Computex 2018: the biggest news from the biggest PC show – The Verge

Android gaming phones have a lot of growing up to do

2018-06-07T08:00:03-04:00

The Asus ROG Phone with optional TwinView Dock that adds a second screen. | Photo by Vlad Savov / The Verge

Gaming and Android have never been bigger. Nvidia's CEO said at Computex this week that he fully expects every person on the planet to eventually be a gamer, and Android phones have taken over from Windows PCs as the most-used method for humans to access the web. Putting the two together in a new product, then, would seem to be an instant winner, and that's what Asus has tried to do with its Computex announcement of a new Republic of Gamers Android phone. But is there any reason to expect its fate would be any different to all the previous Android gaming phones that already crashed and burned?

The answer is complicated. Mobile gaming is und …

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Nvidia CEO says next gaming GPU announcement won’t be for ‘a long time’

2018-06-06T04:27:52-04:00

It's been over two years since Nvidia launched its current generation of GeForce gaming GPUs powered by the Pascal architecture, so you could have been forgiven for expecting the successor to have surfaced around Computex this week. According to CEO Jensen Huang, however, there's still a while to wait. Speaking to reporters at a roundtable in Taipei, Huang answered a query about the next GeForce GPUs by saying that "it's a long time from now."

The question is particularly pertinent because GPUs have represented extremely poor value for money of late due to the cryptocurrency boom skyrocketing prices. Things have settled down somewhat, but y …

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Microsoft launches new Windows Collaboration Displays to make meeting rooms smarter

2018-06-06T02:00:02-04:00

Microsoft is launching a new type of conference room display at Computex this week. While the software giant manufactures its own Surface Hub, its partnering with other display makers to create Windows Collaboration Displays. The displays simply hook up to existing Windows 10 PCs in businesses, and include built-in sensors that connect to Microsoft's new Azure IoT spatial intelligence features. The sensors will detect presence in a room, so they could let a businesses improve how a room is heated or cooled, and to more efficiently manage room-booking systems.

The displays are high resolution, multi-touch, and support stylus input just like …

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AMD promises 32-core Threadripper processor for later this year

2018-06-05T23:23:19-04:00

The 32-core, 64-thread second-gen AMD Threadripper. | Photo by Vlad Savov / The Verge

Mere hours after Intel raised eyebrows with the promise of a 5GHz 28-core processor, AMD has done four cores better with its own tease of a 32-core chip. The second generation of AMD's Threadripper processors will have a truly extreme variant that straps four 8-core Ryzen dies together to form a unified, humongous 32-core part. This "heavy metal" Threadripper can handle 64 processing threads at a time, doubling the core count and capabilities of the original Threadripper, though it can still fit in the same motherboard socket as the first generation.

The only other details that AMD disclosed here at Computex were that the second-gen Threadr …

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Gigabyte will sell you fake color-changing RAM

2018-06-05T09:35:12-04:00

Rainbow-colored RGB-lit RAM isn't new in the world of computing. Companies like Trident have already bravely infused memory sticks with glowing lights going as far back as 2016.

Gigabyte, which announced that it will get into the RAM business at Computex this year, is taking things even further. It's selling light-up LED-infused RAM that doesn't even have any RAM in it.

Light-up LED-infused RAM that doesn't even have any RAM in it

So basically, Gigabyte is selling its new AORUS RGB LED memory as a kit. Two of the sticks are 16GB (2 x 8GB) of DDR4 memory, but the other half of the bundle is two faux-RAM sticks that are made of the same alumi …

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Intel teases outlandish 28-core processor for end of year

2018-06-05T03:22:37-04:00

Intel has started teasing a 28-core processor for PCs at Computex this week. The chipmaker briefly demonstrated the processor onstage today, promising that it will be available later this year. Intel isn't revealing the mystery processor's process technology or architecture, but a spokesperson did reveal it's a single-socket processor with 28 cores running at 5GHz. Intel demonstrated a Cinebench score of 7,334, an impressive result for a single processor PC.

Intel is promising to turn this processor into a real product, and if it manages to do so for workstations or even consumer PCs, it will put it way ahead of AMD in the multicore battle. …

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Intel announces limited edition 5GHz Core i7-8086K anniversary CPU

2018-06-05T02:30:56-04:00

40 years after releasing its historic 8086 processor, the one that got the x86 architecture started, Intel today announced a special limited edition anniversary processor called the Core i7-8086K. This new 8th-gen Core chip maxes out at a dizzying 5GHz turbo frequency, with a default 4GHz clock speed out of the box. Intel is releasing the new Core i7 part on June 8th, the exact anniversary of the 8086's release. Being a K-series processor, the Core i7-8086K also has its multiplier unlocked and is ready for overclocking to even more extreme speeds, should you feel the need.

To maximize hype around this release, Intel is going to be giving aw …

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Sprint and Intel say they’ll offer 5G PCs next year

2018-06-05T02:30:02-04:00

5G PCs are supposedly coming soon, and today we're learning a bit more about where you'll be able to get them. In a joint announcement, Sprint said today that it'll be offering 5G PCs next year powered by Intel's chips.

Two additional companies also said today that they'll be building Intel-powered 5G PCs: Acer and Asus. That brings the total number of companies - which already includes Microsoft, Dell, HP, and Lenovo - up to six. Those companies are all supposed to release 5G laptops and 2-in-1s at some point next year.

This is all good news for Intel, which has struggled to compete with Qualcomm in the connected device space. If Intel ca …

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Intel claims it can cut display battery use in half with new tech

2018-06-05T02:17:25-04:00

At Computex today, Intel made a brief but potentially momentous announcement: it's developed new power management technology for mobile displays that can cut battery consumption in half under some circumstances. The company didn't go into the details of how its Intel Low Power Display Technology works, but it's a combined effort with Sharp and Innolux, who are manufacturing the 1W LCD panel required for it. Sadly, you wouldn't be able to retrofit this battery life extender into your existing laptop. Another requirement is that you'd have to use Intel's graphics instead of Nvidia or AMD's superior alternatives.

Even with the inevitable cavea …

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Asus announces ZenBook S laptop with unique hinge design

2018-06-05T00:30:02-04:00

Asus has announced the ZenBook S, an ultraportable laptop with a unique hinge design. The company calls it ErgoLift, and it angles the keyboard at 5.5 degrees, which is supposed to be more comfortable during long periods of typing. The hinge also helps with the laptop's cooling system by offering more clearance from the surface below.

That's probably for the best because Asus has crammed U-series Core i7 or i5 processors into the Zenbook S' 12.9mm-thick frame, which weighs 1 kg (2.2 pounds). The display is 13.3 inches with options for 4K and 1080p resolutions, and the slim bezels offer a screen-to-body ratio of 85 percent. Physical connecti …

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