A Storm Is

Building
F

Managing Director Noor Azman

Head of Department YK Cheah

ebruary, with the exception of the final week of the

month has been a relatively quiet month for all those
involved in the local tech scene. Prior to Mobile World
Congress that happened in Barcelona, HTC was one of few
phone companies to launch their phones here in KL before
the event, while the other events we attended were pretty
much Chinese New Year lunches and/or dinners.
Mobile World Congress proved to be quite an interesting
affair. Its great to see more phone manufacturers push the
envelope to bring consumers communication devices that do
more than just make calls, connect to the internet and
pushing in more impressive-looking cameras. Were
particularly fond of LGs new G5 smartphone, which features
a modular design that allows you to pack in features that are
more important to you depending on what youre looking to
do. What are your favourite devices that was shown at the
event?
Samsung Forum was held in Malaysia for the first time
ever this year, with the company announcing a brand new
tablet hybrid that aims to go up against the likes of Microsofts
own Surface Pro tablet. They also launched a series of new
household appliances and more, so head on to that article for
the full coverage.
This months issue also is the start of a new feature series
on CHIP which talks about artificial intelligence. We delve into
the science of robotic intelligence, and what we (or in this
case, the robots) can achieve in the near, and far into the
future. Weve also got a tutorial that you can peruse to make
the most out of your SSDs.
As far as reviews go this month, weve got a healthy
selection of products from a variety of types. The Huawei
Nexus 6P found its way here to our labs, as did the Moto 360
and ASUS recently-announced PG279Q gaming monitor.
There are definitely more within these pages of course, but
youll have to read on to find out more!

CHIP Malaysia

EDITORIAL
Senior Writer Nazrin Zain
Senior Writer Matthew Yap
Writer Nixon Ng
Contributors Edwin Lee, Geek Mommy, Christoph Schmidt, James
E. Curtis, Caren Stella Geiger, R. Mattgey, Jrg Geiger, Robert Di
Marcoberardino, Markus Mandau, Leo Joscha, Fabian von Keudell
Design & Layout Halijah Ismail
Cover Design Halijah Ismail
SALES & MARKETING
Senior Manager YK Cheah
Consultant Muffadzlee Dato Sufian
ADMINISTRATION
Admin Manager WP Lim
ONLINE
www.chip.com.my
@CHIPMY
CHIP Malaysia
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Copyright of the trademark CHIP by Vgel Burda Holding GmbH, 80336 Munich,
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No part of CHIP magazine / shall be reproduced without the publishers written
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necessarily represent those of CHIP magazine / the publisher.
All information in the magazine is provided as is and as available and CHIP magazine
/ the publisher makes no representations and gives no warranty of any kind, implied,
express or statutory as to the accuracy, adequacy, completeness, non-infringement
of 3rd party rights, title, merchantability and / or suitability / fitness for a particular
purpose with respect to the said information.
Under no circumstances whatsoever shall the CHIP magazine / the publisher be liable
for any direct, indirect, special or consequential damages whether in contract or in tort
arising out of or in connection with the use of the information made available in CHIP
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All prices, product versions and URLs are correct at the time of printing.

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Family




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Republic

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India

Indonesia

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Netherlands Poland

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contents

066

COVER
STORY
NEWS &
TRENDS

006

032

066 Breathe New Life Into Old

Hardware

Do you have old hardware youre not

using anymore? Give them a new lease
of life!

006 Local News

Coverage of the latest news and

events right on our shores

028 World Wired Web

All the latest tech happenings around

the world

024 Security Reports

Monthly dose of security news

FEATURES

032 LegalTech: Digital Evidence

What constitutes as digital evidence in

Malaysia?

038 Get The Most Out Of Your SSD

Learn how you can get your SSD to
perform as optimally as possible

048 Superbrain

In this multi-part series, we take a look

at the emergence of artificial intelligence,
and what it means for us

110

114

116

contents

038

TEST LAB

048
077 Test Lab: The Tools
Test Labs tools of the trade

078 Test Lab Contents

Take a pick and get started!

086 Reviews

Professionally conducted reviews

following our stringent tests and
benchmarks

LITE &
LEISURE
PRACTICE
REGULARS
086
86

108 CrowdFund

See what people have been funding on

the internet!

110 Blade and Soul

The super popular Korean MMO finally

makes its way stateside

114 How To Configure Your

Microsoft Acount

Learn how to get the most out of your

Microsoft account
116 Installing Kodi on Amazon Fire TV
Get the most out of your Fire TV by
installing Kodi

001 Welcome Note

118 Tips and Tricks

108

contents
chip download

CHIP Downloads
March 2016
Were back with our monthly dose of interesting, free and handy tools for you to enhance your PC experience. If you want to know how you
can get these files, follow the instructions below:
1. Head on our website @ www.chip.com.my and right at the top, click on the Downloads tab
2. After that, click on the respective months post. You will then be prompted for a password. The password can be found on this page
monthly.
3. Navigate using the tabs and pick the categories you want to download the files from. Once you find the file you want, just click on it and
youre good to go!
And its as easy as that!
PASSWORD FOR MARCH 2016 - superbrain

Featured Tools
AS SSD Benchmark
Just bought yourself a new SSD for your computer? You should run a
benchmark to check if its faulty and the speeds are within margin of
error. AS SSD Benchmark allows you to determine your SSD drives
performance by conducting several specific tests such as sequential or
random read/write tests without using the cache. AS SSD Benchmark
reads/writes a 1GB file as well as randomly chosen 4K blocks, and
additionally it can perform tests using 1 or 64 threads.

Parted Magic
Parted Magic is a complete hard disk management solution that does
Disk Partitioning, Disk Cloning, Data Rescue, Disk Erasing and even
Benchmarking. With the Partition Editor you can resize, copy, and move
partitions, grow and shrink partitions to create space for new operating
systems. Clone an entire disk or partition and save it as an image file to
migrate over to another disk with Parted Magic and even wiping after you
clone it.

Essentials

Our list of essentials consists of programs and software such as graphic

drivers, browsers, compression software and even Cloud storage
software that will improve a PC users experience. The links on our
website wont provide you with the files, instead it will lead you to the
developers official website, where you can find the right file for you.
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contents
chip download

The Monthly Downloads

Disk Drill
Operating system: Win XP/Vista/7/8/10
If you ever once accidentally deleted a file you didnt mean to, we know how that feels. So we are so happy that Disk Drill
is the solution. After installing the program all you have to do is connect your device and hit the Quick or Deep-Scan
button. It will then proceed to thoroughly scan your device, probably for a long time before displaying the list of deleted
files. To recover is as simple as selecting the desired folder or file and click Recover.

Kcleaner
Operating system: WinVista/7/8/10
Your computer constantly creates temporary files while youre installing programs, or when you get program crashes and
even while surfing the web. This can lead to a messy computer and may lead to the slowing down of your Operating
System. With Kcleaner you can easily select the files you wish to delete and also the deletion method, or you can save
them by clicking the Save button.

PilotEdit Lite
Operating system: Win 8/10
Using PilotEdit Lite you can create and edit HTML, JavaScript or even CSS files. Its also capable of handling files of several
gigabytes with no problems, and features highlighting of syntax and keywords to ease your workflow. There is so much
more you can do with PilotEdit Lite but a few would be comparing and merging of two huge files of 100GB, encrypt/
decrypt files larger than 10GB, fine/duplicate lines in a file larger than 1GB and even automatically detect start tags and
end tags.

Acrylic WiFi Home

Operating system: Win XP/Vista/78
Has curiosity ever gotten the best of you? Even if youre not a techie, there are some pretty interesting things you could
learn. With Acrylic WiFi Home you can scan all the wireless networks in your vicinity, providing you to interesting
information such as signal strength, MAC address, signal channel, type of encryption and even the vendors name for the
router they are using.

Balabolka
Operating system: Win XP/Vista/7/8/10
Are your eyes tired after long hours of work and would like to read your favourite book, but your eyes are just too tired
out? Or maybe you just like listening to audiobooks but your favourite book doesnt have one? Balabolka supports Testto-Speech systems like Microsoft Speed API or the RealSpeak TTS Engine, so you can listen to your favourite books in
PDF or DOC formats, you can also save the texts as MP3 or WMA files.

W10Privacy
Operating system: Win 7/8/10
If youre one of the users that upgraded their Windows 7/8 to W10 for free, if you didnt know Windows 10 actively
collects your information. If you dont like Windows collecting your information while using their OS, you can prevent this
by using W10 Privacy. With W10Privacy, you can pick and choose what information gets through or even disable it
outright.

Aomei OneKey Recovery

Operating system: Win XP/Vista/7/8
Need a simple and good recovery tool? Aomei OneKey Recovery might just make your day, using the software you can
backup your entire system with just a click of a button, either into a recovery partition or on another disk. Once you are
done with the backup you can also use a factory image to restore your computer, when you get a Boot Failure or
Operating System not found error.

MaxxMEM2
Operating system: Win XP/Vista/7/8
If you want to check your PC memory once thoroughly, you can use MaxxMEM2. It can check the access speed, read/
write speed of all the popular memory modules available. Installation is not required and can be run from the get go
using the EXE file, just unzip or unrar and click. It uses currenct technologies like SSE, MMX, scheduled threading and
further techniques to provide reliable and consistent results.

chip malaysia

march 16

005

news

The RT-AC88U has 8 LAN ports which sport Link

Aggregation

Richard Chen, Territory Product Manager, ASUStek Computer Incorporated(left) and Eric Lim, Country Product
Manager, ASUStek Computer Malaysia (OPBG) showing off the RT-AC88U and RT-AC5300

ASUS Announces Two

Brand New Routers
Two brand new powerful routers for the networking lovers

SUS Malaysia has announced the

RT-AC88U, an ultra-fast AC3100-class
dual-band 802.11ac wireless router
with a four-transit, four-receive (4x4) antenna
configuration, with Broadcom NitroQAM
technology, and the RT-AC5300, an ultra-highperformance AC5300-class tri-band wireless
router, that also uses Broadcom NitroQAM
technology, delivering the worlds fastest
combined data-rate of up to 5.334Gbit/s.
The RT-AC88U is a high-performance,
easy-to-use router that features NitroQAM
technology to deliver a combined dual-band
data rate of up to 3,167Mbit/s 2,167Mbit/s
on the 5GHz band and 1000Mbit/s on the
2.4GHz band. The RT-AC88U is perfect for
low-latency online gaming, smooth 4K/UHD
video streaming and extremely-fast filesharing.
A four-antenna design combined with
ASUS AiRadar and universal beamforming
ensure that the RT-AC88U gives superb multi-

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device performance with wide, reliable and

fast coverage. Online gaming enthusiasts will
also appreciate the fact that the RT-AC88U is
the worlds first router with a built-in gaming
accelerator by the Gamers Private Network
(GPN from WTFast, for the ultimate low-ping
gaming experience.
Other innovations include support for
802.3ad Link Aggregation, which allows two
Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports to be combined
into a super-fast 2Gbit/s wired connection,
together with 8 Gigabit Ethernet ports, twice
as many as a standard router, you can now
connect even more devices to your home
network without the need for expensive extra
network switches.
Then theres the RT-AC5300, designed
as the ultimate state-of-the-art router for
enthusiasts and gamers, the futuristicallystyled RT-AC5300 uses a 4x4 (4-transmit,
4-receive) MIMO antenna array on all three
bands. Combined with AiRadar universal

The RT-AC5300 is the ultimate state-of-the-art router

for enthusiasts and gamers

beamforming and Tri-Band Smart Connect,

RT-AC5300 provides outstanding multi-device
performance, with super-wide coverage.
Also included with the RT-AC5300 is
the built-in game accelerator by GPN from
WTFast, for significantly reduced ping times
and latency for gamers. GPN can reduce
average game ping times by 30-60 percent,
lower average speed deviations by 70-90
percent, and cut bad router hops by 70-90
percent. GPN supports virtually all competitive
multiplayer online games, and has optimised
settings for many of the most popular titles.
The Tri-Band Smart Connect technology
intelligently selects the optimum frequency
band for each device, based on the devices
speed, its signal strength, and how busy each
band is. This means users never have to
decide which band to use, as RT-AC5300 does
it automatically and results in better range
and faster, more reliable connections. While
for advanced users, Link Aggregation is also
found on the RT-AC5300 and usually found
on professional-grade network switches, and
usually is a particular interest to users with
high-speed network-attached storage (NAS)
devices.
The RT-AC88U is available for RM1,799
while the RT-AC5300 is priced at RM2,199.
http://www.asus.com/my/networking/

news

Logitech G Expands RGB

Mechanical Keyboard Lineup
RGB is starting to be the next big thing

ogitech has announced their latest

RGB full-sized mechanical keyboard,
the Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum. The
G810 integrates Logitechs industry-leading
technology and quality of construction in
a uniquely crafted design to deliver peak
performance for a pure gaming experience. The
keyboard sports Logitechs exclusive Romer-G
mechanical switches, offering 25 percent faster
actuation than standard mechanical keyboards,
as well as customisable RGB lighting and
dedicated media controls.
From the simplest of details, such as
fingerprint-masking matte texture and a
durable braided cable, to the most complex
details, including advanced RGB lighting and
ultra-fast, ultra-durable Romer-G mechanical
switches, every aspect of the keyboard is
precisely engineered. Logitechs exclusive
Romer-G mechanical switches delivers nearinstant responsiveness, registering keys up to

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25 percent faster than standard mechanical

switches.
The switches have an actuation point of
1.5mm, and allows the Romer-G switches to
receive commands more quickly, helping to
give you an edge in competitive games where
every millisecond matters. With an improved
durability of 70 million keystrokes, and up to
40 percent more keystroke operations than
other standard key switches on the gaming
peripheral market, feel confident knowing your
keyboard is born to survive.
Using Logitech Gaming Software (LGS), the
G810 Orion Spectrum is capable of selecting
and personalising each individual key light, from
a spectrum of more than 16.8 million colours.
You may also synchronise lighting effects with
other Logitech G gaming gear. You can mark
keys by colour to keep track of spells and other
commands, or change colours to match your
setup. Central backlighting helps you to find

the right keys at the right time even in the dark,

and LGS comes pre-loaded with custom lighting
profiles for over 300 games.
The Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum features
dedicated media controls that can be sued
to pause, play and mute music and videos
instantly, so you can control your background
track without switching out of your game. You
can use the roller to adjust the volume, or skip
to the next song with the touch of a button.
Also with LGS you can gain full control of the
keyboard, and customise your favourite games
with custom button macros on the F1-F12
keys.
The Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum RGB
Mechanical Gaming Keyboard is available
in April 2016, for a suggested retail price of
RM799 (inclusive of GST) from authorised retail
resellers.
http://www.logitech.com/en-my/home

news

The Moto 360 in Silver for Mens

Foo Mun Yee, Country Manager for Lenovo Smartphones (in black), shows off the new Moto 360

Lenovo Brings Moto

360 To Malaysia

The smartwatch that many have been waiting for is now

available for purchase

he long wait is over, for the Lenovo

Malaysia has launched the second
generation of the Moto 360
smartwatch. Thanks to a variety of design,
like a Sport Edition, the Moto 360 is highly
customisable and suitable for any occasion.
The smart timepiece helps users maintain
their active online lifestyles.
At a public launch in Mid Valley
Megamalls Centre Court, Lenovo Malaysias
Country Manager for Smartphone, Foo Mun
Yee, said: Todays society is always-on. We
are constantly in touch and connected with
one another. While we love our phones, we
are still looking for an intuitive device that
complements our desire to stay connected,
while at the same time allowing us the
freedom to disconnect. The Moto 360 is the
perfect device which will enable us to make
time for ourselves, and stay connected at
the same time.
New and improved from the very

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successful first generation of the Moto 360,

the new version now has designs for both
men and women. Now with a quick-release
feature, owners of the Moto 360 can easily
swap between either leather or metal bands
when they desire.
For those with active lifestyles, they can
opt for the Moto 360 Sport Edition. This
edition is designed to give users the right
information they need without having to
bring their phone on a run, as the Moto
360 is able to track speed, distance and
pace with its on-board GPS. Also built into
the Moto 360 and the Moto 360 Sport is
the Moto Body, a comprehensive suite of
health and wellness apps made to help the
user live a healthier lifestyle. Using highly
accurate sensors on the smartwatch, users
can track heart rate and calories burnt, then
receive valuable feedback and coaching on
how to improve their individual fitness.
Furthermore, the smartwatch features

For a more casual look, theres the Moto 360 Sport

the AnyLight hybrid display, which makes

it possible to use the device be it indoors
or outdoors. The Moto 360 Sport is able to
switch between AnyLight hybrid mode or the
normal display mode based on the lighting
condition too.
The Moto 360 is a device thats interested
in helping the user stay on top of his or
her notifications. With Ambient Mode, the
display can help you to easily keep track of
all notifications without needing to check
your smartphone constantly. It also has
the voice related features, allowing you to
do things like search for a location or even
respond to your messages using voice.
Those who are interested in purchasing
the Moto 360 can do so at SenQ, Urban
Republic and Thunder Match stores in
Malaysia, or order it online via Lazada
Malaysia. The four variants currently
available are the 42mm Womens Rose Gold
version (RM1,499), 42mm Unisexs in Black
version (RM1,399), 46mm Mens in Silver
version (RM1,599), and the Moto 360 Sport in
Black (RM1,399).
www.motorola.com

news

Gary Chong, CEO, Play Interactive Sdn Bhd(back second from the left), Hasnul Hadi Samsudin, Director of Creative
Multimedia Division, MDeC(back third from the left), Alexander Fernandez, CEO, Streamline Studios(back fourth from
left) together with staff and cosplayers at the launch of Street Fighter V in Malaysia

Street Fighter V
Officially Launched In
Malaysia
The world famous fighting is back and now available in
Malaysia

apcom Japans world famous video

game, Street Fighter V is now officially
released in Malaysia with over 380 fans
attending the Launch Party. The Street Fighter
V Malaysia Launch Party was hosted by video
game distributor, PLAY Interactive Sdn Bhd and
is officially sanctioned by Capcom and Sony
Computer Entertainment Hong Kong Limited
(Singapore Branch) (SCES) as an initiative to
promote, and raise awareness of the release of
Street Fighter V in the country.
We love opportunities to give back to our
end-users, which are the local gamers. Our
team at PLAY Interactive Sdn Bhd organised
the Street Fighter V Malaysia Launch Party
to create a space for gamers to gather and
enjoy all the Street Fighter activities and the
wonderful prizes weve arranged for them. Its

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our way of saying Thank You to the gaming

community, said Gary Chong, CEO of Play
Interactive Sdn Bhd.
An impressive partnership of sponsors
converged as part of the joint effort to create
a better experience for the games community.
Gamers Hideout, Gamehubs, Telekom Malaysia,
Multimedia Development Corporation,
Streamline Studios, Mad Catz and Bigboystoys
HK were all present at the site to make the
event a success.
A highlight at the video game launch was
the presence of Streamline Studios, who
collaborated with Capcom on the development
of Street Fighter V. The Netherlands-based
video games developer with operations in
Malaysia exhibited their creative works at the
party, while also having a recruitment drive for

prospective talents from Malaysia.

It has been fantastic working with Capcom
and an honour to work on such an iconic
intellectual property as Street Fighter. Weve
enjoyed every second of our collaboration. A
project of this scale requires innovation and
seamless collaboration on all levels that doesnt
get in the way of development. Leveraging
Streamframe, our technology platform designed
for game development, we were able to directly
integrate into Capcoms development process
and significantly reduce turnaround times
and costs. said Alexander Fernandez, CEO of
Streamline Studios.
Triple-A games being made in Malaysia
are fast becoming the norm and Street Fighter
V is an excellent testament of the elvel of
capability and commitment out country has to
offer in terms of talent pool. As MDeC pushes
for Malaysia to become a hub for games
development in South East Asia, there will be
more support in the education sector as well
as increasing investments in our local talents,
reinforced Hasnul Hadi Samsudin, Director of
Creative Multimedia Division, MDeC.
The launch party officially started at 6:00pm
on 15 February 2016 and kicked off with a
myriad of activities, such as taking photos with
their favourite Street Fighter characters. Players
were able to try first-hand Street Fighter V
with friendly matches with fellow fans and
enthusiasts. The party was also filled with prize
giveaways and a Street Fighter V tournament
to crown the best Street Fighter in the venue.
Once the clock had struck midnight, all those
who pre-ordered Street Fighter V were the first
to receive their copy of Street Fighter V from
Gamers Hideout. Fans were also treated to
a lucky draw with notable prizes given away
including entrance tickets plus return flight
tickets to the Tokyo Game Show 2016, Mad
Catz PlayStation 4-compatible arcade sticks
and gamepads, RM2,000 worth of cash prizes
for the tournament winners and Bigboystoyssponsored Street Fighter figurines worth up to
RM2,000.
www.facebook.com/PLAYInteractiveAsia

news

Synology DiskStation
DS216+ Available
Globally
Another high-performance NAS from Synology hits the
shelves

ynology Inc. has launched the Synology

DiskStation DS216+, a high-performance
2-bay NAS server aimed at home and
small office users, who want an efficient
and secure storage solution to protect and
share data, as well as enjoy on-the-fly video
transcoding.
The DS216+ comes equipped with an Intel
Celeron Processor N3050 with
Intel AES New Instructions
encryption, which is capable of
high speed performance with
read and write speeds exceeding
111 MB/s, while ensuring
encrypted data transmissions
at over 113MB/s reading and
109 MB/s writing. In addition,
the DS216+ can perform
on-the-fly video transcoding
from H.264 4K to 1080p video,
making streaming multimedia
files regardless of bandwidth or
device limitations possible.

Having a powerful NAS storage solution

allows small offices to deliver high-speed
file sharing, application serving, and online
collaboration, or lets home users transcode and
stream high quality video to multiple devices.
DS216+ is designed for exactly such purposes
and demonstrates our commitment to meet
our users high expectations, said Jones Tsai,

Offline Playback For

YouTube In Malaysia
Finally you can buffer first and watch later on your mobile

f you havent noticed by now, YouTube has

launched an offline feature for YouTube in
Malaysia. A move as part of a larger initiative
to make the video sharing platform easier to
enjoy on mobile devices, while lessening the
burden of data for its growing base of mobile
users. This is also part of YouTubes ongoing
release of its ad-supported offline feature on
Android and iOS, which has also been launched
in around 80 countries worldwide including
Indonesia, Philippines, and Vietnam.
This new feature allows users to make

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videos available for offline viewing using WiFi

or their data plans, allowing them to keep the
videos for up 48 hours once taken offline. This
is useful for occasions such as a long drive back
to your hometown during the holidays, where
there might be no data on certain stretch of
roads. For videos where this feature is available,
people can choose to add the video for offline
viewing by tapping on the offline icon.
We want to make sure we are making
YouTube as enjoyable as possible for our
growing base of mobile users in Malaysia. By

Hardware Design Director of Synology Inc.

The DS216+ implements a Btrfs files system,
allowing it to offer advanced data protection
by enabling point-in-time snapshot and
store, built-in data integrity checks, metadata
mirroring, as well as quota control for shared
folders. It also comes with a tool-less drive tray
design for easy hot-swap support, and front
LEDs that can be adjusted according to desired
schedule settings.
DiskStation Manager (DSM) is the most
advanced and intuitive operating system for
NAS devices and it is featured in the DS216+.
DSM features a wide range of applications
from backup, network management to
multimedia, and all the essential services that
provide increased productivity at work, made
readily available on the DS216+. The Synology
DiskStation DS216+ NAS is available for $299
(RM1,319 GST included).
https://www.synology.com/products/DS216+

launching a new offline feature for YouTube, we

hope to help people move past the challenges
of data connection, speed and cost to enjoy a
smooth, buffer-free version of YouTube. Said
John Harding, Vice President of Engineering,
YouTube.
Sajith Sivanandan, Managing Director of
Google Malaysia, Vietnam, Philippines and
New Emerging Markets also added, We are
delighted to launch this new offline experience
on YouTube with some of the top Malaysian
players in entertainment. By making these
popular videos available for temporary offline
viewing, our partners will help fans connect
more easily with their favorite content, while
also helping bring more viewers to their videos.
We hope to keep finding better ways to make
video content more affordable and accessible in
Malaysia.
www.youtube.com

news

The HTC One A9 is a 5.0 inch phone powered by a

Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 processor

Manu Seth, Senior Marketing Director of HTC, South Asia, Faisal Siddiqui, President of HTC, South Asia,
Cheong Wah Tong, Country Manager of HTC, Malaysia and Raymond Tan, Chief Operating Officer of Brightstar
Distribution Sdn Bhd proudly presenting the brilliant new HTC One A9 after the launch

The HTC Desire 728 sports a large 5.5 inch screen, and
is powered by a MediaTek MT6753 octa-core CPU

Early To The Party

HTC starts the year with a series of smartphones

fter a long while, HTC has recently

launched a glut of brand new phones,
which includes the much-talkedabout HTC One A9, the first phone in the
companys stable to come with Android
6.0 Marshmallow. Other phones that were
unveiled at a Chinese New Year dinner event
in KL include the HTC One ME Dual SIM, and
the HTC Desire 728 Dual SIM.
The HTC One A9 combines beautiful
design together with powerful hardware,
alongside Googles latest Android 6.0
Marshmallow operating system. The metal
unibody chassis houses the phones 5.0
inch Full HD display, and at the back, the
phone sports a 13MP f2.0 camera that takes
amazing photos regardless of the lighting
conditions. As far as storage options go, the
One A9 features 32GBs of built-in memory,
and an option to upgrade the storage space
to a whopping 2TB via a microSD card.

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The HTC One ME Dual SIM meanwhile

is a blend of style and usability, providing
users with an immersive smartphone
experience. The 5.2 inch display features a
2K resolution, a 20MP f2.0 camera as well
as a polycarbonate design thats easy to grip
onto. As far as specs go, the One ME Dual
SIM is powered by a MediaTek Helio X10
processor and 3GBs of RAM, with 32GBs of
built in storage.
If youre looking for a phone thats
somewhat larger than the other two, the
HTC Desire 728 Dual SIM might just be the
phone youre looking for. It sports a 5.5
inch HD display, a 13MP rear-facing camera
and high quality speakers that belies its
mid-range smartphone status, powered by a
MediaTek MT6753 octa-core processor.
All of these phones are already available
in the market right now, with the HTC One
A9 available in Carbon Gray and Topaz Gold

For those looking for a powerful mid-range phone, you

cant go wrong with the HTC One ME Dual SIM

for RM2,299, the HTC One ME Dual SIM

in Classic Rose Gold and Meteor Gray for
RM1,599, while the HTC Desire 728 Dual SIM
is available in Purple Myst and White Luxury
at a later date.
www.htc.com

news

Samsung Unveils The

Galaxy A Series
Samsung unveils a line of stylish phones for the modern
lifestyle

amsung Malaysia Electronics is proud

to unveil its latest Galaxy A Series
(2016) smartphones, in a unique
lifestyle setting to underline the devices
core properties of camera and storage
features. Boasting the brands latest in
innovative design and technology, the Galaxy
A Series (2016) offers Malaysian consumers
a platform to express their individuality with
powerful performance in three screen size

options: 4.5-inch for the A7, 5.2-inch for the

A5 and 4.7-inch for the A3.
At Samsung, we are committed to
continue innovating, inspired by feedback
and the needs of our wide range of
consumers. Hence with the introduction of
the Galaxy A Series (2016), we plan to make
a thoughtful and impactful improvement,
offering consumers a seamless convergence
of style and performance for their everyday

lifestyles, said Mr Lee Jui Siang, Vice

President, IT & Mobile Business Unit,
Samsung Malaysia Electronics.
All three variants of the Galaxy A come
equipped with an enhanced camera system
for both brighter and clearer photos and
videos. This advanced system includes
Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) on the front
camera to prevent image blurring, as well
as a front and rear F/1.9 lens to allow users
to take the best photos in variable light
conditions. Additionally, the phones sport a
Quick Launch feather whereby you click the
Home button twice to launch the camera
instantly.
Todays lifestyle centres largely around
a culture where people express personal
style, capture moments, as well as relive and
share them friends and family. This is where
the Galaxy a Series (2016) comes in, to offer
users powerful and fun camera functions
to capture those moments
and continually store them on
their phone with substantial
storage space. The functionality
and features of the Galaxy A
Series (2016) makes this device
a perfect one for trendy and
outgoing users, added Mr Lee
Jui Siang.
A technological leap from
its predecessor, the new Galaxy
A Series (2016) come with a
built-in memory of 16GB and a
microSD slot that can support up
to 128GB of external memory is
added. To celebrate the arrival of
this device, Samsung Malaysia
Electronics is offering a free
32GB microSD card for every unit
purchased, which adds capacity
for as many as 16,000 pictures
and high definition videos
without the hassle of constantly
having to clear older albums.
The Galaxy A Series is
available in Black, Gold, White,
and Pink Gold and were available
for sale starting from 28 January
2016 onwards. The prices
respectively for the phones are
RM1,899 for the Galaxy A7 2016,
RM1,599 for the Galaxy A5 2016,
and RM1,299 for the Galaxy A3
2016 inclusive of GST.
www.samsung.com/my

Mr Go Benn Lee, Product Manager, Mobile & IT Business Unit of Samsung Malaysia Electronics (center) presenting the new
Galaxy A Series (2016).

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news

Google Science
Fair Is Returning
Bringing all the bright and creative minds together

or the sixth consecutive year, Google

is looking for fresh, young, budding
Malaysian scientists to showcase
their science ideas. The annual Google
Science Fair is an international competition
which encourages students between the
ages of 13 to 18 to be curious, ask questions,
and perform science experiments to answer
those questions.
Google, in partnership with LEGO
Education, National Geographic, Scientific
American and Virgin Galactic invites
Malaysian students to post their science
projects online to compete for a once-ina-lifetime prize consisting of a USD50,000
scholarship grant from Google, a National
Geographic Expedition to the Galapagos,
an opportunity to visit LEGO Group
headquarters in Denmark, the chance to our
Virgin Galactic, Mojave Air and Spaceport,

and finally a Scientific American

Cruise.
This year, Google has a bunch
of exciting awards to give out
to budding and passionate
students. Up for grab are the
Virgin Galactic Pioneer Award
and the LEGO Education Builder
Award for an engineering
challenge, the National
Geographic Explorer Award and
Scientific American Innovator
Award if your experiment project
offers a new way to look at the
world. Then theres a special
award to recognise an Inspiring
Educator, as well as a Community Impact
Award honouring a project that addresses
an environmental or health challenge.
So what are you waiting for? Find out

Facebook Introduces
Canvas
The new built-in mobile ad experience gives advertisers
more options in creating better video ads

udiences on Facebook has grown

exponentially since the platforms
inception, so it only makes sense that
it has become a site for selling
stories. With the announcement
of the international release of
Canvas, advertisers can now reach
their audiences better.
Canvas is a full-screen mobile
ad experience that loads when
someone taps on an ad on their
Facebook News feed. It provides
brands and agencies with a
platform that fully customisable
and designed for the creation of
multimedia stories. Advertisers
can use a mixture of videos,
images, text, and even buttons
with call-to-actions to create

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an ad that is suitable for mobile devices. Ads

created using the new platform will be viewable
on both Android and iOS devices.

more and gain access to resources to apply

at www.googlesciencefair.com. All entries
are to be submitted by May 18 2016.
www.googlesciencefair.com

Chris Jones, Head of Creative Technology,

Facebook Creative Shop had this to say: We
made the creative community a priority when
we designed and built Canvas. Its a product
that represents our commitment to creative
craft and delivering the best mobile experience
for businesses and people.
To create Canvases, advertisers will need
to have access to Power Editor and Publishing
Tools.
https://canvas.facebook.com/

news

Digi And GSMA

Team Up To
Get Women
Connected
Initiative aims to bridge gender divide
introduce women into the digital
economy

he Mobile World Congress 2016 in

Barcelona this year had more than
just products on showcase. As an
event organised by the GSM Association
(GSMA), it was also announced that
GSMA has entered into a collaboration
with Digi Telecommunications Sdn Bhd.
The collaborations aim is to enable more
women of the low-income to middle-income
countries to get mobile connectivity by 2020.
Digi, along with other mobile operators
around the world, have entered into this
initiative to support the United Nationss

Sustainable
Development Goal in empower women and
achieving gender equality.
Albern Murty, Digis Chief Executive
Officer commented: In Malaysia, six million
women have yet to access the internet,
and bridging the digital gender gap will
help ensure these women can be active
participants and contributors in the digital
economy.
As part of the companys goals in
this endeavour, Digi has also introduced
the its Digi Wanita Era Digital (DigiWED)

programme, in order to have more Malaysian

women reap the benefits of the internet.
Among the objectives of the programme is:
greater internet adoption and basic internet
by women. This programme is a joint
collaboration by Digi with the Ministry of
Communications and Multimedia Malaysia,
Malaysian Communications and Multimedia
Commission (MCMC) and National Council of
Womens Organisations (NCWO).
www.gsma.com/newsroom/press-releases.

MaxisONE Is
The One That
Travels With
You

The new roaming plan is available in eight

countries within the ASEAN region

ith MaxisONE World, customers

get greater value when they
travel. This new innovation by
Maxis was designed to help customers
travel in peace, without the worries and
uncertainties when it comes to roaming.
For just RM38 per day, customers will get
free calls and SMS, free data for common
travel apps such as Google Maps, free
high-speed data, travel insurance and extra
500MB a day. The plan will also ensure that
customers will not connect to the wrong
network and thus incur possible bill shock.

Currently,
MaxisONE
customers can
only enjoy the new features when travelling
to Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Myanmar,
Brunei, Philippines, Cambodia and Laos.
However, Maxis is expected to expand
on this plan to cover other Asia Pacific
countries in the future.
When Maxis launched the MaxisONE
plan back in 2014, our ambition was to give
our customers an unmatched experience to use their phones freely without worrying

about unknown charges or bill shock. Which

is why we made calls and SMS unlimited,
a revolutionary feature at the time. So we
asked ourselves, why shouldnt everyone be
able to do all this even while traveling? This
is not roaming, this is postpaid the way it
should be, said Dushyan Vaithiyanathan,
Maxis Head of Consumer Business.
www.maxis.com.my/oneworld

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news

Samsung SEA Forum

2016
The Korean electronics giant showcases new innovative
products at the Samsung SEA Forum 2016

ts not every day when you get to see it,

but Samsung Electronics recently brought
the biggest regional convention to our
shores the Samsung SEA Forum. Every
year, the Samsung SEA Forum is held to
showcase the latest in innovative Samsung
technologies and products, all designed to
create value in consumers lives. Samsung
has also declared that its focus will be
on raising the quality of smart living with
products such as new Quantum dot display
SUHD TVs, connected refrigerators, and
more.
At Samsung, we have always placed our
customers needs at the heart of everything
we do, and we have a stellar track record
of launching thoughtful innovations that
enhance our customers quality of life. This
year is no exception. I am thrilled to be able

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to introduce ground breaking products and

services that will revolutionize smarter living
and bring IoT technology into consumers

everyday lives. said Yong Sung Jeon,

President and CEO of Samsung Electronics
for Southeast Asia and Oceania.
At President Yongs opening speech, he
declared that Samsung Electronics was once
again named Best Brand in Asia for 2015,
making it the corporations fourth win in a
row. This award is part of the annual survey
by Campaign Asia-Pacific called Asias
Top 1000 Brands, with Samsung ranking
top-five in 14 different consumer electronics
sub-categories. This includes mobile phones,
refrigerators and Televisions.

A Whole New World of Viewing

Experience

Yong Sung Jeon, President & CEO, Samsung

Electronics Southeast Asia & Oceania.

