Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 12 Review

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 12 Review

Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 12 laptop has seemingly lost its way as performance and price no longer match despite having some decent features.

TT Show Episode 31 - AI-Powered iPhone and PS5 Pro and an AI-Generated Romantic Comedy

Kosta Andreadis | TweakTown | Apr 19, 2024 3:38 AM CDT

This week, on a special AI-powered edition of The TT Show, Jak and Kosta examine the latest happenings in tech, gaming, and science - and AI is everywhere. Apple uses AI to give Siri vision and will integrate AI into many aspects of the upcoming iOS 18 update.

TT Show Episode 31 - AI-Powered iPhone and PS5 Pro and an AI-Generated Romantic Comedy

Also, with the PlayStation 5 Pro specs confirmed by multiple sources, AI could play a significant role in delivering the reported 4K 60 FPS gameplay target and boost to ray-tracing performance. In the world of Generative AI and LLMs, companies have pressure to disclose what data is being used (or is that harvested) for training.

And speaking of generative AI, TCL is creating the world's first AI-generated romantic comedy set to debut this summer on the company's TCLtv+ streaming service. How does it look? Well, be sure to tune into this week's episode of The TT Show to watch Jak's reaction in real-time.

Continue reading: TT Show Episode 31 - AI-Powered iPhone and PS5 Pro and an AI-Generated Romantic Comedy (full post)

BioMatrix introduces PoY, the world's first UBI token with 60 years Issuance Commitment

Sponsored Content | Cryptocurrency & Mining | Apr 23, 2024 1:55 PM CDT

Entering the digital future, I have had the chance to explore BioMatrix's cutting-edge blockchain platform. As a technology enthusiast, the idea of the Proof of You (PoY) token caught my attention at first, especially with its pledge to "distribute wealth in a fair and equitable manner."

BioMatrix introduces PoY, the world's first UBI token with 60 years Issuance Commitment

The selling point of the PoY token is that it is not just a digital asset, but it is an integral part of the company's Universal Basic Income (UBI) distribution strategy, which is designed to connect the user's biological identity to blockchain technology - an important development that could help bridge financial divides around the world.

At its recent launch in Dubai, the BioMatrix platform showcased its potential to redefine the UBI landscape. Like many other secure platforms, BioMatrix is built with user empowerment in mind, and leverages advanced AI and blockchain technology to facilitate its ecosystem growth and expansion. However, the key difference that sets BioMatrix apart from other UBI platforms is using newer cryptography solutions like Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKP) to protect user privacy and security.

Continue reading: BioMatrix introduces PoY, the world's first UBI token with 60 years Issuance Commitment (full post)

SAPPHIRE NITRO+ B650I Wi-Fi Ultra Platinum: the company's first AMD AM5 motherboard

Anthony Garreffa | Motherboards | Apr 23, 2024 9:38 PM CDT

SAPPHIRE is well known in the AMD Radeon GPU world for some of the best Radeon series graphics cards over the years, and now the company has unveiled its first AM5 socket motherboard, the new NITRO+ B650I Wi-Fi Ultra Platinum. Check it out:

SAPPHIRE NITRO+ B650I Wi-Fi Ultra Platinum: the company's first AMD AM5 motherboard

The company had a NITRO+ B550I series motherboard on the market, which is based on the AMD AM4 socket, while the new NITRO+ B650I Wi-Fi Ultra Platinum motherboard is based on the AM5 socket. The AM5 socket itself has been around for a few years now, but AMD has promised that AM5 still has a few more years of life with next-gen Zen 5-based Ryzen 9000 series CPUs to work on the AM5 socket.

SAPPHIRE's new NITRO+ B650I Wi-Fi Ultra Platinum motherboard has 8+2 phase (70A powerstage) VRM which is controlled by the XDPE 192C3B PWM IC. A heatsink cools the power delivery systemk, while we have 2 x DDR5 DIMM slots that support up to 64GB of DDR5-6000 memory, while power is provided through a single 8-pin connector and regular 24-pin ATX power connector.

Continue reading: SAPPHIRE NITRO+ B650I Wi-Fi Ultra Platinum: the company's first AMD AM5 motherboard (full post)

TCL unveils flagship Q10K Mini-LED TV family: up to 98-inch 4K at 144Hz refresh

Anthony Garreffa | Displays & Projectors | Apr 23, 2024 9:06 PM CDT

TCL has just unveiled its new flagship Q10K series Mini-LED family of TVs, aimed at the mid-range model market, with sizes ranging between 65-inch and a monster 98-inch, all with 4K resolutions and super-smooth 144Hz refresh rate.

TCL unveils flagship Q10K Mini-LED TV family: up to 98-inch 4K at 144Hz refresh

We've seen the company unveiling new monster-sized TVs and gaming monitors over the last few months, but with the new Q10K series we have high-end Mini-LED panels that will be a huge upgrade for TV owners if they're moving into 4K 144Hz on a TV (which is awesome) and Mini-LED (which is beautiful).

