Latest News - Page 1615

Sabrent is celebrating quite a big deal today, with the storage leader unveiling the latest member of its Rocket Q family of SSDs with the world's first 8TB NVMe M.2 SSD.

The new Sabrent Rocket Q 8TB NVMe PCIe M.2 2280 is a new M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 SSD that comes in a new 8TB capacity, joining its siblings in the 500GB, 1TB, 2TB, and 4TB capacities. Inside, Sabrent packs 3D QLC NAND Flash memory that is capable of reaching the lofty heights of 3.4GB/sec reads, and up to 3GB/sec writes.

Sabrent is tapping Phison's E12S controller (like the rest of the Rocket Q SSDs) but the company hasn't quite detailed out the drive in terms of Random 4K read/writes, but we should expect some stellar specs and speeds from the 8TB drive.

Seven years after launch, Grand Theft Auto V shows no signs of slowing down and is still selling millions of copies while raking in hundreds of millions in monetization.

In its latest earnings report, Take-Two Interactive confirmed GTA V has now sold-in more than 130 million units worldwide, making it the second best-selling game of all time (Minecraft takes the lead with over 200 million copies). GTA V grew by 10 million sales in a single quarter from 120 million in February 2020, which was on the heels of another quarterly 5 million sales jump. That's more than some games sell in a lifetime.

The game has far exceeded the company's expectations, and in 2019 alone GTA Online made over $500 million from microtransactions.

The Embracer Group (aka THQ Nordic) has pushed back its AAA game slate for 2021-2022, including Saints Row V.

Today The Embracer Group inadvertently confirmed delays for two of its biggest upcoming games. In the latest financial report, company CEO Lars Wingefors says plans have changed no major AAA game is coming the current year.

"Looking into the next financial year ending March 31, 2022, we expect continued organic growth driven by further increase in the value of completed games including the first AAA games releases since Metro Exodus," Wingefors said.

I have just finished watching the Man of Steel Watch Party which was hosted by director Zack Snyder, which was an awesome in-depth commentary to the first DCEU movie: Man of Steel.

At the end of the Man of Steel Watch Party, Snyder had Superman star himself Henry Cavill join him with a bunch of fans from around the world. The hottest question to ask right now would be "is there a Snyder Cut of Justice League, and if so... when is it coming out?" The entire #ReleaseTheSnyderCut movement has been one of, if not the largest movement in Hollywood post-release of a gigantic tent pole like Justice League.

At the end, Snyder himself confirmed the news with a teaser picture of Zack Snyder's Justice League -- coming to HBO Max in 2021. We don't know specific dates yet, and I waited and waited (it's 3:45am here as I'm typing this here in South Australia) but there was no trailer. The announcement was enough to have every single hair on my body standing, and now my body is completely ready for 2021 for Zack Snyder's Justice League.

Origin PC has announced the availability of its all-new EON17-X notebook computer. One of the biggest features of this gaming laptop is that it's powered by 10th generation Intel Core desktop processors with up to 10 cores and 20 threads. The gaming laptop is offered with up to an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER with Max-P design GPU.

The fastest processor available in the laptop is a Core i9-10900K and while the machine is aimed at gamers, professionals can certainly take advantage of the high-performance desktop replacement for other types of workloads. Gamers who choose the RTX 2080 SUPER with Max-P GPU get a laptop that supports ray tracing and improved gaming performance compared to some desktops and other laptop computers.

Origin will cram up to 64 GB of RAM inside the EON17-X using the four available DDR4 RAM slots. Support for up to 128 GB of RAM is coming soon. Display options for the gaming notebook support NVIDIA G-Sync including a 17.3-inch 240 Hz full HD display or an optional 17.3-inch 60 Hz UHD 4K display. Both screens can show 100% of the Adobe RGB color gamut.

Samsung has announced a new portable SSD that drops into the lineup right below the existing Samsung T7 Touch portable SSD that launched in January. The new storage device is called the Samsung T7, and it promises the fastest transfer speeds currently available using the USB 3.2 Gen 2 standard.

The storage device is available in capacities of 500 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB and is roughly the size of a business card. The small stature makes it easy to slip into a pocket and take with you on the go. The T7 has read speed of 1050 MB/S and write speed of 1000 MB/S, making it roughly twice as fast as the Samsung T5 portable SSD and up to 9.5 times faster than external hard drives.

The T7 can reach its maximum speed using the NVMe interface, helping to speed up workflows and the transfer of large files. The SSD comes with a USB Type-C-to-C cable and a USB Type-C-to-A cable. The SSD is compatible with Windows, Mac, and Android operating systems.

NVIDIA unveiled its new Ampere GPU architecture last week, with the first Ampere-based product out of the gate being NVIDIA's new A100 GPU. Normally we'd see NVIDIA dub it the Tesla A100 -- just like the Volta-based Tesla V100, but nope -- now we might know why.

According to a new report from Heise, NVIDIA is dropping the Tesla branding because it is too confusing with Elon Musk's automotive company, Tesla Motors. NVIDIA has had the TESLA brand around for over a decade now, with teh first member of the Tesla graphics card with the Tesla C870-based on the Tesla G80 GPU back in 2007.

