Alienware M17 Powered by ATI CrossFireX Dual Graphics Cards, Still Unmovable [Alienware]

Alienware’s newest 17-inch barely portable notebook, the M17, looks a whole lot like their M17x beastie, but instead of rocking Nvidia SLI, it’s Alienware’s first ever ATI CrossFireX notebook, with dual Radeon HD 3870 graphics cards. ATI’s big point when I talked the new mobile CrossFireX with them is that they support DirectX 10.1 and Nvidia doesn’t, though how much that matters is slightly controversial, to say the least.

Either way, they’re monster cards that do nasty things to vectors and numbers, and you can back them up with an equally ridiculous Intel Core 2 Quad and the usual hardcore notebook specs, like 4GB of DDR3-1066 RAM. The M17 starts at $1399, though obviously not with that $1200 Core 2 Quad upgrade. [Alienware]

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Asus Vento PC Cases Stack Thin and Fold Out [Components]

Asus has a pretty good idea with their new Vento line of PC cases. The F11 (black) and F12 (silver) simply fold out for assembly without any tools. While some may say that a preassembled chassis is still more convenient, the Vento design cuts down on shipping costs by 30%. That’s great for the environment, but it’s even better for squeezing boxed PC components into your backseat. Plus, we love the insta-PC aspect of design, even if it’s hollow when assembled. Read on for bay specs.

Chassis ATX/Micro-ATX SGCC 0.6MM
Chassis Size 190 x 426 x 469mm (expanded)
434 x 87 x 434mm (folded)
Drive Bay 4 x internal 5.25″ Optical Drive Bays
1 x internal 3.5″ Floppy Drive Bays
4 x internal 3.5″ Hard Disk Drive Bays
Front I/O Ports USB x 2
Audio x 2
1394 x 1 (optional)
Expansion Slots PCI x 7
Ventilation Front 120/92/80mm fan x 1
Rear 120/92/80mm fan x 1
Side 80mm fan x 1 (optional)

[Asus via Hot Hardware]

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Dealzmodo: 2 Sharp 46″ AQUOS HDTVs for $1999 [Dealzmodo]

Costco, in a fit of either economic optimism or pessimism, is selling not one but two Sharp AQUOS 46″ HDTVs for just $1999 with $99 shipping. That’s a solid $200 below anything PriceGrabber could find for me, and more than $350 below Amazon. Sure, two giant LCDs might be seen as a little excessive, but even the super wealthy are allowed to be a little thrifty. The 1080p set features a 4ms response time and is only 3 3/4″ thick, and reviews have been positive. It’s a pretty stunning deal if for some reason you’re in the market for multiple HDTVs. [TechDealDigger]

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Wireless Wipes Rid Your Filthy Touchscreen Phone of Staphylococcus Aureus [Cell Phone Hygiene]

If you, like me, do unnatural things with your iPhone, go pick up a 10-pack of Wireless Wipes. Why? Because touchscreens are apparently hotbeds of scum and villainy. And germs, which is what a British study discovered when it found they carry “tens of thousands of bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus.” Another study, conducted in Arizona, randomly tested 25 mobiles and found staph on nearly half of them. Staph, in case you didn’t know, causes everything from pimples and boils, to pneumonia and meningitis, which explains the chronic headache and hallucinations I’ve had for the better part of the past week. Wireless Wipes cost $2 for 10, are fast drying, non-streaking and—most importantly—non corrosive. [ChipChick]

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Catching Up: Lawn, Kids, Off [Jibber Jabber]

Hey Brian,
It’s my first Halloween since I moved into my new house, so I really need to make sure I have enough candy so the neighborhood kids don’t change my exterior paint to eggshell white. That means no fun size candy—only the good stuff.

I finally got a chance to play with the New Xbox Experience on my own home console, which Mark reviewed Wednesday, and it’s pretty fantastic, but I still have some complaints. The biggest one is that there aren’t enough avatar feature choices, so it’s just about impossible to make an asian dude that looks like me. The guy I have now looks like Hiro Nakamura and Frank ‘Grimey’ Grimes from the Simpsons. It does have something like nine different levels of receding hairline choices; something that would have pleased Peter Moore if he were still at Microsoft.

But back to H-Ween.

• Sean has a good Gizmodo haunted house for you to pee your pants through
• Frasier’s dad is up on his H-Brew for Wii, distilling dozens of incomprehensible forum posts into something your brain won’t explode while reading
• Want a 1TB hard drive for $99? There ya go

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Filed under: Robots

Robot builder Matt Denton apparently first built a one-off Hexapod robot for himself some time ago, but he’s now taken things one big step further and is offering a kit of a similar bot to the general public through Micromagic Systems. In addition to being excessively creepy (just check out the video after the break), the MSR-101 Hexapod also looks to be relatively simple to get going straight out of the box, with it boasting a built-in HexEngine with plenty of pre-loaded settings, and built-in PS2 controller suppport, which’ll let you parade your creation about without having to mess around with it too much beforehand. Of course, there’s also plenty of room for more experienced robot builders to get their hands dirty, and Micromagic is more than happy to sell you a whole slew of optional add-ons for the kit. Those just looking to get started, however, can simply grab the base kit in their choice of black, red, or silver for an entirely reasonable €105, or roughly $168 — just don’t blame us if you never get a good night’s sleep again.

[Thanks, David]

Continue reading MSR-H101 Hexapod kit lets you build your own nightmares

MSR-H101 Hexapod kit lets you build your own nightmares originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 01 Nov 2008 03:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Via [Engadget]

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Aspire One shipments on pace to beat Eee PC

Filed under: Laptops

Acer’s Aspire One has been somewhat overlooked in the face of a relentless barrage of Eee PCs and other netbooks, but slow and steady tends to win the race — Acer says it’s on track to ship six million machines this year, which is ahead of ASUS’s target of five million Eees. Acer’s mostly pulled into the lead due to its size and ability to push the Aspire One globally, while ASUS (which less than half the revenue) has been building the Eee market by market. Of course, that doesn’t mean ASUS is going down without a fight — we’ve already seen some aggressive ads, and Acer doesn’t have anything to match machines like the S101. Looks like the netbook market is starting to get heated — it’ll be interesting to see how this all shakes out over the next few months.

Aspire One shipments on pace to beat Eee PC originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 01 Nov 2008 11:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In case you’re looking for a recap of today’s … [Halloween]

In case you’re looking for a recap of today’s Halloween madness on Giz, all the ghoulishness and trickery you can handle is right here.

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