Sales of personal computers have been sluggish in the recent quarters, which decreased revenue of PC makers and PC hardware manufacturers. Apparently, Intel Corp. has prepared for slow demand for PCs and significantly reduced shipments of its central processing units in the first half of the year, draining inventory at …
Read More »AMD engineer: Developers were given the total freedom with ‘Zen’
The “Zen” micro-architecture is a tremendously important project for Advanced Micro Devices. If the new technology is successful, AMD will become a viable developer of central processing units again. If not, the company will have troubles with surviving. Fortunately, “Zen” is a completely new micro-architecture that promises to be very …
Read More »Nvidia to fetch second-gen HBM memory from Samsung and SK Hynix – Report
As developers of graphics processing units start to use high-bandwidth memory (HBM), manufacturers of graphics cards cease their ability to buy memory directly from DRAM makers. A good news is that Nvidia Corp. intends to buy second-gen HBM from two suppliers, which potentially means flexible pricing. Nowadays manufacturers of graphics …
Read More »Intel, partners to finalize universal stylus standard in December
Intel Corp. and its partners from the Universal Stylus Initiative (USI) plan to finalize the first specification of an active stylus compatible with a variety of devices already this December. The first products featuring the USI 1.0 standard are expected to become available already in late 2015 or early 2016. Different …
Read More »Intel will retain “Broadwell-C” as the best LGA CPU with built-in GPU
Even though Intel Corp.’s future “Skylake” processors with integrated graphics cores are expected to offer very high performance in applications that demand graphics processing horsepower, the company’s current-generation Core i7-5775C and Core i7-5665C “Broadwell” chips will remain the firm’s best offerings for desktops with sockets for quite a while. Intel’s …
Read More »MSI starts to sell its top-of-the-range Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium
Although makers of mainboards tend to start selling their high-end products right after developers of microprocessors introduce their new central processing units, some unique products take longer time to develop. MicroStar International on Friday said that its top-of-the-range Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition mainboard – which features an distinctive silver colour – …
Read More »MSI unveils Night Elf: Inexpensive Intel B150 mainboard for gamers
MicroStar International has unveiled its new mainboard for Intel Corp.’s latest code-named “Skylake” processors that belongs to its Gaming family of platforms designed for gamers, but which costs significantly less than higher-end solutions. The MSI B150M Night Elf mainboard does not support overclocking or other advanced capabilities of modern motherboards. …
Read More »Intel Xeon E5, E7 “Broadwell” CPUs with up to 24 cores due in 2016
Intel Corp. has slightly re-scheduled release dates for its upcoming Xeon E5 v4 and Xeon E7 v4 central processing units for servers. Instead of late 2015, the world’s largest maker of microprocessors will launch its new server CPUs in the first half of 2016. The reasons for the delay are …
Read More »ARM ups expectations: ARMv8 to be in 25% of servers by 2020
ARM Holdings admits that large-scale deployments of servers based on chips powered by its technologies will start only in 2016 or 2017. But while there are almost no commercial ARM servers today, the company is increasing its target market share for 2020. In fact, ARM hopes that in five years …
Read More »Lenovo to merge its servers product lines, drop IBM brands by 2017
Lenovo Group plans to unify its server product lines under one brand in about 1.5 years from now, the company revealed in an interview. The unification of the product lines will result in drop of all IBM brands from all devices the company currently offers. Back in early 2014 Lenovo …
Read More »Intel will begin to sell mainstream ‘Skylake’ CPUs in late September
Even though Intel Corp. has formally introduced code-named “Skylake” microprocessors for desktop computers, many of such central processing units are still not available. Apparently, Intel only intends to start their sales to end-users in late September. It is not a secret that Intel’s latest CPUs for enthusiasts that feature unlocked …
Read More »Intel: Skipping ‘Broadwell’ CPUs for desktops was a mistake
Due to issues with yields, Intel Corp. had to delay mass production of central processing units made using 14nm fabrication process by almost a year. Instead of releasing enthusiast-class processors based on the “Broadwell” micro-architecture in 2014, the company decided to launch new “Haswell” chips with higher clock-rates. Right now, …
Read More »Asrock unveils mainboard for ‘Skylake’ with DDR3 and DDR4 memory slots
Asrock has quietly unveiled a unique mainboard for Intel Corp.’s latest processors code-named “Skylake”, which features both DDR3 and DDR4 memory slots. The motherboard is an affordable platform, but it can be used to build rather high-performance personal computers for gaming. The Asrock B150M Combo-G mainboard for Intel “Skylake” processors in …
Read More »Microsoft to unveil its Windows 10 mobile devices in early October
Microsoft Corp. on Monday sent invitations to an event, where it plans to introduce its mobile devices running Windows 10 operating system. The list of gadgets is expected to include the company’s new Surface tablet, Lumia smartphones and a fitness tracker. “We're eager to share some exciting news about Windows …
Read More »Apple iPhone 6S costs $234 to manufacture, analysts estimate
The latest Apple iPhone 6S costs the company about the same amount of money as predecessors, according to preliminary estimates by analysts from Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Despite of the fact that the new iPhone 6S is significantly different from the iPhone 6, Apple and its manufacturing partners have …
