Battery life testing For the first time in the series, PCMark 8 will combine performance testing with battery life measurement. You can estimate battery use from each benchmark test or use Battery Life mode to loop a test until the battery is almost empty for more accurate results. New Adobe and Microsoft application tests PCMark benchmark tests are based on common use scenarios such as browsing the web, photo editing, video chat, writing and gaming. PCMark 8 takes this one step further by including additional benchmark tests based on popular productivity and creativity applications from Adobe and Microsoft. Developed with industry expertise PCMark 8 has been developed in partnership with the members of our Benchmark Development Program. PCMark BDP members include Acer, AMD, Condusiv Technologies, Dell, HGST, HP, Intel, Microsoft, NVIDIA, Samsung, SanDisk, Seagate and Western Digital. We believe that this open process of close cooperation with industry experts is the only way to create accurate and impartial benchmarks that measure performance fairly. Having high-level access to the industry’s leaders also ensures that our benchmarks are relevant not only for today’s hardware, but remain relevant year after year. The complete benchmark for Windows Whether you are looking for long battery life, maximum power, for the home or at the office, PCMark 8 will help you find the devices that offer the perfect combination of efficiency and performance for your nee...

3DMark update fixes multi-GPU issues, adds Ice Storm Extreme test to Windows editions What’s New in 3DMark v1.1.0 for Windows This update adds the Ice Storm Extreme test and fixes issues when testing systems with multiple GPUs. 3DMark scores will increase slightly on systems with two GPUs and significantly on systems with three or four GPUs. NEW The Ice Storm Extreme benchmark test has been added to 3DMark Advanced and Professional Editions. Ice Storm Extreme is a Direct3D feature level 9 benchmark test for Windows tablets, ultrabooks and notebooks. Ice Storm Extreme raises the rendering resolution from 720p to 1080p and uses higher quality textures and post-processing effects in the graphics tests to create a more demanding load for the latest mobile devices. You can compare Ice Storm and Ice Storm Extreme scores from Windows and Android devices. FIXED - 3DMark now works correctly on systems with up to four GPUs. - Fixed the issue caused by Windows update KB2670838, which added partial DX11.1 support to Windows 7. - Fixed a problem with the bloom post-processing effect when using very high rendering resolutions in custom settings. DOWNLOAD 3DMark v1.1.0 is now available to download from many of our mirror partners. People with the Steam edition of 3DMark will get the update automatically. http://www.futuremark.com/support/downloads

An update for 3DMark Android Edition is now available from the Google Play store. While most of the changes in this update are minor optimizations and small bug fixes, there is one change to the Ice Storm Extreme test that is worth explaining in detail. There are three tests in 3DMark Ice Storm and Ice Storm Extreme: Graphics test 1, Graphics test 2, and the Physics test. The two graphics tests are designed to measure GPU performance. The Physics test is designed to measure CPU performance. Ice Storm uses an off-screen rendering resolution of 720p. Ice Storm Extreme raises the rendering resolution to 1080p and, while this is fine for the Graphics tests, we have noticed that the additional rendering load can affect the Physics test score on devices with low-end GPUs. With this update, the Ice Storm Extreme Physics test now runs at 720p to ensure the result is not influenced by the GPU. Ice Storm Extreme scores may improve slightly on devices with low-end GPUs. Score are unaffected on the majority of high-end devices. As a rule of thumb, you should use Ice Storm Extreme to compare devices that can run the standard Ice Storm benchmark at more than 40 frames per second. ————- What’s New in 3DMark Android Edition v1.0.2-1109 NEW - Added chipset model to device detail pages. IMPROVED - Ice Storm Extreme Physics test for measuring CPU performance now runs at 720p to ensure the result is not influenced by the GPU. Ice Storm Extreme scores may improve ...

3DMark 11 v1.0.5 This update fixes a few minor issues. Benchmark scores are not affected. Existing users can update 3DMark 11 to the latest version with this patch, or download the complete installer from one of our mirror partners. If you have the Steam version, 3DMark 11 will be updated automatically. Compatibility SystemInfo updated to version 4.17 to improve compatibility with latest hardware. Bug fixes Fixed display mode identification for systems with a very large number of supported display modes. 3DMark Vantage v1.1.2 This update adds Windows 8 compatibility and fixes a few bugs. Benchmark scores are not affected by this update. Existing users can update 3DMark Vantage to the latest version with this patch, or download the complete installer from one of our mirror partners. If you have the Steam version, 3DMark Vantage will be updated automatically. Compatibility Fixed Windows 8 compatibility issues with online result service connection. SystemInfo updated to version 4.17 to improve compatibility with latest hardware. Updated PhysX software to version 9.12.1031. Bug fixes Fixed various GUI bugs. Updated exporter.dll to fix problem loading saved results. Professional Edition only Added support for infinite looping through the command line interface. Added save and submit result options to the command line interface.