Jimmy Tan, Head of Consumer Electronics

for Samsung Malaysia, took the stage to talk
more about the companies new line-up of
SUHD TVs. He explained that the Quantum
Dot display technology is in fact the Nano
Crystal technology, rebranded according to
its given industry name so that consumers
can better identify its use.
The marquee TV for this years line-up is
the KS9500, which features what Samsung
calls a bezel-less design. While not quite
accurate since it does have a bezel, it is so

news

One of Samsungs curved TVs, sporting an updated OS

thin as to be nigh negligible. The

Korean electronics giants new TV uses
the Quantum Dot display technology to
deliver truer-to-life picture quality and
brightness of more than 1,000 nits. In
addition, they will have a bezel-less curved
design. Another term that consumers will
hear a lot is High Dynamic Range (HDR).
Long seen implemented in smartphone
camera apps, the imaging technique makes
its way to Samsungs new TVs. At the same
time, HDR ensures greater levels of contrast
and colour. To add to that, Samsungs new
Ultra Black technology helps reduce light
reflection.
Complementing its impressive hardware
is the improved Tizen operating system.
Samsung talked about some of the
improvements made, which are all intended
to make its new range of smart TVs even
more user-friendly. The updated version will

make it easier for

allows the user to control multiple devices
users to access their
using just the Smart Control remote.
favourite content
Another product that was touched on
and services via the
was the first 4K capable Blu-ray Player. The
new Smart Hub,
UBD-K8500 has the HDR feature as well
all with the help of
as the ability to output the higher Ultra HD
the Smart Control
resolution at 64 times the colour ratio of
remote, or even
standard Blu-ray players.
with the Smart View
mobile app.
Smarter Appliances, Smarter
As its name
Living
implies, the Smart
A variety of home appliances were also
Hub works as a
on display at the Forums exhibition area.
hub that keeps
This includes the new Samsung AddWash
all of the users
Washing Machine, which comes with an
contents in one
access door to put in extra items into the
place. This includes
wash without the need to completely drain
Live TV or any Over
the washer. Of course, this also makes
The Top (OTT) content like Netflix, which is
now available
in Malaysia,
as well as
games that are
compatible with
the OS. The
Smart Control
remote, on the
other hand,
is basically
a remote
controller that
can recognise
a variety
of remote
devices that
are connected
to the TV. This
Sound bars were also on showcase at the forum
effectively

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news

A big surprise - the TabPro S - is revealed

it easier for users to add more softener

RT7000. The RT7000
should it be required. The AddWash shows
uses the unique Twin Cooling PlusTM
Samsungs continuous desire to innovate,
technology developed by Samsung, which
as it not only has that new access door for
allows it to keep the appropriate humidity
convenience but also has a SuperSpeed
level to keep food fresh, and m What it can
feature to reduce the required time for a
do is maintain separate airflows between
normal wash to less than an hour.
the main fridge area and the freezer, along
In addition to the new washing machine,
with the ability to isolate the airflows
Samsung also showcased the Family Hub
between the two.
Refrigerator. What makes it special is the
New Wearables and a Pro Tablet
Family Communication Center, a 21.5 inch
On personal digital devices, Samsung
full HD touch screen display that is on the
revealed two new colours of the Samsung
outside of the refrigerators right door. It
Gear S2 Classic, which are now also in Rose
functions much like how a smartphone
Gold and Platinum. In order to provide an
or tablet does, allowing the user to do
even more personalised device, Samsung
leave digital notes, share posts, or pin up
has increased the number of straps and
photos to give the appliance a personal
watch face available.
touch. The Family Hub also helps the user
The most exciting news for many at the
with food management, all thanks to the
forum was undoubtedly the unveiling of
three cameras within the interior of the
the Galaxy TabPro S.The Galaxy TabPro S is
refrigerator, which snaps a picture whenever
Samsungs answer to the 2-in-1 PC form
the door closes. The user is then able to
factor. Its a Microsoft Windows 10 device
refer to this image from their smartphone,
thats both a PC and a tablet. Samsung has
allowing them to quickly see what items
would be needed on
the next grocery run.
Whats more, the
Family Hub is also
great at providing
entertainment. Its
able to stream and
playback music via
built-in speakers,
or even act as the
users TV screen
by using Screen
mirroring with a
Samsung Smart TV.
Finally, Samsung
introduced its new
top-mounted freezer
refrigerator the
The all new TabPro S is a thing of elegance

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included popular features of both platforms

with its own technology to offer users with
a full-fledged PC experience in a compact
body. Under its slim body, the TabPro S
runs on an Intel Core M processor and has
a beautiful 12-inch AMOLED display. Other
features include support for LTE Cat 6 for
high speed wireless internet, an estimated
of 10.5 hours of battery life, fast charging,
and more.

A One-Fit-All Command Centre

Furthermore, Samsung smartphone users
can use the new mySamsung app. The
app is a one-stop for all existing Samsung
apps, namely the Galaxy Life, Sports Flow,
KidsTime, and Milk Music. By using the app,
users of Samsung devices get access to
benefits such as personalisation, ownership
privileges.
When a user first fires up the app, it is
able to automatically recognise the device
used and will prompt the user to register his
or her warranty. Additionally, the message
centre within the app acts as a two-way

Samsungs Gear S2 now comes in two new colours,

including this Platinum-coloured one

news

Nicholas Wodtke, the Head of Digital Media Solutions & Product Innovation,
Samsung Asia, briefs the audience about the mySamsung app

The mySamsung
app is available on
the Google Store for
selected countries,
including Malaysia,
and will come with
language support for
Bahasa Malaysia and
English.

not be confirmed in any official capacity.

www.samsung.com/my/home/

Samsung Pay
is on the way

communication between the user and

Samsung, give tips on various ways to use
the device, or perform easy data migration
from the users previous device. Users of
mySamsung also gain exclusive ownership
privileges such as discounts, invites to
Samsung events, and birthday gifts.

The new Add Wash feature is handy for small items

once the wash has started

Last but not least,

Samsung gave
a brief to forum
attendees on
Samsung Pay,
particularly on
availability in the
SEA region. The service has now been
deployed in Singapore and Australia, while
other countries in SEA will only be able
to see deployment at a later date. When
prompted, a Samsung spokesperson said
that Malaysia would most likely have
Samsung Pay within 2016, though that has

The new range of anti-tangle vacuum cleaners

On the right side of the refrigerator is a massive

21.5-inch screen

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security report

Frauds Use WhatsApp

Supposed warning message misleads users to a fake website and then into signing an
expensive subscription

nasty scam rip-off of WhatsApp has

been doing the rounds on Android
devices of late. When the user is
surfing certain websites on his smartphone,
a new browser window suddenly opens. A
message that fills the entire screen appears
on it: WhatsApp expires today. Under the
WhatsApp logo, a countdown begins to
run, which appears to suggest to the user
that he has only a few more seconds to
prevent the impending death of WhatsApp.
This is followed by a prompt to download
WhatsApp to continue using our free
service. Under this, you will see a huge
button in the same shade of Green as the
WhatsApp logo and the inscription
Download now!. If you follow up the
request, youll be directed to a subscription
service providers website. The provider
will claim that he will give the customer
background pictures, apps, videos, ringtones
and games. And these are really expensive:

if you enter your mobile phone number,

youll automatically be paying 20 euros a
month with immediate effect. The amount
will be deducted from your telephone bill.

Imposters attempt to lure WhatsApp users into an

expensive subscription trap using a browser popups on Android devices

The subscription can allegedly be cancelled

at any time through the customer care
service. In fact, it can be reached via the
telephone number 0800/5895405. Behind
it is a generic, automated announcement,
where you will be asked to enter the number
that you wish to unsubscribe from the
service.
Subscription traps are always wandering
across the internet and WhatsApp has
become a new favourite playground of
scammers. Even animated emojis or
supposed updates constantly succeed in
enticing unsuspecting users into signing up
for costly subscriptions. In general, official
WhatsApp updates will only be received
through the Google Play Store and Apples
App Store. When your WhatsApp usage
period actually expires, you will find out
about this in the WhatsApp settings in the
app.

AMAZON: USER PASSWORDS IN

DANGER

PATREON: CYBER CRIMINALS SEND

BLACKMAIL LETTERS

LUFTHANSA: ATTACK ON THE

MEMBER DATABASE

Amazon has reset some users

passwords and informed them about
it via e-mail. Those affected had to
subsequently create a new password.
According to Amazon, this move is a
precaution, because the passwords may
have been saved or transferred in an
unsafe manner. This mainly concerns
users in the US and Great Britain.

In an instance of data hacking in October

2015, attackers stole customer data on
the crowdfunding platform, Patreon. Some
users have received a blackmail letter in
which the bullies threatened to release the
credit card details and tax IDs of the users
that they had obtained. Whether the letters
have really been written by the data thieves

Attackers have tried to log into the

member section of Lufthansa using
stolen customer login details. However,
according to Lufthansa, the login
data doesnt come from the airline
companys servers, but apparently from
other sources. For the sake of security,
all customers should change their
passwords.

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who hacked into Patreon is still uncertain.

PHOTO:BLACK HAT EUROPE 2015/ WWW.ROGIERBOS.COM

Data Theft Of The Month

security report

Adobe
Fixes
Loads
Of Bugs
In Flash
Player
A
dobe has fixed 77 bugs in Flash
Player on its Patch Day, with
most of them having been
categorised as critical. Despite the
update, several security experts have
advised users to delete Flash Player
completely from the system, because
the latest websites use the HTML5
standard.

Danger Barometer
Nearly 60% of all cyberattacks use exploits
found in Internet
browsers

High risk

Critical Bug In
Chrome All
Android Oses
Affected
A

ndroid is plagued by another massive security exploits. Attackers have been found using the
Google Chrome app as a new point of invasions for malware. If the user visits a rigged website
on his mobile browser, attackers can take complete control of the smartphone and even restore
the entire device. All Android smartphones with the latest version of the Google Chrome app are
affected by this. With the help of these new security exploits, attackers receive admin rights to the
smartphone via JavaScript code, and can thus run apps or install malware in the background. Google
was already aware of
the security gaps at
the PacSec conference
in Tokyo and has
stated that it is already
working on solving
the problem. Until a
bug fix is available, it
is recommended to
deactivate Javascript
for Google Chrome or
use another browser,
for instance the mobile
Firefox version.

Browsers are widely used

and full of bugs

New deluge of blackmailer

software

In nearly 60 percent of all attacks, cyber criminals use

exploits in browsers as a point of invasion. This is
because many users dont install updates available in
the browser programs regularly.

In the last few months, Ransomware viruses enjoyed

a massive boom. Symantec counted roughly 44,000
cases in October 2015 alone.
*48

Browser

Android

Java

Adobe
Flash

58%

19%

11%

5%

Medium risk

36

20

28

21

23

16

31

34

35

39

44

Low risk

SOURCE: KASPERSKY

Number of the Month:

44,000

NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT
2015
*recorded cases in thousands

SOURCE: KASPERSKY

Symantec estimated there was about 44,000

cases of ransomware virus attacks in October
2015

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security report

Poseidon Group Exposed

K

aspersky Lab has recently discovered a group active in global cyber-espionage operations, known as the Poseidon Group. This groups is special
in that it is actually a commercial organisations, which attacks by using customised digital certificates to steal critical data from victims and
force them into a business relationship. The malware is made to function on English and Brazilian Portuguese Windows PCs.
There have been at least 35 victims with the main targeted sectors being financial and government institutions, telecommunications,
manufacturing, energy and other service utility companies, as well as media and public relation firms. Victims have been discovered to be either from
the USA, France, Kazakhstan, UAE, India, Russia, and Brazil with the highest victim count.
The Poseidon Groups attacks use spear-phishing emails with RTF/DOC files. When clicked on, the files leave a malicious binary in the targets
system. Once infected, the malware inside contacts a command and control server to begin sending all sorts of information such as credentials, group
management policies, or even system logs. The information collected is then used against the affected company, manipulating them to contract
Poseidon Group as a security consultant.

Gartner Names Trend Micro

And Kaspersky Leaders In
Endpoint Protection
T

rend Micro and Kaspersky Lab have recently announced that they are among the few that are considered Leaders by Gartner, according to the
latest Magic Quadrant for Endpoint Protection Platforms. This evaluation is based on both these companies completeness of vision and ability
to execute.
The research and advisory firm Gartner Inc., provides insights into the IT industry and has named Trend Micro as a leader in enterprise security
solutions for over 10 years. For this year, the security firms position on the leaders quadrant is on the farthest right. This means that Trend Micro is
the number one leading in the investment of cutting-edge technology for Endpoint Protection solutions.
As threats continue to evolve in sophistication and
aggressiveness, we have made it a priority to invest in
comprehensive next generation endpoint protection to
help global enterprises keep pace, said Kevin Simzer,
executive vice president, sales, marketing & business
development, Trend Micro. He added: We believe
Gartners Magic Quadrant placement of us reinforces
that not only are our current efforts on point, but our
vision for the future will continue helping to address
complex challenges.
Kaspersky Labs meanwhile has managed this
feat for five years now. We are pleased to remain a
leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for the fifth time
in a row. We will continue to deliver the industrys best
multi-layered protection by transforming our global
cybersecurity intelligence into technologies that address
a wide range of threats, including known, unknown and
the most advanced ones, said Nikita Shvetsov, the CTO of
Kaspersky Lab. He added that the wealth of expertise we
have gained through years of combating major IT threats
has allowed us to develop endpoint security solutions,
which unite of management with effective protection to
meet our clients most pressing needs.

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security report

Dangerous
RAT
Roaming
The Scenes
T

he term Software-as-a-Service has been around,

but theres one thats not as benevolent. Malwareas-a-Service platforms have been around and
when one hits over 400,000 users globally, it makes
people start to notice the dangers.
Kaspersky Labs has been researching on this
platform with its Global Research and Analysis Team
recently. The platform in, called the Adwind Remote
Access Tool (RAT), goes by many other names. This
cross-platform multifunctional malware program is also
called AlienSpy, Frutas, Unrecom, Sockrat, JSocket and
jRat. According to Kaspersky Labs report, the MaaS has
appeared in various versions from 2013 through 2016,
and have targeted over 443,000 users and organisations around the world.
The malware was discovered at the end of 2015, when Kaspersky Lab discovered the programmes attempt to attack a bank in Singapore. In that
case, a JAR file containing a spear-phishing email was received by an employee of the bank. Kaspersky Lab was alarmed by the malwares capabilities,
which include its ability to run on different platforms and also how it is able to avoid the detection by antivirus solutions.
Being written in Java is how the malware is cross-platform on Windows, OS X, Linux, and even Android. Its able to remotely take control of
desktops and data mine. Should the target open the attached JAR file, the malware initiates self-installation and proceeds to communicate with its
command and control server. Once that connection is established, it can collect the users keystrokes; steal passwords from browsers; capture images
or videos via the webcam; and much more.

Yahoo
Mail Sends
Malware
S
martphone users who open their mails on the
Yahoo website could be the victims of an attack.
Hackers have sent mails with malicious code
to Yahoo Mail users. Just receiving the mails on the
website is enough to start the code. The vulnerability
was around till 21.11.2015, but has now been plugged.

Additional
Protection
For Amazon
Customers
A

mazon now supports two-factor authentication, where the user has

to prove his identity with an additional one-time password every time
he logs in. This service is officially available only in the USA. However,
if you use your account to log into the US website, you can even activate the
feature now by going to the settings.

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world wired web

PowerApps
By Microsoft
Besides Windows and Office, Microsoft
is launching exciting products to
some extent, even as open source

icrosofts newest business field, which is expected to rake

in billions, is called PowerApps. Behind this an easy-tooperate app development suite, which companies can use
to process their data in an easily accessible manner. This doesnt sound
spectacular, but shows that Microsoft is much more than just the developer of Windows and Office. Because while apps today mainly earn money in
the form of games and directed at private users, the applications for companies are lagging far behind. Apps specialised mainly for the requirements of
individual companies are rare.
Microsoft, with its PowerApps, is now giving companies the option to develop apps. For one, the software giant intends to make it easier to access
data from cloud services or company databases (including Office 365, Dropbox and SAP). For another, this data is also expected to be accessible from
anywhere. The applications run in the PowerApp app, which are available on not only Windows but also Android and iOS.
Instead of going by the principle one app for all, Microsoft isnt making any ready apps, but provides companies with a tool that they can use to
make the apps themselves. The possibilities are tremendous and the PowerApps actually have the potential to become Microsofts next huge hit.
Similarly, with respect to companies Microsoft has decided to release a core element of the Windows 10 browser Edge as open source. Developers
can even further develop the JavaScript engine Chakra themselves and for instance, use it for server applications or in the internet of things. Open
source and Microsoft is no longer a contradiction by now. Previously, Microsoft had already published the .NET framework and the developer tool Visual
Studio Code as an open source version, decisions that have made the group a lot more popular.

Raspberry Pi Gets Even Smaller

smaller version of the already quite small Raspberry Pi, called Pi Zero, is now available. This would thrill a lot of fans, because Pi Zero measures
at only 6.5 x 3 x 0.5 centimetres and is technically furnished less lavishly than its big brother - Raspberry Pi 2. Pi Zero runs on a single-core CPU
known from the first Raspberry Pi (Broadcom BCM2835), but at 1 GHz its 40 per cent faster. The Pi Zero Makes do with two micro-USB ports,
one for the power supply. Additionally, there is a micro SD slot and a micro HDMI output. What isnt installed by default is the GPIO header with 40
contacts, which you will have to solder yourself. The software used is Raspbian, on which applications such as Minecraft apparently run despite the
slimmed-down hardware. The Pi Zero costs just under 15 Euros (approx. RM70), thats 20 Euros (approx. RM93) less than the Pi 2.

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world wired web

Fine Of Millions

or five years Apple and Samsung have argued in court over patents, and have now finally come to an agreement: Samsung has to pay a fine of
548mil USD (approx. RM2.2bil). The dispute concerned, among other things, is the tap-to-zoom feature and multi-touch gestures.

IBAN
Reorientation
Coming Up

rom 1st February onwards, banks will accept only the IBAN number
details for transfers and debits. The old account numbers and bank
code numbers will no longer be accepted. By law, banks will have to
reject incorrectly completed transfer forms; many banks will inform their
customers about this over the telephone or by e-mail. The IBAN consists of
the country code (e.g. DE), a two-number check digit, the bank code number
and the account number. The IBAN of the account holder is imprinted on
newer EC cards.

Google Tablet
Pixel C Available

n the growing hybrid market between tablets and notebooks, Google

also wants to carve out a niche for itself. The Pixel C (for Convertible) is
taking on gadgets like the Surface Pro 4 or iPad Pro and is now also
available in Germany. The price: 499 Euros (32 GB) (approx. RM2,330) or
599 euros (64 GB) (approx. RM2,798). If you want the keyboard though,
youll have to shell out an additional 169 Euros (approx. RM789). They
are connected to the 10.2-inch tablet magnetically and charged by
induction via the tablet. The Pixel C runs on Android 6.0 and won us over
in its first practice check with good processing and a crisp display.

Yahoo Splits Up

ahoo is one of the most well-known names on the internet and still one of the major
websites. But the company is doing badly so badly that it is being split up. The classic core
business, which includes the website, search engine and mailing service is being outsourced
to a separate company in this manner, two listed companies will come into existence. The CEO of
Yahoo, Marissa Mayer (photo) and the board of directors dont intend to sell the multi-billion stake
in the Chinese online dealer, Alibaba. Yahoo has a 15 percent stake in Alibaba, which alone should
be worth roughly 30bil USD (approx. RM124bil). Thats almost the entire value of Yahoo, which is
estimated at around 34bil USD (approx. RM141bil). In other words: Yahoos core business has
almost no value. At the moment, Yahoo will drop the initially planned sale of the Alibaba shares,
since the investors see the growth potential here.

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world wired web

New Galaxys
With An
Aluminium
Cover

Samsung does away with a Galaxy

S6 mini, replacing it in the form of the new Galaxy A3 and A5

onsumers wont be seeing a smaller version of the Samsung Galaxy S6. However, the 2016 versions of the Galaxy A3 and A5 will be assuming this
role unofficially. As stated by Samsung, the A series is going to replace the Mini series in 2016. In any case, it bears similarities to the big Samsung
Galaxy S6; the new mobile phones have the same metal frame as the S6 model.
The biggest plus point of the new A models is the microSD slot, which can be used to expand the internal memory. Samsungs decision to omit this
in the S6 had brought a lot of criticism upon it. But on the flipside, the battery cant be changed even in the new A3 and A5.
Both models were convincing in the first test when the gadgets were introduced. Their weight is comfortable to hold, look rather refined, and
respond promptly to inputs. The two devices have obvious differences: the A3 is a 4.7-inch device with a 720p display, while the A5s 5.2-inch screen
outputs at 1080p. The bigger A5 also runs on a higher clocked processor and has a 2GB RAM (instead of 1.5 GB in A3). The battery capacity is also larger,
but what is more interesting is the fast charging feature on the A5. Overall, the A3 is somewhat downgraded in terms of function. In contrast to the A5,
it doesnt have a fingerprint sensor, the activity-tracking S Health, or support for LTE Cat 6; it supports LTE Cat 4 instead, which has a top speed of 150
MBit/s instead of 300, more than enough for current LTE networks. It is therefore clear that Galaxy A3 is positioned as a middle-class model, which is
coming out at 329 Euros (approx. RM1,536) without a contract. The superior Galaxy A5 costs 100 Euros more at 429 Euros (approx. RM2,004). Samsung
has yet to bring these models to Malaysia, but its only a matter of time. It will be interesting to see whether Samsung can give its recently weakened
mobile phone business (see page 18) a new boost and a successful year in 2016.

Red Hat
Gluster
Storage
Unveiled

he worlds leading open-source solutions

developer, Red Hat, has announced the
availability of the Red Hat Gluster Storage
that was developed in partnership with Google
Cloud Platform. This platform is made available
to all Google Cloud Platform users and is a
shared-nothing, scale-out solution. Its aim is to
allow customers to deploy the same storage
technology on-premises, as well as on the
Google Cloud Platform, meaning an easier
transition for existing apps into the cloud.
Contemporary storage solutions dont have this
kind of flexibility, which Red Hat Gluster
Storage does, on top of the high level of
compatibility and agility that is crucial in hybrid
cloud setups.

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Wireless Network
From Light

ransmitting data via light is one of the biggest promises of technology, but hasnt been
honoured as yet. The start-up, Velmenni, is now having another go at it. Its Li-Fi (Light Fidelity)
lamp, Jugnu, theoretically transmits data considerably faster than the traditional WLAN. Up
until now, this new, visual type of data transmission only worked under laboratory conditions.
Researchers at the Oxford University recently succeeded in transmitting data with 224 Gbits per
second, but now Velmenni specialists have, with Li-Fi, achieved a speed of 1GBit per second even
under real conditions significantly faster than the faster WLAN routers today, which can manage
around 750 MBit/s. The system functions like Morse code, where LED lamps transmit data by
quickly switching on and off the binary code. Li-Fi is however restricted to one area, and therefore, it
isnt expected to replace WLAN, but complement it. In fact, this can be used to set up spatially
limited and bug-proof high-speed networks. The first tests of Velmenni in Tallin, Estonia were very
promising. The technology should be ready for the market in three to four years.

world wired web

Sensation Around Vodafones

Planned Cable Throttling

odafone has placed file sharing restrictions on its cable tariffs on hold for now. The provider had previously restricted file sharing offers for the
rest of the day once the user had generated 10 GByte traffic on that given day. This has now come to an end, as a Vodafone spokesperson
confirmed to CHIP. Price hikes are not under discussion and indications show that this could be a climb-down considering the outrage that this
action has elicited. Unfortunately, Vodafone isnt eliminating the restriction threat for good. While the new regulation can indeed be considered to be
officially confirmed, the provider doesnt intend to amend the GTC. Furthermore, it states that from 10 GB of daily traffic onwards, connections to
respective peer-to-peer networks and one-click hosts will be restricted. Cable clients affected by this can only hope for permanent fairness.

Mozilla Buries The First 4K

Thunderbird
Pirated Copies
A
Online
fter more than 12 years, Mozilla Thunderbird is nearing its
end. The mail programs current form doesnt fit the
Mozilla portfolio, according to Mitchell Baker, the executive
chairwoman of Mozilla. With software, Mozilla is pursuing its aim
of occupying an influential position in the market, but
Thunderbird is no longer suited for this. At the same time,
Thunderbird has a negative influence on more important Mozilla
products such as Firefox, whose development speed the tool
couldnt keep up with. For the time being, however, Thunderbird
will continue to gets security updates, and therefore, nothing has
changed yet for users.

etflix and Amazon have a problem. Software pirates have found a way to
make 4K versions of popular series and films available online. Indeed,
there were transcoded versions earlier like Breaking Bad. Copy protection
has been hacked for the first time, though HDCP 22 is still considered secure.
The bootleggers found the exploits in Amazon Fire TV, which supports only the
1.4b version of HDCP. This is what an insider reported regarding the scene site,
Torrentfreak. In any case an unsettling development for Netflix and Co.

Porsche Makes An e-sportscar

t the automobile show, IAA, Porsche surprised everyone with the concept Mission E. The inhabitants of Zuffenhausen now intend to build the
electrically driven sports limousine (classed between the 911 model and Panamera) as a production model. The two e-engines installed at the
axles together deliver 600 HP and fuel all four wheels. When its battery is charged, it should be able to drive 500 kilometres; as far as Tesla.
However, what is special about Mission E is seen only when the battery has to be charged. By means of Porsches turbo charging technology and the
800-volt connection, which is twice as powerful in comparison with current loading units, the battery car floor apparently gets charged to 80% of its
capacity in only 15 minutes. Enough for 400 kilometres more. Alternatively, the Mission E can be charged inductively by an inductor in the garage floor.
Another special feature is also the dashboard described as holographic by Porsche. This feature displays the drive information and individual apps in
various layers and is operated by gestures or a touch display. Porsche intends to put the car on the roads by 2020, and create more than 1,000 jobs for
this.

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tech spelunk

Huawei MateBook
At the Mobile World Congress, its normal to expect announcement of the latest in fancy high-end
smartphones, and thats usually no different for most brands. However, Huawei had something
special to show everyone at this years MWC. The Chinese manufacturer surprised the world with its
own entry into the 2-in-1 laptop-tablet hybrid market in the form of the Huawei MateBook By CHIP Team

The Huawei Convertible

Huaweis new MateBook is a 2-in-1 PC thats popularlyy
called a convertible. It can either be a tablet or a laptop,
p, the
latter achieved by docking with a keyboard. The MateBooks
Books
design is similar to that of the Apples iPad Pro and the
e
brands own MediaPad M2. Its an incredibly thin device
ce at
6.9mm thickness and weighs around 640g, making it
lighter than Apples offering. Like Huaweis own Nexuss 6P,
the MateBook comes with a USB Type-C port, so it will be
compatible with new accessories and monitors like Dells
ells
new UltraSharp 30. Besides that, the main body also has a
volume rocker with a fingerprint sensor between it, as well
as a front facing camera, 3.5mm audio jack, dual speakers,
kers,
and microphone port.

Sweet Display
The 12-inch display of the MateBook covers most of the
he
surface of the device, so that users can better enjoy the
he
2160x1440 resolution IPS screen. While we have yet to
o get
our hands on it for actual testing, initial looks at it seem
m to
indicate very good colour reproduction, very crisp visuals,
als,
and decent brightness.

Impressive Specs
Enclosed inside the MateBook is a processor from Intel
el
Core M series, and the user can pick either an Intel Core
re
M3/M5/M7 before purchase. It will also run on 4GB orr 8GB
of LPDDR3 RAM, have SSD storage of up to 512GB, and
d use
either Windows 10 Home or Pro.

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tech spelunk
Typing Enhancement
Like all 2-in-1s, the MateBook is able to dock with a leather case to transform it from a
tablet into a laptop. The leather case can be folded to prop up the device, turning it into
the MateBooks keyboard plus trackpad. While theres no Numpad, the QWERTY keyboard
has its keys well-spaced out and should provide for a good typing experience. Similar to
other 2-in-1s, third party Bluetooth compatible keyboards can also be used with the
MateBook.

A Dock For The Rest

Due to possible compatibility issues of the USB Type-C port with
legacy devices, Huawei also has a handy dock that will be sold
separately. This dock will have two USB ports, as well as an
Ethernet, VGA, HDMI, and USB Type C port; the last one is there to
replace the existing one that will be used to connect to the dock.
This dock makes the MateBook highly versatile, and is definite
value against the likes of the iPad Pro.

Pointer For Productivity

Huaweis answer to the Microsoft Surface Pen and Apple Pencil is
the MatePen. With its 2,048 levels of sensitivity, the MatePen can
capture almost any users writing or drawing with high accuracy
and zero lag. In addition,
ion, the MatePen has a laser pointer that can
be useful for delivering
ng presentations.

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feature

Technilexicon - eSIM
This year, a brand new integrated chip called the eSIM is set to replace the SIM card. We take a
look at the technology behind this new feature By Markus Mandau

An eSIM In Every Mobile Device

The dual-SIM and multi-SIM constructs show
that the SIM card does not belong to an era in
which everything is networked and the devices
are always becoming smaller and thinner. In
this case, the SIM slot is the only problem.
Companies that produce hardware for internet
of things have already responded.
This group includes suppliers for the
automobile sector such as Infineon, which
produce special chips. In addition to facilitating
the communications involving the individual
components in the car, these chips also play
the role of a SIM by establishing a connection
with the networks. Cars need robustly soldered
chips, not sensitive SIM cards. Such an
embedded SIM (or eSIM) is being produced in
the well-established SON-8 designs.
All the big players in the mobile
communications industry from network

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chip malaysia

providers like Deutsche Telekom to device

manufacturers such as Samsung and Apple
want to pull the eSIM out of the mechanical
world and integrate it into the daily routine of
their mobile communication customers. The
Groupe Speciale Mobile Association (GSMA) is
currently developing a standard whose final
version is supposed to be targeted at the
market. In the future, all mobile devices are
supposed to be connected to the network
providers via the eSIM as the SIM slot is
supposed to be removed completely from new
mobile phones and tablets.
Instead, a chip will be integrated into the
circuit board of the device. Since the eSIM is
firmly embedded, it must be programmable: If
the owner of the mobile phone switches over
to a new provider, his new access data is
written onto the chip, and the data associated
with the previous provider is deactivated. The
eSIM can also save data associated with
multiple providers, which means that it can
practically replace the dual-SIM facility. At the
same time, each eSIM device can be activated
for a specific user; this means that the multiSIM construct will finally become part of our
daily routine. From the customers point of
view, this will translate to a smaller degree of
effort and a larger measure of flexibility, in case
he wishes to rapidly switch over to a new telco
provider.

Telco Data Over The Web

But first, the industry has to set a standard and
set up a new infrastructure, in order to ensure
that the transfer of data onto the eSIM is
protected. This process begins with the
production of the eSIM, whereby two data sets
are pre-installed: The first one contains
information regarding a discovery server on the
internet, which facilitates the first contact
procedure, while the other one stores
certificates.
The eSIM can use these certificates to check
whether the data really is coming from the
discovery server, and to authenticate itself over
the server. If a customer buys the smartphone

with the eSIM and signs a contract with a telco,

it should provide him with a code, which the
customer enters into his smartphone. The
eSIM then makes contact with the discovery
server and sends the code that the customer
received when he signed the contract.

Discovery Servers To Process

eSIM
On the other hand, the telco creates a profile
for the eSIM after the contract has been
signed. He sends this profile to a special service
(subscription manager data preparation), which
combines the profile with the appropriate
certificate. Once the discovery server receives
the code from the eSIM, it contacts the service
and asks for the provider package. It then
transfers and saves the profile (along with the
certificate for the eSIM), and activates it. The
owner of the mobile phone is now registered as
a customer in the providers network.
The eSIM can also save multiple provider
profiles, but only one is activated at any given
time.
The discovery server represents the central
point of the distribution system. Only the
discovery server is allowed to create, activate or
delete the provider profiles on the eSIM.
Neither the customer nor the network operator
can access it.
The GSMA has not yet decided who is to be
allowed to offer the discovery servers. SIM
producers such as Gemalto and providers such
as T-Mobile in the USA already have a
corresponding infrastructure for their eSIM
ranges. Since discovery servers are allowed to
programme eSIMs over the internet, a robust
encryption system is necessary.
The GSMA has specified minimum
requirements for the certificate-based
authentication procedure and the connection
establishment. The specified key sizes are
practically unbreakable. The smartphones are
the only things that are missing: The eSIMequipped iPhone 7 is expected to be launched
in September.

Photo: Infineon

he SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card

has stood up to a number of
transformations over the years. It was
first introduced in the early 90s, together with
GSM mobile communications. Since then, its
physical form has changed and shrunk
continuously over the years, but its core
function and code that is stored inside it has
remained the same. Every mobile or
smartphone user requires a SIM card in order
to be able to establish a connection with his or
her providers network. Without a SIM card, the
only thing that works is the emergency call
feature. If the customer signs a contract with
different proviers, they will get a different SIM
for each provider.
There are also devices with multiple SIM
slots (dual-SIM). The customer can use this
function to log onto another wireless network
when he is abroad. In some cases, telcos also
offer a multi-SIM facility: This involves the
presence of multiple SIMs within the
framework of a single contract, so that the
customer will be able to connect to the network
using a mobile phone, a tablet or a smart
watch.

This is how the embedded

SIM works
The tiny little eSIM chip is programmable, and it can store
multiple provider profiles. As soon as the appropriate
infrastructure has been set up on the internet, it makes it
possible to switch over to a different mobile network at the
touch of a button.

1991 SIM-Karte

1996 Mini-SIM

2003 Micro-SIM

2012 Nano-SIM

2016 eSIM

5 mm

12 mm

12 mm

15 mm
15 mm

6 mm

8,8 mm

54 mm

25 mm

eSIM chip replaces SIM card

The trend that results in ever-smaller SIM cards will
end in 2016, which is when an eSIM chip will be firmly embedded in each mobile device.
85.6 mm

eSIM activation in detail

Profile of the
discovery server

The access data for the providers network is

delivered over the internet. The discovery
server programmes it on the eSIM.

Certificate storage

Purchase

The eSIM chip is installed

in a smartphone, after which it
enters the market.

Provider profile 1

eSIM
manufacturer

Provider profile N

When the eSIM is produced,

two pieces of information are
stored: The profile and address
of the discovery server, and the
certificates.

Discovery
Server

The discovery server uses the

certificate to identify itself as the
eSIM. It stores and activates the
provider profile.

Customer

Certification body
Profile processing
service

The provider sends the profile to

a special service, which provides it
with a certificate.

Provider

The buyer signs

a contract with a
provider. He
receives a code,
which he then uses
to activate his
device.

Secure encryption
Activated

10:10

Minimum key sizes have been prescribed for distributing

and authenticating the eSIM over the internet. According
to the BSIs* forecast, they will be secure until 2021.

ENCRYPTION TYPE

KEY SIZE

Symmetrical (AES)

128-bit, block size of 128 bits

Asymmetrical (RSA)

3.072 Bit

One contract for all devices

Elliptical curve (DHE)

256 Bit

Hash value for digital signatures

Hash value for the key generation
functions and the random number
generator

SHA-256

The customer enters a code into each

eSIM device, which sends it to the
discovery server. The discovery server
then sends the provider profile.

SHA-256

* Federal Office for Information Security

legaltech

E-Evidence
&
E-Forensics
Online crimes are being committed more than ever before. We take a look at what
constitutes as digital evidence, and e-forensics that help authorities make them count in the
court of law
By Edwin Lee Yong Cieh

n Malaysia, the Evidence Act 1950 (EA) is the main legislation

governing the forms of evidence, how evidence is to be proved and
tendered to the court, its relevancy as well as its effects. Section 3
of the EA defines evidence as (a) all statements which the court
permits or requires to be made before it by witnesses in relation to
matters of fact under inquiry (i.e. oral evidence); and (b) all
documents produced for the inspection by the court (i.e.
documentary evidence). Document is defined to mean any matter
expressed, described or howsoever represented, upon any substance,
material, thing or article. As such, documentary evidence would
include all forms of written, printed and electronic evidence.
Information technology has caused a paradigm shift in the way
individuals and organisations create, collect, share and store data
and information. These data and information are stored
electronically, and may become important evidence in the event of
a dispute.
E-Evidence (which includes digital evidence) is any probative
information stored or transmitted in digital form that a party to a
court case may use at trial. The question then is whether such
E-Evidence is legally recognised under Malaysian laws. The short
answer to that is, yes, it is legally recognised.