VideoCardz has also picked up on the fact that NVIDIA has removed 'Tesla' from the name of its Turing-based Tesla T4 accelerator, now known simply as NVIDIA T4. You can still see 'Tesla' in the URL, too -- at least for now.

I thought I was reading the story line to a TV show like Fringe, Lost, or one of my new favorites: Dark -- but nope, this is real. NASA scientists working down in Antarctica have discovered evidence of a parallel universe... where the rules of physics are the opposite of our world.

The idea of a parallel universe is not new at all, and has been the basis of plenty of movies and TV shows over the decades. But now NASA scientists have discovered some interesting things in their experiments in Antarctica, where an cosmic ray detection experiment has discovered new particles that -- get this -- could be from a parallel universe that started at the Big Bang.

NASA scientists have been running experiments using a gigantic balloon that takes ANITA (Antarctic Impulsive Transient Antenna) into the skies high above Antarctica where the very cold, very dry air provides the optimal environment for NASA's testing. They want to evade all radio noise in order to run their experiment.

The host of the JRE Podcast, Joe Rogan has just announced that YouTube's biggest podcast will be jumping ship and heading over to Spotify exclusively.

The move will not be immediate, and if you are thinking that viewers will be losing the video side of the podcast then don't worry, Rogan states in his announcement video that the video format will also be coming over to Spotify. Rogan announced the news via his personal Instagram account, where he stated that he signed a "multi-year licensing agreement with Spotify that will start on September 1st."

Rogan also says that the entire JRE Experience (Joe Rogan Experience) podcast library will be uploaded to Spotify on September 1st. Rogan reminds everyone that the other platforms that are hosting his content won't have to remove his content until "somewhere around the end of the year" when the exclusivity side of the new agreement with Spotify kicks in. Rogan emphasizes that the show will remain the same, and will also be free.

President Trump is bringing the pain to the World Health Organization (WHO) where he has threatened to cut funding from the WHO over its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. In recent WHO-related news, the ex-director of the WHO has said that coronavirus could "burn out naturally", more on that here.

President Trump tweeted out his four-page letter to Dr. Tedros, the Director-General of the WHO, saying that the agency must show "independence from China". Trump writes: "If the World Health Organisation does not commit to major substantive improvements within the next 30 days, I will make my temporary freeze of United States funding to the World Health Organisation permanent and reconsider our membership in the organisation".

The letter from President Trump continues: "It is clear the repeated missteps by you and your organization in responding to the pandemic have been extremely costly for the world. The only way forward for the World Health Organization is if it can actually demonstrate independence from China".

Well, it looks like SD cards of the future are going to be mind blowingly fast -- with the SD Association announcing the new SD 8.0 specification and speeds of up to an insane 3.9GB/sec. Yeah, nearly 4GB/sec from an SD card.

The SD Association announced the new SD 8.0 spec which has support for PCIe 4.0, and speeds of up to 3940MBps (just shy of 4GB/sec). What are SD card speeds now? The current SD Express card spec sees speeds of up to 985MBps, while UHS-III SD cards provide up to 624MBps.

if you want those super-fast 4GB/sec speeds then you're going to need a new SD card reader that has 2 x PCIe 4.0 lanes, because if you don't those glorious speeds will be halved, down to just under 2GB/sec (1920MBps) over PCIe 3.0.

Alienware has just unveiled its new AW2521H, a new 24-inch gaming monitor with a ridiculously fast 360Hz refresh rate.

The new Alienware AW2521H rolls out with a 25-inch IPS-based panel, with a native 1920 x 1080 resolution and super-fast 360Hz refresh rate. You might be disappointed with the 1080p resolution but that's all you're going to get when you're at the lofty heights of 360 freaking hertz.

Alienware is also giving gamers G-SYNC support with the new AW2521H gaming monitor, with a dedicated NVIDIA G-SYNC module inside of the monitor. The 'F' model of this (AW2521HF) is the FreeSync enabled monitor, but if you didn't already know -- 360Hz gaming monitors are co-developed with NVIDIA.

FromSoftware's ultra-bizarre medieval fantasy Dark Souls series has sold over 27 million copies to date across digital and physical, Bandai Namco today confirmed.

The Dark Souls franchise is a huge success that's notorious in the gaming sphere. Just say it out loud and everyone knows exactly what you're talking about--the IP has tormented many an obsessed masochist through its lifespan. Like a moth to a flame, we can't escape the clutches of Dark Souls' monstrous claws.

As a result of this strange allure, the series has sold 27 million copies on all platforms across the globe. Bandai Namco also announced Dark Souls III has surpassed 10 million sales across all SKUs, platforms, and digital/physical, which is a pretty big milestone for a 4-year-old game.

The original 2002 PlayStation 2 classic Mafia is getting remade for current-gen hardware, complete with massively enhanced visuals and improved effects.

Today 2K Games and Hangar 13 revealed even more tidbits on the Mafia: Definitive Edition, a full-on remake that's launching August 28 on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. The game has been reborn in Mafia 3's refined engine, complete with 4K HDR fidelity upgrades, more dynamic physics systems, and realistic lighting.

