Intel Corp. on Tuesday demonstrated Optane, the world’s first solid-state drive based on its 3D XPoint memory jointly developed by Intel and Micron. The company said once again that the new type of memory will enable considerably higher performance than existing NAND flash. Intel Optane SSDs featuring breakthrough performance will …
Read More »WD introduces high-performance 5TB and 6TB HDDs for consumers
Western Digital Corp. on Tuesday introduced its new WD Black hard disk drives with 5TB and 6TB capacities. The new HDDs are designed for consumers and creative professionals who require both high performance and high-capacity. In fact, the WD Black 6TB will be the company’s highest-performing consumer-class hard disk drive …
Read More »Intel Core i7-6700K ‘Skylake’ hits nearly 7GHz
A professional overclocker has set a new record for Intel Core i7-6700K microprocessor frequency. This time the new code-named “Skylake” processor hit nearly 7GHz, which is among the highest frequencies ever achieved by any Intel Core i-series microprocessors. Chi-Kui Lam, a professional overclocker from Hong Kong-based HKEPC web-site, has managed …
Read More »Intel releases Quark microcontroller with 0.025W thermal design power
Intel Corp. has quietly released its new Quark D1000 microcontroller designed for smart electronics and embedded applications. The chip sports ultra-low power consumption and features x86 architecture. The Intel Quark D1000 microcontroller has one 32-bit x86 core clocked at 33MHz, lacks cache and has TDP of 0.025W. The Quark D1000 …
Read More »Rambus unveils its first R+ chips for server memory modules
Throughout its history, Rambus has received royalties from other makers of chips for its patents. However, on Monday the company introduced its own ICs designed to improve server-class memory modules. The company will sell the products to interested parties itself. The first in a family of R+ chips, the RB26 …
Read More »Intel ‘Skylake’ processors feature ‘reverse Hyper-Threading’ technology – report
Although Intel Corp. already sells its code-named “Skylake” microprocessors commercially, the company has not disclosed a lot of details about the new micro-architecture. Apparently, Intel’s new processors feature technology, which speeds up performance in single-threaded workloads using multiple cores. Heise.de reports that Intel’s new Core i7-6700K processor with four cores …
Read More »Asustek: Mobile business will exceed PC business in three years
Asustek Computer is primarily known for notebooks and computer components, but the company is actively expanding production of tablets and smartphones. Asus pins a lot of hopes on its mobile business and a number of years from now it expects it to exceed its PC sales. Asustek’s revenue in the …
Read More »Asustek: Free Windows 10 upgrades may be negative for PC makers
Microsoft Corp. needs to install Windows 10 on as many devices as possible to capitalize on it in the coming years, which is why it made its latest OS available free of charge to existing customers. The approach makes sense for Microsoft. But is it good for the market in …
Read More »Intel rolls-out its most advanced air cooler to date: TS15A for LGA1151 processors
Intel Corp. has decided not to bundle a cooler with its latest Core i7-6700K and Core i5-6600K microprocessors with unlocked multiplier for enthusiasts, but this does not mean that the company decided to quit producing cooling system for its high-end CPUs. In fact, Intel’s new TS15A thermal solution for LGA1151 …
Read More »Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 950 Ti is still in development
Nvidia Corp. is working on a yet another graphics card based on the GM206 graphics processor, which will fill the gap between the GeForce GTX 950 and the GeForce GTX 960. The GeForce GTX 950 Ti is in development and it is unclear when exactly it will be released, but …
Read More »Microsoft: HoloLens heads to devevelopers, hits the market when it’s done
Although Microsoft Corp.’s HoloLens looks like a commercial product even today, it will not be launched in the foreseeable future. In fact, Microsoft does not seem to have a roadmap for the device. It will be released when it is done. “I look at [release plans] two ways – how …
Read More »Asustek and Intel confirm global shortage of Intel “Skylake” chips
Chief executive officer of Asustek Computer confirmed on Friday that there is a shortage of Intel Corp.’s “Skylake” processors in the market. Last month a Sweden-based retailer warned enthusiasts about short supply of Intel’s new central processing units with unlocked multiplier. As it appears, the problem is not limited to …
Read More »Image of PNY GeForce GTX 950 hits the web
The first photo of an Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 graphics card has hit the web. The new graphics adapter from PNY seems to be based on a custom design, which is compatible with compact personal computers, but not with mini-ITX small form-factor systems. The PNY GeForce GTX 950 sports dual-slot …
Read More »Microsoft: Windows is the best platform for virtual reality
Phil Spencer, corporate vice president of Microsoft Corp. and the head of Microsoft Game Studios, said in an interview that the company is not trying to bring virtual reality games to its Xbox One game console because Windows is a better platform for VR while the technology is still at …
Read More »Apple working on curved device that displays images and has sensors
No commercial companies like to share what exactly they are developing, but Apple is know for exceptional secrecy when it comes to future products. Nonetheless, a financial analyst has discovered that the company is working on something large and made of glass. The market observer did not classify the object, …
Read More »Asrock introduces USB 3.1 type-C front panel for desktop PCs
