Amazon today announced the next generation of Fire HD 8 tablets, launching four new models: Fire HD 8, Fire HD 8 Plus, Fire HD 8 Kids Pro, and Fire HD 8 Kids. The all-new Fire HD 8, powered by a 30% faster processor and all-day battery life, provides customers with a premier entertainment experience and the ability to get more things done at home or on the go. And for the first time, customers can select a Disney Design bundle for the Fire HD 8 Kids featuring Mickey Mouse or Disney Princess cases. The new Fire HD 8 tablets are available for pre-order today and will begin shipping next month.

"Our best-selling tablet this year just got even better for customers. The all-new Fire HD 8 tablets are faster, lighter, and powered by all-day battery life, delivering great entertainment for the whole family," said Kevin Keith, vice president of Amazon Devices. "For a complete kids tablet experience, the all-new Fire Kids tablets include one year of Amazon Kids+, a virtual playground of thousands of ad-free games, videos, books, apps, and more, kid-friendly case, a two-year worry-free guarantee, and easy-to-use parental controls."

Is there anything better than yet another benchmark leak of upcoming products? This time around we don't have to make do with Geekbench or some other useless benchmark, as a bilibili user in the PRC has posted a video where he has put the upcoming Intel Core i5-13600K and Core i7-13700K CPUs through 10 different games, plus 3DMark Fire Strike and Time Spy. This has been done at 1080p, 1440p and 2160p at that, using a GeForce RTX 3090 Ti graphics card. Both CPUs are QS or Qualification Samples, which means they're going to be close to identical to retail chips, unless there are some last minute issues that are discovered. The CPUs were tested using an ASRock Z690 Steel Legends WiFi 6E motherboard, well, two actually, as both a DDR4 and a DDR5 version were used. The DDR4 RAM was running at 3600 MHz with slow-ish timings of 18-22-22 in gear 1, whereas the DDR5 memory was running at 5200 MHz, most likely at 40-40-40 timings, although the modules were rated for 6400 MHz, in both cases we're looking at 32 GB.

Courtesy of @harukaze5719, we have some much easier to read graphs than those provided by the person that tested the two CPUs, but we've included the full graphs below as well. Each CPU was compared to its current SKU equivalent from Intel and in many of the games tested, the gain was a mere percent or less to three or four percent. However, in some games—at specific resolutions—especially when paired with DDR5 memory, the performance gain was as much as 15-20 percent. A few of the games tested, such as FarCry 6 at 4K, the game ends up being GPU limited, so a faster CPU doesn't help here as you'll see in the graphs below. There are some odd results as well, where the DDR5 equipped systems saw a regression in performance, so it's hard to draw any final conclusions from this test. That said, both CPUs should offer a decent performance gain, as long as the game in question isn't GPU limited, of around five percent at 1440p when paired with DDR5 memory.

With Intel Raptor Lake-S desktop processors around the corner, we see an ever-increasing number of entries to the popular synthetic benchmark databases. Yesterday we had an Intel Core i5-3600K CPU, while today, we are presented with Core i7-13700K SKU. The new 13th generation Core i7-13700K CPU features eight P-cores and eight E-cores. Compared to the 12th generation Core i7-12700K, this is a step up with eight P-cores and four E-cores. According to Geekbench 5 benchmark, the new Qualification Sample (QS) of Core i7-13700K CPU was running at the minimum clock of 5.289 GHz, maximum clock of 5.381 GHz, and average speed of 5.36 GHz. It was tested on the same configuration as yesterday's i5 SKU with ASRock Z690 Steel Legend WiFi 6E motherboard with 32 GB of DDR4 memory.

As far as the results are concerned, the 13th gen i7-13700K SKU scored 2090 points in the single-core test, while the multi-core score totaled 16542 points. If we compare this to the 12th gen i7-12700K CPU that it replaces, the new model leads by about 10% and 17% in single-core and multi-core tests, respectively.

World-leading memory manufacturer, Team Group is embracing the new DDR5 generation in full force by offering products that meet a wide range of user demands. In this case, T-CREATE, Team Group's label targeting content creators, is launching the EXPERT Desktop DDR5 RAM and CLASSIC SO-DIMM Laptop DDR5 RAM to serve the booming digital content market and join hands with digital content creators around the world to usher in the next generation.

