ASRock, the global leading manufacturer of motherboards, graphics cards, mini PCs, gaming monitors and power supply units, today launches its latest Phantom Gaming OLED series, featuring three high-performance models: PGO32UFS, PGO27QFS, and PGO27QFV. Equipped with cutting-edge OLED panel technology, these monitors deliver outstanding visual quality and exceptional performance, providing an unparalleled viewing experience for gamers.

PGO32UFS: Innovative Dual-Mode Large Screen Offering Speed and Clarity
The PGO32UFS features a 32-inch flat WOLED screen with UHD resolution and a native 240 Hz refresh rate for stunning image clarity and smooth motion. Its unique Dual-Mode function allows gamers to switch seamlessly to a 480 Hz refresh rate at FHD resolution, catering to both ultra-high-definition and ultra-high-speed gaming scenarios. Additionally, its stand integrates ASRock's patented Wi-Fi antenna technology, supporting the latest Wi-Fi 7 connectivity with up to 7dBi peak gain, significantly enhancing network stability and providing a low-latency gaming environment. To ensure sustained performance during extended use, the PGO32UFS features ASRock's exclusive heatsink technology combined with graphene film and a four-sided ventilation design, effectively reducing panel temperature and preventing image retention.

Acer today announced the expansion of its Predator gaming monitor line with two new 27-inch models that promise to deliver exceptional speed and stunning visuals for enjoying the latest titles in their full glory. Both monitors bring cutting-edge technology and innovation to the forefront, catering to the needs of gamers who demand only the best performance.

Equipped with a WQHD, 360 Hz panel, and the new NVIDIA G-SYNC Pulsar technology, the Predator XB273U F5 is a gaming powerhouse and is certain to awe even the most demanding players with smooth and dynamic frames. The Predator XB273K V5 comes with a 4K UHD resolution display with 160 Hz refresh rate, and AMD FreeSync Premium technology to showcase crisp details and motion for enjoying games in stunning clarity. With Dynamic Frequency and Resolution (DFR) technology, users can opt to switch to FHD resolution at 320 Hz to tailor the gaming experience based on their preference.

ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) today announced the groundbreaking ROG Swift OLED PG27AQDP, the ROG Strix OLED XG27ACDNG and the ROG Swift 360 Hz PG27AQNR gaming monitors at Gamescom 2024.

The Swift OLED PG27AQDP is the world's first 1440p 480 Hz monitor, and it features an anti-glare WOLED panel. Meanwhile, the 26.5-inch Strix OLED XG27ACDNG boasts an impressive 360 Hz refresh rate and a QHD QD-OLED panel with an anti-reflection. Both monitors feature ASUS Extreme Low Motion Blur (ELMB) and OLED Anti-Flicker technologies. ROG is the only gaming monitor brand to offer QD-OLED and WOLED offerings to cater to different needs. Each display offers unparalleled visuals and unprecedented refresh rates to redefine gaming performance for gamers worldwide. Also launched was the 360 Hz ROG Swift 360 Hz PG27AQNR, with a QHD Ultrafast IPS display and G-SYNC Pulsar that make it a superior choice for esports and competitive gaming.

Samsung Electronics today announced the global launch of its 2024 Odyssey OLED gaming monitor, Smart Monitor and ViewFinity monitor lineups. These new and updated models bring features that people want—as well as some they don't expect—to deliver new experiences, no matter how they use their monitors. The Odyssey lineup brings a next-level OLED experience and new AI capabilities to the Odyssey OLED G8; the Smart Monitor lineup heightens joy with more enhanced entertainment features, plus the Smart Monitor M8 powered by AI; and the ViewFinity lineup boosts connectivity to create a complete workstation.

"Our latest monitor lineups deliver a breadth of options to users globally and create better experiences, no matter how people use them," said Hoon Chung, Executive Vice President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. "From the groundbreaking AI-powered Odyssey OLED gaming monitor to multi-device experiences in the Smart Monitor and ViewFinity lineups, Samsung remains committed to redefining the market and delivering cutting-edge technologies to users everywhere."

Last week, the Professional Gamers League (PGL) announced an interesting overhaul of tournament hardware—new systems will be fitted with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 graphics cards, then hooked up to BenQ ZOWIE XL2566K 24.5" 360 Hz gaming monitors. Their previous generation machines were (initially) designed around AMD's Ryzen 9 5950X processor, but the organization is leaving AM4 platforms behind: "PGL is excited to announce that our team has fully optimized upgraded gaming PCs in partnership with Afromnazareth, and we are ready to deliver an unparalleled esports experience at the PGL CS2 Major Copenhagen 2024. At the heart of this cutting-edge setup is the AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D processor, explicitly chosen for its exceptional performance capabilities and ability to handle the demands of CS2. This processor is renowned for its superior gaming performance, offering players the speed, power, and efficiency required to perform at the highest levels of competition."

