AMD's next-gen APU could feature 16 CPU cores, HBM memory and more

Anthony Garreffa | CPU, APU & Chipsets | Apr 4, 2015 6:43 PM CDT

It looks like AMD has some interesting things coming in 2016, with the current rumor is that its next-gen APU would arrive as a 16-core processor based on its Zen architecture, as well as a "Greenland" GPU with HBM memory.

The new APU will replace the Godaveri platform which we were introduced to with the Carrizo APU, with the Carizzo-based notebooks arriving in the next couple of months, but most likely at Computex 2015 in June. The new Zen APU would feature quad-channel DDR4 support, up to 16 processor cores based on the Zen architecture, and the HBM-powered Greenland GPU.

We should expect Greenland to be based on the Fiji architecture, which will be powering AMD's upcoming flagship video card: the Radeon R9 390X. We don't know if AMD will be using HBM1 or HBM2 on the Zen APU, but with the R9 390X using HBM1, we should expect AMD to quickly shift to HBM2 sometime in 2016.

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Dell maintains its position as the world's top supplier of PC displays

Anthony Garreffa | Business, Financial & Legal | Apr 4, 2015 6:41 AM CDT

With over 150 suppliers shipping 34 million displays over Q4 2014, Dell has maintained its position as the number one PC monitor supplier in the world, according to the latest report from the IDC.

With 34 million displays shipped in Q4 2014 seeing a 4.4% year-over-year decline, but a 1.3% increase on their forecast, the top five monitor manufacturers control a huge 60% of the market. Dell has secured itself 15.2% of the market, while Samsung has 12.7%. HP and Lenovo fall into third and fourth place with 11.8% and 10.9%, respectively. LG is in fifth place with 9.2%, leaving the rest of the market with the remaining 40%.

Dell shipped over 5.1 million displays in Q4 2014 while its closest competitor in Samsung shipped just under 4.3 million units, leaving HP to ship 4 million units, while Lenovo and LG shipped 3.6 million and 3.1 million units, respectively.

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Samsung's Galaxy S6 edge bends during testing, surprises nobody

Now that the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge are upon us, they are going through some serious tests to see just how well they bend. We went through this with the "bendgate" scandal of the iPhone 6 Plus, but I think people are missing the point here.

Anyway, SquareTrade has tested the latest handsets in the Galaxy S6 edge, iPhone 6 Plus and HTC One M9 in its 'BendBot' rig which puts 110 pounds of pressure onto these handsets. During the testing, the Galaxy S6 edge had its screen crack under the pressure, but the phone continued to work even with up to 149 pounds of pressure on it, in which it then stopped working. The iPhone 6 Plus was able to sustain a huge 179 pounds of pressure before it died.

This type of testing is pretty useless, as no one is going to put 149 pounds of pressure on their brand new Galaxy S6 edge. Also, #bendgate was over the iPhone 6 Plus bending from being in users pockets, not from machinery doing it. The Galaxy S6 edge has not had a single unit that has bent from being in a pocket just yet, so we need to put that "bendgate" word away, okay folks?

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AppleCare+ warranty for the $10,000 Apple Watch Edition costs $999

After you've shelled out $10,000 for the 18-karat gold Apple Watch Edition, you'll want to have some high-end protection for it, right? Be prepared to spend another $999 for the AppleCare+ protection on that $10,000 smartwatch.

The AppleCare+ protection for the Apple Watch Edition will add another year to the two-year technical support you'll receive, and accidental damage cover for up to two incidents. We don't know how much Apple will charge for repairs to Watch under their AppleCare+ plan, but if it's anything like the accidental damage claims with the iPhone, it should be around $79 or so.

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NVIDIA GeForce GTX Titan X Ultra teased to counter AMD Radeon R9 390X

Anthony Garreffa | Video Cards & GPUs | Apr 4, 2015 2:08 AM CDT

This is a super-juicy rumor, but let's get on with it: NVIDIA could be preparing a watercooled GeForce GTX Titan X that could be released as the Titan X Ultra.

This purported Titan X would see a hybrid AIO cooler that would allow for some serious overclocking of the GM200-powered Titan X, and see those performance numbers jump up even more. We could see NVIDIA or AIBs increase the Core Clock by 250-300MHz (or more) but that would see the Titan X getting even hotter, which would require the increased efforts on the cooling front.

This is where we would see the company using an AIO liquid cooling unit that would keep the card nice and cool, even under all of that increased pressure. This would be the perfect counter to the impending release of the Radeon R9 390X from AMD, which should be here any week now.

