Latest News - Page 288

Halo Studios has teased that it will reveal new details on the next project at this year's Halo World Championships event in October.

Last year was a pivotal time for the Halo franchise. 343 Industries changed its name to Halo Studios, announced it was abandoning its Slipspace Engine for the more versatile Unreal Engine 5, and that multiple new Halo games were in simultaneous development.

Details have been slim since the announcement, but Halo Studios is poised to reveal new details about the projects at the Halo World Championship event running from October 24-26. The team made this teaser in a recent Halo Waypoint post.

NVIDIA's RTX 5050 is apparently on sale, with one graphics card maker informing us that these desktop GPUs are now on shelves.

This is Inno3D which posted on X (as spotted by VideoCardz) to say that its various models of the RTX 5050 (Twin X2, OC, and Compact) are available and that you only need to 'reach out to your local retailers today.'

The problem being that there's no inventory actually showing in the retailers that Inno3D links to as its official stockists, as far as we can see - which is Newegg in the US.

Microsoft's Yusuf Mehdi, Executive Vice President and Consumer Chief Marketing Officer, published a new article on the Windows Experience Blog that revealed the total number of Windows users. Microsoft quietly updated that statistic after reports were published that showed, according to Microsoft's own figures, it had lost 400 million Windows users in just three years.

Using the Wayback Machine, a digital archive of the internet, we can see Microsoft initially wrote the following: "Today, Windows is the most widely used operating system, powering over a billion monthly active devices through an open and flexible platform that connects people." That figure of "over a billion monthly active devices" was then updated to this: "Today, Windows is the most widely used operating system, powering over 1.4 billion monthly active devices through an open and flexible platform that connects people."

Why did Microsoft update it? Reports surfaced shortly after this blog post was picked up that compared Microsoft's figure of "over a billion monthly active devices" to what the company was touting in a 2022 annual report of the same month, where it said, "There are now 1.4 billion monthly active devices running Windows 10 or Windows 11." Comparing the two figures, it's easy to work out that Microsoft supposedly lost 400 million Windows devices in the span of just three years.

It was earlier this year that LG Display announced its new fourth-generation OLED technology for its TVs, and now the company is introducing that technology to its monitor line-up. The star of the show, so far, is a new 27-inch OLED display capable of hitting a mind-bending 720Hz.

Yes, that is right. 720Hz OLED monitors are real, or at the very least, are going to be available, as LG Display has announced that these panels have already begun production. According to the announcement, the new 27-inch OLED uses LG's proprietary Primary RGB Tandem structure, which enables the display to achieve a record-breaking peak brightness of 1500 nits - the highest among existing OLED monitors.

Moreover, LG explains the Primary Tandem Structure stacks red, green, and two blue-emitting layers to create a 4-stack tandem structure. This design enables a boost to luminance and contrast that produces sharper images and a better color reproduction rate of 99.5%. Furthermore, LG states its fourth-generation pixel technology blocks up to 99% of internal and external reflections, reducing glare down to an absolute minimum.

Reports indicate that the Nintendo Switch 2 sold 5 million units in its first quarter, and if true, the milestone further cements the system as the best-selling console of all time. But the source of the data is dubious and could be internal estimates and not actual sales.

Nintendo has accidentally released Switch 2 sales data prematurely on its website. While the data is no longer available, it was captured by onlookers. We can't independently verify the information contained herein (we didn't see the website), and it's unclear whether or not Nintendo would have this kind of shipment/sales data so early. Another point: Nintendo won't reveal its Q1 sales data for another month--the Q1 report is due out on August 1.

The data needs context. Apparently, the information is actually a week old and was originally spotted on June 24. The data is believed to be some kind of internal estimate at Nintendo and not actual sales data--the reason for this belief, in part, is the inconsistencies that were shown in quarter-over-quarter Switch 1 software sales.

Blizzard's Diablo franchise is very much alive and well, with four games currently receiving updates or seasonal content at a regular clip. From Diablo II: Resurrected to Diablo III, to Diablo IV, and Diablo Immortal, there's a lot of demon slaying action in Sanctuary on offer, with the style and type of action-RPG experience varying from title to title.

Diablo Immortal is Blizzard's free-to-play mobile on-the-go take on the franchise that debuted back in 2022, where at the time it received its fair share of criticism due to its monetization and how it tied endgame progress to a string of menus and spending pretend currency that you purchased with real-world money. Typical mobile game stuff, but that was then and this is now.

As a massive fan of the franchise, I haven't played much Diablo Immortal since its 2022 debut (my Diablo mains are Diablo 4 and Diablo 2), so I jumped at the chance to check out the game in 2025 while getting to go hands-on with the latest class joining the portable Sanctuary action this week: the Druid.

AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition 25.6.3 is now available, offering an optional driver update for Radeon GPU owners. This one appears to be focused on AMD's latest generation of Radeon RX 9000 Series GPUs, powered by the company's latest RDNA 4 architecture, as it adds AMD FidelityFX Super Resolution 4 (FSR 4) support to two new titles: Monster Hunter Wilds and Grand Theft Auto V Enhanced.

