V-Color has launched several EXPO-certified DDR5 RDIMM memory kits for AMD's Ryzen Threadripper 7000 Pro and non-Pro platforms. The new RDIMM memory kits, which only come in an eight-DIMM configuration, will enable workstation users to push the limits on the WRX90 platform with frequencies up to DDR5-7200 and memory kit capacities up to a staggering 768 GB (8 x 96 GB).

These are your typical run-of-the-mill modules without the fancy heatsinks and flashy RGB lighting. The recipe for the RDIMMs revolves around a 10-layer PCB paired with SK hynix's DRAM chips. And as the Threadripper platforms are all one DIMM per channel (1DPC) designs, V-Color's octo-kits are intended to populate all the memory slots on the WRX90 motherboard in one go.

V-Color is offering their RDIMM kits in several capacities and frequencies, with kit capacities ranging from 128 GB (8 x 16 GB) up to 768 GB (8 x 96 GB), while clockspeeds start at DDR5-5600 and top out at DDR5-7200.

Typical for RDIMM kits, the maximum frequency will vary depending on the memory kit capacity. There are two factors to consider: binning costs and achieving stability at faster frequencies on higher capacities is more challenging for the processor. Ryzen Threadripper 7000 Pro and non-Pro chips officially support DDR5-5200 memory modules. Anything higher is overclocking; stability depends on the processor's integrated memory controller (IMC) quality. DDR5-7200 is only available on V-Color's 128 GB, 192 GB, and 256 GB memory kits. Meanwhile, the 512 GB and 768 GB memory kits top out at DDR5-6000.

The DDR5-5600 and DDR5-6000 memory kits are the only ones rated to run at a relatively modest 1.25 V. The higher-end ones require 1.40 V due to the higher frequency and tighter memory timings. The memory timings on V-Color's RDIMM memory kits are decent, though they're far from rivaling premium DDR5 mainstream memory kits. The DDR5-5600 memory kit has 36-38-38-38-80 timings, whereas the DDR5-6000 and DDR5-6400 memory flaunts 32-39-39-102 timings. At the same time, V-Color binned the DDR5-6600 and DDR5-6800 memory kits for 34-46-46-92 and the DDR5-7000 and DDR5-7200 memory kits for 34-43-43-102 and 36-46-46-112, respectively.

V-Color's RDIMM products are overclocked memory kits with a limited lifetime warranty. They come with AMD EXPO support to facilitate one-click memory overclocking. The memory kits are built specifically for the WRX90 platform but should work on Intel platforms (your mileage will vary, of course). Regarding the QVL, V-Color has validated the brand's overclocked RDIMMs on the Asus Pro WS WRX90E-Sage SE and the ASRock WRX90 WS Evo, motherboards that cost over $1,000.

The 128 GB DDR5-5600 memory kit is the most affordable out of the lot, with an MSRP of $1,049.99, whereas the 192 GB counterpart sells for $1,579.99. At the other end of the spectrum, the flagship 768 GB DDR5-6000 memory kit has an hefty $4,919.99 price tag. V-Color's RDIMM memory kits are up for pre-order on the company's online store, and the vendor will ship orders on March 15. The memory kits will be available worldwide through official distribution partners on the same date.

Today NVIDIA has brought variable refresh rate support to its GeForce Now cloud gaming service. The company initially promised variable refresh support on GeForce Now back in early January during CES, and has seemingly waited so that it could launch alongside GeForce Now Day Passes, which are also now available.

Variable refresh rate (VRR) technologies, including NVIDIA's own G-Sync, have been around for around a decade now, and allow a monitor to synchronize its refresh rate to the instantaneous framerate of a game. This synchronization prevents screen tearing, when two or more frames are present on a display at the same time. Without a VRR technology, gamers either have to tolerate the visual incongruity of screen tearing or enable V-Sync, which solves screen tearing by locking the framerate to the refresh rate (or a fraction thereof). VRR became popular because V-Sync added latency and could depress framerates due to it effectively being a framerate limiter.

Dubbed "Cloud G-Sync", NVIDIA touts not only a screen tearing-free experience for GeForce Now thanks to variable refresh rate support, but also lower latency thanks to “varying the stream rate to the client, driving down total latency on Reflex-enabled games.” Prior to VRR’s debut on GeForce Now, users either had to enable V-Sync in-game, enable a stream-level V-Sync setting that had the benefit of not locking the game framerate, or accept screen tearing. GeForce Now Ultimate members will also be able to pair VRR with Reflex-powered 60 FPS and 120 FPS streaming modes.

According to NVIDIA’s technical documentation, variable refresh rate support on GeForce Now can work with both Mac and Windows PCs hooked up to a VRR-capable monitor. This includes G-Sync monitors on Windows, as well as VESA AdaptiveSync/FreeSync monitors, HDMI 2.1 VRR displays, and even Apple ProMotion displays, such as the panels built into their recent MacBook Pro laptops. The biggest compatibility hurdle at this time is actually on the GPU side of matters; Windows machines need an NVIDIA GPU to use VRR with GeForce Now. Intel and AMD GPUs are "not supported at this time."