Inside, TCL's new Q10K series features competitive mini-LED panels with multiple dimming zones depending on the screen size: from 1512 zones to a huge 2592 zones. The TVs feature a 4K 144Hz HVA panel with a maximum brightness of up to 3800 nits. TCL's new Q10K 4K Mini-LED TVs will be launched alongside the flagship Q10K Pro series as a more affordable TV.

Continue reading: TCL unveils flagship Q10K Mini-LED TV family: up to 98-inch 4K at 144Hz refresh (full post)

NASA engineer claims discovery of new force of nature that may solve space travel

Jak Connor | Science, Space, Health & Robotics | Apr 23, 2024 8:01 PM CDT

A space startup has claimed to have discovered a breakthrough force of nature humans will use to propel objects for the next 1,000 years.

NASA engineer claims discovery of new force of nature that may solve space travel

The claims come from Exodus Propulsion Technologies, who's co-founder is Charles Buhler, a former NASA engineer that worked on a selection of legendary NASA programs such as the International Space Station (ISS), the Hubble Space Telescope, and the Space Shuttle. Additionally, he is the lead scientist and co-founder of NASA's Electrostatics and Surface Physics Laboratory at Kennedy Space Center and has a PhD in Condensed Matter Physics from Florida State University.

According to Buhler, who spoke to The Debrief, the startup presented its new findings of a breakthrough force that Buhler believes "will be this force that we will use to propel objects for the next 1,000 years... until the next thing comes." Adding, "There are rules that include conservation of energy, but if done correctly, one can generate forces unlike anything humankind has done before."

Continue reading: NASA engineer claims discovery of new force of nature that may solve space travel (full post)

HighPoint's new PCIe Gen5 SSD PCIe card supports 32 SSDs, up to 960TB Gen5 SSD storage per slot

Anthony Garreffa | Storage | Apr 23, 2024 7:49 PM CDT

HighPoint has just unveiled its new Rocket PCIe Gen5 NVMe Switch and M.2 RAID AIC adapters, which support up to a whopping (and wallet-busting) 32 SSDs... with an insane 960TB of Gen5 SSD capacity per PCIe slot. Yes, 960TB of Gen5 SSDs in your system, in a single slot. Whaaaaat.

HighPoint's new PCIe Gen5 SSD PCIe card supports 32 SSDs, up to 960TB Gen5 SSD storage per slot

We've already seen companies like OWC and Apex Storage offer PCIe Gen4 products that support 16 devices per PCIe slot, but HighPoint is the first to market with a PCIe Gen5 solution. It can house 32 SSDs and up to 960TB of Gen5 SSD storage. That's huge.

The new HighPoint Rocket 7600 and Rocket 1600 series will target different markets. The Rocket 7600 series products are designed for edge servers based on Linux and Windows and high-performance PC systems. Meanwhile, the Rocket 1600 Gen5 adapters have been designed for the enterprise market.

Continue reading: HighPoint's new PCIe Gen5 SSD PCIe card supports 32 SSDs, up to 960TB Gen5 SSD storage per slot (full post)

Samsung announces next-gen HBM4 memory: higher capacity, speeds, 3D packaging tech

Anthony Garreffa | Artificial Intelligence | Apr 23, 2024 7:11 PM CDT

Samsung has just announced that its next-generation HBM4 memory is in development, and will make its first appearance in 2025 with next-gen speeds, capacities, and features.

Samsung announces next-gen HBM4 memory: higher capacity, speeds, 3D packaging tech

The South Korean everything giant posted a blog explaining its next-gen HBM4 is in development, with its current HBM3E "Shinebolt" memory as its flagship HBM. HBM3E "Shinebolt" memory has 36GB capacities using 24Gb DRAM and up to 9.8Gbps bandwidth, with the memory technology supporting 12-Hi stacks and 2.5D advanced packaging technology.

HBM4 is Samsung's next step. If the company uses the same 24Gb modules, we should expect to see 16-Hi stacks. This will allow up to 256GB of HBM4 on future-gen AI GPUs with speeds that should hit 10Gbps or more. Samsung is surely cooking up denser DRAM modules, where we should see 24Gb+ that will drive total capacities of HBM4-powered AI GPUs through the roof.

Continue reading: Samsung announces next-gen HBM4 memory: higher capacity, speeds, 3D packaging tech (full post)

Meta brings its Horizon OS to third-party VR headsets for the first time

It might be all too easy to think that the only VR headset that matters is somewhere in the Meta Quest lineup while the Apple Vision Pro is a different beast entirely. But Meta is looking to change things by expanding the world of virtual reality headsets to include those from other manufacturers - and it wants its Meta Horizon OS to be the software that powers it all.

Meta brings its Horizon OS to third-party VR headsets for the first time

In a press release detailing the move, Meta said that the Meta Horizon OS is what currently powers the Meta Quest headsets and that it combines the core technologies powering current mixed reality experiences. Now, it wants other companies to produce headsets that can run the same software.

