ASUS today launched the Republic of Gamers (ROG) Ryujin line of all-in-one liquid CPU coolers for AMD Ryzen Threadripper processors. Positioned above the ROG Ryuo series, which opened to pre-orders earlier this month, the Ryujin was first showcased at the 2018 Computex. These coolers are characterized by a somewhat square pump-block design that resembles a that of a chipset heatsink; but is embedded with a 1.77-inch color OLED display that shows an animated ROG logo by default, but can be reprogrammed to show just about anything, such as clan logos, live CPU temperature/load monitoring, etc. Another innovation that sets the Ryujin pump-block apart from every other Asetek cooler out there, is a tiny lateral-blower fan embedded into the block, which ASUS claims can bring down CPU VRM and M.2 SSD temperatures by up to 20°C.

The Ryujin series comes in two variants based on radiator size, the Ryujin 240 (120 mm x 240 mm radiator), and Ryujin 360 (120 mm x 360 mm radiator). These are 27 mm-thick aluminium radiators, which are ventilated by matte-black Noctua IndustrialPPC 120 mm PWM fans that are part of the package. These fans each spin between 450 to 2,000 RPM, pushing up to 121.8 CFM of air, with noise output up to 31 dBA. As we mentioned earlier, the product pages for both models mentions that the coolers only support AMD socket TR4, with full coverage for the AMD Ryzen Threadripper integrated heatspreader. This could help ASUS command a slightly high price, given that it's catering only to the market that can afford HEDT processors.

ASUS has revealed their entire lineup, interpreting NVIDIA's RTX 2070 silicon (and its TU106 die, a first - remember that **70-class cards previously featured cut-down versions of the full NVIDIA chip). There aren't many surprised here - ASUS has already spent enough R&D in previous years so as to only need to minimally iterate on their designs for each new generation.

The ROG Strix graphics cards sit at the top of the heap, featuring the company's DirectCU III cooling tech (triple fan) in a 2.5-slot design. RGB lighting and dual BIOS support are par of the course by now, as are some of the other features - backplate and metal brace included. Connectivity-wise there are 2x HDMI 2.0b ports, 2x DisplayPort 1.4 outputs, and 1x USB Type-C port for VirtuaLink. The graphics card draws power from the 6-pin and 8-pin PCIe power connectors and will be available in three versions (Gaming OC, Gaming Advanced, and Gaming) according to factory overclocks.

ASUS ROG launched the ROG Thor 1200W Platinum and ROG Thor 850W Platinum power supply units, welcoming a new product category to the ROG family. The ROG Thor series is designed for enthusiasts who need a high-end PSU with advanced cooling, premium components, and customisable lightning.

In a PSU, component heatsinks are vital when optimizing thermal efficiency. The ROG Thor 1200W Platinum features custom ROG heatsinks that boast 2X more surface area than standard designs, and the ROG Thor 850W is similarly equipped. Having larger heatsinks and other premium components means cooler operation under load, an extended lifespan for key components, and silent operation long after standard designs spin up their fans.

NVIDIA could launch successors to its GeForce GTX 1060 series and GTX 1050 series only by 2019, according to a statement by an ASUS representative, speaking with PC Watch. This could mean that the high-end RTX 2080 Ti, RTX 2080, and RTX 2070, could be the only new SKUs for Holiday 2018 from NVIDIA, alongside cut-rate GeForce GTX 10-series SKUs. This could be a combination of swelling inventories of 10-series GPUs, and insufficient volumes of mid-range RTX 20-series chips, should NVIDIA even decide to extend real-time ray-tracing to mid-range graphics cards.

The way NVIDIA designed the RTX 2070 out of the physically smaller TU106 chip instead of TU104 leads us to believe that NVIDIA could carve out the GTX 1060-series successor based on this chip, since the RTX 2070 maxes it out, and NVIDIA needs to do something with imperfect chips. An even smaller chip (probably half-a-TU104?) could power the GTX 1050-series successor.

Today, ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG), announced a partnership with Activision, for the upcoming release of Call of Duty : Black Ops 4 on PC. From September 10th to October 12th, ROG will be the first digital PC game bundling provider of Call of Duty : Back Ops 4. Consumers can gain access to the game by purchasing an eligible ROG product during the promotion period. With a strong dedication to PC gamers, the Call of Duty team and ROG have worked closely on a unique collaboration with their AURA Sync technology across multiple product lines.

"We are beyond thrilled to be partnering with ASUS Republic of Gamers in an unprecedented way for Black Ops 4," said Ander Nickell, Director of Partnerships at Activision. "Our development teams are hard at work making this the best PC Call of Duty game yet. ASUS ROG shares that commitment to the community, so it was a natural fit to bring our brands together to deliver something special to fans."

