TechPowerUP NEWS

[NextPowerUP]

Legendary overclocker Vince Lucido, aka KINGPIN, has reportedly partnered with PNY to develop next-generation GPUs for extreme overclocking. KINGPIN, known for his unparalleled expertise in pushing hardware to its limits, revealed the partnership during a recent interview with Gamers Nexus at Computex 2024. The move comes as welcome news to enthusiasts who have been eagerly awaiting KINGPIN's next venture since EVGA's departure left a noticeable gap in the high-end GPU segment. Previously, he was the leading engineer of EVGA's high-end KINGPIN designs aimed at pushing the GPU to its limits. However, since EVGA decided to leave the GPU business, KINGPIN was looking for a new company to work on the next-generation GPU designs.

This time, the company of choice for KINGPIN is now PNY. While he has been in contact with many companies like GALAX and ASUS, he claims that it would be very crowded to work there as there are "too many cooks in the kitchen" with these companies already having in-house overclockers. He has also been talking with MSI, but the company wasn't interested in making GPUs for extreme overclocking. However, PNY has been very interested in shaking up the high-end GPU market. KINGPIN claims that there is a massive hole in the high-end GPU market, and he hopes to fill it with a collaboration with PNY. Next-generation GPU designs assisted by KINGPIN will reportedly arrive for the upcoming NVIDIA GeForce RTX 50 series of GPUs when we hope to see the legacy EVGA left to continue at PNY.
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[NextPowerUP]

GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co. Ltd, a leading manufacturer of premium gaming hardware, today launched the cutting-edge AMD Radeon PRO W7000 series workstation graphics cards, including the flagship GIGABYTE Radeon PRO W7900 Dual Slot AI TOP 48G as well as the GIGABYTE Radeon PRO W7800 AI TOP 32G. Powered by AMD RDNA 3 architecture, these graphics cards offer a massive 48 GB and 32 GB of GDDR6 memory, respectively, delivering cutting-edge performance and exceptional experiences for workstation professionals, creators and AI developers.⁠⁠

GIGABYTE stands as the AMD professional graphics partner in the market, with a proven ability to design and manufacture the entire Radeon PRO series. Our dedication to quality products, unwavering business commitment, and comprehensive customer service empower us to deliver professional-grade GPU solutions, expanding user's choices in workstation and AI computing.
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[NextPowerUP]

Keysworlds presents the 2024 Software Special Sale. Get some of the lowest prices on the web for genuine, globally valid software. Get the most powerful PC operating system, Windows 11 Pro, at just $13.66 with a TechPowerUp-exclusive discount code. Save more with multi-PC packs. Also on offer, are enterprise and server editions of Windows. Office 2021 Professional Plus remains the most feature-packed productivity suite, get it for $28.99, or better yet, pair it with Windows 11 Pro at $39.22. Check out great deals on other editions of Windows, Office, and their combos.

Please use the coupon code KWS50 on the following items at check-out, to avail the prices you see here.
Buy Windows 11 Pro at $13.66 | Buy Windows 11 Pro 2-PC at $25.96 | Buy Windows 11 Pro 5-PC at $55.15 | Buy Windows 11 Home at $13.39 | Buy Windows 10 Pro at $8.88 | Buy Windows 10 Pro 2-PC at $15.89 | Buy Windows 10 Pro 5-PC at $35.55 | Buy Windows 10 Home at $8.81 | Buy Windows Server 2022 Standard at $27.28 | Buy Windows Server 2022 Datacenter at $28.35 | Buy Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC 2021 at $13.67

Please use the coupon code KWS60 on the following items.
Buy Office 2021 Professional Plus at $28.99 | Buy Office 2021 Professional Plus 2-PC at $51.95 | Buy Office 2021 Professional Plus 3-PC at $72.55 | Buy Office 2021 Professional Plus at $88.95 | Buy Office 2019 Professional Plus at $20.99 | Buy Office 2021 Home and Business for Mac at $79.99 | Buy Office 2019 Home and Business for Mac at $29.31 | Buy Windows 11 Pro + Office 2021 Professional Plus at $39.22 | Buy Windows 11 Pro + Office 2019 Professional Plus at $31.25 | Buy Windows 10 Pro + Office 2021 Professional Plus at $35.88 | Buy Windows 10 Pro + Office 2019 Professional Plus at $25.75 | Buy Project Professional 2021 at $28.88 | Buy Visio Professional 2021 at $25.82
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[NextPowerUP]

AGON by AOC—one of the world's leading gaming monitor and IT accessories brands - is thrilled to announce the AOC GAMING C27G2Z3/BK, a curved 27" (68.6 cm) Full HD monitor that combines immersive visuals with lightning-fast performance. Designed to cater to both competitive and casual gamers, the C27G2Z3/BK boasts an impressive 280 Hz refresh rate, up to 1 ms GtG and 0.5 ms MPRT response times, and a high-contrast Fast VA panel with a 1500R curvature, all at an affordable price point.

