Toshiba's Digital Products Division (DPD), a division of Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., today announced the Canvio Slim II Portable Hard Drive. With a capacity of up to 1 TB and measuring only 12.5 mm thick, the Canvio Slim II remains one of the thinnest and smallest portable hard drives available on the market-now with the ability to access and share data straight from the device. This complete external backup and storage solution is ideal for customers that carry an Ultrabook or other super-mobile PC.

"The original Canvio Slim was extremely popular- especially with Ultrabooks users due to its incredibly sleek design. This time around, we challenged ourselves with making a great product even better," said Maciek Brzeski, vice president of product marketing and development of branded storage products, Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., Digital Products Division. "We were able to increase the capacity to 1 TB without compromising much on size and added features that allow you to access and share your data from anywhere at any time via internet - making the Canvio Slim II the ultimate mobile storage solution."

Aerocool Advanced Technologies Corp., one of the world leading manufacturers of gaming PC gear, expands its value gaming series "PGS-V" by introducing the new Vs-92 chassis. "PGS-V labeled products target gamers, who are looking for the very best possible cost to performance ratio when choosing their gears", - says Tony Lin, Aerocool Advanced Technologies CEO.

Vs-92 offers a big variety of features packed into a great looking chassis for a reasonable price. Special eye-catcher is the front panel with it's all mash-design, the yellow PGS V badge in the center, the nicely implemented I/O panel with power and reset buttons. Up to date connectivity is assured thanks to one mic, one headphone and two USB 3.0 connectors that can be conveniently plugged-in directly into the motherboard using header-pin connectors. Right below the I/O panel is a small VF-Display, which is informing the user about the current system temperature inside the PC case. Conventional air-coolers with a height of up to 158 mm can be mounted more easily thanks to the back-plate mounting area in the motherboard-tray. In addition, users with water-coolers are able to utilize the pre-drilled cable-ducts and mount radiators (2 x 120 or 2 x 140) in the top panel, or the side panel in case of the mesh edition. When choosing the Vs-92 as Window Edition, a black window is attached to the side panel, allowing insight on the built-in hardware.

Pioneer unveiled the colorful new BDR-XS05J portable Blu-ray XL writer. Its faux-aluminum plastic body can latch on to a selection of four body panels, bushed aluminum, piano black, soft pink, and glossy white. Measuring 135 x 135 x 20.3 mm (WxDxH), and weighing in at 330 g, the drive features a slot-type disc-loading mechanism, and USB 3.0 SuperSpeed. It uses a single cable for both power and data connectivity.

Moving on to its chops as an optical drive, the BDR-XS05J can write single- and double-layer BD-R and BD-R LtH discs at up to 6X, triple- and quadruple-layer ones at 4X, and all kinds of BD-RE discs at 2X. DVDs are written at speeds of up to 8X, and CDs at 24X. Blu-ray discs of all kinds are read at speeds of up to 6X, DVDs at 8X, and CDs at 24X. Bundled software include Cyberlink PowerDVD 10, PowerDirector 10, PowerProducer 5, Power2Go 7 (for pure-read), InstantBurn 5, PowerBackup 2, LabelPrint 2, and MediaShow 6.Source: Hermitage Akihabara

Z87 MPOWER and Z87 MPOWER MAX, two of MSI's top overclocker-targeted socket LGA1150 motherboards, are joined by the company's new flagship motherboard, the Z87 XPOWER. Built in the XL-ATX (345 x 264 mm) form-factor, this board gets you the best MSI has to offer, and is ideal for both CPU and VGA overclocking benches. The CPU is powered by a gargantuan 32-phase digital-PWM power supply, which draws power from two 8-pin EPS connectors, in addition to the 24-pin ATX, and an optional 6-pin PCI-Express connector.

The CPU socket is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots, supporting up to 64 GB of dual-channel DDR3-3000+ memory, and a PLX PEX8747 PCI-Express gen 3.0 bridge chip, which gives out four PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slots, two of which are x16 capable, all four of which are x8-capable. One of the five x16 slots, the second one from top, is directly wired to the CPU, and plugging a graphics card on that slot will bypass the bridge-chip. This slot is ideal for when you have just one card. Two PCI-Express 2.0 x1 slots take seat between the x16 slots, wired to the PCH. In addition to 4-way NVIDIA SLI and 4-way AMD CrossFireX, the board includes Lucid Virtu MVP 2.0 software.

