Computer Systems

ORIGIN PC has just launched its new Custom Labs bundles, offering new designs and complete matching sets that combine cutting-edge tech with "unparalleled aesthetics". Check it out:

The new ORIGIN PC Custom Labs arrive in a variety of unique designs, with a sleek and sophisticated Dark Cherry, the delicate and beautiful Cherry Blossom, the mesmerizing Dreamscape, and the bold Tigerstripe Red. These designs are available in versatile cases such as the spacious 5000D, the premium 5000X with tempered glass panels, and the 3500X with a stunning wraparound tempered glass.

It's not just the gaming PC itself, but ORIGIN PC offers a bunch of matching accessories with a controller, wireless keyboard, wireless mouse, and mousepad. Remember, Corsair acquired ORIGIN PC so we have a suite of gorgeously-themed gaming accessories from Corsair which include:

Apple has revealed the second of its Macs for this week of announcements at the close of October, and this time it's the Mac mini M4 to follow the iMac M4 that was unveiled yesterday - with only the MacBook Pro M4 remaining, surely to follow tomorrow.

The Mac mini M4 doesn't have much in the way of surprises up its tiny little sleeve, though, as all the rumors came to fruition - and Amazon actually leaked the spec by accident yesterday.

We're getting a more compact Mac mini, as predicted, measuring 5-inches x 5-inches, with the M4 CPU inside, and the choice of one faster model which has the M4 Pro. The latter sports a 12‑core CPU, 16‑core GPU (and 16-core Neural Engine), with the option to upgrade to a 14-core CPU (and 20-core GPU) at the very top end. Of those 14-cores, 10 are performance and 4 are efficiency cores, so it's a powerful split.

Apple has revealed its new iMac 24-inch with M4 CPU in the first of its Mac-related announcements that are set to run throughout this week (likely up to Halloween).

With the M4 chip inside, Apple tells us that the new iMac is up to 1.7x faster for productivity, and just over twice as fast (2.1x) for demanding workflows (such as photo editing) in comparison to the iMac with M1. Gamers can also expect much better performance with double the frame rates, again compared to the iMac with M1 silicon.

As ever, Apple prefers to compare the newest model to the last release but one, rather than the last-gen iMac (with M3), to ensure that the upgrade looks like a more compelling leap forward. And twice as fast, broadly, certainly is a huge improvement on the iMac M1.

Industry analyst and Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman has teased in his latest edition of the Power On newsletter that Apple is working on a new smart home device that will blend together an iPad and a HomePod.

According to Gurman, the Cupertino company is currently making progress with the development of the new device, which the Bloomberg reporter describes as a "smart home screen". Additionally, Gurman states those wondering about the size of the new device will need to picture something a little smaller than what they are imagining, as it "may be a little smaller than expected." As for specifics, the new Apple device is expected to have a square display that's approximately the size of two iPhone's side-by-side.

The screen is located on the base of the device and is angled, presumably to provide an easier angle for interaction by users. Notably, the physical design of the new device is reminiscent of the iMac G4, which was released in 2002. Gurman writes the base of the new device, just like the iMac G4, will be circular. Additionally, Apple's upcoming smart home device will also have speakers built into the base, which essentially makes the new device an Apple HomePod but with a touchscreen.

AYANEO has been creating highly sought-after portable gaming handhelds and mini PCs for several years - and it feels like the company is always cooking up something tasty. Its products aren't exclusively Windows PC-based; the upcoming Android-based AYANEO Pocket EVO sports a 120 Hz 1080p OLED display powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon G3x Gen 2 Gaming Platform.

The AYANEO Pocket EVO looks incredible, and its stunning design could make it the portable Android device of choice for gamers. But, the company has something else in the works - a brand-new flagship with the codename AYANEO 3. This is the company's new flagship gaming handheld and its third-gen product in this category.

Although we don't have any official looks at the handheld or its technical specifications, that hasn't stopped AYANEO from going all out to hype this thing. The AYANEO 3 will present a "technological leap" forward for gaming handhelds, but it "aims to change the way we interact with games."

