IPS panel major LG is readying a pair of new widescreen, high-resolution monitors for launch at IFA Berlin, the EA93 and EA83. The two incorporate LG's IPS LCD panels with LED illumination. The EA93 is a 29-inch ultra-widescreen monitor featuring a 21:9 aspect-ratio, with 2560 x 1080 pixels native resolution. The 27-inch EA83, on the other hand, features a more conventional 16:9 aspect-ratio, with 2560 x 1440 pixels resolution.

The EA93 is designed to support 4-way split screen, taking inputs from four different connectors: dual-link DVI, DisplayPort, HDMI, and MHL. The EA83 supports dual-link DVI, DisplayPort, and HDMI, and offers 99 percent coverage of Adobe RGB palette. The EA93 and EA83 are slated for market-launch in November.

LG Electronics (LG) announced the global roll-out of its premium IPS7 series monitors, launching first in the Asian markets of Korea and China, including Hong Kong. The IPS7 series features LG's own CINEMA SCREEN Design, with an almost invisible bezel for an unobstructed entertainment experience and a sophisticated, modern appearance. The IPS7 series also delivers lifelike color consistency and representa-tion across a wider viewing angle, thanks to LG's own IPS technology. The addition of Mobile High-Definition Link (MHL) makes it easy to connect external devices, like smartphones, for immersive viewing on a larger screen.

"By combining CINEMA SCREEN Design and MHL functionality with the industry's leading IPS technology, the IPS7 series is able to offer stunning design and performance," said J.J. Lee, Executive Vice President and Head of the IT Business Unit of the LG Home Entertainment Company. "With the rapid growth in the number of mobile smart devices such as smartphones and tablets, the availability of content has greatly expanded. LG's IPS7 expands the user experience, enabling viewers to take full advantage of this content-rich environment."

Fence-sitters in the massive LCD panel price-fixing case, LG, AUOptronics, and Toshiba, finally agreed to pay their share of fines to settle. The three combined will pay US $571 million in fines, according to an attorney for the plaintiffs. The amount includes US $27.5 million in civil penalties for eight state governments (Arkansas, California, Florida, Michigan, Missouri, New York, West Virginia and Wisconsin).

In late-December 2011, the first set of fines were collected from LCD panel majors Samsung, Sharp, Hitachi, HannStar, and Chimei Innolux; who cumulatively paid US $553 million in the price-fixing case, as LG, AUO, and Toshiba abstained. AUOptronics was faced with the prospect of having to pay fines as high as US $1 billion. The case involves alleged price-fixing and cartel behavior by LCD panel makers in the period between 1996 and 2006, which stunted LCD panel development, and overpriced products to the consumers, by stifling competition.

Noctua's booth at last week's Computex Taipei not only hosted world's first public demonstration of a PC fan with integrated Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) but also gave a stage to upcoming Noctua products such as the new A-series fans, third generation NF-S12 fan and 37mm low profile CPU coolers. In addition to these upcoming products, Noctua also gave an exclusive insight on some of its current development projects for its D-, U-, C- and L-series heatsinks.

Firstly, Noctua has displayed its completely new A-series fans that feature a novel aerodynamic design measure called Flow Acceleration Channels to reduce boundary layer separation as well as Noctua's AAO (Advanced Acoustic Optimisation) frames. The new A-series fans are scheduled for launch in September/October and will come in square 140mm, round 140mm, slim 92mm plus 60 and 40mm sizes.

LG Electronics (LG) unveiled a new line-up of premium personal TVs which combine a TV and a monitor in a single unit. On LG's DM2752 and M2752 monitors, users can enjoy a range of multimedia entertainment ranging from terrestrial HD broadcasting to any content served up by a PC at Full HD resolution. Both personal TVs feature IPS panels, boasting lifelike color and extremely wide viewing angles.

"With the integration of multimedia entertainment and the internet, LG is at the frontier of cutting-edge TV technology," said J.J. Lee, Executive Vice President and Head of IT Business Unit of LG Home Entertainment Company. We are developing unique personal TVs designed to meet the needs of changing consumer habits, whether that customer's passion is 3D gaming, internet browsing or simply watching their favorite sitcom."

LG Display, a leading manufacturer of thin-film transistor liquid crystal display, introduced today a 5" Full HD LCD panel for smartphones - the highest resolution mobile panel to date. Allowing smartphone users to view Full HD content in the same quality as on TVs and monitors, LG Display and its new panel significantly advances the cloud computing experience widely considered the next major internet trend.

LG Display's 5" Full HD LCD panel is a step forward past existing mobile display technology. The LCD panel based on AH-IPS (Advanced High Performance In-Plane Switching) technology features 440ppi and 1920x1080 resolution, providing for the first time Full HDTV quality on a smartphone. With 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio, the panel is also 0.5 inches larger, 2.2 times denser in pixels, and 1.3 times more advanced in ppi than the preceding 4.5" panel at 329ppi and 1280x720.

