AMD's high-end X670E motherboard chipset combines two Promontory 21 chips working together to deliver a single solution. With regularly-sized ATX motherboards, having two chips to form a chipset is fine, as there is much room on the PCB. However, with Mini-ITX motherboards, packing two Promontory 21 chips is difficult as the PCB area is limited. To combat this, ASUS introduced an interesting solution to solve the problem and allowed the company to ship the high-end X670E chipset inside a Mini-ITX form factor. Thanks to UNIKO's Hardware's findings, we look at the exciting solution ASUS used to solve this problem.

Instead of two Promontory 21 chips side by side, one is placed on the motherboard directly, while the other stands vertically attached by M.2 PCIe slot. Below, the chipset's pictures and the highlight show how it looks disassembled.

AQIRYS, the trending Romanian gaming brand, announces the launch of ADARA, the most advanced gaming keyboard in its portfolio. The model announced today is aimed at the most discerning and demanding users of compact keyboards, and it has been engineered for silence, smoothness, and future customization and upgrade possibilities.

Named after the brightest star in ultraviolet light, ADARA fuses in a versatile compact form factor, the latest features and innovations in mechanical keyboard design with customized switches from HaiMu, the newest OEM name in the high-end switches arena. Thanks to its 1800 compact form factor and 95-key layout, the new keyboard offers similar space-saving benefits for performing ample mouse movements, just like the TKL format preferred by e-sports professionals, while preserving the convenience of the Numpad.

NVIDIA has reportedly begun shipping NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 graphics cards with a newer GPU SKU that changes the requirement for PCB design and is set to lower manufacturing costs. Previously, the company shipped its AD103-300-A1 SKU to power the GeForce RTX 4080 graphics cards. However, the new AD103-301 SKU will power the upcoming RTX 4080 cards that the company plans to ship to its AIBs and possibly use in the reference design. With the new 301 version, the GPU performance and power envelope should not change. What does change is the PCB design requirements, as the new SKU revision possesses a different chip pinout that doesn't correspond to the old design.

HKEPC has reported that GPUs with AD103-301 SKU are shipping, while VideoCardz confirms the AIB update with Gainward also offering updated cards. GALAX offers RTX 4080 models with either AD103-300/301 as well. Additionally, the GeForce RTX 4070 Ti will also see an SKU update, with AD104-250 being replaced by AD104-251. With these new silicon revisions, customers will not see any difference. However, the AIBs and NVIDIA could see a cost reduction to improve margins. HKEPC estimates around $1 BOM cost reduction with the new SKU, which will make a difference in thousands of cards shipped.

The long-awaited December 13th has finally arrived with the latest AMD Radeon RX 7000 Series GPUs being released. More good news is that EK, the premium water-cooling gear manufacturer, is ready with the EK-Quantum Vector² water blocks for the reference models of the new AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX GPUs. The compatible water blocks can be found HERE.

But to celebrate the availability of these GPUs, EK Water Blocks is making a limited run of these special AMD Radeon Edition GPU water blocks. This water block fits reference PCB designs of the Radeon RX 7900 XTX GPUs, but we recommend you refer to the EK Cooling Configurator for a precise compatibility match.

While NVIDIA has launched high-end GeForce RTX 4090 and RTX 4080 GPUs from its Ada Lovelace family, middle and lower-end products are brewing to satisfy the entire consumer market. Today, according to the kopite7kimi, a well-known leaker, we have potential information about the configuration of the upcoming GeForce RTX 4060 Ti graphics card. Featuring 4352 FP32 CUDA cores, the GPU is powered by an AD106-350-A1 die. On the die, there is 32 MB of L2 cache. To pair, it has 8 GB of GDDR6 18 Gbps memory, which should be enough to power games at 1440p resolution, which this card is aiming for.

The design of the cards reference PG190 PCB is supposedly very short, making it ideal for ITX-sized designs we could see from NVIDIA's AIB partners. Interestingly, with a TDP of 220 Watts, the reference card is powered by the infamous 16-pin 12VHPWR connector, capable of supplying 600 Watts of power. This choice of connector is unclear; however, it could be NVIDIA's push to standardize its usage across all products in the Ada Lovelace family stack. While the card should not need the full potential of the connector, it signals that the company could only be using this type of connector for all of its future designs.

