Today, Intel announced its latest, fastest and their most reliable SSDs until date for consumers and OEMs – the SSD 520. This new SSD from Intel uses the SATA III interface to communicate, and is based on the 25nm NAND memory process technology.

“We tapped Intel engineering to create a client SSD that delivers performance on all fronts with obsessively high reliability,” said Rob Crooke, Intel vice president and general manager of the Intel Non-Volatile Memory Solutions Group. “The Intel SSD 520 once again raises the industry bar on SSD performance, quality and reliability to dramatically improve user experience.”

Other features of Intel SSD 520 include Advanced Encryption Standard, 256 bit encryption capabilities, and enhanced password protection for added security. The SSD will be available in a wide-range of capacities right from 60GB to a whopping 480GB.

For per 1000-units order, the 60GB model will cost $149, while the 120GB, 180GB and 240GB will set users back by $229, $369 and $509, respectively. The 480GB variant will set users back by a whopping $999. Intel is also providing a whopping 5-year warranty on the new SSD, which outlasts the 1 or 3 year warranty given on the traditional HDDs by manufacturers.

A couple of years back, Google launched Goggles for Android, which is pretty cool by itself. However, Google is now reportedly trying to build the real thing – an actual goggles with a HUD (heads up display).

9To5Google learnt by the way of a tipster that Google is currently developing wearable glasses that resemble Oakley Thumps. These glasses will be fitted with a tiny HUD for each eye on the sides. The display is expected to provide an augmented reality experience by showing real-time information corresponding to objects in your sight. Navigating the on-screen HUD is said to be as simple as tilting your head. The glasses will have a tiny camera equipped with flash, along with a mic for recieving voice commands. CPU, RAM, and other storage will be equivalent to previous generation Android smartphones, which will be stunning considering the form factor for the device.

Oakley Thump

The glasses are still a long way from being done, and Google isn’t even sure if there is an actual demand for such a gadget. However, what this clearly illustrates is just how ambitious and bold Google has become. It’s not afraid to invest money and time into projects that almost appear to be science fiction. 9To5 believes that Google might launch a public beta testing program to gauge demand, as it did with the Cr-48 Chromebooks. Let’s hope that they are right.

Motorola has started rolling out a new software update for the MOTOACTV, a device aimed at active people. The new software update (v4.55.xx) brings in quite a few changes, including an improved battery life, and some new features, which quite a few people would appreciate.

Below is the full change-log of the update -:

Longer Battery Life

MOTOACTV’s indoor/outdoor battery life is now better than ever before with up to 9 hours of
uninterrupted workout time outdoors.

Battery Status Bar

Now you can now see how long your battery will last via the handy Status Bar. Just monitor your
percentage and make the most of your workout time!

Workout Screen Lock

Ever activate your Workout Screen through accidental contact? Problem solved. Now you can lock it to
prevent unwanted display activation. Just Double Press the Power key to lock and unlock your workout
screen.

Enhanced Auto-Pause and Auto-Run

Now you can take a break from the action and pause your workout manually, even if Auto-Pause is
enabled. You can also choose between indoor/outdoor Auto-Run options.

Repeat a Planned Workout

You’re now free to repeat a planned workout even if it had been previously started.

Additional Enhancements Include:

• WAHOO BLE HRM Strap support has been added.
• Enhanced syncing planned interval workouts to MOTOACTV.com.
• Workout metrics have been reordered for easier searching.
• Improved WiFi syncing when multiple networks are configured.
• Optimized list of workout metrics so you can search for your favorites easier.
• Pressing the BACK key on any Home screen brings up the watch face.

MOTOACTV owners need to connect their device to their PC so that they can update it, since it does not support OTA updates.

While the MOTOACTV is a very good device for fitness freaks, I personally cannot justify spending 249.99$ on it. Using fitness apps like Endomondo or Runkeeper on my Android handset gives me the same functionality as MOTOACTV.

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Asus has announced via Twitter that it will be releasing the bootloader unlock tool for the Transformer Prime sometime in February. Asus had earlier confirmed that it will be releasing a bootloader unlock tool for the Prime, but did not exactly state when.

