LG announced two new premium desktop models that will be released under LG’s XPION brand. The specs that we have so far don’t seem to details so far don’t seem to match the “premium” claim, but maybe we will get more specs soon. One thing is for sure, those sleek cases are sexy as hell.

The XPION R20 features a 2 Core Quad Q8200 processor, with 3GB of RAM and a GeForce 9500GS graphics card. You’ll also get a new cooling system based on Multi Direction Platform Cooling (MDPC), which means it will be pretty quiet. The XPION S20 runs on a 2 Core Quad Q9400 and a GeForce 9600GT graphics card. Details on this one are slim indeed, but it should translate to a wider desktop with better performance then the XPION R20. At least we hope so. Sexy cases aside, we want more info.

CyberPower has unleashed the Black Pearl. It will be powered by Intel’s recently announced Core i7 processor. Some of the features under the hood are: 3.2GHz 965 Extreme Edition processor, 12GB RAM, Two ATI Radeon HD 4870 X2 PCI-Express cards (2GB each), Intel X58 chipset, Support for NVIDIA three-way SLI and ATI CrossFireX technologies, Triple-channel DDR3/1600 SATA RAID with eSATA and Dual GbLAN, USB 2.0 and FireWire connectivity and 7.1-channel audio support. Living up to it’s name as a rare gem, it will cost you $3,999, if you’ve somehow weathered the current economic climate.

Do you miss such classics as Q-Bert and Pitfall? Chances are you’ve figured out by now that your vintage Atari Joystick won’t plug into your computer, no matter how you try to shave the connector into a rough USB shape. Lucky for you, Legacy Entertainment’s classic controller looks exactly like an Atari joystick, but it’s Windows / OS X / Linux compatible, and connects via USB. Supposedly, it will run with “nearly any emulator,” so get the 80’s tunes ready and get ready to play some old classics on your PC. Only $14.99.

The small form factor computer system has many uses. A SFF rig can make a nice gaming machine for those who frequent LAN parties. Home theater fans looking for a tiny HTPC to fit into the entertainment center often go with a SFF machine.

One of the biggest purveyors of SFF systems is Shuttle with its line of small barebones machines. Shuttle announced its latest barebone machine today called the X27D. The X27D is the first system from Shuttle to use Intel’s dual-core Atom 330 CPU.

Everyone is looking to buy some gold, seeing it as a safe bet in an uncertain economy. Why not combine your gold with say, your PC and feel like a Bond villain in some underground lair?

While we aren’t sure how much gold this PC contains, it will impress your minions until you you drop them in a shark pond. It does feature an Intel Core 2 Duo processor and a 100GB hard drive, 4GB of RAM, along with eight USB 2.0 ports and two FireWire sockets. No word on price, but it’s a safe bet you can’t afford it. Anyway, you have to go through black market channels for Super-villain goods.

Nothing much new to see here, but since we have been taking a look at the pissing contest between Microsoft and Apple, I thought I’d share this one as well. Microsoft’s marketing guys are spending all the money on advertising Vista instead of actually fixing Vista, so he’s holding a bake sale with some pricey cupcakes. When will it end?

ASUS’s new Eee PC S101 will be landing in the States on November 1st. Landing with a thud thanks to it’s hefty $699 price tag, not due to it’s weight. You’ll get a new super-slim enclosure that’s just 0.75-inches thick, but the specs are pretty standard.

It sports an Atom N270 processor, 1GB of RAM, matte 10.2-inch 1024 x 600 LED-backlit display, 802.11n WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0, multi-card reader, multi-touch touchpad, VGA webcam, 5.4 hours of quoted battery life that you can believe when you see it and Windows XP. No Linux option in the States. It all weighs only 2.3 pounds. This expensive laptop comes in copper brown and graphite varieties. Are you impressed?

So Apple and Microsoft’s pissing contest continues. Apple has some new ads now. Instead of attacking Vista directly, they now attack Microsoft’s marketing of Vista. After watching this one it seems clear that they are saying less and less with each new ad campaign. It just gets more and more pointless. It’s basically just a “I know you are, but what am I?” type thing. I’m waiting for Microsoft’s next ads to retort, “Infinity!” so we can just all shut up already. Do you guys even care anymore?