The Ryzen 7 5800X3D is a more straightforward upgrade—as an easy drop-in for the PGL's older AM4 platform machines, but a leap into new ecosystems will grant a bit of future-proofing. Team Red is expected to support AM5 across a couple of processor generations. PGL did upgrade systems with 5800X3D CPUs, due to player feedback—according to Tom's Hardware: "there was some discontent among players with the previous configuration with the Ryzen 9 5950X because, while the chip sports 16 Zen 3 execution cores, Counter-Strike 2 doesn't exploit the processor's prowess. Some players criticized PGL's poor processor choice for previous events, claiming lousy frame rates." Performance connoisseurs will be pleased to hear about the tournament organizer's new push into modern platforms—Silviu Stroie, PGL CEO, stated: "we have meticulously optimized this bespoke gaming setup to ensure that every participant experiences CS2 in the highest fidelity without compromise. The AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D CPU stands out as a game-changer in the esports arena, promising to elevate the competitive play of CS2 to new heights."

Back in January, Gigabyte announced a wide range of new displays at CES and one of the new models that the company didn't have on display at the show was the AORUS FO27Q3. The company has now shared more details on its website of the new display and it gives us a lot more details than what had previously been released. As the model name suggests, the AORUS FO27Q3 is a 27-inch display and the resolution is 2560 x 1440 pixels and the refresh rate will top out at 360 Hz and has a response time of 0.03 ms. The FO27Q3 is built around a QD-OLED panel with an anti-reflective coating. The panel is said to be a 10-bit panel capable of 10.7 billion colours and it's certified for DisplayHDR True Black 400, has a typical brightness of 250 cd/m² and a contrast ratio of 15 million to one.

Other features include support for AMD FreeSync Premium Pro and VESA ClearMR 13000, but there's no mention of G-Sync support. Other features include a range of gaming related features such as crosshairs, night vision, black equalizer etc. as well as picture by picture and picture in picture support. Inputs consist of two HDMI 2.1 ports, one DP 1.4, one USB Type-C with DP Alt mode support as well as a very disappointing 18 W of USB Power Delivery. Furthermore there's a USB 3.0 upstreams port and two downstreams ports, a headphone and a microphone jack. Gigabyte has also added KVM support and a stand that offers tilt, swivels, pivot and height adjustment. The display is said to have a peak power draw of 53 Watts and relies on an external power brick. No word on pricing or availability.

Today at CES 2024, Alienware is building on our legacy of display innovation with two new world's-first QD-OLED gaming monitors. Introducing the Alienware 32 4K QD-OLED Gaming Monitor (AW3225QF) and Alienware 27 360 Hz QD-OLED Gaming Monitor (AW2725DF) - two new, advanced gaming displays that expand our celebrated, award-winning QD-OLED family which first debuted at CES 2022.

These new models are the first of their kind. On the left, you're looking at the world's first 4K QD-OLED gaming monitor with Dolby Vision HDR designed for you to see every detail in astounding color and contrast. On the right, beauty and speed come together in the world's first 360 Hz QD-OLED gaming monitor, providing you with 360 Hz refresh rate and QD-OLED infinite contrast in QHD resolution (2560x1440). All these features combined into a single package helps position any gamers with a clear competitive advantage. (For a quick refresher on QD-OLED technology, click here.) No matter whether you are playing racing games where speed is of the essence, or simulation and action-adventure games where sharp visual fidelity is key, there is now an Alienware QD-OLED gaming monitor perfect for you.

Samsung Electronics America today announced new Odyssey OLED gaming monitors debuting at CES 2024, the world's biggest tech event owned and produced by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), in Las Vegas next week. The new OLED models deliver the performance and visual clarity gamers look for in their monitors, and include the Odyssey OLED G9 (Model Name: G95SD), Odyssey OLED G8 (Model Name: G80SD), and the Odyssey OLED G6 (Model Name: G60SD).

