News: Technology News

Microsoft wants to ditch NVIDIA and AMD chips for in-house custom silicon

Fri, 03 Oct 2025 17:12:57 +0000

Microsoft may be shifting away from NVIDIA and AMD, betting on its own AI data center chips to power its future in the landscape.

Over the past few months, Microsoft has been doubling down on its efforts to become more independent in the AI landscape. The tech giant is OpenAI's largest backer with a $13 billion investment. It has heavily integrated the ChatGPT maker's technology across its products and services.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella indicated that the company is moving away from Bill Gates' rigid software factory vision by diversifying its portfolio into intelligence, integration, and AI.

At the beginning of the year, OpenAI unveiled its $500 billion Stargate project designed to facilitate the construction of data centers across the United States for its sophisticated AI advances. Consequently, Microsoft lost its exclusive cloud provider status, though it still holds the right of first refusal.

Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff predicted that Microsoft won't use OpenAI's technology in the future. More recently, Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman confirmed that the company was developing its own off-frontier AI models, but admitted they'll be 3 or 6 months behind OpenAI. "Our strategy is to really play a very tight second," added Suleyman.

Building further upon this premise, Microsoft Chief Technology Officer Kevin Scott recently revealed that the company wants to use its own AI chips across data centers, potentially moving away from an over-reliance on AMD and NVIDIA (via CNBC).

According to Scott:

“We’re not religious about what the chips are. And ... that has meant the best price performance solution has been Nvidia for years and years now. We will literally entertain anything in order to ensure that we’ve got enough capacity to meet this demand.”

Every major tech corporation is trying to tap into the AI hype, creating a high demand for chips to foster the development of AI, which explains why NVIDIA's market valuation has been on an upward trajectory (up to $4 trillion).

Scott revealed that Microsoft intends to predominantly use its own chips across its data centers. Perhaps more interestingly, the executive revealed that the tech giant is already using its own chips right now.

Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman recently highlighted the company's plan to build and develop its own AI chip cluster to unlock self-sufficiency in AI.

We should have the capacity to build world class frontier models in-house of all sizes, but we should be very pragmatic and use other models where we need to. It's critical that a company of our size, with the diversity of businesses that we have, that we are, you know, able to be self sufficient in AI, if we choose to.

Microsoft AI CEO, Mustafa Suleyman

For context, the software giant launched the Azure Maia AI Accelerator in 2023 for AI workloads. And now, it is reportedly developing in-house next-gen chips. This will make it easy for the company to develop an entire system that goes in the data center, which meets a specific need.

According to Scott:

“It’s about the entire system design. It’s the networks and the cooling and you want to be able to have the freedom to make the decisions that you need to make in order to really optimize your compute to the workload.”

Elsewhere, Microsoft's multibillion-dollar partnership with OpenAI has seemingly been fraying. The tech giant reportedly wiggled out of two mega data center deals because it did not want to provide additional training support for ChatGPT. However, Sam Altman indicated that OpenAI is no longer compute-constrained.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Saturday 4 October 2025 at 3:11 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of September): 4,533

RIP Matrix

Forget Smartwatches—This New Sensor Sticks to Your Eyelid and Knows When You’re Exhausted

Fri, 03 Oct 2025 15:30:01 +0000

In the last few decades, technology has slipped quietly but profoundly into the rhythms of our daily lives. We no longer need to step into a clinic to measure our pulse, track our sleep, or check how much oxygen flows through our blood. Tiny sensors embedded in smartwatches, rings, or patches now gather this information seamlessly, turning our bodies into living data streams. These devices, born from the ingenuity of electronics engineers, have already transformed how we think about health. They allow us to observe patterns, spot early warnings, and stay in touch with our well-being in ways previous generations could never have imagined.

Yet despite these leaps forward, one stubborn challenge has remained unsolved: the reliable measurement of fatigue.

Why Fatigue Is So Hard to Measure

Fatigue is not simply “being tired.” It is a gradual erosion of performance that seeps into both body and mind. It slows reflexes, dulls attention, clouds judgment, and heightens the risk of mistakes. In high-stakes environments—whether on a construction site, behind the wheel of a truck, in a hospital operating room, or even in classrooms—fatigue can mean the difference between safety and disaster.

Scientists have long sought to quantify fatigue in an objective way. But most current tools are deeply flawed. Self-report surveys depend on how honest or self-aware people feel in the moment. EEG machines that read brainwaves require bulky, specialized equipment. Camera-based systems, while useful, are too intrusive and impractical for everyday use.

The result is a critical gap: fatigue affects everyone, yet we cannot reliably measure it outside a laboratory.

A Blink Toward the Future

At the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), researchers have been working on an answer that feels almost deceptively simple. Instead of tracking brainwaves or asking people to rate their exhaustion, they turned their attention to something universal: the blink of an eye.

“There’s something subtle and telling about how your eyes behave when you’re fatigued,” explained Jing Xu, a Ph.D. candidate at UCLA who co-authored the study. “Your blink rate changes, the speed slows down, and the patterns begin to shift.”

It is easy to overlook this small gesture, but the eyes reveal what words and sensors often cannot. They betray how alert—or how depleted—we really are. The question was whether scientists could capture these tiny changes continuously, comfortably, and in real-world conditions.

The result of their work is a soft, self-powered sensor that adheres gently to the eyelid like a second skin. Each blink compresses the material, altering its magnetic properties and generating an electrical signal. In effect, the sensor translates the language of eyelids into streams of data.

Photograph of the team’s sensor mounted on a human eyelid show a conformal interface with the eyelid tissue when the eye is closed. Credit: Jun Chen Lab/UCLA.

Building the Sensor: A Marriage of Science and Ingenuity

The UCLA team’s innovation lies not only in its purpose but also in its construction. They patterned a thin gold coil onto a stretchable thermoplastic elastomer and placed this over a magnetoelastic film packed with microscopic magnets. As the eyelid moves, mechanical stress ripples through the material, shifting its magnetic field.

This design elegantly sidesteps one of the most persistent challenges in bioelectronics: water. Human skin sweats, the eyes produce tears, and internal environments are damp by nature. Most sensors struggle under such conditions, requiring thick waterproof coatings that reduce performance and comfort.

But this sensor relies on magnetism—a force that remains stable in humid or wet environments. Unlike electrical signals that can short-circuit in moisture, magnetic fields pass through water unbothered. This gives the new device an intrinsic resilience, allowing it to operate reliably even when exposed to natural body fluids.

A Breakthrough in Soft Magnetoelasticity

The principle behind this work is rooted in a phenomenon first observed in 1865, called the magnetoelastic effect.

Traditionally, it was only seen in rigid metals, where large pressures caused their magnetic fields to shift. These conditions, however, were completely incompatible with wearable, flexible electronics.

Dr. Jun Chen, an associate professor at UCLA who supervised the study, wondered if this effect could be extended to soft materials. In 2021, his team made a discovery that sent ripples through the field: they identified a “giant magnetoelastic effect” in soft polymer composites. Suddenly, instead of requiring enormous pressures, the effect appeared under conditions as gentle as a heartbeat or a blink.

This revelation opened a new frontier—soft magnetoelastic bioelectronics. By harnessing this property, researchers could design lightweight, flexible, waterproof devices powered by the human body itself. The eyelid sensor is one of the first practical applications of this groundbreaking science.

Why This Matters Beyond the Lab

Imagine a truck driver wearing a nearly invisible patch on the eyelid. As hours pass on the road, the sensor detects slowing blink rates and subtle changes in pattern, quietly signaling rising fatigue. An alert might ping the driver’s dashboard, encouraging a rest stop before danger sets in.

Or picture a surgeon in the middle of a long, demanding operation. The sensor tracks not only the precision of hand movements but also the doctor’s level of alertness. With real-time feedback, fatigue can be managed before it compromises patient safety.

Beyond safety-critical fields, everyday users could also benefit. Students preparing for exams, athletes training intensively, or office workers glued to screens late into the night could all gain insight into how their bodies manage energy and focus.
A Glimpse of the Broader Potential

The eyelid sensor is only the beginning. The discovery of giant magnetoelastic effects in soft materials could lead to a new era of health technologies that feel almost invisible. Dr. Chen’s team envisions applications far beyond fatigue monitoring:

Pulse wave and cardiovascular monitoring
Respiration and muscle activity tracking
Haptic sensing and human–machine interfaces
Implantable systems for long-term health care
Energy harvesting from natural body motions

These possibilities suggest a future where bioelectronics blend seamlessly with our lives—self-powered, waterproof, comfortable, and capable of quietly enhancing safety, performance, and well-being.

The Emotional Core of Innovation

What makes this story compelling is not just the technology, but the human drive behind it. Fatigue is universal; it humbles us all. It creeps into classrooms, workplaces, and homes, often without warning. The ability to detect it, predict it, and respond to it in real time could save lives, improve productivity, and safeguard health.

As Xu reflected, the team’s work began with a simple yet profound question: how can we monitor fatigue in the real world? From that seed grew a device that may one day reshape how we understand and protect ourselves from one of humanity’s oldest challenges.

Looking Ahead

The UCLA team’s eyelid sensor is still in development, but its promise is undeniable. With further refinement, it could enter the consumer market, embedded in wearable devices designed for comfort and daily use. Meanwhile, the broader field of soft magnetoelastic bioelectronics continues to expand, opening doors to technologies once confined to science fiction.

In this journey, we see the essence of science itself: a marriage of curiosity, persistence, and imagination. By paying attention to something as small and ordinary as a blink, researchers have illuminated a path toward safer, healthier futures.

And perhaps that is the quiet magic of innovation: the ability to look at what seems mundane—the flutter of an eyelid—and discover within it the power to transform lives.

Source

HW News - Intel's New "Super" Cores & Xe3 GPU, NVIDIA Investigated by China, Zhaoxin 96-Core CPU (Gamers Nexus) [Video]

Fri, 03 Oct 2025 07:08:49 +0000

Gamers Nexus (2.51M subscribers)

October 3, 2025

Video length: 27m 39s

In this hardware news recap, we cover the last few weeks of tech industry events. NVIDIA has a 128GB Rubin CPX solution that it has shown, Zhaoxin has its new KH-50000 96-core CPU, Intel has filed a patent for "Super Cores" that we break down (to the best of our ability), AMD is marketing 1000 FPS gaming, Intel seemingly has Xe3 GPUs soon, and more.

00:00 - Recap for the Week

01:12 - Intel Patent for Super Cores

09:31 - 128GB NVIDIA Rubin CPX Die Shot

11:33 - China Investigates NVIDIA

18:11 - Zhaoxin KH-50000 96-Core CPU

20:03 - AMD Markets 1000 FPS Gaming

22:37 - Intel Arc GPU Best-Seller Status

25:20 - Intel Panther Lake Xe3 Fixes

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Friday 3 October 2025 at 5:06 pm AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of September): 4,533

RIP Matrix

What Qualcomm's major court victory against Arm means for its future chips

Wed, 01 Oct 2025 18:39:55 +0000

Qualcomm says that it has achieved a legal victory over British chip designer Arm Holdings, as a Delaware court dismissed Arm's last remaining legal claim against the U.S. chipmaking company. The decision puts an end to a lengthy dispute between the two semiconductor giants.

