Owner: HardwareHounds URL:hardwarehounds.com Join Date: Thu, 19 Jul 2007 22:56:17 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: HardwareHounds is a blog focused on everything to do with todays high tech life style.
Delivering news, previews,and reviews on computer hardware, consumer electronics, gaming, tech trends, websites, and freeware files. Site statistics:Click here
Wordpress Theme Generator 2007-07-19 08:00:04 As you may know, HardwareHounds has been in the process of a complete remake as well as a new direction. I decided I would use Wordpress
to power the site because of its ease of use and its ability to add new functionality by way of plugins.
All was going well till I found out my Wordpress theme was completely screwed up when viewed in Internet Explorer 7. Several hours later after trying to find a theme that was stable and not wonky in both Firefox and Internet Explorer 7, I stumbled upon Yvo Schaap’s website that offers a really nifty little online program called The Wordpress ThemeGenerator
.
This online generator creates your own custom unique WordPress Theme. There is no need for HTML, JS, PHP, or CSS knowledge. Based on WordPress 2.1 with Yahoo! UI (Grids, Tabs & Fonts) it is setup to support all popular browsers. The theme also supports Widgets. You can specify what colors, settings, layout and graphics you want to use.
Also there’s a neat preview live button
Crysis Official Website Launched 2007-07-17 08:00:39 Crytek makers of the successful first person shooter Farcry, have finally launched their official website for the long anticipated new PC sci-fi action game Crysis
.
The website is now live, offering screenshots, trailers, wallpapers and info on this new upcoming game.
Crysis is powered by CryENGINE 2 which features dynamic day/night cycle, fully interactive environments, sunrays and diffuse transmission, real time soft shadows, soft particles, interactive/destructible environments, volumetric clouds, and advanced shader technology. Crysis will be released by Electronic Arts later this year.
Official
website : Crysis
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Read more:Launched
iPhone Will it blend? 2007-07-15 19:05:19 The people at Blendtec, who are the makers of the Total Blender, are up to their old shenanigans again. This time their latest victim is the coveted iPhone
.
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MPEG Streamclip - Freeware 2007-07-13 14:58:16 Todays file comes to us from Squared 5
MPEG Streamclip is a powerful video converter, player, editor for Mac and Windows. It can play many movie files, not only MPEGs; it can convert MPEG files between muxed/demuxed formats for authoring; it can encode movies to many formats, including iPod; it can cut, trim and join movies.
MPEG Streamclip can also download videos from YouTube and Google by entering the page URL.
MPEG Streamclip is a converter for QuickTime files, MPEG-1/2/4 files and transport streams (.ts and .m2t). It provides high-quality conversion of movies and MPEGs into several useful formats. It is compatible with most editing applications and DVD authoring tools. More details are available in the download pages.
Supported input formats:
MPEG, VOB, PS, M2P, MOD, VRO, DAT, MOV, DV, AVI, MP4, TS, M2T, MMV, REC, VID, AVR, M2V, M1V, MPV, AIFF, M1A, MP2, MPA, AC3, …
You can use MPEG Streamclip to open and play most movie formats including MPEG files or transport streams; e Read more:Freeware
Samsung SC-D372 Mini DV Camcorder 2007-07-11 13:17:23 A new review from TechTastic.ca
Today we take a look at a new entry level camcorder from Samsung
the SC-D372 Mini DV. The SC-D372 Mini DV is aimed to meet the needs of first-time buyers with simple to use point and shoot functionality with little or no camcorder tweaking.
Full review here
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Read more:Camcorder
Revamp! 2007-07-09 19:56:10
Hi! Hardwarehounds is going through a bit of a revamp, which should give the site better functionality.
Here’s the link to the old site: hardwarehounds.com
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Read more:Revamp
Fresh Diagnose - Freeware 2007-07-21 08:00:21
Today’s freeware file comes to us from the folks at freshdevices.com .
Fresh Diagnose
is a free Windows utility that allows you to analyze and even benchmark your computer hardware. This utility can easily tell you all the information available about what hardware is installed, to even the serial numbers of the devices.