Although G-SYNC originally came out in 2013 and GeForce Now has been available since 2015, the two never intersected until now. It’s not clear why NVIDIA waited so long to bring G-Sync to GeForce Now; the company’s original announcement merely states “newly improved cloud G-SYNC technology goes even further,” implying that it wasn’t possible before but doesn’t exactly explain why.

Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA), the organizer of Computex, has announced that Pat Gelsinger, chief executive of Intel, will deliver a keynote at Computex 2024 on June 4, 2024. Focusing on the trade show's theme of artificial intelligence, he will showcase Intel's next-generation AI-enhanced products for client and datacenter computers.

According to TAITRA's press release, Pat Gelsinger will discuss how Intel's product lineup, including the AI-accelerated Intel Xeon, Intel Gaudi, and Intel Core Ultra processor families, opens up new opportunities for client PCs, cloud computing, datacenters, and network and edge applications. He will also discuss superior performance-per-watt and lower cost of ownership of Intel's Xeon processors, which enhance server capacity for AI workloads.

The most intriguing part of Intel's Computex keynote will of course be the company's next-generation AI-enhanced products for client and datacenter computers. At this point Intel is prepping numerous products that pose a lot of interest, including the following:

• Arrow Lake and Lunar Lake processors made on next-generation process technologies for desktop and mobile PCs and featuring all-new microarchitectures;
• Granite Rapids CPUs for datacenters based on a high-performance microarchitecture;
• Sierra Forest processors with up to 288 cores for cloud workloads based on codenamed Crestmont energy-efficient cores;
• Gaudi 3 processors for AI workloads that promise to quadruple BF16 performance compared to Gaudi 2.
• Battlemage graphics processing units.

All of these products are due to be released in 2024-2025, so Intel could well demonstrate them and showcase their performance advantages, or even formally launch some of them, at Computex. What remains to be seen is whether Intel will also give a glimpse at products that are further away, such as Clearwater Forest and Falcon Shores.

Marvell this week introduced its new IP technology platform specifically tailored for custom chips for accelerated infrastructure made on TSMC's 2nm-class process technologies (possibly including N2 and N2P). The platform includes technologies essential for developing cloud-optimized accelerators, Ethernet switches, and digital signal processors.

"The 2nm platform will enable Marvell to deliver highly differentiated analog, mixed-signal, and foundational IP to build accelerated infrastructure," said Sandeep Bharathi, chief development officer at Marvell. "Our partnership with TSMC on our 5nm, 3nm and now 2nm platforms has been instrumental in helping Marvell expand the boundaries of what can be achieved in silicon."

The 2nm platform is built on Marvell's extensive IP portfolio, which includes advanced SerDes capable of speeds beyond 200 Gbps, processor subsystems, encryption engines, SoC fabrics, and high-bandwidth physical layer interfaces. These IPs are crucial for developing and producing a range of devices, such as custom compute accelerators and optical interconnect digital signal processors. These are becoming common building blocks for AI clusters, cloud data centers, and other infrastructures supporting machines used for AI and HPC workloads.

While these IPs are vital for a variety of processors, DSPs, and networking gear, developing them from scratch—especially for TSMC's 2nm-class process technologies that rely on gate-all-around Nanosheet transistors—is hard, time-consuming, and sometimes inefficient, both from a die space and economics point of view. This is where Marvell's IP portfolio promises to be very useful.

Marvell does not outright say that its TSMC 2nm-certified platform is silicon-proven, but given the fact that TSMC has been working with IP providers over N2-compatible IPs for quite some time, it is reasonable to expect that at least some of Marvell's popular IPs are.

"We take a modular approach to semiconductor design R&D, focusing first on qualifying foundational analog, mixed-signal IP and advanced packaging that can be used across a broad spectrum of devices," Bharathi said. "This allows us to bring innovations such as process manufacturing advances faster to market."

Meanwhile, Marvell is not part of TSMC's Open Innovation Platform and OIP's IP Alliance, so it is unclear whether the company's N2-compatible IPs will be part of TSMC's TSMC9000 IP program, which greatly simplifies IP choices for chip designers.

"TSMC is pleased to collaborate with Marvell in pioneering a platform for advancing accelerated infrastructure on our 2nm process technology," said Kevin Zhang, senior vice president of business development at TSMC. "We are looking forward to our continued collaboration with Marvell in the development of leading-edge connectivity and compute products utilizing TSMC's best-in-class process and packaging technologies."

Source: Marvell

Once the domain of external, bus-powered hard drives, these days the market for external storage has been almost completely consumed by portable SSDs. Rapid technological advancements in NAND flash technology (including the advent of 3D NAND) has allowed their capacity to eclipse 2.5-inch HDDs, all the while multiple improvements in host interface speeds (such as the move from USB 2.0 to 3.0, and onwards to 3.2 Gen 2 / Gen 2x2 / USB4) has made portable SSDs faster and more reliable than the hard drives they replace. All of which has helped to make portable SSDs the go-to solution for external storage, both big and small.

For our latest storage buyer's guide, we've rounded up some of the best portable SSDs we've looked at in the past couple of years. What's hot, what's not, and what's a good deal while still offering reasonable performance? We break that down and make our picks for the best portable SSDs on the market today.