The AOC GAMING C27G2Z3/BK's 1500R curvature envelops users in the game world, providing an immersive experience that draws them deeper into the action. The curved 27" screen offers a more natural and comfortable viewing experience, reducing eye strain and fatigue during extended gaming sessions. Whether racing through the streets in a high-speed simulation or exploring vast open worlds, the C27G2Z3/BK's curvature enhances the sense of presence and engagement for the user.
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[NextPowerUP]

Sit back and settle in for some epic storytelling. Tell Me Why and As Dusk Falls - award-winning, narrative-driven games from Xbox Studios - add to the 1,900+ games in the GeForce NOW library, ready to stream from the cloud. Members can find more adventures with four new titles available this week. Experience a Metallica concert like no other in "Metallica: Fuel. Fire. Fury." This journey through six fan-favorite songs features gameplay that matches the intensity. "Metallica: Fuel. Fire. Fury." will have six different showtimes running June 22-23 in Fortnite. Anyone can get a front-row seat to the interactive music experience by streaming on their mobile device, powered by GeForce NOW.

Unravel the Mystery
Whether uncovering family mysteries in Alaska or navigating small-town secrets in Arizona, gamers are set to be drawn into richly woven stories with Tell Me Why and Ask Dusk Falls joining the cloud this week. Tell Me Why - an episodic adventure game from Dontnod Entertainment, the creators of the beloved Life Is Strange series - follows twins Tyler and Alyson Ronan as they reunite after a decade to uncover the mysteries of their troubled childhoods in the fictional town of Delos Crossing, Alaska. Experience true-to-life characters, mature themes and gripping choices.
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[NextPowerUP]

According to the report from Phoronix, the upcoming Linux 6.11 kernel will introduce initial display support for the highly anticipated Intel Battlemage graphics processors. Battlemage, built on Intel's Xe2 architecture, represents the company's latest effort to challenge established players in the graphics arena. This new line of GPUs is designed to succeed the current DG2/Alchemist hardware, promising enhanced performance and improved power efficiency. The Linux 6.11 kernel will provide the fundamental capability to drive displays connected to Battlemage GPUs. While this initial support is a crucial first step, it lays the groundwork for more comprehensive functionality in future updates. Linux users and developers can look forward to testing and providing feedback on these new graphics solutions.

Intel's focus on power efficiency is evident in the features accompanying Battlemage support. The kernel will introduce Panel Replay functionality, a technology aimed at reducing display power consumption. This aligns with the growing demand for energy-efficient computing solutions, particularly in mobile and laptop segments. However, the work is far from complete. Intel's Linux graphics driver team continues to refine and optimize Battlemage support, with the goal of delivering a seamless experience by the time these GPUs hit the market later this year. The introduction of Battlemage support not only expands options for Linux users but also intensifies competition in the GPU market, potentially driving innovation across the industry. With promises of up to 1.5x over the previous generation Arc GPUs, we are in for a decent upgrade this year.

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[NextPowerUP]

Prices of AMD Ryzen 8000G "Hawk Point" desktop APUs in the Socket AM5 package saw reductions over the week. The Ryzen 7 8700G, the fully unlocked part, is now available for $299, a $30 cut from its launch price of $329. Meanwhile, the Ryzen 5 8600G has now slipped under the $200-mark, with a $199 price-tag. The chip had originally launched at $229. Both these chips feature a 16 TOPS NPU, and are the first desktop processors that are capable of on-chip AI acceleration. Both processors are based on the 4 nm "Hawk Point" monolithic silicon, and feature "Zen 4" CPU cores. The 8700G packs an 8-core/16-thread CPU with an RDNA 3 iGPU that has 12 compute units (CU); while the 8600G is 6-core/12-thread, with an iGPU that has 8 CU.

