How to List your Business in Google Maps using Local Business Center

If you are having a full fledged offline business then you can get it listed using Google Maps under the -Local Business Center. This is a service by google which allows you to put your business details on the google maps for free. You normally get a PIN for this delivered directly by google or else you can request for one at the Local Business Center here

If you dont have a Pin and business listing on google then click here and fill the whole form. Your listing will appear to the right. This is just a first step. After this has been completed, you will be able to upload photos and videos, specify categories, payment options and business hours and much more.

Once you fill in the whole form with all the required details, you will be asked to validate your listing - By Phone, By SMS or By Postcard which can take upto 2-3 weeks time. You can select the Phone option to instantly verify your listing. If you are selecting the phone option you would be given 2 option to offer you a call instantly or after 5 minutes with a ‘Verification PIN’ which you need for validation.

Once you complete the verification call you will find a message of ‘Thank you! We’ve confirmed your PIN and validated your listing.
Your listing should appear on Google Maps within one day. We appreciate your patience. ‘ which means that you have completed this process.

Samsung X360 Notebook PC

Samsung has announced today light weight Samsung X360 Notebook which is powered by Core 2 Duo ULV processor SU9300 which features 13.3-inch WXGA Baclkit LED display, integrated WiFi 802.11b/g wireless LAN connection, Bluetooth+EDR connection, Solid State hard drive, Fingerprint reader and 6-cell battery with 10 hrs life.

Samsung X360 Notebook PC powered by 1.2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Ultra Low Voltage (ULV) Processor SU9300 and it features 3-MB L2 Cache, 1066 MHz FSB build using Intel GS45 + ICH9M Express Chipset Mainboard.

The Samsung X360 features 2-GB DDR3 SDRAM 800 Mhz RAM with upto 8 GB maximum RAM in 2 Slot, a 128-GB Solid State Hard Drive and USB based external 8x Super Multi Dual Layer DVD Writer with LightScribe

Solid State Drives (SSD) weigh less, use significantly less power and are less prone to damage as compared to conventional hard disk drives (HDD).

In addition, Solid State Hard Drives (SSD) significantly enhance performance in comparison to conventional hard disk drive. SSD’s boot times are 25-50 percent faster and data access is 300 times faster for reading and 150 % faster for writing.

1.25-inch thick, the new Samsung X360 Notebook PC comes with Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium preinstalled, and this notebook is equipped with 13.3-inch (33.7 cm) Widescreen SuperBright WXGA Backlit LED display having 300 nit brightness powered by integrated Intel Graphics Media Accelerator GMA X4500 Graphics chipset with 256 MB shared video memory capable of maximum resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels.

Baclkit LED technology used in Samsung X360 laptop enables screens to be thinner, brighter, and more durable and power efficient in comparison to TFT LCD display.

The Samsung X360 Notebook also sports integrated 1.3 Megapixel DigitalMotion webcam which is placed in the bezel above the LCD. In addition, the notebook sports build-in stereo speakers and built-in Digital Array Microphones.

Available in Black color, the Samsung X360 notebook also features integrated WiFi 802.11b/g Wireless LAN mini PCI-E connection and Bluetooth v2.0 with EDR wireless connection.

In addition, Samsung X360 Notebook also offers integrated 10/100/1000 Mbit Ethernet LAN connection, an integrated 56kbps Modem/Fax connection and sports 3 USB v2.0 ports for wired connectivity. The notebook also features HDMI digital out port and 34 mm ExpressCard slot.

Installed software includes :- Samsung Recovery Solution, Samsung Magic Doctor, Samsung Update plus Easy Display Manager, Easy Battery Manager, Easy Network Manager, Easy Speedup Manager, McAfee Virus Scan, Adobe Acrobat Reader etc.

