AMD's December 13th "New Horizon" event is supposedly (and expectedly) a pivotal moment for the company - a celebration of sorts for the impending launch of their ZEN-based microprocessors. The event, which will be presented mainly by Gametrailers TV-based journalist Geoff Keighley, is now turning up to be a Summit Ridge celebration of sorts as well.

According to recent reports, a small number of motherboard manufacturers should also be in attendance at the event, showing-off their AM4-compatible motherboards based on the top-of-the-line X370 chipset. The X370 is the most advanced version of the Zen-compatible chipsets and is expected to provide extensive overclocking features and up to two third-generation PCIe x16 lanes for multi-GPU systems. Below the X370, the B350 and A320 take over the role of the mid-range and entry-level chipsets respectively. The new chipsets are expected to bring native M.2 NVMe & SATA Express connectivity, PCIe gen 3, DDR4 memory compatibility and USB 3.1 Gen2 to the company's high-end desktop platform for the very first time.

Remember ASRock's Beebox? The original Mini PC was originally reviewed here on TechPowerUp to a glowing score and wholehearted recommendation, and now, the company has announced an upgrade to its innards that is sure to give a new lease of life to the device's appeal. The upgraded systems are powered by either Intel's Core i5-7100U (2C/4T, 2.5 GHz base and 3.1 GHz Boost clocks) or i3-7200U (2C/4T, 2.4 GHz base clock) CPUs, featuring the Kaby Lake micro-architecture, but are, apart from that, identical to their predecessors. The system can also be equipped with up to 32 GB of DDR4-2133 memory (two SO-DIMM slots), an M.2-2280 NVMe SSD and a 2.5" SSD/HDD depending on your particular demands. Meanwhile, Intel's 802.11ac Wi-Fi + BT 4.0 wireless module is pre-installed.

The globally-praised ASRock DeskMini 110 barebone series and the most compact mainboard H110M-STX are the world's first H110 chipset based products that support Intel next generation processors. Simply update BIOS after P1.40 version, users are able to enjoy the exciting performance of new CPUs.

The highly-recognized DeskMini 110 barebone series and H110M-STX motherboard are the very first models based on the Mini Socket Technology Extended (Mini-STX) form factor that add the flexibility to support Intel LGA 1151 socket-based Intel processors. Besides the comprehensive and valuable configurability options, ASRock Mini-STX series is also well focused on improving every possible computing features. Both two products are the pioneer that are compatible with the popular Samsung 950 Pro NVMe M.2 SSDs and Intel's latest 600p series SSDs with the fastest PCIe Gen3 x4 speed.

Intel is readying a follow-on to its 600P series performance-segment PCIe solid-state drive (SSD) series, with the 610P series. Built in the M.2-2280 form-factor, with PCIe gen 3.0 x4 bus interface, and support for the NVMe protocol, the SSD 610P will be based on TLC 3D NAND flash by IMFlash Technology, the company's joint-venture with Micron Technology. The SSD 610P series will come in capacities of 128 GB, 256 GB, 512 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB.

The company is also working on a smaller M.2-1620 variant for notebooks and SFF desktops, which will feature a BGA version of the SSD. These are multi-chip modules of NAND flash stacks and SSD controllers bundled into single packages. The BGA variants will come in sizes of 128 GB, 256 GB, and 512 GB. Not much else (performance figures) are known about these drives, except that Intel plans to release these towards Q4 2017 (after September).

ASUS signs off the AMD socket AM3+ platform with a motherboard that's built to last, the TUF Sabertooth 990FX R3.0, its third TUF series motherboard based on the AMD 990FX chipset. The board could be the ideal upgrade for AMD FX processor users wanting to hold on to their builds a few years longer, as it features cutting-edge connectivity, such as four 10 Gb/s USB 3.1 ports (including a type-C port), eight additional 5 Gb/s USB 3.0 ports (of which four are via headers), a 20 Gb/s M.2 slot with NVMe support, and the very latest VRM innovations ASUS made for the TUF series.