ASUS surprised many when they showed off their closed loop liquid CPU coolers at Computex this year, in the form of the Ryuo and the even higher end Ryujin series. Today we see that the Ryuo 120 and Ryuo 240 have made their way on to pre-order pages at popular UK retailers including Overclockers UK. The Ryuo series is based off an Asetek AIO design, presumably Generation 6 as used by other Asetek clients including CORSAIR and EVGA, with either a 120 or 240 mm radiator. ASUS's attempt at differentiating these is by the addition of a 1.77" "LiveDash" full color OLED screen on the top of the CPU cooler block/pump unit, with a USB connector that will no doubt help configure the display and other cooler settings via a software driver. The OLED screen can thus be used to display system stats, cooler settings or, if you wish, even a GIF or a custom static image.

The other differentiation comes in the form of "ROG-designed fans" that claim efficient, instantaneous cooling. The ROG Ryuo 120 and Ryuo 240 are up for pre-order at £129.95 and £149.95 respectively, with the prices including UK VAT. For comparison, the CORSAIR H100i PRO and the NZXT Kraken X52 240 mm coolers currently cost £114.95 and £124.99 respectively from the same store. Both the ROG Ryuo series coolers support a wide variety of CPU sockets, including AM4, sTR4, LGA 115x, LGA 1366, LGA 2011(-3) and LGA 2066. No release date, nor pricing in other regions, is available at this point.

Wireless gaming mice are back in vogue as manufacturers are powering them with lightweight lithium-ion rechargeable batteries or induction current; and as gamers are beginning to care less about the added input-lag of wireless peripherals. To compete with the likes of the Logitech G Pro, which launched to generally positive reviews, ASUS launched a wireless variant of its Republic of Gamers (ROG) Gladius II. The new ROG Gladius II Wireless retains the shape, button-layout, and grip of the original Gladius II, but is wireless, lacks the bottom RGB LED diffuser, and weighs 130 g, just 20 g more than its wired sibling. It also packs a more powerful sensor.

The ROG Gladius II Wireless uses a combination of 2.40 GHz RF and low-latency Bluetooth BLE to achieve input latencies as low as 1 ms. The mouse packs a 16,000 dpi optical sensor (compared to the wired original's 12,000 dpi). At any point, if you're not sure about playing wireless, you can switch to the wired mode on the fly, by simply plugging in the included USB cable to its micro USB connector located up front. The mouse is remapped as a new device by Windows, and USB is used for both input and recharging the battery. We expect the ROG Gladius II Wireless to be competitively priced to the Logitech G Pro Wireless (around $140).

ENERMAX, a leading designer and manufacturer of high-performance power supply, has collaborated with ASUS to launch RevoBron TGA, a rock-solid gaming power supply tested and certified by ASUS TUF Gaming Alliance to ensure the perfect compatibility with the other gaming components of the league. The semi-modular gaming PSU lineup is equipped with several advanced and unique elements that are higher than the industry standards, which makes the unit the best-in-class power supply for the TUF Gaming PCs. RevoBron TGA can perfectly support mainstream gaming rigs, multimedia systems, or home theater PCs.

Surpassing 80PLUS Bronze efficiency level, RevoBron TGA has several advanced features, including the DC-to-DC circuit, 100% 105°C Japanese electrolytic capacitors, and dual +12V rails, which make the PSU a stable and durable gaming power solution. Moreover, RevoBron TGA also comes with the patented self-cleaning DFR (Dust Free Rotation) fan; the concept of the DFRTM is to make the PSU fan perform a self-cleaning spin for 10 seconds upon startup to blow away the accumulated dust.

ASUS today announced the Republic of Gamers (ROG) Strix, ASUS Dual, and ASUS Turbo graphics cards based on the new NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti and RTX 2080 GPUs, which feature support for high-speed GDDR6 memory and VirtualLink for quick, single-cable connections for next-generation VR headsets.

The new NVIDIA GeForce RTX GPUs have reinvented graphics and set a new bar for performance. Powered by the new NVIDIA Turing GPU architecture and the revolutionary NVIDIA RTX platform, the new graphics cards bring together real-time ray tracing, artificial intelligence, and programmable shading. This is not only a whole new way to experience games-this is the ultimate PC gaming experience.

The new GPUs were unveiled at a special NVIDIA two-day event called the "GeForce Gaming Celebration" which kicked off tonight at the Palladium in Cologne, Germany ahead of Gamescom 2018.