Other features of Samsung X360 notebook PC includes integrated Biometric Fingerprint Reader, Trusted Platform Module (TPM), 83 Keys Silver nano Anti-Bacteria Keyboard, integrated 7-in-1 card reader, which handles MS, MS Pro, SD, SDHC, MMC, MMC plus and xD., 3x USB v2.0 ports, Realtek ALC6628 Hi-Definition Audio 5.1 CODEC Hardware with build-in 2 stereo speaker system of 1.5 Watts each and also sports built-in Microphone.

Weighing 1.29 Kgs, the Samsung X360 notebook comes with 6-cell, Li-Ion, 3700 mAh, 7.4 volts Battery which provides upto 10 hrs battery life (without Wi-Fi) and the Notebook is designed to be a eco-efficient consumer and business notebooks, and are fully compliant with the RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances) directive.

I/O Ports

• 3 USB v2.0 ports
• RJ-45 LAN Port 10/100 Mbps Fast Ethernet Controller
• RJ-11 Fax/Modem Port
• External MIC Input
• External Audio Out
• VGA Port 15 Pin D-Sub
• 7-in-1 Media Card Slot
• HDMI Digital Out Port
• 34 mm ExpressCard Slot
• Fingerprint Reader
• P-Dock Port

Samsung X360 Notebook PC Features

• Intel Core 2 Duo Processor ULV SU9300, 1.2 GHz
• 3-MB L2 Cache, 1066 MHz FSB
• Intel GS45 + ICH9M Express Chipset Mainboard
• 2-GB DDR3 SDRAM, 800 Mhz, Max. upto 8 GB maximum in 2 SODIMM Slots
• 128-GB Solid State Hard drive (SSD)
• USB External Super Multi Dual Layer DVD Writer with LightScribe
• 13.3-inch (33.7 cm) Widescreen SuperBright WXGA Backlit LED display, 300 nits brightness
• Intel Graphics Media Accelerator GMA X4500 Graphics chipset with upto 256 MB shared video memory
• 1280 x 800 Pixels screen resolution
• Integrated WiFi 802.11b/g Wireless LAN mini PCI-E connection
• Integrated 10/100 Mbit Ethernet LAN connection
• Integrated 56kbps Modem/Fax connection
• Bluetooth v2.0 + EDR
• Integrated 1.3 Megapixel webcam (placed in the bezel above the LCD)
• Fingerprint Reader
• 7-in-1 card reader, which handles MS, MS Pro, SD, SDHC, MMC, MMC plus and xD memory cards.
• 3x USB v2.0 ports
• 83 Keys Silver Nano Anti-Bacteria Keyboard (93% fullsize)
• Realtek ALC6628 Hi-Definition Audio 5.1 CODEC Hardware
• Build-in Stereo 2 stereo speaker system 1.5 Watts each
• Built-in Digital Array Microphone
• Windows Vista Home Premium
  
• 6-cell, Li-Ion, 3700 mAh, 7.4 volts Battery, upto 10 hrs battery life
• Dimensions: 311 x 228 x 16.5 / 30.9 mm
• Weight: 1.29 Kgs (with battery pack and SSD)

Ad blocking in Google Chrome

I’ve been using Chrome for days now as my main browser in Windows, and I’m very happy with it. It’s ridiculously fast (around 3x faster according to this test). One thing it lacks, however, is an ad blocker. Luckily, I have been using Privoxy for a while, and it blocks ads regardless of what browser you’re using, as well as do a few other helpful things. This is how you set it up:

1. Download and install Privoxy. Start it and set it to automatically run every time you start your PC.
2. Open your proxy settings. In Vista you can get there by going to Control Panel -> Network and Internet -> Internet Options -> Connections -> LAN Settings.
3. Check “Use a proxy server for your LAN” and type “127.0.0.1″ for the address and “8118″ for the port (without the quotes). Check “Bypass proxy server for local addresses.”

Now all your browsing should be going through Privoxy, and it’ll block out unwanted ads.