The board draws power from a combination of 24-pin ATX and 8-pin EPS power connectors, and uses a 10-phase VRM to condition it for the CPU. The board supports 220W TDP AMD FX-9000 series CPUs. The CPU socket is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots, and the AMD 990FX northbridge. Expansion slots include four PCI-Express 2.0 x16 slots, of which three are wired to the 990FX chip, and run at x16/NC/x16 or x16/x8/x8 depending on the way they're populated; while the fourth slot is wired to the SB950 southbridge, and runs at gen 2.0 x4. Storage connectivity includes five SATA 6 Gb/s ports besides the M.2 slot. 8-channel HD audio and gigabit Ethernet (Intel i211V controller) make for the rest of it. The board is driven by UEFI BIOS, and features Windows 10 certification. The company didn't reveal pricing.

Following the launch of the NC01 series in a typical NUC format, the Shuttle XPC nano product range is growing once again. The NC02 models are the immediate successors and put the sixth generation of Intel Core processors in a micro-format. The NC02 models are sold as barebones PC as standard which include the case, mainboard, heatpipe cooling system and power supply unit as key components. Four different models with soldered Celeron, Core i3, Core i5 and Core i7 power-saving processors are available to cover as many application areas as possible.

The base model NC02U is driven by an Intel Celeron 3855U dual-core processor clocked at 2x 1.6 GHz. The 14 nm architecture as well as the power consumption of less than 10 Watt in operation promise low energy consumption and enhanced performance. With its ultra-slim dimensions of 141 x 141 x 42 mm, the housing is 13 mm taller compared to the NC01, enabling the units to support even 15 mm high 2.5" drives.

Not every tech company achieves a ten-year lifespan, and Macau-based ZOTAC is sure celebrating that milestone - though with hardware, not fireworks. All in all, five new products were announced in the company's Hong Kong celebration. These range from a liquid-cooled, GTX 1080 graphics card in partnership with Thermaltake; a limited edition HB SLI bridge; a special edition PCIe SSD; a water-cooled Mini PC; and finally, an upgraded VR Go backpack.

Today FinalWire released a new stable update to the desktop editions of its popular system information software. AIDA64 v5.80 supports the latest Windows 10 builds and the most recent hardware components, including the AMD RX 400 series and NVIDIA's GTX 1050 GPUs.

As a new feature, it now allows users to define global hotkeys with which they can enable or disable the AIDA64 hardware monitoring panels or switch between multiple hardware information pages on external displays, even when AIDA64 is running in the background. Using these customized key combinations, PC enthusiasts can also start and stop saving temperature, voltage and power measurements as well as fan RPM readouts to a CSV or HTML log file. The developers have made AIDA64 v5.80 DPI aware so that all elements of its graphical user interface scale properly when the DPI zoom is active in Windows. In practice, this means that users will see no more blurry or incorrectly sized graphics or text on high-resolution screens as AIDA64 now looks crisp even on 4K and 8K LCD and OLED displays.DOWNLOAD: FinalWire AIDA64 v5.80 Installer | FinalWire AIDA64 v5.80 ZIP Package

Cashing in on the popularity of its "EVO" brand extension in the client SSD space, Samsung this September announced the 960 EVO family of PCI-Express SSDs in the M.2 form-factor, supporting the NVMe protocol. The drives are up for pre-order on the company's US online store. The series is topped with the 1 TB variant, priced at USD $479.99, followed by the 500 GB variant priced at $249.99, and the 250 GB variant priced at $129.99.

All three variants target a price-per-GB value around the $0.50/GB mark, however, one has to note that these are PCI-Express drives. The cheapest 250 GB variant serves up sequential transfer speeds of up to 3200 MB/s reads, with up to 1500 MB/s writes; the 500 GB variant up to 1800 MB/s writes; and the 1 TB variant up to 1900 MB/s writes. All three drives feature 3D V-NAND flash memory by Samsung, while the controller takes advantage of PCI-Express gen 3.0 x4 interface over the M.2-2280 form-factor, taking advantage of the NVMe protocol.

The Intel-Micron joint collaboration in the development of what is promised to be the next step in storage technology is inching ever closer to reality. According to Bench Life, which published a leaked specifications list for the upcoming Intel Optane Memory products, the first application for consumer-grade 3D XPoint technology straddles the line between an SSD and system RAM. Intel calls it a "System Accelerator" solution, and it's meant to operate as an intermediate caching solution between a system's RAM and storage. Codenamed "Stony Beach", Intel's 8000p (and entire 3D XPoint-based products) support is still up in the air, but it's expected that only Kaby Lake and subsequent platforms will be compatible with the technology - which, if true, is sure to limit the product's market penetration.

