CD PROJEKT RED's Cyberpunk 2077 is already one of the most technologically advanced games available, using several ray tracing techniques to render its neon-illuminated environments and vast Night City visuals at incredible levels of detail. On April 11th, a new Cyberpunk 2077 update will hit the streets, featuring the technology preview of the Ray Tracing: Overdrive Mode, which enhances the game's already-amazing visuals with full ray tracing, otherwise known as path tracing.

Full ray tracing accurately simulates light throughout an entire scene. It is used by visual effects artists to create film and TV graphics that are indistinguishable from reality, but until the arrival of GeForce RTX GPUs with RT Cores, and the AI-powered acceleration of NVIDIA DLSS, real-time video game full ray tracing was impossible because it's extremely GPU intensive.

Last week we announced Playground Games' Forza Horizon 5 added DLSS 3 to multiply performance and provide the definitive open-world racing experience. This week, DLSS 3 is available for Sackboy: A Big Adventure. And coming next week, the technology preview of Cyberpunk 2077's Ray Tracing: Overdrive Mode will be released.

Sackboy: A Big Adventure DLSS 3 Update Available Now
PlayStation's iconic woolen hero stars in the PC edition of Sackboy: A Big Adventure. The dastardly Vex kidnapped Sackboy's friends and forced them to build his Topsy Turver. This most terrifyingly twisted device will transform Craftworld from a fantastical land of pure imagination and innocent dreams… into a torrid, barren eyesore of nightmares. Set off alone or with your bravest friends on a whirlwind of capers across the snowiest mountains, the leafiest jungles, the wettest underwater realms and the, uh, spaciest of space colonies. Take down Vex. Save the sack-folk. Save the day.

As we draw closer to the launch date, it does not come as a surprise that the GeForce RTX 4070 has leaked in one of the benchmark databases. The one coming from Geekbench confirms the previously rumored 5888 CUDA cores, as well as 12 GB of 21 Gbps GDDR6X memory.

The Geekbench entry most likely comes from one of the reviewers, and while the actual results are not that important, since these are done in older Geekbench 5, the entry does confirm some of the previous rumors. If you really compare the performance, it ends up around 25 to 30 percent faster than the GeForce RTX 3070 and around 19 percent slower than the GeForce RTX 4070 Ti.

Although it is scheduled to launch next week, the first NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 graphics cards have started to show up in retail, confirming some of the SKUs from various NVIDIA AIC partners. While price rumors officially start with those same retailers, this time around, the price has leaked earlier in the form of NVIDIA's official slide, and it should start at $599. Early listings and placeholder pricing put the GeForce RTX 4070 at rather high $823 or even $915.

The first RTX 4070 spotted came from MSI, and according to retail listings and ECC filings, it appears that MSI will have a couple of Ventus, Gaming, and Suprim series RTX 4070 graphics cards. According to the list from Videocardz, Gainward will offer RTX 4070 Ghost, in standard and OC version. Gigabyte is so far confirmed with RTX 4070 Eagle OC. Palit will have GamingPro and JetStream versions, and PNY will have two RTX 4070 graphics cards. Of course, more will show up as we draw closer to the launch date. First reviews for the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 are expected on April 12th.

The latest leaked slide for GeForce RTX 4070 confirms most of the specifications, as well as reveals some previously unknown details, including the 186 W average power draw. While the specification list does not mention the number of CUDA cores, it does confirm it will be based on AD104 GPU with 36 MB of L2 cache, and come with 12 GB of GDDR6X memory with 504 GB/s of maximum memory bandwidth, which points to 192-bit memory interface and 21 Gbps clocked memory.

The slide posted by Videocardz also compares the upcoming GeForce RTX 4070 with the previous generation RTX 3070 Ti and the RTX 3070, showing a significant increase in shader number, RT cores, and Tensor cores, not to mention we are talking about 3rd gen RT cores and 4th Gen Tensor cores on the RTX 4070. It will also support DLSS 3, and have AV1 and H.264 NV encoders.

