NEW YORK, July 20, 2020 — Kamakura Corporation is pleased to announce the expansion of its Board and the election of Don M. Griffith to the Board of Directors. Mr. Griffith was the founder, chairman and chief executive of Grandpoint Capital, Inc, the parent company of Grandpoint Bank. He previously founded two banking companies, an investment and advisory firm, and served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of First Interstate Bancorp. After earning his MBA at Harvard Business School, Mr. Griffith began his banking career at Citibank in New York and Mexico before joining Bank of America. Mr. Griffith earned a Bachelor of Arts from Stanford University and his Master of Arts in political science from University of California, Berkeley.
Don M. Griffith
“We are pleased to welcome Don Griffith to the Board as a new independent director. Kamakura entered 2020 with a number of strategic opportunities to accelerate growth and leverage our risk analytics platform, Kamakura Risk Manager, and Kamakura Risk Information Services (“KRIS”). Don complements the skills and background of our current directors and brings banking, investment and deal experience to the board at a transformational inflection point for the company,” said Martin Zorn, Kamakura’s president and Chief Operating Officer.
“It was a great pleasure for me as a young banker to work with Don Griffith at First Interstate Bancorp. He brought amazing creativity and energy to First Interstate as Chief Financial Officer, and we are sure he will do the same at Kamakura as we rapidly grow our advantage as the global leader in enterprise risk management software and related risk information,” said Donald R. van Deventer, Kamakura’s founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “There are very few leaders in the financial services industry that have accomplished as much as Don Griffith. His wise counsel and collaborative approach will help us drive value for our clients and our shareholders”.
Kamakura’s other members of the Board of Directors are Donald R. van Deventer, Martin Zorn, Professor Robert A. Jarrow and V. Vance Roley, Dean of the Shidler College of Business at the University of Hawaii.
About Kamakura Corporation Founded in 1990, Honolulu-based Kamakura Corporation is a leading provider of risk management information, processing, and software. Kamakura was recognized as a category leader in the Chartis Report, Technology Solutions for Credit Risk 2.0 2018. Kamakura was named to the World Finance 100 by the editor and readers of World Finance magazine in 2017, 2016 and 2012. In 2010, Kamakura was the only vendor to win two Credit Magazine innovation awards. Kamakura Risk Manager, first sold commercially in 1993 and now in version 10.0.5, is the first enterprise risk management system for users focused on credit risk, asset and liability management, market risk, stress testing, liquidity risk, counterparty credit risk, and capital allocation from a single software solution. The KRIS public firm default service was launched in 2002. The KRIS sovereign default service, the world’s first, was launched in 2008, and the KRIS non-public firm default service was offered beginning in 2011. Kamakura added its U.S. Bank default probability service in 2014.
Kamakura has served more than 330 clients with assets ranging in size from $1.5 billion to $3.0 trillion. Current clients have a combined “total assets” or “assets under management” in excess of $26 trillion. Its risk management products are currently used in 47 countries and regions, including the United States, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Austria, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Russia, Ukraine, South Africa, Australia, mainland China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, and many other countries in Asia, Europe and the Middle East.
To follow risk commentary by Kamakura on a daily basis, please follow:
For more information, please contact: Kamakura Corporation 2222 Kalakaua Avenue, Suite 1400, Honolulu, Hawaii 96815 Telephone: 1-808-791-9888 Facsimile: 1-808-791-9898 Information: info@kamakuraco.com Web site: www.kamakuraco.com
DALLAS, July 20, 2020 — TrustKey Solutions (“TrustKey”) announces T120 – FIDO2/U2F, USB-C security key. T120 is based on public key cryptography to protect users against phishing and man-in-the-middle attacks. T120 is a hardware security key for the consumers as well as enterprise deployments – it is fast, easy to use and affordable.
T120 supports passwordless login to Microsoft Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) joined Windows devices even in flight-mode. With their Azure AD integration, TrustKey earned a nomination to join the Microsoft Intelligent Security Association. In addition, it is compatible with all the major web browsers where WebAuthn is implemented, and works seamlessly on online services like Azure AD, Google, Dropbox, Facebook, ServiceNow, Twitter, GitHub, 1Password and more. T120 supports up to 150 user accounts with securely stored Resident Keys. Moreover, “T120 is implemented on the same platform as FIDO Alliance L2 certified G-Series keys, G310 and G320. T120 provides high security performance with affordability,” said Stephen Oh, CEO of TrustKey.
Moreover, T120 supports OTP (HOPT and TOTP) features with maximum 50 OTP accounts. This capability provides an instrument of seamless transition from 2FA to passwordless login. The organizations with currently deployed 2FA mechanism and with plans to transition into passwordless system can deploy T120 with peace of mind that knowing that FIDO2 is supported by T120 and provide passwordless experience to the users.
“Microsoft has been on a mission to eliminate passwords and help people protect their corporate identities. T120 supports our four steps to password freedom with password replacement offering,” said Sue Bohn, Partner Director of Program Experience, Microsoft Identity Division, at Microsoft Corp. “We are pleased to see companies like TrustKey support that goal by providing a reliable and an affordable solution like T120.”