Things get interesting with the Ryzen 5 8500G, which is now down to $159 from its launch price of $179. This new price makes the processor competitive with the 13th Gen Core i3 and the lower end of the Core i5 lineup. Unlike the other two 8000G series chips, the 8500G lacks an NPU, and is based on the 4 nm "Phoenix 2" silicon that has two "Zen 4" and four "Zen 4c" CPU cores for a 6-core/12-thread CPU configuration. Both kinds of cores share a 16 MB L3 cache. It has a heavily cut-down RDNA 3 iGPU with just 4 CU. The Ryzen 8000G desktop APU series only features PCIe Gen 4 (no Gen 5), which may not mean much for today's discrete GPUs, but limit your SSD upgrade path to Gen 4 (Gen 5 SSDs will be limited to 7 GB/s).

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[NextPowerUP]

Today, Razer unveils the new DeathAdder V3 HyperSpeed, an ergonomic wireless esports mouse inspired by the iconic, award-winning DeathAdder V3 Pro. Loved by the esports community with over 20 million units sold worldwide, the DeathAdder line continues to evolve. In pursuit of creating an approachable pro-grade esports mouse for the community, factors like grip style, and mouse shape and size were crucial.

As a result, design angles and height tweaks were treated with extreme care, with testing, and validation to ensure the DeathAdder V3 HyperSpeed meets community and pro standards. This mouse delivers top-tier features in a more accessible format, perfect for gamers and aspiring champions seeking to elevate their gameplay with Razer's trusted performance and technology.
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[NextPowerUP]

Dune: Awakening, the Open World Survival MMO set on Arrakis from developer Funcom, today unveiled the second Dune: Awakening Direct. The showcase offers 30 minutes of in-depth interviews and game footage showing character creation, the MMO-like server structure, the narrative ramifications of a world where Paul Atreides was never born, and the spiritual journey the player will undergo in the game, following in the footsteps of the Fremen.

Dune: Awakening, which recently shot past 1 million wishlists on Steam, draws on the visual and aural identity created by Denis Villeneuve and Legendary's recent blockbuster movies and is deeply rooted in the original masterpiece by Frank Herbert. The game unleashes you on a vast and open Arrakis torn by war, where you must survive and strive for control of the spice alongside hundreds of other players.
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[NextPowerUP]

TSMC is working on a new advanced chip packaging technology that uses rectangular panel-like substrates instead of the traditional circular wafers, according to a Nikkei report citing sources. This new approach would allow more chips to be placed on a single substrate. TSMC is reportedly experimenting with rectangular substrates measuring 515 mm by 510 mm, providing more than three times the usable area compared to current 12-inch wafers. Using a rectangular-shaped wafer can potentially eliminate more of the incomplete chips found on the edges of current circular ones. While this may sound simple, it would actually require a radical change to the entire manufacturing process.

While the research is still in its early stages and may take several years to reach mass production, it represents a major technological shift for TSMC. The company has responded to Nikkei's inquiry by stating that they are closely monitoring advancements in advanced packaging technologies, including panel-level packaging. This development could potentially give TSMC an edge in meeting future chip demands, however, Intel and Samsung are also testing this new approach.

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[NextPowerUP]

Western Digital has released a new budget friendly SSD that got a serious jump in model number, since the company decided to call it the SN5000. Its predecessor is the SN580 launched just under a year ago and price wise, it's the better option of the two. The new SN5000 uses the same BiCS 5 TLC NAND as the SN580 on the 500 GB to the 2 TB SKU, but according to Anandtech, the 4 TB uses BiCS 6 QLC NAND. The SN5000 is still a PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe drive, but the overall performance has been significantly improved. If we use the 1 TB SKU for comparison, then the sequential read speeds have gone up by 1 GB/s from 4150 MB/s to 5150 MB/s. The sequential write speed is up 750 MB/s from 4150 MB/s to 4900 MB/s.

As for random performance, the read IOPS are up from 600K IOPS to 730K IOPS and the write IOPS are up slightly from 750K to 770K. The 4 TB QLC SKU is said to deliver even better performance with the exception of the random read IOPS. The 1 TB SKU is said to have a write endurance of 600 TBW, but the 4 TB SKU only offers 1200 TBW. That's 0.33 drive writes per day (DWPD) for the 1 TB SKU vs. 0.16 DWPD for the 4 TB SKU, showing the weakness of the QLC NAND. A new feature for the SN5000 series compared to previous WD Blue NVMe drives is support for TGC Pyrite 2.01 encryption. The WD SN5000-series starts at US$70 for the 500 GB model, going up to US$80 for 1 TB, US$140 for 2 TB and topping out at US$280 for the 4 TB model. WD only seems to have the 500 GB model in stock, with all the others being available in 3-4 weeks time. All SKUs come with a five year warranty.