SteamOS 3.6.19 is Valve's latest Stable Release of the operating system, which is available on its Steam Deck line of gaming handhelds. And it's a pretty big one, so be sure to update if you've got a Deck. It updates the OS to the more recent Arch Linux base and the Linux kernel to version 6.5 for improved performance, stability, security, and compatibility.

The patch notes for the update are at the end of this article. There's a lot of ground to cover, so we'll give you the highlights. The big one for PC gamers is the new Mesa 24.1 graphics driver, which brings overall improvements to game performance, faster boost times for the handheld, and a more responsive Steam UI.

The presentation has also improved with brightness uniformity for the display and improved color balance at lower brightness levels. Battery life while gaming is also improving specifically for Steam Deck OLED owners, thanks to the latest SteamOS release plugging a 'memory leak.'

If you had any doubts about Apple's intention to launch a bunch of new M4 Macs by the end of October - as strongly rumored for ages - cast those doubts aside now, as the firm has confirmed new devices are coming next week.

Apple's marketing bigwig, Greg Joswiak, announced this on X with a cheeky little pun that we should 'Mac' our calendars for an "exciting week of announcements ahead" starting on Monday morning, October 28.

So, from that we can gather that there isn't going to be a big press event, although when the invites failed to emerge earlier this month, that became clear enough anyway.

GMK has shown off its new EVO-X1 Mini-PC which is powered by AMD's new Ryzen AI HX 370 "Strix Point" APU, as well as an OCulink port for external GPUs.

The new GMK EVO-X1 Mini-PC is larger than the regular-sized 4x4 NUC-sized Mini-PC, where inside we've got the AMD Ryzen AI HX 370 "Strix Point" APU joined by LPDDR5X-7500 memory, and the OCulink connector. The Strix Point APU has a built-in NPU for AI workloads offering up to 50 TOPS of AI performance, while the RDNA 3.5-based Radeon 890M at 2900MHz GPU boost.

The company explained on its website: "GMKtec, together with the continuous winner of the German Red Dot Award, has created the EVO-X1 with dedication, polishing every detail to perfection Creating excellence, exploring and innovating, 'EVO-X1 Evolver Opens up a New Era'. GMKtec EVO-X1 HX370, equipped with AMD Ryzen™ AI 9 HX 370 processor, supports AMD Ryzen™ AI, NPU power up to 50 TOPS, AMD Radeon™ 890M, 16 cores/2900MHZ/RDNA 3.5, LPDDR5X 7500MHz, independent Oculink interface. The new look, stay tuned!".

YEYIAN Gaming has just launched multiple new Gaming PCs powered by Intel's new Core Ultra 200S series "Arrow Lake" processors, check them out:

We have three new configurations that include Premium, Advanced, and Performance-Focused Gaming PCs that feature Intel's new Core Ultra 9, Core Ultra 7, and Core Ultra 5 processors. There are varying amounts of RAM, storage, GPUs, power supplies, and cooling inside of the new YEYIAN gaming PCs, with 12 different configurations to choose from.

YEYIAN's new premium Gaming PC features the flagship Core Ultra 9 285K processor, a higher-end GeForce RTX 4080 16GB graphics card, 32GB of DDR5-6000 RAM, and a 2TB Gen4 SSD. The company includes multiple RGB fans pre-installed into the system, with a meshed pane for increased airflow.

The Kickstarter page for the new Lunar 2-in-1 Foldable Keyboard & Mini PC is now live. The unique device is available starting from $579 USD, and the ultra-compact pocket-sized PC sports some impressive specs. It features the impressive AMD Ryzen 7 8840U processor, with up to 32GB of RAM, 1TB of SSD storage, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth, and around six hours of battery life (or 8 to 10 in light office scenarios). It also has a lightweight build, weighing 800 grams.

The key idea is that you've got a mini PC in the form of a keyboard. You unfold it, place it on a desk, connect it to a display, and you're good to go. The keyboard includes a trackpad, so there's no need for a mouse, and when fully unfolded, it is 29cm long - slightly smaller than a compact TKL keyboard. When folded, this halves to around 15cm with a thickness of 3cm.

The crowdfunding Kickstarter campaign offers several discounted models and configurations, and global shipping is expected to commence in January 2025. The fully decked-out 32GB of RAM and 1 TB storage variant is available for $769.