Apple's upcoming OLED iPad Pro might not cost as much as first feared

Oliver Haslam | Mobile Devices, Tablets & Phones | Feb 6, 2024 12:15 PM CST

Apple is very much expected to announce a couple of refreshed iPad Pro tablets this coming March, although rumors also suggest that we might have to wait until April. Whichever month it will be, there were previous reports that the new high-end tablets would be prohibitively expensive thanks to the use of impressive new OLED displays. Some suggestions claimed that the prices would be as high as a $1,800 starting price for the 12.9-inch model and $1,500 for the 11-inch one. But a new report claims that might not be the case after all.

Apple's upcoming OLED iPad Pro might not cost as much as first feared

The report, a paywalled text from DigiTimes and picked up by 9to5Mac, suggests that Apple's iPad Pro price increase won't be as huge as was feared although the prices will still go up.

The DigiTimes report cites unnamed sources when it says that the new 11-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pros will cost around $160 more than the models that are currently on sale. It's thought that the extra money will pay for the new OLED displays as well as the faster M3 chip - the same chip that powers Apple's most recent Macs.

Continue reading: Apple's upcoming OLED iPad Pro might not cost as much as first feared (full post)

Video of reckless Tesla driver using Apple Vision Pro headset behind the wheel goes viral

Apple's Vision Pro has been making waves of one kind or another since its launch, and here's one very much in the misuse category for the mixed reality headset - namely wearing one while driving.

Video of reckless Tesla driver using Apple Vision Pro headset behind the wheel goes viral

Yes, we've had a sighting of someone who has bought the expensive headset, and then used the hardware while driving a Tesla - you can see the filmed evidence in the above tweet.

Of course, the Tesla does have Autopilot on, but as you doubtless realize, that's considered a driver assistance feature, not an autonomous driving function. In short, you still have to be paying full attention in your Tesla while using it.

Continue reading: Video of reckless Tesla driver using Apple Vision Pro headset behind the wheel goes viral (full post)

PowerColor RX 7900 XT Spectral White may tempt buyers away from NVIDIA's RTX 4070 Ti Super GPU

Darren Allan | Video Cards & GPUs | Feb 6, 2024 10:26 AM CST

PowerColor has launched another Radeon graphics card in its line of Spectral White editions, this time an RX 7900 XT.

PowerColor RX 7900 XT Spectral White may tempt buyers away from NVIDIA's RTX 4070 Ti Super GPU

You may recall that previous Spectral White editions have included the RX 7900 XTX flagship GPU, and the RX 7800 XT to boot.

The new model is the Radeon RX 7900 XT Hellhound Spectral White, and as ever it comes decked out in a smart white color that's becoming quite the trend for some PC enthusiasts (being well-suited to streamlined and sleek looking PC builds).

Continue reading: PowerColor RX 7900 XT Spectral White may tempt buyers away from NVIDIA's RTX 4070 Ti Super GPU (full post)

How much burn-in coverage is right for OLED? ASUS and MSI reveal policies for their PC monitors

Darren Allan | Displays & Projectors | Feb 6, 2024 8:29 AM CST

Burn-in with OLED screens remains something of a controversial issue, especially with PC monitors, and we've just had some interesting news in terms of warranty coverage for this potential problem.

How much burn-in coverage is right for OLED? ASUS and MSI reveal policies for their PC monitors

Two monitor makers have revealed their extended warranty coverage for burn-in - a permanent blemish on the display, as opposed to temporary image retention, which happens all the time - and one firm has gone longer than the other.

As VideoCardz spotted, TFT Central flagged up on X (formerly Twitter) that ASUS has updated the warranty for its OLED monitors to include two years' worth of coverage for burn-in (in the product specs, though the main warranty page for ASUS hasn't yet been changed).

Continue reading: How much burn-in coverage is right for OLED? ASUS and MSI reveal policies for their PC monitors (full post)

Trailer for Fallout 2 fan remake using Fallout 4's engine captures the look of the 1998 classic

Kosta Andreadis | Gaming | Feb 6, 2024 12:36 AM CST

Fallout 4: Project Arroyo is an ambitious fan remake of the classic 1998 isometric hit Fallout 2 from Black Isle Studios - the last major entry in the franchise before Bethesda Game Studios took over in the mid-2000s.

Trailer for Fallout 2 fan remake using Fallout 4's engine captures the look of the 1998 classic

Like other ambitious mods like Skywind and Skyblivion, which are Morrowind and Oblivion remakes in a more modern Bethesda engine, this goes one step further by translating a 2D game into full 3D.

Fallout 4: Project Arroyo has been in development for a few years, but over the weekend, we got our best look at the project with a two-minute location trailer that captures the look and feel of Fallout 2's New California setting. Fans of the classic will undoubtedly notice the Sacred Head of the Vault Dweller looking very cool (and imposing) recreated in Fallout 4.

Continue reading: Trailer for Fallout 2 fan remake using Fallout 4's engine captures the look of the 1998 classic (full post)

Cyberpunk 2077 introduces a brand new DLSS setting called DRS or Dynamic Resolution Scaling

Kosta Andreadis | Gaming | Feb 6, 2024 12:07 AM CST

Patch 2.11 for Cyberpunk 2077 and the Phantom Liberty expansion went live recently, bringing several fixes to the game, including a few visual updates. Although not mentioned in the full release notes, the update also adds a new NVIDIA DLSS settings called DRS or Dynamic Resolution Scaling to sit alongside the Quality, Balanced, and Performance modes.