The ASUS Transformer Prime was one of the most anticipated tablets of 2011. The Prime was going to be the first tablet in the world to use a quad-core, technically five cores, processor – Tegra 3. Apart from the processor, the full aluminium body construction, the value for money the tablet offered, the screen and the developer support offered by the community, made the Prime truly desirable.

However, most of the Prime owners were in for a rude shock when they out that their tablet has a 128-bit encrypted bootloader. No one expected this move from Asus, considering the original Transformer came with an easily unlocked bootloader. After some negative criticism, Asus responded back saying it will be releasing a bootloader unlock tool for the Prime soon.

What companies like Asus and HTC need to realize is that developers don’t like to wait for an official tool/use an official tool to unlock their device bootloader. You need to ship it unlocked right from the factory. Quite a few developers have already shown cancelled their Prime purchase due to this.

The Asus Transformer Prime was easily one of the most anticipated tablets of 2011. It was the first ever quad-core tablet to be available to the general masses. Apart from the Tegra 3, Asus improved the Prime in nearly all departments compared to its predecessor- the Transformer – by including an 8MP rear camera, an IPS+ display – which is actually visible outdoors, better battery life, better performance, and an aluminium body.

The only thing it managed to worsen compared to the original Transformer is the GPS performance. Due to the aluminium construction on the Prime, the GPS chip inside the device struggles to communicate with the satellites in the space. The problem is actually because of a design flaw, and there is no way Asus can fix it now. The company has in fact, even updated the Prime’s official spec sheet to remove GPS from its list of features.

The company however is still trying to improve the GPS performance on the Prime by tweaking the software part. The company has started rolling out a new software update which aims at improving the GPS performance of the tablet. The update is being rolled out for Prime owners who are running either Ice Cream Sandwich or Honeycomb. Sadly, quite a few Prime owners did not notice any improvement in the GPS performance of the Prime after installing the update.

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Motorola has started rolling out the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich update for the original XOOM, the first ever tablet to release with Honeycomb on-board. The IML77 build of Ice Cream Sandwich update is being rolled out to all the general users, unlike the last ‘soak test’ update that was meant only for XOOM owners who had signed up for it.

The ‘soak test’ build and the public release build have the same  version number, so there should be no differences between them. The update is only being rolled out to the Wi-Fi variants of the XOOM in the United States though. Hopefully, the 4G LTE variant’s update should not be far away, and the roll-out of the ICS update for the XOOMs in other regions of the world should happen sometime in the next few weeks.

The Ice Cream Sandwich update will bring with it quite a lot of new goodies for XOOM owners to enjoy including a redesigned app launcher, an updated and faster web-browser, improved text input and spell-checking, continuous voice to text support, the ability to dismiss notifications with a swipe, a redesigned gallery with an editor and much more. The whole change-log for the update can be found here.

While not the first, Motorola made sure that the XOOM is among the first Android tablets to get some Ice Cream Sandwich love.

Archos, a company which among all other things also manufacturers Android tablets, has announced that it will be upgrading all the variants of its G9 tablet to Ice Cream Sandwich starting from the first week of February.

While the Archos G9 series of tablet are not really popular, they are still pretty good and decently priced. Forr the unknown, the G9 tablet is powered by a dual-core OMAP4 processor, packs 1GB of RAM, a PowerVR SGX540 GPU and come with either an 8-inch screen or a 10-inch one. The tablets are also available with either flash storage or a 250GB hard disk as well.

The usual connectivity features like Wi-Fi, GPS and sensors are also present. Also, unlike quite a few other Android tablets, the G9 series runs on stock Android 3.2 Honeycomb. All this, and the the prices of the tablet starts from a mere $299.

Now, that Archos has confirmed that it will be updating its tablets to Ice Cream Sandwich, it makes them more attractive for potential tablet buyers.

Thanks to the patent trolling from Apple, Samsung has released a re-designed version of the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus, known as the Tab 7.0N Plus.

Apple had earlier successfully managed to get the whole Galaxy Tab series banned in Germany on grounds that the tablet looked similar to the iPad 2. Samsung has thus released this slightly re-designed version of the 7-inch so as to get around with the ban in Germany.