On November 1, 2022, Angry Miao officially launched AM AFA, the world's first mechanical Alice keyboard with 3-stage adjustable leaf-spring mount for 18 different typing combos. At the same time, Angry Miao announced the Hover Ergonomic Maglev Wrist Rest, provided as a free gift with all AM AFA purchases. AM AFA takes its inspiration from one of the Angry Miao team's favorite mecha animes with its fighter jet-like forward-swept design. Like a fighter jet, AM AFA excels in next-level design, mounting system, and craftsmanship.

Hollowing out the metal frame of AM AFA takes over 7 hours and is done using high-precision 5-axis CNC machinery. Its smooth edges are carefully cut and polished. After 2 hours of manual grinding and sandblasting of each single piece, AM AFA receives its body finish through anodizing, electrophoresis, or baked paint. The design of the AM AFA's adjustable leaf-spring mount takes its inspiration from height adjustable coilover suspension seen on cars since the 1950s. Coilovers allow for stiffness and range adjustment of the car's suspension, and Angry Miao's three-stage adjustable leaf-spring mount brings a similar experience to keyboards. Benefiting from the advantages of the Alice keyboard layout, AM AFA has built-in three-stage leaf-spring with adjustable gears. Just place the rubber stopper in a different gear to adjust the flex of the inner assembly, and experience keyboard flex with different levels of softness and hardness.

NZXT, a leading designer of computer hardware, software, and services for the PC gaming community, today announces the NZXT N7 Z790 motherboard supporting the latest generation of Intel CPUs. With the newest chipset for Intel CPUs,, the N7 Z790 has all the latest features and is designed for Intel's 13th gen Raptor Lake CPUs. Features such as PCIe gen 5 support and DDR5 RAM will provide with all the power needed to play your favorite games and get the performance you want out of them.

The N7 series of motherboards provide a centerpiece for you to build the PC of your dreams. Housed in a clean metal cover, the N7 easily blends into your NZXT H series case and features smartly placed ports to make building simple. In addition, the N7 Z790 allows you to control your fan curves and plug in RGB Fans or LED strips and customize their lighting using NZXT CAM.

Based on a report by Tom's Hardware, AMD's CEO Lisa Su is planning a trip to Taiwan in the next couple of months. It is said that she is planning to meet with multiple partners in Taiwan, such as ASUS, Acer and maybe more importantly, ASMedia, which will be the sole maker of chipsets for AMD, once the X570 chipset is discontinued. AMD is apparently also seeing various less well known partners that deliver parts for its CPUs, such as Nan Ya PCB, Unimicron Technologies and Kinsus Interconnects.

However, it appears that the main reason for Lisa Su herself to visit Taiwan will be to meet with TSMC, to discuss future collaboration with CC Wei, TSMC's chief executive. This is so AMD can secure enough wafer allocation on future nodes, such as its 3 nm and 2 nm class nodes. The move to these nodes is obviously not happening in the near future for AMD, but considering that TSMC is currently the leading foundry and is operating at capacity, it makes sense to get in early, as the competition is stiff when it comes to getting wafer allocation on cutting edge nodes. It's unclear which exact 3 nm class node AMD will be aiming for, but it might be the N3P node, which is said to kick off production sometime next year. Lisa Su is also said to have meetings with TSMC, SPIL and Ase Technology when it comes to advanced packaging for AMD's products. This includes technologies such as chip-on-wafer-on-substrate (CoWoS) and fan-out embedded bridge (FO-EB), with AMD already being expected to use some of these technologies in its upcoming Navi 3x GPUs.

NVIDIA's RTX 3090 Ti graphics card could very well be a Spartan from 343 Industries' Halo, in that it too is missing in action. Originally announced at CES 2022 for a January 27th release, the new halo product for the RTX 30-series family even had some of its specifications announced in a livestream. However, the due date has come and gone for more than half a month, and NVIDIA still hadn't said anything about the why and the how of it - or when should gamers hoping to snag the best NVIDIA graphics card of this generation ready their F5 keys (and bank accounts). Until now - in a statement to The Verge, NVIDIA spokesperson Jen Andersson said that "We don't currently have more info to share on the RTX 3090 Ti, but we'll be in touch when we do". Disappointed? So are we.