When it comes to benchmarking, you can test all kinds of hardware whether it’s a hard drive, DVD drive, Video card, or a CPU, etc, Fresh Diagnose has you covered. Fresh Diagnose can also save the results of a benchmark test as a report, which is handy when diagnosing hardware problems.
Key features of Fresh Diagnose:
*
System Information: Scanning your system and give a complete report about your computer’s hardware and software, for examples: mainboard information, video system information, PCI / AGP buses information, peripheral (keyboard, mouse, printer, etc.) information, Windows registry settings, and network information.
*
Read more:Freeware
iPod Disko Case mod 2007-07-23 08:00:59 If you’re an iPod
owner, you know there are all kinds of third party add-ons and customization companies out there that cater to the iPod. If you’re the kind of person who likes a little flash and sparkle, then maybe Griffin Technologies’ Disko customized case might be for you.
The Disko case is made of a tough polycarbonate and features multiple light colors and motion activated lighting sequences.
It features a ring of colored LEDs around the Click Wheel that lights up, swirls, flashes and chases in a variety of fun patterns, triggered by movement. Suddenly your iPod is fun in the dark, with or without speakers or headphones.
Features:
* Offers 3 light colors and 5 lighting sequences for endless disko excitement
* Available in clear or black polycarbonate
* Motion controlled, turns on with movement
* Polycarbonate case with LED lights
Cost: 29$
Website here: Griffin Technologies
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EVGA: 8th Year Anniversary Scavenger Hunt 2007-07-25 08:00:45 The EVGA Scavenger
Hunt is back for 2007!
This annual extravaganza is boasting prizes that are bigger and better than before. Make sure you check out all the prizes and start scouring the EVGA website for the 10 gold ribbons today!
This event is to commemorate EVGA’s 8th year of operation, bringing the ultimate in PC hardware, customer service and support to the masses. The Scavenger Hunt
2007 is packed with over $50,000 in computer related hardware, software and gaming related prizes, and over $100,000 in discounted 8th Anniversary
Special Deals offered in limited quantities at special times on our B-Stock Sale page!
For full details on how to play, Click Here.
Scavenger Hunt Directions:
Locate the 10 special gold ribbons hidden throughout the EVGA website and answer the 2 EVGA/product related questions and you will be entered into the contest. Only one entry per customer is allowed for the Scavenger Hunt prizes.
SPECIAL 8th Year Anniversary
Prize:
Trip to see the F1 Ja
Wolf King Warrior USB Game Pad 2007-07-29 08:00:31
Here’s an interesting and innovative USB device aimed straight at first person shooter enthusiasts.
The Wolf King Warrior
USB Gaming Keypad is a unique device designed to deliver enhanced functionality and superiority to FPS (First Person Shooter) Gamers. The Warrior encourages lightening quick, deadly accurate movement to give you an edge on your competition.
The Wolf King Warrior features 55 ergonomically placed controls commonly used in FPS games. Each key can be programmed for all manner of in game functionality. Even games that feature other factory programmed movement keys can be configured to use this pad, as long as they feature key mapping. Its “one palm size fits all keys” concept will make your movement more precise and deadly to your opponents.
The Wolf King Warrior works as a standalone unit or in concert with a keyboard.
Features:
* Ultimate keypad for FPS gamers
* Unique ergonomic key area offers faster and easier operation
* Highly flexibl
File Renamer Basic - Freeware 2007-07-27 09:51:23
Here’s a great freeware utility for the PC that I personally use quite often. It’s very easy to use yet it is also extremely powerful. This application is very well suited for renaming your photo and MP3 collections.
File Renamer is an application that can easily rename multiply files at the same time from complete directories and subdirectories. You can find or replace all or part of a filename, delete or add characters, put letters in uppercase or lowercase, and place separators in multiple locations. It also features a preview pane so you can see exactly what the changes are.
The program has some powerful options such as a find and replace feature, automate copy / move renamed files, remove/modify file extension, and even a remove x number of characters to name a few. File Renamer is also great for MP3’s with its ability rename MP3 files based on ID3 tag information.
