Semiconductor manufacturing is a significant investment that requires long lead times and constant improvement. According to the latest DigiTimes report, the pricing of a 3 nm wafer is expected to reach $20,000, which is a 25% increase in price over a 5 nm wafer. For 7 nm, TSMC managed to produce it for "just" $10,000; for 5 nm, it costs the company to make it for the $16,000 mark. And finally, the latest and greatest technology will get an even higher price point at $20,000, a new record in wafer pricing. Since TSMC has a proven track record of delivering constant innovation, clients are expected to remain on the latest tech purchasing spree.

Companies like Apple, AMD, and NVIDIA are known for securing orders for the latest semiconductor manufacturing node capacities. With a 25% increase in wafer pricing, we can expect the next-generation hardware to be even more expensive. Chip manufacturing price is a significant price-determining factor for many products, so the 3 nm edition of CPUs, GPUs, etc., will get the highest difference.

AMD late Tuesday released the AMD Software Adrenalin 22.11.1 WHQL drivers. These are essentially identical to the Adrenalin 22.11.1 beta drivers the company released on November 16, but with the added WHQL certification. Compared to the previous 22.10.3 beta drivers, these add optimization for Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0, and Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales. It also comes with the same set of fixed and discovered issues as the 22.11.1 beta; including missing prediction lines in World of Warships on Radeon RX 6000 series GPUs; an beep heard in the background when you hold down shift + backspace key with Radeon Anti-Lag enabled; visual corruption in OpenGL applications with MSAA enabled; higher than expected idle memory clocks on multi-monitor setups; and missing objects in Edificius.

DOWNLOAD: AMD Software Adrenalin 22.11.1 WHQL

ASUS today announced new versions of the TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 3060 Ti and the Dual GeForce RTX 3060 Ti graphics cards that now feature GDDR6X memory for greater performance. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti has been an excellent sweet spot between price and performance for the past generation of graphics cards, and it has now been improved. The GDDR6X memory further boosts the capabilities of the 3060 Ti and expands the options available to the discerning PC DIY builder. ASUS is also updating the GeForce RTX 3060 with a new model featuring 8 GB of GDDR6 VRAM to add even more possibilities for upgrading and assembling.

The ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 3060 Ti 8 GB GDDR6X features the same triple Axial Tech fan design, solid aluminium backplate, and 2.7-slot form factor as its predecessor, as well as support for NVIDIA G-SYNC and GPU Tweak III. Supplementing that rock-solid foundation is the introduction of GDDR6X ultra-high-speed and error-correcting VRAM, setting up the GPU to deliver more frames per second than the previous iteration. A factory-overclocked version is also available, tuned in-house to make sure users get the absolute best performance right out of the box.

The Razer Blade 14, the world's most powerful 14" gaming laptop, is now available in a fresh new Mercury edition finish. This colorway combines the Mercury anodized aluminium chassis with a matte black keyboard for a truly striking aesthetic package. This new colorway is exclusive to two Blade 14 GPU configurations: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti. The addition of Mercury to the Blade 14 line marks the first time any Razer Blade is available in three different colorways simultaneously (Mercury, Quartz, and Black).

Along with the colorway release, a software update is now available for 2022 models of the Blade 14, upgrading the two Type-C USB-3.2 Gen 2 ports to USB4 and bringing support for Microsoft Pluton. USB4 expands peripheral compatibility, increasing device connectivity options and enabling multi-monitor deployments, support for Thunderbolt peripherals including Razer's Thunderbolt dock and Core X external graphics enclosures, and more. Microsoft Pluton's chip-to-cloud security technology protects users with an array of hardware-based security capabilities and services. New and existing 2022 Blade 14 owners should contact Razer Support to download this update.