For more information and pricing on T120 and G-series biometric keys, please visit us at www.trustkeysolutions.com.
About TrustKey Solutions
TrustKey Solutions, www.trustkeysolutions.com, strives to be the recognized leader in IoT security solutions worldwide. We will lead the industry in IoT security with our revolutionary holistic security solutions, providing a more secure and private world for all people, everywhere.
The new collection features original artist prints on iPhone and AirPods Cases, with 100 percent of the proceeds supporting the ACLU.
LOS ANGELES, July 20, 2020 /PR Newswire/ — CASETiFY, the leading custom tech accessory brand, launches its Cases for a Cause series today. The debut collection invites three independent lifestyle brands to feature original artwork on CASETiFY’s signature cases, compatible with iPhones, AirPods and AirPods Pro. Upon release, 100 percent of the collection proceeds will be donated to the American Civil Liberties Union, (ACLU).
The new collection features original artist prints on iPhone and AirPods Cases, with 100 percent of the proceeds supporting the ACLU.
Known for the company’s mission “to celebrate self-expression“, CASETiFY and its partners have curated a collection of designs speaking to the messages of creativity and individuality. Among the artist collective, accessories will explore technology-inspired themes, in addition to bold graphics from Midnight Studios, Sundae School, and Prix. Starting today, cases will be available to shop online, shipping worldwide, and retailing $35 USD – $55 USD.
“I believe change happens together, and anything that I can do to support increasing exposure and education around freedom of expression and civil rights is amazing!” said Esther Ng, Founder and Designer of Prix.
Aligning with the collection’s mission, Cases for a Cause will support the efforts of the ACLU, a non-profit and non-partisan organization fighting to safeguard people’s rights around the country. CASETiFY and partners are proud to donate 100 percent of the collection’s proceeds to the ACLU, while the accessories are available to purchase.
“These brands have always celebrated self-expression through music, arts, and culture, so onboarding them for this collection is exciting for all of us,” said Wes Ng, CEO and Co-founder of CASETiFY. “One of the most powerful ways to express yourself is by sharing and defending your beliefs, and we’re honored to be a part of this conversation.”
Cases for a Cause will join CASETiFY’s Co-Lab program, as a natural partnership between creatives and the brand’s global platform. For more information on the collection, its partners, and its mission, please visit www.CASETiFY.com/cases-for-a-cause. Stay tuned to @CASETiFY on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for the latest news on Cases for a Cause, as well as upcoming campaigns.
About CASETiFY
Founded in 2011, CASETiFY is recognized as the first and largest global platform for custom tech accessories. The leading Gen Z casemaker not only delivers high quality products to millions of customers around the world, but every case is inspected top to bottom for a stylishly slim, drop-proof accessory. Fans of the brand often look to CASETiFY for special edition collaborations with top creatives and talents across industries. Members of the CASETiFY Co-Lab program include Moncler Genius, Vetements, DHL, Coca-Cola, The Pokémon Company, streetwear label BAPE, and global K-Pop group BTS. For more information on CASETiFY, its stores, partners and products, visit www.CASETiFY.com
SHANGRAO, China, July 20, 2020 — JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd. (the “Company,” or “JinkoSolar”) (NYSE: JKS), one of the largest and most innovative solar module manufacturers in the world, today announced that the maximum solar conversion efficiency of its large-area N-type monocrystalline silicon solar cells reached 24.79%, and have set a world record for large-size contact-passivated solar cells. This result was independently confirmed by the Institute for Solar Energy Research in Hamelin (ISFH), Germany.
JinkoSolar’s R&D teams of experts in silicon wafer, solar cells and solar modules have made significant breakthroughs in the field of high efficiency and high power of cells and modules for many years.The record-breaking mono-crystalline silicon solar cell was fabricated on a high quality CZ mono-Si substrate, with a practical size of 267.72cm2, and several advanced technologies have been implemented to achieve this new record of 24.79%, including passivating contact technologies, advanced diffusion system, surface passivation and advanced anti-reflection technologies, and a series of material upgrade were integrated into the cell process. The record-breaking mono-crystalline silicon solar cell will be gradually applied to product production.
“JinkoSolar has reached a key R&D milestone and our commitment towards technological innovation in silicon material, cell fabrication and module processing technologies has led to multiple world records for the efficiency of solar cells and modules. We are very proud to break the world record with advanced large-area N-type cell in the world, and this innovative cell technology also holds the world record for PV module efficiency,” commented Dr. Jin Hao, CTO of JinkoSolar. “We will constantly invest in upgrading technologies to achieve mass production, and to lead the way by providing high efficiency and competitive industrial products for our global customers.”
About JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.
JinkoSolar (NYSE: JKS) is one of the largest and most innovative solar module manufacturers in the world. JinkoSolar distributes its solar products and sells its solutions and services to a diversified international utility, commercial and residential customer base in China, the United States, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, Chile, South Africa, India, Mexico, Brazil, the United Arab Emirates, Italy, Spain, France, Belgium, and other countries and regions. JinkoSolar has built a vertically integrated solar product value chain, with an integrated annual capacity of 17.5 GW for mono wafers, 10.6 GW for solar cells, and 16 GW for solar modules, as of March 31, 2020.
