On Monday, Microsoft Corp. announced its plans to launch Windows 10 on July 29 with global fan celebrations, joint efforts with thousands of retailers, including all Microsoft store locations, a new global advertising campaign, and a new year-long initiative to celebrate people and organizations making a difference around the world. Available for the first time as a free upgrade, Windows 10 delivers a fast and familiar experience that is more secure and automatically up-to-date. Featuring new innovations like Cortana, Microsoft Edge and Xbox integration, Windows 10 is the best Windows ever.

"Windows 10 was built to empower people to do great things. We are thrilled to celebrate the launch of Windows 10 with our fans," said Yusuf Mehdi, corporate vice president of Windows and Devices Marketing at Microsoft. "We'll mark the launch of Windows 10 by celebrating the people and organizations that upgrade the world every day - and by helping them do more in their communities."

Windows fans have helped shape Windows 10, with 5 million Windows Insiders providing valuable feedback. The Windows Insiders will be the first to receive Windows 10 and are invited to join Windows 10 fan celebrations in 13 cities around the world, including Sydney, Tokyo, Singapore, Beijing, New Delhi, Dubai, Nairobi, Berlin, Johannesburg, Madrid, London, Sao Paolo, and New York City. Fan celebrations will offer hands-on opportunities, experiential demos, entertainment and opportunities to meet the Windows team.

Thecus Technology Corporation today announces firmware enhancements on all consumer and enterprise NAS models. Updates to ThecusOS 5 and 6 mean enhanced capability and security across the entire Thecus NAS lineup.

Updates available for Thecus consumer and SOHO NAS will enhance their capabilities, giving them features found usually on business class storage. For the N2310, ThecusOS 6 is upgraded to offer multiple RAID volumes and RAID Encryption. Updates for the 2-bay N2520 and N2560 as well as the 4-bay N4520 and N4560 models offer enhanced UPS support and multiple RAID volumes. In addition, OpenSSL updates and bug fixes enhance security and reliability of these consumer and SOHO Thecus NAS models.

Today, OWC expanded its award-winning line of high-performance SSDs in capacities ranging from 120GB to 480GB for the MacBook Air 2010-2012 and the MacBook Pro with Retina display 2012-2013. The new upgrade options deliver even greater affordability and are backed by the support and expertise OWC is known for around the world.

Aura and Aura Pro SSD: The Easy Drive Upgrade for Air and Retina
Aura and Aura Pro SSD (Flash) drive upgrades provide an easy and economical path versus buying a new laptop to achieve greater performance and/or internal drive capacity. Repurpose the original factory drive with a sleek, award-winning Envoy/Envoy Pro external enclosure included with complete DIY Kits.

Transcend Information, Inc. (Transcend), a worldwide leader in storage and multimedia products, is proud to announce the launch of its JetDrive SSD Upgrade Kits aimed at MacBook computers. The JetDrive Upgrade Kits are ideal for professional photographers, videographers, and graphic artists looking to enhance the performance and capacity of their MacBook system, and even includes an easy-to-use drive enclosure for converting the original SSD or HDD into a new USB 3.0 portable storage device.

Faster Performance and Increased Storage
Built on the next-generation SATA III 6 Gb/s interface to achieve lightning-fast transfer speeds of up to 560 MB/s, upgrading to a Transcend JetDrive SSD translates into faster system boot up and application launch times, while offering the lag-free responsiveness and stability necessary for data-intensive computing and advanced gaming. Moreover, the newly-released SSDs are available in capacities of up to 960 GB, offering the perfect combination of speed and high-density storage.

The past year has seen a flurry of Thunderbolt related activity. Already present on every current Apple Mac, Thunderbolt has continued to grow within PC circles. And the Thunderbolt ecosystem responded, with over 100 Thunderbolt devices now shipping and available, most certified for both Mac and PC. Thunderbolt makes new experiences possible and developers are seeking to take advantage of Thunderbolt's key benefits, including simultaneous data and display transfer, with speeds of up to 10 Gbps, and daisy-chain connectivity of up to six devices. Building upon that foundation, the first Thunderbolt 2 systems were introduced in October this year, with speeds up to 20 Gbps, and support for the DisplayPort 1.2 protocol. Thunderbolt is clearly the fastest, most versatile connection to your PC.

