ASRock has just unveiled something rather new with the introduction of its new Side Panel Kit, which is a 13.3-inch LCD that you can install into the side panel of your PC... awesome.

The new ASRock Side Panel Kit

The new ASRock Side Panel Kit is a 13.3-inch IPS-based display with a native 1920 x 1080 (1080p) resolution, 16:9 aspect ratio, and 60Hz refresh rate. The new side panel kit measures in at 293.76 x 165.24 (H x V) with an anti-glare LED that has a maximum brightness of 300 cd per m2, and a contrast ratio of 800:1.

If you don't have the space for another monitor on your desk and really wanted one, the 13.3-inch IPS panel will be a great addition to your PC, whether it's being used for productivity, or just to show your PC off in a totally new way. If you've got RGB lighting and a wicked gaming PC setup, obviously the new ASRock Side Panel Kit is going to hide that, but you already knew that.

Bykski has unleashed a monster new cooling system in the new B-1080-CEC-X which is capable of cooling not one, not two, not three, but four graphics cards at once. Yes, you read that right... it can cool 4 x GPUs at the same time.

Bykski's new B-1080-CEC-X cooling system

The new Bykski B-1080-CEC-X is a mammoth unit with 9 x 120mm fans attached to a huge radiator, with a pre-installed pump, radiator, and reservoir. All you're going to need are some G1/4 fittings, some coolant of course, and 4 x graphics cards if you've got them sitting around, or building a monster new rig... not for gaming, obviously.

Once you've got the Bykski B-1080-CEC-X installed, you can actually plug it into a CPU waterblock or liquid cooler for your graphics cards -- up to the 4 x graphics cards as stated above. Bykski says that the cooling capacity can handle up to 2000W of "antipyretic capacity" so you can run a cluster of graphics cards in a monster workstation PC without a single thermal issue... very cool, pun intended.

Sycom has just announced its new GeForce RTX 4090 and GeForce RTX 4080 graphics cards, with some AIO cooling and a built-in spirit level, if that's your thing.

Sycom's new GeForce RTX 4090 with a built-in spirit level

The Japanese custom PC maker has used a virtually identical cooler to the MANLI Gallardo range of GeForce RTX graphics cards, where it even has the same logo... but with the same cooler, Sycom has used a built-in spirit level and AIO cooler with some Noctua fans attached.

Sycom has replaced the GPU vapor chamber with an in-house AIO liquid cooling kit that is attached to an external radiator, but it doesn't match the style and aesthetics of the graphics card itself, which is kind of disappointing. The Japanese custom PC maker is using their semi-custom design inside of their pre-built G-Master Hydro gaming PCs, where customers can choose between NVIDIA's new flagship AD102-based GeForce RTX 4090, and the second-fastest Ada Lovelace-based GPU in the AD103-powered GeForce RTX 4080.

MSI has teased its upcoming Project 491C with a pre-CES 2023 announcement, with Project 491C being a new super ultra-wide gaming monitor.

The new MSI Project 491C is the world's first super ultra-wide curved gaming monitor, with a 240Hz refresh rate and QD-OLED panel. There's nothing else known about the monitor, other than it rocking a huge 49-inch QD-OLED panel at 240Hz, but we don't know the native resolution yet: but we're hoping for 5120 x 1440.

MSI has already secured itself a CES Innovation Award that we'll hear and see more about at CES 2023, which is right around the corner in early January 2023. We should get all of the details we need, but we need to know that native resolution and pricing before we can pass final judgement (as well as the usual hands-on and eyes-on with MSI's upcoming Project 491C super ultra-wide gaming monitor).

Intel's new NUC 13 Extreme "Raptor Canyon" PC is out in the wild, where it has been tested with NVIDIA's new flagship GeForce RTX 4090 Founders Edition graphics card... and man, what a combo it creates.

Intel's new NUC 13 Extreme "Raptor Canyon" with the GeForce RTX 4090 Founders Edition installed

Inside, Intel ships the NUC 13 Extreme "Raptor Canyon" SFF system features an Intel Core i9-13900K processor with 24 cores and 32 threads of Raptor Lake CPU power, and an ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 3080 Ti graphics card. Now, the GeForce RTX 3080 Ti isn't a performance slouch, but upgrading to the GeForce RTX 4090 inside of a system this small is a force to be reckoned with.

