Computer Systems - Page 3

At CES 2026, Acemagic showcased a range of new Mini PCs, some of which were powered by AMD's new Ryzen AI 400 Series, which was announced at the show. Two designs that immediately stood out from the pack were the NES-inspired Retro X5, announced late last year, and a new design described as a blend of the original Sony PlayStation and the Sega Dreamcast.

The Retro X5's Nintendo Entertainment System look is unmistakable, with the mini PC resembling the classic 1985 console while featuring modern USB and display ports. Acemagic calls the design '1985 Reimagined,' and it's clear that this is a Mini PC aimed at retro gaming and PC gaming fans.

Underneath the hood, it's powered by AMD's new Gorgon Point-powered Ryzen AI 400 Series, with up to a Ryzen AI 9 HX 470. This 12 Core (4 x Zen 5 and 8 x Zen 5c) and 24 Thread processor includes integrated RDNA 3.5 powered Radeon 890M graphics with 16 CUs. GPU-wise, it's powerful enough to run most games at 60 FPS at 1080p as well as 'emulate' classic console and gaming hardware.

A new report from International Data Corporation (IDC) indicates that global PC shipments grew by an impressive 9.6% year over year in Q4 2025. With shipments estimated at 76.4 million units, the big winners were Lenovo, HP, Dell, and ASUS, all of which experienced double-digit growth compared to the same period in 2024. Lenovo led the quarter with 25.3% market share.

The growth is attributed to several factors, including increased demand driven by the holiday season, Windows 10 officially reaching the end of life, and early 2025 tariff concerns, which led to more inventory hitting the market. Another factor that drove growth in Q4 2025 was the upcoming memory shortages that are expected to hit all aspects of the PC market as we head into 2026.

And so, even though 9.6% year over year is definitely good news, the overall outlook for 2026 isn't so bright. In fact, IDC predicts that the PC market will look very different in 12 months based on "how quickly the memory situation is evolving."

Thunderobot had its new MIX GAMING 2 Mini-PC on display at CES 2026 this year, with enough power to easily run 4K @ 120FPS gaming.

The MIX GAMING 2 system is thin-and-tall, looking quite unique standing up and solid on its stand, but inside you can configure it with up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX processor, and up to an ultra-fast NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Laptop GPU with 24GB of GDDR7 memory.

Thunderbolt allows for up to 230W of power to flow into the system, with the CPU allowed to use 120W on its own, and up to 175W on the GPU. Thunderobot uses an in-house "Night Owl" thermal system, with the internal layout integrated into one huge heatsink, fin stack, and dual fans that keep the 275HX and RTX 5090 cool.

Minisforum had plenty of products showcased at CES 2026, but one of the main ones that I wanted to see in the flesh was the MS-S1 MAX. A powerful AI workstation packing the AMD Strix Halo APU, up to 128GB of RAM, and more, all in a small form factor system.

The new Minisforum MS-S1 MAX workstation packs the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 "Strix Halo" APU which has 16 cores and 32 threads of Zen 5 processing power, the powerful Radeon 8060S with 40 CUs of RDNA 3.5 GPU power, and up to 128GB of LPDDR5X-8000 memory.

On the front I/O we've got 2 x USB4, 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2 (10Gbps), 1 x 3.5mm audio combo jack, and 2 x DMIC. On the rear, you've got 2 x 10GbE ports, 2 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10Gbps), 2 x USB 2.0, 2 x USB4 V2 (80Gbps), 1 x HDMI 2.1 FRL (up to 8K @ 60Hz and 4K @ 120Hz).

AMD showed off its impressive new Ryzen AI Halo Mini-PC at CES 2026, powered by its Ryzen AI Max series "Strix Halo" APUs, acting as an answer to the NVIDIA DGX Spark.

AMD's flagship Strix Halo APU features up to 16 cores and 32 threads of Zen 5 CPU power, 40 cores of RDNA 3.5 GPU power, an XDNA 2-based NPU for AI workloads, and up to 128GB of RAM. AMD has used the power of its Strix Halo APU and created the Ryzen AI Halo, which will take the mini AI supercomputer battle to NVIDIA's doorstep with its DGX Spark.

The new AMD Ryzen AI Halo has been designed as an AI Developer Platform, similar to how it works with the NVIDIA DGX Spark, designed to speed up AI development and workloads.