Giada Technology, a world famous manufacturer of compact desktop PCs, has launched one of the strongest mini-PCs on the market, the D2308. Using the latest 4th generation Intel (Haswell) Core i5/i7 CPU, with the powerful NVIDIA GTX650 enthusiast GPU, Giada has created a high-end mini computing platform that is targeted at living room computer needs and CEO-level business environments. The D2308 also features 3 antennas for maximum signal reception and wireless throughput with a maximum speed of 450 Mbps.

The D2308 is designed from the ground up for high-end home theater uses. Not only supporting Ultra HD 4Kx2K content with two HDMI outputs, the unit comes with a Bluray/DVD player. Support for the Trusted Platform Module (TPM) which provides extensive security with high levels of data encryption, allows the use of D2308-based systems in various applications in IT departments of large enterprises.

Patriot, a global pioneer in high-performance memory, NAND flash, storage, and mobile accessories today announces an exclusive partnership with Meteor Entertainment, a leading publisher of online games, to launch a one-of-a-kind Supersonic RAGE XT promotion bundle with Meteor's online mech action game, HAWKEN. This valued-added bundle pairs the ultra-fast 64GB USB 3.0 Supersonic RAGE XT flash drive with a game changing 7-day HAWKEN Double XP Boost for the extremely popular multiplayer mech combat video game.

Providing the enhanced transfer speeds of USB 3.0 in an extra tough rubberized housing, the Patriot Supersonic Rage XT is the perfect solution for those looking for a compact design that doesn't compromise performance. The Supersonic Rage XT comes with a custom slide to connect design that provides best in class protection from wear and tear.

Axtremex Technology is pleased to announce a MicroSSD, the new portable high performance external solid state drive with USB 3.0 interface. The MicroSSD is designed in a small form factor that is lightweight, durable and convenient to carry and use. It offers blazing fast data transfer rates and achieves a read speed of up to 420 MB/s and Write speed of up to 400 MB/s.

The device draws power directly from the USB port and requires no external power cord. It is also backward compatible with USB 2.0 ports. The MicroSSD will be available in 32 GB, 64 GB, 128 GB and 256 GB capacities. 512 GB and 1 TB capacities are being planned.

First sighted in January, ASUS' P9X79-E WS socket LGA2011 motherboard is ready to take on the new breed of Core "Ivy Bridge-E" and Xeon "Ivy Bridge-EP" lines of processors, even if initial versions of its BIOS don't advertise that support. Based on Intel X79 Express chipset, the board is built in the 305 x 267 mm SSI-CEB form-factor. The LGA2011 socket is powered by a 10-phase VRM, with 2+2 phase memory VRM. The CPU socket is wired to eight DDR3 DIMM slots, four on its either sides, supporting up to 64 GB of quad-channel DDR3-2133 MHz memory. The board features a total of seven PCI-Express x16 slots. 4-way NVIDIA SLI and AMD CrossFireX are supported.

Storage connectivity on the P9X79-E WS includes two SATA 6 Gb/s ports from the X79 PCH, four SATA 6 Gb/s from a Marvell-made 4-port SATA 6 Gb/s AHCI/RAID controller, four SATA 3 Gb/s from the PCH, and an additional two eSATA 6 Gb/s from an ASMedia-made controller. There are just four USB 3.0 ports on offer, all ASMedia-made controllers. Other connectivity includes two gigabit Ethernet interfaces, both driven by Intel-made controllers, 8-channel HD audio, legacy connectivity such as PS/2 and RS232 COM (header), and a pinch of overclocker-friendly features in the BIOS and on-board. The P9X79-E WS from ASUS is priced at US $499.99.

ASMedia owes a big part of its brand value to the initial popularity of third-party USB 3.0 host controllers, before motherboard chipsets started integrating it. It's only natural that the company is enthused about the upcoming USB 3.5 standard. At a recent media event, the company announced that it would be among the first to offer USB 3.5 host controllers, when the standard enters the consumer market some time in 2014.