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[NextPowerUP]

Today Lenovo introduced the Lenovo Tab Plus, an entertainment tablet that delivers an outstanding sonar experience with Eight JBL speakers with Hi-fi matrix structure tuned by Dolby Atmos. Designed for music lovers, the 11.5-inch tablet complements its premium sound with a 2K display for vivid visuals and an adjustable stand for optimal enjoyment from every angle.

"Tablets have evolved to meet the needs of people transitioning between work, study and play, offering a balanced combination of mobility and performance," said Tony Chen, vice president of Tablets, Intelligent Devices Group, Lenovo. "As the tablet market recovers, customers can expect increased Lenovo product differentiation through features that address their specific demands. The Lenovo Tab Plus is a prime example of a well-rounded tablet that delivers premium sound for a truly immersive entertainment experience."
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[NextPowerUP]

CTL, a global cloud-computing solution leader for education and enterprise, announced today the introduction of the new CTL Chromebook Plus PX141 Series. This series equips education and enterprise users with the powerful performance, AI tools, and creative apps they need to get more done, faster. Easy ChromeOS device manageability combined with CTL's lifecycle services reduces the burden on IT departments.

"We are excited to launch CTL's Chromebook Plus PX141 Series with two distinct models. As a leader in the ChromeOS space, we know our customers will appreciate the design, performance, and AI capabilities of this next-generation device in the CTL Chromebook portfolio," said Erik Stromquist, CEO of CTL.
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[NextPowerUP]

During Computex 2024, Intel announced the next-generation compute platform for the notebook segment in the form of the Core Ultra 200V series, codenamed Lunar Lake. Set for release in September 2024, these processors are generating excitement among tech enthusiasts and industry professionals alike. According to the latest leak by VideoCardz, Intel plans to unveil nine variants of Lunar Lake, including Core Ultra 7 and Core Ultra 5 models, with a single high-end Core Ultra 9 variant. While exact specifications remain under wraps, Intel's focus on artificial intelligence capabilities is clear. The company aims to secure a spot in Microsoft's Copilot+ lineup by integrating its fourth-generation Neural Processing Unit (NPU), boasting up to 48 TOPS of performance. All Lunar Lake variants are expected to feature a hybrid architecture with four Lion Cove performance cores and four Skymont efficiency cores.

This design targets low-power mobile devices, striking a balance between performance and energy efficiency. For graphics, Intel is incorporating its next-generation Arc technology, dubbed Battlemage GPU, which utilizes the Xe2-LPG architecture. The leaked information suggests that Lunar Lake processors will come with either 16 GB or 32 GB of non-upgradable LPDDR5-8533 memory. Graphics configurations are expected to include seven or eight Xe2 GPU cores, depending on the model. At the entry level, the Core Ultra 5 226V is rumored to offer a 17 W base power and 30 W maximum turbo power, with performance cores clocking up to 4.5 GHz. The top-tier Core Ultra 9 288V is expected to push the envelope with a 30 W base power, performance cores boosting to 5.1 GHz, and an NPU capable of 48 TOPS. You can check out the rest of the SKUs in the table below.

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[NextPowerUP]

Toshiba Electronics Europe GmbH (Toshiba) announces the release of its MG10-D Series, a family of air-filled conventional magnetic recording (CMR) HDDs supporting SAS and SATA interfaces and capacities of up to 10 TB. Crafted with precision engineering and over 50 years of Toshiba experience, the MG10-D Series delivers improved performance and power efficiency over prior generations. With sanitize instant erase (SIE) and self-encrypting drive (SED) options, valuable data is safeguarded by a storage solution known for its robust performance and unwavering dependability.

Built for the increasing application demands of enterprise server and storage solutions, the MG10-D Series delivers a new level of performance. For example, compared with the previous model, the new 10 TB MG10ADA10TE provides an approximately 13% better maximum sustained transfer speed of 268MiB/s and doubles the cache buffer size to 512MiB. It also reduces power consumption in active idle mode by approximately 21%, to 5.74 W. Architected to deliver improved total cost of ownership (TCO), the new MG10-D Series fits seamlessly into a wide variety of business-critical applications, such as email, data analytics, data retention, and surveillance.
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