Admissibility of E-Evidence
A document produced by a computer and a statement contained

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therein are admissible as documentary evidence under Sections 90A,

90B and 90C of the EA. The court will determine if the evidence is
relevant, reliable and authentic. E-Evidence by nature is very fragile
and is easily manipulated, altered, forged, damaged or destroyed. It
is prone to damage or alteration as well as destruction if it is not
properly handled. Therefore, it is technically challenging in
establishing the authenticity and reliability of such evidence.
Section 90A provides that a document is admissible if it was
produced by the computer in the course of its ordinary use. There are
2 methods to satisfy this condition. The first method is by getting
the person in charge of the operation of the computer or the conduct
of the activities for which that computer was used to give an oral
evidence that the document was produced by the computer in the
course of its ordinary use. An example is shown in the case of
Gnanasegaran a/l Perarajasingam v Public Prosecutor where a bank
officer who was in charge of all the operations of the bank branch
gave an oral testimony that the bank statements were produced by a
computer at his branch.
The second method is used in a situation where there is no way
to bring a witness to the court to give an oral evidence. In this case,
the person who wants to bring up such evidence must produce a
certificate signed by a person who is in charge of the operation of the
computer or the conduct of the activities for which that computer
was used to prove that the document was produced by the computer

legaltech
in the course of its ordinary use. Once the
certificate is produced, there is a presumption that
the computer referred to in the certificate was in
good working order and was operating properly in
all respects throughout the material part of the
period during which the document was produced.
The evidential burden of disapproving it would be
on the party challenging its credibility.

Other Types of E-Evidence

E-Evidence includes computer generated/produced
documents, computer printouts, computer outputs,
computer-based/related evidence, electronic data
and electronic documents. This has been
recognised since 1993 when the law was amended
to accept this type of E-Evidence. However,
technology has changed so much that there is now
a new emerging sub-category of E-Evidence called
digital evidence, which refers to evidence is
available in digital form or binary form. Some of the
examples include chat-room and web-browsing
histories, ISP records, digital photographs, video and audio files,
cloud data storage facility, GPS tracks, computer hard-drives as well
as local and virtual databases.
Some digital evidence cannot be printed out. How would the court
treat this type of evidence? In certain countries, their courts
recognise the use of certain software to obtain and secure digital
evidence and accept testimonials given by digital forensics experts.

Authenticity of E-Evidence
Once the document is admissible as an evidence, the court will then
need to assess the authenticity and relevancy of such evidence.
Section 90B says that the court may draw any reasonable inference
from circumstances relating to the document or the statement,
including the manner and purpose of its creation, or its accuracy, in
assessing whether the evidence is authentic and reliable. This would
be essentially a question of fact and the parties would need to bring
in circumstantial evidence to strengthen such evidence.
The court recognises that although the oral testimony and
certificate are two means of authenticating E-Evidence, they are not
sufficient to ensure the originality and genuineness of E-Evidence.
The court will also examine the collection, preservation and discovery
of the E-Evidence to ensure that the contents of the E-Evidence are
authentic.

E-Forensics
Other than calling the maker or witness to the court, another
authentication method is by getting an expert opinion from the
digital forensics experts (Section 45 of the EA). These experts are
trained and skilled in investigating and preserving E-Evidence to
ensure that the chain of custody of such evidence is preserved in its
original and authentic form up to the time when the evidence is
produced in court. While there is no specific provision under the EA
that provides for the admissibility of digital forensics evidence, our
courts have accepted digital forensics findings as expert opinions
provided the experts follow the procedures when giving the evidence.

Getting help from the digital forensics experts is important

especially in cases where the electronic data is deleted or destroyed.
These experts have the necessary tools and expertise in retrieving
the lost data. Recognising the need for the development of digital
forensics expertise in Malaysia, the Ministry of Science, Technology &
Innovation has set up an agency under its control to deal with digital
forensics matters. The agency is known as CyberSecurity Malaysia
(CSM).
Since its establishment, CSM has been the focal point in digital
forensics in Malaysia. The services offered by CSM include digital
forensics, data recovery, data sanitisation, expert witness as well as
training and certification. CSM works with law enforcement agencies,
regulatory bodies as well as public and private companies. CSMs
experts have assisted in a number of digital forensics cases,
including high-profile cases such as the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder
case, the V.K. Lingam Video Clip, DSAI China Doll video clip case, DSAI
Liwat 2 case, insult Sultan Perak case, insult Sultan Johor case, illegal
online soccer gambling during World Cup 2010, illegal Ponzi scheme
Dana futures, Maldives credit card fraud case and many more
including cases in Intellectual Property Court. Reports and
testimonials from CSMs experts have been accepted by our courts.
Digital evidence requires special handling skills and precise tools
and this is where the digital forensics experts come in handy. These
experts are equipped with specific knowledge and skills and have the
ability to present the evidence and assist the parties and the judges
in understanding the digital evidence tendered at trials.

The view expressed in this article is intended to provide a general

guide to the subject matter and does not constitute professional
legal advice. You are advised to seek proper legal advice for your
specific situation.

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ffeature
e atuu r e
Allrounder
(SATA 3): 550
MB/s
1

High End
(M.2/NVMe):
>2.000MB/s
2

Getting The Most Out

Of Your SSDs
An SSD is the most effective way to make your PC go faster. With our tips, the purchase, the
installation and the operations will be made easy For optimal speed and a long service life

f your goal is to make your day-to-day

computing run smoother and faster, an SSD
upgrade beats every other option. The delayfree call-up of data accelerates the boot-up
procedure, the launching of software and the
response to every click of the mouse. All in all,
the advantages are significantly more visible
than the advantages associated with an
upgrade of the CPU or the RAM. However,
certain factors deter users from an upgrade or
make them feel uneasy during the devices
operations: SSDs are considered to be too
expensive and too small for a single drive.
Apart from that, many users want to avoid the
complicated task of re-installing the operating
system. Finally, reliable statistics are not
available regarding the actual lifespan of SSDs,
whose Flash cells are always subject to a

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certain amount of wear and tear. Regardless

of whether youre a little hesitant about
making the upgrade or whether youre already
using an SSD, well show you how you can
avoid all these problems.

From
Purchase To
Operation
As we will describe in points 1 through 5,
certain things have to be kept in mind when it
comes to selecting the optimal SSD and
putting it in operation. The task of choosing
the right SSD and the manner in which you

migrate to the SSD will depend on your system

and your preferences. The section beginning
with step 6 addresses the operations. There
are always some differences between an SSD
and a conventional magnetic hard drive. For
example, these differences be can related to
the deletion of files or the rectification of
errors.

Best all-round drive

Most users who are upgrading from a

magnetic hard drive or an old and small SSD
would be well-served with a SATA SSD with
about 500GB of storage. These are available
for prices ranging from RM600 onwards, and
usually offer enough storage space for the
operating system, programmes and user data.
On top of that, the SSDs 2.5-inch chassis fits

Photos (from left to right): Samsung; Transcend; Nikolaus Sch ffler (2); Sebastian Sonntag

By Christoph Schmidt

feature
3a

into notebooks and desktop PCs. Although the

SATA 3 interface limits the data rate to a
maximum of 600 MByte/s, SATA SSDs transfer
data four or five times as quickly as magnetic
hard drives. Modern SSDs with a minimum
warranty period of three years are designed to
be compatible with a large amount of written
data: If the device is used in conjunction with a
private desktop, this limit is often reached after
a good ten years

3b

3 Transferring the operating

system to an SSD

If you want the fastest possible SSD, it has to

use PCI Express 3.0 instead of SATA This
usually requires an Intel Skylake motherboard.
There are currently two such products: Some
options in this category include the Intel SSD
750 and the Kingston HyperX Predator which
feature a plug-in card for the PCIe slot in PCs.
The Samsung SSD 950 Pro meanwhile features
the M.2 form factor, and it fits into compatible
PC motherboards or Skylake notebooks
featuring an M.2 slot. These products feature
data transfer rates of over two GByte per
second, and these data transfer rates are three
to four times as fast as those of SATA SSDs
However, in comparison with the jump from an

Before you start installing the SSD, you should

think about whether and how you would like to
transfer your existing system from the old
drive to the new SSD. In order to attain the
best performance, you should re-install the
operating system and the programmes after
the installation procedure has been completed;
you should then copy the files.
The task of mirroring the old drive on the
SSD is simpler, but it doesnt always work out.
The easiest way to do this is to perform the
task while Windows is running, with the help of
a software that has been supplied by the
manufacturer (such as Samsung Data
Migration). If that doesnt work, experienced
users can try the Clonezilla live system. In any
event, you should first connect the new SSD to
the system. In case youre using a PC, you can
use a free SATA port. Since notebooks only
have a 2.5-inch shaft and a SATA port, you will
have to buy an external 2.5-inch hard drive
casing that has a USB 3.0 port. Alternatively,
you can use a SATA-to-USB adapter, such as
the item that can be found in Samsungs SSD
installation kits. Connect the SSD using this
device for the transfer; you can then use the

HDD to a SATA SSD, this advantage is less

noticeable during daily usage.

hard drive that has been removed as an

external drive.

2 When only the performance

matters

HDD and SSD in the notebook

In case of most notebooks, you can only replace

the existing HDD with a SATA SSD that is in an
ordinary 2.5-inch casing. If the notebook has an
optical drive, it can often be replaced with an
OptibayHD adapter, which is compatible with a
2.5-inch SATA SSD. Under certain
circumstances, your notebook will also be able
to accommodate an additional SSD as an
mSATA or M.2 module. You can find out
whether this will work by entering your
notebook model into the Advisor Tool on the
website www.crucial.de: If M.2 or mSATA SSDs
are listed, these devices will be compatible with
your computer. Use the notebook manual to
find out where the M.2 or mSATA slot is, and
install the SSD in accordance with the
accompanying instructions.

Installation in a desktop PC

Typical PC cases often have no space for

installing small SSDs since 2.5-inch slots for
SATA SSDs are quite rare. Some casings have
bore holes on the rear side of the mainboard
base plate, onto which the SSD can be screwed.
Otherwise, you can install the drive in a 3.5-inch
slot with the help of adapter rails. However, in
most cases, all you have to do is use two screws
to attach the SSD to the side wall of a 3.5-inch
slot. M.2 models present no problems
whatsoever as they fit directly onto the
mainboard.

6 Optimising the operating

system
In any event, you should install and use the
manufacturers SSD software. Tools like Intel
SSD Toolbox ensure that the SSD runs with the
newest firmware. Furthermore, the tool tests
whether the partition alignment and the
settings of the operating system are as they
should be. If necessary, it tells you how to
optimise these points. In case of a newly-

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039

feature
6b

6a

installed version of Windows (from version 7

onwards), this shouldnt be required, but its
definitely necessary in situations involving a
mirroring operation or the old Windows XP
system. If the manufacturer does not offer a
tool that can run such tests and optimisation
measures, you should use the benchmark tool
AS SSD to check the alignment (i.e. whether the
partitions have been created such that they are
compatible with the storage structure of the
SSD).
The upper left section of the screen will
display an offset value such as 1024 K, and a
green OK will be right next to it. Alternatively,
a red Bad will be displayed. In such a case, you
must use the Parted Magic live USB system to
adjust the alignment, by shifting the partition
boundaries.

Optimal distribution of data

If your computer uses an SSD with a maximum

capacity of up to 500 GByte as a mass storage
device, a single C: partition for the operating
system, programmes and files would be the
most sensible solution. It would be conducive to
the service life of the SSD if you could keep a
few percentage points of the available space
empty during the creation of the partition (e.g.
during the Windows installation). By doing so,
you would be enhancing the active
overprovisioning facility. This relates to the
extra memory cells, which replace cells that
malfunction due to age.
If you are using the SSD and the hard drive
simultaneously, the operating system and the
programme should be stored on the SSD (drive
C:), along with your home directory (C:\Users\
[User name]). In the case of the latter, you
should transfer the directories containing
space-consuming user data onto the hard drive.
In order to ensure that you can quickly access
these files from any Explorer window and save/

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load dialogue, you should, under Windows 7,

add them to the Windows libraries. To do so,
open the respective library in the Explorer (e.g.
Pictures or Music), and click the link behind
Include:. In the following dialogue, remove the
folder associated with the SSD, and add it to
the HDD. Under Windows 10, navigate to the
target folder on the hard drive and drag the
folder symbol from the URL tab into the Quick
access section.

Vacate space regularly

Since the capacity is usually limited, the SSD

can fill up more quickly than a hard drive, and
operating the device at the limit of its capacity
also damages the performance of the Flash
cells. Consequently, you should clear up the
SSD on a regular basis: This means that you
should transfer the files that have been
downloaded onto the SSD to the hard drive, or
use CCleaner to delete temporary files. If these
measures do not lower the fill level below 90%,
you should run the Windows data carrier
clean-up operation (right-click the respective
drive in Explorer, and then click Properties >
Disk Cleanup).

Delete securely from the SSD

If you want to store particularly sensitive data

on your SSD, you should note that in
comparison with an HDD, it is much harder to

delete such data from an SSD. In case of an

HDD, a tool such as Eraser can overwrite the
physical storage section associated with the
file to be deleted with random data. However,
the controller of the SSD would, on account of
so-called wear levelling, write the random
data in a different storage section, in order to
guarantee the balanced attrition of all Flash
cells.
Theoretically, the original data remains
readable until all the free memory of the SSD
has been overwritten. In practice, you must
delete the files in Windows, and then use
Eraser to repeatedly overwrite the free
memory, in order to also delete the
overprovisioning sections that cannot be
addressed by the operating system. It would
be more practical to use the secure erase (refer
to the Refurbish old SSDs section) option to
completely clear the SSD before you sell it or
hand it over to a third party.

This Is How To
Solve All SSD
Problems
According to the market researchers from IHS,
SSDs have a lower annual malfunction rate for

In conjunction
with SSDs, a fast
NAS with two LAN
ports (in this case,
the Netgear Ready
NAS 212) provides
a lot of capacity
within the network

Rescue data
A data recovery
tool like Recuva
can work if you
connect an SSD
that is no longer
booting up to a
system that is still
in operation

the warranty period (1.5 percent) than HDDs (5

percent). However, there are often several
things you can do if you encounter problems.

Refurbish old SSDs

SSDs that are more than five years old lack the
garbage collection mechanism, which
preserves the write-performance for a drive
which is increasingly being filled up. Such SSDs
become slower and slower. Their speed can be
re-enhanced through deletion and reinstallation. First, use Clonezilla to create an
image of the SSD on an external drive.
You should then save the data separately.
The secure erase command can be executed by
the manufacturers tool (but only if the system
is not currently using this SSD) or the Parted
Magic live Linux system. Use the UNetbootin
tool to store it on a USB stick, boot up from the
USB stick and use the System Tools > Erase
Disk option. Now, select the Internal Secure
Erase.. option and the SSD that is to be
deleted. The computer is then switched over to
the stand-by mode, after which it is woken up
to execute the secure erase operation. The SSD
will then be irretrievably deleted. The Clonezilla
image can then be used to make it as good as
new.

Photos; Netgear (t.); Quickstore (b.)

A defect isnt equivalent to a total

loss
When Windows stops booting up from the SSD,
write access operations are often the only
things that do not work. If you remove the ailing
drive and connect it to a running PC (first the
slender SATA data plug, and then the broad
power plug), the SSDs data can be recovered
In the best-case scenario, this can be done with
the help of Explorer. If the files cannot be seen,
you should try to use recovery software such as
Recuva. Otherwise, experts will be able to
integrate the SSD into a (live) Linux system for
read-only access.

Solving more complexs problems

Inexplicable SSD problems can often be traced
back to incompatible hardware or UEFI settings.

The old SSD is

empty, but fast: A
secure erase
operation carried
out with Parted
Magic makes it
possible

For example, some Lenovo Thinkpad T540s

completely erased each and every Samsung
SSD 840 Evo. The only solution is to update the
firmware of the SSD. Another problem: After
being upgraded to an SSD, computers featuring
Intels Rapid Start technology get stuck during
the boot-up procedure. In such a case, the
simplest solution would be to deactivate Rapid
Start in the UEFI settings. When it comes to
such sporadic problems, you should check
whether the

SSD Tricks For

Specialists

Turbo-speed USB 3 drive

If you are replacing an older SSD on account and
impervious external drive. If your computer
supports USB 3.0 or 3.1, you should insert the
SSD into an appropriate USB casing (refer to
point 3).

SSD-speed in the network

If the NAS features two interconnectable gigabit
LAN ports (link aggregation), doing so would be
advantageous in environments in which
multiple users simultaneously use the network
to access large volumes of data In such a case,
two users would be able to work on the files in
conjunction with the full gigabit-LAN speed.

An SSD can usually be used as a system drive,

but other configurations should be used for
special purposes.

High speed in an old PC

If older mainboards are equipped with a fast
multi-core CPU and a sufficient quantity of
RAM, they can perform quite well. However,
when it comes to SSDs, their SATA 2 interfaces
that provide a transfer rate of just 300 MByte/s
represent a genuine bottleneck. You can
circumvent this problem by linking two smaller
SSDs and connecting them to a RAID-0 system
that is twice as large and almost twice as fast.
However, in order to be able to install Windows
on the RAID system, the system must be
created at the BIOS level of the motherboard.

Self-built and fast

external drive
An out-of-service SSD
can be a turbo-speed
portable drive if its in
a USB 3 casing

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041

Set Up Your
Social Media
Profile The
Right Way
Social Networks can help in your job hunt. But only if you
maintain your profile properly and dont display any embarrassing content on Facebook By Fabian Von Keudell

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ccounts with business networks such as

Xing or LinkedIn can be very helpful and
get you potential job contacts when
youre on the lookout for a job. But its just as
important to check your private networks for
sensitive material. Well show you how you can
do this.

Business
Networks
If you want your business profile to be received
by staff managers, it isnt enough to merely
complete your own profile. On Xing, LinkedIn
and the like, you should also expand the reach
of your profile using hidden features. Then, even
head hunters will find your entries and then
write to you specifically in a best-case scenario.
Concentrate on a business network
depending on your preferred target group. Xing,
with roughly eight million members, is the
number one networking site in Germany.
LinkedIn has around seven million users in
Germany, Austria and Switzerland together, but
in turn scores international points: it has linked

Photos from L to R, T to B: iStockphoto/ NI QIN, Maica, shapecharge, 123rf/Serhiy Kyrychenko; iStockphoto/Charles Schmidt,
ThomasVogel, PeopleImages, slavemotion, g-stockstudio, SeanShot, Imgorthand; 123rf/Andrey Kiselev; Dreamstime/
Warrengoldswain; iStockphoto/AlenaPaulus, Johnny Greig

ffeature
eature

feature

LinkedIn your blogs on the net

Under LinkedIn Pulse, users can send blog entries that can also be found on
the web. This makes the profile more popular

Online etiquette for your business

network
Xing integrated job search
The integrated job exchange looks for suitable job openings with the help of your profile
information

more than 400 million people around the globe.

Complete your profile

The meat and potatoes of both networks is a
completely filled-out profile. This results in
seven times more profile hits on an average,
according to LinkedIn. Moreover, your entry will
be provided as a business contact more
frequently to other participants. Make sure
that youve entered a serious e-mail address in
your contact data. This cant be a fun address
like the_dude@spammail.com. Incidentally, if
you dont want anyone to find your Facebook
profile with the e-mail address entered in Xing
and LinkedIn, enter an alternative address and
not your main account. But you must link the

profiles (see Private networks and blogs).

While putting up your profile picture, make
sure that it is a relatively high-quality image
that isnt pixelated. You dont have to upload
your complete CV, as a brief version is usually
enough. If youre applying to places outside of
your country, you should also create a version
of your profile thats relevant to the country
youre applying in. On LinkedIn, you can do this
directly on Display profile > Create profile in
another language.
The next step involves keywords that outline
your skills in a few words. Select your top skills
carefully, because these fields will be displayed
right at the top by Xing and LinkedIn. It is
therefore preferable to enter common terms,

No boasting
Speak about your qualifications very modestly
in your online profile
Complete profile
Pay attention to your profile picture, CV and
qualifications
Correct spelling
Check your texts using the software and with
the help of another person
Pleasantness
Always use greeting and leave-taking
expressions
Quick response
Reply to requests within a day as far as possible
and no play of words even if youre highly
creative. On LinkedIn, your contacts can endorse
your skills by clicking on them. To approve this,
for Add skills under I want my skills to be
endorsed, click on yes. You must now
network your profile perfectly

ARE PREMIUM FEATURES WORTH THE MONEY?

Share your profile optimally

Xing and LinkedIn offer, besides the

standard accounts, the option of switching
to a premium version against payment.
Xing (approx. 7 euros (RM32) a month) Xing
displays premium users better and with
more details to employers looking for job
contacts. For the users themselves, the
direct contact request is beneficial. You can
thus write to people who arent in your Xing
address book. Useful: you receive initial

message to other users who arent in your

contact list. Additionally, you will get more

In your business profiles, you can also give links

to other social networking site accounts and
blogs.
On Xing, you will find the feature under
Other profiles on the network on your
account. On LinkedIn, you can insert the links
under Professional experience.
You must switch your profile to visible.
Only then will you be found by others. However,
we recommend switching off one function for
data privacy reasons: the telephone number

consultation from the labour lawyer. The

offer is worth it for a job hunt.
LinkedIn (approx. 18 euros (RM82) a month)
You have the option here as well to send a

statistics functions and even be able to see

the profile contents of strangers. But the
basic membership is enough for a simple
job search.

search on LinkedIn. The default setting allows

any user to find your profile with the help of
your telephone number. Spammers perform a
random number search and find the

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043

Google search
If you allow Google access to
your social networking
accounts, youll be more visible
and easier to find online

Phishing alarm
A telephone number search
should be limited to the
persons own contacts

Security risk for public accounts

Public profile
Allow Facebook to let even users without a
social network account to see your profile.

corresponding telephone subscriber and send

personalized spam or phishing messages to the

Make my public profile visible to everyone.

smartphone. You can find the feature under

Profile > Privacy > Controls > Decide how
persons who have your telephone number can
get in touch with you.
To become more popular on the online
services, we recommend you to have your
business profile indexed by Google. On Xing, you
can find the option under Settings > Privacy >
Profile settings. Here, enable the option My
profile can be findable in search machines. This
process is a bit more complicated on LinkedIn.
Here, the network, in the data privacy settings,
differentiates between your internal and public
representation. If you want your account to be
found using Google, you must, in the case of the
latter, enable the corresponding options under

Private
Networks And
Blogs
If your business appearance is optimised, lets
now proceed to its private variants.

Updating Facebook
Always check if you have posted any
compromising things online. You will also find
an overview of all your posts and likes in your
Activity log, where you can also delete photos
and entries. For the future, you should also
enable the feature Timeline review in the

REMOVING WEB CONTENT

Sensitive content on websites and blogs
arent always easy to delete. There are
services online that claim to do this job for
you. The providers demand very different
prices, but what is good for you?
Cheap and not very helpful
Companies that guarantee for less than a
hundred euros, that your online appearance

networks. But you can also do this yourself

with just a little bit of effort (seeCheck
websites and search queries).
Expensive but effective
Real professionals cost anything from
several hundreds to thousands of ringgit
depending on the intention. For this, the
companies, using black SEO techniques, can

will appear flawless, often dont do much

more than what you can yourself for
example, such companies remove a Google
search and posts in the accounts of social

even manipulate entries on Google such

that they no longer appear on the first page,
but much later. In doing this, the providers
often operate in a legally grey area.

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Phishing
See to it that your phone numbers arent
publicly available. Phishers often send mails to
addresses of public accounts
Separate e-mail address
For private and business networks, use your
own e-mail addresses and not your main
account
Be choosy
Only accept serious contacts, or else you could
receive annoying spams

settings. With this, you can check posts in

which you have been tagged, before these
appear in your timeline.

Check websites and search

queries
First of all, make a Google web and image
search for your name. With this, you will quickly
find out which information about you is
available online. But watch out: even when you
delete contents from your own pages, these
could still be found on Google. In that case,
delete the entries via google.com/webmasters/
tools/removals. If the content is on external
pages, request the page operator to delete
them and then remove the Google entry. Once
this is done, you can proceed to your job search
after being reassured. But be careful, because
everything you post in the future can now be
seen by outsiders. Even the accounts are linked
to one another. This has advantages as well as
disadvantages. Therefore, you should regulate
the visibility of your account a little again and
perhaps disable the Google indexing once youve
found a job.

feature

Disabling
Windows 10
Upgrade

n order to bring Windows 10 to the masses,

Microsoft chose a strategy that has irritated
many users. The biggest pet peeve when
upgrading to Windows 10 is the Get Windows
10 Tool (GWX tool) which can be recognised
through a small Windows 10 icon in the
taskbar of Windows 7 and 8. Every time the
system starts, the tool pops up to pester the
user into a system upgrade. This mainly bugs
users who want to stay with Windows 7 or
8.1. Theres a solution for those who are
annoyed by Microsofts insistence to upgrade
the operating system. The GWX tool can
actually be removed quite easily. Since this
tool is installed as a Windows update, it can
be removed in the same way.

Delete downloaded updates

First switch to the control panel and then click

Not everyone wants to upgrade to Microsofts latest

operating system. Use our trick to get rid of the annoying
Get Windows 10 tool once and for all By Benjamin Hartlmaier
on (depending on the view) Uninstall
programs or Programs and Functions. Next,
click on Show installed updates in the left
column, and then look for the update
KB3035583. The fastest way to do is it with
the search field on the top-right (picture 1).
Mark the relevant entry and select Uninstall.
Confirm the following dialog box with a yes
and restart your computer following the
uninstallation.

Prevent forced updates

The GWX tool may have disappeared now, but

Microsoft will try to reinstall it on your

computer by means of a Windows update. Go
to Windows Update (via Control panel >
System and security > Windows update) and
click on Search for updates in the left column
(picture 2a). Once the search is completed, at
least one important update should be
available. Click on the link that takes you to
the list of important updates, and search for
the update with the serial number
KB3035583. Right-click on the entry and
select Hide update. Exit the list by clicking on
OK. Windows Update will skip this update
immediately and your computer will be free of
the GWX tool.

Restore the upgrade tool

Should you want to perform the upgrade later,

you can restore the GWX tool just as easily.
Click on Show hidden updates in Windows
Update, then tick the box next to the update
KB3035583, and click Restore.

Nursery Hackers
Toymakers are sloppy when it comes to data privacy and hackers manage to find a peephole
into the lives of the little ones By Moritz Jger

Barbie that eavesdrops on children

and saves their conversations on the
Internet. A manufacturer of
computers for children, who has the profile
pictures and addresses of children and their
parents on his servers. A baby monitor that
shares a view of the baby cot on the
internet. Digital products connected to the
internet found their way into the nursery
long ago. Unfortunately, its getting evident
more often that the manufacturers of these
online toys dont take data security
seriously enough.

Barbie: interactive and

attackable
The newest Barbie doll is called Hello
Barbie, and emulates Siri and Cortana: the
doll is connected to the internet by Wi-Fi,
and has a microphone the child can talk
to the doll, which replies correspondingly. In
addition, all conversations are recorded,

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forwarded to the Internet via WiFi, and

analysed on the servers of the third-party
provider, ToyTalk. The generated answers
are given by the doll and supposedly enable
communication in a natural manner.
Security researchers such as those from
BlueBox uncovered certain potential flaws
mainly in conjunction with the Hello Barbie
app. Hackers could use the access data for
attacking, for instance, and additionally, the
smartphones would be connected with a
WLAN if it has Barbie in its name. In the
worst case, the doll can be turned into a
microphone which the attacker can use to
listen in on all the conversations of the
child.
Even ToyTalk has fought these
allegations and explained in a statement
that the systems in themselves are safe
and are protected by encryption. However,
the work done here was sloppy: the
providers servers can be attacked by

Poodle attacks. By means of this attack,

this encryption can be disabled and
downgraded to an outdated and therefore
vulnerable encryption system (see
infographics). The Poodle backdoor has
been known since October 2014; ToyTalk
should have included this in its security
structure right from the beginning.
This isnt the first time that a networked
doll has had to fight security problems.
Experts removed the security from the
Cayla doll way back in 2014. This too
communicates with servers online it can
be easily taken over and then give back
random sentences.

Data sloppiness par excellence

The manufacturer VTech takes its
customers data even less seriously. VTech
is a Chinese company known particularly
for its electronic toys such as laptops or
mobile phones for kids, and its annual

Photos: iStockphoto/Ugurhan Betin (lead story); Mattel/dpa/Picture Alliance (Hello Barbie); Reuters/Tyrone Siu (VTech); Toshiba (notebook)

feature

feature
Barbie outwitted
With a man-in-the-middle threat, the new Hello Barbie can be made to
transfer voice data from the nursery in an unsafe manner susceptible to
interception via SSL 3.0 encryption

Hello
Barbie

1 TLS 1.2
2 TLS 1.1
3 TLS 1.0
4 SSL 3.0

Man in the
Middle

CloudServer

x
x
x

Hacker
turnover was over 1.8 billion US dollars in
2014. A part of this company is a digital
Data MCA at VTech
shop, the Learning Lodge, a combination of
A hacker could access personal data and even pictures of children on the servers of the
the app store, bookshops and a range of
Chinese manufacturer
games. The apps downloaded are installed
on the VTech devices and ask, like most
only available to the authorized people, but
offers of this type do, for a lot of private
at worst, freely available publically. Looking
data. Whoever collects such data also
for access is easy. Specialised search
then use the surfing behaviour of this user
protects it. VTech has failed completely here
machines such as Shodan find several
group. The American consumer protection
and obviously ignored all the latest
thousand entries when you look for
organisation EFF has criticised that in doing
approaches used for data privacy. By means
webcam. The security researchers at
this, Google has failed to adhere to its
of a simple SQL injection attack, a hacker
Rapid7, in a study, found innumerable flaws
promises to schools and authorities.When
managed to copy the personal data of more
in baby monitors by well-known
parents bring digitally networked products
than five million parents and 200,000
manufacturers like Philips, iBaby and
to the nursery be it a toy or webcam they
children from the database. The data didnt
TrendNet.
must understand that security gaps can
contain only the names, addresses, e-mail
never be eliminated entirely. They also have
addresses or passwords, but even the
Do parents share responsibility? the responsibility to see to it that their own
birthdays of the children as well as photos
Companies are undoubtedly to be blamed
data as well as their childrens is protected.
that were taken for Learning
first and foremost for these
This truth is very uncomfortable and even
Lodge. The hacker bluntly cited
incidents. When companies
stricter conditions or manufacturers wont
the online magazine, Motherboard
dont even integrate basic
change a thing. Furthermore, the principle of
(a channel of vice.com) as his
safety mechanisms into their
data economy applies here: as little as
motivation for the attack. As far
networked systems, attacks
possible, as much as necessary the lesser
as he was concerned, he was
like those on VTech, Barbie or
data is saved, the lesser are the chances of it
pointing out the bad security.
Cayla are inevitable.
being stolen.
This inconspicuous webcam is
The VTech infrastructure was
Unfortunately, parents
still vulenrable to hack attacks
easy to hijack and the attacker
have few ways of protecting
that allow strangers to watch
your children from afar
Is Google spying on students?
even managed to obtain
themselves from the security
US students often use Chromebooks Google knows
comprehensive root rights.
gaps of networked devices.
their surfing behaviour
There was nothing else left for VTech to
The only safe option is to avoid them entirely
do but confess to the hacking and do
- at least until the lawmaker introduces
damage control.
binding standards for the data privacy of
such products, and above all, implements
Baby monitors freely accessible them.
Hackers dont have their sights on just toys.
Not only are criminals after private data;
Baby monitors with an WiFi connectivity are
companies, too, are interested in gathering
wildly popular because several makers
sacrifice safety for comfort. What only a few
parents know: a baby monitor, whose
camera is accessible via the internet, is not

data on children and adolescents. For

instance, Google is suspected of providing
cheap Chromebooks to the students in the
USA deliberately so that it can analyse and

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feature

The
Superbrain
In their quest to built a robust artificial intelligence,
brain researchers want to unravel natures biggest
miracle and simulate it on a computer By Roman Leipold

Origin of life

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4 billion years ago

Cambrian Explosion

500 million years ago

feature

Photos: iStockphoto/Ingram Publishing (brain), carrollphoto (circuit board); Tomislav Medak/Eikipedian/CC BY 2.0/Processing Bill Bertram (PC); IBM Research (Watson);
Venusianer/Wikipedia/CC BY-SA 3.0 (Computer); SSPL/Getty Images (train); dpa/Picture Alliance/AKG-Images/Erich Lessing (writing); Scan by Jossi via Wikipedia (printing)

umanity stands on the threshold of the

greatest revolution in its history.
Technology companies, militaries and
research laboratories are working on a digital
super-intelligence, which will change
everything at a breathtaking speed: Society, our
lives and even our deaths.
Is this the beginning of a utopian age, or the
beginning of the last days of mankind? We still
dont know which route were going to take. In
a new series, CHIP is going to highlight the
unbelievable opportunities associated with this
AI revolution, along with its underestimated
risks.
Given the fact that it has been keeping the
digital world busy for 50 years, Moores law
represents a somewhat blurry issue. Firstly, its
not exactly a law, but rather a mixture of a
thumb rule and a forecast. Secondly, there is
no concrete formula that can capture Gordon
Moores insight in numbers or words. In 1965,
the co-founder of Intel predicted that the
number of transistors that can be
accommodated on a processor would double
every year. Ten years later, he revised his
estimate to a two-year cycle.
Today, with the benefit of hindsight, it can
be said that the integration density doubled
every 20 months. The death of Moores law
was announced quite frequently. However,
even when the miniaturisation of silicon chips
runs up against its atomic and energetic limits,
the performance enhancement trend will
continue for a long time thanks to new
architectures and materials.

five PlayStation 2s from the year 2000. The

latest PlayStation 4 console totally eclipses the
Intel ASCI Red, which was the most powerful
supercomputer in the world in 1998.
Ray Kurzweil is convinced that Moores Law
isnt just valid for the digital era as he believes
that it applies to all the information processes
in human history, which he considers to be a
consistent evolution in terms of patterns:
Evolution works in an indirect way: Each stage
uses the methods for information processing
that originated during the previous stage, in
order to reach the next stage. The graphics on
these pages illustrate this dynamic
development by revealing the shrinking timegaps between more and more complex events.

The period of time that began with the origin of

life (the so-called chemical evolution that took
place at the beginning of the earths history)
and ended with Cambrian Radiation (which was
the point at which biological diversity began to
take shape) contained about 3.5 billion years.
The time-gap between this point and the
current point in history contained a good 500
million years.
Another 150,000 years passed before the
homo sapien read his first book, and the wheel
was invented in the next period of time. The
time-gap between Gutenbergs invention and
the first Windows crash contained another 500
years. Now, 30 years later, we consult our
smartphones about self-driving cars.

Countdown to artificial intelligence

Ray Kurzweil considers evolution to be an exponential development. In the digital era, events are
coming thick and fast, and this will result in the AI big bang the singularity
2
20
2045 Singularity:
Intelligence
explosion
In
IInt
n
2029
AI simulates and overtakes
the human brain

2011 IBM Watson

Triumph einer KI im semantisch
anspruchsvollen Quiz Jeopardy

1977 PC

Ray And How

He Sees The
World
Moores law describes the developments
associated with the entire IT sector, whose
exponential dynamism is historically
unprecedented. All devices and components
are always becoming faster, smaller and
cheaper. In terms of capacity, the Galaxy S6
Samsungs top smartphone is on a par with

1941 Computer

1760 Industrial revolution

1450 Printing
3000 BC Writing

Homo sapiens

150,000 years ago

3000 BC

1500 AD

2045

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feature

Moores law
In 1965, Intels co-founder
Gordon Moore formulated
his forecast for the future
of semiconductor
technology: The integration
density of transistors per
chip would double every
one to two years
Moores law goes on: Zeiss (in Jena) is reaching the next stage of nanoelectronics
through lithography involving extreme UV light

Kurzweil is a technology genius with many

talents. He specialises in pattern detection. He
invented the flat bed scanner and the voice
synthesiser and is currently employed as
Googles chief engineer. Apart from all this, Mr
Kurzweil also wrote popular non-fiction books.
However, the 67-year old describes himself as a
futurist, whose forecasts are as safe as can be.
When it comes to Mr Kurzweils long-term
prophecies, he has a hit rate of 86 percent; one
of his forecasts was about the resounding
victory of the internet. He predicted this when
the only people interested in the issue were
nerds in the basements of their universities. In
the middle of the 80s, he announced that a
computer would defeat a flesh-and-blood
grandmaster in a chess match in the year 1998.
He was off by just one year It happened in
1997.

happened on this planet of ours. That was the

flat beginning of the exponential curve, and
then biology cranked up quite quickly: In
conjunction with the evolution of humanity,
epoch-making events took place at evershorter intervals. On account of the exponential
technical progress, the events have been
coming thick and fast; the curve shape in our
graphic knows only one direction: Steeply
upwards.

