TechPowerUP NEWS

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InWin, a leading innovator in PC enthusiast and gaming hardware, has introduced the ModFree Mini. This latest entry to the ModFree ecosystem (First introduced in 2023) is more than just an add-on item. The ModFree Mini is small but creates a big impact, allowing users to create either a standalone SFF PC or merge it with full ATX ModFree system to be part of a multisystem setup. The ModFree ecosystem emphasizes versatility to offer more possibilities and experience the future of PC customization with a perpetually upgradable chassis!

Compact, Portable, Mini-ITX Chassis
Build an SFF system to fit your needs: Start with a compact, portable chassis to build a highly capable PC. Pick your favorite panels to create a personalized style that fits your preference. Discover the freedom of customization with our exquisite panel styles, Monarch, Mesh, and Timber, allowing you to craft a PC chassis that reflects your unique taste.

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Thrustmaster is thrilled to unveil its new modular and scalable base for flight simulation joysticks. AVA (Advanced Versatile Aviation) has been carefully designed to perfectly meet your needs and preferences, offering you a multitude of tailor-made configurations that are great for all types of aviation. Create your ideal configuration from the many adjustment possibilities offered by the AVA base's various interchangeable elements: the axis curve, the resistance, the travel and the damping. AVA's design was specially created for quick modification of all its elements, allowing for customization between flights, and on-the-fly adjustments.

In addition, a real ecosystem is taking shape around the AVA base - with the introduction of a metal plate designed for desktop use, an offset adapter that lets you adjust the position of the grip to 15° or 30° in the joystick's central position, as well as the announcement of future add-ons and accessories. You'll also want to discover the comprehensive bundle featuring the AVA base, metal plate and offset adapter, which includes Thrustmaster's world-famous F/A-18C Hornet grip. Excellent for military, civil, space or helicopter piloting, the AVA base will adapt to your requirements and transport you into a world of simulation that's more realistic than ever before.
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TerraMaster, a professional brand focused on providing innovative storage products for homes and businesses, recently introduced the F2-424, a new upgrade of F2-423. The brand-new F2-424 adopts the Intel Celeron N95 4-core 4-thread processor, 8GB DDR5 memory, two 2.5GB network ports, two M.2 NVMe sockets, and adds a USB Type-C host interface and a USB Type A interface, achieving a 40% improvement in overall performance compared to the previous generation.

The F2-424 will come with the new generation TOS 5.1 operating system and can be smoothly upgraded to the TerraMaster TOS 6 operating system in the nearly future. With its robust features and state-of-the-art technology, the F2-424 NAS redefines data storage and management for both personal and business users.
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Every week, GFN Thursday brings new games to the cloud, featuring some of the latest and greatest titles for members to play. Leading the seven games joining GeForce NOW this week is the newest game in Ninja Theory's Hellblade franchise, Senua's Saga: Hellblade II. This day-and-date release expands the cloud gaming platform's extensive library of over 1,900 games. Members can also look forward to a new reward - a free in-game mount - for The Elder Scrolls Online starting Thursday, May 30. Get ready by opting into GeForce NOW's Rewards program.

Senua Returns
In Senua's Saga: Hellblade II, the sequel to the award-winning Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, Senua returns in a brutal journey of survival through the myth and torment of Viking Iceland. Intent on saving those who've fallen victim to the horrors of tyranny, Senua battles the forces of darkness within and without. Sink deep into the next chapter of Senua's story, a crafted experience told through cinematic immersion, beautifully realized visuals and encapsulating sound. Priority and Ultimate members can fully immerse themselves in Senua's story with epic cinematic gameplay at higher resolutions and frame rates over free members. Ultimate members can stream at up to 4K 120 frames per second with exclusive access to GeForce RTX 4080 SuperPODs in the cloud, even on underpowered devices.
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[NextPowerUP]

When it debuted on the Apple II in 1981, SirTech's Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord was the first game to recreate a pen-and-paper, Dungeons & Dragons-style role-playing game for home computers. As the first party-based RPG, it directly inspired enduring series such as Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and Demon's Souls.

SirTech published seven Wizardry sequels over the next two decades. In the years since, the series' popularity has persisted in Japan, with a number of additional sequels and spin-off games released only in that market. As of 2024, the Wizardry franchise encompasses more than forty titles.
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Yesterday we reported on DDR6 memory hitting new heights of performance and it looks like LPDDR6 will follow suit, at least based on details in a JEDEC presentation. LPDDR6 will just like LPDDR5 be available as solder down memory, but it will also be available in a new LPCAMM2 module. The bus speed of LPDDR5 on LPCAMM2 modules is expected to peak at 9.2 GT/s based on JEDEC specifications, but LPDDR6 will extend this to 14.4 GT/s or roughly a 50 percent increase. However, today the fastest and only LPCAMM2 modules on the retail market which are using LPDDR5X, comes in at 7.5 GT/s, which suggests that launch speeds of LPDDR6 will end up being quite far from the peak speeds.