While the reasons surrounding the RTX 3090 Ti's delayed launch still aren't clear - and with NVIDIA's response, we're left wondering if they ever will be - there were some warning signs that not all the grass was green on the RTX 3090 Ti's launch. The consensus seems to be that NVIDIA found some last-minute production issues with the RTX 3090 Ti, which prompted an emergency delay on the cards' launch. The purported problems range from issues with the card's PCB, BIOS, and even GDDR6X 21 Gbps memory modules - but it's unclear which of these (or perhaps which combination) truly prompted the very real delay on the product launch.

EK, the leading computer cooling solutions provider, is introducing another long-awaited addition to the EK Quantum Line. The EK-Quantum Vector TRIO RTX 3080/3090 active backplate is made to complement the existing EK-Quantum Vector TRIO RTX 3080/3090 water blocks and actively cool the backside of MSI TRIO and SUPRIM GeForce RTX 3080 and 3090 GPUs.

EK-Quantum Vector TRIO RTX 3080/3090 Active Backplate links the water block and active backplate with a new terminal, which replaces the stock terminal that comes with your water block. This way, the whole enclosure requires only one inlet and one outlet, removing unnecessary additional tubing and reducing clutter. It is the ultimate aesthetic and performance solution that finds your GPU sandwiched between two water blocks, allowing maximum cooling.

Today, we got another report about the potential problems with motherboards and graphics cards. At the moment of writing, the global supply chain of electronics is still under the shortage caused by the lack of sufficient supply of semiconductors and some other electronic components that cannot meet demand. There is a reported scarcity of copper and copper-clad laminates (CCLs), used as a base plate for manufacturing printed circuit boards (PCBs) that power every electronics product currently available. According to DigiTimes, the costs of copper foils used to make these CCLs are rising, putting significant pressure on motherboard and GPU makers to increase their price quotes.

As the materials used to create motherboards and GPUs are experiencing rising costs, that usually results in two types of actions taken by the manufacturer: a price increase or a reduced profit margin of the product. Copper pricing has risen by 35% since Q4 2020, so price growth is inevitable. With the increased MSRP representing a common trend in the computer industry for the past period, it could very easily translate into manufacturers boosting their pricing structure. That means that we, as consumers, could see higher prices of motherboards and graphics cards, especially those models with PCBs made out of high amount of copper layers.

If you were hoping for relief from the electronics shortages, then we have more bad news for you, as China is now being hit by power outages in various parts of the country. The outages are due to shortage in production, as China is trying to balance pollution vs. production, while at the same time trying to make sure its population doesn't feel the worst of the power shortage.

Factories in at least five provinces have suspended production to try and appease the government, which in turn will lead to delays in shipping whatever part or component they're making that is an important cog in the greater machinery that produces so many of the world's goods. Not all factories are affected and the suspension is obviously temporary, but it seems like we can expect a rolling production suspension over the next few months at the very least, which suggests that not everyone will get their new shiny toy from Santa this Christmas.

If it wasn't bad enough that we're in the middle of a pandemic, which has resulted in major shipping issues globally and a semiconductor shortage, it now looks like electronics are likely to get even more expensive due to skyrocketing prices of many rare earth metals.
Nikkei is reporting that many often overlooked materials, such as neodymium and the lesser known praseodymium, have increased by almost 74 percent since the same time last year and that's only one of several key materials that have increased in price by 50 percent or more in a year.

It's no secret that lithium has increased in price and it now costs about 150 percent of what it was costing last year. However, many other, less obvious materials have also increased in price, with copper up over 37 percent and tin up almost 82 percent in a year. To TPU's readers this mainly means that you can expect higher costs for PCBs and all the components that are soldered onto them, as tin is used to solder just about every component in place.

Have you ever wondered if your graphics card could pack just a little bit more VRAM than it is advertised to come with? Well, if you have some spare time and some awesome soldering skills, you could find out yourself by placing higher-capacity VRAM chips in place of the standard memory. That is exactly what VIK-on, a hardware modder from Russia, has done with his graphics cards. Before, VIK-on modded the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 to support 16 GB of GDDR6 memory and modded NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 3070 to also support 16 GB of GDDR6 memory. Today, VIK-on has done it again and the modder has tested his skills by proving that it is possible to install 22 GB of GDDR6 memory on the GeForce RTX 2080 Ti graphics card.

