Gaming

More references to a new Nintendo Switch and Switch Pro have been spotted online. This time, the rumoured console has made its way to a major retailer, albeit briefly.

When a manufacturer already uses one of the most powerful graphics cards in its laptops, a new CPU also needs to ensure a higher performance.

The affordable gaming headphones retail for just under $70 USD with 50 mm drivers, a steel headband and lots of adjustment options. Its stiff microphone arm and volume adjuster, however, could use some more work.

A Czech webstore now offers what is claimed as the recently-launched Asus ROG Zephyrus M16; then again, the new listing contains specs that are considerable downgrades on what the OEM announced while debuting this machine. For example, this apparent M16 leak involves the Core i7-11800H processor, as opposed to the i9-11900H on official product pages.

Youtuber The Resident Gamer got hold of Necromunda: Hired Gun days before the game's June 1st launch. An extended gameplay video indicates that Hired Gun will feature fast-paced gunplay that brings Doom: Eternal to mind.

According to a new report, Nintendo has finalised the specifications for the so-called Switch Pro and its revised dock. While the console is believed to be launching in some regions before October, it could take a while longer to reach European shores.

Acer has launched an upgraded version the Predator X38 that was originally announced during CES 2020. The new Predator X38 S is now VESA DisplayHDR 600-certified and comes with a built-in NVIDIA Reflex Latency Analyzer. The rest of the features including the 2300R UWQHD+ panel are similar to the previous version.

NVIDIA is expected to announce the GeForce RTX 3080 Ti on May 31, its latest GA102-based graphics card. A leak has not only confirmed that NVIDIA plans to sell a GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Founders Edition, but it has also provided a hands-on look at its design.

Chinese testers note that the new GA106-302 chips featuring the LHR limiter included with the new RTX 3060 cards provides the same gaming performance as the original versions, but effectively halves the Ethereum mining performance in half. The same is apparently true for the upcoming RTX 3080 Ti cards.

We now know the final specs for the reference RTX 3080 Ti cards, including the base and boost clocks, VRAM specs and TGP. Performance should be very close to an RTX 3090, but the first Ashes of the Singularity tests do not seem to support this.

ROCCAT has introduced its new Syn Pro Air as its latest high-end gaming headset. It combines a range of potential advantages of its maker's association with Turtle Beach in its build, including a TruSpeak flip-up mic, the Superhuman Hearing sound setting and ProSpecs ear-cushions. The Syn Pro Air also supports Stellar Wireless connectivity and the AIMO RGB system.

Due to restrictions in California for in-person gatherings, BlizzCon 2021 has officially been cancelled. However, the team behind BlizzCon promises a make-up event will take place in early 2022.

NVIDIA's cloud-gaming service GeForce NOW has announced support for no less than 22 new games, including Biomutant, Maneater and Imagine Earth, which have also just launched on Steam. The platform is also starting to add DLC without the downloads, supporting major expansions for 3 titles thus far.

Nubia's premium Android gaming brand has launched a new variant for its 2021 smartphone series. This 6R has frankly near-mid-tier looks, yet still manages to pack the Snapdragon 888 processor and up to 12GB of RAM. It starts at ~US$425, although its top-end Buddha IP Limited Edition is closer to $630.

In a celebratory livestream for Dragon Quest's 35th anniversary, Square Enix announced four new Dragon Quest games, including Dragon Quest 12, the first mainline game in four years. Other titles include an HD-2D remake of Dragon Quest 3, a Dragon Quest 11 spinoff, and a Dragon Quest-themed puzzle game for smartphones.

Unreal Engine 5 is available as a demo starting today, and users are gravitating toward its Temporal Super Resolution feature. TSR is similar to Nvidia's DLSS in that, while advertised as an anti-aliasing technique, it vastly improves high-resolution frame rates by upscaling lower resolutions. The technology is impressive at first glance.

