VisionTek, a company whose last graphics card announcement we've posted here was on June 2015 with its Fury X and R9 300 line of graphics cards, has announced its vision for the RX 500 series graphics cards. This one seems a throwback to the RX 400 series, though, with Visiontek's "Overclocked Edition" GPUs carrying clockspeeds more in line with the prevous AMD series: 1,366 MHz for the RX 580, and 1264 MHz for the RX 570, respectively.

The VisionTek Radeon RX 580 8 GB comes with a slightly unoriginal take on the AIB partner design, sporting custom dual-fan cooler with a black-nickel aluminum shroud with 2x 8 mm and 2x 6 mm heatpipes for increased cooling capacity. The Radeon 570 4GB makes use of what is basically AMD's RX 480 reference design cooler, with a blower-style fan that ensures the GPU's heated air output exits the back of your case instead of lingering inside your system. VisionTek's Radeon RX 500 Series cards are now available through the company's website, with retailer availability to follow.

Intel's X299 HEDT platform, whose launch we recently covered as having been pushed forward by the company so as to better compete against AMD's upcoming X399 HEDT platform, has some new, juicy rumors floating about it. Namely, Bench.Life has reported that Intel's upcoming Kaby Lake-X and Skylake-X lines of high performance CPUs will also feature 12-core offerings on its Skylake-X materialization, instead of just the previously reported 6, 8, and 10-core designs.

This really looks like an Intel that's stretching its manufacturing and chip design prowess so as to prevent itself from being buried in higher-performing, higher core and thread count offerings from its rival AMD, which has turned Intel's line-up in the mainstream consumer market head-over-heels already. Latest reports peg the new series as being presented on Computex 2017 (specifically, on may 30th), with availability being expected on June 26th. Which platform are most interested in, and what do you think of this move from Intel?

TUL Corporation, a leading and innovative manufacturer of AMD graphic cards since 1997, has released a new PowerColor Red Dragon RX 550 2GB GDDR5 added in the line of RX 500 series. It is based on AMD's latest GCN 4 architecture designed for GloFo 14nm FinFET that delivers premium VR capability, increased level of performance, smooth VR, seamless support for next-gen gaming monitors and CPU-free game streaming or recording.

Furthermore, the model also supports AMD's optimized DirectX 12,Vulkan Gaming, Radeon FreeSync, and Liquid VR. It has the features of AMD's newest technology called Radeon ReLive which supports 4K, 30 & 60FPS, HEVC & H.264 providing you smooth recording on lower power systems, and Radeon Chill which is an intelligent power-saving feature that regulates dynamically frame rate based on your movement's in-game.

XFX has launched three variants of the RX 550 graphics cards, the tiny GPU that could, which AMD launched so as to bridge the enormous gap between IGP and its previous entry-line RX 460 (now RX 560) series of graphics cards. There are two low-profile versions of the RX 550, packing either 2GB or 4 GB of memory (whose amounts can be justified or not,) both with boost clocks set at 1203 MHz and 7000 MHz GDDR5 memory over a 128-bit bus. There is also a full-profile, dual slot RX 550, dubbed the Core Edition, and another Core Edition, though this one is a full-profile, single-slot solution.

All of these pack the same 1203 MHz boost clocks, so XFX is basically telling you to pick and choose the size of the graphics cards that best fits your use case, with improvements on cooling and sound profile that come with the larger, beefier cooling solutions. Display outputs stand the same among all the different cards, with 1x DVI-I Dual-Link, 1x DisplayPort, and 1x HDMI 2.0.

Microsoft, in a bid to ensure users of 7th generation Intel Core "Kaby Lake," AMD A-series "Bristol Ridge," and AMD Ryzen "Summit Ridge" processors stick to Windows 10, ensured that the three platforms don't receive software updates when running older Windows 8.1 or Windows 7 operating systems. A new user-made patch removes this draconian restriction, letting you install Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 on your new-generation CPU powered machine, and receive regular software updates through Windows Update.

The patch is open-source, so you can inspect its code, and available on GitHub. The author of the patch, Zeffy, discovered two new functions to system file wuaueng.dll after the March 2017 update for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1, labeled "IsCPUSupported(void)" and "IsDeviceServiceable(void)." This library is patched to toggle those two functions "1," telling Windows Update that the CPU is "supported" and that the platform is "serviceable," making it eligible to receive updates.