Windows 7 Beta 1 Build 7000 DVD ISO Image Torrent Download

The Windows 7 initial first beta release will have the build version number of 7000, the DVD ISO image of the 32-bit (x86) Windows 7 6.1.7000.0, 7000.0.081212-1400_client_en-us_Ultimate-GB1CULFRE_EN_DVD.iso, has been leaked to Internet (MDL forumers have started downloading since hours ago).

Some good sign to indicate that the leaked build version 7000 is beta is that at the end of EULA, there is a text stating B.1.


The ISO image is the full version DVD image that allows installation of all editions of Windows 7 similar to Windows Vista, namely Windows 7 Ultimate, Windows 7 Business, Windows 7 Home Premium and Windows 7 Home Basic.


After installing, Windows 7 has the version of 6.1 (Build 7000). The beta will expire on July 1, 2009.

To download the Windows 7 Beta1 full ISO image, download the following torrent to download the content in any BT client: Windows.7.Beta.1.Build_7000.0.081212-1400_client_en-us_Ultimate-GB1CULFRE_EN_DVD.iso [MSDN iSO]

Note: This post is to explore the news to all viewers.but not for encouraging Windows 7 piracy.

Windows 7 Beta ISO leaked on torrent trackers

There's already been an ISO file leaked to several torrent trackers.The ISO appears to contain the Windows 7 M1 build (7000) highlighted by Paul Thurrott on SuperSite. So far the new build seems to perform slightly better than 6801, and memory usage has been improved. A number of previously hidden features - like the iconized task bar - are also now active.

Before comments start asking why there's no link to the file, it's because this is something that we're not supposed to have yet. If you want to get your hands on it, check your favorite torrent search site. Also keep in mind that this is a leak, and there's always the possibility that the ISO has been tampered with.

HTC Touch Mobile Phone Review

The HTC Touch Diamond was first released in the market mid 2008. The device is considered to be a PDA-mobile phone combination. PDA stands for Personal Digital Assistants. HTC Touch is a pocket PC. The front part of the HTC Touch Diamond is made up mainly of the VGA display. The color VGA TFT display is 480×640 65-K. Directly below it is the control buttons which are touch-sensitive and depressible. There is also a directional pad which doubles as a scroll wheel. Basically all the space is used up. A new technology,

TouchFLO technology is embedded in HTC Touch that allows users to use their fingertips to launch applications and make phone calls. With the Touch Diamond, the company has taken the touch system of previous phones and combined it a new wave of designing. Dual-band 3G connectivity is a feature on the device that allows your downloads and media stream to be done at a faster rate.

The 3G technology also includes call connection to ensure clear reception. The added visual characteristics of the feature gives the Touch Diamond a unique appearance and function over other touch based phones. The accelerometer sensor on the phone allows you to keep up with everything. Turning the phone is ignorant in the direction in which you do so because of its ability to adjust the image to your advantage. Memory of the HTC touch includes 4 gigs of internal memory allowing you to store a variety of files in the phone including games and music. The RAM has 192 MB of memory and 256MB flash memory. The computer processor on the phone is a super fast 528 MHz thus the applications on your phone will operate smoothly. There are more features that deal with connectivity, these includes a wi-fi connection for connecting to the internet, USB, EDGE and Bluetooth support.

It is possible to view web-based e-mail programs like Yahoo as you would from your home computer. The performance of the battery is average. Video calling and hands-free calling are also possible.

There is a 3.2-Megapixel built in camera on the back of the PDA-phone which has auto focus. It takes good quality photos.

Nokia OVI Mail Beta Is Live Now

If you are one of the 110 million Nokia phone users around the world, now you can set up your Ovi email account directly on your Nokia phone using the recently announced ‘Mail on OVI’ Beta.

Mail on Ovi, the free email account from Nokia, is now ‘live’ and can be set up directly on Nokia phones without requiring a PC to get started. People who use Nokia Series 40 devices can create their own email address directly on their mobile phones. The Ovi email account gives a person all the features and functionalities of a typical PC-based email account. During the Beta period, consumers will be able to choose from 12 languages based on the settings of their device, including English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Hindi, Bengali, Tagalog, Bahasa Indonesia and Bahasa Malaysia.