The Odyssey OLED G9 is a 49" curved ultra-wide gaming monitor with DQHD (5,120×1,440) resolution and a 32:9 aspect ratio and other upgraded features. The Odyssey OLED G8 is the first flat 32-inch Samsung OLED gaming monitor with 4K UHD (3,840×2,160) resolution and a 16:9 aspect ratio. Both monitors have a 240 Hz refresh rate and 0.03 ms GTG response time. The Odyssey OLED G6 is a 27" QHD (2,560×1,440) monitor which supports a 16:9 aspect ratio, 360 Hz refresh rate and 0.03 ms GTG response time.

It's no wonder AUO didn't reveal the actual resolution of its new 49-inch 5K panel in its press release yesterday, as this is a typical 5120 x 1440 panel when it comes to the resolution. Yes, it's capable of 360 Hz, which is higher than the competition which is currently at 240 Hz. AUO has also managed to crank up the backlight to 600 nits in HDR mode, although this is still a typical backlight and not some kind of FALD implementation.

The panel itself is based on AUO's PSA, which is a VA type of panel. It has a contrast ratio of 5000:1 and covers 95 percent of the DCI-P3 colour gamut. AUO claims that the panel has a 1 ms grey to grey response time with overdrive enabled. As per yesterday's press release, the panel has a 1000R curvature, which means it's very curved, as you can see in the pictures below. We don't know who AUO's customers for the panel are, but we'll hopefully see some indications at Computex next month.

Tomorrow, the Touch Taiwan trade show kicks off in Taipei and AUO will be showing off a range of new products at the show, which TPU will be attending, so we'll have some hands/eyes on coverage this week. As far as gaming monitors are concerned, the big announcement from AUO is a 49-inch ultrawide, curved 5K display panel that supports refresh rates of up to 360 Hz. The company didn't reveal the actual resolution in its press release, but we'll find out at the trade show what 5K resolution means in this case, as it's most likely 5120 x 1440, since this is what most 32:9 5K displays offer today.

AUO will also be showing off a 24-inch, 540 Hz, 1080p display panel that the company claims will "eliminate screen tearing, stuttering, and ghosting issues. There's no mention of the display panel used, but it's most likely a TN panel. Somewhat less gaming related, AUO will also have a 17.3-inch, transparent Micro LED notebook panel on display, which the company says will enhance the display quality under glare, something they'll hopefully be demoing at the trade show.

LG Electronics' (LG) latest UltraGear gaming monitor (model 25GR75FG) has been named the official display of the League of Legends EMEA Championship (LEC) 2023. The new monitor will make its debut during the upcoming LEC season, which begins this weekend, supporting players from the region's top teams as they battle it out for tournament honors. LG UltraGear is proud to continue its strong partnership with LEC, one of the world's most popular esports leagues, and remains committed to fostering the growth of esports internationally.

Designed for competitive esports, the latest LG UltraGear gaming monitor delivers outstanding picture quality and speed thanks to a 24.5-inch Full-HD (1,920 x 1,080) IPS display with a 360 Hz refresh rate and 1 millisecond Gray-to-Gray (GTG) response time. The performance of LG's new gaming display is further boosted by the integration of NVIDIA G-SYNC technology, which minimizes screen-tearing for seamless visuals, and NVIDIA Reflex, which helps to reduce click-to-display latency for more precise control of the onscreen action. VESA Display HDR 400 certified, the 25GR75FG also ensures bright, clear images and has a 3-sided borderless design that helps increase players' sense of immersion, making it easier to focus during fierce competition.

Dell has launched a pair of new gaming focused displays under its Alienware badge and both are high refresh rate monitors. The 25-inch (or rather 24.5-inch) model goes under the model name AW2523HF and has a 1080p panel with a 360 Hz refresh rate. It supports Freesync Premium and it also supports VESA AdaptiveSync. It's said to have a 400 nits peak brightness fast IPS panel that has a colour gamut that covers 99 percent of the sRGB spectrum. Inputs consist of one DP 1.4 and two HDMI 2.0 ports, as well as a USB-B 3.0 input and four USB-A 3.0 outputs

The 27-inch model is called the AW2723DF and it sports 1440p resolution and here we're looking at a fast nano IPS panel that has a native 240 Hz refresh rate, but it can be pushed up to 280 Hz using an overclocking option. It supports FreeSync Premium, G-sync Compatible and AdaptiveSync, so here all your bases are covered regardless of which GPU you hook it up to. It's also an HDR 600 display with a typical peak brightness of 450 cd/m² and it has a wider colour gamut that supports 95 percent of the DCI-P3 spectrum. This is still an edge lit display, so don't expect amazing HDR performance. Connectivity is the same as for the AW2523HF, although it's said to support Picture-by-Picture and Picture-in-Picture, which the 25-inch model apparently doesn't. The AW2523HF will be available in early September for $450, while the AW2723DF will launch in early October for $650.

