As students and pupils gear up for the upcoming school year, AOC and its gaming-focussed sub-brand AGON by AOC are excited to introduce an impressive range of monitors designed to cater to their specific needs. With a focus on functionality, innovation, and affordability, AOC offers a variety of monitors that empower students to excel in their studies whilst also providing immersive entertainment experiences.

From portable options for students on the go to gaming models for avid gamers, AOC's line-up combines cutting-edge technology with user-centric design, making the range the perfect choice for students across disciplines. AOC understands that students have diverse requirements, ranging from productivity and creativity to entertainment and gaming. To meet these varied needs, AOC presents a selection of monitors that deliver exceptional performance, stunning visuals, and enhanced functionality.

VisionTek Products LLC (VisionTek), a recognized leader in the field of high-performance upgrades and accessories for PCs and Macs, today announced the introduction of the VisionTek VT4950 KVM docking station. This innovative product is the upgraded successor to the previously celebrated VT4900 KVM docking station and is designed to enhance the workflow of users in today's professional and remote work environments. The VT4950 enables users to seamlessly swap between two connected Windows, Mac, or Chromebook host systems with up to three 4K displays, accessories, and peripherals through a single USB-C connection to each.

"The VT4950 simplifies the process of switching between systems, saving users valuable time and making their workflow more efficient," said Nick Bill, director of product development and product marketing. "This frees these users from the tedium of unplugging and reconnecting everything as they switch between systems, resulting in significant time savings."

Micron Technology, Inc., today announced the Crucial X9 Pro Portable SSD and Crucial X10 Pro Portable SSD, two new performance offerings in the Crucial Pro Series product portfolio, designed for content creators such as photographers, videographers, designers, or any performance-seeking consumer. Both drives utilize Micron TLC NAND and leverage a revolutionary single-ASIC portable storage architecture to enable a breakthrough, ultra-compact, lightweight form factor and allows Micron to ship the most capacity per square millimeter in the industry. With either the Crucial X9 Pro and X10 Pro, users can safely store, transport and backup important videos, photos, files and more on the go, without cloud or internet access at lightning-fast speeds.

"We recognize that fast, efficient workflow processes are essential to the success of videographers, photographers and other content creators," said Jonathan Weech, senior director of product marketing for Micron's Commercial Products Group. "We designed and built our two new portable SSDs, the Crucial X9 Pro and the Crucial X10 Pro, to specifically address these demanding workloads. With more photos and videos being taken than ever before, consumers are looking for ways to save, preserve and protect their digital lives reliably and quickly. These two new Crucial Pro Portable SSDs are a great choice for anyone who needs dependable, fast, high-capacity storage."

Electronics brand JSAUX is celebrating its seventh anniversary during July and it has announced a new batch of Steam Deck accessories: the RGB Docking Station and the RGB transparent backplate are now available, following the release of the transparent front plate and the redesigned transparent backplate. JSAUX is also planning to release an anti-glare screen for Steam Deck later this month. More info about each product below:

The RGB docking station is the latest feature on JSAUX's family of docks for the Steam Deck. This new product features better compatibility, a total customization of the RGB lighting, and comes in two versions: 12-in-1 and 8-in-1, offering different connectivity options.

MSI, a world leader in high-performance and innovative computing solutions, has recently launched its Mini PC line-up, featuring the Cubi 5, Cubi N, PRO DP10, and PRO DP21 series. This array of minis caters to the requirements of the SMB, offices, hostels, restaurants, educational institutions, medical facilities, science labs, kiosks, and more. This collection of mini computers is designed with productivity in mind and featuring a miniature chassis, powerful processor options, exclusive software, and Thunderbolt 4, the Cubi and PRO DP series have raised the bar in terms of compact computing.

