Online retailer Amazon has opened up pre-orders for Razer’s new surprisingly beefy Android-powered micro-console, the Forge TV.

Since Razer has opted to sell controller-less retail versions for $99, Amazon’s $149.99 listing bundles the device alongside the new Android-optimized Serval controller. The controllers normally retail at $79 so you’re actually saving money going this route.

The Forge TV is scheduled to release May 1, 2015.

Here’s what the device has under the hood:

• CPU: 2.7 GHz Snapdragon 805 (quad-core)
• RAM: 2GB
• Storage: 16GB
• Connectivity: Bluetooth 4.1, wireless 802.11ac, gigabit Ethernet
• Ports: HDMI 1.4 output, USB 3.0, DC Power
• OS: Android 5.0 Lollipop

Forging a New Path

Micro-consoles have started crowding the hardware market over the last year or so, and they ultimately aim to deliver a console gaming experience without the premium console price. We’ve seen devices like the MadCatz Mojo, the Gamestick

Tapping the versatility of Android has been the key, as the OS not only games via Google Play but a wealth of multimedia and entertainment apps like Netflix, Hulu and HBO Go.

With just about every major player throwing their hat into the ring of Android set-top boxes, it’s not so surprising to see Razer jump in as well.

The Razer Forge TV has access to Google Play’s wide array of apps and features, making it a multimedia portal as well as a mini games console.

With so many options on the market, Razer plans to woo gamers with an attractive performance versus value ratio.

As far as performance and functionality goes the Forge TV beats out competitors like the Ouya, which retails for the same price, and delivers a fractured games marketplace compared to the huge open-ended Google Play store.

Beating Ouya is just the start. Razer’s Forge TV will take on key competitors like Valve’s new Steam Link and Nvidia’s 4K TV- ready Shield Console.

How well it’ll fair against the big contenders like Valve and Nvidia remains to be seen. That being said the Forge TV is $50 cheaper than the Shield Console, and since gamers already own PC’s, picking up a higher performance micro-console is a bit redundant.

Apart from price, Razer does have additional aces up its sleeve: the multiplatform-capable Serval controller, and the Cortex game streaming ecosystem.

The Serval controller is quite flexible and can transform into a MOGA-like controller for on-the-go mobile gaming.

The Serval controller is basically a refined Sabertooth controller that can duo as a Moga controller. It can be paired to four different devices including PCs, tablets, mobile phones and the Forge TV, making it a versatile and flexible solution.

You can also hook up four Serval controllers up to the micro-console, making for some epic couch co-op sessions.

Razer even has a stylish “Turret” keyboard and mouse combo that’s designed for use in your living room, which is a pretty great idea.

Cortex is Razer’s unified games streaming ecosystem that will bring PC gaming to your living room.

Cortex is Razer’s answer to Steam Link, and represents a major ecosystem that will unify Razer’s array of gaming hardware.

Using Cortex you’ll be able to stream games from your centralized PC to the Forge TV via LAN connectivity. It’s a lot like the PS4’s Remote Play function only with PC games.

No release date has been finalized for the PC-to-mobile games streaming service, but Razer has targeted a Q2 2015 release window.

If you’re thinking about picking one up be sure to check out some reviews. The major consensus seems to indicate that the Forge TV’s full potential won’t manifest until Cortex is made available.

Until then it’s just another middle-grade set-top box in a sea of Android micro-consoles.

Source: Amazon

Via: Talk Android

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Specifications

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Razer, a a gaming peripheral company, has just unveiled its newest computer bag.  The Razer Tactical Bag is a backpack that is built from military-grade materials ensuring the durability to stand up to the abuse that gamers can dish out.  The Razer Tactical Bag is currently available from Razer’s online store for $159.99 and will start to ship on December 12th.

