NZXT, a leader in PC gaming components, products and prebuilts, builds on its commitment to making PC gaming achievable to all of those with a passion for play with the introduction of NZXT Flex. A first of its kind gaming PC subscription service, Flex enables gamers to enjoy the benefits of a high performance gaming PC for a low monthly fee. The Flex subscription service features no hassle returns, no hidden fees and regular upgrades all without a long term commitment.

"At NZXT, we believe everyone should be able to play the games they love," said Bryan de Zayas, NZXT's Head of Marketing. "In the past, that meant buying a pre-built PC or building your own. Our new Flex subscription service offers gamers more flexibility and choice, so they can focus on what really matters - playing the games they love."

Microsoft has made a last-minute decision to pull its much-debated "Recall" feature from the Windows 11 24H2 update set to launch on June 18th. Instead, the company will roll out Recall as a preview through the Windows Insider Program while it works to build user trust and address security concerns. Recall, one of the flagship features of 24H2, creates a searchable 30-day timeline of a user's activities including files, webpages, and screenshots. However, since its announcement on May 20th, Recall has faced heavy criticism over potential privacy risks from storing user data in unencrypted plain text files. Security researcher Kevin Beaumont labeled Recall a "security nightmare" after finding it logged activities to a SQLite database accessible by non-admin accounts. This raised alarms about the depths of user behavior tracked and stored locally on PCs.

Initially, Microsoft had planned for Recall to be enabled by default in 24H2. However, following the backlash, the company backtracked on June 7th, making it an opt-in feature requiring Windows Hello authentication and adding encryption. Those adjustments were still not enough to satisfy Microsoft. In a new blog post, the firm stated Recall did not yet meet its "own standards of quality and security" and that it "must be trustworthy, secure and robust" before a wider rollout. By moving Recall to the Insider Program for further testing and refinement, Microsoft is giving itself more time to get the technology right and rebuild user confidence. A future blog will provide instructions for Insiders to preview Recall on compatible Copilot+ PCs with added security protections.

We are delighted to announce our support for the National AI Research Resource (NAIRR) pilot, a vital initiative highlighted in the President's Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence. This initiative aligns with our commitment to broaden AI research and spur innovation by providing greater computing resources to AI researchers and engineers in academia and non-profit sectors. We look forward to contributing to the pilot and sharing insights that can help inform the envisioned full-scale NAIRR.

The NAIRR's objective is to democratize access to the computational tools essential for advancing AI in critical areas such as safety, reliability, security, privacy, environmental challenges, infrastructure, health care, and education. Advocating for such a resource has been a longstanding goal of ours, one that promises to equalize the field of AI research and stimulate innovation across diverse sectors. As a commissioner on the National Security Commission on AI (NSCAI), I worked with colleagues on the committee to propose an early conception of the NAIRR, underlining our nation's need for this resource as detailed in the NSCAI Final Report. Concurrently, we enthusiastically supported a university-led initiative pursuing a national computing resource. It's rewarding to see these early ideas and endeavors now materialize into a tangible entity.

In a major stride toward building a shared national research infrastructure, the U.S. National Science Foundation has launched the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource pilot program with significant support from NVIDIA. The initiative aims to broaden access to the tools needed to power responsible AI discovery and innovation. It was announced Wednesday in partnership with 10 other federal agencies as well as private-sector, nonprofit and philanthropic organizations. "The breadth of partners that have come together for this pilot underscores the urgency of developing a National AI Research Resource for the future of AI in America," said NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan. "By investing in AI research through the NAIRR pilot, the United States unleashes discovery and impact and bolsters its global competitiveness."

NVIDIA's commitment of $30 million in technology contributions over two years is a key factor in enlarging the scale of the pilot, fueling the potential for broader achievements and accelerating the momentum toward full-scale implementation. "The NAIRR is a vision of a national research infrastructure that will provide access to computing, data, models and software to empower researchers and communities," said Katie Antypas, director of the Office of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure at the NSF. "Our primary goals for the NAIRR pilot are to support fundamental AI research and domain-specific research applying AI, reach broader communities, particularly those currently unable to participate in the AI innovation ecosystem, and refine the design for the future full NAIRR," Antypas added.