Technology as a new stage of

evolution
As before, his predictions are still waved aside
as baseless exaggerations. However, Mr
Kurzweil points out that many people view
technological progress in an intuitively linear
fashion: We have to practice thinking
exponentially. If I take 30 steps in a linear
fashion, I arrive at the number 30. If I take 30
steps in an exponential fashion, I arrive at the
number one billion.
When Mr Kurzweil was studying, he rode a
bicycle to reach a university computer that was
as large as a building. Today, he uses a
smartphone that can do a lot more, which costs
a lot less and can fit into a shirt pocket.
According to Mr Kurzweil, a computer will be
able to fit into a blood cell in another 20 years.
With his craft mixture of Darwin and Moore
(which he calls the law of accelerating returns),

According to Mr Kurzweil, technological

intelligence will eventually overtake its
biological counterpart. Its expected to happen
in the year 2029; at this point in time, a robot
will be able to do everything that a human being
can do. Pretty soon, it will be able to do a lot
more. From the humans point of view, the
phase marked by the merging of biology and
technology will accelerate. The process that
began with wooden legs, gold teeth and contact
lenses will end with the immortality of the
human being, who will be able to digitally or
physically enhance or replicate his mind and his
body.
According to Mr Kurzweil, along with digital
technology, genetics and nanotechnology will
also contribute to humanity 2.0. In his book of
the same name, the smart American makes
many promises of salvation: By reprogramming our genetic code, we will be able

Mr Kurzweil peeks into the future of humanity.

Depending on how you look at it, it will either be
short-lived or long-lasting.
For millions of years, practically nothing

to eradicate diseases and thwart the aging

process. Robots smaller than viruses will be
injected into our bodies, in order to keep us fit
and enhance our brains. Thanks to new

The Human
Being As An
Obsolete
Model

Supercomputer: Performance
The capacity of the worlds 500 best computers
follows Moores law. With about 43 petaflops,
the Chinese Tianhe-2 is at the top of the chart.
Flops/s
1018

Sum of the top 500

Rank 1

1015

Rank 500

1012

109

1994 96 98 00 02 04 06 08 10 12 2014

More power for less money

If you look at transistor prices and the increase
in their clock frequencies, you will notice that
the costs halve every 13 months.
Dollars per transistor and hertz
10-7
10-10
10-13
10-16
10-19

1975 80

85

90

95

00

05

10 2015

Space for data is becoming

cheaper
The total volume of data in the world doubles
every year. Since the memory prices are always
declining, theres no shortage of space.
Dollars per megabyte
10.000
100
1,00
0,01
0

1975 80

050

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85

90

95

00

05

10 2015

Henry Markram leads the Human

Brain Project, which is equipped with
1.2 billion euros of EU funds

feature

Unsolvable riddle
The Munich-based physicist and
neuro-researcher Andreas Herz
believes that it will not be possible
to completely simulate the
human brain on a computer

Is Ray Kurzweil crazy? Many people think he is.

Each one of his theses about the near future is
opposed by numerous opponents from the
respective branches, but each one also has an
approximately equal number of supporters. We
will also keep track of the most important
question of all. It is of decisive importance to
humanity, but it plays hardly any role at all in
the public debate: Will the machines eventually
take over?

beyond the capacities of human beings links up

institutions from 24 countries were able to
with the worlds digital knowledge, starts
agree on this objective.
learning by itself and rapidly produces new and
smarter super-intelligences, human history will
Brain researchers and pigheads
go off on an unknown path that we cannot even
What took place next is more in line with what
imagine.
one expects from Europe: A serious dispute
The religious concept of the omega point
broke out. Mr Markram and some of his
refers to this big bang of AI. Like Mr Kurzweil,
colleagues proclaimed a spectacular goal. They
the German AI researcher Jrgen Schmidhuber
wanted to emulate a human brain on the
expects this to happen in two or three decades,
computer by the year 2023. This focus on a
but he prefers this particular expression,
scheme with many question marks was
because omega sounds a little like oh, my
opposed openly by hundreds of participating
God!. Regardless of how accurate these AI
scientists. They called for a restructuring of the
predictions are, one things for sure: Every
project, which has a budget of a good 1.2 billion
person who has not yet retired should brace for
euros. Naturally, the dispute also involved the
tumultuous times, especially since the life
research funds. However, in the final analysis,
expectancy of a human being is also increasing
the dispute revolved around one key question:
exponentially.
Can one simulate the human brain on a
Those who are born in this century can
computer?
expect to
Since the
experience its
dispute was not
end, along with
being resolved, a
the ascendance
mediation team
to immortality
was brought in.
Provided AI is
This mediation
of the same
Ray Kurzweil, Author of the book The Secret of Human team put the
Thought
opinion.
brakes on Mr
But is
Markram. The
omega really only a few decades away? The
group contained the Munich-based physician
worlds best IT companies especially the
Andreas Herz. Mr Herz is a professor of
Google group (which is now called Alphabet) and
computational neuroscience at the Ludwig
Baidu, its Chinese equivalent are currently
Maximilian University of Munich. This is a
trying to heave biology and technology up to a
relatively new field, in which biologists,
new (perhaps common) level. Scientists in the
physicians, psychologists, computer scientists,
research laboratories of universities, militaries
mathematicians and physicists do research on
and intelligence agencies are also working on
the brain in a field-spanning manner.
their own elimination. One would hardly have
According to Mr Herz, the HBP should serve
expected this, but the EU Commission is
the broader scientific community by focussing
supporting an especially ambitious scheme: the
more strongly on organising, analysing and
Human Brain Project (HBP). For two years,
visualising complex neuronal data.

Mr Kurzweil certainly isnt the only artificial

intelligence (AI) expert who believes that
technological singularity will be reached in
about 30 years. If an AI system that lies far

international research teams under the

leadership of the Israeli Henry Markram have
been devoting themselves to the extensive
research of the brain. All the 112 participating

Photos: Intel (Moore); Zeiss (clean room); Reuters/Valentin Flauraud (Markram);

Courtesy of Inbal Goshen and Karl Deisseroth/Stanford (mouse); Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (Herz)

Innovative method: With optogenetics, brain

researchers control genetically-modified live cells
using light

materials, we will be able to print out new

worlds, organs and our own clones. The
mechanical brain capacity of human beings
doubles every year.
Mechanical beings can think much faster
than their biological predecessors, but they
never get tired. Death will become a thing of the
past, but we as human beings will also be no
more.

Will the machines take over?

Humans are breaking

away from their biological
roots

This move from research to service was a

headache for several HBP researchers, but its
the only option: The project is fated to fail if it
continues to chase the illusion of replicating the

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feature
brain in a computer.

Mental
Arithmetic:
Very Good
Why is it so unspeakably difficult to emulate the
brain? Firstly, you have the enormous
performance indices with which the
masterpiece of evolution confronts the
superlatives of the modern digital age. The
brain of a human being contains about 100
billion neurons, which are connected by about
ten thousand times as many synapses.
Now, the speed of neuronal data processing
is relatively low: Its at the level of about one
hundred calculations per second. The
computational speed of modern electrical
circuits is at least ten million times higher.
Natures formula for success revolves around a
massive degree of parallelism. All the neurons
and about one billion synapses can work

simultaneously. Consequently, the human brain

can trump any quartet of supercomputers.
If our thinking apparatus can indeed be fully
emulated, the task would require an exaflop
computer that can handle at least 1018 floating
point operations per second. With a capacity of
34 petaflops, the worlds fastest supercomputer
the Chinese Tianhe-2 is an order of
magnitude (or ten decimal powers) below that.
Such a monstrous computer could emerge
in no sooner than three years, but the number
of years is likely to be a little higher. Along with
China, India, the USA and Europe are also jumpstarting the development process. One big
problem will be the energy consumption level,
which might lie between 200 and 1000
megawatts. The medium-size Stade nuclear
power plant generates 670 megawatts, while
our brain generates a few millionths of that; no
more than 30 watts are required to fire the
synapses. Irrespective of the concrete
orientation, the Human Brain Project is also an
IT project. The Jlich Centre for Supercomputing,
which provides the hardware for the HBP, has
to develop better and more efficient computers,

by orienting themselves towards the biological

template: Peak performance and a lot more
parallelism. When it comes to learning from the
most refined object in the known universe, the
following holds true: The computer analyses our
brain by imitating its tools.

Is the brain too complex for us?

Bearing Moores law in mind, these technical
problems will eventually be solved. However, as
professor Herz explains, other hurdles will also
have to be overcome on the path that leads to
the emulation of the brain. Successful models
of complex systems are similar to caricatures:
They emphasise important details and neglect
the unimportant aspects. However, on account
of the evolutionary history of biological systems,
we do not know whether or not a certain
characteristic can be neglected: Even the most
minor anatomical detail of a synapse may be
important in terms of its function.
In order to find out whether or not this is the
case, one must know which neuronal code is
used by the nerve cells that are connected
through this synapse.

Mastermind Of The Digital Future

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In 2015, he received a Grammy award

for his pioneering feats in the field of
music. His non-fiction books regularly top
the bestseller charts for non-fiction books
in the USA. In books such as The
Singularity is Near, he lays out bold
theses about the technologies of the
future that sound like they should be part
of the eighth chapter in the Harry Potter
series. Mr Kurzweil studied literature and
information technology at MIT in Boston.
The father of two daughters comes from a
Jewish family of artists, which left its
home city of Vienna for New York on
Pogrom Night in 1938. As an agnostic, he
doesnt thoroughly reject God, but he is of
the opinion that religion is no longer in
keeping with the times.
In this respect, the oft-repeated
allegation that Mr Kurzweil is collecting a
community of faithful transhumanists like
a sect leader seems to be excessive.
Googles chief engineer considers the
conquest of biology to be an evolutionary
inevitability. According to him, this isnt
exactly a religious issue: Religion deals
with beliefs, while technology deals with
understanding.

Photos: Weinberg-Clark Photography (Kurzweil); Kurzweil Technologies (Kurzweil und Wonder)

Ray Kurzweil is considered to be one of

the leading experts on artificial
intelligence. In fact, researchers who
study human intelligence could even use
him as an object of study. The 67-year old
has racked up massive achievements in
many different fields. He developed the
flat bed scanner, the OCR system and the
first commercial speech recognition
system.
Mr Kurzweils reading machine is
considered to be the greatest step in the
social integration of blind people since the
invention of the Braille alphabet in the
year 1829. The machine reads out text,
and in the year 1976, it led to a friendship
between him and Stevie Wonder. The
blind musician inspired Mr Kurzweil to
produce his next big invention This was
the first synthesiser, which reproduced
the sounds made by acoustic instruments.
If Thomas Edison and Joanne K. Rowling
had had a son, he probably would have
been a lot like Ray Kurzweil. Dozens of
patents, doctorates, research awards and
honours granted by three American
presidents testify to his technical
ingenuity.

Analytical and creative: Both halves of Ray Kurzweils brain

run at full speed. His ideas also benefited the musician
Stevie Wonder

feature
Learning from the brain
The thermal image 1 shows that IBMs
Truenorth neuro-chip (l.) consumes less
energy than the standard CPU next to it.
Researchers at the Heidelberg University
use neuromorphic wafer networks 2 to
imitate real nerve networks.

which newly-discovered neuro-computational

principles would be combined with synthetic
procedures. Neuromorphic hardware is oriented
towards the structures found in the nervous
system. In an ideal case, such hardware would
function like the brain: It would be stronglyconnected, self-organising and tolerant of
errors. It would exhibit a massive degree of
parallelism, a high level of energy efficiency and
a low space requirement.
It is not yet known whether the
neuromorphic approach will lead to an AI
system. The construction of the first aircraft can
be considered to be a classical example for this
ambivalence. Birds showed human beings that
it is possible to fly, and they made us realise
that wings would be a good idea. Nevertheless,
no airplane has been able to fly with the help of
similar wings; the method of moving forwards
in the air was basically invented anew.

Progress in thought through

technology

Perhaps Mr Markram would have been in a

better position if he had joined a high-tech
California-based company that considers crazy
ideas to be among the fundamental principles
of corporate endeavours. After all, Googles chief
engineer Ray Kurzweil sympathises with Mr
Markrams spirit of research. However, even the
leading prophet of exponential thinking believes
that a full-fledged emulation of the brain will
only become possible in the year 2029.
Nick Bostrom believes that even this
assessment is too optimistic. The Swede who
has studied physics, mathematics,
neurosciences and philosophy has sketched out
scenarios associated with the AI revolution in

A similar thing could happen in the case of AI.

Biology introduced us to the manner of thinking,
be needed, and which are still to be developed,
but we are inventing it anew. One can rely on
he believes that it will take place in the middle
the strengths of technology, and they are quite
of the century.
immense. The hardware computes and
For example, the imaging would be
communicates a lot quicker than its biological
problematic: Scanning tunnelling microscopes
rival, and it can grow without limits by
are precise, but slow; electron microscopes are
expanding its components. It can always be
fast, but they have a lower resolution.
optimised, and it is more reliable than human
On the
beings. The software
other hand,
also comes up
Mr Kurzweil
trumps:
believes that
Programmes and
the imaging
algorithms can be
procedures
processed in any
are also
manner and
subject to his
duplicated.
Nick Bostrom, Philosopher and futurologist
law of
Digital
accelerating
intelligence can learn
returns. In fact, the spatial resolution of
things much quicker than a biological
magnetic resonance tomography has increased
intelligence. Furthermore, it can promptly cope
by a factor of ten since 1995. However, Mr Herz
with special problems of any type. On the other
believes that even in the future, imaging will
hand, even geniuses like Albert Einstein can
only be able to generate reduced images of
only shine on very limited topics.
reality.
The DNA of such a digital super-intelligence
Even if actual emulation remains an illusion,
will contain seed AI. The grain represents the
it doesnt mean that a robust AI system will be
first generation of the thinking machine. After
a long time coming. After all, there are more
that, the self-learning AI system keeps
targeted methods of building an AI system, and
improving through the process of recursion.

his book Superintelligence.

Like Mr Kurzweil, he believes that it would
be possible to simulate the brain. However, on
account of the complex technologies that would

all of them play into the hands of exponential

development. Mr Bostrom believes that the
route leading to full-fledged emulation could
also produce a neuromorphic AI system, in

According to Andreas Herz, An extensive

understanding of individual components of the
brain would make it necessary to understand
the overall system and vice versa. This is
where the problem comes up. Consequently,
each model is destined to be a patchwork item.
In the best-case scenario, it will be able to
illuminate fascinating partial aspects and
stimulate exciting new experiments, but it will
never be able to do justice to the true reality.

Photos: IBM (Nr. 1); Universitt Heidelberg (Nr. 2)

AI doesnt need our brain

A strong AI system
doesnt have to have a lot
in common with a human
being

Each generation is smarter than the previous

one, and this cycle will end with an intelligence
explosion.

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feature

Re-installing
Windows 10
Cleanly install your operating system instead of upgrading:
Upgrading to Windows 10 can be done via a fresh install. We
will be showing you two methods that will provide you with a
clean, brand-spanking new install of the operating system

to accept the old Windows 7 and Windows

8 keys. The keys that were upgraded to
Windows 10 with the help of the GWX tool
were the only keys that turned themselves
into valid Windows 10 keys. Microsoft has
now changed this. Ever since the
September update of Windows 10 (to
version 1511), computers running Windows
7 and 8.1 that fulfil the upgrade
requirements can be upgraded directly with
the help of an installation medium. A
hardware fingerprint is used to detect
whether a digital authorisation for the
upgrade exists for the respective system.

By Benjamin Hartlmaier

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the installed operating system to Windows

10.
This was experienced by many users
who wanted to run their version of
Windows 10 on their computers with the
help of a USB stick, even though they had
not used the Get Windows 10 tool (GWX
tool) to run an upgrade operation. The
problem with this method: In case of clean
installations, Microsoft has so far refused

Nothing has changed in terms of the

general requirements for a free download
of Windows 10. Users will only be able to
install the new operating system for free if
they have already installed Windows 7
(with the Service Pack) or Windows 8.1.
Windows RT, Windows RT 8.1 and
Enterprise editions of the operating system
are not eligible for a free upgrade.
Furthermore, the installed version of

Photo: Nikolaus Schffler

Requirements for Windows 10

he release of Windows 10 presents a
good opportunity to free your
computer from old software and
unused data. The best way to do this
involves a clean installation of your
operating system, which provides you with
a fresh copy of Windows. However, unlike
the previous versions of Windows, its not
easy to do this with Windows 10, because
Microsoft wants users to directly upgrade

feature
1a

1b

It has to be the original

Only owners of an activated original copy of Win7 or 8.1 can obtain Windows 10 for
free. In spite of rumours, there is no licence for cracked versions

Windows must be an activated version. You

can find out whether that is the case by
accessing the System and security >
System section. Scroll all the way to the
bottom to find the menu. If your PC fulfils
all the requirements, you can get started
with the clean installation of Windows 10.
Before you upgrade to the new version, you
should create a back-up of all the important
data on an external storage medium. No
data was lost when we were running our
test, but we cannot guarantee that this will
be the case every time.

In this case, you initially perform the

upgrade operation using the GWX tool (as

If you possess an authorised copy of

Windows 7 or 8.1, the GWX tool will have
been installed automatically on your
computer. This can be detected through the
Windows 10 symbol in the quick launch bar,
which keeps popping up every now and then
to inform you about the Windows 10
upgrade. If you cannot see the Windows 10
symbol, check whether all the Windows
updates have been executed. The GWX tool
is installed through the KB3035583 update,
which is tagged as an important update. If
the Windows flag does not appear after all
the updates have been installed, visit the
website support.microsoft.com/de-de/
kb/3081048. The Solution section
contains a Windows troubleshooting centre
for error rectification, which downloads the
required update.

upgrade to Windows 10. If the installation

files have not been loaded in the background,
a Windows Update window is will pop up,
which enables you to download the required
data. Caution: The downloaded material has
a size of about 3.0GB, so you should make
sure theres enough space on your hard
drive. Otherwise, the system will request you
to connect a USB stick that has enough
storage space. In such a case, you can also
choose to use Option 2: Clean installation via
a boot medium, which will be explained on
page 76.
After all the installation files have been
downloaded, you must first accept the
licence terms before you can initiate the
upgrade operation. If the system asks for a
Windows key, enter the key associated with
your previous copy of Windows. Caution: The
computer restarts several times during the
installation process. In order to ensure that
the installation procedure is carried out
smoothly, you should not interfere in this
process. When the upgrade operation has
been completed, you will see a blue screen
with the title Get started quickly.
This enables you to set up Windows 10
with the help of the Express settings.

recommended by Microsoft). You can then

take care of the clean installation procedure
in the second step. The decisive advantage
of this method is that you can go back to

When the GWX tool has been installed

on your computer, open it by clicking the
Windows 10 symbol in the quick launch bar.
Use the Update now button to initiate the

Alternatively, you can use the Adjust

settings option to independently specify the
data protection rules and standard
programs.

Option 1:
Clean
Installation
With Onboard Tools

the old operating system during a period of

30 days, in case you do not like Windows 10,
or in case it causes problems. This option is
also suitable for users who have already
executed the upgrade operation, since it
enables them to avoid a full-fledged
reinstallation operation.

Upgrade via the GWX tool

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2a
2b

Using the on-board tools to

reset the PC
If the upgrade operation has been carried
out properly, you should be able to find all
your personal data, as well as the compatible
programs, so your version of Windows isnt
completely fresh yet. However, you now have
the option of returning to your old version of
Windows within a period of one month. If
you want to do so, open the settings section
through the start menu. Under the Update
and security section, select the Restore
tab. The second option in this window allows
you to go back to the previous version.
If you want to keep Windows 10, select
the Reset this PC option in the same
window. A retroactive clean installation
operation can thus be executed with the help
of the on-board tools. After you have clicked
the Go option, you can select one of two
options: The first option resets Windows 10
to the factory state, but it retains files such
as documents, images, videos and
downloads. The second option deletes
absolutely everything except the operating
system, which is why you should create a
back-up of important data in advance. Even
here, you can choose between two variants:
The Only remove files option executes a
quick reset operation. The Remove files and
clean up drive option can take several
hours, but it is more thorough.
The second method should be used if you
want to sell or dispose of your computer.
The two reset procedures dont just
remove the installed programmes (except for
the standard Win10 apps) They also
remove the vendor drivers and replace them
with standard Windows drivers.

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Consequently, before you execute a reset

operation, you should ensure that you have
the driver DVD for your computer.
Alternatively, you should download the
drivers and save them at an external
location. Caution: After you reset the PC,
you will no longer be able to go back to the
old operating system.

Option 2:
Clean
Installation
Via Boot
Medium
In case of the second method, we are
describing the classical clean installation of
Windows 10, which is carried out directly
from Windows 7 or 8.1. This method is more
radical, but it is also cleaner than a reset

operation that is carried out with the help of

the on-board tools of Windows 10.
However, you should know for sure that
Windows 10 will run on your computer, and
that you really want to use the new
operating system, because you cannot
return to the old version of Windows after
the upgrade operation has been carried out
with the help of a clean installation. Our
test used a retail version of Windows 7
Home (which came with a key) as the initial
system. The contents of the following
section notwithstanding, you will not be
asked to provide a key during the clean
installation procedure if you have an OEM
version without a key.

1 Loading the Media Creation

Tool
Before you can get started with the clean
installation procedure, you will need a
Windows 10 installation medium on a USB
stick or a DVD. Ideally, you should create
this using Microsofts Media Creation Tool.
To download the software, go to microsoft.

2a

2b

3
USB stick or a DVD. Note that the USB stick
should have a storage capacity of at least
3.0GB. Furthermore, it should not contain
any important data, since it is formatted
during the creation of the installation
medium. If you decide to go for the DVD
option, select ISO file and save it on the
hard drive. After the ISO file has been
created, burn it onto the DVD with the help
of the Media Creation Tool, or the on-board
tools offered by Windows.

3 Establishing a Windows
partition
com/de-de/software-download/
windows10. Scroll all the way up to the
section Do you want to create a USB drive, a
DVD or an ISO file?, and click the Download
tool now button. The Media Creation Tool
does not have to be installed.
All you have to do is save the EXE file and
launch it with a double-click.

2 Creating an installation
medium
The Media Creation Tool offers step-by-step
instructions, but the instructions do appear
to be a bit ambiguous. After the initialisation
has been completed, the tool greets you with
the question How would you like to
proceed?, and it presents you with a choice
of two options (image 2a). Select the second
one (Create installation media for another
PC), even if you are going to subsequently
execute the clean installation procedure on
the same computer.
After clicking Next, select the version of
Windows 10 that corresponds to your PC.
Tick the Use the recommended option for
this PC option, in order to ensure that your
previous Windows key will be accepted for
the clean installation procedure. You should

only select the options from the drop-down

menus if you are creating the installation
medium for another computer. Information
regarding which editions of Windows 7 and
8.1 qualify for which edition of Windows 10
can be found at windows.microsoft.com/
en-us/windows-10-upgrade-to-windows10-faq
After clicking Next, specify whether you
want to create the installation medium on a

For the next step, you have to find out which

hard drive partition contains the Windows
operating system. To do so, run a search for
Partition on the PC (via the start menu for
Windows 7, and via the charms bar for
Windows 8). The Create and format hard
drive partitions allows you to access the
disk management section. Note down the
location of the Windows partition C:. To do
so, count off the partitions from left to right.
In our case, it was partition 2 on volume 0,

New motherboard, no Windows

During the activation procedure, Microsoft
binds the Windows licence to various
system components of your PC, just like a
fingerprint. This is also called a product ID.
This facilitates the upgrade and subsequent
reinstallations of Windows 10 on the same
PC. This might be the reason why Windows
10 stops working when too many of the
computers system components are
replaced. After you switch the hard drive or
execute a BIOS update, it should be possible
to re-activate Win10 We were able to
retrace these steps in a test. However, the
situation looks quite different if the

motherboard is being replaced: After this

critical component is replaced, Windows 10
can no longer be activated on the PC. In
such a case, you must purchase a Windows
10 licence. Alternatively, you can re-install
the old Windows and then re-upgrade to
Win10. However, this can only be done for
retail versions that come with a key. If you
have an OEM version of Windows, and if
your PC manufacturer replaced the
mainboard while repairing the system, you
will have to contact the manufacturer. The
manufacturer is obligated to recreate the
old status of your computer.

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6b

6a

since C: occupied the second position from

the left in the partition table.

4 User-defined installation
After the installation medium has been
made ready, you have to use it to boot up
the computer. Insert the DVD or the USB
stick, and re-start the computer. Caution:
The stick should not be in a USB 3.0 port,
since older systems do not detect this
during the boot-up process. Furthermore,
you must change the boot sequence in the
BIOS, so that the boot medium will be read.
Usually, the [F] or [Del] key must be pressed
during the boot-up procedure. To find out
which key you have to press, refer to the
BIOS splash-screen that appears at the
beginning of the boot-up procedure, or the
instruction manual supplied by the PC or
mainboard manufacturer.
The Windows setup section appears
after the booting routing has been
completed successfully. Select the language
settings and then click Next, followed by
Install now. When the system asks for a
key, enter the key of your previous Windows
operating system. In order to carry out a

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clean installation procedure, click the

second option (User-defined: Only install
windows) in the Choose an installation
type window.
The partition table of the PC is now
displayed. You now have the option of
selecting a radical clean installation
procedure, or creating a backup folder
containing old programs and files. However,
neither one of the two variants allows you
to keep using the old Windows. The
following sections describe both options.

on drive. In this case, mark this entry and

click the New button. The system will then
create a boot partition (marked as System)
and an empty primary partition. Mark the
latter partition and click Next to start the
installation procedure.

6 Clean installation with

backup

Use the table to look for the partition in

which Windows has been installed (refer to
step 3). It is usually the largest partition on
Drive 0, which is tagged as the Primary
partition. Mark the entry and click the
Formatting option. This deletes all the
files from the partition. Clicking Next
initiates the installation of Windows 10.

In addition to the radical clean installation

option, you also have the option of installing
Windows 10 in a clean manner, while
retaining old programmes and files in the
form of a backup. As in step 5, mark the
primary partition with the existing Windows
installation. Now, instead of clicking the
Format option, click Next. The Windows
Setup module then informs you that it is
going to move all the old files and folders
associated with the previous Windows
installation into a folder called Windows.
old. In Windows 10, this folder can be found
in the root directory of the Windows
partition (it is usually C:\). The benefit of
this method: You do not have to recopy your
data from the backup medium to the hard
drive. The disadvantage: The folder can
occupy a lot of space. If you dont need it, you

If you want to install Windows on a new

and unformatted hard drive, the partition
table simply displays an entry bearing the
following description: No allocated space

can simply delete it. If you are not suffering

from a shortage of space, we would
recommend that you use this personalised
clean installation procedure.

5 Clean installation without

backup

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feature
The Huawei Mate S has seen some big changes to
the way the company is designing its phones. Will
this be a one-off, or can we expect iterations of this
design in future smartphones?

Danny Chin, Regional Marketing Director of Consumer Business Group, Southern

Pacific Region, Huawei Technologies

Moving
Forward

We sat down with Huaweis Danny Chin to

talk about Huaweis plans for the future
By Nazrin Zain

Huaweis smartphone division has been around for

quite some time, and its design philosophy has
clearly changed over the years, previously pushing
out low and mid-range smartphones, and now with
the Mate S, Huawei is looking to contend with the
big boys of the industry. What brought about this
change?
Evolution and the fact that we know we have the people and the
potential that has brought us so far that we are today a force to reckon
with across the connectivity landscape! We are committed to becoming
one of the most respected brand among global consumers and we know
that can be achieved by delivering the best, most quality products.
For us, it was never about competing with the big boys but about
delivering the best of our potential, in line with what consumers need.
This objective has served us well as in May 2015, Huawei was named
one of BrandZs Top 100 Global Brands of 2015 for the first time,
ranking in 16th position in the technology and science category with
brand value of USD 15.335 billion. This follows Huaweis success in being
the first Mainland Chinese brand to reach Interbrands Top 100 Best
Global Brand list in 2014.

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Absolutely, its an ongoing commitment. If you look at our series of big

ticket launches in 2015, starting with P8 and Mate S and ending with
Nexus 6P and Huawei Watch, aesthetics and design have been recurring
themes.
Tech is no longer so much about specs and features because
everyones delivering those. Its about packaging because the
relationship that consumers have with their devices has become
incredibly personal. It started with touch and then went on to become
wearables. The winners of the industry will be the ones who are able to
deliver a package that consumers are proud to be associated with.
Its with this objective that we launched the Paris Aesthetics
Research Center. It will bring creative ideas in color and style to Huawei
products, integrating innovative technologies with aesthetics.
Huaweis vision is to create genuinely great-performing products
that not only satisfy the user from a performance and design
standpoint, but also to create true value for consumers. That will
continue to be our driving force.

The Huawei Nexus 6P is Googles latest Nexus

flagship smartphone. How did the collaboration
with Google come about, and how long did it take
the company to come up with the final build of the
device?
Each generation of the Google Nexus selects the most innovative
hardware partners, such as HTC, Motorola and Samsung. The latest
generation of Nexus is Huawei, one of the worlds leading innovators
and a dedicated Android user. This creates a win-win situation for both
brands.
Available in over 170 countries globally, Huawei is the third largest
smartphone manufacturer worldwide. The Huawei brand is well received
among smartphone users. Partnering with Huawei enables Google to
leverage strengths from the smartphone manufacturer, creating ideal
hardware-software integration; it also enables Google to tap Huaweis
knowledge about design and manufacturing prowess.
Google has built its success on bringing information and innovation
to consumers. By partnering with Google, Huawei is able to bring its
world-renowned hardware expertise in the mobile device market to
create a product that perfectly meets the needs and desires of todays
loyal Nexus users. Partnering with Huawei helps Google realize the goal
of the Nexus and highlight whats possible in hardware to showcase
the best Android experience possible.
Huawei and Google have been collaborating on this project for a long
time. The Nexus 6P has a sleek and durable fully metal unibody design
that sets its premium tone and provides a good built quality. Since its
launch, weve been receiving good responses from the Malaysian
consumers that we saw 1,000 units of the Nexus 6P sold within the first
day of its official introduction
We look forward to continuing to collaborate with Google in the
future to provide best products and services

How have the Malaysian consumers reacted to

Huawei moving towards creating more high-end
and premium smartphones these days?
Very positively, if the sales are anything to go by! The Malaysian market
is moving towards a premium lifestyle segment, where their devices
become an integral part of their lifestyle that reflects their personality

feature
and style. Our devices enable that.
Nexus 6P by Huawei, the most premium Nexus to date, sold 1,000
units during the first day of sales launch! P8 and Mate S saw similar
outstanding response. The production capacity for Mate S continues to
grow steadily, and this comes to no surprise as the device indeed packs
an incredible amount of features and top-notch specifications.
Weve worked hard on bringing these products to market and clearly,
the response tells us we are on the right path.

Huawei is also heading into the wearable space

strongly with the companys line of smartwatch
devices. Do you think that the market for such
devices will continue to grow in the near future?
Absolutely! As a company, we see that IoT is the next big thing in the
consumer space and we are committed to being a long-term competitor,
capitalizing on this opportunity. For consumers, having access and
storage of personal data and records will make wearable devices one of
the most important industry developments in the advent of Big Data
and Cloud technologies. No doubt, wearable devices will remain one of
the most significant trends in the device industry.
Huawei Consumer BG has leveraged its experience and knowledge in
telecommunications hardware and software to capitalize on the
opportunities presented by the all things connected era. Thus, Huawei
intensified its wearables strategy and introduced the Huawei Watch,
TalkBand N1 and B2 during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this
year. We also stepped up our wearable game with Android Wear.
Huawei Watch, the much talked about smartwatch in the industry in
2015 was also awarded the iF Design Award 2016. As one of the
worlds most influential design award, iF design award was considered
as the Oscar in the design field

Huawei is fast growing in the tech market, coming

in third in sales after Apple and Samsung. How does
Huawei plan to overtake these tech giants to
dominate the regional and Malaysian market?
The smartphone market is incredibly competitive and expanding rapidly.
This is evident of the data which portrays closer gaps between top
players and, the rising demand and popularity of smartphones as it
overtook feature devices for the first time ever earlier this year. More
people are coming on board the smartphone bandwagon, and theres no
denying it
Competition has always been good for the market, especially a
consumer-centric one where end users are the key benefactors of the
entire competition
In Malaysia we strive to bring better offerings of greater value and
offer more channels to engage consumers and ultimately, increase
overall customer satisfaction. All this, without compromising on quality
of products and services
According to recent Trendforce Report, Huawei is now being ranked
No.3 in terms of global shipment sales that mark our commitment to
close the gap between the other top 2 players by providing devices that
meets consumer needs

Huawei was generally known to produce products

that catered to the mid-range market in the past.
How does Huawei plan to break this notion to
dominate the high-end market?
Our strategy has always been to democratize mobility. Whether it is our
carrier business or smartphone, we have always been at the center of
every digital transformation
We have been producing excellent flagship devices such as Huawei

Mate 7 & Huawei P8 and a very big portion of our sales revenue are
premium devices
Similarly, the most recent trend today is the accessorisation of
devices. The lines between features and design have blurred.
Smartphones are no more just a device; it is a fashion accessory to suit
each customers needs
As a brand that is constantly evolving with our consumers, we want
to make sure that our devices, whether the gorgeous Huawei Watch or
the design elements of Huawei P8 and Mate S, are filling this new
lifestyle need

Why should someone own a Huawei product? What

upper hand does Huawei possess over the
competition?
We have made tremendous effort in building trust among Malaysian
consumers since our entry in the market in 2011. They have recognized
our offerings for what they are customer centric, affordable with no
compromise on quality

What can you foresee for the future of the tech and
smartphone market and Huaweis role and position
in it?
The future of the tech and smartphone market is a vibrant one as it is
constantly evolving with renewed consumers needs
Customer centricity is an intrinsic part of the Huawei DNA. We are
focused on creating value for our customers through quality and
affordability, our starting point is what customers need, not what can
we sell
As one of the leaders in the smartphone and ICT industry, Huawei
Device is committed to produce innovative market-leading smartphones
alongside a well-established range of mobile broadband devices and
home device business
We are different as our device business is central to our strategy of
providing solutions across cloud, pipe and device that caters to
consumers needs and lifestyle

What are some of the things Malaysian fans can

look forward to from Huawei Malaysia in 2016?
I believe that 2015 was the year in which Huawei Consumer Business
Group started delivering on a new plane with a solid IoT strategy and
products, renewed focus on aesthetics and design, and a strong foothold
in the premium segment with Huawei Mate S and in wearables with
Android Wear.
2016 will see natural progression on several counts
Product portfolio and form factors Expansive and aesthetically
pleasing. We already have one of the most complete portfolio in terms
of form factors and we will continue to refine those further.
Innovation leadership 2015 was also a year of firsts in terms of
product innovation. Our first Nexus, our first aesthetics research center
and more. 2016 promises to seal our position as one of the most
innovative, R&D focused consumer tech brands in the market
Customer service From a business standpoint, customer service
remains one of the essential engines of growth as well as brand affinity.
We will continue to grow out online and offline presence, making it
easier for consumers to find us and interact with us.
Essentially, our strategy in meeting diverse lifestyle needs remains
the same. We will continue to strengthen our sales and service network.
Of course we will continue to focus on talent. We are building arguably
one of the best consumer technology teams across different functions
in the country to support our aggressive growth roadmap. So these
initiatives will continue through 2016.

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feature
ShopBack is a pretty new
concept in Malaysia, so for
our readers who may not
be familiar with you and
the cashback concept,
could you describe what it
is that you do?