Read More »Intel: Over 800 “Skylake”-based mobile PC designs are incoming
Intel Corp. has done a lot to make its new code-named “Skylake” family of central processing units very competitive across all market segments they will eventually serve. The company also rolled-out an extremely broad lineup of such CPUs for various mobile computers and plans to expand it in the future. …
Read More »Intel, Citigroup: Demand for PCs is stabilizing
Sales of personal computers have been on the decline for several quarters now and the first half of 2015 was particularly bad for the PC supply chain. However, according to Intel Corp. and analysts from Citigroup, the demand for PCs has bottomed and is now stabilizing. Moreover, Intel’s new “Skylake” …
Read More »Apple’s iPad Pro and productivity tablets could be threat for Intel – Analyst
If Apple manages to popularize its iPad Pro tablet among professionals, then over time such devices could expand their market presence and compete against various notebooks and 2-in-1s based on microprocessors from Intel Corp. Even though Apple’s iPad Pro introduced this week leverages Apple iOS ecosystem, the new product does …
Read More »Alienware to upgrade newly bought laptops to ‘Skylake’ for free
Alienware, a division of Dell that sells high-end gaming PCs, has announced that it will upgrade all newly purchased laptops to Intel Corp.’s latest processors free of charge. Alienware is known for its high-performance gaming laptops with exclusive features and capabilities not available from other manufacturers. However, exclusive things take …
Read More »Intel slightly delays introduction of Core i7 “Broadwell-E” processors
Intel Corp. has decided to postpone release of its next-generation high-end desktop microprocessors code-named “Broadwell-E”, based on a media report. The new central processing units will be formally introduced in February or March, 2016, not in January, as expected before. According to excerpts from an Intel’s document published by BenchLife, …
Read More »Zotac Magnus EN970: SFF PC with Core i5 and GeForce GTX 960 3GB
Zotac has introduced its new miniature personal computer designed for gamers. Despite of small form-factor, the Zotac Zbox Magnus EN970 PC can deliver rather high performance in video games thanks to powerful specifications and a unique GeForce GTX 960 graphics adapter with 3GB of memory. The Zotac Zbox Magnus EN970 …
Read More »Tech giants to pay out $415 million in poaching lawsuit
A US District Judge today approved a $415 million settlement in the no-poaching lawsuit levied at several massive tech companies, including Google, Apple and Intel. The class action lawsuit came about after it was discovered that several massive tech companies agreed to not poach employees from one another, which in …
Read More »AMD: We are actively promoting HBM and do not collect royalties
Advanced Micro Devices is currently the only company to use high-bandwidth memory it co-developed with SK Hynix and other partners. While usage of HBM is clearly a competitive advantage that AMD has over its rivals, the company is encouraging others to use the new memory type and does not intend …
Read More »Acer Revo Build: Inexpensive, stackable modular PC
Small form-factor personal computers are gaining popularity these days. One of the drawbacks that modem SFF PCs have is poor upgradeability. Sometimes it is hard to get appropriate components and it is generally hard to install them into a tiny system. Acer Group proposes a stackable PC concept, which makes …
Read More »Asus ROG GX700: World’s first liquid-cooled laptop with 4K IPS LCD
Asustek Computer has announced the world’s first notebook with liquid cooling. The system is designed for gamers and can deliver performance on-par with high-end gaming desktops. Thanks to unique cooling solution and microprocessor with unlocked multiplier, the Asus ROG GX700 notebook even supports serious overclocking capabilities. The unique Asus ROG GX700 …
Read More »Wireless charging, wireless docking and smart sensing will remain exotic PC features
When Intel Corp. revealed first details about its mobile platforms powered by its code-named “Skylake” microprocessors about a year ago, the company said that the new systems would feature a number of innovative technologies, including wireless charging, fast wireless docking, Thunderbolt 3 interconnection, RealSense cameras and so on. But while …
Read More »Kingston introduces DDR3L memory modules for enthusiasts
Although DDR4 memory provides higher bandwidth than DDR3 and has very high overclocking potential, it is also more expensive than its predecessor. However, Intel Corp.’s latest “Skylake” processors officially support only DDR4 and DDR3L, but not DDR3. For those, who do not want to invest in DDR4 now, Kingston Technology …
Read More »Gigabyte unveils high-end Intel Z170-based mini-ITX mainboard
Gigabyte Technology has introduced its new mini-ITX mainboard for Intel Corp.’s “Skylake” processors with premium features. The new platform supports a number of advanced technologies, including Creative SoundBlaster audio enhancements, USB 3.1 type-C port, 802.11ac Wi-Fi and so on. The Gigabyte GA-Z170N-Gaming 5 mainboard based on the Intel Z170 core-logic with …
Read More »Sales of SSDs increase by 3% in the second quarter
Despite of the fact that sales of personal computers are decreasing, shipments of solid-state drives are rising, according to analysts from TrendFocus. Samsung continues to be the world’s largest supplier of NAND flash memory as well as solid-state drives and it is unlikely that this will change any time soon. Sales …
Read More »Alienware updates X51 line up with Skylake
Following on from Dell's refresh of its Alienware gaming laptop line, the X51 slim desktops have also received a hardware update, bringing things over to Intel's latest Skylake platform and even adding in all-in-one water cooling units to keep the temperatures down. The Alienware X51 desktop systems have been around …
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