T-CREATE's EXPERT Desktop DDR5 RAM, unlike its DDR4 iteration, uses a dedicated DDR5 cooling module and all-new cooling fin design to strengthen cooling under high-intensity applications and ensure digital content creators can continue to experience high-speed performances at the ideal operating temperature. Digital content creators require strong performances and large capacities. The EXPERT DDR5 has the specs to achieve speeds of up to 5600 MHz and dual-channel options available in 16 GB x2 or 32 GB x2, which can fulfill any multi-tasking needs and drastically enhances the creative experience.

Silicon Power (SP) releases its first line of memory modules featuring the all-new, next-gen DDR5 technology. Designed for gaming, the XPOWER Zenith DDR5 UDIMM module is available in both RGB and non-RGB forms. Experience even faster frequencies, greater capacities, and lower voltages with the latest release in our Zenith Series, the XPOWER Zenith DDR5 UDIMM module. Take your gaming abilities to new high scores with turbo speeds ranging from 5200 MHz to 6000 MHz. It's available in 8 GB, 16 GB, and 32 GB module densities with double the banks and double the burst length compared to DDR4 to give hardcore gamers and overclockers the power to harness DDR5's game-changing performance.

DDR5 memory pricing has been declining faster than expected, with average pricing for modules based on the latest standard dropping by as much as 20% in a month's time. As reported by ComputerBase, pricing for 1 GB of DDR5 has fallen from around €15 by the end of 2021 down to around €5/GB at time of writing. At current pricing, an entry-level, 32 GB DDR5 kit DDR5-4800 memory (JEDEC standard) has fallen from a high of €430 down to a much more palatable €154.

The price decline comes as good news for anyone aiming to upgrade their PC in wake of AMD's Socket AM5 launch for its Zen 4 architecture, which the company has already confirmed will only support the latest RAM standard. AMD itself must be riding the sea of relief, as high DDR5 pricing could significantly shape the company's next-gen platform's value compared to arch-rival Intel, which already offers DDR4 and DDR5 support with its Alder Lake chips. Expectations place the same memory support for the next-gen Raptor Lake platform. Prices for DDR4 memory seem to have hit a bottom, however, as pricing hasn't significantly moved in around six months. Like with all new technologies, expect the price difference to eventually change in favor of DDR5 memory, as manufacturers adjust their outputs towards adoption.

Silicon Power (SP) releases its newest UDIMM memory module with the latest, groundbreaking DDR5 technology. Read on to learn why it's time to ditch your DDR4 module and make the upgrade. Taking speed, capacity, and reliability even further, the cutting-edge technology of this DDR5 module gives that next-level edge for your system's performance. With aggressive speeds of 4800 MHz, it's 1.5x faster than standard 3200 MHz DDR4 to provide multi-core CPUs with extreme responsiveness and the power to multi-task seamlessly.

Even with all of its extra power, this DDR5 module improves upon its predecessor with on-module voltage regulation. A power management integrated circuit (PMIC) reduces the burden on the motherboard control and results in a lower voltage of 1.1 V versus 1.2 V for DDR4 for even less power consumption.

G.SKILL International Enterprise Co., Ltd., the world's leading manufacturer of extreme performance memory and gaming peripherals, is delighted to announce the launch of an extremely low-latency, high-speed DDR5-6400 CL32 32 GB (2x16 GB) memory kit under the Trident Z5 family memory series, designed for the latest 12th Gen Intel Core desktop processors and Intel Z690 chipset motherboards.

Dedicated to developing ever-faster memory modules, G.SKILL is launching an ultra-low latency DDR5-6400 CL32-39-39-102 memory kit at 1.40 V with 32 GB (2x16 GB) kit capacity. Equipped with exceptionally tight timings, this extreme memory specification represents the next step of the Trident Z5 family flagship performance. The screenshot below shows this memory kit validated on the Intel Core i7-12700K processor and ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero motherboard. The DDR5-6400 CL32 32 GB (2x16 GB) memory kits under the Trident Z5 and Trident Z5 RGB series is available now via G.SKILL worldwide distribution partners.

GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co. Ltd, a leading manufacturer of motherboards, graphics cards, and hardware solutions today announced AORUS RGB DDR5 6000 MHz 32 GB Memory Kit, which uplift frequency to 6000 MHz with RGB lighting for performance boost and striking accents. Enhanced by DDR5 XMP Booster and XMP 3.0 User Profile of GIGABYTE Z690 motherboards, and copper-aluminium heat spreaders with nano-carbon coating thermal design, the new memory kit promises the next-level performance with stability while dissipating heat efficiently under high-speed operation.

AORUS RGB DDR5 6000 MHz 32 GB Memory Kit features high clock speed and low power consumption by two 16 GB DDR5 XMP 6000 MHz dual-channel designs with 40-40-40-76 timings, which fit the support of DDR5 memory on Intel Z690 platform. Along with GIGABYTE Z690 AORUS motherboards, AORUS RGB DDR5 6000 MHz 32 GB memory kit can enable "DDR5 XMP Booster" function which detect the brand of memory IC in the BIOS setting to allow users to choose promptly from multiple built-in memory overclocking profiles, boosting the native DDR5 or XMP DDR5 memory speed. Furthermore, "XMP 3.0 User Profile" enables users to create and store XMP profiles of their own to unleash the extreme performance of memories.

KLEVV, an emerging memory brand introduced by Essencore, today announced the latest addition to its lineup of computer memory upgrades with new DDR5 memory series, including DDR5 standard memory and signature DDR5 series of overclocking/gaming RGB memory. KLEVV DDR5 memory offers assurance of QVL testing with major motherboard brands' Z690 platforms that support the latest Intel 12th Generation 'Alder Lake' Core Processors.

KLEVV DDR5 standard desktop memory (U-DIMM) will adopt SK Hynix chips and will first launch in a 16 GB capacity with JEDEC standard frequencies of 4,800 MHz CL40-40-40 at a power-efficient 1.1 V. KLEVV DDR5 standard desktop memory kits have passed QVL testing with Z690 motherboards from leading partners including ASRock, ASUS, Gigabyte, and MSI, assuring outstanding compatibility for PC builders. Larger capacity 32 GB modules and standard memory for laptops (SO-DIMM) will follow soon.

AMD announced the AMD Radeon PRO V620 GPU, built with the latest AMD RDNA 2 architecture which delivers high-performance GPU acceleration for today's demanding cloud workloads including immersive AAA game experiences, intensive 3D workloads and modern office productivity applications at scale in the cloud.

With its innovative GPU-partitioning capabilities, multi-stream hardware accelerated encoders and 32 GB GDDR6 memory, the AMD Radeon PRO V620 offers dedicated GPU resources that scale to multiple graphics users, helping ensure cost-effective graphics acceleration for a range of workloads. Built using the same GPU architecture that powers the latest generation game consoles and PC game experiences, the AMD Radeon PRO V620 GPU is also designed to develop and deliver immersive AAA game experiences.

We've already seen some official and some leaks of various DDR5 modules and now Corsair's Dominator Platinum RGB modules have leaked. Alongside the pretty pictures, we also now know that these will be 5200 MHz/MT/s modules with a timing of 38-38-38-84 and that they'll require 1.25 V at these settings. Corsair has carried over its Capellix LEDs and iCue support, although this was pretty much expected.

Details of three sets of DDR5 memory from Kingston have also leaked and it looks like the company will have at least three main SKUs. What we're looking at is the ValueRam series with bog standard JEDEC spec at 4800 MHz with a CAS latency of 40, the Fury Beast which will feature the same clocks, but improved an CAS latency of 38 and finally a higher clocked Fury Beast SKU at 5200 MHz which a CAS latency of 40. All three SKUs will come in single 16 GB modules or 32 GB kits.