NVIDIA is stepping up to manufacturers of counterfeit graphics card in China according to an article published by MyDrivers - the hardware giant is partnering up with a number of the nation's major e-commerce companies in order to eliminate inventories of bogus GPUs. It is claimed that these online retail platforms, including JD.com and Douyin, are partway into removing a swathe of dodgy stock from their listings. NVIDIA is seeking to disassociate itself from the pool of unlicensed hardware and the brands responsible for flooding the domestic and foreign markets with so-called fake graphics cards. The company is reputed to be puzzled about the murky origins of this bootlegging of their patented designs.

The market became saturated with fake hardware during the Ethereum mining boom - little known cottage companies such as 51RSIC, Corn, Bingying and JieShuoMllse were pushing rebadged cheap OEM cards to domestic e-tail sites. The knock-off GPUs also crept outside of that sector, and import listings started to appear on international platforms including Ebay, AliExpress, Amazon and Newegg. NVIDIA is also fighting to stop the sale of refurbished cards - these are very likely to have been utilized in intensive cryptocurrency mining activities. A flood of these hit the market following an extreme downturn in crypto mining efforts, and many enthusiast communities have warned against acquiring pre-owned cards due to the high risk of component failure.

ASUS ROG has started selling its RTX 4090 XG Mobile external graphics card in China and Japan this week. Japanese customers are being charged a cool $3000 for the pint-sized powerhouse external GPU, and Chinese buyers are getting a slightly better deal at $2700. It should be noted that this eGPU is the (GN21-X11) mobile variant of the GeForce RTX 4090, and not the full fat desktop version. The newly updated XG Mobile enclosure can only be connected to an ASUS Flow laptop, which limits the scope of compatibility to an already very expensive range of devices. The proprietary connection standard will keep customers in the ASUS ROG mobile hardware ecosystem - but their higher end laptop models can be configured with the very capable GeForce RTX 4070 mobile GPU, so the RTX 4090 XG Mobile seems to appeal to a very small buying niche.

The XG Mobile interface uses the PCIE Gen 3 x8 standard of connection, and the GPU has access to a dedicated 63 GB/s of bandwidth. This beats the Thunderbolt 4 standard of 40 Gb/s, by a 57% margin. The enclosure acts as a docking station - its features include an up to 2.5 Gbit Ethernet, a single HDMI 2.1 port, one DisplayPort 1.4 with G-Sync support and three USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports (3x Type-A + 1x Type-C). ASUS ROG has engineered the docking station/enclosure to be as compact as possible (21.7 cm x 16.5 cm x 3.26 cm), when compared to competing products from other manufacturers. The whole package weighs in at 1.3 kg, which will ensure decent portability for gamers on the move.

Today at the Amplify Partner Conference, HP Inc. announced new products and solutions to usher in the next era of hybrid work for everyone with a comprehensive set of computing solutions for hybrid flexibility. With only 22 percent of workers describing themselves as 'thriving' in hybrid work, it's clear companies are still figuring out how to make hybrid work. "Most companies want to move past the 'forced return' to the office era of hybrid work," said Alex Cho, President of Personal Systems, HP Inc. "The challenge is, they're not sure how to. We believe the future is hybrid flexibility, which delivers the best of the home and the office to workers everywhere."

According to HP's Future of Work study, 80 percent of workers want to be in the office some of the time, but many companies continue to struggle to get workers back in the office. HP research suggests that the most significant barrier to a return to office is a sub-optimal technology experience. In fact, 89 percent say technology is the most important factor driving return to office decisions. Similarly, of those who report thriving in hybrid work, 90 percent believe that access to the right technology and tools leads to a positive work experience. To accelerate employees' return to work, the right technology is required for optimal work setups, enabling success for companies and their employees.

Both the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Ti and the RTX 4060 have been rumored to launch in May, and now the RTX 4060 Ti name has been pretty much confirmed as NVIDIA board partners have received the marketing materials, including the box design template. When the board partners get the box and logo design templates and send out boxes to printing, the name is pretty much carved in stone.

The leak comes from MEGAsizeGPU, and we had a pretty similar leak for the RTX 4070 Ti earlier. Unfortunately, the leaked box design and key features do not reveal or confirm previous rumors about any of the important specifications, so the rumored 8 GB memory or PCIe Gen 4 x8 interface are still not confirmed. One thing is clear, NVIDIA is building up steam and gearing up to launch as many as three new RTX 40 series graphics cards in next two months, with the GeForce RTX 4070 rumored for April 13th launch date, while the GeForce RTX 4060 Ti and the GeForce RTX 4060 should launch in May.