Now we have a new announcement for you - an exciting new program to quickly expand the footprint of Thunderbolt for desktop and workstation users. This new initiative is called "Thunderbolt ready", and it enables PC manufacturers to offer Thunderbolt upgradeable motherboards within desktop and workstation computers. By using a Thunderbolt card, Thunderbolt's blazing fast speed and uncompressed video capabilities can now be added to any motherboard that includes a GPIO header (general purpose input/output header), so even if your system doesn't have Thunderbolt it is now possible to "upgrade" to it. Users that are interested in adding Thunderbolt 2 technology to an existing Thunderbolt ready system can combine a Thunderbolt card with a growing number of enabled motherboards, all identified by the use of the "Thunderbolt ready" moniker. The Thunderbolt ready program makes it simple to identify which components work together to upgrade your PC with Thunderbolt 2 capability.

Other World Computing, the world's leading destination for cutting-edge and easy-to-install Mac and PC upgrades and accessories, announced the immediate availability of the OWC Memory Upgrade Kits from 8GB to 32GB for 2013 iMac 27" models that became available today. OWC's kits offer memory configurations not offered by the factory as well as savings of more than $240 compared to same-size factory options. Like all OWC Memory Upgrade Kits, a 'how-to' install video and OWC Lifetime warranty are included.

What it does: upgrading the memory of this iMac gives you more options and better performance. It's a low-cost improvement that gives Apple's latest OSX-including the upcoming Mavericks release-the space it needs for maximum performance. For hundreds less than what Apple charges, users can select an OWC upgrade to unlock the machine's true potential. Installation takes just a few minutes, and OWCs iMac Memory Upgrade Guide makes it easy to select the right memory for any Apple iMac model.

At IFA 2013 in Berlin Acer showcased an updated C710 Chromebook, a model that swaps the old, 32 nm-manufactured 1.1 GHz Celeron 847 processor for the fresher, 22 nm 1.5 GHz Celeron 1007U. Other specs remain unchanged so you still get a 11.6-inch (1366 x 768) display 2 or 4 GB of RAM, either a 16 GB SSD or a 320 GB HDD, 10/100 Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n WiFi, and a 4- or 6-cell battery.

Acer's upgraded Chrome OS-running machine has a price tag of 249 Euro and is expected to hit stores soon.

All ASUSTOR NAS devices will be upgraded to ASUSTOR's ADM 2.0 NAS operating system, fully optimized user interface is easy to use with zero learning curve, newly added features include original technology such as Searchlight search engine, Mission Mode backup, FTP Explorer and more; App Central also receives updates in App Central V2, along with the launch of two new mobile apps AiMaster and AiData, effectively combining cloud storage with multimedia applications.

ASUSTOR Inc., a leading innovator and provider of network storage solutions, has announced that all of its NAS devices will be upgrading to the ASUSTOR Data Master (ADM) 2.0 operating system. ADM was the first NAS operating system in the world to be designed around the use of Apps and features an intuitive graphical interface that provides users with a familiar experience closely resembling the simplicity enjoyed on mobile and tablet devices. ADM also features the App Central App repository which contains over 100 unique NAS Apps. Users with needs ranging from business to SOHO to home and personal will all find Apps that they can use to create a customized NAS device for themselves.

Razer, the world leader in high-performance gaming hardware, software and systems, today announced the latest member of its software family: Razer Surround.
Razer Surround is a state-of-the-art audio engine that provides 7.1 virtual surround sound with any stereo headphones. The current generation of virtual surround technology often provides inaccurate listening experiences because individuals perceive sound differently based on their distinct ear sizes and shapes. As such, virtual surround sound traditionally falls short compared to discrete surround sound setups.

With the patent-pending Razer Surround audio engine, users have the option to calibrate their personal surround sound settings through a series of listening tests to match their preferences, giving them far superior positional sound over traditional virtual solutions. Razer Surround gives gamers a truly individualized 7.1 surround sound and attuned 3D audio experience, allowing them to acoustically pinpoint exact locations of opponents in game, providing "the unfair advantage" in gameplay.

