Reg Hardware

1st November 2007 Archive

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  • Is the Xbox 360 Elite a multi-region DVD player?

    Do you know if the Xbox 360 Elite console is multi-regional or not? Can it play all DVDs from region 1, region 2 etc?

    Q&A 1 Nov 2007, 09:02

  • LG fills its DVD rewriter gap

    20X writer now available

    It may seem unbelievable, but until this week LG didn’t have an external 20x DVD rewriter in its product portfolio. So it’s created one to fill the gap. LG's GSA-E60N/L: 20x writing speeds LG’s GSA-E60N/L Super Multi Drive is USB 2.0 powered and writes to DVD±R discs at 20x speed. Other formats are catered for too, such as …

    Storage 1 Nov 2007, 10:16

  • iPhone rubber fingers not a hoax, inventor insists

    Exclusive Latex slip-ons to protect your display

    Register Hardware can confirm that it's possible to prevent smudging your iPhone’s display by rolling what looks like a black latex condom onto your finger - aka the weirdest iPhone accessory ever seen: the Phone Finger. The product’s maker claims the Phone Finger will “prevent smudges and fingerprints” on your iPhone or iPod …

    Media players 1 Nov 2007, 10:29

  • Qimonda samples GDDR 5

    Hold up, we're only just adopting version 4

    Memory maker Qimonda has begun sampling GDDR 5 video-memory chips, producing what it claimed today was the world's first 512Mb part. Like past GDDR revisions, GDDR 5 ups the maximum available data transfer rate between video memory and GPU - to 20GB/s, in this case. Error compensation, adaptive interface timing and the ability …

    Bits 'n' Chips 1 Nov 2007, 11:04

  • 'Seat of your pants' gaming chair comes to UK

    Gamers seeking what could be the ultimate accessory - at least that's how it's branded - can now save themselves hefty transatlantic shipping costs: US company Ultimate Game Chair's Renegade seat is now available from a UK supplier. The Renegade is designed to be connected to any of the major gaming platforms, from PCs to …

    Gadgets and Gizmos 1 Nov 2007, 11:33

  • Samsung glass breakthrough to slash LCD TV prices?

    Works out how to use window glass

    Samsung scientists have figured out how to make LCD panels from ordinary glass plates, the company announced yesterday. If the process is put into production, it could dramatically reduce the costs of LCD screens for laptops and TVs. Ironically, Samsung subsidiary Samsung Corning Precision Glass produces the kind of high- …

    HD 1 Nov 2007, 12:07

  • Asus intros 'quietest' HD DVD drive

    Sssshhh...

    Asus has launched an add-in HD DVD drive for PCs, pitching the product as a quietest of its kind - handy for folk building living-room systems. Asus' HR-0205T: Ssshhh... The HR-0205T is a read-only unit that can handled single- and dual-layer HD DVD media, and single-layer HD DVD-R discs, all at 2.4x. It'll also read all the …

    Storage 1 Nov 2007, 12:41

  • T-Mobile Sidekick Slide messaging phone

    Review Still doesn't quite cut it with kids

    Whenever the Sidekick is mentioned, the phrases “big in the States” and “Paris Hilton” inevitably follow. But, despite several attempts by T-Mobile to propel the Danger-designed device into the mainstream, it has so far failed to get Britain's youth ditching their Nokias and Walkman phones en masse. The Slide is the first of …

    Phones 1 Nov 2007, 13:47

  • IEEE powerline networking group selects HomePlug AV

    Will choice be confirmed at second ballot?

    The IEEE has moved a step closer to establishing the HomePlug AV brand of powerline Ethernet networking as the basis for a future mains networking standard. But its adoption is not yet a certainty. The latest round of balloting on the IEEE P1901 specification took place last month. Two options were put to the vote: a proposal …

    Networking and Wireless 1 Nov 2007, 17:19

  • Ubuntu laptop clan trapped in hard drive hell

    OS 'not to blame' for maniacal disks

    The Ubuntu operating system has been charged with crimes against hard drives. A number of users have complained this week about the OS (7.04/7.10) forcing drives to spin up and down at an unnatural rate due to some very aggressive power management features. According to Ubuntu wizards, however, this is a firmware/BIOS issue and …

    PCs 1 Nov 2007, 18:10

  • Laggard Apple lets Leopard virtualize

    Tired of thinking different

    Apple has tweaked its Mac OS X Server software license for Leopard, allowing the operating system to run legally in a virtual environment for the first time. The change could be a telling relinquishment of control in Apple's traditional manic dominion of all its gear. Or it's a sign of the Apocalypse. Tough call. We'll know …

    Mac 1 Nov 2007, 18:33

  • DARPA selects 11 robotic grunts to take driver's license test

    Shudder. Have you seen R2D2 parallel park?

    DARPA applied a firm hand when narrowing down the list of robot vehicles that can take place in the weekend's $3.5m Urban Challenge. The organization - an arm of the US Defense Department - has deemed only 11 out of 35 competing teams as worthy to take place in the final event. The teams have spent the past week showing off …

    Gadgets and Gizmos 1 Nov 2007, 20:44