All of Hangar 13's major studios collaborated on the Mafia: Definitive Edition remake, and the game will be sold separately for $40 or as part of the new Mafia Trilogy bundle which includes Mafia II remastered alongside Mafia III with all its DLCs.

The PlayStation 5's customized PCIe 4.0 will help revolutionize console gaming by pushing 5.5GB/sec of data, leading to interruption-free gaming.

New SSD tech is one of the most exciting features of next-gen, and it'll empower devs like never before. The PS5's SSD in particular hits blazing fast speeds and can blast uncompressed data, assets, and content through the system's internal pipeline at 5.5GB/sec, and compressed data can hit 9GB/sec. That's 100x faster than the PS4's mechanical HDDs. This will translate to ultra-fast loading times, seamless gameplay without transition points, and pretty much instant access to gameplay.

PS5 architect Mark Cerny went into a deep dive on the PS5's new tech, but now Sony corporate is hyping up the hardware. In a recent corporate strategy meeting brief, Sony CEO Kenichiro Yoshida talked up the console's new PCIe 4.0 M.2 NVMe SSD and how it'll revolutionize PlayStation gaming.

Sony's versatile PlayStation Now offering is the leader in the streaming space, and has grown by over 100% in the last year.

Today Sony confirmed some surprising PlayStation Now numbers, reinforcing the company's trajectory for service-based revenues. PS Now currently has 2.2 million paid subscribers, up an incredible 120% year-over-year. Sadly, this is just 2% of the PS4's current 106.8 million install base.

The service's flexibility is a big adoption point: It allows gamers to stream titles to smartphones, consoles, and PCs, including a number of PS4 games and legacy PS1, PS2, and PS3 titles. Users can also download games for dedicated offline play on PS4.

Biostar has unveiled a pair of new mainboards that are designed to support 10th generation Intel processors. The new boards include the Racing B460GTA and Racing B460GTQ. Since both are Racing boards, they have the signature black, gray, and blue Racing colors. The boards are aimed at commercial and casual use and are designed with an eye towards power efficiency and cooling.

Both boards have similar features, including Super Hyper PWM with DCR current sensing architecture offering precision in delivering stable power with 100% fixed voltage. Biostar says that the differences between the B460GTA and B460GTQ boiled down to the GTA offering additional ports and connectivity options thanks to the ATX form factor while the GTQ is a micro-ATX mainboard.

Biostar says that both boards are designed to be extremely affordable and feature a stylish Armor Gear enclosure on the motherboard, helping to dissipate heat and housing the LED Rock Zone RGB lighting. Both boards have customizable light settings via the Vivid LED DJ software. The boards support up to 128 GB of DDR for RAM with four DIMMs.

Sony confirms new PS5 games will be shown "soon", reinforcing rumors of an early June event.

In its new Corporate Strategy Meeting, Sony outlined some important details on the PlayStation 5. Most of the info we already know--DualSense controller info, SSD specs, etc--but there's some new assurances around next-gen game reveals.

"By combining speed, haptics and sound, we can further improve on the wonderful experience available on PS4, making the PS5 a truly next generation console by providing game experiences that were not possible before," Sony CEO Kenichiro Yoshida said in the presentation.

ADATA has announced the launch of a pair of new solid state drives that it is aiming at creators. The new SSDs include the Falcon and Swordfish PCIe Gen3x4 M.2 2280 SSDs. Each use 3D NAND flash memory and delivers a read/write speed of up to 31000/1500MB per second. ADATA says that using the 3D NAND flash memory allows higher efficiency and increased reliability compared to 2D NAND SSDs.

Falcon drives will be offered in capacities that range from 256 GB up to 2 TB and feature data protection and correction technologies to expand the life of the SSD. Falcon also has intelligent SLC caching, host memory buffer, and a random read/write of 180/180K IOPS. To help keep the SSD cool, it features an aluminum alloy heat sink.

The ADATA Swordfish SSD also features 3D NAND flash memory and uses the PCI Gen3x4 interface. The drive offers sustained read/write speeds of up to 1800/1200MP per second and SLC caching. Other features include a host memory buffer and random 4K read/right of 180/180K IOPS. ADATA offers the SSD in capacities of 250 GB to 2 TB. This SSD also features an etched aluminum alloy heat sink to keep the drive cool.

It seems as though some hackers got into the University of Edinburgh's ARCHER supercomputer, forcing administrators to recently shut it d own and look into the attack. It's forced them to reset all SSH passwords, too.

Computer Security Incident Response Team (or CSIRT for short) for the European Grid Infrastructure (EGI) have released samples of the malware used, as well as network compromise indicators for some of the hacks on the ARCHER supercomputer. Other security researchers have since reviewed the samples and said hackers were successful in their infiltration of the ARCHER supercomputer through compromised SSH credentials.

ZDNet reports that the first report of an attack on ARCHER on Monday, reporting a "security exploitation on the ARCHER login notes". System administrators quickly shut the ARCHER supercomputer down, and reset SSH passwords to stop future attacks.