Monster Hunter Wilds is a PC release that has been controversial for Capcom due to widespread reports of poor performance and a reliance on AI-enhanced rendering to maintain a playable frame rate. This makes FSR 4 support in the game good news for RDNA 4 gamers, as the AI-powered FSR 4, exclusive to the Radeon RX 9000 Series, delivers fantastic image quality comparable to NVIDIA DLSS.

The optional AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition 25.6.3 also fixes FSR 4 support in several titles, including Star Wars: Outlaws and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl. The driver-based override wasn't working as intended in these titles.

NVIDIA is currently offering free Adobe Creative Cloud subscriptions to GeForce RTX owners through the NVIDIA App. GeForce RTX 30 and RTX 40 Series owners are eligible for one month of Adobe Creative Cloud, while GeForce RTX 50 Series owners are eligible for two months. Unfortunately, GeForce RTX 20 Series owners aren't eligible.

NVIDIA and Adobe have a long-standing partnership, with the Adobe Creative Cloud suite of apps that includes Photoshop, Premiere Pro, After Effects, and other creative tools, offering enhanced features and RTX-accelerated performance when paired with a GeForce RTX GPU. Adobe Creative Cloud apps also include powerful AI features that you can run locally on GeForce RTX hardware.

The free Adobe Creative Cloud subscriptions are only available to new subscribers and can be redeemed via the Rewards/Redeem section in the NVIDIA App.

We've teamed up with the awesome crew at ID-COOLING to bring you an exciting global giveaway! Three lucky winners will each score one of ID-COOLING's high-performance CPU coolers - perfect for keeping your gaming setup running cool and quiet under pressure. Whether you're upgrading your current build or starting fresh, this is your chance to win some seriously cool gear. Best of all, it's open to everyone worldwide - no matter where you are!

And remember, ID-COOLING's big Prime Day promotions are coming. Expect hot discounts and cool deals on a wide range of coolers at the annual shopping event from July 8 to July 11. Stay tuned so you don't miss a thing!

The ID-COOLING SL360 is built for powerful cooling with style. Its standout feature is the 2.1" LCD screen, perfect for uploading custom GIFs or system stats using easy-to-use software. The Gen 7 pump delivers stronger water flow for improved cooling performance. It comes with AF-127 ARGB fans featuring fluid dynamic bearings for a longer lifespan and better airflow. The daisy-chain design simplifies cable management, while the premium-sleeved tubing keeps the build clean and sturdy. It's a perfect blend of performance and aesthetics.

Yesterday, we received confirmation on some of the specifications for NVIDIA's upcoming GeForce RTX 50 Series SUPER refresh, which is currently rumored to arrive in early 2026. Outside of the GeForce RTX 5070 SUPER, which also increases the CUDA Core count slightly, the significant improvement this time around is the 50% increase in VRAM capacity for all SUPER GPUs.

This will allow the SUPER cards to better handle path tracing with max settings in titles like DOOM: The Dark Ages, while also expanding the cutting-edge AI capabilities of these GPUs. Rounding out the SUPER refresh, today we've got specs for the upcoming GeForce RTX 5080 SUPER graphics card courtesy of the same insider, @kopite7kimi.

Responding to a post about the potential specs for the GPU over on X, @kopite7kimi confirmed that the current specs indicate that the GeForce RTX 5080 SUPER will feature the exact SM and CUDA Core count as the baseline GeForce RTX 5080, albeit with a faster 3 GHz Boost Clock speed, and 24GB of fast GDDR7 clocked at a higher 32 Gbps speed.

NVIDIA's new GB300 "Blackwell Ultra" AI servers are expected to begin shipping in the second half of 2025, with the new GB300 AI servers to be the most powerful AI servers on the planet.

Taiwanese media outlet UDN reports that Taiwanese contract manufacturing giant Foxconn has secured the biggest number of orders for NVIDIA's next-gen GB300 AI servers. Foxconn isn't the only one, with contract manufacturers including Quanta, Wistron, Wiwynn, and Inventec all itching to pump out GB300 AI servers.

According to supply chain sources, NVIDIA's new GB300 AI server manufacturing will have precedence over Apple's upcoming iPhone, as Foxconn manufactures the iPhone for Apple, and is leading the charge with GB300 AI servers.

Billion-dollar sports games publisher Electronic Arts releases a teaser for a new college basketball game, and reports signal a 2028 release.

EA is working on a new NCAA Basketball game for the first time in 15 years. The news follows the meteoric sales success of EA's previous collegiate return to football, with College Football 25 becoming the best-selling sports video game of all time in the United States. Now EA wants to do the same with college basketball.

While EA officially confirmed the game publicly, there's been no confirmation of a launch window. Sources behind the scenes say that EA is targeting a 2028 launch for the new sports title.

TSMC's new Arizona chip-making facility might be making next-gen chips on US soil, but those chips are being sent back to its facilities in Taiwan for advanced packaging.