You can get the file here: File Renamer Basic
If you liked this post, buy me a cup of cof Read more:Freeware
Zalman Z-MACHINE GT1000 2007-07-31 08:00:35
Zalman makers of computer cooling devices and various other hardware, have released their newest creation to the market. The Z-MACHINE GT1000 computer case continues to follow in Zalman’s mind set of providing hardware that offers optimal cooling while delivering low noise.
This sturdy 4-5mm thick all aluminum case has a lot to offer in noise reducing hardware. All the connection parts for the hard drives are made of rubber rollers and dampers, which serve to capture the vibration and noise from escaping.
To keep the computer components cool Zalman has incorporated two 92mm LED Front Intake Fans and a 120mm Rear Exhaust Fan for high volume airflow through the system at low fan RPM for high performance cooling with quiet operation, and accommodates even the hottest CPUs that generate over 130watts of heat.
The Z-MACHINE GT1000 is paired together with the GT1000, which allows the control of fan RPM according to the ambient environment (temperature, humidity, etc.) Thu
Weather Watcher - Freeware 2007-08-02 08:00:39
Here’s a handy utility that allows you to receive weather forecasts for your area.
Weather Watcher
is your personal Windows desktop weather station. Automatically retrieve the current conditions, hourly forecast, daily forecast, detailed forecast, severe weather alerts from the National Weather Service (US only), and weather maps for over 77,000 cities world-wide. The current conditions can be quickly viewed by holding your mouse pointer over the Weather Watcher system tray icon.
Weather Watcher will allow you to automatically retrieve your weather data at a set interval, display the current temperature in a customized tray icon, and display the current condition image in a tray icon.
It also can designate which weather information is displayed in the Weather Watcher system tray tooltip, convert the weather data using almost any conversion, display a weather map as your desktop wallpaper, log the weather data in any format, export the weather data in any format, customi Read more:Freeware
QPAD - EC-R Mouse Pad 2007-08-06 08:00:59 The Swedish company Qpad has just launched their latest gaming mouse pad. The QPAD® EC-R™ is a robust but light weight hard-surface mouse pad, that gives gamers at the top of their sport the pinpoint accuracy and superior control they need.
The rugged, medium rough Carbytek2™ surface strikes the ideal balance between glide and friction. EC-R™s ultra thin design gives the ultimate gaming experience and control. The back-side’s bubble-structure ensures mouse pad stability even in the heat of the game. EC-R™ comes with QPAD® | Glidz™ and 3-D dome stickers. EC-R™ is like all QPAD® products designed in the spirit of gaming.
*Carbytek2™ with micro-precision.
*Ideal balance between friction and glide.
*Bubble Structure with supreme stability.
*Ultra thin wont miss a beat.
*For professional users
Consistent with the QPAD image, the EC-R comes in a cool tin box with a foam cushion, which provides easy packing and protection when traveling. Included with the Qpad Read more:Mouse
, Mouse Pad
Spyware Blaster - Freeware 2007-08-04 08:00:13 This is a great little application that i’ve been using for awhile now. The company that makes spyware blaster regularly updates its spyware definitions. To update the software it’s as easy as clicking the update button.
Spyware
, adware, browser hijackers, and dialers are some of the fastest-growing threats on the Internet today. By simply browsing to a web page, you could find your computer to be the brand-new host of one of these unwanted fiends!The most important step you can take is to secure your system. And SpywareBlaster
is the most powerful protection program available.-Prevent the installation of ActiveX-based spyware, adware, browser hijackers, dialers, and other potentially unwanted pests.
-Block spyware/tracking cookies in Internet Explorer and Mozilla/Firefox.
-Restrict the actions of potentially dangerous sites in Internet Explorer.SpywareBlaster can help keep your system spyware-free and secure, without interfering with the “good side” of t Read more:Freeware
Get and Set CPU Affinity - Freeware 2007-08-08 08:00:44
Today’s freeware file comes to us from Edgemeal software. This handy little Windows utility is a tool to view and set CPU affinity on two single core or one dual core CPU systems.
Get and Set CPU Affinity allows you set the CPU affinity of executables to use one, or both CPUs. If you select one CPU, it’ll allow you choose between which CPU to use.
You can also save the settings in a favorites list so each time you launch that specific executable it will remember the settings made to it. The utility also displays the dual core CPU usage in the system tray.