With each new major version of USB, the specification increases interface bandwidth by 10 times. This time however, bandwidth is only being doubled, and so the version numbering is 3.5 and not 4.0. USB 3.5 will offer a bandwidth of 10 Gbps, will be able to deliver higher power to devices, and will maintain backwards compatibility with all older USB standards. USB 3.5 host controllers could compete directly with Thunderbolt. Despite a 2-year headstart, the 10 Gbps Thunderbolt interface is being offered only by one major host controller manufacturer, Intel, and the controllers are expensive compared to USB 3.0 host controllers. Unless that changes, Thunderbolt's future as a mainstream consumer interface will be in jeopardy with the advent of USB 3.5.Sources: Apple Daily Taiwan, OCWorkbench

It looks like Corsair's Carbide Air 540D will have company very soon, from Lian Li and its PC-D600 split-compartment aluminum case. While the 540D gives you a narrower drive/power compartment than the board/expansion one, the PC-D600 is split right in the middle, and the two compartments have largely the same volume. Another difference is that the PSU bay is located in the board/expansion compartment, with the other compartment being dedicated to drive bays, and room for a large 140 x 420 mm radiator. Like Corsair's joybox, both side panels of the PC-D600 are windowed.

The entire length of the front side of the board compartment is lined with 140 mm fan intakes, it packs a 120 mm rear exhaust, and provision for two 120 mm top exhausts. With its eight expansion slots, the case seats standard ATX motherboards. The drive compartment, on the other hand, is lined with 5.25-inch bays covers, which double up as three 140 mm front intakes. All nine vacant 5.25-inch bays can be populated, or drive cages that convert three 5.25-inch bays to three 3.5-inch bays, can be added. Additional drives can be stacked up in the space between these 5.25-inch bays and the rear, or you could use it up for liquid cooling components, such as reservoir and pumps. The front utility panel gives you four USB 3.0 ports (standard header), and HDA front-panel jacks.

MAINGEAR, an award-winning PC system builder offering custom desktops, notebooks, workstations, is now adding the Pulse 14 high performance ultraportable notebook solution to their product line and is unparalleled in its class and size for PC gamers and PC enthusiasts who do not want to sacrifice speed or performance on the go.

The MAINGEAR Pulse 14 combines a unique laptop design featuring the latest mobile technology with Intel's 4th Generation Core processors that delivers the perfect combination of performance, power efficiency, and portability. The Pulse 14 also utilizes NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760M graphics with 4 GB of GDDR5 memory to deliver tremendous 3D gaming capabilities. All of this power and performance is wrapped up in a svelte 14" package with a 1600x900 resolution display, the perfect resolution for the included GPU to allow for high levels of detail, geometry, and texture resolution in the latest and most demanding PC games.

While Sapphire's LGA1150 motherboard lineup came across as a little lukewarm, the company more than made up for that with its fleet of motherboards that take advantage of AMD's newest A-series and E-series APUs and SoCs. First, there's the PGS A320M, a micro-ATX motherboard that ships with a FirePro A320 socket FM2 APU pre-installed. Largely identical to an A10-5800K, and based on the "Trinity" micro-architecture, the A320 features FirePro-branded professional graphics that's certified for most modern 3D productivity applications, and can give display output at resolutions as high as 4096 x 2160. The board features one each of DisplayPort 1.2, dual-link DVI-I, and D-Sub display outputs. Other features include eight SATA 6 Gb/s ports, four USB 3.0, gigabit Ethernet (Broadcom controller), and 8-channel HD audio.

Things get interesting with a contraption called IPC-FS1r2A75. This board comes in a proprietary IPC form-factor, features an FS1 rev 2.0 socket, which seats R-series APUs, an embedded AMD Radeon E6000 series GPU based on the Graphics CoreNext arhitecture, with its own dedicated GDDR5 memory on-package, and AMD A75 FCH chipset. The board offers six mini-DisplayPort and four HDMI outputs, two DDR3 SO-DIMM slots, an open-ended PCI-Express 2.0 x4 slot, four mPCIe slots (in stacks of two), five SATA 6 Gb/s ports, six USB 3.0 ports, two gigabit Ethernet connections, and 6-channel audio.