Dell has announced its very latest Area-51 desktop gaming PC will arrive with the world's fastest gaming CPU: AMD's new Ryzen 7 9850X3D which just launched at CES 2026.

Dell launched the Alienware Area-51 desktop gaming PC at CES 2025 but only had Intel Core Ultra 200 series "Arrow Lake" processors, but in November 2025 it unlocked AMD Ryzen 9000 series "Zen 5" processors. At CES 2026 this week, the company announced the Alienware Area-51 would be available with AMD's new Ryzen 7 9850X3D processor.

You can configure a new Alienware Area-51 desktop gaming PC with AMD's new Ryzen 7 9850X3D processor, up to an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 with 24GB of GDDR7 memory... however, only 64GB of DDR5 (there are only two DIMM slots), and up to 12TB of SSD storage.

ASUS has just unleashed its new ROG G1000 at CES 2026, a next-level desktop gaming PC that has the best PC gaming hardware money can buy, and show-stopping innovation. Check it out:

At the core of the new ASUS ROG G1000 desktop gaming PC is the built-in AniMe Holo fan, which is the world's first holographic fan system inside of a pre-built gaming PC, and it's capable of projecting customizable holographic visuals on your PC.

The AniMe Holo module is housed inside of an independent chamber that features a hinge-door design, making sure that airflow isn't interfering with the rest of the components thermal path, helping reduce overall system noise by limiting vibration from the AniMe Holo system.

Lenovo has some new products to unveil at CES 2026 in less than two weeks time, with two new systems leaked: the Yoga Mini i desktop, and the new ThinkCentre X AIO Aura Edition system with an uber-interesting 16:18 near-square display. Let's dive right in.

First off, the new Lenovo ThinkCentre X AIO Aura Edition looks like one of the most interesting products from the company for CES 2026, with a unique 16:18 aspect ratio. The leaks are coming from WindowsLatest, which reports the near-square 27.6-inch panel will help creators, programmers, data-focused users, and more with more than enough vertical display area to view two A4 pages of content in portrait.

The new AIO system is (unfortunately) a new Copilot+ PC, powered by Intel's new Core Ultra X7 series "Panther Lake" CPUs, with an IPS-based display and native 2560 x 2880 resolution @ 60Hz, the 2560 pixels wide is the same as a 1440p panel (which is 2560 x 1440) but the 2880 pixels high is double that of a regular 1440p, meaning it'll be impressive for particular users who will adore the additional vertical pixels.

We all know RAM prices are utterly out of control, with system integrator MAINGEAR announcing its new "BYO" RAM builds, where gamers can have a pre-built system created with, or without RAM.

MAINGEAR's new category of gaming and high-end enthusiast PCs will ship without DDR5 modules, with the company calling the new systems "BYO" RAM Builds.

This is good for gamers who already have their RAM ready, or they might have found a fantastic deal on some DDR5 memory, you can place your order with MAINGEAR and send them your RAM, and they'll slot it into your new MAINGEAR system, test it, and tune it for performance and stability.

Digital Storm will unveil its next-gen flagship desktop gaming PC at CES 2026, with the upgraded Aventum X, and it looks gorgeous from just the few teaser photos the company has online. Check them out:

The company has the Aventum X system on the market now, with high-end custom liquid cooling and easy serviceability, with the chassis using fixed inlet and outlet ports on the motherboard tray, which make it easy to disconnect liquid cooling parts without tearing the whole loop apart.

Digital Storm offers high-end Intel and AMD processor offerings, with up to the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (starts at $5064) , the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X (starts at $5032), and the AMD Ryzen Threadripper 9960X (starts at $7153). There are plenty of RAM, SSD, and GPU options depending on how much power you want inside of your Aventum X gaming PC.

AOOSTAR has just launched its new NEX395 Mini-PC system in China, powered by AMD's flagship Ryzen AI Max+ 395 "Strix Halo" APU, a huge 128GB of RAM, and a cost of just under $3000.

The new AOOSTAR NEX395 Mini-PC system ships with its massive 128GB of LPDDR5X-8533 memory running on a 256-bit memory bus, the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 "Strix Halo" APU with its 16 cores and 32 threads of Zen 5 processing power, and powerful 40 CUs of RDNA 3.5-based Radeon 8060S integrated GPU goodness.

The company has beefed up the cooling design and power delivery of the new NEX395 Mini-PC, with AOOSTAR describing its "Glacier VC" thermal design with an IVC plate and a higher 140W TDP performance mode. AOOSTAR says that its 3DMark numbers were taken at 120W with scores of around 11,550 points total, a GPU score of 11,639 points, and a CPU score of 11,073 points.

It's no secret that the DRAM and memory crisis is well and truly here, as seen with the dramatic price increases for products like DDR5 memory. According to a new report (via TrendForce), memory shortages and supply squeezes are about to hit products from two of the biggest names in consumer and commercial PC products: Dell and Lenovo.

The report highlights recent comments Dell COO Jeff Clarke made to Bloomberg in November, in which he said he's "never seen memory-chip costs rise this fast." And with that, Dell has apparently issued a price-hike alert to its customers, indicating that prices will increase by "at least" 15-20% as soon as next week or mid-December 2025.

In addition, Lenovo has started communicating with its customers and notifying them of upcoming price increases that will take effect in early 2026. According to the report, Lenovo is telling its customers that existing quotes and prices will expire on January 1, 2026, due to memory shortages and the rapidly growing AI and cloud markets. Lenovo hasn't specified a figure like Dell's 15-20%, but it's expected that it will be in a similar region.

With Valve's Steam Machine announcement, the idea of a mini gaming PC that sits next to or underneath your TV like a gaming console is on the minds of gamers everywhere, and for good reason. Gaming on a couch with a big-screen TV is simply more comfortable than sitting at a desk. And with that, the new MINISFORUM AtomMan G1 PRO, which features a design inspired by the PlayStation 5 console, looks like a pretty impressive Steam Machine alternative.

The MINISFORUM AtomMan G1 PRO is powered by the AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX, a mobile Zen 4 CPU with 16 cores and 32 threads and a Boost Clock speed of up to 5.4 GHz. It also features a low-profile desktop GeForce RTX 5060 graphics card that can run at its full 145W power draw, thanks to the AtomMan G1 PRO's integrated 350W PSU.

MINISFORUM notes that, with the RTX 5060, 25% more powerful than the RTX 4060 and featuring DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation support, the AtomMan G1 PRO can run Cyberpunk 2077 at 214 FPS at 1080p and several other titles at 200+ FPS.

We all know about the insane DRAM price increases that are affecting RAM prices in a massive way, but also GPU prices as they have a bunch of VRAM on them (up to 32GB for the RTX 5090), but now MAINGEAR CEO Wallace Santos has weighed in on the situation.

In a new chat between our friends at Wccftech and MAINGEAR CEO Wallace Santos, we get some more insight to the retail supply chain for PC gamers, and how it is affecting them. Wccftech asked Wallace: "With analysts projecting that memory shortages could extend into 2027, what advice would you offer consumers, whether building their first PC or upgrading an existing system, on how to navigate rising prices and potential component constraints?"

MAINGEAR CEO Wallace Santos explained: "We've already seen DRAM prices skyrocket due to the shortages and are holding off those price changes for our customers as long as we can. For consumers that are interested in getting a new PC or upgrading their current system's GPU, SSD or RAM, they should consider shopping now and looking for offerings that have not seen price increases yet. MAINGEAR is offering pre-built units for Black Friday right now that were sheltered from these price increases".

CyberPowerPC is one of the biggest names in pre-built gaming PCs and laptops, making it easier for those who aren't keen on shopping for individual parts or building a PC from scratch. And with the company's Black Friday Sales offering savings on its range of systems and gear, it has taken to social media to confirm that, as of December 7, the prices for 'all systems' will increase due to market conditions.

Due to memory (RAM) prices surging by 500% and even SSD prices rising by 100%, this has already impacted the cost of the PCs it has been building since October 2025. CyberPowerPC is making the announcement now to "remain fully transparent" with the PC gaming community and, given the timing so close to the holiday season, is aware it's "not ideal."

"Please know that CyberPowerPC will continue to strive to acquire the highest quality components at the best prices to ensure our customers continue to get top-performing systems with the best value on the market," the post concludes. Now, we're not posting this just to highlight that CyberPowerPC's system prices are about to increase, but also to warn that this may be indicative of a seismic wave of post-Black Friday Sales price increases set to hit the PC gaming market.

Dell is now offering AMD Ryzen 9000X3D processors inside of new configurations of its Alienware Area-51 desktop gaming PC, which launched with Intel Core Ultra 200 series CPUs earlier this year at CES 2025.

AMD versions of the Alienware Area-51 system weren't offered until today, with new Area-51 systems using an Alienware X870E motherboard and either the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D (8C/16T) or Ryzen 9 9950X3D (16C/32T) processors, providing even more gaming and multi-threaded performance over the flagship Area-51 system and its Intel Core Ultra 9 285K processor.

The overall design of the new AMD-powered Alienware Area-51 gaming PCs isn't changed, with a positive pressure cooling system consisting of dual 140mm fans, dual 180mm fans, and up to three 120mm intake fans. The cool air inside of the system is pushed towards the CPU and GPU, with warm air blowing out of the passive rear exhaust.

GMKtec has teased its new EVO-T2 Mini-PC at Intel's recent conference 2025 event in China, powered by the new Intel Panther Lake CPU with 12 Xe3 GPU cores.

The new GMKtec EVO-T2 Mini-PC had its spec sheet on display with some basic specs teased, listed with a Panther Lake-H processor (actually, it's spelled on the spec sheet "PatherLake" but whatever) with the chip fabbed on Intel's new in-house 18A process node, featuring 12 Xe3 GPU cores, and 128GB of LPDDR5X-10677 memory.

On the storage side the new EVO-T2 Mini-PC system has dual M.2 SSD slots with one of them wired to PCIe 5.0 and the other one wired for PCIe 4.0, with support for up to 16TB of SSD storage (hot damn). There are 3 x USB-A ports, 1 x USB-C port, and a 3.5mm combo audio jack which are all on the front, but we don't know the I/O for the rear of the PC.

Apple is reportedly no longer cooking up a new high-end Mac Pro desktop, with an insider saying that the system has been put on the "back burner".

We all remember the Apple Mac Pro system that looked like a trash can, but its unique design didn't do so well, and in the end Apple apologized about it. There was a bigger issue with the Mac Pro at the time, as Apple executives later admitted that the design backed the company into a "thermal corner", meaning it was close to impossible to upgrade the processor without causing the Mac Pro to overheat.

Apple changed things up big time with its totally redesigned Mac Pro desktop that had a traditional design over the oh-my-gosh unique style of the one from 2013. Apple promised at the time that the Mac Pro family would be updated regularly, and would remain an important part of the Mac family... but we all know that didn't happen.

If you thought just a single NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 had some power, this Redditor has installed not just one, but four of ASUS's new flagship ROG Astral GeForce RTX 5090 graphics cards into a single monster battlestation PC.

In a Reddit post by user u/Zestyclose-Salad-290 posted of his new battlestation, he showed off some of the innards of the massive case that has four gigantic ASUS ROG Astral RTX 5090 graphics cards inside. He used some PCIe 5.0 riser cables to get the graphics cards connected to the second chamber, providing space on the motherboard and other components.

ASUS's new ROG Astral RTX 5090 is a bloody thick card, taking up close to 4 slots inside of a system, but with 4 of them, they take up a hell of a lot of space. The PSU choice by the user is questionable, as it's a 2400W power supply and each one of the GPUs will chow down on 600W of power: 4 x 600W = 2400W of power from the GPUs alone.

SignalRGB has just built a new custom PC that is inside of an actual microwave, with the RGB-blinged PC components sitting inside of the microwave, spinning on a turntable, and a Stream Deck on the side as the keypad. Check it out:

The company installed a small monitor into the door of the microwave, by the turntable, with the graphics card -- the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16GB -- mounted on the wall, instead of inside of it. SignalRGB's new Microwave PC costs $2000 and features a customizable LCD screen where the microwave display used to be, in the upper right-hand corner. You can interact with the display through the built-in Stream Deck pad below it.

Inside, SignalRGB's new Microwave PC features an Intel Core Ultra 5 225 processor on an MSI MPG Z890I EDGE TI motherboard, an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16GB graphics card, 48GB of Patriot Viper Xtreme 5 M DDR5-6000 memory, a Patriot Viper VP4300 Lite Gen4 SSD, and an 1100W SFX power supply.