As part of that new generation of hardware Meta sees the rising popularity of gaming, entertainment, and fitness experiences as a key factor in bringing other companies to the market. Some companies are already working on new devices that are powered by Meta Horizon OS, Meta says, with ASUS ROG at the top of the list. It's developing an all-new performance gaming headset, Meta says, adding that Lenovo is also going to develop mixed reality devices for production, learning, and entertainment.

Continue reading: Meta brings its Horizon OS to third-party VR headsets for the first time (full post)

So few people are buying the Apple Vision Pro, Apple has had to slash shipments

When Apple launched the Apple Vision Pro to the public in February it was the hottest thing in town, and it remained that way for a few weeks. But as is so often the case with these launches, once the dust settled, interest was already starting to wane. Now, a new report claims that demand for the high-end spatial computer has been so low that Apple has had to take drastic action.

So few people are buying the Apple Vision Pro, Apple has had to slash shipments

That action, according to the normally well-connected analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, comes in the form of cutting its 2024 shipments to somewhere between 400,000 and 450,000 units which is considerably down on the market consensus of anything up to 800,000 units - and potentially even more.

Kuo points out that Apple cut the orders even before launching the Apple Vision Pro in new markets. Right now it's only available in the United States and it's thought that demand has fallen so sharply in the United States that Apple is taking a more conservative view of the demand it can expect when the headset finally starts to ship to other countries.

Continue reading: So few people are buying the Apple Vision Pro, Apple has had to slash shipments (full post)

Qualcomm's other Snapdragon X SoC is leaked, indicating how Plus CPU should compare to Elite

Darren Allan | CPU, APU & Chipsets | Apr 23, 2024 4:00 PM CDT

Qualcomm is rumored to be revealing its Snapdragon X Plus chip at an event tomorrow, and it seems like this will indeed be happening, as the details of the SoC have just been leaked.

Qualcomm's other Snapdragon X SoC is leaked, indicating how Plus CPU should compare to Elite

VideoCardz has got hold of some apparent press slides detailing the three variants of the Snapdragon X Elite, as well as the Snapdragon X Plus silicon which will run alongside it (there'll just be one version of that - to begin with, anyway).

The rumor mill was correct in its assertion that the Snapdragon X Plus would be a 10-core SoC, cut down a pair of cores compared to the 12-core Elite CPU. At least assuming this leak is correct anyway - we must treat any pre-release spillage with some caution until the info is confirmed by Qualcomm, which will no doubt happen at the mentioned event tomorrow.

Continue reading: Qualcomm's other Snapdragon X SoC is leaked, indicating how Plus CPU should compare to Elite (full post)

Apple is finally bringing the Calculator app to the iPad for the first time

Oliver Haslam | Mobile Devices, Tablets & Phones | Apr 23, 2024 3:45 PM CDT

One of the first apps that appeared on the iPhone way back in 2007 was the Calculator app, a simple calculator that has so far not been made available on the iPad. It's pretty amazing that there has so far not been a calculator app, built by Apple, available on the iPad to date. But that could finally be about to change and it's thought that it might happen sooner rather than later.

Apple is finally bringing the Calculator app to the iPad for the first time

That's according to MacRumors, with a report detailing that after 14 years Apple is getting ready to bring the iPhone's Calculator app to the iPad. The report cites unnamed sources familiar with the matter, saying that the new Calculator app will be part of the iPadOS 18 software update.

This news follows a report from last week that some of Apple's upcoming AI features will include a new math feature linked to the Calculator app. That appears to be part of this new Calculator app news, but the original AppleInsider report does add extra context. We're told to expect a resizable window and a list of recent calculations and more.

Continue reading: Apple is finally bringing the Calculator app to the iPad for the first time (full post)

Apple's iOS 18 AI features will run 'entirely on-device' and feature privacy and speed benefits

Oliver Haslam | Mobile Devices, Tablets & Phones | Apr 23, 2024 3:30 PM CDT

As we get ever closer to the June WWDC event at Apple Park we're learning more and more about what we can expect from the big opening keynote. That keynote will be streamed online and has historically been when Apple previews all of its big new software updates. This year iOS 18 is expected to be at the forefront of those previews and we've been hearing a lot about potential new AI features. Now, a new report has added more color to Apple's plans for those features.

Apple's iOS 18 AI features will run 'entirely on-device' and feature privacy and speed benefits

According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, writing in the weekly Power On newsletter, Apple's AI features will not use server-side components as is normally the way but rather go the other route, and run the large language models required to make them work on-device instead. That will mean that the features will use Apple's iPhone chips to process requests and handle data. As a comparison, chatbots like ChatGPT use servers that handle processing over the Internet.

Gurman says that Apple's large language model will run entirely on-device which will mean that there are some benefits to be noted. One of those benefits is that Apple will be able to boast performance improvements due to the lack of an internet request. With no need to send information to a server and then wait for a response, iPhone owners can expect a speedier experience than might otherwise be possible.

Continue reading: Apple's iOS 18 AI features will run 'entirely on-device' and feature privacy and speed benefits (full post)