Gaming

According to a recent leak, NVIDIA is prepping multiple mobility-focused Ampere graphics cards. These include, among others, the GeForce RTX 3080 Max-Q, GeForce RTX 3070 Max-Q, and GeForce 3060 Max-Q. Questions remain, though, about performance and power consumption.

Eve Devices is adamant that it should not ship its upcoming Spectrum monitor "until it is ready". To this end, it has revealed that the shipping date for its QHD/240Hz and 4K/144Hz SKUs has been pushed back to February 2021. This, apparently, will give it time to iron issues with its production out.

A Sony executive's latest blog post has revealed that 6 different major content-streaming platforms will be compatible with the PlayStation 5 from day 1. They include Spotify, YouTube, Disney Plus and Netflix, which will get their own dedicated buttons on the console's also newly-announced Media Remote. Other apps may become available thereafter.

Fancy some origami while you wait for your Xbox Series X to arrive? Well, Microsoft is offering Papercraft Kits with some Xbox Series X pre-orders, albeit only Germany. You can print out your own Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S 'Papercraft Kit' worldwide, though.

Intel CEO Bob Swan has confirmed that the first dedicated Xe graphics chip is now shipping and should be delivered before the end of the year. Its gaming desktop counterpart, the DG2, will not follow for a few months, though.

Gaming peripheral maker Genesis recently announced the Krypton 550 ultra-light gaming mouse. The Krypton 550 features RGB lighting, Huon switches, and an 8000 DPI sensor in a diminutive 70-gram package. The mouse is expected to hit the market by the end of October

Four independent sources reveal that that the RX 6800 XT cards perform up to 19% better in the Firestrike tests, and up to 3% faster in the Time Spy tests, but still trail behind the RTX 3080 in the Port Royal tests that focus on ray tracing performance. One of the sources claims that the AMD cards can even beat the RTX 3090 in the Firestrike tests, but we are suspecting the source is actually confusing RX 6800 XT with the more potent RX 6900 XT in this case.

Lenovo is now introducing Ryzen 4000H APU options for the world's lightest gaming laptops featuring RTX 2000 GPUs. The new Legion Slim 7 models can be equipped with up to a Ryzen 4900H APU coupled with up to 32 GB of DDR4-3200 RAM, up to 2 TB of NVMe SSD storage and up to an RTX 2060 Max-Q GPU. Users can also choose between 60 Hz / 144 Hz FHD displays and even a 60 Hz 4K HDR screen.

NVIDIA may be planning another raid on the upper-midrange desktop graphics card market, according to a new leak. Apparently, the green team has a third GA102-based card in development, which would sit between the RTX 3070 and RTX 3080 in its Ampere product stack with 7,424 CUDA cores, GDDR6X VRAM and possibly up to 232 Tensor cores.

The release of Halo Infinite may be a while off yet, but The Master Chief Collection is coming to the Xbox Series X and S on November 17. The re-release will run at up to 120 FPS on Microsoft's new consoles and will feature a host of improvement, such as a refined split-screen mode. Halo: The Master Chief Collection will be free for those who already the collection and also for those who subscribe to Xbox Game Pass.

The Xiaomi Fast LCD 24.5-inch Monitor has been launched in China with a regular price tag of 1,499 yuan (US$224), although it is on sale to early-bird purchasers. The gaming-friendly external Fast LCD Monitor promises 144 Hz refresh rate, Full HD resolution, 2 ms GTG response time, HDR400 display, and Adaptive-Sync for reduced tearing and stuttering.

Nintendo Switch gamers can enjoy the third Torchlight game starting today just as promised. The new adventure "filled with hordes of goblins, undead and other dangerous Netherim creatures" is now live and early adopters also get the exclusive Ashen Glittersprite pet.

Initial benchmark data for the GeForce RTX 3070 is here, and the US$499 card can hold its own against the RTX 3080 and RTX 2080 Ti in 3DMark, Ashes of the Singularity and Geekbench. The RTX 3070 will arrive on October 29 after a two-week delay.