Sharmeen Looi, COO of ShopBAck Malaysia (left) and Gil Carmo, Country Head of ShopBack Malaysia (right) giving us run
through of their website

Helping
Shoppers
Save One
Transaction
At A Time
CHIP Malaysia had the chance to interview Country
Head, Gil Carmo and COO, Sharmeen Looi of ShopBack
Malaysia to learn more about their service and how
has their service fared in local and overseas market
By Nixon Ng

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Basically we give cash back to

consumers when they shop online, on
our platform we have over 500
merchants and in any single one of
them we give cash back to our users.
We have popular merchants ranging
from Fashion, IT, Travel and many
more. A brief example would be
Lazada, Zalora, Agoda and also
overseas merchants like ASOS. How
our service works is, if you decide to
shop on for example Zalora, you pick
and choose your items and pay for it,
thats the end of the transaction. But
if you go to Lazada through our
website, you still take the same steps
but once the transaction is done, we
will give you a percentage of the final
amount back to you. How we benefit
from this is, whenever a transaction
is successful when gone through our
platform, we receive commission
from the merchant. This way
everybody stands to gain, users get
bigger discounts, merchants gain
more traffic and we earn a
commission from users. The best part
is shoppers gain cashback on top of
the discounts you get from the
merchants, so if youre going to buy
something anyways why not save
more. The cash back you receive is
shown in your account and can be
paid out to every bank in Malaysia,
some consumers treat us as a second
bank account which helps them keep
a bit of money floating somewhere
else.

What was it like trying to

get merchants on board
and getting them to
understand your business
modal?
Getting merchants on board wasnt
too hard as they were quite familiar
with the concept, this isnt something
thats very new concept especially for
countries in the West like the UK
where its much more popular,
another factor is because they see us
as a sales boosters and that we are
supporting them, another factor
would be them not seeing us as a

feature
business. We think by hiring carefully and bringing in the talent, we can
grow faster and better, we can actually aim to reach more people in a
better way with better products or with a better method. We constantly
look for committed, fun-loving, passionate, specialised, and dedicated
talents so that we can have a dynamic team where everyone is a
superstar. Customer feedback is also another important aspect to our
growth, we take our customer service issues very seriously, but with
challenges we believe we can grow further. Like we also mentioned
earlier, word of mouth and consumers referring their friends is one of
our strategies and its a powerful one. This is why customer service is so
crucial to our growth, because while a consumer can spread good things,
bad things can also be spread the same way.

Is it true that the Malaysian website is currently

performing stronger than its Singaporean
counterpart?

ShopBack Malaysia strives to find new talents who are passionate, dedicated, and
specialised in what they do

competitor, so getting them on board was quite smooth.

What were the challenges involved when starting

up ShopBack in Malaysia?
Our biggest challenge would definitely be education. Cash back might be
well known and popular in the West but in South East Asia its quite
new. The first phase of how we tackled this challenge was to educate
consumers about the concept, because we are giving out free money,
who would believe that could work and what do we want from them?
But once people knew about the concept and tried it, they find out its
legitimate and it works and from there we had great growth, because
once a consumer uses it, they would continue using it and then they
would start spreading ShopBack through word of mouth. Its a stigma in
Asia that nothing comes for free, so when people hear that we are
actually helping you out they are sceptical, but we kept pushing them to
try it, its all about trying and once you have theres no doubt that youll
continue using us and recommend it to your friends and family.

Does the Malaysian website and websites for other

regions run autonomously, or does the HQ in
Singapore manage and control the websites across
regions?
For each website, there will be its own management and then theres
the regional that supports every country on having a unanimous
business, although we are localised and we adapt to the market,
because we are here for the market and the people and we need to
understand them. As a whole we are all one like a family, the only thing
that differs is that the websites are managed by their locals who
understand their local market better. For example, certain merchants
are available in maybe Philippines and Indonesia that may not be
available here in Malaysia.

ShopBack has recorded 30 percent growth monthon-month since it was launched. How has the
company achieved this in such a short span of time,
and what is the company doing to improve its online
reach even further?
Its an everyday effort, we look for talent, and people are the key to our

We wouldnt say we performing better per say, but we have a bigger

market compared to Singapore definitely, so its hard to compare
something fairly without having the same access to a large market, but
with our larger market the opportunity to grow is definitely stronger. We
also feel that the internet infrastructure for E-Commerce is pretty good
and that has helped and supported ShopBack to grow.

Would you say ShopBack is targeted at the younger

generations, or can it also encompass a wider age
group?
Actually the range of people that we touch is quite large, easily across
different age groups and social statuses. Its basically were here for
everyone, everyone wants to save money right? So its easy to reach out
to those aged 60-70 or someone 18-25. But of course there are larger
groups that shop online between the age of 18-35, but thats the
behaviour of the market itself. Its not a niche market, and anyone with
the buying power can use our service. Also although currently our
service is only accessible through our website, but a mobile app is
definitely in the pipeline to help make our service more convenient for
our users.

With the devaluation of our currency, has there been

an impact on traffic for sites such as ASOS and etc
that mainly trade in USD, GBP, and Euros?
Some may think that with the situation of the currency in Malaysia, that
there would be a huge impact but in reality there isnt. Taobao is an
example of an international merchant, and because of our currency,
consumers are more inclined to use ShopBack to buy things from
Taobao, which somewhat offsets the exchange so shopping hasnt really
decreased. Even when GST was introduced, we also believed that there
would be an impact but there wasnt.

Is there anything you would like to add on?

Yes, we would like consumers to know that we not only provide cash
back, but we are also a one-stop site where we find the latest and
greatest deals for our users. We also work closely with our merchants to
provide our users with the best deals possible. Another important thing
we have to note is that our service uses internet cookies, each time you
access a merchant through our site we drop a cookie for the merchant,
so its crucial that cookies are enabled and its also mentioned in our
Terms and Conditions. We stress this heavily because we want your
experience to be flawless, we also encourage our users to tell us what
merchants you would like to see on our site, so that we can continue
improving our service and helping you save even more on your favourite
items.

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feature

1971
Project Gutenberg

~1450

Michael S. Hart had the goal of

making as many books as
possible available as free
e-books

Gutenberg
Early pioneer for the book
market

1930

1940

1950

1960

1970

6.3 percent

CHIP TIMELINE
E-books: From
Gutenberg to EPUB
The idea of digitising books emerged at the beginning of the seventies. However, the path
that led to todays wide selection of e-books was littered with severe setbacks

n 4 July 1971, Michael S. Hart typed

out the American declaration of
independence and made the digital
text freely available on the computer.
Michael S. Hart typed out the American
declaration of independence and made the

064

march 16

chip malaysia

digital text freely available on the computer

offshoot (Project Gutenberg-DE) emerged in
the year 1994, and now contains a good
8,000 works. The Google Books project was
much larger and more ambitious: The search
engine giant announced the project in the

year 2004, but it quickly collided with the

limits of copyright laws. Consequently,
Googles book service often only shows
previews (when it shows anything at all), and
the search results are linked with
commercial service providers.

PHOTOS (FROM LEFT TO RIGHT): UNKNOWN/IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN VIA WIKIPEDIA; DOUG BOWMAN/FLICKR/
CC BY 2.0; SONY; CHIP; JON SHAKATAGANAI DAVIS/WIKIPEDIA/CC BY-SA 3.0

was the market share of

e-books in the German book
market in the year 2015
Source: Statista

feature

1999
Rocket eBook
NuvoMedia unveiled the Rocket eBook in the
middle of the dot-com euphoria. The books are
transferred nto the reader in a complicated way
via a cable

1980

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2006

2007

2007

1990

The breakthrough

Sony Data Discman

The open EPUB standard

emerged, just as Amazon created
a closed e-book system with the
Kindle 1

The original reader had to be fed

with text through a CD. The
reading device unmistakably
belongs in the DOS era

The commercial dissemination and

utilisation of e-books became popular, but
this only happened after several attempts
had been made. On the hardware side,
several pioneering models such as the Sony
Data Discman and the Rocket eBook (see
above) ended in failure The primitive
reading devices were simply too expensive,
too heavy, too uncomfortable and
uncompetitive in the era of Palm Pilot and
PDAs. However, in the year 2007, Amazon
slowly boosted the e-book market with its

2005

Kindle 1 device The online bookseller could

simultaneouslys deliver the contents.
However, with the introduction of the iPad in
the year 2010 and the beginning of the
tablet era, e-book readers once again ran
into powerful headwinds.
On the software side, the e-book
pioneers also tinkered with suitable formats,
even though Adobes PDF had established
itself as the quasi-standard for the digital
depiction of printed material in the 90s. In
the year 2000, special reader formats were

introduced by Microsoft and the French

company MobiPocket.
In 2005, MobiPocket was taken over by
Amazon. Its standard was turned into the
Mobi format for the Kindle, after which it
was developed further into the AZQ format
(with DRM). In the spirit of Gutenberg, the
free market fought back against this
compartmentalisation, developing the
device-independent EPUB standard in the
year 2007.

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065

Breathe New Life

Into Old Hardware
Recycle instead of throwing things away! Used PCs, discarded mobile phones and
other old devices are too good for the dustbin find new areas of use for them with
the help of our tips By Mathias Gerlach

Photos: Nikolaus Schffler (lead feature and DECT/hand); Raidsonic (Icy Box)

ew features, better hardware and low

prices entice several users into
changing their technological gadgets
sooner than necessary. In this way, an
arsenal of technology accumulates in almost
every household, and either lies around
unused or even lands in the trashcan at
some point. But it doesnt have to be like
this: think of sustainability and breathe new
life into your old hardware. This is often
neither particularly time-consuming nor
expensive. In the following pages, we will
give you a number of examples for what you
can do with discarded gadgets from the
different classes. The tinkerer in you will be
delighted.

Super slim Ultrabooks, mini PCs and all-inone computers do without an optical drive
due to lack of space. If you want to read
DVDs or burn DVDs, youll need an external
solution with a USB port. A cheap way to do
this is to use a scrapped DVD writer from a
desktop PC or notebook contained in a
suitable case from the accessories supplier.
The more compact drivers will be supplied
with power via the USB controller, while
bigger models will require an additional
power supply. If a simple plastic casing is
too boring for you, you can turn to more
high-end models such as the lighted
RaidSonic Icy Box IB 550StU3S.

2 Turn a DECT handset into a

baby monitor

PC And
Peripheral
Devices

Effort: little; Cost: none

You can use an available, cordless telephone
as a baby monitor without a lot of effort or
extra costs to monitor your childs sleep
patterns. Youll just need a discarded DECT
phone. Most models can be connected
regardless of the manufacturer with the help
of the GAP technology. You can read about
how this works in specific cases in the
respective operating instructions. The
system PIN needed for this is usually 0000.

Continue using your DVD

drive
Effort: medium; Cost: from approx. RM90

Baby monitor

WLAN repeater at no cost

Spend very little to burn DVDs

Then search for the item Baby monitor/

direct call in the menu, which many devices
support. As soon as the feature has been
activated, a handset can be placed near the
child. If a certain volume is exceeded, the
other phone will ring.

3 Router turns into repeater

Effort: medium; Cost: none
An old WiFi router can be used in your home
network as a repeater, which optimises the
quality and range of the wireless network.
Lets take the example of FritzBox to see
how this works.
1. Enter the address fritz.box (or
alternatively, 192.168.178.1) in the browser
and open the user interface of the main
router. Check the software version there
under System and download an update if
required.
2. Then check whether the operating mode
Basic under WLAN > Repeater is enabled.
3. Now connect the old router to your
computer using a LAN cable, disable the WiFi
connection and then call up the user
interface via the browser. If the firmware
version is older than 05.5x, an update will be
needed. Then go to the old FritzBox menu
and open the item System > Update and
under the tab FRITZ!OS file, select the
path with the image. Start the update by
clicking on Save settings.
4. Now select the operation as Repeater
under WLAN > Repeater in the old
FritzBox. Here, select your home network
from the list of the available WiFi SSIDs,
enter the password and Apply the entries.
The old router will promptly expand your
wireless home network.

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067

PC components you should keep

PC for the price of a mini

Hard drive: Mass storage can always be used

and can for instance be used as an external
HDD.
Internal memory: RAM modules can be easily
removed, stored with minimum space
requirements and used for PC tuning.
Video card: A dedicated GPU shouldnt be
thrown away, but instead kept as an important
spare part.

Transform your monitor into

a PC
Effort: medium; Cost: from approx. RM180
Do you have a monitor for which you dont
really have any use anymore? With the help
of minimal resources, you can turn it into a
complete computer. For this, youll need a
mini PC like the Compute Stick by Intel
(approx. RM550), which, despite its pocket
size, is a full-fledged computer with a Quadcore Atom CPU, 2 GB RAM and Windows 10.
You simply have to plug it into the HDMI port
of the monitor, and the keyboard and mouse
can be connected via USB or Bluetooth.
Using a Raspberry Pi for this is even cheaper
(approx. RM180), but then youll have to
make do with a Linux operating system.

5 Look for aliens

Effort: slight; Cost: none
Is there life beyond our solar system? How
can the collider at CERN be improved? And
how will the global climate change in the
coming decades? If you want to be involved
in finding the answers to such questions,

Support research
you can devote your hardware to the service
of science. The software platform, BOINC, of
Californias Berkeley University, is among the
best known distributed computing systems.
The unused computing power of several
thousand computers is bundled and used for
complex computations here. One of the most
well-known projects is SETI@home, short
for the Search for Extraterrestrial
Intelligence. If you want to be a part of it,
just install the free BOINC software on a
computer you arent using any longer, and
then let it start computing.

6 Convert your PC into a media

centre
Effort: medium; Cost: none
You can transform a PC you no longer need
or a discarded notebook into a highperformance media centre with a negligible
amount of effort and at no extra cost. Two

6a
Following the basic
settings such as
language and
keyboard selection,
Kodi displays linked
media in a graphically
pleasing manner

6b

Entertainment centre
The complete installation package by Kodi offers
the widest range of functions

options are possible here: you can either

operate the computer as an independent
system with the monitor or place it near a
TV and connect the devices via HDMI. The
software used here is always Kodi, which
many still know as Xbox Media Center
(XBMC), its earlier name.
Installation: The setup wizard will take you
step by step through the installation
process. First, determine which Kodi
components are to be selected. We
recommend you to keep the selection on
Full.
The first steps: In the main menu item
Settings > Appearance, you can set the
language, region and keyboard layout under
International. Then, Kodi will show you
where the data is. In the main menu, you can
specify a path under the categories
Pictures, Videos and Music by clicking
on the button Files.

High-performance remote control

Photos: Intel (stick); Raspberry Pi Foundation (mini PC); Samsung (mobile phone);
iStockphoto/George Clerk (cockpit)

Smartphones
And Tablets
7

Using mobile phones as

remote control
EEffort: slight; Cost: none
Samsung has come up with a special feature
for the Galaxy S4 and S4 mini, which is an
infrared interface. Together with the
included app, WatchOn (or its successor,

Home-made webcam

Peel Smart Remote) the Galaxy S4 turns into

a high-performance universal remote control
even though the smartphone has already
been replaced by other newer models. Other
ageing phones that can control other devices
via infrared include thes HTC One, the LG G2
and the LG G Flex.

8 Second life as a webcam

Effort: medium; Cost: none
Seeing whats going on at home even when
youre out is not a problem anymore, thanks
to surveillance cameras with remote access.
But you dont need the expensive special
solution; an old smartphone can also be
used as a network-compatible camera. For

NEW FUNCTIONS FOR MOBILE PHONES IN THE CAR

With a permanently installed second mobile
phone, you can bring useful features to the car
and specifically add the benefits of the main
smartphone. Universal brackets for mounting
it in a stable manner in the windscreen area
cost around RM50 each. Good models can be
operated in the portrait and landscape
formats.
Navigation: Online navigation apps
such as Google Maps only make sense
when they have a data flat rate with
enough volume. Microsoft and Nokia
mobile phones come with the
extensive Here app, and there are
economical offline alternatives for
Android and iOS too.
Dashboard cam: Lawyers and data
privacy officers are still arguing over
whether and to what extent dashboard
cams should be used. You should

therefore use your photos only privately for

data privacy reasons and never publish them
online. Free apps such as DailyRoads Voyager
(Android) or accident data storage (iOS; picture
above on the right) take a video of the traffic
scene and save it in the phone memory.

this, you only need the right app, of which

there are many in the market. We shall take
the example of the free IP webcam for
Android to show you how this works.
1. Download the app from the Google Play
Store and start the program on the
smartphone. In the Video settings, first
enable a medium resolution and quality.
Additionally, you can select between the
front and back camera as well as between
portrait and landscape formats. You can also
control the power management, enable the
mobile phones microphones and turn on the
camera sensors that identify movements
and sounds.
2. Under the item Local broadcasting. You

12

Second TV

AirPlay for Android

It isnt only Apple phones that can
function as an AirPlay receiver

can define a login name and password as

well as change the port if you want to.
3. The transmission starts with the
command Start server. The phone will now
show the IP address which you can use to
follow the stream in the browser and control
the camera.

9 Upgrade Airplay free of

charge
Effort: medium; Cost: max. RM6.75
The Airplay technology transmits wireless
audio and video signals via the home
network and is integrated in several devices
besides one that run on iOS. Even a
discarded Android smartphone can be turned
into an AirPlay receiver in the wink of an eye,
to which you can send music from
compatible devices. With this, you can make
any stereo system AirPlay-compatible by
simple connecting the smartphone via a jack
and select the AUX or line-in input. Youll
need the app AirBubble as the software it
is available in the Play Store as a free demo.
Youll have to pay RM6.75 for the full
version. If you now want to stream music via
iTunes or an iOS device on the stereo

system, just pick the Android phone in the

list of devices.

10 The original iPad

Effort: slight; Cost: none
The first iPad from the year 2010 is a solid
piece of hardware which Apple however has
rendered unusable to a large extent because
of its rigid update policy. Because of the low
internal memory, a lot of apps have stopped
running since iOS 5.1.1, as they require iOS 6
and above. But you can still use the original
iPad as a media player. Download pictures,
music and videos on the tablet using the
iTunes software. Apples standard apps are
good enough to play these media.
11 Keep the emergency mobile
phone cool
Effort: slight; Cost: none
If you want to play it safe, keep a spare
mobile phone for emergencies, in case the
phone youre currently using stops working
overnight. The only way such a case could
prove frustrating would be if the battery of
the spare phone were to run out. Because it
is common knowledge old energy cells dont

Mobile phone as a hotspot

A mobile phone can pass on its 3G or LTE
connection to tablets or notebooks via WFi.
Relatively cheap data tariffs with sometimes
high surf volumes by prepaid providers are
excellently suited for this. You can also do this
abroad at a favourable price with the help of
local providers in the internet. Simply enable
the item Tethering, Hotspot or Internet
permission in your phone settings.

only age every time they are charged, but

also lose power if they arent used. Our tip:
charge the phone battery to around 80%, take
it out of the phone, and keep it in the fridge
where it is protected from condensed water.
At temperatures between 4 and 10 degrees
Celsius, the batterys self-discharge will slow
down. You can also use this method to store
other batteries that are seldom used for
example, energy storage for digital cameras,
but also AA or AAA cells.

12

Turn your tablet into a second

TV
Effort: medium; Cost: depending on
subscription fee
Even if your old tablet cant keep up with

Photos: CHIP (iPad); Pearl (2)

15

13

Make an old TV smart

Practical camera shutter release

14

Music streaming

16

Amplifier for your record player

Enhance the multi-room experience

13 Turn your headphones into a

camera shutter release
Effort: slight; Cost: none
In-ear earphones, which come with most
smartphones, are only rarely regarded as a
revelation of sound. Therefore, users who
are music fans prefer more high-end
alternatives. But the original headset can be
granted a second life as a camera shutter
release, for example. This can be just as
handy for selfies as for bulb exposure, when
the camera should be kept as still as
possible. Apple has already modified the
software in the iOS version 5 such that
pressing the volume up button + on the
earphone cord triggers the iPad or iPhone
camera. The Windows Phone mobile phones
by Nokia and Microsoft also have this
feature. For Android devices, the
manufacturer and the models are the
deciding factors here.

14 Hi-Fi via Bluetooth

Effort: medium; Cost: from approx. RM100
A good Hi-Fi system with solid speakers and
a powerful amplifier delivers brilliant sound
quality even after years of use. However, the
equipment of the latest models is better.
But you can at least retrofit the music
streaming function via Bluetooth quickly and
at a low price. An audio Bluetooth adaptor
starting at approx. RM90-100 is available in
the market. The compact devices have their
own power supply and fit into the analog

input of any stereo system with the help of a

3.5-millimetre jack or cinch cable. Perform
the pairing in the Bluetooth menu of the
player (mobile phone, tablet, PC), and the
streaming can now begin. For instance, the
Philips AEA2700/12, which can be connected
via a jack plug and digital connection (optical
or coaxial) and also supports NFC and has
many interfaces.

15

Retrofit the Smart TV

function
Effort: medium; Cost: from approx. RM200
You would love to continue using your old
full-HD television set if only it had smart
TV features. But such features can be easily
added, in fact using a WiFi-compatible media
player. Connected to an HDMI port and
supplied with power via an external power
adaptor, the Google Chromecast, for example,
offers a smart TV interface with access to
media libraries and streaming services that
can be operated using the accompanying
remote control. The device can also act as a
connecting link between the TV and mobile
device: it can be used to beam any contents
from the tablet or smartphone on to the
large screen.

chip malaysia

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071

Photos from left to right: Sabrina Raschpichler; Philips; Amazon; Hama

new hardware in terms of performance or

storage, you can still use it as a second TV.
You just need a free app like iFlix or Netflix,
which streams a lot of TV programs and
movies.
You also have options such as Tonton
and Astro which streams a wide variety of
TV channels and shows locally as well.

Audio, Video
And Photo

You can even connect old audio equipment to a

wireless multi-room system. Denon, Panasonic,
Raumfeld, Samsung and Sonos have network
adaptors for Hi-Fi equipment. This can be used
to incorporate complete systems, amplifiers, as
well as players and even speaker pairs into the
multi-room world.

18

Continue using
lenses

17

16 Reactivate record players

Effort: medium; Cost: approx. RM140
Do you still have an old record player and a
dusty LP collection that you havent digitised
but dont want to throw out either? Then
bring the player back to life even if you dont
have a dedicated phono input on your stereo
system. To do this, you will only need an
external phono amplifier that converts the
phono signal into a usable line level signal
and can be connected to any input in your
Hi-Fi system using a cinch cable. A good
option is the Hama PA 506 with its greatly
designed metal casing.
17 A cost-effective way to macro
optics
Effort: medium; Cost: from approx. RM50
Macro lens help give small things greater

19
Make a 3D camera at home

effect, which can be used to realise excellent

photo projects. But you can also get
magnified close-ups without real macro
optics. All you need is a retro adaptor or
reversing ring for your SLR or system
camera. These are available starting at
roughly RM50. The trick: attach the adaptor
to the camera mount and mount any old
lens on it in reverse position. The shorter the
focal length, the larger is the aspect ratio in
reversed position. In this mode, however, you
must manually focus sharply. If you want
the autofocus function too, youll need an
electronic intermediate ring set

18 Use lenses by other makers

Effort: medium; Cost: from approx. RM100
Even loyal photographers change platforms
and switch from Nikon to Canon, for
example. What happens then to the lenses?
They continue to be used! Accessories
stores have adaptors for this, which allows

an old Nikon lens to be used on a Canon EF

mount. This is a good and long-term
solution especially for expensive lenses.

19 Make a 3D camera at home

Effort: great; Cost: from approx. RM230
Photographers can use the 3D technology by
tinkering around a bit. If you already have an
old but still-functional camera, you will need
another structurally identical sample for this
project. eBay is a good place to go for this
project. Mount both digicams on one board
such that the lenses are around six
centimetres apart. In order to ensure a
simultaneous shutter release of both
cameras, use an infrared remote control, and
for still images, press the shutter release of
both cameras one after the other. If you
want to edit your photos, we recommend the
tool StereoPhoto Maker.s

GIVE AWAY OLD HARDWARE WISELY

Do something good and donate hardware
that is still working. You can try social
department stores by welfare institutions,
which are present in all the big cities. There
are some recycling centres in the Klang
Valley that collects old PCs and passes them
on to the less-fortunate. Same goes to your
mobile or smartphones too. They will be
refurbished and be sent to homes that may
require it.

Sell: You can also turn functional gadgets

and components into cash in some
circumstances. The classic way to do this:
list the hardware on auction platforms or in
classified ads and hope for the highest
possible proceeds. The alternatives are
second-hand goods buyers such as Cash
Converters. Here, you can invite offers for
your hardware online in just a few steps. If
the price is acceptable for you, just send the
item to the retailer and youll receive your
money.

Providers such as Cash Converters specialise in the

purchase and sale of second-hand electronics

Photos from left to right: Novoflex; CHIP (2)

Turn around the optics

cover story

20

External hard
drive

21

Hard Drives
And USB
Flash Drives
20

An external hard drive for a

low price
Effort: medium; Cost: approx. RM30
Youve treated your PC to a new, fast Solid
State Disk (SDD) and the hard drive used so

far is just lying around now. Give it a new

role to play and use the HDD as an external
mass storage device. To do this, youll only
need a casing with a SATA controller; these
are available for 2.5-inch as well as 3.5-inch
models. The latter will need a power adaptor;
in compact drives, the power supply via the
USB port is sufficient.

USB stick unlocks PC

select the plugged-in USB stick and

configure the preferred security settings.
Once you have entered your Windows
password, your USB stick is ready for use.

21 Stick instead of password

Effort: slight; Cost: none
There is one more practical use for smallcapacity USB sticks. You can use it, for
instance, to unlock your computer without
entering a password, when logging into
Windows. For this, youll need the tool Rohos
Logon Key. Once the installation is complete,

When your computer no longer seems to

want to work the way it is supposed to, a
bootable USB stick is a great thing. The tool
Sardu arms the memory stick with up to 20
different anti-virus programs; moreover, it
has various Linux versions and more firstaid software.
Preparation: The selectable software is
listed by category in the left sidebar. Mark

Create the stick: Click on the symbol with

the USB stick in the right sidebar. You can
begin creating the boot flash drive here.
Use in emergencies: In order to ensure that
the USB flash drive can also be used in case
of an emergency, the starting sequence of
the drive must be started in BIOS. Here, USB
should come before hard drives. Then select
the preferred software from the list (bottom

the applications you want by ticking the

boxes next to them. We recommend you to
pick several anti-virus programs as well as
a Linux version (e.g. Ubuntu).

photo on the right). But dont forget to undo

the changes in BIOD after repairing your
computer.

Photos: (Raidsonic (left) Nikolaus Schffler (right)

USB STICK FOR EMERGENCIES

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073

test lab

TEST LAB: The Tools

Here at the CHIP Test Labs, we adhere to the high requirements set by the CHIP International Testcenter
standards. This means that everything here -- from our own personal knowledge and to our trusted tools
of the trade -- are meant to provide the most optimised, unbiased and comprehensive review to every
product that comes through our doors. As thus, our test bed tools are specifically picked to get the most
out of every test we perform

Intel Platform
Motherboards
Intel DZ77GA-70K
MSI Z87 MPower

Processors
Intel Core i7-3770K
Intel Core i7-4770K

Graphics
Processing Unit
MSI GeForce GTX 980
GAMING 4G

CPU Cooler Cooler

Master X6

PSU, Storage & RAM

Power Supply

Memory

Cooler Master Silent Pro

Hybrid (1300W)

Kingston HyperX
KHX1600C9D3K4/16GX
Kingston HyperX FURY
HX318C10FWK2/8
Kingston HyperX Predator
HX430C15PBK4/16

Storage
Western Digital Black Dual
Drive
Western Digital My Book
Live Duo

AMD Platform
Motherboards
ASUS Crosshair V
ASUS A88X-Pro

Graphics
Processing Unit
ASUS Radeon R9 290X

Processors

CPU Cooler

AMD FX-8150
AMD A8-3850

Cooler Master Hyper 212

EVO

Benchmark Software
Operating
System
Windows 7 Ultimate
(64-bit)

Futuremark
PCMark 8
3DMark

Industry
Standard
Benchmark Tools
AIDA64
SiSoftware SANDRA
Speccy
Unigine Heaven

chip malaysia

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test lab

TEST LAB
9

16
20

15

18
17

13

3
12

10

19
6

076

march 16

chip malaysia

14

test lab

CONTENTS
8

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

11

11
12
13
14
7

15
16
17
18
19
20

086
087
088
089
090
091
092
093
094
095
096
097
098
099
100
101
102
103
102
103

Huawei Nexus 6P
ASUS VivoMini UN45
Wiko Lenny2
ASUS STRIX Soar
Acer Predator 15
Huawei Watch
Lenovo ThinkPad X250
ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q
ASUS E3 PRO GAMING V5
Cooler Master MasterAir Maker 8
Casio XJ-V2
ASUS Zen AiO Pro Z240IC
ASUS ZenFone 2 Deluxe
honor 5X
Sony XBA-300AP
MSI B150 GAMING M3
MSI GK-701 Mechanical Keyboard
MSI WS72 6QJ
Moto 360 v2
Philips 276E7QDSW

CHIP Awards
CHIP Editors Choice Award

Ratings
Each product review is rated on a scale of 1 to 5 for
different key parameters:

Awarded to products that receive unanimous

endorsement from all CHIP editors for its overall
brilliance

CHIP Outstanding Award

Reserved for products that combine astute technical
performance with good quality and design

CHIP Recommended Award

Given to products that possess singular quality
worthy of a recommendation

PERFORMANCE : Refers to the efficiency of execution

FEATURES : Rates the abilities and unique characteristics available
DESIGN : Varies according to product. Finished products - form factor and build
quality. Hardware components - layout, size and cooling solution. Software - user
interface
VALUE : Calculated from the performance and features of the product in relation
to the price

chip malaysia

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077

first looks
Up With The Stars
Boasting the brands latest in innovative design and technology, the
Samsung Galaxy A7 offers consumers a platform to express their
individuality with powerful performance with a 5.5-inch screen. The
Samsung Galaxy A7 combines metal and glass to create a beautiful
and harmonious premium design, with superior viewing experience
through a larger screen size, and a narrow 2.7mm bezel. The phone
is equipped with an enhanced camera sporting Optical Image
Stabilisation (OIS) on the front camera. In addition, the front and rear
cameras both sport an f/1.9 lens for optimum photos in low-light
conditions.
Samsung Galaxy A7
Contact: Samsung Malaysia Electronics Sdn Bhd
Phone: 1 800 88 9999
Info: www.samsung.com.my

Power To The Router

Say hello to the fastest tri-band WiFi router, the ASUS
RT-AC5300. Its the ultimate choice for PC enthusiasts
and gamers, with NitroQAM for AC5300-class speeds
for maximum combined speeds of up to 5334Mbit/s.
Sporting a 4x4 MIMO antenna array that is unrivalled in
multi-device performance and coverage, it also features
a built-in game accelerator that greatly reduces ping and
latency for virtually all competitive multi-player online
games. The Tri-Band Wi-Fi and Smart Connect allows
for more devices to connect faster and smoother with
impressive network speed.
ASUS RT-AC5300
Contact: Advancenet Technology Sdn. Bhd., SDS
Distribution Sdn. Bhd
Phone: (03)8070 3633, (03) 7782 4700
Info: www.advancenet.com.my, www.sds.com.my

Feeling Unwell?
Always working to ensure the right balance between
technology, design, quality and price, Wiko Mobile introduces
the Wiko FEVER. Something you dont see often or at all is
the FEVERs phosphorescent design, which translates into
a glow-in-the-dark effect. The FEVER absorbs daylight and
reflects it once in the dark, making it the first glow-in-the-dark
smartphone in Malaysia. Its equipped with a 5.2-inch FHD IPS
display and a 2.5D curved glass, together with an accented
metal frame and soft touch leather-effect back cover that
gives the FEVER a premium look.
Wiko FEVER
Contact: TRI-MAX DESIGN SDN BHD
Phone: 601 6210 5088
Info: www.rimba.com.my

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first looks
Zooming In Fast
Boasting an unrivalled 4D FOCUS system, the Sony a6300 can lock
focus on a subject in as little as 0.05 seconds, which Sony claims
is the worlds fastest AF acquisition time. Additionally, the a6300
has an incredible 425 phase detection AF points that are densely
positioned over the entire image area, another world breaking
number of AF points on an interchangeable lens camera. The
camera is capable of shooting at up to 11 frames per second with
continuous autofocus and exposure tracking. The versatile a6300
camera is equipped with a newly developed 24.2 MP3 APS-C sized
Exmor CMOS sensor, which works together with a BIONZ X image
processing engine for outstanding image quality and shooting
high resolution 4K video.
Sony a6300
Contact: Sony (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd
Phone: 1 300 88 1233
Info: www.sony.com.my

Colours Across The Spectrum

Sporting a spectrum of more than 16.8 million colours is the,
Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum, a full-size RGB mechanical keyboard.
The keyboards uniquely crafted design delivers peak performance
for a pure gaming experience. It sports Logitechs exclusive
Romer-G mechanical switches, offering 25 percent faster actuation
than standard mechanical keyboards, as well as a customisable
RGB lighting and dedicated media controls. You can select and
personalise each individual key light using Logitech Gaming
Software, and even synchronise lighting effects with other Logitech
G gaming gear.
Logitech G810 Orion Spectrum
Contact: Ingram Micro Sdn Bhd., MCL Sdn Bhd., M-Link Sdn Bhd.,
Kaira Technologies Sdn Bhd
Phone: (03) 7955 8188, (03) 8023 3800, (03) 7728 9003, (03) 7955 3669
Info: www.logitech.com/en-my

Charge Up
Harvey Norman Malaysias first foray into developing their
very own line of laptops has given birth to the Harvey
Norman Charge Plus 2-in-1. This sleek Intel-powered
device is perfect for your on-the-go lifestyle, meeting
consumers need to be productive with style. The Charge
Plus 2-in-1 sports an 11.6-inch display with a detachable
keyboard designed with a dazzling metal body. It is
powered by Intels Atom Z8300 processor, 2GB of DDR3L
RAM and sports 64GB of storage. It can either be a tablet
or laptop whenever you need it to be either, and comes
with Microsoft 365 and translator Dewan Eja pre-installed.
Harvey Norman Charge Plus 2-in-1
Contact: Harvey Norman Malaysia
Phone: (03) 7805 1702
Info: www.harveynorman.com.my

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Up In The Clouds
Need an easy-to-use Network Attached Storage (NAS) device?
Look no further than the WD My Cloud EX2 Ultra, a highperformance, two-bay NAS system. The My Cloud EX2 Ultra
has a powerful 1.3 GHz dual-core processor enabling ultra-fast
transfer rates for high performance and smooth video streaming.
Users also have access to 1GB of DDR3 memory, allowing them
to multitask with ease and leverage applications for HD media
streaming, surveillance and much more. The NAS also comes
preconfigured in RAID 1 mode to help protect data right from the
start and is easily configurable into other data protection modes.
My Cloud EX2 Ultra
Contact: Amble Action Sdn Bhd, Eternal Asia (M) Sdn Bhd
Phone: (03) 7955 1768, (03) 5613 5600
Info: www.wdc.com

Dont Cry Over Spilt Milk

The Logitech MK235 Wireless Keyboard and Mouse
Combo, is a spill-resistant keyboard and mouse
combination with wireless connectivity and a durable
design. The keyboard features a familiar layout with fullsized arrow keys, a number pad and all the usual keys you
need, as well as easy access to 15 function keys. With its
durable, spill-proof design and anti-fading treatment, you
never have to worry about losing the letter from your keys.
Additionally, the mouse has a standard on/off button,
a wireless range or 10 meters and Logitech Advanced
Optical tracking for multi-surface tracking.
Logitech MK235 Wireless Keyboard And Mouse
Contact: Ingram Micro Sdn Bhd., MCL Sdn Bhd., M-Link Sdn
Bhd., Kaira Technologies Sdn Bhd
Phone: (03) 7955 8188, (03) 8023 3800, (03) 7728 9003, (03)
7955 3669
Info: www.logitech.com/en-my

Whats Your Greatest Desire?

