Asustek recently introduced a 20.1-inch, widescreen LCD monitor (ASUS PW201) with a built-in 1.3-megapixel webcam and LifeFrame software bundle that enables the display to be used for video conferencing. The company claims that its "Splendid" video intelligence technology optimizes individual regions in the picture and adjusts colors, brightness, contrast and sharpness to be most favorable to the human eye. It offers five modes (standard, scenery, game, night view and theater) and three skin tones (natural, reddish and yellowish). The monitor offers 1,680×1,050 resolution; 800:1 contrast ratio; 300nits brightness; composite, s-video and component (YPbPr) support and DVI-D and D-SUB inputs; built-in 3W stereo speakers and headphone jack; flexible tilting angle and height adjustment; portrait and landscape viewing options; security lock; and three-year system and panel warranty. ASUS PW201 20.1-inch widescreen LCD monitor with built-in 1.3-megapixel webcam Photo: Company.

Tul on May 5 launched the PowerColor X1900 GT graphics card, the latest addition to its flagship X1900 series. The X1900 GT is an enthusiast graphics card for the price-conscious with a suggested retail price of US$349, the lowest price in the X1900 series to date, according to the company. The card uses the ATI Radeon R580 core, with a clock speed of 575MHz, 1.2GHz memory clock and 256MB of DDR3. The 36 pixel shader processors and 8 vertex shaders support today’s latest games, according to the company. The PowerColor X1900 GT is CrossFire ready and supports DirectX 9c, Open GL 2.0 and Shader Model 3.0, enabling anti-aliasing with HDR, said the company. An Avivo engine also ensures accelerated video decode and encode of the latest video formats and support for High-Definition (HD) videos, the graphics card maker noted. PowerColor X1900 GT specifications Item Details Core clock speed 575MHz Memory speed 1.2GHz Memory 256MB DDR3 Memory interface 256-bit Pixel shader processor 36 Vertex shader 8 VGA output By DVI to VGA converter TV output S-Video DVI-I DVI X 2 VIVO (Video In/Video Out) Yes H.264 Support Yes Geometry transform rate (vertices/sec) 1.15 billion Memory bandwidth 38.4GB/sec Pixel fill rate 6.9 billion/sec Photo Source: Company, compiled by DigiTimes.com, May 2006

Acer on May 4 launched a white-colored dual-core notebook in Taiwan, the TravelMate 3020, which features the Intel Core Duo processor and a 12.1-inch TFT LCD display with wide XGA (WXGA) resolutions, with a suggested retail price of NT$55,900 (NT$1,766). In addition to the Acer TravelMate 3020, other available white models in the Taiwan market also include the Compaq Presario B2800 from Hewlett-Packard (HP), the W6A from Asustek Computer, Sony’s VAIO FE590 series and the Joybook S53W from BenQ. Notebooks with a white chassis and a slim profile specifically target female consumers. Scott Lin, president of Acer’s Taiwan and Hong Kong operations, stated that among Acer’s total sales of dual-core notebooks in the second quarter, the contribution from 12.1-inch models will increase with monthly sales climbing to 5,000 units from 3,000 units in the first quarter. According to Lin, sales of dual-core notebooks will account for 34% of Acer’s overall notebook sales in Taiwan in the second quarter of 2006, rising from 13% the previous quarter. The contribution will further increase to 50% in the third quarter and 70% in the fourth quarter, said Lin. Acer’s sub-NT$20,000 offerings for Sonoma notebooks shook the Taiwan notebook market in the third quarter of 2005 but Lin indicated that prices of Acer’s dual-core models will not see such significant reductions this year. Price cuts for dual-core notebooks will depend on price cuts by Intel, Lin said. The Chinese-language Apple Daily reported today that Intel’s price-cutting schedule will go into effect on May 14, a week in advance of the original planned date. Xbitlabs.com, however, has reported that Intel already has released new prices for its CPUs. Acer’s notebook sales in Taiwan topped 51,000 units in the first quarter of 2006, up almost 40% from 37,000 units during the same period of 2005. With rival Asustek Computer, the two companies grabbed a 53.1% share of the Taiwan notebook market in the first quarter. Acer TravelMate 3020 specifications Item Detail CPU Intel Core Duo T2300/ T2400/ T2500/ T2600 Clock speed 1.66/ 1.83/ 2.16GHz (2MB L2 Cache) FSB 667MHz Chipset Intel 945GM/PM Express Network Intel PRO/ Wireless 3945ABG Display 12.1-inch WXGA TFT Memory DDR2 533/667MHz (up to 2GB), two SODIMM extension slots (upgradable to 4GB) HDD 80/100/120GB SATA Built-in camera 1.3-megaxel, 225-degree rotating Dimension 297.5×210×2 4.5/32.4mm Weight 1.5kg (3.3lbs) Retail price (Taiwan) NT$55,900 Photo Source: Company, compiled by DigiTimes, May 2006 The Acer TravelMate 3020 Photo: Andrea Liu, DigiTimes