JinkoSolar has over 15,000 employees across its 7 productions facilities globally, 14 overseas subsidiaries in Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, India, Turkey, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, United States, Mexico, Brazil, Chile and Australia, and global sales teams in China, United Kingdom, France, Spain, Bulgaria, Greece, Ukraine, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Morocco, Kenya, South Africa, Costa Rica, Colombia, Panama, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, Poland and Argentina.
This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements constitute “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “will,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “future,” “intends, “plans,” “believes,” “estimates” and similar statements. Among other things, the quotations from management in this press release and the Company’s operations and business outlook, contain forward-looking statements. Such statements involve certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in JinkoSolar’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including its annual report on Form 20-F. Except as required by law, the Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Gaming notebooks seems to be the sort of notebook PCs that everyone is going for these days. There is a good reason for that. Gaming notebooks do not look that much more outrageous these days. They look quite good and svelte in most cases today. They look stealthy, and regular with just a little bit of cues of the power that lies inside.
You combine that polished, stealthy look with the amount of power that these things come with these days, and you are looking at a very compelling package. Oh yes, cool too – temperature wise. There is a small problem, however.
Gaming specific products are not cheap. This is because the powerful hardware that is packed into these portable mean machines are not cheap on their own. So, if you are in the market for a new notebook with gaming capabilities with the latest hardware, best be prepared to spend a little bit more money.
Still, you still can go for entry-level gaming PCs today and you are going to be okay mostly even with AAA titles. Entry-level gaming notebook PCs have come a long way. You are not getting sub-par devices with cheap prices and plenty of compromises. Which also means that entry-level gaming PCs are the gaming notebooks to go these days.
One of the ones you want to look at is the Acer Nitro 5 we have here. The Acer Nitro 5 we have here is the top-specced Acer Nitro 5 you can get your hands on. It packs the latest Intel Core i7 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660Ti. It also comes with 8GB of RAM – like finally. It costs MYR 4,899 – more expensive than the entry level Predator Triton 300. Is it worth the asking price then? Let us find out.
Design
The Acer Nitro 5 has never been a bad looking notebook of a thing. While they are not the most svelte looking stuff, they are not bad lookers. The previous Nitro 5 has a faux carbon fibre treatment on the top of the case, which could be a thing for some people. We also understand that it may not be for everyone.
We do quite like the overall design of the Acer Nitro 5 in general though. They retain mostly the same shape since the first generation of the Nitro 5 a few years ago. You get the angular mouth that is reminiscent of Predator’s famous curves these days. You also get plenty of space for cooling purposes while maintaining a Plain Jane look.
The new one still retains the general shape and thickness of the older one. You lose the carbon fibre design from the old one though. Instead, you get some power lines that folds inward on the top of the clam. It mimics the lines that you get from the Helios line-up of the Predator family. They are, after all, cousins. Instead of the carbon fibre look, this retains the cleaner aluminium look mixed with some brushed steel look. Overall a cleaner look on the top.
But there are some extra flares that you get at the exhaust ports to indicate that this is still a serious piece of kit. It is more serious than ever too with the power it contains. There are some warnings of hot surfaces too, which might be quite necessary for any gaming rigs these days. There is no notable reduction in thickness of the hardware though, which may be a good thing. You still get full sets of I/O ports like HMDI and multiple USB Type-A ports with this standard of thickness. Of course, it is sturdier too.
The DC in port though, or the charging port is now moved to the back of the notebook. We especially love this because it frees up plenty of space on the sides. Most importantly it does not interfere your mouse movement which ever side you prefer it to be. It is ambidextrous now, is what we are saying.
That does create a little bit of a problem with the exhaust port though. There are now two smaller ports at the flanks of the backplate covering the charge mechanism. Acer seems to think that they have solved cooling issues with improved heat transfer pipe placements and bigger heatsink plates on top of the GPU and CPU. We shall find out later.
Open it up and what greets you is a 144Hz Full HD display at 15.6-inch. That seems to be a staple size for gaming notebooks these days. Of course, you want that 144Hz too, to take advantage of the Intel Core i7’s power to push fps to higher than 100. We will talk about the display a little more later.
The keyboard is now a 4-zone RGB instead of a single colour backlit keyboard. Again, I am not actually that big into RGB, so I usually set the backlight to a single colour. I chose white. But for you who are fans, you can customise the colours via Nitro Sense software included in the PC. It is even easily accessible via the Nitro Sense dedicated button on the keyboard. No ‘Turbo’ button on this thing like the Predators. Still, largely similar in layout with the previous notebook PCs.
Hardware
The Acer Nitro 5 you see here is the top-of-the-line model (AN515-55-79CU) that sports a 10th Generation Intel Core i7-10750H high performing CPU. That CPU is backed by an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660Ti GPU and 8GB of RAM. Of course, you can upgrade that to however much you think you need. But let me say that 8GB is quite enough to run most games these days. Of course, a quick upgrade will never hurt. With 512GB of SSD storage, you are looking at MYR 4,899 for this model.
