computex 2019
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Intel and AMD won Computex 2019
You can thank AMD and Intel for the influx of news out of Computex over the past week. Both chip companies announced some major new products: Intel showed off its 10-nanometer 10th-gen laptop chips, and AMD gave us details on its third generation Ryzen CPUs and first Navi GPUs. At first glance, that might all sound like typical tradeshow news, the next steps in a boring, iterative upgrade cycle. But each announcement spoke volumes -- they're not just showing us what Intel and AMD are working on for the next year, they gave us a preview of what's to come for the next decade.
Intel's 2-in-1 prototype proves it has big plans for dual-screen PCs
Intel surprised us last Computex with unique dual-screen prototypes like its Tiger Rapids device with an e-ink screen. This year, the company had even more concepts to show off at its technology open house. It showcased laptops from its Project Athena program and an intriguing Honeycomb Glacier idea that envisions different ways to make powerful laptops with integrated companion screens. Intel also gave us a glimpse at its new dual-screen prototype called Twin Rivers, demonstrating how its eighth-generation (and newer) processors are able to power such a resource-demanding device. As I played around with this prototype and Intel's other experiments, one thing became clear: The future of PCs is incredibly exciting.
MediaTek's 5G chipsets are ready for cheaper next-gen phones
The first wave of 5G devices carried a high premium, but MediaTek is working hard to ensure that budget handsets aren't left behind. The company has announced a new 5G-compatible system-on-chip that will offer decent performance and 5G connectivity to lower-end devices. The elegantly-named Integrated 5G SoC combines MediaTek's M70 5G modem with Arm's Cortex-A77 CPU and Mali-G77 GPU.
Watch Intel's Computex 2019 keynote in 11 minutes!
It's the battle of the chip makers here at Computex 2019 and in addition to companies like NVIDIA, AMD, ARM and Qualcomm, Intel had a slew of new products to unveil. It showed off 11 new 10nm Ice Lake SKUs and shared specification details for the Project Athena platform it first announced this CES. The company also showed off some impressively effective AI demos running smoothly on its processors, as well as its Core i9 CPU that can run all its cores at a beastly 5GHz. We've taken all the most fun parts of this presentation and compressed it into a snackable clip that you can enjoy, so bon appetit!
Alienware's slim gaming laptops are getting a bold new look
If you've been drooling over the Alienware Area 51m's sci-fi aesthetic, but wanted something a bit more compact, Dell has got you covered. The slim Alienware m15 and m17 are finally getting the company's new "Legend" industrial design, giving them the same light and dark case options as the 51m. Those new frames also include plenty of visual flourishes, like the rounded LED lighting around their rear ports and cleaner lines across the board. On the whole, they look a lot more modern than the last batch of slim Alienware laptops.
Dell's new XPS 13 2-in-1 is its most stylish laptop yet
I don't throw the word "perfect" around a lot, but that was honestly the best way to describe the latest XPS 13. But what if you wanted something more than a traditional laptop? That's where the new XPS 13 2-in-1 comes in. Like other convertibles, you can flip the screen all the way around to turn it into a large tablet. But while it brings over many of the hardware improvements from this year's XPS 13 -- a webcam above the screen and HDR displays -- it also takes Dell's XPS design to a whole new level.
Intel's 10th-gen Core CPUs will let you game on ultraportables
It was just about a month ago that Intel showed off its powerful new ninth-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.
ASUS’ redesigned touchscreen trackpad is bigger and more intuitive
It's only been about a year since ASUS introduced the ZenBook Pro with a touchscreen trackpad called a ScreenPad, and the company is already back with an updated version. To celebrate its thirtieth anniversary, ASUS unveiled a slew of intriguing laptops at Computex this year, as well as the ScreenPad 2.0, which will launch on an array of its notebooks as well.
ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo hands-on: A bizarre yet useful dual-screen laptop
Every once in awhile, a briefing pleasantly surprises me. And that's what happened when ASUS brought the new ZenBook Pro Duo to our office in New York last week to give us a preview prior to its Computex debut, today. It's hard to describe this bizarre-looking machine, but think of it as an almost dual-screen laptop. We're not talking about the fully dual-screen Project Precog notebook that ASUS unveiled last Computex, but the Pro Duo feels like the middle stage of an evolutionary process towards that dubiously glorious end.
AMD isn't ruling out ray tracing for its new Radeon RX 5000 GPUs
AMD finally unveiled its first Navi-based "RDNA" video cards this morning, the Radeon RX 5000-series. But, curiously, it's still keeping plenty of details under wraps. In particular, the company hasn't said anything definitive on real-time ray tracing, the technology that NVIDIA banked on with its RTX GPUs. It allows for more realistic lighting, reflections and shadows -- you can think of it as the next major visual upgrade after HDR.