Elevate your gameplay! From November 09 to December 09, 2023 purchase selected Z790 MAX Series motherboard and receive Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name game code for free. Don't miss this opportunity to upgrade your gaming rig with MSI's Z790 MAX Series Motherboard and experience "Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name" at no extra cost. With only a limited quantity available, act fast to secure your bundle and embark on your gaming journey in style. This exclusive bundle is a limited-time offer, so mark your calendar and be ready to seize this opportunity from November 09 to December 09, 2023

MSI's Z790 MAX motherboards paired with Intel Core 14th gen processors are here to succeed with more efficient computing from the last generation of processors. MSI's Z790 MAX motherboards are to design and provide the very best performance for gamers. Main product features that MSI's Z790 MAX Series motherboards brings Wi-Fi 7 doubles the wireless networking speed compared to Wi-Fi 6E. It can boost its theoretical speeds to 5.8 Gbps and double the bandwidth from 160 MHz to 320 MHz, which will enable devices with Wi-Fi 7 to simultaneously send and receive data on different wireless channels without any bottlenecks.

Newegg Commerce, Inc., a global e-commerce leader for technology products, today announced the launch of Newegg's GPU Trade-In Program, allowing customers to trade in an eligible GPU device and receive a trade-in value credit toward the purchase of a new qualifying graphics card also known as a graphics processing unit (GPU).

Newegg's GPU Trade-In Program not only helps customers upgrade to a newer GPU model, the program also helps limit electronic waste. By offering a resource for customers to exchange their unwanted GPUs for new ones, the program simultaneously contributes to waste reduction and facilitates cost-effective PC upgrades.

IBM today announced that it has received an additional Trusted Supplier accreditation from the Department of Defense (DoD) Defense Microelectronics Activity (DMEA) for delivery of embedded security services customized for a U.S.-based advanced microelectronics manufacturer. IBM Consulting's accredited security services were previously recognized with the prestigious James S. Cogswell Outstanding Industrial Security Achievement Award for overall security program excellence in 2022.

Microelectronics are used in most defense technology platforms—from mobile devices to computers and advanced weapons systems. This makes microelectronics supply chains critical to our national security and economic prosperity. However, they also represent one of the most complex defense-critical supply chains to secure because of their global reach and manufacturing. IBM Consulting's award-winning accredited security services takes this complexity into account, allowing for not only the identification, but also the remediation of microelectronics supply chain vulnerabilities.

Yesterday, Intel reported that the company experienced one of the most challenging quarters and year overall revenue results, which led the company's share price to plummet and erase almost 10 billion dollars from its market cap. Amid the economic downtrend, the company is preparing to axe unnecessary developments and research costs that it would get in low-margin markets. Today, this has been reflected in the company's network switch business and the RISC-V pathfinder program. In 2019, the company acquired Barefoot Networks, which ended up in a line of Tofino series of standalone network switches. Apparently, this has been a low-margin or unprofitable business for Intel. "NEX continues to do well and is a core part of our strategic transformation, but we will end future investments in our network switching product line, while still fully supporting existing products and customers," noted Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger, adding, "Since my return, we have exited seven businesses, providing in excess of $1.5 billion in savings". Intel NICs are not affected, and the company's investments in other networking businesses continue.

Additionally, the company is also doing a shutdown of its RISC-V Pathfinder program. Thanks to Yusuke Ohara, who questioned Intel's Pathfinder for RISC-V program support, we have information that the company is discontinuing the program "effective immediately." The support also advises that Intel will not provide additional advancements or bug fixes, so everyone should consult 3rd parties for any software and development.

Today, leading global fabless chipmaker MediaTek Inc., [joined by Indiana Governor Eric J. Holcomb, Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves, Indiana Secretary of Commerce Bradley B. Chambers, and Purdue College of Engineering's Dr. Mung Chiang] announced their commitment to accept a state transition assistance package from the Indiana Economic Development Commission (IEDC) to support its very first Midwest semiconductor chip design center in West Lafayette, Indiana. MediaTek also shared its intention to create a new research partnership with Purdue to collaborate on engineering talent development and new research on next-generation computing and communications chip design. The news was shared with senior leaders, other international investors and policymakers assembled in National Harbor, Maryland for the 2022 SelectUSA Investment Summit.