Supermicro, Inc., a Total IT Solution Provider for Cloud, AI/ML, Storage, and 5G/Edge, at the 2022 Super Computing Conference is unveiling the most extensive portfolio of servers and storage systems in the industry based on the upcoming 4th Gen Intel Xeon Scalable processor, formerly codenamed Sapphire Rapids. Supermicro continues to use its Building Block Solutions approach to deliver state-of-the-art and secure systems for the most demanding AI, Cloud, and 5G Edge requirements. The systems support high-performance CPUs and DDR5 memory with up to 2X the performance and capacities up to 512 GB DIMMs and PCIe 5.0, which doubles I/O bandwidth. Intel Xeon CPU Max Series CPUs (formerly codenamed Sapphire Rapids HBM High Bandwidth Memory (HBM)) is also available on a range of Supermicro X13 systems. In addition, support for high ambient temperature environments at up to 40° C (104° F), with servers designed for air and liquid cooling for optimal efficiency, are rack-scale optimized with open industry standard designs and improved security and manageability.

"Supermicro is once again at the forefront of delivering the broadest portfolio of systems based on the latest technology from Intel," stated Charles Liang, president and CEO of Supermicro. "Our Total IT Solutions strategy enables us to deliver a complete solution to our customers, which includes hardware, software, rack-scale testing, and liquid cooling. Our innovative platform design and architecture bring the best from the 4th Gen Intel Xeon Scalable processors, delivering maximum performance, configurability, and power savings to tackle the growing demand for performance and energy efficiency. The systems are rack-scale optimized with Supermicro's significant growth of rack-scale manufacturing of up to 3X rack capacity."

The 60th edition of the TOP500 reveals that the Frontier system is still the only true exascale machine on the list.

With an HPL score of 1.102 EFlop/s, the Frontier machine at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) did not improve upon the score it reached on the June 2022 list. That said, Frontier's near-tripling of the HPL score received by second-place winner is still a major victory for computer science. On top of that, Frontier demonstrated a score of 7.94 EFlop/s on the HPL-MxP benchmark, which measures performance for mixed-precision calculation. Frontier is based on the HPE Cray EX235a architecture and it relies on AMD EPYC 64C 2 GHz processor. The system has 8,730,112 cores and a power efficiency rating of 52.23 gigaflops/watt. It also relies on gigabit ethernet for data transfer.

MediaTek today launched the Pentonic 1000, its latest flagship smart TV system-on-chip (SoC) designed for 4K 120 Hz displays. Pentonic 1000 integrates Wi-Fi 6/6E support, MEMC for smoother video, a powerful AI processor, Dolby Vision IQ with Precision Detail, and 8-screen Intelligent View so users can watch or preview multiple streams of content at once. The chipset also supports the most advanced video codecs and global TV broadcast standards in a single platform.

The MediaTek Pentonic 1000 combines a powerful multi-core CPU, dual-core GPU, dedicated AI processing unit (APU) and video decoding engines into a single chip. The chipset provides resolution support up to 4K at 120 Hz and is capable of VRR up to 4K at 144 Hz for gaming applications. In addition to supporting super-fast frame rates for smoother gaming, it provides a lag-free experience with Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM).

ASUS, a leading provider of server systems, server motherboards and workstations, today announced new best-in-class server solutions powered by the latest AMD EPYC 9004 Series processors. ASUS also launched superior liquid-cooling solutions that dramatically improve the data-center power-usage effectiveness (PUE).

The breakthrough thermal design in this new generation delivers superior power and thermal capabilities to support class-leading features, including up to 400-watt CPUs, up to 350-watt GPUs, and 400 Gbps networking. All ASUS liquid-cooling solutions will be demonstrated in the ASUS booth (number 3816) at SC22 from November 14-17, 2022, at Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas, Texas.

In advance of Supercomputing '22 in Dallas, Intel Corporation has introduced the Intel Max Series product family with two leading-edge products for high performance computing (HPC) and artificial intelligence (AI): Intel Xeon CPU Max Series (code-named Sapphire Rapids HBM) and Intel Data Center GPU Max Series (code-named Ponte Vecchio). The new products will power the upcoming Aurora supercomputer at Argonne National Laboratory, with updates on its deployment shared today.