Unleashing Power in a Compact Package: Cubi 5 & Cubi N
The Cubi series offers remarkable power with a small footprint of only 0.66 liters, making it effortless to access high-performance capabilities at your fingertips. Equipped with up to the latest Intel Core i7 processors, the Cubi series boasts incredible performance that rivals many full-sized desktop computers. The Cubi 5 boasts a noteworthy feature: an extensive range of connectivity options. Despite its mini size, it offers an impressive selection of ports, such as Thunderbolt 4, USB-C, HDMI, and DisplayPort. In addition, Dual Ethernet ports on both Cubi series can improve network security by keeping the internet and intranet connections separate and preventing unauthorized access. It is also a reliable backup in case one port fails as the other one will be activated immediately.

Beats today announces Beats Studio Pro, the next generation of Beats' iconic, bestselling over-ear headphone. With all-new and improved interior components, Studio Pro offers next-level audio fidelity, fully-adaptive Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency modes, Personalized Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking, UltraPlush leather cushions, up to 40 hours of battery life, Lossless Audio via USB-C3 and enhanced call performance.

Beats Studio Pro is available to order starting today in four premium colors, Black, Deep Brown, Navy and Sandstone, for $349.99 (US) from apple.com. Starting tomorrow, Studio Pro will be on-shelf at Apple Store locations and authorized resellers in its beautiful new packaging that was designed with the environment in mind.

GameSir, a leading provider of innovative, high quality gaming peripherals, today launches its G7 SE Controller, a licensed Xbox controller featuring Hall Effect sticks. This groundbreaking controller offers gamers unparalleled precision and customization options, delivering an enhanced gaming experience across multiple platforms. The GameSir G7 SE Controller is now available for purchase for £49.99/$44.99/€59.99 from Amazon UK, Amazon US, Amazon Europe stores and GameSir official website.

The Anti-drift Hall Effect sticks use non-contact magnetic sensors, ensuring the sticks are extremely durable and reliable, to prevent wearing down prematurely and maintain pinpoint control for an extended time, particularly useful in FPS games. The precision-tuned triggers enable gamers to experience ultra-responsive, smooth, and accurate controls, enhancing gameplay and providing a competitive edge.

Samsung Electronics today announced it is expanding its ViewFinity monitor lineup with the global availability of the 27-inch ViewFinity S9 (S90PC model). The launch of the ViewFinity S9 strengthens Samsung's high-resolution monitor lineup following the introduction of the ViewFinity S8 (S80PB model) in June 2022 which featured an Ultra High Definition (UHD) resolution. The new ViewFinity S9 is optimized with all the tools needed in industries like graphic design and photography and also being named a CES Innovation Award honoree in 2023.

"Our new 5K monitor is designed to deliver the highest performance and best experience for professionals in creative and visual industries," said Hoon Chung, Executive Vice President of the Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. "With the ViewFinity lineup, we will provide creatives with top-notch visual experiences, along with the lifelike color clarity and versatile connectivity they need to achieve the best in any project."

Introducing Page: our Most Advanced 7" eReader with Built-in Page-Turn Buttons. The BOOX Page is a cutting-edge 7" eReader equipped with our most advanced processor and customizable page-turn buttons. Discover the impressive array of features on our newest model below.

A Supercharged Journey of eReading
With its Qualcomm advanced octa-core CPU and enhanced configuration of 3 GB RAM + 32 GB ROM, the all-new Page guarantees an incredibly smooth experience while reading ebooks, browsing websites, or using third-party apps, which is made possible by the open Android 11 system it operates on. The 7-inch ePaper screen comes with the E Ink Carta 1200 touchscreen technology, replicating the sensation of reading on traditional paper. With a 300 PPI high definition, each word is presented with extra sharpness and more distinct contrast, resulting in a gentler visual effect and diminished strain on the eyes.

Luxury brands and consumer electronics don't tend to be a good mix, largely due to the luxury brands either not caring or not being knowledgeable enough about the product they're making. Montblanc has taken a very different route with its new MTB 03 ANC earbuds, as the company has cooperated with Axel Grell, who used to work for Sennheiser before setting up his own brand of audio products. In all fairness, Montblanc did a similar team-up for its MTB 01 headphones where they worked with the founder of Audeze. The MTB 03's feature 7 mm beryllium drivers and are built around a Qualcomm Bluetooth 5.2 chipset which Montblanc is leveraging by adding aptX Adaptive support.