It all started back in 2021 when Qualcomm acquired Nuvia, a startup developing Arm-based processors for data centers, for $1.4 billion. At this point, Nuvia was building CPUs based on Arm's technology. Post-acquisition, Qualcomm pivoted Nuvia's chip development focus from data centers to energy-efficient processors for laptops.

Arm then sued Qualcomm and its subsidiary, Nuvia, for breaching license agreements and trademark infringement, claiming that Qualcomm attempted to transfer Nuvia's licenses without Arm's consent, a standard restriction under Arm's licensing agreements. Arm also cancelled Qualcomm's license to make Arm-based chips after that.

However, Qualcomm continued to produce new chips, which began appearing in the market in 2024, including those powering Microsoft Surface laptops.

In December 2024, a jury in Delaware unanimously ruled in favor of Qualcomm, determining that Qualcomm held a valid license to use Arm’s chip architecture and had not breached the architecture license agreement (ALA) associated with Nuvia. Despite the verdict, Arm continued to pursue remaining allegations against Qualcomm and Nuvia for violating licensing terms. Arm wanted to overturn the jury ruling and requested a retrial.

On September 30, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware dismissed Arm’s last remaining claim. The court confirmed that Qualcomm and Nuvia did not breach the licensing agreements, thus upholding the 2024 jury decision.

What this finally means is that Qualcomm can continue selling its Arm-based chips without additional licensing fees, securing its position in critical markets such as AI PC laptops. The company recently unveiled the next-gen X2 Elite and Extreme processors that bring massive performance upgrades to Arm-based PCs.

However, this legal saga isn't over yet, as Qualcomm also has its own ongoing lawsuit against Arm, accusing the latter of breach of contract, wrongful interference with customer relationships, and obstructing innovation while favoring its own products, and the litigation is scheduled for trial in March 2026.

Image via DepositPhotos.com

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Thursday 2 October 2025 at 4:39 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Google’s Gemini-powered smart home revamp is here with a new app and cameras

Wed, 01 Oct 2025 18:38:51 +0000

Google promises a better smart home experience thanks to Gemini.

Google's products and services have been flooded with AI features over the past couple of years, but smart home has been largely spared until now. The company's plans to replace Assistant are moving forward with a big Google Home reset. We've been told over and over that generative AI will do incredible things when given enough data, and here's the test.

There's a new Home app with Gemini intelligence throughout the experience, updated subscriptions, and even some new hardware. The revamped Home app will allegedly gain deeper insights into what happens in your home, unlocking advanced video features and conversational commands. It demos well, but will it make smart home tech less or more frustrating?

A new Home

You may have already seen some elements of the revamped Home experience percolating to the surface, but that process begins in earnest today. The new app apparently boosts speed and reliability considerably, with camera feeds loading 70 percent faster and with 80 percent fewer app crashes. The app will also bring new Gemini features, some of which are free. Google's new Home subscription retains the same price as the old Nest subs, but naturally, there's a lot more AI.

Google claims that Gemini will make your smart home easier to monitor and manage. All that video streaming from your cameras churns through the AI, which interprets the goings on. As a result, you get features like AI-enhanced notifications that give you more context about what your cameras saw. For instance, your notifications will include descriptions of activity, and Home Brief will summarize everything that happens each day.

Conversational interaction is also a big part of this update. In the home app, subscribers will see a new Ask Home bar where you can input natural language queries. For example, you could ask if a certain person has left or returned home, or whether or not your package showed up. At least, that's what's supposed to happen—generative AI can get things wrong.

The new app comes with new subscriptions based around AI, but the tiers don't cost any more than the old Nest plans, and they include all the same video features. The base $10 subscription, now known as Standard, includes 30 days of video event history, along with Gemini automation features and the "intelligent alerts" Home has used for a while that can alert you to packages, familiar faces, and so on. The $20 subscription is becoming Home Advanced, which adds the conversational Ask Home feature in the app, AI notifications, AI event descriptions, and a new "Home Brief." It also still offers 60 days of events and 10 days of 24/7 video history.

Free users still get saved event video history, and it's been boosted from three hours to six. If you are not subscribing to Gemini Home or using the $10 plan, the Ask Home bar that is persistent across the app will become a quick search, which surfaces devices and settings.

If you're already subscribing to Google's AI services, this change could actually save you some cash. Anyone with Google AI Pro (a $20 sub) will get Home Standard for free. If you're paying for the lavish $250 per month AI Ultra plan, you get Home Advanced at no additional cost.

A proving ground for AI

You may have gotten used to Assistant over the past decade in spite of its frequent feature gaps, but you'll have to leave it behind. Gemini for Home will be taking over beginning this month in early access. The full release will come later, but Google intends to deliver the Gemini-powered smart home experience to as many users as possible.

Gemini will replace Assistant on every first-party Google Home device, going all the way back to the original 2016 Google Home. You'll be able to have live chats with Gemini via your smart speakers and make more complex smart home queries. Google is making some big claims about contextual understanding here.

If you've used Gemini Live, the new Home interactions will seem familiar. You can ask Gemini anything you want via your smart speakers, perhaps getting help with a recipe or an appliance issue. However, the robot will sometimes just keep talking long past the point it's helpful. Like Gemini Live, you just have to interrupt the robot sometimes. Google also promises a selection of improved voices to interrupt.

If you want to get early access to the new Gemini Home features, you can sign up in the Home app settings. Just look for the "Early access" option. Google doesn't guarantee access on a specific timeline, but the first people will be allowed to try the new Gemini Home this month.

New AI-first hardware

It has been four years since Google released new smart home devices, but the era of Gemini brings some new hardware. There are three new cameras, all with 2K image sensors. The new Nest Indoor camera will retail for $100, and the Nest Outdoor Camera will cost $150 (or $250 in a two-pack). There's also a new Nest Doorbell, which requires a wired connection, for $180.

Google says these cameras were designed with generative AI in mind. The sensor choice allows for good detail even if you need to digitally zoom in, but the video feed is still small enough to be ingested by Google's AI models as it's created. This is what gives the new Home app the ability to provide rich updates on your smart home.

You may also notice there are no battery-powered models in the new batch. Again, that's because of AI. A battery-powered camera wakes up only momentarily when the system logs an event, but this approach isn't as useful for generative AI. Providing the model with an ongoing video stream gives it better insights into the scene and, theoretically, produces better insights for the user.

All the new cameras are available for order today, but Google has one more device queued up for a later release. The "Google Home Speaker" is Google's first smart speaker release since 2020's Nest Audio. This device is smaller than the Nest Audio but larger than the Nest Mini speakers. It supports 260-degree audio with custom on-device processing that reportedly makes conversing with Gemini smoother. It can also be paired with the Google TV Streamer for home theater audio. It will be available this coming spring for $99.

Google Home will continue to support a wide range of devices, but most of them won't connect to all the advanced Gemini AI features. However, that could change. Google has also announced a new program for partners to build devices that work with Gemini alongside the Nest cameras. Devices built with the new Google Camera embedded SDK will begin appearing in the coming months, but Walmart's Onn brand has two ready to go. The Onn Indoor camera retails for $22.96 and the Onn Video Doorbell is $49.86. Both cameras are 1080p resolution and will talk to Gemini just like Google's cameras. So you may have more options to experience Google's vision for the AI home of the future.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Thursday 2 October 2025 at 4:37 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Google launches three Nest smart home devices to rival Amazon's latest hardware

Wed, 01 Oct 2025 18:36:29 +0000

Google has updated its smart home lineup by launching new Nest-branded security cameras and a doorbell. This comes alongside the Gemini for Home AI assistant, which is supported on Google's smart devices launched in the last decade. The Nest Doorbell (3rd gen), Nest Cam Indoor (3rd gen), and Nest Cam Outdoor (2nd gen) are the three new wired smart devices that come fitted the 2K HDR video support, the highest resolution Google has offered yet.

These smart devices are designed to work with Gemini For Home. Their upgraded cameras can capture the detail required for multimodal AI and advanced semantic scene understanding, according to the company. Google has improved low-light performance to deliver more color and detail in the recordings by fitting a new sensor and a wider aperture.

"The new Nest Cams capture a sweeping 152-degree diagonal view, while the Nest Doorbell offers a 1:1 aspect ratio and a 166-degree diagonal view so you can see packages on the ground, wide entryways and visitors from head to toe," Google said.

Gemini For Home lets users catch up on the daily recording with Home Brief, adds more context to motion detection alerts, and searches through their video history to find the desired moments.

Google has made the latest Nest devices available for sale on the Google Store and other platforms. The 3rd gen Nest Cam Indoor ($99.99) and 2nd gen Nest Cam Outdoor ($149) will be available in more than a dozen countries, including the US and Canada.

The Nest Doorbell (3rd gen) is available in the US and Canada with a price tag of $179.99. Gemini For Home features will initially be available to users in the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, and Australia, with other regions to follow in early 2026.

That said, these new smart home devices from Google have arrived right after Amazon refreshed its lineups for Echo smart speakers, Fire TV devices, and Ring security cameras, featuring the upgraded Alexa+ assistant.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Thursday 2 October 2025 at 4:34 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

'World of Warcraft: Midnight' gets a huge new detailed deep dive video — and I can't wait to visit the new Monster Hunter-style Arcantina player hub

Wed, 01 Oct 2025 18:34:09 +0000

Blizzard Entertainment shows off all the new exciting features coming to World of Warcraft: Midnight in this expansive deep dive.

World of Warcraft: Midnight is still a ways off from releasing in 2026, but players will get a chance to play the game early on October 2, 2025, through an exclusive Alpha Test.

To drive players' excitement even further before then, Blizzard Entertainment has just uploaded a new deep dive presentation video demonstrating the upcoming expansion's various gameplay features in action such as Player Housing, the Prey System, and much more.

It starts with a recap of the expansion's premise. Xal'atath has empowered the Dark Heart artifact after the events of World of Warcraft: The War Within and is now leading a Voidwalker army known as the Devouring Host.

Her goal is to invade Silvermoon City and corrupt its mystical Sunwell to engulf the world in never-ending, life-consuming night. In our hands-on session with the Alpha, Voidwalkers run amok in the city, slaughtering the defenders. Interestingly, these Voidwalkers don't wear shackles like the Burning Legion-controlled ones, nor do they vanish on death. These are unbound Voidwalkers exercising their free will. And their will is destruction.

Discover a newly reforged Silvermoon City.

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

Over the course of the player's adventures to stop Xal'atath, they will explore new regions and visit classic locales reimagined with a coat of graphical paint.

For example, Silvermoon City has been revamped from the ground-up with its architecture polished with modern graphical fidelity, and Eversong Forest's biomes have healed all the damage caused by previous, opening up new areas to uncover. However, we'll discover that too much Light can be a bad thing, too, with unchecked growth leading to biological mutations. In an interview with us, WoW Design Director Maria Hamilton remarked that in Midnight, we'll see that the Light can be just as dangerous as the Void, in the right circumstances.

As for original zones to explore, we have the Amani Troll homeland of Zul’Aman, the void-corrupted wasteland known as the Voidstorm, and Harandar, the fungal jungle home of World of Warcraft: Midnight's new Allied Race, the Haranir.

Rest up heroes before your next quest.

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

Every once in a while, you will need a break from adventuring and fighting back Xal'atath's army, so World of Warcraft: Midnight has prepared a new narrative hub for players to gather called the Arcantina.