Gigabyte Technology and Leadtek Research introduced two PCI Express graphics cards based on Nvidia’s price-performance GeForce 7600 GT graphics processing unit (GPU), which was introduced on March 22. The new graphics cards comply with the European Union's Restriction on Hazardous Substances (RoHS) legislation. Using Nvidia’s Scalable Link Interface (SLI) multi-GPU technology, Gigabyte's GV-NX76G256D-RH and the Leadtek WinFast PX7600 GS TDH feature 256MB of DDR2 memory, 128-bit memory interface and up to 12 pixel pipelines. With highlighted features including Microsoft DirectX 9.0c, OpenGL 2.0 and Intellisample 4.0, the two cards can support high-definition video up to 2560×1600. Companies that will offer graphics cards based on the Nvidia GeForce 7600 GS chip also include Albatron, AOpen, Asustek Computer, Biostar, Walton Chaintech and Micro-Star International (MSI), according to a press release from Nvidia. Gigabyte, Leadtek: 7600 GT graphics cards Item Gigabyte Leadtek Product GV-NX76G256D-RH WinFast PX7600 GS TDH GPU GeForce 7600 GS Memory 256MB 128-bit DDR2 Pipelines 12 Connector DVI-I/ D-sub/ TV-out HDTV-Out/ dual DVI-I/ DVI-I HDTV resolution 2560x1600 Highlighted features Microsoft DirectX 9.0c, OpenGL 2.0 Photo Availability April Now Source: Companies, compiled by DigiTimes, March 2006

The growing popularity of reusable energy has prompted Taiwan-based A-Data Technology and Micro-Star International (MSI) to introduce solar cells into their latest flash-based memory devices. A-Data is launching the Solar Disk thumb drive equipped with a solar cell module at CeBIT in Germany. The drive does not have a built-in battery and the solar cell module powers its LCD display to show remaining capacity. The product supports USB 1.1/2.0 connectivity and it is expected to be generally available in April. It will come in 128MB, 25MB, 512MB, 1GB and 2GB models. MSI will be showing a solar cell-equipped MP3 player at the show. This concept MP3 player uses the solar module to charge the built-in lithium battery and provide supplementary power to extend battery life. Solely relying on the solar cell to charge the battery would take two days under ordinary outdoor light and a fully charged battery allows ten hours of playback. MSI plans to move this product into mass production in time for Computex and the device will use a solar module supplied by a local solar cell maker. A-Data Solar Disk flash disk drive with solar power. Photo: Company. MSI’s solar cell MP3 player (concept model). Photo: company.

Corsair Memory is saying that it will launch the world’s fastest DDR2 and DDR memory solutions for Intel and AMD platforms at CeBIT 2006 in Hannover, Germany. Rated at 1066MHz, the new TWIN2X1024-8500 from Corsair targets Intel users, while the TWINX2048-4400PRO at 550MHz is aimed at the AMD platform. "Last year, Corsair was the first manufacturer to break the 1GHz DDR2 memory frequency barrier and brought the world’s first 512MB PC4400 memory to market. Looking ahead, we believe the future DDR2 speed standard for the enthusiasts will become 1066MHz, and Corsair is offering that speed now," stated Richard Hashim, director of Product Marketing at Corsair.

