Acer today announced cross-platform support for AcerCloud, the company's file sharing and media management solution, free to Acer customers. Consumers can now share, retrieve and enjoy their multimedia and data files using a variety of computing devices, regardless of which operating system they are running -- Windows, Android or iOS.

AcerCloud uses the free space on a PC's hard drive as cloud storage space. Users simply designate one of their PCs as their "Cloud PC," enabling them to use the available hard drive space on their own PC, giving them security and full control over their storage needs.1 And unlike other cloud solutions, consumers won't receive constant reminders about exceeding capacity with solicitations to pay for more storage.

ASUSTOR Inc., a leading innovator and provider of network storage solutions, today announced the release of three new NAS Apps for its well-received AS 6 Series NAS devices. These new Apps consist of Symantec Backup Exec's RALUS, an acclaimed backup solution, Dropbox, a popular cloud storage and sync service and DVBLink TV Server, a digital television App. Additionally, two of ASUSTOR's existing Apps are being upgraded with advanced features and enhancements. Download Center now features the new and convenient Smart Download Folder function. Its mobile App, AiDownload, has added a push notification function and is now available for both iOS and Android. Not to be outdone, the Surveillance Center App now boasts added Daylight Saving Time adjustments along with full compatibility with Panasonic's BB and BL camera lines. Interested users may begin enjoying these new Apps and upgrades by downloading them through ASUSTOR's App Central.

Microsoft Corp. and Hoeft & Wessel AG have signed a patent licensing agreement that provides broad coverage under Microsoft's patent portfolio for Hoeft & Wessel devices running the Android platform. Hoeft & Wessel manufactures handheld devices and terminals for the public transportation, logistics and retail industries in Europe. While the contents of the agreement have not been disclosed, the parties indicate that Microsoft will receive royalties from Hoeft & Wessel.

"This agreement with Hoeft & Wessel is another example of how industry leaders address intellectual property," said Horacio Gutierrez, corporate vice president and deputy general counsel of the Intellectual Property Group at Microsoft. "We are proud of the continued success of our licensing program in resolving IP issues surrounding the Android platform in a variety of industries."

Genius invites all CES attendees to visit their booth during CES to get hands-on experience with the new Windows 8 touch gesture mouse, Touch Mouse 6000, that lets users tap, swipe and zoom right on the mouse giving users full use of the new Windows interface. Beside the Touch Mouse 6000, the other major new products that will be shown are the Innovations 2013 honoree GX Gila Gaming Mouse along with the Ring Mouse 2.

Following last week's reveal of next-generation 3DMark game test "Fire Strike," which is designed to make even the fastest consumer graphics setups sweat, Futuremark revealed screenshots of its second game test, titled "Cloud Gate." Going with Futuremark's "one benchmark for all platforms" strategy, Cloud Gate is designed to test DirectX 10 hardware capabilities. It uses DirectX 11 engine that's limited to feature level10_0. The lighter game test will be able to put notebook GPUs and entry-level DirectX 11 desktop GPUs to test.

Cloud Gate will see Futuremark's artists going back to space-opera mode, something we missed in 3DMark 11. Screenshots reveal what appears to be a giant machine hovering over a moon, with its parent gas-giant in the background. Perhaps it's a terraforming machine? An ion-drive spacecraft scooping up fuel? The test appears to make use of several of D3D10's illumination and bloom effects. In related news, Futuremark told us that the new 3DMark won't make it to the markets this year, and instead it will be launched for Windows PC (x86) platform in January, 2013. The Android, iOS and Windows RT versions will launch after a little more beta testing and approvals from their respective app stores.More screenshots follow.

TRENDnet, a best-in-class wired and wireless networking hardware brand, today announces the availability of two new cloud cameras: the Wireless Cloud Camera, model TV-IP751WC and the Wireless Day / Night Cloud Camera, model TV-IP751WIC.

TRENDnet cloud cameras take the work out of viewing security video over the internet. To view non-cloud camera video remotely, users need to perform many complicated and time consuming steps: such as signing up for a third party dynamic IP service and reconfiguring their router. The TRENDnet Cloud service removes all of these complicated steps.

FXI, pioneer of the Cstick Any Screen Micro Computer, announced today that it releases a full system solution for ARM Linux and Android developers on its Cotton Candy device platform, targeting developers. The agreement and close collaboration with ARM will enable FXI to take full advantage of the resources of the Mali development community, while providing an easy to use, innovative development platform for Mali GPU developers. Existing owners of the Cotton Candy device can download development versions of Ubuntu Linux for ARM v12.04 and Android 4.0 in both source and binary forms by visiting this page. Developers can get Cotton Candy from here.