Sapphire unveiled its first socket LGA1150 motherboards, designed for 4th generation Core "Haswell" processors, although they're not completely out of the pipeline, and Sapphire is yet to finalize heatsink designs. Among the boards shown at Computex are the micro-ATX Pure Platinum Z87M-PR, and the ATX Pure Platinum Z87A-MA, both of which offer a pretty mid-range feature-set. The Z87M-PR gives you a 5-phase VRM that powers the CPU, four DDR3 DIMM slots, a single PCI-Express 3.0 x16, and one each of mPCIe, PCIe 2.0 x1, and legacy PCI. The board offers four each of SATA 6 Gb/s and USB 3.0 ports, eight USB 2.0/1.1 ports, DVI, D-Sub, and HDMI display outputs, gigabit Ethernet, and 8-channel HD audio.

The Z87A-MA, on the other hand, offers the same CPU VRM as its little sibling, one PCI-Express 3.0 x16, a PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (electrical gen 2.0 x4, wired to the PCH), two PCI-Express 2.0 x1, and two legacy PCI. You get six each of SATA 6 Gb/s and USB 3.0 ports, but oddly enough, the rest of the connectivity is a notch worse. 8-channel HD audio makes way for 6-channel. Sapphire's other motherboards are more interesting finds, but more on that later.

Rosewill's Neutron case is designed for those with an itch for mini-ITX gaming PC builds. The case gives you adequate room for footlong graphics cards, tall CPU coolers, and a number of internal drives. Pictured below, Rosewill Neutron orients the motherboard horizontally, with two expansion slot bays for dual-slot graphics cards. A detachable drive cage with four 3.5-inch/2.5-inch bays is right under the motherboard tray, the PSU bay is positioned towards the bottom-front, with an AC cable and receptacle running back. A 5.25-inch bay takes position where it's supposed to. The idea here is to use the PSU's cooling fan as an intake. Other fan vents include a 120 mm rear exhaust above the motherboard tray, a 92 mm exhaust behind the bottom drive cage, a 120 mm top exhaust, and various vents on the side panels. Utility connectivity include two USB 3.0 ports (standard header), two USB 2.0/1.1, and HDA front-panel jacks. The case is made of 0.8 mm steel and ABS.

Enermax rolled out the iVektor (ECA3310) line of ATX mid-towers at Computex. Available in matte black, white, and red, the case features several polygonal design elements you'd normally associate with something from NZXT's Switch lineup. Measuring 234 x 495 x 508 mm (WxDxH), the iVektor uses 0.8 mm SECC steel and ABS plastic. It features three 5.25-inch drive bays, which feature an "Slide-in ODD" bay, which lets you remove the bay cover and simply slide in a SATA optical drive, to connect it. The SATA back-plane, and locking mechanism take care of the rest. Other drive bays include seven 3.5-inch, from which four covert to 2.5-inch. Its cooling system includes two 120 mm front intakes, a 120 mm rear exhaust, two 120 mm top exhausts, with room for a 240 x 120 mm radiator, a 120 mm bottom intake, and a 120 mm side intake. Its utility panel provides two USB 3.0 ports (standard header), two USB 2.0/1.1 ports, and HDA jacks.

ECS' socket LGA1150 motherboard series launch was rather low-key, and with good reason. The company was saving its best, the Z87H3-AH series, for a Computex unveiling. Pictured below are the Z87H3-AH and Z87H3-AH Golden "Gank Machine" motherboards. The non-golden variant doesn't get dull gray this time around, but a red, black, and silver color scheme. The Golden variant, on the other hand, gets gold, silver, and black. Both boards are otherwise identical. The LGA1150 socket is powered by a 12-phase VRM. The bigger of the two VRM clusters is cooled by an active fan-heatsink.

The CPU is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots, and three of the board's four PCI-Express x16 slots (electrical gen 3.0 x16/x8/NC or x8/x4/x4), the fourth x16 slot is electrical gen 2.0 x4, wired to the Z87 PCH. On the storage connectivity front, you get six SATA 6 Gb/s ports, an eSATA 6 Gb/s port, and an mSATA 6 Gb/s slot. Display outputs include HDMI and mini-DisplayPort, which doubles up as Thunderbolt. The rest of the board's notable connectivity includes two gigabit Ethernet interfaces, one driven by Bigfoot Killer E2201, and the other by common Realtek fare; 802.11 b/g/n WiFi (using a USB dongle), Creative Sound Core3D 8-channel audio, and ten USB 3.0 ports. The board features several overclocker-friendly features, such as a 3-digit POST diagnostic readout, voltage measurement points, quick CMOS reset/restore, etc.