NVIDIA is seemingly only a few days away from announcing the GeForce RTX 3070 Ti, but marketing renders of two Gigabyte cards have already leaked. The renders confirm that the GA104-based card has GDDR6X VRAM, an improvement on the RTX 3070. The RTX 3070 Ti may nearly match the RTX 3080's power consumption, too.

Acer has refreshed its Predator Orion 300 (P03-630) gaming desktop with current-generation hardware, including an Intel Core i7-11700 processor, Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 graphics card. Gamers can buy the entry-level SKU in June 2021 for EUR 1,099 (US$1,337).

Acer has updated the hardware on its Nitro 50 desktop. One can now pick between 11th-generation Intel Rocket Lake and the AMD Ryzen 5000 series of processors. GPU options max out at the GeForce RTX 3060 Ti. Its entry-level model costs EUR 999 (US$1,216).

Acer's new high-end gaming monitor is finally here. The Predator CG437K has a 42-inch 4K panel that refreshes at 120Hz, Nvidia G-Sync support, VESA DisplayHDR 1000 certification and more. It will hit shelves in November 2021 for EUR 1,599 (US$1,947).

Acer has announced the Predator Triton 500 SE powered by the latest Intel Tiger Lake-H45 processors and up to an NVIDIA RTX 3080 Laptop GPU. The Triton 500 SE also offers two high-refresh rate display options and Killer networking for low-latency online gaming.

NVIDIA has confirmed when it will launch new GeForce RTX cards, expected to be the RTX 3070 Ti and RTX 3080 Ti. However, ASUS has filed trademarks for multiple RTX 3070 Ti and RTX 3080 Ti SKUs with the EEC, while Gigabyte has already started marketing the RTX 3080 Ti on Twitter.

A new report concerning the successor to the Nintendo Switch has offered up some details in regard to potential release schedule and pricing. The upgraded console, which has been called the Switch Pro and Super Switch in the press, might be coming sooner than expected but unlikely at the same US$299 introductory price of the current model.

The Acer Nitro 5 AN515-55 is a mid-range gaming laptop with a great price-to-performance ratio. However, to achieve a great level of performance at a low price, Acer had to cut some costs.

Asus touts the ROG Phone 5 as the most powerful Android gaming phone it has ever launched, due to its Snapdragon 888 processor and 144Hz FHD+ display. It is now available to buy in the United States, and is priced at $1,000 for its 16GB RAM/256 internal storage SKU.

OnePlus has announced a new promotion by which those who buy certain new smartphones in the UK, Germany or France can claim a new Stadia Premiere Edition from Google. The units included in this new deal are those of the new flagship 9 series, the 8 Pro, 8T or mid-range Nord. The OEM asserts that these combos will deliver "powerhouse gaming" for new customers.

The new A7 X1 is the first AMD-based mid-range gaming laptop from Gigabyte's new Gaming series. It features the Ryzen 9 5900HX processor with integrated Vega 7 graphics plus an Nvidia RTX 3070 Max-Q 140 W discrete solution. The display is limited to FHD resolution, but gets 144 Hz refresh rate, and there is support for up to 64 GB of DDR4-3200 RAM and 6 TB of storage.

According to multiple sources, Valve is planning on releasing a handheld games console and as early as Q4 2021. The device, codenamed SteamPal, will reputedly run Linux using an AMD Van Gogh APU. The SteamPal is expected to launch for US$399.

CD Projekt Red's Adam Kicinski recently stated at a shareholder meeting that Sony has yet to reapprove Cyberpunk 2077, despite having been delisted in December. With patch 1.2 performance still not optimal on last-gen consoles, Cyberpunk's PlayStation remains an open question.

Razer's latest keyboard is the Blackwidow V3 Mini HyperSpeed. It has a 65% form-factor, which translates to a 60% form-factor that retains arrow keys. The new board also features the OEM's HyperSpeed Wireless Technology, an aluminium frame and a choice of 2 switch types.