There will be some other interesting changes to LPDDR6 CAMM2 modules as there will be a move from 128-bit per module to 192-bit per module and each channel will go from 32-bits to 48-bits. Part of the reason for this is that LPDDR6 is moving to a 24-bit channel width, consisting of two 12-bit sub channels, as mentioned in yesterday's news post. This might seem odd at first, but in reality is fairly simple, LPDDR6 will have native ECC (Error Correction Code) or EDC (Error Detection Code) support, but it's currently not entirely clear how this will be implemented on a system level. JEDEC is also looking at developing a screwless solution for the CAMM2 and LPCAMM2 memory modules, but at the moment there's no clear solution in sight. We might also get to see LPDDR6 via LPCAMM2 modules on the desktop, although the presentation only mentions CAMM2 for the desktop, something we've already seen that MSI is working on.

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Today, Focus Entertainment and Saber Interactive premiered a new trailer for their highly-anticipated third-person action game Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2.

The trailer reveals a whole new PvE experience and the return of the beloved PvP mode from the first game. Unveiled during the Warhammer Skulls Festival live stream, this trailer also marks the opening of digital pre-orders on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, Steam and Epic Games Store ahead of the release on September 9, in addition to the already-available retail pre-orders.
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D-Central Technologies proudly announces the launch of its latest innovations in Bitcoin mining hardware, the Bitaxe Supra v401 and the NerdAxe Ultra. These cutting-edge devices are set to revolutionize the Bitcoin mining landscape with their advanced features and unparalleled performance.

"The latest Bitaxe Supra v401 and NerdAxe Ultra set a new standard in Bitcoin mining accessibility", Jonathan Bertrand, CEO, D-Central Technologies
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Coinciding with the upcoming start of the European Football Championship, astragon Entertainment and weltenbauer. Software Entwicklung are pleased to announce the latest DLC for the popular Construction Simulator. The Construction Simulator - Stadium Expansion will be released on June 06, 2024 on the digital stores for PC, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One and will bring a brand-new major contract to the game's European map - the construction of a football stadium and its associated infrastructure!

With the Construction Simulator - Stadium Expansion, construction enthusiasts will have the opportunity to contribute to the construction of a football stadium and its facilities on the game's European map. The campaign, which adds more than 30 hours of gameplay, involves building the stadium itself as well as a pedestrian bridge, a parking area, a multi-storey car park and a clubhouse. Once the stadium, including its newly erected spectator stands, VIP lounges and the impressive entrance area of the building, has been completed, the final touches can be added to the epic scenery - the construction of the pitch and the installation of the floodlights. And then it's time for the kick-off in the Friedenberg Arena!
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Lenovo Group today announced Q4 and full-year results for fiscal year 2023/24. After resuming growth in Q3, the Group reported year-on-year revenue growth across all business groups in Q4, with Group revenue increasing nearly 10% year-on-year to US$13.8 billion, net income doubling year-on-year to US$248 million, and non-PC revenue mix reaching a historic high of 45%. The Group's Q4 and overall 2nd half performance demonstrates how Lenovo has navigated the past year's industry downturn, captured the tremendous growth opportunities presented by AI, and accelerated momentum across the business. Revenue for the full fiscal year was US$56.9 billion, and net income was US$1 billion. From the second half of the fiscal year, Lenovo achieved year-on-year revenue growth of 6% and net margin recovered from a first half year-on-year decline to flat in the second half.

The Group is leading in an era of unprecedented AI opportunities with its pocket-to-cloud portfolio, strong ecosystem and partnerships, and full-stack AI capabilities. Since announcing its AI strategy in October 2023 at its annual Tech World event, Lenovo has launched its first wave of AI PCs as well as AI capabilities covering other smart devices, smart infrastructure, and smart solutions and services. The Group expects the AI PC - which is defined as equipped with a personal AI agent based on natural interactions, heterogeneous computing, personal knowledge base, connected to an open AI application ecosystem, and with privacy and security protection - to grow from its current premium position to mainstream over the next three years, driving a new refresh cycle for the industry. Hybrid AI is also driving greater demand for AI infrastructure and customers are increasingly asking for customized AI solutions and services, particularly consulting, design, deployment and maintenance of AI.
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Gaudio Lab, a leading company in AI audio technology, is proud to announce the launch of 'Just Voice Recorder', a cutting-edge mobile recording application powered by AI noise cancellation technology. Just Voice Recorder sets a new standard in recording applications with its innovative AI noise reduction technology. By utilizing an on-device AI approach, the app ensures that recordings are securely stored within the device, eliminating the need for external transmission to cloud servers and addressing security concerns for sensitive recordings. With an intuitive interface similar to high-end physical recorders, users can enjoy hassle-free and secure recording while minimizing data leakage risks. Currently available for iOS, an Android version is in development.

