Gaming

AYA NEO continues to provide more details about the NEXT II, the company's future premier gaming handheld. Likely drawing comparisons with the Steam Deck because of its design, the NEXT II is slated to arrive before the end of the year with an 8-inch IPS display, an AMD Ryzen 7000 series APU and discrete graphics. AYA NEO has designed the NEXT II to be capable of cooling an APU and GPU combination that draws up to 100 W too.

A retailer has revealed European pricing for the Odyssey OLED G9, a 49-inch ultra-wide-angle monitor with a 1440p resolution and a 240 Hz refresh rate. The same retailer also appears to have disclosed the monitor's release window and is already accepting pre-orders.

This 17.3-inch Schenker laptop is one of the most powerful of its kind on the market right now: featuring a Core i9-13900HX and GeForce RTX 4090, the device is kitted out for 4K gaming, video editing and rendering. It can accommodate up to three SSDs (incl. 1x PCIe 5.0) and offers very decent battery life.

Ada Lovelace-powered gaming laptops are finally getting some long-awaited price cuts, and the RTX 4050-equipped configuration of the budget-friendly 2023 Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3 is slowly but surely closing in on the US$900 threshold.

ASRock has showcased the PG32UMF, a 31.5-inch gaming monitor that combines a 4K resolution with a 144 Hz refresh rate and 1,400 nit peak brightness. The ASRock PG32UMF is also colour-accurate and can charge a connected device a tup to 90 W via a USB Type-C port.

Samsung has shared new details about the Odyssey OLED G9. First shown at CES 2023, the Odyssey OLED G9 has a 49-inch QD-OLED panel with a 1800R curvature, a 1440p resolution and a 240 Hz refresh rate, among other features.

The APEX 15 / 17 models as well as a new 16-inch CORE laptop are scheduled to receive the AMD Phoenix treatment with a Ryzen 7 7840HS APU later this summer. However, even though the integrated Radeon 780M GPU is already good enough for 1080p gaming, XMG cannot eliminate the dGPU options.

After releasing the RX 7600 and the RTX 4060 Ti, AMD and NVIDIA are expected to follow the boards up with more cost-effective cards such as the RX 7500, and the RTX 4050. Per a new report by RedGamingTech, the RX 7500 and the RTX 4050 could have multiple SKUs differentiated solely by the amount of VRAM and the resulting lower MSRPs.

AYA has announced a new Mini PC Kit for owners of the AYA Neo 2 and Geek 1 who want to opt in to their new motherboard upgrade program to AYA Neo 2S and Geek 1S performance. The program is similar to the Framework laptop upgrade approach.

ASRock has showcased the PG558KF, a 55-inch IPS gaming monitor that will run natively at 8K and 60 Hz. The ASRock PG558KF will also be VESA DisplayHDR 1000 certified and will come with numerous modern ports.

Powkiddy is preparing to release a new compact gaming handheld. Thought to be the Max 3 Pro or the RGB10 Max 3 Pro, the device is expected to arrive with a 5-inch display and has a design reminiscent of the RGB10 Max.

AYA NEO has teased a AYA NEO 2S refresh, only a few days after it started selling the gaming handheld. So far, the company has confirmed two major improvements for the AYA NEO 2S, which should improve visual fidelity and gaming performance.

The system on display at Computex '23 is drawing 660 W of power including the storage components. Streacom makes use of a new approach to cooling that combines traditional heat pipes with AIO closed loops, but does not require an active pump.

XMG has brought its first ever gaming laptops to support the AMD Ryzen 7 7735HS to show off as part of its Computex 2023 showcase. The latest (or M23) APEX 15- and 17-inch models also boast 'full power' RTX 4050 or 4060 graphics, Gigabit Ethernet, Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0. The potentially affordable new PCs also feature upgradable RAM and SSD storage.

Schenker has announced its intention to make a new, 16-inch addition to its XMG Pro series of laptops at Computex 2023. This Studio edition is now slated to launch later in 2023, as are new WORK 14 BASE and 15 BASE models with Alder Lake-U platforms. An updated CORE 16 with up to RTX 4070 graphics is also now on the cards.

NVIDIA released the RTX 4060 Ti on May 24 to a generally cold reception. According to various reports, consumer interest in the GPU was quite low and much of it could be due to the bad launch reviews. 3DCenter has now published a launch review roundup of the board alongside the AMD Radeon RX 7600.