SiPearl, a processor designer supported by the European Processor Initiative, is about to start shipments of its very first Rhea processor for high-performance computing workloads. But the company is already working on its successor currently known as Rhea-2, which is set to arrive sometimes in 2026 in Exascale supercomputers.

SiPearl's Rhea-1 datacenter-grade system-on-chip packs 72 off-the-shelf Arm Neoverse V1 cores designed for HPC and connected using a mesh network. The CPU has an hybrid memory subsystem that supports both HBM2E and DDR5 memory to get both high memory bandwidth and decent memory capacity as well as supports PCIe interconnects with the CXL protocol on top. The CPU was designed by a contract chip designer and is made by TSMC on its N6 (6 nm-class) process technology.

The original Rhea is to a large degree a product aimed to prove that SiPearl, a European company, can deliver a datacenter-grade processor. This CPU now powers Jupiter, Europe's first exascale system that uses nodes powered by four Rhea CPUs and NVIDIA's H200 AI and HPC GPUs. Given that Rhea is SiPearl's first processor, the project can be considered as fruitful.

With its 2^nd generation Rhea processors, SiPearl will have to develop something that is considerably more competitive. This is perhaps why Rhea-2 will use a dual-chiplet implementation. Such a design will enable SiPearl to pack more processing cores and therefore offer higher performance. Of course, it remains to be seen how many cores SiPearl plans to integrate into Rhea 2, but at least the CPU company is set to adopt the same design methodologies as AMD and Intel.

Given the timing for SiPearl's Rhea 2 and the company's natural with to preserve software compatibility with Rhea 1, it is reasonable to expect the processor to adopt Arm's Neoverse V3 cores for its second processor. Arm's Neoverse V3 offer quite a significant uplift compared to Neoverse V2 (and V1) and can scale to up to 128 cores per socket, which should be quite decent for HPC applications in 2025 – 2026.

While SiPearl will continue developing CPUs, it remains to be seen whether EPI will manage to deliver AI and HPC accelerators that are competitive against those from NVIDIA, AMD, and Intel.

Be quiet! is renowned for its dedication to excellence in the realm of PC components, specializing in products that emphasize silence and performance. The brand's product lineup is extensive, encompassing high-quality power supply units (PSUs), cases, and cooling solutions, including air and liquid coolers. Be quiet! is particularly renowned for trying to achieve whisper-quiet operation across all its products, making it a favorite among PC enthusiasts who prioritize a noiseless computing environment. The brand's portfolio reflects a dedication to meeting the diverse needs of tech aficionados and professionals, with an array of products that emphasize noise reduction and efficiency.

This review shines a spotlight on the Be quiet! Pure Power 12 M 650W PSU, a standout product in Be quiet!'s PSU collection that illustrates the company's attitude towards product design. The Pure Power 12 M series is designed to provide dependable performance and quiet operation, catering to users who demand a good balance of power efficiency and acoustics with reliability and value. This model, in particular, strives to offer a compelling blend of performance and quality, making it an attractive option for individuals seeking a PSU that aligns with the requirements of both entry-level and advanced PC builds.

Our avid readers tend to look at microelectronics made using leading edge process technologies, which in case of Intel means usage of High-NA extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography a couple of years down the road. But the vast majority of chips that we are going to use in the next couple of years will be made using Low-NA EUV litho tools. This is why the latest announcement from ASML is particularly notable.

As spotted by Computerbase, ASML this week has delivered its first updated Twinscan NXE:3800E lithography machine for fab installation. The latest iteration of the company's line of 0.33 numerical aperture (Low-NA) lithography scanners, the NXE:3800E is aimed at making chips on 2nm and 3nm-class technologies.

Chipmakers have a need for speed! The first TWINSCAN NXE:3800E is now being installed in a chip fab. 🔧

With its new wafer stages, the system will deliver leading edge productivity for printing advanced chips. We're pushing lithography to new limits. 💪 pic.twitter.com/y5hJg5Tdot

— ASML (@ASMLcompany) March 12, 2024

ASML has not published the full details on the capabilities of the machine, but previous roadmaps from the company have indicated that the updated 3800E would offer both improved wafer throughput and increased wafer alignment precision – what ASML refers to as "matched-machine overlay". Based on that roadmap, ASML is expecting to crack 200 wafers per hour with their fifth-generation low-NA EUV scanner, which would mark a significant milestone for the technology, as one of the drawbacks of EUV lithography since the beginning has been its lower throughput rate compared to today's extremely well-researched and tuned deep UV (DUV) machines.

For ASML's logic and memory fab customers – a list these days that is only around half a dozen companies in total – the updated scanner will help these foundries continue to improve and expand their production of leading-edge chips. Even with major fabs in the midst of scaling-up their operations with additional facilities, improving throughput at existing facilities remains an important factor in meeting capacity demands, as well as bringing down production costs (or at least, keeping them in check).

Though as EUV scanners don't come cheap – a typical scanner costs some $180 million and the Twinscan NXE:3800E will likely cost more – it'll take a while to fully amortize these machines. In the meantime, shipping a faster generation of EUV scanners will have significant financial implications for ASML, who is already enjoys the status (and criticism) that comes from being the sole supplier of such a critical tool.