The Arcantina is a tavern where Horde and Alliance players can take a break and converse with one another before going back outdoors to tackle quests. It's reminiscent of the gathering hub from Monster Hunter World to some degree, and seems partially inspired by the tavern from Warlords of Draenor's Garrison system. The Arcantina exists in a pocket dimension maintained by the Kirin Tor and sorcerers like Khadgar, full of magic and even mini-games.

Like the Garrison tavern, the Arcantina is regularly visited by NPCs (some of which veteran World of Warcraft players will recognize) who will tell tales of their adventures and offer side quests for players to take up if they want a change of pace from doing the main quest. It adds some dynamism to the world, and looks like it could become a staple feature of the game.

Discover the secrets of the Amani Trolls in the new Twilight Crypts Delve.

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

Best rest up well while you can, as World of Warcraft: Midnight will pit you against a deadly horde of monstrous beasts, Ethereal marauders, and Void-empowered bosses in this expansion's Raids, Dungeons, and Delves.

You will not be alone in your battles, though, as you will acquire a new Delves Compansion in Valeera Sanguinar. Valeera is a deadly Blood Elf Rogue whose abilities can be assigned to DPS, Tank, or Healer roles to assist players in clearing Delves. In the DPS role, Valeera dances around enemies using the Killing Spree ability before slicing them to bits.

As a Healer, Valeera can suck out the life force of enemies by using the Vampiric Reaping and dropping them on the ground as healing orbs for players to pick up and heal themselves with. As a Tank, Valeera taunts enemies and constantly dodges their attacks while applying damage-over-time effects to draw their ire away from the player. Valeera can also apply poisons that buff the player's abilities depending on the role she's assigned. If mobs step away from Valeera, she'll whip out a big backstab.

Obliterate foes with the powers of the Void as the Devourer Demon Hunters.

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

In addition to a Delves Companion, players will get a new class specialization to play with for the Demon Hunter class called Devourer. The Devourer is a mid-range DPS spec that uses the power of the Void to deal a flurry of melee and ranged magical attacks.

The Devourer can maintain its transformation Metamorphosis state beyond its regular duration by reaping the souls of their enemies mid-combat and unleashing a powerful super move called the Collapsing Star to finish foes in explosive fashion.

Play as the new Haranir race.

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

Finally, players receive further aid with the Haranir, a new playable Allied Race that made their debut during World of Warcraft: The War Within.

This tribal yet mystical race vows to help the Horde and Alliance stop Xal'atath's machinations with their nature-themed abilities and take up the following Classes: Warrior, Hunter, Rogue, Priest, Shaman, Mage, Warlock, Monk, and Druid.

You're going to need to master the Haranir and Devourer Specs quickly in order to survive, as Raids, Dungeons, and Delves won't be the only PvE content to deal with, more on that shortly.

In the WoW Alpha, we were able to get a look at some of the game's new talents and features. Blizzard says they will publish deep dives into big class changes over time, but to give you a taste.

Hunt down challenging foes with the new Prey system.

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

Demonology warlocks have received a significant revamp, with imps now spawning directly on the player rather than at the point of Hand of Guldan. The imp "economy" has been significantly reworked and streamlined, and culminates in turning Hand of Guldan into a fel laser beam when you have spawned enough of them. Oh, Demonic Tyrant can also tangle it up in melee now, too. Affliction warlocks will be happy to know Malefic Grasp has been removed from the rotation as well, with stackable Unstable Affliction returning.

Unholy Death Knights are also getting a revamp to some degree, making them closer to a true pet class. Scourge Strike will now spawn "lesser ghouls" with each attack, and a new ability called Putrify will let you target your lesser ghouls for an explosive AoE. Shadow Priests now get an AoE Vampiric Touch applicator called Tentacle Slam (and yes, it looks exactly how you're imagining). Frost Mages also get icy hands that spawn out of the ground and apply freezes to targets.

There are tons of other class changes, far too many to list here, so keep an eye on Blizzard's website for more details on that, but it really feels like Blizzard has gotten creative with classes that needed a bit of extra love.

You're going to need all of those abilities to explore World of Warcraft: Midnight's new outdoor activity called "Prey," where you are commissioned by Astalor Bloodsworn to hunt unique boss enemies to siphon a magical energy called Anguish for a secret project. In Prey, you pick a target and explore the world to hunt it down for exclusive rewards such as cosmetics, mounts, titles, Housing items, and more.

The hunt is on.

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

Each time you beat a Prey target, you will whittle its overall strength down until you corner it in its hideout, where it will have nowhere else to run.

Though you'd best be careful while exploring because your Prey target can ambush at any given moment, even while you're in the middle of other quests or minding your own business. Prey has three difficulty modes, each one harder than the last: Normal, Hard, and Nightmare.

Higher difficulties will have players endure Torment mechanics to make each Prey hunt harder, like randomly dropping AoE puddles on the ground, damage over time effects, or even time limits to complete a hunt.

In an interview, Game Director Ion Hazzikostas told us that Prey was about bringing more challenge to the game's open overworld area, to add some dynamism while questing. It should recreate that old school feeling of being stalked by a rogue on a PvP server, or even by The Butcher in Diablo IV. It looks fantastic, simply put.

Home, sweet, Orcish home

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

Last but not least, the deep dive gives players an extended look at Player Housing, one of the most requested gameplay features in World of Warcraft history.

In this mode, players can buy a home and customize every facet of it from its exterior, interior, and decorations to their heart's content.

Players can acquire thousands of items to customize their homes by completing various achievements throughout their time playing World of Warcraft, visiting various vendors in their neighbourhoods, completing Endeavour activities where players participate in group mini-games, and much more.

Blizzard told us that they want Player Housing to be easily accessible and not too taxing to get into, but naturally, there will be exclusive furnishings for those who complete some of the game's biggest challenges, and legacy players can look forward to rewards for some of their own legacy achievements, too.

A Monster Hunter-style gathering hub and bounty hunting system? Sign me up!

Each day we get more info on World of Warcraft: Midnight, the more I can't wait for it to arrive on PC in 2026. Luckily, you don't need the best PC for World of Warcraft since it will run on practically anything, even the upcoming Xbox Ally if you connect up a mouse and keyboard. With the revamped new player experience, it could be easier to get into than ever, too.

I was already hooked with the addition of Devourer Demon Hunter and the Haranir race, but the new Arcantina narrative hub is something that has got me unexpectedly giddy, both as a World of Warcraft and Monster Hunter fan.

It's practically the multiplayer Gathering Hub from Capcom's Monster Hunter franchise, where players can chat and form parties before going on quests, but in World of Warcraft.

Combine this with the new Prey feature, where we get to hunt monsters and potentially get ambushed by them in the open world, and World of Warcraft: Midnight has suddenly turned into a Monster Hunter MMO, and I'm all for it

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Thursday 2 October 2025 at 4:31 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Grounded 2 Hairy and Scary update delivers a massive tarantula boss

Wed, 01 Oct 2025 07:14:32 +0000

Obsidian Entertainment's survival game Grounded 2 hit early access just a few months ago, and already, its first major update is here. The aptly dubbed Hairy and Scary update has a big highlight: a boss fight with a massive tarantula. It also carries matching Tarantula gear, a more streamlined building system, and more changes.

Starting off with the boss fight, AXL is the name of the colossal tarantula that has arrived at Brookhollow Park. As the trailer below shows off, it's a tough fight even for the most prepared players, but rewards for beating it should be worthwhile.

"Defeating AXL opens up a whole new frontier of power," says Obsidian. "You can forge an imposing tarantula armor set, wield the devastating Tarantula Bow and Spear, and even decorate your base with spidery flair. From larger-capacity chests to flickering candles to the kind of throne Yoked Girth would envy, you’ll have plenty of eight-legged style to show off."

Changes have also been made to the grid system, letting players snap objects and building materials much more easily and with more precision. The construction radial has been replaced entirely too.

Buggy riders can also use the PEEP.R and Hot Pouch without getting off the insect. Meanwhile, a Praying Mantis armor set has landed for players wanting to sport a plague-doctor style while going on the offensive. As October comes in, Obsidian has included some holiday items celebrating Halloween already. This includes a new spooky ambiance across the park, candy corn replacement for some resources, and Trick-or-Treatery Buildings.

Alongside performance improvements and bug fixes, the update carries adjustments to crit multipliers, stunning, parries, armor set bonuses, mutations, and a lot more areas. Find the complete patch notes for Grounded 2 Hairy and Scary 0.2 Update over here. It is now live across PC, Xbox Series X|S, and Game Pass.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Wednesday 1 October 2025 at 5:13 pm AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Age of Mythology: Retold Heavenly Spear expansion launches with a massive free update

Wed, 01 Oct 2025 07:13:30 +0000

Last year's fully rebuilt version of Age of Mythology from Microsoft already received the new Immortal Pillars expansion a few months ago. Already, a second expansion dubbed Heavenly Spear is now out the door, this time introducing a campaign featuring a Japanese pantheon of gods. Alongside it, a major update to base game owners containing a new game mode, fresh cheat codes, and more is here too.

The Heavenly Spear expansion's new campaign introduces Yasuko as the protagonist for a 12-mission storyline.

"As war looms and chaos spreads across the land, Yasuko is thrust into a world of gods, monsters, and mortal ambition," says the developer describing the setting. "With the guidance of Akari, guardian of the spear, Yasuko must uncover the relic’s secrets and prevent it from falling into the hands of Kagemasa, a ruthless warlord who seeks to imprison the sun goddess Amaterasu and claim godhood for himself."

Alongside new god powers, the new Japanese pantheon of gods brings with them new human and mythical creatures, with everything from ninjas to Shinigami available for players. The DLC also touts six multiplayer and skirmish maps set in Japanese landscapes.

Age of Mythology: Retold – Heavenly Spear expansion is now available for $19.99 on PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PlayStation 5.

As for the free update, the biggest feature addition is the Gauntlet. Currently available in beta form, this is a brand-new game mode that is playable both solo and in co-op, letting players run through a labyrinth of missions they can choose themselves. The roguelike experience gives players only three changes to go through the entire challenge before having to start over. Both temporary and permanent perks can be unlocked to make runs easier as well.

Its randomized nature means each run will offer new challenges and rewards when playing, with multiple difficulty levels to choose from. The harder the run, the more XP and unlocks players receive for surviving.

The update also includes major matchmaking improvements, a new AI personality to choose, new cheat codes to use from the chat, better modding tools, and a huge number of bug fixes and tweaks.

Find the complete patch notes for Age of Mythology: Retold Update 18.49472 over here, which goes over all the balance changes.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Wednesday 1 October 2025 at 5:12 pm AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Battlefield takes hilarious shots at Call of Duty in new live-action trailer

Tue, 30 Sep 2025 20:40:01 +0000

Celebrity worship is coming to an end, for now.

Picture it: celebrities gracing the trailer of some live-action Call of Duty launch special. Maybe you recall the 2011 Modern Warfare 3 trailer, with Jonah Hill and Sam Worthington: the veteran and the noob.

Essentially, some form of celebrity collaboration has been featured in almost every Call of Duty game since around 2010. If you're unaware of what the Battlefield 6 trailer showcases, I recommend watching it before I discuss it, so I don't spoil anything. Once you've done that, go ahead and keep reading!