Of course, if you do not think that you need that power, you can opt for an Intel Core i5-10300H variant (AN515-55-52Z1) with an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650Ti GPU. You still get the same amount of RAM and SSD storage too. That will set you back MYR 1,100 less than what you are paying for the one we review.
As usual, you only get one extra RAM slot so if you are planning to plug in two 16GB RAM sticks, you would have to pull out the original 8GB RAM. Make sure your RAM is compatible too. Then there is the upgradability on the side of storage. Traditionally you get a single SSD slot and an HDD slot. These days you get SSDs stuck in the notebook. Which means with the traditional set up you only get an HDD expansion slot.
In this though, you get two SSD slots. This is a new standard for notebook PCs too. Which also means that you get an extra SSD slot to upgrade your rig with an SSD and extra HDD for both extra storage and speed.
Specifications
Acer Nitro 5 AN515-55-79CU
As Tested
Processor (clock)
10th Generation Intel Core i7-10750H (2.6GHz)
GPU
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660Ti
Display(s)
15.6-inch IPS LED-backlit (1920 x 1080) ComfyView
Memory
512GB NVME M.2 SSD 8GB DDR4 RAM
Networking and Connections (I/O)
1 x USB-C 3.1 Gen 1 1 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A 2x USB 2.0 1 x Standard HDMI 1.4 1 x Audio combo jack 1 x Network RJ-45 Intel Wi-Fi 6 Gig+ (802.11ax) Bluetooth 5.0
Battery
3,560mAh 4-cell Li-Polymer
Operating System
Windows 10 Home
Miscellaneous
Audio certified by DTS:X 1.8kg
Features
To be fair, there is not that much that has changed since we saw the slightly older generation of the Acer Nitro 5. The most notable changes are that on paper. It is more powerful with newer generation processors and GPU. But somehow it does carry a slightly higher retail price tag for that. We suspect that the COVID-19 situation might play a small role in its pricing.
That is not to say that this is a gaming notebook PC that does not stand out with its own features. There are somethings that we appreciate in the new Nitro 5. While they are quite minor things that we may have already touched on earlier, they do matter.
Nitro Sense – Not Quite Predator Sense
There was one software that made Predator devices stand out in the last generation. That software is their Predator Sense that allows you to control every part of your rig. You can set the fan to its loudest and fastest settings. This is required mostly when the GPU and CPU is being pushed to their limits in gaming. To get games to play out smoothly and beautifully, these things tend to be pushed to their limits and more.
In the previous generation of the entry-level gaming PC, we did not see much of Nitro Sense. Nitro Sense in the new Nitro 5 takes a larger stage. The dedicated button is easy to reach and recognise. It is placed in the same part of the keyboard as the Predator PCs since 2019. This also means they are using the same sort of keyboard in the Nitro 5, which is also good news.
There is no ‘Turbo’ button that you can expect to find on Predator PCs though. Still, it is not to say that Nitro Sense is useless. It is quite the contrary.
By default, you Acer Nitro 5 is programmed to run as quietly as possible. This would be important in places like meeting rooms maybe. But when you are gaming, you want to unlock the fans a little and from the Nitro Sense app, you can turn on CoolBoost. That function allows the fan to adjust itself according to the GPU and CPU operations and heat dissipation requirements. Of course, when you run the processors harder, the faster the fan spins to dissipate more heat.
Because there is not ‘Turbo’ button, you can only control the ‘boosts’ within Nitro Sense as well. While certain games like Grand Theft Auto V, Two Point Hospital, and Re: Legends may not require plenty of GPU or CPU power, you might need more in games like Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, or Red Dead Redemption 2 to get them to play as smoothly as possible.
Most games though will do well enough with NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 1660Ti. Still, it is nice to know you can tap into more power when you want to, especially when you need to render videos and such. Nitro Sense is a big welcome here.
Smooth Operator 4-Zone RGB
I may not be a big fan of RGB. That does not mean that others cannot enjoy RGB. I know plenty of people who loves RGB and cannot get enough of it. For me though, single colour all the way.
For those who enjoy a good RGB, the Acer Nitro 5 now comes with a four-zone RGB backlit keyboard array. I have to say though, it is nice to have the option to show off and turn on your RGB backlight and set the to ‘dynamic’ settings and watch the rainbow colours go. When you do that too, it does not seem like a four-zone RGB.
You cannot map each key to any colours of your choice individually. Not that it mattered that much anyway. But that also means you cannot colour code your WASD keys to their own colours. Still, the WASD keys are made so that the RGB can highlight them a little, which is still something.
Even this is controlled via Acer’s trusty Nitro Sense. This goes back to how useful the Nitro Sense is for Acer’s Nitro 5.
Back-to-Back Power
We had a small issue with the older models of Acer Predator notebook PCs. Their charging port is awkwardly placed in the middle of the right side of the device. This creates a few persistent problems.