The RX 7600 is AMD’s debut sub-US$300 RDNA 3 GPU. The board brings 32 Compute Units, 8 GB of VRAM, and has a TDP of 165 W. 3DCenter has now published a detailed review roundup of the card and, sadly, the GPU doesn’t look as impressive as it ought to be thanks to poor performance/price and performance/watt showings over the last-gen Radeon RX 6600.

Introduced in the last half of January 2023, the Asus ROG Harpe Ace Aim Lab Edition gaming mouse is now down to US$99.99 thanks to a 33% discount applied to the US$149.99 list price. Its highlights include wired and wireless connectivity alongside a next-gen 36,000 dpi sensor with less than 1% cpi deviation.

(Update: Now available) As usual, Sony is providing its paying PlayStation Plus subscribers with three quite different games next month. In addition to a well-known basketball simulation, the second title revolves around a famous Hollywood movie franchise while the third free PS Plus game for June 2023 might be a good fit for fans of Japanese games.

Arriving less than a week after its predecessor, the Nvidia GeForce Game Ready Driver 535.98 software package brings day-1 support for DLSS 3 and Reflex in Diablo IV, as well as DLSS 2 optimizations for the Unreal Engine 4-based remake of System Shock. However, there are no other changes mentioned.

Gamers can soon run Nintendo Switch games on their Android devices via Yuzu. The software is still in the early stages of development; hence its hardware requirements are pretty high (Snapdragon 865 or higher and 8 GB RAM minimum).

Gigabyte is back with its latest Aorus Gaming Box and this time it is loaded with the might Nvidia RTX 4090 GPU. As in the past, the eGPU connects over Thunderbolt 3 and can transform any laptop into a graphics powerhouse.

The ASUS ROG Zephyrus M16 with a Core i7-12700H and an RTX 3060 is a powerful gaming laptop that is also quite portable thanks to its comparatively low weight and slim profile. Best Buy now has an open-box unit in like-new condition for US$850 off the US$1,649.99 list price.

The ROG Strix XG259QN is a new 1080p and 380 Hz gaming monitor. Offered with a 24.5-inch IPS panel, the ROG Strix XG259QN also has low response times, VESA DisplayHDR 400 certification and USB 3.2 Type-A ports for connecting peripherals.

ASUS has lifted the lid on the ROG Swift PG38UQ, a new gaming monitor equipped with a 38-inch IPS panel. Arriving later this year, the ROG Swift PG38UQ combines 4K visuals with a 144 Hz refresh rate, VESA DisplayHDR 600 certification and modern connections.

ASUS has unlocked performance gains for the ROG Ally, its Steam Deck competitor. Now one of many AMD Ryzen 7 7840U-derived gaming handhelds, the ROG Ally failed to reach its potential at various wattages with early software. A new firmware update has brought upwards of 20% performance gains, putting it on par with the AYA NEO 2S, another Zen 4 and RDNA 3-based gaming handheld.

AYA NEO is now selling the AYA NEO 2S and GEEK 1S, its first AMD Ryzen 7 7840U-based gaming handhelds. Available in various memory configurations and colours, the pair should start shipping in under two month's time.

Sony has confirmed Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is coming to PC. It is being developed by Nixxes, the same studio that bought Marvel's Spider-Man to PC. The game is up for pre-order now and will be playable on July 26.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang talks about a possible collaboration with Intel in an effort to diversify production venues and alleviate supply chain issues rising with the escalating tensions between the US, China and Taiwan.

It appears AMD’s bet of reducing the price of the RX 7600 mere days before the press reviews went live seems to have worked as the newest report from Moore’s Law Is Dead claims that the RDNA 3 GPU outsold Team Green’s mid-ranger at launch. Per the leaker’s sources, the RTX 4060 Ti appears "to have sold 1/10th as well as the RTX 4070 did on its launch week".

Although Asus skipped giving the RTX 3000 series this treatment, the ROG Matrix custom video card design is back with a metal liquid-cooled Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090. The card sports a thick 360 mm radiator with three 12 cm fans and also marks the first use of indirect Aura Lighting. Sadly, sales will kick off in the third quarter.