NBA All-Star Jimmy Butler, country artist Morgan Wallen, UFC jokester Paddy Pimblett, and MTV Movie Awards Best Kiss 2017 nominee Zach Efron take center stage in the middle of a good ole' Predator Missile strike. Yet another knock at Call of Duty, at least, in my opinion.

Two of them don't even have any lines, making it the celebrity dump on Call of Duty even better. Honestly, even after someone spoiled what happened for me, I still cried with laughter when I watched it for the first time.

The trailer arrives less than a week after the Black Ops 7 gameplay reveal, which featured Michael Rooker, Milo Ventimiglia, and Frankie Adams. Ouch.

I can't even remember the number of times Call of Duty has used Eminem in one of its trailers. Is it three, maybe ten times? If it wasn't for the annual CoD trailer mixed with another Eminem song, would Eminem still have a career? (I kid, top 5 rapper on just about every person's list)

Snoop Dogg is in everything, and you'll like.

(Image credit: Activision)

Zombie modes alone are notorious for featuring celebrities like Danny Trejo, Michael Rooker (again!), Robert Englund, Ron Perlman, Kiefer Sutherland, and numerous other actors whose names I've long since forgotten. Needless to say, CoD is a celebrity worship platform.

That's all before we get into the latest kerfuffle of Call of Duty skins that include Seth Rogen and Beavis and Butt-head. Battlefield is taking prime shots while Call of Duty is busy trying to respawn from the ashes of community backlash.

Although let's not pretend Battlefield hasn't had its fair share of celebrity use before.

Hell, how can anyone forget Snoopp Dogg smoking a blunt during the Battlefield One gameplay event? Even Battlefield's last entry used Michael Kenneth Williams as the character, Irish, a former character in Battlefield 4 as well. Rest in peace, Omar Little.

Let's not kid ourselves; many other developers are also incorporating a multitude of celebrities into their games. Look at Cyberpunk, or anything Kojima touches.

If it weren't for JK Simmons, we'd have never been graced by Cave Johnson.

The battle of realistic expectations

I would go for one Zac Efron pack, but it's his character from the movie The Greatest Beer Run Ever.

(Image credit: DICE)

Battlefield has promised the community that it won't launch any cosmetic bundles that make use of celebrities, cartoon characters, or other out-of-world experiences that remove players from the reality of real warfare. At least, things that break that immersion entirely.

In response to community backlash, Call of Duty has also promised a more realistic approach to its cosmetic packs as well. They recently announced they even cancelled some planned collaborations with brands for Call of Duty: Black Ops 7.

How long will the realism approach last? I feel like I've heard that from half a dozen companies over my 30+ gaming career.

Personally, I've played and purchased every Call of Duty since 2003, but stopped after the release of Modern Warfare 2. Something inside of me was finally done with the franchise.

I want him to randomly have powers from Heroes.

(Image credit: Activision)

Since then, I've jumped into games like Rainbow Six Siege, Rust, and other competitive or PvP-oriented games. I even put over a dozen hours into the Battlefield 6 beta.

With that said, the Black Ops 7 trailer actually looked good to me. I'm one of the few people who miss the jetpacks and what my fellow Unc-status gamers call "zoomer" movement.

Whatever the case may be, we have less than two weeks of waiting time left before Battlefield 6 drops and another month after that for Black Ops 7 to see who the king of FPS gaming in 2025 will be. Will the Zoomer or Boomer movement win out?

Did you like the Battlefield 6 trailer? Where do you stand on the use of celebrities? Let us know in the comments or

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Wednesday 1 October 2025 at 6:38 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme crushes Apple M4, Intel, and AMD in new benchmarks

Mon, 29 Sep 2025 17:49:14 +0000

Qualcomm’s latest ARM chip doubles multi-core performance, leads in GPU and AI, and could redefine battery life for premium Windows laptops.

Qualcomm’s big bet on Windows PCs just got a lot more interesting. Announced last week, the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme is the company’s new flagship laptop processor, and today we have the first official benchmark data. If these numbers hold up in shipping devices, the X2 Elite Extreme could redefine what we expect from premium Windows laptops — delivering desktop-class performance while still sipping power for all-day battery life.

A clean sweep across CPU, GPU, and AI benchmarks

The press got to experience live, real-world benchmarking of production-ready Snapdragon X2 Elite

Extreme chips in official Qualcomm reference-design laptops.

(Image credit: Future | Daniel Rubino)

Last week, during Qualcomm's annual Snapdragon Summit, the media were treated to an hour-long session detailing reference-design laptops running production-ready versions of its flagship Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme laptop processor, now with 18 cores and the ability to hit 5.0GHz, a first for Arm-based processors, according to Qualcomm.

Like the original Snapdragon X Elite announcement two years ago, these benchmarks were run in real-time by the press so that we could see the range of the results and repeatability. And like two years ago, I have little reason to doubt the numbers, although it should be noted that when these chips hit real consumer PCs in 2026, thermal configurations by OEMs can result in differing numbers.

Indeed, like the original Snapdragon X Elite chips, laptop makers could opt for fanless designs, passive cooling (no fans, open vents), or active cooling with one or even two fans along with various heat sinks and vapor chambers.

Likewise, in conversations with Kedar Kondap, SVP & GM of Compute and Gaming at Qualcomm, I was told that we should also expect the performance of the X2 Elite Extreme to behave the same on battery as when plugged in, something that has challenged AMD and Intel laptops in the past.

Getting to the benchmarks themselves, Qualcomm’s charts paint a clear picture: the X2 Elite Extreme isn’t just competitive — it’s dominant in nearly every metric.

So, let's take a closer look!

Single-core performance

(Image credit: Qualcomm)

In Geekbench 6.5 single-core, the X2 Elite Extreme posts a score of 4,080, edging out Apple’s M4 (3,872) and leaving AMD’s Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 (2,881) and Intel’s Core Ultra 9 288V (2,919) far behind.

Qualcomm claims up to 41% faster single-core performance versus rivals, which is critical for everyday responsiveness, app launches, and lightly threaded workloads.

(Image credit: Qualcomm)

While Qualcomm did not list the M4 Pro from Apple (in its 14 CPU core configuration), that chip is known to score around ~3,900–4,000 on Geekbench 6.5, which is just behind Qualcomm's claimed 4,080 for the X2 Elite Extreme.

Of course, the M4 Pro peaks at 4.5GHz, which, while no slouch, is far behind Qualcomm's 5.0GHz speed for two of the prime cores found on the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme.

Also, as noted above, the new X2 Elite Extreme is 39% faster on single core than the original Snapdragon X Elite, which first shipped in June 2024.

The bottom line: Peaking at 5.0GHz results in some powerful results for Qualcomm in a category that usually Intel and Apple take the lead in.

Multi-core performance

(Image credit: Qualcomm)

The multi-core story is even more dramatic. With a Geekbench 6.5 multi-core score of 23,491, the X2 Elite Extreme nearly doubles the Intel Core Ultra 9 185H (11,386) and comfortably outpaces Apple’s M4 (15,146) and AMD’s Ryzen AI 9 370 (15,443). Qualcomm’s claim of “2x faster CPU performance” versus Intel’s top mobile chip is backed by these numbers — a rare feat in the laptop space.

What about Apple's M4 Pro? Apple's 14-core chip yields a score just under 23,000 at ~22,544 on Geekbench 6.5, which is still about 1,000 points less than what Qualcomm is claiming on its reference laptop, where it scored an impressive 23,491. Of course, Qualcomm is clearly benefiting from four more cores (18) versus Apple's 14 and the ability for two of those cores to peak at 5.0GHz.

Qualcomm's new X2 Elite Extreme versus last year's X Elite.

(Image credit: Qualcomm)

And compared to last year's Snapdragon X Elite (12-cores), the new X2 Elite Extreme is now 50% faster on Geekbench multi-core, which is no doubt due to the faster chip performance and six additional cores.

The bottom line: 18 cores in an Ultrabook-form factor is a lot, especially when two of those cores peak at a record-setting 5.0GHz (for Arm64).

GPU performance

GPU performance of the new Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme versus the competition from Apple, AMD, and Intel.

(Image credit: Qualcomm)

Integrated graphics have long been a weak spot for Windows laptops, but the X2 Elite Extreme’s Adreno GPU changes that. In 3DMark Solar Bay, it scores 90.06, up to 61% faster than the next-best competitor. That’s a huge win for creators, casual gamers, and anyone relying on GPU acceleration for video editing or 3D work.

When combined with the just-released anti-cheat features with Arm64 support in the Windows Insider builds, there's a good chance that gaming could get a massive boost on the X2 Elite Extreme, not to mention performance for Adobe video editing apps.

The bottom line: The X2 Elite Extreme has a significantly better GPU, making it potentially an excellent gaming machine.

AI/NPU performance

NPU performance on the new X2 Elite Extreme blows away every other laptop currently on the market.

(Image credit: Qualcomm)

Perhaps the most jaw-dropping result comes from the Procyon AI Computer Vision benchmark. The X2 Elite Extreme’s NPU hits 4,151, compared to Apple’s M4 (2,121), AMD’s Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 (1,742), and Intel’s Core Ultra 9 185H (719).

Qualcomm touts up to 5.7x AI performance, which could be transformative for on-device — from real-time translation to generative image creation — without hammering the battery.

The original Snapdragon X Elite, announced in late 2023, featured an integrated Hexagon NPU rated at up to 45 TOPS (trillions of operations per second) for AI workloads — already a strong figure for a Windows laptop chip. With the new Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme, Qualcomm has pushed that ceiling dramatically higher, delivering 80 TOPS in the refreshed NPU.

That’s nearly double the AI throughput of its predecessor and a primary reason the X2 Elite Extreme dominates the Procyon AI benchmark results, outperforming Apple’s M4 and M4 Pro (~2,200–2,300), as well as the latest Intel and AMD offerings.

This leap in TOPS means the X2 Elite Extreme can handle far more complex on-device AI tasks — from real-time vision processing to generative media creation — without relying on the cloud, all while maintaining the power efficiency ARM designs are known for.

Of course, there are unlikely many apps that can leverage 80 TOPS at the moment, but such a raised ceiling gives developers much more runway to experiment with heavy localized AI processing, something we haven't seen too much of yet.

The bottom line: Qualcomm, again, leads the way for AI PCs.

Under the hood: a new architecture for Windows laptops

(Image credit: Future | Daniel Rubino)

The Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme is built on Qualcomm’s latest Oryon CPU cores, paired with an upgraded Adreno GPU and a next-gen Hexagon NPU. The architecture emphasizes:

High IPC (instructions per cycle) for both single-threaded and multi-threaded tasks.
Advanced power gating to shut down unused cores and subsystems instantly.
Unified memory architecture for faster data sharing between CPU, GPU, and NPU.
3nm process
3rd Gen Oryon cores (up from first gen)
12 Prime Cores (4.4 GHz) + 6 Performance Cores (3.6 GHz)
Up to 5.0 GHz dual-core boost
53 MB total cache
GPU: DirectX 12.2 Ultimate, Vulkan 1.4, OpenCL 3.0, Enhanced GMEM, Ray tracing improvements
80 TOPS Hexagon NPU
LPDDR5x-9523 MT/s
228 GB/s Bandwidth

This isn’t just a speed play — Qualcomm is betting that its ARM-based design can deliver desktop-class performance at mobile-class power draw, enabling thin, fanless designs or ultra-light laptops with battery life measured in days, not hours.One of the more intriguing aspects of the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme is its memory‑in‑package design, a departure from the off‑package RAM used in other X2 Elite variants. Qualcomm is using a System‑in‑Package (SiP) approach here, integrating the RAM directly alongside the CPU, GPU, and NPU on the same substrate.

