August 15 - 4:40pm EDT   Chip and motherboard maker AMD added four new business-class processors, according to a Friday report. Two of the chips, the 2.4GHz, 95W, X4 9750B quad-core and X3 8750B triple-core, are based on the Phenom architecture, while the other pair is built on the Athlon family. The X2 5600B dual-core is rated at 2.9GHz and draws 65W of power, while the X2 4850B dual-core is rated at 2.5GHz and draws 45W of power. In the past, Business-class Athlon CPUs from AMD predominantly used less energy, and the same holds true here as well. [full story]

July 18 - 3:00pm EDT   Shuttle has switched its attention back to AMD with the launch of one of its first small form factor barebones systems designed with AMD's Phenom processor in mind. The SN78H7 can handle at least some versions of the tri-core and quad-core AMD chips and comes with a 300W power supply to handle both the processor as well as peripherals attached to the system. The mainboard also comes with GeForce 8200 video built-in that can take on most of the workload for processing Blu-ray movies in home theater systems as well as providing enough 3D power for Vista Home Premium. [full story]

July 8 - 9:20am EDT   Acer today gave the US a rare miniature addition to its Aspire desktop lineup. The X1200 is just over a foot long at its largest measurement but fits in desktop components and expansion that would normally be impractical in its size. Up to a 2.6GHz Athlon 64 X2 is complemented by a GeForce 8200 for integrated graphics as well as a PCI Express 2.0 slot that allows dedicated video or other peripherals. Every system also fits 4GB of memory. [full story]

June 10 - 4:00am EDT   HP today gave virtually all its notebook line both a cosmetic and performance update, including some of the first Centrino 2-based notebooks. The Pavilion series is now said to have a subtler look with displays that are flush with the bezel, silver-on-silver insides, and a new Imprint finish on the outside. The Intel-based systems use their new notebook platform to supply both faster Core 2 processors as well as faster X4500 graphics on systems that go without dedicated video hardware, while a similar match uses the platform behind the Turion Ultra platform. Improved touch-sensitive media controls and an External SATA port are common across most systems, HP notes. ... [full story]

May 28 - 12:15pm EDT   Much of ASUS' notebooks running both Intel's Centrino 2 platform and the corresponding AMD Puma foundation have been revealed in advance, according to several leaks from Notebook Italia. The M-series will still serve as ASUS' media-oriented flagships, but will now trade power savings for performance: the stock M51VR will use Intel's new low-power 2.53GHz Core 2 Duo that uses only 3MB of Level 2 cache but also consumes just 25W of average power, while both the M51VA and the 17-inch M70VM will use a 35W chip that doubles the cache size to 6MB. [full story]

May 19 - 9:15am EDT   AMD this morning hoped to wipe out some of the confusion surrounding games with the advent of its AMD GAME! platform. A more precise parallel to the company's LIVE! platform for media center PCs, the new concept would certify systems as capable of a minimum gaming experience based on their choice of AMD parts. The platform will always be "balanced" and guarantee that users get both a strong processor and a good dedicated video chipset. Buyers can pick up a game meeting a given GAME! standard knowing the system won't lag or drop frames based on a sub-par component, AMD says. [full story]

April 28 - 1:00pm EDT   AMD on Monday announced it will be adding Business Class platforms to its line-up of multi-core CPUs. The maker's dual-core Athlon and triple or quad-core Phenom CPUs, coupled with AMD 780V chipset and optional ATI Radeon integrated graphics support are featured in the Business Class. The benefits of the new platforms will include up to 24-month image stability when installed in first-issue desktops, and a minimum 12 months in subsequent models. Furthermore, all are energy efficient thanks to Energy Star 4.0 rating. [full story]

April 17 - 2:25pm EDT   eMachines on Thursday released a pair of AMD-based towers that serve as the very entry level for desktops. At $300, the T3646 is the Gateway label's least expensive system and accomplishes the feat with a 2.2GHz Sempron, 1GB of memory, and a 160GB hard drive; Vista Home Basic also trims the price and reduces the operating system's demands on the computer. [full story]