Latest Technology Content

Respawn has just pushed out the second update for mega smash hit battle royale game Apex Legends, with the new update concentrating on overall stability and various crashes on consoles.

All versions of the game including PC and consoles have had their slow-walking issues fixed, which was an issue with people reviving team mates and then seeing them move slowly afterwards now fixed. Mirage's abilities would sometimes crash the entire of Apex Legends, another issue that the developers at Respawn have now fixed inside of the update.

PlayStation 4 players have received a bunch of love, with GPU issues being fixed so it doesn't crash after pressing one of the buttons on the controller in the loading screen while the Xbox One version has been patched up for Gibraltar's Epic skins crashing matches when they were equipped. Small but super annoying bugs, now fixed for Apex Legends.

Samsung is hosting is massive Unpacked 2019 event tomorrow, where we will be formally introduced to the new family of Galaxy S10 smartphones as well as as few surprises.

One of which should be Samusng's first foldable smartphone which according to Evan 'evleaks' Blass will be called the Galaxy Fold. Blass took to Twitter with a simple tweet that read "Samsung Galaxy Fold" which is enough on its own. Samsung has been teasing it in various advertising spots on the internet, on TV and even at the movies (I saw it teased yesterday at the cinema when I saw Cold Pursuit).

I prefer the name Galaxy Fold over Galaxy F, as it lines up with the Galaxy Note (which is a Note-style phone) like the Galaxy Fold is a foldable phone. Whatever happens, we'll know for sure tomorrow. I'll be picking one up no matter what because I'm a technology and smartphone addict, and I can't wait.

I can't believe it has been 14 years since Logitech introduced one of the most legendary gaming mice: the MX518. The only one that comes close to it would have to be Microsoft's own IntelliMouse Explorer 3.0 which I also loved, but the Logitech MX518 drove my professional Call of Duty: United Offensive days on the GameArena ladders here in Australia.

Well, Logitech has just revealed it is bringing back the MX518 gaming mouse with the same overall shape as the original mouse, but with various tweaks made to the hardware, materials used, and the buttons on the mouse. The refreshed Logitech MX518 features a 1ms response time, a HERO 16K sensor, and 8 programmable buttons that can be set to other keys, or specifically-chosen commands.

Logitech is providing more customization through its in-house Logitech Gaming Software, as well as on-the-fly adjustment buttons that are found above, and below the scroll wheel. The company is packing in some on-board memory that lets you save custom profiles onto the mouse so that you can transfer them between PCs which makes things easier.

Intel looks to be making a tasty new CPU with a purported Core i9-9900KFC model in the works... and that's not a typo, 'KFC' in the model of the processor actually makes sense and most likely won't come with a bucket of chicken.

Breaking down the KFC model we have 'K' meaning it's an unlocked CPU, 'F' is something new for Intel and means it doesn't feature integrated graphics, while 'C' designation was added to Broadwell CPUs that had improved integrated graphics. But the 'C' contradicts the 'F' as one means without integrated graphics and the other means it won't have integrated graphics, so what is going on here?

AnandTech points out that the 'C' processors featured a "small amount of eDRAM to act as a buffer between the L3 cache and the CPU. In our testing of those processors, it only really gave extra performance to integrated graphics workloads, which is where those Broadwell processors were focused". This means we could see a new high-end 8C/16T processor with additional eDRAM, which is going to confuse people I'm sure. The 9900KFC would feature additional hardware on it to boost graphics performance, but doesn't feature integrated graphics. Alrighty then.

Qualcomm has just unveiled its second-gen 5G modem with teh announcement of the Snapdragon X55, a beast of a chip that handles both 5G and 4G connectivity with support for both mmWave and sub-6GHz spectrums, like its X50 predecessor.

The new Snapdragon X55 ramps up theoretical peak speeds to 7Gbps (up from 5Gbps) download and up to 3Gbps upload. You won't hit those speeds walking around down, as you'll need to use the right phone, be in the right spot, and have perfect network conditions to be pulling down 7Gbps and uploading at a huge 3Gbps. Qualcomm has introduced 5G FDD support in the new Snapdragon X55, which is an important building block for Europe and other countries where it will free up low-frequency spectrum (600MHz to 900MHz) for that all-important 5G.

Qualcomm hosted its annual Snapdragon Tech Summit in Maui, Hawaii last year where it talked about using the Snapdragon X50 inside of the 5G-powered smartphones of 2019, but the new Snapdragon X55 will be what powers the 5G phones of tomorrow... as in 2020, and beyond. Qualcomm says it won't have Snapdragon X55 available until "late 2019", the company just announced it ahead of time to blow our minds open even more.