This proximity slashes latency and boosts bandwidth — up to 228 GB/s compared to 152 GB/s on the off‑package models — while also enabling a unified memory architecture similar in concept to Apple’s M‑series chips, where CPU and GPU share the same pool for faster, more efficient data access. The Extreme configuration shown by Qualcomm includes 48 GB of embedded RAM, though OEMs can choose different capacities, and that memory can be flexibly allocated between system tasks and graphics workloads. For high‑end Windows laptops, this design means more consistent performance under load, better efficiency in compact chassis, and the potential for sleeker devices without sacrificing capability.

Why this matters for Windows PCs

For years, Apple’s M-series chips have been the benchmark for performance-per-watt in laptops, leaving Intel and AMD scrambling to catch up. Qualcomm’s X2 Elite Extreme is the first Windows-focused processor that appears to match — and in some cases exceed — Apple’s performance while promising the kind of battery life ARM designs are known for.

Granted, the first-gen Snapdragon X processors already were catching up to Apple, but this next gen, built on new Oryon 3 cores, looks to be a much stronger outing that also leaves Intel and AMD in the dust in all three categories (CPU, GPU, and NPU).

The road ahead

(Image credit: Future | Daniel Rubino)

Benchmarks are one thing; real-world performance is another. Qualcomm’s numbers are impressive, but the proof will come when retail devices hit shelves and reviewers like me put them through diverse workloads.

Still, if these results hold (and I have little reason to doubt that they won't), the Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme could be the most significant leap for high-end Windows PCs in a decade — not just catching up to Apple, but setting a new bar for what portable computing can be.

Sure, Apple will have the M5 series coming out around the same time as Qualcomm's X2 Elite Extreme, and I wouldn't be surprised if it rivals or beats Snapdragon's performance. But really, such a win means very little, as it is Intel and AMD that are Qualcomm's real competition, and, at least there, it seems to have solidified its position as the best CPU, GPU, and NPU for premium lightweight Windows laptops.

Being able to run neck and neck with Apple's 5th-gen processors on only its 2nd-gen outing says Qualcomm is here to play for keeps.

Additional things to watch? How do Qualcomm's other X2 chips (X2 Elite) and forthcoming X2 and X2 Plus (not yet announced, but presumed) compare to Apple's chips? I suspect Apple will still lead in efficiency, but Qualcomm will still leave Intel and AMD scrambling.

When does Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme release?

As usual, there is a lag between when Qualcomm announces its chips and when they hit laptops you can actually buy.

Here, the company notes the "first half" of 2026 for the new Snapdragon X2 Elite and Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme. Still, all the rumors I hear suggest we'll see some real hardware from OEM partners at CES in January 2026 in Las Vegas, which means shipping devices could land as early as February or early March. Qualcomm is optimistic we'll see those devices closer to the beginning of 2026 instead of June.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Tuesday 30 September 2025 at 3:45 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Google's brighter 'G' logo trickles across its entire product and services lineup

Mon, 29 Sep 2025 17:45:13 +0000

Google logo Sep'97 to Sep'98

Google is almost three decades old, and the search giant keeps changing its logo design from time to time. Its latest quad-color G logo has been around for a decade and has seen changes over the years.

In 1998, Google began as a simple search engine accessible via desktop computers. Now, there are an endless number of devices from which you can access Google, and its portfolio of products isn't limited to a search engine. It can be a smartphone, TV, or even the dashboard of a car, where you can tap, type, or say your query out loud.

While the company has used the same four colors since its early days, it switched to the multicolor G favicon in 2015, which was built upon the flat logo design introduced in 2013. Google said that the " design update reflected all the ways people interacted with Google products across our platforms, apps and devices."

The 'G' was refreshed again earlier this year with a brighter four-color gradient for Google Search, switching away from solid colors. Google is celebrating its 27th birthday this month and rolling out the updated "Google G" company-wide across all its products, services, and platforms.

Google 'G' logo in 2025

Google currently owns almost 90% of the search engine market share and approximately 70% of the market share for Google Chrome. But it has explored several other areas beyond digital products, including self-driving cars and airborne balloons that beam internet to the ground.

Android is one of Google's flagship offerings, which has maintained its green color all along; however, the most recent brand refresh turned the Bugdroid into a 3D character. Similarly, YouTube showcases its red color.

Google also jumped on the AI bandwagon and developed a massive catalog of Gemini-branded AI tools and services. "While staying true to Google’s iconic four colors, the brighter hues and gradient design symbolize the surge of AI-driven innovation and creative energy across our products and technology," Google said in a blog post.

Google's four-color gradient palette was recently featured in the Gemini logo, as part of a refresh a couple of months ago. Now that the logo has become company-wide, Google said the design will be implemented in more places over the coming months.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Tuesday 30 September 2025 at 3:44 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Video game giant Electronic Arts to be taken private in historic $55B buyout deal

Mon, 29 Sep 2025 16:37:00 +0000

Buyers include Saudi sovereign wealth fund, private equity firm run by Jared Kushner

The Associated Press · Posted: Sep 29, 2025 9:50 AM EDT | Last Updated: 2 hours ago

Electronic Arts, maker of video games like Madden NFL, Battlefield and The Sims, is being acquired for $55 billion US, the biggest leveraged buyout attempt in history.

Under the terms of a deal announced on Monday, the private equity firm Silver Lake Partners, Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund PIF and Affinity Partners will pay the company's stockholders $210 per share. Affinity Partners is a private equity firm run by President Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner.

Electronic Arts (EA) would be taken private. The total value of the deal eclipses the $32 billion paid to take Texas utility TXU private in 2007.

If the transaction closes as anticipated, it will end EA's 36-year history as a publicly traded company that began with its shares ending its first day of trading at a split-adjusted 52 cents.

The IPO came seven years after EA was founded by former Apple employee William "Trip" Hawkins, who began playing analog versions of baseball and football made by Strat-O-Matic as a teenager during the 1960s.

EA has been run by its current CEO, Andrew Wilson, since 2013.

The company also has roots in Canada. It bought Burnaby, B.C.-based game developer Distinctive Software in 1991 and renamed it to Electronic Arts Canada.

Now known as EA Vancouver, that studio went on to develop some of the company's largest franchises, including EA Sports FC and its NHL series.

As of today, EA has several other video game studios and offices across the country, including in Edmonton, Montreal, Toronto and Victoria, B.C., according to its website.

One buyer also involved in TikTok deal

This marks the second high-profile deal involving Silver Lake and a technology company with a legion of loyal fans in recent weeks.

Silver Lake is also part of a newly formed joint venture spearheaded by Oracle involved in a deal to take over the U.S. oversight of TikTok's social video platform, although all the details of that complex transaction haven't been divulged yet.

Silver Lake has also previously bought out two other well-known technology companies: the now-defunct video calling service Skype in a $1.9-billion deal completed in 2009, and a $24.9-billion buyout of personal computer maker Dell in 2013. After Dell restructured its operations as a private company, it returned to the stock market with publicly traded shares in 2018.

By going private, EA will be able to reprogram its operations without being subjected to the investment pressures and scrutiny that sometimes compel publicly held companies to make short-sighted decisions aimed at meeting quarterly financial targets.

Although its video games still have a fervent following, EA's annual revenues have been stagnant during the past three fiscal years, hovering from $7.4 billion to $7.6 billion.

Meanwhile, major EA rival Activision Blizzard was snapped up by technology powerhouse Microsoft for nearly $69 billion in 2023, while the competition from mobile video game makers such as Epic Games has intensified.

After being taken private, formerly public companies often undergo extensive cost-cutting that includes layoffs, although there has been no indication that will be the case with EA. After jettisoning about five per cent of its workforce in 2024, EA ended March with 14,500 employees and then laid off several hundred people in May.

Source

Bye Bye, Google AI removes AI from Google Search

Mon, 29 Sep 2025 06:05:15 +0000

Google continues to push AI services into its core products. Just a few months ago, it started to roll out AI Overviews in earnest. Back in July, Google claimed that the feature reached over two billion monthly users already.

Now it is introducing the next step, AI Mode, in Google Search, and also turning its Chrome web browser into an AI-first browser.

Not every user likes the infusion of AI on Google Search. While AI can be useful, it can also get in the way or, worse, provide information that is not accurate. It happened in the past and it is happening regularly.

Hide Google Search AI content

Bye Bye, Google AI is a browser extension that gives you control over the features. Google does not provide options to turn off AI content on Google Search, which this extension rectifies.

The extension displays the options right after installation in a compatible browser. It is available for Chromium-based, which covers most desktop browsers. Installation in Chrome worked flawlessly, but it should work in other browsers, including Brave, Edge, or Vivaldi as well.

AI Overviews is selected by default only. This displays information created by AI when you run certain searches on Google Search. You can hide other types of content on Google Search using the extension, namely:

AI Mode tab for deeper AI interactions.
Discussions and Forums.
Sponsored links.
Shopping blocks.
People also ask.
People also search for.
Video blocks.
Feature snippets.

Only AI Mode is AI related, while the remaining features are blocks of content that Google Search often displays. It is a good option to get rid of content blocks that you have no use for. If you never shop online, you could for instance remove the shopping blocks.

If you prefer only organic results, you could remove sponsored links and feature snippets.

Activate the save button to save your selection. The extension works automatically from that moment on. When you visit Google Search, it will hide the blocks, AI and all others selected, automatically.

Note that it uses CSS to hide them. It does not really toggle them off, as no option to do so is provided by Google at the time.

Extensions like Bye Bye, Google AI have a tendency to break regularly. When Google makes changes to its Search page, it may break the extension functionality as a consequence. This usually requires the developer to publish an update to address the changes.

Closing Words

Integrating AI overviews and other AI content in search is controversial. Google says it improves searches for users and while that may be true to an extend, there is also a darker side to this.

The elephants in the room are false information and doing its best to keep users on Google Search and other Google properties while displaying information created by third-party publishers.

Now You: how do you handle AI information in search engines? Do you use them, like them even? Or do you prefer to ignore or hide them?

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Monday 29 September 2025 at 4:04 pm AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Microsoft Weekly: Windows 11 25H2 is getting close, so does the end of Windows 10

Sun, 28 Sep 2025 18:33:40 +0000

This week's news recap is here. Windows 11 version 25H2 is right around the corner, new details about extended security updates for Windows 10, a single preview build for Windows Insiders, new games at Tokyo Game Show 2025, new processors for Arm PCs, and more.

Quick links:

Windows 10 and 11
Windows Insider Program
Updates are available
Reviews are in
Gaming news

Windows 11 and Windows 10

Here, we talk about everything happening around Microsoft's latest operating system in the Stable channel and preview builds: new features, removed features, controversies, bugs, interesting findings, and more. And, of course, you may find a word or two about older versions.

It appears that Windows 11 version 25H2 is right around the corner. This week, users discovered that download links for Windows 11 version 25H2 and its enablement packages are now available for download. If you do not want to wait for the public release, you can check out this guide describing how to download and install Windows 11 25H2 right now.