Shortly after Futuremark released 3DMark on the Google Play store a couple of weeks ago, they were contacted by James Coote (@JamesACoote), developer of upcoming OUYA game Executive Star: http://www.crystallinegreen.com/?page_id=316 OUYA is console based on components for mobile devices, quite attractivly priced at $99. James was keen to try 3DMark on his OUYA dev kit, they were happy to help, and now we have his results. Here’s a video of James running 3DMark on his OUYA. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IiCuN1wsHgQ And here are the OUYA’s results in detail: http://community.futuremark.com/hardware/mobile/OUYA+Console/review The OUYA is currently ranked #73 among Android devices for 3DMark Ice Storm, new benchmark designed specifically for testing the performance of mobile hardware. Ice Storm is an OpenGL ES 2.0 benchmark that uses a fixed off-screen rendering resolution of 720p before scaling the output to fit the native display resolution of the device. Ice Storm includes two graphics tests designed to stress the GPU performance of the device and a physics test to stress its CPU performance. More about new 3DMark in our review here. 3DMark is available worldwide as a free download for Android devices. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.futuremark.dmandroid.application As OUYA can’t install 3DMark from Google Play you will need the standalone installer if you have access to this console. OUYA offers every game free to try, and if you lik...

Durathon from Elitegroup Computer Systems (ECS) exclusively delivers a hassle free computing experience by solving common PC hardware problems before they can even occur. A specially devised testing regime – far stricter than common industry standards and combined with the highest quality components, ensures that ECS Durathon motherboards can be relied on stability and reliability far into the future. Durathon derives from Durable and Marathon, which means each board runs through the strenuous testing cycle and guaranteed the ability of working flawlessly even under the most extreme environmental conditions. For PC owners suffering crashes, instability and poor performance, ECS Durathon motherboards go above and beyond industry standards to ensure that your motherboard can now deliver the stability, reliability and performance that we promise. ECS Durathon comprises four interlocking tests and enhancements together to protect PCs and defeat many of the most common causes of hardware problems and system instability. Ultimate Hardware Protection ECS Durathon motherboards must have the highest level Bi-Directional Splitting Glass Fabric, which is 3 times more effective humidity protection than general glass fabric. ECS Bi-Directional Splitting Glass Fabric narrows the vacant space between the glass fabric of the PCB which can lower air permeability for dampness proofing and reduces short circuit or burn out malfunction. It improves the thermal stress of the PCB and makes th...

Futuremark Releases 3DMark For Android With more than 100,000 downloads in its first five days in the Google Play store, our 3DMark benchmark app is a big hit with Android users. We’ve collected thousands of results, added hundreds of new devices to our database and replied to lots of great feedback. Given the huge range of Android devices out there, it’s no surprise that there have been a few unexpected issues too. The good news is that we have just rolled out our first update, which fixes many of the more common problems. Benchmark scores are not affected by this update. What’s New in 3DMark Android Edition v1.0.1-949 NEW - You can now search the Device Channel. - You can now report unknown and incorrectly identified devices. FIXED - Fixed a bug that caused crashes for some users. - Fixed the “no score” bug that could cause the test to exit after the demo. - The Device Channel list loads faster and uses less memory. To get the best results we recommend closing all other apps before running 3DMark tests. This appears to be particularly important on Android devices that keep frequently used apps running in the background. If the test stops randomly in the middle of the run, the most likely cause is your device running out of memory. 3DMark is also good at exposing the thermal throttling behaviour of high-powered devices. As these devices heat up they intentionally slow the processor to avoid overheating, which in turn leads to lower scores on ...