Leveraging Gaudio Lab's world-renowned AI sound source separation technology (GSEP) and Loudness Management (LM1) technology, Just Voice Recorder excels in isolating and enhancing human voices within recordings, delivering crystal-clear content. Its loudness management feature maintains a balanced volume level throughout, providing users with comfortable, fatigue-free playback. Just Voice Recorder, featuring AI-powered noise elimination in real-time, received the prestigious CES Innovation Award and was a finalist at the SXSW Innovation Awards 2024.
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Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation ("Toshiba") today held a ceremony to mark the completion of a new 300-millimeter wafer fabrication facility for power semiconductors and an office building at Kaga Toshiba Electronics Corporation in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, one of Toshiba's key group companies. The completion of construction is a major milestone for Phase 1 of Toshiba's multi-year investment program. Toshiba will now proceed with equipment installation, toward starting mass production in the second half of fiscal year 2024. Once Phase 1 reaches full-scale operation, Toshiba's production capacity for power semiconductors, mainly MOSFETs and IGBTs, will be 2.5 times that of fiscal 2021, when the investment plan was made. Decisions on the construction and start of operation of Phase 2 will reflect market trends.

The new manufacturing building follows and will make a major contribution to Toshiba's Business Continuity Plan (BCP): it has a seismic isolation structure that absorbs earthquake shock and redundant power sources. Energy from renewable source and solar panels on the roof of the building (onsite PPA model) will allow the facility to meet 100% of its power requirement with renewable energy.
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[NextPowerUP]

The CAMM2 and LPCAMM2 form-factors were originally designed for thin-and-light notebooks, to provide them with memory replacements/upgrades without compromising on the Z-Height tolerances of the device's design. It looks like MSI sees a future for the CAMM2 form-factor on desktops, specifically the ones without cables sticking out. The company's next round of motherboards under its Project Zero banner will replace the conventional DDR5 DIMM slots with DDR5 CAMM2 slots. The company is joining forces with Kingston Technology for the effort.

Kingston is readying a new line of performance-segment CAMM2 modules under its FURY Impact brand that it originally uses for performance SO-DIMMs meant for gaming notebooks. MSI's next-gen Project Zero motherboard features contact points for a DDR5 CAMM2 module. A single CAMM2 module utilizes the entire 160-bit memory bus width of the Socket LGA1700 processor (that's both channels and their sub-channels). Kingston may release CAMM2 modules for most common memory sizes (such as 32 GB, 48 GB, 64 GB, and 96 GB), and most common DDR5 OC speeds for the platform (ranging between DDR5-6000 and DDR5-8000).

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USB4 hasn't exactly taken off as yet, largely due to a shortage of devices in the market and with a limited number of device controllers, the competition in the market is also slow. With Thunderbolt compatibility, there are plenty of USB4 compatible hosts out there though, even though you only get 32 Gbps rather than 40 Gbps of data throughput when a USB4 device is connected to Thunderbolt 3 or 4, although Thunderbolt 5 will allow for the full 40 Gbps. A company called ADT-Link has launched a product it calls the UT3G which is pretty much a retail ready bridge solution that allows techies and tinkerers to try out whatever PCIe devices they have over USB4. The adapter has a full-length PCIe x16 slot, but it's limited to a four lane PCIe interface which is compatible with PCIe 4.0, albeit not at the full 64 Gbps that such an interface can deliver.

In addition to the USB4 Type-C port on the PCB there's a standard 24-pin ATX power supply connector for power, which means that this isn't really a portable solution. However, the company has tested the UT3G with various graphics cards from both AMD and NVIDIA to make sure you can use it as an external graphics card dock. The UT3G has also been tested to be compatible with Windows, Linux and macOS, although macOS is limited to AMD GPUs. The board is built around the ASMedia ASM2464PD USB4 to PCIe 4.0 bridge and this shouldn't come as a surprise, as so far this is the only such device controller. ADT-Link doesn't appear to be selling the UT3G to consumers, but it can be picked up online from DFRobot starting at US$129 for a single unit.

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Last week, we got confirmation from the highest levels of Dell and NVIDIA that the latter is making a client PC processor for the Windows on Arm (WoA) AI PC ecosystem that only has one player in it currently, Qualcomm. Michael Dell hinted that this NVIDIA AI PC processor would be ready in 2025. Since then, speculation has been rife about the various IP blocks NVIDIA could use in the development of this chip, the two key areas of debate have been the CPU cores and the process node.

Given that NVIDIA is gunning toward a 2025 launch of its AI PC processor, the company could implement reference Arm IP CPU cores, such as the Arm Cortex X5 "Blackhawk," and not venture out toward developing its own CPU cores on the Arm machine architecture, unlike Apple. Depending on how the market recieves its chips, NVIDIA could eventually develop its own cores. Next up, the company could use the most advanced 3 nm-class foundry node available in 2025 for its chip, such as the TSMC N3P. Given that even Apple and Qualcomm will build their contemporary notebook chips on this node, it would be a logical choice of node for NVIDIA. Then there's graphics and AI acceleration hardware.
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