Apparently, AMD did not show off its flagship Navi 21 XTX version with the Ryzen 5000 CPUs earlier this month. Rumor has it that the performance metrics presented back then come from the Navi 21 SKU powering the RX 6800 XT cards and these can match the RTX 3080, but they also feature a lower price point closer to the RTX 3070.

The cancellation of these two Nvidia models that pack more than 10 GB of VRAM might allow AMD to increase its sales, since the Navi 21 SKUs are expected to get 16 GB of VRAM. Nvidia is currently stuck with terrible yields on the Samsung 8 nm nodes, and, once it switches to TSMC next year, maybe it could consider relaunching the 16 GB and 20 GB models.

The RX 6900 XT will deliver clock speeds over 2,300 MHz with 80 CUs and 16 GB of GDDR6 VRAM, according to a new leak. Four other cards will make up AMD's 'Big Navi' lineup, as will AIB cards that will venture to an eye-watering 2,577 MHz.

Despite the hardware from the gaming entry-level, you don't have to worry about the performance. The Legion 5 brings all the current computer games smoothly to the matte screen (Full HD, IPS). However, the highlight of the laptop is the excellent battery life.

It turns out that Ice Lake laptops are better for eGPU gaming than their more powerful Comet Lake-H counterparts, Jarrod's Tech has discovered. Thunderbolt 3 controller placement seems to be at the heart of the difference in performance, which can be nearly 50% in some modern triple-A games. Seemingly, Thunderbolt 3 latency matters more in eGPU gaming than high clock speeds or a superior TDP.

Today (October 21, 2020), Acer has unveiled its latest gaming monitors. The Predator X34 GS is the likely headline here, as it combines a 34-inch 1900R panel, a UWQHD resolution and a new stand type in one. Then again, the 24.5-inch XB253Q GW is the one with the highest (280Hz) refresh rate here. There is also a new Nitro XV272U KV which offers some attractive specs for a decent price.

With just a week to go before AMD's Big Navi reveal, NVIDIA announced 12 DLSS and RTX-enabled games, including sandbox epic Mount and Blade II: Bannerlord. The timing is interesting, considering the concerns about AMD's hardware ray-tracing capabilities.

If you're looking for a mobile game to bring your fancy $1000 smartphone to its knees, then Genshin Impact would be it. The game is practically unplayable on budget Android devices with unsteady frame rates and visual bugs galore.

AMD is yet to announce its challengers to the likes of the RTX 3070 and RTX 3080, but rumoured clock speeds suggest that at least one Navi 21 SKU will be capable of reaching 2.4 GHz. The Navi 21 XT is thought to offer 16 GB of GDDR6 RAM too, along with a 255 TGP. The Navi 21 XL and XLE will supposedly be no slouches, either.

Digital retailer ProShop indicated that AIBs have delivered fewer than 8 percent of the 8925 NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 units it ordered, far too few to meet increasing customer demand. This reinforces speculation that Ampere supply shortages could continue for months to come.

Both PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X fans have been trolled online lately in regard to a couple of major games. An alleged release date for God of War: Ragnarok on the PS5 soon got debunked, but it took a bit longer for the supposed RTX 3090 vs. Xbox Series X Gears 5 screenshot comparison to be shown as a trickster’s hoax.

ROG Strix Scar 15 G532, ROG Strix Scar III G531, HP Pavilion 15-cs0053cl, XPS 13 7390, XPS 13 9380, Yoga C930, Yoga Book C930... it's no surprise that even we're starting to get a bit confused at how all these names are structured.

The PlayStation 2's record sales will be blown away by the market dominance of the PlayStation 5, according to a top Japanese analyst. Sony's next-generation console is expected to sell anywhere from 200 to 300 million units its lifetime, which is thought to last 5-6 years.

PlayStation fans in Southeast Asia will be dismayed by the rumor that the PlayStation 5 launch may have been delayed in a number of countries in that region, including Indonesia and Thailand. However, while gamers in some places may have to wait until 2021 to buy the console, Singapore has already received a second PS5 pre-order wave.
Update: Sony has issued a short statement about the SEA launch.