Following the 3800E, ASML has at least one more generation of low-NA EUV scanners in the works, with the development of the Twinscan NXE:4000F. That's expected to be released around 2026.

Source: ASML (via Computerbase)

ARCTIC GmbH, originally known as Arctic Cooling, first burst onto the PC cooling scene in 2001 and has since maintained its stature as a leader in cooling technologies. The company made its mark with top-notch thermal compounds and has since kept its focus on cooling solutions while also expanding into other tech accessories, including advanced monitor mounts and audio products.

With the introduction of the Liquid Freezer III series, ARCTIC has taken another significant step forward in the cooling market. This new lineup builds upon the success of the previous Liquid Freezer II series, the great price-to-performance ratio of which made it a highly popular product. Today, we're delving into ARCTIC's latest offerings with the Liquid Freezer III series and, specifically, the 280 A-RGB White model. We'll assess the features, quality, and thermal performance of the AIO (All-In-One) cooler of the series ARCTIC is hoping to dominate the bulk of the mainstream market with.

Corsair has launched its latest Hydro X series iCUE LINK XH405i RGB custom open-loop water cooling kits, replacing the older XH305i kits from 2020. The new kits feature Corsair’s latest XD5 RGB ELITE pump and reservoir, the XC7 RGB ELITE CPU waterblock, three QX120 RGB fans, and a 360mm radiator. The pump, waterblock, and fans all have the namesake iCUE LINK integration, which Corsair has been pushing throughout its entire recent generation of products.

The biggest hardware-related difference between XH405i kits and previous generation XH305i kits is undoubtedly the inclusion of iCUE LINK hardware, which Corsair recently debuted with its iCUE LINK H150i RGB AIO cooler. iCUE LINK allows individual Corsair cooling components within a system to be directly connected, primarily cutting down on cable clutter, but also offering the promise of more and finer-grained control over individual components via the iCUE LINK Hub at the center of a system. For instance, each individual iCUE LINK-compatible fan connected to the iCUE LINK hub can be set to its own speed, rather than either requiring each fan to be connected to its own fan header on the motherboard or setting a common speed for all fans via a multi-headed cable.

The XH405i is offered in two themes: stealth gray and white. Outside of cosmetics, the two variants are the same and come with a combined pump and reservoir, a CPU waterblock compatible with the AM5 and LGA 1700 sockets, three 120mm fans, a 360mm radiator, and a central iCUE LINK Hub. The kits also come with all the accessory components needed to build a custom loop: hardline tubing, a bending kit, fittings, and XL8 clear-colored coolant. These kinds of kits are usually geared towards newcomers to custom liquid cooling and users who need a brand-new loop but don’t want to spend much time scouring for individual components.

Separately, Corsair has also launched the iCUE LINK XG7 RGB GPU waterblock for GeForce RTX 4090 and 4080 Super graphics cards. As is typically the case for full-coverage GPU waterblocks, the XG7 has specific hardware compatibility requirements, and as a result Corsair is making four versions of the waterblock. The company is targetting ASUS’s ROG STRIX and TUF cards, as well as MSI’s SUPRIM and GAMING TRIO lineups, offering RTX 4090 and RTX 4080 blocks for each of those card families. Just like the other components in the XH405i kit, the GPU waterblock is also iCUE LINK-equipped.

Aimed at a premium market, the full XH405i kit doesn't come cheap: Corsair has set the MSRP at $700 for the complete cooling collection. Meanwhile, the XG7 GPU waterblock is priced at $230 for all four models.

The iCUE LINK XH405i kit is available now at Newegg and Amazon, as well as through Corsair’s own website.

Wi-Fi 7 products have slowly started gaining market traction, particularly in the residential market (home consumer segment). The SMB / SME / enterprise market is traditionally a few quarters behind this, given the longer validation cycles. Earlier this year, Ubiquiti Networks introduced their first Wi-Fi 7 access point - the U7 Pro. Today, NETGEAR Business is launching the WBE750 Wi-Fi 7 Access Point (AP) in the Pro Wi-Fi lineup for businesses with heavy wireless Internet use.

The benefits of Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) have been covered in multiple pieces earlier. The presence of a relatively interference-free 6 GHz band, wider channels (up to 320 MHz wide), and technical improvements to address interference and latency make the new standard an attractive upgrade for Wi-Fi users.

Unlike the Ubiquiti UniFi U7 Pro's entry-level focus (with 2x2 configurations in the 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz bands), the WBE750 opts for 4x4 configurations in each of the three bands. Correspondingly, the AP is able to support more concurrent connected clients (600 vs. 300), and obviously provide more bandwidth (18.4 Gbps vs. 9.2 Gbps theoretical). The pricing is also correspondingly higher ($700 vs. $190). The WBE750 also incorporates a NBASE-T (10 GbE / 5 GbE / 2.5 GbE / 1 GbE) RJ-45 uplink port with PoE++ support. Eight SSIDs are supported per channel.

Similar to other networking equipment vendors in this space, NETGEAR is also pushing for recurring subscription-based revenue with the product. A 1-year subscription to the single-pane cloud-based management interface (NETGEAR Insight) is included in the $700 purchase price.

NETGEAR Insight is particularly useful for professional installers who can manage multiple sites on the go, even from a mobile device.

