Taiwan based manufacturer Aerocool expands its quality PC-Chassis portfolio. New addition to the portfolio is the Strike-X Xtreme Midi Tower, which is targeting ambitious Gamers and combines stylish exterior with spacious and clean interior.

The interior design is offering much space for drives and latest high-end gaming components. Users can conveniently access the four 5,25 inch (13,34 cm) bays, which are equipped with a tool-free mounting mechanism. Additionally up to six 3,5inch (8,89 cm) respectively 2,5 inch (6,35 cm) hard drives can be mounted into the allocated slots conveniently using the supplied HDD trays.

Intel's Core "Haswell" desktop processor family launch may be three months away, but retailers in Europe aren't wasting any time to hog attention or score pre-orders. The company's flagship socket LGA1150 processor, the Core i7-4770K, was listed by Dutch stores MAXICT.nl and takeITnow, for €331.13 (incl. VAT) and €352.00 (incl. VAT), respectively. Both stores are offering the chip in its tray (chip-only) packaging. The listings confirm the chip's clock speed to be 3.50 GHz, and L3 cache size 8 MB. The MaxICT listing can be found here, and TakeITnow here. Ships all over EU.

Noctua today introduced its new NF-A14 FLX, NF-A14 ULN and NF-A15 PWM 140mm fans that complement the recently announced A-series of premium quality quiet fans. Like the previously presented NF-A4x10, NF-A6x25 and NF-A9x14, the new 140mm models feature Noctua's novel AAO frames as well as the series' signature Flow Acceleration Channels for reduced boundary layer separation and improved aerodynamic efficiency. Reference class SSO2 bearing and 6 years manufacturer's warranty make the NF-A15 and NF-A14 a stand-out choice for all noise-sensitive 140 mm applications.

"Introduced in 2009, our NF-P14 has become a default-choice among PC enthusiasts looking for a premium quality, quiet 140mm fan, so we're excited to further improve its much acclaimed airflow to noise ratio with the new NF-A14 and NF-A15", says Mag. Roland Mossig, Noctua CEO. "The A14 and A15 models all sport the key features of our new A-series fans and now come in both round and square frame design."

The European Commission has informed Microsoft of its preliminary view that Microsoft has failed to comply with its commitments to offer users a choice screen enabling them to easily choose their preferred web browser. In 2009, the Commission had made these commitments legally binding on Microsoft (see IP/09/1941). The sending of a statement of objections does not prejudge the final outcome of the investigation.

In its statement of objections, the Commission takes the preliminary view that Microsoft has failed to roll out the browser choice screen with its Windows 7 Service Pack 1, which was released in February 2011. From February 2011 until July 2012, millions of Windows users in the EU may not have seen the choice screen. Microsoft has acknowledged that the choice screen was not displayed during that period.

According to a report, European Commission is planning to level a criminal case against Microsoft for failing to meet the conditions laid down by the judgement of a 2009 case that forced Microsoft to strip its Internet Explorer browser from Windows operating system copies sold in the EU, and presenting new installations of the OS with a browser selection menu. With the advent of Windows 7 SP1, the browser selection menu was not implemented for tens of millions of PCs (out of an error, Microsoft argues). The new case could lead to penalties in billions of Euros for Microsoft.

One of the biggest consumer electronics markets, EU strictly regulates materials, radio-emissions, and energy-efficiency of consumer electronics items eligible for sale in its member states. A new such energy-efficiency regulation is taking shape that specifically mandates integrated graphics cores and discrete graphics cards to live up to certain energy standards. This has GPU maker AMD worried that it could affect next-generation chips, as they could be barred from sales in the EU.

The EU classifies graphics cards on the basis of on-board memory bandwidth, which is a reliable means of segregating the various market segments. The various classes are tabled below. The top tier "G7" is classified as graphics cards with 128 GB/s or above memory bandwidth. EU wants to cap graphics cards from achieving bandwidths above 320 GB/s (possible with 6.67 GHz at 384-bit width, or 5.00 GHz at 512-bit width). The EU sees memory bandwidth as proportionate to power-consumption. It's possible that the EU sees today's hardware more than sufficiently fast to handle games, and every new generation that increases performance does so with increases in power-consumption. With the sheer size of the EU market, GPU makers could be deterred from making low-volume high-performance products for the rest of the world as well.

Optical disc drives are components buyers are least bothered about, when purchasing parts to build a PC, or replace a broken one. The EU's regulators have found something fishy even with companies making these roughly-20€ PC components. According to the European Commission (EC), 13 optical disc drive vendors may have conspired to fix prices of their products on a global scale, and that affects European consumers, as well.

