“When we launched GLOBALFOUNDRIES just over a year ago, we set out to fundamentally alter the landscape of semiconductor manufacturing and revive competition at the leading edge,” said Jim Kupec, senior vice president of sales and marketing at GLOBALFOUNDRIES. “We have made tremendous progress toward this goal over the course of that time and we want to share our innovation and enthusiasm with customers and partners from across the industry and around the globe. GTC 2010 will offer a forum to communicate and demonstrate how we plan to achieve and deliver sustainable leadership and growth as we bring a differentiated model to the foundry industry.”

The event will feature keynotes from industry leaders and presentations from senior members of the GLOBALFOUNDRIES management and technical teams, with a special emphasis on how the company achieves time-to-volume leadership by leveraging global collaboration with customers and partners. GTC 2010 also will include parallel track sessions on a variety of topics and a GLOBALSOLUTIONS pavilion showcasing members of the company’s extensive partner ecosystem offering differentiated solutions in design enablement, mask preparation, assembly and test.

GTC 2010 is expected to draw more than 1,500 people from around the world, including broad participation from key customers, suppliers, partners, industry analysts and media as well as the GLOBALFOUNDRIES leadership team. The event also will kick off a series of GTC 2010 “Road Show” events to be held at strategic international venues including China, Taiwan, Japan and Europe.

More details on GTC 2010 will be announced in the coming weeks. Please visit the following Web site for regular updates on the agenda, keynotes, exhibitions, demos and other features of the event: http://www.globalfoundries.com/gtc2010/.

Big Bang-XPower - Unlock Your Ultimate Gaming Weapon
Following the widely praised Big Bang-Trinergy and Fuzion, the release of the all-new Big Bang-XPower that is fully compatible with Intel's six-core processor features 6 PCI-E ×16 expansion slots that facilitate the increase of 3D performance and quality. And for gamers who value audio quality, there's the Quantum Wave Audio Card specially optimized for gaming sound effects. Through close integration of the latest THX TruStudio PRO and Creative EAX ADVANCED HD 5.0 audio technologies, remarkable audio capability produces a tonal quality that is pure and flawless.

6 PCI-E ×16 expansion slots facilitate the increase of 3D performance and quality. Quantum Wave Audio Card is specially optimized for gaming sound effects.

Hi-c CAP on PWM, DrMOS and SFC provide CPU best power stability. SuperPipe has better cooling efficiency with its 8mm extra-thick heat-pipe. Solid CAP and Icy Choke have longer lifetime and lower temperature.

Dual 8-pin power connectors provide sufficient power for extreme overclocking. An extra 6-pin power connector provides better overclocking capability of multiple graphics cards.

All-inclusive overclocking design
In addition to high spec materials, overclocking capability is also an important consideration when consumers select a product. MSI's Big Bang-XPower mainboard comes with OC Genie, the one-second overclocking technology. Just press the OC Genie button on the mainboard, no other settings are required for automatic overclocking and optimization of CPU, RAM and chipset settings. And the OC Dashboard allows users to avoid entering the BIOS to adjust CPU clock and voltage directly. With the V-Kit's V-Check Points and V-Switch, users don't need to modify circuits; they can use a multimeter to directly measure and manually adjust CPU, VTT, and DDR voltage. These features are all equally attentive designs for overclokers who enjoy challenging the extremes of overclocking.

Just press the OC Genie button for automatic overclocking and optimization of CPU, RAM and chipset settings. V-Kit's V-Check Points and V-Switch allow users to directly measure and manually adjust CPU, VTT, and DDR voltage.

OC Dashboard allows users to avoid entering the BIOS to adjust CPU clock and voltage directly.

USB3.0 & SATA 6Gb/s provide ultra-high transfer bandwidth
Big Bang-XPower comes built-in with all-new USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gb/s transfer standards. Unlike the 480Mbps provided by traditional USB2.0, USB 3.0 provides 5Gb/s, up to 10 times the transfer bandwidth; the USB 3.0 interface can complete a Blu-ray movie transfer in less than one minute. SATA 6Gb/s provides double the bandwidth of traditional SATA 3Gb/s to increase data transfer speeds, and completely satisfy the stability and speed requirements of consumers.