The WBE750 joins a number of other Wi-Fi 6 / 6E APs in the Pro Wi-Fi line serving a wide range of deployment requirements. NETGEAR has been introducing multiple products in their Insight-manageable line over the last few quarters. As a result, they are able to offer a total network solution (gateways / routers / switches / APs) that can be managed from a single pane. As part of its Pro focus, NETGEAR is offering free site design services to installers along with expert technical support. NETGEAR's Pro WiFi Design Services (network design, product selection guide, troubleshooting, and training support) aims to be a key differentiation aspect compared to other similar offerings in the SMB / SME market.

The WBE750 is powered by a Qualcomm solution - the Waikiki Wi-Fi 7 chipset incorporated in the Networking Pro 1220 platform.

The new WBE750 AP is available for purchase today for $700.

For the last several generations of desktop processors from Intel, the company has released a higher clocked, special-edition SKU under the KS moniker, which the company positions as their no-holds-barred performance part for that generation. For the 14th Generation Core family, Intel is keeping that tradition alive and well with the announcement of the Core i9-14900KS, which has been eagerly anticipated for months and finally unveiled for launch today. The Intel Core i9-14900KS is a special edition processor with P-Core turbo clock speeds of up to 6.2 GHz, which makes it the fastest desktop processor in the world... at least in terms of advertised frequencies it can achieve.

With their latest KS processor, Intel is looking to further push the envelope on what can be achieved with the company's now venerable Raptor Lake 8+16 silicon. With a further 200 MHz increase in clockspeeds at the top end, Intel is looking to deliver unrivaled desktop performance for enthusiasts. At the same time, as this is the 4th iteration of the "flagship" configuration of the RPL 8+16 die, Intel is looking to squeeze out one more speed boost from the Alder/Raptor family in order to go out on a high note before the entire architecture starts to ride off into the sunset later this year. To get there, Intel will need quite a bit of electricity, and $689 of your savings.

Western Digital has introduced its new series of SSDs aimed at mainstream PCs, which combine high performance and low cost. The Western Digital PC SN5000S family of DRAM-less drives uses the company's 3D QLC NAND memory and an in-house-developed platform, so the SSDs promise to be relatively inexpensive. Meanwhile, their sequential read performance reaches 6,000 MB/s.

Western Digital's PC SN5000S drives are based on the company's latest in-house controller, which supports a PCIe 4.0 x4 host interface and BICS6 3D QLC NAND memory. The controller fully supports Western Digital's nCache 4.0 HybridSLC technology with endurance monitoring to ensure decent performance, RSA-3K and SHA-384 encryption, and TCG Opal 2.02 and Pyrite security capabilities.

On the capacity side, Western Digital's PC SN5000S drives will be available in 512 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB configurations. As for performance, the 2TB PC SN5000S is rated for up to 6,000 MB/s sequential read speed, up to 5,600 MB/s sequential write speed, up to 750,000 random read IOPS, and up to 900,000 random write IOPS. The SSDs will be available in M.2-2230 and M.2-2280 form factors.

When it comes to endurance, Western Digital rates 2TB PC SN5000S at 600 terabytes to be written, 1TB version at 300TBW, and 512GB at 150TBW, which is significantly lower compared to entry-level SSDs with similar capacities (yet higher compared to WD Green-branded drives). 

While the performance of Western Digital's PC SN5000S hardly impresses our avid readers, who tend to look at the highest-end SSDs, 1TB and 2TB versions offer considerably higher performance than most entry-level drives on the market today. What disappoints is the relatively low endurance of Western Digital's new SSDs compared to entry-level drives from other makers.

Western Digital primarily markets its PC SN5000S solid-state drives for OEMs, where they succeed the company's SN740-series. For PC makers, the drives are fast enough, and perhaps more importantly, they support advanced encryption technologies as well as TCG Opal 2.02 and Pyrite security capabilities, which is crucial for desktops and laptops sold to various U.S. government agencies.

Source: Western Digital

Asus on Thursday said it has released new versions of UEFI BIOS for DDR5-supporting Intel 600/700-series motherboards that enable support for 64 GB DIMMs. As a result, Asus's latest platforms for Intel's 12^th, 13^th and 14^th Generation Core processors with four slots for DIMM slots can now work with up to 256 GB of DDR5 memory, and motherboards with two DIMM slots can now support up to 128 GB of memory.

To gain support for 256 GB of DDR5 memory using 64 GB unbuffered DIMMs, one needs to download the latest version of UEFI BIOS for one of the Intel 600/700-series motherboards listed at the Asus website.

The list of Asus motherboards with an LGA1700 socket supporting 256 GB of DDR5 memory includes 75 boards based on a variety of Intel's 600 and 700-series chipsets, including Intel Z790, H770, B760, Z690, W680, and Q670. Though taking stock of Asus's larger motherboard offerings, this is still a bit shy of covering all of Asus's LGA1700 motherboards, which is nearly 200 models in total. So 64 GB DIMM support has only come to a fraction of their boards, at least thus far.

