FINsix Shrinks Laptop Power Bricks To Pocket-Size

Lugging around a laptop’s power supply can be a chore. FINsix aims to shrink laptop power supplies across the board into something you can easily carry in your pocket while still delivering the same power output.

To see why FINsix is revolutionary, we have to look at how power adapters work. Your current power adapter takes ‘packets’ of energy, stores them, converts them for the output device, outputs the energy and then repeats the process. We can call this process one cycle. A research project at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) found that power can by cycled 1,000 times faster than current power adapters, without additional energy being wasted. Since power can be cycled more quickly, the packets of energy don’t have to be stored as long, meaning smaller components can be used to store the packets, thus FINsix adapter’s pocket-size. All of FINsix’s adapters provide equal power output to their larger cousins. Meaning the FINsix’s MacBook Pro charger will still output 60 watts, and they will have a full suite of adapter for PC laptops too.

This will replace the bulky and annoying power adapter laptops nowadays. It is cool in a sense that it is small but the effectiveness of this device is still the same or maybe it will exceed expectations.

Razer Christine Modular PC

Razer always has something innovative and flashy to show off at CES, this year is no different. Project Christine is Razer’s take on a desktop computer. Currently building a computer requires a ton of pieces, and some technical know-how. Razer’s vision is that anyone should be able to easily build a computer, it should be super fast with the possibility of being faster, and everything should be water cooled.Quad SLI and water cooling are usually reserved only for extreme enthusiasts. But the idea behind Project Christine is anyone should be able to build a decked out rig. 

Razer accomplished simplicity by creating a true modular computer. You buy the blank frame that comes with 7 empty slots (8 including PSU slot), and piping throughout for water cooling in every module. Then you can get a CPU/RAM module, video cards, or storage arrays. When you want another video card, all you have to do is buy the module and snap it in. Creating a rig with Quad SLI is so easy, my grandmother could do it, no joke. When it’s time to replace an aging module with new tech, it’s as simple as sliding the module out, and replacing it with a new one. Currently swapping out a CPU takes about 10 minutes. But swapping out a CPU with Project Christine would seriously take less than a minute.

This is one of my favorite innovation this year! A modular PC at last! You can customize and upgrade PC specifications with less hassle and easy to install. You just can replace computer parts in a snap and it’s not bulky.

Zalman FX70 Fanless CPU cooler

The FX70 as mentioned is a fan less (passive) CPU cooler with mounting points for adding a 120mm fan if you choose. Cooling is accomplished through 6 heat pipes branching out from an all copper base. The fins are Nickel plated aluminum which makes for a nice finish and don’t sacrifice performance.

Zalman expects to launch the FX70 in Q1 for $60-70

For computer enthusiasts, this will minimize power consumption and it maximizes space in your computer rig. You’ll not have hard time in routing anything inside your PC. It enhances PC performance too.

ADATA XU41 Mini Solid State Drive

Over the past year we have seen storage get smaller and smaller, but now ADATA is introducing their XU41 or Mini solid state drive. This is one of the smallest implementations of a full solid state drive that we have seen. Check out the video below to see what I am talking about.

It has the dimensions of 16 x 20 mm and it is in a BGA (Ball Grid Array) package which means everything is on a single chip. As far as performance goes the drive will have sequential read and write speeds 400 MB/s and 180 MB/s respectively. It was also had 4K random writes of up to 20K IOPS (Input/Output Operations Per Second). The XU41 will also support NCQ (Native Command Queuing, TRIM and S.M.A.R.T. (Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology).

The XU41 will be available in capacities ranging from 8GB all the way up to 128GB. ADATA expects to see implementation of the XU41 in tablets and other small devices towards the middle of 2014.

Going small is a great thing specially on a SSD! It supports BGA means everything in on a single chip. I think all gadgets now are getting smaller and faster in terms of data transferring and and functionality.

Razer Nabu

During CES 2014, Razer introduced its very first wearable tech, the Razer Nabu. This smart band, sporting the company's trademark green/black color scheme, is a smart band that provides two screens: a 32 x 32 OLED display for showing "public" notifications, and a 128 x 32 OLED display for showing "private" messages.

According to Razer, users wear the band with the smaller screen facing up and the larger screen facing the floor. For instance, if the wearer receives a call, the top display will show a phone icon, and the bottom screen will display the caller's name. If the caller decides to send a text message, the top icon will revert to the message icon and the bottom screen will scroll through the contents of the message at a user-defined speed.

That said, the public OLED screen notifies users of incoming calls, texts, emails and app updates via icons, and the private screen shows a bit more detail. The band is also capable of collecting data such as location information, bio data feedback (steps walked, distance traveled, stairs climbed, etc.), sleep data, band-to-band communication and much more.

This is a great innovation by Razer. It enables the consumer to enjoy and experience new features with this awesome gadget. It has many features like connect through gestures. I’ll hope this will be available in the market for a cheap price.