The HTC Desire 728 is a dual-SIM smartphone that
combines high-quality audio with a vibrant 5.5inch High Definition Screen. Paired with its 13MP
main camera and 5MP front camera, it becomes
the perfect choice for those looking for a mid-range
smartphone. Using an 1.3GHz MT6753 octa-core
processor with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of ROM,
the HTC Desire 728 comes with Android 5.1 and
provides the user with a great everyday experience.
HTC Desire 728 Dual-SIM
Contact: HTC Careline
Phone: 1 800 88 9855
Info: www.htc.com/sea

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first looks
A Cute Cube
The MSI Cubi 2 Plus is built on a concept of nifty
technology and a brilliant design to suit the needs of
both consumers and businesses so that users can
benefit from a powerful handheld-size PC. This latest
Cubi PC comes with a new mini STX motherboard
form factor, which makes it 29 percent smaller than
a mini-ITX motherboard. You can easily upgrade the
CPU since it sports a socket design, so if you ever need
to replace the CPU it can be done, instead of buying a
whole new PC. The Cubi 2 Plus can also be mounted
to the back of a monitor as it support VESA mounts.
MSI Cubi 2 Plus
Contact: MSI Malaysia Office
Phone: 1 300 22 1386
Info: my.msi.com

Durable Storage On-The-Go

The ADATA HD650X is based on the HD650 ruggedised
external hard drive, it features a tough shell that protects
it against shocks and drops, and is deal for gamers who
like to carry their games around just in-case an opportunity
appears. Sporting USB 3.0 support, the HD650X is capable
of data rate up to 5Gbps. The HD650X is aimed towards
Xbox One users as its compatible with Xbox One and Xbox
360 consoles, providing a high speed storage expansion for
Xbox gamers and their ever-growing library of games.
ADATA HD650X
Contact: Achieva Technology Sdn. Bhd.
Phone: (03) 7955 1768
Info: www.adata.com

Put It On My Tab
The new Samsung TabPro S is designed to be slim and
light, fitting perfectly into a streamlined lifestyle. Its sleek,
lightweight form makes for a capable companion to your
everyday life. Featuring dedicated cook covers that have
a premium leather-like finish, it takes on the wear and
tear of daily travels with purpose and grace. The 12-inch
touchscreen is big enough for your Galaxy TabPro S to
serve as mobile office, or even a mobile movie theatre. This
time round Samsung has went with Windows 10 Home/
Pro as the operating system to give consumers the feel of
a computer at the tip of their fingers.
Samsung TabPro S
Contact: Samsung Malaysia Electronics Sdn Bhd
Phone: 1 800 88 9999
Info: www.samsung.com.my

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Divine Intervention
The most powerful gaming solution in the world
just got better with the MSI X99A GODLIKE GAMING
CARBON Edition motherboard. Featuring their latest
Mystic Light RGB LED feature that support up to 16.8
million colours and 16 LED effects, you can style your
rig in any way you want and your creativity as the limit.
For the first time ever, MSI has used their Steel Armor
technology on their DIMM slots giving your RAM a
stable hold and better EMI-shielding and even better
signal strength when paired together with MSIs DDR4
Boost.
MSI X99A GODLIKE GAMING CARBON Edition
Contact: JW Power Marketing Sdn. Bhd., Mediaforte
(Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Advancenet Technology Sdn. Bhd.
Phone: (03) 2148 1307, (03) 7960 6868, (03) 8070 3633
Info: my.msi.com

Honor In Hand
Introducing the honor 7 enhanced edition, an updated
model of the popular honor 7 smartphone. It now
sports 32GB of built-in storage, EMUI version 4.0, and
includes a Fast Charging Adapter. It also comes in Gold
as an exclusive colour for the model. Its still powered
by Huaweis own Kirin 935 chipset and a 5.2-inch
FHD display. Then theres also the 3GB of RAM, 20MP
rear camera, 8MP front camera and finishing with a
fingerprint sensor. The smartphone packs a 3,100mAh
battery and comes only in gold colour for this variant.
honor 7 Enhanced Edition
Contact: Huawei Malaysia Mobile Hotline
Phone: 1 800 22 0086
Info: www.vmall.my

NAS At Home
Aimed at home and small office users, the Synology DiskStation
DS216+is designed to deliver high-speed file sharing, application
sharing, and online collaboration while allowing home users
transcode and stream high quality video to multiple devices. The
DS216+ is a high-performance 2-bay NAS server delivering highspeed performance, exceeding 111 MB/s read/write, while ensuring
encrypted data transmission at over 113 MB/s read and 109 MB/s
write. Additionally, the DS216+ can perform on-the-fly H.264 4K
to 1080p video transcoding, making it possible for high definition
enthusiasts to stream to multimedia files, regardless of bandwidth
or device limitations.
Synology Diskstation DS216+
Contact: Build Technology Supply Sdn Bhd, Eternal Asia (M) Sdn Bhd
Phone: (03) 7955 1136, (03) 5613 5600
Info: www.synology.com

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first looks
One Of Us
The HTC One A9 combines striking design on the outside
with the latest features of Android 6.0 Marshmallow, with
HTC Sense on the inside to create an unrivalled smartphone
experience. It comes packed with the HTC UltraSelfie camera
for a more vibrant feel, real and true to life photos, making the
best of your One Moments even when captured in low light.
The phone is available in Carbon Gray and Topaz Gold with a
32Gb configuration thats expandable up to 2TB through SD
card storage. The perfect phone for storing all your photos,
music and videos.
HTC One A9
Contact: HTC Careline
Phone: 1 800 88 9855
Info: www.htc.com/sea

Reach For The Stars

Samsung has revealed their Samsung Galaxy S7 edge with a slew of
new of great features and hardware. The S7 edge sports a 5.5-inch
Quad HD Super AMOLED display, a 12MP rear camera with dual
pixel and a 5MP front camera. It runs of Android 6.0 Marshmallow
with built-in storage of 32GB which is expandable up to 200GB. The
phone is powered by a 3600mAh battery their biggest battery yet,
thatll last you throughout the day and is capable of fast wireless
charging is IP68 certified water resistant.
Samsung Galaxy S7 edge
Contact: Samsung Malaysia Electronics Sdn Bhd
Phone: 1 800 88 9999
Info: www.samsung.com.my

The Premier SD
XPG microSDHC/SDXC UHS-I U3 models are able to reach
read speeds of 95MB/s and write speeds of 90MB/s,
which is a considerable increase compared to previousgeneration of microSD performance. The new UHS-I U3
models allow for faster microSD performance to enable
quick transmission od media between devices, cutting
down the frustration of waits, especially in this time
where consumers create content in Ultra HD 4K. The
64GB versions can store up to an hour of Ultra HD 4K
video and over 10,000 images captured by smartphone
cameras in the 12MP-20MP range.
Contact: Achieva Technology Sdn. Bhd.
Phone: (03)7955 1768
Info: www.adata.com

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Huawei Nexus 6P
Price: RM2,740
Contact: Huawei Malaysia Mobile Hotline
Phone: 1 800 22 0086
Info: www.vmall.my
Display: 5.7 inch (1,440x2,560)
Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 810
Memory: 4GB
Storage: 32GB
Operating System: Android 6.0 Marshmallow
Camera: 12.3MP
3DMark Icestorm: Maxed Out
PC Mark Work: 7,264 points
Antutu: 55,341 points

By Nazrin Zain

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

A Brand New
Nexus
Huawei does well with the brand new Nexus 6P

oogles Nexus line of phones are

often regarded as a baseline of
what is expected of Android-based
phones, as well as a guideline of what phone
manufacturers should emulate. This time
around, Huawei has set the benchmark pretty
high with the Nexus 6P smartphone.
The Huawei Nexus 6P is one of the first
Android-based smartphones in the market
to launch with Android 6.0 Marshmallow.
The device sports a 5.7 inch display, with a
resolution of 1,440x2,560 pixels that is protected
by a Gorilla Glass 4 screen. The phone is
powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 810
processor, alongside 3GBs of RAM and 32GBs
of storage, which unfortunately does not come
with any expandable storage options.
In the past, Nexus phones have often been
derided for their low quality build, but this time
around, Huawei has decked the Nexus 6P in an
aluminium unibody chassis that feels amazing
to the touch, even if a bit slippery.
Underneath the phones 12.3MP rear-facing
camera is a fingerprint scanner that allows
users to easily unlock their phones without
having to key in a password. Unlike Huaweis

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Mate S however, the fingerprint scanner on the

Nexus 6P is capable of performing only one
task, which we feel is a bit unfortunate and is a
waste as Huawei has shown that its good for
other tasks as well.
Performance-wise, the Nexus 6P is a pretty
amazing phone. Thanks to the Snapdragon
processor, the phone runs any and all apps as
well as can be expected, and not to mention
that the device is capable of running throughout
the day unless its subjected to the most
rigorous of app testing that you can throw at it.
The USB-C connector at the bottom of the
phone is both a blessing and a curse. When
paired with the wall-charger that the Nexus 6P
comes with, charging from empty to full takes
about an hour to complete.
The downside however, is that if you lose
the USB Type-C charging cable, youre going to
find it difficult to find a new one as theyre not
common enough just yet.
As advertised, the Nexus 6P gets all the
latest updates from Google first, and this can be
seen from the monthly updates that the phone
receives to improve performance and fix security
flaws, amongst others.

The Nexus 6Ps unibody chassis adds a touch of class

to the phone

The fingerprint scanner is a bit underutilised as it is

only used as a means to unlock your phone

Performance
Features

None

CHIP CONCLUDES
The Huawei Nexus 6P has come a long way
now, being a mid-range phone to a fullfledged premium device that gets all the cool
updates from Google first. The pricetag for
the Nexus 6P may seem to be a bit steep, but
considering the features it comes with, we
feel that its actually quite a good deal.

test lab

ASUS VivoMini
UN45
Price: RM1,599
Contact: Build Technology Supply Sdn Bhd,
Servex (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd.
Phone: (03) 7955 3699, (03) 8024 6688
Info: www.build.com.my, www.servex.com.my

Operating System: Windows 10

Processor: Intel Pentium Quad-core 1.7GHz
Graphics: Intel HD Graphics
Memory: 4GB DDR3
Storage: 128GB M.2 SSD
Others: Bluetooth 4.0, Gigabit LAN, 802.11ac Wi-Fi,
Dimensions: 131 x 131 x 42 mm
Weight: 3.6kg
PCMark Home: 1,394 points
PCMark Creative: 1,254 points
PCMark Work: 1,728 points

By Matthew Yap

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

Keeping It
Compact
ASUS shows that a PC doesnt have to take up
much space, or too much money either

hen it comes to casual PC use,

consumers these days have a wealth
of choice. Be it a desktop or laptop,
we are only limited by the budget we have. So
say you want something thats affordable and
small, which do you go for? Well, there are small
form factor PCs like the ASUS VivoMini UN45.
Like the VivoPC, the VivoMini UN45 is an
ultra-compact PC thats only about the size of
a small box. Its got a simple yet elegant design,
and a plastic body with a spun-metal finishing.
In addition to being so compact, the UN45 is
also very lightweight at less than 700g.
Theres a decent number of I/O ports on
this PC, including two USB 3.0 ports, as well as
a VGA port and HDMI port to output display.
For connectivity, it has wireless AC on top of
the Gigabit Ethernet port. Last but not least
is the audio jack that also works as a line-in,
so you can plug in a headset and do Skype
calls. According to ASUS, the UN45 has a
variation to its ports, specifically the inclusion
of a mini-DisplayPort instead of the VGA port.
Moreover, ASUS packed a VESA mount kit inside
the box, so that the VivoMini can be attached
to the back of displays that are compatible

with the mount. To secure the PC, theres also a

standard Kensington lock.
The UN45 can be purchased with varying
specs, meaning that the PC does come with
varying prices as well. For one, it could house
either the Intel Pentium N3700, Intel Celeron
N3150, or the Intel Celeron N3000. The first
two are quad-core processors, while the N3000
is only a dual-core CPU; the unit we received
came with the Intel Pentium N3700. Besides
benchmarking it, we also tested it mainly with
multimedia. Its not very suitable for games,
but if youre looking to get a HTPC, this VivoMini
does the job well.
Curiously enough, though ASUS website
states that only the Intel Celeron N3000 variant
has a fanless design, the one we reviewed
clearly didnt have a fan either. We really
liked how the PC remained silent throughout
benchmarking and when watching videos,
which is a trait were sure many users would
appreciate.
It comes with a M.2 SSD of at least 32GB,
with the maximum being the 128GB we have
on our review unit.

For a PC this small, the UN45 sure packs a good number

of ports

With this, you can VESA mount the VivoMini

Silent
Compact

Limited storage

CHIP CONCLUDES
Compact and mountable, the VivoMini UN45
works well by keeping out of sight and stays
silent throughout.

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Wiko Lenny2
Price: RM299
Contact: Wiko Mobile
Info: my-en.wikomobile.com
Display: 5-inch, 480 x 854 resolution IPS
CPU: Quad-core 1.3 GHz Cortex-A7
GPU: Mali-400MP2
Memory: 768MB
Connectivity: Bluetooth 4.0, WiFi
Storage: 8GB eMMC Flash expandable with microSD
Operating System: Android 5.0
Camera: 5MP (rear), 2MP (front)
Dimensions: 145.4 x 73.2 x 9 mm
Weight: 156g
3DMark Icestorm: 2,963 points
PC Mark Work: 2,480 points
Antutu: 23,693 points

By Matthew Yap

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

Value Choice
The Lenny2 is the choice for the budget conscious

he number of smartphone brands

entering Malaysia has been gradually
increasing since last year. Are they here
just to test the waters, to see how well their
products will fare? Brands as big as Meizu have
come to market their wares here, but have
met with little success. So how well will Wikos
Lenny2 perform?
When we first pulled the Lenny2 out of its
box, the first thing that came to mind was that
the smartphone looks eerily like Microsofts
devices. The Lenny2 is made with majority
plastic, sporting a white polycarbonate plastic
cover that gives off a strong resemblance
to a Microsoft Lumia smartphone. Standard
components can be found on the device, so its
at least as complete as smartphones go. At the
front is the three touch-buttons found in any
Android smartphone and a 2-megapixel front
camera, while the speaker is placed at the back
along with the rear camera. The rear camera is
a 5-megapixel snapper that comes with a single
LED flash, so none of that fancy dual-LED weve
gotten used to. Finally, the power button and
volume rocker are on the right side.
Though it looks like the Lenny2 is a unibody,
due to the cover wrapping around it nicely, its
actually removable and again gives off that
Lumia vibe. Inside is a removable 1,800mAh

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battery, as well as two SIM slots one

supporting only micro SIM, while the other a
full-sized SIM and also a microSD slot for
additional storage space.
Powering the Lenny2 is Mediateks
MT6580M, which uses a quad-core Cortex-A7
that is clocked at 1.3 GHz, and its RAM is just
768MB. Overall, its not as bad as it sounds,
since it can do simple tasks like browsing the
internet or video chat. However, stutters are
apparent during the benchmarks and when
trying to game on it. You wont be able to store
much on it either without a microSD card,
because the Lenny2 only has 8GB of internal
storage, which was barely enough to store our
regular suite of benchmark apps.
The display for this smartphone is only
about 854x480, so even YouTube videos will be
limited to that. Audio isnt that great either; the
max volume is decent, but theres some minor
distortion so its excellent with multimedia.
Fortunately, Wiko included an earphone
inside the box of the Lenny 2 and it helps by
outputting better audio.
As for the camera, it takes decently sharp
images without noise. However, it is crippled by
the lack of features HDR or Autofocus, as well
as a low pixel count of only 5-megapixels.

An earphone is included inside the box for better audio

quality

It comes with dual SIM, a microSD slot and a removable

battery

Price
Camera

Lack features
Weak performance

CHIP CONCLUDES
Despite lacking all the bells and whistles
we like from high-end phones, the Lenny2
provides a compelling value choice for those
who cant afford 4-digits for a smartphone.

test lab

ASUS STRIX Soar

Price: TBA
Contact: Build Technology Supply Sdn Bhd
Phone: 03-7955-3699
Info: www.build.com.my

Chipset: C-Media USB2.0 6632AX High-Definition

Sound Processor
DAC: ESS SABRE9006A Premier 8 Channel Audio DAC
Frequency Response: 10 Hz to 48 KHz
Sample Rate: 44.1K/48K/88.2K/96K/176.4K/192
KHz @ 16bit/24bit
Ports: 5 x audio jack, 1 x Line-in/microphone/ 1 x
SPDIF
Dimensions: 190mm x 130mm x 22mm

By Matthew Yap

Performance:
Features:
Design:

Familiar
Hardware
ASUS seems to believe that theres no reason to stray from
established designs

f theres one thing that would be

disappointing in principal, it would be nigh
identical products that dont differ much
from one another. Why? Because in such a
case, which model or version should you go
for? Making an inform decision is important,
so we knuckled down with the latest sound
card we received from ASUS the STRIX Soar
to find out if our readers should just get
this one, or something like the STRIX Raid Pro
from last issue.
The STRIX Soar comes in a nice box with
a cut-out to show the sound card. However,
inside it is quite barebones; other than
the driver CD, manual, and the sound card
itself, theres nothing else given. Of course,
only the sound card is relevant in this case.
Once plugged into our testbed, the most
glaring bit presented itself - the STRIX Soar
looks exactly like the STRIX Raid Pro and
the STRIX DLX. The design is identical and
the port placements the same. About the
only difference here with last issues STRIX
Raid Pro, is the distinct lack of the external
controller.
It should also be noted that this sound
card requires a 6-pin power connector.
Without plugging that in, its not even going
to be able to run, much less have the juice to

power its built-in amp. Therefore, your PSU

will need to have the 6-pin connector for it,
while the motherboard needs to have the slot
to support it; a mini-ITX motherboard might
not be able to use it, for example.
Fortunately, the performance of this sound
card isnt affected by that downside. The
STRIX Soar can support high-end headphones,
capable of amping even the super expensive
cans that have a 600-ohm rating. This means
you wont have to spend money on a separate
amplifier for your favourite headphones. With
a SNR of 116 thats vastly superior to onboard
sound chips, it can deliver very high volumes
without distortion. This is further aided by the
plastic shroud over it that shields the sound
cards PCB, from electromagnetic interference
emitted by the other components inside a PC.
Software for the STRIX Soar is the same
as the ones for the STRIX Raid Pro, which is
the Sonic Studio. This utility provides the user
with a simple interface to tweak settings like
the volume, EQ, or to toggle virtual surround
sound. It also comes with the Sonic Radar
Pro, a tool dedicated mostly to FPS games,
that shows the direction of sound in a visual
format. This is useful for FPS gamers in
pinpointing where sounds like gunfire or
explosions are coming from.

A 6-pin connector is required to power the STRIX Soar

The shroud with owl eye shields this sound card from
EMI

Easy installation
Great audio quality

No stand out feature

Basic software

CHIP CONCLUDES
Due to the absence of the external controller,
this is basically a cheaper version of the
STRIX RAID Pro

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Acer Predator 15
Price: RM8,999
Contact: Acer Sales and Services Sdn.Bhd
Phone: 1 800 88 1288
Info: www.acer.com.my
Operating System: Windows 10
Processor: Intel Core i7-6700HQ
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX980M, Intel HD Graphics 530
Memory: 24GB
Storage: 256GB PCIe x4 SSD, 1TB HDD
Others: Bluetooth 4.0, Gigabit LAN, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, SD/
SDXC/MMC card reader,
Dimensions: 391 x 300 x 39 mm
Weight: 3.6kg
3DMark Fire Strike: 8,270 points
3DMark Fire Strike Extreme: 4,392 points
PCMark 8 Home: 3,371 points
PCMark 8 Creative: 3,358 points
PCMark 8 Work: 3,412 points

By Matthew Yap

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

Superior Predator
Acer shows that you can own something awesome for less

n the last issue, we reviewed the Acer

Predator XB1 monitor that debuted in IFA
2015. A monitor with that kind of spec is best
paired with hardware that matches it, hardware
like the Acer Predator 15.
Unlike many other notebooks, the Predator
15 has a plastic matte body instead of a metallic
one. It feels smooth but retains good grip, so
those who have butter fingers wont drop it
easily. We also noticed that its quite a bit bigger
than most other notebooks of its size range.
What this means is that it requires a 17-inch
bag for storage. Weighing in at 3.6kg, its one of
the heavier notebooks around too.
Acer went all in with the IO options here.
We found four USB 3.0 ports, Gigabit Ethernet
port, two 3.5mm jacks, HDMI, DisplayPort, and
USB Type-C. Furthermore, theres also a SD card
reader and right next to it is a Blu-ray drive.
The Predator 15 has soft-touch keys on its
full-sized keyboard. We like its good key travel
and has well-spaced out keys, which caters for
a more pleasant typing experience. Similarly,
the trackpad is smooth and a blast to use, with
responsive physical buttons. However, the
recessed design of the trackpad traps dirt easily,
so cleaning it often is necessary.
Just above the keyboard is a row of keys that
can be used with the PredatorSense software.

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These allow the user to switch a variety of

options on the fly, just by pressing the button
youve set it to. It takes time to learn how to use
the, as it not very intuitive to use.
Gaming on the Predator 15 is a satisfying
experience. Thanks to its specs, it runs any
game you can throw at it in 1080p and on a mix
of high and ultra-settings. We didnt encounter
any stutters while playing The Witcher 3, and all
other current gen titles ran at above 60FPS on
those settings.
This gaming performance is backed by its
cooling efficiency. The Predator 15s Blu-ray
drive can be swapped out for a unique cooling
module called the Predator FrostCore, made in
partnership with Cooler Master, which adds to
the cooling efficiency of the notebooks back
exhaust vents. Mind you, having that many
cooling vents does make it very noisy.
Its display has above average brightness,
contrast, and colour reproduction to make
watching videos on it fun. Videos look crisp and
vibrant enough, and can be viewed even from
acute angles. This is complemented by the
audio, which is no slouch either. At max volume
we found that it could even be heard over a
small room full of people in conversation. Its
got decent bass too, because of the subwoofer
located at the bottom.

As with many gaming notebooks, the Predator 15 has a

good keyboard

The Predator FrostCore can be used to swap out the

existing optical drive to make this laptop cooler

Performance
Unique cooling
module

Noisy

CHIP CONCLUDES
Great all around and more affordable than
most, definitely consider it if youre on the
market for a gaming notebook

test lab

Huawei Watch
Price: RM1,799
Contact: Huawei Malaysia Mobile Hotline
Phone: 1 800 22 0086
Info: www.huawei.com/my
Display: 1.4-inch AMOLED
Connectivity: Bluetooth 4.1 BLE, WiFi
Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 400
Water Resistant: No
Touch Screen: Yes

By Nixon Ng

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

Brains And Brawns

A fashionable yet smart timepiece that not only catches
the eye, but also improves your lifestyle

ith so many brands and

manufacturers churning out smart
wearables, its not hard to see why
they are starting to gain popularity. Technology
is growing faster than ever, where it started
with smartphones and tablets, now even your
watch is getting smarter. Smart wearables
could be the future and manufacturers are
picking up on that, and this time round we have
the chance to try out the Huawei Watch.
Getting straight into the details, the Huawei
Watch is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon
400, 512MB of RAM and has 4GB of ROM. It
runs Android Wear by Google, which gives you
the ability to download supported applications
from the Google Play Store, and features
Google Now, an intelligent personal assistant
also developed by Google. For the display, the
Huawei Watch sports a 1.4-inch AMOLED
screen protected by scratch-resistant Sapphire
Crystal glass.
The watch itself is made from Cold-Forged
316L Stainless Steel giving the watch its rugged
and durable feel. Our Huawei Watch came
with a stainless steel strap but you can buy
fine leather straps to replace it, if you prefer
leather over metal. The high-definition 1.4-inch
AMOLED display, is crisp, clear and colourful,
leaving us satisfied. Compared to other smart

watches, the Huawei Watch features an

always-on screen but despite that battery life is
still reasonably good.
The Huawei Watch also functions as
a fitness tracker, able to track your steps
and heart rate using its accelerometer and
gyroscope combo, and a PPG heart rate
sensor. The sensors are accurate and should
satisfy a gym junkie, but the issue we thought
the Huawei Watch had was its weight. Not
counting the stainless steel chain, the watch
has some nice weight to it, and although it
gives the impression that the watch is durable,
it also doesnt feel suitable to be a fitness
tracker. We love the weight, it gives us the
confidence that the Huawei Watch is rugged,
but the weight could be an issue when youre
out for a run.
Another great thing about the Huawei
Watch is that it supports iOS, so now you have
another option to go for if you dont want an
Apple Watch. One of our favourite features
of the smart watch was the Android Wear,
connecting it to our smartphone gave us
remote control of our device. Shuffling through
playlists, receiving notifications, and using
alarms are just a few things that make the
Huawei Watch great.

The thick and heavy body could please or displease, in

our case it pleased us

Premium feel
Durable
Supports iOS

Not very suitable as

a fitness tracker

CHIP CONCLUDES
With a classy demeanour that would satisfy
the modern gentleman, the Huawei Watch
blends technology with style and strikes a
good balance between the two, and because
of that the Huawei Watch would be a waste if
treated only as a piece of fashion.

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test lab

Lenovo ThinkPad
X250
Price: RM4,799
Contact: Lenovo Technologies Sdn.Bhd
Phone: 1 800 80 8575
Info: www.lenovo.com/my/en

Operating System: Windows 7 Professional

Processor: Intel Core i5-5300U
Memory: 8GB
Storage: 256GB SSD
Others: 1x VGA, 1x mini DP, 2x USB 3.0, 1x Integrated
Smartcard Reader, 1x Mic / headphone combo, 1x RJ45, 1x
FPR (Optional), 4-in-1 card reader
Dimensions: 305.6 x 208.5 x 20mm
Weight: 1.3kg
PCMark Work: 2,848 points
PCMark Home: 2,360 points
PCMark Creative: 2,044 points

By Nixon Ng

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

Thinking
Outside The Pad

Lenovo knows their roots, working where theyre strong at

and producing great results

hen productivity matters the most,

you need a no nonsense working
PC to be efficient. Lenovo has been
around for a long time, making some of the
best work laptops on the market. With their
ThinkPad series, they designed their laptops
to be simple, mobile, and efficient. So it was
a great opportunity for us to try out the new
Lenovo ThinkPad X250 when we received it
from Lenovo.
The X250 is truly a no nonsense laptop,
providing the essentials for every working class
adult such as a card reader and VGA port. Not
only that, the X250 weighs in at only 1.3kg
making it an excellent choice for a portable
laptop. The X250 comes powered by an Intel
Core i5-5300U processor, that sports a base
clock of 2.3GHz and turbo clock of 2.9GHz.
This paired together with 8GB of RAM and a
256GB SSD, provides a fast and seamless work
experience.
The ThinkPad always had a place in our
hearts with a simplistic design, the X250 is no
different than its predecessors and still retains
the ThinkPads compact and simple black
design. The trackpad has a nice matte finish

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and responds well when navigating the laptop.

The buttons are easy to press down but feels
solid, and is large enough for even users with
large fingers to use comfortably. Then above
the trackpad is Lenovos very own full-sized
spill resistant ergonomic keyboard.
Sporting a full array of keys which you dont
usually find on a laptop of this size, the X250
squeezes in the keys tightly, but in a way that
still allows the user to feel comfortable. The
keys have a nice slight dull tactile feedback, and
is pretty enjoyable to type on and silent, which
is great if you work in a quiet environment.
Finally, Lenovo still has their TrackPoint
pointing-device, so if you miss it no worries, its
still there and works without a hitch.
The size and weight of the laptop allowed
us to carry it around easily from venue to
venue, while not burdening us with its weight.
The small form factor allows it to easily fit
into messenger bags and of course regular
backpacks. Something we wished the X250
had was a HDMI port which could replace the
mini DisplayPort, but Lenovo might be looking
further ahead when DisplayPort becomes more
common.

VGA, USB and DisplayPort, but no HDMI

SD card slot always a must on laptops

Performance
Keyboard and
Trackpad

No HDMI port

CHIP CONCLUDES
Its always a hard decision when choosing a
laptop, so well help you out a bit by saying,
the Lenovo ThinkPad X250 is a choice that we
can recommend. Its compact and gets the
job done.

test lab

ASUS ROG
Swift PG279Q

Price: TBA
Contact: Build Technology Supply Sdn Bhd,
Servex(Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., ECS Astar Sdn Bhd
Phone: (03) 7955 3699, (03)8024 6688, (03) 6286 8222
Info: www.build.com.my, www.servex.com.my,
www.ecsm.com.my
Display Size: 27 inches
Resolution: 2,560 x 1,440
Connectivity: HDMI x1, DisplayPort x1, USB 3.0 x2
Refresh Rate: Up to 165Hz
Touch: No
Viewing Angle: 178 degrees

By Nazrin Zain

Performance:
Features:
Design:

For The Best

Gaming Visuals
ASUS steps up its display game with the ASUS ROG Swift
PG279Q

SUS has been in the monitor space for

quite some time now, and launching
displays meant for hardcore gaming is
something theyre very familiar with as well.
As gaming tech continues to grow, so does
the companys desire to release the biggest
and the best products money can buy. This
time around, that thing is the ASUS ROG Swift
PG279Q G-Sync monitor.
As the model name implies, the ROG
Swift PG279Q is a 27 inch monitor, with a
WQHD resolution of 2,560x1,440 pixels. The
monitor features support for NVIDIAs G-Sync
video technology which eliminates stuttering
framerates when playing fast-paced games at
higher resolutions. The monitor also sports an
IPS display, so not only do games look bright
and vibrant, you can also view the display at
almost any angle without having to worry
about discolouration and glare.
As far as input options go, the ROG Swift
PG279Q features one HDMI port and one
DisplayPort. Other I/O ports on the monitor
include two USB 3.0 port, as well as a 3.5mm
audio jack for headphones or speakers.
Most G-Sync, or even FreeSync monitors

have a high refresh rate of 144Hz to counter

the stutter that could happen when the GPU
and monitor go out of sync with each other,
but the ROG Swift PG279Q sports a 165Hz
refresh rate, completely removing motion blur,
allowing you to react quickly to what happens
on screen.
As mentioned before, the ROG Swift
PG279Q has an IPS screen, and this, combined
with support for 100 percent of sRGB colour
gamut. This is especially great for designers
and gamers who require things on monitor to
be colour-accurate for a variety of reasons.
Coupled with the monitors amazing viewing
angles, you can easily show gameplay footage
or a work in progress without having to adjust
the monitor to accommodate peculiar viewing
angles.
Gaming on the ROG Swift PG279Q is a
feast for the eyes. We tested games such as
Tomb Raider, FarCry 4 and Call of Duty, and
the visuals were simply stunning. There was
not a hint of graphic lag or screen-tearing
throughout our playthroughs, and everything
was shown in buttery smooth FPS, all thanks
to NVIDIAs G-Sync.

The base of the PG279Q monitor lights up, giving the

monitor a very aggressive look

Amazing visuals
Features

None

CHIP CONCLUDES
The ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q G-Sync monitor
is an amazing gaming monitor that elevates
your gaming experience to the next level.
No doubt it will be pricey no thanks to the
G-Sync module built-in, but if youre looking
to maximise your gaming experience, this is
one monitor you cant go wrong with.

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test lab

ASUS E3 PRO
GAMING V5

Price: RM726
Contact: Build Technology Supply Sdn Bhd, Servex(Malaysia)
Sdn. Bhd.
Phone: 03-7955-3699, 03-8024-6688
Info: www.build.com.my, www.servex.com.my
Slots: LGA1151
CPU: Intel C232
RAM Slots: 4
RAM Type: DDR4 2133MHz ECC, Non-ECC, Unbuffered
Memory
Ports: 1x PS/2, 1x LAN, 1x USB 3.1 Type A, 1x USB 3.1 Type
C, 4x USB 3.0, 2x USB 2.0, 1x Optical S/PDIF, 5x Audio jacks
PCMark 8 (Home): 4,460 points
PCMark 8 (Creative): 4,851 points
PCMark 8 (Work): 3,791 points

By Nixon Ng

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

Gaming On A Xeon
Gaming on a Xeon cant get any better than this

t wasnt too long ago that Xeon processors

started finding themselves in gaming
builds, the thought behind it was getting i7
performance at a lower price point and maybe
sacrificing certain features. Certain Xeon
processors arent able to be overclocked very
much like how Intel has their K and non-K
series processors. Also, the lack of an integrated
graphic card would mean you would need to
have a discrete one, these are just a few of the
differences between Xeon processors and the
more common consumer grade processors.
ASUS tries to tackle a niche market this
time round with a Xeon gaming motherboard.
The ASUS E3 PRO GAMING V5 supports Xeon
processors and all the features that come with
it, like ECC memory support. The board is aimed
to combine a workstation, server, and gaming
computer, so you can work efficiently and game
on the same hardware.
Although running off Intels C232 chipset,
the board still has the features youll usually
find on a B150 or Z170 board. You have your
USB 3.1 Type A and Type-C, USB 3.0 and USB
2.0. The board is equipped with ASUS gaming

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components like their SupremeFX gaming

audio technology and Gamers Guardian set
of features. ASUS Q-LED feature is a godsend
and works similarly to others of the same type,
whereby the LEDs will light up to show you
where the system has gone wrong if you fail to
boot successfully.
The Q-LED was tested by inserting a graphic
card we knew was faulty, and just like that the
VGA LED had lit up during boot. The E3 PRO
GAMING V5 comes in ASUS signature black and
red theme, so now you can build a workstation
or server that not only performs good, but looks
aesthetically pleasing. FAN Xpert3 is found on
the board and gave us full-control of the fans,
which made it easy for us to tweak our fan
settings for either silent when were working or
performance when the gaming gets intense.
The finally we have BIOS, which comes
with an EZ and Advanced mode for novices or
seasoned overclocker. It is capable of updating
to the latest BIOS via internet from within the
BIOS itself, so you can be sure to have the latest
motherboard updates when made available
with less hassle.

ASUS Supreme FX comes with high-end capacitors and

other sensitive parts to provide the best experience
possible

The board supports both Intel Core and Intel Xeon

processors

Supports ECC
memory
Overall features

None

CHIP CONCLUDES
By now you shouldve made the decision of
getting a Xeon processor, but if you havent
this motherboard could probably help you
make that decision for you, providing you
access to Xeons features and still provide
you with a great gaming experience.

test lab

Cooler Master
MasterAir Maker 8
Price: RM639
Contact: Ban Leong Technologies Sdn Bhd, Build Technology
Supply Sdn Bhd
Phone: (03) 7956 6300, (03) 7955 3699
Info: www.coolermaster.com

Compatibility: Intel LGA 2011-v3 / 2011 / 1366 / 1156 / 1155 /

1151 / 1150 / 775
AMD FM2+ / FM2 / FM1 / AM3+ / AM3 / AM2+
Fans Provided: 2x 140mm Silencio FP
Heatsink: 3D Vapor Chamber Base, 8 Heat Pipes, Aluminium Fins
Heatsink Weight: 758g
Noise Level: 8-24 dBA
Dimensions: 135 x 145 x 172mm

By Nixon Ng

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

Be An Airbender
Cooler Master is taking the modular market by storm

s water-cooling started losing popularity

air-cooling has started its rise among
hobbyists and regular consumers.
Although water-cooling isnt as risky as people
think, water-cooling has a stigma among
average consumers that if their cooling loop
malfunctions it would spell the doom of their
rig. Not to say that it wont happen but the
chances of that happening nowadays is very
low, but nonetheless air-cooling is still the top
choice when it comes to third-party cooling
solutions.
Cooler Master has been in the case and
cooling business for a long time now, and now
they have picked up on the consumers wish to
have full control over their hardware. Starting
with the Master Case 5, Cooler Master is
promoting modularity for their future products.
This time around, Cooler Master has provided
us with their Cooler Master MasterAir Maker
8, an impressive modular air-cooler with a
modular twist.
The MasterAir Maker 8 is big, and that might
be an understatement. Standing tall at 172mm,
you might want to measure your case if it could
fit the cooler. But with its size the MasterAir
Maker 8 has 8 heat pipes running through
a high number of aluminium fins helping it

dissipate heat at a greater rate. The MasterAir

Maker 8 also sports Cooler Masters patented
3D Vapor Chamber technology, which replaces
the traditional copper base with a coolant filled
vapor chamber which transforms liquid to gas
when heated and back when cooled to make for
a better cooling experience.
Inside the packaging you will find all the
tools and brackets you need to mount the
supported chipsets, then theres also additional
120mm brackets if you prefer to use smaller
fans. The fans on the cooler can be easily
popped off and then you can just remove the
fans from the bracket to replace them. You can
also use a 3D printer so create top covers which
are interchangeable and gives you a whole new
level of customisation.
Performance-wise, while running AIDA64
stability tests for about 30 minutes we achieved
a minimum temperature of 27c, maximum
temp of 67c, and average temperature of
56.6c. Your minimum temperature may vary
depending on your ambient temperature but it
should stay within the range of 60-70c or lower
when on load. The Silencio FP fans that comes
with the MasterAir Maker 8 does a great job of
cooling the heatsink, and impressed us with its
silent performance.

