OCZ unveils Agility 3 and Solid 3 SSDs for thrifty speedsters

Now that OCZ has shifted its corporate focus away from the DRAM market, the company has begun deepening its lineup of solid state drives with two new additions: the Agility 3 and Solid 3. The pair of 2.5-inch SSDs, announced today, run on the SATA III 6Gbps interface (unlike their SATA II predecessors) and come strapped with a SandForce SF-2200 processor that allows for some pretty speedy performance. The Agility 3 boasts a maximum read rate of 525MBps, a write speed of 500MBps and can crank it up to 60,000 IOPS. The Solid 3 ain't no slouch, either, with a 500MBps read rate, 450MBps writing capabilities and a max IOPS of 20,000. Granted, they won't deliver quite the same punch as the Vertex 3 Pro, but they also won't cost you quite as much. On the high end of the price spectrum is the 240GB Agility 3, at $480, with the 60GB and 120GB versions priced at $135 and $240, respectively. The Solid 3, meanwhile, is available in both 60GB ($130) and 120GB ($230). Not exactly chump change, but still cheaper than OCZ's heavier hitters. Hit the source links for more details.

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OCZ Technology (1), (2)

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Manual for Alienware M11x with Sandy Bridge confirms NVIDIA GT540M graphics

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Test subjects with electrode implants use mind control to move a cursor

As trippy as mind-control still seems to us, we've already seen it implemented in everything from wheelchairs to pricey gaming (and car driving!) headsets. But the problem is that they measure brain activity outside the skull -- you know, the thing we've evolved to shield the murky goings-on in our minds from prying EEG sensors. Now, though, a team of Washington University researchers appears to have happened upon a more effective -- albeit, invasive -- approach. The researchers got some brave specimens to move a mouse cursor by implanting plastic pads containing electrodes underneath their skulls, with the sensors sitting on the surface of the brain . That, they say, gives them access to more telling, high-frequency waves that say a lot more about cognitive intentions. In the end, the subjects moved the cursors by thinking one of these sounds: "ee," "ah," "oo," and "eh." Brain-computer interfaces ain't new, of course, b...

Commodore USA puts the new C64 up for pre-sales, unveils far-less-retrotastic VIC-Slim

Desktops Commodore USA puts the new C64 up for pre-sales, unveils far-less-retrotastic VIC-Slim By Sean Hollister posted Apr 6th 2011 8:43PM Now that Commodore USA has sufficiently piqued your curiosity with a revamped Commodore 64 prototype, it's ready to capitalize on the idea. Quite literally, we might add. $595 buys you the basic basic model with an 1.8GHz dual-core Intel Atom D525 chip, NVIDIA ION 2 graphics, 2GB of RAM and a 160GB hard drive -- which it promises to deliver by "early June" -- with hundred-dollar increments adding premium features like an additional 2GB of memory, a Blu-Ray drive, up to 1TB of storage, 802.11 b/g/n WiFi and Bluetooth. However, if you're simply looking for a compact keyboard computer (rather than reliving 80's nostalgia) there's another option on tap -- a likely rebadged thin wedge of a machine that Commodore's...

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