It's not just GIGABYTE, even ASUS has several of its graphics cards leaked to the web. We see pictures of at least three products by the company, an ROG Strix-branded RTX 2080, a cheaper RTX 1080 Dual, and a rather basic-looking RTX 2080 Ti. The new-generation DirectCU III cooler introduced with the ROG Strix RTX 2080 looks more menacing than ever. The 2.5-slot cooler appears to feature two large aluminium fin-stacks, ventilated by three 100 mm spinners, with up to 5 copper heat pipes making direct contact with the GPU at the base. The RTX 2080 Dual features a much simpler fin-stack cooler, ventilated by just two 90 mm spinners. The RTX 2080 Ti Turbo features a lateral-blower cooler, and may be priced on par with NVIDIA's reference design.

Cooler Master, a global leader in manufacturing CPU coolers, computer components and peripherals, introduces its first 360mm all-in-one (AIO) liquid CPU cooler. The MasterLiquid ML360R features addressable RGB LEDs on both the fans and water block and is certified compatible with ASUS, MSI and ASRock motherboards.

The MasterLiquid ML360R RGB features Cooler Master's newly designed pump with 12 addressable RGB LEDs on the water block and eight addressable RGB LEDs on each fan, capable of 16.7million color options. Users can easily customize each LED, individually, through the addressable RGB software from ASUS, MSI and ASRock motherboards, or with Cooler Master's MasterPlus+ software for complete ambient control.

ASUS today introduced the VP248QGL-P, a cost-effective 24-inch gaming-grade monitor with AMD FreeSync technology support. If you can get past the TN-film panel with 1080p resolution, you'll also find that it features response times as low as 1 ms, and up to 75 Hz refresh-rates. Viewing angles are 170°/160° (H/V). Among its feature-set is ASUS Splendid display management software, blue light filtering, and ASUS GamePlus, which is a collection of game genre-specific display presets. Display inputs include one each of DisplayPort 1.2a, HDMI 1.4a, and D-Sub. Stereo speakers and 3.5 mm-jack make for the rest of it. Expect a sub-$175 price.

EK Water Blocks, the premium computer liquid cooling gear manufacturer is expanding the AM4 socket based monoblock portfolio by making an acetal version of the monoblock for ASUS ROG Crosshair VI Hero, Crosshair VI Extreme and Crosshair VII Hero motherboards. The EK-FB ASUS C6H RGB Monoblock - Acetal has an integrated 12V 4-pin RGB LED strip which makes it compatible with ASUS Aura Sync, thus offering a full lighting customization experience!

This is a complete all-in-one (CPU and motherboard) liquid cooling solution for the previous gen AMD X370 Chipset AM4 socket based ASUS ROG Crosshair VI Hero and new AMD X470 Chipset AM4 socket based ASUS ROG Crosshair VII Hero gaming motherboards that support the latest generation of AMD Ryzen and 7th Generation A-series/Athlon processors.

ASUS announced that it is releasing motherboard BIOS updates that add 9th generation Core "Whiskey Lake" processor compatibility for almost its entire Intel 300-series chipset motherboard family. This includes models based on H310, B360, Q370, and H370 chipsets, and not just the top Z370. Intel is expected to debut its 9th generation Core processor family with three SKUs later this year: the Core i9-9900K, the Core i7-9700K, and the Core i5-9600K. The tables below list motherboard models alongside the minimum BIOS version you'll need for "Whiskey Lake" compatibility. You'll find your BIOS in the "support" tab of the product page of your motherboard on ASUS website.

To cope better with AMD 2nd generation Ryzen Threadripper processors, which come with up to four active dies on the MCM (multi-chip module), ASUS is giving away free Cooling Kits to owners of its socket TR4 motherboards, such as the ROG Zenith Extreme, ROG Strix X399-E Gaming, and Prime X399-A. The kits include a fan bracket that lets you strap a 40 mm fan onto your CPU VRM heatsink, and a so-called "SoC heatsink," designed to cool the SoC power phase MOSFETs (which now have to cope with the load of four SoC dies). The kit for the Zenith Extreme also includes a 10 mm-thick 40 mm fan, which plugs into one of your 4-pin PWM headers. The kit will neither be included with current or upcoming inventories of unsold X399 motherboards by ASUS. Customers who need it will have to contact their local ASUS office, which will verify the purchase of their ASUS X399 motherboard, and ship their kit for free.

If you've been dreaming of an external HDD that could sync its RGB goodness with that of your PC case for the ultimate in bling synchronicity, ASUS has you covered. Its new FX external HDD lineup does just that - deliver a Strix-like design with a very angular base, with detailed accents etched onto the brushed aluminum enclosure. And did I mention there is full AURA Sync support?