The re-designed tablet has the same specs as its older version that includes a 7-inch PLS LCD screen with a resolution of 600×1024, an Exynos 4210 SoC sporting a 1.2GHz dual-core A9 processor, an ARM Mali-400MP GPU, 1GB of RAM, a 2MP camera at the back and a 1.3MP camera in the front, microSD card slot and 16/32GB of internal memory. All the usual features like Wi-Fi, GPS, Accelerometer are also present.

Externally, Samsung has increased the bezel size around the screen by a bit and placed the speakers there. Quite a few Galaxy Tab users out there will appreciate this design change.

However, the Tab 7.0N Plus still runs on Android 3.2 Honeycomb with Sammy’s TouchWIZ UI on top of it. The tablet should get the Ice Cream Sandwich update sometime in late Q1 of this year. This new version of the Galaxy Tab is already available in retail stores in Germany.

While at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, I was able to get some video of the Lenovo IdeaPad YOGA. The YOGA is a convertible Ultrabook which has four modes of operation:

• Regular laptop mode: In its simplest form, the YOGA is a nice Ultrabook. It conforms to the Ultrabook specifications with the thickness (16.9mm), weight (3.1lbs) and startup/resume times (not specified since it is not final yet).
• Tablet/slate mode: With its patented dual hinge, the YOGA can flip back completely and become a tablet/slate. Now, don’t get me wrong, it is not going to compare to a regular slate in terms of weight or thickness. Instead,  think of it as a way to use your laptop more comfortably for say browsing the web or consuming other content.
• Stand mode: The hinges are strong and the body is sturdy, and as a result you can flip back the screen and leave the computer on a table instead of carrying a dock around with you. The IPS panel (1600×900 resolution) does provide great viewing angles which helps this mode’s usage.
• Tent mode: This mode, I am not too sure about, but for sake of completeness, let me describe it. You can fold the laptop so it becomes an inverted “V” and then use it as a photo frame.

I like it a lot because it is thin, it is light and it is not just another laptop. The skeptics may say that we have seen these before and they didn’t work then, so there is no reason they should work now – tablet users want a tablet, and PC users want a PC. Well, I was one of them! The difference between then and now is that this laptop is built for Windows 8. Lenovo didn’t even pretend that it is a Windows 7 PC upgradeable to Windows 8. Windows 8 is a touch-first operating system compared to Windows XP or even Windows 7 which is what powers the “legacy” convertibles.

The operating system being touch-first is one big difference, but also, the form factor. The convertibles of old were thick and bulky, almost like a tablet stacked on top of a regular laptop. The YOGA is sleek, and at 3lbs, it is lighter than most PCs in the market today. The person who was providing me the demo said that they are going to be able to shave another 100 grams before the machine becomes final!

There are many other Ultrabooks worth drooling over, at CES, but this is my best because finally there is a design which is different from the MacBook Air, and not just for the sake of being different (I am looking at you, HP with the Gorilla Glass-covered Ultrabook).

See below for a quick eyes-on, with a demonstration of all four modes in action.

Lenovo IdeaPad YOGA Video

Velocity has been in the tablet business for a couple of years now, and despite not seeing much success, it continues to fight on, launching new Android tablets every year.

At CES 2012, it unveiled two new tablets – the Velocity Micro Cruz T507 and T510. Both run Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, and come with some great hardware. The Velocity Micro Cruz T507 and T510 are powered by a 1.2 GHz ARM Cortex A8 processor and a ARM Mali 400 MHz GPU. They come with 512 MB of RAM and 8 GB of internal storage.

Both have dual cameras, and come with mini USB and mini HDMI ports. The T510 sports a 9.7 inch display with a resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels, while the T507 sports a 7 inch display with a resolution of 800 x 480 pixels. Both run Ice Cream Sandwich and come with Android Market as well as Amazon Appstore. They will ship with an optimized version of Adobe Flash 11.

Here’s the best part – the Velocity Micro Cruz T507 will be priced below $150, while the Velocity Micro Cruz T510 will be priced below $200, which will make them ideal for customers on a budget.

Check out our complete CES 2012 coverage: Techie-Buzz @ CES 2012

Here are some images of the Velocity Micro Cruz T510 and T507, courtesy The Verge: