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Apple share price took a hit of 3.6% after news outlets began reporting China has issued a ban of iPhones across government officials.

According to unnamed sources that are familiar with the matter, China's government has instructed officials to not use any iPhones, resulting in Apple shares taking a hit. Reports from The Wall Street Journal indicate that senior levels of China's government are pushing the newly implemented ban to staff through various avenues, such as chat groups and meetings. Additionally, publications have attempted to get confirmation of the news from China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Apple and neither party has responded.

While this news of an official government-wide ban of iPhones may be surprisingly, it shouldn't be as Chinese officials have been slowly stepping away of Apple's iPhones for many years now, with reports dating back as far as pre-pandemic of Chinese government members dropping the iconic smartphone for smartphones manufactured in China.

CNN released a report that claimed SpaceX was instructed by company CEO Elon Musk to turn off Starlink internet access over Crimea to prevent a major Ukrainian offensive attack against Russia's naval fleet.

CNN's sources were Walter Isaacson's new biography titled "Elon Musk" where it claimed that Elon Musk told SpaceX to deactivate internet access over the region to stop Ukraine from destroying Russia's fleets with drones. The publication states that since internet access was severed the drones that were en route to their targets "lost connectivity and washed ashore harmlessly". Notably, this Ukrainian offensive happened last year, and Isaacson's book will be released on September 12, 2023.

Now, Elon Musk has responded to the recent claims, writing on X that the Starlink regions in question were not activated, and SpaceX didn't "deactivate anything". Musk followed up with further explanation, writing that the Ukrainian government issued an emergency request to activate Starlink all the way to Sevastopol, with the intent being to "sink most of the Russian fleet at anchor".

One of the most impressive features in Bethesda's sprawling space epic Starfield is the in-game ship editor that lets you customize and upgrade your existing ship via a complex and modular interface and create brand-new creations from scratch. It's a creative tool tailor-made for fans to go wild and recreate some of pop culture's most iconic spaceships.

And when it comes to galactic-based pop culture, it doesn't get much bigger than Star Wars, and so far, we've some impressive recreations of Han Solo's iconic Millenium Falcon (I'm sure you've heard of it) and the Rebel fighter better known as the X-Wing.

Impressive creations, though the best Star Wars ship build we've seen so far has to be the Consular Space Cruiser from Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace. It's the cool-looking ship from the film's introduction, and this Starfield recreation by DaMightyMilkMan over on Reddit looks incredible. Also incredible? The Planet Express ship from Futurama.

Xbox marketing proudly touts Starfield's millions-strong engagement that could help spark continued subscription growth.

Starfield is a big success for both Bethesda and Xbox. As of this morning, Starfield had over 6 million players worldwide on all platforms (MS Store, Steam, an Xbox Series X/S). This is an impressive amount of players to say the least and makes for eye-catching promos, but knowing Microsoft's penchant for blurring the lines between its data points, we have to consider a few things.

There's a lot that we don't know about this 6 million figure, including how much actual revenue that this figure could represent. This is the sum of all platforms across all delivery methods--subscription and purchase--so it's a completely mixed bag.

Nintendo's new upcoming gaming hardware was shown off to developers at Gamescom with , reports indicate.

The next Switch system looks to deliver some hefty upgrades over its low-powered Tegra X1-powered forebear, including ray tracing and DLSS support. Sources have told both Eurogamer and VideoGameChronicle that Nintendo held private backstage meetings to showcase its next-gen system to developers, which is a common practice for key industry events.

Nintendo reportedly demoed two things during the show: a high-end Matrix Awakens tech demo that was created to show off Unreal Engine 5's impressive capabilities and flex the power of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, and an upgraded version of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

The latest AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition 23.9.1 driver release for Radeon graphics is big, as it adds Radeon Anti-Lag+ and AMD HYPR-RX for RDNA 3 GPUs. Coinciding with the launch of the new Radeon RX 7700 XT and Radeon RX 7800 XT GPUs, HYPR-RX is a new driver-based feature for the RDNA 3 generation that offers a significant boost to performance while lowering latency for all games at the driver level.