Furthermore, Montblanc has added support for Mimi Hearing Technologies sound personalisation software, on top of the tuning provided by Axel Grell. Sadly these luxury buds aren't without shortcomings, as the battery life is said to be good for only six hours of listening time, with another two full charges in the charging case. That's far less than most competing products on the market today. The charging case can be charged wirelessly or via USB-C and a 15 minute charge of the earbuds is said to be good enough for 100 minutes of playback time, while a full charge takes 90 minutes. For those still interested, a pair of the MTB 03's will set you back £345 or around US$439, although that price includes 20 percent VAT.

ATEN Technology, Inc., the technology leader and global manufacturer of KVM and AV/IT connectivity and management solutions, today announced its newest desktop KVM switch solution, which initially debuted at InfoComm 2023 in Orlando, Florida, which took place June 10-16. Taking desktop KVM switches to a new level, the "US3311" is a 2-port 4K DisplayPort USB-C KVM dock switch with power pass-through. It enables plug-n-play via a single USB-C connection, enabling two laptops to share one monitor and one keyboard and mouse set with SuperSpeed connectivity.

Built to deliver easy control and seamless switching between dual USB-C hosts, the US3311 2-in-1 solution combines a KVM switch and multiport dock with 4x USB Type-A ports, 1x DisplayPort, 1x USB-C PD input and 1x DC jack input. The solution is ideal for anyone looking to integrate a keyboard, video and mouse switching solution with multiple USB-C devices, and is recommended for small office home office users, hybrid workspaces and for use in hotdesking environments.

Skullcandy today introduced an all-new lineup of powerful wireless speakers. The new Ounce, Kilo, Terrain Mini, Terrain and Terrain XL Wireless Bluetooth Speakers bring an array of features including significant battery life, all-weather rugged engineering and ultra-portable design at accessible price points, without compromising supreme sound. The lineup of speakers is now available globally at select retailers and on Skullcandy.com.

"We developed this line of speakers to extend our consumers' experience from listening solo, to gathering with friends," said Justin Regan, Vice Preside of Marketing, Skullcandy. "Purpose built for all-day use, these products last as long as the party, with no limits to how far you can take them."

Dell has added a new display to its UltraSharp range and this time around we're looking at a 38-inch ultra-wide display with a resolution of 3840 x 1600 pixels. The display uses an IPS Black panel with a 2000:1 contrast ratio and it covers 100 percent of the sRGB and REC.709 colour gamuts, as well as 98 percent of the DCI-P3 and Display P3 colour gamuts. Sadly it only has a brightness of 300 cd/m² and it's unclear if this is an 8-bit + FRC or a true 10-bit panel, as Dell only mentions support for 1.07 billion colours. It uses a standard WLED backlight, so no fancy miniLED backlight here and as this display is intended for work use, it also only appears to support 60 Hz refresh rate with a response time of 8 ms in normal mode.

Other features include a built-in KVM switch courtesy of a pair of USB-C ports, with the primary supporting USB PD up to 90 W, as well as DP Alt mode, with the second port only supporting USB 3.2 Gen 2 data at up to 10 Gbps. Other inputs include two HDMI 2.1 ports and one DP 1.4, while the outputs consist of five USB 3.2 Gen 2 10 Gbps Type-A ports, two USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 10 Gbps ports, a 2.5 Gbps Ethernet jack and a 3.5 mm audio line out jack. One interesting feature is that the built in Ethernet supports network boot, something that isn't a common feature on monitors and it also has the ability to lock the wired port to one of the two connected computers in KVM mode. The stand supports height,swivel and tilt adjustment. The asking price for the U3824DW is US$1,529.99 and it's available from Dell now.