The EC is investigating 13 drive suppliers, and 2 major PC OEMs (pre-built PC vendors), for conducting and participating in what is known as bid rigging scheme, a serious antitrust violation. In bid rigging schemes, the bidders and contractees conspire to rig their prices so that a particular supplier wins the bid. Penalties for such a violation include 10% of worldwide turnover set as fines.

EU's highest legislative body, the European Parliament, voted against ratification of Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), a broad-scoped piece of legislation designed to prevent copyright infringement of nearly all kinds (commodities, consumer durables, electronic and print media, etc.) A thumping 478 votes against, 39 for, and 146 abstainers saw to the quashing of ACTA. The act had been widely criticized by people of the EU as being too broad-scoped, and giving the regulators sweeping powers to prosecute anything they deem as copyright infringement. Activists feared that censorship could be carried out under the veil of ACTA. Meanwhile, across the big pond, the United States House of Representatives passed a similar piece of legislation, the CISPA, in April.

Around three years after the European Commission slapped Intel with a record €1.06 billion fine for anti-competitive practices against market rival AMD, the company appealed against the fine, on grounds that the commission relied on "profoundly inadequate" evidence to establish anti-competition charges against the company, which lead to the fine. A 5-member bench of General Court in Luxembourg, Europe's second highest, will hear arguments of both Intel and EU's regulators, during a 4-day hearing. Intel wants its conviction quashed and its fine reduced/removed. According to European regulators, major computer manufacturers such as HP, Dell, and Lenovo, received unfair rebates from Intel for opting for its chips. The case is T-286/09, Intel vs Commission.

Spire is proud to introduce our new fan series with Nano-ceramic precision bearing. Spire fans with Nanobearing offer a more silent, reliable and durable solution for the most demanding situations.

Traditional fans with oil seal bearings have serious wear with a relatively short service life as the bearings can easily overheat which results the impeller jamming and the PCB melting. Fans with nano-ceramic bearings are made from namo-zirconia powder as main material and a collocating special nano-particles lubricant to guarantee an exponentially longer life. The average service life is more than 70,000 hours.

AMD's FX-8150 was only mildly competitive with previous-generation Intel processors such as the Core i5-2500K, but to make matters worse, Intel launched its new "Ivy Bridge" Core processors that promise small but sizable performance improvements over its predecessors. The Core i5-3570K, for example, will be priced on par with FX-8150, if its price is left to itself. AMD has apparently cut prices of FX-8150 in Europe. Price aggregator Geizhals shows that the FX-8150 is available for as low as 179 EUR (incl. taxes). The PIB chip is now packed in a more cost-effective paperboard box, instead of the tin box AMD launched the SKU with.

Today Fox Business is reporting U.S. and European regulators approved Google Inc's $12.5 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility on Monday and said they would keep a sharp eye on the web search giant to ensure patents critical to the telecom industry would be licensed at fair prices. The U.S. Justice Department also approved an Apple Inc -led consortium's purchase of a trove of patents from bankrupt Canadian company Nortel Networks.Both the Justice Department and European antitrust authorities said that they would monitor how patents are used to ensure they comply with antitrust rules. Antitrust enforcers on both sides of the Atlantic are concerned that patents essential to ensuring communications devices sold by different companies work together are licensed for a reasonable fee.

The European Court of Justice, the highest court in the European Union, ruled that P2P filters installed by ISPs violate the European Directive on electronic commerce as well as fundamental rights. The full ruling can be accessed here. This comes as a major blow to stingy ISPs who conserve and shed bandwidth in the name of checking peer-to-peer (P2P) traffic, by somehow deeming that all P2P traffic consists of unlawful sharing of copyrighted content and software.

The ruling is part of a case filed by SABAM (Belgium's equivalent of RIAA), which sued ISP Scarlet for not filtering P2P traffic, and in the process, facilitating copyright infringement. A Brussels Lower Court then ordered Scarlet to install a filtering system to monitor the internet traffic of its subscribers. In response Scarlet appealed against the verdict in the European Court of Justice. Scarlet argued that a filtering system would be incompatible with the Directive on electronic commerce and with fundamental rights. The European Court of Justice ruled in agreement with Scarlet.

Amelia Andersdotter from Sweden will soon take oath as the youngest to join European Parliament in Brussels. The 24-year old member of The Pirate Party was voted to her seat more than two years ago, but her appointment was delayed all this while, due to bureaucratic hurdles. Andersdotter promises to fight archaic copyright laws and corporate interests.

In an interview to Torrent Freak, Andersdotter touched on issues like competition between telecommunication companies (state and private operators), certification, and the infamous ACTA legislation. "When national parliaments have been saying that they can't do anything about ACTA, activists and media just kind of happily accept. What national parliaments could do, and should do, is obviously tell their national governments not to sign the agreements. That is and would be within their power," she said. You can read the full interview at the source.