The Xeon Max CPU is the first and only x86-based processor with high bandwidth memory, accelerating many HPC workloads without the need for code changes. The Max Series GPU is Intel's highest density processor, packing over 100 billion transistors into a 47-tile package with up to 128 gigabytes (GB) of high bandwidth memory. The oneAPI open software ecosystem provides a single programming environment for both new processors. Intel's 2023 oneAPI and AI tools will deliver capabilities to enable the Intel Max Series products' advanced features.

GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co. Ltd, a leading manufacturer of premium gaming hardware, the GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 4080 16 GB series graphics cards powered by NVIDIA Ada Lovelace architecture are going to be available for purchase on Nov 16. The new GeForce RTX 40 series GPUs have a quantum leap in performance, allowing gamers and content creators to enjoy ultra-high FPS gaming and improve the workflow efficiency. GIGABYTE provides both WATERFORCE and WINDFORCE thermal solutions for users, including AORUS XTREME water-cooled graphics cards, AORUS MASTER, GAMING OC, AERO OC, and EAGLE OC air-cooled graphics cards, which all meet the diverse requirements and needs.

AORUS WATERFORCE WB is the top choice for those who wish to build open-loop liquid cooling systems. GIGABYTE specializes in thermal cooling solutions, providing optimal channel spacing between the micro fins for enhanced heat transfer from the GPU via stable water flows. The sunk-designed copper micro fins shorten the heat conduction path from the GPU, so that the heat can be transferred to the water channel area quickly. Moreover, with the patented "Leak detection" technology, the built-in leak detection circuit covers the entire fitting and water block and can promptly alert users by flashing lights at the first sign of a leak, so users can deal with the leakage early and prevent any further damage to the system. Both the front cover and the backplate of the graphics card support RGB lighting, allowing gamers to customize their own style through GIGABYTE CONTROL CENTER (GCC) software.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE: HPE) today announced it is making supercomputing accessible for more enterprises to harness insights, solve problems and innovate faster by delivering its world-leading, energy-efficient supercomputers in a smaller form factor and at a lower price point.

The expanded portfolio includes new HPE Cray EX and HPE Cray XD supercomputers, which are based on HPE's exascale innovation that delivers end-to-end, purpose-built technologies in compute, accelerated compute, interconnect, storage, software, and flexible power and cooling options. The supercomputers provide significant performance and AI-at-scale capabilities to tackle demanding, data-intensive workloads, speed up AI and machine learning initiatives, and accelerate innovation to deliver products and services to market faster.

MediaTek today launched the Dimensity 9200, its latest 5G chipset powering the next era of flagship smartphones. Boasting extreme performance and intelligent power efficiency, the new SoC brings immersive all-day gaming experiences, ultra-sharp image capturing and support for both mmWave 5G and sub-6 GHz connectivity to consumers around the globe.

"MediaTek's Dimensity 9200 combines ultimate performance with significant power savings, extending battery life and keeping smartphones cool," said JC Hsu, Corporate Vice President and General Manager of MediaTek's wireless communications business unit at MediaTek. "With notably brighter image capturing and improved gaming speeds, along with the latest display enhancements, the Dimensity 9200 will bring new possibilities for next-gen smartphones that come in a variety of stylish and foldable form factors."

In what can only be called an unusual move, several Chinese fabless chip makers—such as Alibaba and Biren Technology—who manufacturers at TSMC, are looking at running their chips slower. The reason for this is that they're trying to circumvent the US sanctions against Chinese chip makers. It should be noted that these are chips that have already taped out and gone into sample production, such as Biren's BR100 GPU.As reported earlier today, Alibaba even had one of its chips delisted from the official SPEC ranking, due to being unavailable and it's possible that it's one of the chips that's affected by the US sanctions.