All these exciting technologies will be showcased to demonstrate MSI's continuous devotion to its mainboard products and an aggressive marketing strategy for the second half of 2010.

Big Bang series - Ultimate Gaming Performance
Designed for power users, the Big Bang series products have been widely accepted by enthusiasts since their debut and were highly acclaimed at CES and CeBIT last year. Following the launch of Big Bang Trinergy and Fuzion, the fully Intel 6-core CPU supporting BigBang-XPower supports six PCI-Ex16 expansion slots and also provides a game audio optimized Quantum Wave sound card. The former offers users convenient display performance and quality improvements; the later integrates the newest audio techniques of THX TruStudio PRO and Creative EAX ADVANCED HD 5.0 to playback vigorous and perfect audio with excellent computing power for game players who demand top-notch sound presentation.

Exclusive Fuzion engine for flexible 3D capabilities
MSI has always been synonymous with being a cost-performance leader, and no other technology provides that better than Fuzion. Easily allowing end users to mix and match their GPU choices without worry, Fuzion not only provides maximum 3D performance, but also the flexibility that mainstream users can utilize to build their dream system. Take advantage of all the amazing graphics technologies on a platform that provides nearly unlimited combinations.

Military class components for better stability and longer life cycle One of the other focuses in this exhibition is the establishment of MSI’s higher standard in product design - Military Class Components. The new components include Hi-c CAP, Solid CAP and Icy Choke for product life cycle, heat resistance and stability improvements. These amazing components are used in some of the most advanced space and military systems and provide an extreme level of reliability and efficiency. MSI’s design philosophy is to provide you the most stable platform to base your system. Whether it is green or extreme, you can take pride knowing your system is built with top-quality.

OC Genie overlocking wizard leads the overlocking trend
In addition to better onboard components, MSI has developed a series of overlocking techniques for user friendly performance boosting. The OC Genie One Second overlocking technique launched at the last COMPUTEX TAIPEI ushered in a new era of CPU auto-overlocking. This year, OC Genie overlocking makes another big leap. Accompanied by an all-new Intel Unlock series CPU, the new OC Genie not only boosts CPU and memory performance, but also improves overlocking flexibility and effectiveness. MSI is the best technical partner for the Intel Unlock series CPU!

In the past 45 days, Intel and its Atom processor has entered a variety of markets beyond the more than 50 million Intel-based netbooks sold in the past 2 years. Intel announced a processor and MeeGo software win with Chinese carmaker HawTai Automobile for a future in-vehicle-infotainment platform; a greater than 50-times lower platform idle power reduction with Intel's next generation Atom processor platform for handheld devices including smartphones; and a collaboration with Google, Sony and Logitech to deliver a new Smart TVs experience powered by Intel Atom CE products and running Android-based Google TV.

Intel recently unveiled the future System on Chip (SoC) Atom-based "Tunnel Creek" that, for the first time, will allow other companies to connect their own custom silicon to Intel's SoC product. The Intel Atom processor also powers the Intel Reader, and the company has received more than 3,000 non-PC design inquiries – most new-to-Intel potential customers – ranging from fish finders to golf carts.

During his keynote, David (Dadi) Perlmutter, executive vice president and co-general manager, Intel Architecture Group, touched on these and other Intel efforts, which included showing off the world's thinnest netbook running on the upcoming mobile dual-core "Pine Trail." At just 14mm, the razor-thin "Canoe Lake" innovation platform runs cooler and is 50 percent thinner than any other netbook consumers can find on the market today. In addition, Perlmutter showed a range of other Intel Atom-based devices spanning energy efficient blade servers, retailing systems, presentation projectors and multiple tablets.