There is a separate guide for those who want to install the update on an unsupported PC with apps like the recently updated Rufus 4.10, which received dark mode and Windows 11 25H2 support. There is another app for such ordeals, Flyoobe. It has also been updated to a new version with optimizations for Windows 11 version 25H2, where it should now run smoothly.

Image by DepositPhotos

Microsoft also released a bunch of Windows updates this week. While Windows 11 24H2 has not received its monthly non-security update, Microsoft pushed KB5068221, an out-of-band update, to resolve compatibility problems with Office applications. Other Windows 11 versions, though, received their scheduled non-security update, with Windows 11 23H2 and 22H2 getting KB5065790. As for Windows 10, it received KB5066198, the final non-security update ahead of the end of support.

Speaking of the end of support, Microsoft revealed that users in the European Economic Area will not have to give Microsoft any data or pay it to receive one more year of security updates. Additionally, Microsoft revealed plans to deprecate WHCP and HLK for Windows 10.

We also published several useful guides this week. Also, check out this guide that describes how to limit memory consumption in Microsoft Edge. Speaking of useful stuff, check out WindowSill, a new app from a Microsoft engineer that aims to upgrade your taskbar with an additional panel full of useful tools.

We also have a new piece of Windows trivia from Raymond Chen, a seasoned Microsoft veteran. In its latest blog post, Raymond explained the online nature of Windows 3.0's WinHelp. Finally, check out two articles from Usama where he talks about a very "underrated" Windows feature and how his favorite Microsoft product is getting way too expensive.

Windows Insider Program

This week, we barely had any updates in the Insider program, with only one small build in the Canary Channel and a single update for the Photos app:

	Builds
Canary Channel	Build 27954 Only general improvements and a single fix for networking in this week's Canary build.
Dev Channel	Nothing in the Dev Channel this week
Beta Channel	Nothing in the Beta Channel this week
Release Preview Channel	Nothing in the Release Preview Channel this week

As for the Photos app, its latest update for Windows Insiders with Copilot+ PCs introduced automatic photo categorization. However, only four categories are available at this moment.

Updates are available

This section covers software, firmware, and other notable updates (released and coming soon) delivering new features, security fixes, improvements, patches, and more from Microsoft and third parties.

Qualcomm announced the second generation of the Snapdragon X Elite processor family. Chips that will power the next wave of Arm-powered Copilot+ PCs are now official with two tiers: Elite and Extreme. They feature more cores, more cache, faster clocks, and a significantly improved Neural Processing Unit.

OneDrive, which, according to Microsoft, is not just a storage service, appears to be parting ways with Samsung. A fresh APK teardown revealed that the South Korean giant plans to remove OneDrive integration in favor of Samsung Cloud.

Finally, Microsoft released a small PowerToys update to resolve more installation issues. Version 0.94.2 does not contain anything but that, but look forward to version 0.95, which will bring a new module called Light Switch. On Saturday, we published a quick look at the upcoming tool that will let you automate theme switching in Windows 10 and 11.

Here are other updates and releases you may find interesting:

Reviews are in

Here is the hardware and software we reviewed this week

We have a new review from Christopher White this week, as he tried to recall how to ride a bike with the ENGWE LE20. This relatively inexpensive e-bike has good cargo capacity for your grocery hauls, solid range on a single battery, and it is overall well-made, with just a tiny bit of annoyances.

On the gaming side

Learn about upcoming game releases, Xbox rumors, new hardware, software updates, freebies, deals, discounts, and more.

Hideo Kojima and Jordan Peele are working on a new Xbox horror game. It is called OD: KNOCK, and we have the first trailer showcasing its graphics, a character played by Sophia Lillis, and a gloomy room with some spooky stuff.

Oxide Games released a new update for Ara: History Untold. Called v2.0 Revolutions, it brings a number of new and overhauled systems, a new unit type in the Renaissance age, redesigned leaders with unique mechanics, better AI systems, and more.

After reopening the Xbox Design Lab, Microsoft announced a new Ninja Gaiden 4-themed Xbox Wireless Controller. The new design is available for the standard controller and for the Elite, and it will set you back $95 or $184.98.

Also, Microsoft finally opened pre-orders for ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X. Microsoft's handhelds will be available for purchase in October, and you will have to pay $599.99 for the regular model and a whopping $999.99 for the Ally X.

Nvidia announced new games for GeForce NOW subscribers. With September coming to an end, Nvidia is adding ten games to the service. Those include ENDLESS Legend 2, Renown, Baby Steps, SWORN, Lost Rift, CloverPit, Mecha BRAK, and more. In addition, Nvidia also announced two more games that now also have support for the new RTX 5080 servers available for Ultimate members: Alan Wake 2 and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl.

If you want to play the latest Battlefield (its campaign trailer is out, by the way) or Call of Duty game, your PC must have Secure Boot and TPM enabled. Otherwise, those games won't run. To help gamers figure out whether their PCs have the necessary features enabled, Valve added TPM and Secure Boot checks to the latest beta version of Steam.

Microsoft Flight Simulator is the latest Microsoft game to head to the PlayStation. At Tokyo Game Show 2025, Microsoft revealed that the flight sim will be available on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 5 Pro (including PlayStation VR) on December 8, 2025. Additionally, developers announced a new City Update focusing on Japan and its iconic landmarks.

Another game that will be available on PlayStation 5, albeit at a later date, is the new Forza Horizon 6. At TGS 2025, Microsoft revealed the first teaser, confirming that the game will be set in Japan, and its release is scheduled for 2026. No exact dates, sadly.

Deals and Freebies

The Epic Games Store is giving away two games this week. Those are Eastern Exorcist and Jorel’s Brother and The Most Important Game of the Galaxy. As usual, they are up for grabs until next Thursday. You can find more deals in this week's Weekend PC Game Deals issue.

Other gaming news includes the following:

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Monday 29 September 2025 at 4:31 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Borderlands 4's 1st DLC Vault Hunter has been revealed — this gambling, robot gunslinger may be the character to finally convince me to jump back into Borderlands after a decade

Sun, 28 Sep 2025 18:31:28 +0000

Gearbox Software unveils C4SH, the first DLC Vault Hunter to be added in Borderlands 4's 1st Story expansion pack scheduled for 2026 Q1.

We're at the tail-end of Tokyo Game Show 2025, but the announcements aren't over yet. Randy Pitchford from Gearbox Software made a surprise appearance for a Borderlands 4 announcement regarding its first DLC Story Expansion Pack coming in 2026.

That announcement is a new teaser trailer for the game's first DLC, Vault Hunter, coming in the expansion, and it is none other than C4SH.

Here is what we know so far about this mysterious gun slinging robotic Vault Hunter.

According to Randy Pitchford, C4SH used to be a dealer robot that served at a casino, dealing out cards and witnessing players either win big or ruin their lives by gambling their money away.

However, something happened one day to cause C4SH to rethink his life choices. This eventually led C4SH to quit his job at the casino and become a Vault Hunter, seeking his own fortune and place in life.

While no gameplay footage of C4SH's abilities exists yet, we do have hints at what they could be like. Randy Pitchford states that as a Vault Hunter, C4SH uses the powers of chance and probability via rolling dice or playing cards to inflict random effects in battle.

Randy Pitchford says the random, high-risk/high-reward gameplay of C4SH's abilities could potentially cause him to become the most powerful playable Vault Hunter in the game or be a complete liability, depending on the player's luck.

C4SH is slated to be added in Borderlands 4's 1st Story Expansion Pack, "Mad Ellie and the Vault of the Damned", in the first quarter of 2026.

Aside from C4SH, the "Mad Ellie and the Vault of the Damned" DLC will feature new story missions where get to tag along with Ellie on a cosmic-horror themed adventure.

It will also include a new map region to explore, new side missions to complete, and new Legendary Gear to collect.

In addition, there will be several new cosmetics up for grabs, such as:

4 Vault Hunter Heads
6 Styles
4 Weapon Skins
2 Vehicle Skins
3 ECHO-4 Drone Skins
6 Attachments
1 ECHO-4 Frame

I may finally found my main Vault Hunter in Borderlands 4 and I can't wait to see more of C4SH

I have a confession to make: I haven't played Borderlands 4 yet, as of this writing, and it's got nothing to do with the game's ongoing performance issues or missing features, causing players to review bomb it on Steam.

Despite its technical issues, I have heard that Borderlands 4 is a great game from the staggering amount of positive reviews it's gotten from official critics. One of my colleagues, Michael Hoglund, even said it's a glorious return to form for the Borderlands series in his 4-Star review for Borderlands 4.

However, my problem is that, well, none of the default playable Vault Hunters look all that appealing to play for me personally. They don't exude the silent, coolness factor of someone like Zer0, the smug, evilness of Jack: The Doppelganger, or the unhinged insanity of Krieg, who is my favorite Vault Hunter of all time.

However, this new Vault Hunter, C4SH, may be up my alley despite only seeing a few seconds of him through a teaser trailer.

His character design is deliciously gritty, and his gameplay concept of using luck via dice and playing cards sounds reminiscent of Claptrap: The Fragtrap's RNG-based gameplay from Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, but without having to suffer listening to Claptrap's annoying voice.

With the quick roll-outs of gameplay improvements like performance patches and adding FOV Sliders to consoles, coupled with the addition of this slick-looking new Vault Hunter and a DLC Story Expansion Pack, 2026 may be the year I finally give Borderlands 4 a shot.

I can't wait to see gameplay footage of C4SH's abilities in action and see if it convinces me to jump back into the Borderlands series after a decade since completing Tales from the Borderlands.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Monday 29 September 2025 at 4:29 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Paul's Tech News - Nvidia is starting to scare me [Video]

Sun, 28 Sep 2025 08:02:22 +0000

Paul's Hardware (1.53M subscribers)

September 28, 2025

Video length: 11m 47s

Nvidia is starting to scare me - Tech News Sept 28

0:00 Welcome to Paul’s Tech News - Sept 28, 2025

1:32 Nvidia’s $100 billion OpenAI investment

3:53 Intel wants some Apple money too

5:45 Intel XESS Multi Frame Generation Coming? Feature spotted in driver

6:56 Intel’s Hiring a High End Desktop GPU Engineer

7:58 Intel reportedly raising prices on ever-popular Raptor Lake chips

TECH BRIEFS

8:37 AMD Enables PyTorch on Radeon RX 7000/9000 GPUs with Windows/Linux Preview

9:41 Palit Oktoberfest Edition RTX 5080 - Hold My Beer GPU

10:39 Steam Deck on sale for $320

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Sunday 28 September 2025 at 5:59 pm AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

What to expect from Amazon’s big fall hardware event on Tuesday

Sat, 27 Sep 2025 16:11:11 +0000

Amazon is already hinting at new Echos and a new color Kindle.

Amazon is hosting its 2025 fall hardware event on Tuesday, September 30th, and it could be a packed show. The company’s invite has a few not-so-subtle hints about new Echos and a new Kindle. It will also be Amazon’s next big product event for Panos Panay, who joined Amazon in 2023 to head up its devices and services teams after a long career at Microsoft helping launch products like the Surface lineup.

Amazon has taken some big swings under Panay’s leadership, launching a suite of new Kindle products last year — including the first color Kindle — and announcing its AI-powered Alexa Plus assistant. What’s coming up next, then? Here’s what we think you can expect.

Amazon’s event invite image.