This novel partnership in Indiana represents a new U.S. growth model for MediaTek USA; outside the traditional centers of gravity for chip design. "We believe strongly that being in Indiana means we'll have access to some of the best engineering talent in the world," said Dr. Kou-Hung Lawrence Loh, Corporate Senior Vice President of MediaTek Inc. and President of MediaTek USA, Inc. "Not just at Purdue, but West Lafayette is only four hours away from nearly a dozen of the top engineering schools in the country. In the post pandemic world, top candidates tell us they want to be closer to home, near family and they want to have a real house and great schools. Indiana offers all that and more."

AMD announced that the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory (Argonne) has chosen AMD EPYC processors to power a new supercomputer, called Polaris, which will prepare researchers for the forthcoming exascale supercomputer at Argonne called Aurora. Polaris is built by Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), will use 2nd Gen EPYC processors and then upgrade to 3rd Gen AMD EPYC processors, and will allow scientists and developers to test and optimize software codes and applications to tackle a range of AI, engineering, and scientific projects.

"AMD EPYC server processors continue to be the leading choice for modern HPC research, delivering the performance and capabilities needed to help solve the complex problems that pre-exascale and exascale computing will address," said Forrest Norrod, senior vice president and general manager, Datacenter and Embedded Solutions Business Group, AMD. "We are extremely proud to support Argonne National Laboratory and their critical research into areas including low carbon technologies, medical research, astronomy, solar power and more as we draw closer to the exascale era."

Some time ago, Intel has introduced the Performance Tuning Protection Plan (PTPP), which was used as a warranty for any damage that has occurred during overclocking. Customers of PTPP, mainly buyers of Intel Core processors having a "K" tag were able to get a replacement processor whenever they damaged their CPU by overclocking it. When it comes to the pricing of such a service, typical plans were spanning from $19.99 to $29.99, depending on the processor you had. However, there will no longer be such a program, as Intel is discontinuing its PTPP extended overclocking warranty. The company has updated its site to refer to End-Of-Life (EOL) page displaying a quote below.

Thanks to the report of ZDnet, we have information that Sony has launched a bug bounty program for its Playstation console. Sony will pay security researches upwards of $50K for a bug they discover. Of course, there are smaller rewards and it depends on what type of bug is discovered. The starting amount for the bug bounty program is $100. The area of bug exploits includes Playstation Network, the PlayStation 4 console itself, and the PS4 operating system. The bug bounty program is going to be available and managed through the HackerOne platform, where multiple companies like PayPal, Slack, etc. keep track of bugs and offer rewards for them. You can check out the Playstation bug bounty program here.

MSI has announced that it is running an upgrade program for its Z490 motherboards. The program is valid for motherboards purchased from May 6th through June 15th. This program will essentially see you being rewarded with a Steam wallet code worth $50 should you purchase a new MSI Z490 motherboard to replace the old (or maybe just last-generation) motherboard you own from Intel. To this effect, MSI is requiring users to register their new motherboard online, take a picture of the boards' serial number, and upload another picture with your new motherboard and old one side by side - the ultimate shame towards your old, trusty piece of hardware.

The promotion applies to select MSI motherboards, with rewards being tiered according to the expense you had on the new MSI board. As such, users who acquired MSI's MEG Z490 GODLIKE or MEG Z490 ACE will be rewarded with $50 back. Users who purchased the cheapest Z490 motherboard, the MPG Z490
GAMING PLUS, however, will only see a $10 credit. Interestingly, MSI has included both its own, pre-Z490 motherboards as eligible for the upgrade program... As well as ASUS'. And that's it. No other manufacturers' boards are being accepted. Make of that what you will.

The EVGA Associates Program offers a simple way for EVGA ELITE Members to allow others to purchase an EVGA product with a discount on www.EVGA.com - and lets you earn a percentage of the purchase back in EVGA Bucks!

First, share your Associate Code with someone interested in purchasing an EVGA product. Next, once they get to EVGA.com, they will need to make a purchase from one of the Product Types listed on the Dashboard. Finally, the buyer must use your Associate Code during checkout to receive the discount.

After purchase, you will receive a percentage of the net purchase back as EVGA Bucks that can be used to buy any products at the EVGA store! The EVGA Associates Program is the best way to Get Discounts and Earn Rewards at the EVGA store!

Learn more and sign up now at www.evga.com/associates/
Update: Currently only available to consumers in the Continental U.S., Hawaii, Puerto Rico and Canada

EA announced last week its new Origin Access Premier program, which launches today and introduces a new access tier which provides unlimited access to imminent-launch games five days before the official release. This program will cost £14.99/$14.99 a month or £89.99/$99.99 a year. Alongside this launch, EA has decided to axe the freebie On the House initiative - a strange correlation, because these programs hardly interfere with one another.