"Intel believes the strength of the Atom franchise can help consumers realize the true potential for a common experience to enable the compute continuum," said Perlmutter. "With platforms ranging from compact and portable netbooks, to Smart TV experiences and innovative tablets designs, Intel Architecture is driving innovative products based on a unique 'port of choice' software strategy."

Keynote Highlights
Citing a million PCs sold a day, Perlmutter also highlighted the momentum around the all new 2010 Intel Core processor family, including Intel Wireless Display and an overview of next-generation Intel Core processors using the Intel microarchitecture codenamed "Sandy Bridge," targeted to be in production late 2010.

Renee James, senior vice president and general manager of the Software and Services Group at Intel, joined Perlmutter onstage to discuss how software – and software choice – will help drive Intel's vision for Atom and a cross-device experience. This provides consumers consistency and accessibility to their content on a choice of computers and PC-like devices. James also announced that Asus will be the first OEM to ship a pre-installed, customized AppUp client called "asus app store" on netbooks this fall, beginning with Windows and following with MeeGo-based systems.

Acer CEO Gianfranco Lanci discussed with Perlmutter how future Intel Atom-based netbooks and tablets from Acer, running the MeeGo software platform, will foster an open ecosystem of innovation.

"Acer will be ready with MeeGo-based mobile devices," said Lanci. "MeeGo's open software platform will present our customers with another choice of a friendly, easy-to-use operating system. We are pleased to collaborate with Intel in our continuous drive to provide effortless technologies that empower people at work, home - anytime, anywhere."

New Intel Atom Processors on Tap
In production now and on shelves before the winter holiday season, mobile dual-core Intel Atom processors will deliver a noticeably snappier, more responsive consumer experience in the same compact form factors, and with the same great battery life. Intel Atom processors N455 and N475 with DDR3 support for netbooks are available today and D525 and D425 for entry-level desktop PCs are expected to be available on June 21. Available to customers in early 2011, "Oak Trail" is our upcoming SoC Intel Atom platform optimized for sleek tablet and netbook designs, delivering up to a 50 percent reduction in average power consumption with full HD-video playback and targeting software choice including MeeGo, Windows 7 and Google operating systems.

“Computex is always a good opportunity to showcase our latest solutions to both our clients and trade press and this year we have a complete range of solid state drive solutions that further push the envelope,” commented Ryan Petersen, CEO of the OCZ Technology Group. “At the show we will be demonstrating exciting new products, including a truly affordable PCIe SSD for consumer applications, ultra reliable enterprise drives and a first look at the HSDL (High Speed Data Link) interface that delivers far superior transfer rates over traditional SATA.”

OCZ’s solid state drives not only continue to redefine storage performance, reliability, and power efficiency, but also address a wide range of applications from top-tier data management to personal notebooks. Showcasing a demo system with new Deneva Series SSDs in an eight-way RAID configuration, these drives are qualified specifically for the highest throughput, compatibility, and reliability in enterprise environments. OCZ will showcase the innovative HSDL (High Speed Data Link) interface, which was developed to raise the bar in data throughput and management to solid state storage drives.

Focusing on both performance and affordability for consumers, OCZ is unveiling the RevoDrive, a bootable PCI-Express based SSD designed for high-performance gaming PCs and workstations. With speeds up to 540MB/s read, 530MB/s write, and 75,000 IOPS, the RevoDrive can accommodate a wide range of computing environments beyond everyday use to video-editing and other multi-media creation and management applications.

Also on display are new 1.8” Vertex 2 and Onyx SATA II SSDs for mobile systems. With the proliferation of on-the-go performance computing for personal, business, and educational needs, the OCZ 1.8” drives are ideal for users seeking to integrate SSDs into systems with small form factors such as ultra-thin notebooks, netbooks, nettops, and tablet PCs. Built with SATA 3Gb/s and available in a range of capacities, the drives easily integrate into today’s mobile platforms and feature TRIM support for Windows 7 systems.