DOWNLOAD: New-gen CPU Windows Update Unlocking Patch for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 by Zeffy

ASUS is excited to launch the RX 500 Series, an all-new line-up of gaming graphics cards powered by the latest AMD Radeon RX 580 and RX 570 GPUs. These new graphics cards are capable of delivering HD+ resolution gaming with ultra-settings, bringing new levels of performance to the market at an affordable cost. The ROG Strix RX 580 and Strix RX 570 are engineered with advanced cooling and reliability features to deliver superb gaming performance, plus Aura Sync illumination for the best in PC personalization.

The new models include the high-performance ROG Strix RX 580 series with higher clock speeds, MaxContact cooling, and FanConnect II technologies along with Aura Sync illumination for building a personalized high-performance gaming PC. The ASUS Dual RX 580 Series provides "sweet spot" graphics performance that is ideal for both VR and eSports gaming. Both RX 580 series cards feature 0dB wing-blade fans that spin down completely when the cards are idling or under lighter loads for blissful silence when you're surfing the web, watching movies, and even playing less-demanding games. You also get dual HDMI 2.0 ports, which is perfect for connecting a VR headset and monitor simultaneously.

User TonybonJoby in our own forums has successfully flashed his XFX RX 480 graphics card with the BIOS from a Sapphire RX 580 Limited Edition (the one that runs at 1411 MHz Boost clocks, yes.) Having obtained the Sapphire's BIOS right here on TPU, he then flashed it onto his graphics card (which possesses a dual-BIOS setup; this is an important point which you should consider, as it gives you an extra safety net should anything go wrong) through ATIFlash. The newly-christened RX 580 thus smiles for the screenshot, with a stock clock of 1411 MHz, higher than most overclocks possible with the RX 480 cards, probably due to increased voltages on the BIOS level. The user then tested the card on The Witcher 3 and Furmark, with no problems having been reported. Just remember to back-up your BIOS with GPU-Z and make sure to peruse our forums for some details on this flashing process before you get the proverbial grease on your elbows.

Essentially, this may allow you to bypass some artificial overclocking limitation with your graphics card, probably by increased voltages on different power states of the card. You should do this at your own risk, and remember, the only guaranteed way of getting an RX 580 is... you guessed it, buying an RX 580. However, this might also give you an extra performance boost, and free performance is always good, right?

It isn't unusual for AMD or NVIDIA to launch OEM-specific graphics chips, and it would seem that AMD is doing just so with its rebranded yet improved RX 500 series. Now, it's time for the RX 540 to surface, which, like the name implies, flies right below the RX 550 in terms of specs, though you wouldn't know it without a closer look.

The chip packs the same 8 CUs as the RX 550 (512 stream processors), but its memory bandwidth (in 2 GB or 4 GB flavors) peaks at 96 GB/s (lower than the RX 550's 112 GB/s.) However, its core clocks see an interesting boost from the RX 550's 1183 MHz boost clocks to a "up to 1219 MHz" value, which should alleviate the performance impact from the stunted memory bandwidth. This is a GPU that's likely to be used by OEMs and system integrators, whether on desktop computers or in laptops, though I do have to wonder regarding this configuration. I'd expect higher clocks on the core to increase power consumption more than the offset allowed by the reduced memory clocks, but then again, I'm not an AMD engineer.

According to DigiTimes, sources among Taiwan-based PC vendors have indicated that Intel's upcoming Basin Falls platform, which includes Skylake-X and Kaby Lake-X processors on a new X299 chipset, will be unveiled at Computex 2017 (May 30th, June 3rd), in Taipei - two months earlier than expected. This move comes accompanied by an accelerated launch of the Coffee Lake microarchitecture, which still uses the 14 nm process, to August 2017 from an initial January 2018 launch. If true, this is big in a number of ways - that Intel would bring forward a product launch 4 months has some interesting implications - or at least, confirmations.

Remember that Coffee Lake is supposed to carry an increased number of cores in its mainstream designs. And we all know how Intel's line-up has almost been torn apart by Ryzen's aggressive core and thread-count, with AMD offering more cores and threads than Intel at virtually all price-points. And even if an argument is made regarding Intel's better gaming performance, that's one scenario out of many. Future proofing, professional work, multimedia, all of these assert AMD's dominance in a pure price-performance ratio. I, for one, would gladly give up some FPS in some games and accept an increased number of cores than go the other way around (especially with AMD's platform support and the number of patches that have increased game performance on Ryzen CPUs.)

