Using Nvidia’s Keplar Core, the GTX 680M is looking to break some new ground in Ultrabooks.

Nvidia had just made an announcement about the GTX680M, the next-step in their ultra mobile gaming graphics range.

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If you’ve got an Ultrabook, it likely has either integrated Intel HD 3000 graphics or discrete Nvidia GeForce graphics. Recently we gave you 6 excellent game suggestions for your Ultrabook. Now we’ve got a suggestion to make sure your Ultrabook is running those games as well as possible. One of the best ways to keep the graphical capabilities of your Ultrabook performing at maximum capacity is to ensure that you’re using the latest driver for your graphics card. Intel and Nvidia regularly update their GPU drivers to address bugs and other problems. Sometimes there are game-specific fixes, and other times there are general performance-enhancing changes. In this article I’ll show you how to quickly and easily update your Ultrabook’s GPU drivers in order to maintain maximum graphics performance.  Note that this guide will also apply to Intel HD4000 graphics when Ivy Bridge Ultrabooks are released later this year.

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Genuine Ultrabooks use integrated graphics which, while not as powerful as a ‘discrete’ GPU, allow the systems to be slim and power efficient. Even though the graphical capabilities of current Ultrabooks won’t satisfy those looking to play the latest blockbuster titles at full settings, there are still plenty of excellent games that will run perfectly on an Ultrabook. I’ve got six great games to share with you that will run great on your Ultrabook and offer hours of entertainment (all together hardly more expensive than a single blockbuster title!) For now, my recommendations and performance-evaluations are based on an Ultrabook using the current-gen HD3000 ‘GPU’ and Core i5 processor. Also note that your experience may vary depending upon the processor that your Ultrabook is equipped with (Core i3, i5, or i7), amount of RAM, whether or not you have up-to-date drivers, and your power settings (check back with us at UltrabookNews for a guide to optimizing your Ultrabook’s power configuration).

image credit: Marshall Block

In the Intel Ultrabook press event this morning at CES we heard how user interface changes will be coming to Ultrabooks. Windows 8, touch and gestures were mentioned and we managed to capture a demo of a gesture based game on video. This is not something you’ll see on all Ultrabooks and this really is just a demonstrator but it’s interesting to think about how gestures could be applied to the standard Windows user interface.

Check out the video below.

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From Sony Tablet P

Thanks to Al Sutton of Funky Android at Droidcon NL in Holland this week I got a lot of hands-on time with a retail version of the Sony Tablet P that has just arrived on the shelves in the UK. It’s the Psion 5-like dual-screen Android clamshell that I found quite exciting at IFA in Sept. It may look strange but there’s some nice mobile usability features tucked inside. Sony have done a reasonable job of optimizing Sony apps and gaming capabilities for the screen but there are some issues with standard apps and text input which mean the Sony Tablet P may only be interesting for people wanting the Sony media and gaming experience.

Obviously the clamshell form factor brings a natural screen protector into play which improves ruggedness. There’s also an interesting 12wh removable battery, a fantastic screen, a fast processor, Honeycomb build (with possible, not promised, upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich) and a useful 5-row on screen keyboard.

From Sony Tablet P

In terms of size and weight it feels a little bit dense but it’s about the same weight as a Samsung Galaxy Tab. It fits into most pockets for short term transport but it’s very thick indeed. Its design certainly doesn’t shout ‘manly’ either.

Although there’s a gap between the screens I found myself ignoring it when reading content. It was great to see a full readable version of Carrypad across the screens and the Tablet P could make an interesting page-per-view reading device. The split screens bring a little issue when dragging across two screens. When the contact is lost the dragged item gets dropped.

From Sony Tablet P

Thumbing is possible in portrait or landscape but I didn’t find it as easy as the Galaxy Tab in portrait mode and the sharp corners dig into your hand. Angling the screen closer to 90 degrees allows a level of table-toppecking but there’s no haptics and its a little hit-and-miss. You certainly won’t enjoy inputting large amounts of text in this way. Again, I find a 7″ portaint-mode Thumbing experience to be much more comfortable.

From Sony Tablet P

I tested a number of apps and was impressed with the amounts of content being presented to me but many apps default into a single screen view. Using Honeycomb’s stretch feature apps are encouraged to spread across with screens. This isn’t always successful though. Google Reader refused to expand and crashed at every attempt. I saw other apps doing this too. This is a critical problem.

From Sony Tablet P

Having a removeable battery is a real advantage to the ultra-mobile user. Battery life looked, after a few hours of testing, very similar to that of the Galaxy Tab 7 – 6hrs screen-on usage over an active period of 12 hrs. It’s not quite all-day capable if you’re relying on this for some productivity.

