November 2009

Mass Effect 2 System Requirements

Posted Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:40 by tux

BioWare games is slated to release Mass Effect 2 in January of 2010.  So what sort of machine will you need to run the new game?  Tom's Hardware has the following listed on their site:

PC MINIMUM System Requirements
OS = Windows XP SP3 / Windows Vista SP1 / Windows 7
Processor = 1.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo or equivalent AMD CPU
Memory = 1 GB RAM for Windows XP / 2 GB RAM for Windows Vista and Windows 7
Hard Drive = 15 GB
DVD ROM = 1x Speed
Sound Card = DirectX 9.0c compatible
Direct X = DirectX 9.0c August 2008 (included)
Input = Keyboard / Mouse
Video Card = 256 MB (with Pixel Shader 3.0 support). Supported Chipsets: NVIDIA GeForce 6800 or greater; ATI Radeon X1600 Pro or greater. Please note that NVIDIA GeForce 7300, 8100, 8200, 8300, 8400, and 9300; ATI Radeon HD3200, and HD4350 are below minimum system requirements. Updates to your video and sound card drivers may be required. Intel and S3 video cards are not officially supported in Mass Effect 2.

PC RECOMMENDED System Requirements
Windows XP SP3 / Windows Vista SP1 / Windows 7
2.6+ GHz Cure 2 Duo Intel or equivalent AMD CPU
2 GB RAM
ATI Radeon HD 2900 XT, NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT, or better recommended
100% DirectX compatible sound card and drivers
DirectX August 2008

 

Intel Development Roadmap for i5 and i3 processors

Posted Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:36 by tux

Just thought I'd share this link with everybody: http://www.tomshardware.com/news/intel-roadmap-core-i5-i7,9167.html

Looks like Intel might have solidified the development roadmap for their i5 and i3 processors.  I'm especially interested in the i5, as it's supposed to still have a lot of the features of the i7, but at a fraction of the cost.

Good stuff.

Cyber Monday: Protect Yourself from Nastiness

Posted Mon, 11/30/2009 - 11:44 by tux

Cyber Monday has become to online shoppers what Black Friday has been to brick-and-mortar deal hunters for years: a love-hate experience in bargain shopping that can make heroes of the meek and reduce even the mightiest men to heaps of burnt out frustration.

It can also be a hey-day for online identity theft, scams, and spam.  Make sure you're shopping smart when you're online this year.  Stay away from shady deals, especially if you didn't explicitly request information from a particular online retailer.  Don't use links that arrived as part of an advertisement email.  If you got something in an email and you're really interested in learning more about it, open a new browser window and type the address of the retailer directly into the address bar yourself, that way you can be sure you're going to the retailer's site, as opposed to a spoofed website where your personal information can be collected and sold.  Finally, make sure the computer you're using to do your online shopping is fully up-to-date with the latest security patches.  This can prevent a lot of malicious software from being able to take hold of your computer.

Check out PCMag.com's article on safe cyber-shopping for more information and tips on how you can make it through Cyber Monday unscathed.

Cody Phillips

Posted Thu, 11/26/2009 - 01:18 by codyphillips

Cody Phillips is a professional travel guide and a representative from Cheap Hotels . 
Cheaphotels.com.au is dedicated to bringing customers reduced rates on hotels around the world like Sdney Hotels and Melbourne Hotels whether clients are planning holidays months in advance, or last minute travel. Their network reaches more than 85,000 hotelsworldwide, bringing a savings of up to 75% percent off regular room rates.

The New York Times Reads the Writing on the Wall

Posted Wed, 11/25/2009 - 09:42 by tux

In an unprecedented move toward embracing new mediums of distribution, the New York Times announced that they will be partnering up with Samsung to offer readers a discount on a Samsung Go netbook preloaded with their Adobe AIR-based reader software.  Prospective Times Online readers can receive a $100 discount on the Go, as long as they sign up for a year-long subscription.  Check out the full article on Engadget.

Enter the "Door-Buster" Deals

Posted Tue, 11/24/2009 - 12:22 by tux

Tis the season to be shopping, so we here at Side-by-Side Geek thought we'd get into the game as well, and give you a little bit of help finding some of the more interesting deals.  There's a whole load of "deals" going on out there, and it can be difficult to tell which are worth the wait outside the store in the cold, and which are really just old hardware with a slightly lower sticker price slapped on it.  We've searched the web high and low to try to help you figure out where to look for deals, and which "deals" are as good as they say they are.  Here's a list of sources that we find to be most interesting:

It can be a jungle out there, so be careful!  Remember, behind every great "deal" is profit for the retailer.

Core i7 iMacs Arriving Dead

Posted Tue, 11/24/2009 - 10:29 by tux

According to a story posted by Engadget's Nilay Patel early this morning, Apple's been having some issues delivering the goods, at least in a fashion that does the user any good.  The article states that there has been a rash of Apple's new Core i7-based iMac showing up either DOA or with a cracked screen.  The moral of the story: if you're buying one of these performance beasts for a friend or loved-one this Christmas, make sure you unbox and power the thing on, just to be sure.

Shop Black Friday Deals from Home

Posted Mon, 11/23/2009 - 11:07 by tux

If you're like most people, the Friday after Thanksgiving, also known as "Black Friday", is both a blessing and a curse.  Yes, there are some great deals to be had if you're willing to hoist yourself out of bed at 4:30am.  Well, it turns out there is an easier, and much more comfortable, way to take advantage of Black Friday savings.

 

Melinda Fulmer over at MSN's Money Central site posted an article which contains a lot of useful information for those of us who want to make smart shopping choices, but don't want to have to stand in line with hundreds of other tired, coffee-wired deal hunters.  She gives tips on finding deals ahead of time and researching the best options on what to buy from the myriad of available choices.  It's a pretty interesting read.

 

The bottom line: we're all internet savvy now-a-days.  Don't forget there are deals to be had in the world of online shopping.

HP Pavilion dm3z On Sale for Black Friday

Posted Mon, 11/23/2009 - 10:25 by tux

HP's dm3z will be available at a deep discount from HPDirect.com this coming "Black" Friday.  According to Notebooks.com writer Rajesh, HP will be cutting the price up to $329 on the 13.3" laptop, depending on which configuration you choose.  Check out Notebooks.com and HPDirect.com for further information.

Mobiado: Cells phones for the rich and, well... rich

Posted Fri, 11/20/2009 - 16:28 by tux

Engadget just posted a story on cell phone gift ideas for the upcoming Christmas season.  Along with the usual stocking-stuffer-esque fare, they included a couple of extremely high-priced options that will leave your jaw on the floor.  What might shock you even more than the price tag, which is apparently too high for Engadget to list, is the fact that these phones seem to be woefully under-featured.  But who cares when your battery cover is made of a single piece of cut crystal?

Mobiado

Nokia Flagship Store