Image: Amazon

At least one new Echo product

Amazon’s invitation appears to tease two products with the company’s iconic blue Echo ring, so it looks like we’ll get new Echo smart speakers of some kind during the show. Which ones, though?

A new standard Echo seems like a safe bet, as the company hasn’t released one since 2020. Perhaps that’s the one in the top left of Amazon’s event teaser. The shape on the top right looks a little bit like an Echo Studio, which is also due for an upgrade. It was last refreshed in 2023.

I might be totally off-base with my guesses, but if you’re shopping for new smart speakers and are already invested in Amazon’s Alexa and Echo ecosystem, you might want to wait to see what Amazon reveals at this event before you buy anything new.

A color Kindle Scribe

This one is easier to tease out from Amazon’s event invite: one of the pictures is a color version of the Kindle logo. But hidden in the corner of the image is a clue that Amazon might announce a color version of the Kindle Scribe: tiny text in the corner includes the words “with the” and “stroke of a pen.”

Amazon announced the first Scribe, a tablet-sized E Ink device that pairs with a stylus, in 2022, and it released a second-generation version last year. But both were missing a color screen, which seems like the next natural upgrade.

A smaller color Kindle

A Reddit user recently shared images of a prototype Kindle that’s apparently a bit smaller than the 11th-generation Kindle and has “Kindle Petit Color” branding. The prototype has colors that are better than last year’s Colorsoft, too, the user says. The first Colorsoft had a rocky launch due to a discoloration issue affecting some units that Amazon had to address. I have lower confidence in this one, though, since Amazon very recently launched a cheaper Kindle Colorsoft without some of the features of the Colorsoft Signature Edition, like wireless charging.

New TV hardware and potentially a new TV OS

The bottom-left corner of the invitation features a picture that resembles a TV, suggesting that Amazon will announce new TV hardware of some kind. But the bigger TV-focused news might be Vega OS, a replacement operating system for its Fire TVs that isn’t based on Android, and the OS could launch as soon as this week, according to Lowpass’ Janko Roettgers.

Vega OS is a bit of an open secret already; Amazon job listings have directly mentioned it, and the company already uses the operating system on the Echo Show 5, Echo Hub smart displays, and the Echo Spot smart clock. If Amazon uses this event to share more about Vega OS on TVs, it would mark a big public reveal for the operating system.

Alexa Plus announcements or upgrades

Alexa Plus is a major initiative for Amazon as it looks to compete with other popular AI assistants, such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini. While the revamped Alexa is still technically rolling out in early access, Amazon could use this event as an opportunity to give an update on that rollout and announce new features coming to the assistant.

Other unexpected hardware

When David Limp, now the CEO of Jeff Bezos’ rocket company Blue Origin, led Amazon’s devices and services, the company’s hardware events were often packed with a dizzying number of new and unexpected products that worked with Alexa, including things like Echo Buttons, the Echo Wall Clock, and even an Alexa-enabled microwave. All three of those are now in the Echo graveyard, but Amazon could have another surprise product up its sleeves again. With Meta all-in on smart AI glasses, maybe Amazon will upgrade its Echo Frames?

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Sunday 28 September 2025 at 2:10 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Microsoft shares Windows 10 deprecation plans for WHCP and HLK

Sat, 27 Sep 2025 08:01:18 +0000

Windows 10 is reaching end of support on October 14, 2025, and it recently received its last non-security updates. Although customers in Europe can take advantage of the Extended Security Updates (ESU) program with no strings attached and so can customers in other regions with some caveats, it's clear that it's the end of the line for Windows 10. Now, Microsoft has shared Windows 10 deprecation plans for the Windows Hardware Compatibility Program (WHCP) and Windows Hardware Lab Kit (HLK), mainly impacting Windows hardware manufacturers.

For those unaware, WHCP is a process aimed primarily at hardware manufacturers who want to test their products for compatibility with Windows, ahead of release. It uses HLK as a testing framework for automated driver testing. Devices who pass these tests get certified by Microsoft, which also increases customer confidence in the products they buy.

After October 14, Microsoft will be deprecating the Windows 10 certification process in WHCP. Only Windows 10 LTSC 2021 release (22H2) and HLK 22H2 will remain supported throughout 2028 through the ESU program which offers up to three years of paid security updates for enterprise customers. Similarly, for Windows Server, HLK versions 1809 and 22H2 will continue to be used for Windows Server LTSC releases until their end-of-life (EOL) dates. After October 14, Microsoft Premier Support will no longer accept submissions for unsupported versions of HLK.

Finally, the Hardware Dev Center (HDC), which is essentially the portal where hardware manufacturers submit and register drivers for testing with their products, will see a different kind of impact. For now, it will continue accepting HLK packages for all versions of Windows 10. The company is yet to share timelines on deprecation plans for unsupported HLK submissions in HDC, but it has strongly encouraged all partners to migrate to supported versions of Windows HLK.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Saturday 27 September 2025 at 6:00 pm AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

You should care more about the stabilizers in your mechanical keyboard—here’s why

Sat, 27 Sep 2025 02:40:26 +0000

Don't know what a keyboard stabilizer is? You're about to find out.

While most people don't spend a lot of time thinking about the keys they tap all day, mechanical keyboard enthusiasts certainly do. As interest in DIY keyboards expands, there are plenty of things to obsess over, such as keycap sets, layout, knobs, and switches. But you have to get deep into the hobby before you realize there's something more important than all that: the stabilizers.

Even if you have the fanciest switches and a monolithic aluminum case, bad stabilizers can make a keyboard feel and sound like garbage. Luckily, there's a growing ecosystem of weirdly fancy stabilizers that can upgrade your typing experience, packing an impressive amount of innovation into a few tiny bits of plastic and metal.

What is a stabilizer, and why should you care?

Most keys on a keyboard are small enough that they go up and down evenly, no matter where you press. That's not the case for longer keys: Space, Enter, Shift, Backspace, and, depending on the layout, a couple more on the number pad. These keys have wire assemblies underneath called stabilizers, which help them go up and down when the switch does.

A cheap stabilizer will do this, but it won't necessarily do it well. Stabilizers can be loud and move unevenly, or a wire can even pop out and really ruin your day. But what's good? A stabilizer is there to, well, stabilize, and that's all it should do. It facilitates smooth up and down movement of frequently used keys—if stabilizers add noise, friction, or wobble, they're not doing their job and are, therefore, bad. Most keyboards have bad stabilizers.

Like switches, most stabilizers are based on the old-school Cherry Inc. designs, but the specifics have morphed in recent years. Stabilizers have to adhere to certain physical measurements to properly mount on PCBs and connect to standard keycaps. However, designers have come up with a plethora of creative ways to modify and improve stabilizers within that envelope. And yes, premium stabilizers really are better.

A world of options

The stabilizers in most retail boards aren't anything special—they're just knock-offs of the classic Cherry designs that sound and perform poorly. A modest upgrade might be the venerable GMK screw-in stabilizer. GMK stabilizers are produced from the original Cherry molds, so they're compact and inexpensive, and they fit well in almost all boards. But there is an even higher echelon of luxury available.

Some stabilizers make fairly minor changes to mounting and internal geometry to great effect. For example, Zeal V2 Stabilizers look like the classic Cherry variety, but they have clear housings, beefed-up mounting hardware, vintage-style "pre-clipped" sliders, and snazzy gold-anodized hardware (which you will admittedly almost never see).

Looking for more innovation? Some stabs use multiple materials in pursuit of better performance. Swagkeys Knight stabilizers (top image) use a double-shot mold to offer polycarbonate plastic on the exterior with a softer silicone internal surface where the wires touch. Another designer, Wuque Studio, has versions of its stabilizer with a similar internal silicone surface or one with the silicone layer on the metal wire. And there are keyboard people who believe one approach or the other is clearly superior.

There are also some newer takes on key stabilization that eschew the traditional stem shape. Take, for example, the Typeplus x YiKB stabs with their "chiral" housing—instead of having identical left and right housings, the left and right sides are mirror images. The wires end in small hooks that lock them into the sliders. This design prevents wires from popping out and is more friendly to under- or over-lubrication. They're also made from a stronger polyketone thermoplastic, whereas most stabilizers are ABS or polycarbonate.

The Typeplus kit is also an example of all the fiddly little accessories that come with fancy stabilizers (and some of the best packaging I've ever seen for a product that costs under $20). There are washers for the screws, shims for thinner PCBs, and Teflon landing pads for the sliders. It's common to see a whole range of mounting hardware accessories included with fancy stabilizers, allowing for intricate customization.

This is just scratching the surface—stabilizers come in more shapes, colors, and styles than we could reasonably cover here. And they're all superior to the cheap parts used in the average retail mechanical keyboard.

More art than science

Buying a cleverly designed set of stabilizers for a keyboard is a good start, but you then have to install them correctly. Stabilizers are the "inner-most" component, sandwiched between the PCB and the switch plate. If the keyboard doesn't exist yet because you're building from a custom board from a kit, great—install the stabilizers first. Forgetting the stabilizers is a mistake you only make once.

Everyone has their own way of tuning stabilizers, some of which may be little more than superstition. Maybe you want to use foam landing pads or wire guides, check every wire for warping in just the right way, or apply a preferred industrial lubricant to the wires. Some people even use different kinds of lubricant for plastic-plastic versus plastic-metal junctions. However arduous the plan, it's worth the time if you get good results that save you from an annoying rattle.

Replacing stabilizers (or going back to install them because you forgot) means completely disassembling the board, and that's particularly annoying if the switches are soldered in. In that case, you'll have to spend a few grueling hours with a desoldering iron to get to the stabilizers, which we do not recommend. Modern mechanical keyboards with hotswap switches make this much easier.

The stabilized keys sound just like the unstabilized keys, which is what you want.

Like many hobbyists, keyboard fans have been hit hard by new US tariffs. Most custom keyboards and components are manufactured overseas and imported, and the import charge for a full kit can run into hundreds of dollars. Stabilizers aren't immune to that—GMK stabilizers come from Germany, Zeal is in Canada, and almost everything else is shipping straight from China.

Still, a good-quality set of stabilizers, properly installed and lubricated, is probably the best upgrade you can make to a mechanical keyboard.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Saturday 27 September 2025 at 12:37 pm AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

The latest Borderlands 4 patch notes just added this much-desired feature to console, and it came faster than I expected — here's everything new in the update

Fri, 26 Sep 2025 08:04:12 +0000

Gearbox just updated Borderlands 4 with an FOV slider for consoles, along with some big buffs and fixes.

One of September's biggest game launches has been the arrival of Borderlands 4 — Gearbox Software's long-awaited co-op looter shooter, and the first new mainline entry in the franchise since 2019's Borderlands 3. It released on September 12 to positive reviews from critics, and quickly attracted a very large player base across Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and PS5.

But while the title has received high praise for the quality of its gameplay, story, and presentation, something it's gotten quite a bit of criticism for is its performance, along with the absence of some key features on console like a field-of-view (FOV) slider and a toggle for motion blur. As a result, the game fell to a "Mixed" rating at launch, and hasn't risen above it since.

In the past couple weeks, Gearbox has put out a few patches for the PC version of the game to improve its stability, though players on Xbox and PS5 have still been waiting. On Thursday morning, though, another new update was released for both PC and console.

The patch is available to download now across all of Borderlands 4's platforms, and is the biggest one the developers have published since release. And in addition to implementing more fixes for performance and some notable gameplay tweaks, it's also brought an FOV slider to the console versions of the FPS.