Cyberpunk 2077 introduces a brand new DLSS setting called DRS or Dynamic Resolution Scaling

The various DLSS modes refer to the rendering resolution as a percentage, where Quality at 4K means AI upscaling from 1440p and Performance at 4K means AI upscaling from 1080p. The new DRS mode is about maintaining a target frame rate, where the resolution that DLSS is upscaling from dynamically changing to ensure a minimal performance loss.

It's an exciting new addition as it means DLSS will be able to dynamically switch from DLAA's native rendering to lower resolutions in much smaller increments, with Redditor 'skyj420' posting that they witnessed native 1440p drop to just 1420p to maintain the target frame rate set of 45 FPS.

Continue reading: Cyberpunk 2077 introduces a brand new DLSS setting called DRS or Dynamic Resolution Scaling (full post)

Radeon RX 7900 XTX is still the only RDNA 3 card to make the Steam Hardware Survey list

Kosta Andreadis | Video Cards & GPUs | Feb 5, 2024 10:31 PM CST

The Steam Hardware & Software Survey results for January 2024 are in, giving us an updated look at the hardware PC gamers use for playing games on the biggest PC gaming platform. It's an interesting look at the current state of GPUs, with NVIDIA continuing to dominate with an overall 74.25% market share, followed by AMD with 16.46%. NVIDIA's total share has dropped compared to December 2023, while AMD's has grown.

Radeon RX 7900 XTX is still the only RDNA 3 card to make the Steam Hardware Survey list

Not dramatically, mind you, but enough to make a difference. However, the biggest Radeon gains come via integrated graphics, not desktop Radeon products. In fact, the only RDNA 3 GPU to make the list (and not relegated to the 'other' category) is still the flagship Radeon RX 7900 XTX. According to the results, more than twice as many GeForce RTX 4080 GPUs are in circulation.

There's still no sign of the Radeon RX 7800 XT, 7700 XT, or mainstream 7600. However, as the 7800 XT and 7700 XT have only been available for four months, it could be a matter of time.

Continue reading: Radeon RX 7900 XTX is still the only RDNA 3 card to make the Steam Hardware Survey list (full post)

GeForce RTX 4060 Ti drops to its lowest price ever, $343.99 for this GIGABYTE model

Kosta Andreadis | Deals | Feb 5, 2024 10:04 PM CST

NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 4060 Ti launched in May 2023, and with the same price point as the GeForce RTX 3060 Ti it replaced, it offered a modest 10-15% improvement to PC gaming performance with the bonus of DLSS 3 Frame Generation support in one of the most power-efficient GPU releases this generation.

GeForce RTX 4060 Ti drops to its lowest price ever, $343.99 for this GIGABYTE model

It's a great entry-point to 1080p and even 1440p gaming while being notably faster than mainstream offerings like the GeForce RTX 4060 and Radeon RX 7600. In fact, it's closer to the GeForce RTX 3070 than those two offerings.

Today's deal arrives via US retailer Best Buy, which has dropped the price of a single model, the GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 4060 Ti GAMING OC 8G, to a historic low of $343.99 USD - $55 cheaper than the $399 MSRP and $86 cheaper than this OC model's original $429.99 price point.

Continue reading: GeForce RTX 4060 Ti drops to its lowest price ever, $343.99 for this GIGABYTE model (full post)

ASUS included in Fortune's new 2024 World's Most Admired Companies, its 9th time on the list

Anthony Garreffa | Business, Financial & Legal | Feb 5, 2024 9:47 PM CST

ASUS has just announced it's made Fortune's list of 2024 World's Most Admired Companies, which is the 9th time ASUS has received this honor.

ASUS included in Fortune's new 2024 World's Most Admired Companies, its 9th time on the list

The company was recognized for its extraordinary achievements in areas including global competitiveness, social responsibility, product service quality, and more. ASUS continues its technological innovation, maintaining its global leadership in areas like motherboards, computers, monitors, graphics cards, peripherals, routers, and more.

The company also has collaborations with strategic partners like AMD, Intel, NVIDIA and others, which has continued to strengthen its presence in gaming, commercial, and industrial markets. The new AI market has also been a huge push for ASUS, which has rapidly advanced its AI applications, integrating cloud services, efficient computing power, and big-data platforms, as well as expanding into diverse fields such as smart healthcare, smart transportation, smart manufacturing, smart education, smart cloud, and smart retail.

Continue reading: ASUS included in Fortune's new 2024 World's Most Admired Companies, its 9th time on the list (full post)

NVIDIA quietly launches the entry-level GeForce RTX 3050 6GB with a TGP of just 70W

Kosta Andreadis | Video Cards & GPUs | Feb 5, 2024 9:31 PM CST

The GeForce RTX 3050 6GB refresh and relaunch is real, with NVIDIA's new entry-level graphics card making some pretty major cuts that extend beyond lowering the VRAM capacity of the GeForce RTX 3050 8GB to 6GB.

NVIDIA quietly launches the entry-level GeForce RTX 3050 6GB with a TGP of just 70W

One of the biggest changes with this relaunch and refresh for the new GeForce RTX 3050 is lowering the power rating from 130W to 70W. This means the new GeForce RTX 3050 6GB ships without a power connector and is entirely powered by the motherboard and PCI Express slot - which is great for home theater PCs or SFF builds.

And with a lower price point of around $169 compared to the GeForce RTX 3050 8GB's $240 or so, you might think this is an easy win-win. However, lowering the power rating to 70W means significant cuts all around, with a sizeable impact on performance - making it around 20% slower, according to reports.

Continue reading: NVIDIA quietly launches the entry-level GeForce RTX 3050 6GB with a TGP of just 70W (full post)