Considering that the Chinese chip makers are dependent on the same cutting edge nodes at TSMC as the likes of Nvidia, AMD, Qualcomm etc. it would potentially lead to more capacity for these companies at TSMC. According to the report by the Financial Times, Biren has had to stop shipments of its GPUs, as the company is going to have to prove that its chips don't violate the US export control restrictions. Apparently the rules to work out if a chip falls under the US sanctions or not are anything but clear. One metric is apparently based on the bidirectional transfer rate, which is capped at below 600 GB/s between chips, but the tricky part is that this metric can be calculated in several different ways. As such, Biren has dropped the transfer rate from 640 to 576 GB/s according to the Financial Times. The sanctions are likely to cause longer term concerns for TSMC as well, as the company is likely to lose several big customers for its cutting edge nodes, at least for the time being.

Based on details from a PCWorld livestream following AMD's launch of the Radeon RX 7000-series, it was revealed that AMD has designed the Navi 31 GPU to be able to scale as high as 3 GHz. In other words, it appears that AMD has power limited its cards, at least for the SKUs that the company has announced so far. This could be for many reasons, but most likely to try to find a balance between power and performance. The details of the 3 GHz scaling did however not come from AMD directly, but rather from Jarred Walton over at Tom's Hardware. That said, the information was apparently shared with the media by AMD at the event.

In the livestream, it was also confirmed that partner cards will be able to overclock, so expect to see some factory overclocked cards, with higher power draw. This could be why, in part, that ASUS went with a much larger cooler on its TUF Gaming Radeon RX 7900-series cards. As ASUS didn't reveal any clock speeds or TDPs of its two cards, we don't really know what to expect, but we'd be surprised if these cards weren't factory overclocked to some degree when they launch in December.

The innovative manufacturer of high-end multi-GPU workstations and professional liquid cooling solutions for individuals and workgroups requiring GPU computation, announces a slim waterblock of top-tier efficiency for GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 4090 GAMING OC 24 GB and AORUS RTX 4090 MASTER 24G GPUs.

Given the fact that the latest 4090 GPUs by Nvidia are extremely power hungry, the Comino team did its best to deliver the highest performance 4090 waterblock design, specifically adding:

Over the past few weeks, the legal dispute between Arm Ltd. and Qualcomm Inc. has been warming up the eyes of the entire tech community. However, as per the latest court filing, Arm could change its licensing strategy and shift its whole business model into a new direction that would benefit the company directly. Currently, the company provides the intellectual property (IP) that chip makers can use and add to designs mixed with other IPs and custom in-house solutions. That is how the world of electronics design (EDA) works and how many companies operate. However, in the Qualcomm-Arm legal battle, Qualcomm's counterclaim has brought new light about Arm's plans for licensing its hardware designs past 2024.

According to Dylan Patel of SemiAnalysis, who examined court documents, Arm will reportedly change terms to use its IP where the use of other IP mixed with Arm IP is prohibited. If a chip maker plans to use Arm CPU IP, they must also use Arm's GPU/NPU/ISP/DSP IPs. This would result in devices that utilize every design the UK-based designer has to offer, and other IP makers will have to exclude their designs from the SoC. By doing this, Arm directly stands against deals like the Samsung-AMD deal, where AMD provides RDNA GPU IP and would force Samsung to use Arm's Mali GPU IP instead. This change should take effect in 2025 when every new license agreement has to comply with new rules.

Aetina has launched new embedded MXM GPU modules powered by the NVIDIA RTX family, including RTX A1000, RTX A2000, and RTX A4500. These NVIDIA Ampere architecture-based MXM GPU modules, providing superb performance and power efficiency, are suitable for various types of computer vision applications across different industries such as commercial gaming, aerospace, healthcare, and manufacturing.

The model names of the new Aetina MXM GPU modules powered by NVIDIA RTX A1000, NVIDIA RTX A2000, and NVIDIA RTX A4500 are M3A1000-PP, M3A2000-VY, and M3A4500-WP, respectively. These models support CUDA Compute version 8.6, OpenGL 4.6, Vulkan 1.2, DirectX 12 Ultimate, and Shader Model 7.0, as well as Windows 10/11 64-bit and Linux 64-bit operating systems. For display and output, M3A1000-PP, M3A2000-VY, and M3A4500-WP all support up to 4x DisplayPort (DP) and 8K (7680 × 4320) resolution.