It looks like Spring-Summer will see NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 40-series get a rapid ramp up to high-volume market segments. In April, the company is planning to release the GeForce RTX 4070, which should hold the performance-segment end of things, albeit at an eye-watering $750 rumored price. May 2023 could see NVIDIA come out with two product launches before the 2023 Computex; the GeForce RTX 4060 Ti, and the RTX 4060.

Both the RTX 4060 Ti and RTX 4060 are expected to be based on the "AD106" silicon, which is expected to have around 36 streaming multiprocessors (4,608 CUDA cores, 144 Tensor cores, 36 RT cores, 144 TMUs, 48 ROPs); and a 128-bit wide memory interface. NVIDIA is expected to use 18 Gbps-rated conventional GDDR6 memory chips with these SKUs, which should lower costs (for the company) in comparison to the more exotic 19 Gbps GDDR6X.

Today at the Amplify Partner Conference, HP Inc announced its latest line-up of gaming hardware and software designed to bring gamers everything they need to enjoy the games they love. The new OMEN Transcend 16 Laptop, OMEN 16 Laptop, Victus 16 Laptop, and a vast range of stunning OMEN monitors offer casual, hobbyist, lifestyle, and hardcore gamers the power and flexibility to play and work hard. To bring everything together, new enhancements in OMEN Gaming Hub offer a variety of performance and personalization features.

People everywhere seek devices that can adapt to hybrid play and work. Sixty-two percent of gamers prefer a PC that fits their entire life instead of being used for gaming only. With a billion new gamers entering the space in the last seven years and 84 percent of them using games to connect with others with similar interests, gaming devices enable access to countless games and corresponding communities.

NVIDIA has quietly removed some video encoding limitations on its consumer GeForce graphics processing units (GPUs), allowing encoding of up to five simultaneous streams. Previously, NVIDIA's consumer GeForce GPUs were limited to three simultaneous NVENC encodes. The same limitation did not apply to professional GPUs.

According to NVIDIA's own Video Encode and Decode GPU Support Matrix document, the number of concurrent NVENC encodes on consumer GPUs have been increased from three to five. This includes certain GeForce GPUs based on Maxwell 2nd Gen, Pascal, Turing, Ampere, and Ada Lovelace GPU architectures. While the number of concurrent NVDEC decodes were never limited, there is a limitation on how many streams you can encode by certain GPU, depending on the resolution of the stream and the codec.

A combination of the Diablo IV Closed Beta and NVIDIA RTX 3080 Ti graphics card is proving lethal for the latter - community feedback has alerted Blizzard to take action, and they will be investigating the issue in the coming days, with assistance from NVIDIA. It is speculated that the game is exposing underlying hardware faults within an affected card, but it is odd that a specific model is generating the largest number of issues. Unlucky 3080 Ti owners participating in the closed beta are said to be experiencing unpleasant or inconsistent in-game performance at best, and BSODs followed by non-functional GPUs at worst.

A Blizzard forumite, ForANge, chimed in with their experience: "My graphics card also burned out. While playing, the fans of my Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3080 Ti suddenly started running at maximum speed. At the same time, the signal from the monitor disappeared. After turning off the power and trying to turn it back on, I couldn't get it to work anymore. The card is just under a year old. It happened during a cutscene with flowers when they showed a snowy landscape."

NVIDIA has released the latest version of its GeForce Game Ready drivers, the version 531.41 WHQL. The new release provides the best day-0 gaming experience for Diablo IV beta phase, including support for DLSS 2, as well as the same DLSS 2 support for The Last of Us Part I, Smalland: Survive the Wild, and Deceive Inc. The new NVIDIA GeForce Game Ready Drivers 531.41 WHQL is also the Game Ready driver for Resident Evil 4 and it adds DLSS 3 support for Forza Horizon 5. Most importantly, it also adds support for the technology preview of Cyberpunk 2077's Ray Tracing: Overdrive Mode. The new NVIDIA GeForce Game Ready Drivers 531.41 WHQL also adds several GeForce Experience Profiles, as well as fixes several issues.