KVM switches are either one of those things you need or you don't have much use for, however Sabrent has launched a new Thunderbolt 4 based KVM switch that differs from your average KVM switch in a few ways. As any KVM switch, it allows two computers to share peripherals and displays, but it also supports up to 60 Watt USB PD charging of laptops. The latter is something Sabrent has offered on its USB-C KVM switches, but this time around the power adapter for the KVM switch handles both devices, unlike its USB-C KVM switches which required a USB-C PD charger per device, with the power being passed through the KVM switch.

The Thunderbolt 4 KVM switch lacks any traditional display outputs, relying entirely on Thunderbolt 4 for display connectivity, although DP Alt mode over USB-C is supported and each output supports up to 8K 60 Hz output with DSC 1.2 or 5K 60 Hz without DSC. The KVM switch supports three Thunderbolt 4 devices, four USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A devices and two inputs via Thunderbolt 4, with all USB ports supporting data speeds of up to 10 Gbps. It also comes with a switch button, which means you can hide the KVM switch out of sight and still have easy access to switch between devices. Sabrent is asking for US$299 for its Thunderbolt KVM switch, which is a steep premium over its USB-C KVM switch which is currently selling for US$119.99.

ASUS today announced BR1402 series, the world's first 2-in-1 ruggedized 14-inch laptops aimed at K-12 education—and designed for the need of modern students and hybrid learning. Available in both traditional clamshell form (BR1402C) and a convertible design that flips 360° to become a versatile multitouch tablet (BR1402F), the all-new BR1402-series laptops are built to military-grade standards and packed with clever protective features to help students through their learning journey.

BR1402 series are also loaded with essentials for the demands of hybrid study, enabling education to flow seamlessly from the classroom into the home and beyond. To empower a full day's study, these laptops include up to 10-hour battery life, full-function USB-C, up to WiFi 6 for speedy connectivity and a modular design to ensure easy maintenance and upgrades.

Audio-Technica, a leading innovator in transducer technology for over 60 years, announces the launch of the AT2020USB-XP cardioid condenser USB microphone - the latest addition to A-T's comprehensive lineup of 20 Series content creation products. Competitive features and studio-quality sound have become the calling card of the 20 Series, and the AT2020USB-XP is no exception, delivering ideal performance for streamers, podcasters and other content creators.

Building on A-T's most recent USB condenser model, the AT2020USB-X, the AT2020USB-XP includes the same silent touch-sensitive mute switch, built-in headphone jack with volume control and personal mix control to allow for monitoring of the microphone, as well as plug-and-play USB-Type C operation. Additions and improvements for the AT2020USB-XP include a 24-bit 192 kHz sampling rate, three levels of noise reduction (via selector switch with LED indicator), automatic gain control (with LED indicator), and the inclusion of a clip-on pop filter.

BenQ, an internationally renowned brand of digital lifestyle devices and innovator of professional display technology, today launched the SW272U and SW272Q monitors, successors of the SW271C and SW270C and the latest generation of PhotoVue professional monitors for photographers. Featuring exclusive Fine-Coated panel technology and certified color quality, the 27" 4K and 2K photography monitors advance the pursuit of perfect performance that photographers and videographer have entrusted to BenQ PhotoVue monitors for many years.

"Our pursuit for perfection never ends, and with new generation BenQ PhotoVue monitors such as the SW272U and SW272Q, we ensure spectacular user experiences for photographers and color experts far beyond industry standards," said Houston Wei, Senior Director of BenQ North America.

AGON by AOC, the globally recognized gaming monitor and IT accessories brand, is set to redefine immersion in gaming with the launch of the AGON AG405UXC. This 40" (100 cm) flat ultra-wide (21:9) gaming monitor, part of the esteemed AGON series, is a powerhouse of performance, boasting an IPS panel with a 3440x1440 resolution and a 144 Hz refresh rate. Designed to captivate and engage, the AG405UXC is poised to set a new standard in the ultra-wide gaming market.