Get it here: Get and Set CPU Affinity
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Read more:Freeware
StickyPad - Freeware 2007-08-12 08:00:27
StickyPad is an invaluable, easy-to-use tool that lets you place sticky notes on your desktop. You can type notes to yourself, set meeting and appointment reminders, keep track of a to-do list, and anything else you would do with paper notes. Your notes can be printed, pasted into other applications, or emailed to coworkers.
You can even make notes translucent and have them float above your other windows, so you can see both your note and what you are working on. When you log off, StickyPad remembers all of your notes, and when you log back on, your notes are still there. Once you try it, you won’t want to work without StickyPad again.
The new version of StickyPad adds some great new features, such as shortcut keys, so you can write sticky notes from any Windows application without using the mouse, a great time-saver for keyboard jockeys. The latest version also sports a help system in case you get lost, an updated appearance, and shadows, a great new visual effect.
Get i Read more:Freeware
Creative Zen Stone 2007-08-10 08:00:00
Creative has released their latest MP3 player that they hope will rival the iPod Shuffle. The ZenStone
is approximately the same size as the iPod Shuffle, and as the name states does look similar to a polished stone. Third party manufacturers are already creating add-on accessories for the Zen Stone, such as speakers, skins, and straps etc.
Small but impressively built, the new ZEN Stone is the answer to ready music on the move. Carry it on you as you dance to the beat of your workout music for this tiny dynamo pulsates with listening power.
Available in six attractive colors, the MP3 Player is set in a glossy finish, designed to suit the aesthetic needs of any user. Featuring user-friendly plug-and-play capabilities, transfer files smoothly from the computer to your ZEN Stone and take pleasure in a selection of up to 500 songs as you bask in 10 hours of continuous audio playback. You can even download the free integrated software Creative Media Lite to enhance your Read more:Creative Zen
Archos 605 Wifi 2007-08-14 08:00:46
The ARCHOS 605 WiFi features the highest resolution screen (800 X 480) and highest quality screen in a portable media player. Use the touch screen to easily operate the device with your finger or stylus.
You can personalize your ARCHOS 605 WiFi to fit your unique lifestyle. Abundant plug-ins and accessories are available to customize your device to work the way you do: Go online for full Web surfing, video your friends and family in action, record your favorite TV shows and movies, and share your photos.
Through the home WiFi connection, you can enjoy the entire shared digital media library of your home PC in your living room, not just in your office. You can also download content wirelessly and directly to your ARCHOS 605 WiFi via the ARCHOS Content Portal and our partners’ online stores.
You can also stream movies, TV shows and music that are stored on your computer.
The ARCHOS 605 WiFi is Internet ready. With the optional Web browser plug-in, you can surf the Web and e Read more:Archos
MiniMag flashlight to Laser Flashlight Hack 2007-08-18 08:00:50
Turn a MiniMag flashlight into a powerful DVD laser pointer! This 245mw laser is powerful and fits real cozy in a MiniMag! See the video at the end for the Test Results! NOTE: This Instructable WILL NOT WORK with any CD burner/player diodes or DVD player diodes!
Disclaimer: CAUTION! As you know…lasers can be dangerous. Never point them at any living object!T his is not a toy, and this should not be used like a conventional laser pointer. In other words, don’t use it in presentations, or to play with pets, or allow children to use it. It should only be operated by responsible persons who understand and respect the potential laser safety hazards.
See the instructions and watch the video here: Laser
flashlight
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Wavosaur - Freeware 2007-08-16 08:00:41
Wavosaur is a free sound editor for editing, processing and recording sounds, wav and mp3 files. All classic editing functions are available such as: cut, copy, paste, paste mix, paste replace/insert, paste to new file, trim/crop, delete, undo.
You can also produce music loops, analyze, record, and batch convert files.
Wavosaur supports VST plugins, ASIO driver, multichannel wav files, and real time effect processing. You can chain VST effects in a virtual rack, save and recall your chains. You can tweak the effect and listen to the processed audio in real time. Wavosaur can load & save presets for VST effects and can display several VST GUIs at a time.
