be quiet! introduces new Zero Wings AI cooling that is fanless and AI controlled
With all facets of society and technology looking to implement AI tools and models to improve almost anything you can think of, AI has now made its way into the PC cooling space. Specifically with be quiet!'s new range of Zero Wings AI cooling, which the company describes as its first AI-supported fan.
be quiet! introduces new Zero Wings AI cooling, image credit: be quiet!
On top of the wingless design that does away with the need for fan blades and the introduction of state-of-the-art Controlled Airflow Technology (CAT) which can actively route air through a system, there's FANOS. An admittedly clever and ominous name for the artificial intelligence that sits at the heart of the Zero Wings AI fan system.
A proprietary AI has been trained to identify hot spots within a PC and direct air in those areas to keep cooling at optimal levels. It's a fascinating system that creates a live heatmap of the PC based on thermal sensors and what be quiet! calls "behavioral analysis of the user's habits." Which we assume means playing intensive PC games that put GPUs and CPUs to the test.
AMD Zen 5 CPUs rumored 2023 launch isn't happening (Intel will be glad to hear)
Earlier this week, our eyebrows climbed a fair distance up our forehead when we spied a rumor that maybe AMD's next-gen Zen 5 CPUs were coming out later this year - but this isn't happening.
It seems Zen 5 chips won't be pitching up later this year, and remain due for arrival in 2024 as per AMD's latest roadmap (Image Credit: AMD)
As we wrote at the time, this seemed like a bolt out of the blue, and very much a stretch in terms of believability (particularly given that leaks would surely have been more prevalent at this stage, if it was true).
The rumor came from GIGABYTE, which published a press release on Ryzen-powered servers in which came a surprise mention that the "next generation of AMD Ryzen desktop processors ... will come out later this year."
Bug lets you overclock AMD Ryzen 5800X3D - but doing so will brick the CPU
Ryzen 5800X3D owners are doubtless aware that their CPU isn't supposed to be manually overclocked, with AMD having locked out the ability to up the voltage.
However tempted you might be, don't experiment with this avenue of overclocking (Image Credit: AMD)
Now, though, it seems there is a possibility to perform such an overclock, but it isn't a feature, rather a bug in ASRock, ASUS, GIGABYTE and MSI's apps, according to reports.
Before we go any further, we should stress the following: Do not use this flaw to experiment with overclocking the Ryzen 5800X3D, as you'll almost certainly nuke the processor irrecoverably.
Microsoft may be rethinking its plan to jam ads into Windows 11's Start menu
Microsoft might have thought better about its apparent plan to push notifications relating to Microsoft Accounts - that effectively look like advertising - in the Windows 11 Start menu.
This is going by findings in a new preview build of Windows 11, and while it doesn't represent the abandonment of the idea, it does at least allow for a way that users can opt out of seeing these notifications (or ads, depending on how you look at them - we'll come back to that point).
Note that this is far from concrete - it's a hidden option in a test build of Windows 11 - but at least it's there in build 23419 (for the Dev channel).
The MacBook Air's display could be about to get smaller
A future MacBook Air could be smaller than the one that is currently on sale. Or, at least, the display that it uses could shrink from the current 13.6-inch panel that is used today.
That's according to a tweet by display analyst Ross Young that was sent to his paid subscribers on the platform. According to Young, the MacBook Air's rumored move to an OLED display technology could bring with it a slightly smaller screen - 13.4 inches down from the current 13.6-inch model that is on sale as the M2 MacBook Air. However, it isn't clear yet whether anyone will notice that shrink in size or if Apple could rejig the layout of the model including the notch.
In that tweet, reported on by MacRumors, Young is said to have added that the MacBook Pro isn't likely to get its own OLED display until 2026. That's when Young expects that the supply chain will be able to produce enough OLED panels for both lines of notebooks. Previously, it's said that suppliers of OLED displays have focused on other products and smaller screens - like the iPad Pro and other tablets produced under other brands.
Continue reading: The MacBook Air's display could be about to get smaller (full post)
You can finally watch ad-supported Netflix on your Apple TV
After months of waiting, Netflix subscribers can finally watch their ad-supported content on the Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD streaming boxes. Before now, that tier didn't work thanks to an incompatibility with the tvOS version of the Netflix app. That meant that the only way to watch Netflix on the Apple TV was to pay for the tiers that didn't offer ads.
That has now finally changed after it was noticed by one Reddit user that a new Netflix app update has fixed things. The result is that those who have chosen to pay less and watch ads can now do so on their premium Apple streaming hardware.
The new update is version number 2.3.0 and if you have automatic app updates enabled you probably already have it installed without realizing it. The Apple TV doesn't do a good job of telling you when it has updated an app, unfortunately.
Continue reading: You can finally watch ad-supported Netflix on your Apple TV (full post)
Apple's AR/VR headset might miss expected WWDC launch
Apple had been expected to announce its first AR/VR headset during the WWDC event that will take place in June. But a new report now suggests that might not happen after all.
The headset, dubbed Reality Pro by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, has been heavily rumored for months with some suggesting that Apple could unveil it at the Worldwide Developers Conference so as to give developers a chance to take a look at what they'll be building apps for. It was never clear whether the device would go on sale at the same time, or if it would launch months later as Apple previously did with the Apple Watch.
However, a new report by supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo now suggests that might not happen. In a post to Twitter, Kuo said that Apple "isn't very optimistic" about its product, adding that it might instead choose to delay the announcement.
Continue reading: Apple's AR/VR headset might miss expected WWDC launch (full post)
AMD A620 Motherboards for entry-level Ryzen 7000 builds are launching this week
A new report at Wccftech indicates that the launch of entry-level A620 motherboards for AM5 Ryzen 7000 CPUs is happening this week, with an MSI A620 motherboard set to launch with a price point under USD 90.
And yeah, that's what we'd call entry-level and affordable, and something that will open the door to more budget-conscious Ryzen builds using the lower, more efficient SKUs of the Ryzen 7000 Series. Like, say, the AMD Ryzen 5 7600.
Of course, lowering the price does mean reducing the capabilities, with PCB images of the MSI A620 board showcasing a 6+2+1 VRM design and a single 8-pin power connector for the AM5 socket. Still, the board will feature VRM heatsinks and, per the AM5 spec, support DDR5 memory (with AMD EXPO overclocking) via two slots.
GeForce NOW games for April 2023 announced, Dead Island 2 and more are coming
NVIDIA has announced what's being added to the could-streaming GeForce NOW in April 2023, and it's stacked with great-looking indie titles and a few high-profile releases.
NVIDIA also took the time to remind everyone that it has partnered with Microsoft to bring titles from Xbox Game Studios, Bethesda, Mojang, and Activision (pending the closure of the acquisition) and is currently in the process of onboarding Microsoft titles into the GeForce Now ecosystem.
But, until those titles arrive, plenty of goodness is coming - with 11 titles added this week and plenty more coming in April, including the highly anticipated Dead Island 2 and the entire run of The Dark Pictures Anthology interactive horror games from Bandai Namco.
E3 2023 has officially been canceled due to a lack of industry interest
Traditionally the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) has been one of the biggest events in the gaming calendar, covering consoles, PC, and anywhere games are played. And now, after a year since we got confirmation that the event was making a return, word of its cancelation has arrived.
So, what went wrong? The short answer is that there wasn't enough industry interest or support for the event to be the sort of large-scale gaming extravaganza it has been in the past.
Several notable players like Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony, Ubisoft, EA, and others have chosen to skip E3 2023 to do their own digital thing or shift their focus to the newly annualized Summer Game Fest.