FXI is working closely with ARM to take full advantage of the capabilities of the ARM Mali-400 MP GPU (and other ARM technologies). The Cotton Candy Any Screen IP enables developers to work with the Cotton Candy device inserted in their PC and develop with their existing tool chains directly on the Cotton Candy. The combination of the ARM Cortex-A9 and Mali-400 MP can be found in a wide range of devices ranging from smartphones, tablets and smart TVs. By using Cotton Candy, which also uses this combination, developers can target a wide range of Cortex processors and Mali GPU based platforms -or for Cotton Candy itself- can develop on actual market leading Mali silicon.

Futuremark has announced that the next version of 3DMark, its popular benchmarking software, will offer cross platform testing capabilities on Windows, Windows RT, Android and iOS devices. With three all new tests Futuremark says 3DMark can be used with the full range of hardware from smartphones and tablets, to notebooks and home PCs, to the latest high-end, multi-GPU gaming desktops. Futuremark expects to launch the new 3DMark before the end of the year.

3DMark is well known in PC circles as the go-to benchmark for testing the latest Windows gaming PCs and video cards. Today Futuremark announced that the next version of 3DMark will also be available on Android, iOS and Windows RT devices. Futuremark says 3DMark scores will be directly comparable across platforms providing valuable insight into the performance differences between competing devices and operating systems.

Arduino announces the release of the new Arduino Due board based on the Cortex M3 ARM processor. The release of the 1.0 Arduino platform in 2011 represented a milestone for Open Source Hardware: after six years of development, Arduino is declared mature and stable.
Once this was achieved, the team applied itself to the new version of Arduino designed to provide more creative options to users. The result of this work is the Arduino Due, a board that provides increased performance and faster connectivity at an affordable price (49 USD MSRP).

Arduino Due is ideal for those who want to build projects that require high computing power such as the remotely-controlled drones that, in order to fly, need to process a lot of sensor data per second. Arduino Due gives students the opportunity to learn the inner workings of the ARM processor in a cheaper and much simpler way than before.

Samsung developed a new file-system that's optimized for storage devices with multiple NAND flash memory chips. Called "Flash-Friendly File-System" or F2FS, Samsung's newest creation has been submitted to the group governing the Linux kernel, and an implementation of it on derivatives such as Android is possible in the near future. F2FS is designed to take into account the "internal geometry" of NAND flash storage devices, using a log structure approach that overcomes shortcomings of file-systems designed for older spinning-disc physical media (such as floppy, hard drives, and optical discs). There's also promise for F2FS, particularly in future high-density servers using enterprise SSDs.

NETGEAR, Inc., a global networking company that delivers innovative products to consumers, businesses and service providers, today announced the worldwide availability of NETGEAR Centria, a powerful, all-in-one automatic backup/media server and high-speed WiFi router. Centria is a dual band high-performance router with the added convenience of automatic data backup for both PCs and Macs. The backup capability of the Centria router gives you peace of mind knowing that your data is always backed up.

If your PC or Mac goes down or is lost, you can still access your data from Centria using another computer. Routers are an ideal device to provide data backup since they are always on and are the central point of connection for all computers in the home. Additionally, Centria can be used as a storage repository for photos, media and documents that may take up too much space on your computer. Centria uses an internal SATA drive and/or external USB drives to backup and store data.

ViewSonic Corp., a leading global provider of computing, consumer electronics and communications solutions, today announced its innovative new Smart Display, aimed at changing the way people think about computing. The 22" (21.5" Vis.) VSD220 Smart Display pairs a 1920x1080 full-HD resolution monitor with the dual-core, ARM-based OMAP 4 processor from Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) and an Android 4.0 "Ice Cream Sandwich" operating system, resulting in a whole new way to experience the web.

"The VSD220 Smart Display is engineered for today's cloud connected world," said Jeff Volpe, president of ViewSonic Americas. "ViewSonic is embracing the post-PC transition with what will be a full range of connected display solutions. For consumers, the VSD220 is perfect for surfing the web, engaging on social networks and enjoying a world of Android apps. For commercial opportunities, the VSD220 serves as a flexible solution that can address the needs of Android compatible vertical market applications such as signage, hospitality, point of information, and kiosk. Whatever the need, our new Smart Displays are the future of connected computing."

