Today is the launch of a pair of the most anticipated video cards of all time, the ATI Radeon HD 5870 and Radeon HD 5850! These are the world's first and only DirectX 11 graphics cards, and yes they are out before Windows 7 or a DirectX 11 ready video game has even hit the market. Truth be told, AMD has WHQL certified drivers out for Windows 7 and the new Radeon HD 5000 series is a monster to say the least.

AMD asked us to inform our readers that they will be giving away some Radeon HD 5800 series gpu's tomorrow at a relaxed get together/tweetup here in San Francsico. If you are interested in the AMD VISION Bay Area Meet-Up check out the forums for more information!

Come join AMD Social Media mavens and some of our cooler executives for an informal and entertaining meet-up/tweet-up at the St. Regis Hotel. Of course, it wouldn't be a fun meetup without complimentary cocktails and appetizers. Come down, hang out, have a beverage and geek out on the next generation of gadgets and technology that AMD has been cooking up. We will have some signed copies of Chris Brogan and Julien Smith's New York TImes Best Selling book “Trust Agents” as well. Hope to see you all there!

The second Intel Developer Forum keynote just finished and Sean Maloney included a little update in it about Intel's latest discrete graphics card called Larrabee. This would make it the very first public showing of Larrabee, which is a big deal for enthusiasts and those who have been hearing about Larrabee for years.

Intel showed only one slide on Larrabee and you can check it out for yourself above. It basically states what we have all known and that software development systems are shipping now to developers. Intel didn't actually show Larrabee itself, but they did show a demo that was said to be running on the Larrabee discrete performance graphics card.

The second Intel Developer Forum keynote just finished and Sean Maloney included a little update in it about Intel's latest discrete graphics card called Larrabee. This would make it the very first public showing of Larrabee, which is a big deal for enthusiasts and those who have been hearing about Larrabee for years.

MSI 785GM-E65 Motherboard and AMD 785G Chipset Review @ PCSTATS.com and other reviews from around the web can be found by visiting our forums!

“AMD is introducing a new mainstream integrated graphics chipset, the AMD 785G and Radeon HD 4200 IGP. The AMD 785G and its Radeon HD 4200 are the first with DirectX 10.1 compliance for Microsoft Windows 7 operating system, and include enhanced features like ATI Stream application acceleration and improved Universal Video Decoding 2. The MSI 785GM-E65 is a socket AM3 motherboard, which means it's compatible with AMD's newest processors like the Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition and the Athlon II X2 250.”

Rambus and Kingston recently announced that they have successfully co-developed a threaded DDR3 memory module or improved multi-core computing. What makes this announcement interesting is that the initial test results have shown an improvement in data throughput of up to 50 percent, while reducing power consumption by 20 percent compared to conventional DDR3 memory modules!

VIA Technologies today announced the first ever Mini-ITX board to feature a dedicated on-board graphics processor and dual HDMI ports. The VIA VB8003 is ideally suited for a range of advanced digital media applications, supporting the latest advanced HD codecs and DX10.1 graphics. A wide range of connectivity options are available, including four display configurations using the VIA VB8003's two HDMI, DVI and VGA ports. The S3 Graphics 435 ULP Graphics Processor is what makes the motherboard so special though.

“The VIA VB8003 is the first Mini-ITX board to harness the unique performance efficiency of theVIA VB8003 VIA Nano processor combined with a dedicated HD capable DX10.1 graphics processor,” said Daniel Wu, Vice President of VIA Embedded, VIA Technologies, Inc. “We are confident that the HD adept VB8003 will be massive hit with developers of the latest digital multimedia devices, making it easier than ever to employ high resolution, compression intensive content across multiple displays.”

Mellanox recently announced availability of the Mellanox ConnectX-2 EN 40G converged network adapter card, the worlds first 40 Gigabit Ethernet adapter solution. ConnectX-2 EN 40G enables data centers to maximize the utilization of the latest multi-core processors, achieve unprecedented Ethernet server and storage connectivity, and advance LAN and SAN unification efforts. Mellanoxs 40 Gigabit Ethernet converged network adapter sets the stage for next-generation data centers by enabling high-bandwidth Ethernet fabrics optimized for efficiency while reducing costs, power, and complexity.

Mellanox is committed to delivering high bandwidth, low-latency solutions to drive efficiency and productivity while lowering costs for data centers and cloud computing, said Eyal Waldman, chairman, president and CEO of Mellanox Technologies. ConnectX-2 EN 40G delivers the industrys highest Ethernet bandwidth to unleash the performance potential of the latest multi-core CPUs, and provides the best return on investment for compute and storage infrastructure to end-users in terms of capital and operational expenses.

Beginning with the classic N2100, Thecus has made it possible for NAS technology to find its way into the mainstream. Today, Thecus is pleased to introduce the N2200 NAS Server, their friendliest, most affordable two-bay NAS yet.

The N2200 is ideal for storing your entire collection of digital media. With capacity for two 3.5 SATA hard disks, the N2200 can easily accommodate up to 4TB of storage. For added flexibility, the N2200 is equipped with combo disk bays, which means it can also accommodate 2.5 SATA hard disks! To keep your data safe, the N2200 also offers several RAID modes including RAID 0, 1 and JBOD. If you need to change out your hard disks, the N2200s hot swap, hot plug, and auto-rebuild capabilities make swapping out hard disks a snap. Wondering how your N2200 is doing? Get system status updates at-a-glance with the N2200s easy-to-read LCD, which displays intuitive icons to show you system information including hard drive access, LAN connectivity, and USB copy status. And because high tech shouldnt mean high difficulty, the N2200 even comes with a handy Thecus Smart Utility that not only backs up your files, but also allows you to install the N2200 with a single click! Managing your own NAS server just doesnt get easier than this.

Intel President and CEO Paul Otellini was the main speaker for this morning's keynote and spoke about the state of Intel and the direction that the company was headed. If you are interested in what Intel will be up to in the near future this is worth a read!