ORIGIN PC announced today the availability of their brand new line of Ready-To-Ship (RTS) systems for the holidays. ORIGIN PC's RTS line of systems come pre-configured using only high quality parts specially chosen by the ORIGIN PC engineers. These high-performance systems are available while supplies last and offer the same unmatched quality and performance as every custom ORIGIN PC without the wait and without any compromise. Every RTS system is put through the same rigorous benchmarking and testing and built and supported in the United States. With included popular PC games, features such as professional overclocking and award winning Lifetime 24/7 Support, the ORIGIN PC RTS system makes the perfect holiday gift.

Other World Computing (OWC) www.macsales.com, a leading zero emissions Mac and PC technology company, announced today the OWC Mercury Aura Pro is the industry's first high-performance Solid State Drive upgrade for the new 2012 13" MacBook Pro with Retina display (rMBP) computers introduced by Apple last week.

Available in 480 GB capacity for immediate ordering and with additional capacities to be announced in November, the 6G (6 Gb/s) SandForce Driven Mercury Aura Pro offers rMBP owners up to nearly 3x more storage and/or backup capacity than the factory 128 GB flash module.

Apricorn today announced the latest addition and now the fastest of its popular Velocity Solo Desktop SSD Upgrade line, the Velocity Solo X2. It's the first PCIe 2.0 x2 lane card available that is capable of delivering speeds upwards of 550 MBs when used with a single super fast SATA III (6 Gb/s) 2.5" SSD.

Taking advantage of two PCIe 2.0 lanes and using a Marvell 9182 chipset, the Velocity Solo X2 will enable desktop PCs and Macs to take advantage of the ever increasing speeds in the SSD market. Designed to fit into a PCIe 2.0 x2 slot or larger (typical installation will use a x4 slot), the Velocity Solo X2 enables users to easily add an SSD to their desktop system. Connection of the Velocity Solo PCIe 2.0 card to the SSD is via a super fast SATA III (6 Gb/s) connection. The Velocity Solo X2 also provides an additional SATA III data connection that can be used to connect to another SSD or HDD to provide expanded high speed storage.

Microsoft's biggest launch of the year, Windows 8, may be under two weeks away, but there are still a couple of things Redmond managed to keep secret despite consumers getting a fair look-and-feel of the new operating system with pre-launch Consumer Previews. A large volume of Windows licenses are sold through hardware vendors, where the operating system is sold pre-installed on PCs and notebooks. The rest is sold as packaged software, through conventional retail channels.

As packaged software, the two variants of Windows 8 (Windows 8 and Windows 8 Pro) will be available as upgrade and full-version. The upgrade package lets you move from an existing installation of Windows XP, Windows Vista, or Windows 7, to the new OS. The Windows 8 Pro Upgrade is listed at an introductory price of US $69.99. For the same price, you get Windows 8 Pro Pack, which is a card with a software key to Windows 8 Pro (any architecture), no installation media. The OEM (builder) packages of Windows 8 (standard), which includes a key and installation media is sold in 64-bit and 32-bit variants, each priced at $99.99. Lastly, there are similar 64-bit and 32-bit packages for Windows 8 Pro, each priced at $139.99. Newegg.com is accepting pre-orders.

To provide the best user experience on the AMD platform, ASUS has refreshed a variety of motherboards, including mainstream channel models, dedicated products from ROG and the TUF Series, plus FM1 socket-compatible and power-efficient APU-based models. Each product offers a variety of new ASUS exclusive technologies such as digital power control, Remote GO!, and Network iControl, alongside innovative Fast Boot, ASUS Boot Setting, and DirectKey, all specifically leveraging upcoming Windows 8 capabilities. Both new and existing features have been tailored and tested to comply with the Windows 8 architecture for total stability and maximized utility, while all motherboards have gone through a full series of compatibility assurance tests in getting ready for the move to Windows 8.

Belkin today announced new upgrades to its upcoming Thunderbolt Express Dock, as well as a new Thunderbolt cable for both Mac and PC users. Belkin's new Thunderbolt offerings will be on display at the Intel Exhibition Showcase, Booth M410, at Computex, June 5-9, 2012.