From Sony Tablet P

Other notes:

• The Sony Tablet P is not phone-capable but 3G version (4Gb storage) is just under 500 UK pounds
• Speaker quality is very poor
• Brightness and viewing angles on screen are excellent
• No games tested – this is a key feature of the device.
• Content catalogue not available from on this UK model tested in NL – This is another key feature of the device.

Summary

The Sony Tablet P is an interesting mobile device with some unique and useful features but text input was a little clumsy due to an uncomfortable thumbing grip and lack of haptics. Desktop-pecking is possible, but not efficient.  It seems that gaming could be the only serious unique feature here and I haven’t tested it. If that part of the device works well it’s the entertainment user that is the only type of user that really needs to take a close look at the Sony Tablet P. The reading experience was good and the Tablet P is easy to hold but the weight needs to come down a bit to match some of the best reader-capable tablets. Others looking for a more mobile all-round Android experience may find more pleasure in the Samsung Galaxy Note or 7″ Android slates.

 Gallery

Sony Tablet P

Update: Session is finished now. A report will go up soon. is now available.

I think I’m right in saying that this is the first ever Ultrabook live review and Q&A. It happens tonight, here on Ultrabooknews.com/live

It starts at about 2100 GMT+1 (Berlin time. Your local time here)

We’ll be spending 2 hours (yes, it’s going to get detailed) testing the UX21 and we’ll include battery life testing, video video editing, gaming, web, usability and a whole lot more. There will be a chat session (already open at Ultrabooknews.com/live if you want to log in and start talking) and I’ll take general Ultrabook or UX21 questions and guidance from you. Some of the session (not all of it) will be recorded and posted tomorrow. You’ll need a flash-enabled browser and about 1mbps of bandwidth to join-in.

See you later. In the meantime, here’s a teaser and a bit of World of Warcraft on the UX21…

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We’ve seen game controller and plenty of other great mods before for the loved but unfortunately canceled VAIO UX-series UMPC, but it looks like one person has taken the game to a whole new level by mounting a PS3 controller directly to the device.

Following my open letter to the makers of Worms, here’s another game-themed letter to the makers of another fine game.

Dear PopCap,

Insaniquarium.

That’s really all I should have to say. Here we are, a few years into the mobile app store scene and the game is nowhere to be found. This amazingly addictive game was practically destined to be a success on modern smartphones, so where is it?

For those that have never had the satisfaction of simultaneously making sure that hundreds of cartoon fish are properly fed while also defending them from alien attackers, Insaniquarium is a truly unique game that’s addictive, and one of those rare World of Goo-esque games that was born on the PC but would actually function way better on a touchscreen.

The game involves purchasing various fish, and keeping them fed properly. But this is no sissy aquarium simulator. Staying true to it’s name, Insaniquarium is loaded with arcade action. Properly fed fish reward you with coins which let you purchase other fish, upgrades for food or weapons, and all the while you’re goal is to collect enough cash to purchase three pieces of an egg which completes the level. What’s really quite neat is that the egg hatches as you beat the level to reveal a creature that you can use on future levels. These creatures have all manner of special attributes, such as the ability to help defend your fish from attackers, or help keep them fed. You can only have a small number of the creatures equipped, so your strategy depends on which creatures you choose to work with. The game offers surprisingly deep gameplay for one that is so cartoonish in concept. This video gives a good idea of how the gameplay:

The first version of Insaniquarium was released years ago as a free online game. Subsequent versions were released for Palm and Windows Mobile, but this was back in the day of resistive screens and styli.

Today’s capacitive screens and high-performance phones would be a perfect match for Insaniquarium. The game, which relies exclusively on mouse clicks, would be so much more intuitively and enjoyably played with simple finger taps. On a large screen like the Motorola Xoom or iPad 2, Insaniquarium could even work as a multiplayer game! Not to mention that the gameplay is perfect for quick gaming sessions during a lunch break or while waiting in a long line. And let’s not forget that Insaniquarium existed before the idea of achievements the inclusion of which would make this game even more delightful and challenging (I can already think of plenty: complete a level with no fish deaths, acquire 500 fish at one time, beat a level with just one fish the list goes on!). The game’s content also has wide appeal as it’s cartoonish, and easy enough to understand, to appeal to youngsters, but has gameplay that scales well enough to appeal to someone like me who would be considered a serious gamer.

Seriously PopCap, Insaniquarium could be a massive hit in the app stores. You’ve got a wonderfully unique game here and one that needs few (if any) conceptual modifications to work flawlessly on hundreds of millions of modern phones and tablets. I’d take Insaniquarium over Angry Birds any day, please consider releasing this masterpiece to the devices of today.

Sincerely,

Ben