HIM Technology (formerly TaiwanSoft Technology), a vendor of digital consumer electronics under the Digimaster brand name, on February 8 unveiled its X8 Titanium Silver, an 8.2-megapixel auto focus digital camera equipped with a Samsung camera lens unit, for launch in the Taiwan market on February 15 at a recommended retail price of NT$8,690 (US$270). The X8 Titanium Silver is much cheaper than Japanese-branded 8-megapixel digital cameras which currently sell for between NT$15,000-17,000 (US$464-526) in the local market, local retail channels indicated. X8 Titanium Silver specifications Item Details Image sensor 1/1.8-inch CCD made by Sharp Resolution 8.2 megapixels Screen 2.4-inch 112,000-color TFT-LCD Zoom 3x optical; 4x digital Memory Embedded 32MB flash, compatible with external SD card of up to 1GB; able to record MPEG4 video/audio Battery Alkaline AAx2, with life of taking 388 8-megapixel photos or 175 8-megapixel photos using flash lamp or recording 640×480-pixel video/audio for 20 minutes and 41 seconds Dimension (W×H×D mm) 89×60.5×28.1 Weight (not including battery and SD card) 145 grams Source: HIM Technology, compiled by DigiTimes.com, February 2006 The Digimaster X8 Titanium Silver 8.2-megapixel digital camera Photo: HIM Technology

Swiss peripheral vendor Logitech yesterday introduced the G15 keyboard for gamers. Its adjustable-tilt, backlit LCD display shows users crucial information during game play and allows to set timers to keep track of game events, claims the company. The 18 programmable "G Keys" allows you to execute macros – like the casting of spells in World of Warcraft – with the press of a single button, said the company, adding that the G15 also features a switch that turns off the 'Windows' key. The gaming keyboard is slated to hit store shelves in Taiwan by the end of this month, with a suggest price of NT$2,590 (US$81), according to the company. Logitech G15 gaming keyboard Item Detail System requirements PC with Pentium processor or compatible Windows XP 256MB RAM 20MB of available hard disk space CD-ROM drive USB port Price NT$2,590 (US$81) including taxes Photo Source: Company, compiled by DigiTimes, January 2006

Sapphire Technology is now shipping the AGP version of its latest graphics card offering based on the ATI Radeon X1600 Pro graphics chip, which offers complete support for DirectX 9.0 and Shader Model 3.0 and utilizes ATI's Avivo Technology. With 12 Pixel pipelines, the Sapphire Radeon X1600Pro AGP is equipped with 256MB of DDR2 memory and features 500MHz in core speed and 400MHz in memory speed. Sapphire Radeon X1600Pro AGP Item Detail Chipset Radeon X1600 Pro AGP Engine clock 500MHz Shader units 12 Memory clock 800MHz DDR2 Memory interface 128-bit Memory support 256MB Bus interface AGP Variable display outputs VGA/ DVI/ TV out Max. 3D resolution 2560x1600 (dual-link DVI), 1024x768 (TV out) Hardware feature DirectX9, Shader Model 3.0 Software feature Avivo Photo Source: Company, compiled by DigiTimes, January 2006

Canon late last week announced the launch of its Pixma iP1200, its latest entry-level photo printer model, in the Taiwan market at a recommended retail price of NT$1,680 (US$53). Pixma iP1200 has many competitive advantages among all entry-level photo printer models with retail prices below NT$2,000 (US$63), the company claimed, adding that the Canon Pixma iP1200 features resolutions of 4,800×1,200dpi and as many as 1,152 inkjet nozzles for fast printing. A 4”×6” photo takes only 70 seconds to print, the subsidiary pointed out. Canon’s Pixma iP1200 photo printer Photo: Canon Marketing (Taiwan)