DOWNLOAD: NVIDIA GeForce Game Ready 531.41 WHQL

Update: Added Open Issues to the release highlights.

Today, Lenovo announced the latest 8th generation of Lenovo Legion Slim laptops, allowing gamers to harness the freedom that the newest series has to offer. The Lenovo Legion Slim series is all about empowering players to crush their gaming goals while also pursuing their creative passions, and there are more options than ever among the new Lenovo Legion Slim 7i and 7 (16", 8), Lenovo Legion Slim 5i and 5 (16", 8), and—an all-new size for this year—the Lenovo Legion Slim 5 (14", 8), which elevates laptop power and portability to a whole new level. This newest generation of the series is also the first to sport the Lenovo Artificial Intelligence (LA) family of chips. These are onboard physical AI chips that power Lenovo AI Engine+, which dynamically adjusts the Lenovo Legion ColdFront 5.0 thermals to optimize cooling on the fly and maintain maximum output with minimal noise.

Lenovo Legion Slim series laptops are designed to meet the multi-faceted needs of gamers, with an SD slot, rapid charging battery technology Windows 11, three months of free Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, as well as access to Nahimic by SteelSeries 3D immersive audio, and Lenovo Vantage helping users get the most out of their machines. Offering peace of mind, Lenovo's Legion Ultimate Support service is available with round-the-clock tech support, guidance and assistance so gamers don't have to miss a beat, and with Legion Arena, users can create their ultimate gaming hub with all their titles accessible in one place rather than having to switch between apps. Additionally, gamers looking to expand their horizons—literally—can look forward to the new Lenovo Legion R45w-30 44.5" 32:9 ultrawide curved display and the new Lenovo Legion Y34wz-30 Gaming Monitor that delivers extreme clarity and vivid color with its 34-inch mini-LED backlit panel.

Gaming doesn't have to be enjoyed only on a high-end gaming PC. Announced today, Lenovo LOQ—pronounced "lock"—lets new gamers set out on the first steps of their gaming journeys, allowing them to explore new virtual worlds and connect with new real-world communities with gaming devices that are packed with features without breaking the bank. Offering plenty of choice, the brand-new lineup of Lenovo LOQ gaming laptops include the Intel-based Lenovo LOQ 16IRH8 and Lenovo LOQ 15IRH8 laptops as well as the Lenovo LOQ Tower 17IRB8 desktop PC, and the AMD-based Lenovo LOQ 16APH8 and Lenovo LOQ 15APH8 laptops. Inspired by Lenovo's premium Legion-branded gaming line-up, the new Lenovo LOQ line encompasses more than just design features such as the rear I/O notch on its laptops and the shared stylized 'O' in both brands' logos. The two sub-brands are complementary in catering to a wider gaming community, including beginner gamers setting off on their gaming paths to greatness with Lenovo LOQ as well as those leveling up to Lenovo Legion devices to compete against more advanced opponents.

"With the launch of the new Lenovo LOQ brand, we're building a lineage of gaming excellence and PC offerings that are not just for the gaming community's top players, but for new and future gamers alike," said Jun Ouyang, Lenovo's vice president and general manager of the Consumer Business Segment, Intelligent Devices Group. "Lenovo LOQ breaks down barriers to entry for gamers, empowering them to embark on adventures of connection and fun in the gaming world."

As the leading brand in the enthusiastic graphics market, Gainward proudly presents the brand new GeForce RTX 4080 and GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Panther Series video cards, powered by NVIDIA's Ada Lovelace GPU architecture. The new Panther Series is born in the Gainward graphics card lineup for performance-oriented consumers who favor the aesthetic of utter darkness and the perfection of simplicity. Shunning all the bells and whistles, the Gainward GeForce RTX 40 Panther presents itself in a sleek black finish with simple line patterns that add a touch of dynamics in the darkness. The minimalist design allows it to seamlessly blend into any builds.

Underneath the Panther's stealthy exterior lies the latest graphics technology and extraordinary thermal solution. The model leverages the Cyclone Fan for optimal aerodynamic performance. The Wing Tip on fantail collects maximized airflow into the thermal module. The sharp claw marks on the Cyclone Fan Blades lead the air to the heat sink steadily. With the support of Ultra-Dense Protection Plate and Metal Backplate with cut-out areas, the GeForce RTX 40 Panther offers exceptional cooling and improved stability.