Otherwise, it is noteworthy that cutting-edge high-capacity DIMMs, such as 32 GB, 48GB, and 64 GB, are typically not available with the same blistering XMP clockspeeds as some of their lower-capacity counterparts, so equipping an Intel system with 256 GB of memory will come at a cost of peak memory bandwidth, on top of the typical DDR5 2 DIMM Per Channel (2DPC) frequency penalty. In fact, the fastest 48 GB modules currently offered by Corsair and G.Skill (which could be used to build systems with 192 GB of memory) top out at 6600 MT/s and 6800 MT/s, respectively. Meanwhile, for now, there are no Intel XMP 3.0-compatible 64 GB DDR5 modules from these two renowned makers.

Ultimately, the prime market for high-capacity UDIMMs at this time is going to be content creators, data scientists, and other workstation-light workloads that need a quarter-terabyte of RAM, and can justify the cost for the leading-edge DIMMs. Otherwise 16 GB and 32 GB DIMMs are likely to remain the sweet spot for the LGA1700 platform for the rest of its lifecycle.

Finally, it should be noted that Asus is also announcing (or rather, reiterating) support for 64 GB DIMMs on their AM5 motherboards. That said, this support is already baked into that platform and BIOSes, and unlike the Intel boards, a BIOS update is not needed.

Asus this week has become the latest PC video card manufacturer to announce a sub-75W video card based on NVIDIA's recently-released low-power GeForce RTX 3050 6GB design. And going one step further for small form factor PC owners, Asus has used NVIDIA's low-power GPU configuration to produce a half-height video card that can fit into low-profile systems.

As Asus puts it, the GeForce RTX 3050 LP BRK 6GB GDDR6 is a 'big productivity in a small package' and for a low-profile dual-slot graphics board, it indeed is. The unit has three display outputs, including a DVI-D, HDMI 2.1, and DisplayPort 1.4a with HDCP 2.3 support, which makes the graphics card s viable option both for a a dual-display desktop and a home theater PC (Nvidia's GA107 graphics processor supports all popular codecs except AV1). Furthermore, a DVI-D output enables the card to drive outdated displays, which even over half a decade after DVI-D was retired, still hang around as spare parts. Meanwhile, because the card only consumes around 70W, it does not require any auxiliary PCIe power connectors, which are at times not available in cheap systems from big PC makers.

Underlying this card is the aforementioned GeForce RTX 3050 6 GB, which uses the GA107 GPU with 2304 CUDA cores, and it comes with 6GB of GDDR6 memory connected to a narrower 96-bit memory bus (down from 128-bits for the full 8GB version. With a lower boost clock of 1470 MHz (1500 MHz in OC mode), the RTX 3050 6GB has reduced computing performance, delivering 6.77 FP32 TFLOPS versus 9.1 FP32 TFLOPS of the full-fledged RTX 3050.

As a result, the low-profile GeForce RTX 3050 6 GB is very much an entry-level card, though the low power requirements for such a card are also what make it special. This should be plenty for low-end gaming – beating out integrated GPUs – though suffice it to say, it's not going to compete with high-end, power-hungry cards either.

With its diminutive size, the Asus GeForce RTX 3050 LP BRK 6 GB GDDR6 looks to be a nice candidate for upgrading cheap systems from OEMs as well as fixing outdated PCs. What remains to be seen is how price competitive it is going to be. The graphics board already has one low-profile rival from MSI — which costs $185 — so Asus is not the only vendor competing here.

The DNA Data Storage Alliance introduced its inaugural specifications for DNA-based data storage this week. This specification outlines a method for encoding essential information within a DNA data archive, crucial for developing and commercializing an interoperable storage ecosystem.

DNA data storage uses short strings of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) called oligonucleotides (oligos) mixed together without a specific physical ordering scheme. This storage media lacks a dedicated controller and an organizational means to understand the proximity of one media subcomponent to another. DNA storage differs significantly from traditional media like tape, HDD, and SSD, which have fixed structures and controllers that can read and write data from the structured media. DNA's lack of physical structure requires a unique approach to initiate data retrieval, which brings its peculiarities regarding standardization. 

To address this, the SNIA DNA Archive Rosetta Stone (DARS) working group, part of the DNA Data Storage Alliance, has developed two specifications, Sector Zero and Sector One, to facilitate the process of starting a DNA archive. 

Sector Zero serves as the starting point, providing minimal details necessary for the archive reader to identify the entity responsible for synthesizing the DNA (e.g., Dell, Microsoft, Twist Bioscience) and the CODEC used for encoding Sector One (e.g., Super Codec, Hyper Codec, Jimbob's Codec). Sector Zero consists of 70 bases: the first 35 bases identify the vendor, and the second 35 bases identify the codec. The information in Sector Zero enables access and decoding of data stored in Sector One. The amount of data stored in SZ is small and fits into a single oligonucleotide.

Sector One expands on this by including a description of the contents, a file table, and parameters required for transferring data to a sequencer. This specification ensures that the main body of the archive is accessible and readable, paving the way for data retrieval. Sector One contains exactly 150 bases and will span multiple oligonucleotides. 

"A key goal of the DNA Data Storage Alliance is to set and publish specifications and standards that allow an interoperable DNA data storage ecosystem to grow," said Dave Landsman, of the DNA Data Storage Alliance Board of Directors. "With the publishing of the Alliance's first specifications, we take an important step in achieving that goal. Sector Zero and Sector One are now publicly available, allowing companies working in the space to adopt and implement."

