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Asus has worst quarterly profit since 2010, changes product focus

Asus appears to have an increased focus on their high-margin products such as ultra-thin, 2-in-1, mid-range gaming, and high-end gaming in the hopes that the higher profit per unit will help them recover from their lowest quarterly profit for seven years.

The Ryzen 5 2500U APU puts forth a good show in the Geekbench benchmark. (Source: PC Perspective)

AMD Ryzen 5 'Raven Ridge' APU benchmark shows major performance benefits over last gen 'Excavator'

Benchmark scores of the Zen-based AMD Ryzen 5 2500U APU are out on Geekbench and they seem promising. While the results seem to somewhat corroborate AMD's claims of a close to 50% performance increase over Bristol Ridge APUs, details are still scarce with respect to specifics of the on-die components.

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Notebookcheck's Top 10 Convertibles

September 2017 update. Here you will find the best convertibles reviewed by Notebookcheck in the last few months. Our list of top models is regularly updated, maintained and commented on and should assist in purchase decisions.

Swelling batteries in the XPS 15 9550 have caused displacement of trackpads rendering them useless. (Source: User Crashnorun on the Dell Support Forum)

PSA | Dell offers to replace swelling XPS 15 9550 batteries for free, even if out-of-warranty

There were problems with batches of 84Wh batteries in the XPS 15 9550 that led to the battery bulging and pushing against the trackpad. Once the swelling was bad enough, it not only hindered the trackpad function but also posed a safety hazard. Users are now reporting that Dell is now finally accepting out-of-warranty battery replacements for the XPS 15 9550...

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Notebookcheck's Top 10 Ultrabooks

September 2017 update. Here you will find the best Ultrabooks reviewed by Notebookcheck in the past few months. Our list of top models is regularly updated, maintained and commented on and should assist in purchasing decisions.

Notebookcheck's Top 10 Subnotebooks

September 2017 update. Here you will find the current best subnotebooks reviewed by Notebookcheck in the last few months. Our list of top models is regularly updated, maintained and commented on and should assist in purchase decisions.

The Surface Laptop is now available in all four launch colors in 20 countries. (Source: Micrsofo

Microsoft Surface Laptop now available in more countries, in more colors

Microsoft has continued the global rollout of its Surface Laptop. Customers in Japan, Hong Kong and Taiwan can now order the Platinum i7 model, while 20 countries can now also purchase the notebook in any of the four colors revealed at its June launch.

Notebookcheck's Top Windows Alternatives to the MacBook 12 and Air 13

Lighter than Air? Apple shocked the whole industry with the first MacBook Air: We had never seen such a slim and light notebook before. However, in the meantime the other manufacturers have come up with several slim Windows devices that are good alternatives to the current MacBooks. Update September 2017.

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Microsoft Surface Laptop color options. (Source: Microsoft)

A new 1 TB Surface Laptop is available for those with US$2700 burning a hole in their wallet

Microsoft is now taking pre-orders for a variant of the Surface Laptop that features an i7-7660u, 16 GB of RAM, and a 1 TB solid state drive. It is due to arrive on October 3rd, which is almost an entire month earlier than the new color options are due.

ThinkPad 25: Retro ThinkPad will be based on the ThinkPad T470

For the 25th birthday of the ThinkPad brand, Lenovo is preparing a special anniversary version. This special ThinkPad will be called ThinkPad 25 and it will be based on the ThinkPad T470. Also included: The classic ThinkPad keyboard.

Lenovo launches redesigned Yoga 920 with Kaby Lake-R options

IFA 2017 | Lenovo launches redesigned Yoga 920 with Kaby Lake-R

The new Yoga is ever-so-slightly thinner with dual Thunderbolt 3 ports and a re-positioned webcam back to where it belongs.

Lenovo: AMD ThinkPads A275 and A475 announced - with Bristol Ridge

While the IFA-show is getting underway, Lenovo and AMD announce two new ThinkPads and a complete new ThinkPad-series. Both new ThinkPad A-Series models will be based on the ThinkPad T-Series and ThinkPad X-Series, but they won´t use Raven Ridge CPUs, for now.

Acer Swift 5 SF514-52 Windows ultrabook with Kaby Lake-R processor (Source: Acer)

IFA 2017 | Acer Swift 5 ultrabook with 8th generation Intel Core processors now official

The updated Swift 5 ultrabook weighs only 2.2 pounds and promises to offer a battery life of 8 hours. Just as expected, it has an Intel Core Kaby Lake-R processor under the hood and runs Windows 10 out of the box.

The Acer Spin 5 comes in both 13-inch and 15-inch models. (Source: Acer)

IFA 2017 | Acer Spin 5 gets 8th-gen Core chips, dGPU option for 15-inch model

Acer gives the Spin 5 Intel's 8th-generation Core-i treatment. It comes in both 13-inch and 15-inch models with the latter also offering support for a discrete Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 GPU.