The consumer products will initially sport capacities of either 16GB or 32GB, leveraging the NVMe protocol at PCIe Gen 3.0 x2 bandwidth in the M.2 form-factor. Mirroring NAND technology, the greater capacity solution will sport the highest performance: with the 16GB part coming in at 1400 MB/s read and 300 MB/s write speeds, against the 32 GB's 1600 MB/s and 400 MB/s, respectively. We see similar results in regards to IOPS, with the 16GB solution offering up to 285,000 read and 70,000 write operations per second, against the 32 GB's solution respective 300,000 read and 120,000 write. As usual with new technologies, expect all these metrics to only go up in time.

Samsung drawing inspiration from Apple on product design is not new. Its latest is a cylindrical desktop PC that bears semblance to the Apple Mac Pro. To be fair to Samsung, the Mac Pro is technically a multi-GPU ready workstation powered by Intel Xeon processors. The new ArtPC Pulse Premium Desktops from Samsung, on the other hand, are just that - Windows desktops. Measuring 5.5 inch x 5.5 inch x 10.7 inch, this desktop packs in some premium PC hardware, flash memory, and an integrated 360° speaker system by Harman Kardon attached to its body.

The ArtPC Pulse comes in two main variants, the base $1,199 model featuring Core i5-6400 processor, 8 GB of dual-channel DDR4 memory, and 256 GB NVMe SSD storage; and a higher $1,599 variant featuring a Core i7-6700 processor, 16 GB of dual-channel DDR4 memory, and a 1 TB HDD in addition to the 256 GB NVMe SSD. Both variants feature AMD Radeon RX 460 graphics with 2 GB of video-memory. Other connectivity includes 802.11ac WLAN, gigabit Ethernet, SDXC card reader, five USB 3.1 ports (including a type-C port), and HDMI 2.0b display output.

Samsung Electronics America, Inc., a worldwide leader in advanced memory solutions for more than two decades, today unveiled the Samsung 960 PRO and 960 EVO, its newest solid state drives (SSDs). The V-NAND based, M.2 form factor SSDs were built on the company's category-defining Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) SSD leadership. With powerful performance, endurance and capacity topped with all new and more robust Samsung Magician software package, Samsung continues to accelerate the NVMe era.

Packed with more technology and innovation than ever, the 960 PRO and 960 EVO are designed for users who seek smaller and faster storage solutions that deliver higher bandwidth and lower latency for processing massive amounts of data for everything from gaming and large file transfers to 4K video rendering, data analytics and more on their ultra-thin notebooks and PCs.

Samsung is giving finishing touches to a new line of PCI-Express solid-state drives (SSDs) that offer performance that matches or beats the current SSD 950 Pro series, at lower price-points, the 960 EVO. These drives leverage the company's 48-layer 3D-VNAND flash memory, and the new "Polaris" SSD controller by Samsung, to serve up performance that beats the 950 Pro. Samsung could transfer some of the cost-savings in using the inexpensive flash standard to the consumer, highlighted by the company's decision to brand these drives "EVO."

Tom's Hardware discovered that the Samsung PM961 drives are analogous to the 960 EVO, featuring identical components - the "Polaris" controller, and 48-layer TLC 3D-VNAND flash chips . These drives come in capacities of 128 GB, 256 GB, 512 GB, and 1 TB, with sequential transfer rates of up to 3000 MB/s reads, with up to 1150 MB/s writes; up to 360,000 IOPS 4K random-read, and up to 280,000 IOPS 4K random-write. The 960 EVO will ship in M.2 NGFF-2280 and PCIe add-on card form-factors, with PCI-Express 3.0 x4 bus interfaces. The drives will support the NVMe protocol.