More advanced editing features are also available such as resample, bit-depth convert (8,16,24,32 bits), pitch shift, vocal removal, DC offset removing, auto-trim, silence remover, interpolate, auto detect region, crossfade loop, exporting multiple wav file from regions. Wavosaur can import, save and edit loop points & m Read more:Freeware
NUMARK iDJ2 MOBILE DJ WORKSTATION 2007-08-22 08:00:32
The Numark iDJ2 is the only iPod mixing console that provides full control of your music with real–time scratching (via two jog wheels), a stunning color screen and Numark’s exclusive crate management. Keylock insures that DJs can easily change tempo without affecting pitch. The iDJ2 features a fresh and innovative new iPod docking system that allows users to play and mix two songs simultaneously from a single iPod without the need of a computer.
Users can also hook up multiple mass storage devices including additional iPods, thumb drives, and external USB hard drives through rear panel USB ports. In addition to USB connectivity, the iDJ2 comes complete with line inputs for audio sources including a microphone, CD players and turntables.
Website: idj2
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FastStone Image Viewer - Freeware 2007-08-20 08:00:00
FastStone ImageViewer
is a fast, stable, user-friendly image browser, converter and editor. It has a nice array of features that include image viewing, management, comparison, red-eye removal, emailing, resizing, cropping and color adjustments. Its innovative but intuitive full-screen mode provides quick access to EXIF information, thumbnail browser and major functionalities via hidden toolbars that pop up when your mouse touches the four edges of the screen.
Other features include a high quality magnifier and a musical slideshow with 150+ transitional effects, as well as lossless JPEG transitions, drop shadow effects, image annotation, scanner support, histogram and much more. It supports all major graphic formats (BMP, JPEG, JPEG 2000, animated GIF, PNG, PCX, TIFF, WMF, ICO and TGA) and popular digital camera RAW formats (CRW, CR2, NEF, PEF, RAF, MRW, ORF, SRF and DNG).
Get it Here: Faststone Image Viewer
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Read more:Freeware
Microsoft SideWinder 2007-08-26 08:00:26
The Microsoft
® SideWinder Mouse was created to meets gamers’ individual needs, providing custom tuning tools and a design for ultimate handling. The first mouse to wear the coveted SideWinder name, this top-of-the-line gaming machine sets itself apart from the competition with never-before-seen features that gamers want, uncovered during worldwide research.
Features include one-touch access to Windows Vista® Games Explorer, Quick Turn — a performance-enhancing macro that lets users check their perimeter from wherever they are in-game — the first-ever LCD on a gaming mouse, and a cable anchor that doubles as an accessories storage box.
The SideWinder Mouse lets gamers create an individual gaming system with tuning options that allow them to personalize their SideWinder Mouse, including an adjustable weight tray, changeable mice feet with three materials for glide preference, DPI control and new software features. The SideWinder Mouse lets gamers record their own macros by
HandBrake DVD Converter - Freeware 2007-08-24 08:00:34
Today’s freeware file HandBrake, is an open-source, GPL-licensed, multiplatform, multithreaded DVD to MPEG-4 converter.
Handbrake is also available in three operating system flavours; MacOS X, Linux and Windows.
After using your favorite DVD decoder to decode your DVD VIDEO_TS folders, HandBrake makes it possible too convert them to a MPEG-4 movie format, for playback on the PC, Mac, TV, iPod, iPhone, Apple TV, Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP) and other devices that support the MPEG-4 codec.
Advanced features allow you to manipulate various settings for video, audio, subtitles, andchapters. Some of the options available including frame rate, bit rate, video size and dimensions, audio quality, and number of audio channels.
Supported sources:
-Any DVD-like source: VIDEO_TS folder, DVD image or real DVD (encrypted or unencrypted, but protection methods other than CSS are not supported and must be handled externally with third-party software), and some .VOB and .TS files
- Read more:Freeware
iDailyDiary - Freeware 2007-09-01 08:00:37
iDailyDiary has been designed around a simple page-for-a-day diary. Your diary can contain a mixture of pictures and formatted text. Image files of various types are supported, including bitmaps, JPEGs, icons, and even animated GIFs. Add new page tabs and rename them whatever you wish to help get your life organized. In addition to the calendar on the top toolbar, you have a month-view calendar bar at the bottom of your diary.