LG Electronics (LG) unveiled its advanced P Series of cloud monitors, allowing companies to do away with desktops and laptops altogether. The new VMware-based Zero Client monitors can be networked to create a virtual comput-ing system and come packaged with Cisco's Universal Power over Ethernet (UPoE) technology, enabling centralized resources, greater system security and reduced costs.

"These monitors are a highly appealing option for the next generation workspace archi-tecture," said J. J. Lee, Executive Vice President and Head of IT Business Unit of LG Home Entertainment Company. "The P Series combines two technologies -- cloud monitor networking and IPS panels -- for a combination that offers exciting new possi-bilities in terms of efficiency in the workplace and gives LG a significant role in virtual computing."

LG Electronics (LG) announced the beta opening of LG Cloud service on May 1 with the aim of providing seamless connectivity and streaming access to all digital content across various electronic devices. Although cloud is today's hottest IT buzzwords, LG Cloud is the first that allows users to manage and consume all types of content on "three screens" which includes Android smartphones, PCs and smart TVs (including but not limited to CINEMA 3D models) without a separate set-top box.

To use the service, users need to download the LG Cloud app from Google Play or LG SmartWorld app store from their Android smartphones, LG SmartWorld store from their LG Smart TVs or the LG Cloud website from their PCs or laptops. LG's Cloud service automatically synchronizes smartphone content with the cloud server and the user's PC and TV. Photos and videos taken with the smartphone can be viewed and streamed to the PC or TV almost instantaneously. Videos edited on a PC can be uploaded to LG Cloud for viewing seconds later on a smartphone. Unlike other cloud services, there's very little waiting or lag time since the content is streamed to the TV, PC or smartphone, not downloaded first.

LG Electronics (LG) today announced the availability of a new line of monitors, the IPS4 series. These monitors feature In-Plane Switching (IPS) rather than conventional Twisted Nematic (TN) panels, allowing for superb color reproduction, exceptional picture quality and unmatched color shift-free wide viewing.

Thanks to an impressively wide viewing-angle (178 degrees), the new IPS monitors enable viewers to enjoy superb picture quality without any color shift whether sitting, standing or lying down. Smooth Color Change also eliminates blur generated from rapid motion in action scenes, sports or video games so that viewers feel less eye fatigue even during longer viewing sessions. When all of these technologies are combined, the result is a richer, more comfortable viewing experience.

LG introduced the Flatron M2380D LED-backlit LCD monitor with TV-tuner. As a monitor, this 23-incher sports 1920x1080 pixels resolution, with 5,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, 250 cd/m² maximum brightness, and 5 ms response time, with a trio of display inputs: DVI, HDMI, and D-Sub. The built-in TV tuner converts it into a conventional 1080p HDTV. The Flatron M2380D should be available in two color options, white (-WH) and black (-BK). Pictured below is the Flatron M2380D-WH. In the Japanese market, it goes for the equivalent of US $307.

LG Display, a leading manufacturer of thin-film transistor liquid crystal display, announced today that it has started mass production of the world's first plastic electronic paper display (EPD) for use in E-Books. The 6" XGA (1024 x 768), e-ink, plastic EPD is expected to revolutionize the E-Book market with its advancements in functionality and design.

"With the world's first plastic EPD, LG Display has once again proven its reputation for leadership and innovation with a product we believe will help greatly popularize the E-Book market," said Mr. Sang Duck Yeo, Head of Operations for LG Display's Mobile/OLED division. "Based on our success in mass-producing plastic EPD, we are excited as we look toward applying concepts from this experience to future developments like plastic OLED and flexible displays."

One of the biggest suppliers of LCD panels to notebook and PC monitor manufacturers, AUOptronics, has been convicted by a US court on Tuesday, of price-fixing, a serious anti-competitive practice that cripples innovation and is bad for consumers and progress of the industry. The company faces fines as high as US $1 billion, which could amount to a big blow to the company that already finds itself facing losses.

AUOptronics' conviction follows the December 2011 mega-settlement of LCD makers including Samsung, Sharp, Hitachi, HannStar, and Chimei Innolux. At the time, AUOptronics and LG Electronics were the only fence-sitters. LG Electronics agreed to pay a US $400 million fine, in 2008. AUOptronics' current position is that it finds the evidence presented against it, which led to the conviction as being "distorted and incomplete," and that it will appeal against the verdict. The quantum of fine levied against AUOptronics will surface in the months ahead.