AGON by AOC - one of the world's leading gaming monitor and IT accessories brands - adds the 27" (68.58 cm) AGON PRO AG274QS, a high-speed, 300 Hz gaming monitor to its AGON PRO portfolio. Equipped with a Fast IPS panel supporting DisplayHDR 600, 1 ms GtG response time and QHD resolution, it hits home with esports players and enthusiasts, especially fans of FPS, battle royale, and similar fast-paced titles.

AGON PRO's current models with Full HD, the 25" AG254FG (360 Hz) or the 27" AG274FZ (260 Hz) demonstrate beautifully how exceptional speed can be combined with high quality IPS panels and award-winning gamer-focussed designs. Now, with the 27" AG274QS, AGON by AOC brings sharper QHD resolution (2560x1440 pixels) up to breath-taking 300 Hz - one of the first QHD displays with such a high refresh rate on the market today.

Back in 2012, ASUS released the world's first ever 144 Hz monitor, and we've been chasing high refresh rates ever since. From the first 240 Hz NVIDIA G-SYNC display we released in 2017 to the first 360 Hz display in 2020, ROG is committed to pushing competitive gaming to new heights at every opportunity. Now, we're ecstatic to announce that we've done it again: introducing the ROG Swift 500 Hz, a groundbreaking new gaming monitor that refreshes 500 times per second, for the most fluid, fast-paced motion you'll find in modern Esports.

In competitive, intense firefights, every single millisecond counts. The ROG Swift 500 Hz draws frames more than eight times faster than typical 60 Hz displays in a single second, which means you have that much more time to get a leg up on your opponent in esports titles like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Valorant, Overwatch, and Rainbow Six Siege. With super low response times and unprecedented improvements in input lag, the ROG Swift 500 Hz is the new benchmark in Esports, offering the same competitive advantage that made its 360 Hz predecessor the official display at last year's DOTA 2 The International championship. The ROG Swift 500 Hz features a 24.1-inch Full HD (1920x1080) panel, allowing your GPU to push as many frames as possible. ROG was able to push refresh rates to the limit by using new Esports TN (E-TN) technology, which offers 60% better response times than standard TN panels, allowing us to reach a new milestone in speed and clarity.

In January, we introduced the ROG Strix SCAR 2022, an ultra-powerful esports gaming machine designed to blow away any and all competition. But we couldn't leave well enough alone, so we decided to make it even better. We're proud to announce the ROG Strix SCAR 17 Special Edition, the ultimate laptop for competitive gaming.

For most gamers, the regular 2022 Strix SCAR is the perfect companion, since it's lighter and more affordable than the new Special Edition, while offering exceptional gaming performance. But for gamers who need the absolute best of the best, cutting-edge technology paired with a bold cyberpunk design, the Strix SCAR 17 SE has arrived.

GIGABYTE today launched AORUS 17X gaming laptop, the brand-new flagship model that combines breakthrough performance with enhanced portability. The AORUS 17X is powered by the latest Intel 12th generation Core i9 HX processor that offers up to 16 cores. Pairing with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 series graphics card, the powerful combo in the AORUS 17X can deliver a significant performance gain up to 32% over its predecessor, allowing enthusiasts to enjoy desktop-class gaming performance on the go. High-performance cores demand superior cooling. The latest generation of AORUS 17X adopts the exclusive WINDFORCE Infinity cooling system. It features a pair of highly efficient fans, 6 heat pipes, and multiple cooling fins that can efficiently remove heat produced by the CPU and the GPU, keeping the laptop cool while maintaining maximum performance throughout the workload.

Different from the conventional thin-bezel displays that are generally limited to the sides, the new AORUS 17X, as well as the AORUS 17, are the world's first four-sided super-thin bezel gaming laptops with the bent-type technology. Thanks to the innovation, the AORUS 17X screen's bottom border is trimmed by 30%, making the overall screen-to-body ratio reach 90%. The bent-type panel also makes it possible for the AORUS 17X to pack a big 17" screen in a nearly 15" tall chassis, greatly increasing its portability. The AORUS 17X is also engineered for fast-paced gaming, delivers ultra-high refresh rate of up to 360 Hz, which is six times faster than conventional laptops. The beastly AORUS 17X gaming laptop reshapes the game by bringing unmatched power and gaming visuals to a more compact form factor, making it a powerhouse laptop for heavy-duty gaming on the go. For more information on AORUS 17X and other AORUS series gaming laptops, check out the AORUS official website.