New notebooks are being introduced by the dozen this time of year. This year we are seeing some new types of systems hit the market with netbooks being very popular. Gateway is also introducing a notebook with a different size LCD than we are used to seeing.

The new Gateway MC-Series has a 16-inch edge-to-edge seamless glass display. The aspect ratio for the screen is 16:9 and it has a screen resolution of 1366×768. Other features of the notebook include Illuminated Multimedia Touch Controls.

Looking like typical Samsung LCD digital photo frames, these have an interesting and more useful feature. You can use them as a secondary PC monitor and you won’t need a special video card. The 8-Inch Samsung SPF-85H LCD will cost you $142 and 10-inch Samsung SPF-105P LCD costs $204.

Thanks to some hocus pocus called UbiSync PC, you can display computer imagery on them via the USB port. The 8-inch version will give you 800×600 resolution, while the 10-inch has a 1024×600 screen. Both models offer 1GB of internal image storage and a memory card slot if you want to use them as a plain old digital photo frame. Pretty cool.

For those of you who like to have a home that is more bar then dwelling, consider this device instead of a jukebox. It will go great with your round pool table. The IntelliTunes Digital Jukebox. It features two screens and mounts on your wall. It doesn’t just play CDs.

It will also network with your computer so that you can play all of the music you have stored on it by remote control. On top of that, it sports a visualization screen for animations to play along with the music. Consider it a Mega iPod. What we’re talking about here is a built-in UltraHiFi 360 watt 2 channel amplifier and full windows XP functionality, wireless internet, online radio streaming, DVD drive and iPod/MP3 support all in one unit on your wall. Sweet.

When customizing your PC at Dell, you can now click on a $19 option called “Iron Man movie with bonus content?” Say what? We love Iron Man, but surely it’s full of evil DRM. It’s what Dell’s Global Consumer Group Director is calling Dell’s “slow immersion into content as a major piece of the puzzle in terms of what consumers want from a PC.”

The flick can be had on the Inspiron, Studio, or XPS laptop or desktop, playable on that machine or your choice of Windows Media Extender. Dell will soon offer more movie preloads and eventually a whole iTunes type of download store. The move is a gutsy one and could let them get to customers first, before Apple. Customers getting movies when they purchase their PC should give them an advantage.

The DVR has been the best thing to happen to TV since programming went color. Before the DVR, we had to record shows with a DVD recorder or even worse — a VCR. Anyone who has tried to program a VCR to record a show that isn’t on yet will recall the anxiety. The DVR came along and made recording programs as easy as clicking a button and one of the pioneers in the DVR realm was TiVo.

Nero and TiVo announced that they have teamed up for a new software and hardware product called Nero LiquidTV | TiVo PC. The product allows users to record TV programs on their PC with typical DVR ease as well as pause and rewind programs. Once TV programs are recorded, the shows can be exported to PSP, iPod or DVD automatically.

Here’s an odd sight. A PC with a built-in 7-inch touchscreen that looks more like a microwave or other appliance. We are used to bulky PC’s that have to be tucked under desks well away from your external monitor as if they are mortal enemies in some secret war. But now it’s as if the two are enjoying a nice soft cuddle, with the Shuttle D10.

As you might expect, it only has a resolution of 800×480, so it won’t replace your current PC. Well, unless the one you’re using is reallllly old. But it might be a good PC for those odd places, like the kitchen, or in an RV or something. It will be available in Japan this week for under $500. I don’t think it’s a great idea personally. Did we not learn from TV/VCR combos?

Sotec’s E7 media center PC series adds an iPod dock. A hidden compartment at the base houses a slot where you can plug in the mp3 player. The 21.6 inch PC also features a DVD drive, built-in card reader, 1.3MP camera, wireless keyboard and mouse, 8W Onkyo speakers, NVIDIA GeForce 9300 video card, integrated 802.11a/b/g Wi-Fi module, Gigabit Ethernet, 1GB of RAM and a160GB hard drive as part of the standard option.

It’s powered by an Intel dual-core 2GHz with optional enhancements like 2GB RAM, 500GB hard drive, and a 2.53GHz processor. The E7 should be arriving with an October launch date. The standard version is priced at about $950, while the fully-loaded options will cost you $1560. It’s nice to see an iPod dock included, but it doesn’t make it stand out enough in a sea of PC’s that are all very much the same.