The modder has taken a broken NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti GPU that was in very bad condition. He had to re-solder the GPU and fix some broken PCB traces. Finally, after that, he tried to install more VRAM than the card came with in the first place. The TU102 SKU is capable of handling up to 48 GB of VRAM, as seen with Quadro RTX 8000 GPU. However, the problem would be firmware support. VIK-on used a strap mod, leading the GPU BIOS to believe that there is much more memory present compared to the stock version, and the card managed to boot. However, some screen flickering was present and it had stability issues, so the mod isn't very successful.

Yesterday, we got information that Intel's upcoming DG2 discrete graphics card is "right around the corner". That means that we are inching closer to the launch of Intel's discrete GPU offerings, and we are going to get another major player in the current GPU market duopoly. Today, however, we are in luck because Igor from Igor's LAB has managed to get ahold of the specifications of Intel's Xe-HPG DG2 graphics card. For starters, it is important to note that DG2 GPU will first come to laptops later this year. More precisely, laptops powered by Alder Lake-P processors will get paired with DG2 discrete GPU in the second half of 2021. The CPU and GPU will connect using the PCIe 4.0 x12 link as shown in the diagram below, where the GPU is paired with the Tiger Lake-H processor. The GPU has its subsystem that handles the IO as well.

BIWIN, a leading chip manufacturer for flash storage, reached an agreement with Acer to bring Predator-branded memory and personal SSD storage products to customers in the United States and Canada. The product offerings will take advantage of BIWIN's manufacturing capabilities and Predator's global brand recognition to provide the latest memory and storage solutions for both casual and professional gamers.

The Predator brand is known for providing hardcore PC gamers and esports professionals with high-end gaming solutions that give them a competitive edge. The new high-end flagship memory and storage portfolio under the Predator brand begins with state-of-the-art memory modules and blazing fast solid-state drives. With a powerful "cyberpunk inspired" design to match the power of its performance, the new Predator Apollo memory module series offers speed, style and special lighting. Its ultra-high frequency, ultra-low timing, and overclocking capabilities will satisfy even the most speed-thirsty gamers.

Gigabyte Technology, one of the top global manufacturers of motherboards, graphics cards, and hardware solutions, announces today the latest BIOS of B560 AORUS motherboards. Enhanced by the 12+1 phases DrMOS power stage with 60 Amps for each and full coverage VRM thermal design, B560 AORUS motherboards can support Intel Core i9 11900K (F) series processors overclocking to all cores 5.1 GHz. The exclusive anti-interference design of memory circuit enables DDR4 speed raising up to XMP 4800 MHz, and overclocking performance boost to DDR4 5300 MHz. which demonstrates GIGABYTE's strong R&D strength and persistence in quality. Users can enjoy the performance boost of time-limited overclocking by simply updating to the latest BIOS to meet their special needs.1

Intel B series chipset motherboards have been always excluded from overclocking due to the product positioning. Although the memory XMP overclocking is unlocked on 500 series, the processor frequency can only reach up to 4.8 GHz by Turbo Boost. Thanks to the efforts of Gigabyte's R&D team, the processor can be overclocked to 5.1 GHz and maintain low temperature under the Prime95 no AVX burn-in test. This powerful performance benefits from the top-quality materials of GIGABYTE AORUS motherboards and product design capabilities, which include 12+1 phases/ 60Apms DrMOS power stage, 6 layers 2Oz ultra-cool PCB, full-covered VRM thermal design, and the latest Smart Fan 6 technology for temperature control. These features allow processors to have a stable and pure power supply under ultra-high frequency operation, providing the most solid backing for the CPU limited-time overclocking.

GALAX, the maker of the popular premium Hall Of Fame (HOF) edition of graphics cards, has recently announced its GeForce RTX 3090 HOF Edition GPU. Designed for extreme overclocking purposes, the card is made with a 12 layer PCB, 26 phase VRM power delivery configuration, and three 8-pin power connectors. Today, we have managed to get the first comprehensive review of the card by a Chinese YouTube channel 二斤自制. However, this wasn't just regular testing being conducted on a card with factory settings. The channel has applied 1000 Watt vBIOS to the GPU and ran it all on the air cooler the GPU comes with.