If you are placing your power brick out of the way in the back of the notebook PC you are placing the cable in the way of an exhaust port at the side which causes heat to build up a little. Move the cable to push toward the front for better ventilation and you realise the cable covers a USB port and a headphone jack, a USB Type-C port maybe. This is for those L-shaped power cables. If you have it plugged with a regular straight power plug, you are going to be restricting the movement of your Mouse in gaming sessions, not ideal when you are in an online game situation.
So, for the 2020 version of Acer’s Nitro 5, they have moved the power charging port to the back of the device. This is a delight because now the power cables do not have to be in the way. Out-of-the-box though is the L-shaped head which kind of makes sense since Acer do not have to change their whole production supply. While it does create an avenue for bent cables and even blocked exhaust ports, it does tuck the back in a little so that you can push your notebook PC a little further away from you on the desk.
We do find that somehow the back plate that houses the power supply peripherals a little sparse though. Other than they charge port, there is no other useful features at the back of the PC. We would appreciate the HDMI port to be moved to the back. We might also appreciate one Thunderbolt enabled USB Type-C at the back. The LAN port should also be pushed to the back with the HDMI and power ports, in our opinion. Of course, that might happen while sacrificing the convenient I/O on the sides of the device.
Cool Kits
No, not extra accessories. The new Acer Nitro 5 for 2020 comes with a set of newer, more advanced cooling system. Thing is, this is not a large improvement over the previous cooling system. That is also not to say that the cooling system is not great. The cooling system on the Nitro 5 has always been good.
The new Acer Nitro 5 for 2020’s cooling system layout sort of mimics the Predator Helios 300’s cooling layout. With their 3D Aeroblade technology trickled down from the Predator notebooks, the Acer Nitro 5 should not face any issue with cooling really. In our use case, we never had in issue with cooling even when we are playing games like GTA V for an extended period.
While the rear radiators have shrunk in favour of the more ergonomic rear side power input, there are virtually no difference in cooling with the Acer Nitro 5. That is also thanks, mostly, to bigger copper plates, better routing, and wider heat pipes too. Of course, there is the more efficient CPU too.
Performance
With Intel’s 10th Generation Core i7 and NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 1660Ti, this gaming Notebook PC should be able to handle nearly any modern games you can throw at it. You technically can play The Shadow of Tomb Raider in lower settings that you would want to and still get decent FPS performance out of it.
Gaming
If you are thinking of playing DOTA 2 on it, you should not be too hesitant. The 144Hz does help with FPS in MOBA type games. Even competitive first person shooters would benefit from the smooth graphics. Of course, do not expect your new Call of Duty: Warzone or Call of Duty: Modern Warfare games to be as smooth at higher graphics settings.
Still, Ghost Recon: Breakpoint and Assassin’s Creed: Origins play smoothly as long as you leave them on their default settings. In that regards alone, this is a worthy choice to get into most games of today. If you are planning to only play things like Two-Point Hospital, or Motorsport Manager, or even Football Manager, you should have nothing to worry about anyway.
Doing the Work Stuff
We are not talking about doing things like word or powerpoint processing. You do not even need this kind of pulling power if you are just looking to work on those. With this thing, you want to do heavier work – video rendering stuff, photo editing, or even low-level animation work.
Sadly, the Acer Nitro 5 does not have a boost button or even a convenient one-touch max-out function. In this case, the fans and processors will spool up when necessary. At a maximum, it will not even touch the Acer Predator models.
Still, it has a decent video processing capability. You have to expect some lags and stutters while scrubbing through 4K videos. Though it is much improved, you might want to spend on more expensive rigs for 4K video processing. This is not to say you cannot, it still works, but you might want something faster.
For Full HD 1080p vidoes though, the process is buttery smooth. Of course, this is also a contribution of the speedy SSD speeds too. You can easily drag your cursor around to any point of the video and start playing it at the program monitor. We use Adobe Premiere Pro, by the way.
To render a 5-minute Full HD 1080p videos, it does not take that long actually. It takes probably about 15 minutes at the maximum. This is also considering that we were scaling down from 4K resolution, which is extra workload for the PC. We unfortunately do not produce enough 4K resolution contents to test out the Acer Nitro 5.
Sound By DTS
Acer Harmony was great, it was not the best though. Sometimes, it is best to leave some things done by experts. That is why The Acer Nitro 5 now comes with some support by DTS with DTS: X. This is probably one the notebook’s biggest improvements.
DTS: X was seen on a few devices before. In effect, DTS makes things sound better. Then again, that is their business.
The Acer Nitro 5’s speakers are not the loudest in the world. They still pack quite a punch though, and they are louder than before. Despite the louder speakers, you are not getting much of difference in terms of sounds profile. Until you open the DTS app that is.
With the DTS app, sound profile changes a little bit. The trebles are more distinctive, the bass more pronounced. That changes a whole lot of experience when it comes to music. When you hear the vocals, then you can start appreciating the new DTS: X speakers. Vocals are still as crisp as before, if not crisper. It does not overpower the other range of frequencies though, rather the DTS app cleverly balances everything out. Everything completements each other, is the best way we can describe it.