Intel Labs Europe (ILE), unveiled the latest Innovation Open Lab located at the Intel Ireland campus in Leixlip Co. Kildare. This is Intel's second European Innovation Open Lab, which will foster cooperation between Intel, industry and academia through joint research and innovation programs. The Lab's mission is to facilitate and enhance open research and innovation opportunities in Europe that can be converted into various broadly based and value-driven technology solutions. The Ireland Innovation Open Lab is part of the ILE initiative which was announced in January 2009.

The official opening was attended by special guests including Conor Lenihan T.D., Minister for Science, Technology & Innovation; Brian Crowley, MEP; Rick Echevarria, Vice President, Digital Enterprise Group and General Manager, Digital Office Platform Division, Intel; Dr. Martin Curley, Global Director, Intel IT Innovation and Director, Intel Labs Europe; and Jim OHara, General Manager, Intel Ireland and Vice President, Technology Manufacturing Group, Intel.

Scythe Group is officially announcing the release of the first 2.0 stereo speakers set and the improved version of the Class D amplifier. With the goal to develop a Hi-Fi solution with a very affordable price tag, Scythe engineered a set of plain and classy speakers by the name Kro Craft. By this Scythe is taking another step towards enriching the audio market even more by simultaneously releasing the improved Kama Bay Amp Kro.

New Kama Bay Amp Kro is coming with various innovations in inside as well as outside of the unit. Core of the new unit is the former known Yamaha YDA138(D-3) IC which was now placed on an overworked PCB which results in higher sound precision. Outside of the Kama Bay Amp Kro has been turned black to further match it to average home theatre environments and Kro Craft Speaker. On the underground new isolated feet were placed which are making the unit more stable and solid.

Following the European Commission's recent welcoming of Microsoft's proposed "browser ballot" method of providing users a choice of web-browser software to be installed, Microsoft has decided to scrap the Eurozone-specific variant of the operating system codenamed "Windows 7 E", that lacks the Windows Internet Explorer web-browser component. The company will be shipping the standard version of the software to EU which it ships to the rest of the world.

In an interview with CNET, Microsoft's VP and Deputy General Counsel Dave Heiner said "One reason we decided not to ship Windows 7 'E' is concerns raised by computer manufacturers and partners." He added that "Several worried about the complexity of changing the version of Windows that we ship in Europe if our ballot screen proposal is ultimately accepted by the Commission and we stop selling Windows 7 'E'. Computer manufacturers and our partners also warned that introducing Windows 7 'E', only to later replace it with a version of Windows 7 that includes IE, could confuse consumers about what version of Windows to buy with their PCs."

The European Commission can confirm that Microsoft has proposed a consumer ballot screen as a solution to the pending antitrust case about the tying of Microsoft Internet Explorer web browser with Windows. This followed extensive discussions with the Commission which centred on a remedy outlined in the January 2009 Statement of Objections (see MEMO/09/15) whereby consumers would be shown a "ballot screen" from which they could - if they wished - easily install competing web browsers, set one of those browsers as a default, and disable Internet Explorer. Under the proposal, Windows 7 would include Internet Explorer, but the proposal recognises the principle that consumers should be given a free and effective choice of web browser, and sets out a means - the ballot screen - by which Microsoft believes that can be achieved. In addition OEMs would be able to install competing web browsers, set those as default and disable Internet Explorer should they so wish. The Commission welcomes this proposal, and will now investigate its practical effectiveness in terms of ensuring genuine consumer choice.

As the Commission indicated in June (see MEMO/09/272 ), the Commission was concerned that, should Microsoft's conduct prove to have been abusive, Microsoft's intention to separate Internet Explorer from Windows, without measures such as a ballot screen, would not necessarily have achieved greater consumer choice in practice and would not have been an effective remedy.

Earlier this year in May, the European Commission for anti-competitive practices found Intel guilty of various antitrust practices. The company was then slapped with a massive 1.06 billion Euro (US $1.45 billion) fine, the single largest antitrust fine it has ever meted out to a company. On Wednesday, Intel explored its legal option of appealing against the fine with Court of First Instance in Luxembourg, Europe's second highest judicial body. The company argues that the EC regulator failed to consider the evidence that supported Intel's contention during the trial.

In a telephone interview with ComputerWorld, Robert Manetta, an Intel spokesperson said "We believe the Commission misinterpreted some evidence and ignored other pieces of evidence." Meanwhile, apart from the fine Intel is expected to pay within three months of the verdict, the ruling also puts a stop to Intel's rebates to PC manufacturers and retailers on condition of near or total exclusivity, among several other deemed malpractices. Authorities in South Korea and Japan found similar irregularities in Intel's marketing methods, while the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and New York Attorney General's office are investigating the company for abuse of its monopoly position.