In the default 420 Watt setting, the card has been running with a GPU clock of 1845 MHz and a temperature of 69 degrees Celsius. However, when the 1000 Watt vBIOS was applied to the card, the GPU core has managed to ramp to 2000 MHz and consume as much as 630 W of power. If you were wondering if the stock cooler was able to handle it all, the answer is yes. The card has reached a toasty 96 C temperature. While GALAX doesn't offer BIOS like this, the ID of the BIOS corresponds to that of a custom XOC 1000 W BIOS for EVGA Kingpin GeForce RTX 3090 GPU, which you can find in our database. When it comes to performance, the gains were very minimal at only 2-3%. That must have been due to the insufficient cooling, and the card could have done much better on water or LN2. The Firestrike Ultra and Firestrike Extreme results are displayed below.

GALAX has today decided to take the lid off its upcoming premium GeForce RTX 3090 Hall Of Fame (HOF) edition graphics card and showcase to the world what the company has been working on. The HOF edition is usually GALAX's highest-end custom graphics card design with one simple goal - ultimate performance. Featuring all-white aesthetics, the card has a 12-layer white PCB with a white three fan air cooler. The air cooler features three fans with one in the middle being 92 mm and the other two being 102 mm. The card comes paired with HOF Panel III, representing a small 4.3 inch LCD screen that can stand on its own or stick to the GPU using magnets. It is used for some software diagnostics like temperature monitoring.

The GPU comes with a diamond-shaped aluminium backplate used for additional heat dissipation. When it comes to power delivery, there are three 8-pin connectors (also colored in white to match the aesthetics), that supply 26 VRM phases for the power delivery system. Such configuration is envisioned for extreme overclocking purposes like LN2. There are two BIOS versions, P and S variants, where they are used for maximum performance or quieter operation respectively. The boost frequency of this GPU is 1875 MHz (using one-click OCing), however, any buyer of such a card is not going to just use it like that and will probably prefer to push higher frequencies.More pictures follow:

GALAX is preparing to launch its flagship graphics card based on NVIDIA's Ampere lineup of GPU, specifically the GeForce RTX 3090 variant. The company is currently developing the GeForce RTX 3090 Hall Of Fame (HOF) edition GPU that is supposed to have a regular HOF treatment. That means a white aesthetics (white PCB plus white cooling solution), a massive three fan air-cooler, and of course, a PCB that is designed for extreme overclocking. Today, thanks to the sources over at VideoCardz, we have the first look at the PCB of GALAX's upcoming GeForce RTX 3090 HOF edition graphics card.

Featuring a massive VRM configuration consisting out of 26 phases, the GPU is swimming in VRM phases and it is the highest number of VRM phases we have seen on any GeForce RTX 3090 GPU. It is not exactly clear from the pictures how much of the total 26 VRMs is going to Vcore (GPU), and how much to Vmem (memory). To power the card, there are three 8-pin power connectors. It is important to note that these specifications are not finalized, as this is only a prototype. Nonetheless, the card is made with LN2 extreme overclocking in mind and is going to probably be more expensive. There are event probes for voltage measuring directly from the card, to avoid having to do it in software. NVLINK fingers are present as well, meaning that dual-card setups are still an option with this GPU. The real product is expected to arrive sometime in February according to the source, however, we don't know the exact date or pricing.

ASUS has today surprised everyone and decided to launch the first custom design of AMD's Radeon RX 6900 XT graphics card. Previously, the word was that AMD was debating with AIBs whatever to open the GPU to custom designs or keep it AMD PCB exclusive. However, thanks to today's launch, we now know that AMD will allow its partners to design their PCBs and push the Big Navi silicon to its maximum. So when it comes to pushing to maximum, enter the world of ASUS TUF Gaming Radeon RX 6900 XT graphics cards, designed to fit in the line of ASUSes TUF principals.