This calendar bar not only allows you to view and select any day of the current month but also highlights which days of the month you have made entries in your diary. Features include the ability to create and open as many diaries as you wish; diary files that are fully encrypted and password-protected; the ability to search the entire diary for matching entries; the ability to insert clickable hotlinks, URLs, and links to other diary pages; and the ability to save diary pages to HTML to publish to Web. Version 3.41 include unspecified updates.
Get it here Read more:Freeware
Creative Zen Ultra Slim Player 2007-08-30 08:00:53
Creative Technology Ltd, today introduced Creative ZEN™, the credit card-sized music, video and photo player with a stunning 2.5-inch colour screen that supports up to 16.7 million colours. The Creative ZEN is the first Creative player to support AAC music and unprotected iTunes Plus tracks from the iTunes store, in addition to MP3 and WMA formats. You can now listen to up to 4,000* of your favorite tracks that you have ripped from CDs through your iTunes software.
The Creative ZEN can carry of up to 60** hours of video or thousands of photos, and it features a SD memory slot, so you can add virtually limitless additional storage capacity and easily bring new music, video or photos to the player.
“The Creative ZEN immediately gets your attention because it has the same size screen as our award-winning Creative ZEN Vision:M, but it’s so much smaller, lighter and thinner,” said Craig McHugh, president of Creative Labs Inc. “With the vibrant 2.5-inch screen, you can Read more:Zen
, Ultra
, Creative Zen
, Ultra Slim
Pidgin Instant Messenger - Freeware 2007-08-28 08:00:34
Pidgin is an instant messaging program for Windows, Linux, BSD, and other Unixes. You can talk to your friends using AIM, ICQ, Jabber/XMPP, MSN Messenger
, Yahoo!, Bonjour, Gadu-Gadu, IRC, Novell GroupWise Messenger, QQ, Lotus Sametime, SILC, SIMPLE, and Zephyr.
Pidgin can log in to multiple accounts on multiple IM networks simultaneously. This means that you can be chatting with friends on AIM, talking to a friend on Yahoo Messenger, and sitting in an IRC channel all at the same time.
Pidgin supports many features of the various networks, such as file transfer, away messages, and typing notification. It also goes beyond that and provides many unique features. A few popular features are Buddy Pounces, which give the ability to notify you, send a message, play a sound, or run a program when a specific buddy goes away, signs online, or returns from idle; and plugins, consisting of text replacement, a buddy ticker, extended message notification, iconify on away, spell checking, tabbed co Read more:Freeware
Snap Backup - Freeware 2007-09-27 08:00:07
Snap Backup is The One-Click Backup Utility that makes it simple to protect your important work. Snap Backup is for individual computer users who need a simple and convenient way to backup their valuable files, and it’s free.
The first time you run Snap Backup, you configure where your data files reside and where to create backup files. You can also specify an archive location, such as a USB drive or an Iomega Zip® drive, for storing backup files.
Snap Backup automatically puts the current date in the backup file name, alleviating you from the tedious task of renaming your backup file every time you backup. The backup file is a single compressed file that can be read by zip programs such as StuffIt®, gzip, and WinZip®.
Get it here: Snap Backup
Read more:Freeware
ASUS R2H Ultra-Mobile PC 2007-09-25 08:00:46
ASUSTeK Computer Inc. (ASUS), a leading provider of high-performance notebook computers, today unveils the latest R2H Ultra
-Mobile
PC. With built-in high-resolution webcam, incorporated global positioning system (GPS) and biometric fingerprint authentication, the 7-inch ultra compact R2H is designed to fulfill the increasing need for an all-in-one mobile device that enables professionals to stay connected, productive and secured on the go.
Solid Security Management for Protected Computing
To give business travelers peace of mind, the R2H offers total data protection that meets the evolving security needs with both software and hardware solutions.
The protected computing starts with fingerprint authentication that grants strict access only to the designated owner. For the most accurate reading, t he electronic imaging mechanism scans fingerprint pattern from the live layer of the skin , bypassing any common skin surface conditions.
The exclusive ASUS Security Protect Management (
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