It's hardly a secret that AMD will announce its first RDNA 3 based GPUs on the 3rd of November and the company has now officially announced that that it'll hold a livestream that starts 1:00 pm (13:00) Pacific Daylight Time. The event goes under the name "together we advance_gaming". AMD didn't share much in terms of details about the event, all we know is that "AMD executives will provide details on the new high-performance, energy-efficient AMD RDNA 3 architecture that will deliver new levels of performance, efficiency and functionality to gamers and content creators."

Basemark launched today GPUScore Sacred Path. It is the world's only cross-platform GPU benchmark that includes the latest GPU technologies like Variable Rate Shading (VRS). Sacred Path supports all the relevant device categories - ranging from premium mobile phones to high-end gaming PCs and discrete graphics cards, including full support of the major operating systems, such as Android, iOS, Linux, macOS and Windows.

This benchmark is of great importance for application vendors, device manufacturers, GPU vendors and IT Media. Game developers need a thorough understanding of performance across the device range to optimize the use of the same assets across a maximum device range. GPU vendors and device manufacturers can compare their products with competitor products, which allows them to develop new product ranges with the correct targeting. In addition, Sacred Path is a true asset for media reviewing any GPU-equipped devices.

Meta today announced its next-generation AI platform, Grand Teton, including NVIDIA's collaboration on design. Compared to the company's previous generation Zion EX platform, the Grand Teton system packs in more memory, network bandwidth and compute capacity, said Alexis Bjorlin, vice president of Meta Infrastructure Hardware, at the 2022 OCP Global Summit, an Open Compute Project conference.

AI models are used extensively across Facebook for services such as news feed, content recommendations and hate-speech identification, among many other applications. "We're excited to showcase this newest family member here at the summit," Bjorlin said in prepared remarks for the conference, adding her thanks to NVIDIA for its deep collaboration on Grand Teton's design and continued support of OCP.

Apple today announced the next generation of Apple TV 4K—more powerful, entertaining, and affordable than ever, and offering impressive cinematic quality. Driven by the A15 Bionic chip that delivers faster performance and more fluid gameplay, the new Apple TV 4K features endless entertainment options for everyone to enjoy on the biggest screen in the home. HDR10+ support joins Dolby Vision on Apple TV 4K, so users can watch their favorite movies and TV shows in the best quality possible across more TVs. Running tvOS, the powerful and intuitive OS for the living room, and featuring the popular Siri Remote, Apple TV 4K simplifies the way users discover and enjoy their favorite content. Its seamless integration with other Apple devices and services magically transforms the living room in different ways for the entire family, while also adding convenience as a smart home hub.

The new Apple TV 4K is available in two configurations: Apple TV 4K (Wi-Fi), which offers 64 GB of storage; and Apple TV 4K (Wi-Fi + Ethernet), which offers support for Gigabit Ethernet for fast networking and streaming, Thread mesh networking protocol to connect even more smart home accessories, and twice the storage for apps and games (128 GB). Customers can order the new Apple TV 4K with Siri Remote today at a new starting price of $129, with availability beginning Friday, November 4.

Apple today announced the new iPad Pro with the M2 chip, delivering the ultimate combination of portability, versatility, and unbelievable performance. The new iPad Pro features a next-level Apple Pencil hover experience and superfast wireless connectivity, along with the world's most advanced mobile display, pro cameras, Face ID, Thunderbolt, and a four-speaker audio system. New features in iPadOS 16—including Stage Manager, full external display support, desktop-class apps, and Reference Mode—take pro workflows on iPad even further. Enabled by its advanced hardware and iPadOS 16, iPad Pro has an incredible ecosystem of powerful pro apps unlike any other device of its kind. The new iPad Pro is available to order starting today, and in stores beginning Wednesday, October 26.