The Thunderbolt Express Dock is a first-of-its-kind docking solution for both PC and Mac users that enables instant access to up to nine desktop peripherals with one cable, and provides an easy transition from a desktop workstation to a mobile device. Upgrades to the latest version of the dock include the addition of three USB 3.0 ports, instead of USB 2.0 ports, as well as an eSATA port.

Microsoft Corp. today announced the availability of the Windows Upgrade Offer for consumers purchasing a qualifying new Windows 7 PC. The Windows Upgrade Offer provides consumers who buy an eligible Windows 7 PC the option to purchase a downloadable upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for an estimated retail price of just $14.99 (U.S.) during the time of the promotion, which will be redeemable when Windows 8 is generally available. The Windows Upgrade Offer is just the first of many consumer offers that will roll out in conjunction with the general availability of Windows 8.

"We've seen a great interest in Windows 8, especially given the availability of the Windows 8 Release Preview this week, and yet we know many consumers want a new PC now," said Tami Reller, chief marketing officer and chief financial officer of Windows at Microsoft. "The Windows Upgrade Offer gives people the flexibility to purchase the new Windows 7 PC they need today, with the knowledge they can easily get Windows 8 when it's available."

Corsair, a worldwide designer and supplier of high-performance components to the PC gaming hardware market, today announced the immediate availability of the Force Series 3 SSD Notebook Upgrade Kits. The kits, available in sizes of 120 GB and 240 GB, provide users with an easy, affordable way to upgrade their laptops to a solid-state drive (SSD) for improved performance, battery life, and reliability.

Corsair SSDs provide significant advantages over standard hard drives. The solid-state design enables SSDs to deliver faster data read and write speeds which can reduce software load and PC startup times. And because SSDs have no moving mechanical parts, they help laptops run cooler, run longer on batteries, and resist data loss from bumps.

Alienware announced that outstanding (pending) orders of M14x, M17x, and M18x gaming notebooks, which were placed before last month's refresh to the Core "Ivy Bridge" processor platform, will be upgraded for free, to Ivy Bridge. Such customers with pending orders are being notified by email that their selected models with previous-generation Core "Sandy Bridge" processors will be upgraded to their "Ivy Bridge" equivalents, at no additional charge, and with no delay in their delivery dates. This offer applies only to the Alienware line, and not other Dell notebooks.

Japanese cooling expert Scythe has today announced a new Screw Kit for upgrades to socket LGA2011. Thanks to this new Scythe Screw Kit for Intel LGA 2011 users are able to upgrade new as well as older Scythe CPU Coolers to achieve compatibility to the recently announced enthusiast platform based on socket LGA2011. It is possible to use the new Screw Kit with the CPU Coolers Mugen 3, Mine 2, Ninja 3, Susanoo, Mugen 2 Rev.B and Big Shuriken 2 to upgrade and establish compatibility. Required screws, wrench and manual are contained in the package of the Screw Kit.

Mentioned CPU Coolers are usually mounted with a Scythe backplate designed for various sockets. Socket LGA2011 mainboards are already equipped with an own pre-mounted backplate which is firmly connected to the socket. Scythe Screw Kit for Intel LGA 2011 is utilizing this backplate and achieves a solid as well safe mounting between socket LGA2011 and the Scythe CPU Cooler. Installation still requires the Metal Assembly Clips for socket LGA775, 1155, 1156, 1366 which are delivered with the mentioned CPU Coolers.

Investment firm Barclays Capital lowered its ratings on semiconductor majors Intel, Applied Materials Inc, Freescale Semiconductor Holdings Ltd, Microchip Technology Inc., and Spansion Inc., from "equal weight" from "overweight", meaning that these companies are no longer outperforming, and are doing average, with negligible growth. Towards the end of 2011, Intel adjusted its Q4 forecast, lowering it by $1 billion, blaming factors beyond its control such as HDD supply problems. Weakened PC sales growth is another major factor. On the other hand, DRAM and NAND flash memory maker Micron Technology got its rating upgraded to "overweight", as Barclays notes that the industries Micron is in, are on the verge of a boom. Reacting to this, Micron's shares shot up by 11 percent during trading early this week, sending its shares' valuation from $6.2 billion, up 9 percent to $6.88 billion.