The DTS app has several preset settings within the app though. You can go on the default dynamic profile for the app to cleverly detect your medium and adjust itself properly. Either that or you go into specific preset profiles like music or gaming to get the best tuning for each activity.
We appreciate good audio and the Nitro 5 was able to deliver on the speakers. The same can be said when you plug in your headphones too. With DTS:X, you are getting a completely different experience when it comes to headphones too. The only sad part? It does not come with 3D audio or spatial audio like the Acer Predator notebooks. I guess there are still some things that the Acer Nitro 5 cannot do.
Battery
The battery life of any gaming PC is quite appalling. Because of the amount of power you get in a gaming PC, you usually cannot expect more than two hours away from the charger before it needs another charge. The situation has improved though, and the Acer Nitro 5 for 2020 is a testament to that.
The Acer Nitro 5 for 2020 boasts about 8 hours in battery life. In our tests, we never really gotten close to that number. We can safely say that your gaming notebook can go past 4 hours now on battery.
At least for the Acer Nitro 5, we could get battery life at a maximum of 6 hours with balanced settings. We had Spotify on with earphones plugged in, we use Firefox as our internet browser, and we had about 20 tabs open at the same time. Most of the time though we got about 4 hours of battery life. We did try to game on it without plugging it into a power socket and still got an hour of battery life on it though. That was quite impressive for us. Of course, on battery, your gaming is a little compromised because the hardware within the Nitro 5 tends to turn itself down in favour of preserving its battery life.
Display
You are really not getting a bad deal with the new Acer Nitro 5. The one we have here sports a 3ms 144Hz refresh rate display. I cannot tell whether the display panel is a TN panel or IPS, but the colours look good still.
Still, this is a gaming display, which means colours are not its main priority. While the colours still look better than most notebook PCs you can find these days, you are not getting the most colour accurate display in town. Still, that is not what the Acer Nitro 5 is about though.
This is about speed, and competitiveness. The Acer Nitro 5’s 144Hz display helps with MOBA games and FPS games in a competitive environment. Motion blur is less of a thing with 144Hz at least. This also means you get a better competitive advantage when it comes to games like Counter Strike. You see better. In competitive games too, every millisecond count towards getting the first hit or getting hit first. That 3ms response time is crucial for your kills.
We are not competitive gamers though, so that matters less to us. We still appreciate a fast display though. Games generally look better with 144Hz. We could see that in effect with games like GTA V. While 3ms response time does not do much too, we do appreciate having a fast responding display, a near instant display, more like.
That said, it is not a brand-new display unit. It is technically the same display panel that you get in previous generation Acer Predator notebooks like the Triton 300. Which also means you get about the same performance from the display as the older Predator notebook. It may not be a bad thing though.
We still really like that notebook PCs come with minimal bezels. The bezel size has not increased on the Acer Nitro 5 compared to the old one, which is a good thing. It has not shrunk either though. That is not necessarily a bad thing. We still like webcams to be where they are supposed to be, above the display.
The Acer Nitro 5 – Best Value Got Better
Entry-level gaming notebooks are never that great in the earlier days of mainstream gaming notebooks. The thing is, entry level gaming notebooks have come a long way in 2020. With more powerful processors on offer, they can really replace all the gaming needs you have. Of course, if you want the best of the best performance in class, you are still better off with a desktop PC.
There is an appeal to gaming notebook PCs though. They are plenty more portable, and more convenient. You do not need to be sitting where your PC is to start gaming with notebook PCs. You just need to sit anywhere you like, and turn it on, and start playing at any time; your gaming comes with you.
Entry level gaming notebook PCs are exactly just that, but at a much more accessible price point. Thing is, the Acer Nitro 5 gaming notebook that we have is not exactly budget friendly at MYR 4,899. There is a cheaper variant with an Intel Core i5 and an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650, which is quite a bit less.
At MYR 4,899 though you are not getting something compromised, you are getting something that will work. The Acer Nitro 5 at this spec easily handles plenty of AAA titles, albeit not at the highest settings. You get 144Hz display too, so games with less graphical requirements will perform and look beautiful on the display.
Prices for notebook PCs are not very encouraging at this point due to the whole global pandemic situations though. While the Acer Nitro 5 is a great notebook PC to have, it may not be the best time to get a new gaming notebook PC. Sill, we do think that the MYR 4,899 asking price for the Acer Nitro 5 with Intel’s 10th Generation Core i7 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti is worth it. Considering an equivalent Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3i will cost nearly MYR 1,000 more than the Acer Nitro 5, yes the Acer Nitro 5 is the entry-level gaming notebook PC for you.
Flexible Formulation for Wire Bonding Features Secondary Heat-Cure for Shadow Areas
TORRINGTON, Conn., July 20, 2020 — Dymax Corporation expands its range of encapsulant materials with the introduction of Multi-Cure® 9037-F. The product cures in seconds upon exposure to UV/Visible light and has secondary heat cure for shadow areas caused by high-profile components on printed circuit boards.