Chino, California – April 2nd, 2013 – Cooler Master, a leading designer, manufacturer, and purveyor of mobile accessories, laptop coolers, and peripherals, today announced the launch of its new Mobile website. It is complete with a new, engaging, and customer-centric layout. Bright. Fun. Casual. As a nexus for all on-the-go things, Cooler Master Mobile focuses on the lighter, more fun side of your constantly shifting and moving life. Each product is designed to address, and assist with, multiple aspects of a life that has become increasingly dependent on devices that serve as hubs for mobile entertainment, productivity, and social interactions. Visiting Cooler Master Mobile will keep you up-to-date on the latest releases of these mobile products from Cooler Master as well as fun / educational (Yes, they can be both) videos from our crew, and upcoming events where you can meet with our mobile team directly. Visit mobile.coolermaster-usa.com for more details. Give us your feedback of the website for a chance to win prizes. Details here.

The Android edition of 3DMark includes everything you need to accurately benchmark the performance of Android smartphones and tablets. Developed in cooperation with Broadcom, Imagination Technologies, Intel, NVIDIA, Qualcomm, and other world-class companies, 3DMark is the ideal modern benchmark for over 1,000 Android devices. What’s more, 3DMark scores can be compared across platforms. You can use 3DMark to test and compare the performance of devices running Android, iOS, Windows and Windows RT, and help your readers better understand how new devices compare with the alternatives. Millions of PC gamers use 3DMark to tests the limits of their hardware. Now 3DMark is ready for a new generation of mobile gamers. Available today on Android and Windows, and coming soon to Windows RT and Apple’s iOS, 3DMark is the cross-platform performance benchmark for all your devices. Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAImZ_Jzk1s NEW 3DMARK BENCHMARK TESTS The Android edition of 3DMark includes two benchmarks, both based on OpenGL ES 2.0. Ice Storm Use Ice Storm to test the performance of your Android powered smartphone or tablet. Ice Storm includes two graphics tests designed to stress the graphical (GPU) performance of your device and a physics test to stress its processing (CPU) performance. Ice Storm Extreme Designed for the latest smartphones and tablets, Ice Storm Extreme raises the rendering resolution to 1080p and uses higher quality textures and post-processing eff...

AMD Radeon HD 8000 GPU and AMD Richland APU Support BUDAPEST, Hungary – March 27, 2013 – FinalWire Ltd. today announced the immediate availability of AIDA64 Extreme Edition 2.85 software, a streamlined diagnostic and benchmarking tool for home users; and the immediate availability of AIDA64 Business Edition 2.85 software, an essential network management solution for small and medium scale enterprises. The latest AIDA64 update implements full support for the upcoming AMD Radeon HD 8000 Series graphics accelerators, adds AVX-optimized 64-bit benchmarks for AMD A-Series “Richland” APU, and supports the latest GeForce and Tesla GPUs by nVIDIA. New features & improvements Optimized 64-bit benchmarks for AMD A-Series “Richland” APU Improved support for AMD “Kabini”, “Temash” and “Kaveri” APUs Improved support for Intel “Haswell” and “Valleyview” processors Preliminary support for AMD “Beema” APU Preliminary support for Intel “Avoton” SoC, “Crystal Well” CPU, “Haswell-E” CPU, “Haswell-ULT” SoC, “Ivy Bridge-E” CPU, “Lynx Point-LP” PCH, “Wellsburg” PCH Preliminary support for DDR4 memory modules and GDDR5 system memory GPU details for AMD Radeon HD 8000 Series and nVIDIA GeForce GTX Titan What’s new since AIDA64 v2.00 Microsoft Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 support OpenCL GPGPU Stress Test Enhanced UPS support SensorPanel graphs and gauges Revamped Desktop Gadget Optimized 64-bit benchmarks for AMD A-...

Players, such as Chris Kluwe of the Minnesota Vikings and David Price of the Tampa Bay Rays, challenge fans to Madden, Call of Duty, HALO, FIFA and more NASHVILLE- March 7, 2013- From the gridiron to the gaming console, professional football players like Matt Forte from the Chicago Bears, want to challenge YOU to Madden. Tampa Bay Rays cannon, David Price, dares you to hit his fastball in MLB 2K13. Are you up for it? New app, OverDog, connects athletes from all sports to their fans through any video game title. Fans who support OverDog on Kickstarter will receive exclusive access during the mobile app’s beta window which will be closed to the general public until Fall. “So many athletes love video games. They’re young and competitive, and enjoy connecting with their fans. OverDog is an easy, efficient way to bring fans and players together. We’ve got NFL Pro Bowlers, UFC fighters, Olympic Gold Medalists – you name it,” says OverDog co-founder and former Chicago Bear, Hunter Hillenmeyer. “These athletes may have spent years mastering their sport with practice and weight training- but in the online gaming arena everyone is equal.” Straight out of the OverDog playbook, here’s how this innovative and exciting application works: Simply put, athletes post video challenges through the mobile app which notifies subscribers. Fans who choose to accept the challenge are put into a random drawing by OverDog who streamlines the selection and “friending” proces...

