab via video, so you and a friend can watch the same movie clip or flip through the same PowerPoint presentation. Photo Booth integrates with iChat, letting you record videos and show off full-screen slide shows.

Mac's new Mail application integrates rich note-taking into e-mail. These notes can serve as scrapbooks containing images. Some 32 e-mail templates enable you to drop in pictures and resize them with a built-in photo browser. Mail's RSS feeds tie into those in Safari. The e-mail application also detects addresses for mapping via Google, as well as contacts for a quick save. Natural language capabilities, similar to those within Gmail, recognize phrases such as "next Saturday" for scheduling. Changes are synchronized between Mail and iCal. Setting up Mail is less complicated than Outlook, and it works with accounts from 27 services, including Yahoo, AOL, and Gmail.

However, we wish we could access RSS feeds from Mail without signing into our e-mail account. We encountered delays with several different Gmail accounts. In one case, the most current Gmail message that loaded in Mail--15 minutes after we had logged in--was from December 2006. We kept leaning on the Get Mail button for an unsatisfactory, slow and incomplete refresh.

Finally, the Safari browser default is tabbed without making you turn on the feature. Safari's cool new Web Clips tool lets you turn any snippet from a Web page into a widget for your Dashboard. Potential plug-ins from third parties that would be nice to have already include the Web Clips feature for the popular Mozilla Firefox browser.

Leopard offers many tie-ins to Web-based content (see the Webware video ). Among them is Wikipedia as a new companion to the Dictionary. Although you can access the open-source encyclopedia from the Desktop, no entries are saved locally.

Geotagging is a cool addition to Leopard, enabling you to tie photos to latitude and longitude through built-in GPS on digital cameras so you can put picture galleries on a map.

Leopard offers 17 new features . There's support for Braille output devices as well as contracted and non-contracted Braille. It's the first operating system that can use a Braille display during installation. VoiceOver makes it easier to jump to sections on a Web page, and its preferences can be transported to other Macs. However, for people with repetitive stress injuries, Leopard supports voice-activated commands only--not dictation. There are updates to less glamorous elements such as Automator and Dashcode, and Network Preferences has been streamlined. Developers can enjoy full 64-bit support, and get to tinker with fun extras, which we wish were integrated already within iChat Theater. ColorSync reads EXIF sRGB data from cameras, and there's support for connecting more cameras via cable or Wi-Fi, and for other gadgets via Bluetooth.

Security
More firewall controls are among several security enhancements to Leopard. Yet the firewall isn't turned on by default , and we consider it vulnerable to outside threats. To fend off Trojans and spoofing attempts, you'll be grilled more when downloading materials. A mechanism called Sandboxing is supposed to prevent potential external threats from hijacking your applications. Parental controls are now featured more prominently in the System and offer content filters, time limits, and Internet activity loggers to keep tabs on young Web surfers.

Performance
We saw only a 1 percent to 3 percent improvement with Leopard over Tiger on our performance tests. As this falls within our typical margin of error (5 percent), we saw no significant difference with application performance when moving from Tiger to Leopard.

We were unable to complete our Photoshop CS3 test because our automation routine tests, which typically run fine under Tiger, had problems with Leopard. Adobe's Web site indicates that Photoshop CS3 should be compatible with Leopard--other than the automation snafu, Photoshop CS3 appears to operate normally.

This underlies the point that some applications might not be 100 percent compatible yet with Leopard. For instance, Adobe is rolling out updates to various CS3 image, video and audio editing applications within the next four months. FileMaker is warning users of FileMaker Pro 9 that there are some compatibility problems with Leopard . However, FileMaker expects to have an update available by November 19.

Service and support
Support options remain the same as in the Tiger version. You get 90 days of help free by telephone, as with other products from Apple. Phone support thereafter costs $49 per incident. AppleCare support lasts a year after you buy Leopard. For extra peace of mind, you should consider extended warranties.

Apple also tweaked the Help menus within OS X 10.5. These are arranged well, although they didn't always provide an instant answer. Many items are better explained on Apple's Web site via message boards, user forums, and a well-organized knowledge base.

Credit: www.cnet.com

SGI Visual Supercomputing

• Users accomplish more work with less cost, reduced complexity, and optimized workflow
• Delivers top performance by offering hybrid solutions optimally built from best of breed technologies
• Reduces workflow complexity through a data-centric architecture and technologies that seamlessly integrate
• Manages diverse workloads by offering a software stack that supports visualization technology choices
• Enhances SGI® Altix® XE and SGI® Altix® ICE compute platforms with closely coupled CPU/GPU visualization nodes

SGI Visual Supercomputing is a complete portfolio of innovative high performance visualization technologies, services, and solutions that enable our customers to effectively solve their greatest supercomputing challenges. Visualization challenges include the ability to process increasingly larger and more complex data sets that continue to expand in scope and detail; the ability to explore multiple "what if" scenarios tight deadlines; and the need to display and interact with visual data in remote locations.