MSI is proud to announce the new Z170A GAMING M6 motherboard for the enthusiast gamers. Premiering two significant new features, Lightning USB and the next generation Killer networking technology, the Z170A GAMING M6 adopts evil gray as its major color scheme, bringing a whole new look and feel to the game table. This motherboard also offers Twin Turbo onboard M.2, Audio Boost 3 and a plethora of other game enhancing features.

The traditional ASMedia 1142 USB 3.1 controller chip on current motherboards is connected via either PCIe Gen2 x2 (10Gb/s) or Gen3 x1 (8Gb/s) which limits the USB 3.1 Gen2 transfer rates (10Gb/s). MSI is now proud to introduce the first ever motherboard to have the next generation Lighting Asmedia 2142 USB 3.1 Gen2 controller chip which runs at PCIe Gen3 x2 (16Gb/s) which is twice as fast. In combination with MSI's exclusive USB Speed Up there is no faster USB 3.1 Gen2 solution on the market. The PCIe Gen3 connection will also help to boost transfer speeds enormously when using two USB 3.1 Gen2 devices at the same time. The MSI Z170A GAMING M6 comes with both an USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A and Type-C interface.

Intel takes computing to the next level with the 7th Gen Intel Core processor family. The 7th Gen Intel Core processors are designed for the immersive Internet and built on a strong foundation of the Skylake microarchitecture. Intel's latest 14 nm processors deliver more responsive performance than ever, fantastic entertainment and gaming, robust security, and even more natural, intuitive interactions with your PC. With incredible improvements that transform the viewing experience with 4K UHD videos, 360-degree videos , multiple video streams, and premium content playback, the 7th Gen Intel Core processors for mobile platforms enable a new way to enjoy the sharp and engaging content across a range of form factors.

Intel scales 7th Gen Intel Core processors to a variety of PC designs at a wide range of price points, which may include features such as Thunderbolt 3 USB Type-C single-wire connection, low power premium audio and hassle-free facial recognition such as Windows Hello. Users can also expect to see PC designs based on 7th Gen Intel Core processors with a variety of intuitive input options such as touch, voice, and stylus.

Western Digital Corp. (NASDAQ: WDC) today announced that its popular HGST-branded Ultrastar SN150 PCI Express (PCIe) NVMe solid state drive (SSD) is now certified for use with VMware Virtual SAN and vSphere. Optimized for easy set-up, the Ultrastar SN150 SSD for VMWare environments reduces latency, and brings hyperscale-level performance and enhanced Quality of Service (QoS) time to virtualized servers and cloud storage. This can significantly lower the total cost of ownership of VMware storage environments over traditional storage architectures by reducing performance tuning and field support costs. In server-side environments where VMware virtualization management is utilized, the Ultrastar SN150 is an ideal option for data center managers building or deploying systems on VMware Virtual SAN or vSphere.

Part of Western Digital's HGST-branded Ultrastar data center storage solutions family, the certified Ultrastar SN150 is available in a low-profile, half-height, half-length (HHHL), add-in card form factor and is one of the first NVMe SSDs in the industry to utilize VMware's in-box NVMe driver. For data center administrators, this helps eliminate the hassle of time-consuming downloads and configurations, and allows faster deployment. The Ultrastar SN150 drive is available in capacities ranging from 1120GB1 to 3820GB and offers speeds which exceed Virtual SAN's highest performance class (Class F) specifications, enabling it to easily address the heaviest data workloads in a variety of virtualized server and storage configurations, including all-flash and hybrid configurations utilizing flash for caching and hard disk drives for storage capacity.

Kingston Digital, Inc., the Flash memory affiliate of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., the independent world leader in memory products, today announced Data Center 400 (DC400) SSD, the latest solid-state drive to its family of enterprise solutions. DC400 SSD is an entry-level enterprise drive designed for server use in data centers especially for customers who deploy a rip-and-replace strategy. It is ideal for read-intensive applications such as boot, web servers and lower data rate operational databases and analytics - especially in data center mixed workload environments where endurance and reliability are important.

DC400 SSD offers superior quality of service for data center customers whose workload environment calls for sustained IOPS and consistent low latency. An expanded on-board DRAM acceleration cache enables high, sustained IOPS to increase performance over a wide range of read/write workloads. Standard as well as user-adjustable over-provisioning improves random IOPS performance and endurance while enterprise firmware improves latency and delivers consistently low data access times under steady-state workloads. Additionally, DC400 SSD features enterprise-class reliability with end-to-end data path protection and firmware-implemented power-loss protection ("pFAIL").

