The Zone

Gigabyte recently held their GO OC (Gigabyte Open Overclocking Competition) 2009 Pan Asia Finals in Bangkok, Thailand. HWM Malaysia was invited to cover the overclocking competition that pitted nine teams from around the Asia region (and South Africa) for the title of Regional Champion. The winning team will then head off to Taipei in June 2009 for the GO OC 2009 Worldwide Finals, coinciding with COMPUTEX TAIPEI 2009. Look out for the full report on the event in the upcoming issue of HWM.

If you've seen the Pulse Smartpen in action and wondered when or if you'd ever get your hands on this mini computer - translator - digital transcriber - audio note taker device then wonder no more. K-One recently signed a partnership deal with Livescribe, the company that first made the Pulse Smartpen such a big name. For more info on the event, check it out in our latest issue of HWM.

From left to right; Li Chang , Deputy Secretary General of the Taipei Computer Association and Walter Yeh, Executive Vice President of TAITRA answering questions from the media during a press conference about the upcoming COMPUTEX TAIPEI 2009

Computex Taipei 2009 is going strong despite the current global economic downturn. Taking place from 2^nd to 6^th June at the Taipei World Trade Center (TWTC) Nangang Exhibition Halls and Taipei International Convention Center (TICC), the show will host 1700 exhibitors using 4600 booths to showcase their best products and solutions and is expected to attract 35,000 international buyers. Products from wide-ranging categories will be found in such dedicated areas as Components & Parts, Data Storage Devices, Software, Computer Systems, Peripherals and Displays & Digital Entertainment Products. This year’s show will also feature a 700-booth WiMAX & Communication Products area to paint a clearer picture of a more wireless future.

The Computex 2009 show is expected to be an important technology and product launch platform for numerous IT giants such as Intel, AMD, ASUS and Acer. Two “New Product Launch Sites” both located in TWTC Nangang Exhibition Hall and Hall 1 will be set up to accommodate the growing needs of exhibitors from home and abroad to stage their new products. Altogether 40 companies are to demonstrate their new products in these dedicated areas. This new service can also help buyers and the media to easily discover the hottest products and latest trends.

Another highlight of this year's event is the dedicated pavilion for China, a driving force in the computing market, thanks to the country's vast resources as well as manufacturing abilities. Computex 2009 will feature a dedicated area where wares and services from 100 Chinese companies will be showcased, in a total area that spans 200 booth spaces. It is definitely a show not to be missed!

HP recently launched their new Pavilion dv2 Series entertainment notebooks in the flavours and colours of high-grade coffee. Coming in Espresso Black and Moonlight White the new 12" screen notebooks are powered by AMD Athlon Neo MV-40 processors and features AMD-ATI 3000 series graphic cards. As an added plus these new performance ultra-mobile notebooks come with their own external DVD drive at a price of RM2399. For a full report on the event check it out in our latest issue of HWM.

Transcend has proudly announced that its StoreJet 25M and StoreJet 25C portable hard drives have been awarded the prestigious "Red Dot" award for excellent design quality by the International Jury of 2009 Red Dot design competition. The judges commented favorably on the StoreJet 25M's superior shockproof design concept that incorporates an attractive anti-slip silicone outer shell and advanced military grade anti-shock technology - a combination that not only offers excellent protection against impact damage, but also prevents the drive from slipping or falling in the first place. The eye-catching StoreJet 25C was praised for its luxurious polished stainless steel case with piano-gloss finish connection panel that makes it a truly fashionable piece of technology. The judges also noted that the distinctive textured backing of the StoreJet 25C not only provides a stable non-slip base for resting the drive on a table, but also added character and enhanced tactile feel.

Video game box art back in the NES and Atari 2600 era may look simple and old school when placed next to the CG and 3D render artwork that dominates today's box art, but their mix of pixel art and clean layout did make for an iconic and memorable design. What happens then if games like Wii Sports, BioShock, and Halo 3 were to be repackaged in the same stylized manner?

Well, wonder no more and hop on straight to The -Minus World for the goods, courtesy of one talented B Miggs. Further recreation of "Atari Modern Classics" can be found here.