slim

Synology slims down its SMB NAS server

Synology, maker of the DS209+ that earned our Editors' Choice award, unveiled Monday the DS409slim, its first advanced NAS server based on 2.5-inch laptop hard drives.

There are a few other NAS servers that use laptop hard drives, such as the Buffalo LinkStation Mini (most NAS servers use the regular 3.5-inch desktop hard drives). However, the Synology DS409Slim is the first we've seen that offers advanced functionality, including a variety of RAID configurations.

The biggest advantage of supporting small hard drives is the reduction in size of the device. Measuring only 4.7 inches by 4.1 … Read more

Rumor: PS3 Slim to be manufactured in July?

We had a feeling we'd soon be hearing more on the rumored PS3 Slim, and sure enough, some enticing tidbits have hit the blogosphere. On Tuesday, several sites picked up on a report by Chinese-language site Economic Daily News (UDN.com) that Sony has signed manufacturing agreements with two Taiwanese-based companies, Foxconn and Pegatron, to build the new, slimmed-down version of the PS3 in July.

We've looked at a rather poorly translated version of the story and it's very hard to tell from what we read what the exact details are, but both Joystiq Japan and Engadget … Read more

Latest PS3 and Xbox 360 price cut rumors

Ars Technica's "favorite inside source" is at it again, telling the Web site that Sony is clearing inventory on the $399 80GB PS3 in advance of "dropping the price of hardware and launching the PS3 Slim rumor in the fall."

At the same time, Ars' mole claims the 60GB Xbox 360 Pro ($299) will be replaced by the Xbox 360 Elite ($399), which has a higher-capacity 120GB hard drive. In other words, Microsoft will offer up more hard drive capacity at the $299 price point, which seems to dovetail nicely with its plans to deliver … Read more

PSP Go! and PS3 Slim: Latest rumors

In advance of E3 next week, rumors continue to circulate around the possibility of a new PSP and a new, slimmer PS3. Here are the latest:

Ars Technica is reporting that the next-gen, UMD-free PSP Go! is "indeed real," according to a "trusty inside source" and should be announced at E3. The same Sony "mole" claims that the new PSP will be "lighter than its UMD-sporting predecessor, along with lower power consumption and possibly a lower price." The new PSP will be sold alongside the older version of the PSP ( PSP-3000), according … Read more

Gadgets and Games 5/22

While we're not in for the show on this good Memorial Day, we decided to embed our appearance on FOXNEW.com's Strategy Room's Gadgets and Games show. Our good friend Claytom Morris invited us to discuss everything from the latest "Ghostbusters 3" rumors to unboxing the Asus Eee PC Seashell and our thoughts on the Palm Pre. We also chat about a slimmer PS3, how a HTC Touch Pro causes some one's pants to catch on fire, the Queen gets a gold plated Nintendo Wii, and a possible Apple netbook or tablet.

Check it … Read more

Card-shaped USB drive to attack your wallet

Duality indeed exists in me. Just the other day I complained about membership cards and the hassle of having to carry them. Now I am about to rave about something that takes the shape of a card just so that you can carry it around easily.

It is a USB thumb (or I should say "card") drive from TopTech Products called a Slim Data USB Card. This is a really slim USB drive housed in a case that has the same physical shape as a regular credit card, but is just a tad thicker. When you want to … Read more

Alleged PS3 Slim spy photos get cease-and-desist treatment

Engadget is reporting that its Japanese site received a cease-and-desist notice from a "mysterious Chinese firm" demanding that it take down images of what may--or may not be--a new, slimmer version of Sony's PS3 game console.

Engadget didn't name the firm, but if such a company really exists--and it did send out a real cease-and-desist letter--it would lend some credence to the possibility that the photos are real. Engadget, as we do, finds the whole episode amusing, because in this day and age you just don't retract leaked photos. Once the genie's out of … Read more

Is a slimmer PS3 in the works?

Back in 2004, after the PS2 was on the market for four years, Sony went ahead and shrank its design down and brought out a new model dubbed the "slim" PS2. It was a great move and Sony initially couldn't keep up with demand for the system.

Now, five years later, rumors have been percolating that Sony might be preparing to trim the PS3, with an outside chance that the company might have something to say about a new design at E3. While early reports we read seemed pretty dubious, a set of alleged spy photos of … Read more

MacBook Air competitor packs thrifty Intel chip

A notebook from MSI portends the crush of lower-cost, Intel-based MacBook-Air-like laptop designs to come.

As I've written before, consumer ultra-low-voltage (CULV) chips will arrive in earnest this summer. The X-Slim X340 from MSI (Micro-Star International) is using the ULV SU3500, a precursor to lower-cost CULV Intel chips to come.

(Note: On April 19, Intel cut prices (PDF) on a wide range of processors. Though the SU3500 didn't see any cuts, the prices on its low-power cousins, the SL9400 and SU9400, were reduced 10 percent and 9 percent, respectively.)

What is CULV exactly? Well, one thing it's … Read more