A Gaming Rig With an Intimidating Aura, and That’s Even Before You Look Under the Hood

Gaming PCs are the gladiators of the computer world. So while most PCs look like a cross between a fax machine and a breadbox, the Acer Predator looks as if it came out of the bowels of the Roman Colosseum.

The gaming rig, which starts at $1,649 without a monitor, has an IntelCore 2 Quad 2.5-gigahertz processor and an Nvidia GeForce 9600 GT graphics card. The cheapest version comes with 2 gigabytes of memory and two 640-gigabyte hard drives. It also includes an optical disc reader and writer. Acer offers a $400 24-inch display with a maximum resolution of 1,920 by 1,200 pixels.

If all those speeds and feeds don’t catch your attention, the PC’s unique case just might. A front panel slides up like armor to reveal four U.S.B. ports and two audio ports. Front ribs mimic the radiator of a 1950s U.F.O. while the internal cooling system ensures the machine doesn’t go up in smoke. Internal colored lights add a bit of mystery to the proceedings. Most gaming PCs cost about $2,000 without monitors, making the Predator a bit more affordable than some of the other monsters out there.

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For years, "More information about Nokia has shied away from cellphones with large touch screens. Keypads and keyboards seemed to be in the company’s DNA, resulting in a number of phones that look about the same. Now, however, Nokia is ready to expand its music line with a phone that looks suspiciously like a phone that begins with the letter “I.”

The 5800, available near the end of the year for about $300 (no carriers have been named yet), includes an eight-gigabyte memory card and is compatible with Windows Media Player and Nokia Music Store files. A resident PC application allows you to rip CDs to the phone automatically, and it includes a free year of Nokia’s Comes With Music download service.

The 3.2-inch touch screen offers both virtual keyboard and pen-input mode (included are a stylus and an accessory shaped like a guitar pick for swiping through photos and music). Also included is a 3.2-megapixel camera and a built-in GPS receiver.

The 5800 can connect to 3G and Wi-Fi networks and has special social networking features including adding “feeds” for four of your favorite contacts, allowing you to view Twitter and Facebook updates right under their pictures. As the song says: You’ll never walk alone.