While there are many mainboards with USB 3.1 support available today, they feature type-C ports on their back panels and it is uncomfortable to use such connectors. Asrock this week introduced a special adapter that places one USB type-C and one USB type-A ports on the front panel of any …
Read More »DDR4 memory hits 4838MHz with LN2 cooling, Gigabyte Z170X-SOC Force mainboard
A professional overclocker this week set a new clock-rate record for DDR4 memory. This time a memory module from G.Skill was overclocked to whopping 4838MHz on Gigabyte Technology’s Z170X-SOC Force mainboard. Hicookie, a professional overclocker from Taiwan who works with Gigabyte Technology, this week pushed a 4GB G.Skill memory module …
Read More »Intel ‘Skylake-U’ processor lineup for notebooks detailed
A web-site has published complete specifications of Intel Corp.’s upcoming “Skylake-U” microprocessors for low-power laptops. The new central processing units will have thermal design power of around 15W and promise to significantly increase performance of ultra-thin notebooks. As reported, Intel will release its code-named “Skylake-U” processors in September. The Core …
Read More »Palmer Luckey: Virtual reality needs unlimited GPU horsepower
In the early days of virtual reality gaming various limitations and trade-offs are inevitable because early hardware and software are never perfect. However, the main challenge for VR games will be performance of graphics adapters. Not all high-end graphics cards will be able to deliver 90 frames per second required …
Read More »AMD: We have very strong roadmap for GCN architecture
Despite of ongoing problems and lowering research and development budget, Advanced Micro Devices maintains optimism and claims that it will keep financing development of key products. In the recent months, Advanced Micro Devices has been criticized heavily for re-introducing its previous-generation graphics processing units under new names. The release of …
Read More »Samsung’s new SSDs feature up to 6.4TB capacity, up to 5.5GB/s bandwidth
Samsung Electronics has introduced its all-new solid-state drives based on the latest TLC 3D V-NAND flash memory for enterprises. The SSDs provide unprecedented levels of performance, capacity, endurance and reliability, which will help Samsung to address new markets. The new enterprise-class SSDs are based on Samsung’s latest 48-layer 3D V-NAND …
Read More »AMD: Virtual reality could mean rebirth for PC industry
Sales of personal computers have been stagnating for a couple of years now for various reasons. Many industry executives and market observers believe that to revive the PC market, new programs that demand more resources than contemporary computers can provide are needed. Mark Papermaster, chief technology officer of Advanced Micro …
Read More »Nvidia unveils Quadro M4000, M5000 professional graphics cards
Nvidia Corp. has quietly introduced two new professional graphics cards. The new Quadro M4000 and Quadro M5000 adapters are powered by the highly-successful “Maxwell” architecture. The novelties promise to deliver strong performance in graphics applications, but when it comes to computing, the new GPUs will be slower than some of …
Read More »‘Steamboy’ portable game console to arrive next year for $299
Smach Zero, a portable gaming device that runs Steam OS and is based on an x86 system-on-chip, will hit the market next year and will cost like an inexpensive desktop PC. The portable console, which is widely known as “Steamboy” will be a rather unique device that will not be …
Read More »Samsung begins to produce 48-layer 3D V-NAND flash memory
Samsung Electronics on Tuesday said that it had started to mass produce the world’s first triple-level-cell (TLC) three dimensional vertical NAND flash memory chips with 256Gb capacity. The new 3D V-NAND memory ICs [integrated circuits] will help Samsung to make solid-state drives and other flash-based devices more affordable, which will …
Read More »Nokia hires as it preps to re-enter smartphones market
Nokia Corp. is hiring additional specialists as it is gearing up to return to the smartphones market late next year. While the company does not have plans to manufacture handsets itself, the firm seems to pin a lot of hopes on brand-licensing model and development of software and hardware. Once …
Read More »Nvidia readies new flagship mobile GPU – report
Nvidia Corp. is working on a new graphics processing unit for mobile personal computers that will feature performance of desktop-class graphics adapters. Not a lot of details are known about the new product, but a media report claims that the new flagship GeForce GTX for notebooks will be released in …
Read More »Intel to release ‘unlocked’ Core i7 CPUs for enthusiast notebooks
High-performance laptops aimed at gamers have been available on the market for many years. Moreover, it is not a secret that it is possible to overclock mobile processors using BIOS settings. This week Intel announced plans to release mobile central processing units with unlocked multiplier that will be designed specifically …
Read More »Samsung to offer its Exynos SoCs to other smartphone makers
Samsung Electronics may become a new rival for Qualcomm, MediaTek and other suppliers of mobile system-on-chips as the company reportedly plans to sell its Exynos 7420 processors to third parties. For a long time, Samsung Electronics used application processors from Qualcomm inside its premium smartphones, but in the recent years …
Read More »BenQ unveils 35” curved display with 144Hz refresh rate
BenQ America Corp. has introduced the world’s first curved display with 144Hz refresh rate. The device can potentially provide unique experience in video games and it even has an advanced VA panel for great viewing angles and high quality. Unfortunately, its resolution is not really high by today’s standards. The …
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