The AG405UXC, with its 40" flat ultrawide IPS panel, offers an expansive gaming environment that engulfs the user in the gaming action. With a UWQHD resolution of 3440x1440, the AG405UXC provides a detailed and sharp image. The 144 Hz refresh rate and 1 ms MPRT response time ensure fluid and responsive gameplay. The AG405UXC is also a perfect companion for streamers and content creators, who can use the extra horizontal space to include their chat window or their streaming software, or use it to see the complete timeline when video editing their footage.

PFU America, Inc., the U.S.-based subsidiary of PFU Limited and the leader in digital transformation solutions, today announced the launch of the RICOH Portable Monitor Series. Designed as an easily accessible, portable extra screen for enhanced creative collaboration, the new RICOH monitors feature vivid picture quality, a touch screen for drawing and writing, and the option of wired or wireless connectivity.

The RICOH Portable Monitor Series is available in two versions - a 150 wired model and the battery-powered 150BW wireless model. These new monitors are the world's lightest compared to other 15.6 inch touchable OLED products currently on the market, with the wired model weighing in at just over one pound - including the integrated stand, and despite having a touch display - with a super-slim bezel of less than one-fifth of an inch. Both monitors feature a 15.6" OLED display with exceptional image quality, including better contrast, higher brightness and rapid response time. Built for portability, two USB-C inputs near the center of the device enable easy connectivity to video display, or so that two devices connected wirelessly, such as a PC and a smartphone, can be connected at the same time, enabling switching between displays at the touch of a button. An integrated stand, cable management, and two integrated speakers make it easy to set up and manage power, input, and speaker controls.

Simply NUC, Inc, a leading mini computer solutions company, today announced a new Simply NUC designed and branded mini PC product family called Moonstone. Equipped with the latest AMD Ryzen 7000 processors in a compact 4x4 design with an innovative cooling solution, Moonstone delivers top-tier computing performance for a wide range of usages. Supporting up to 64 GB of DDR5-4800 high-speed RAM and up to 16 TB of storage, Moonstone will increase your computing output while keeping a minimal footprint on both your desk and energy bill.

"Perfect for working or gaming, we saw an opportunity to set the new standard of innovation-driven mini PC performance," said Aaron Rowsell, Simply NUC co-CEO, "Moonstone is the highest performing 4x4 ever launched."

Synopsys, Inc. today announced an expanded agreement with Samsung Foundry to develop a broad portfolio of IP to reduce design risk and accelerate silicon success for automotive, mobile, high-performance computing (HPC) and multi-die designs. This agreement expands Synopsys' collaboration with Samsung to enhance the Synopsys IP offering for Samsung's advanced 8LPU, SF5, SF4 and SF3 processes and includes Foundation IP, USB, PCI Express, 112G Ethernet, UCIe, LPDDR, DDR, MIPI and more. In addition, Synopsys will optimize IP for Samsung's SF5A and SF4A automotive process nodes to meet stringent Grade 1 or Grade 2 temperature and AEC-Q100 reliability requirements, enabling automotive chip designers to reduce their design effort and accelerate AEC-Q100 qualification. The auto-grade IP for ADAS SoCs will include design failure mode and effect analysis (DFMEA) reports that can save months of development effort for automotive SoC applications.

"Our extensive co-optimization efforts with Samsung across both EDA and IP help automotive, mobile, HPC, and multi-die system architects cope with the inherent challenges of designing chips for advanced process technologies," said John Koeter, senior vice president of product management and strategy for IP at Synopsys. "This extension of our decades-long collaboration provides designers with a low-risk path to achieving their design requirements and quickly launching differentiated products to the market."