The FX external HDDs boast of secure 256-bit AES encryption and data compression, and has a built-in back-up software solution. Connection (both for data transfer and AURA Sync) is done via a USB 3.1 Gen1 x 1 connector via the ASM1153E controller. The FX external HDDs measure 128 x 80 x 16.3 mm and only weigh 145 grams in 1TB and 2TB capacity, while the EHD-A2T model provides 2TB of storage.

ASUS today announced that the ROG Strix, Prime and TUF Gaming series motherboards built on the AMD B450 chipset and supporting the latest AMD Ryzen processors are now available. AMD's Ryzen platform offers an incredible desktop compute experience with multithreaded horsepower plus accessible overclocking and gaming prowess. Earlier this year AMD launched the second-generation Ryzen family with the updated X470 chipset designed to further enhance the performance of higher-end gaming and content creation rigs. Now, AMD is launching the B450 chipset for a new generation of affordable motherboards.

The B450 is streamlined for straightforward builds and smaller form factors, and ASUS has a complete collection available now. ROG Strix B450-I and B450-F Gaming elevate the platform with signature features for serious gamers, TUF B450-Plus and B450M-Plus Gaming focus on essentials and durability, and Prime B450-Plus, B450M-A and B450M-K put a more professional face on the platform.

ASUS is ready with a staggering 19 motherboard models based on Intel's upcoming Z390 Express chipset. This chipset, as you'd recall, is a re-branding of the Z370 Express with a stronger reference CPU VRM design, to cope with overclocking Intel's upcoming 8-core "Whiskey Lake" processors better. This time around, ASUS lineup is more exhaustive than its Z370-based lineup, with its top-tier ROG Maximus XI series including nearly all extensions including the Maximus XI Hero (and its WiFi sub-variant), Maximus XI Code, Maximus XI Apex, Maximus XI Formula, and Maximus XI Extreme (no Gene, though). The upper-mid tier ROG Strix series includes three ATX models: Strix-E, Strix-F, Strix-H, and the mini-ITX Strix-I, but again curiously, no micro-ATX Strix-G.

The company's mainline Prime series is relegated to just three models: Prime Z390-A, Prime Z390M-Plus, and Prime Z390-P. The cheap entry-level TUF Gaming lineup swelled to five modes: TUF Z390M-Pro Gaming, TUF Z390M-Pro Gaming WiFi, TUF Z390-Plus Gaming, TUF Z390-Plus Gaming WiFi, and TUF Z390-Pro Gaming. There's also the Z390 Dragon, designed for gaming i-cafes. Intel is reportedly launching its first 9th generation Core "Whiskey Lake" processors as early as 1st August, 2018.

The European Commission today fined, in four separate decisions, consumer electronics manufacturers Asus, Denon & Marantz, Philips and Pioneer for imposing fixed or minimum resale prices on their online retailers in breach of EU competition rules.

The fines totalling over €111 million were in all four cases reduced due to the companies' cooperation with the Commission.

ASUS, the leading IT Company in server systems, server motherboards, workstations and workstation motherboards today announced new workstation products built upon the latest Intel Mehlow platform, including the WS C246 PRO and WS C246M PRO motherboards, and the E500 G5 and E500 G5 SFF workstations. The Intel Mehlow platform offers up to a 50% performance improvement on multi-threaded workloads, enhancing overall system performance compared to the previous platform. The Intel Mehlow platform also includes support for the latest Intel Xeon E processors (Coffee Lake-S), which are designed to provide small and medium-sized businesses high performance for professional workloads, combined with leading reliability and security. With the new Intel Mehlow platform, Intel Xeon E processors provide better support for features such as 4K UHD video rendering, suitable for content creators.

In addition to rolling out TUF Gaming Alliance variants of the MA410M and MA620P coolers, Cooler Master unveiled the MasterBox MB500 TUF Gaming case. A variant of the original MB500 launched in April, the case incorporates several design elements of ASUS' new brand. To begin with, the upper half of the front panel, and the left side panel features the urban camo pattern characteristic of TUF Gaming. The right side panel is printed with a large TUF emblem, along with a few design lines from the original. Although the fans support RGB multi-color lighting, out of the box, they run at a pale military green color (we wonder why it isn't yellow). The rest of its feature-set is identical to the original. The company didn't reveal pricing, but mentioned that the case could go on sale on the 26th of July.