LG Electronics has today announced the release (in Japan at least) of its D2500N-PN 25-inch monitor offering glasses-free 3D (TriDef software needs to be installed to enable 3D). LG's 3D display makes use of a TN panel, comes with a built-in webcam (which tracks the user's head movement to optimize the 3D experience), and features a native resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, a 5 ms response time, a 1,000:1 contrast ratio (5,000,000:1 DCR), and 250 cd/m2 maximum brightness.

The D2500N-PN includes DVI and HDMI connectors and is expected to become available at the end of this month priced at about 150,000 yen (~ $1,923).

Indilinx, a leading provider of solid state drive (SSD) processors and a subsidiary of OCZ Technology Group, announces OCZ Indilinx SSDs based on the acclaimed Everest Series SATA 3.0 (6 Gbps) platform are shipping in LG Electronics' thinnest notebook yet, the Super Ultrabook Z300 based on the Intel Ultrabook initiative.

"We are excited to continue our partnership with LG Electronics and provide our Indilinx Everest based OEM SSDs for integration into the company's exciting new Super Ultrabook Z300," said Ryan Petersen, CEO of OCZ Technology. "These custom OEM Indilinx SSDs are the ideal solution for the Z300's ultra slim and stylish form factor, and help deliver a superior overall computing experience for customers with quicker transfer speeds and faster boot up."

LG Electronics (LG) will showcase four new notebook models and an all-in-one PC at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2012 in Las Vegas. LG's brand new Super Ultrabook Series, the Z330 and the Z430, offer powerful performance and sleek design unseen in ordinary Ultrabooks, while the P535 and the A540 establish a new standard for 3D notebooks. Lastly, the V300 is the ideal 23-inch all-in-one PC for entertainment, thanks to its immersive 3D display and In-Plane Switching (IPS) -enabled wide viewing angle.

"At this year's CES, LG will showcase products that are not only new, but also establish categories defining new standards for personal computing devices," said J.J. Lee, Executive Vice President and Head of LG Electronics IT Business Unit. "Our new products feature a range of breakthrough technologies from LG, such as IPS display, glasses-free 3D and Super Speed Boot, that will noticeably elevate the personal computing experience. These technologies reflect our goal of satisfying various consumer demands, as well as our aggressive strategy for 2012."

LG Electronics (LG) will present the future of TV technology at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas with the unveiling of the world's largest OLED TV with a display size of 55 inches. By incorporating the company's 4-Color Pixels and Color Refiner features with LG Display's advanced OLED (organic light-emitting diode) panels, LG OLED TV generates the most natural colors of any TV set at a much lower price point than could have been achieved using the standard manufacturing process.

Five major LCD panel makers, including Samsung, Sharp, Hitachi, HannStar, and Chimei Innolux; agreed to pay over US $553 million in settlement to regulators for a price-fixing case. The case by regulators alleged that these companies colluded to fix prices of LCD panels 1999 and 2006, affecting billions of dollars of commerce. The scam unearthed in 2006, by regulators of Japan, Korea, United States, and the European Union. Many companies and executives have since pleaded guilty to criminal antitrust violations and paid more than US $890 million in fines so far.

The latest payout of $553 million is aimed to resolve claims by "indirect" purchasers that bought televisions and computers with thin film transistor LCDs, as well as claims by eight USA states: Arkansas, California, Florida, Michigan, Missouri, New York, West Virginia and Wisconsin. It also includes payments of $14.7 million by the companies to settle civil fine and penalty law claims by the states, the office of New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said. He stated "This price-fixing scheme manipulated the playing field for businesses that abide by the rules, and left consumers to pay artificially higher costs for televisions, computers and other electronics."

LG Electronics (LG) announced today that its newest collection of 3D glasses, including a pair designed by renowned eyewear designer Alain Mikli, will be introduced in the first quarter of 2012. The new 3D glasses -- the F310, the clip-on F320 and the Alain Mikli F360 -- are lighter and more comfortable to wear while upgraded design features such as curved lenses and clean frame structure have transitioned 3D glasses from burdensome requirements to stylish fashion accessories.

"Compared to active shutter glasses, LG's 3D glasses are far more comfortable to wear and much more affordable, making it possible for large groups and entire families to watch 3D programs and movies together," said Havis Kwon, President and CEO of the LG Home Entertainment Company. "LG is addressing two of the biggest barriers to 3D acceptance head-on and we're confident consumers will react favorably to our strategy in the coming year."

LG Electronics (LG) will unveil its 2012 IPS monitor line-up at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas next month. LG's new IPS monitors will provide consumers with the most optimal 3D viewing solution, offering immersive 3D viewing with higher resolutions from wider viewing angles. The new IPS monitors are divided into the DM92, DM82 and DM52 series, in addition to the D43 3D monitor.

"The quality and technological superiority of LG's 3D display products are second to none, according to the findings of internationally renowned research organizations and respected media outlets," said Havis Kwon, President and CEO of LG Home Entertainment Company. "The 2011 IPS monitor line-up shows LG's commitment to further build upon on this reputation and technological prowess in order to provide consumers with the most immersive home entertainment experience possible."