The DNA Data Storage Alliance is led by Catalog Technologies, Inc., Quantum Corporation, Twist Bioscience Corporation, and Western Digital (though we are unsure whether Western Digital's NAND or HDD division is responsible for developing the specification). Meanwhile, numerous industry giants, including Microsoft, support the DNA Data Storage Alliance.

Source: SNIA

BIOSTAR has launched its AM5-based A620MS motherboard today, bringing a new low-end option for PC users on a budget. Though BIOSTAR has not disclosed what MSRP it the A620MS motherboard will carry, the specifications of the board make it clear that it targets the lowest-end segment of the market, though it makes use of the regular A620 chipset instead of the even less expensive A620A chipset.

The A620MS sports some features typical for mATX A620 boards (which make up the vast majority of current models): two DDR5 DIMM slots that support up to two 48GB sticks, an M.2 PCIe 4.0 slot for SSDs, four SATA III ports, and a PCIe Gen4 x16 slot. The motherboard also has four debug LEDs for diagnosing CPU, RAM, GPU, and booting errors.

Meanwhile the rear I/O features a one gigabit Ethernet port, four USB 3.2 ports, analog audio jacks, two USB 2.0 ports, an HDMI 1.4 port, and DisplayPort 1.2. Though there are some more fully-featured A620 motherboards available with more ports operating at a higher specification, but the rear I/O is more or less par for the course when it comes to A620.

However, there are other things about BIOSTAR’s A620MS that implies it will be quite low-end for an A620 motherboard. It has just eight total voltage regulator modules (VRMs), which appear to be in a 6+2 or 6+1+1 phase configuration. This isn’t as low-end as BIOSTAR could have gone (ASRock offers a 4+1+1 stage board), but it is still very sparing in VRM stages compared to most other A620 motherboards. These VRMs are also not covered by a heatsink, which is also typical for boards in this segment, as they're normally paired with equally chip 65W(ish) chips.

BIOSTAR doesn’t list any official CPU restrictions in either its press release or its specification sheet; instead, the company simply lists the motherboard as compatible with Ryzen 7000 and future Ryzen 8000 processors.

While the market for AM5 motherboards includes plenty of B650(E) and X670(E) models, there’s only a handful of A620 boards in total. On Newegg, there are 14 different motherboards available, and many only differ slightly in respect to things like form factor. The cheapest of these cost $75 to $100, and while BIOSTAR didn’t reveal what price we should expect of its A620MS board, given its specifications, we expect it will land in that same $75 to $100 region.

With the launch of their flagship Snapdragon 8 SoC firmly behind them now, Qualcomm this morning is turning their collective head towards the premium market with the launch of another new Snapdragon 8 family SoC, the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3. The first of Qualcomm’s ‘s’-subseries of down-market parts to be released under the Snapdragon 8 banner, the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 (8sG3) is intended to be a bridge part between the last-gen flagship 8 Gen 2 and current-gen flagship 8 Gen 3, offering a not-quite-flagship experience at a lower price point than Qualcomm’s top SoC. The new SoC is set to be available globally, with the first phones announced this month, though as is often the case for Qualcomm’s “premium” market SoCs, it looks like only Chinese handset OEMs will be picking up the chip, at least initially.

Although Qualcomm prefers to draw comparisons to their current gen flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 is by and large and enhanced version of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. Many of the hardware blocks of the 8G2 have been carried over to the new chip – either in whole or in terms of functionality – a process that is made very easy thanks to the fact that Qualcomm is building the chip on the same TSMC 4nm node as the 8G2 and 8G3. Compared to the 8G2 then, there are two key differentiators for the 8sG3: a newer CPU complex lifted from the 8G3, and official on-device generative AI support.

Starting with the CPU complex, Qualcomm is implementing Arm’s latest generation of Armv9 CPU cores here, meaning a mix of the Cortex-X4, Cortex-A720, and Cortex-A520. Relative to the flagship 8G3, the 8sG3 gives up one of its performance cores for another efficiency core, shifting the design from a 1/5/2 configuration to a 1/4/3 configuration – the same as the 8G2. The 8sG3 also loses some frequency headroom in the process, with the X4 prime core dropping from 3.3GHz to 3.0GHz, and the other CPU cores following similarly along.

Still, the 8sG3 should outperform the 8G2 in CPU tasks, which is the primary reason for replacing the CPU complex at all. Qualcomm is basically looking to offer an 8G2 with better CPU performance and energy efficiency, and using Arm’s latest CPU cores will be how they deliver on that.

Outside of the CPU complex, however, most of the rest of the functional blocks are either lifted from the 8G2, or are the same generation teams of features. This means the 8sG3’s integrated GPU offers hardware raytracing, for example, but not the global illumination support that was introduced for the flagship 8G3. The memory controller is also otherwise identical to the 8G2, with the SoC supporting a maximum of 24GB of LPDDDRX-8400.