G.SKILL International Enterprise Co., Ltd., the world's leading manufacturer of extreme performance memory and gaming peripherals, is thrilled to announce the world's fastest DDR5 memory kit at an extreme speed and low latency of DDR5-6600 CL36-36-36-76 32 GB (2x 16 GB). This is the world's first DDR5 memory kit to reach such high level of frequency speed and extremely efficient low timings, achieved with high-performance Samsung DDR5 ICs.

In the never-ending quest for memory performance, G.SKILL is proud to reveal the latest addition of ultra-high DDR5 frequency to the flagship Trident Z5 family. While reaching an extreme frequency speed of DDR5-6600, this memory kit specification is also created with an ultra-low timing at CL36-36-36, compared to the typical CL40-40-40 timing of DDR5, making this the ultimate performance choice for gamers, enthusiasts, and overclockers. The screenshot below shows a G.SKILL memory kit validated with the use of high performance Samsung DDR5 ICs.

DIMM designs by the various DRAM module manufacturers are always something of a personal taste thing and then there's the polarising issue of RGB or not. Well, it looks like Galax has worked on something special for its upcoming Gamer RGB DDR5 modules that is likely to cause mixed reactions, but we have a feeling they'll potentially be popular with younger gamers.

The new modules are expected to come in kits of two, ranging in size from 16 to 64 GB, with the 32 GB kit launching first. These are merely 4800 MHz modules, so there's not too much to get excited about there and no timings have been announced. However, these are the first customisable DIMMs we've ever come across, as the RGB LED strip at the top of the module is compatible with LEGO bricks, although presumably there's no official license involved here. Based on the fact that it's Galaxy China that has shown off these modules, they're unlikely to make an appearance in markets outside of China.

ADATA Technology, a manufacturer of high-performance DRAM modules, NAND Flash products, mobile accessories, gaming products, electric power trains, and industrial solutions today announces the ADATA DDR5-4800, a next-generation DDR5 memory module that is capable of reaching frequencies of up to 4800MT/s and comes with up to 32 GB of capacity. In addition, ADATA has worked with six major motherboard brands, including AORUS, ASROCK, ASUS, GIGABYTE, MSI and ROG to ensure optimal performance and compatibility across a wide range of motherboards.

"Through our strong R&D capabilities and close partnerships with the world's leading motherboard makers, we are committed to offering memory modules with next-generation performance, higher capacities, and enhanced stability," said Nick Dai, Senior Manager of DRAM Products at ADATA. "In the coming months, we will continue to launch a diverse array of DDR5 products to meet the different needs of creators, gamers, and other users."

If you're looking at getting your hands on some DDR5 memory for your new Alder Lake build once it launches, a leak of validated RAM has popped up on Twitter, that should give you an idea of what to expect. The list is only a couple of weeks old and it's not what we'd call a long list, as it only covers five companies, out of which three are actual DRAM manufacturers and one is a subsidiary of one of those companies, there are no real surprises here.

All the DDR5 modules tested are rated at 4800 MHz and are either 8, 16 or 32 GB in size, with all modules using 16 Gbit chips. All modules were tested with timings of 40-39-39 at 1.1 V. Kingston is the only outlier here, since they're not a DRAM manufacturer, unlike SK hynix, Samsung and Micron/Crucial. Intel is listing all the modules as non ECC, which should put an end to the claims of all DDR5 being ECC memory.

[Editor's note: We have published the review of HYTE Revolt 3 Case here.]

HYTE, the new PC components and lifestyle brand of iBUYPOWER, a leading manufacturer of high-performance custom gaming PCs, today released its premier product, the Revolt 3 Mini-ITX PC case. Previously announced during CES 2021 as the Revolt 3 MK3, the Revolt 3 was designed with careful consideration for DIY PC enthusiasts, gamers, and creators alike.

"iBUYPOWER is excited to introduce its new sub-brand, HYTE, to our community with its very first product, the Revolt 3" said Darren Su, Executive Vice President of iBUYPOWER. "With over 20 years of experience as a systems integrator we felt like we had a unique perspective to bring to the table when developing PC Components. We approached the Revolt 3 with the goal of designing a case with the freedom and flexibility that would allow the use of a wide range of components without imposing performance restrictions based on the size of the case."