The mysterious Coffee Lake 6-core mobile CPU will probably replace the i7-7700HQ. (Source: Intel)

First Coffee Lake 6-core mobile CPU benchmarks are in

GeekBench got hold of spec and performance information on a mysterious 6-core Coffee Lake mobile CPU. It's default clock is set to 2.6 GHz, but it can boost to 4.0 GHz. The gen 8 model seems to have the same single-core performance as the 7th gen i7-7700HQ. However, the multi-core tests show a 40% performance gain over the gen 7 CPU.

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IFA 2017 | Dell XPS 13 getting the quad-core Kaby Lake-R treatment

One of our favorite subnotebooks is coming with i5-8250U and i7-8550U CPU options and a claimed performance boost of 44 percent over 7th gen Kaby Lake.

The HP Spectre x360 is one of the first ultrabooks fitted with Nvidia's MX150 GPU (Source: HP)

15-inch HP Spectre x360 convertible surfaces with an 8th-gen Core i7 and MX150 GPU

The HP Spectre x360 will be one of the first ultrabooks to ship with both an 8th-generation Intel Kaby Lake-R CPU and an Nvidia Pascal-based MX150 GPU. US customers can pre-order the device now for a September 7 shipping date.

Intel Core i5-8250U, i5-8350U, i7-8550U, and i7-8650U Kaby Lake-R launches today (Source: Intel)

Intel Core i5-8250U, i5-8350U, i7-8550U, and i7-8650U Kaby Lake-R series launches today

The four 15 W TDP processors will run at slower base clock rates and with the same integrated 620 Graphics as the 7th generation Kaby Lake equivalents. Regardless, the move to four cores and eight threads promises a significant 40 percent performance boost without sacrificing battery life.

Razer Blade with 4K UHD now shipping in North America (Source: Razer)

Razer Blade with 4K UHD display now shipping in North America

The 13.3-inch Blade Stealth and 14-inch Blade are shipping with 7th gen CPUs on the eve of Intel's 8th gen reveal for $1400 and $2400 USD, respectively.

The ULV Coffee Lake CPUs are also known as Kaby Lake-U/Y. (Source: LaptopMedia)

Intel Core i7-8550U specs and early benchmarks

The i7-8550U ultra-low voltage CPU wipes the floor with the previous generation i5-6300HQ and i7-7500U, but is a bit behind the i5-7300HQ.

Clevo revenue drops in first half of 2017 but expected to rebound with new devices

Clevo has reported first half revenues are down by 7.7 percent in their notebook business between 2016 and 2017. Net profit remains in the positive but is tight at slightly below US$11 million, or only 3.95 percent of revenue.

Two methods of obtaining Windows 10 for free appear to still be open

Two methods which were detailed back in January 2017 which allowed users to upgrade from Windows 7 or 8.1 to Windows 10 for free still exist now, even though the free upgrade period ended over a year ago. One method involves taking advantage of a program for those with disabilities, while the second approach only needs a valid Windows 7 or 8.1 install and pr...

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The new materials create insulating rust that is beneficial to the miniaturization process. (Source: Stanford)

Silicon chips might not retire too soon, thanks to ultrathin semiconductors

Scientists from Stanford University combined silicon with ultrathin semiconductors, making silicon viable for chips under 5 nanometers and thus offering a smoother transition between silicon and germanium-based chip manufacturing.

Super-slim Asus Zenbook Flip S UX370 convertible now available

Major online outlets in Europe are now listing the UX370UA for 1400 Euros and confirm earlier rumors of a smaller battery than the UX360 series in favor of a thinner design.

The solution with the best result used sodium sulfate (Na2SO4), a compound found in detergents. (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

Researchers create flexible salt-based batteries

A team of researchers have been experimenting with various sodium-based solutions to replace lithium-ion batteries with significant success. Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) would be advantageous as they would not require as many safeguards due to the more benign nature of sodium versus lithium.

The Surface Pro has faces issues with power management, throttling, backlight bleed, and even noise.

Microsoft defends Surface family after Consumer Reports labels Surface products "unreliable"

Microsoft executive Panos Panay has attempted to defend the reliability of Microsoft's Surface family of products following Consumer Reports's failure to recommend the Surface products based on surveyed high rates of failure.

Chuwi teases a new Lapbook Air which can be mistaken for a Macbook Air

Chuwi have teased a new product which imitates the MacBook Air but with a thin bezel design that allows a 14.1-inch screen. Chuwi claim that the LapBook Air gets as thin as 6 mm, while retaining at least two full sized USB ports and a 3.5 mm headphone jack.