Featuring a triple fan, triple-slot (2.9 slots more precisely )body, the graphics card is built around Navi 21 XTX GPU. This means that only the best needs to be brought to the card as it is a premium product. That is why the company says that "The TUF GAMING Radeon RX 6900 XT is a tenacious beast with a tough metal exterior, super-efficient cooling, and components that offer enhanced endurance." The built-in cooler offers 0dB cooler technology, meaning that fans will not spin unless the GPU reaches 55 degrees C temperature. The card is powered by two eight-pin connectors, so it seems that power supply requirements are not changed compared to the reference card. While the exact specifications are not known, you can expect the card to boost over the standard 2250 MHz frequency, as it is factory overclocked. Pricing is also not yet confirmed but a slight premium is expected as well.

ASRock has today published a new product on the company website. The new ASRock Radeon RX 6900 XT graphics card is the latest addition to the company's offerings. Featuring regular, reference-designed PCB found in the Made-by-AMD (MBA) cards, the ASRock Radeon RX 6900 XT even features all of the same specifications as the reference model: base clock 1825 MHz, game clock 2015 MHz, boost clock 2250 MHz, memory clock 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective). The card itself isn't changed one bit. Even the stickers found on it (which are usually AIB's logos) are still AMD's. The only thing that differs this card from AMD's offerings is the box that the graphics card comes in. That is the only part that features ASRock's branding. When it comes to the pricing and availability, we do not know when this card will arrive, however, assuming the reference PCB design, it will feature a reference price of $999.

Colorful, a Chinese manufacturer of PC components known for its graphics cards, is apparently preparing a special RAM version for AMD's Ryzen 5000 series CPUs. The new arrival is part of the iGame series that Colorful offers. Thanks to SMZDM forums, we have specifications of the upcoming iGame RAM tuned specifically for Ryzen 5000 series processors. Coming in with all white PCB without a heat spreader, the new Colorful iGame memory features Samsung's B-dies designed for maximum speed and performance. The dies are running at 4000 MT/s with some very strict timings. The memory features C14 (14-14-14-35) timings that are supposed to bring the system latency down and improve performance even further. It is estimated that such a configuration will require 1.5 Volts to power it. While the exact name, launch date, and pricing is unknown, we can only wait and see how Colorful plays it out.

According to the unknown manufacturer (AIB) based in Taiwan, NVIDIA is preparing to launch the new GeForce RTX 3000 series "Ampere" graphics card. As reported by the HKEPC website, the Santa Clara-based company is preparing to fill the gap between its top-end GeForce RTX 3090 and a bit slower RTX 3080 graphics card. The new product will be called GeForce RTX 3080 Ti. If you are wondering what the specification of the new graphics card will look like, you are in luck because the source has a few pieces of information. The new product will be based on GA102-250-KD-A1 GPU core, with a PG133-SKU15 PCB design scheme. The GPU will contain the same 10496 CUDA core configuration as the RTX 3090.

The only difference to the RTX 3090 will be a reduced GDDR6X amount of 20 GB. Along with the 20 GB of GDDR6X memory, the RTX 3080 Ti graphics cards will feature a 320-bit bus. The TGP of the card is limited to 320 Watts. The sources are reporting that the card will be launched sometime in January of 2021, and it will come at $999. This puts the price category of the RTX 3080 Ti in the same range as AMD's recently launched Radeon RX 6900 XT graphics card, so it will be interesting to see how these two products are competing.

EK, the leading computer cooling solutions provider, is proud to announce its latest collaboration with ASUS, the leading graphics card and motherboard manufacturer. The result is three GeForce RTX 30 Series graphics cards with a pre-installed full-cover EK water block. A match made in heaven for enthusiasts, demanding content creators, and gamers. This strategic collaboration between ASUS and EK brings new GPUs that emphasize minimalistic, robust design, DIY convenience, and high performance.

The Precision and Reliability of ASUS Engineering
Going the extra mile, the ASUS EKWB GeForce RTX 3090 and 3080 Series are built using Auto-Extreme technology to solder components to the PCB with extreme precision. All cards feature an aluminum backplate to prevent PCB flex and a single-slot mounting bracket made with 304 stainless steel for better corrosion resistance. Water block mounting is handled by ASUS during the manufacturing process, so each graphics card is ready right out-of-the-box to deliver high performance and reliability to customers.