Anti-Lag+ is AMD's latest version of its Reflex-like latency reduction tool, optimized per game and exclusive to RDNA 3-based Radeon graphics cards. With the first wave of 12 Anti-Lag+ supported titles, including Apex Legends, Overwatch 2, Fortnite, and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, AMD showcases the difference it brings compared to its existing Anti-Lag tech.

HYPR-RX combines Anti-Lag+, Radeon Boost, and Radeon Super Resolution into a single-click option to make access to these technologies easier. It will be expanded next year with the long-awaited introduction of FSR 3 and AMD Fluid Motion Frames - the company's answer to DLSS 3 Frame Generation.

Nacon has lifted the lid on its new premium RIG wireless gaming headset - the RIG 900 MAX HX. As expected, it's stacked with features, including support for Xbox (headsets need a special license to work on Microsoft's consoles). It also introduces Dolby Personalized Audio into the gaming headset realm.

It's a feature that builds on the Dolby Atmos 3D Audio capabilities of the headset by linking to a Dolby Personalization App on your smartphone, which can then tailor the Dolby Atmos experience via analyzing your ears, head, and shoulders and creating a personalized audio profile to match your noggin's particular dimensions.

Will it make a massive difference to the sound quality of the RIG 900 MAX HX when playing a game like Starfield on PC or Xbox Series X|S? Time will tell, and it's a feature we'll check out in our review. In the meantime, hit the jump to check out the new RIG's full specs and other features.

Picking up a 15-inch MacBook Air just got cheaper in Europe with Apple now offering its big Air as a refurbished option for the first time. The move means that those in countries like the U.K., Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Poland, and Switzerland can now pick up a 15-inch MacBook Air via the Apple refurbished store.

With these countries now coming online it seems likely that we can expect the United States and Canada to also get the same refurbished options within the next few weeks. Refurbished Macs tend to sell for around 15% less than their new counterparts with color options and configurations often varying depending on what is in stock at any given moment.

Buying a refurbished Mac is often a great way to save some money. Apple checks each Mac before cleaning and testing it before repackaging it in a new box, ready for sale. All refurbished Macs come with a one-year warranty and buyers can even take out AppleCare+ as if they were a brand-new machine as well.

Apple's iPhones are no longer welcome in Chinese government agencies and state companies and the country looks set to make the ban even broader.

According to a Bloomberg report several agencies have already begun to tell staff that they can't bring iPhones to work. On top of that, China also wants toe to extend that to a whole whose of other government-controlled organizations according to unnamed sources who want to remain anonymous for obvious reasons.

The aim of the Chinese government is to ensure that as little foreign technology as possible in sensitive settings while China is also thought to be keen to reduce its reliance on American software. However, the move is a problematic one for Apple as it continues to focus on China as a key market. Bloomberg reports that China makes up about a fifth of the company's revenue. China is also a key location for Apple in terms of production with the majority of the iPhones ever sold having been made there.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra isn't expected to debut until the first few weeks of 2024 but it's already leaking in a big way. The latest leak appears to have given us a great look at the specs that the unconfirmed phone will have to offer.

This latest leak comes via Yogesh Brar, someone who has so far proven to be accurate in various aspects of phone leaks in the past, so we'd definitely pay attention here. The leak came in a post on X, the social network previously known as Twitter, and details everything from the technology that the display will use all the way through to the size of the battery and the rate at which it will charge.

Starting with that display, Brar believes that we can expect a 6.8-inch QHD+ display with a dynamic AMOLED and LPTO construction. That'll give us a variable 120Hz refresh rate, as has become the norm of late.

After rumors upon rumors Google has now officially confirmed that the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro will be announced on October 4 while sharing images of the previously unannounced handsets.

The Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro will replace the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro in Google's lineup and will be officially unveiled at an event on October 4. Now, Google has opened up a new webpage that allows people to sign up to stay updated on news and offers about the new phones.

Google confirmed the new flagship phones in a post on X, the social network that was previously known as Twitter. The company hasn't yet gone into details about what the new phones will have to offer in terms of features or specifications, but we can expect confirmation of all that good stuff during that event. The fun will kick off at 10am ET, and the event will likely be streamed on YouTube for everyone to watch at home.

Ever since Apple bought Intel's smartphone model business back in 2019 we've been waiting for it to ditch Qualcomm and start to use its own radios in iPhones and iPads. That, so far, hasn't happened despite repeated rumors that it would. Now, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says that Apple continues to be around two years off using its own modems.

That two-year timeframe is one that seems to continue to exist no matter how much time passes, suggesting that Apple continues to have problems getting its ducks in a row for whatever reason. Kuo had previously said that the fourth-gen iPhone SE would be the first to use an Apple model and it's possible that is still the case. That phone in particular appears to have a fluid release timeline of its own, with 9to5Mac noting that it is thought to have had mass production delayed all the way into 2025. That timeframe could well match with this new modem one.

Kuo was writing as part of a larger look at how Qualcomm is going to be affected by changes to chip buying habits in the Android world when noting that Apple is expected to start using its own model chip starting in 2025. Interestingly, Kuo also said that he will discuss more details about that modem in the future.

Apple's iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro series of devices are expected to be announced at an event that Apple has already confirmed for September 12. Now, a new report backs up previous assertions that two of the four new models are going to cost more than previous ones.

We've already heard from various analysts and reports that Apple is set to increase the price of the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, with some suggesting that the hike could be as much as $200. Now, another analyst has weighed in on the expected pricing, saying that we should look to a $100 price increase on both Pro models.

That's according to Wedbush analyst Dan Ives, at least. Ives was writing in a research note seen by MacRumors when he said that the iPhone 15 Pro and Iphone 15 Pro Max will be priced at $1,099 and $1,199 respectively. Both of those prices equate to a $100 increase over the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max that they will both replace in the lineup.

Starfield is a big success in terms of active players, but most people aren't engaging with the game on Steam.

In a not-so-surprising development, the majority of Starfield's players aren't playing the game on Steam. Instead, users are soaring into Bethesda's celestial simulator on Xbox and the Windows store version of the game. Yesterday, Xbox gaming CEO Phil Spencer confirmed that Starfield achieved 1 million concurrent players on all platforms.

According to SteamDB, Starfield's player count on Steam hit a peak of 269,177 players, which leaves some 730,000 users playing on both Xbox and Windows.

AMD has launched two new Radeon graphics cards this week, the Radeon RX 7700 XT and the Radeon RX 7800 XT - and this new combo, the RDNA 3 lineup of GPUs, is now complete. If you're interested in seeing how these new graphics cards perform, check out our massive in-depth reviews of the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT and the Sapphire PULSE AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT.

Long story short, even though they might not offer a gen-on-gen upgrade in terms of raw performance (especially in the case of the Radeon RX 7800 XT compared to the Radeon RX 6800 XT), they're priced extremely competitively - so much so that they offer a compelling alternative to NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 4060 Ti and GeForce RTX 4070.

And to help sweeten the deal, both cards come with a free copy of the Premium edition of Bethesda's Starfield (also out this week), the long-awaited brand-new RPG from the creators of Skyrim and Fallout. It's an incredible game, so here's how it runs on these new AMD Radeon GPUs.

The Logitech G PRO series of gaming peripherals and hardware are highly sought after for several reasons, whether it's the physical design, the reliable performance, or the premium quality. That said, they generally command a price that's noticeably higher than the competition - which is the case with the new Logitech G PRO X TKL LIGHTSPEED Gaming Keyboard and Logitech G PRO X SUPERLIGHT 2 Gaming Mouse.