The world's leading computer brand, GIGABYTE, launched its new generation of AORUS professional gaming laptops featuring Intel's 12th generation processors and Nvidia's RTX 30Ti series graphics cards. The upgraded dual-chip approach has resulted in a great leap in performance and smoother gaming experience, with a 11% increase in gaming performance. In addition to an upgraded performance, AORUS has pushed the limits of size dimensions of notebooks in order to improve visual enjoyment for gamers.

The AORUS 17, GIGABYTE's flagship model laptop debuted at CES 2022, changed the rules of the game by introducing a 17-inch screen panel inside a 15-inch tall laptop chassis. By adopting an extremely narrow four-sided frame design, AORUS increased the screen-to-body ratio to 90%, so you see more while carrying less. Without compromising any performance, the screen still boasts a 360 Hz refresh rate, allowing players to see more frames and win more games.

In addition to the new game titles with Reflex support that Nvidia announced during its CES press conference, the company has also announced an additional eight displays and six mice that are now supported. Four of the displays are part of Nvidia's new 1440p esports display scheme and comes from AOC, MSI, ASUS and Viewsonic, one being the Alienware QD-OLED display, with the remaining three being 4K miniLED displays from Acer, Asus and HP. The 1440p esports monitors are all capable of a refresh rate of at least 300 Hz, with the ASUS ROG Swift going as high as 360 Hz.

We've already covered the Alienware QD-OLED display in a separate news post, so we'll skip it here. The 4K miniLED displays consist of the Acer Predator X32, the ASUS ROG Swift PG32UQXE and the HP Omen 32u, all 32-inch displays, with the Acer and ASUS displays being capable of 160 Hz refresh rates. We can't find any details about the HP display beyond the limited information provided by Nvidia.

Razer, the leading global lifestyle brand for gamers (Hong Kong Stock Code: 1337), is kicking off 2022 with new Razer Blade gaming laptop models including the Razer Blade 14, Razer Blade 15, and Razer Blade 17. The world's fastest laptops for gamers and creators are equipped with the recently announced NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 Series Laptop GPUs, up to an RTX 3080 Ti, making the new Blades better than ever, now shipping with Windows 11. All new Razer Blade gaming laptops now also include groundbreaking DDR5 memory, providing blistering clock speeds up to 4800 MHz, an increase in frequency by up to 50% compared to the previous generation.

"The Razer Blade series continues to be the best gaming laptop by providing desktop-class performance on-the-go," says Travis Furst, Senior Director of Razer's Systems business unit. "Additionally, we've enabled creators to work anywhere with gorgeous displays, available NVIDIA Studio drivers, and up to 14-Core CPUs. Users will have the ability to choose any model or configuration that best fits their gaming or creating needs, while getting the latest and greatest in graphics, memory and processing technology."

ViewSonic, unveils ELITE professional gaming monitors armed with the latest NVIDIA Reflex and G-Sync technology. Delivering maximized latency improvements for high-velocity, graphics-intensive games, ELITE's XG251G and XG271QG monitors also boast precise, competitive frames-per-second (FPS), highest refresh rate of 360 Hz, and industry-leading 1 ms (GTG) response time.

Outgun rivals with ultra-high shot accuracy and bleeding-edge responsiveness on ViewSonic ELITE's professional gaming monitors - the ELITE XG251G is the first 24.5" ELITE monitor with the highest refresh rate of 360Hz, and 27" ELITE XG271QG unlocks buttery-smooth gameplay with 240Hz. Integrated with NVIDIA Reflex and G-Sync capabilities, both displays are paired with blistering-fast refresh rates and hyper-quick response time for seamless kills and exact click-timing action. Gamers can also gaze upon alien jungles and sweeping landscapes in true-to-life color from 99% Adobe color coverage and brightness of 400 nits.

As a world-leading gaming brand, MSI is the most trusted name in gaming and esports. We stand by our principles of breakthroughs in design, the pursuit of excellence, and technological innovation. Just this month, our Esports Gaming logo obtained trademark certification. Therefore, we hereby officially announce the two major series of MSI gaming monitors: Curved Gaming Series and Esports Gaming Series.