Mobile phone users from India, Malaysia and the Philippines have been able to use the Beta service since November, with extremely encouraging results, and the availablity is now being extended to the rest of the world.

India to Shut Down 25 Million Mobile Phones in January

It is being reported that as many as 25 million mobile phones could be cut off in India from next month - following a security clamp down on unregistered mobile phones following ongoing terrorist attacks in the country. According to the Mobile World subscriber­ tracker, the country ended September with around 315 million mobile phone subscribers.

The department of telecom (DoT) has instructed the mobile network operators to disconnect all handsets which do not have an IMEI number from January 6th 2009.

“What the DoT is trying to do is to block all calls with zeroes as IMEI numbers or from blacklisted numbers. That adds extra load on networks. There are so many combinations of non-genuine IMEI numbers that it is extremely difficult to block them. Network upgradation is required to block all such calls and not all of our multiple equipment vendors are equipped to do it,” a senior official at a telco told the Economic Times newspaper.

There have been much commentary in local media over the past few months - largely blaming grey imports of handsets from China which are not set up with individualised IMEI numbers.

“In the interest of national security, all cellular mobile service providers in unified acess service licences (UASL) are hereby directed to make provisions for EIR so that calls without IMEI or with IMEI consisting of all zeroes are not processed or rejected,” DoT said in a letter to operators in October. The operators were given six months to set up the necessary systems - hence the deadline of 6th Jan 2009.

ASUS Eee PC 1002HA Netbook Launched

ASUS has unveiled its latest Eee PC 1002HA netbook. It sports a stylishly redesigned chassis adorned with a brushed aluminum LCD cover and palm rest.

The light-weight netbook weighs only 1.2kg and measures merely 1-inch thick.

Powered by Intel Atom N270, the Eee PC 1002HA features Bluetooth and 802.11n wireless connectivity that ensures six times faster connection as compared to the preceding 802.11g standard.

Other than that, the latest ASUS netbook features a 10-inch LED-backlit that delivers a resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels, multi-touch pad and keyboard, 1.3 megapixel with built-in webcam.

It also packs in Intel 945GSE / ICH7-M chipset, 160GB of primary storage and offers 10 GB of online storage through the exclusive ASUS Eee Online Storage.

HP-Unveils 250FB USB Media Drive in India

HP has announced its latest offering for the festive season in India.

HP introduces its new 250 GB Personal Media Drive for Indian consumers.

Compatible with all the Windows PCs and Macs, the drive not only allows users to store all data backup but also stock up their music and movie collection.

Furthermore, the USB-powered drive eliminates security hassle, offering easy-to-use and convenient plug-and-play operation.

The HP 250GB USB Media Drive carries a price tag of Rs 6,500.

AMD Opteron 45nm Boosts Performance and Uses Less Energy

AMD Opteron is now available in 45-nanometer technology. It is the latest move by Advanced Micro Devices to compete with rival Intel. Intel currently has 80 percent of the global market for microprocessors.

Advanced Micro Devices Inc is shipping its next generation of AMD Opteron chips ahead of schedule. The new AMD processor offers faster performance with 35 percent less power consumption.

AMD Opteron is a quad core processor which are used in servers. The company shipped the new processor months ahead of schedule to compete with Rival intel corp. Intel currently has 80 percent of the global market for microprocessors.

The new AMD Opteron is also code-named "Shanghai" which was first unveiled last year. The quad core is the first 45-nanometer chip made by the company. Each core operates independently on the chip. The chip is also smaller in size than the previous generation of processors.

The new processor is energy efficient which can automatically turn off non-working parts which are not in use. Overall, the new chip uses 35 percent less energy.

There are two versions of the AMD Opteron chip available. The second processor is a more enhanced version which will be available in early January. IBM, Hewlett-Packard, Sun Microsystems and Dell are among 25 systems vendors who will be shipping servers this quarter with the new Opteron chip installed.

