Toshiba Prepping World's Lightest 13-Inch Laptop [Unconfirmed]

There's no official confirmation yet, but it looks almost certain that Toshiba is gearing up to launch the lightest 13-inch notebook ever. We're talking just over two pounds with an SSD. But how on earth did they do it?

It's not the processor. The info unearthed at vozExpress indicates that the mystery laptop will coming in standard voltage Core i3, i5, and i7 varieties pretty standard these days.


Instead, look to the battery: this new Toshiba's going to employ a second Super Charged ion Battery (SCiB) that we'd previously seen achieving 90% charge in ten minutes. That was back in 2008, so we could see improvements even over that. The laptop's honeycomb rib structure, another first, will presumably also save some weight.


Other presumed specs: up to 4GB memory, 500GB hard disk or a 512GB SSD, 16:9 aspect ratio, and USB 3.0. Not to mention the 'Blaze Mountain' cooling system, which at the very least sounds impressive. But that kind of power with that little weight, and a sleek design to boot? Yes, please.
[Gizmodo via vozExpress via Engadget]

Intel’s new Gulftown i7-980X CPU reviews well [Core i7]

Intel cut loose some benchmarking samples of their new, top of the line CPU, the i7-980X Extreme Edition. This is not a CPU intended for the causal use, but rather aim directly at the gaming market. MSRP for the CPU all by itself is a jaw-dropping $999, and rumors are already circulating that the OEMs are already looking at coming out with systems that utilize the new processors.

The reviews are looking good too. There’s just one little problem. There’s no software out there that can really take advantage of the new processor threading yet. See, the i7-980X supports up to 6 cores, which means it’s a multi-threading monster, but if the software doesn’t support it, you end up spending a grand on future proofing. Not a terrible idea, I mean it’s not like it’s worthless, but don’t expect the your brand new smoking CPU to be all it can be until the software can take advantage of it.

Don’t take my word for it, I haven’t actually seen one of these bad boys yet, but all the reviews out there are pretty much saying the same thing.
[CrunchGear]

This Tiny Core i7 Motherboard Could Almost Fit In Your Pocket [PCs]

5 inches by 3.7 inches—that's the diminutive footprint of the fully loaded conga-BM57 Core i7 motherboard.
Despite its small stature, the conga-BM57 features an impressive spec list, including a 2.66 GHz Core i7, 8GB of RAM, integrated intel graphics, 5 PCI Express lanes, 8 USB 2.0 ports, 3 SATA, 1 EIDE and Gigabit Ethernet—plus support for dual displays over VGA, LVDS, HDMI, DisplayPort or SDVO.
The price and release date are still unknown, but at this size, it would make one heck of a HTPC that could double for some gaming.
[Gizmodo via SlashGear]

Toshiba Qosmio X500 Has Ferrari-Like Looks, Core i7 Speed [Laptops]

This big 18.4-incher with Windows 7 has plenty for gamers to drool over. A Core i7 mobile processor and 1GB Nvidia GeForce GTS 250M graphics should crunch out respectable framerates, and the Blu-ray drive and Harmon/Kardon speakers are nice, too.
Yep, that's Blu-ray on a Toshiba laptop. Don't be shocked, you knew it was coming. The X500 also has an HDMI-CEC port, Harmon/Kardon speakers, a multi-touch touchpad (two-finger pinch, swipe, rotate, scroll), and a LED-backlit keyboard with a 10-key numberpad.

Toshiba says you'll be able to tailor the processor and DDR3 memory (it's still deciding on specifics), opt for a 1080p or 720p-capable screen, and go with either a 7200rpm hard disk on its own, or combined with a solid-state drive. We'll know full specs and pricing sometime in mid-October.
Looks like a pretty decent addition to the Qosmio family, but you'll have to wait until Windows 7 arrives on October 22 to get your hands on one.

[Gizmodo]