Razer a leader in gaming peripherals just announced today that its newest computer bag for gamers is now available for order from its online store.  The new Tactical Bag is made of military grade materials that should help to give it the durability for whatever that gamers can dish out.  The majority of the bag is from high grade 1680D ballistic nylon, it is a larger pile nylon which results in more of a raised surface because 1680D is a larger yarn.  The 1680D is also a heavy fabric that has a much higher abrasion resistance than yarns of smaller deniers.  This is good for bags that are meant to protect what is inside and that won’t be worn all day, such as a computer bag. The multiple compartment design should help to make things stored in the bag much easier to get at and will make packing up all of a gamer’s gear a breeze.  The  design also incorporates a rain poncho for the bag that will protect it from the weather, though using it when around a lot of people may also help to keep people out of the bag.

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We’ve been scouring the internet for good Cyber Monday deals, and we weren’t particularly impressed with TigerDirect’s nor Newegg’s Cyber Monday deals. Newegg’s deals are merely an extension of their Black Friday deals, some of which were very good deals, but the best deals are simply sold out. Getting beyond that, we’ve been looking for some hidden good deals and I think we’ve hit the jackpot.

Performance PCs is an enthusiast PC website, generally for buying cooling products and cases, however they have expanded their offerings over the past few years and now offer virtually everything you might want to buy for a PC. The real great thing about this deal is that it covers virtually everything they sell on the website with the exception of cases, processors, motherboards and Clearance items. This offer is only available today and offers either 75% off most items on the site or 8% off any order over $50 (not stackable).

For example, if you were to go and buy a Razer Goliathus Fragged Speed Edition in Alpha Large size, then you will pay $6.25 (already sold out) compared to $23 on Amazon. The deals they have are really quite good and span across Bitspower, Antec, Roccat, Enermax, Magicool, Koolance, Razer, Icy Dock, Noctua, Xigmatek, Thermaltake, StarTech, Nexus, Kingwin, Azio, Bytecc and Spire. You will very likely see the best deals on Razer products, which is why they are disappearing so quickly, so act fast.

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One of the best mid-tower enclosures available in the market is getting a facelift today as NZXT announce the Razer edition of the H440. The special edition comes with a green on black design scheme and features Razer’s logo at the front and on the sides of the enclosure.

The USB ports, power button, LED underglow and the rear I/O LED lighting are now coated green to highlight the Razer branding. The side window is tinted, and the shroud that hides the power unit now features a Razer logo. There’s also a hexagonal mesh, and the exterior of the H440 now has a matte black paint finish.

Other features remain the same: the H440 comes with three 120mm fans at the front as standard, along with a single 140mm fan at the back. There are dust filters at the front and bottom of the chassis, and provision for fitting large radiators. The case can easily accommodate mini-ITX, micro-ATX and ATX motherboards, and can slot in video cards 294mm in length with the hard drive cage intact, and 406mm cards after removing the bay. CPU coolers 180mm can fit in the enclosure.

The Razer edition H440 is now available for $149, which is $30 more than what the standard version of the chassis costs. That is a premium for a few minor design tweaks, but then again, anything associated with the Razer brand has commanded a premium. And considering the strong userbase the brand has, it is likely that this version of the H440 will sell a lot. While this isn’t the first chassis associated with Razer, as the brand unveiled a modular platform at the start of the year. It looks like it may be a while before the brand can make Project Christine available to users, though. Until such time, there is the NZXT H440.

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Hewlett Packard (NYSE:HPQ) just announced the brand new Omen gaming notebook, and has its sights set squarely on the Razer Blade notebook.  The premium Omen has the specs that should put it on the short list for the next notebook of many gamers.

The 15″ notebooks is only 19.9mm thick and 4.68lbs, making it one svelt notebook that is more than capable of running the latest games.  With HP naming the notebook “Omen”, it is clearly trying to revive some of the feelings that a PC enthusiast has for Voodoo.  Back in 2006 HP bought up the Canadian boutique gaming computer company Voodoo PC.  Voodoo PC was well known for its gorgeous high end custom creations that were the envy (also a Voodoo PC product name) for so many enthusiasts, and they still are.  One of the most beloved products they had was the Omen, a beautiful gaming desktop computer.  Unfortunately HP killed the brand, but started using the term Voodoo DNA to help market its higher end products that were geared toward gaming.  With logo of the old Voodoo PC as the wallpaper of the marketing shots of the Omen notebook on its site, there is little doubt that they are appealing to those who still love the old brand.