Windows Live Converts Into New Social Networking Hub

Microsoft Windows Live will soon become a social networking hub. The company plans to overhaul its Live software to compete with other social network giants such as MySpace and Facebook. The new version will be available in the coming weeks.

Microsoft Corp is making plans to turn its Windows Live online services into a social networking hub. The new social network will merge other existing Microsoft applications which include Hotmail, Live Messenger, Spaces and photos.

The new migrated social networking platform is Microsoft's latest strategy to compete with other online community sites such as MySpace and News Corp's MySpace. The new Windows Live will feature a main profile page for users to add friends and identify them with photos.

Windows Live will also include more than 50 outside Web services including Yahoo Inc's Flickr photo site. Microsoft hopes to simplify new user accounts by using one login for e-mail and instant messeging.

India plans 3G spectrum sale Jan 15: report

India said Friday it would hold an auction of airwaves to offer so-called third generation or 3G mobile phone services in mid-January, a report said.

"The electronic auction date is January 15," Telecom Secretary Sidhharth Behura told reporters in New Delhi, according to the Press Trust of India.

The reserve price for a licence for 3G spectrum -- or radio bandwidth -- is 20.20 billion rupees (412 million US dollars) for licences covering all of India but Communications Minister Andimuthu Raja said last August he expected to "realise significantly higher amounts" -- between 300 and 400 billion rupees.

India became the latest nation on Thursday to have 3G technology after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh launched a free 3G trial service of state-run phone company MTNL.

All radio frequencies for providing 3G services are being offered in the auction in which all telecoms companies -- existing operators, licence holders and international players -- can bid.

Even if it appears the sale will bring in less money than initially expected due to the global financial turmoil, Raja has said India will go ahead with the auction as "it is the progress of the country that counts."

The move will give mobile users access to high-end data applications on their phones, including high speed interactive gaming and Internet access, video conferencing, video streaming and other multimedia features.

India has the world's fastest growing mobile market. Indian mobile telephone operators signed up a record 10.42 million mobile users in October, bucking a slowdown in the rest of the economy.

The country had a total of 364 million telephone subscribers at the end of October, including 326 million wireless users.

With the mobile sales boom, scarce spectrum has become a sore issue with Indian mobile operators who are eager to get next-generation frequencies to ease airwave congestion in the country of over 1.1 billion people.

The government expects the telecom subscriber base to nearly double by 2012 to 700 million users as operators penetrate the vast rural areas.

Teledensity, or the number of phone users for every 100 individuals, in rural areas stands at 13 percent and 72 percent in urban areas. The national average is 32 percent.

India allowed private mobile operators in the mid-90s but subscriber growth has only significantly gathered pace since the turn of the century, rising around 25 times between 2002 and 2007.

Fake YouTube pages spread virus

Savvy internet users know that downloading unsolicited computer programs is one of the most dangerous things you can do online. It puts you at great risk for a virus or another time bomb from a hacker.

But even some sophisticated surfers could get taken in by a sneaky new attack in which criminals create fake YouTube pages - dead-on replicas of the real site - to push their malicious software and make it look like it's safe stuff coming from a trusted source.

A program circulating online helps hackers build those fake pages. Users who follow an email pointing them to one of the pages would see an error message that claims the video they want won't play without installing new software first. That error message includes a link the hacker has provided to a malicious program, which delivers a virus.

Even worse: once the computer is infected, it's simple for the hacker to silently redirect the victims to a real YouTube page to see videos they were hoping to see and hide the crime.

"It's spot-on accurate, and that is scary," said Jamz Yaneza, threat research manager for security software company Trend Micro. "If I were watching YouTube videos all day I would probably click on this one."

The tactic itself isn't new: There's a constant push by criminals to build more convincing spoofs of legitimate sites to trick people into downloading harmful software. And the latest attacks don't target any vulnerability in the YouTube site.

But it highlights the fact that criminals are getting better at creating bogus sites and developing so-called "social engineering" methods to fool people.

