Marvel

Marvell announced today the deployment of its 88SS9187 SATA controller designed for solid-state drives (SSDs).

The company says the new controller is powered by high-performance embedded processor technology and features the latest 6Gbps SATA 3.1 host interface optimized specifically for SSDs. The 88SS9187 also has Marvell's Adaptive Read and Write Scheme and on-chip RAID functionality. This means it can be used with the latest generation of NAND flash memory.

According to Marvell, the new controller will deliver lower costs, high performance, and better power efficiency, making it also a great choice for the ultrabook computer market. Most of all, the new controller might also lead to the further reduction of SSD prices.… Read more

This week, the Crave crew and Admiral Sackbar recount the myriad geeky DIY gadgets and projects recently featured on the Crave blog. Also, Donald pitches his idea for a new Ewok TV special; Marvel comics take on a new dimension; and two upcoming movies, "The Lone Ranger" and "Battleship," are the subject of a healthy Geek News debate.

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Marvel Comics unveiled a new way to read comic books today at South by Southwest Interactive that involves an augmented reality app and the physical comic itself.

The app, called Marvel AR, is half of the entertainment company's new push to further integrate digital and print comics, an effort it's calling Marvel ReEvolution. The other half is a digital-only line of comics called Marvel Infinite Comics, which will be available to readers from the standard Marvel Comics app for free when they buy the print comic with a digital coupon, when they buy the standard digital comic, or separately as a 99-cent digital download. The first Infinite Comics story will tie in to Avengers versus X-Men and be written by Mark Waid, with art by Stuart Immonen and colors by Marte Gracia. These are big names in the comics business, so Marvel's clearly not publishing throwaway stories, even if they are digital-only and feel more disposable. … Read more

If you're one of those people who loves the tactile feel of a physical comic book and the convenient portability of a digital comic, Marvel Comics wants to make it easier for you to get your hero on.

The publishing company revealed today a plan to include a free digital coupon with all paper comics priced $3.99. Starting in June, books such as "Avengers versus X-Men," "Spider-Men," "Invincible Iron Man," and "Ultimates" will include the coupon. For some readers, you'll no longer have to choose between print or digital for Marvel's big-ticket titles. For other readers, like CNET's Bonnie Cha, this is unlikely to sway them since they're interested mostly in reading only the digital copies.

Not all Marvel books will have the dual-copy deal, but the ones that do will cover all of Marvel's top-shelf comics. The full list of the June titles that will offer the deal is below. Currently, books that cost $3.99 retail at that price in digital and in print. Marvel has yet to reveal a similar value incentive for readers who prefer digital-only, but it wouldn't be surprising if the company came up with one sooner rather than later given their recent history of incentivizing their comics. … Read more

Nerf, "Star Wars," and Marvel gear was everywhere at Hasbro's showcase at the Toy Fair in New York City.

Hasbro's Toy Fair showcase was housed several blocks away from the rest of Toy Fair 2012, in a two-level set of showrooms that was easily one of the most elaborate setups of the weekend.… Read more

Marvell Semiconductor is trying to get in on the ground floor of the smart home.

Today at the Consumer Electronics Show, the company announced a chipset that can add wireless networking to home appliances and LED light fixtures. The gear is designed to make it relatively cheap for manufacturers to make connected versions of common goods, such as thermostats and dishwashers.

A smart home that lets people remotely monitor and control appliances and electronics is likely to be a theme at CES this year as it was last year.

One of the technical challenges with making household items network-aware is … Read more

One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) will show a $100 tablet at CES, a follow-on to the organization's low-cost laptop, which has been distributed to over 2 million children globally.

OLPC's mission is to provide one connected laptop or tablet to children who have little or no access to education because of insufficient resources.

"We're proud to introduce the XO 3.0 tablet, showcasing the design, durability and performance features that make it a natural successor for our current laptops, which have been distributed to more than 2.4 million children in 42 countries and in 25 languages," said Edward McNierney, chief technology officer of One Laptop per Child, in a statement. … Read more

Google is tapping Santa Clara, Calif.-based Marvell to power its new TV, which will debut next week at CES.

Marvell's ARMADA 1500 HD Media System-on-a-Chip (SoC) has been designed into the next generation of Google TVs debuting at CES 2012, the chip supplier said Thursday. That chip is based on a design from U.K.-based ARM.

"Marvell and Google have teamed up to...[transform] the TV into the command center for our connected lifestyle," Marvell co-founder Weili Dai said in a statement.

The two companies have collaborated on software and chip technologies to grow the … Read more

It's amazing to think how many comic book characters--some from decades ago--are still relevant to pop and geek culture today.

Lately, it feels like there's no end in sight to the surge in superhero-movie releases. In our gallery below, we look at the original comic depiction of several larger-than-life beings compared with their most recent movie equivalents. The differences are astounding, and truly indicate how far animation and artistic quality has evolved over the years.

While we didn't feature every comic book character who's had a makeover recently, we think you'll still enjoy our selections consisting of mostly Marvel (Stan Lee) and DC comic stars. The gallery includes Captain America, Thor, Superman, Green Lantern, Iron Man, Tin-Tin, Spider-Man, X-Men, and Batman. Think there's someone we missed that should be on the list? Leave a comment with your suggestions and we may revise the gallery down the line.

On a related note, it's worth sharing that DC Comics plans to reboot all of its franchises beginning this September.

… Read more