By fully integrating high performance visualization with its supercomputing and data management systems, SGI delivers a complete compute/visualize/data management solution that optimizes workflow and productivity, reduces system complexity, and delivers dramatically reduced time-to-results.

The SGI Visual Supercomputer is integrated into our industry-leading hybrid compute-visualization-data systems that deliver a seamless and highly productive supercomputing environment. The SGI Visual Supercomputer includes high performance visualization blades featuring the latest CPUs and GPUs, a comprehensive visualization-enabled software stack that reduces system complexity, and remote visualization capabilities. Every SGI Visual Supercomputer is engineered to match the unique global workflow requirements of each of our clients.

Credit: www.sgi.com

Gateway One GZ7220

If Apple's iMac is the best all-around, all-in-one PC (if not one of the best all-around desktops), and Sony's VAIO LT19U succeeds in a very specific, high-end niche, where does that leave the new Gateway One? It's certainly attractive, but our fully loaded, $1,799 review unit has slower performance and a smaller screen than the less expensive, equally pretty iMac. The Gateway One has a few clever design elements, and the best upgradeability we've seen in an enclosed system. We can also imagine the OS X-shy might be interested in a visually pleasing, Vista-based all-in-one. But for confident, platform-agnostic users, we'll continue to recommend Apple, mostly due to its price and performance lead.

The sleek, glossy black Gateway One is not the first all-in-one from Gateway, but it's definitely the best looking. At 17.5 inches tall, 18.3 inches wide, and 3.5 inches from front to back, it takes up less space than the 7.25-inch-deep iMac. The trimmer footprint is due to an unexpectedly sturdy support on the back of the Gateway One, that actually recalls the design of Apple's old Cinema Displays . As with those bygone LCDs, you can stand the Gateway One up at an almost a 90-degree angle or tilt it back by roughly 45 degrees.

The Gateway One also does a better job than the iMac of preserving its aura of wireless techno-calm. In addition to the obligatory RF wireless mouse and keyboard, the single cable coming from the rear of the system goes down to a power brick. But on that brick you'll also find a collection of USB, digital audio, networking, and other inputs. Gateway includes USB and headphone ports on the side of the system as well, but the beauty of placing the ports on the brick is that it lets you keep the wires to things you don't normally disconnect under the desk and out of sight. Apple has its wireless mice and keyboards as well, but any other hard inputs go directly into the rear of the iMac, disturbing the cable-free aesthetic.

The ports on the Gateway One's power brick let you keep your wires out of sight under your desk.

Also in the Gateway One's favor, it allows for more customer upgradeability than either the iMac or the Sony VAIO LT19U. You slide two latches on the bottom of the system to pop the rear panel up like the hood of a car. Inside, you get access to the memory slots as well the two PCI Express MiniCard slots and the spare hard drive bay. Apple offers only memory access. Sony lets you get at both the memory and the hard drives of its all-in-one, but to add or remove the drives you need to wrangle with cables and an annoyingly complicated removable drive sled. The Gateway simply has two plastic bays that line the drives up directly with their fixed data and power inputs. No screws, no cables.

It couldn't be easier to add a second hard drive to the Gateway One.

While Gateway has done a good job designing the body of its new all-in-one, its soul needs some work. Consider the following specs comparison:

We should point out that the iMac we reviewed is a nonstandard config that has upgrades to its memory and its hard drive. And even after those add-ins, the Gateway One still has more memory and more storage space, not to mention a TV tuner. But counterbalancing those features are the Gateway's higher price, its smaller screen and slower processor, and its lack of Bluetooth capability. You can add Bluetooth via the Gateway's spare MiniCard port, so you can at least do that as an option, but if you were hoping to for wireless syncing between the Gateway and a smart phone or another device, you're out of luck to start.

It might be fair to argue that the Gateway's TV tuner and the iMac's Bluetooth capability cancel each other out (although we wish the tuner was internal, as on the Sony). What's plain, though, is that the Gateway is a performance laggard. Considering its higher price, its slowness hurts it the most. Of the three all-in-ones we've reviewed recently, as well as a standard HP desktop of similar price and capability for good measure, the Gateway One finished last or second to last on every test. Especially compared to the iMac, the Gateway is slower at editing photos, encoding audio and video files, playing games, and multitasking. PC vendors are sometimes keen to argue that all-in-ones can sacrifice performance as long as the features are there and the thing can serve as a standard-definition multimedia box. We don't expect any all-in-one to set records, but it's clear that Apple takes the iMac's performance as an actual computer far more seriously than Gateway does.

Credit: www.cnet.com