9037-F Blue Fluorescing Encapsulant
The material features improved flexibility and resiliency for a variety of glob-top, chip-on-board, chip-on-flex, chip-on-glass, and wire-tacking/bonding applications. It is well-suited for encapsulation of critical components on flexible and rigid circuit board materials such as FR-4, Kapton®, and glass, and contains no sharp, abrasive, mineral, or glass fillers to abrade fine wires.
Multi-Cure 9037-F has excellent moisture and thermal resistance, making it a good candidate for use as a corrosion guard for wire-bond connections in battery management systems. Additional uses include encapsulation of components on circuit boards found in automotive ADAS and infotainment systems, aerospace and defense applications, and consumer electronics. Formulated with blue fluorescing technology, the material is highly visible on encapsulated PCB modules when exposed to low-intensity black light for easy visual quality inspection.
About Dymax Corporation
Dymax Corporation develops innovative rapid and light-curable materials, dispense equipment, and UV/LED light-curing systems. The company’s adhesives, coatings, and equipment are perfectly matched to work seamlessly with each other, providing design engineers with tools to dramatically improve manufacturing efficiencies. Major markets include aerospace and defense; medical device; and consumer and automotive electronics.
For additional information on Dymax, visit www.dymax.com.
KINGSTOWN, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, July 20, 2020 — OctaFX is an international online broker who has been providing trading services worldwide over the last nine years. They have noticed a recent rise in the number of scammers who try to associate themselves with the company and defraud traders of their funds.
The fake websites are not that easy to pinpoint at a glance. Some of the fraudsters started acquiring security certificates and using .com as their top-level domain so that the potential traders would not notice anything suspicious when looking at the address bar.
One way traders can avoid being defrauded by OctaFX impersonators is by paying attention to the domain name itself. The broker regularly warns its clients about fake websites and social media accounts that use different variations of the OctaFX brand name. The company stresses that it only works under its official brand name.
The OctaFX clients should also pay attention to the payment processing. The broker only processes payments through the client’s profile on the official website or the OctaFX Trading App and the OctaFX Copytrading App.
Fighting fraudsters on the Forex market is a complex task that requires effort from all parties involved. OctaFX is doing its best to take down fake websites and social media accounts. The team told us that it would be much harder without the trader community help. OctaFX is thankful to traders who diligently report fake websites and accounts that try to pass themselves off as the broker.
About OctaFX
OctaFX is a Forex broker providing online trading services worldwide since 2011. It offers a state-of-the-art trading experience to more than two million trading accounts. OctaFX has won more than 20 awards since its foundation, including the Best ECN Broker 2020 award from World Finance. The company is well-known for its social and charity activity. It also regularly conducts global and local promotion campaigns with valuable money and product prizes.
Ivanti Speakeasy provides customers with leading voice-enabled solution for cost-effectively improving accuracy and productivity
SINGAPORE, July 20, 2020 — Ivanti Wavelink today announced its partnership with Manhattan Associates in South East Asia (SEA) in support of voice-enablement in the warehouse. Using Ivanti® Speakeasy, customers in warehousing, transport and logistics, and retail who leverage Manhattan Associates’ Warehouse Management System (WMS), can now experience voice-enablement that supports flexible, versatile and cost-effective WMS integration, offers improved accuracy and productivity, and is easy and fast to deploy.
“We are proud to be on board with Manhattan Associates and support their customers in deploying our voice-enablement solutions for warehousing, supply chain and logistics firms in the SEA region,” said Simon Storey, area vice president APAC at Ivanti Wavelink. “With Ivanti Speakeasy, we are providing our mutual customers with the best voice-enabled solution for enhancing workers’ productivity, while at the same time improving accuracy and safety within the supply chain.”
Designed to speed modernisation within warehousing and supply chain environments, Ivanti Speakeasy is a fast and easy way to add voice to any application.
Some of the benefits and features of Speakeasy include:
Easy integration with mostly all WMS solutions. Ivanti Speakeasy helps to eliminate the intensive, time-consuming and often costly installation and integration of advanced voice features into WMS.
Easy and Fast Deployment. Ivanti Speakeasy extends voice to terminal emulation or web apps and enables warehouses to deploy voice on existing mobile computers.
Simple Employee Training. Ivanti Speakeasy is an independent voice solution that’s proven and ready to be deployed, and can recognise voice without any upfront training time and cost.
Flexibility and Versatility. Ivanti Speakeasy works with both telnet and web apps across a spectrum of Windows and Android operating systems.
Multi-modal. With Ivanti Speakeasy, pickers can switch between voice-directed and on-screen modes, giving them the flexibility to choose voice or touch input, which can also improve safety.
Speak the Global Language of Productivity. Ivanti Speakeasy recognises users’ spoken responses in multiple languages, regardless of accents.
“At Manhattan Associates, our software, platform technology and unmatched experience helps to drive both top-line growth and bottom line profitability for our customers in the region,” said Richard Wright, managing director, SEA at Manhattan Associates. “Partnering with Ivanti will further support us in our commitment to delivering our customers a seamless technology integration experience.