AMD today released the latest version of Radeon Software Crimson ReLive Edition. The new Radeon Software Crimson ReLive 17.4.3 WHQL drivers add official support for the newly launched Radeon RX 500 series GPUs, such as the RX 580, RX 570, RX 560, and RX 550; besides support for Windows 10 Creators Update (v17.4.2 already added WDDM 2.2 support). Grab the drivers from the links below.DOWNLOAD: AMD Radeon Software Crimson ReLive 17.4.3 WHQL

The floodgates have opened on AMD's recently-launched RX 500 series, which features a more polished, revised, 3rd-gen 14 nm FinFet process. Graphics cards based on the new GPUs will, as such, feature higher clocks than their RX 400 series counterparts, even if the number of graphics processing resources remains relatively unchanged. PowerColor (with its Red Devil and Red Dragon RX 580 and RX 570 graphics cards), ASUS, Sapphire, Gigabyte, and MSI have all announced their take on the new GPUs, with distinct enterprise identity, cooling solutions and audio profiles - as well as VRM and power delivery subsystems - competing for your money.

TUL Corporation, a leading and innovative manufacturer of AMD graphic cards since 1997, has released a new PowerColor Red Devil RX 570 4GB GDDR5 in Devil series. It is powered by AMD's 4th generation GCN 4 architecture featuring asynchronous shaders. The PowerColor RX 570 is designed for more smooth game playing and video performace in the latest DirectX 12 and Vulkan, and e-Sports game titles.

PowerColor Red Devil RX 570 4 GB GDDR5 utilizes 4GB of GDDR5 memory with 2,048 stream processors, ships with 1320 MHz core clock speed, and has 1750 MHz memory clock speed which is connected via a new high speed 256-bit memory interface. It has the capability to switch from Ultra Overclocking to Silent Overclocking or vice versa for choosing the BIOS fitting your need, faster clocks or more balanced overclock with quiet operation. Therefore, on Silent BIOS, it ships with 1270 MHz. PowerColor Red Devil RX 570 4GB GDDR5 equips an 8 pin power connector with superior 6+1 multi-phases board design enhances the power efficiency and also stabilizes the voltage precisely.

TUL Corporation, a leading and innovative manufacturer of AMD graphic cards since 1997, has added a new PowerColor Red Devil Golden Sample RX 580 8GB GDDR5 and Red Devil RX 580 8GB GDDR5 in the Devil series. It is powered by AMD's 4th generation GCN 4 architecture featuring asynchronous shaders. The PowerColor RX 580 is designed for more smooth game playing and video performance in the latest DirectX 12 and Vulkan, and AAA game titles.

Both PowerColor Red Devil Golden Sample RX 580 and Red Devil RX 580 utilize 8GB of GDDR5 memory with 2304 stream processors and have 2000 MHz memory clock speed which is connected via a new high speed 256-bit memory interface. They have the capability to switch from Ultra Overclocking to Silent Overclocking or vice versa for choosing the BIOS fitting your need, faster clocks or more balanced overclock with quiet operation. On the OC BIOS, Red Devil Golden Sample RX 580 ships with 1425 MHz core clock speed and on the other hand Red Devil RX 580's core clock speed is 1380 MHz. On the Silent BIOS, Red Devil Golden Sample RX 580's core clock is 1411 MHz and Red Devil RX580 is 1355 MHz.

AMD today announced the Radeon RX 500 series graphics cards. The lineup is based on a "refined" variants of the "Polaris" family of GPUs that power the RX 400 series. These include manufacturing-level refinements on the 14 nm FinFET process, which enable higher clock speeds; lower idle and multi-monitor power draw, and a host of software features. The lineup consists of four SKUs, beginning with the Radeon RX 550 at a sub-$79 price point, followed by the Radeon RX 560, which succeeds the RX 460 at $99; the RX 570, which starts at $169, and the RX 580, which is priced at $199 for the 4 GB variant, and $229 for the 8 GB variant.

The RX 580 and RX 570 are based on the 14 nm "Lexa" Polaris20 silicon. This chip is nearly identical to the "Ellesmere" Polaris10, except for the manufacturing-level improvements that enable higher clock speeds. The RX 580 features 2,304 stream processors across 36 compute units, 144 TMUs, 32 ROPs, and 8 GB or 4 GB of GDDR5 memory across a 256-bit wide memory interface. The core is clocked at 1257 MHz, with 1340 MHz boost, and 8.00 GHz (GDDR5-effective) memory. The RX 570, on the other hand, features 2,048 stream processors across 32 compute units, 128 TMUs, 32 ROPs, and clock speeds of 1168 MHz core, 1244 MHz boost, and slightly faster 7.00 GHz (GDDR5-effective) memory. Although available in 4 GB and 8 GB variants, 8 GB appears to be the most common memory amount for the RX 580, and 4 GB for the RX 570.