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake has gone back to the conception stage, according to Ubisoft. The developers said that the game, which missed several launch timelines since it was first announced in late 2020, will focus on modern gameplay mechanics, combat, and puzzle solving, while still retaining the story and key characteristics the defined the original trilogy 20 years ago.

MSI has announced a new variant of its flagship Raptor Lake-HX laptop, the MSI Raider GE78 HX Smart Touchpad. It adds a touchpad next to the trackpad, complete with programmable keys and quick access to commonly used Windows functions.

The 2022 Dell G16 (7620) gaming notebook with a Core i9-12900H processor and an RTX 3070 discreet laptop GPU is now enjoying a mentionable 17% discount at Dell's official store. Aside from the powerful CPU and GPU, the laptop also comes with a 165 Hz display and upgradable RAM and storage.

Two stackable coupon codes for Dell's official online store bring a well-equipped mid-range configuration of the popular G15 5525 down to US$999, which is a quite reasonable price for an RTX 3070-powered gaming laptop that also features AMD's quick Ryzen 7 6800H.

The Alienware m17 R5 with a Ryzen 9 6900HX CPU, an RX 6850M XT GPU, 16 GB of DDR5 memory, and 1 TB of PCIe NVMe Gen 4 SSD is going for an amazing 43% off thanks to stackable coupons. What’s more, the notebook can also be upgraded down the line as there are SO-DIMM slots for memory and two M.2 slots for storage.

Sony has announced its Days of Play sale is scheduled between June 2 and June 12. Gamers can get hefty discounts on PlayStation Plus subscriptions, games, accessories and merchandise.

Lenovo US has unveiled its Memorial Day 2023 sales with offers such as savings of just over US$700 on the Legion Slim 7 Gen 7 laptop. There are also ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 11 configurations with 13th-gen Intel processors for up to 39% off, with the possibility of even more off with new limited-time coupons.

ASUS is reportedly preparing a new line of RTX 40 GPUs without any traditional power connectors. The GPUs will instead rely on a proprietary interface that slots in and draws all power from the motherboard.

With the ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD, ASUS has unveiled another ultra-wide gaming monitor. Offered with a 32:9 aspect ratio, the ROG Swift OLED PG49WCD has a QD-OLED panel that achieves 1,000 nits peak brightness with a 1440p resolution and a 144 Hz refresh rate. The gaming monitor also has a USB Type-C port that supports 90 W charging via USB Power Delivery, among other features.

The Xiaomi Redmi G27 and Redmi G27Q have arrived in China, both with 27-inch and 165 Hz panels. Xiaomi distinguishes the pair in a few areas though, including I/O and native resolution.

With a list price of US$299.99, the Acer EI322QUR Pbmiippx 1500R curved gaming monitor is now down to US$209. Its list of highlights includes a WQHD VA panel, 165 Hz refresh rate, 1 ms VRB latency, two 2 W speakers, AMD FreeSync Premium Pro support, as well as two DP 1.4 and two HDMI 2.0 inputs.

A well-placed industry insider estimates that Sony's Project Q handheld will have a battery life of between three and four hours. While the figure isn't final and could change later, it is relatively low for a device that exclusively streams games off a PlayStation 5.

Introduced at the end of June 2021, the Zotac Gaming GeForce RTX 3060 Ti Twin Edge OC LHR video card reached its highest Amazon price of US$669.99 at the end of March 2022. Now, a 29% discount is keeping it at the lowest price until now, so those interested can grab it for a tempting US$377.99 (Camelcamelcamel reveals an average price of US$449.04).

XREAL, formerly known as Nreal, has announced the Beam accessory for the Air AR glasses. The device makes the headset compatible with various games consoles, laptops and smartphones running Windows or iOS. Plus, the brand's new Spatial Display enhances the AR experience.

Anbernic has lifted the lid on the RG Nano, its next miniature gaming handheld. Smaller than a Dreamcast VMU, the Anbernic RG Nano will still feature full gamepad controls and a relatively large display considering its diminutive form factor.

After getting roasted by reviewers, the RTX 4060 Ti and the RX 7600 GPUs are also getting abandoned by gamers if the newest report from 3DCenter is any indication. Per 3DCenter, the RTX 4060 Ti and the RX 7600 has had an extremely slow launch day on MindFactory compared to the RTX 4070 Ti and the RTX 4070 that also went on sale this year.