The market for UCFF (ultra-compact form factor) PCs has seen tremendous growth since the introduction of the Intel NUCs in early 2013…
The market for UCFF (ultra-compact form factor) PCs has seen tremendous growth since the introduction of the Intel NUCs in early 2013. Various motherboard and system vendors have their own offerings in this space. ECS started selling their own UCFF PCs under the LIVA brand in 2014. The initial focus was on the low end, with units based on the Intel Bay Trail and Braswell platforms. The lineup evolved to accommodate Core M-based units as well as systems in the mini-STX form factor. Today, we are taking a look at the ECS LIVA Z. This fanless Apollo Lake system targets the low-end market segment, and aims to differentiate itself by supporting two LAN ports.
Traditional UCFF PCs (such as the BRIX from GIGABYTE and the Beebox from ASRock) have stayed close to the Intel NUC form factor. ECS had experimented with a smaller form factor ( Mini-Lake ) in the first-generation LIVA , as well as the LIVA X , and LIVA X2. The LIVA Z , however, adopts a board form-factor similar to that of the Intel NUCs.
The feature set and pricing of the LIVA units make it target the developing and cost-sensitive markets. The LIVA Z is no different. Intel’s Apollo Lake SoCs improve upon Bay Trail and Braswell by adopting a newer microarchitecture (Goldmont) for the CPU cores and also getting fabricated in a more power-efficient / mature 14nm process. In the consumer market, the Goldmont cores are exclusive to the Apollo Lake family. The SoCs target the netbook and nettop markets, and it is no surprise that ECS has adopted the netbook variants for the fanless LIVA Z models.
The LIVA Z comes in three variants,corresponding to the three members of the Apollo Lake mobile SoC family (6W TDP) – the Pentium N4200, or the Celeron N3450, or the Celeron N3350. Our review sample, the LIVA-ZN33 is based on the Intel Celeron N3350. The unit ships with 32GB of eMMC on the board, but, it was insufficient to enable the installation of all our benchmark programs. Therefore, we evaluated the PC in two different configurations – the base one with Windows 10 installed on the eMMC and used for typical workloads such as media playback, and a configuration with a M.2 SATA SSD for office workloads. The full specifications of our review configurations are summarized in the table below.
The ECS LIVA-ZN33 package comes with a 65W (19V @ 3.42A) AC adapter and a VESA mount / screws in addition to the main unit. Windows 10 is the only officially supported OS, and all the drivers were downloaded on our review unit from the ECS website.
One of the interesting hardware components in the LIVA-ZN33 is the integrated digital microphone. This allows the end user to configure it as an always-listening machine (if needed), without the need to connect an external microphone. The other selling point is the availability of two GbE RJ-45 ports. Intel Ethernet controllers would have sweetened the deal, but, ECS has taken the cost factor into consideration and opted for Realtek controllers.
The industrial design is attractive and the unit feels solid. The chassis is made of plastic (not uncommon at the targeted price point). The internal heat sink which faces the bottom lid, however, is solid metal , and possesses good characteristics for effective heat transfer from the SoC. It would have been nice if the design allowed for the generated heat to dissipate via convection. In any case, we will take a look at the effectiveness of the thermal design in a later section.
The specifications of the Intel Celeron N3350 indicate that the SoC can support up to 6 PCIe 2.0 lanes, 2 SATA ports, and 8 USB ports. The break-up of the high-speed I/O lanes is interesting in the context of the availability of four USB 3.0 ports (3x Type-A + 1x Type-C) as well as two GbE LAN ports in the LIVA Z
Intel Celeron N3350 HSIO Block Diagram [ Courtesy : Intel Pentium and Celeron Processor N- and J- Series Datasheet – Volume 1 of 3 ( PDF ) ]
The distribution of PCIe lanes in the LIVA Z is as below.
Since the used PCIe lanes are muxed with the USB 3.0 lanes, and, there are four USB 3.0 ports in the system, it stands to reason that at least one USB 3.0 port has its bandwidth shared with the PCIe lanes / networking interfaces. At the price point targeted by the LIVA Z, this is hardly an issue.
In the table below, we have an overview of the various systems that we are comparing the ECS LIVA-ZN33 against. Note that they may not belong to the same market segment. The relevant configuration details of the machines are provided so that readers have an understanding of why some benchmark numbers are skewed for or against the ECS LIVA-ZN33 when we come to those sections.

© Source: http://www.anandtech.com/show/11229/ecs-liva-z-duallan-apollo-lake-ucff-pc-review
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The South Korean giant’s latest quarterly likely benefited from its business supplying chips, displays and other components.
Samsung’s ready to claw its way back from the Galaxy Note 7 disaster.
The company on Thursday estimated its operating profit for the first quarter should jump nearly 50 percent from the same period a year ago, while its revenue should be about flat but better than analysts expected.
Samsung said its overall operating profit should leap to 9.9 trillion won ($8.8 billion) from 6.68 trillion won a year earlier. Its sales should total about 50 trillion Korean won ($44.2 billion), up from 49.78 trillion won a year earlier. The company didn’t provide any commentary or details about its results.
Analysts expected Samsung to post revenue of 49.3 trillion won ($43.6 billion), according to a poll by Thomson Reuters.
CNET senior reporter Shara Tibken visits Samsung headquarters in South Korea to see firsthand how the company has stepped up its battery testing after the disastrous Note 7 fires. She also gets an early look at the new Galaxy S8.
Samsung’s had a rough few months. In October, the company killed its large-screen phone , the Galaxy Note 7, after two battery flaws caused the device to overheat. The debacle cost Samsung an estimated $17 billion in sales. It also cost Samsung the lead in the global smartphone market, with Apple leapfrogging it in the fourth quarter of 2016 to become the world’s biggest smartphone vendor. (The last time Apple had held the lead was in 2014 when it introduced its first big-screen phones, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.)
Samsung’s estimate for the first quarter comes a week after it unveiled its next flagship smartphone , the Galaxy S8. The South Korean giant expects the device to help it recover from fallout from the Galaxy Note 7 and regain its footing in the mobile market. Despite a financial hit from the Galaxy Note 7 in recent quarters, Samsung has managed to generate strong results because of its components business.
Samsung’s first-quarter results won’t include any money made from the Galaxy S8. The device hits the market April 21.