The latest patch for Halo Infinite has introduced an undesired side effect for a select portion of its PC platform playerbase. Changes to minimum system specification requirements were not clarified by 343 Industries in their patch notes, but it appears that the game now refuses to launch for owners of older GPU hardware. A limit of 4 GB of VRAM has been listed as the bare minimum since Halo Infinite's launch in late 2021, with the AMD Radeon RX 570 and Nvidia GTX GeForce 1050 Ti cards representing the entry level GPU tier, basic versions of both were fitted with 4 GB of VRAM as standard.

Apparently users running the GTX 1060 3 GB model were able to launch and play the game just fine prior to the latest patch, due to it being more powerful than the entry level cards, but now it seems that the advertised hard VRAM limit has finally gone into full effect. The weaker RX 570 and GTX 1050 Ti cards are still capable of running Halo Infinite after the introduction of season 3 content, but a technically superior piece of hardware cannot, which is unfortunate for owners of the GTX 1060 3 GB model who want to play Halo Infinite in its current state.

Palit Microsystems Ltd. as the leading graphics card manufacturer is excited to announce the GeForce RTX 4080 and RTX 4070 Ti JetStream Series built with the ultra-efficient NVIDIA Ada Lovelace architecture. Sedate, silent, yet powerful. The Palit GeForce RTX 40 JetStream fashioned in jet-black with geometric block patterns demonstrates a performance-focused design that remains the essences to achieve any gaming and creator application. Restrained from flashy lights, the JetStream reveals the philosophy of Less is More. Its stealthy approach intends to suit users who prefer function over form, or fancy to keep their PCs in dark presence. Concealed within the JetStream's discrete design is a true marvel of engineering that brings impeccable thermal solution and low-noise operation.

To ensure superior aerodynamic performance, the Gale Hunter Fan cooling system is packed to offer concentrated and smooth airflow. An Ultra-Wide Copper Base adhered to both the GPU and VRAM effectively absorbs heat, keeping the GPU temperatures always in check. The model also possesses a matching Metal Backplate with golden-ratio cut-outs to dissipate hot airs while providing extra rigidity. The GeForce RTX 40 JetStream fully incorporates NVIDIA's revolutionary technologies such as NVIDIA DLSS 3, NVIDIA Reflex, and NVIDIA Broadcast. Consumers will experience immersive visuals and AI-enhanced creating process without compromising on performance. Let the JetStream be your stealthy companion as you take on the most demanding tasks with ease.

A picture of the INNO3D GeForce RTX 4070 has leaked online, confirming earlier rumor that at least some RTX 4070 graphics cards will not come with new 16-pin 12VHPWR connector, but rather the standard 8-pin PCIe one. This is in line with earlier rumors that NVIDIA will probably have two variants, premium and the one that will be sold closer to the MSRP.

Unfortunately, the box shot of the INNO3D RTX 4070 does not reveal a lot more information, other than it will have a dual-slot, dual-fan cooler with detachable fan blades, and a heatsink with copper base for the GPU, aluminium base for the memory, and nickel plated heatpipes. The RTX 4070, based on the AD104 GPU and packing 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 192-bit memory interface, is scheduled to launch on April 13th, with first reviews showing up on April 12th.

As promised and detailed earlier, NVIDIA has now released the first SDK for Path Tracing. Path Tracing, which should accurately re-create physics of all light sources in a scene, has been around and we already had a chance to see it in some demos like Quake RTX and Portal RTX, but now, thanks to some previously available NVIDIA tools and features, it could be finally coming to more games and not just tech demos.

According to NVIDIA, the thing that makes Path Tracing possible now, and more accessible to developers, is the combination of previously available NVIDIA technologies, as well as some new ones, including the new performance multiplier in DLSS 3, called the DLSS Frame Generation. The DLSS Frame Generation, working on GeForce 40 series cards and using the Optical Flow Accelerator, is what made real-time path tracing possible. The RTX Path Tracing SDK, according to NVIDIA, should re-create the physics of all light sources in a scene in order to reproduce what the eye sees in real life, and allows to build a reference path traces to ensure that lighting during production is true to life, while accelerating the iteration process; or build high-quality photo modes for RT-capable GPUs or real-time, ultra-quality modes that take advantage of the Ada Lovelace architecture.

