Specs at a glance: Intel Compute Stick STCK1A32WFC OS Windows 8.1 with Bing 32-bit CPU 1.33GHz quad-core Intel Atom Z3735F (Turbo Boost up to 1.83GHz) RAM 2GB 1333MHz DDR3 (non upgradeable) GPU Intel HD Graphics (integrated) HDD 32GB eMMC SSD Networking 2.4GHz 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0 Ports 1x USB 2.0, microSD, micro USB (for power) Size 4.06” x 1.46” x 0.47” (103 x 37 x 12mm) Other perks Lock slot Warranty 1 year Price ~$150, ~$110 for Ubuntu Linux version with 1GB of RAM and 8GB of storage Our appreciation of mini desktop PCs is well-documented at this point . In the age of the smartphone and the two-pound laptop, the desktop PC is perhaps the least exciting of computing devices, but there are still plenty of hulking desktop towers out there, and many of them can be replaced by something you can hold in the palm of your hand. Intel’s new Compute Stick, available for about $150 with Windows 8.1 and $110 with Ubuntu 14.04 LTS, takes the mini desktop concept about as far as it can go. The Stick isn’t even really a “desktop” in the traditional sense, since it’s an HDMI dongle that hangs off the back of your monitor instead of sitting on your desk. It’s not very powerful, but the Compute Stick is one of the smallest Windows desktops you can buy right now. Let’s take a quick look at what it’s capable of. Read 19 remaining paragraphs | Comments
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Intel’s Compute Stick: A full PC that’s tiny in size (and performance)
MojoKid writes: Samsung has just announced its new SM951-NVMe SSD, the industry’s first NVMe SSD to employ an M.2 form-factor. Samsung says the new gumstick style drive is capable of sequential read and write speeds of 2, 260 MB/sec and 1, 600 MB/sec respectively. Comparable SATA-based M.2 SSDs typically can only push read/write speeds of 540 MB/sec and 500 MB/sec, while most standard PCIe versions muster just north of 1GB/sec. The Samsung SM951-NVMe’s performance is actually very comparable to the Intel SSD 750 Series PCIe x4 card but should help kick notebook performance up a notch in this common platform configuration. Read more of this story at Slashdot. 
HBO Now , the new standalone version of HBO that doesn’t require a cable subscription, is finally here. The app launches exclusively on Apple devices—iPhones, iPads, and the Apple TV to be specific—so if you have one of those then legal, non-moocher, cable-free HBO is just a few taps away. Read more… 
MojoKid writes Laptops with fully articulating hinges are starting to show up from more vendors than just Lenovo, though the company certainly got some mileage out of their Yoga brand of machines. Now it appears HP is getting in on the action as well, with the new HP Spectre X360 that’s powered Intel’s new Core i5-5200U Broadwell-based processor with integrated Intel HD 5500 series graphics, along with 8GB of DDR3-1600 memory, a 256GB Solid State Drive (a Samsung M.2 PCIe SSD), 802.11ac WiFi, and a 13.3″ Full HD (1920×1080) multi-touch screen. The Spectre X360 has a geared and spring-assisted hinges. The hinges swing open easily, and then offer more resistance as the screen is moved into an upright position, or swung around into tent, stand, or tablet modes. What’s also interesting about this new breed of convertibles, beyond just its ability to contort into tablet mode and various other angles, is that performance for these ultralight platforms is scaling up nicely, with faster, low-power processors and M.2 PCIe Solid State Drives offering up a very responsive experience and under 10 second boot times. It has gotten to the point that 3 pound and under notebooks feel every bit as nimble as desktop machines, at least for mainstream productivity and media consumption usage models. Read more of this story at Slashdot. 
MojoKid writes: AMD just unveiled new details about their upcoming Carrizo APU architecture. The company is claiming the processor, which is still built on Global Foundries’ 28nm 28SHP node like its predecessor, will nonetheless deliver big advances in both performance and efficiency. When it was first announced, AMD detailed support for next generation Radeon Graphics (DX12, Mantle, and Dual Graphics support), H.265 decoding, full HSA 1.0 support, and ARM Trustzone compatibility. But perhaps one of the biggest advantages of Carrizo is the fact that the APU and Southbridge are now incorporated into the same die; not just two separates dies built into and MCM package. This not only improves performance, but also allows the Southbridge to take advantage of the 28SHP process rather than older, more power-hungry 45nm or 65nm process nodes. In addition, the Excavator cores used in Carrizo have switched from a High Performance Library (HPL) to a High Density Library (HDL) design. This allows for a reduction in the die area taken up by the processing cores (23 percent, according to AMD). This allows Carrizo to pack in 29 percent more transistors (3.1 billion versus 2.3 billion in Kaveri) in a die size that is only marginally larger (250mm2 for Carrizo versus 245mm2 for Kaveri). When all is said and done, AMD is claiming a 5 percent IPC boost for Carrizo and a 40 percent overall reduction in power usage. Read more of this story at Slashdot. 
slash-sa writes: A Polish software and hardware developer has created a prototype computer which is entirely housed within a mouse. Dubbed the Mouse-Box, it works like a conventional mouse, but contains a processor, flash storage, an HDMI connection, and Wi-Fi connectivity. It is connected to a monitor via the HDMI interface and connects to an Internet connection through standard Wi-Fi. Read more of this story at Slashdot. 