Fortunately, truly alert internet users can still see the telltale warning signs with the fake YouTube pages. For one, the web browser won't show the real YouTube's internet address. And to even see the malicious page, you have to first follow a link that's sent to you, which is often a tip-off that you should independently verify whether the site is legitimate.

Intel completes 32-nanometer chip development

Intel has completed the development phase of its next-generation manufacturing process that shrinks chip circuitry to 32 nanometers, the chipmaker said Tuesday night.

Intel processors are currently made on a 45nm process. Generally, smaller geometries result in faster and more power-efficient processors.

"The company is on track for production readiness of this future generation (of transistors)...in the fourth quarter of 2009," the chipmaker said in a statement.

Intel said it will provide technical details about the 32nm process technology at the International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM) next week in San Francisco.

Finishing the development phase for 32nm process technology keeps Intel on track with its "tick-tock" strategy. Tick-tock is intended to introduce either a new processor microarchitecture or cutting-edge manufacturing process about every 12 months.

"Producing 32nm chips next year would mark the fourth consecutive year that Intel has met its goal," the company said.

The 32nm paper and presentation "describe a logic technology that incorporates second-generation high-k + metal gate technology, 193nm immersion lithography for critical patterning layers, and enhanced transistor strain techniques," Intel said.

Other Intel IEDM papers will "describe a low power system on chip version of Intel's 45nm process, transistors based on compound semiconductors, substrate engineering to improve performance of 45nm transistors, integrating chemical mechanical polish for the 45nm node and beyond; and, integrating an array of silicon photonics modulators," according to the company's statement.

Intel will also participate in a short course on 22nm CMOS technology.

AMD to own less of chipmaking spinoff

Advanced Micro Devices will reduce its stake in the manufacturing operations it spun off in October, as it adjusts to repercussions of the financial crisis.

This follows a fourth-quarter warning earlier this month when the chipmaker revised its revenue estimate downward.

And like the shares of many companies, AMD's stock price has been in a free fall. Dropping from over $7 back in June to $2.10 on Monday.

Monday's action revolves around Abu Dhabi-based Mubadala Development and the Advanced Technology Investment Company (ATIC)--which Mubadala backs.

ATIC has equal voting rights with AMD in the newly formed manufacturing concern, the Foundry Company, and--per the October agreement--had owned 55.6 percent of the new entity.

However, as a result of amendments between AMD and ATIC, AMD will own approximately 34.2 percent and ATIC will own approximately 65.8 percent of the Foundry Company's fully converted common stock, AMD said Monday.

"Changing economic times" is the reason for a change in the terms, an AMD representative said.

Other changes include a restructured agreement that now says Mubadala will purchase 58 million shares of AMD's common stock "at a revised purchase price per share equal to the lower of (i) the average closing price per share of AMD's common stock on the NYSE during the 20 trading days immediately prior to and including December 12, 2008 or (ii) the average closing price per share of AMD's common stock on the NYSE during the 20 trading days immediately prior to the closing date of the transaction."

AMD will also issue to Mubadala an additional 5 million warrants to purchase AMD stock, for a total of 35 million warrants.

"All other material economic terms of the transaction agreements remain unchanged. ATIC will still invest $2.1 billion to purchase its stake in the Foundry Company, of which it will invest $1.4 billion directly in the new entity and will pay $700 million to AMD," the chipmaker said in a statement.

Google Chrome Extensions Adblock, Flashblock, Privacy control

Google Chrome which now has a 1% market is getting ready to launch a bunch of excellent extensions which can make sure people would move away from firefox which is widely used mainly for the huge number of available extensions.
Chrome is claimed to be the fastest browser in the world but the only thing most users need is the AdBlock plus extension which is available in firefox, if these different extensions are available in Chrome too, iam sure many would move away from firefox which gets regularly crashed and also uses heavy resources when you have multiple windows and tabs open, on the other hand google chrome reduces the resource usage because it treats tabs as different windows.