Curved Gaming Series focuses on designing a curved monitor that conforms to the human eye and provides the best ergonomics. It provides players with increased comfort, high-contrast, and 178-viewing VA panel, which is more suitable for watching videos and can provide an excellent gaming experience for all game types. An extraordinary visual experience for both gaming and leisure purposes makes the Curved Gaming Series the most suitable gaming monitor for the general public. If you don't have any idea about what kind of monitor you need, the Curved Gaming Series can be your starting point for gaming. The first choice on the road of victory.

Reports circulating the web point towards Xiaomi planning to take the high-refresh rate market by storm, following very interesting releases in the more "mainstream" gaming display market. Reports place the company as preparing for an announcement on November 11th for the launch of a new, 1080p high-refresh-rate monitor. Sources seem to be in disagreement over the actual refresh rate - whether 240 Hz or 360 Hz - but they are adamant that a product - or perhaps both products - will emerge.

The $145 pricing is something that Xiaomi could well pull-off; the company tends to bet on market penetration first, before scaling its production with higher ASP products. Diagonal are expected at the 24.5" range, and a 1080p panel is all but guaranteed at those refresh rates. It's currently uncertain what kind of panel technology is at stake here - some mention AUO's IPS solutions, while others claim a TN panel is mandatory to achieve these prices. There's only so much tech that can be bought into with $145. That said, this monitor could become an extremely attractive proposition for gamers on a budget, though we all know that 360 Hz (and even 240 Hz) at 1080p are somewhat hard to achieve due to CPU limitations on performance.

MSI, world's leading manufacturer for true gaming hardware, is proudly expanding the hardware possibilities for gamers. This time, we are honored to introduce our latest flat eSports Gaming Monitor: Oculux NXG253R. MSI Oculux NXG253R supports the latest NVIDIA G-SYNC technology, accompanied with extremely high refresh rate of 360Hz and fast response time of 1 ms GTG, giving gamers the smoothest gaming experience. The mystic light feature allows you to personalize your gaming rig, giving you a full grip of your game in a blink of an eye. In addition to providing the best hardware performance, MSI is committed to providing players with the best gaming experience, cooperating with NVIDIA, and introducing the latest NVIDIA Reflex Latency Analyzer function.

ASUS today announced the ROG PG259QN monitor, a 24,5" monitor featuring a blazing fast 360 Hz refresh rates paired with a 1 ms response time. Of course, driving that refresh rate means that the monitor itself only offers 1080p resolution - albeit it does so using an IPS panel. Color-accuracy isn't reported as of yet, though, so save your money, at least for now, if you're also looking at color-critical applications. But the defining purpose for this monitor is for it to be one of the best solutions for twitch gaming scenarios. According to an NVIDIA-led study, gamers with a 360 Hz monitor improved their K/D ratio by 4% compared to using a "mere" 240 Hz solution, so there's that. The addition of a G-Sync module, according to ASUS, allows the PG259QN to have the best smoothness of any gaming monitor, bar none.

The ROG PG259QN supports ASUS AURA Sync, slim bezels, tilt, pivot, height, and swivel adjustments. I/O is guaranteed by 1x DisplayPort 1.4 cable and 1x HDMI 2.0 port, alongside 1x 3.5 mm headset jack and 1x USB 3.0 pass-through port, as well. No word on pricing at time of writing.

A lot is riding for Intel on its 11th Gen Core "Tiger Lake" system-on-chip (SoC), which will launch exclusively on mobile platforms, hoping to dominate the 7 W thru 15 W ultraportable form-factors in 2020, while eventually scaling up to the 25 W thru 45 W H-segment form-factors in 2021, with a variant that is rumored to double core-counts. The chip is built on Intel's new 10 nm SuperFin silicon fabrication node that enables a double digit percentage energy efficiency growth over 10 nm, allowing Intel to significantly dial up clock speeds without impacting the power envelope. The CPU and iGPU make up the two key components of the "Tiger Lake" SoC.

The CPU component on the "Tiger Lake" processors that launch in a few weeks from now features four "Willow Cove" CPU cores. Coupled with HyperThreading, this ends up being a 4-core/8-thread setup, although much of Intel's innovation is in giving these cores significant IPC increases over the "Skylake" core powering "Comet Lake" processors, and compared to the "Sunny Cove" cores powering "Ice Lake" a minor IPC (although major net performance increase from clock speeds). The "Willow Cove" CPU core appears to be a derivative of the "Sunny Cove" core, designed to take advantage of the 10 nm SuperFin node, along with three key innovations.