The God of War sequel, also known as God of War: Ragnarok, has likely been delayed. On top of that, there is growing belief it will only be a PS5 exclusive, meaning no new appearance for Kratos on the PS4. A well-known leaker has also stated that there will be a PlayStation 5 exclusive Final Fantasy title revealed soon.

Razer has started taking pre-orders for pre-built systems containing the RTX 3070 Ti and RTX 3080 Ti, confirming the impending launch of both cards. Both will be available with AMD Ryzen 5000X CPUs.

The successor of the Ryzen 5 4500U-powered MINISFORUM HM50 is now available as the HM80. Inside it, there is a more potent Ryzen 7 4800U processor, alongside 16/256 GB or 32/512 GB of memory/storage. The prices of these two configurations, after the US$100 early-bird discount, are US$759 and US$829.

Verizon is offering up to one year of Apple Arcade for new Unlimited plan subscribers. Considering the cost of Apple Arcade ($5/month), this would save up to $60. As such, this new deal is really only good for those that are already considering opening an Unlimited plan.

Although there is nothing special about it hardware-wise, the Slim 1 TB PlayStation 4 autographed by the popular online player CoryxKenshin is now up for sale on eBay with a starting price of no less than US$25,000. However, there are two days left and no bids have been placed so far.

HP has introduced the Omen 25i gaming monitor recently featuring a VESA DisplayHDR 400 and AMD FreeSync support. The Omen 25i is a FHD 165 Hz display that offers several software enhancements including Dynamic Crosshair, Edge Precision, Eye Ease, and Shadow Vision. The Omen 25i also includes a Game Remastered mode for enhancing old school PC and console classics.

An AMD patent filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office offers a glimpse at how its DLSS-competitor, apparently named "Gaming Super Resolution," could work.

The ROG Flow X13 has received an upgrade to NVIDIA's latest RTX 30 series GPUs. The laptop remains available with AMD Ryzen 9 5000 APUs, which ASUS has paired with either the GeForce RTX 3050 or the GeForce RTX 3050 Ti.

HP has upgraded the hardware on its Omen 16 and Omen 17 gaming laptops. One can configure the latter with an Intel Core i9-11900H processor and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080, while the former is restricted to an Intel Core 17-11800H/AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX and a GeForce RTX 3070.

HP has announced a new sub-brand of gaming laptops to complement the Omen lineup. Victus by HP 16 will be available in both Intel and AMD options and offers display options up to QHD 165 Hz. Victus by HP 16 is designed to cater to those who want capable hardware without having to splurge too much on a high-end gaming laptop.

Opera asserts that it has been inundated with requests for a mobile version of its gaming-focused browser since launching the PC-compatible original. Now, it has delivered with the launch of GX Mobile. It shares many features with the desktop variant, its customized navigation controls and esthetics included.

Base specs for the upcoming GeIL DDR5 kits include 16 GB capacity per module, 4800 MHz speeds and CL40 timings. The overclockable modules will come with higher specs: 6 GHz CL32-36-36, 6.4 GHz CL32, 6.8 GHz CL36-44-44, and 7.2 GHz CL36. There will be RGB as well as non-RGB variants with black PCB and capacities will eventually go up to 32 GB per module.

Xbox Game Pass has been in the news a lot lately thanks to details revealed in the ongoing Epic Games v. Apple legal showdown. While this has stirred up rumors about a potential Nintendo union, Game Pass has also been connected with Electronic Arts by a somewhat hit-and-miss games informer.

The Huawei MateView GT features a soundbar, a lightbar and a 34-inch panel with a 21:9 aspect ratio. The 1440p display also runs at up to 165 Hz and has a 4,000:1 peak contrast ratio.

The RTX 3090 Ti could feature a full GA 102 die just like the A6000 professional cards, plus maybe some more VRAM and slightly higher clocks with raised TGP. This configuration would net a performance increase of around 15-25% over the RTX 3090 FE models. It is entirely possible this could also turn out to be an entirely new SKU produced on the 7 nm nodes from TSMC.