“As a provider of leading-edge cloud and on-premise WMS solutions, Manhattan Associates is constantly working towards helping companies in the region use supply chain and omnichannel solutions to improve operational efficiency and increase profits. By working closely with Ivanti Wavelink, we can ensure our customers are able to rapidly benefit from modernising their warehouses with Speakeasy and voice.”
About Manhattan Associates Manhattan Associates is a technology leader in supply chain and omnichannel commerce. We unite information across the enterprise, converging front-end sales with back-end supply chain execution. Our software, platform technology and unmatched experience help drive both top-line growth and bottom-line profitability for our customers. Manhattan Associates designs, builds and delivers leading edge cloud and on-premises solutions so that across the store, through your network or from your fulfilment center, you are ready to reap the rewards of the omnichannel marketplace.
Ivanti Wavelink The Ivanti Wavelink business unit helps organisations leverage modern technology in the warehouse and across the supply chain to improve delivery without modifying backend systems. The company also unifies IT and Security Operations to better manage and secure the digital workplace. From PCs to mobile devices, VDI and the data center, Ivanti discovers IT assets on-premises and in the cloud, improves IT service delivery, and reduces risk with insights and automation. Ivanti is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, and has offices all over the world. For more information, visit www.ivanti.com/wavelink and follow @GoIvanti.
SAN MATEO, California, July 20, 2020 — Unbxd Inc., a leading provider of AI-based Commerce Search and Product Discovery solution today announced its partnership with Peak Activity, a technology, and marketing consultancy that partners with enterprises to “Dream, Deliver, & Elevate” their digital results by creating eCommerce platforms that achieve long term and scalable growth through game-changing technology. This is pertinent in today’s economy where more businesses are headed the eCommerce way.
“At PeakActivity, we help online retailers create digital experiences that are fast to stand up, fast to load, and deliver personalized customer journeys. With the power of Unbxd, we are able to assist shoppers in navigating these websites quickly and connect them to the products they are most likely to buy,” says Manish Hirapara, CEO at Peak Activity.
Unbxd with its AI-powered relevance, robust and reliable APIs on a cloud-based platform helps Peak Activity to enhance the on-site shopper experience and boost conversions for its customers. Unbxd adds a layer of data sciences and analytics for customers of Peak Activity to drive useful insights and make informed business decisions.
“With our partnership with Peak Activity, we are enabling faster go to market for all online retailers looking to optimize shopping interactions that enable product discovery,” says Pavan Sondur, CEO, Unbxd. He adds, “Our product offering has not only made retailers see more engagement with the shoppers along the buying journey but has also made Peak Activity maximize returns for their customers through headless commerce implementation.”
About Peak Activity: PeakActivity partners with enterprises to elevate their digital results by creating eCommerce platforms and digital marketing experiences that help grow their business. It delivers innovation, emerging technology, and mobile solutions to the enterprises headed the eCommerce way. Peak Activity’s capabilities span a wide range of sectors and industries, including hospitality, manufacturing, retail, biotechnology, real estate, and finance.
About Unbxd: Unbxd is an AI-powered eCommerce search solution that understands shoppers’ intent and connects them to the products they are most likely to buy — across site search, browse, and recommendation purchase journeys. Unbxd powers search for more than 1300+ eCommerce sites across 40+ countries. The Unbxd product discovery solution is custom-built to be deployed across verticals such as Fashion, Healthcare, Pharma, Autoparts, Home Decor, B2B, and Mass Merchants. For more information, please visit unbxd.com or follow them on LinkedIn.
MINNEAPOLIS, July 18, 2020 — North Pole Engineering announces a major update to its Runn smart treadmill sensor. Runn, when used in conjunction with North Pole Engineering’s heartbeatz connect Apple Watch app, will now allow Apple Watch owners to record treadmill workouts directly on their Watch.
Existing Runn owners can take advantage of this new feature by updating the Runn’s onboard software with North Pole Engineering’s Configurez app. Once the Runn’s software is updated, it is ready to use with any Apple Watch Series 2 and newer.
heartbeatz connect Apple Watch App will track:
Speed
Distance
Incline
Cadence
Heart Rate
“Apple Watch has become one of the most popular wearables for tracking workouts. Enhancing the Runn to allow an Apple Watch owner to record their run made perfect sense to us, and we are excited to bring this capability to the market,” said Jeff Lasch, Senior Product Manager for North Pole Engineering.
About North Pole Engineering North Pole Engineering, Inc (NPE) is an Internet of Things (IoT) product and engineering services company. North Pole Engineering specializes in providing sensors and enabling technologies to various markets including sports, fitness, and wellness. North Pole Engineering helps clients implement cost-effective technology for their sensor-based products and systems to efficiently move data to the Internet where it can enhance operations, reduce costs, and improve customer experiences. Learn more about Runn, heartbeatz, CABLE, GEM Bluetooth/ANT+ modules, WASP IoT gateway, and our engineering services at http://npe-inc.com.
If you would like to learn more about Runn, please email us at info@npe-inc.com or call 612-305-0440.