Since the end of 2020, TEAMGROUP has been at the forefront of next-generation DDR5 development, working closely with motherboard manufacturers to perform extensive validation testing. Whether it is the testing and research of DDR5's new PMIC architecture or XMP overclocking parameters, the company has achieved very fruitful results. Today TEAMGROUP is launching its brand new DELTA DDR5 Memory Series, the first DDR5 modules to be equipped with RGB lighting effect, providing gamers who enjoy visual flair with both next-level speed and eye-pleasing illumination.

The T-FORCE DELTA RGB DDR5 continues the design language of the DELTA DDR4 Series by maintaining the ultra-large spreader with wide-angled RGB edges and a minimalist geometrical surface. The overall look is further enhanced by its sleek stealth-fighter-inspired design. In addition, the color and flashing speed of each RGB LED used in DELTA RGB DDR5 can be independently controlled, offering more freedom to customize lighting effects than a typical RGB DDR4 memory. Currently samples have been sent to ASUS, GIGABYTE, MSI, ASROCK, BIOSTAR and other motherboard manufacturers for lighting tests. Players will be able to easily customize their own dazzling RGB effects through the manufacturers' lighting software.

Chinese company Jiahe Jinwei owns a sub-brand of gaming-oriented products named after Norse mythology - Asgard. The company has now announced that the trial production for high-speed DDR5 modules using Micron's semiconductors has completed without issue, meaning that their roadmap is going through without a hitch. Of course, as with the introduction of any new DDR memory standard, operating frequencies are still in their nascent stage; Asgard currently is only offering 4,800 MHz DDR5 sticks, which the most premium DDR4 sticks can already surpass.

It's only a matter of time before DDR5 speeds accelerate however, and Asgard is already planning to launch 5600 MHz DDR5 kits as early as 2022. These should be available in 32 GB and 128 GB capacities with a CAS latency of 46 cycles. The next step in performance increase would look towards 6,400 MHz kits, but these should only be expected towards the end of 2022 and beginning of 2023, should the development continue to move along smoothly. All of the DDR5 memory speeds should still make do with a relatively puny 1.1 V.

As the industry is preparing for a shift to the new DDR standard, companies are trying to adopt the new technology and many companies are manufacturing the latest DDR5 memory modules. One of them is Shenzhen Longsys Electronics Co. Ltd, a Chinese manufacturer of memory chips, which has today demonstrated the power of DDR5 technology. Starting with this year, client platforms are expected to make a transition to the new standard, with the data center/server platform following. Using Intel's yet unreleased Alder Lake-S client platform, Longsys has been able to test its DDR5 DIMMs running at an amazing 6400 MHz speed and the company got some very interesting results.

Longsys has demoed a DDR5 module with 32 GB capacity, CAS Latency (CL) of 40 CL, operating voltage of 1.1 V, and memory modules clocked at 6400 MHz. With this being an impressive memory module, this is not the peak of DDR5. According to JEDEC specification, DDR5 will come with up to 8400 MHz speeds and capacities that are up to 128 GB per DIMM. Longsys has run some benchmarks, using an 8-core Alder Lake CPU, in AIDA64 and Ludashi. The company then proceeded to compare these results with DDR4-3200 MHz CL22 memory, which Longsys also manufactures. And the results? In AIDA64 tests, the new DDR5 module is faster anywhere from 12-36%, with the only regression seen in latency, where DDR5 is doubling it. In synthetic Ludashi Master Lu benchmark, the new DDR5 was spotted running 112% faster. Of course, these benchmarks, which you can check out here, are provided by the manufacturer, so you must take them with a grain of salt.

In the name of Odin, Chinese manufacturer Asgard has launched their first DDR5 memory modules to market - beating some competing western companies that are still "gearing up" for it. Owned by the much less interestingly-named Shenzhen Jiahe Jinwei Electronic Technology Co., Ltd., Asgard likewise lost some of its flair in naming these DDR5 sticks - the best they could do was VMA5AUK-MMH224W3. The modules will be available in 32 GB, 64 GB and 128 GB per-stick densities.