"The next-generation iPad Pro pushes the boundaries of what's possible on iPad, bringing even more versatility, power, and portability to the ultimate iPad experience," said Greg Joswiak, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. "Powered by the M2 chip, the new iPad Pro features incredible performance and the most advanced technologies, including a next-level Apple Pencil hover experience, ProRes video capture, superfast wireless connectivity, and powerful iPadOS 16 features. There's nothing else like it."

The Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) announced today that it has released DisplayPort 2.1, the latest version of the DisplayPort specification, which is backward compatible with and supersedes the previous version of DisplayPort (DisplayPort 2.0). VESA has been working closely with member companies to ensure that products supporting DisplayPort 2.0 would actually meet the newer, more demanding DisplayPort 2.1 spec. Due to this effort, all previously certified DisplayPort 2.0 products including UHBR (Ultra-high Bit Rate) capable products - whether GPUs, docking station chips, monitor scalar chips, PHY repeater chips such as re-timers, or DP40/DP80 cables (including both passive and active, and using full-size DisplayPort, Mini DisplayPort or USB Type-C connectors) - have already been certified to the stricter DisplayPort 2.1 spec.

Achieving a robust, end-to-end user visual experience remains the utmost priority for VESA's DisplayPort specification, whether across a native DisplayPort cable, via DisplayPort Alt Mode (DisplayPort over the USB Type-C connector), or tunneled through the USB4 link. As such, DisplayPort 2.1 has tightened its alignment with the USB Type-C specification as well as the USB4 PHY specification to facilitate a common PHY servicing both DisplayPort and USB4. In addition, DisplayPort 2.1 has added a new DisplayPort bandwidth management feature to enable DisplayPort tunneling to coexist with other I/O data traffic more efficiently over the USB4 link. This increased efficiency is on top of mandated support for VESA's visually lossless Display Stream Compression (DSC) codec and VESA's Panel Replay capability. DSC bitstream support can reduce DisplayPort transport bandwidth in excess of 67 percent without visual artifacts, while VESA's Panel Replay capability can reduce DisplayPort tunneling packet transport bandwidth in excess of 99 percent when Panel Replay operation is taking place.

Today, we shared our vision for the next era of the Windows PC, where the PC and the cloud intersect and tap into innovative AI technology that unlocks new experiences. So that each of us can participate, be seen, heard and express our creativity.

For nearly 40 years, the Windows PC has held a place at the center of our lives. It's contributed to new levels of productivity, kept us all connected, and unlocked our creativity and potential through innovations we couldn't have imagined when we first began this journey. Just think about how far we've come in how people interact with it. From the very first text-based keyboard input to the precision of point and click with the mouse, up to today, where touch, voice, pen and gestures all help people use the Windows PC more naturally and intuitively. From its inception, Surface has been a catalyst for that change.

We've been aware of Intel's upcoming NUC 13 Extreme—codenamed Raptor Canyon—since July this year, with the compute element module having leaked back in August. Now Intel has previewed the NUC 13 Extreme at TwitchCon and we have a better idea what the biggest NUC to date will look like. The chassis has a volume of no less than 13.9 litres, which is bigger than many Mini-ITX cases. The main reason for this is that the NUC 13 Extreme has enough space for a triple slot GPU, although if you're hoping to put a GeForce RTX 4090 inside, then you're out of luck, as it seems to be limited to the length of an RTX 3080 or thereabout. The compute modul appears to have changed somewhat from the early leak, or it's possible it just wasn't a very good render.

As we've known, Intel will be kitting out the NUC 13 Extreme with a range of CPU options and it was confirmed during the stream that it'll handle a "full" Core i9K without specifying which model. The Intel rep mentioned a highly optimised heatsink, which appears to be something along the lines of a modified GPU cooler with a blower cooler. This is because the compute module is largely the same shape and size as a graphics card. The chassis itself looks like a bit of a nightmare to deal with, as it has a lot of removable parts to allow access to the innards of the NUC 13 Extreme. The compute module has to be installed at an angle, or it won't fit inside the chassis, whereas the graphics card looks relatively easy to install. You can find the full video in the link below and it starts just past the four hour mark.