LG Display, a leading innovator of thin-film transistor liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) technology, today announced that it has developed the world's largest 55-inch OLED(Organic Light Emitting Diodes) TV panel. The 55-inch panel is a significant step forward in the popularization of OLED TVs and demonstrates the effective application of AM OLED technology to larger panel sizes at a more cost efficient level.

"Our objective has always been to actively define and lead emerging display technology markets," said Dr. Sang Beom Han, CEO and Executive Vice President of LG Display. "Although OLED technology is seen as the future of TV display, the technology has been limited to smaller display sizes and by high costs, until now. LG Display's 55-inch OLED TV panel has overcome these barriers."

Welcome to the TechPowerUp 2011 PC technology Christmas special. We hope that you will enjoy reading it while tucking into your turkey, Christmas presents and a little too much wine... In this article, we go through the technology of 2011 that has had the most significance, the most impact and was generally the most talked about. It's not necessarily the best tech of 2011 which is the most significant though, since lemons can be just as significant as the ground-breakers in how they fail to deliver - and the backlash that goes with it.

January: Intel Sandy Bridge i5 & i7

Released on January 9th, the new Intel Core i5 & i7 processors were based on Intel's second generation Core architecture built on a 32 nm production process (HEXUS review). They included an IGP (Integrated Graphics Processor) physically on the same piece of silicon along with HyperThreading. These new dual and quad core processors soundly beat all previous generations of Intel processors in terms of processing performance, heat, power use, features and left AMD in the dust. Therefore, Intel badly needed some competition from AMD and unless you have been living under a rock, you will know how that turned out in October with the launch of Bulldozer. Sandy Bridge was a sound win and is generally considered to be the only architecture worth considering at this point. The i5-2500K is currently at the sweet spot of price/performance. It comes at a stock speed of 3.3 GHz, but typically overclocks to an amazing 4.5 - 5 GHz with a decent air cooler and without too much difficulty in getting there. Models in the budget i3 range were released at various times later. See this Wikipedia article for details.

LG Electronics (LG) and Intel entered into a strategic alliance to adopt and jointly promote Intel Wireless Display (WiDi) technology. Intel WiDi will be embedded into next year's LG CINEMA 3D Smart TVs, making them the first in the TV industry to feature Intel WiDi technology. Intel WiDi is a wireless connectivity inter-face which allows for instant, high-definition viewing of content stored in notebooks and other external mobile devices on large screen TVs, projectors or monitors.

"Through this strategic alliance, CINEMA 3D Smart TV users will be able to access a wider variety of content in a more convenient manner," said Seog-ho Ro, Senior Vice President of LG Home Entertainment Company's TV Business Unit. "Intel WiDi will be one of several features that will enhance the user convenience of our CINEMA 3D Smart TVs, further differentiating our products from the competition."

Optical disc drives have been pretty cheap for years now, yet there is enough money in the business, that three executives managed to collude in price fixing of these devices, scamming HP, Dell and Microsoft in the process - and in the end the consumer, who foots the higher prices. The three are from Hitachi-LG Data Storage Inc. (HLDS) and have reached a plea agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice on price fixing charges for optical disc drives during the 2005-2009 timeframe. According to Security Week, the three executives, Sang Hun Kim, Young Keun Park, and Sik Hur, will each pay $25,000 USD in fines and serve little sentences of seven to eight months in prison at a "correctional facility" aka prison, that is yet to be decided.

LG Electronics (LG) extends its glasses-free 3D monitor lineup with the 25-inch DX2500, which incorporates glasses-free parallax barrier 3D and head-tracking technologies. With the DX2500, LG becomes the first in the industry to receive TÜV Rheinland certification for a glasses-free 3D monitor.

"LG is taking glasses-free 3D monitors mainstream with the DX2500," said Si-hwan Park, Vice President of the Monitor Division at LG's Home Entertainment Company. "With the DX2500, we are making the LG brand synonymous with glasses-free 3D monitors. In 2012, we'll continue to expand our range of glasses-free 3D monitors featuring different designs and advanced functions."

LG Display, a leading innovator of thin-film transistor liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) technology, today announced it has developed a 47-inch Full HD LCD panel, featuring vertical single side LED backlight technology, that offers maximum brightness while consuming less electricity than other LCD TV panels over 40 inches in size and even normal PC monitors over 20 inches in size.

The newly developed LCD panel achieves the world's lowest power consumption rate among large LCD panels by dramatically reducing the number of LED lamps used while maintaining a high level of brightness. To reduce the quantity of LED bulbs used, LG Display introduced its own backlight technology in which LED lamps are attached vertically to a single side of the panel, a world first for such technology.