Green House Japan announced a unique multi-format card reader that supports tablets, smartphones and PCs, which is compatible with the Android operating system. The GH-CRAD-SUAK from Green House is a lightweight device with a micro-USB 2.0 connector on one end, which plugs into the latest Android tablets and smartphones with the connector, or to a PC with a micro-to-standard USB cable. On its business end, the card reader sports a standard SDIO slot, a micro-SD slot, a micro-USB port (so you don't end up losing the only such port of your device), and a full-size USB port. Measuring 61.2 x 10.6 x 19.7 mm (WxDxH), the GH-CRAD-SUAK is feather-light, at 9.5 g. Slated for late-September, it is expected to be priced at 2,480 JPY (US $31.7).

HARMAN International Industries, Incorporated, announces the availability of three new, ultra-portable JBL speakers built for superior on-the-go music enjoyment from a smartphone or tablet. The compact speakers - the JBL Flip (right), JBL Micro Wireless and JBL Micro II - easily fit into a backpack or back pocket and are ideal for business travel, dorm rooms or a second bedroom. Each speaker includes a built-in bass port to deliver a deep, more resonant sound than comparably sized portable speakers.

The three ultra-portable JBL speakers range from $39 to $99 and work with virtually any music-playing gadget, including the Apple iPad, iPhone or iPod touch as well as Android smartphones or tablets and BlackBerry or Windows Mobile phones. Each features a convenient, rechargeable battery that provides up to five hours of playing time. Two speakers - the JBL Flip and JBL Micro Wireless - connect via Bluetooth wireless or through a cable, while the JBL Micro Wireless and JBL Micro II can be daisy-chained with other JBL Micro speakers to create a significantly larger - and louder - soundscape.

ARCHOS, an award-winning innovator in consumer electronics, is proud to announce their first gaming tablet. This new type of tablet, the GamePad, combines gaming controls with Android for a full tablet and gaming experience in one. Gamers will not only have access to all their favorite games, they will also have access to email, Internet, apps and more through one device.

The GamePad features a 7-inch, capacitive screen, physical control buttons and analog sticks. This Google certified tablet has full access to Google Play for the tens of thousands of games available, runs a dual-core processor @ 1.5 GHz combined with a Mali 400mp quad-core GPU. In addition, the GamePad includes automatic game recognition and mapping tools - patented technology to ensure control compatibility with every advanced Android game.

Kickstarter prodigy OUYA, a $99 (for backers) gaming console based on the Android platform, driven by NVIDIA Tegra 3, is finally up for pre-order to non-backers. It starts with a console + single controller option at US $109 (US buyers), $119 (international buyers); $139 (US buyers) and $149 (international buyers) for console + two controllers; and $199 (US buyers), $209 (international buyers) for console + four controllers. The first deliveries will start just in time for next summer, in April 2013. Head over to this page, if you're interested.

Futuremark is proud to announce that Acer Incorporated, Intel, Qualcomm Incorporated and SingTel-Optus have joined its Benchmark Development Program to create a new 3DMark gaming benchmark for Android-based tablets and smartphones. The Futuremark Benchmark Development Program gathers input and expertise from the world's best and most technologically advanced companies to create industry standard benchmarks for performance measurement. 3DMark for Android is expected to be released later this year.

Jukka Makinen, Futuremark CEO said, "For more than 10 years, we have worked with the world's leading PC hardware manufacturers to create 3DMark and PCMark. As a result, Futuremark benchmarks are the industry standard for PC performance measurement used by hundreds of press publications and millions of end-users. As we bring 3DMark to a new OS for the first time, we are excited to expand our cooperation to include Acer, Intel, Qualcomm and SingTel-Optus, technology leaders who will bring unparalleled insight, experience and vision to the development of 3DMark for Android."

We are pleased to announce that the APC ROM, kernel and bootloader are now available for download here. Our efforts are focused on creating the most stable and user friendly Android experience for APC and with this release we are aiming to provide developers with the tools you need to begin creating new and exciting apps for our Android environment. At the same time we understand the desire and passion that exists from the hacker and developer communities and we want to allow you the freedom to experiment with installing other distributions to match your needs.

In addition to the availability of the APC ROM, kernel and bootloader we have created a forum within the APC website, at www.forum.apc.io, to encourage discussion and innovations for APC. We are always interested to see what the actual users envision for APC and aim to provide a fertile feeding ground for new ideas and applications to develop. We have created a separate section for those who choose to go with a different distribution and wish to develop strong community support for these efforts. Also available at this time are technical drawings of the board, including the 3D stacking layout for those who want to create customized cases for their APC, as well as a quick guide and other reference material.

VIA Technologies, Inc, a leading innovator of power efficient computing platforms, today announced the VIA VAB-800 Pico-ITX embedded ARM board. Featuring a choice of an 800MHz or a 1GHz Freescale ARM Cortex-A8 processor, the VIA VAB-800 combines a wide operating temperature range with extremely low power consumption to meet the demands of high-end industrial and in-vehicle fanless embedded applications.