Scythe announces its first PC Case for the PC DIY market. FenrisWolf PC Case was designed by a cooperation with Germany's most famous case modder called Benjamin "benny" Franz. This cooperation is displayed by the logo "b" on the side panel. The new pc case has more to show than just a nice design, it's equipped with several popular Scythe products.

6 kg (13.23 lb) full aluminum FenrisWolf PC Case has the overall dimensions of 527 × 203 × 455 mm (20.75 × 7.99 × 17.91 inch) and is covered completely in elegant black color. It is equipped with the famous Slip Stream 120 mm case fans which are spinning at 800 rpm, generates a low noise level of 10,70 dBA and constant airflow of 40,17 CFM (68 m³/h). The fan in the front can be mounted in other 5.25" bays which allows an individual optimization of airflow.

Software giant Microsoft has had disturbed relations with the EU markets following series of lawsuits to penalise the company's alleged anti-competitive market practices. Abiding by the courts' judgments, Microsoft will release two special types of its upcoming Windows 7 operating system to sell in Euro-zone countries. The OS will be devoid of Microsoft's Internet Explorer 8 (MSIE 8) web-browser, and Windows Media Player (WMP) 12 multimedia software. The first type is Windows 7 E, which lacks MSIE 8 alone. The second is Windows 7 N, which lacks MSIE 8 and WMP 12. The standard type which includes both, will not be available in Euro-zone countries. These types maintain their variant hierarchy (with the lineup starting from Home Basic to Ultimate).

Furthermore, the copies of Windows 7 (E, N) will require a clean installation. Users will not be able to upgrade their existing Windows Vista installations with such types of Windows 7. This however, won't affect the standard version. The move puts users in a bit of inconvenience, since the OS will not remain web-capable as soon as it's installed. In an effort to make things as easy as possible for users, Microsoft is recommending OEM vendors to pre-install MSIE 8, or any web-browser they choose. MSIE 8 will be available as CD-ROM installation media at stores. It will also be available for users to download using FTP, so a web-browser could be downloaded and installed without the presence of another one. "We're committed to making Windows 7 available in Europe at the same time that it launches in the rest of the world, but we also must comply with European competition law as we launch the product," said Microsoft deputy general counsel Dave Heiner said in a written release. "Given the pending legal proceeding, we've decided that instead of including Internet Explorer in Windows 7 in Europe, we will offer it separately and on an easy-to-install basis to both computer manufacturers and users. We're committed to launching Windows 7 on time in Europe, so we need to address the legal realities in Europe, including the risk of large fines. We believe that this new approach, while not our first choice, is the best path forward given the ongoing legal case in Europe," he added.

In EU, a land that worships fair market practices, that recently booked two of the biggest names in the IT industry (Intel, Microsoft) for anti-competitive market malpractices, and penalized them for billions of Dollars, one would expect high standards of business practices. Apparently one has to peel the onion to find it's not all that fresh inside. Aquatuning, a German reseller has found an interesting way of locking its competitors out, of pretty much everything it does. The store deals in high-performance PC component cooling products, such as water-cooling components. In order to make sure nobody else in the country sells what it does, the company is registering the brands its sells, under its own name.

The Pirate Party silenced skeptics, gathering enough votes in the European Union elections this year, to make it to the Parliament from Sweden. This serves as a huge victory to the party whose ideology revolves around fighting harsh and archaic copyright laws and enforcement agencies, that it finds incompatible with the digital age we live in. The party secured 7.1 percent of the 99.9 percent districts' votes counted, which guarantees at least one of the 18 or 20 seats Sweden contributes to the EU Parliament. Sweden has 20 seats, but until the Lisbon treaty passes only 18 with voting rights. In this case, the party might secure 2 seats.

Rick Falkvinge, leader of the party, in a statement to TorrentFreak said "Together, we have today changed the landscape of European politics. No matter how this night ends, we have changed it." National and International press gathered in Stockholm, where the party celebrates its landmark victory. "This feels wonderful. The citizens have understood it's time to make a difference. The older politicians have taken apart young peoples' lifestyle, bit by bit. We do not accept that the authorities' mass-surveillance," Falkvinge added.

Following the news we covered the other day, the verdict is now in, and as expected Intel has been found guilty and fined €1.06 Billion ($1.45b/£948m) by the European Commission for anti-competitive practices. This fine smashes the €497 million fine issued to Microsoft by the EU in 2004 for abusing its dominant market position. Nine years on from when AMD first made a complaint that Intel had paid computer manufacturers not to use AMD chips in Europe the EU have ruled that Intel had given rebates to manufacturer's if they only used their chips, and had also found that a retailer had been paid to sell only Intel based systems.
"Intel has harmed millions of European consumers by deliberately acting to keep competitors out of the market for computer chips for many years," said Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes, "Such a serious and sustained violation of the EU's antitrust rules cannot be tolerated."