TechPowerUp today released the latest version of TechPowerUp GPU-Z, the ubiquitous graphics subsystem information and diagnostics utility. Version 1.20.0 comes with a few critical updates that make come in handy to users of upcoming graphics cards. To begin with, a bug was fixed that caused video BIOS extracted from AMD Radeon RX 500 series graphics cards to be corrupted. GPU-Z now correctly extracts the BIOS. Grab it from the link below.DOWNLOAD: TechPowerUp GPU-Z 1.20.0

Marketing rebranded cards is a much greater effort than selling the achievements and improvements of a fully new product launch. And word on the street is AIB partners that have to deal with rebrands don't really enjoy doing so. Having to sell the old as new is a tough sell, especially so when virtually no extra features seem to have been implemented. AMD itself is marketing their new RX 500 series as worthy improvements to its R9 390 graphics cards, for what it's worth. And as such, AIB's have to come up with original, out-of-the-box ways of peddling what is pretty much their old stuff as if it was new.

Recently, we've seen MSI showcasing a "3rd Gen FinFet 14" production process for its RX 570 Gaming X; now, PowerColor is looking to increase the attractiveness factor on its RX 580 Red Devil and Red Devil Golden Sample graphics cards (of which we've seen a teaser here and there) by showcasing an improved, reinforced VRM design for its upcoming graphics cards, with a "Platinum Power Kit", which includes Dr.Mos and a top-of-the-line Digital Power delivery system. Its VRM, however, keeps the 6-phase design that was already present on the RX 480. Here's hoping that the additions to PwerColor's card, alongside the Red Devil's purported 8+6-pin power delivery, will allow for higher overclocks, perhaps making this card a prime candidate for more efficient, exotic cooling solutions.

Some photos, screenshots and benchmarks of what appears to be an XFX RX 580 graphics card are doing the rounds, courtesy of overclocker Lau Kin Lam, who shared them (alongside a three-hour log video) on his Facebook page. Apparently, this is a special, China-only edition of the card, which is a shame, considering the great-looking waterblock that is smiling for the camera. The fact that this card is using a reference board with one 8-pin power connector may prove relevant to its overclocking efforts (and those of other, non-reference boards that we've seen carry both the 8-pin and an extra 6-pin power connector.

Someone got lucky with an early purchase of an MSI Radeon RX 570 Gaming X graphics card, ahead of its April 18th launch, and wasted no time in posting pictures of it, before selling it off on eBay for $329. Pictures reveal the card to look not much different from the RX 470 Gaming X, given that it features the same TwinFrozr VI cooling solution. This particular card features 4 GB of GDDR5 memory. While the box doesn't reveal clock speeds, it highlights "3rd gen FinFET 14" technology, proving that AMD is building the RX 570 and RX 580 chips on a newer, more advanced 14 nm FinFET node than the one it built Polaris 10 "Ellesmere" on.

MSI, world leading in motherboard design, launches five new ATX GAMING motherboards based on the AMD AM4 X370 and B350 chipset. These new GAMING models are positioned in the Performance GAMING segment, a series all about Gaming In style. Its new flagship is the X370 GAMING PRO CARBON AC with Mystic Light RGB, to fully customize its looks, but now also available with Intel WIFI AC. The new X370 and B350 GAMING motherboards all support the upcoming AMD RYZEN Series processors and 7th Gen A-series / Athlon Processors and are ready to fully utilize performance on AM4 with the exclusive MSI A-XMP feature, maximizing DDR4 speed & stability.

TechPowerUp today released the latest version of TechPowerUp GPU-Z, the graphics subsystem information, monitoring, and diagnostic utility that no PC enthusiast can leave home without. Version 1.19.0 adds support for new GPUs and improves some features. To begin with, GPU-Z 1.19.0 supports upcoming AMD Radeon RX 500 series, new NVIDIA TITAN Xp, Quadro M600M, and M1200. It also adds the ability to extract video BIOS from GeForce GTX 1080 Ti. It also improves NVIDIA driver version detection on Windows 8, and a new vendor ID for Sapphire Technology was added. Grab it from the link below.DOWNLOAD: TechPowerUp GPU-Z 1.19.0

The change-log follows.