ECS unveiled one of the very few mini-ITX motherboards to ship with an AMD "Kabini" A6-5200. The chip integrates both the APU and FCH, making it a true system-on-chip (SoC). It packs four x86-64 "Jaguar" CPU cores, a Radeon HD 8400 series GPU with 128 stream processors, a dual-channel DDR3 memory controller, and a modern FCH chipset. On the KBN-I, the 28 nm chip is cooled by a small fan-heatsink. The PCB area gained by the single-chip solution is used to create two mPCIe expansion slots, in addition to the PCI-Express 2.0 x16. The board draws power from just a 24-pin ATX connector. Connectivity include two SATA 6 Gb/s ports, 6-channel HD audio, D-Sub and HDMI display outputs, four USB 3.0 ports, and a gigabit Ethernet connection.

Belkin, a trusted leader of technology solutions for office, classroom, IT infrastructure and mobile environments, today announced the release of two new docking stands: a Dual Video Docking Stand for Windows 8 tablets and Dual Video Docking Stand for Ultrabooks, making mobile computing easier and more productive for business users. The stands, which leverage DisplayLink technology, allow users to turn an Ultrabook or Windows 8 tablet into a full-function desktop with a single plug-and-display USB 3.0 cable. Belkin will showcase the docking stands and other mobile computing solutions at COMPUTEX TAIPEI in Taiwan, June 4-8.

"Greater mobility and the need for an improved user experience are increasingly important to organizations that care about worker productivity and its impact on overall efficiency," said J. Gerry Purdy, Ph.D., principal analyst, Mobile Trax. "Belkin has developed an interesting set of docking stands that really optimize the functionality of Ultrabooks, and particularly Windows 8 Tablets, in the business environment. This is a great step forward for mobile computing at the enterprise level."

ASUS announced its first Republic of Gamers (ROG) motherboard in the mini-ITX form-factor, the Maximus VI Impact, which could go on to become choice number one for SFF gaming PC builders. Arguably the most feature-rich mini-ITX motherboard ever made, the Maximus VI Impact is a socket LGA1150 motherboard based on Intel Z87 Express chipset, which supports 4th generation Core "Haswell" processors.

The board draws power from a combination of 24-pin ATX and 8-pin EPS connectors, and conditions it using a 10-phase VRM that off-shoots into its own little PCB, with heatsink. The other three daughterboards on the Maximus VI Impact include the SupremeFX Impact, a sound-card with an audiophile-grade 115 dBA DAC, OPAMPs, and audio-grade capacitors; and an mPCIe combo card that lends it 802.11 ac WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0; and an ImpactControl card that gives overclockers POST diagnostic readouts and CMOS reset/restore at the push of a button, right from the rear panel.

ASRock Z87-Extreme11/ac motherboard can connect to no less than 22 drives over its six SATA 6 Gb/s, and sixteen SAS3 ports, so why not show it off? It's just that ASRock chose 22 Plextor M5 Pro SSDs, which make for a creepy cemetery-like sight. Sadly, they couldn't give us performance numbers because the 22 drives aren't exactly striped across in any RAID configuration, but at least you know you can take something like this to your next Left4Dead LAN, and pull crowds. It's not just the drives, ASRock also fitted the board with four Radeon HD 7970 cards in CrossFireX, maxed out the memory, and wired the board to its Wi-SD box accessory, a 3.5-inch front-panel that features the board's WiFi+Bluetooth antenna, a couple of USB 3.0 ports, and a multi-format card reader.

Toshiba's Digital Products Division (DPD), a division of Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., today announced its completely redesigned Qosmio X75 enthusiast-class laptop and PX35t All-In-One Touchscreen Desktop Computer, two powerful entertainment hubs equipped with 4th generation Intel Core processors.

"These entertainment-driven PCs are designed to help consumers do more and be more productive with Windows 8," said Carl Pinto , vice president of marketing, Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., Digital Products Division. "Both systems enable users to do everything from creating, managing and enjoying HD content, multitasking and playing graphics-intensive games with an amazingly responsive experience."