At an event last night in San Francisco, AMD provided additional architectural details and a first look at the performance of its next-generation, high-performance "Zen" processor core. AMD demonstrated the "Zen" core achieving a 40% generational improvement in instructions per clock, delivering a landmark increase in processor performance.

During the event, AMD demonstrated an 8-core, 16-thread "Summit Ridge" desktop processor (featuring AMD's "Zen" core) outperforming a similarly configured 8-core, 16-thread Intel "Broadwell-E" processor when running the multi-threaded Blender rendering software with both CPUs set to the same clock speed. AMD also conducted the first public demonstration of its upcoming 32-core, 64-thread "Zen"-based server processor, codenamed "Naples," in a dual processor server running the Windows Server operating system.

ORIGIN PC launched upgraded models of their award-winning EON15-X, EON17-X, and EON17-SLX high-performance laptops today. Gamers, enthusiasts, and professionals all over the world can unleash mobile dominance with ORIGIN PC's new EON laptops featuring NVIDIA's game changing desktop class GeForce GTX 1080, 1070, and 1060 graphics cards. With the new NVIDIA GeForce GTX 10-Series graphics cards, ORIGIN PC offers up to 3X the performance of previous-generation GPUs, compatibility with the most popular VR headsets, 4K-gaming support, and support for DirectX 12 features to deliver the fastest, smoothest gaming notebook experiences ever.

The new EON15-X, EON17-X, and EON17-SLX laptops also feature support for up to an Intel Core i7 6700k desktop processor, ORIGIN PC professional CPU and GPU overclocking, up to 64GB of DDR4 Memory, PCIe NVMe m.2 drives in RAID and optional 1080p 120Hz displays or 4K displays; both with NVIDIA G-SYNC support.

MSI, industry leading motherboard brand, is proud to announce its latest addition to its X99 portfolio, the X99A WORKSTATION. Dedicated towards users demanding perfect stability & performance for optimal productivity while in search of a wide variety in connectivity & storage options, the new X99A WORKSTATION is sure to impress. Built from the ground up using Military Class 5 components, the X99A WORKSTATION is optimized to use ECC Registered DIMM (RDIMM) memory while benefiting from enhanced performance & stability through the presence of DDR4 Boost. The X99A WORKSTATION supports the latest Intel processors out of the box, both Broadwell-E and XEON based models. The X99A WORKSTATION motherboard is the perfect multi-tasking powerhouse to cater even the most demanding professional.

To be qualified as a true workstation motherboard, optimal & stable data handling needs to be guaranteed, no matter what. By using industries' highest quality components combined with an unmatched R&D design and extreme QA testing, the X99A WORKSTATION motherboard PCB design has been optimized to do just that. To protect the PCB and its components, besides looking cool an IO & audio cover ensures worry free use. The data and audio signals are also shielded against EMI. Heavy plated heatsinks, with a touch of grey, green and white, are used to ensure perfect operation at even the most extreme conditions. To transfer countless data, a wide variety of storage connecters such as U.2 , M.2 and SATA ports are demanded by most workstation users. The X99A WORKSTATION allows any of the latest and greatest HDD, SSD or other storage devices to be connected.

Crucial today, in a statement to TechPowerUp stated that it has canceled the Ballistix TX3 PCIe solid-state drive launch. The company canceled the product on the basis of "prioritization of company resources and investments." The company however stated that it will continue to develop SSD products that target the gamer-enthusiast market that the Ballistix TX3 PCIe was intended for. "We are, however, continuing to explore potential opportunities for future gaming products and will provide an update as new plans are formalized," the company stated.

Crucial first unveiled the Ballistix TX3 at the 2016 Computex Expo, where it demonstrated its M.2 variants. The drives combined Silicon Motion's new SMI2260H processor with Micron-made 3D MLC NAND flash memory. The drive took advantage of 32 Gb/s PCIe and the new NVMe protocol to offer transfer rates up to four times higher than current performance-segment SATA 6 Gb/s SSDs.