A leak of what appears to be AMD's presentation on the Radeon RX 500 series has brought confirmation on specifications and details of the new line-up - which includes the RX 580, RX 570, the (until now) missing RX 560, and the RX 550. It would seem AMD has now opted for a new, dual-fan reference design, instead of their usual single-fan, blower-style coolers.

The RX 580 has a base clock of 1257 MHz, and a boost clock of 1340 MHz (74 MHz greater than the RX 480's 1266 MHz). It's a Polaris chip alright, packing the same 36 Compute Units (2304 Stream Processors, and up to 8 GB of GDDR5 memory across a 256-bit interface. AMD apparently decided to compare the RX 580 to the R9 380, which allows the company to show some relevant performance improvements (which wouldn't be possible with the RX 480, now would it.)

New processor launches are closely followed by clock-speed and benchmark records, and that applies to even AMD's Ryzen 5 1600X six-core processor. Professional overclocker Der8auer succeeded in overclocking the chip to 5905.64 MHz without having to disable any cores. The feat was possible due to liquid nitrogen (LN2) cooling. The clock was made possibly by running the chip with a base-clock of 129.79 MHz, and a multiplier of 45.5X. The core-voltage is unclear. The processor was paired with an ASUS Crosshair VI Hero motherboard, and G.Skill Trident Z memory.

MSI today introduced the B350 Gaming Plus, a gaming-grade socket AM4 motherboard based on the mid-range AMD B350 chipset. Built in the ATX form-factor, the board is based on the same PCB as the B350 Tomahawk, and draws power from a combination of 24-pin ATX and 8-pin EPS power connectors, and conditions it for the AM4 SoC with a 6-phase VRM. The AM4 socket is wired to four DDR4 DIMM slots, supporting up to 64 GB of dual-channel DDR4 memory; and one PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slot, with a metal reinforcement brace. The second x16 slot is electrical x4, and wired to the B350 chipset. Two each of PCIe x1 and legacy PCI make for the rest of the expansion area.

Storage connectivity on the MSI B350 Gaming Plus includes four SATA 6 Gb/s ports, and one 32 Gb/s M.2 slot with NVMe booting support. USB connectivity includes eight USB 3.0 ports (six on the rear panel including a type-C port, and two via headers). Display outputs include one each of DVI, D-Sub, and HDMI. The onboard audio solution combines a Realtek ALC892 8-channel HD audio CODEC with ground layer isolation, and audio-grade capacitors. Gigabit Ethernet is handled by a Realtek RTL8111H controller. We expect the board to be priced around the $120 mark.

It would seem business is not as usual for GLOBALFOUNDRIES, which started as the spin-off from AMD's manufacturing arm way back on March 2, 2009. Blaming the capricious chip market's fluctuations, the company is looking to divest longtime employees in all three of its U.S. semiconductor manufacturing plants, including Essex Junction, which it acquired from IBM in 2015 by... receiving a $1.5 billion payment from the company. And as part of the deal, GLOBALFOUNDRIES agreed to be IBM's exclusive provider of semiconductor chips through 2025.

"We go through these ebbs and flows," Spokesman Jim Keller said Wednesday. "Right now we're at a point where some customers delayed their orders. We're in a period where we don't have as much business." The "voluntary separation" program is part of a larger cost cutting initiative that will look for other efficiency savings as well, though "layoffs are also a possibility". Keller would not say how many of GLOBALFOUNDRIES' 2,800 employees at Essex Junction are eligible for the early retirement program. Most of the workers eligible are in "support roles," such as administrative, sales or finance.

AMD is on a roll with product launches lately, having just pushed out what is probably the most significant update in mainstream CPUs in years: the Ryzen 5 line of desktop processors. You can look over TPU's review of the 1500X and 1600X here and here. AMD is looking towards powering another central part of your desktop processor, though, with the impending launch of the RX 500 line of GPUs.

Confirmed as rebrands of previous-generation Polaris 10, the new RX 500 series will carry the new Polaris 20 XTX and Polaris 20 XL chips, which are expected to feature higher clocks (in the range of 1300-1400 MHz) from AIBs, before your own overclocking. PowerColor has officially confirmed the launch date as April 18th through social media with a tease for their new Red Devil graphics card. Now if only we could see Vega on this new horizon...