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Titanfall 2 rumored to include traditional campaign, many more weapons

Anthony Garreffa | Gaming | Apr 4, 2015 1:29 AM CDT

According to Respawn Entertainment's Community Manager, Abbie Heppe, Titanfall 2 could see a traditional campaign and many more weapons added to it over its predecessor.

Bella Ryse from The EXL Podcast asked Heppe about a campaign and more weapons for Titanfall 2, Heppe wasn't specific. But, she also didn't deny the possibility of these things, reiterating that Respawn knows what the fans want,t and that the developer has some ideas, too. Heppe teased: "When you work on a game for so long, there's always lots of things we - especially everyone here internally has all different sorts of things [they want to do]".

She continued: "We've definitely heard the feedback. Obviously, I can't comment on what we're doing in the next game, but the really nice thing about working on a sequel is that we've established the core of what Titanfall is. We have assets, we have an engine, we have all of these things that we laid the foundation for in the first game that now we can really build off of in the second". Heppe finished, by teasing: "So, I think there's going to be a lot of stuff that people are going to be excited about".

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Samsung to reportedly make A9 processors for Apple's next-gen iPhone

Apple's next generation iPhone should be unveiled later this year, and will have its A9 processor built by its main competitor; Samsung. Samsung has reportedly won the contract from TSMC, who made the A8 processors for the current iPhone 6 and 6 Plus handsets.

Samsung will reportedly begin making Apple A9 processors at its Giheung plant in South Korea, according to sources of Bloomberg. Additional orders will be filled with Globalfoundries, one of Samsung's partners. With Samsung and TSMC fighting for contracts from companies like Apple and Qualcomm, it's quite the scoop for Samsung and its continued dominance of the industry.

TSMC is currently the world's largest contract manufacturer of chips, with the Taiwanese giant spending around $12 billion in plants and equipment in order to secure contracts from Apple and Qualcomm. Losing a large contract like this to Samsung isn't going to bode well with TSMC, but according to analysts, TSMC won't be laying low, as they'll reclaim the upper hand in 2016.

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ABC rebooting 'The Muppets' TV show

Ben Gourlay | Celebrities & Entertainment | Apr 4, 2015 12:15 AM CDT

Hot on the heels of confirmation that Jim Henson's classic 'Fraggle Rock' TV show is coming to movie screens in the near future, it seems that 'The Muppets' is doing the reverse - and coming back to TV screens.

TVLine is reporting that ABC is looking to bring the property back to TV screens following the release of two financially and critically successful films in recent years, with 'Big Bang Theory' co-creator Bill Prady taking the chair as co-writer and executive producer. It's said that the network will film a pilot episode later this month under the working title 'Muppets 2015'.

The last 'Muppets' TV show; 'Muppets Tonight' in 1996 was a flop and cancelled after just 10 episodes. Disney purchased the franchise rights in 2004.

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MI6 admits the difficulties of trying to keep up with cybercriminals

Michael Hatamoto | Hacking, Security & Privacy | Apr 3, 2015 2:26 PM CDT

There is a technology arms race currently underway between the US and UK governments trying to compete against cybercriminals and terrorists using the Internet effectively. Cybercriminals are increasingly organized, some of them state-funded, and able to launch sophisticated attacks easily.

During a recent speech, MI6 officials said agents are trying to battle against opponents "unconstrained by consideration of ethics and law," able to more easily put the UK at risk. Although espionage can be easier to track due to technological footprints, it also opens the door to cyber mercenaries able to share and launch coordinated attacks.

"Using data appropriate and proportionately offers us a priceless opportunity to be even more deliberate and targeted in what we do, and so be better at protecting our agents and this country," said Alex Younger, chief of the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6).

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'Furious 7' could be next $1 billion box office movie

Michael Hatamoto | Celebrities & Entertainment | Apr 3, 2015 11:46 AM CDT

Furious 7 is estimated to rack up between $275 million and $280 million in the United States during its run in movie theaters, according to Boxoffice.com. Combined with global box office sales, it's quite possible the movie will end up racking up $1 billion worldwide. The movie is out today.

Fast and Furious 6 earned $238 million in the domestic box office and $550 million in international markets, earning $788 million worldwide. Furious 7 is expected to surpass that figure, especially as it is the last movie and the series - and Paul Walker's death in a car accident before the movie was done filming.

"This is definitely shaping up to be massive," said Phil Contrino, VP and chief analyst for BoxOffice.com, in a statement to Business Insider. "With a movie like this, it's important not to get too carried away with expectations because in the lead-up to a big movie, that's all people are talking about, and it's easy to keep saying, 'It's going to be bigger, and bigger, and bigger.' That said, I think it has a legitimate shot at becoming the next member of the $1 billion global club."

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