On April 30th, starting at 12 noon Central Time 8 overclocking teams from around the world are going to find out. Broadcast live at www.AMDBlackOps.com

You have seen live streams. You have seen overclocking. You have seen high definition. You have seen celebrations of a single moment around the world…but no one has ever seen this.

In an event like none before, AMD Black Ops will be a live stream overclocking event broadcast globally in high definition with plans for 8 of the top overclocking teams broadcasting live from 8 countries. Legendary overclockers including Macci, SF3D, Sampsa, chew*, FUGGER, MikeGuava and many, many more are planning to test the potential of the Leo platform and AMD Phenom II X6 processors under the most extreme conditions. Sponsors include ASUS and Gigabyte with community participation and discussion at www.xtremesystems.org, www.hwbot.org, and www.techreaction.net.

In an epic journey taken by overclockers across the land, AMD Phenom II has crossed the 7GHz threshold, been taken to temperatures approaching absolute zeros, shattered world records and brought amazing performance and performance tuning to enthusiasts everywhere. Now AMD Phenom II X6 is unleashed and ready to continue the journey.

Enthusiast around the world can watch multiple HD streams from around the world at http://www.AMDBlackOps.com starting Friday the 30th at 12 noon Central Time.

See the AMD Phenom™ II X6 Processor debut in an event like none before. AMD Black Ops. Overclocking teams around the world streamed live and in high definition on Friday April 30th at noon Central Time.

Ryan and Allyn spent some time discussing the awesome hardware we saw at CES with Leo Leporte from TWiT.tv. Check out more info on our PC Perspective's weekly podcasts that are hosted on TWit.tv at http://pcper.com/podcast.

Another Consumer Electronics Show has come to a close and as always we learned about many new technologies and products that will keep us busy in 2010. We saw more than our fair share of Intel H55 and H57-based motherboards from a variety of vendors and saw more industry support for USB 3.0 and SATA 6GB/s in the way of USB 3.0 PCIe cards, third-party onboard controllers, and an explosion of SATA 6GB/s SSDs. I'm sure these two interfaces will definitely have an impact throughout the first quarter as well as the rest of the year.

We also got a glimpse of the future through some conceptual products from ASUS called their Wave Face series, which included a wearable smart phone, lightweight personal tablet, and a home information and entertainment display that might replace home LCDs someday.

Allyn also got a kick out of Intel's Light Peak prototype board that used fiber and made a highspeed data interface from it. The Pepcom Digital Experience event also showcased a few fancy products like Blu-Ray 3D and a neat transparent AMOLED notebook display that caught the eye of more than a few press members. As we walked around the CES exhibition halls, there were several booths that caught our eye like ASUS, NVidia, and AMD to name a few.

We also saw several X58-based boards get a refresh with added support for USB 3.0 and SATA 6GB/s as well as many new overclocking features for enthusiasts and even hardcore overclockers to help them fine tune their graphics cards and processors.

Overall, it was an exciting (and exhausting) week for the PC Perspective team, but we do it happily to provide our readers with the latest technology and innovations because we know that's what you come to our site every day. We hope you all have had a great 2010 so far and we'll continue to provide you with the best hardware news and reviews in the industry. 

Here's a rundown of all our coverage from this year's Consumer Electronics Show:

