Archives for May 28, 2019

Intel finally unveils its long-awaited 10nm “Ice Lake” CPUs.

It was just about a month ago that Intel showed off its powerful new 9th-gen laptop CPUs, but now it’s finally ready to talk about its upcoming “Ice Lake” 10nm chips. For one, they’re officially known as 10th-gen Core. And they won’t be taking much limelight away from those beefier laptop chips, as Intel is focusing on ultraportables first with U-series processors. 10th-gen CPUs will be available in Core i3, i5, and i7 variants, as you’d expect. And, just like Intel already teased, they’ll feature its powerful new 11th-gen “Iris Plus” integrated graphics which are fast enough to run games decently in 1080p.

The heart of the 10th-gen CPUs is Intel’s Sunny Cove architecture, which features a quad-core, eight-thread design and speeds up to 4.1GHz. In comparison, the 8th-gen i7-8565U scaled up to 4.6GHz, while the previous i5 and i3 CPUs topped out at 3.9 GHz. We don’t have the full breakdown of specs for the new chips yet, but they definitely don’t seem like a downgrade. Intel claims Sunnycove can handle 18 percent more instructions per clock (IPC) than before, which means they’ll do a lot more at equivalent clock speeds. The company is also touting other architecture upgrades that should improve performance. That includes a much larger L1 and L2 cache; more execution ports (for handling more work at once); and better branch prediction (for anticipating tasks).

These improvements are a bit tougher to grasp than just boosting clock speeds, but the end result should be faster perceived performance for users. And, of course, there are some more direct speed improvements with the new 11th generation graphics, which features over a teraflop worth of performance with 64 execution units and a clock speed up to 1.1GHz. In comparison, Intel’s previous UHD 620 graphics only had 24 execution units.

As we previously saw, Iris Plus can achieve over 70 FPS in CS:Go while playing in 1080p, compared to around 45FPS from before. According to Intel’s stats, it’ll get close to 60FPS in Rocket League at the same resolution, and over 30FPS for Fortnite. With the previous graphics, Fortnite was barely playable in 1080p.

Outside of games, Iris Plus Graphics also adds support for VESA’s adaptive sync standard, which should reduce screen tearing and smooth out performance on supported displays. Additionally, it’ll offer video encoding acceleration for HEVC/VP9 4K/60FPS content and even 8K at 30FPS. You’ll be able to take advantage of those encoders in apps like Adobe Premiere and Cyberlink PowerDirector, something that seemed unimaginable with integrated graphics a year ago. And, as a nice bonus, there’s direct support for HDR and Dolby Vision playback, as well as better power efficiency.

You can also look forward to faster AI computation in 10th-gen CPUs. The new Core i7 is around two and a half times faster than last year’s when processing images through the ResNet-50 deep learning interface. In real-world usage, that means the new processors will be faster at things like semantic search in Microsoft Photos, which relies on local AI to sort images. During Intel’s Computex keynote, the company also showed off how the AI capabilities could help sharpen blurry video footage almost instantly.

As for other upgrades, the 10th-gen chips will include WiFi 6/802.11ax, which offers around 40 percent faster speeds than AC wireless, and far better performance in congested areas. There’s also Thunderbolt 3 support, as expected.

While it’s a bit tough to get excited over ultraportable laptop CPUs these days, Intel’s 10th-gen chips seem like a more fully-featured upgrade than previous generations. The jump to 10nm is a big part of that, allowing the company to craft a more efficient architecture that’s not just focused on chasing faster clock speeds. And together with the massive leap in graphics quality, these new processors will ultimately let thin and light laptops do more than ever before. It’s no wonder Intel has started a new initiative for next-generation laptops in Project Athena — all of a sudden, we can expect a lot more from notebooks.

If you’re looking for top-tier graphics, this is where your money needs to go.

After NVIDIA revealed its Quadro RTX 5000 designed for laptops, a number of manufacturers have announced machines that’ll pack the new gear. Acer, ASUS, MSI, HP and Razer have all launched machines that offer the most powerful in professional, mobile graphics hardware. Here’s a brief run-down of what’s going to be available in the near future, and how much you can expect to pay for it. Now, these aren’t all of the “RTX Studio” laptops, which NVIDIA is using as branding for all devices that it will supply special drivers for. These are just the models packing, specifically, the new Quadro RTX 5000 GPU.