Kensington, a worldwide leader of desktop computing and mobility solutions for IT, business, and home office professionals, today announced the expansion of its portfolio of innovative docking solutions for Microsoft Surface devices, with the launch of the SD5765T Thunderbolt 4 Dual 4K Docking Station. Kensington's portfolio of Designed for Surface (DfS) Thunderbolt 4, USB4 and USB-C docking stations enhance the usability of Surface devices to optimize the productivity of professionals and creatives.

Thunderbolt 4 Dock Adds Speed, Power, Video Options to Surface Devices
Designed to enhance the productivity of professionals using Thunderbolt based Surface devices running Windows, Kensington's new Plug-and-Play SD5765T Thunderbolt 4 Dual 4K Docking Station is an affordable, high-speed dock that enables users to connect multiple 4K monitors and accessories without using adapters.

Dough GmbH, known for innovations in the display industry with its Spectrum line of monitors, today announced an array of new features for its flagship monitors, including cover glass made by Corning, one of the world's leading innovators in materials science. Dough is also redefining its product naming to improve differentiation for customers.

Introducing Spectrum Black: Cutting-Edge Performance and Unparalleled Image Quality
Formerly known as Spectrum OLED, the company's flagship gaming monitor has been renamed Spectrum Black -- referencing the perfect contrast offered by its OLED panel equipped with cover glass. Spectrum Black is now designed with Corning Gorilla Glass with DXC, which delivers best-in-class optical performance and industry-leading abrasion resistance. When compared to the previous Spectrum model, ambient contrast ratio is increased by 40%, and reflections are reduced by 70%.

Framework has been going in-depth with the hyping up of its latest "Laptop 16" model - the modular hardware specialist has issued a new blog post this week that focuses on a "brand new custom high-efficiency 180 W USB-C power adapter," co-developed with Chicony. This unit is touted as a significant upgrade over the existing 60 W model that is bundled with their Laptop 13 system - Nirav Patel, Framework's CEO and co-founder explains: "The (180 W) adapter body is just 116.6 x 58.2 x 27 mm, and the enclosure is made of 30% post-consumer-recycled plastic. That's exactly the thickness and depth and twice the length of our 60 W power adapter, while outputting 3x higher wattage. Pretty incredible! Our PFC plus asymmetrical half-bridge flyback architecture uses ON Semi NCP1622 and JoulWatt JW1556 controllers along with latest generation GaN switching parts from both GaN Systems and Navitas, peaking at an amazing 93% efficiency."

The Framework Laptop 16 has some hidden potential according to Patel - he reveals that this flagship model is now future-proofed with support for 240 W power adapters: "We needed to solve for the tricky task of creating an adapter small and portable enough to be a great fit for the Framework Laptop 16 in an integrated graphics configuration while also outputting enough power to handle the Graphics Module with a discrete GPU. 180 W covers the majority of use cases while still being extremely compact. If you have a Graphics Module installed, set your OS to maximum performance mode, and run a sustained heavy load, it is possible to draw from the battery while plugged in. If that doesn't sound like a good tradeoff to you, the Framework Laptop 16 supports 240 W USB PD 3.1 power adapters too, so you can configure your DIY Edition without a power adapter and bring your own 240 W one instead."

ASUS today announced the TUF Gaming AS1000, a portable high-performance M.2 NVMe 1 TB SSD with innovative cooling features to ensure ultrafast data transfers. TUF Gaming AS1000 uses a USB-C 3.2 Gen 2x1 connection and is compatible with PCs, laptops, and the latest gaming consoles. This SSD has been subjected to stringent durability testing to ensure stored data is well-protected from everyday spills and knocks. Plus, bundled NTI Backup Now EZ software (valued at up to US$35.99) allows for easy data backup and recovery.

Military-grade toughness
The TUF Gaming AS1000 has been subjected to a rigorous battery of durability tests, including the U.S-military-grade MIL-STD-810H drop test and IP68 water-and-dust-resistance tests. Devices were dropped from various heights, submerged in water, and exposed to dust and dirt to ensure toughness, making the TUF Gaming AS1000 more than capable of withstanding accidental bumps, knocks, and spills.