Virtualization Solution Delivers an Automatic Cache Warm-up Scheduler and Data Mirroring Enhancements that Enable ‘SAN-less’ Virtualized Services  HANNOVER, Germany—CeBIT 2013—March 5, 2013—OCZ Technology Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:OCZ), a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today announced the general availability of the next release of its popular VXL Cache and Virtualization Software. VXL 1.3 has evolved its synchronous data mirroring capabilities and automatic server failover mechanisms to enable ‘SAN-less,’ highly available, fault tolerant environments based entirely on virtualized host flash. The ability to provide uninterrupted service for business-critical applications even during severe system failures is a requirement for IT managers of any sized data center, and ideally suited for virtualized database deployments, email servers, or cloud computing applications. Another innovation in this new version of VXL allows IT managers to pre-load the cache with critical data at pre-determined schedules to ensure that important data is available on SSD flash at the precise time it is required by the application. This advancement is particularly well suited for business intelligence and data analysis applications, and in particular, for columnar database deployments where the periodic collection of data to a distributed flash cache enables real-time online analysis. Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) a...

These updates bring Windows 8 compatibility and fix a few issues. You’ll find the complete release notes for both updates below. Please note that PCMark 7 scores ARE affected by the changes in this update. If you use PCMark 7 in your testing you should NOT compare scores from PCMark 7 v1.4.0 with any previous version. PCMark Vantage scores are not affected by the update to v1.2.0. —————————– PCMARK 7 VERSION 1.4.0 RELEASED PCMark 7 has been updated to version 1.4.0 and is now fully compatible with Windows 8. Please note that benchmark scores ARE affected by the changes in this update. **You should not compare scores from PCMark 7 v1.4.0 with any previous version of PCMark 7.** To get the update, download the PCMark 7 v1.4.0 installer: http://www.futuremark.com/support/downloads The major changes in PCMark 7 v1.4.0 include: IMPROVEMENTS - Enhanced accuracy in video playback drawn frames measurement. - In addition to the standard result, PCMark 7 Storage tests now report additional “raw” results where the metric idle values have been excluded from the score calculation. - Enable or disable hardware accelerated video transcoding from the Help tab for troubleshooting. - Improved logging. COMPATIBILITY - Now fully compatible with Windows 8. - The Web Browsing test has been completely rewritten to avoid compatibility issues with Windows 8. The previous implementation was based on Microsoft Foundation C...

Futuremark updated 3DMark 11 to version 1.0.4, which makes the benchmark fully compatible with Windows 8. The update also addresses other compatibility issues and a few uncommon bugs. Benchmark scores are not affected and scores from this new version can be compared with scores from the previous version 3DMark 11 v1.0.3. DOWNLOAD: 3DMark 11 v1.0.4 Improvements: Keyboard focus is no longer checked during the demo or when running the benchmark in a loop. Note that if the display switches to the desktop due to a popup window during the benchmark, the run will still be aborted as the display mode is no longer the same. 3DMark 11 now remembers the last custom resolution used. GPU count detection for multi-GPU systems is now correct even when SystemInfo is explicitly disabled. 3DMark 11 will now prevent Windows from entering Sleep during the test. The license key is now reset when the benchmark is reinstalled, allowing removal of invalid keys. Compatibility: SystemInfo updated to version 4.15 for full Windows 8 compatibility. Updated DirectX redistributable. Now using static Visual C++ 2010 runtime libraries to fix rare installation issues on some systems. Removed dependency on EvaDotNet.dll and EvaDotNet.DirectX.dll for GPU enumeration to fix compatibility issues with some systems. Bug Fixes: Fixed display initialization code that caused “SetFullscreenState failed: DXGI_ERROR_NOT_CURRENTLY_AVAILABLE” errors on some systems. Fixed several memory and texture leaks, im...

Futuremark has released today three videos, showcasing the full demos of its latest benchmark tool, 3D Mark. As Futuremark suggested, ‘if 3DMark Fire Strike brings your PC to its knees, sit back, watch the video and see what you are missing’. The company is also working with Nvidia and AMD to resolve some negative scaling issues when three or four GPUs are being used. Enjoy!