In a new report from the Taiwan Economic Daily, we're hearing that TSMC US is flying out fully-prepared wafers to Taiwan in order to get advanced packaging services and then to make those chips fully usable and ready for AI server manufacturers.

The outlet reports that TSMC Arizona doesn't have the packaging services that companies like NVIDIA require, and that flying the chips back home to Taiwan is the only option available, as it's faster and more convenient than setting up advanced packaging facilities in the United States.

Nintendo opted not to launch its mega-popular Switch 2 on Amazon in the US due to issues with price undercutting, sources tell Bloomberg.

Before launch. the Nintendo Switch 2 could be pre-ordered at practically every retailer except the US branch of the world's largest digital storefront. The Switch 2's absence on Amazon US was noticed by millions, and consumers didn't understand why Amazon had been excluded. Now we have an answer.

According to a new report from Bloomberg's Mochizuki Takashi, Nintendo withheld the Switch 2's launch from Amazon due to price undercutting.

NVIDIA is expected to ship 5.2 million units of its Blackwell AI GPUs this year, but that number will reportedly drop to 1.8 million units according to JP Morgan.

In a new post by insider @Jukanrosleve on X, investment firm JP Morgan is projecting NVIDIA to ship 5.2M Blackwell AI GPUs in 2025, dropping to 1.8M units in 2026, but that's because NVIDIA is projected to ship a larger 5.7M units of its next-gen Rubin AI GPUs and 1.5M units of its next-gen Vera CPUs.

JP Morgan notes that NVIDIA AI GPU shipments are not expected to grow in 2026, which is primarily due to conservative adjustments to Blackwell shipment forecasts. Jukan's post on X ends with: "that said, there is potential upside if the rollout of the Rubin platform accelerates or if the CoWoS-R packaging specifications for the Vera CPU are significantly expanded".

SPARKLE has just announced three new Arc Pro "Battlemage" series graphics cards, including a dual-GPU variant rocking 48GB of GDDR6 memory.

In a new post by VideoCardz, we've got some new information on SPARKLE's new Intel Arc Pro "Battlemage" GPUs starting with the Arc B60 Passive with no active cooling (in the pictures above). In the pictures below, we've got SPARKLE's new Arc Pro B60 Blower, with a blower-style cooler.

Both the SPARKLE Intel Arc Pro B60 24GB Blower and Arc Pro B60 24GB Passive measure in at 289 x 120 x 42mm, weighing in at 1056g, and arriving in a dual-slot design. VC compares these new offerings from SPARKLE but without detailed specifications, expected to feature a 300W Total Board Power (TBP).

ASUS's flagship ROG Astral GeForce RTX 5090 OC graphics card has been chilled under LN2 and pushed to its limits by overclocker "Splave" to break the 3DMark Port Royal world record.

The 3DMark Port Royal world record now sits at a huge 47,375 points using the ASUS ROG Astral RTX 5090 OC and overclocker Splave, breaking the previous record set by overclocker OGS who used the GeForce RTX 5090D and 47,196 points: a record held for just a few days until Splave's new record was set.

Splave used LN2 cooling on his ASUS ROG Astral RTX 5090 OC Edition graphics card, with the overclocker hitting 219.33 FPS in Port Royal, a new world record for the RTX 5090. The average score for the RTX 5090 on Port Royal is a little over 36,000 points, so with a score of 47,375 we have a 31% increase over the average score... impressive stuff.

Ever wished for a truly affordable MacBook? These Apple laptops could get a lot cheaper in the near future, if rumored plans to use an iPhone CPU in the notebooks to lower the cost are correct.

This comes from a respected Apple leaker, Ming-Chi Kuo, who claims that the reference design for the purported MacBook 13-inch is being provided by Everwin Precision (based in Shenzhen, China - a firm that's also involved in producing future smart glasses for Apple, as we reported elsewhere).

Kuo's post on X (spotted by Tom's Hardware) claims that the MacBook 13-inch will use an A18 Pro processor, and could enter mass production as soon as the final quarter of 2025, or possibly in Q1 2026.

NVIDIA's RTX 5050 desktop graphics card has been keenly awaited for some time now, and it may go on sale a bit sooner than we hoped in the US.

As a quick refresher, NVIDIA revealed the desktop GPU alongside the laptop variant last week, pinning an MSRP of $249 on the former.

We were told that the board would launch in the second half of July - at least outside of Asia (it could arrive sooner in China, perhaps) - so that means we theoretically still have a couple of weeks to wait before we can buy this budget GPU.

Original Diablo 2 creator David Brevik briefly talks about the cancelled second expansion for the beloved ARPG sequel.

Diablo changed over the years, going from the grim dark fantasy from the first two games to the more colorful WoW-esque design of Diablo 3. But what if this design shift never happened? What kind of Diablo 3 would we have, and more importantly to the topic of this article, what kind of new Diablo 2 content would we get?

It's been widely known for a while now that Blizzard wanted to make a second expansion for Diablo 2. The expansion, which may have been called Diablo 2: Salvation, would have taken place after Lord of Destruction. In the past, D2 series creator David Brevik said this second expansion would have a new Cleric character class, but other details remain light.