Cooler Master rolled out TUF Gaming Alliance variants of two of its recently launched MasterAir series CPU coolers, the MA410M and MA620P, suffixed with "TUF Edition." The two are practically identical to the originals, but have a few design bits from ASUS' The Ultimate Force (TUF) color scheme. The MA410M TUF Edition features the urban camo insert along its top-plate, and yellow accents. The MA620P TUF Edition features a matte black top-plate with black heat-pipe caps; and a more restrained TUF urban camo print, with yellow accents. Both coolers feature variants of the MF120 fans that have yellow silicone dampeners along the mount holes of the frame; and a TUF Gaming Alliance logo on the impeller's hub. The company didn't reveal pricing.

ASUS introduced a pair of new workstation motherboards based on the new C246 chipset, designed for Xeon E-2100 series socket LGA1151 processors. These include the WS C246 Pro (ATX form-factor) and WS C246 M Pro (micro-ATX). Both boards also support 8th generation Core, Pentium, and Celeron "Coffee Lake" processors. The cornerstone of both boards is a zero-bling design that focuses on features relevant to workstations. The WS C246 Pro draws power from a combination of 24-pin ATX, 8-pin EPS, and an optional 6-pin PCIe power. An 8-phase VRM conditions power for the CPU, which is wired to four DDR4 DIMM slots supporting up to 64 GB of dual-channel DDR4 memory with ECC support. Expansion slots include two reinforced PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slots (x8/x8 with both populated), two additional x16 slots that are electrical gen 3.0 x4 and wired to the PCH; and two gen 3.0 x1 slots.

Storage connectivity on the WS C246 Pro includes eight SATA 6 Gbps, an two M.2 slots with PCIe gen 3.0 x4 wiring, each. USB connectivity includes two USB 3.1 gen 2 (one each type-A and type-C), and four USB 3.0 ports on the rear panel. Two USB 3.0 ports are put out as internal headers. There's also an internal type-A USB 3.0 port meant for USB TPMs and security keys. Display outputs include one each of D-Sub, DVI, HDMI, and DisplayPort. There are two 1 GbE interfaces, both driven by Intel-made controllers. 8-channel HD audio makes for the rest of it.

A variety of motherboards based on Intel Z370 Express chipset began receiving the first BIOS updates that add compatibility with upcoming Intel 8-core processors. The updates are flagged "beta" by the manufacturers. Given that only Z370 (and not other 300-series chipset models) have such updates, it's possible that Intel could restrict the first socket LGA1151 8-core processor SKUs (which could be unlocked "K" variants with higher TDP) to Z370 chipset, as the chipset has stronger VRM requirements than other chipset models that don't support CPU overclocking.

To support the upcoming processors, the BIOS needs to include the latest 06EC microcode revision. Various motherboard manufacturers, such as ASUS, ASRock, and MSI, have released beta BIOS updates with this microcode, as confirmed in AMI Aptio inspection tool screenshots. The 06EC microcode, detailed in this slide-deck from Intel, hardens the machine against newer variants of the "Spectre" vulnerability. Older revisions of this document also mentioned support for Intel Core "9000 series" processors, before Intel scampered to redact it.

The same exact graphics cards, made by the same exact manufacturer, in the same exact factory, with the only difference being the "AREZ Strix" branding, priced a whopping USD $160 apart - that's the kind of mess NVIDIA GPP (GeForce Partners Program) left in its wake. Newegg lists the ASUS ROG Strix Radeon RX Vega 64 (STRIX-RXVEGA64-O8G-GAMING) graphics card at USD $589.99. This card was made before ASUS decided to re-brand its AMD Radeon graphics cards under the AREZ Strix brand, necessitated by NVIDIA GPP. The post-rebrand AREZ Strix Radeon RX Vega 64 (AREZ RXVEGA64-O8G-GAMING), is priced at $749.99 on the same site, a whopping $160 premium for what is basically a sticker. Just to make sure this isn't a discrepancy between the various sellers from Newegg's marketplace, we also post screenshots that confirm both listings are "sold and shipped by Newegg" (and not a marketplace partner).

We noticed this anomaly on Newegg last week (the week of 9th July), and initially dismissed it for a listing error that would be resolved by the retailer in a couple of days. The week passed, and the listings didn't change. NVIDIA triggered a strong backlash for the language of its GeForce Partners Program (GPP), which implicitly forced its AIC (add-in card) partners to keep their well-established gaming hardware brands (eg: ROG, Aorus, MSI Gaming, etc.,) exclusive to GeForce GTX graphics cards, forcing them to re-brand their AMD Radeon products (and stripping them of those well-established brands, thereby putting AMD at a disadvantage). NVIDIA eventually cancelled GPP, but not before the likes of ASUS and MSI committed changes to their product stacks. AREZ is the Frankenstein's monster that was too late to abort, which now threatens to rip off uninformed consumers.