Seagate Technology announced today at the Flash Memory Summit conference two new flash innovations that extend the limits of storage computing performance in enterprise data centers to unprecedented levels. The new products include a 60 terabyte (TB) Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) solid-state-drive (SSD) - the largest SSD ever demonstrated - and the 8TB Nytro XP7200 NVMe SSD. These two new products represent the high performance end of Seagate's Enterprise portfolio - a complete ecosystem of HDD, SSD and storage system products designed to help customers manage the deluge of data they face and move the right data where it's needed fast to meet rapidly evolving business priorities and market demands.

The 60TB SAS SSD and 8TB Nytro XP7200 NVMe SSD are the newest additions to Seagate's data center portfolio and are designed to help enterprise IT leaders obtain more value from the rapidly expanding amount of data they must contend with, even under the most demanding application requirements. The 60TB SAS SSD features twice the density and four times the capacity of the next highest-capacity SSD available today - equivalent to the capacity needed to accommodate 400 million photos on a typical social media platform, or 12,000 DVD movies. This single controller architecture also delivers the lowest cost per gigabyte for flash available today.

VIA Technologies, Inc, today announced that it be will demonstrating its latest VIA NVMe PCIe Gen III & SATA III SSD controllers in Booth#818 of the 2016 Flash Memory Summit being held from August 9th to 11th in the Santa Clara Convention Center, California, USA. Featuring the VIA LDPC PLUS ECC decoding engine with Gear-Shifting technology, the second generation VIA SSD controllers offer best-in-class error correction capability and ensure high-throughput performance without overheating issues.

"VIA Gear-Shifting technology leverages our unique dual hardware decoding architecture to maximize data integrity and longevity," said Richard Brown, VP International Marketing, VIA Technologies, Inc. "Our second generation VIA SSD controllers are the ideal choice for computing devices that require superior SSD performance with high cost-efficiency."

ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) today announced that the GT51CA gaming desktop is now available with the latest NVIDIA GeForce GTX 10-Series graphics cards. This includes the top-spec NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080, which delivers up to three times (3X) the performance of previous-generation NVIDIA graphics cards. GT51CA even supports up to NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 2-Way SLI for super-smooth gaming visuals. It is powered by a 6th-generation Intel Core i7 processor, with Turbo Gear for one-click full-core CPU overclocking to 4.6GHz without having to reboot.

The flagship NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 graphics card is designed around the new NVIDIA Pascal architecture, and is the most advanced gaming graphics card ever created. ROG GT51CA supports up to NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 in 2-Way SLI to create stunningly beautiful and stutter-free 4K UHD gaming worlds. In product development tests, a GT51CA equipped with a GeForce GTX 1080 2-Way SLI performed 60% better than a similar system featuring GeForce GTX 980 2-Way SLI graphics. GT51CA ran DOOM at 'Ultra' graphics settings in 4K UHD with an average frame rate of 66fps.

Marvell, a world leader in storage, cloud infrastructure, Internet of Things (IoT), connectivity and multimedia semiconductor solutions, today announced the expansion of its solid-state drive (SSD) portfolio to include the 88NV1160 Non-Volatile Memory (NVM) Express DRAM-less SSD controller. Marvell's 88NV1160 DRAM-less SSD controller provides the industry's leading performance per Watt and up to 1600MB/s read speeds. The 88NV1160 can be used in a single ball grid array (BGA) package SSD, as well as in a standalone controller in a tiny 9x10mm package which makes it compatible with M.2230 and M.2242 form factors. These features make the 88NV1160 optimized for a new generation of slim computing devices such as productivity tablets and ultrabooks. The new controller is currently available for sampling to key customers globally.

"As the world's leading storage controller provider, Marvell has a long track record of bringing to market world-class innovations, including the pioneering integration of Host Memory Buffer technology into DRAM-less products. Working closely with other ecosystem leaders, Marvell has continued to advance the industry and drive a new generation of low power, small form factor mobile computing systems," said Dr. David Chen, Vice President of SSD Business at Marvell Semiconductor, Inc. "The 88NV1160 controller is optimally engineered for high performance tablets and ultrabooks, providing unparalleled performance per Watt and the largest NAND compatibility on the market."