© Source: https://www.cnet.com/news/samsung-galaxy-s8-note-7-earnings-components-profit-revenue-q1/
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Commentary: A new J. D. Power study finds Surface buyers are happier than their iPad counterparts. They’re younger and prefer Microsoft’s design.
A winner?
Have you noticed a certain giddiness in some of your friends lately?
I’m thinking about the ones who use a Microsoft Surface.
I only ask because J. D Power has just emitted its US Tablet Satisfaction Study and it declared that Surface owners experience deeper sensations of satisfaction than iPad buyers.
Apple fanpersons might turn pale when they learn the main reasons for this greater Surface joy are, according to the Power people, “its top rankings in the features and styling & design factors. ”
And the darkness descends. Apple being beaten in styling and design? Does Jony Ive know? Will someone dare tell him?
J. D Power says the Surface scored 855 out of a possible 1,000. This beat Apple by 6 points.
The study relied on the feelings of 2,238 US tablet owners who have owned their tablets for less than a year. It was performed between October and December 2016.
It measures tablet joy across five areas: performance, ease of operation, features, styling and design, and cost.
Surface owners were, apparently, most elated with the Surface’s connectivity, pre-loaded apps and accessories. They were also moved by machine’s size, build and, yes, the beauty of the design.
Here, though, is something else that Cupertino might find disturbing in this study. Surface owners tend to be younger. They’re also more likely to be early adopters. They also seem to rather like being first among their friends to get one.
Apple didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. A Microsoft spokeswoman, however, did.told me: “Building products that deliver the power, versatility, and dependability that allows our customers to create their best work in any setting is fundamental to everything the team does. ”
Of course, one issue here could be that Apple has somewhat neglected the iPad. It’s been too busy pushing phones and watches and forgetting it makes computers.
It just released a base iPad .
Otherwise, there are merely rumors of what might come next. What is clear, however, is that Apple took a long time deciding what the iPad was — especially iPad Pro, the most direct competition to the more productivity-focused Surface.
It first marketed it as a computer. Which made Microsoft laugh. Recently, it’s decided that the iPad Pro is better than a computer and that computers are rather passé.
A tiny consolation for Cupertino might lie in the study insisting that general satisfaction with tablets has risen.
Oh, what am I saying? They don’t do consolation at Apple. So when are the sexier, new iPads coming?

© Source: https://www.cnet.com/news/microsoft-beats-apple-in-tablet-satisfaction-study/
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We talk community, diversity and inclusion with the two founders of GX Australia ahead of the show’s last hurrah in Sydney.
This week on Girt by CNET, we sit down with Joshua Meadows and Liam Esler, the two-man team behind GX Australia, Australia’s most inclusive gaming and geek convention.
GX Australia was born out of a dedication to diversity and inclusion. Driven by crowdfunding and local indie support, the not-for-profit convention is a fantastic representation of the best of the Australian gaming community. We talk about what it takes to make that happen, and what the show means to those fans.
While 2017’s show will be the last GX Australia due to funding difficulties, Liam and Joshua also give us a rundown of the amazing things that’ll be on offer.
The show takes place on April 29 and April 30 at the Sydney Showground, and you can learn more at the GX Australia website and Kickstarter page for the farewell party .
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© Source: https://www.cnet.com/news/gamers-and-geeks-are-welcome-girt-by-cnet-podcast-105/
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The gene testing company can now tell US customers who use its home DNA kit whether they have a genetic risk for any of 10 diseases and conditions.
Gene testing company 23andMe can now tell customers whether they have a genetic risk for any of 10 diseases, including Parkinson’s disease, celiac disease and late-onset Alzheimer’s disease.
The US Food and Drug Administration said on Thursday that 23andMe could market its genetic health risk tests for several diseases and conditions, making it the first home DNA test authorized by the regulator.
This is a big win for 23andMe, which stopped giving health analysis information to US customers in 2013 after being reprimanded by the FDA. The Google-backed startup continued to sell its home DNA kits but provided only ancestry information in the US. In 2015, the FDA gave the company its approval to tell US customers their “carrier status” — meaning whether they could pass a gene mutation on to children — for 36 hereditary diseases.
“This is an important moment for people who want to know their genetic health risks and be more proactive about their health,” Anne Wojcicki, 23andMe’s CEO and co-founder, said in a release. “It is a significant step forward for 23andMe and for the adoption of personal genetics. ”
The FDA cautioned, however, that genetic predisposition shouldn’t be confused with a diagnosis.
“Consumers can now have direct access to certain genetic risk information,” Dr. Jeffrey Shuren, director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, said in a release. “But it is important that people understand that genetic risk is just one piece of the bigger puzzle, it does not mean they will or won’t ultimately develop a disease. ”
23andMe can now provide genetic risk information on:

© Source: https://www.cnet.com/news/23andme-fda-approval-home-dna-test-genetic-risk/
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