Corsair, a worldwide designer of high-performance components to the PC hardware market, today announced two new mid-tower PC cases-the Carbide Series Air 540 and the Carbide Series 330R. Both cases incorporate innovative and unique features for superior cooling and quiet operation.

The Carbide Series Air 540 is designed with a wider form factor with two "side-by-side" chambers and a Direct Airflow Path layout. This unique design helps the case deliver best-in-class cooling at incredibly low noise levels. The main chamber of the Carbide Series Air 540 houses the motherboard and hot-swap 3.5" drives for superior drive cooling and quick swapping. The second chamber holds the power supply, SSDs, and 5.25" drives behind the motherboard tray. The separate compartments make building a breeze and provide cleaner cable routing and superior cooling for system devices. In addition, layout in each chamber is optimized to limit obstructions and streamline airflow from the intake fans to the hottest PC components, resulting in lower temperatures and noise levels.

MSI rolled out a trio of socket LGA1150 motherboards in the mini-ITX form-factor, Z87I, H87I, and B85I, based on Intel Z87, H87, and B85 chipsets, respectively. Pin-compatibility between the three chipsets means that the three boards are based on a common design. The three feature a 4-phase CPU VRM, two full-size DDR3 DIMM slots, a PCI-Express 3.0 x16, and a combination of 24-pin and 4-pin power connectors.

The Z87I and H87I are nearly identical, with VRM cooling, 802.11 b/g/n WiFi, and Bluetooth 4.0. The Z87I edges past the H87I with support for CPU overclocking, and a second gigabit Ethernet connection. The B85I lacks a VRM heatsink, and the wireless connectivity card. Instead, it gives you a vacant mPCIe slot. It offers 6-channel HD audio, instead of the 8-channel solution, on the other two. All three feature at least one gigabit Ethernet connection, DVI and HDMI display outputs, six USB 3.0 ports, and a number of USB 2.0/1.1 ports.

In addition to the G1.Sniper A85X, GIGABYTE also showed off what could go on to become an HTPC builder favorite, the F2A85XN-WiFi mini-ITX motherboard. The board draws power from conventional 24-pin ATX + 4-pin ATX connectors, and uses a 6-phase VRM to power the APU. Built with the Ultra Durable 4 Plus construction, the board uses high-grade PowIRstage driver-MOSFETs and VRM controllers, made by International Rectifier. The FM2 socket is wired to two DDR3 DIMM slots, supporting up to 32 GB of dual-channel DDR3-2133 MHz memory, and a PCI-Express 2.0 x16 slot. On the connectivity front, the F2A85XN-WiFi offers four SATA 6 Gb/s ports, four USB 3.0 ports, dual-link DVI and two HDMI display outputs, 8-channel HD audio, gigabit Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, and a number of USB 2.0/1.1 ports.

At Computex, GIGABYTE showed off the first AMD platform motherboard in its coveted G1.Killer series, which targets gamers and overclockers, the G1.Sniper A85X. The board is based on AMD A85X FCH chipset, and comes with out-of-the-box support for AMD A-series "Richland" APUs, including the AMD A10-6800K quad-core APU, with the fastest integrated graphics in market. Built in the narrow ATX form-factor, the G1.Sniper A85X draws power from a combination of 24-pin ATX and 8-pin EPS connectors, and uses a 6-phase VRM to condition it for the APU.

The FM2 socket is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots, which support up to 64 GB of dual-channel DDR3-3000 MHz memory; and a PCI-Express 2.0 x16 slot. In addition, the board offers a PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (electrical x4, wired to the FCH), three PCI-Express 2.0 x1, and two legacy PCI. The board shines in connectivity, where it offers eight SATA 6 Gb/s internal ports, a combination of DVI, D-Sub, and HDMI display outputs, Creative Sound Core3D audio with user-replaceable OPAMP and audio-grade capacitors, four USB 3.0 ports, and gigabit Ethernet. The board is driven by AMI Aptio UEFI BIOS, backed by GIGABYTE Dual-UEFI redundancy, and the new BIOS interface that made its debut with GIGABYTE's socket LGA1150 motherboards.