Anthem is the latest big-budget AAA game to leverage the Xbox One X's boosted GPU and CPU for higher-end visuals.

Armed with the brunt of the Xbox One X's higher-end 16nm Polaris GPU, 8-core Jaguar 2.3GHz CPU, and sizable 12GB of GDDR5 RAM, the team at BioWare brings a host of new console enhancements to their massive new IP, Anthem. The developer confirms Anthem can run at native 4K resolution with HDR on the Xbox One X--an impressive feat for any open-ended live game heavily reliant on online servers--but there's other optimizations included too. The in-game world will look better than ever with improved shadows and lighting effects, as well as boosted textures across the sci-fantasy landscape.

"The Anthem team has been able to leverage the power of the Xbox One X to deliver enhanced graphics to our players. The added GPU power of this console allows Anthem to render at native 4K and with HDR," BioWare's Scott Neumann told Xbox Wire. "To complement the increased image quality of 4K, we have also increased the resolution at which we render shadows in the game, and we have enhanced the rendering of in-game terrain."

Square Enix will shake up and combine its myriad of dev teams to help optimize and organize games development, the company today announced.

Square Enix hasn't been doing too well lately. Sales of Just Cause 4 didn't meet launch targets, and its Q3 smartphone games didn't take off, resulting in lower than expected earnings. Now the company plans to restructure its business divisions to help streamline how it makes games. The publisher currently operates with 11 different business departments that all handle development of various games, from big-budget Final Fantasy titles at BD1 to smaller-scale mobile games. CEO Yousuke Matsuda says this number shrink dramatically down to just 4 teams during Square Enix's next fiscal year.

"As of FY2020/3, we plan on reorganizing and consolidate the 11 existing business divisions at SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD. into four business units in order to increase the efficiency of our workflows, make more effective use of our resources, and consolidate our expertise with the aim of improving profitability," Mr. Matsuda said in a recent Square Enix Q&A earnings report.

After a few delays and tons of tweaks, Path of Exile finally has a concrete PS4 launch date, and it's quite soon.

Path of Exile will arrive on PS4 on March 8, 2019 alongside the game's new Synthesis expansion, Grinding Gear Games today announced. The PlayStation 4 flavor will release with all previous expansions and content baked in alongside the Synthesis update, complete with console-friendly controls, chat systems, and everything else the previous games are known for (including excellent action RPG mechanics straight out of Diablo).

Like previous updates, the latest Synthesis expansion has a bunch of new additions including a fresh league for ladder-like competition, a new NPC called Cavas that opens up a unique questline, new skill gems, a ton of new items, and an interesting new Fractured item type that can be earned from synthesizing Cavas' memories. Just when I think GGG can't top their previous expansions they find new ways to re-invent the wheel.

Monster Hunter: World conquers Japan's 2018 game sales with 2.85 million copies sold on PS4.

Capcom's online-based Monster Hunter: World multiplayer game has exploded since launch, spiking company profits by sixfold and ushering in a new steady influx of cash for the publisher. The game, which has sold more than 11 million units worldwide, is a huge success in its native land and actually outpaced big hits like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and Pokemon Let's Go in 2018's game sales.

Although Japan is typically ruled by mobile and handheld gaming, Monster Hunter: World is a big driver of the country's dedicated console sector. According to new figures from Famitsu, 2018's top five best-selling games in Japan include: Monster Hunter: World (2.85 million), Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2.66 million), Pokemon Let's GO Eevee and Pikachu (1.36 million), Splatoon 2 (1.19 million) and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (1 million). It's worth noting eight out of the ten top games are on Nintendo's new Switch handheld-console hybrid.

Activision and Treyarch add a familiar feature to Black Ops 4: lootboxes.

Black Ops 4 is already monetized with battle passes and COD Points (even reticles cost cash), but now lootboxes are coming back too. Starting with its new Operation Grand Heist update, Black Ops 4 will have purchasable lootboxes filled with randomized cosmetic loot. A new vendor, Blackjack, will peddle these seasonal-style wares in the game's Black Market microtransaction storefront. Not surprisingly, Activision never explicitly calls its lootboxes what they are--instead they're referred to as "Cases".

"Blackjack's Reserves: New Reserve items include playable zombie Blackout characters, Vacation Hudson sporting a Hawaiian shirt and tie, Mastercrafts for the KN-57 and Outlaw, and much more. Items from Reserves in past Operations will be available in Blackjack's Reserves, including the Mozu Replicant and SG12 Boombox Mastercrafts. Additionally, Cases containing Blackjack Reserves can be earned by playing Multiplayer or Blackout, or they can be acquired in the Black Market," reads a Treyarch blog post announcement.