Acer

The 15.6-inch Acer ConceptD 7, built to coax designer types away from the MacBook Pro, will pack the Quadro RTX 5000. NVIDIA also says that the ConceptD 9, with its fancy tilting display, will also get the new silicon, although Acer itself hasn’t confirmed that yet. Since the machines were only announced in April, Acer hasn’t felt the need to make any changes to the spec list. On the ConceptD 7, that means you’ll get the same ninth-generation Core i7, 32GB RAM, 1TB HDD and the 15.6-inch, Pantone-validated 4K display.

Price and Availability: To be announced.

ASUS

ASUS is launching the StudioBook 700G3T and the W500, both of which can be bought with a Quadro RTX 5000 GPU option. We have specs for the W500, which include a ninth-generation Core i7-9750H, 32GB RAM, and 1TB storage. That’s about all we know, for now, apart from the fact that the W500 measures in at 18.9 x 360 x 252mm and weighs 4.4 pounds.

Price and Availability: To be announced.

HP

HP’s Zbook 15 G6 and Zbook 17 G6 will both get the new Quadro, as well as the choice of a ninth-generation Intel Core or Xeon CPU. For these enterprise-centric machines, the standout feature is the ability to swap out the memory and storage without the need for tools. And the larger of the pair offers “un-throttled performance” in simulation and GPU rendering, as well as a 100% DPI-P3 color gamut display.

Price and Availability: At some point in July, at an as-yet unspecified price.

MSI

MSI will include the RTX 5000 inside its line of workstation laptops, including its line-leading WS65 which is powered by a ninth-generation Core i9. The new models get a slimmer design and 4K display, as well as the promise that the hardware will meet Military Standard 810G for durability.

Price and Availability: Early next month, and already available to pre-order, for $3,500.

Razer

Razer has upgraded both its Blade 15 and Blade Pro 17 with the Quadro RTX 5000, and used the opportunity to make some other tweaks. That includes a new Mercury White finish to the bodies and more powerful CPU options. At first blush, both models resemble an old-school PowerBook G4, especially with the lighter shade on its bodies, and frankly, we’re here for it.

Price and Availability: To be announced.

There’s also a 256GB option, but it’s the same on the outside.

No, your eyes aren’t deceiving you — after four long years, Apple has updated the iPod touch. The new version packs a much faster A10 Fusion chip that can keep up with modern iOS experiences like group FaceTime calls and augmented reality, not to mention newer mobile games. Apple has also given the storage a much-needed boost, with a new 256GB version joining the mix for those who need to hold absolutely everything.

Those of you who were hoping for a redesign, however, will be disappointed. The new iPod (that’s still very strange to write) is identical on the outside — same shape, same four-inch screen, same cameras. You even have the old-school home button instead of Touch ID. That’s not a huge knock for a device that’s meant for kids, the car or the gym, but it’s a reminder that the iPod isn’t exactly a high priority in an era of iPhones and Apple Watches.

It’s relatively inexpensive, at least. The refreshed iPod touch is available now for $199 with a 32GB capacity, $299 for 128GB and $399 for the range-topping 256GB model. That could be considered a lot when not much has changed, but look at it this way: it’s still the most affordable way into the iOS ecosystem, and it makes more sense with the kid-friendly Apple Arcade service on the horizon.

It will use Sony’s proprietary low-power wide area (LPWA) network launching this fall.

Sony is quietly launching a chip that could change how e-bikes, cars, street lamps and all kinds of other connected devices can relay information. The module, when installed on any IoT object, will allow it send data to Sony’s proprietary low-power wide area (LPWA) ELTRES network launching this fall. It can transmit up to about 60 miles and work in noisy urban environments on objects moving at high speeds, opening up a lot of new applications in security, monitoring, tracking and more.

Most IoT systems use the internet to transfer data to the cloud, either via WiFi with very limited range, or an expensive cellular data connection. Sony’s ELTRES LPWA network harnesses low-power wireless technology to transfer low-bit data across a wide area, with lower power consumption, making it feasible to connect a wide range of devices.

The CXM1501GR chip transmits signals in the 920MHz band to Sony’s ELTRES network, and is also equipped with GPS/GNSS sensors to obtain time and position data. Sony said it’ll work in a “broad range of IoT devices, aiming to develop various services making the most of stable wireless communications over long distances and while moving at high speeds, thereby creating a new market.”

In a use case document, Sony said the tech could be used to “help friends find each other at a ski hill,” track wildlife, geolocate ships, follow yacht races, monitor bike rentals, while tracking numerous things like drones, rental cars and trains.

The technology appears to be limited to Japan for now, where Sony recently launched an application program for interested companies. It plans to build out the network there and do extensive testing. If it works out, it could make things much more connected than they are now, with all the good — and bad — that entails.