Users who have already gained access to these freebies will keep them, of course, but attempts to enter the "On the House" page are met with a redirect to the Origin Access webpage. However, users who hadn't grabbed the games will be left in the dust (even if just some metaphorical specks of it, since the games can be easily and quite cheaply had), such as Theme Hospital, Medal of Honor: Allied Assault, Dragon Age, Mass Effect or Battlefield series. Read on for EA's remarks on this decision.

MSI was caught openly slandering AMD Radeon graphics processors in promoting its MSI Gaming Series notebooks featuring NVIDIA GeForce graphics chips. The company is a signatory of the draconian GeForce Partner Program (GPP) by NVIDIA which, in boilerplate regulator-baiting language, tells its add-in card (AIC) partners not to use the same gaming sub-brand (eg: ASUS ROG, MSI Gaming, GIGABYTE Aorus, etc.,) for GPUs from any other brand (i.e. AMD Radeon). When it's in effect, ASUS, for example, can't sell an ROG Strix-branded Radeon graphics card, MSI can't sell an RX Vega 64 Gaming X, and it's probably why GIGABYTE stripped the RX 580 Gaming Box of Aorus branding.

In one of its regional Facebook pages, an official Facebook page customer response handle was seen openly stating "NVIDIA currently are ahead in the GPU experience," (keyword being "experience" and not performance), suggesting that its competition is sub-par. The handle was responding to a question as to why the notebook didn't come with AMD Radeon graphics options. Facebook users were quick to torch the MSI handle with a flame-war, and MSI corporate redacted the post stating "We apologize for making an inappropriate comment. It did not represent MSI's official views."

ASUS is looking to increase the appeal of its ROG (Republic Of Gamers) brand beyond just the aesthetics and specifications of its products. Through the launch of ROG Arena's Elite Rewards program, ASUS is looking to materialize users' belief in their ROG products through rewards and a loyalty system, which should a) get ROG customers even more into ASUS' products and b) increase user recognition of ROG as a brand.

Elite Rewards, as the name implies, is a reward program for users, with a scoring system that differentiates customers between Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum and Diamond tiers, each with increasing rewards. Users can increase their ROG Elite score through Battle (gaming) feats, Adventuring (going to ASUS' events), Craft (earning points through ASUS' content creation contests) and by purchasing select ROG products. All of these activities give a player points towards their Elite rewards tier and the rewards they can redeem, while also increasing a player's standing in the ROG Arena leaderboard.

While Microsoft has been offering bug bounty incentives since at least 2012, Google has arguably been much more vocal in its bug bounty programs. The company recently increased the maximum payout in its bug bounty programs (mainly focused on Android) to a staggering $200,000, and now Microsoft is not only following suit - it's upping the game.

With the Windows Bounty Program, which Microsoft announced yesterday, the company is looking towards an increased incentive to security-hardening suggestions from tech-savvy users. This program will extend to all features of the Windows Insider Preview in addition to focus areas in Hyper-V, Mitigation bypass, Windows Defender Application Guard, and Microsoft Edge. And incentives starting at $500 and going all the way up to $250,000 are very, very respectful.

In a lInkedIn job post for Senior Marketing Manager, NVIDIA has seemingly confirmed the launch of a Ti version of their GTX 1080 graphics card. The relevant line is a simple one: "980 Ti users get first spot in line for 1080 Ti pre-orders, or Step Up offer".

If true, this is an interesting way for NVIDIA to go on about with their newest generation graphics card releases, and would be a good way to essentially "corner" their current user base into future hardware upgrade paths by increasing the value of staying within the GeForce family. Considering NVIDIA's current product stack, we wouldn't be surprised to see GTX 1080 Ti retail at about $999, so a value of $200 for your used 980 Ti seems reasonable in such a trade-in program (from a purely corporate perspective, naturally).

MSI offers cashback to end-users who buy a selected MSI motherboard from official MSI resellers. Picking new hardware to prepare well for upcoming game-titles has never been so easy. End-users can get up to €40 cashback when purchasing new MSI (gaming) motherboards. Some of the eligible products are numerous models from MSI's Z170 GAMING & PRO Series motherboards and enthusiast gaming & overclocking X99 models. The cashback promotion also applies to selected H170 models.