Gigabyte has pretty much confirmed the upcoming NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 and RTX 4060 graphics cards, by adding support for its two SKUs in the Gigabyte Control Center software. The latest 23.03.02.01 version of the software adds support for the Gigabyte RTX 4070 AERO OC 12 GB and the Gigabyte RTX 4060 GAMING OC 8 GB graphics cards.

Gigabyte's product codes reveal a lot of information, including the first confirmation that the upcoming RTX 4060 will indeed be coming with 8 GB of memory, just as previous rumors stated. Obviously, the GeForce RTX 4070 comes with 12 GB of memory. The GeForce RTX 4070 is rumored to be announced on April 12th, with the retail availability expected on April 13th. The GeForce RTX 4060, or the rumored GeForce RTX 4060 Ti, still do not have a launch date, but earlier rumors pointed to May.

Chinese board partner Maxsun announced today their new flagship product line dubbed Mega Gamer GPU (MGG) which packs five fans onto RTX 40 series GPUs. The first card to receive this new branding is NVIDIA's RTX 4070 Ti which Maxsun suggests will come with a healthy factory overclock, but they have not yet elaborated on complete specifications. The five fan array isn't the only unique aspect of this new lineup as the overall visual design features a striking rounded shroud with a large magnetically attached top-facing RGB LED panel. The fan arrangement appears at first to be a traditional set of three downward facing ~100 mm fans, but a glance toward the top of the card reveals the last two ~40 mm fans flanking either end. These fans are configured as exhaust fans for the finstack, likely intended to assist in pulling heat up and away from the card instead of blasting it down into the motherboard. The 40 mm fan toward the front of the card appears as though it may actually provide some benefit as it sits directly above the forward VRM to the left side of the GPU die.

For those of you that remember the bygone era of 2012 you'll likely have a light bulb going off in the memory department since this is not the first GPU to pack an excessive amount of fans. Some of Gigabyte's Super Overclock series of GPUs featured five 40 mm fans on a bulky triple-slot design, specifically their GeForce GTX 680 Windforce 5X SOC and exceptionally limited Radeon HD 7970 SoC. Unlike Maxsun's MGG design, these designs arranged all of the fans along the top edge in a "pull" configuration to force air up through the dense fin stack and away from the motherboard. Similarly to Maxsun's MGG these were overclocked cards with a considerably unique visual aesthetic.

Gigabyte has introduced its new NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti WindForce series, that will actually be a sixth SKU in the RTX 4070 Ti lineup, alongside two AORUS models, Eagle, Gaming, and AERO models. Surprisingly, this is a completely new design that has not been used on any previous Gigabyte cards, featuring a 2.5-slot, triple-fan cooler design.

Gigabyte did not give out a lot of information, so we do not know when the new Gigabyte GeForce RTX 4070 Ti WindForce series will actually be available or at what price, but it is safe to assume it could end up to be the least expensive in the lineup. The new RTX 4070 Ti WindForce is also an OC edition card, which means it comes with a slight factory overclock, pushing the GPU up to 2625 MHz, which is a rather minor 15 MHz overclock.

NVIDIA DLSS has revolutionized graphics rendering, using AI to boost frame rates while delivering crisp, high quality images. GeForce RTX gamers can accelerate performance with DLSS in over 270 games and apps, with another 7 games adding support in March, and today, we are announcing that Diablo IV and Redfall will both launch with DLSS 3.

DLSS 3's Frame Generation multiplies performance in 28 released games and has been adopted 7X faster than DLSS 2 in the first 6 months. DLSS' groundbreaking features, exceptional performance, and ease of integration are key to its rapid adoption by developers. With the DLSS 3 Frame Generation plugin becoming publicly available at GDC for developers, and a DLSS 3 plugin coming soon for Unreal Engine 5.2, it will be even easier for developers to enhance the next generation of games. Keep reading for further details about the addition of NVIDIA DLSS to Deceive Inc., Diablo IV, Forza Horizon 5, Gripper, Redfall, Smalland: Survive the Wilds, and THE FINALS Closed Beta.