Still, they do look pretty amazing, with the Logitech G PRO X TKL LIGHTSPEED Gaming Keyboard offering a compact design, low-latency wireless, and the company's LIGHTFORCE Hybris Switches that blend optical sensors with a mechanical feel. Plus, they've added dedicated media keys.

Weighing in at 60 grams, the Logitech G PRO X SUPERLIGHT 2 Gaming Mouse sees some innovation, too, with the arrival of the new HERO 2 Sensor that offers 32,000 DPI accuracy with tracking at over 500 inches-per-second (IPS). Logitech notes that the tracking still works when lifting or tilting the mouse, which is very cool.

Although a lot of the focus in 2023, at least when it comes to SSD performance, reviews, and news, has been on the new PCIe Gen5 technology - where we're seeing some massive speed increases over the previous generation and massive SSD coolers to keep the temperatures down. However, PCIe Gen4 is still the go-to option for many because it's more affordable and can deliver when it comes to speed.

The Samsung 990 PRO Series debuted in 2022 and earned critical acclaim (including a couple of Editor's Choice awards at TweakTown) due to its price, performance, and overall design. So then, why is Samsung 990 PRO back in the headlines? When Samsung first showcased the series, it noted that a 4TB model and variant was on the cards for 2023.

So yeah, the 4TB variant of the Samsung 990 PRO is finally here (with an MSRP of USD 349.99), with a baseline Samsung 990 PRO 4TB model hitting retail this month and a Samsung 990 PRO with Heatsink coming in October 2023.

External SSD storage that is small enough and light enough (under 29 grams) to fit in your pocket is how Kingston describes its new XS1000 External SSD. And that's certainly true, but it's also small and lightweight enough to fit on a keychain with dimensions (69.54 x 32.58 x 13.5mm) that are more in line with a USB thumb drive than a full-on external.

And with the enclosure housing a 3D NAND SSD, you've got up to 2TB of storage delivered over a USB-C (with a USB-C to USB-A cable also included) capable of delivering read speeds of 1,050 MB/s and write speeds of 1,000 MB/s, which is definitely fast for portable storage that is all about convenience and on-the-go productivity.

Perhaps the biggest plus for the tiny Kingston XS1000 External SSD range (available in 1TB and 2TB capacities for USD 79.99 and USD 124.49, respectively) is backed by Kingston's limited 5-year warranty with free support alongside the company's reputation for reliability.

Microsoft has announced that its long-running WordPad app will no longer be updated, and it will be removed in a future release of Windows. WordPad, which first debuted almost three decades ago as a part of the (then) brand-new Windows 95, has been a Windows staple for so long it will be weird to see it go.

That said, it's an app that I personally haven't opened in a long, long time - with my main memories surrounding WordPad being that it was a great tool for opening MS Word .doc files without having to shell out for a copy of the (then) gold-standard word processor.

Although the demise of WordPad didn't get a formal standalone announcement, its retirement from future versions of Windows was added to Microsoft's list of 'deprecated features' for the OS, which also includes entries for Cortana in Windows and a bunch of other tools and features that are no longer being updated or have been superseded with other tools or apps.

NTDEV is the developer behind the popular Tiny10 and Tiny11 versions of Microsoft's latest Windows Operating Systems, which reduces the overall footprint of each OS in terms of their physical size in bits and bytes and removes tonnes of unneeded bloatware.

Recently, NTDEV released a version of Windows 11 called Live11 that squeezed the OS onto a 4GB USB drive (or DVD-ROM) that they also ran directly from the VRAM of a GeForce RTX 3050 without installation. So, it goes without saying that NTDEV knows the ins and outs of Windows and virtual machines at an awe-inspiring level - which brings us to the latest (and perhaps most fun) Windows experiment.

'Winception', or running a virtual nest of the last five versions of Windows on a single machine. That means Windows 7 is running a virtual version of Windows 8, which is then running a virtualized version of Windows 8.1, and so on.