The initial modules don't have any flair - they're built with the same green PCB that's actually the forerunner of today's colored ones. The company hs also announced that the modules win run at a relatively mild 4,800 MHz (the DDR5 specification goes up to 8,400 MHz), and that its timings coincide with JEDEC's "B" classification, which should mean 40-40-40. The voltage likewise remains at the JEDEC-set standard of 1.1 V. The company announced that mass-production rollout will only occur after there are actual CPUs and platforms that can take advantage of the DDR5 memory spec, and said that they expect Intel's Alder-Lake, Sapphire Rapids and Tiger Lake-U from the blue team, as well as Van Gogh and Rembrandt APUs from the AMD camp. No word on consumer pricing was available at time of writing.

Stealth (a Sparton company), a leader in the industrial computer, displays and peripherals market, has released the new model WPC-905, a high performance rugged Waterproof PC computer that is completely sealed, surviving liquids, chemicals, dust and dirt intrusion and meeting IP67 environmental specifications

Fanless by design, this durable environmentally sealed small form factor PC features powerful 8th Generation Intel Celeron and Core Processors, solid state drives (SSD) with optional onboard RAID configurations and a wide ranging 9 - 48VDC power input making it a perfect fit for mobile and transportation based applications. The WPC-905 is RoHS, CE & FCC, EN50121-3-2, EN50155 certified and also incorporates TPM 2.0 (Trusted Platform Module) to provide increased hardware security.

Alienware, the gaming division of Dell Technologies, has today announced a lineup refresh, meaning that all of the existing products will get upgraded to versions with the latest hardware. And to start off, the company has equipped their thin and powerful Alienware m15 R4 and m17 R4 laptops with the latest hardware we saw announced just yesterday. The laptops are equipped with 12-phase voltage regulation modules to power the newest NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3000 series of mobile GPUs. To pair with a strong GPU, Alienware decided to use 10th generation Intel Comet Lake-H designs. These new laptops can be equipped with up to 4 TB of PCIe 3.0 NVMe SSD storage and up to 32 GB of 2933 MHz RAM. For display, options range from FHD LCD to a 4K OLED panel and 360 Hz refresh rate for the m17 R4 model.

In the upstream semiconductor industry, the major foundries such as TSMC and UMC are reporting fully loaded capacities, while in the downstream, the available production capacity for OSAT is also lacking, according to TrendForce's latest investigations. Given this situation, suppliers of NAND Flash controller ICs such as Phison and Silicon Motion are now unable to meet upside demand from their clients. Not only have many controller IC suppliers temporarily stopped offering quotes for new orders, but they are also even considering raising prices soon because the negotiations between NAND Flash suppliers and module houses over 1Q21 contracts are now at the critical juncture. The potential increases in prices of controller ICs from outsourced suppliers (IC design houses) are currently estimated to be the range of 15-20%.

With regards to the demand side, demand has risen significantly for eMMC solutions with medium- and low-density specifications (i.e., 64 GB and lower), for which NAND Flash suppliers have mostly stopped updating the NAND Flash process technology, while maintaining support with the legacy 2D NAND or the 64L 3D NAND process. This is on account of strong sales for Chromebook devices and TVs. As older processes gradually account for a lowering portion of bit output proportions from NAND Flash suppliers, these companies are exhibiting a lowered willingness to directly supply such eMMC products to clients. As a result, clients now need to turn to memory module houses, which are able to source NAND Flash components and controllers, to procure eMMC products in substantial quantities.

The percentage distribution of 2021 NAND Flash bit demand by application currently shows that client SSD accounts for 31%, enterprise SSD 20%, eMMC/UFS 41%, and NAND wafer 8%, according to TrendForce's latest investigations. TrendForce expects NAND Flash ASP to undergo QoQ declines throughout 2021, since the number of NAND suppliers far exceeds DRAM suppliers, and the bit supply remains high. As Samsung, YMTC, SK Hynix, and Intel actively expand their NAND Flash bit output in 1Q21, the oversupply situation in the industry will become more severe, with a forecasted 6% QoQ increase in NAND Flash bit output and a 10-15% QoQ decline in NAND Flash ASP in 1Q21.