The barebones Maker 8 in all its finned glory

Bored of the top? Just 3D print a new one with the

template provided and voila

Performance
Customisation

Could be a bit
bulky to some

CHIP CONCLUDES
Big in size, but gets the job done.
Aesthetically pleasing, and with the amount
of choices given for customisation, you can
change your fans yet still make your cooler
look good. Although at this price you could
easily afford a basic water-cooling set, if you
just cant pull the trigger on one, this is a well
performing alternative.

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test lab

Casio XJ-V2
Price: RM3,599
Contact: Casio Malaysia Sdn Bhd
Phone: (03) 2724 1253
Info: www.casio-intl.com/my/en

Light Source: Casio Hybrid Laser & LED Light Source

Native Resolution: 1024 x 768
Contrast ratio: 20,000:1
Light source life: Up to 20,000 hours
Ports: 1x VGA, 1x Serial, 1x HDMI, 2x Audio In/Out, 1x
Service
Dimensions: 269 x 269 x 89mm
Weight: 2.8kg

By Nixon Ng

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

Let There Be Light

Casio brings beautiful video and images to office, home and
classroom

asio isnt quite a new name anymore in

the projector industry, having some of
the latest and innovative projectors in the
market, they have become quite a favourite in
just a short time. When we think of projectors,
back then they were heavy, bulky, noisy and
expensive to maintain. This is not the case
anymore with Casio and many other brands
kicking projector technology into high gear.
Casio has provided us with one of their latest
offerings from the Core series line of Casio
projectors, the Casio XJ-V2. The XJ-V2 fits in
where consumers asked for greater brightness
from its predecessor the XJ-V1, and thats why
the XJ-V2 sports a brightness rating of 3000
lumens, an increase of 300 lumens over the
XJ-V1 to get that extra oomph that consumers
have been asking for.
The projector has all the ports that a
classroom or office would need, HDMI, VGA,
and audio in/out ports. Its easy to setup and
combined with Casios Hybrid Laser & LED
light source, lets anyone go from power off to
full brightness and colour in a jiffy. The Hybrid
light source fits in between where Laser or
LED individually dont fit in, providing the right

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amount of brightness at the distance usually

used for office and classroom presentations.
Its capable of projecting a 60-inch image at
1.79-1.99m, a 77-inch image at 2.33-2.59m and
an 80-inch image at 2.43-2.7m.
The XJ-V2 also excels in home theatre, as
stated above its easy to setup so anyone in
your household could hook it up and get it
working in no time. The projector comes with
an ECO-mode of different levels allowing you
save electricity and tweak the brightness to
your needs, such as when we didnt need its
full brightness because our room was in pitch
darkness, we toned it down with the ECO-mode.
Another great thing about the XJ-V2 is
its dust resistant body, compiled of three
separate blocks with the primary light source
unit being tightly shielded. This also allows
for easier troubleshooting and replacement
of parts, as all Casio has to do is look for the
faulty block and replace it entirely, hassle free
and fast. The XJ-V2 retains the same compact
and stylish design from the XJ-V1 which allow
Casio to emphasise on the development of their
hardware.

All the inputs youll need in this day and age

Image quality
Eco-mode
Dust-resistant

Compact but a
tad heavy

CHIP CONCLUDES
The Casio XJ-V2 can easily find itself in any
household office or classroom with its great
brightness that can be controlled with the
ECO-mode. Its range of inputs that suits
the needs of the modern consumer further
makes it a viable choice for any situation.

test lab

ASUS Zen AiO

Pro Z240IC
Price: RM4,599
Contact: Build Technology Supply Sdn Bhd.,
ECS Astar Sdn Bhd
Phone: (03) 7955 3699, (03) 6286 8222
Info: www.asus.com/my/

Operating System: Windows 10

Processor: Intel Core i5 6400T
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX950M
Memory: 8GB
Storage: 1TB SATA HDD
Others: Bluetooth 4.0, Gigabit LAN, 802.11ac Wi-Fi,
SD/SDXC/MMC card reader
Dimensions: 230.3 x 170.9 x 20.47 mm
Weight: 7.3kg
3DMark Fire Strike: 2,437 points
PCMark 8 Home: 2,798 points
PCMark 8 Creative: 2,594 points
PCMark 8 Work:

By Matthew Yap

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

Complete Package
A complete package thats just what the average PC user
will appreciate

his issue has been an interesting one

in terms of variety. We have a gaming
laptop, ultra-compact PC, and now an Allin-One from ASUS. Usually, most people prefer
laptops or standard desktops, so how will the
ASUS Zen AiO Z240IC attract buyers?
We had to be careful when hauling
the Z240IC out of its box, because all its
components are enclosed inside the central
unit along with the display. Since it weighs
7.3kg, a slip and it could drop and cause
damage to the display or internal components.
Of course, thanks to ASUS using mostly metal
in its construction, its quite tough and should
survive minor knocks. Its metal stand is also
solid, ensuring that it wont topple over unless
you manhandle it.
Along with the AiO, a wireless keyboard and
mouse are included, with the transmitter for
both housed inside the mouse. However, the
build quality for both are disappointing. The
keyboard itself has some flex to it while the
mouse feels hollow and cheap, not something
we expect from a product so premium.
The Z240IC sports a fantastic Full HD IPS
display. Its the ideal resolution for this screen
size; outputting sharp visuals, as well as great

brightness level, contrast and colour. However,

the screen is extremely glossy, so reflections
were very noticeable. Theres also a 4K version
of the Z240IC, though that will cost more.
Turning over to the back, we spotted many
I/O ports. On the right back, youll find two
HDMI ports, allowing users to their display.
There are also four USB 3.0, one USB 2.0, and
even a USB 3.1 Type-C port. In addition, theres
a SD card reader and a Gigabit Ethernet port,
audio and line-in port.
Since this units processor being an Intel
Core i5 and the GPU a GTX950M, its placed
squared into the multimedia slash low-end
gaming machine. The Z240IC has more than
enough power to play simpler games like
e-sports titles, as well as do playback for 1080p
videos. However, as you can see from the
benchmark scores, its only average in terms of
its overall performance.
Regardless, the Z240IC would definitely
do well for multimedia, since it has a good
set of speakers. The volume is loud enough
for you to enjoy even movies, all thanks to
the 4.2-channel setup. The four 2W speakers
inside are paired with two 4W internal woofers,
resulting in good bass levels.

Despite its weight, the Z240ICs stand is capable of

keeping it stable

At the back, youll find all the ports you would need

Speakers
Display

Price
Accessories

CHIP CONCLUDES
More compact than desktops and overall
performs well, but its the mouse and
keyboard that could be better.

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test lab

ASUS ZenFone 2
Deluxe

Price: RM1,799
Contact: Dynamics Distribution Sdn bhd., ECS Astar Sdn Bhd
Phone: 03 8024 2100, 03 6286 8222
Info: www.asus.com/my
Display: 5.5-inch Full HD IPS
CPU: Intel Atom Z3590
GPU: PowerVR G6430
Memory: 4GB
Connectivity: Bluetooth 4.0 + EDR, WiFi, NFC
Storage: 128GB eMMC Flash expandable with microSD
Operating System: Android 5.0
Camera: 13MP (rear), 5MP (front)
Dimensions: 152.5 x 77.2 x 10.9 mm
Weight: 170g
3DMark Icestorm Unlimited: 21,845 points
PC Mark Work: 5,813 points
Antutu: 63,135 points

By Matthew Yap

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

A Deluxe Of Small
Proportions
The ASUS ZenFone 2 Deluxe features more of the same
from its base model

any of you have noticed by now that

ASUSs ZenFones tend to all look
similar. How then will the ZenFone 2
Deluxe stand out from its other ASUS sibling?
As expected, the ZenFone 2 Deluxes design
hasnt change much from the ZenFone 2s.
The model we received for review had a lovely
shade of crimson red on its frame, with a back
cover that has a slightly textured and checkered
design that feels smooth yet has good grip.
Positions of the cameras, speakers, and
buttons are all identical to the ZenFone 2, so no
surprises there.
We were slightly disappointed that the
ZenFone 2 Deluxe doesnt have a 2K screen
to justify the Deluxe moniker, though its not
a bad display by any stretch. Colours are vivid
and the contrast level is great, which makes it
great for watching videos. Brightness is only
above average, though its maximum will allow
you to read text under it with no issues.
Under the hood, the ZenFone 2 Deluxe
has a more powerful Intel Atom Z3590. It also
has more storage, plus pre-included microSD
card. However, the RAM and GPU are still the

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same 4GB and the PowerVR G6430. While

its performance is respectable, its ranked way
below some of the latest heavyweights. Still,
the Deluxe is capable of handling most of the
apps, videos and games we threw at it.
The camera is its weakest points. The
shutter speed isnt fast and images are often
dark, warranting the use of manual mode for
better adjustments. ASUS Low Light mode is
fantastic as always, but HDR images werent
impressive. Also, many of the images ended up
looking grainy.
Another issue that mars this device is the
high number of pre-loaded apps that cant be
deleted. Some of them are useful, though none
that are particularly superior when compared to
other options that are available on the Google
Play Store.
Despite its issues, the ZenFone 2 Deluxe is
not all that bad. Besides being one of the most
affordable options you can find at this level,
its got great performance, a good display, and
plenty of storage to spare. If the camera isnt
that critical a factor for you as a user, then this
smartphone is one worth considering.

The ZenFone 2 Deluxes back is a familiar design,

though ASUS does have other back covers for a
different look

Theres a 128GB microSD card included with the

smartphone, which gives users a larger storage
capacity

Great display

Camera
Non-removable
battery

CHIP CONCLUDES
Not a very exciting smartphone, but its a
decent upgrade over its other counterparts
and an able device on its own.

test lab

honor 5X

Price: RM939
Contact: Huawei Malaysia Mobile Hotline
Phone: 1 800 22 0086
Info: www.vmall.my
Display: 5.5-inch
Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 616
Connectivity: Bluetooth 4.1, WiFi
Memory: 2GB
Storage: 16GB expandable with microSD
Operating System: Android 5.1.1
Camera: 13MP (rear), 5MP (front)
Dimensions: 151.3 x 76.3 x 8.15mm
Weight: 158g
3DMark Icestorm Unlimited: 7,706 points
PC Mark Work: 3,716 points
Antutu Benchmark: 34,516 points

By Nixon Ng

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

More Than Metal

honor does it again and gives us another great phone at a
competitive price point

ith the year just beginning plenty

of smartphone manufacturers are
already going at it. Samsung, WIKO,
HTC, and others are already churning out new
smartphones as the months pass by. honor
isnt one to back down from a challenge, and
struts its stuff with the honor 5X. honor has
been kind enough to send us their latest honor
5X smartphone in gray.
The honor 5X sports a metallic body made
from aluminium alloy with a four-step finishing
process. The brushed finish on the back is
beautifully done and goes well with the metallic
body of the honor 5X. The phone is comfortably
light and is easy to use even with a single hand,
due to its curved body and the well placement
of the buttons adds to the ease of use.
A 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 616
octa-core processor is used to power the honor
5X together with 2GB of RAM, and provided
us with a smooth and responsive experience
which is important for smartphones in this
day and age. After deducting RAM used for
the operating system and other background
applications, we were left with about
800MB-1GB of usable RAM which may not

seem like much, but is enough for our everyday

use.
The 5.5-inch FHD displays colour vibrantly
and with good contrast while the text appears
crisp and clear, great for watching videos and
movies or reading e-books on it. Then we have
the 13MP rear camera which takes decent
photos, paired together with the multiple
settings you can play within the camera app
allows you take pictures in multiple ways
making it a suitable phone for the hobbyist
photographer. The 5MP front camera also takes
decent photos and shouldnt disappoint the
average user.
The honor 5X supports dual-sim capabilities
of both nano-SIM and micro-SIM, with no
distinction between a primary or secondary
card, and are given the ability to choose which
SIM you want for data. All of this combined
with the EMUI 3.1 with its simple user-friendly
layout and enlarged icons makes for an
all-round great user experience regardless of
what your usage is. To end this, the phone
has a 3,000mAh battery that provides good
battery life and has the help of SmartPower 3.0
technology to help lengthen battery life.

The metal unibody and polished brushed look is to die for

Metal unibody
Ergonomic curved
body

Camera quality
could be better

CHIP CONCLUDES
While not performing outstandingly in many
categories, the honor 5X sits at a good price
point while providing a smooth and userfriendly experience. With a battery life that
can last throughout the day, its hard not to
keep this phone on your shortlist if its within
your budget.

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test lab

Sony XBA-300AP
Price: RM840
Contact: Sony (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd
Phone: 1 300 88 1233
Info: www.sony.com.my
Driver unit: Triple Balanced Armature
Impedance: 16 ohms
Frequency response: 5Hz 40,000Hz
Ports: 3.5mm

By Nazrin Zain

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

Big Sounds In A
Small Package
Sonys XBA-300AP provides great value for everyone

esides the PlayStation, Sony is also a

company that is very well-known for
their line of audio and visual products.
Their headphones are used throughout the
world to help create the music you know and
love today, as well as to listen to it. This time
around, well be taking a look at the Sony
XBA-300AP, an affordable triple balancedarmature set of IEMs that aims to blow you
away.
The XBA-300AP is the first in Sonys line
of High Resolution-compatible earphones.
Despite sporting such a compact design, the
earphones sport triple balanced armature
drives, which includes a full-range drive, a HD
Super Tweeter and woofer for bass.
Not only that, the XBA-300AP also sports
4-wire silver-coated OFC cable with L/R
ground separation for crosstalk reduction. The
best part of all however is the fact that the
cables on the earphones are also removable,
allowing you the option of pairing the XBA300AP with other cables, such as Sonys own
MUC-M Series cables. This opens up a lot
of possibilities, especially for the hardcore
audiophile crowd.
At its base configuration, the XBA-300AP
is an amazing all-rounder pair of IEMs.
The low and mid trebles are crystal-clear,

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while the highs are not too high-pitched

that it hurts the ears. Bass levels are pretty
acceptable too, although for these pair of
earphones, its clear that the focus is on the
trebles and vocals.
Being fitted to support Sonys own Hi-Res
Audio technology, you can also tell that there
is a difference when using a standard MP3
player, and one of Sonys new Walkman
devices. In the case of the latter, alongside
Hi-Res audio files, or lossless audio, the
soundstage of the XBA-300AP is considerably
improved. Making songs sound almost livelike, its certainly a great pairing between the
two devices.
If youre also looking for a 2-in-1 solution
that comes with a microphone to answer
phone calls, the XBA-300AP also comes built
in with one as well. During our tests, the call
quality was quite good, with the mic quality
being pretty decent as well.
The best part about the headphones
of course is the fact that it is priced at a
relatively affordable price compared to
similar options from other brands. Triple
balanced-armature headphones dont come
cheap, so the Sony XBA-300AP headsets can
be considered a steal, for what youre paying
for.

The XBA-300APs drivers can be detached from the

cable, allowing users to switch it up whenever they
want

The earphones also come with a built-in mic, which

means users can also use the XBA-300AP as a handsfree device

Price
Performance

None

CHIP CONCLUDES
Affordability, modularity and performance.
What more can one ask from a pair of
headphones? The Sony XBA-300AP sounds
as impressive as can be expected, while not
breaking the bank. Definitely one to consider
if youre looking to expand your cache of
audio gear.

test lab

MSI B150
GAMING M3

Price: RM635
Contact: JW Power Marketing Sdn. Bhd., Mediaforte
(Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Advancenet Technology Sdn. Bhd.
Phone: (03) 2148 1307, (03) 7960 6868, (03) 8070 3633
Info:my.msi.com
Slots: LGA1151
CPU: Intel B150
RAM Slots: 4
RAM Type: DDR4 2133MHz
Ports: 1x LAN, 4x USB 3.1, 4x USB 2.0, 5x Audio jacks, 1x Optical S/
PDIF, 1x HDMI, 1x DVI
PCMark 8 (Home): 4,237 points
PCMark 8 (Creative): 4,652 points
PCMark 8 (Work): 43,748 points

By Nixon Ng

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

B Doesnt
Mean B-Grade
MSI nails it with a motherboard that has all the tools to
make a great gaming system

fter a wave of Z170 motherboards

filling the market for the enthusiasts,
B150 chipset motherboards are finally
getting their fair share of attention. MSI brings
over features that are found on their higher
end mother boards, and made them available
on their consumer grade gaming hardware,
bringing more power to the people.
As on many of MSIs gaming motherboards,
DDR4 Boost is also featured on the B150
GAMING M3 on their four DDR4 DIMMs, this
helps ensure that the system is working
optimally and stable. The board features six
SATA III ports, one SATA Express port and an
M.2 slot for all your storage expansion needs.
Not only that the board also sports two PCIe
3.0 x16 which are AMD CrossFire ready, and the
PCIe slots are protected with MSIs VGA Armor
that held our heavy graphic cards with no
bending noticed.
The motherboard comes with an ample
amount of I/O ports in the back ranging from
USB 3.1 to USB 2.0. One feature we always
come to love is the EZ DEBUG LED, which
helped us figure out that we were using faulty
RAM sticks when we first tried to bootup the
test bench. The LEDs are separated to CPU,

DRAM, and VGA so you can always pinpoint

the issue when you fail to boot your computer.
Additionally, the B150 GAMING M3 has a nice
number of features that support overclocking,
like the Slow Mode.
What it does is that, it allows you to
decrease your CPU ratio if youve reached an
extremely high frequency, that has caused
you to be unable to boot successfully. It will
decrease your CPU ratio below stock settings to
create a stable environment to safely boot into
Windows. We tested it by slowly overclocking
our Intel 6700K to the point of failure and just
flicked the switch, allowing us to boot safely
once again.
Something usually left out from
being reviewed is the BIOS of the latest
motherboards, in the past motherboards
had very clunky and not really user-friendly
interfaces. But the MSI B150 GAMING M3
has their latest CLICK BIOS 5 which displays
settings and functions sharply in a high
resolution. This is an important factor because
if youre overclocking, since youll be spending a
lot of time in your BIOS a clear and easy-to-use
BIOS can greatly improve your overclocking
experience.

MSIs Audio Boost 3 is on a separate circuit as the rest of

the board to prevent interference

USB 3.1 is aplenty together with other de facto ports

Overall design and

performance

No MSI Steel Armor

CHIP CONCLUDES
Sporting features that arent much lacking
from their Z170 boards, MSI has done right
with the B150 GAMING M3 fitting into a nice
spot for gamers and regular users.

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test lab

MSI GK-701
Mechanical
Keyboard
Price: RM524
Contact: JW Power Marketing Sdn. Bhd., Mediaforte (Malaysia)
Sdn. Bhd., Advancenet Technology Sdn. Bhd.
Phone: (03) 2148 1307, (03) 7960 6868, (03) 8070 3633
Info:my.msi.com
Keyboard Switches: Cherry MX Brown
NKRO: NKRO
Interface: USB2.0
Weight: 1,200g

By Nazrin Zain

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

No-nonsense
Gaming Keyboard
MSI marks its first foray into gaming keyboard market with
the GK-701

SI has been pushing its gaming agenda

for quite some time now, but as far as
were concerned, the company has only
launched components such as motherboards
and GPUs, as well as gaming laptops which
are decked with the latest and greatest
components. The Taiwanese gaming giants are
diversifying their portfolio by introducing the MS
GK-701 mechanical keyboard.
The GK-701 keyboard looks mostly
inconspicuous, with the exception of the MSI
Gaming dragon logo on the top right-hand
corner. The design of the keyboard itself looks
relatively plain, as the chassis and the keycaps
are all black with red accents, and red LEDs
backlighting the keys.
For this keyboard, MSI has enlisted the help
of Cherry, and used Cherry MX Brown switches,
which on top of being highly tactile, also sports
low actuation points and is much quieter than
its Red and Blue counterparts. Using Cherry
MX Browns also makes it easier to type with,
thanks to its tactile, yet silent nature. Touch
typists will especially love the low actuation
point of the keyboard as it allows users to

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quickly glide their fingers across the keyboard.

As far as macros are concerned,
unfortunately the GK-701 does not come with
any, although it does have built-in multimedia
shortcuts which allows users to control a variety
of options such as play and pause, as well as
volume controls directly from the keyboard.
Sometimes, accidentally pressing the
Windows key while gaming can prove to be
quite a nuisance. MSI has added the option for
you to lock the key by pressing a combination
of the Fn and the F12 key. As for backlighting,
MSI has done a pretty good job at ensuring that
the GK-701 is individually backlit, and providing
options to adjust the intensity and modes of the
lighting.
Performance-wise, the GK-701 is a very
decent gaming and typing keyboard that doesnt
make too much noise. During our time with it,
its very easy to get used to the keyboard as it
doesnt require that much force to actuate the
keys, which in some cases is to our advantage
as we can press more keys quickly, and in the
long run, it really shows in terms of efficiency.

The MSI Gaming dragon logo sits majestically on the

top corner of the keyboard

Despite lacking macro keys, the GK-701 does feature

multimedia shortcut keys for ease of use

Performance
Build quality

No macro keys

CHIP CONCLUDES
The MSI GK-701 mechanical keyboard is a
pretty decent foray by MSI into the world of
mechanical keyboards, although we do wish
it comes with a bit more features built in.

test lab

MSI WS72 6QJ

Price: TBA
Contact: MSI Malaysia
Phone: (03) 2282 8599
Info: game.msi.com

Operating System: Windows 10

Processor: Intel Xeon E3-1505M v5
Graphics: NVIDIA Quadro M2000M
Memory: 32GB DDR4
Storage: 256GB M.2 SSD, 1 TB HDD
Others: Bluetooth 4.1, Full HD webcam, Gigabit LAN, 802.11ac
Wi-Fi, SD card reader
Dimensions: 418.5 x 287 x 19.9 mm
Weight: 2.55kg

By Matthew Yap

Performance:
Features:
Design:

Mobile Creative
Station
This MSI laptop is here to tell consumers that mobile
workstations exist

hen companies go shopping for

workstation they usually go for
desktop PCs or an iMac. But those
arent portable, so what if you actually want to
do design work on the go? In that case, MSIs
WS72 Workstation could be an option.
The WS72 is actually a workstation with
hardware designed for rendering work, with
MSIs tagline for it being: Best Laptop for
CAD & 3D modelling. It looks like many of
MSIs usual laptops, with a black body thats
mostly aluminium and a brush finishing. The
workstation sports a 17.3-inch display, making
it one of the bigger laptops weve reviewed in
recent months.
Being a workstation, its geared towards
multi-tasking so there are a few display-related
ports for multiple screens, which included a
HDMI and two mini-DisplayPorts. On the other
hand, the workstation is also meant to be
mobile. Thus, it has two USB 3.1 and two USB
3.0 ports for users to plug in accessories that
may be useful for those in the creative field,
such as a mouse, Wacom tablet, or an external
hard drives. Additionally, it has the standard
SD card reader slot, which would be useful for
photographers.
At 2.55kg its relatively light when compared
to many other laptops, but at the same time it
seems to lack the heatsinks that MSIs other
laptops have. Indeed, this lack of cooling and

its aluminium body contribute to the high

temperature that is felt when the WS72 is
running on high load. During benchmarks, its
surface becomes noticeably warm to the touch.
One of the best features of the WS72 is
its display. The IPS Full HD display has one of
the most colour accurate screens for a laptop,
which is a crucial point for design and 3D
modelling. A colour accurate screen means that,
for example, a designer can visit a clients office
and show the client an accurate representation
of a commissioned work.
Of course, what this workstation excels in
is graphics rendering. Thanks to the Intel Xeon
CPU, NVIDIA Quadro GPU, and 32GB of DDR4
RAM, the WS72 is able to deliver renders very
fast and thus cut down on wait time. This is
useful for those who work on the go, and might
not necessarily have the time to wait in a caf
for a render to finish.
Also very useful are the pre-bundled
software with this workstation: Adobe Creative
Suite and Maya 2016. This allows designers
to be mobile and work on the go, or easily
meet up with clients to discuss and work on
commissions on the spot. Other software
includes the Shortcut Manager, which lets the
user create shortcut that can either execute
commands or easily launch programmes, a fun
programme called 3D builder, and the Microsoft
Office productivity suite.

A staple these days with MSI notebooks is the

Dynaudio sound and Steelseries keyboard

The fact that this is a workstation doesnt get more

obvious than this

Software
Audio

Heat

CHIP CONCLUDES
If you are need a workstation that you can
carry wherever you go, this is the one you
should be looking at

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test lab

Moto 360 v2

Price: RM1,399
Contact: Brightstar Distribution Sdn Bhd., Lazada Malaysia
Phone: 1 300 88 2744, (03) 2027 4766
Info: www.motorola.com
CPU: Cortex M4
Screen size: 42mm
Screen resolution: 360x330 pixels
Display technology: Backlit LCD
Compatible platforms: Android

By Nazrin Zain

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

Combining Form
And Function
The new Moto360 v2 smartwatch is a real looker

he smartwatch trend continues to boom,

and Motorola, fresh from officiating their
takeover by Lenovo has decided to bring
their latest smartwatch, the Moto 360 v2 here
to Malaysia. We take a look at what this device
has to offer, and why you might want to get one
for yourself.
The Moto 360 v2 sports a variety of models,
but for the benefit of this review, well be
concentrating on the model for men, which
sports a 42mm watchface and 300mAh battery.
The display is protected by a Corning Gorilla
Glass 3, while the watch itself is powered by
a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor with
512MB of RAM and 4GBs of internal memory.
Connectivity-wise, while the watch does
connect to the phone via Bluetooth through the
Android Wear app, you can also get the watch
connected via WiFi, in case your phone is too far
away for Bluetooth connectivity.
As far as features and functions go, the
Moto 360 v2 is capable of a variety of things.
Some of the straight forward ones include
pushing notifications from your phone, answer
calls, a built-in pedometer and tell the time!

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A dial crown sits on the top right hand corner

of the watch, which allows you to turn on the
phone, wake up and dim the watchface, as well
as quick access to the settnigs menu where you
can change things like the watchface design, set
alarms and much more.
As far as features are concerned, there isnt
much on offer here, besides added functionality
to health and fitness apps, which have already
been on offer by FitBit and the like, but if you
like a bit of form to go with your function, you
can definitely do no wrong by going with the
Moto 360 v2.
We love the fact that the Moto 360 v2 is
smart enough to determine when the watch
needs to be dimmed and when it should be
bright. The watch comes with a brightness
boost feature which is to be used whenever
youre outdoors and need to look at the time.
Battery life has also only seen slight
improvements over the previous model, with
the watch now lasting roughly one and a half
days before the battery is depleted. This is with
a variety of features such as dynamic ambience
and the like turned off.

The Moto 360 v2 boasts a number of features, including

a pedometer, heart rate monitor and many more

The watch crown sits on the top corner, allowing users

to quickly access the settings page, and activate and
dim the display

Performance
Design

Battery life

CHIP CONCLUDES
The Moto 360 v2 doesnt really reinvent the
wheel for smartwatches, but what Motorola
has done here is to enhance an existing
concept and make it function even better
than before. Recommended if youre in the
market for a good-looking smartwatch.

test lab

Philips
276E7QDSW

Price: RM999
Contact: Ban Leong Technologies Sdn Bhd
Phone: (03) 7956 6300
Info: www.philips.com.my/c-m-pc/monitors
Display Size: 27-inches
Resolution: 1920x1080
Connectivity: 1x VGA, 1x HDMI, MHL, 1x DVI
Refresh Rate: 60Hz
Viewing Angle: 178 (H)/178 (V)
Dimensions: 616 x 468 x 179mm
Weight: 4.33kg

By Nixon Ng

Performance:
Features:
Design:
Value:

27-Inches Of
Goodness
A great PLS monitor at a competitive price point

Cs are starting to become the de facto

option for watching movies in a home
environment. With the rapid growth
of sizes for monitors, they are beginning to
replace TVs in a home, due to their lower
prices, but still being able to achieve great
image and video quality. Plane to Line
Switching technology (PLS) and In-plane
Switching (IPS) technology has done leaps
and bounds for the monitor industry, with
increased image quality and improved viewing
angles.
For the home user, Philips sent us their
Philips 276E7QDSW (276E for short) so that
we could put it to the test. The 276E is part of
their E-line of monitors designed for the home
environment providing the best experience
possible with their monitors. The monitor uses
a PLS panel providing a 178/178 degree wide
viewing angle so regardless of what angle
youre watching from; youll have crisp images
with vivid colours.
The 276E comes with a simple white
border, and the power switch acts as four-way
navigation switch for the menu. Ditching all the
different buttons, this allows the consumer to
use a single knob to control all the menus and
functions of the monitor. This is a great idea

in our opinion as it simplifies the navigation

process and doesnt require you to fish around
the back or side for the right buttons. The bezel
is noticeably thin and suitable for use when
placed side-by-side with other monitors.
Performance-wise the monitor does
well in viewing angles, colours reproduction
and brightness. Text is crisp and clear when
working on text documents, but we did notice
that the screen has an anti-glare coating. The
monitor has a response time of 14ms (GtG) and
a SmartResponse of 5ms (GtG), good enough
for the casual gamer and movie buff. But if
youre looking for lower response times, youre
going have to sacrifice viewing angles and
image quality by getting a monitor that uses a
TN panel.
The 276E is easy on the eyes, and we
havent felt any strain on our eyes throughout
our review period. We believe that Philips
Flicker-Free technology plays a big role in our
lack of eye-fatigue. One thing we noted was
when viewing from a 45-degree angle, it does
get darker on the edges of the monitor but
this could be due to the anti-glare coating. Its
competitively priced against other IPS monitors
of the same price but doesnt lack in image
quality and overall design.

HDMI, MHL, DVI, VGA it has it all

The 4-way toggle switch is a perfect example of easy

controls without using a cluster of buttons

PLS Panel

None

CHIP CONCLUDES
A great monitor to have, sporting a
simple design that could easily fit into the
modern home, and a no nonsense take on
adjusting monitor settings makes the Philip
276E7QDSW a great buy.

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lite & leisure

E-SPORTS NEWS

E-Sports Snippets Of The

Month

The world of e-sports is growing by the day, with more titles appearing as time goes on.
From card games like Hearthstone to League of Legends, we stay on the lookout for the
major news on the most popular e-sports games By Matthew Yap

Blizzard intends to standardise Hearthstone

All card-based games have one problem. Eventually, they all grow to a point where there are
too many cards. Balancing becomes a problem and it is imperative that rules and format are
created to keep the game healthy. Blizzard has decided that it is time to do so for Heartstone
and split the game into the Standard and Legacy formats. The former will exclude all use of
cards older than a year, while Legacy mode will permit all cards available. Details have not been
finalised as this is still a project in consideration, but players will likely know for sure within the
next few months.

Group brackets for Dota 2 Shanghai Major released

As of the time of writing this news piece, the group brackets for Dota 2s Shanghai Major was
just released. This also means that the Winter compendium has gotten an update and owners
of the compendium can now do predictions on the group stages to level up the Battle Pass. The
groups are as follows: Group 1 has EHOME, MVP Phoenix, Team Secret, and Team CDEC; Group
2 has Alliance, Team Spirit, Vici Gaming, and Fnatic; Group 3 has OG, Team Archon, LGD Gaming,
and Newbee; and finally the last group has Evil Geniuses, compLexity Dota, Virtus.Pro, and Team
Liquid.

ASEAN E-sports tournament will have over RM1 million in prizes

Recently, Malaysias Deputy Minister of Youth & Sports, Datuk M. Saravanan, joined hands with
other e-sports organisations in the ASEAN region Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand,
Vietnam and Cambodia to announce the launch of the ASEAN Games for Esports 2016. A
prize pool of RM1,000,000 will be sponsored by Platinum Eden Sdn Bhd from Malaysia, and the
tournament is officially endorsed by E-Sukan Malaysia.

MSI and Fnatic partner up to bring e-sports to the next level

Fans of Fnatics CS:GO team should be interested to know the team has partnered with MSI. The
partnership will give MSI more exposure to e-sports fans.
"MSI and Fnatic are both proven leaders in the gaming industry with dedicated efforts to further
eSports for years. Players at Fnatic will be outfitted with state-of-the-art MSI gaming rigs that
give them the edge they need to smash their enemies and succeed. MSI will have Fnatics full
support and expertise to market and create truly awesome gaming rigs that gamers crave,
says Sam Chern, MSI Global Marketing Director.