Here is a list of upcoming extensions :
• Bookmarking/navigation tools: Delicious Toolbar, StumbleUpon, Web-based history, new tab page clipboard accelerators.• Content enhancements: Skype extension (clickable phone numbers), RealPlayer extension (save video), Autolink (generic microformat data–addresses, phone numbers, etc.)• Content filtering: AdBlock, Flashblock, privacy control, parental control• Download helpers: video helpers, download accelerators, DownThemAll, FlashGot• Features: ForecastFox, FoxyTunes, Web Of Trust, GooglePreview, BugMeNot
Will you shift to Google Chrome Browser if all these above listed extensions are available or would you still continue with Firefox/Internet Explorer?

How to Convert Youtube Videos to Apple iPhone Format

If you remember our last post on different iPhone Video Formats we mentioned that the video files are generally of H.264 format and when you are watching youtube videos they are not of H.264 format, hence you cannot directly transfer youtube videos or movies.

Using Videora you can convert all types of video files (avi, divx, xvid, flv, x264, vob, mpeg, DVD’s, YouTube, etc.) into MPEG-4, H.264 video format which you can play on the Apple iPhone. This process is as simple as converting itunes to Mp3 format.

How to Convert Youtube Videos to Apple iPhone Format

If you remember our last post on different iPhone Video Formats we mentioned that the video files are generally of H.264 format and when you are watching youtube videos they are not of H.264 format, hence you cannot directly transfer youtube videos or movies.

Using Videora you can convert all types of video files (avi, divx, xvid, flv, x264, vob, mpeg, DVD’s, YouTube, etc.) into MPEG-4, H.264 video format which you can play on the Apple iPhone. This process is as simple as converting itunes to Mp3 format.

Intel Core i7 Performance Preview

Welcome to Core i7

Core i7, or Nehalem as we've been calling it for the past year, becomes part of Intel's "Tock" step, which denotes a brand-new micro-architecture built on the current process node. "Tick" will come next year in the form of Westmere, a 32-nm shrink of Nehalem.

The top-of-the-line i7 processor will be the Extreme 965, at 3.20GHz. As is typical of all newly-launched Intel Extreme editions, this one will be sold at a price of $999 in quantities of 1,000. This means that you can expect a price of closer to $1,100 if you wish to own one. Moving downwards, the 2.93GHz model will sell for $562, while the mainstream 920 will be sold at $284.

Like previous Extreme products, the 965 will be a fully-unlocked chip with a Turbo multiplier capable of hitting 40x, the default being 24x. The 940 and 920 are capped at their stock multipliers (22x and 20x, respectively) and can only be overclocked by increasing the Base Clock, or BCLK for short. That tells us right away that these processors are going to be more of a challenge to overclock than anything from the Core 2 line-up, and we'll get into the specifics of why later.

Comprised of 731 million transistors on a surface area of 263mm^2, Intel's latest processor is a little bit of a strange beast, since it's larger in areal density than its predecessor (214mm^2), but uses less transistors. Why that's the case exactly, I'm unsure.

Each of the i7 processors to be launched later this month have identical pin and filter cap layouts on the back, which leads us to believe that each is identical inside, with the obvious multiplier and model code changes. In previous architectures, some of the filter caps would be laid out differently, or some would be missing on the smaller models, but not here. We could assume that smaller models, when eventually released, will look slightly different on the back.

As mentioned above, today's article is a preview, not a review, as there is a lot more testing that needs to be conducted that couldn't yet be focused on due to time. So, we'll be following-up with more specific content over the course of the next few weeks, including a deeper look at gaming performance and overclocking. We'll finish it all off with a proper "review" nearer to the official launch.

Today's article will be focusing primarily on two things. First will be simple performance scaling between the three new processors and three top processors from Intel's Kentsfield line-up, including the QX9770 and Q9450. The second will be a performance look at Core i7's new features, including Turbo and HyperThreading. I can assure you... these are results you won't want to skip over.