The Omen Notebook is packing the latest Intel i7 4710HQ giving it a fairly powerful processor for most tasks users will have.  The Nvidia GeForce GTX 860M that comes in the notebook is available with either 2GB or 4GB of video memory is also using Nvidia’s latest Maxwell architecture, even though it isn’t part of Nvidia’s most recent GTX 900 series of GPUs, which would be real cutting edge.

8GB of DDR3 is standard, but it has the option to be bumped up to 16GB which will definitely allow this notebook to perform a lot of multitasking or memory intensive operations.  There are options as well to bump up the standard SSD from 128GB to either 256GB or 512GB.  The specifications on the page for the Omen say that the keyboard has a RGB backlit keyboard that has been tuned for gaming.  This should allow users to customize the color of the LEDs in the notebook since it does use RGB leds.  The specs put it in line for competing with the Razer Blade notebook, although the Omen only has a 15.6″ 1920 x 1080 touch screen.  This is definitely the point where the Omen will fall short since it likely has a TN panel giving a worse color gamut and resolution that the Blade’s 14′ 3200 x 1800 IPS touchscreen.  Though in many cases having a panel with that high of a resolution will not make a difference in most tasks since DPI scaling will need to be cranked up.

Overall, this looks like it could be a winner for HP, as the Omen has a starting price of $1499 for the 15t version.

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The gaming peripheral company Razer announced its new ‘surround’ sound bar, the Leviathan.  The Leviathan is a 30W sound bar with a 30W subwoofer, with Bluetooth 4.0 aptx and Dobly Technology.

Razer released the Leviathan sound bar today via its website.  The new Leviathan 5.1 channel sound bar is a 2.1 system that uses Dolby Virtual Speaker and Dolby Pro Logic II to create faux 5.1 surround sound.  This method is one that many companies are employing in various audio products.  The Leviathan sound bar can be used for both computer use and living room use with gaming consoles.  The sound bar incorporates a pair of 2.5″ full range drivers and a pair of .74″ tweeters, while a separate 5.25″ downward firing subwoofer takes care  of the lows.

The sound bar has a full complement of Dolby technology to create an immersive soundstage.  The sound bar has an optical input that can decode Dobly Digital (AC-3), which allows the Dolby Virtual Speaker technology to have the information for virtual surround sound.  The Dobly Pro Logic II technology allows the sound bar to expand the stereo content into 5.1 surround sound.

The Bluetooth 4.0 AptX technology is said to give audio that is played over Bluetooth a better sound due to the lower compression than usual.  This means that you will be able to play music that sounds better over Bluetooth, but most likely not the CD quality that the tech is said to provide since audio is still compressed. A marked improvement in sound quality will be a major selling point for those who like to stream audio from their portable devices.

Overall, this looks to be a fantastic new addition to the Razer lineup and should far well with being placed on a desk under a monitor.  It should also do nicely in a small room used with a television that may not be well suited for full blown surround sound.

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More interesting number is just how fast the computer industry developed – between 1985 and 1996, Logitech shipped 100 million mice. In 12 years between 1996 and 2008, Logitech shipped another 900 million. Out of these 900 million, roughly 500 million were shipped in the last five years.

This number is also a testament at what rate the company is expanding, and it is no wonder that a lot of companies ended up squeezed out from the market. Microsoft and Logitech are battling for lion share of the market, and as a consequence – high quality products appeared from other smaller companies, while the crap products of yesteryear perished.

Yet, a lot of new companies appeared with niche products and survived – Razer, for instance. As a small bonus, I added a gallery into this news, showing some products that never left the labs… and a small comment on the OEM/ODM side of business.

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