During the heyday of optical storage we saw a 400GB Blu-Ray flavor (shown above) and even 1TB discs in the lab, but lately such development has waned. Sony and Panasonic have teamed up to move things along, however, saying there’s a need for reliable long-term storage that only optical disks can provide. The pair will develop a “next-generation standard for professional-use optical discs, ” saying that a 300GB flavor could be ready in two years or so. Though geared towards industries like cloud storage and digital cinema at first, the tech could eventually trickle down to consumers, too. Given rapid developments in on-demand streaming and cloud gaming , however, there might be nothing left for us plebes to archive by then. Filed under: Storage , Sony Comments Via: The Verge Source: Sony

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Sony and Panasonic ally to launch next-generation 300GB optical discs

These days, it’s fairly easy to find a PCI Express-based SSD to transform one’s desktop — Angelbird , Fusion-io , Micron and ASUS will sell you one, just to name a few. That said, the last of those three has just revealed a new entrant that will certainly catch the eye of many, as the RAIDR Express claims to be the first PCI-e SSD to be compatible with both legacy and UEFI BIOS. The so-called DuoMode feature is joined by 240GB of storage space, sequential 830MB/s read and 810MB/s write speeds and a reported 620, 000 hours mean time between failure (MTBF). You’ll also find the latest LSI SandForce controller, Toshiba-built 19nm MLC flash, and 100, 000 4K read/write input/output operations per second (IOPS). The bundled RAMDisk utility allows users to dedicate up to 80 percent of a computer’s available RAM for use as a high-speed virtual drive, and if you needed any further proof that it’s fast, look no further than in the video after the break. Curiously, ASUS isn’t talking pricing just yet, but it should start shipping in the very near future. Filed under: Gaming , Storage , ASUS Comments Via: PC Perspective , Engadget Japanese Source: ASUS

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ASUS’ RAIDR Express PCI-e SSD is compatible with both legacy and UEFI BIOS

Last month we reported that Apple was to provide iPads to the Los Angeles school district. At the time, the numbers looked like only a slice of the region’s 640, 000 students would receive the hardware (just 31, 000 of them initially). A new update today indicates that this is actually just the first wave, and in fact every one of the region’s kids will benefit from the scheme — as confirmed by Mark Hovatter, chief facilities executive for LAUSD. This is of course great news for those in the area, but not all that bad for Apple’s bottom line , either, we’re guessing. Filed under: Tablets , Apple Comments Via: 9 to 5 mac

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Los Angeles School District iPad scheme confirms all 640,000 students will benefit

Gaming giant Activision Blizzard announced it’s buying out most of majority shareholder Vivendi’s stake, at a total price of about $8.2 billion. Activision will pay about $5.83 billion in cash to Vivendi for 429 million shares, while an investment group led by CEO Bobby Kotick and co-chairman Brian Kelly will pick up 172 million shares for $2.34 billion, leaving Vivendi with 83 million shares, or about 12 percent of the company. The publisher of titles like Call of Duty and World of Warcraft (and Guitar Hero before it ran that into the ground) Activision is reporting preliminary results for Q2 of $1.05 billion in net revenue and raised its full-year revenue outlook slightly, although full results won’t be available until August 1st. As Joystiq mentions, Vivendi has been unsuccessfully trying to sell its part of the company for nearly a year, hopefully this transaction works out the best for everyone. By everyone, we mean people still waiting for StarCraft: Ghost . Filed under: Gaming , HD Comments Via: Joystiq Source: Activision

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Activision Blizzard is going independent, buying out Vivendi for $8 billion

NVIDIA’s just launched its latest flagship Quadro GPU for well-heeled graphics professionals, the Kepler-based Quadro K6000. The company claims it’s “the fastest and most capable GPU ever built” with double the graphics capability of its Quadro 6000 predecessor. It also has 12GB of the “world’s largest and fastest” DDR5 graphics memory, enabling companies like Nissan to load nearly complete vehicle models, for instance. Other niceties include 2, 880 streaming multiprocessor cores, four simultaneous displays at up to 4K resolution, ultra-low latency video I/O and large scale visualization support. It’ll hit the market this fall from workstation vendors like HP, Dell and Lenovo, along with system integrators and distribution partners like PNY . There’s no pricing yet, but the current K5000 runs about $2, 250 — so, prime your budget expectations accordingly. Filed under: Peripherals , NVIDIA Comments Via: Slashgear Source: NVIDIA