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lite & leisure

The Many League Of LoL

Numero Duo

A continuation of last months segment, but before that lets have a quick recap. League of
Legends consists of many tournaments and competitions typically coined as ''Leagues.
Right now were giving you a shortlist of some of the highest level of play for League of
Legends across the globe, and some teams for you to look out for while following the
latest Leagues By Nixon Ng
League of Legends Master Series
LMS also known as League of Legends Master Series is the
professional league for teams in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, and
consists of two seasons per year, spring and summer. The LMS was
preceded by League of Legends Nova League (LNL), where the top 4
teams would receive spots in the Garena Premier League. But with the
dominance of Taiwanese teams in the GPL, the LNL was dissolved and
from there the LMS was born to replace GPL for Taiwan, Hong Kong,
and Macau, this action was to allow South East Asian teams a better
chance of winning GPL.
Teams To Look Out For:
Taipei Assassins, Flash Wolves, ahq e-Sports Club

Garena Premier League

Representing the highest level of play in Southeast Asia is the Garena
Premier League abbreviated as GPL. Most of the games played during
the GPL are online and are played by up to 16 teams where the top four
teams of both groups advance to the playoffs, where a best-of-five
single elimination format is used to determine the top teams. Although
the GPL is known as the weakest of the known leagues, teams from
the GPL have received praise from teams of other countries when GPL
teams competed in the last World Championships.
Teams To Look Out For:
Bangkok Titans, Saigon Jokers, Saigon Fantastic Five

League of Legends World Championships

This is it, the big kahuna, the one and only World Championships, an
annual professional League of Legends world tournament and the
premier tournament for the game. Hosted by Riot Games themselves,
it is set as the culmination of each season where teams compete for
a cash prize of $1,000,000 and the honour to receive the 32kg heavy
Summoners Cup. The World Championships have been held all over
the world, Sweden, California, South Korea and most recently Germany.
Most recently during the 2015 World Championships, teams played
across Europe during the group stages, quarterfinals and semi-finals
before finally settling in Berlin for the grand finals.
Teams To Look Out For:
All of them

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lite & leisure

CROWDFUND

Made Possible By The

Masses
Eye-popping crowdfunding projects for tech geeks

By Matthew Yap and Nixon Ng

Monument
Managing Your
Photos For You

ts such a hassle to keep track of all your photos, especially after a

holiday. But no one said that it has to be difficult, because it can be
simplified with the right tools like the Monument. The Monument acts as a personal cloud storage device specifically for easy management of photos
and videos. With this device, you can sync the files effortlessly, mirror cast them to a TV, and easily expand storage with USB drives. Best thing is you
wont need a monthly subscription fee regardless of how much you store.
http://kck.st/1KWoGE4

Aijia Pro The

Smart Robot

ver wanted to play

your part in the
development of a
robot? Well, now you can.
Now you can pledge your
funds to the cause and
support the Aijia Pro, a
super smart robot that is
being designed to assist
humans in the home.
The Aijia Pro is able to
function as a security
camera, taking
snapshots of your home
as required, and more
functions are being
created as its
development goes on.
http://kck.st/1VIJ6kJ

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Immersit The
Sofa That
Moves With
Your Movies

magine your seat vibrating as the car on screen zooms by, or that you
feel movement when the car hits the barricade. Those seem to be
what you can expect from Immersit, a plug and play device that can be
installed under a couch or sofa. The Immersit has quite a degree of
movement and
vibration patterns
programmed into
it, allowing it to
react by generating
subtle pitches,
rolls, side-to-side
movement, and
more.
http://kck.
st/1V3XTpW

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YOUMO: Your
Smart Modular
Power Strip

OUMO is a modular power strip with a variety of different power

options. Conveniently charge multiple electronics while
customising the style and amount of functions you want. Offering
more than what a standard power strip can offer, it offers wireless
charging, IoT capabilities, multi-USB ports, US and EU sockets all in a
single power set. Designed to be travel friendly, the modular power
modules allow
you to fit the
pieces
conveniently
and separately
into your
luggage.
Adding and
removing
modules is as
easy snapping
it on and off at
each end of the
modules.
http://kck.st/1QjHqKP

Blink:
Multifunctional
Device For
Contact Lenses

et more and use less with Blink, a multifunctional contact lens

device. The goal is to eliminate the main problems that you
encounter, when interacting with your contact lens, such as
forgetting to change them after the prescribed 15 or 30 days period,
spilling of solution, and any more. It has an automatic refill function
where all you have to do is fill up its tank every month and a lower
drawer for your
lenses and it also
automatically
rinses your case.
Additionally, it
helps you track
the usage of your
lenses to help you
remember, when
its time to change
your lenses.
http://bit.
ly/1QhGv0T

Mountek GRIP Plus: Car Mount

For Any Mobile Device

he worlds first CD slot mounted mobile device mounting

device is now not just a dream. Slide the mount into the CD
slot and tighten it with a knob and your basically set. The arms
can be stretched and tightened through levers or by pulling it apart,
and hitting the Tap-to-Grab button conveniently placed on the
mounting zone. A gel pad is used to tightly hold your device so it
wont slide off no matter what. You can even purchase add-ons to
use it on your back-seat and fan vents for some in-car
entertainment or if you need to use the CD slot.
http://bit.ly/1RsaxhA

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PLAY

Long Years In The Wait

After what felt like an eternity, Blade & Soul International launched. Its a game thats
deemed a marvel of modern MMORPG design even after three years. As the game has
been out for over a month in the US of A, we felt that it was about the right time to give
our take on it. Has it been worth the wait for those who have waited, and is an interesting
game in its own right? By Nixon Ng

lade & Soul is a fantasy Action

MMORPG with a strong Kungfu and
martial-arts theme. To be honest,
the theme has a decidedly Chinese feel to

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it, which is quite unusual considering that

it was developed by a Korean company.
Regardless, NCSoft has combined Chinese
martial arts and the ability called Qinggong,
then exaggerated
them to fantastic
proportions.
Like all online
games, the game
requires players
to create a
character before
he or she can
play. First, you
need to choose
your characters
race and class.
Depending on
the race you
choose, there
could be race

specific classes. For example, the Summoner

and Blade Dancer are only available to the
Lyn race. Once thats done, youre thrust
into Blade & Souls highly in-depth character
creation module. From facial markings, hair
colour, to how wide your hips can be, theres
a huge variety of settings you have to truly
make your character your own. And theres
of course, even a slider to adjust the size of
a characters breast, if you choose to make a
female one.
After character creation, youll spent some
time getting to know the mechanics of the
game through a prologue. The story is, in our
opinion, one of the biggest reasons why Blade
& Soul stands out a bit from the multitude
of MMORPGs out there. Here, your character
is a student under the Hongmoon School of
martial arts, which was destroyed overnight
by a group of evil martial artists led by
Jinsoyun. The plot does sound very clich and

lite & leisure

really isnt the most griping one youll have

experienced, but its at least interesting for
gamers who like games with a decent story
to it.
B&S comes with a quest system that ties
into its storyline. This also includes subquests for extra experience, and is the primary
method of levelling up in the game. Quests
range from the typical: fetching materials,
killing monsters, talking to other NPCs, and

more. The quests become tedious after some

time and once you hit your level cap, the
motivation to complete them is lost. It doesnt
help that at any one point, youll be competing
with dozens of other players trying to finish
the same quest that requires material A,
which only appears as a limited resource on
the map. Compounding on that is the lack of
zones or channels to switch around, further
limiting your options. While those
who are in a party share quests
rewards, lone wolves are out of luck.
Another bizarre issue is that the mini
bosses on the maps drop rewards
to all who deal decent damage to
it, regardless if youre in a party or
not, so youll often see a big group of
people ganging up on these bosses to
farm for loot.
Dungeons are better, since
theyre all instanced zones isolated
to the individual or party. This is
how players can farm the high
level loot in the game, but its big
glaring weakness is that none of the

dungeons are particularly difficult to conquer

as long as you have enough members and are
familiar with the bosss attack patterns.
Theres also crafting and gathering in
this game. After a point in the game, youll
get to pick up to two gathering and two
crafting guilds to belong to. At first we
found this interesting, especially when some
combinations allow you to get important
materials, or even make equipment if you
want. However, the vast majority of them are
unrewarding and simply not worth the time or
investment.
If theres one thing that really helps the
game stand out, it would be the Player Vs
Player aspect. Once you reach a certain
level, the game unlocks the PvP arena. PvP
in B&S is either individual matches, or 3v3
tag matches. Here, a players skill with the
character is more important than level,
because the latter is automatically maxed out
in the arena. Victory at the arena accumulates
points for you to rank up, so theres a degree
of bragging rights to it when you win.
Honestly, a fundamental reason for those
of us in SEA to ignore this game is the horrible
lag. But besides that, Blade & Soul plays like a
game thats more than a little dated. While it
has its charms, a decent storyline and a solid
PvP system, it fails to be compelling enough
for long term play.

Blade & Soul

Genre: Action MMORPG
Developer: NCSoft
Info: www.bladeandsoul.com
System Requirements Platform: Microsoft
Windows

Latency
PvE is not
challenging

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Character creation
Story

Gameplay:
Graphics:
Sound:
Replayability:

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PLAY

Unfinished Business
The Street Fighter franchise of games has always been one of the most anticipated games
every time Capcom announces a new title. With Street Fighter V, it is no different as the
Japanese game company often comes up with new ways for players to enjoy themselves
both casually and competitively. So has Capcom come out with a new winner with Street
Fighter V? The answer isnt really as straight forward as you might think By Nazrin Zain

he fifth iteration of the major Street

Fighter franchise is a title that many
gamers have been looking forward
to for quite some time now. After the

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runaway success that is Street Fighter IV

and Ultra Street Fighter IV, many have been
clamouring for a new game to whet their
appetites with. This is very much the case
with hardcore
and pro-gamers
as Evo 2016 is
just around the
corner, and the
tournament
junkies and
veterans all want
a new title to
show off their
skills with.
With Street
Fighter V, these
gamers got
exactly what they
wanted, although
it is to the

detriment of the state of the game itself.

The game was sold as a full-priced AAA
title at USD$60, or RM220 of the Malaysian
equivalent on both the Sony PlayStation 4
console, as well as the PC.
After the game loads up, youre forced to
do a small tutorial on the game mechanics
before you can head into the games menu
page, which sort of looks like a rehash of
the Xboxs old interface. Right here, youll
no doubt notice that there is one mode that
is inconspicuously missing from the menu.
Thats right folks, Street Fighter V does not
come shipped with the mode that made it
popular from the get-go, the Arcade Mode.
In a bizarre turn of events, it appears
that Capcom has decided to omit Arcade
Mode from the game, with gaming media
outlets giving varying reports, such as that
Capcom will add in the mode at a later date,
and some others saying that Capcom are

lite & leisure

still thinking about adding it in.

To make things worse, the games story
mode (for now) is very threadbare, as each
character only gets to fight three short
rounds before it is completed, unlike the
previous game, where each character had to
fight entire gauntlets of characters before
their stories are completed.
For those who are looking to have a
"taste of what Arcade mode has to offer,
you can go to Practice Mode and set the CPU
to normal so you can sort of fight them as
you would in that mode.
With Street Fighter V, Capcom has
also announced a new system called
Capcom Fighters Network, an ID system
where players can track their game stats,
tournament results, as well as heat maps of
battles happening all over the world.
With CFN, the game can do things like
track how many light punches you landed
in a game, your throw tech success, the
various ways in which youve won matches,

and more. This is especially great if youre

a hardcore Street Fighter V fan, or a
professional gamer in the circuit.
Another great thing Capcom thought of
is to put gamers on both the PS4 and PC
platform together, as the game is crossplatform compatible thanks to the CFN as
well. Which is great until you realise that it
takes forever for people to match up with
one another, regardless of the platform
youre on.
Network difficulties aside, Capcom has
delivered its fans a wonderful game, as far
as fighting mechanics are concerned. The
great thing about Street Fighter V is that
the game runs at 60FPS at 1080p on both
versions, which is really important especially
for tournament gamers who need the extra
juice for frame cancels and such.
Another great thing about the game is
also how newbie friendly it is, as most of
the moves, with the exception of some really
long string of combos are relatively easy to

pull off. Capcom has also removed the Ultra

gauge, where you can pull off Ultra moves
while getting damaged, replacing it with
the V gauge that instead allows you to pull
off different kinds of moves instead. The
unique thing here is that no two characters
V Gauge are the same, and each character
have their own set of moves that goes with
the V Gauge.
Capcom has also changed the way
damage works in Street Fighter V, as you
can no longer chip at your opponents health
while he is blocking. What this means is that
while you still have a sliver of life left, you
will still be able to block any and all attacks,
except for throws and super moves.
All in all, Street Fighter V is what we
can only call a beautiful mess. Our only
hope is that Capcom comes to its senses
and releases Arcade Mode and a complete
cinematic Story Mode for free. Many argue
that Street Fighter V was rushed out so
that pro gamers would have time to practice
before EVO 2016, however we feel that it
should have at least released properly with
the modes that made the Street Fighter title
popular in the first place.

Street
Fighter V
Genre: Fighting
Developer: Capcom
Info: www.streetfighter.com
System Requirements Platform: PlayStation 4, PC

Amazing fighting
system

Incomplete modes
Broken online
matchmaking

Gameplay:
Graphics:
Sound:
Replayability:

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practice

How To Configure
Your Microsoft
Account
Carry all your data everywhere and protect it from unwanted access at the same time - this
can be done when you have optimally set up your Microsoft account By Markus Hermannsdorfer

othing works in Windows without a Microsoft account. The

advantage of the account: You can access all your contacts,
documents or photos at all times and almost on every device. You
need to carry out various important settings after creating the account so
that the operating system will run as you want it to, which will also be
more secure for you and your family. Some things can be done via a
special Microsoft website while the rest can be configured in the settings
of Windows 8.1 or 10.

Protection on the top right. Under Account Security, click on the link
More security settings. Now log in with your Microsoft account, a
security code will be sent via Email and subsequently enter this code on
the Microsoft page. Now you can Set up the test in two steps. The steps
in the Assistant are self-explanatory. Among other things, you can also
determine whether you wish to use an app which, apart from the
password, also requests for a PIN number set by you.

3 Remove individual devices

How to proceed
1 Configure synchronisation
Open the Start menu and click on Settings. In the following dialog, select
Accounts and then Synchronise settings. If the slider is on ON under
the Synchronisation settings, then with the help of the other sliders,
you can determine which data should be synchronised between the
different devices.

On the Start Page of the Microsoft website, you will see all devices that
are logged in with your Microsoft account and which are involved in the
synchronisation. If you do not need one of these devices, then click on
Show all. Depending on the device type, PCs and cell phones can now be
removed where you have to click on the corresponding command and
confirm the process.

4 Synchronise via OneDrive

2 Optimise security
Go to the website account.microsoft.com and click on Security and Data

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In the Taskbar, click on the OneDrive icon and then on Select folders to
be synchronised. In the next dialog, select all folders which should be

available on all devices. Confirm the same with OK.

5 Setup as network drive

Start the browser and go to the site onedrive.com. Here, log in with your
Microsoft account and open a folder. Now click in the browser on the
address bar which shows a very long URL. Copy the number sequence
between cid= and &group=0 and start Windows Explorer. Now click on
This PC and go to the menu command Computer > Connect network
drive. Here, select a drive letter and under Folders type the URL
https://d.docs.live.net/, insert the copied number sequence and enable
Establish connection with other login information. Confirm the same
with Done. Now enter the login data of your Microsoft account in the
login window and enable Save login info. OneDrive will be shortly
available as a network drive.

6 Enable child-lock

Go to the website account.microsoft.com and click on Family. Here,

select Add Child, enter the Email address of the child and click on Send
invite. If the child accepts the invitation, then he/she has to register with
the Microsoft site. As this process is quite complicated for children, you
should guide the child step by step and complete this process. Once the
child is registered, you can block inappropriate websites, permit
downloading of specific apps and much more.

7 Automatic login
Unzip the ZIP file of the Sysinternals Suite. Subsequently start the
module Autologon in the software, enter your Microsoft account login
data and click on Enable. The login will now take place automatically
henceforth.

8 Change name and password

You can update your login info via Edit name or Change password on
the website account.microsoft.com. You have to enter a security code
beforehand. This security code will be sent to you via Email. You can make
changes only after you have entered the security code.

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practice

Install Kodi on Fire

TV
The Kodi Media Centre extends the Streaming Box from Amazon with numerous functions.
But it can be installed only using a trick By Markus Hermannsdorfer

he setting up of Kodi on the Fire TV has become more complicated.

Amazon has removed the popular Opensource Mediacentre from
its app store as it provides access to illegal content with its
unofficial plug-ins. However, this justification is doubtful as similar
programs like Plex are allowed in the Amazon app store as well as
browsers like Opera that can provide easy access to illegal streaming
sites for users.
But you can still use Kodi using a trick as Fire TV is basically a normal
computer with an Android operating system. It also allows the
installation of apps that are not in the Amazon app store. This works as
follows: Using an external program, transfer the Kodi app via the network
connection to Fire TV. Also install an alternative operating interface there
as the Amazon GUI permits starting the Kodi Mediacentre only with a
bypass via the internal app management.

How to proceed
1 Procure required tools
Go to the site kodi.tv and download the APK for Android devices. While
doing so, select the version ARM. Moreover, you will also need adbFire
which can be found on the website jocala.com

2 Allow external apps

Go to your Fire TV and in the main menu of the device select Settings >

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System > Developer options. Here, activate both the functions ADB
Debugging and Install apps of unknown origin. For the second point,
confirm the warning message with OK.

3 Determine IP address of the Fire TV

On Fire TV, now go to the menu Settings > System > Info > Network.
Fire TV will now show its IP address on the top right. Note down this
address.

4 Establish network connection

Unzip adbFire and start the application included in it. This application
does not require any installation. Click on New and enter the name
Fire TV under Description. Enter the determined IP address under
Address. Save the entries with Save and close the dialog. Now click in
the main window on Connect. If adbFire does not establish a connection
to your Fire TV then open the Windows Explorer and go to Network.
Here, right-click on the device Fire TV and select Properties. If
Windows shows a different IP address, then change it accordingly in
adbFire and then again click on Connect. The connection should now be
established. If Fire TV does not appear in the Windows Explorer then
there is something wrong with the network configuration. You must then
ensure that both the devices are present in the same network.

5 Transfer Kodi to Fire TV

In the adbFire, click on Install APK, select the file kodi-15.2Isengardarmeabi-v7a.apk and confirm with Yes. The transfer of the
Kodi app for Fire TV can last for a few minutes depending on the quality of
the network connection.

6 Start Kodi on Fire TV

Once the transfer is completed, go back to Fire TV and call the menu
command Settings > Applications > Manage installed apps. Using the
remote control, scroll up to the app Kodi and select it. Now go to the
command Start app in the menu. Kodi should now run without any
problems. Set up the Mediacentre as per your requirements. Close the
app and proceed with the remaining steps of this tutorial.

7 Use alternative interfaces

In adbFire, click on FireStarter and then on Install so that, in future, you

do not have to face the inconvenience of starting the Mediacenter every
time via the Fire TV settings. Similar with Kodi, the tool now transfers the
app FireStarter on to Fire TV. After this process is complete, go to Fire TV
and access the FireStarter via Settings > Applications > Manage installed
apps. Start the app and activate the option Import under Settings.
After the success message is displayed, the alternative interface
FireStarter is now ready for use.

8 Start Kodi automatically

If you want the interface of Kodi to open automatically while starting Fire
TV, then go to the FireStarter app and then to the Settings. You can
select Kodi via the Startup application. Subsequently, restart Fire TV
via the system settings. The Kodi interface will now appear. It may take a
bit longer for the first time as Fire TV must read the changed
configuration first. To access the conventional Fire TV interface, just tap
on the Home icon of the remote control.

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tips & tricks

old preview pictures should now be gone.

Tips
Tricks

03

Excel
Force line break for longer text
entries

MARCH 2016

WINDOWS & OFFICE

WINDOWS 8
Move folder with personal files to
another drive

01

02

WINDOWS 10
Quickly and reliably deleting your
old profile pictures

02
01
In case of lack of space on the system disk, move
folders with personal files to another drive

With a few tricks, you can move all folders

with your videos, songs and documents to
another hard disk or partition.
Open the folder "This PC and go to the
path "C:/User/Your Username. Keeping
the [Ctrl] key pressed, select the folders
"Pictures, Documents, "Music and
"Videos.
Then right-click on one of these folders
and select the command "Cut. Then
navigate to another hard disk or partition
and create a new folder there called "Own
Data. Open this folder and right-click on
the empty area. Click on "Paste to store
all the cut folders into this directory.

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In the account settings, check whether the old

pictures are really deleted

In the account settings, Windows 10 also

shows your old profile pictures apart from
your latest profile picture. Delete this
feature if you do want to use this feature.
Open Windows Explorer using the
key combination[Windows]+[E]. In
the "%appdata%\Microsoft\Windows\
AccountPictures and confirm with ENTER.
Alternatively, go to the path "C:\User\
USERNAME\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\
Windows\Profilbilder.
You will find a preview of your old
account photos in the folder Profile
pictures. At this point, delete the photos
which should not appear any more in the
settings. Subsequently, open the settings
using the keys [Windows] + [I] and go to
the "Accounts > Your account menu. The

03
Display texts in Excel fully using the button Line
Break

Occasionally, the entry of longer texts in an

Excel cell is inevitable. You can force the
table calculation for a line break so that
the text is visible not only in the editing
bar above but also in the cell itself in its
full length.
In Excel, first select the cell in which you
wish to have a line break. Then go to the
tab "Start. You will find the option "Line
break in the group "Align. Click on this
button and Excel will insert a line break in
the selected cell.
If you wish to force a line break at a
specific point in the text, then click on the
corresponding point and press the key
combination [Alt]+[Enter]. It may happen
that this text is not completely visible
after this action or it is displayed in an
extremely lower font size or runs into the
adjacent column. In such cases, the line is
defined at a certain height. To adjust the
height of the line, click on "Format in the
group "Cells in the "Start tab. Now select
the command "Automatically adjust line
height under "Cell Size. Click once again
on the "Line break button. The text in the
cell will now be completely visible.

04

Windows 7
Rescind missing authorisation
while installing packages

If you receive the Error message 1603

then you do not have any authorisation to

tips & tricks

install the Windows Installer packages. This
error can be corrected easily.
Right-click on the Installer package and
select "Run as Administrator. You have
to confirm this process. While selecting
the installation folder, ensure that you
have the corresponding access rights.
You should basically install the Windows
Installer packages on the system hard disk.
In rare cases, other programs may
also block the installation. If required,
disable tuning tools, firewalls and antivirus
programs running in the background for
the duration of the installation.

07

Windows 10
Activate automatic login without
entering the password

05
The command powercfg reports problems with
the Hibernation function

05

Windows 8
When the idle state of Windows no
longer works

There are many reasons as to why the idle

status of Windows 8 does not function
correctly. As a first attempt to fix it, start
the command prompt as Administrator
and enter the command "powercfg -a.
The standby modes that are supported
and those that are not by your system,
will be displayed to you now. But you
can also check whether the file "hiberfil.
Sys is present on the system drive "C:\.
For this, you must first ensure that the
hibernation status is Open the Control
Panel and go to the "Power Options. Click
on "Change power saving plan settings
next to the power saving plan used. Open
the option "Save power. You will find the
option "Permit hybrids stand-by mode
there. Disable this option for the battery
and power supply operation. Confirm your
changes by clicking on OK.
There must be sufficient free space
available on the system partition to be able
to use the hibernation. Windows 8 stores
the entire contents of the RAM in the file
"hiberfil.sys. This file is as large as the
RAM.
Deactivating and activating the
hibernation once may help to repair
the same. For this, open the command
prompt as Administrator and type the
command "powercfg -h off. With this,
you can reactivate the hibernation feature.
Subsequently, restart Windows.
If the hibernation still does not work,
then type another command in the
command prompt as an Administrator.
With "powercfg.exe-energy, you can start
an analysis of the power saving function
of Windows 8. You should refrain from

using the mouse or the keyboard as long

as the test is running. After some time, the
test program will store the file "energyreport.html in the directory "C:\Windows\
system32. This file can now be opened
in your web browser. In the Log file, pay
special attention to the entries in the
"Error section. At this point, you will find
applications or even devices connected to
the computer which block the hibernation
function.

06

Office 365
Rectify the error "0x8004FC12
occurring in Windows 10

Due to a bug, Office 365 in Windows 10

refuses to establish a connection to the
Microsoft server and thereby also the
activation of the Office Suite. The remedy
is UltraSurf, a hacker tool developed by
Chinese dissidents, which can help you fool
the firewall installed by the government
there.
Technically, UltraSurf tunnels the
connection through the proxy server
operated by the developer himself. Once
you start the program by double-clicking,
wait till the message "Successfully
connected to Network appears below.
Then start Office and try again to activate
Office 365. The error message should not
appear from now on.

07
If only you use your PC, then disable the standard
query of Windows password

If no one else, except you, has or needs

access to your computer then you can
enable the automatic login and bypass
the mandatory entry of the Windows
password. Open the "Run command using
the key combination [Windows] + [R]. Then
type "netplwiz and confirm with OK. Now
click on the desired account in the window
"User Accounts.
Disable the option "User must enter
username and password and click on OK.
Subsequently, Windows will request you to
enter your username and password. You
can initiate the saving of your settings by
clicking on the button OK. In future, you
will be able to login without entering your
password.

08

Windows 8.1
Speeding up your slowed-down
system

Windows 8.1 is getting slower every day.

But you can speed up the system where
you delete old files and Registry entries,
clean up the Autostart folder and create
free space on the hard disk.
Install and start the tool CCleaner.
Subsequently, click on "Analyse. The

06
UltraSurf freeware helps you to activate the connection to the Microsoft server, Office 365

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tips & tricks

option "No Pagefile and confirm your
changes with OK.

09

Outlook
Transfer mails from a POP3 account
to an IMAP account

08

10

After the cleanup, you should also trim your PC for

optimal performance

You can discontinue the Insider Builds of Windows

10, in the settings

program continues to search files that are

no longer required on your PC. As soon
as the search is completed, click on "Start
CCleaner.
After cleaning the hard disk, go to
the "Registry menu. Click on "Search
for errors and wait till the search is
completed. Now go to "Rectify all errors.
The tool will now repair the registration
database.
Subsequently click on Extras and
select "Autostart in the menu. You will see
all programs that start automatically, on
the tab "Windows. Select the applications
that you do not need and click on
"Disable. It is important that you leave
the system-relevant programs enabled.
Graphic card drivers, WLAN driver and
Audio managers come under the same. You
can mostly identify these by name of the
developer, for example, Realtek of Intel.
Close CCleaner and open "This PC.
Right-click on your hard disk and select
"Properties. Click on "Optimise on the tab
"Tools. This optimisation process may last
for some time.
Right-click on "This PC again and
select "Properties. On the side, go to
"Advanced system settings and then to
"Settings under "Performance. Here, you
can determine whether you prefer optimal
display i.e. all visual effects or an optimal
performance and bypass all visual effects
for the same. Individual effects in the
list can be enabled or disabled at ones
discretion.
If there is no SSD installed in your PC,
click on "Change in the "Advanced tab
under "Virtual RAM. Remove the check
mark for "Automatically manage Pagefile
size for all drives.
Further below, you can choose the

option "Update and Security. On the left

side, select "Windows Update and then
"Advanced Options. You will find the title
"Get Insider Builds. Click on the button
Stop getting Insider Builds. You must
confirm the process in a new window
and then restart your PC. In future, the
operating system will download only the
final updates for Windows 10.

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09
Before copying your Emails, disable the automatic
sending/receiving of mails

Switch your mail account from POP3 to

IMAP protocol so that your mailboxes are
constantly synchronised. You can then
transfer your Emails to the new account.
First click on Send/Receive in Outlook.
Under Send-Receive Groups, select the
option Disable automatic send/receive.
Now set up your new IMAP account in
Outlook. Subsequently, go back to the
POP mailbox and select all the mails there
where you press the key combination
[Ctrl]+[A]. With a right-click on the selected
Emails, open the context menu and select
Move to folder. Enter the folder Inbox
as the destination, in the newly created
IMAP account and confirm with OK. Move
all other POP3 folders, e.g. Sent folder, in
this manner.

10

11

Windows 10
Make the Start menu, Taskbar and
Info-Centre transparent

You can get the transparent effects

for the desktop in Windows 10 with a
few tricks. First, click on the Windows
icon on the bottom left and select the
option Settings or use the shortcut
[Windows]+[I]. Here, select the category
"Personalisation and in the left side
menu, select the option "Colours. Scroll a
bit down and activate the "Make "Start,
Taskbar and Info-Centre transparent and

Windows 10
Permanently disable the Insider
module with insecure updates

If you have switched over from the

Windows 10 preview, directly to the final
version then it is possible that invoking
of the Insider Builds is still activated in
the settings. But the builds may contain
errors and therefore they are only
conditionally suitable for routine tasks. In
order to stop updating Insider builds, go to
"Settings by pressing the key combination
[Windows]+[I]. Subsequently, click on the

11
Enable transparency effects in the settings for
colours

tips & tricks

set the slider to "On. The changes will
take effect immediately. If not, restart your
PC.

12

Word
Generate barcodes and QR code and
insert them in a document

13
Remove standard apps
Using a PowerShell command, you can delete standard applications in Windows 10

12
With the help of external Add-ins, Word can
generate its own barcodes and QR codes

Word, as such, does not offer any function

to generate barcodes. A 10-day free plug-in
will extend the Microsoft text editing by
this missing function.
Go to the website tec-it.com and
download the "TBarCode Office. It is
compatible with all versions from Office
2007 onwards. Close Word and if required,
install the Add-in. A short introduction
shows what type of barcodes the program
can generate. In order to insert a barcode,
open a new Word document and go to the
tab "Add-ins. Click on the field "TBarCode
Panel. First confirm the license of your
test version there. You can subsequently
use the tool for the next ten days in its
full scope. The menu of TBarCode will now
appear on the right. At this point, specify
the barcode type, the data to be included
and the desired size and then click on
"Insert Barcode.

13

Windows 10
Remove apps using the PowerShell
command

If you do not want to use specific, preinstalled apps from Microsoft, then you can
easily uninstall them. Type "Powershell in
the Taskbar. Then right-click on the search
result "Windows PowerShell and select
"Run as Administrator. Confirm this query

with "Yes and a blue command prompt

will open.
For example, to delete the game Solitaire,
type the command "Get-AppxPackage
*solit* > Remove-AppxPackage and
confirm by pressing the [Enter] key. You
can delete the other apps in a similar
manner with the help of the PowerShell
commands:
3D Builder: Get-AppxPackage *3d* |
Remove-AppxPackage
Photos: Get-AppxPackage *photo* |
Remove-AppxPackage
Voice recorder: Get-AppxPackage
*soundrec* | Remove-AppxPackage
Xbox: Get-AppxPackage *xbox* |
Remove-AppxPackage
Camera: Get-AppxPackage *camera* |
Remove-AppxPackage
Mail and Calendar: Get-AppxPackage
*communi* | Remove-AppxPackage
News, Sport, Finance & Weather:
Get-AppxPackage *bing* |
Remove-AppxPackage
Groove-Music, movies and TV broadcast:
Get-AppxPackage *zune* |
Remove-AppxPackage
Contacts: Get-AppxPackage *people* |
Remove-AppxPackage
Phone Companion: Get-AppxPackage
*phone* | Remove-AppxPackage.

14

"Insert and go to the menu option "Forms

where you have a huge selection of graphic
elements. Simply click on the shape of your
choice and place it at the desired position
in the document using the mouse. You
can select the Freehand shape and the
"Sketches in the sub-point "Lines. Both
features will allow you to draw freely.

15

Windows 7
Merging the partitions of the hard
disk

If the storage space on a hard disk

partition is scarce then you can increase
the capacity by merging a second partition.
Do note that the data of the partitions
which you wish to merge, will be lost
during the merging process of the two
partitions. Therefore, create a backup
before you delete the partition.
Click on "Start and type "Hard disk
partitions in the search window. From the
results list, select the option "Format and
create hard disk partitions. The window

Word
Draw individual sketches and insert
completed icons

With the text program from Microsoft, you

can, not only write and make layouts but
you can also enhance your documents
with forms and lines and also individual
sketches.
In a Word document, click on the tab

15
By deleting a disk partition, its storage space can be
added to another partition

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tips & tricks

"Disk Management will now open. All the
partitions will be listed there under "Disk.
Select the partition to be deleted by rightclicking on it, to use its storage space.
Furthermore, the option "Delete Volume
will appear in the context menu. Confirm
the warning that all data will be lost during
this process.
After the deletion, a non-allocated disk
appears instead of the partition. Right-click
on the partition which you want to enlarge
and in the context menu, select the option
"Extend Volume. A Windows Assistant will
open which will ask you which partition do
you wish to add to the existing one. Select
the non-allocated partition and continue
by clicking on "Next. Finally, Windows will
merge the two partitions and connect it
to a new, larger hard disk partition with
sufficient space for your data.

16

standard deviation, on the contrary, can be

randomly selected.
When you close the windows, Excel
will enter the first value in line "B1. Now,
take the mouse pointer over the lower
right corner of the cell and drag the frame
downwards. Select all values i.e. all cells
from "A1 to "B11. Go to the tab 'Insert
and to the group "Diagrams. Under "Point,
you will find several diagrams to display
the normal distribution.

17

then you should disable the LocalhostLoopback for security reasons. To do

this, type "about:flags in the address
line of the Edge browser, and disable
the function "Allow Localhost-Loopback
under "Developer options. Restart the
browser so that the change is permanently
incorporated.

18

Windows 10
Activate the Emoji keyboard hidden
in the system

Windows 10
Activate the Emoji keyboard hidden
in the system

Excel
Show normal distribution with
Statistics formula in the diagram

Using a suitable function, you can easily

calculate and display a normal distribution
for a specified average value and a
specified standard deviation, in Excel - in
order to test the hypotheses. This sounds
complicated but is very simple: Fill the
cells "A1 to A11 with a database - in
the example, with the numbers from 0 to
100 in increments of 10. Select the cell
"B1, go to the tab "Formulae and click on
the function "Insert function. As category,
select "Statistics and as function "NORM.
VERT. Confirm by clicking on OK and
another window will open. Here, enter the
value "A1 in the line "X and select the
value "0 below, for the line "Cumulated.
The average value is always "50, the

18
Windows 10 has its own Emoji keyboard which you
can access via the screen keyboard

17
By deleting a disk partition, its storage space can be
added to another partition

Malware on your computer can set up a

type of a local mini-server which displays
the Phishing pages in the browser. For
this, the malware needs an IP address via
which it can use your computer locally. This
IP address is 127.0.0.1 and in technical
jargon, it is called "Localhost-Loopback".
If you are not a software developer
and do not operate any public server

Many smartphone users who are active

in social networks, love using special
keyboards with smileys from time to time.
These smileys symbolise the respective
mood of the user. Microsoft has also
installed an Emoji keyboard in Windows 10.
To access this keyboard, right-click on the
Taskbar and select the context command
"Show screen keyboard (Button). Then click
on the new key-board icon in the Taskbar
and then on the Smiley and the Windows
10 Emojis will be displayed. If you want to
type without Emojis, then start typing on
the PC keyboard as usual. Windows will
automatically hide the screen keyboard.

HARDWARE
SD Card
Recover the images deleted from
the SD memory card

19

16
Excel has the function NORM.VERT for displaying the normal distribution

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Photos which you have deleted from the

memory card of your camera or which you
cannot access due to a card error, can be
rescued using a clever freeware.
Install the tool Recuva on your PC and run
it. An assistant will guide you through the

tips & tricks

recovery process. It will initially ask you
about the file types involved. Click on the
radio button before the option "Images.
Subsequently, enter the file path of the lost
photos. Select "On my memory card. By
clicking on "Start, the verification process
is initiated. After some time, Recuva will
show you all the photos which you can
recover. Now select the photos of your
choice and click on "Recover. Also specify
the folder in which the tool should store
the recovered photos.

20

21

Graphics card
Repair damaged card in the oven

Notebook
Fixing a dead touchpad

21
About half an hour in the oven at 120 degrees can
resuscitate a defective graphics card

20
If the Notebook Touchpad is not activated, then you
can activate it in the Control Panel

If the touchpad of your notebook refuses

to work, then there are a variety of ways
to fix it. First, make sure that the touchpad
has not been blocked accidentally. In the
line of the function keys on the top, look
for an icon for the touchpad which can
also appear as strike-through. Once you
have found this F-key, keep it pressed
along with the "Fn key on the bottom left.
If this does not yield any result, then try
to activate the touchpad via the control
panel. The settings for the touchpad can be
found under "Hardware and Sound. Here
you can switch it on with the help of a
check mark next to the button "Activate.
For some notebooks, the touchpad settings
can be accessed via "Devices and printers
> Mouse.
If you do not find the touchpad in the
Control Panel, then sometimes updating
the driver could help. For this, search for
the Touchpad in the "Device Manager.
Here, right-click on the same and go to the
context command "Update driver software.

If the graphics card of your PC renders

faulty images or no images at all then
sometimes it may be worthwhile to
undertake unusual rescue actions before
you throw it away.
Corrosion of individual conductor lines
on the circuit board often leads to faulty
conduction by the material which causes
it to malfunction. If you bake the graphics
card for some time in the oven, then
conductivity of the lines improves under
certain conditions.
Remove the cooler, all plastic parts and
the heat paste. Pre-heat the oven(120
C, air circulation), place the circuit board
on a baking tray and slide it into the
oven. If you cover the card beforehand
in an aluminium foil, then the heat gets
distributed. Remove the card from the oven
after 20 to 30 mins and let it cool for half
an hour. Now mount the cooler again and
remember to reapply the thermal paste.
Re-install the graphics card in your PC and
check whether it works. If not, then repeat
the process by setting the temperature of
the oven 30 C more than the previous
temperature.

22

Then, with the key combination [Ctrl] +

[Alt] + [Del] and start Task Manager, go
to the "Processes tab. You can sort the
processes according to the CPU utilisation
by clicking of the tab "CPU.
After you have identified the processes
which particularly need a lot of CPU power,
check in the Autostart programs whether
you are able to find one of these processes
again. For this, type the command
"msconfig in the "Run window and
thereby open the "System configuration.
Windows will show you the Autostart
programs on the tab "System start.
Processes that generate a high CPU load,
can be excluded from the Autostart at this
point by removing the check mark in front
of them.

23

Smartphone
Rescuing your smartphone if it falls
in water

If the cellphone accidentally falls into a

filled sink or the toilet, it need not be
its death sentence. Here's how to deal
with the situation: Immediately remove
the battery to avoid a short circuit. Then
unscrew the device and remove the circuit
board. Then place the circuit board in
Isopropanol (from the pharmacy) for two
days; it is a water-displacing alcohol that
evaporates without leaving any residue.
You can wipe the board dry on the third
day.
Once the Isopropanol has evaporated
then re-assemble your smartphone. If you
are lucky, it will start working once again.

Processor
Suppress tempo breaks due to high
CPU usage

Does your computer get slower and

slower because the processor is always
being used to its limits? There are many
causes and solutions for this. First, start
your virus scanner to rule out that a
malware is responsible for the CPU load.

23
A thorough bath of the circuit board in Isopropanol
safeguards your phone against future damages due
to water contact

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picture perfect

15/2/2016 The history of Street Fighter on a wall during the

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1/2/2016 I guess we could call those sound booths?

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in the next issue

APRIL

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Its time the world started using LED for their home and office lighting, learn about their strengths and quirks.

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A man who fights his age, and a man who fights in the name of
science, is the secret to immortality in the human genome?

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Webbing At Work
Using the web at work could come with consequences, find out
what could happen, and what you can do to prevent it from
happening.