ASUS' top-end ROG STRIX GeForce RTX 3090 GUNDAM promises higher clock speeds, better performance, and an all-white design. However, for US$2500, a US$1000 premium over the already expensive GeForce RTX 3090 Founder's Edition, this is a graphics card for ultra-enthusiasts only.

If you want to get the maximum performance out of a laptop, the XMG Ultra 17 is the right choice. The massive 17-incher can be equipped with a Core i9-10900K, a GeForce RTX 2080 Super, 128 GB of RAM, and up to four M.2 SSDs.

Overclockers and enthusiasts looking to get a bit more out of their GeForce RTX 3080 cards have a solid option now in the EVGA GeForce RTX 3080 FTW3 Ultra. EVGA's new BIOS for the card pushes the TDP up to 450W, freeing the AIB card from power throttling to a certain extent.

ASUS has packed an awful lot of features into the slim chassis of the ROG Swift PG32UQX, its 32-inch gaming monitor. Not only has ASUS included a 4K panel, but it also has equipped the PG32UQX with a 1,152 zone Mini-LED backlight and a 144 Hz refresh rate. The PG32UQX supports NVIDIA G-Sync Ultimate too, although there is no HDMI 2.1 on board.

Dark Souls modder Grimrukh, known for the well-received Daughters of Ash mod, has announced a new collaborative project called Dark Souls: Nightfall. Nightfall is apparently a full-fledge mod "sequel" to the original game, promising expanded lore, new environments, voice acting, and more.

Updated across all platforms — including mobile — Vivaldi 3.4 comes with an arcade game inspired by the Future Noir and Cyberpunk genres. This easy-going title is named Vivaldia and it comes along various features such as the very useful periodic reload, configurable context menus, and much more.

Microsoft has launched an extended warranty program for the Xbox Elite Controller Series 2. The company has extended the normal warranty from 90 days to one year after reports of “mechanical issues” affecting the expensive accessory.

The launch of Watch Dogs Legion is almost here, so Ubisoft has released the system requirements for run its upcoming triple-A title. The game is lean when it comes to 1080p even at high settings, but it becomes a touch power-hungry at 1440p and beyond, especially with ray tracing enabled.

The Predator Helios 300 can run all current games smoothly. It comes with a 17.3-inch screen (144 Hz, FHD, IPS). Users can install up to three storage devices in the Helios 300.

Dell has announced a whole range of sales events and deals for Black Friday, Cyber Monday and winter 2020 in general already. They include discounts on some Alienware laptops, desktops and monitors. Some of this hardware will be cut by up to 50% in price during these events.

X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter. Only a year after the first-class Jedi Fallen Order, EA sends its next Star Wars epic into the race. Squadrons offers action-filled space fights and turns out to be surprisingly undemanding when it comes to hardware.

According to a Gematsu report, the Korean Game Rating and Administration Committee listed ratings for "Mass Effect Legendary Edition." This fuels speculation that the unannounced but very likely Mass Effect trilogy remaster might be arriving soon.

The ROG Strix G17 doesn't lower its guard and displays all modern games smoothly on the matte screen (IPS, Full HD, 144 Hz). The individually configurable LED bar on the bottom brings color into play. The laptop can accommodate up to three M.2 SSDs.

Nintendo will sell more consoles than Microsoft and Sony this holiday season, despite the arrival of the next-generation PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series S/X, according to analysis from NPD. Call of Duty is expected to continue to dominate the market too, while the sale of gaming subscriptions and accessories will receive a boost.

The Oculus Quest 2 is now shipping to customers and starts from US$299. The second-generation standalone VR headset features several improvements on the original including a much more powerful Qualcomm SoC.

On its way to the scheduled November 19 release, Cyberpunk 2077 has a script that will hit — and surpass — the one-million-word barrier. Last week, CD Projekt RED’s localization manager Yuki Nishio posted an image on Twitter that shows the entire script printed out and it looks insane.

A Burger King promo posted on Twitter has excited gamers thanks to its obvious connections with the PlayStation 5. While some have posited that a PS5 UI reveal is going to take place in a couple of days, it’s more likely the fast food restaurant chain is planning a contest to win one of the next-gen consoles.
Update: As expected, Burger King is holding a PS5 sweepstakes.