The promotion is running in 13 countries in Europe and is set for those looking to upgrade or assemble a brand new high-performance PC by themselves, ready for gaming during the holidays and in 2016.

ASUSTOR Inc., a leading innovator and provider of network storage solutions, has announced the release of the ASUSTOR Data Master (ADM) 2.1 Beta Program for all of its NAS devices (2, 3, and 6 Series). All ASUSTOR users are welcome to download the beta firmware from the official ASUSTOR website and experience all the brand new features firsthand.

The ADM 2.1 Beta Version expands the core functionality of the system and includes newly expanded support for Bluetooth devices along with MyArchive, an exclusive new storage technology developed by ASUSTOR. Furthermore, a number of in-house developed Apps have been added to ASUSTOR's App lineup that are sure to please both business and home users alike.

The past year has seen a flurry of Thunderbolt related activity. Already present on every current Apple Mac, Thunderbolt has continued to grow within PC circles. And the Thunderbolt ecosystem responded, with over 100 Thunderbolt devices now shipping and available, most certified for both Mac and PC. Thunderbolt makes new experiences possible and developers are seeking to take advantage of Thunderbolt's key benefits, including simultaneous data and display transfer, with speeds of up to 10 Gbps, and daisy-chain connectivity of up to six devices. Building upon that foundation, the first Thunderbolt 2 systems were introduced in October this year, with speeds up to 20 Gbps, and support for the DisplayPort 1.2 protocol. Thunderbolt is clearly the fastest, most versatile connection to your PC.

Now we have a new announcement for you - an exciting new program to quickly expand the footprint of Thunderbolt for desktop and workstation users. This new initiative is called "Thunderbolt ready", and it enables PC manufacturers to offer Thunderbolt upgradeable motherboards within desktop and workstation computers. By using a Thunderbolt card, Thunderbolt's blazing fast speed and uncompressed video capabilities can now be added to any motherboard that includes a GPIO header (general purpose input/output header), so even if your system doesn't have Thunderbolt it is now possible to "upgrade" to it. Users that are interested in adding Thunderbolt 2 technology to an existing Thunderbolt ready system can combine a Thunderbolt card with a growing number of enabled motherboards, all identified by the use of the "Thunderbolt ready" moniker. The Thunderbolt ready program makes it simple to identify which components work together to upgrade your PC with Thunderbolt 2 capability.

Today Intel Corporation announced She Will Connect, a new program that commits to expanding digital literacy skills to young women in developing countries. Intel will begin the initiative in Africa, where the gender gap is the greatest, by aiming to reach 5 million women and reduce the gender gap by 50 percent. To achieve this, Intel will work with a diverse set of partners including global and local NGOs and governments.

Findings from the groundbreaking "Women and the Web" report released by Intel in January revealed concrete data on the enormous Internet gender gap in the developing world and the social and economic benefits of securing Internet access for women. The report issued a call to action for stakeholders to double the number of women and girls online in developing countries in three years. She Will Connect demonstrates Intel's commitment to this action by not only providing digital literacy skills to girls and women, but also by pushing the concept of digital literacy forward through new, innovative and scalable models.

Lenovo, the largest PC manufacturer in the world today announced a new trade-in program agreement with NextWorth, a leader in consumer electronics upgrades and trade-ins. Geared toward making laptop and tablet upgrades more affordable, the online trade-in program, powered by NextWorth, is now available at Lenovo Trade-in Program.

The Lenovo trade-in program managed by NextWorth allows customers to conveniently trade-in used laptops, tablets, smartphones, e-readers, music players, digital cameras and more online and receive Lenovo eGift Cards for the value of their used gadgets. By turning used electronics into gift cards, customers can affordably upgrade to the latest Lenovo laptops and tablets. The easy-to-use platform allows customers to receive an instant quote for their electronics as well as a free, prepaid shipping label to mail devices into NextWorth.

Coinciding with exciting new processor launches from AMD and Intel, Futuremark is proud to announce the release of PCMark 8 Professional Edition - the Complete Benchmark for Windows. Designed around common scenarios in the home and office, PCMark 8 is an essential benchmark for the latest Windows 8 notebooks, tablets and desktop PCs, especially those powered by new AMD Richland and Intel Haswell processors. PCMark 8 Professional Edition is licensed for commercial use and is intended for business, press and industry users. Additional PCMark 8 editions for home users will be released later in June.