Based on the industry standard 10 cm x 7.2 cm Pico-ITX form factor created by VIA, the VIA VAB-800 Pico-ITX board combines a rich I/O set with superb multimedia performance, supporting playback of the most demanding video formats in resolutions up to 1080p. Leveraging VIA's hardware design expertise, the VIA VAB-800 delivers the highest I/O integration on the Pico-ITX form factor for an ultra compact yet highly flexible platform for the latest embedded devices.

NETGEAR, Inc., a global networking company that delivers innovative products to consumers, businesses and service providers, today announced the WiFi Booster for Mobile (WN1000RP). The compact, WiFi Booster for Mobile amplifies WiFi coverage for mobile devices in the home by extending and strengthening an existing WiFi signal, giving consumers the ability to enjoy an improved wireless experience on tablets, smartphones and e-readers.

Consumers are leveraging WiFi connectivity at home more than ever before to browse the web, stream movies and play online games on their devices. The NETGEAR WiFi Booster for Mobile improves an existing WiFi signal throughout the home and even outside on the deck or patio, enabling users to move freely around the house while streaming content on everything from tablets and e-readers to smartphones.

WD, a world leader in external storage and connected home solutions, today introduced powerful new collaboration and file management features, including Dropbox integration, in the next generation of its popular WD 2go mobile app for their personal cloud products, the My Book Live, My Book Live Duo and My Net N900 Central HD router with storage.

WD's personal cloud products provide shared storage on the home network, letting customers centralize their important documents, photos, videos and music in one place as well as automatically backup all the computers in their home. With the WD 2go app customers can access and share that content from outside the home on their mobile devices.

A new Kickstarter project is making waves, by proposing an open-source, hacker-friendly platform using Android as its backbone. "OUYA" merges the "satisfying" experience of a console with the developer-friendly nature of the Android marketplace. The project is seeking nearly a million dollars in funds, but it's already managed to reach more than half its lofty goal within just a day. The project's goal is $950,000, a figure it's likely to hit. It's been less than a day, and it's hit more than $590,000. That's no doubt because the higher dollar amounts, $95 and $99, offer the console itself as a reward. So far, the project hasn't outlined any stretch goals, but they seem likely. The funding will go towards converting the prototype to production models with approvals from regulatory agencies, development kits, production orders, and possibly some first-party game development. It also claims that games will be required to offer a free element, be it a demo or the full game with microtransactions. OUYA has already specified its technical specs, including a Tegra3 quad-core processor, 1 GB of RAM, 8 GB of flash storage, an HDMI connection, and Android 4.0. The controller looks fairly standard for consoles, with eight action buttons, two analog sticks, a D-pad, and the addition of a touch pad.

QNAP Systems, Inc. today announced the release of the new Qfile and Qmanager mobile apps for iOS and Android mobile devices, providing users with free Turbo NAS remote management and monitoring solutions.

Qfile gives users remote access to the Turbo NAS. It allows users to easily access, manage, and share files on the Turbo NAS and upload files directly from their mobile devices on the go. Qmanager offers users a handy tool to monitor and manage the Turbo NAS remotely. It provides users information of system status and connection status. Furthermore, users can manage the download/backup tasks and easily turn on/off application services of the Turbo NAS anytime and anywhere.

Belkin today launched WeMo, a line of modular, Wi-Fi-based products that turn an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch into a remote control for household devices. Consisting of two initial products, the WeMo Switch and the WeMo Motion, WeMo works with the free WeMo app to create a scalable, customizable home control system designed to provide added safety, convenience, and peace of mind.

"WeMo uses familiar technology to create a plug-and-play solution for controlling gadgets and appliances remotely," said Jamie Elgie, senior director of product management for Belkin. "Designed to address simple automation needs without the hassle or expense of whole home automation, WeMo is an easy and fun way to put your home at your fingertips."

Genius today releases an ultra-thin Bluetooth keyboard, LuxePad 9100, that is compatible with iPad as well as Android and Windows tablets. This portable keyboard comes with the protective leather case that can also be used as a stand, turning your tablet into a mobile office and allowing you to quickly and comfortably type wherever you go.

Only 1.75cm thick, the LuxePad 9100 easily slides into a bag or purse alongside your tablet, making it ideal when traveling on trains or planes or just a day in the park. When you need to write documents or type emails simply pull out this ultra-thin keyboard and press the CONNECT button, then you can start writing away on your tablet. When finished, just flip the on/off switch so to conserve battery life.