Acer brings NVIDIA’s Quadro RTX 5000 to its ConceptD 7 laptop
Earlier this year, Acer announced its ConceptD range of high-end notebooks designed to woo away folks who had gone sour on the MacBook Pro. The company touted the range's sharp looks and sharp specs paired with a commitment to color accuracy on the display. Now, with the advent of NVIDIA's new Quadro RTX graphics for laptops, Acer will now offer the RTX 5000 inside its ConceptD 7.
NVIDIA is bringing pro-level Quadro RTX GPUs to laptops
NVIDIA has succeeded in shrinking its beefy Quadro RTX 5000 graphics hardware to bring it to laptops. The silicon offers 3,072 CUDA cores and 48 RT cores, paired with 384 Tensor cores and 16GB GDDR6 RAM, same as the version available for desktops. And, much like the previous version of the RTX 5000, the mobile edition is designed for professionals who do a lot of heavy graphics or video work.
AMD's third-gen Ryzen 9 CPU is a 12-core powerhouse for $499
AMD just dropped the mic when it comes to ultra-fast consumer CPUs. At Computex today, AMD CEO Lisa Su introduced the company's third-generation Ryzen CPUs, which are also the world's first 7-nanometer desktop chips. Its crown jewel is the 12-core/24-thread Ryzen 9 3900X for $499. And if you're wondering why that's such a big deal, it's because it's going up against Intel's 12-core i9-9920X, which sells for around $1,189. Even better, AMD says the thermal design power (TDP) of its chip is 105W, compared to Intel's far less efficient 165W TDP. The Ryzen 9 3900X speaks to AMD's broader philosophy: It wants to beat Intel when it comes to performance, value and efficiency.
AMD's first Navi GPUs are the Radeon RX 5000-series
Just as we expected, AMD took the wraps off of its first 7nm Navi consumer GPU's today at Computex, though the company is still playing coy with details. The Radeon RX 5000 series is the name of the new lineup, and the first featured card is the RX 5700, a mid-range offering that will go toe-to-toe with NVIDIA's RTX 2070 GPU. At this point, the Radeon VII keeps top billing for the company. You won't see Navi on the box, though -- AMD is officially calling its new architecture RDNA, or Radeon DNA.
Intel's 10nm 'Ice Lake' CPUs can actually run games well in 1080p
In December, Intel promised that its upcoming 10nm laptop CPUs will feature integrated graphics with over a teraflop worth of computing power. Ahead of its Computex keynote later this week, the company gave us a better sense of what that improvement means for real-world gaming in 1080p. How does a 72 percent performance jump in CS: Go sound? Or maybe you'd prefer the 42 percent faster speeds in Overwatch? The big takeaway is that its 10nm CPUs and their 11th generation integrated graphics will actually be able to handle plenty of titles in 1080p without leaning on a dedicated GPU.
Intel's Core i9-9900KS CPU can run all eight cores at 5GHz
It wouldn't be Computex if Intel didn't have some sort of geek-friendly CPU reveals. This time around, it's the Core i9-9900KS, a "special edition" upgrade of its flagship 9900K. The biggest improvement? It'll be able to reach 5GHz boost speeds across all eight of its cores, instead of just on a single one. Intel isn't giving us many details about the chip until its Tuesday Computex keynote, but the company confirmed it'll have a 4GHz base speed, a slight leap beyond the 9900K's 3.6 GHz. Curiously, they wouldn't reveal the chip's TDP, so it's unclear if it'll demand more power than the original model. During a brief demo with press, Intel showed the chip running via Windows Task Manager, which had every core maxed out at 5GHz. So, at the very least, we know the silicon is real.
We’re live from Computex 2019 in Taipei!
Every summer, the PC industry descends on the capital of Taiwan to show off the latest in components, laptops and gaming gear. It's an opportunity for us to see the shape of things to come, and get excited about how much more powerful our machines are about to get. After a series of very long flights, we have congregated in Taipei to bring you the best of this year's show. So, stay tuned through the next week for all of the most exciting technology to come out of Computex 2019.
MSI crams an unlocked, desktop-class Core i9 into its new laptop
MSI's Titan-series laptops can only be described as an Absolute Unit, and with a laptop this beefy, you need a chip that can keep up. That's why the new GT76 Titan is packing an unlocked, desktop-class Core i9 into its hefty frame.
What to expect at Computex 2019
Computex offers us a chance to check in on the health of the PC market in an era when it was expected to wither on the vine. At last year's show, the PC industry, either through desperation or a newfound confidence, started to innovate once more. We saw designs with multiple screens, attempts to kill off the keyboard and better ideas around portability. It may have taken far longer than expected, but PC makers have realized they can't simply expect people to buy their products just because. So this what we're expecting, and in some cases hoping, to see this year at Computex when we hit the ground in Taiwan next week.