The non-X versions of the Threadripper CPUs would feature reduced boost clocks, but can still be easily overclocked. (Source: AMD)

Motherboard manufacturers list unannounced 1920 Threadripper CPU, other non-X versions could follow

The non-X 1920 Threadripper CPU could be considerably cheaper than the X variant, and even though it could end up with reduced boosts clocks, the multipliers are most likely remaining unlocked to further provide excellent overclocking potential.

Confirmed: Lenovo's AMD ThinkPads A275 and A475 are based on the X270 and T470

When the model-names A275 and A475 surfaced a few weeks ago, it was mere speculation. Now we have the confirmation: These two models are based on the enterprise ThinkPads of the T-Series and X-Series.

The M.2 2230 removable module allows OEMs to provide upgrade options for laptops and other mobile devices. (Source: Toshiba)

Toshiba announces M.2 form factor BG3 Single Package NVMe SSD

The latest BG3 single package SSDs feature the M.2 2230 removable module and will be available in 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB capacities. The NVMe technology provides sequential read speeds of up to 1,520 MB/s.

The key feature of the M5520 anniversary edition is the dark anodized aluminum upper and lower surfaces. (Source: Dell)

The XPS 9560's brother, the Precision 5520, just got a special new color

Dell is celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Precision business workstation line with a cool "limited edition" Precision 5520, sporting new packaging, special wallpapers, and (most importantly) a cool dark anodized aluminum finish.

Nvidia has worked with OEMs like Asus, HP, Powercolor and Razor to provide the external chassis. (Source: Nvidia)

Nvidia is bringing Titan Xp and Quadro external GPU solutions to notebook creative professionals

The Titan Xp solution is intended for gaming as well as demanding appliactions such as Maya and Premier Pro, while the Quadro eGPU mainly focuses on engineering-grade applications and certifications.

Lightweight, elegant, and performant, at least according to Huawei's marketing. The latter is debatable.

Huawei MateBook X exhibits massive throttling

Is it acceptable to refer to a notebook that loses up to 37 % of its initial performance after a few minutes of high load already as performant? We are faced with this conundrum once again with the latest Huawei MateBook X with its innovative MEPCM cooling system. A short excerpt from our extensive review focusing on persistent load.

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New security measures put in place by the TSA could slow down security lines if passengers aren't prepared for the change. (Source: CNBC/Getty Images)

United States airport security could get even slower

Over the next few months, the TSA will introduce a new requirement for passengers to remove all electronic items larger than a smartphone from their bag as they go through airport security. This measure is intended to make it easier for TSA agents to examine items that could conceal dangerous substances.

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Is AMD slowly returning to its glory days from the early 2000s? (Source: AMD)

AMD's Q2 2017 revenue results unveiled - Ryzen steals the show

AMD is well on its way back to profitability, thanks to the Ryzen CPUs, the Vega GPUs and the EPYC datacenter products. Q2 2017 revenue increased 19% over Q2 2016.

The HP Pavilion Power comes only in Shadow Black, but the keyboard can have acid green or ghost white accents. (Source: HP)

HP's new Pavilion Power notebooks get the GTX 1050 treatment

HP has released new Pavilion Power notebooks powered by Intel's Core i5-7300HQ or the i7-7700HQ, and all models come standard with the GTX 1050 GPU. Prices start at US$949.99.

The i9-7920X features 16.5 MB of level 3 cache compared to i9-7900X’s 13.75 MB. (Source: Intel)

Intel quietly announces the i9-7920X CPU in response to AMD's Threadripper

Intel's latest CPU price list mentions the i9-7920X as a 12-core / 24-thread processor with a base clock of 2.9 GHz and an MSRP of US$1,189. The core count make it a direct competitor for AMD's Ryzen Threadripper 1920X, even though the AMD CPU costs US$799.

Even though the new models are part of the Asus ultrabook family, they come equipped with the desktop version of Nvidia's GTX 1050 GPU. (Source: Asus)

Asus releases the VivoBook Pro 15 ultrabooks with GeForce GTX 1050

Three new Asus ultrabook models come equipped with Nvidia's GTX 1050 GPU. Prices range from US$799 for the Intel's i5-7300HQ CPU version up to US$999 for the i7-7700HQ version.

More notebooks sporting Intel 8th generation CPUs spotted through benchmark listings

In addition to the Acer Swift 3, we can now expect Lenovo, HP, and Asus to soon announce new Coffee Lake SKUs in their respective Yoga, Spectre, and Zenbook families of Ultrabooks.

The device we're all waiting for just got a little further away. (Source: The Ledger Gazette)

Microsoft crushes hopes of current Windows Phone users — no full Windows 10 coming to existing handsets

A Microsoft exec has clarified that Windows 10 on ARM will not be coming to any existing Windows phones, as the OS is designed for a "desktop experience" rather than a phone one.

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