The video recording and decoding capabilities of the 8sG3 are a distinct downgrade from the other Snapdragon 8 SoCs, however. Qualcomm has retained their trio of 18-bit Spectra ISPs – so the SoC can support up to 3 cameras – but all 8K support has been excised entirely. Instead, the 8sG3 can only record video at up to 4K, and even then only at 60fps, half the framerate of the 8G3/8G2. Slow-mo video capture has also been altered, as well; Qualcomm lists 1080p240 for this mode rather than 720p960. The higher resolution will no doubt be appreciated, but less so if this means it’s not possible to record above 240fps.

The lack of 8K video support also applies to the SoC’s video decode block, which can only decode videos up to 4K in resolution. Qualcomm has otherwise kept all of the underlying features of the video decode block at parity, however, so the 8sG3 gets support for AV1 decoding, along with Dolby Vision HDR.

Meanwhile, the DSP/NPU situation on the 8sG3 is a mixed bag. Officially, this SoC supports generative AI models (up to 10B parameters in size), something the 8G2 and its NPU were not capable of, and is otherwise only available on the 8G3. However, according to Qualcomm this is not the same generation of NPU IP as on the 8G3, and among other things it lacks support for speculative decoding (and I don’t see any mention of the newer NPU’s micro-tile inferencing improvements). So by all appearances, this is just the 8G2 NPU. Still, Qualcomm has at least rolled out some software/firmware updates to improve its functionality, giving it additional AI functionality right as exuberance for that is through the roof.

Finally, the comms side of the 8sG3 is essentially a slower version of the 8G2. Qualcomm is once again using their Snapdragon X70 integrated modem here, a 5G Release 17-generation design that offers 2x2 MIMO on mmWave, and 4x4 MIMO on sub-6G. Max upload speeds are unchanged, at 3.5Gbps, however max download speeds for the 8sG3 are 5Gbps, half that of the 8G2 (and 8G3). Paired with the X70 modem is Qualcomm’s FastConnect 7800 system, which offers Wi-Fi 7 support with 2x2 MIMO, as well as Bluetooth 5.4. The dual BT antenna feature from the other Snapdragon 8 chips has also made it over for this part.

Overall, the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 is intended to occupy a very specific niche within Qualcomm’s SoC lineup, offering a cheaper alternative to their flagship SoC without giving up too many features. The marketing messaging behind the chip is made somewhat complicated by the fact that last year at this time Qualcomm launched the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 for the premium market, which at least partially overlaps what they’re trying to do with the 8sG3. None the less, Qualcomm insists there’s a market for chips between the Snapdragon 7 series and the flagship Snapdragon 8 SoC, and so here we are.

Absent another 7+ chip this year, it’s hard to see the 8sG3 as anything other than the 7+’s successor. Still, where the 7+ was a souped-up 7, the 8sG3 is clearly a down-market 8, so it has some significant hardware advantages, particularly when it comes to memory bandwidth. It may just be that Qualcomm aimed a bit too low for the premium market with the specs for the 7+, so this is an attempt to aim a bit higher.

In any case, expect to see the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 picked up by many of the usual Chinese handset OEMs, including Honor, iQOO, realme, Redmi and Xiaomi. The first phones are expected to be announced this month.

Gallery: Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 Press Deck

StarTech.com has introduced its latest Thunderbolt 4/USB4 docking station, which has a plethora of ports and supports four display outputs. This makes it suitable for 4Kp60 quad-monitor setups often used for professional applications. The Thunderbolt 4 Quad Display Docking Station can also deliver up to 98W of power to the host, which is enough to feed a high-end laptop, such as Apple's MacBook Pro 16.

StarTech's 15-in-1 docking (132N-TB4USB4DOCK) has pretty much everything that one comes to expect from a dock engineered explicitly for demanding professionals, such as those involved in photography, content creation, video production, and computer-aided design. The unit comes with one Thunderbolt 4/USB 4 port with a 98W power delivery capability to connect to the host, a 2.5 GbE adapter, six USB Type-A ports (three supporting 10 Gbps, two supporting 5 Gbps, and one being USB 2.0 for up to 7.5W charging), one USB Type-C connector (at 10 Gbps), four display outputs (two DP 1.4, two HDMI 2.1), an SD Card reader with UHS-II, a microSD card reader with UHS-II, and a 3.5-mm audio jack. 

The dock's main selling feature is, its support for up to four displays. Of course, this is a valuable capability, but it has a couple of catches. The device can support four 4Kp60 displays when connected to a laptop featuring Intel's 12th or 14th Generation Core processor using a Thunderbolt 4 or USB 4 connector and with DSC enabled. With AMD Ryzen 6000 and Intel's 11th Gen Core-based systems, only three 4Kp60 displays are supported. Meanwhile, with MacBooks, users must get on with two 5Kp60 or one 6Kp60 display. The good news is that the Thunderbolt 4 Quad Display Docking Station requires no drivers and works seamlessly with MacOS, Windows, and ChromeOS.

The docking station has a 180W power supply, so it can simultaneously charge a laptop and power on all the remaining ports.

Thunderbolt 4 and USB 4 docks with rich capabilities are not cheap as they have to pack loads of quite expensive controllers, and StarTech's 15-in-1 docking station is no exception, as it costs $330.99. 

The StarTech.com Thunderbolt 4 Quad Display Docking Station is available for purchase directly from the company and through various IT resellers and distributors such as CDW, Amazon, Ingram Micro, TD SYNNEX, and D&H.