German PC cooling and power manufacturer Be Quiet announced a free compatibility upgrade for all its customers. The upgrade gives users support for Intel's latest LGA2011 socket platform, and is particularly well timed, since some of the company's best CPU coolers were released only recently, such as its famed Dark Rock series, which are more than capable of handling 130W TDP processors, which LGA2011 Core i7 processors, are. The LGA2011 mounting kit can be availed for free (including shipping charges), by filling up a request form, and supplying Be Quiet with product serial numbers, or any proof of ownership of an LGA2011 motherboard. The request form can be filled here.

Duke Nukem Forever Gets Second, More Promising DLC Upgrade

Yes, everyone's favourite game they like to hate has received its second dose of DLC goodness. The first one was a bit of a ho-hum looking Hail to the Icons Parody Pack, but this second one, The Doctor Who Cloned Me, looks more promising, as it includes a "full new single player campaign", it's set in Area 51 (you know, where all the aliens live) features an evil would-be world dominator (how original) Dr Proton, new weapon types, new enemy types, bosses, more achievements and new interactive items. It also includes four new multiplayer maps. In short, if you liked DNF, then you'll likely enjoy this expansion pack, which costs $9.99. Teaser video follows the jump.

For those who upgrade between succeeding versions of Microsoft Windows, the upgrade installer can be cumbersome. There are way too many prompts and clicks. Microsoft is working to make the upgrade package of its next major version of Windows, for now referred to as Windows 8, streamlined to as few as 11 clicks. The new installer will be designed to perform most of its tasks without needing user input.

Microsoft will implement a new web-delivery method, where you purchase your Windows 8 license online, and the installer downloads your soft copy to you. It is pre-fed with your 25-character product key. Microsoft's next major Windows release is slated for 2012.

The original 8-bit Commodore 64 computer was very popular in the early 1980s, but the original company eventually closed down in the 1990s, having launched their 16-bit Amiga range in the meantime as the C64s successor. For a while now, replica C64 models, packed with the latest PC technology, have been made by Commodore USA, a different company that has purchased the original Commodore brand.

Since last summer, they have been selling a replica for $999 powered by an Intel CPU. This PC, called the C64x Ultimate (model number: C64x-UL) included a dual core Atom D525, NVIDIA Ion 2 graphics, 4 GB RAM and a 1 TB hard drive. A barebones version is available for $349 without a motherboard, just the keyboard and case, allowing the customer to add their own hardware into the retro box. However, Commodore USA has now upgraded their offering with a considerably more powerful CPU. This version is the C64x Extreme (model number: C64x-EX) which includes a 2.2 GHz Intel Core i7-2720QM CPU, mini-ITX motherboard and PSU, 8 GB DDR3 RAM, DVD writer (slot loading) 2 TB 7200 RPM HDD, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. The back panel has the following ports: legacy PS/2, USB 2.0 x5 (one eSATA combo) USB 3.0 x2, Ethernet and three audio jacks. Video connectivity is looked after by HDMI, DVI-D and VGA outputs.

Noctua today announced its new NM-I2011 mounting kit for LGA2011. Continuing Noctua's tradition of supplying its customers with SecuFirm2 mountings free of charge, the NM-I2011 kit allows Noctua users to upgrade to Intel's upcoming LGA2011 socket for Core i7-3000 (Sandy Bridge-E) processors. The new mounting is backwards compatible with all Noctua retail coolers since 2005 and will be supplied to Noctua users free of charge after uploading a proof of purchase on the company's website.

"We feel that product quality and service quality should always go hand in hand, so we're determined to give the best possible support to our customers. Having provided free mounting upgrades for the last generations of Intel and AMD platforms, we're happy to announce that we will continue this tradition with the NM-I2011 kit for LGA2011", says Mag. Roland Mossig, Noctua CEO. "We always like to think of our coolers as safe long-term investments, and even if you bought one of our first models six years ago, you'll still be able to upgrade it to the latest socket technology free of charge."