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NVIDIA announces ‘fastest GPU ever’ for pros, the 12GB Quadro K6000

Intel teased us with the prospect of a fanless Haswell chip back at Computex , but it didn’t say just how it would achieve such a feat. Now we know: it’s introducing more energy-efficient versions of the Y-series Core processors that were announced earlier this year. The new chips consume as little as 4.5W in a typical scenario, letting them run in tablets and detachable convertibles without the fans needed by their 6W peers. Don’t expect blistering performance at this reduced power level, however. While Intel isn’t divulging clock speeds just yet, the 4.5W Y-series chips have the same 11.5W thermal design power rating as their 6W siblings — they’ll still need active cooling to perform at their best. The company also isn’t providing ship dates or naming customers, although it does promise that the extra-miserly Core CPUs should be available in the “coming months.” We have an idea as to who might be interested. Filed under: Laptops , Tablets , Intel Comments Source: Intel

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Intel previews 4.5W Y-series Core chips for fanless tablets

Gmail’s new layout doesn’t just keep your inbox organized, it also gives Google the perfect opportunity to send you unsolicited email ads. These sponsored missives appear as highlighted entries under the Promotions tab, where you can also find deals and updates from online services you subscribe to. To be fair, Gmail has long displayed advertisements at the top of your inbox, so this development isn’t totally new. In a statement sent to Venturebeat , the company says it’s merely relegating ads “to a more appropriate place” and that they won’t show up unless they’re relevant to you. No word yet if this is a permanent arrangement, but if it makes you livid, you can always kill your Promotions tab or dismiss the intrusive emails by clicking the “x” button on the right. [Image credit: Antonio Gulli ] Filed under: Internet , Google Comments Via: BGR , VentureBeat Source: Geek

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New Gmail layout spawns targeted ads that look like emails

Netflix has revealed its earnings report for the second quarter of 2013 which shows its worldwide customer base has grown by 1.2 million. The company now has “nearly” 30 million customers in the US (up 630, 000) and 8 million internationally (up 610, 000), with streaming revenue up 26 percent domestically and 155 percent outside the US. That compares well with the same period last year, when it added 530, 000 customers in the US . This year has been highlighted by Netflix’s push into original programming and just last week that initiative resulted in a bounty of 14 Emmy nominations . Expect more in the future, as Reed Hasting’s letter mentions the company expand into documentaries and stand-up comedy specials. According to the report, the new $11.99 family plan that supports four simultaneous streams has seen “limited uptake” (did anyone know it was available?), while the new individual profiles will be implemented in Q3. The company has rolled out a new streaming platform to its partners, and says its next goal is a single UI that works with various input devices, whether voice, pointer or d-pad. While we paw through the financial documents for more details, don’t forget Netflix plans to live stream video of its investors call on YouTube later. The event should start at 6PM ET and is embedded after the break. Filed under: Home Entertainment , Internet , HD Comments Source: Netflix Q2 letter to shareholders

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Netflix Q2 earnings show 1.2 million new subscribers; plans for original stand-up comedy, documentaries

The broadband speed wars continue to rage, and today, Verizon announced that it’s throwing down with its fastest tier yet. With a download speed of 500 megabits per second (and an upload speed of 100Mbps), the leap forward marks the latest evolution of the company’s fiber-optic Quantum Internet Service , which rolled out last summer. To put those numbers into perspective, you’ll be able to download a 5GB HD movie in 1.4 minutes or upload a 100MB file in eight seconds, assuming you’re operating at full speed. Verizon is hoping to gradually introduce its newest speed tier to all FiOS markets by 2014, with limited availability starting today. To hear what Big Red has to say about it, check out the video after the break. Filed under: Internet , Verizon Comments

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Verizon FiOS rolls out 500/100 Mbps broadband, its highest speed tier yet

When the government comes knocking on your door, you kind of have to cooperate with them or face the consequences. That’s the situation Pete Ashdown, CEO of Utah ISP XMission, was faced with in 2010 after receiving a warrant under the Foreign Intelligence Service Act (FISA). The warrant, coming in at just three or four pages, was perfectly clear: install a rack-mount server on your network to track every last bit going in and out from one of your customers, and don’t say anything to anyone about this. Ashdown’s lawyer said the request was indeed legit, and the box stayed there for a little over half a year. So why talk about it now? Because Pete, like the rest of us, wants a bit of transparency , even if there’s a risk the G-Men will come “come back and haunt” him. Comments Source: BuzzFeed

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Utah ISP breaks silence over government server installed on its network