We already know that the Intel NUC 13 Extreme supports a triple-slot graphics card, but the chunky GeForce RTX 4090 Founders Edition is truly something else. You've already got 32GB of DDR5-4800 from Kingston, and 3 x M.2 SSD slots for some super-fast storage, which can be backed up by a 2.5-inch SATA drive for more storage capacity if needed.

Activision-Blizzard games will not appear on any subscription services if the merger with Microsoft does not go through.

In a recent 111-page response letter to UK regulators, Microsoft reveals some rather interesting details about Activision's thoughts on subscriptions. According to Microsoft, who cites internal data and sworn testimony from executives, Activision has no plans to bring its big mainline games to a subscription service if the merger is not approved.

This is particularly interesting because of a pre-existing deal that Activision made with Sony. Some time ago Activision had signed a big multi-year marketing and licensing deal with Sony that offered exclusive Call of Duty content on PlayStation. Part of that contract stipulated that Activision could not release Call of Duty on Game Pass. According to Microsoft's recent statements to the CMA, Activision had no plans to release Call of Duty (or any of its big games) to Game Pass anyway.

Microsoft has suggested that Sony disrupt disrupt a business model that has delivered nearly 10 years of success in order to boost the value of PlayStation Plus.

Right now both Sony and Microsoft are going head-to-head with the Activision merger. Sony is arguing against the deal and says it will "threaten the gaming ecosystem," where as Microsoft argues the deal is great for consumers and competition. One of the main arguments is that Sony's PlayStation Plus will have a hard time competing should Activision games become offered exclusively to Game Pass and not available on PS Plus.

So what is Sony to do? Microsoft says that, at minimum, Sony could offer day-and-date releases of key first-party and third-party games on PlayStation Plus. In other words, Microsoft is advising Sony to essentially break the so-called "virtuous cycle" that has helped sustain the multi-billion dollar PlayStation empire.

Neither Sony nor Microsoft are willing to allow either company's competing services on their respective platforms.

Sony's latest response to the Microsoft-Activision merger reveals interesting new information. Sony tells UK regulatory body the CMA that Microsoft will not allow PlayStation Plus on Xbox, which presumably means the company tried to offer its subscription service on Microsoft's ecosystem.

Microsoft had likewise previously offered to bring Game Pass to Sony's platform, suggesting that PlayStation gamers could still access any content that would theoretically be Game Pass-exclusive and thereby circumventing one of the CMA's theories of harm arguments against the Microsoft-Activision merger.

Microsoft's recent comments about Grand Theft Auto 6's release date are based on rumors, not concrete information.

Microsoft recently made a 111-page response arguing why it should be allowed to merge with Activision. That document, which about as long as a novella by Stephen King, outlines a ton of information regarding the games industry, key metrics, and new releases. One of the games mentioned in Microsoft's response is a potential release year for Rockstar Games' massively anticipated GTA 6.

"The highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI is expected to be released in 2024," Microsoft wrote. But like everything else in this document, we have to check the sources. As it turns out, Microsoft--more specifically, Microsoft's lawyer--is directly basing this statement on a rumor post from TechRadar. Therefore it can't be taken as fact, or as something that Microsoft believes. Counsel is simply stating that the industry, analysts, and gamers believe it to be the case because of this article--not that Microsoft believes it to be the case.

If Microsoft is allowed to merge with Activision, then Xbox will become a "one stop shop" for shooter video games, Sony has told regulators.

Sony's latest response to the Microsoft-Activision merger has made some new arguments against the deal. Sony's core argument boldly claims the merger would threaten the games industry during a pivotal point, but more specific arguments include Microsoft acquiring a much larger share in the very lucrative shooter genre.

Sony has told the UK's Competition and Markets Authority that Microsoft would essentially hold too many popular FPS franchises following the Activision merger, including Call of Duty, which dominates the premium console shooter space with over $31 billion in revenues generated to date. Other franchises would include Overwatch, which certifiably became a billion-dollar series in 2017, joining other wholly-owned Xbox megahits like Halo.