CES 2010: ASUS unveils new ROG motherboards, graphics cards
CES 2010: NVIDIA outlines new Tegra 2 products, next-gen GF100 features
CES 2010: Pepcom Digital Experience Press Event
CES 2010: NVIDIA demos Fermi-based GF100
CES 2010: Gigabyte motherboard product line preview
CES 2010: Thermaltake showcases new BlacX Duet USB 3.0, performance cases, heatsinks, and PSUs
CES 2010: ASUS Waveface Conceptual Products
CES 2010: Lite-On Showcases New LabelTag Technology, External Slim and Blu-Ray Drives
CES 2010: Plextor Launches SSDs and New 24x External Writer with eSATA Dual Interface
CES 2010: In-Win showcases rugged PC enclosures for gamers
CES 2010: Antec showcases Dark Fleet PC enclosures, high efficiency power supplies
CES 2010: EVGA details latest motherboards, graphics cards
A Peek at Light Peak @ CES 2010
CES 2010: Ryan and Allyn on TWiT Live @ CES 2010
CES 2010: AMD Shows us Eyefinity on a Netbook
CES 2010: New Motherboards from EVGA, ECS, and Gigabyte
LIVE from CES 2010: NVIDIA Press Conference
Spring Design Unveils Alex Dual Screen Android-Based eReader at CES 2010
CES 2010: OCZ Techology shows off SSDs in both SATA and PCIe form
CES 2010: HP Snapdragon-based netbook prototype
CES 2010: NVIDIA shows Tegra- powered tablet PC with Android
CES 2010: OCZ Technology unveils new power supplies
CES 2010: Video overview of the ASUS G73Jh gaming notebook
CES 2010: MSI Reveals New Products - Ultra Slim Arrandale Notebook Included
CES 2010: CES Unveiled Press Event
CES 2010: ASUS Eee PC Seashell 1008P Karim Rashid Collection
CES 2010: ASUS U53 U-Series Bamboo Notebook
CES 2010: ASUS Bang & Olufsen NX90Jh and G73Jh notebooks previewed

More than 100 companies showcased their latest products and innovations at Pepcom's Digital Experience press event. Hundreds of media members got to preview new products from companies like BlackBerry, Canon, Energizer, Epson, Garmin, Google, HP, Intel, Kodak, Lenovo, Lexmark, LG Electronics, Microsoft, and ViewSonic. We hand picked a few products that were pretty innovative and interesting at the same time. 

One of the most visually stimulating things we saw at the event, other than the safari girls, was a 14.1" Active-matrix organic light-emitting diode (AMOLED) notebook display at the OLED Association booth. This display had a transparent background that was very interesting and the actual icons on the screen were bright, sharp, and colorful.

Intel had an array of budget netbooks running off their N450 Atom processors from companies like Acer, Toshiba and HP. the N450 offers characteristics such as low power consumption, low heat generation, and ultra-economical power usage.

IOGear had a modest-sized booth that included this small two port USB 3.0 PCI-E card that we thought was newsworthy enough to post here. This card supports data transfer rates up to 5Gb/s and is backward compatible with USB 2.0 and USB 1.1 devices. This was one of the first USB 3.0 cards we saw at CES and I'm sure it won't be the last. It's good to see vendors adopt this technology early and replace the legacy USB 2.0 interface.

Kingston showed off a variety of products from their HyperX line of system and laptop memory. Kingston introduced dual and triple-channel DDR3 1600 kits in the 16GB and 24GB flavors for hardcore enthusiasts to use in their insanely-expensive and blazing fast PCs. The 16GB kit will cost around $1,065 while the 24GB kit will be available at $1,598. Pretty steep, but well worth it to max our your LGA 1156 or LGA 1366 rig's memory.

Another sweet product we previewed at the event was a Samsung BD-C6900 3D Blu-ray player. This slim player has a transparent cover and includes support for Internet TV with Samsung apps. It also includes mult-channel, high definition surround sound and meets Energy Star 4.0 guidelines.

Lastly, Buffalo Technology wowed me a bit with this iPhone dock slash portable hard drive that is properly named the Dualie. The Dualie is a combined storage solution and docking station for the Apple iPhone and Apple iPod.  This product allows consumers to sync and charge their iPhone or iPod while providing simultaneous access to the included 500 GB portable hard drive for backup or storage of digital assets. The 500GB version of this product goes for $249.99.

There were hundreds of other products shown to media, and Allyn will showcase what he saw in the way of system storage innovations in a future news post so stay tuned!