In-game performance and the lack of an FOV slider on console have been some of Borderlands 4's biggest

problems since its launch, but this update addresses both.

(Image credit: 2K)

The addition of an FOV slider is definitely the highlight of the update, as the default view on Xbox and PS5 was so narrow that it was giving players headaches and motion sickness. I was expecting the feature to take Gearbox longer to develop and implement on consoles, so the fact it's here now is a pleasant surprise.

It's unfortunate a motion blur toggle hasn't come as well since that visual effect is also known to occasionally cause similar sensations, but hopefully one does in the future.

Notably, Gearbox has also made "improvements to stability and performance," and has "addressed various instances of hitching, low FPS, and crashes" as well. The studio also says it's continuing to look into reports of issues and will further refine and polish Borderlands 4's technical state moving forward.

The addition of an FOV slider is definitely the highlight of the update, as the default view on Xbox and PS5 was so narrow that it was giving players headaches and motion sickness. I was expecting the feature to take Gearbox longer to develop and implement on consoles, so the fact it's here now is a pleasant surprise.

Ironically, some users have experienced worse performance after the patch, which the developer says it's aware of. Issues with stutters specifically should improve as Borderlands 4's shaders compile in the background during gameplay, with Gearbox recommending a clearing of your shader cache if they persist beyond 15 minutes.

Some nice Vault Hunter buffs were also made with this patch, including a tweak that stops Harlowe's Flux Generator from healing enemies when you take the Potential Transference skill and a change to the Accretion passive that gives your allies lifesteal. Amon's Primal Surge also now restores shield and ammo as intended, his Onslaughter Rocket Punch connects more consistently with shielded foes, and his Forgeaxe tracks nearby enemies properly.

These adjustments come shortly after Borderlands 4 committed to making buffs before nerfs, exciting many in the community who were worried that Gearbox would be nerf-heavy as they were soon after the launch of Borderlands 3 and the 2022 spinoff Tiny Tina's Wonderlands.

To be clear, nerfs are coming — the critical damage you can do with Vex's knife and her Bloodletting skill can skyrocket into the millions — but Gearbox is focusing on improving underwhelming parts of the sandbox before it tones anything down.

Vex the Siren and her absurd Bloodletting critical damage builds have survived being nerfed...for now, at least.

(Image credit: 2K)

Overall, this is quite a substantial update for Borderlands 4, complete with the speedy addition of an FOV slider and some sweet gameplay buffs. It's great to see some performance fixes come to console as well as PC, too, given that Xbox and PS5 players have been stuck waiting since launch for some help on that front. You can read the full patch notes here.

It also happens to coincide with the reset of the game's weekly endgame content offerings, including the Weekly Big Encore Boss, the Weekly Wildcard Mission, and the Maurice’s Black Market Vending Machine.

The former two can be farmed for plenty of high-quality loot, and the latter's powerful, but randomized offerings encourage trading with other players. Keep an eye on community spaces like the Borderlands subreddit for info on which bosses, missions, and vending machine locations are active every week.

Borderlands 4 itself is available for $69.99 on Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and PS5, with a Nintendo Switch 2 release coming at some point in the future (it was delayed indefinitely). Thanks to an awesome deal, though, you can get it for about $13 off; right now, it's selling for $57.09 at Loaded (formerly CDKeys).

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Friday 26 September 2025 at 6:03 pm AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Raspberry Pi 500+ is here, with all the hardware inside a sleek mechanical keyboard

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

In late 2024, the Raspberry Pi Foundation launched the Raspberry Pi 500, integrating its latest Raspberry Pi 5 single-board computer into a keyboard with useful, everyday-use ports for quick and easy usage as a computer. Today, the company brought out an enhanced version of that release, calling the new Raspberry Pi 500+ its "most polished product yet."

Ditching the old membrane design, the new keyboard housing the computer features mechanical keys using Gateron KS-33 Blue switches with custom RAL 7001 Silver Grey stems. Each key is equipped with an RGB LED that can work in unison to offer programmable backlighting. "Each custom-designed low-profile keycap is spray painted and then laser etched to allow the backlight to shine through the legend," adds the company.

For those who want to use their own keys, the foundation confirmed that the 500+ keyboard is compatible with "most aftermarket keycap sets," with even a key puller being included in the package.

Looking at the internals, the Pi 500+ has a 2.4GHz quad-core Arm Cortex-A76 CPU and 16GB of LPDDR4X-4267 SDRAM inside it. It also has a 256GB M.2 SSD with Raspberry Pi OS preinstalled, alongside a separate microSD card slot. A prying tool is bundled with the package for opening the keyboard and accessing its insides and swapping out parts.

The device also features Bluetooth 5.0, dual-band Wi-Fi, Gigabit Ethernet, a 40-pin GPIO header, and two micro HDMI ports with 4K 60FPS support.

The Raspberry Pi 500+ is now available with a $200 price tag. The company also sells a $220 Desktop Kit edition that bundles with it the Raspberry Pi Mouse, the official 27W USB-C Power Supply, a 2-meter micro HDMI to HDMI cable, and a physical copy of the Raspberry Pi Beginner's Guide 5th Edition.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Friday 26 September 2025 at 7:29 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Apple demands EU repeal the Digital Markets Act

Thu, 25 Sep 2025 20:01:48 +0000

"DMA compliance is not optional, it's an obligation," the EU reminds Apple.

Apple has demanded Brussels scrap its landmark Big Tech legislation, marking a step up in US tech giants’ fight against European oversight.

The EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), which entered into force in 2022, aims to curb the power of Big Tech and level the playing field for smaller rivals, with fines of up to 10 percent of global revenue for companies that do not comply.

Apple’s call to repeal the law comes at a time of transatlantic tensions over the EU’s digital rule book, including the DMA.

US President Donald Trump has threatened to punish countries that “discriminate” against US companies with higher tariffs, and Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg has personally lobbied Trump against the DMA.

“The DMA should be repealed while a more appropriate fit for purpose legislative instrument is put in place,” the iPhone maker said in its response to a routine call for feedback on the Digital Markets Act.

The EU fined Apple €500 million in April following an investigation into whether the company’s rules prevented app developers from sending consumers to cheaper offers for products and services outside Apple’s ecosystem.

In June, the company announced changes to its app store policy in an attempt to avoid being further penalized by Brussels.

Apple argues the bloc’s digital rules have made it harder to do business in Europe and worsened consumers’ experience.

In a post on Thursday, the company said the DMA was leaving European consumers with fewer choices and creating an unfair competitive landscape—contrary to the law’s own goals.

For example, Apple said it had had to delay certain features, such as live translation via its AirPods, to make sure they complied with the DMA’s requirement for “interoperability.” The EU rules specify that apps and devices made by one company need to work with those made by competitors.

“Despite our concerns with the DMA, teams across Apple are spending thousands of hours to bring new features to the European Union while meeting the law’s requirements. But it’s become clear that we can’t solve every problem the DMA creates,” the company said.

A European Commission spokesperson said it was normal that companies sometimes “need more time to make their products compliant” and that the commission was helping companies to do so.

The spokesperson also said that “DMA compliance is not optional, it’s an obligation.”

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Friday 26 September 2025 at 4:05 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Valve adds Secure Boot and TPM checks to Steam on Windows

Thu, 25 Sep 2025 18:05:28 +0000

In 2021, with the initial release of Windows 11, the average PC user got to learn two new terms: Trusted Platform Module, or TPM, and Secure Boot. These features became mandatory for those who want to run Windows 11 officially, but for everyone else, TPM and Secure Boot remained irrelevant. Fast forward to 2025, and Trusted Platform Module and Secure Boot are grabbing people's attention once again, as some popular games now rely on these features for anti-cheat software.

Trusted Platform Module and Secure Boot are low-level features that are usually managed outside the operating system. You cannot toggle them in Windows, so less tech-savvy users might not even know about their existence or how to turn them on. To make life easier for such users, Valve is adding TPM/Secure Boot checks to the Steam client.

The latest Steam beta release added a single Windows-related change. Now, users can go to Help > System Information and see whether Secure Boot and Trusted Platform Module are enabled. Here is the changelog:

Added detecting if Secure Boot and a TPM are enabled on the current machine. This information is displayed under Help > System Information. It is now also collected when opting into the Steam Hardware Survey.

Unfortunately, Steam won't tell you how to enable Secure Boot and Trusted Platform Module on your system, so you are on your own on this one. Still, it is a welcome change that will make these two technologies more known among gamers who might not care whether their systems have some obscure security features. What they care about is why the latest Call of Duty is not launching, and the Steam client will help figure that out.

Speaking of Steam updates, Valve recently announced that support for 32-bit Windows 10 is ending on January 1, 2026. While the previous versions of the client will continue working for a while, Valve urges users to switch to 64-bit Windows installations to continue receiving updates and support from Valve.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Friday 26 September 2025 at 4:05 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix

Sins of a Solar Empire II Reinforcements DLC lands with new Command Ships and win conditions

Thu, 25 Sep 2025 18:03:17 +0000

The Reinforcements DLC for Sins of a Solar Empire II that Stardock announced earlier this month is now ready for launch. This latest premium add-on is only the second piece of DLC to hit the game since the Paths to Power scenario pack, and it adds on brand-new ships as well as faction-specific win conditions for the endgame. Check out the launch trailer for the DLC above.

Per the developer, the new Command Ships sit between Capital Ships and Titans when it comes to their versatility. When deployed inside late-game fleets, Command Ships will be able to offer "devastating firepower, unique abilities, and strategic utility."

Stardock describes each of the new Command Ships like this:

TEC Enclave – Takadaran Command Fortress: A massive support platform doubling as a mobile cruiser-scale shipyard, capable of producing TEC cruisers in the field.
TEC Primacy – Khevarkov Modular Battleship: A high-speed strike vessel with customizable hardpoints for railguns, missiles, or hangar bays.
Vasari Alliance – Sularkon Tyrant: A city-ship fortress with integrated Phase Gate, designed to lock down entire sectors.
Vasari Exodus – Anarkrul Wanderer: A colossal refugee-carrier turned warship, bristling with defenses and heavy strikecraft support.
Advent Wrath – Oblivia Dreadnought: A heavily armored frontline warship wielding a devastating Super Heavy PsiKinetic Lance.
Advent Reborn – Justicia Dreadnought: A vertical dreadnought that grows deadlier as allies fall, culminating in catastrophic retaliation.

The new win conditions are The Departure, Mass Conversion, and Super Novalith Offensive. To start, the Vasari have to build Arkships to escape the sector through a star. As for Advent players, they must deploy a mass conversion wave using planetary structures to turn more star systems into loyal territory. Lastly, the Trader Emergency Coalition has to build a Novalith cannon that can destroy entire planets to forcefully bring peace throughout systems for their unique win.

Sins of a Solar Empire II Reinforcements DLC is now available across Steam and Epic Games Store with a $14.99 standalone price tag. Owners of the game's Premium Edition or the Content Pass will gain access to the DLC for no extra charge. Following this, coming up next in the DLC content plan are the Harbinger and Times of War expansions.

Disclaimer: Neowin's relationship to Stardock

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Friday 26 September 2025 at 4:02 am AEST (my time).

News posts... 2023: 5,800+ | 2024: 5,700+ | 2025 (till end of August): 4,048

RIP Matrix