Demonstrating its commitment to developing the USB 3.0 ecosystem, GIGABYTE is working with other USB 3.0 device vendors to ensure cross-compatibility between products. With this in mind, GIGABYTE recently launched the USB 3.0 motherboard microsite that lists compatible 3rd party USB 3.0 devices that include an ultra slim USB 3.0 SSD from OCZ, external hard disk drive (HDD) enclosures from Inxtron and DoTop, an HDD docking station from Sharkoon and other USB 3.0 accessories from DoTop. More 3rd party USB devices are currently undergoing testing so watch this space for more exciting new SuperSpeed action.

GIGABYTE is also working with USB 3.0 integrated circuitry (IC) vendors on product compatibility such as Genesyslogic (USB 3.0 to SATA 3Gb/s Bridge Controller). Information about their CES presence and demos using GIGABYTE USB 3.0 motherboards is available from their website.

“We expect USB 3.0 to be a very hot topic at CES this year and it’s really exciting to see all the new applications and devices that have already been preannounced by the media and CES organizers,” commented Tony Liao, Associate VP for North American Sales and Marketing at GIGABYTE Technology Co. Ltd. “With our aggressive USB 3.0 motherboard roadmap and top-to-bottom range of solutions, we are ready to partner-up with every USB 3.0 device vendor in ensuring complete compatibility with GIGABYTE motherboards.”

Click here for a list of dates and cities.

See first hand:

• Why Windows 7 is the best cutting-edge solution for consumers and small to midsize businesses. Windows 7 is more responsive, enables users to get more out of their PCs, prevents security threats, and safeguards data loss while making it possible for users to spend time on the things that matter most to them. Now, with Windows 7, the PC is simplified.
  
• How consumers and businesses running Windows 7 on AMD technology-based PCs can achieve an advanced visually dynamic, powerful, and rich computing experience on a stable and consistent platform.
  
• What’s new with Windows Server 2008 R2, and how its new Web tools, virtualization technologies, security enhancements, management utilities and integration with Windows 7 can help your customers save time and reduce costs, all while providing a solid foundation for their information technology (IT) infrastructure.

Other Attractions
Engage with authorized distributors on site who will be available to offer exciting bundled offers. Attendees will be eligible to purchase a complete experience DIY Kit at an attractive price of $189.

The DIY Kit contains:

• One full, not-for-resale copy of Windows 7 Ultimate
  
• AMD Athlon II X4 620 quad-core processor
  
• Asus motherboard with AMD 785G integrated graphics chipset

Each attendee will be eligible to purchase one kit only

"One look under the hood of this 2010 Shelby and you'll start strategizing on how to get your hands on this powerhouse street machine," said Brian Knapp, president, Flagship Industries. "Ford and Shelby are both iconic American names that represent a long history of street legal horsepower, and it's a thrill to be giving one away to the lucky winner of the Ventrilo Ultimate Power Up competition. As always it's an honor to be working with our friends at id Software and giving back to the gaming community."

"This is the most powerful production Mustang ever made and thanks to Ventrilo, someone from QuakeCon will walk away with the keys to this beast of a machine," said Todd Hollenshead, president, id Software. "QuakeCon 2009 will be a can't miss event for LAN fiends, game fans or id Software devotees; and Ventrilo giving away this bad ass muscle car is an example of why everyone needs to make sure that they have August 13 to 16 on their calendar for the world's best video game party."

The 2010 Ford Shelby Mustang GT500 Coupe to be given away will be Kona blue and comes with a six speed transmission mated to a supercharged 5.4 liter V-8 pumping out a brutal 540 horsepower and 510 lb-ft of pavement destroying torque. The car will be on display throughout QuakeCon in the main exhibition area.

A total of 100 tickets for the Shelby Mustang GT500 drawing will be awarded to QuakeCon attendees for everything from performance in the QuakeCon Pro, Open and Quick Draw Tournaments, to participation in other QuakeCon contests, events and random drawings. The winner will be randomly selected at 9 p.m. (Central Standard Time) on Saturday, August 15, as part of the tournament finals event on the QuakeCon Main Stage.